Though Callie wasn't nearly the expert at reading fetal ultrasounds as her wife and best friend, she knew it didn't take a world class fetal surgeon to understand what she was looking at. Her vision blurred with unshed tears as she stared at the monitor, consumed with fear. She could clearly see that their little Rainbow had wiggled her way front and center as earlier predicted by her wife, but what none of them could have anticipated was that she was turned completely around and her little head was resting on Arizona's cervix, just millimeters from entering the birth canal. While she knew her wife wouldn't carry to term, they were still nearly three weeks away from the anticipated due date and if what she suspected was true, their babies could be born nearly ten weeks early. Suddenly feeling her fears from the night before returning ten-fold, Callie turned to an equally stunned Arizona and already knew her suspicions were correct. Still needing confirmation, she managed to stammer out, "Honey, does that mean…is that…" Tearing her gaze away from the screen, wondering how she didn't recognize all the symptoms she was experiencing; Arizona released her death grip on Callie's hand, lifted it to caress her warm soft cheek, pulled her down so their foreheads were touching and confirmed, "That means Sofia might get her birthday wish after all." Feeling her knees go weak once again, unsure if she was excited or terrified by that prospect, Callie let out a strangled laugh and repeated, "Oh boy!"
Sofia had been sitting quietly, trying to see if she could make out her babies and giggled when her Aunt Addie said something about the baby's butt. She never understood why adults got all silly about babies, especially their butts and feet. She sat up a little straighter in her chair and tried not to worry when her mommy used her doctor voice and asked Addie to move the wand. But when Addie said, "Oh boy," and her mama started to get that high squeaky voice and couldn't even finish her sentences, she felt butterflies in her tummy and was scared something was happening to her babies. When nobody said anything and they all stared at the monitor like they were surprised by something, she started to get scared. Her eyes darted back and forth from her mama to her mommy, who were both crying, and her head snapped up when she heard her mommy say she might get her birthday wish. She scrunched up her face in confusion, wondering what a new bike had to do with this, then remembered telling her mommies she wanted the babies to come on her birthday…and all the reasons why it wasn't safe for them to come, and shrieked, "WHAT?"
Popping out of the chair, she rushed to stand in front of her Aunt Addie and scolded, "But you said it would be weeks!" She then turned on her mommy and accused, "You said it was too soon! You can't have them yet." Running her hands through her hair, she shook her head, then crossed the room as she muttered, "They can't come this soon, they're too little, and, and…they need to cook longer. Mommy said they need to cook longer!" Reaching the sink, she turned around, walked towards her mommies, threw up her arms and squealed, "They need to be big and strong! What if they come out and they're little and scared and need their big sister and I can't even be with them because you never let me go see the sick babies." She then turned on her heels and came face to face with Max who was just standing there and because no one else was moving or saying anything, she glared at him, poked him in the stomach, and commanded, "Do something!"
Startled by the outburst, both women watched in fascination as their daughter unknowingly voiced all of their own concerns as she frantically paced the room, perfectly channeling her brunette mother. Suddenly understanding why people became so concerned when she went into one of her rants, Callie stared at the miniature version of herself, leaned toward Arizona, and whispered, "That's all me. I think I broke our child." Both women glared at Addie when she muttered, "I thought for sure this would be Cal. It's not nearly as entertaining when Sofia does it." Seeing that once again, no one wanted to cross the path of a Torres on a tirade, Arizona huffed, brushed the wand away, hastily wiped the gel from her stomach, lowered her shirt, then looked at Callie and commanded, "Help me down, I have a little practice in this area." Relieved and not at all embarrassed to admit it was true, Callie reached out, assisted her to her feet, and stood behind her for both physical and moral support as they stepped in their daughter's path and waited for her to turn around once again.
