Mike did something great, everyone! Jonnor dreams are real! Mariana is now a super-hacker in addition to being a math whiz and dance star. Clearly, a lot happened on The Fosters this week, and that's not even the most intense part because the end of the episode truly did bring the waterworks. To kick things off, Mariana's really struggling with Callie's official decision to move in with Robert. Though Stef and Lena tell the kids they'll still be a family, Mariana's convinced 'families live together' and storms off. However, Mariana's silent treatment falls second in importance to a call from Daphne, informing Callie that she told the police she was the only one involved in kidnapping Tasha.
The next day, Mariana announces she and most of her class will not be attending school to protest the firing of rebel teacher Timothy. Turns out this movement has spread like wildfire and all of the teens have decided to participate in the protest. Lena is at a bit of a loss over what to do here, especially being the vice principal of the school her children are protesting. Lena decides to even the playing field a bit and allows them to stay home, only without computers, cell phones, or internet. Well played, Lena.
Callie meets up with Daphne at Girls United, and Daphne tries to talk her out of moving in with Robert now that she's confessed to kidnapping Tasha on her own. Callie believes there's no going back now, especially since she already told the judge she chose Robert. The arrival of Carmen back at the house brings a moment of joy, but it's fleeting, since Carmen brings bad news of Kiara's whereabouts. Since running away from her last dangerous foster home, Kiara's gotten a job working as a prostitute on one of of the most dangerous streets in the neighborhood. The girls are shocked to hear this, but Rita insists that it's not their job to save Kiara, and that she's going to have to make the choice to turn herself in before they can save her. Oh, but are they all really going to let Kiara make this choice on her own? Are they really?
Well, now that we've learned about Kiara this whole 'Timothy Protest' thing seems a lot less high stakes, huh? The protest is hitting the school pretty hard and a large number of students have called out. Principal Monty doesn't believe she's done anything wrong and that the faculty needs to prove it's in charge. Anyone absent on Monday without a legitimate excuse will be suspended. Eventually, however, Monty and Lena do some bonding (Monty had a miscarriage too, and understands not wanting to adopt another baby so soon after) and Lena convinces her to hear the kids out. Monty compromises, saying that she will, but the kids will have to show up at school for that to happen. At least Jude and Connor won't get suspended either way because they totally did show up at school! However, Jude's having a pretty bummer day as he watches Connor make out with his new girlfriend. It's okay, Jude. We can pretty much promise no one is rooting for Connor/Daria.
Since they have no internet, Brandon invites his uncomfortable girlfriend Lou over. She peruses his room and picks out a vintage baseball Brandon's grandfather gave him, suggesting he sell it to pay for the tour. Brandon feels like that would be disrespectful, but Lou points out it's not like his grandfather will ever know. For the record, I was not team Brallie, but wow, Team Bou is a mess. That night, Brandon hangs out with Mike, who's still on a mission to help Brandon make a responsible choice about his summer plans. He asks if he only wants to go on the tour because his girlfriend will be there, but Brandon insists it's for the 'life experience.' Brandon asks Mike if he thinks it's okay for thim him to sell the baseball. It's not like he's into sports anyway, so why not sell it to support something he does love? Oh Brandon, make all the bad choices you want, but don't bring your grandfather's memory into it!
Surprise! Connor's dad's flight got cancelled and now Connor is going to be spending the night. Looks like his dad got over that mysterious tent situations from episodes past pretty successfully. While getting ready for bed, Stef muses to Lena about whether or not Jude has a crush on Connor. She wonders if Jude would be questioning his sexuality at all if he was straight, and then reminisces on her own crush on her Madonna-inspired middle school BFF. Lena asks if Stef thinks Connor has a crush on Jude, but Stef doesn't think Connor seems gay. The conversation soon shifts instead to Stef's fear of losing Callie and concern that she's not making the right decision. We're right there with you, Stef. More than anything else, we're Team Callie Staying At the Adams Fosters House.
Callie may not be telling Stef about her own legal issues, but she does tell her about Kiara being on the streets. Stef tries to impress on Callie what a horrible neighborhood that is, and that she absolutely must not go down there. Rita, however, did not get that inspiring talk from Stef and decides to try her hand at singlehandedly saving Kiara. Bad idea? Bad idea. She finds Kiara and tries to get her to leave with her, but Kiara's pimp is right around the corner and to protect both of them, Kiara spits in Rita's face and acts like Rita is a stranger who was trying to pick her up. It's a horrible, heartbreaking situation, but clearly Kiara is trying to keep it from getting any worse for her and Rita.
Since things are getting pretty heavy, let's return to the adorable Jude/Connor plotline. Before bed, the boys get bond-y over a Star Wars video game, but bonding over video games does not a relationship make. Yet. The next day, a game of baseball turns cuddly (as sometimes they do), and we can start to see that maybe this isn't 100% platonic. The adorable romantic tension is squished, however, when Connor gets a text from Daria who wants him to come over. Jude gets really distant and tells Connor to just go. Connor decides he wants to stay, but Jude's already hurt. When Connor asks why he's so upset, Jude explodes, explaining that Connor needs to stop leading people on. He goes on to elaborate specifically, and we finally learn that the tent incident involved Connor kissing Jude. Jude's confused and doesn't understand why Connor kissed him and why he held Jude's hand in the movie theater. Connor responds by kissing Jude again, and that "JudeAndConnor" hasthtag blew up. It's a great day to be a Jonnor fan, world.
Jesus (remember him?) tells his moms that he no longer wants to entertain the idea of boarding school. He's seeing how crushed Mariana is about Callie leaving, and with that on top of Stef and Lena's decision not to adopt Anna's baby, he's sure she won't be able to handle someone else leaving her. They tell him they'll cancel with the scout, only the scout shows up at the house anyway. He's greeted by Mariana, who quickly learns everything Jesus was keeping from her. However, she's not upset or angry he was thinking of leaving, but instead encourages him to look into the school, since it might be a really great choice for him even if it hurts her. Awww, you go, Mariana! In other 'people making good choices' news, Brandon's thrilled to have sold his baseball online, although he quickly realizes the buyer is his own dad. Mike wants to let Brandon make his own choices, but also thinks he might regret this one day. This might actually be my favorite Mike-gesture on the show ever, especially cause yeah, Brandon's probably going to regret this one day.
Okay, time to wrap up this devastating Kiara plot. Kiara meets up with Callie during the day, and Callie actually manages to convince her that she'll have a better life if she turns herself in, talks to Rita, and goes back to Girls United. Kiara reluctantly agrees, but insists she needs to go get her things first because she's sick of people not letting her have any belongings every time she moves. Callie will only let her go if she goes with her (but you were warned, Callie!) and it turns out when they get close that yes, Kiara did intend to abandon Callie and go back with her pimp. However, Callie was a step ahead and had already called Stef and Rita, who arrive to help Kiara. Kiara breaks down in tears and hugs Rita, so it actually seems like everything may be okay here. And if you weren't already crying yourself, get ready because Stef then pulls Callie aside to tell her she's proud of her, and finally (like, seriously, finally) Callie breaks down herself and tells Stef the truth about what happened with Daphne and that she's absolutely devastated about leaving. Serious kudos to Maia Mitchell for being absolutely soul-crushing as Callie. We absolutely need this show to end well for her one day.
Turns out, absoutely no one is mad at Callie for telling the truth about why she was going to live with Robert, but Stef is mad at someone else. She shows up at Robert's house, rightfully furious at him for telling Callie to keep everything from Stef. Robert believes he's already won since Callie told the judge she wants to move in with him, but Stef announce she won't go down without a fight. We believe in you, Stef! Take. Robert. Down.
