By Summer's End (Christian Fiction) (13 page)

“Are
you ready to go?” Holly called to Brianna, who was still primping in her
bedroom.

“Almost,” she answered back.

When she stepped out of her room moments
later, in a floral print dress borrowed from Holly, Holly couldn’t help but
gasp.  Her little sister looked beautiful.  She had already forgone applying
her eyeliner in thick, Goth fashion, but this morning, had rejected makeup
entirely—save a clear gloss on her full lips.

“Brianna, you look beautiful,” Holly
gushed.

The girl looked uncertain.  “Are you
sure I look all right.  I can’t remember when I last wore a dress, and…”

“Trust me, you’re gorgeous,” Holly cut
in with a smile, that quickly morphed into a frown.

“What is it?” Brianna asked worriedly. 
“It’s the dress, huh?  I do look ridiculous.  And I need makeup, huh?”

Holly shook her head to clear it.  “You
don’t look ridiculous and you don’t need makeup,” she mused.

“Then what is it?”

“I’m anticipating the reaction of the
teenaged boys in this town when they get a look at you.  Oh, Lord, help me,”
she prayed earnestly.

Brianna giggled.  “Do you really think …
boys will … notice me?”

“Oh, Lord,” she repeated.  “Heaven help
me.” 

She hurried to the kitchen and took a
seat at the island.  She patted the seat beside her. 

Brianna grinned sheepishly as she
crossed the room to take a seat beside her.  “What?”

“Okay, so…  Listen…”

“Holly, we’re going to be late.”

“Yes, you’re right.  We’ll leave in a
moment.  But first…”  She took a deep, shoring breath.  “Did your parents ever
talk to you about the birds and the bees?”

Brianna gave a burst of laughter.  “No,
but I learned all about sex in school.”

“Oh, okay, well…  Listen, hon, it’s
just…”

“I’m not ready for that sort of thing,”
Brianna said decisively.  “I’m not even sixteen.” 

Holly practically crumpled with relief. 
“Oh, okay.  Good.  I’m really happy to hear that.”  She brightened
considerably.  “Okay, well, we’ll pick up this line of conversation later,
because we’re going to be late if we don’t leave for church now.”

“We wouldn’t want to be late,” Brianna
said with a smile, though it quickly faded.

“What’s wrong?” Holly asked.

“I’ve never been to church before.  I
don’t know what to expect.”

“We’ll talk a bit about that in the
car,” Holly told her.

Soon, they were in the car and driving
to the church according to the directions Brianna had found on her smart
phone.  Holly explained to her about the service, noting it included both song
and prayer, and finished by telling her the church had a youth group she might
consider attending.

“What sorts of things do they do?”
Brianna asked with interest.

“Well, they study the Bible, of course,
but they also take fun trips.  One time, my youth group visited a farm and we went
on hay rides.  Another time, we all got together to go sledding.”

She sent Brianna a quick glance, fully
expecting to see her rolling her eyes, but she appeared interested.  Holly was
delighted to see it and continued, “My favorite trip was one that involved an orphan
outreach.  We raised funds and several of us traveled to Honduras to help build
a school for the children in the particular region we visited.  We had
collected loads and loads of new shoes and clothing, which we took along with
us.”

“Wow,” Brianna said.  “Your mother
allowed you to travel out of the country.”

Holly nodded.  “She was worried, I’m
sure, but my mother had a strong faith in God.”

“What other things did you do in youth
group?”

Holly searched her memory.  “Well, my
youth group hosted harvest parties for neighborhood kids.  Sometimes, we got
together at our church and watched movies.  A few times, we had slumber
parties—boys on one side of the church, girls on the other,” she was quick to
add.

Brianna smiled.  “It does kind of sound
like fun.”

“It was.  For me, anyway.”  She suddenly
realized she’d made youth group sound like mostly fun and games.  “But first
and foremost, youth group is a means to learn more about Christ—to foster a
closer relationship with Him.” 

