Right, chapter 10! I cant believe this story made it this far! I thought i had 3 maybe 4 chapters in me, but you and your reviews just kept me going, made me want to keep writing, so thank you all for making me write this fic, i'm loving it and there is so much more to come! Here is a bit more Jude/Lena, and some sibling love as well, we never watched the twins get told about that night so i just winged it!
You all said you liked the long ones, so buckle up coz here is the longest one yet:
Lena and Jude walked hand in hand towards the cafeteria, both lost in their own thoughts and neither attempting to start a conversation.
The sibling's confession played over and over in Lena's mind, she couldn't get Jude's words out of her head.
She gave me the cookie and then she hit me.
The look on the boy's face had been heartbreaking, he wasn't upset about being hit, on the contrary, much to Lena's horror, he had made the abuse sound like a regular occurrence, like being struck by a foster parent was normal and okay.
What had really seemed to devastate him was how upset his sister was. It had looked like he was comforting her, not the other way around and that crushed Lena for reasons she couldn't explain.
The sibling's relationship simultaneously made her feel sick, but also reassured her and the combination was wreaking havoc with her mind.
On one hand, she hated how dependant the siblings were, hated that they'd had no one but each other to rely on over the years because that wasn't how it was supposed to be, neither sibling should ever have had to comfort the other the way she had just watched those kids comfort each other.
She really really hated the fact that they had been forced to protect each other and be strong for each other. She wanted to scream at the unfairness of it all. They were great kids, who had been through the wars and somehow pulled each other through and as much as she hated that they'd bonded over their shared horrific experiences, she was also beyond grateful for their close connection.
She had a feeling that one of the only reasons the two had survived the foster system was because they had each other.
From just the short interaction she had witnessed, she could see that the siblings were strong for each other and both drew strength from the other.
When they had recounted what that devil of a woman had done to them, Jude had quietly leaned on his sister as she began their story, and when he could see she was struggling, he jumped straight in, giving his sister back her strength, and Callie had let him take over, let him be the brave one if only for a moment before she had pulled herself together to finish the terrible tale.
The whole thing had been painful to watch and yet as much as it tore Lena apart, it reassured her as well, because she could see that there was nothing that Callie and Jude wouldn't do for each other and that gave her hope.
When one of them faltered, the other took up the slack, they trusted each other, and Lena hoped that one day the siblings would be able to trust her and Stef the same way, that they wouldn't feel the need to protect each other so fiercely, that they would feel comfortable depending on the women.
She hoped that Callie and Jude would be able to just be brother and sister again, she wanted them to be able to reclaim their childhood and just fight and argue like normal siblings, something she was sure they'd never done.
She wanted so much for the beautiful, damaged children she was starting to love, and she knew that her and Stef were both more than willing to provide them with the love and support they so desperately needed.
She would have to talk to her partner, but she could tell by the way the blonde acted around Callie that Stef was just as in love with the Jacobs' as she was, they would give the kids the family they needed and the attention they deserved.
They would save these siblings no matter how long it took.
With her renewed determination, Lena looked up and realised they had somehow made it all the way to the hospital cafeteria.
She looked down at Jude, who also seemed to be lost in his own thoughts.
"Okay sweetie, what do you feel like eating?"
Jude looked up at her and furrowed his brow.
"Um, I don't know, what do you feel like?"
It was a trick Callie had taught him, never ask for anything, just go along with what everyone else is having so that you aren't a burden.
The way Lena was looking at him though, with her eyes full of kindness and her smile that seemed so genuine, he didn't feel like he was being a burden.
But in his mind, that gave him all the more reason to be easy going, if he didn't cause trouble then maybe the women would keep him and Callie for a while longer.
Lena's gaze grew impossibly softer as she crouched down next to Jude and held both of his hands in hers.
"Sweetie, you don't have to be afraid okay? I'm not going to hurt you. You can get whatever you like and maybe you can help me grab breakfast for Callie as well? You know what she likes to eat better than I do"
She may not be a cop, but she was a mother, and on top of that a Vice Principal, she could see when a child was holding something back from her.
