A/N: 1 more chapter after this one. Just so you are aware…

Chapter 14

Thankfully all three women were able to walk inside of the house and upstairs to Stef's and Lena's bedroom before anyone could catch them. Callie had to be practically shoved inside of the room by Stef, because she wanted to avoid the whole clean up situation.

Lena closed the door behind them before making a face when she saw just how bad the burns were on Callie's skin with the better lighting.

"I should probably talk to Jude and Mariana first," Callie said as she waited for Stef's okay.

Just as Stef was about to say no, Lena answered, "I will talk to them both later. I don't want you to worry about any of that. Or anything for that matter…Let us handle it," she nodded slightly.

Callie let out an exaggerated breath, which demonstrated just how much she was dreading all of this.

"Oh, it won't be that' bad," Stef teased as she began walking Callie to their bathroom.

"I'll go get the first aid kit. I think it's still downstairs. Be right back," Lena informed them as she walked out of the room.

Just as Callie walked in their bathroom, she turned around to face Stef, who raised her eyebrows in anticipation as if she was ready for the girl to try and bolt again.

"I can clean them myself," Callie asserted with the hopes that the woman would actually give her confirmation. "I remembered not to use alcohol."

"I know you can, sweets. But I would prefer to do it myself."

"But—" Callie started.

"It's not up for discussion," Stef voiced calmly but gave her a stern look to let her know that she was serious, as she proceeded to walk her toward the edge of the bathtub. "Have a seat. Let's take a look, yes?"

"I hate it when you talk like that," Callie mumbled. "You make it feel like we're at a doctor's office or something."

"Well, good," the blonde answered. "Think of it as just a little preview of what's going to happen if this burning continues."

Callie rolled her eyes and took another deep breath as Stef walked over toward the sink to wash her hands.

"Should Lena be here for this?" Callie asked, causing Stef to give her a puzzled expression. Callie attempted to explain, "I mean, I saw the way she looked at them and… I don't really think she can really handle it."

"Your mama is tougher than you think, Callie. She was probably surprised is all. She'll be fine… And trust me, if she doesn't come back with that first aid kit that's when you can worry," Stef smiled as she knelt on the floor. "And besides, I think she'll want to be here."

"Why?" Callie voice showed confusion.

"Because…" Stef paused as she stared at the doorway to make sure Lena hadn't come back yet, "She felt guilty the last time."

"The last time what?" the teen questioned.

"The last time this happened…"

"Oh."

"Oh," Stef repeated. "…So I doubt even dead bolting that door shut is not going to keep her from getting in here… No matter how gross your knee looks," Stef joked to lighten the situation.

"Thanks," Callie replied sarcastically.

"…Alright, so now that I've seen your knee what else are we dealing with here?" Stef asked.

The teen looked up at Stef and it was obvious that she was afraid to say anything.

"You can either be honest with me and tell me or... I can find out other ways…" Stef raised her eyebrows and clenched her lips together so that Callie could get the point.

"Other ways like what?" Callie still questioned.

"Uhuh. So you really want to go there," Stef nodded as she began to stand up from her spot on the floor.

"No, Stef. No," Callie answered immediately.

"Smart decision... So?" the blonde urged while she knelt back down.

Callie's face froze for a few seconds, and eventually she gave in and began to remove her sweater. The teen wasn't even sure if she'd find any noticeable burns on her forearms at all, because she knew that it was a hit and miss situation when it came to fire. But she was afraid of having to get butt naked in front of Stef if she didn't cooperate.

Callie removed her first arm from her cardigan, and Stef took in the few small pink patches above her wrist. Not as bad as she had thought she realized. But when Callie tried to remove her other one, Stef instantly grabbed hold of her hand when she noticed the large red lines branded onto her palm. "Oh my God, Callie," the blonde in front of her voiced loudly enough for Callie to attempt to retract her hand back. "No, don't move," the older woman instructed as she took another look. "What the hell happened?" she questioned the teen, making sure to keep direct eye contact with her so that she could tell if she was lying.

"The stove," Callie muttered simply.

"You wrapped your hand around the stove?" Lena's voice came from behind Stef and caught both of them off guard. Callie glanced up at the woman and tried to study her face for another uncomfortable reaction but didn't find one.

