The alarm clock went off at exactly eight the next morning.

Justin bolted straight up in bed and grimaced, slapping blindly at the source of the shrill sound. When he finally managed to hit the snooze button, he fell back onto his pillow with a sigh and turned onto his side, snuggling closer to the warm body next to him. Hmm... Soft... Flannel...

Wait...Flannel?

He opened his eyes and saw his sister's face looming in front of him. It was easy to see that she was still sleeping deeply, her eyes moving rapidly with some dream and her mouth tense as if she were in pain. He smoothed her hair back and watched her for a minute, letting his brotherly worry take over.

The last time she had crawled into bed with him was...well the week before. She had a tendency to lay down to talk to him at night and then fall asleep before moving to her own room. But, the last time he could remember her doing such a thing in the middle of the night, obviously in need of some sort of comfort, she had been about four or five. Afraid of the shadows on the wall in her room, she had run tearfully into his room as she was sure that her brother wouldn't put up with such evil shadows.

He wondered what shadows she needed chased away this time.

He had tried several times the night before to prod Brian into giving him the scoop on what was up with Molly. But Brian wasn't one to give out his own information much less someone else's. It, as he had suspected, had been an uphill battle and all for naught. Well...not for NOTHING. Brian had been forced to find something to shut him up, which he did quite effectively with several random parts of his anatomy.

The alarm went off once more but before he could shut it off, Molly was blinking awake. She stretched and looked at him for a moment before her eyes clouded over.

"Morning."

"Morning," she whispered, looking past him at the clock.

"Did you set the alarm?" He asked, finally realizing that it was actually his day off.

"Yeah. Sorry."

"That's okay. You going to school? I'll have to write a note if you are, because you're gonna be late." She shook her head mutely. "Okay. Are you...feeling okay?" He asked cautiously, not wanting to anger her again over it. Again she shook her head. "What's wrong, Mol?"

She bit her lip for a moment and picked at a loose thread on the duvet. "Got any plans today?"

"I was going to meet Brian for lunch. You want to come with?"

She looked at him then, the anxiety in her eyes almost palpable. "Actually...can you cancel?" He was too worried to speak so he nodded and reached for her hand. She grabbed onto it as if it was her only hope for survival. "I need you to...take me somewhere."

"Okay. Sure. Whatever you want." He hugged her to him and kissed the top of her head, his mind running in circles to figure out what was happening.

An hour later, they were both seated quietly in the car. She was looking out the window, while he tried to navigate through the morning traffic. She had only given him an address to go by and the suspense of where they were going and why was still eating at him.

If only he had known what was to come, he might not have wanted to know quite so badly.

Finally they pulled up to a medical complex and slowly Molly turned towards him. She waited. For him to realize. To respond. To react.

Justin was unaware of her stare as he glanced at the front of the building. It took him a moment to really SEE the words on the bright white and lavender sign. Women's Clinic? He looked over at his sister, a question in his eyes.

Molly was suddenly unsure what to say. She had thought that perhaps this would be the saner course of action. That he couldn't be too upset if he saw that she was taking care of it. She needed his support if she was going to get through this. But now...she could only wonder what she had been thinking by not telling him outright. Instinctively, her arms crossed over her stomach and she avoided his searching eyes.

"What...?" And then he looked out the window, beyond Molly and saw an old man standing solemnly beside the road with a huge poster of an aborted fetus. Giant black letters spelled out "stop the killing", and Justin understood. "Mol," he breathed painfully.

She seemed to be trying to hold something back. As though her words might betray her instead of aiding her cause. "I'm sorry, Jus," she whispered.

"Why?"

Her head shot up quickly at his quiet question. There was no shouting. No angry tirade about the stupid actions of teenagers. Nothing but a soft disappointment and disbelief. She would have preferred anger.

When he realized that no answer was forthcoming, he shook his head and began chewing absent-mindedly on his thumbnail. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I...just found out last week."

"Shit, Molly! Have you told mom?"

"What's the point?" She asked softly, motioning towards the clinic. "Please Justin. I just...needed you here with me."

"What about Daniel?"

"We broke up." She was holding back tears and the sight of his strong, brilliant baby sister near breakdown was tearing at his heart. He shook his head again, hoping it might gain him a little instant perspective. Then he pulled her into a tight hug and she began to sniffle.

"I'm here," he affirmed. "Everything will be okay. You'll do what you feel is best and life will go on."

