"Crap!" Stef cursed as the severity of the situation finally hit her the moment Callie disappeared from her bedroom doorway. She didn't really have time to think as she grabbed a set of clothes from the pile of unfolded clothes in a basket by their bed and threw them on as she shoved her feet into whatever shoes she could find before dashing out the door after their foster daughter.
Stef made it to the front door just in time to see Callie disappear around the corner. She immediately raced after the girl. Absolutely no good would come of it if she lost sight of her.
"Callie." Stef called after her as she chased her down the sidewalk ignoring the looks from those around. She had lived on this street for almost ten years and knew almost everyone around and each of them knew they were foster parents and that came with it's fair share of drama and intensity.
"Callie, honey, stop." Stef said as she surprisingly caught up to her fairly quickly and easily. "Wait love." Stef said as she grabbed Callie by the shoulder and wrapped an arm around her waist to stop her, trying to catch her own breath at the same time.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." Callie said as she spun around once Stef had a grasp on her arm. "I didn't know you were home, and I didn't know... I didn't see... I'm sorry." She babbled, trying to catch her breath as well as free herself from Stef's grasp.
Stef looked at the terrified girl and her heart broke at the tear-stained cheeks and frightened eyes. She'd expected Callie to be embarrassed and maybe a little scared at being caught out of school in the middle of the day but she never expected to see her so afraid for something so small.
"Please, I'm sorry, let me go. Please just let me go." Callie begged though her tears though she stopped fighting and sounded almost reigned to her fate.
"Okay." Stef agreed, unwilling to cause any more fear. "Okay, I'll let go but you can't run." She said before slowly releasing the girl. "You're not in any trouble so you don't need to run." She stated clearly as she released her further until only one hand rested gently on Callie's shoulder.
Once she wasn't being held Callie finally managed to calm down enough to catch her breath and once she did the body ache and weakness caught up with her as she swayed slightly, unable to hold her own weight.
"Whoa" Stef said as she gripped the girl once again to keep her steady. "What's wrong?" She asked in concern, studying the girl's face and noticing that the paleness wasn't just due to fear and the lack of oxygen from running.
"Nothing." Callie tried to brush off as she pulled her arm away once again. "I just ran too fast." She said, hoping the excuse was enough.
"Well, let's get inside so you can sit down okay." Stef suggested though she wasn't entirely convinced that Callie wasn't lying.
Callie looked up at her skeptically though she didn't insist that Stef let go of her entirely. Stef's hand still stayed resting on Callie's shoulder ready to support her if need be.
"It's okay, it's not that big of a deal." She assured. "It was an accident."
Callie needed a glass of water and she needed to sit or maybe even lie down and she had nowhere to go besides back with Stef so she took a tentative step in Stef's direction, indicating that she was ready. Whatever was coming was coming no matter what and so maybe it was better to just get it over with. They weren't going to hurt her - that much she was sure of.
Stef let Callie just a step ahead of her and kept a firm grip on her elbow, helping Callie get back home. She was certain now that she wasn't feeling too well and that something was wrong which was probably why she was home in the first place and that was her main concern right now - talking to her about what she unfortunately walked in on could wait.
Once they reached the driveway Callie could see Lena pacing the porch, waiting for them to come home. She paused momentarily at the sight until Stef gently nudged her forward, reminding her again that it was okay.
With a deep sigh Callie began walking towards the house and she could see the relief on Lena's face as they made it to the porch.
"Everything okay?" Lena asked, looking between Stef and Callie as she too noticed Callie's pale, tired face.
"Fine." Stef assured. "Callie's just not feeling too well." She added, letting the girl know that she wasn't fooled.
"What's wrong honey?" Lena asked in concern as she reached out to feel Callie's forehead. It didn't go unnoticed that even though the girl had been running she wasn't sweaty and that only meant one thing - a fever.
"I'm fine." Callie assured, shaking Lena's hand off. "I need to get back to school." She said, turning around to walk the other way only to be stopped by a strong arm across her chest. "I'm fine Stef." She said again.
"Get inside please." Stef said firmly making it clear that Callie had no option.
"I'll get the thermometer." Lena said as she walked in ahead of of them leaving Stef to get Callie inside.
"I'm fine Stef, really." Callie tried one more time though she now knew it wasn't going to work.
"Callie, we both know you're not fine." Stef said clearly as she ushered Callie towards the living room couch. "I know you're embarrassed about what happened and you're obviously scared too but you have nothing to be embarrassed or scared about but we do need to check you out." She said as she gently pushed Callie down onto the couch.
Callie would never admit it but it was definitely good to get off her feet. She would like to lie down but didn't want to attract any more attention and so she just sat as waited as Stef grabbed a rug off the back of the couch and draped it across Callie's shoulders while Lena walked back into the room.
