Prologue: New Beginnings

The past year has been a whirlwind of challenges and triumphs for me, Nellie Genovese. Just as I was navigating the final stretch of my junior year in high school, life threw me an unexpected curveball—I found out I was pregnant. That moment near the end of my junior year felt like everything came crashing down. My parents’ reaction was swift and harsh; they kicked me out, leaving me with no choice but to rely on Pete, my boyfriend and now husband. Together, Pete and I faced the daunting reality of impending parenthood without much family support. Jeff’s parents weren’t interested in us living with them after what happened leading to me being pregnant.

Over the past year, we juggled online classes through a charter school, part-time jobs, and the overwhelming responsibilities of preparing for a baby. Late-night study sessions turned into sleepless nights once Daniela was born, but every glimpse of her tiny face made it all worth it. Pete stood by me through it all, working tirelessly while completing his education a year ahead of me.

Graduating from the online charter school felt like climbing a mountain. Despite the chaos, I managed to meet all my graduation requirements. The day I received my diploma was one of immense pride, but it also marked the beginning of a new set of challenges. With school behind me, I needed to find a steady job to help support our small family while preparing for community college in the fall.

Back when Jeff and my parents found out I was pregnant with Jeff, there was turmoil at home. My parents were livid when they learned what had happened. My mom, in particular, was harsh and unyielding. “You’re just one of those woke kids, flaunting it all out there,” she snapped at me one evening, her words cutting deep. “Getting loose with the guys, aren’t you?” Her judgment was scathing and based on her outdated views, but arguing with her was pointless.

She learned that I got pregnant in the middle of the classroom before my entire class by Jeff when the teacher was out of the room. This was extremely embarrassing and humiliating, especially after he pulled off my dress and tossed it across the room, damaged the bra, and pulled out the seams of the panties in front of everyone, then to top it off he pulled off my shoes. He then pushed me down on one of the desks and went at it while everyone was watching. While the other classmates were there blocking our view if the teacher returned early. Once the teacher returned, I was in the back of the room standing and left with nothing as others took everything, leaving me in Jeff’s arms when the teacher returned and didn’t seem to notice that we had just done it.

A lot of that with two others in the room who were living nudes, I was one of them until getting home and dressed before the parents got home without being caught. The aftermath of getting kicked out was humiliating, but I wasn’t even as embarrassed about it as I was that day. What followed was getting the results of the pregnancy tests and being called into the administrative office with Jeff and learning that they were expelling us for our act of having sex before the whole classroom. Looking back to that afternoon, thinking about it now, I shouldn’t have gotten dressed that day and faced my mom that way in the raw. The following day we were told we could no longer be students there.

That night my mom exploded at me, and I was kicked out of school. It felt like the final blow in a series of crushing events to all of the social changes that had been happening faster than my parents could handle. In our state, clothes have become more optional after a recent federal ruling. Clothes are nothing more than accessories than necessary, which went against my parents’ deep beliefs. They saw my situation as a betrayal, confirming their worst fears about the world changing around them. I was able to grab some of my stuff that night and they allowed me to get the rest once we had a place.

Chapter 1 »