Looking down at the floor, still muttering, though now having moved on to all the preparations that needed to be made, Sofia stopped just short of barreling into her mommy's belly. She knew she would probably get into trouble for yelling at everyone, but she didn't care because she was scared for her babies. Arizona reached out, calmly ran her hands through Sofia's hair and cooed, "Sofia, look at me big girl." She watched as her daughter slowly lifted her head, revealing big, tear-filled, milk chocolate eyes, which so resembled her other mother, wiped the tears from her cheeks with the pad of her thumb, and quietly soothed, "We need you to settle down sweet girl, there's no need to get yourself all worked up." Feeling her mommy's soft touch, hearing the gentle tone, Sofia looked from her mommy to her mama who was nodding and smiling at her, and started to relax. Taking a deep breath like she'd heard her mommy tell her mama whenever she got upset, she put both hands on her mommy's big belly and nervously asked, "Are they…Are you all going to be okay?" Touched, but not at all surprised by their daughter's fierce protective instinct, Callie reached out caressed her other cheek, looked at Arizona and suggested, "Let's get mommy back into the chair so Aunt Addie and Max can take another look, and then we can answer that question." Still concerned, and not at all happy with that answer, which really wasn't an answer, Sofia bit her bottom lip to keep it from trembling, and stepped aside so her mama could help her mommy back into the chair.
Instead of sitting down herself, Sofia stood next to her mama, reached for her hand, looked up, and asked, "Mama, aren't you scared?" Knowing she couldn't lie to her daughter even if she wanted to, Callie got on one knee so she could look her in the eye, squeezed her hand, and admitted, "There is a part of me that's scared. I know it's a little early for the babies to come and the part of me that remembers how little you were when you were born, how much more careful we had to be with you makes me worry. But do you know how I keep myself from being scared?" Sofia shook her head and asked, "How mama? Cuz I need to not be scared right now." Callie looked up at Arizona, reached for her hand, linked all their fingers together, and revealed, "Whenever I get worried, I remember that Aunt Addie and your mommy were the one's who brought you into this world and gave you life, and just knowing that they will be the same people bringing your brothers and sister into the world, makes me feel better. It makes me believe that even if they are early, they will be given the best care possible. Then I look at you and see how big and strong you've gotten and I know that one day they will be as big and strong as you are now."
Feeling better that she wasn't alone in her fears and that her babies were going to be safe, Sofia looked at her mommy's belly and declared, "Plus they have something I didn't." Callie arched her brow in question and asked, "What's that?" Sofia stood up tall, straightened her shoulders, brought her thumb to her chest, and proclaimed, "Me. They have a big sister who will help take care of them and keep them safe." Both women chuckled at their daughter's antics, relieved to see she was feeling just a little better, and Arizona answered, "That's right! They have the best big sister in the whole world." Smiling brightly, she wrapped her arms around her mama's neck and whispered, "Thank you mama, I'm not so scared anymore." Callie pulled back, winked at her daughter, and replied, "It's okay to be scared. We just can't let it stop us remember?" Sofia nodded then looked at her mommy and asked, "Are you scared mommy?" Arizona looked at her wife, eyes glistening with unshed tears, and answered, "Not anymore, mama made me feel better too."
Standing up, Callie helped Arizona get situated again, carefully washed her stomach, reheated the gel, handed it to Addie, then took her place next to her wife, wrapping an arm around her shoulder, providing them both with much needed comfort. After spreading the gel around Arizona's stomach with the wand, Addison placed it in the exact position where they'd seen the baby girl earlier and tapped the keyboard to turn on the camera. When the babies came into view, she pointed at the screen and explained, "As we've all concluded, little Miss Rainbow is being impatient, just like her mama, and wants to come meet her family. She is in what we call the right anterior position, meaning that her body is turned around completely, her head is down, and her back is aligned with the inside of mommy's tummy. That's what tells us that she's ready to come out very soon." Still worried despite what she told her daughter, Callie squeezed Arizona's hand and asked, "How soon?" Seeing Addison was allowing her to field this question, Arizona shook her head and answered, "It's hard to know for sure honey. If they keep moving around the way they have been, it could be a few days. If something stalls, it could be another week or two. They'll come when they are ready, unless…unless we decide to have a C-section." Addison nodded in agreement and added, "Which is why the two of you need to finalize your birthing plan and let us know as soon as possible."
