Chapter Three

As promised, exactly seven days after her arrival, Avery was handed a pregnancy test. Her brothers, her mother, her lawyer Jenny, and officer Sahara were all waiting in the room.

She takes a deep breath as she enters the bathroom. She positions the stick underneath her and begins to urinate. She feels ashamed. She feels ashamed that she's even in this position in the first place.

She's angry, too. She's angry she didn't fight harder against Andrew. Angry at what he's done.

When she finishes, she wipes, flushes the toilet, and places a paper towel on the counter for the test to sit on. She washes and dries her hands and sits on the closed toilet seat. The instructions on the box said it would be five minutes at the most for results to show up.

"Please be negative, please be negative. Please be fucking negative." she silently pleads.

After chanting this in her head for a while, she gets up and makes her way back to the counter. She stands over the test and closes her eyes. She mentally counts down from three.

  She looks at the space for the results and her breathing hitches. Tears form in her eyes and she covers her mouth with her hand. "No...why?" she asks herself softly.

She's not sure what she should feel. She's pregnant. She's going to have a baby. Her rapist's baby. She's not yet fifteen.

She dries off the test and wraps the stick end in a clean paper towel.

Silently, she exits the bathroom and walks to her mom. She hands the test to her mother and looks away. Hot tears boil their way through her tear ducts and fall down her cheeks. "I'm pregnant. But... as angry as I feel, I can't bring myself to kill it." she says. She can't look at anyone.

Her mom places a hand on her arm.

She turns around and faces her. "I'm going to have to contradict that, Avery. You're going to get rid of it. You're way too young to have a baby. And you're going to live your life constantly remembering what happened when you see the child. I'm not letting you keep it." Her mom interjects.

Avery's brothers stay silent. They don't know whether to back up Avery or their own mother. "Momma, this is my body. This is my choice. I'm the one carrying this baby, it's going to come out of me. I can live with the fact that this baby was a product of a rape, but I can't live with the fact that I killed an innocent life before it even got a chance to live." Avery said.

She remembers that the officer said it won't even be her choice. But that's completely ridiculous and angers Avery even more.

She snatches the test away from her mom and sits on her bed. Everyone was silent. Finally, the officer spoke up. "I'm afraid this isn't your decision, Dana. As I've mentioned before, this is Avery's choice."

With tearful eyes, Avery looked at her mom. "I-'' her mom said. Avery's words sunk in and she was second guessing her demand of aborting. "If it's what she desires, then by all means, let it live." she finally gave in.

Expecting her daughter to be relieved, there was no emotion shown to confirm that. Instead, Avery had a passive look on her face.

"It's my choice. Having something of my own to care for might make my life from this point on less miserable." She said slowly. She stayed quiet after that.

"If I really am pregnant, why haven't I experienced any symptoms?" she asked. "It could be a little bit before you do, some take longer than others. You might have already been experiencing some, but haven't noticed. Missing your menstruation, tender breasts, mood swings, hunger, big appetite, and frequent trips to the bathroom to pee." The nurse explained. Avery thought a moment. Her eyes widened and she nodded.

She turned away and stimulated one of her still growing breasts, and gasped when an unfamiliar feeling arose. It wasn't entirely pleasant, but it wasn't as painful as when her breasts were tender from growing.

She turned around and her cheeks went red as she realized people saw what she did. "It's all right. Don't be embarrassed." her mom cooed. She leaned in a little closer and whispered, "I used to do that when I was pregnant with your older brother. It feels weird doesn't it?" she said. Avery couldn't help but laugh and nod. Everybody smiled when they heard it.

"I believe that was the first time we heard you laugh, Avery." Officer Sahara said. Avery's lips form a small but genuine smile as she curtly nods her head. "It's the first time I've been given a reason to." She said sarcastically.

A rumbling in her belly quieted the room. "Is there pizza and hamburgers and chocolate milk? I'm kinda hungry." Avery said, looking at every individual in the room.

Everybody laughs. "Another item on the symptom list. Cravings." Officer Sahara says, then lets out another lighthearted chuckle. Avery couldn't help but giggle a little. Her two brothers, (Danny and Walter) stood up and stretched.

"We can pick something up for her. We'll just stop by a Backyard Burger and pick up something for her to eat." Danny, the oldest said. "Make sure you get me something too. I'll text you orders, okay?" Their mom said.

Danny nods. "Let's go, Walter." Danny said as he swung his car keys attached to a lanyard and swung it around. Avery watches as they leave. "Well, we were all witnesses to this day. I hope you don't mind Avery, but I did record the reaction. Both video and voice." Jenny says.

Avery just nods her head solemnly. "I really don't care what you do in terms of collecting evidence. Just as long as it won't be for nothing." Avery said, her eyes sporting an absent minded look. "Oh, well. If that's how you feel then so be it." Jenny says.

"But, I have another question, Miss Jenny. It's a legal question." Avery says. "Oh? No need for the formalities. If you wish to be formal, it'll be Mrs. Hopkins. But, call me Jenny by any other means. But, by all means, ask away." Jenny says, her attention is seized.

Avery rests her chin on the side of her shoulder, just so she can look at Jenny without turning around. "Would Andrew- by right, get to see the child? And even if he's not, would it be allowed for the child to come into contact with him by birthright?" Avery said.

A few whispers go around the room. Jenny thinks for a moment.

"You know, you have a choice in this matter, too? The only reason Andrew won't be permitted to see his child would be by your request. If you allow him to meet his baby, but not visit, then he'll be brought to the hospital and under surveillance the whole time. If you'll allow visitations, they will all be under surveillance as well, but with a time limitation of no more than two to three hours per day. If you choose that he does not get to see or contact the child, he'll simply only be notified of the birth of the child." Jenny explains.

By this time, Avery was facing forward again, folding and unfolding her hands in her lap. "If he wants to, he can meet the baby after it's born. I'll have to think about the terms of visitation." Avery says.

She turns her head to witness the reaction of everyone behind her. She was aware that every conversation she had when Jenny Hopkins was visiting were all recorded. 

Yes, Avery was aware her conversations were being recorded, but it was this one she was hoping would show up in court. "I have another question... if you don't mind... Mrs. Hopkins." Avery says, slowly drawing out Jenny's formalities to get used to the sound. Jenny raises an eyebrow. "Yes?" she says. "How long do you suppose the trial will be?" she asks. Finally turning around. Jenny pauses.

"The length of a criminal trial can have many variations. Yours shouldn't last too long, given the circumstances. About a week and a half before the trial, I will submit copies of all the evidence to the judge and the jurors. We will also have to submit evidence to the defense attorney." Jenny answers. Avery nods once in a slow manner, her body language saying, "Oh."

"If you need to, you can leave now. You seemed like you were going somewhere before I asked my questions." Avery says. "No need to indirectly apologize. But yes, I was on my way out. I'll be back late today okay?" Avery nods. She doesn't move from her spot until everybody leaves.