A/N: OK I really hate author notes but this requires a note, that being said, I promise to never post an AN as a chapter. First, I want to say this is my first fanfiction ever. It is also my first time ever sharing anything I've written with anyone aside from my Beta who is my little sister. So first off, I am a nurse so the medical knowledge in here is more what I know as a nurse or what I have researched. This is fiction so some things might not be completely accurate but I need to make it fit for the story. Also, I have no real personal knowledge of the military or it's inner workings so everything is based on research or stuff I have completely made up. It is not meant to be offensive, just for your entertainment. As always, constructive criticism is always welcome. As for the previous chapter, my sister thought that Chapter One where the story originally began was a bit confusing so I added the Prologue to fill in some holes. Plus, I have to say, I loved the kissing in the bathroom scene and really didn't want to stray from that being their first kiss. I have six chapters ready and the seventh is currently being worked on. I am not going to guarantee updates on any specific day but I will try very hard to post at least once every week or every other week. I have plans of this being a lengthy fanfiction and there will be some time jumps in the future. Happy holidays everyone :)
Chapter Two
Arizona
"So, Teds, what do you know about the people on my brother's team?" Arizona asked her old friend sweetly.
"Anyone in particular you want to know about?"
"Well, no, I just think I should know more about the people my brother is working with."
"And it has nothing to do with one gorgeous brown eyed Latina with legs that never quit?" Teddy asked knowingly. She had seen the way the two of them had reacted to one another when their eyes had momentarily met earlier in the day. And she knew her friend well.
"Teddy, I've lived in Malawi for a year. And here for six months before that with all of you. What's a girl to do?" Arizona smiled, trying to look as innocent as possible.
"And you will be here for another six months followed by at least another year in Malawi before you go back stateside. Getting involved with someone is messy and it will only get you both hurt, Riz. So don't even go there." Teddy replied softly, reverting back to Arizona's old college nickname. She had always been a bit of a player, preferring to focus on studies instead of true, meaningful relationships which caused her to rack up quite a list in her little black book. As well as a scandalous nickname from her close friends.
"Did you follow your own advice Teds?"
"It was a one time thing, off base, on leave, in Germany for two weeks. And I got hurt. It's against the rules, we aren't in college anymore." Teddy replied with a heaviness to her words. Arizona slung her arm over the taller blonde's shoulders.
"This is different, Teds. I mean for me. Calliope, she's different. I...she helped me with my luggage earlier and I literally felt fireworks when she touched me. And we aren't in the army. Fraternization between colleagues might be frowned upon but there are no actual rules against it either. Besides, she's dirty bar bathroom girl."
"Well from what I've heard, she's got a talent for ortho. I actually heard Webber refer to her as an ortho goddess. She's in her fifth year of residency. She should have already completed her residency but rumor has it she spent a year with the Peace Corps before starting her intern year. She was top of her class at Miller too." Teddy said, giving in to her best friend, then adding, "Dirty bar bathroom girl is much hotter than I expected."
"Goddess, yea, that suits her." Arizona smiled stupidly as she pictured the long bronze legs she had ogled earlier before Callie had realized her presence. She licked her lips as she pictured her singing softly and swaying her hips as she took care of her clothing while listening to music only she could hear.
"Ortho...you forgot the ortho part. Ortho goddess." Teddy laughed, emphasizing the word ortho as she snapped her fingers in front of her friend's face.
The two friends laughed lightly then settled into a comfortable silence as they finished Teddy's perimeter around the base. They walked together to the mess hall, joining the growing line that was forming. Arizona's eyes were in constant search of raven hair, caramel skin, and dark chocolate eyes. She searched up and down the growing line several times, each pass causing her to grow more and more uneasy as every face she scanned was not the one she was searching for. Checking her watch, she felt a bit of panic, 16:51. Despite needing to rest and having been up for nearly twenty four hours, Arizona knew an hour of rest would only leave her more tired and add to the jet lag. Years of being a military brat had prepared her for long flights and frequent travels. So after unpacking, she had left the barracks in search of Teddy and joined her on her assigned perimeter check. But she had left one very sexy, exhausted Latina fast asleep in her bunk. Did she set an alarm? Not wanting to waste time, Arizona turned to Teddy quickly.
"I'll be right back!" Arizona said to her friend, not waiting for a response as she was already running toward the barracks.
