Callie sat on the floor of the empty and dark exam room she had barricaded herself in. She stared unmoving at a small scratch on a pot plant across the other side of the room. Her eyes were stinging with tears she wouldn't let fall and her jaw so tense to avoid the trembling she felt so close. The door opened slightly but she didn't move, she didn't acknowledge it, she barely heard it, she just sat, staring. Numb. A body moved in front of her and crouched down and dark blue scrubs filled her vision.

"Calliope"

Her voice was unsure, like she didn't know what to do, what to say? What was there to say?

"They need you to ….to go and..well you know ….you …they said you should be able to ….Christina and Alex…even Izzie agreed…Callie?"

She said her name almost with desperation, but callie's wide eyes stared through her.

"Cal-"

Arizona's pager pierced the air shrilly causing the blonde to jump up and awkwardly fish the offending black object out of her pocket. Glancing down at it not long enough to read it she looked back at Callie a hopeless look in her eyes…

"I have to…to go Calliope i…I have patients and I—"

"Go" A deeper voice interrupted her clumsy explanation.

Arizona raised her head to mark who had entered the room not long after her but remained by the door watching his best friend with concern. Arizona nodded and leant down and pressed an unreciprocated kiss to Callie's lips which had lost their normal lush red colour. With that Arizona rushed out of the room without another word leaving Mark with Callie. After a minute he moved further into the room and instead he slid down the wall coming to rest beside her.

"Hey baby"

His voice was quiet and laced with worry, but not pity like Arizona's seemed to exude. Callie hated to be pitied, after taking care of her after many breakups before, this he knew well….just as Callie knew he hated it just as much. With one movement he reached for her and her body slumped against his, he held her, breaking her gaze. His strong arms collected her in his embrace and he kissed her forehead. But before she got too settled in his arms he pushed her back upright again.

"I know this hurts Torres, I know but you've got to be strong for just another minute, they need you to officially identify him." He watched her and met her pained eyes when she looked up at him, broken and vulnerable.

"No…..no please Mark….please no …don't make—" He placed a finger over her lips before using it to sweep her hair away from her eyes. He kept eye contact with her before he spoke again,

"Callie…You can do this…you can do this and I know you will do this..because you were his wife and he was your husband…you knew him Torres…you knew him like nobody else knew him…you loved him…you love him Callie …I know that as well as you do because when YOU love someone Cal…you never stop loving them…so I know that you can do this and you will do this for George"

He finished and she was staring at him with the saddest eyes he had ever seen causing his heart to sting. She reached for him and he stood up pulling her with him.

She grasped his hand so tightly and he caressed her cheek…..

"You look great Cal"

Her mind whirled back to when Mark had first said that to her and she nodded at him knowing he knew that she was grateful. They moved to the door and Mark opened it after whispering that he would take her home afterwards. They moved out into the corridor and Mark gently guided her through the halls. She saw their stares, heard snippets of their whispers and drew the strength from her best friend that she needed so dearly.

"I can't believe it, he was always so nice"

"He made such a great doctor"

"It's Dr Torres, look"

"I wonder how she's doing"

Mark walked by her side past the stares and the whispers and moved even closer when they rounded the corner to George's room. She stopped as she observed the group huddled together outside of her ex husband's room. Meredith, Christina, Alex and Izzie. Bailey the chief. Derek and Owen. Lexie,— Her vision was broken as Christina turned to look at her. Their eyes met and a hundred words passed between them, Callie began to walk again and slowly the group parted. Mark opened the door for her but didn't go any further as he let her hand slip from his. She looked up at the sudden loss,

"You got this Torres, I'm right here"

She nodded in response realising it was something she had to do herself. She moved forwards, knowing but not truly caring she had an audience staring at her through the wall of glass. She moved to the bed and clutched onto it for support and looked up at George's face. She raised a shaking hand to caress his scarred cheek.

"Hi George" She whispered in a hoarse voice. Her hand wiped imaginary lint off his gown covered shoulder and slowly moved down his arm. She carefully held his hand, simply staring at it. Struggling to move she briefly looked up at the window and met Mark's eyes. He stared into hers and she slowly, shakily turned his hand over in hers. Mark nodded briefly and her eyes dropped down to her ex husband's hand.

She found what she was looking for….the small, barely there mark on the inside of his right wrist caused her heart to stop. She couldn't breathe, couldn't move, everything looked brighter in her vision, blinding. She felt moisture on her arm and looked up to see where it had come from before realising it was her tears running down her arm. A gut wrenching sob wracked her body and then another and another. She didn't see the hospital employees outside mirror her actions, she didn't see Meredith Grey look away, she didn't see Izzie Stevens clutch onto Alex and him onto her, she missed Miranda Bailey's eyes well up and didn't hear Lexie Grey's gasp. She didn't see the head of trauma, neurosurgery and plastics bow their heads and run their usually steady hands through their hair. She didn't see Mark look back up at her and didn't hear him enter the room but she did feel him catch her just before she would have hit the ground as her sobs overcame her and her legs gave out.