Hello, Guidecos! LegoSophia here. I am so sorry for not writing in over 3 months! You see, I usually write on Sabbath. And these past few Sabbath’s have been VERY busy. Also, my family’s chromebook recently broke. But we also recently just got a new computer! Praise the Lord! So yeah. I finally can write to you all! Anyway, the last chapter I wrote had a contest. A Character Submission Contest. We had 5 people in total who gave submissions. So let me give the tier-list of the submissions. (Remember: This is how I would rate the characters and how they will develop and change in book 2. Also, winner 1 was already revealed. But I still gave a tier list.)

In 5th place is Joshua26. I thought your submission was a little less detailed, but still usable. But there were better submissions. Sorry. (Not counting you using plagiarism on me recently.)

In 4th place, for honorable mention, is Rw82137. A little drama for the character not knowing what to believe is genius! But still, little detail. (She also submitted it late, but I’m still giving her a chance.)

In 3rd place, for bronze, is Jojo! Your’s was GREAT! But still lacked something. I just don’t know what.

In 2nd place, for silver, is SEA! Very detailed in appearance and race, and facts are detailed! The reason this is in 2nd place though, is because the character is very old for a middle-school aged story. (The character’s age was 16, while Rebekah’s is 11.)

And Last, but not least, for 1st place, for gold, is AmyNichole!!!! Your submission was so detailed, and would make a great story plot in the character finding Christ! Congratulations! Justice Ray Smith will be an official character in book 2 and throughout! 

Thank you to all of you for submitting a character! They were all great submissions. All right, Enough of me talking. Let’s get to the story!

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The spring dance was coming up in a couple of days. And Rebekah was super excited to come. Except one thing……. 

April 23

Dear Diary… The Spring dance is coming up soon. I’m super excited for coming! But I have to tell Darius that I don’t have a crush on him. Look, I know he has a crush on me, and I’ll get bullied for going to the dance with him! Will this be my first date?! I don’t know, but whatever comes my way, I’ll pray about it.

As Rebekah shut the lid to her diary, she pondered many questions. What dress am I going to wear? What will Steve think? Is Darla going to be nice to me?

“SWEETIEEE!” Rebekah’s mom yelled. “The bus is here!” “Ok, Mom!” Rebekah said as she went down the stairs. “Now now, honey-bunches. There’s breakfast in your school bag, and your completed homework, too.” Beep! Beep! The bus beeped. “You gotta run!” Rebekah’s mom said. Rebekah ran out the door as fast as she could and was able to make it through the doors. As soon as Rebekah sat down in an empty seat, she breathed a sigh of relief. Until…

“Oh, hey little girl.” Steve said. “Who would’ve known that you were going to the dance with a guy like.. Oh, I don’t know! Darius, PERHAPS?!”

“We’re just going as friends, Steve.” Rebekah said.

“Yeah, right. Look, the boy’s gotta crush on you. Heck, I even saw him try to defend you last week from some bullies when he heard some talk about how you have bad breath.”

“I d-do have bad breath?!”

“Apparently.” Steve said.  “I’m not trying to complain, but Darius is a dork! I think you should just ditch him.”

“No way! That’s NOT what friends do!” Rebekah said.

“That’s what I would do.” Steve said, walking away. As Rebekah got so furious she felt the urge to punch him. She just decided to not do it. She had self-control. 

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As Rebekah went from class to class, Rebekah thought about the dance, and day-dreaming about her telling Darius that she just wanted to be friends with him. At the end of the school day, she decided to talk to Dorothy about it. A few minutes later, after telling Dorothy ALL that she had been through, Dorothy decided to give her some advice. “Just tell him straight up that you don’t like like him.”

“Really?! That’s all I have to do?”

“Yep.”

“Oh, thank you so much!” Rebekah said, giving Dorothy a hug.

“Alright. No more hugs. But yes, just do as I said.”

As night passed by, Rebekah was nervous about her being bullied. About her getting in trouble. Many thoughts were passing through her mind.

