17Author's Note: Hey! So I was originally going to wait at least a week to post chapter 4, but I'm already halfway done with chapter 5, and by the way I've been writing I'll probably finish that within the next day or two. I obviously have the time, anyway. This is crazy what we are going through, and I hope everyone and their family is staying safe!
I am glad you like what I've written so far, and I'm honestly so excited to bend the storylines and see what I can mesh together and make my own. Hope you enjoy this one as well. I wasn't sure about the flashback though, but I decided to keep it anyway.
"Ew!"
Mariana wiped the palm of her hand on her jeans, gagging in the process. "Why is humanity so disgusting! I mean seriously, why stick your dirty chewed up piece of gum under a seat when there is a perfectly good trash can literally 3 feet away from you." Callie laughed, crossing her arms. "Why would you even touch under the seat? Have you really never been on a bus before?"
"Why take a dirty smelly bus with strangers when I have two moms with two perfectly good working cars. Remind me again why we didn't just walk?"
"Did you want to walk for 2 hours from San Diego to Tijuana? Because to be honest, I don't think your feet would have lasted. Taking the bus cut our time by half." Mariana grunted in response. "Remember, you were the one who wanted to tag along."
"That was before I knew we were getting on this...this germ infested machinery. I mean, I'm pretty sure you can catch something on here."
"Mariana!"
"What, I'm just saying. When we get off of here we are using all the hand sanitizer I have in my pocket."
"Maybe not all," Callie smirked. "After we get Jude we still have to take the bus back to San Diego." Mariana groaned, rolling her eyes. "Don't remind me. I have never hated you more than I do right now."
"Aw come on, you know you love me."
"Ugh, fine, I do love you." The girls laughed, scooting just a little closer in their seats towards one another. "You know I really did miss you Callie, like super bad. Nothing was the same when you left. I'm glad you are back. Maybe this time around moms will get to your adoption sooner that way you won't be pulled out of the house again." Callie sadly shook her head. How did this person sitting next to her have so much more hope then she did? Callie loved Mariana, but she didn't want the girl to be disappointed if Stef and Lena decided not to keep her this time around. "Mariana, look, I just got back. I wouldn't be too focused on your moms adopting me and Jude right now."
"You mean our moms."
"Yeah, right, of course. It's just, they might not want us anymore. Just don't get your hopes up if I don't stay permanently."
"Callie, that's crazy."
"Hey, this is our stop. Let's go." Mariana sighed, getting up and following Callie off the bus. This chat between them was far from over.
They walked for a few blocks, and each turn they made felt like a worse neighborhood then the last. Mariana hadn't been in streets like these since, well, since her and her brother lived with their birth mom Ana when they were about 4 years old.
After seemingly walking for maybe another 10 or 15 minutes, Callie stopped in front of a small red, rundown, house. The whole atmosphere gave Mariana the creeps. "Callie, are you sure about this? It's not still too late to call mom."
"I'm sure. I'll head towards the back and see if I can sneak in and get Jude. You wait here, okay?"
"Okay, but hurry. I don't want to be by myself for longer than I have to be." Callie nodded, givinging Mariana a final look back before heading towards the back of the house.
She spotted the back door and carefully walked over, risking a glance in. When she saw Jim, her old foster father, come into view she pulled back. Jude was at the sink filling up a container with water, no doubt for cleaning the dumb floors in this already ruined house. A knock at the front door was the last thing Callie expected to hear, but whoever it was it would be a good distraction. "What, you deaf?" She could hear Jim mumble at Jude. Callie quietly slid the back door open, whispering her brother's name. "Jude!" He didn't hear her though. "Jude!" she tried again. This time he turned, his eyes lighting up upon seeing his sister. They both froze in place though when they heard who was at the door.
"Can I help you?"
"Uh, yes sir, I was uh...well I seemed to be lost and I was just wondering if you could point out where the nearest bus station is."