"It's 16:52, don't you dare be late Battleship!" Teddy shouted sternly but Arizona continued her sprint toward the barracks.
Arizona thanked her military upbringing for being in great shape as she reached the barracks in record time where she found both Callie and her rude friend fast asleep in their respective bunks. The rude friend being the closest and easiest to reach on the bottom most bunk, Arizona gave her a hard shove with her foot.
"Get up, you're going to be late for supper." Arizona said gruffly, taking slight pleasure in getting some revenge for the woman's earlier comments.
"Crap, I'm up!" Cristina shouted, jumping up and sprinting to the door as she tossed her hair up in a messy bun, neither thanking nor waiting for the blonde.
Wanting to see Callie's sleeping face as she woke her, Arizona climbed up the side of the bunks at the head of the bed rather than utilizing the ladder at the foot of the bed. Balancing precariously, Arizona finally reached the sleeping beauty and she smiled widely. Before her lay the most adorable sight she had ever seen. Dark locks were scattered hazardously across a tan face and chest. Plump red lips were parted slightly so her breath caused a single unruly dark curl to flutter with every breath.
"Calliope!" Arizona called much more gently than she had just moments ago with Cristina. The ortho goddess made no movement and continued sleeping peacefully. Arizona checked her watch, 16:55. As peaceful as Callie was sleeping, Arizona knew she had no time to waste.
"Calliope!" Arizona called again with more force. The latina mumbled something incoherently and scrunched up her nose slightly. Arizona giggled and this time she couldn't resist reaching her hand out to sweep the unruly curl from Callie's face as she shouted , "Calliope," for the third time.
Callie jumped awake this time, swinging in complete confusion as she struggled to gain consciousness and place her surroundings. Her hand connected with Arizona's face causing Arizona to lose her balance as she was only hanging on with one arm and she fell to the floor landing on her bottom with a loud "oomph". A head of dark hair and chocolate orbs filled with fear peaked over the edge of the top bunk to look down at Arizona.
"Oh my God, Arizona! Are you alright?" Callie asked with concern as she hopped down from the top bunk with lightning speed, suddenly wide awake.
"Yea, yes, yes, I'm fine but we have to go!" Arizona responded as she watched her watch tick to 16:57. She knew she would likely have a black eye where the latina's hand had connected hard with her face but she also knew there was no time to inspect it; nor did she want to make the latina feel badly. Callie reached down and offered Arizona her hand, pulling her to her feet with surprising strength. Arizona kept Callie's hand in her own as she led them sprinting for the door. She only let go of Callie's hand as they reached the now moving line into the mess hall. 16:59, they made it.
"Oh my God, your brother would have killed me if I had been late. Thank you, Arizona. I owe you one." Callie gasped from her bent position as she desperately tried to get air into her lungs. She herself was in decent shape with a salsa class as well as a zumba class every week and a regular swim at the Y three times a week but the excitement, exhaustion, and Arizona's very presence left her breathless.
"It's not a problem." Arizona replied with a smile.
"Let me see your face." Callie said once she caught her breath and her brain was finally getting enough oxygen to catch up with recent events.
"Calliope, it's fine, there's nothing to see." Arizona replied as she carefully kept the right side of her face shielded from Callie's vision by not directly facing her. They were nearing the entrance to the mess hall as the line continued to move forward and the last thing Arizona wanted was to cause a scene. She herself hadn't even seen her face so she wasn't entirely sure there was even anything to see, though the throbbing in her cheek bone told her otherwise. Ignoring Arizona's request she was shocked when she felt soft but strong fingers grab her chin and gently but firmly turn her face.
Arizona heard a gasp and saw terror flash across Callie's eyes before the terrified voice of the latina whisper shouted, "Oh my God, Arizona! I gave you a black eye."
"I'm ok, it's ok, really. It was an accident and it was my fault anyway. You were sleeping, I shouldn't have touched you." Arizona rambled in embarrassment over the intense gaze Callie was giving her. Callie brought her fingers to Arizona's tender right cheek and gently palpated the bone. It took all of Arizona's strength and willpower not to moan aloud in both pain and pleasure at the latina's intimate inspection of her face.
