Page 112 of The Mistakes I've Made
“What? No! I got the one that lasted forever, remember?”
She groaned, and I wasn’t sure if it was a groan over how incredibly stupid I was or that she was starting to seriously feel bad for me.
Either way, it wasn’t good.
“No,” she explained. “You went in there, dead set on the copper IUD, because you didn’t want any hormones in your body.”
“I remember that.”
“And then the doctor told you about the possibility of losing your period all together if you went with the five-year option.”
Suddenly, everything started to come back.
“Shit,” I said, my stomach becoming queasy. “But I did have my period every single month. Like clockwork.” It was one of the reasons I panicked so quickly. My period was like a very punctual out of town guest. It came like clockwork.
Except for this month.
This month, it was a no-show.
“I remember calling my doctor to complain when my period came, despite her bragging that it wouldn’t, and she just played it off as no big deal and said it would just work itself out eventually. I hung up, called her a quack and never thought about it again.”
I stared at the pale yellow walls, realizing my monumental mistake. “I’m such an idiot. This is all my fault.”
“Hey,” she said, her voice soft and filled with warmth. “It’s going to be okay. It’s not like you had a one-night stand. This guy is one of the good ones, right?”
My lips trembled. “Right,” I said, trying not to think of the letter still resting on the table downstairs.
He’s one of the good ones.
“So, see? Maybe it’s not so bad. And, besides, we’re getting ahead of ourselves. You haven’t even taken the test yet.”
“Right,” I said again, unable to think of anything else.
I didn’t need to take the test.
Some things you just knew.
And I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was carrying Taylor’s child.
“Are you going to be okay?” she asked after an unusual amount of silence passed between us.
Looking down at my belly, I protectively nestled a hand over it. “Yeah,” I said, feeling more determined than ever. “I’ll be just fine.”
When we hung up moments later and I called Molly back in the room, I no longer felt like the trembling, lost little girl sitting in front of the fireplace.
Now, I was a woman, ready to take on the world.
“Let’s do this,” I said, surprising even Molly.
“Well, okay then.”
I was still scared, still fearful of the future, but when that positive test appeared, I knew one thing for certain.
I would never be alone again.
“Taylor, I’m having your baby.”
I took a deep breath and let it out.
