Title: Moving On (2/?)
Author: iheartcallietorres (laurenxx3 on Live Journal)
Pairing: Callie/Arizona, Callie/Mark (friendship), Mark/Lexie, with appearances by other GA characters, including one Dr. Erica Hahn
Rating: T
Summary: (I've always wanted an Erica/Callie closure scene/episode on the show, but I highly doubt we'll actually get one, so I wrote my own. I love being creative.) Set four and a half years after 5x07 (Rise Up) when Erica walked out of Callie's life. How will Callie, Arizona, Erica and other Grey's characters react to her return?
Disclaimer: You know the drill. All characters belong to Shonda Rhimes/ABC. I don't own anything. If I did, I'd be a lot richer than a poor college student. Any similarities to real life situations/persons are purely coincidental. Not for profit; for entertainment purposes only.
A/N: I have absolutely NO medical knowledge beyond what I see/hear on Grey's Anatomy, so forgive me of any medical-related errors. Also, this is un-betad, so all mistakes are mine. Please let me know if you come across any. As always, comments are much appreciated (and will encourage me to write more fics in the future - *hint, hint*).
A/N 2: I got 99.5% positive feedback from part 1, both here and at . (Yay!) So, here's part 2. Don't get too used to speedy updates—I just happen to be on Spring Break from college right now, so I have spare time. Once classes resume, I'll be swamped with papers, exams and readings once again. Thanks for the awesome reviews! You guys ROCK! : )
A/N 3: HUGE 6x17 (Push) SPOILER ALERT! If you haven't watched 6x17 and don't want to read spoilers, DON'T READ THIS STORY! - Ooookay. So, I just finished watching 6x17 (Push) and now I kind of hate this story. lol. JK JK. No worries, I'll still finish it, but I feel weird writing it. Sooo, we're going to pretend that the events of 6x17 happened, but Callie/AZ worked through them and AZ finally came around and Calzona lived happily ever after. Yep, that's what we're going to do. Great! Now my story makes sense again. Yay! Now, let's just hope that happens for real on the show. Now, onwards with the story! (note: flashbacks are in italics) Enjoy. : )
__________
It was three in the morning and Arizona couldn't sleep. Callie was on-call tonight, so she was still at the hospital while Arizona was alone in their bed. She hated sleeping without her wife by her side. And with them both being surgeons, it happened frequently.
Arizona sighed and rolled onto her back, trying to allow sleep to overcome her. But she couldn't stop thinking. Callie seemed so okay with Erica returning. For some reason, that bothered Arizona. She should be happy that Callie was fine, right?
Her pager suddenly sounding startled her and she groaned. She looked at the clock. 3:17. Great.
After quickly getting dressed, she called Mrs. Roland, their next door neighbor that offered to watch Elena anytime, day or night. At first, she and Callie had been hesitant to take the woman up on her offer in the early morning hours, but the woman had insisted. And really, what choice did they have?
Mrs. Roland groggily answered the phone, but was happy to watch Elena. Mrs. Roland was a former surgical nurse and had worked at Seattle Grace until three years ago when she'd retired shortly after her husband had died. Arizona and Callie trusted the woman, both having worked with her in surgeries. And Elena loved the older woman, so that made things easier.
After waking a reluctant Elena and taking her next door where Mrs. Roland was waiting, she rushed across the street to the hospital.
"What do you got?" Arizona asked Owen Hunt.
"Multiple MVC on the interstate. Trauma Room 3," he said, handing her a chart.
Arizona rushed to Trauma room 3 to find Karev working on the teenaged girl. "Abby Henderson, age 13, victim of a car crash. Multiple fractures, possible concussion, in need of a trauma series and CT to check for internal injuries. Had to intubate upon arrival. She has a collapsed lung and we had to put a chest tube in."
Arizona checked the girl's limbs, noticing severe bruising on the upper right leg. "We need a STAT x-ray on the right femur," she told Karev.
"I paged Torres and Sloan," Karev said. "She has some nasty lacerations to her face that Sloan should check out."
Arizona nodded as she listened to the girl's heart with her stethoscope. "Her heart sounds strong, but she's lost too much blood. Hang some O-neg," she said to a nurse.
"What do we have?" Callie asked as she entered the room. The sight of Callie never failed to make Arizona's heart race, even now when she was in full Pediatric Surgeon mode. But fortunately, it didn't stop her from doing her job.
"Abby Henderson, age 13, car accident victim," Karev filled her in. "She has substantial bruising in her right leg."
