[Author's note: This chapter got pretty long. It played out shorter in my head, lol. But I promise no other chapter will be as long. I appreciate all your reviews!]
Mark woke up to an empty bed, a sheet covering from his torso down with a bent leg peeking out. He was naked and felt hazy as he attempted to shake free from sleep. He sat up on his elbows, looking around to find no one there. Had it all been a dream? He wasn't sure what scared him more, that it had been or that it hadn't. The bite mark on his shoulder confirmed that it hadn't and those feelings of fear and lack of certainty gripped him tight around the middle. He wished it had been a dream but all at once he couldn't shake the feel of her, the way she smelled, the way she tasted. That look in her eyes stayed with him, warming him yet a cold chill went through his core.
Sounds of pots banging could be heard from the kitchen along with the wafting smell of morning cooking. He got out of bed, tugging on his sweats as he left the room. Callie smiled up at him as he entered the kitchen as she scrambled eggs and poured them into a buttered skillet.
"Hi."
She had showered and dressed, wearing a pair of jeans and one of his old buttoned down shirts, her hair fell loosely about her shoulders still tinged with dampness.
"I was going to bring this to you in bed. I wanted to surprise you."
He swallowed as he looked over all that she had prepared. She must have gone out shopping for it all because at most, the only things he kept in his kitchen were liquor, apples and bread to make toast. There was a fruit salad of strawberries and blueberries and bananas, french toast, oatmeal and eggs. It all looked and smelt delicious but the perfect scene before him left him unnerved.
"You didn't have to do that, this," he said, needing to clear his throat.
Her smile only beamed brighter. "I wanted to," she said as she tended to the eggs. "Have a seat."
He popped his knuckles as he took a seat, his stomach uneasy. He wouldn't be able to eat a thing. He watched as she made his plate. She was beautiful, happy...misled. Or maybe it was him that was misled. He wasn't sure. Things had suddenly become so jumbled. Before there had been a line and it blurred in a moment that his guard was down. He hadn't meant for it to happen, but she was there and he was unable to resist.
She sat a plate in front of him and herself, taking a seat across from him as she popped a blueberry in her mouth. She looked pleased. Callie watched Mark as he moved his fork around the plate yet never take a bite. For her, this morning had been perfect. She couldn't have dreamed it to be more so and she had moved about on a high. But there he sat, unable to eat and it confused her, bringing her down and unable to eat as well.
"What's wrong?" she asked, her eyes upon him.
His eyes rose to hers as he set the fork down. He wasn't sure himself. This should be easy. It had always been before but now there was a shift and he was unable to simply take things as they came. He tried to smile, but it never fully formed.
"I think you might have gotten the wrong idea," he finally said, watching as she mimicked his earlier action of setting the fork down. "This morning was -"
"Perfect," she finished.
The truth is that it had been perfect. They had reconnected and it had been powerful. It had never happened like that to him before and it rocked him to his core. He had lost control and he needed desperately to get it back. He was unwilling to take a chance on an unsure thing.
"It was a mistake," he corrected, watching as the light dimmed in her eyes.
Callie closed her eyes as she let out a breath through parted lips. She knew he was lying. How had they gotten back there? He was resisting her, resisting what was the most natural and honest thing that had ever happened between them. Her eyes reopened with a tilt of her head.
"No it wasn't. No it wasn't, it was amazing. It was -"
"A mistake, Callie."
"How could you say that? How could you honestly say that to me? I was there. I felt it, I saw it."
"It should have never happened. You should have never been in my bed."
"Have things changed that much, Mark? How many years have I spent crawling into bed with you, and not once did you feel the sudden impulse to rock my world. You wanted it and so did I."
Mark pushed his plate away, his body twisting as he tried to think up another excuse.
"I wasn't in my right mind."
"What, you were drunk?"
"No!"
"Why can't you just say it? Why can't you just say that you're scared? That it scared you? That it surprised you? That you weren't prepared for it? Why the need for all this bullshit?"
"It's not bullshit," he said standing, "I was completely caught off guard. You were there and it was morning."
"Then what was your excuse last night when you were standing at attention?"
