Notes: See below.
Disclaimer: I, unfortunately, do not own any rights regarding The Fosters. I have taken creative liberty with it's canon but that's it.
Important: This story will contain triggering content that will be noted at the start of every chapter. There are also some scenes that occur non-linearly, meaning it will switch between what's happening present day and what has happened in the past. Those scenes are in italics.


"Callie!" Even she startles at the sound that tears from Lena's throat as she turns the corner and finds her six year old balancing precariously on a stool beside the sink. Rushing forward as Callie whipped around, eyes wide, Lena's hands slide under the girl's arms and she lifts her up on to her hip. Callie blinks, a crease between her brow as Lena holds her close to her chest, her lips pressed against Callie's forehead and one hand running through her hair. Lena's eyes are closed as she pictures every what if situation that could have come with Callie falling from such a height, and she can feel her heart pound, unwilling to settle.

"Lena," Callie whines, trying to squirm out of her arms but Lena just holds on to her even tighter, shaking her head and silently prompting Callie to stop. "Baby girl, you scared me. You can't climb up there on your own, you could've gotten hurt." Lena can hear the fear in her voice as she pulls back and looks at Callie, her brown eyes staring in to Lena's own and Lena melts.

Callie and her brother, Jude, had joined their little family of three a month ago, fresh to the system and their first charges as foster parents. It was only supposed to be a temporary placement, but within a week both Lena and Stef had fallen in love with the six and three year old's and were discussing the possibility of adoption. It was a stretch, considering they were new to the system themselves and they couldn't adopt every child they fostered in the coming years, but there was just something about Callie and Jude that tugged at their hearts. They knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that those kids were theirs. They belonged with them, and Brandon, and the five of them were meant to be a family.

So seeing Callie balance on a stool too high for her to climb alone, watching as the stool shifted under her weight when Lena had startled her, it was scary. It was terrifying. And Lena held Callie close unwilling to let her go, even as the six year old struggled in her arms. Callie had only just started to adjust to the affection her foster parents were prone to indulging in. When she had first come to them, she shied away from everything, and she hadn't spoken for three days. "Sorry," she mumbled in to Lena's neck and Lena sighed, brushing down Callie's hair with the palm of her hand. "It's okay, baby. It's okay."

She smiled at her, and Callie smiled back, and Lena's heart jumped. She loved this girl more than she could explain in words, and as an educator, that was quite a feat. With Callie settled on her hip, Lena glanced towards the counter Callie had attempted to climb and she sighed, shaking her head and turning towards her wayward ( one-day ) daughter, playfully narrowing her eyes. "Something you want to tell me, bug?"

Callie shied briefly, before gathering her courage and pointing towards the cookies pushed up against the wall. "Jude wanted one," she said, and Lena could tell the tiny girl felt justified in her attempt at stealing a treat before dinner, considering it was for her brother. Lena hid her smile behind pursed lips as she bounced Callie on her hip and Callie's arms wound around Lena's neck. "Is that right? Jude wanted one?" Callie nodded, and Lena shook her head as Callie hid her face in Lena's hair. "Mhm, you sure you didn't want one too?" She shook her head this time, but Lena could feel Callie's lips stretch in to a smile against her neck, and Lena couldn't stop her own from forming. A quick glance at the clock on the wall told her dinner wouldn't be for another few hours, as it was only just after two in the afternoon. Normally, Stef was the one who allowed treats, sneaking them behind Lena's back thinking Lena didn't know. But it was a game the kids and Stef liked to play, and Lena couldn't possibly take that away from them.

Just this once, she wanted to play.

"Don't tell Mom, okay baby?" She whispered conspiratorially to Callie, who looked up at her with a wide grin and even wider brown eyes, and Lena shook her head. She was a goner for that puppy persona of Callie's, and she knew Stef fared no better. They would have to harden themselves against their daughter's natural built-in weapon lest she end up calling all the shots. With Callie held on her hip and supported by one hand, Lena drew the jar towards her with the other and took out two of the oatmeal cookies they had made earlier in the week. Handing one to Callie, Lena grinned as she mumbled a quiet "thank you" before she began carefully munching on her prize. With another kiss to her forehead, Lena put Callie down and handed her the other cookie. "Share with your brother, Cal." She reminded her, though she knew there was no reason too. Callie had always taken care of Jude and she would never take something from him, least of all, food. Callie nodded, wandering away while Lena watched, and she shook her head.

