AN: / Hi guys.
I don't have much to say except Thank you all for your positive feedback!
This chapter is about Callie And Arizona getting to know each other a little more.
Some pieces of Arizona's past would be revealed but that's not the most important ones.
With that story, I try to improve the descriptive lines, which I am not really good at. This chapter is more about dialogue, I'm more comfortable writting it.
As english is not my first language I don't have a lot of vocabulary, but I'm trying to improve.
Shyalien help me as my beta and as usual I'm very grateful.
I really hope you'll like it. Take a few second to express what you think in a review. I love to read them.
I know for those who are following me that I haven't updates in a while but I'm having some professional trouble actually, so my mood is not really into writting. It willg et better soon and you'll have your update, I promises!
Have a nice reading!
...
It wasn't supposed to be like this.
But Jo had done it and now someone was worried, waiting for Callie to call them back.
What was she supposed to do? She wasn't sure.
She was building a relationship based on confidence and trust with Arizona and she didn't want to lose it.
There was too much at stake between the trial process beginning and... Something else.
Callie knew that Arizona had woken up something in her, a kind of interest, curiosity, an admiration in a way.
There were so many questions about her that were running through her head and she wanted to know more about her.
She shook her head trying to gather her thoughts with difficulty and sighed in exasperation.
Even if she was struggling ethically speaking, she had made her mind. She was going to call that Teddy Altman back. It was to reassure that so called friends of her patient, but at the same time it was pure curiosity. She wanted to know, she needed to know more. It was a guilty pleasure like when you eat sweets secretly and you don't want to be caught. And Callie was acting a little out of her field.
She hesitated until the last moment, her thumb tracing the shape of the call button and finally pressed it, nervously taping on the top of her desk and her throat suddenly felt very dry.
« Hello? »
« Hello, I am looking for Dr. Teddy Altman? » Callie asked almost shyly, her voice so raspy it made her cough.
« It's me. Are you the person who I left a voice message regarding Arizona? » Teddy asked, her voice full of expectation.
« It's... Yes, it's me. I'm Dr. Callie Torres » Callie replied, coughing again. She wasn't sure anymore if it was a good idea, but it was too late to step back. At least that Dr. Altman seemed to be a nice person.
« Oh thanks god... I am so grateful you're calling me back! Do you have any information about Arizona? Have you seen her lately? Is she okay? »
The flow of desperate questions hit Callie. She was not ready to receive such an expected welcome and it took her a few moment before answering. She knew she had to keep a certain distance to respect what was left of Arizona's privacy.
« I... Wait, wait, wait... » Callie asked, exhaling in the words she pronounced. « First, I have to tell you that Ms. Robbins doesn't know I'm calling you. »
« Oh... »
« And I'm not very comfortable talking to you without her consent. » Callie explained, rolling her eyes as she noticed the non-sense she was saying. « She's my patient, and we were just looking for a relative …. »
« Wait! She's in a hospital? What happened? Is she Okay? » Teddy cut Callie off, anxiousness audible in her cracked voice.
« She is actually. Don't worry, she is okay. » Callie immediately cleared Teddy's fears. She felt she was drowning explaining the situation.
« Thank god... »
Callie remained speechless as she heard her interlocutor sobbing. The poor woman must have been worried as hell to be so on edge. Whatever was her relationship with Arizona, she was just relieved and letting Callie hear it.
« She's alright. » Callie repeated, trying to keep a professional tone for the conversation. « In fact, she's been hospitalized for a minor injury. I'm an orthopedic surgeon, and Ms. Robbins charts were send to me by my colleague who knows I'm working on a trial regarding a sensitive prosthetic. So her case caught my attention to be a part of that trial. »
« Oh... » Teddy simply reacted. « That's a good thing. »
« Yes. She agreed and signed the papers yesterday. » Callie explained, still thrilled to have found her tester.
« She signed the papers? Has it been easy or tricky? Because she can be a pain in the ass when she's not in charge. » Teddy laughed between her last sob which make Callie smile.
They were definitely talking about the same person.
« Listen, I think that it's great that she's included in that clinical trial. It mean she's going to be followed and taken care of. » Teddy said, the relief of knowing her friend was alive, audible. « So I don't think you should tell her we spoke. »
« Really? Are you in bad terms with her? Because the procedure is going to be tough, so I think she's going to need some support... » Callie asked. She was surprised by Teddy's request, thinking she would want to see her friend as soon as possible. But after all, she knew her story and not Callie.
