CHAPTER 3

Arizona Robbins did NOT have a good day. The reason was Mark Sloan. He was everywhere lately. He had interrupted a wholehearted try for morning sex and when Callie, Alex Karev and herself had been doing a MRI on that fifteen-year-old kid with cancer in his leg, Mark had showed up and just assumed that dinner for three this upcoming evening was a done deal. She had managed to get out of that one though Callie had given her strange looks and then later, in the lab, while they had been doing some researching it had been inevitable for the subject Mark Sloan to come up. And considering the way that conversation had ended she knew that this was going to be on the main topic for talking during lunch. She had even begged Teddy to start sleeping with Mark again so that he would leave her and Callie alone just for one day. She knew he was lonely and miserable at the moment and she felt for him, honestly she did, but if it wasn't Owen and Cristina crowding them it was Mark. Although it seemed like Owen and Cristina where on their way out of the apartment for good much to Arizona's delight, there was always a Mark Sloan who would come next and destroy everything in it's way. She had been tolerant about this but when it came to bursting in to her bedroom while she was trying to have sex she wasn't willing to be tolerant anymore. So no, this was not a good day for Arizona Robbins. And right now she really didn't like Mark Sloan.

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Callie Torres did not have a good day and the reason for that was, according to her girlfriend, Mark Sloan. Callie was frustrated about this whole thing but she couldn't figure out why Arizona acted the way she did when it came to Mark. She loved Mark and he was her best friend so why couldn't her girlfriend just accept the fact that Mark was a big part in Callie's life? It wasn't that big of a deal anyway. Of course she'd also been a little annoyed when Mark had stumbled right in to their bedroom this morning but hey, it was Mark, and he had immediately stepped out when he'd realized what had been going on in there. But then Arizona had just grunted and got out of bed and went straight to the shower. Callie could feel Arizona's non-liking-feelings for Mark today. Especially when the blonde had turned down dinner with Mark with the comment about not liking sushi anymore and that following conversation in the lab but it couldn't not just be about Mark's interruption this morning. Or could it? Either way, Callie Torres did not have a good day and she was still trying to find the reasons why.

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The lunch had so far been a real torture for both Callie and Arizona. The blonde was yet again annoyed by the fact that they couldn't be left alone for one minute. The tension between them was so obvious for their colleagues but that seemed unnoticed to the girl's cause they were chatting around with everyone, except with each other. Teddy, Owen, Mark and Derek had already exchanged some strange looks during eating.

"So, what are you up to this afternoon? Any large, complicated surgeries to perform?" Teddy asked with her head turned to Arizona.

"Uum, yeah. We are actually going to try and take out a kid's bone from his leg and radiate it", the blonde responded while trying to maintain her unaffected look and at the same time avoid Callie's gaze. "Alex Karev is going to assist."

"That sounds cool Robbins", Mark commented. "I guess that means that by the end of the day you and your girlfriend are going to be this kid's heroes?"

The look he got from the blonde in response surprised him a bit. He'd also felt the tension but suddenly it hit him that he himself may be the reason. He knew he was a teaser and quite full of himself for most of the time but he'd never actually thought that Arizona Robbins was letting any of his jokes get to her. Hmm, maybe he had to change his way with the blonde to get on her good side. For Callie's sake.

Before Arizona had the chance to answer to Mark's comment she felt a hand on her arm and a little squeeze. She looked up and saw a begging look from Callie, telling her to just let it go.

"Yeah, wouldn't that be just heavenly? Just another day at PED's. I'm used to being a hero. But this time I am actually going to let Callie and Karev feel the pleasure of the 'being a hero-thing' as well."

"Why thank you Dr Robbins. That's quite honorable of you", Callie said with a try to ease the tension.

"I think you two are going to kick some serious ass with this kid" Mark said. "Dr Robbins has good hands. At least that's what I've heard."

He couldn't help but smirk and poke Callie's side.

The glare he got from both Callie and Arizona was the one saying: Shut up or I'm going to kill you right this second!

Derek and Owen chuckled lightly at Mark's comment.

Arizona sighed out loud and got up from the table.

"I'm going to prep this surgery. See you later."

And off she went. Callie grunted and turned her head to Mark again.

"What?" he said. "What did I say?"

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The surgery went well although Callie and Arizona had continued with the nagging at each other and finally had resulted, much to Alex Karev's dismay, in a sudden revelation from the blonde attending in where she admitted that she didn't like Mark Sloan at all because he stared at her boobs when they talked. And by that Alex Karev could hear that Arizona Robbins meant that Mark Sloan REALLY stared at them.

But he could also see that Mark Sloan was really bugging the blonde and that Callie just wouldn't want to let this go away. And now Arizona stood outside the room where Kevin, the kid with the bone cancer was inside with his parents when Callie told them that the surgery had been going well.

