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Sabrina was floored by the answer she'd gotten on the end of the stick, but she was glad for a couple different things in this moment. One, that she wasn't at home with this; people didn't look through her trash, but Aunt Hilda was normally the one that grabbed the trash from her bathroom, and she might've ended up catching a peek before Sabrina had talked to her about it. Two, they were out of Greendale. She didn't want to think about what would've happened if someone had seen her buying a pregnancy test. Gossip could be like wildfire, and there was no telling who would've known about it by the time she made it home.
As it stood, she was able to throw the pregnancy test in the trash and wash her hands like nothing had happened. Like nothing had changed.
She glanced at the mirror above the sink and smiled-- even she couldn't tell that there was something wrong just by looking at her face. She let the smile dropped and finished washing her hands.
Pregnant. There was so much to think about, and she didn't know where to start. She'd have to tell Caliban. She'd have to tell her aunties, and telling them would be so much easier if she'd already talked to Ambrose. She should look into pregnancy health so that nothing would go wrong, because she'd heard that teenage pregnancies were rife with problems. She should also think about school and when the baby was going to be born so that she'd know how much class she'd have to miss. She had no doubt that Aunt Zelda would look after the baby if she was busy with something else, but how was she supposed to graduate high school with a kid? How was she supposed to have a career when she had a kid?
There were a dozen things she needed to figure out, and she didn't know what to do about any of them.
The one thing she did know for sure though, was that she wasn't going to talk to anyone about it right now. They were celebrating Ambrose's good health by taking the first family trip out of Greendale to go to the new bookshop that had opened, and she wasn't going to spoil that for any of them.
She had a while before she'd be visibly pregnant, anyways. Plenty of time to think and find the answers that she needed.
Sabrina fiddled with her headband in the mirror to make sure it was still sitting comfortably, then left the bathroom. She joined her aunts standing outside the gas station next to the car. "Is Ambrose still in the bathroom?" she asked, glancing behind herself back to the store.
"I believe he is debating over his chip options," Aunt Zelda said.
"Poor thing. He really has been cooped up in the house for so long, I think he forgot what fresh air smelled like," Aunt Hilda said.
"Well, to be fair auntie, fresh air would've killed him." Ambrose was allergic to half the things in nature, and with his immune system so weak, getting fresh air was like playing with fire for his health.
It took Ambrose another few minutes to be done, and when he came out, he had an armful of food. Chips, candy bars, and a few massive drinks. It was obvious that he hadn't bought just for himself, unless he'd spontaneously taken a liking to Sabrina's favorite orange Gatorade while she wasn't looking.
"Here, let me help you," Sabrina said, catching the items that looked like they were about to fall from his arms.
"Thanks, cousin," Ambrose said.
Between the two of them, they were able to bring everything into the car. When he handed out what he'd gotten for everyone, they thanked him and continued back on the road.
She didn't want to dwell on her pregnancy, but the car was quiet except for the station that Aunt Zelda had tuned the radio to. There was nothing else to occupy her mind, and she didn't get anywhere with it. She was just as freaked out as she'd been before, and without doing any research, she couldn't come up with a plan. Any plan.
She didn't know how to tell Caliban. With her friends, she could just spit it out. She'd like to have a plan of some sort when she told her aunts, but she didn't like to think about that when they were in such tight quarters. It's not like they could read her mind, but she also wasn't going to take that chance. But Caliban... telling your boyfriend-- that was also in highschool-- that you were pregnant had to be handled delicately. Sabrina didn't really do 'delicate'. She needed to find a way to build up to it. Some way to soften the blow, as it were.
They made it to the bookstore, and she wasn't any closer to figuring out what to do than she'd been when she first suspected that she might be pregnant.
She was resolved not to steal Ambrose's day of fun for herself, but she also should've known that Ambrose would be able to tell something was going on.
The bookstore was as wonderful as Ambrose-- and the rest of them, to be honest-- had dreamed, with towering shelves and so many sections of non-fiction that they had it first alphabetized by country, and then organized by date. Then by author, if the section was still too big-- like World War Two, which had an entire room to itself.
Sabrina and Ambrose were making their way through the store together while Zelda looked at artistry books-- right now, she was looking into the history of plays-- and Hilda thumbed through the cooking section. Sabrina was glad that she'd brought a bag in addition to the one Ambrose had brought for himself, because one was already filled to the brim and they weren't halfway done.
"So," Ambrose said, inspecting the contents page of a book of George Orwell's essays, "are you going to tell me what's wrong, or do I get to guess?"
"What makes you think anything's wrong?" Sabrina tried.
He glanced at her and raised an eyebrow. She sighed, and he looked back at the book and flipped a page.
"I'm pregnant."
To his credit, Ambrose didn't so much as blink. "Are you sure?"
"I took a test when we stopped at the gas station, and I've definitely missed a period. Maybe two."