"I'm not Mary honey, I will never hurt you or Callie, and as long as you're with us, Stef and I will make sure you have plenty to eat and are safe and happy okay? I promise"
She didn't know how to get through to the boy, how to prove that she wasn't going to cause him harm like so many in her position had.
Jude thought about it and considered what Callie had said.
Nine is like Base.
She'd never said that before, Base had always been the dream, never the reality. Base was the stories that Callie told him on the really bad nights, the nights where she had protected him and he had let her, the nights when they'd both hurt physically and emotionally.
He knew Callie would never lie to him, and he was really hungry, he hadn't eaten anything since lunch time the day before.
He trusted Callie, and she said he could trust Lena as well.
"Maybe some toast?"
He was hesitant so suggest it, but the smile that stretched across Lena's face at his simple request made him feel instantly better.
"Sounds great! I think I'll get some as well."
She stood back up, but kept hold of his hand, she had always been an affectionate person, and from the way Jude had instantly been soothed by his sister's touch, she had a feeling Jude was as well.
They walked to the end of the line and waited behind the five people ahead of them.
"What do you think Callie would want?"
She was trying to engage the boy in conversation, but as she looked down at him, he looked down at his feet.
"Callie doesn't eat breakfast."
His voice was quiet and Lena could feel all the progress they'd just made start to slip away.
"Why doesn't she eat breakfast honey?"
Lena had a sinking feeling that she didn't want to know, but she sensed that Jude needed to tell her, he needed someone else to share the load with.
"She just used to get sick a lot, in the mornings especially, so she doesn't eat breakfast because then there isn't anything to throw up and she won't get in trouble"
Jude shrugged as he spoke, trying to pass it off as no big deal when it was, he knew it was, but he was trying to be like Callie. She had a way of talking about the horrible things like they didn't matter, like they didn't hurt.
Lena tried not to react as she listened to Jude, but her mind was buzzing as she tried to think of why Callie would have been so sick.
"Why'd she get sick? Did she have a bug?"
Jude finally looked up at Lena, studying her intensely. He could see the concern and worry in her eyes, but no hint of malice or anger.
He took a breath to steady himself before he told her.
"Our foster father would get really drunk after he got home from work. He would get really angry and mean and he'd hit Callie, or he would try to hit me but Callie would get in the way, and usually it was okay, he was too drunk to do anything too bad, but sometimes he would just start kicking Callie in the stomach and he wouldn't stop until he got tired or she stopped moving"
He swiped furiously at his eyes as he remembered dragging his sister to bed on those nights, trying to look after her like she always looked after him.
He was angry at himself for crying, Callie wouldn't have cried. He sniffed as he carried on, suddenly wishing he hadn't said anything at all.
"She would be sick for the whole week, but the next morning was always the worst. So Callie doesn't eat breakfast."
His voice was strong again as he thought of his sister and how brave she was.
She had been the same age Jude was now when it had all happened, they'd been living at Two, one of the really bad ones.
Lena was devastated at hearing Jude's story, hearing him say that being beaten by their foster father was okay had snapped something inside of her and the usually non-violent brunette was suddenly overwhelmingly glad that the man was dead by Stef's gun.
She smiled sadly down at Jude and squeezed his hand gently.
"Well he can't hurt either of you anymore, he's dead now Love, you don't have to worry about him anymore."
She watched as Jude's face twisted in confusion.
"He's not dead."
He spoke gently as if he was breaking bad news to Lena.
Lena startled, she just assumed Jude had seen his foster father get shot, but apparently he wasn't aware that the man was dead and Lena didn't know how he would react to the news.
"Honey, remember last night? Remember how Stef shot him? He's gone Jude, he is never coming back"
She was trying to be gentle, using the information she had learned from Brandon as he had given his statement to try and jog his memory.
"No he was our foster father a long time ago. He was in our second foster home, I think he's still alive, but he isn't allowed to have foster kids anymore, not after... us."
