Hey! I know I don't usually write multichapters, but I got an idea and I thought I would try it out. I haven't seen any stories at all with Sophia, and I really wanted to see the family and Sophia bonding (and also have an excuse to write Jonnor, oops) so I'm doing this. I'm actually really excited about this story, so I hope you all are too! Enjoy!
"Callie— are you sure you're ready for this?"
Stef rubbed Callie's shoulder comfortingly as they looked up at the luxurious home. It was a Saturday, only a few days before the end of the school year. Callie took a deep breath and nodded, rubbing her nose subconsciously. "I still can't believe they're so… rich."
Stef smiled as they approached the front door. "I'm sure they've actually got the room for six kids, huh?" Callie grinned and rolled her eyes.
"Don't remind me."
Looking at the front door of her real father's house was like getting hit by a bus. Callie had known for awhile that she had a half sister now, but realizing she was only feet away from her... It all seemed like a dream up until then. Am I really ready for this? Callie's main priority when she got the letter was to ask Jude- she knew he was more upset than he let on, but she didn't know what she could do besides reassure him. She knew he was afraid that she would fall in love with her "real family's" luxuries and leave the Fosters for the Quinns. And if she was being honest... she was afraid of the same thing.
Callie nervously reached her fist up to knock, squinting her eyes closed. Opening them slowly, she backed up. "What if she's really spoiled? What if she had like, her tutor write that letter for her? That photo looked really professional. Maybe we should go-"
As if by magic, the door suddenly opened.
On the other side was the girl in the letter, exactly as she looked in the picture, standing in front of her dad and a woman Callie didn't recognize. That must've been Sophia's mother.
Callie felt as if the breath had been knocked out of her chest. She opened her mouth to speak but found that she had nothing to say. Finally, she smiled at Sophia, nervously sticking her hand out for her to shake. Sophia took it, seeming just as shocked as she was.
"I'm Sophia," the younger girl said breathlessly. "It's great to meet you, Callie."
"She's been gone two hours, do you think that's a good sign?" Mariana nervously sat at the counter in the kitchen, staring at the clock. Jesus reached past her and grabbed an orange, rolling his eyes at his twin sister.
"Just breathe, we're all excited to hear how it went. She'll be back soon. Calm down," Jesus reassured, peeling the orange. Jude sat down next to Mariana, obviously just as (if not more) nervous than his new sister. Mariana wrapped an arm around Jude, bringing him in.
Mariana leaned her head on her brother's shoulder, pausing for a moment. "What if she-" All of a sudden, the door opened, Callie and Stef walking in. Mariana jumped up to greet her, running over to them. "So? How'd it go? How is she?"
Callie smiled, quickly hugging her sister. "Well, she's nice, and she's very... proper," Callie said, her smile widening.
Stef nodded. "Yeah, I was afraid to make a joke- I didn't want to embarrass myself. I kind of just sat there and made small talk whenever the conversation stopped." Mariana giggled and hugged her mom. Her eyes flicked back over to Callie, who was still smiling rather wide.
"Why do you look so suspicious? Is there something you aren't telling us?" Mariana asked, stretching out the last word. Jesus walked up next to his twin, crossing his arms and looking Callie in the eyes.
"Yeah, Callie, tell us."
Callie giggled and playfully swatted Jesus in the shoulder before continuing. "Well, since you asked... Sophia has invited us to stay at her lakehouse for two weeks, right after school gets out!"
All the kids were celebrating, but Mariana's excited squeals drowned the rest of them out. She pulled away from Callie, already prioritizing. "Okay, first things first, is there any chance there will be cute boys there? And do you think we'll be spending a lot of time in water..." her voice trailed off, squinting her eyes as she mentally checked things off of her list.
Callie raised her eyebrows. "Mariana, it's a lake house. There's literally-"
"Yeah, okay, I just bought new bikinis. I used to go with blue, but it really doesn't go good with the blonde, so I got pink- which was a great choice, I look amazing in them. And I got one with fringe-"
Callie gripped Mariana by the shoulders and shook her a few times, staring her in the eyes. "Mariana. Mari. I don't care." Giggling a bit, she released her. "They said we could bring a few guests if we wanted, but we couldn't think of anyone, so if you guys have anyone in mind...? Just, please, no Caitlin. She might throw up on me again."
Mariana scowled, crossing her arms. "Great. I wouldn't want to bring her anyway. The one chance I get to impress someone with my sister's sister's parent's cool expensive lakehouse and I have nobody to impress." She sighed loudly. "I'll be packing. Wait, when do we leave?"
"The day after school gets out, Miss Thing. And breath. You'll have fun whether or not you bring someone." Stef rubbed Mariana on the arm before "Miss Thing" stormed off, bumping into Brandon on the way out.
"We're going to a lake house and I have no friends," the girl grumbled, muttering things under her breath as she headed up the stairs.
Brandon stopped at the kitchen entrance, looking oddly from the retreating Mariana to the rest of his family. "Have I... missed something...?"
A week later, the day before the last day of school, Jude sat on his bed, looking at the phone. He debated calling Connor and asking him to visit the lake house with him- but he still acted a bit awkward around him. It wasn't the almost kiss, Jude got over that quickly, but he still felt weird about Connor's dad.
Connor wasn't exactly living with him anymore- after some "family issues" that Jude didn't want to ask about, Connor and his little sister were living primarily with their mom. His mom was a lot nicer than his dad, so they were allowed to hang out again. Jude really just wanted to move past all of that. Finally, he reached over and picked up the phone, quickly punching in Connor's number. It rang a few times before he finally answered.
"Hello?"
"H- ahem, um, hey Connor."
"Oh, hey Jude!" Jude repressed the urge to make a Beatles joke.
"Hey! Listen, we're leaving for a trip to Callie's sister's lake house on Saturday, two weeks, and we're allowed to bring guests... I was wondering if you were interested? You don't have to if you don't want to, I just-"
"Jude, calm down! I'm all for it, let me just ask, one sec-" Connor paused, setting the phone down. A few minutes later, he picked it back up. "It's fine. I guess I'll see you at school tomorrow, okay?" Jude thanked him and hung up, sighing with relief.
Mariana squealed from the front seat, reaching over to turn up the volume. They had been travelling for two hours now, two separate cars, with Callie, Mariana, Jude and Connor in one car and Brandon, Jesus, Stef, and Lena in the other. Sophia was being dropped off separate. Callie had recently gotten her driver's license and met Stef and Lena halfway at the price of her new car. New wouldn't exactly be a word anybody else would use to describe it, but Callie was proud of it.
"I can see it! Oh my god, Callie, thank your mom for enjoying herself." She paused, looking back at Callie and Jude. "I realize that was insensitive. Anyway, we're here!" They pulled up in the dirt pathway leading up to a beautiful, classic house overlooking a lovely lake. Callie could see jetskis and boats parked in the dock, and kids playing across the lake. It was a sight she definitely wasn't expecting. "Wow, and it's even prettier than I expected!" Turning back to the boys, she clapped twice. "Suit up, boys, I'm taking you out on the jetskis."
As the three laughed and exited the car, Callie smirked and shook her head. "Don't kill each other, you three! Remember, no wake zones are not just a formality-" The doors shut before she could finish her sentence. "-and there are still laws for driving jetskis." Frowning, Callie parked the car and exited, silently praying that her family got along with her new sister. Two weeks with each other could always bring out the bad stuff.
Hey! I've got a lot of family fluff and bonding moments planned for this story, this was just a bit of a... slow start. But I should have another chapter up tonight or early tomorrow, please do tell me what you think! Constructive criticism is always accepted.