Chapter 6
After that incident with Callie, Arizona just wanted to go home, but she had to attend an emergency surgery for 4 hours. Right now she is hungry as if she has not eaten for years- she in fact has not eaten anything after the morning coffee. Instead of grabbing something from the café, she decides to head home- she is feeling little bit of dizzy too. While climbing down the last step of the stair she stumbles suddenly and loosing the balance she falls down on the floor breaking her prosthetic leg. The nurses rush to her quickly and help her to get up.
-"Dr. Robbins, are you okay?"
-"…", she is too tired to reply and moreover she is feeling a sharp pain in her thigh, "call Callie". Before she could realize that she actually has taken Callie's name for help, she closes her eyes because of an unbearable pain in her left thigh.
Callie almost flies towards the emergency room as soon as she has heard about Arizona's fall. By this time, Arizona has become little stable although her face is very pale. "How did you fall?" she comes to Arizona and without any hesitation she lifts the broken prosthetic leg, "everyone leave the room" she knows how conscious Arizona is about this matter. Why did I name her? Her eyes are about to form water re-visualizing the past. Callie was so protective about her feeling. The intern handovers the initial examination report to Callie before leaving the room. "Your blood pressure is so low- when did you eat last time?" she lifts the leg again "Please remove your pants". "Callie, I am okay- I do not know why they called you" Arizona snaps hiding the fact that she actually has named her. "They called me because you need an ortho doctor" she tears her scrub pants without even taking her permission. "Callie!" "It is Dr. Torres"
Callie gently takes out the leg and finds the end of the thigh is swollen in red. She gently presses the red nerves earning soft moans of pain from the pale woman. "Dr. Robbins you should not be standing for a very long time with this- I guess you know this," Callie says in a stern face while she cannot help but remember the way she used to message Arizona's swollen nerves whenever she had to work for a long time. She keeps messaging the area softly giving the woman in pain a great relief. Calliope, I lasted two years without your message, so I will survive next also. Callie observes the swollen area carefully. She actually is working to make a better leg for Arizona so that she could get rid of this problem. She has been working in this project for a while now- she is yet not ready to share this with Arizona although she will be talking about her new ideas in an upcoming conference in LA next week.
-"Callie, let me go"
-"I have no desire to hold you, so you do not need to worry about that" she looks up and suddenly both of them are caught in that moment. Locking the eyes with Arizona Callie thinks, I wish I could hold you always…I can message your leg every night till you fall sleep. Arizona as if could see what Callie is thinking, I can message you too- Callie used to laugh at her girly soft hands whenever Arizona offered a message to her. Breaking the never ending eye contact, Callie puts back the new prosthetic leg to Arizona's thigh and stands up. While moving back to the door she says softly "you need to eat something… do you have something at home?" knowing how terrible cook Arizona has been. "You do not need to worry too". "I wish I could stop worrying" the ortho doctor leaves quickly before the tears could fall from her eyes.
Coming back to her apartment, Arizona takes a long bath before going to the freeze hoping to find something to eat. She annoyingly gets up from the freeze hearing the door bell. Who is this?
-"Ma'am, I am here to deliver your order"
-"Order?" seeing the name on the bag she already knows these are donuts from her favorite place. She knows who has sent them- someone who knows that she has nothing to eat at home. Taking the delivery, she tiredly opens the bag and starts eating her favorite donuts. I missed this; she smiles with white sugar powders on her lips. Callie would always kiss her to wipe the powder from her lips.
Next morning Arizona receives an email from Dr. Bailey requesting if she could join Callie to the LA conference next week as she has been Callie's first successful prosthetic project. She is still working on this project… she never told me. But why do I have to go to the conference? Thinking this she visits Bailey in her office.
-"I didn't get this… the conference thing"
-"I wrote the email in English, I thought!" Bailey gives her famous confused look; she knows that she has to convince Arizona for this. As a new chief the success of this project is important for her career.
