I do not own Grey's Anatomy, or these characters ya'll.
Callie was about to snap. If Arizona looked at her one more time, she was going to snap. She had been in Seattle for five days, today marking the third case she had worked with the blonde. She thought she was imagining it at first, when she happened to catch the gaze of blue eyes every time she looked up. But Callie had quickly learned that the stolen looks and glances that were coming from Arizona, were not all in her head. Because Arizona would not stop staring at her.
It was annoying and irritating, and after the way Arizona had shot her down so callously, she didn't have a right to be looking at Callie. Callie had received several text messages from Arizona, ever since she got the job, but the Latina made a point of ignoring every single one of them. And the worst part of it was, no natter how angry Callie wanted to be at Arizona, she missed the woman a great deal. They had spoken every day, for the past four months, and now they were just...colleagues.
It sucked. But Callie Torres wasn't the emotional type who cried over girls. No, Callie Torres was a hardcore badass, who didn't have time for women who were going to mess with her head. So, she was done with Arizona.
Done.
"Okay." Callie finally looked up from the notes that she had been scribbling in, meeting her patients eyes. "Do you have any questions about the surgery?"
The Patient — a teenage girl named Britney, who had talked only talked about how hot Dr. Avery was — looked at Callie like she was speaking a foreign language. "What do you mean questions? Do I have to read up on this surgery?" she asked dimly, not having a clue what was going on. Neither did her friend, Allanah, who was, once again, updating her Twittter account.
Callie fought the strong urge to roll her eyes. Teenage girls were not her thing. "No, you don't have to read up on anything," she informed, trying her best not to sound frustrated. She thought she heard a snicker come from Arizona, but chose to ignore it, staying focused on the patient. "I mean — do you understand everything that I'm going to be doing?"
"My leg's broke," Britney dumbly stated, her voice full of attitude. "Aren't you just going to fix it?"
This girl was enough to put Callie of wanting kids — it was like having a conversation with a tree. "Yes, I am."
"Am I gonna have a scar?" Britney asked frighteningly, clutching her heart as if she was in pain.
"You'll have a small scar on your shin," Arizona stepped in, confirming the girls worst fears.
Britney dropped her head into her hands. "Oh my god!" The friend was quick to hug her, whispering reassurances in her ear. "How am I going to wear shorts?" the brunette yelled accusingly. "I'm a cheerleader!"
"Of course you are," Callie mumbled out quietly, through a heavy, frustrated sigh. "The scar is going to be the size of your pinky, okay. It's not the end of the world; you can still wear shorts.
"I can't even imagine what you're going through," Allanah laid on the sympathy, softly touching her friend's arm. "You are being so strong."
Callie and Arizona shared a look of disbelief. And Arizona was over the moon, because it was the first time Callie had looked at her like she didn't want to kill her. Progress.
"I know," Britney nodded, crocodile tears filling her eyes. She looked up at her two doctors, perking up a little on her bed. "I'm getting, like, a really weird vibe, from the two of you."
Allanah's mouth fell open dramatically. "No way! I swear, I was just thinking that," the smaller girl gushed.
"Oh my god," Arizona groaned to herself. She looked at Callie, completely unsurprised to see that the Latina wasn't even giving her a half glance. It was clear that Calliope was beyond fuming with her, and she knew that the brunette wouldn't give in. Nothing really seemed to be going her way, right now.
"Yeah, that's great," Callie said shortly. "Anyway!"
The girls weren't giving in, both set on finding an answer. "Are you guys together?" Britney inquired, tilting her head to gaze at them both.
"No!" Callie scoffed harshly. Being together was the farthest thing from what the two of them were. Arizona was looking at Callie, a look of hurt on her face. But Callie wasn't bowing down. Arizona hadn't cared when she hurt Callie, so Callie wasn't caring, now.
"Did one of you sleep with the others husband?" Alannah chimed in. Both girls were now giggling freely as a heavy silence lurked between the doctors.
"Nobody slept with anybody!" Arizona insisted adamantly. She knew Callie well enough to know that she wasn't finding this even a little bit funny.
The two girls shared a mutual nod. "You slept with each other, didn't you?" Britney nodded her head confidently, looking smug. Allanah soon joined in, both of the young women now looking at the doctors quizzically.
If two teenage girls — not even the brightest girls — could figure out that something had happened between them, Callie guessed that it wouldn't be long before the entire hospital found out. Arizona had once told her that the nurses at Seattle Grace Mercy West knew everything about everyone.
"Nobody had sex with anybody!" Callie argued defensively. How did of a Head of Department end up having an argument with two teenage girls, over her sex life with Arizona Robbins? Just...how?
"Liar!" Allanah whispered quietly, making her friend giggle giddily.
Done with the conversation, Callie gathered up her chart. "I'll see you in the OR. Try not to do more damage than you've already done." Heading to the door, she didn't bother looking back to see if the blonde had followed her. But the footsteps she heard behind her, a few seconds later, gave it away.
"Teenagers, right?" Arizona caught up with Callie, awkwardly standing next to the Latina at the nurses station.
Completely focused on signing off her chart, Callie didn't acknowledge the blonde's presence, keeping her eyes trained downwards. She just hummed in response, hoping that Arizona would take the obvious hint, and disappear. But a minute later, Arizona was still standing there. Slamming her chart closed, Callie met those deep blue eyes. "What do you want, Arizona?" she practically spat, her face void of emotion, arms crossed over her chest.
