Project Archangel Book One: The Conspiracy Project

Chapter 20

“Oh my gosh, I can't wait to take a shower!” Mary, one of the girls in my group exclaimed as we entered our cabin.
“I can't wait to put down these heavy bags,” another girl named Mercedes complained as she dropped her bags onto the bottom bunk of the first bed.
Everyone else began to claim beds and drop off their stuff. I took the bottom bunk on one of the beds in a corner, close to the bathroom. I liked the corner best. It was like my own little space.
“Um... Mrs. Rachel,” a shy girl named Maddie with strawberry blonde hair spoke up. “There are only two showers.”
“I guess we'll have to take turns then,” Mrs. Rachel suggested.
“Great, I have to stand in a mass of someone else's dirt and skin cells if I wanted to take a shower,” Mercedes grumbled.
“It's a shower. It washes down the drain,” Mary said sarcastically.
“Now, girls,” Mrs. Rachel interrupted, breaking up the beginning dispute. “If you don't want to use the showers, you don't have to. You can take one when you get home tomorrow.”
“Ew!” Mercedes fussed. “A day without a shower? No way.”
“Then I guess you'll just have to suck it up,” a girl named Taylor put in.
“Girls! What are the rules? Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, remember? Two of you go take your showers, and the rest of you need to go sit down and chill out for a minute. There will be no arguing in this cabin. We're all friends here.”
Several girls grumbled, and Mary and Mercedes went to shower first while the rest of us relaxed in our chosen beds, some reading books and others texting. I finally got a moment to sit down and check my phone as well. Michael had sent me a message.
This is kind of awkward. I don't know these guys. They keep trying to talk to me, but I don't really care about sports or God...
At least they aren't arguing about how nasty the showers may or may not be and whether or not to take one today or wait until tomorrow.
Once everyone was showered and feeling better, we all had Bible study time. We went over several verses on purity and marriage together and talked about a woman's role in a godly relationship or marriage. Once that was over, it was lunch time. Finally, I could see the only person I really cared to talk to again.
---
Several obvious couples ran up to each other when we met up in the mess hall. The agony of not being able to embrace was pretty obvious on most of their faces, including mine most likely, but just seeing Michael made me feel better.
“Hey,” he greeted as we met up in the mess hall. 
“Hi,” I said with an awkward smile. I wasn't really sure why I felt so shy right now, but it probably had something to do with not being able to touch him and having to pretend to be well behaved.
“Um... I guess we should get some lunch?”
I nodded. “That's a good idea.”
We walked to the line together and started picking out our foods from the hot bar. There was pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, fries, chicken tenders, chicken sandwiches. It was a pretty wide selection. He got the pizza and some mozzarella sticks, and I got a chicken sandwich and fries with several ketchup packets. We grabbed our drinks from the open cooler at the end of the bar and then started scouting for a table where we could sit together without having to sit with too many other people.
“Michael!” someone called out to us. We looked in the direction of the voice to see a redheaded guy with a girl with brown hair a few shades darker than mine.
“Who's that?” I asked.
“His name is Levi, I think. He's in my group. I don't know her.”
“Should we sit with them?”
Michael shrugged. “We can, I guess.”
He started walking, and I followed. When we reached the table where Levi and the girl were sitting, we sat down in the empty seats in front of them.
“Michael,” Levi repeated. “This is Jessica, my girlfriend. Jess, this is Michael. He's in my group.”
“Hey,” Michael greeted. He nodded towards me. “This is Kelsey. She's my girl.”
I blushed and smiled politely with a wave. I loved being called his girl. “Hi.”
“You guys haven't been dating long, have you?” Levi asked, his focus on me.
“Why do you ask?” I responded in surprise.
“You're blushing.”
Michael looked at me with a smirk. “We've been friends for a couple of months, but we've only been dating a couple weeks.”
“We've known each other since we were kids though,” I quickly explained.
“Even though you used to hate me.” He grinned.
“I did not. I hated your friends.”
“Yeah, me too. I probably could have found better friends.”
“You really should have.”
“I have some now though.”
I smiled. “Yeah, you do.”
“You guys are cute,” Jessica said with a smile.
“We've been dating about a year,” Levi explained. “And I don't think God could have sent me a better woman. I've never been so happy with anyone else.”
“Aw, Baby,” Jessica giggled. 
“I mean it, Baby. You're the best thing that ever happened to me.”
She smiled. “My parents didn't really like him at first, but they've learned to accept him now.”
“Why didn't they like him?” I wondered. He seemed okay to me.
“Because I'm a ginger,” Levi joked.
“Hush!” Jessica scolded. “That's not it at all.”
