175 Years

Cathedral Plaza

After school, Macy plodded towards her locker. No matter how convincing she thought she had been, Sophia still had no interest in going house hunting with her. Abandoned house hunting, that is.

Unfortunately, she wasn't going to be too pleasant to paint with today.

Opening her locker, she jumped back when a few unknown items came tumbling out of it.

A canvas. She leaned down to pick it up, finding a note squashed under the canvas as well.

"4 Cathedral Plaza." Macy glanced around, seeing if Sophia was about to pop out from around the corner and spout out her apologies for being an awful best friend. Instead, the hallway was dead silent.

With a new spring in her step, she ran to the bike rack and raced home to get her exploring boots. The kind that she didn't care about getting cow manure on.

"Where are you headed to?" Macy's mom asked as she was about to run out the door as quickly as she came in.

"4 Cathedral Plaza!" Macy slammed the door, not offering a second glance behind her. At least someone would know where she was in case this note was really a serial killer and she didn't come to school the next day.

Macy couldn't recall a time she pedaled so enthusiastically. On such a dreary day, this is exactly what she needed. Her camera slapped against her torso as she gained speed. She prayed the clouds wouldn't pour before she got to the address.

4 Cathedral Plaza. She hadn't remembered there being an abandoned house on that street. But it wasn't one that she went down often.

Fifteen minutes later, Macy pulled her bike up to the address. She had already rode past it twice. It just wasn't what she was expecting.

Why would Sophia want to meet her at the Catholic church? Should she go inside? She had never been inside the church before.

Fighting against her judgment, Macy pushed the large wooden door open and carefully stepped inside.

Boom. She shuddered as the wooden door loudly closed behind her. Choral music filled the space. It was like heaven.

If heaven smelled like an antique shop.

Spotting something shiny out of the corner of her eye, Macy walked up to the very back pew.

Paintbrushes. A new set too. Not like the used ones her and Leo had been using at the school.

A cough reverberated throughout the sanctuary, snapping Macy out of her thoughts.

She looked up to find a very slackened Leo, donning sweatpants instead of his usual dark wash jeans. His damp hair fell into his eyes even more messily than it had at school. Macy was tempted to push it out of his eyes.

"What are you doing here?" She asked. Very concerned that God would strike him dead by wearing something so laid back in a church. Although, she violated the whole Sunday dress attire too. Her cow manure boots were probably the biggest disgrace God's marble floors had ever seen.

"I'm here to help you paint." He said nonchalantly, snatching the paintbrushes from Macy's hands.

"If you're wanting to recreate the Sistine Chapel, I really don't think I'm ready for that yet."

Marley reminded herself that she was in God's house. The way Leo chuckled at her made her wish she was anyplace but. Lust wasn't a deadly sin, right? It's like one of those small ones that don't really matter in the scheme of things.

"Professor Price locked up the art room today. Said kids were stealing spray cans or something."

"And you thought of me?" Macy teased him, feigning surprise. "You even got me paintbrushes. See, you do like me."

"The first and only time that is ever happening." He reassured her. Although the smirk on his face told her differently.

"You still didn't answer my question. Why here?"

Just then, a dark robe entered into the sanctuary from the front. Macy's eyes widened, temporarily forgetting that she was in a church and that attire was normal.

"Leo," the sweet voice underneath the veil said. "Dinner's ready."

Macy's mind whirled. Dinner? At the Cathedral?

"Thanks, Martha."

"Oh, I didn't realize you were having guests. I'll fix a plate for you, too, dear." The little nun came up to me, putting her hand on my arm.

"Oh, I'm fine, really—"

"No. No, any friend of Leo's is welcome to dinner, too. I insist."

Macy glared at Leo for instruction. He didn't really want her to stay for dinner, did he? And he didn't even explain why he was having dinner here in the first place!

"She'd love to." He smiled towards Martha the Nun.

Macy wasn't sure whether to shoot Leo daggers or hearts. On the one hand, Leo was actually inviting her over for dinner.

On the other hand, Leo was actually inviting her over for dinner at a church. With nuns and priests. And offering no explanation.

And she thought she was going to be stepping in cow manure and exploring abandoned houses.