17 & Pregnant [ORIGINAL VERSION}

Chapter 49

Six years ago...

BRIT

"Hmm."

My eyes roam over my options in the food court as I stand near Subway. I know that this is one of the healthiest options, but the other places are making my tummy rumble. I can get Japanese, Chinese, Tex-Mex, basic American...

"Those quesadillas though," I whisper, rubbing my chin in deep thought. The woman working at Subway keeps glancing over at me, waiting for me to go the counter.

"Welp," one of my best friends, Kim, looks at me, "I am getting some Japanese. You can keep thinking it over."

She starts walking away, but I grab her arm before she gets too far.

"You coming?"

I pout, closing my eyes.

I want some udon.

"Yeah."

******

The two of us laugh as we talk about the guys in our lives, and Kim always has some really funny stories to tell. It takes all I have not to spit out my food as I'm laughing, and calm down to swallow.

"You're killing me, Kim."

She shrugs, smiling as she grabs at a California roll, "I'm not even sure I want the drama out of my life."

"What?!"

She shakes her head, swallowing her food, "mnh. I mean, not yet. It's kinda fun, and mostly harmless."

I shake my head, laughing. This girl is really something else. Resting my fork down in my bowl, I look up at her, "I think-"

Kim's eyes are fixed on something behind me, and I turn to see what's caught her attention. "Wha-? Oh..."

It's Tracy, Julia, Alex, and my sister Amanda.

Kim scoffs, looking away from them and doing her best to focus on something else. The story behind all that isn't great.

Basically...

Kim and I were at NYU first. We met in our Tische program years ago, and have been inseparable ever since. Then, Amanda, who didn't really have a direction in life, decided to join the same program I'd been in. Kim and I were living together and, because she's my sister, had Manda stay with us.

Then, Amanda met Tracy, who's been friends with Julia since they were in middle school. It was fine, because Kim and I had our friends and lives, and Manda was making her own.

So, during Spring break, Kim, our friend Tammy, and I went on a trip. We asked Manda to keep the house clean while we were gone. Basically, not partying and no random people over. It sounds a little random, but I knew how she could be.

The trip was great, and we came back. When we got home, our house was trashed. One of our sofas was cracked nearly in half, some lamps were broken, the TV was smash, our beds had semen on them. Kitchen was dirty, it smelled like cush, and there were so many empty bottles of beer everywhere.

The kinda shit you see in movies and shows.

I could tell Kim was about to implode when we came in, so I walked with her to look at the rooms and for support. When we got to Kim's room, Manda was lying in bed naked and sweaty, next to a naked and sweaty dude. They were both panting and smiling until they saw us.

Kim was pissed. Not just because our house was destroyed and my sister had slept with this guy in her bed. But, the guy was Raven. Raven was dating Kim, and had met all of us, including Amanda, and it seemed to be going well. She was looking forward to seeing him when we got back.

Then, Tracy and Julia came into our place, laughing about how they were so glad they threw those parties here. "I would've hated if our place got this messed up," I heard one of them laugh.

"Yeah, thank Zeus we have Manda."

Needless to say, we don't like any of them anymore. And I'm pretty sure Kim hates Amanda. I was surprised she even stayed friends with me.

"So... Rob is dating Julia now," I announce, kinda changing the topic.

Kim's eyes pop open, and her jaw drops, "ew!"

"I know! I mean, yeah I technically cheated-"

"Technically?" She asks, smirking.

I throw my hands up in defeat, "okay, I full on cheated. But, I was basically calling a guy friend, that I hung out with and kissed twice, my boyfriend for fun. Plus, I would never date my ex's best friend. He claims he didn't know."

Kim stacks her empty dishes, and grabs a toothpick from her bag, "you still talk to him?"

She surprises me with that, and I shrug, "I bumped into him... Anyway, I'm almost ready to go. Let's go."

I stand up, grabbing my stuff and my tray. As I head over to the trash cans, I catch Amanda looking at me. She gives me a smile, and I nod.

It's really sad how things have turned out.

******

Kim jogs up the bleachers, finds a spot she likes, then sits down. She's looking really extra as she open up her little paper umbrella. Once she's fully set up, she waves at me as I'm warming up on the track.

"I'm excited," she yells, loud enough for me to hear.

As close as we are, we don't do everything together. I have some interest in sports, whereas Kim only runs in the morning to stay fit. She's all art, all the way. So when it came time to pick extracurricular stuff, I went with Track and she joined the Film club.

They're off today, and so she decided to come and watch.

"I'm glad you're here!"

As I'm warming up my hips, I hear Tracy's annoying voice getting closer. I try to ignore her, but she just keeps getting louder and louder.

"I can feel my muscles getting cold. I think it's a side-effect," Tammy whispers to me, stretching her quads. I laugh, getting into a lunge, "don't say that too loud. She'll 'end your career'."

The two of us laugh, finishing our warm up, when our coach comes up to me.

"Hey coach, what's up?" I ask, smiling. My smile turns into a smirk when I notice Tracy behind her, holding a bag of white powder. "Oh, Trace, I didn't know you started baking. I can show you what to do with the flour. Just a starter tip; it goes in a bowl."

Instead of rolling her eyes and whining, she just smiles.

And that kind of worries me.

My coach sighs, shaking her head as though her mouth is no longer her own. Like she's no longer responsible for what she says next.

"According to Miss Brandon," Coach Gerald sighs again, "this cocaine is yours."

My eyes dart from the bag, to Tracy, to Tammy, then back to my coach.

"WHAT?!"

*********