Title: Perky Beautiful
Author: Gina and Ash
Pairing: Callie/ Arizona, Callie/OC, Arizona/OC
Rating: R
Summary: Callie and Arizona experience something unexpected in Paris that changes their relationship with others. How will this affect Callie's relationship with Matt?How will Nikki cope with this?Can Callie and Arizona get together? AU Calzona
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this fiction, nor do I have any rights in regards to them. All characters belong to ABC and Shonda Rhimes
A/N : Thanks to everyone who reviewed :D
Matt's POV
"You called me?" I closed the door and sat in the chair in front of Langdon's table. I appreciated how he had the blinds open letting the natural light enter his office instead of the florescent light. He is even known for liking to work in the dark during the day.
"You know that I was given two seperate proposals for the case? One from you and the one was from Johan Heyns..." he said while checking this phone.
"I am aware of that Langdon..." I said as I stretched my neck. Everything was making me tense. This stupid case and my position within it.
"You are like my son Matt and Callie is like my daughter. She has given up a lot for you to be such a cut throat lawyer." he was looking directly at me right now.
"I don't get it Langdon..." I said confused.
"Are you willing to give up more? Are you willing to put in more hours is what I am trying to say..." he placed the folder infront of me.
"Are you rejecting the proposal?" I said completely surprised.
"Johan knows I accepted your proposal and he has no doubt about it Matt. That's how good you are. We are going with your plans, assessments, and defense for the case..." Langdon gave his fatherly smile.
"Really..." I ran my hands through my hair. I couldn't believe this. The sleepless nights and countless hours drafting and re-drafting had finally paid off.
"I think Callie will kill me if she knows what you are up to..." he laughed.
"I don't she will mind to tell you frankly.." I said.
"What do you mean?" Langdon asked confused.
"Langdon, I don't know. It's like ... she's fine with it. She's been acting really.. distant lately. She is loving and caring don't get me wrong.. but it's something different." I looked away.
"Have you tried asking her about it?"
"No, cuz I think she's just into her work too. She is very successful at it. She just seems mentally pre-occupied...like she is always thinking about something." I said to him hoping for some sort of sage advice to be given.
"Maybe she is sort of tired of fighting for the marriage to work because of the time constraints..." he replied.
"I will try to talk to her about it. It's just so weird..." I said getting up.
"Matt, you can talk to me anytime...' He politely offered.
"Thanks Langdon.. If you don't mind me asking, Can I get off early today?" I flashed my charming smile.
"Is it something work related?"
"It's something wife related..." I smiled.
"Sure, just finish sending me your reports by noon." he informed.
"Thanks Langdon..." I opened the door to step out.
"Anything for Callie..." he laughed.
Callie's POV
"Torres." Bailey said while awkwardly smiling.
"Bailey." I said, forcing myself to smile too. I was holding the patient's chart ready to deliberate the diagnosis I had made earlier.
"Torres." She beamed more widely.
"Is..is everything okay?" I looked at my scrubs to make sure there weren't any holes or stains on them.
"Oh we are okay. The question is…are you feeling okay?" Bailey is not this optimistic especially this early into her shift.
"Bailey, did you have mind blowing sex or something because I know for a fact.. a fact.. that you are not this happy every morning..." I said while she was reading her charts.
"Torres, I am happy but thanks for linking it to something dirty. And no, I did not have sex.." She continued to write.
"Bailey, I have a patient waiting. He has osteomyelitis and needs to be on antibiotics stat." I said slowly walking away.
"Torres."
I turned around.
"Enjoy your day. Make the most out of it." Bailey smiled. I knew Bailey was probably lying, she had sex and had multiple orgasms for her to have this much happiness in her.
Arizona's POV
I was heading towards the coffee cart with Addison to get a muffin or something to eat before I tried tracking down Derek to talk to him about Chloe's treatment plan.
As we were waiting for our coffee's and chocolate chip muffins both our pagers went of at the same time. We had been paged to the auditorium immediately.
"I wonder what is going in the auditorium?" I asked Addison confused.
She seemed equally confused. "Must be an unscheduled M&M" she muttered in disgust.
"I guess we should head there then," I suggested.
"Trust me we should wait for our coffee and muffins. We are going to need them to stay awake during that thing."
I laughed loudly at that before heading to the auditorium a bit wary of the dreaded M&M.
Maybe we could sit at the back and I could catch a nap.
Calliope's POV
"Hi..welcome everybody…" Derek cleared his throat on the microphone.
"What is going on?" I heard Cristina whispered behind me.
"I don't know he didn't tell me anything…" Meredith replied equally confused.
"I thought married people had one feeling and one thinking kind of thing…you're practically sharing the same brain." Cristina replied sarcastically.
