Pretty Little Liars: 16 & Pregnant

The Bear From the Boutique

Aria's Pov

It's Monday morning, and even thought I'm not anywhere close to showing yet, I'm still incredibly nervous for school. I won't be surprised if A texted everyone in the whole school and told them I was pregnant, or hung a huge banner in the centre of town. I know people will find out eventually, but I'm not ready for them to right now. I'm still processing it myself.

My phone chimes as I slow down for a red light.

It's a text from Hanna; 'Meet me in the girls bathroom when u get here'

'Ok' I text back, not bothering to write anything else.

I pull into the student parking lot and get out of my car, feeling like people will look at me differently than they did last week. But to my great relief, they don't.

I walk into the bathroom, where Hanna, Spencer, and Emily stand.

"We just wanted to make sure you were okay." Hanna says without even saying hello.

Yesterday, the morning after I told my friends about me being pregnant, I had started getting really nervous about everyone at school, and what they would think of me. They'd reassured me that I have a while before I'll start showing, and I don't have to tell anyone until then.

But my nerves still feel jumbled.

"Yeah. I'm fine." I say blankly.

The bell rings, signalling for students to go to their first class.

"Ok," Spencer says, sounding confused "I guess we'll see you in Math."

We saunter out of the bathroom and get the books for our first class.

After I close my locker, I walk towards the science labs, even though I want to walk back to my car and drive somewhere else.

***

The bell rings for the end of the day, and I rush out to my car, eager to get home.

As I drive through town, I pass a quaint store called 'The Baby Boutique'. I've seen it before, but I obviously never had any reason to go there before now. I make a mental note to check it out sometime.

The fact that I'm pregnant still hasn't sunk in yet. My life will change drastically, for sure. I've been telling myself it will change in a better way, I believe that everything happens for a reason.

Although I care about my future, what I care about most is the health and safety of my baby. And I'm definitely willing to put my future on hold to ensure that.

I pull over to the side of the road, quickly do a U-turn, and park in front of the boutique.

I want to buy something for my baby, it'll make my pregnancy seem more official. And now seems like a good time to do it.

I get out of the car and walk into the store, which smells of fake cherries. My fingers graze the racks of tiny baby clothes that are lined up at the front door. It's hard to believe that a human being can be so small as to fit into these clothes.

There are a few other people in the small shop, all who fit the bill to look normal in a baby store. There's a very pregnant woman and her husband, an older lady with a cart full of items probably for her grandchild, and a man who, though he looks a little nervous, seems to be just the right age to be a new Dad. And then there's me, a sixteen year old girl that shouldn't have to be worrying about anything other than homework and hot boys. But here I am, shopping in a store for my baby, wondering what the hell I did to deserve this. We were careful, we used protection, so why did this have to happen? I don't want to be worrying about morning sickness and concealing my baby bump, I want to be concerned about upcoming pop-quizzes and who's all going to the mall after school, just like my friends. This isn't fair, not to me, Ezra, or anyone else whose life my pregnancy has somehow affected. I just want things to go back to the way they were.

"Excuse me miss, do you need any help finding anything?" A woman, who I realize is an employee, asks me nicely.

"Um," I stammer, my face flustering "N-no, I'm good." After giving me a small smile, she turns and walks away to help another customer. After convincing myself not to leave the store and forget about this whole thing, I force myself to go over to the corner that shelves stuffed animals.

My eyes immediately land on a pale yellow bear that's slumped over in the mass of plush toys. Maybe it catches my eye because almost all of the other stuffed animals are coloured in pinks and blues, and it stands out. I pick it up, the soft material feeling nice underneath my fingers. I turn it over in my hands, already deciding that I will buy it.

And with that, I walk to the till, pay for the toy, and drive home, the very first thing I purchased for my baby in a bag on the seat beside me.

***

I lay on the couch, watching some documentary on Netflix. My hand rests on my nearly nonexistent baby bump, and I gently rub circles with my thumb every so often. It still equally blows my mind and terrifies me that there's a real, tiny human being growing inside me. Half me, half Ezra, but still its own little individual that will one day make decisions and have a personality that I'm sure will amaze both of us.

"I'm sorry." I whisper to my bump "I didn't mean those things I thought about earlier, I don't wish that you never existed. I'm just a little scared, because I'm not sure how the hell I'm supposed to do this. To tell you the truth, I'm not ready to be a Mommy yet. But I'm gonna figure it out before long, okay? By the time you're ready to meet us, I promise that I'll be fully prepared and even more ready to meet you than I could've ever imagined. While you grow in there, I'll be growing out here into the Mommy that you deserve. I'm sorry that this situation isn't perfect, but it's what we've got. You already mean so much to me, and I'm glad that I have you. I wouldn't undo any of this."

I rest my hand on my baby bump for a few more minutes, focusing on it more than what's on the tv. After a few minutes, I sit up and glance at the clock; 4:27. Ezra usually gets home at around five.

I stand up and walk over to the kitchen, deciding on what we should have for dinner. I take out spinach leaves for a salad, and find some chicken breasts in the fridge.

I season the chicken and put it in the oven. All that is left to do is wait for Ezra.

Twenty minutes later, Ezra stumbles in the door, his arms full of paperwork. He sets the papers down and walks over to me, a smile on his face.

"Hey," He says, kissing the top of my head "I missed you."

I chuckle "I missed you too. Even though I saw you this morning."

He sighs, smiling lightly "It seems like way longer than that."

I agree, then kiss his soft, warm lips.

***

I lay on the couch with my head on Ezra's chest, listening to his heartbeat. I think of how babies, while still in the womb, listen to their mothers heartbeat and find it comforting, even after birth.

When I showed Ezra the stuffed bear that I bought earlier, we'd gotten into a conversation about our baby, fantasies maybe. We discussed what we think the baby would look like, eye colour, hair colour. Although, Ezra and I both have dark hair, so most likely our baby will too. It's weird how much this tiny human being inside of me is changing my life so drastically, especially over such a short period of time. And I'm almost positive it's for the better.