“Ashley, you look really good.”
“Ashley is no more. Good riddance. Nobody liked her. You saw what happened at my graduation.” After the ceremony, nobody had spoken to Ashley. Instead, they had turned their backs as she walked over to join Mom and me in the gymnasium.
“From now on,” she continued, “I am going to go by Nicole.” Nicole was her middle name. “Oh, and thanks a lot for everything yesterday. You were such a big, big help. Can I make you some breakfast? Or an early lunch”
“Breakfast would be nice.” I had just woken up even though it was 11. “I’ll have a light lunch before going to work at 4.”
“How does a half a bagel, a yogurt and some apple slices sound?”
“Much better than my usual cereal.”
I watched as she worked in the kitchen. She was easy on the eyes.
“You asked me during the drive why I was so happy.” I hadn’t understood how she could be so happy when I thought her future looked so grim. “I told you that things were going just the way I was hoping. Losing the weight and getting fit went a lot better than I thought they would. Don’t get me wrong – I had to work for hours every day to get into this shape and it is a challenge to eat well on a tight budget. But I did it. After blowing off school for three years, I busted my butt the last year so I would know something when I graduated. I have been accepted to Madison College” – the local community college – “and I’ll be taking classes there this fall so I can be admitted to their nursing program. I came up with a plan and I have been sticking to it.” She served me my breakfast. “The only big challenge left is to use this” – she gestured towards her body – “to get a dad for Owen.”
As if he had heard his name, my five-month-old nephew cried out.
“Coming honey!”
Ashley went to get Owen out of his portable crib.
Owen was why I had thought Ashley’s future looked so grim. She had only a high school diploma and no money. Mom wasn’t going to give her any money just like she hadn’t given me any money in the four years since I graduated from high school. Hell, I can’t remember the last time she ever gave me money as the house, food and her beer habit took up her meager paycheck. Ashley wasn’t going to get any money from Owen’s dad as she didn’t know who he was.
Owen was why Ashley had been shunned at her graduation ceremony. Pregnant girls in our small Wisconsin town were expected to drop out of high school and disappear. I only talked to my Mom when I spent Christmas at home and this Christmas had been an unusually tense visit. Mom constantly complained (which was why I avoided talking to her), but she seemed especially bitter at Christmas. She had told me that everyone called Ashley the town slut. Mom had told me that whenever people asked Ashley who the father was, Ashley told them that she had no idea and they would have to do paternity tests on half the boys in the senior class to determine who the father was.
Ashley sat down on the couch, lifted her cropped T-shirt a little bit, did something with her bra to make a nipple appear and then brought Owen’s mouth up to it.