Disclaimer: This is AU. I do not own any of the characters from Grey's Anatomy. I just manipulate them to my will. Also, any line or phrase or setting that seems remotely familiar from any other show, movie or book, also not mine. I borrow…

AN: Sorry! Sorry! I apologize for the long wait. Hopefully this chapter will make up for it. Enjoy!

Chapter 28

"Whose house?!"

"Our house!"

"Whose house?!"

"OUR HOUSE!"

"USA on three. One, two, three." Callie yells over the roar of the stadium.

"USA!" Her team shouts, the next second a cooler of Gatorade is getting dumped over Coach Webber's head. If it isn't obvious to anyone looking on, USA just dominated the British in their last semi-final game and clenched a spot in the gold medal round.

A newscaster is able to catch the excited Callie Torres as she and her team file off the field. "Callie, tell us what your team is feeling right now."

"We're thrilled. We… we're just riding high right now. I mean, we knew we would make it into the finals, you can't not think that going in to these sort of competitions but to finally make it is like… like a weight has been lifted." Callie replies, the surge of adrenaline pushing away her usual stage fright.

"And any thoughts about going into the Gold Medal round down two games to the Japanese?" The female reporter asks.

"You know… it wasn't two losses. It was one loss and one bad call but… you know, we're just going to go in with our game faces on and take care of business. You know? Leave no doubt and just play our game without fear." Torres replies, smiling and waving to the fans and her teammates passing by her. "We're counting on Japan bringing their A game, and we're going to bring ours."

"How is USA coping with the injury of Erica Hahn? She's been one of the top performers in the batter's box during these Games as well as a strong third base man. Does the team feel that loss?"

"Hahn is an ace player and her injury has affected us but, you know, we're all on this team because we are the best. Naomi Campbell is a solid third, and there's a whole list of second strings that can handle the position. Addison Montgomery, Lexie Grey, Arizona Robbins… and that's just to name a few." The Latina replies.

The interviewer catches an opening and goes with it. "Speaking of Arizona Robbins, is it true that the two of you are stuck in a lover's quarrel? If so, how has it impacted your chemistry on the field? What do your coaches and team mates think about the relationship?"

This question quickly sobers Callie up and a knot forms in her stomach. "You know… It's just… Arizona is my teammate and my friend. And… even if we were something else besides that, it's no one's business besides ours. We're both professional enough to not let our off-field relationship hamper our on-field relationship and… and that's all our team needs to worry about. Arizona and I, you know, we take care of business. She gets up there on the mound and does what she needs to do, and the same goes for me behind the plate. Our team and our performance on the field is always our priority. …Anything else is… our own business."

This vague response is not what the interviewer was hoping for but when she tries to rope the Latina back into the discussion, Callie has already moved on to continue her celebration with her team.

"Ow, damn it Robbins!" Erica whines, pulling her bum ankle away from the doctor after Arizona twisted it a bit too far.

"Man up, Hahn." Arizona growls, taking hold of the swollen joint and pulling back in front of her.

It's the night of USA's victory over Great Britain and the rest of their team is out celebrating somewhere but Arizona and Erica are holed up in Robbins room as the surgeon attempts to get a better look at her teammate's injury. Hahn had to swallow a very large pill to get over her dislike of her fellow blonde, but if there is any chance of Arizona helping her so that she can compete in the Gold Medal round, Erica will do whatever she has to. Even if that means sucking up to the one person on the team she dislikes the most.

Icy blue eyes scan her teammates room while deft fingers examine her ankle. "So… you two still in that honeymoon phase?" Erica sneers.

A sarcastic chuckle falls from pink lips and Arizona replies "I don't think we've ever been in that phase. It went from flirting to hiding, back to flirting, a couple of kisses, then neither of us being able to stand the other. …Now we're just, I don't know. At least we're talking again." Arizona toys at the third base man's ankle, and after one last hiss of pain from Erica, Arizona removes her gloves with a snap. "Without an MRI I'm just guessing, but it feels like just a sprain. I don't really have any miracle advice, just what Karev and Avery told you. Ice and elevate. Stay off it. That's about all you can do."

Erica slowly extricates her foot from Arizona's lap and places it back on the ground. "Will I be able to play?" She tries not to sound like she's pleading or begging, but Hahn has been working towards this for years. Now it's so close and she hates that she'll miss it just because of a stupid sprained ankle.

