Page 59 of Broken

“Izzy,” Annie whispered, and I knew it was time.

My whole life was about to change.

Or maybe not.

The last vestiges of my hope built as I walked over to the bathroom counter, and just as fast as they’d stirred, they came plummeting down.

‘Pregnant’

The word was clear across the screen.

Annie grabbed my hand, giving me an anchor as I spiraled in the abyss of shock. I met her gaze in the mirror and saw tears sliding down her face.

She felt for me.

I didn’t know what to feel.

All I knew was that it changed everything.

“So, um, I really want to be supportive here and say the perfect thing, but I don’t know what comes next. Are you okay? Izzy?” Annie squeezed my hand.

“I’m…I don’t know. Is it okay not to know?”

“Absolutely. You look like you’re in shock.”

“I think I am. Can we just not talk about it now and do something else until I get my head wrapped around it?”

“Sure.” Annie’s face shifted into understanding.

We settled downstairs andneverhad I been happier that Mom was on the night shift for work. I seriously needed to think before she saw me. She’d know something was up, and right now, I didn’t know my next move. Aside from knowing I had to tell Tucker.

Tears welled in my eyes, and I swallowed them back. He needed to know. He deserved to know. But all I could picture right now was the way he reacted when he thought this very same thing happened with Lisa just months ago. It had not gone well.

“How are you going to tell Tucker?” Annie asked when some movie she’d put on was over, the two of us sitting in the quiet of the downstairs.

I shook my head. I still had no clue.

“Well, my next question was going to bewhenare you going to tell him, but if you don’t know how–”

“Annie?”

“Yeah?”

“Promise me you’ll have my back. No matter what I decide.”

She held my gaze, blazing ferocity and fierce loyalty piercing through. “Always.”

We headed to bed after that, but neither of us really fell asleep until it was well past midnight. Mine was fitful, in and out with dreams of what Tucker would do when I told him. Him holding me tight. Or yelling, blaming me for letting this happen. Ruiningour careers before they even started. Even him just walking away.

I finally tossed my covers back, knowing sleep was a lost cause, and did what I should’ve done in the first place. Leaving a note for Annie, I grabbed a sweater and pulled it over the silk of my pajamas before heading outside. The chill of the night wind bit my exposed skin, but if anything, it was a relief. Like it was letting me know I was alive. That I could feel something past the fear and doubt.

Crawling in my ancient Ford pickup, I pulled out and drove straight through town, heading for the highway that would lead me to the long roads where I could simply zone out and be. Let the vibration and hum of the road in my old truck be the white noise my thoughts needed to slow down and process.

The sun was just peeking over the horizon when I finally knew what I was going to do. It was whether or not Tucker would agree and stand by my side that I didn’t.

I headed home and found Annie already up. One look at my face and she read me like a book.

“You’re about to tell him, aren’t you?”

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