"I'm still a man, Callie!" He leaned with his back against the counter.
"Huh, so what? I was fulfilling a need? You could have gotten any whore in a bar for that."
"There was no need for that with you there."
The words had came out wrong. He didn't know how to swallow them back and watched in horror as oxygen ceased making its way into Callie's body. She was frozen, silently gasping for breath that wouldn't come as water filled her eyes. She had just been slapped with an invisible hand. She tried to speak but no words came out as her lips moved open and shut.
"Fuc -," she finally managed, nearly choking as oxygen returned. "Fuck you, Mark Sloan."
He was beginning to panic, he hadn't meant it that way. God, it had come out so wrong! But he was paralyzed, stuck between pride and ego all tied neatly in a bow with fear. She stood wiping her tears roughly with her hand, pissed that they had come at all. She had her pride too after all. The Latina moved passed him, pushing him with both hands out of her way before turning back.
"Are we even yet?" She asked, his eyes unable to meet hers. "I remember a time when you swore that you'd never hurt me. Do you remember that? Because you seem to be taking so much pleasure in doing it now."
With that she was gone, the slamming of the front door making him jump. He listened as the engine of her car roared and made it's way from his home. He continued to stand there. What the hell had just happened? In his bid to gain back some control he lost it all entirely. But if she left now, he wouldn't have time to get too hooked. Only now he was lying to himself. He was hooked, had always been but that fear had gripped him in a headlock. He couldn't tell which way was up or which was down.
Addison sat with Sam and Naomi on their back terrace laughing and enjoying breakfast. Naomi was telling them about a potential mom that had formed an obsession with Nadya Suleman, the octo- mom.
"It sounds like she needs to talk to Violet," Sam suggested before placing a pancake in his mouth.
"I've already set up an appointment," Naomi agreed, sipping orange juice from her glass.
Addison continued to laugh between bites of toast.
"Isn't that your friend, Callie?"Sam asked pointing across the way.
Callie was walking around the back of Addison's house, cellphone to her ear as she tried to call the redhead. She knocked on the glass of the backdoor, punching the redial button repeatedly on her phone only to be sent to voicemail.
"Yeah," Addison said, her voice concerned. She looked down at her phone next to her on the table to see that it was turned off. "Shit." She rose from the table. "Guys, I -"
"Go," Naomi said. "She looks upset."
Addison grabbed her phone and made her way over to her house, half running, calling out to Callie as she went.
"Callie!"
Callie turned her head to find Addison running over from her neighbors. She felt bad, she had meant to interrupt.
"Hey! What's going on?"
"Oh Addison, I'm sorry. I tried to call but I couldn't reach you and I didn't know you were with your friends. Go back."
"No, it's okay. I was finished. What's wrong? What happened?"
Callie looked at her as her phone passed between her hands. She felt foolish but there was no where else for her to go. Addison watched as thoughts played out in her mind. She knew something was wrong. Callie's eyes were red and her bottom lip swollen from being bitten down on.
"I just - I don't - I don't know what I'm doing."
She needed a hug, and Addison gave her one freely, holding her tight as the Latina began to cry.
"Come on," Addison said, ushering her toward the house. "Let's go inside."
Mark sat alone in his office, the building mostly cleared except for a cleaning crew. He tried to read over some case file but kept reading the same sentences over and over, his mind flashing back to the disaster that was this morning. He finally gave up, leaning back in his chair and pinching the bridge of his nose. He began to rub his arm and then the other, an action that resembled an addict in withdrawal. She was still on his skin, or in it. He had taken an hour long shower in an attempt to scrub her off but then he'd see her eyes and he'd falter. He leaned forward again to rest his elbows on the desk, determined to read the file as fingers rubbed at his temples. Her face was on the file, her expressive eyes staring back at him. He knocked it all of the desk. In one fell swoop, files and their papers were tossed in the air before floating to the ground, pens and their holders fell with a thud along with books and a coffee mug that shattered. He pushed away from his desk, his chair rolling back until it hit the wall. He couldn't think and his head began to throb as a single image of Callie and her eyes played over and over in his mind. He pulled his cell from his pocket and dialed a number, bringing the phone to his ear.
