I am Sarah

Chapter 4: Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

Sunday morning, I woke up to the ringing of my cell. It was Sam.

"Hey." I answered.
"Hey, you up?"
"Now I am."
"You want to go to church with me and my family today?"
"I'm not really a religious person..."
"So? It will be fun!"
"What time?"
"I can pick you up in fifteen minutes."
"What should I wear?"
"We are considered more of a 'cowboy' church. So, jeans and a nice tee shirt are acceptable."
"Cowboy Church?"
"No real dress code. You know, for most churches you have to wear nice dress up clothes."
"Okay. Well, I better get ready." I say, trying to get ready in time.
"Alright. See ya, Sarah. Buh-Bye." Sam said before disconnecting.

I got up and got dressed in my MissMe blue jeans and Rue21 Zebra Tank top. The last thing to choose was my shoes which ended up being my nice boots.

Just like she said, Sam was waiting outside my doorstep in exactly fifteen minutes. I grabbed my phone and house keys before getting in Sam's car.

"Good-Morning, Sunshine!" Sam said, holding her phone out and trying to get both of us in a selfie. I didn't do this much, but it was whatever really; I was just glad to have finally made a friend here. She did a weird face, but I just smiled, and then we switched; I did a face and she smiled. She grinned and showed me the one of me smiling and said, "You are my WCW this week, that is alright, right?"

"Of course. I mean, I'm usually TeLiah's but she hasn't tried to talk to me since I moved." I confessed.

"Sorry to hear that. My best friend, Bryce, she was a senior two years ago and aside from surprising everyone at practice yesterday, she hasn't really talked to me. So I know how you feel." Sam replied.

I was surprised at how fast we got to the church, but I was also surprised to see the whole community there. I gazed around the room and saw no open seats. I sighed and was going to stand against the wall, but then a beam of light hit my eyes. I looked up at the stained glass, and it wasn't Jesus as in most churches, it was his mother, Mary. I traced the bright blue lighting of her eyes to the glow of a blonde's hair. I felt my heart jump; Jess.

She turned around and then she saw me. Our eyes locked, even if it was for a weirdly long period of time, it felt right to me. She blinked and waved for me to come sit by her. I pointed her out to Sam and we walked quickly down the aisle before someone stole our spots. I went in first, not realizing that I would have to sit by Jess. I tried to switch Sam spots, but Jessalee just beamed me a smile and joked,

"Aw. Don't worry Sarah; I don't bite, I promise."

I looked into her eyes and saw the secret that she held so heavily. I wondered if this was the right time, or place. I blew the thought from my mind and sat next to Jess. She smiled at me and placed her hand on mine.

"Are you religious?" She asked.
"I don't know. I believe in God and stuff, but some of the bible stuff strikes me as odd." I answered honestly. I excepted her to ease back and shun me silently for my lack of belief, but she surprised me with a simple and unexpected answer;
"Me too!" 

I smiled at her; no one had ever openly accepted any of her views. She smiled back and the chorus began to sing, and then the rest of the community stood and sang along with them. Jessalee's voice was soft and unwavering like that of my own. She may have been an angel.

After church sam offered to take me back home, but so did Jess. As smart as Sam was, she knew Jess' and I had things to talk about, so she made an excuse and allowed me to go with Jess. I texted my mom and told her where I was and about how I wouldn't be home for awhile. Once I got in the car, I saw the carseat still sitting in the backseat. I turned to her as she settled in her seat. I wanted to ask, but as if she had read my mind, Jess said,

"Not here. Let's go to my house."

I nodded and turned up the radio. It was tuned to the classic country station. It began to play "Ocean Front Property (In Arizona)" by George Strait. 
I heard her sing again and it was so refreshing; like drowning in a sea of endless melodies.

I was kind of surprised when I saw her house. It was just outside of town, and painted white, but obviously needed a power washing. In the yard, aside from the overgrown grass, their was a collie chained up. Jess walked up and unchained him before saying,
"Scout, play nice."

And he did as she said and only ran up and licked me gently. I followed her into the dim lit house. After entering the front room, I looked to my left and saw a hallway. I walked down the hallway and stopped at a door. I pushed gently and the door came open. Inside was a crib and around it was diapers, clothes, and a bunch of baby toys; all of them were blue.

"Micah." Jess said from the doorway, "Micah Nicolai Law. He was my little baby boy. And I think you should know; the rest of the girls kind of do."

I sat down on the floor and she sat in the rocking chair by the big window facing the woods.  Her face went soft and her voice became solemn,

"It was only two years ago; strange, but I'll always say it felt like yesterday..."