This is a sequel of sorts to my story "Dreams Redefined", but it has a much different tone and takes place several years later. It's not really necessary to read "Dreams Redefined" beforehand, I don't think anyone will be confused if they haven't. I feel the need to mention this story is set after the events of 7x18. The idea for this story started out as just a one-shot from Sofia's perspective, but the more time I spent outlining the story, the more it took on a life of it's own! So it's longer than originally planned and is written in third-person because I wanted to show other characters' thoughts and feelings. As always, enjoy and please leave a review!
Arizona opened the back door to the house she shared with Callie and their four children and was greeted by a flying soccer ball that nearly hit her in the face. It smacked into the wall next to her and rebounded away into the family room.
"Harper! No soccer in the house!" Arizona yelled, feeling like she had this conversation every day with her rambunctious youngest child. Ten-year-old Harper came running up to her. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail and it swished from side to side as she moved and her blue eyes were sparkling in a way that told Arizona that Harper knew something.
"Sofia and Sierra are fighting again." She tattled, completely dismissing her mother's order and changing the subject. Harper told everyone everything so her siblings were always trying to keep her out of the loop. However, when Sofia and Sierra were screaming at each other, it was a little hard to hide from their nosy snitch of a younger sister.
Arizona sighed. "Ok, I'll take care of it." Harper started to turn and run into the family room, but Arizona stopped her. "Hey! No soccer. I mean it." She repeated adamantly.
"Fine." Harper agreed with a dejected sigh. Arizona rolled her eyes at Harper's dramatization over the slightest thing. She trudged up the steps, not looking forward to what she might encounter with her two older daughters. She could hear their voices coming from Sierra's room and opened the door to find seventeen-year-old Sofia and twelve-year-old Sierra standing toe-to-toe, faces red and voices raised.
"Hey!" Arizona's voice cut through their shouts and made both girls turn and look. "What's going on?"
Sofia and Sierra glanced heatedly at each other and then faced Arizona and both jumped in to tell their side of the story. Arizona held a hand up. "Whoa! One at a time." She demanded, silencing both girls.
"Mom!" Harper called up the stairs.
"What?" Arizona snapped, not appreciating the timing.
"Uncle Matt is on the phone."
"Oh geez." She muttered to herself. She'd barely been home five minutes and she felt like her attention was being pulled in eight different directions. "Alright, tell him I'll be there in a minute." She shouted, and then turned back to Sofia and Sierra. "You two, stay away from each other until I get back, alright? Not one word to each other."
Sofia crossed her arms and looked away, while Sierra obediently resigned herself to sitting quietly on her bed until her mom returned. Arizona left the room and started toward the stairs but paused to knock softly on Holden's door.
"Come in."
She peeked inside to find her fourteen-year-old son at his desk doing homework. "Just checking to see what you are up to." She explained, smiling at her only seemingly sane child at the moment.
"I'm avoiding the madness." He replied with his suffering look of I'm-the-only-boy-living-with-two-moms-and-three-sisters. "What's for dinner?"
"I don't know. Maybe if I get a second to actually think, I can figure that out."
"Mom! Uncle Matt is still on the phone!" Harper reminded her mom from somewhere downstairs. Arizona sent Holden a stressed look.
"You better take care of that." Holden turned back to his homework. Arizona nodded and left, going down the stairs only to have her cell phone quickly thrust at her when she reached the landing.
"Here." Harper handed it off and ran away. Arizona didn't bother to ask what she was up to. She didn't want to know.
"Matt? Sorry about that. It's a little crazy here at the moment." Arizona said with a small laugh.
"Arizona, I don't know how to tell you this…" her younger brother's voice was dreadfully serious on the other end of the line.
"What happened?" She asked, feeling her heart rate speed up as panic settled in.
It was close to 8:00 when Callie finally made it home. She smelled pasta and followed the scent to the kitchen. She was starving, but it seemed a little late for the rest of the family to be eating. She was surprised to find Holden standing next to the stove, stirring the pot of noodles while the sauce simmered next to it.
"Hey, Buddy. What's going on?" She asked, dropping her purse on the counter and sliding off her jacket.
"Well, I was hungry and so was Harper, so I'm making some pasta." Holden stated in a way that was straight to the point, but didn't explain why. It was typical of Holden. "Don't worry, there is enough for everyone else, too." He added.
"That's great, but where's your mom? I thought she was home already." Callie was sure that Arizona had gotten off work a few hours before her, but if she had, she would have been making dinner, not Holden. Holden turned to Callie and gave her a grave look. "She's been up in her room crying for a while now. She won't come out and I'm afraid to bother her."
