Callie helped Arizona up onto the examination table, brushed her hair from her forehead and asked, "Do you want to lie down yet, or would you rather wait for Max and Addie?" Arizona smiled at Callie's consideration, reached up to take her hand, brought it to her lips to kiss each finger and replied, "I think I'd rather sit up, lying on my back isn't quite as comfortable now." Callie caressed her wife's stomach and asked, "How are you feeling today? Are you in any pain?" Arizona snorted, "Pain, no. Extreme discomfort from whichever of your children is deciding to use my bladder as a plaything today, yes." Callie laughed and asked, "Oh they're MY children when they are causing trouble." Arizona tilted her head, batted her eyelashes and confirmed, "Always." Callie stepped between her wife's legs, wrapped her hands around her back and flirted, "Oh I can think of many ways we can cause trouble in here." Arizona ran her hands up the front of Callie's shirt, caressing her breasts along the way, grabbed her collar to pull her closer, and murmured against her lips, "Why don't you show me, I learn best by participating." Callie smiled into the kiss and just slipped her hands into the back of Arizona's scrub pants when they heard a sharp knock at the door and it opened without their approval.
The two women pulled apart and glared at the intruder who just laughed at them and claimed, "I swear I'm getting a fire extinguisher or squirt gun or something, five days of living with you two and I feel like I've seen more R-rated material than I have in my whole life." Arizona buttoned Callie's top button, looked at Addison and quipped, "Pretty sure that says more about your sad existence than it does about us." Callie laughed out loud, kissed Arizona on the cheek and replied, "She's got ya there Ads." Addison shook her head at the two women who couldn't seem to keep their hands off each other and asked, "Do you think you can control yourselves long enough to look at my niece and nephews or do I need to ask Max to bring in a hose?" Callie glared at her friend while Arizona taunted her more and asked, "Honey, will you help me lie down and lift my shirt for me?" Hearing the exasperated huff coming from the red head, Callie turned to face her wife and mouthed, "You're so bad." Arizona winked and whispered, "You love it." The brunette nodded, then did as her wife asked and carefully lowered her to her back, lifted her scrub top, and tucked the blue paper protective cover into the waistband of her pants.
Addison rolled her eyes, sat on the stool, wheeled herself and the ultrasound machine to the end of the table, and sulked, "If you two are finished torturing me, I'd like to begin." She looked up at Callie then asked, "Unless you'd like to put the gel on her as well." Callie smirked and just to piss her friend off, pulled the tube of gel from its holder and did the same thing she did at home the night Addison examined Arizona and ran the tube under the hot water of the sink to heat it up. Arizona pulled her lips between her teeth to try to hide her laughter, but one look at the scowl on Addison's face and she couldn't hold it back and burst into peals of laughter. Giggling herself, Callie turned and passed the gel over to her friend who muttered something about charging more for patients who were a pain in the ass. Addison took the top off the gel, squirted it all over Arizona's abdomen and just as she was about to press the wand down, Max came into the room carrying a small brown paper bag and handed it to Callie asking, "Could you give this to Sofia for me please?" Callie eyed the bag suspiciously and asked, "What is it?" All three of the other surgeons responded, "Avocados." Callie quirked her eyebrow in question and asked, "Is she making guacamole?" Max and Addison started laughing and Arizona took her free hand and explained, "No honey, that's what size the babies are now." Addison cut in, "Which you would see for yourself if I could actually look at them!"
Receiving Arizona's nod that she was ready, Addison moved the wand around and it took her no time at all to locate the first baby. Moving the wand around the outer curve of the right side of Arizona's lower abdomen, Addison smiled when a full body shot of the precious little girl came into view and declared, "There she is, our sweet baby girl." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the tiny fetus moved her leg and Arizona released a shocked, "Oh!" Callie turned to her with tears in her eyes and asked, "You felt that?" Arizona nodded and realized she started to feel that warmth in her stomach as soon as Callie started talking. Deciding she wanted to see what was going on inside her whenever Callie talked to the babies, Arizona asked, "Will you, um, will you talk to her, baby?"
Callie's face broke into her mega-watt smile. She was always curious to know if they recognized her voice like Arizona said they did. Moving lower down the exam table, she put her face near Arizona's midriff and whispered, "Hi baby girl, it's mama. I see you. You look so beau…" She stopped midsentence when she saw the tiny fetus shake her little arms and legs and turn around to snuggle up to the side of Arizona's stomach as if she were searching for the sound of her mama's voice. With tears streaming down her face, Callie blindly reached for Arizona's hand and whispered, "Do you see that?" Arizona sniffled and murmured, "Keep talking." Callie nodded, placed her fingertips just under where the wand was and continued, "You're so beautiful baby girl. Mama can't wait to see you and snuggle with you for real. For now this will have to do huh?" The entire time, she had her eyes on the monitor and watched as their tiny daughter appeared to have fallen asleep to the sound of her voice.
Looking up, she saw that both Addison and Max also had tears in their eyes and asked, "Is that…does that happen a lot?" Addison shook her head and answered, "First time I've ever seen it." Max wiped his eyes and replied, "Allergies, happens all the time." Before she moved the wand, Addison printed two pictures, not mentioning that she also recorded the little moment between mama and daughter, then noted the measurements in her tablet. Before moving on to the boys, Addison looked up to her dear friends and explained, "Baby girl looks good. Remember they are all going to measure a little smaller than a single birth at this point of gestation. The average single baby weighs in at 3.5 ounces and 4.5 inches in length. This little one is 3.1 ounces and 3.9 inches long." Callie snorted, "She's going to be short like her mommy." Arizona stuck her tongue out at her then asked, "Can we see the boys now?" Addison smiled and replied, "Absolutely!"
She picked up the wand and laughed when she found a tangle of arms and legs. Callie asked, "What's so funny?" Addison pointed to the screen and answered, "It looks like they are playing twister." Arizona huffed, "Yeah, well somebody must have spun, 'left hand on mommy's bladder' so can we keep this moving?" Addison laughed, tried to poke and prod at the little bundle of tangled babies, but they were perfectly content lying still. Deciding to see if it was just a fluke, Addie nodded at Callie who leaned over her wife's belly and cooed, "Hey boys, it's too early for wrestling practice. Can you turn so mama can see you?" She looked up when she heard Arizona's sigh of relief and the whispered, "Oh thank God." Looking back at the monitor, she heard Max declare, "Well I'll be damned." All four adults watched as the tiny humans wiggled and squirmed around, and they laughed when Addison declared, "Well that was no help at all." Callie bent down and explained, "Hey guys, you're getting your picture taken right now and Aunt Addie needs you to be still. Plus, you're going to wake up your sister and if she's anything like mommy when you wake her up, you're in for a long day in there. Can you settle down for your mommy and mama and be good little gremlins?" Arizona's eyes flickered back and forth from the monitor to her wife, all the while feeling that tingling along with the few kicks she could see on the screen. Though she was already certain the tingles were caused by the babies responding to Callie's voice, she realized that it wasn't stimulating them, it was calming them. Once again, all four adults watched as the tiny fetuses turned to the sound of their mama's voice and settle right down.