He faltered as he finished speaking, he couldn't tell Lena, not without talking to Callie first.
Callie didn't like to talk about how they got removed from each foster home. Probably because they were only removed when things got really bad, when one of them got really hurt. When Callie got really hurt, it was always Callie.
Lena could see that there was something he wasn't saying, but she didn't push him. He had already told one emotionally-draining story and Lena thought that was enough for the time being.
There would be plenty of time later, hopefully after Lena had had a chance to talk to Stef and vent some of the anger she was feeling towards the kids' previous foster parents. After she had patched up the hole in her heart that kept ripping open every time she learned something new about the siblings.
Thankfully, they'd reached the front of the line. They were both able to quietly collect themselves as Lena ordered their toast and orange juice and a bagel and coffee for Stef.
The two carried their trays over to a near by table. Lena took a seat and was overjoyed when Jude chose to sit next to her instead of across the table from her.
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Jude hesitate as he was about to take a bite of his breakfast. She turned to him and smiled as she took a bite of her own, hoping that he would imitate her.
He tentatively nibbled on the corner of his toast and Lena smiled and looked away from him, not wanting him to feel like she was watching him eat.
Satisfied that it was okay, Jude calmed down and quietly crunched on his food.
As they ate in silence, Lena could feel the little boy inching his way closer to her and she smiled.
He was really a sweet kid and Lena had a feeling that Callie had sacrificed a lot to make sure he stayed that way.
As they finished eating, Lena felt her phone buzz and took it out of her pocket, holding the device in one hand as Jude slipped his fingers into her other, Stef's bagel under Lena's arm and her coffee in Jude's tight grip.
She read the text and smiled, typing out her response as they made their way back to Callie's room.
"Mariana come on! You've been in there for like half an hour!"
Brandon pounded on the bathroom door for the fourth time that morning.
He had woken the twins up at 6am and neither of them had been very happy about it, usually sleeping in till at least 10 on the weekend.
"I'm doing my hair! Just five more minutes!"
Mariana's voice was muffled through the door, it was the third time she had said those words and Brandon wasn't holding his breath.
After Lena had left with Jude, Brandon had tried to go back to sleep, but every time he closed his eyes, he saw Callie lying on the floor with blood pouring out of her shoulder and his mom leaning over her, trying to stop the bleeding.
He had finally given up trying at around 5:30, opting instead to have a shower and start getting ready for the day.
He'd woken his brother and sister, telling them to get up and get ready before making his way downstairs to have some cereal.
Jesus had grumbled at the early wake up call, but when Brandon told him they needed to go to the hospital, he had followed his brother's instructions.
Mariana had put up more of a fight.
"Why do we have to go, we don't even know her!"
She had said variations of the same statement for the next fifteen minutes, long enough for Jesus to finish in the shower.
Brandon'd told her that their moms needed them to get to the hospital as soon as they could, and that white lie had finally gotten his sister moving, though she complained the entire time.
That had been thirty minutes ago and Brandon was anxious to get going, he needed to see how Callie was and he needed to check on Jude, keep his promise to watch out for the young boy.
"Mariana!"
He pounded his fist against the door one more time and was surprised when it opened.
"Chill, I'm out! What's the hurry anyway?"
She brushed past him and made her way down the stairs, not waiting for his answer.
He followed her as she made her way to the kitchen and waited for her to sit down opposite Jesus before he sat at the head of the table.
"So are you going to tell us what happened last night?"
Jesus managed to get his question out around his mouthful of cereal, looking expectantly at his brother.
Brandon sighed, he'd known the question was coming but he still didn't know how to answer it.
He took a breath and prepared to just get it over all in one go.
"Yesterday at school I saw Callie leaving early so I followed her to see where she was going and this random number had been calling my phone all day and when it rang again she grabbed it from me and answered it and it was her brother Jude and-
Mariana held up her hand to stop him.
"How did her brother get your number?"
Her face was suspicious, like she thought there was something he wasn't telling them.
