Author: Sassy
Rating: PG-13
Show: The Fosters
Pairing: Brandon/Callie
Summary: It's my first Fosters fic. I haven't reading fan fic in about 8 years, but something about this show brought out the fan gurl in me.
This is following Quenceanera.
Talya's mad that Brandon broke up with her and she's going to retaliate.
A Little Bit of Darkness
Brandon tried to convince himself he was just fascinated with her. Callie came from a different background, a whole different world than what he was accustomed. Yes, he was the child of divorce that resulted in an almost non-existent father. Yes, he had two moms. Yes, he even had adoptive siblings whose lives hadn't started out easily. He'd been exposed to all sorts of ways of life. He wasn't naïve. He knew the world wasn't kind to everyone. But Callie seemed like she was caught up in a universe so far removed from his own. Seeing relief in her eyes every day that she and Jude were together and safe in the Fosters' home made him feel something he couldn't identify. He'd never had to wonder if he was safe or loved. Every time she smiled because the moms listened to her, every time she laughed at something Jude did, every time she let a little bit more of herself go because she felt a little more at home, made him want to make sure she stayed in their house, Callie and Jude. But at the same time what he really wanted would ensure that they wouldn't stay. So here he sat, in front of his keyboard, unable to play, trying to convince himself he was just fascinated with the poor little foster girl his moms had taken in.
It wasn't working.
He heard her strumming the guitar from the other room. Mariana was at Lexi's for the night, which meant Callie has the room to herself. That's when she seemed to play the guitar he'd given her the most. He went into the hallway to listen better, as she played and hummed along, until she hit the wrong chord and he heard her mutter against it. He knocked lightly on the door and opened it without waiting for her permission.
"You almost got the chord."
"Gee, thanks." Callie nervously pushed her brown hair behind her ear before letting it drop back to the neck of the guitar. The guitar he'd given her. She hadn't had a gift like that since her mom had died. She'd certainly never gotten anything like that in any foster home before. Then again, this wasn't just any foster home. She'd never seen a home where everyone was so accepting. Well, at least accepting of Jude. Mariana and Jesus tolerated her. And Brandon, well, she didn't know what he thought of her, and she kind of thought it was better that she didn't know. Ever since their mom died, all she had hoped for was a place where Jude was happy and safe. It had taken her more than five years to find it, but she finally had. Now if only they could stay. And sitting here, staring at Brandon, with those green eyes that looked at her with this mix of compassion and puzzlement, made her realize how difficult it was going to be.
"I was just messing around on it. I'm remembering some of the chords, even a couple of songs that I used to play, but then I lose it. I didn't mean to bother you. I know the house is never quiet like it is right now." Callie shrugged apologetically and tore her eyes away from Brandon's figure.
"It's true that the house is never this quiet, but I don't mind. Music is never bothersome." He flashed a grin, trying to seem casual. He knew it didn't come across that way. He never could seem to get casual down around Callie. "You need some help. I think I know what song you were playing."
As he moved to her, his hands reaching for hers, Callie jerked back. She couldn't do this. Not after the dance at Mariana's quinceanera. Not after he'd broken up with Talya because Talya did stupid things like read her journal and told her he knew everything he needed to know, that her past didn't matter to him. She couldn't cross the rule of foster siblings. She couldn't do that to Jude. And if he moved any closer to her, she would.
They both pretended they didn't notice her reaction. "No, that's okay. I'm done anyway. I should go see if Jude needs anything."
Brandon started to let her pass as she went for the doorway, but then he couldn't. He stomach tightened when she brushed past him and he grabbed her arm. He pulled her a little closer and said, "No, Jude's fine. Lena's downstairs helping him with math homework."
Callie felt her heart thudding and she wondered if Brandon could hear it beating.
Brandon saw it then: heat, interest, and then that flash of fear clouding her eyes.
He could see the wheels turning, trying to come up with another excuse to get out of the room, the dimly lit bedroom, with no siblings or moms in sight. They'd been alone before, on the bus to save Jude from the foster father, the lunches they ate sometimes in the music room, but somehow this was different. She almost seemed panicked. He knew he should step back and let her escape. He knew that he should be the good boy that he was and not push for anything that could have such dire consequences for everyone. But wasn't Callie the one who asked him if he did everything he was supposed to?
