While she'd insisted on doing as much for herself as possible, Arizona was relieved when they finally made it to the sofa to sit down with their plates. Since she'd woken up that morning and felt the first contraction, she hadn't felt quite right and though she tried to hide it, it was getting increasingly harder. Her body was aching, she was cramping…feeling full and empty at the same time, and she couldn't seem to stop the tears from falling. She loved her friends and family and was overwhelmed with their outpouring of love and beyond grateful for this amazing party, but all she really wanted to do was lie down and sleep. Hoping that eating something would make her feel better, Arizona bit into the macaroni and cheese cupcake and rolled her eyes at the exquisite taste. She was just about to ask Callie if she remembered them being this amazing when her wife gushed, "Oh my God Arizona, this is even better than I imagined it would be," and held out the lasagna cupcake for her to taste. Arizona leaned forward, took the offered bite, closed her eyes, and at the same time the tasty morsel hit her palate and she moaned in delight, her abdomen contracted and she felt a great deal of pressure in her pelvis, followed by a trickle of moisture dripping down her thigh and she knew her mucus plug had just dislodged, then her voice took on the tone of pain and surprise, "Oh mmmm, OH! OH, Calliope!"
Realizing that this pain and sensation were far different than any she'd experienced thus far, Arizona quickly took account of her recent behaviors, the need to get the nursery in order and pack the hospital bags, the complete and utter exhaustion combined with the inability to sleep, the mood swings, the uncontrollable crying, and understood that she had been in active labor for the last several hours, if not longer. Feeling as if another wave of pain could come at any moment, certain her contractions were becoming more consistent, Arizona clutched at Callie's arm, both to help steady her for the next bout of pain and to get her attention, positive they had a long night ahead of them, she hissed, "Ah…I think we…ugh we need to take these to go." Seeing the confusion on Callie's face, Arizona felt the tears welling in her eyes and her vision blurred in frustration when all she heard from her wife was, "What?" Deciding she needed to draw attention to herself, to snap her wife out of her stupor, Arizona exhaled slowly, looked up, and teasingly asked, "Who predicted I wouldn't make it through lunch?" Then she nearly doubled over in pain, focusing on counting the seconds between the beginning and the end of the contraction and losing all sense of the goings on around her.
Arizona concentrated on her breathing, on the counting, and tried not to cry out as her stomach contracted, her thighs burned, and a stabbing sensation ran down her spine into her pelvic region. Trying to block out the rest of the room, she tightened her grip on Callie's arm and stared into those deep chocolate emotion-filled eyes, which always grounded her and let her eyes flutter closed briefly as the pain finally subsided. Still experiencing what she could only describe as an aftershock, Arizona exhaled slowly and even through the pain, she couldn't contain her smile when she realized that she was going to meet her precious babies very soon, and whispered, "It's time Calliope." Just as she'd expected her to do, Callie jumped off the couch and started to pace as she nearly screamed, "Time, it's time… they…" and she hoped this would be a short rant because she really needed to get to the hospital. When Callie stopped in front of her, clutched at her hair and mumbled, "Oh fuck! It's time," Arizona saw the fear and panic take over her expression and fill her eyes, then watched as her pupils dilated, turning her eyes nearly black. She knew the instant her wife had lost consciousness and was helpless to do anything but scream, "Calliope!" as she started to sway back and forth.
Everything seemed to slow down and all she could hear were the shrill cries of the people around her while, as if in slow motion, Callie wilted to the ground, only to be caught by Max and Michael just before her head hit the floor. Arizona was snapped out of her fog by Nicole's cackled, "Did Torres pass out again? Oh, this is rich, someone please tell me you got a picture. She's never living this one down." Seeing a flash of light out of the corner of her eye, Arizona looked up to see Aria taking pictures of her unconscious sister as she lay sprawled on the floor, and muttered, "Oh for fuck's sake." Huffing in annoyance, she reached out her arms, braced herself against the sofa cushions and tried to push herself up to go to her wife just as she was struck with a bout of nausea and another jolt of pain started in her lower back and wrapped around to her stomach as her muscles tensed, making her feel as if she wanted to push. Falling back on the sofa, she growled, "You've got to be fucking kidding me!" Looking down at her wife, who was now surrounded by both of their mothers and Lorraine who had somehow obtained a damp cloth, and Maria who was checking her pulse, she snapped out, "Calliope Iphigenia Robbins-Torres, you get your ass off that floor right now! I am having these babies with or without you…SOON!" Hearing this, all eyes snapped to Arizona in shock, as if they were all just now realizing what caused Callie to faint in the first place. Understanding that was his cue and he was now officially on duty, Max nearly tripped over his own feet as he jumped up and scurried to get to Arizona.
