Chapter 11---Church
Lily woke up around 7:45am. "Cool, today's church." She went to take a shower. As she was shampooing her hair, she thought about the previous night. Last night was so awesome! Mai and Joey danced, Seren saw Kaiba, I saw Valon, and met Alister. It was kind of awkward though. Valon didn't come talk to me. I guess he forgot. I wonder what everyone else thought about last night. Maybe they're thinking about it right now.
Lily was right. Downstairs, Mai was replaying the night over in her head. Last night was so perfect. When I was dancing with Joey, it felt like we were the only ones in the club. Or the world. So strange, yet completely normal. So slow, yet heart rushing. I can't let anyone find out about this.
Lily was done with her shower. She dried her hair and put on a white skirt and peach shirt. I hope Mai knows she's taking me. I hope this church is good. Mai says she's been there twice. Maybe I should invite Serenity and Joey. Mai would definitely want to go if he was. Lily picked up her cell and dialed Serenity's number.
"Hello?"
"Hey Seren, it's Lily."
"Hey, what's up?"
"Nothing really. Do you and Joey want to come to church with me?"
"Sure. Hold on, let me ask Joey if he wants to come." Serenity covered the receiver. "Joey, do you want to come to church with me and Lily?" Joey scratched his head. Maybe Mai's going. "Uh yeah. I'll go." Serenity removed her hand from the phone. "Yeah he's gonna go."
"Cool. We'll pick you up at quarter till."
"Okay. See ya."
"Bye." Lily hung up the phone and went down the hall to Mai's room. "Mai, don't forget we're going to church."
"Oh Lily, I meant to tell you, I can't ---"
"By the way Joey and Serenity are coming. Oh sorry, didn't mean to interrupt you. You cant what?"
Mai stopped. "Um I can't not go with you. After all, we are sisters."
"Uh huh. Okay then, I'm gonna finish getting ready." Lily went back to her room and did her makeup brushed her hair and teeth, and gave herself the once-over. She looked good. By the time she was finished, it was time to go.
Mai was just finishing her makeup. I love this brand of makeup. I am definitely buying more at Bare Esentuals! She grabbed her keys and went downstairs.
Mai drove up to Serenity's house. She honked twice. They both came out. Serenity was wearing a flowered skirt with a pretty blouse. Her hair was tied back with a ribbon. Mai raised her eyebrows as she looked at Joey. "Wow Joey, you actually brushed your hair and wore something other than a t-shirt and jeans." He actually looked good. Really good. Joey rolled his eyes. "Wow Mai, you own a slightly longer skirt. Who would of thought?" he challenged. "Whatever. Get in the car." Lily and Serenity both heard playful notes of affection in their voices.
They arrived a few minutes before the service. Mai took the time to introduce them to Pastor Kim, the youth pastor. Lily liked her a lot.
When they went to go sit down, Lily whispered, "Is this service only for teens and young adults?" Mai nodded. "Yeah. They have other services for different age groups." The truth was, Mai only knew that because some girl told her one of the times she was there.
Pastor Kim went up to the podium and began with a word of prayer. The youth worship leader Pastor Josh, began to play the keyboard and other band players played.
"You are everything that I ever need
All I ever want is You (repeat)
This wonderful passion
Beautiful obsession
Lord I can't get enough of You
I breathe I move
Live my life for you
I can't stop wont stop
Lovin everything You do yeah
You are everything that I ever need
All I ever want is You (repeat)
This wonderful passion
Beautiful obsession
Lord I can't get enough of You
Chorus
The next song they sang was called "Shout Unto God" by Hillsong. "I have this CD," Lily said. "Who is it?" Serenity asked. "Hillsong. They're this awesome worship band from Australia." Serenity laughed. "Same place as Valon." Lily giggled. For some odd reason, Lily felt peace surround her. She thought of New York. Of her friends. Of her mom. Actually, that wasn't peaceful, more like angrifying. Lily smiled. That's a new one; angrifying. I miss Valon. Where did that come from? she wondered.
Mai looked over at Joey. He is so cute. I wish I could dance with him again. That little goofball. Pastor Kim stood up to preach. She began with this story:
"This is a story about a teen girl named Carly.
Jared and I have been dating for eleven months now. Everyone agrees were the perfect couple. We have a common love in sports, music, and he's even been coming to church with me on Sundays. I know he's not the perfect Christian or anything like that, but I think he's getting there. Once I asked him about a relationship with Jesus and he said, "All in good time." So when my aunt asked me if Jared is saved, I told her he's in the process. He'll get there. I just have to be patient. All in good time."
Pastor Kim looked up from her notes. "Some of you have probably been in this situation. We call it 'missionary dating'. Listen to what God's Word says about the subject. If you have your bible, turn to 2 Corinthians 6:14-18. It reads, "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of God. As He has said: I will live with them and walk among them and I will be their God and they will be my people. There fore, come out from them and separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing and I will receive you and you will be my sons and daughters."
