When Elise’s twin sons return home from their college program and say they never want to see her again, everything she’s sacrificed comes under fire. But the truth about their father’s sudden reappearance forces Elise to decide: protect her past or fight for her family’s future. When I got pregnant at seventeen, the first thing I felt wasn’t fear.
It was shame. It wasn’t because of the babies; I already loved them before I knew their names; but because I was already learning how to shrink myself. I was learning how to take up less space in hallways and classrooms, and how to tuck my belly behind cafeteria trays.
I was learning how to smile while my body changed, and the girls around me shopped for prom dresses and kissed boys with clear skin and no plans. While they posted about homecoming, I was learning how to keep saltine crackers down during third period. While they worried about college applications, I was watching my ankles swell and wondering if I’d still graduate.
My world wasn’t filled with fairy lights and formal dances; it was all latex gloves, WIC forms, and ultrasounds in dimly lit exam rooms with the volume turned down low. Vaughn had said he loved me. He was the typical golden boy: a varsity starter, perfect teeth, and a smile that made teachers forgive his late homework.
He used to kiss my neck between classes and say that we were soulmates. When I told him I was pregnant, we were parked behind the old movie theater. His eyes went wide first, then teary.
He pulled me close, breathed in the smell of my hair, and smiled. “We’ll figure it out, Elise,” he said. “I love you.
And now… we’re our own family. I’ll be there every step of the way.”
But by the next morning, he was gone. There was no call, no note… and no answer when I showed up at his house.
There was only Vaughn’s mother standing in the doorway, arms folded, her lips pressed into a line. “He’s not here, Elise,” she said flatly. “Sorry.”
I remember staring at the car parked in the driveway.
“Is he… coming back?”
“He’s gone to stay with family out west,” she said, then closed the door without waiting for me to ask where or for a contact number. Vaughn also blocked me on everything. I was still reeling from the shock when I realized that I’d never hear from him again.
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