Hearing Arizona yelling and cursing, Callie was confused as to why she sounded so angry and so…far away, when she was just sitting right in front of her smiling. She tried to get up and realized she couldn't move, everything was dark, all she felt was paralyzing fear, and she struggled to figure out exactly what was happening. The moment Arizona's voice broke through the pounding in her head, full naming her, everything came flooding back to her and she remembered exactly why she was lying on the floor. Arizona was in labor. Fighting through the fear and darkness, her eyes popped open and she tried to sit up, only to be pushed back down as she called out, "Arizona?" She surged forward once again, this time meeting no resistance, and was shocked when her wife scolded, "Calliope, I have carried your children for seven months, my body is nearly unrecognizable, I have stretch marks that will never go away, I haven't slept properly in weeks, and I am about to push three tiny humans out of a very tiny hole in my body! I am claiming my super extra special vagina vote. You do NOT get to steal my thunder. I've earned this moment. Now get your ass up here and take me to the hospital before I give birth right here in Maria's living room." Blinking furiously, still trying to shake off the fog, Callie found herself being pulled to her feet and shoved toward her very angry wife as Maria argued, "The hell you will! That's a brand-new couch."
Looking down into piercing blue eyes, Callie could feel her cheeks burning with embarrassment and she was suddenly mortified that she'd passed out at this moment, in front of all these people, this moment when Arizona needed her the most. She raised her right hand to scratch at the stubble on the back of her head as she bent her left arm at the elbow, wiggled her fingers, and offered her most charming smile as she murmured, "Hi." Arizona wanted to stay mad, she really did, but looking at her wife standing there awkwardly, her tan skin flush with shame, her apologetic, dark chocolate, puppy dog eyes staring at her pleadingly, and that damn mega-watt smile, she just couldn't do it. In that moment, Calliope Robbins-Torres was probably the most pitiful and adorable that she had ever seen her, and she smirked as she returned, "Hey." She then tilted her head and asked, "Are you finished showing out now?" Callie's lips twitched and she held her hands out to her sides, shrugged, and answered, "I kind of have to, you played the vagina card." Both women stared at one another as if they were the only two people in the world, soaking up this last quiet moment before their lives were completely turned upside down.
Hearing a throat clearing behind them, they looked over and saw Addison had somehow materialized beside Arizona on the sofa and was taking the blood pressure cuff off of her arm as she declared, "Uhhh, speaking of which, we need to get you to the center before all of these people get an up close and personal look." Snapping back into reality, Callie looked around and saw that all of their guests were now circled around them, their gazes focused on her wife, cleared her throat and announced, "Thank you all for coming, but as you can see, the guests of honor are excited to make their appearance and as she said, Maria doesn't want…" "Calliooooppeeeee!" Arizona growled through clenched teeth as another contraction hit, knocking the wind out of her and she reached out and grasped Callie's hand. Of all the times for Callie to become chatty in front of a large group of people, she had to choose this one.
Feeling the crushing grip on her hand, Callie's head snapped around to see Arizona clutching her stomach and muttered, "Ah, right, right." She then squatted in front of Arizona and asked, "Do you want an ambulance or…" Arizona shook her head no and Callie looked to Addison, who was staring at her watch and whispered, "There's no time." Glancing from Addie to Max, Callie commanded, "You are riding with us." The two surgeons nodded and the three of them waited for the contraction to pass and carefully helped Arizona to her feet. Knowing she wasn't leaving Arizona's side, not even for a minute, and certain she was in no mental state to drive, Callie reached in her pocket, pulled out her keys, tossed them to Max and asked, "Would you mind…" The OB caught the keys, thankful Callie wasn't insisting on driving, and cut her off saying, "Not at all, I'll go bring the car as close to the door as possible."
As soon as Arizona stood up, she felt the searing pain in her pelvis and tried not to cry out as it radiated up her spine and down her legs. She wrapped her arm around Callie's waist and looked up to see Sofia standing next to her mother with her arms enveloped tightly around her middle, looking as if she were about to cry. Though she could barely stand, she knew she had to reassure her daughter, who at this moment looked terrified. Letting go of Addison's hand, she held it out for Sofia and tried to keep the tremor out of her voice as she licked her lips, sucked them between her teeth, and requested, "Come here sweet girl." Sofia looked up at her grandmother who smiled and pushed her forward, then up to Callie who also held her hand out in silent encouragement, then ran to her mommy's side and asked, "Does it hurt really bad?" Arizona ran her fingers through thick brown curls and answered as honestly and as calmly as she could without scaring or scarring their daughter for life, saying, "It does hurt sweetie but as soon as I get to the hospital, Aunt Addie is going to give me some medicine and it will help take the pain away. The most important thing to remember is at the end of the pain, we get three new members to join our little family."
Sofia smiled, then and giggled as she replied, "Then we won't be so little anymore." Arizona smiled and answered, "Our family won't, but hopefully, the next time you see me, this tummy will be gone and you can give me one of your famous Sofia hugs that I've missed so much." Sofia nodded fervently and promised, "I'm going to give you the biggest, longest hug ever." She then dropped her gaze to Arizona's stomach and asked, "Can I give you a hug now though?" Arizona nodded and answered, "I would love for you to give me a hug now." Sofia carefully wrapped her arms around Arizona's belly, rested her cheek against it, and whispered, "I can't wait to meet you little babies. It's okay if you can't wait til my real birthday, just don't hurt mommy, okay?" Callie and Arizona looked at one another, amazed by their daughter's big heart, and smiled down at her, each of them hoping her siblings inherit her compassion.
