Unfold

Chapter Three (3)

Shawn Lewis knew that this night was not going to end well. Ultimately, it would be good, but he knew what needed to be done. He had been avoiding the convictions like the plague.

Megan knew it too. They couldn't keep living in the tension like they were.

She opened the door of her apartment for him and didn't say a word. She walked back over to the couch and sat down, her eyes blazing as she stared across the room at him.

He slowly walked over to the other end of the couch and sat down on its edge. He felt like he was walking on eggshells already. Megan shooting daggers at him wasn't helping.

"Hey," he said, realizing she wasn't going to speak first.

"You've changed."

Shawn couldn't help but smile at her quick comment. "Shouldn't we all be trying to change?"

Megan crossed her arms and leaned back against the couch. It was clear she wasn't amused by him. Shawn decided to wait her out and see what was going on in her head.

"And you actually believe in all that stuff? You're gonna base your life on a book that is probably made up?"

"Well, first of all, it's not a book. It's a collection of historical documents—"

"Don't get smart with me Shawn."

It took everything in him not to smirk at her reaction. He studied her face, praying that God would soften her heart. She had always been stubborn, but she never gave his faith a chance. As much as he loved her, it had become clear that their relationship was not going to work. If God hadn't made that clear, his friends and family had. He guessed he just had a way of seeing the best in people.

"I'm not trying to be smart," Shawn said calmly. "I'm just saying, if you actually looked into it for yourself, it might surprise you."

She stood up and walked over to the window. "You know, I was okay with you going to church. I was cool with you helping with the youth kids or whatever. But you don't have to pull me along on this journey of self-discovery. Unlike you, I'm emotionally stable and don't need to pretend there's some God looking out for me just to get through."

Shawn turned around and faced the other direction so she wouldn't be offended by the smile on his face by pure amusement. The most emotionally unstable girl in the world claiming that he was the one who needed help. This girl needed Jesus more than anyone he knew.

"Megan, I wish you would just open your mind—"

Megan spun around and faced him, pointing a finger in his chest. "I will not become a gay-hating, hypocritical brain-washed cult member like you've become, and there's nothing you can say that will change my mind."

There it was.

Shawn stared down into her brown eyes. He understood where she was coming from. He too had believed those same things about Christians not that long ago. Sadly, her description was accurate about some, but he knew that's not what it was ever intended to be. People went and messed it up, making God what they wanted him to be so it fit with their lives. He just wished she could see the truth.

What had happened in her life to make her so hard? In the three years that he'd known her, he'd seen her cry once, but she brushed it off and recovered almost too quickly. Anger was like a second language to her, and it only seemed to be getting worse as time went on. Would she cry after he left here tonight? Would she wait until she was alone? Or would be just let the anger harbor and hate him all the more?

"I'm sorry, Megan, but I pray that one day you'll be able to see that it's not what you think it is."

Megan backed away from him, her eyes still piercing his. She was bold, fearless. She wasn't afraid to tell him anything. It was probably the reason she didn't have many close girlfriends in her life; she was not for the faint of heart. Shawn, however, had years of practice and was strong enough not to let anything she said phase him.