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On an early Friday morning, the sun shone through a gap in two separate black out curtains with seahorses and coral embroidered into it. That small slip of light landed on a face, eyes scrunched at the sudden betrayal of their curtains resulting in them rolling over only to yelp when they hit the floor with a thud. "Ow..." A soft voice whined as they blinked their eyes open, beautiful blue eyes settling as they rubbed them sleepily, huffing out, "Too early." A yawn fought to escape their lips as they pushed themselves up from the floor, fighting her way out of the burrito of a blanket they had formerly been trapped in.

Now free of the warmth, their skin prickled under the cold air of the room accompanying them to the bathroom where they looked up at their reflection. Returning the stare was the seventeen year old young woman with fair skin and blue doe eyes, long brunette hair that was tangled and frizzy from her sleep. As she turned her attention to the little bin in the space, she remembered the test she had done the night before; the lines that showed a fate that she had dreaded. Shaking off the remnants of that feeling, she focused on showering and changing into her cheer uniform of blue and white; doing her skincare routine before brushing her teeth.

"Jasmine!!" Damien Portman's voice echoed from downstairs, it was one of irritation which told Jasmine Portman that she had been in the bathroom for too long. Jasmine rushed through the final parts of her routine; hair in a high pony, make up lightly done as she sweats through cheer pratice, extra scrunchie on her wrist, her shoes on her feet, and finally, the seashell necklace her mother left her. Her bag rested on the desk by her door, she shoved her purse and phone inside before switching lights off and heading out of the room. "I'm up, I'm up!" Jasmine called back as she made her way down the stairs towards the lavish kitchen.

"Karina made breakfast," Damien spoke from behind his newspaper, "Sit and eat it." The words weren't an offer but rather an order, Damien had priorities and on top of that list was his wife, Karina Argent. Jasmine placed her bag on the ground by her chair, she looked at the plate in front of her that had eggs on toast, bacon to the side, slices of avocado and a hashbrown. "Thanks, Karina," Jasmine spoke as she looked towards her stepmother, the woman smiled back before turning away to the stove in order to clean it. Jasmine dug into the food, though she preferred to have a savoury muffin for breakfast rather than a meal, she didn't dare disrespect her stepmother as her father would lose his mind in anger.

"Sweetheart, will you be home late?" Karina asked Damien, her voice a soft coo as she settled into the seat next to his. "Not tonight. I made sure my boss understood that our anniversary is too important to miss," Damien replied as he lowered his newspaper to look at her, grasping her hand in his own before lifting it to his lips. The sight made Jasmine's stomach churn in displeasure, she lowered her gaze and focused on finishing her food so that she could leave without any arguments. "Will you be will Xayden tonight?" Damien asked Jasmine, his tone showing his distaste of her choice of boyfriend. "Uh, no. I have plans with Vicky and Nali tonight," Jasmine replied softly yet loud for him to hear.

Damien simply nodded before focusing his attention back onto Karina, the woman blushing and swooning under his loving affection; a sight that Jasmine didn't like. It wasn't that Jasmine hated the two of them, but rather she was angered by them. Jasmine had only been twelve years old when her mother went missing; Andrea Miller had been driving home from work when she disappeared. Her car had been discovered the next afternoon, abandoned with no signs of struggle. And Damien's response? He screamed about how she abandoned him with her child to live her life in peace elsewhere with no plans to return.

The missing case had been closed as no other signs outside her leaving were left to follow. It wasn't even a full twelve months after Andrea Miller's disappearance that Damien had remarried to Karina Argent, a woman that was younger than him by a few years who never truly liked the presence of Jasmine in their home. Karina never made an effort to view Jasmine as anything more than the extra baggage of the man she had loved long before Andrea disappeared. The only true bonus that had come from Damien marrying Karina was that Jasmine had more freedom from her father due to Karina encouraging every opportunity of Jasmine being out of the house.

With her breakfast finished, Jasmine thanked Karina politely, placing her dishes in the sink as ordered before grabbing her bag and heading out of the house, her keys in hand. The moment she had gotten a few houses away from the house she couldn't call a home, Jasmine finally let out a breath of relief; it no longer felt like the walls were suffocating her. It wasn't too long until Jasmine spotted the familiar faces of her best friends, Victoria Redfern and Denali Jane. "Jassy!!" Denali called out, the trio embraced each other the moment they were in arms reach. "I am so excited for tonight," Victoria spoke with a grin as they continued their walk into school for the day.

