High School Never Ends

The test

Meredith got home after school that day and knew she would have to tell Derek that she thought she was pregnant. She was scared and wasn't sure she was ready to here the truth. He was going to be there in five minutes so she decided to wait on the wrap around porch on her house. She was pacing back and forth when he finally showed up in her circular driveway. She ran to his car and got in.

'Meredith you ok. I thought we were going to stay at your house." He looked over at her in the passenger's seat her eyes were puffy from crying. She looked more like a scared guilty child than his girlfriend.

"I have to tell you something, but you cant be mad at me. I don't know how this could have happened we were pretty careful. I am late."

"Late for what you are right her Mer." He grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it.

"I could be pregnant Derek. What would we do?" Derek's face went white at the word pregnant. He never planned to be a dad in high school, but he saw she was nervous and wanted to comfort her. The last thing he wanted was Meredith thinking he would leave her.

"We will get through this." He gestured between them and her stomach. "Let's hope for the best, but if you are I will stay by you."

"Okay,' That was the first time she smiled since the beginning of the assembly. She prayed that if the test did come back positive that he wouldn't get scared and run. He could just be trying to calm her down now. She would never know until she took the test. "We have to buy a pregnancy test. I think we should know and take it from there."

"Okay do you want to go to a different town?" He asked she would surely get recognized at one of the drug stores or food stores in town. Everyone in the high school knew her and Derek.

"Yeah I don't want anyone to know. Thanks for not yelling at me.' She looked at him and smiled. He just squeezed her hand harder and gave her the McDreamy look.

"Its as much my responsibility as yours to use protection. You shouldn't have to go through this alone. Even if it just buying a test. We can buy the test in Summit. And then take the test when you are ready. I want you to know before you take the test that I am here for you whether its positive or negative we will get through this with the best possibly outcome. I wont pressure you to do something that you don't want to do either." He voice showed he was being honest. Both of them knew the relationship would never be the same after this. No matter what the outcome of the test is.

The ride to the drug store was silent except for The Clash music playing in the back round on the radio. He pulled his car in the parking lot outside of Rite Aid.

"Well are you ready to go in." He asked and grabbed her hand.

"You don't have to go in with me." She told him on the verge of tears again.

"We've been in this together since the minute we chose to have sex. I will go with you. If it wasn't for me you wouldn't be in this position." She gave him a smile and then the both got out of the car.

They walked through the door hand and hand. Meredith and Derek found the isle that had the pregnancy tests on them. Suddenly the shock had both hit them. This was for real there futures lied within the results of the test. Would they stay together if there was a baby? If there wasn't. How would the pressure affect their relationship? Would they keep the baby? Would the get married? Could their relationship ever be the same if the test is negative? Those were all questions that were plaguing the thoughts of Meredith and Derek. Suddenly the world felt like it was closing in on them in that drug store.

Derek squeezed her hand before asking. "Which test do you want to buy? There is a lot of choice."

"Let's go with this one." She grabs one of the tests. "This one should be good. It says it can detect pregnancy five days before the missed period and has a digital read out."

"Is that the one we need?"

"I don't know Derek. I have never needed to buy a pregnancy test before." She had snapped at him. He was being to supportive. This was all starting to scare her. Her life hung in the balance. What would her mother think of her? What would Derek's family think? They even warned them of the consequences.

"Well that one looks best." He says putting back some other tests he had grabbed to read about.

"Then we will buy this one. Thank you for being here. I don't know what I would do if I came in by myself." She said. "I think we should take the test right away. When we get back to my house. The uncertainty of it has been killing me since the assembly."

"Okay Meredith." For the first time since she told him the possibility of her pregnancy he was starting to think what other people would think. The clerk who would ring up the test. His parents and older sisters who warned him of getting her pregnant. Meredith's mother and family. What we they all say and think about him now. He knew he would never leave her now. It would be tough but he would stick it out. He wasn't the kind of person who would leave if she was pregnant.

When they got back to her house she went right to the bathroom to take the test. He was fidgeting in the family room when she came back.

"So what is the results?" She looked at him.

"We have to start timing it. It should take like five minutes." Those were going to be the longest five minutes of his life. Every possible outcome ran through his head. They just snuggled together to wait it out. The second hand seemed to stop. The minutes felt like hours. Together they sat crying.