"Hello?"
"Sam? Sam, I'm - I'm -"
"Mark? What is it, man?"
"I think I'm losing my mind, Sam. I think I'm losing my mind." Mark's voice trembled as he spoke into the phone, his forehead resting in his palm as his fingers tugged at the front of his hair.
"You at home? Where are you? Tell me where you are."
Addison went to answer her front door, opening it to find Naomi standing behind it.
"How is she?" Naomi answered as she stepped inside.
Addison shut the door as both walked further into the house and into the living room.
Addison wore a face of concern as she shrugged, her arms tossing up in the air.
"I don't know. I don't know what's happening. All I know is that one of my closest friends couldn't stop crying until she finally fell asleep. She's upstairs now in my room. And I - I don't know what to think."
"Mark called Sam."
"Really? What'd he say?"
"I don't know. Something must have happened, he ran out the door so fast."
Addison looked at Naomi with her head shaking back and forth. She couldn't possibly fathom the thoughts that were going through her best friend's mind.
"You don't know Callie, Nai. I mean you never seen her with Mark. They were - even just as best friends they... they just made sense. You could see that they loved each other, that they were good for each other. I can't imagine what you're thinking right now."
They took a seat on the sofa. Naomi rubbed Addison's arms with her hands in an attempt to reassure her.
"I don't think anything. I could see it when they were going at it in the conference room that they loved each other, love each other."
"So what do I do? What do you do when two of your close friends are in so much pain? I mean I can't take a side. It's so obvious that Mark still has feelings for her and she's fighting with everything she's got and I..."
Naomi continued to wrap an arm around Addison, rubbing up and down her arm.
"I think you're doing everything you can. There is a lot of pain there. We knew that when Mark showed up all those months ago. It's a lot to work through. So just let them work through it and continue to be there for them. Like you were for Sam and me."
Addison rested her head on Naomi's shoulder overwhelmed with the morning's events.
"I think it's going to work out." Naomi continued.
"You do?"
"Mark deserves someone that will fight for him. He's just being stubborn right now, but he'll see that Callie's doing just that."
Callie's voice could be heard from upstairs. Addison and Naomi turned their heads in the direction of the stairs before Naomi looked back at Addison.
"Who's she talking to?"
Addison shrugged, grabbing Naomi's hand as they stood from the sofa and headed up the stairs.
Callie sat against the pillows on Addison's bed, phone to her ear, a kleenex in her free hand.
"I don't know Cristina. Tell her, tell her that um, I'm sorry and that um, you really don't know much more than that."
She sniffed her nose as she listened Cristina on the other side.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I mean - I don't know. I don't know, I might be home soon."
She waited as Cristina talked, letting out a breath.
"It's not. He's...making it really hard. Tell Bailey that I'll call her later and not to worry."
She wiped her nose with the kleenex as she nodded her head.
"Okay. Thank you."
She clicked off the phone and dropped in onto the bed.
"Who was that?"
Callie turned her head to find Addison leaning against the doorframe with Naomi behind her.
"Cristina Yang."
"Things okay back at home?"
"Yeah, yeah, everything's fi - fine."
Addison sat on the bed and took her hand, wiping the younger surgeon's eyes with the other one.
"You wanna tell me what happened?"
Callie eyes went up to Naomi before casting themselves down upon the bed.
"Oh, I'll leave you two alone," Naomi said as she began to turn.
"No. You don't have to go. I'm just a little embarrassed."
"Callie Torres, you never get embarrassed," Addison teased, rewarded with a small laugh. She nodded her head at Naomi, indicating that she should sit down.
Callie looked at both of them, both good friends of Mark and smiled at her predicament. Her shoulder rose, staying just below her ears for a moment before falling back down.
"I really couldn't tell you what happened. We um," She looked at them, her mind going back a few hours ago. "We had... sex. No, it wasn't just sex it was...it was like, really beautiful, you know?"
Addison and Naomi nodded their heads as they waited for her to continue.
