Class dismissed, Heart Enlisted [JesBible]

7 [The Wedding Bombshell]

Bible lay sprawled across the couch in his living room, flipping through channels on the TV. His earlier frustration with Jes had finally started to melt away, replaced by the peaceful comfort of being at home. Finally, some time to relax, he thought. The last thing on his mind was anything to do with school—or Jes.

Just as Bible started to get comfortable, his mother appeared from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron.

"Bible, sweetie, could you come here for a second?" she called out.

"Yeah, what's up, Mom?" Bible asked, not bothering to look away from the screen.

"Make sure you're presentable, okay? We have guests coming over soon."

Bible frowned, confused, as he turned to look at her. "Guests? What guests?"

His mom hesitated for a moment, then gave him a warm but slightly nervous smile. “Actually, it’s not just guests… it’s something important. You should probably sit up for this.”

Bible’s confusion deepened as he swung his legs off the couch and sat up. “Important? What’s going on?”

His mom let out a small sigh and walked over, sitting down beside him. She placed a hand on his shoulder, which only made Bible more anxious. “Sweetie, there’s something I need to tell you. It’s about a promise… a very old promise.”

Bible’s stomach twisted in knots. This can’t be good.

“A promise?” he echoed.

His mom nodded, her smile faltering. “You see, your grandpa made a promise to his best friend many years ago… before you were even born.”

"Okay…?" Bible dragged the word out, still not understanding where this was going.

“Well, they promised that one day, their families would be joined together… through marriage,” his mom explained, her voice soft and steady.

Bible blinked, not sure if he had heard her correctly. “Wait. What? Marriage? Whose marriage?”

His mom gave him an apologetic look. “Yours.”

For a moment, Bible could only sit there, frozen in shock. His mind struggled to process what his mom had just said. Marriage? Me?!

“You… you can’t be serious,” Bible finally stammered, his heart racing. “I’m supposed to marry… a stranger?”

His mom stood up quickly, smoothing down her apron as if she couldn’t handle the tension. “I know it’s a lot to take in, sweetie, but you’ll meet them soon. They’re coming over for dinner tonight, so please, get dressed and be on your best behavior.”

Before Bible could even react or argue, his mom hurried out of the room, leaving him sitting there in stunned silence. He stared at the door she had just walked through, his mind whirling.

I’m going to get married? he thought, disbelief washing over him. To a stranger? And his grandpa was behind all of this?

Grabbing his phone, Bible immediately called Bas, his heart still pounding.

“Bas, you have to come over. Right now.”

---

Not long after, Bas arrived at Bible’s house, concern etched on his face as soon as he stepped through the door. Bible was pacing frantically in the living room, looking like he was on the verge of a breakdown.

“Dude, what’s going on?” Bas asked, walking up to him.

Bible turned to face his best friend, his expression panicked. “You’re not going to believe this. My grandpa—he… he made a promise years ago that I’d marry someone! And now it’s happening!”

Bas’s eyes widened. “Wait, what? You’re getting married?! To who?”

“I don’t know!” Bible groaned, throwing his hands in the air. “Some stranger! Apparently, it’s my grandpa’s best friend’s family or something. I have no idea who they are! Can you believe this?”

Bas blinked, still processing the information. “That’s… insane.”

“I know!” Bible cried, collapsing dramatically onto the couch. He buried his face in his hands before looking up at Bas with wide, desperate eyes. “What am I supposed to do, Bas? I can’t marry someone I don’t know! What if they’re awful?”

Bas tried to hide a smile as Bible continued to panic, but seeing his friend so distressed, he sighed and sat next to him.

“Maybe it won’t be that bad. You haven’t even met them yet. It could be someone nice, right?” Bas tried to reason.

But Bible wasn’t having it. He jumped up from the couch, pacing even more frantically. “No, no, no. I can’t do this, Bas. I can’t marry someone just because of some old promise! I’m too young, I have plans, I have dreams! This… this is ridiculous!”

Bas watched him for a moment, biting his lip before cautiously asking, “So… what are you going to do?”

Bible stopped in his tracks, turning to face Bas with a wild, desperate look in his eyes. “I’m going to run away.”

Bas blinked in surprise. “What? Run away? Bible, come on, that’s a bit extreme, don’t you think?”

“No, it’s the only way!” Bible exclaimed, grabbing Bas by the shoulders. “I can’t go through with this. I don’t care who they are or what this promise is. I need to get out of here, Bas. You’ve got to help me.”

Bas hesitated, glancing around as if someone might overhear. “Bible, you can’t just run away. Where would you even go?”

“I don’t know,” Bible admitted, his voice trembling. “But I can’t stay here. I need to get as far away from this as possible. You’re my best friend, Bas. Please. Help me.”

Bas shifted uncomfortably, clearly torn. “Bible… this is crazy. What if you regret it later? What if it’s not as bad as you think?”

Bible shook his head furiously. “I won’t regret it. I know I won’t. I just… I need to escape this whole situation before it’s too late. Please, Bas. You’re the only one I can count on.”

Bas ran a hand through his hair, clearly struggling with the decision. “I don’t know, Bible. Running away sounds like a huge risk. What if things go wrong?”

“Then I’ll deal with it,” Bible said firmly, gripping Bas’s arm. “But I can’t stay here and go through with this. I’ll lose my mind. Please, Bas… help me.”

For a long moment, Bas remained silent, his expression conflicted. But finally, with a sigh of resignation, he nodded.

“Okay,” Bas said quietly. “I’ll help you. But we have to be smart about this.”

Bible’s eyes lit up with relief, and he threw his arms around Bas in a tight hug. “Thank you, Bas. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

Bas hugged him back, still uncertain but knowing that, no matter what, he couldn’t let his best friend face this alone. “Just promise me we’ll figure it out together, alright? No doing anything stupid.”

“I promise,” Bible said, already feeling a surge of hope as he pulled away. “We’ll figure it out. Together.”