“Well his colors are poop brown, because he’s an asshole.”
I laugh. “Seems so. And I’m sorry he’s being like that.” I eye her. “And your parents?”
She laughs bitterly. “How do you think they took it?”
“Not well?”
“I’m currently living with Ms. Pearson. You can’t tell anyone, though, because I guess she’d get in trouble or something.”
I smile at her. “Ms. Pearson is my best friend, so I already knew.”
“Oh, right,” she says. “Well, yeah, that’s where I am.”
“They disowned you?”
Tina nods. “Yep. Mom helped me pack a couple bags of clothes and stuff, and Dad gave me a check for five thousand dollars.”
I shake my head. “My god. I don’t understand that reaction at all, Tina. I’m so sorry.” I breathe out slowly. “So…even after telling them you’re having the baby adopted, they still won’t help?”
She shrugs. “They said I’m a disgrace to the family, and that I’m on my own.”
“So…what are you going to do? Do you know? What kind of help do you need?”
“Well, I called the admissions department at Brown—I had a partial academic scholarship, and I was planning on taking a bunch of loans—Mom and Dad were going to help a little, but it’s not like they were going to pay the whole thing. So, Brown said they could hold my scholarship for one year. I’ll have to take more student loans out because I won’t have Mom and Dad helping.” She sighs. “I mean, realistically, I should switch to a non-Ivy League school, because I’ll end up with a bajillion dollars of debt, but if I’m going to be going at this alone, I may as well swing big, right?”
“And, with another year, we can even look into getting you some more grants or scholarships, try to defray the costs a little.”
She nods. “Yeah, that’s true.”
“Schedule an appointment with me during school hours, and we’ll spend some time working on that, okay?” I pat her hand. “So, adoption, huh?”
She nods. “Yeah. It just…it seems like the best option. I don’t know if I’m going to do closed or open, because I’ve only done a little bit of research. I just…I have a feeling it’s going to be the hardest thing I’ll ever do. But there’s just no way I could manage here in Clayton alone as a single mother. There’s just no work, no way to support myself. And I’d…just selfishly, I know that would be the end of my dreams. It’d be a shitty life for me, and for the child. This way, the baby will go to a good, loving family who wants a baby and can take care of one, and I can still work for my own future.”
“It will be hard, Tina.”
She nods. “I know.”
“Well, I think you’re incredibly brave, Tina. And please know that I will help you with whatever I’m able to help with, you have only to ask. I’m here for you, no matter what. You’re NOT doing this alone, okay?”
She nods, sniffling. “I’m just trying to prep myself to be the talk of Clayton.”
“Oh, you’re giving the Busybody Society fodder for gossip and speculation and rumor for years to come.”
She rolls her eyes. “The last teen mom Clayton had was Emily Johnson—that was ten years ago and they’restilltalking about her.”
I lean forward. “Actually, Gina Rhodes was the last teen mom in Clayton.”
Tina’s eyes go wide. “No way! I always wondered where she went.”
“She and Cam Bowers eloped when they discovered she was pregnant. I helped them get their GEDs so they could drop out and elope to Philly. I think Cam is a diesel mechanic, and Gina is doing some sort of sales thing where she works from home. Nail stuff and lip stuff, maybe? I don’t know. Their son is three, now.”
She smiles. “Good for them. I always liked Gina. She was nice.” Tina laughs. “She sort of took me under her wing during gym class my freshman year. I was terrified and had my period unexpectedly and didn’t have any pads or tampons, and nobody was my friend. She gave me a pad and took a zero for the day so she could sit on the bleachers and talk to me.”
“Sounds like Gina.” My phone rings then—I can feel it buzzing. “I’m sorry, Tina, my phone’s ringing and I need to make sure it’s not Aiden.”
“I have to go anyway,” Tina says. “Ms. Pearson is taking me into Hanover to pick up a few things.”
“Bye, honey.”