Addison was in complete and utter awe. She always knew there was a special bond between Arizona and Callie, but she never understood how deep it ran until that moment. She'd never seen babies this young respond to external stimuli. In her mind, the only way she could explain it was that the triplets felt that bond, felt the love the two women had for one another and responded in kind. Looking at the two of them now, it was hard to miss. Callie stood by Arizona's bedside washing the gel from her abdomen, removed the paper drape from her pants, dried off her stomach, pulled her shirt down, and helped her sit up. Still caught up in the magic of seeing their babies and watching how they responded to her, Callie leaned her forehead against Arizona's and whispered, "Thank you for carrying my babies. I love you so much." Arizona brought her hand up, caressed her face and responded, "I love you too and these babies certainly love their mama." Seeing the tear escape from her wife's eye and run down her soft tan cheek, Arizona leaned in to kiss it away and revealed, "That was the most magical thing I have ever seen or felt." Callie asked, "You felt that?" Arizona nodded and replied, "I have since the first day you ever spoke to them. I just didn't know what it was until recently." Callie smiled brightly, proudly, and brushed their lips together in a sweet chaste kiss.
After printing the pictures, saving the recordings, and inputting all of the measurements into Arizona's chart, the fetal surgeon turned and explained, "The boys are both measuring at 3.3 ounces and 4.4 inches long, which means they are weighing in at the average size." Instantly worried, Callie asked, "Is our, is she, what does that mean? Is our baby girl okay?" Arizona reached for her wife's hand and soothed, "She's fine honey. The boys' weight or size has no effect on her since they aren't sharing an umbilical cord or placenta. If they were, it would be a concern. But honestly, it's like you said, mommy is short and given my smaller frame, she probably takes after me and will be smaller. At this point, there's nothing to be concerned about because she is falling exactly where she needs to for the acceptable weight for a multiple." Max added, "Arizona is exactly right Cal, all of her blood tests look good, her blood sugar levels are perfect, her weight is exactly where it needs to be, the nausea has passed, her blood pressure and cholesterol are where they should be. Everything looks…" "DON'T SAY IT!" all three women commanded, forcing the man to take a step back in shock. Seeing his reaction, Addison apologized, "Um, sorry. It's just, where we come from, you don't say those things. They invite problems." Callie and Arizona nodded in agreement. Max started to laugh at their superstition, then the expressions on all three faces made him think twice and he simply nodded and replied, "Understood." All three women visibly relaxed, knowing they might sound crazy, but there was no need to tempt the universe to send karma out to play.
While Addison was cleaning up the equipment, Arizona asked Max, "What are you and Michael doing for Thanksgiving?" Max smiled, knowing they were about to receive an invitation and answered, "We usually spend the morning and early afternoon at the soup kitchen, then have dinner out." Callie, Arizona, and Addison all looked at one another and Callie asked, "How would you like a few extra volunteers?" Addie added, "There's a catch though." Max laughed, "There always is." Arizona suggested, "We bring the volunteers if you and Michael join us for an actual homecooked family Thanksgiving dinner later that evening." Max narrowed his eyes and asked, "Who exactly is cooking this dinner?" Callie laughed and asked, "Who isn't cooking?" She went on to explain, "Jake wants to try his hand at frying a turkey with Arizona's dad's help, Lorraine and Addie are preparing stuffing and sides for that. Arizona's mom is baking a ham and all the fixings with Dee's help. My mom, sister, Maria, and I are making some traditional Mexican dishes and Nicole is bringing dessert." Max looked at Arizona and asked, "What are you doing?" The blonde fetal surgeon pouted and muttered, "They won't let me do jack shit so I have declared myself the official taste tester." Callie chuckled at her wife and asked Max, "So do we have a deal?" The man smiled brightly and proclaimed, "Let me talk to Michael, the volunteers are certainly needed. Hopefully I can talk him into dinner. I don't want to sound ungrateful, but honestly, I just want a homecooked meal that wasn't made by a Michelin Star Chef." Addie shook her head and tsked, "Poor baby, such a rough life." Max laughed and quipped, "The things we sacrifice for love." All four of them laughed and left the examination room.
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Callie lay on the sofa in Arizona's office with her head resting in her wife's lap holding up the smallest avocado, turning it around in her hand. Arizona scratched at the stubble on the side of her head and asked, "What are you thinking?" Without turning, Callie answered, "I'm wondering if we need to give these to Sofia, I mean, taco Tuesday is tomorrow and it would save me from stopping at the grocery store." Arizona let out a bark of laughter, slapped her shoulder and scolded, "Calliope, you are not eating our babies." Callie rolled over on her back, stared into twinkling blue eyes and admitted, "I was thinking about how tiny they are, about how I could love them so much already. I talk to them every day and I never thought about what they might be doing in there while I'm talking you know. But I got to see it today. So now, every time I talk to them, I'll know that they really hear me, they are turning to listen to me. That my voice makes them calm and relaxes them." Arizona took Callie's hand, linked their fingers, rested them on her abdomen and revealed, "You make them feel safe, you make all of us feel safe. Your voice, your presence, it has that effect on all five of us Calliope. You are our safe place." Callie felt a warmth spread throughout her body. She loved that Arizona spoke her feelings so freely now and what she just said, it not only confirmed how much they had changed, but how much she herself had changed from the frantic, spur of the moment, self-absorbed person she used to be to the strong, trustworthy, stable, nurturer. She kissed the back of Arizona's hand and replied, "You're mine. Whenever I feel anxious, upset, angry, out of sorts, I just need to hear your voice, see your face, feel your touch, and it all just falls away." Arizona bent down for a kiss, started giggling when she couldn't reach and suggested, "I'm going to need you to meet me halfway here." Callie snorted, lifted her head, and captured full pink lips with her own.
Smiling into what was supposed to be a quick playful kiss, Arizona lifted her hand to the back of Callie's head to pull her closer as she became overwhelmed with emotion. Her heart was full of joy knowing that their babies were thriving, undying love for the woman in her arms, and endless hope for a future full of happiness with their four children. Deepening the kiss, she felt her wife's moan vibrate straight to her core as their tongues brushed against each other and the passion that always bubbled just below the surface was awakened and the kiss became needier, more passionate. The instant their lips met, Callie had to remind herself to keep it soft and chaste. She knew her emotions were running high after their appointment and actually seeing for herself how the babies responded to her, but the moment she felt Arizona's tongue slip through her lips, she knew she was lost, lost in her need for this woman, lost in her desire to show her how much she meant to her, how much she loved and appreciated her for housing their growing family.
