Sydney came down the stairs of her home one morning and entered the kitchen where her father Max was preparing breakfast. A smiling Max then said, "There's my amazing daughter. How about as much pancakes as you can eat this morning?" As Sydney sat down at the kitchen table she said, "This is great. Why so many pancakes though dad?" Then as Max sat down with Sydney he said, "Well I just wanted to make sure you were feeling good. I mean... as much as I want to respect your privacy Syd, I still keep my ears open at night. I've been hearing you making noises in the bathroom for the last few days. It kind of sounded like you were throwing up. I didn't wanna bring it up unless you did, but I gotta ask...you feeling okay?" Then Sydney said, "Oh. Well... I think it's just since grandma has been cooking every night this week, it hasn't been sitting well with me. But we all know your cooking is the best. So time for me to have a good healthy breakfast!" Then Sydney was about to take a bite of her pancakes, but then stopped, looked a little pale, and then said, "Um, can I please be excused?" Then Sydney stood up and ran out of the kitchen and towards her bathroom.

Olive was laying in her bed looking tired. Suddenly Olive's mother opened the door and said, "Olive. School starts in less than an hour. You need to be awake now!" As Olive slowly got up she said, "Ugg. Mom, I'm not feeling too good." Then Olive's mom briefly felt Olive's forehead and said, "Well I'm not feeling any fever. Any other symptoms?" Then Olive turned her head and said, "No. Just tired." Then Olive's mom said, "Well then you just need more sleep. Stop texting your friends late at night, and go to bed earlier. Now, get moving and head to school." Olive sighed and said, "Yes m'am."

Emmy was walking down the sidewalk with her younger brother who said, "Come on Emmy, or I'll be late to school." Then Emmy said, "Sorry Diego. I just really had to use the bathroom at that fast food place." Then Diego said, "Well you could just go before you leave like mom always says. We've had to stop for your bathroom breaks every day this week." Then Emmy said, "Sorry. I have been going before we leave but... well, never mind. Here we are at your school. Remember, dad is picking you up today. Have a good day." Emmy's brother Diego than ran off towards his school, while Emmy walked off in the opposite direction with a scared look on her face.

Sophia was running down the hallway of her middle school as she heard a teacher yell, "Walk young lady!" Then Sophia said, "Sorry, bathroom emergency!" Then Sophia ran into the bathroom and began to vomit in one of the toilet stalls. Then after a moment, Sophia heard a familiar voice in the stall next to her say, "Sophia, is that you?" Sophia now not feeling as sick, stuck her head out of the stall door, and saw sticking her own head out nearby was Sydney. As Sophia stood up she said, "Sydney... did you just hear me..." Then Sydney nodded her head and said, "Yeah. Did you just hear me..." Then Sophia curious, asked, "Hear what?" Then Sydney looking nervous said, "Umm... well... I've been throwing up a lot over the past week." Then Sophia also looking nervous said, "Well... I have as well." Then suddenly stepping out of another bathroom stall was Emmy who said, "Oh God, I thought I was the only one." Then Sydney said, "Wait. You mean all of the amigas are feeling sick?" Then Emmy said, "Well not all of us. I mean Olive doesn't seem to be feeling sick." Then suddenly Olive ran into the bathroom and said, "Gangway, need a stall right now and..." Then Olive suddenly saw the other three girls and said, "What are you all doing in here?"

Later that day at a lunch table: Sydney, Olive, Emmy, and Sophia were all sitting together nervous. Sophia then sounding a bit bold and nervous at the same time said, "Look, we need to accept the possibility we're all thinking. It's possible... all four of us are pregnant." Then a doubtful looking Sydney said, "No. I mean... seriously, what are the chances? All of us at the same time!?" Then Olive said, "Well I mean... we all did it on the same night." Sydney then rubbed her forehead as she said, "Oh dear God. A co-ed sleepover. What was I thinking?" Then Emmy said, "Well maybe not all of us are pregnant. It could just be stress from school. Plus, I don't think I could get pregnant, since I haven't had my first period yet." Then Sophia said, "You can still get pregnant before your first period Emmy. Look, my mom still keeps a bunch of pregnancy tests lying around. We can go by my place after school, all grab some, and then find out for sure." Sydney looked very hesitant but then said, "Okay."

