Chapter One
The Truth Comes Out
Alice Wakefield stared at the doctor in disbelief. "What!" She
exclaimed, not trusting what she had heard. Elizabeth sat silent, not trusting
herself to speak.
The doctor looked back and forth between the mother and daughter. "I
said that Elizabeth is pregnant, about three or four weeks. I take that
this comes as a surprise?" She scanned her clipboard, as if checking to
see if there was anything else.
Alice looked from her daughter to the doctor. "Yes, very much so." She
turned to Elizabeth. "I think that we'd better go." She turned back to
the doctor. "Thanks for you help, Dr. Mitchell."
Elizabeth looked at her mom as they got in the car. "I'm sorry." She
said quietly.
Alice looked over to her daughter, who looked as if she was struggling
not to cry.
"Liz, I'm not mad at you, but I am disappointed." She turned to face
Elizabeth. "Conner is the father, right?" Elizabeth nodded. Alice shook
her head. "Why did you, anyway?"
Elizabeth looked at her mom. She deserved to know that much. "It just
happened. We were kissing, and the next thing we both knew… Do you get
that?"
Alice nodded, and pulled out of the parking lot. "I figured that was
what had happened. But was that just how it happened the first time?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "It may sound strange, but it only happened
one time."
Alice looked over at her daughter. "I believe you. Do you want to just
go home? You don't have to go back to school."
Elizabeth smiled slightly. "If you don't mind. I don't want to face
everyone."
************************************************************
Jessica slid into a seat at the lunch table between Melissa and Maria.
"Hello, people!" She greeted them, eyeing the suspicious lump on her
tray. "What is this crap, anyway? They call it meatloaf, but I don't
trust that."
Andy poked at the lump on his plate. "So that's what they do with gym
socks that people leave in the locker rooms! All they have to do is stew
them- for a completely inedible meal!"
Melissa looked at her plate, to Andy, and to Jessica. "Does he ever
stop making cracks about the food?"
Tia looked at her, and laughed. "Nope, he does run out of material
sometimes, so he'll start repeating jokes after awhile."
Melissa nodded, and Conner took the opportunity to ask Jessica a
question. "Jessica, was Liz supposed to come back to school later today?"
Jessica shrugged. "I don't know. She said she might, or she might not.
Depends on what's up."
Conner nodded. "Just checking."
************************************************************
Elizabeth watched her mom bustle around the kitchen, fixing lunch.
"Mom?"
Alice looked up from the pot of spaghetti on the stove. "Yes?"
Elizabeth took a deep breath. "Do you think that Dad's going to be mad
when he finds out?"
Alice sighed, wishing that she didn't have to answer the question. "I
know that he won't be happy. Your father is old-fashioned about some
things, and this is one of them. He strongly believes that you should be a
virgin until your wedding night."
Elizabeth nodded. It was weird to hear her mom talk about heavy issues.
"I figured as much. If there was one thing I'd done that I could take
back, it would have been this."
Alice looked at her daughter, wishing that this was happening to
someone else. "Are you going to talk to Conner tonight?"
"Yeah. It'll be the best to tell him as soon as I can." Elizabeth
sighed. "I wish this hadn't have happened."
Now that was the understatement of the year.
************************************************************
Jessica and Melissa stood in front of Jessica's locker after the bell
rang, signaling the end of school. "So, are you doing anything later?"
Melissa asked.
Jessica nodded. "I have to work for about two hours, but after that I'm
free."
Melissa nodded. "I got in a fight with Cherie and Gina today. They
think that I'm a traitor for being friends with you, so I'm not going to
hang around with them anymore. You're a better friend then they ever
were."
"Really?"
Melissa smiled. "You are. Anyway, can I hang around the HOJ after
school? I'm supposed to pick my little sister up from basketball at three
thirty, so I have an hour to kill."
"Free world. I don't see a reason why you shouldn't."
Melissa smiled. It felt great to have a friend like Jessica.
Elizabeth hang up the phone after leaving Conner a message on his
answering machine. She'd told him to come over once he got the message
because she needed to talk to him. She'd figured it would be easier to
deliver the news to his face.
Elizabeth sighed. How was she supposed to get through this mess?
Conner waited for Tia by her locker at the end of the day. She'd asked
him after lunch if she could get a ride home because Andy was planning
to go to Evan's swim meet, and she didn't want to come along.
There she was, bouncing down the hall, her pre-calculus book in hand.
"Hi Conner!" She greeted him, flipping open her locker.
"Hey Tee. What did you do this morning? Take perky pills?" He asked,
amused with her perky tone.
"Oh, I'm just happy. Mr. Swansea agreed to let me retake my math test
'cause I'd missed the day we were reviewing."
"Great. How bad did you do on the first test?" Conner asked.
Tia pulled a wrinkled sheet of paper from between the pages of her text
book. A large, red D was circled at the top right hand corner. "Pretty
bad. So your going to help me study for my retest."
"Why me?"
Tia looked at him like he was an idiot. "Well, you're the one that aced
pre-calc last year. If you can't help me, nobody can."
"Oh fine." Conner grumbled. "But it's going to cost you a trip to HOJ."
************************************************************
Half an hour later, Conner dropped Tia off at her house, and then went
over to his own house. He walked in, threw his backpack down in the
foyer, and then walked into the kitchen.
Conner looked over at the answering machine, where the little light was
blinking. He pressed the button. "Hey Conner, it's Liz. I know that
you're not home yet, but will you please come over once you get this
message? I really need to talk to you, and it's really important. Love you,
bye."
He listen to her message, and picked his keys up from where he'd tossed
them on the counter. Conner couldn't have helped to notice it sounded
like something was wrong.
