AN: So I said this before, but this is an AU. It doesn't follow the timeline as seen on the show because I didn't want Arizona to go to NYC. While I choose to believe that the hope the writers gave us for Callie and Arizona in S14E23 means that they will be back together, I want them in Seattle. So maybe Andrew moved out when Sofia came home in the show, for the purpose of this story he still currently lives with Arizona and Sofia. So stop telling me he moved out. Thanks.
After their tryst in the supply closet, and Arizona's office, they had made their way to the OR to do the surgery that they had planned to do together, and Callie was amazed at Arizona. The way that every single person in the room listened to Arizona, the way that they worked in silence and reverence. Holding that born, but still cooking baby (as Arizona put it) in her hands as Arizona worked on him, was one of the most magical things she had ever witnessed. DeLuca, who seemed to treat this as old hat, was less impressed than Callie but she could tell that he was treating this surgery with respect and reverence.
And this was one of the best things to have come out of the divorce. That Arizona, who was almost as amazing at teaching the residents and interns as she was as a surgeon, could pass on Nicole Herman's work and create enough Maternal Fetal surgeons so that even more babies could be saved.
She would be writing the Catherine Fox Foundation and the F.A.C.S Board to let them know of their folly for failing to recognize this as its own specialty.
Watching Arizona work though, was nothing short of spectacular. She so wished she could see the concentration in the blonde's face, the way her blue eyes focused on the task at hand, the way her eyebrows spoke volumes as the raised and fell from beneath the line of that stupid butterfly scrub cap that she always wore. God, Callie hated how much she loved that hideous pink scrub cap.
In the silence, both her and Arizona's pager's rang out. The scrub nurse who checked their phones, squeaked loudly at what was written. "Dr. Robbins, Dr. Torres, it's Dr. Karev. He stresses it's non-emergent, but Sofia is in the E.R."
Callie just looked at Arizona, she could feel the panic that was rising on her face and saw it mirrored on Arizona's.
This time Arizona's phone pinged with an incoming text, and the scrub nurse read it out loud. "I know you and Torres are still in surgery, but I've got Squirt. Avery says he needs to do some stitches though, so we need consent. How much longer will you be?"
"About an hour," Arizona whispered. And Callie knew she couldn't leave. She was holding this baby boy. She needed to be with Sofia right now, needed to know what happened, but this baby and his mom needed them as well.
"I'll go be with her," DeLuca offered. And Callie's heart soared with affection for the man. Sofia loved Dr. D, as she called him, and if she and Arizona couldn't be with their daughter she should be surrounded by the people from their village.
"Yes, thank you Andrew. Please tell Dr. Avery to go ahead, and we'll be there as soon as we can." The tall man just nodded, and hurried from the OR, ripping his gown and gloves off quickly and rushed out of the room.
While Callie could tell that Arizona was panicking, her hands moved faster but no less steady than they had before.
"I swear to god Callie," Arizona breathed, "The worst thing we ever did to Sofia was bring her here. This hospital, I mean seriously, so much wonderful things happen here. Good, miraculous things. Beautiful things. It's her family, but man… I just wish she didn't have to get all the crap too."
Callie could only nod. While working here at GSM was a blessing in so many ways, it offered as much pain and heartbreak as it did wonderful things. Some of the best surgeons in the country worked here, a lot of the best surgeons in the country were trained here so it was a good place for pain, but Callie could swear that the hospital was built on some ancient burial ground and was a magnet for as much bad luck as it was good.
"Okay, I was going to ask you to help close, but I'll do that myself, go be with Sofia." Arizona said after fifteen minutes, her soft and small hands helping Callie to place the baby back into his home for the next three months.
"But you-" They should go to Sofia together. She wanted to listen to Arizona, to flee once the baby was back in the uterus, but she also wanted to hold Arizona's hand as they found their girl.
"It's okay. I'll be another 45 minutes, one of us should be with her." Callie's heart broke as she heard the pain and anguish in Arizona's voice. But Sofia knew that they saved lives, it was easier now for her to understand when one of her mother's couldn't be there with her, or if both of them were absent. She was 7 now, and while they hadn't completely explained the horrors they saw in their job, she knew that when one of her mommies was in surgery that it was important.