"Two?" he repeated.
"I was really busy with the student council election, remember? And sometimes I'm a couple days late and it's nothing. So I've definitely missed one, but it's really possible that I missed two and didn't notice. Do you think Aunt Zee will be mad?"
"Probably, at first," he said honestly. "Anger does tend to be her immediate reaction." He closed the book and added it to the bag. "But, as she always does, she'll get past it and be supportive."
Sabrina had known that was true in the back of her mind, but it made her feel worlds better to hear her cousin say it. She nodded, adjusting the bag on her shoulder. "I don't know what I'm going to do about this. Like, how am I going to juggle school with raising a baby? And aren't teen pregnancies kind of dangerous?"
"Not to be rude, but why didn't you use protection?"
Sabrina rolled her eyes, hard. "We did . Condoms aren't a hundred percent effective, and you know that birth control pills don't agree with me." Simply put, it had been the worst two months of her life as she took them, tried to tell her doctor that she felt something was wrong, and he didn't believe her. It's not like her periods had been so heavy that she felt the need to regulate them, and using a condom had felt like plenty of protection. Until now. "I know you think I can be irresponsible at times, but I'm not reckless."
Ambrose sighed, the way he always did when she got herself into situations that she then asked for his help with. Of course, this was a much bigger situation to deal with than usual. "I don't know how you continue to get yourself in trouble, cousin. I really don't."
"It's a baby. It's a big life change, but I don't think I'd call it 'trouble'."
"Then you have a different perspective on motherhood than the rest of your family," Ambrose said. "At least you were using protection. That should keep the wolves at bay for a little bit. Ah, I believe this is what you were looking for," he said, pulling a book off the shelf and handing it to her.
Sabrina opened the book and started scanning the first page. For the moment, her pregnancy was put on the backburner. She didn't necessarily feel better about the situation now that Ambrose knew, but it was definitely one less thing to worry about. Besides, pregnancy would last for a while. Nearly a year, which seemed like an eternity away. She'd have plenty of time to figure everything out.
They made it back home, had a celebratory dinner of ordering in, and everyone trailed off to bed. Aunt Hilda hummed to herself as she went, making Aunt Zelda roll her eyes and ask if she had to be so happy all the time. They bickered softly as they went, and Ambrose lingered at Sabrina's door with her. He waited until the door to their Auntie's room closed before leaning in and whispering, "Do you have any idea what you're going to tell them?"
Sabrina shook her head. "I'll think of something."
"Please do, cousin."
"Goodnight, Ambrose," she said, a hint of finality in her voice since it looked like he had more to say. This wasn't something she wanted to get into right now because if she did, she'd never be able to get to sleep.
He sighed. "Goodnight." He walked towards the attic, and Sabrina stepped inside her room.
As much as she wanted to crawl into bed and fall into unconsciousness, she'd feel a lot better if she talked to Caliban. He kept later hours than her, so didn't feel bad picking her phone out of her pocket and calling him.
"Hello, love," he said, and the tension left her with a relieved smile. It was possible that he'd dump her when she told him, but for now, hearing his voice made her feel better.
"Hey."
"Not that I'm complaining, but why did you call? Nighttime goodbyes aren't your style."
"I know. I was just wondering if you wanted to meet up at Doctor Cerberus's tomorrow at eleven?" Eleven o'clock would give them enough time to have a normal date, and then go for a stroll where Sabrina could tell him. Because as much as she wanted to tell her aunties about this so she would know that she had support, it would be easier to go to them when she had a plan, and she couldn't have a plan unless she knew how involved Caliban was going to be.
"I thought you had church then."
"I normally do, but uh, ever since I got in an argument with Father Blackwood in the middle of his sermon, I think Aunt Zelda would be happy for me to skip."
"I thought she forgave you for that."
"I did it again." After promising that she wouldn't. She did feel bad about it, but Father Blackwood had been going on about traditional roles for men and women, and she hadn't been able to let that slide. If Aunt Zelda had thought about it beyond how embarrassed she was, Sabrina was confident that she'd agree with her-- it's not like her Aunt was the picture perfect submissive woman, after all.
Caliban snorted, amused. "You never can keep your thoughts to yourself."
"I will have you know that my thoughts are absolute treasures. Anyways, tomorrow, eleven o'clock?"
"I'll be there."
"Awesome. That was all I really called to talk about, and I am kind of tired. So, I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yes. Sweet dreams, love."
Sabrina smiled again. Maybe it was corny, but it warmed her every time he called her 'love'. "Sweet dreams," she echoed, and they both hung up. She got changed and climbed into bed, all without losing her good mood. Her mind was moving a little too fast to be able to get to sleep quickly, but she wasn't up half the night like she'd worried would happen.