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During her free periods, Jasmine headed to the local doctor's clinic with clammy hands and nerves flitting through her body. "Hello dear, how can I help you?" The receptionist, Janet asked with a friendly smile. "Hi, I'm Jasmine Portman. I set an appointment with Dr. Matherson," Jasmine replied with her bag hanging off of her shoulder, an anxious smile on her face. "Yep, I have you right here. Please take a seat in the waiting room and she'll be out to get you soon," Janet assured the teenager. Jasmine thanked her before moving to sit down in the waiting room, her heart was racing as she fiddled with the necklace around her neck.

It had barely been three minutes before Dr Matherson stepped into the doorway with an easy smile, "Miss Portman." Jasmine lifted her head and nodded before grabbing her bag from the floor beside her and following behind the familiar face of Helen Matherson. "How have you been, Jasmine?" Dr Matherson asked once they were in her office, the door closed and both of them seated comfortably. "Uh, I'm doing okay. Haven't been straining myself in cheer," Jasmine replied with a soft expression before adding, "But, uh, the reason I'm here... I did a pregnancy test yesterday and it said positive but I... wanted to be sure with a proper test."

Dr Matherson's eyes widened ever-so-slightly at first before she composed herself, she had been Jasmine's GP since she was a kid having been good friends with Andrea Miller in high school. "Okay, we can get that going for you and luckily, I can find the results out for you quickly," Dr Matherson expressed before they moved on to do the tests required. Jasmine sat anxiously in the office by herself as Dr Matherson stepped into another room where the tests would be applied; the woman had always been about fast results having her own lab and team to provide same day lab results if the tests could allow it. Unfortunately, the results she got would change her entire world in a matter of seconds.

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Jasmine's shoulders were slumped, her heart was racing and her hands remained clammy as she trudged her way to the familiar home of her boyfriend, Xayden Carson. He was the cliche football quarterback, desired by the girls and admired by the boys but Jasmine never cared about the cliche aspects of the head cheerleader and the quarterback because it was all completely real for her. They had started dating during the beginning of their Freshmen year but had grown up together in the small town of Locksvale. She adored Xayden and as far as she knew, he adored her as well even with all of his clear as day daddy issues.

Jason Carson was a brutal man with a quick temper that only McKenna Young was ever able to calm however, the mother of Xayden had unfortunately died many years ago in a house fire visiting friends. This left Jason without his sunshine and so, that brash anger was always placed on Xayden who had his mother's eyes and heart; however, he also had his father's temper and due to that, he often clashed with his father. But having Jasmine in his life as an anchor created a sense of calm for him, he was able to cool his temper quicker and handle the drunken state his father was often in.

Jasmine was dreading this encounter, she knew that Xayden had to be told about the results── she was pregnant with his baby, after all. But she had no idea how he would take the news, she knew her own father will be disappointed in her and she didn't doubt she'd kick her out due to his more "religious" views on premarital sex; which was a mockery considering he had no issues being with Karina while married. And of course, Jasmine understood that even Jason Carson would be enraged at the news of his son getting his seventeen-year-old girlfriend pregnant; he wouldn't listen to reason like the fact that Jasmine was on birth control and that Xayden had been using a condom which most likely broke without realising.

Shaking her overthinking away, Jasmine lightly knocked on the wooden door of the Carson Residence, heavy steps echoed from inside before the door opened to reveal Jason Carson himself. "Jasmine," Jason stiffly greeted, he and her father used to be good mates but they fell apart when McKenna died and Jason shut everyone else off. "Hi, Mr Carson. I was wondering if Xayden was home?" Jasmine asked politely, she wasn't a fan of talking to the older man. "He's in his room... I'm sure you know where that is," Jason remarked before walking away with the final words, "Close the door behind you, this isn't a barn." Ignoring his last remark, she stepped inside and closed the door.

Xayden's bedroom door was closed, Jasmine knocked on it before waiting for him to open it. Xayden ripped the door open expecting his father but his scowl dropped into an expression of surprise seeing Jasmine standing there before him. "Hey, seashell," Xayden greeted, the nickname having been one he chose when they were kids playing on the beach; Jasmine had an obsessive love for seashells along with a little hidden collection on the beach. "Hey, Xay... can we talk?" Jasmine asked, he swallowed slowly at the question but stepped aside to let her before closing the door behind them for privacy.

"Is everything okay, seashell?" Xayden questioned as he grabbed her hands and held them in his own, worry flooded his eyes as Jasmine held back tears. "I went to the doctor today... and... I found out that I'm pregnant and I know we used protection but... it wasn't as effective as we'd hoped but──" Jasmine's words were cut off by Xayden dropping her hands like he had been burned, he took two steps back from her and turned away. "You need to leave," Xayden snapped out lowly, the words hitting Jasmine harsher than any physical hit. "What?" Jasmine muttered heartbroken however, she stepped back fearfully when Xayden turned to face her again.