Seeing Callie mad at her, made Arizona feel like crap. But this was all her own doing, and she now had to deal with the fall out. "Callie, I thought we were going to be friends?" Those dark, expressive eyes that Arizona loved were normally so warm and caring, but all that was present in them right now, was frustration and anger. And it was all being aimed at her.
Callie laughed bitterly, her hand tightening its grip on the pen she was holding. "Uh, you said we were going to be friends!" she shot back in annoyance. She was past the point of caring if anyone was listening to them. "I didn't agree to us being friends, Arizona."
"Calliope," Arizona sighed heavily, not getting the chance to finish.
"No!" Callie snapped in anger. "You do not get to call me that, anymore!" It was awful, Callie knew that, but she still loved the way her full name fell from Arizona's lips. God, especially in the bedroom — Arizona always said her name with so much desire... so much want. "We're not friends, Arizona," Callie revealed coldly, before walking away in the opposite direction.
Closing her eyes in defeat, Arizona slumped forward onto the nurses station, bracing her elbows on the cool base. It felt like she had made a mistake. Turning Callie down had been necessary, but everything felt wrong. Things were different, and Arizona couldn't help but wish that things could go back to being easy...just like it was four months ago.
Reverently running her hands down to cup the blonde's ass, Callie gave the taught muscle a firm squeeze. "Your ass feels different," she groaned out, her eyes fluttering closed at the feel of Arizona's teeth nipping and sucking at her neck.
Arizona laughed, continuing to straddle the taller woman on the couch. "That's because the only thing we've consumed in the past five days, is junk food." Normally, she ate relatively healthily, but they had been eating whatever the hell they wanted, the past few days. She'd lost a lot of weight after the crash, though, so she wasn't really caring. "Is that your way of telling me that my ass is fat?" she gasped in mock offence, sitting back to look at Callie.
"What?! No!" Callie flailed, thankful when Arizona only grinned playfully at her, those gorgeous dimples beaming down at her. "Your ass does not quit." She gave the blonde's behind a firm smack, emphasising her point.
It wasn't something that had ever got her going, but everything Callie did to her seemed to get Arizona going. "Bedroom. Now!" the blonde commanded, pulling back to strap on her leg that was setting up against the table.
Pulling Arizona back into her, Callie sat forward, Arizona now sitting precociously on the edge of her lap. She made a move to stand up, but Arizona held her ground.
"You can't lift me," Arizona laughed, tangling her fingers around a tanned, smooth neck, fingertips tickling the skin.
Callie looked more than a little offended. "I'm sorry. Are you doubting my Ortho strength?" That eyebrow was raised challengingly, brown eyes glaring into sparkling blue.
Arizona steadied herself on Callie's lap. "What if you drop me, and I break my other leg?"
Rolling her eyes in amusement, Callie heaved them both upwards in one quick motion, losing her balance a little once she got to her feet. "How mad would you be if I dropped you?"
Instinctively tightening her leg around Callie's waist, Arizona laughed heartily into the side of the Latina's neck. "Please don't drop me!" the blonde pleaded, now laughing uncontrollably as Callie began to walk on unsteady feet.
With blonde hair obscuring her vision, Callie back the blonde into the wall of the foyer. "Move your hair!"
"Callie!" Arizona squealed out through her laughter, feeling herself begin to slip from the strong grip. "You're gonna drop me." Despite the fact that she could crash to the floor at any second, Arizona was having so much fun. Every that happened with Callie, was so easy, so carefree.
Callie dropped her head to the wall, resting her chin on Arizona's shoulder. "I ca...can't," she stuttered out, unable to get her free throwing laughter under control. She loved the sound of Arizona's laughter more than anything. And, right now, it was like music to her ears. "We can sleep out here tonight."
Arizona gasped loudly as Callie began to walk them into her bedroom. "A few more steps. Hurry up!"
Throwing Arizona onto the bed, Callie immediately fell on top of her, the sound of their combined laughter ringing out through the bedroom. "It looks a lot easier when you see people doing it on TV," the Latina laughed out into Arizona's neck.
Arizona's wrapped her arms around Callie's middle, enjoying the feel of the warm body on top of her. "I thought you had mad Ortho strength, Torres." Her blue eyes were beaming, full of mischief and happiness, the grin on her face matching them perfectly. "Because it really doesn't seem like you have any strength," she chastised teasingly.
"I hate you," Callie grunted out, nuzzling softly into Arizona's neck. She really liked cuddling with Arizona. Really liked it.
"I can't believe we're at a bar on Valentine's day," Callie groaned, downing a shot of tequila, hoping it would take her mind off the blonde who was sat at the opposite side of the bar with April Kepner. "Could we be more pathetic?"
Addison grimaced, her movements somewhat shaky as she brought her third glass of red wine to her lips. "I really don't think we could be," the red head agreed, the words slightly slurred. "How did our lives get to a point where Mark Sloan has a date on Valentine's Day, and we don't?"
"I really have no idea." When Callie found out that she was going to be in Seattle, for Valentine's Day, she had immediately jumped the gun, convincing herself that she was going to be spending it with Arizona. But things hadn't exactly gone quite to plan.
"Would you judge me if I texted Karev, for sex?" Addison looked desperate. And a little horny.
Callie downed another shot. There was no way this was her Valentine's day...just no fucking way. "Yes! I would judge you immensely." Once again, she could just feel Arizona looking at her from across the bar.
