AN SO THERE IS A SLIGHT TIME JUMP FROM THE LAST CHAPTER HOPE YOU LIKE IT!
CHAPTER 12
CALLIE POV
"Mom, mami how many cookies should I leave for Santa tonight?" Sofia asks Arizona and I from her stool in the kitchen where she is busy completing her Christmas Eve tradition of plating cookies for Santa.
Arizona and I share a knowing look coming up with the same silent agreement we have had every Christmas, since Sofia was born.
"Five Sof same as always," I answer her. "
"Two for me. Two for you." Arizona husks in the softest whisper covering it with a gentle kiss on my cheek.
Sofia pads into the living room clad in pajama's bare feet bouncing against hardwood. "I put the plate and a glass of milk in the fridge, so they can get cold. I'll get them out before I go to bed tonight." She announces before squeezing in between Arizona and I on the couch.
"Ready to watch Christmas Vacation?" Arizona has her hand hovering over the play button on the remote, ready to play the movie.
"Yep" Sofia grins, snuggling into my side as the movie starts. Sofia falls asleep despite her best efforts to stay awake; somewhere around the time Eddie brings home Clark's boss beginning their first family kidnapping.
By the end of the movie Sofia is asleep between her head resting in Arizona's lap while her legs are in my lap. I take this moment to just to savor the happiness I'm feeling. I smile at the blissful expression on Arizona's face, as she runs her hands through Sofia's hair. The square box I have in the pocket of my jeans suddenly feeling very heavy. I swallow the urge to take it out and ask her right here and now, because I have a plan. One that Sofia is so excited to be a part of I can't ruin that.
"I'll go lay her in her bed and then we can start hauling the presents out?" I suggest needing to shake my fog a little bit, before I accidently send my plan up in flames.
"Sounds good." Arizona nods placing a kiss on Sofia's forehead whispering a "goodnight" and an "I love you" in her ear, before I carry the eight-year-old to her bedroom.
When I come back in the living room Arizona has already begun stuffing our stockings. I come up behind her wrapping my arms around her waist whispering "I love you" in her ear.
She turns into my embrace placing a kiss on my lips. Warmth is what I feel spreading through me. The warm comforting feeling of happiness. My thoughts again wander to the black box in my pocket. "We should probably get started on moving the presents out here, it's almost midnight and we both know how much of an early riser she is on Christmas."
Arizona laughs, "the only morning she is an early riser."
"Well if I remember right which I do. Your mom once told me that one Christmas you and Tim woke your parents up at one in the morning just, so you guys could open presents."
Arizona smiles despite the twinge of sadness in her eyes whenever Tim is mentioned. "Hey that wasn't my fault and it wasn't Tim's either. It was our dad's he told us we could wake up at whatever time we wanted to, to open presents." She pulls me into another kiss. "You're right though we should get started on the presents." She gives me another quick kiss before untangling herself from me and going back to the stockings.
"It's kind of crazy to think that she's already eight and in third grade. If we're lucky we have maybe two more Christmas' where she still believes in Santa." I grab a cookie off the plate and bite into it. "Do you remember her first Christmas? When the leaving one of Santa's cookies for Sofia began?"
"How could I forget Mark was so excited when he saw how excited Sofia was in the morning when she found out she got to have a cookie before breakfast. Arizona grins grabbing her first cookie from the plate.
"The perks of being an adult getting to eat cookies left for Santa," Mark grinned taking a swing from the glass of milk we left out.
"Mark she's not even a year old yet. She doesn't know who or what Santa is yet, we didn't need to leave out milk and cookies."
"Yeah, she doesn't know yet, but one day she will. For now, though Cal this is about us. You, me, and blondie. This is the first year we get the opportunity to create the magic of Christmas for our daughter. Growing up in my house Christmas was never a warm and cheerful time of love. I'm going to make sure my daughter grows up knowing the magic of Christmas."
"I agree with Sloan on this one Calliope," Arizona kissed Mark's cheek, as she stole the cookie from him for herself. "And if it makes you feel any better Callie, we can leave a cookie out for Sof from Santa," Arizona shot me a wink.
"I miss Mark" Arizona finishes with the stockings her words are voicing my thoughts.
"I do too" I whisper, placing the first present under the tree. "Sometimes I wonder what he would think of us if he was here now?"
"He would probably be just as frustrated with how stupid we've been the last couple years; as we were with how stupid Lexie and he were, in trying to deny their love for one another."
"Yeah, you're probably right, but you and I are done being stupid right?" Arizona grins handing me two more presents to place under the tree.
"We're definitely done being stupid." Arizona pecks me on the cheek, and once again I think of the black box in my pocket. I can wait until morning. I can wait until morning.
"Mami wake up we have to get the present ready for mom before she wakes up," Sofia whispers pulling me out of bed.
She doesn't even blink at the mountain of presents under the tree, she dashes into her bedroom coming back out a couple minutes later with the shoebox I've had her keep under her bed for the last month. "Go sit on the couch, I'll be back in a minute."
I walk into the spare room heading to the closet where I've stored the new prosthetic for Arizona and the blue bow, I bought to place on it.
In the living room Sofia places the bow on to the prosthetic and then I lean it against the wall next to the tree. I sit back down next to Sofia; who has pulled out one of the brand-new heeley's. I grab Arizona's ring out of the box and hand it to Sofia to tie it onto one of the blue shoelaces.
Sofia and I hear shuffling from the bedroom. We look up to see Arizona leaning against the doorframe smiling over at us. "Merry Christmas mom!" Sofia proclaims shooting Arizona a radiant Robbin's grin.
"Merry Christmas Sof! Merry Christmas Calliope! Now Callie can you please hurry up and put that ring on my finger already, so we can open presents."
"I haven't even asked you yet Arizona!" I grin unable to keep the grin off my face.
"You don't need too. I promise you Calliope, the answer is yes!
AN I'M ACTUALLY PROUD OF THIS FLUFFY CHAPTER! LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THOUGHT OF CALLIE'S PROPOSAL? REVIEW AND HAVE A GOODNIGHT LOVELIES! NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE UP SOON!
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