The Teacher's Pet | Slowburn MJ FanFic

• | Chapter Forty-Six | •

| Saturday. . .

Anxiety rolled through her veins as Riley got off the city bus and slowly walked down the sidewalk toward the edge of downtown where the private clinic was located. When Javen called the day before to set up an appointment, he was informed that someone had just canceled their afternoon appointment for today at 4:30 and he eagerly filled Riley into the slot.

Here she was with a thick wad of cash—that she knew for a fact Javen didn't earn himself since he always complained about being broke—in the pocket of her joggers and uneasiness rattling her nerves. She didn't want this baby, but she was conflicted. Not just because it was the product of rape, but because she wasn't sure she could handle the aftermath of the abortion. She heard some stories of women battling depression and regret. She didn't possibly want to be one of them.

She saw the brick building with its tinted glass doors and windows just down the block. It didn't appear anything remotely close to creepy like she thought it would as the building was well-maintained and was in a decent area. Her apprehension lowered a little, but only for a mere second before it skyrocketed once again.

Her heartbeat thumped so fast and loud it made her ears ring. She almost backed out of it, but then paused for a moment to cajole herself forward.

At the same time, however, she wanted to keep the baby. Her deep love of children ignited an argument inside her mind as she debated if she really wanted to go through with it. The potential child didn't ask to be here nor did she feel completely comfortable to go through such a procedure before it even had the chance to live, but she didn't want to subject it to such an unstable life.

She was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

"Hi, how are you?" The receptionist warmly greeted her after she walked into the air-conditioned lobby that chilled her skin through the thin clothes she wore. "Do you have an appointment today, ma'am?"

"I'm fine, thanks. Um, I have an appointment at 4:30 today." Riley softly spoke, then rubbed her throat as it still felt tender from all the screaming last night.

"And what's the name?" The brown-haired lady continued to ask.

"Riley Smith."

The receptionist nodded her head after verifying her name in the system, then handed her a clipboard to fill out her medical history and answer some questions once she signed in.

"Just turn this in right after you finish filling it out, and we'll go over it together."

Riley responded with a weak smile as she took the clipboard and sat in an isolated corner, crossing one leg over another. She nervously bit down on her lip as she positioned her hand to start scribbling her information, but she couldn't help but let her eyes wander around the room.

There were a few other girls and women sitting around waiting to be called back. One particular girl looked barely older than sixteen as she sat next to an older woman that Riley presumed was her mother. She glanced back down at the clipboard and slowly completed her information. She got up and turned in the clipboard, then talked to the receptionist for a bit before sitting back down. She grabbed a celebrity magazine to rid her mind of the anxiety.

Occasionally she would check her phone for the time since she arrived about an hour and a half early to keep herself from psyching out. On top of that, any time away from the very person that caused her various amounts of pain was heaven.

Her eyes eventually wandered away from the magazine and back around the small waiting room. The turquoise colored walls were practically bare except for maybe three paintings and small wall decors, making the overall environment bleak. Services the clinic offered played on a television in another corner, the monotone of the woman's voice droning on through the room.