Pretty Little Liars: 17 and Pregnant

Chapter 11: Pregnancy Panic

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Crap. Hanna thought. What was she supposed to do now? Tears welled in her eyes once more and this time, she didn't try to stop them. She put her phone down and set her elbows onto her knees. Burying her head into her hands, Hanna burst into tears. She knew Emily was watching, but she didn't care. Sobs wracked through her body as all her pent-up emotion from the past few days came bubbling to the surface. It was finally starting to set in. She was pregnant. She was going to be a mother. At seventeen. Even though this wasn't part of her plan at all, Hanna still felt an overwhelming love for the life growing inside her, and the fact that A was after her and knew about the pregnancy made everything even worse. How was she supposed to protect a baby from A when she couldn't even protect herself? And the fact that A was trying to force her to tell everyone? This was all too impossible. How was she supposed to deal with high-school, a baby, and a stalker who was quite literally trying to ruin her life? Hanna started to hyperventilate. It felt like the air couldn't get into her lungs fast enough, and her head began to spin. She was having a panic attack. She couldn't breathe, and her heart was racing. The blonde suddenly felt a hand on her back. Emily stayed quiet, but rubbed Hanna's back gently, trying to calm her down. Hanna slowly breathed in for four counts, held it for four, and then exhaled for four. It was a tip that Dr. Sullivan had taught the girls last year, and it honestly worked. After a few minutes, Hanna started to regain control of her breath. Emily reached into the glovebox and pulled out a small pack of tissues, handing them to Hanna.

"Thanks," Hanna whispered, wiping her tears and blowing her nose. She looked up at Emily finally, her mascara-smudged blue eyes still teary. "I have to tell you something," She said, her voice breaking.

"You can tell me anything, Hanna," Emily said, reaching out and taking her best friend's hand.

"I know," Hanna replied. "But this is really important. Nobody knows yet... well, except A," Hanna said, looking down again. Emily sighed. She had guessed from the way Hanna reacted to the text message that A was somehow involved.

"What's going on, Han," Emily said. Hanna reached for her purse and pulled out something wrapped in a tissue. She couldn't say the words out loud. It made it feel too real. She had put the pregnancy test in her purse because she didn't want anyone to find it in the garbage, but it turned out to be useful. Hanna handed the small, tissue wrapped stick to Emily, and looked away. She couldn't bear to see Emily's face. Emily took it, confused, and unwrapped the test carefully. Her eyes scanned it before they froze. She raised her head slowly to look at Hanna.

"You're..." Emily was speechless. Hanna nodded, closing her eyes as more tears ran down her face.

"When did you find out?" Emily whispered.

"Friday night after we got home from the hospital." Hanna replied in a soft voice.

"Oh my god, Hanna," Emily said. Hanna sighed.

"I know, Emily. Why do you think I've been acting like this?! What the hell am I supposed to do?!" Hanna cried. Emily tried to calm her friend down.

"You can do whatever you want. I'll support you no matter what. We all will. Have the baby, don't have the baby. We'll still love you," Emily said, wrapping her arm around Hanna. "Have you told Caleb? Your mom?"

"No. I told you, nobody else knows... except A. I just needed some time to figure stuff out, but I guess A is keeping me on a schedule, as usual," Hanna answered, pulling out her phone and showing Emily the A text. Emily read it, her face twisting into a look of exasperation.

"I'm sorry, Han. But I'm glad you told me. I was so worried, at least stuff makes sense now," Emily admitted.

"Yeah, now we know why I've been crying so much," Hanna let out an empty laugh. Emily looked at her sympathetically.

"It'll be okay, Hanna. No matter what you decide. You'd be an amazing mother, and I'm sure Caleb would be an awesome dad too. But if you decide to get an abortion, or give the baby up for adoption, that's okay too. I'm here for you always," Emily said.

"Thank you, Emily." Hanna said sincerely, reaching across the glovebox to give her friend a hug. It felt good to tell someone, to be honest; a weight had been lifted off Hanna's chest. Even though she still had a lot of decisions and announcements to make, having someone on her side to support her somehow made it a little easier.

"Can you stay over tonight?" Hanna asked Emily, who was starting up the car.

"Sure," Emily smiled.

"I think I should invite Spencer and Aria too. I have to tell them, before A does," Hanna sighed. Emily nodded with a sad look on her face. It wasn't fair of A to meddle in something as personal as this. Then again, nothing A did was fair, really.

"I'll tell Caleb tomorrow, once he's back from California," Hanna decided. "And my mom gets back on Monday, so I'll tell her then," Her voice shook as she said those last words. Emily took one hand off the wheel and squeezed Hanna's hand. "You've got this, Hanna," Emily told her. Hanna squeezed back but didn't say anything, knowing if she did she would break down once more. Pregnancy hormones were no joke. The two girls drove back to Hanna's house in a weighted but comfortable silence.