« I know... I know... » Teddy whispered. « But nobody from her past can help her. We were worried and you are giving us the news we needed. I trust you with her. »
« Are you sure? Can you contact her family? She told me she had no one left, but apparently you care very much about her. » Callie asked, hoping she can help her contact Arizona's family.
« It's almost right, she doesn't have a lot of family left, and anyway she's not talking to them. Arizona had been through hell. I can't tell you what happened to her, it's not my place. But almost all her life has been a fight. And she has lost a lot. So please, take care of her. She's strong on the outside but the last time I saw her, she was destroyed inside. I hope she's healing and she has managed to find whatever she needed to get better. I will call you back in a few weeks to check on her. And don't hesitate to call me if something happens. »
« If you say so... » Callie replied, a little disappointed but more intrigued by Arizona's story than before.
« I know her. Every time she feels oppressed, or whenever she thinks she's not free to do what she wants, she bails and runs away. » Teddy confessed in a sigh.
« Are you telling me she's unstable? » Callie worried suddenly, stretching her shoulders nervously.
« It's a kind of instability, but if you let her be in control, she might stay... She can be unpredictable sometimes. And I know that because I am supposed to be her best friend, and I had no idea of where she was for two long years. » Teddy explained. The relief and the tension both detectable in her words.
« For the moment, she is in her hospital room, waiting for the physiotherapist. So I'm going to check on her. » Callie explained. « I will take what you told me in consideration. Thank you. »
« You're welcome. Thanks for giving me news on her. Good luck with her, she is a hard costumer! »
…...
Miranda Bailey was a woman with a strong temper. She was respected but also feared in her professional field.
But she also had a huge heart and was really human.
So that Morning, when she opened the door of the research lab, she knew she was going to meet a player.
Callie had explained her what kind of character Arizona was and she wasn't afraid of her. She had dealt with all kinds of patients, And Arizona Robbins wouldn't be the worst, she was sure of that.
« Ms. Robbins? » She asked with an affirmative voice receiving a simple nod from the blonde. « Hello! I'm Miranda Bailey. I'm a physiotherapist AND a prosthetician. So I'm going to work with you throughout the whole process. »
She offered Arizona her hand and who shook it firmly.
« Nice to meet you. You can call me Arizona if I can call you Miranda. » The blonde replied politely with a dimpled smirk.
« I can do that, and you don't have to charm me Arizona. » She said as she was putting her bag on a free desk of the lab. « I'm not here to be your friend, I'm here to make that trial a success. »
Arizona smiled. She seemed to have found a rival in the showdown relationship she liked to share with people. Miranda was going to be a tough candidate and she already liked it.
« Today we're going to get acquainted a little more. And then we'll try to make a mold of your stump for the socket. Am I explaining myself well? »
« Ma'am, yes Ma'am! » Arizona replied, taking a serious facial expression which made Miranda look at her in annoyance. « Have you been in the military or something? »
« I'm not here to talk about my personal life. » Miranda replied. Callie was right, Arizona was annoying.
« Well, you're going to, because otherwise, I won't say a word... »
« Arizona... You want to make it work or wreck that trial? Because I am working to make it a complete success. So if you're not in, you better go away immediately. » Miranda stated. She was telling the truth. She was excellent at her job, she was one of the best and she was used to succeeding in everything she was doing.
« I'd like it to work actually, but I need to be in a quiet atmosphere with people I trust. And I'm going to share personal stuff with you, so the least you can do is extend the same courtesy... » Arizona fake pouted as Miranda stared at her with suspicion.
« Take your pants off soldier... And No I have never been in the army. But I think you have... » Miranda said because she had noticed the grey hoodie Arizona was wearing and her tank top seemed to be army clothes.
« Yeah! Now I like you better! » Arizona smiled. « Well I had relatives in the army. But I never joined it. »
She took of her ripped jeans and at the same time, Amelia Shepard entered the lab, slamming the doors and drinking her latte. She walked by the two women to a desk.
« Hey Miranda. » She greeted the shorter woman who was examining Arizona's stump.
