Title: Fix You (7/8)
Pairing: Callie/Arizona
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Tragedy strikes Arizona while in Africa, forcing her to come home.

I will try to fix you

Disclaimer: I own nothing. I do not intend to profit in any way, shape or form by posting this story. It's for fun, nothing more, and nothing less. Please don't sue me.

A/N: I'm sorry for the super long wait on this. I was having trouble deciding exactly what to do and how I wanted to bring this story to an end. I hope this is up to everyone's expectations. There will be an epilogue, but I have no idea how long it will take to get it out of me. LOL Thank you to everyone that has been posting comments and telling me how much they've enjoyed the story. It truly means so, so much to me. Now, I'm posting this before Drea decides to kick my ass!

I sighed and looked down at my hands. I've become accustomed to them being constantly covered, but it was still a bit unnerving. I knew they were my hands, but I hadn't actually seen them in weeks. There was a brief period when Callie was finally able to take the casts off that I was greeted with my pale and slightly red hands and fingers. They looked like road maps, each stitch part of a road that led from finger to finger and across the palm. It reminded me of Africa. That within the pale and beautiful desert, there were roads which led to destruction and pain. Callie purchased these grey and pink braces for my hands. They fit like gloves, but they were stiff and would help with getting their strength back. She told me I would have to wear them constantly until therapy was over, which is why I haven't seen my hands in a while. Just when I shower, since I've even been wearing them to sleep. I was thankful for them, though. No one had to see the angry scars which adorned my hands. No questions from scared children who accidently would glance over and see what was difficult to understand. That the world wasn't just rainbows and happiness, that there was a darkness hidden in fear and ignorance and those people consumed by that darkness could do incredibly destructive things.

I miss my innocence. I miss blindly believing in the good of the world. Even after my brother was killed in a terrible war, I still believed, but now… Well, now I'm not so sure anymore.

I glance over to Calliope who is sitting on my right. She has a small smile on her lips and it brings a small smile to mine as well. She pulls my right hand into both of hers and grips it as though it were a lifeline. I can tell from the look in her eyes that she is just as anxious as I am right now. I hate sitting in doctor's offices, which is fairly ironic considering I'm a doctor. I suppose it's why I'm a surgeon and work in a hospital. I may have an office, but I don't normally entertain patients there. In fact, the last time I was in my office I was entertaining Calliope. The thought brings a smile to my lips. I should really say she was entertaining me, considering my hands were still casted at the time. I had spoken to Chief Webber again and he told me that I could have my office back and a job as the head of pediatric surgery as soon as my hands were ready. He had no doubt that my hands would be back and until then, I could consult and teach and handle all the budgeting and paper work. He said Stark would be staying on as a co-head of the department until I was able to cut.

Needless to say, I was excited. I called her to meet me at my office and gave her the good news. She wrapped her arms around me and kissed me so hard and deep that I felt lightheaded and as though I was gliding in a cloudless blue sky. I wanted so much to touch her, but I just ended up rubbing my arms against her sides. That has to be the most frustrating part of my life right now; the inability to touch and really hold my Calliope. She shut the door and locked it and laid me on the couch and worshipped my body. I felt so loved and secure in her arms. She's been so tender with me since we finally talked and hashed things out. We are in such a good place, but my hands still frustrate me and she knows it. When we're intimate, she always ensures to satisfy herself and me at the same time, which I'm thankful for, but also embarrassed about. I want to make love to her, but my hands…

She brings me out of my reverie by squeezing my hand. She thinks she's gentle, but she's not and it hurts, but it's a good pain. It reminds me that my hands are getting better and although the process is slow, it's worth it. She's worth it. She's worth all the pain I've gone through, emotionally and physically. When we finally sat and talked things out just a week after my hand surgeries, I was scared. I was so scared to bare myself so completely to her, but I needed too. She wanted me too and she wanted to give herself to me as well. We both acknowledged that we made mistakes and that we would still likely make more mistakes, but we vowed to talk to each other and to be open, regardless of how hard that might be. That discussing our mistakes is the only way we would ever be able to fix them. Somehow, amidst all the crazy things going on in both of our lives, we grew up. We grew up as people, as friends, as lovers and our relationship did too. It's a shame that I needed such a tragedy to finally open my eyes, but now that they are open all I can see is Calliope and our beautiful future.