"The bone feels intact but you need to ice this so your eye doesn't swell shut. You will need your eyesight if you have to perform any surgeries tomorrow." Callie replied, all business. Her concern and professional demeanor prevented her from noticing the effect she was having on Arizona just from her delicate touches. "It must hurt, I'm impressed that you didn't at least curse." Callie added.
"Well I'm pretty tough. I grew up with the name Arizona. The playground at every school I attended was rough. I got into my share of fights. I was small and always the new girl with the weird name so I was an easy target for playground bullies. It only took one time for me to come home with a black eye and a bloodied lip before my dad taught me how to punch hard and fast so I only had to do it once. After that, I didn't lose playground battles, the bullies got quite a surprise from the small blonde new girl with the weird name." Arizona bragged a little.
"I'm sure they did," Callie smiled, "but still, it must hurt. I'm so so sorry, Arizona. I didn't mean to be a playground bully. I'm a hard sleeper on a normal day and I thrash around a lot and wake up swinging if startled."
"I will keep that in mind for next time." Arizona replied with a smirk.
"Next time, huh?"
"If you're lucky." Arizona winked with her good eye before she grabbed her tray and sauntered away swinging her hips a little extra as she made her way to the table where her group sat. Arizona plopped down next to Teddy as her eyes immediately searched her brother's table, eyes locking with beautiful brown ones. She gave her dimpled super magic smile to Callie as Callie smiled back and motioned for Arizona to put something on her eye. Arizona understood what Callie was saying and nodded her head. She would ice her eye as soon as they were done eating. Keeping her eyes locked on Callie she heard April gasp from across the table. Fearing she had been caught, Arizona regretfully pulled her eyes away from the sexy brunette and focused her attention on April instead.
"Dude, what happened to your face?" Alex asked, his voice echoing across the table. Arizona felt herself blush as all eyes at the table landed on her face. For once she was glad she had broken eye contact with Callie and she kept her eyes purposely averted from her brother's table.
"Oh it was an accident. I tripped and fell earlier. It's not a big deal, I'm fine." Arizona replied shortly with a wave of her hand. She could feel Teddy's eyes narrow at her to her left so she turned to face her and shook her head slightly to let Teddy know it wasn't up for discussion at the moment.
"You better hope Timothy doesn't find out who did that. Or me for that matter." Teddy whispered.
"I told you, I fell, drop it Teds." Arizona warned as Teddy opened her mouth again, presumably to argue.
"At least tell me you got it looked at." Teddy said with concern. She just couldn't help it. Arizona was like a sister to her and she had felt protective of her since the first time they met. Though admittedly, Arizona didn't require as much physical protection as one might think just by looking at her. Growing up with a marine father and a big brother, she had more than learned how to protect herself.
"A doctor did look at it for me." Arizona replied, then rolled her eyes as Teddy pulled out her pen light and inspected Arizona's eyes. Arizona gave in and let her look at her pupils and inspect the bone herself.
"If you get a headache or start feeling nauseated or vomiting…" Teddy started but Arizona cut her off. "I know the signs of a concussion Teddy, I work with kids, remember?"
"Ok well at least put some ice on it." Teddy said scooping some ice from her glass and placing it in a napkin before handing it to Arizona. Arizona placed the ice to her eye to placate both Teddy and Callie but she had to admit, it felt good on the throbbing cheek bone.
The rest of dinner was eaten in an awkward silence at Arizona's table as both fatigue and hunger took over. Arizona could feel Teddy's concern radiating next to her and she didn't miss Callie's worried gaze landing on her from time to time either. But she kept her head down, eyes focused on the plate of food that she just moved around with her fork instead of eating.
"Good evening everyone," a deep male voice said from the front of the room, capturing Arizona's attention as she brought her head up to focus on him. The man waited until he had the room's attention before he continued to speak, "I'm sure all of you know me in one way or another but I am Chief Webber at Seattle Grace. All of you have been, currently are, or will be employed with me and have been selected for this amazing opportunity. The work we do here will be hard yet rewarding. I am looking forward to working here with all of you over the next six months. These six months will be challenging, frustrating, and it will feel impossible at times, but I expect you all to give your best, to learn, and to succeed. I personally selected each applicant, do not let me down."
Arizona took in every word the Chief had to say. While her eyes remained forcibly focused on him, she could feel a set of chocolate orbs burning a hole in the side of her head from her brother's table to her right.