"I don't know." Arizona answers quietly. "Probably not…" She watches as her teammate's shoulders slump and Robbins quickly looks for a way to give Erica hope again. "But you never know. Ice it, elevate it, baby it all night and all day tomorrow. …Maybe by the time we play Japan in two days you'll be able to put weight on it."

"Right." Erica sneers, struggling to get up on her feet and getting steadied on her crutches. "I'll be holding my breath." She adds, then starts to limp out of the bedroom.

Just as she's about to cross the threshold a smiling and slightly intoxicated Callie Torres appears. "Erica!" The Latina exclaims, clapping her teammate soundly on her shoulder. "What are you doing here?" Dark, unfocused eyes flick between the ex-captain and her pitcher still sitting on her bed. An image forms in her mind and Callie starts to giggle. "Ohhhh… I get it." She tries to wink theatrically but only manages to blink both eyes at the same time.

"Looks like Yang's drinks were a little on the strong side." Erica muses, then continues to limp out of the couples bedroom while muttering something along the lines of 'sticking with men' and 'women are too messy'.

Once their apartment door closes behind the intruder, Callie turns back to see Arizona watching her in amusement. The Latina tries to sexily saunter towards the blonde but gets tripped up by a stray flip flop which sends her sailing to the ground.

"Oh god!" Arizona gasps, rushing to the aid of the downed player. But as she kneels next to her catcher brown eyes turn up to look into blue and Callie starts to laugh her ass off. "Wow, you are so drunk." The blonde states while laughing along with the intoxicated woman rolling around on the floor.

"I tripped!" Callie announces like it's the funniest thing ever. "I tripped over a flip flop." She holds the offending item up for Arizona to see, which only makes the Latina laugh even harder.

"Yeah, you sure did." Arizona agrees with the woman.

Their gazes lock for a second and all laughter fades from the room, a seriousness now filling the air. "Why weren't you at the party?" Callie asks softly, not even attempting to get up from her position on the floor.

"Not really my style." Arizona answers off handedly, then snakes an arm around the Latina's back and tries to stand, but Callie isn't helping her at all.

"I missed you there. …That's why I left." Torres states. "I came to find you."

"Well, you found me." Robbins replies with a smile. "Now… wanna get off the floor?"

"No." Callie breathes out, then reaches up through draping blonde hair to grasp the base of Arizona's neck and pulls her down for a kiss.

It's soft and tender, and Arizona can still taste the alcohol on Callie's tongue. Just this morning did they make up again after Arizona said she wanted to catch Callie, if the Latina still wanted her to catch her. They didn't talk much after the kiss, what with a very important game nipping at their heels, but throughout the day they kept stealing glances and smiles. Arizona isn't dense, she knows that this is far from being happily ever after and that there is still a great deal she needs to do and learn to make it up to Callie, but she's ready to start. …Right after this kiss.

When tanned hands become bolder and urge the blonde closer, Arizona supporting her weight over the Latina but her arms starting to shake, she whispers "You're drunk."

"No." Callie replies, her lips leaving a slick trail down a fair neck. "I'm not. I'm just clumsy."

She knows she shouldn't, that it's too soon and that they need to talk first, but Arizona can't help but moan when warm hands slip underneath her shirt and fingernails rake down her back. Their mouths swallow up the others whimpers and groans, their tongues starting an intricate dance only they know the rhythm to. But when the apartment door opens, Arizona pulls away in a flash, jumping to her feet and wiping her lips from the moisture collected there.

"Arizona? You in here?" A high pitched voice calls from the living room.

Arizona sends the Latina a tight smile before slipping through the bedroom door and shutting it behind her. "Yeah, what's going-" But her question is no longer necessary because she can see what's going on. There, standing in her living room, is Lexie Grey with a bloodied tissue held against her nose while April Kepner stands at arm's length.

"What happened?" Arizona asks as she immediately slips back into doctor mode.

"Yang's got a bony elbow." Lexie replies, her words slurring a little more than Robbins would have liked.

"They were dancing and Cristina just…" April mimics some sort of elbow shot, then points to her nose. "And Lexie just exploded. I heard a pop too, definitely a pop."

Arizona takes her friends head in her hands and turns the younger woman's face towards the light. "Does it hurt?" She asks.

"I don't feel a thing." Lexie answers with a huge smile, some mix of tequila and rum rolling off her breath that makes Arizona gag.