"You, you're lost?" The man eyed Mariana up and down which sent shivers down her back. "Yes, I've been walking around for the past 30 minutes and I have no clue where I'm going. If you can just tell me where the nearest bus is I would be…" Jim turned away looking behind him, a scowl set on his face at the sight of Callie standing near his kitchen. "Hey!" he yelled. "What the hell are you doing in here?"
"Please I just want to talk to Jude for a minute."
"No! Shut up! No!"
"Just one second—"
"No you get out of this house!"
"Okay, look. I am sorry about your car…"
"Hey, shut up!"
"Look I can pay for it—"
"No, get out of here!" Jim put his hands on Callie's shoulder and forcefully shoved her back. He did it again, and Mariana could no longer just stand there. She opened the screen door and stepped inside. "Hey, don't touch her!"
"No, get out of here," Jim yelled back. He rummaged through a drawer next to him and pulled out a gun, aiming it towards Mariana. "Hey, shut up!"
"Ok, ok I'm sorry…"
As Stef pulled up to the front of the red house, her heart dropped as she looked through the front window. "Gun!" Mike looked, turning back to the two women. "Call 911."
"Lena, stay here," Stef ordered. She pulled her gun out and undid the safety, holding it down by her waist. Nodding at Mike, he went for the front door as she headed around back. She glanced in, almost doing a double take as she saw Jude cowering in the corner of the kitchen with his hands covering his ears. Stef took a deep breath then charged in. "Police, freeze! Get down on your knees now!" It took all of Stef's power to focus on the man in front of her and not to meet Calllie's eyes when she could feel them burning a hole through her. "Whoa, whoa—"
"Get down on your knees now!"
"Put the gun down!" Mike screamed from the front. "Put the gun down!" Jim dropped his gun, and put his hands up in the air, lowering himself to the floor. "Don't shoot! Don't' shoot!" he begged.
As Mike closed in on him Stef turned her attention back to the kitchen. Callie was now standing with Jude hugging him as if this was the first time the girl had seen him in years. Stef threw her handcuffs over to Mike, and once he had the man secured, she turned her safety back on and holstered her weapon. She immediately ran to Mariana's side, since Callie and Jude were comforting each other at the moment, and hugged her daughter as tight as she could. "Are you okay, love? Are you alright? What were you thinking, Mariana?" Her daughter pulled away and wiped at a tear that ran down her face. "Mom, Callie's back home." Stef smiled. "I know love, why don't you go wait with mama outside, okay? Are you sure you're okay Mariana?"
"'I'm fine, mom." She gave her mother another hug before heading out the front door. Stef turned around and immediately made eye contact with Callie and Jude. It seemed, for a moment, the world stood still and nobody knew quite what to do or how to react, but then Jude's small voice filled the silence. "Mom?" Stef's resolve broke at that, her rushing to meet Jude halfway. The boy crashed into her, and she hugged him back just as tightly. "Yeah baby, it's mom."
Callie on the other hand hadn't moved. She wasn't expecting Stef to come barging in behind her, rescuing her from her former foster father who she had no clue owned a gun. If anyone had gotten hurt tonight, or even died, it would have been all her fault. All because she couldn't wait a couple more hours for actual help. "Callie?" Stef appeared in her line of vision, and it wasn't until she saw how blurry Stef looked that she realized she was crying. "Callie, sweetheart? Are you okay?" No she wasn't, she was far from okay.
For one night though, Callie decided it was okay to let down her walls. It was okay to not act as if she had it all put together, because after tonight it was clear she didn't. Callie crashed into Stef just as hard as Jude had, maybe even a bit harder as Stef had to balance herself out so as not to fall.
Callie cried for everything. For losing her mom so young, to being placed into foster care, and from being ripped away from the only family she could truly remember being nothing but warm and loving. "It's okay, I got you. I got you Love." Stef knew this was far from over, but she felt complete for the first time in years. She let a tear run down her own face at the fact if they had even been a minute later something more drastic could have gone down. That maybe they would have only walked out of here with two kids instead of three. At that thought, she hugged her daughter just a little tighter. Callie eventually calmed down, pulling back from the hug. "I've missed you so much Callie. You and Jude."
