Ortho Goddess: Chapter XXVI

"You're a runner, Calliope," the old man said as he leaned closer to her. He paused to take a sip of his wine. "Whenever things get rough, you run." Their conversation had lasted so long, that they ended up moving into the hotel's restaurant to have dinner. Callie was thoroughly enjoying her father's company, although it was not as much fun to be lectured by him.

Callie frowned and took a deep breath. She was ready to start defending herself, but she stopped when she noticed her father holding up his hand.

"You ran to New York," he continued. "And now your past is about to catch up with you there and you ran again."

She let out a sigh, only now realizing she had been holding her breath. Even though she was not happy with it, her father had a point. She had not come to Miami for a sweet family reunion or just for work. She had grabbed hold of this opportunity with both hands to escape New York. To escape Emma and the idea of having Arizona there again. She ran.

Carlos put his hand on Callie's arm. "I understand," he said. "You are searching for the answers to your questions. You wonder, you worry, that's what we do. You came here searching for the answers. But the answers," he leaned closer to Callie and pointed his finger at the spot where Callie's heart was. "The answers are right there, within you." He flashed his daughter a reassuring smile. "It's a Torres thing," he continued. "I ran for years. I only found my answers, and myself, when I stopped running. Now, it was not fun, but it did give me clarity in the end."

"I could sure use some clarity," Callie huffed. It was kind of annoying how right her father was, but his advice was welcome. Anything to make her feel better was welcome.

"Remember that we talked about Arizona when I was in New York?" Carlos waited for Callie to nod before he continued. "I told you that I wasn't so sure you were over her. And here is your proof."

Callie rolled her eyes. Even though she needed her father's advice right now, it was cutting right through her. The clarity she wanted was not supposed to hurt, right?

"Don't roll your eyes at me, mija, I'm your father," even though his voice sounded stern, he flashed Callie a warm smile. He could see his daughter was hurting and he truly wanted to help her. "The fact that this news is getting to you only means you have not moved on. Or else it would not have knocked you off your feet."

She pursed her lips and picked up her glass of wine, only to down half of it in one go. She was not sure what to say. Maybe she was not over Arizona, maybe she had just been telling herself that.

"Wanting to be over someone and actually being over someone are two different things," Carlos continued.

"Daddy, that's enough. I get it."

"Calliope Iphegenia Torres, I did not raise you to be a quitter," he replied.

"I'm not quitting, dad. I just….I just want to have a nice meal with my father."

"We're having a good conversation," Carlos retorted. "I can see you are in pain and I want to help you."

"Your help is not really making me feel any better," Callie's voice sounded empty. She just felt really drained from the rollercoaster of emotions she had experienced the past week.

"I get that, but to be able to fix it, you have to know what you need to fix. I think you weren't seeing it." Carlos looked up at the waiter, who slipped him the bill. He got out his credit card and signed the bill. When the man left, he turned back to Callie. "How about we go for a drive? It always helps me clear my head."

This time, her father was driving the car and Callie was sitting next to him, gazing out of the window. The sun was about to set, casting beautiful light upon the world around them. They had done this when she was younger, especially after she got into a fight with her mother. Her father would take her for a drive so everybody could cool off. Being here brought back a lot of memories and reminded her that she missed her mother. She did not miss the woman who seemed to no longer be related to her after she came out, but her mother. The woman who always hugged her when she was sad, who braided her hair in the morning before going to school, the mom that was just there. That was what she missed.

It was nice, to just sit here in silence and contemplate her thoughts while they drove. Her father was focused on the road and maneuvered the car through rush hour traffic to get to the seaside. Her father was there.

"Penny for your thoughts?" The old man said with a smile while looking over at Callie.

She snorted and shook her head. "Nice pun, dad." She looked at the man next to her and smiled. "This is nice, thank you."

Carlos nodded back at her. "You will be just fine," he said before focusing back on the road. "You will get through this, just like you got through everything else. You are so strong, Calliope. I think you don't give yourself enough credit."

Callie did not reply, instead she gazed out of her window, a content smile on her lips. She sighed deeply, feeling truly relaxed for the first time in a long time. It was almost like actually being on holiday. She could not help but snicker when her father turned onto Ocean Drive, the most touristy place in the whole city.

