Run, Girl (If You Can)

The next morning the trio set out on their aquarium adventure bright and early to beat the crowds. Keeley couldn't remember the last time she had been to one of these. Probably when her mom and Kaleb were still alive.

Undersea life was both strange and beautiful. Watching the colorful fish and other sea creatures glide peacefully through the water was very relaxing. It helped her forget the worries she couldn't quite leave behind in New York.

Her favorite exhibit was probably the one imitating a tropical rainforest. Why they had that in an aquarium she wasn't quite sure but they did that sometimes. The last one she went to had snow leopards in it for some reason.

Keisha's favorite was the tunnel under the shark tank. Sharks and other fish could swim right above your head, which was both amazing and a little scary. Jeffrey preferred the jellyfish exhibit.

They all made sure to get plenty of pictures at each. Keeley took some of just the engaged couple together and in turn they took solo shots of her. When they wanted everyone in the picture they had to ask a stranger for help. Selfies don't exactly work if you want to see what's in the tanks behind you properly.

After leaving the aquarium, they wandered around looking at all of the historic ships for a while. Some of them were from the mid-1800s, which was crazy to think about. They were still afloat after more than a hundred and fifty years.

There was a submarine too. Kaleb had always wondered what it would be like to go inside one but never got the chance. She made sure to take a picture of it for his sake and hoped he saw her do it.

It was a lovely day until they went to a seafood restaurant near the harbor and Keeley had to run to the bathroom to puke. The very smell of fish was making her gag.

Keisha came after her a few minutes later. "You okay in there?" she called from the other side of the stall door.

"I'll let you know when I sto—" she had to cut herself off to puke again. Gross. "Stop puking."

"Did you eat something bad earlier? We haven't even gotten our food yet."

"No," she said miserably. "All I had this morning was a granola bar and an apple."

Keisha went 'hmm' before asking her next question. "Do you feel sick anywhere else? You were fine a few minutes ago."

"No. I suddenly had to puke because the fish smelled horrible."

"The fish smelled horri—girl, are you pregnant?!" she asked in disbelief.

What little blood was left in her face drained right out of it. Not possible. She and Aaron only did the deed once and she took the morning after pill!

"No…I took the pill after…I can't be," Keeley mumbled before retching again.

"When did you take it?"

She thought back. She meant to take it right after work that Monday but then Ryan got in the way…she didn't take it until Tuesday night. She missed the 24 hour window. It was within 72 hours but did that make a difference? 

"About 36 hours later."

Keisha sucked in a breath. "Oh honey, those things are 95% effective in the first twenty-four hours but after that it drops down to 89% and after seventy-two hours it doesn't work at all."

So she had an 11% chance of being pregnant? That was so small and yet…

"I think I need a pregnancy test. Right now," she said feebly.

"Okay, open the door and I'll help you. This is a girl emergency; we don't have to explain it to Jeff. I'll let him know we're going somewhere for a while."

Keeley teared up. She was being so nice about this. "Thank you."

Her nausea had passed so she shakily got to her feet and left the stall to wash her hands. A glance in the mirror told her she looked terrible. There was no use stressing out about it yet. This might just be a coincidence.

Keisha wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders as they exited the restaurant and headed back towards town. There was a drugstore a few blocks away.

She picked out a box that had three pregnancy tests in it so people could triple check and stuck it in her purse after paying. Keeley followed numbly in her wake.

The last time she took a pregnancy test was about two years after getting married in her first life. They had been trying to have a baby for about three months when she finally missed her period. She had been so excited seeing those two blue lines appear. Now she felt sick.

This couldn't be happening to her. 11%. There was no way she was that much of a statistical anomaly. Except…she had already been reborn and the chances of that happening were way less than 11%. Statistics were not in her favor.

They made it back to the house before Jeffrey did and Keisha ushered her into the bathroom after giving her a paper cup to pee into so it would be easier to do all three tests at once. Waiting for the lines to appear was the most stressful three minutes of both of her lives.

Keeley was so grateful she didn't have to do this alone. The other woman's arms were around her the entire time as they both peered onto the counter at the test sticks.

Pregnant. Unsure. Pregnant.

Two of the three tests had clear results. Her knees buckled and Keisha had to catch her so she didn't smash headfirst into the counter.

"Calm down," she said. "Deep breaths. It's going to be okay. Let's get you over to the couch and we'll figure out what to do."

Do? What else could she do? After traumatically having her baby aborted without her consent and getting her reproductive organs removed in the process there was no way she would take a life for granted. She had to give birth to it.

Keeley had wanted to be a mother at some point in the next few years anyway. The problem was Aaron. He would be thrilled but he would also want to marry her straightaway.

She didn't want that, right? Wasn't she fighting against her old life as Mrs. Hale this entire time? Logically, she knew that Aaron had changed but she was terrified of going back to the way things were.

She couldn't go through all of that again. The stares. The whispers. The constant judgment. He said he would leave high society behind for her but could he really escape it? What about his parents? He wouldn't be able to hide her forever!