"We've really missed you." Stef smiled, glad to hear that. "And look at you," she nodded towards Jude. "Look how tall you've gotten"
"I'm 11 now."
"I know. It's so hard to believe." Stef pulled Jude in for a side hug, kissing the top of his head. "Why don't you two go pack your things and then meet us outside, alright?"
"Are we, are we going home with you?" Jude looked up at Stef unsure, and that broke her heart. "Of course you are buddy. There isn't anywhere else I would let you go." He smiled, and Callie took his hand and guided him towards their once shared bedroom. "Callie," Jude said, shoving a shirt into his Skippy backpack, followed by a spider-man action figure, the one toy he could ever remember owning in the foster care system. "Yes Jude."
"When we go home, do you think...do you think this time we'll get to stay?" Callie shoved her last shirt into her blue duffel, zipping it up. "I don't know bud. It has been three years since we last saw them, they might not want us anymore."
"Yeah, but what if they do? What if they still want to adopt us?"
"Why don't we cross that bridge when we get to it baby, alright?" Jude nodded, zipping his own bag up. "All done?" Callie asked. Jude nodded, slinging his backpack over his left shoulder. "Alright, let's get out of here." She grabbed his hand, thrilled that this would be the last time she would ever see this room.
When they stepped outside, Callie could spot Stef talking to Mike and Mariana next to Lena, who seemed to shy away knowing how much trouble she was in. Jude spotted Lena right away, grinning from ear to ear. "Mama!" he shouted, running towards the woman. Lena's head snapped up, and before she knew quite what was happening felt small arms wrap around her waist. She looked down and could cry in relief at the sight of Jude. "Hi bubba, I missed you."
"I missed you too mama." Callie slowly walked towards the vehicle, letting Jude have his reunion. Mariana got in the backseat of the car, and Callie was about to join her when Stef called her name. "Callie, can I speak to you for a moment." That didn't sound good, Callie thought.
Stef led Callie to the back of the car throwing her hands up in defeat. "Come on Callie, of all the dumb things you could have done? I would really like you to understand how this, tonight, could have ended very, very badly." Callie looked away, feeling her eyes start to water. She was more than aware of how tonight could have ended. "Look, uh, you can send me back to Juvie or whatever, but...but I just really needed to get Jude out of that house as soon as I could. I needed him safe."
"Callie," Stef whispered her name, having nothing but love towards this girl who no longer seemed to care for herself or think they could care less where she ended up. Why did she think it was only her brother that mattered? "Callie, love, look at me." It took her a few seconds, but Callie eventually turned back to Stef, a tear rolling down her cheek. "Callie, you are not going back to Juvie, and I would never send you back there. But listen to me when I say you aren't disposable. You...you aren't worthless. You are just as important as Jude is and Lena and I love you so much, that if something were to happen to you, or any of you, we would be heartbroken. Do you understand? Come here." Stef pulled the girl in for a hug, wiping away a tear in the process. "Let's go home, Cal."
Three months.
That's how long Callie and Jude had been living with the family and still they walked around as if someone would attack them at any given time. That hurt Stef to see, because what could have happened to this 9 year old and 5 year old to make them so jumpy. She just wished they could see that they have been living in a warm and loving environment for the past three months, and not one where they would be hit for something as small as talking.
While it did upset Stef that neither kid was really comfortable around her or Lena yet, the situation with the other kids had been totally different.
Jude was starting to take more notice with Jesus and his action figures, even playing with the older boy every now and again, and Callie was starting to let Mariana in. Leave it to her to be able to break down those walls. The girls now went everywhere and did everything together. If Mariana was coloring, then so was Callie. If Callie was reading a book, then there was Mariana right next to her, her own book in hand. This was a sign that Callie was starting to open up to the family, and given a little more time, they would have the children's trust completely.