Keeping their lips connected, Callie sat up so she was straddling her wife's lap and ran her fingers through the soft blonde curls at the nape of her neck. Arizona slipped her fingers through Callie's belt loops, pulling her even closer, then began slowly unbuttoning her shirt. She broke the kiss and licked a path up the tight abdomen that was right in front of her face, nibbled and sucked the sensitive skin under each breast, then gently clamped her teeth around one turgid nipple through the fabric of her bra. Callie let out a soft whimper, gripped Arizona's hair tighter, and threw her head back in ecstasy, thoroughly enjoying the pleasure her wife was giving her. She could already feel the moisture pooling at her core, smell their mixed arousal, and could only think of burying her fingers deep into her wife's tight channel, pleasing her, watching her come undone in her arms.
Arizona could feel Callie's fingers slipping under the waistband of her scrubs and wanted nothing more than to have those strong talented hands on her, inside her, and she wanted to feel Callie, to feel her moisture, to know she had the same effect on her wife. Lifting both hands to Callie's shoulders, Arizona guided her sideways and gently pushed her down until she lay on her back on the sofa. Making sure they weren't interrupted, Arizona hopped off the couch, locked the door to her office, toed off her shoes, and shimmied out of her pants and panties while Callie watched her through heavy-lidded desire filled eyes. Reaching down, she removed Callie's shoes and looked up to see her wife unfastening her pants. Leaning forward, she helped her remove them the rest of the way then took a brief moment to take in the long muscular caramel colored legs, the small neat patch of hair right about her glistening mound, the rippling abdominal muscles visible through the opening in her half buttoned crisp white shirt, the hardened nipples protruding from full pert breasts, and plump red lips forming that sexy smirk which was always her undoing.
Callie did her best to lie still and let Arizona look her fill, taking the time to admire her wife's body as well. Her fingers were itching to reach out and caress the soft alabaster skin of her long toned leg, slide around and grope her firm round ass, feel the long strip of tight curls brush against her bare skin, to slide her fingers through the creamy arousal she could see slowly making it's way down the sensitive skin of soft but muscular inner thighs. When she was finished with her exploration, she looked into bright blue eyes darkening with desire, held out her hand and whispered, "Come here baby. Let me love you." In that moment, they both understood that this wasn't just a quick coupling before work, it wasn't going to be a hard and fast fuck. This was going to be a joining of their bodies, a celebration of their love and their joy over the lives they were bringing into the world.
Taking Callie's hand for support, Arizona rested her right knee on the cushion next to Callie's left leg and balanced herself by standing on her left leg, straddling Callie's right leg. Looking into one another's eyes, Callie sat up, tugged on the hand in hers, pulled the blonde closer and connected their lips in a long searing kiss as their tongues slowly tangled together, their breathing becoming more labored, and their hands began to wander, to touch and caress the places only they knew that would ignite the fire, send the other higher, closer to euphoria. After allowing their hands to roam everywhere but where the other needed it the most, they instinctively moved their hands lower and slowly entered the other with two fingers, groaning in delight as they felt the tight channel of their wife's sex clench and pull at their fingers. Callie broke the kiss on a gasp as she felt Arizona's fingers curl inside her, instantly finding her most secret spot, the place only Arizona had ever been able to find and sent tremors through her body causing her to warn, "God, if you…mmmm…keep that up…oh fuck…I won't last." She dropped her head on Arizona's shoulder and growled when she received an evil chuckle in return.
Deciding to give as good as she got, Callie brushed her thumb over Arizona's engorged clit, feeling the fingers inside her falter slightly. Finished teasing one another, they found a slow gentle rhythm which both brought the other pleasure and expressed the emotions they felt swirling inside. Leaning forward, Arizona nibbled on Callie's bottom lip before connecting their lips, their tongues moving at the same pace as their rolling hips. Callie brought her free hand up to tangle in loose blonde curls, tightening her grip occasionally as Arizona's fingers pressed firmly into her g-spot then curled and brushed against her secret sensitive area, causing her hips to buck and her pace to quicken. Arizona cried out when Callie followed her lead and began to curl her fingers deep inside of her. Her entire body quivered in response to the touch and she found herself begging, "Again, oh God." Callie did as she was asked, this time not only curling her fingers but finding the exact spot that elicited her wife's earlier reaction and began thrusting into her relentlessly, making sure to brush against it each time. She watched as Arizona threw her head back, moaning and whimpering, digging her shortened nails into the skin at the back of Callie's neck. She had to fight her body not to give in, not to go over the edge and moaned, "Fuck baby, I'm so close."
Arizona's entire body was thrumming, she was on the verge of flying apart, all she needed to hear was Callie was close. Lifting her heavy head, she looked her wife in the eyes, saw the need for relief that rivaled her own, nodded once and whispered, "Now." Callie stared into her wife's eyes as they both brought their thumbs up to press down on the swollen bundle of nerves of their lover. It only took to the count of three before their bodies stiffened and jerked in each other's arms, their labored breathing and soft moans echoing throughout the otherwise quiet room. Their hands slowed at the same pace, bringing one another down slowly, sweetly. As they stilled their movements, their lips joined together in a soft sensual kiss while their bodies still hummed with the aftereffects of their simultaneous climax.
After a few minutes of holding one another, allowing their breathing to return to normal, their bodies to cool from their heated lovemaking, Arizona kissed the soft skin under Callie's chin and whispered, "I should let you get to work. Your patients will think you've been kidnapped." Callie smiled, kissed a sweat laden forehead, tasting the salt on her skin and returned, "I didn't schedule any appointments until this afternoon. I knew I wouldn't want to leave after seeing our babies. I never do." Thinking of something Arizona said during the appointment, Callie sat up and asked, "What did you mean when you said you've felt them since the first day I started talking to them? They weren't even little peanuts yet. How did you…" Arizona reached down and grabbed their clothes from the floor and they both started getting dressed. For a moment, Callie thought she wasn't going to get an answer until she saw the blush creep up smooth porcelain skin and understood her wife was slightly embarrassed to admit how she knew.
Arizona was trying to put what she felt and experienced into words without sounding like a crazy person and finally explained, "It's like I said, I didn't know it was them. The first few times, I just thought it was like that warm fuzzy feeling you get. Like, the love of my life is talking to our babies. As they grew, the feeling grew too. It was like this tingling feeling, that's how I always knew you were talking to them when I was sleeping. At first, I thought I had to pee or it was morning sickness. But now, whenever you are close, whether you are talking to them or not, its this warm tingly feeling. That's why I asked you to talk to them today, I wanted to see what they were doing that made me feel like that when you spoke to them." She looked up and saw Callie's eyes welling with tears and her voice cracked when she asked, "Wh-what were they doing when you felt it?" Arizona reached out, took both of her hands and replied, "They were turning into you, settling down, almost like they were trying to send you the love they could feel coming from you. So, it was the warm fuzzy feeling. It just wasn't coming from my heart; it was coming from theirs." Arizona watched as Callie's expression turned to one of pure wonderment and her eyes flickered from her own eyes, to her protruding abdomen, and back again. Callie couldn't keep the tears from falling and quietly stated, "They know who I am." Arizona nodded and proclaimed, "They know their mama. They know who you are honey."
