Owen opened the door slightly and poked his head in the opening. "Callie. Can I talk to you?"
"Of course. What's up?"
Owen glanced at Aria and looked back to his soon-to-be ex-wife. "In private?"
"Oh, come on, Owen," Aria said. "We're all family."
Callie shrugged. "We can talk in front of Aria."
Owen stepped into the room, making sure the door was closed behind him and stepped towards Callie with a dark look on his face. "Why were you kissing Arizona Robbins in our kitchen last night?"
Aria's eyes got wide as Callie sputtered. "Uh…what?"
"I was just in the daycare and Allegra said, 'Mommy was kissing Goldilocks on the mouth to fix her ouchie.' It took me a minute to figure out what she was talking about, but the only explanation I can come up with is that you were kissing Arizona Robbins in our home last night."
Aria tried to cover up the laugh that bubbled up by clearing her throat.
Callie shot her sister a dirty look and turned back to Owen. "It was nothing, Owen."
"I mean, after that dinner I figured she had a silly little crush on you, but what the hell are you doing, Callie?"
"Hey, we're not married anymore."
Owen banged his fist on the table and Aria stood up quickly, on alert. "We are! No papers have been signed. You're my wife and you're bringing…what, some doctor who sleeps around into our home and kissing her in front of our children?"
"Owen…" Aria said, her voice filled with warning.
"Are you gay now? Is that why we're getting a divorce?"
"No…I…I don't know, Owen."
Stepping around the table, Aria stood slightly in front of her sister, never taking her eyes off Owen. "Owen, I need you to take a breath and a step back."
He shot her a look filled with pure annoyance. "You don't need to protect her from me."
Aria raised her hands, palms out. "Probably not. But I'm still just going to stand here."
"You've always been a pain in the—" he muttered before turning his attention back to Callie. "You can't just do that. You can't just change your mind and be gay and start bringing women into my home!"
"It's my home, Owen. We are separated and you no longer live there." Callie's heart was starting to race. She recognized this behavior from him, even though she was hoping to never see it again.
"C'mon, Callie! She's slept with all of the women in this hospital and you're just another conquest for her!"
Aria shook her head. "Owen, seriously. Take a breath."
"Owen, you're going around this hospital with Christina Yang doing god-knows-what. You don't have a leg to stand on."
"In our house, Callie! In front of our kids!"
Callie took a deep breath. "That was a mistake. It won't happen again."
"Goddammit!" Owen exclaimed as his breaths got faster and both sisters could see the anger rising in his eyes.
Aria spotted Drew and Frankie standing outside of the lab, watching what was going on with interest. Drew made a move to open the lab door and Aria shook her head slightly, stopping him in his tracks.
"Owen, Callie's not going to do anything that's going to affect the kids without talking to you first. You know that, right?" Aria asked.
"That's bullshit! She already did! She brought that woman into my house…"
"It's not your house, Owen." Callie stated again, calmly, trying to deescalate the situation.
In a quick move, Owen slammed his fist down on the table again, sending a tray of instruments flying into the air, and took a step towards Callie. Aria quickly moved back to shield her sister just as Callie stood up with a gasp. Drew and Frankie ran into the room and blocked Owen from getting to the two sisters, holding him back.
At that moment, Chief Grey and Doctor Webber were walking past the lab and heard the commotion. They stopped and Chief Grey clipped out, "Torres! Hunt! Torres! My office. Now." She turned on her heel and walked towards her office, confident that the trio would be following close behind.
"Callie—I'm so sorry. I didn't mean…" Owen's eyes were remorseful as he realized what had just happened.
"Hey, buddy. Let's go to the Chief's office, okay?" Frankie gently turned Owen towards the door and guided him out.
Drew turned to Aria and gasped. "You're bleeding, Ar."
She realized her cheek was stinging and raised a hand to touch it gingerly. Pulling her hand back and seeing blood, she sighed.
"Something from the tray must have hit you." Drew moved closer, prodding at the wound.
"Oh my god, Aria. I'm so sorry," Callie moved around to face her sister and grabbed some gauze from the table.
"It's fine."
"I can't believe he did that."
"He's scared, Cal. Things are changing and he's scared." Aria let out a big sigh as Drew put a bandage on her face, making her wince. "I'm fine."
"We shouldn't keep the chief waiting." Callie held her sister's hand as they walked down the corridor. "I'm really sorry about him, Aria."
"Stop apologizing. I'm just glad everyone's okay."
The sisters stood in front of Chief Grey's office and saw Owen already sitting in front of her desk, head hanging. The Chief was looking at him sternly and speaking to him in a low voice before noticing the other doctors at the door. She gestured for them to enter and Aria and Callie stepped inside.
"Please sit."
