Chapter 30

Several weeks have passed since Callie and Arizona became intimate. Most nights have been spent at the hospital, but several nights have been spent at Callie's house, and last night they happened to be back at Arizona's, thanks to the wonderful friends they have. Callie is more than thankful for their small group of friends, that is starting to feel like family.

"Good morning beautiful," Callie says, leaning down to kiss her sleeping girlfriend on the cheek, after carefully sitting the tray in her hands down on the night stand.

"Mmm, I love waking up to the sound of the woman I love," Arizona says, trying to get her eyes to cooperate and open up.

"How can you sleep with a pillow over your head and have the most messed up hair, but still be this beautiful in the morning?"

"I feel like that's a slam and a compliment all wrapped up in one, Calliope. Is my hair that bad?" Arizona asks, as she reaches up to try to tame her wild strands, giving Callie a sleepy smile.

"Not exactly a slam... I mean, you should see it," Callie says, chuckling. "You still manage to take my breath away though."

"I am just going to point out, that your hands being in my hair is what started this look I have going on right now in the first place. And the pillow over my head was so that my screams didn't come out quite as loud. Unlike you, I have neighbors a little closer, and they would have called 911 had they heard that."

"Well, we wouldn't want that now, would we?"

"Not at all," Arizona says, pulling Callie down for a kiss. "If there are going to be handcuffs, it is not going to be because someone called 911."

"I didn't have you pegged for a handcuff kind of lady," Callie laughs.

"Calliope, you make me want to do things that I never imagined. I would gladly be your love prisoner," Arizona says, reaching to pull Callie down as the brunette laughs. "Tell me why you have clothes on and why you aren't you still in bed..."

"Honey, it's time for me to go. Remember, I have to go in a few minutes early today. I have that big consult first thing and I need to go over the files one more time before he gets there."

"Oh, that's right. The guy from Seattle... that baseball player."

"Yep. That's the one."

"I'm sure you already went over them frontwards and backwards."

"I did. But you can never be too prepared for a high-profile client. Here... I brought you some breakfast," Callie says, picking the tray up from the table and handing it to Arizona. "Eat some decent breakfast before you go. I know you won't stop and grab anything on your way."

"You are starting to know me too well. I don't want to keep Katie waiting. I mean, she is starting to look around for us when she hears us. That's just... so exciting Callie. And I swear, she is trying to smile but that tube is in her way."

"I think you are right. I just wish she would improve a little quicker, you know? It seems like although she is improving, it isn't happening as quick as they were. I know she hasn't gotten worse, but she just hasn't had any more advances."

"I know it is frustrating, Calliope. I do. I know you want to have her back, right now. But these meds take a little time. It's a very slow process. We actually saw improvement quicker than I thought we would. Her body is having to rebuild these connections between nerves and muscles. It's a tough job for a tiny body. We have every reason to believe she will keep improving. It just takes time."

"I know. I just, I want my little girl back. I miss living a normal life, you know? She has missed out on so much. It's little things... like cereal in front of the tv watching cartoons, or coloring in the middle of the floor with crayons scattered everywhere. Halloween is next month week and she is going to miss dressing up again. And Christmas is coming, and once again, she won't be able to open her own presents. We can't have Christmas at home again. I just, I want my little girl and our life back."

"It will happen, Calliope. I really, really believe that."

"I know. I am just... impatient. But I know she is in very capable hands. If anyone can help her, it's you."

XXXXXXX

"So, how's itty bit doing?" Christina asks, as Callie walks into the office to find her staff already there.

"Um, Teddy texted me and said she slept all night and still hadn't woke up. She is getting to where she is on more of a schedule. She is awake more during the day and sleeps at night. She seems to like being talked to and read to. I guess not that she could tell us any different," Callie mumbles, sitting her bag down on the desk.

"I know you have heard it time and time again, but hang in there. I am sure that little girl is fighting like hell to get better.

"I know. Arizona keeps telling me she is doing better than what she had anticipated at this point. So that has to mean something. I am just impatient."

"Well, feast your eyes on these scans... I think they might take your mind off of things for a little while...," Christina says, handing a file over to Callie.

"Oh, I think you may be right. He is a pitcher, right?"