Wrapping her wife up in her arms, Callie sighed, "Now I really don't want to go to work." Arizona laughed and reminded her, "We have a short week and a long weekend. We can make it." Callie groaned, stood up, fixed her clothes and muttered, "Fine, I'm going, but let it be known that it is under great protest." Arizona stood as well, wrapped her arms around Callie's back and commented, "Duly noted and for what it's worth, I don't want you to leave either." Callie stomped her foot and whined, "Don't say stuff like that!" Arizona laughed and leaned up to kiss the pout off Callie's lips when her pager went off. Looking down at the device, she said aloud, "911 mother and unborn baby both in distress, ambulance is 5 minutes out." Knowing that was her cue, Callie nodded, kissed her wife on the cheek and headed out the door with Arizona hot on her heals.
When the two reached the lobby, Addison was waiting by the door with a gown and gloves for Arizona. Just before she could walk out, the ambulance pulled up to the entrance and Callie stepped back out of the way so they could get the patient inside. Both Arizona and Callie were shocked when Jo jumped out of the back of the ambulance and ran straight to the fetal surgeon crying, "Arizona, please, you have to help…you have to save them, they are my whole world…you have to…" Though she had no idea what was going on, Arizona knew she had to get to that ambulance and assess Becca. She looked at Addie who was already moving in Jo's direction, but before Arizona or Addison could say a word, Callie stepped in, gently turned Jo around and soothed, "Arizona will do everything she can, but we have to let her work now. I know it's going to be hard, but I need you to take a deep breath and tell Dr. Montgomery what happened." Jo looked into two sets of concerned eyes, turned to watch as Arizona ran out to meet their wife's gurney and knew right away they made the right decision to come here.
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Callie and Addison guided Jo to the conference room so they couldn't see the EMT's bringing Becca in. Leaving the majority of the patient information blank for the time being, Addison asked Jo to explain in as much detail as possible what happened prior to them calling an ambulance. Jo put their head in their hands and closed their eyes trying to recall everything that happened and started, "Becca's been having Braxton-Hicks contractions on and off. So when she woke up this morning in pain, that's what…we both thought that's what it was. But the pain, it didn't go away. I mean, it didn't even subside like contractions are supposed to do. I called her regular OB and left a message because they weren't open yet. When they called me back, they told me she was out of town for the holiday." Jo stopped as the tears started to flow, they lifted their head, looked at Callie and added, "I thought…I thought maybe she slept wrong, it's so hard for her to get comfortable now, so I tried to help her up and…and…" they stopped again and started sobbing. At this point, Addie had no more information than she did when the ambulance first arrived. She was torn between letting the person talk, dragging what she needed to know out of them, or just going into the O.R. with Arizona and helping her figure it out.
Callie rubbed her friend's back and soothed, "Jo, I know this is hard, but Addie needs to know what symptoms Becca was having besides the pain. It will assist her and Arizona try to figure out what they need to do to help Becca and your baby." Jo nodded, sniffled and finished, "When I helped her up, she got really dizzy, collapsed in my arms. When I went to lay her back down, I noticed her shorts were soaked with blood." Addison furrowed her brow and asked, "Just her shorts? Was there any blood on the bed?" Jo shook their head and recalled, "No, when I stood her up, oh right, when I helped her stand up, before she collapsed, she let out this loud cry. I just thought…Did I do this? Did I make it worse?" Addison took Jo's hand and asked, "Jo, I need you to tell me exactly how long it was from the moment you saw the blood until you walked into this door." Jo furrowed their brow, looked down at their watch and replied, "Not more than 20 minutes, if that." Addison nodded, stood up, ran to the door, turned around and declared, "Don't go anywhere. Cal can call whoever you need. I'll send someone out as soon as I can."
Jo looked up at Callie and asked, "They can save her right?" Callie sighed, this was the part she hated about being a surgeon and being the wife of a surgeon. In her mind, Arizona was phenomenal and could do anything, so she wanted to answer with a resounding yes. She couldn't do that though, she learned firsthand, you don't make promises you know you can't keep. Looking into scared watery eyes, she gave the best answer she could, "Arizona and Addison are the best in their fields, they will do everything in their power to save your family." Jo blew out a breath of frustration, stood up and started pacing the room, they couldn't even begin to think what life would be like without their family.
Addison rushed out to the desk, asked Dee where Arizona took the patient, then ran up the stairs, taking two at a time until she reached the O.R. Without even scrubbing in, she put a mask over her face, opened the door leading from the scrub room and started to announce her theory when, without looking up, Arizona continued to frantically work on the patient and declared, "Uterine rupture, hang more O neg, get that incubator in here, scrub in Addie, I need your hands." Addison closed the door, started scrubbing in, and realized she should have known Arizona would have figured it out before she made it back in and thank God she did. If the timeline was correct, they only had another ten minutes to get that baby out of there. Busting through the door, she was quickly gowned and gloved, moved to Arizona's side and informed her, "We've got about ten minutes." Arizona nodded and replied, "I'm working on it. There's so much blood. Did she fall?" Addison shook her head and relayed all the details she could get out of Jo. Arizona sighed and asked, "So your timeline was from the moment she saw the blood to the time she arrived here?" Addison nodded and explained, "It was the best I could piece together. Jo said they tried to help her up and she screamed then passed out. When they tried to put her back to bed, that's when they noticed the blood on her clothes." Arizona glanced up and asked, "None on the bed?" Addie shook her head and Arizona relaxed slightly.
Her relief was short lived as the monitors flatlined and Addison moved to start compressions and hollered out, "Get the crash cart over here, charge to 200." Arizona finally found a clear path to the baby and without causing more damage to the uterus, she carefully cut the exposed amniotic sac and pulled her hands back as Addison commanded, "Clear," and the lifeless body jumped with the shock of the electricity flowing through her body. Everyone stood silent for a few seconds until the monitors started beeping again. Arizona commanded, "Clamps, I need to get this baby out of here now." As soon as Arizona removed the baby, the nurse clamped and cut the cord. As she passed by Addison, the taller fetal surgeon asked, "Any sign of movement?" Arizona replied, "None and her color is bad. Do you have mom?" Addison replied, "I've got her, go." Arizona nodded and rushed to the warming table with the lifeless baby girl in her arms.