If Callie wasn't so worried, she would have berated her son for not starting with that when she first walked in, but she was too concerned about Arizona to say anything and immediately turned to go upstairs. She opened the door to their bedroom and found Arizona curled up on the bed, her arms wrapped tightly around a pillow.
"Arizona? Baby, what's wrong?" Callie asked softly, alarmed by what she saw. Arizona had been silent, but when Callie spoke, she started to cry again. Callie sat on the bed and began to rub Arizona's back, waiting for an answer. Arizona fought to control her weeping, but it wasn't an easy task.
"My …. Dad… is …. dead." She managed to say between sobs before bursting into another fit of tears and crying even harder than before. It was the first time she's said it out loud and she felt the sting of pain all over again.
"Oh my god. No." The news hit Callie like a ton of bricks landing on her chest. She wanted to ask how it happened, but she feared making Arizona cry if she tried to talk about it.
"It was a…. heart attack." Arizona struggled to say. "Matt said… it was quick. Mom found …..him, but it was …. too late."
"Oh my god." Callie felt her own tears start to fill her eyes. "Come here." She pulled Arizona up so that she could hold her. A sudden knock on the door startled both of them.
"Not now." Callie called to whoever was on the other side of the door.
"Oh my god. The kids. I can't tell the kids." Arizona began to frantically babble to herself.
"Hey, it's ok. I'll tell them. We'll tell them together." Callie ran her hand over Arizona's blonde hair. "We'll get through this." Arizona turned pain-filled eyes to her wife.
"I don't know if I will…"
"What's going on?" Sofia wanted to know. All four kids had crammed on the couch and their parents were standing before them. Her mom looked like a basket case and she could tell that her mama had been crying a little as well. It was scaring her more than she wanted to admit.
"Are you ok, Mommy?" Sierra asked Arizona, her brown eyes wide with concern. Arizona tried to speak, but tears sprang back into her eyes and she quietly tried to blink them away. Callie gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.
"I'm afraid I don't have very good news." Callie began, struggling to find the right words. Her voice was shaky and full of emotion. Four pairs of eyes were locked on her and she could almost see them physically bracing themselves for the worst. "This morning, your grandpa had a heart attack and, uh, he didn't make it." An uncomfortable silence settled among the group. The kids' faces first registered shock and then hurt. Arizona was trying to stifle her sobs, but it wasn't working. Sierra got up from her spot on the couch and wrapped her arms around her mom, trying to comfort her, but seeking her own comforting in return as the news set in. Callie saw Harper start to fall apart next. Holden was sitting next to her and put an arm around her. She leaned into him and started to cry. Sobs and sniffles filled the air as the family felt the pain of their loss sink in.
"Mark, I need to talk to you." Mark recognized Callie's voice coming from behind him, but he kept his face buried in the hospital chart he was looking at.
"Good morning, Callie. I'm fine, thanks. How are you?" He joked. He lifted his eyes to her face and saw the dark circles under eyes that were filled with raw misery. The teasing smile disappeared from his face and he suddenly looked concerned.
"Whoa. Are you ok? What the hell happened?" He prodded, placing his hands comfortingly on her shoulders. Callie looked like she was about to talk, but stopped herself. She glanced around the busy hospital lobby and shook her head. "Not here."
Mark's expression only grew more worried. "Callie, you're scaring me. Is it Sofia? Is she ok?"
"Yes, she's fine." Callie blurted out, pulling Mark into the nearest on-call room. "Well, I mean no, not completely. None of us are."
"Callie." Mark pleaded. "Just tell me."
"Ok, ok. I…" Callie took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She'd been taking care of crying kids and a crying wife all morning. And all night. And all she really wanted to do was sit by herself and cry also, but she couldn't. "We found out that Arizona's dad passed away yesterday."
Mark's look of concern turned to sympathy. "I'm sorry. That's…"
"Yeah." Callie took another deep breath. It seemed to be the only that helped at the moment. "Anyway, we have to fly to Chicago in a few days and Sofia will be with us during your week with her –"
"It's fine. Don't worry about it. I understand." He was quick to put her at ease. This wasn't the first time the schedule got a little moved around and it wouldn't be the last. "How's she holding up?"
"She's been… quiet, which is starting to freak me out, because it's Sofia and she's the loudest person I know." Mark cracked a smile and Callie couldn't help but smile a little, too.
"She's strong." Mark added. "She'll be alright. It may take a little time for all of you, but everyone will pull through." Callie nodded, knowing this was true, but still wishing there was an easier way to grieve.
