Chapter Title: Melody
POV: Callie
Disclaimer: This is a 1950s fanfic, so it is AU. I do not own the characters of Callie and Arizona. They are the creations of Shonda Rhimes and the writers of Grey's Anatomy. Every other character though is of my own creation, but I might add more Grey's characters later on. Also, because this is AU and in a different time period, Callie and Arizona will not be as they are on the show, but I stay pretty close to their personalities as possible.
Notes: I honestly had a lot of fun writing this chapter because I got to listen to 1950s music. The radio station is real, taken from a clip I heard on Youtube. And the songs and their lyrics are real as well, of course. The first song is "Singin' in the Rain" by Gene Kelly. The second song that plays on the radio is "You Belong To Me" by Patsy Cline. Feel free to listen to them while reading the fic! They are both quite good songs. Thanks for all the feedback! I hope you enjoy this chapter as well!
The afternoon sun peeked through the vertical blinds of Callie's living room window. It had taken much time and patience to put the twins to sleep, but finally Callie was able to have her sons nap while she could finally have some peace and quiet. Well, peace for that matter. The quiet. Not so much. A silly tendency, she quite thought it to be, was turning on the radio and singing along. Or at least humming since she had no trust in her singing voice. If there was one thing she knew, music could make anyone happier. Even if she was listening to it while cleaning. It filled the room with something other than the silence and boredom. Although no one was coming to Callie's house that night, she was dusting the living room furniture while the radio played in the background.
"Come on with the rain/I've a smile on my face/I walk down the lane/With a happy refrain."
Callie hummed along as she straightened the painting she hung above the fireplace. A surprise to her, it hadn't taken long to fix up the house and decorate. The boxes that had cluttered the living room floor were moved. Callie had to admit her house sure was a sight. She loved the simple things of the house the most. Like the way the curtains over the kitchen window gathered the sunlight so nicely in the morning. It almost made the act of washing dishes more bearable. Everything was quite was lovely. So, with the twins' bedroom, the spacious kitchen, and her belongings in place, she felt as if she needed the house to become more of home. A home. Not just some run-of-the-mill place her husband had bought her to keep their marriage together. No, she needed a home. She deserved a home.
"I'm happy again!/ I'm singin' and dancin'in the rain!"
The gentle melody of the song playing on the radio brought her back into what she was truly doing. Instead of thinking and pondering. But cleaning. She was dusting the furniture, even though she suspected dust couldn't already accumulate. It had only been days since she first moved in. The truth was she was nervous about tonight's dinner. She almost dreaded it, considering her not too successful record of dinners. Callie was never the well-spoken woman who picked out her words as carefully as if picking out her evening dress. Somehow, her words always seemed to come out jumbled. Her words were a mix of hesitancy and confusion, and she dreaded the thought of her looking like an odd ball in front of her new neighbors. Though, it wouldn't be the first time she looked like a fool.
Callie had reached the instrumental portion of the song when Gene Kelly pulled off his famous tap dancing routine. And despite of her lack of dancing skills, Callie could no longer fight the urge to spin around like Gene Kelly once did. She lifted up her skirt and tried to follow the taps on the radio. Though, on carpet flooring and with no tap dancing skills, it certainly didn't achieve the same effect it did in the flick. But once the instrumental music ended, she plopped down on the armchair with a silly smile on her face.
"I'm dancin' and singin' in the rain…"
Callie felt lucky the house came with blinds covering the large living room because the thought of someone seeing her was mortifying. But she was alone. Right now, she was all alone in peace. For a moment, she closed her eyes, letting herself relax in the blue armchair.
The doorbell rang. Callie opened her eyes, wondering who the person at the door could be. But in the back of her head, she already knew. Arizona Robbins had come to see her every day this week. At first it had been surprising because Callie couldn't possibly imagine someone else enjoying her company. Now, four days after they first met, Callie was glad she met the blonde woman who was the same blonde woman standing on the Torres' front door step at that very moment.
"Hello, Arizona," Callie greeted before even opening the door all the way. She expected little Violet to be holding onto her mother's skirt, but she was not there. "Where's Violet?"
The other woman smiled at Callie brightly. "Now, I know what you're thinking, Calliope," Arizona started as she stepped inside the house freely. "You're thinking I'm silly to come over when you'll be at my house for dinner in an hour or so. And I know. I probably am. That is crazy, to be more exact. But dinner's ready. Violet's sleeping. And I can't seem to find anything to do,"
The radio, in the background, played advertisements before the next song would run. And Callie, for a moment, was overwhelmed, for it still took a while to get used to the babblings of Arizona Robbins. At least, she could make sense of them unlike her own babblings. Her own babblings seemed to be the result of awkwardness and mostly stupidity. "Are you sure Violet will be okay alone?" Callie asked, worried for a moment. Although Violet was a year older than Mark and George, the dark-haired mother couldn't possibly imagine leaving her babies alone in her house. The house that still did not feel like a home yet.
"She just fell asleep," Arizona clarified, still standing in the foyer with Callie. "I hadn't had the time to get her to bed until after I finished cooking-"
"This is the Progressive Station with tomorrow's ideas here today. Here on KRIZ! I'm loving KRIZ, Channel 123 !"
"So?"Callie started the same time the next song on the radio did as well.
Arizona stared into the other woman's eyes, and she no longer remembered what she had planned to say. In that moment, it barely seemed to matter. She did this too often. She came here looking crazy way too often. It was never the impression she wanted imprinted in Callie's mind. "I-I…could I borrow some honey?"
"Just remember darling all the while,"
"What?" Callie answered.
"You belong to me,"
"It'll only take a moment. I just need to borrow some honey," Arizona explained.
"Okay," Callie answered, still confused, but she figured it wouldn't hurt to let Arizona use some of the honey from her honey jar. Callie walked towards her kitchen and then towards the pantry. On the top right stood the little honey jar she kept.
"Just remember when a dream appears,"
Callie came back with the honey jar in her hands. "Do you need anything else, honey?" Callie asked, laughing at her own joke.
"You belong to me,"
Arizona forced a smile. No matter what she did, the result always seemed to end in embarrassment. This entire week had been different for her. Less boring. Almost interesting. If anything, the dinner had to end up well. She couldn't lose the only friend she liked in the neighborhood. "No, that will be all," she replied, ready to head back to her own house.
"Just remember till you're home again,"
Callie nodded. All she could think about how much of a mess she looked like. Her hair was in a messy bun, and her apron was still on. She had planned to freshen up after Mark and George woke up, but she hadn't expected Arizona to come. At least at that time.
"You belong to me,"
"See you at dinner then," Arizona added looking into Callie's eyes. She gave the other woman a soft smile. Still carrying the jar of honey, Arizona headed back to her own place. What had seemed like a good idea at the time seemed like a complete disaster right now. The only good to come out of the meeting was a jar of honey she didn't possibly need.
"I'd be so alone without you,"
Callie sighed, realizing that now would be a good time to freshen up. She turned off the radio before heading upstairs. Dinner couldn't possibly be as awkward as that recent meeting. Hopefully.