"Shocking." Robbins murmurs, then lightly presses around the area of the injured nose. Despite Lexie's urgings, the woman winces from pain after a few short seconds. "Well, it's broken." Arizona surmises after her quick examination. "I can pop it back in place but it's going to hurt."

"Just do it." Grey groans, the ache of her injury slowly overcoming the numbness from the alcohol coursing through her veins.

"Ok. Deep breath." Arizona says, taking a firm hold of the woman's chin in one hand while using her thumb and forefinger to grip the nose. "On three, ok? One… Tw-" With a quick flick of her fingers the bones move back into place.

"AH!" Lexie yelps, eyes instantly watering. "You said on three!" She cries, her hand coming up to protect her nose from any other injury.

"Hurts less if you don't expect it." Arizona offers with a smile then grabs hold of woman's face again to examine her work. "Put some ice on it. Twenty minutes every hour or you'll have a very nasty bruise. And no more alcohol."

Once April has escorted a still buzzed, bleeding, and crying Lexie Grey back out of the apartment Arizona shuts the door behind them and locks it. The blonde shuffles back to her bedroom and finds that Callie has peeled herself off the floor and has collapsed in the nearest bed. …Which just so happens to be Arizona's.

It's not too late in the evening, but USA couldn't wait to start partying which is why Callie is nearly knocked out at just after 9 o'clock. They have tomorrow off to prepare for the gold medal match the following day, so no one is really worried about being hung over on game day.

Sitting on the edge of her bed, Arizona brushes back raven hair from Callie's face, uncovering rich chocolate eyes below. "How you feeling?"

"Fine." Callie sighs, but Arizona doesn't believe her.

The pitcher slips off her shoes and lies down next to the Latina, both on their sides and facing each other but not really touching.

"Really?" The blonde whispers, blue eyes staring right into Torres's heart and soul.

Callie chews on her lip and thinks back through the last few days. The hurt and pain coming from the picture, the way it felt when Arizona walked away from her, what her father said to her, and watching him walk out of her life. It all comes back to her in one big, huge, ground shaking sucker punch and it leaves her breathless.

A tear springs from her eye and all Callie can do is reply with a breathless, "No." More tears follow the first, blazing a trail down caramel skin and pooling on the fresh pillow underneath her. She doesn't fight it when Arizona pulls her closer to the blonde, and when she nestles into the crook of the blonde's neck, it feels like Callie is coming home.

The slamming of a door is what pushes Callie Torres out of her deep sleep, both she and Arizona jumping at the sound. It's quickly followed by the sound of their roommates arguing, Addison harassing Teddy about something before the apartment door quickly opens again, slamming shut just a second later. And within five seconds silence fills the apartment again.

Confused if all this actually happened of if she just hallucinated it, Callie cracks open her brown eyes only to shrink away when the bright morning sun burns her corneas. The Latina burrows back into her pillow, hiding her sensitive eyes from the cruel light while at the same time trying to ignore the pounding in her head.

An arm wraps around Callie tighter, her pillow actually being Arizona's shoulder, and the blonde just chuckles.

"What?" Callie groans, her voice sounding like nails on a chalkboard and her tongue feeling like sandpaper.

"Never pegged you for a drooler." Arizona replies with a giggle.

"I don't drool." Torres defends herself, pulling away from the warmth of her pitchers body to find a wet spot spreading down the blonde's chest, making Arizona laugh even more. "Shut up." The captain groans, burying her head back into her cocoon while moaning "My head hurts."

"Probably your concussion from tripping over my flip flop last night." The blonde jokes then wiggles her way out from under the Latina. Once free Arizona sits on the edge of the mattress and stretches her tired muscles, silently chastising herself for sleeping two to a twin yet again. Though… when it's Calliope Torres you're sharing a bed with, the closer the better.

When Arizona twists her head, a series of loud pops erupting in the air as the pitcher's neck cracks, Callie groans in disgust. "God, I hate it when you do that." With the warmth of the blonde missing, Torres pulls the unused sheets up over her still clothed body while Arizona plods out to the tiny kitchenette and grabs a bottle of Gatorade along with a couple aspirin.

Back in the bedroom, she retakes her seat on the edge of the bed and cracks open the beverage. "Alright Boss, I got the magic hangover cure for ya."

Callie sits up, her hair all a mess and still dressed in her clothes from last night, and groans. "Blue? Didn't we have any orange or red?" Blue eyes just stare at her and the Latina weakly takes the drink, throwing back the pills and swallowing them down. "They teach you this cure in med school?" She asks after sucking down about half of the blue liquid.