Aunt Zelda didn't even ask her to get dressed for church in the morning. Her and Aunt Hilda left, leaving Sabrina and Ambrose alone in the house. Ambrose had been exempt from going to church for years because there were too many people in a small room, and now that he was better, he still had no desire to go. Aunt Zelda had either given up on both of them, or she was secure in the safety of Ambrose's soul even if he didn't go to church every week.
Sabrina got dressed for her date and stared in the mirror for a while at her still-flat stomach. She knew that nothing about her appearance had changed yet, but she spent a long time looking, trying to be sure. It was only her imagination that her stomach was sticking out a little bit more, and she knew that for a fact. She couldn't be more than two months in, and that was too short a time for her body to start outwardly changing.
"Ambrose?" she asked, knocking on his door even though it was hanging open.
"What's up?"
"I just wanted to let you know that I'm heading out to Cerberus's to see Caliban."
"Are you going to tell him?"
"Yeah." She tugged on the sleeves of her sweater.
"Do you have a plan?"
"Does buying him a milkshake and going for a walk afterwards not count as a plan?"
"It counts as part of a plan," Ambrose said. "I just think you should know what you're going to say leading up to it. All the milkshakes in the world won't provide enough cushion if you blurt it out."
"Yeah, I guess you're right." He often was, but she wasn't going to admit that aloud; it would give him too much power. "I'll think of something. Do you need anything while I'm out?"
"No, but do try to get back before Aunt Zelda does; you know how she feels about your boyfriend."
Sabrina knew her feelings forwards and backwards and hated every single piece of them. Aunt Zelda was a wonderful person, when she wasn't trying to judge anyone. If Sabrina could get her to accept Caliban, then they'd be fine. "He's about to be family, so she'll have to get over it."
"You're that confident he'll stay with you?" Ambrose asked.
"No," she admitted. There was no point in pretending to be sure. Not about this. For school, she could fake her way through it, and he'd never know. But with a baby on the way and Caliban possibly being involved, he'd be up close and personal with everything as it was happening. "But he'd still be connected to the family, whether we like it or not. Wish me luck!"
"Good luck," Ambrose called after her as she headed down the hallway. Then, under his breath, "You're going to need it."
Caliban didn't stop walking. They were walking, arm in arm down the street after their milkshakes, and she'd told him. Two simple words, and he hadn't given an immediate reaction. "I'm pregnant," she'd said, and they were still walking, almost as if he hadn't heard her. She hadn't whispered it or fumbled over her words though, so she knew that he'd heard her.
After a second, he said, "That's unexpected."
She laughed a little. "Yeah. I guess we weren't careful enough."
He nodded.
They kept walking.
"Your aunt doesn't like me very much. I'd imagine that's about to get worse."
"Aunt Zelda will accept that you're part of the family like I always knew she would."
Caliban smirked. "I suppose that's one way of looking at it." He stopped and turned to face her. "I know that I'm not the most responsible person you've ever met, but I'll be there for you for every step of this."
It was the answer Sabrina had been hoping for, and the one she'd expected. Yes, she'd had her doubts, but those were mostly from fears derived from statistics and not anything Caliban had done. Her eyes filled with tears, overwhelmed by his support now that she had it, and she nodded. "I know. Thanks." She threw her arms around his neck, and he held her tightly.
"Have you told your aunts yet?"
She shook her head, her hair brushing against his as she did so. She pulled back and ran her fingers through that side to get it back to normal, then wiped at her eyes. She put her arm through his, and they started walking again. "Ambrose knows, but that's it."
"Do you want me to be there when you tell them?"
"If you don't mind, that would be amazing. I know that they'll be supportive at the end of the day, but at the start, I think Aunt Zelda will be upset. It would be nice not to be alone. And, to be honest, I think it'll make them worry less if they see that we're already starting to think about the future. Not to mention, they'll like you more if they see that you're not abandoning me."
"Then I'll be there."
Another weight off her shoulders. She knew that she'd have support through the pregnancy-- and after, when the baby was born-- but it was a different experience to have the promise given to her, rather than assuming it would exist. "Thank you." She knew that this wasn't going to be easy, but she hoped that, with each conversation, things would get easier.
"Have you thought about what you're going to do yet?" Caliban asked.
"What do you mean?"
He shrugged one shoulder. "School. You've got another year. Are you going to drop out and take your GED, or are you going to try and attend your senior year?"
"I- I haven't thought about it yet. I wanted to tell you, tell my aunts, and then start dealing with the logistics. It won't be easy. I know it won't be easy, but I think if we all put our heads together, we can figure it out."
"We can do that. Or..." he trails off, hoping that she'll prompt him.
"Or?" she asked dutifully.
"Or we come up with a plan on our own to present to them. Try to show them that even though we're young, we can handle this responsibility."
She squeezed his arm, so unbelievably happy that she had met Caliban. "I like the way you think. Let's plan."