Solution

"April, can you open the window, please. I'm literally going to fall." Punk groaned, hanging from her window later that night as AJ looked over, getting up from her bed and walking over, opening up the window and letting him in.

"What are you doing here?" AJ shook her head, walking back over to her bed and climbing in.

"What do you mean what am I doing here?" Punk shook his head, "I'm here to see if you're ok. You just took off today." He said.

"Because the whole school knows I'm pregnant and you decided to try and kill a kid in front of everyone. We look like we're really stable parents, congratulations."

"It wasn't my fault he was being a dick." Punk said, "How the hell did everyone find out?" Punk asked.

"The girls in the squad fond the picture in my bag. News travels fast." AJ shrugged, "Eve isn't replying to my texts or calls and I think I have no friends."

"So you're response to this is to push me away too?" Punk asked her.

"I don't know." She placed her hand on her head, "I don't know what I'm doing, Phil." She began to cry, "I'm a child. Look at my room. I still have… posters of boy bands and… childhood teddy bears lying around. Is my baby's crib going to sit in amongst all of that?" She questioned, "No wait…" She laughed, "My mom won't let me raise my baby here so maybe I'll be on the streets with it." She said.

"Stop it." Punk said, "I'm not gonna let anything bad happen to you."

"How? My mom is right, you have nothing to give me. Love doesn't cut it for this. We need money, we need a place to stay. Neither of us can give this baby any of that." She said, "So why are we even trying?" She questioned.

"I have nothing to give you?" Punk questioned, "Look around you. I'm the only person here for you right now. Your parents don't want anything to do with you. You friends have left you to deal with this on your own. I'm the only one that gives a damn and you wanna tell me I have nothing to give you?" He questioned as she got out of the bed.

"If I have this baby, I give birth in six months. Do you really think we're gonna come up with a solution in that time? My parents will not let me raise this baby in this house."

"Then you come live with me." Punk shrugged, "I'll… I'll tidy the place up. I'll leave school and get a job. I'll get money." Punk nodded, "I'm sure you'll get some kind of benefits, right?" He questioned.

"That sounds like I'm pretty much ruining your life." AJ shook her head.

"You are my life." Punk shrugged, "I've been used to nothing my entire life. And then I found you." He nodded, "You're what I want." He nodded.

"You want to raise your baby in amongst your father's drugs?" AJ asked him, "The way you were raised?"

"It's temporary." Punk nodded, "Until we can get our own place." He shrugged, "If you didn't want this baby, we would have been at the clinic by now." He said, "I know you. I know the type of person you are. You don't want to give up on this." He said as she sighed.

"What about school? Everyone is whispering and staring at me like I have some sort of disease." AJ shook her head.

"It'll fade out." Punk nodded.

"But I'm going to have to take time out." AJ said, "Which delays me into going to college." She said, "I still have another year of school."

"There's ways around it." Punk said. It was understandable for her to act that way. He was thinking the same things on the inside too. He was just trying his best to keep her calm.

"My mom and dad aren't talking to me." AJ said, "My dad hasn't spoken to me since I told him." She said, "My mom looks at me like I'm cheap."

"That's because she's a bitch." Punk said bluntly, "And she doesn't care. She doesn't care if you have an abortion, she doesn't care if you have the baby. She's not interested either way. This is your life, not hers."

"Yeah and I don't want to be a young mom who dropped out of everything to take care of their kid." AJ said.

"I will be here." Punk said, "Think about things working out for us. We get our own place. You get into college. I get a job somewhere. We have a baby." He said, "We're just… a few steps ahead of everyone." He nodded.

"A few?" AJ questioned, "We're a lot of steps ahead of everyone." She shook her head.

"April, I promise I'll do everything I can to make this work. But I can't if you're just gonna doubt it the entire time. If you're having any doubts. If you don't want this… you gotta decide."

"Do you even want this?" AJ shook her head, "You're so busy trying to convince me. Have you convinced yourself? When all your friends are out partying, they're at fun, they're at college… me and you will be home with a baby screaming." She said, "Is that really what you want?"

"I think it'd be wrong not to try. We… We've had no support our entire lives. But maybe we can be different for this kid. Maybe we can be better for it." He nodded as she looked across at him, "And we can make it work."

"Do you really think so?" AJ asked him.

"I promise that if we put everything into this, we'll make it work." He nodded, "And fuck what anyone thinks. You always said you hated people assuming how your life was gonna turn out, didn't you?" He asked her.

"I didn't really want to do this to prove them wrong." AJ smiled a little as Punk smiled.

