AN: hello beautiful readers!
chapter 13 is here and I hope you will like it. My friend Jax help me one more time.
please let me.know.what you think will happen next.
...
« I can do this, I'm Arizona freaking Robbins! I'm an independent woman. I'm the chief of my department, I'm a double board certified surgeon. I mastered one of the most difficult specialities in less than 6 months! » Arizona said, looking at herself in the eyes, facing the mirror she once hated so much, trying to convince herself everything was going to be alright.
« I'm a mother of the most amazing little girl. I survived a car crash, a plane crash... » She stopped for a second to think about what she was just about to say. « I barely survived my divorce, but I'm here now and nothing is going to stop me! »
She nodded to herself, totally freaking out on the inside. She struggled to keep the tears from coming.
« I'm... I'm going to be an amazing mother for the both of you, and I swear you and your sister will always be my priority. »
And now it was too much, tears were rolling from her sad blue eyes.
She was mad at herself for being like this, but even as a doctor, she didn't know if it was the hormones, the tiredness or something else... Or perhaps, you could say someone else...
She was going back to work after Bailey had forced her to take a 10 day break.
She had spent time, as much time with Sofia as she could. Time spent with Her daughter was the only way she could focus on anything else but her inner turmoil and all the fears and doubts she was feeling.
So she was confident that being back at work and focusing on Sofia and her babies would eventually lead her to find a balance and stop thinking about Callie Torres.
She didn't deserve for Arizona to think about her, and Arizona herself didn't want to be thinking about her.
Callie was now in New york, she had reconnected with her family, living her best life with her girlfriend and Arizona would only deal with her regarding their daughter. No muss, no fuss...
« You're a good man in a storm, and you're going to push through that storm! »
Unfortunately the self convincing speech she had played out in her head wasn't really working in real life.
It was even almost having the opposite effect.
She was showing more and more and her bump wasn't going to be easy to hide for much longer.
So she was going to have to reveal her pregnancy and pop the bubble her and her babies were floating in.
She knew the gossip mill was already rearing its ugly head. She heard the nurses whispers, the exchanges of looks, the changes of subjects when she entered a room.
Or maybe she was just being totally paranoid.
She checked her phone and the time. She had to go, she put on her brightest fake smile.
She splashed some water on her face, trying to erase the tears she had tried so hard to contain when she called Sofia.
Grey Sloan Memorial was waiting for her.
...
Callie was a proud woman. She got that from her father.
And it had been a little hard on her to beg Miranda Bailey for her job back.
The chief of surgery had told her exactly what she thought of her and that what she was doing was stupid for her career when she had given in her notice a few months earlier.
So when she had asked her friend to take her back, Bailey had made it clear she had already hired someone to fill her job in Ortho, and his contract didn't run out for another seven months.
She was part owner of the hospital, but she would have to work under the command of a man she had never ever met.
But it was nothing compared to the relief she was feeling to be back in Seattle, with her coworkers, her friends, her daughter and … Arizona.
This part was the most complicated. She hadn't told anyone but Meredith she was back. She knew her ex-wife was going to be mad at her, and she would have every right to be.
All that pain and suffering because of her decision to follow Penny Blake to the other side of the country, and what a fiasco it had turned out to be.
All the things that had happened between them while visiting her parents in Florida. All the epiphanies she had had, the thought of everything, she couldn't breath : Arizona was moving on, but not with another woman.
She was having twins, without her by her side, and it terrified her.
Why? It was supposed to be their happy ending.
And now she was alone, in a downgraded job, with no apartment and the Grey Sloan gossipers would be all over her, talking about her and how her life was a mess, one more time.
She was waiting nervously in Bailey's office, biting her nails.
Getting the feeling she didn't really belong here anymore was getting to her even if she had a lot of people on her side, the situation was weird.
« Torres, why are you here? You're supposed to start your shift in 10 minutes. » Bailey snapped, entering her office.
« I know, but I need my badge and I have all the forms signed here. » Callie said, surprised by the coldness in the other woman's tone. « And I wanted to thank you for taking me back at such a short notice. »
« Don't thank me. I needed an ortho surgeon anyway, Chang is retiring. » Bailey said, walking to her desk. « And as for all the paperwork, you should have dealt with all that with my secretary. »
The shorter woman sat behind her desk and opened her laptop; not making any eye contact with Callie at all.
« Okay... » Callie replied, frustrated by the lack of empathy from her former friend. « I'm glad to be back, and I'm sorry if you think otherwise. »
Seeing no response, Callie walked out of the office and was about to close the door.
« I'm glad you're back Torres. But I wasn't playing the « I told you so » card to play hard. » Bailey confessed. « I'm your friend, but I'm Arizona's too, and I hope that all your whimsy choices won't affect her. She's very vulnerable right now, and I don't want your comeback to upset more than she already is. »
Callie nodded, keeping silent and closed the door.
There it was. Arizona had apparently told Bailey some things, and her coming back was not going to be easy. On anyone.