"I can't be alone on Valentine's day," Addison whined, looking like she was in actual physical pain. "I just can't do it!"
"Ugh, I hate Mark. And I hate everybody that's happy!" Callie threw her head back dramatically. She hated this stupid holiday. "I'm never celebrating Valentine's day ever, ever again," she promised, with a sigh.
Addison continued to gulp her wine, like it was water and she had just spent a month in the desert. "We're gonna die alone."
Across the bar, April and Arizona were experiencing the same dilemma. "Would it be bad if I texted Jackson?" the red head tapped her fingers nervously, contemplating the idea.
"You're gonna booty-call him, on Valentine's day?" Arizona gave a small laugh. She wanted to be at home — alone. But April had managed to coarse her into coming out for a few drinks. She was glad she did, because Calliope was here — and that meant the Latina didn't have a Valentine's date.
April already had her phone in her hand. "Don't judge me!"
"Totally judging you," Arizona replied sharply. She glanced over to the corner, perking up at little when she noticed that Callie was looking back at her. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Alex approaching Callie and Addison's table.
Callie had honestly had enough of this crap. Tearing her gaze away from pleading blue eyes, she mumbled to Addison and Karev that she was going to the bathroom, not that they had even noticed, anyway. She hoped that Addison would go home with Karev, so she would be able to go back to her hotel room and get the hell away from Arizona Robbins.
Once in the safety of the bathroom, she splashed some cold water on her face, then quickly patted it dry with a paper towel. The door opened, and Callie didn't even need to look up to know who it was.
"Hey," came the soft, angelic voice.
Depositing the paper towel into the nearest bin, Callie looked up at the blonde. "Hey," she returned the gesture, surprising both of them.
"Callie, can we please talk?" Arizona pleaded desperately. She didn't even know what she was planning to say, but the need to be near Callie was so overwhelming. This wasn't helping any of them.
"I'm not the clingy type of girl." Crossing her arms over her chest, Callie leaned back onto the wall, a distant, longing look on her face. "I'm not the type of girl who pines after people. But I'm just..." she cut herself off, eyebrows drawn together in anger. "I'm just so confused. And I want an explanation."
Oh, shit. Arizona swallowed heavily. Callie looked really, really mad — even madder than what she did when Arizona turned her down. Following Calliope into the bathroom had not been thought through well. "Callie, it's got nothing to do with you."
"Don't bullshit me, Arizona!" Callie snapped, brown eyes lit up in anger. She wasn't leaving this bathroom until she got a decent explanation. "I want a reason — a decent reason. And you're gonna give it to me."
Arizona's face morphed into a look of pure sadness. "I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to hurt you."
Callie wasn't believing a thing that was leaving the blonde's mouth. "Is that just what you do? Do you just go around making people fall for you, and then shoot them down as soon as they wanna take things further." The words felt good, like ripping off a band aid. She had been wanting to confront Arizona for days.
The defensive walls that Arizona had erected, over the past few months, were back up in a flash. Although she had no right to be, Arizona was getting pissed. "That's a lie!"
"Is it?!" Callie yelled, springing off the wall. "How many other girls have you played, just like you played me?!" She couldn't control herself. Words...feelings...everything was spilling out.
"Don't you dare accuse me of that!" Arizona's eyes flashed with a look of pure rage. Her entire body was fuming — how could Callie think that of her? "You know you're the only girl I've been with, since the crash," the blonde angrily reminded, subconsciously taking another step closer.
A bitter laugh escaped from Callie's lips, the sound sending a chill through the air. "You just...used me. And led me on." Callie said sadly, that devastated look now back on her face. The truth hit her like a bullet — Arizona had used her. How...how could she have been so stupid?
"No I didn't!" Arizona promised, stepping forward, bringing the distance between them to a mere 2ft. "I didn't use you. I wouldn't do that to you." She could never, ever to that to Calliope; the woman meant so much to her.
"Then why?" Callie demanded sternly. Those pink lips looked so soft and inviting — she really wanted to kiss them. She really wanted to kiss Arizona. "Tell me why you won't go out with me?"
Looking away from those penetrating brown eyes, Arizona let out a shaky breath, her resolve so close to breaking. Callie could break her so damn easily. And that's exactly what the problem was. "I can't do this, Calliope," she unevenly stated, her voice hovering on the edge of breaking.
Squaring her jaw, Callie shook her head, taking a step backwards. She looked dead into watery blue eyes, knowing this wasn't over between, "Happy Valentine's day, Arizona." She forced herself to walk away, going back to the table to nurse her broken heart.
Arizona dropped her head, the smell of Calliope's sweet perfume lingering in the air.
Happy Valentine's Day, indeed.
"It's just a little weird," Addison explained, with a nonchalant shrug. "You've been here almost two weeks, and you still haven't found an apartment. You need to get out of that hotel."
Although Mark and Addison moaned at her every single day, Callie still hadn't bothered to search for a new apartment. "I know," she sighed in agreement. Flipping open the local paper, she turned to the Apartment Listings page. "I need something close because my car still hasn't been shipped up from Miami."
"I can't believe you still have that car," Mark said, shaking his head in disbelief.
Callie ignored the comment. She could have strangled Addison for what her friend did next.
"Arizona!" Addison yelled, spotting the blonde looking for a place to sit in the cafeteria. "Over here." She waved her hand dramatically, pointing the chair that was, of course, straight across from Callie.