« Hi. » Bailey barely replied, focusing on her work. She and Amelia were working in the same team for the trial, but they had opposite personalities.
« So, you must be the one? » the brunette asked Arizona, looking at her with a playful grin on her face.
« I am so famous over here... » Arizona smirked as Amelia approached her. « And you are? »
« Dr. Amelia Shepard from neuro. I'll be working with you apparently. »
« If by putting some creepy captors after opening my skull you mean working, then yeah, it's going to happen. » Arizona replied sarcastically, looking at the new doctor intensely, almost scanning her entirely. She loved to do that kind of thing when she met new people. It was a way to look at their reaction and trying to know with what kind of person she would deal.
Amelia smiled. Second degree humor, almost trash, she loved it. She used them all the time and she liked people with respondent. She turned on the side to observe Miranda working and noticed what seemed to be a tattoo on Arizona's upper tight. Smirking at that detail, she couldn't help but think that little rebel side of Arizona was going to be attractive, professionally speaking.
« Nice tattoo. » She said, looking at the blonde. « What is it? Two A intertwined? »
« Kind of. High school mistake. I'm sure you know what it is. » she replied raising her eyebrow in provocation.
Amelia looked at her one more time and took a chart from Callie's desk where a note was addressed to her. It was the first element regarding the trial and she had to plunge into it, the sooner the better.
She opened it and sat on the desk while Arizona was observing her from far. Something about that new doctor was like a Deja vu.
« Do I know you? » She asked suddenly. « Because your face seems familiar. »
Amelia raised her head from the chart. And smiled. There was definitely something she liked in that woman.
« I was going to say the same! It's your name that sounds familiar... » She said, turning the page of the charts. « Have you been to...? »
« Hopkins! » Arizona said before her. « Yeah, that's where I saw you! »
« Hey! We're working here Shepherd, so please, get back to your office. You'll see her when it's your time. » Miranda snapped as if they were talking about the custody of a child. She wasn't a huge fan of Amelia, Arizona was messing with her, and so she needed silence to work on the patient.
Without a word, Amelia rolled her eyes and walked toward the doors.
« What about I bring you a coffee when you're done with the Colonel and we talk about it. » She offered the blonde, well decided to hear about her time in Hopkins.
« Sounds like a plan! » Arizona replied excitedly as Amelia opened the lab door without looking ahead and Callie almost bumped into her.
« Sorry! » Callie said in surprise. « Oh did you find the charts? »
« They are right here! » Amelia said, showing it to her. « I'm going to check them out! See you. »
Callie looked at her going away and then turned her attention back on Arizona. She was in the lab, already working with Bailey. The atmosphere seemed peaceful, Arizona was smiling. Everything was on the good road for the start of the trial.
« Hey Bailey. How are things going? » She asked when Arizona began to stare at her. She didn't need it to be upset by the blonde so she immediately tried to avoid it. She was here to work, focusing on the future of prosthetic limb. But she had also crossed a line by calling Teddy Altman, and she was feeling a little preoccupied.
« It's pretty great. » Miranda said as she removed her plastic gloves. « Arizona's stump is very clean, no edema, no visible problem. I just think we're going to need to tone it a little for it to fit the socket. But so far so good... »
« Great! » Callie replied, relieved and excited at the same time. « Are you done? »
« No I have several questions to ask her. » the prostetician announced. It was a routine procedure, but with a patient such as Arizona, nothing was going the way you thought it would.
« Do your job, I'm just going to check some email. Act as if I wasn't in the room. » Callie lied.
Looking at her with a suspicious grin, Arizona took time to observe the ortho surgeon in detail.
Something was making her smile each time she was looked at her.
She would be lying if she said she didn't find her attractive with her long dark hair, her bright smile, her hypnotical brown eyes...
But Arizona was not in the mood for thinking about her in that way. More than that, she didn't want to. Her policy when it came to love were strict inalienable: no attachment, no feelings, nothing...
That meant no pain, no resentment, no betrayal, and no tears. She was a free woman. She could do what she wanted to do when she wanted.
She had loved once and it had destroyed her and brought her in the darkness of sorrow.
It would never happen to her again. Ever.
« Arizona? Are you listening? » Miranda asked noticing the blonde's lingering eyes on Callie.
« Oh, yes, Sorry... » She mumbled, turning her gaze to the prosthetician.