Pastor Kim looked up once again. "Most people don't think they'll stray off the path. But take this into consideration. If I had a short person and a tall person try to put a broomstick on the back of your neck and put your arms over it, the tall person would have to bend down so the short one could do the same. The small one brought the tall one down." Pastor Kim let this sink in everyone's head. Then she did an altar call. Serenity and Joey went up.
"For those of you who want to accept Christ today, please repeat after me. 'Jesus, I realize that I'm a sinner. I believe that you're the Son of God. Thank you for dying on the cross for me . Jesus come in to my life. Be my Lord and Be my Savior. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for hearing my prayer. Amen."
Lily was so psyched that Serenity and Joey received Jesus. She thought about Valon. I can't hook up with him even if he did like me. Well I'll just have to bring him to Christ before we date.
Valon sat back in his apartment. What a crazy week! First becoming Lily's teacher, then finding out she likes me, and on top of that, I meet up with Alister! Sadly, he isn't what I'm worried about. It's what he said. "A nineteen year old going for a thirteen year old." But he wasn't 'going' for Lily. Somehow, last night, she seemed different, older. More mature. That's just it. Could I be attracted to her? No of course not. But…no. Or can I?
On the drive back home, Lily asked Mai if she could drop her and Serenity off at the mall. Mai agreed. Lily and Serenity walked into McDonalds to get something to eat.
As Mai waited for a car to turn, Joey hopped into the front seat and said," I got shotgun." Mai laughed. "Joey, did you want me to drop you off at your house or the game shop?" Joey thought for a moment. "My place is fine."
After eating, Lily and Serenity walked into a CD store. Lily loved getting CDs. She had over 50; most of them she bought. She couldn't decide which to get. Hmm. Kelly Clarkson or Mariah Carey. There's also TobyMac. So she got all of them.
Mai drove up to Joey's house. They both sat there for a few minutes. Suddenly, Joey spoke up. "Hey Mai, if you want, you can come inside. I have something for you." Mai looked at him with interest. "All right."
Lily waited for Serenity. She had bought two CDs. "So what did you get?" Lily asked. "Well, I trust your judgment, so I got Jump5 and ZoeGirl." Serenity showed her. "Great choice," Lily enthused. They walked past TeddyCrafters and Anchor blue. Then Serenity went in Game Craze, the video game store.
Mai sat on the couch while Joey ran upstairs. He came back down holding a small box and handed it to her. Curiously, but cautiously, she opened it to reveal a beautiful silver bracelet embedded with amethyst stones. This could not have been inexpensive. Mai knew that Joey knows that she is what you call a "high-class woman" who couldn't be wooed by a cheap pair of earrings. But this was beyond anything she would have expected, especially from Joey. Mai was hushed. Joey enjoyed seeing her speechless. That didn't happen very often. He sat down next to her.. "So, do you like it?" he asked. She nodded as he helped her put it on. Then she practically jumped on Joey and threw her arms around him. "Whoa!" Joey cried as he was smothered. "Thank you so much," she whispered in his ear. "Amethyst is my" "Birthstone," he finished for her. "I know." Joey put his hand to her cheek. It was slightly cold, but warmed as pink tint appeared to her cheeks. He smiled. Then he bent in closer and kissed her gently.
Serenity was looking for an X-Box game for Joey. Up at the cash register, she heard a familiar voice. When she glanced over, she saw Mokuba Kaiba. He turned around and saw her. "Hey Serenity, what's up?" She shrugged. "Oh nothing much. Shopping. A girl's sanctuary you know." Mokuba laughed. "I know that's true. So are you here with anyone?" Serenity nodded. "Yeah I'm with Lily. She's in Suncoast." Mokuba finished paying for his merchandise. "That's Mai's sister. I wanted to meet her." She smiled. "Well, I can introduce you to her. Come on." As they walked out of the store, Mokuba motioned to someone that he would be back. Serenity turned around and noticed Mr. Seto Kaiba himself sitting on a bench. He was on the phone. As she looked at him, their eyes met. Serenity's heart did a flip-flop as she quickly looked away. "So Mokuba, did you come with your brother?" He nodded. "Yeah, I didn't want to take a bodyguard. They're more boring than Seto."
Just then, Lily came out and showed Serenity the cute pair of jeans she bought. "Cute," Serenity said. "Lily, this is Mokuba. Mokuba, Lily." Lily looked at him with interest. "Oh, so this is Seto Kaiba's most treasured possession, huh?" Mokuba forced a smile. "Yeah, I'm it." Secretly, he was getting tired of Seto watching him constantly. Mokuba was to be 13 pretty soon. His interest was in girls. When he had brought this up with his brother, it went differently than planned. Sure, he agreed, but either Seto or a bodyguard would need to go along in every date. Plus, Seto would have their backgrounds checked. Lily
Lily seemed to be reading Mokuba's mind. "You don't seem too happy about it." Mokuba sighed. "Well," he admitted, "I'm sick of everyone following me. I want privacy. I want to be able to get away when I want without having someone to accompany me. I'm almost 13, and frankly, it's not really any of Seto's business what I do in my leisure time." Lily laughed. "You've got yourself quite an argument. Have you brought it up with your brother?" Mokuba rolled his eyes. "No such luck." Serenity patted his back. "You'll figure something out." Lily nodded. "Well, if you ever need help, don't be afraid to hit me up. I've got all sorts of escape routes." He smiled thoughtfully. "Maybe I will." He looked at Seto, who wore an impatient look on his face. "Well I better go." The girls said goodbye and went into another store.
