It's just two years after the second season finale. Ashley is a sophomore and Amy a junior. Both girls are living with their mother and her husband, while their father lives right next door with his wife, and her senior daughter, Adrienne.
When Ashley's boyfriend, Thomas, is killed in a car accident, Ashley is thrown into a world of grief. But when she learns she's pregnant with his baby, she knows she has a choice. She can give the baby up for adoption, and lose the one thing that will link her to Thomas, or she can keep the baby and keep on living for the last thing she has of him. Either path will change her life forever.
Chapter Four
Amy and I rode home in silence. The conversation I had had with Thomas' parents kept running through my head.
"Pre...pregnant?" Mr. Meyer asked, his voice shaking. I nodded. He started to get up, thought about it, and sat back down. "Who's the father? Is it Thomas?"
"Yes..." I whispered.
"Get out." He said calmly. "I do not want a slut in my house. We will not support you or the baby. I should have guessed this would happen when you started dating him. After all, it runs in the family, apparently. And I'll bet the baby isn't even his."
"But-" I started to protest.
"Ashley, come on, let's go," Amy whispered, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Just forget about it. You told them, and that's all we came to do. There's no point in getting upset because of them." Then she turned to the Meyers. "This is it. Your son loved Ashley, and he wouldn't have left her alone iwth this. I guess that means your son was a whole hell of a lot better than you are." Then, with her arm wrapped around me, she led me out of the house.
"Amy, Ashley, Mrs. Conrad just called, asking when you two would be over to see her. I told her you should have been there, but she said you never showed. What happened?" I just shook my head, going up the stairs.
"Amy, what happened?" I heard her ask my sister. I shut my door before I heard a reply.
The next morning, I woke up an hour earlier than I normally do, and went downstairs. My mother was sitting at the table.
"Mom? You okay?" I asked, sittting down across from her. She glanced up at me.
"Morning, Ashley. Why are you up so early?"
I shrugged. "I really don't know. I woke up, and I couldn't get back to sleep," I told her. "Why are you up?"
She smiled sadly. "I'm just thinking of my marriage with your father, and how it went wrong," she said.
"Want to talk about it?" I asked.
"No, not really. It's in the past, and nothing we can do will change it," my mother said, sighing.
I stood up. "If you say so," I said, opening the fridge and taking out the milk.
"Hey Ash, there's something I want to speak to you about," she said suddenly. To my horror, she took out the box to my pregnancy test. "Is this yours?"
I stared at her, swallowed, and nodded.
"Oh Ashley," my mom whispered. She stood up, walked over to where I was standing, and pulled me into a hug. When she backed away, she looked me in the eyes. "Was it positive? Who is the father?"
"It... It was positive, and I went to a clinic. Thomas... Thomas would be the father."
"Ganma! Aunty Ash!" a little voice said from the doorway. "I hungy!" We glanced up. It was John.
"Hey John," I said, smiling. "What would you like to eat?"
"Pancake!"
"We'll talk later, Ashley," my mom whispered, heading to the stove.
I walked into Grant High School, and headed to my locker. Since coming back after the car crash, people had avoided me. They were afraid to mention Thomas' name, or anything. The teachers, on the other hand, had dedicated a whole wall to him. Thomas had been really involved with the school drama department. He played Romeo in the play Romeo and Juliet, with Grace Bowman as Juliet. He helped with the backgrounds in MacBeth. And when a student wrote her own play, it was his idea to perform it.
Seeing the wall everyday on my way to my locker sent so much pain to my heart. Today, however, I stopped in front of it. I looked at the pictures, and saw the one with me and him together, before Romeo and Juliet, drenched from head to toe and laughing.
"Ashley! Come on!" Thomas laughed, pulling my hand as we ran in the rain. "I'm going to be late for the play!"
I laughed too. "I hope Mrs. Ander won't mind you being drenched for your part as Romeo! She may just kick you out!"
"She won't! Without me, the play can't go on!" He stopped, staring in my eyes. "Ashley, I love you. You will forever be my Juliet," He whispered, before kissing me softly.
I looked at the others, and saw Homecoming pictures.
"And now, our king and queen! Thomas Meyer and Ashley Jeurgens!" I gasped in surprise.
"Ha! I knew it!" One of the football players cried out.
Thomas grinned, and offered me his arm. "My lady?" I took his arm, and he led me up the stairs to get our crowns.
"Hey Ash," Amy said, coming up beside me. "You okay?"
I glanced at her, and shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. I just miss him, a lot."
"What was he like, Ashley?" Amy asked, putting an arm around my shoulder. "I mean, I knew him, but not as well as you did. I knew him as, if-he-hurts-my-little-sister-I'll-hurt-him, but I didn't really know him."
I smiled. "Thomas... He was playful, he loved to laugh, and sometimes he would say something that would really shock you. He enjoyed being in the rain. Once, we spent all day out in the rain, jumping in puddles."
"Ashley smiled, just as the bell rang. "W'd better get to class, Ash. I'll see you later." I waved as she grinned and walked away.
"Ashley, pay attention!" my teacher snapped. I glanced up at her. She had her arms crossed, and was glaring. When she saw the tears that had formed in my eyes and that were now running down my face, she softened. "Ashley, come with me, please."
I followed her out of the classroom. "I'm sorry," I mumbled, once we were alone. "I'll pay attention next time, I promise."
"Ashley, this isn't about that. Have you talked to Mr. Molina about what you're feeling? Or your mother? I'm sure they can help you with this loss."
"I've talked to Amy some," I said. "She listens."
"Ashley, next time you get this upset, leave me classroom until you calm down. Then you can come back in. I won't say anything to you."
"Why do you care?" I mumbled. "You never have before."
"Because I know what you're going through. When I was fifteen, my boyfriend died. What was different, however, he left me pregnant." At these words, I froze. She didn't seem to notice. "I had to raise the baby on my own, with no help."
"Y...you w...were p...pregnant?" I stammered,
"Yes, I was." She saw the look on my face, and gasped. "Ashley, you're not pregnant, are you?"