"Yep. The doctors in Seattle told him he wouldn't be able to pitch again. He is hoping you are a miracle worker and can prove them all wrong."

"Well, I am good, Christina."

"Prove it Torres."

XXXXXXX

"Teddy, thanks so much for staying last night," Arizona says, making her way into Katie's room, pulling the machine for Katie's morning treatment behind her.

"Oh, hey Arizona. No problem. Little miss just woke up about a half hour ago. We had the nurse change her into some clean clothes and we are watching some cartoons on her tablet you bought her. You are really spoiling her," Teddy chuckles.

Arizona moves over to where she is in Katie's line of sight and talks to the little girl, while addressing Teddy. "You deserve to be spoiled, don't you? Yeah, you deserve about anything we can get for you right now. And I have no problems doing that," Arizona says softly, stroking Katie's cheek with her thumb.

"You do an amazing job spoiling her and her mom both. You better be careful, you might just be stuck with them if you keep it up," Teddy says, smiling.

"I think I would be ok with that," Arizona says, as she smiles. "Actually. I know that I would. I just think this little girl here deserves the world. And if I can help in any way, I will."

"Well, I am going to go home for a little bit and take a shower, then I have some errands to run before we go in to the office later."

"Ok. Thanks again Teddy. You have no idea how much better rested we both have been."

"Well, I guess that depends on how much sleeping has been happening," Teddy says laughing as she grabs her bag and heads for the door.

"Funny Teddy," Arizona says, laughing as she waves goodbye. "See ya in a bit."

Grabbing Katie's chart and checking morning labs, she is pleasantly surprised to see another big improvement in Katie's labs. "Miss Katie, I really like what I see here," she says, looking over to see Katie's eyes following her.

Arizona puts the chart down and begins Katie's treatment for the day. Once that is completed, she grabs the chair and sits by Katie, as she picks up the tablet to let Katie watch the cartoon Teddy had started with her.

The next thing she knows, the alarm she had set is going off and it is time to unhook Katie from the equipment. Once that is done, she notices it is almost time for Callie to be back from work. She takes Katie's hand and begins to talk to her.

"You know, I think you are a pretty tough girl. Your mommy can't wait for you to start moving your muscles so we can get you off these machines here. I'm not telling your mommy, but I ordered you a Halloween costume a little bit ago. We may not be able to go trick or treating, but there is no reason we can't dress up a little bit. Now, it's not an actual costume, more like unicorn jammies, but we can even put some pink makeup on that cute little nose of yours to make you look absolutely adorable. And it has a hood that we can lift up over your head that has a cute little horn on the top. You will be so adorable. I thought we could surprise your mommy with it on Halloween. It falls on a weekday and I think we can make you look all cute for her before she gets here after work. What do you say? You want to dress up?"

Arizona looks at Katie and wishes more than anything that there would be something else that she could do for the little brunette. "You know, I just can't wait to be able to take you to the park. There is one a few blocks from the office and you would love it. There are big slides and little animals you can get on that spin around. I think there is an elephant and a giraffe. Then there is a lake where you can go feed the fish. I bet you would love that. I always did when I was your age. Oh, I bet you would love to swing too. I can't wait to be able to take you," Arizona says, imagining a day at the park with the little girl and Callie.

Arizona is startled when she hears a voice behind her say, "I can't wait to go to the park with the two of you. I think you will be the one who doesn't want to leave," Callie says, chuckling.

"Hey, how long have you been standing there?" Arizona asks, standing up to give Callie a kiss.

"Long enough to know that you are even more amazing than what you were this morning. And... that I am so thankful you are mine," Callie says, looking down at Katie, as their eyes find each other. "Actually, she is ours, isn't she Katie? We couldn't ask for anyone more amazing than she is to take care of us, huh?" Callie looks at Katie, then back to Arizona reaching for the blonde's hand.

"Calliope, I haven't done anything. I'm just... here."

"You are here. And that means the world to me. And it will to her too. You have done more than I think you will ever realize."

"Well, you two make it easy to want to be here. I happen to think the two of you are just... I don't know. I can't even find the words to really describe it. You guys are my whole world."

"Arizona..." Callie trails off as she wipes the tears that are starting to fall.

"Sorry, I wasn't trying to get mushy on you," Arizona says, leaning over to wipe the tears that are still softly falling over her cheeks.

