I just picked a random day in February for Taylor's birthday. So she's 18 now. Mean Seth is gone, again. I'll try to keep him nice from now on. And Ryan isn't in jail because they haven't been caught.

Chapter 26

It's February 26th. My birthday. I'd like to tell you that the past two months have been amazing. I'd like to say that Ryan has been very supportive of me deciding to keep the baby but then I'd be lying. He broke up with me the day I told him about the baby. He said that he needed time to go over everything in his mind.

Lived was an understatement when I refer to how my mother reacted coming home to find me in a cast AND to learn that I'm pregnant. She asked who the father was. I lied and told her that I had no idea. She seemed to take that answer.

Summer's been by my side since I told her I was pregnant. She never left Seth. He hasn't hit her since and I'd like to think that he won't hit her again. I really am rooting for that relationship to go correctly without anymore bruises on my best friends body.

I'm currently pulling on my favorite sweatpants, the ones that help hide the small bump that's forming on my abdomen. I'm more than happy that my casts are off. I was getting very tired of them. The pink things irritated my skin insanely.

I'm dreading school today just like I dread it every day that I go since my first class is in fact the one Ryan teaches. He doesn't pay attention to me in class. He rarely calls on me even if I raise my hand to answer a question, he'll call on a different student even though I'm usually the only one raising my hand at that moment.

"So you really need to readjust what's going on with your face right now because today you're 18 and you're supposed to be happy!" Summer was standing at my door. She was unusually cheery this morning.

"Shove it, Summer." I growl at her. She chalks it up to my insane pregnancy hormones.

"You have to stop this, Taylor. It's Mr. Atwood's loss if he doesn't want you or that baby in his life so just…move on." Easy for her to say. She would be doing the exact same thing if she were in my shoes.

"Maybe I could skip today…" I look at myself in the mirror. I look terrible. I feel terrible.

"Not going to happen, now are you really going to wear that?" She scrunches her nose at my outfit.

"Yes, you have a problem with it?" I glare at her daring her to say something negative. She just shakes her head no knowing not to press this any further.

-

"Taylor." My arm is being poked by the stupid red haired girl who sits next to me in Ryan's class. I could really kill her for touching me right now. Instead I just put on my fakest smile and turn to her.

"Yes?" I ask her.

"Are you pregnant?" I figured I could hide this thing a little longer than this.

"Yeah…" I tell her. I don't want to lie anymore. I just want it all out in the open just as long as they don't find out the father, then everything is going to be fine.

"Wow…I thought so but I just had to ask!" She grinned. Oh God. I could really hurt this girl. "How far along are you?" She asks.

"It's not any of your business, Lindsey but I'm 12 weeks." I tell her.

"Lindsey, Taylor stop talking and get to work." Ryan tells us. I wonder if he heard our little conversation. Of course he did, if he hadn't he wouldn't be glaring at me like he was right now. That's when I got a tap on my shoulder by the person sitting behind me. I turned around to see another grinning face. This person had heard me talking to Lindsey. Great. Just fucking great.

"You're pregnant?" The person asked me. I didn't answer, just turned around in my seat and hit my forehead to my desk. This was going to be a long day.

"I want everyone to stop talking and get to work!" Ryan's voice boomed through the class room.

"Mr. Atwood, did you know that Taylor's pregnant?" Lindsey said next to me. I turned to look at her. What was this girls problem?

"I did not know that, Lindsey but I'm not sure what that has to do with History so would you please just get back to your work." His face showed no emotion when he talked to my lab partner. My face was probably a deep red at this point. I raised my hand hoping he would call on me.

"Can I go to the restroom?" I say just above a whisper hoping that the tears wouldn't come out of my eyes just yet before I reached the bathroom.

"Sure." He said not looking at me as I made my way out of there.

-

"Taylor?" Ryan approached me after class. He hadn't wanted to talk since I told him about me being pregnant.

"Hmm?" I said setting my stuff back down on the table before approaching his desk.

"Are you sure about all of this? I mean…a baby is a huge thing…"

"I've thought it over, and yes I am sure about all of this. I know what I'm doing Ryan. I don't need your help or anyone else's help." I snap a little. So I lied a little about the knowing what I'm doing thing but I'll figure it out along the way.

"Come over after school to talk, okay?" He begged me with his eyes. I just nodded before walking back to my desk and getting my things.

-

"I totally forgot but uhm…happy birthday?" He rubbed the back of his head as I entered his house later that day.

"Thanks…at least you remembered. My mom hasn't but she's not really speaking to me right now anyway." I sigh walking over and sitting down on the couch where he is. I sit as far away as I can placing my hands on my knees hoping he just gets whatever he wants to say over and done with now.

"Why is that?" Small talk was not what I came here for but whatever.

"The baby." I whisper to him looking straight ahead of me.

"Oh. Look, Taylor. I'm sorry about how I've been acting but I can't be a father again. I'm just not ready…and you are definitely not ready to be a mother…" That wasn't what I wanted to hear.

"Since when do you get to tell me when I'm ready or not? Whether I'm ready or not is not my problem right now. I have to be ready. There's no stopping this, Ryan!" I probably speak a little too loudly but I'm not in the best of moods right now.

"I know that…it's just…God, you're too young for this. You're not supposed to be having to deal with a kid and trying to get into college. I'm sorry. This is all my fault."

"Yeah, you're right it is your fault." I say before standing up and making my way to the front door. So, it's not all of his fault but I'd rather blame him then myself at this point.

"Taylor, come on sit back down and talk to me." He sighed standing up and catching my arm. I turn around and glare at him.

"I applied to college but I'm not going." I tell him. His face falls a little.

"Why not?" He asks.

"I don't have the money to go and take care of a baby so I'm going to defer a year or two…" I just got my acceptance letter from Berkeley. I had been thrilled to know that I'd be going but then I realized it'd be far too difficult to raise a baby and go to school at the same time. I haven't exactly declined the acceptance yet but if I can't find some other way to go to college and raise this baby then I will.

"Oh…where'd you get in at?" He asks.

"Berkeley." I tell him.

"I guess we're moving to Berkeley in the fall." Wait, did he just say what I think he said?

"What do you mean?" I sit back down on the couch curious.

"I mean…I'm not going to let you defer college to take care of a baby that is half my responsibility too. You're 18 now and once school's out then we can move to Berkeley. I'm pretty sure I can find a teaching job at an elementary school or something…"

"Okay, back up. So you're saying you'll leave Newport so that I can go to college? You'll leave for me?" I ask not really sure if I'm hearing correctly.

"Yeah." He nods.

"But you haven't talked to me in two months and then you suddenly decide you want to go away with me?"

"It's not like that, Taylor. I've just needed to think about everything. This is big…huge…and I'm still freaking out but I think we can do this." He ran his hand through his hair. I smiled. So maybe things weren't going to end up perfect but I swear this is the best Birthday present ever.

"I love you." I giggle pulling him down on the couch next to me.