"Cristina…" Meredith replied irritated.
"Please have a seat…" He said to the people standing on the side of the auditorium. This better be good. I gave up two of my surgical procedures to attend something I didn't even have a clue about. I checked my phone to see if there were any messages from Matt about my car that broke down the other day.
"Welcome everybody… First, I would like to say that I don't usually do this for something like this. But this is special. Real special. I am very privileged to say that today we have been given an honour that truly, just truly speaks for itself. Obviously we did not get the 2010 Flance-Karl Award from the American Surgical Association, thank you Dr. Alfonso Gonzales for sweetly taking that away…" he chuckled and smirked at Arizona who reciprocated his smile.
"Is this one of his tactics to expose his chiefly position?" I asked Addison who was seated beside me.
"Beats me…" She replied equally confused.
I tried my very best to look and speak to Arizona as professionally as possible. I knew Addison had a way of smelling anything in my line of thought. Even though Addison was seated between us, I found Arizona's presence very infectious and sweetly intoxicating.
"You know Dr. Alfonso Gonzales?" Addison asked Arizona, loud enough for me to hear.
"Yup, he's our chief of surgery…" she proudly replied.
"That man is every bit honourable…" Addison said.
"Some of you were informed about this and yes I advised that this should be kept discreet for a reason. I wanted this to be a surprise for someone in particular and this also should serve as an inspiration and motivation for other doctors who are struggling to successfully complete their research and clinical trials. This was not an easy task and I know that every bit of hard work, failure, and disappointment was worth the accomplishment in the end." Derek placed his both hands on the podium and looked directly at me.
Some were smiling in the crowd and others were plainly confused in curiosity. I felt my phone vibrate and saw it was a text message from Matt.
Babe car wil b repaired by 2morrow. C u soon. I luv u & u deserve every success.
"He has received numerous honours and awards for his contributions to the field of transplantation. He is a major contributor in The Journal of Experimental Medicine and is the recipient of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons Roche Pioneer Award and the Medallion for Scientific Achievement of the American Surgical Association Please give a round of applause to someone who I truly admire…Dr. Conner Michael Laurel." Derek stepped away from the podium to shake hands with him. He was wearing a black suit and carrying a plaque and medal. He looked like someone in his late fifties with a receding hairline but fit, nonetheless. He looked very confident yet humble for someone who achieved this much in his life.
"We are here to see him?" I heard Cristina complain again.
"Great another lecture instead of surgery…" I sighed.
Addison just looked confused because she clearly didn't know what her presence was going to contribute to this entire thing. I felt her arm fumble for her pager deep within her white lab coat.
"Good morning everybody…" he warmly smiled and placed the plaque and medal on the podium.
"Show off…" I heard Cristina slowly whispered.
"Cristina… I turned around and to tried to shush her unnecessary comments.
"First, I am not a public speaker…at all. When the panel informed me that I would be doing this in front of such talented doctors and staff, I couldn't help but honestly feel very nervous…" Dr. Conner Michael Laurel adjusted his cufflinks. He was clearly trying to compose himself because he didn't have any paper as a guide with him. Every word he was uttering was coming from within.
"I was very impressed with the dedication of this doctor's research. I was inspired by the consistency and diligence of the material and explanation provided within the research. To master this sort of engineering is extremely, I mean extremely daunting and stressful. Many of our candidates have tested it but have not been as successful as this next recipient. I have been sent by the distinguished panel to award a very deserving doctor the 2010 Thomas Enzo Award for medical research and innovation." Dr. Conner Michael Laurel proudly said.
I completely felt my heart skip. The entire crowd started whispering in a continuous motion.
"Oh my God… I would die to have one." I heard someone say loudly.
"I think Webber is probably getting it…" Cristina confidently said.
"I have a greater chance of winning a Nobel peace price than a Thomas Enzo Award..." Addison joked. I completely agreed with her.
"Dr. Shepherd would you be kind enough to join me here…" He motioned Derek to stand next to him by the podium.
"I, Dr. Conrad Michael Laurel and the distinguished panel at the Thomas Enzo Medical innovation and research institute, present this prestigious title and honour of the 2010 Thomas Enzo Award for medical research and innovation to Dr. Calliope Iphigenia Torres for her bold and ground-breaking research and clinical trial in Tissue engineering. She has successfully developed new cartilage using an Injectable Hydrogel. She also effectively managed to transplant these using three methods which are not only minimally invasive but decreases the chances of complications as well. Dr. Calliope Iphigenia Torres please come up the stage to receive the plaque and the medal of honor." He exclaimed.
I was stunned.
I couldn't move.
