Hi folks! Something a little different - and extremely rare! A couple weeks ago TheTBone offered me an idea that she had thought up and done a bit of a script for and I thought it was hilarious and fitting for the way I've portrayed Stef and Kasey's relationship so we decided I would expand it out a bit as a co-write in this universe. Not much happens - I guess we're just showing a bit of rebellious Kasey getting put back in her place by a creative Stef. A bit gratuitous but it's all a bit of fun - except for Kasey. The poor kid. It's a two-parter and I hope you guys enjoy reading it. The endless parent-daughter cat and mouse.
The Fosters gathered round the breakfast table about their usual bustling routine. Callie looked at her phone nervously for the 4th time, her interest in it not going unnoticed.
"You trying to get your phone confiscated before school?" Stef asked playfully as Callie eventually looked up realising she was the focus of the comment. Both Lena and Stef were staring at her.
"What?"
"Seem a bit distracted...you expecting a call?"
"Uh...no. Nothing." she smiled slipping the phone into her pocket. Lena and Stef looked across at each other putting it aside to note a more pressing matter.
"Kasey not up yet? I swear that girl is just asking for a bucket of water." Stef quipped.
Callie laughed, a little too obviously, before driving a last piece of toast into her mouth and hopping off her seat at the table.
"I'll go check. She did say something about going in early and I'll see you at school..." her voice trailed off as she hopped up off out the room. Stef and Lena exchanged another look and both moved to round her off.
"Where's the fire there Callie?" Stef asked with a knowing grin as they slowed her down and swooped round to block the stairs.
She sucked her bottom lip in between her teeth before forcing out a smile.
"Nothing - just want to go through some things before school. Think that's where Kasey is...now you mention it I remember this morning she said she was gonna go study before school so to tell you she wasn't gonna be at breakfast."
Stef and Lena each raised an eyebrow to each other.
"Callie...we're gonna ask you a question and I want you to think very carefully about your answer - bearing in mind that a three-year old with crumbs around their mouth would give Evan a run for his money when it comes to lying - and that Kasey has never gone to study before school in as long as she's been alive." Stef explained before Lena continued.
"Did Kasey sleep in our house last night?"
Callie dithered slightly, open mouthed and looked between the two interrogating glares studying her reaction. Just then her phone bleeped and she shuffled nervously as Stef raised an eyebrow before holding her hand out. Lena's remained firmly crossed.
"Phone, please." She asked as Callie obliged.
"Missed alarm – sorry! Will be at school, cover if you can but if not I'll wing it."
Stef showed the text to Lena who gave Callie a nod as a sign she was free to go.
"Can I get my..." she paused clocking the two stern looks. "...never mind." She bolted up the stairs in resignation that the phone would probably be held ransom for a little while.
"Sneaking off and spending the night at Evan's with aim to sneak back in unnoticed before breakfast?" Lena observed shaking her head.
"She's getting cocky again. That girl needs a reality check." Stef replied.
"What are we gonna do?" Lena asked reading the text again. A devilish smile filled out Stef's face.
"Can you leave this one with me? I will drum this out of her."
Lena opened her eyes wide with a smile. "I see Kasey's not the only cocky one..."
"Well I'm allowed to be – please? Every inch she keeps taking a mile - she needs reminding who's boss."
Lena kissed her as a sign of approval as Stef gave herself another contented smile
"Good luck with that." She texted back from Callie's phone before returning to the breakfast table.
"Were they mad?" Kasey exclaimed, chasing a striding Callie down the hallway.
"Of course they were mad! I mean not yell-y mad but that super creepy she's-going-to-be-paying-for-this-into-her-fifties kind of mad." She explained, frustrated. "I couldn't even explain you not being there had I had time to prepare, never mind when you were supposed to be back! I didn't know whether you were suddenly gonna emerge. You could at least given me some warning!" She scolded her.
