3 Ch 1 Prayers Answered

The sky was cloudy and sad as the sun was hidden away and wind wiped over the land. "Hey guys. Melvin finally asked me out, asked me to think about it. I graduated like I said I would mama, papa. Memaw helped me a lot, she took good care of me. Yall take care of each other now okay? Miss you. Love you." Mwezi said as she kissed her fingers and pressed it to the three headstones before placing her three sets of flowers down.

Mwezi was already dressed in her Sunday's best in a forest green dress with a matching jacket and hat. It had been a week since lunch with Melvin and Mwezi had been doing her best to dodge and avoid him and he seemed to be okay giving her her space to think. She was half tempted to skip out on church but the congregation knew her. They'd send the sheriff to her house if she didn't show.

"Welp here goes nothing." She muttered and walked into the church. Like clockwork as soon as she walked in Melvin walked out of the restrooms up front and smiled at her. "Hey Mwezi!" he called out and she waved. "Hey Mel." She replied as he held the door open for her. They ended up sitting together but he was oddly quiet and fidgety. She was worried about how he'd react to her answer but she really couldn't see herself with Melvin and didn't want to lead him on.

Service passed a lot faster than she would have liked so she decided to try and wait Melvin out by slipping into the bathroom on the way out. She took care of business and waited a few more minutes while she checked some emails hoping for a reply to any of the applications she submitted over the week. "Fu—uudge striped cookies" she muttered catching herself before she decided she had waited long enough. 'Hopefully he left' she prayed silently and slipped out the bathroom. Much to her dismay he was waiting for her by her car with a smile on his face and hope in his eyes. "Hey you okay?" he asked and she nodded while holding herself as the wind picked up. "Took you a bit, I was worried you was sick." He replied and she shook her head no with a smile. "No I'm okay I was just holding it for a while. Yanno how they get and won't let you back in." she retorted with a laugh and he nodded. "So…Have you thought, any at all about our conversation from last week?" he asked softly. Mwezi uttered a string of profanities in her mind as she tried to prepare herself to let him down but as if God himself sensed her struggle her phone rang.

She lifted it and noticed the caller ID popped up as 'Gundua Corp.'. "Holy MACKEREL! Hold that thought I gotta take this!" Mwezi cleared her throat a few times and pulled her shoulders back as if to engage her code switch voice. "Hello this is Mwezi speaking." "Hello Akua My name is Andrew Sulivin and I work for Gundua corporation. I'm calling in regards to your application you recently submitted." the man said. "Yes sir of course Mr Sulivin. How can I help?" she asked. "Well I know this is sudden and a lot to ask, but if I were to send you an HR packet requesting some documentation how fast do you think you could get it sent back?" he asked. "Would you prefer, email, fax or mail?" she asked. He laughed heartily, "I like your enthusiasm Ms. Akua. I am currently pulling together a team for a discovery in what would be ancient mesopotamia and it just so happens the only qualification you don't meet is experience. However, I sent your information to Dr. Gundua herself and she wanted to offer you the job so you could finally get that experience. We just need the documentation and you'll need a passport and shots." he said. "One second please." she retorted before quickly muting her phone. "YES THANK YOU GOD IS SO GOOD ALL THE TIME!" she screamed. One of the old ladies yelled back " All the time God is good! I know that's right babeh!" Mwezi quickly unmuted herself "Apologize. Yes of course, I did some traveling abroad while I was at Howard University so I have my passport and I will call my primary care to set up a travel appointment as soon as possible. Will you need proof of vaccinations?" she asked. "Yes please you can just send a copy over with the rest of your paperwork." he replied before verifying her email. "Alright everything is on the way. Lookin' forward to working with you Ms. Akua." he said. "Thank you so much Mr. Sulivan I won't let you or Dr. Gundua down!" she replied getting teary eyed as they hung up.

Melvin handed her his handkerchief with a sad look on his face. She had used it to wipe her tears of joy before realizing the look he was giving her. "Oh Melvin I'm sorry but this is the opportunity of a lifetime." she nearly begged him to understand. "I get it MWezi, I guess I just wish we had more time is all." he said with a sad smile. Mwezi hugged him without thinking about it and he returned the gesture. She pulled away and touched their cheeks with a kiss sound, "Maybe in another time we would have been great together, but I'm just starting my work and I'm going to be all over the place. I know you'll find someone who can look amazing for the lord on Sunday's and make a proper wife for you. I expect a wedding invite." she said jokingly and patted his chest. Melvin looked at her like he was thinking hard. She hadn't realized his hands still around her waist and before she could react his lips were on hers. The kiss wasn't needy or pushy but sad like a final goodbye. "Sorry." he said, pulling away. "I always wanted to know how ya lips felt and quite frankly my dreams did it no justice. But I do wish you the best, Mwezi." he said wincing as he finally let her go. She nodded "I'll see ya round Mel." she said and slid into her car to make her way home.

Being the youngest person to graduate with a double major in Geology and Gemology and a woman of color makes it difficult to find quick and quality work. But Mwezi's prayers were answered and she was finally on her way to live out her dream just like she promised her parents and grandma she would. As soon as the email came in she compiled all the information she needed. She double checked her passport and began packing her luggage for the expected time frame of the trip. By the time she had everything together it had gotten late and she hadn't eaten since this morning. She pulled up her Uber Eats and ordered some spare rib tips with fried rice, chicken wings and fried dumplings. "Ahhh yeah. Fat girl time." she said with a smile. As she waited for her food she popped on netflix so she could start her binge of the Witcher since she wouldn't be able to see it once she left. With her show booted up she grabbed her home made products and began to tighten her locs so she wouldn't have to worry about it on the trip or looking busted her first day on the job.

The food finally arrived and she devoured half of it before going back to doing her hair. A few hours later she heated up the rest and somehow managed to finish her hair in one go. Sis was excited. She took a shower to wash the day away and fell into bed whispering a soft prayer before darkness consumed her.