"I know. That's why it means even more. You don't even have to try. It just comes so easy for you."

"I love you..." Arizona says, as she catches the clock out of the corner of her eye. "Oh no, I need to go. My first patient is in ten minutes. I'm going to be late."

"Oh, yeah. Sorry to keep you."

"You are always worth it, Calliope. Call me if you need anything. Oh, my mom texted me earlier and she might stop by. She said something about having something for you."

"For me?" Callie asks, surprised.

"Yeah, that's what she said. It's hard to tell. Well, I need to go. I love you. Call if you need anything."

"I will. I love you too."

XXXXXXX

Katie has had her eyes closed for about an hour now, and Callie has her laptop pulled out, doing a little browsing. After Arizona left earlier, she can't help but feel that she needs to do something for the woman who has captured her heart. She almost feels like she hasn't done enough for the blonde, after everything she continues to do for them. She wants to get the blonde something to show her how much she appreciates and loves her.

As she browses through the jewelry website, the one famous for little blue boxes, she looks at different necklaces and bracelets, and finds the perfect necklace for Arizona. She then can't help but to see the link for rings on the left of her screen. Curiosity getting the best of her, she clicks the button and begins to scroll down the page, taking in the different styles. When George proposed, he had a ring that had been in the family that he had used to proposed. Not because he loved Callie so much that he wanted her to have it, but it was a family tradition. It was expected for him to give it to her and equally expected that she would wear it. No other ring would do.

The ring was never something she would have picked out, but actually the total opposite. The day she became a single woman again, she gladly handed the ring back to George as they walked out of the court room. She had never been so glad to get rid of a piece of jewelry in her life. Not 9nly because it put an end to that part of her life, but she never liked it. Looking at the rings in front of her, she can't help but gasp as she clicks on a link to pull up a picture of one ring in particular.

The ring is simple. Nothing extravagant in size or price, but absolutely gorgeous. She didn't intend to look at rings, but this ring, this is the one. She knows they aren't ready for this step yet. They have only been together just a little while, yet, this ring is the one. This ring, with the one carat diamond flanked by several small sapphires set in a white gold, that wrap around the rest of the band. This is the one that Arizona is going to wear one of these days. Maybe not now, or even soon, but that is it.

"That's very pretty," she hears from beside her in a quiet voice, causing her to jump.

"Barbara! I didn't hear you come in," Callie says, starting to blush at being caught looking at rings.

"I can see that," Barbara says, chuckling as she takes the seat next to Callie, once again eyeing the screen.

"Following the older woman's eyes, Callie takes the laptop and shuts it quickly. "Oh, I was wanting to get Arizona something and just picked out a necklace, just something small. And, well, you know, I was bored and just browsing the rest of the site. Katie's been asleep for a while, so I have had plenty of time to kill.

"I see. For the record though, that was beautiful."

"Yeah, it was," Callie says, still blushing.

"She has always looked good wearing blue. I won't tell her you were looking. That's not any of my business anyway."

"She is your daughter. It kind of is," Callie says, making sure the woman knows she respects her.

"Maybe. You know, I kind of gave up hope that she would find someone and settle down. You have been the first one who has held her attention. I never thought I would see my daughter as taken with someone as she is with you. And I know when you just meet someone, a part of you wonders whether or not you can really trust them. And I don't mean the kind of trust where we trust them not to eat the last cookie in the bag or to watch your puppy while you are on vacation. I mean, trust them with your heart kind of trust. I can tell you, she loves you. I saw it before she did, I think. I didn't even know about you at the time of one of our breakfast or lunches, I can't remember which, but I knew she had met someone. She loves you. And I think whether you give her a bracelet, a necklace, or... something else, that she will love whatever you pick out. But you need to know, you can trust her."

"It's only been a few months Barbara. Really, I was just browsing. I picked out a necklace I thought she would like then just started browsing."

"I believe you. I also believe we are lead by our hearts as to what we browse for," Barbara says, squeezing Callie's hand. "Anyway, I brought you something," the woman says, reaching into her purse to pull out a small envelope and handing it to Callie.

"What's this?"

"Open it," Barbara says.

Flipping the envelope over, Callie looks at Barbara before she looks back down and begins opening the envelope.