After placing a soft kiss on her mommy's stomach, Sofia stepped back, walked to her mama's side, grabbed her hand and whispered, "I know you're scared too, but mommy and my babies need you." Callie smirked, feeling properly chastised and getting embarrassed all over again, wrapped her free hand around Sofia's shoulders, pulled her close, and answered, "I promise I will be strong for mommy and I will hold her hand the whole time." Seemingly satisfied, Sofia nodded, stepped back, and said, "I love you." As she walked back towards her grandmothers, Arizona realized they hadn't even discussed who would care for her and looked at their parents and asked, "Can you uh…" Lucia and Barb both waved her off and Lucia opened her mouth to answer when Aria cut her off, saying, "I've got her. You just worry about the three you have in there." She then looked at the two older women who were clutching each other tightly with one hand while resting their other hands on Sofia's shoulders and declared, "Our moms will be right behind you."
Arizona nodded and her breath hitched once again, indicating the pain was about to start, and Addison and Callie guided her toward the door as Callie called out to their mothers, "I will call you once we get there and she gets settled in her room." She's not sure whose voice she heard, but Callie nodded and waved when someone yelled, "They are expecting her, the VIP suite is all ready and waiting." Just before they reached the door, Arizona turned and commanded, "Seriously though, someone needs to bring some of that food up to the hospital." The whole group laughed and a chorus of, "Go!" "Good luck." "Congratulations." Rang out as they walked out of the house.
As soon as they were in the car, Arizona gave up all pretense, sagged against Callie, and screamed, "Fuuuuuuuuuck this fucking hurts. Maxwell drive…N…OWWWWWWWWWWW!" As Max sped out of the driveway and down the street, Callie wrapped her arm around Arizona's shoulder, caressed her stomach and soothed, "Arizona honey, look at me, breathe with me." Arizona swallowed thickly, focused on Callie's face and inhaled deeply as she directed, "Breathe in, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Breathe out, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Again…" Sitting on Arizona's other side, Addison reached out and started examining her stomach, feeling around and making sure all of the babies were now head down and they wouldn't run into any surprises. Feeling the contraction wane, she looked up and asked, "I know this isn't the best time, but I'm guessing you decided against the c-section." Arizona rolled her eyes and snorted, "What tipped you off?" Addie shook her head and continued to ask questions about their birthing plan, mostly to keep both women occupied throughout the short ride to the center.
Just as they were about to turn into Brooklyn Medical Park, another contraction hit and Arizona's arms shot out and she dug her nails into Addison's and Callie's thighs as she screamed, "Aghhhhhhhhhh," then immediately turned to Callie who was patiently waiting to help her breathe. As soon as the pain subsided and her breathing was under control once again, Arizona declared, "Eleven minutes apart, thirty to forty seconds long." Max glanced in the rearview mirror and chuckled, "You are off the clock chief. That's my job." Feeling the burning in her vaginal area, Arizona retorted, "Right now, your job is to get me into a room as soon as physically fucking possible." Hearing Addison snicker, her head snapped around and she asked, "What the hell is so funny?" Addie bit her lip and answered, "You don't know how long I've waited for you to be all cranky and mean. Let me tell ya, you don't disappoint." Arizona opened her mouth to show her doctor just how mean she could be when the car came to a screeching halt and they were met by Dr. Yost and two interns opening the door for them.
Callie climbed out and turned to take Arizona's hand to help her out when her wife burst into tears and cried, "No! I'm not ready. We don't have our bags and oh my God, I made you get up in the middle of the night to pack and we didn't even…" Callie leaned back into the car, caressed Arizona's cheek, wiped away her tears, took her hand, linked their fingers, and softly assured her, "We brought the bags honey. I finished packing this morning and carried them out to the car so we wouldn't have to worry about them." Arizona looked into loving brown eyes and asked, "You did?" Callie smiled and replied, "I did. They are right back there." She then turned to one of the interns and asked, "Can you open the hatch and get our bags please." The young woman muttered, "Yes Dr. Robbins-Torres," then quickly rushed to do Callie's bidding. Callie looked back to Arizona, smiled, and soothed, "See, I'm not as big of a mess as you think I am." Arizona chuckled, shook her head, and asked, "But the car seats and…" Callie knew Arizona's fear had taken over at this point and she leaned in, placed a gentle kiss on her lips, and whispered, "When it's time to go home, everything will be done honey. I know it's scary, but we are in this together. I'm here and what you can't do, I will, remember?"
Realizing her wife saw right through her, Arizona smiled, rested their foreheads together, and whispered, "I love you." Callie smiled, slowly lifted her head, leaving little kisses up the bridge of Arizona's nose, kissed her forehead, and murmured, "I love you too. You are the strongest, bravest, most amazing woman I know and you, Arizona Robbins-Torres, you are great." "Oh my God, can we get on with this already?" Addison huffed from behind Callie. Turning to glare at her friend, Callie muttered, "Shut up," then turned back to her wife and asked, "You ready?" Arizona nodded and replied, "As ready as I'll ever be to push three bowling balls out of a keyhole." Callie laughed, reached for Arizona's hands and helped her scoot across the seat and out of the car. Once Arizona was on her feet, Callie and Addison each took their places by her side once again and they slowly moved toward the doors when one of the interns stepped in front of them with a wheelchair. All three women glared at the would be doctor and snapped, "NO WHEELCHAIR!" The young man flinched, but didn't move and had the nerve to argue, "B-but it's polic…" Arizona clenched her jaw and sneered, "I know the damn policy, I wrote it! However, under no circumstances will I sit in that godforsaken thing. Now get it the hell out of my face." The man's eyes widened in fear and he quickly ran back into the building and as far away from the three women as he possibly could.
