All the readers and reviewers… Thank you all. You guys are THE BEST… I hope and wish that all of you are safe and healthy.
TinyHuman- thank you for noticing that… you made my day…: -*
Special thanks FROM my Beta for appreciating her efforts... Big shout out TO my beta for sticking up with me and making me better despite her busy life and work
Yes, Penny is a big itch and will be treated soon?
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters... it's all ABC and Shonda Rhimes…. If I had owned them believe me! … CALZONA would have gotten ALL the screen time or a spin-off with just them…
Now enjoy the Read…
Arizona and Sofia's goodbye was always hard to watch, they both would cling to each other and cry. But this time Callie felt worse than ever before; seeing Arizona bawled like that, she could only think of that night when Arizona told her- "I don't need much to be happy, I don't even need two legs. But I do know that I need you. I need Sofia and I NEED YOU". And here she was… happen to lose everything, her leg, her daughter and... and her…
Callie's heart ached from the view in front of her. She couldn't do anything to console Arizona or Sofia... after all …she was the one who caused this pain to them.
Arizona was looking at Callie, silently asking her to take Sofia but she was clinging to her mamma's neck as if her life depended on it.
"Hey baby, please stop crying... you know mamma can't see you like this. I promise I will come soon this time and I will take leave for a whole week and we will spend every second of it together, and before you know it, it will be your time to be with me in Seattle where all your friends are waiting for you….Zola, Ellis, Baily." Arizona said to crying Sofia, trying extremely hard to stop her tears which were threatening to fall again.
"Plea…please… don't go, mamma, I miss you so much... I…. I... don't want to stay away from you... please..." Sofia said between the sobs and hiccups. Sofia's entreats brought tears in Callie's eyes as well.
Arizona's heart broke looking at her distressed daughter. "What have we done? We had one life and one daughter to take care of and we messed up… big time. Mark asked me to take care of our girls, but here we are, broken and wrecked. I failed Mark, I failed my marriage and I have failed our daughter." Arizona thought sadly.
"Callie!" Arizona said pleadingly and gestured to take Sofia from her.
Callie cleared her throat to control her own emotion and tried to loosen Sofia's grip from Arizona's neck. "Mija, come on baby, don't be sad… Mamma will be back soon… she promised you right?... and you know your Mamma never break her promise to you. Come Baby girl…"
"Nooo" squealed Sofia, stubbornly "I won't let Mamma go… I won't … I won't … I won't" making Arizona and Callie weep with her.
Penny was standing behind the front door listening to the conversation outside. She decided to come out and include herself in commotion.
"Sof, you are a good girl and good girl don't behave like this," Penny said little sternly.
Penny's firmness towards Sofia irked Arizona which didn't go unnoticed by Callie before Arizona could say something Callie countered "Don't… don't scold her now… can't you see how devastated she is?"
"Babe!" Callie rolled her eyes irritably on her choice of word. "I was just trying to help you… Dr Robbins is getting late" penny said with a little shrug.
Callie looked towards Arizona and tried to apologize for Penny's behaviour, but Arizona avoided her gaze.
"Sofia, Basta! (stop it), let Mamma go, she will miss her flight…" Callie said firmly "Kiss mamma goodbye, go to your room… inmediatamente! (right away!)" Sofia knew that when her mother starts talking in Spanish it means trouble, so she lifted her head from Arizona's neck and looked Callie with red puffy eyes.
"Give her goodbye kiss" Callie repeated, and Sofia obliged.
"Vamos, I'll come in few minutes," Callie said further.
"Bye, mamma! I love you" said still sniffling Sofia.
"Bye, Little Goose! I love you too" Arizona replied with a sad smile and with that, Sofia went inside stomping her feet, visibly sad and angry at Callie.
"Penny, can you please go and check on her… give her water or something…" Callie requested.
Sure, have a good flight Dr Robbins" penny said smugly and went inside the house.
Arizona bent down to pick up her luggage "I should leave…"
"Let me... at least let me walk you to the cab," Callie said, picking up her luggage.
Even though Callie insisted to drop her to the airport herself, Arizona firmly denied on two accounts. First, she didn't want Callie to see how incredibly tense and scared Arizona still gets before the flight. Second, she needed to get away from Callie as soon as possible before her emotional turmoil starts.
"Arizona, seriously I can drop you myself" Callie insisted again.
"Callie, Seriously, It's fine… you have an early shift tomorrow… I'll take the cab" Arizona replied.
They got into the elevators and pressed ground floor.
"So? Babe?" Arizona teased Callie with raised eyebrows.
