by Allie Giffes

 

On this week's episode of 16 and Pregnant: we meet Cleondra, a seventeen-year-old senior who loves dancing and aspires to go to college to earn a degree in physical therapy. Her sister, Zerica, had a baby of her own when she was seventeen who Cleondra, along with her mother, helped raise. Her boyfriend, Mario, has been with her for a few years and conveniently lives right across the street.

 

Zerica relies on Cleondra to help raise Zyra, so of course her mother wasn't thrilled when she found out that her other daughter was pregnant. She is disappointed in herself for getting pregnant, as is her mother who expected her to be more conscious after seeing how her sister struggled with having a baby at seventeen. She feels like she has let her family down.

 

Mario also feels guilty about getting Cleondra pregnant. Once he found out, he signed up for the army and got a full-time job. He thinks that having the three of them live at his house will be easier, but Cleondra thinks it would be better for her to stay at home where she has the support of her mother and sister.

 

Mario never seems to want to spend time over Cleondra's house. This poses a concern to Cleondra because she knows how much her family depends on her to be there to help with Zyra. Mario's mother happens to live around the corner from them. They pay her a visit, but Cleondra is just awkwardly bombarded with possible baby names... such as "Brooklyn," and "Twilight."

 

It's the day of Cleondra's baby shower and she's super excited to see her girl friends. She hasn't gotten to spend much time with them since she had to quit the dance team. After opening all of her gifts, she fills her friends in on her concerns about Mario. Meanwhile, Mario seeks advice from one of his friends at work who is already a father. He reiterates his desire to have Cleondra live at his house. But there are much bigger things to worry about!

 

Cleondra's due date has arrived and she quickly goes into labor. She has a seemingly effortless birth. Her and Mario decide on naming their new baby girl "Kylee Sue."

 

The baby's first day home does not go as planned. Mario is putting unnecessary stress on Cleondra by pressuring her to sleep at/move into his house with him, but as a new mother she obviously wants to be home (sleeping in her own bed) with the support of her family. Zerica is staying home more often, so luckily Cleondra isn't as responsible for watching after Zyra.

 

Mario doesn't feel comfortable having his child around Cleondra's sister or mother, which is ridiculous because they obviously have a lot of experience raising children! He tells his mother that "if [Cleondra] doesn't move in, this isn't going to work." Sounds like a cop out to me. Needless to say, he hasn't been much help to Cleondra at all throughout the first week.

 

Cleondra is determined to graduate high school on time, so she can't miss any of her midterm exams. She didn't tell Mario that she asked Zerica to watch Kylee while she took one of her tests because she didn't want him to overreact, but of course he does. Mario needs to stop focusing on persuading Cleondra to move in with him and just help with the baby instead. If he's never there to help, how can he expect Cleondra not to depend on her family?

 

When Cleondra reaches out to Mario and asks him for help, he tells her that he doesn't feel like coming to her house. She turns to her mom for advice. Though she doesn't want her to move out, she doesn't see any other option at this point and gives her permission - as long as Mario actually helps her with Kylee. However, even when she stays with Mario, he's "just not into helping her with the baby."

 

Despite the tensions between Cleondra and Mario, she has been able to work out a schedule for who watches Kylee when so that she can graduate on time. Unfortunately, Mario hasn't stepped up at all... so Cleondra needs to confront him and let him know it's not working out. All he does is whine about the same thing he's been whining about throughout this entire episode: Cleondra moving in to his house.

 

Even though Cleondra knew having a baby would change things a lot, she didn't expect everything to fall apart in the way that it has been. Her mother meet up with Mario and his mother to clear the air, and they agree to work on things so that they can be a team and raise Kylee the way she deserves to be raised.

 

 

16 and Pregnant airs Tuesdays at 10/9c on MTV.

 

(Image courtesy of MTV)

 

 

Follow Allie @agiffes