As they entered the lobby, Dee rushed up to greet them, looked at Arizona and ordered, "Hold out your left hand please." Arizona smiled at her administrative assistant and asked, "How did you beat us here?" As she fastened Arizona's bracelet around her wrist, the older woman smirked and answered, "As soon as you said it was time, I had Dr. Yeager call ahead to warn them you were coming, then hightailed it out of there and came in to make sure everything was ready for you." She then took Callie's hand, fastened a matching bracelet on her arm and continued, "Kinda wish I woulda stayed though. I heard you put on quite the show." Callie felt the blush rush to her cheeks once again and answered, "Nah, I was just the warmup act." Arizona narrowed her eyes and muttered, "I still say you were trying to steal my thunder." Addison shook her head and suggested, "Okay, now that you are officially a patient, let's get you upstairs and into your room."
Arizona nodded and started to turn toward the stairs when Callie asked, "Where are you going?" Arizona snapped, "There is no damn way I am getting on an elevator when I'm mere hours from giving birth Calliope. Have you learned nothing from your years in Seattle?" Callie shook her head and Addison interjected, "I'll give in to not using a wheelchair, but you are most definitely not climbing stairs." Arizona rolled her eyes and huffed, "Ugh! Fine." Seeing the same intern from earlier, Arizona decided she'd rather be safe than sorry and commanded, "Hey! Wheelchair boy, go get an OB crash cart and some bedding and meet us at the elevators." The man froze in his tracks, certain he misheard his boss, looked at Addison, then at Dee, almost pleading with her to help him, then jumped into action when all three surgeons snapped, "GO!" As they slowly moved toward the elevator, Dee wondered about her chief's request and why neither of the other surgeons even blinked at it, and declared, "This hospital you all worked at must have been something." Callie shook her head and answered, "They don't call it Seattle Grace Mercy Death for nothing."
XXXX
Arizona stood hunched over the end of the bed, gripping the plastic frame, as Callie rubbed her lower back through the opening of the hospital gown and coached, "That's it honey, deep even breaths." Dropping her head between her arms, Arizona exhaled slowly, swayed back and forth, and asked, "How far apart now?" Callie looked up at the clock and replied, "Still eleven minutes honey. We've only been here for twenty minutes." Letting out a growl, Arizona asked, "Where the hell are Addison and Max?" She then pushed off the bed, started bunching up the gown, snaked her hand around her stomach, and huffed, "Ugh, you know what…never mind, I'll check myself." "You will do no such thing! Now get your ass on that birthing chair and let me do my job." Addison scolded as she strolled into the room. Arizona snapped her head around and growled, "Well it took you long e-damn-nough."
Tapping on the tablet to update Arizona's chart while Callie helped her get situated, Addison explained, "As you very well know Dr. Robbins-Torres, I was called out of a party and had to change my clothes, then I needed to inform the NICU nurses to expect three new occupants, assign my staff for a multiple birth, brief them on the case notes, and I took the liberty of calling your parents and telling them you were settling in." Arizona sighed, ran her fingers through her hair and softly replied, "I do know that. I'm sorry Addison." The redhead smiled, went to the sink to wash her hands and answered, "You are forgiven. Just because I said I wanted to see you grumpy, doesn't mean I want it directed at me. I'm sure I'll get plenty of that when the action really starts."
As Addison put on her gloves and got into position, Callie went to Arizona's side, took her hand, and laughed when her wife quipped, "I don't need to check anyway. I'm five centimeters dilated." Addison shook her head, put the lubrication gel on her fingers, and returned, "I'll be the judge of that. There's no way you can…" As she reached down and started her exam, Addison was irritated to find that her friend was correct, glared at her, pursed her lips, and huffed, "Actually you are…ugh, I hate you. How the hell did you know that?" Arizona laughed and replied, "I'm seriously that good." Addison wheeled the stool backward, took off her gloves, and asked, "Do you want the epidural now or do you want to wait until the contractions get closer together?" Arizona's gaze darted between Callie and Addison and she bit her bottom lip, knowing they were both going to argue, but she just couldn't do it. She'd been thinking about it for months and no matter what she told herself, she couldn't come to terms with it, not even for a few hours.
Seeing that her wife had become quiet and was lost in her own thoughts, Callie squeezed her hand and asked, "Arizona, what are you thinking about honey?" She gasped and her heart sank when Arizona finally looked at her and she saw the terror in her eyes and the painful expression on her face. She'd seen that look before, only once, but one time was enough. That look, the absolute terror in her wife's eyes, is what prompted her to open her mouth and make a promise she had no business making. She knew in that moment what her wife was thinking and though she didn't like it, she understood it, and would support her no matter what. Swallowing thickly, she sat down, pulled Arizona's hands to her lips, and prompted again, "What is it?" Arizona took a deep breath and declared, "I don't want an epidural. I want Demerol or Stadol for pain now and a pudendal block at delivery." Shaking her head, Addison argued, "No can do. Arizona, you are giving birth to triplets naturally, which is rare as it is, but to do it without an epidural, I can't sign off on…" Arizona cut her off and commanded, "I'm not asking Addison; I'm telling you an epidural is a hard no." Addison slapped the tablet on the table, looked at Callie and raised her voice as she asked, "Would you talk some sense into your wife? That's ludicrous."