« I need to ask you a few question about your accident and the sequel. So you said it was a crash? What kind of crash? » Miranda asked. She wasn't here to mother Arizona. She didn't want to play the shrink. She only needed technical and medical details.
Callie raised her head from her chart discretely. She didn't want Arizona to notice her but she feared her reaction at Bailey's question.
« You know my former prosthetician used to say that swimming helped to maintain the stump tonic... » Arizona stated.
Receiving a frozen glare from the shorter woman, she bulged and began to think she had found someone more stubborn than her. The showdown was close.
« Okay, okay... I was in a plane crash. »
The surprise of the announcement left a silence in the room for a few seconds. Callie knew now what happened. Not the details, but she wasn't expecting that kind of accident.
« And, were you suffering from other injuries? » Miranda asked, not letting the awkwardness of the moment go further. She needed to stick to the required information and not let the emotions settle. It wouldn't help anybody and she knew it.
« Nothing important. Bruises, cuts and a minor head trauma. I was stuck on my seat and half-conscious when the paramedics found me. The plane crashed on the landing runway, so they were on the site pretty fast. I don't really remember the events. But my leg was too damaged and they didn't have what it took to save it. » Arizona explained quietly, almost as if she was talking about another person or about a patient.
« Where did it happen? » Miranda continued.
« Is that important for your interview or is that just curiosity Miranda? » Arizona asked with a smirk.
« Curiosity. » The prosthetician replied sincerely, not assuming the storm that was waking up in Arizona's mind.
« Well it occurred in Indonesia. And if you want other details it was during the first Holiday I took in my entire life. We were coming back from a smaller island to Phuket and there was some kind of storm. So we had to do an emergency landing and the gusts punched the plane against the tarmac at more than 170 mph. There was 70 passengers and 6 staff member. We were 17 survivors. »
Callie and Miranda remained speechless. They wanted to know, so Arizona gave them the story without filters. That's when Teddy's word came back to Callie's thought.
« That's pretty impressive right? » Arizona said, her eyes darker and cold. « I lost consciousness during the impact. And When I woke up I saw what I think was a dead body's leg. But later I realized it was my own leg so twisted and broken that my brain couldn't get it was mine. »
She laughed nervously, increasing the uncomfortable vibes reverberating in the room.
She hadn't been pushed too much by Bailey's question but somehow, the pressure around her was too difficult to handle, and as usual, she reacted by pure provocation.
All she could do was to throw everything away and run, never looking back and tried to feel free again.
« I... I think I'm done here. » Miranda simply stated. « And you are right. We're going to schedule some swing sessions to tone your stump. We'll do the mold later. »
« Come on Miranda, I can give you more creepy details... » Arizona said, laughing bitterly.
« I'll see you tomorrow. » The shorter woman replied, still under the shock of Arizona's angry reaction. « Good bye Dr. Torres. »
« Bye Bailey... » Callie Mumbled
She walked out of the room, and Arizona immediately grabbed her jeans on the floor and put it back on. She approached the wheelchair and literally threw herself in it. She knew she had gone too far, but she didn't know how to react otherwise since a long time.
« See, when you want to know something, just ask. » She said, staring at Callie. « But just to warn you, my life is just a big mess. So, choose what you want to know. »
She wheeled her chair to the doors and left the lab, leaving a speechless Callie.
Something seemed dead inside that woman. What could she have been through to be always on edge and mad.
…...
Later the same day, Arizona was sitting in her wheel chair in an empty room, looking in the air through the window. She seemed cool on the outside, but she was cold inside.
She was pissed at everything. It had been a long time since she had to think to the crash and all the things it had changed in her life.
When she found herself homeless, it wasn't totally by chance. Of course a lot of events had lead her there but somewhere, unconsciously she knew that it was maybe the only way she could survive.
She had fled everything that could remind her of what she lost and the so called life she was trying to live after that fricking plane smashed itself on the ground.
She wasn't able to handle all the loss it had caused her. And after losing hope, desire and believe in everything, she didn't think living worth anything, especially for someone who survived that fatal accident.
Scratching her neck nervously one more time she stopped when she felt the blood flowing on her skin.
It wasn't a relief, like some people found by cutting their skin willingly, it was just exhaustion and the pain of remembering those horrible memories she had forbidden herself to think about for so long, just to survive.
