SummerHill Secrets, Volume 1 (19 page)

Elton, on the other hand, seemed content just being here. He held his beloved pen in his left hand without clicking it. I wondered about that. Was it a gauge, a way to determine how attentive he really was?

Silence is golden, my dad always said. But in Elton’s case, silence was much more than that. Silence spoke of childlike wonder and a secluded world inside his head. Elton’s world was a place where things like seeing a chalk drawing of Jesus dying on a cross brought shameless tears. A world where discovering an oak tree near a covered bridge and settling down for an afternoon of sketching brought peace.

I was sure I was beginning to know Elton. Really know him. He was letting me in, allowing me to see inside. In Elton’s world, things like the Spring Spree and a preacher’s daughter with good looks didn’t matter. I smiled at him and turned my attention back to the lesson.

Honestly, if Elton hadn’t come today, I’d probably have had a nervous breakdown.

After class, I waited while Lissa went to talk to Jon. I watched her approach him, realizing none of this would be happening if I had asked him weeks ago. Of course, it was anybody’s guess what his answer might’ve been. Maybe if I had asked him with all
w
’s…

Elton remained seated next to me. I turned to face him. “Did you like the class?”

He nodded.

“I’m glad you came today.”

Again, he nodded.

“Are you staying for church?”

He tapped on my Bible, then pointed to me.

I laughed. “Sure, I’m staying, and you can borrow my Bible if you want to.”

He shook his head no.

I was stunned. I didn’t know Elton could do that. “Are you saying you don’t want to use my Bible?”

He shook his head no emphatically.

“What, then? What do you mean?” I was feeling totally inadequate here.

He pointed to me again. Then, very precisely, he pointed to himself.

“Oh, I get it,” I said, relieved. “You want to sit with me in church and share my Bible?”

He nodded and forced a half smile.

I could hardly contain my joy. Elton was changing, growing before my eyes! I explained to him that my parents thought being together as a family in church on Sunday mornings was somehow important to God. “So…if you don’t mind sitting with all of us, we’re set.”

Elton nodded and when he did, I saw a hint of a smile in his eyes.

Lissa came over and stood beside me. One glance told me Jon had turned her down.

“Guess who beat me to it.” She pointed discreetly to the door.

Elton stayed in the room while Lissa pushed me into the hall. “Ashley’s taking Jon to Spring Spree,” she moaned.

My stomach rumbled. Conflict made me hungry. “Come with me,” I said.

“Where are we going?” Lissa asked, following me as I rushed toward the classroom down the hall from ours. The smell of freshly brewed coffee and sweet doughnuts drew me inside. Adults stood around, doing whatever it was they did every Sunday with coffee in hand. My dad spotted me and waved between bites of pastry.

“Here, eat this,” I said, handing Lissa a jelly-filled doughnut.

Her eyes grew wide. “What’s
your
problem?” She sounded like she was going to cry.

I shrugged, chewing quickly.

“What should I do about Spring Spree?”

I had to be careful what I said. After all, she had absolutely no idea how I felt about Jon. Most likely the thing with Ashley Horton was only temporary. Once Jon found out she was basically illiterate, he’d turn back to the Word Woman—me.

Meanwhile, I needed a way to distract Lissa, to get her mind off Jon. “Have you thought of asking someone else?”

“Like who?”

I wiped my mouth. “Hey, it’s not the end of the world, is it? I mean, getting beat out by Ashley Horton?” I was trying to play it down. For her sake, and mine. “There are plenty more guys to pick from.”

“Look, maybe you don’t know it, but I saw Ashley’s Sunday school lesson book,” Lissa said, lowering her voice.

“So? What’s that got to do with anything?”

“She thinks she’s pretty cool—I mean, she’s got her initials written all over everywhere. A.H. this, and A.H. that.”

I smiled. “Very clever. AH-H-H never would’ve guessed.”

Lissa and I burst out laughing. That’s when I realized we were the only ones left in the room.

