Sixteen And Pregnant

Chapter 3

I needed to get out of here. I knew that my face was red because I was flustered, and I was at the edge of doing something stupid. Like, literally run out of here. I scanned for Shirley on the dance floor but saw her nowhere. It was like she had disappeared into thin air.

Just when I needed her the most. She told me that she would watch over me …

My skin was itching to get out of that place and forget that this ever happened. I could not even look this guy in the eyes, I was looking anywhere but at his face. Although, I was pretty sure that he was looking at me and noticing my strange behaviour. Observing my need to get away. But I did not know how. Maybe running out of here was the best option.

As the time went by, we both stood there not talking, and it started to get more and more uncomfortable and weird. Finally, he spoke.

"Wanna get out of here? This time I meant what I said, Like getting out of this place to get some fresh air." He suggested. My eyes flew to meet him. For once, my heart skipped a beat when I heard him speak about getting out of here, but then I realised what he said. I let out a sigh of relief.

He was only talking about going out in the fresh air. Still, I was not sure if I should agree to this. He was a stranger after all. Nevertheless, his offer seemed non-threatening. Just going out of this hectic place. Outside. Quiet and peaceful. With not a lot of people around, who smelled like alcohol and sweat.

I thought it was an okay offer, especially when I could not find Shirley. I will text her once I am outside. I could not even think about anything right now. It was really hard to hear myself speak over the music. Therefore, I decided it was for the best.

Through my beating heartbeat, I hesitantly nodded my head and mouthed a yes. Mike smiled and gestured for me to walk ahead and lead the way. And I did. I walked through the crowd who parted to let me out. After a minute or so, we were out in the open, away from the crowd.

Chapter 5

The music volume dulled a little and I was finally able to breathe in fresh air that was not thick with different sorts of smells. I eagerly gulped in air, feeling my lungs expand, at the ability to finally breath in fresh air.

"Wow. You Really needed fresh air, didn't you?" I heard him say from behind my back. A little jolt went through my spine because I completely forgot about him following me out.

I plastered a smile on my face and spun around to face him, nervously.

I have never been around guys and men in general, therefore I did not know what to say or how to act. Back in the house, we had a common topic to talk about but now, I did not have that benefit. What should I do now?

"We haven't really introduced ourselves to each other formally. I'm Mike Michelson. And I am your senior from high school." He said, casually striding to me. His hands in his pockets and his lips tucked in, what I assumed to be a smile.

I gave him a shaky smile in return.

"I'm Viri Ballot. And ... that's it." I said, unable to extend the length of the sentence. My words made Mike chuckle. He found me ridiculous. Awesome. Damn it. Where was Shirley? Where had she disappeared to? Maybe it was the right time to call her. I reached inside my pocket to bring out my old Nokia phone. It was an embarrassment, really. In truth, I wanted to avoid taking out my old phone in front of him, but at the moment, I was not left with any other choice.

"You're cute." He said, catching me off guard. My eyes widened and my hand froze inside my jacket pocket, which was digging for my phone. Did he just say what I thought he said? Did he just call me cute?

Gosh, how do one reply back to a compliment? Was a thank you okay?

"Uh ... mm ... thanks." I replied.

"I guess." I whispered to myself, feeling myself shrink. Awkward. That was awkward. I stared at the ground and tried to dig the mud on the floor, to distract myself. To avoid facing the embarrassment head on. Gosh, I wish Shirley was here to save me from this situation.

I did not hear him come forward, until I reached out and lifted my face by placing his hand beneath my chin. "Hey."

I nearly jumped back from his sudden move if I would have let myself move. Thankfully, I did not. His hand on my face registered a bit too long ago.

Still, in a reaction, I jerked out of his hold like it had electrified me. "Whoa. Sorry." He said. Taking a step back in response to my reaction. "I was not trying to startle you." He said, shaking his head at me.

This was it, now I could no longer wait there and hope to see Shirley miraculously. She was gone to have fun on her own and completely forgot about me. Now, I have to look out for myself. I needed to find a way out of this situation myself.

"Listen. I - I need to ..." I tried to come up with an excuse.

"Why are you behaving like this? Are you really this nervous with every other guy you meet?" He snapped. His voice took a sharper edge, rising in tone.

