SEVEN

The sun was at its peak when Drake woke up the next morning. The bright light emitting from his window despite his curtains being closed, blinded him for a second and he shut his eyes tightly,  groaning loudly. He rolled to the other side of his bed, wanting to sleep more when he set his eyes on the wall clock.

He sprang up from his bed immediately and let out a frustrated sigh as he dashed  into the bathroom with a speed he never knew he possessed.  All he could think of was what Ms Silver would say to him for coming late to church. 

Had his alarm not rang? He wondered. How could he had overslept on a Sunday morning? His lips quivered as the cold water from the shower dropped on his body and in a jiffy, he was already out of his house in a plaid suit and well polished shoes.

He had ironed his clothes the previous day for church - one thing he commended himself for.

As he drove out of his driveway,  he glanced at Maeve's apartment,  hoping to see her face but the black Iron door greeted him instead and he sighed. He hoped she was okay for she had been quite tipsy early that morning when she had woken him up with a call to take her home.

It was quite stressful to drive to and from the bar - not when he still craved sleep. Now that she knew the bar, he hoped she would not ask him for a drive again. It was for this reason he was late to church and would have to face the wrath of Ms Silver. He shuddered at this.  

The pope was already preaching the moment he arrived in church and Drake's palms became sweaty when he noticed this. He hoped to find an empty seat at the back of the pew so he would not have to walk in front of everyone - he was never a fan of 'all eyes on me'.

It made him sick. Though this was the very first time he was this late to church,  he couldn't help bowing his head in embarrassment as he walked into the building. Fortunately, there was an empty seat beside a fat woman and he quickly dived in despite the direction the usher gave to move further.  

He strained his eyes in search of Ms Silver,  wondering if she had seen him, but when he didn't find her, he sighed deeply. She would be very disappointed if she found out he was late.

She had been the preacher that brought him to church and ever since his personal encounter with Christ, she had been his mother in faith - someone he went to each time he felt he couldn't take things anymore.

She had one word or the other of encouragement always and for this reason, he didn't want her thinking he was withdrawing from the faith. He couldn't even explain to her that his lateness was due to something he had no power over - though he did, he could have just said no to Maeve when she asked to be driven to the bar. 

Drake sighed when he found out he hadn't been listening to all that the pope had preached. He watched the old man return to his seat from the altar and a younger pastor walked to the altar for the intercessory prayer. Communion was served and the services finally came to an end. 

Drake heaved a sigh of relief for he was very tired and needed to sleep. He remained in his seat, scanning the hall for sight of Ms Silver. He preferred knowing where she was before getting up to meet her to walking about in search of her.

The folds on the neck and protruding belly of a laughing woman three seats away, made he stand up, taking large steps to where she sat. She stood out immediately she saw him, her arms wide opened for him and he didn't hesitate to go into them,  hugging her tightly as she rubbed her palms on his back.

"My baby." She rocked him and he giggled.  

She released him after a while and her eyes twinkled with affection that melted his heart.

"I kept a seat for you but when I didn't see you, I gave it out." She began and Drake stared at his feet. He didn't like lying to her but he couldn't bear her being disappointed in him - he wasn't ready for a sermon on how lateness to church was the beginning of a back slide.

"I'm sorry.  I felt like sitting at the back today.  I have always sat at the front of the pew so I wanted a change." 

That brought a smile to Ms Silver's face and she tug at his cheek, smiling lovingly. 

"Drake,  the explorer." She teased and they both laugh. 

The woman she had been talking to, stood up and left.  She was quite used to this and she knew they needed some time alone just as they had always did. 

Drake occupied the seat the woman had been sitting on when she left and Ms Silver held his hand in hers. She began her series of questions Drake was now used to and when Drake told her about his new neighbour, she jammed her chubby arms, squealing as she clapped.  

"I'm happy to hear this. This is a good news." She squealed. 

Drake couldn't help but smile. She had always complained about the loneliness of his environ and had asked him countless of times to relocate; he knew she would find this news very pleasing. 

"Make sure you bring her to church. I will love to see her." She chirped and Drake frowned. What made Ms Silver believe they were that close to ask him to bring her to church the following week?  He opened his mouth to protest but Ms Silver was already walking to a couple he recognized as the Jones.  

Taking a deep breath, he got up and left the church since there was no one else to talk to. 

The compound was very quiet when he drove in and this made him wonder if all was well. Ever since Maeve moved in, it became unusual to be greeted with quietness.

He walked into his house and headed for his room only to see her windows shut. His shoulder slumped in disappointment but he shrugged it off and went back to bed instead.  

He was awaken by the knock at his door and he rubbed his eyes wearily as he went to open up. He pulled the door open and Maeve walked in, in a white hood. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw that she was alright.

She made herself comfortable on his sofa and he smiled a bit,  glad that she was now acting comfortable in his house. He felt he owed her a visit but he still couldn't bring himself to step his foot into that house - not after all he had heard about it. 

"Do you want some orange juice?" He asked her.

"Do you have a bottle of rum? That will do." She picked the remote from the glass table and switched the television on. The bare head of a man filled the screen and she hissed loudly.

"Do you have any movie we can watch?" She moved closer to the television set and sat on her legs as she rummaged through the packs of movies he had carefully arranged.  He winced when she tossed one of his favourite movies aside.

"Why is your house filled with lame movies? Don't tell me these are what you watch?" She turned to look at him, an incredulous look on her face. 

He shrugged. "They are not lame."

"But they are boring." She quirked her brow and he frowned.

"Haven't you heard the saying: don't judge a book by its cover?"

"Well, I think that saying is lame too." Her lips curled into a sly smile but he frowned.

"You're the one who is lame." He mumbled and she raised a brow. 

"What did you just say?" She stood up, approaching him with a deep scowl on her face. 

Alarmed, Drake moved back a bit, her intimidating glare getting to him. He had never meant to say that neither had he meant for her to hear. 

"I'm sorry. I . . . I. . .didn't mean that." He stuttered but she didn't stop.  Instead her hand balled into a fist. 

Thinking she was going to hit him, he raised his hands in surrender and shut his eyes. What he didn't expect was a loud rumbling of laughter to envelope the room.  He opened his eyes slowly and saw her bent over, finding it difficult to stand as her body shook with laughter.

"My goodness!" She wiped her eyes after she had laughed to her fill. "You're a sight to behold. I can't remember when last I laughed this hard." She pushed him by the shoulder and walked back to the scattered packs of movies.

Drake heaved a sigh of relief as he placed a hand on his thudding chest. He was more relieved than hurt. 

"What were you expecting?" She asked him, amusement evident in her voice. "That I'll punch you?" She chuckled a bit.  "What a chicken! A chicken of a man." She mumbled to herself but he heard and anger welled up in him.

He didn't like that she never missed an opportunity to tease him. She was acting like the rest when she should be different.  He walked to her and bent to pack the movies she had scattered on the floor, grabbing one from her grip. 

"What are you doing?" She looked confused.  

"Since you don't like them, I am keeping them back." He spoke through gritted teeth. 

"But I'm not done checking them out." She stretched her hand to take them from him but he pushed her hand away.

"They are all the same.  You won't like any." He yelled to his surprise and silence pervaded the room.