“I know, Baby.” He looked back at us. “They think I'm a homicidal maniac.”
“Seriously? Why?”
“Because I had to spend three days in a mental ward for my depression. Her dad is seriously overprotective, and somehow he thinks that me being depressed means that I'm gonna kill my family and myself.”
“That makes no sense...” Michael muttered.
Levi shrugged. “He saw this story on the news about some guy with serious mental problems who killed his family and then himself, and so he thinks that depression is the same as being bipolar or schizophrenic or something, I guess.”
“My parents like Michael,” I said quietly.
Michael grinned. “That's just because they don't know me well enough.”
Levi chuckled.
We continued to talk until Mr. Wes rang the bell, signaling everyone to quiet down so he could speak.
“Lunch will be ending here shortly, and once it does, everyone is to get up and line up single file to dispose of their trays, dishes, and silverware, just like at school. You'll take them to the window by the exit and then leave out of said exit. After lunch, we will be meeting in The Lodge for today's lessons. Any questions?”
No one spoke.
“Let's have a great day!”
---
The Lodge was the large stone cabin beside the lake, and the inside was big and spacious. There was no furniture, only a fireplace and a stage. As we all entered and took our seats, our leaders took down our names to verify that we were still here and not missing or running around unsupervised with a girlfriend or boyfriend. Levi and Jessica had taken a seat on the stones around the fireplace, and they beckoned us over as we entered. We made our way over and sat down with them by the fireplace while everyone else sat on the floor.
Once everyone was present and accounted for, Mr. Wes and Mrs. Rachel stepped out on stage while two of the other leaders, whose names I wasn't sure of, started passing out papers. When my paper arrived, I took a look at it. It was five questions about purity.
1. What is purity?
2. What does purity mean to you?
3. What does God say about purity? (1 Corinthians 6:18-20; Romans 12.1-2)
4. Why is purity so important?
5. What are some things you can do to remain pure?
Michael and I exchanged glances. Levi and Jessica were already filling out their papers. I dug in my bag for a couple of pens. I kept a purple one and passed Michael a black one, but I was unsure of how to answer the questions.
Once all the papers were passed out, Mr. Wes spoke again. “Now, you may answer the questions on your own, and after about five minutes, we will go over all of them as a group. Answer these by yourself, without help from your neighbors. Begin.”
I stared at the first question. What is purity? Wasn't it abstaining from sex until marriage? That sounded good to me. I wrote that down. Question two sounded like the same question, so I just scribbled something similar. I skipped question three because I didn't feel like looking up the verses in my Bible. Why was it important? I don't know. Because God said so? Five... How to remain pure. Don't have sex. That was pretty easy. No wonder this assignment took only five minutes.
Mr. Wes rolled out a white board onto the stage and started writing down the first question. He looked out at the audience. “Okay. You've had some time to come up with your answers. Now let's answer these as a group. What is purity? Who can answer that one for me?”
A girl in front raised her hand. “Purity is when you don't have sex.”
“That's right,” Mr. Wes agreed. “Purity is when you don't have sex until marriage. Easy, right?” He turned back to the board to write down number two. “What does purity mean to you? Now, I know this may sound like a trick question, but it's actually not. It sounds a lot like the first question, sure, but the question is more about your personal feelings and beliefs. What does purity mean to you? What do you think it means to stay pure? Anyone think they can answer this one for us?”
A boy near the middle raised his hand. “Purity means saving yourself for your godly spouse.”
“And is that important to you?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because God wants two people to come together to be one, but you can't do that if you've already been one with a bunch of people.”
“That's true.”
Another hand went up. This one was a girl. “Also, most people don't want to spend their first time with someone who has been with several people.”
“That's good,” Mr. Wes replied. “But now we're getting into question four, which we will cover in a minute. Let's look at question three now. What does God say about purity? Did any of you guys look at those verses?”
A girl raised her hand. “We should honor Him with our bodies because we belong to Him.”
“Yeah, whatever,” Michael snickered under his breath.
I glanced at him.
“Sorry,” he mumbled, turning his attention back to his paper, where he was doodling a spider hanging from a web in the corner.
“That's the verse from Corinthians, yes. Can anyone tell me about the other verse mentioned?” Mr. Wes asked.
A boy raised his hand. “Offer your body as a sacrifice and don't give in to the ways of the world.”
Mr. Wes nodded. “Good job, Jeremy.”
“Are they for real right now?” Michael asked me.
I nodded.
“Wow... This religion thing is sounding more and more like a cult.”
“Well, I doubt most people follow these verses to a T.”
“I hope not.”