The Truth Comes Out
Alice Wakefield stared at the doctor in disbelief. "What!" She
exclaimed, not trusting what she had heard. Elizabeth sat silent, not trusting
herself to speak.
The doctor looked back and forth between the mother and daughter. "I
said that Elizabeth is pregnant, about three or four weeks. I take that
this comes as a surprise?" She scanned her clipboard, as if checking to
see if there was anything else.
Alice looked from her daughter to the doctor. "Yes, very much so." She
turned to Elizabeth. "I think that we'd better go." She turned back to
the doctor. "Thanks for you help, Dr. Mitchell."
Elizabeth looked at her mom as they got in the car. "I'm sorry." She
said quietly.
Alice looked over to her daughter, who looked as if she was struggling
not to cry.
"Liz, I'm not mad at you, but I am disappointed." She turned to face
Elizabeth. "Conner is the father, right?" Elizabeth nodded. Alice shook
her head. "Why did you, anyway?"
Elizabeth looked at her mom. She deserved to know that much. "It just
happened. We were kissing, and the next thing we both knew… Do you get
that?"
Alice nodded, and pulled out of the parking lot. "I figured that was
what had happened. But was that just how it happened the first time?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "It may sound strange, but it only happened
one time."
Alice looked over at her daughter. "I believe you. Do you want to just
go home? You don't have to go back to school."
Elizabeth smiled slightly. "If you don't mind. I don't want to face
everyone."
************************************************************
Jessica slid into a seat at the lunch table between Melissa and Maria.
"Hello, people!" She greeted them, eyeing the suspicious lump on her
tray. "What is this crap, anyway? They call it meatloaf, but I don't
trust that."
Andy poked at the lump on his plate. "So that's what they do with gym
socks that people leave in the locker rooms! All they have to do is stew
them- for a completely inedible meal!"
Melissa looked at her plate, to Andy, and to Jessica. "Does he ever
stop making cracks about the food?"
Tia looked at her, and laughed. "Nope, he does run out of material
sometimes, so he'll start repeating jokes after awhile."
Melissa nodded, and Conner took the opportunity to ask Jessica a
question. "Jessica, was Liz supposed to come back to school later today?"
Jessica shrugged. "I don't know. She said she might, or she might not.
Depends on what's up."
Conner nodded. "Just checking."
************************************************************
Elizabeth watched her mom bustle around the kitchen, fixing lunch.
"Mom?"
Alice looked up from the pot of spaghetti on the stove. "Yes?"
Elizabeth took a deep breath. "Do you think that Dad's going to be mad
when he finds out?"
Alice sighed, wishing that she didn't have to answer the question. "I
know that he won't be happy. Your father is old-fashioned about some
things, and this is one of them. He strongly believes that you should be a
virgin until your wedding night."
Elizabeth nodded. It was weird to hear her mom talk about heavy issues.
"I figured as much. If there was one thing I'd done that I could take
back, it would have been this."
Alice looked at her daughter, wishing that this was happening to
someone else. "Are you going to talk to Conner tonight?"
"Yeah. It'll be the best to tell him as soon as I can." Elizabeth
sighed. "I wish this hadn't have happened."
Now that was the understatement of the year.
************************************************************
Jessica and Melissa stood in front of Jessica's locker after the bell
rang, signaling the end of school. "So, are you doing anything later?"
Melissa asked.
Jessica nodded. "I have to work for about two hours, but after that I'm
free."
Melissa nodded. "I got in a fight with Cherie and Gina today. They
think that I'm a traitor for being friends with you, so I'm not going to
hang around with them anymore. You're a better friend then they ever
were."
"Really?"
Melissa smiled. "You are. Anyway, can I hang around the HOJ after
school? I'm supposed to pick my little sister up from basketball at three
thirty, so I have an hour to kill."
"Free world. I don't see a reason why you shouldn't."
Melissa smiled. It felt great to have a friend like Jessica.
Elizabeth hang up the phone after leaving Conner a message on his
answering machine. She'd told him to come over once he got the message
because she needed to talk to him. She'd figured it would be easier to
deliver the news to his face.
Elizabeth sighed. How was she supposed to get through this mess?
Conner waited for Tia by her locker at the end of the day. She'd asked
him after lunch if she could get a ride home because Andy was planning
to go to Evan's swim meet, and she didn't want to come along.
There she was, bouncing down the hall, her pre-calculus book in hand.
"Hi Conner!" She greeted him, flipping open her locker.
"Hey Tee. What did you do this morning? Take perky pills?" He asked,
amused with her perky tone.
"Oh, I'm just happy. Mr. Swansea agreed to let me retake my math test
'cause I'd missed the day we were reviewing."
"Great. How bad did you do on the first test?" Conner asked.
Tia pulled a wrinkled sheet of paper from between the pages of her text
book. A large, red D was circled at the top right hand corner. "Pretty
bad. So your going to help me study for my retest."
"Why me?"
Tia looked at him like he was an idiot. "Well, you're the one that aced
pre-calc last year. If you can't help me, nobody can."
"Oh fine." Conner grumbled. "But it's going to cost you a trip to HOJ."
************************************************************
Half an hour later, Conner dropped Tia off at her house, and then went
over to his own house. He walked in, threw his backpack down in the
foyer, and then walked into the kitchen.
Conner looked over at the answering machine, where the little light was
blinking. He pressed the button. "Hey Conner, it's Liz. I know that
you're not home yet, but will you please come over once you get this
message? I really need to talk to you, and it's really important. Love you,
bye."
He listen to her message, and picked his keys up from where he'd tossed
them on the counter. Conner couldn't have helped to notice it sounded
like something was wrong.