As she sat on the cold tiles of her bathroom floor, the plastic stick in her shaking hand. With each passing second, her heart beat racing, mirroring the thoughts in her mind.

As the second line faded into existence, time seemed to stop as she grappled with what had just happened.

Her mind swirled in a whirlwind of thoughts into her soul, each one more chaotic than the last. “What would this mean for my future?” She thought. How would she navigate the untouched land of her new life chapter? And, perhaps most daunting of all, was she truly ready to bring a new life into this sometimes terrible world all on her own?

Tears became evident in her eyes. In the midst, she realized that her world, well her current world, was indeed ending – not in an apocalyptic blaze or of some passion she had once fantasised of, but in this new beginning.

With a deep breath, she slowly rose from the floor, staring at the test. Though the path ahead would be fraught with challenges and unknowns, she knew that she wanted to and would then have to face them head-on.

As she gazed out of the bathroom window and into the sunrise, she dared to believe that, amidst the chaos, and the chaos to come, there was still the potential for a love that was as profound and rewarding as any she had ever imagined.

She then clutched the test to her chest and with a hopeful smile, hoped for a safe travel to the second trimester.