A chuckle falls from the blonde's lips and Arizona replies "In med school? No. But going to med school for four years, you learn some tricks. Gatorade and aspirin is second only to a banana bag. But… I'm kind of running low on supplies here."

"Ahh." Torres sighs, sipping on her drink periodically as an awkward silence falls between them. The Latina finds it strange that it's always one of two ways. Either they are on fire and can barely pull away from one another, or they are in complete and utter awkwardness. It's like there's no middle ground for them, at least not yet.

Clearing her throat and keeping her eyes trained on the blanket beneath her, Arizona asks "Webber got anything planned for us today?"

"Umm, just a light practice later on. Nothing heavy, just to keep us loose and all." Callie answers softly. "Why?"

"No reason, just wondered." The blonde replies. A growl of a hungry stomach pulls both sets of eyes to the pitchers midsection, and a giggle slips from Arizona's lips. "Guess I'm hungry."

Downing the last of her hangover cure, Callie stands and sheds the top from yesterday to reveal a very thin tank top, and she doesn't miss the way blue eyes widen at the sight. "Give me ten minutes to freshen up and wash the tequila from my pores and then we can go get some breakfast."

Arizona smiles and rests back against the wall, her dimples popping at the thought of spending even more time with this mysterious and very beautiful woman. "Awesome."

Within 25 minutes both Callie and Arizona have joined some of the other players from the team at their usual table in the chow hall. The Olympic schedule being what it is, which is hectic and jam packed, there is always a crowd circulating through the lines and around the tables. And because today is an off day for the US Softball team, some have opted for sleeping in rather than pushing through the crowds of people to get to mediocre cafeteria food.

Grabbing one of the two seats side by side, Callie scans the faces of her teammates, taking a mental roll call, but stops when she sees Lexie Grey. "Woah! What the hell happened to you?" She asks, the band aid taped over the player's nose doing little to hide the dark bruise surrounding it.

"Tequila is what happened to me." Lexie groans, the pressure and movement of talking making the ache in her face increase tenfold. Turning her sad eyes to the only doctor she knows, she pleads "Can you give me something for the pain? Please, I'm dying here."

Arizona smiles her soft, reassuring smile that has been proven to work on the sickest and most hurting of pediatric patients. "Have you taken any aspirin for it yet?"

"Yes! Like four an hour ago." Lexie cries. "But it's not helping."

"Try some ice, and then another couple of aspirin in a few hours." Arizona tells her. "But I can't prescribe you anything else, not if you want to be able to compete and pass the drug tests. Besides, I don't know if my scripts would actually be filled here since I'm not licensed to practice in England."

"Damn it." The younger Grey groans.

"Why don't you go see Mark? I'm sure he'd kiss it and make it feel all better." Charlotte King quips, resulting in a quick middle finger from Lexie before she stands and leaves the table. "Baby." The southern blonde murmurs once her teammate is gone. "I don't know why she gets all defensive. It's out in the open now! Hell, if I was banging Sloan I'd shout it from the roof top."

"Maybe it's because she didn't want it out in the open." Teddy drawls, her glare turning towards her friend across from her. "Maybe some people just like to keep their private lives private. What do you think, Arizona?"

Blue eyes roll in their socket and Arizona has to physically bite her tongue to keep from snapping back at her friend. Teddy and Addison still haven't let up and even though it kind of worked out for Robbins, she did get to room with Callie which led to them… whatever they are right now, she still doesn't like the fact that two of her closest friends on the team hate her guts right now.

Callie doesn't miss this interchange and asks "Did I miss something?"

"No." Arizona quickly replies but Addison immediately talks over her.

"She just called Teddy and I whores." The redhead states pointedly.

"I did not!" The blonde sneers.

"Really? So… when you said that Teddy was opening her legs for Hunt even though he didn't care for her… what were you trying to infer." Montgomery rebuttals.

"Hey!" Teddy yelps, her cheeks blushing from all the extra eyes and ears on them right now.

"I was pissed off, alright!" Arizona shouts, drawing the attention of the few tables surrounding them, as well as the handful of their teammates eating right next to them. "I get mean when I'm pissed off, and I'm sorry for taking it out on you and Addison, ok? Is that what you want to hear from me? Fine. I'm sorry."

