Teen Pregnancy

As I watch Jackson blow out the candles on his third birthday cake, I can’t help but smile. He’s grown up to be such a beautiful and caring young boy. It wasn’t always this easy though, Four years ago I was a senior at Blackwood High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I was starting to look at colleges, planning my whole life. I was going to go to college for four years to be registered nurse. For once, my life was going good and my parents were proud of me. They weren’t fighting as much, but that one night changed my whole life forever.
I can remember it like it was yesterday. June 20, 2012 was a Friday. Every single one of my friends wanted to go this big party, it was the biggest party of the summer. Everyone was going to be there. I wasn’t really a party person, but if it was the biggest party of the summer I told my friend Amanda I wanted to be there. She called me that night and told me to get ready and at 9:30 she would be there to pick me up. She picked me up and we were on our way to the biggest party. We pulled up and there were so many people there that there were people in the yard just hanging out. The house was a mansion. Huge glass windows lined the front. The lawn, was a perfect patch of green grass; no weeds anywhere. The front door was different it had colorful pieces of glass put together into one door it was amazingly beautiful. As we walked into the house it was so full that we couldn’t even walk in the door without bumping into someone. We started drinking and Amanda did too. I was a light weight, so this boy named Devin Smith walked up to me and asked me what my name was. He had light brown hair with amazingly green eyes that sprinkled when he talked and looked me in the eyes. He asked if I wanted to do shots with him. Everyone knew him, he was good at every sport he played. He was the best player on the football team and he was hot and he knew it. I was already a little drunk, and when I get drunk I get very friendly, so I said of course. We started doing shots and I was having a great time. We did over 11 shots and I was drunk ,He was drunk too. So we started talking and telling each other about ourselves. He asked me if he could take me up in the room upstairs. I smiled, He grabbed my hand, and as we went up the steps I fell and spilled beer all over my shirt.
He smiled and said “I’ll help you, come with me”.
We got into the room and he sat me down on the bed and took my shirt off and started kissing me. From there it was a blur. I woke up the next morning in Amanda’s house. She told me how much fun the party was and how everyone was telling her how sexy and hot I was, but I wasn’t even listening to her. All that was going through my head was Devin Smith and what we did after he took me upstairs. I became sick to my stomach and wanted to cry as Amanda started to stop talking and ask me,
She said “what is wrong?”
I began to explain. “oh my god!” Amanda said.
“ We need to find out if you’re pregnant or not.” I started to cry ”I was so scared as everything went through my mind.
What I was going to tell my parents? How were they going to take it? It was all bad and I couldn’t stop thinking about it as I sat there and cried. Amanda tried to calm me down.
“Its okay Becca everything is going to be okay ill help you through this all if you need my help I’ll be there.“
I sat there and smiled a fake smile. She gave me a huge hug, I thought my life was over..
It was two months later when I got the results. I couldn’t believe the pregnancy test came out positive. I couldn’t get it off my mind. It felt like my whole life had changed. I knew I had to tell my parents. But I’m not sure she's prepared for how they might react. But that night I told my parents and they said that they would be here for me. They said they were going to do as much as they can. My mom didn’t take it as bad as my dad did my dad was upset with my actions and said that he was very upset. I was alone and now since I told my parents now it was going to get even harder. I had to call the boy that was my baby’s dad and tell him that the night we partied he got me pregnant. I didn’t feel very comfortable with him, I mean I met him that night and he took advantage of me being drunk That’s going to be such an awkward conversation I didn’t want to call him but I knew I had to. So I picked up my phone and called the number he had given me that night “Hello,” Devin answered I become to get all red and started to freeze up.
“Hum… yes this is Becca, you know that girl at the party from like two months ago.”
“Oh yeah hey I didn’t have your number I wanted to text you and tell you that I’m sorry for that night and I was drunk and don’t remember anything.”
“Yeah it’s fine, I just need to tell you something and its kind of awkward.”
“Yes,” Devin said”
“Well I’m not sure what we all did that night, but..”
“ But what..”
“Well, let’s just say you got me pregnant..”
As she sat there she heard him hang up..
Three and a half years later, it’s hard for me to believe sometimes that I survived it. I am doing well. Devin is still not involved in my life or his sons. I like to keep it that way because I think I have done my job as a mother I also think that he doesn’t deserve to be my sons father sometimes I think that maybe someday he’ll come around, but I’m not sure that will ever happen. Being a mom is the hardest, but best thing I ever did. There was sometimes I was so broke I had to ask my mother for money. To get Jackson the stuff he needed I was so thankful my mother coopered with everything. Cause some girls that get pregnant at the age that I did don’t have that kind of help or the support. Some teens now a days are getting pregnant and think it’s funny it’s not funny at all when I got pregnant I had to grow up real quick there was so more partying no more school dances , no more sports , nothing it was time to realize that I was going to have kid when you have your kid its adult time there’s no more worrying about how you look what clothes you wear nothing everything you spend your money on is for that kid to getting diapers, formula. It all cost alot of money it not a life for teens that’s why people get pregnant in there 20s not teens. It’s not the life I wanted to live even though I love Jackson and I would trade the world for him. Now I’m a speaker at schools I talk to girls in grades 10 and up about teen pregnancy. I see a lot of girls that are or were in the same position as me. I see some girls that are in the same position as I was or their situation is worst then mine was. I’m am really lucky that I made it though this. There is sometimes when I go and speak at schools I hear some girls stories that remind me so much like my teen pregnancy story. It makes me very upset cause I know what them girls are feeling. Also I tell them about the birth control and tell them to get on the birth control if there not already on it. If any of them need help with getting on the birth control we have papers where they can fill out. I sent them to parents and tell the parents that it would be better if we get them on the birth control. To stop them from getting pregnant most parent are understandable. Trust me girls you do not want to end up getting pregnant you have a whole life to live. It’s alot of responsibility.