A/N: Hey, everyone. Since today marks the halfway point of the hiatus, I thought I'd post a new story. Based on the press release for 3B, I'm really excited; 77 days! This is that second sickfic that was option 'A' when you all voted. I'm still working on more stuff and hopefully this helps me keep my writing mojo going. Enjoy.

The only thing I own is my idea for this story.

Chapter 1

Thursday - 5:47 PM

Callie entered the house as post-dinner clean up was happening. She went to the kitchen, setting her bag and keys on the island.

"Hey, Cal. Get stuck at work?" Stef wondered as she put a stack of plates away.

Callie was supposed to be off at five. "Yeah. I had to stay until Eddie could get there; car trouble." She went to the fridge for a bottle of water.

"There's a plate in the oven for you," Lena told her, putting on an oven mitt, retrieving it, and setting it down in front of her.

Callie picked up a fork and had a few bites of chicken and potatoes, mostly just pushing it around her plate.

"Not hungry?" Lena surmised, noticing the girl's obvious lack of appetite.

"I guess I don't feel so great," she admitted with a sigh, sliding the food away.

Lena reached to feel Callie's forehead with the back of her hand. "No fever." She looked over at Stef, slightly puzzled.

Callie had been feeling 'off' since she woke up that morning: her brain was foggy and she was unusually tired. "I think I'm just getting a cold. I'm gonna go do homework," she decided and took her things upstairs.

A couple of hours' worth of Algebra II and Chemistry was enough to make anyone's head hurt, but it made Callie's just-barely-there headache escalate to eleven. She put her materials away and got under the covers, glad to have had the foresight to change clothes when she got to her room. Surprisingly, she fell asleep quickly, snoring lightly as congestion began to set in.

Mariana returned home from Lexi's house around 8:30 because of a school project for English. She went upstairs to her room and saw Callie sleeping, deciding instead to stay out until bedtime so as not to disturb her. "Callie's sleeping, so I'm gonna finish my homework down here," Mariana told her moms who were in the living room watching TV. "Is she sick or something?"

"She's had a long day and isn't feeling so well, yes," Stef answered, standing. "I'm gonna go check on her."

Stef opened her daughters' bedroom door and found Callie snoring with her mouth open, rolled over facing her. She went over to her and briefly felt her forehead, agreeing with her wife that the girl didn't feel feverish. After placing a kiss on Callie's hair, Stef left her to rest.

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Friday - 6:55 AM

As soon as she woke up the next morning, Callie knew that her cold had erupted overnight. Her head throbbed, feeling as though it weighed a ton, her nose was completely blocked, yet running at the same time, and her throat was sore. She looked over at her nightstand and saw a box of Kleenex, not hesitating to pull one and blow her nose.

"Is that supposed to be a bugle call? Are we in military school?" Mariana asked, also awake.

"Haha, sorry."

"You sound like crap," Mariana informed her.

"I'm sure I look the part, too. I feel like ass," Callie admitted as she got out of bed.

Mariana sat up. "Should you even bother getting up? Moms are gonna make you stay home."

"I have a math test today." Callie went to her dresser to pick out some clothes.

Callie got dressed and ready for school and went downstairs to have breakfast.

"Good morning, Callie. How are you feeling?" Lena asked as she saw her come in to the kitchen.

"Morning," she replied, although it sounded more like bordig because she was so congested.

"You sound awful, honey."

"So I've been told by Mariana," Callie said as Stef checked her temperature.

"Maybe a smidge warmer than last night."

"I don't think you should go to school today, sweetheart. I doubt you'll get much learning done and you don't want to spread this to everyone," Lena advised her as both her mom and vice principal.

"I have an Algebra II test in third period. I already studied."

Stef and Lena both looked at each other, silently communicating. Should we let her go?

"Is that the only major thing you have going on today?" Stef asked.

Callie nodded, grabbing a tissue from the box on the counter. "Yeah."

