Hey all! I've been working on a few longer oneshots recently (including mayyyyybe a sequel to i ain't there yet but i'm healing but we'll see lol early days), but my mind needed a break from all the emotional drama so I wrote this, it's just kinda short mindless fluff but I thought it was fun. Shoutout to the reddit post on grey's characters' coffee orders for inspiring this lol. Also shoutout to all the people who informed me that orange starbursts are the grossest, could not have done it w/o you.

title comes from bitter by fletcher and is definitely about the taste of coffee and not the emotional state of calzona in this fic, i promise lol

(about three weeks into dating, late season 5)

"Arizona! Arizona!"

Callie's unmistakable voice carried down the hall, stopping Arizona in her tracks. Smile on her face, she wheeled around to see Callie leaning on the wall outside OR 4, scrub cap still on, looking exhausted. She let herself glide the last several feet to Callie on her Heelys, prompting Callie to roll her eyes.

"Hey. I thought your surgery was supposed to go all morning," said Arizona.

"It finished early." Callie's tone told her it was not the good kind of finishing early.

Arizona gently touched Callie's arm. "Is there anything I can do?" she asked.

Callie nodded to the paper coffee cup in her hand. "Actually, would you mind if I had some of your coffee? I'm fried."

"Of course." Arizona passed it over." It's not anything fancy, just coffee from the attendings lounge."

"At least your lounge has coffee," said Callie, accepting the cup and taking a sip. "Honestly, Arizona, you're a life- oh grossgrossgross." Callie jerked the cup away from her lips.

"What? What's wrong with it? I just had some-"

"Arizona, do you put any sugar in your coffee?"

Arizona blinked. "Why would I do that?"

"Um, to make it palatable? Arizona, this is so bitter."

"That's the point of coffee, Calliope. It's supposed to be bitter."

"Oh, so you're one of those people? I knew there had to be something wrong with you. You were too perfect."

"One of those people? What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's supposed to be bitter - what is this, the epistemology of coffee?" It was kind of cute, how riled up Callie could get about things.

"Is this a dealbreaker for you, Calliope?" Arizona teased.

"No, I just - I thought you had a sweet tooth. Yesterday you ate all my orange starbursts!"

"Yes, because sugar should be consumed for the sake of sugar, not for the sake of caffeine. Mixing them is just begging for a crash. And while we're on the topic of Starbursts, Calliope, I'm not sure why you save the orange ones."

"Because orange is the best?"

"No, Calliope, no one thinks that. You might be the first person I've ever met who likes them. Actually, scratch that, I know you are."

"Well then why did you eat them?" Despite the mild frustration in her tone, the weariness in Callie's face seemed to be evaporating with their bickering, and Arizona was glad to see her cheering up.

Arizona grinned wickedly. "Again, to use your words, I have a sweet tooth."

"Oh, okay then. So no sugar in coffee, but gross starbursts are okay"

"I'm just saying, Callie. Scientifically, orange is the worst flavor."

Callie raised a perfect eyebrow. "Scientifically?" she repeated.

"Look, I'm a doctor, I know these things."

"Oh?" Callie smirked. "You're a doctor, huh?"

She reached out and grabbed the lapels of Arizona's lab coat, pulling her in for a short, sweet kiss. As Arizona drew away, Callie pulled her in for another, slightly longer and deeper one, before pulling apart. Arizona inhaled the taste of Callie, closing her eyes to focus on the rest of the sensations - her softness contrasting the firm way Callie held her body close.

As Callie let Arizona go, her warm brown eyes sparkling, Arizona realized it was their first kiss in public, in the hospital. It always sent a thrill through her, every time they took a step forward together. It was still early, but Arizona could feel them growing more comfortable with each other every day. Flashing a dimpled grin at Callie, Arizona took in the brightness that now lit up Callie's previously-tired face. Inside, she was glowing at the fact that somehow, she was the one that got to make Callie smile like that.

"I guess you don't mind the taste of coffee now so much, do you? Hypocrite."

Arizona was clearly still teasing, but Callie flushed a little. "Sorry if I jumped down your throat a little. I was in a mood after surgery and it kind of took me by surprise.. You're just so sweet, and perky, and kind of addicted to candy. I guess I just assumed you'd like sugary coffee too."

Arizona raised an eyebrow. "I'm more than just a cute girl in a flowery scrubcap, Callie."

"I know, I know. That's what I like about you."

Arizona touched Callie on the arm. "Really, Calliope it's fine. I think it's cute when you get riled up over silly things."

"Silly?"

"Don't pretend like it wasn't silly. Look, now that you know how I like my coffee, why don't I get you some? I can learn how you take it, even the score?"

Callie grinned. "Sounds good."

Arizona held out her hand and Callie grabbed it. Together, they set off down the hallway.

(several months later, after 6x08)

"Callie?"