Addison stepped into Arizona's spot and stared into the open womb. After removing the placenta and the remainder of the amniotic sac, she waited for the nurse to continue to suction all of the blood and fluid out while trying to decide her best plan of action. Knowing this was Becca's first child, it was clear there was no C-section scar which would have possibly led to a uterine rupture. Rather than focus on the cause, she had to now determine, and quickly, if she could save the uterus or if she would have to perform a complete hysterectomy. Looking at the damage done, she sighed, knowing that it was almost an inevitability. Even if she could repair it, the likelihood that Becca would carry another baby to term would be slim to none. It disheartened her even more to hear her friend and colleague continue to call out orders in her no nonsense, calm, and commanding tone, indicating there were still no signs of life from the baby and they were closing in on two minutes. Putting her head down, Addison focused on her own patient and began meticulously removing her uterus.
After trying manual ventilation, delivering the proper medications, and continuing to suction her nasal passage and lungs to no avail, Arizona was about to insert an intubation tube when the little baby's arm jerked upward and she let out a scream that would rival any she'd ever heard. She blinked as she stared down at the once bluish skin, not wanting to believe what she was seeing until a nurse stated, "She's pinking up Dr. Robbins-Torres." The blonde immediately put the earpieces of her stethoscope in her ears and heard her little heart thumping away. Deciding to weigh the baby and perform the Apgar tests herself, Arizona listened to her heart rate, checked her coloring on her fingers and toes, checked her reflexes, and nearly laughed when the sweet baby kept trying to pull away from her. Listening to her chest again, she heard a little rattle, but nothing abnormal for a newborn. She turned around to Addie and proclaimed, "7 pounds 10 ounces, Apgar is 8," and smiled when she heard, "Oh thank God. You really are the baby whisperer Robbins." Arizona laughed and corrected, "Robbins-Torres." She then looked to one of the scrub nurses and asked, "Can you take her into the NICU, get her shots and clean her up please? I want to keep her in there for observation at least overnight. I'll send her other parent up as soon as I've spoken to them." The nurse nodded, swaddled the baby up in a warm blanket, put her in a warming bed and moved her out of the O.R.
Arizona stepped up beside Addie, noticed what she was doing and commented, "That was my call too. I'm not sure what caused it, but she would have continued to have problems, especially if she tried to get pregnant again." Addie nodded and replied, "That was my thinking too. Did you want to go to the conference room to deliver the news to Jo while I finish up here?" Arizona took a deep breath and asked, "What's your prognosis?" Addie shook her head and replied, "I really can't say. She came in unconscious, we almost lost her once, she's stable now. We have no reason to believe that she won't wake up, it's just wait and see. I'll be done in about an hour. I'm going to put her on heavy antibiotics and want to keep her sedated for at least 24 hours." Arizona agreed with the assessment, nodded and offered, "Thanks Addison. I'm really glad you're here." The red head smiled behind her mask and teased, "I think you missed me." Arizona walked toward the door and quipped, "Nope, if you weren't here, I'd be doing that right now and my back is killing me." Addison's eyes twinkled and she joked, "Maybe you and Callie shouldn't work out together so much." Arizona laughed as she pushed her way through the scrub room door. There was no damn way she was giving up her 'work outs' with her wife.
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When Arizona opened the door to the conference room, she wasn't at all surprised to see that Jordyn and Stevie had joined Callie and Jo. When she stepped into the room and closed the door, Jo popped out of their chair and asked, "How are they, can I see them…did they…" The fetal surgeon smiled softly, took Jo's hand and led them back to the table. Taking a seat at the head of the table, Arizona asked, "Is it okay to talk about this in front of everybody?" Jo nodded, looked around and declared, "You're the only family I have, well…" They trailed off, still not knowing if the rest of their family was out of the woods yet. The blonde smiled and declared, "Well, not exactly, there's a 7 pound 10 ounce kicking screaming baby girl up in the NICU waiting to see her parent…" "Mada," Jo corrected with a huge proud grin on their face and tears in their eyes, then asked, "She's…she's okay?" Arizona took a deep breath and explained, "Becca had a uterine rupture, that means her uterine wall tore open. It is usually caused by a weak spot in the uterus such as a C-section scar, but in Becca's case, we can't determine the cause. Do you know of any other surgeries she may have had on her uterus?" Jo shook their head and explained, "No surgeries, but when she was younger, she was in a diving accident, slipped from the diving board and landed on the side of the pool, she had a concussion, broken hip, and some internal injuries. Arizona nodded in understanding, certain that may have been the cause of the weak uterine lining.
Looking around the table, she continued, "A uterine rupture can be fatal to both the mother and the baby if it's not caught in time. If we go from the timeline you gave Addison, we made it just under the wire. When your daughter was born, I had to ventilate her and get her heart going. In some cases, the lack of oxygen can cause brain damage to the baby. I've checked her over and all of her reflexes are good, her response time is good, she's extremely vocal, and at this time, she's showing no signs of brain damage, however I need you to know, it still may cause developmental delays." Jo nodded and asked, "But she's alive? She's healthy?" Arizona smiled and replied, "She's alive, she's healthy, and she is beautiful." Jo sagged in relief and asked, "What about Becca? How's my wife?" Arizona sobered and answered, "Addison is still with Becca. When she was brought in, she'd lost a great deal of blood. I had to give her a transfusion and we lost her once on the table." Jo cried, "Oh God," put their head in their hands, and started rocking back and forth.
Arizona put her hand on her friend's back and continued, "We got her back, but there was too much damage to her uterus Jo and Addie had to perform a hysterectomy. She's just finishing up now, but when I left, Becca was stable and we have no reason to believe that she won't make a full recovery. We have her on strong antibiotics because some of the amniotic fluids may have gotten into her blood stream and we'd like to keep her sedated for at least 24 hours. But as soon as we move her to her room, you can be with her. Right now though, there's a little baby girl waiting to meet her mada." Jo smiled at that and asked, "I can…I can go see her?" Arizona nodded and explained, you'll have to show your ID at the desk and get a bracelet, but you can go see her, she should be ready now. The others stood up, gave their friend a hug, congratulated them, then hugged Arizona and thanked her. Jo stood by the door with tears in their eyes and stated, "I don't…there's no words to tell you how grateful I am to you." Arizona smiled and replied, "You just did, now go see your baby." Stevie and Jordyn hugged Callie and Arizona telling them they had to get back to the salon, then made their way out the door as well.
Arizona slumped in her chair, ran her fingers through her hair, and sighed when Callie came up behind her to massage her neck and shoulders. After waiting in this room for nearly an hour with Jo, all Callie wanted to do was see her wife, hold her, know that she was okay. She bent down, kissed the top of Arizona's head and smiled when two pale hands covered hers. Arizona turned her chair around so she was facing her wife, looked up into concerned brown eyes and asked, "Are you okay?" Callie arched her brow in question, then realized her wife knew her too well, crouched down in front of her and admitted, "I know I was supposed to be supporting Jo, but I just…my mind kept wandering and I wondered what I would do if…" Arizona pulled her closer, placed a soft kiss on her lips and quietly offered, "I can't promise you nothing will happen. I can assure you that I was in excellent health before we got pregnant, I can tell you my wife is a stickler when it comes to what I put in my body, how much rest I get, and she takes very good care of me, I can swear to you that I will never do anything to put these babies or myself in harm's way."