"Barbara, what is this?" Callie asks, as she pulls out the contents and looks it over.

"That is a coupon for a night away at a little Bed and Breakfast outside of town. I know it seems weird coming from me, but I know what it is like worrying about your child. I know the toll it takes on you. From one mom to another, it is important for you to take care of yourself. So, I thought that on a weekend of your choosing, I could stay here with this one, and you could use that coupon. I know you might feel obligated to take Arizona , but don't. Maybe you just need some 'me' time. Either way, you need some pampering. It helps to keep your batteries charged and not get worn down. I know Teddy and the girls are rotating through and that helps, but, a change of scenery is nice too. So, no rush at all, but whenever you are ready, I'm available to stay with this little one."

"Barbara," Callie says, tearing up. "You are too kind. I see where Arizona gets it now. She is absolutely the most thoughtful person I have ever met. It looks like that is all thanks to you. I don't know what to say but thank you."

"Well, I will gladly accept the compliment. And no need for thanks. This is just one mom taking care of another."

Truth be known, Barbara was taking a quick liking to the woman, and can't help but notice that Callie's mother hasn't been to visit, not even once. She kind of feels the need to step in and take care of the brunette, along with her own daughter.

"Well, thank you anyway. This means a lot. I'll uh, see how Katie is doing and take it from there on when I'll go. And I'll probably take Arizona too. It feels weird when we aren't together."

"You just let me know. Well, I need to get going," Barbara says, standing. "Now, if you need help with any further… shopping… you let me know. But, I think you found what you were looking for," she says with a wink and heads for the door. "I'll see you later Callie."

"Bye Barbara," Callie says, blushing.

Sitting there for a few minutes, Callie picks up the laptop and once again opens it. She makes a few clicks and closes the browser, then puts her laptop away.

Smiling, Callie pulls her phone out of her pocket and sends a text off to the blonde. "I just wanted to tell you how much I love you."

A minute later, she gets a text back. "I love you too. Can't wait to see my girls."

Smiling, Callie slides the phone back in her pocket, stands, and takes Katie's hand. "Mommy needs to talk to you about something…" Before she can say anything else, she feels Katie's hand begin to lightly squeeze hers as her eyes open.

"Katie! Oh my goodness! You are squeezing my hand!"

XXXXXXX

"Arizona, I can't believe it. She is moving her whole hand now. I was getting frustrated this morning and now she is showing improvements. I just, I am still in awe."

"I told you, the treatments are working. Her numbers are improving all the time. It just… takes time."

"I'm sorry. You probably feel like I'm doubting you."

"Don't be sorry. I understand. It is normal to get frustrated. It's ok."

Callie nods, then gives Arizona a kiss. "Thank you for being so understanding. I love you."

"I love you too. Oh, ow did your big case go today?"

"Great. He is coming back for surgery next week. He will be my first one in a while."

"You nervous?" Arizona asks.

"Are you kidding? I can't wait. I have missed being in an OR. I actually need to go down and get acquainted with the OR staff here. I have been putting it off."

"They are great. I haven't done much here, only a few minor procedures, but I think I am going to change that. I'm going to start offering my surgical expertise again."

"You sound pretty confident there, Dr Robbins."

"I am Dr. Torres. I have skills."

"I know you do, Dr. Robbins," Callie says, laughing. "I love your skills."

"I'm glad you do, Dr. Torres," Arizona says, wiggling her eyebrows. "So, what did my mom want today?"

"Um, she gave me a coupon, or gift certificate for a night at a B and B outside town. She said I need to take care of myself. Get a change of scenery."

"She is a smart woman."

"Yeah. I see where you get it now."

"She likes you. And she knows how much I like you, " Arizona says, smiling.

"You just 'like' me?" Callie asks, with air quotes.

"Well, I like you. But, I love you too," Arizona says, giving Callie a kiss.

"I was starting to wonder. But, I guess it is good that you like me too. At one point I didn't think you would ever like me," Callie says, chuckling.

"I wouldn't say that. I would say that…" Arizona is cut off by alarms going off on Katie's machines.

"Katie!" Callie says, as she and Arizona jump up to see Katie's eyes open wide and the alarms still going off.

"Arizona! What's going on?" Callie yells.