"Lila, its time to wake up" I glanced at my phone, seeing it was only 7 am. "How did you sleep?"
"I slept good, I didn't have a nightmare,"
She smiles, "That's great,"
"You praying over me helped, I fell asleep pretty quickly,"
"I noticed, I came back in the room after I called Luke, and you were almost asleep,"
"I remember you coming back in and whispering 'goodnight' but I don't remember anything after that,"
"I'm glad you finally got some rest,"
"Me too, I needed it,"
"Want me to do your hair and makeup for church?"
"If you want to, Zack and I are going on our first official date today,"
"Of course I want to!"
I sat down in the chair and watched in the mirror as she curled my hair, and did my makeup. When I looked in the mirror at the finished product, all I could do was smile
"Aww you look gorgeous,"
"Thanks, Sarah, I usually don't let others do my makeup, but you understand that I prefer a more natural look, I don't want to look like a clown,"
"I don't either, even though we go to school with some human Barbie dolls, who plaster makeup on their faces"
"Oh I've seen them, Somebody really should tell them less is more,"
She laughs and starts doing her hair and makeup
"Go ahead and get dressed, You can pick out anything you want,"
As I looked through the closet, I found the cutest skirt and top, and sandals. I quickly walked to the bathroom and changed into them.
"You look pretty,"
"Thanks, I wanted to wear something nice for our date today,"
"You look gorgeous, Zack's going to love it,"
"I hope so, I rarely dress up,"
"I know, I don't either honestly, trust me, girl, he likes you whether you're dressed up or not,"
I sat on the bed and watched as Sarah put the finishing touches on her makeup.
"Ready to eat breakfast?"
"I'm not much of a breakfast person but let's go"
I followed her down the stairs and into the kitchen.
"Good morning girls. Sleep well?" Her mom asks
"Yeah we did," Sarah says
"Good, I'm making French toast for breakfast, it'll be done soon,"
Once her mom finishes cooking, she places a plate in front of each of us. I wasn't hungry, but I ate two pieces of french toast, fruit, and some bacon.
"Thank you for breakfast, Mrs. Campbell," I say
"You're welcome sweetheart, did you have enough to eat?"
"Yeah, I did, I'm not much of a breakfast eater,"
"I understand, I used to be the same way,"
"I'm trying to break the habit of not eating in the morning though, even if I just eat some fruit or something,"
"Your body needs the nutrients. The Bible says our bodies are Temples of God, and we should take care of them"
"I didn't know that was in the Bible,"
"It's found in 1 Corinthians Chapter 6, 'Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own, you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.'"
"Wow, I didn't know that God thought of our bodies as temples for the Holy Spirit,"
"The Bible says a lot of things that most people don't know about, or that they don't understand. God reveals different things to different people,"
"Zack has told me a lot about that, I'm still waiting for God to reveal things to me through scripture,"
"It may take some time, but right now, I think you need to focus on reading, asking questions when you don't understand something, and praying. Going to church and youth group will help you too, just remember to reach out if you need anything, our family is always here for you"
"I agree with everything she said, but I'm also going to say this: don't feel like you're praying too much, or that you're bothering God by asking him questions. He loves to hear from us and answer our questions, When I first got saved as a teenager, I was afraid I would bother God with how much I prayed, or how many questions I asked, but that is never the case, He loves hearing from his children," her dad says
"We should get ready to head to church, I'm glad that you had a good night last night Lila, you're more than welcome to stay any night, We love you as if you were our own daughter,"
Sarah and I quickly put our dishes in the dishwasher.
