Thank you everyone for the reviews! I am working on a part 3 to the car accident story, but I am not exactly sure where I would like it to go as of now.
Thanks, Baylin, for this idea, and all of the other ones!
A movie triggers something for Callie
"You about ready, Jude?" Lena called up to her youngest son, who was getting ready to go to a sleepover.
"Yeah. Hold on!" The boy answered as he finally came barreling down the stairs.
"Woah! Take it easy there, babe! Promise I won't leave without ya." The mother said with a wink.
"Sorry." Jude said as his head slightly drooped down.
"Hey." Lena said, cupping his chin in her hand, "It's ok for you to be excited. Just slow down on the stairs." She said with a smile. "Come on."
Lena reached over and grabbed the boy's backpack while Jude used both of his hands to carry the sleeping bag.
"Bye, my love! Have fun!" Stef said as she stepped into the room to give her youngest a kiss on the head before returning to the dishes that she was taking care of.
"I will!" Jude said with a smile and he headed out the door, followed by Lena, who closed it behind her.
Outside, Jesus was just riding up the driveway on his skateboard, coming home from a friend's house.
"Hey bud! Goin' to Justin's?" The older boy asked his brother.
Jude nodded eagerly.
"Have fun!" Jesus said as he ruffled the boy's hair and walked up the steps to the house, skateboard in hand.
"Mom!" Jesus called out as he opened the door, tossed his jacket, shoes, and board to the side and walked into the house.
"I'd better not see that skateboard lying somewhere in this house" Stef called from the kitchen, causing Jesus to pick up the board and put it in the garage.
The teen walked back into the kitchen and his mother met him with a smirk.
"How do you always know?" He asked as he filled up his cup with water.
"You're my kid. I know you." Stef replied. "And I know you stink." She said, crinkling her nose in disgust.
"Wow. Thanks, mom!" Jesus said in a mock hurt voice.
"Go shower." Stef said, raising her eyebrows.
Sighing, Jesus turned to head to the second floor when he stopped and turned around. "Hey mom"
"What do you want?" Stef asked, her eyebrows raising again and her head tilting when the teen questioned how she knew he wanted something.
"Well, since Jude is gone tonight, maybe can we watch a scary movie? Like Reincarnation or Death of Many or Bloody Remains." Jesus began listing off movies that he knew would be inappropriate for Jude to watch.
Mariana walked into the room, her arms crossed and her face disgusted. "Eww. No way, Jesus. No way are we watching those movies." She said matter-of-factly as she moved to sit at the kitchen table.
"Says you!" Jesus argued back.
"Says Mama. You know she'd never let you watch those movies." Mariana responded, tossing her hair with attitude.
"Just because Jude is usually here. Death of Mary is only rated R because of one little scene!" He exclaimed, focusing his plea to his mother, who had sat down next to her daughter.
Stef focused on her son. "And how do you know that?" She asked.
"Luke told me!" He expressed, trying to continue. "His parents let him and his brothers watch it!"
Stef looked at him suspiciously. "I dono. You're gonna have to talk to Mama about this one." Stef said, not wanting to make any decisions if Lena wouldn't be comfortable with it.
"Why can't we watch Love Actually or Secret Lovers?" Mariana asked, looking at her mom.
"Uhhh no, Mariana! Something that we can't watch while Jude is here." Jesus said, rolling his eyes.
"Hey now!" Stef chastised.
"I'm not saying I don't want him here. I'm just saying he is over at his friend's house and we should be able to watch a higher-rated movie while he isn't here." Jesus explained.
"Mama will be home in less than 10." Stef said as she got up and kissed her daughter on the top of the head as she focused on her phone. "You can ask her when she gets here."
Jesus sighed before getting up and out of his chair and walking up the stairs.
"Brandon?" The teen called out, knocking on his brother's door.
After a moment of shuffling, Brandon opened the door. "What?" He asked, cracking his knuckles.
"Jude is gone at his friend's house for a sleepover and I thought we could watch a scary movie that moms won't let us have in the house when Jude is here. You in?" He asked with hopeful eyes.
"Dude. Do you remember the last time you tried to sneak around moms? You were grounded for a month." He pointed out, crossing his arms at his younger brother.
"I don't mean to watch it behind their backs. I already asked mom and she said to ask mama when she gets home. I just figured if you backed me up that it wasn't too scary, that she would let us watch it." Jesus explained.
Brandon looked as if he was thinking it over, then nodded his head. "Mkay. What were you thinking?" He asked as Callie passed by his room towards the bathroom.
"Oh maybe Callie will too!" Jesus said as he turned to fully face the girl.
Callie gave them a look before responding. "Maybe Callie will do what too?" Though she didn't know if she actually wanted to know. With Jesus, you never knew what was going on in his head.
"Jude is gone tonight and if the three of us convince moms, maybe we can watch a scary movie." Jesus explained once more.