That was one thing they did together after their divorce, when Sofia was old enough to ask and understand, they had spent over an hour showing her their surgery scars, explaining that the scars meant that someone had done surgery on them, to save their lives so that they could be with her. And while Callie wasn't sure that Sofia had completely understood what they had tried to say, it had eased her discomfort of not having her mommies around.
"Okay," she whispered, backing away from the table as Arizona began the preparations of closing the baby back into the womb. She removed her gown and gloves, watching as blue eyes left hers and focused on her task again. Finally turning around, she ran out of the scrub room and towards the ER.
When she got there, her panic completely left her as she saw her daughter surrounded by her and Arizona's friends. Alex was on the bed, Sofia snuggled against his chest, his right arm wrapped protectively around her middle. DeLuca, she would start calling him Andrew now, was sitting beside her holding her free hand, his knees knocking Alex's. And while the two men glared at each other, their eyes and faces softened and smiled as they looked at Sofia and talked to her. April was assisting Jackson as he was doing the sutures on the palm of Sofia's left hand. Meredith and Maggie were sitting on the end of the bed, each holding one of Sofia's ankles. The six adults surrounding her were all talking and laughing with her, and Callie felt tears spring to eyes.
She stood, transfixed, watching as Sofia's village surrounded her, and comforted her.
"Why the heck are there six surgeons surrounding one patient?" Bailey's chief voice was out, and Callie watched as her usually stern face softened when she saw that it was Sofia sitting on the bed.
"Aunty Bailey!" Sofia said cheerfully, and everyone laughed.
"I guess a seventh wouldn't hurt." And she moved to stand by Meredith, patting Sofia's knee as she joined the conversation. "Where are Robbins and Torres?"
"Surgery!" Sofia yelled, and everyone laughed. It was then that Callie strode forward and made her presence known to the group.
"Nope, mommy's right here!" The smile Sofia offered her made every fear and shred of panic disappear, replaced with loved and joy.
"Mommy!" Andrew moved from his spot on the rolling stool and offered it to Callie, which she took and put her hand over Andrew's, because though the man had moved, Sofia hadn't let go of his hand.
"Hey baby, what happened?" She asked, but it was Alex who pointed over her shoulder. By the ER desk stood the school nurses aide and one of the assistant principals, both wearing matching grim looks. She nodded at them, and indicated that she would be with them in a moment,
"I fell down. Dr. Jackson said I'd need eight stitches though, and that I had to be careful in the future and Uncle Alex said that scars were super duper cool, and Aunt Meredith and Aunt Maggie said that I should say 'super duper cool' instead of what he actually said and then Aunt Meredith slapped his head, and Dr. D said that I would have to wear a glove when I took a bath and Aunty April said that I'd have to be careful when I played with Harriet and Bailey and Zola and Ellis."
Everyone surrounding her laughed as she recounted the last twenty minutes, but she was smiling and happy, and didn't seem to be bothered by the work that Jackson was doing on her hand. Even though her heart hurt seeing her baby, once again, in the ER it was also overflowing with love for the people that surrounded her. Arizona had been right, terrible things happened to all of these people, but the fact that they were still here, surrounding each other with love and care and tenderness, Callie knew that the good outweighed the bad.
And it always would.
Sofia chatted with everyone until Jackson finished his work, and bandaged her hand, and said goodbye to everyone with hugs and kisses when Miranda had said "VIP is finished, don't you all have work to do?" And all the adults dispersed.
When Callie was left alone with Sofia, the adrenaline of the moment passed and her tiny body sagged into the pillows behind her. Finally Arizona rushed into the ER still wearing her scrub cap and made a quick beeline directly for them, sparing only a passing glance at the people from Sofia's school.
When Sofia saw Arizona, she started crying. And before Callie could react, Arizona had climbed onto the bed and took Sofia into her arms, the same tears falling down her cheeks as she rocked and soothed Sofia, fingers combing through their daughters hair, her soft voice whispering a song to Sofia.
"I'll go talk to them," Callie whispered to Arizona, who only nodded at her.
"Hello Dr. Torres, we're incredibly sorry about this." The assistant principal started. He was a small man, and looked exactly like what Callie thought a teacher should look like. Curly brown hair that was always a bit wayward, small thick framed glasses, and a sweater vest.
"What happened?" She asked, accepting the clipboard that April passed her, and began signing the consent forms as she listened to the explanation.
"There was an incident on the playground, Sofia was involved in a small altercation, when she was pushed by another student she stumbled and she landed on a piece of glass."
