Saved Folk in the House (14 page)

After seeing a crash dummies commercial and learning that you could get a ticket for not using seat belts, Shay assumed the responsibility for making sure her family rode in safety. Even if they were already buckled up, Shay said it anyway. It became a habit. Sometimes they needed the reminder, sometimes they didn’t. But they got it whether they needed it or not. That was her job.

Nikki was pleased with them when they acted responsibly. Shay, like her brother, sought to make her mother happy, mostly because she couldn’t stand it when Nikki yelled at her. So Shay, too, studied her mother to learn what it was that she had to do to keep her calm and content.

When they pulled up on the campus of WMM, they were amazed at what they saw. There was a sea of vehicles on acres and acres of land, people galore trying to get into several buildings, as well as an army of parking attendants and policemen directing traffic. There were lines and lines of people looking like they were waiting to get into a music concert.

When she called earlier to find out what time service started, Nikki was told seven o’clock, nine o’clock, and eleven o’clock on Sunday mornings and seven o’clock on Wednesday evenings. She chose the nine o’clock service because it wasn’t too early or too late. The scene outside so excited them that they could hardly wait to get on the inside. Some people were dressed up in suits and hats, while others were dressed down in jeans, T-shirts, and sneakers. Never had she seen that at her old church, Richmond Baptist. The men always had on ties and jackets. You could hardly see the pulpit for the hats that more than half the women wore.

Nikki was directed to the children’s church to deliver the kids to their appropriate classes. Shay and Taj were in the same class, since they were only a year apart in age, and Mia’s class was across the hall. Once they were all settled, Nikki went over to the main building and got in one of the lines that led into the sanctuary. The lines went out of the exit doors and wrapped around the building. Nikki carefully followed the instructions that the ushers yelled at the worshippers and flowed right in with the crowd. She got pushed through the door, down the hallway into the sanctuary, and into a seat. The music ushered them in. The crowd was praising and worshipping God.

This is what the Bible means by entering into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise,
she thought. It all flowed smoothly, even though there were so many people. Being one in the Spirit was the only way order could be kept—and flowing in obedience to the instructions of the ushers, of course.

Once settled in her seat, Nikki looked around. As she took it all in, joy came out of her in the form of uncontrollable tears. She let them flow freely, laughing out loud, shouting, “Hallelujah.” Lifting her hands in praise, clapping, rocking side to side, and stomping her feet, Nikki realized she had never felt so close to God before. This was nothing like the praise and worship at her old church. She knew she was home. Following the praise team, even though the songs were not familiar, she joined in the praise and worship. She cried some more and thanked the Lord for bringing her to Way Maker’s.

After praise and worship was over and the congregation squeezed into their seats like sardines, Nikki managed to regain control of herself and her tears. Ushers were walking the aisles with tissues and offered her some. Wiping her eyes, she took in more of her surroundings. The sanctuary was exactly like it looked on TV, with wooden pews, stained-glass windows, and live plants and flowers decorating the pulpit. The band was to the left of the choir, and TV cameras were all over. The baptismal pool was behind the choir, and there was a balcony. It was a traditional sanctuary except for the cameras, although a much larger, more modern place of worship was under construction nearby. It hit her that this was the scene that she had been viewing every week on TV for the last few years. The revelation almost overwhelmed her, and she rocked back and forth in her seat thanking Jesus.

After the announcements and other preliminaries, she began to settle down. Pastor Freeman arrived and Nikki froze. She could not take her eyes off him. Here in the same room with her was her link to everything her heart desired. She closed her eyes and remembered watching him on TV at home in Virginia, then opened them to see him right there in the flesh. He had always spoken directly to whatever she was going through at the time, providing comfort and direction. At first, she had thought that somehow he personally knew about her, her divorce and fears about single parenting. Then she realized that he did not, but that the Holy Spirit ministering through him knew her and loved her dearly. She kept opening and closing her eyes until the tears flowed again as the revelation of where God had brought her embraced her. She had been delivered, and her future was brighter than ever.

