JESUS NATION SEX REBEL, mini-chapter 27

27. A CONVERSATION

Eve was wearing an A herself. That way, she and Rachel could be seen together without them being arrested.

“Eve, you’re breaking the law.”

“I took a chance when I testified for you. And I got away with it. This is just an extension of that risk.”

“Eve, you mustn’t do this. It’s Non-Sanctioned. It’s un-Christianist. You’ll be reclassified yourself.”

“It’s just a temporary disguise, Rachel, so we can be together. Let’s go for a walk.”

Rachel followed her. After all, Eve was still a Beloved, and when a Beloved deigned to speak to a Scarlet, the Scarlet had to obey. They didn’t speak until they were in the park. Dusk was settling over the green grass and leaves, giving them a blue tint.

“I saw the burning on TV,” said Rachel, making conversation.

“I watched it on TV afterwards, too. The real thing was…well, you can’t smell TV.”

“What did it smell like?”

“To be precise, a backyard cookout.”

Rachel winced. “How did you feel about it, watching it for real?”

“I thought I was going to be very glad, after all he’d done, and I enjoyed focusing on the hissing we did beforehand, but in the end I felt sad.”

Rachel didn’t know what to say. Eve had just expressed a sentiment that steered quite close to falling under the category of Non-Sanctioned Notions. It scared Rachel, especially now that she was a Scarlet. She changed the subject.

“There’s a guy pestering me.”

There was always some guy pestering single mothers. They were considered fair game, only a step up from V-dolls.

“Why not throw him a bone?”

“He’s my new boss. Married. I may have to quit soon.”

“Darn. You need a steady guy to protect you.”

“Good steady guys don’t look at unmarried women who’re pregnant.”

It was true. A man who did that might lose his friends. No one had the courage to squire a woman with a big “A” sewed on her front.

“It’s not fair, is it?”

“Don’t say that, Eve. I don’t want you to have Non-Sanctioned Notions on my account.”

“I only have some Non-Sanctioned Notions regarding how the Bureau of Behavior Design and Management regulates us, not about the bedrock of our society, our faith in the Lord. It’s natural that our society, which is all too human, does not yet reflect the perfection of God.”

“There you go again with a Non-Sanctioned Notion. Listen, it’s dangerous enough us meeting like this.”

“Listen, Rachel. Before this, I did not really have a purpose in life. Yes, I was going to meet a man, and I wanted to be equal with men, and do well in my job, but I did not have any burning ambition. Now I do. I won’t rest till I have gained enough power to save you from being a Scarlet and make you a Beloved again.”

Rachel did not know what to say. She was adjusting fast to her new status. She doubted if it would help for her to get her hopes up.

“You’re talking about something that could take years, Eve. Enjoy your own life. I’ve made my bed. I’ll sleep in it. I can make friends with other Scarlets. And I can live for the baby that’s coming.”

“Don’t give up, Rachel. I won’t let you.”

“Eve, you can’t live for me. You have your own life to live.”

“Our whole gender lives in subjugation to men. I want to redress the whole thing from top to bottom. It’s time for Females to gain some rights again, like it used to be. Don’t you remember?”

“I remember, but those days are gone.”

“Says who? The Men of the Gospel? The Bureau of Behavior Design and Management?”

“Yes. The whole Jesus nation.”

“The people who say so are only men. People like us. They may be physically stronger, but they are not smarter. I’m not going to be complicit in my own oppression.”

“Don’t talk like that. I’ll find a way to live with this.”

“Once upon a time, Females fought for their rights. They fought for the vote. They fought for equal pay. That’s what I’m going to do.”

Eve was hoping that Rachel would urge her on, but Rachel was silent. Behind the mask she wore, something had cracked. Rachel was looking at the ground. Since they’d come out for a walk, Rachel had done an awful lot of looking down, as if she were looking at a flattened self. Some of the sorrow Eve had felt at the burning spilled over into their conversation.

“You’re wasting your time, Eve. The whole of Jesusland stands against you.”

“The whole society stood against the suffragettes, yet they won in the end. It can happen again.”

“One female can’t change the world.”

“This one will. I will find allies. You’re one.”

“I’m a Scarlet, Eve. I have no say. All I have is a sickening fear that I’ll be reclassified down to a V-doll.”

“I don’t intend giving my friendship with you just because you’ve become a Scarlet.”

A little tear strained itself out of Rachel’s clamped mask. “Eve, don’t do this. I’m in enough trouble already.”

“Let me remind you that as a Scarlet, you have to listen to me, Rachel. I’m a Beloved.”

There was a look of fear on the mask. It made Eve feel guilty, but it also made her feel motivated. I’m going to wipe that fear from your face, Rachel. You’ll see.