This was the Thomas Enzo Award. The award that only one doctor has received from this hospital. The award that gives you a edge against any doctor in the world.
I looked at Addison who was equally stunned as me.
Arizona's POV
"I brought us some coff-" I stopped my sentence midway when I unexpectedly saw Calliope sitting inside Addison 's office. She always manages to change my disposition whether I see her unexpected or expectedly. I slowly pushed the bottom of the door with my foot to shut it.
"I was just waiting for Addie to…"
"Yeah I thought she was here too.." I managed to say. I placed one coffee on Addison 's table and positioned the other coffee close to Calliope.
"Uh…" She tried resisting it.
"You can have mine…" I smiled.
"Really…?" Calliope finally smiled.
"Yes..really." I replied. I honestly did not know whether to sit on the empty chair beside Calliope or continue to stand.
"I…"
"I…" We both said simultaneously.
"No, you.."
"You.." We both said simultaneously said again.
I took a deep breath and silently counted to three to stop interrupting her.
"Hating you…running away from you…is clearly not helping…" She said without looking up. She ran her hands through her hair and tucked small pieces of it behind her ears.
I took a deep breath and sat beside her.
"You know how that feeling still lingers even after fighting to run away from it. It's this dull ache that waiting for you to do something…" She continued.
"I am very proud of you Calliope and I know you didn't win today because you wanted to win or you needed the recognition…" I faced her but she was still looking down. "The money and the research will help a lot of people…" I whispered back.
"Thank you. I was just sick and tired of people thinking that I submitted my research to the Thomas Enzo foundation for the sake of getting a damn Thomas Enzo award. I needed the money and support for it to be widely available…" She said while rubbing the top part of the medal with thumb.
"Whatever it may be, you are a rockstar…and you deserve it." I just wanted to kiss her in this moment but stopped before I made matters worse.
" Arizona …" She surprisingly took my hand and squeezed it. I felt the rush of blood to my heart and her touch just intensified it.
I deeply sighed to try and regulate my breathing.
"Je t'aimerai toujours…And even if I fight you and even if I make you hate me…I know deep within Arizona that some how..some way in some shape or form… we will always, almost always..find a way to one another…" Caliiope looked at me directly. I slowly wrapped my fingers against hers. Her wedding ring against my fingers was a constant reminder of our situation.
Calliope's POV
When you runaway from something instead of facing it from the beginning, in some way, it will always come back to haunt you. I despised how the more I fought my feelings for Arizona , they kept intensifying every day. It was a stark reminder of the choice I needed to make.
"You still remember French?" she smiled.
"I remember everything. Every moment." I honestly replied.
She took my hand and slowly kissed the back of it.
"Oh hi!" we both abruptly sat up when Addison came in. I immediately separated my hand away from hers.
"Hi…" Addison replied eyeing the both of us. I just continued to smile hoping she would not read the tension between us.
"I bought coffee…" Arizona pointed to the coffee cup.
"Thanks Arizona . Callie, come here.. Congratulations!" Addison hugged me so hard that my medal almost fell from my lap.
"Uh yeah.. Thanks." I awkwardly replied.
"Do you both know each other?" Addison asked before sitting in her chair.
"Oh us?..Um.." I replied confused.
"We just met..right Ca- I mean Dr. Torres" Arizona uncomfortably replied.
"Oh yeah Dr. Robbins.." I gave a fake chuckle.
"So Callie what brought you here? Can I just say I am so proud of you…" Addison beamed.
"Thanks Addison you sound like my dad too. I ju-just came here for…" I completely forgot my purpose of being here. I looked at Arizona who was also waiting for a response.
"For?" Addision asked.
"Oh yeah, Wanna hang at Joe's later? Drinks on me…" I offered.
"Callie, Matt just texted me..your father is throwing a party for you and apparently he invited like half of the hospital…" Addison responded. I gave a shocked look to Arizona .
"Wha-what?"
"Didn't Matt tell you?" Addison asked curiously.
"Obviously not, but why? Gosh.." I replied irritated.
"Callie, you were seriously being kept in the dark…" Addison laughed.
"I cannot believe this. Is this crap necessary?" I opened the door to walk out and call Matt at home from the nurse's station.
"Callie you won a freakin' award that's like the Oscars for the medical Gods…you deserve a little bit of celebration.." Addison exclaimed.
"Um yeah whatever but not in this fashion…" I said before closing the door.
Arizona's POV
I was nervously fiddling with my dress with one hand and drumming on the dashboard of Addison's car with the other. I felt akward going to this party firstly because I would have to see Calliope with her husband and secondly I wasn't actually invited.
Addison insisted I go with her and I couldn't say no.
