I rush toward my car in the school parking lot with one thing on my mind.
And that’s stopping at the pharmacy on the way home to get a pregnancy test.
In my two years as a high school counselor, I’ve had several girls pop into my office, frightened that they could be pregnant. The first thing I tell them is to talk to their parents because this isn’t an issue they should deal with on their own. The second is to take a test. For the most accurate results, I advise them to make an appointment with their family doctor or Planned Parenthood to run blood work and take a urine test. If they aren’t comfortable with either of those options, I tell them to pick up a home pregnancy test.
Most of the time, they stop in and tell me their results were negative. We then have a come-to-Jesus discussion regarding safe sex practices. Abstinence is the only foolproof method, but that’s not a realistic option for many teenagers nowadays. And I get that. We go over the different kinds of birth control available over the counter and by prescription, as well as the fact that using two methods of contraception is most ideal.
Clearly, the situation I now find myself in is chock-full of irony.
I’m still clinging to the possibility that I’m late. After all, pregnancy isn’t the only reason why a woman might skip her period. There are thyroid issues, stress, over-exercising…
I snort at the last one.
Over-exercising isn’t an issue for me. I’m lucky if I can talk myself into stopping off at the gym twice a week to run on a treadmill. And even that’s pushing it most of the time.
Ten minutes later, I steer into the drugstore parking lot. I exit my car with nerves dancing in my belly and head inside, searching the aisles until I find three shelves of pregnancy tests.
I study the single and double-stick options. Just to be safe, I’ll buy one with two sticks. Plucking a box from the shelf, I peruse the label and replace it, grabbing another to do the same.
Irritation builds as I try to figure out what makes one test better than the other. And who knew there were so many choices?
I see yet another brand and examine it as well.
Arghhh.
I just need to pick one and get out of here.
“Sofia?” a deep voice asks.
Startled out of my thoughts, I fumble the boxes. I whirl around as they fall to the floor and find Roman standing behind me. My cheeks heat as he bends down and scoops up the packages.
His eyes widen when he sees what he’s holding. “You’re pregnant?”
“I don’t know,” I rasp around the lump in my throat. “That’s what I need to figure out.”
He sets two tests on the shelf, holding on to the third. “I think this one will do.”
I nod in agreement. “I thought you’d taken my advice and left town.”
He gives me a hard stare. “You really thought I’d just pick up and leave you?” He steps closer and slips his fingers under my chin, tilting my face up until only he fills my vision and the universe shrinks to just the two of us. “I told you before that you’re mine and I’m not about to let you go. You asked for time to think things over, and that’s what I’ve been trying to give you. Time. A few days to get your head on straight. Maybe you haven’t seen me, but I’ve been here all along keeping you safe. Protecting you.”
Relief rushes through every cell of my body. I may have told him to leave, but that’s not what I wanted. It never occurred to me that he was just giving me space.
Roman rests his other hand on my abdomen. “And this child is mine, too.” His fingers spread. “I’m not leaving either of you,” he vows, his jaw clenched in determination.
“I don’t even know for sure if I’m pregnant.” Glancing around, I add in a lower voice, “I just realized I’m late today.”
He jerks his chin toward the front of the store. “Then we should figure it out, princess.” His lips quirk at the nickname.
I walked in here feeling alone and scared that I might be carrying the baby of the man who betrayed my family.
Roman’s disloyalty and deception still hurt, and I’m not sure how to get past them. Or if that’s even possible. My feelings for him are a thorny tangle of conflicted thoughts and emotions. He could have walked away from me and the situation with my family, but he chose not to. He’s here.
I don’t have to go through this ordeal alone, which makes all the difference in the world.
With a surge of confidence, I look at him and say, “Okay, let’s go.”