"Thank you for everything,"
"You're welcome sweetheart like I said, you are welcome over any time. I know your mom works a lot of over night shifts, So if you don't feel like being alone, you are more than welcome to come over, have dinner with us and spend the night,"
"Come on Mom, we're going to be late,"
"We're coming,"
Sarah and I get into the backseat of the car, listening to the radio as we begin the 20-minute drive to church. Sarah quietly sings along to an unfamiliar song
When the earth shakes
I wanna be found in you
When the lights fade
I wanna be found in you
"You should lead worship Sarah, you'd be great at it," her dad says
"I don't think so,"
"Luke already tried talking her into it, but she's stubborn. She's afraid of how she'll sound, and she doesn't want to make a fool of herself in front of others"
"Exactly, I can't do it,"
"You could do it, but I understand why you're hesitant, it takes a lot of courage to get up there and sing in front of everyone,"
"After all, your dad and I used to do it all the time, that's how we met and fell in love, "
"I know, I know. I've heard the story a hundred times"
"Just think about it okay? we won't force you, but I think if you did it, you'd love it" her mom says
"I'll think about it," Sarah says as we pull into the church parking lot
"We'll drop you off at the door so you won't be late for class." her dad says as he pulls up to the door
"Have fun girls"
Sarah and I walk into the youth room, Almost everyone had arrived by this point, but the service hadn't started yet.
"There you are, I was worried you weren't gonna show up," Zack hugs me tightly
"Sorry, we spent a little too much time talking at breakfast this morning,"
"It's okay, I'm just glad you made it,"
"Me too, I wasn't going to miss today, especially not our first date,"
"You look beautiful,"
"Thanks,"
"This is for you," he hands me a cup of coffee
"Thank you, but you didn't have to get me anything,"
"I wanted to, My mom and I always stop on Sunday morning to get coffee, and I wanted to treat my girlfriend,"
"Thank you, Zack, that was sweet of you,"
"You're welcome, get used to it though, it's gonna happen every Sunday morning,"
He takes my hand into his, "I can't get over how beautiful you look,"
"Thanks, Zack, Sarah helped me get ready this morning. I give her all the credit"
"You're just as beautiful without the makeup, and your hair done,"
"Aww Thank you, Zack, "
"You're welcome, beautiful,"
I take a drink of my coffee and instantly smile
"What are you smiling about?"
"You remembered how I drink my coffee,"
"Well, yeah. I'm supposed to remember the little things that make you happy,"
"Good Morning Everyone!" Pastor Evan cheerfully says into the microphone
"Good Morning"
"Today we're gonna start by worshipping, and then I want a few people to share about their camp experiences,"
Zack and I stood together as Luke and the others began to play an unfamiliar tune
He made the lame walk and the dumb talk
And He opened blinded eyes to see
That the sun rises on His time
Yet He knows our deepest desperate need And the world waits while His heartaches
To realize the dream
I wonder what life would be like
If we let Jesus live through you and me.
.........
Who am I without your praise
Another smile, Another face
Another Breath, A Grain of Sand
Passing quickly through your hand
I give my life, An offering
Take it all take everything
Let them see you, In me
Let them hear you When I speak
Let them feel you When I sing
Let them see you
I tried to sing along, but the more I listened to the words of the songs, I had this overwhelming feeling, I couldn't explain it, but I felt like I needed to sit and pray.
I sit back down in my seat and bow my head, I silently began to pray.
"God, Please let people see Jesus in me, and working through me. I want to be a light to the world,"
After a few minutes of sitting down, Zack takes a seat next to me and places his hand on my knee
"You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm good,"
"Did you feel like God was saying something to you?"
"Yeah, I guess just the words of the songs started to hit me, and I felt like I needed to pray that people would see Jesus working in me and that God would use me,"
"Wow, that's awesome Lila,"
"Alright guys, I would like a few people to volunteer to share anything that they experienced, learned, or just something awesome that happened at camp" Pastor Evan says as the lights come back on and the band takes their seats
I raised my hand
"Everyone please be respectful as Lila shares something from her week at camp,"
"The first few days, I was unsure about the whole camp thing, I had never been to anything like this, and I wasn't a Christian, so I felt so out of place, One night everything changed, As Pastor Evan prayed over the meal, I felt like someone was standing right beside me, but when I opened my eyes, nobody was there, That was the first experience I had of God revealing himself to me, Later that night at service, I questioned why God loved me, or how he could love me, After talking with Zack about everything I had experienced, we both agreed that God was showing me that I wasn't alone, that he loved me and that he wanted me to enter into a relationship with him. That night I prayed to accept Jesus as my Savior, That night I found so much freedom and love, more than I ever thought could be given to someone."