Stood before her, Xayden's eyes blazed a bright amber gold, hair had formed on the sides of his face and canines poked free from his gums. "You and I are over... I don't want anything to do with that thing," Xayden snapped harshly, claws protruding from his fingers as he growled out, "Rid of it, keep it, I don't care... but it's not my responsibility." Jasmine felt as though her heart had been physically struck with a knife, she sneered back through the tears, a flicker of teal scales flowing over her visible skin like a wave as her eyes shone blue, her pupils turning to cat-like slits. "Fine. We are done, Xayden Carson... don't ever talk to me again," Jasmine replied before storming out of the home leaving the werewolf behind.

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Jasmine had tears flowing down her cheeks when she walked freely into the Redfern Mansion, she didn't greet Victoria's parents like usual but both of them acknowledged her sadness and knew she needed her friends right now. Denali and Victoria were in the latters room talking about an assignment when Victoria's door burst open to reveal a broken-hearted Jasmine who was practically sobbing at this point. "Jasmine!" Both girls exclaimed as they stood up and wrapped their arms around her, rubbing her back delicately in hopes to comfort her as much as they could. "What happened, flounder?" Victoria asked, her own nickname for Jasmine slipping free in hopes to put a small smile on Jasmine's face.

Through hiccups and broken sobs, Jasmine explained to her best friends what had happened from the night before right up until the very moment she fell into their arms. Victoria pulled away from Jasmine, her anger clear on her face as dark veins appeared under her eyes that filled with blood causing them to appear demonic along with sharp fangs pushing through her gums. "How dare he!?" Victoria snapped out, she had every intention to leave that house and kill Xayden but as she moved to leave her room, an invisible wall prevented her from exiting the space. "Denali, remove it," Victoria growled out, turning to the teen who was chanting under her breath.

"It won't fix anything, Vicky," Denali reminded her before motioning to Jasmine, "Do something better and call Natasha to let her know she needs to come over." Victoria took a settling breath allowing her eyes to return to normal along with the fangs shortening, she snatched up her phone and immediately made a phone call to Jasmine's older cousin, Natasha Miller. Andrea Miller had been an younger sister to Sam Miller who had married Jessica Watson and together, they had Natasha who was still very close with Jasmine; the two more like sisters rather than cousins. It didn't take long for Jasmine to fall asleep from crying, Denali and Victoria settled her into bed with worried frowns.

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Natasha greeted the Redferns as she walked inside, she still wore her work uniform but the phone call from Victoria told her that this situation was more important than a shift she was working simply as an excuse so she didn't have to reject anyone's party invites on Friday nights. The sight of Jasmine with dried tears on her cheeks and puffy eyes, a slight snore from the stuffiness of her nose caused the eighteen year old's eyes to glow blue and her pupil to slit like a cat before she walked over to the bed; a wave flow of lavender scales had shown Victoria and Denali that Natasha was not happy to see her younger cousin upset like this.

"Staying in Locksvale may not be a good idea for Jasmine," Denali expressed as she and Victoria sat on the edge of the bed, watching as Natasha used a makeup wipe to remove the tear tracks. "She has a cousin on her father's side named Jordan Parrish who could take her in," Natasha replied before brushing her fingers through Jasmine's hair, "The moment that Damien learns about the pregnancy, he'll kick her out." Victoria scoffed, they all hated the man who warned them to remain good, pure beings so they wouldn't face him and Karina. "Where does Jordan live?" Denali asked, she didn't want her best friend too far away from them.

"He recently moved to Beacon Hills after being honourably discharged from the army," Natasha answered with a small smile, she trusted Jordan as he was the son of Damien's sister, Winona Portman. "Okay, so should we give him a call?" Victoria questioned next, she adjusted the blanket to tuck Jasmine in further; the youngest of them was always coddled and dotted on. "I'll give him a call, he'll want to be here for when Jasmine confronts her father about this," Natasha assured them before pulling out her phone, she leaned down and lightly kissed the side of Jasmine's head before making the call that would change Jasmine's life more than the baby growing within her.

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ᯓ★ HELLO, MY BRIGHT STARS ୭˚. ᵎᵎ

How do you feel about the more in-depth content compared to the original summary versions? (If you read the old version)

What is your take on Damien Portman?
What about Karina Argent? Perhaps, the Carsons and McKenna?

How do you feel about Xayden?
About Victoria and Denali? About Natasha?

What are your overall thoughts on this chapter?

See you in the next chapter!

Unedited
Written via phone