“Maybe I’ll consider joining,” Brianna
said.  “I’ll have to see.”

“Good enough,” Holly said, and spotted
the church up ahead.  She studied the large, newer building, with the massive cross
atop, set within a niche beneath the peaked roof.  The nearby parking spaces
were filling fast.  She found a space and parked.

“It looks pretty big,” Brianna
commented.  “I guess I expected a small, country church.”

“Did you?”

“Yeah.  Sort of.”

“Would you prefer that—a small country
church?  Because honey, we’re simply visiting today.  We’re not making a
commitment as yet.  When we pick a church, it must feel right for both of us.”

“Okay.”

They climbed out of the car, and as they
approached the main entrance, Holly spotted Jim.  He was standing alone.  When
he spotted her, he grinned widely, and hurried toward her.    

She’d called him yesterday to tell him
she wouldn’t need a ride to church.  He had been very gracious about it and had
said he would wait for her outside of the church so that he could show her
around.

“Hello.  Welcome,” he said, smiling at
both women.  “I’m so glad you both could come.”

“Thank you,” Holly said.  “Jim, this is
my sister, Brianna.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.  I really
hope you’ll enjoy your time with us today.  We have a lot of kids your age
here, and a terrific youth group.”

He directed the women to the sanctuary,
which had filled up fast with both church members and visitors.  “Please find a
seat and I’ll join you later,” he said with a smile.  “I have usher duties
today.”

Holly smiled, though she was surprised
to learn he intended to sit with them during the service.  Brianna appeared
surprised as well, since she gave her a speculative glance.  “I think he likes
you,” she whispered, as he hurried away.  She watched after him as she and
Holly scooted along a pew and took a seat.

“Oh, he does not,” Holly scoffed.  “He’s
just being kind.  We’re new here and he’s trying to make us feel welcome.”

“Oh!  Hey, look!  I see Annabelle and
Ryan up ahead.”

“You do?”

“Yes, see.”  She pointed toward the
front of the church, where Ryan and Annabelle were moving toward an open
section of a pew.  “We should sit with them.”

Brianna rose from her seat, but Holly
clutched her arm.  “We should stay here.  It wouldn’t be polite to leave Jim
wondering where we went off to, since he expects to find us here later.”

“Do you like him?” Brianna whispered.

“Who?”

“Jim.”

“No!” she answered a bit too harshly. 
Why her sister was so fixated on her feelings for Ryan, and now Jim, baffled
her.  She took her voice down a notch and forced a smile.  “Brianna, we’re at
church.  I’m not here to find a man.”

Brianna glanced around her.  “But there
are so many.”  She grinned.  “Frankly, if I were you, I’d sit by Ryan.  He gets
my vote, if it counts for anything.”

“Your vote always matters,” Holly
assured her, but followed by groaning with exasperation.  “But we’re not
talking about men.  Honey, today is about fellowship…”

Brianna grinned.  “You can have
fellowship with Ryan,” she teased.

“Brianna!  I’m here to spend time with
God,” she said, meeting her gaze.  “I’m here because I love Him and because He
died for my sins.”

Brianna gave her a bewildered glance. 
“I don’t know what you mean.”

To Holly’s relief, the pastor soon began
the service with a prayer, followed by the church choir singing several
beautiful hymns.  When he said it was his intent to talk about the salvation
plan, about how one can invite Jesus into his heart and life and be
transformed, she was relieved.  Perhaps Brianna would gain some understanding
that would enable them to begin a dialogue about Christ.

Holly wanted her sister to experience a
relationship with God.  To turn to Him for everything.  To realize He was the
answer to life’s questions—the path to real happiness and fulfillment.

Brianna was still young.  Holly hoped
she wasn’t too jaded by her parents’ lack of regard for those who believed in
Christ.

As the pastor spoke, she found herself
listening intently.  When she glanced over at Brianna, it was apparent the man
held her rapt attention.  She offered a silent prayer for her sister—that she
would leave today with both an understanding as to what she had heard and a
desire to learn more.

