I'm even surprised that I got this done before Thanksgiving but my muse wouldn't leave me alone so I had to write in order to keep her happy. Thank you so much for the reviews. They really are what keep me writing and I love hearing what you think. Enjoy!
CHAPTER FOUR
Arizona sat in stunned silence as Callie yelled at her. It was heartbreaking to hear her recount the events that lead to their demise with such pain in her voice. Watching the stray tears slide down her former lovers face Arizona wants nothing more than to comfort her but what could she possibly say? Hearing the hurt in Callie's voice breaks her heart and she finds it nearly impossible to reply. "I… Callie I'm…." But no words come to her. Saying I'm sorry wasn't going to fix the damage she had done to this incredible woman sitting before her.
Watching the blonde struggle to form a reply, Callie suddenly realizes that she revealed far more then she had wanted too. Feeling extremely vulnerable by letting Arizona see how hurt she was, Callie abruptly stands up and runs a hand through her hair. Taking a shaky breath she tries to calm her racing heart and push back the pain that she knew was clearly evident on her face. She never planned to let Arizona see the full impact her actions had on her.
Looking anywhere but at Arizona her eyes fall on the clock in the kitchen reading 4:17am. This was the wrong time to be having this conversation. Finally turning back to Arizona she sees that the blonde has also stood up and is still searching for a response to Callie's outburst. Saving her the trouble Callie tells her, "I think we should call it a night."
"Callie…" Arizona says gently wanting to continue their conversation. She could see the taller women putting her walls back up.
"It's late or early depending on how you want to look at it." Callie weakly jokes. "We're both exhausted and this isn't going well." She quickly explains as she moves away from the couch and towards the bedroom.
"I know but…" But what, she thinks to herself? She's right and I'm at loss for words anyways. Watching Callie leave the living room she knows they won't be talking anymore tonight. "Ok." Arizona says loudly enough for Callie to hear her in the bedroom. Dropping her head she feels the full impact of jet lag and emotional exhaustion. Slowly making her way over to the hallway she begins picking up her suitcases. The last thing she feels like doing is going back out but she needs to find a hotel for the night.
"What are you doing?" Callie asks in confusion as she walks out of the bedroom.
Leaning down to pick up another piece of luggage Arizona replies, "I'm getting my stuff together before I call a cab."
"Why do you need a cab?" the brunette asks in the same befuddled voice.
"To take me to a hotel." Arizona says while she throws the bag's strap over her shoulder and stands back up. "They should still have some vacancies." But Arizona stops short when she sees Callie holding blankets and a pillow.
A slight smirk plays at Callie's lips as she takes in Arizona's stunned expression. "Arizona, it's late and the weather is terrible." Walking over to the couch she unfolds the blanket and begins making up the couch. She hears Arizona set her luggage down and slowly make her way into the living room.
"I just thought you wouldn't want me here." The blonde says in a hesitant voice.
Callie is thankful her back is to Arizona because she can't hide her longing at that statement. I always want you here, she thinks. Putting the down the pillow to finish the bed Callie turns around and finds Arizona looking very perplexed at the situation. "It just makes more sense for you to stay here." Callie tells her softly.
It's the tone of voice that relaxes Arizona. She knows there is much more behind that statement but neither woman has the strength to face it tonight. Feeling comforted by the fact that Callie at least wants her to stay Arizona gives a small smile. "Thanks."
Standing there for a moment Callie allows herself to drink in the sight of Arizona. Although she is furious and upset with the blonde woman, she is also elated that she's back. Looking into her blue eyes Callie feels the overwhelming desire to pull her close and never let her go. However, she can't do that. She can't just forget everything that happened and let Arizona back into heart. Breaking eye contact Callie murmurs, "No problem," and walks past Arizona toward her bedroom.
Feeling Callie slip past her, Arizona has to stop herself from reaching out and taking Callie's hand. Being so close and yet so far away was almost unbearable for her. Closing her eyes briefly she sits down on the couch and exhales a labored breath. At least Callie didn't throw her out. That was something. She knew coming back was going to be difficult but she didn't think it was going to be this hopeless. Is Callie even happy to see me, she wonders.
