Chapter 3

This isn't Nova, but it's the bathing suit she is wearing to the beach, along with what the beach looks like. I don't want to have a set character for anyone because I like to imagine my own characters when I read so I don't get disappointed 💀 so I'll leave y'all to imagine what they look like.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's been a few weeks since the party. Everything has been good. My classes have been good, Ethan and I have been hanging out outside of classes, I've made a few new friends, and Ethan has even befriended Lorena, Callie, and Cameron. Him and Cameron especially get along well. Callie is really excited about that because, as she states, "Cameron is just so in love with me, he doesn't make much of an effort to make other friends. We're always together."

Right now we're in our intro to higher education class. This class feels more like a free period than an actual class. I love it. Supposedly we're having a debate today. Our professor didn't give us the topic beforehand, so we have no idea what to argue. I look over at Ethan, who is sitting next to me, chatting with another guy in the class. He made a bunch of friends easily, everybody loves him.

"Okay class," our professor stands up from her desk. "as you can see, the chairs are split up. Half are on one side of the room, the other half on the other side. Today's topic is on abortion. Before I go any further, I want you all to know that any form of disrespect will not be tolerated in this class. We are all entitled to our own opinions, no matter what we believe in. So now, I want everyone to stand up." Everyone stands.

"Now, whoever believes that abortion should not be an option for pregnant women, in other words, whoever is pro life, take a seat on the left." I watch as people moved to sit down at the pro life section, though I stay still.

What I didn't expect is for Ethan to take a seat over there. I watch in disbelief as he smiles warmly at me and nods to the seat next to him. Does he actually expect me to sit down with him? What the hell?

"Now, whoever believes that abortion should be a choice, in other words, if you are pro choice sit on the right." The rest of us sit down. I sit in one of the front seats.

Ethan and I are directly across from each other. He's frowning, as if he's upset I'm on the pro choice side. Well I'm upset he's on the pro life side. I look at the people over there. There's more guys than girls. On our side it's the opposite. There's more girls than guys. Since we weren't given any time to prepare, the professor says the opening statements for each side.

"Okay, pro life students, you may begin. You only have a certain amount of time and if I say switch, you have to let the opposite side talk okay?" Everyone nods in agreement. "Alright, let's start."

"Abortion is murder. How can you be for murder? Unborn babies are considered human beings by the government. It's a woman's own personal selfishness that results in the death of hundreds, probably thousands of babies." One of the guys from the pro life side says almost immediately.

"If the government is so against this 'murder', how come it allowed the U.S Supreme Court to rule abortion as a fundamental right that's guaranteed by the U.S Constitution?" I say back, crossing my arms. I look at Ethan again, and he's frowning.

"Roe V. Wade was approved in 1973. Since then we have had time to realize that unborn babies' lives are just as important as our own." Ethan speaks up, his voice soft, as if he doesn't want to hurt my feelings or make me angry.

"Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy, not a baby." A girl from my side speaks up. "A persons age is calculated from their birth date, not the day of conception."

"They're still people. It's murder. And you're all still okay with that?" A girl from the pro life side speaks up. I want to slap the shit out of her.

"Embryos and fetuses are not independent, self-determining human beings. They're practically just a clump of cells. You want to talk about Roe v. Wade?" I turn my attention to Ethan at the last part. He looks uncomfortable. "Roe V. Wade states that the word "person" does not apply to the unborn."

"Switch." Our professor says, stopping me before I go on.

"Back to what the other girl said before," one of the guys on the opposite side chimes in. "Life begins at conception, so unborn babies technically have the right to life."

"Yeah," Ethan sits up straight, seeming like he got new confidence. "One of those babies could be the next President of the United States, or a famous actor, maybe even a successful scientist. But nobody will ever know because they're being killed." I scoff at his answer and he narrows his eyes at me.

"You sound ridiculous. You're basing your argument on a bunch of 'what if' situations? The chances of any of that happening, is low." I shake my head and glare at him.

"There's many couples who aren't able to have babies of their own, to them, an abortion is an insult. Give the baby to a loving home. Give them a chance at life, put them up for adoption for crying out loud." Ethan responds. It feels tense between us, and I think the rest of the class feels it too because nobody else bothers to respond.

"Why is it our job to make other people happy? Those couples can go adopt kids at their local shelter. There's so many orphanages and adoption clinics around the world that exceed their limit of children, yet they still have to take them in because of how many people can't take care of their kids. It only hurts the kids because that means less money for them for things they need like food, water, clothes, school supplies, and more. And when they turn 18, they're kicked off onto the streets with nothing because they never got a chance at having a family. You think that's better for them?" I challenge and Ethan cross his arms.