"I know - I'm sorry! The alarm didn't go off. I barely had 5 minutes to get to school on time." Kasey looked around edgily as if her Moms would pop out any moment.
"I'll just try and avoid them as long as possible. Maybe they'll forget how mad they were." She reasoned as Callie turned to her with knitted eyebrows.
"Kasey - you may have slept in but you're not still dreaming!"
Kasey sighed. "Ugh! You're right. I'm so dead. Still - I need time to think up a story." She began to look pensively across the hall.
"Well you better think fast." Callie informed her, noticing Lena emerging while talking to another teacher.
"Shit..." Kasey exclaimed through a whisper before scurrying down the hall ducking in between other students.
Lena clocked her as she disappeared round the corner, at this point she was passing an unimpressed looking Callie.
"Did Kasey just run away from me?" Lena casually dropped in as she passed, without even breaking her motion. Callie didn't reply but her defeated smile confirmed the answer.
"Talk to you later, Jane." She broke off conversation and set off for the chase, her pace quickening.
Kasey quickly tried to think of a route to her class without going back the way she had just came but the seconds ticked closer to the bell. She hid behind a locker block looking round to see Lena stride past, waited a few moments before ducking back out, her folders firmly clasped to her chest as she jogged slightly back into the main corridor, speeding up before she was stopped by a voice coming in from behind.
"Sleep well?" Lena asked with a menacing smile as Kasey felt the underlying chill of it down her spine and settling in her stomach. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before sporting a guilty smile and turning to face her. Her Mom's pose was regal and damning, arms folded tightly across her chest.
"Not bad - how about you?" She forced a smile.
"Good, thank you. Fun morning too - the house seemed quieter for some reason. Seemed to be more breakfast to go round."
"Yeah - well...I mean you know I think there was some mix-up with stuff and I got out kinda early and..." Kasey began a plethora of mumbled and mixed up excuses as Lena humoured her by nodding for each one, enjoying the cracking in her voice. The bell then saved her as Kasey's eyes opened with relief. "Hey there's the bell - better get to..." she spun around only to be rounded off again by Lena who swept around to block off her new direction.
"I'll write you a slip." she assured her. "I still have a few questions." Kasey's chest deflated.
"Tell me, Kasey...exactly what long term advantage do you see coming as a result of lying to me right now?" She asked plainly with another grin.
"What makes you think I'm..." A twitch of Lena's left eyebrow ceased Kasey's response. She sighed her shoulders down, knowing she was on a losing strategy.
"Look I'm really, really sorry! The alarm didn't go off and I just didn't get back in time. We fell asleep - I never meant to stay the night..."
"So if you didn't plan to stay the night what was your alarm that didn't go off for? To let you know when your excuses had finished cooking?"
Kasey stuttered.
"OK - so I was gonna stay a little while into the night but I never meant to freak you out by me not being there or anything...Evan has really demanding shifts at the moment..."
"And you have a curfew." Lena reminded her as Kasey sighed again in defeat.
"How much trouble am I in?" She asked through a wince as Lena smiled again.
"I dunno - you'd have to ask your Mom. She begged me to let her decide your punishment." Lena said with a flair. "Let's get you a slip." She strode off with a panicked Kasey trailing behind.
"Woah - wait. By herself? Like you have no control over it?"
"Sorry Kasey..." She replied without slowing her pace as Kasey chased her trail.
"But you're the reasonable one...Mom's gonna come up with some warped, disproportionate, illegal-in-17-countries torture. It may have a detrimental effect on my blossoming self esteem or something if you don't regulate it..." She tried to appeal as Lena opened the door to her office and made her way to the desk. "What if she beats me? Could you live with knowing you stood by and let her stunt my psychological development?"
"I'd be careful - you may give her ideas." She responded with a laugh at the over-dramatic display. She scribbled away at a note without looking up.
"Can't you do anything - please?" Kasey begged with her biggest, roundest, puppy dog eyes.
Lena took a deep breath.
