Callie is wary about breakfast this morning. Brandon in no doubt saw her crying last night. He's probably intrigued by her past. The fact that surprises her the most is that she actually considered telling him most of her secrets. Their conversation played on a loop in her mind all night. She tossed and turned, certain that Mariana would awaken and yell at her. One thought repeatedly occurred to Callie, "I trust Brandon."
By the time the sun rose at exactly 6:17, Callie concluded that she shouldn't tell Brandon a thing. He would never understand. He would listen to her speak, but he wouldn't be able to relate. So Callie walked down the stairs, trying to be as invisible as possible. To her surprise, she was the first one down, which meant that should would have to greet every person that entered the kitchen. Luckily, Brandon was not the next person to come down for breakfast. He was probably still waiting in line for the bathroom. With Lena and Jesus in the room, Callie was sure that Brandon would keep the events of last night to himself.
The morning went by quickly and by lunch time Callie wished even more that she could be invisible. She hated new schools. It was always the same routine. Callie would be the new kid that everyone thought was weird, an outsider. Eventually, a person or two would take interest in Callie. They might even become friends. Then Callie's foster parents would send her away and she would never see her friends again. "Why even bother?" The question lingered in Callie's mind.
Callie wanders past numerous lunch tables, unable to make herself choose. No matter where she sits, the other students will get up and leave. Or they stay and completely exclude Callie from their conversation. The second scenario is by far worse and Callie simply continues to walk. Eventually, she is standing at the edge of the lunch area, overlooking the beach. She thinks about the friendships that she has lost. "Sometimes, friendships come unexpectedly and you can't deny them. Brandon is my friend, " she admits to herself.
Brandon walks up to Callie, interrupting her train of thought. "Hey. Want to go for a walk on the beach?"
Callie is surprised at his impeccable timing. "Is he psychic? I hope he can't read minds, " she jokes, but fights the smile that may appear on her face. "What about your girlfriend? I bet she wants to have lunch with you." Callie turns in Brandon's direction, but avoids his gaze.
"Talya is busy. It's fine." He gestures in the direction of the beach. "We do have separate friends, aside from the ones that we have in common."
Callie can't find an excuse not to go. They walk in silence for a while. Brandon desperately wants to bring up last night, while Callie desperately wants to avoid it.
Brandon get's up the courage to say, "I didn't mean to make you cry."
"I'm not crying." Callie knows exactly what Brandon is talking about, but she pretends to be clueless. The sunlight beams into Callie's eyes, forcing her to look at Brandon. She then focuses her sight on a couple of guys throwing a football back and forth.
"Last night... I'm sorry." Brandon's apology is genuine.
Unfortunately, Callie doesn't know exactly what he is apologizing for and she feels awkward to ask. She doesn't want to say anything, but there's no going back now. "It wasn't you." Callie keeps her answer short, not because she has nothing to say. She just doesn't want to say too much. The less Brandon knows about her, the farther away he will be. Not that her walls will let him get any closer anyway.
"You told me that your mom died and it was really insensitive of me to act so..." He searches for the right words.
Callie: "Don't apologize for having two moms that obviously love you very much."
Callie's pace accelerates and Brandon gently puts his hand on her shoulder to slow her down. He pulls on her shoulder slightly and she turns around to face him. And there they are, those deep blue eyes of his. They can see through the walls, the sarcasm, and the lies. Those eyes can see deep into her soul, and it's unnerving. Callie has never connected with anyone before, but this particular connection is inevitable.
The insecurities that dwell in her heart force her mind into a defense mode. This mechanism has allowed her to survive the emotional and physical abuse that she has endured. The home that Lena and Stef provide for their kids - Jude and Callie included - is definitely free of physical abuse, but emotions cannot be controlled. Callie puts up a tough facade, but in reality, her emotions are closer to the surface than she would prefer, giving people the opportunity to hurt her.
In-between Callie's internal conversation with herself, Brandon continues with his apology, "I know. I love them too. I understand that not everyone is as lucky as I am and I didn't mean to make it sound like I take that for granted when you..." He searches for the right words again.
"When I don't have a mom at all." Callie looks down, then at the ocean, all to avoid his intense stare. Impulsively, Brandon grabs Callie's hand and pulls her towards him. It's so unexpected that she doesn't have time to stop it from happening. He wraps his arms around her and she can't stop herself from crying.