“Listen,” I said, touching Lissa’s elbow. “Sounds like the opening music has started. We’d better skedaddle.”

I wiped the sticky off the corners of my mouth and hurried into the hall. Elton was waiting near the stairs. “Ready for church?” I asked.

He nodded.

“C’mon, Lissa,” I said. “By the way, Elton’s sitting with us today.”

She looked like she hadn’t heard me right, but I threatened her with a frown. She kept her mouth shut and followed me up the stairs, behind Elton.

During the part of the service when people greet one another, I introduced Elton to my parents and my brother. Dad and Mom were ultra-polite as usual, but Skip didn’t exhibit the kind of enthusiasm I’d hoped for. In fact, he was downright rude. I shouldn’t have been surprised. What can you expect from an eighteen-year-old sibling who hates stray cats—stray anything! Right about now, I was sure Skip was thinking about Elton as my latest stray, er…project.

When we settled into the pew again, I sent a serious scowl Skip’s way.

He pretended not to notice. Then out of the corner of his mouth came this: “Don’t be such a child, Merry.”

Fortunately for my obnoxious brother, church services were designed to discourage fighting, whether verbal or a solid punch to the nose. In my opinion, Skip truly deserved the latter.

Anyway, God must’ve been looking out for me, because the minute our pastor announced his text, I recognized the verse—Matthew 18:3. And Skip, being the snooty high school senior he was, tried to act totally cool when the pastor’s words rang out from the pulpit. “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Not only was the verse fair reward for Skip’s snide remark, it spoke an even deeper, more powerful message to me. I thought of Elton’s childlike ways—often misunderstood by his peers. His simple approach to life was probably a very refreshing change to God. It must be much easier for the Lord to work in an uncomplicated life.

Finding the chapter and verse in my Bible was a snap, but sharing God’s Word with Elton like this, holding my end of the Bible while he held his end, seemed almost symbolic. Rachel Zook would probably say it was providential—that God had led Elton to me so that I could lead him to Jesus. She was always talking about things like that. Simply put, it meant she believed that whatever happened to her and her family had been permitted by God. That’s why the Zooks wouldn’t press charges against Ben Fisher. Even if we caught him.

Rachel and I had discussed it many times, but I still struggled with the whole thing of trusting God one hundred percent, amen. It was especially hard for me since I liked to take care of things myself.

I listened to the pastor talk about the kind of faith a little child exhibits when he or she comes to God. But my mental image of Elton and the tears rolling down his cheeks last night spoke louder than any sermon.

Staring at the floor under the pew in front of me, I noticed Elton’s backpack. I’d seen the contents on more than one occasion. Pens, paper, sketch pad, and my Polaroid. Something was missing, though. Elton needed a Bible, and one way or another, I was going to make sure he got one.

When the congregation stood up for the benediction, I noticed Jon Klein sitting with his two older sisters. Quickly, I bowed my head during prayer. I’d have to do some heavy praying myself to get through the next weekend. Not going to Spring Spree was nothing. But finding out my one secret crush hadn’t waited for me—that hurt!

As for Lissa, I guess she’d never know why I had needed a doughnut fix this morning. She was in a big hurry to leave now anyway. “Thanks for having me over,” she said, waving and dashing down the side aisle.

Interesting,
I thought. Maybe Lissa had someone else in mind for Spring Spree….

Instead of following my parents into the main aisle, I stood in the pew beside Elton. Actually, I was glad we were alone. “Elton, do you own a Bible?” I asked.

He shook his head no.

I thought for a minute. How could I pull this off without making him feel like a charity case? I thought of the wonderful drawing he’d made of me. The one he’d nearly burned up.

“You gave me a gift,” I said. “And I want to give you one. It won’t be a loan like the camera. It’s something you can keep forever.”

His eyes started to blink as I told him my plan to purchase him a Bible. I didn’t say it would take most of the money I’d planned to spend on the Spring Spree. Elton didn’t need to know about that.