"I'd like to take a moment to thank the U.S. Army for working with us and allowing us to be here for this amazing opportunity. It is an honor to be here. Could Captain Altman and the rest of the army team leaders please join me up here?"
Teddy groaned but smiled at Chief Weber. Arizona patted her back supportively as Teddy stood to join the Chief and her comrades at the front of the room.
"I'd like to introduce my team leader, Army Captain and double certified cardiothoracic and trauma surgeon, Dr. Teddy Altman, as well as the rest of our team leaders."
Pointing to the tall ginger beside Teddy, Chief Weber said, "Army Captain and double board certified Trauma surgeon and Orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Owen Hunt." Owen gave a small smile and a polite wave.
"Army Captain and double board certified trauma and cardiothoracic surgeon, Dr. Nathan Riggs." Chief Weber introduced the man beside Owen with light brown hair.
"Army Ranger and medic, Timothy Robbins." Arizona's blonde haired, blue eyed brother smiled widely, popping his dimples.
"And last but not least, Army Ranger and medic, Nicholas Gilbert." The Chief finished his introductions.
"Can we get a round of applause for them please?"
The room erupted into rounds of clapping and a few brave wolf whistles. Once order was restored, the room quieted, the Chief began to speak once more. "Thank you, you all may kindly return to your seats."
Teddy joined Arizona once again and then the chief continued his speech, "I know our nine other lead surgeons were supposed to introduce themselves tonight and I will have them join me momentarily up here so you can get a good look at all of them and at least hear their names; but, I know this has been a particularly long day and all of you are exhausted. Listening to introductions will more than likely put you all to sleep. You will get better acquainted with the attendings as you work with them and we will be placing their photos and bios at the top of the board so you may review them at your leisure. Also, I have asked the attendings to make sure they make an effort to speak with other team members at the mixer tonight so that you have an opportunity to meet them before we begin at the hospital tomorrow. With that out of the way, can the nine other lead surgeons please join me up here please?"
The sound of nine chairs shuffling across the floor, including one from Arizona's table as Dr. Herman stood, followed by the sound of nine people scurrying to the front of the room echoed through the hall for the next few moments. The nine lead surgeons stood next to Dr. Webber in a horizontal line. "Please step forward and state your name, specialty, and which team you are on. I will start."
"Richard Weber, General surgery and I am on Dr. Altman's team."
"Derek Shepherd, neuro, team Hunt."
"Mark Sloan, plastics and ENT. Team Robbins."
"Addison Montgomery, maternal-fetal medicine and OB. I am with Dr. Riggs."
"Catherine Avery, urology and I am also with Dr. Hunt."
"Preston Burke. Cardiothoracic surgeon. Dr. Riggs is my team leader."
"Erica Hahn, cardiothoracic surgery. Mr. Gilbert is my team leader."
"Tom Koracick, neuro, Robbins."
"Nicole Herman. I am maternal-fetal medicine and I am with the Chief on Dr. Altman's team."
"Sam Bennett, cardiothoracic, Team Gilbert."
Another round of applause sounded and quickly died as Chief Weber spoke once more, "I'd like for the lead surgeons to join their tables once more so we can go over schedules before we all join the mixer."
Once again the sound of shuffling and chairs moving echoed as the ten lead surgeons joined their team's table once more. Dr. Herman and Chief Webber both joined Arizona's table and the chief quickly passed out schedules for their first week. Arizona scanned hers quickly wanting to see what days she would be paired with her brother's group or more specifically a member of his group that was invading her mind. She sighed, feeling a bit deflated as she saw that it would be Thursday before their groups would be paired together. Today was Sunday, over four days before she would be able to be close to her favorite brunette without making an excuse. 'Arizona, you are literally going to be sleeping like five feet from her, it's not like you aren't going to see her, get a grip,' Arizona scolded herself.
"Dr. Robbins, did you hear me?" Arizona looked up to see seven pairs of eyes on her as Chief Weber waited for her to respond to a question she didn't hear.
"I'm sorry, I didn't, I was distracted."
"Tomorrow I would like you to lead the tour of the hospital for all the groups before we go our separate ways before lunch. You have more experience in this area than the rest of us and with you taking the lead in the peds department, I would really like for you to take a role in mentoring all of us. Could you do that?"
"Uhhh, sure, of course Chief, I'd be honored to do that."
