Drama in the Church Saga

by Dynah Zale

  Val and Julian had been together since their freshman year in high school. They had endured their share of ups and downs like every couple, but their love for one another always pulled them through.

  Most of the girls at Philly High School described Julian as a pretty boy with a baby face. He was often told he resembled the R&B singer, Usher. Julian was considered a good catch, not just because of his handsome good looks, but also because of his determination to be successful.

  Obsessed with the dream of one day becoming a basketball star, Julian perfected his basketball skills by spending all his spare time in the gym. Ultimately, it paid off, securing him a spot on the varsity team. The coach recognized his talent and appointed him co-captain of the team his freshman year.

  Despite Julian’s arrogant attitude and boastful behavior, Val’s love for Julian was rare. He was her first love and she dedicated her life to making him happy. She would do just about anything he asked. Whether she had to stay up all night writing a paper for him or finishing his homework before her next class, Val was the kind of woman who stood by her man through the good and the bad.

  Julian’s feelings were mutual for her. He knew how lucky he was to have Val in his life. The love they shared was special and hard to describe. Their bond was strong and they refused to let outsiders interfere with their love. Their decision to wait until after marriage to have sex seemed to strengthen their relationship.

  Julian finished his sophomore year at the University of Kentucky, and after several debates with his parents, he decided to forfeit the remaining two years of his scholarship and enter the National Basketball Association.

  With his six feet, two inch, 210-pound frame, Julian bent down to kiss Val on her lips. “Valencia, I hope I wasn’t interrupting anything.” Julian always used Val’s full name. He loved the way her name rolled off his lips.

  Elise shot Val a look that asked the question, “Were we finished?”

  “No, honey you didn’t interrupt anything,” Val responded. “Where have you been?”

  “I went to get a haircut and then I went to the gym.” He thrust his arms into the air and bulged his biceps, mimicking Popeye. “I’m trying to get in shape. Is it working?”

  “Yeah, baby, it’s working,” Val replied sarcastically.

  The next person to arrive for Bible Study was Montrese Cox, whom they called Tressie.

  “Hey, Tressie.” Elise greeted her with open arms. “We missed you in church on Sunday. Where were you?”

  “I overslept,” Tressie responded. She took a seat in the pew directly in front of Val and Julian.

  Elise stood up. “While we wait on Danyelle and Olivia, I thought maybe—”

  “Danyelle is outside,” Tressie said, interrupting Elise mid-sentence. “She’s outside smoking a joint.” Tressie made a loud cracking sound with her gum.

  Elise walked to the church doors and stuck her head outside. “Danyelle, what did I tell you about smoking marijuana in front of the church? If the police catch you they’re going to arrest you.”

  Danyelle took one long last drag of her joint and threw it on the ground. She walked up the church steps. “I’ll just tell them that it’s a European cigarette.”

  “I’m sure they can tell the difference,” Elise said.

  “Jesus loves me,” Danyelle sang as she entered the church. Her high-pitched voice went to a screeching high that made everyone in the church stop and look at her.

  “Yes, Jesus loves me,” she sang out again. She laughed because she was used to getting strange looks because of her odd behavior at times.

  Danyelle was a hefty girl and nobody would ever make the mistake of calling her petite. Her body had lots of curves. Her hips were wide and her huge bust size was a genetic trait that had been passed down in her family from generation to generation.

  Danyelle smoked morning, noon, and night. She claimed that marijuana was her motivation to get out of bed in the morning. Before inhaling her first puff, she would always kiss it up to God first and say a silent prayer. She prayed that the Lord would bless her experience, so she would get the most out of her high. She believed that God made weed as a natural herb, and it was there for everyone to enjoy.

  “For the Bible tells me so.” Danyelle finished her song. Julian laughed at her.

  Elise walked in after picking up the joint Danyelle threw on the ground. “Danyelle, why must you do that every time you enter the church?”

  Danyelle knew she was referring to her singing, “I’m just letting the Lord know that I’ve arrived.”