She pulled back and smiled weakly. "Thanks Justin." He nodded and silently they made their way into the clinic.

***

The first thing Molly noticed about the inside of the building was that it looked exactly like her grandmother's livingroom. Filled with flower arrangements and a large gilded mirror, a large dark oak table and thick green shag carpeting. She figured that it was to give a more homey feel to what would prove to be an intimidating office. The only thing that offset the cozy atmosphere was the reading material that was scattered over every available surface in the room as well as the dozens of chairs that lined the wall. Molly was a bit shocked to see nearly every chair was occupied.

After a gentle nudge from Justin, she finally stepped up to the window and she stared through the glass window as two receptionists ran around madly trying to file and rearrange the paperwork for each of the patients. It took a moment, but finally the older of the two noticed them and slid the glass open, quickly shifting into the pleasant greeter.

"Good morning. Do you have an appointment?"

"Uh...y-yes ma'am. Molly Taylor."

She consulted a large appointment book and nodded, checking the name off and grabbing a blank folder. "I'll need to see your driver's license. Also, did you bring a driver?" The tall brunette asked, sounding far too chipper for such morose surroundings. Molly looked at her dumbly.

"Uh...yeah. That's me," Justin spoke up, now at her side.

"Great! We'll need to see your license as well. Just a formality. So that we know she has a licensed driver that will drive her home, since she cannot drive after the procedure." The brunette busied herself with making copies of the licenses and came back to the window, looking as though she were going to split if her grin got any bigger. "Now if you'll just fill these papers out and return it to the window here as soon as you're finished. Thanks!" She handed Molly a clipboard with several forms attached, but Molly just couldn't make herself take it from her. Justin took it and thanked the woman before pulling her down into an empty chair in the corner.

After she was seated, she relied on Justin to begin the paperwork as she eyed her surroundings a bit more closely. Women and girls of all ages, ranging from around fifteen to forty, sat around the room. All of them looking a bit sad and apprehensive. Most of them were flipping through magazines or watching the television that was mounted onto the wall in one corner. A few had their heads placed on their friend's or lover's shoulder seeking a bit of comfort.

One girl that was sitting directly across from her looked to be about sixteen or seventeen. Her mother sat beside her, filling out her paperwork and looking annoyed by the whole situation. The girl, who was twirling her hair distractedly around her index finger, met and held Molly's stare and the girls shared a sympathetic smile.

"Have you ever had or do you have any...STDs?"

"What?!" She cried, blushing as she realized the volume she had put behind the word. "What?" she asked more quietly.

Justin pointed at the brightly colored paper. "It's on here. There's a whole list. You want to do it?" She nodded and took the clipboard from him, somewhat relieved to have something to do.

"Molly," one of the women behind the glass partition called out.

Molly looked up, stunned at hearing her name. She looked at Justin, who motioned for her to go and see what the receptionist might want. She was immediately guided through a side door and sent to give a urine sample. As she handed it over to the waiting nurse, she felt herself blush. The whole situation just seemed too far out for her. "Um..what is this for?"

The woman looked at her and broke out in a grin. "We have to make sure you're pregnant."

"Oh." Her face scrunched up in confusion. "But...why would anyone come here if they WEREN'T?"

"False alarms, some pregnancies terminate themselves before they really have a chance to grow... We just have to double check. No sense wasting our time and yours." The woman sent her back into the waiting room and she set back to filling out her forms.

It was worse than college applications, she realized after the second page. There were questions for everything from blood type to current sexual activity. Thankfully she had taken over before Justin had gotten to that part.

Not that he hadn't figured out that she and Daniel were having sex. It was sort of a given at this point.

The next time her name was called, some twenty minutes later, she was called back for a counseling session. After the attack on her brother and after her little stint with suicide, Molly had her fill of doctors and therapists. She rebelled at the idea of sitting through such a session, but it was mandatory and she resigned herself to whatever torture it took to get through the whole mess.

She did ask that her brother be present, which the counselor agreed to. When the three were settled, the woman began by giving them all of the literature. Alternatives to abortion. Possible options that might be better suited. Which type of abortion would be preferable. How to deal mentally and physically with the choices you would make. What to expect during and after the decision was made and the "miscarriage" completed. And in the end, Molly hadn't heard a word of what was said. The only way she would distance herself enough to make it through this was to simply detach from the actual situation. And she could. Because dealing with school bullies and bitchy prom queens had taught her the fine art of detachment.

