Sunday morning the kids were up early getting the house ready for Lena. They cleaned up the kitchen and the living room and Mariana and Jude changed the sheets on all the beds and did the laundry while the other boys cleaned the bathrooms, mowed the lawn and vacuumed the house. Callie helped Sharon get lunch and dinner ready so that they could all spend extra time with Lena when she got home - only it was more like Sharon was helping Callie since Callie was doing all the work and the one giving the orders.
Lena was being discharged at twelve and Stef said that they probably wouldn't be home till about two and the kids wanted everything ready by then. Brandon and Jude went on a second trip to the cheesecake factory to get Lena her two slices of cheesecake as a welcome home and this time they got Stef her own favorite as well.
Callie still smiled whenever she thought about that interaction. In all the foster homes she'd ever lived in she had never witnessed actual love. Not all the homes had been abusive or neglectful but still, every member seemed to only do their own thing. And as for her mom and dad - she didn't really remember them together much. They were just her mom and dad and she hadn't really paid attention to anything else.
"The pot-roast is cooking." Callie said as she put the lid on.
"And the squash is ready too." Sharon said.
"Now on to the vegetables." Callie said, pulling out the extras for the pot-roast.
They were making Lena's favorite dish for dinner. It was proving to be more difficult than Callie originally thought but she was enjoying the challenge.
"The house is vacuumed and the bathrooms are done." Jesus said as he and Brandon entered the kitchen.
"Dinner's more than half way through as well and lunch is already in the oven, we'll eat in a bit." Callie said.
"Great." Brandon said, grabbing a carrot that Callie was dicing. "I'm going to shower then."
"Are you sure you made enough for everyone?" Jesus teased Callie as he glanced around at what looked like too much food even for ten people.
"Very funny." Callie said, dumping the carrots and potatoes into the pot-roast pot to cook. "If we fall short you can always stay hungry." She teased him.
Soon Sharon and all the kids were sitting around the table eating a cheese and asparagus bake that Callie had made, deciding all the things that were still left to do before their moms got home in just over an hour.
"I did four loads of laundry." Jude said proudly. "And didn't mix anything colored with the whites."
"He was great." Mariana agreed. "After lunch Brandon and I can do the dishes." She offered. "We're already done showering so the rest of you can get done as well."
"Great." Callie said. "Just keep checking on my roast and stir the vegetables and potatoes so they cook well please."
"Yes boss." Jude teased Callie prompting her to poke him in the side with the back of her fork causing him to giggle.
"Your moms are going to be so proud of you kids." Sharon said. "You did such a great job cleaning up the house and Callie, you did a great job on lunch and dinner."
"Thanks grandma." The kids said, huge smiles on their faces. "I can't wait for mom to get home."
When they finally heard the car drive up all the kids rushed outside to greet Lena. Stef helped her out of the car and onto the couch. Though Stef had driven rather slowly and carefully all the movement had caused Lena's leg to throb and her body was tired and sore after having lain in bed for three days.
Lena tried to be cheerful for her kids but it was clear that she needed to rest so Stef ushered the brood up to their rooms for a couple of hours to give Lena some time to relax. Within ten minutes she was sound asleep, her pain killers kicking in.
Dana and Stewart were resting in the master bedroom and Sharon was lying on Brandon's bed while the kids were all in the girls' room doing homework. None of them were concentrating too much and were more concerned about their mom.
"Hey guys." Stef said, poking her head in the door. "You did a great job with the house. I should leave you guys to it more often." She joked.
"I made the beds and helped with the laundry." Jude said proudly once again.
"I noticed." Stef smiled at him. "You did a great job."
Have you eaten lunch mom?" Brandon asked, noticing just how tired his mom looked.
"I grabbed something earlier." Stef said dismissively, though the truth was that she had eaten a power bar around eleven along with a cup of coffee while the nurses were doing one last check on Lena.
"Callie made a great bake for lunch and there's still some left." Brandon said, knowing his mom could do with some food.
"I'll get you a plate." Callie said, jumping up before Stef could protest.
Stef followed Callie downstairs while Callie served Stef a helping of the bake.
"This is delicious." Stef said sounding surprised. "I didn't know you could cook."
Callie blushed slightly. "I haven't done it in a while." She said. "My mom always said she thought I'd be a chef someday." She admitted.
"Well this is great." Stef said, taking another bite. "I think you should do the cooking more often."
