Three Months Later

Thomas 'James' Shepherd's Prospective

I laid on the couch as I watched Nicole stretch her legs on my living room floor, she is only seventeen, and not like the other girls I have dated, I guess that was why I loved her. I knew he since she was three, and I was four, I use to break the heads to her barbie dolls off when I was ten, and she was six. We have been together for three years, longer then any of her friends been dating each other. She came to my house at six in the morning, with tears in her eyes, she had me drive her to the drug store in the next city, so she could pick up a pregnancy test, and that was why she was stretching, to pass the time, and to loosen up for whatever the just was about to tell us. A part of me wanted her to be pregnant, because that would mean she would stay here in Tulsa with me, okay well maybe all of me wanted her to be pregnant. I didn't want to loose her/

She looked at me when the timer went off, she looked at me scared, "Let's wait a little longer," she got off the floor, and came and sat beside me, "I love you."

I wrapped my arms around her, and kissed her cheeks, "I love you to baby."

She stood up, and walked into the bathroom where the test was.

I waited for her to return to the living room, "Nicole," I stood up just as she was coming back into the living her.

Hr complexion was paler then usual, and I could see tears in her eyes, "I forgot to take the pill one time, and now look what happened," she looked at me, "Maybe the test is wrong."

I nodded, as I made my way into the bathroom to look at the stick myself, "She's pregnant," I walked back into the living room, and pulled my girl into my arms, "We'll be alright, I am going to be there for you."

"Good," She wrapped her arms around my waist, and cried into my chest, "How am I going to tell my dad."

"Well let's think about what we're going to do first," I lifted her chin, and kissed her.

"Well I'm going to have to drop out of gymnastics, no fun having a pregnant girl on the team," She turned her back to me, "Alexy had an abortion, less then a year ago, maybe I….."

"You're not getting an abortion," I turned her roughly around to face me, "We're going to the doctors to make sure you really are pregnant, those test aren't always right."

"Thomas," She looked at me, with tears in her eyes, "I am pregnant, I missed my period for the last two times."

"You're not getting an abortion," I took her hand, "Alexy was raped, when she got pregnant, that was why she aborted the child. You have someone who loves you, and will be there for you, and the baby."

"I know," She wrapped her arms around my neck, and kissed me, "I need to go now, I promised Alexy I would help her at the drug store."

I nodded my head as I kissed her good bye. I stood by my door as I watch as she drove off to work. She worked at the drug store with Alexy, which was one of the reasons why we couldn't get the test at the drug store in our town.

Later On That Day

Roland, who was one of my old friends, was over at my house, he was downing his third beer in the last in the last two hours, "Why you looking so glum, man?"

"Nicole," I looked at him, and snatched the beer from him, then took a drink, "She's pregnant."

"That's a damn shame," Roland looked at me, trying to be serious, "You don't need her any ways, she go off and have some other dudes baby."

"Shut up Roland, you know nothing. I'm the only guy she's been with, it's my baby," I punched him in the arm.

He just shook his head, "Sorry man," he rubbed his arm, "That's sad, she had her whole school going for her, she had a real chance of getting something, now she is stuck here raising a kid," he looked at me, and frowned, "I almost went to a state university, until Pamela had Nick, now the only thing I do is tend bar at the pool hall."

I looked at my friend, and stood up, "She said she loved me, and now we're going to have a baby, and we'll be together."

Roland stood up, and walked to the door, then looked at me, "But will she be happy without wondering what life could had been if she hadn't had a child?"

"Do you?" I stood up, and stared at my friend.

"I love Nick, and I will be there for both him, and Pamela, but once in a while I think of what it would be like if it was me on the tube, playing football, and wondering what it would be like if I never got Pamela pregnant," He sighed, "I admit I do regret not going to school, but I wouldn't trade Nick for anything in the world."

I nodded, "Well I will talk to you later," I walked my friend to his truck, then got on my Bike, and headed to the Drug Store.

The Drug Store

"I am going to see if we need any of the shelves stocked," Alexy was walking to the front of the store as I came in, she smiled at me, "She's looking at inventory in the back."

"Hello Alexy, thanks," I walked to the back of the store into the stock room, and there I found my girl on her knees looking through some white box, "Hey, I want you to know that no matter what, I want you to finish school, and go to college, because you are smart, and I always known that, I don't want you to feel like I knocked you up, and that was why you didn't continue your education, I will watch the baby while your at school, and will work night for when you get home from classes, and…"

"Thomas," She got to her feet, and walked over to me and smiled, "I love you."

I wrapped my arms around her waist, "What about your dad?"

"I still want him in my life," She grinned, knowing what I really meant, "I'm going to tell dad that I am pregnant."

"You're pregnant?!" Alexy came into the back room, and looked at Nicole shocked.

I stared at her, "Yeah, and don't go telling your tell-it-all boyfriend either."

Alexy rolled her eyes, "Are you kidding, I don't tell him important stuff," she walked over to Nicole, "What are you going to do?"

My girlfriend took a deep breath, and stared at Alexy, "Well for starters, I am going to go hug the toilet for a while," she hurried into the restroom.

I looked at Alexy, "It's my child."

She laughed, "I know."

I remembered her being pregnant before, "How are you?"

Alexy smiled at me, "I'm alright."

I'm not good with small talk.