I am not in love with this...maybe some nice reviews will make me feel a little better lol I think my brain is fried from a paper I had to write for school, sorry if this suffers because of it. However, the finale gave me so many new ideas for this story I am excited about things to come :)

"I am sorry Callie couldn't be here, but she got called into a meeting at work," Jude said to his father as they sat in the living room.

"It's ok…it is good to have a little guy time," Donald said as he smiled at Jude. "Although I am going to have to go out and buy this gaming system and get a couple games so I don't totally suck next time we play," he laughed at how pathetic he was at video games.

"It was still fun."

"Yeah, it was. Maybe next time we can go to an arcade and I can show you some old school games from my day and prove I wasn't always so useless with a controller," the older man laughed.

"They had video games in your day," Jude questioned?

"Ouch…yeah right after they invented electricity we managed to put together a couple video games. I am not that old you know kiddo."

"Well, I will have to ask my moms if we could go out next time."

"Talk to them about it, but if they don't agree right now, don't worry about it. We will get there eventually ok."

"Ok."

"I should get going, I promised to pick up some overtime at the garage."

Jude and Donald said their goodbyes and Jude showed him out. Stef and Lena were sitting on the patio and also said their goodbyes. Jude stayed on the front lawn until he could no longer see Donald's car.

"How was your visit kiddo," Stef asked, always wanting to know how the visits were?

"It was fun. I totally schooled him in Call of Duty."

"I am pretty sure the only person you don't beat up on in Call of Duty is Jesus," Stef laughed.

"True, Donald said we might be able to go to an arcade sometime and he would show me some games he used to be good at when he was a kid…if that was ok with you two."

Lena could tell Jude was nervous to ask this, knowing it was a big deal. He didn't make eye contact when asking and his voice grew softer with each word. The moms had to admit that each visit had gone well, but that didn't mean they were ready to let Donald loose with their son right now.

"Mama and I will have to talk about it, ok?"

"Ok, he said if now wasn't a good time, he would understand," Jude offered, not wanting his moms to think he was pushing the subject.

"We understand buddy. We will talk about it and see if we can come up with something."

Jude nodded and headed inside.

"So," Stef drew out the word, clearly not happy with this turn of events.

"He has been over to the house a handful of times, we should have known this was coming, I just never thought about it. I am not sure how I feel about the two of them going out together alone."

"Oh I know how I feel about it and I will be trailing them in my cop car the whole time if he thinks he is leaving this property with our son," Stef said in full on mama tiger mode.

"Don't you think that is a bit extreme, Stef? I mean he is still on parole you think he wants to go back for attempted kidnapping?"

"I am not giving him the chance. I am not ready to let them go out alone together."

"Ok then that is that. We will tell Jude we are not ready right now for them to go out together, but Stef we are going to have to figure something out. We can't confine them to the house."

"Why not," stef asked in a huff?

"Because Jude isn't a little kid anymore…he is growing up and we have to let him out in the world."

"Doesn't mean I have to let him out there with Donald," Stef practically spit out.

"Jude loves us…he is not looking to replace us. He just wants to get to know his dad and right now everything is new. Donald is like the shiny new toy and eventually he will become a toy that just gets played with occasionally. We will still monitor things but we have to give him room to grow."

"Why must you be so rational about everything?"

"To balance out your insanity," Lena smiled, giving her a kiss.

Stef and Lena were about to head inside when they saw Callie pull up.

"Hey, love bug, how was your meeting," Lena asked?

"Oh um good I think…no yeah it was good," Callie stated.

Stef and Lena shared a look. It was very clear something was distracting Callie.

"What was it about? Did Anna like the photo shoot for the foster kids?"

"Yeah, she loved the photos and the photos I took at their Gala last week."

"That great," Lena said, happy her daughter's love for photography was really helping people.

"Yeah."

"Ok, I am not a mind reader, what's wrong," Stef flat out asked?

"She…Anna…wants me to take some photos at a business meeting she is having and at another charity event."

"That's great sweetie," Stef said, excited. "What is wrong with that?"

"The meeting is in London."

"England," Lena asked shocked?

"Yeah, she has a corporate office there and does a lot of work in Europe."

"That is so exciting, Callie."

Callie just nodded her head.

"Why do I get the feeling we are more excited than you, love?"
"I…I don't know…London is far. I have never been out of the country before; I guess I am a little nervous."

"It is ok to be nervous, Callie, and if you don't want to go no one is forcing you. However, I think this is an amazing opportunity. Not many people get the chance to travel aboard and experience other cultures."

"I don't even have my passport."

"When is the trip," Stef inquired?

"The last week of May."

"That is plenty of time to get your passport together. We aren't telling you, you have to go, but don't let fear be the reason to prevent you from going though. You're going to come up against a lot of scary moments in your life and if you run from them all, you're going to miss a lot of great experiences."

"Plus, there are so many amazing sights to see in London. Seeing them in a book is nothing compared to seeing them in person. With your amazing photography skills, you could really expand your portfolio and capture some amazing pictures. Anna wants you to come for a reason, Callie. Don't underestimate that…this is a great personal and professional experience."

