Author's Note: If you haven't read part 1 of this chapter, read it before continuing on. Trust me.
I'm sorry.
You're not disposable.
You deserve to be happy.
You are more than just your file.
You are not selfish.
You are not dirty.
You are perfect.
The sooner you can accept love, the sooner you can give it.
You are strong.
You are brave.
And you can decide you're own fate.
You can ignore the voices in your head.
The past is called the past for a reason.
You don't dwell on it, you move past it, so that you can embrace the future with new eyes.
There's nothing wrong with remembering our mistakes. What's important is what we learn from it.
Now wake up Callie.
You can escape the darkness and go into the light.
Go on.
You're family is waiting.
First, I could hear.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
Then I felt the sheets under my hands, and the cool air blowing against my face.
I felt like something is wrong with me. I should be somewhere else, somewhere important. My thoughts are groggy and thinking becomes too much of a hassle that I might throw up from the effort.
I curled a finger and felt the long finger nail scratch the surface of the blanket I was under. I think I hear a scuff. The noises started getting louder as I feel my body become more aware, and I started hearing muffled voices.
"You told us there was a chance she could wake up. It's been three days, is she getting any better?"
"The swelling is finally down and as far as we can tell, there was no permanent, life-altering damages."
"As far as you can tell? What is that supposed to mean?"
"Until she wakes up and answers for herself, we won't know for sure. It not just physical, something psychological could be happening to her."
I struggle to open my eyes. The lights burn at first and I shut them before trying again, and slowly the lights are less bright. I open them up fully and I'm met with unfamiliar surroundings. Silver, gray, and white fill my vision before I hear a door burst open.
"Callie!" Jude rushes too me, dropping the bags of chips he was holding in his hand onto the bed I was lying in and throws his arms around me. His body shakes as sobs escape and I try to move my arms when I realize my right arm is stuck. Something stiff is covering my lower body and I glance down to see a cast covering my stomach down to my feet. My head felt weird and I still couldn't think properly to react to his cries.
"Jude?" Somebody asked from the doorway. Jude let go of me and backed away, letting Lena and Stef notice I was awake. They cried out and rushed to my side. Stef was in hysterics and Lena was shouting, "Oh my God, Oh my God!" They each gave me a kiss on the cheek, but I still couldn't move. I was wrapped and bandaged almost everywhere on my body. My left arm was the only thing not in a cast. There was a bandage around my head. I could tell there was a bruise on my face because my cheek hurt when I frowned.
Sleepily, due to the painkillers coursing through my body, I finally say something.
"How-"
"Shhhhh, don't speak sweetie. You need to rest. Your body has been through a lot, you need to heal." She turned to Jude. "Go get the other kids buddy."
He looked at me and then gave me a kiss on the cheek. "I love you Callie." He ran out the door and into the hallway.
Stef picked up my non-casted hand and kissed the top of it. "You scared the living shit out of us. We didn't know you were in here until I got a call that a teenage girl had fallen from a bridge and was in critical condition. We got here and you were miraculously still alive, despite breaking almost every bone in your body."
"Doctor says you will make a full recovery. You Callie are very lucky to be alive."
I'm lucky to be alive.
Jude came in with the twins in tow and I was wrapped in a hug I couldn't reciprocate again. Marianna looked like a wreck compared to how she usually looks. She was still in her pajamas and her hair and face was unmade. Jesus, for the first time ever, was the calmest person in the room, but that didn't mean he wasn't still shedding a few tears of his own.
Someone was missing and from all of this. Lena speaks about it first. "He's in another room. Doctor's had to sedate him. He went crazy when he saw you."
He went crazy when he saw me. He had to be sedated.
I suddenly shot up, or as much as I could in this insane mummy costume. I needed to see him, but immediately five pairs of hands push me down.
"Callie, you can't go anywhere okay. Not for a while. We'll bring him in when he wakes up." Stef lightly squeezes my hand. "Go to sleep love, we will all be here when you get back."
I was already nodding off as the next wave of painkillers overtook me.
"We love you Callie."
I managed to speak before sleep overtook me.
"I love you too."
I was having déjà vu back to waking up in Brandon's room. My hand was once again being held and I knew he was there before my eyes were even open. When I finally opened them, my stomach went into knots when he smiled at me. He bent over and kissed me on the forehead. He stayed above me, his fingers interlacing in mine, my eyes focusing on his as they stared intently.
"You weren't here when I woke up." I whispered.
He looked down and blinked, tears forming in the corners of his eyes. He took a deep breath and then looked back at me. "They told you I had to be sedated."
I nodded. "What did you do?"
His mouth formed a small line and he spoke with staggered breaths. "I don't know. One minute I'm looking at you, thinking you look like a fallen angel, the next moment I'm lying in a bed like yours in a room across the hall. According to the doctors, I punched a wall and threw a chair before they stopped me. Since then, they've been keeping me sedated until you woke up because when it wears off, all I want to do is hit something."
I smile slightly. "A fallen angel?"
"Yes, an angel who fell too high and crashed too hard." My hand was brushing the tears off his cheeks.
I laugh a little. "It sure feels that way. That bridge was pretty high."
"Jude told us what happened at the bridge. It was where your mother died."
I nodded. "He goes there with me sometimes. It's where we talk to our mom. It's where we feel the most connected with her. Kind of sad huh, that we feel her presence at the place where she died."
"Was that why you jumped? To be with her?"