Brandon shrugged his shoulders.
"Callie said she borrowed my phone on her first night here and used it to call him."
Mariana seemed satisfied with his answer and nodded for him to continue.
"Any way so her brother called and I think their foster father was hurting him or something because Callie was getting really upset -"
It was Jesus who stopped him the second time, thankfully swallowing before asking his question.
"Dude why didn't you just tell mom? She's a cop, she could have gotten him out of there if he was being hurt!"
Jesus was also suspicious of his brother. Brandon was usually a lot smarter than that and he always followed the rules and told him mom everything.
Brandon wasn't sure if he should tell them, but he figured they would find out eventually, so he took a breath and just said it quickly.
"Because Callie's been in juvie, she got arrested for smashing up her foster dad's car while he was hitting her brother, she said that if i told mom then she could get sent back to juvie because her foster dad had all these complaints against her"
He looked back and forth between his siblings, both looked very shocked at hearing Callie had been incarcerated.
"She was in juvie?"
Jesus's tone was disbelieving, but as he thought about it, juvie would explain the bruises on her face, she probably got beaten up while she was in.
"Yeah but it wasn't her fault, what was she supposed to do? Let her brother get hurt?"
Brandon couldn't explain why he felt the need to defend Callie but he did, it hadn't been her fault, she was only trying to protect her brother.
"Okay, so you didn't call mom and you went with her, what happened when you got there?"
Mariana's tone held no judgement, just curiosity, which Brandon could deal with.
"When we got there, I knocked on the door and pretended to ask where the metro was, to keep the foster father distracted while Callie got Jude out, but he must have heard her or something and he was really drunk and started shouting at her and then he pulled out a gun and -"
Jesus cut him off Brandon's rambling, his spoon clattering loudly as he dropped it back into the bowl.
"Woah wait, the guy had a gun? Mama must have flipped!"
It was no secret that Lena hated guns. Stef never talked about her work because she knew her partner was uncomfortable at even the mention of firearms.
"Well yeah, I mean, she didn't come into the house until after-"
Brandon was interrupted again as Mariana asked a question.
"Wait did mom have her gun? Was it like on TV, like when the police corner the guy and tell him to 'drop the gun dirtbag'?"
Mariana put on a tough voice as she did her best impression of a police officer, a look of excitement on her face that Brandon didn't share.
He sighed.
"No it wasn't like on TV, can you guys just let me finish?"
He looked at his brother and sister who both nodded their heads.
"Thank you. Yes, mom had her gun, and so did my dad, but the guy was completely wasted and he was shouting at Callie and it was really intense and he was waving the gun in her face and yelling and then he just shot her."
Neither Mariana or Jesus spoke.
"And then mom shot him."
He looked between the younger two and waited for them to say something.
"Wait so Callie was shot? Like actually shot? With a gun?"
Jesus was completely shocked. He thought maybe she'd gotten hit in the head or something, he knew doctors got weird about head injuries, he hit his head on the curb when he fell off his skateboard once and they'd made him stay in the hospital overnight and woken him up every hour to check for concussion.
He'd just figured thats what they were doing to Callie, he hadn't thought she'd been so badly hurt.
"Yeah with a gun."
Brandon was patient with his brother's questions, he'd been shocked too when he'd seen Callie on the kitchen floor.
"Wait is mom okay? Did she get shot too?"
Mariana knew that cops were supposed to protect people and her mom was probably the most protective person she'd ever known, especially when it came to kids, she couldn't imagine Stef just standing by and letting Callie get hurt.
Brandon hesitated.
He had been in the room when everything happened, but between his dad and the foster father, his view of his mom and Callie had been obstructed.
His eyes had been glued to his mom and he could tell she was trying to get into the room, but Callie had been holding her back.
He thought maybe he had seen wrong, but just as her foster father had fired, Brandon swore he saw Callie push his mom out of the way.
It didn't make any sense though, Callie didn't even like his mom, she certainly didn't trust her enough to tell her about Jude but Brandon was almost positive she had saved his mom's life.
