Title: Until You

Author: A. Windsor

Pairing/Characters: Callie/Arizona

Rating: PG-13 (lots of innuendo)

Disclaimer: All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. My almost two years of law school could allow me to legalese this a little more, but it also tells me it's pretty useless. So please don't sue; it's not me, I'm just playing!

Series: Standalone, post ep.

Summary: Callie contemplates and has a few conversations. Post-ep to 8x18.

Author's Note: Not beta'd. Meant to have this up sooner, but I have had a crazy week.

Callie leaves Dermatology duly-chastised. There's something that really bothers her about the fact that Mark Sloan understands her wife better than she does, and all she feel is an overwhelming need to prove to Arizona how much she loves her. The hiding still hurts, but only because she wants to know every single thing about her wife.

She hurries to change her clothes; her jealous ego relishes the idea that Arizona is at home, worrying herself about Callie's anger, but she wants to end that suffering as soon as possible. And get to the make up sex.

In her street clothes and ready to go, Callie heads to the elevator, checking her phone and finally reading Arizona's "Sof and I are home. Dinner and bath time next." Callie smiles a little. She loves that Arizona always sends her little updates of Sofia's schedule, usually with some pictures.

The elevator dings, and Callie doesn't look up from her phone, sending Arizona a heads up that she's on her way. She notes with a frown that Sofia will probably be asleep by now, or soon after.

A throat clears, and Callie looks up, her heart dropping into her stomach and her jealousy flaring hot again.

"Colleen."

"Dr. Torres," Colleen smiles gently.

"Headed out soon?"

"Just going over to Joe's now. The other nurses are buying a few rounds. Did... Did you and Dr. Robbins want to stop by?" she asks tentatively.

Callie's eyes widen, which must give her away, and Colleen drops her gaze. Callie opens her mouth to politely decline but instead she blurts:

"I didn't know."

Now Colleen panics.

"I, what?"

"About you and Arizona," Callie continues to blurt. "I didn't know."

"Oh."

The doors split open on the bottom floor; Callie should bolt, but maybe she needs to see this through.

"Can we talk for a second?" she asks, trying not to sound too scary.

"Um."

"I won't keep you long, I just." Callie sighs. "We worked together every day. For years now. And I need a couple answers."

"You should really ask Arizona," Colleen defends, stepping off the elevator with Callie.

Callie flinches at her familiar use of her wife's first name.

"Oh, I will," Callie promises. "But you didn't tell me, either, and you let me spend hours in the OR talking about her and never let on that you'd seen her naked. Or known her favorite Seattle restaurant, or about that thing she does with-"

"Enough!" Colleen blushes, ducking down the hallway so they're not quite in the middle of everything.

"I thought you knew," she continues earnestly.

"So you thought I would just go on and on about your ex like I was gloating?"

"No! No. Arizona and I were never that serious, and we ended months before you two started up. I just thought you didn't think it was a big deal."

"Seriously?"

Colleen shrugs.

"But if you weren't ever that serious, why'd you get all misty about giving my wife an inappropriately long hug?" Callie asks, arms crossed over her chest.

"Dr. Torres," Colleen blushes. "We weren't... not serious."

Callie raises an eyebrow.

"It was a few months. We got to the point where it was be serious or go our separate ways. I was ready for more. She wasn't."

Callie taps her foot, taking that in. Colleen presses on:

"I haven't been pining for her. It's just a might-have-been. I thought we had potential, but it never got that far. It's no one's fault. I'm just... nostalgic," Colleen deprecates. "I'm sorry about earlier."

Callie shakes her head.

"No, I was just... surprised."

"She really didn't tell you?"

"Nope," Callie admits. "But I guess I never asked."

Colleen smiles wryly.

"There were many disappointed women when she got serious with you, Dr. Torres."

"Women are lining up for me," Callie remembers.

"Okay."

"I'm sorry you didn't know. I didn't know how to bring it up."

Callie shakes her head.

"No, I get it. I should get home, and you should get out of here and celebrate. You're a great nurse; good luck in Philly, okay?"

"Thanks, Dr. Torres."

Colleen escapes while she still can, and Callie respects that. It still makes her sick that anyone has seen her Arizona naked, and that Arizona really let her work alongside Colleen for years and said nothing.