Mr. Wes went on. “There are several other verses, but we will go over those in a minute as part of this study. For now, let's move on to question four. Why is purity so important?”
Several people were waiting with answers for this one.
“Because God wants you to stay pure.”
“STDs.”
“Pregnancy.”
“Attachment.”
“Those are all great answers,” Mrs. Rachel finally spoke. “Now, what about the last question? What can we do to remain pure until our wedding night? Any ideas?”
“Don't have sex,” one of the guys responded.
“That's good, Cody, but what are some other things we can avoid?”
“Kissing,” a girl suggested.
Mrs. Rachel nodded.
“Touching.”
“Hugging.”
“Being alone.”
“Drugs and alcohol.”
“Those are all great answers,” Mrs. Rachel said, “but there are other answers. What about the media and things we see everyday? Doesn't God say not to let the world influence you? What are some things in our world that we see or hear everyday that could influence us to sin?”
“Other people.”
“That's one. Don't give in to peer pressure. Just because everyone else is doing it doesn't mean you have to. What else?”
“TV and movies.”
“Social media.”
“Porn.”
“Those are all great answers. It's best to just remove those temptations from your life, isn't it? If you have immoral friends on your social medias, delete them from there and even from your life if you can. Delete all your social medias if you can. Watch only good moral movies that don't show sex or anything else. If you are looking at pornography, stop. Remove that from your life. But there's another one that we don't think about. What about books? Some of these romance novels you girls read? Some of those books show soft core pornography that can influence and tempt you. It's best to just remove those from your life as well.”
Several of the girls in the audience began whispering. 
“This is really boring,” Michael sighed, leaning back against the stones around the fireplace.
I felt kind of bad that he wasn't having fun, but I wasn't really either. Still, he was the one who agreed to join me. He could have just said no. “Sorry. You know you didn't have to come."
He shrugged. “At least you're not suffering alone.”
“I'm pretty much used to stuff like this. I'd have probably been okay.”
“I still say it sounds like a cult.”
Once we finished going over the worksheet, we were told to hold onto it until tomorrow afternoon. We would have to re-answer the questions tomorrow to see how we learned, grew, and changed from the lessons. The leaders went over several more verses about purity for a bit, and then they reverted to telling us the basic ‘just say no' stuff that we learned as kids about drugs.
Mr. Wes and Mrs. Rachel were up on stage to perform a skit. They were pretending to be on a first date at a restaurant, and they finished their imaginary food and left to take her home.
“I had a great time tonight,” Mrs. Rachel was saying as they walked.
“I did too. Maybe we could go back to my place and continue the night there?”
“Oh, no thank you. I really need to get home.”
“We can go back to your place then.”
“No thank you.”
“Why not?”
“I'm saving myself for marriage.”
“We don't have to do that then.”
“I would still rather you not come over after only a first date. Thank you for the evening though.”
The dim lights grew brighter, and the skit ended.
“See? It's that easy!” Mr. Wes announced. “Just say no.”
One of the girls raised a hand.
“Yes, Courtney?”
“But not all men are that easy to say no to. What if he gets violent or tries to pressure you and won't go away? What if he stalks you home?”
“Well, you should probably call the police then.”
Mrs. Rachel popped back in. “That's where you kids come in. I want everyone to find a partner. One of you be a man and one be a woman, and offer ideas for how to say no to peer pressure and get away.”
“Begin,” Mr. Wes called out.
I looked at Michael, and he looked back. “How should our skit go?”
He shrugged. “I think we should use whatever cliche BS we can think of and go from there.”
“Okay. So... You don't love me if you don't do it?”
“Everyone else is doing it.”
“No one will ever want to sleep with someone who's inexperienced.”
“I think that covers most of it.”
“Let's get started then.”
---
After the twenty minutes we were offered, everyone came up with a skit and was asked to act it out up on stage in front of everyone. Most people more or less copied Mr. Wes and Mrs. Rachel, but there were a few more unique ones like a couple pretending to be in a car. The girl opened the invisible door and jumped out. We snickered. Like anyone would really do that if they didn't feel threatened.
After Levi and Jessica acted out their skit, it was our turn.
“Here we go...” I muttered.
Michael just shrugged and followed me to the stage. We pushed two chairs together like a couch and sat down.
“The movie is over,” I announced. “I guess I should get going.”
“You don't have to leave, Baby.”
I got up. “I really should though. I'll see you later, okay?”
He got up too. “But it's dark outside.”
“I have my car.”
He blocked my path to the imaginary door. “Come on, Baby, I've been trying to get you in my bed since our first date. Let's make tonight the night.”
“I can't. I need to go.”
