Etini wasn't sure if she was relieved or sad as she leaned against the bathroom door, looking at her mother in a worrisome manner. Her father was sitting on the cane chair with a belt, he had loosed it from his waist when Etini refused removing her panty.

"I am still a virgin papa. I can't pull my panty to prove it." She said tearily.

"Then you're not!" Her mother retorted with a loud tone. "It's either you're a virgin and you open your legs for me as your mother to see, or you're not, then close it and stand there." She beat her hands on the holy bible twice. "I married your father a virgin. He was a young minister when we met..."

"Mama, you've said that many times."
"Shut up!" Her father yelled.

Etini lowered herself to the floor and tightened her girlish face. She was an eighteen years old teenager who grew under the shadows of her religious parents. Her Father, Oscar, was a pastor of a church. While her mother was an evangelist. Etini, being the only child, was well tamed, disciplined and controlled.

"Etini, have you ever allowed a man touch your breast?" Her mother broke the silence.

"No!" Etini replied firmly, still with a tightened face.

"Then why have you not allowed me to check you?"

"Because I am a big girl now mama. I am eighteen." Her father shrugged.

"So, because you're eighteen, you now have wings to fly abi? You want to let the devil use your age to mislead you into the sinful world abi? Being eighteen has given you the temerity to be stubborn abi? What did the bible say about children who disobey their parents?" He asked her gruffly but softly, so that his voice won't be heard by the neighbors.

They lived in a large compound, accommodated by church pastors of same ministry. Being a senior pastor of a large church as Chapel of Grace ministries, Pastor Oscar wanted a sinless and perfect life for him, his wife and only daughter. He wanted a life worth emulating and loved.

"Do you want to disgrace your father and I? Do you know how God detests stubborn children?
Etini's face flamed. She carefully removed her skirt. Her father averted his gaze to the wall when he saw that she was ready to prove that she was still a virgin. She carefully pulled out her panty and walked slowly to the bed, lying on it and spreading it wide open. Her mother stood up immediately and turned to her father, let me have the torchlight." He handed it to her immediately, and still averted his gaze to the wall.

Her mother pointed the torch in between her legs, trying to see through. She rushed to the reading desk were she had piles of different versions of bibles and her reading glasses on it. She put it on and rushed back to Etini.

"Open your legs wider." She said softly as she tried to see through her vagina.

Her father began to whisper words of prayers. "Father, let my daughter not disgrace me. I didn't disgrace my father. May she be a virgin oh lord."

"It's intact." Her mother said excitedly after few seconds.

Pastor Oscar smiled. "Thank you Jesus." He muttered.

Etini carefully got up from the bed, wore her panty and then her skirt.

"Listen to me, God is not happy for the fact that you punished your mother and I by wasting time to do this. Go to the chapel and ask God to forgive you. Make sure you use the olive oil on your face and the holy water to rinse that sinful mouth you used to challenge your mother and I."

Etini walked away dumbfounded and bittered.

And as she walked into the chapel, she fell to the floor. Stress had finally caught up with her. The prayer came from her soul; a whispered plea for help to gain admission into her dream theological school.

***************************

The next morning, Etini's best friend Kokomma visited her. She was dressed in a maxi oversized gown that almost swept the floor as she walked. Her hair was braided with a rubber thread that revealed the skin of her head.

Etini smiled the moment she saw her.

"You are not dressed for bible class?" Kokomma asked.

"Bible class isn't now. It's in the evening." Etini replied.

Kokomma lowered her voice and her face down to Etini's, "I know. I want you to accompany me somewhere."

"I doubt you have any idea of what I went through yesterday for coming back late from choir rehearsals. My father will squeeze me with his bare hands."

"But if I was the one, shebi I would have followed you? shebi I would have lied to cover up for you?" Kokomma asked with a frowning face.

"My apologies. I don't want problems with my parents."

Kokomma knelt down slowly. "Please Etini, this is the last time we're seeing Solo together. He will be going back to campus. And he wants to give me money for panties, brassieres and lip gloss."
She spoke the last words in a whisper for her ears alone. "I will give you some money too."

"Etini stood, "I am not accompanying you because of his money, I am only doing this for friendship sake." Kokomma laughed and stood to hug her.

That morning they'd visited Solo again, it was the second time Etini accompanied Kokomma to his place. Solo was the son of one of the senior pastors of the same church; He was twenty eight, huge and quite masculine.

As Kokomma got into his one room apartment, Etini sat gently on the verandah, patiently waiting for her friend.

Then the sound came in again, it was a soft moan.
Etini wondered what was going on.

"Are you okay Kokomma?" Etini asked.

"Yes...yes..." She replied unsteadily.

How vain and ignorant Kokomma thought Etini was, she was thinking her the most helpless, noodle witted female ever to think so weird and asked such a silly question.

Link: https://africanfictions.com/romance-fiction/evergreen-emerald-chapter-2/