« Dr. Robbins? » A voice said behind her.
She didn't react. She hadn't been called like that for so long. The man approached and stood by her side, avoiding eye contact and looking at the same empty space she was trying to lose her thoughts.
« I'm Owen Hunt, from trauma. » He introduced himself. « I'm a consulter on your trial. »
« Great. » She sarcastically replied. « So Torres and Bailey must have told you to come and see if I was still upset and crazy? »
« We talked about you, regarding the trial of course. But, indeed they explained to me your breakdown. But I'm used to that a lot too... »
Arizona turned her gaze to meet blue pastel eyes.
« Wow, they're sending me the traumatized Buddy... Great call... » She snapped. She didn't need a babysitter, she didn't need anybody around. She wanted to be alone, to be on her own and forget about everything.
« Well it is actually. I don't know what you've been through but I've seen pretty bad stuff after a terrible life event. So I know what it is to be bitter, to feel everything collapsing around you without being able to pull it together. That's just what I'm saying. » He simply replied. « And I wanted to meet you as we're going to work together some times. »
He wasn't pushy, he was quiet. He wasn't aggressively asking question. He didn't consider her as a poor damaged thing. He was just there, open and listening.
He smiled at her and began to walk away when Arizona called him, wanting to take the first step for the first time in a while.
« You can tell her I'm okay. I'm waiting for her. She promised me a hotel room, so I'll wait for her in the lobby. »
…...
Arizona had taken back the prosthetic Callie had given her the day before and was standing in the lobby when the ortho surgeon met her.
She looked at her and smiled, trying to show her she was making efforts to get back to her.
« See, I took the crutches. » She said proudly when Callie approached her.
Callie just nodded and grabbed the bag that was on the floor next to Arizona. She was still upset by the scene she had made in the lab earlier, but she was trying to get over it.
« Are you ready? The hotel is just three block away, but I'm going to drive you. » She said
« Okay let's go... »
…...
After a silent but comfortable ride, they arrived at the hotel Callie had booked for her patient. Arizona had requested the cheapest hotel she can find but Callie hadn't really listened.
She had chosen a middle class hotel, comfortable but not flashy. She wanted Arizona to be comfortable.
« So yours is room 502. » Callie said as she was carrying Arizona's military bag.
« Okay. Here we go... » The blonde simply replied.
For the first time since they met, Arizona was letting Callie lead the event without playing or arguing. She was tired both physically and mentally, so she could help let go a little.
The two women entered the elevator without talking and Callie pushed the floor's number button.
The doors closed, and Callie hoped it wouldn't take long before they opened back.
She didn't want to be stuck with Arizona for too long, not knowing what to tell her. Between the scene she made in the lab, her conversation with Teddy and everything else, she didn't really know how to act in Arizona's presence anymore.
« I'm not going to say I'm sorry because I'm not totally sorry. » Arizona broke the silence. « It's just I don't like talking about it. It's not about the trauma or anything it's just that I don't remember everything and I almost repeat what the paramedics told me. And there is something else about that crash but it's another story... »
« I'm not here to intrude in your privacy Arizona. I'm here to work on the trial and that's it. » Callie cut her off a little abruptly.
« Oh, Okay... So now we're remaining to professional relationship? I get it... » Arizona said as the elevators doors opened, getting out of it before Callie. So this was it. She might have messed with her too soon, too hard and now, she was on her own again.
She walked to the door of room 502, helped by her crutches and waited for Callie to open it.
« It's good. Thank you Dr. Torres. You can put the bag on the bed, I will see you tomorrow. » She said, entering the room and looking around, avoiding Callie's eyes.
Rolling her eyes, Callie obeyed and dropped the bag on the bed.
« So it's like that with you? It's black or it's white. There's no in-between? » Callie asked, annoyed by Arizona childish behavior.
« In between sucks. » Arizona replied, still avoiding her doctor's gaze.
« Arizona... I'm trying to help you. I'd really like this project to work... So if we could at least be friends, I think the whole experiment will get better, don't you think. »
Arizona sighed and let her body fall on the bed. Callie was right. And she had signed the papers. Even if she didn't want to be some kind of passive puppet between a bunch of over experimented medical professionals, she had to follow the rules now.
