𝙼𝚞𝚖 𝙰𝚝 𝚂𝚒𝚡𝚝𝚎𝚎𝚗

03

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐨𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭

The next week flew by in a blur. Jake continued to ignore my calls, while Ariana and Mom tried to comfort me. Eric had started to open up a little more, but Claudia was still her usual self. She kept bugging me about becoming an aunt at eight years old.

"If it's a girl, I'll style her hair perfectly and it'll be better than that bird's nest you carry around," Claudia joked one evening.

"Not on my child, Audie. Don't even think about it," I shot back.

The day we had been waiting for finally arrived - the day for me and the baby to get checked up. Mom and I left Ethan in charge of Claudia and made our way to the hospital. Ariana had already offered me some words of encouragement, but she couldn't resist a little "I told you so" when I mentioned Jake's reaction. She said she couldn't blame him, but insisted that I should have listened to her advice in the first place.

As we drove to the hospital, I couldn't shake the guilt I felt for unloading all my problems on Ariana without even bothering to ask how she was doing. I knew her life had been a living hell ever since her single dad remarried, but I had been so wrapped up in my own issues that I hadn't even thought to check in on her.

I couldn't bring myself to ask Ariana about it. She was always so bubbly and full of life, I didn't want to bring her down.

"How are you doing?" my mom asked, her eyes fixed on the road ahead. I played with my fingers nervously before responding, "I've been better. I just want to get this appointment over with."

The reality of Jake not wanting the baby was starting to sink in. I couldn't shake Ariana's words from my mind - he was just as shocked about the pregnancy as I was. I tried to reassure myself that he would come around, that he would come back to me with a change of heart.

"I know you're probably still processing all of this, but it's just a part of growing up," my mom said, her voice filled with a mix of concern and disappointment. "Pregnancy at sixteen is the last thing you would ever want, but you brought this upon yourself. And now, with the nausea and emotional breakdowns, I can't even ground you." I sighed, silently acknowledging the truth in her words.

A few minutes later, we pulled into the hospital parking lot and got out of the car. The feeling of entering a hospital grossed me out. The smell of meds and everything medical made me sick to my stomach.

As a kid, I always avoided going to the doctor like the plague. Whenever I was sick, I would try to hide it and miraculously start feeling better after passing out. I'm pretty sure I fainted once and ended up in the hospital, but at least I didn't have to witness it.

When my mom took me to see a gynaecologist, Dr. Marigold, I was relieved to see that she was a woman. I never thought I would feel comfortable with a male doctor, so I was grateful for that.

As we sat in the waiting room, I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. When Dr. Marigold finally called us in, I felt like I was going to pass out.

She did all the usual stuff - checked my blood pressure, weighed me, and asked me a bunch of questions. Then came the moment of truth - the ultrasound.

As Dr. Marigold moved the wand over my belly, I held my breath. And then, there it was - a tiny little blob on the screen. Dr. Marigold pointed to it and said, "That's your baby. It's about 3 weeks old."