"Good. You know this is a learning opportunity for you too Robbins. You are without a doubt a very talented young surgeon but you can never be done learning so I want to make sure you get to take some time to learn and explore other specialties as well."
"Yes sir."
"Ok then, Dr. Altman, I know we are scheduled to arrive at the hospital tomorrow at 0900, what kind of transport should we expect? And where and what time are we meeting?" Chief Weber asked, turning his attention to Teddy.
"Well, we have arranged for several army vehicles to transport us. There are forty of us plus two extra army service members per vehicle so we will be using five of our RG-33's for transportation to and from the hospital this week. The hospital is only about fifteen miles away but we will leave here by 0800. Breakfast is at 0700 so we will just gather after breakfast say 0745. Although we encourage everyone to socialize with other teams at meals and during freetime, for traveling we will stay in our teams. It will be easier to keep an accurate body count to make sure everyone is accounted for that way."
"Does everyone understand where and when we are meeting?" the Chief asked. Seeing nodding heads all around the table, Dr. Webber nodded his own head, seemingly satisfied. "Alright then people, this is not a competition but you are on a team with the Chief, that means we set an example for everyone else, we have to be the best. That means we train with Captain Altman. A run at 05:30, correct?" Webber asked and Teddy nodded, "Do not disappoint me."
"If that is all from Chief Webber and none of you have questions about this week's schedule then I think we can all join the mixer." Teddy said with a smile. Alex, April, Shane, Amelia, and Arizona all stood to leave.
Dr. Robbins and Chief Webber, can I just have a moment please?" Teddy stopped them.
"I'll just join you at the mixer then Chief, I think these two boys can escort me in." Dr. Herman said with a wink as she linked her left arm with Alex's right and her right arm with Shane's left. "Come on boys, see if you can keep up."
"WOW." Arizona mouthed to Teddy and Teddy giggled quietly in return.
Once the trio was alone Dr. Webber turned to Teddy and asked, "What was it you needed Dr. Robbins and I for?"
"Well, Chief Webber...Arizona, don't get mad, but Arizona took a hard hit to the face earlier after a fall and I'd really just like to have someone check her face and neuro status for me." Teddy rambled quickly without taking a breath avoiding Arizona's glare.
Chief Webber looked from Teddy to Arizona and said, "I was wondering what happened to your face Robbins. And, I agree with you Dr. Altman. Please go grab Dr. Hunt and Dr. Shepherd quickly and quietly."
"It's really not necessary…"Arizona tried to protest but was interrupted by the Chief. "Dr. Altman is a great surgeon and she is your friend who is concerned about you. I, as well, would have more peace of mind if I knew you were up to par for tomorrow and the remainder of the week. My people's health and safety on this trip are more important than anything to me. Now, Dr. Altman, please go fetch them. I will keep young Dr. Robbins here company."
Teddy continued to avoid Arizona's famous Robbins death glare as she quickly scurried from the room. She was a captain in the army. A trauma and cardiothoracic surgeon. She was in a war zone. And still the petite frame of her 5'4.5", 115 pound best friend terrified her. Still, she wouldn't back down. Arizona was more than a best friend, she was family, a sister and Teddy had made a promise to protect her years ago.
An awkward silence fell over the mess hall as she and the Chief stood waiting for Teddy to return with the trauma and neuro surgeons. Time seemed to pass in extra slow motion as the Chief hummed to himself, seemingly undisturbed by the awkwardness while Arizona picked at her pink nail polish nervously. What had been less than five minutes seemed like hours when the voices of Dr. Hunt, Dr. Shepherd, and Dr. Altman entered the mess hall.
"I hear someone had quite the clumsy moment earlier. That looks like one hell of a shiner, Robbins." Owen said with a smile.
"It's really not that bad." Arizona replied, the fire she had felt toward Teddy only minutes ago fading slightly at the look of complete concern on her face. "Teddy just worries too much and is overprotective, Owen."
"Well, that's for me to say. I want to make sure you don't have any signs of a bleed or a concussion. Can you look at me?" Dr. Shepherd asked. Arizona followed his instructions. "Follow my finger, good. Look at my nose, how many fingers am I holding up?"
Arizona continued to answer all of Derek's questions and followed his commands as he completed a very thorough neurological exam. "Do you want me to do the hokey pokey and turn myself around while I'm at it?" Arizona teased, losing her patience with all the attention on her.