I laugh softly when I feel her leg rapidly jumping next to me and tilt my head to look at her. She shrugs slightly and then laughs. She leans over and presses a soft kiss against my cheek. "I'm sorry, I'm just a little nervous."

"Don't be nervous. It's just a few tests." I say softly, trying to calm her nerves and my own.

"Yeah, it's just a few tests that can alter our lives forever," she says quietly.

And her leg just keeps going. I can't stop myself from laughing out and she follows suit. She slides one arm around my shoulder and pulls me into her. I tilt my head so that I can brush my nose slightly against her neck and breathe in her scent. My Calliope, how did I ever think I could live without her?

She tilts her head and looks at me and we are eye to eye and I feel so loved when her warm chocolate brown eyes met with my own bright baby blues. It's in our differences that we are most beautiful together and our similarities that keep us grounded together. She is truly my soul mate and talking to one another just brought us closer. We fought and we loved, we picked each other apart, admitted that we knew of one another's weaknesses and would often manipulate them to get our way. We also acknowledged that we knew each other's strengths and the fact that we made each other better people. We knew that we are better together than we could ever be apart. We are so in love with each other and we've earned the right to be happy. The feeling reminds me of our beautiful wedding. We really didn't want to wait. The shooting that occurred in the hospital, my brother dying, Africa, my hands… these were all reminders that life is insane and short and we just couldn't waste another minute not being married to one another.

We both chose to wear big white dresses. It made the logistics with dancing kind of awkward, but it was what we wanted. I wanted to see Calliope in a beautiful white gown and she said she wanted the same, so that is what we did. It didn't matter than Calliope was married before and it didn't matter than we were both women, all that mattered to us both was making each other happy. Looking back on my life, I can honestly say without a doubt that my wedding has been the happiest moment so far. We chose silver, black and white as our wedding colors and we had yellow flowers that simply popped in the beautiful reception area. Calliope made the right call in waiting until my hands were strong enough to hold the simple bouquet. We purposely chose to make them sparse to ensure my hand wouldn't shake from the weight. The outdoor wedding was Calliope's idea, but I think Mark helped find the venue. It was a beautiful garden and everything was in bloom; I don't think it could have been more perfect. The sky was so blue and the sun was just setting over our shoulders as we said 'I do' to one another. We pledged our love to each other in front of our friends and our family and then we partied.

The reception was a small covered area with the most elegant of table settings that could have been found in the middle of an open garden. There was a huge dance floor and we danced the night away. I danced with Calliope and her father and my father and even Calliope's mother. I know she's having a difficult time accepting things, but I will be forever grateful for the olive branch which she extended to me that evening. The disc jockey was amazing and he played music from many eras. I can't remember sitting for more than five minutes all night long. The best memory from that night though, was the clinging of glasses that surrounded Calliope and I while we were dancing to our song, You and I by Michael Buble. It was the first dance of the evening and I think every person at the wedding was knocking their glasses, begging for us to kiss. Callie grinned at me and leaned in to whisper in my ear, "I think we should give the public what they want before we have a mutiny on our hands." We both giggled at her words and I shook my head slightly at her antics. Then she twirled me, dipped me gently and then pressed her lips to mine. Our first kiss as a married couple and a kiss I'll never forget it for all my life, especially since we received quite a loud round of applause. I feel my cheeks flush pink and Callie looks over at me and raises her perfect eyebrow.

"I was just thinking about our wedding." I laugh softly and watch as her face lights up and she smiles at me.

"That was an awesome day." She says as though it's the most obvious thing in world… and it was.

"Oh yeah, it was. I wish I could wear my ring." I say sadly as I look down at our hands.