Jim suddenly slipped into the pew and
sat down beside her.  “Sorry, usher duties kept me away,” he said with a smile. 
  

She returned his smile and directed her
focus back on the pastor’s sermon.  She remained fixed on him and his words,
but found herself searching for Ryan and Annabelle.  She spotted them up ahead. 
Suddenly, Ryan turned and seemed to scan the congregants’ faces.  His eyes
immediately found hers and he broke into a smile.

Her heart leapt with pleasure.  She
swallowed and then smiled back.  She was quite surprised he’d spotted her.  The
sanctuary was overflowing with people.  He gave a small wave and a nod, and
seemed to hesitate, before turning back to face forward.

Holly forced herself to refocus on the
pastor’s message.  Earlier she’d scolded Brianna for fixating on her love
life—or in truth, the lack thereof.  Brianna had suggested that Jim ‘liked’
her.  Previously, she had suggested that Ryan had feelings for her.  Was it
possible that two men found her appealing? 

She gave herself a shake.  She was as
bad as her sister.   While she knew that neither man had known her long enough
to feel anything for her, she couldn’t deny that she felt … something … for
Ryan. 

Holly forced away all thoughts of both
Ryan and Jim, and settled in to listen intently to the pastor’s sermon.  Later,
when he finished with a prayer, she rose with the other parishioners and filed
out of the pew.  Brianna followed close behind.

Jim took her arm and directed her out of
the sanctuary and down a long hallway.  People surrounded them, all heading in
the same direction.  “I forgot to mention it, but we’re having a get-together
in the fellowship hall,” he said.  “We’d love for you to join us for good food
and fellowship.”

She turned back to Brianna.  “They’re
having a luncheon here today.  Would you like to stay?”

“Sure,” she said agreeably.  “I could
eat.”

Soon, they joined the other congregants
in the fellowship hall, which was a huge, sunny room.  A kitchen on one wall
was buzzing with activity, as women pulled meals from a commercial-grade
refrigerator and began setting them out on a long banquet table.  Holly noted
Brianna had her eyes on the dessert table, which was already overflowing with
delectable treats.

Jim directed them to an open table. 
They sat down, but Brianna promptly jumped from her seat and began waving at
Annabelle and Ryan, who had just stepped into the room.  They spotted her and
moved toward their table, as Brianna eagerly gestured them over.  “Sit with
us!” she invited, with a cheery smile.

“Thank you,” Annabelle said.  “It’s so
wonderful to see you both.”

“Hello,” Ryan said, smiling first at
Holly, and then Brianna. 

When he turned to greet Jim, it was
apparent the other man was surprised to see him.  “What are you doing here?” he
said, and then appeared to realize what had just come out of his mouth.  “I
mean…”  He smiled ruefully.  “Since when do you…?”  He grimaced and extended
his hand.  “Welcome, Ryan.”

“Thanks,” Ryan said, eyeing him
speculatively.

Annabelle, who had watched the exchange,
chuckled.  “I understand your surprise, Jim,” she said, by way of easing his
embarrassment.  “Getting Ryan to church generally involves either threats or a
crow bar.”

Ryan gasped.  “That’s … not true.”

“Yes, it is,” Annabelle said.  “But…  I,
for one, am glad to see you here again.  Regardless of who … er, I mean … what
brought you here.”

Ryan glared at her briefly, but turned
when a voice declared loudly that lunch was ready. 

“I’m starving,” Annabelle said, and
reached for Brianna’s hand.  “Let’s go.  Maybe we can be first in line.”

Brianna laughed.  “Okay.  Let’s hurry. 
I’m starving too.”

The two women hurried off.  Holly rose
to follow, but was surprised when both Ryan and Jim reached for her, each
taking an elbow.  When both men registered what the other had done, they glared
at one another.  They remained locked in a sort of visual mortal combat.  Holly
felt wholly uncomfortable and gently tugged her arms away from them.