My head shot up and I met his eyes. His whole face was twisted into an annoyed expression. I was not going to lie, I felt scared of him at that moment. I felt threatened by something violent. Like, he would strike me the way my father does when he thinks that my mother had stepped over her boundaries. Or how my brother does when he gets angry with me.

It was scary. On the borderline of life threatening.

Although, right underneath a few seconds I saw his face change into what I could see as realisation. His gaze skimmed over all my features and took in my eyes, my cheeks, all expressions of fear. I knew it because I was not able to conceal that expression in time.

All of a sudden, I jerked back to reality. I realised what had happened. Without another word to him, I walked past him. Moving to go back inside the house and get Shirley involved.

"Hey. Wait. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that." He called from behind me. I halted in my tracks and turned around to face him. He walked over to me, looking guilty like a puppy. The moment he walked close enough, his eyes skipped past me to move on and stare at somebody behind me.

"Viri." I twirled around to find my best friend looking at me. Until her gaze shifted from me to Mike. I saw something pass in her eyes but it was gone before I could catch that look.

"Mike." She said, Her whole demeanour shifted, and it became quite visible that she knew Mike. KNEW him.

"Long time, no see, Shirley." He said. "Not that long ago." She replied, before Shirley turned to me. "Viri, where were you? I was looking for you everywhere." She said,

I was going to remind her that SHE was the one who abandoned me but Shirley did not give me a chance to say anything. Shirley walked right up to me, hooked her arm in mine and walked me out of the place without another word. Not only she abandoned me but I think she left me alone in a place where I did not know anyone. While she, probably, went to be with some guy.

I was angry with her for that reason. Especially, when I got stuck with a guy that I didn't even know. Even though I knew that was my fault in the first place.

"Sorry. I got held back. I was holding back a girls' hair in the bathroom. She was throwing up. She got too drunk. Nobody was with her and I did not want to leave her like that in that condition. Parties aren't too great for girls, who drink their head off. Things could go wrong." She explained to me.

"That's alright." I said. A pang of guilt hit my chest, squeezing it. Why did I assume the worse of her? Even though I knew that Shirley always kept her promise. She was the best of the best then why? The reason was that I needed someone to blame. For the situation I fell in with Mike.

As simple as that. I did not deserve her.

Shirley squeezed my hand and stopped me from moving forward. "Viri." She said. Spinning me around through my shoulder to meet her eyes. "Stay away from him. Stay away from Mike. He is bad news." She told me, looking me in the eyes. Her whole face was way too serious for her cheery self. She hardly ever gets serious about anything thus, her warning caught me off guard.

"Huh? What do you mean?" I asked her. She squeezed her eyes closed before opening them. I had a feeling that she was preparing herself for something big. "Just - please. Stay away from him." She repeated herself. This was so not like her. She was a strong girl who was hardly ever scared of anything. This was why the worried look on her face and the pained look in her eyes, that she just tried to hide, did not make sense.

I knew for some reason she was waiting for me to promise her. Not wanting to make her wait, I told her what she wanted. Even though I was curious what she was hiding. Or holding back from telling me. There was something more.

So, I decided to tell her the truth.

"This was the last party I was going to go to. We are not going to meet anymore. So, don't worry about it." I told her. She smiled like my answer satisfied her and she nodded before she slung her arm over my shoulder. We started walking again.

"Well, today was a bummer." She said, For a reason, I agreed with her. And that was a first.

Chapter 6

The next day, I forgot everything that happened. Or at least I tried to. The thing was that as much as I forced myself to forget the interaction between me and Mike, the more it came back to me in full force.

I remembered how Mike saved me from Blake, and our awkward interaction after that and the conversation we had outside. I remembered how he snapped at me but it was a blur among all other things. To me it did not seem like a big thing, however Shirley's warning was still in the back of my mind. Shirley, who always told me to enjoy life and talk to guys, told me that Mike was a warning sign, then it must be worth considering. But then again, it was only one interaction. Maybe she was just overreacting or else she would have told me the reason, about why I should stay away from him.

Not like that we would meet after yesterday anyway.

"Viri, I won't be eating lunch today with you. I'm taking half - day off." Shirley told me when I was brushing my teeth in the bathroom. My hand stopped brushing my teeth and I swirled to face her.

"Wahye?" I asked her, the toothpaste in my mouth enabling me to speak. She leaned on the bathroom door and smiled. "I'm going to meet people in the orphanage." She told me and grinned. The light in her eyes increased.