Anything but Normal - Melody Carlson [45]
“I’ll bet she does have mono,” Hannah said as Sophie got into her car.
Sophie just smiled, waved, and slowly backed out of the parking lot. She could imagine what they were saying about her. Not necessarily mean things, since she was their friend and they were Christians, but she knew they talked differently about people when they weren’t around to hear. She also knew that unless she wanted to get them really speculating about her, she needed to show up at the harvest party as well as the other church activities she’d been skipping out on. The problem was that it was hard to be around all that—sermons, discussions, Bible studies, prayer requests—when she felt like such a hypocrite. It wasn’t that she’d totally abandoned her faith. It was simply that she and God weren’t exactly on speaking terms lately.
She knew that God was gracious and loving and kind—at least, she knew this in her head. She also knew that if she confessed her sins, he would forgive her and make her clean. The problem was that he wouldn’t make her unpregnant. He wouldn’t undo what she had done. And she knew that if she took these steps with God, she would probably have to take them with her family and friends too. That was usually how it worked. Christians were supposed to confess their sins not only to God but to each other. And she just couldn’t do that.
Still, she decided as she went into her house, she needed to do a better job of playing that part—the role of the good Christian girl. And if that meant putting on some lame costume and going to the harvest party and yukking it up with her friends, so be it. But first she was taking a nap!
“You’re home early,” Sophie said to her dad as he came into the house and tossed his Carhartt jacket over a kitchen chair.
“It’s a holiday.”
“It’s Halloween, Dad.” She grabbed her bag.
“Halloween happens to be one of my favorite holidays.”
“Well, the candy’s there, what’s left of it anyway.” She pointed to the big bowl that everyone had been sneaking from. “We’ve already had some early birds. Mom will be home by six. And she’s got some more candy.”
“Hey, looks like you took my advice.” He chuckled as he set his thermos in the sink.
“Huh?” She fished her car keys from her bag.
He poked her in the tummy and grinned. “Putting on a little weight there, aren’t you, pumpkin?”
“Very funny.” She looked down at the orange T-shirt she’d borrowed from his closet. She’d used black electrical tape to make a smiley face. Then she’d put it on and stuffed it full of wadded-up newspaper to resemble a lumpy jack-o’-lantern.
By the time she reached the church, the parking lot was full and the party was in full gear. She went inside, pushed past moms and kids in costume, and finally located her friends in the snack area.
“Wow, you went all out with your costume this year,” Kelsey said sarcastically. She was dressed like a princess, the same costume she’d worn for the past couple of years—in Sophie’s opinion, boring.
“You have something against pumpkins?”
“I’m just glad you made it.” Carrie Anne gave her a sideways hug.
“What are you?” Sophie studied her black head-to-toe attire.
“A cat, of course.” Carrie Anne waved her tail under Sophie’s nose.
Sophie dug a green stocking hat from her bag and pulled it on her head. “Almost forgot my stem.”
“Now there’s a good look,” Jenny teased.
“Are you supposed to be an elf or something?” Sophie asked.
“Peter Pan.” Jenny bowed, then pointed to Hannah. “And this is Tinkerbell.”
“Of course.” Sophie laughed at the strange apparatus of wire hangers and cloth that was attached to Hannah’s back. “The wings are a dead giveaway.”
And so the evening went. Sophie hung with her friends, made jokes, and played the multifaceted role of good Christian girl, class clown, and loyal friend. Hopefully she dispelled any concerns that Carrie Anne or the others had about her. Of course, the constant question was, how long could she keep this up?
Sophie put a lot of time