Less Children

“Darling, wake up. Open your pretty eyes. We have a doctor’s appointment, come on.”

Sophia knew what that meant. It was a few days before the first day of school. Even in this town, like all others, school had to begin. Unforgiving school would start in the town of Charlotte too. A pregnant sophomore didn’t charm the principal of the high school, but he eventually had to accept her. Now the doctors were going to decide whether she is strong enough as to go to school for the first time after the incident. Sophia didn’t even know if she wanted to go back to school. She knew it would be hard, but, then again, she wanted to have as normal a life as she could. She wanted to be a teenager, throughout all the dark thoughts that had been haunting her mind. She, subconsciously, meant to set an example for all teenage mothers and all rape victims.

Resolving for the better, she opened her eyes, eyes so dark they were almost black. She even uttered a small smile for her mother, whose features instantly softened at the sight of that smile, such a rare thing to be done by her daughter in the past months. Her mom outstretched an arm and helped Sophia get up, which wasn’t all the way an easy thing, because of her belly, too big for her frail body, just as frail as it had always been.

Half an hour later, after enjoying a bowl of Captain Crunch, the cereal she hadn’t given up on, Sophia got in her mother’s car, next to the driver’s seat. She stretched the seat belt to reach over her round belly and adjusted in her seat, as her mother lovingly watched her. Monica, her mother, was hurt, thinking of how much her daughter had gone through, but was proud, proud that through it all, Sophia had done the thing that meant giving up on childhood, and making a sacrifice for the off-spring of her rapist. She knew that that child had no fault in the world, and perhaps, just perhaps, he/she was meant to live.

“Your baby looks just fine, his size is just fine for 25 weeks, and, well, we’re just going to have to wait to see how things evolve in the time to come, given as you have a high-risk pregnancy because of your young age. I hope you’re doing everything I suggested, eating, resting, taking good care of yourself,” the doctor said gently, and smiled a little, very professionally.
“She is, I am very surprised. She has never been so keen on eating right, and she’s always been that way a little,” her mom said.
“Good. Now, at the last checkups, the baby was turning his back on us, and we couldn’t quite locate his genitalia. Now, I did. Would you like to know his sex?”
“No!” both Sophia and her mother Monica bellowed, at the same time. They had made a previous decision, not to find out about that.
“Okay…” the doctor laughed in a strong, deep voice. “Now as for the serious part, me and the other doctors that have been taking care of you, your psychologist, everybody, have been discussing whether we should suggest you went to school or not. I know that it’s hard to go to school on the first day as a regular girl, in normal conditions, let alone in yours. But we feel that you should go on with your studies, it may give you a sense of normality. Do you understand, do you agree, Sophia?”
“Yes, I do. I see what you’re saying. And I feel that way too. I have to have a normal life, even if it has a twist of another life that will be in my care.”
“Great, then. I am very glad to see that you fully comprehend this and everything else. In this case, have a good first day of school next week and see you in two weeks.”

It was decided. She was bound to go to school. Well, she could just as well get used to the idea and get ready, mentally.

She walked into the school, feeling all eyes stop for a moment from their excited roaming, upon her. Those eyes lingered for a moment on her face, and then unforgivingly traveled down to her 6-month-pregnant belly, very much showing, her being a small person. She had pondered, that morning, not going to school, or at least, trying her best to wear something that wouldn’t make her look pregnant. She eventually gave up on that thought and walked into Charlotte High wearing a white maternity top with spaghetti straps, under a very soft grey cardigan. She had always had a very high and polished aesthetic, and she didn’t see why there would be a reason for her to change while she was pregnant.
Sophia looked around, trying to find her assigned locker. The faces she saw were the faces of teenagers she had seen in her native town, and wherever she had been in life. She could see all the labels that had existed in her old high school, where she had spent freshman year: self-declared emos, emos in denial, preps, jocks, geeks, loners, and all the rest. As she found her locker and opened it, a girl next to her slammed her own locker door. The girl looked very clean and classic, her blonde hair caught neatly in a tight ponytail, a granny cardigan buttoned all the way up and old-fashioned pearls hanging from her neck. She smelt of expensive perfume. Sophia tried to smile, making a final appeal to her well-natured old ways, trying to make the girl ignore her baby bump.
“Another pregnant sophomore. What’s your story? Your step dad forced you into this? No. You were artificially inseminated by mistake. No. You were asleep and you don’t remember. Or, you were drugged. No, I know, by the look on your face, you’re trying to make us believe you were raped! Right? Slut. Have fun.”
Sophia looked down to her belly, round under the soft, comfortable fabric of her top, sighed, and started walking away, keeping her head down. She had known it was going to be this way.
“Don’t mind Erica. She is trying to make-believe she’s a virgin, that’s why she always tries to put down pregnant girls,” said a girl two lockers away, closing her own locker and turning to reveal her own baby bump, one covered in a Metallica T-shirt. She wore some kind of ripped jeans, old-looking and stone-washed. “I’m Sage. At least that’s who I wanna be,” she smiled and outstretched a slim, very white hand. A boy, very tall, came to the girl that had introduced herself as Sage and grabbed her hand into his own.
“This is Jamie, my fiance.”
Sophia couldn’t help but open her mouth widely and keep it that way for a while. What was this, Married with Children High? “The fiance” outstretched an arm himself and shook Sophia’s hand.
“And you are?”
“Oh, sorry guys. I’m Sophia. Sorry!”
“Don’t worry! You’re definitely not the first one to be bewildered by this. We did something 15-year-olds shouldn’t really do 5 months and a half ago. The rubber broke and, that’s how I’m the future Mrs. Durham and these are my baby girl and my baby boy,” she said, placing each of her hands on two different sides of her belly. “We’re waiting to turn 16, get emancipated from our parents and get legally married. It’s all been decided and talked to our parents, in case you were wondering. And I tend to tell my life story to every person that walks in front of me,” she said, breathing out loud and smiling.
“Wow, twins? Aren’t you… afraid?”
“Nahh, I’m past that. What are you having?”
“I’m not sure. I didn’t wanna know…”
“Come on, Sage, we have English,” Jamie said, smiling at Sophia.
“Oh me too, I have English too,” Sophia said as they took off to their first class.