"Addison, I could feel everything. And the way he looked at me. Like we connected, we really connected."Her hands balled into fist as she gestured, a small shake to her voice as she spoke. "It was so intense, it was SO INTENSE and amazing."
"So what happened?" Addison asked.
"He got scared. He must've gotten scared because then he was just...so cold. I made him this breakfast because he fell back asleep and I -," she swallowed as her breath caught, "went out and bought all these things that I know he likes to eat and I made him this really nice breakfast."
"Okay," Addison encouraged.
"He wouldn't even look at me. He said - he said this morning was a mistake and that it shouldn't have happened and that I shouldn't have been in his bed."
"Why were you in his bed?" Naomi asked with genuine curiosity. She was met with a cool stare by Addison.
"I - I couldn't sleep last night so I climbed into his bed. I did it without even thinking about it. I used to do it all the time. He never minded before. It probably was a stupid thing to do."
Addison kept her 'Good job, Naomi' glare on Naomi for a few seconds more before turning back to Callie.
"No, it wasn't stupid. It was something that had become so natural between you two that you didn't even have to think about it. It was probably just like you said. He got scared. We all know what he's like when he's scared."
"Yeah," Naomi added. "He doesn't always know how to handle his emotions. He was probably just caught off guard."
"But I was caught off guard too. I didn't plan it."
"We know you didn't plan it, Callie," Addison said as she scooted closer to her onto the bed.
"God, Addison. It was so intense. I never - it was never...and then he tainted it. He made it seem like it was just some random roll in the sack and that he was a man and it could've been anyone."
"He did not say that." Naomi was incredulous. She looked up at Addison with wide eyes. That was not her friend. That was not Mark.
"I couldn't stay so I left, I mean I just couldn't stay and I almost drove straight back to Seattle but I figured he wanted that. But how twisted that does sound? I don't know. Like part of me just says give up. Just give up. But then where would that leave me?" She looked at Addison as her eyes began to tear again and Addison wiped a stray tear away. "Where would that leave me, Addison? Because I love him so much. I love him so much and so much of this is my fault."
Addison wrapped her arms around Callie as Callie laid her head on her shoulder. Addison's eyes went to Naomi who looked back at her with no solution to offer. She reached out her hand to rub Callie's leg in an attempt to comfort the woman that clearly loved one of her oldest friends.
Sam got off the elevator in a hurry, darting toward Mark's office. He slowed upon seeing the mess that was created, paper everywhere, broken glass. Mark was still seated in his chair, head in his hands as his elbows rested on his thighs.
"Mark, what the hell happened?"He asked as he continued forward.
Mark looked up at him, eyes red and blood drained from his face.
"I'm losing it. I think I'm losing it, Sam."
Sam entered the office and walked carefully around the files on the floor. He made his way around the desk to kneel down beside his friend.
"What's going on?"
Mark turned up his blue eyes to his brown, his face grave and ashen.
"I can't...shake her off me. She's in my head, she's in my lungs. I can feel her," he said as he smacked one arm and then the other, "in my skin. I can't function, Sam. She's everywhere and I can't - deal. I can't deal."
"What do you need? What do you want me to do?"
Mark wasn't hearing him as he continued to ramble on, his eyes glazing over.
"I left. I left her in Seattle. I got rid of her. I left and I took back my pride and my dignity and I left. And then she comes and she tries to take it all back. Just like that. Just like that." he snapped his fingers with a flare of his nose. "She takes it from me."
Sam placed a hand on Mark forearm. "I don't think she's trying to take your pride, Mark. I think she's only after your heart."
"That can't be it," Mark said with a shake of his head. "Because she had that a long time ago."
Sam kept looking over his friend, Mark's face twisted every so often as a different pained emotion would take hold. He took out his phone and typed up a text message before sending it out. His attention went back to Mark.
"Let's get this cleaned up. Then we'll go out."
Mark sat at the bar of Besitos, one of the new restaurants in town that he and Sam have heard Addison raving about. He nursed a glass of scotch as Sam sat beside him with a bourbon of his own. He glanced down at his phone as a text came in and glanced at the restaurant's entrance as Cooper and Pete entered. Sam waved, catching their attention and watched as the made their way over.
