Stef

"Did you not listen to a word I just said?" I'm pacing the length of the backyard talking to Bill about sending some uniforms to the Olmstead's. I can't believe this creep got so close to Callie; this is completely unacceptable.

"I am listening, Stef. I just don't see the sense in sending the cops over what? Some little bruises?"

I scoff, "Little? Bill you haven't even seen her wrists! He intentionally intimidated her!"

"So she says."

"Do NOT start with this bullshit again! Why the hell would Callie make up this up?"

"Because it's what she does, Stef!" Bill says, "She says what is most inconvenient for her at the moment."

"You're her social worker!" I exclaim, "You of all people should be fighting for her, not trying to discredit everything she says."

He sighs over the line, "Look, you just don't know―"

"No, you don't know!" I exclaim, "This perverted man threatened my daughter and you're just going to sit on your ass and not do anything about it?"

"You mean your foster-daughter."

I pause for a moment. Did I really just call Callie my daughter? I pinch my nose, "Just DO something, Bill. Good-bye." I hit the end button on my cell phone and take a moment to just collect myself. Clearly my emotions are on high and are running my thoughts.

But would it be so bad to have Callie as your daughter? And Jude as your son?

But I can't. I just can't…

I walk back into the kitchen where Callie is sitting with Lena. Callie has her arms flat on the table, wrists up. I took pictures of them earlier. Now, Lena is holding icepacks to them. They both look up when they hear me close the back door behind me. I take a seat across from both of them and rest my arms on the table.

"We're getting a restraining order against Liam," I tell Callie, not seeing the need in filling her in on the pointless conversation I had with Bill, "We are going to notify our lawyer as well as his about what he did this afternoon. How are your wrists?"

Callie shrugs, "They're fine."

I chuckle, "Is 'fine' your favorite word?"

Callie smirks, "Actually it's 'okay'."

I smile and chuckle a bit. I take a deep breath, "Why didn't you just tell us, Sweets?"

Callie draws her arms away from Lena and hides them under the table. She drops her gaze and remains silent. Lena shares a sad smile with me. I wish Callie didn't feel the need to keep everything to herself. I know Lena wishes the same. I stand up and walk around the table so that I am right next to Callie.

"You know, Lena," I begin, eyes trained on Callie, "One of the things that really got me when I first met Miss Callie here were her eyes."

Lena smiles, "Is that so?"

I nod, "Yup. They're the prettiest things. Maybe as pretty as yours," I tease with a wink, "I just wish you could see."

It does the trick because Callie lifts her head and her eyes meet mine. I cup her face in my hands and run my thumbs over her cheeks, "There they are." I whisper. She gives me a ghost of a smile and I can't stop myself from pulling her into my arms. Lena's eyes never leave me the entire time.

"What if he tries to hurt you guys?" Callie mumbles into my sweater.

I brush her hair back, "I think you're forgetting I'm an officer of the law; I can protect myself and Lena and Brandon and the twins and Jude. And you, Callie. I'm sorry I let him get near you in the first place, but I promise you I won't let that happen again."

Lena reaches a hand to rest on Callie's back, "Why don't you head upstairs and get ready for bed. We'll be right up to say goodnight, okay?"

Callie nods and moves out of my arms to head upstairs. I take her seat and drop my head into my hands with a sigh.

"What did Bill say?" Lena asks, noticing my omission of his name when I initially walked in.

"I know you hate when I curse, Love, but he was being a complete dick!" I exclaim, "He was questioning the validity of Callie's words again and didn't want to do anything about Liam. God, so what if she made a few mistakes? Is that really who defines who she is?" I rub a hand over my face to calm myself down. I'm getting worked up again.

Lena nudges my calf with her toe and I look over at her, "There's more," she says knowingly, "Tell me."

I bite my lip and begin to tug nervously on a loose strand of hair, "I…when I was on the phone with Bill…I called Callie my daughter."

Lena grins and I groan, "What?"

"Stef, you love her."

I do. I love Callie and I love Jude and want nothing more than for them to be mine. But that's not practical.

"I love them," I admit out loud in a quiet voice, "So much, Lena. But I'm Callie's parole officer. Not to mention we have three kids already."

Lena shrugs, "Five is a good number, too."

I point my finger at her, "You are absolutely obsessed with Jude so don't go pinning this all on me."

