Consider Yourself Lucky

Twenty-Two

What am I going to do? I haven't talked to Collin in weeks and quite frankly I still don't have any desire to. He's probably too busy with his other woman anyways. He wouldn't care about a baby. Would he? I can't be the type of person to not give him a chance to be in his child's life. I know what it's like to grow up without a dad. I don't want my child to suffer because of the feelings I have towards their father. I need to tell Grandma. I don't want to stress her out. A baby is a big responsibility and I've only ever been responsible for Flake. I take a deep breath and grab the tests. I slowly walk down the stairs and Grandma is sitting on the couch. She's been more into the game shows than the cooking shows lately. She likes to play along as if she's the contestant. She sees me slowly walk into the room. My hands are behind my back and shaking uncontrollably. I've tried so hard not to cry but as soon as she looks at me, they just flood down my face.

"Adelaide? What's wrong my love? Talk to me." I sit next to her on the couch, still hiding the tests.

"Please don't be mad."

"Why would I be mad?"

"The night you went to the hospital, I didn't want to be alone. Collin came over and we got carried away. We weren't thinking and" I wipe my eyes and try to calm myself so I can get the rest of the words out. "We didn't have any protection. Grandma..."

I think at that point she knew what I was about to say. I took the tests out from behind my back and place them in the middle of us on the couch.

"I'm pregnant." She looks down at the tests and looks back up at me.

"Oh honey. I am not mad at you. You are a grown adult. I had your mother way younger than your age. While these tests are usually accurate, I think you should call the clinic and get some blood work done to make sure. They can also talk you through your options if you aren't sure what you want to do. However, I know you aren't on talking terms with Collin right now, but he does have a right to know you're carrying his child."

"Do you think I could wait until I get the confirmation from the doctor before telling him?"

"I think that would be a good idea, yes. If he decides he doesn't want to be involved, then that's his loss. We can do this together. I'll be here every step of the way for anything you need."

I hug her tightly and we both cry into each other's arms. I feel a bit better knowing Grandma is supportive of anything I decide. The clinic should still be open, so I go in the other room and call.

"Hello?"

"Hi, my name is Adelaide Chase and I'm looking to get some blood work done. I just got two positive pregnancy tests and I just want it confirmed."

"Not a problem, we have an opening before we close. I'm not sure if that's too last minute for you. If it is, you can come in the morning. We open at nine."

"I can head over now. It will take me about fifteen minutes though. Is that alright?"

"Yes, that's perfect. We'll take down more of your information once you get here. See you then. Bye."

"Thank you, bye bye."

I tell Grandma I'm going to the clinic, and she insists that she goes with me. I don't mind. I would rather have her support with me than go alone and overthink everything. We get in the car and Grandma gets all excited. I know she said I have options, but I already know I want to keep this baby. I'm terrified but I'm also happy. The only thing I'm not looking forward to is what Collin is going to say. I feel a little bad about how things ended. I was hysterical and I should have let him explain. It was also wrong of me to go snooping through his phone. I need to take accountability for my own actions too.

It doesn't take long to get to the clinic. When we walk in there's one other woman in the waiting room. She looks very pregnant. Her arms resting on her big belly in front of her. Grandma finds a seat as I walk to the front desk. The lady slides the little glass window open.

"How can I help you?"

"Hi, I think we spoke on the phone about twenty minutes ago. I'm Adelaide Chase. I wanted to some blood work done to confirm that I'm pregnant."

"Oh yes, I'm glad you could make it." She goes into the file cabinet that's behind her and takes out a couple sheets of paper. She clips them onto a clipboard and hands it to me along with a pen. "Fill these out and bring them back up when you're done. Then we can get you into the system and a nurse will come out to get you." She smiles sincerely and I take the clipboard and go sit next to Grandma. The questions are just asking if I have any allergies, what my birthday is, when my last period was, and just general questions. I get to the bottom of the last page, and I'm appalled by the question I see.

"Are you and the father of your child related?" I turn to Grandma and read her the question.

"I sure the hell hope we're not. That would be kind of gross." She laughs at me which calms my nerves. I finish filling out all the papers and bring the clipboard back to the lady at the desk.

"Thank you love. Someone will be out to take you in as soon as they can."

"Thank you." I smile at her and sit back down.

Not even five minutes later, a nurse comes through a door on the opposite side of the room. She reads my name off of a paper and I stand up.

"Do you want me to go back with you?"

"I think I'll be okay. It'll be quick." Grandma smiles and nods as I walk through the door with the nurse. She leads me to a secluded booth and pulls the curtain, so we have some privacy.

"Name and birthday please?" I tell her my information even though she just read my name off the paper. She wraps a rubber band around my arm and tells me to make a fist. She pokes me until she finds a vein. She wipes the spot with an alcohol pad and the smell makes me sick.

"Just a slight pinch." I flinch as the needle breaks through my skin. I've always hated needles. I hate shots and I don't have any tattoos for that specific reason. I glance over and see all the blood shooting into the tube. It's nauseating. Before I know it, she's putting pressure on the spot she poked me and applying a band aid.

"You're all set. They should call you with your results in the morning." She walks me back out into the waiting room.

"How did it go?"

"I get my results in the morning. Until then, I think I need a nap. I'm exhausted and feel like shit."

This would explain why I've been so tired but also haven't been able to sleep at night. I never thought I'd get pregnant my first-time having sex, but here I am. I know the blood work is for a physical confirmation, but I already feel so different. I'm actually looking forward to going through the journey of motherhood. There are so many things to be happy about. I'm really hoping for a girl but either way as long as the baby is healthy, I'll be over the moon excited.