"Robbins, to-go order," the blonde says slipping on to the bar stool to wait for her order. She spins around slowly and freezes when she spots Murphy, Wilson and Edwards sitting in a booth with another woman. Praying that her order comes quickly, Arizona turns back around hoping that they didn't see her.
"Robbins," the bartender says loudly as he comes back from the kitchen.
Arizona hands him her card and reminds herself not to turn around.
"It's kind of late for a burger, isn't it?" Wilson teases taking the seat beside the blonde.
"It is, but I had a salad for lunch and I'm starving," Arizona remarks.
"Murphy's girlfriend is here for a visit, you should come meet her," Wilson says cryptically.
"What? Definitely not," Arizona snaps. "Have you lost your damn mind?"
"I think you'd find her interesting and I know that you two have a lot in common," Jo replies laughing softly.
"Okay, just tell me. What's going on?" Arizona blurts out. "Wait, no. I don't want to know. Not tonight anyway. We can discuss it in the morning. Don't stay out too late, we have a big day tomorrow," the blonde reminds her.
"I've been trying to leave for an hour now," Jo confides.
"Good luck with that, now cover me so I can escape!" Arizona exclaims before slipping off the stool and bolting for the door.
"Was that Arizona?" Murphy asks when Wilson returns to the table.
"Yeah, she had to get home though, we have a big case tomorrow," Wilson says suddenly realizing that this is her ticket out.
"Oh right, WE do have a big case with Pierce and Robbins," Edwards adds. "I'll drop you off," she says handing Wilson her jacket.
"Oh thanks," she says taking her jacket from Edwards. "Well hey it was great to meet you," Wilson says to the girlfriend and Edwards echoes the sentiment before pushing Wilson towards the door.
"Oh thank god, that was brilliant," Edwards says once they're outside.
"You know that I don't need a ride home, I drove today," Wilson says as they walk back towards the hospital.
"Yeah, but they didn't know that and there was no way that you were going to leave me there with them," Edwards blurts out. "Did you tell Robbins?"
"I tried but she wouldn't let me," Wilson remarks.
"Well, I can't wait for her to find out. This will be hilarious, that girl couldn't be more like her," Edwards jokes.
"I know, right? It's really eerie, she looks like her and talks like her and is an amputee," Wilson remarks.
"It would only be more weird if she was a surgeon," Edwards points out as they approach their cars. "See you tomorrow," she says before slipping into her car.
"I can't believe that you're eating take out when you could have had a home cooked meal," Meredith grouses into the phone.
"Did you talk to your sister, because I am telling you she really did ask me out," Arizona replies before taking another bite of her burger.
"I'm not going to ask her, because I know that you're wrong. It took Maggie a month to ask that Radiologist out and she talked about it incessantly the whole time. Hell I almost asked him to ask her out," Meredith exclaims.
"Well I hope that you're right, because I don't handle these things well," Arizona remarks.
"What are you talking about?" Meredith asks her voice raising a little.
"Damn," Arizona blurts out, how did she let herself get into this conversation.
"Arizona," Meredith says letting the blonde know that she is expecting an explanation.
"Meredith, we still haven't talked about what is happening with us," Arizona points out bluntly.
"We haven't. But is that one of the things that you don't handle well?" Meredith questions.
"I really don't want to talk about this over the phone," Arizona replies with a sigh.
Meredith sighs in response. Then she swallows down her fear and makes a decision.
"Arizona, what if I ask you out? Would you go out with me?" She asks nervously.
"Meredith no. Please, please don't do this," Arizona replies softly.
"Wait, seriously you would turn me down?" Meredith balks loudly, before adjusting her voice. "We just ate dinner together last night, what the hell Arizona?"
"Last night we had dinner together as colleagues, as friends," Arizona points out. "It wasn't a date," she adds defensively.
"You paid, I think it was a date," Meredith counters.
"It wasn't," Arizona exclaims. "Trust me, if that was a date, there would have been a kiss. I wouldn't take a woman out to dinner and not kiss her good night. What kind of lesbian do you think I am?" She jokes.
"Well, we've already kissed," Meredith reminds her.
"A kiss three months ago doesn't count," Arizona argues. "Look, this is getting weird. I was trying to avoid letting this get weird between us. I like having you as a friend Meredith."
"I like having you as a friend, but I am attracted to you and since I kissed you, things between us are already weird. You have just been ignoring the weirdness," Meredith remarks.
"Okay," Arizona says resigning suddenly.
"Okay? Like I am right, okay? You mean you'll go out with me?" Meredith asks needing the blonde to clarify what she is agreeing to.
"Okay, things may have gotten a bit weird with us. But no to the date, because I am taking you out," Arizona replies.
"I asked first, you don't get to say no and then turn around and ask me out. Are all lesbian contrary like this?" Meredith argues, finding herself both amused and annoyed.
"Yeah, but you don't know how to date women and I'm not going to subject myself to that, so yeah, I'm taking you out. Get a sitter for Saturday, I'll pick you up at 7," the blonde says decidedly.
"Maggie, do you have a minute?" Meredith asks after they drop off Bailey and Ellis at daycare the next morning.
"Not really, I need to meet with Robbins in ten minutes," Maggie says glancing at her watch.
"I'll walk with you," Meredith suggests.
"Meredith what's going on?" Maggie asks concerned.
"I, uh, I sort of have a date on Saturday night," Meredith confesses as she steps in and pushes the call button for the elevator.
"Oh, well that's no problem, I can stay home and watch the kids," Maggie offers quickly. "But wait who are you going out with?"
"Good morning doctors," Arizona says stepping up behind them at the elevator.
"Meredith has a date Saturday night," Maggie blurts out.