They stood in silence, electrified and awkward all at the same time. Then, they were inching closer and closer to one another, his hand wrapping around her waist, sliding just like they had done when they'd learned to waltz. Her skin was tingling, his hand felt like he was touching fire. His lips hovered over hers and she was ready to give in and finally feel something good and wonderful, not something full of fear, worry, and horror.
"Brandon!" Jude called up the stairs, stomping up the first couple of steps. "Talya's here." The disgust in his voice was thinly veiled. Jude had that uncanny ability to know exactly who everyone was, no matter what front was put up to disguise their natures.
Callie stepped away as the spell broke. Brandon let out a frustrated groan and started an explanation. "I don't know why she's here. I haven't talked to her since we broke up."
Callie shrugged in her usual I-could-care-less manner. She just walked out the door.
Brandon sighed. He'd been so close to making the most incredible mistake of his life. He went down the stairs with trepidation while Jude bounded up the stairs. Jude glanced at Brandon's face then saw Callie's behind him in the hallway watching him go. Jude wrapped his arm around Callie once reached the top of the stairs.
"I like it here, Callie." His words spoke volumes.
"I know, Jude."
"But Callie, we can find another home." Callie ruffled his hair, even though he thought he was getting to old for it. She kissed his forehead and sent him into his and Jesus' room.
Callie lied in her bed, unsettled by the silence. She'd actually gotten used to the sound of Mariana's breathing. She hadn't seen Brandon since he'd gone down to talk to Talya. They were probably back together and having sex in the tree house or something. She really shouldn't go down that train of thought. The idea of Brandon naked was really something she shouldn't consider. She'd been just seconds away of ruining hers and Jude's life. Stef and Lena had promised this would be their last foster home until they'd found a permanent home. But she had the feeling that falling in love with their son would probably change that promise. They probably had never even thought about the possibility of the Brandon and Callie. They loved evil Talya. They didn't even know that Brandon had broken up with her.
She heard the door slam and the sound of feet coming up the stairs. She'd recognize the sound of Brandon's tennis shoes anywhere. They stopped in front of her door and she heard him open the door a couple inches. "Callie? Are you awake?"
She lay perfectly still. She held her breath and kept her eyes shut. She felt him enter the room and stand over her. He brushed some of her hair off her cheek, maybe in an effort to wake her up. Of course, when faking sleep, it wouldn't work. He stood up and left the room quietly and Callie let out the breath she was holding. She needed to avoid Brandon at all costs.
Talya had come over to convince him to take her back. But he knew who she was now. She was insecure, cruel, and a bully. And there was nothing in his life that showed he would tolerate bullying. He couldn't believe it had taken him so long to figure it out. Obviously, he hadn't been thinking about Talya with his brain.
She tried to explain. She tried to tell him her reason for looking at Callie's journal, for threatening Callie repeatedly. It was just that Talya loved him so much. He'd told her that if that's what loving him turned her into, she was obviously going to be much better off without him.
She'd even tried break up sex that she thought would turn into make up sex, but he'd turned her down. That had struck the chord of her desperation and it turned her hard. He'd never actually seen the look in her eyes that she shot him, but he had the feeling that Callie had seen it many times before. She went on about how he would be sorry she was humiliated, that she was left for some loser foster skank from juvie. And he was sorry. He didn't want to hurt her, even if she'd hurt other people. But he had the feeling that wasn't what she had meant.
He had stopped in Callie's room, wanting to get back to where they'd left things, but she'd been sleeping. Or rather faking it. She obviously didn't want to talk. He looked at Callie, brushing her hair away, hoping that would soothe her into wanting to talk with him. But he knew even if he and Callie never crossed that line, he was glad he wasn't with Talya anymore.
Callie knew something was off when she entered school. She was used to being virtually nonexistent. After the novelty of being some kid from juvie had worn off, most people just ignored her, which was fine with her. Who knew how long she'd end up here anyway? As long as Jude was making friends and not being bothered, that's all that mattered. But when she walked in the doors Monday, she felt like people were watching her. She didn't like it, but she figured she was just being paranoid. Jude glanced around and looked up at Callie.
"What happened? Everyone's staring at us."
Callie shrugged. "No, they aren't. People don't think about us. Go to class, kid."
Jude shot her a look that said yeah right. But he grabbed his backpack and headed on to the 7th grade hallway.
Callie took a calming breath and headed to her own class.