"I'll be in the kitchen." Stef said as Lena tucked Callie's hair behind her ear in order to get the thermometer in her ear. "Holler if you need me." Stef said and disappeared.
"A hundred and one." Lena read once the thermometer beeped. "You really must be feeling miserable." She said sympathetically to the girl.
Callie nodded slightly as Stef came back with a glass of water, a couple of dry crackers and a piece of cheese.
"Here, sip it slowly." She instructed handing the glass to Callie who took it gratefully.
"Honey, why didn't you tell us you weren't feeling so good." Lena asked once Callie and taken a few sips of the water. Instantly color began returning to her face but she was still tired and weak.
"It wasn't this bad in the morning." Callie answered honestly. "I was a little tired but nothing else."
"How did you get out of school?" Stef asked, not liking the fact that Callie had walked all the way home in this state.
Callie looked sheepishly at Stef before answering. "Once the fever set in I got really cold and I wasn't hungry so as soon as lunch started I came home to get a sweater. I planned to just grab it and head back before lunch ended but it was in the dryer and that's why I..." She trailed off, not needing to explain further. "Look, I'm sorry, I didn't know you were in there."
"I'm sure you didn't" Stef said, holding back a smirk. If Callie hadn't been unwell and so afraid then Stef would definitely have found the whole incident humorous. "It's okay, no big deal." She assured.
"But next time, please tell us if somethings wrong." Lena added, not liking the fact that Callie was hiding from them. "And no more leaving school without permission." She added warningly.
"Sorry." Callie said again, hating that she had disappointed them.
"Well, I'm going to leave you here with Stef and go sign you out of school for the rest of the day." Lena said forgivingly, standing up and patting Callie affectionately on the knee. "Feel better love." She smiled.
"I can go back with you." Callie said. "I just need a sweater and I'll be fine." She tried to convince her foster moms.
"You need to rest and frankly Stef could use a break from work." Lena added, giving Stef a warning look. "I hate her patrolling the streets anyway." She added, always glad when Stef was home.
"Actually, I'm on desk duty for the rest of the day so I'll be happy to stay home with you instead." Stef grinned, knowing Lena loved desk duty just as much as Stef hated it.
"Rest." Lena instructed sternly before smiling down at the girl who looked rather grateful for the order.
"So you have three options." Stef said to Callie once she walked Lena to her car and watched her drive away. "You can lie here and watch TV, go up to your room and sleep or come up to my bed and we can hang out together." Stef offered.
Callie wasn't sure how to answer that question. She wanted to sleep but she didn't want to have to climb the stairs. She was finally comfortable and didn't want to move. She also definitely didn't want to get into Stef's bed. The woman still made her a little nervous and the thought of sitting with her after what she'd seen with absolutely no distraction was daunting.
"I will tell you that my bed has magical powers." Stef added. "It miraculously makes sick kids better." She grinned, letting Callie know that each kid had crawled into their bed when they weren't feeling all that well.
"TV?" Callie said, almost like a question as though she was asking permission to choose that one.
"TV it is." Stef said as she uncovered Callie. motioning for her to lie down before she covered her up again. Stef then settled herself at Callie's feet gently stroked the girl's legs as she grabbed the remote and began flicking thought he channels looking for something cheerful and mindless for them to watch.
"I don't bite you know." Stef said after a few moments, knowing exactly why Callie didn't choose to sit upstairs with her.
Callie didn't respond because she simply didn't know how to. What was she supposed to say that wouldn't upset or insult Stef further.
Stef finally turned to Callie and smiled, letting her know she was only kidding. "It's okay, I'm sure you don't want to talk about what you saw." She smirked.
"No thank you." Callie answered quickly, thankful that Stef wasn't pushing her. It was embarrassing enough to have seen it - talking about was just too much for her.
"Besides, I'm sure you already know it all anyways." She added.
Callie didn't respond but kept her focus on the TV, hoping this topic would end immediately.
"You do know about it, yes?" Stef confirmed only half teasingly.
"Yes." Callie answered immediately, before Stef could begin to explain anything to her.
"Okay." Stef accepted, turning her attention back to the TV though she could feel Callie's eyes still on her, trying to figure out how the tough, terrifying cop could also be the fun-loving, friendly, companion. If she was honest she would admit that she would like to be like Stef - strong and independent but loving and caring at the same time. If Callie could be anything - that's what she would pick.
Stef then turned back to Callie with a genuine smile. "Can I just say one more thing?" She asked Callie's permission.
Callie nodded once though it was clear that she was a little skeptical about what Stef was going to talk about.
"You don't have to be afraid of anything." Stef said seriously. "Even if you make a mistake or you do something wrong. We aren't going to hurt you and we understand that you're a kid and mistakes happen."
Callie nodded in acceptance as she smiled shyly back. They were definitely the best foster parents she'd ever had and she was so grateful.