"You will. You're doing so well and the swelling is still going down, it will just take time. I can't believe how amazingly well your therapy is going and that you're not having any tremors. And the cartilage is working. Your case was really perfect timing. I needed a case where I could use a small amount of the cartilage for research and practical purposes. With how successful it has been, I really think I'll be able to use larger amounts soon. You know what that means? How many lives can be changed? It's amazing and it's all because of you and your bravery." She's smiling so widely at me and beaming with pride. She's just amazing.

"It's because of you, Calliope. All the hard work you put into that research and persevering when biomechanics told you it wasn't even possible." I lean over and press a soft kiss against her lips, not caring what any of the other patients in the office thought about our open public display of affection. "You know, even if this doesn't work, even if I can't operate again, even if these tests don't come back as we want, I know things will be awesome for us. But because of you, I have a chance that I will be able operate again and it's because of you that I am truly happy."

"I would normally say flattery will get you everywhere, but you don't need to use that on me, you already have all of me." I know Callie is being honest with me and she smiles at me with her super white teeth. I turn away from her, hoping she won't see the tears falling down my cheeks.

"Arizona?" Her voice is quiet and she turns slightly so that she can use her hand to turn my face towards hers. "Why are you crying?"

My first instinct is to buck up and stop the tears and just say nothing, but I have been down that road before. I knew she would catch me if I tried to lie about that, but we vowed to be open, so I just let it all out. "I have a-almost all of you. I am f-fine with not being able to operate, really, I am… but I am h-having such a hard time accepting the fact t-that I can't touch you the way I want too. I can't love you the way you d-deserve, the way I want too."

I watch as Callie sighs, her shoulders and chest heaving in what I perceive as disappointment. I lower my head and pull my bottom lip between my teeth. I hate disappointing her. I feel the sting of more tears behind my eyes.

"Arizona, really?" She raised my chin so that she could look into my eyes. "You are wonderful. Awesome, even," she laughs and leans her face to mine so she can playfully rub our noses together, "especially when we're intimate." She winks and kisses the tip of my nose. "I love your hands, but I don't need them to feel good when I'm with you. Besides, pretty soon, your hands will be back to perfect." Just being with her makes me feel so much better, but her words make me swell with pride and love for her. Sometimes, I wish my hands were fine so that I could pinch myself and ensure I'm not dreaming this amazing life.

"Well, at least a lot of good things happened for us because of this," I say as I pull my hand from her and then wave both of my hands in front of us, "We finally learned how to communicate, you scared Mark so bad he's finally giving us some space, we got married," I wink at Callie and I watch as she rolls her eyes before continuing, "and I literally cannot smoke, even if I wanted too."

Callie laughs and shakes her head slightly. "I can't believe how much you were smoking in Africa. Had you not been attacked and managed to stay there for the full three years, you'd probably end up a cancer patient before you turn forty." She pulls my hand back into hers and starts to soothingly massage it. She's being very gentle and it actually feels good. I quickly move my other hand next to it and pop my dimples out at her. She takes the hint and starts massaging the other with a laugh. "Goof."

"Yeah, but I'm your goof."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." She leans closer and presses another kiss on my head. "I'm glad I managed to find someone like you."

"Are you channeling your inner Adele?" I can't help but giggle as she pushes me playfully.

"Well, she did say sometimes it lasts in love, but sometimes it hurts instead. I think we went through enough hurt to ensure our love will last." She sighs and I can tell it's a soft sigh of happiness. She slides her arms around me and places her chin against my head as I lean it against her shoulder.

"I didn't realize the badass I married was a secret romantic." I press my elbow into her side and she grunts softly before laughing.

"You're the only one that knows all of me, even the squishy parts."

"I think I know those squishy parts pretty well," I say with a straight face. She lifts her head and tilts it slightly so she could look me in the eye. Once our eyes meet we break into soft giggles.

"I can't believe you actually said that."

"You bring the natural sarcastic badass side of me out to play." Callie laughs loudly and I mock offense.