"I love you, baby girl." She called out after her, and she felt nothing but love when she heard Callie call back from around the corner.

"Love you, Mama!"


It's chaos that morning. Stef stands at the kitchen table, coffee in hand and a piece of toast in the other as her kids run in and around her, shouting at each other from opposite sides of the house. She expertly ignores them, just watching as Mariana calls out to Lena from upstairs asking where her jacket is, the one with the studs. Stef smirks at Lena who looks up at the ceiling, Mariana's floor, the slightest glare in her expression because everyone knows Lena hates it when they yell in the house, and there's no chance she'll answer her. Before she's even given the opportunity to try, Mariana's yelling out that she found it and she'll just be one more minute, which is Mariana-speak for another ten.

Lena sighs, and Stef snorts in to her coffee.

It's just another typical day in the Adams Foster household.

Jesus comes barreling in to the kitchen, sliding in to a seat beside Lena at the end of the table and immediately, without so much as a good morning, begins to pour half the contents of the cereal box in to his bowl. Both women watch him in silence as he twists open the milk and drowns his breakfast before he starts shoving mouthful after mouthful in. Stef's head cants to the side, watching in morbid fascination as her fifteen year old son seems to inhale his breakfast. Lena just watches, horrified. Brandon wanders in as his mothers observe his brother, taking two pieces of toast as he sits opposite and slathers it in butter and jam, his headphones in and a piece playing so loud, it draws both women's attention. Now, they're glancing between both boys and they barely notice when Mariana appears at the end of the table. "That's gross, Jesus." She comments as she reaches for an apple and Jesus just holds up his hand, palm up, blocking his view of her and effectively icing her out.

"Whatever," she rolls her eyes, snatching a bagel from the table and shoving the apple in to her bag. She turns on her heel and walks from the kitchen to the front door, and both parents know she'll be sitting outside on the swing until Lena's ready to drive them all to school. Stef leans forward, bending at the waist with her elbows on the table and her coffee held up to her lips as she watches Jesus demolish his cereal, down an entire glass of orange juice and then shove a piece of plain toast in his mouth, held between his teeth. He mumbles "laters, moms" with his mouth full and Lena scolds him as he disappears around the corner before she deflates, already exhausted at only seven fifteen. They both look at Brandon, who finally looks up from his plate. Their oldest reaches up, pulls out an earbud and asks in confusion. "What?" When he receives no explanation for their staring, he shrugs, finishes his toast and follows his siblings out the front door. Both women remain exactly where they were before their brood invaded the kitchen, Stef standing beside Lena.

"Just once, I'd like to experience a family breakfast during the week." Stef snorted in to her coffee again at Lena's comment, finishing her morning brew and reaching over to pick up the kids plates, walking them over to the sink. "Yeah, that's not going to happen. But dream big, babe." Lena glares at Stef, her glare softening as Stef returns to Lena's side, bending down to kiss her goodbye. "You okay?" She asks quietly, and Lena nods. "Are you?" She asks back, and Stef just smiles. But there's something almost sad about it, and she knows today will be a tough day. "Do you think it'll ever get any easier?"

They both pause, Stef hesitating to answer while Lena composes herself. They both know it won't, that this day all those years ago will weigh on their mind for the rest of their days. And they don't want it to get easier, they don't want to forget how hard November 12th is for them or why. But it's not easy, and both would love nothing more than to call in sick and spend the day together. Remembering. Grieving.

Because while three kids had come and gone through their kitchen, they both know it should have been five.

Her throat tightens with emotion she can't afford to shed, because she has to go to work and pretend she's happy and pretend she's not still heartbroken. Lena sighs, leaning to the side and resting her head against Stef's chest. Stef's hands rise, her fingers sinking in to Lena's curls as she bows her head forward and they both close their eyes. The sound of the car horn blaring breaks them from their moment and Lena exhales in irritation, but Stef calms her down with a kiss to her temple. "They don't know, love." She reminds her wife, and Lena nods. "I know."

Brandon knows, which is why neither of the mother's had scolded him for his headphones at breakfast. All the kids know how they feel about tech at the table, but today... today they could make an exception. With an already exhausted sigh, Lena slips from her stool and kisses Stef one last time before she braves the outside world, prepared to drive her three kids to Anchor Beach, all while thinking about another two.