"Really, dad?" She turned towards her father and flashed him a big grin.

"Just reminding you of what you are missing," the old man replied with an amused sparkle in his eyes.

"New York also has tourists, you know."

"I'm sure it does, but it does not have these beautiful ocean views."

"I miss the water sometimes," she said. "It makes me feel calm." While she gazed out of the window, she spoke her mind without realizing it. "I miss Arizona."

Carlos looked at his daughter, raising his eyebrow. At this moment it was very, very clear where Callie got it from. "Ya te lo dije, mija."

Callie rolled her eyes, but she also could not help but chuckle at her father's words. "Really, dad? In Spanish?"

He just shrugged. "I hate to say I told you so."

His remark made them both laugh.

The next day in Miami was all about the Yankees and Callie found herself enjoying herself once again. She pretty much had an all-access pass to Marlins Park and it made her feel special. Alejandro Perez, the pitcher she had treated on different occasions had made it his life goal to get Callie to smile as much as he could. Since he had no luck charming Emma's pants off, he was now trying it with her and it was amusing.

"Come on, Doctor T," the man said with a smile as he held up a baseball. "Remember that pitch Doctor C. made? You look like you can do that too."

"You do know that Caplan is a softball player, right? I have nothing on her in that area."

The man flashed a cheeky grin. "Oh, but I bet you have a lot of things on her in different areas."

Callie chuckled and shook her head, feeling almost relieved when her phone rang. The pitcher was called onto the diamond for training and left the dark-haired doctor by herself.

"Callie, hey." At hearing Arizona's voice, Callie's lips curled into a smile.

"Hey."

"So ah…I was wondering….I found a couple of apartments and I was wondering if you could help me pick one?"

"Sure, but can I call you back? I am….sort of in the middle of something"

"In the middle of something?"

"Yeah, literally," while Callie spoke, she looked around the still empty stadium. "I'm standing in the middle of the Miami Marlins baseball stadium."

"Ooooh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt."

"Don't worry, Arizona, you can always call me." It was out before she even realized it.

Speaking to her father yesterday had made her realize she missed having Arizona around. She missed her friends in Seattle, no matter how crazy things would sometimes get between them. But she missed Arizona most of all. They had not been the best of friends after their divorce, but the perky blonde had been a constant in her life. A stable factor. No matter what, Arizona always managed to calm her down. Although, in the past few years, it was also Arizona who got her all worked up or angry over something. But that was beside the point right now.

"Can I send you the listings? I just want to make sure the area is nice and it's not too far from your place. That will make it easier…." Arizona's voice trailed off mid-sentence and she did not finish it. Callie did not respond to it though. It would be easier if they loved close to each other.

"What about the center? Will it be close as well?"

"Yeah, I checked and it happens to be pretty close to the hospital."

The idea of everything just working out like it did so far made Callie's heart flutter. This could hardly be anything other than 'meant to be'. Although, deep down, it also felt like things were going too well. Arizona and her had not fought about anything in a long time and for some reason, Callie was afraid to mess up this winning streak. It was like she was waiting for the shoe to drop.

"Sounds great! If you send me the listings, I'll have a look at them tonight after the game."

"Thank you, Callie. Talk to you later."

Callie felt that Arizona's voice sounded different. She could just not pinpoint what exactly the difference was or what it could mean. She knew Arizona had probably not decided to move to New York overnight, but it was still a big deal. It was not hard to imagine that it needed to sink in for her as well. But for now, she decided that it would be better to focus on work and enjoy being here in Miami. She would figure out the whole Arizona thing later.

There was one thing she was not going to do. And that was run. If there was anything she had learned over the past two years, it was that she was strong enough to deal with whatever life threw at her. Yes, she might have needed a break or an escape here and there, but she had made it out. And that was what she wanted to keep in mind. She could do this, they could do this. Sofia would be so much happier having both mothers around and it was up to Arizona and her to make it work. One way or another.

After the phone call, Callie had let herself get sucked into the whole atmosphere. The exciting pre-game buzz during preparations. The Yankees had won all three of their games and she had hitched a ride on the team's high. Together with the perfect Miami weather, her father's presence, and the comforts she was enjoying, Callie felt fully recharged when she went back to New York. Ready to face the music.