Stef POV

Lena and I were both getting ready for bed. She was already sitting in the bed, blanket over her legs, her back pressed to the headrest, while I was changing into PJ.

"Are we really doing this?" Lena asks surprising me, her eyes were down to her lap

"Doing what?" I ask when I jump in my PJ pants and place the clothes away

"Go into a custody battle with his sister. Fight for Jude?" I pulled the cover back when Lena said that

"Lena what kind of question is that!" I exclaim out instantly

"Just…hear me out," Lena replies calmly watching me, she waits till I get under the cover to continue "I have been thinking about this non-stop"

Lena paused and turned to me "We thought, Jude was alone. We thought his only family - his dad- was in jail. But we were wrong Stef. He has a relative…a sister. That wants him. A sister who is willing to take care of him, to raise him. He has…a family"

"Are you saying you don't want him anymore?" I ask slowly and as calmly as I can

"Of course I want him. I love him and I will always love him. But for 6 years they were together and Jude said that Callie took care of him…until the system split them up. The first chance she got, she tries to get custody of him. Are we really going to stand between the two siblings?"

"I hear you" I say after a moment "But what if what Jesus was right about what he said at dinner? What if she is living in some dump? In a bad neighborhood? What if she has barely enough to take care of herself...let alone her brother? What if she is barely home to take care of him? What if she is a bad influence? What if…what if she doesn't really want him...Lena? What then?"

"…I don't know" Lena said quietly watching me "But I got the feeling, from when Jude talked to us, that Callie has been very protective of him, putting his need in front of her own. I doubt that has changed, Stef" There was a short pause and then Lena added in a hushed voice "What if Jude wants to live with his sister?"

Tears whelm up in my eyes, I didn't want to think about that possibility "Lena—"

"It's a possibility Stef" Lena said very gently "In the end it will be a decision about - what is best for Jude. And maybe what is best for Jude…isn't us. What if it's Callie?"

Callie POV

My shift at the restaurant ended at 10, when it closed up. After my job, like any other day, I head home alone. In the dark.

Walking home at night is not something I look forward to. I don't even think about putting earphones in. I was walking fast, not stopping anywhere, always listing what is happening around me, eyes wild open, looking out for people who look shady.

Thankfully after 20 minute I was finally by the apartment block where I live. I make my the way up to the 3rd floor and get to my apartment.

I was living in a one bedroom apartment. When you enter it, at first there is a small hallway. The door on the left, lead to a small bathroom. There was no washing machine in the apartment, but there was a laundromat at the basement level of the building.

If you walk through the short hallway - you enter a bigger room. Which for me served the purpose of a small kitchen/my bedroom/living room. Even thou it served the purpose of 3 rooms, it wasn't stuffed full, the room was pretty empty. Beside the kitchen furniture, the room also had a couch, that is where I am sleeping, few closest for clothes and stuff, bookshelf, a very small TV, that came along with the apartment, because the previous owner had left it there, and a small coffee table by the couch. It wasn't much, but it was enough for me.

If you walk through the room, you find yourself in front of doors that lead to a bedroom - that's where Jude is supposed to live. The room wasn't big, but it had everything he need to make it comfy - bed, nightstand, closet, shelves, desk where he can study.

The child protective services already visited this place and checked everything out. They came to a conclusion, that this is a place where a child could live and they signed all the necessary paperwork. Thus allowing me to go further with getting the custody for Jude.

I lock up the doors, kick off my shoes and head over to the small kitchen area. From my bag I pull out a box of leftover from the restaurant. I knew how to cook, I learned to cook in the group home. But it was easier to just eat out of a box, than to make a meal to myself. I found cooking for one pretty depressing. When Jude will be here, I would definitely cook for him, without a doubt.

After my lonely supper, I head for a quick shower and then I fell in the unmade couch. I fell asleep the moment my head hit the pillow. My routine has been pretty much the same, ever since I finishes school and got the job at the restaurant. It hasn't changed in months.