"Are you always this nervous in a car or am I having a special effect on you?" she asked me after ten minutes of my twitchy behaviour.
"No…no….it's just I feel like I am gate crashing this party." I finally admitted.
"Arizona, Callie is a very warm person and she'll be so happy you wanted to share in the celebration of her success."
"Or if it makes you feel better we can tell everyone we are officially dating and you are there as my date." She teasingly added with a wink.
"I'll keep that in mind." I winked back.
I couldn't help but chuckle at her attempt to put me at ease and cheer me up.
Calliope's POV
"Podiamos celebrar sin una fiesta grande daddy…" I said as I tried fixing my red dress. This was the dress I usually chose when I didn't really want to look very dressy yet super casual for the occasion. I loved how it was off shoulder and completely comfortable.
"Calliope you deserve this..I know you didn't expect me to have such party organized.." Daddy said. He was standing by the door and checking his phone.
"Matt, I cannot believe you…you were in this?" I said completely irritated.
"I just followed your dad's orders. He called in the catering company and everything. Callie all you need to do is enjoy. You don't even have to do the dishes…" Matt said so casually.
"No occupo todo esto daddy…No occupo todo esto.." I whispered to myself as I touched the heart shaped necklace Arizona gave me.
"Baby, I already E-mailed and texted everyone. They are coming..just…enjoy this okay.."Matt said. He was clearly dressed for the occasion. He was wearing his black button up shirt with white slacks. I thought he was heading out for work before he broke out the news in the parking lot. He knew I was going to wonder what all these waiters were doing around our house.
"No te puede creer en-ses…" I said almost rolling my eyes at him.
"Calliope, I organized this okay? Please.. this is a monumental event for you mija…" Daddy said with his soft tone.
" No creo que muy importante daddy…" I said. Honestly the last thing I want is a party.
"Baby come here.." Matt approached me and touched my hair. "Just look at this..as something we are proud of. Heck, we can drink..enjoy..and tomorrow you can go on with the benefits of the research okay?..." He smiled.
"Fine…" I sighed and wore my high heels.
This is going to be a long night.
Arizona's POV
I was feeling a sense of trepidation as Addison and I arrived at the Cohen residence for the party. We knocked and the smartly dressed butler greeted us with a friendly smile and let us in.
"Dr. Montogmery and Dr. Robbins" He greeted us before taking our coats.
"Hello James." Addison smiled at him.
I was surprised that he knew who I was but realized that Addison must have listed me as her guest while sending her RSVP for the party.
As I took in the inside of the house on our way to the hall where the party was being held I was in a state of awe. The interiors of the house such as the chandeliers and paintings seemed expensive but tasteful. The walls were a rich cream color and the furniture was made of exquisite mahogany.
As I took all this in it made me question whether I had any right to disrupt this home Calliope had built with her husband...did I have any reason to expect her to choose me or was I just setting myself up for the sting of rejection?
The sound of music playing and people laughing got louder as we approached the party room. I felt my breath taken away. Calliope was looking regal and amazingly divine in a beautiful red dress . She was standing in a corner talking with a handsome man who I assumed to be Matt and Derek and his wife. Upon hearing the beautiful tinkle of her laughter I couldn't help but let out an audible sigh.
"Are you ok?" Addison asked concerned.
"Sure. I was just admiring how beautiful the house is." I smiled.
Addison still looked a little doubtful but her attention was diverted by Callie who had spotted her and was walking towards her with a huge smile on her face.
"Addie you are finally here. What took you so long?" Callie hugged Addison with a huge smile on her face which slowly fell as she finally noticed me.
"Let me breathe Callie." Addison laughed."You know the annoying Seattle traffic. I was stuck behind some idiot who insisted on crawling at 20 mph." she complained.
Callie was still staring at me in a mixture of shock, happiness , fear and several other emotions I couldn't quite name. I was hurt and upset at how things had gone between us in the last couple of days...but this was Calliope's big moment and I didn't want to taint it by my emotional behavior. I would be a good man in a storm and keep a smile on my face because I truly was incredibly proud of her for her well deserved success.
"Congratulations Dr. Torres. No one deserves this award more than you do. Your hard work, perseverence and skill is an inspiration for any young woman entering our profession." I smiled at her and offered my hand to shake.
She seemed taken aback at my smile and formal words but quickly recovered her poise.
"Thank you so much for coming Dr. Robbins. Please make yourself at home and enjoy the party." She replied while shaking my hand.
Calliope's POV
"Here you go…" I handed bailey her third flute of champagne. She was seated by the pool area alone. Ben had to leave temporarily to check on a patient but promised to be back in an hour.
"You're trying to get me drunk?" She laughed.
"Who knows it might work for you…" I winked and laughed.
