Finally uploading after a decently long wait time. Lots of things came up that prolonged my finishing this but it's done. And it's here! Hopefully it's good enough to make up for the wait. As always, reviews are appreciated and enjoy!
Arizona trudged into Mount Sinai hospital on Monday morning. Her limbs felt like dead weight and sweat beads were forming on her forehead and under her armpits. At eight o'clock in the morning, the temperature was already a boiling 98 degrees. It was safe to say that her morning was off to an unpleasant start. Ugh. Coffee. She needed coffee.
"One medium vanilla latte, please" Arizona told the barista her order. Her usual morning grin absent. Arizona reached into her purse, fishing for her wallet.
"A medium coffee, black, please. Could you also load it with cream? Thanks," An unmistakable voice, and order, spoke up, handing their debit card to the barista. Having found her wallet, Arizona glanced over her right shoulder. Her assumption was correct. She was silently grateful for something to make her morning a little better.
The barista slid Arizona's freshly made latte over to her side of the counter, and Arizona handed the younger woman her debit card with a small smile. "Thanks."
"Oh, hey," Callie greeted. She hadn't realized the woman standing next to her was Arizona. They hadn't seen each other since their family outing at the park Saturday afternoon. Although Callie liked to refer to it as their "first date" of their new start.
Last they spoke to each other was on Saturday evening. Arizona had called to ask Callie if Herman could crash at her place for the time being, while she dealt with the April situation.
"Hey! Did Herman get in safely?"
"Um, yes! No. I mean, yeah, she did. Actually something came up and I need you to ask you to do a favor for me, if that's okay."
"Sure, of course. As long as you're not going to ask me to help you bury a dead body or something."
Despite the dire situation at hand, Arizona couldn't help but crack a smile at Callie's joke.
"Yeah, well, that actually could be possible."
Dumb joke.
"Yeah, no. It's just- something came up and I was wondering if you'd be willing to let Nicole crash at your place tonight? Maybe for a few nights actually. I'm not really sure, to be honest."
"Um," Callie was taken aback. Not in a bad way, she just hadn't been expecting to be asked to offer the final nail in their marriage a place to stay for a few nights. "Yeah, of course. Is everything okay?"
Callie's concern was clearly evident in her tone, and though Arizona wanted to tell her what was going on, she knew she couldn't.
"Yeah. No. I don't know," she was stumbling all over her words. "April's here."
"What? Why? Is she okay?" There it was. That concern again.
"I really don't know. Look, I'll let you know when I know more."
Callie had been glad to do it, even though she honestly didn't think it could get any awkwarder than it already was. Callie had never been Herman's biggest fan. Granted, her reasons for which were illogical but still, there was history there. And Nicole Herman certainly wasn't the easiest person to warm up to.
"How's April?" The brunette figured this was the easiest conversation starter, but she was honestly genuinely curious as well. Her relationship with April had certainly never been as close as her ex's had, but she'd grown a fondness for the quirky red-head over the years. Besides that, Callie was also pretty sure she still had some pictures from their wedding day neither her or Arizona had seen yet.
"I'm-I'm sorry for just showing up unannounced like this. I just-," April's eyes fell shut, and she forced herself to take a breath. She was on the verge of tears once again. Her back was towards Arizona, whom was still by standing by the door, her mind working on processing the situation before her.
Once she felt more in control of her emotions, she turned around to face her dumbfounded friend. "I needed to get away for a little while. I-," April's throat began to close in on itself. She forced herself to swallow. "needed some time to think."
Arizona had dealt with a severely distraught April only a few times, but she knew exactly what her friend needed. Some sort of alcoholic drink, to rant and to just allow herself to break down.
"Hey, no, no. It's okay," Arizona loosely reassured her friend. Concern was etched into every crevice of her face. She gently grabbed her wrist and led her around to the other side of the couch to sit down. "What happened, April?"
Arizona watched the shaking woman slam her eyes shut, shaking her head from left to right and back again. Arizona rested her hand on the small of her back, not wanting to pressure her but wanting to make sure she knew she was still there.
"I didn't think-," April blew out a heavy breath. "I never thought he was capable of doing something like that," she spoke in a hushed whisper.
Arizona furrowed her brows. "Do what, April?"
"I never would've married him if I knew…" April continued to shake her head back and forth. A classic symptom of shock.