Callie nodded, knowing that she would have to have a talk with Sofia about physical violence again, and solving problems with her words.
"The student who escalated the altercation to physical violence has been suspended, but due to our zero-tolerance policy, Sofia will also have to be suspended. However as Thursday and Friday are P.D. days, we decided to only discipline her with one day, tomorrow. And she will be welcome back to school on Monday." At least Sofia hadn't started the fight, she was thankful for that.
"Do you know what the fight was about?" Callie asked, handing the forms back to a nurse. She had looked for April, but saw that the red head was beside Arizona and Sofia, covering them with one of the pink blankets from the warmer.
"Yes, well sort of, we aren't sure of the reason for the altercation, but Sofia was defending another student from being bullied. She tried to avoid reacting to the escalation, but when the bully changed from pushing her to the student she was defending she stepped in from of him. That's when she stumbled." Callie's heart soared hearing that, knowing that he daughter was a protector and had tried to avoid getting into the fight in the first place.
"We have the paperwork here, about bringing her to the hospital and the nurses notes as well as the suspension, so you don't have to worry about coming to the school. We also have the contact information of the the other two students' parents, and have passed yours along, if you want to discuss this with them. "Dr. Robbins will have to sign them as well. If you want to bring them to her, we will wait here."
Callie nodded and accepted the clipboard that the nurse behind the desk handed her and made her way back to Arizona and Sofia, back to her family. "Hey," she whispered, noticing that Sofia had fallen asleep cradled against Arizona's chest. The sight warmed her heart and made her fall a little bit more in love with Arizona.
"Hey," Arizona whispered back, her fingers still stroking delicately through Sofia's hair.
"She fell on some glass, do you think we should do some antibiotics?" Arizona simply nodded, and Callie looked around for April and waved the other woman over.
"Yes," she also whispered, noticing that Sofia was asleep.
"She fell on some glass, can you grab some antibiotics and maybe some fluids?"
"Of course," April nodded and moved to get the requested items.
"Sofia has been suspended, because there was a small fight, so we have to sign these forms. She's back to school on Monday though." Arizona's eyes widened at the mention of the fight, but she disentangled her hand from Sofia's hair and reached for the pen that Callie was holding out. She held the clipboard for Arizona to sign. When the blonde had finished, Callie took the pen and Arizona's hand was instantly back, softly stroking and combing through Sofia's hair.
Callie brought the forms back to the vice principal, and as she signed by Arizona's name. Handing the forms back, she watched as April softly inserted the IV in Sofia's uninjured hand and connected the antibiotics and fluid. The touch was so gentle that Sofia didn't wake, but snuggled herself closer to Arizona's chest. Board applied, Arizona took Sofia's hand and tucked around her waist.
Callie could only stare at the two of them. The people from the school were gone, and the ER was blissfully quiet, only one other patient was in the normally bustling room and he was as fast asleep as Sofia was. Leaning against the desk, she just looked at Arizona and Sofia, snuggled together on the gurney. She could tell that Arizona was saying something to Sofia, more likely that she was singing something, but Sofia looked calm and peaceful snuggled in her mother's arms.
This was truly Callie's greatest joy in life, to see the two people she loved the most in the world, happy and content and safe with each other. She'd said, on multiple occasions in malicious and hurtful ways, that Arizona wasn't Sofia's mother. She knew better, with her head and with her heart, had always known, and yes sometimes with a little bit of doubt, that Arizona was Sofia's mother. From the moment that heartbeat rang out, Arizona was as in love with the baby as Callie was. Arizona had forgiven her for those transgressions, had even returned joint custody to her after that heinous court battle that Callie had not just drug Arizona through, but her name and her reputation and her love and devotion to Sofia, but Callie didn't know if she could ever forgive herself.
They had talked about this, multiple times, and Arizona assured her every time that she held no ill will towards Callie for the mistakes of the past, but Callie knew that she still had negative feelings about the way that people talked about her role in Sofia's life. Her mom still resented both Callie and Arizona, her dad had come around, sort of, he still made comments though. Surprisingly it was Mama O'Malley that accepted Arizona as Sofia's mother easiest.
