Callie's eyes widened as she registered Stef's voice. She immediately began to run in the opposite direction but Stef was just as quick. Where the hell is she going? Stef wondered to herself as she chased the teen down the path, "Callie! Stop!" The brunette, however, showed no plans to slow down and was making incredible distance. In a split-second decision of desperation, Stef increased her speed and tackled her foster daughter to the ground.

Callie squirmed beneath Stef to get away, "Let me go! Please!"

"Callie, baby, it's me," Stef soothed, holding on tightly as the girl struggled in her embrace, "Calm down."

"No," Callie moaned, shaking her head, "You have to let me go! Please, let me go!"

"Sweets, I just want to take you home," Stef whispered, running her hand over Callie's matted hair.

The brunette continued to shake her head and thrash her arms in an attempt to get away. Stef shifted her position on the dirty ground and pulled Callie into her lap as if she were a child. She awkwardly placed a leg across the teen's torso to give her extra leverage and used her hands to hold Callie's down by her stomach.

"You can't do this," Callie cried, still fighting to get out of Stef's embrace, "You can't…"

"I can't what, Callie?" Stef asked, pressing her lips to brunette locks. The brunette turned her head away, brown eyes looking for something, anything that would help her escape.

"What can't I do, Callie?" Stef asked again, putting a hand under the brunette's chin so that they were face to face.

"You can't love me!"

Stef stared down at Callie in bewilderment and her jaw dropped, "W-what?"

"I'm so sorry, Stef," Callie began to apologize as her voice cracked, "I…I…"

"Shh," Stef whispered in a calming tone, "You're okay, Love―"

"No!" Callie interrupted, tears shiny on her cheeks, "I'm bad."

The blonde officer began to rock the girl in her lap, "No. God, Callie. You are the farthest thing from bad. You're a good girl, Sweets. Such a kind young woman…"

"I called you and Lena dykes," Callie choked out, "I'm a nasty girl."

"You were scared for your brother," Stef came to her immediate defense, "You were in an unfamiliar home while Jude was stuck in that nightmare of a house. You were in survival mode."

"You have to let me go," Callie repeated her words from earlier as she strained to get away, "It will be better―"

"Better for whom?" Stef asked in a firm but soft tone, "Better for your little brother? For Lena? What about, Brandon, Mariana and Jesus? Do you truly believe they will be better off without you?" The teen did not answer but continued to struggle.

"Callie," Stef's voice splintered as her eyes welled with tears, "Stop. Please, Baby. I love you."

The brunette finally stopped her fighting and looked up at the older woman in astonishment. She watched as tears rolled down Stef's face and landed on her black dress. Callie reached up a tentative hand and hesitated before finally brushing her fingers across Stef's cheek, wiping away the tears, "Don't cry, Stef."

Stef offered a sad smile and ran her own hand over Callie's face, "Only if you stop, too." She adjusted her grip on the girl in her lap, "You have been dealt an unimaginable amount of pain for most of your life and I am sorry about that. I'm sorry that nobody stood up for you or fought for you but I'm here now and so is Lena. You are so loved, Callie Jacob, so loved."

Callie turned in Stef's embrace and buried her face in the junction between her foster mother's neck and shoulder. She wrapped her arms around Stef tightly as she shivered from the cool night air. Stef kissed Callie's forehead twice and her cheek once, "You are my daughter Callie," Stef whispered right into her ear, "And I promise that I am going to fight for you."

Lena looked up as the door to the hotel room opened. In came Stef and…Lena let out a breath she figured she had been holding since the wake. Callie. She got up quietly―Jude was asleep―and made her way to the two quickly. She threw her arms around the shivering girl and held on tight, smothering her face with kisses, "Please don't ever, ever, do that again." Lena said in a hushed voice. She felt Callie nod in her embrace. The older woman pressed one last kiss to Callie's cheek before stepping back so that she could look her over. The younger girl's eyes were downcast and misty. She was trembling and her arms were wrapped around herself. Overall she looked…defeated.

"How about you take a shower, Baby?" Lena suggested. Callie quietly moved to grab her bag and disappeared into the bathroom. Lena looked now at Stef who looked equally worse for wear. She opened her arms and the blonde immediately fell into them. The officer buried her face in her partner's neck and took a deep breath, "Lena, she…she wanted me to let her go. She asked me not to love her." Stef's voice cracked on the word 'love' and Lena could feel hot tears in her neck. Stef was not one to cry.

