For The Least Of These (18 page)

By the time our food arrived, I was feeling somewhat uncomfortable. Adam hadn’t said a word since Roz had taken his order, and Alicia just kept sighing impatiently. Just to break the silence, I asked Adam to say grace over our meal. Alicia seemed content to participate, and Adam briefly gave thanks for our food. While we were eating, Adam perked up a bit and started talking. He thought the food was good, and it reminded him of his grandmother’s cooking. Alicia commented that her mother’s biscuits were better, but that overall, the food was good. We chatted as we ate, and when we were done, Alicia offered to pay the bill. Adam started to protest, but Alicia insisted. Of course, the entire bill was less than fifteen dollars, so Adam finally relented.

We began our trip to Pensacola with full tummies. About the time we hit the interstate, Alicia announced that she was going to take a nap, and she stretched out as best she could in the backseat. Adam was being reticent, so I remained quiet as well. With the steady hum of the car, I guessed that I might fall asleep, too, but after fifteen miles, I was still wide awake. Alicia seemed to be sleeping soundly, so I decided to ask Adam some more questions about his beliefs.

“So, Adam, are you going to tell me about Jesus? I really would like to hear more about Him.”

Adam glanced over at me. “I’m glad you asked. I think that shows that you are truly interested.”

“I am. It means so much to you…”

Adam rolled his eyes and the expression on his face told me that I had let him down again. “It doesn’t matter if it means a lot to me. It needs to mean a lot to you. And let me make this clear, I’m not telling you the Gospel in order to make you acceptable as a girlfriend. I’m concerned about your soul, Brandy…”

“So you aren’t going to tell me?”

“Yes, I’m still going to tell you. I just want you to know that this has nothing to do with my relationship with you.”

“Okay, I understand.” Besides, God was working on my relationship with Adam. We had an understanding.

Adam proceeded. “I think I’ve gone about this whole thing wrong. I shouldn’t have told you about the Trinity before telling you about Jesus’ love for us. I hope I didn’t confuse you too much. Anyway, it is very important to know that God loved you so much that He sent His Son Jesus to earth to die for your sins. And Jesus loved you so much that He was willing to be crucified so that his blood could redeem you.

“All of us are sinful, ever since Adam disobeyed God in the Garden and ate the forbidden fruit. We are each born sinful, and we are unable to do anything on our own to change that. The only way we can be forgiven and have everlasting life with God in Heaven is to accept that Jesus died on the cross for you. Then you have to repent your sins and pray for forgiveness. God is merciful. He will forgive you if you are truly sorry for the sins you’ve committed. And once He forgives you, you will be adopted into His family, and even future sins will not be counted against you. Once you accept that Jesus is God’s Son, Jesus becomes your intercessor. He will petition God the Father on your behalf…”

I heard everything Adam said, but it was a lot to take in. I just sat staring at him, and he seemed to be expecting more. I was really sorry that I couldn’t do whatever it was he wanted me to.

“Brandy, please consider what I’ve told you. There is so much more, but this is the most important part. Jesus died for you, for me, for all of us. If you want to come to know Jesus, you should try to find a Godly church and attend every week. And I hope you will start reading the Bible. I’m sure you don’t have one, so I’m going to give you mine when we get to your house. I am also going to continue praying for you. It would be wonderful if everyone could know Jesus the way I do, but if I can only help one person, you are the one I want to help. I care about you, Brandy, more than you know…” Adam clearly saw the joy that his last sentence brought, so he quickly added, “No, not like you are thinking. I’m not in love with you, Brandy. I have just found you to be a special person, and I want you to let Jesus into your life. Then you will let Him guide you, and you will find the right person to fall in love with.”

Adam got quiet, so I sat and tried to think about what he’d said. I was still trying to work out all the promises I had made God the day before. “Adam,” I started, “will Jesus help you get the things you ask God for? What if you promise to be good or to go to church all the time?’