Teddy and Addison catch each other's eyes and share a look like they are having a silent conversation before both turn their attention back to the blonde.

"It's a start." Teddy states flatly, then stands and clears her tray, the redhead right behind her.

Arizona slinks down in her chair and massages at her temples, silently cursing herself and her mouth. Catching the gaze of deep brown eyes, she groans "It's going to be a looonnnngggg freaking day."

"Alright ladies, that's enough for the day! Circle up!" Webber calls, all of his players jogging slowly towards him after the light practice they just had. It wasn't anything too stressful but just enough to keep them sharp and loosened up. Tomorrow is the big day and the big man wouldn't admit it to anymore, but he has the biggest case of nerves in his life.

"How you all feeling?" Richard asks when his girls have fallen into a circle around him, his three fellow coaches standing behind him.

The man gets a round of hoots and hollers, everyone ready to end this long road tomorrow.

"Great. Great." He replies with a smile, then pulls his hands behind his back and takes on a pose of a leader. "Now, tomorrow is a big day. I shouldn't have to tell you that. But I will. …Tomorrow is the day you ladies have been dreaming about for years. Some since college, or high school. …Some even longer." Heads nod in agreement with their coach as each player recalls her trip to this very spot right now. "And there's a lot of talk out there. Some are saying that we don't have it in us. That… we'll trip up at the finish line. But that's not going to happen, you know how I know?" Silence greets his ears, his team fully wrapped up in the man's speech.

"Because you ladies play with your hearts. You play with passion. A passion far greater than I've ever seen before. …Yes, we may be going into this game two games down to Japan, but that only adds fuel to the fire. When I look around this group gathered here… I see champions." A chill hits each and every woman, goose bumps arising from flesh that moments ago were hot and sweaty. "So, enjoy your night. Eat, sleep. Do whatever it is you do to prepare yourselves. Because tomorrow? Ahh, tomorrow you become champions."

The empty air is quickly filled with hoots and hollers, all the players agreeing with what their head coach has said. Callie calls them all into a circle and with as much enthusiasm as they can muster, they send off their practice with a loud "USA".

After the usual hustle and bustle of the team getting all their equipment locked away and achy joints iced, Arizona and Callie find themselves at the back of the herd again. The Latina's iced knees prevent her from walking too fast and the blonde isn't in any hurry to get anywhere anyways. Normally they would have an interview to get to right now, at least Callie if not Arizona as well, but Webber insisted that both of the girls skip this one. Torres isn't sure if that was a gift or some sort of punishment, and as she thinks back through the multiple on air interviews she's done, she can't think of an occasion that made her or the team look bad. …Besides the whole picture business that is.

Almost as if Robbins can sense that her catcher is thinking too hard, Arizona cheerfully asks, "What you got planned for the rest of the night?"

"Umm… nothing, really. I should really look over the game footage from our last two games with Japan." Torres replies, already disliking her plan but she doesn't want to assume anything that would have to do with her roommate. "You?"

"I got nothing." Arizona answers, balling her hands into the pocket of her hoodie to keep herself from reaching over and grabbing Callie's. She wants to so bad but… after all she's done to the woman, Arizona doesn't feel like she has that right. Not yet.

"Maybe… I don't know, grovel to Addison and Teddy. See if I can't smooth everything over before tomorrow." The blonde adds after they walk for another hundred feet or so. "I'd rather not step out on that field tomorrow with half the infield staring daggers at my back."

Callie smiles and edges closer to her pitcher until they are side by side, then slips an arm through Arizona's and says "How about after your groveling we go and grab a late lunch somewhere in downtown London."

"You and me, we?" Arizona asks with a smile.

"Yep." Callie answers, her own mega-watt grin enveloping her face as her dark eyes catch those dimples on display. "You game?"

Robbins is sure her face is about to split wide open from how hard she is smiling, and she has to laugh at herself because of how nervous and fluttery this woman makes her feel. Arizona isn't used to being on her toes like this, no one has ever made her feel like this. Like she is some sort of school girl pining over the quarterback, or the head cheerleader in Arizona's case. But Callie does.

So with a wink, Arizona answers "Definitely game."

"So what you feel like?" Arizona asks as she and Callie make their way from Olympic Village and move deeper and deeper into the heart of London. It's early afternoon and after a quick shower and change, the two are looking forward to a couple hours of unwinding before resetting in preparation for tomorrow.