Callie rested her forehead against Arizona's and whispered, "That's all I can ask." The blonde smiled, rubbed their noses together and replied, "You don't even have to ask that. It's a given. It's also perfectly natural to have the feelings you are having and I expect you to dote over me for at least two days." Callie laughed, stood up, and proclaimed, "You're ridiculous." Arizona stood up, wrapped her arms around Callie's neck and murmured, "But I'm right." Callie sighed, it was true, she didn't plan on letting her wife out of her sight as much as possible for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, she had to do so now or her administrative assistant was going to have her head. Brushing their lips together one last time, Callie pouted, "I guess I really have to go this time." Arizona nodded and replied, "Yeah, we should probably, you know, see patients today." Callie swatted her behind making her squeal, pulled herself away, then left the conference room to walk over to her center.
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Early Thanksgiving morning, Callie smiled in her half-conscious state when she felt warm lips leaving a trail of soft wet kisses from her shoulder to her neck and whined in protest when she heard, "Wake up sleepy head." Moaning, she rolled onto her back to find her gorgeous wife hovering over her, greeting her with that stunning smile and those dazzling cerulean blue eyes. Unable to hold back her own smile, she reached up, tucked a stray curl behind a soft pale ear and croaked out, "Good morning beautiful." Arizona bent down, kissed her softly, giggled and tried to squirm away when Callie tried to deepen the kiss and pull her down onto the bed. Callie pouted, "What time is it anyway?" Arizona groaned, "7:45 am because we had the brilliant idea to feed everyone breakfast before we went to the soup kitchen. I already hear momma up and around out there."
Callie sat up, stretched, and didn't miss the fact that Arizona's gaze dropped to her chest when the sheet slipped down to her waist. Smirking, she teased, "Eyes up here Robbins." Arizona narrowed her eyes, bent her head to wrap her lips around one of the quickly hardened buds, nipped at it with her teeth, making Callie gasp, and corrected, "Robbins-Torres. I told you; these are very effective disciplinary tools." Callie smacked her ass and rolled toward the edge of the bed asking, "Will you at least shower with me?" Arizona sat beside her, pecked her on the lips and replied, "Always. Will you wash my back?" Callie arched her sexy brow and asked, "Just your back?" Arizona stood, pulled Callie to her feet, wrapped her arms around her and flirted, "Well, I was hoping to get a little dirty before you washed the rest." Callie snaked one hand down between their bodies to the apex of Arizona's thighs and replied, "Hmmm I can definitely help with that." She leaned forward, brushed their lips together over and over again while guiding her wife backward toward the bathroom.
When the two women finally emerged from their bedroom, freshly showered, sexually sated, and dressed warmly in jeans and hoodies, Barb looked up from the center island where she was whisking a large bowl of eggs and declared, "Well look who finally decided to join us." Daniel looked up from his newspaper, smiled at the two women who both kissed him on his forehead as they passed, muttered, "Good morning," then returned to his reading. Arizona furrowed her brow and asked, "Where did you get the newspaper?" Barb scoffed and stated, "You know you're father, he can't go one day without reading an actual paper. He ran down to the market to get it and I put him to work picking up more milk, juice, bread, and eggs while he was at it." Callie laughed, went to the cupboard to grab her coffee mug and asked, "We didn't have enough? We just went grocery shopping for everything on our lists yesterday." Barb shook her head and replied, "I decided to make my breakfast casserole so we would have enough to feed everyone instead of having to make a pile of pancakes." Callie nearly swooned, "Oh my gosh, I haven't had that since…" She stopped, tried to figure out exactly the last time she had her mother-in-law's breakfast specialty and Barb supplied, "The Christmas after Sofia was born. Trust me dear, it's only gotten better." Callie poured her coffee and asked, "What can we do to help?"
While Callie browned the sausage and Arizona cut up the vegetables, Barb said, "Now tell me again how this is going to work." Callie chewed on the pepper Arizona just popped into her mouth and explained, "You, Daniel, Dee, Lorraine, my mom, Nicole, and Julie will stay here and start prepping for dinner while the rest of us serve lunch at the kitchen, then we will come home and finish helping. We figured we'd shoot for dinner at around 6 o'clock." As they put the casserole together, Daniel asked, "Callie have your parents arrived yet?" Callie shook her head and replied, "No, they were flying in this morning and coming straight here from the airport. They didn't want to be anywhere near the hotel or the downtown area today because of the parade." Just then, they heard little footsteps pounding through the house, "Oh the parade, can we watch it?" They all looked up to see Sofia running out of her room with Tobin right behind her, barking excitedly as if he wanted to see the parade too. As soon as he saw Arizona, he scurried up to her, licked her toes and settled in right by her feet. Callie shook her head and rolled her eyes at the little pup and just to irritate him leaned in to give Arizona a kiss on the cheek and rub her belly. They all laughed when he went into protector mode, attacked Callie's pantleg and started growling at her.
Daniel got up to turn the television on for Sofia, watched the interaction, then saw the moment his wife put things together and gasped, "You were pregnant when you first got him!" Arizona's cheeks turned beet red, knowing she was about to get scolded for not telling her mother the instant she knew, and replied, "We had just found out and wanted to wait for a while before we said anything." Barb shook her head and tsked, "Well that explains why you two ran out of here that day like your shoes were on fire." Callie laughed remembering the day Barb told the story about her old dog not wanting Daniel near her when she was pregnant for Arizona and how they both rushed out of the house before the older woman started asking questions and replied, "That would be it." Grey-blue eyes narrowed at both of them and she laughed when Arizona rubbed her stomach and declared, "Joke was on us though, we wanted to wait until the end of the first trimester and these guys decided to share our secret four weeks early."
All of them looked up when the patio door opened and Addison and her family entered the dining room. Seeing that Sofia was watching the parade, Henry kicked off his shoes and darted into the living room to watch with her. Arizona looked at Addie and asked, "Did I just hear your car pull up?" Addison nodded her head and replied, "Yeah I just got back from checking on Becca to see how she was feeling. Since you gave the okay for Noel to be released from NICU as soon as Becca was ready, I thought it would be nice to give them a little family holiday together." Callie nodded and asked, "How is she?" Addie sighed and replied, "She's showing no sign of infection, so I signed off on Noel joining her. She's in a lot of pain, thrilled that her baby is happy and healthy, but heartbroken over the hysterectomy. They always wanted a houseful of kids. I have the therapist coming to talk to her on Monday." Arizona blew out a relieved breath and proclaimed, "I'm sure that has to be hard, I know she doesn't want to hear it now, but there are so many other ways they can have children." The red head nodded in agreement as she looked into the living room at her son.
