First Response

Callie never thought she'd have to actually do this. Everything about it made her feel awkward.

She read the labels on all of the boxes.

Rapid Result.

First Response.

Earliest Results 6 Days Sooner.

They all sounded good to her.

Why were there so many?

Which was she supposed to choose?

Damn Kiara for making me do this! she thought to herself. She also couldn't figure out why she felt so stressed. She wasn't buying the pregnancy test for herself.

She was doing it as a favor for Kiara, who wasn't allowed to leave Girls United to get it on her own. Kiara certainly couldn't tell Rita what was going on, without admitting to breaking one of the rules and possibly getting kicked out. She didn't think Rita would do that to her, but she couldn't handle the disappointment she would bring with the question.

Callie glanced through all of the purple, pink, blue and orange boxes as if this were one of the most difficult decisions she'd have to make in her life. What if she got the wrong one? What if it came out with a false negative because she decided to go cheap?

Callie read the orange box that was labeled "Answer." Same Test As Used In Doctor's Office, it read.

She picked it up and examined it even more carefully.

Over 99% Accurate

Best Value!

5 Pregnancy Tests

Kiara could take all 5 and figure it out from there.

Phew! she thought to herself. Now she could get out of here and take it to her. Hopefully Rita would it find it suspicious that she came over twice in one day. She'd have to pretend she left something behind the first time, she rationalized before making her way down the aisle.

"What are you doing here?" she heard a familiar voice call out behind her, causing her to freeze in her tracks. The teen clenched the pregnancy test in her hands when she realized who it was coming towards her.

Why? she asked herself.

"If I knew you were coming over here, I would've given you a ride," Stef smiled as she walked over to her daughter who was still facing in the other direction.

Callie couldn't lessen the fear consuming her entire body as she felt the woman approaching her from behind. She glanced to the side of her and wanted so badly to throw the stupid orange box on the shelf; but that wouldn't go unnoticed.

Instinctively, she brought the box up to her abdomen and attempted to shield the letters as much as possible with her gray sweatshirt and her long fingers.

"Callie?" Stef asked when she thought she had mistaken the girl in front of her for her daughter after she didn't get a response. As soon as she reached directly in front of the teen, she sighed. "Oh, I thought I was talking to myself there for a second," Stef chuckled as she glanced at Callie's face.

The teen turned to face her but had made it apparent that she wasn't going to look her mother in the eye. She clenched the box even tighter desperately wanting to be anywhere but here. She'd gladly choose juvie right now over this.

Stef studied the girl's expression carefully, and it was clear that she was nervous or worried about something. "You okay, sweets?" she asked Callie as she glanced down and noticed that the teen had something in her hands she was holding onto. Unfortunately for Stef, she couldn't exactly make out what it was. "Watcha got? Let me get that for you?" her mother offered to pay as she tried to reach for whatever it was, assuming it was some type of over the counter medicine since they were in the medicine aisle.

"NO," Callie's response was instant and louder than she had intended it to be. She couldn't help how frightened she felt and it was displayed through her voice.

Stef's eyes widened and it was clearly was made evident to Callie that she was taken aback by the sudden outburst. It was apparent to the woman that her daughter didn't want her to know what was in her hand, and that's when Stef realized the girl was clutching onto the box for dear life. This made Stef all the more suspicious.

"I'm sorry," Callie apologized when she saw Stef's face. "I didn't mean to yell."

"Okay?" Stef waited for her to continue.

"I can pay for it myself," Callie answered. "I have a job," she decided to point out.

Stef continued to stare at Callie's stern facial expression and her eyes moved down toward the orange box again.

The teen could tell that her mother was trying to make out was it was, so she decided to turn her body around before she started walking down the aisle again. She couldn't help but let out a small sigh of relief when she felt the distance she was creating between herself and her mother.

Distance was good.

Distance was really good.

"Freeze!" Stef yelled out loud enough for her daughter to hear but not loud enough to draw attention from the entire pharmacy.

Callie unwillingly stopped in her tracks at the sound of Stef's outburst.