"Hey," Pete said as he shook Sam's hand with a pat on the back. "What going on?"
Sam drew Pete close to whisper in his ear as Cooper looked over them to see Mark sitting at the bar.
"He's a little messed up. Something went down with him and Callie this morning. Found him at the office, almost trashed."
Pete looked at him as Cooper walked around them. He put his hand on Mark's back as he took a seat beside him.
"Hi, Mark. How you doing?"
Mark continued to sit without acknowledging his other friends. He took a drink after a bit and finally turned his attention to Cooper as Sam and Pete took seats at the bar.
"Charlotte ever make you insane?" he asked.
Cooper laughed as he raised an eyebrow, glancing over at Sam and Pete.
"All the time," he answered.
"No, I don't mean the - I mean literally. Literally drive you insane. Like she's haunting you or something?"
Cooper tilted his head as he brows lowered.
"No."
Mark began to laugh, turning his head to look at Pete and Sam and back to Cooper before he downed his drink. They all looked back at him unsure how to take his bought of laughter. Cooper held a finger up to the bar tender.
"Can I have a beer?"
"Make that two," Pete chimed in, leaning forward.
"I had dreams about her." Mark started, indicating to the bar tender that he wanted a refill. "For the longest time I had dreams about her."
They all listened as the bar tender slid Pete and Cooper their drinks and slid another glass over to Mark.
"Then this morning, I wake up and she's there. I thought I was dreaming." He took another drink from his glass. "But she was really there and I couldn't not. It was like a reflex. I had to touch her. I shouldn't have but I -,"
Sam, Pete and Cooper shared concerned glances. Was he admitting to something heinous?
"So you... slept with her? It was... consensual, right?" Pete said, asking the question the others were a little too afraid to voice.
"Of course it was!" Mark answered, anger rising.
"Okay, man. He was just - you were setting it up a little strange." Cooper stated, then took a drink from his beer.
It was forgiven and forgotten as Mark took another sip.
"You guys have seen her? You've all seen her right? She's - she's beautiful."
"Gorgeous," Cooper agreed.
Pete leaned back in his stool eyes on Cooper. "I'll make sure not to tell Charlotte that you're drooling over another woman."
"What? I'm not. We've all got eyes. You're telling me you don't think Callie's beautiful."
"It was the way you said it, Cooper," Sam stated.
"You could have just agreed." Peter affirmed then leaned back up in his stool to give Mark back his attention.
Mark had barely noticed as he struggled to get his thoughts together. He looked down at his drink for a long while as the other three waited for him to continue. Sam set down his drink when he didn't, twisting his stool to fully face him.
"So you slept with her," Sam said in an attempt to make Mark continue. "What happened?"
"She just... took hold of everything. She took everything." He turned to look at Sam, for the first time really looked at him. "I begged her. I begged her to be with me, to stay with me but she didn't. She went back and she took everything that I had as a man with her. And I was finally getting it back. I was getting it back and then she comes and just that, she took it. She had no right, Sam."
Mark began to lift his drink back to his lips but Sam took ahold of it and set it back down.
"Listen, Mark," he began, "I think that you're giving her more power than she actually has. I don't think that she's trying to take anything from you."
"It just seems to me," Pete said, "that she realizes she made a mistake. She knows she made the wrong choice and she just wants another chance."
"But she didn't realize that she made a mistake. She could go back anytime. I'm just the afterthought."
Cooper, Pete and Sam exchanged glances as they tried to think of something else to say.
"I think that that's just the fear talking, Mark. I think you're just scared." Sam said. "You're just scared."
Naomi opened the front door of Addison's house. Violet and Charlotte stood on the other side holding a couple of cartons of ice cream and bottles of wine. Charlotte held up the wine.
"The boys went out drinking, I figured we could do the same. We've got ice cream and we've got wine." Charlotte said as she and Violet made their way inside.
"I thought you didn't do sleepovers," Naomi said as she shut the door.
" I didn't say anything about sleepovers. I just said let's drink. Now it sounds to me that this Callie has had a hard day and could use a drink or two and I'm just supplying the goods."