“That’s two questions. First, Jesus does go to God on your behalf, but you can’t be asking for selfish or unnecessary things. But God doesn’t make deals, Brandy. A believer will want to go to church, read the Bible, be a good person
– but they don’t have to do any of those things to earn God’s favor. A person can only be saved by the grace of God through Jesus Christ. Promising to do good will not get your prayers answered. And know this, God doesn’t always answer your prayers, but He will always provide what you need.”

I sat back in my seat and looked out the window. So God wasn’t really helping me get Adam. He didn’t care about my promises. Of course, I had only planned to keep those promises until Adam was mine. After that, all bets were off. I suddenly realized that God was smart enough to figure that out. He was God after all.

“I’m going to really think about this, Adam. I want to believe, I just don’t really think I want to change though. I don’t want to have to go to church every week. I am going to read the Bible, but you will think it is for the wrong reasons…”

“I don’t think there can be a wrong reason, if you keep your heart and mind open. I’m sure you are going to read it because it is mine. That’s good enough for me. Hopefully, if you read it, things will change in your life.”

I was really moved by Adam’s concern for me. I would read his Bible, and maybe I would start going to church. But not every week. I could never do that. Maybe once a month. I decided that my goal would be to read from the Bible each week and try to go to church each month. I was sure I could manage that. But I didn’t promise God. I just made it a personal project. After all, the Bible was full of good stories and the right church would be full of good people. I couldn’t go wrong – I’d have to improve even if I didn’t get saved.

Before long, we were crossing the state line into Alabama. I began to feel drowsy, and I unfastened my seatbelt so I could get comfortable. I was soon fast asleep. I don’t know how long I slept, but when I woke up, my head was lying on Adam’s shoulder. His arm was around me, and I snuggled closer to him. He didn’t seem to mind. I could have drifted back to sleep, but I made myself stay awake so I could take pleasure in being this close to him. If he was aware that I was awake, he didn’t let on.

Once we crossed the Florida state line, Adam nudged me and said I should tell him which exit to take. I reluctantly moved away from him and looked around to get my bearings. I could also hear Alicia moving
around in the backseat. Of course, I wanted Adam to drop Alicia off first, so I turned around towards Alicia and said, “Which exit do you want Adam to take?”

“You know the exit, Brandy…the one for Highway 29 South. I can never remember the exit number.”

“I think it is exit 10A,” I said. I turned back around and buckled my seatbelt.

Adam asked Alicia if she’d had a good nap. She replied that she had. “And I can’t wait to get home,” she added. I was ready to be home too, but I knew that would mean that Adam would soon be leaving.

“How did you sleep, Brandy?” Adam asked.

“Okay,” I said. “I’m sorry I dozed off and didn’t keep you company.”

“It was fine. I needed to do some thinking. I have a lot of decisions to make.” I was hoping he was deciding to give me another chance.

Alicia called out, “Brandy, did you call Terry and tell him you were all right?” I had known that Alicia would get around to mentioning Terry in front of Adam. I didn’t care
– Terry was just my roommate.

“No,” I said. “He probably hasn’t even missed me. I think he was going hiking with one of his friends for the weekend.”

“Who is Terry?” Adam asked. Was that jealousy I detected in his voice?

“He’s my roommate. We rent a house together. I guess we are also friends, even though we don’t spend much time together, and we have absolutely nothing in common.”

Alicia laughed from the backseat. “What was that all about?” Adam asked.

“Oh, nothing,” Alicia snickered.

“She’s just trying to make you think Terry is more than what I said. She can’t believe that a guy and a girl could live together without being intimate.”

“She has a good point. I’m not saying that you are intimate with Terry, but you have to understand that people are going to think that.”

“I don’t care what anyone thinks.”

“Well, you should care about your reputation. It can affect many aspects of your life. Some employers might hold it against you if you have a blemished reputation. And they aren’t the only ones. It may not seem fair, but the world isn’t fair. And there’s even more to consider. If you are living with a man, there is always a chance that you could become intimate. Things happen. You have too much to drink, your lonely, your depressed…”

“That’s not ever going to happen to Terry and me. I’m not even remotely attracted to him…”

“Like that ever stopped you before,” Alicia chimed in. “Do you want me to remind you?”