"I am really proud of you Torres" She held up her champagne flute.
"Thanks but now you sound like my dad." We toasted our flutes together and took a sip.
"Torres, you gotta face it." She genuinely said.
"Face what?" I asked and sat beside her. I adjusted my dress to make sure it was not going to get caught by the twigs behind us.
"Face whatever is it you are running from. It is painfully obvious. Painfully." She took another sip of the champagne.
"It's just really complicated, I tried fighting it…hoping it would just disappear." I said as I thought about Arizona.
"What you did in Paris will not disappear. It must have meant something if it is eating you up this way…" she said.
"The guilt is not eating me up honestly. It is the choice." I said playing with my heart shaped necklace.
"The choice?" She repeated surprised.
"Yes the choice between my marriage and her." I looked directly in her eyes.
"Torres, Y-You are actually considering this?" She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Bailey placed her champagne flute on the glass table and faced me.
"It was not some random person I experimented with. It is not someone I can easily forget. Trust me bailey, she is not someone anyone can easily forget. At all." I said very seriously. I definitely saw the hesitation of advising otherwise in her eyes. I sensed how she became immediately uncomfortable.
"He needs to know, soon. He deserves to know, soon." She finally said.
"I understand that. What hurts me the most is that my father would see this as a failure of his upbringing…" I said trying to compose myself. I cannot imagine the humiliation and discontentment in his attitude towards me when he finds out.
I felt Bailey sigh.
"Torres, look here…" She placed her hand on my shoulder. "You know what is best for you. People will judge regardless, what you need to do is think what is best for you. The game changes especially when you are married. When you decide, stick to it. I am here. Addison is here too. You need to face this before it eats you alive. And Torres, as a friend, it is painful to see…" She concluded. I slowly felt her arms around me as she gave a reassuring hug.
"Thank you…" I whispered.
"Let's have another one of these things…" She said and picked up both our empty champagne flutes.
Arizona's POV
"Do you like Tennis?" I turned around to see whose unfamiliar voice that was.
"Hi..." I whispered back.
"Hi, I am Matt. Are you new at the hospital? You look unfamiliar..." He stood beside me. He was much prettier than he looked in his pictures. I was looking at their wall and witnessing their monumental pictures. The entire wall was covered with different types of black frames with the pictures of them together and separately.
"Hi, I am Arizona.." I shook his extended hand. I can certainly see he was a huge fan of tennis. He had action pictures of himself playing tennis and one picture where Calliope was kissing him when he won some trophy.
"Here have one…" He picked up a glass of champagne from one of the trays the waiter was serving. I tried my best to keep myself composed in front of him. We both shared deep love and respect for the same woman. I was absolutely sure about one thing – this was going to be a hard battle to fight.
"Does Calliope like tennis?" I asked taking a small sip from the champagne flute. I loved the black and white picture of her at the beach on the left side of the wall. Her smile looked incredibly beautiful. It reminded me of the moment during the Paris plage when she wore her bikini.
"Calliope?... haven't heard someone say that in awhile…everybody calls her Callie. She doesn't like it as much as I do." he chuckled. The shape of Matt's eyes and the length of his lashes made his eyes a distinct asset. I didn't exactly know how to approach this situation so I just went with the flow.
"Calliope is actually very beautiful….I-I mean the name." I said taking another sip of the champagne. This was my third round for the night and I loved how it maintained my bravado.
"Indeed it is. So, are you new at the hospital? I have met almost all of Callie's friends there.." he smiled.
"Well, I am from New York… I was called in for a week to attend to a patient of mine who is currently admitted in the hospital here. Her case.. is pretty serious." I said.
"Nice… Arizona, you must be one heck of a doctor for them to request you across the state…" He smiled. He placed his empty champagne flute on the side table and offered me some salmon hors d'oeuvres.
"Thanks…" I said taking one from his plate.
"So do you work in the same department as Callie? I heard her work is always pretty intense…"
"She's in ortho and I am in peds…" I said picking on the salmon.
"Oh.. so how did you get to know her?" he asked as he chewed on the salmon.
"Through Addison…" I said as confidently as possible.
"Oh okay, yeah she works with kids.… Well, I am glad you came along to celebrate with us…" he responded courteously.
"Anything for Calliope…" I smiled.
"It's so interesting how the name rolls of your tongue…it sounds meaningful." He said wiping off the bits of salmon from his fingers. I noticed the modern design of his wedding ring had diamonds embedded in it. It looked the male version of Calliope's wedding ring.
That's very well thought out.
"Yes it does…" was all I managed to say.