"You're supposed to be the strong one!" Lena argued back playfully, pushing my finger down, "You know I'm weak willed."

"Excuses, excuses." I sing-song as I stand up, "I'm going to go see if Callie has settled in for bed yet. You should check on Jude. I think he knows something happened with Callie today." Lena acknowledges that she heard me and I head upstairs. I cautiously peek my head into the girls' room. Callie is alone, dressed in her pajamas and sitting cross-legged on her bed. She's looking down at her wrists and lightly rubbing them.

I walk fully into the room, "Do you want the icepack again?" I ask.

Callie looks up at me and shakes her head. I take a seat on the bed, "Ready for bed?"

She nods.

"And you don't need a day off from school?"

She shakes her head.

"Okay," I begin, "Although we are in the works of getting a restraining order against Liam, I still want to take other precautions. No more walking home by yourself. If you guys want to walk in a group, that's fine, but if you're alone I would prefer that you wait for Lena or call me. Okay?"

Callie nods.

"I know I'm asking yes or no questions, but you could still use your voice, Sweets."

"Yes."

I smile and she ducks her head down with a faint blush painted on her cheeks. I wonder what Colleen Jacob had to deal with when Callie was younger. Was she always this quiet about what was going on in her head or is this a result of years in the system? I ask myself questions like this a lot.

"Callie? Can I give you a hug?"

I don't have to wait very long before she practically dives into my arms and holds tight. She won't say it explicitly, but I know she's scared. She tucks her head beneath my chin and I can feel her breath right near my collarbone.

I never want to let her go.

I give her a final squeeze and kiss her cheek before pulling away, "You should get into bed." I pull back the covers and let her climb in before putting them back over her and tucking her in. Callie watches me with so much interest that I know it's been a while since she's been tucked into bed.

"The front door is locked, right? And the back door, too?" Callie asks as she settles on her side in fetal position.

I nod, "Yes, but I'll double check, okay?"

"Okay. Goodnight, Stef."

I swoop down and press a quick kiss to her forehead, "Goodnight, Love."

~OOO~

Lena

I walk into the boy's room to check what they are up to. Jesus has his headphones on and he's surfing the internet. His foot is tapping against the ground and his fingers are drumming on his desk. It seems like he has the most energy right when it's time for bed. When he was younger, bed time was a struggle, but he's learned to manage. Jude is sitting on his bed, reading a book, although when I walked he immediately looked up where as Jesus was not bothered. Jude is peering at me, curiosity and nervousness evident in his features. I take a seat next to him and pat his knee.

"What are you reading, Buddy?" I ask.

"What's wrong with Callie?"

Wow. There's no beating around the bush with this kid.

I adjust my position on the bed, "Well, your sister had a little run in with someone today who isn't too nice, but Stef and I are taking care of it."

Jude's gaze doesn't waver, "Was it Liam?"

I debate or a moment whether I should tell him or not, but I'm sure he'd find out eventually, "Yes, Jude. It was Liam."

"Did he hurt Callie again?"

"A couple bruises," I admit, "But she's okay." I'm curious about the way he said 'again,' "What do you know about Liam?"

Jude looks down at his sheets, "We lived with him and his family a while ago. He hurt Callie. I don't know what happened, but she said he hurt her and he's bad."

It makes sense that Callie would spare him the details, "Yeah, Buddy. He did. But Stef is making sure that doesn't happen again. She's working with Bill and some other police officers to make sure Liam can't come near Callie ever again."

"Bill didn't help last time." Jude mumbles with a hint of resentment in his tone. I don't blame him. Bill has proved to be less than helpful when it comes to the Jacob siblings.

I pat Jude's knee to get his attention, "Even if Bill doesn't do something, Stef will. I promise. Okay?"

He nods, "Okay."

I smile and reach out to give him a hug. He seems surprised but responds quickly, hugging me back with vigor. I kiss his forehead before pulling away, "Get some rest, okay?" he nods and begins pushing back his covers. I stand up so he can get ready for bed and so I can go say goodnight to Jesus.

Thank you for the supportive reviews! You guys make me smile :) For those of you who were upset, please understand that as much as I love to write for you guys, school is a priority.

I finally got Netflix so The Foster's reruns (yay!). They just need to put up season two and we'll be Gucci.

-Liv