"We need to get her to CT STAT," Arizona said, noticing her vitals begin to drop.
As they were wheeling the girl out of the Trauma room, Hunt poked his head out of another trauma room. "Torres! Need you in Trauma 2!"
"Page me when you get the scans and x-rays," Callie said to a resident before joining Hunt.
Several hours later, Arizona and Karev had repaired the girl's internal injuries and Callie had repaired the extensive damage to the femur. It had been touch and go for a while, but the teenager was expected to make a full recovery.
Arizona had scrubbed out before Callie and went to grab some coffee for both of them at the vendor. It was now approaching her actual shift, which was due to begin at 8am, so there was no point in returning home.
As she paid for the coffees and returned to the nurses' station, her and Callie's unofficial meeting place, she noticed the notorious Dr. Erica Hahn standing at the counter, flipping through some charts.
Arizona knew Callie didn't really feel anything about the woman's return, but Arizona felt her own anger surface. She knew she had no right, but she couldn't help it; she was highly protective of the things she loved, after all. She'd heard the stories about Callie breaking down after Erica had left. She remembered how sad and defeated Callie had seemed when she'd first met (and kissed) her in the bathroom at Joe's. And it was because of this woman standing ten feet in front of her.
Arizona had to force herself to remain calm. Then, she remembered what Callie had said the other night. She'd said that if Erica had not walked away, they may not be together now. That thought made Arizona shudder. She couldn't imagine her life without Callie. Without their beautiful Elena.
Erica was the fool, here. She'd left the gorgeous, sweet, generous Callie and Arizona had been lucky enough to sweep the brunette off her feet.
Arizona had to keep reminding herself of that fact - she had Callie.
Arizona squared her shoulders and walked the remaining distance to the nurses' station, depositing the two cups of coffee at the opposite end of the counter from where Erica Hahn stood and asked the nurse for a patient's charts, just so she'd have something to do while waiting for Callie. She hoped Erica left before Callie arrived.
As she looked over the charts, she felt Erica's eyes one her. She glanced up and her own brilliant blue eyes connected with those of Erica Hahn. Arizona had to admit, Callie did seem to have a pattern - blonde hair, blue eyes.
Arizona also grudgingly admitted that Erica wasn't the ugly, Cruella DeVil-like character she'd pictured in her mind. Dammit. She was actually quite attractive.
The way in which Erica was looking at her let Arizona know that she knew who she was. She really hoped this woman wouldn't start any drama. The last thing she needed was drama.
"Hey, blondie," Mark said loudly from beside her, startling her.
"Don't do that!" Arizona admonished, slapping his arm lightly.
"Sorry," he said, putting his hands up in front of him. He spotted the coffees on the counter. "You got me coffee? You shouldn't have."
"I didn't," Arizona said, slapping his hand away from the coffee cup. She sighed and glanced back over at Erica.
Mark leaned back against the nurses' station and eyed her carefully. "Bugs you, too, huh?"
Arizona didn't have to ask what he meant. "Yeah, a little."
Mark sighed and shrugged. "I don't understand Callie," he said softly. "I really don't."
Arizona mirrored his shrug and returned her gaze to the tall blonde still standing at the nurses' station. Her attention was back on her charts, so Arizona took the opportunity to study her more.
"Hey guys," a lyrical voice said from beside Mark and Arizona turned to face Callie. "Dude, what's with your face?" Callie asked Sloan.
Sloan grumbled something indiscernible about "lesbian drama" and walked away, shaking his head.
"What was that all about?" Callie asked.
"Oh, um…" Arizona looked back towards the place Erica Hahn had been standing only to find the spot empty. She then noticed the woman rounding a corner down the hall. "Just… Erica was here and… well, he was trying to figure you out."
Callie raised an eyebrow. "Figure me out?"
"Yeah, he can't understand why you're not freaking out about her coming back." She paused momentarily. "Actually, I'm kind of perplexed by it as well, to be honest."
Callie shrugged. "I don't know, it's kind of weird. I mean, I always thought that I'd be mad or upset if she came back, but, like I said, if she hadn't walked away… I just don't… feel anything when it comes to her. Nothing. Not anger, not happiness… I'm just neutral."
"That doesn't mean I have to be neutral, does it?" Arizona asked.
Callie chuckled. "Nope. Be whatever you want. Just be careful. She can be kind of spiteful if you're not on her good side. Just ask Cristina."