If it didn't hurt so much, Callie would have thought the situation was kind of funny. Everyone around them was completely clueless to what had happened between her and the blonde that was slowly making her way over to their table. Mark would have a fit if he found out. He had specifically told her not to hook up with Arizona. And Callie kind of wished she had listened to him — it would have saved all the heart-break.
Swallowing thickly, Arizona stepped up to the front of the table. "Hey," the blonde greeted, discreetly focusing her gaze on Callie. She hadn't seen Calliope since their run in on Valentine's day, two days ago. It was painfully clear that the brunette was avoiding her.
"Robbins," Mark smirked, always happy to see the blonde. "Sit down."
It was hard not to notice the scowl on Calliope's face. "No, it's okay," she politely declined, hoping Mark and Addison couldn't pick up on the clear tension that was present. "I'm just gonna go sit in my office."
"Don't be crazy," Addison brushed the blonde off dismissively. She pointed to several papers that were thrown across the lunch table, taking up space, "Callie, move your crap and let the woman sit down!"
Callie glared at Addison, and then at Arizona. Knowing she couldn't get around this without looking like an arrogant bitch, she threw on a fake smile, aggressively snatching the papers over to her own side of the table. Now she had to sit with Arizona at lunch; this situation could not get any worse.
Breaking the weird, lingering silence, Addison indicated between the two women sitting across from each other. "You two don't really know each other, do you?"
Brown eyes met with blue, a shared look of nervousness passing between them. "No," Callie decided, looking straight at the blonde. "We don't know each other, at all!" It was a lie. Callie guessed that she knew Arizona better than Mark and Addison did. She knew that Arizona's favorite color was orange. She knew that if Arizona did that tapping thing with her fingers, it meant the blonde was nervous about something. She knew that Arizona hated the shortening of her name. She knew that Arizona loved it when Callie tickled her neck because it put her to sleep almost instantly. She knew a lot about Arizona. And, yet, somehow, Callie felt like they were complete strangers.
Neither Mark, nor Addison, seemed to notice the anger lurking in those deep brown eyes. But Arizona did notice. She could always tell what Callie was feeling, just by looking into those gorgeous chocolate orbs. Knowing she'd have to agree, a grimace-y smile formed on her face. "No. We don't know each other."
Addison sat up straighter in her chair. "Arizona, your apartment has two bedrooms, right?" The question made Callie drop the pen that she was holding, but the red head never thought anything of it. When the blonde nodded in confusion, Addison gave a wide grin. "Callie's looking for an apartment. Are you interested in a roommate?" she asked innocently, thinking her idea was genius.
Forcing her attention away from the paper she was reading, Callie's mouth dropped. "No! No! No!" Awkward, uncontrollable laughter poured out from the Latina's mouth, as she adamantly shook her head from side to side. That was the best thing she had heard all day.
Arizona noticed Addison was looking at Callie with suspicion, so she cut in before any questions could be asked. "I'm not really looking for a roommate. I'm kind of anal, anyway, so I don't think I'm the best choice," she said with humour, hoping the subject would immediately be dropped. She wondered where Calliope was staying at the moment.
"Right. Yeah," Addison hummed, her gaze drifting between the two women, who were looking away from each other. Something wasn't right.
Something caught Arizona's eye. And when she saw it — it ripped her apart. Calliope wasn't wearing the lab coat that Arizona had bought for her. The white material covering the Latina's body, was the standard edition of lab coat that every surgeon received from the hospital. The writing on the breast was simple and plain, not elegant and fancy, like the one Arizona had spent time choosing. It was clear to her that Callie was mad, but Arizona really didn't expect this.
Sensing blue eyes staring at her, Callie followed their gaze to her own collarbone. And she instantly knew what the problem was, knew what was making Arizona look like she had just been forcefully slapped across the face. She hated that it bothered her. But seeing Arizona look so upset, seeing her beautiful blue eyes look so sullen, really got to Callie.
"You can live with me," came the dull voice from behind Callie.
Recognizing the voice, but struggling to place a face on it, Callie spun around on her chair. "You want me to live with you?" She recognized the woman immediately as Cristina Yang, hardcore Cardio Resident. She didn't know anything about the woman, other than the fact that she was probably the most scalpel hungry person in the entire hospital.
"Sure." Cristina gave a nonchalant shrug, not looking at all bothered by who was going to live in her apartment.
Although the first thought in Callie's head, was a resounding no! The more Callie took a few seconds to think about it, the more Cristina Yang seemed like the perfect roommate. It was wildly know that the resident was always at the hospital, which meant she was hardly ever at home. And Callie figured that she would have to live close to the hospital. She wouldn't be surprised if Cristina revealed that she actually lived in the hospital. "Where do you live?"
"I live right across the street," Cristina revealed, nodding at Mark. "Across the hall from Sloan, actually."
For the love of — why were people forcing her to be near Arizona Robbins. Mark lived three floors above Arizona, which also meant Cristina lived three floors above Arizona. Callie couldn't live in the same building as Arizona. Seeing Arizona, whilst she was feeling this down about what had happened between them, absolutely wasn't a possibility.
Finding the scrunched up look on Calliope's face more than adorable, Arizona offered the Latina a small smile. "The apartment is really nice," she said quietly, almost sounding a little scared of Callie's reaction. "You'd really like it."
