The John Hughes Club

Chapter Sixty One

"I think you're making the right decision, but I just want you both to be sure about the decision you are making. An abortion will have consequences...emotional consequences." Sliding her gaze away from Chas, mum leaves her strongly given opinion to fully rest on me, to see whether I buckle beneath its weight. "This isn't just like removing a song from your playlist, Mindy...you'll be removing a baby from your life."

"She's not stupid, Megan, I think she knows that," snappily interrupting, dad's being protective as ever, agitated by mum's bluntness with me.

"If she was stupid enough to have sex and get pregnant, Damon, our daughter needs to fully understand the emotional fallout that will come from getting rid of the baby...they both do." Searching for Rob, mum's needing him to back her up with what she is saying, to back her up with the point she is trying to calmly get across.

Frankly, I'm just glad that she is calm. After my time alone with Chas, it would seem that those hours were just as much needed for our parents. Since our return, a calm acceptance welcomed us back inside. The tears, the screams, the disappointment and the blame, were no longer present when we rejoined them. Instead, mum, dad, and Rob were waiting to listen to what we had decided. However, now that they have heard our decision, tensions appear to be on the up again.

Just like dad is guarding me from mum's blunt honesty, Rob's defiant demeanour and firm eye contact with her, suggests he feels much the same about his son. "I don't really think it's fair to say that Mindy and Chas are stupid for having sex and getting pregnant. From how they've explained things to us, it's pretty clear they both tried to do the right thing by using protection. Mindy was on birth control, Chas used condoms. Even though they stopped using the condoms, together they still thought they were being responsible with Mindy remaining on the pill. Sadly, it wasn't enough, and well...here we are." Lifting his shoulders, they slowly rise and fall with Rob's cautiously done shrug.

Shaking her head, mum purses her lips with a bitter eye roll. "Yes, here we are indeed...pregnant!" Continuing to move her head from left to right with how miffed she is about the whole situation, and maybe now with Rob himself, she slides her bemused gaze across to my dad. "I suppose you'll be thinking much the same as him, that this was all an unfortunate mistake by two responsible kids, right?"

Confidently, dad answers with a slow and careful nod, "Actually, I do. They didn't intend for this to happen, Megan. They've gone away to talk about it and have decided that they're too young to be parents. Which I think, we're all on the same page about, yes?" Questioningly staring at mum, then at Rob, dad eventually glides a far warmer stare of understanding to where Chas and I are seated together on the sofa opposite of him.

With our thighs and knees touching, Chas gives a small smile to my father before saving the last of it for me. "Mindy and I just want to focus on our exams. We've talked about it together. Thought about a lot of things. I don't like it being said that we're just 'getting rid' of the baby, that's an unfair term to use. All we're trying to do is what's best for us both...for now and our future."

Impressed with Chas, I study the face of my mature-sounding boyfriend, impressed with how he's come back to the house with a voice that's wanting to be heard. I think mum has convinced herself that the decision to have an abortion was a really easy one for us to make. It certainly wasn't the easiest decision I've ever made, but it also wasn't the hardest either. In fact, it's the only decision that makes any real sense to me, and to Chas as well.

We are only sixteen.
We are too young to be parents.

I think mum wants me to deeply think about how I'm going to feel about having an abortion, but I can't do that, I don't want to do that. First thing on Monday morning, I'm going to make an appointment with the doctor to set things in motion to erase the one and only thing that's in the way of my exams...the one and only thing in the way of my future.

"On Monday, I'll make an appointment with the doctor," I wilfully announce, the confidence from Chas obviously rubbing off on me.

"I'll take the morning off work, so I can take you," Mum determinedly says.

"Actually, Chas will be coming with me." Keeping the confidence in my reply, I inwardly feel wary about how mum is about to respond.

"That's fine. I'll take you both, then I'll drop you back at school afterwards," is her surprisingly chirpy answer.

Relieved, I thread my fingers with Chas's, just glad that my mum isn't fighting me with every choice and decision I am making. Chas and I are in this together. When we were on the beach, he told me that he wanted to accompany me to the doctors. To him, he's wanting to support me every single step of the way. As I sit here, feeling his fingers lightly caressing mine, and our parents supportively all around us, I start counting my blessings. Okay, this pregnancy is a huge mess, a huuuuuuuuuuge mess, I know that. I also know that it's my mess to clean up, which I am trying to do. But those blessings that I am counting, are for Chas still being by my side, for my dad still looking at me with pride, for Rob stepping up and being there for his son and I, and for my mum not completely disowning me...for this pregnant teen, I count myself kind of lucky.