"Uhh yeah. I mean I'm in." Callie said.
Jesus pumped his fist in the air, causing Callie and Brandon to look at one another and roll their eyes.
"Good luck trying to convince Lena. Even with us." Callie said as she walked into the bathroom and closed the door.
"Yeah dude." Brandon agreed before turning back to his room.
When Jesus heard the front door open, he ran down the stairs clutching a pile of papers. As he made it into the kitchen, he waited for Lena and Stef to release each other from a hug before clearing his throat.
"Oh this otta be good." Stef said as she sat down and folded her hands together and placed them on the table.
"What's going on, Jesus?" Lena asked with a concerned look.
"Ok. I know you're gonna say no right away, but..." Jesus began before he heard Stef stifle a chuckle.
"I'm sorry, baby. Keep going." Stef said, biting her lip to keep from smiling.
"Since Jude is gone tonight, we were thinking we could watch a scary movie." Jesus said, handing his mother the papers. "This is the description of the ones we were hoping to watch." He added.
"We?" Stef asked as she too peaked at the papers.
"Well I dono about Mariana, but Brandon and Callie are in." He said.
Lena took a moment to skim the papers before talking. "I don't know, Jesus. These are all rated R. And you're only 15."
"But look." Jesus said as he came over to the mother and pointed down at the paper. "It's only because of a couple of scenes. And it's just because of the action." He explained.
Lena looked through the descriptions once more before exhaling deeply and looking at her son.
"Fine." Lena said, stunning both her son and her wife.
"Really? Thank..." Jesus began before Lena continued.
"You will watch this movie" She said, pointing to one of the papers, " in the living room while mom and I get some stuff done upstairs. If I hear anything I don't like, it goes off. And if any of your siblings want it off, it goes off. Understand?" She asked and Jesus nodded excitedly.
"Thank you!" He responded before running up the stairs to ask Brandon to drive him to the store to rent the movie.
"Wow." Stef said, wrapping her arms around her wife.
"What?" She asked, twisting to face the blonde.
"I'm just surprised, that's all." Stef said with a smile.
Lena smiled back and kissed her wife. "Hopefully this will give us some of our own rated R time." She said with a wink, leaving Stef with her mouth hanging wide open. It was rare when Lena talked like this, but she wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to get some alone time with her wife.
Less than a half hour later, Brandon and Jesus had made it back from the store and the 4 oldest children sat down in the living room to watch the movie. Mariana had reluctantly joined, claiming that the movie was going to be stupid, but Callie pointed out that this would probably never happen again and that she should take what she can get.
So, after bags of popcorn had been made, and Jesus and Mariana had argued for 5 minutes about whether or not the light should be left on or turned off, they settled in, the hall light on and the family room lights off.
Jesus and Brandon sat in the two single chairs, each with their own bowls of popcorn and a blanket. The girls occupied the couch, sharing a bowl of popcorn and a blanket.
"Oh my gosh! No! Don't go in there!" Mariana commented for the third time within the first 20 minutes of the movie. Jesus glared at his twin.
"Sorry!" She said, holding her hands up in surrender and snuggling into Callie's shoulder. She had gotten so comfortable with Callie as her sister and was glad she finally had another girl in the house to endure her brothers with her.
Callie looked over at Mariana and smiled. She really did feel like part of the Adams Foster family. Here she was sitting on the couch, watching a scary movie with her siblings, eating popcorn, and she could actually pay attention to the movie because she wasn't distracted with protecting her brother. The brunette sighed and relaxed into the couch, letting herself engage in the film.
About halfway through the movie, most of the popcorn was gone, Mariana had stopped commenting, and she kept her head covered by the blanket, only peaking out every few seconds before diving back under.
The movie progressed to the main character as she walked into an old abandoned house. The girl crept into the house, trying to keep quiet and made it only a foot before someone reached out and grabbed her.
All four kids jumped at the sudden grab but remained silent, wanting to know what happened next.
The girl in the movie was being dragged into a closet by a man. He shoved her into the small, cramped room and slammed the door shut, locking it behind him.
As the man walked away from the screaming girl, Brandon, Mariana, and Jesus' heart rates began to decrease, while Callie's increased. As the sounds of the girl pounding on the door and her screams lingered, Callie felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. Relax, Cal. Calm down! She tried to talk herself out of where her mind was taking her, but she could feel her chest tightening and her breathing increase.
Callie threw off the blanket from her body, suddenly feeling extremely hot and claustrophobic.
At the sudden movement, Mariana glanced over at the older girl for a moment before doing a double take when she saw the girl's hand on her chest. "Callie?" She asked, completely ignoring the movie.
"I'm fine." Callie said, looking to the younger girl and forcing a smile. "Promise. Just got a little hot." She explained. "Keep watching. I'm gonna get some water." She continued as she stood up to quickly leave the room.