"Arizona?" Callie suddenly calls. She sees the blonde turn to look at her and she feels a blush start to heat her face. Callie had every intention of shutting the bedroom door and going to sleep but she just needed one more look at the blonde beauty. Glancing back to the couch she saw Arizona fall into it looking defeated and before she could stop herself she called out to her.
"Yes?" came the reply.
Tightening her hold on the door handle Callie looks down at the floor and quietly says, "It's good to see you." Then she quickly closes the door before she can say anything else.
Starring at the closed door a smile slowly spreads its way across Arizona's face. Maybe this isn't completely hopeless after all she muses as she lies down.
XXXXXX
Callie awoke the next morning after a fitful night of tossing and turning. She had been unable to silence her mind long enough to fall into a deep sleep and after several failed attempts at trying to going to back to sleep she begrudgingly gets up around 9:30am. Making her way into the bathroom she splashes some cold water on her face and tries once again to process everything as she gets cleaned up. Arizona was back. It seemed almost incomprehensible. After two months of silence, not even an email, and suddenly she is only few yards away in the other room instead of on the other side of the world?
Finished in the bathroom Callie walks over to the closet and pulls out a pair of socks and a black sweat jacket. It had gotten colder in the apartment after she had gone to bed. Putting on the socks she quickly slides her arms into the jacket and heads towards the kitchen. Pausing for a moment with her hand on the door knob she wonders briefly if she will actually find Arizona in the living room. Did last night really happen or was it just a sick dream?
Quietly opening the door she immediately looks at the couch and exhales a breath. Arizona is curled up on the couch fast asleep. She's turned on her side facing the seat back and has the covers tightly pulled up to her chin so that the only thing visible is blonde hair. Smiling fondly at the sight before her, Callie carefully walks out of her bedroom trying not to make any noise.
Entering the kitchen she takes special care to avoid the squeaky floor board as she turns on the coffee maker. Waiting for it brew her gaze returns to the living room and the person occupying it. The soft muted light coming through the windows gives the apartment a cozy feeling. In the serenity of this moment it seems almost unfathomable that mere hours ago a shouting match had taken place. Callie knows that this illusion of tranquility will be shattered once Arizona wakes up. They'll then have to exchange awkward sentences until a cab comes to take Arizona to a hotel. But for now she was content to watch Arizona sleep and hope that when the blonde leaves, she'll be able to remember this moment all long with all of the fighting that she will surely be replaying in her head all day long.
Noticing that the coffee was done Callie gets out the creamer and fixes her coffee. Not wanting to stare at Arizona all morning she takes her mug and walks over to the windows to look out at the Seattle landscape. Rain is still lightly falling on the city and it didn't appear to be letting up anytime soon. Sipping her coffee she hears faint snoring coming from Arizona and the drop, drop, drop of the rain. Stopping mid sip Callie listens more carefully and looks closer at the rain falling outside. It didn't sound normal. It sounded more like ping, ping, ping. Focusing her eyes on the railing of her balcony she notices that it's covered in ice. In fact, everything outside is covered in a quarter inch of ice.
Momentarily forgetting about being quiet Callie grabs the remote and turns on the TV remembering at the last second to turn down the volume. Flipping to the weather channel her fears are confirmed as she listens to the weatherman. "As temperatures continue to stay in the upper 20's the rain that's falling will keep freezing on impact. This creates a treacherous sheet of ice on the roadways and can also cause power lines to come down due to the weight of the ice. Given these conditions we strongly advise that you remain indoors until this storm passes and road crews can begin work again. As you see here on the map this is a slow moving storm but we do expect it to let up by nightfall or tomorrow morning at the latest."
Callie turns off the TV as a commercial comes on. Setting the remote back on the table Callie's content mood leaves her as she grows anxious at the thoughts racing through her mind. We're stuck here. Arizona and I are stuck in this apartment for at least 24 hours with no one else except the 800 pound elephant in the room. Turning around to glance at the sleeping blonde, Callie is startled to find piercing blue eyes looking back at her.
I know that's not exactly how freezing rain happens but I needed a reason to keep Arizona in the apartment and couldn't just create a snow storm when I said it was raining. This was a bit of a filler chapter but I needed to set up the scene and fear not, some real content is on the way in a week or so. Feedback is always welcomed and the click, click, click of your mouse on the review button is music to my ears. :)
