It all started about nine months ago. We were lying on the hammock when things started getting hot and heavy. Then we made our way to the study where the story begins. We didn’t have any condoms and I told him it’d be alright, so he did what I told him. When we finished we just lay on the couch and cuddled. I wanted to tell him so badly that I felt so sl**ty, but I already knew what he’d say. When he looks at me, he doesn’t see my sl**ty past, he sees his beautiful girlfriend who’s just perfect beyond compare. We lay there and talk about our future together. He reassures me that he’s never going to leave, that I have nothing to worry about, but he’s wrong. For you see, my father is an evangelist preacher. Everyone knows a preacher’s daughter is supposed to be so perfect and never make mistakes, well you got that wrong. I started crying and he asks what’s wrong. I tell him that I can’t believe I let him do that. I mean we are 16, there’s no way we can raise a baby. He tells me that it will all be okay, he isn’t going to leave. I finally calmed down and we cuddled some more. I told him I guess we are just going to have to wait.

Well December finally came around; this is when I was supposed to start my period. I had gone to use the restroom hoping I’d started but, I didn’t. I called my boyfriend up and told him that I didn’t and asked if we should go get a test. He went and picked up a test and brought it over. I hurried to the bathroom and peed on the stick. I walked over to the sink to wash my hands and to wait. Man, waiting took forever. I never thought time would hurry up. After my thirty minutes were over, I walked over and picked up the test. There in front of me was what we weren’t hoping for. A big positive sign stared me in the face. I felt the tears run down my face as I opened the door to walk outside and tell my boyfriend the news. He already knew the results when he saw my face and he pulled me into his arms to a warm embrace. I cried for what seemed like forever. He told me it would be alright. I trust him and said okay. I knew he would never leave me.

A month passed by and I was just starting to show a bit. I hadn’t told my parents yet, I mean how exactly was I supposed to? Well I knew I couldn’t keep it a secret forever because I was going to start getting bigger and bigger. We talked about sitting down and telling our parents the news. The day came and we were all sitting around the table eating a special meal, since it could possibly be my last one. I told them we had something to tell them and I burst into tears. The look on my mother’s face was just horrible. I knew she knew, I didn’t even have to tell her. I felt so ashamed of what I’d done. I turned to face my boyfriend and he pulled me into another hug. He softly whispered that it would be alright.

The next few months passed by quickly, and the love inside me grew bigger. There was no way I could keep it a secret from anyone now. When I walk down the street, or if I’m in a store, I can just feel the eyes glaring at me. Things happen for a reason, and there has to be one behind this. God has given me this child for a good purpose, I’m not sure what that purpose is yet but I’ll know one day.

I was approaching my third trimester, which is the last stage before the baby comes. Things were going pretty good like he said they would. I made it up to the day my baby was supposed to come and we were getting more excited by the minute. A couple nights after my due date my water broke. I panicked and yelled for my boyfriend. He didn’t answer. I kept yelling his name louder and louder and he still didn’t come. I got up and tried to walk (which isn’t easy at all when you’re in labor) and fell to the floor. I crawled on my hands and knees to the living room where he was supposed to be. The pain got worse and worse and I reached the couch where he was lying. I shook him and I got no response. I reached for the phone to call an ambulance because the pain was excruciating and my boyfriend still wouldn’t respond. I lay in the floor against the couch until I heard the sirens. The paramedics rushed into the house and placed us both on a stretcher. They rushed us to the hospital. The next few hours are all a blur to me. I woke up to a faint cry. I looked next to me and there was a small clear tub with something moving inside. I sat up slowly and realized I had given birth to a beautiful baby girl just hours ago. I tried to remember but I just couldn’t. The nurse walked in and explained everything to me. She said that on the way to the hospital I had fainted and that they took my baby anyways. I then asked her about my boyfriend. She gave me the worst look of my life and shook her head. She told me that he had passed out and it was a good thing that I called because he could have gone into cardiac arrest and died. I started freaking out and she tried her best to calm me down but I wouldn’t let her. She said that he was in the intensive care unit on the floor below me. I asked her if I was allowed to go see him and she told me I had to heal first. So I waited.

It took me a day or two to heal and she finally strolled me down to the intensive care unit. I don’t even remember what happened there. All I know is I burst into tears because my boyfriend was in such a bad shape. When he told me everything would be fine, I thought he was serious. There’s no way everything is going to be fine I thought. My baby is going to be daddy-less. The nurse told me that he was okay and doing better. They are going to move him to a regular room in the morning. Joy just busted out all over me. My sad tears became happy tears and I thought he was right, everything will be fine.