Knowing that was a private conversation for later, Callie nodded in understanding then looked to her friend and asked, "What about the boys? They obviously moved too." Addison quickly took the measurements she needed, moved the wand to Arizona's left side where the boys were usually positioned, saw that she could only see their heads now, looked up and declared, "What we are looking at now Sofia, is your brothers. Do you remember how they used to be up here next to Rainbow and they all looked like they were sitting upright?" Sofia nodded and giggled, "They were sitting crisscross applesauce." Recognizing the phrase spoken by Callie shortly after the move, the two women shared a soft smile and Arizona continued, "That's right, but now they are lying in what is called the transverse position. That means they are on their backs lying sideways across mommy's tummy and Rainbow is lying on top of them." Sofia turned to look at her mommy and asked, "Is she hurting them?" Arizona smiled and replied, "No baby, she isn't hurting them. It just makes things a little uncomfortable for me and that's why it looks my belly grew a little bit."
Satisfied that she had a much clearer picture of what was going on, Addison finished her measurements, printed off what was sure to be the last of the ultrasound images, then turned up the volume so she could hear all three heartbeats. As soon as the strong rhythmic thumping filled the room, everyone went quiet and focused on the sound. Knowing she had their attention, Addison placed the wand in its holder, smiled and looked at Arizona and declared, "I'm sure I don't have to tell you this, but as soon as little miss fully drops, you will be entering the early stages of labor. If I had to make a guess, I'd say the back pains you are experiencing are Braxton-Hicks." Arizona snorted and mumbled, "How could I have missed all the signs?" Max teased, "Because you aren't thinking like a fetal surgeon right now, just a mom who is about to give birth."
Addison nodded in agreement and continued, "Everything looks good though. It appears that my little niece is weighing in at 2 pounds and 10 ounces and measuring 10 and a half inches long." Both Callie and Arizona sighed in relief, knowing the average birthweight of triplets is 3 to 4 pounds and the odds of having healthy babies was in their favor. Arizona looked at Sofia and said, "Your sister is healthy and weighing exactly what she should at this point." Addie smiled and added, "Your brothers, on the other hand, are greedy little buggers and Aggie weighs 3 pounds while Tulio weighs 3 pounds and 4 ounces. They are both 11 and a half inches long." They both knew their babies were still very small in comparison, however Callie felt her insides fill with warmth when Arizona looked at her, eyes full of love, squeezed her hand, and commented, "They're going to be tall like their mama."
Realizing they were just about finished and if they weren't, Arizona could answer any questions she had, Callie started to remove the draping, but Arizona caught her hand, looked to Addison and requested, "Addie can you leave that on?" Callie and Addie both looked at Arizona in question and she explained, "I ah…" her gaze shifted to Sofia, and she continued, "I'd like to look at something on the computer." Getting the hint, Max turned to the little girl and asked, "Hey Sofia, how would you like to go up to the nursery and see the babies with me?" Sofia clapped excitedly, turned to her moms and asked, "Can I go? Please?" Callie and Arizona both nodded and watched while their daughter ran out of the room with Max not far behind. Just before he closed the door, Max leaned in and said, "I'm sure you already know this, but as your doctor, I am officially placing you on maternity leave." Before Arizona could respond, he closed the door behind him and laughed to himself when he heard Addie's muffled voice calling out that he was a chicken shit. Looking around, he quickly pulled out his phone and sent of a message he knew was sure to throw 4 excited women and his husband into a frenzy of accelerated planning, but it needed to be done.
