Jude's POV

"I have to go." I jumped up from Callie's chair and started towards the elevator. But Connor was close on my heels.

"Jude! Wait!" Connor put a hand on my shoulder to stop me but I jumped away from his touch. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I just… can't we talk about this?"

"Not right now. I… I just can't handle this right now!" My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest. The elevator doors opened and I pressed down. As soon as the heavy metal doors slid shut I collapsed to my knees. "Why did he have to tell me that? Now it's out in the open and I have to deal with it. Why couldn't I just have kept on imagining?" I muttered to myself. I was near tears, but the elevator slowed so I collected myself and stood.

"Jude, my boy! Let's take a look at those hands!" Ducky's cheerful voice filled my ears once I walked into the morgue. "Here, have a seat on my stool and I'll go get some fresh bandages for you." He smiled at me and patted me lightly on the back.

"You okay, buddy? You look a little pale." Callie pressed the back of her hand to my forehead. "You don't have a fever. What's up with you?"

"Nothing. I don't want to talk about it. Will you call moms and have one of them pick me up once Ducky is done? I want to go home." I hung my head, refusing to make eye contact with Callie.

"Uh, yeah I can do that. Are you sure you're okay?" She tried to put an arm around my shoulders but I moved away from her.

I sighed in frustration. "I said I don't want to talk about it. Can't you just leave it at that?" I snapped.

Callie sighed, too. But hers was out of defeat. "Fine. I'll be upstairs. Just come up when you're done." Her words were a little harsh but I knew she wasn't angry, just a little upset.

"Alright, let's have a look at those hands, shall we?" Ducky came back from his office with fresh gauze and medical tape. He began telling me a story about the first time he ever punched someone. I zoned out, only catching bits and pieces. I was too distracted by Connor's confession. No matter how much I tried to pretend like it didn't happen, his words kept ringing in my ears.

Callie's POV

As I rode the elevator up to the main floor, Jude's attitude kept me worried. Obviously he had a lot on his plate but he just seemed even more distracted and upset. Once I got to my desk I pulled my phone out of my drawer and dialed Stef.

"Hi, Cal! What's up?" Stef's cheery voice put a little smile on my face. I'd only been away from them for one night and I already missed them dearly.

"Uh, Jude wanted me to call you or Lena. He asked if one of you would come pick him up. He wants to go home." I could tell that my voice was filled with worry and that Stef would pick up on my concern.

"Is he okay? Is he sick?" She matched my level of distress.

"I don't know what's wrong. He came down to autopsy so Ducky could take a look at his hands and he seemed really upset. He wouldn't talk to me and snapped at me when I questioned him further." I scratched my forehead and sighed deeply. "I have a feeling something other than his attack is bothering him. I just can't quite figure out what it is, though."

"Don't worry, my love. Mama and I will try and talk to him." There was a moment of silence. I could tell Stef wanted to know how the visit with Ellie went.

"Ziva got approved. My evaluation will be in a few days. If everything goes well, I should be back by the weekend."

"Oh, Callie, that's wonderful!" Her happiness broke through the darkness that had been surrounding me that day. "How are you? Are you okay? Can I get anything or do anything for you?" Her questions rattled off at a hundred miles an hour.

"I'm okay. Ziva is taking good care of me. I just wish I could be back home with everyone…" My voice trailed off and I tried to fight back the tears that were welling up in my eyes.

"Everything will work out. I promise." Silence filled the space between us once again. "Well, I'm on patrol but I can swing by and pick him up. Will you tell him I'll be there in about five minutes?"

"Sure. Will you… Any chance you can come in for just a few minutes?" I didn't want her to have to take extra time but I was dying to see her.

"Absolutely. I'll see you soon, love. Bye-bye."

I smiled a little as I hung up the phone. As I looked up I saw Connor sitting at Tony's desk with a rather upset expression on his face.

"Hey, you alright dude?" I questioned.

Connor looked up at me, his brow furrowed. "Can I talk to you about something?"

"Of course." I pulled my desk chair over to him and sat down. "What's up?" I silently hoped he would be able to tell me what was wrong with Jude.

