Chapter 21

She was being punished, Tapiwa thought as she fought to keep her eyes open. That wasn't an easy task when she had barely slept the night before. Who was she kidding? She hadn't had a good night's sleep in weeks. Not since the party and it was taking a toll on her both mentally and physically.

But then again, Tapiwa thought she could blame her current inability to keep her eyes open on the old pastor standing at the pulpit. He had the kind of voice that would put even the most energetic person to sleep. She should know, after all, she had known the man for as long as she was alive.

Going to church every Sunday morning was a tradition in her family that had been upheld regardless of the season outside, the health status of anyone in the house, or even a possible car malfunction.

Allen Mvula was the sort of man who would drag his family through the worst storm on foot for an early Sunday service. The church loved his dedication of course; his kids, not so much. But they never voiced their opinion on the matter. Just as they never argued with the sitting arrangements.

As a more traditional church, it was housed in a small building, just big enough to fit five hundred congregants. At the very front of the long rectangular space was the pulpit which also accommodated the uniformed choir of ten. The rest of the space was divided into two sections filled with rows of faded white pews for the churchgoers.

For over two decades, Tapiwa's father always insisted they sit in the left section, right next to the wall. Her parents sat in the second row from the front, since the first row was reserved for the church elders. Tapiwa and her siblings occupied the row immediately after.

The sitting arrangement saved Tapiwa from her parents noticing she was dozing, but it was never a nice thing to have to stare at the back of her father's head for three hours every time she looked up. It was either that or staring at the wall which was right next to her because life was so unfair her seat couldn't even be next to a window. Also, the wall was unfortunately not close enough for her to lean against it and make it her pillow. Not that she would have dared.

Tapiwa did a slow blink and widened her eyes. Damn, it wasn't working. She needed sleep. Even for just five minutes. Needing to know what time it was, Tapiwa subtly removed her phone from her jacket pocket. She used her notebook to keep it out of sight and then glanced at the screen. Damn. Only an hour and a half had passed since the service started. She almost groaned but quickly swallowed it down.

Maybe she was really being punished by God for dozing one too many times during a service and had she given her tithe last month? Tapiwa mused. She didn't want to think God would use the situation with Asher and Jadon as a punishment, but it really felt as though some higher power was working tirelessly to show her the error of her ways.

Sighing in resignation, her finger moved to lock the screen of her phone and return it to her pocket when she noticed she had a new message from an unknown number.

Tapiwa immediately looked up at the pastor explaining the meaning of a passage he had just read. She shouldn't. She was in church and it wasn't the time to be checking her phone. It wasn't right and she would probably get caught. No, she wouldn't check. Tapiwa clicked the screen off.

Her resolve lasted less than a minute. With a quick glance to make sure her brother, who was right next to her, wasn't paying attention to her, Tapiwa unlocked her phone again and opened the message.

Unknown: Are you still dating Asher?

Tapiwa frowned even as her heart skipped a beat. That hadn't been what she expected, although truthfully, she hadn't known what to expect and had only been searching for a distraction. Still, she was puzzled by the message. She bit her lip and thought for a second then typed out her response.

Tapiwa: Who is this?

She hadn't expected the reply to be immediate since the first message had been delivered over an hour ago but it seemed the person had been waiting for her to respond because their answer was back before she could even think of putting the phone away.

Unknown: Jadon Paterson. Answer the question.

This time, her heart didn't skip a beat, it slammed against her ribcage as though it was attempting to jump out of her chest. Tapiwa barely suppressed the gasp of shock, still very conscious of where she was. But her mind was whirling. Jadon was texting her. Why? How had he even gotten her number? Against her better judgment, she answered his question.

Tapiwa: I'm not dating your brother. You already know I ended things with him.

Jadon: I know he came to see you again. He bought you flowers and a gift.

Tapiwa: And you just assumed I was easily bought?

Jadon: I assumed nothing. Hence my question.

For some reason, Tapiwa didn't believe him. She glared at her phone. He thought she would get back with Asher just because he'd bought her some flowers and a necklace. The same way he'd thought her capable of working with a blackmailer and plotting their night together.

She was about to tell him where he could go and shove his assumptions of her when Lute suddenly leaned into her space close to her ear, voice low. "Put your phone away, Tapi. You know better."

Bristling at the rebuking tone in her brother's voice, Tapiwa turned her glare on him. She opened her mouth to tell him to mind his own business, but then an idea slipped into her mind and she was standing before she thought better of it.