But watching them now, simply lying together and comforting each other, Callie knew that Arizona was always Sofia's favourite parent. When Mark couldn't soothe Sofia when she was a baby it was Arizona he called. When she herself couldn't help, it was Momma Sofia wanted. Sure there had been times when Sofia had asked for her Mommy, had asked for Callie, she had even asked for one of their friends from time to time, but the majority of the times that Sofia asked for someone in particular, it was always Arizona. And Callie didn't even blame her.
"That woman has loved that child so hard for so long." Miranda Bailey said behind her, scaring her slightly, so lost was Callie in watching her family she hadn't noticed the shorter woman's approach. "Fought so hard for her, in so many ways."
"Mmm," was the only way Callie could agree.
"I remember the fight she had with Sloan after the car accident, the way he spoke to her, I didn't think they'd ever be okay. But she ended up loving that boy."
"What do you mean?" It had been strange while she was in the hospital, suddenly Arizona and Mark had been thick as thieves. Arizona had been trying before, to be Mark's friend, because Callie had asked her too.
"When he called her 'nothing,'" Bailey looked at her with confusion. What?
"What?" He did what?
"Torres, why do you keep saying 'what' like you don't know what I'm talking about?"
"Because I don't know what you're talking about?"
"Hmm, well maybe you should ask Robbins." Though judging by the look on Bailey's face, Callie knew that Arizona wouldn't say anything if she hadn't already. It's been seven years, almost eight now. Maybe this was one of the things that caused Arizona to have negative feelings about people's perceptions.
"Bailey, please."
"After the first surgery when you came in, we put you in damage control. It was bad Torres. That child's heartbeat was good, but she was still so small. After Addison got here and kicked Fields out for not making sure to give her steroids to help her develop if we had to deliver, we weren't sure how to proceed. And no one really knew who to ask what you'd want, so Webber told them to work it out. Karev said it best, to save the baby we have to save Callie, and to do what we need to do to save Callie might kill the baby. Robbins fought for us to save the baby, that if we terminated to save you, what kind of life would that be for you, she said you wouldn't have wanted to wake up if we made that call. He said that you wouldn't care, that you and he could screw again to make another baby, because Arizona was nothing, she didn't get a say because he was the father and you were the mother and she was nothing."
Callie couldn't feel anything. How had neither of them said anything? How could Arizona have never told her? How could Mark say something so callous and cruel?
"Then when we did have to deliver her and Fields was not doing well, Robbins went all 'She-Hulk' and practically body checked that woman out of the way, and she got Sofia breathing. I always did love a good scuffle in the OR."
That part of the story Callie knew, Mark had told her that part, many times about how Arizona had rushed in and saved Sofia, had used her "wicked good skills" as Mark had put it to save their daughter.
"And then she just kept fighting. She's a good momma bear Robbins."
"Yeah," Callie agreed quietly, falling a little bit more in love with Arizona.
"Anyway, Kepner and Avery discharged Sofia so when that IV is done, take that child home Torres."
"Thanks Bailey." Callie watched as Bailey walked away, and then she made her way back to her family, her mind a swirl of emotions. Anger at Mark, predominantly. Anger at herself for practically saying the same say things to Arizona. A little bit of anger for neither of them having given her the whole story. Not that she blamed them, really.
"Hey, how much longer?" She whispered, sitting behind Sofia who was still asleep snuggled into Arizona's chest.
Arizona looked at the IV stand, "About half an hour, we should let her sleep until then. She had a long day."
"Yeah," Callie agree, placing her hand on Sofia's back and just looking at Arizona.
"I know it's technically my night with her, but you should come home with us." Arizona said quietly, impossibly blue eyes turned toward Callie. While they had shared a bed with Sofia often at either Arizona's house or hers, they hadn't told Sofia that they were seeing each other again yet, so they had opted to revert to the schedule they had kept before they'd left for New York. But after a day like this, first taking Arizona in the closet and then spending a salacious hour in Arizona's office, and then with this whole thing with Sofia, Callie didn't want to be away from either of them. And while her mind had added ever again, at the end of that sentence, they wanted to ease Sofia into the idea that her mothers were together again.
But in this moment, knowing now what Bailey had told her, Callie didn't want to wait any longer. Even though tonight was not the night to be having this conversation, as soon as she had kissed Arizona in Tim's old bedroom three months ago she knew that working back to having them be a family under one roof is where they were moving too.
"Okay," she agreed, and felt her heart soar at the way that Arizona's smile grew and her eyes twinkled. "Is Andrew home tonight?"