Violet laughed as she moved past them.
"Where are they?" She asked.
"All the action's upstairs," Naomi answered before leading the way to Addison's room. "Look who's here," she said upon reentering the room.
Callie and Addison looked up from the bed as Violet and Charlotte made their way in. Violet placed one carton of ice cream on top of the other before she extended her hand out to Callie.
"Hi. We haven't been formally introduced. I'm Violet Turner."
"Hi." Callie replied, shaking her hand.
"She's our resident psychiatrist." Addison informed Callie.
Callie turned to look at her before looking back at Violet.
"A shrink? You guys think I need a shrink?"
"No, no." Violet said quickly. "I'm just here...to be...here."
"Oh. That's really kind of you but I really, I -"
"Callie," Addison said, taking her hand. "Just let them be here."
She nodded and looked down at her hands.
"I just can't imagine what you guys think of me."
"Well you can consider me a fan," Charlotte said as she set the bottles of wine on a dresser before taking a seat on the edge of the bed. "Any woman that has the balls enough to interrupt a business transaction just get the man she loves to listen to her, scores major points with me. Even though it could potentially cause me to lose out on a great doctor."
Callie was silent as she looked as Charlotte. She tilted her head as a smile crept onto her lips.
"I like you," Callie said simply, eliciting a small round of laughter from the others.
Violet and Charlotte played catch up quickly, learning the story of what happened between Mark and Callie earlier that day. Callie, never really amongst strangers, felt at home as they offered encouragement and told stories of their own about their loves, past and present, and the fights that went along with them. The wine flowed freely as the mood alternated between light laughter and somber sadness. Callie was feeling better but she remained stuck on how next to proceed. Addison refilled everyone's glasses as they all dipped their spoons into the carton of ice cream to scoop out the last remains. They all sat on the bed like a bunch of school girls gossiping on who had a crush on who.
"So, I'm trying to look at this from both sides," Violet said after removing a spoon from her mouth. "Mark has been here for six months and you were with -"
"Arizona." Callie answered.
"What kind of name is that?" Charlotte asked.
"She was named after a battleship. Her dad was marine. There's actually a really nice story behind it."
Violet continued, bumped shoulders with Charlotte, slightly appalled at her rudeness. "You were with Arizona. Then you had this big falling out and that's when you decided that you were in love with Mark?"
"Something like that only -"
"Only what?" Naomi asked, taking a glass from Addison as she sat back on the bed.
"I knew before that. I mean I've always loved him and he's my best friend. I just think the lines were blurred a little bit. We never had the typical relationship."
"You mean the friends with benefits?" Violet concluded.
Callie nodded.
"Those are nice." Charlotte stated earning a set of four eyes to turn to her. "What? You all know I love Cooper. We've all had a friend with benefits."
"I never did." Naomi said between sips of wine. "It was always a relationship or nothing."
"Well we can't all be prudes." Charlotte said.
Naomi scuffed boring her eyes into Addison who was trying to hide a chuckle.
"You are though, Nai. I love you but you can be."
"It's good to have well defined boundaries. There is nothing to be ashamed of," Violet consoled.
"Oh, I'm not ashamed." Naomi said with wave of her hand. "At least I never had to go on the internet to find a date. How did you and Cooper get together, by the way?"
Charlotte gave Naomi a death glare, silently counting to ten less she toss her drink in Naomi's face. Callie laughed, intrigued.
"Back to my point," Violet said, attention back on Callie. "You and Mark have this long history sleeping together without expectations. How do you know it wasn't like that this time?"
"You think it was one sided?"
"I don't think anything. I'm just, like I said, trying to look at it from both sides. How do you know that it wasn't?"
Callie bit down on her bottom lips as the others waited for her answer. She peered down at her glass of wine and set it on the nightstand. The others looked at each other unsure before turning their eyes back to her. A smile began to form on Callie's face as her chocolate eyes raised to look directly at them all.
"He cried."
"He cried?" Addison and Charlotte questioned at the same time.
Callie swallowed as she nodded her head, her smile becoming bigger.
"He cried. And I held him. It had been so intense. It was so beautiful. It was...not one sided."