"So you'd rather them die? Seriously? That's disgusting." The class starts to murmur amongst themselves and I stare at him in shock. He has never been this riled up before, nonetheless called me disgusting.

"Do you realize that it's not always a woman's first option to get an abortion? Several women have to get an abortion or they'll die during labor. You'd rather a fetus live rather than someone who is already alive and has a whole life ahead of them? Because there's a 0.00001% chance they 'might be the next President of the United States' ?" I mock him and put air quotes around his own words.

"Okay but that's not always the case." Ethan shakes his head.

(TW* the next part mentions r/pe)

"You're right, it's not. Sometimes the woman is raped. Their kid will resemble their abuser, and that woman is going to have to live with that for the rest of their lives. And then, to make it worse, sometimes the abuser will have the audacity to fight for partial custody. So now the mother is traumatized and has to constantly see their abuser, and share their kid with them. It's happened before, so don't you dare say it's not plausible." I clench my fists. I can't believe he's actually saying these things.

"I'm not saying that isn't a horrible situation to be in. But a mother should love their kids."

"Would you let me get an abortion?" I ask bluntly. He looks shocked.

"W-What?" He stutters, taken aback. Our classmates, and even Professor, look back and forward at us.

"Say we ended up together, by some miracle" his face looks hurt at the last part, but I don't regret it. Not one bit.

"We are together for 10 years. I get pregnant. I'm in no way ready to be a mother, and the doctors inform us that if I give birth to this baby, there's a 90% chance I won't survive. Are you going to force me to have the baby? Are you going to get mad at me if I decide to secretly get an abortion? You're going to choose an unborn baby you have no connection with, over your partner of 10 years?" I seethe at him.

He looks uncomfortable. He shifts in his seat, but doesn't break eye contact with me.

"Answer the question Ethan." I challenge. The entire class is silent now.

"Okay, if you won't let me live, then think about this." I say. "12 years after that. I'm dead because you didn't care enough about me, you're a single dad with an 11 year old daughter."

(TW/ mention of r-pe again)

"She gets taken advantage of. Now she's pregnant. She's too small to have a baby. But you obviously don't learn from me dying, and force your kid to go through with the pregnancy. She dies. Now you're all alone because of your weird obsession with having control over women's bodies. What do you do now?"

Again. No answer. How fucking pathetic.

"Okay, I think that went really well." The professor stands up from behind her desk. "But I think we should stop at that, there's only 10 minutes left of class. I'd like for you all to give me a hand and rearrange the desks to how they were before."

Everyone stands up and begins to talk to each other. The classroom is filled with chatter and the sound of desks scraping against the floor as we put the desks back together.

"Nova..." Ethan grabs the desk I was pushing and puts it in place for me. "What was that?" He crosses his arms.

"What do you mean 'what was that'?" I copy him. "You know exactly what that was." I grab another desk but he takes it away again, putting it where it belongs.

"I didn't like that. I think we both got in way over our heads. I don't want to argue with you. I think of you as a really close friend. We've been hanging out a lot lately and I'd like to keep it like that. I know you're upset about what I said but I'm upset too. I don't like the situation you put me in, especially in front of the whole class."

"Oh but you can call me a murderer?" I snap at him. "And for your information, my friends would never fight against my rights as a woman, and would never ever feel like they're entitled to say what I can, or what other women can, do with their bodies." I glare at him, folding my arms over my chest.

"I was standing up for what I believe in. We can have different opinions. I didn't think you would be willing to abort your own child." He groans, we are definitely not seeing eye to eye.

"What is wrong with you?" I spat at him. "Just because I support women having the choice of abortion, doesn't mean I would get one myself. Personally, I don't think I'd ever be able to have one. But will I be there to support my friend if she wanted one? Yes. 100%. Regardless of her reasoning. I can't be friends with someone who wouldn't stand up for my rights." I shake my head. The bell rings signaling the end of class, and the fact that we have 10 minutes to get to our next lecture.

"What does that mean?" Ethan looks taken aback by my last statement. "What does that mean for us?"

"Us?" I laugh coldly. "What us? Huh? There is no 'us' anymore. We're not friends." I walk out of the class, making my way to my last lecture of the day. The only class I don't have that infuriating white boy in.

