Chapter 35

The practices that week were some of the hardest ones Cole had ever put one of his teams through. None of the players remembered anything even close to this, a message from the coaches on how important this game was.

The players did not complain, as they were also fired up for this game and if it took long and hard practices to beat Big Cedar and stay undefeated in the district, then it was fine. They all admired Tatum Sloan and heard all the stories, but the Panthers were a little tired of hearing about him and how great he was.

Cole knew Tatum would be working his players extra hard for this game and probably felt pretty good about his chances. It would be an advantage to Tatum since he was familiar with Petros’ system, except the Panthers’ philosophy had changed some over the years and Cole was smart enough to change with the times.

His little wrinkle worked good in practice as did the trick plays put in for this game. Since Tatum’s parents lived in Petros, Cole moved some of the practices inside the gym, not expecting any of the Sloans to do any spying, but not willing to risk it either.

Cole did not plan to use the offensive changes the whole game, just enough to keep the Mustangs off guard.

He had no doubt it would work. The faith in his quarterback was growing daily. Cole always expected Lucky to be a good player, but never figured his son to be this good as a sophomore.

Lucky had improved so much, even though Cole tried to not put too much on him. That would not be the case Friday. As far as the coaches were concerned, this would be Lucky’s coming out party, a chance to exhibit his talents in a way nobody had seen before.

It was just like a Christmas present as far as Cole was concerned. They were going to take the wrappings off the present and see what was there.

Cole could not wait to see the look on Tatum’s face when he saw what the Panthers had waiting for him. All he knew was the Mustangs better be in good shape.

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Seldom did a week pass without a call from Tatum, talking about strategy, opponents or anything else going on.

Cole could not describe the pride he felt for Tatum, or tell anybody how much this game really bothered him. Tatum was almost like a third son and now the father would try to disappoint a child with the gift of a loss.

Tatum was usually the caller, but Cole took the honors this time, mainly to wish him luck and tell him how impressed he was with the Mustangs’ improvement.

Cole knew Tatum was excited about coming home and wanted to make it even more special by winning.

Petros’ coach was a little more uptight than usual, but went out of his way to be loose around the players, having learned a long time ago that his attitude and behavior had a great influence on the way his players performed.

If the coaches were loose, that was how the players would be. If he was nervous, the players would react that way.

Cole never tried to let the players know how he felt, but wasn’t that great of an actor.

Those closest to him knew how he felt. Lloyd, Lucky, Ichabod and Stub knew this, and also felt the same way.

This would not be just another game.

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Lucky did not have any classes with Toni since they were in different grades. Plus, she was an older woman, something she kept reminding him about. They only saw each other between classes or at lunch.

They hooked up at lunch and went for a walk around the school, talking and laughing. She was still working most nights so they had not gotten together again. The only night she was off was Wednesday, which gave him an idea as they sat down on the rock wall that surrounded the school grounds.

“You want to church with me on Wednesday night?” he asked.

She smiled, although the question caught her off guard. Toni hoped they might get together and do something, but it did not involve sitting in a church with a bunch of other people.

“My family doesn’t go to church,” she answered, watching for his reaction.

“That’s okay. It never hurts to start.”

“I don’t know anything about church or the Bible.”

Lucky smiled and took her hand in his.

“It’s okay,” he insisted. “You don’t have to pass a test to get in.”

“I don’t think I’d fit in,” she protested.

“You won’t ever know until you try.”

“But I don’t know how to act or what to do.”

“You just have to be yourself,” Lucky suggested.

“And you will be there with me?”

“All the time. I think you’ll like it. Everybody’s really friendly and my dad even smiles at church.”

“I’ll go just to see that,” Toni declared. “I’ll try it but don’t be disappointed with me if it doesn’t work out.”

Lucky nodded, not sure what to make of the statement. He knew this made her nervous, far from what he intended. He just wanted to spend some time with her and since it was Wednesday night, that meant going to church.

For Lucky, he had done this almost all his life. When the church doors were open, whether it was Sunday morning or night, Wednesday night or during a revival, Lucky was there.