They were all quiet as they reflected on this new bit of information.
"Sam cried." Naomi informed.
"He did?" Addison asked, turning her head toward her.
She nodded her head. "On our wedding night."
"Pete did too," said Violet.
Charlotte finished off her drink as silence returned.
"Well damn," she said, forgetting that she had drunk the last her wine. "I need some more."
"That was the last of it." Addison said.
"Both of them?"
"Both of them."
Naomi, Violet, Charlotte and Addison looked down at their empty glasses, all suddenly very thirsty.
"I think I have some tequila downstairs," Addison said.
"Yes, tequila! That'll work."Charlotte enthused, extending her empty glass to Addison who took it with a roll of her eyes.
Addison scooted off of the bed and began to make her way to the door.
"I'll help you," Naomi said, joining her.
"I have to pee," Violet said after the two had left and made her way into the bathroom.
Callie and Charlotte were left remaining. Charlotte looked at Callie with scrunched up brows as she worried the inside of her cheek.
"He cried, huh?"
"Yep."
Callie couldn't help but smile as Charlotte couldn't quite get over that bit of information. Her cell's vibration filled the silence in the room. Without thought, Charlotte reached over to grab it off the nightstand, reading the text message that had popped onto the screen. 'Callie, baby. I don't understand what happened. Please call me. Tell me where you are.' Callie snatched the phone quickly from Charlotte's hand but she had already seen it.
Charlotte green eyes turned up at Callie in confusion.
"Why is your ex sending you text messages and calling you baby?"
"I think you read it wrong."
"I know exactly what I read." she said, waiting for a response that never came. "You haven't been telling the whole story, have you? There was no big blowout with you and this...Arizona, was there?"
"It doesn't matter."
"I think it does. In fact, I think it would make the world of difference. You defended her."
"What?"
"You defended her when I mocked her name earlier. Now call me petty, but I don't have a nice thing to say about any one of my exes. You sure as hell wouldn't find me defending them even if there was a beautiful story behind it."
"I'd love it, if you could just pretend you never saw anything. It's complicated."
Charlotte looked at her. She couldn't decided whether to be intrigued or skeptical.
"I have a strong suspicion that whatever it is you're not saying is going to come out."
"I'll cross that bridge when I come to it."
"You'll be coming to it a lot sooner than you think. I've played the secret's game. They always come out."
"I'm not keeping secrets, Charlotte."
"Okay. Well, my lips are sealed."
"Okay!" Addison said entering the room after Naomi. "We've got tequila and we've got limes. Did we miss anything?"
Callie looked at Charlotte then turned toward Addison.
"Nope. Not at all," Charlotte answered.
Cooper, Pete, Sam and Mark sat at a booth in Besitos, their dinner eaten long ago. Their drinks of choice sat in front of them. Whatever demon that had tortured Mark earlier had seemingly been content to leave him alone for the time being. He looked better, color returning to his cheeks and his eyes were now clear.
"What do ya think, Mark? Should we do another round?" Cooper asked, arm resting on the back of the booth.
"Yeah, sure," he said as he sat back.
Cooper waved at the waiter as he sat forward looking back at Mark. He grew silent as he stared at his drink.
"Mark?"
"How can I go back?" Mark asked to no one in particular. "She thinks I called her a whore. But it came out wrong. I would never call her a whore. She's not one. How can I go back when she thinks that's what I said?"
"Just apologize." Sam suggested, holding his glass as the waiter poured his drink.
"You didn't see her eyes, Sam. I can still see them. She left. What if she doesn't come back? What if she really thinks that I think that about her and she doesn't come back?"
"She's not going anywhere. She made that pretty clear yesterday," Pete said, his hand on Mark's shoulder.
"I've never felt like this before. I never had someone grip me from the inside out."
"That's love, my friend," Sam said with a laugh. "It's a bitch."
A small laugh was permitted to escape Mark, his first in a long while.
"It's a bitch," he repeated.
"Just go back and be honest." Cooper said. "Tell her you love her. Women always forgive will they hear the magic words."