"You're hardcore, but badass? I don't think so. You're cute and perky and sunshine and rainbows." I felt Callie's hand move up my arm and back down to my hand where she absently continued to massage my fingers.

"Uhm, have you forgotten when I got back from Africa? And I'm totally badass when it comes to my therapy. I kick therapy's ass." I jut out my chin and then nod once, but I glance at Callie out of the corner of my eye and she's laughing, but trying to keep the sound down. "Seriously? You're laughing at my awesomeness?"

"No, I'm laughing at you confusing hardcore and awesome with badass." I pout, but only for a moment because she kisses me lightly and as always, it brings a huge smile to my face. "But it's okay, I have enough badass for the both of us." She winks at me and I just giggle and feel so helplessly in love with this woman.

"I love you, so really it's a good thing I married you..." I hear Callie chuckle and then I turn to her and give her a sharp look. She raises a brow at me and tilts her head, body language telling me she's waiting for what I have to say, "…even after I found out about where you and Mark went the night before the wedding. You know, while Teddy and I practiced holding a bouquet all night without dropping it or shaking the flowers all over the place like a flower girl." I smirk when I see Callie's eyes widen and I feel her tense up.

"You knew?" Callie's wide eyes stared into mine and I just stared back at her with a straight face. "Wait, how long have you known about that?"

"Duh, Karev was there!" I laughed and gently caressed her cheek with one of my hands, making sure to keep the touch light because despite all the therapy, I still had random pains especially when gripping or touching anything too firmly. "Seriously, inviting Karev to a secret drunken episode at a strip club and you expected him not to tell me?"

She looks at me and nods her head once. "Okay, good point."

"We were talking after doing a consult and he told me how cool I am for letting my fiancée go out to a strip club with the manwhore she used to sleep with and the intern she slept with once," I said matter-of-factly. "It wasn't a big deal to me, Calliope, though I wish I would've been invited." I grinned at Callie's surprised expression.

"Okay, I take it back; you have a bit of badass in you."

"…Sometimes more than others."

"Wow, you're so pervy today."

"Just today? I've been complaining about lack of fingers for weeks, Calliope!"

"Oh my god, Arizona." She laughs and I just shake my head. Lately, everything has felt great between us. Talking has really opened us both up and really moved our relationship onto a solid foundation. It was everything we always needed and now we have it and I am never letting it go or letting her go. She's my forever and I'm really ridiculously lucky.

The door to the back of the doctor's office opened and a surly looking black haired nurse walked out whole holding a chart. She glanced across the room and read the name from the chart, "Callie Torres?" She glanced around and made eye contact with Callie. Callie held up her hand and extended her index finger, asking for a moment. The nurse nodded and waited by the door.

Callie turned to me, still holding my hands and she showed me her beautiful smile before furrowing her brows and offering me a look of concern. "Now, you're sure about this? You know we don't have to do this right now, right? We can wait for a while if you want."

I couldn't love her anymore if I tried. She's just amazing. I put my hands on her cheeks and pull her gently to me and kiss her lips. I hold her lips in mine for just a moment, relishing how soft and silky they feel with her chosen lipstick of the day. I pull back just slightly so that I can playfully nuzzle my nose against hers and then finish pulling back completely. "I'm ready, Calliope. And I know you're ready. If there's one thing Africa has taught me it's that I need you and I want a family with you. If we wait any longer, there can be a man in a white beret that runs horses over us or a Gary Clarke in the hospital shooting bullets into people we care about. Nobody knows where they might end up because we have no control over anything, so we need to be happy. You make me happy. Our baby will make me happy. All of these things are things that I want and I don't want to waste another breath without making that happen for us."

Callie releases the breath she's been holding throughout my speech and she leans forward to press her lips to mine, but she doesn't make it a chaste kiss in this room full of people. No, she pushes her tongue deep into my mouth and uses her right hand to press the back of my head firmly against hers. She ravishes me with a deep passionate kiss and I can't hold back the soft moan from the back of my throat. We both hear a subtle clearing of the throat near us and she finally pulls away and offers me that breathtaking smile I love. She smiles at the nurse who interrupted our kiss, the same surly one from a moment ago. "Doctor Oswalt is waiting…" The nurse seems a bit flustered and grins at us as she holds the door open to the back of the office.