Aria pushed Callie towards the other available chair and decided to stay standing behind the two department heads.
"I can't stand for these kinds of shenanigans in my hospital, Hunt. Do you hear me?"
Owen let out a deep sigh. "Yes, Chief."
"I won't have two of my department heads at each other's throats while residents who are new to this hospital look on. Do you know how that makes us look?"
"Sorry, Chief Grey."
Ellis turned her attention to Aria, who was looking uncomfortable. "Doctor Torres. I'm sorry this is our first meeting. You've made quite a name for yourself already with the cartilage project."
"It was a team effort, Chief."
"I'm not finished." Ellis paused to make sure the other doctor wasn't going to interrupt again. "The Seattle Pres doctors are not safe. This is an acquisition and we already have several residents here at Seattle Grace. I do not want to see you in my office like this again. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Chief."
"Was your wound bandaged properly?"
"It's just a small laceration."
"All the same, it's going to bruise. Take the rest of the day off, cool down, and ice it. Be back tomorrow."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Hunt, I want you to take at least a week. I don't want to see you back in this hospital until you are cleared by Dr. Franklin."
"I'm already seeing my own therapist."
"And now you'll see two. I want clearance from Dr. Franklin. Do you understand?"
Owen nodded. "Yes, Chief."
"You may both go." She looked at Callie. "Dr. Torres, please stay."
Aria squeezed her sister's shoulder. "Call me if you need me."
Callie nodded and watched as Owen and Aria made their way out of the office.
"Chief?"
"Dr. Torres. What in the world were you thinking?"
"I—I wasn't…"
"I know that you and Owen are separating. I know he is struggling with his condition. Is it a problem to have you both working here?"
"No, ma'am."
"Your sister is a very good doctor."
"Yes, she is."
"If she is to keep working here, you need to teach her how we behave at Seattle Grace."
"She was protecting me, Chief."
"She was in the middle of the scuffle."
Callie's nostrils flared. Chief Grey was notoriously impossible to talk to, and Callie definitely didn't want to get her sister in any more trouble than she was already in. "Yes, Chief. I'll talk to her."
"Thank you. That is all."
Aria watched as Owen left the hospital without changing out of his scrubs. Her cheek was starting to ache, but she just wanted to put the whole thing behind her. She knew her brother-in-law was struggling and this wasn't the first time that she had stepped in front of Callie or the kids in case his PTSD got the better of him, but it was definitely the scariest.
She made her way to the residents' locker room and hung her lab coat in her locker, sending up a quick prayer of thanks that everyone was safe, especially her sister. She had just lifted her scrub top over her head when she heard the door slam open and saw Cynthia rush in.
"Someone said you got hurt," Cynthia breathed out as she rushed up to Aria.
"I'm okay."
"You don't look okay." Cynthia's fingers went to Aria's face, lightly tracing over the bandage, and saw that her skin was already starting to discolor around the wound.
"It was nothing."
"What happened?"
"Seriously, I'm okay."
"This is going to bruise. You need to ice it."
"Yes, doctor, I know." Aria sighed, realizing her anger was misplaced. "Sorry, thank you. I will."
"Will you please tell me what happened?"
"Owen got a little intense, that's all. He found out about Callie and Arizona because Allegra saw them kissing."
"He put his hands on you?"
"No—"
"I'm gonna kill him."
"Cynthia, seriously." Aria grabbed the other woman's hand. "No, he didn't touch me. I moved between him and Callie, he accidentally knocked over a tray, and I got hit by something flying through the air. It's fine."
Cynthia squeezed Aria's hand and waited for Aria to look at her. "You can say if it's not fine, you know."
Aria shook her head. "I'm okay. It's really fine."
"And I'm very glad you're okay. But it sounds scary and like it sucked royally. You can tell me if that's the case." Cynthia's heart broke as she saw Aria's protective façade falter.
After a moment, Aria admitted quietly, "It sucked and it was scary."
"Oh, sweetheart." Cynthia gathered Aria into her arms and held her tight.
Cynthia was waiting outside of the OR two hours later as Arizona finished up her surgery. Coming out of her surgery, Arizona took off her gown and scrub cap, stretching her neck from side to side before spotting her best friend standing against the wall.
"Hey. What are you doing here?"
"So…there's some gossip going around the hospital and I didn't want you to hear it from a nurse or something."
"Alright. What's up?" Arizona started making her way back to the Peds ward with Cynthia walking next to her.
"Owen had another PTSD…situation."
"Is everyone okay? Did he punch another window?"
"Everyone is fine. But it was directed at Callie this time. Aria was there too."
Arizona stopped walking and turned to her friend. "Is Callie okay?"
"She's fine."
"What happened?"