Addison shook her head at her colleague's hasty exit and yelled out, "Chicken shit!" letting him know she wasn't happy to be left alone to fight with their extremely independent patient about the issue. Arizona sighed, leaned back on the chair, took Callie's hand, then looked at Addison and stated, "I already know I'm done working, I knew that this morning." Addison nodded and confirmed, "I was going to suggest that, yes. I also wanted to talk to you about the possibility of partial…" She trailed off when Arizona held up her hand to stop her and interjected, "I know that too. I asked you to keep the ultrasound on because I want to take another look at the boys, see where they are sitting and have Cal look at my spine. We were going to go over to her center afterward, but if I'm being honest, that just seems too…daunting right now." Instantly concerned by both her wife's words and her resigned tone, Callie turned to Arizona, studied her face, and worriedly asked, "Are you in pain?" Arizona shook her head and answered, "No honey, I'm just exhausted and very uncomfortable and all I've done is sit here. I thought maybe we could take another look while we are here and see if there is even anything you can do about the pain and cramping." Callie nodded in understanding and leaned down to kiss her wife's cheek, trying to offer what comfort she could.
Understanding that this part really had nothing to do with her and feeling the solemnity settle over the room, Addison stood up and declared, "I think you two have this under control and thanks to my little niece's antics, I'm going to be late for my surgery. So if it's okay, I'll head out." Grateful, Arizona nodded and replied, "Thanks Addie, is there anything else we need to know?" The redhead tilted her head as she thought about it and realized that though her friend was a stubborn and independent woman, she knew all the risks and would never do anything to jeopardize the health of her babies. Shaking her head, she answered, "Nothing that you don't already know. You are aware of the risks and you know what your body can handle. I would still like you two to take some time to firm up your birthing plan and let me know if anything has changed." With that, she blew them both a kiss and left the room. As soon as the door clicked shut, Callie placed both hands on the chair beside Arizona, dropped her head and let out a shaky breath, trying to regain control of her emotions.
Seeing that her wife was struggling, Arizona lifted her hand to rub the stubble on Callie's head and whispered, "Talk to me Calliope. Tell me what you are thinking." Callie felt the tears sting the backs of her eyes, blinked to release them, deciding to let them flow, looked into her wife's eyes and answered, "I think…I think everything is just catching up to me now; all of it, and I'm scared to death Arizona." Pulling back, Arizona looked into Callie's frightened tear-filled eyes, lifted her hand to swipe at the tears and asked, "What are you afraid of honey?" Callie closed her eyes, not wanting to speak her fears aloud, shook her head and whispered, "I don't want to say, I don't want to put it out there." Arizona furrowed her brows in confusion, understanding why Callie wouldn't tell her, pulled her so their foreheads were touching and soothed, "You can tell me, I'm pretty sure I'm worrying about the same things." Callie sighed and admitted, "I just…I'm scared for you Arizona. The closer we get to delivery, the more scared I get, and now…knowing it could be any day, it scares the shit out of me. Knowing how small they are…how small you are…there's three babies honey, there will be more pain and the chance for more complications and more…just more everything. I didn't want to say it because I didn't want to speak it into existence."
Understanding her wife's fears completely, knowing that while they weren't the same, they were related, Arizona revealed, "I'm scared too." Leaning forward, Callie brushed their lips together and whispered, "Tell me what you are afraid of." Resting her head on Callie's chest, Arizona closed her eyes and shared, "I'm afraid that when it comes time to deliver, I won't be strong enough, that my body will give out. I feel like it's already failing me in some ways. I just, I…we wanted to try to have them naturally and I still do. But I don't want to get halfway through and fail them…fail you." "Hey, no baby, none of that. I wish you would have said something. If that's what you're afraid of, if you want to have a C-section, then that's what we will do. This is your body; this is your decision." Callie tried to soothe. Arizona shook her head and argued, "These are our babies, this is our decision."
