Chapter 12. (one week later)

"Good morning, sunshine," Lena chirped, when Callie came down to breakfast, smiling. Stef couldn't help but smile too.

"Good morning," Callie said, sitting down next to Jude at the table, and serving herself some pancakes.

"You know why today is a special day, right?" Stef asked her.

"Yeah," Callie replied happily. "I'm not grounded anymore."

"That's right!" Stef dug through the kitchen drawer for Callie's phone, and handed it to her. "Bet you're happy to get this back."

Callie nodded appreciatively. "I've missed taking pictures."

The kids finished their breakfast, and headed out the door to school, but Callie hung back, looking at Stef. "Did you need something, sweetheart?" she asked her.

Callie crossed the room, and wrapped her arms around her ribs. Touched by her gesture of love, Stef hugged her back, tears stinging her eyes. "I know this is gonna sound weird," Callie told her. But thank you for grounding me."

"That's one sentence you don't hear every day," Stef laughed. "Where did it come from, honey?"

Callie shrugged. "I don't know. I guess... it made me feel more like a member of the family. No other foster home has ever really treated me the same as their own kids before. So, now I know for sure that you and Lena love me."

"We do, baby," Stef replied, letting the tears run down her face. "We love you and Jude dearly. And this isn't just any other foster home. This is just as much your home as it is Brandon, and Jesus, and Mariana's. And you two are just as much our kids as they are."

"I just wish I didn't hurt you," Callie told her sadly. "I regret it every day. Will... you ever be able to trust me again?"

"Callie," said Stef, taking her face between her hands, and looking her in the eye. "It's been a long month, but you've been so good, and you've grown so much in the last thirty or so days. You recognized that you disobeyed me, and you accepted your punishment without complaining or sneaking around. You're a good girl, and if you keep up this behavior, there's no reason you shouldn't earn my trust back." She bent her head down and kissed her daughter's forehead. Callie smiled from ear to ear, and wrapped her in another hug.

"Thank you, mama. I won't disappoint you again."

"I have every faith in you, sweetheart," Stef replied. "Now... it's getting late, so how about I drop you off at school on my way to work?"

Stef and Lena watched Callie through the kitchen window as she wandered around, snapping pictures. "She really has a talent," Lena sighed.

"She does," Stef smiled. She felt like yelling to the world; that's my daughter! She imagined Callie becoming a world-famous photographer one day. She'd fund it, if that's what Callie wanted. But the present snapped her out of her daydream, when she remembered the phone call they'd received earlier. "I guess we better get this over with," she sighed. Lena nodded, and they went outside, approaching Callie.

"Can we talk to you a minute, Cal?" Lena asked.

"Sure," Callie nodded, her brow creased with worry. "Am I in trouble?"

"No. Not at all," she assured her. "We just want to ask you if you'll do something for us."

"Okay," she replied, sitting down on the tree swing.

"We found out that we're going to court about the adoption soon," Stef explained to her. "And we think it would be helpful if you spoke at the hearing. Would you do that, honey? It might help things get done a lot faster."

The color drained from Callie's face. "I...I don't know. My trial... I lost. I mean, they basically told me that word doesn't mean anything. What if I mess everything up and ruin the adoption?"

"Honey," Stef began. "Your testimony at the trial was... amazing. You moved us to tears. I've never been so proud. And your words weren't the reason you lost. You won't mess the adoption up. You can write down what you're going to say beforehand. Just write what's in here." She tapped Callie's heart. "Write about what makes us a family, and why you and Jude want us to adopt you. I know you can do it if you put your mind to it. You're a smart girl."

"I'll try," Callie sighed, unsure of herself.

"Come here and let me give you one more hug," Stef said to Callie, before entering the courtroom. "For good luck." She smiled as Callie stepped into her embrace. "You can do it, baby," she whispered in her ear. "Don't worry about a thing. You'll do great." She hadn't seen what Callie had wrote, but she had seen her writing fiercely in her journal, staring blankly into space as she chose her words. She knew her daughter worked hard on whatever she had to say, and for that, she was proud.

The hearing went on, and finally, Callie was asked to come forward. Stef held her breath, ready for anything, as she watched her beloved daughter carry her journal, and stand before everyone, in the new outfit she and Lena had bought her days before. And then, she began to speak.

"In a perfect world," she began shakily. "The family you were born into is there to love you forever. But... this isn't a perfect world. So, my brother and I were really lucky to find a family like the Fosters, because they give us what our natural family couldn't. With them, we know we're safe, and that we'll always have a place to live and enough food to eat. Those are the basics, I guess. But most importantly, they give us unconditional love. Lena helps my brother with his homework, and puts nice notes in our lunches. Stef will drop everything to spend time with us, and makes sure we're being the best people we can be. They listen to our problems, and kiss us goodnight, and tell us they love us every single day. They don't treat us like a number, or a burden. They care for us like we're their own kids. And if what Lena always says is true; that DNA doesn't make a family, love does, then I guess we are their kids. Because my brother and I love them as much as they love us. And that makes us a family. Stef and Lena are our moms, and Brandon, Jesus, and Mariana are our siblings. With them for a family, the world seems almost perfect. The one thing that would make it even better is knowing that it's forever." She looked around the room before stepping down. "Thank you."

Stef was a snotty mess of tears when Callie's speech ended, and she looked over at Lena and saw that she was in the same emotional state. Callie hurried to them, crying herself, and Stef grabbed her into a hug. "My beautiful baby," she whispered, kissing her. "Mama's so proud of you."

"It came from my heart," Callie told her, smiling, as Lena and Jude joined in the hug.

A few weeks later, the adoption was finalized, and the family went out to dinner to celebrate, Callie included this time. Earlier, she had told Stef that she was tired of living in her past. She was ready to move forward, now that she had a new life and a new name. She was no longer Callie Jacob, the foster girl who could never catch a break. She was Callie Adams Foster, and with the papers to prove it. The change in Callie, since the day she arrived in their home, was nothing short of a miracle, Stef thought as she grabbed Lena's hand under the table. She looked around at their precious children, her heart filling with love. They now had three handsome sons, and two beautiful daughters, each one a miracle in their own right, and it didn't get any better than that.

The End- Thanks for reading!