Hey! I got this chapter up a lot quicker than the last chapter (although not that quickly). I wanted to get it up before The Fiery Heart came out. Are you excited? Two days!

Zoe's words echoed in my mind. "Pregnant" "Sydney, are you pregnant?" for a moment all I could do was stare at her in a state of shock; wide eyes, slack jaw.

I knew I couldn't lie my way out of this. How could I possibly explain carrying around vitamins for pregnant people?

I knew this was the point where everything changed. After this my father would find out, and the Alchemists would too. Before now Adrian and I had been suspended in a state of limbo. Regardless of my growing belly, the baby still seemed ages away. As completely unrealistic as it was, it sort of felt like things would just stay like that forever.

"Sydney." Zoe repeated, snapping me out of my shock.

"I-I don't really know how to tell you this," I began. "I'm pregnant. I've known for a couple months now."

Zoe had to sit down as she tried to comprehend it all. "Oh my God Sydney, pregnant." she said in a low voice. "How could you have gotten pregnant? How could you have been so irresponsible? You're only eighteen and now you're pregnant, pregnant when you have to be working with monsters every day. What were you thinking?" Her voice had risen but her cheeks were scarlet, she was clearly embarrassed and uncomfortable.

"I obviously didn't intend on getting pregnant," I shot back defiantly, irritated that I was being lectured by my baby sister. I couldn't help feeling ashamed though. I never thought I would be one of those girls who got knocked up in their teens. I always figured I would save myself until marriage. I thought it would be dumb to give away such an important piece of myself to someone who I wasn't even married to. But I suppose it was ignorant to think that in the first place.

"Dad's going to flip when he finds out," Zoe said. I felt my heart rate pick up at the thought of having to tell my father that I was pregnant.

"Zoe, please don't tell him," I said. "I'll tell him. Soon. Today."

"Today? You better keep your word on that or I'll call him. I will," she warned.

"Today, I promise."

"Sydney, I think I know who the father is," Zoe said.

"What?" I shouted. "How would you know?"
"You didn't think I noticed, but I've noticed you sneaking around. You'd go to a store to pick up a couple things and then not come home for hours. You even snuck out in the middle of the night a few times. It looked suspicious. So I started following you, and you lead me to his apartment. Adrian. A vampire."

I was shocked. "Why didn't you say anything until now?" I asked.

"I didn't know how. How was I even supposed to bring that up? I felt like going straight to Dad when I found out, but I wanted to know your side of the story. I thought he might have compelled you or something," she said.

"He hasn't compelled me. He'd never do anything like that. They're not like what the Alchemists told us. You should know that by now, you've been with them for months now. Adrian cares about me," I said, hoping she would understand.

She chewed this over in her head for a moment, trying to decide what to say or do next. Finally she said "I won't tell Dad."

I don't know if it was because after the past few months she had actually seen that the vampires were different from what we were told, or that just me being pregnant was enough to make Zoe Dad's favorite now, but either way she was keeping my secret.

I was driving, just trying to relax and recover, I just needed a safe place to go and think. I ended up driving to a park I had never been to before. It was twilight and the sky was a mixture of blazing oranges and deep purples and pinks. The park was mostly deserted considering the time of day.

There was a blanket that had been left in the truck of my car from a day when Adrian and I had had a picnic. I smiled at the memory and grabbed the blanket, hugging it around my body and walking to a bench that was positioned next to a pond. There was a fountain in the center of the palm and I watched it as it lit up against the enclosing darkness.

I probably looked like I was homeless but I didn't care. I needed the blanket, a poor excuse for human comfort. It was relaxing sitting on the bench; the only sound was that of the steady fountain water.

I needed to call my father. If I didn't tell him Zoe would. I had been dreading this moment since I found out I was pregnant. Sighing, I pulled out my cellphone and called him.

"Hello?" He answered.

"Hi Dad, it's me, Sydney. I really need to tell you something."

"What is it?" he replied cautiously, I guessed he could hear the apprehension in my voice.

I took a deep breath, bucked up the courage, and said" Dad, please don't freak out, but I'm pregnant."

For a moment there was only silence at the other end of the line, and then I heard him hang up. His reaction shook me. I was prepared to be shouted at, get called irresponsible and a disgrace, anything like that I was ready for. But not this. Not this awful silence. The silence made me feel worst that any words could. I felt like a disappointment. I was a disappointment. I blinked a couple times, trying and failing to stop myself from crying. I tugged the blanket tighter around me and called my mom.

She picked up right away, "Sydney, how are you doing?" Her voice felt like tea and warmed me. I love my mom, I really do.

"Actually mom, I really need to tell you something that I should have told you ages ago."

"What is it?" she replied.

"Mom," I began, tears were spilling down my cheeks, "I'm pregnant."

"Pregnant?" she repeated.

"I'm so sorry, I'm such a disappointment." I was sobbing now, my face was red and streaked with tears. As hard as it was telling everyone else that I was pregnant, especially my father, this was the worst.

"You're pregnant?" she repeated again. "My little girl is pregnant."
"Mom, I'm not a little girl anymore," I said, sheepishly.

"You always will be to me," she replied.

"Mom…"

"Who's the father?"

"That's where things get complicated," I said.

You do know who he is, right?" she said, sounding alarmed.

"Yes mom! Of course I know who he is. It's just," I paused for a moment. "Who he is makes everything more complicated. He's a Moroi. A vampire."

"I can see why that would complicate things, I've never held those prejudices that your father had," my mom said.

"What am I supposed to do? If I tell dad a vampire got me pregnant I'll be shipped off to re-education. He might ship me off the re-education anyway, just for being pregnant. The baby is going to be a dhampir, that's not something I'll be able to hide."

"Are you and this Moroi in a relationship?" Mom asked.

"Yes, it's a secret though, his name's Adrian."

"Well you're right. This isn't something you can hide forever. You can stay with the Alchemists for now, and honestly, I'm not just saying this because I don't agree with the Alchemists, but if you want to have any sort of life at all that doesn't involve being locked away in some cell, you need to run. You need to quit the Alchemists before anyone finds out who the father of your baby is."

"I guess that's really the only option I have, isn't it? I've recently begun to realize that the Alchemists aren't what they say they are, anyway. The way they lie to us, fill our heads with propaganda. They made me believe that Moroi and Dhampirs are the same as Strigoi, when really they're just like normal people."

We talked more. I told her more about Adrian and she asked how Zoe was doing. I was so thankful for my mom, growing up she was the only person who was always there for me.

By the time I hung up the sun had fully set. The night made the park seem creepy and I realized that it wasn't a smart idea to be out in a place like this by myself at night. Quickly I pulled out my cellphone and texted Adrian, telling him where I was and that I wanted to see him. He arrived quickly and sat down on the bench next to me. I curled into him; he was much more comforting than that old blanket.

"So Zoe found out. She found my vitamins. She made me tell my father. I told mom too," I whispered to him.

"Busy night. How'd they all take it?"

"Mom was really supportive, but she always is. Zoe treated me like I was five years old. Oh yeah, apparently she's been following me around so she knows about us. Dad hung up on me." The weight of it all felt like a hundred pounds crushing down on my chest and I couldn't deal with it anymore. I started crying again and Adrian hugged me closer. We stayed like that for a while, until I stopped crying.