He couldn't talk to Lena about what he's seen because he knew she had enough on her plate, but he could talk to his siblings.
"Mom's fine, she didn't get shot, she's okay"
He was quick to reassure his sister, he could tell she was starting to panic.
"Actually, I think Callie might have.. You know.. "
He didn't know how to say it, didn't know how to tell them that the girl they barely even knew had saved their mom's life.
"She sort of covered mom. From the bullet I mean, she kind of pushed mom out of the way so she wouldn't get shot."
His statement was again met by silence.
Neither of the twins knew what to think.
Jesus was confused. He couldn't understand why Callie would have done that, why she would have protected a cop, didn't she know that's what cops were supposed to do?
"Wait bro are you sure? She was definitely meant to push mom out of the way? Mom didn't just fall or something?"
Brandon nodded his head, understanding his brother's need for confirmation.
"Yeah I'm telling you, one minute, Callie's blocking the door and not letting mom in, and the next, Callie had slammed mom into the doorframe, pushing her out of the way!"
Brandon was relieved to find his own confusion mirrored back to him by Jesus, he didn't understand it either.
Both boys looked at each other, neither able to come up with an explanation for Callie's actions.
Mariana finally broke the silence.
"She saved mom's life."
Her words were quiet and both of her brothers looked up at hearing the tears in her voice.
She finally looked at them, her eyes swimming as she tried to blink the moisture away.
"I was so m-mean to her and she saved my mom's life"
She stuttered slightly as she spoke, her tears finally spilling down her cheeks.
She's asked Callie if she was going to meet her pimp and the girl had been going to rescue her baby brother.
Jesus reached across the table and held his twin's hand.
"Mari, its okay, she's going to be okay."
He looked sideways at Brandon.
"Right?"
Suddenly he wasn't so sure, a gunshot wound had to be pretty serious, but Brandon didn't seem too worried.
"Yeah no, she's gonna be fine, she was talking and everything and she was just shot in the shoulder, she's gonna be fine."
Even as he said it, he didn't fully believe his words.
He quickly changed the subject.
"Alright so we should get going, Jude's at the hospital as well, he fell off the couch and hit his head on the coffee table so mama took him in this morning"
The twins nodded at the information, both had been wondering where the young boy was.
Mariana stopped them as they all stood to leave.
"Wait! We should get mom some clothes, and like her toothbrush and stuff right? So she can get changed.. I mean she's been in the hospital all night, so maybe.."
She trailed off, unsure of what she could do but just wanting to be helpful somehow.
"Yeah that's a really good idea! Uh maybe we should take Callie some clothes as well, I don't know when she'll be getting out but she'll need them eventually."
Brandon picked up the idea, grateful for Mariana's forward thinking, he hadn't even considered clothes for either of them.
"Should we take something for Jude as well? Did he he cut himself? He might have blood on his clothes.. "
Jesus jumped on board as well, wanting to help too.
"Uh I'm not sure, but it couldn't hurt to bring him something in case right?"
Both twins nodded.
"Okay so Mariana, you get stuff for mom, Jesus, you get Jude's things, and I'll get Callie's.
The siblings raced off to complete their designated tasks, all three of them just glad to be doing something useful.
The boy's decided to take both Callie and Jude's whole bags, rather than going through and picking items out. They didn't know the two well enough yet and they didn't want to invade their privacy.
Mariana met them at the bottom of the stairs with Stef's bag that was almost the same size as Callie and Jude's put together.
She rolled her eyes at her brothers' raised eyebrows.
"What? She might want choices!"
She huffed as they smirked at her.
"Weren't you the one in a hurry five minutes ago? Let's move, come on!"
She brushed past Brandon and punched Jesus in the shoulder as he snickered at her.
Brandon smiled for the first time that morning and followed his brother and sister out to the car.
They all got in and put their seat belts on, Mariana sulking because Jesus called the front seat.
Brandon pulled out his phone and sent a quick text to his mama.