It was about two months after that, on a Saturday morning, much to both her and Lena's surprise, that Callie spoke for the first time directly to them. Stef was piling pancakes on everyone's plate, giving Jesus an extra one with his growing appetite, as Lena was setting cups of orange juice down. Once everyone was settled the two moms took their seats. "Alright guys, I have to run to the store to pick up dinner tonight, so I expect you to be on your best behaviors for mama. That means you, Jesus." Stef smiled as her son pouted. "I'm always good mommy."
"Sure you are." Stef chuckled, picking up her glass of orange juice and taking a sip. "Can I go with you?" Stef practically choked on the liquid, setting her glass back down. All eyes went to Callie, who immediately started to back track her question, nervous she had said something wrong. "Uh, nevermind. Im sorry—"
"No, no it's okay sweetheart. Yes, of course you can come. I'd actually really love the company." Stef gave her a warm smile, which Callie returned. Everyone began eating again, while Stef turned to Lena, the two grinning at each other. After everyone was finished eating, Stef helped Lena clear and clean the plates, then waited for Callie by the front door. The girl bounced down the steps, smiling up at Stef. "Ready to go?"
"Yup." Before she could open the door though, another set of feet came bounding down the stairs. "Wait for me!" Mariana screamed.
"Oh, I wasn't aware that you wanted to join us as well." said Stef, surprised to see Mariana. Her daughter hated trips to the grocery store, in fact, Callie had been the first kid in this house to ever voluntarily go with her. "I mean, I don't really wanna go, but Callie needs me. So I'm going." Stef looked from Callie to Mariana. "Sweetheart, Callie will be fine. If you don't want to come you don't have to."
"But...but—" Callie cut her foster sister . "It's okay Mariana. I'll be fine. And I kind of want to go alone. Maybe, maybe you could look after Jude for me while I'm gone?" Mariana's eyes lit up at the important job given to her, knowing Callie was the only person who looked after Jude—well, besides her moms. "Okay, I can do that." She hugged Callie goodbye then ran back up the stairs.
It was at that moment Stef realized this was Callie testing them. If she could leave the house by herself and come back safe, at the same time seeing Jude has been taken care of and not hurt, then that meant the girl could trust this family. "Alrighty then, let's go."
Stef opened the backdoor for Callie, allowing her to slide in before closing it and heading around to the driver's side. Once she made sure Callie was buckled up, she buckled her own seat belt and pulled out of the driveway, heading towards the store. For the most part, the ride was silent. Stef didn't mind though. If Callie was in her backseat, asking Stef if she could go with her, then that was a win all in itself. "Can I ask you something?" Callie's small voice floated to the front out of nowhere. Stef glanced back at her, then back towards the road, stopping at a red light. "Sure sweets."
"Why are you so nice?" Stef sighed, almost wanting to cry at the fact this little girl couldn't believe nice people existed. At the green light, Stef moved forward, pulling the car into an outlet parking lot. She undid her seatbelt and turned back towards the girl, hazel eyes meeting brown. "Sweetheart, there are some very mean people who live on this planet."
"Like the people you put away?" she asked.
"Yes, exactly like the people I put away. The foster families you lived with before, love, were not nice people and didn't deserve to be parents."
"Then why...why did me and Jude end up with them?"
"I don't know. People make mistakes and that was one of them. Parents should be kind and loving towards their children. They should play with them, feed them, and clothe them. A parent helps their child grow, they don't knock them down. I need you to know Callie, that the most important thing right now, is that you are safe with Lena and I. We love you and your brother very much, and we would never do anything to hurt you or make you feel unsafe." Callie smiled at that, nodding her head. "I know, we trust you."
Looking back years from now, Stef would know it was at that point in time, even though they hadn't asked them until 2 and a half years later, that Callie and Jude belonged with them forever.
