Page 4 of Abby

“Get some rest,” he says and leans in to kiss me. “Nibble the crackers and stay hydrated. Call me if you start feeling worse. I’ll come by as soon as I get off work.”

I smile up at him. “You’re too good to me.” He kisses my forehead.

“Not possible. You deserve everything and more, Abs.” I feel my cheeks flush. He hands me the TV remote and heads to the door. “I’ll see you in a bit, babe.” I wave after him and settle in for a day of mindless television.

Funny enough, I feel fine the rest of the day, only a bit hungry. I snack on the crackers, and everything stays down fine. Stomach rumbling, I have a craving for something greasy. I pull up the FoodDash app on my phone and scroll through, finding a diner down the street that has my favorite milkshakes. I ordered a grilled cheese and a large strawberry shake without a second thought. I haven’t had dairy in over a year, but man, I have such a craving for it. One time won’t hurt.

Twenty minutes later, there’s a knock on the door. I take my order and hop back into my nest on the couch. I take a long drink of my shake – sweet and creamy with bursts of strawberry flavor flooding my mouth, and I moan around the straw. Yes. This is what I needed. I pull out the grilled cheese. It’s golden and is crisp to perfection. I devour it in minutes and almost regret not ordering two. Feeling a little sleepy, I move to my bedroom and cuddle in to take a nap.

***

I groggily open my eyes and glance at the clock: 6 am. I slept through to the next morning. Wow. I haven’t slept that long since… Well, ever. I feel great, though. I must’ve had a 24-hour bug or something. I crawl out of bed and go to turn on the shower. As I wait for the water to heat, I feel cramps starting in my lower abdomen. It is no big deal; even though I’m on birth control, I sometimes get my period. I can’t say I’m happy about it, but it’s whatever. Once the water is steamy, I hop into the shower and quickly wash up. I’m starving again.

I head into the kitchen in my bathrobe and pull out the eggs and vegan butter, whipping up some scrambled eggs. I pop some bread in the toaster, and my mouth waters at the smell of the bread crisping up. I pile my plate high and sit down at the table. My stomach rumbles, and I take a huge forkful of the fluffy eggs, popping them in my mouth. The moment they touch my tongue, my stomach immediately sours and clenches in a warning. No good, I’m sick. I rush to the bathroom.

When I feel a bit steadier, I move back to the sofa with a fresh bottle of water and pull out my cell phone.

“Hey Shay,” I say when my sister picks up.

“Abs! How are you feeling? Jake said you were asleep when he checked on you after work.”

“I thought I was fine until I tried to eat breakfast. I’m going to make a doctor’s appointment. Are you okay without me at the shop today?”

“Of course! You shouldn’t be working if you’re sick. Do you need me to close the shop and drive you?”

“No, I can handle it. Thanks though. I’ll let you know what they say.”

“Okay, call me as soon as you get home, okay? Love you.”

“Love you too, Shay,” I say and then call my doctor. I’m able to get an appointment for noon and decide to just take it easy until then.

***

Doctor O checks me over, taking my temp and looking at my ears, nose, and throat.

“Everything looks great, Abby. Is there any chance that you could be pregnant?”

“No way,” I laugh. “I’ve been on birth control for years.”

“Birth control isn’t 100% effective. I’d like to give you a pregnancy test to be sure.” I feel the blood drain from my face. There’s no way. I can’t be… Pregnant. Oh god.

A quick urine test comes back positive, and my world grinds to a halt. My head is full of cotton, and I feel like the walls are closing in around me. There’s no way this is happening. Barely noticing when the doctor takes a blood sample for a more definitive test, I go home in a daze. The doctor said they would call me with definite results in the morning and to discuss my options. Options… God. I have no idea how I’m going to tell Jake.

6

Abby

Iignore Jake’s texts for the rest of the evening. I don’t want to talk to anyone. I let Shay know that I’m waiting on test results, but I wouldn’t be in tomorrow. She’s going to have Liam help out in the shop, so it works out fine. I head to bed with a heavy heart, not sure what is going to happen to me. Doctor O’s number pops up on my phone the next morning, and I answer quickly, hoping that the previous day’s test was wrong. It wasn’t.

“Congratulations, Abby. You are pregnant.” The blood test came back positive. I’m pregnant… Congratulations… Yeah, right.

“I need you to stop your birth control immediately. You have several options; I’m going to send you an email with detailed information. You have a little time to weigh your options, and you can call me if you have any questions. In the meantime, I sent in a prescription for prenatal vitamins, and I want to see you back in a week.” I give Doctor O my thanks, hang up, and then go back to bed.

I lay there and stare at the ceiling. What am I going to do? I’m too young to be a mother… Hell, Jake is only nineteen; he’s way too young to be a father. I know he wants kids someday, but it doesn’t mean he wants them with me. And not before he’s lived a little. And what about the shop? Can I keep working and have a baby? I can’t leave Shay to handle everything.

I cover my face with my hands and sob. What if Jake gets angry? What if he doesn’t want me anymore? Barely a month into our relationship, and now we may be connected for life. I pull the covers up to my chin and close my eyes, tears slipping down my cheeks, and drift off into an uneasy sleep.

***

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