"Hey," Arizona tried to ease her back into reality. April had just made it through an extremely rough patch and Arizona wanted to make sure she didn't fall back into one. "April, look at me." Arizona's voice was gentle, but stern enough to be effective. April turned her head, timidly. "You can tell me what happened."
"I-," April's mouth bobbed. She was speechless. Her mind wasn't piecing together the words she wanted to say. "One second I was talking to Jackson and the next he was on the floor and then," tears stung the corners of her eyes when she thought about what was next, and she had to remind herself to breathe. "I heard her crying," the tears forced their way through her tear ducts, leaving streaks on her face as they cascaded down. "She was bleeding. She was hurt. He hurt her."
Arizona blew out a breath of air, her shoulders sagging as worry replaced her irritated expression. "I honestly have no idea," she admitted.
Dark eyebrows furrowed. Callie was curious yet concerned, but she wasn't sure how much information Arizona could give her, so she gave a gentle prod. "Do you know why she's here?"
Arizona's eyes were wide. Was she hearing April correctly?
"Matthew?" Arizona was wracked with disbelief. Surely Matthew wouldn't hurt Jackson. If he didn't have a go at him when he stood up at their first wedding, why would he do it now, after they're married? And surely there's no way in hell Matthew would hurt Harriet..
April nodded silently through her tears. She could tell Arizona couldn't believe it, and she didn't blame her. She couldn't believe it either.
Matthew had always been a good man, who loved her at times when she didn't deserve it, and he had always been adamant about his faith and his vow to never inflict violence on any other living soul, but yet, here they were. He let his jealously of her relationship with Jackson get in the way, even though she had already chosen him. He hurt her best friend. And he hurt the most precious and important thing in the world to her. She didn't give a damn if it wasn't on purpose. She didn't know how she could ever forgive that. She could never forgive that.
"How?" Arizona couldn't think of anything else to say. She was completely and utterly, speechless.
April swallowed, taking deep breaths as she geared herself to relive the events that took place just yesterday.
"Jackson wasn't on call yesterday. Matthew was. I thought it would be nice for us to spend some quality time with Harriet because it had been a while," April dared a glance at Arizona's face. Her expression was attentive and thoughtful. Arizona's willingness to be there for her 24/7 had always been comforting to the former trauma surgeon. "We went out for lunch and then we took Harriet to the park, and then we came back to my place. We were talking and hanging out like old times and then I guess Matthew came home and he saw us. Then it happened. Just like that. I-it doesn't even really feel real. How could he do that? Was it something I did? Did I do something to make him think that there was something between me and Jackson?"
"No." Arizona instantly shook her head. "No. This is not your fault, April. Do you hear me? This was not your fault."
April broke away from Arizona's intense gaze. "Yeah, you're probably right," she cracked a smile.
"Where's Harriet?"
"She's with Owen and Amelia. I asked them to watch her while I was gone. I didn't want Jackson to keep her at his place because of what happened, and he agreed. I just needed to get away as soon as possible, and you were the first person I thought of so, I booked the soonest flight to New York."
"Hey, it's okay. You're my friend. You can stay here as long as you need."
"Yeah," the blonde's reply was short and her gaze was fixated on the rim of her coffee cup that was now stained with her light pink lipstick. She desperately wanted to tell Callie what was going on, but she'd betrayed April's trust once before and she wouldn't dare make that mistake once again.
"And I'm guessing you can't tell me the reason why?" Callie's face and tone held a knowing expression.
Arizona shot the brunette just a flicker of a gaze. "Nope."
"I get it," Callie said. "Although, I am kind of doing you this huge favor of allowing your ex-mentor, new co-business partner to sleep in my guest room so maybe you could tell me something whenever Kepner says it's okay?"
Arizona's lips curled upwards into a small smile that she tried to hide. "Of course."
"And thank you, by the way, for doing that. It was just kind of unexpected, you know, and you didn't have to considering.." she trailed off. She was alluding to her fellowship that had ultimately ended their marriage, but she was sure Callie didn't need a verbal reminder of that. "everything."
"Don't worry about it."
And Callie meant it. Well, mostly. "She isn't exactly the easiest person to get along with but April needs you right now, so I'm glad to help out."
"Thank you," Arizona's Super Magic Smile made an appearance and Callie's heart just about melted right then and there. "You're amazing."
Yep. Callie Torres was a puddle of all the feels.
Walking through the Pediatric ICU, Callie was seriously dreading this follow up with Clara and her parents. In terms of the injuries sustained last Thursday, she would be fine, but in terms of her Osteosarcoma, things were getting worse.
