26. Corinthians
Corinthians
“Madea, you should let me lead the children’s choir,” Krude suggested as we sat in our seats. “These kids need some guidance.” He looked at them and shook his head. “They sound boring.”
“This isn’t our church, Genesis,” she replied without looking at him. “What the Kilmores do with their church is their business.”
“Stop accepting invites then,” he said, shaking his head. “From here on out we don’t go outside; the company comes to us.”
“I don’t want the Kilmores at our church,” she said, cutting her eyes to him. “I don’t like how they look.”
Krude looked around, then nodded. “Yeah, they are a little funny looking,” he agreed. He looked over at me. “I hope that baby takes after us.”
“Not their looks,” she sighed. “Their spirit ain’t right.”
“Shoot them,” he suggested. “We can have a clean-up crew here within minutes.”
“I can't shoot them.”
“Why not? This ain’t their church either!” he fussed. Exodus sat beside him, trying not to laugh, while Mercy and Judge nodded in agreement. “If you can threaten to pop me in church just for being me, you can shoot them for boring us to death.”
“I hate when he says stuff that I agree with,” Judge said, leaning forward to talk to Madea. “But in this instance, I am on his side. We can shoot them.”
“I’m not shooting them,” she said, shaking her head.
“Why? You left your gun at the house?” he asked, slightly confused. “That ain’t like you, Best Friend. You need to borrow mine?”
“I didn’t leave it at home,” she told him, then patted her purse. “It’s right here.”
“Oh, then shoot them.”
“Genesis, we are here to show support. Our family is expanding; that means we have to show a strong unit. The Kilmores and Decortes under one roof does just that.”
“We don’t even like them,” he groaned. “Like I get that Corinthians and Isaac are dating, but damn, we gotta do stuff like this?” he looked over at me. “Break up with him.”
“Again, something else I hate to agree with him on,” Judge replied.
“Genesis,” Madea scolded him. “Sit back, shut up, and be quiet.”
“Madea ain’t the last two the same thing?” he leaned forward to ask, making her glare at him. “Okay, I’ma shut the fuck up.” He threw his hands up in surrender. “I know when my advice is falling on deaf ears.”
“You just cussed in the church!” she scolded him. “Do you want me to beat your ass in here?”
“Uh, first off, we are outside; they got us in this tent in the parking lot like it ain’t hot out here. I bet you they didn’t pay their bill, so their power is off,” Krude pointed out. “And secondly, you just cussed too.”
“I’m grown; I can cuss.” She pointed at Krude. “Shut the fuck up. Sit down there and act like I taught your ass something. Or it’ll be you I shoot.”
The children’s choir finally finished their selection and sat down. Krude was right; they were boring, but I wouldn’t admit that out loud because if I did, he would’ve run with it. It was enough for Judge to agree with him. He was never going to let Madea and Granddaddy live down that fact alone.
We were here to show support. Be a unit.
And I hated it. Over the last few months, Isaac popped up from time to time.
Never longer than an hour but long enough to make my blood boil.
He would sit in my shop, talk to people, put on a damn show of being a loving partner.
Every few weeks he’d show up to Granddaddy’s church, sit next to me and hold my hand.
Then two weeks ago his entire family showed up: his grandfather, uncles, brothers, and cousins.
They invited us to an anniversary service and said it was time for the church world to know we were a strong family unit.
Granddaddy and Madea never asked questions about Isaac and my relationship.
My cousins did; I avoided them. I told them that I was trying to navigate my relationship without the influence of everyone around us.
They didn’t like it but again respected my decision.
Their being here now was their way of showing their support.
No one wanted to be here though, not even me.
The first lady of the church we were visiting walked to the front and greeted everyone. Her eyes went to us, and when they stopped at me, I could see the judgment in them.
“Greetings, friends, family and visitors,” she said, looking around.
“My name is Helen Cartell, the first lady of this lovely church. I’m honored to have the brothers and sisters in Christ here with us to celebrate our anniversary.