“You don't love me, do you?”
“What?”
“You won't sleep with me.”
“That doesn't mean I don't love you.”
“If you love me, you'll do it.”
I put my hands on my hips to show that I was angry. “That has nothing to do with this, but I'm really starting to feel like you don't love me. I've already told you I'm waiting until marriage.”
“Why wait? No one else does.”
“Well, I'm not everyone else.”
“Marriage is pointless, Baby, it's just a piece of paper. Let's just skip that part.”
“I said no!”
He pretended to get angry. “Well, no one else is going to want to be with someone like you, you know that? No one wants to wait until marriage. No one even gets married anymore.”
“I'm sorry you feel that way, but if you can't accept that I want to wait, then maybe we shouldn't be dating.”
“Are you breaking up with me?”
“Are you willing to wait until marriage?”
“I'm tired of waiting.”
“Then yes, I'm breaking up with you. I'm sorry. Goodbye.” I pushed past him and out the imaginary door.”
The room filled with applause, just like it had for all the other skits. Even Mr. Wes clapped.
“That was great, you two,” he praised. “I could really feel the emotion. Well done.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled.
Michael just nodded, and we walked off the stage and back to our seats in the audience.
---
“That was probably the most miserable few hours of my life, and I've been through a lot of stuff,” Michael sighed over dinner.
Levi chuckled. “You just have to sort of grin and bear it if you want to make your parents happy.”
“My parents don't care.”
“Same. I'm here because of Jess. Her parents wanted both of us to go.”
“Kelsy's parents wanted her to go. I just tagged along.”
“And I'm sure they're very happy about that,” I said with a smile. I looked at Levi and Jess. “They wanted us to go because they think it will stop us from doing anything.”
Jessica nodded. “Mine too. They have this idea that me wearing a ring will inspire me not to sin or something. I don't care though. When I'm ready, I'll do it, whether I'm married or not. I'm just not ready yet.”
“Same here,” I agreed. “I don't know about marriage or when I'll be ready, but we've agreed to wait. Not because of God or anything, but just because I want to wait.”
“Well, I also have enough going on in my life without worrying about having kids and all that,” Michael added. “Even dating is a big stretch for me, but I can't help it. If I don’t claim her, someone else will.”
Levi nodded. “That's the truth. A cute girl like her could get snatched up quickly. That's not the only reason I'm with Jess, but it definitely is a factor. I couldn't imagine letting someone else have my soulmate.”
“Aw, Levi,” Jessica giggled.
He smiled. “I wish I could just kiss you right now.”
She pouted. “Me too.”
Mr. Wes started ringing the bell as usual, and everybody's eyes turned to him.
“After dinner, you will have thirty minutes to return to your cabin and get dressed. The dance will begin at seven and last until nine. That will give your group time for Bible study before bed at ten.”
Mrs. Rachel took the microphone. “Remember, this is a purity dance. You and your partner are not to touch one another, short of your hands and arms. There will be no frontal touching or holding, no embracing, no kissing, and nothing that could be seen as provocative in any way. This dance is meant to celebrate purity until marriage and the glory of God. It's a tradition, so we ask that you try not to ruin it for everyone else. If you are caught doing anything against the rules, you will be separated and made to sit out until you can control yourselves.”
“I wonder if anyone has ever broken the rules,” I thought aloud.
Levi nodded. “I've heard that some couples have been caught straight up making out on the dance floor.”
“What happened to them?” I wondered.
“They weren't given their rings and were made to sit out the rest of the dance.”
“Oh no, they didn't get their cheap five dollar rings,” Michael faked horror.
“How disappointing,” I agreed.
“You guys are really negative about this,” Jessica muttered.
Michael shrugged. “I don't really put much faith into these sorts of things. I just can't see the point.”
“Short of peace of mind for our parents, I don't think there is,” Levi agreed.
Mr. Wes announced the end of supper, and we all got up to empty our trays.
---
“I wish I had known there was a dance,” Jessica muttered as we walked together. “I don't have anything to wear.”
“Me either,” I agreed. “I'll probably just throw something together.”
“You'll look cute in whatever you wear,” Michael assured me.
I blushed and smiled shyly. “Thanks.”
“You too, Baby,” Levi said to his girlfriend.
Jess smiled. “Thanks, Babe.”
As we neared our cabins, Michael and Levi said their goodbyes and walked off in the direction of their cabin. I looked at Jessica.
“Which one is yours?”
She pointed to the cabins in front of us. “I'm in that one.”
Her cabin was apparently the one right next to mine. We shared a bathroom, and I hadn't even known she was right next door.
“That's crazy. I'm in the one next to it. We share a bathroom.”