The three had walked into the classroom and found seats, somewhere, somehow, in the middle. The middle of the class had been a nightmare spot for Sophia the night before, picturing herself in the center of attention, something she desperately did not want. The classroom wasn’t exactly full of students; it being the first day of school, people seemed to be busy socializing, catching up on the exciting news of the summer. Of course, Sophia’s oldest mates in the whole building were Sage and Jamie, and she had known them for a whole 7 minutes and a half. A few girls here and there, some guys at the end of the class, the ensemble looked fairly random and almost OK. Jamie was playing with a yo-yo and saying jokes, which were half funny, half stupid things that looked peculiar on him, a tall guy, with a Goth look and a promise ring on his finger. His future wife laughed uncontrollably, touching her growing belly. Sophia snickered a little bit, uncomfortable to laugh too hard – and out of a reason to really do so. A cold, clean voice, almost shocking, bellowed from the end of the class: “Cut it off, James, you look positively dumb.” The party of three instantly turned around to see a well-built boy, with long, wavy to curly, sandy-blond hair and cunning dark green eyes. He stared ahead of him as if those mortals were undeserving of his gaze, yet he had a sparkling smile on his face. Jamie’s curious gaze turned into one of recognition and happiness as he got up and hugged the boy, who had gotten up himself.
“Girls, this is my dear cousin, Mark, who is half Finnish and has been traveling all summer. I thought the bitch wasn’t coming back!” Jamie introduced his cousin.
“Hey look who it is! Sage, and plenty of her!” Mark said, laughed a little and hugged Sage.
“Oh, dude, this is Sophia, we just met her!” Jamie said and motioned to Sophia, who stood up and shook the hand Mark had put forward. He smiled politely trying to ignore her baby bump and said “Hi, I’m Mark. I’ll be your classmate.”
“Mark, dude, you’re older than us,” Sage said, trying to make fun of him like he had, when he hugged her.
“Only by a year. And don’t be mean, I didn’t study anymore than you did, I just did it in Europe.”
Sophia was a little scared. She didn’t know what to believe. She found it weird that she had managed to actually have a real conversation with people, after all that time, and she was positively happy to have met such unique (as in beautifully messed up) people like Sage and Jamie. The dudes were engaged at 15, all Goth-looking, with piercings and wearing black, and expecting twins! Despite all that, Sophia found understanding in them, even if it was only because they were in a similar situation. That Mark guy must have thought the same thing happened to her, she had had sex, willingly and desirably, and some accident had happened.

“Rape victim” wasn’t embedded on her forehead, was it?

As she walked home that afternoon, Sophia couldn’t help but think of the day she had had. She had been called a slut, met an engaged couple that was expecting twins, the future spouses happening to be 30 years old, if added their ages.
Things gave the impression that life might turn out just fine. Every night though, as dark hugged the earth, a layer of dark was laid upon Sophia’s heart and mind too. Memories, dark, tainted memories haunted her, as if trying to torture her, to mortify her life. The moments she had gone through, the time when she was literally gasping for air, when she had that man all over her, ran through her mind, at high speed. Somewhere, inside, she was afraid and she knew that she was never to have a normal life. How could she? The mere thought of a kiss frightened her, making her feel as if air wasn’t enough to breathe.