"Nothing too heavy. I'm squatting all day tomorrow." Torres replies, the ache in her knees a constant reminder that Erica Hahn is no longer splitting the catching duties, meaning that Callie is behind the plate for every out, of every single inning, in every single game.

"I'm sure we'd work it all off before then." Arizona says nonchalantly, making the Latina look over at her and raise a questioning eyebrow in a 'really?' gesture. Blue eyes suddenly spark with horror and the blonde starts to babble. "No! I-I… No, that came out wrong. I didn't mean-"

A deep chuckle rattles from deep within the captains chest and Callie smiles at the sight of Arizona blushing rather badly so she decides to spare the blonde. Stepping in front of the shorter woman, Callie fists the material of her sweatshirt and purrs "I'm sure we would, too." Plump lips lean in and caress pink, her tongue sneaking out and teasing for permission to enter Arizona's mouth.

When Arizona tries to deepen the kiss Callie pulls away, wanting to leave the woman wanting more, and says "You're cute when you get flustered."

After another half hour of walking around and bickering about where to eat, Callie and Arizona end up at another little café that looks right out onto a small and not too populated strip of London road. Torres keeps having the urge to look over her shoulder in search of someone hidden behind a car or street lamp, a camera at the ready. After the last blind side, she doesn't want to be surprised again. But now… it's out. The whole world knows that she and Arizona were touring London, tasting local delicacies… and other things. Still, once bitten, twice shy.

"So…" Callie sighs once their meals have been ordered and now all there is to do is wait.

"So…" The blonde parrots, her fingers working at destroying the paper napkin in her lap from her nerves. She knows that they have yet to really 'talk', and she can feel it coming. And she doesn't know what she's going to say.

Their gazes find each others and a beat of silence passes before Callie lets out a loud bark of laughter and the ridiculousness of their situation. "This is so screwed up." The Latina groans, rubbing at the faint headache she's had since waking up this morning. "God, when did this get so difficult?"

Arizona smiles weakly and drops her eyes to the table. "I don't know… Probably right around the time I pinned on the number 89 to my shirt and tried out."

"Yeah, I'd have to agree with you." The captain says, making blue eyes snap back up in shock. But when Arizona sees the smile on Callie's face she knows her catcher was only playing.

"You're mean." The surgeon grumbles, feigning hurt which only makes Callie smile wider.

"If we were on the playground I'd be pulling your pigtails right about now." Torres states, an image of a young Arizona with long, blonde hair and dimples running around on a playground. She doesn't know why she thought of it, and it quite frankly startles her, so she takes a sip of her drink to try and wash it away.

"Well, I grew up with the name Arizona, I know how to fight dirty." The blonde replies playfully. "Took down more than my fair share of snot covered and pig tail pulling boys in my day."

"I don't doubt it." Callie states softly. "So when did Battleship start bailing on things?"

In an instant the mood shifts, blue eyes darkening in sadness. She knew it was coming, but that doesn't mean she was prepared.

Brushing a lock of blonde hair out of her face, Arizona takes a deep breath and says "I… I don't know. I know it's not right to blame all of this on my brother, it's not his fault. But… I just stopped trying to fight it all. It was easier to just leave than… than to face it, you know?"

"And with me? What… what makes you run?" Callie asks, knowing that there are probably a dozen ways to ask this question more gently, but right now she just wants answers. She's had enough of waiting around and letting Arizona come around when she's ready.

"Everything." The blonde answers in a whisper. "You scare me, Calliope. The way you make me feel when you're around… The way you make me feel when you're not around… I wasn't prepared for it. I wasn't ready for it." Silence falls between them, their eyes locked and Arizona slowly moves her hand across the table to rest on top of a caramel hand. "But I'm fighting again. For you. I'm fighting for you. You made me want to fight."

Both are thankful that the heaviness is broken by the arrival of their food, and they let the issue rest until another time, happy to dig into their delicious meal in front of them. No one is in a rush, the two having all afternoon to just hang out, and Arizona uses this time to get to know the Latina better. She realized while talking to Erica the other day that all of their chats have centered around Arizona, or softball. Robbins knows nearly nothing about Callie, her life, what she does, where she grew up. …Nothing. And that's an injustice she's happy to right.

Minutes fly by as Torres regales her pitcher is stories of her past, recounting the first time she took a ball to the face which left her with a shiner for two weeks, what her college experience was like and even what her hopes are for the future.

