Forever changed

An appointment

RILEY
Jack and I had been hanging out a lot, much to Thomas' chagrin. It had been about 3 weeks since Thomas found out about Jack and I. Jack had a job, working for his father, not yelling telling him why he was suddenly interested in becoming an adult. As for me, I had gotten the job at the baby store, the manager, Sarah, feeling sympathetic to my cause. I was working every day after school from 4-8. Jack would work in the mornings before school. By the time 3 weeks had passed, I had earned $150 from the job.

"So...what I didn't tell you, was that since you're a worker here, you get 25% off all baby clothes and 10% off everything else." Sara spoke as she filled up one of the shelves. I smiled, feeling happy.

Mostly females worked here. I had become familiar with the women that worked here. Tiffany was married with 2 kids, Sheryl was a single mother, Taylor is married and Charlotte was in the same year as me.

"Hey Riley, can you give me a lift home after? My mom can't pick me up..." Charlotte asked as she took a sip of her water.

"Of course!" I said, happily.
———
After 9pm had passed, Charlotte and I were driving home to her place. I pulled up and she got out.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" Charlotte asked as she shut my car door.

"Sorry, I have an ultrasound appointment tomorrow after school." I said. Charlotte smiled and waved as I pulled away.

When I got home, I was greeted to Jack sitting on the couch, just across from my mom and brother.

"Hey beautiful." Jack spoke as I placed my bag down on the counter. I walked over to the group, sitting next to Jack as he hand rested lightly on my belly. At this point, you can't tell that I'm pregnant.

"I did some research and apparently in 3 weeks, I'll start to show a little bit. I'll look like I've gained a pound or two, but that'll actually be the baby." I said, showing my mom, Thomas and Jack the information I read.

"Well, we have an appointment tomorrow after school." Jack said, rubbing my belly. It was currently Monday evening at 8:15.
———
(THE NEXT DAY)
Jack and I had gotten ready for school, my mom waiting for us in the kitchen. We walked downstairs and had some food, and made our way to school. Once the day was done, Jack and I went straight to the doctors appointment. We waited for 5 minutes before we heard a doctors voice.

"Riley Harper?" Dr. Smith spoke as she looked down at her board. We walked in to her office.

Dr. Smith gestured to the seat in front of me. I sat on the large blue chair whereas Jack sat besides me. "Lift your shirt. This gel might be a little cold." The doctor said as she placed the gel on my flat stomach. She searched around for a bit before she stopped.

"That is your baby..." She spoke, pointing to a small dot on the screen. Jack and I teared up, seeing our tiny baby. Jack held my hand, kissing it as he smiled to me.

"You're about 5 weeks in now. At this point, your baby is the size of a strawberry seed, the baby is growing rapidly, and the major organ systems of their body are beginning are to form, specifically the brain and the heart." She spoke as she turned off the machine.

"Your baby is healthy and I don't see any abnormalities so far. Now. In 3 weeks, you'll be 8 weeks along, we will schedule an appointment for then. Now, when you reach the 12 week mark, there are some things you'll notice, but we can talk about that when we reach that mark." She said as she handed Jack and I, 3 sonogram pictures each. We arranged an appointment before we said our goodbyes before leaving the clinic. As we made our way into my driveway, Jack noticed his parents house lights were off. This wouldn't be good.

We both slowly got out of the car and made our way inside, making our presence known as soon as the front door shut. Jack and I could clearly see a smile on Mrs. Millers face, obviously having no clue as to what was about to go down. Her happy mood wouldn't last long. While Mrs. Miller was a horrible person when she became angry, it was Mr. Miller who I was worried about. Jack had told me that Mr. Miller was never a huge fan of my family, hating me the most...maybe because of a prank gone wrong. He only tolerates us because Mrs. Miller would never forgive him if he didn't. I watched as Thomas walked downstairs, his face clearly expressing his current mood. Fear. He knew what was going to happen as soon as his eyes moved down towards the sonogram pictures slightly poking out of my jean pocket. He too a deep breath in before his foot touched the final step, being embraced by Mrs. Miller.

I pray to god that nothing...or no one is thrown around tonight. I put on a smile before walking towards the group, about to face my inner demons.