Arizona shook her head, then noticed the missing coffee. "Hey! He stole your coffee!"
"Who?" Callie asked.
"Mark."
"No worries. I'll get it back," Callie said with a wink. She gave Arizona quick kiss before leaving to chase after Mark, the dirty thief, and her missing coffee.
__________
Erica sighed and rubbed her face with her hands as she sat at the table in the attending' lounge. Dr. Boyd's heart transplant was scheduled for the following morning, but all she could think about was Callie and this Arizona chick.
She's asked around and had discovered that Arizona Robbins was Head of Peds and one of the best pediatric surgeons on the West Coast. She also learned that she and Callie had been together for nearly four years and were happily married.
In the four and a half years since leaving Seattle, Erica had dated a few women, but it had never amounted to anything substantial until she'd met Madison Jenkins, a scrub nurse at Mass Gen, six months ago.
Erica had made it a rule, once again, to not date anyone from work and, once again, she had broken that rule when Madison had knocked her for a loop. She'd resisted for all of two weeks before breaking down and agreeing to go on a date with the woman. The rest was, as they say, history.
It had only been six months, but Erica felt like she may have found someone special, but she was still hesitant to take the plunge. Maybe now, she could stop dancing around her relationship with Madison. After all, if Callie could move on and find another woman to love, so could she, right?
While the knowledge that Callie had moved on and found love stung a little, it didn't hurt as much as she thought it would have. Of course Callie had moved on. She was young, beautiful and successful. And she deserved to be happy.
But, even though she wasn't upset that Callie was with Arizona Robbins, that didn't mean she had to like the woman.
Something about Arizona Robbins made her cringe. She was too damn perky and Erica swore she saw the woman glide down the hall on her shoes as if they were roller skates. How in the hell did she do that?
Just then the door opened and the object of her thoughts, Arizona Robbins, walked into the room, stopping short when she saw Erica.
"Hey," Arizona said slowly, unsure of what to do or say.
Erica nodded in acknowledgment. There was a moment of awkward silence before Arizona moved to the small refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water. She quickly moved to exit the room, but thought better of it. She stopped before she got to the door and turned to face Erica.
"I just have to know one thing," Arizona said.
Erica raised her eyebrows in question.
"Just tell me you're not here to, like, try and win her back or anything. Because then I'd have to kick your ass."
Erica nearly laughed aloud at the idea of this tiny, petite woman kicking her ass, but thought better of it. She may surprise her. Rather than laughing, Erica simply shook her head. "I'm just here to do a transplant, and then I'm gone," she said.
Arizona nodded. "Good," she said. "Because I can't stand to see her hurt. Although, she doesn't seem all that upset about you being back, God only knows why. After the way you ran out on her—" She stopped short and shook her head. "Sorry, that was rude."
Erica shrugged. "More like honest," she said, regret evident in her voice.
Arizona eyed her carefully, seeing the way her shoulders slumped. This was not the headstrong woman she'd heard about. This woman seemed… defeated. Run down. Tired. And Arizona had a feeling she knew why.
She sighed heavily and sat across from the taller blonde. "Look, I know that I only know one side of the story and all that, but from what I've heard, you and Callie started off as friends, right?"
Erica nodded wearily, unsure of where this was going. "She was one of the best friends I'd had in a long time."
"Okay, so talk to her," Arizona said. "I know Callie. And I know that while she seems okay on the outside that you're here, I know she's fighting a battle inside. And it has nothing to do with Erica the ex-girlfriend or whatever you two were. It's all about her former best friend. She misses her friend, even if she won't admit it. And I think you miss her, too. So, maybe you should just talk to her." Arizona stood and walked out the door, turning back before the door shut. "Just remember, you hurt her or try anything with her, I'll kick your ass. And Mark will be there to back me up."
The door closed and Erica couldn't help but grin. Arizona Robbins sure was feisty. And she talked a lot. And maybe she was right, too. Looking back on the entire situation, Erica had to admit that the thing she missed the most about Seattle Grace was the quick and easy friendship she'd formed with Callie.
__________
Callie arrived home before Arizona that evening and, after thanking Stephanie, she began getting Elena ready for bed. She gave her a bath and helped her brush her teeth before dressing her in her favorite pajamas and tucking her in. She read Elena's favorite bedtime story and kissed her forehead.
"Goodnight, mija," Callie said softly.
"Night night, Mamá." The small girl was asleep within minutes, clutching tightly to her favorite teddy bear. Callie couldn't help but watch her sleep. She sat in the rocking chair beside the small bed and smiled. She couldn't believe how lucky she was.