"Yeah, Daddy's not too happy with it." Callie sighs, having just laid out her imagined restaurant for the woman sitting across from her. "He wants me to take over for him, but… I just don't want to. That was one of the things I loved about George though. He wanted me to be happy."

A flash of jealousy makes Arizona say "While he cheated on you." Before she can stop herself, it's out there and now blue eyes go wide in shock.

But Callie doesn't snap back, just smiles and replies "Touché."

"Did you love him, though? George?" The blonde asks, wanting to know the lows of Callie's past just as much as the highs.

"I… I loved the idea of him, I think. He was sweet and cute and… goofy. He wasn't like all the other guys I dated or was set up with." Torres answers honestly. "But it wouldn't have lasted even if he didn't lie to my face and screw his best friend. We just weren't good together. …He liked my cooking though." She adds, ticking one hash mark to the plus column of that failed relationship.

"I've only had it a couple times, but I like it too." Arizona replies, trying to get this conversation back on the upbeat side of things. "It's almost like you can taste the passion in it."

"It makes my heart sing." Callie sighs, reclining back in her chair a bit and bringing her drink up to her lips, taking sip and turning her gaze out to London passing by them.

"It's physiologically impossible for a heart to sing." The blonde states matter of factly, earning her a feigned look of annoyance from the Latina that makes her giggle.

"And what about you, Dr. Robbins." Callie turns the conversation on the pitcher. "What are your dreams? Are you prepared to live out your life as a softball player or will the sick tiny humans ever get their doctor back?"

Arizona knows Torres is just trying to mess with her, but the topic still weighs heavily on her heart. "Well, I failed my boards so… who knows."

Brown eyes study the woman across from her, Callie's mind going back through all the times she's seen Arizona study and bury herself in her textbooks. "I have a feeling that that's not the whole truth." Callie whispers just loud enough for Arizona to hear her. "I'd put good money on betting that you know every one of those textbooks and notebooks you lug around with you backwards and forwards. That you could recite those pages like you were reading from them." Blue eyes dip from brown and Arizona shifts uncomfortably in her seat. "I'm right, aren't I? You didn't fail your boards, did you?"

"I did." Arizona answers shortly. "Trust me, I've read my score about a thousand times since I got it. It's hard to confuse a zero with anything else."

"A zero?" Callie muses. "How often do zero's get given out to John Hopkins interns and residents?"

"At least once, apparently." The blonde replies, something inside of her breaking. "And to every other doctor who just sits across the street and stares at the building the test is being given in." When blue eyes move back up and meet brown again, she can tell Callie is waiting to let her finish. "I just… I couldn't go in there. My brother had just died. I had just put my best friend in the ground. …I couldn't see the point in sitting in front of three, over the hill doctors and try to convince them that I'm as good as I am. That I deserve what I have worked so hard for. They were scoring me, over a span of a few hours, what I had spent the last eight years learning and perfecting. …I was mad, at everyone and everything. And I was miserable. So… I sat across from the hotel and just… drank myself numb."

"But you're taking the test again, right? I mean… there has to be some sort of pardon that can be given. You know, extenuating circumstances or something? So you can test again, this time actually show up, and then pass." The Latina asks hopefully but all she gets is a shrug in response. "You are going to take the test again though, right?"

"I don't know." Arizona answers, averting her gaze from anywhere near her catcher.

"What do you mean 'you don't know'?" Torres asks.

"I mean, I don't know!" The blonde snaps, making Callie jump and Robbins quickly reels in her anger. Taking a deep breath, she explains in a calm and even tone, "I don't know if I'm taking the test again. I don't know if I even want to. I haven't thought that far out yet, Callie. Hell, I don't even know where I'm going once we get back stateside. I don't have an apartment or a job to go back to, I don't even know which of my parents live where. So… no, I don't know." Sad brown eyes meet blue and Arizona can feel the sympathy pouring from Callie's heart. "You talk about what makes your heart sing? Well, right now I'm more focused on breathing. Singing comes later."

Nearly three hours after sitting down for their meal, Callie and Arizona start to head back to their apartment. The sun is starting to set over the city of London and the breeze brings with it a slight chill. A smile appears on Torres's face when she feels the blonde nestle in closer to her body, their arms linking as they try to protect themselves against the cold. And even as they get closer and closer to Olympic Village, neither attempt to pull away from their close and intimate embrace. Photographers be damned.

"How's it looking?" Erica groans as Arizona manipulates her swollen ankle.