Callie looked from her wife to her best friend, both of them staring at her, burning holes into her skin, their arms crossed in front of them and their lips formed into a straight line. As much as she wanted to agree with her friend, simply because she didn't want to think of her wife in any pain, she understood that the epidural would take more of a toll on her mentally than any physical pain ever could. Shaking her head, Callie looked Arizona in the eyes, and declared, "The epidural is a hard no Addison." Throwing up her hands, Addison yelled, "Have you two lost your damn minds? Do you know how much pain…" Seeing how upset Arizona was getting, Callie stood up and hollered, "No! You don't get to do that Addison. Neither of us know the pain of giving birth but we do know pain; excruciating, heart-wrenching, blood curdling pain. The kind of pain that rips through your body and nearly kills you with its force. But you know what's worse than that pain? Nothing! Feeling nothing at all is far worse than that pain and the fear that you will feel nothing for the rest of your life is debilitating. So no, I will not put my wife through that again; not even for a few hours. If she says no epidural, then she's not getting a fucking epidural!" She then looked at Arizona, saw that she was now sobbing, and quickly pulled her into her arms, whispering, "It's okay honey, shh, settle down baby."
When Callie looked at her, jaw clenched, shaking her head, Arizona was certain they were about to have their first argument since they remarried. But then she dared to look in her eyes and only saw compassion and understanding reflecting back at her as she repeated her words back to Addison, declaring she wasn't having an epidural. Though she knew where Addison was coming from, she was starting to get angry that she continued to argue and could feel her face getting hot. She didn't want to have to explain her reasoning, but she knew she would have to. She didn't get the chance however, because Callie did it for her, far less amiable than she would have, at that. As she listened to her wife, she realized that she wasn't just agreeing with her to respect her wishes, but she truly understood why she didn't want an epidural. She also realized that Callie did understand that fear, not the fear of losing her leg, but the use of her arm, and the tears started to freely flow down her cheeks. She was heard, she was seen, and she was understood. The thought of losing the feeling in her legs was far more than she could bear and while she knew it was only temporary, there was still a slim chance that something could go wrong and she just couldn't risk it. She still didn't trust the universe enough to take that chance. By the time Callie finished, she was extremely emotional at hearing her defend her so fiercely as well as the thought of being confined to a wheelchair again. Feeling strong arms wrap around her, Arizona let the dam break and emotions she didn't realize she still kept locked inside, memories and guilt from that horrible time in her life, all came out in the form of tears and body wracking sobs.
Addison stood near the door with her hands cupped over her mouth and nose, tears running down her cheeks, feeling like a world class bitch and wanting to kick her own ass. It never once occurred to her that this would be an issue and now that she knew, she couldn't comprehend why she never thought about it before. Of course Arizona wouldn't want to intentionally paralyze herself. What the fuck was she thinking? She knew she had to apologize, beg and plead for forgiveness, but she also knew now was not the time. Looking at her two friends, she knew both of them well enough to know she needed to just leave them alone for a while, let them cool off, and return on her hands and knees, hoping they would all get past this. Picking up her tablet, she slipped out the door, closed it behind her, then collapsed against the nearest wall and broke down.
Max was standing at the nurses' station and watched as Addison came out of what he was sure was the VIP room. Seeing the condition his colleague was in, he instantly worried that something had happened to Arizona or the babies, ran down the hall and asked, "Addison, what happened?" Shaking her head, not wanting her friends or the nurses to overhear, Addie took his hand and pulled him into the nearest empty room. Locking the door behind her, Addison leaned against it, wiped her eyes, and quickly assured him, "She's fine, everything is fine." Max handed her a tissue from the bed tray and answered, "Things don't look fine. Did she turn into a monster again?" Addie's eyes welled with tears and she responded, "No, I did. Fuck!" She started pacing the room and explained to him everything that just happened, flopped on the bed and finished, "So now my best friends hate me because I'm an insensitive bitch."
Max swiped his hand down his face, sat next to her and commiserated, "Well, that must make me one too because that never crossed my mind either." Addison ran her hands through her hair and asked, "Why didn't she say anything?" Max sighed and asked, "Why didn't Arizona Robbins-Torres freely confess a fear or weakness? Hmm, I have no idea." Addison snorted and muttered, "Good point." She then shook her head and suggested, "Maybe I should take myself off the…" Knowing exactly what she was about to say, Max cut her off and argued, "No, you will not take yourself off the case. They might be mad for a little while, but you are family and if there's one thing I know about those two, they don't take that lightly. You are Aunt Addie and they want you in there to bring their children into the world. You would all kick yourselves in the ass for the rest of your lives if you let this get in the way of that."
