Falling In Love With You

Chapter 14. What to Expect When You're Knocked Up

Bex rested her chin on her hand and closed her eyes. She loved photography class; it was the highlight of her day, normally. But today, she just wasn't feeling it. She let her mind wander aimlessly. She wondered what Bowie was doing at that exact moment. She thought of her baby. She thought of how she was going to tell her mom about the baby. She was planning to tell Celia that night, and she was not looking forward to it. She lay her head down on her table, feeling the coolness of it's surface on her cheek. She felt her eyelids grow heavy.

"Bex?"

She jerked as someone shook her shoulder, and looked up, confused. Ms. Fisher was standing over her. "Huh?"

Her classmates snickered and whispered.

"You were daydreaming, Bex," Ms. Fisher said softly, but not angrily. "Did you complete your assignment?"

Bex looked down sullenly at her portfolio. She was supposed to have turned in a portrait that day, but she hadn't even touched her camera in weeks. "No, I'm sorry," she said quietly.

"Please see me after class," Ms. Fisher said patiently.

Bex nodded sullenly. "Okay."

The teacher moved on, and she went back to her thoughts. Class flew by. When the bell rang, she hung around, waiting for everyone to clear out of the room.

Ms. Fisher closed the classroom door softly. "How are you?" she asked. "Did you take the test, honey?"

Bex nodded. "Yes."

"How did it go? Is everything okay?"

She shook her head. "It was positive."

Ms. Fisher leaned back against one of the classroom tables. "Oh, Bex..." she sighed. "Are you okay?"

Bex shrugged. "There's nothing much to say. My life is over. But I decided I'm keeping the baby."

"Don't say your life is over," her teacher told her firmly. "That's not true. Thousands of young mothers go on to finish school, and have careers. There's all kinds of help out there. You have so much potential, Bex. You're one of the most promising students I've ever had."

Bex widened her eyes in surprise. No teacher had ever said that to her before. "Th-thank you?"

Ms. Fisher smiled. "Don't sell yourself short. You can do anything you put your mind to. I just don't want you to slip through the cracks." She paused thoughtfully. "And I know that this isn't something you planned on right now, but remember, every life is a gift. This baby you're carrying is a gift, and he or she is here for a reason."

Bex felt her heavy heart lift, just a little. "Thank you." She hoped her mom would see it that way, but she doubted it.

"About your photo assignment," Ms. Fisher went on. "There's some evidence that darkroom chemicals may be harmful to unborn babies. I'd rather you didn't take your chances. So just bring your negatives in, and I'll process your assignments for you. I won't take off any points. Okay?"

"Okay," she nodded. "Thanks."

"Take care of yourself, okay?" Ms. Fisher patted her shoulder encouragingly.

"I will," Bex smiled. She turned to leave the room, then stopped. "Ms. Fisher?"

"Yeah?"

"Please, don't tell anyone about this. I really don't want anyone to know right now." She was fully aware that she was the subject of gossip since Bowie left, more than ever. It was better if as few people knew that she was knocked up as possible.