« Okay, I'm sorry... » She just replied. « I think I'm not used to interacting normally with people anymore... »
« It's okay... » Callie said, smiling. « I think whatever the hurdles you had to undergo in your life, you are allowed to be on edge. So, friends? »
« Friends... » Arizona said, surrendering her bitterness and offering a dimpled smile while shaking Callie's hand. She felt a little disappointed but it was the way things were going to be.
« Would you...uhm... Have dinner with me? » She asked suddenly making Callie blush.
The brunette had been thinking to asking her the same thing for hours but didn't have the nerve herself to do it. But it wasn't for the same reason obviously. She understood Arizona didn't want to be alone that night, but she had to keep the boundaries. A dinner wasn't a big deal.
« Oh... I don't know... » Callie hesitated.
«I'm sorry, you must have other plans. »
« No, actually I don't... » She replied as her hands began to sweat a little. « So okay... »
« Really? Cool... But I can just buy us a pizza... » Arizona laughed. She hadn't thought about it but she wanted to show she was grateful.
« It's great... I like Pizza! »
« I like pizza too! »
…...
As Callie was gone to buy the pizza, Arizona grabbed the shoe box she had gotten back the day before. She squeezed it emotionally and smiled. It was safe and nothing else mattered.
She opened it for the first time in months and she took a deep breath. Her life was in that box. Everything she loves, every memory of painful and happy time.
An old piece of paper, three pictures, a book, some cash too, a ring, an old knife and some old glasses. Every items meant the world to her and she wasn't able to touch them, afraid to waste them.
« Hey... » Callie greeted Arizona, back with the pizza.
« Good, I was starving! » Arizona said, closing the shoe box and putting it on the floor.
Callie sat at the opposite end of the bed and opened the pizza box.
« This pizza is not so bad. » the Latina commented, taking her first bite.
« Yeah, not so bad... » Arizona repeated dreamingly. « Oh, I have my two questions to ask! »
« Me too! » Callie interjected. She thought the blonde would have forgotten about it, but she didn't know Arizona Robbins well enough.
« I go first... » She decided, not leaving any choice. « So tell me everything you found about me while googling my name? »
« You're still on that? » Callie rolled her eyes.
« Answer the question Dr. Torres! »
« I... You're right, Dr. Wilson gave me the idea. » Callie confessed, avoiding to look at Arizona directly.
« So? »
« We found a few articles about you and your career as a peds surgeon, travelling all over the world to rescue children in under-developed countries. » She explained, praying for Arizona not to notice she was deliberately forgetting to talk about Teddy Altman.
« Yay! I'm busted! »
« And that's it... »
« So I still have some mysteries around me... » Arizona said, trying to be teasing but apparently annoyed that Callie knew about her past. She knew by giving her real name, her past will resurface.
« Well it's great to know, because as a doctor, your feelings are going to be more precise, and the data will be better! » Callie explained, trying to keep it professional.
« If you say so... » Arizona replied. She seemed annoyed but totally disconnected from that part of her life.
« So it's my turn... » Callie said. « Are you really happy to be a part of our trial, I mean really? »
« I'm more curious than Happy... » Arizona replied frankly. « I mean it's a great opportunity I get it, but that's not what I'm talking about. I could have stayed on the streets, I am not unhappy there. I could have gotten my prosthetic back One day... So I'm more curious to see where we are going than happy, to say the truth. »
Callie felt relieved by the honesty she just received from Arizona. It was may be the beginning of a constructive and concrete conversation and after the show she had given to her and Bailey, she needed to hear that.
« So, my turn! » Arizona said letting a big smile appear. « So, Dr. Torres... Divorced twice, almost married a third time right? So Why? I want to know why your three marriages failed. »
Callie sighed and her body tensed under the pressure. It was the aspect she hated to shreds, especially with a stranger. It was chaotic, she felt pathetic but after all, it was her life and she had get over it.
« I don't know if I want to answer that... » She said, turning her gaze, almost pouting.
« So are you using your joker? » Arizona smirked. « But you can be sure that I will find some sneakier question for later... »
Exasperated but also a little amused, Callie cleared her throat and decided to answer the question.