The room erupted with cheers when I had finished speaking
"That was beautiful, Thank you, for sharing Lila. Does anyone else want to speak?"
Zack lightly squeezes my hand,
"I am so proud of you"
"Thank you"
I listen as a few others share their camp experiences, I was truly amazed and in awe of how people could get so many different things out of one week.
"Let's pray and we'll conclude. Father God, we thank you so much for the amazing experiences that we had at camp, and I thank you for those who were brave enough to share what you did in their lives over the week, I pray that you strengthen our relationships with you throughout the week. I thank you for the 135 teenagers we saw come to know you over the week, bless them and watch over them as they begin their journeys, In Jesus name, Amen" Pastor Evan says
"Amen"
"I know I said it already, but I'm proud of you Lila, I know it's not easy sharing in front of a big group"
"I was nervous, but I felt like I should do it, holding your hand helped a lot,"
"I could tell, You spoke with so much confidence!"
"I can't believe you shared your testimony in front of everyone," Sarah says as she hugs me tightly
"I couldn't believe you wanted to share, let alone be the first one to speak," Luke says
"Thanks, guys,"
"You were awesome Lila, I'm so glad you got to come with us this year, and that you could finally experience God's love and power! I was shocked when Grace told me you got saved, but I knew that God had revealed himself to you, and now hearing the story myself, I'm just in awe of how good God is!" Pastor Evan says
"I'm happy I got to be the one there to witness it, it was such a special moment,"
"That's awesome! I'm going to head into the second service, I'll see you guys in there" Pastor Evan says before walking toward the sanctuary.
"I never thought that my heart could feel whole again, especially after my dad died almost 6 months ago, but after praying to receive Christ, I felt every little piece of my heart that was broken being put back together, now my heart is whole again"
"Wow, That's amazing Lila"
"I hadn't shared it with anyone except for Sarah, Last night she encouraged me to share it with you,"
"I'm glad you did, that was powerful,"
We should head to the second service too, it'll be starting soon"
"Yeah, Let's go," Zack says
Zack and I walk into the main sanctuary, taking a seat in the back row, next to some of the others from the Youth Group.
Zack instantly starts talking to some of the guys around us, but I sat there quietly. I had been coming to church with them, and going to youth group for a few weeks, but I still hadn't talked to anyone besides Zack, Luke or Sarah
Music starts playing, signaling that the service is about to start. Zack stops talking, turns and looks at me and smiles.
I listen as Pastor Jim begins talking, two quotes, in particular, stuck in my mind more than anything else: "Sometimes the most real things in the world are the things that we can't see" it reminded me so much of my camp experience, although I couldn't see God I could feel him working in my heart and my life. "If God is for us, who can be against us" No matter what trials I face in the future, I have God. Nothing that Satan throws at me can stand up to the power of God.
"You okay Lila?"
"Yeah,Why?"
"You were staring off into space, after the service ended,"
"Oh,bI guess I just got lost in thought," I say
"What were you thinking about?"
"The two quotes he shared with us,"
He smiles, "God is already doing so much through you, I can see it"
"I'm starting to see it too,"
"Ready to go get lunch? I don't know about you, but I'm starving"
"I'm hungry, I didn't eat a lot for breakfast this morning,"
"I didn't either, I woke up later than normal,"
"I didn't, I woke up earlier than I normally do,"
"That's surprising, usually, you don't wake up until the last minute"
"I know, I need my beauty sleep,"
"You're beautiful enough without sleep,"
"Maybe physically, but trust me, you don't want to see me without sleep,"
He smiles, "Well I'll see it at the Youth Lock-in later this month,"
"I know, It's on my birthday. I can't wait!"