Making a point to blatantly ignore Arizona, Callie gave Cristina a thankful smile, shaking her head. "Thanks for the offer. But I'll pass."
"Yang! Stay!" Mark called out, just as the resident was about to walk away from the table. "Cal, what the hell?" He look at his friend, confused by her reaction to turning down the perfect option. "This is perfect! It's right across from work. It's right next to me. It's not that far from Addison's. Why the hell would you ever turn that down?"
Callie opened her mouth to respond, but upon realizing that she didn't actually have a reason for turning down the offer, she then closed it. There was no way of getting around this, she knew that, and so, she decided to give in. "Fine. I'll go view the apartment," she groaned, closing the paper shut.
"Great," Cristina stated unenthusiastically. "I'll be in tonight, around eight. So come by then." She made the move to walk away, but quickly turned back around. "And bring some food."
Later that night, Callie was stood in the middle of Cristina's living room, a wide smile on her face. "This place is great!" She had almost managed to forget that it was in the same building as Arizona; the apartment was that nice. The layout was similar compared to Mark's apartment, but the décor was entirely different. It wasn't expected, but Callie found herself to be a fan of Cristina's taste. The apartment was modern and edgy, not at all similar to the Easter basket Arizona lived in downstairs.
"You like it?" Cristina entered the living room, handing over a cool beer to her potential new roomie.
Taking a sip from the refreshing beverage, Callie nodded. "I really like it."
Cristina flopped down onto the couch. "I'm hardly ever here," the resident revealed, glancing around her apartment. "I'm either at the hospital, or at Mer's, or Owen's. He's here sometimes, too."
Sitting herself down in the trendy chair opposite the TV, Callie was torn in two. Cristina was basically telling her that she could have her own apartment. And even if Owen Hunt was sometimes here, Callie didn't mind; he seem like a decent enough guy. And anyway, it wasn't like she would always be running into Arizona. As far as Callie knew, the blonde wasn't close with Cristina, and only ever hung out at Mark's if there was an event or party going on.
"Okay," Callie decided, grinning. "Screw it, yeah. Let's do it."
"Great." Cristina raised her beer for an air click. "Do you need some help moving?"
People didn't have a lot of nice things to say about Cristina — words from Cristina herself — but Callie was finding that the resident wasn't all that bad. "That would actually be really great."
Offering a small nod, Cristina stood up, and went into the kitchen. She returned a few seconds later, a piece of paper in hand. "Here's the number for this really cheap moving company.
Callie rolled her eyes. "That's great. Thank you," she mumbled sarcastically, accepting the piece of paper, anyway.
"So, what's your deal?" Cristina looked at her new roommate with eager eyes. "You married? Single? Boyfriend? Girlfriend? Virgin? Sleeping with anybody at the hospital? Widowed?"
Maybe living with Cristina Yang wasn't such a great idea. "Wow. You really get straight to the point, don't you?" Callie laughed, taking another sip from her beer. She had the sudden urge to text Arizona and tell the blonde that she had a new apartment, but quickly remembered that they weren't speaking.
"You gonna answer the question?" Cristina pressed, her face blank.
Straight to the point, indeed, Callie thought. "Single. Not sleeping with anybody?" And currently presenting with a severe broken heart because of the woman three floors down.
"Gimme more than that?" Cristina whined, crossing her legs over to sit up further. "You're a total chick lover, aren't you?" She gave a confident smirk.
Callie let out a defeated sigh. "Yeah, whatever," she conceded with a wave of her hand.
Cristina only looked on knowingly. "You would totally go well with Roller Girl?"
Was that some sort of new pop singer? Callie had never heard of this person. "Who the hell is that?"
"Robbins," Cristina answered, like it was completely obvious. "Head of Peds?"
Callie didn't need Cristina Yang to tell her who Arizona Robbins was. "Yeah, I know who she is." She was confused by the nickname, though. "Why do you call her Roller Girl?"
"Uh, she used to wear Heeley's before she lost her leg," Cristina sounded a little sad, her teasing tone gone. "We used to all tease her about it, but her patients loved it."
Sitting back on her chair, the feeling soft on her back, Callie digested what Cristina had just told her. She didn't know that about Arizona, but it was just such an Arizona thing to do. The sweet, cute revelation only made her miss the blonde more. It had been two weeks since they'd had a proper conversation, and her life felt a little empty without Arizona in it.
Sensing that the brunette's demeanour had changed a little, Cristina changed the subject. "So, you wanna talk about rent? That's always fun."
Around an hour later, Callie was in the elevator of her new apartment building, heading back to her hotel for the last night. With a heavy, drawn out yawn forcing itself out of her mouth, she slumped back in the elevator, feeling her day catch up with her. When the elevator stopped at the Ground Floor, she stepped forward to make her way out, walking straight into an all too familiar face.
Arizona smiled softly, her heart rate speeding up at the sight of the gorgeous brunette. "Hi." She dropped her head in sadness as Callie ignored her, once again, and stepped around her. This was hell. "Did you take the apartment?" she called out in a last attempt, hoping Callie would turn around.
Callie froze, halfway down the lobby. Shaking her head, she turned around, a pained look on her face. "Does it really matter?"
Sighing, Arizona watched the Latina walk out of the lobby, and into the cold, dark night. For the same time in just about as many days, Arizona felt tears begin to roll down her face.
