Chapter 3
Jack
It was five weeks before I heard from Janis again. “I’m pregnant, Jack. You’re going to be a daddy,” she announced as soon as I answered the phone.
I was dumbstruck. She had told me that she was “safe” that night that we had sex. “But you said you were safe,” I protested. “Evidently I was wrong,” she answered.
There was a long period of silence while I held my phone to my ear but was too in shock to even think of what I could say. I got laid one time in my life and now I am being told that I am going to be a father.
“I don’t know what to say. I don’t…know what I should do,” I finally said miserably. “I need to talk to my parents,” I told her. “You need to man up and marry the mother of your child,” Janis hissed. Then she hung up her phone.
“Oh hell no!” my father yelled when I told him and mom about my situation. “You have known this girl for seven weeks and now she is saying she is pregnant?” he questioned.
“When did you have sex with her?” He asked. “Exactly five weeks ago,” I told him. “Shit, most women don’t even figure out that they are pregnant until six or weeks in,” dad stated. “There is no way in hell you will marry that girl until there is DNA proof that it is yours,” dad growled.
At 18 years old this was a monumental event in my life.
Dad has made it very clear that I am not to marry Janis until I know for sure that the baby is mine.
He even said that even if the baby is mine that I did not have to marry Janis.
You can pay child support and move on with your life,” he told me.
I was torn inside. I understand what my parents are saying to me. Yet, I feel responsible to see this through.
When I called Janis, she answered her phone this time. “Can I take you out to dinner so we can talk about this?” I asked Janis. “I’d like that a lot,” she answered.
Janis seemed happy and upbeat while we ate dinner. She agreed that we could wait till after the baby was born before we’d get married.
It was just past 8pm when Janis and I checked into a flea bag motel. We fucked our brains out till midnight and then I took her home.
Janis and I made a decision to act as boyfriend and girlfriend until the birth of the baby. “We can name the baby together and then make plans for how to move forward,” Janis suggested.
Mom and dad were not pleased that I was seeing Janis but at least they were relieved that I would not marry her until after the birth and getting DNA proof that the baby is mine.
Mom told me that she was proud that I was doing what I felt was right. Dad was not on board with that at all. He said I was making things harder on myself. He said that he had no doubt in his mind that the baby was conceived before I even met her.
Over the next 7 months, I saw Janis every Friday night and Most Saturdays. Even a few Sundays. Janis always acted all lovey dovey when we were together. Telling me that I was the best boyfriend ever.
But there were some things that were happening that did not quite sit right with me. I would drive past her house every evening of the week coming home from my Tai Chi training. On many occasions, I saw men coming out of her house.
Tall men, short men. White men, black men and even an Asian fella. By the end of those 7 months, I had a deep concern as to what going on with Janis. When I confronted her, she told me that the men were just friends of hers from the local college.
I was shocked when Janis went into labor at the end of 7 months. Because we weren’t married, I had to sit in the waiting room for four hours while she went through the labor and finally delivered her son.
When I asked the doctor if there were any problems with the baby being a preemie, he looked at me like I was daft and informed me the baby had been carried to full term.
When I went into Janis’ private room, I quickly found out how the baby had been carried to full turn. The baby that was in her arms was a black baby. “I can explain,” she said in a panic. “Don’t bother,” I answered. I have never talked to her again since that day.