Arizona's POV
I retrieved the small box from the kitchen counter beside their double door fridge and headed to Calliope's room. Matt told me to take the stairs and according to him, it was the second room to the left. I made my way through the crowd careful not to bump into anyone.
"Está bien Aria… really, it's fine. Yeah… Muchos Gracias." Calliope was sitting on the bed and talking on her cell phone. I loved how her entire room was accented by the light of the lamp by her bed. The dim yellow lights made her room eloquently romantic. I stood by the door unsure whether to step in or to wait for her until she finished her conversation.
She instinctively looked up at me.
"I- I can come back…" I said uncertainly. I didn't know whether to leave or stay.
"It's okay…this is quick… come in." she said placing her cell phone away from her mouth. I loved how flowing her hair looked tonight. It accented the beauty of her eyes.
"Oh okay…" I stepped inside and sat on the bed beside her. I saw the heart shaped necklace hanging from her neck. I felt my heart flutter at that.
"Yes…this means a lot Aria. Yes, I will call you soon… Te extraño tambien." Calliope's Spanish was enough to make me melt. I looked away to look nonchalant and relaxed about the entire thing.
"It was nothing…just Aria..congratulating me. What is this?" She looked at the box.
"It's something for you.. I didn't mean to disturb you…" I picked up the box and gave it to her.
"You can never disturb me… and you didn't have to get me anything…" She said while holding the box.
"Trust me, I know you'll like it…" I smiled. I pretended to fix the strap of my dress out of nervousness.
"What is it?" She said slowly shaking the box.
"Wait, don't shake it..it's going to come apart." I slowly touched her hand to stop her from shaking the box.
"Let's open it together…" She placed it on her lap and slowly untied the metallic black bow.
"I-I didn't know what else to get you…" I tried reading her facial expression to see if she liked it or not.
"Chocolate éclairs…" She smiled. She bit her lower lip to contain her excitement.
"These are no ordinary éclairs. Yep, they aren't. And you know how many I had to eat today and select the best ones…" I said.
"I bet…." Calliope was beaming. I heard her sigh slowly.
"Is everything okay?" I asked a bit worried.
"I love it Arizona . It's the most thoughtful gift ever." I heard her say.
"I am glad you like it…" I slowly replied.
"Let's try it…" Calliope slowly picked up one chocolate éclair. "First bite is yours and I will take the second one…"
I took a bite from the chocolate éclair and this moment was as perfect as the time we had in Paris .
"Man, this is good. Like really good…." Calliope said shaking her head like she was in chocolate heaven.
"I told you so…" I smiled and nodded.
"Arizona , you have some chocolate on you…" Calliope chuckled.
"Really, where?" I immediately asked.
"Here…"
Calliope slowly kissed the side of my mouth where the chocolate was apparently was.
I was still.
Very still.
"There wasn't a napkin, so I had to…improvise." She smiled and closed the box.
"Yeah…." I said almost breathless.
Arizona's POV
I was laughing at the joke Addison made about probably never winning a Thomas Enzo award till she grows wrinkles and gets white hair. She kept rambling as the martini's kept rolling.
"I will probably need to turn my ovaries green and then bring them back to normal before getting any recognition from Thomas Enzo himself…" She laughed. Our jokes were getting more pathetic as the alcohol consumption increased.
I turned around to see Calliope's dad asking the attention of everybody as he lightly tapped on the champagne flute with the table knife.
The room slowly hushed and everyone was looking at her dad.
"I know Calliope did not want this…" He smiled at all of us. I was surprised that he called her by her full name too. At least we share that in common.
"She is the type who is not boastful because I know mija did this for a better purpose. I remember when she called me from Botswana and I was just scared and furious about the entire thing. She joined the peace corps but did not tell me they were sending her to Botswana . You said you were going to Denver . Then she told me about the kids they educated in this really poor region and how it changed her life as a privileged kid. I will not forget that Calliope. You're voice, it inspired me as a father and your experience inspired you to be a great doctor…" He paused for a second to stop his voice from trembling.
"Every Sunday when we talk you tell me stories of failure and success about your patients. You tell me about how difficult it is for you to amputate a limb because this person could be someone's father or brother. I love it when we both pray on the phone for your patients to get better. Then you married this hot shot lawyer Matt…" He pointed his champagne flute at Matt and everybody chuckled.
"I know you chose him because I chose him too. You're love for him is very deep mija…He is my best friend's son and I know because of our opinions..This also convinced you to marry him. I am so proud how both of you are working it out because in marriage.. love triumphs everything…" He warmly smiled at Matt who reciprocated the same smile.
I slowly started walking away towards the back. There was a tinge of guilt and a wave of jealousy in my heart. I am trying to smile as though I needed to be excused for a very good reason. I felt the heat slowly creeping at the back of my neck.