~~

It's finally Friday evening, the weekend, and only a few days after what happened with Ethan. We haven't talked at all. Now that I haven't hung out with him after school, I realize just how much time we had been spending together. He's been hanging around with Cameron, and Cameron is always with Callie, so Lorena and I have been spending time with each other by ourselves. I didn't want to hang out with all of them if Ethan was there. I told Lorena what happened and she understood how I felt. She did say that maybe it's something we can work past, but I doubt it. We're both so adamant about our beliefs.

But I hate to admit, I miss him. A lot actually. I have gotten so used to his presence, that I feel kind of lonely.  I just can't bare the thought of things going back to normal though. How could that happen? I am definitely not going to forgive him for what he said, but people are entitled to their own opinions....

No. I tell myself. No. Not with that. He thinks he can have a say in what I do with my body, as if this is the 30s and I'm his property. People can have a difference in opinion, but not when it comes to human rights. And I'll stand by that. No matter what.

"Callie texted me right now, she said if you wanted to go to the beach for your birthday tomorrow." Lorena, who is laying next to me on my bed, asks.

"Ooh that sounds fun. Tell her I'm down." I smile. I turn 18 tomorrow. It always seems like my friends are more excited about my birthday than I am.

"Yay, I'm so excited. I love the beach. I can't believe you're turning 18. They grow up so fast," Lorena wipes a fake tear away from her eyes and we both laugh.

"We need to pick out what we're gonna wear! Let's do that now." She shoots up from my bed and grins. I agree with her and together we go through each other's clothes to find out what bathing suit and cover up to wear.

~~

"HAPPY BIRTHDAYYYYYYYY!!!!!" I feel two bodies jump onto my bed, shaking me. I groan, wanting to go back to sleep.

"Wake up! We got you breakfast from the cafeteria." Lorena says. I open one eye to see them both holding out food to me.

"Well, in that case..." I laugh and sit up.

"Okay, Lorena and I need to go to the store real quick to get ice for the drinks. We'll let you finish getting ready and then we can leave okay?" Callie looks at me as she slips on her sandals.

"Okay, sure. Thanks." I smile at her. They yell happy birthday at me once again as they exit the dorm.

I eat my breakfast and then shower quickly before braiding my hair so the beach's salty water doesn't make it super tangled. Instead of letting the braid hang down normally, I tie it into a bun at the nape of my neck. I put my bathing suit on, a neon orange color which compliments my skin tone nicely. I then throw on a random pair of shorts over it, and pack an extra shirt just in case.

I look at the clock to see it's been an hour since the girls left, they should be here any minute. I put some lotion on and slip into my sandals, just as a knock came on my door. That's weird. I think to myself. Why would they knock? I don't bother looking out the peephole, I just grab my phone and wallet, throwing the door open.

"Hey- oh..." Ethan says as he stands before me, looking me up and down. I suddenly feel self conscious and wrap my arms around my stomach.

"Why are you here?" I frown.

"What do you mean...?" He asks, looking confused. "Cameron called me asking if you can ride with me because all the stuff is in their car and there's no room."

"They never told me that." I groan. "When were you even invited?" I narrow my eyes at him.

"Yesterday...Callie, Cameron, and I were out and we were talking about what we should do for you. If you don't want me there, I won't stay. But at least let me take you."

Ethan gives me a small smile. I feel angry at my friends. They set me up. God, why would they do that to me?

"Come on, let's go." He takes the things I was holding in my hands and puts them in his bag.

I silently walk out into the dorm halls and lock my door. We walk to the student parking lot, Ethan leading me to his car. I have zero knowledge of cars but I know this one looks extremely nice. His family must have a lot of money. He opens the trunk and places his bag in there. He then grabs a different bag and seems to think for a minute before putting it down again.

"Before we leave, can we please talk?" Ethan looks over to me.

"I don't have anything to say to you." I respond.

I look away from him, but within 2 seconds he pulls me to him and embraces me in a tight hug. I try to push him away but he just holds on tighter to me.

"Let me go!" I huff

"Please just listen. God stop being so stubborn." He groans. "Do you know how hard it is not talking to you? We went from hanging out everyday until the late hours of the night, and texting each other when we couldn't be with one another, to absolutely nothing. We have to see each other for almost the entire day and we don't even speak. It's only been a couple of days, but I miss you. I miss my best friend." I relax in his arms. I feel the same way. But I'm not going to let him know that. I wrap my arms around his torso.