"So, luckily, the three of them were in the ortho lab and no one knows what they were talking about when it happened. But Aria told me that Owen found out about you and Callie and didn't react well."
Arizona's face fell. "It was my fault?"
"No. Hey, you and I both know that no one is at fault here."
"So what exactly happened?"
Cynthia recounted the story as it had been told to her by Aria. She ended with, "So Owen is out on leave for the week, Aria's at home for the rest of the day, and Callie, I'm assuming, is blaming herself. I don't know that part for sure, but it's an educated guess."
"I can't believe the Chief was walking by and saw it."
"Yeah."
"What are people saying it was about?"
"People are assuming it's about their divorce or about Yang."
Arizona sighed and chewed on her lip. "I should probably go find Callie. Is Aria okay?"
"Shaken up more than she'd like to let on, but she's home and resting. I'll check in with her a little later."
"I told you the Torres women would be the death of us."
Cynthia shrugged. "But what a way to go."
Arizona knocked softly on Callie's closed office door, shaking Callie out of her thoughts. As Callie glanced up through the door's window, her face brightened as she saw the blonde woman standing outside of her office. She gestured for Arizona to come in, and she did, closing the door behind her.
"It sounds like you had an eventful day, Calliope."
Callie couldn't help but chuckle. "You could say that. The rumor mill is in full force, I imagine."
"I actually just got out of surgery and Cynthia found me to let me know what happened. I'm so sorry, Calliope."
"Not your fault." Callie waved a hand in the air. "I should have been more careful. Or I should have talked to him first. Or something."
Arizona sat in the chair across from Callie's desk and leaned forward. "You can't think like that. Sure, there was a catalyst, but please don't blame yourself."
"My sister stepped in front of him because she was scared for me and she got hurt. How is that not my fault?"
Arizona stood quickly and went around the desk so she was next to Callie. She knelt down and waited for Callie to look at her. "Aria is really brave and she loves you a lot. I don't think there's much that woman wouldn't step in front of to protect you. But she's okay."
"The chief threatened her job."
"What?"
"All Chief Grey saw was Owen being restrained and Aria standing in the middle of it. You know how the chief is—you can't explain anything to her. She basically told Aria that she's not safe with the acquisition and to be on alert."
"Well, I'm sure the chief was bluffing a little. Aria is a great doctor and part of the team who made cartilage out of thin air. You and I both know there's no way Grey is going to get rid of someone who can bring more grants and awards into his hospital." Arizona reached out to take Callie's hand but paused when Callie pulled her hand away. "What…"
"Are we moving too fast?"
Arizona sat back on her heels for a moment before standing up. "What do you mean?"
Glancing up at Arizona, Callie shrugged. "I'm not even divorced. We haven't even started the paperwork to make that happen. I've got three kids at home and clearly, Owen is having a problem with this…"
"Calliope."
"This isn't fair to you, Arizona. You deserve someone better than…" she gestured around her futilely. "All this."
Arizona shook her head. "You're wrong."
"I'm not."
"You are. And I'll prove it to you. Let me take you on a date."
Callie's face screwed up in confusion. "I don't kno—"
"This weekend." Arizona pleaded. "Let me take you on a real, honest-to-god date. We'll dress up, we'll order wine, maybe I'll let you kiss me at the end of the night. And then you can decide, okay? However you feel after that…I'll deal with. But don't end this before we even get a chance to try it out. Please."
Callie chewed on her bottom lip, conflicted.
"Calliope."
Hearing the other woman say her name in a pleading whisper, Callie's resolve broke. She knew it was a bad idea, but she didn't want to give this up. She looked up into the blue eyes staring at her and nodded her head. "Okay. Let's go on a date."
Callie got a fresh ice pack from her sister's freezer and brought it over to the couch, handing it to Aria.
"I just don't know. I agreed to go out with her this weekend on a real date, but I feel bad. Like I'm doing something wrong."
"What are you doing that's wrong?" Aria asked, wincing as she put the ice against her cheekbone.
"Breaking my vows?"
Aria rolled her eyes as best she could and sighed. "Your vows have already been broken. You're in the process of disintegrating them, actually. So that's not an excuse."
Callie sat on the sofa across from Aria. "Owen clearly has a problem with…"
"Even if he did, that's not your concern anymore. Owen has things he's working through. Yes, there are things you guys need to work out as parents, such as the protocol for bringing new suitors around the children, but you have time. You did it too soon yesterday, which was a mistake and it set him off. None of that will happen again."
"But you got hurt."
"Jesus, Callie. Barely. I've got a scratch and tomorrow I'll have a black eye, and that will be the end of it. Are you going to never kiss Arizona Robbins again because I got a black eye?"