Why did it spook her so much?

She felt a chill running down her spine and the top half of her body trembled slightly as she felt the blonde approaching nearer.

It could either be one of two things, the woman rationalized as she stepped in front of Callie and placed her hand in front of her body. "Let me see?"

Callie glanced down at Stef's palm as if it were filled with a fireball of some sort. She stared at it for longer than the woman appreciated.

"Hand it over. Now," the woman voiced sternly as she made her daughter look her in the eyes. She didn't like speaking to her children like this. She never enjoyed directly ordering them to do something with the 'or else' voice, but she also knew this was the best way to get through to Callie when she was behaving like this. And she'd already tried the nice way.

Callie's clench loosened but she didn't let go of the object right away.

"Mom, it's not what you think," the teen managed to voice out.

"Callie, please don't make me ask you again," Stef continued without hesitation this time. She needed the girl to realize that she wasn't going to let this go.

Callie mustered to take in a deep breath before she was compelled to unclench her hold of the box and hand it over to the cop, her eyes never leaving the box since she was afraid to look Stef in the eye at this point.

Stef grabbed hold of the pregnancy test and scanned it quickly before gazing back up at her daughter.

"Callie," she said softly as she felt her heart sink.

"Iittss not for me," Callie stuttered, but it was obvious by Stef's consistent saddened facial expression that she couldn't help but think otherwise. "I swear it's not," Callie said more intently and without hesitation this time.

Stef wanted to believe her but it didn't make sense to the woman that her daughter would be alone in drugstore buying a pregnancy test for someone else. Still, she tried to appear understanding or at least willing to let her explain. "Okay?" Stef answered. "Who was it for?" she said as she studied her daughter's face for any indication of nervousness.

Callie pressed her lips together. She swore to Kiara she wouldn't tell anyone and here she was, being forced to tell.

"Callie?" Stef pressed even more when she realized the teen was being much too vague for her liking. She crossed her arms over her chest in order to remind Callie that neither one of them were going to move an inch until she got an answer.

"…Kiara," Callie mumbled, undoubtedly upset about the fact that she had broken her promise to her best friend.

The blonde couldn't help but notice that Callie seemed just as upset about giving Kiara's name as she was when gave Daphne up for having the keys to the school when the kindle went missing. Stef knew that Callie wasn't a good enough liar to do this purposefully. She also wasn't averting her gaze or shaking anymore, though she still seemed tense.

Stef watched Callie for another matter of seconds, which made Callie feel all the more uncomfortable. She wasn't even sure if her mother would believe her. It wouldn't have been the first time and she couldn't blame her if she didn't.

It was so stupid of her to come to the same store that everyone in her family went to so often, she was beginning to realize.

Stef let a deep breath in and out before handing the box back over to Callie. Callie, herself, tried to study Stef's demeanor. She didn't seem angry or sad anymore. She seemed… almost normal, as if nothing just happened at all. This confused her.

"Okay," Stef said plainly.

"Okay?" Callie repeated awkwardly. "That's it?" she asked for some kind of confirmation.

"Yes," Stef nodded as Callie took the box back from her.

"So you believe me?" Callie asked for reassurance. She hadn't wanted to leave there and have Stef think that she was lying about the whole thing in order to avoid getting in trouble. It really mattered to the girl what her moms thought about her.

"I do," Stef confirmed and she placed her arm over her daughter and put her hand on the girl's shoulder, leading them both toward the checkout line. "I think you should've told me from the beginning…"

"I didn't expect to run into you here," Callie pointed out.

"I know that," Stef smiled at her daughter. "But still, you shouldn't have tried to hide it–"

"I didn't want you to think it was mine… And I know you thought it was mine," Callie answered honestly.

"Well, do you blame me?" Stef questioned with a small chuckle.

Callie thought about it. "No," she finally answered.

"Well, okay then… But hey," she made a point to remind her, "I'm glad it wasn't yours."

Callie nodded. "Me too," she confessed, while letting out a sigh.

THE END.