"we'll get out of Indiana somehow"
he breathlessly promised
as they raced each other to nakedness
in the basement
of James' parent's house
in the blue glow of
an unattended television
they threw the dice
as his parents slept
blissfully unaware.
That was November.
Months melted slowly
they made a pact
and their secret
grew inside her.
When people started to notice
Jessie dropped out in her senior year
nobody was certain
and nobody asked.
His parents were skeptical
was she right
for their son,
and remembering his boyhood dreams
of being an astronaut
he each felt a pang.
As trimesters passed
Jessie and James
grew more isolated
from the rest of the world
so his ostrich-like parents
were relieved when
"the kids" accepted their invitation
to the family vacation
at Disneyland.
Inside the Magic Kingdom
Jessie didn't explain why she
couldn't go on any fast rides
and all she wanted was a plush Mickey
James lived out his fantasies
on "Space Mountain".
Later, they went for lunch at Denny's
and before her chicken strips arrived
Jessie excused herself
to the ladies' room.
With surprising efficiency
she quickly locked herself
in the handicapped stall
and forced the baby out of her
onto a cold dirty tile floor.
Then, as planned,
she scooped up the baby
wiped up the blood
with paper seat covers
and gently placed the crying
lonely infant
on the ignoble bedding
of used paper towels
in the wastebasket.
She tried composing herself
to rejoin the others
but something inside her
betrayed this part of the plan
and she numbly walked to the exit
and stood outside
waiting for the unknown
but knowing it was inevitable.
Then came
the surreal voices of alarm
the police cars and handcuffs
the television cameras
and eventually a felony child neglect
booking for her
and a statutory rape charge for him
His parents said they didn't know
she was pregnant.
Everyone just wanted to go back to Indiana
but they had to stay in California
a lot longer than anyone had expected.