Callie stood outside Mark's door, key in hand, hesitating before she put the key in the lock and opened the door. A wave of mustiness hit her; the apartment hadn't been opened in months. Neither she nor Arizona had wanted to go in lately. After Mark's death and once Arizona had come home, Callie spent a lot of time there, mourning the loss of not only her daughter's father and her best friend, but of her wife as well. Despite Arizona's being quite alive and just across the hallway, Callie felt that she was lost and far beyond her reach.
The last few months had been better; their relationship was now closer to what it was before the plane crash. The tried not to dwell on the past as much, and Mark's apartment was the past. Callie had cleaned out the fridge and freezer, emptied the cupboards of food and neither she nor Arizona had stepped foot in the apartment since.
Now though, with the decision to sell both Mark's and their apartment, the women knew they had to return and get things organized. Arizona had dropped Sofia off with Meredith and then gone into work for the day. Callie had the day off and she had decided that today was the day to get things in order.
She walked into the apartment, shutting the door behind her. She flicked on the lights and she felt her heart rise to her throat, her stomach drop. She could still smell Mark, she still saw him on the couch in her mind. It took her several moments before she was able to walk through the living room and into the kitchen. She stood, holding the counter top for support, as a wave of memories came crashing down upon her.
How many nights did her and Mark sit at Joe's and share a drink, to vent, to just be there with each other? Sure, there was sex involve a bit, well, a lot. But above all they were friends. Best friends. She missed him, and even more, she missed that their daughter would be growing up never knowing her father.
Callie took a deep breath and walked into the bedroom. She diligently worked on packing away each item of clothing, sorting through the insane amount of clothing Mark had owned. She took all the pictures he had on his dressers, most of them were of Sofia, a few of him and Callie, a handful of the four of them, him, Callie, Arizona and Sofia. Callie treasured those the most; as they were something she would be able to show Sofia as she got older.
A knock at the door interrupted Callie's thoughts. She ignored it at first; no one was expected. The knocking persisted though and finally Callie stood up and went to the door.
"Derek?" she said, surprised.
"Arizona said I'd find you here," he stated. "I thought you might be able to use some help."
Callie opened the door wider and invited him inside. Derek walked in and looked around, then exhaled loudly.
"Harder than I thought," he said, running a hand through his hair. "I sort of expect to see him on the couch or coming out of his room."
Callie nodded, "I know what you mean. It took me a good ten minutes before I could even unlock the damned door and come in."
There were a few moments of silence, and then Callie took Derek's hand. "Let's get to work."