Arizona found her there half an hour later, fast asleep.
She stood in the doorway and smiled, thinking about how she'd almost missed this opportunity. Working in Peds, she treated on sick kids every day. She knew what could go wrong, and she had always thought she didn't want to go through what she saw her patients' parents go through on a daily basis. She had been determined to not have kids.
Arizona hadn't realized how much Callie had wanted kids, how much she craved the family atmosphere. So when Callie had nonchalantly mentioned having kids, it had thrown her for a bit of a loop and drama had ensued. They'd even broken up for a few months, but Callie had cornered her one day and had made her fall in love with her all over again. She'd been asleep then, too.
FLASHBACK - THREE YEARS EARLIER
Arizona had just finished her shift and she was exhausted. She contemplated going to Joe's to grab a drink, but decided against it, knowing that Callie was probably there already, hanging out with Mark or Cristina.
Instead, she just went home. 'Home' was now a foreign concept to her. For the better part of the past year, 'home' had meant Callie's apartment. 'Home' had not been this dark, lonely apartment that she'd slept in all of a total of about six nights while she was with Callie. 'Home' had been in Callie's arms, in Callie's bed, in Callie's apartment. This was not 'home.'
As Arizona walked up the two flights of stairs, her shoulders sagged. The past two months had been awful. Callie had been avoiding her at all costs. Arizona didn't blame her. She'd said some pretty hurtful things that night that she hadn't meant. As soon as the words had come out of her mouth, she'd tried to take them back, blame them on the heat of the moment, but Callie wouldn't listen. She'd been upset, understandably so, and told Arizona to leave.
So, Arizona had left. And the only time they'd spoken in the two months, one week and three days since was on the rare occasion that they were forced to work together. On a child.
Arizona was walking with her head down, so she didn't immediately notice the figure sitting on the floor outside her apartment door, back to the wall, fast asleep.
Arizona stopped in her tracks when she saw the her beautiful Callie, hair in a messy ponytail, make-up smeared as if she'd been crying, and jeans and shirt wrinkled, as if she'd been waiting for quite a while.
"Callie?" Arizona said softly. She walked over to the sleeping beauty. "Callie, wake up," she said again, nudging her sneaker-clad foot with her own.
Callie finally stirred and opened her eyes.
Arizona nearly cried at the sight of her. Her normally gorgeous chocolate brown eyes were red and it was now even more obvious that she'd been crying. "What are you doing here?" Arizona asked softly, leaning back against the wall opposite her former girlfriend, needing the support.
"I… I don't know," Callie said, her voice tight with tears. She stood. "Can I… Can I come in? I need to talk to you."
Arizona didn't answer immediately.
"Please?" Callie pleaded.
Arizona finally nodded and unlocked her apartment door. They entered the apartment and Arizona turned on the lights. The lamp cast a soft golden glow over the room.
Callie sat heavily on the couch and buried her face in her hands.
Arizona didn't know what to do. She stood next to the couch awkwardly for a few moments listening to Callie cry before sitting next to her and gathering her in her arms. Callie cried into her shoulder for several moments. Arizona had started to cry when she wrapped her arms around Callie, feeling more at 'home' for the first time in several weeks.
"I can't, Arizona," Callie had finally said, lifting her face from Arizona's shoulder. "I tried, but I can't."
"Can't what?" Arizona asked, concerned.
"Can't live without you," Callie said. "These past couple of months have been hell. I can't sleep, I can barely eat… I love you, Arizona, and I need you in my life."
Arizona felt fresh tears well as Callie said those words. She cupped Callie's cheeks and swiped the tears away with her thumbs. "Callie, I love you, too, you know that, but—"
"Don't call me that!" Callie insisted. "Don't call me 'Callie.'"
Arizona shook her head. "I haven't changed my mind," she said. "I see what parents go through every day and I never want to have to feel that pain. I see what kind of things can happen to children. I can't put myself or you through that."
Callie's tears continued to flow, breaking Arizona's heart even more. "Yeah, I still want kids," Callie said. "Badly. I want to raise a family and go on family vacations and all that, but Arizona, I want you more. I need you. If I can't have kids with you, then I don't want kids at all. If being with you, having you in my life, in my home, in my bed means giving up kids, then fine. Because as much as I want kids, I want you a hundred times more."
With that, Callie stood and stumbled off the couch and out the door, leaving behind a stunned Arizona.