He sighed deeply and began to speak, his eyes closed. "I know I haven't known Jude for very long, but the minute I met him I felt this… connection. I've known for a long time that I'm, you know, gay. But I've never told anyone. And this morning I just felt like I had to tell Jude that I have feelings for him. Well, I did and he just shut down. He basically ran to the elevators and wouldn't talk to me at all." He took a quick breath and continued. "I thought he liked me too. I just sensed that he did. How could I be so wrong about this?" Connor wiped a tear that was forming away from his eye.

"Connor, you aren't wrong about Jude. He's just dealing with a lot right now. Give him a little while; he'll come back around to you." I patted his knee in reassurance.

"Really? Are you sure?" He looked up at me with wet, hazel eyes. So much fear covered his face.

I smiled back at him. "I'm sure. I know Jude better than any other person. He's just dealing with more than he should have too. I'm sure he was just shocked. I have to go call Ducky to send him up. You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. But I think I'm going to go to the break room. I feel like it's going to be awkward and I want to avoid that." Connor didn't even give me a chance to respond. He quickly got up and made a bee-line for the stairs.

I took a deep breath, thankful that I at least had an idea of what was bothering my little brother. I walked back to my desk and called Ducky. "Hey, can you send Jude up? Stef is on her way to pick him up. She should be here any minute."

He agreed and I sat down in my chair, taking a much needed mental break. But, seconds later the elevator doors opened and revealed Stef, who all but ran to me.

As soon as she reached me, she enveloped me in a giant hug. "I've missed you so much, Callie." She whispered to me. She kissed the top of my head and then pulled me right back to her.

"I missed you too. I just want this to be over with." I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding. Tears threatened to spill and I tried to blink them away. I wasn't very successful.

"Hey now, everything is going to be okay." She wiped the tears from my cheek and smiled at me sadly. "That doctor who evaluates you is going to realize that all you need is to be back home with your family. This will all be forgotten about before you know it."

We stood there hugging each other as we wait for Jude to come back upstairs. I felt so vulnerable, which was something I was taught was bad, but Stef made me feel safe so I let it happen.

"Is everything okay? You've been standing like that for like five minutes." Jude's voice interrupted my thoughts. He had new bandages on his hands.

"Everything is just fine. How are you, buddy?" Stef walked over to him and tried to hug him but he stepped away.

"Can we just go please?" He hung his head and refused to look at us.

Stef and I shared a look. We stood in silence for a moment, hoping he would say something. But, our attention was distracted by the elevator opening once again. Ziva walked towards us quickly with a concerned look on her face. A woman I didn't recognize was close behind her.

"Are you Callie Jacob?" The woman directed her question to me. She was wearing an expensive, professional looking outfit. Her hair was long and curly and she had a sort of understated beauty to her.

"May I ask who is wanting to know?" I stood tall and kept my voice steady even though I was nervous beyond belief.

"My name is Dr. Jenny Rallings. I'm with social services and I'm here to evaluate you." She wrote something down on the notebook she was carrying.

"I thought her evaluation wasn't until Friday?" Stef took a step towards me and grasped my hand tightly.

"You must be Stefanie Adams-Foster, one of Callie's foster mothers." Jenny smiled stiffly. "The evaluation was scheduled for Friday but I had some opening and I determined that this took highest priority.

"You should have called. It's not very professional to just show up unannounced." Jude hissed. I looked over at him and anger plastered his face. His hands were balled up in fists.

"I'd really like to get started. I've already talked to Director Vance and he's allowed us to use the conference room upstairs." Jenny took a step to the side and put her hand out to direct me to the stairs.

Stef kissed me on the cheek and Ziva hugged me as I passed by her. I slowly walked up the stairs. As I looked down, Jude was sitting at my desk with his head in his hands. I felt like I was walking towards my doom. A pit was forming in my stomach and I felt like I was going to be sick.

We finally reached the conference room and I sat down across the table from the young woman.

She clicked a pen and wrote a few things down. "Let's get started, shall we?"