He already knew enough of the Bible to put some preachers to shame. He could quote several scriptures and led a Bible study class for other youth of his age on Sunday mornings.

“Do you believe in the stuff in the Bible?” she asked.

“With all my heart,” Lucky answered, showing a conviction and seriousness she never saw in him before.

“It’s always seemed strange that there’s some supreme being out there you can’t see. I’ve had some trouble believing in that.”

“Do you love your parents?”

“Of course.”

“But you can’t see the love, right? But it’s still there.”

“Yeah.”

“Just because you can’t see God, it doesn’t mean he isn’t there. Nobody could ever see Him and live to talk about it. But I can assure you God is watching over us, protecting us at all times. Look around at this world. I mean, how could all this be explained if God didn’t make it?”

“But it still seems I should be able to see it to believe it.”

“You breathe, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Can you see the air?”

“No.”

“But it’s there, just like your love for your parents. Without oxygen, none of us would be alive. If you were unable to love, this would be a hard life to go through.”

“You’re pretty good,” she stated, smiling at him.

“Thanks, so are you.”

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Toni was more nervous walking into the church than she could remember. The church was smaller than expected. There was a large covered area for the bus and cars to pull under to drop off or pick up people, then some steps leading up to the entryway.

Double-glass doors led into the lobby. A nursery was to the right, restrooms were straight ahead and the auditorium was to the left.

The walls were covered with dark brown paneling that had been around for some time. As they walked in, she looked to her right and saw a message board with cards, pictures and newspaper clippings.

She glanced into the nursery and saw several small children playing under the watchful eyes of two older women. Just past that was a small trophy case filled with trophies, not for athletic events but for giving.

Toni felt uncomfortable just coming to church, but was even more so because she wore a dress. Dresses and her just did not get along. She saw other kids wearing jeans and wished that was her choice, but Toni did not know what to wear. Lucky thought she looked great in the pink dress that stretched down almost to her knees.

She had spent almost an hour trying to get ready, knowing Lucky would arrive exactly on time. He wore a nice blue golf shirt, a pair of slacks and dress shoes, so at least he was also dressed up.

Her mother suggested wearing a pair of high heels, a bad decision. Toni was not used to wearing them and seemed on the verge of falling every second. Plus, they hurt her feet.

Toni did not know why she felt so uncomfortable. It was only a church and she was sure the people would be nice to her, since the chances of visitors returning were pretty slim if they were mistreated.

She talked to Elizabeth earlier, trying to get a feel on what to expect but her friend had not helped.

If Lucky was not with her, she would probably fling off the high heels and run home. This was the Bible Belt she lived in, where some 70 percent of families went to church at least once a week. Her family just never went. She never asked why and her parents never gave a reason. Toni just accepted it, not knowing any better.

She always thought all the talk about some God and Jesus dying on the cross was a little weird, but it seemed so important for Lucky so Toni decided to give it a chance.

They barely got inside before people started coming up to greet her. They shook her hand, hugged her and said how glad they were she came.

She started feeling better, but was still uncomfortable. Toni was not used to a lot of hugging and physical contact and now a bunch of people she did not know were hugging her and did not seem to want anything from her.

Nobody gave her any dirty looks or told her she should not be here. The laughter and conversations filled the lobby as people walked around, talking to each other. She looked at the clock on the wall and saw church would start in a few minutes.

The people started entering the church and Lucky and Toni joined in. There was also a big crowd inside, including a lot of students she knew. When several came up and acted like it made their day to see her in church, it further confused Toni.

Toni knew most of them, but could not get over how warm they greeted her, a bunch of students she seldom spent time with.

She followed Lucky as they walked to their seats, down near the front. It was not a big church, but this part at least seemed to be in better condition. She was surprised at how many people came to church, especially on a Wednesday night.

“Is this okay?” Lucky asked, as they sat down.

“It’s fine,” she answered, finally starting to relax as it did not look like anybody was going to condemn her for her sins or not going to church. It was kind of strange, everybody just seemed happy she was here.

