Disclaimer: I own nada.

Warning: If any mention of self-harm bothers you, then this is not the fic for you.


Chapter 1


Callie raised the lighter up to her skin and let the fire push against it, taking a deep breath right before and letting the pain from the heat take over.

It helped.

And it was the only thing that was helping her right about now.

Yes, she was back home with Stef and Lena now, but with everything that was going on she could just feel the walls closing in on her.

And she could already hear the doorbell ringing, with the next cps worker standing on the other side threatening to take her away.

But take her away to where?

To another Helen maybe?

Who knows?

Flashback

Callie watched as Helen locked the door and could hear the clicking of the latch as she turned the key to the right and then to the left.

She could hear Helen twisting the knob from the other side, just to make sure that Callie couldn't get out.

The girl tried to convince herself that it was only to keep her safe, but she couldn't help but think that the bars on the windows were only there to break her even more.

Once again, she felt like she was in a jail cell, but she couldn't understand why this time.

She walked over toward the window frame and lifted it just to smell the air. Her hands clenched around the black metal bars and she couldn't help but automatically fear the worst.

Would Stef really come and get her like she promised she would?

Was this really only for one night?

Or would they forget about her just like they forgot to renew their fostering license?

End of Flashback

Callie glanced back at her arm and immediately removed her lighter from her forearm as she remembered that it was piercing a hole through her skin. She opened her mouth from the pain, but made sure not to make a sound as she glanced back down at the evidence.

A small pink mark,

A mark that was barely noticeable now,

And mark that she knew would be gone by tomorrow.

It was too bad that she couldn't say the same about her troubles.


She heard a soft knock on the bathroom door. "Callie, are you in there?" Stef asked with a hint of worry in her voice.

Callie shoved the blue lighter into her pocket and turned on the sink, "Yes, I'll be out in a minute," she called as she rolled her sleeve back down, once again glancing at the small pink mark on her arm.

It didn't look as bad as it felt, she thought to herself.

She could get used to this.

Callie was actually relieved, when she found the lighter hidden under the matress at Helen's.

It gave her something to do while she was locked in that room.

And it became a habit of hers now.

Stef was standing outside as soon a Callie opened the door, "Are you okay, sweets?" she asked as she glanced at the girl quickly up and down.

"Yah, I'm fine," she answered with a smile as she tried to walk away but Stef caught her by her arm, and unknowingly wrapped her hand around the burn mark she just made. Luckily, Callie could barely feel the stinging.

This was a good sign, right?

If it didn't hurt her anymore, then it couldn't be that serious…

Callie turned around to look at the woman.

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asks again.

"Uhuh," she smiled. "Why?"

Stef coughed nervously before she answered, "Well… I know that you've been through a lot these last couple of days and after I came to pick you up from that woman's house, I've noticed you've been acting a little differently. Maybe I'm just imagining it, but… I just want to remind you that you can come and talk to us, yes?"

But what Stef hadn't realized was that she was the last person Callie wanted to talk to.

She trusted those two women and they had let her get taken away.

What's to stop all of that from happening again?

What's to stop her from getting burned again?

"I'm fine," the teen offered a small laugh, and then added an, "I promise."

"Okay," Stef said as she smiled back and let go of Callie's arm, to pull her in for a hug. "I love you, my baby," she finished as she kissed her head.

But to Callie, the kiss hurt more than the burn itself. "I know," she lied. "Love you too," she answered timidly.

"Good night," Stef said with an eyewink.

"Yeah. Good night," Callie replied sincerely and then walked away.

As soon as she closed her bedroom door behind her, she glanced around the room for any sign of Mariana.

She was alone.

Again, she reached inside of her pocket for the lighter and raised her shirtsleeve up for some exposure, flicking the lighter on and holding it up and onto her skin. She closed her eyes as she allowed the fire to consume her thoughts as she counted down.

1…It's not over.

2…There's more to come.

3…It doesn't hurt that bad.

4…Don't bother unpacking.

5…Is someone knocking?

6…You're somewhere else.

7…You're waiting again.

8…Trapped in a cage.

9…They'll let you burn.

10…So why not do the honors?

To be continued.