A/N another week down and still feeling like crap but i'm going to try and go back to work tomorrow, i HATE taking time off work sick, does that make me abnormal?!
Another shorter chapter, more of a filler to get to the next stage of the story, the next chapter will be about the gender reveal so will be a bit more lighter.
Here is this weeks chapter, now i'm going to go and write some fluff for the upcoming chapters, im sure you will all be overjoyed to know that there will be some fluff coming haha.
Enjoy and as always, please take a extra minute to drop me a review, they are the highlight of my week when i see a review in my inbox :)
AL xx
-oOo-
"Oh Mija, we knew this might happen... how are you feeling, you're looking awfully pale. Can I get you some water?" Lucia asked carefully as she rounded the table and gripped at her daughter's shoulder supportively.
"Yeah, a water would be good please" Callie asked absently as she stared at the stark white paper in front of her. Her mother dashed to the cupboard to fetch a glass then filled it using the water dispenser on the fridge before handing the cool glass to her daughter who mumbled a thanks without taking her eyes away from the news in her hand.
"Mija, I need you to say something, you're really worrying me" Lucia begged as she took a seat next to Callie and laid her hand soothingly on her knee.
"I don't know what to say Mama, I mean we knew this was coming, it was always going to come at some point I just wasn't expecting it to be today... I think, I think I'm going to be sick" Callie announced as she threw her hand over her mouth and made a mad dash for the kitchen sink where she promptly discarded the contents of her stomach.
After dry heaving for several moment's she grabbed the tea towel and wiped her mouth before throwing it in the washing machine and taking her seat at the table once again, flicking the sheet of paper further away from her in disgust.
"May I read it?" Lucia asked carefully as she rubbed soothing circles on her daughters back. Callie nodded so she picked up the paper and read the formal typing slowly to digest all the information. "Ok so we have three weeks to prepare for this. I will ring John now and inform him that this has arrived and we can start getting prepared. Don't you worry about a thing sweetheart. He is going to have guards around him, he won't be able to get anywhere near you. Your father and I will be with you every single step of the way"
"I don't want you to be there" Callie said numbly.
"What... Mija don't be ridiculous, of course we want to be there" Lucia frowned.
"No... I don't want you there, it's going to be hard enough to have to re-live what he put me through without you and Papi hearing it as well, I'm sorry but I don't want you there" Callie finally looked to her mother with teary pleading eyes.
"How about a compromise, we will come..."
"Mami please listen..."
"No, you listen" Lucia interrupted calmly. "We will come but we will stay in the waiting room, that way if you need us we are at hand but we won't be in there making you even more uncomfortable"
"Thats... that would be great" Callie admitted as she leaned into her mother who wrapped her arms lovingly around her and kissed her crown softly.
"Don't you worry my darling, this will all be over shortly"
"I feel like this will never be over, every time I start feeling like my old self something will happen or someone will say something and it's like I'm transported back in time to being this pathetic version of myself that I can't stand"
"Oh Mija, you were never pathetic please don't think like that, you were so strong to go through what you did, you ARE so strong to be going through all of this and despite everything you've had thrown at you... look at you thriving, you're out there living your life and training to become a doctor of all things. Your twenty weeks pregnant and you're still thriving. Saying I'm proud of you doesn't feel like a strong enough description, the word isn't strong enough but it's all I have and I am so very proud of you"
"He hurt me Mami, in ways I can't even describe. It's not just about the physical abuse it was emotional as well. He took everything from me and made me into the shell of the woman I'm supposed to be and even now I still struggle, I hear his voice in my head taunting me, the words he used to use to describe me or berate me... I'm scared that his voice will never go away" Callie admitted as tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Sweetheart, what you need is closure, this court case will help with that, and you keep seeing Dr Warner and you tell her these things and she will help. It's not unusual for women who have been involved with domestic abuse to feel that way. Look at it like this, you have PTSD and that isn't going to go away on its own, like going back to school to achieve your dreams you have to work on your PTSD to achieve being free for him. It's not going to be a short or easy road but you will get there in time and until then if you need to break down and cry, I am always here with a shoulder to lean on" Lucia said carefully as she battled her own emotions. This was the first time since the hospital Callie had opened up about her feelings regarding Earl and to say she was feeling overwhelmed was an understatement.
"What he did to me, the things he made me do... I don't want to have to tell them to a group of strangers. For gods sake I can't even say them in front of you... I've tried to talk to Arizona about it too but it just hurts so much. I've spoken to Dr Warner about it but that was near on impossible getting the words to leave my mouth. I just don't know how I'm going to do it. How do I stand there in front of a group of strangers and tell them my darkest secrets without Earl breaking me again?" Callie asked as she leaned back from the embrace and looked into her mother's watery eyes.