"Well, I didn't mean to," Callie tried to defend as both women looked at her skeptically. "It was an acc—"

"Do not say accident," Stef warned. "We talked about this the last time remember?"

Callie looked away from both of them and toward her wound, giving Stef her queue to continue. "We talked about how just because you didn't mean for the burn to get this bad, doesn't mean that it was an accident. If it was your intention to burn then it's not an—"

"But I shut the stove off bef—"

"Callie," Stef stopped her when she was beginning to lose her patience.

The teen sighed, "Alright, fine," she answered flatly, knowing that she wasn't going to win this debate with two women down her throat now.

"Okay," Stef continued with a hesitant voice as she stared at Callie and then at Callie's arm. "These don't look too bad," she informed both women as she removed the other sleeve of Callie's cardigan to glance at her other arm. She took a deep breath when she saw a large burn that looked to take up the size of half of her forearm. It was oozing slightly and she could tell that it must have been really painful. She took a deep breath before she looked up to her wife.

Lena attempted to lean in and to examine it even closer, making Callie feel even more uncomfortable while she subconsciously pulled her arm back.

Lena tried to ignore it because she knew that the girl had just felt embarrassed, "Callie, how did that one happen?"

"…the stove," she answered again.

"Any more?" Stef asked in a no nonsense tone.

"No," she answered honestly.

"Alright," Stef said before she started to stand up and open the cabinet underneath the sink. She attempted to hand over the bottle of mild soap to Callie, causing the girl to make a depressed face. "…Oh no," the blonde continued, "You knew that this was going to happen," she informed her as she turned on the cold water in the shower and began to adjust the temperature.

Lena tried to understand what was happening.

"Haven't I already been tortured enough for one day?" Callie mumbled.

"Not by me you haven't," Stef answered with a slight smile as she held out her hand even further for Callie to give in and take it. "You know the drill…"

Callie stared at Stef blankly and wanted to say something but thought it was better not to. She didn't win the last time this happened and she knew that she couldn't avoid the inevitable. Stef couldn't help but smile as soon as Callie took the soap from Stef's hands without putting up a fight. This is better than the last time, she thought to herself but quickly hid the smile when Callie turned around after she got into the shower with her clothes on. She pulled the curtain back so that they couldn't look at her and Lena stared at her wife.

"Honey, are you sure that a cold shower after all of that is such a good idea?" she whispered.

"If it keeps her from burning again anytime soon, then yes," Stef answered. "Relax, babe. I know what I'm doing. After what happened the last time, Callie didn't have another slip until now. She didn't burn for months. If she needs to be reminded of it and this is the best way to get through to her then…"

Lena sighed but nodded, "Okay. Seems like more torture to me," Lena mumbled.

"Well good," Stef whispered. "Serves her right."

Lena raised her eyebrows but Stef made a face, "The water isn't that cold," she answered innocently. And in reality, she knew that if she had to take it this far every time, she would.

By the time Callie was finished taking a quick shower, she pulled the curtain back, expecting to find Stef sitting on the toilet seat cover again waiting for her. But she was surprised when all she saw were a pair of pajamas shorts, a t-shirt, a sports bra and some underwear on top of a towel. The door was left ajar and she was actually relieved that no one else was in there with her.

Lena must've convinced her to give me some privacy, she thought to herself and suddenly she was thankful that Lena had been there too.

"Callie, we're right out here waiting for you, so when you're ready," Lena offered in an attempt to make Callie feel as comfortable as the situation would allow.

But Stef wasn't so trustworthy, "And no funny business, please? If you take too long I'm coming in there."

"Stef," Lena chastised, "We just talked about this," Callie heard Lena whisper-scold her other mom, causing her to smile a little at the sound of Stef getting reprimanded.

The blonde opened her mouth to say something back but gave Lena a childish grumpy look in response.

It was only seconds later that Stef heard Callie's phone vibrate in their desk drawer. She glanced over toward the door to make sure that Callie wasn't already on her way out before getting up and running toward the drawer and pulling it open.

"I'm done," Callie mumbled at that exact moment, causing for Lena to stare at her wife angrily, but Stef paid her no attention. Lena shook her head with disapproval as she walked into the bathroom to help her daughter wrap up her burns.