Clara had a huge tumor, the size of a baseball right underneath her kneecap, and with the mets in her lungs, she would die before Callie could come up with another course of action to treat her tumor. She had removed this tumor once before, one of her first surgeries upon arriving to New York, but unfortunately, the tumor had grown back. Callie Torres hated nothing more than admitting defeat, but ultimately, the only option she had left, was amputation.
"Dr. Torres, hi!" Clara's jittery mother jumped out of the corner chair to greet her daughter's surgeon.
Callie gave her a solemn smile. Surgeon's guide 101: never let the parents know you have bad news. Watching the mother's hopeful expression fall, Callie knew she'd just failed that one.
"The nurse said you had some things you needed to discuss with us?"
Callie nodded and spared a glance at Clara, awake but looking as weak as she'd ever seen her. She could tell by her expression and the dullness in her hazel eyes that she already knew the news wasn't good. Her parents on the other hand, were still clinging onto the last string of hope.
"Mr. and Mrs. Davis," Callie began. "As I'm sure Dr. Matthews told you when she followed up with you after Clara's surgery on Thursday, we found mets that had metastasized to your daughter's lungs. We were unable to remove them as she was already too unstable. With the extent of her injuries from her accident and her already weakened condition, we are unsure as to when we will be able to go back in and remove them."
"But you will, right? You'll get them out?"
"Um, no. I won't be, but Dr. Matthew's will. Um," Callie paused, trying to figure out what words she should use to tell her patient's parents their daughter is dying and needs an amputation. "As we've discussed her condition is getting worse, and while I am still researching an alternate treatment for your daughter's tumor, I am afraid that by the time I do, she will be too weak to undergo the surgery."
Clara's parents held similar expressions. Both confused. Callie knew they were having difficulty digesting the information she'd just given them.
"So, what are you saying?"
Callie took a breath. "I'm officially recommending amputation."
"No." Clara's mother didn't miss a beat.
"Mrs. Davis…"
"No. I will not allow for you to cut off my daughter's leg!"
"No! No! No. An intramedullary nailing can save the leg!"
"Define save? Her leg will never be the same."
"Mrs. Davis, Clara's condition is only worsening and an amputation will better increase her chances of survival-"
"I said no. My daughter needs her leg! You know that she's a skater. She needs her leg."
"You know what you're life is going to be. You know if you're going to..take her to the park. Or if you're going to stand in an O.R. table again!"
"You will!"
"Or-I know-!"
"Yes, you will!"
"I know what my options are!
"Clara will be able to skate. Technology is improving every day, and we already have prosthetics that will allow for her to do all of the things she wants to," Callie tried to reason with the distraught mother. She knew the position she was in. She understood exactly how gut wrenching it was. But she also knew the other side of it. She knew that Clara would be okay.
Clara's mother was about to fire back, but her daughter decided then to speak up.
"Mom, it's okay. I knew this could be a possibility. I've accepted it."
Clara's mom looked at her daughter for a few seconds, digesting her words, but ultimately, this is what she said next. "Find another solution. Or I will take her to someone who will."
"Hey! I'm on my way. I just had to check on a patient at the hospital and then-,"
"I don't need excuses, Robbins. Just get over here."
Beep.
Arizona rolled her eyes and hung up her phone, shoving it back into her purse.
She was on her way to an abandoned building across the street from the empty space where they wanted to build their hospital. She and Nicole decided that would be the best place to have meetings regarding the construction, planning, hiring, etc. of the building. Arizona had gotten permission from the retailer before she left, so everything was set. She'd gotten a desk and some chairs to fill it as well.
"Look who finally decided to show up," was the greeting Arizona got when she entered the small building space. Herman was sitting in one of the chairs, facing the doorway, a seeing eye dog laying by her feet, underneath the table. It looked to be a black lab, maybe 3-4 years old.
"It's only 2 p.m."
"Oh, come on," Nicole waved her hand in dismissal. "You know I'm just messing with you."
Arizona raised her eyebrows. Mhm.
"Now, sit," the ex-fetal surgeon tapped the the hard wooded table. "We have a lot to discuss."