Lena sighed as Callie blew her nose. "Alright. You can go, but Mom's gonna take you home after. Meet us at the nurse's office at 10:30 and not a minute later, got it?"

"Okay, that's fair," Callie agreed and sat down to get some food.

Callie couldn't help but regret her decision to take the test when she had to keep wiping her nose and sniffling throughout the period, unable to fully concentrate on solving the equations in front of her. She didn't realize that it was irritating her classmates as well. She was relieved when she turned it in and headed to the nurse after the bell rang.

Stef, Lena, and Mrs. Andrasik, the school nurse, were waiting for Callie when she walked in.

"How'd your test go?" Stef wondered as Callie sat down on one of the cots.

She shrugged. "Alright, I guess."

"Hey, Callie. I'm gonna let you go home, I just have to follow procedure first, okay?" Mrs. Andrasik said as she grabbed the thermometer. "Under your tongue," she instructed as Callie opened her mouth and waited for the beep. "99.8. Elevated, but not significant. How do you feel?"

"Just crummy. Headache, stuffy nose, sore throat, tired."

Mrs. Andrasik examined Callie's throat as well. "Red and inflamed. Is anyone else sick at home?" She used an otoscope to look in Callie's ears.

"No," Lena answered.

"No signs of infection here. Just a cold, then. I hope you're back on Monday, Callie. Feel better." Mrs. Andrasik addressed Stef and Lena. "Keep her home with any temperature over 100.4. Rest, fluids, and all of that."

Callie grabbed her backpack and hugged Lena. "See you later, Mama."

Lena kissed the top of her head. "See you at home."

Callie left to go to the front desk and Stef signed her out. They walked to the squad car where Mike was waiting for them. "Hey, Callie. Sorry you're not feeling well."

She got in the backseat and buckled up. "Thanks, Mike."

Mike drove to the Adams Foster household and parked in the driveway. "Feel better, Callie."

"Thanks," she said as she left the car.

"You can hang out on the couch or go to bed, but you need to be resting," Stef told her, her voice firm. "There's NyQuil and meds in our bathroom if you want them."

"Alright."

"I'll see you tonight. Love you."

"Love you, too, Mom." Callie went and unlocked the front door with her key and heard the car pull out once she closed and locked it behind her.

As promised, she went right upstairs and changed into some sweatpants and a shirt, choosing to forego medicine for now and climbed back into bed to sleep.

Callie woke up a couple of hours later; it was going on one o'clock. She still felt as crappy as she did before she fell asleep. Snapping out of her sleepy haze, she quickly grabbed a tissue and sneezed into it. "Heh'chew!" She groaned and coughed, knowing that was only the first of many.

Callie got up and went to her moms' bathroom to see what medicine they had. She found the NyQuil, Tylenol, and some orange-flavored Alka-Seltzer tablets that were non-drowsy. She took two tablets to the kitchen and dropped them in a glass of water, watching them fizz and dissolve away as they turned the water a pale orange color. She took a sip and made a face at the awful taste, deciding to plug her nose and chug it. She coughed when she finished and refilled the glass, bringing it, a box of Kleenex, and a plastic bag with her to the living room couch.

Callie turned on the TV and flipped through the channels, settling on watching Bizarre Foods America for awhile. When that was over, she turned on Survivorman. Her phone buzzed; it was a text from Wyatt:

Where'd you go after math? Did you disappear or something? She and Wyatt had English, Algebra II, and Economics together, the latter after lunch.

My moms only let me stay 'til 3rd period because of the test. They made me go home.

Oh, okay. I know I'd rather be home than here. lol

I'll trade you. Ready for some germs? ;)

On second thought…you can keep them. XD

Callie laughed and set her phone down, turning the TV off and lying down. As soon as she got comfortable, she felt another sneeze brewing. "Heh'chew! … Heht'CHEW!" She coughed and had some water before falling asleep again.

A/N: Let me know what you all think. There will be more soon. :)