This season of Unexpected, no couple is more controversial than Bella Vaughn and her 12-year-old baby daddy.
(He has turned 13 since they conceived, as she is quick to point out. Hooray.)
Now that the baby is here, Bella’s family’s focus is on Bella not being a mother of two.
Bella won’t do birth control. Hunter won’t do condoms. His foolproof plan is anal sex, forever. There’s an unfortunate Farrah Abraham joke in all of this.
Apparently, birth control ‘side effects are stupid’
During the Monday, March 23 episode of Unexpected, one brief scene filled viewers with discomfort and nausea.
(Okay, it was multiple scenes but we’re talking about one in particular.)
15-year-old Bella — and Emi, her sister who also recently became a teenage mother — discussed preventing another pregnancy.
When producers asked, Bella acknowledged that condoms could lower her risk of conceiving. So, too, could ovulation tests.
She didn’t exactly sound too certain about either method, unfortunately. She even added, aloud, a “question mark” after mentioning tracking her ovulation.
“Birth control,” both of Bella’s parents say at the same time — and with the same air of weary resignation.
The 15-year-old, who recently gave birth to Wesley (at least she gave her kid a good name), explained her reluctance.
“The side effects are stupid,” Bella argued.
“And,” she suggested, “knowing me, I’d probably be unlucky and get every single one.”
(We are not doctors, but people who are doctors tend to recommend IUDs or hormonal implants for teens. Long-acting birth control can be very effective, and for some, has fewer side-effects.)
Yes, we’re sure that Hunter would love that
Bella’s father, Kris, suggests that the best form of birth-control might be for Bella and Hunter Johnson to stop having sex altogether.
That ship has obviously sailed. She has a whole baby. Please be serious.
Unfortunately, Hunter’s idea — as Bella shares with the camera — is similarly absurd.
“Hunter would love to do butt sex,” the 15-year-old mother shares with the camera.
Bella explains that this is “because he thinks that is a way to prevent pregnancy and he doesn’t want to wear a condom.”
While anal sex will not result in a pregnancy barring some sort of Final Destination style shenanigans, this is not a long-term solution.
Particularly not for Bella, as she explains.
“But we’re not doing anal sex,” she affirms.
Bella then declares: “That is a one-way poop chute.”
After that indelicate announcement, her mom, Falen, suggests that the young couple should be focusing upon school and other age-appropriate activities — alongside the age-inappropriate activity of being parents — and not have a second child.
These two children sure are being immature about this
Some on social media are expressing their horror at this discussion, or at this discussion being on camera, or in front of her parents, or whatever.
But that’s kind of missing the point.
What Bella is saying about birth control is really immature. That’s probably because she’s 15.
Hunter suggesting that they become an anal-only couple, and his refusal to wear condoms, is even more immature. (No one likes condoms! But you need to be mature enough to wear them.) That’s probably because he’s 13.
As adults, of course we all feel uncomfortable about this scene. Though people Hunter’s age and especially those Bella’s age may discuss things like anal sex and birth control, adults are not really supposed to be part of that conversation.
(Unless those adults are, like, doctors or whatever. Seriously, we hope that Bella makes a mature decision, because it doesn’t sound like Hunter will.)