"Oh really, anyone we know Dr Grey?" Arizona teases.
"It's new," Meredith says glaring at the blonde.
"Well, will I get to meet him. Is he picking you up at the house?" Maggie inquires as they enter the elevator.
"No and definitely no," Meredith replies, still annoyed at the blonde.
The elevator doors open and Arizona moves between them to step out. "I'll see you in a few minutes Dr Pierce."
"Dr Robbins, I need a word with you," Meredith says following her out of the elevator.
"Yes, Dr Grey," Arizona says brightly wiggling her eyebrows.
"I was going to tell her and now I can't," Meredith points out, pausing for Arizona to unlock her office.
"You were going to tell her ten minutes before I'm meeting with her on a consult?" Arizona counters as they enter the office. "Bad idea, because if she was asking me last night, then we would be awkward together on this case. And we cannot be awkward on this case."
"Fine, then I won't tell her and she'll figure it out on Saturday, when you pick me up," Meredith replies sarcastically.
"Meredith, you can tell her, I'm not asking you to hide this from your sister. And you should tell her, just not here at work. And not right before I am going to meet her for a consult," Arizona says reaching out to rest her hand on the other woman's shoulder.
Meredith smiles at the contact and leans in to it, "Good, because I don't want to hide this," she murmurs closing the gap to give the blonde a light kiss.
Arizona steps back. "No kissing! We haven't even had a date yet," she teases, her blue eyes twinkling playfully.
Rolling her eyes, Meredith opens the door to leave, but then turns back to her. "This date had better be good," she quips flashing her own bright smile and twinkling blue eyes.
Arizona leans in the doorway watching her walk away before noticing Wilson approaching.
"I am fairly certain that I have never seen Meredith Grey smile like that," Jo says pointing over her shoulder as she enters the office.
Arizona turns around still smiling brightly at the exchange with Meredith and Jo gasps.
"Oh wait. My god, you and Meredith Grey!" Jo gushes after shutting the office door.
"Colleagues and friends," Arizona replies turning back to her desk and organizing her things. "Now we are going to be late for rounds with Pierce."
"Yes, I remember," Jo responds opening the door to the office and letting the blonde pass through first. "Seriously though, does Alex know about you two?" She whispers as they walk towards the elevator.
"Wilson, stop talking. And if I hear one word about this from anyone else, you'll be off my service," Arizona snaps.
"Wow, okay then. Jeez, I don't see what the big deal is," she mutters under her breath as they enter the elevator.
Arizona looks at the resident a moment, before reaching out and pulling the stop button on the elevator.
"Wilson, look. I may have overreacted a little bit. But please just leave it alone. This is new, this whatever it is with Meredith and I just don't want people gossiping about us. If this turns into an 'us' thing, then we'll tell people, but right now it's not anything that anyone needs to know, okay?" Arizona asks.
"I get that. And I swear, I won't say a word, not even to Alex," Jo promises.
Arizona exhales and then pushes the stop button back in. "Thank you Wilson," she replies.
"Hey have you met Murphy's girlfriend yet?" Meredith asks stepping into the scrub room as Arizona is scrubbing out of surgery.
"No, and why do people keep asking me that?" Arizona asks, obviously annoyed by the question.
"Wait until you meet her," Meredith answers cryptically.
"Meredith," Arizona says. "I saw her for a hot second at the bar last night. She was cute and blonde. You have to tell me why everyone keeps saying that."
"Her name is Montana and she is a pediatrician and she lost a leg in a hiking accident," Meredith blurts out, before bursting into a fit of laughter.
Arizona stands stunned. "And you were just going to let me walk into that?" She asks giving the other woman a playful shove.
"Well, I realized that it would be funnier to tell you myself where we could actually laugh about it," Meredith answers wiping a tear from her eye.
"I'm going to kill Jo Wilson. She was going to let me walk into that," Arizona says shaking her head.
"Speaking of Wilson, what is up with her? I just saw her in the elevator and I'm pretty sure that she got off on the fourth floor just to avoid being alone with me. Unless she has some sort of dermatology crisis that I don't know about." Meredith quips.
"Uh, well Jo sort of suspects that something is up between us," Arizona informs her.
"Oh," Meredith replies, but still not understanding.
"Don't worry, I told her to keep it to herself or I'd kick her off my service," Arizona jokes.
"Arizona, we don't have to hide this. I don't care if people know," Meredith retorts.
"Well, I don't like people gossiping about me. And I'm not exactly looking forward to people finding out about us. They'll say terrible things about me converting you," Arizona complains.
"Converting me? Half the hospital thought that Cristina and I were dating." Meredith reminds her. "I don't think they will blink an eye at me being with you," she adds.
"You are forgetting how brutal the gossip mill is at this hospital. I'm still the crazy lesbian who cheated on Dr Torres and slept with a resident. And you will always be Meredith Grey, Derek Shepherd's widow," Arizona argues.
"My life with Derek doesn't define me any more than your life with Callie defines you. They are people who we loved, but we're still us and we deserve to find happiness without them," Meredith retorts.
"I know that Meredith, but can we please wait until putting whatever this is out there to them? Can't we just figure it out first?" Arizona asks, reaching out for the other surgeon's hand and giving it a light squeeze.
"Okay, as long as you're not trying to hide it," Meredith replies pulling the blonde's hand to bring her closer.
"No kissing," Arizona reminds her.
Meredith rolls her eyes, then glancing out into the hall she spots Ben Warren. "I should go, I have surgery in ten minutes," she says moving towards the door.
"Oh and hey Webber is going to cover Peds, so I am going to get out early tomorrow," Arizona informs her.
"That seems like a thing that you would tell your girlfriend and I thought that we weren't dating yet," Meredith teases her before heading out of the room.