Addison stayed quiet for a few minutes, trying to process everything, and knew Max was right. Nodding her head, she tapped him on the leg and declared, "You're right. I just hate that I wasn't more sensitive about that. I won't take myself off the case, but I'm not going to show my face for a few minutes. I'm going to put in the order for analgesics and the pudendal block and maybe visit the gift shop. I'll be back in a bit." Max covered her hand, squeezed it, and asked, "Can I tell you a secret?" Addison arched her brow and he blushed slightly as he admitted, "I ahhh, I forgot Arizona was an amputee until Cal got nominated for her award. I only learned about it from her chart and still don't know the whole story, what I do know, I learned from google." Addison gasped and asked, "What?" Max laughed and revealed, "I mean, I never really got a good look at her legs during her exams and it's not something anyone talks about, so I just…I forgot." Addison nodded and replied, "Yeah, I guess that's understandable." Max shook his head and said, "I told you that because Arizona, she's just…she doesn't let it hold her back from doing anything and it's hard to know or in our cases, to remember that she may have limitations. So, I'm just saying, don't be so hard on yourself." Addison smiled then and replied, "Yeah, I guess she does. She's kind of amazing like that." Max winked and whispered, "Let's keep that between the two of us. She already has a big head." Addie laughed, stood up, and suggested, "You should probably get in there. Whatever you do though, don't mention an epidural." Max laughed as well, stood up and held the door open for his friend. As they reached Arizona's room, he whispered, "Wish me luck."
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Finally feeling as if she had settled down, Arizona pulled back, looked up to Callie, opened her mouth and let out a loud keening wail as she felt the tightening in her abdomen and was hit with wave after wave of excruciating pain. Her body tensed and she clutched both of Callie's hands and tried to match her breathing, but she felt as if she couldn't catch her breath. She closed her eyes and let out another loud moan as the pain kept coming without letting up and knew this was the worst and longest contraction yet. When it finally passed, she was exhausted and her body ached all over from tensing up. Looking up into loving brown eyes, she asked, "Do you think I made the right decision? This is only going to get worse." Callie caressed her cheek and quietly answered, "I think you made the right decision for you. I hate seeing you in any kind of pain honey, but I think…I think if the alternative means that you will spend the next however many hours it takes to have our babies reliving those memories or wondering and worrying about whether or not you will regain the feeling in your legs, then I'd rather you have peace of mind. I support your decision and I will be here to help you through the pain." Arizona reached up, ran her fingers through Callie's hair, caressed her cheek, and was certain she couldn't love this woman any more than she did in that moment. Slipping her hand to the back of her head, she pulled her forward and murmured, "Thank you. Thank you for seeing me and for understanding." She then captured her lips in a long languorous kiss.
When the kiss came to its natural end, Callie rested their heads together and asked, "I should probably apologize to Addie huh?" Arizona smiled ruefully, shrugged, and answered, "I mean, the fate of my vagina does rest in her hands." Callie gasped, sat up straight, and hissed, "Oh my God! She's never letting us have sex again." Arizona slapped her shoulder and asked, "Seriously? That was your takeaway?" Callie smiled and replied, "It's a pretty important takeaway." Arizona laughed then groaned as she felt another contraction coming on and growled, "Ahhh fuck! It doesn't matter what she says, you are never touching my vagina again!" Callie laughed while glancing at the clock and muttered, "And so it begins. Breathe honey, deep breath in, that's it…" She continued in that manner until Arizona relaxed back against the chair, looked at the clock again and declared, "Ten minutes apart. That one was almost a minute long." Arizona puffed up her cheeks and exhaled slowly, then turned toward the door when she heard Max declare, "Sounds like you're moving right along." Seeing that he came in alone, Arizona looked at Callie and suggested, "Maybe you should go find her." Callie took a deep breath, stood up, then looked at Max and asked, "You'll stay here until I get back?" The OB nodded and replied, "I will. She's at the nurses' station putting in the order for Demerol AND Stadol." Callie nodded then bent down and gave Arizona a quick chaste kiss before she left the room.
Stepping into the hall, Callie looked up and wanted to smack herself when she saw that her normally confident friend, who seemed to glide everywhere she went, was slumped over and shuffling her feet toward the elevators. Running to catch up to her, she jumped on the elevator just before the doors closed. Addison spun around when she heard someone step into the car behind her and came face to face with Callie. Feeling the shame and sadness wash over her once again, she opened her mouth to apologize but Callie beat her to it. "I'm sorry Ads. I shouldn't have talked to you like that. I just…it…Arizona, her leg…" Addison shook her head, held up her hand and interrupted, "No Cal, I owe you both an apology. I wasn't thinking. I mean to be honest; the thought never crossed my mind. When I look at Arizona, I don't see everything she went through, I can't even imagine it really. I only see who she is now, everything she fought so hard to become, and I didn't realize what having an epidural would mean to her." Callie scratched her head and admitted, "I didn't think about it either if I'm being truthful. That is, until I looked into her eyes and I saw the pain and the fear in them, then it hit me. We are both grateful for you and we know you were concerned for your friend and patient's comfort and I shouldn't have faulted you for that." Addison smiled softly and asked, "So I'm not an insensitive monster?" Callie laughed and replied, "It depends, are you going to hold this against me when it comes time to clear Arizona for um…extracurricular activities?"