"Me either, I get to spend all day and night with my girlfriend"
"So what have you planned for our first date?"
"How about if we go to the Olive Garden right down the street for lunch, then we can decide what to do after that"
"That sounds perfect Zack,"
He smiles, "Let's go,"
He takes my hand into his as we walk outside, and toward the restaurant
"Excited?"
"Yeah, but I'm also nervous,"
"Why are you nervous?"
"Because it's the first time we've been on a real date,I guess I don't want to make myself look stupid,"
"I promise, Nothing you could say or do would make me feel different about you,"
We walk into the restaurant and are immediately seated.
"Do you know what you want to eat?"
"I'm going to get Lasagna it's my favorite,"
"Good to know,"
"What about you?"
"I think I'm going to get Spaghetti and Meatballs,"
"I don't really like meatballs that much,"
"Really?"
"Yeah, I'll eat them, but they're not my favorite,"
"Well, I learned something new about you,"
"Yeah, I guess you did,"
The waitress brings out our drinks, salad, and bread sticks. Zack prays over the food, and we begin to eat
"Is it good?"
"This is amazing, I've never had Olive Garden before today,"
"Really?"
"Yeah, these bread sticks are the best I've ever had,"
"Well, I know one place you like to eat now,"
"I'll pretty much eat anything unless it's some kind of weird foreign food. I can't stand the smell of it, it makes me sick every time"
"I don't like much foreign stuff, besides Tacos,"
"I love Tacos,"
"Maybe later this week I'll take you out on our second date, and we can have Tacos for lunch,"
"That sounds perfect,"
"Great! what are you doing this week?"
"Nothing, I'll probably just hang out with Sarah most of the week,"
"You guys can come over one evening and go swimming, and we can have another movie night if you want. I'll invite Luke too"
"That sounds like fun, My mom has been working a lot more night shifts recently, so she isn't home a lot,"
"Where does she work?"
"She's a nurse, so she works at the Children's hospital, she's been working a lot of extra hours recently,"
"That's awesome,"
"Yeah, I just wish she wasn't on night shift, I barely get to see her anymore. I've only seen her one day since getting home from camp last week"
"I'm sorry Lila, I know it's hard, but soon enough, she'll be on a different shift and you'll be able to spend more time with her,"
"I know, I'm just glad I have Sarah and her family, They've become like a second family to me,"
"I'm glad you have them too, her parents are awesome,"
"So what's the youth activity tonight?"
"I don't know, Pastor Evan hasn't announced it yet,"
"Oh, maybe they won't have anything tonight since we just got back from camp Monday,"
"They always do something, usually it's just a movie night, or another game night, something low key and chill,"
"That sounds like fun,"
"I'll text him and see if they've decided what we're doing tonight,"
"Whatever it is, it'll be fun,"
"Pastor Evan just texted me back and said we're having a pool party at their house tonight if you want to go?"
"That sounds like fun!"
"It's starting at 3:30, so after we finish eating, we'll have to go home and change,"
"That's fine with me, at least we get to spend all afternoon together,"
"I can't wait to go swimming, It's always so much fun, Especially at Pastor Evan's house, they have a hot tub and a fire pit, They usually end up doing a bonfire,"
"That sounds like a lot of fun,"
"Are you done eating?"
"Yeah, I have no more food to eat so I have to be done,"
He laughs, "Now you sound like me,"
"I know, I'm just glad I've started to get my appetite back the last few weeks,"
"Me too,"
We stand up and walk out of the restaurant, he takes my hand into his as we walk into the parking lot and toward our homes.
"Luke's mom is going to pick us up for the pool party tonight,"
"We won't have long to get ready before we have to leave again,"
"It shouldn't take long to change clothes and stuff, it'll take longer to walk home than anything,"
"At least it's only like a 20-minute walk,"
The rest of the walk home was fairly silent, Zack held my hand the entire time we walked, I was falling in love with him fast, but we had only been together for about two weeks, far too early to say those three little words. Zack hugs me goodbye, as we reach my driveway, I start walking up the driveway and into my house.
