The Implosion of Aggie Winchester by Lara Zielin Read Free Book Online Page A

I realized. She was no doubt bluffing—but better safe than sorry.
    “I’m just playing,” I said, trying to make my voice light. “Just screwing around.”
    Jess lowered her sword a few inches. “Yeah, well, me too,” she conceded. “I won’t tell. It must suck to be pregnant in this cow town.”
    I pulled my fencing mask over my face so Jess didn’t see the blood leaving my cheeks and pooling in my stomach. How did she know that? “What are you talking about?” I asked.
    “My hand might be deformed, but my eyes are just fine, thanks,” Jess replied. She moved her sword again, and the tip landed squarely on my heart. But the jab wasn’t so hard this time.
    “The match goes to Kline!” Ms. Rhone called out. I stared at the indistinguishable contours of Jess’s face behind her fencing mesh. Who the hell was I dealing with?

Chapter Six
    MONDAY, MARCH 16 / 4:12 P.M.
    Later that afternoon at Tickywinn’s I recounted the whole conversation with Jess to Sylvia. She and I sat at a battered blue table in the corner of the café. A huge old window was pouring so much light onto us, I was starting to feel like I was tanning.
    “How does she know you’re pregnant?” I asked. “Who else did you tell?”
    “No one,” Sylvia said, propping her legs up on the empty chair next to her. “Except Ryan. On Saturday night.”
    “You told him? Really?”
    “Yeah. After his beer pong game, we met by my car and just drove around for a while.”
    I didn’t need Sylvia to go into detail about what they did when they “drove around for a while.”
    “What did he say?”
    Sylvia fingered the handle of her coffee mug. “Not much. He said some scouts were down recently from the wrestling team at the University of Minnesota, and afterward they sent a letter saying they’re interested in him. He says he pretty much needs to focus on that since his grades aren’t so hot and he might not make it into college without sports.”
    “Uh, that’s great and all, except we don’t graduate for another year .”
    “He says the scouts can make their decisions as early as the fall.”
    I clenched my jaw. So that was that.
    “Does that change your mind about anything?” I asked. “I mean, about the kid?”
    Sylvia shrugged. “I don’t know.”
    “Did the doctor say how far along you are?”
    “Almost three months.”
    My stomach twisted. That was way farther along than I’d expected. “Three months? And you didn’t suspect before now?”
    Sylvia shrugged. “I have a lot on my mind. I don’t exactly put my periods on my calendar, you know.”
    I tried to remember back to sex ed class when they told us how a baby developed over the pregnancy. Would it have a heart by now? A spine?
    It didn’t matter. “Well, you have tons of options,” I said. “If you don’t want to get an abortion or keep it, you can always give it up for adoption. There are lots of couples who would probably pay big bucks for a white kid from the Midwest.”
    Sylvia glanced out of the window. A blue Camry backed out of a parking space and pulled away. “I just can’t get my head around not being involved in the life of someone who’s half me. And half Ryan.”
    “You love him,” I realized out loud.
    “Yeah. I do.”
    “I know how you feel,” I said after a second. “I saw Neil on Saturday.”
    Sylvia’s expression didn’t change. “So?”
    “So, you know what he’s done to me all year. His whole m.o. is to want me to come over and screw around, then pretend like it never happened. Just like you and Ryan.”
    Sylvia swung her legs off the empty chair. “That’s nothing like me and Ryan,” she said. “Our situation is completely different. He never dumped me like Neil did to you. And I’m pregnant , okay? So don’t sit here and say it’s the same.”
    I sat back. I hadn’t expected that. “Okay,” I said. “Okay. Just chill.”
    Sylvia folded her arms across her chest and went back to staring out the window. I watched her,