Chapter 16: Distractions

After the police interrogated the thief in custody within Emuna, her friends and the thief's mother were present there, Emuna and everybody else left the police station. Then Emuna turned to the thief's mother. "Excuse me, miss."

"Yes?" The thief's mother turned to Emuna, watching her walk towards her. The sunlight radiated on that gorgeous brunette's pale skin. Her blue eyes gazed at Emuna.

"Me and my friends are so sorry your husband's very sick in the hospital, and you can't afford to get him treated right now," Emuna stated with a frown.

The thief's mother grinned while the thief crossed his arms and glared at Emuna. "Oh, it's quite alright, ma'am. Don't worry about it."

Emuna shook her head. "No, we want to help your family heal. We're gonna give you some of our money." She turned around to her friends' attention. "Right, guys?"

Her friends closed her eyes and raised their fists up in the air. "You betcha, Emuna!"

Emuna already discussed assisting the boy's family over their financial troubles on the hospital bills. They wanted to do this to prevent the boy from recommitting crime.

The thief's mother flustered, pushing the air a couple times. "Look, guys. I really do appreciate what you've done for me and my family, but we're pretty much good on our own."

"But please, miss," Emuna pleaded. "Please let us help you and your family."

The boy's mother gave Emuna and her friends her annoyed look while the boy frowned at first, then turned to his mother. "Look…I really appreciate what you've done for us, but I really have this under control. We're just going to ask family members and friends for some money to heal my husband. There's no need for you guys to help me and my family, okay?"

"But mom…" The boy cried. "All our family members and friends are also financially struggling too though. We're going to need as much money as possible. Please let them give us the money. I don't want daddy to die from being sick in a hospital."

The thief's mother angrily turned to her son. "Don't make some assumptions now, son! I'm sure they got some money in hand. So let's go home, shall we?"

"But moooom…" The boy cried even more, making his baby face. "Please…"

The boy's mother then glared at him. "Now look! I'm not going to tolerate a child like dishonoring his parents! When I say, 'We'll get some money from my friends and family, and not request financial help from anyone else besides them,' I really mean that. Do you understand me?!"

The boy frowned and put his head down. "Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry I doubted you..."

Realizing that there's nothing Emuna and her friends can do to help out their situation, they turned to each other with a frown, before they returned their attention to the boy's mother.

"Excuse me, miss…" Emuna frowned at her, slightly tilting her head down, looking down below and at the boy's mother back and forth. "We're sorry we doubted you too. Will you please forgive us?"

The boy's mother turned back to Emuna and her friends with a smile on her face. "Oh, it's alright now. I forgive you. We'll be heading home now. Good-bye, you guys!"

"Good-bye to you guys too!" Emuna yelled while she, her friends, the boy and his mother waved at one another. "Take care now!"

"You too!" The boy and his mother replied, heading towards the blue car.

Emuna and his friends continuously waved at the boy and his mother until they drove away from the sidewalk home. Seeing the sun about to set, Emuna turned to her friends. "Look, it's about to get dark. We should head home. I'll see you guys at the usual spot tomorrow."

"Okay, byyyyeeee! You tooooo!" Emuna's friends yelled as they went home on their separate ways, waving at one another while they left.

****

When Emuna and her friends continued to work on their project Saturday morning, they worked on their tasks individually on John 4. Memories from yesterday evening began to haunt Emuna's heart while she was working on her task. She stopped working a bit and closed her eyes tightly, trying to fight against her distractions.

But her memories were able to overcome her heart. C'mon, Emuna, dammit! Focus on your task for the Lord, not on memories from yesterday! C'MON!

Emuna's friends noticed this and stopped performing their individual tasks.

"Hey, Emuna. Are you okay, broh?" Zaboulon questioned, raising his eyebrow at Emuna.

Emuna turned to Zaboulon. "Yea, I'm fine…it's jus' that-" She then put her head down below. "Hmm…how do I say it?"

"Say what though?" Zaboulon asked, raising his eyebrow at Emuna.

"Well, I try to prevent my memories 'bout yesterday evening distractin' me from workin' on our project, yet it keeps on holdin' me down," Emuna responded, shaking her head sideways while she remained putting her head down. "It jus' drivin' me crazy, y'know."