I walked upstairs to my room and started looking through my swimsuit drawer, for something to wear. I texted Sarah letting her know I was home and that she could come over. A few minutes later, I heard the front door shut, and her walking up the stairs.
"How was your date with Zack?" Sarah asks as she walks into my room, sitting on my bed
"It was amazing, we went to Olive Garden for lunch, and he walked me home,"
"I saw that you guys are adorable together,"
"I'm falling in love with him"
"I can tell, don't worry, he is too, but he's too afraid to admit it. He doesn't want to scare you off"
"I feel like its too early to say it, we've only been together for a week and a half, but I know I'm in love with him"
"Wait until the time seems right, just like the first kiss, you don't want it to be rushed, you want it to be when the timing feels right,"
"I haven't had my first kiss yet, or really even thought about it,"
"That's not a bad thing, Luke was my first kiss and I was his, we waited for almost 4 months. we didn't want to rush it,"
"When did you first say I love you?" I ask
"Around our third week together, I think, He said it first, even though I knew I loved him since the first date,"
"I'm just scared of rushing it,"
"I know, just go at a pace you're comfortable with, don't feel rushed into anything. If you aren't comfortable with something he does, tell him and he'll back off.
"I know, he hasn't done anything without making sure it was okay first,"
"Good, that's how it should be,"
"I need to get ready, the pool party starts soon,"
"Need help finding a swimsuit?"
"Yeah, I've been trying to figure it out since I got home,"
"What about this one?"
"I was thinking about that one, but I wasn't sure how it would look on me,"
"You'll look gorgeous,"
I walk into the bathroom to change and tie my hair up, once I've finished getting ready I walk out and dig through my closet for a pair of shorts and a tank top to wear over my swimsuit. Once I found something to wear, I slip it on over my swimsuit and grab my backpack, throwing a beach towel, sunglasses and some sunblock inside
"They'll be here in two minutes,"
We walk downstairs and out to the driveway as Luke's mom pulls into the driveway. I get into the back row next to Zack instantly hugging him
"You look beautiful,"
"Thanks, I had to rush to get ready, Sarah and I spent too long talking,"
"That's not surprising, you two do nothing but talk when you're together," Luke says
"We had some things to talk about, she had to get me caught up on how their first date went,"
"We talked about a few other things too,"
"Like what?" Zack asks curiously
"Nothing," I quickly reply, Zack, looks at me slightly worried,
Sarah notices and speaks up "Don't worry, it's nothing bad, she just isn't ready to talk about it yet,"
I knew he believed her, but he still had a look of uncertainty on his face. I took his hand into mine, "She's right, I'm just not ready to talk about it yet, but when I am, you're the first person I'll come to,"
"Technically the second since you already talked to me about it,"
Zack frowns, turning his head to look out the window.
The rest of the drive was completely silent, I didn't want to say anything else to upset anyone. Once we arrived at Pastor Evan's house, the four of us walked around the back to the pool in complete silence
Several of the others from the youth group were already in the pool or laying out in the sun, a few of the guys were playing basketball. Zack and Luke drop their towels off and run down to join them, I put my stuff down on the far side of the pool. I really didn't want to talk to anyone at the moment.
I dug out my towel out of my backpack and laid it on the ground, I took off my shorts and tank top, I put on sunblock, and my sunglasses before laying down on my towel. I listened as more teens started arriving, I was thankful nobody had decided to sit down next to me, everyone else was on the other side of the pool, or down on the basketball court.
"Can I have everyone's attention please?" Pastor Evan yells
Everyone becomes silent, all the guys that were playing basketball start running up the hill to the pool area, almost trampling me in the process
"I will be grilling hamburgers and hotdogs for dinner a little later, feel free to go swimming, play basketball, tennis, volleyball or do whatever you want, we'll also have movies playing inside for anyone who wants to go in and watch one,"
"Just please dry off some before going inside," Grace says
"Now go have fun, everyone, I'll announce when dinner is ready,"
The guys run back down to the basketball court, once again almost trampling me, I could hear someone sitting down next to me,
"You okay?" Luke asks
"Yeah, I'm fine,"
"I know you better than that Lila, something is wrong,"
"I guess I hate knowing that I'm keeping stuff from Zack, but I also know I'm not ready to tell him how I feel, and now he isn't happy that I talked to Sarah about it,"
"Well you said it's nothing bad right?"