"Yeah he is, but you know he'd be happy to stay somewhere else." Truthfully Callie did feel a bit guilty at all the times she'd force the man out of his own home and bed these last few months.
"No, that's okay. When I came down here he was holding her hand, she didn't even let his go to hold mine. Traitor." Though her words were harsh, she said it with affection. She was glad that Sofia loved the man. One of her favourite pictures that Arizona had sent her at Christmas was of Sofia sitting on Andrew's shoulders while the two were wearing ugly sweaters and reindeer antlers.
"Okay." Arizona removed her hand from Sofia's hair, and placed it on top of Callie's, filling her with warmth and affection for the blonde.
888*
Later that night, after Andrew had made everyone his grandmother's secret sauce, which he shared with Sofia, but she was sworn to secrecy from sharing it with her mother's, and the four of them ate dinner and watched a movie, Callie and Arizona were sitting on the couch cuddled together under a blanket as a movie played in the background.
Arizona was so thankful that Callie had been there today. Not just for the sex or the surgery, but her strength and compassion in the ER with Sofia. It was a strength that Arizona had depended on many times in their first relationship, and a strength she knew she would need in the future.
"I need to talk to you about something," Callie had started quietly. Those words no longer sent Arizona careening into fear and the desire to run away. Therapy had done wonders for them as a couple, and personally that was one of the things that she had learned. She didn't like to be challenged personally, and while if anyone else had said those words to her she knew that she would feel the way she used to with Callie, but when Callie said them, she knew that it was important.
She also knew that it was probably important to work on those things in her relationships with others. She'd work on it.
Giving her full attention to Callie, Arizona couldn't help the smile that spread her cheeks as she looked at the woman she was quickly falling in love with, "What's up?"
"About what Mark said to you, after the car accident. About you being nothing." Arizona could tell that Callie was hesitant to have this conversation, she was too, but probably for different reasons.
"I didn't think you remembered that." She said with partial honesty. Though the whole truth was that in those dark days, of therapy and the custody trial that she thought that Callie was siding with Mark.
"What?" Callie asked, an eyebrow raising in question.
"I mean, I know you were unconscious when I told you he said that, but I didn't think it mattered, it doesn't. Well, I mean it does sometimes cross my mind when other people say similar things."
"I didn't know he said that, Bailey told me today."
"Oh." She swallowed, she understood the fear and hesitation that she could see on Callie's face now. Reaching up to smooth the worry lines on Callie's face, she ran the back of her fingers across Callie's cheek loving the way that the Latina leaned into the touch. "Mark and I, you know we were okay after that. Even before we knew you were both going to be okay. Every time something happened with Sofia he would ask me to explain what it meant for premeis and babies. He knew stats and stuff from adults, but we talked a lot about medical stuff. He'd have been a good peds surgeon, he learned so much so fast."
"It was still wrong of him to say, to think." Callie replied, lifting her hand to cover Arizona's on her cheek.
"He was scared Callie, he loved you both so much, he was your best friend. You were his best friend, he was just scared."
And that's what she'd come to realize after Callie had woken up. Because she felt that same fear, wondering if they were going to be okay. They were a team now, she and Mark, and they would need each other. His words still haunted her, gave her trepidation sometimes, but he was right about him being a dad and her being a mom.
"He was the first person to call me Sofia's mom. You and I had bounced around the term, we talked about co-parenting and being parents, but we never used that word before. He was the first person. Did you know that? Even my parents said 'Callie's baby' before they met her."
"I guess I'm just, I don't know, shocked I guess, that neither of you told me. When I was conscious." Callie said with a laugh.
"Well I mean, would you have responded favourably towards him if he had? No, you wouldn't have. And like I said, Mark and I were okay. We were more than okay, we were friends. I wouldn't have chosen Mark to be my friend, but because we both chose you he came as part of the deal. And I'm glad because you were right, I got to know him, and love him."
Arizona leaned forward and kissed Callie's cheeks, then rested her head on Callie's shoulder entwining their hands and pulling them to her chest.
"I miss him. I miss him for Sofia, and for you, and I miss him for me." Arizona whispered, an unexpected tear falling from her eyes. She could hear Callie crying as well.