Leaning back, Callie lifted her hand, caressed Arizona's cheek, gently tilted her head so they were seeing eye to eye, and firmly stated, "And I will be able to see them being born either way. My primary concern is your health and that of our babies. Quite honestly, hearing you scream, curse my name, and watching you in pain for several hours, isn't on my top ten list of things to do." Arizona snorted and teased, "Oh, it won't just be you I'm cursing, I'm sure I'll have a few choice words for Mark as well." Callie laughed at that and replied, "As entertaining as I'm sure that will be, I'd much rather you and our babies are safe and if you're already worried about that, then let's put both of our minds at ease and schedule the C-section." As tempting as that sounded, Arizona stood her ground and asked, "Can we uh, can we wait to make that decision? I want to see what's going on with my leg and give us both some time to think about it." Though Callie pretty much had herself talked into the C-section, she knew Arizona was right and they both needed to let this new news sink in, gather all of the information and make an informed decision, not one based on fear. Nodding her head, she agreed, "We can do that, as long as you promise me that you won't agree to something just because you think that's what I want. What I want is for both of us to be 100 percent sure that whatever we decide is best for you and the babies." Arizona brushed their lips together and whispered, "I promise."
Leaning back, Callie reached for the ultrasound cart, pulled it towards her, and asked, "How about we take a look and see if we can figure out what's causing all the pain?" Arizona pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, nodded, and hoped it was nothing serious. Seeing there was still plenty of gel on Arizona's abdomen, Callie positioned the wand to give them the best view of the boys, and pointed, "Right here, it looks like…" She tilted her head and continued, "Tulio, it looks like Tulio's little toosh is pressing up against the base of your spine, possibly pinching the nerve if you or he moves in just the right, or wrong, way. That's what's causing the cramps and sharp pains in your right leg. Once he moves, the pain should subside. There doesn't appear to be anything more than that. Well, you know other than the whole baby shifting thing, throwing you off balance." Hearing this, seeing the physical proof, Arizona sighed in relief and finally gave into her fears and let the tears begin to fall, followed by body wracking sobs. Dropping the wand on the table, Callie gathered her in her arms and cooed, "Oh baby, what is it?" Arizona fisted her hands in Callie's shirt and only cried harder, feeling ashamed for not having shared her concerns earlier.
With her face still buried in Callie's chest, Arizona sniffled and admitted, "I've been so scared Calliope. Since Valentine's Day, I was afraid my right leg was giving out on me or, or…something, I don't know. I was afraid this was permanent and I just, I couldn't bear to think about what that would mean and…" Finally understanding that these were tears of relief and realizing that Arizona was carrying far more weight on her shoulders than she could imagine, Callie ran her fingers through silky blonde curls, lightly scratched up and down her spine, and soothed, "Shh baby, I know how scary this must have been for you. I can't tell you how long you'll feel like this, that's up to the boys, but I can promise there's no damage and once these little ones are out of there, you'll feel just fine and this pain will be nothing but a fading memory." Finally settling down, Arizona lifted her head, pulled one of the drapes up to wipe her face, and asked, "You aren't mad because I didn't tell you?" Callie smiled softly, kissed her forehead and answered, "No honey, I'm not mad at all. I knew something was bothering you or you wouldn't have asked me to examine you earlier, but I figured you would tell me when you were ready and you did." Arizona smiled sheepishly and revealed, "I guess I'm a little like my wife and didn't want to put it out into the universe."
Callie brushed their lips together, murmured, "I get it," then leaned back, wiped the excess gel off of Arizona's stomach, retrieved a warm damp towel, washed her completely, and helped her off the table. While she cleaned up the room, she suggested, "Why don't we get you and Sofia home, have lunch together, then I'll figure out a way to slip out and finish up the birthday shopping." Arizona smoothed down her clothes and was reminded of their impending shopping trip and asked, "What about maternity shopping?" Callie tilted her head and asked, "Are you feeling up to it?" Arizona looked down at her stomach, which she would swear had gotten even bigger and asked, "Do I have a choice?" Callie chuckled, shook her head and replied, "I guess not. What are you thinking?" Arizona sighed and answered, "Well, since it looks like I won't be coming to work anymore, maybe just something nice to wear this weekend for Sof's birthday and some comfy sweats and pajamas?" Callie nodded and replied, "I think we can manage that. Let's go find little miss and get a move on then." Callie reached out to open the door and was stopped when Arizona grabbed her wrist, tugged on her arm and pulled her to her side for a hug and whispered, "Thank you for being so amazing." Callie wrapped her arms around her shoulders and replied, "You are the amazing one. You're so strong Arizona, I am absolutely in awe of you." Arizona smiled, tilted her head back, and commanded, "Kiss me Calliope."