I sighed heavily, "I'm in love with him, but I'm not ready to tell him that yet, We've only been dating for a week and a half, and the fact that I'm in love with him scares me,"
Luke smiles, "If you aren't ready to tell him, you don't have to. I think he's just worried about you is all,"
"I just don't want him upset with me,"
"I'm not upset with you," Zack says taking a seat next to me, Luke smiles, gets up and walks away
"How much of that did you hear?" I silently prayed that he didn't hear the whole conversation. When he didn't answer, I brought my knees to my chest, hiding my face in them.
"Babe, look at me,"
I slowly lift my head, and look at him
"I know I shouldn't have been listening in on your conversation with Luke, I'm sorry, I just wanted to make sure you were okay,"
"So you heard everything then?"
He nods,
"Great, now you probably think I've lost my mind,"
"I feel the same way,"
"What?"
"This sounds dumb, but I started falling in love with you the day we met, because one, you're the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, and two, your personality lit up the room, and my feelings have only grown since then,"
"That's not dumb, that's really sweet,"
He smiles and hugs me tightly,
"I honestly started falling in love with you at camp, seeing your heart for God, and others. My feelings keep growing, especially after spending the last two days together,"
"I'm glad you feel the same way though, I didn't want to say anything for a while, I didn't want you to feel rushed,"
"So when you overheard me talking to Luke, that's when you decided you needed to tell me you felt the same way?"
"Yeah, I knew I needed to, I didn't want you feeling ashamed, or scared that I wouldn't feel the same way,"
I smile and hug him tightly
"I love you, Lila," he says
"I love you too,"
"You don't have to say it if you aren't comfortable with it yet,"
"It just seemed like the perfect time to say it," I laid my head on his shoulder. He wraps his arms around my waist and held me tightly.
"They're about to serve dinner, what do you want for dinner?"
"I don't care, surprise me,"
Zack gets up and walks over to where the line is forming. I walk over to the cooler, getting myself a bottle of water, and him a Coke, before sitting back on my towel, a few minutes later, Zack comes over with two plates of food, He hands me one before taking a seat next to me
"Hopefully I guessed right, I tried to remember what you ate the first night we met,"
"You did perfect babe, I'll eat both hamburgers and hotdogs, so it didn't matter what you got me,"
"I'm glad I didn't mess it up,"
I smiled, "You even got my favorite chips,"
"I knew they're your favorite, and I grabbed them before anyone else could,"
"I can't top that, but I did get drinks for us," I say handing him the Coke
"Thanks, babe I'm surprised you didn't get a Coke or something,"
"I just wanted water, I'm kinda thirsty from being outside a lot today,"
"Makes sense, after we finish eating, we can go inside and watch movies if you want,"
"I'm thinking about walking home after I finish eating,"
"Why, What's wrong?"
"I'm just tired, I just want to lay down in bed and relax,"
"I'll walk you home,"
"It's okay, I can walk by myself,"
"I don't mind babe, it gives me a chance to spend more time with you,"
"I'll let Sarah and Luke know you're taking me home,"
"I'll do it while I throw the trash away," he says taking my empty plate from me. He stands up, and walks off, I start packing up my bag.
"Ready?"
"yeah I'm ready,"
"You sure you're okay?" Sarah asks as she hugs me
"Yeah, I'm just exhausted,"
"If you want, you can spend the night again, since I know your mom isn't going to be home tonight,"
"It's okay, I don't want to bother you guys again tonight,"
"You aren't bothering us, Lila, my parents loved having you over, they talked about you all afternoon,"
"Alright, I'll stay, but I need to go home and get clothes and stuff first, so I don't keep stealing yours,"
"We'll walk you guys home," Luke says
Sarah and Luke walk ahead of us, Zack had his arm wrapped tightly around my waist as we walked by the park
"You okay?"