Back in Arizona's apartment, April was trying to figure out what the hell her next step was going to be. She wasn't ready to go back to Seattle. After what happened, she just needed at least a week away from there and Matthew. But then there was Harriet, whom she hated being away from. Jackson was with Maggie so he was fine, but they still needed to talk about what happened because Matthew's behavior was so completely unacceptable. If she was being completely honest after everything with the shooting, being fired, the plane crash, the storm, her first wedding, Samuel, Bagdad, the divorce, Harriet's birth, the fire, her crisis of faith, near-death experience, and now this? She didn't know if she could ever go back to Seattle. But what would that mean for Harriet? Her life was an actual catastrophe.
'Hope your meeting with Herman goes well. Miss you at the hospital already.'
The corners of Arizona's mouth pulled upwards into a smile, causing her dimples to pop at the strain in the muscles of her cheeks.
"Who is it?" The raspy voice of her partner entered her ears. "I can feel you smiling all the way over here."
"H-," Arizona stopped herself. Asking the question wasn't worth it. She wouldn't get a straightforward answer anyway. "No one."
Arizona locked her phone and placed it face down on the table before turning and scooting her chair closer to Nicole. "So I was thinking that we could place the emergenc-."
"Don't bullshit me, Robbins." Arizona released a huff of annoyance. "Tell me who it is."
"But it's not important," Arizona countered.
"It's Callie, isn't it?"
Arizona didn't reply.
A smirk grew on her former mentor's face. "I'm right, aren't I?"
"No. It's not," Arizona was quick to defend her phone antics. She wasn't one hundred percent sure of her feelings for Callie at the moment and she certainly wasn't ready to let other people know. "You know, i-it's Carina."
Herman quirked her eyebrow in disbelief. "Carina?"
"Yep," Arizona lied.
"You are so full of crap."
"What? No, I'm not!" Arizona's determination to cover up what was obviously her feelings for her ex-wife intrigued Nicole.
"Oh, you totally are." Arizona rolled her eyes. "But I get it! You know, there's history there."
Arizona let out a sigh. This is not what they came here to discuss. She reached forward and began to collect the papers and the blueprint she'd spread out across the desk. They were almost done here for the day anyway.
"But Callie seems pretty great. I mean, I don't know all that much about her, and what I do know, came from your mopey and pathetic mouth after your so I'm not sure how objective I can be here for you."
"Alright, I think we're done here for today," Arizona said as she stood up from the chair she'd been sitting in, the stack of papers she'd brought in held close to her chest.
"Oh, come on, Robbins! Don't be such a hard ass." The red-head patted the seat next to her. "Tell me about Callie."
Arizona rolled her eyes again, but this time a small smirk formed wore her lips. With a dramatized reluctance, the blonde sat down next to her mentor once again.
"We're just friends." Arizona observed Nicole's frown. "We're starting over. Taking it slow, you know?"
Nicole shook her head. "Not particularly, but continue."
Arizona bit back a scoff. "It's kind of amazing, but also really, really confusing. We're such different people now, but it's also the same feeling as when we first got together. I smile every time I get a text from her. My breath catches in my throat when she smiles at me. My stomach swarms with butterflies when she enters the room. My heart beats faster."
"You're much softer than I remember."
"Well, you only know the post-Callie me," Arizona paused, a realization coming over her. "She's much different."
In that moment, in a way she'd never thought before, Arizona Robbins realized who Calliope Torres was to her. Her Lexie.
For years and years, Arizona hadn't wanted to admit how alike she and Mark were. It was the major reason why she disliked him so much in the beginning. He wore all of her worst qualities out in the open. A player, hard headed, selfish at times, etc. But for the first time since he came into and went out of her life, she realized the biggest thing they had in common. They both had only one person who could tie them down. Callie was her Lexie.
"Robbins?"
Arizona was snapped out of her thoughts. "Hm?"
"I don't do nonverbal."
"Right, sorry. Um, back to what I was saying," Arizona blinked hard and gave a shake of her head to bring herself back to her previous thoughts.
"Being friends first is great, but it's also so, so hard, and the tension is ridiculously overwhelming. And I would love nothing more than to just pull her in and kiss her, but I can't do that!"
"Why can't you?" Classic Nicole Herman. So practical.
"Because we're building our friendship first an-."
"No, I mean, why can't you?"
Arizona drew her eyebrows together. "I'm not so sure I follow."
"How many times do I have to tell you? You're so thick, Robbins!" Nicole exclaimed. "You both are on the same page, correct?"
"Yes, but-"
"And you both want to be together, correct?"