The next night, Arizona was on her way out of the hospital lobby, about to head home, but the conversation she happened to here coming from the two nurses behind her, completely stopped her in her tracks.
What she heard, made her blood run cold.
"The last thing I heard, was that Torres was out cold," one of the voices was heard saying.
"I heard it was really bad," the next voice said.
Arizona couldn't breath, couldn't force air into her lungs. There was on one Dr. Torres at Seattle Grace Mercy West. Ca-Callie. Something awful had happened to Callie.
Turning to face the two nurses, Arizona's face was whiter than snow. "What happened to Dr. Torres?!" the blonde demanded, her voice in a state of pure panic.
The nurse paused, shocked by the tone in the normally calm Dr. Robbins' voice. "She, um — she slipped in the ER and hit her head pretty bad. Dr. Shephard was sending her for a CT. That's all I know."
Not needing to hear anymore, Arizona bolted to the nearest elevator, her mind immediately imagining the worst possible scenario. Shephard was the best neurosurgeon in the whole country. If he was with Callie...
Clenching her eyes shut, Arizona couldn't begin to think about what had happened. In a matter of seconds, but what really felt hours, the blonde was heading towards the nurses station.
"Karev," Arizona called out shakily, spotting him heading down the hall. "Where's Dr. Torres?" She could feel the moisture on her cheeks, too panicked to actually care about it, though.
Alex looked at his boss uncomfortably. "Dude, are you crying?" He was glad they were no longer in the no speaking phase, like they were right after he had cut her leg off.
"Alex," the blonde yelled, her voice cracking. "Where's Callie?"
Not one to argue with a crying woman, Alex pointed to the room down the hall. "Down the hall with Addison. Tell Torres she cost me sex, tonight," he grumbled out, watching the blonde take off down the hall. It was the first time he had seen anything as close to a run from his boss, since she lost her leg.
There was some comfort in Alex's words. He had told her to tell Callie; that meant Callie was at least consciousness. Spotting a flash of distinctive raven hair through the window, Arizona burst through the door, a little out of breath. "Oh, thank god," she breathed out unevenly when she saw that Callie was sitting up in bed.
Callie frowned, the movement making her head hurt. "Why are you here?" the Latina spat aggressively, barely managing to sit up in the bed without feeling dizzy. She was embarrassed for Arizona to see her like this.
Not paying any acknowledgement to the anger present in that husky voice, Arizona strode forward, her hands reaching out to touch the cut on a tanned head. "You needed stitches." Her hand moved reverently over the small cut, whilst the other found its place on Callie's shoulder. "What happened?" she softly inquired, only to have her hands immediately shoved away.
Callie moved away from the soothing touch, hating that Arizona's hands on her body — even in her injured, pissed off state — still felt amazing. "I fell," she revealed with a groan, squaring her jaw. "Slipped on some blood in the ER, and hit my head."
Arizona gave her a sympathetic look, forcing herself to take a step back. "Are you okay?"
"Don't pretend like you give a crap, Arizona," Callie scoffed, her head shaking in annoyance.
"I do care!" Arizona insisted, looking like she had just been slapped. "How could you even say that?" Her voice was small, insecure.
Callie only looked away.
And that's when Arizona's resolve broke.
"I care about you so much, Callie," Arizona revealed, her blue eyes brimming with tears. She took a chance and sat down on the bed. "You don't think I want to go out with you? Because I do," she painfully revealed, reaching out to softly touch a tanned hand.
Callie's act of ignoring Arizona was gone in an instant. "Then why did you turn me down?" She wanted to pull her hand away, but Arizona's touch...it just felt too good, too perfect. When Arizona dropped her head, Callie sat up further. "Tell me the truth, Arizona," she begged, gripping the blonde's hand tight in her own.
The act was over, and there was nothing Arizona could do about it. "I've been getting really bad Phantom Limb pain, the past few months," she revealed in a whisper, scooting closer to Callie. "Sometimes...it's unbearable...awful." Out of habit when talking about her leg, blue eyes drifted down to look at her left leg, covered by dark blue jeans. "I don't want you to have to deal with that crap, Callie," she said, pleading for Callie to understand why she was doing this.
Leaning into Arizona's body, Callie placed a soft hand upon her left leg. "Why didn't you tell me?" It was so, so obvious now. She should have expected this; Arizona was too damn stubborn, sometimes.
"I knew you would worry," came the blonde's quiet, sullen response.
Callie reached up to brush the barely-there tears away from Arizona's face. "So you thought you'd just save me the hassle, and turn me down?"
Arizona nodded sadly, her body instinctively responding to Callie's touch. "Yeah," she admitted quietly.
Callie blew out a heavy breath. "You're a pain in my ass, Robbins," she said teasingly, the life suddenly back in her dark brown eyes. Blue eyes locked with her own, making Callie sigh. "You lied to me. And I'm pissed — I'm really, really pissed, Arizona."
"I know you are," Arizona replied quickly, pushing some blood-stained hair away from that gorgeous face. "I never wanted to hurt you, please believe that," she desperately pleaded, clutching Callie's hand in a death grip. "You're my best friend...my rock. You got me through so much, and the past two weeks without you, has been hell."
Despite being so, so mad at Arizona for not telling her the truth, Callie could understand why the blonde had done it. She knew Arizona had issues that were out of her control. "You don't scare me, Arizona." Sliding down the bed a little, Callie wrapped an arm around the blonde's waist, pulling her close. "I'm not going to run," the Latina earnestly promised, her voice begging for Arizona to believe her.