"Yeah, just deep in thought,"
"About what?"
"I guess wondering how I'm so lucky to have you by my side, and how lucky I am to have friends like Sarah and Luke, 6 months ago I never thought my life would be like this,"
"Sometimes, God uses the pain for good, the heartache turns to joy and happiness, and the bitterness and anger turns to laughter,"
"I'm just glad God changed everything,"
"Me too, He's done some amazing works in your life, Lila, in just a few short months,"
"I can't wait to see what he does in the next few months, especially as we go back to school,"
"Yeah, we go back in a month and a half,"
"We'll have to go back to school shopping together,"
"That sounds fun,"
Zack walks me up the driveway and to the front door, I hug him tightly not wanting to say goodbye just yet.
"I love you, Lila, I promise I'll text you until you fall asleep,"
"I love you too Zack," I say finally releasing the hug, and watching as he walked down the driveway, back toward Pastor Evans House
I walked inside, and immediately went upstairs to change into pajamas, I grabbed an extra outfit and all of my essential get ready supplies, and put them into my backpack, Once I've got everything I zip it up, and walk downstairs, and out the front door, running across the lawn to get to Sarah's house. I knock on the door, which is immediately answered by Sarah
Sarah wraps me into a tight hug and leads me to her room,
"How was your guys' night, you looked awfully cuddly tonight,"
"Well, he overheard me talking to Luke about what I told you,"
"Oh my gosh,"
"He admitted that he feels the same way, and he told me he loved me tonight,"
Sarah squeals with excitement
"I said it back,"
"You did?"
"It just felt right after we started talking about it,"
"I'm happy for you Lila,"
"He told me that he was falling in love with me since the night we met,"
"Aww, that sounds like Zack, but when did you realize you were falling in love with him?"
"During camp, seeing his heart for God, and his heart for others, it really made me start falling for him hard,"
"I told you, he's the sweetest guy ever, he's perfect for you,"
"I've never met a guy like him,"
"I can't wait to see where God takes you in the future,"
"Me either,"
"You can get ready for bed if you want, I know you're tired, and I am too,"
"I got my pajamas on before I even came over, I wanted to be comfy,"
"Completely understandable, that's the first thing I do when I come home,"
I lay down in bed, listening as Sarah prays over us before we go to sleep, Once she finishes, she lays down beside me
I listen as she starts quietly snoring beside me, I wasn't able to fall asleep immediately, so I decided to text Zack,
L: I can't sleep
Z: I'm sorry, babe, anything I can do to help?
L: I don't think so
Z: Maybe try talking to Sarah?
L: I would but she's asleep already
Z: So that's why she didn't call Luke. He's been over here worried something was wrong with her
L: Nope she just fell asleep, literally as soon as her head hit the pillow
Z: hopefully you'll fall asleep soon
L: I hope so, I'm exhausted
Z: I know you are, I could see it in your eyes
L: That's why you didn't argue in letting me go home
I waited, for him to text me back, but after about twenty minutes, I knew he had fallen asleep. I rolled over and closed my eyes, trying my hardest to sleep, but I couldn't. I knew at this rate, it was going to be a long night.
"You okay?" I hear Sarah ask groggily
"I can't sleep,"
She sits up in bed,
"You should have woken me up, I don't want you laying here alone,"
"You needed your sleep, I'll be fine, some nights I struggle to sleep
"Here take this," she says handing me a Melatonin
I take it, and lay back down on the bed,
"They help me fall asleep on nights I have too much on my mind"
As the minutes passed by, I could feel myself growing more and more tired, this time when I closed my eyes, I could feel sleep beginning to take over
"Goodnight Lila," Sarah says quietly as she lays back.diwn
"Goodnight,"