His face was red as he licked his lips, opening his mouth to say something. For a moment that stretched on forever, he hesitated over his words before they burst from him. “How can I pay for a baby? I dropped out of school this year. Any money I earnt working was going to pay for hormones and top surgery—but that was years off, ’cause I couldn’t save very fast. I have no cash. I have no way to support a baby. Nowhere to live. How will I raise a kid? I can’t even sort my own life out. I don’t want the baby to have a, a mess for a mo—father.”

Desperate to comfort him somehow, Frazer grabbed his hand, now clutching the desk white knuckled. “Breathe, Jack.”

He took a deep breath.

Frazer ducked her head and managed to catch his gaze again. With a squeeze of his hand, she said, “You’re not a mess. At all. Never say that. Kids need parents who love them. Who support them. We’ll take this one step at a time and figure out what is best for you and for the baby. Okay?”

Shoulders relaxing a little, he looked up at the ceiling for a minute and swallowed heavily. Finally, he caught Frazer’s eye again and said, “Okay.”

“And Jack?”

“Yeah?”

“If you give the baby up for adoption, this programme ensures we’ll still be in contact with you to make sure you’re okay. Okay?”

He let a slow breath. “Okay.”

This kid was awash in a sea of stuff there was no way Frazer would have been mature enough to handle at seventeen. Hell, her actions lately proved she wasn’t mature enough to handle it now. Who let her be in charge of people’s wellbeing like this?

Reaching into her drawer, she pulled out a booklet and flicked through it, tearing out a few of the pages. “Take this.” She handed them over. “That will get you lunch in the canteen and a drink. What time’s your appointment with Cora?”

“In an hour.”

“Great. Eat some lunch. Whatever you don’t eat, take back with you.” Maybe she’d given him enough for four meals. “I’ll see you at the next appointment. You have the bus pass?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. And remember, you can contact Cora at any time. That’s the point.”

When he stood up, he hesitated, not moving to leave. Finally Frazer asked, “What’s up?”

He ground his toe into the carpet. Watched himself do it. “It hurts too much to bind.”

Frazer’s heart went out to him. Unsure of what she could say to make that better, she went for something simple. “Sorry, Jack.”

“Will it stay that way?”