Three days later

I was at the restaurant, when I felt my phone buzz in my pocket. I stopped just outside the restaurant and pulled the phone out.

"Hi, Callie! It's Martin, your lawyer" The lawyer greeted me like he always does. It is like he doesn't know about this thing called Caller ID.

"Yeah, hello. Any news?" I ask as I take few steps away from the restaurants entrance

"That's why I am calling. There has been some progress" his tone of voice didn't sound too happy, nor did it hold a sad tone. It was very neutral "So, I just gonna explain the current situation"

"I'm listening" I say back, wrapping my free hand around my stomach, giving myself some sort of comfort

"Right now, for the last 4 months, Jude has been living with Adams Foster family"

"What? I thought he still was living with Greg..." Greg was the foster father whose car I smashed up when he was hitting Jude. We got separated from that point on. Last I knew, he was still living with that asshole.

"Not anymore. Like I said, he has been with the family for 4 months now" he explained, while I was just staring down to my feet and the pavement around me "He was placed there after his teacher reported to the authorities that Jude had been abused- " Martin was about to continue when I stopped him

"How bad was it?" I just had to know, how badly Greg hurt him "His injuries…how bad was he hurt?"

"The worst was ]dislocated shoulder. He had few other bruises," He said and then picked up where he left off when I didn't say anything back "So, the cops got involved and his social worker called this Adams Foster family. They have a good record, they have been fostering kids for like 10 years. They have adopted two kids themselves"

"What are you saying?" I ask back and bit my lower lip

"They were about to adopt him, the adoption didn't go through because we handed in our paperwork to get custody over him"

"So, uh…after 4 months they wanted to adopt him?" I ask in disbelief "That…that doesn't sound real! No one does that!"

I was taken aback by this news. Clearly I had not expected for a family wanting to adopt him. And only after 4 months, that just sounded unbelievable. We were in the system together for 6 years, no family ever came close to wanting to adopt us. And now, all of a sudden, a family wanted to adopt him, only after 4 months. This didn't seem real.

My feeling were dividing as well. I just want Jude safe. I was doing this, trying to get the custody of him, so he could be safe, so he doesn't get abused anymore. I would be taking care of him, making sure he no longer is abused.

But this news, that this family wanted him, are willing to adopt him, just messed me up. I wasn't sure how I was supposed to feel, nor I didn't know what was the right thing to do.

Part of me wanted this family to adopt him, other part of me was ready to fight for Jude, with everything I had.

"Well, it is. They would have adopted him faster, but at first they had to have Donald sign the abandonment papers, that took some while" Martin explained in the same neutral tone of voice, it gave me no comfort at all.

Sometimes I felt like I was talking to a robot or something. Martin was that kind of guy that doesn't get attached. It wasn't that he didn't care, he just knew better than to get attached to his cases.

"I can't believe this" I say pacing down the street, I run my free hand over my face "What now? Where do we go on from here?"

"Well, I was contacted by their lawyer, they want to meet you"

"Meet? Why? Why would they..." I got lost in my thoughts and didn't finish the sentence as I slumped down on the bench by the bus stop

"From what I was told, they were pretty surprised to find out about you as well. What would you want to do? Would you want to meet them? Try and talk it out with them on your own or would you want me to handle it for you?"

I ignore his question and jump to the one thing that was on my mind "What about Jude? I get to see him, right? I should see him…I have a right to see him"

"That was one of the things they wanted to discuss with you first" Martin replied quickly

"I…don't…uh...I don't know" I kept mumbling it over and over again. I was lost, I had no idea what was the right thing to do

"Callie?" Martin asks after what seemed like a minute of complete silence from me "I need an answer"

"I need time to think about it" I said and hung up quickly. This wasn't what I had expected, it took me by surprise. I stared down the street blankly, thinking about my options. Trying to decided what I was going to do.