Chapter 4

Callie limped into the house with the support of Stef and Lena. She flinched at the sound of unsynchronized welcome homes and lifted her head to find her family waiting in the living room, all wearing matching smiles. She winced when Jude collided with her, throwing his arms around her waist. She swallowed back the pain and returned the hug.

"I'm so happy you're home, Callie." Jude spoke into her shoulder.

Callie forced a smile and gently patted the back of his head. "Me too."

"Let's give her some space, buddy." Stef said, patting Jude's shoulder gently.

Jude pulled away from his sister. "Sorry."

"B, why don't you help Callie upstairs while Mama and I start lunch?" Stef suggested to her eldest son.

"I'm fine. I can manage the stairs on my own." Callie insisted. She moved out of Stef and Lena's arms, but stumbled when she put weight on her injured ankle. Brandon grabbed onto her to steady her.

"And you want to go up the stairs by yourself." Stef sighed. "Callie, I thought we said you can't say fine anymore. The doctor let you go home as long as you rest. Your body is still weak and still healing. And if it weren't for your other injuries you would be on crutches for that ankle. So yes, you need help going up the stairs. That's not something to be ashamed of."

Callie nodded reluctantly. "Okay."

The family dispersed to the kitchen, except for Brandon and Callie. He supported her as they walked to the stairs. Her whole body screamed as she took the first step on the stairs. Brandon paused when he noticed the grimace that spread upon her lips. He wrapped one arm around the small of her back and scooped her into his arms bridal style.

"Wh-what are you doing?" She asked nervously.

"I'm carrying you up the stairs." Brandon replied as he started up the stairs. "And don't say you're fine because I know you're not."

Callie let out a huff as Brandon carried her into her bedroom. He gently placed her on her bed. She played with her hands nervously before glancing up at him. "Thanks."

Brandon sat on the bed beside Callie, turning his neck to look at her. "How are you holding up?"

Callie's vision blurred with unshed tears and her voice cracked when she spoke. "I'm not."

Brandon pulled Callie into his arms as she erupted into sobs. She buried her head into his chest, trembling beneath his arms as she cried. One hand rubbed her back soothingly, while the other gently played with her curls. He wanted to take her pain away; to shield her from all the bad things that happened to her in her sixteen years. "Talk to me, Callie. Please talk to me."

Callie pulled out of his arms and wiped at her eyes. She shook her head. "I can't do this. I can't talk to you about this."

"Why not?"

"Because I still love you!" Callie shouted through her tears. She closed her eyes for a moment as she inhaled deeply.

Silence fell between the two as Brandon tried to process the words that slipped from Callie's mouth. "Callie…"

Callie stood and started for the door. Her body protested the movement, but she ignored it.

"Callie, stop. You're going to hurt yourself." Brandon stood up, but he wasn't sure how to approach her. He didn't want to grab her because he knew that would scare her, but he needed to stop her before she further injured herself.

"I'm already hurt." She choked out. "I swore to myself that I would never let this happen to me again! I spent the past year and a half guarding myself and toughening up so it wouldn't happen again! But it did!"

Brandon watched in horror as Callie collapsed to the floor, clutching her chest. Her chest heaved up and down as she struggled to catch her breath. He knelt to the ground before her and took her hand, placing it on his chest. "Callie, breathe. Please breathe. You're okay. Follow my breaths."

Callie focused on the gentle rise and fall of Brandon's chest. She followed his deep breaths, trying to breathe in sync with him. The burning pressure in her chest began to subside. Her lungs seemed to finally fill with oxygen. The room began to stop spinning. She kept her hand on his as shook her head, tears tumbling down her cheeks. "I'm weak."

"You are not weak. You are the strongest girl I know. Crying or falling apart or asking for help doesn't make you weak." Brandon took the hand that was on his chest into his and used his other hand to gently wipe away her tears with his thumb. He lifted her chin and gazed into her sorrow filled eyes. "I still love you too, you know. I never stopped and I don't think I ever will."

"What are we supposed to do? We can't be together. I want to be with you so bad, believe me, but I really need a family. Especially now." Callie looked up into his eyes to find them full of love and care. She let out a humorless laugh, peeling her eyes away from his. "I don't even think I'm in the right mental state for anyone to love me."

"Hey, I just said I love you. I always will." Brandon said, taking her hand in his. "Maybe I can move back in with my dad again or…"

"Lunch is ready!"

Callie jumped as Stef's voice rang throughout the house. She wiped at her eyes before moving to stand up. Her body gave out on her and she dropped back to the floor, a whimper escaping her lips.

"Callie." Brandon breathed out nervously. He grabbed onto her upper arms. "Are you okay?"

The truth was she wasn't okay and she didn't know if she would ever be okay. But her family was waiting downstairs for her and she didn't want everyone to worry about her. So she forced back her tears and nodded. "Yeah, I guess I just keep forgetting how messed up my body is."

Brandon helped Callie onto her feet and brushed her hair out of her face. "That's why you need to let us take care of you."

Callie limped towards the stairs with the support of Brandon. "It's an adjustment. Letting people take care of me. I haven't had that since I was ten."

"Well you have a family now." Brandon smiled. He stopped at the top of the stairs and scooped her into his arms, careful not to hurt her further.

Lena sighed as she closed the bedroom door behind her. She slipped into bed beside her wife. "Callie's asleep, although I don't know how long it will be before she wakes up from a nightmare."

"I just got off the phone with Mike." Stef looked over at Lena with a mix of worry, sorrow, and anger in her eyes. "Vico is out on bail."

"What?" Lena shouted. She lowered her voice so she wouldn't wake up the kids. "Are you serious? How can they do that?"

"They set the bail very high, but his parents have money." Stef shook her head furiously. "He has to wear an anklet though. He can't go more than fifty miles out of the city and he's not allowed to go within fifteen feet of Callie or any of us."

"What about school?"

"He has to be homeschooled." Stef said. She paused for a moment. "I don't think we should tell Callie."

"That's a terrible idea." Lena raised her eyebrows as she looked at her wife.

"She won't admit it, but she is terrified and I don't blame her. Do you want to scare her anymore?" Stef's voice raised an octave. "We'll just keep an extra close eye on her and not let her go out alone. Not that she even can right now anyway. I don't think he's going to do anything, though. That would revoke his bail and could get him time in jail in addition to whatever he gets for what he did to Callie."

"And what happens if she runs into him in a store or hears that he's out in school? People talk and Vico was popular. Do you really want Callie to find out from someone else?" Lena understood her wife's reasons for keeping this from Callie, but she knew doing so would be worse. Especially when Callie found out they were keeping it from her; the brunette hated not knowing things.

"Well then you can be the one to tell her." Stef snapped, grabbing the bed remote and flattening the bed.

Lena watched her wife turn on her side, leaving her back to face Lena. "Stef."

"If you want to tell her, then you tell her." Stef's voice was bitter as she remained on her side. "I'm not breaking that girl any more than she already is."

"I know you're trying to protect her, but it's not right to keep it from her." Lena said. "Callie doesn't like to have thing kept from her and it's very likely that she is going to find out. Do you really want her to hear it from someone else?"

Stef turned over to face her wife, letting out a sigh. "You're right. I'm sorry. I just…I hate to see her like this and knowing that Vico is out is going to terrify her."

"I know, but it's for the best." Lena smiled sadly, placing her hand on Stef's and squeezing it gently. She reached over to turn off the lamp beside her bed. "We'll get her through this."

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