"Yes, but-"
"No but's! You can date someone and still build a friendship, Robbins. That's what the term 'taking it slow' is for. You date, and you learn about the other person. You don't have to torture yourselves with all of this 'friend's first' bullcrap."
Arizona was taken aback. "I-," She wanted to fire back with another reason why that wouldn't work, but the truth was, she didn't have one. The truth was she had been afraid. After everything that happened between them, she was afraid about what would happen if they were to not work out again. She'd been using this "friend's first" rule as a way to prolong the possibility of getting hurt again, but that was no way to live. She and Callie had been apart for long enough and she didn't want to wait any longer. She wanted to be with her. She wanted to do it the right way and make it work. "Maybe you're right."
"Of course I am. Just think about it this way: My fellow ship broke you two up, and now my grant brought you two back together."
Arizona grinned. Nicole was right. Slightly presumptuous, but she had a point. It did kind of feel like a sign.
Only seconds later, it was decided. She was gonna tell Callie how she feels. Tonight.
She pulled out her phone, and went to her text messages. Tapping on Callie's contact, she began to type, "I need to talk to you."
And send.
Ding!
Mid seat buckle, Arizona's phone alerted her she'd just gotten a text message. Pulling her phone out of her purse, curious eyes read over the name Callie. Concern for her friend pushed her desire to talk to Callie into the back of her mind.
"I need to talk to you too."
Arizona smiled. She felt a flutter in her chest, hopeful that Callie would be on the same page with her feelings.
"Meet me up in radiology ASAP."
Arizona sighed, heavy disappointment replacing her hopeful fluttering.
"Hey," Arizona peered into the radiology room from her lingering position at the doorway.
The Orthopedic surgeon stood analyzing two x-ray scans she had pinned to the wall in front of her. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and she chewed on her bottom lip in concentration.
A tingling sensation erupted down Arizona's spine. The way Callie bit her lip when analyzing scans always got her feeling some time of way. She gave her head a quick shake to clear it of any dirty thoughts threatening to cloud her logical thinking, and swallowed the build up of saliva in her mouth.
"You said you needed to talk to me?"
"Oh!" A look of recognition crossed Callie's features, and she spun her body one hundred and eighty degrees to the left. "Hi. Yes. Um, you said you needed to talk to me about something too?"
"Uh, yeah," Arizona took a step inside the radiology suite. She kept her eyes glued to the floor to avoid eye contact. "But it can wait."
Coming to a standstill at the brunette's side, Arizona nodded towards the scans. "Who's the patient?"
Arizona heard what sounded like a defeated sigh emit from Callie's throat, and she shot a glance in her direction.
"Clara Davis," Callie finished with another sigh, refusing to take her eyes off the scans. "I was looking over her first scans and her most recent ones. Hoping to find something but," her sentence trailed of. She knew she didn't need to explain it to Arizona. She already knew.
Callie turned the switch off on the illuminated reading panel. Arizona's eyes followed Callie's movement, watching as her tired body fell into one of the chairs placed around the table that held multiple computers for reading scans. She was unsure of what to say next. This patient was clearly having an adverse affect on Callie and she had no idea why. Leaving Arizona with no clue as to what kind of comfort the brunette needed.
"We removed her tumor the first time around when I first moved here," Arizona settled for just being a thoughtful ear and took a seat in the chair next to Callie. "About six months later, it grew back. I've been working on an experimental bone grafting procedure that would guarantee clean margins and no recurrence but with the occurrence of the mets in her lungs, there's no way I could have it finished before.." Arizona leaned forward the slightest bit and gently placed her hand on Callie's thigh before her mind could even comprehend the action. She surprised even herself when she didn't pull it away.
Callie felt a pressure on her left thigh, and her eyes were immediately drawn to the hand that rested there. Instantly, her heart started to beat faster. She could feel it pounding in her ears. When she was able to find her resolve and pull her gaze away from Arizona's hand, still resting, unmoved, on her thigh, her brown eyes looked up to find empathetic blues.
For a second, it felt like something out of a movie. The building tension paired with a coincidental gentle that found them both side by side, lips only inches apart. Then Arizona coughed. And the moment was over.
"So, um, what is it about Clara?" The blonde's attempt to patch up the awkward silence was met with a questioning look. "You're clearly really invested in her case, so I'm just curious. Why is she so special to you?"
Callie inhaled a giant breath of air. Here it goes.
"She's bisexual," a look of understanding washed over the blonde's features. "So I guess I just kind of feel connected to her in that way. I don't know. She's a child," A brash laugh escaped her plump lips, and she shook her head. "That probably doesn't make any sense. Forget it."
