Faith and Abdul made a vow to never let anyone or anything come between them, even though they're from two different religious backgrounds.
Faith Johnson is a Christian, and not only that, but her father is the pastor of their church. First Presbyterian Church.
They've never really said to Faith that being with someone who is not of the same religious background is forbidden, but they have implied it, and through the subtle way they speak about atheists and other religions, Faith knew for a fact that she was indeed forbidden to be with anyone who wasn't Christian.
She never thought she was going to fall in love with anyone other than a Christian anyway. She didn't have any prejudice against anyone from another religious background, but she did understand that someday she was going to get married to a Christian man.
But God really does have a funny way of doing things, because as soon as she set her eyes on Abdul, everything changed. She stopped imagining herself getting married to a white Christian man, and she started planning weddings with Abdul in her head.
They met at glee club; it was Abdul's first time at Cupid Hollow High. He had moved from Pennsylvania to New York, but originally his parents were from Pakistan. They immigrated here so Abdul would have a better future.
And they were Muslims.
Faith was so intrigued by him. He was the most beautiful man he had ever seen, more beautiful than most white boys.
He had the full lips, the sharp jawline, the neat jet black hair, a pointy nose and the natural muscular build that most Pakistani men seemed to have. He was breathtaking. And Abdul felt the same way when he laid his eyes on her.
Abdul Malik also could not stop thinking about Faith every chance he got. It was like it was destiny; they were meant to be together, but Abdul didn't know how he was going to tell Faith that he liked her. It was obvious she liked him too, but he was too chicken to ask her out.
"Stupid, just ask her if she'd like to get a milkshake at The Sweet Heart Diner", he'd say to himself. But he kicked himself in the nuts by shrugging the idea off. There was no way they were going to go out.
Just like Faith's parents, Abdul's parents did not want him dating or marrying anyone who wasn't Muslim, but the difference between them and Faith's parents was that they were upfront and direct about it.
"You'll get married to a Muslim girl." His mom would repeat over and over again. "No white girls."
Abdul had never pictured himself with a Muslim girl; in fact, he never pictured himself getting married to anyone. All that was in his mind was becoming a well-known Grammy Award-winning artist.
His parents would forgive him for marrying a white non-Muslim girl, but they'd never forgive him for choosing a different career path than the one they'd chosen for him as soon as he came out of his mother's womb.
Doctor
Lawyer
Engineer
CEO of a multi-million-dollar company.
Nothing less.
And like most Pakistani parents, they see the arts as less.
Abdul had given up on trying to ask Faith out on a date; maybe it was better if they just stayed friends.
As soon as he walked into the glee club, he saw that Faith was the only one there; the rest hadn't arrived yet. It felt like a sign; it felt like fate. Seeing her looking so majestic in her floral dress and her long strawberry blonde hair kept to the side made him want her even more. It encouraged him to ask her out on a date.
He was smitten like that.
"Hey Abdul." She said in that innocent voice of hers.
"Hey, Hey, Faith." He said nervously.
"Looks like it's just us right now."
"Seems so."
"You wanna… I don't know, sing something with me before the others come in."
"Ye-yes, of course." Abdul had heard Faith's voice, and he's got to say, it was majestic. The most beautiful thing he had ever heard.
Faith didn't want to be a singer, but she wanted to be an actress; if acting didn't work, then she'd move to singing.
Her parents were also wary of her career choice. They thought the entertainment industry was full of Satanists. And while Faith thought there were evil people in the industry, she believed there were good people as well.
Abdul sat next to Faith by the grand piano.
"What should we sing?" he asked.
"Do you know ' Fire on Fire ' by Sam Smith?"
"Yes! I love that song."
And then Abdul started to play on the piano, and Faith began and then after some time Abdul joined in on the chorus.
They say that we're out of control and some say we're sinners
But don't let them ruin our beautiful rhythms.
This continued, their voices in sync, their voices blending so perfectly. It was like they were destined to sing this song. Their hands brushed against each other, and after the song, they shared a passionate kiss.
That kiss encouraged him to ask her on a date. And when she said yes, Abdul wondered why he was scared in the first place.
He got the girl!
So Abdul took her to The Sweetheart Diner after school, and they had a good time with their milkshake and talking about their dreams and their passions. The chemistry between them was a burning red.