By lunch, Callie knew she wasn't just imagining things. But she still didn't know what had caused such a stir. She decided that the hallway wasn't secluded enough for lunch, so she headed for the music room. Just before she entered, Wyatt called out for her, "Callie! Callie, wait!"
She stopped and turned towards him. "Hey. How's it going?"
"Compared to you, pretty great."
"What does that mean?" She moved closer to him to see what Wyatt had in his hand. He stepped a little closer, but moved his phone back.
"You don't know yet?" He asked slowly. She shook her head and pulled his hand towards her. Wyatt smiled sadly. "I hate to be the one to tell you this. I thought I was an outsider, but even I got on this message list. It was sent to basically the whole school. I don't know who sent it out. I guess you did do that journal entry for class."
She grabbed Wyatt's phone out of her hand and started scrolling. "I guess I really should have asked you about your rap sheet at lunch the other day." He was trying to lighten the mood, but it didn't work. She shot Wyatt an exasperated look and shoved the phone back in his hand.
"Thanks for telling me. I'm definitely out of here, before I do something I regret to her." She pushed past Wyatt and headed out the door.
"You know who sent it?" He called down the hall. Callie didn't reply.
Brandon stormed down the hallway. He had never felt so angry before. He was Brandon. He was the good boy. He followed directions, he did what he was supposed to, and he was kind to everyone. Sure, he got upset sometimes, but he had never felt pure fury. He grabbed Talya's arm.
"Are you kidding me? You did this? Just because I broke up with you? I didn't leave you for her. I left you for me. I left because of what you've done. It had nothing to do with her. She's my foster sister. Nothing can happen. I broke up with you because you have made so many wrong choices and I finally saw it, so I knew I couldn't take it anymore. You pushed me to this, not Callie! And you did this to her. Did you think that mailing out the pictures of her journal would make me want you back?" He shook her slightly, not caring that good little Brandon was making a scene in the middle of the hallway.
Talya didn't seem ruffled at all. She smirked at him, which just made Brandon feel even more fury. "No, I told you that you'd be sorry you humiliated me. So now she's humiliated and you're sorry. Besides, you should know who you get into bed with."
Brandon pushed her away. "You're right. I should have known." Talya stood slightly stunned as Brandon continued his path down the hallway.
He started looking for friends of Callie's, but quickly remembered she didn't have any. He saw Jude standing at the end of the hallway. He held a binder and book in his hand, but he wasn't moving. "Something's happened, hasn't it?"
"Yeah, Buddy, something happened. Where's Callie? Have you seen her?" He tried to reign in his fury at Talya to appear calm and unworried for Jude's sake. Jude probably didn't really know what had happened. He just had that sixth sense about people and life that alerted him to this situation.
"Not since this morning when we got here. I told her something was wrong when we got here, but she told me I was crazy. What happened, Brandon?" Brandon slung an arm around him. He didn't know what to say. He couldn't say nothing. He didn't know how to explain that Callie's secrets about Liam were out. How do you explain to the kid who only has one person in the world that his psycho bully ex-girlfriend had exposed Callie? Jude had already dealt with so much in his young life. This would just make him feel hurt and guilt for Callie. He was a sensitive kid.
"Well, Talya did something, Jude. Something cruel." Brandon started.
Jude cut him off. "It's about her journal, isn't it? She told me someone read her journal about –"
"Liam. Yeah. Talya messaged it to the school." He waited for Jude to process the information.
Jude's sweet face changed to one of hurt. The world had just let him down again. He'd felt safe here with the Fosters, but obviously, he and Callie would never be safe. Life just continually brings them a reason to be miserable. Once Lena and Stef saw this, they would send them both back.
"I've gotta go find Callie. I need to help her. She needs to know it's going to be okay." Jude looked lost. He was too young to have to deal with comforting his sister after a school wide bullying scheme.
"No, Jude, I'll find her. Just take my phone to Lena. She'll deal with it. She has to." Brandon offered his cell to Jude, already opened to the message.
Jude shook his head. "No. We can't tell Lena. She and Stef will send us back, Brandon! I like it here. Well, I guess I won't anymore. Not after this…"
Brandon leaned down a little bit. "No, Jude. My moms will not be sending you back for this. They need to know so they can take care of this. This is Callie's past mistakes, things that have happened to her before you came. They won't send you back." Jude took the phone and nodded. He didn't look like he believed Brandon but he would do it anyway. He walked towards Lena's office as Brandon walked for the door.