"How are you holding up?" He asked.
"I just… I've been so busy taking care of everyone else, I haven't even been able to grieve myself."
Mark pulled Callie into a hug. She relaxed into his strong arms, thankful for his support when she felt like she needed to be everyone else's. "I keep going back to this one memory of him when the kids were little…"
It was summertime in Chicago. Callie and Arizona had flown in for a week with three-year-old Sofia and six-month-old Holden. As always, Arizona's parents were thrilled to see the kids and proceeded to spoil them rotten, something that Arizona admitted to Callie was a wonder for her to see, since her parents were never that laidback with her and her brothers.
"They're grandparents now. It's what they do." Callie told her with a smile. In all honesty, Callie was thrilled with how involved Arizona's parents were in their kids' lives, even if they lived far. Her own parents, who had made great strides in trying to come to terms with Callie's life, were not as involved as Callie would have liked. Arizona's parents made it a little easier for Callie.
Barbara Robbins had Holden on her lap and was trying to coax a smile out of him. "Arizona, he looks more like you every time I see him!" She squealed happily. "Just look at those eyes!"
"What about me?" Sofia asked, leaning against her grandmother's leg.
"You, darling, look just like your other mommy." Barbara fondly stroked Sofia's silky black hair. She threw one arm around Sofia and pulled Holden a little closer with the other. She shot Arizona a look.
"What does that face mean?" Arizona asked.
"I just sometimes can't believe I'm holding my baby girl's two babies. It goes fast, just watch." Arizona smiled back.
"I'm going to get something to drink." Callie announced, excusing herself as she went to the kitchen. Col Robbins was already in there, helping himself to a cup of coffee. He was a kind man, but stern, and for that reason, Callie was always a little scared of him. The only time she ever saw him completely relaxed and at ease was with his grandkids.
"There's a fresh pot of coffee if you want some." He told her.
"Ok, thank you, sir." Callie murmured. He eyed her curiously, but didn't say anything. Callie reached for the pot of coffee and preceded to poor herself a cup. They didn't say anything else until Callie was about to leave the kitchen.
"Callie." He surprised her by speaking up. She was standing on the threshold of the living room and turned to face him. He glanced down at his cup of coffee briefly and then squared his shoulders and looked her in the eye. "I've never said this out loud, but I've been thinking it a lot and meaning to tell you."
Callie stared at him questioningly. She'd never had a serious conversation with him before. Now that she thought about it, she'd never been alone with him before.
"You make my daughter very happy." His face was still set firmly in place like he was giving an order, but his eyes softened just slightly when he said 'my daughter'. "She's an incredible person. She deserves happiness and you've given it to her. I just wanted to say thank you for loving my Arizona and making her happier than I've ever seen her. That, in turn, makes me a very happy father."
Callie smiled at him, speechless. She hadn't expected to hear this from him. Ever.
"And grandfather." He added, surprising Callie once more by smiling back at her. "You and Arizona have two very beautiful, amazing children. I'm very proud of them."
Callie struggled to find something to say. The man had just shared more with her in five minutes than he had in the three years she'd known him. "She makes me happy, too." was all she could think to say. The colonel nodded and sipped his coffee. Sofia came running in just when Callie wondered what to say next.
"Grandpa!" She stood in front of him and stretched her arms up, silently asking to be picked up. He smiled that rare smile he kept only for his grandkids and bent down to grab her.
"How's my girl?" He asked. Sofia grinned and rested her head on his shoulder, her slim arms reaching around his neck. "How about we go see if Grandma and the rest of the troops are ready to go to the zoo?"
"Yeah!" Sofia exclaimed. The Colonel laughed and strolled into the living room with his granddaughter. Callie followed them out and couldn't wait until she had Arizona alone so she could tell her what happened.
"He accepted me and Sofia into his family." Callie concluded. "At a time when I was struggling and fighting with my own family and feeling betrayed and abandoned, he welcomed us and loved us. He was a good man."
Mark shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry this happened. If you need anything, Lexie and I are here to help."
"Thanks, Mark. I gotta go home now. We have to book flights and pack and get everything together. The kids are going to miss school so I have to take care of that. Feels like the list never ends." Callie rambled.
"Just breathe. You'll get through this. Call me if you need anything."
"Ok. Thanks again." Callie turned to go.
"Callie, give my love and sympathy to Arizona and the kids." Mark told her earnestly.
"I will. Bye, Mark."
Callie returned home to a quiet house. She didn't see any of the kids and wondered if they were all hiding in their rooms, suffering quietly with their loss. Then she heard thumping coming from the second floor and went in search of the source. Arizona was in Harper's room, tearing apart her closet and scattering clothing all over the room. Callie glanced around for Harper, but she wasn't in the room.