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Today was the day: The day of the Spring dance. As Rebekah put on her dress, she said a silent prayer in her head, wishing for God to be with her when she told Darius the truth. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Her mom quickly opened it.

“Hello, Mrs. Williams. Is Rebekah here?” Darius said.

“Yes. She is just upstairs. REBEKAH! Your date is here!”

“Mom, it’s NOT a date!” Rebekah said. “See you tonight, Mom!” She said after kissing her mom’s cheek.

As Daruis and Rebekah were talking, Rebekah was thinking of what to say to Darius. “Do you want to walk to the school building?” Darius said.

“What? Oh, yeah yeah sure.” Rebekah said. A few minutes later, they were at the school. The gym was covered in flowers, and plants, openly welcoming the students. About 50 students were there, all dancing the night away. When suddenly, she saw a familiar face there. It was Dorothy spinning in her wheelchair! 

Should I approach her? Rebekah thought to herself. Yeah I really should. After all, she IS my friend! As Rebekah walked over to her, Darius touched her hand. “Where are you going?!”

“Umm. Over to see Dorothy!”

“OH! Then let me come with you!”

“NO! Er, I mean, I would like to talk to her myself, if that’s ok.”

“Sure! I’ll be over by the snacks table”

As Rebekah relived a sigh of relief, Dorothy did, in fact, notice her. “Hey, Rebekah! How are you doing? I am SUPER energetic today!”

“And why is that?!” Rebekah said.

“Because I had some soda today. And that soda had CAFFEINE! So much caffeine! Now, I wanna bounce up and out the walls! I feel free, Rebekah. FREE.” “

Oh.” Rebekha said surprised. “Well, I’m gonna go back now. See you in a bit?”

“Sure!!!” Dorothy said..

 As Rebekah walked back to the snacks section, the DJ turned on the microphone. “Hey everyone! Hope were having a great night tonight! This next song is a slow song! So get on the floor and slow dance!”

Oh no. I gotta get out of here. Rebekah said. As she ran near to the nearest exit door, Darius was looking for her to dance with. Suddenly, he had his eyes on her, and ran with her. Rebekah was able to run out, with Darius behind her. Then Rebekah sat underneath a nearby tree, and cried. Then Darius ran and sat next to her. 

“Hey. What’s wrong?” Darius said.

“Look, I know you have feelings for me, but I don’t have the same feelings for you.”

“And?” Darius said.

“Well, you see… I don’t like like you. I only like you as a friend. I also think I’m too young to be your ‘Girlfriend.’”

“Oh.”

As Rebekah was sobbing, Darius still sat next to her, comforting her. “Hey! Rebekah, this reminds me of a verse I memorised in Sabbath school.”

Rebekah sniffled her tears. “Really?” “Yes. It’s 1 Corinthians 10:13. No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. Look, I understand if you just wanna be friends. That’s ok with me.”

“Really? Thank you so much!” Rebekah said happily. As they entered the building, the slow song was over. And it was back to dancing. “Darius, can we just go home?”

“Sure,” Darius said. They were able to get home safely. When Rebekah got home, though, she was teased by her brother all week for her so-called “date.”

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Soon enough, the last day of school approached. The school was bustling with excited children that day. Soon, the last bell rang, meaning school was over for that year. As Rebekah, Darius, and Dorothy said goodbye to each other, Rebekah got a text message. It was sent by Mom, saying “I need you home ASAP. We’ve got a special announcement!”

“Oh. My Mom needs me. It’s urgent. See you in a few months!”

“See you!” Dorothy said.

When Rebekah got home, her mother talked to her in private. “I’ve got great news! This Summer, we are going to see the Smiths!”

“And. Who are they?” Rebekah said.

“They are good friends of our’s, Rebekah. Well, at least Mr. Smith. He also has a girl that is about your age now. You two used to be such great friends. Do you remember, Justice?”

“YES! Man, I miss her so much! Well, what are we waiting for?! Let’s start packing! I’m so excited now!!

End of book 1: Fruit of the Spirit.

Coming soon… Book 2: The summer I’ve been dreaming of.