Brandon wished he knew where Callie would have gone. He knew she probably just decided to skip the rest of the day. He would have. Every feeling he had right now towards her was as far as platonic as it could be. He felt protective towards her, angry with himself and at Talya, frustrated that this would happen. He could even imagine the worry that Callie felt on the family's reaction. He knew his family better than she did. Callie hadn't felt unconditional love in a long time, he figured. She wouldn't expect it anymore.
He just started wandering down the nearby beach. It wasn't too full. The waves crashed against the somewhat rocky shoreline. He spotted her on the rocks down the beach. He started jogging as relief washed over him for having located her. He had worried he wouldn't find her. He climbed up the small cliff and sat next to her.
She didn't move. She wanted to be alone, but at the same time Callie couldn't imagine anything worse. Feeling the body heat from Brandon, only centimeters away from her, gave her comfort that she didn't want to say. Who knew how he'd react now that he knew about Liam? Her big mistake. She'd just been a scared kid. She was only 11. Her mom had been dead a year. The only thing her mom had ever asked of her was that she take care of her brother, ever since he was born. Liam had been her older foster brother at one of the houses. He was threatening Jude daily and Jude had just been in elementary school at the time. Liam told her that if she'd be a look out while he robbed the store, he'd leave Jude alone because he'd have enough money to leave the foster home. Liam would be out of their lives forever. All she had to do was be the lookout. But things were never that simple. They never are, especially with criminal behaviors. Liam went nuts in the store and beat the storeowner with a baseball bat. The owner survived, but he'd been injured and put in the hospital. She had never thought Liam would hurt anyone. She figured he'd take the money and run. Which he had done as well, of course. He had beaten the owner, grabbed the money and ran. She had run, too, before Liam even came out of the store. She hadn't been able to be a lookout. She couldn't be a part of it. Of course, it was too late for that. She was a part of it. She had known that Liam was going to rob the store. She had run all the way home and actually cried that night in the bedroom. Jude had seen her crying and eventually figured out what had happened when the police showed up to question Liam. He'd left the bat behind with his fingerprints (brilliant teenage criminal). They had no proof of anyone else being involved, but the foster family had kicked them all out to keep the police from coming around again. Callie had never gotten over feeling guilty about the poor storeowner. Even if he was all right, she felt responsible. Even if she had been a scared kid trying to protect herself and her brother. She had never forgiven herself for knowing what Liam had done, how she could have stopped it. She had thought of a million different things she should have done instead, but she hadn't. And now everyone knew. Maybe she would be sent back to juvie. Maybe the Fosters would keep Jude at least. She knew she would be out. How could anyone forgive her for knowing about that?
"So, apparently, Talya's an evil bitch. I don't know how I missed that for so long." Brandon wanted desperately to close the space between them and pull her into him. He wanted to touch her, feel her skin beneath his, let her know that he didn't care, that he understood why she'd done what she had done and how he had absolved her of the guilt and didn't care what had happened five years ago. She had been put into so many situations where she had to protect her brother.
"Well, yeah, she is. But I obviously have done a few evil things too. And I think mine pretty much tops it." She said it softly as she stared at the ocean waves crashing. She couldn't look at Brandon. She was afraid she might fall apart if she looked him in the eyes. She felt anger at Talya right now, and the regret she'd felt about the Liam situation had come back full force. She couldn't fall apart. She couldn't deal with any other emotions.
"I told you before that all of that is in your past. I don't care. I know who you are now, Callie. And all you have ever done your whole life is protect Jude. You are a caring person who has been put in these horrible situations. Talya never should have read your journal to begin with, and then to photograph it and send it to everyone. All because she was jealous."
"Jealous of me? Someone who let a robbery happen? A robbery that led to someone getting hurt. Liam never even got caught. He actually escaped. If I had just told someone, reported him, warned the storeowner, anything. But I didn't. I was afraid of him, afraid of what he would do to Jude, which is no reason. I should have just told anyway." Brandon could see that Callie was beating herself up. No wonder she'd written about the guilt.
"Callie, look at me." He reached his hand out and touched her chin, wanting to make her face him. She shook him off. "I can't, Brandon. I can't look at you, or Lena, or Stef. I can barely stand Jude knowing, and he's the only one who has known for five years." Again, he turned her head towards him. This time their eyes connected and to Callie's surprise, she didn't fall apart.
"I don't blame you! No one knows what they would do when they are put in those situations." He said it vehemently, wanting to get through to her.
