A/N: I am updating whatever I could write, because I need to keep going.
"We should love, not fall in love,
because everything that falls,
gets broken"
In the morning, I reach to my office almost running, as it was difficult to get up after a terrible night. Once I enter, I find a bunch of red roses sitting on my table and Arizona is doing something at my desk. Oh! Is she groveling now? I am beyond to accept any admission of guilt now.
"What the hell is this?" I almost bark at her.
"Sorry?" Arizona clearly seems to be confused.
"What are these flowers doing here?"
"I don't know…"
"It was me!" Someone cuts Arizona in before she could finish.
Oh! It's Professor Eva. She is standing holding the door frame smile the fullest.
"You?...I mean for what?" I don't think that she knows about my birthday.
"If you remember that I have coordinated your fellowship here." Professor Eva offers me another smile, while slowly entering the room. "Happy birthday Dr. Torres."
"Thank you Professor Eva. Call me Callie only. I would feel more comfortable." I offer her to have a seat. Arizona leaves the chair and stands near the shelf.
"Then you too call me Eliza."
"Eliza?"
"Yes, people I close to, they call me Eliza." I see how green eyes are twinkling. Is she trying to suggest something? We are not even close. I have talked with her only a few times and they were also very official. I peek a little at Arizona- she has full concentration on a journal of language testing. Why is she looking at that journal? I know how much she finds that boring.
"I mean… if you want to." I try to concentrate on Eliza, "Okay, Professor Eliza."
"Only Eliza!" She leans forward to the desk a little giving a little view of herself. Oh! God, this woman is hot. Why is she behaving weird?
"Okay." I reply embarrassingly. I know how powerful and respected she is at this university. She is one of the well-known professors in Europe.
"Callie, I was wondering if we could go for your birthday dinner tonight?" Eliza asks smiling, then quickly adds, "I would like to have both our TAs also with us. This would be good opportunity for both to be friends with each other." She must have noticed my shocked face. She again adds, "there is a conference coming up about the status of higher education in Europe…so I wanted to talk about that too. If things work out, maybe you would get to attend it, if you are interested."
I don't know what to answer. This is so sudden, but she is asking to join the TAs too. I look at Arizona, as I do not know her schedule, but I know that she does not like networking and probably will say No.
"Ms. Robbins, would you like to go? But, I know that you might have your own plans." I give her a way out. If she says no, then I also will try to avoid the dinner. I am not in a mood for any dinner right now.
"I will go." Surprisingly, Arizona says yes. Now I am as if bombed down. Once I look at her, I notice that again she is browsing another journal, which she found annoying last week.
"Okay, Eliza. I will see you tonight." I give her a half smile.
"I will text you the address of the restaurant." Eliza gets up to leave. "Happy birthday again, Callie." I skip a heartbeat, noticing the way she says that to me. I am not ready right now to enjoy this, especially after last night.
"That was so unprofessional." Arizona remarks at flat voice once Eliza leaves.
"Why is that unprofessional?" I snap at her.
"Asking someone to a date out of the blue." Arizona gives a sarcastic smile.
"First, it is not a date, because she invited you too. And second, if something is unprofessional, then it is you, who dares to comment like this about a Professor, when you are working as a TA." I say in a stern voice and I mean this too. I am kind of disgusted the way she is acting now. I have enough of her jealous moments, when she is not willing to act on that.
"She invited me as I was present here." Arizona replies in a low voice.
"So, if you don't want to go, that is okay."
"I will go." She quickly says.
The rest of the day goes in routine. I have not met Arizona after the morning class and it is a kind of relief not seeing her. In the afternoon, as I am about to leave, I receive a text from her.
"I will be in front of your apartment at 6pm to pick you"- A
"Thank you, but no. I will call a cab." I swiftly type.
"But, I can always come and pick you"- A
"I don't think that you always need to come. I am okay. Bye." I annoyingly answer her. She even hasn't apologized for last night, which I think she should have and now she expects me to take a ride with her. I am not going down that way anymore.