And not to Stef's surprise, the phone displayed a text and five missed calls from Robert, Asshole-Of-The-Year in Stef's eyes. The blonde picked it up and stared at it intently as she read the message: Callie, I'm sorry for not being able to re-sign the papers but after what happened to Sofia, it made me realize that I was absolutely right not to. I'm sure your foster moms already told you what happened so I need you to know that I'm still going to fight for you. I can't lose you like I almost lost Sofia today or like I lost your mother seventeen years ago. Don't you think your mother would want what was best for you? No limit to everything you've ever wanted and your family? Your real family. I don't think that she would want you stay with the first group of people you felt comfortable with because you felt obliged to them. You can still see Jude. You can still see Stef and Lena. I wont keep them from you. But please try to understand. I want you to be happy and I'm sure that you will be if you give us a chance. I am your father. You even said it yourself today. Please don't hate me because of one mistake. I'm sorry I lied but I still want to be there for you. Love, Dad.

Stef shook her head the entire time she had read the text. She couldn't believe how wrong he was about her. And every single sentence that he wrote proved just that. Part of her wanted to leave the house and go to Robert's place or find out what hospital Sofia was being treated in and going there to set him straight… to tell him that she wasn't going to let him have custody of her kid in a billion years.

And at this moment, she had to fight against leaving… Not only would Lena kill her if she left right away, but she knew that Callie would probably put two-and-two together. And the last thing she wanted was for it to trigger her to burn again or to run.

So rather than doing anything tonight, she took a deep breath and deleted the text from Callie's phone, making sure to shut it directly afterwards before placing it back in the drawer and closing it.

"All done," Lena said purposely loud enough so that her wife would get the hint before opening the bathroom door and following Callie out.

Callie appeared almost miserable and Stef had to smile when she saw the look on her face. "Do I at least get some pants and a sweater so that I don't have to walk to my room like I just got ran over by a car?" she mumbled.

"Awwwww, poor baby," Stef answered sarcastically as she gave Callie a kiss on her forehead, which Callie found strange but didn't say anything. "…And no. I'm afraid you don't."

"Great. Just what I need. Everyone in the house to see me like this."

"They're not going to see you like this, Callie," Stef tried to assure her, causing the teen to give her a confused expression in return.

"Then how…"

"Oh, I'm glad you asked," Stef smiled sheepishly as she walked over toward her closet and pulled something out.

And by the metal rattling in her handle, Callie already knew what was hiding behind her back. "Stef, come on, no," Callie begged as she backed away from the blonde and hid her hands behind her back so that Stef couldn't reach them.

"Stef, is that really necessary?" Lena questioned her wife.

"She needs to know that there are consequences," Stef answered her, "Relax, Callie. It won't be so bad… unless you refuse," Stef warned as she took a step closer and saw the look in Callie's eyes. "Those puppy dog eyes aren't going to work with me, sweets… Maybe with Lena, but not with me," Stef smiled as she grabbed one of Callie's arms and placed one of the cuffs around her wrist tightly but not too tight. "I have to take a shower…Lena, can you come here a sec?"

Lena started walking over toward her, "This isn't right," she informed the blonde. "But I'll watch her for now. After your done, the cuffs come off of her. Got it?" Lena informed her.

"Sure," Stef said unconvincingly, as she quickly grabbed Lena's wrist and before Lena could move away, Stef wrapped the other cuff around hers. "Stef!" Lena yelped as she looked angrily at her wife. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" she questioned her.

"You said that you wanted to be here this time, Lena. So…" Stef paused, "you're here."

Lena let out a deep breath as she looked at her wrist and back at her wife, "Stef, remove these cuffs off of me, now," Lena instructed causing Callie to chuckle at how funny Lena looked cuffed next to her, angry and baffled.

"I will. I promise. When I get out of the shower," Stef answered as she walked toward the bathroom, "…And once I find the key," the blonde mumbled before closing the door and causing both Callie's and Lena's faces to go straight.

"Callie?" Lena questioned.

"Uhuh?"

"We need to find this key," Lena glanced around the room.

"Agreed."

Stef took her ear off of the door and smiled as she pulled the key out of her pocket and placed it in one of the bathroom drawers where Lena had her makeup. She took a deep breath and turned on the bath, figuring that there was no need to rush.

To be continued…