"I do. You would have done what you should have. You know exactly who you are and who you are supposed to be. You know what's right. You are a crusader, Brandon." She said it with just as much passion as he had spoken to her with. Brandon's eyes widened. He never would have considered himself a crusader. He no longer wondered about crossing a line. He no longer cared. She sat across from him, a mix between strong and broken, and he needed her. She needed him.
Brandon grabbed Callie and pulled her to him. He covered his mouth with hers, with a well of buried passion spilling out of him. He couldn't believe how soft her lips were, considering how hardened she seemed on the outside. She seemed hesitant at first, and then it was as if something snapped inside of her. She returned the kiss with as much passion as Brandon had started with. Every bit of twisted emotion she had felt earlier: guilt, sadness, fear, anger, pain came out in this kiss. She had imagined kissing Brandon lying in her bed at night, but she'd never thought that it would be as a result of this. She felt everything she'd thought start to melt into the background and she slid her fingers into his wavy brown hair. She bit his lip slightly and he moaned. His hand brushed down her side and she gasped as his hand grazed her breast. It wasn't her first rodeo, but this was different somehow. She slid on top of him, pulling him even closer to her. After all the weeks of trying to keep their distance, it was as if they couldn't get close enough. He pulled her jacket off of her, grabbed at her shirt, trying to get to her skin. He couldn't wait any longer to feel her covering every inch of him. She started pulling at his buttons, fumbling with them as she went. They lied back on the rocks, hidden in their own little niche on the beach.
Lena was working in her office, typing on the computer when Jude knocked on the door. She looked up, scooted away from the computer, and smiled at the slightly timid pre-teen. "Hi, Jude. How are you? Come on in." She motioned for him to sit at the chair in front of her.
Jude walked in slowly with his head down. He flopped into the plastic covered chair and stared at Lena with wide eyes. She waited for him to speak, but he didn't. He just sat quietly. She smiled encouragingly, hoping to put the boy at ease, but still he didn't speak.
"Jude, did you need something? We can talk if you need to. Or I can go find a counselor." Lena didn't know what else to say. Something was wrong. Jude didn't trust them enough to share things still. He was polite and sweet always and never discussed difficulties if he didn't have to.
Jude shook his head. He sighed loudly. He watched her a little bit longer, then he started, "You and Stef said that we wouldn't have to leave unless we had a forever place. Did you mean that? Even if we do something bad? Or did something bad?"
Lena walked around the side of her desk to sit in the chair next to Jude. She put her hand on his knee and patted it. "Of course we meant it, Jude. You and Callie are here to stay. You could never do anything that would make us send you away. I can't promise you won't get in trouble, but we won't just throw you away, Jude. You're a wonderful, sweet boy and we won't just toss you out because you did something we don't like."
Jude nodded, but stared at Lena with a somewhat hard look. A look that 12-olds shouldn't know how to give. "But what about Callie? Would you get rid of her of she did something bad? A long time ago?"
A feeling started to build in the pit of Lena's stomach. This was more than just the timidity that Jude normally felt. He didn't just want a little reassurance. Something had really happened. This wasn't hypothetical.
"Callie too, Jude. We won't split you up. We won't get rid of either one of you. Now I need you to tell me what happened." She tried to smile again, but this attempt was half-hearted. She watched as Jude fumbled with a cell phone. It wasn't his, of course. It looked like Brandon's. He handed it over.
"This is what happened." Lena touched the screen and scrolled. She read it slowly, surprised by what she saw.
"What is this, Jude? When did this happen?" Lena asked. She didn't really clarify too much. She just waited for an answer.
"It's Callie's journal. It was sent out this morning. Remember when Callie thought someone had read her journal? Someone did. And they sent a message out to everyone about it." He waited for more questions. He figured Lena would have a lot.
"Okay, but when did this happen? With Liam?" She didn't know what to do with the information she now had. Should she tell Callie's parole officer? Would she have to send Callie away after she'd just told Jude she wouldn't?
"It happened in our first foster home. It was five years ago. Callie was only 11. Liam was mean. He used to hurt us. He was really secretive about it. Finally, he made this plan to leave foster care and he was going to rob that store. He told Callie that if she was the lookout and didn't tell, he wouldn't hurt us anymore and he'd leave us. He said if she told he'd hurt me so bad, I might not survive. So she did it. Or almost did. But you see, she ran away after Liam went in the store. She didn't do anything wrong. She left. She didn't do it." Jude finally took a breath and Lena could see the fear in Jude's face. He was so worried. His eyes were wide and pleading and she knew he wanted to keep pleading for forgiveness for Callie.