"I wish I could get some scans to be sure but I think she's fine. If you have any headaches or vomiting I want to know immediately. Head injuries are nothing to joke about, Arizona." Derek said sternly.
"Ok let me take a look at that cheek bone." Owen said, breaking up the awkwardness. Unlike earlier with Callie's soft fingers examining her face, Arizona couldn't help but wince at Owen's examination. His fingers were as gentle as they could be but his touch just wasn't as soft or as comforting as Callie's had been.
"Yea, the bone feels intact but with how much pain you have with just me gently touching
it, I'd feel better if we got some imaging tomorrow at the hospital just to rule out a fracture." Owen said.
"Owen, I really don't think that's necessary. I really don't want to make a big deal out of this." Arizona protested.
"You will get imaging done tomorrow before seeing any patients Dr. Robbins, that is an order from your Chief of surgery."
"Yes sir." Arizona replied, feeling defeated. She always had issues with authority figures and she could feel that further arguing would lead to her having angry tears and she was not about to cry in front of the chief. In truth, imaging really wouldn't be that big of a deal for her but she was afraid that Callie would feel worse if she found out about all the fussing that was being done over this silly black eye.
The five surgeons left the mess hall together and walked the short distance to the banquet hall where the mixer was being held together. Teddy conveniently was needed somewhere for something that Arizona was sure she made up to avoid having to deal with Arizona's wrath. Luckily for her, Arizona was much too tired to fight and the only thing on her mind other than sleep was seeing the Latina's beautiful face. Arizona stood against a counter in the corner of the room leaning back on her elbows casually as her eyes scanned the sea of people in search of the one person who was becoming her favorite view at an alarmingly quick rate. Eyes finally landing on the face she was searching for, Arizona maintained her safe distance just studying the Latina's gorgeous features as she contemplated her options.
Arizona settled on safely observing and committing certain features to memory from a distance for just a few more moments and then she would approach her. She liked watching the way Callie nervously shuffled her feet from side to side while fiddling with the bottom hem of her shirt. She noticed how Callie's beautiful dark eyes searched through the sea of people in the large room and Arizona suddenly felt a slight tightening in her chest that made absolutely no sense as she wondered if Callie's eyes were searching for her too.
"Well I shouldn't keep my goddess waiting." Arizona said to herself aloud with a shrug of her shoulders as she decided it was time to approach Callie. She drank the rest of her punch and turned to place the empty cup on the counter behind her. As she turned back around, feeling confident in her decision, her breath caught when she noticed the dark blonde haired woman approach Callie. Arizona unknowingly faltered, halting her own approach after just a few small steps as she watched the interaction unfold. The tall, curly haired blonde handed Callie a drink and whispered something in Callie's ear, causing Callie to throw her head back in laughter. The blonde woman smiled widely at Callie and placed her hand lightly on Callie's left upper arm.
"Who does she think she is?" Arizona asked quietly to herself as she folded her arms across her chest, a scowl forming on light pink lips.
"Ohhh who is getting the famous Arizona Robbins death glare?" Arizona looked up briefly at the male voice to see her childhood husband and best friend join her before she returned her glare to the two women across the room. He followed her laser glare across the room to the Latina and the ridiculously tall blonde.
"Oh, yea, that's Erica Hahn. She's in my group. Hot as hell but super intense and kind of a cocky jerk. The other one is in your brother's group. I can't remember her name but Tim has it bad for her." Nick said as he stood beside Arizona while she continued to glare. He had no idea why she was glaring but he glared too in solidarity. Arizona's head snapped suddenly in his direction as realization hit her, her death glare now fixed on him.
"You mean Callie? Tim has a thing for Callie?" Arizona asked, half in disbelief and half in horror. Nick just nodded his head enthusiastically at the juicy gossip he was about to share with Arizona. He swallowed his giant mouthful of punch as quickly as possible so he could spill his guts. He and Tim usually teamed up to tease Arizona but Nick secretly loved teaming up with Arizona on occasion to get Tim going. Nick gasped as he excitedly responded, "Oh yea. He's got it really bad. That is all Tim could talk about all afternoon as we did our patrol. Callie this, Callie that. Callie's smile, Callie's eyes, Callie's hair, oh and Callie smells soooo good." Nick laughed at himself as he imitated Tim in a ridiculously high pitched voice while batting his eyelashes wildly. Arizona would have laughed with Nick if it had been any other girl, but not Callie. No, this could not be happening.
