Kira

I was only 14. I was a virgin and was raped by a man in his 20s that I trusted. After pressing charges, and him going to jail, I discovered I was pregnant.

“Even though my parents could barely get along any other day, they both were right there holding my hands.”

I cried for days before finally telling my mother. We decided that for my physical and mental health, I had to have an abortion. I could not bear to have a child with the man who raped me, let alone bring a child into this world at the age of 14.

Nowhere near me would do the procedure. When we finally found a place that would, over an hour away, I went in for a consultation. I was met at the door by protesters. People screaming in my face, waving signs, telling me that what I was doing was wrong.

The next day I came back for the procedure. Both my parents came with me, and even though they could barely get along any other day, they both were right there holding my hands. They had to sneak me in the back of the clinic because I could not bear to face the screaming protesters.

When I went back to school the a couple days later, my best friend had told everyone what I went through. As I walked down the hallway of my high school, I had people tormenting me, calling me a murderer, and other harsh names, and throwing things at me. I had nightmares for years and even had to be put in psychiatric hospital. I draw the line because no one, especially not a 14-year-old, should have to go through what I did, just because I needed to do something for my health.