"Better." Arizona answers, running a finger over the joint and testing the ligaments and tendons. "Definitely better. I can tell you've been doing what I told you."

"Will she be able to play tomorrow?" This time it's Callie asking, the Latina sitting on the edge of the mattress opposite Hahn's and watching as Robbins checks out their teammate.

"Don't know. Right now, I'd say no but if the swelling continues to go down at the rate that it is…" Her shoulders shrug, years and years of experience keeping her from making promises. "We'll just have to wait and see."

After giving the agitated blonde more instructions to keep her ankle elevated and iced, Callie and Arizona head back to their rooms. They had arrived back at Olympic Village a couple hours ago but soon found out that just sitting in the bedroom with one another was a dangerous thing so they decided to take in some of the other competitions taking place. USA had been doing very well in the medal count and Arizona really wanted to say she witnessed one of her fellow athletes win gold… besides themselves. But now the sun has set and curfew is upon them, nerves and butterflies flaring up in the players' stomachs as they think about tomorrow.

When they get back to the apartment, both Teddy and Addison are all ready there. A chill is still present between Arizona and her friends so she just mumbles a good night and goes to hide in her room, Callie spending a few cursory minutes with them before making up an excuse to retire as well.

Both women fall back on their beds, each at opposite ends of the room, and stare up at the ceiling.

After a couple seconds, Arizona says "Sing something."

"What?" Callie asks in surprise.

The blonde rolls over on her side so she can see the Torres, then says again "Sing me something."

Callie just laughs, a blush starting to crawl across her face, and she says "Like what?"

"I don't know." Robbins murmurs, then chances, "Some little ditty about a grail or something? Maybe about you losing a part?"

Eyebrows furrow and Torres turns her glare to the woman across the room to find a bright and knowing smile lighting up Arizona's face. "Who told you?" Callie growls, immediately catching on to the blonde's game.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Arizona feigns ignorance with a cute little shrug.

"Arizona…" The Latina warns.

"Calliope…" Her pitcher plays back.

Callie slowly stands from her bed and stalks up on the older woman, Arizona curling in on herself the closer her catcher gets. "Tell me who told you about my play." The captain says, giving her roommate one more chance to come clean.

Arizona pretends to think for a second but quickly shakes her head, draws a zipper over her lips and throws away the key. Blue eyes meet brown hovering above her, the surgeon just testing Callie's empty threat.

With one last look, giving Arizona a chance to spill the beans, Callie attacks. She jumps on top of the blonde and immediately digs her fingers into the soft under flesh of Arizona's arms eliciting a very high pitched wail. Arizona tries to fight Callie off her but the woman is much stronger than Robbins and keeps her in place while continuing to tickle her.

"No! Stop! No! Calliope!" Arizona screams between fits of giggles, her body thrashing all over the bed as she tries to get away. Tears are streaming from her eyes and her dimples shine so bright that Callie is nearly blinded.

Somehow the blonde is able to grab the Latina's wrists and pull them from her body, but because Torres has the leverage of being on top she easily pins Arizona's hands above her head, bringing their faces and bodies even closer together. Suddenly they are in a very close setting, both their faces flushed and breathing ragged. Rich dark eyes stare down into cobalt blue and it's almost as if Callie can dive into Arizona's soul. Everything she's ever wanted to know about this woman is right there, right in front of her. All the pain and the hurt and the disappointment, it's right there. And Callie wants to take it all away, so she closes the small distance between them and kisses her pitcher passionately.

Out in the living room, Addison is flicking off the TV while Teddy grabs a bottle of water before both start to shuffle to their own bedroom. Just as they are about to cross the threshold a loud wail comes from the other bedroom, making both stop and stare at the closed door. The screaming and laughing and playing doesn't stop, and a knowing smirk crosses the redheads lips.

Turning slowly to her fellow teammate, she holds out her hand. "Pay up."

Altman's eyes roll in their sockets and she grabs a twenty pound note from her pocket, slapping it down on Addison's waiting palm. "Damn it." She growls, not liking the fact she lost her second straight bet.

Montgomery shrugs her shoulders and says "Hey, you were the one who wanted to go double or nothing." Folding the bill and slipping it into the cup of her bra, she continues her way to her bed while throwing over her shoulder "Told you it would work like a charm."

AN2: Next up, gold medal match and maybe even more progress between the power couple. Stay tuned folks.