Lena's heart broke for both of them again. They'd had such a hard life since their mom had died. Poor Callie, being so young and having to decide how to protect herself and her brother, all the time. She never got to finish her childhood. She went from kid to grown up overnight, but her mind and body hadn't caught up to her. She probably didn't have anyone she could trust with this information at the time. She was terrified.
"Who sent this out? Do you know, Jude?" Lena asked softly.
"Talya. She's mad that Brandon broke up with her."
"Talya did this? She took a picture of Callie's journal and messaged it to who?"
"The whole school I guess. Everyone knows." Jude looked at his hands folded in his lap now. He began to wring his hands in anxiety. She didn't know what she could say to reassure the poor kid.
"Where's Callie?" She'd have to talk with her first. Jude shrugged. He didn't want to get Callie in more trouble. "Jude…"
"She left, I think. I haven't seen her since this morning. But if she knows about this, I think she would leave. I don't know how she wouldn't know about this." Jude shifted in his seat, wanting to leave. Lena leaned over and hugged Jude.
"Thank you for telling me, Jude. I'll take care of this. Why didn't Brandon just bring me his phone?" Jude bit his lip. Lena almost laughed at the look of guilt on Jude's face. "He went to go find her, didn't he?"
Jude nodded. She smiled. "All right. You go on to class and try not to worry. I'll take care of it all, I promise." Jude nodded and picked up his backpack. He walked to the door, but stopped just short of it. "Thanks, Lena."
"You're welcome, Jude." She handed him a pass to go back to class. After he left the office, she looked at her secretary. "Get Talya in here. As soon as possible." Her voice had lost it's warmth and it was obvious things were not going to go well for Talya.
Callie shifted, her head lying on Brandon's chest. They hadn't spoken for a while. He was running his fingers up and down her arm; she was listening to his heartbeat. The sun was starting to set. Neither knew what to say. They knew they had crossed the line. There was no going back, but there was no way for them to possibly have a relationship either. That's all either one of them wanted though. Maybe that's why they didn't speak. If they did, the magic would be broken and reality would come crashing back.
"So…" Brandon began.
"So….that wasn't a bad ending to this fairly crappy day." Callie finished. Brandon smiled and lifted her chin to kiss her. Callie gave him a half smile. "Well, at least until Lena and Stef kick me out and send me back to juvie."
"They aren't going to do that, Callie. You were 11."
"Yes, juvenile detention is for juveniles who do things they shouldn't. Like keeping a robbery a secret when they were 11." She sat up and shook her hair. She slipped her shoes back on and looked at Brandon. "It's fine. I deserve to go back for it. I just hope they'll keep Jude. You'd take care of him, wouldn't you?"
Brandon pulled her close. "I'll take care of Jude with you." She shrugged him off and stood.
Callie nodded. "I guess we should go home. I need to get this all over with."
Brandon hurried to retie his shoes to go with her. He didn't know what to say. He knew they needed to talk about what had just happened. She was acting so pessimistic. She probably figured if she went back to juvenile detention, this didn't matter.
"Callie, I know that this wasn't supposed to happen. I know that it breaks the rules. But I've never been able to stop thinking about you. I want this to happen again, and again, and again." Brandon grabbed her hand and entwined their fingers. Callie looked at their hands and then back up at Brandon. "We can't tell, Brandon. We have to keep this a secret. It won't matter if I go back, but if I do get to stay, we can't tell."
Brandon nodded. "Okay, Callie. We'll keep it a secret. Until you get that permanent home."
Brandon led Callie down to the beach and they headed to the Fosters' home.
They came up the walkway and the door opened. They released hands instantly and hoped no one noticed it. Jude darted down the sidewalk and hugged Callie. Stef and Lena stood in the doorway.
Jude said quickly, "It's going to be okay, Callie. They know about Liam and it's going to be okay." Callie tried to smile for Jude, but it didn't quite happen. So she walked up the doorway with Jude attached to her side.
Lena and Stef stepped back to let them come in. "Bran, we'll be talking about the skipping school later. Why don't you take Jude upstairs while we talk with Callie." Stef said sternly.