"Mmmm?" Head in Arizona's lap as she sprawled across the sofa, Callie did not remove her eyes from the TV. Arizona's hands slid gently through her hair in a steady, rhythmic motion.

"I have to tell you something."

Arizona's somber tone set off alarm bells in Callie's head. She jerked back, turning so she could see the guilty expression in Arizona's eyes.

"Is - is everything okay?" she asked, a pit building in her stomach. She had no idea what Arizona was about to say. Things had been so good. Ever since they'd first said "I love you", they'd been riding the high together. Callie hadn't expected to come crashing down so soon, or so hard.

"I just - I've been lying, Calliope."

"What?" Cold dread flooded Callie's body.

"Well, not exactly a lie. More like, a lie of omission. Well, okay, let's just say I haven't been entirely forthcoming. And I just - I want to be, you know? I want us to be honest, I don't want us to hide things-"

Callie sat up, grabbed the remote, and turned off the TV.

"Arizona, you better tell me what's going on."

"I - I just don't know how to explain it."

"Just spit it out!" Callie nearly jumped off the couch.

"Sometimes I order sugary drinks at Starbucks!"

"What?"

"Well, okay, not sometimes, most of the time. Okay, all the time. Don't get me wrong, I don't like sugar in drip coffee. I wasn't lying to you when I said that. I drink it black that's how my Dad taught me it should be. But still, those seasonal lattes? They're really, really good. And it wasn't a problem, at least not for awhile, I'd just have one occasionally and no one would know and it would be fine. And then we started dating and you - you get them all the time, and I'm thinking about them all the time - not that I'm blaming it on you! But then I started ordering them, once a week. It was my Thursday treat. And then it became my Tuesday treat, too. And then my Friday treat. And - and now, whenever its my turn to get coffee and you're not there, I get myself two drinks instead of one, and drink the sugary one first so you can't tell. And then when you get coffee I can't get a sugary drink so I'm always volunteering to get coffee - and just yesterday, when I said I had a consult? Yeah, that was an excuse to go to work alone so I could get a peppermint mocha latte. But I just - I hate lying - and double ordering really adds up, those lattes are expensive and - why - Callie, why are you laughing?"

"Arizona," Callie chuckled. "I know you've been ordering peppermint mocha lattes every day of the week."

Arizona's face wrinkled into an adorable expression of confusion. "What - how?"

"What, you really think drinking that bitter swill" - Arizona bristled at Callie's word choice -"means I can't taste the sugar too?"

"I - I guess it doesn't."

Callie laughed again.

"It's not funny, Calliope." Arizona swatted Callie's arm.

"It is, Arizona. But it's also sweet. Both that you thought you were hiding it from me and that you felt bad about it. I have to say, you're doing a much better job at hiding the smoking. I honestly can barely tell"

"Smoking? What do you mean by that? I quit smoking."

"Really? Since when? Cause I thought you were still-"

"No, Calliope, I quit as soon as you told me you were worried about it. I - I wanted to do it for you. Wait - what made you think I was smoking?"

"Well, I don't know, last week I thought I smelled it on Karev. And I never saw you do it before you quit, so I just assumed."

"What, you think I smoke with my residents, Callie?"

"Well, I don't know, I've heard it's a social activity!"

"I'm surprised you didn't bring it up sooner."

"I was actually really mad," Callie admitted. "I was prepared to come home yelling."

"That sounds about right," Arizona replied, reaching up and toying with a lock of Callie's hair. "Where'd this newfound impulse control come from?"

"Well, on my way out, little Grey asked me how you were. You know, after the whole Wallace thing."

Arizona's expression nearly made Callie melt. "Calliope."

"I just assumed that that's why you were smoking, and I, uh - well I figured that it made sense, and that I could just yell at you twice as much when I actually caught you."

"You know, that's really sweet. Other than the, you know, double yelling thing."

"Well I wasn't going to let you get away with it."

"Oh, of course not." Arizona paused. "Thanks, Callie. For thinking about me."

Callie cupped Arizona's face. "Of course, Arizona. Always. Did you really quit quit? Because of me?"

"Yes, Callie. I quit quit. For you, not because of you."

Callie leaned in and kissed Arizona gently. "I'm glad you're not living a lie anymore," she told Arizona. "I guess tomorrow we'll have to go to Starbucks and order you a peppermint mocha latte for the world to see. My treat."

Arizona pecked Callie on the lips. "Sounds good."

Callie beamed at her girlfriend again. It was very sweet, she thought, that Arizona had been so anxious about keeping things from her. The fact that her girlfriend cared so much about honesty filled her with hope, that maybe things wouldn't come crashing down, that maybe things would just always be good.

"Great. Now, can we get back to my show? Not that I didn't find your honesty touching, I did, but-"

Arizona settled back against the couch, making space in her lap for Callie to lie in it once again. "Sure thing, Calliope."