"When you rushed out of the pool the day we met, I regretted so badly not asking for your number or something. I went inside the house to look for you but I didn't know where you went. I looked for you for like 20 minutes inside and then when I went back into the backyard, I seen my shirt laying out to dry. For a month I thought about you. I thought about the way you laugh, the way you smile, your bright teeth, the way your dark skin contrasts against mine and I absolutely love it. You're so beautiful. Everything about you is beautiful, I love everything about you. The way your curly hair gets longer in the water, making it seem like magic. The way you smile when you blush, I love your height, the way your body fits against mine. How I can just perfectly rest my head on top of yours and you can perfectly rest your head in my neck." He lays his head on top of mine, making his point.

I have no idea what to say. Why would he tell me all this? I'm trying to be mad at him. I can't help but feel my heart melting though. That was so cute. This man is so cute. I feel so overwhelmed and my heart is so full, I want to cry.

"I know we don't see eye to eye on some things...but I did some research while we weren't talking. I was raised in a very conservative home. I went to a religious school up until now, so I was taught things that may not be acceptable to others. But I want to change. I'll support you, and all the other women in the world. I realize that I was being selfish. As a man I have no right to speak on what you guys should do with your bodies. I realize that now. I'm so sorry that I hurt you."

I take a shaky breath, then let it out. Why, that is quite the confession. He puts his head up and looks down at me. I look up at him, he's giving me a small smile, unsure of how I'll react. I grin up at him and move my arms to wrap about his shoulders.

"I want to grow as a person, I want to better myself. And I want to do it with you, for you." He puts one of his hands on my cheek and I lean into his touch.

"What do you say? Will you be my girlfriend Nova?" He leans down so our foreheads touch. He's whispering at this point.

I close my eyes, basking in the pure bliss I feel in this moment. He runs his thumb over my cheek, again and again, awaiting my response. I open my eyes to see he's staring at me. His light brown eyes piercing holes through my skin once again, sending shivers down my spine for the trillionth time.

"Yes." I barely manage to get out.

He grins so widely I think his mouth might rip.

"Really? Are you for real?" He asks in an excited voice. I laugh and cup his face in my hands.

"I'm 100% being for real." I respond, and for the first time, I ask the question.

"Can I kiss you?" His eyes light up more than I ever could have imagined.

"Do you want to?" He teases, repeating the same words I said to him before we had our first kiss.

"I think you know I want to." I laugh at him. He is so cute.

"Then okay." He grins and I waste no time in connecting our lips together.

This kiss feels so different. It's more raw, and emotion filled. I love every second of it. I open my mouth to allow him more access and he doesn't hesitate to take what he can get.

"I've never french kissed before." He suddenly pulls away.

"Me either." I shrug and he laughs, kissing me again.

He picks me up and swings me around in a circle, not breaking the kiss. I squeal and pull away when he puts me down, laughing.

"I can't believe I like a white man." I mutter under my breath, chuckling a bit.

"What was that?" He looks at me curiously, not hearing what I said. I break out into a laugh.

"Nothing, let's start heading to the beach." I reach up and give him a quick peck on the lips, lingering for just a moment before pulling away.

"I have gifts for you. But I want you to open them later." Ethan closes his trunk and opens the passenger door for me.

"You don't have to give me anything." I respond before sliding onto the leather seat. He closes my door, making sure he wouldn't hurt me, and gets into the drivers seat.

"Of course I do. You're my girlfriend." He puts his own seatbelt on, grinning at me.

"You're my girlfriend." He repeats, pulling out of the parking lot and starting to drive. "I could get used to saying that. Nova is my girlfriend. I have a girlfriend. It's Nova." His smile gets wider with every phrase.

"Say I'm your boyfriend." He looks at me. I blush and look away, suddenly feeling embarrassed.

"No." I say shyly.

"I'll say it for you. Ethan is my boyfriend." He mimics a girl voice. He laughs and I join him.

"I don't sound like that." I can't help but smile though. He is my boyfriend. And I couldn't be happier.

"No, you're right. It would sound a lot more angelic coming from your lips." He says.

Lord. What is this man doing to me? I feel butterflies in my stomach. He reaches his hand over and rests it on my thigh. More butterflies.

I put my hand over his and rub his skin with my thumb.

Today is going to be a good day.

A little shorter than the last chapter, but I believe still longer than the first. I have no idea how long the chapters should be. I haven't written in like...years. If anybody ever sees this story, then hi :) pls leave feedback.

Also I feel like this is moving really fast but they're so cute and I'm so bored 😔🖐 but ima stir some drama up soon.

ANYWAYS I WROTE CHAPTERS 1-3 LAST WEEK BUT IM POSTING THEM NOW AND SOMEONE IS ACTUALLY READING IT. They voted on both of them omg 🥺. Hello!

Also, I'm still editing these so there will be spelling mistakes and stuff :(