Addison threw back her head, let out a loud bark of laughter, and asked, "Seriously?" Callie held out her arms for a hug and answered, "No you are not a monster. Far from it actually. Now come on, your favorite patient needs you." Addison wrapped her arms around Callie's back and felt the tears stinging the backs of her eyes as she whispered, "I was so scared you both hated me." Callie held her tighter and replied, "Never, you're family. Now seriously, come on because her contractions are getting stronger and they are only ten minutes apart." Addison jumped back, slapped at the button to open the doors and exclaimed, "Already?" Callie nodded and answered, "Yup and she's already told me I'm never touching her again." Addison laughed and the two women stepped out of the elevator and moved quickly down the hall as she declared, "Why do I have the feeling this is one birth I will never forget?" Callie noticed the nurse entering Arizona's room with an IV bag and several syringes and said, "I have a feeling it's about to get a hell of a lot more interesting," and the two followed the other woman into the birthing suite.
Max was helping Arizona to the bed and they both looked up to see the nurse walk through the door followed by Callie and Addison who each had tears in their eyes and smiles on their faces. Arizona locked eyes with Callie, silently gauging the situation and slumped in relief when her wife winked at her, indicating that they had made up. Stepping aside, Max allowed Callie to take his place helping Arizona into bed and went to stand beside Addison. Callie lowered the bed as far as it would go, pushed the button to lift the head, then took both of Arizona's hands and steadied her while she sat down. Adjusting the head a little more, she bent down, picked her feet up and gently swiveled her around until she was lying in the bed. She reached down, lifted the covers up and settled them over Arizona's stomach and asked, "Are you ready to take the edge off?" Arizona nodded, then held out her pinkie finger for her wife to take. Callie looked at the offered digit and arched her brow in question. Arizona smiled and requested, "Promise me that you won't hold anything I say for the next 24 hours against me?" Callie laughed, linked her pinkie with Arizona's and replied, "I promise I won't hold it against you, but I can't promise that I won't laugh about it for the rest of our lives." Arizona smiled brightly, popped her dimples, and returned, "I guess that's fair." She then turned to the nurse, held out her arm, and informed her, "My veins jump so be gentle." The nurse nodded and proceeded to tie the tourniquet around her bicep.
Keeping her gaze locked on the young woman's tremoring hands as she prepared the vials of medication, Arizona was slightly confused by the normally confident and competent nurse's timid demeanor, waited until she turned around and asked, "Michelle, are you not comfortable with this?" Not at all surprised that her chief had noticed her fumbling, the young lady shook her head and sheepishly answered, "Umm…it's not that Dr. Robbins-Torres, it's ah…" She trailed off, unsure of whether or not she should continue and looked up into patient blue eyes, let out a sigh, and offered, "It's just that, well, you're the chief and you…you're you, you're a pretty big deal in the medical community. People are dying to work here, and, and I do work here and you're my boss and your wife just won a Catherine Fox Award and you are both watching me, and those two, who are also world-class surgeons and my supervisors are watching, so this is kind of umm…intimidating."
Still overwhelmed with how other people see them, Callie tried to hide her laughter at the nurse's rambling response, then quickly sobered up when she watched her wife's face fall and tears spring to her eyes as she clutched at her shirt, buried her head in her chest, and wailed, "Oh my God Calliope, I'm THAT patient, THAT boss. My nurses are afraid of me and my wife yells at my doctors and I'm being so difficult and the babies haven't even…" Callie kissed the top of her head and cooed, "No honey, you're just fine. No one is afraid of you. Calm down sweetie." She then glanced at the horrified nurse apologetically, hoping this experience didn't make her run for the hills, and mouthed, "It's okay." Feeling the hold on her shirt loosen, Callie lowered her head so she could look Arizona in the eyes and whispered, "Let's let the nice nurse do her job and give you your medicine. I'm sure you'll feel much better afterwards." Arizona sniffled, nodded, then looked at the young nurse, saw the fear in her eyes and her bottom lip started to tremble once again. Letting out a slow breath, she smiled and reassured her, "It's okay Michelle, for the next few days, you can call me Arizona and I want you to try to think of me as any other patient. You are very good at what you do, if you weren't, you wouldn't work here, so just do what you do best."
The nurse sighed in relief and replied, "Yes Dr. Rob…uh Arizona." She then tore open the package for the alcohol swab, took Arizona's arm, cleaned the area on the back of her hand, and asked, "So do you have names yet?" Arizona smiled and replied, "We do, but we are waiting until they are all born and everyone is together before announcing them." Callie added, "We ahh, we also want to make sure the names fit." The nurse nodded and replied, "That makes sense, I was actually surprised when I heard people did that. I didn't give much thought to names until I started working in L and D and heard all the reasons why people chose certain names for their children." She then patted Arizona's hand and declared, "All finished." At the same time, Michelle and Arizona both asked, "Now that wasn't so bad was it?" The nurse continued to hook up the IV, smiled and offered, "I'm sorry Arizona, you are not scary at all. You are the best boss I've ever had." Arizona smiled her genuine smile and replied, "Thank you. I'm happy to hear that." Michelle reached for the small vials of medication and warned, "You may feel a stinging sensation, then your arm will feel really cold for a moment. It should pass quickly, if you continue to feel it after a few minutes, let me know. I've hooked up the drip, if you need to up your dosage, just push the button." Arizona knew this, of course she did, but she allowed the nurse to do her job and was happy to see the young woman had settled down. Just as predicted, she felt the sting, then the coldness, then her mind went a little foggy and she didn't feel much of anything.