As she was making her way to the HR department to get her badge and credentials she almost bumped into another surgeon who was walking immersed in the text she was reading on her phone.
The unexpected meeting made her drop her phone and some files she was carrying.
« Oh my god I'm so sorry! » Callie apologised looking at the other woman gathering her stuff.
« Oh, no it's okay! » The woman replied, standing up to meet a puzzled face she hadn't seen in years. « Callie? Is that really you? »
« Teddy? What are you doing here? »
Both women understood quickly they were both back working at their former hospital, both of them wearing the dark blue scrubs.
« Oh my! I'm so glad to see you! » Teddy said, smiling widely as she hugged the ortho surgeon.
« Yeah! » Callie replied, still a bit in shock..
It had been years since Callie had news of Teddy, or even thought about her former colleague.
Teddy had always been a good friend, but she was really closer to Arizona and once she had left for Germany, and regarding all the heartbreaking that had happened to her in a few weeks after the blonde left, she hadn't really stayed in touch with her.
« It's been a while... » Teddy said, as she looked at the brunette. « And apparently you're back here too! It's going to be like the good old times... »
« Yeah, you could kind of say that... » Callie replied, still awkward.
« Well I mean almost... I didn't want to bring back bad memories... I am sorry... » Teddy apologized, noticing the embarrassment on Callie's face.
« Well, you know, that's life... » Callie replied, a hint of nostalgia and sadness in her voice.
So much had happened in her life since the last time she had seen or talked to the cardio surgeon, it was like a lifetime ago.
« Arizona knows you're back? Because I saw her the other day and she was... Well she didn't mention it. »
« No, she doesn't know. » Callie sighed. « And I think she's going to hate me a little more when she finds out... »
Teddy's eyes looked shocked. Arizona hadn't really gone into details of all the things that had happened between her and Callie, but after almost three years of divorce, she thought the two of them would at least act cordially.
« Hate you? Wow... Really? Why? » She asked
« For being back, for not telling her, for anything and everything... » Callie said, her voice breaking as she tried to restrain her tears.
« Well I think we have a lot to catch up on! »
…
Walking around to the hospital entrance was already making her nervous.
By now, knowing how the gossip mill works at Grey Sloan, all the staff would know about her melt down.
Nobody had said anything directly to her, but she had received texts from people who were not that close to her during her 10 day break.
Of course Alex, April and Teddy had reached out to her, but also Meredith, Maggie and Owen Hunt.
She was wearing a large blouse, trying to hide her bump for a little longer. She didn't want to talk about it with her friends, and certainly not with her co-workers.
As she walked to the hospital entrance, she felt a sudden pain in her abdomen. It was not the first time. She had felt it several times but it was not that painful.
It was the stress, playing with her body, and she needed to relax.
Another flash of pain, a little stronger this time. She sighed and stopped walking, rubbing her belly discreetly.
« It's ok, I'm ok... We're ok ! » She whispered the mantra her counsellor had taught her after the plane crash. « We're ok... We're ok... »
As she was inhaling and exhaling deeply to retake control of her mind and body, she didn't even notice someone was calling her and approaching.
« Robbins! You're back! » Richard Webber said as he put his hand on his friends shoulder, scaring her, making her jump in surprise.
« Robbins, are you okay? » He asked her, seeing her pale face and her body quivering. « Arizona? What's wrong? »
« No... Nothing, I just didn't hear you coming. » Arizona tried to hide her embarrassment, plastering a fake smile on her face.
« You sure? » Richard insisted.
« Yeah, I'm sure. Let's get in. I have a patient waiting for me. »
The duo walked side by side, without a word, Richard knowing something was up with the blonde, but knowing he shouldn't push her to talk. She would eventually come around and let him know when she was ready.
As they entered the lobby a nurse came running up to Arizona « Dr Robbins, Dr Bailey wants to see you as soon as possible. She's in her office. » Richard looked surprised and wondered what the urgency was.
« Oh, Ok... » Arizona replied, stunned. « I will go change, and then I'll meet her. »
« She told me to ask you to meet you as soon as you entered the hospital. » The embarrassed nurse rambled. « She's been very specific. »
« Well, She will have to wait at least five minutes, because I need to go to the bathroom and I have some things I need to put in my locker... » Arizona replied aggressively as she passed by the nurse and a puzzled Richard.
She couldn't deal with that. She was back for a minute and everybody was on her back.
She hurried her walk and felt another wave of pain in her stomach. This was definitely linked to her messy state of mind.
She had no time for that. She wanted a minute alone, just a minute to compose herself and try to hide her self pity.
She put a hand on the wall and swallowed hard. A few steps and she would be alone, and she could breath, before a long and hard day of work in front of her.
But as she tried not to let her emotions totally take over, she heard voices coming from the attending lounge and then she heard someone laugh, she felt a jolt of electricity pass through her body.
She knew that sound, she had always loved that laugh. But it couldn't be, could it?...
She walked to the door and opened it, revealing the scene, which could be a scene from her past, right in front of her.
« What the hell... »
« Oh Shit... »