« My first husband was my college boyfriend. We went to med school together. We were together for over a year when his father died. He didn't deal with the situation and one day, he proposed. I was so blinded by my desire to be in love that I said yes immediately. We were about to be interns, I was 24, too young to think twice. The wedding was pathetic in a little chapel during a trip to Las Vegas... My family was shocked, his was thrilled. A few months later, he cheated on me with my own sister who was visiting me. It was the first time they met. But today, they're married, they have two kids and are happier than ever. I like to think that it was a blessing in disguise ... »
« Wow... that's... » Arizona mumbled, surprised by the first revelation. Callie was sincere and she was telling everything.
« I know... You thought you had a crappy life... Welcome to mine... » Callie said, clenching her teeth realizing the awkwardness of her remarks. « I'm sorry... I didn't mean ... »
« Oh! Don't apologize! It was kind of funny... » Arizona replied, not upset at all. « So, second one? »
« Oh my... » Callie sighed. It was the same old song... « I met him at my best friend's Wedding, Dr. Grey. He was just taking an attending job at the hospital in plastics... We got along very well soon and we hooked up pretty fast. Less than a year later, we were married. And then a beautiful stranger arrived from nowhere. She was a resident, and Grey's half-sister... They fell in love and it was beautiful. A real love at first sight like we all dream about. I wasn't even sad or mad. They were meant to be together... He and I were just friends and we met in a period of our life where we were terribly lonely... »
« That's kind of sweet I guess... » Arizona replied, touched by Callie's self-abnegation.
« It is, actually. We are still very close, he's my best male friend. » Callie smiled, thinking about Mark.
« And what about the attempted third one? »
« I could use the joker on this one... » Callie said shamefully, putting her face in her hands.
« Come on! »
« Alright... At least that time, I took the time to figure what I wanted... » Callie explained before explaining the whole story. « She... because it's a she... She was the new head of cardio, and everybody hated her... She was cold, bossy, snooty... But I got to know her and I had worked with her on several cases. We began to hang out together after work and finally, one day, Addie, a friend who knows I was into women and men, suggested we were a cute couple. Erica freaked out, she had never been with a woman before. So I tried to reassure her and told her we were just friends. Weirdly, it made us become closer and eventually we started dating. Once Again, I was on cloud nine, seeing myself married with ten kids, in a big house. And so 10 months later, I proposed to her...We were good together, I guess... »
« So what happened? »
« Addie, again, told me before she moved out to LA, to be careful. She told me that being in love was different than loving the idea of being in love. I told her Erica didn't want kids and that I was okay to give up the idea for her. She just told me that she knew that it was my dream to have kids, at some point in my life... And so, I pondered that for a few days and she was right. Having a kid is something I want above everything else... » Callie sadly confessed. « And so, I broke up with her two weeks before the wedding. She left the hospital and flew to the other side of the country. »
Arizona remain a little stunned by the confession. Callie seemed to be kind, caring and she was amazingly beautiful and smart. So how can her private life be such a failure?
« So I know two big things about you... You fall in love easily and you have a thing for surgeons... » Arizona teased.
« Big deal... » Callie mumbled, blushing in shame.
« And you are bisexual... »
Callie raised her heads at the tone in Arizona's voice. She didn't like that tone. She had been insulted, disowned, denied even by her mother talking about that tone.
« Is that a problem for you? Because it's who I am and I' don't have... » She snapped.
« Hey! Hold on! Hold on! » Arizona yelled, laughing. « It's not a problem at all... »
« So why are you saying that in that tone... » Callie snapped again.
« Because maybe if we had met under other circumstances, in a bar, after a rough day, I would have met you in the dirty bathroom and asked you why you were crying, alone, in front of that mirror... »
« What? » Callie knitted her brows in confusion. What was Arizona talking about? Was she fooling her again?
« Nothing, I was just kidding... » Arizona quickly replied, wishing she hadn't said that out loud.
« Oh... so you're stepping back? » Callie tried to tease her. « Too easy Dr. Robbins! So I'm going to use my second question... What is that 'dirty bathroom' story? Were you openly hitting on me? »
« It's two questions Dr. Torres... »
« Answer it! You got me yesterday, now it's my turn... » Callie insisted. She was in a strong position and she would do everything she could to keep it.