"I'll go for days, or for weeks, or for months without missing him. He's always there, somewhere in the back of my mind. But Sofia has his smile, you know. The way that his eyebrow would crinkle just a little bit when he was really happy. It doesn't happen often, but when that smile comes out I just remember sitting by his bed, holding his hand, me and Derek both crying, and it hits me right in the stomach and it hurts how much I miss him." At Callie's words, Arizona felt more tears gather and fall.
"Me too. I see all three of us in her. But sometimes, I look at her and all I see is him and it takes my breath away."
They lapsed into silence, each remembering and missing him.
"About a year after you left, I stole a set of scrubs in his size and found one of his lab coats. I know you kept his stethoscope for Sofia, but I also found out that Jackson has some recorded surgeries that Mark did. You can't see him, well his face but you can see his hands, and hear his voice explaining what he was doing. I know it's not a lot, but I had him make copies so that when Sofia is old enough to watch them, she can hear his voice."
"How are you not mad at him for saying that Arizona? I'm a little bit mad."
"Please don't be mad at him, Callie. Being with you has taught me the power of forgiveness, the importance of it. I'm not going to lie and say I don't think about it now and then, that it doesn't come back to me when I think I'm being a bad mother, but I've forgiven him just as I forgave you." And she had.
"Still, he shouldn't have said it."
"He was scared Callie. We've all said things in fear and anger that we didn't mean."
"Well I plan to be mad for a little bit, like maybe another thirty seconds."
"That's fair, and when you're done being mad come to bed with me."
888*
Alex Karev couldn't believe that this was happening. Not the dinner party, though this house had had far too many awkward dinner parties for any of them to think of trying again, but all of them together in this house couldn't be a good thing. While he could see that everyone else was having a good time, he was not.
Or at least he was pretending he was not. In fact, he was having a great time.
But he was currently sitting at a children's table, imaginary tea in hand, and sparkly princess crown on his head.
He was glad that the rest of the adults were outside wrangling the rest of the kids, and that Jo wasn't here. Though they had spoken about starting their own family recently he wasn't sure that he was ready for her to see him like this. He wasn't embarrassed, having had many tea parties with Sofia, Zola, and recently Harriet and Ellis in the past, but he was a grown ass man, he shouldn't have to wear a sparkly plastic crown to drink imaginary tea.
Apparently the crown was non-negotiable.
And so he sat, crown on and tea in hand, while he waited for Sofia to return. She hadn't said where she was going, but Squirt promised that she would return soon.
He did feel a bit foolish wearing the crown when one of the children weren't around, but as he wasn't certain when she would return, he opted to keep it on. Sometimes, when she glared at him, he could see the glares of Torres, Robbins, and Sloan directed at him and even though he was Chief of Pediatrics now, some scared resident that still lived inside of himself feared that look.
"Uncle Alex, I brought a friend!" Sofia's voice reached his ears, and he turned to see Sofia dragging DeLuca by the hand behind her, apparently to join their tea party.
"Crap," he muttered. He still felt really bad about almost killing the guy, and then almost ruining his surgical career. The guy had potential, even he could admit that, but the relationship was strained. And he knew all of it was his fault. For the beating, for taking so long to apologize, for not supporting him more after the custody battle when he was one of the only people stand up for Robbins. And he loved Robbins, and had wanted to help, but he also really liked Torres. He should have supported all of them, especially DeLuca when the guy put himself on the line to help.
But now they sat in that uncomfortable silence, trying not to glare at each other because Sofia was paying attention. He knew that Sofia loved both of them, heck she had lived with both of them, separately of course, and the little squirt could love like nobody's business. When Sofia had been in the ER last week, he pushed away the uncomfortable feeling he felt towards DeLuca for Sofia's sake, they were both there for the kid, and he wouldn't let his own feelings get in the way of hers. He loved her too.
"I have to talk to you guys about something," the young girl said into the silence, placing an identical sparkly crown on DeLuca's head, the tone of her voice and words years beyond the imaginary tea party the three of them were currently having.
"Cos'e la mia piccola principessa?" He heard DeLuca ask. Why couldn't the dude speak English? But then, judging by the look on Sofia's face, the way she smiled at him, she knew what he was saying.
"I heard Momma say that you guys weren't friends because you got into a fight," she started, and she could see the way that she was nervously looking between them. The kid was seriously too smart and perceptive for her own good. Maybe she had seen the way they glared at each other, or the way that he avoided going over to her house when he knew that Andrew would be there. "Is she right?"