"I don't understand how one person can be so broken," Stef continued in a whisper, "She's…God, she's only sixteen. This isn't fair." Lena knew it wasn't fair as well, but unfortunately they couldn't change the events of the day or of Callie's life, they could only ensure that her future was better.

Callie came out of the bathroom twenty minutes later. She had showered and washed her hair, allowing it to dry in curls. She looked across the room at Jude who was peacefully sleeping in one bed. She didn't want to bother him by climbing in…he would ask questions, some of which she didn't know the answer to yet. She glanced at Lena who was settling into bed while Stef took a turn in the bathroom. Without giving it much thought, Callie crawled into her foster mothers' bed. Lena did not even hesitate before wrapping her arms around the young girl and bringing up a hand to run through her damp hair. Callie allowed her eyes to slip closed at the gentle ministration.

"Lena?" Callie whispered, eyes still closed.

"Hm?"

"Can I sleep now? I want to sleep."

Lena looked down at the teenager and saw the dark circles under her eyes that indicated she was tired, but she also saw worry lines that no one should have at such a young age. Callie had been taking care of Jude for six years now; had been worrying about his well being. Now, for the first time in a long time, she felt safe. So safe that she could finally rest.

Lena pressed her lips to Callie's forehead, "Yes, Love. You can sleep."

Jude woke up early the next morning. He blinked his eyes a bit and yawned before rolling over in bed. When he saw the empty side, he suddenly remembered what had happened the day before. His mood immediately deflated as he recalled that Callie was missing. With a sigh he turned to face Stef and Lena's bed. Wait, was that…?

"Callie!"

Jude scrambled out of bed and hopped unceremoniously onto the other, wrapping his arms around his sister in a strong grip. All three women groaned as the boy's body startled them from their slumber. Callie returned her brother's hug, "Hi, Jude," she said sleepily, eyes half closed.

"Why did you leave?" he asked, looking into her eyes, "Where did you go?"

"I just had to think for a bit," she answered as she sat up a bit, "I'm sorry if I scared you."

Jude shrugged a bit, accepting her answer for the moment. His eyes lit up as he remembered something, "Look what we got!" He hopped off the bed to grab the box that Malcolm had given to Lena yesterday and carefully carried it to the bed.

Stef sat up as well, eyebrows raised, "What's in there?"

"Christopher's friend dropped it off last night," Lena explained, as she sat properly on the bed, "Apparently he put together some things for Callie and Jude."

Callie reached for the box cautiously and opened it up. She pulled out a manila envelope and peeked inside before pulling out its contents. There were pictures. Callie began to flip through them with a gentle reverence. Stef scooted closer to her to get a good look.

"Oh," she breathed, hand on her chest, "Look how cute you are!" The picture in question was one of Callie when she was about three years old. She was wearing a large university tee shirt that reached down to her knees and a pair of mismatched socks. She was standing on top of a coffee table, smiling toothily at the camera.

Callie blushed a bit and ducked her head as she continued to flip through the pictures. Jude crawled up next to her and leaned on her side to get a good look. As Callie flipped to the next picture, recognition lit up in his eyes, "Mom," he breathed reverently. The picture featured Cynthia Jacob holding a newborn Jude while Callie, standing on the couch, pressed on her mother's shoulder to get a better look at the new addition to the family. Cynthia had a smile across her face as she looked down at her baby in pure adoration.

"What was her name?" Lena asked softly as she studied the picture as well.

"Cynthia," Callie answered quietly, tracing a finger over her mother's image.

"She's beautiful." Callie nodded and blinked her eyes rapidly to rid them of their mistiness, "Yeah, she was," she cleared her throat. She stared at the picture hard―this one was clearly taken by Christopher―and tried to imagine what her father thought of her. Was she the reason he never came back for them after getting out of jail?

"Hey," Stef nudged Callie gently, "What's on your mind?"

Callie shook her head, "What else is in the box?"

Guys I feel as if I am getting bronchitis. I was recently around someone with it and now I keep coughing and my throat always hurts…I feel it cooking in my throat. I'm not crazy, WebMD backs me up.

It's cooking.

-Liv

P.S.-Please review! :)