XXXX
After stopping at a nearby maternity shop just down the road from the Brooklyn Medical Park and purchasing a couple of nice outfits and more than enough sweats and pajama sets to keep Arizona comfortable, they stopped for take-out at the Chinese restaurant they'd come to favor and headed home. As they sat around the dining room table eating their lunch, Arizona looked up to see that Sofia wasn't eating, merely pushing her food around on her plate with her fork. Clearing her throat to get Callie's attention, she nodded her head toward their daughter and arched her eyebrow in question. Callie put down her fork, wiped her mouth, and took a drink of her pop before asking, "Are you not hungry Sof?" Broken from her trance, Sofia looked up at her mommies and declared, "I've been thinking." Hearing her serious tone, Arizona put her fork down as well, turned her attention to her daughter and asked, "And what exactly have you been thinking about?" Sofia looked from her mommy to her mama, then stared out the window and blurted, "Idon'twannahaveabirthdayparty."
Arizona and Callie looked at each other in confusion, each wondering if the other caught what their daughter just said. Shaking her head, Callie looked at Sofia and said, "I'm sorry sweetie, we didn't catch that. Can you say it again, maybe a little bit slower?" Sofia took a deep breath, gathering the strength to spit out the words which were so hard for her to say the first time, and repeated, "I don't want to have a birthday party." She sat quietly, not looking at either of her mommies, and waited for them to agree with her. Almost certain this had something to do with the babies, Arizona reached out, took Sofia's hand which remained limp, and asked, "Why not baby girl?" Sofia sighed and answered, "Because you can't come." Surprised by that answer, Arizona arched her brow and asked, "I can't?" Sofia shook her head and huffed, "No, cuz you're on aternity leave and Max said that meant the babies were coming soon and you can't come to work and have to get ready for them. If you can't do something as important as go to work, then you can't come to something silly like a party."
Callie and Arizona looked at one another, finally understanding what their daughter was thinking, and instantly softened at her selflessness. Callie reached out to take Sofia's hand and clarified, "So you don't want to have a birthday party because you think mommy can't be there?" Sofia nodded and shrugged, "It's okay, birthday's are dumb, mommy doesn't even like birthdays." Closing her eyes, instantly regretting her poor attitude toward her own birthday, Arizona tightened her grip on Sofia's hand and gently supplied, "Thanks to you and mama, I do now and I love your birthday. It's my favorite day of the whole year. It's even better than Christmas." Sofia scrunched up her nose in confusion and asked, "Better than Christmas? But you don't even get presents on my birthday." Arizona shook her head and replied, "Oh, that's where you are wrong sweet girl. I got the very best present on your birthday and every year on that day that you turn another year older, I am reminded of how precious and irreplaceable that present is." Sofia tilted her head and asked, "You get a present on my birthday?" Seeing where her wife was going, Callie nodded and answered, "We both do."
At their little girl's confused expression, Arizona informed her, "You baby girl. You were our present. You gave us the gift of being mommies and it's the best thing that has ever happened to us. So yes, we are going to celebrate your birthday, we are going to celebrate another year of being mommies, and we are going to celebrate you. To me, your birthday is way more important than a job and while it's true that I need to take it easy and can't run around and be silly like I usually am on your birthday, nothing will ever keep me from celebrating the person who made me a mommy, which is the most important job I will ever have." Sofia perked up and asked, "Really?" Arizona smiled and replied, "Really. I mean, it's okay if you don't want to go to some silly old birthday party, but mama and I will be there along with everyone else we know, so you'd have to stay here all alone with Tobin." Callie clapped her hands together and teased, "Oooh, can I blow out the candles and have the first piece of cake?" Arizona winked and answered, "Well, that's only fair since I'll be opening her presents and…" "NO!" Sofia squealed then lowered her voice and conceded, "I mean, since you will both be there, I should probably go to." Callie picked up an eggroll, took a bite, and answered just as casually, "I mean if you want to." Sofia smiled and replied, "I do, I want to go and blow out the candles and eat the first piece of cake and open MY presents." Both women laughed at their daughter's quick mood changed and smiled at one another as she proceeded to shovel forkfuls of food into her mouth, barely taking time to swallow between bites.