Woke the twins up, weren't happy at first but we're on our way now, what room is Callie in? x
He turned on the car and backed out of the driveway, pausing in the street as Lena replied to his message.
Thank you honey, room 6029, see you soon, drive safe! x
Brandon put his phone in the cup holder between the seats and started driving towards the hospital.
No one spoke for the first few minute, each trying to process everything they'd heard or witnessed.
It was Mariana who finally broke the silence.
"Do you think Callie and Jude will stay with us? Or will moms send them away?"
The question had been on everyone's mind, but no one had wanted to ask.
"I don't know. I guess Jude will stay with us for a while, at least until Callie's out of the hospital, but then I don't know.."
It was Brandon who answered, his voice unsure as he tried to predict his mothers' actions.
"Well I mean, she's only in hospital because she got shot right? And if she got shot saving mom, then don't we kind of owe her? Like a lot? Mom could have died if Callie hadn't been there"
Jesus was trying to rationalise a way for Callie to stay with them, he felt for her, he knew how bad the foster system was, and how it was even worse when you had to watch out for someone other than yourself, like he'd had to do for Mariana and Callie'd had to do for Jude.
People thought he didn't pick up on things like that, but he had seen how sad and worried Callie had looked when they'd first met, and how she was trying to hide it behind insults and rudeness.
She seemed to have had it bad, and she'd probably had it worse than him and Mariana because she'd been in the system longer and she was older.
"Yeah but mom wouldn't have even been in danger if Callie hadn't been there in the first place."
Mariana poked her head between the two front seats as she pointed out the obvious.
She knew it sounded like she blamed Callie, but it was easier than blaming herself.
She had told Callie how to get to the metro and she had told her how to sneak out without getting caught.
On some level, Mariana had been glad that Callie was leaving, she was scared that despite what the older girl had said, she would in fact nark on her about selling Jesus's pills.
But after hearing that the teen risked her life to save someone she didn't even know, Mariana realised that Callie probably wasn't the kind to nark on anyone, no matter how mean they'd been.
"What was she supposed to do Mari? She didn't want to get sent back to jail and she couldn't just leave her brother there with that psychopath! I would have done the same thing if it had been you in that house."
Mariana sat back at hearing her brother's words. She believed him.
Family was everything to the two of them, they'd spent so long wishing for one and they'd been lucky enough to find it in the Fosters.
Callie had saved a part of their family and Mariana knew there was no way they'd be able to thank Callie for that.
"I hope they get to stay, I'm sure moms will listen to us if we say we want them wont they? She saved mom, that has to count for something"
Mariana looked at the back of both her brother's heads, waiting for their answers.
Brandon turned into the hospital entrance, parking the car and turning off the engine before shifting to face his sister.
"I want them to stay, Callie saved our mom, she saved all of us."
Brandon's words were firm and both he and Mariana looked expectantly at Jesus, waiting for his answer.
"Hey I think it would be cool, I'd get a big sister and a little brother, then I have one of everything!"
He smiled at the thought, he'd have a big brother and sister, and a little brother and sister. He didn't mind being in the middle.
His tone turned more serious.
"She saved our mom."
He repeated his brother and sister's words for emphasis, none of them would be forgetting them anytime soon.
As the siblings got out of the car and walked towards the hospital, they were all thinking of ways they could convince their moms to let Callie and Jude stay, ways they could help out until Callie got better and ways they could make the two feel comfortable and at home.
As they got in the elevator and Brandon hit the button for Callie's floor, they all shared a look and smiled; they were on the same page.
Callie saved their family, the least they could do was save hers.
Finally done;) So please let me know what you think, i would love to hear from all the readers who follow and read this story but dont usually review, i just wanna know your thoughts and feelings:) Thank you to all my regular reviewers, i love you all and i hope i tell you all how grateful i am to get your reviews!
Also, let me know what you prefer, two short chapters in two days, or one chapter, twice as long, every two days?
Review review review :))))) ~BC xo