Page 293 of Kentrell

I didn’t respond. Couldn’t.

Mostly because some part of me was already starting to wonder the same thing.

But I wasn’t ready to say it out loud.

Saying it made it real.

I groaned, grabbing the edge of the blanket and throwing it off me as I swung my legs off the bed. “I gotta go to the bathroom.”

“Wait!” she called as I stopped myself from getting out of bed.

“What?”

She grinned wickedly, eyes twinkling. “Is it ten?”

I rolled my eyes so hard I could’ve sprained something.

She fell out laughing again on her way out of the room.

Mars had been trying to get me to spill all week.

And the worst part?

She wasn’t wrong.

I pulled myself off the bed, cheeks still burning from that embarrassing wake-up call Mars had just delivered, and headedstraight for the bathroom. Closing the door behind me with a soft click, I leaned back against it… breathing slow… shallow.

For a minute… I just stood there. Silent. Still.

Then I pushed off the door and caught my reflection in the mirror.

The sight of myself nearly made me cringe.

Hair a mess. Eyes tired and puffy. My oversized T-shirt sticking to my skin like I’d been sweating in my sleep. Which, considering the dreams I’d just had… wasn’t far from the truth.

I moved closer to the sink, gripping the edge like it was my anchor.

Get it together, Zoe.

But even that little pep talk fell flat as my stomach did another lazy somersault, the kind I’d been fighting for days now.

I glanced down at the small, Walgreens bag peeking out from behind the stack of extra toilet paper under the sink. The pregnancy test I bought two days ago was still inside. I’d stuffed it there, told myself I didn’t need it… that this was just stress, bad eating, hormones… anything butthat.

But now?

After this morning?

After the way Mars looked at me when she heard me throwing up again before sunrise?

I didn’t have the luxury of lying to myself anymore.

I reached for the bag with shaky hands. Tore the box open like it had personally offended me. Then unwrapped the test.

By the time I sat down on the toilet… my hands were trembling so bad I almost dropped it.

It took a few seconds for the stream to come… but when it did, I sat there staring at the stick like it held all the answers I wasn’t ready to face.

As soon as I finished, I capped it. Set it on the edge of the sink. Then covered it with the nearest thing I could find…a folded hand towel… like that would somehow keep the truth from setting in.

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