-"Why me? I even did not know that she was working on this… anymore" Arizona feels somewhat uncomfortable, as she remembers that once Owen told her that Callie did not want to pursue this project anymore as her motivation to work was gone… because of their break up…
"Yeah! She has been working for last couple of months"
-"Why me?" She repeats the question. Going anywhere with Callie is the last thing she would want to do right now. Moreover, she is working on a grant, which is due last week. She cannot miss that presentation at any cost.
-"Because you were Callie's first project and another aspect of this presentation is amputation in kids, which you were working with her"
-"I left that long back… I am not going anywhere right now"
-"see I want you to go so that you can help her in answering the questions regarding the experiences about maintaining the prosthetic and the effect it might have on kids"
-"I am not into this…I have to do the grant presentation next week… I cannot go"
-"Let me come to the point Robbins" Bailey stops Arizona as she is about to leave.
-"This presentation might earn the Harper Avery Award to Callie"
-"What?"
-"Yes… I want another Harper Avery for this hospital" Bailey knows that this information would nail Arizona. "You know how bad public speaker Callie is and I want somebody who will do the damage control in the presentation." Arizona does not reply because the information about Harper Avery is still playing in her brain. She always wanted Callie to win this award- Callie was always into research and she knew how deserving she was. They even planned where they would keep the award, if one day they had one. Probably the day has come, but she will not be there to keep the award. Arizona sighs. Unable to read Arizona's expression, Bailey continues, "I can't force you…I know the grant is important to you…I just…," "I will go" Arizona cuts her in the middle "tell me when I have to fly and I need to talk to Callie also about the project."
-"Robbins, you know that your name will be nowhere, even if we earn something from this presentation"
Arizona laughs, "you will owe big to me for this, you remember that". "Anything for you Dr. Robbins", Bailey knows that she can rely on Arizona's ability in handling Callie, even though they are not married. She is the one who knows how to relax and direct the apparently strong woman. "We already have a team to represent us…I will instruct the HR to add your name in the list, they will contact you."
Amelia catches Arizona in the PEDs floor "I heard you are not giving the presentation for the 2016 grant", she says not able to hiding her excitement; if Arizona is not in the competition, she has a better chance. "You must be very happy", Arizona tells handling the chart to the new intern "I am going to a conference, so I will not participate in this year. Amelia is little shocked that a competitive person like Arizona is backing off so easily. "But I still do not understand why Bailey is sending you when you literally do not have any reason to go there", Teddy remarks from behind.
-"She wants me to assist Callie in her work related to kid's prosthetic,"
-"You are readily going leaving this big grant!" Teddy looks at her with a question mark.
-"I want GSM to earn another Harper Avery" saying this she moves fast to the next patient. Arizona is also surprised because of her own agreement to leave the grant to help Callie winning the award. But, right now her heart has decided the priority of the moment. I can apply for the grant next year, but for Calliope this is the opportunity. Does not matter I get to see the award or not, I want her to win this. If she wins, some way it is mine too.
Callie literally jumps out of her chair by Bailey's revelation of Arizona's agreement to assist her. She knows that she needs Arizona if not for anything but to crack the presentation, but she never has dared to utter those thoughts. But, after that incident, she never has thought that Arizona would agree to join her. Moreover, she knows that there is a grant presentation next week. I simply do not understand her. How could she drop the grant to go with me? I will probably never understand her. And it is 2 hours flight… is she okay with this? Callie makes a mental note to ask Arizona if she is okay with flying.
Whatever it is, Callie is happy- she always wanted to have Arizona by her side whenever there was any important moment in her life, especially when this is about the Harper Avery. It was more of Arizona's dream for her. She still has that place empty in her house, which Arizona decided for that award. Callie always used to dream to get the award while Arizona is by her side.
A thought: Can't we send some kind of petition to ABC or show runner Shonda asking to bring back CalZona? We may use Twitter…may be email… let me know what do you think about this? We can use the huge fandom…