Mark walked into his home, his head cleared from the fog of the morning yet somehow feeling that the air had shifted. He looked around, checking into the living room and then in the kitchen. Everything was still there. Even the breakfast that had been prepared and left entirely untouched this morning. He walked back to the guest room. The bed was made up. He looked into the closet. Her suitcase was gone. It was then that he realized that her car hadn't been parked in the front.
"Callie?" He called out, receiving no reply.
His heart began to race. She had left, he knew she would. Why wouldn't she? Right when she snuck inside his veins again, right when he had become hooked.
"Callie!" He called out again, making his way into his room. There was no sign of her there. He pulled out his phone and dialed her number. It was sent straight to voicemail. He dialed it again only to receive the same outcome.
The knot returned to his stomach and he felt sick. He had lied. He hadn't wanted her to go. How could he have been so stupid? He shouldn't have let her go.
He couldn't remember the drive over to Addison's. He had been on autopilot the moment he had stepped foot in his house with his heart lodged in the back of his throat. Addison opened the door unable to get a word out as Mark made his way in.
"She left." He said, his voice in panic.
"What?"
"Callie. She left. She left me. Again!"
"Mark -"
"I was so stupid. I was so stupid, Addison."
She shut the door and went to him, taking him by the arm.
"Come on, let's - let's sit down."
"No, I can't sit down! Did you talk to her? Did she call you?"
He held her by the arms. She was too busy trying to understand what Mark was saying to respond right away.
"She, um -"
"I let her leave. I wanted her to. I thought I wanted her to. But now I want her back. I need her back. Will you help me get her back? She'll listen to you, Addison. I need her back."
"She didn't leave." The words had come from Charlotte who stood on the stairs along with Violet and Naomi. Callie had made it further down the steps, both of her hands clinging to the banister as Mark turned to see her.
His breathing stopped when he did, her eyes watching every move he made. He swallowed, releasing Addison to make his way over to her. She remained on the stairs. His eyes stayed fixed on hers as relief flooded over him.
"She was just going to stay here for a little while," Addison finally managed.
But he didn't turn back to acknowledge her. He couldn't, his eyes were fixed on Callie. His arms went up on his sides before falling back down again.
"You were right," he began. "I got scared. I'm still scared. But I love you and I don't know what to do about it. I don't know how to be. It's just - I can feel you all over me, Cal. I can't get you off. I don't want you off. You're apart of me. And that scares me. It scares me so much, Callie because I don't have any control. I love you so much, and I don't know how to be...without you. I don't know how to be."
They all watched as Callie lingered at her post for a second more before she fully descended the stairs and made her way over the him. She took his face in her hands, her thumbs wiping away tears as their eyes stayed connected. His hands wrapped around her wrists.
"Come back." He said. "Will you come back?"
She smiled as she nodded her head, leaning up to capture his lips with hers. She leaned back, wiping away more tears.
"I'll go get my things." She said and then kissed him again.
He watched as she made her back back up the stairs, past Violet, Naomi and Charlotte, all of whose eyes were stuck on him. He swallowed and then wiped his nose.
"I like her, Mark." Charlotte said. "So make sure you two get your crap together."
He gave a small chuckle as the three ladies made their way down the steps to join Addison.
"I like her too, Mark." Naomi said, squeezing his shoulder and then kissed the side of his head. "She's a keeper."
"You know, if you do end up staying in LA, the practice could always use an orthopedic surgeon." Charlotte said.
"Charlotte, I think they have other things to work through first." Violet stated.
"I'm just saying..."
Callie made her way downstairs carrying her suitcase with both hands on the handle. He walked around the ladies and took the suitcase from her.
"You ready?" He asked.
She nodded.
Addison opened the front door as Mark made his way out. Callie turned back.
"Addison -"
"Don't you dare thank me." Addison commanded before pulling her into a hug. "You crazy kids have a good night."
Callie smiled and waved at the other ladies before making her way out. Addison shut the door behind her and leaned against it, looking over to Naomi, Violet and Charlotte. She looked exhausted.
"There's still a sleepover though, right?" Charlotte asked in all seriousness.
Addison laughed. "I'll order a pizza."