"So, you both think I should go?"

Stef and Lena exchanged a look.

"Yes, we do, but it is up to you. You're not going to disappoint us if you don't go. We just don't want you to look back on anything with regrets."

"Guess I am going to London."

Stef and Lena had big smiles on their faces and caught Callie in a mama sandwich.

"You won't regret going love I promise," Stef said, kissing her temple.

"Getting your passport is pretty easy too. You can get the application online, we can go get your passport photos at Triple A, you have your birth certificate and driver's license, and it can all be processed at the post office."

"That is it, really?"

"Yup and all the instructions are with the application for you to read. If you have any questions just let us know ok."

"Thanks."

Monday morning rolled around and just like she had for the last 4 weeks, Callie stumbled into class, still half asleep and grumpy. She once again took her place next to Jay, who had learned by now not to speak until spoken too. Stef took her usual place towards the front of the classroom and it was good there was some distance between mother and daughter. Stef was a morning person and walked into the class like a ray of sunshine, Callie's mood would put a storm all over her parade.

"Ok, so you have your first papers due today," Dr. Saum announced. "How did everyone do with writing about themselves?"

The class groaned and mumbled, more so because it was just after 8am than because of the topic. Dr. Saum understood and couldn't help but chuckle. She had a little more sympathy for her students who suffered through this class at 8am than her later ones.

"Glad you had so much fun. With each paper I am going to ask for volunteers to present, usually 6-8 students per paper and just give us a summary of what you wrote about. I don't need a word for word reading…trust me I will be reading all these papers later. You only have to present once to cover your participation so I will take volunteers until we run out and then I will start calling on people. Anyone want to start us off this semester?"

Everyone looked around to see who the first brave sole would be and no one was in a rush to go first. After a few moments someone raised their hand.

"Stefanie Foster, thank you for going first. The stage is yours."

Stef grabbed her paper off her desk and walked up to the podium at the center of the room. Callie suddenly became interested in what Stef had to say. She had no idea what Stef wrote about, and if it was about her life Callie could be in this paper.

"Hello everyone, my name is Stefanie Foster. As most of you might have guessed, I am not your typical college student."

Stef paused as that got a laugh from her peers.

"After high school I went right into the police academy. That's right, be on alert," Stef chuckled a little, seeing everyone sit up a little straighter. "I am currently working with the San Diego Police Department and going to school part time. I am married to the most amazing person and we have 5 beautiful children together. My two oldest are currently freshmen in college and the twins are seniors in high school, preparing to start the next phase of their lives. I am here today because of my kids…because I want to show them that anything in life is possible if you really want it. The reason I went into the academy right out of high school is because I knew it was the quickest way to get out of my house and provide myself with a decent living. Don't get me wrong, I grew up in a good home, however my father and I didn't see eye to eye on one major issue."

Even though Callie knew what was coming she was still sitting on the edge of her seat. Stef had a way of connecting with her audience and making everyone interested in what she had to say. Normally, college kids would be playing with their phone or half asleep, but as Callie looked around the room it seemed they were all just as interested.

"See my father believes that love should only be shared between a man and a woman. That became a big problem seeing as how I am married to a woman."

Silent gasps could be heard throughout the room. While college was much more open and accepting of everyone, it was still a shocking moment when someone so openly discussed same sex relationships.

"I could stand up here and talk about how I was married to a man and had an amazing son or how my wife makes waking up in the morning worth it, but my sexuality does not define me. What defines me are my amazing children and the example I want to set for them every day. The one thing I want you to know about me is that I live for my kids, they are my heart beat. I never thought I would have 5 children, but now I can't imagine my life without them. If you keep your heart open you never know what amazing things life can offer you."

The class clapped as Stef grabbed her paper off the podium and took her seat. Stef turned around and gave Callie a wink before settling in. A few more people shared their stories, but none compared to what Stef had to offer. There was just a difference in hearing someone's story that had real life experiences.

"Way to rock it, Stef," Callie said as she was meeting Stef in the back of the class room with a fist pound.

Stef couldn't help but chuckle, giving Callie a fist pound in return. Even though she would always be mom, Stef really liked being treated like a typical college kid and hanging around with this younger generation.

"Thanks, love. How come you didn't volunteer to share?"

"I think I have shared my story with enough people in my life…I am not ashamed of anything in my life, but I think for once I'll just be Callie, the girl with an amazing family and looking to the future."

"I think that sounds great."

"Incoming," Callie said, quickly moving away.

Stef turned just in time to see Brad coming up the stairs.

"Hey Stef."

"Hi Brad."

"So, umm, you're a cop?"

"I am."

"And you're married to a woman?"

"I am," Stef answered again, wondering where this was going.

"So have you ever thought of a threesome with the cuffs?"

Callie almost lost it and had to leave the room. Stef was momentarily shocked.

"Ohh cute little Bradley…if only you could handle this," Stef said, patting his cheek and walking away leaving Brad with his jaw on the floor and a tightening in his pants.