Right well, hopefully last chapter was okay? This chapter… it ends up being long(ish). As in the longest chapter I've ever written...and it includes some flashbacks.

Oh, and I'm thinking of adding an OC soon. I have a name sorted and I know what personality it'll have, but I'm not sure on appearances, so if anybody wants to help, please PM me and we can discuss it? (Or tell me if you really HATE the idea XD ) If I use your idea, I'll mention you and what not? I dunno, just a suggestion. Anyway, on with the next chapter!

Disclaimer: I own nothing. At all. Ever. Unfortunately.

Chapter Eight

She didn't want to cause any trouble. Not then, not that day. Not when it was a date that was always hard on her and her brother - though she liked to pretend otherwise for Jude's sake. Because it was the day that marked a milestone in her small insignificant life, reminding her of the moment she went from being part of a slightly dysfunctional but overall close and dependable family to parentless and Jude's sole protector. It was the day that Coleen Jacobs had died. And even then, seven years on, the thought made her want to fall sobbing to the ground. But she couldn't - and wouldn't - today she had to be strong. No matter what.

It was early morning and Mariana was still asleep, snoring softly in her bed across the room. Callie smiled softly at that, before padding softly to the door, careful not to wake her. Once in the hallway she hurried to the bathroom and locked the door. She slid down to the floor and leant against the wood, her breathing uneven as tears began to fall. She cried softly as she remembered that night, as she quietly grieved all her losses.

...

She and her brother sat on the old settee, side by side quietly watching the woman in front of them.

"I'm going to need you kids to pack a bag, we're going to take you to a very nice family called the Sagouls for a little while." The woman spoke slowly, her tone gentle as she looked at the two of them, pity in her eyes. Pity for them.

"What about our dad?" Confused, Callie sat up straighter and frowned at the woman.

"Your dad," She began, taking a step forwards and sitting down in the chair opposite them, "is in jail. He was drinking before the accident and several people - including your mom - were killed."

Callie's eyes widened as anxiety overcame her. "Your not going to split us up, are you? 'Cause I won't leave my brother." She tried to look as determined as possible as she stared at the woman, silently hoping that she wouldn't notice the scared tremor at the end of her sentence - that she wouldn't call the young girl's bluff.

To her relief, the woman shook her head. "We're not going to separate you, I promise. We're going to keep you together until we can find a home for you both."

Continued to speak, but all the words seemed to merge into one meaningless sentence. Without looking at her brother, Callie reached over and the two of them clutched each others' hands, as though their lives depended on it.

Despite the warning bells going off in her head, she was sobbing louder now, not bother to restrain herself. The pain she was feeling refused to stop, no matter what and she was fed up with that. There had to be something she could do about it - anything. A wave of anger hit her and she stood up. Storming to the mirror she glared at her reflection. Stupid. Worthless. Pathetic. If she'd just kissed her Mom goodbye...

...

Before she had a chance to register it, she acted impulsively the object in front of her, barely noticing the sound of it smashing or the pain that jolted through her fist. But then she looked down and saw her bloodied hand, shards of glass sticking out.

"SHIT!" She cursed loudly whimpered softly, returning to her previous sitting position by the door. "Ow."

...

Stef frowned. She'd heard the sobbing. She'd heard the noise of something smashing. And she'd heard Callie's loud yell of pain. So, it seemed had just about everyone else in the household. Lena and her had leapt from their bed, rushing to the landing where they'd been surprised to meet Mariana, Jesus and Brandon, all three teens wearing looks of concern on their faces.

Lena turned to Jesus. "Is Jude still asleep?"

"Y-yeah, I think." Her son replied anxiously, fidgeting slightly as he stood there.

"Good." Her voice brisk, Stef marched to the bathroom door - the only door upstairs that was shut. "Callie? Callie, are you okay?" She twisted the doorknob, hoping that it would open, but not particularly surprised when the door didn't budge. "Callie, I know you're in there - the light's on and I heard you. Could you come out, please?"

The girl didn't respond. Stef ran a hand through her hair, concerned for the girl. "Callie, if you don't answer I'm going to have to knock the door down."