"Lena enjoys cooking for us." Callie pointed out.
"True." Stef agreed. "I was thinking more like whenever it was my turn." She said with a wink, causing Callie to laugh.
Stef ate in silence for a few minutes while Callie poured a glass of water and set it down in front of her mother.
"Your pot-roast smells delicious too." Stef said when Callie opened the pot to stir it again.
"Thanks." Callie said. "I hope it tastes good. I've never made it before."
"I'm sure it'll be great." Stef assured her. "Besides it's Lena's favorite so she'll be happy."
Callie beamed. She hoped that Lena would like the dinner. She had spent a lot of time on it and looked through several recipes on the internet trying to find the right one.
After eating Stef went to do a load of laundry. There wasn't much to wash since Lena had spent most of the time in the hospital gown and she herself had only worn two outfits in three days. She wanted to get it done while Lena was asleep so she could be there for her when she woke up. Lena's leg still hurt and so did her insides whenever she moved. The force with which the man had entered her had probably caused some bruising, the doctor had said, and that's what caused the pain.
The kids finished their homework and were sitting with Lena's parents, talking quietly in the girls' room while Sharon and Stef spent some time together. Dana and Stewart hadn't had time to buy presents for them all so Stewart handed each of them a $50 note.
"Can't come all the way from Europe and not give my beautiful grandchildren anything." Dana said smiling.
Brandon, Jesus and Mariana thanked them, huge smiles on their faces. Callie and Jude looked shocked. They were still new to receiving gifts and found it hard to just accept them.
"You really don't need to." Callie said, trying to hand it back.
Jude followed her lead. It was the most money he'd ever had in his life and he really had no idea what to do with it.
"Nonsense." Dana said, pushing their hands away. "Of course I need to."
"Yeah." Jesus said. "Be grateful." He had no intention of returning anything and neither did his twin or older brother.
"Thank you." Callie and Jude finally said, rather awkwardly.
"Our pleasure." Dana said. "Make sure you buy yourselves something you love." She instructed.
That statement resulted in a long conversation of what each kid would buy.
"I'm gonna get new makeup and some clothes and maybe some shoes too." Mariana said excitedly though no one was surprised - that's all Mariana was ever buying.
"I'm gonna get new wheels for my skateboard." Jesus said.
"I've been saving for a new car stereo." Brandon said. "This will help a lot. Thanks gramps and grams."
"You're welcome B." Stewart said.
"What about you two?" Dana asked, turning to her newest grandkids.
"I'm not sure." Callie said, still looking at the note in her hand. "It's a lot of money."
"It's not all that much." Dana said.
"Yeah." Mariana agreed. "I'll disappear before you know it." She said.
Callie continued to look at the note. She couldn't think of what to buy with so much money. Before this house she would have stocked up of food for herself and Jude and maybe gotten them a couple of new jeans and jackets so keep warm during the colder months. But in this house all that was taken care of and this money was solely for Callie's pleasure and she had no idea what to buy with it.
"So..." Brandon asked, coaxing Callie to make a decision.
"I'm not sure." Callie said. "Maybe I'll open a bank account or something."
"Boring." Mariana said, rolling her eyes.
"I'm gonna buy new video games." Jude said smiling.
Callie shot him a disapproving look.
"With part of it." He quickly added.
"Well you just do whatever you like with it." Stewart said, making sure Callie understood that it was Jude's decision.
"So long as it's nothing dangerous." Dana added for good measure.
The family sat down for an early dinner so that Stef and Lena could get to bed. They were both exhausted and were looking forward to finally sleeping in their own comfortable bed.
"This looks delicious." Sharon said as Callie put the dish of pot-roast on the table along with the squash and a bowl of salad. "I can't wait to dig in."
"Me too." Jude and Jesus piped up together as Jesus reached across to grab the fork and knife.
"Mama first." Callie said, whacking his hand away. "I made it specially for her."
Everyone watched as Stef and Callie made Lena a plate and set it in front of her. Lena looked at the food and then up at her family around her. Suddenly the thought of eating upset her and the fact that everyone was watching her and expecting her to be happy and excited upset her even more.
"Go on mom." Callie said teasingly. "It won't kill you I promise."
The kids laughed as Lena slowly picked up her fork and speared a bit of the roast. She stared at it for a few seconds before dropping the fork back on the plate and bolting from the table as fast as her injured leg could take her, leaving behind nine stunned faces.