When the pastor got up to preach, all the people disappeared in Nikki’s mind, and no one was there but the two of them. After a few minutes, Pastor Freeman disappeared too, and only Nikki and the Word of God that was coming out of his mouth were there. The Word had taken on a life all its own. It was no longer just a man standing there talking directly to Nikki who began filling her, molding her, and anointing her for whatever God led her to do. The most powerful force there is, the Word of God itself, was ministering to her, pouring itself right into her spirit. It was the most transforming experience of her life.

At the end of the message, Pastor Freeman was ushered out ahead of the crowd, and Nikki watched him leave. She felt numb. After service, as the crowd pushed her out the door, she staggered toward the minivan. Then, realizing she had not picked up the children, she turned around, still dazed a bit—what the pastor called drunk in the Spirit—and headed back to get in the line at the children’s church.

By the time everyone was retrieved, she was almost back to normal.

“How did you like church?” she asked on the drive home.

“It was great,” Taj said.

“We had fun,” Mia jumped in. “We read our Bibles, watched videos about Jesus, played games, and won prizes. Look what I won,” she said, showing Nikki a pad and pencil set. “Thanks for making me learn my books of the Bible, Mommy. I won because I knew the four Gospels.”

“I loved it too, Mommy,” Shay said. It took a lot to impress Shay. If she loved it, that said a lot to Nikki. “How was your church, Mommy?”

“Just plain awesome. I can’t wait for the next time. I heard somebody say that the weekly Bible study is just like Sunday service. I’m so looking forward to Wednesday,” Nikki said.

Getting something to eat and relaxing were next on their agenda. They went to a pancake restaurant because Nikki was too keyed up to cook. The food was pretty good and made everyone feel full and sleepy.

“I’m going to lay down for a couple of hours. What are you guys going to do?” Nikki asked as she opened the door and they all filed into the apartment.

“I’m sleepy too,” Shay said.

“Me too,” Taj agreed.

“Me three,” Mia said, yawning.

Everyone quickly changed clothes, found a comfortable spot, and went straight to sleep. Nikki dozed off, dreaming about how she was, without a doubt, sure that God had brought her to the right place.

Chapter Twenty

N
ikki spent the day on the phone, getting instructions to register the children for school. She learned that they needed to visit the health department to get their immunization records certified. She gathered all of the appropriate papers, and they were on their way.

Outside, her smiling neighbor was wiping down his car again.

What does he do?
Nikki’s curiosity was getting the best of her. “Hi. My name is Nikki Riley. This is my son, Taj, and my daughters, Shay and Mia,” she said, offering her hand to shake.

“I’m Randy Jordan. Nice to meet you,” he replied, shaking her hand.

Quickly thinking of something to say, Nikki asked, “Randy, do you know a good barber? Since we just moved here, I have to find one for my son.”

“My roommate cuts hair.”

“Really? Does he cut yours?” Nikki asked, checking out his haircut and concluding that if his roommate cut it, he was worth a try. She wondered if that cute guy with the girl was his roommate.

“Yes, he cuts mine.”

“Is he expensive, and does he make house calls?” Nikki asked jokingly, but really wanting to know. “What’s his name?” she continued before he had a chance to respond to her previous inquiry.

“Kevin,” Randy said, hesitating before answering the other questions. There was a pause as Nikki examined Randy’s haircut again.

“What do you think, Taj?” Nikki asked her son.

“We can try him out,” Taj said, nodding.

“Will you ask him if he will cut Taj’s hair for me, please?”

“Sure, I’ll ask him when he gets in tonight.”

With that settled and noticing that the writing on his T-shirt read “RHS Football Coaching Staff,” she asked, “What’s RHS?”

“Riverdale High School, where I teach,” Randy answered.

Finally! Mystery solved. He’s a teacher, and they have the summers off. That’s why he’s walking around here with nothing to do all day.
“What do you teach?” she asked.

“History,” he said.

“Interesting. You coach football too?”

“Yeah. I coach the wide receivers.”

