The Kings IV II

45

Hero

"Excuse me," I said, pushing past the people crowding the doors of the school.

"No, we make way for Hero King," one of the guys said, making me chuckle and nod. I walked through the hallway, searching for Amelia.

"Hey," I yelled, as soon as I saw her. I caught her eye and she closed her locker, hugging her books close to her chest as I approached her.

"Hey," I said, "I-I brought you something."

I held out a bag, making her lift an eyebrow and take it. She reached in the bag and pulled out the vitamins I'd bought her, quickly shoving them back in the bag with a concerned look on her face.

"Hero," she whisper-yelled, "prenatal vitamins?"

"Yeah," I said, "th-those keep things healthy with the baby. I researched it."

She shook her head, holding the bag out to me. "I-I can't take those."

"No, you need to," I said.

"I'm not keeping the baby."

I looked down at her, knitting my eyebrows together. "Wait, what?"

"Hero, there is no way I can keep this baby," she said, "w-we're seventeen years old. We're not even seniors yet. We've got f- we've got futures ahead of us."

I shook my head, chewing on my lip. "Well, we could make it work."

"How?" She asked, "Hero, you and I have different plans. Plans on opposite ends of the spectrum. I mean, I want to go to law school. You wanna play ball. There's no way either of us would have time to take care of a child and do it right, at that."

"Amelia."

"Hero, I really didn't think I'd have to even argue this topic with you."

"I'm not arguing," I softly said, shaking my head, "b-but you just told me. Last night. And you're already wanting to just get rid of it?"

"Yes," she firmly said, looking over at me.

"Will you please think about it?"

"Hero, it's all I've thought about," she said, "since I found out, all I can think about is this human being growing inside of me."

I chewed on my lip, looking down at her with soft eyes. To be honest, when she'd told me, it was a shock- but it had gotten me out of bed this morning. This human being that I'd never even met.

"Hero, I just can't," she said, "I'm sorry, if that upsets you."

I rubbed the back of my neck, sighing. "Yeah."

"And plus," she said, "you don't want something that ties you down to strictly one woman, anyways."

I knitted my brows together. "I hate that you think of me that way."

"That was kind of a joke," she muttered.

I leaned against the lockers, folding my arms over my chest. "Does anyone know?"

She shook her head. "No, and I'd like to keep it that way."

I nodded, clenching my jaw. "So, like, do you need me to come with you? To get whatever done?"

"I'm gonna have to tell Mom," she said, "I can't go by myself, I'm a minor."

"You'll be eighteen soon."

"I'll start showing before I'm eighteen, Hero," she said, looking up at me.

I sighed, nodding. "Yeah."