In the Light

Chapter One: Things Change

Sister Elena Maria woke up gasping for air; her head felt like it was splitting open. She had a name on her lips - "Sam." She pulled her knees in, setting her head on top of them. Her eyes flicked back and forth as she remembered the dream. She had opened the door to see two tall men standing in front of her. They were priests; the kinds of priests that, when in the seminary, girls would see and be disappointed to find out they were to be married to the church. That is to say, they were incredibly hot.

The first priest invited himself in only to trip on the door frame. He cursed, and the other priest reprimanded him saying "Dean!" While Father Dean was brushing himself off, the other priest entered. He glared at Father Dean while introducing himself. "I'm Father Sam," he trailed off when he met Sister Elena's eyes.

"Sam," she said quietly at the same time.

"Am I interrupting something?" Father Dean asked. That's when she'd woken up.

The headache went away as soon as it had come, so Sister Elena decided to go about her day as normal. Still, she couldn't shake the dream. Sam was her college boyfriend. She always wondered what had happened to him. She didn't like think about college because she did a lot of things she regretted then. She was in a cult with Sam and she'd had sex with him, to name a few things.

Sam disappeared in their junior year. He told her he had some kind of experience, but he wouldn't tell her anymore than that. It shook her entire world. She realized that she was doing things that were bad for her and others, and she changed her ways - extremely. So, she left the cult, reached out to her mom, and started getting her grades up, respectively. One thing led to another, and she became a religious sister, what most people would call a "nun."

• • •

After Mass, it was time for breakfast. Before Sister Elena could take a bite, the Mother Superior took her aside. "Good morning, Sister Elena. I know this is sudden, but I have a new assignment for you. Two priests are coming by today. They're exorcists and they're looking for some help, and I told them that you were available. I know that you used to be in a cult, and I thought that this would be good for you; to confront your past."

Sister Elena felt her heart skip a beat. She felt butterflies in her stomach. Anything new always scared her, but she knew that Mother Superior knew what she was doing. The words "two priests" repeated themselves in her mind, but she dropped it. "Yes, Mother, I always do as you say. I look forward to this new opportunity."

"I'm glad. They'll be here around lunch time, so you have time to pack up and call your family if you want. You might be gone for awhile, so pack up all of your things."

Sister Elena swallowed; talking with her mom and sister wouldn't be pleasant.

• • •

Sister Elena hung up the phone. The conversation with her mom and sister went a lot better than she thought it would. Her mom understood, and told her that she loved her and to be careful. Charlie, her sister, was a lot more worried, but that was pretty normal for her. Charlie had panic disorder, and Sister Elena was one of the only people who could help her through her panic attacks. Sister Elena reminded her that they could still talk on the phone anytime, they just might not be able to visit for awhile.

Sister Elena zipped up her suitcase and took it into the hallway, in front of the door. As she started to walk away, there was a knock on the door. She felt her heart flutter in excitement and fear. She turned around and opened it. Just like in her dream, there were two tall men standing there. They were priests. One had short hair that was gelled up. The other, the one who looked like he could barely fit through the door, had longer hair that was pushed to the side.

"Hey, I'm Father Dean," said the one just before he stepped inside, fell, and cursed. Sister Elena was speechless. Father Sam must not have recognized her yet, probably because of the veil, so he introduced himself after apologizing for Father Dean. She had almost forgotten what he looked like. He was beautiful. His face was so expressive - almost always kind.

Once, Charlie said that when Elena and Sam got married, he should just use his jawline to cut into their wedding cake. She remembered what it felt like to have his body pressed against hers. She remembered the fun times like going to the movies and playing basketball, and then she remembered the times when she got so drunk with him that everything just seemed to fall out of her brain.

"Sam," she whispered.

Father Dean looked at them both and said "Am I interrupting something?"