It took Arizona all of five minutes to go after Callie. She knocked on Callie's apartment door, noticing how weird it felt now that she no longer had a key. Cristina answered and looked at her, then at Callie's closed bedroom door. She rolled her eyes and said "I'm going to Owen's," before grabbing her jacket and leaving. But before she disappeared, she turned back to Arizona. "Just don't hurt her again. She's been through too much."
Cristina left, leaving Arizona alone in the living room. She walked to Callie's bedroom door and knocked. "Go away, Cristina!" came a muffled reply.
She knocked again, this time, opening the door at the same time.
"I said go away!" Callie said again.
"Cristina left," Arizona said softly, closing the door behind her.
Callie sat up in her bed, wiping away her tears. "Wha-what are you doing here?" she asked, embarrassed by her earlier actions.
Arizona quickly rounded the bed and sat on the edge, pulling Callie towards her once again. "These past couple of months have been awful for me, too," she said softly. "I couldn't go a single day without thinking about you or what I said that night. Callie… Calliope, you know I didn't mean what I said. You'd make a super mother."
"I know you didn't, Arizona," Callie said, her voice muffled by Arizona's shoulder. "But I did mean what I said earlier," Callie said. "I want you, even if it means no babies."
Arizona buried her face in Callie's neck, feeling herself falling even more in love with the amazing woman in her arms. Callie was willing to give up one of her biggest desires for her?
Several moments passed before Callie pushed Arizona away, looking into her eyes. "Arizona, say something," she pleaded. "Say you still love me and want to be with me."
Arizona cupped her cheeks and kissed her softly. "Of course I still love you, Calliope. I never stopped loving you. And I never stopped wanting to be with you. The fact that you're willing to give up having kids for me… well, I'm… I… I don't know what to say."
"Say you'll come back to me. Come back home."
Home. Home was here with Callie. It had been since the first night they spent together here, in this very bed. This? Oh, yes. This was home.
Arizona nodded, unable to speak, and kissed Callie harder this time, giving her all to the fiery kiss, letting Callie know that she was here to stay.
Suddenly, her anxiety of having kids melted a little. Maybe, just maybe, she could allow herself to have a family with this amazing woman.
"Calliope," Arizona said, pulling away. "I… I don't know if I'll ever be fully willing to have kids, but I'm willing to discuss it. I know it means a lot to you. Just, let me think about it. But I can't promise you anything."
CURRENT DAY
She smiled and walked over to her sleeping wife, glad that she'd finally decided that she was willing to have children with the love of her life. She kissed Callie's cheek, gently waking her.
"Hey, sleepyhead," Arizona said softly when Callie opened her eyes.
"Hmm? What?" Callie asked groggily.
"You fell asleep in Elena's room. Did she have a nightmare?" Arizona whispered.
Callie shook her head and stood slowly. "No, I was just watching her sleep, marveling over how lucky I am to have the both of you."
Arizona smiled and wrapped her arms around Callie's waist. "I'm the lucky one."
They exited Elena's room hand in hand.
"Oh, man, I was going to cook dinner for the most amazing wife in the entire world," Callie said, noting the time.
Arizona grinned. "You were going to cook yourself dinner?" she teased.
Callie rolled her eyes. "No, smarty. I was going to cook you dinner. But, it's kind of late. What do you say to something fast and simple?"
"Hmmm… Grilled cheese?"
After eating the quick supper, the two women got ready for bed. They both fell into the bed, utterly exhausted.
"I had an interesting conversation with Erica today," Arizona said sleepily as she curled into Callie's side.
"Did you now?" Callie inquired. "About what?"
"I may have threatened her just a little."
"What?" Callie asked, amused. "Oh, Lord, what did you say?" she groaned.
"Just that if she said or did anything to upset you or tried to make a move on you that I'd kick her ass."
Callie groaned again. "You did what? Arizona—"
"Hey, I'm just staking my claim."
"You don't have to," Callie said, pulling Arizona closer to her. "I'm already yours forever."
"Hmm," Arizona sighed, resting her head on Callie's shoulder. "Forever," she agreed and closed her eyes.
Callie shook her head. "Really, Arizona, you don't have to protect me. I can handle this."
When no response came, Callie looked closer at her wife, smiling when she noticed that she was already fast asleep. Callie placed a gentle kiss on her forehead before closing her own eyes and allowing sleep to overcome her. Her last conscious thought was how incredibly happy she was in this moment.