“Where are you going?” she shouts at my back as I turn and walk in the opposite direction.
“BRB!” I yell. I don’t want to announce to the entire world and the small group of anti-abortionists always hanging around there that I’m going to go tackle a pregnant girl.
About ten seconds later I’m almost caught up to Alissa in the parking lot. “Hey! Alissa! Wait up!” I yell at her rapidly retreating back.
She stops at her car and uses the key to unlock the door. It’s an older model Toyota, too ancient to have an automatic key lock. I’m impressed at the shape the thing is in. It looks like a granny’s been driving it for fifteen years or something. When I reach the side of it, I lean back to see if there are any stuffed animals in the back window. Nope. That’s a surprise.
“I’m in a hurry, Quin. Sorry.” She’s using her ultra polite tone, usually reserved for professors and people in the registrar’s office.
She tries to shut the door after getting in, but I put my hand up to block it. “Where are you going?”
“None of your business,” she says, her voice finally showing some annoyance. I had expected it sooner. I don’t know why, but something is making me harass a pregnant woman. I’m going to blame it on The Bell. I should have gone with the mild sauce, I guess.
“I see you’re pregnant.” Boom. Conversation opener. I’z got skills.
“Brilliant. I guess your contacts are working. Do you mind?” She finally looks up at me at the same time that she grabs the inside handle of her door and starts yanking on it.
But I’m too stubborn to move yet. I have more harassment to dole out. My body sways side to side with the movement of her attempts at shutting the door on me. “So I’m just wondering … if you’re like … I don’t know … seven months pregnant, what are you doing at a birth control clinic?”
Her face turns a shade of pink that would be really cute if it didn’t have the tears along with it. I feel just a tad guilty for making it happen, but not enough to stop. I have a feeling there’s something big going on here and any girl who has to go to a clinic alone needs a friend as far as I’m concerned.
“Bug off, Quin.”
“Bug off? Wow. Them’s serious fightin’ words, Alissa. Are you sure you can back them up in your condition?”
She pulls the keys out of her ignition and throws them onto the dashboard. “What do you want from me, Quin?! Can you just tell me so I can be on my way?!” She looks up at me with the perfect mix of fury and anguish in her expression. She’s like an angry nerd, and if it weren’t so out of character for her it would be amusing.
I step closer, putting my hand on her shoulder and softening my voice, all the harassing tone gone. “I just want to be sure you’re okay, that’s all.” I give her my concerned look. “I’m worried about you.”
I don’t know what I expected in response, but this isn’t it.
She throws herself over her steering wheel and starts bawling like a baby.
“Oh, shit.” I bend down and pat her on the back, a true-blue freak-out coming in a big wave over my head. “Sweetie, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get you upset. Shit!” I stand up and look around in a panic. Teagan is nowhere in sight.
I scramble to get my phone out of my purse. My fingers fly over the keypad as I text like a mad woman.
Gt ur az out here double time. Fuck!
After about thirty seconds of me patting Alissa’s back and Alissa crying like I’ve just stabbed her in the heart, Teagan is by my side.
“What took you so long?!” I whisper-yell at her.
“What the hell did you do to her?” she asks, ignoring my demand for answers.
“Nothing! I just told her I was worried about her, that’s all.” I keep patting her back, hoping it’ll help.
Alissa starts blubbering and talking at the same time. “She didn’t … do … a-a-anything -ing -ing …. Baaaaaahhhhhh haaaa haaaaa!”
And more crying ensues.
Teagan and I look at each other, panic-stricken, now taking turns patting Alissa’s back. We have a pretty good beat going, but it’s not really helping.
“Alissa, honey,” Tegan says, “you need to stop crying and talk to us. What’s going on? Are you upset about being pregnant?”
Alissa’s cries turn into something not even really human-sounding at that question.
I cross my eyes at Teagan and shake my head. “Nice. Good work, Tea.”