Callie watched Barb pull the casserole out of the oven and went to the cupboard to take down the plates and start setting the table. Arizona popped bread into the toaster and suggested, "Help yourselves to some coffee, we need to finish that one off and start a new pot." Addison grumbled, "Sure, give us the old crap and save the fresh stuff for the real company." Arizona laughed, kissed her friend on the cheek and replied, "Oh, I'm certain you'll have your go at the first cup often enough." Addison laughed, poured the last of the coffee for her and Jake, filled the carafe with water, started a fresh pot, then asked, "So when are we leaving?" Callie turned to answer, but was cut off by the doorbell, then Sofia's loud squeals when she saw her Abuela, Abuelo, and Tia Aria walking through the door. Callie went to greet her parents and was surprised to see her father wearing a pair of jeans with a nice sweater rather than his ever present business suit. She kissed both of her parents and her father asked, "Where should we put all of this?" Callie looked in the bags, pointed to Barb and declared, "She's the head chef today." Then she turned to her mother-in-law and reminded her, "If we run out of room in here, I think there might be a little space left in Addie and Jakes fridge." Barb nodded, greeted the Torres' with her bright smile and a hug, then helped them put everything away.
Once everyone else arrived and they were all seated around the table, as well as the smaller table they had to set up in the kitchen for Bella, Henry, and Sofia, they started passing the two separate dishes of Barb's casserole around, along with the fresh fruit, toast, and other sides. While the adults were talking about their plans and deciding who would be riding with whom, Sofia approached the table for more toast and juice and asked, "What's a soup kitchen? Why are we passing out soup? Shouldn't we be giving people turkey since it's Thanksgiving?" Hearing their friend's questions, questions they themselves were too embarrassed to ask, Henry and Bella walked to the table with their empty glasses as well so they could hear the answer. Callie poured her daughter's juice and explained, "A soup kitchen is a place that homeless people and other families who don't have enough money to buy food go to get a hot meal. It's called a soup kitchen, because a long time ago, when they first started seeing a need for these places, soup was the easiest, cheapest, and most filling food to feed a large group of people. But now, all kinds of food is served there. Today, thanks to Max and Michael and many people who donated food and money, they will all be getting a hot Thanksgiving Dinner along with a few supplies to take with them. We are helping out today because there are a lot of people who don't have what we have and we always need to remember how lucky and blessed we are."
All three kids took in what Callie said and Henry asked, "There are people who don't have houses?" Addie nodded and asked, "Remember that man who sits on the corner by our clinic and daddy always takes him lunch?" Henry nodded and Jake explained, "His name is Rick and he used to be a soldier and fight for our country, but when he got back from war, he was really sick and lost his house and his family. So I take him lunch everyday to show him how grateful I am that he did what he did." Henry scowled and asked, "Who will take him lunch now?" Addie smiled at her son, ran her fingers through his hair and answered, "We made sure to give Uncle Sam enough money to cover his lunches before we left." Henry smiled then and asked, "Will they let us help too?" Bella chimed in, "I can pass out napkins and help clean up." Sofia offered, "Me too. I want to help." All of the adults around the table looked at the three children proudly, grateful for the opportunities they were given that allow them to fulfill all their needs, but also thrilled to see what big hearts they had.
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Four hours later, Daniel and the women who had been left behind had finished with the breakfast clean up and as much of the dinner preparation as they could, some of the food was already in the oven and they were sitting around drinking iced tea, laughing, and fawning all over Julie who only had five weeks left to go in her pregnancy. Lucia placed a cup of juice and a small plate of fruit in front of the young girl and asked, "So do you have a name picked out for the little one yet?" Julie smiled, rubbed her vary large stomach and replied, "I do, but…I'd kind of like to keep it a secret for now. I mean, I'll share, I just want the other's to be here too." The older woman smiled and replied, "Fair enough. How have you been feeling?" Julie laughed and replied, "Like a huge a balloon ready to pop." All of the other women joined in, sharing stories of their own pregnancies and how much things have changed since they gave birth to their children. Julie looked at Lucia and Barb, listening intently to their stories and it hit her that two of the children they were talking about had grown up to become two of the most important people in her life, they were the reason she was still alive and had a baby to complain about. She felt the tears stinging the backs of her eyes and was relieved when the door leading from the garage burst open and their conversation was cut short with a flurry of noise which included Tobin barking to greet his family home.
As soon as they walked in the door, everyone took off their coats and boots, then piled into the kitchen where Barb was already pouring them all cups of hot cocoa. Lorraine smiled at the three little ones and asked, "So what did you think?" All three faces dropped and Henry supplied, "There were kids just like us there and some of them didn't even have coats." Bella nodded and added, "One little girl who looked like me and Sofia had an old doll with one eye." Sofia proclaimed, "They were all so hungry and looked so tired." Carlos' heart broke for all of the children he saw that morning, bent down, took Sofia in his arms and looked at the other two children who were also highly effected and asked, "What would you three think about helping Abuelo make their Christmas a little more special than their Thanksgiving?" All three children stood up straight and asked, "Really? How?" Carlos clapped his hands together and declared, "We, we can start by going shopping tomorrow and you can help me pick out all kinds of nice warm coats, hats, mittens, and scarves and we can drop them off with Mr. March. Then in a couple of weeks, I will come pick you up and we can go out and buy them all kinds of presents. Nice warm clothes, blankets, and we can get your new friend a brand new baby. Would you like that?" The three children threw their arms around the older man and Henry declared, "You could be Santa and we could be your elves." The two girls cheered and the three ran off into Sofia's room to make a list of things they wanted to buy.
Michael came up behind him and declared, "You really don't have to do that Mr. Torres." Carlos waved him off, "Carlos please, and I believe I do. I remember my parents telling me how little they had when they first moved here. They had no family, lived wherever they could find shelter, and prayed for Saturday to come so they could get a hot meal at the soup kitchen. They worked hard and still barely had enough to scrape by. I believe it is the same for many of these families. I spoke to several people today who worked on Wall Street, served our country, worked in the medical field, and all it took was one bad investment, one injury, one lay off, and they found themselves on the streets. God willing, those three little ones and my future grandchildren won't know that life, but I want them to know of it, I want them to see how fortunate they are now, I want them to never take for granted the things they have, and I want them to understand, if we have extra to give, then we do so." Michael nodded, swallowed the lump in his throat and responded, "Well thank you. I know they will all appreciate it and you're right, it's good to give kids these experiences and help them understand how the world works."
Once dinner was prepared and everyone seated, Carlos cleared his throat and declared, "I'm not sure how many of you start your holiday meals, but if you would indulge me, I'd like to say grace before we continue." Everyone nodded their heads, joined hands, and listened as the elder Torres gave his thanks for the meal, the company, and his ever-growing family. As they passed the food around and fixed their plates, Daniel spoke up and shared, "It's always been a tradition in our family to go around the table and tell everyone what we are thankful for. If it's okay with you Callie and Arizona, I'd like to do that as well." Both women nodded and Daniel suggested, "Why don't one of you start first?" Arizona looked to Callie and nodded, indicating she should start, then giggled when her wife glared at her knowing she didn't like speaking to large groups.
