Made to Shine

Made to Shine Chapter 6

Chapter 6

After school, Emily headed to the bakery. When Emily arrived, her grandparents had no idea of the incident at school. She was good at hiding those emotions and tell tale signs from school. Emily began working the counter and helping out, meeting the needs of the customers, and talking to them. Up until a few days ago, these regular customers were her only friends.

At closing, Emily shut the blinds and began cleaning. As she cleaned, she sang.

"You are my hiding place 

You always fill my heart 

With songs of deliverance 

Whenever I am afraid 

I will trust in You

I will trust in You 

Let the weak say 

I am strong 

In the strength of the Lord 

You are my hiding place 

You always fill my heart 

With songs of deliverance 

Whenever I am afraid 

I will trust in You

I will trust in You 

Let the weak say I am strong 

In the strength of the Lord  

I will trust in You"

Emily was unaware that the crowd on the sidewalk was growing to hear her sing. She was singing to the Lord, thanking Him for helping her get through the incident today with Mark. As she sang, she was also thanking God for sending Ben to help her and to be her friend. She was still amazed that he wanted to hang out with her rather than the cute popular girls. She was praising God for his mercy as she sang and it sounded like an angel worshiping God in the throne room of heaven. As she repeated the song in worship, tears began to fall down her face and she found herself on her knees, with her hands outstretched to the heavens worshiping her Savior.

"You are my hiding place 

You always fill my heart 

With songs of deliverance 

Whenever I am afraid 

I will trust in You

I will trust in You 

Let the weak say 

I am strong 

In the strength of the Lord 

You are my hiding place 

You always fill my heart 

With songs of deliverance 

Whenever I am afraid 

I will trust in You

I will trust in You 

Let the weak say I am strong 

In the strength of the Lord  

I will trust in You"

Emily rose from the floor, washed her face in the sink and walked up the stairs to her grandparents apartment. She went straight to her room and crawled into bed. She wasn't hungry, she wasn't thirsty, but she just wanted to rest. A little after 11 PM, she heard something tapping on her window. She looked outside and saw Ben standing in the alley under her window. She motioned for him to give her a minute and meet her out front. She ran to the bathroom and tried to fix her hair that was starting to come out of it's braid. She decided to bring it down and brush it, but the braid made her hair wavy. Then, she quickly brushed her teeth.

She ran downstairs and unlocked the front door and met Ben at the table they had shared the past few nights.

Ben had been worried about her since he left her in the hallway. He hoped Mark or Tim had not bothered her. "How do you feel?" he asked as he reached over to hold her hand.

"Tired," She said. "Thank you for helping me today." Emily said as she stroked his hand with her thumb.

"Did you tell your grandparents?"

"No! I really don't want to either. Let's talk about something else... How was the football game?"

"We won, no thanks to me!" He said. Emily wrinkled her brow and he continued, "I was too worried about other things to concentrate. Coach knew it and took me out of the game at halftime."

They sat quietly for a few minutes enjoying the stars and the quiet street. Then Ben asked, "Can I ask you a question? I really want to know, but I will understand if you don't want to answer."

"OK." Emily said as she furrowed her brow.

"Who left you? I mean, who did you love that left you alone?"

"It was a long time ago. And honestly, I thought I was over it. But I guess even though it was a deep cut to my heart and it may have healed, the scar will always be there..." Emily took a deep breath. "Please understand I am not mad at her anymore. I have forgiven her, even though it hurts. My mom was my age when she had me. I can't imagine how difficult that can be. She finished high school, and then left me with Grandma and Grandpa. I have not seen her in many years. I met her husband once and she introduced me as her sister...not her daughter, like she was ashamed of me. We get a Christmas card every year. She is now married with one child and another on the way. Her husband is a banker.  Grandma and Grandpa gave up everything for me, scrimps by every month. They need to retire soon and yet they can't afford to."

Ben sat in silence as Emily told her story. WOW! He had no idea all she had been through. He now understood why it was hard to let anyone close. He also knew that he was honored that she was letting him in. No matter what, he would do whatever he could to never let her down.

"You know..." He started, "My family is not perfect. But, I was wondering if you would like to come over for dinner tomorrow night? Dad is going to grill and then we will either watch a movie or play games."

"OK. Grandma and Grandpa have been wanting me to get out of the house and do something with friends. Now, I won't have to go to the dollar movie and sit by myself, killing time until I can go home again. It sounds like fun."

Ben laughed, "Well, I can promise you it will be more exciting than that, but I don't know how fun it will be." Emily joined him in laughing. "Can I pick you up around 6:30?"

"Sure." Emily said. "I am really beat. I better get to bed."

She stood up to leave and Ben took her hand, he put his free hand around her neck and pulled her in slow for a kiss. It was gentle and sweet and everything Emily had ever dreamed of for a first kiss. Ben stood there to make sure she got in OK and locked the door before he turned around to walk home. As he walked he felt like he was walking on air. The bad parts of today were blocked out of his mind and he focused on the last hour of time spent with Emily.