  “I’m sure the Lord could never miss you. Where’s Olivia?” Elise asked Danyelle.

  “She said she wasn’t feeling well and decided to stay home.”

  Val gently cleared her throat to signal to Elise that Olivia was embarrassed by what happened on Sunday.

  Elise spoke up. “Today, I would like to talk about the power of prayer. It is so important for us to maintain a close and intimate relationship with the Father.” She clasped her hands.

  “The only way to do that is through prayer. God wants us to tell Him about any burdens that we are carrying. He also wants us to tell Him about the amazingly good things that happen in our lives. We can only do that by going to Him in prayer. I challenge everyone in here to double the amount of time they spend in prayer. If you pray for five minutes a day, double it to ten minutes. If you pray for an hour a day, double it to two hours a day. Prayer is going to be our focal point for the next few weeks. We will have a more in-depth conversation on prayer next week. Does anyone have any questions?”

  Julian raised his hand. “Is it all right that I pray about which team I prefer to get drafted to?”

  Elise laughed at his question. “Yes, Julian, if you want something specific, you need to be specific in your prayer. If you desire something and it’s in God’s plan for you to have it, you will receive it. God wants to bless you. All you have to do is ask.”

  “Can I pray for a man?” Tressie asked.

  “Sure.”

  “Can I pray that the Lord send me Nasir Jones?”

  “Who is Nasir Jones?” Elise asked.

  “Nasir Jones is this rapper who’s already engaged to Kelis,” Val spoke up.

  “Tressie, I’m pretty sure God isn’t going to give you someone else’s fiancé, so you need to change your prayer request.”

  Elise fielded the other attendees’ questions and they all sang a few hymns.

  Elise concluded her lesson by saying, “For the first week everyone should pray for one thing. Next week, when we gather again, we’ll discuss whether or not God answered your prayer. Is that all right with everyone?”

  Everyone in the room nodded.

  “I’ll close out in prayer.”

  Everyone held hands while Elise prayed.

  “Heavenly Father, I want to thank you for once again bringing us safely together. I ask that you bless each and every heart here, and that they increase their prayer life to get closer to you. Through prayer they will realize and experience that you have control over all things great and small. Amen.”

  In unison everyone responded, “Amen.”

  Chapter 2

  The following day, Olivia walked into the apartment she shared with her sister, Danyelle, and was welcomed by a cloud of smoke. She waved her hand in front of her face to see what was causing the entire apartment to be engulfed in smoke. She found Bryant and Danyelle sitting in the living room with what appeared to be a pound of marijuana lying on the coffee table.

  “Why can’t you two smoke outside?” Olivia asked, annoyed. This was not the first time she had asked them not to smoke in the house.

  “Hey Livie,” Bryant said. “How was your doctor’s appointment?”

  Olivia looked at him, surprised that he had even asked. After her first doctor’s appointment, weeks had passed before he asked her how it went. Lately, he had lost interest in the baby, which concerned her because when she first told him, he was so excited. Olivia badly wa
nted Bryant to participate more in her pregnancy.

  Ever since Olivia was a little girl she had wanted to be a mother, and the idea of her soon becoming one brought joy to her heart. She looked forward to the monthly doctor visits and midnight food cravings.

  Her only regret was that she and Bryant weren’t married. She never thought she would be having a baby out of wedlock, but she knew there wasn’t too much she could do about it now. Bryant had made it clear that he was not going to marry her just because she had gotten pregnant.

  “Well the doctor said that . . .” Olivia began.

  “Hold up, baby.” Bryant held up his finger. He turned toward Danyelle. “Yo, where you going with that?” Danyelle had gotten up from the couch and started to retreat to her bedroom, taking the smoking joint and the ashtray with her.

  “Oh!” She looked back at Olivia. “I was going to my room. I wanted to give you and Livie some privacy.”

  “Yeah right, you were trying to smoke the whole joint by yourself.”