"You don't know how bad it is, Callie. You can't promise that." The frustrated tears began to spill down her cheeks, Callie quick to wipe them away. "What if we end up together, and then you leave." She searched Callie's face, looking for answers that were not there. "I can't take another loss, Callie! And I couldn't survive if I lost you."
Callie didn't know what she was supposed to say. The problems were clearly drilled into Arizona's head, no way of getting them out. "You wouldn't lose me," she adamantly insisted, knowing she was coming up empty.
"I can't think about being with you, without thinking that it's going to get too much for you, and you're going to end up walking away from me. How is it fair for you to be in a relationship like that?" It was something Arizona couldn't stop thinking about...Callie leaving her. "You deserve better than that, Calliope."
Callie was fighting a losing battle, that part was now clear. "I don't want better." She could feel her throat closing up, knowing that Arizona wasn't going to change her mind. "I want you," Callie whispered, her voice full of heartbreak.
"I want you, too. More than I've ever wanted anything in my whole life," Arizona admitted in return, locking eyes with teary brown. "I'm scared to love you...because all I can think about is losing you. I can't get that thought out my head long enough to be with you."
Falling back onto the bed, Callie breathed out heavily through her tears, the pain in her chest almost unbearable. "I-I have things that you don't like." It was the only thing she could think of, and even then, she knew it was useless. "I always breath really loudly in your ear. And I...I take up all the space...on your side of the bed," she mumbled out pleadingly.
Arizona shook her head with a laugh. "I love those things about you," the blonde insisted, moving forward to cup Callie's cheek softly.
Feeling that warm, curvy body cuddle into her from behind, Arizona closed her eyes, waiting for what she knew was about come. When it did, she laughed into the side of her pillow. "You breath really loudly. Did you know that?"
Callie purposely slowed down her breathing, a blush creeping up the side of her face. "What?!"
"It's just," Arizona began, turning around to face the stunned looking woman. "You're a really loud breather." The mortified look on Callie's face was the cutest thing the blonde had ever seen. "It's sort of like a lawnmower. And you take up every square inch of the bed."
Setting her jaw, Callie's eyebrows drew together. "A lawnmower," she repeated in disbelief. "Are you kidding me?!" She moved back to her own side of the bed, putting some space between them
Arizona laughed at the move from the brunette. "A really, really cute lawnmower," she tried to reason. It was becoming clear that Callie wasn't taking the joking comment as well as Arizona would have liked. "You look kinda mad."
"You just compared me to an instrument that cuts grass!" Callie just gaped, moving far away from Arizona to the other side of the bed. "You know what — It's fine. I'll stick to my side of the bed, and you stick to yours."
Laughing, Arizona watched as the Latina turned away from her. "Callie." No answer. "Callie." Moving behind the taller woman, she spooned the rigid body from behind, her lips reaching out to softly kiss the smooth skin on Callie's neck. "Callie," she whispered out, slipping her hand inside the pajama top to stroke a firm stomach. "I think it's really endearing. And I really like that you're such an adorable dork."
Knowing Arizona couldn't see, Callie smiled into her pillow. "Go back to your own side!"
Forcing the strong body onto its back, Arizona smoothly straddled Callie's hips. "Let me make it up to you," she husked out, leaning down to place open-mouthed kisses along a caramel collarbone. "Anything you want."
Callie's eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Mhmm-hmmm," Arizona hummed out, moving to kiss those plump lips that were now converted into a mischievous smile. "Anything." She punctuated the word with a rough tug on Callie's bottom lip.
Turned on beyond belief, Callie grinned. "I want to go get the whipped cream and chocolate sauce."
Arizona's face scrunched up in confusion. "Why?"
In one fluid motion, Callie slipped off Arizona's pajama top. "Because I wanna put it on you." She sat up, now eye level with those darkened baby blues that were filled with arousal. "And then I wanna lick it off you," she whispered seductively.
Swallowing heavily, the throbbing between her legs almost painful, Arizona moved to let Callie stand up off the bed. "Go get it." Callie Torres was going to kill her, Arizona was sure of it.
"You better be naked by the time I get back," Callie sternly said, raising an eyebrow.
Arizona had her shorts off before Callie had even left the room.
"I wish it wasn't like this. I need for you to believe that," Arizona appealed for Callie to believe her. She didn't know if telling the truth was going to make things better between them, or worse. "I couldn't sleep without you. For a week after you left...I couldn't sleep."
Callie managed to get the unwanted tears under control. "You couldn't?"
"No." Arizona shook her head sadly, their hands finding their way together again. "It wasn't in case I got a nightmare...it was in case you weren't there to get me through it when I woke up."
The words just about broke Callie's heart. "How bad is the Phantom Limb?" As an orthopedic surgeon, Callie had spent time with many patients, and knew how severe it could be.
"Really bad." Blue eyes had darkened to a look of pain, Arizona staring at the ground, embarrassed. "I could see the bugs in the nightmares. But now...now I can feel them," she admitted darkly, her body going tense at the thought.
"I can help you," Callie insisted firmly, refusing to let Arizona go through this alone. "There's techniques that we can do, to get it under control." A sudden jolt of pain went straight to her head, making her wince.
Arizona eased the brunette into lying down. "Shhh. We'll talk about this another time." She softly stroked Callie's hair, knowing it wasn't doing them any good, but wholly unable to stop.
