SWEET INNOCENCE
Chapter Thirteen
When Rose and Jack got home, they
went straight to bed, for tomorrow was a big day for them. Graduation was
coming up for Jack, and Rose was still in her classes, heading for finals.
Everything had gone so way out of proportion for Rose. First she met Jack, then
got pregnant, got married, and moved to live with Jack. She had been a busy
girl. So much had happened, indeed.
Jack got up, took a shower, and
got his clothes. He pulled out a pair of black slacks and one of his favorite
shirts, a blue button-up shirt. He wondered why he felt like dressing up today.
Rose rolled out of bed, finding
Jack searching in his dresser for socks. She ran to the bathroom to throw up.
After that, she put on one of her maternity dresses that she had bought not too
long ago, and put it on with some comfortable shoes.
Jack made a small breakfast for
them, although Rose could not eat at that point. They made their way out of the
house, heading for school just before 7:40 AM.
When they got there, all the news
was about Cal and how they had found out he had died. But Rose and Jack knew
differently. So they spread the word.
When Jack reached his Italian
class, he saw Fabrizio and sat next to him.
"Buona mattina, Jack,"
Fabrizio said.
"Buona mattina,
Fabrizio." Jack smiled at him and said the same thing.
"Your Italian is getting
better," Fabrizio complimented Jack.
"Thanks." Jack felt
happy, like nothing could ruin his happy mood.
"Where have you been? I
hardly see you anymore." Fabrizio turned in his chair to Jack.
"That's a long story,
Fabrizio. Really long." Jack patted his pencil on his desk with a loud
thumping sound.
Just then, the teacher walked in.
"Allievi di buona mattina," Ms. Palmer said in Italian.
"Buona mattina, Ms.
Palmer," Jack said loudly.
"Okay. Today we are having
our Italian final. For all the graduates, you have to pass with at least a C or
better in order to be able to graduate. That means you, Jack, since you’ve
hardly been to class." She smiled at him.
"Sì, Ms. Palmer." Jack
smiled back.
"All right, then. Fabrizio,
will you pass these out, please?" She held out some papers.
"Si, Ms. Palmer."
Fabrizio stood, took the tests from her hand, and passed out all the exams to
the students. They took out their Number 2 pencils and wrote their names at the
top.
When Jack got his, he wasn't sure
if he could remember anything, since he was hardly in class. Everyone was now
quiet and doing their exam in silence. He did the best he could, and some parts
of it he remembered, which was good. When he finished it, he turned it over,
stared at everyone else, and sat there. When the teacher saw that he wasn't
doing anything, she told him to give her his paper. He walked up and gave it to
her. Since she had nothing better to do, she started to corrected it. When she
was finished, she called him.
"Jack?" She looked at
him.
He looked up. "Yeah?"
"Come here," she
commanded.
He got up and wondered if he was
in trouble or something. There was a chair for him to sit in, so he sat there.
"Jack, I have to ask you one
thing." She looked at him and put her hands on her desk.
"All right," Jack said,
wondering what he had done wrong.
"I know you’ve hardly been
in my class, but have you been studying lately?" Ms. Palmer asked.
"Yeah. My wife, Rose, has
been teaching me here and there, and so have my friends." He looked over
at Fabrizio, who was looking at him with a funny expression. Jack couldn't help
but laugh.
"Well, congratulations. You
just got an A." She looked as if she was in shock.
"I did? I thought for sure I
would fail." Jack sat back and was relieved.
"Nope. You got five wrong,
which makes that ninety-five percent." She showed him his test.
"Wow. I can't believe
it." He stood up.
"Well, since you finished
early, you can go." She figured there was really no reason for him to sit
there, since he was done.
"Do I need a pass?"
Jack turned back and asked her.
"Nah. Just go," she
said, gesturing with her hands that he could go.
"Grazie, Ms. Palmer."
He smiled and went to his desk.
"Il vostro benvenuto,
Jack." She asked Fabrizio to come up, and so he did.
Jack got his backpack and headed
out the door, walking to Rose's class. He peered inside and watched her take
her math final. He was so happy that he had gotten an A in his Italian class.
He waited for Rose while she took her test. He saw a bench a few feet away and
decided to sit there. He took out his cell phone and called Mercy Hospital.
"Hello. Yeah. Room for
Caledon Hockley, please," he told the operator at the hospital. She told
him the room number. He wrote it down and was connected to Cal's room.