  Danyelle pointed back at Bryant. “Negro, you’ve got five joints rolled up in front of you that we haven’t even touched.” Then she pointed over in the corner. “Not to mention the bundle we haven’t even opened.”

  Olivia looked over at the cube of marijuana securely wrapped in clear plastic wrap lying on the floor.

  “No need to get hostile. I forgot. My fault!” He turned back to Olivia. “Sorry, honey. Now what did the doctor say?”

  “Forget it!” Annoyed, Olivia stormed toward her bedroom. She was tired of Bryant putting his marijuana habit before their baby.

  “Where are you going?” Bryant yelled out.

  Olivia closed the door and cried. She felt like her life was falling apart. She wanted the baby to come into the world feeling that it was loved by both its parents, but Bryant acted so selfish at times she wondered if that was possible.

  She wished her mother were there to fix the problems in her life. She remembered the last conversation she had with her. Olivia was in her bedroom getting ready for bed when her mother walked in.

  “Livie, can I speak with you for a minute?”

  “Sure, Mommy.” Olivia jumped into bed and pulled the comforter over her legs.

  Her mother smiled and took a deep breath. “Olivia, I don’t like to ask you to promise me anything because I know you’re only nine years old and you have a lot of growing up to do, but I have to ask that you make me this one promise.”

  Olivia’s soft eyes asked, What is it, Mommy?

  “Promise me that no matter what happens in life, you will always keep the word of God close to your heart. Being obedient to God will carry you through the roughest times in your life. Trust him. He will never leave you.”

  Olivia held her mother’s final words close to her heart. Later that night her mother had a heart attack in her sleep and died instantly.

  Since then Olivia had kept her promise to her mother and was a devoted Christian who read her Bible regularly. She tried to live the life of a righteous woman, but lately she struggled in her Christian walk. It all started with Bryant.

  From the beginning, Olivia was very up front with Bryant. She told him she was a virgin and explained how important it was for her to remain one until her wedding day. Olivia knew how most men felt about being in a celibate relationship, and she had prepared herself for the possibility of him walking out of her life forever. Surprisingly, he wasn’t angry nor did he walk out on her. In fact, he told her that he respected her values and her desire to wait.

  Three months later, he suddenly had a change of heart and started pressing her to have sex with him. Every time they went out he would beg her to make love to him, but Olivia was strong and held on to her vow. Before long, arguments arose and he threatened to end their relationship. Olivia panicked. She didn’t want to lose him. He was her first boyfriend and the only man she ever cared about besides her father. She felt cornered, and after careful consideration, she gave in to his demands, but only under one condition: that they always use a condom.

  The first time they made love Bryant made her feel like he was the one she had been saving herself for. He was gentle and compassionate. She couldn’t help but fall in love with him. Being in his arms and sharing her body made her happy. There was nothing she wanted more than to be with him. After they made love, they realized the condom had broken. She missed her period, and then the morning sickness began. She bought a home pregnancy test and that’s when her greatest fears were confirmed. She was pregnant.

  Depression set in fast and Olivia isolated herself from friends and family. Val often questioned Olivia’s strange behavior. Olivia reassured her that the stress from working long hours at the bank was making her tired, but Val wasn’t buying it. Bryant was also concerned about her. Unsure of what to do, he asked her if she wanted to have an abortion. An abortion? The baby growing inside of her was so unexpected. And then to suddenly get rid of it? Would that be another sin? She needed somebody to talk to. She usually confided her problems to Val, but this was different. Val and Olivia had made a pact to remain virgins until marriage, and now Olivia was embarrassed to admit she had broken their vow to one another. For weeks Olivia prayed that the whole situation would just go away. Finally, the burden of hiding her secret became unbearable. That’s when she went to see the pastor’s wife.

  Mrs. Simms always encouraged members of her husband’s congregation to come and pray with her if they had problems that were too much for them to bear alone. Mrs. Simms and Olivia prayed for over an hour. Afterwards they discussed the pros and cons of her pregnancy. Mrs. Simms pointed out that terminating her pregnancy wouldn’t erase the sin that had already been committed, but ultimately Olivia would have final say on the fate of her baby. Olivia pushed her fears aside and decided to give her baby a chance at life.

