broken home - j.f✔️

sixtynine.

They had held off finding out for two weeks now. Justin was beginning to feel nervous around her dad and Sofia, especially now since they were asking about the party and how they spent their week. But it had become apparent to Sofia that Elizabeth was hiding something. She was rarely coming out of her room, only seeing her at dinner and as she left for school. As that first week back home had passed, Sofia was suspicious. Justin and Elizabeth only muttered a few words to each other in the presence of her and Victor, so Sofia assumed there was a small argument between them.

It was getting harder for Elizabeth to believe she wasn't pregnant. She was throwing up most mornings, but in the bathroom downstairs, so Justin didn't hear her. She would try to be as normal as possible around Justin, because she didn't know how he would react to this news. It was almost 6am on a Sunday morning, and Elizabeth was clutching the toilet bowl again, before grabbing a glass of water and heading back upstairs. Luckily, Justin was still asleep and had no intention of waking up early. Grabbing her phone, she decided to text Zach.

I need your help.

Would he be up this early on a Sunday?

Zach: What's up?

I need you to pick me up from mine ASAP.

Zach: Okay? I'll be 30 minutes.

Elizabeth huffed before quietly searching for something to wear. Mornings were cold in LA, so sweatpants and a hoodie did the trick. She had tiptoed downstairs and out of the house, seeing Zach's gray Audi. She had opened the door and strapped herself in, waiting for Zach's twenty questions as to why he's outside her house at almost 7am on a Sunday.

"Before you ask," she spoke quietly, "I need to go to a store out of my area." If anything, Zach was more confused by her answer.

"My question is why?" He asked, flicking the indicator stick downwards. As the car made a sharp left turn, she reached for the window button and opened it. It probably wasn't the best choice to choose someone with a sports car, but Zach was the only other person she trusted as much as she did Justin.

"I need a pregnancy test." She blurted out, the car halted to a stop as she said so. "And if I get one from a local store, they might say something when I'm with my dad and then he would find out. It's hassle, and I want to find out for sure." Zach nodded slowly, and continued driving. Looking for a store that was quite a distance from her home.

As they'd parked in the parking lot of a Target, Zach had an arm around her protectively. They searched every aisle, throwing in other items so the test wouldn't seem so prominent. It didn't help that Zach was wearing his letterman, so Elizabeth prepared herself for the scowls from elders.

They reached the till and threw on the snacks and the stick, watching as the woman on checkout didn't even care about the things she'd scanned. She just politely asked for payment with a smile whilst Elizabeth bagged the items. Now they had to figure out where to take the test, so they sat in his car throwing names out. They couldn't do it at hers, for obvious reasons. Zach's mom is too strict, Ani lives in Bryce's house, telling Jess would cause World War III to erupt, and they were left with the perfect person. Clay.

It was perfect as he lived in an out house, so no parents and no problems. Zach made the short drive from Target to Clay's house. Whilst Elizabeth texted him.

Clay, can I use your bathroom?

Clay: Sure. May I ask why?

I'll explain when I get there.

They'd walked along the path beside his parents home, quietly entering Clay's out house. He was sat at the island with his computer on and a bowl in his hand. As Elizabeth had come into view, he slammed the lid of the computer shut, both Elizabeth and Zach chuckling.

"Don't even pretend you were watching porn whilst eating cereal," she laughed and walked around him to get to his bathroom. "We know it's Alien Killer Robots." Zach sunk into Clay's perfectly made bed, although there was an unused bed beside it. It didn't make sense to Elizabeth why he had two beds, yet he lived there on his own. But Clay had shut down her silly comments by saying, "it's for when people sleep over." He will always be 10 years old in her eyes.

She'd taken the test, pushing the lid back onto the stick and placing it on the counter beside the sink. Now she had to wait for three minutes, giving her the perfect amount of time to explain to Clay what the hell she was doing in his bathroom at 7am.