But Mark's words about Arizona's own struggles with jealousy (as exaggerated and Mark-like as they had been) ring in her ears, and she wonders what it would have been like to joke around the nurses station with Colleen every day, if she'd known that the other woman has been inside Arizona.

She sighs and heads home, intent on talking it out and getting on to the make up sex. Probably not in that order.

"Look, Mami can be mad, but I didn't lie about anything. I just didn't volunteer."

Sofia looks at her skeptically, chewing on her hand, giraffe under her arm.

"Oh, I know. Stop that. You're not supposed to take sides."

Sofia grins and lunges forward from where she's pulled herself up onto her feet, supporting herself on the edge of her pack-n-play.

Arizona scoops her up, and Sofia immediately snuggles into her momma's embrace.

"Oh, okay then," Arizona grins. "Bed time, mi amor."

Arizona is sure she bungles the pronunciation; right now she is too self-conscious to use the Spanish she's learning in front of anyone but little Sofia, who doesn't seem to mind or judge. In fact, Sofia doesn't care what language her momma is speaking, as long as she can cuddle up with her and a stuffed leopard.

"But really," Arizona says as she walks Sofia through her night time routine. "I was just saving her the stress, you know?"

Sofia grunts as Arizona unzips her sleeper and changes the still bath fresh baby into her last diaper for the night.

"Just 'cause your mommies are fighting doesn't mean we love each other any less," Arizona promises their daughter. "Sometimes we fight with people we love."

Once she's changed, Arizona kisses her forehead and carries her over to the rocking chair.

"Alright. One story or two- No, sorry. ¿un cuento o dos?"

"Wow. I love it when we skip to the make up sex."

Callie laughs, deep in her throat, cheek pressed against her wife's bare breat, planting a kiss there that makes Arizona shudder, even in their sated, exhausted post-coital bliss.

"You're still a little in trouble."

"I figured."

"Yeah? How?"

"You bit a little harder than usual."

Callie smirks.

"So you want to start explaining?"

"We can't go back to sex-fighting?" Arizona asks cheekily.

"Arizona..."

"No, no. You're right."

"I feel like an idiot, Arizona."

"Oh, Callie, no."

"Every day. I worked with her every day. And I know, you thought you were saving me from the jealousy, but it still feels... sneaky."

Arizona purses her lips. "I really didn't mean it that way."

Callie sighs, kissing her wife's temple and then rolling onto her back, further away but her arm and leg still connecting with Arizona's at certain point.

"I know, but I'm not sure that changes how I feel."

Arizona sighs, trying to find the words to make her wife slow her worrying.

"You know, it's funny-"

"Um..."

"I mean, it's funny that Colleen is actually the one that told me about you and Hahn. It was after we split up. So she kinda led me to you."

"That helps a little."

"Good."

"But why... Why so many?"

Arizona fidgets and sighs.

"Maybe not that many."

Callie sits up, and Arizona pouts at the loss of contact (and view).

"What?"

"I- You were so jealous, and cute. And maybe a little hypocritical."

"Hey," Callie huffs.

"All of your exes. I might've inflated it. For effect."

"So how many, for real?"

"Five? Well, six if you count Noelle. That was just one night."

"The others weren't?"

"No. But they weren't serious, either. I was a fellow when I moved here. I didn't expect to stay that long."

"Carter-Madison," Callie sighs.

"Yeah. And I was still really dealing with losing Tim, and getting a fresh start."

"I just never saw you as a player. A... Sloan."

"Hey! Rude!"

Callie laughs. "Well!"

"For me, Calliope, love comes with a whole set of responsibilities. Responsibilities I take very seriously, but that I so wasn't looking for. That maybe history told me I wasn't great at providing. So I avoided falling in love."

"Until me."

"Until you," Arizona beams, sitting up and wrapping Callie in her arms. "You were always different. I saw you, and it was... inevitable."

Callie melts, seeking out her wife's lips in a warm kiss, pulling her back with her as she lies down.

"I love you," Arizona swears, hooking a knee over her wife's hips.

"I love you, too. I'm just glad I fit your type," she teases, looking into her wife's sparkling blue eyes.

Arizona pinches her side and makes a face. Callie laughs and threads her arms around her neck.

"Do you really want to talk about types, Calliope?"

Callie grins into Arizona's neck.

"I guess we were both just looking for each other."

el fin