“Cool,” Nikki responded, visibly impressed. She always thought teachers and coaches were the most important people in the world. She knew many young men who survived the streets only because of their high school coaches. They replaced a lot of the absent fathers and helped get some of the players into college, many of them on scholarship. And teachers in general, but especially high school teachers, had the toughest job in the world. To motivate high school students to do well and prepare them for life had to take a special type of individual.

“Where are you from?” Randy asked.

“Virginia,” Taj answered.

“Richmond, Virginia,” Mia said, “and I want to go back. I miss my granddaddy.”

“That’s our cue to leave,” Nikki said. “See you later, Randy.”

“Bye. Nice meeting you,” he said.

They got in the minivan, directions in hand, and headed to the health department. After all of the shots and tests were taken, they had to wait for the records to be updated. Finally, they left with all the required paperwork completed.

“That took forever. Let’s go get something to eat,” Nikki said as they headed to the car.

As they were walking into the apartment, Nikki heard a door shut downstairs. She hesitated and looked to see who it was. She spotted the first guy she had met, this time accompanied by a young boy. She went in the apartment thinking,
He has a son about Taj’s age.

Later that night, there was a knock on the door. When Nikki looked through the peephole, she saw a vaguely familiar face. She opened the door with the chain still on to get a better look at the big, good-looking guy. He resembled a linebacker and wore shorts and a T-shirt, showcasing his thick neck, broad chest, and muscular legs. Between the tall and thin basketball type and the shorter, more muscular and strong football type, she preferred the football type, being drawn to strength. Her ex-husband, Sam, had been that way when they first met, before he let his body deteriorate from drugs.

“Hi. I’m Kevin Washington from downstairs. My roommate said your son needed a barber.” He spoke without smiling.

“Oh,” she said, closing the door, removing the chain, and opening it all the way so that he could enter. “Come in.”

Kevin came in without saying a word and stood stiffly by the door as Nikki locked it. She turned to him and snuck another quick complete view.

So serious,
Nikki thought. “Hi, I’m Nikki. My son needs a haircut like yesterday,” she said, trying to loosen him up.

“I have time now,” Kevin said, still serious.

He doesn’t mess around,
she thought. “How much do you charge?” she asked.

“Six dollars.”

“Okay. Can you cut it here?” she asked, thinking that was a good deal, hoping she would get more than her money’s worth in terms of quality. Haircuts back home had gone up to ten dollars.

“Sure. I’ll go get my clippers. I’ll be right back,” he said as he turned and let himself out.

A few minutes later, when he returned, Kevin looked around her living room and said, “Wow! It’s like night and day.” He was obviously impressed.

“What is?” Nikki asked.

“Your apartment compared to ours,” he said.

That’s a refreshing touch of honesty,
she thought. “Thanks, I guess,” she said, not wanting to sound presumptuous.

“No, this is nice. It’s hooked up,” Kevin said, still not smiling.

This is a serious guy.
“Well, thank you very much. Now, where do you want to cut my son’s hair?”

“The kitchen will be fine. The light is probably better in there than anywhere else.”

“Okay. Taj!” she called.

Taj came out of his room, and seeing Kevin, he moved close beside his mother.

Putting her arm around her son’s shoulder, she introduced them. “Taj, this is Kevin, our neighbor and Randy’s, who we met earlier, roommate. He’s here to cut your hair.”

Kevin came over, and they solemnly shook hands.

“Hey, man, how you doing?” Kevin asked.

“Fine,” Taj said.

“Are you ready to do this?”

“I guess,” Taj responded, shrugging.

Taj sat in a chair in the kitchen as Kevin draped him. When he started combing through Taj’s hair, Nikki got out of the way. She could see them from across the breakfast bar while she organized some things in the living room. She couldn’t help but notice how intense Kevin was.
He and his roommate must get along really well because they appear to be total opposites. Randy seems friendly, smiling all the time, while Kevin seems so serious. I haven’t seen him smile yet. Probably got a jacked-up grill.

The haircut turned out pretty well, so Nikki gave Kevin a ten-dollar bill and told him to keep the change.

“Thanks a lot,” he said, packing up his tools.

Taj was sweeping up his hair off the floor.