  Mrs. Simms asked a lot of questions about Bryant. Where was he from? Did he have any ties to the community? What did his parents do?

  Olivia couldn’t answer any of her questions. She didn’t know too much about Bryant’s background because he never talked about family or friends. One time he did tell her that he was raised by an elderly aunt in North Carolina. He described himself as a drifter who never stayed in one place for too long. Bryant worked for Amtrak as a conductor, which required him to travel a lot. That was how they met.

  Anxious to get back to Philly after a long, uneventful visit with her Aunt Gretchen in Chicago, Olivia ran through the train station trying not to miss her train. She was already late because her aunt tried to get her to stay another week, but one week of playing bridge with the old woman in her retirement community and watching reruns of The Golden Girls was more than Olivia could bear.

  She couldn’t figure out why her aunt never invited Val or Danyelle to come visit her. Olivia had been branded with the term ‘Favorite Niece’. Olivia hated going out to visit her aunt every year, but because her aunt didn’t have any of her own children and she was Olivia’s mother’s only sister, she felt she couldn’t refuse her offer.

  She looked at her watch as the whistle blew, giving the signal for the final call. People ran past and around her. Olivia made it just in time. She lifted her foot to climb on board when her foot missed the first step. Just before she hit the ground, Bryant came out of nowhere and caught her mid-air.

  “You have to be careful. These steps are tricky,” he told her.

  “Thank you.” Olivia was embarrassed by her clumsiness, but she was more embarrassed that the handsome conductor witnessed it firsthand. Olivia gathered her things and occupied the first empty seat she could find. Soon after, the same handsome conductor who broke her fall walked through the train collecting tickets. When he approached her aisle he asked her again, “Are you sure you’re all right?”

  Olivia wished he would forget her small but humiliating accident. “I’m fine,” she replied.

  “Good. Now that I know you’re all right, would you mind going to dinner with me?”

  Excited by his invitat
ion, she gladly accepted. Over time they began to spend more time together and eventually their friendship developed into a relationship. When Olivia found out she was pregnant, Bryant asked if he could move in with her so they could be a real family.

  Olivia looked at her growing belly in the mirror. The baby was getting bigger every day and her clothes were getting tighter around the waist. It wouldn’t be long before she would have to start shopping for maternity clothes. Olivia grabbed her baby book and plunged into the first chapter when the phone rang.

  “Hey mommy-to-be! What’s up with you?” Val screamed into Olivia’s ear.

  “Nothing much. I just came from the doctor’s office.”

  “How’s the baby?” Val asked.

  “The doctor said the baby is fine. I should have a healthy baby in six more months,” Olivia nonchalantly responded.

  “Why do you sound so down? This should be one of the happiest times in your life.”

  “I am happy,” Olivia unconvincingly replied.

  Val heard concern in Olivia’s voice and she wondered what was bothering her, but instead of asking, Val decided on a different approach.

  “Why don’t you come to the mall with me? I need to pick up some things for Julian’s party tonight.”

  “I don’t know. I’m really tired.”

  Val acted like she didn’t hear her cousin’s response. “I’ll be there to pick you up in ten minutes.”

  “I would like to see those three rings,” Val pointed to three platinum diamond rings displayed in the glass showcase. The saleswoman laid them before Val and Olivia on a black velvet cloth. Val slipped a ring on her finger. “What do you think?” she asked, holding up the ring for Olivia to see.

  “Nice,” Olivia replied

  “But do you think it’s me? I don’t want something too big, but it has to be classy.”

  Olivia looked at the rings more closely. “They’re all nice.”

  “I think I like that one.” Val looked at a fourth ring sitting inside the display case. The saleswoman retrieved the ring and handed it to Val. “Yes, I really do like this ring.” Val stared at the large marquise diamond.