Callie stands up and helps me to my feet and we follow the nurse into the back. She leads us to a room and we are both greeted with a short woman who has her red hair slicked back into a ponytail. "Dr. Callie Torres, I presume?" She says as she stands and reaches out with her hand toward Callie.

Callie nods, "Yeah, I'm Callie and this is my wife, Arizona."

I laugh and shake my head slightly. "Callie, I told you that I knew Dr. Oswalt, so I don't really think she needs another introduction."

"I just wanted to say my wife, Arizona." Callie winks at me and all three of us laugh.

"It's nice to see you again, Dr. Oswalt. How is Emily Warner doing?" I ask as I take a seat in the chair next to the exam table. Callie jumps onto the exam table and I can't help but laugh at her enthusiasm.

"I can't believe you remember that case, that was two years ago, Dr. Robbins."

"Please, call me Arizona. And some cases just stick with you, you know?" I watch as Dr. Oswalt nods, her eyes glazing over as though she's recalling some important case in her life. She then shakes her head slightly and smiles at us both.

"Yeah, I understand and as for Emily, she just celebrated her third birthday and there have been no further complications. I must say, you're the finest pediatric surgeon I've ever worked with. And please, call me Sara." I beam from the compliment and Callie narrows her eyes at Dr. Oswalt.

"Hey, hey, that woman is mine, don't get any funny ideas." She points at Sara and looks serious, but it only lasts a second before she's grinning like a fool.

"Calliope!" I gasp.

Callie and Sara both laugh at my reaction and Sara holds her left hand up and wiggles her ring finger, "Don't you worry, I'm a married woman." She then claps her hands together and smiles us at us both, "Now, let's get started making a baby…"

Three hours later, Calliope and I are walking to our apartment. The sky is a beautiful blue and the sun is casting the most amazing golds and reds against the blue as it slowly sets. The contrast makes the sky so beautiful and makes me feel so happy to be alive. I'm leaning against Callie, my right arm is loosely lying across her lower back and the hand rests on her hip. Her left arm is thrown over my shoulders and her hand is gently caressing up and down my bicep. She feels so warm against me in the cold air, but it's not raining and the leisurely walk we've been on has left us in a comfortable silence as we're both lost in thoughts. Thoughts of the new life we've forged together as well as the new life that is hopefully being made within Calliope's womb. A life I already love with all my being.

"I can't remember ever being poked and prodded so much." She groans and squeezes me with her left arm. "Making a baby is supposed to be fun," she pouts.

"Well, it could've been more fun if I could be the one poking and prodding you, instead of cold instruments, huh?" I pop my hips to the right, into hers and we both giggle as we stumble along the sidewalk. She pulls away from me, but her left hand slides down my right arm to my hand and she gently works our hands until our fingers are intertwined. Two months ago I would not have been able to keep my hand in hers, it would have been too painful. She turns to look down at me and I look up into her beautiful eyes and smile. She is breathtakingly gorgeous and miraculous and I thank every god I can think of everyday that she is mine.

I know we'll make mistakes, but our future is as bright as the sun in the setting sky. The thought makes me look up at the sun and smile. One day, we'll walk this same street with a little girl or boy between us, holding our hands and being so happy. I can't believe I almost lost this because of self-doubt and self-pity and an awful tragedy that no one should ever have to go through alone. I'm glad she forced me to see that I couldn't do it alone, that I needed her. And I realized that she needed me just as much. Together, somehow, we managed to fix one another.

"You were right all along, Calliope."

"Oh, I was?"

"Yeah, don't get used to hearing that though." I grin and she laughs softly.

"So what was I right about?"

"That I just need to have faith in you." She smiles at that and pulls me to her and presses her lips against mine as the sun sets behind us.