” The crowd clapped. “It has been heavy on my heart since my husband told me who was coming up here and to talk to you all. I didn’t know what I was going to say; I prayed for God to lead my steps and guide my mind. ”
“Take your time, trust him,” someone in the crowd said.
“Oh, she’s long-winded, I can tell,” Krude said.
He reached behind him and twisted his Wall-E fanny pack to the front.
“I came prepared. Who wants a snack?” He unzipped his pack then looked at us.
“I got one of everything I knew y’all liked.
” He didn’t wait for anyone to say anything and started pulling out candy and handing it to us.
“Genesis…”
“I got yours too, Best Friend,” he said, taking out a pack of peanut M she didn’t. She took her candy, nodded, then sat back in her seat, opened them, and started eating.
Krude looked at me and smiled. “I got you two things.” He set a pack of Skittles and a few pieces of Bit-O-Honey into my lap. “Yo ass is picky nowadays.”
I picked up the Skittles and opened them.
I was at the point that I couldn’t hide my pregnancy any longer.
That was another reason Isaac’s family showed up at my grandparents' house. He’d figured out I was pregnant; he wanted to ‘do the right thing’.
His grandfather suggested we get married; I’d damn near had a heart attack.
There was no way I was going to marry him, but Isaac quickly nixed that idea.
He said that we weren’t ready, and while he loved our baby and me, he didn’t want to force us into something that we would regret.
He said he didn’t care about what anyone had to say and would be there to support me through it all.
His grandfather let go of the idea of marriage but suggested that we join churches and show the congregation that we were strong in our faith and in our relationship with God.
He suggested I repent, ask for forgiveness, and understand how some may not agree with our choices.
When Granddaddy asked him what Isaac would be doing, he said that this was my mistake and was mine to carry alone.
Isaac already apologized to their members and fellow churches. It was my turn.
He wanted me to do it at this church anniversary. So here I was, sitting here, with my family who were adamantly against it yet still by my side. The Kilmores sat across the aisle from us.
“I’m gonna talk to y’all about the act of weak flesh and how the Lord punishes all no matter the age.
Sinners are sitting in this crowd, heathens who have opened their legs for men well before marriage.
These sinners have the nerve to wear white as if they are pure when the evidence of their treachery is evident in their growing wombs.
They will carry these bastards as if the Lord has blessed them.
These bastards are nothing but the devil's doing. These girls have no soul to save because they have denounced the Lord’s words,” she said, looking directly at me.
“God said our body is a temple, did he not, Corinthians? Is it not in the chapter you were named after where these sinners were denounced, yet you are sitting there with a bastard child in your womb?”
“Oh, this bitch…” Madea said, shaking her head. She looked down at me, but I wouldn’t meet her eyes.
“I can't do this,” I said as I closed the Skittles bag and put them in my purse. I was about to stand, but Madea reached across Psalms and grabbed my arm.
“Do not get up and walk out of here.”
I wasn’t about to walk out. I was about to go up there and hit this bitch right in her mouth. She knew nothing about me, yet she was standing there in front of all these people, judging me. “Madea…”
“Look at me. I didn’t agree with this shit from the beginning, but we still came to support you.
If you don’t want to do this dumb ass shit, then don’t; we won't love you any less,” she said.
I slowly turned to look at the Kilmores sitting across the aisle from us.
Isaac sat next to his brothers; their eyes locked on the first lady and what she was saying.
Every so often they’d nod in agreement. Tyrell sat behind Isaac; he made a show of patting him on the shoulder as if to support him.
“You will not put your head down; you will not be shamed that you are carrying my great-grandchild. If that bitch wants to judge, then so be it, but what you will not do is put your head down because of her judgment.”
“I don’t want to be here,” I told her, shaking my head. Her shoulders relaxed, and she nodded. “I don’t want to cause problems, though, Madea. I swear I’m not trying to be a problem.”
“You aren’t,” she said, then smiled. “Because I’m about to set the record straight.”
The first lady finished her judgmental speech and walked away from the podium. Madea got up and made her way up there. Granddaddy sat at the edge of his seat with a mug on his face. He was just as upset as she was.