Leah’s Point of View

AJ’s comments didn’t sit well with me. Eden was always honest with me. I don’t see why she would need to lie to me now. It worried me that AJ thought our daughter was hiding something.

I spotted a coffee shop and went inside. I got a cup of coffee and a pastry and sat down. I tried to relax for a few minutes, but my body was tense. I needed to learn to relax. I sat back and closed my eyes for a moment. Thought from my past were haunting me.

*Flashback*

I stood outside the apartment afraid to knock. Normally I was fearless and bold, but today I was actually nervous. Slowly my finger touched the doorbell. I heard the chiming of the doorbell and waited for the door to open.

“Hello!” AJ’s mother said as she opened the door. She looked from my face to my protruding belly. Then she looked back at my face with disillusionment. “You look familiar. How may I help you?”

“I’m a friend of AJ’s. I need to talk to him.”

“He’s not home at the moment. Would you like to come in and wait?” Denise said softly. I nodded my head. She escorted me into the apartment.

I stood in the living room feeling uncomfortable. I was ready to breakdown, but I stayed strong. I didn’t like people knowing I was weak. My dad had taught me that since I was a little kid. I guess that was the only advice I ever took from him.

“Have a seat.” She motioned for me to sit down. I slowly took a seat on the couch.”Who are you?”

I knew Denise McLean was curious about having a pregnant teenage girl on her doorstep. I was betting it was even weirder since I said I was a friend of AJ’s. He was a pop sensation what would he be doing with a pregnant friend.

“I’m Leah Foster. I met AJ this summer in Germany. We hung out for a few weeks.” I said politely.

“Now, I remember you. How are you dear?”

“I’m as well as I pregnant girl can be.” I said lightly. Denise made me nervous. I could see the wheels turning inside her head. She was putting two and two together.

“What brings you to Florida?”

“My family is originally from here. My dad is in the military, so that’s why I was in Germany. My mom decided that we come back to Florida.” I rubbed my sweaty hands on my jeans. I didn’t want to make small talk with Denise. I just wanted to talk to AJ.

“How far are you along?”Denise cut to the chase. She waited for my answer without taking a breath.

“I’m four months. I’m due at the end of March.”

“Is Alex…the…fath…” She started to question, but got interrupted by AJ coming inside.

“Hey mom. Do you mind if Amanda and I go out tonight?” He walked in with a pretty girl. I looked at him. He was still just as sexy as I remembered. “Umm Leah…what are…you…you…doing here?”

“I need to talk to you.”

“I think I need to go. Forget about tonight Alex.” The girl said and walked out.

AJ was unsure of what to say next. He just stood there looking at me. His mom was watching his reaction toward me. It was a mix of lust and hate.

“Mom can you leave us alone for a while?”AJ asked her without taking his eyes off me.

“I’d rather we go somewhere else. Let’s go for a walk. I saw a park a few minutes from here.” I wanted to talk to him privately without his mother ease dropping on us. I had a lot of explaining to do.

“Fine, let’s go.”

We walked quietly to the park. AJ seemed upset by my presence. I had a feeling things weren’t going to go well. When we got to the park we found a bench to sit on.

“Why are you here Leah?” He came right out with it. AJ started playing with the hem of his t-shirt. I knew he was anxious.

“AJ, I’m pregnant.”

“That’s obvious. What does that have to do with me?” He stared at me. Wasn’t it obvious to him? Why would I be in Florida telling him I was pregnant.

“AJ you’re the father.”

“What?”He choked out.

“The last few times we had sex we didn’t use a condom. Now I’m pregnant with your baby.” I blurted out.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”Clearly he was upset. “My career is just starting to take off.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t plan on this happening.” I yelled at him. “It takes two people to get pregnant.”

“I know that. You don’t have to be a bitch about it.” He stood up and started pacing.

“I’m not trying to be a bitch. My life has spiraled out of control the past two weeks. You don’t even know what I’ve gone through.”I hollered at him. Within five minutes of talking he was already getting on my last nerve.

“I’m sorry your life sucks at the moment. I hardly even know you. We spent a few weeks together having fun.”

“You never thought you would see me again. I get it.” I laughed bitterly. “You thought I was a good fling and you would come back to your little girlfriend. Don’t feel bad for using me. I did the same to you.”

“You bitch. I didn’t have a girlfriend at the time. I cared about you. You were more than just sex.” I didn’t believe him. How could anyone care about me? I wasn’t worthy. My parents had proved that to me.

“Well, apparently you moved on. I don’t care. I just wanted to let you know I was pregnant with your child.” I started to walk away.

“You can’t just leave me hanging like that.”

“Fine. You want to know the truth. When I found out I was pregnant, I hid the truth from my parents. They are so strict and don’t believe in sex before marriage. Two weeks ago, they realized I was pregnant. My father kicked me out. I got my shit and came back to Orlando. He was pissed because his fifteen year old daughter was a whore.”

“Wait, you’re fifteen?” He interrupted.

“Yes, I lied to you AJ. You wouldn’t have looked at me if I told you the truth.” I blinked back tears. “I had no where to go, so I’ve been staying in a cheap motel about three miles from your house. I finally got the nerve to come tell you today.”

“Leah, I’m sorry you had to go through this.” He held me in his arms. The tears I’d wanted to cry finally fell from my eyes. “It’s going to be okay.”

“AJ, I never wanted this to happen. I thought it was just a fling.” I looked up at him. “I have no where to go. I’m almost out of money. After tomorrow I’ll be out on the streets.”

“I won’t let that happen. You can live with me. My baby can’t live on the streets.” AJ rubbed my back and kissed the top of my head.”It’s going to be okay.”

*End of flashback*

After reliving that moment of my life again, I realized that I was a hurtful, manipulative person in the past. I have grown up since then, but when it came to AJ, I felt like I went back to my old ways. From day one with him it was always a battle. Even today, it was a battle of wills between us. I needed to come to terms with my relationship with AJ and stop this battle. Fifteen years later, it was eating a hole in my heart.