Just then, the apartment door opened to reveal Mark Sloan. "Hey, Little Torres. Torres." He turned back to Aria. "Rogers told me I have to look at your face when I get home. So…how's your face?"
"It's fine, Sloan."
He stepped towards the couch, whistling softly as Aria removed the ice pack from her cheek. "That's going to bruise."
"I know."
Mark raised his hand to her cheekbone, gently prodding. "The bone is fine. Just a scratch."
"I think I would know if there was something wrong with the bone. But thanks for your professional opinion." Aria put the ice back against her face and Mark backed up.
"Hey, I'm just doing what I'm told. Rogers must have been pretty worried about you if she was willing to ask for my help."
Callie noticed the small smile on Aria's face at the mention of the other woman. "Hey, Sloan, how are Addison and the baby doing?"
Mark immediately whipped out his phone and pulled up a picture of Sofia in her bassinet. "Growing like a weed. Look at that nose." He swiped to a different picture and showed it to Callie. "That's the Sloan nose."
"She's gorgeous. And Addy?"
"She's doing okay. I'm actually just going to shower and head over there now to spend some time with them. I'll tell her to call you."
"That would be great. Thanks, Mark."
He smiled and started heading towards the bathroom, taking his shirt off as he walked away. Both sisters watched in appreciation.
"Damn," Callie said, involuntarily.
"Nice, right? I mean, I'm not interested at all, but it's nice to have the eye candy around, you know?"
Callie laughed and nodded. "I get it." There was a knock at the door. "Are you expecting anyone?"
Aria shook her head and Callie got up to answer the door. Surprised to see Cynthia and Arizona on the other side, she stepped back to let them into the apartment.
"Hey, guys."
"Oh, hey, California. We were just stopping by to check on the patient. We thought a little bit of a girls' night was in order but it looks like you got started without us."
Aria stood up from the couch and made her way to the door. "You didn't have to check on me."
Arizona held up a bottle of wine. "We had ulterior motives."
"Why didn't you say so? Come on in!" Aria grabbed the wine from Arizona and went into the kitchen to get glasses. Cynthia followed close behind her, leaving Arizona and Callie in the doorway.
"Hey."
"Hi." Callie smiled and gestured for Arizona to make her way into the kitchen in front of her just as Cynthia was examining Aria's cut.
"Does it hurt?"
"I've been icing it on and off all day. It's okay."
"Can I kiss you?"
"Gently, please." Cynthia leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on Aria's lips.
"Alright, enough, you two." Callie grabbed the wine from Aria and opened it using the wine opener she found on the counter.
"Where are the kids, Callie?" Cynthia asked.
"Owen's sister has them. I'll pick them up on my way home. Aria, Megan asked how you were doing."
"That's nice of her. I'll text her later. She doesn't have the kids at Owen's mom's, does she?"
"No, they're at her place. I think it's probably best if he doesn't see the kids for a couple of days. We can reevaluate later." Callie poured four glasses of wine and handed them out.
"That's going to be tough for them. And you," Arizona offered.
"Owen's recovery comes first. I think we all agree on that." Cynthia took a sip of her wine and turned to Callie. "If you need any help with childcare or anything, let me know, okay? Your sister isn't the only one with aunt experience."
Callie smiled gratefully at the other woman. "I appreciate that. And I'll keep it in mind."
"Speaking of siblings," Cynthia turned to Arizona, "how's Tim doing?"
"My parents are driving him crazy. Mom keeps trying to set him up with the women from town."
"Good! Maybe he'll fall in love and get off my case!"
"I'm sorry," Aria piped up. "Arizona, is your brother chasing after this one?" she pointed her thumb in Cynthia's direction.
"Timmy has been in love with her since I first moved to Seattle. Don't worry, Aria. If she hasn't fallen for his charms yet, it's not going to happen."
Cynthia laughed. "Not my type. No offense, Zona, but I've never been partial to blonde and blue-eyed."
Arizona held up her hands. "No offense taken."
"I don't know, I kind of like it," Callie spoke up.
Callie shot a quick smirk at Arizona and winked. As the conversation continued around her, Callie took a moment to breathe. Today had been a rough one, but she was very lucky to have such great friends around her. Smiling at Cynthia and Arizona, Callie thought about how each of them had only really come into her life in the last few weeks, but she couldn't imagine them not being there. Cynthia was a great friend who was always willing to help and Arizona…well, Arizona was just incredible and Callie let herself feel a small thrill at the thought of their date a few days away. Arizona had said she might let Callie kiss her at the end of the night. What if Callie was ready for more?
Just then, Mark came out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a towel around his waist. Arizona noticed that all three of the other women's eyes zoned in on his chest and glazed over as he walked to his bedroom and shut the door behind him. She rolled her eyes. "The three of you are disgusting!"