The door creaked open and Amelia handed the white plastic stick to Tina. The teacher looked at it as tears filled her eyes; she knew she would never experience this for herself, she would never have a positive result on a pregnancy test. She would never have the joy of knowing that a child was growing inside her. She would never rush home to tell Chris that he was going to be a dad again. No one would ever call her Mum. The sadness hung in her chest like a lead weight. ‘Miss, miss, what does it say?’

They walked out of the toilets before anyone else came in. ‘Just get in the car, we can talk about it there. You can’t wash your dirty laundry in public – let’s keep this to us, not the world and his bloody wife.’

Tina could barely speak. She sat in the car, with her head resting on the steering wheel. Amelia watched her impatiently, desperate to find out if she was tubbed.

‘Miss, come on, just tell me and put me out of my misery.’ Tina lifted her head up slowly. She had to put her own issues to the back of her mind and deal with this situation professionally.

‘Amelia, it’s a positive result.’

The girl swallowed a large mouthful of air – she looked like she was choking. She reached over and gripped her arm. ‘Just breathe, take deep breaths.’

Tina reached to her left and pressed the button for the electric window. Some fresh air would help. The cold breeze drifted in. Amelia gritted her teeth together tightly. ‘Forget what I said earlier. Take me straight to the clinic. I want it gone today; can they do an abortion today?’

Tina squirmed; she wasn’t comfortable with this one little bit. ‘Listen to me, Amelia, you’re just panicking at the moment. You’re not thinking straight. Let’s go back to school and have a chat about your options.’

Amelia smashed her fist against the car door. ‘Fuck off, will you? You don’t know my life; you know nothing about me and what my family is like. My dad will do me in.’

‘What about the father of the baby? He might want to support you and the baby. You should talk to him first.’

‘I don’t even know who he is, miss. I’ve slept with a few lads over the last month.’

‘Well, you could have a DNA test when the child is born but let’s worry about that later.’

‘My dad thinks I’m a virgin, miss. Imagine telling him I don’t even know who the dad is, he will shit a brick. Miss, I know what I want to do. Don’t try and persuade me to keep it. If you don’t help me, I’ll do it myself. I’ll drink vodka and get a coat hanger or something. That will do it, won’t it?’