I don't own The Fosters and never will. No copyright infringement intended.
Today was the day that Callie and Jude were officially going to be adopted by Stef and Lena. The entire family was excited and they were going out to eat to celebrate the adoption being finalized. The entire process had taken over a year to happen and it had been stressful at times. But now they wouldn't have to worry about Callie and Jude being separated or the family being torn apart.
"So, are you two ready for this?" Lena smiled at her son and daughter. It was thrilling to be able to call them that.
Callie nodded. "Definitely. Thank you so much." She was forever grateful to Stef and Lena for adopting them. She was glad to not have to worry about Jude like she has been ever since he was born.
"You don't have to thank us, sweetheart." Stef pulled them in for a hug. Upon seeing this, Brandon, Jesus, and Mariana joined in.
"I'm really, really excited!" Jude informed them when they finally pulled away from each other.
They all laughed. "We're excited, too, Kiddo," Brandon replied to his youngest brother. It was a little weird to have two new siblings, but he, Jesus, and Mariana had adjusted to this big change over the past year and a half.
In ten minutes, everyone was out of the door and headed towards the courthouse. Stef and Lena, even though they had nothing to be worried about, had started to panic. What if the judge denied the adoption for whatever reason? They loved all five of their kids and didn't want to be away from any of them. Callie and Jude were one hundred percent their kids now.
"I'm a little nervous." Callie hated to admit that, but it was the truth. And Brandon understood her.
"You don't have to be nervous. Everything's going to be fine. Our moms will kick the judge's ass if something screws this up so don't worry. You're going to freak Jude out."
Callie shot a concerned glance towards her younger brother, who was playing a game with Jesus. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks for that pep talk, I guess."
He laughed. "You're welcome. And I'm here for you any time you need me. Just remember that. We're officially going to be brother and sister in just under an hour."
"Don't remind me." She laughed, though, and he joined in a few seconds later. They followed their family inside about ten minutes after that.
"Jude, how do you mess up your tie so much?" Lena laughed as he glared at it. With Stef's help, he had the tie quickly fixed.
Their case was called to the front twenty-five minutes later. Stef took a deep breath and squeezed Lena, Callie, and Jude's hands. But all their worries were for nothing – The judge and social worker agreed to the adoptions quickly. Callie and Jude were both thriving in their new environments and the judge appreciated it. He thought Stef and Lena, along with the other kids, were good influences on them. And that was that – Callie and Jude's adoptions were finalized.
Stef laughed and pulled all five of her children in for a brief hug. "I love you both – all of you – so much."
"Love you, too, Mama." Jude beamed up at her and then rushed to Jesus' side to talk to his big brother.
Lena grinned. "So you two are now officially Jude and Callie Foster. Nice, isn't it?"
Callie nodded. "It's really nice. Thanks, Lena." She occasionally called Stef and Lena by "Mom" but it was still a little awkward. She was going to start using the moniker more to get used to it.
"You're welcome. Now we need to take a picture of all us together!" Then they'd head back to the new house they bought once they realized they wanted Callie and Jude to stay with them permanently. Stef handed her camera to the social worker and he took several pictures of the family of seven.
"It's nice to have a sister." Mariana patted Callie on the shoulder and then ruffled Jude's hair.
"Same here, sis." Callie never thought she'd have this, but was so thankful that she and Jude did.
"Okay, that was a little weird."
Callie laughed. "Yes, it was. Now let's go eat because Jude and Jesus starve to death."
"Wouldn't want that."
The entire family walked back towards their car and drove to their favorite restaurant. Here, everyone could get what he or she wanted to eat. It was an awesome place to go and all of them loved it.
"You look like you're going to stab those crayons to death, little guy," Jesus observed of Jude when he tried to start coloring in his coloring book.
"It's not the crayons – It's the book. I can't figure out how I want to color this." Jude looked to him for help and Jesus reluctantly gave in. He didn't mind too much, however. He always enjoyed helping out his younger brother.
Mariana and Callie started laughing about something over in their seats and the inside joke bothered Brandon just a little. He didn't care, though. As long as his sisters and brothers were happy, he was happy. That was what mattered to him.
"So what movies are we going to watch tonight? Remember that Callie and Jude get to pick them so no complaining from the peanut gallery." Stef shot a look towards Jesus and Brandon, who immediately looked guilty.
Callie shrugged, but Jude already had his answer and informed them what he wanted to watch. They were all happy with his choice so there actually was no complaining for once. It was pretty nice (but rare and most likely wouldn't happen again for a few more years).
Later that night, as the kids watched movies, Stef put her arm around Lena, who cuddled up with her wife. "Can you believe our family? I never would have pictured this would happen when I met you all these years ago, but I'm glad it did."
Lena kissed her. "I'm glad it did, too. We have five pretty great kids and I honestly can't imagine our life without them even when we have four teenagers who drive us up the wall." But four teenagers were nothing compared to the entire school so she couldn't complain all that much.
"Same here. I love you."
"I love you, too." Lena ended up falling asleep with her head on Stef's shoulder. They slept there on the couch, surrounded by all of their kids, that night.
Stef and Lena's family was complete and they were always grateful for what they did. Callie and Jude appreciated the fact that they finally had a stable, loving happy. And Brandon, Jesus, and Mariana were happy they had someone to share chores with and love. All in all, life was pretty much perfect for the Fosters.