“No daughter of mine will be tied down with a child on her own at twenty one,” Dad boomed.

I’m not own my own though. If he only knew how sweet and caring Derek is he would regret even thinking that.

“Your Mother will take you to an abortion clinic tomorrow,” he suggested without hesitation.

“I’m nine months along, so the hospital won’t do it,” I pointed out.

“Juliana, do you seriously think I’m that stupid,” he laughed, “haven’t you heard of illegal clinics?”

I stormed to my room. NO. NO. NO. This is my baby. Derek already has a career and I only have to finish my student teaching. I will never forgive them; even if I somehow keep the baby. I have to text Derek to come get me. I do, but there isn’t a reply until two hours later. As I read it I can feel a warm glow throughout my body. He’ll be here at midnight! Lord watch over Derek, because I know he’ll be doing eighty all the way here.

I didn’t have much to carry out of the house; since I was only supposed to stay the night, then leave around six to go to the airport. So I could go to Springfield, Illinois, and start my student teaching. As I walked down the dark and dead street, I hoped and prayed his truck didn’t give us away. Just at that moment I got a text; I read what I thought would be the text that would kill me from my parents, but it was Derek. He said that he borrowed a black Chevy Malibu so we wouldn’t be noticed. Thank god. I felt the urge to pee, so I had no choice but to go behind Mrs. Anderson’s giant circle of overgrown weeds, plants, and trees. As I stood up and wiped myself off with a tissue I saw the black Malibu coasting along the other side of the street.

“Derek slow down,” I could barely hear myself scream, “have you been drinking?
“

At that very moment he couldn’t respond because he slammed on the brakes, and almost ran a four way stop sign and into sixty mile per hour traffic. Instead of being plowed by the semi that went by we were hit in the back end by a diesel truck. The truck seemed to be evilly staring at me. That’s all I remember before my fire went out.

I could smell newly bleached seats and taste blood. I move my hand to my stomach, but nothing’s there. Could I have had the baby already! No, Mom was supposed to take me to an abortion clinic. Could I have dreamed my through it!

“Tom, she’s awake,” Mom said, her eyes full of tears, “you tell her I can’t.”

“Honey, Derek and the baby died in a car accident, sorry,” Dad said with his head down.

Liars, I know they’re lying. I watched Mom leave. I wished Dad would have gone with her. I hate him for trying to make me abort the baby. If he didn’t say that my baby and Derek would be with me right now!
The last six months went by like a dying snail. I got the worst school possible. The kids make you want to run away and never look back. They have turned what was once an OK school into a place for juvenile delinquents. The teacher I am assigned to had a baby last night, so she is on maternity leave. I hope she doesn’t come back like she said she would.

When I first walked into the door I heard peace and quiet. Then I heard the buses leave, and then a bunch of spawns of Satin walked in. Next thing I knew I was face to face with my so called dead unborn child’s dead father. After that I remember getting into his car and driving to my Mom’s sister’s house.

When he hugged me in the car, my body felt like an electric wire that reconnected with its other half. He told me he knew I wasn’t gone, and he thought the same for the baby. Knowing Derek, he would never rest until he found our little one, and brought it home again. He asked me a bunch of questions. Like ‘Is there a scar on your belly?’ I told him ‘no, and that the truth that my water broke that night when he was coming to get us.’

It was just breaking dusk when we turned into her driveway. I walked up to the door and heard the cry of a child. I knew it was my baby, because she can’t have children and won’t watch other people’s children. I burst through the cherry oak door and saw Derek’s blue eyes on a baby girl. Aunt Laney said she knew we would find each other and the baby. She told us to sit and she would tell us what happened. The way she acted so cool almost made me hate her even more.

She said that the only reason she took the baby was because my parents had a family that would take her and move to another state. Not giving us a fair chance to be happy. My mother never expected a thing; knowing her sister couldn’t have children she felt sorry for her and decided to give her the child. All the hate I had felt at the front door suddenly vanished. She saved my baby from being kidnapped basically. She sees me loosen up a little, and says she would have felt the same way at the person who had taken her child. Derek then says that we should go so we can leave this nightmare behind. Aunt Laney nods and hands me my baby girl.

“I’ve called her Bella,” she offered before we left.

Six years have come and gone since that night at Aunt Laney’s house. I haven’t talked to my parents since the hospital and I never will. They are my darkest secret; neither of us will tell little Bella of those horrid people who almost destroyed her family.

“Mommy, come find me,” Bella shrieks causing me to jump out of those unhappy thoughts.

Only if she knew what I went through to find her and her Daddy would she understand how those two little words hurt so much.