Once I reach to the restaurant, I ask the receptionist about the reservation. She shows me a table where already Arizona and the other TA are waiting.
"I guess, I am not the last one," I start the conversation while taking the seat next to Arizona.
"Yes, you are." Eliza says from behind and leans on me giving me a kiss on my cheek before I could turn to her or say something. "I was in the washroom… I thought you dumped me." Eliza smiles softly.
I start feeling little uncomfortable, as I can sense that Eliza is flirting with me openly- it is more than flirting.
Once the dinner starts, we start talking random stuff. In fact, only I and Eliza are talking and the other two TAs are kind of silent.
"So, Callie, tell us more about yourself." Eliza asks putting some wine in my empty glass.
"She does not drink." Arizona's comment stops Eliza pouring my glass halfway. Eliza gives me an apologist look, "I am sorry. I should not have assumed…what do you want for your drink then."
"Oh… no that's okay. I would like to have…" Arizona again cuts in not letting me finish, "diet Pepsi. She always drinks that."
Now Eliza really makes an amusing look, "I think, your TA knows everything about you." Then she teasingly adds, "so, Ms. Robbins, why don't you say more about her?"
And I see unexpectedly Arizona dropping her reserved self, asks Eliza, "what do you want to know?" This is such an unexpected behavior from her. She is the most uninhibited only with me and among her classmates, it is with Neesha. She always has authority issues- after I have come here, I have always noticed how uncomfortable she has been with Professors, specially people own some power.
Eliza stares at Arizona for few moments, "of course, I would like to know more about Callie, but only from her." Stressing on the last part of her dialogue, she leans on my ears and whispers, "I don't want to compete with a kid, you know!"
This is so embarrassing now. Eliza is experienced and she has got what Arizona is doing. I am sure that now she knows why Arizona had punched her TA weeks back.
Instead, I just smile softly assuring, "nothing like this."
"I hope that too… let's start eating." The waiter has started serving the table.
After few minutes of silence in the dinner, I feel that Arizona has put her left hand on my right thigh. I cannot believe that she has dared to do this, specially here. I try to ignore that till the point she starts rubbing softly and gently stroking up making me chocking hard on my drink.
"Are you okay?" Eliza asks in concern.
"I'm good… I think, I need to go to washroom." I quickly head towards the washroom to stop the spinning of my head.
In the sink, I splash my face with water just to stop the spinning world. Whatever I say or do, Arizona's one touch is enough to stop the world and resume it back. After few minutes, as I am about to get out from the washroom, Arizona comes in. seeing her, I try to leave the washroom, "Arizona, this is very embarrassing!"
"What is embarrassing?" She asks closing the door behind her and physically blocking it.
"The things you are doing with me."
"Embarrassing is when you say you love me and jump into Eva's arms on my rejection."
"I didn't jump into… you know what is happening here." Saying this I try to go out, but Arizona grabs my hand and pulls me on her, "I see what is happening. I see everything, the way you are avoiding me, the way you even didn't look at me once during whole day…as if I am invisible." I see her eyes are becoming dark in anger.
"Didn't you want this though?"
"I didn't want any of this. I didn't want you to come back my life to ruin everything I have… I hate relationships…I hate attachments…" Arizona softly touches my cheeks with both of her hands.
"Arizona, I have only three weeks to go," I pull out both of her hands from my face, "just tolerate me these few weeks." I can sense that my eyes are steamed with water.
There is nothing painful in this world, when you cannot be with the person you love most. I know the emptiness will not let me live, but I cannot let Arizona to do something which she is not willing to do. It's better to let her go… better to let it be, the way it is!
A/N: AND ONE THING, I AM NOT GOING TO EXPLAIN NOW ON THAT, IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE A CALZONA STORY. I HAVE DONE THAT ENOUGH. I HAVE MADE IT CLEAR THAT THEY ARE GOING TO END TOGETHER. SO, IF YOU DO NOT BELIEVE IN US, WHO ARE STILL WRITING CALZONA, PLEASE DO NOT READ IT. WE DO NOT DESERVE THIS. Thank you.
