By Your Side

Chapter 8: The Talk

Callie's POV

It has now been three days since I tried to run away and four days since the school shooting. None of us have left the house since then, but things are finally starting to settle down. Everyone is still on edge and I don't see that going away anytime soon. Every night if you listen closely you can hear crying. A lot of the time it is coming from Mariana. She was devastated when she found out that Nick was the shooter, and I feel so bad for her. We tend to spend a lot of time together because neither of us want to leave our bedroom. I spend most of my time hiding from the rest of the family.

Stef and Lena have been avoiding Brandon and I ever since they talked to us the other day. Brandon and I haven't spoken in a few days because every time we so much as made eye contact moms got uptight and would give each other "the look" .

As I take out my laptop today , I decide to do something that I haven't had the guts to do since the Fost and Found launch party, I look at everything that Justina and the media have said about me. The first article I find criticizes me for being immature. It basically says that I am not ready to handle such a big responsibility, and that I should not be looked at as a role model. Apparently I acted out because I wasn't getting my way. Bull! But at least there is nothing about my personal life in this one.

The next website that I click on however, makes me want to throw up. Not only does it state that I had sex with a foster brother, but it accuses me of still being with Brandon. It also bashes moms for 'adopting their son's girlfriend'. I don't know why, but I continue to read. Now it brings up my criminal record. I have no clue how they even got access to this information because I am still a minor and my file should be sealed. Great! So now, I am an aggressive, violent teenage girl who beats up my foster parents' car, runs away, robs a convenience store, participates in grand theft auto and am addicted to having sex with my 'brother'.

 I guess that Justina must have told them all about my history, but she must have forgotten to mention that I beat up a car to help my little brother, I stole a candy bar because I had nowhere to go and I bought a car that I didn't know had been stolen. And how the heck did she even find out about me and Brandon? Did she just guess and get lucky? I feel really bad about what it says about Stef and Lena because obviously they didn't know about our relationship. Even though technically I only kissed him one time that was against the rules.

The first time that I kissed Brandon was the only time that I thought I was being fostered by the family. After that I was either staying at GU or I thought that I was going to have to go with the Quinns after the fundraiser. So as bad as our relationship sounds, if you think about it, it wasn't really wrong. I do not nor will I ever think of that boy as my brother, we are not related by blood and when we met we were both 16 and thought I was only going to be there for a short time. But even if we were wrong or impulsive teenagers, I really wish the media would stay out of the sex lives of two seventeen year old kids... It's weird!

Tears are already rolling down my cheeks so I decide not to look at any more articles. Instead, I check Fost and Found. As soon as it loads, I smile. There are so many kids supporting me. They are praising me for standing up for them and calling out this bill for what it is.

A lot of kids are defending me about all of the allegations Justina made against me. They talk about all of the good things I have done with the website, and drop in center.

A girl named Sabrina wrote " Callie is one of the sweetest people I have met. I was in an abusive home and she helped me get out of there within a day. She told me all about Pearson, the man she said killed Jack. She told me about when he was hitting her brother. That is why she smashed his car. I believe everything that she said is true and you should too. She is one of us. Thank you for everything Callie."