"Oh this day just keeps getting better and better." Arizona groaned grumpily and snatched Nick's cup of punch from his hand downing it as if it were a shot of tequila. Too bad the base was dry, she would do just about anything for a real shot of tequila. For the time being, she would have to get through with pretending the punch was spiked.
"Wait! Phoenix, do you have a thing for her too?" Nick asked excitedly. Arizona narrowed her eyes at him and scoffed. She rolled her eyes as she shouted, "What? No!"
"Oh my God, you totally do! It's like college all over again! Flagstaff, my money is on you, always baby, but I sure am going to enjoy watching you two duke it out once again." Nick replied with a giggle. He sounded more like a gossipy cheerleader with his giddiness at her misfortune than the supportive childhood husband he was supposed to be.
"Oh grow up Nicholas!" Arizona rolled her eyes once again dramatically and gave Nick a playful punch to the gut. He pretended to be severely injured for a moment earning him a genuine smile from Arizona before they both chanced a glance back in the brunette's direction.
"Excellent, speak of the devil!" Nick smiled.
"Oh Jesus." Arizona groaned, a grimace once again plastered to her face as she watched none other than her very own brother join Erica Hahn and Callie.
"Better get in there Tucson, the competition is heating up. Callie is drowning in a sea of blondes out there." Nick teased.
Arizona stood her ground next to Nick, weighing her options carefully. Erica did not seem pleased by the presence of her brother which did make Arizona only slightly happier. But still, she felt something she couldn't quite identify. It was unpleasant. She felt sick to her stomach, hot with anger, and a bit of sadness all at once. And then it hit her, she was jealous. A feeling she was very unfamiliar with. She had never been the "jealous type" but right now, she felt the green eyed monster so clearly when she really had no right to. Nick seemed to pick up on this as well and decided to poke the bear, "You wouldn't be jealous now would you Tempe?"
"Arizona freaking Robbins does not get jealous, Nicholas. I am amazing, awesome, hot, like super hot, even dirty hot for the right girl. I'm a catch. No Nick, of course I'm not jealous." Arizona replied without removing her glare from the trio across the room.
Deciding that perhaps it was time for a change in subject, Nick asked, "So, are you going to tell me what happened to your face, Arizona?"
The use of her real name and the sincerity in his voice caught Arizona's attention and her brilliant blue eyes met Nick's darker blue ones. She could only see genuine concern there and her jealousy and anger dissipated for a moment as she replied simply, "Callie."
"What?!" Nick shouted, capturing the attention of the people nearby as well as the trio across the room. Neither of them noticed that the trio was now intently watching them from across the room. Nick lowered his voice and leaned in and said, "Is that a sex injury? Wow, didn't think you had it in ya, Mesa, I'm impressed."
The sweet moment between them evaporated instantly as Arizona seized Nick by the elbow and steered him outside into the cool night air roughly. Once they were away from prying eyes and curious ears, Arizona rounded on him quickly, catching him off guard.
"Don't be ridiculous, Nick, of course I didn't have sex with Callie. We only just met, we barely know each other, plus we have both been kinda busy with all of this!" Arizona said in exasperation as she flung her arms up in the air and flailed them around to signify the base.
"Like that ever stopped you before." Nick said with a knowing smile. Arizona slugged him in the shoulder. "Ow" Nick replied, rubbing his shoulder where Arizona's surprisingly strong hit landed.
"Serves you right." Arizona stuck out her tongue maturely which Nick instantly mimicked.
"So, how did this Callie give you a black eye then?" Nick asked, lowering himself to the ground and resting his back against the brick wall of the building they had just evacuated. He patted the ground next to him and looked up to Arizona patiently, trying to show her that he was ready to be serious and listen. Arizona sighed and joined him in the dirt, her own back against the wall as he pulled her close to his side with an arm around her slender shoulders. She noticed a tinge of pain in her tailbone and adjusted her weight to her left butt cheek. She had been so concerned about the possibility of being late to supper and then all the fuss over her eye that she had forgotten about the hard landing on her backside.