Joey and Mai talked for a while and then put a movie on. Since most of his movies were action movies, he went through Serenity's. Joey chose Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle. It satisfied them both. Stylish butt-kicking.
While Lily browsed through racks of tops, Serenity had her eye on a flirty, but respectable, tank top and a frilly pink skirt. As she was looking, Seto and Mokuba walked past. He is so cute, Serenity thought. "Hey girlie! Checkin out them skirts, huh?" Serenity snapped back to reality. "Huh, what? Oh yeah, I thought they were cute. What do you think?" Lily nodded. "Totally. You should get them. Look at what I found." She held up a black halter-top with diamonds lining the sides and a pair of leather pants. "Wow," Serenity gushed. "Bold. If you ever ride with Valon on his motorcycle, you'll look like a biker chick." Lily laughed. "A mini-biker chick." They both started laughing. "So," Lily said, regaining composure, "I take it you were thinking about Kaiba." Serenity blushed. "How did you know?" Lily rolled her eyes. "Please, you have the same look I do when I'm thinking about Valon." Serenity smiled. "Yep, you're right." Her smile faded as she looked at the price tag of the items in her hands. "Thirty dollars? That's how much I brought with me! The shirt cost 20!" Lily took the outfit out of her hands. "Don't sweat it." She took out her wallet as the clerk ran up her purchases. "That's $111.75." Serenity was shocked 111? Goodness! " Lily, that's a lot of money. I don't have to have the outfit." Lily looked at her with an irritated look on her fame. "Chill. I got it covered." Lily pulled out her credit card.
After Lily paid for it, Serenity asked how much she spent that day. "About 140," she replied calmly. "Where do you get that kind of money?" Serenity asked dumbfounded. Lily looked at her. "Well, I am Mai's sister and she does understand the importance of shopping. I usually get $200 when I go to the mall. But if it's a fashion emergency, $300." Serenity was speechless. " I guess we should call Mai," Lily said. She took out her lime green cell phone and began dialing
Rrrring. Rrrring. Mai opened her purse. "It's Lily. Her and Serenity must be finished shopping. I'll go pick them up." Joey nodded as she answered the phone.
Serenity was still puzzled. Gosh, it was almost impossible for her to even get $100, even if it is necessary. Perhaps if it was her birthday, or Christmas. Maybe The only time her and Joey actually had a sizeable amount of money was the three million for her operation. Serenity was hoping to get a scholarship, because there was no way, unless God provided a miracle, for her to go to Tokyo University. And if she saved the money she got from now until then, she could maybe pay for the tuition. But then there wouldn't be any for Serenity to spend on her own. I need to get a job. Lily and Serenity walked out the entrance and looked for Mai. She drove up with a smile on her face. "Hey girls!" she said happily. "What are you so happy about?" Lily asked as she hopped in the front seat. "Oh nothing. Two people on my soap opera got together that's all. What did you guys buy?" Lily opened her bag and showed her the jeans, leather pants, and halter she got. "Cute. Serenity, what'd you get. "Lily bought me this." She showed Mai the outfit. "Wow Serenity. You totally have style. That isn't what I expected from you." Serenity sighed. "Well there are some things I want to wear that are tasteful, but Joey freaks out if there is an inch of skin showing. It's beyond reason." Mai laughed. "Yeah, but he's just protecting you. But I totally understand. You're not ten. Maybe if yu bring an extra change of clothes with you and ease Joey into it." Serenity thought for a moment. "Oh no. I couldn't do anything behind Joey's back." Mai rolled her eyes. "Oh puh-lease. Serenity, you're sixteen and it's about time you start dressing how you want. Of course, I'm not saying dress like a skank, but Joey doesn't need to protect you."
Though Lily was listening to what Mai was saying, she saw something on Mai's shoulder. She reached over and pulled it off. It was a hair. Mai appeared not to notice. Hmm, Lily thought as she examined it. She was no DNA expert, but it wasn't hers. Sure it was the same color, but not the same length. It could have been half a hair, but that would mean it was weak and brittle. Mai would rather die than have brittle hair. She took care of it like it was her child. Also, this hair was straight, not Mai's waviness. Could it be? Did Mai have some behind-the-scenes fun while we were at the mall? Did her and Joey kiss or something?
all halter tops that are in this story are not low cut. I totally believe in PURITY so none of the clothes are slutty.
Ichi ni san yon go roku nana hachi kyuu juu (1-10 in Japanese)