XXXX
After having slipped out earlier in the day to purchase Sofia's bike while her girls were napping, Callie snuck into the garage while Sofia was in the bath to get a head start on putting it together so she wasn't up all night trying to figure it out. She had just finished unpacking all of the pieces and laying them on the tarp in front of her so nothing got scraped up or rolled away when the door opened and she turned to find Arizona standing in the doorway. Smiling softly, she crossed the garage and asked, "Come to watch the master at work did ya?" Arizona smirked, took her hand, letting her wife lead her to her makeshift work area, and retorted, "I'm only here for the power tools." Callie chuckled, looked around the garage, found the canvas love seat and opened it up for Arizona. The blonde eyed the chair suspiciously and asked, "Do you think that's going to hold me?" Callie narrowed her eyes as if weighing the possibilities and laughed when Arizona smacked her shoulder and scolded, "Calliope! That's not very nice." Taking Arizona's hand, she helped lower her into the seat and apologized, "I'm sorry, I know it wasn't. It will hold you just fine, it held both of us and Addie that one night when the gang was all here." Still a little skeptical, Arizona wiggled around for a moment, realized she wasn't going to fall and settled in, making herself more comfortable.
Looking down at the larger bike frame, she pouted, "This is her first big girl bike." Callie poked out her bottom lip and nodded, "I know. I swear I was almost in tears while I was in the sporting goods store looking at all of the different bikes." Arizona sighed and agreed, "She's getting so big and she's already acting so mature." Callie picked up the frame, attached the handlebars, then reached for the small packet of screws, while adding, "She really is." She then tilted her head and asked, "Do you think she's okay? Did our appointment scar her for life?" Arizona shook her head and answered, "No, I don't think it was a bad thing that she was there. She had a few more questions for me after you left, nothing I couldn't handle." Callie reached for her power screwdriver, placed the screw in the tiny hole, bit her bottom lip nervously and offered, "So, I was thinking about something while we were out today. We talked about it a while back, but never came back to it and made a decision." She proceeded to insert the screw and waited for her wife to respond, when she didn't hear anything, she looked up into darkening blue eyes which were focused on her arms, chuckled, snapped her fingers, and teased, "Focus Arizona." Blushing only slightly, Arizona shook her head to clear it of the dirty thoughts that appeared as soon as she heard the motor of the screwdriver and asked, "What's that?"
Callie pursed her lips together and replied, "Maternity leave…um for me. I was thinking that…I'd kind of like to be here for you…with you, until the babies come and for a few weeks after." Arizona sighed in relief, smiled and quickly agreed, "Yes, please." Callie looked up, slightly surprised by her normally stubborn wife's quick reply and asked, "Seriously?" Arizona watched while she reached for the front wheel and answered, "Yeah, um, I've been thinking about that too and I was going to ask you if it would be possible. I know you'd have to shift some things around and would probably have to go in next week, but I'd feel better knowing that you were here, safer." Callie tightened the bolt on the front wheel, smiled and declared, "I'd feel better about that too. I'll take a look at my schedule this weekend and see if I can't condense my appointments this week and have Lorraine refer others to the other attendings. I know you don't need me and Jake would be here if you did need something, but yeah, I want to be here. I don't want to be in the O.R. or get stuck in traffic or any number of other things the universe could find to keep me from getting to you when the time comes and our babies are ready to come into the world." Though they'd long passed the point of her worrying if Callie would make herself available during her pregnancy and she was indeed there for every single little thing, it still made Arizona's heart swell with love knowing she wanted to be with her now. Reaching out her hand, she waited for Callie to grasp it, and offered, "Thank you Calliope." Callie smiled, lifted the soft warm hand to her lips, kissed each knuckle and replied, "You don't ever have to thank me for loving you baby."
