Jude walked to the door and opened in. Standing in the doorframe was a boy a few years older than him, with dirty blonde hair, ice blue eyes and rectangle-framed glasses. He looked to be around Brandon and Callie's age.

"Hi…." Jude said, hesitating. "Uh, can I help you?"

The boy took a deep breath. "Are Stef and Lena home?"

Jude nodded. He turned his head to the living room, where everyone else was watching TV. "Hey, moms, there's someone here to see you!"

"Who is it, love?" called Stef.

"I'm not sure."

"Well, ask them who they are," came Lena's voice.

"It's John," the boy said.

There was silence, followed by two pairs of footsteps coming to the door. Stef and Lena walked up to the front door and stared at the boy, a hint of recognition visible on both of their faces.

John smiled hesitantly. "Aunt Stef, aunt Lena," he said in acknowledgment.

"John, what are you doing here?" Stef asked in a tone barely louder than a whisper.

John looked like he was about to burst into tears and his tone suggested it. "I-I need your help."

He leaned forward into Stef's embrace, sobbing into her shoulders.

"Sssshhhh, it's OK, John, come inside," Stef said, holding him in her arms and helping him into the house. Once the door closed, John broke apart from her and turned to Lena, hugging her, too. They led him to the living room, Jude following close behind. Once inside, the other Foster children looked up and seemed to instantly recognize John.

"John, what are you doing here?" asked Mariana.

"I need some help with something," John replied quietly.

"Jude, Callie, this is John, our nephew," said Stef. "His parents, my older brother and his wife, were killed in a car accident last year, and he was emancipated afterward, and he's been attending community college and working."

"John, are you OK?" asked Mariana. "Is everything all right?"

John looked back at his cousin with tears in his eyes. "No," he said, shaking his head. "Something bad has happened, and I need some help dealing with it."

He took a seat in one of the sofas, while Jude, Stef and Lena returned to their spots.

"Well, whatever it is, John, we will help you as much as we can, we did promise that when your parents died," Stef said consolingly.

John took a deep breath. He hesitated, looking at Stef and Lena for reassurance.

"Take your time, John," said Lena.

John sighed again. "I was sexually assaulted six months ago," he said flatly. A collective gasp of breath rang through the room. "I was on my way back home when I was grabbed from behind and taken into an alleyway. He…. he tried to rape me. I managed to fight back long enough for a bystander to be alerted, and he managed to subdue the guy and get the police called. The man was arrested for what he tried to do to me, and he's going on trial soon."

Here, John took another deep breath. With every word, his voice seemed to become a little stronger. "I was OK at first and then… I've started reliving it," he said. "I just feel really jumpy and I can't sleep. And I feel very out of control. And the thing is that I wasn't even raped."

"John, you were sexually assaulted," Lena interjected in a soft voice.

"He came… so close, and there was nothing that I could do to stop him. He had a gun, and he completely overpowered me. I never should have been walking down that street so late at night by myself."

"Rape victims often blame themselves," said Stef.

"I know, I know," John said, coming close to tears again. "That's what my counselor has been telling me. And she's told me how misplaced that blame is and I know that. But now, I… I feel… I feel like I don't deserve to be here, telling you all this. But I feel like… I feel like he has… He stole something from me. And…and I need help dealing with it," John finished, bursting into tears again. He buried his face in his palms, his body shaking.

Stef and Lena jumped up from their spots, rushing over to John. They put their arms around him, hugging him.

"It's OK, John," Lena whispered as he sobbed onto her shoulder. "You do deserve to be here. You did the right thing, coming to us for help."

"You can stay here as long as you want, OK?" said Stef, kissing John on the forehead. "You stay here with us, and we'll keep you safe, as long as you need us."

John nodded, breaking apart from his aunts and wiping the tears from his face. "I'm sorry that I barged in like this and I didn't tell you about it before."

"No-" started Lena.

"You don't worry about not telling us earlier," Stef said. "The point is, you have told us and you've made it past one of the hardest parts of your recovery — telling your story to your family."

Callie walked over to them, wiping a tear from her face. "John, I'm Callie, one of Stef and Lena's children," she said quickly. "I want you to hear something. I've been where you are, in another foster home. You survived the trauma; you're gonna survive the recovery."

As Callie hugged John, Jude reappeared in the living room, holding something in his hand. Nobody had noticed him leave. He walked up to John, gave him a pat on the back and held out what was in his hand. It was a necklace with a charm on it.

"What's this?" asked John, tears still streaming down his face.

"It's a good luck charm," Jude replied, smiling. "It says 'Ad Astra per aspera,' which in Latin means 'Through the stars through difficulties.' It's the state motto in Kansas, which is where some of Callie and I's family used to live. I want you to have it," he finished, placing the necklace in John's hands.

John smiled and pulled Jude into a hug. "Thank you," he said, more tears flowing down his cheeks.