However, Callie wasn't anticipating her head spinning from her shortness of breath and she stumbled to her knees. "Callie!" Mariana yelled, significantly louder and this time gaining the attention of her brothers.
"What's wrong?" Brandon asked as Jesus paused the movie and they both made their way over to the girl.
By this point, Callie had tuned out the other noises and tried to focus on her own thoughts. Thoughts of one of her earlier foster fathers and when he used to throw her into a closet and keep her locked in there for days. He eventually was investigated and arrested after Callie lost so much weight from the lack of food he provided the girl. She tried to suck in as much air as possible, but it felt like her throat was tightening up.
Upon hearing her gasping for air, Brandon looked at Mariana. "Go get moms."
Halting only to glance once more at Callie, Mariana ran up the stairs and knocked quickly on her moms' door. "Mom!" Mariana called out in a panicked tone, causing the women to quicken their pace and open the door.
"What's wrong?" Lena asked, putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder and staring at her.
"Callie. She... I dono really." Mariana started before Stef took off down the stairs and ran into the family room where she could see Brandon and Jesus huddled over who she thought had to be Callie.
"Callie?" Stef called out, causing both boys to stand up and look over as the blonde cop walked over to the girl who was still on the floor, clutching her chest and breathing heavily.
"Boys, go by mama." She instructed quickly before kneeling down next to the girl and trying to determine how to approach her without making the situation worse.
"Callie. Sweetie." Stef gently said, placing a hand on the girl's shaking back. At the physical touch, the girl lifted her head and tried to straighten up and smile. "Oh hi. Sorry. I'm fine." She said though the hitches in her breathing and her distant look told another story.
"Come sit down." Stef ordered, helping the teen over to the couch. Stef squatted in front of the brunette and Lena was soon next to her, holding out a glass of water.
"I had the others go upstairs for a bit." She informed both her wife and daughter and tried to smile at the girl whose hands were shaking as she tried to hold the cup.
"Ok Callie. I need you to relax. Look at me and breathe." Stef instructed, trying to capture the girl's gaze.
Feeling helpless, Lena sat down on the couch next to Callie and wrapped her arms around the girl's shoulders. "In and out. In and out." Lena said in a steady rhythm.
Callie's head was spinning at an even faster pace and at some point, she felt the cup of water being removed from her grip.
"Callie. Callie, sweetie." She could hear someone calling out her name, but she couldn't focus on who was talking. All she could think about was the closet, that old, dirty, tiny closet. And that smell. At the thought of the smell, Callie's stomach lurched and as much as she tried to hold it together, she vomited on the rug.
"Oh baby." Lena muttered, rubbing the girl's back in a soothing manner. "Shhh sweetie. It's ok. You're ok." She whispered to the girl.
"Don't worry about that." Stef said as she saw the look of horror in the girl;s eyes as she spotted the mess. "Just concentrate on me and breathe." Stef instructed once more. "Come on, baby doll. Slow down your breathing. You're fine. You're safe."
Once Callie's breathing became more manageable, Stef held up the cup of water that she had grabbed from the girl's hands when it seemed like she was shaking too much for her to hold it without spilling. "Drink some, my love."
Callie thankfully took the cup and drank slowly, allowing herself more time to relax.
Stef took the water out of the girl;s hands once she indicated she was done, and placed it on the coffee table next to her. As if she could feel both sets of eyes on her, Callie dropped her head and stared at her feet, hoping they would leave her alone.
"Callie?"
The teen sighed in frustration at the concerned mother's tone. She knew they would be worried, and that she owed them an explanation of some sort, so she lifted up her head and was met with the concerned faces of her mothers.
"I'm sorry." She mumbled and her gaze fell back towards the floor, but before it reached all the way, Stef captured her chin with her hand and gently lifted it.
"What happened?" She asked, with a tone that didn't leave room for anything but the truth.
"I... It's stupid." She began before Stef shook her head and kept her gaze on the girl. "No. It's not stupid."
Callie shrugged her shoulders. "There was a scene in the movie that reminded me of something and I got scared." She confessed, not lying, but not telling the entire truth.
Lena and Stef looked at one another and sighed. They knew there was more to the reason, but they also knew that it would probably take some time for her to feel comfortable enough to vocalize it.
"Why don't we get you into a shower and you can brush your teeth." Lena suggested as she stood up and held out her hand to the teen.
Slowly, Callie stood up. Stef mirrored her motions, but reached out to grab the swaying girl. "Take your time." She instructed as she waited until the girl seemed to be steady.
Callie looked away from both moms, completely horrified by what had happened, and began to walk towards the stairs.
Sighing in defeat, Lena started to let her hand drop, but Stef swooped in and gathered it in her own, bringing her wife's mocha fingers up to her mouth and kissing them.
Lena smiled at her wife and they followed Callie up the stairs. They had a long way to go with this one.