Out of the Fire

Author's Note: This missing scene one shot is set during EQ, (3x16) when Callie comes home after Rita's daughter's attempted suicide. The end of this episode really intrigued me, because when AJ goes outside to comfort Callie, he mentions that he heard what happened, meaning that Callie told some other people in the family. So prepare yourself for some more Stef and Callie bonding and enjoy the story!

Callie slowly and quietly turned the doorknob to her house. She knew her moms would be suspicious; she never came home this late. She'd missed dinner, but a text message she had sent in the early evening excused her from the family meal. She stepped inside cautiously, wanting nothing more than to sit in her bedroom alone, processing the sad event. Unfortunately, her mom was sitting in the living room, typing something up for work with a glass of wine in her other hand.

Stef smiled at Callie. She set down her laptop and wine glass on the coffee table in front of her before turning away from Callie and beginning to straighten the blankets on the back of the couch. Callie stood awkwardly near the front entrance of the house with her coat and backpack still on and a death grip on her keys.

Faced away from her daughter, Stef greeted Callie. "Hey, I was just about to call you. You hungry? Mama made you a plate. It's in the oven." She turned around to look at Callie.

"How was your night?" Stef asked casually, looking at Callie with kind eyes.

After hearing her mother's questions, Callie's eyes began to water. Her backpack and keys dropped to the floor, and she brought her hand up to her face to wipe the tears. Stef launched forward, fear and concern evident in her face.

"Hey, hey, hey… What's going on?" Stef asked, gently prying Callie's hands from her tear soaked face.

Stef set her hands on Callie's upper arms. "R…Rita…Rita's dau—" Callie tried to speak, explaining the night's events to her mother. But before she could say anything that could be understood, she choked on a sob, with more tears spilling down her face before she could stop them.

"Come on. Shh... You're okay." Stef laid one hand on Callie's back, hoping more contact would help to calm her hysterical daughter down. Callie sucked in a shaky breath. "Relax, honey. Deep breaths." Stef took the sleeve of her sweater and wiped the tears from Callie's face, trying to slow her own heartbeat as her maternal instincts were demanding: What happened to my baby?

Once Callie had calmed down a bit, Stef couldn't wait any longer. She needed to know what happened that evening. Tears still slowly ran down Callie's cheeks, but she was confident in her ability to speak. Stef looked at Callie forlornly as she opened her mouth. "Rita's daughter… She tried to kill herself tonight. She left me this message on my phone… Rita wasn't taking her suicide threats seriously… But something wasn't right… I called the paramedics… I was just so scared… that she would die." Stef brought her devastated daughter into her arms.

"Come here, babe." Stef pressed a kiss to Callie's temple. "But she's okay?" Stef asked in a whisper. Callie nodded in her mother's embrace. Stef bent down a little to be on Callie's level.

"Do you know how proud you make me?" Stef asked, separating a bit from her daughter while keeping a strong hold on her upper arms.

Callie looked up at Stef, confusion written in every crease of Callie's face. "What did I do to make you proud?" Callie asked sadly, in a whisper of sorts.

Stef moved her hands up and down in Callie's arms. She gave her an intense look, one that was sharp yet backed with overwhelming love and compassion. "Hey. I want you to listen to me, Cal. You make me proud everyday. Being able to finally, legally, call you my daughter… one of my greatest joys, baby. As for today- you saved a life today, Cal. And from what you told me, you helped to improve Rita's relationship with her daughter. And that's all in a day's work for you, Callie. Helping people is a second nature for you. That's something to be proud of for sure. You should be proud of yourself."

Once again wrapped in a loose embrace, Stef heard Callie mumble something into her shoulder. "What was that, Callie?" Stef asked, tilting her daughter's chin up to make eye contact with the younger girl.

"Um… I love you… So much."

Stef's eyes seemed to sparkle as she smiled at Callie. "I love you too, honey. More than you'll ever know." A genuine smile spread across Callie's face, alongside a single tear. She felt herself leaning forward, letting all of her weight fall into her mother's strong arms.

Stef smiled silently as Callie's head found its way to rest on her shoulder. She pivoted to bring Callie into a side hug, then with a firm and reassuring hand around her daughter, Stef led the two of them to the kitchen. Callie took a seat at one of the bar stools in the kitchen as Stef wandered to the fridge. Callie looked up expectantly at her mother. "I know you're probably not too hungry, but I do need you to eat something, Cal."

Callie nodded. Stef pulled Callie's favorite kind of soda out of the fridge and set it on the table for her daughter with a small smile, moving to the oven to pull out the plate that had been fixed for Callie. She warmed in in the microwave before placing it front of Callie, taking a seat next to the girl. Callie moved her fork around her plate absentmindedly until she saw Stef's unimpressed expression and took a bite. Stef wrapped an arm around Callie's shoulders.

"Can I be excused? I… I just want to sit outside for a minute." Callie asked as she chewed her last bite.

"Sure, sweets." Stef said, picking up Callie's plate and taking it to the sink, watching her daughter exit the house and sit on a nearby bench. Stef heard footsteps as she dried the plate, and turned her head to find AJ walking to the fridge.

"Oh, sorry. I was just getting a drink of water." He said, reaching for a bottle of water from the fridge.

"No, you're fine. Stef and AJ both glanced out the window at Callie.

"Oh, Callie's home?" AJ paused. "Is she alright?"

Stef turned to face her daughter's boyfriend. "Yeah. She, uh, had a pretty rough night."

"What happened? I mean… it's not really my business. Sorry."

"No, you have a right to know. Well, Rita's daughter tried to kill herself this evening, and Rita wasn't taking her daughter's mental health very seriously, so Callie called for help. It must have been a pretty scary scene when Callie arrived… so she's a little shaken up." Stef ran a hand through her hair.

"You don't think… uh… You don't think she'd want to see me right now, you know? Yeah. She probably just wants to left alone for now." AJ turned to go back upstairs.

"No, wait AJ. Um, I think seeing you would make her feel a lot better." Stef said, drying her hands with the dish towel on her left.

"Okay. Yeah." AJ said, smiling a little, as he made his way to his girlfriend.

Stef smiled, watching her look up at him, then she went back to the living room and sat down, grateful that Callie had found someone as caring as AJ to be with. She got one of the good ones. She thought, chuckling under her breath as she turned her attention back to her work.