Brandon nodded, "All right, Mom. Come on, Jude, let's go play one of Jesus' video games." He didn't regret skipping school. He didn't care what the punishment was. Callie had needed him and it was worth it. Jude looked at Callie who gave him a signal to go ahead with Brandon. Her eyes met Brandon's and he mouthed, "It's going to be all right." Then the two of them disappeared up the stairs.
Lena put her arm around Callie. "Let's go in the living room and talk. We have a lot to tell you." Callie stiffened and followed them wordlessly to the couch.
"Listen, if you'll just keep Jude, I'll go wherever I have to. He shouldn't pay for my mistakes."
Stef stopped her, "Callie, you're not going anywhere and neither is Jude. We've talked to several people and no one thinks that this will affect your probation. You were a minor and you didn't actually participate in the robbery. I'm also hazarding a guess that you were threatened in what you did do and it also explains why you didn't come forward. Since Liam is still at large, you were probably afraid he would come back after you. And from that journal entry, it's obvious that you realize that it was wrong and you regret what happened, even though it was done to protect yourself and Jude. You will have to talk to the police and discuss what you know, but other than that, it'll be over for you."
Callie stared at them. In all the scenarios she'd run through her head on the way home, she'd never thought that this one would happen. She was ready for anger, shock, and disgust, not acceptance.
Lena spoke next, "We know that you regret it. You've made several bad choices when you feel that you have to keep Jude safe. Hopefully, you won't be put in that position any longer. As long as you are with us, you won't have to worry about it.
I'm sorry about what Talya has done. That has taken cyber bullying to a whole new level at my school. I talked with her this afternoon. I've suspended her and when she returns, she'll be doing some school community service. It was not right for her to do this, read your journal and especially send it out to people. I know that it will be difficult to go back to school, but I can't change the fact that Talya has sent it out."
Callie bit her lip and took a deep breath. She didn't know what to say. She'd never expected to be able to stay. She had been positive that the incident with Liam would send her right out the door. Of course, now that she and Brandon had broken the rules, that could send her on next. She always seemed to have a secret that she had to feel guilty about. Stef and Lena had done so much for her and Jude already. They were starting to trust her, even after all the things that had happened. And she would be breaking their trust again if she and Brandon snuck around. If they ever found out, she didn't know what would happen. She decided she'd focus on one crisis at a time.
"I didn't want anyone to know. I definitely didn't want anyone to read that. But it'll blow over. I'll be invisible again, which is all I can ask for. I can't believe how understanding you all are being. Thank you. Again." Callie looked both moms in the eye.
Stef smiled and hugged her. Lena wrapped her arms around both of them. As they broke away from the hug, Stef said, "We'll have to go to the station tomorrow. You can go in to work with me and you'll talk to someone. I'll drop you off at school after that. I think you've skipped enough school. You and Brandon." Stef gave her a look. Callie shrugged and stood up, "All right. I'll be ready."
As she headed for the stairs, Lena called out, "Callie, Talya said Brandon broke up with her and that you had ruined everything. She said that was why she'd done it. Why would she think it was your fault? She has to know about the rule about foster siblings dating." Lena said the last part as a reminder. She'd seen the looks she and Brandon could give each other at times. Even Stef had noticed and worried about it aloud when they'd gone to bed at night.
Callie stopped cold. She hesitated for a moment, and then said, "I've tried to stay away from their relationship. Brandon and I don't talk about that stuff. She just never liked me."
It actually hurt her to choose her words so carefully. Though she was being truthful, she knew why Talya had done it. She knew why Brandon had broken up with her and that Talya hadn't been completely wrong to be worried. But she knew she had to be that way. They could never find out. She saw Brandon at the top of the stairs, his eyes looking a little darker as the realization of what life was going to be like hiding everything. Callie started slowly up the stairs after Lena said, "Okay, " and Lena exchanged glances with Stef.
Brandon brushed her cheek as she walked past him in the upstairs hallway. He had been eavesdropping on what was being said and he knew he'd be getting the school skipping punishment next. She stopped at the touch and they shared a look. Things were not going to be easy. He was going to start lying to his moms, which was something he had never done. Callie was putting her whole life and Jude's life in a precarious position. She was changing the way Brandon interacted with people, honest Brandon, becoming a sneak and a liar. She was bringing out his bad side instead of him bringing out her good side.
That was Callie's life since her mom died – bringing a little bit of darkness – everywhere she turned.