“No,” I shouted. “I’m done with this conversation.” But I was thinking about what Adam said. I was pretty sure that Jesus wouldn’t approve of my living arrangement.

By now, we were approaching the exit. Adam moved onto the exit ramp and then pulled smoothly out into the traffic on Highway 29. Alicia directed him through the multitude of red lights until we reached “W” Street where she told him to take a right. After going five or six miles, we eventually turned right on Navy Boulevard. Alicia told Adam to follow the signs for Highway 98. We drove through four red lights and turned right at the fifth one. We passed Navy housing and the Navy Commissary on the right. A few miles later, Alicia told Adam to turn right. Her parents owned a house in the community of Myrtle Grove and Alicia was leading us through one of her shortcuts.

We soon pulled up in front of a red brick ranch-style home with a manicured lawn. The house had been home to her parents for the last twelve years. Alicia lived on her parent’s property in a detached garage that had been remodeled into an efficiency apartment. The apartment looked like a scale model of the main house right down to the mahogany door entrance. Alicia opened the door to the car and stepped out. “Don’t you want to come in?” she asked.

“Do you think we could, Adam? I really need to use the restroom.” I was certain I’d never make it to my house.

“Sure,” he answered.

We walked towards Alicia’s apartment. Over to the right, a majestic magnolia tree was covered in velvety white flowers and their sweet fragrance filled the air. The tree’s broad green leaves created a lengthy shadow that engulfed the small building, and one corner of the roof was covered in old leaves that had accumulated over the winter.

Once inside, Alicia’s fancies became evident. She loved anything that hinted at a country theme. Many of the items in her home were made by her, and she was quite the little crafter. The apartment consisted of one large room with a kitchenette and a bathroom. In the large room, she had an ecru colored overstuffed sofa upholstered in nubby linen. The sofa was adorned by a brightly colored patchwork quilt and two needlepoint pillows – all of which Alicia had sewn. Her end tables were of an early American design, although they were not antiques. The paint on these appeared to be peeling, but that added to their charm. On the tables were lamps with distressed wood bases and parchment shades. The coffee table was an old steamer trunk with a flat top. There was a 27-inch TV sitting on a gray finished entertainment stand. The walls of the room were painted off-white, and Alicia had decorated them with homemade crafts – many bearing syrupy sentiments such as “Home Sweet Home”. The windows were dressed in tab top light blue gingham curtains and the dark brown carpet on the floor was dotted with colorful rag rugs. Along the wall next to the bathroom, Alicia had positioned a four poster twin-sized bed. It was dressed in another one of Alicia’s pieced quilts, a blue trimmed white dust ruffle, and several throw pillows. The kitchenette was separated from the rest of the room by an island that had a butcher block top and oak cabinets. Both these cabinets and the ones over the stove and sink were decorated with blue gingham material that Alicia had somehow attached to their doors. Her stove and sink were tiny, but both were accented by country themed knickknacks. Alicia’s home was very warm and inviting.

Alicia asked us to sit down and Adam sat down on the edge of the couch. I was trying to hurry to the bathroom, so I excused myself and rushed through the door beside Alicia’s bed. The bathroom was similar to the rest of her house. The only variation in the theme was calico instead of gingham. Her window and shower curtains displayed a soft blue calico design. Her toilet was wearing a Wedgwood colored plush tank set that complemented the calico. Rugs on the floor matched the tank set. On top of the toilet tank was a doll dressed in a white with blue trim crocheted dress that blossomed at the bottom to hide a spare roll of toilet paper. I didn’t really notice any of this when I entered the room because I was in a big hurry to get my pants down. I just remembered everything from the thousands of times I had been in the room before.

When I returned to the front of the house, Adam excused himself and went into the restroom. I took this opportunity to question Alicia. “So what is going on between you and Rick? What was with all the crying?”