That afternoon, Sophia was digging through a large drawer in her moms' room as Sydney, Olive, and Emmy stood behind her. Then Sophia held up four pregnancy tests as she said, "Here you all go." Then as each girl reluctantly took one pregnancy test, Olive said, "Sophia, why does your mom have so many?" Then Sophia said, "Well I think even though she still uses protection with my dad, she just wants to stay on top of knowing if it hasn't worked." Sydney looked down as she said, "Protection. Oh God, I'm so stupid. Why didn't I consider bringing any sort of protection for anyone to use that night!?" Olive then put a hand on Sydney's shoulder and said, "Hey. None of us considered it either. We're all equal to blame here." Then suddenly Sophia heard a sound outside and said, "Shoot. That's my mom's car. Quick, you all gotta head out. If she catches any of us with a pregnancy test, it could spell trouble." Then Emmy said, "You mean we're not gonna do the test together or..." Then Sydney said, "She's right. Better each of us is potentially caught alone, than together. Just head home, and then we'll talk tomorrow." Sydney, Olive, and Emmy then grabbed their belongings and headed out.

That evening Emmy headed into her house as she saw her mother preparing dinner. Emmy's mother then said, "Ah. Mija! How was your day?" Emmy putting on a calm face said, "Eh, fine." Then Emmy looked at a phone near her and noticed the call log as she said, "Wait. Uncle Freddy called? What was that about?" Then Emmy's mother said, "Oh, it's terrible. Your cousin Isabella got pregnant... at age 15. Oh, esa niña estúpida." Emmy's eyes widened as she said, "What?" Emmy's mother nodded her head and said, "Yes. She just thew her body at some body she didn't know, and threw her virginity away like it was trash. The whole town back home is so disappointed in her, and your uncle and aunt are so upset. Your aunt Carmen has even already been asked to stop leading the church youth group because the leadership has lost confidence in her ability to properly lead the teenagers. Oh, how that stupid little girl didn't consider the consequences to her actions. Well anyway, would you like macaroni or lasagna tonight?" Emmy suddenly looked sick to her stomach as she said, "I... I'm not feeling too good actually, and I think I need to go to bed early."

Sydney stepped into her home and saw her grandmother Judy was putting together some pictures in a photo album. As Sydney went over to Judy she said, "Hey grandma. Re-organizing the family photo album?" Judy nodded her head and said, "Yeah. We've kept so many photos in small albums over the years, but I realized it was better to combine them into much larger ones." As Sydney sat down next to Judy she said, "Oh look. That's a real cute picture of dad and Grandpa Doug." Judy sighed as she said, "Yeah. I'm tempted not to have any pictures of Max's dad in here... but he's still part of this family, and I can't ignore that." Then Sydney looking a bit nervous said, "Grandma... do you ever feel like my dad being born was a mistake?" Judy looking confused said "What do you mean?" Then Sydney said, "Well your marriage to Grandpa Doug you once said was a mistake, meaning you two just weren't meant to be. So does it ever feel like... my dad being born was something not meant to be?" Then Judy said, "Listen Sydney. People make mistakes sometimes. People might get married for the wrong reasons, and might have kids for the wrong reasons. But that doesn't mean that any child being born is wrong. I may not love Max's father, but I am forever happy every day I got be Max's mother; with the only thing better than that being your grandmother." Sydney made a little smile as she nodded her head and said, "Thanks for telling me that grandma."