"You deserve all of this Calliope Ipheginia Torres Cohen…everything. This award…this moment…and the people here feel the same for you. You are going to change someone's life with that research and God is so happy..so happy…Te quiero mucho mija… Te quiero mucho… I am so proud of you." I heard everyone clapping and whistling.
I closed the bathroom door and started my breathing exercises. I paced back and forth to stop the tears from streaming down my face. I took a tissue from the roll and drenched it in water. I slowly sat on the toilet and pressed it on my eyes to stop my tears from coming out.
"Robbins, calm yourself down." I repeated it in a firm hushed down.
"Robbins, calm down. This is not the place..this is not the place." I slowly let out a long breath.
I looked in the mirror to make sure my mascara was not smudged. I fixed my hair and positioned the strap of my dress.
"Oops sorry…" someone abruptly entered the door.
"It's fine..it's fine. I am done." I said walking away to get out the door.
"Wait..Are you ?" I turned around and smiled.
"Yes, I am. Do I know you?" I replied confused yet I was still smiling.
"No, but I know you. Cristina Yang. I read your research in the Journal of Pediatrics.." She firmly shook my hand.
"That's nice…" I replied awkwardly.
"Yup, if I remember correctly it was laparoscopic duodenostomy in the neonate…" She smiled.
"Wow, you have a very sharp memory…" I replied impressed.
"Yeah and people in the hospital talk… you're the surgeon who is dealing with one of the most complicated case in our hospital in peds…pretty hardcore if you ask me. Especially when there isn't a cure." She was practically rambling. I felt like I was meeting a fan or something.
"Oh yeah, yeah..it's a challenge." I was almost out of the door.
"Dr. Robbins…" I turned around.
"I didn't know you knew Callie Torres..." she curiously asked.
"Yeah I do.." I said.
"Funny..she never mentioned you." Cristina replied completely confused
"Oh yeah?..." I said trying to hide my disappointment.
"Yeah… she's been acting really weird lately anyway. She probably forgot. " she replied back and I just wanted to shut the door to runaway from here.
Arizona's POV
I couldn't help but stare blankly at the scene in front of me. Calliope's father was standing with his arms around Calliope and Matt with a proud smile on his face. They were sipping champagne and seemed to be sharing a private joke between the three of them. I could sense from his speech earlier that Calliope and her dad shared a strong bond and I would never want to interfere in any way with that relationship. I would never want Calliope to lose any part of her family because of me. All I wanted was to make her happy.
I suddenly felt like an intruder.
Maybe I had no right to want Calliope to leave all this for me.
I can't breathe. I have to get out of here.
Having seen the display of Happy Families over the last few hours I decided to leave before I reached my breaking point. I am not a masochist after all. I did not want to create a scene by losing my composure and breaking down in front of everyone.
I found Addison and explained to her that I was leaving because I wasn't feeling well. She offered to drive me back to the hotel but I reassured her that I would reach safely on my own and that she should not leave her best friend's party early. I gave her a quick hug and headed towards the entrance to retrieve my jacket.
As he saw me approaching James was standing at the door with my jacket ready.
"Leaving so soon Ma'am? I hope you had a good time." he asked politely while helping me into my coat.
"Yes, I am unfortunately not feeling too well. But it was an excellent party, thank you for your splendid service." I smiled back at him.
I turned towards the door to leave but a certain voice stopped me in my tracks.
"Arizona." she husked in a low and deep voice.
Damn that voice gets me everytime.
"Calliope." I turned around slowly.
She took me by the arm and led me outside which was probably a good idea...talking in front of James would have been both akward and inappropriate.
"Where were you going?" she asked with a frown on her face.
"Back to the hotel. I think I am coming down with something and maybe had too much champagne. I am having a killer headache." I said as convincingly as possible.
The raise of her eyebrows clearly indicated she didn't buy a word of what I said.
"Lying is not your thing Arizona so don't even go there...also don't you think you should have told me rather than trying to sneak out?" she asked with a trace of hurt in her expression.
I wanted to answer back and explain how much being at this party and what I had seen had hurt me and shattered my dream. But I didn't. I had to go before I lost my last thread of composure and broke down in front of her.
"Calliope, lets not do this. Just let me go...it's probably best for both of us." I whispered brokenly.
She gently cupped my face and stroked my cheek. I instnctively leaned into her touch. "Do you trust me?" she whispered softly.
I definitely wasn't expecting that.
"What does that have to do with anything?" I asked confused.
"It's a simple question Ari. Yes or no?" she asked again.
"Yes." I simply nodded.
"Good. Then come with me." she led me by the hand to her car.
"Where are we going?" I asked growing more confused by the second.