"Well..." She began as Kasey's body lifted slightly. "I guess if we're looking for some long-term benefits we have to be careful about how we handle this kind of delicate situation."
"My thoughts exactly." Kasey nodded.
"There's one small problem." Lena replied as Kasey's shoulders dropped slightly. "Remember before when I asked you what long term advantage you thought lying to me would have?"
"Yes..." Kasey winced, having a feeling she knew where this was headed.
"The answer is 'none'. Enjoy your chat with Mom." She ripped the slip off the notepad and handed it to her with a final smile.
"Whatever is about to happen – it's not gonna be good..." Kasey gulped to Callie as they made their way back to the house.
"No offence sis, but you only have yourself to blame." Callie scolded her, playfully – having got over her annoyance at being dragged into the situation.
"I know." Kasey resigned. "That's the worst thing. Oh God!" She exclaimed noting the car in the drive. "Mom even came home early!"
Callie rolled her eyes.
"I'm going in the back..." Kasey decided.
"Kasey you really think...ugh." Callie gave up trying to persuade her of the redundant effects of delaying things any further as Kasey disappeared around the side of the house.
She opened the door as quietly as she could and closed it, turning the handle to prevent the click.
"Not sneaking in the back are you. Kind of futile don't you think? Almost like an admission of guilt." Stef snapped as Kasey jumped and she saw her emerge from her position behind the wall.
Kasey turned with a guilty smile, Stef sporting a similar pose to Lena's earlier in the day.
"Good night?" She asked with a smile.
Kasey bit her lip. "Lena's already made that joke – it is a good one though." She giggled nervously, striding through the kitchen as if she had any hope of leaving it.
Stef side-stepped to cut her off.
"So tell me, what time did you sneak out exactly?"
"Mom, I'm sorry – I didn't..."
"Ooh, that doesn't sound like a time. Answer the question, Kasey." She cut her off.
"OK – about eleven...but I meant to be back before..." She began before Stef cut her off again, asserting her control of the conversation.
"And tell me how do you think it would be for us finding that you were gone in the night? Did you not think for second about how worrying that would be for us? Did you not think we may panic about where you may be or the fact you're wandering around at that time of night?"
"To be fair Mom, you didn't last night...you didn't even notice...and Callie knew where I was." Kasey protested, cynically as Stef laughed to herself.
"Really? That's what you're going with?"
"I...well...no." She sighed. "Look – I know I was wrong and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to risk you worrying..."
"No, you didn't mean to risk us finding out..."
"Well...that either...but you know Lena already talked it all through with me and..."
"I know. She filled me in on everything so I know exactly what has been covered and what hasn't. Wanna re-think your strategy?" Stef replied, nipping that method of avoidance in the bud. Kasey gritted her teeth in defeat.
"I take it I'm grounded then. I guess I deserve that." She offered up the punishment with a sigh in case it may sway the result.
"Oh you're grounded. For a week." Stef confirmed firmly.
"Really?" Kasey replied with suspicion. "A week?" she clarified as Stef nodded.
"OK..." she chirped, surprised at the leniency. "I guess I'll go to my room then now this is all dealt with..." She said hopefully, springing away.
"Hold it." Stef stopped her. "I didn't say that was all of your punishment. Wait for me at the table. I need to go get something."
"Get...wait...Mom...you know what's illegal right? Ugh." Kasey flopped down onto a stool and tapped her fingers anxiously on the table as Stef disappeared. She then buried her head in her crossed arms. This wasn't going to end well.
"Ha!" Stef goaded before heaving the bucket onto the table in front of her with a loud clatter. "Nice try."
Kasey peered over into the bucket to see it was full of change. She looked at her Mom with confusion.
"You're paying me for sneaking out? If I'd have known that I would've done it more often..." she quipped in return for another smug glare.
"Oh trust me, by the time I get done with you it'll be very clear who's paying who here." Stef responded as Kasey winced, studying the bucket again.