Arizona shook her head. "No. That makes perfect sense."
Arizona's fingertips brushed against Callie's arm, causing the brunette to forget how to breathe once again.
"Also, without this bone graft, she needs an amputation, and her mother is hellbent on not letting that happen so," Callie took a pause, hesitant to continue. "I guess she kind of reminds me of you, too."
Arizona nodded. "That makes sense too."
"Hey! Sorry I'm late. I had to stop by the hospital to help Callie with something and then I got held up with a trauma that came into the ER," Arizona began to explain the second she opened the door to her apartment. "But I did stop at the store and get some wine so we can get as drunk as we want and-," Arizona placed the two brown paper bags, which contained one red and one white bottle of wine, on her kitchen countertop. "Well, you can. I'm on call tomorrow, so I cannot. But I can still listen. That sound good?"
No response.
Arizona finished pulling the bottle of red out of it's brown bag, and placed it back down on the counter. Her eyebrows knit together in confusion. "April?"
Her eyes scanned the kitchen and living room as she looked around for her friend. Arizona walked out from behind the kitchen countertop and into the living room. Red hair came into view as she turned the corner. April sat on the beige colored couch, a blank expression wearing her pale face. "April?"
April didn't show any acknowledgement of Arizona's presence.
"How did you guys do it?" The petite woman asked a moment later. Her gaze remained locked on the space ahead of her.
"Do what?" Arizona questioned, as she took a seat next to her friend. She was growing concerned. April's facial expression still remained unchanged, almost as if she were dissociating.
"The whole co-parenting thing while you both were on the opposite sides of the country."
Arizona's eyes widened and her mouth fell just a bit agape. April wasn't really considering moving to New York, was she?
April finally turned her head to face Arizona. "How did you do it?"
"Well, we didn't really. I ended up moving here, didn't I?" Arizona attempted a light-hearted joke, which received no appreciate response. "We just came up with a plan that put Sofia's well being first. If Sofia wanted to visit, we came up with the soonest time available she could do that. W-Why are you asking?"
April averted her eyes. "I can't go back there, Arizona. I can't."
"April.." Arizona began, her tone empathetic.
"No!" The red-head jumped to her feet. Blue eyes followed her movement. "Don't tell me this is crazy. I know it sounds crazy, but my life, in Seattle, it isn't even a life! It's a cycle of tragedies! I was held at gun point. Two years later, I was fired. One year later, Jackson ran into a burning bus! Then, Samuel died and I ran off to Jordan. And then Jackson divorced me for seeking what I needed to survive! I gave birth to my daughter on Meredith's freaking kitchen table! And then, I lost God and spiraled into the darkest state of mind I've ever been in. And then I almost freaking died! And this-this is where it gets really interesting. I actually quit being a surgeon. Like what?! Can you believe that? I failed my boards twice. I fought so damn hard to be where I was just two months ago and then I just quit," The words spewed from April's mouth on a roll, laughing erupting once she reached the end as if it was the funniest thing she had ever heard. Arizona didn't crack a smile, though. Because it wasn't funny. None of it was. "And if that's not enough, I even got married to man I don't want to be with just because Jackson had Maggie and I didn't want to be alone!"
Now that was news to Arizona.
Tears broke free and rolled down April's cheeks one by one. Arizona pulled her trembling friend back down onto the couch and into a hug, lending her the much need shoulder to cry on.
April was right. She couldn't go back there.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Callie groaned as she walked through her kitchen to the front door. She glanced at the clock on the stove. 10 p.m.. Ugh, she'd only been asleep for an hour.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"I'm coming!"
Jeez.
Callie turned the silver knob, and pulled open the door. Arizona nearly fell into her apartment, still dressed in the same clothes she'd worn this morning.
"What are you doing here?" Callie asked through a sleepy haze.
"I couldn't sleep."
Callie only stared at her through squinted eyes. She was half asleep. It took her at least a half hour after being woken up to be wide awake.
"And I was thinking. About your patient, and I think I have an idea."
Suddenly, the brunette felt more alert. "What do you mean?"
"When Grey-Sloan was doing the surgical innovation contest, Amelia came up with an experimental treatment to remove inoperable brain tumors using MRI guided ultrasound ablation. She wasn't able to figure out how to use it to remove the Glioma, but I was thinking we could try it on Clara's tumor."