"Ugh! You noticed that huh?" Callie said slightly embarrassed.
"Yup! … since when did you start using the "terms of endearments"?" Arizona asked emphasizing the last part.
"I don't… she does… so I let her… frankly to keep her from calling me "Calliope" " Callie explained
"So what? I used to call you that… you never minded" Arizona said casually
"that's why " Callie mumbled lightly.
Though Arizona heard it, she decided to let it pass and they continued rest of their descent in silence.
…
Arizona had called uber and it was still showing 10 minutes to arrive.
"Dammit! It's stuck in traffic" Arizona said frustrated
"New York and its traffic" Callie shrugged.
Both of them had nothing to say. They kept their eyes on the street but stole a few glances at each other without saying a single word. Only when Arizona phone beeped to inform the upcoming cab, they looked at each other and suddenly everything around them seemed to stop.
/*Now that we're bleeding, broken and scarred
Thought we were finished and yet here we are
Stuck in the same place, despite what we overcame
Sometimes doesn't it make you wonder
Darling, when will it come to an end?
Cause the price we paid left a mark that stains
And I don't think I'll ever be the same*/
There were so many things in their hearts but nothing to say. They both stayed there just like that until they were pulled out of their contemplation by the honk of the cab. They hugged goodbye and parted their ways with wet eyes.
XXXXXX
Callie entered her house and saw penny sitting on the couch sipping wine.
"Sofia?" Callie asked Penny.
"She is sleeping… all changed and brushed" Penny replied indifferently.
Callie sighed as she noticed her tone. "Great! Another argument… Dios! Estoy cansado (God! I am tired)"
"Que Pasa?... umm… I mean what's wrong?" Callie asked
"Seriously! You are asking what's wrong? As if you don't know" Penny snapped
"I thought we got past that," Callie whined
"No! you got past that… I, on the other hand, can't comprehend why my girlfriend would invite her EX wife to dinner and won't tell me—her girlfriend" Penny said with the touch of anger in her tone.
"It slipped my mind… it was just a dinner… can't I have dinner with the mother of my child?" Callie retorted
"Of course, you can… but you also CAN inform you girlfriend…" Penny exclaimed
"for the last time... I. Forgot. To. Tell. You… we both were busy, and I didn't get the time… can we please end this topic?" Callie requested irritably.
"Fine… but what about how you berated me for scolding Sofia in front of Arizona" Penny retaliate
"Oh Dios Mio! … Penny…First of all, stop exaggerating, I didn't "berate" you or anything, I just asked you, not to scold Sofia that's it"
"Oh! That's it? …On one side you want me to get involve with Sofia and on the other side, you don't allow me to be firm with her… it can't be one or the other Callie…anyways I was just trying to help" Penny stated.
"You can't scold Sofia in front of Arizona… you know how bad it looks? … Arizona won't allow you to say anything to our daughter." Callie tried to explain
"oh! but Arizona can scold her in OUR house?"
By this time Callie also lost her temper and yelled "Of course, she is her mother… it doesn't matter which house she is in"
"and what am I Callie?... huh? … do I mean anything to you and Sofia… or am I just another woman?" Penny shouted from the other side of the living room.
"Enough! I will say it once and I don't want to hear it again… You are my girlfriend… I want you to have a cordial relationship with Sofia because I want you, me and her to live a happy life… Arizona is the mother of Sofia, she will be there in her life and in extension, mine … it doesn't make you "just another woman"… I didn't let you scold Sofia in front of Arizona because she wouldn't like it and she would resent you for that… which!... I don't want…am I making myself clear?" Callie concluded and let out a breath feeling exhausted.
"Fine!" Penny said meekly but unconvinced
Callie calmed herself with few quick breaths and continued "Penny! I came to New York for you, I uprooted Sofia from her home and brought her here… I fought a freaking custody battle for this… what more you want?"
"Nothing… it's fine… really… I am going to bed" Penny sighed and left.
Callie sank into the sofa. She looked around at her house, at her life, her mind went to Sofia, who cried herself to sleep today and …one… only one thought clouded her mind.
Was it worth it?
XXXXXXXX
It's been over a month since Arizona's visit. Callie was sitting in her study on her off day, working on the speech she was supposed to give on TED conference, this time it was for her bionic prosthetics. She didn't realize what time it was until she heard the knock on the front door.
"Hey, little goose!" Callie said cheerfully as she opened the door for Sofia, who has returned from the school. But Sofia didn't reply, instead, she latches onto Callie and started weeping uncontrollably.
Callie's heart stopped beating as she heard her daughter cry. Millions of horrible scenarios started running through her head which scared her even more.