Silence was her only reply.

Stef looked at her wife and the two of them had a silent conversation. Lena agreed. She knew what she had to do. As her wife pulled their other children away from the bathroom and towards their own bedrooms, she turned back to the door. "Okay," She warned, "That's it - I'm coming in." She took a step back, planning on ramming into it, when a small figure darted from his bedroom and crouched down by the door.

"Callie?" Jude asked, his voice soft. "Callie it's okay."

She stilled at the sound of his voice.

...

The weak rays of the morning's sun lit her room from the small gap in her curtains. Callie smiled, and lay still for a moment, listening to the birds outside. Fed up of not moving, she sat up, pushing the covers off of her and leaving them in a crumpled pile at the end of her bed. Standing, the toddler paused momentarily, but the sound of even breathing informed her of her parent's still sleeping. Which was time she'd woken them up her Daddy had yelled at her and then at Mommy and Mommy had looked upset. Callie hated it when Mommy was upset, no one as pretty and wonderful and fun as her deserved to be upset. It wasn't upset.

But Mommy had been happy recently. She'd been smiling and laughing more. She'd also been growing fatter. Though telling her that wasn't a good idea. Her smile would vanish and she'd frown, before telling the girl 'Not to be so rude!'

Apparently she was only bigger because of the baby. The baby that was going to make her a big sister and really grown up. She wasn't sure she liked the idea of that. The idea of staying the same and nothing changing sounded better. But then, Daddy had been less cross now that Mommy was going to have a baby. He was home more and looked happier. Callie'd even caught him singing with Mommy the other day. So she'd decided that they could keep the baby. For now.

...

Callie smiled at the memory. She could remember how she felt when Jude had first entered her life.

At first, she'd disliked him, hating how loudly he screamed when he wanted something - especially when she wasn't allowed to yell. But she'd always loved him, right from the moment she first met eyes with the tiny, curious looking creature her Mom had brought home from the hospital - she hadn't even minded staying with Old Mrs Phirt, who smelt of pee and ended every sentence with a laugh. She'd been rewarded with a close relationship with him - Jude's first word had actually been 'Callie' as supposed to the traditional 'Momma' or 'Dadda'.

"Jude?"

"Callie." He sounded so relieved, and she couldn't help but feel guilty.

"Jude, baby, Im sorry. I just..." She trailed off unwilling to put into words what she was feeling.

Though she couldn't see him, he nodded. "It's okay," He told her, "I understand."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I-" He glanced at his moms, unsure of whether to continue. At their smiles of reassurance, he turned back to the door. "I miss her too."

His sister din't respond, but he hadn't expected her to. He looked at Stef and Lena again. "Our mom, I mean."

"Yeah, I know."

"But we didn't." Stef took a step towards the door and put out a hand to touch the frame. "Sweets, if today's important, you've gotta tell us. We need to know things like this."

"Okay." Callie muttered, but she didn't elaborate.

Stef bit her lip. "Right. Do you think... Do you think you could open the door?" She closed her eyes, willing the teen to listen to her, and was rewarded with the sound of the lock turning. "Oh thank God!" However, her relief was short lived as she saw the state of the girl's hand.

"Oh Callie, what happened?"

"The mirror." The girl ducked her head. "I punched it."

"Why-?" Sighing, Stef shook her head. "You know what, never mind."

Sitting the girl down on the edge f the bathtub, she set to work attending her cuts. They worked in silence, neither meeting each other's eye. At last they were done. Callie headed towards the entrance, before hesitating and turning to Stef. "My Mom died seven years ago today." She told her.

"Oh, sweets." Stef felt a pang of sympathy for the girl.

"Whatever." Callie shrugged. "i'm going back to bed - try and get some sleep, y'know."

Stef nodded, a sad smile on her face for the beautiful, broken girl in front of her. "Sure."

With a parting smile, the two women went in separate directions. And as Stef went to bed, all thoughts of Robert and his request for custodial rights were pushed to the back of her mind, not to be thought about - or mentioned - until it was too late.