“That's pretty funny,” she agreed.
I nodded. “Well, see you later, Jess.”
“Bye, Kelsey. See you at the dance.”
---
The dance was held in an unusual building. It had no entrance or exit, no windows, no walls. It was just a raised cement floor, surrounded by beams, like a large gazebo. The only part that was enclosed was the stage, where all the electronics were, like speakers and amps. The youth group band was up there when we arrived, setting up and getting everything ready.
I noticed Jess and Levi standing and talking with Michael by the seating area. Jess had chosen a flowy purple top under a white sweater and tight fitting blue jeans, and Levi was wearing a long sleeved green shirt with the sleeves rolled up and khaki cargo pants. Michael was wearing a simple black t-shirt under an opened white and gray plaid jacket and black jeans with his usual high tops. His hands were in his pockets, and he looked dreamy, like he had just stepped out of one of my paranormal romance novels. I had put on the fingerless gloves and leggings Brenda had bought me, with a lightweight black lace hoodie over a black shirt and a fluffy black skirt. On my feet were the boots Bradley had gotten me that I had just been looking for an excuse to wear. My parents always told me to bring something a little casual formal whenever I stayed somewhere, just in case I needed it, so I had. 
I approached them, and Michael looked at me with a smirk, saying “you look really pretty.”
“Thank you. You look pretty dreamy yourself.”
He chuckled softly. “It was the closest thing to casual formal that I brought with me.”
I smiled and turned my attention to Levi and Jess. “You guys look really nice too.”
“Thanks,” they both replied in unison, with a smile.
The mic screeched, and Mrs. Rachel's voice came out over the speakers. “Tonight we will celebrate our purity and our love for God during this dance. Please remember to be mindful of personal space, both of the people around you and your partners. There is to be no provocative touching of any kind. Is everyone clear on that?”
“Yes, Ma'am,” several people called out. None of us four said anything.
“Great. We have with us tonight, our youth group band. They perform at our church every Wednesday evening during youth group, and I really recommend that everyone come out and see them in action on Wednesdays. Our youth groups are always filled with fun and lots of fellowship and friendship. Come and see them perform sometime and sing along. For now, let's get started.”
Everyone else cheered.
The band finished setting up, and they introduced themselves and began to play. For the first few songs, everyone mostly just stayed in their own space and swayed or sat on the benches around the room. Some of them stood in little groups and talked, like us, while the band played some songs about God and Jesus. When they started playing some of the slower songs, people began to slow dance.
Levi offered Jess a hand. “Shall we, my love?”
She smiled and took his hand. “We shall.”
Michael and I looked at each other, and he shrugged and asked “wanna dance?”
I shrugged as well. “Sure, why not?”
He took my hand and led me to the dance floor, near where Levi and Jess were dancing, very careful not to break the rules. I could see from their awkward stances that they wanted to dance like normal couples, him holding her and her with her head on his shoulder, but they were trying to be good.
I looked at Michael, and he gave me a small smile, pulling me closer. He made sure there was a good bit of space between us and laid his hands on my waist. I put my hands on his shoulders like everyone else was doing, and our eyes met as we began to move and sway with the music and the flow of the crowd.
While we tried to remember to maintain a safe distance from each other, several other people in the group forgot, and one of the leaders would scold them and make them move away from each other. After the third time, some of them would be made to sit down separately for a song or two, and then they were allowed to return to the floor.
Michael shook his head. “I get that it's really hard, but it shouldn't be that hard.”
I shrugged. “Maybe they're used to dancing close all the time or something.”
“We dance together a lot.”
“Maybe we have better self control.”
“I don't know about that. Just this little bit of physical affection feels like it isn't enough, but I know that if we did anything else, I wouldn't be able to touch you at all.”
“Just for about three minutes.”
“That's too long.”
I smiled faintly. This would normally be the point where we kissed, but we couldn't do that now, and that alone made me kind of sad. I liked kissing Michael, and I hated having restrictions on our relationship, especially after he told me he loved me. I wanted more than anything to embrace him and taste his kisses after that moment, but I couldn't. It was honestly driving me crazy, and now we were so close to each other that I could feel, smell, and taste his breath, and I couldn't do anything. I could easily understand how hard it was for some of those other couples.
“What are you thinking about?” Michael asked quietly.
“How much I wish I could kiss you,” I teased.
He smirked. “No ma'am. That's bad. You're supposed to stay pure for God.”
“Yeah, well, I guess I'm just not a very good Christian.”
“That's okay. You can't be good at everything.”
I laughed quietly and shook my head. “You're such a dork.”
“You love it.”