Stef watched them leave from the door, before she leaned back and turned her head towards the staircase. The wall's scattered with pictures, photos of Lena and Stef and the kids. There's one tucked in the middle of them all, one that Jesus and Mariana only know so much about before they stopped asking questions. Two children, one a four year old boy and the other, a seven year old girl. She's hugging him from behind, the tree in the backyard in the background, and both are laughing at the camera.

A slow exhale passes through Stef's lips before she shakes her head and moves back to the kitchen, quietly cleaning up the mess left behind before she fixes her uniform, picks up her bag and leaves for work.

It's gonna be a long day.


"I've got work this afternoon buddy so you'll have to sit in one of the booths and do your homework." She's quiet as she talks to him, not wanting to risk waking up their current guardian at seven o'clock in the morning when he doesn't usually wake up until near noon. She'd managed to fix them both something to eat, just dry cereal because the milk was out of date, but her brother ate as much of it as he could. Not happy that he'll have no lunch, she drops her own breakfast in to a small zip-lock bag before packing it in to his bag for school. "I know it's not much but hopefully I can swing free fries from Cook for dinner." She smiles at him, and he smiles back at her, but neither one of them feel any relief.

She glanced at her watch, an old thing that she'd found at a former home that she'd managed to restore through resilience, determination, and google. Shaking her head, she moved around the kitchen in barefeet before she nudged her brother and inclined her head towards the front door. "Let's go, or you'll be late." He nods obediently, following his sister. They're both unusually quiet as they pick up their shoes and slip outside, gently closing the door behind them before they both sit on the stoop and put on their shoes. Taking his hand, they start walking, bypassing the bus stop because they don't have enough for the fare today. They'd used most of it on new second-hand clothes.

"Callie?" Her brother asks quietly as they walk. He's thirteen, but he's experienced more than your average grown man, and it hurts his sister that he's seen things he shouldn't have. He's such a good kid and she's only ever done her best to protect him. "Yeah?" She asks him just as quietly, the both of them looking first right, then left, before they crossed the road. She drops her brother's hand and he immediately grasps at the straps of his bag, she does the same as she looks down at him while they walk. "Do you think we'll ever get a family?"

Callie's lips part but words die in her throat. She doesn't want to give Jude false hope, but she doesn't want him to lose hope completely. So she shrugs, averting her gaze so he doesn't look up at her and see that she's lying. "We're the only family we need, bud." It's not the answer either of them want, but it's all they've got for now. They cross another two streets when Jude speaks again, this time much quieter and Callie has to bend slightly just to hear him.

"Do you think we'll find another Stef and Lena?"

Her breath catches and her heart aches at the reminder. He doesn't remember them all that well. Bits and pieces, here and there. He remembers more of them than he does their birth parents, which is fine. Callie prefers that. But he knows the stories. Because Callie was seven when they were taken away from Stef and Lena, and they were with them for almost a year before that. She has memories that she shares with her brother, because they were the first house they were in after their parents died, and they were the last house they ever felt safe in too. "Callie?" She blinks, pulled from her thoughts by Jude, who looks down at the sidewalk, counting the cracks as they pass. Her arm slides around his neck and she draws him in to her side, sighing heavily. "Probably not."

She could try and find them, she's sure. She might not remember where they lived but she knows their names, and she knows Stef wore a uniform and Lena was a teacher. It wouldn't be that hard, she'd just have to go to the library and use the computer, because god forbid she try and use the one at the house. She could try and find them, she's sure. But whether she wants too is another thing entirely.


Notes: So I haven't written fics in a while, I'm a bit rusty. I'm hoping this will become a slow-burn fic, with a lot of angst and drama. I'm a sucker for angst. I'm also a sucker for the mother-daughter relationship, and The Fosters really delivered on that front. I do not ship Brallie, I won't write it. Please don't ask me too. As you can see, this is AU. I have ideas in mind that I want to write about here so hopefully I can update regularly for you guys. I might need to implement a schedule so I can keep myself on track. Anyway, let me know what you think. Any comments and/or suggestions are welcome. On that note,

Important! I want to start a collection of one-shots directly involving Callie and her relationship with the family, especially Stef and Lena, but also the kids as well. I'd love some prompts and ideas. I have a few of my own that I really want to work on, as well as different variations of when Callie ( and Jude ) first refer to Stef and Lena as Mom and Mama. I know it's been done but, not by me. So please send your prompts my way via either a review or a PM.