Taking her wife's hand, Callie looked around the table, then into the eyes she loved so much and started, "I told Arizona this a few months ago and only feel stronger about it now. When this year started, "I was virtually alone, I had Lorraine and Maria and her family, for which I am extremely grateful, you all have truly become my family. Now I have Sofia back and Arizona, my beautiful Arizona who I can once again call my wife, and along with her I have my second parents, Daniel and Barb, whom I've missed so much. On top of that, I have my mother and sister back in my life, Addie, Jake and Henry are here with us, we have new friends who have become our family, and most importantly, we have three tiny little humans on the way. For all of that, for all of you, I am truly thankful." She leaned over, kissed Arizona on the cheek, and wiped the stray tear from her eye.
Arizona sniffled, looked at Callie, and laughed, "My wife kind of stole my thunder there. So I will say she speaks for both of us. We are truly thankful for our family, blood and chosen." She then looked to Callie and declared, "I am so thankful for you, for your kind and forgiving heart, for the love you show me every day." Callie smiled, kissed her forehead, then looked to Daniel. The older man looked around the table, then to his daughter and declared, "I am thankful for my daughter, for how far she's come. I'm thankful to you Callie for always loving her, bringing the best out in her, and for being the woman Barb and I always hoped she'd find one day. I'm thankful for my lovely wife, my beautiful granddaughter, and the three on the way." He turned to Jake who blushed and joked, "You people really know how to give speeches." Everyone at the table laughed and Barb tossed out, "It's a Robbins trait." The younger man smiled and stated, "I am thankful for my family, for the opportunity to be here with all of you, and for the chance to learn how to fry a turkey." They all chuckled and Addison looked around, took a sip of her wine and stated, "I'm thankful there's enough wine to get me through all this sappy crap." She took another drink, huffed as she saw all eyes were still on hers and sighed, "And I'm thankful for my handsome and amazing husband who agreed to come out here so Arizona could have the best doctor in the country." Everyone started laughing and Max exclaimed, "Excuse me, the best doctor in the country was already here." Arizona piped in, "Yeah, but I can't exactly deliver my own babies." Again the table burst into laughter and the small speeches continued.
When they got to Nicole, she proclaimed, "First, I am thankful I don't have to see all of your tears during these little speeches." Then she turned her head to where she heard Arizona's voice coming from earlier and finished sincerely, "I'm also thankful for my protégé, my business partner, and my friend. You've saved me in more ways than one and I truly appreciate that. I am also thankful for my new roommate because now I don't eat dogfood for breakfast." Barb looked at Arizona and she mouthed, "I'll tell you later." Lucia looked around the table, she had been nervous for her turn, she didn't share her feelings often, but since everyone was been so open, she knew she needed to be as well. She looked at Callie and stated, "I am thankful that I finally opened my eyes and my heart and saw how wrong I have been all these years. I am grateful to Arizona and Calliope for welcoming me into their home and accepting me so freely. I am immensely thankful for my four grandbabies and can't wait to spoil them all."
She looked to her left to see Julie chewing nervously on her bottom lip and whispered, "It's okay dear, we're all family." Julie felt the tears spring to her eyes and nodded, then started softly, "Th-that's what I'm thankful for. Like Cal, I started this year alone, just me and Kim. Now, we sit here surrounded by all of you who have welcomed us into your lives, into your homes, and have given us the family we never thought we'd have." She put her hand over her belly and finished, "Most especially, I am thankful for Nicholas Calvin Robert Crowe and hope I can show him half the love you've all shown me." Everyone stared at her in silence for a moment, Callie and Arizona both had tears running down their cheeks, and Nicole's voice cracked as she asked, "Nicholas?" Julie nodded and explained, "If it weren't for you, I'd probably be at that soup kitchen today and Cal and Arizona, if it weren't for you, I may not be here at all, or I may not have kept my baby, so, um, if it's okay with all of you, I'd like to name him after the people who cared enough to keep us alive, to give us a chance." Everyone at the table had tears in their eyes, even more so when Nicole opened her arms and declared, "You're hugging me now." Julie chuckled, got up from her chair and threw herself into the arms of the cantankerous woman who had become like a mother to her. She then walked around to hug Callie and Arizona who both thanked her for the honor.
As soon as Julie sat down, they all heard a large crash and turned to the center island to see what happened and heard the three kids yell, "Tobin NO!" Callie turned around in time to see the little pup struggling to drag the ham bone which was almost as big as he was across the dining room floor into the living room. She started to stand up to chase the dog when Aria stood up from behind the island and declared, "Apparently Tobin is thankful for whoever left the plate sitting on the tea towel so he could pull it down." Everyone laughed and watched as Callie tried to play tug of war with the little pup then decided to give up and went back to enjoy her meal.
After dinner, Arizona sat on the overstuffed chair observing the interactions around her. Her eyes kept darting back to Callie who was almost glowing with happiness and contentment. She felt that same little flutter every time her joyful laugh flowed throughout the room. She watched as the children wrestled with Tobin, their parents sat around the table drinking coffee, Aria, Maria and Addison stood at the counter sneaking shots, Jake, Michael, and Max were yelling at football game on the television, Julie and Kim were huddled in a corner, and she couldn't help but think about their honeymoon and the time they spent at the Ortiz Hacienda. When she glanced from her wife to her mother-in-law, she saw those piercing brown eyes looking at her as if she were reading her thoughts, then nodded her head toward the office. Lucia smiled, excused herself, and joined Arizona in her office, slightly intrigued by her request.
Once they were inside, Arizona closed the door and offered the elder Torres a seat. Lucia waited until Arizona sat down and asked, "Is everything okay dear?" Arizona nodded and started, "I was just, I love seeing Calliope like this, so happy surrounded by the people she loves and I was just thinking about our honeymoon, the time we spent with your family. As happy as she is now, it was so much…I don't know, it's like she was a different person." Lucia nodded and replied, "Calliope always loved being there. She was enamored by the culture, the old world traditions, to her, it was always home." Arizona nodded and replied, "I want to give her that." Lucia furrowed her brow and asked, "You want to go back to Mexico?" The blonde smiled and replied, "I want to give her a home in Mexico that we can go to. I want our children to have what she had, to know their roots, to understand their culture and not just the Americanized version of it." The older woman smiled brightly and asked, "Can I assume you already have a plan?" Arizona smiled her super-magic smile, popped her dimples and asked in return, "Don't I always?"
A/N: You all are amazing. Your reviews truly keep me going. I know, this was another chapter with a lot going on. In my mind, when I watch the earlier seasons of GA, this is what I see when I hear Callie talking about their future together. I picture their house as the gathering place and the two of them being the core of their friend group.