Alex snuck a look at DeLuca, and he could see the question on the other man's face. "Yeah squirt, it is. I hit him." And while that was true, it was so far from the truth that he shook his head. But he didn't need Sofia to know how much of an abusive ass he was. Didn't want her to know, either.
"Did you apologize to Uncle Andrew, Uncle Alex? Mommy and Momma say that apologizing is very important when you do something bad. They say that you should always mean it too, and it's important to actually be sorry too, not just say it." God damn this kid.
He took a sip of his imaginary tea to stall. But luckily it was DeLuca that answered for the both of them, "He did apologize, principessa, and he did mean it," DeLuca threw him a look over Sofia's shoulder.
"Then why aren't you friends Uncle Andrew? Did you forgive him." Sofia asked, looking between them. Alex gulped wishing that his tea cup was filled with something other than imaginary tea.
"Well, principessa, it's hard to explain, I mean," DeLuca fumbled, and he too took a sip of his tea.
"Squirt, look at me," Alex asked Sofia, who finally turned her full attention to him. There was that Robbins/Torres/Sloan look, and it still terrified him. "It was wrong of me to hit Andrew, I shouldn't have done it. I should have used my words, like your mommies taught you, right?" She nodded, reaching for his hand which he willingly gave her. "But sometimes, when adults make mistakes, it can take a lot of work to forgive each other. And I made a big mistake, and I did apologize, but you know it isn't always easy to do. Do you know what I mean?"
She nodded again, and reached behind her for Andrew's hand, and they stayed that way in silence for a little bit, the little girl holding the hands of two people she loved, who didn't really even like each other, while she thought about what he said.
"You're right, principessa, I should forgive Uncle Alex." Alex whipped his head up to look at Andrew, and was surprised when he didn't see any deception on the other man's face.
Then suddenly Andrew was holding his hand out to Alex, and he only hesitated for a second before he shook the other man's hand. And suddenly both of them were pulled towards each other by the tiny arms that circled both of their necks and pulled into a hug with Sofia and Andrew.
Before either of them knew what was happening, Sofia planted sloppy kisses on each of their cheeks and then fled from the room, presumably to go play with the rest of the kids. They sat awkwardly for only a moment before they both stood and turned to see Robbins standing in the doorway.
888*
Arizona had watched as Sofia pulled Andrew towards the playroom where she knew Alex was waiting, she had seen him with the pink crown on his head, and she knew that her daughter had pulled her favourite Uncle into the room earlier. She had followed out of concern, knowing that they two men still had some unresolved issues between them.
That had seriously been one of the hardest moments of her life, trying not to pick sides between two of her favourite people. She'd loved Alex for a long time, he was an excellent doctor and the way that he had taken to Sofia and worn the mantle of "Uncle" with pride and grace, made her extremely happy in so many ways. And while Andrew had been hesitant to live with a seven year old, he too had instantly welcomed the little girl into his life with open arms. And to have witnessed the way Sofia had changed from calling him Dr. D, to Uncle Andrew, warmed her heart even more. She hadn't done a good job of not picking sides in the turmoil of two years ago, but both had stayed with her.
But she needn't have worried it seemed. She knew that neither man would lie to Sofia, both of them loved her too much to be that callous, she was sure that they would move forward. While they may never be friends, and honestly she wouldn't blame either of them for that, at least they wouldn't glare at each other anymore. Or she hoped, at least.
On her way out of the room after her mini lecture to the two men, she had stopped for a brief hug, then ran to the backyard where the rest of the party was happening. She turned back to the room and saw the surprise on both Alex and Andrew's faces as they saw her there.
They reached her at the same time and each of them took one of her hands when she offered them to the guys. "Thank you Alex," she leaned up and gave him a kiss on the cheek, much like Sofia had done. "Thank you Andrew," and she did the same to the other man. Both of them blushed at her thanks, and they moved towards the backdoor together, each of them still wearing their sparkly crowns.
"Guys," she said when they were a few steps away, and laughed as they both turned back to her expectantly. She closed the distance and plucked the crown's off of their heads and they both mumbled thanks, and turned to leave again.
She watched them go their separate ways in the backyard, and returned the crowns to the playroom, happy that her daughter felt comfortable with each man and herself to have done what she just did. She and Callie had done something so miraculously right to have such an amazing child, and she would remember to thank Callie, once more and not for the last time, for Sofia.