Most good stories start with a fundamental list of ingredients: the initial situation, conflict, complication, climax, suspense, denouement, and conclusion. Great writers sometimes shake up the recipe and add some spice.
Exposition
Boy Meets girl
Our story officially kicks off when Sam meets Alicia at a party. Before that, he's just an ordinary sixteen-year-old kid with a passion for skateboarding. When he first sees Alicia, he thinks she's a knock out, but he can't imagine actually having a shot with her. Luckily for Sam, she's into him. Right away, these two lovebirds start spending every waking moment together and decide it's time to take things to the next level.
Rising Action
Girl Gets Knocked Up
The news of Alicia's pregnancy takes her by surprise. Sure, she knew it could happen, but that's different than it happening. We're calling this our complication because it's more than just a wrinkle on the path to happiness for these two. In fact, Sam has already gotten over his infatuation with Alicia by the time she announces her pregnancy, so it's really tough for these teens. All of a sudden, they have a lot of decisions to make—you know, the kind that are life altering. Yep, we'd say that's a complication all right.
Climax
Sam Ditches Town
When Sam runs away to Hastings, we're more than a little annoyed with him. We get that he's scared and confused about what to do next, but running away from your problems doesn't make them disappear. He learns this the hard way when he gets back from his little trip and nothing has changed—Alicia still hasn't told her parents or Sam's folks. He finally has to face the music. This is a huge turning point for Sam. He's at a crossroads about what he's going to do next.
Falling Action
One Big, Happy Family
For a while, everything goes back to normal—sort of. Alicia has the baby, and they name it Rufus. They decide that if they are raising a baby together, they might as well live together. Yeah… that's a good idea. Sam moves into Alicia's folks' place and everyone tries to get along, emphasis on tries. It's not easy for them, and pretty soon Sam realizes that he can be a dad while living under a different roof than his kid. Just as he makes this decision, his life starts to feel okay again.
Resolution
Modern Family
One more time, Sam whizzes to the future to check out what's going down in his life. All in all, he's pleased with what he finds. He and Alicia have moved on from each other, but they are still together as parents. He has a job, a place, and a steady relationship. Things are looking good. It seems like as good a resolution as any for Sam. Not everything turned out perfectly, but he's happy with his life. Hey, that's all you can really ask for.