"You're gonna go out with me eventually. You know that, right," Callie said matter-of-factly, blinking to stop the pain in her head. "I like you, and you like me. And I can't get over you—I don't want to get over you." In some way, she wished that Arizona hadn't told her the truth — because that way hurt a lot less. Now, they had to be around each other, knowing they both harboured these feelings.
"You will, Callie." Thinking about Callie with someone else killed Arizona, but she knew it was bound to happen at some point. "You're gonna meet somebody. And then you and I will laugh about this conversation, years down the line."
Callie gave an adamant shake of the head. "No!" She wasn't giving up on Arizona — on being with Arizona — not when there was feelings this strong, involved. "I'm gonna be with you — you're the only person I want." The only person she was ever going to want. "And maybe right now isn't the right time for us...but there will be a right time for us," she promised, her tone leaving no room for argument.
Arizona wanted nothing more than Callie to be right. "What the hell are we gonna do?" she brokenly asked, dropping her head to rest on Callie's shoulder.
"We're gonna be friends." There was no other option for Callie — Arizona was easily the most important person in her life. "And even though I've been pissed as hell at you, the past two weeks — I've missed you so much," the Latina admitted, wrapping her arms around the crying blonde. "You mean too much to me, and I can't not have you in my life."
"Me, too," Arizona agreed sharply, sitting back to look into those heartbroken eyes. "You really think we can do that — be friends?" She couldn't be around Callie and not want to kiss her, but she also couldn't not be around her, either.
Callie laughed, a look of unknown on her face. "You got a better idea?" she mumbled out playfully.
Managing her own laugh, Arizona nodded her head in agreement. "No, I don't," the blonde conceded. Slowly, she reached her hand out, fingers softly brushing over the nasty looking cut on Callie's forehead. "I really missed you."
Falling into the familiar embrace, Callie held the blonde close, hugging her tight. "I missed you, too." The smell of Arizona's shampoo was throwing her mind into a tailspin. And she found herself having not-so friendly thoughts.
"Well, I spoke to Shephard," Addison burst through the door, immediately hearing two frustrated groans. Looking up, she was shocked to see her friend engaging in an intimate hug, with Arizona Robbins. And just like that, Addison's suspicions were confirmed. Something had happened — or was still happening — between them. It was written all over their faces, made clear by the way they were looking at each other. "Oh, sorry." Her gaze drifted down to their joined hands, an eyebrow raising once she saw their fingers entwined. "Am I interrupting something?"
"No, you're fine," Callie grumbled, glaring daggers at her friend. "What did Shephard say?"
Addison couldn't take her eyes off Arizona, who was, in return, unable to take her eyes off Callie. What the hell was going on with these two? "He wants you to stay in for observation tonight. He was gonna come tell you, but he got paged 911."
Groaning aloud, Callie reached over to take a sip of her water. Arizona's eyes were trained on those delicious, plump lips as they wrapped around they straw. "What else did he say?" the brunette inquired, shifting to lay on her side, the painkillers beginning to kick in.
"He wants someone to observe you overnight, so I said —"
"I'll do it," Arizona offered, cutting the red head off. She met Addison's gaze, unsure of the look she saw lingering there. "I'll stay with her."
Becoming more shocked by the second, Addison tilted her head, looking at Callie. "Callie?"
"It's fine," Callie said, knowing what her friend was silently asking. She knew Addison's questions were going to have to be answered, tomorrow.
"Okay, then," Addison sighed out, laughing a little. "Feel better. I'll come check on you, tomorrow."
Callie rolled her eyes. "I'm sure that you will," she mumbled tiredly, watching her friend leave the room.
"So...Addison knows," Arizona chimed in, chewing her lip awkwardly.
"Yeah," Callie said, yawning heavily. "You don't have to stay with me, Arizona."
"Shut up," Arizona shot back, tugging the comforter tight around Callie's body, making sure she was nice and snug. "Get some sleep." Remembering something from a week ago, Arizona asked, "Did you bin the lab coat I bought you?" It had been bothering her since she first noticed Callie wasn't wearing it.
"No, I would never bin it. My pride was a little dented, but I'll wear it as soon as I'm back to work." Callie's eyes were already drifting closed, the exhaustion of the day clear on her sleepy face. Arizona released a heavy, thankful breath, making Callie smile. "I'm still mad at you, by the way."
Arizona smiled, reaching down to place a kiss atop Callie's forehead. But as soon as she was half way down, Callie looked up, their lips now level. Callie glanced at pink lips inches from her own, aching to feel them press against her own. It would be so easy for Arizona to lean in and close the distance. Callie wanted it. She wanted it. But it wasn't fair to either of them.
And so, the blonde forced her head upwards, her lips placing a small kiss to the middle of Callie's forehead. "Go to sleep, Lawnmower," the blonde teased, making Callie laugh huskily. It wasn't how she expected her night to go, but as long as she had Callie back in her life, again — Arizona wasn't caring.
They fell asleep holding hands, neither of them aware of the fact that they were sleeping in the same room that Callie would — in a few years down the line — give birth to their daughter in.
Regular updates! Can you believe it...cause I really can't. The reviews for the last chapter, though — you guys are seriously unbelievable. I know a lot of you want them to get together straight away, but if the updates keep coming like this — the story could be done in a few weeks. I'm ecited to see what you guys think. You're all awesome!
