“I found out I was pregnant at about 6 weeks.  I told my Dad 2 weeks later.  He just said make an appointment.  I told him wasn’t ready for that yet.  He got really pissed, gave me a month to get ready.  By then I was 3 months and decided to have the baby.  When I told him, he didn’t even look up from his paper.  He just said pack.  Next thing I know I’m on a plane to Canada to live with his sister that I have never even seen before much less talked to.”

“God what an ass,”  Ellie said mad for Ava.

“Complete ass.”

“Why didn’t he want you to keep the baby?  I know you were young but it was still your choice.”

“Keep?  He didn’t want me to have it period.  It didn’t matter how old I was he just didn’t want to be embarrassed by me.  So he sent me here before I started showing.  He said if I was stupid enough to get knocked up then I would just have to deal with it.”

“God Ava I was hoping your story would make me feel better but damn now I’m dreading telling my dad more than I was before,”  Ellie said looking a little pale.

“I’m sorry El.  But come on did you really think if he was all great with it I would be here?”  Ava said laughing.  “I didn’t mean to make you feel worse.  Look my dad was a dick but everything still worked out fine.  It will for you to.  Besides he has always been an ass.  So don’t let his attitude make you expect your dad to act the same way.  He sounds cool from what I’ve heard about him.  I bet he’ll be great.”  Please God let that be true.  Ava said to herself.  She just hoped Ellie’s father didn’t put her through what she had to go through.  

“I hope your right.  But what about your mom, she just let him send you away?”  Ellie asked.  Her mom was far from perfect but she didn’t think she would let her dad send her away.

Ava’s face hardened.  “She does what he says, she has no mind of her own.  When I told them she just sat there with her hands folded on her lap looking at him like she was waiting for him to tell her how to respond.  She’s like a fucking robot.  She makes me want to throw up.”

“That sucks,”  Ellie said not really sure what else to say.

After a few minutes Ellie finally spoke.  “But what about now that Seth is here?  Don’t they just love him?  He’s so cute how can they resist?”

“They haven’t seen him.  I don’t know if they know he’s even here yet.  He was 3 weeks early so I don’t know if they have figured the dates or not.  But they didn’t know I was going to keep him.  I didn’t even know until I was 5 and a half months.  The first time I felt him move I just knew I couldn’t give him up.”

“You going to tell them?”

“NO!  Fuck them.  They don’t care about me and they sure as hell don’t care about Seth.  My Dad set me up with that car and sends me a fat check every month so I wouldn’t come home before I had the baby.  Isn’t that sad?  My own father paid me to stay away.”

“That is awful Ava.  Your dad needs his ass kicked.  What did he think was so embarrassing about you being pregnant?”  Ellie asked trying to soak it all in.  Ava’s life was like some bad made for TV movie.

“He’s rich and a wannabe politician.  He couldn’t let me make him look bad in front of the whole town.  His words were ‘If I can’t control my own daughter who is going to vote for me to control this town?’  So I got the boot,”  Ava said with a shrug.

“What does he tell people about where you are?  I mean what do people think, you just dropped of the face of the earth?”  Ellie said still trying to grasp the craziness of it all.

Ava laughed a harsh forced laugh and said.  “You’ll love this.  I’m an exchange student in Canada.  I don’t know what he’ll do when I never come home.  I don’t even want to know what he will say then.”

Ellie couldn’t help but laugh so she did and Ava was laughing right along with her.

“That is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,”  Ellie said trying to stop laughing.

“Tell me about it.  Next thing I know he’ll be saying I’m a Mountie and that’s why I never get back, I’m just to busy with my man tracking,”  Ava said rolling her eyes. 

Ellie laughed again “Okay so you’re rich?” 

“No El he’s rich.”

“What kind of rich are we talking here?”  Ellie asked.

“18 Mercedes’ dealerships across the state of Alabama rich,”  Ava answered.

“That’s pretty damn rich,”  Ellie said nodding her head.  “So what about Seth’s father?”  Ellie began.

“I don’t think so!”  Ava yelled grinning.

“What?” 

“I’ll tell you about my old beau when you tell me about yours.” 

“Shit it’s 15 till 10.  I gotta go,”  Ellie said changing the subject.

“Nice save Nash.  Come on I’ll give you a ride home.  You can tell me about lover boy later,”  Ava teased.

Ellie just laughed.  “I wouldn’t hold my breath.”