I shook my head. "Part of me thought so but really, I was tired Brandon. I had unknowingly turned all emotions except for exhaustion and sadness. I had just given up on ever getting better and I wanted to just let go. It was easier than trying to live."
"You can't just turn your back on the world like that. What about the people you leave behind."
"People move on Brandon. I did when I lost my mom."
"I wouldn't have. If you had died, I would've jumped off that bridge too."
"Why?"
"Because I wasn't there to stop you. I wasn't there to catch you. And because I love you," he said this while staring into my eyes, his face inches from mine.
I moved my head up to meet his and briefly press my lips to his. I could feel how much I hurt him and I was putting every apology I ever gave into that kiss. I break away and rest my head back on my pillow.
"I love you too Brandon."
He breaks out into the biggest smile I ever saw on his face, sits down on the chair, bringing my hand to his mouth, and kisses the knuckles, fire burning through my whole body, warming my cooled cheeks and bringing another smile to my face.
We sit there in silence, just drinking each other's presence in, when I feel myself being pulled under again. He squeezes my hand to let me know that he would be there for me when I wake as I drift under.
I dream of angels and tiny cupids flying through to air, waving their bows at me, letting me know they shot me with their love arrows, made me fall in love with a boy, in a family that wanted me, despite everything being against me. I was cast out of heaven for not being good enough and I could see the ground below come closer and closer until I landed in the arms of another fallen angel. And neither of us were perfect enough, neither of us had earned our wings, until we both knew what it was like to fall from heaven and let our hurt bleed onto the ground. But he didn't bleed. He protected my fall and taught me to let the hurt go; and our wings grew, and we joined the rest of the angels hand in hand, wings flapping towards a paradise we were finally allowed in.
I knew I was stuck on him from that point on. I knew I couldn't force myself to pretend I didn't love him. Adoption was so out of the picture for me. Going to another home wasn't an option though. I was invested in this family whether I liked it or not.
Jude's adoption had gone smoothly, without a hitch and without any argument. He accepted that we weren't going to have the same last name, at least not for a while.
I wasn't moved to a group home. Instead, Stef and Lena opted to get me a psychiatrist, an amazing woman named Lenora, who I loved and trusted as much as the family. She was the one who helped make the dark shadows become small and faded. She was the help I needed.
Everyone was there for the days that followed; every good day and every bad day, and it took them a while before they knew I wouldn't try anything again. Lena and Stef had become my legal guardians, taking me out of the system and letting me stay with them until college came around.
"And you're welcome back anytime in the future too. Just because you're not a Foster officially, doesn't mean you're not our daughter."
I apologized to Wyatt the day he came to the hospital to see how I was doing. I wish I could say we stayed friends but he moved to Indiana to live with his grandparents. Frankly, it was for the best. I hurt him too much for me to not feel guilty when I looked at his face.
No one could deny that it was strange to have Brandon carry my books around at school, drive me everywhere I went, and even help me eat as I healed. Kids at school figured out what was going on when a teacher made a rude comment about teen suicide and Brandon left the classroom after calling to teacher an asshole. I kissed him in the hallway after school because despite what he thinks, he is my hero. We were never afraid of what others would say after that.
Some days were not easy. There were times I would rather curl into a ball and die than open up about my past. I would yell at everybody, even Brandon, and tell him or her to leave me alone. They never did though. And I'm grateful for their unconditional loyalty to me, for their never ending support, and how they have given me something I needed. A family.
They have taught me to accept. They have taught me to accept what I have, whether it is good or bad, and take it with stride. To accept the love I get. To accept that my past will never change but that my future is mine to control. To accept the help I receive.
I now love and am in love. I have found someone who loves me enough to feel my pain. He is the yang to my yin, the light in my dark world, and even I have put a little touch of darkness in his life. We have changed each other, melded together until we can no longer be one without the other. We complete each other.
Life wasn't going to be easy. I already experienced a bit of adulthood and I knew it would be hard. There would be times when temptation comes knocking, waiting for a reunion with skin and blade. Times when the surface of the Earth looks better when speeding towards it. But I was ready. I wouldn't go back to the Darkness, succumb to the whispers, or scream for an easy way out. I wouldn't leave behind the people who loved me absolutely. I wouldn't give in.
Not anymore.
The End.
Last Author's Note: Holy mother of God, I finished this. I never thought I would actually be able to end this in a way that I would be happy with it. I want to thank everyone that reviewed, followed, and favorite this story, whether you have been doing it from the beginning or just started today. I want to thank you all for taking time out of your life to read this because it is truly worth all the frustration I felt trying to make this the best thing ever. I know that this story only lasted a week, but I really feel like I learned a lot about myself while writing this. I feel confident about posting my other stories for you all to see. I will always treasure this story and all of you that read it, even if you never followed or reviewed or favorited.
If you want more from me, check out my other stories and keep your eyes out for a new story tomorrow or in the next few days. I cannot say what it will be about, because I have 4 other stories in progress that have not been posted, not to mention an unwritten one-shot about Stef and Frank I want to write before posting another Brandon/Callie story. Follow me to know when I post it, and if you really want to show your love for this story, favorite this story.
One last thing, I want to thank BrallieLover123 for showing so much love for this story, reviewing every chapter, following and favoring me and this story, and just bringing a smile to my face whenever I read what you say. I hope to see you again in a future story.
To everyone, PM or review, telling me what you want from me. I wish you all happiness and thank you once more.
Good night and sweet dreams to you all.
- riversong15