"Well? Have you tried turning to Elohim?" Lazarus asked.

Emuna turned to Lazarus. "No, not yet…"

"Well, turn to Elohim," Yudia suggested. "Pray to Him 'bout your problem and He'll probably help you on your problem."

Emuna turned to Yudia, smiling at her. "Thanks, Yudia"-she turned to Lazarus-"Lazarus"-she turned to Zaboulon-"and Zaboulon. I truly appreciate y'all helpin' me and stuff."

Emuna's friends grinned at her. "You're welcome, Emuna!"

Emuna looked up at the ceiling. "Dear Elohim, please help me prevent my memory from distractin' me. I'm tryin' my best to create some artwork for Your ministry work, yet I believe I can't do this on my own. In Yeshua's name, Amen."

"Amen!" Emuna's friends said as they and Emuna continued working on their individual tasks.

As Emuna continued working on her project, her memories from yesterday evening kept pestering her. She frowned when looking down at her unfinished work.

-Oh, c'mon now! Go away already! The thief's mom made it perfectly clear, when she says her friends and family have some money for her sick husband, she really has this shit in the bag! Ghosh!

Emuna slowly continued her work on her project. Very slowly. But she feels Elohim keeps allowing her memories to distract her. She looked up at the ceiling once more with a frown on her face.

-Elohim…why are You doin' this to me, huh?! Why?! Why?! WHY?!

Yudia noticed Emuna gazing at the ceiling while working on her task, looking at her and her project back and forth. She frowned at Emuna. "Uh, Emuna? Are you alright? You've been starin' at the ceiling for a while now."

But Emuna didn't answer Yudia. Zaboulon and Lazarus also stopped working on their individual projects and turned to Emuna. Zaboulon leaned forward to tap on Emuna's arm, calling her name.

"Huh?" Emuna responded, turning to Zaboulon. "What's up?"

"Yudia's callin' ya," Zaboulon replied as he leaned back against his chair.

Emuna turned to Yudia. "What's goin' on, Yudia?"

After Yudia repeated her words from earlier, Emuna put her head down with a frown, shaking her head sideways. "No…not at all. I feel like for some reason. Elohim hasn't answered my prayer. These same memories kept distractin' me, and…"

"And what?" Yudia questioned, raising her eyebrow at Emuna.

"And…after I prayed to Elohim a couple more times, I feel like…um…uh…" Emuna tried to give her response, yet her guilt kept building up inside her heart, which prevented her from giving her friends her immediate answer.

Yudia gave Emuna an annoyed look on her face. "Feel like what, Emuna?! Jus' spill it out and get it over with already! You're doin' nothin' but waste our precious time!"

"Yea, broh!" Lazarus and Zaboulon agreed, also giving Emuna their annoyed look on their faces.

"Yudia's right, ya know," Lazarus added.

"I feel like I need to…um…" Emuna swallowed her own saliva and lifted up her head towards her friends' attention. "Leave…that's right…I'll leave and call it a day for me. I feel like if I kept working on the project in this condition, my distractions will jus' keep hammerin' me more and more to the point that I'll jus' put the project and ministry behind, and I jus' can't risk that, y'know."

Then Emuna's friends understood what she meant, grinning at her.

"Well, why didn't you say so earlier?! Sure, you go on ahead, Emuna. I'll take over from here," Yudia said as she moved towards Emuna's seat.

"Huh?!" Emuna loudly asked out of confusion. "Are ya sure 'bout that?! 'Cause I don't wanna ya to be overworked, y'know."

"Girl, don't worry 'bout me," Yudia said, standing near Emuna with her eyes closed and a wide grin. "I can handle this, jus' like ya did for me a weekend ago, remember?"

Recalling what Yudia just said, Emuna grinned back at Yudia and shook her head. "Mhn. Alright, Yudia. You can take it from here." Turning to Lazarus and Zaboulon while they also grinned at her, she said to them, "Bye, guys. I'll see ya at the bridge when y'all get done."

"We will!" Emuna's friends said as Emuna left her usual spot and Yudia sat in her seat, working on two individual tasks. She sighed out of relief.

-Alright, I'm glad I'm out of there, 'cause my distractions are causin' Elohim's ministry to fall behind. And I can't allow that to happen, can I?