So Let Me Tell You What Happened

Chapter 18: Faith & Fury

It's finally Saturday, the day I decided to go to church and welcome Jesus into my heart. This past week had been a whirlwind from my clash with Deanesh to my parents' divorce and the nightmare where Deanesh tried to take my soul and my family. That dream was the final straw.

The girls, Karissa, Xalia and Jaelee, were still at the house with me, and they all agreed to accompany me to church, which was a relief. Somebody had to make breakfast, so I headed downstairs to the kitchen, took out the eggs from the fridge, and decided to whip up some egg omelets and sandwiches.

I whipped up the eggs into a delicious omelet, adding seasonings and other ingredients to give it a little extra flavor. Once I was done with that, I made some really good sandwiches and brewed some tea. Then, I called the girls downstairs to eat.

"Get your butts downstairs, breakfast is ready!" I yelled.

They all came downstairs, looking amazed by my cooking skills.

"Well, dang, I didn't know you could cook," Xalia said, impressed.

"I know, right? This smells delicious. I can't wait to take a bite," Jaelee added, eyes wide with anticipation.

"I've been cooking for the longest time now," I said, laughing. "But let's hurry and eat. We gotta praise the Lord today and get these demons out of us."

"Amen to that, sister," Karissa said. "But let me enjoy this breakfast first. You really outdid yourself, Dena."

"I sure did," I replied, feeling a sense of pride.

I'm so glad the girls loved my breakfast. I mean, who wouldn't? We started to dig in, and I have to say, it was delicious. As we were enjoying our meal, I saw my mom come into the kitchen, looking sad and crying. I stopped what I was doing and went to her.

She started ranting about how she missed Dad and how the divorce was a mistake. It was striking a nerve hearing her talk like this in front of me and the girls. I mean, come on, Mom, get it together.

I tried hard not to burst out at her while she went on in front of my friends. Then an idea came to my mind, bringing her to church with us. She kept nagging about it, but I wasn't backing down and wasn't taking no for an answer. After a good ten minutes of nagging, she finally decided to go with us.

So, boom. I knew I had to fix my mom up because she's been looking a mess lately. We all had to get ready. We styled ourselves to perfection, and damn, we looked fabulous. Time to hop in the car and head to God's house.

When we reached the church, it was packed. And guess who we saw? Deanesh and her mom. Just perfect.

"Great, my worst nightmare is everywhere I go," I muttered, rolling my eyes.

Karissa snorted. "What on earth is she doing at church now?"

Xalia added, "Good question, because that girl is the devil himself. Holy water ain't no use to her."

"Right?" I agreed.

Deanesh is like a bad penny, always turning up, even in my dreams. I'll be damned if I have another one featuring her. After a quick gossip session about Deanesh, we finally mustered up the courage to step into the church. We arrived just in time, which was a good thing. We greeted a few familiar faces since we hadn't been to church in a while, then took our seats.

The songs were lively, but honestly, it was kind of boring until a pregnant woman stormed in, accusing the pastor's son of doing the unforgivable. Yeah, he was the baby daddy. The drama turned the whole service into a comedy show, and the pastor's son, who'd been acting like a saint, was caught red-handed. All I could do was shake my head.

"Just look at that," I muttered, shaking my head in disbelief.

Karissa smirked. "Why does she have to bring all that drama here on a Sunday morning?"

Xalia laughed. "To expose him! Isn't he supposed to be all about God and faithfulness?"

Jaelee chimed in, "I would've been so ashamed. This is nasty work, pure devil's work."

"I feel y'all," I said, exasperated. "I don't know why I decided to come to church today with all this drama."

The woman then revealed that the pastor's son didn't want the baby and, oh, by the way, he also had a wife. The whole place erupted. People were clapping and laughing, the excitement palpable. I couldn't believe my eyes and ears; this was hilarious and outrageous all at once. They eventually took the situation outside, and the church service resumed.

A preacher lady decided to take over since the pastor was too ashamed and disappointed to continue. She asked if anyone wanted to make a confession. I stood up, all eyes on me, because Deanesh had been eyeing me the whole time and I was just fed up.

"This isn't a confession, but a stark warning to you all," I declared. "Be vigilant about who you call friends and scrutinize the people around you. They wear the masks of devils and thrive on seeing you falter. They are snakes in the grass, waiting to strike when you're at your most vulnerable. Beware the silent haters lurking in your midst."

Yeah, I was shading Deanesh, and she knew it too. She stormed up to the front of the church and grabbed the mike out of my hand.

"Watch out for those conniving, boyfriend-stealing parasites," she shot back. "They're fueled by jealousy, always scheming, and ready to snatch away what belongs to you."

I snatched the mike back from her, ready to put her in her place. "Oh, please. Like anyone would want your leftovers. Keep dreaming, honey. You're not worth the jealousy."

Karissa then shouted, "Spill the tea, girl!" and everyone was gawking at the drama unfolding. We were on the verge of throwing down, but our mother's swooped in, preventing a full-blown showdown. We exited the church, leaving behind the chaos.

My mom and Deanesh's mom are still thick as thieves, chatting like schoolgirls, so when my mom caught wind of the argument, she was livid. She didn't appreciate my little confrontation with Deanesh, but tough luck. Some truths need to be said, whether they like it or not.

Supposedly, I was on my way to salvation today, but it seems the universe had different plans. Guess I'll have to schedule that Jesus chat for another day. As for therapy, yeah, sign me up ASAP.

Back home, Karissa and the squad scattered, leaving just my mom and me. As we stepped inside, my mom's tears flowed once more.

"Mom, what's eating you?" I prodded.

"You know damn well," she choked out between sobs. "I miss your dad."

"Yeah, I know," I replied, unflinchingly honest. "But you two pulled a stunt; there's no undoing that. Rekindling things? Expect a rerun of the same old drama. Broken trust, suspicious glares-it's a toxic loop. You both shattered this family, and if anyone's got a right to be shedding tears, it's me and my brother."

"I'm sorry, Dena," she whimpered, her remorse palpable.

"You and Dad inflicted wounds that won't heal overnight," I shot back, my tone softened by the heaviness of the moment. "I forgive you both, but don't expect it to be smooth sailing from here on out."

"Dena," she whispered, her voice cracking with emotion.

I stormed away from the conversation, fed up and drained by the whole ordeal. No tears fell from my eyes; why waste them on something that's already dead and buried? I retreated to my room, shedding the facade of the day, slipping into comfortable clothes.

With my headphones on, I cranked up the volume, drowning out the noise with some hardcore tunes. Right now, I needed an escape, a distraction from the mess of my life. Therapy was calling my name, I needed help, and I wasn't going to ignore that call.