After he left, I headed down the main aisle to catch up with my family. Seconds later, I heard Jon calling, “Merry, mistress of mirth.”

My heart jumped as I turned around. “Hi,” I managed to say.

“Hey, Mer.” He was smiling. “My silly sis says if Skip’s free for Spring Spree she’s slappin’ happy.”

Some alliteration! I knew he expected me to come back with a strong reply, but I wasn’t in the mood for word games. “Why don’t you just have your sister call him?”

Jon leaned against a pew. “What’s wrong?” His eyes grew sober.

“It’s nothing.” I noticed Ashley inching her way closer. “I better go now,” I said, forcing a smile.

“But, Merry?”

“Uh…later.” I turned on my heels, leaving him in the dust. Served him right. He should’ve waited for the Word Woman.

At dinner, I mentioned Jon’s sister to Skip. Between mouthfuls, he said Lissa Vyner had already asked him.

I howled. “You’re going to the spree with a ninth grader?”

Dad frowned. “Age means little when it comes to love.” I waited for his frown to fade. This was a joke, right?

Mom grinned, but Skip nearly choked.

Dad looked over his plate at me. “And what terrific guy will have the honor of our daughter’s company this year?”

“Yeah,” Skip said, jumping right in. “Who’s the lucky guy?”

“Haven’t decided,” I said. But that was a cop-out. Everyone was going to Spring Spree. Everyone but me.

After dinner, Dad helped Mom with dishes. I was free to leave and track down Rachel next door.

Zap ’em Zook was playing volleyball with several other barefoot Amish teens when I showed up. The net stretched high across the side yard, secured between two gray buggies. I hurried past them, hoping to avoid Levi.

“Rachel’s in the house,” Levi shouted, leaping up to punch the ball. I hurried past his open buggy, toward the back door and into the kitchen.

Rachel looked up from a sinkful of dishes and smiled. “
Wilkom,
Merry,” she greeted me. “I’ll be done here in no time.”

Rachel’s mother and several other women were wiping the long tables and gathering up trash. To speed things up, I took a cotton towel from the wall hook and dried dishes. I could tell by the mischievous look in Rachel’s eye that she couldn’t wait to have our secret detective meeting.

It didn’t take long for Rachel to get Levi’s attention after her chores were finished. She stood at the back door and whistled. I’d forgotten that Rachel had such a powerful pucker. In seconds, Levi dashed over to meet us.

“It’s time,” Rachel said, glancing mysteriously at me, then at her brother.

Levi smiled in his usual flirtatious way, but his grin faded quickly when he noticed Rachel watching him. “Let’s go on up in the loft, jah?” he said, pointing to the barn. “It’s as good a place as any.”

Rachel, also barefoot, followed her brother. I hurried to keep up with them, glancing over my shoulder to see if we were noticed. By the looks of things, the volleyball game was back in full swing—even several adults had found their way into the game.

The closer I got to the earthen ramp leading to the upper level and the hayloft, the more I felt the excitement. Just walking up the ramp with the smell of soil and cow manure in the air made something warm and tingly drift through my body. Zooks’ farm, especially the hayloft, held sweet exhilaration for me.

The smell of dried hay kissed my nose as the three of us entered the secret world. Haylofts were like tree houses—nearly sacred, secluded from the world of grown-ups, and close to heaven.

I sat in the soft hay, leaning back on my hands and feeling the dry, warm ridges push against them. The smells and the atmosphere of this place gave me confidence.

Levi sat cross-legged in the hay. Removing his wide-brimmed straw hat, he wiped his forehead as if he was going to say something important. His white, long-sleeved Sunday shirt with black trousers and white suspenders looked the same as the clothes he wore around the farm.

Rachel’s white prayer bonnet had slipped cockeyed, and she fooled with it while Levi spelled out the game plan.

“I think it’s safe to say that Ben Fisher won’t be comin’ around here tonight,” he said. “There’s a singing in our barn till late. Some of the crowds will be coming out for it.”