"I don—" Kara started to reply, but a voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Are you a coward? How long will you keep running? Go to the party. Convince them." Lucifer whispered, calm but relentless.
Kara swallowed hard, then forced out a response to Kelvin,
"Yes, I'll come."
Kelvin threw his hands up in victory, grinning widely—ignoring Todd's signals to switch seats.
When class ended, Kara walked out first. The rest of the group exchanged sharp looks, then followed her silently.
Kara headed toward the basketball court. There, a small group gathered—the "church losers," as the school called them. They prayed quietly together.
A soft smile crossed Kara's face. They were her childhood friends—the ones who'd prayed and studied with her before everything changed, before her father passed.
Her mind drifted back to that fateful Sunday evening.
They had all gathered in Kara's backyard for prayer when she suddenly opened her eyes and said,
"Guys, I don't want to do this anymore. It's time we're honest with ourselves. I don't want to serve God anymore. He played me dirty."
"How dare you say that about God, Kara? Yes, your father died, but it wasn't God's fault. It..." Canila started to argue, but Kara cut her off sharply.
"If it wasn't God's fault, then whose fault was it? My dad's? I'm fifteen, for crying out loud. I'm at an age when I need my parents. You don't understand how I feel because you haven't lost yours. So take your Bibles and leave my house!" Kara yelled.
The friends scattered, running away in silence.
The next day, Kara arrived at school with Becky—the notorious female gangster. Becky did things way above her age, and with her by Kara's side, they intimidated Kara's old friends.
When the "church losers" tried to approach Kara, she met them with cutting insults and pushed them away.
From that day forward, Kara and Becky bullied them relentlessly. Soon, it became the norm at school.
People grew afraid to join the "church losers," to worship openly, or to identify as Christians.
"Oh my God, look who's here—the church losers!" Becky sneered, and Kelvin, Todd, and Iris laughed along.
"So, what's the Lord saying? Is He coming now?" Todd added sarcastically.