"Post ops are stable", Alex Karev informed his superior as he came walking and stood beside her. "And I've ordered morning labs."

"Hmm. Thanks." Arizona said softly and gave her resident a small smile.

"You know", Alex started. "Sloan risked his life to save mine even when I was sleeping with his girl and that is not a guy without a soul. Maybe he's an ass that stares at boobs but whatever. And you, you have nice boobs. And maybe they are lesbian boobs and you don't want men staring at them but…what I'm trying to say is that you have hot boobs and I stare at them to."

And with that Arizona watched Alex Karev walk away. She couldn't help but laugh to herself before she turned her look back in to the room where Callie just received hugs and handshakes from two parents who were beyond relief to the fact that their son was going to be okay. At that moment Arizona felt a wave a warm feeling towards Callie. She loved Callie with everything she was and so be it. Even if Mark Sloan was the brunette's best friend. She made the decision to try hard for Callie's sake to try to reason with Mark. But only if she could convince Callie that the bedroom would be 'Mark Sloan free' from this moment on.

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"Hey there", Callie said softly when the blonde landed beside her in bed later that evening. "Did you have a good time or am I going to regret that I asked?"

Arizona turned her head to the brunette so that their eyes locked. There was no anger or frustration in the blonde's eyes at all. Callie saw that. No, this was just a pair of blue eyes filled with warmth and love. She let herself relax and the look they shared continued and soon intensified with emotions.

"I love you. I love you so much that it scares me sometimes. You know that, don't you?"

It was an honest statement from the blonde. Although it was a sentence with simple words Callie could hear the honesty in them. Words delivered with pure love.

"I know. I know. But the 'scare-you-part' I didn't know of. Care to fill me in on that one? And before you start, in case you didn't know, I love you too. VERY much."

Arizona leaned in closer to Callie and placed a soft and warm kiss on her girlfriends lips before she turned and lay on her back with eyes up in the ceiling.

"I don't hate Mark. In fact I've always kind of liked him for most of the time. But sometimes he crosses the lines. My lines. Our lines. Or at least I want to believe that it is our lines."

It was in that exact moment Callie understood why Arizona had been so irritated, frustrated and annoyed.

"I'm sorry", she said.

Arizona turned her head back against the woman beside her.

"It's okay".

"No. No, it isn't. I'm a bad girlfriend. I should've understood your point a view in this thing. Instead I choose to believe that you were the selfish bitch who didn't want me to have friends."

Callie had said this with a twinkle in her eyes and a smile on her lips so Arizona would see that is was a joke.

The blonde responded with a giggle.

"Ooh yeah that's me alright. Although, I would be very satisfied with the fact that I could have you all to myself all the time…."

"Come here", Callie whispered and opened up her arms so that Arizona could snuggle up close to her.

"We had a really great time by the way", she said. "To answer your question. I like to talk about my girlfriend you know. It is very nice to talk about you with someone who love's you almost as much as I do. And the sushi was delicious. And Mark was a gentleman all through dinner. So yes, I did have a good time."

"But?"

"How did you know there was a but?" Arizona said and raised her eyebrows.

"Because I know YOU."

Arizona let out a small sigh.

"It's just that I feel left out sometimes. I know you and I have had a hard time to communicate in the past and that you need someone beside me to talk to. I need that to. So I talk to Teddy, cause she is my friend. But she doesn't show up in our bedroom while we're having sex."

Callie played with her fingers in the blonde's hair.

"I know. But if you asked her she might wanna consider it…"

"Calliope!" Arizona slapped the brunette's arm and laughed out loud. "Be serious."

"What? I'm just sayin", Callie said and try to sound as innocent as she could.

"What I'm trying to say here is this: You and Mark have seen each other naked in the past and I can understand that you two are having a relaxed relationship with one another BUT I don't want him to see me naked. Cause that's only for you. And I like to joke and talk about sex in a lighthearted way, you know that, but Mark's comments about OUR sex life are just too much sometimes. I feel like a piece of meat every time he's bringing something like that up in the middle of our lunch conversations when there are other people around that I certainly don't want to know what you and I do when we are alone in bed. I feel like he knows to much and I'm not comfortable with that."

"I understand completely. And I'm sorry. Again, I am very, VERY sorry", Callie said. "I'm going to talk to Mark about this I promise."

"Thank you", Arizona whispered back. "Thank you. Now I don't want to talk anymore. We're done talking actually."

"We are? So that means I'm not in trouble anymore?"

The blonde lifted herself up on the bed and straddled the brunette's waist.

"Oh, you're still in trouble young lady. You're not getting off easy with this one. I might have to teach you some…stuff about being a good girl."

Callie smiled happily when Arizona dove in and started peppering passionate kisses all over her face, down her neck and shoulders. Soon the two lovers were lost in their own world and in each other. This day would definitely end better than it had started….