They were enjoying their time together until Faith's mother walked into the diner and saw them.
Faith panicked, and she walked out of the booth. She knew her mother was going to say something about it. And she did.
Mrs Johnson told her father about it, and he began to quote the bible at her: to love their neighbours but be wary because Muslims don't like Christians. Faith assured them that Abdul would never do anything to hurt her, but they didn't want to listen. That was not going to stop her from seeing Abdul.
The two kissed under a tree close to school, and Abdul's father caught them. This brought heavy scolding and his mother crying, saying he was going to ruin this family for being with a white Christian girl. Abdul didn't care; in fact, it was the first time he had argued with his parents. He wasn't going to let anyone come between him and Faith.
The more time they spent together, the more they did it in secret, but somehow they kept getting caught. They got so tired of this that both parents had to go to Principal Kingston to tell them to not see each other again.
The principal obviously didn't see a problem because they were two of the brightest students and they didn't cause any trouble.
But unfortunately. Principal Kingston's hands were tied. He had to listen to what the parents wanted, and so did their kids.
Faith and Abdul wondered how there could be so much hatred between their parents when they were both madly in love with each other.
The hatred that oozed in the principal's office was so strong that it made them uncomfortable; it made them angry.
They weren't going to give up.
In fact, they were going to run away together. Abdul was the one who brought it up, but he didn't think Faith was going to agree. When she immediately agreed to run away with him, it got him excited; he knew for a fact that Faith loved him.
So the two began to plot through the phone.
They were going to run away with Abdul's dad's car; they were going to follow their dreams and become the power couple in the entertainment industry.
Which brings us to this moment. The night has come, and Abdul stops in front of her house in his dad's car. Faith sneaks out of the house with ease,, and she feels ecstatic because she has never done anything like that before. She gets into the car, and she kisses Abdul.
"Okay, are you ready? You? You sure you want to do this?"
"Mhmm." Faith nods her head.
"Okay," he says, looking at her with so much love in his eyes.
"I don't care where we go. I just want to be with you," she says, and she places a hand on his cheek.
She's going to miss her parents and her little sisters, but she has to do this; she has to do whatever it takes to achieve her dreams and doing it with the love of her life is the icing on the cake.
"God, I love you," Abdul tells her.
"I love you too," and they share another kiss. Their lips can't seem to stay away from each other.
"Okay, let's get out of here." Abdul starts the car, and they move, driving away from Faith's house. Faith looks at the house one last time, and she lets out a sigh.
Hopefully, her parents will forgive her one day, and they will come to their senses.
Abdul continues to drive their way to freedom. While he steers the wheel, he takes a look at her, and she looks at him too.
They stare so hard into each other's eyes that they don't see the person standing in the middle of the road.
"Abdul, watch out!"
He stops the car.
But it's too late; he's hit the person. Abdul stops the car, and fear grips both of them.
"Oh, my God." Faith whispers to herself.
"Wait here; I'm going to see if they're okay. Call 911." He says, and Faith nods her head, and she picks up her phone shakily. It's hard for her to use her phone when she's scared as hell.
Before she could even dial the number nine, she hears a frightened yell, and her phone drops in fear, her hands shaking. She's frozen.
"Abdul?" she gathers enough courage to step out of the car. "Abdul," she says quietly, and she looks around, but no one is here. Abdul is nowhere to be found, and neither is the person they hit.
Faith squints her watery eyes in confusion.
"Abdul?" she says again, looking around, but still no one.
She screams and jumps when she hears a loud thud on the car. A frightened Faith immediately turns to see Abdul in the car, but he's not moving; he's not alive. There's blood all over his body, and his chest is wide open. His heart is missing.
Faith screams, and she runs for her life.
She stops in her tracks when a masked individual stands in front of her and grabs her by the neck, lifting her.
She struggles and begins to kick her feet, but her misery would soon end because the masked assailant forcefully puts his hand in her chest and brings out her heart. A heart that glows in the dark.
The masked killer puts the heart in their bag and then takes a dead Faith to her lover. He puts her on top of him. And when he's done, he jumps, disappearing into the air, leaving the dead couple on top of a car.
This is the end of Abdul and Faith's love story and the beginning of the masked killer's victory.