A Church Love Story

Chapter 1 - Late for Church

Staring in the mirror in my room, I Iooked over at the confident new woman I had become. Gone were the insecurities that used to cripple me, and instead, I stood tall smiling at the person reflected back. It had been a journey of self-discovery that I thanked God for. My teenage years were spent full of comparison, mean popular girls, and of course the invisibility cloak I seemed to wear around boys in my high school.

It was one of the first Sunday mornings in summer, and I was getting ready for church. I wore a mustard blazer dress with nude heels and nude clutch to match. I had straightened my 14-inch lace front and flipped the ends giving it that 90s bob I had seen all over Instagram lately. I had opted for a soft glam look today, nude mauve glossy lip with a simple matte brown eyeshadow and of course my wispy falsies. Everyone in church knew me to be the self-proclaimed fashionista that always dressed like someone was getting married. I couldn't help it. I loved my church. I was excited to go. Every Sunday was an event.

"Deborah!" my mum screamed from the hallway downstairs. Thus, indicating we were running late as per usual.

"Coming!" I said as I quickly grabbed my bible and tried to squeeze it in my clutch. Looking around my room, I quickly grasped the gold jewellery on my vanity to add to the already over the top outfit.

"DEBORAH YOU'RE ALWAYS MAKING US LATE!" My mum's Nigerian accent became thicker the angrier she got. I knew I was pushing it.

Trying not to trip over my ridiculously high heels, I ran down the stairs.

My mum gave me the once over, and the next words would determine whether I had to get changed.

"Beautiful, love." She smiled her toothy grin. My mum was stunning the kind of beauty that didn't age. Her skin showed no sign of it at 50. Her glowy makeup enhanced her features, and she had opted for her ombre curly long wig we had got her for her birthday and a navy blue midi wrap dress with a sparkly broach. Of course, her heels and bag had to match.

"What about me?" My little sister grumbled under her breath. She's 15 and puberty has kicked in. My sisters usual casual street style replaced with patterned flared pants and a black blouse.

"Of course, you're beautiful! All my children are beautiful. God didn't give me any ugly children." She turned to her, earning a smile of my sister.

"Anyway enough chit chat we're off to church!" My mum hurried us towards the front door and into the car.

Our church was a 30-minute drive. We had been going to this church since I was 10, the members had become our family. The church was a medium-size the kind of size where you knew everyone's name. But it was growing each day, and the pastor had new plans to remodel it and build it bigger.

We finally arrived. My mum quickly scurried across the parking lot, giving a quick wave to the aunties and heading inside. Me and my sister followed in fast pursuit. Before we could even get to the door, a familiar voice stopped my sister and me.

"GIRLS! How are you? Wheres your MOM?" Sparkly aunty screamed. We had given her this nickname as everything she wore was some form of sequin glitter concoction. She was the kindest aunty by far and always gave off a sweet, genuine aura.

"Aunty we're good thank you. Sorry, we're late." I said on behalf of us. I took the chance to pull my sister inside quickly. The longer we stood outside, the more aunties we were going to attract.

"Deborah? You're late." Willy said as he stood at the door. His face was more disappointed than usual. Willy was my church dad as well as the usher leader he looked out for me.

"Sorry, Willy." I mustered the most adorable face I could make.

"That isn't going to work today. You're supposed to be ushering."

Ahhh I forgot. My sister quickly left my side and went into the main church building and joined the rest of the congregation.

Willy read my mind.

"Soo I'm guessing you forgot." His face became even more disappointed.

I chose to keep silent. I knew a rant was coming.

"Deborah this has been the fifth time you've been late or forgotten. You need to take this more seriously. I promoted you to cup service, and you weren't here, so I had to fill the cup for the pastor. It is just not on. I'm going to have to think about changing your position if you can't handle the responsibility."

He did realise the church wasn't paying me.

"Anyway, you can take over from me now and greet people at the door. After service, me and you are continuing this conversation. Alrighty?"

I answered with a simple nod. I knew his anger would soon pass.

Willy left me alone in the doorway.

The church service had started 10 minutes ago, so I knew not many more people would come in. I greeted everyone with a smile saying the usual "Good morning. How are you?" or "Lovely weather" "So nice to see you." I gave a handshake or a hug, but the vast majority of people wanted a hug. Church makes everyone friendly. I would provide them with a church newsletter if I remembered to. Not gonna lie I am a pretty good usher.

It had been 30 mins since the start of the church, the worship was ending, and the preaching was about to start, which was my queue to head in too. As I left the doorway, a figure entered.

Quite late I wonder who it is.

A young guy who looked in his late 20s entered. He was different from anyone in the church. He wore a white long sleeve shirt, but I could still see hints of a sleeve tattoo on his wrist and collar bone. His curly hair was a sandy blonde colour, and his eyes were the brightest shade of blue I had ever seen. His facial hair was perfectly carved to frame his face. I didn't even realise how long I had been staring until my thoughts were interrupted

"Hi ermm, I'm new here. I don't know where I'm supposed to go." His voice surprised me more than his looks, his accent was Irish. Which was completely different from the Northern accent of the area I lived in.

"Oh erm... erm that's fine. I'll give you a newsletter about our church." I mumbled. My words were mixing. His piercing eyes felt like they were staring into my soul. I awkwardly handed over the newsletter, trying my best to avoid eye contact.

"Thank you. I'm James. Nice to meet you...?" He offered his hand out. I sheepishly placed mine. His hands were big and warm despite the cold from outside. I shook his hand for what felt like a lifetime.

"Deborah. It's nice to meet you too." I gave a smile, and he smiled back. His smile was warm, and as he did, I noticed his dimples. I let go of his hand. What was wrong with me? Why was I acting so weird?

"Where do I head to?" He asked, looking around the doorway.

I pointed to the big glass doors leading to the main church hall.

"I'm going in now... you can follow me" I said as I headed into the service.

Our pastor had just begun preaching. I looked around the room for empty seats. My church was very diverse. We had pretty much every race. But there was a slight divide the African families sat together while the British families sat together. It wasn't on purpose, but that's just what happened.

All my friends had seats filled next to them. There were only two seats available in the middle column at the back. I made my way over and sat down. James then filled the next place. His timber cologne was now evident and as he sat down his arm pressed against mine. The muscles in his arms.... Oh, this was going to be long service.

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Thank you for reading my story! :D I'm so excited to start this. Please give it a like and comment it'll motivate me to write more. I'm thinking of doing a cast list for everyone, but I'm not sure. If you'd prefer one then let me know :D