In the waiting room once more, Justin finally broke her silence with a question. "How are you paying for this?"

"It's covered."

"By what? Your friendly HMO? I think not."

"Justin, just leave it okay?" He shook his head and tried to focus on the soap opera that was now playing on the television. Well she couldn't exactly tell him that Daniel's perfect little society mother had bought her off could she? It was absolutely disgusting. She couldn't even believe that she had taken the check. How much lower could her self esteem go at this point?

One final time her name was called and she looked at her brother, the fear evident in her eyes. "Sure you wanna do it?" Molly looked at him with wide eyes and slowly nodded as if she were convincing herself. "Okay. You'll be fine. You'll see the doctor, he'll give you the little pill and we'll go home. Simple as that, right?" He squeezed her hand one last time and she moved slowly towards the side door that led towards the exam rooms.

As she tried to control a panic attack, the doctor entered looking suspiciously like one of Santa's elves. He was short and stocky and he waddled when he walked. His hair was thinning and his face was ruddy. He seemed nice enough, but there was an underlying sternness that scared her a bit. Very no-nonsense. Not quite a comforting figure, but then she remembered that he wasn't there to bring comfort. His was a business that wasn't necessarily of the healing profession.

"Alright...MmmMolly," he squeaked, looking over her paperwork. "First thing I'm going to do is an ultrasound," he explained as he switched on a monitor beside the exam table. A nurse stood at the head of the table but Molly wasn't worried about her. She was too nervous to even hear what the doctor was now saying. But she saw. The wand, that was rolling over her belly and through the generous amount of KY that he had spread onto her torso, was putting the image on the screen. It was the baby.

The doctor didn't point it out, probably as a professional courtesy to the emotional mother, but she saw it. The little butter bean in the center of the black screen. Her baby. Daniel's baby. It was their little butter bean!

"...and I'm sure they've already explained to you how the pill works."

Molly blinked and looked up at the doctor. "I'm sorry?"

Just then, there was a noise resembling a soft humming vacuum followed by a loud wail heard throughout the back rooms of the clinic. Molly straightened and looked pointedly at the doctor. The little pie-faced man shook his head, ignoring the sound altogether. "Yes. Well...all you have to do now is take the pill." The nurse was by her side in an instant. A small paper cup of water in one hand, a second paper cup containing a small pill in the other. "You'll take this now and you should begin the process of expelling the tissue within the next day or so. And I'll want to see you back here in two weeks, just as a precautionary measure. Make sure that the pill DID work and the entire pregnancy was cleared out."

She looked at the pill and shook her head. Something in her had snapped. Whether it had been falling apart or coming together, she wasn't yet sure, but she knew she couldn't do it. "No."

***

As soon as she had come rushing back into the waiting room, Justin had known. Probably had known all along. It wasn't that she wasn't strong enough to go through with it. It was that she cared too much. About Daniel. About him. About an unborn baby that she had to have already named, at least in the back of her mind. She was simply too in love with life.

"I'm proud of you," he began later, while they sat eating lunch in a quiet booth at the diner. Molly gave him a sidelong look and frowned, obviously not believing his words. "I am. I'm proud of you," he restated.

"Why?"

"I would have stood by you no matter what. But...the fact that you are taking...the road less traveled..." His voice trailed off, not knowing what more to say.

She smiled at his poetic reference but felt the need to correct him. "Thousands of women have babies without being married. Some of them younger than I am."

"I know. But...this isn't gonna be an easy road. That's all I'm saying."

"Yeah," she acquiesced. "But it'll make all the difference, right?"

A bright grin lit his face for the first time that day. "You bet your ass it will. Especially to my little niece or nephew." He leaned over the table and placed a hand over her tummy. She giggled and slapped it away.

"Is this a private party or can anyone join?"

The siblings turned their attention to the man standing beside the table. Molly smiled softly while Justin scowled. When his sister finally noticed the look on his face, she grimaced and eyed Brian sympathetically, knowing exactly what argument was about to follow. "Uh...I think I'll...just go check my schedule." She hopped up out of the booth and Brian moved to fill the vacated spot.

"Hey." All he received in response was a hooded glare and he knew he was undoubtably in for it. He was seriously going to have to reconsider not letting Molly tell him things. Oh well...It was bound to happen sooner or later. Let the verbal thrashing begin.

To Be Continued...