Olive sat in her bathroom holding a pregnancy test near her as she began to breathe in and out heavily. Then Olive suddenly heard a beep on her phone. Olive looked at her phone as her eyes widened. Then Olive quickly started a video call, and within seconds: Sydney and Sophia's faces appeared. Olive then said, "Hey. Did you two just see that picture with that scary caption Emmy just sent?" Then Sophia said, "Yeah, I just tried calling her but she didn't answer." Then Sydney said, "Hold on. I'm just looking at the photo now, and the caption says... I always knew deep down my life would end while young, and now it has. The world has no place for me. Goodbye. Oh God. Is Emmy gonna..." Then a panicked Olive said, "We have to call the police." Then Sydney said, "Wait. Let me just see something. Many pictures now have geo-tags attached to them that reveal where the picture is taken. Lets hope Emmy didn't turn that features off... There! I got her location. It's less than a mile from place. I'll text you both, and we'll meet her there immediately!"

As only the moon shined in the sky, Emmy walked down a sidewalk that was on a bridge near a small road. Emmy then got up and stood on the edge of the bridge as she looked down at a large ravine with plenty of rushing water and large rocks beneath her. Emmy then took a deep breath, but then suddenly she heard Olive yell, "Emmy, wait!" Emmy turned her head and saw Sydney, Olive, and Sophia running towards her. Emmy then yelled, "Stay back! This is my choice!" Then Sydney said, "Then choose not to jump Emmy. Please. Things are never so bad that you have to result to this." Then as Emmy dug a hand into her pockets she said, "Oh yeah?" Then Emmy took out her pregnancy test and said, "I tested positive. I'm pregnant, and my life is over!" Then Sophia said, "Emmy, it doesn't have to be over." Then Emmy with tears in her eyes yelled, "Yes, it is! You don't know my family. If they find out, they'll disown me, hate me, and never want to talk to me for the rest of my life. I'll be alone." Then Sydney said, "No you won't Emmy!" Then Emmy yelled, "How can you say that with certainty!?" Then suddenly Sydney, Olive, and Sophia all took out pregnancy tests from their own pockets as Sydney said, "Because we all tested positive too. We'll all pregnant Emmy." Emmy looking surprised said, "What?"

Then Olive stepped forward and said, "Look, I know this is scary. But this is scary for all of us right now. I don't know how my parents are gonna react to this. None of us do. But what I do know is that I need my best friends with me right now as I go through this. And that includes all of my best friends. I need you Emmy, just as much as you need us." As more tears appeared in Emmy's eyes she said, "But... this is gonna be the end of my life. Don't you know what happens to most teenage mothers? We don't get good jobs, we end up in debt, we wind up with kids who get bad grades and bad jobs too and..." Then Sophia stepped forward and said, "Then prove the world wrong. You may think the world wants Emmy Mendoza to fail, but you have to say to the world: No, I will succeed. This is gonna be your chance to overcome your greatest obstacle and prove to the world how strong you are. That goes for all of us." Then as Emmy began to cry she said, "But you still don't get it. If I keep this baby inside me and raise it, I am going to look at my child and seem them as a result of sin. I will hate them and hate myself for the rest of my life."

Then Sydney stepped forward and said, "No, you won't Emmy. What we all did five weeks ago was a sin. But getting pregnant was not a sin. People make mistakes sometimes, and sometimes have kids for the wrong reasons. But that doesn't mean that any child being born is wrong. Just like you staying alive isn't wrong Emmy. Please. We need you." Emmy then closed her eyes... and then stepped down and ran towards the other three girls. The four girls then hugged each other as they all began to cry. Emmy then said, "I'm sorry guys. I'm so, so sorry." Olive then said, "Shhh. It's okay. This is just been a super crazy emotional day for all of us." The four then all remained in a long group hug for the next several minutes. Then Emmy broke the silence and said, "So... what now?" Then Sophia said, "Well... first, we all promise each other that no matter what, we'll all be there to support one another no matter how hard things get." All of the girls nodded as Olive said, "Agreed." Then Emmy asked, "And then...?" Then Sydney said, "Then... we each tell our families about what's happened." Then Emmy looking nervous said, "Now?" Sydney nodded and said, "Better I tell my family the truth and try getting help from them now instead of later. And after that... I've got a certain baby daddy I'm gonna have to have an even harder conversation with..."

TO BE CONTINUED...