The phone rang. Then, Cal
answered.
"Hello?" Cal answered.
"Hello, Cal. It's Jack.
Rose's husband," Jack reminded him.
"Oh, hello, Jack," Cal
said cheerfully.
"Yeah. Listen, I wanted to
know when you’re getting out. Have they given you a time or anything?"
Jack asked him, wanting to know before he had another test to take.
"Well, they said something
about four o’clock PM." Cal had heard from the doctor.
"All right. I will be there
after school to pick you up," Jack said, yawning. He hated mornings.
"All right. Thanks,
Jack," Cal said.
"You’re welcome." Jack
hung up. He put his cell phone in his pocket. Then, he heard the bell ring. He
got up and saw Rose coming out with her friends. He went to her and took her
bag from her.
"Thanks, Jack," she
said, walking slowly.
"No problem. How was
math?" He grabbed her hand.
"Terrible. But I think I
passed. How was Italian? Did my teaching help you?" She smiled up at him.
"Sure did. I got an A."
He smiled at her, kissing her hand.
"Awesome." She was very
proud of him.
"Yeah, thanks to you."
He looked over at her and kissed her cheek.
"You’re welcome. Listen, I
think that we should call the hospital and see what time Cal will get
out." She smiled that at last she had done something right.
"Already taken care of. He
gets out at four," Jack told her, and helped her sit down.
"Okay. Cool. So, what now?
We’ve got a two hour rest period before our drama class." She looked up at
Jack.
"Well, we are supposed to
put on our own short play for our class." Jack sat next to her, supporting
her back as he let her sit between his legs.
"Well, then, we’d better get
on it. You think we can pull off one in two hours?" She got out her pen
and some paper.
"I sure do," Jack said,
taking the paper and pen from her.
"What shall we do? Have any
ideas?" She looked at Jack and looked at him. He was still handsome.
"Well, yes. How about teen
pregnancy?" Jack looked at her, and she gave him a obscene expression.
"What?" She wondered
why he wanted to do that.
"Well, I thought we could
work that into our script." He patted her stomach. She was showing. She
was due in a month.
"Why?" She had no idea
why he wanted to do that in the first place.
"Because it's something we
can both relate to. Don't worry, Rose." He assured her that everything
would be good. He was known for being a straight A student and his reputation
counted on it.
"Okay. I trust you."
She let him write, offering no ideas, because she hadn't any.
"All right." He took
the pen and tapped the paper.
"Can I read it after you’re
done?" she asked. He was in thought.
"Sure." He looked at
her and kissed her. Jack took twenty minutes trying to figure out how he was
going to start. Then, when he had, he started to write.
Jack wrote the title. Teen
Pregnancy, by Jack and Rose Dawson
Finding Out
Rose: Jack, I have something
to tell you.
Jack : All right. What is it?
Rose: I'm pregnant.
Jack: You’re what?
Rose: That's right. You heard
me. I am having your baby.
Jack: But, Rose, surely it
can't be. We used protection.
Rose: Well, Jack, it didn't
work.
Jack: Are you positively sure?
Rose: Absolutely.
Jack paces the room.
The Next Step
Telling Their Parents
Rose: Mom, Dad, I have
something to tell you.
Father: All right.
Rose: I'm pregnant.
Mom: You’re what?
Rose: I am having a baby.
Father: Rose, this is the
dumbest thing you have ever done in your entire life.
Mom: Rose, you are not to see
this boy anymore.
Jack: Hey, don't yell at her.
We did this together.
Father: Oh, don't worry, son.
You’re gonna get a beating for this.
Jack: Surely we can arrange
something without violence, sir.
Father: Maybe he is the right
one for our daughter. He's smart.
Mom: Maybe.
The End.
He handed it over to Rose. She
read it. She laughed at some parts. When she finished, she looked at Jack.
"Nice writing." She
kissed him, appreciating her talented writer.
"Thank you." He put his
arm around her, hugging her close.
"So, who's gonna be my
mother and father?" Rose hadn't a clue.
"I was thinking maybe
Fabrizio and Cara can do it," Jack said, looking at the new couple a few
feet away.
"Okay. Let's ask them."
Jack helped her up and they went to talk to them. Jack went to Fabrizio and
Rose went to Cara. They both agreed.