"Hey! Hey! Hey, what's wrong... Sofia?" Callie asked with concern, but Sofia didn't reply and continued to cry in Callie's neck
Now Callie was at the brink of a panic attack "Baby, you are scaring me… please tell me what's wrong."
"Ma…mma…doesn't …. Love … me" Sofia managed to say between the Sobs.
Callie was confused, she couldn't understand what Sofia was saying and why. "Honey! Why are you saying this? Did something happen at school?".
"Lu… lu… Luke said…"
"Baby, first stop crying and tell me properly what happened," Callie said calmly.
Sofia wiped her tears and took a few minutes to calm down. "Good girl! Now tell me clearly what Luke said." Callie asked again.
"Luke said that when his mom and dad got divorced, he went to live with his mom… because she loves him very much … and …and… she fought for him" Sofia tried to explain
Callie was still confused "Okay, so?"
"But mamma kept me for few days and …. She sent me with you" tears started to roll on her cheeks again. "she didn't fight for me… she didn't want me"
Callie's heart shattered hearing her daughter's words, she lifted her on her lap and embraced her lovingly "Oh My God! Baby, No! … It's not true"
"You know how much Mamma loves you … she loves you the most in the world baby girl… you are her little bug… you know that right?" Callie tried to convince Sofia.
"Then why didn't she fight for me? Why she left me?" Sofia's questions were laden with sadness.
Callie took a deep breath. She couldn't understand how to explain to a child, why her mamma did, what she did. After a few minutes when Sofia's sobs subsided, Callie said: "Sofia, let me tell you something about your Mamma, would you like to hear that?" Sofia nodded silently, still lying on Callie's chest.
"Now! After my and Mamma's fight, I met Penny and I wanted to move to New York with her along with you. But mamma got very angry and she told me that I cannot take her princess away from her." Hearing that Sofia lifted her head and looked at Callie with innocent sad eyes.
"I am Mamma's princess?"
"Yes baby, you are Mamma's everything" Callie reassured and continued "then Mamma took me to court and fought for you; she fought very hard to prove everyone that she loved you the most… and she won… the judge gave you, to her"
"Then why she asked me to go with you?" Sofia asked innocently.
"Because your Mamma has the biggest heart in the world… After the court decision, I was very sad… I cried because I thought I lost you… I was sad all the time… Mamma couldn't see me like that, so she gave me one thing which would make me very happy" Callie explained
"what?" Sofia asked naively.
"You…you silly girl, Your Mamma gave me you so that I can be happy and move to New York," Callie said with a smile. "So, don't ever think that Mamma doesn't love you… she loves you very much… Okay?"
Sofia nodded with a grin, remarkably satisfied with Callie's elucidation. Callie kissed her forehead and got up to fix some lunch.
"Mommy?"
"Hmm?"
"If Mamma gave me to you so that you could be happy…. It means Mamma loves you too…. right, Mommy?" Sofia asked
Callie stopped in her track at this question, she looked at Sofia with a smile and replied lightly almost in the whisper "yes… she does".
…
A week after this incident Sofia demanded that she wants to go to Seattle to live with Arizona. Only 2 weeks were left to the end of the school term, so it was Arizona's year with Sofia anyways and as per their verbal agreement Callie will have her for Christmas.
Callie picked up her phone to message Arizona.
Hey,
Sofia wants to come to Seattle. There are still
2 weeks left for her school term.
I'll arrange for her to come a week after that.
You will also get some time to put everything together.
…
Arizona's phone beeped from the table. She sighed and after giving one more kiss to Carina, she picked it up to check the message and smiled brimming.
"Everything okay?" Carina asked, lying next to her
"Yeah, it's my, umm- It's my daughter, Sofia. She—she wants to move home." Arizona replied happily from the other side of the bed.
XXXXXX
Present-day
/ "How the hell it all got so messed up?"/
A loud music sound from the flat above brought Callie out of her thoughts. She got up from the armchair in the living room and went to check on her very pissed girlfriend with the intention of making up, but as she peeked into the bedroom, Penny was fast asleep in the middle of the bed.
With a long sigh, she went to her office and lied down on the couch hoping to fall asleep. As she slept, laughing faces of Arizona and Sofia from her last video call flashed in front of her eyes; slowly she drifted off to sleep, as single a tear rolled down her cheek.
I hope you like the Chapter.
/* Song*/ - Lewis Capaldi- Days gone quite
Just to make clear if it's not – in the last part of this chapter we are out of the flashback which Callie started in the first chapter.
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