Arizona's gaze dropped to Callie's forearms, and she focused on the flexing muscles as she tightened another bolt, shifting slightly in her seat, she cleared her throat and more as a distraction to herself, asked, "Did you call the place and ask about gift bags? I could put those together while I'm sitting out here." Callie reached for the back wheel and answered, "I did. They said everything was included in the package we purchased and all we have to do is show up. I did stop by the mall and get a few smaller gifts so she would have some presents to open from her brothers and sister, and Tobin of course." Arizona smiled at her wife's thoughtfulness and responded, "That was sweet. I'm sure she will love that." Callie nodded in agreement then asked, "Did you call the others to confirm?" Arizona nodded and replied, "They are all set. Maria and Bella are coming to get her at 10:00 to take her to breakfast, Stevie and Jordyn will be here at 11 o'clock to set up and Jo will be here at noon, which will give them all plenty of time to get everyone ready by the time we need to leave." Callie tightened the bolt and started to attach the chain as she looked up and stated, "I still can't believe you found that place. It's perfect and she will love it. My wife is a genius."
Arizona beamed at her, glanced at the bike which was quickly coming together and returned, "My wife isn't so bad herself. That looks great. I love the designs." Callie looked down at the pale pink frame with purple and blue flames and responded, "When I saw this, it just reminded me of her, girlie with a touch of badass." Arizona tossed back her head, laughed out loud and asked, "Okay, can we talk about the perfect impression of you she did today?" Callie tried to hide her laughter behind a scowl and grumbled, "I'd rather not." She then chuckled and conceded, "Okay, all I'm going to say to that is now I understand why people bring it up so often. It's a little scary being on the receiving end." She finished with the chain and pedals, attached the seat, and declared, "There we go, one brand new big girl bike, ready to go for the birthday girl." Arizona clapped and squealed, "Yay! Just think, in a few years you'll be out here putting together three tricycles." Callie dropped the wrench she was holding, stared at her wife and corrected, "We…we will be putting together three tricycles." Arizona popped her dimples and asked, "Isn't that what I said?" Callie laughed, shook her head and answered, "No, not at all. Let me get this cleaned up and we can go in and relax for a while."
Once they were lying in bed, face to face, Callie reached down, caressed Arizona's stomach and quietly asked, "How are you feeling about everything?" Arizona reached out, caressed her face and answered, "Probably about the same as you. I'm still kind of in shock, happy, excited, and scared out of my mind to think that pretty soon, these babies will still be lying on the bed between us but they will be eating, crying, tiny little humans." Turning her head, Callie kissed her wife's palm and confirmed, "Yep, that's pretty much how I'm feeling." As she continued to caress her wife's stomach and feel the babies moving around, she looked up and hesitantly asked, "Have you um…have you thought anymore about a birthing plan?" Arizona lowered her hand to cover Callie's, linked their fingers, and answered honestly, "I have. I know your concerns and I hear you, I do, but I think…I know, that I'd like to have them naturally, or at least try. I've loved every minute of being pregnant, which I wasn't so sure I would, and now that I've carried them all this time, I'd like to know what it feels like to give birth to them. I wouldn't do anything to endanger any of us and we are all healthy and…" She was effectively cut off by soft red lips pressing against her own and after only seconds of surprise, responded to the kiss. Pulling back, Callie whispered, "I'd love that baby. I just want you to be certain and it sounds like you are." Arizona smiled, ran her thumb across Callie's bottom lip and answered, "I am positive." Smiling her dazzling mega-watt smile, Callie leaned forward and murmured against her lips, "So the plan stays as it is." Arizona nodded, whispered, "The plan stays as it is," then connected their lips in a longer, more sensual kiss.
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A/N: Thank you all for the great reviews. I know this is another short chapter, but I didn't want to leave you hanging much longer. As I have previously stated, there may be some surprises, but no real drama and I'm sorry, but I just couldn't hurt these babies or even put them in danger. Up next, Sofia's party and…