"Hon, what are you doing?" Callie approached cautiously.
"Harper doesn't own any black! Not one piece of black clothing! How is that possible? She's got nothing to wear to the funeral!"
"Calm down. It's going to be ok."
"No, it's not! I checked Sierra's closet, too. Do you know what she has? One black skirt and nothing to go with it! I don't know if I can even bother to check Sofia's. Our children have nothing to wear! Holden has black sweatshirts." Arizona laughed joylessly at the notion. "He's going to be wearing black sweatshirts at my father's –" Arizona faltered on the word 'funeral'. She was finally quiet so Callie knew it was alright to hug her.
"I'll take the kids shopping. Right now. We'll go to the store and I'll get them an entire outfit each if that's what we need to do. I'll get Holden a suit and anything the girls need, ok? It's going to be ok." Callie felt Arizona start to relax into her arms.
"I'm sorry." She whispered.
"There's nothing to be sorry about." Callie told her. "What about you? Do you need anything?"
Arizona shook her head. She looked around Harper's room. "Oh god, it looks like a tornado came through here. What did I do?"
"You can't take all the credit. Harper is messy all on her own. You just… helped her a little."
Arizona laughed ever so slightly, but Callie was greatly encouraged by that. It was the first time she'd seen her do that in two days. She framed Arizona's face with her hands. "I love you." She kissed her softly. "Are you going to be ok if I leave with the kids?"
"Yes," Arizona stated firmly. "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."
"Ok. Where are those troublesome kids of ours?" Callie teased.
"Harper and Sierra have been glued to each other all day. I think they are in the basement watching a movie together. Holden and Sofia are in their rooms, I think."
Callie nodded and pressed another kiss to her wife's lips before going in search of their children. She entered Sofia's room to find her oldest sitting up on her bed staring at a pair of fancy black heels in her lap.
"Hey Sweetie." Callie greeted her. "We're going to go shopping soon to find outfits for everyone for the funeral. Do you have anything you can wear already?"
Sofia lifted the shoes up for Callie to see. "Just these. I don't have anything else."
"That's fine. We'll make sure all of us have what we need. We're going soon, ok? So get ready." Callie closed the door behind her and Sofia's eyes returned to her shoes. It was funny sometimes how the simplest thing could remind a person of a memory. The last time Sofia had worn those shoes had been the last time she'd seen her grandpa alive. It had been just a few months ago…
Sofia plopped into the nearest chair and rubbed her heals. They were starting to blister, but she was having too much fun dancing to care. All she needed was a little break and she would go back out on the dance floor.
"Having fun, Sofia?" her grandpa asked loudly, trying to talk over the music. She beamed at him and nodded. They were at his great-niece's wedding reception. Shannon, the bride, was Sofia's second cousin. Besides her family, Sofia didn't know anybody at the wedding, but that didn't stop her from having a good time. She chatted with her grandparents for a little while, who had only danced a few times before getting comfortable again at their table. The song changed and Sofia was about to jump up and join in on the dancing, but Holden stopped over at the table.
"So get this, Adam told the girl he's dancing with that he is 18. She's got to be at least 20!" Holden exclaimed, surprised by his cousin's actions.
"Adam did what?" Barbara was astounded. Matt's youngest son Adam was 16 and got along with Sofia the most, since they were closest in age.
"I know." Sofia grinned. "It was my idea. I told the guy I was dancing with that I'm 19."
"Sofia!" Barbara couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"There are no young people here our age." Sofia added in her defense. "What were we supposed to do?"
Barbara gave her granddaughter a disapproving look and Holden, always trying to please his elders, joined in with a stern shake of his head.
"Oh, leave her be, Barb." Col Robbins said with a laugh. Sofia smiled broadly and sent her brother a triumphant look. "She's young and having fun."
Sofia turned to go back to dancing, but her grandpa stopped her for a moment. "Sofia, just dancing. Nothing else." He told her in no uncertain terms.
"Grandpa!" Sofia blushed.
"I just had to say it." He told her. Then he waved his hand to let her know she could go. She quickly spun and disappeared into the crowd.
Sofia was still staring at the black heels and watched as two tears fell from her face onto them. Last time she had seen him, he had smiled and took her side against Grandma, but he had also let her know that he expected her to be smart and behave in a way that was proper. He loved her. Now he was gone.
I would love to know what you thought! Leave a review! Also, I'm working on a new title. If you have a better suggestion, let me know!