"Go big or go home, right?" Punk nodded, "We can prove everyone wrong." He nodded as she sighed.

"Phil… we need a place to stay." She shook her head.

"We will pay you back for this, Bob. I promise." AJ nodded, sitting her bag down in what was her and Punk's new bedroom, in Bob's apartment.

"You're ok, April." Bob smiled, "I'd rather this than see you out in the streets somewhere." He assured her, "And Phil is gonna work with me at the store so… that's helping me out." He said as AJ nodded, "And you're gonna continue going to school, right?" He made sure.

"Yeah, for as long as I can." AJ smiled.

"You're a brave girl." Bob nodded, "And you shouldn't be embarrassed either, this is your life. Your decision."

"Thank you." AJ smiled.

The idea to ask Bob was a last minute one, but a successful one. They promised the store owner it would only be temporary until they got enough money to get their own place. AJ had left her parents behind, knowing they would no doubt pretend she didn't exist from here on out. It was scary. She really felt like she was out in the real world now. But she had Phil.

"Thanks for this, Bob." Punk nodded, coming through the apartment, "You're really helping us out here." He said as Bob just waved his hand.

"It's fine. Stop thanking me. You're working with me so… think of that as your rent." He nodded as Punk smiled, "It's a shame you kids had to resort to this but… I'm sure you'll be fine here." He nodded, "And don't give up on your education." He told AJ, "I'll babysit if I have to if it makes sure you go to school and college." He said as AJ smiled.

"Thanks, Bob." AJ smiled as he nodded.

"I'm gonna go back to the store now. You both got your sets of keys?" He asked them as they nodded, "Ok, call if you need me." He said as they nodded, watching him leave the apartment and close the door behind him.

"Was he married?" AJ wondered, picking up the picture frame on the coffee table of Bob and what looked like his wife.

"Let's see." Punk walked over, taking the frame from her and looking on, "Well… maybe he got divorced or something." He shrugged as AJ nodded, sitting the frame back down carefully.

"He's really kind for letting us stay here." AJ shook her head.

"He's a good person." Punk nodded, "And he's right, don't give up on going to college and doing your thing. This doesn't have to come in the way of anything." He said as AJ nodded.

"I'm actually feeling a lot better about it." AJ nodded. Her biggest concern before was having nowhere to go. Her boyfriend had figured it out and they had managed to find themselves a good place to stay, even if it was just temporary. It was still something, with gave her a lift.

"Yeah?" Punk smiled as AJ nodded.

"I'm sorry for freaking out the way I was." AJ said.

"Hey, if there's anything you're allowed to freak out over, it's this." Punk smiled as she laughed a little, "We're gonna be ok here." He nodded, taking her chin between his thumb and forefinger, leaning down and kissing her softly.

"Morning, Bob." Rey smiled, walking into the store.

"Morning." Bob smiled, "Off to work are we?" He stood up from behind the desk as Rey shook her head.

"No, actually. For once I have a day off." Rey smiled, walking over to the desk, "I'm going shopping with Joanne. I never go shopping." She shook her head.

"I know, you always wear the same clothes." Bob teased.

"Hey." Rey gasped as Bob chuckled, "It's a foster kid thing." She waved her hand as Bob nodded.

"In for a bottle of water I assume?" Bob asked.

"You know me so well." Rey smiled, "Yes, please." She nodded, "And don't worry, I got money to pay for it this time. Gosh, I must owe you so much."

"You owe me nothing, sweetheart." Bob nodded as Rey smiled. She was a sucker for sweet old men who loved to chat, "Here, one for your friend too." He slid across the waters to her as Rey smiled, handing him over the money.

"Thank you." Rey smiled, putting the water into her purse.

"Hey, I think I saw that boy of yours in that car garage a few blocks down. He working there?" Bob asked curiously.

"Zac? Well he was supposed to but we had a fight and he went off on a bender. Didn't show up." Rey shrugged, "So I had to apologise to the guy for him."

"The guy?" Bob asked.

"Uh… the owner I think. I don't know." Rey shrugged as Bob nodded slowly, "It's on Zac. No one to blame but himself. I really thought he was changing." She shook her head.

"Don't be fooled." Bob warned her.

"I'm learning my lessons." Rey smiled, "Hey, you mind if I use the bathroom before I go?" She asked him.

"No, go on." Bob smiled, watching her as she rushed off into the back into the bathroom as he sighed to himself. It was hard to play spectator as time went by, especially the older he got. But it wasn't for him to interfere in.