"It was an accident. I was in line for supper at the mess hall with Teddy when I remembered that Callie had fallen asleep before I left the barracks. I couldn't find her in line and I knew Tim would have a coronary if one of his team members were late, especially on the first night. So, I ran back to the barracks to see if she was still sleeping and there she was on the top bunk sound asleep. I climbed up to wake her up, she's a heavy sleeper so she didn't respond to me shouting so I reached out to touch her and yelled her name one last time. Well not only is she a heavy sleeper but she wakes up swinging." Arizona replied, giving him the short version. He didn't need to know how much of a creeper she had been by reaching out to brush the hair out of Callie's face when they were basically strangers. Although, for some reason, Callie felt far from being a stranger, she felt very familiar. Still, for all intents and purposes, they were strangers; And she had startled Callie by touching her when she was sleeping so peacefully.
"Does Tim know?"
"No."
"Well Phoenix, if you want to solve your problem and eliminate the competition, he might not be so keen on Callie once he finds out she's responsible for that wicked shiner on your beautiful face." Nick said. He kissed the top of her head affectionately before laying his head on hers which was still resting on his right shoulder. They sat that way in comfortable silence for several minutes both lost in their own thoughts as they gazed out at the night sky.
A few more peaceful moments passed with them sitting this way before the sound of the heavy door opening interrupted the silence. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. They need everyone inside so they can hand out everyone's helmets, vests, and medical bags." Callie rambled as she stood holding the door, half inside the building and half out in the cool night air.
"Crap, I forgot all about that. I'm a team leader, I should be in there. Can you believe they actually gave me a team this year, Sedona?" Nick asked with a mischievous grin as he stood then turned to offer his hand to Arizona. She gratefully accepted it as her bottom had become increasingly sore from sitting on the ground. She wondered if her tailbone was bruised as Nick easily lifted her to her feet. She absentmindedly turned her bottom towards the two in her company as she twisted her own body to try to peek at the butt of her jeans. "Is there dirt on my butt? These are my favorite jeans, I wasn't thinking about how light they are when I sat on the ground in a pile of dirt." Arizona fretted.
Arizona looked up when no one answered. Nick wasn't even looking in the direction of Arizona's derriere. She followed his line of sight to Callie who was openly ogling Arizona's backside while unconsciously licking her full red lips. Arizona blushed slightly at the intense look on Callie's face, feeling a flutter low in her abdomen.
"Your bottom is just fine, Scottsdale, perfect as usual." Nick said, breaking the silence as he gave Arizona a slap to the backside causing her to yelp in both surprise and pain as he walked past her and Callie to enter the building leaving the two women alone.
"We should probably go in too." Arizona said, the trance between the two having been broken by Nick's departure and Arizona's fear of being late once more.
"Yeah." Callie agreed without moving. Arizona moved forward to enter the building and Callie gently reached out and stopped her, wrapping her hand around Arizona's forearm, "Arizona?"
The way Callie whispered her name added to the feeling of Callie's skin on hers sent a warmth flooding through Arizona's body. She looked down at Callie's strong, tan fingers wrapped gently around her forearm. She loved the way their different skin tones looked together. She slowly brought her eyes up Callie's body enjoying the way Callie's simple gold scoop neck shirt hugged her in all the right places and revealed just enough cleavage to make Arizona's mouth water and her eyes begging to see more. As cerulean blue finally met dark chocolate, Arizona's heart rate increased as the look of lust was momentarily recognizable in Callie's eyes.
"How's your eye feeling?" Callie asked, bursting the lust filled bubble they had just been in.
"What?" Arizona asked as she felt their pretty pink bubble pop. She didn't know Callie well yet but she did know that was not what she was asking when she whispered Arizona's name moments before.
"Is your eye ok? Are you in pain?" Callie asked, her own heart beating wildly in her chest as she tried to get them back on solid ground.
"I'm ok Callie, really. It was an accident and you're so sweet for your concern but I promise, I'm fine." Arizona replied with a smile and a gentle nod of her head. She placed her free hand over the hand of Callie's that was still holding her forearm in place. She squeezed Callie's hand gently and said, "We should go in."
Callie nodded in agreement and dropped Arizona's forearm as she followed her into the building, both women feeling slightly deflated after the encounter. 'You're crushing on a straight girl, Riz, get a grip,' Arizona silently scolded herself for the millionth time that day it seemed.