Page 11 of A Night To Remember

“You are in tip-top shape and all the STD tests came back negative. You will, of course, need to come back in six months for another HIV test, but I don’t foresee a problem. The tests performed today are pretty accurate so the chance of it coming back positive a second time is slim.”

Charlie breathed a huge sigh of relief at the announcement of her clean bill of health. That was that then. She could write this episode off as bad judgment and move on with her life. Something struck her as odd, however. The way Dr. Greene had delivered his news made her hesitate. “Dr. Greene, there’s something you’re not telling me. You said all my tests came back negative, so I’m fine, right? You said I was healthy,” she probed.

“Yes, I said that all of your tests for STDs came back negative.”

“I understand. That’s what I was tested for, but you’re leaving something out,” Charlie insisted.

“Well, I actually wanted to leave this for last but you do remember when you came in here I told you a pregnancy test would also be taken as standard procedure.”

The alarm in Charlie’s head went off. For some stupid reason pregnancy had been the last thing that had occurred to her. “Please don’t tell me what I think you’re about to say,” Charlie pleaded.

Dr. Greene sighed sympathetically. “I’m sorry to tell you this if this comes as bad news, but your pregnancy test came back positive.”

“Oh my God.” Charlie fainted.

Chapter Four

Three years later…

“I wanna stay wit’ you, Mommy!” Charlie’s daughter wailed. The vibrant child generally liked going to daycare so she could see all of her friends, but this morning, Kristy was in a foul mood.

Charlie had spent the last two weeks home with her daughter, in between jobs, and she suspected that Kristy had grown use to her being around more. It broke her heart to drop her baby off at daycare, but she had to provide for the two of them.

“Sweetie, don’t you want to go to school and draw a nice picture for me?” Charlie tried to soothe the cranky toddler as best she could by mentioning Kristy’s favorite activity of drawing.

Kristy stomped her little foot in frustration. “I don’ wanna go! I want you, Mommy!” Kristy began to cry loudly, big tears falling from her ice blue eyes.

Today was supposed to be a good day. This was the first day of Charlie’s new job in a supervisory position making a lot more money.

Unfortunately, Kristy didn’t understand and was unwilling to cooperate. Going into “mommy mode”, Charlie bent down in front of Kristy to feel her forehead. “Are you feeling okay today, baby? Does your tummy or head hurt?” Charlie stroked a stray curl from her daughter’s face.

“I not a baby!” Kristy screamed indignantly. At the ripe age of two and a half, Kristy felt it was beneath her to be called a baby; after all, according to her, she was a big girl. Charlie had told her often enough.

“Well, I guess since you’re feeling okay I have to take you to daycare today.”

“No!” Kristy wailed.

Charlie closed her eyes and counted to ten. She had read in her parenting book that this was a good self-calming method when dealing with temper tantrums. She gathered Kristy’s things in one arm and her screaming child in another. Charlie endured the entire trip to daycare with Kristy crying from the backseat. “They don’t call them the terrible twos for nothing,” Charlie muttered to herself.

Once she had dropped her daughter off, Charlie drove to her new job. It wasn’t that she hated working. Truth be known, she loved what she did, but she was missing so much of Kristy’s life as it was. She was glad she decided to take the two weeks off between her old and new job in order to cement the already tight bond she shared with her daughter.

Charlie pulled into the parking lot of the unassuming building. As she stepped out of her car, she took a deep breath. She was still upset about the scene her daughter had caused earlier, but this job was too important to let Kristy’s tantrum get in the way.

She had to be focused for this new position. Charlie had found out about the job through Laura, who already worked for this company. Charlie had applied and, to her delight, she’d been offered the position. She would have more responsibility than she had ever had before and the thought, although frightening, was very exciting as well. She would be one of the supervisors in the accounting department who reported directly to the CFO.

She sighed, sliding out of her car. It was still hard to believe how far she’d actually come in three years.

When Charlie had received the shocking news of her pregnancy, she didn’t quite know what to do with herself. Her first thought had been to get an abortion. What was she going to do with a baby when she didn’t even know what she was going to do with her own life? She had always wanted children—but with Paul. The thought of carrying Jake Fox’s child made her feel…what? Excited? No! That wasn’t possible. She barely knew him. It was horrifying to be carrying a stranger’s baby. Someone she would never see again. What would she tell everyone?

Charlie’s parents had been bewildered and a little hurt when she broke the news to them. They had raised her to respect her body and not throw herself at any Tom, Dick or Harry without a serious commitment. Of course they had demanded to know who the father was, and how Charlie had gotten herself in such a predicament, but she’d refused to give details. Her parents, being old fashioned, were adamant that she not have an abortion or else they would never forgive her.

Although their declaration hadn’t been the biggest factor in her decision to keep the baby, it was one of them. She discovered she couldn’t end an innocent baby’s life, one who never asked to be born. It just wasn’t in her. Throughout the pregnancy, adoption had been one of her options, but when Kristy was born, Charlie knew she would never let her baby go. Charlie loved her daughter from the moment she held the little bundle in her arms. She knew then she’d dedicate her life to her child.

She reached the guard’s desk and showed her driver’s license in lieu of work IDs carried by employees with the company.

“Newbie, huh?” he asked.

“Yep,” Charlie replied. “First day.”

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