FORTY SEVEN

Eternity …

For I know the thoughts that I think toward Emmaline Ruth Johnson,” said the Lord. “Thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give her an expected end,” continued Almighty God as He considered the happiness of the girl as she chatted away to her friend on the telephone.

God had continually observed this little one after her parents settled down to make a go at their marriage. He allowed all manner of maturity builders to happen to the entire family: the man Alton, the woman Maybelle, the girl Emmaline, and the rest of their family members.

Emmaline was coming of age. The things destined to affect her during this season of life would influence her greatly as she entered the military and later joined His Army of Holy Soldiers.

“Father,” said the voice of His Son, Jesus Christ. “What is to happen to the little one Emmaline Ruth Johnson in this next season of her life?” He asked, concerned for the fate awaiting her.

“Just watch, My Son,” Almighty God said confidently. “Even though there are things coming her way designed to break her heart and destroy her mentally and emotionally, she is strong and will overcome. The enemy is gearing up to take her down. But this one has the strength of the Ancient of Days within her. She will conquer all that will transpire.”

In the Unseen …

Ridicule, Rejection, Discouragement, and Pride sat high in the atmosphere over Bobby Joe Hall’s room as he schemed with his best friend, Sheldon Murray. It was time for the ultimate ruination of Emmaline Ruth Johnson and her friend Sonora. These two would cause their downfall to materialize.

“Will Rape be joining us today, Lord Pride?” asked Ridicule as they planned their attack on the two girls. Rape was a very big part of their plan.

“No, imp,” answered Pride. “He only shows up on the day of the attack. He is more like a special guest for the invasion. We only need him as the piece de resistance on the day of the dance. Don’t worry—he will show up in all his glory for this feast,” promised Pride.

Satan had attempted to get rid of Emmaline Ruth before she was born but the Almighty had pulled her through. Satan decided that if he couldn’t get to her physically, he would work an emotional and mental strategy with her. He would win one way or the other.

In the Seen, Bobby Joe’s bedroom …

“Man, she fell for it,” Bobby Joe Hall chortled to his best friend and cohort, Sheldon Murray.

They had plotted for weeks to ask who they considered to be the ugliest girls at school to the Thanksgiving dance. They were “but-her” or “butter” girls—nice body, “but her” face.

In their estimation, nobody in school cared one way or the other about these two girls. Smart but homely, nobody else wanted to date them. Bobby Joe and Sheldon figured they would get some good Boy Scout points with the appearance of taking them to one of the minor dances of the school year. Plus, they would get a good laugh if they could get everything to happen just right that night.

With the plans they had for these girls, the boys were confident they would have a good time at each girl’s expense. Sheldon, who grew up with both Sonora and Emmaline, would not have thought of doing something like this on his own. He had a good coach in Bobby Joe Hall, though.

Bobby Joe was notoriously recognized at David G. Farragut High School in Chicago for pulling pranks on less popular students. Always popular in sports, he had other students groveling just to get a smile from him. Knowing the power of his charm, he capitalized on his good looks and made sure everyone thought of him as smart, good-looking, and kind. Unfortunately, only two of those words accurately described Bobby Joe. And he was no less devious after moving to lame Charlotte, North Carolina with his family. He was still up to his old tricks.

After all, it was his fault his family had moved in the first place. Following that little incident with Rosalyn Chambers on homecoming night, Bobby Joe’s parents felt it was best for the family to move if they were to either keep Bobby Joe alive or out of jail by the time he was eighteen. Who would have thought there would be such a big stink over him giving her that little pill during the homecoming dance and then taking her home?

He didn’t see what the harm was. All the guys were doing it. So now he had to get back into the swing of things with this bug of a girl, Emmaline Johnson. She would never know what hit her. Bobby Joe snickered as he thought about how happy Emmaline had been when he approached her with the invitation.

“Yea, she almost fainted when I asked her to the dance, man,” he gloated with Sheldon. “But man, she is one ugly chick! She is butt-ugly, dude!” Bobby Joe said, laughing at his own joke.

“Hmmph!” snorted Sheldon. “So did Sonora. Man, I thought she was going to float from the floor to the ceiling when I asked her. Boy, I almost got sick from the look on her ugly mug. Yecch!” He faked barfing at just the thought of her ugliness.

Sheldon wasn’t a bad kid. Attractive and very athletic, he showed great skill on the basketball court as well as the football field. He had known Sonora and Emmaline for many years, had played with them when they were all kids. He couldn’t see the harm in what they were planning. But he didn’t know all that Bobby Joe had planned.

Bobby Joe and Sheldon considered themselves to be two of the most upstanding guys in the entire school. They were good looking, athletic, and hard workers. Surely, it would be OK if they had a little fun with these two undesirables.

“Did you tell Jenae who you were taking to the dance?” Sheldon asked Bobby Joe. In their own minds, they both had girlfriends who were just as good looking as they were.

Sheldon had already spoken with his girlfriend, Sussie Frye. She had given him the go-ahead to do what he wanted on that night. She would be out of town with her family for Thanksgiving and didn’t care one way of the other. As ugly as this little nobody was that Sheldon planned to ask out, Sussie was confident he would be there for her when she returned from her mini-vacation.

“Yea, I told her. She’ll be out of town that weekend,” Bobby Joe replied. He had told Jenae Brown what he was going to do. As the most popular of the students in the twelfth grade, they were known for the jokes and hijinks they normally played on the underclassmen. Besides, they usually got away with their antics.

Bobby Joe and Sheldon continued to plan their night of trickery and deceit with the girls. Bobby Joe had already contacted a friend back in Chicago who would supply them with the needed additives for their dates. He was sure it would be a night to remember for all concerned.