"If you don't do this Calliope he will win. He will be released from remand and will be free to roam the streets to do this to some other poor girl. He will be able to gain access to your son or daughter and be able to do this to them. So if you can't do it for yourself, do it for this little one" Lucia smiled as she stroked Callies barely there bump. Callie hung her head in defeat, although her mother's words were true they stung and she felt a heavy sense of duty fall on her shoulders. She couldn't let that monster be free, she couldn't allow him to do this to another woman and she sure as hell couldn't let him get anywhere near her daughter. No she would be in a grave before she let that bastard anywhere near her daughter.
"Your right, I've just got to do this... where do we start? I want to be ready for him"
"I will call John now, I'm sure he received a letter too about the trial. We will set up a meeting with him to go through everything and until the trial we will go on with life as normal, he will not disrupt your life anymore than he already has, agreed?" Lucia said with fire in her eyes.
"Thanks Mami, I love you" Callie admitted sadly.
"I love you too Mija, now tell me how did today go? Did you find out am I having a grandson or a granddaughter?" Lucia asked with excitement as she stood up and rounded the table to grab her phone to ring John, the lawyer they had hired for Callie's case.
"Nope, you have to wait for the gender reveal to find out... nice try though" Callie smiled for the first time since that afternoon when she found out she was having a daughter.
-oOo-
"Calliope?" Arizona called over the fence, not surprised to find her friend sitting in her usual spot only this time she wasn't working away on her laptop, nor was she basking in the freedom with the sun on her face, no this time she was sitting curled in on herself with tear tracks on her cheeks, with red puffy eyes and her lips in a distinctive pout. "I'm guessing you got one of these too?" Arizona said as she entered the back yard through the communal gate and showed the Latina a letter.
"You got one too?" Callie asked in a croaky voice.
"Yep... I'm guessing by the look on your face your as thrilled about it as I am" Arizona asked as she plonked herself down on her usual chair next to Callie's. Stealing the brunettes cup she took a swig and grimaced, not only was it bitter, it was decaf. "How do you drink this crap?"
"It's fine... it's better than overloading the baby with caffeine" Callie offered absently.
"It's terrible... do you, do you want to talk about it?" Arizona asked carefully.
"I was on such a high today after finding out I'm having a girl... then I came home to this and I feel like I'm back to square one. I have an assignment due in two days and I don't have the energy to even look at my laptop never mind do any work on the assignment" Callie sighed audibly as she threw her head back onto the chair back and closed her eyes tightly to try and fend off the tears threatening to fall.
"Ok, let's have a thirty minute pity party, then you can go grab your laptop and I will help with the assignment. I'm not letting you fall behind because of that piece of shit" Arizona said authoritively then felt bad when she saw Callie's shoulders begin to shake. Stepping up from her chair she knelt in front of the brunette with her hands on her legs running soothing patterns. "Come on Cal, he isn't worth your tears. You have come so far in such a short space of time... I don't want to see you regress because of this. When you look at it, it's really a good thing it's only been a few months since he was put on remand and now his trial is set. The lawyers must think they have a solid case to be going to trial already with it"
"It's not that... well it's also that... I'm just... how the hell am I going to explain to this little one about her father?" Callie asked as she opened watery eyes and looked into Arizona's bright blue orbs.
"That she doesn't have a father like the other kids, you are more than enough for this little one" Arizona said in a serious voice as she pleaded with her eyes for the Latina to understand.
"What if I'm not?" Callie asked in a sad voice, her heart breaking at the thought of letting her child down.
"You are. And what you can't do... I will do, or your parents, or my parents, or uncle Timmy or Aunt Aria... this little one is going to be loved by so many people they won't even notice that they are missing a father" Arizona said adamantly, blanching when Callie scoffed.
"Tia Aria doesn't want anything to do with me, she blames me for going missing" Callie admitted in a small voice.
"You know Aria, she's always a drama queen. She will come around and when she does she will feel awful for even thinking that, you know what she is like" Arizona smiled softly as she remembered all the times Callie's baby sister had thrown a strop about something or another, usually about missing out on joining Callie, Arizona and Tim on their adventures because she was two years younger and wasn't allowed to go and do the things that they had planned.
"How could she think that I wanted to go missing... that I wanted any of this?" Callie asked.
"She doesn't understand fully, she's not thinking about you right now she's thinking about herself. Aria and I spoke a lot when you went missing and she took it really hard, she felt betrayed by you... like you had abandoned her. She loves you she's just confused right now, give her time to come around because she will come around I promise you"
"How do you always know the right things to say to cheer me up?" Callie asked with a hint of a smile.
"Because I'm awesome?" Arizona smirked confidently.
"You're annoying" Callie laughed softly, her mood seemingly had changed once again because of the perky blonde and her perfect words.
"Why don't you go fetch your laptop and we will work on this assignment now" Arizona asked carefully, smiling when Callie nodded and uncurled herself from the chair.
"Ok boss" Callie threw over her shoulder, smiling when she heard the blonde laugh.