A/N: Hey guys. I'm sorry if you like this story and waited this long for an update. The first chapter did not receive much praise so I was never inspired to write. I also had to deal with a loss in my family. Now that I have had some time, I have written some more. Please review! It inspires me! Anyway, this chapter focuses on Callie and her current situation! Enjoy. (BTW if you notice any errors, please tell me so I can fix them. I know this chapter is short but I plan on writing a lot more so don't worry!)
Callie was enrolled at one of the worst schools in the area. Drugs and violence trumped learning and creativity. Her foster father, John Goodman, was never around. He worked part time at the local convenience store and used the money for gambling. Callie was used to his schedule. Work and drink during the week, gamble on the weekends.
The sound of the door slamming woke her up. All of her photos fell off of the cabinet. It was Saturday, meaning John was on his way to the casino. Callie rolled over to the right side, sitting up on the edge of her bed. Her clothes were filthy and smelled slightly of dried alcohol and tears. The abuse received from her foster father was becoming unbearable. John did not resort to physical abuse. He enjoyed the slow torture that came with verbal assault. Sometimes, he would yell at Callie because of unethical reasons. The words would batter Callie's thoughts and her emotional wall would break down. There was nothing John enjoyed more than pulling away the confidence from a young girl. Callie always tried to drown out the insults with positive thoughts. More specifically, thoughts of her younger brother Jude.
Callie stood up from her worn bed. Her hair was a mess and her eyes sat above a depressing facial expression. John had been up very late the night before, keeping her up with his constant yelling. Callie made her way to the bathroom. It was the only one in the house, not containing very much. A few toothbrushes, some that seemed as old as 20 years, were scattered across the counter near the sink. A grungy shower was against the far wall. The curtain was ripped severely. Surprisingly, the toilet itself was the cleanest area of the bathroom. Callie walked in and quickly dropped her clothes. She spun the tap and water began to flow from the shower head. After a minute had passed, and the water had warmed up, Callie stepped in. The water rushed down her back, sending chills across her body. Memories of her little brother came flooding back to her as the water sprayed.
" Jude where are you? I'm home!" Callie had just returned home from work. It had been three weeks since they had moved to this foster placement. Their foster father had left for the week, leaving Callie and Jude with almost no food.
" Jude, I got some groceries on my way home from work." Again, there was no response from Jude. Callie began up the stairs, immediately going to their shared room. There was only one bed, but it happened to be a queen size. Other than that, the room was almost empty. Before Jude and Callie had moved in, their foster father had planned to adopt a child with his wife. Sadly, she died of ovarian cancer shortly after the decision was made. Since she was gone, the man no longer wanted to adopt. He decided to foster because it provided him with another source of income. He didn't really care about the children he was going to foster. That was why he put a queen sized bed into an empty room.
Jude was nowhere to be found, so Callie called out again, " Jude! Honestly where did you go?"
Callie walked towards their foster father's bedroom. A smile rose on Callie's face when she saw Jude cower in fear, wearing a dark blue dress.
" Oh Jude buddy, you know you aren't supposed to wear women's clothes. I think the colour looks good on you though." Jude blushed and fell into a deeper state of embarrassment. Callie knew that their foster father was gone for a few more days, so she was not worried about Jude.
" Jude you should probably get out of that dress before you wrinkle it. Let me go put the groceries away and I can help you clean it up, okay?"
Jude nodded in response. Callie defended the stairs back towards the kitchen. She began organizing the food, placing some in the pantry and some in the fridge. She was busy, until the she heard the front door open. Callie froze immediately, realizing Jude was still upstairs.
The rest of the memory seemed blurry to Callie. The water had begun to run cold down her back so she spun the tap to turn off the water. Callie was frozen, just like on the day she found Jude wearing the dress. The only difference this time was that she was mission orientated. She had to find Jude. Swiftly, she moved out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around her moist skin, making her way back to her bedroom. She grabbed the cleanest shirt and nicest pair of pants that she could find and threw them on. In a matter of seconds, Callie was out the door. She had to go find Jude.