« Ok, but it's the last time! » Arizona reproached her. « It was the way I met one of my exes, crying in a bar bathroom after a day's work. And for the second question: maybe I was... »
Callie eyes opened wide. She wasn't sure if Arizona was playing with her again but what she wasn't expecting was that she answered the second question. Taken a little aback, she blushed in confusion. Was Arizona really trying to seduce her? And was she attracted to women? Nothing really told it to Callie but she suddenly realized that she was attracted to the blonde, romantically, and she wasn't really happy to discover that.
« I... Uh... Really? » she mumbled.
« Yeah I really met my ex in a dirty bar bathroom... Not really Romantic uh... » Arizona replied with a sparkly smile as Callie's phone buzzed. « Saved by the buzz... »
« Sorry... » Callie mumbled as she took her phone to check it. « Oh, it's just a text from my sister... I thought it was work... »
« You still talk to your sister ever since? » Arizona asked surprised.
« It was a lifetime ago. It was hard in the beginning, I won't lie. But after a moment, I decided to let it go. They were happy, I wasn't resentful anymore. And when they were expecting their first kid, I wanted to be a part of their life you know? » Callie explained. Family was an important thing in her life.
« Actually I don't. I'm kind of a rancorous person. » Arizona stated quietly, her eyes turning darker.
« Oh... I can be mad at people. I can yell, scream, give the silence treatment, but not on the long term. Plus, she's my only sister and I don't have other siblings. Do you have sibling? » Callie asked not thinking about the strict rules about question Arizona had established. It was just asking in the conversation.
« Nope. And by the way this is a question you can't ask me tomorrow! » Arizona replied as she scooted closer to Callie.
« That's not fair! » She said, noticing the blonde's rapprochement. « What are you doing? »
Callie's eyes opened bigger as Arizona reached her hands close to her mouth.
« You have tomato sauce just here. » She said, wiping it with her thumb and taking her hand away while fixing at Callie's surprised eyes.
The brunette gasped at the contact. It was unexpected but it felt good.
« It's getting late, I should go. I have a huge day tomorrow. » Callie mumbled as she was still staring at Arizona who was smiling that dimpled smile at her.
« Yeah, you should go Dr. Torres. » Arizona whispered, licking the thumb which had wiped Callie's lips.
Callie gulped and shook her head. She took her purse and stood up. She had to get out of here right now. She had to.
« I will see you in the lab tomorrow? »
« I won't miss it! »
…...
« You must be kidding! » Arizona yelled. « I haven't taken this job to teach some dumb ass like that poor girl! »
« Listen, I'm sorry! I didn't know who she was! She asked to work for you, saying you were the reason she wants to be a doctor... »
« Teddy, I don't have time for at. Send her to another service! »Arizona yelled again.
« I can't! »
The discussion was interrupted by two young interns entering the room.
« Oh, we're sorry... » The young man said. « We were just looking for Dr. Altman. »
« It's alright. By the way, I was telling Dr. Robbins here that you were assigned to her department and she couldn't wait to welcome you. » Teddy, giving Arizona no choice.
« Right! » she said angrily, grabbing the charts from her friend's hand.
« So let's introduce yourself! » Teddy said with enthusiasm.
« I'm Michael Jameson, and I'm honored to work with you Dr. Robbins. »
« I'm... I'm April Kep... »
« Yeah, I know who you are. I don't need to hear you right now. I just need you to go grab Jason Carmichael's labs, I need them immediately. » Arizona said coldly. « So what are you waiting for... just go! »
She gave Teddy a death glare and stormed out of the room.
« I'm sorry April... She is just a little tired these day... »
« I know... I can take it... »
« So why don't you guys go to the lab and ask for the result she needs? » Teddy tried to motivate her interns. « Dr. Robbins will be a good teacher, I promises. »
She smiled at them and walked away.
« What was that? » Michael asked his binomial.
« What? »
« With Robbins! DO you know her? »
« I'd rather not talk about that. » April replied.
« You have to explain it to me, because if she's pissed at you for a reason or another, I don't want to be included in the drama! » Michael said. « Are you fucking her or something? »
« Mike! Please! »
« I don't know! You're supposed to be my friend and here you are, hiding something from me... »
« I... I'm not hiding anything! »
« Okay, then I'm going to ask Dr. Robbins to not judge my work regarding yours because... »
« She's my sister! » April yelled. « My half-sister, and she hates me that's it... »