"Patience is a virtue Arizona. You'll find out soon enough." she smirked.
Hmmmmm her car is almost as hot as her.
Focus Robbins focus.
Calliope's POV
"I know for a fact that we passed by my Hotel..so my guess is we aren't going there?" she looked outside the window wondering what the hell we were doing.
"Yup.." I checked my phone and texted Matt that I needed to check on something real quick.
"Calliope, kidnapping me is not a good idea." she said worried.
"Arizona, why would I kidnap you? And plus, you are with me by choice.."I chuckled.
"What the heck? You skipped your own party..." she said completely confused.
"Arizona, can we just please forget about the party. I need to talk to you. Away from the crowd. Away from dad. Away from Matt..." I took a sharp turn to the left towards Kirkland to go towards Cyrus hill.
"It's dark here..." I felt Arizona uneasy about the situation.
"Arizona, I want to show you something. I go there when I need to free my mind...5 more minutes and we are there.." I said and accelerated up the road.
"Did you finish the eclairs?" She whispered.
"I saved some for us..we could have them at work tomorrow.." I smiled at her.
"Nice.. I am impressed but not surprised." She fixed her hair in the mirror and I loved how this moment was for the both of us, completely uninterrupted.
"About?"
"Thomas Enzo Award."
"Oh please.." I accelerated and watched out for the sign for the parking lot entrance sign. Everything changes when you are driving at night.
"What? It's impressive. I mean I knew you were talented but this..takes it to a whole new level..." She was taking advantage of her dimples. Her smile was always breathtaking.
I entered the parking lot and there were only two cars parked in the middle. I couldn't help but laugh at the facial expression of Arizona. She was apparently nervous because the parking space was dark.
"Arizona, Bring your coat.. "
"What? where are we going?" She said as she shut the car door.
"I wanna show you something and plus we gotta talk.." I took her hand and led her towards the entrance of the park.
"It's called Top side Seattle...it's a small park with benches and a small restaurant that's open 24 hours." I felt her come closer and I wrapped my arms around her.
"And... why are we here exactly.."
"Just keep walking...watch out for the twigs..."
"Calliope.. I swear if this is some -"
"There...take a look at that.." I felt Arizona take a deep breath.
"It's an amazing view right? You can see the skyline and the entire Seattle.." I made my way to the bench while she was holding on to me.
"I see this in New York but this...with you..is amazing.." Arizona sighed. We were both looking at the view of Seattle at night. The small lights blinking and the beauty of the space needle...was priceless.
"I remember that moment when I saw you at the hospital.. I walked away because I was so scared..so scared because I finally knew that I had to make a choice. That perhaps running away from it this way won't help..." I slowly said making sure she heard every word.
"I know Arizona.. I know that what we are doing may not be right but it feels so perfect. I have made a choice Arizona. I know what I want, what I need to do...to have it." I looked at her and took both of her hands.
"No, Calliope.. Are you saying this because of some sudden rush of emotions? I mean, you have never ever been with a woman.. You are married.. I don't think you know -"
"Something's bothering you Arizona...I need you to tell me what it is." I squeezed her hand to give her strength.
She drew in a deep breath as if she was bracing herself for what she wanted to say.
"Calliope, I do understand why you avoided me and ran away…I really do…..but the mixed signals I get from you….they are killing me….one minute I am this mistake you want to forget and the next minute you are telling me how much I mean to you.."
I wanted to say something but I decided to not interrupt her
"Coming to the party was maybe the reality check I needed Calliope…..I saw the relationship you share with your dad. I don't want to be the person who causes you to lose his respect and affection….I love you too much to do that to you and you might end up resenting me which would kill me….I don't know what to think Calliope" she finished brokenly tears starting to flow down her cheeks.
"I know."
"You know what?"
"That Arizona Robbins it is you. It is you that I want to be with. When I look at the future and I see myself being with someone it is you. I know for a fact..a fact that I love you. And believe me, I know that running away from it won't solve a damn thing..." We both stood and faced each other. This was our moment…our game changer.
"So, Calliope what do we do now.."
"I don't know..." I honestly whispered.
"We'll figure it out together." She whispered back.
"First... I gotta tell my dad..maybe he will understand.." I said completely confused.
"Your dad?" Arizona repeated surprised.
"Yes and then Matt maybe..." I said assuring her that we would fight for us with every shred of hope we had.
"I am kinda scared but I'll gladly face every fear to be with you Calliope. I love you and I can't live my life anymore without you in it. "
"I am scared too...Come here..." All I did was hold her and slowly felt the graveness of the consequences sink in. But I felt ready…..as long as I could be with her I would fight.
She is worth every pain. Every battle.
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