Can you Imagine?
Imagine being in a situation, where no one would know what they’d do- until they had to.
you wake up in the morning, you feel nauseated, oh god you hope you’re not sick. 11:30 am. your pants aren’t fitting right, it’s sweats and a tee shirt day. you rush downstairs to grab a bite before you run out the door to make your 12 pm class, it’s political science. you make it to class, with 10 minutes to spare, and you breathe a sigh of relief. little did you know that moment would be the last time you’d ever feel relieved, for a long time.
the professor walks in, mr. johnston, an immigrant from canada. he speaks with a weird accent, all the canadians, you know don’t have that accent. he is punctual. You can see the long hand and the short hand of the clock come in sync at the exact moment, that the door opens, at 12 pm on the dot. he walks in his sharp blue and gray suit with a smile on his face and says “how’s everyone doing today? June 24th, crazy how the middle of the semester is here…”
12:02 pm. who knew two minutes could change so much? your mind tunes out the professor, what does he mean it’s not June 24th, that’s impossible. it feels as if the room is frozen in time. you can’t stop thinking about it, it’s June 24th. why can’t it be June 24th? how can it be June 24th, it’s supposed to be June 10th. why didn’t you realize that much time had passed?
For you, overthinking is like a pastime.
snapping you back into reality, the professor says “have a great day everyone, see you on wednesday” and the class packed up and left as if everything was okay, but it wasn’t for you.
1:50 pm. you go to grab your phone- where for the first time you see the notification from over a week ago, Period Begins June 10th. how did you not know, that is all that is going through your head. how had you not noticed it had been 2 weeks?
4 pm. the phone rings, it’s your “boyfriend” he’s alright, he’s loud and opinionated but he can be sweet, some of the time. he just wants you to know you are his. Possession. it’s all standard relationship stuff. you don’t tell him though, that you're late, why would you, it means nothing. you're 19 years old, and there is no possible way you can take care of a kid. taking care of yourself during school is hard enough without caring for another human being.
5 pm. you realize you have to know for sure because if you are what you think you are, a decision has to be made. you walk down to the university center on campus, suddenly, the campus isn’t as fun as it used to be. it felt homey before, the place where you sit with friends in the library, and go to classes that teach you everything you need to know for life, a career. where getting starbucks every day is normal, and where everyone is going through the same thing. except now, you feel a sinking feeling in your stomach. everyone will judge you if you are… if what you think is happening everyone will think you're a slut, and your parents will be ashamed they sent you to school if you come home with a child. you're not sure they’ll be able to look at you the same.
5:10 pm you walk into the pharmacy where you can get a test that will tell you your fate. is everyone staring? you feel as if you just walked onto a stage for all to see.
5:15 pm these shelves seem to be full, you can’t help to think you’re the only one going through this problem.
6:00 pm the test is done.
6:02 pm why does the time go so slow- when you need it to go fast?
6:07 pm two lines.
as you walk out of the bathroom wondering what the hell you're going to do. the noise of the television makes you look up, the news is on with the heading,
June 24th, 2022. Roe v Wade Overturned.