LIFE IN THE "GRAM" II

The thin blue line appeared with the finality of a judge's gavel. Belinda stared at the plastic stick in her trembling hand, the cheap fluorescent light of the bathroom casting harsh shadows on her face. Pregnant. Again. And this time, there was no mistake, no room for denial.

She sank onto the closed toilet seat, the cold porcelain a stark contrast to the heat flushing her cheeks. Outside, she could hear Man Man—nine years old now, all knees and elbows and boundless energy—rummaging in the ...