The pastor arrived as the conversation stopped and everybody took a seat. He was dressed in a black suit, minus the tie. It was his best suit, just back from the cleaners. His blonde hair was combed to perfection, not a hair out of place. His black shoes were polished to a shine so a person could see their reflection.

He made his way slowly to the front of the church, stopping to visit and shake hands with the people along the way. As he neared Lucky and Toni, he stopped and looked at them.

Toni always thought he must be a stern man, based on his appearance. Her impression of him quickly changed as he smiled and reached out to shake her hand.

“I’m so glad you could join us tonight,” he proclaimed, softly shaking her hand while patting Lucky on the shoulder.

Pastor Furman finally made his way to the front of the church. He sat in a chair next to the choir section as one of the deacons made announcements. The youth choir was scheduled to sing at the service and was in the choir’s section.

The deacon led the church in a couple of hymns. It was not a song she heard before and sounded nothing like any church songs Toni had heard. It actually moved kind of fast and had a nice ring to it.

As the deacon retired after the two songs, the pastor came forward and welcomed everybody, especially the visitors. He mentioned how good the crowd was for a Wednesday night, which was true, mainly because a lot of parents of the youth choir showed up to see their children perform.

He motioned for everybody to stand and asked for a man seated near the front to bless the service.

As the prayer ended, “Amens” echoed throughout the church. Pastor Furman announced the youth choir was going to bless everybody with their singing and turned it over to the choir director, a young man who was also the school’s choir director.

“How come you’re not up there?” Toni asked, leaning close to him.

“If you’d ever heard me sing, you wouldn’t have to ask,” Lucky responded.

The whole audience stood as the music started, another song she never heard but liked. It sounded almost like a rock song with the heavy bass and rhythm. Many in the congregation stood and started clapping.

They performed two more songs, sounding even better on each successive song. It was nothing like she expected. Toni figured all the songs would be like “Amazing Grace” and “Go Tell it on the Mountain”, songs her grandparents probably sang back in their days.

This wasn’t bad, Toni decided, not nearly like she expected. The congregation gave the youth choir a loud ovation after finishing. She was stunned to find out her fellow classmates at Petros High School were so talented. Toni had heard the school choir sing before, but they did not sound nearly as good as the youth choir did.

The service continued at a fast pace, never slowing down. The pastor had his wife sing a couple of songs then called on Cole to lead a testimonial service.

Toni was stunned to hear people talk so openly about problems they or their family had gone through before something happened to change the situation, always giving the credit to God. She was not nearly that open and found it hard to believe people she had known all her life would open up like this and tell things Toni would have been embarrassed to admit.

God had apparently rescued several members of this church from sins like alcohol and drugs, and performed healing miracles on many others.

Toni really did not know how to take this since she never heard confessions like this. The people continued to open up and let loose a current of emotions of the love they received and how Jesus was always there for them. They talked of when times were good, but especially when they went through a struggle and how God gave them the strength to get through whatever faced them.

Before she knew what was happening, Toni realized her eyes were misting. This was a new emotion for her. She had cried before when sad or hurt, but never out of joy.

The string of testimonies continued, taking up most of the service. She felt something tugging at her insides, something Toni never experienced, a power stronger than anything she ever felt. But at the same time, it felt peaceful. Her eyes were letting loose with a torrent of tears like she had not experienced since her grandmother passed away last year.

Toni thought of how much better her life was than what these people had gone through. She had never been through these battles and hoped never to have these problems.

She was still shaken when the service ended. The tears had dried up, but her thoughts were filled with the stories from the testimonies.

Toni hoped Lucky would not mind her crying, but doubted he would.

As they started to leave, they stopped and shook hands and hugged many people. Pastor Furman was at the door and gave each of them a hug and thanked them for coming.

When they finally got outside, her nerves were still on fire and everything seemed so different.

“I’m sorry I cried,” Toni stated. “I don’t know what came over me.”

“It’s okay,” Lucky responded, putting his arm around her for the first time, just reacting and never thinking about it first. She moved closer to him, no more words needed.

Chapter 36