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Callie watched the nurse clean up and leave the room, followed by Max who said he would be back soon. Realizing Arizona had been quiet for a few minutes, she looked down at her wife, saw the dreamy faraway look in her eyes and realized the medicine was doing its job when she declared, "You're pretty. I don't tell you that enough, but you are very beautiful Calliope." Callie chuckled and assured her, "You tell me that all the time baby. But thank you for saying it again." Arizona's gaze dropped to her wife's full chest, and she licked her lips as she continued, "And HOT! Like really hot. Sex on a stick…" "Okaaay, I see the drugs are working and making you a little amorous." Arizona's lips formed her sexy little smirk and she suggested, "You know, you could help my labor go a little faster." Callie laughed, kissed her wife's head and murmured, "You're high honey."
Arizona pouted, then recalled the last time she felt this way and asked, "Did I ever tell you about the time I got everyone at the hospital high?" Callie laughed and answered, "You did tell me that. I'm sorry I missed it." Arizona poked out her lip and replied, "Me too. Maggie lost the flat man's liver because she was talking about cheese and I was telling her that you drove me crazy in bed and I didn't even know I said that until she questioned me. I mean, we were divorced and I wasn't supposed to be thinking about those things, but I did think about them, all the time, and that's when I finally admitted to myself that there would never be another you." Surprised and touched by the confession, Callie smiled, brought their joined hands to her lips, kissed Arizona's fingers and returned, "There will never be another you either." Arizona smiled and chirped, "Nope! Cuz I'm awesome."
Hearing a chuckle coming from behind her, Arizona turned her head, saw Addison, held out her hand and asked, "Do you hate me?" Addison shook her head, went to her friend's side and answered, "No, not at all. Do you hate me?" Arizona shook her head back and forth and replied, "NO! I well, I hated you for a minute when you and Callie got drunk and she told me you turned her gay. I wanted to rip your lips off. But then she explained and told me about the vagina monologues and…I love that you care so much about us." Taking a deep breath, she admitted, "I should have told you all before today what I was thinking." Addison nodded and proclaimed, "It would have been nice. I wasn't trying to be insensitive, it's just, well, it's like Michelle said, you're you. You may not feel like it, but to us, you're always so confident and capable, you don't let anything slow you down and honestly, I ah…I forget that…" She trailed off, glanced down at Arizona's legs, and waved her hand down the length of her body. Arizona's face crumpled and Addison braced herself to get yelled at once again when the blonde cried, "That's the sweetest thing you've ever said to me." Addison furrowed her brow in confusion and looked to Callie for an explanation. Callie quietly clarified, "She doesn't like it when we focus on the leg. That was our life for two years and…yeah, it caused problems." Finally understanding, Addison nodded, looked at her friend and was reminded once again that this woman, both women, have been through more than she could ever begin to imagine.
Arizona felt the tightening in her abdomen, reached for Callie's hand, and muttered, "Oh shit," as another contraction began. Though the pain wasn't nearly as bad, she still felt it and let out a low growl as she gritted her teeth and listened to Callie coach her through the breathing. When the pain finally subsided, she looked up and asked, "Was this one longer? It felt longer." Callie nodded and replied, "I think it was a few seconds longer. They're still about ten minutes apart though." Addison stood up and said, "I want to take another look, see if you've dilated any more, then I'll…" "I'm at about six now." Addison shook her head and accused, "You are just guessing. There's no way you can possibly know that." Arizona smirked, and asked, "You wanna bet?" Addison stomped to the sink and returned, "What's your wager?"
Callie tossed up her hands and scolded, "You two are not betting on your vagina." Arizona crossed her arms over her chest, poked out her bottom lip, and pouted, "You're no fun!" Callie scoffed and asked, "Fun? Betting on how big the opening in your vagina has gotten is fun?" Arizona nodded and answered, "Yeah! We bet on all kinds of things. How big the baby will be, how long it takes, how much hair it will have, who it will look like – the mom or the dad, oh and in one case, we all assumed it would look like the dad's brother and we were right. That one got extremely uncomfortable. One time, Karev even bet on whether or not the baby would be ugly. He was right too. I don't bet on that though. Especially now that I'm pregnant, even if I think the baby is ugly and looks like a wrinkled old man, I don't say anything because I don't want to jinx our babies. Our babies would never be ugly. We make cute babies." Callie was laughing so hard she nearly fell out of her chair. Whatever combination of drugs they gave her wife was most certainly causing her to have loose lips.
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"Uggghhhhh! This fucking sucks Calliope." Arizona yelled as the contraction ripped through her, sending shockwaves of pain down her leg. Tensing up again, she groaned, "Getting these babies out isn't nearly as much fun as getting them in there was." Callie bit back her laughter and soothed, "I know honey. Just breathe with me." Arizona clutched her hand and yelled, "I'm sick of breathing. I want them out. NOW!" Callie glanced at the clock, continued counting the seconds as the contraction wore on, and prayed the extended time meant things were picking up. While everything seemed to move quickly when they first arrived four hours ago, Arizona had been stalled at seven centimeters for the past two hours and her mood had increasingly worsened. Watching her wife repeatedly click the button for more medication, which she'd topped out a while ago, both women relaxed when it finally beeped, indicating the new cycle had begun.
Feeling the medicine start to take effect, Arizona tossed her head back and started breathing properly as her wife had been begging her to do. Looking up hopefully after the pain had finally subsided, she asked, "How long?" Callie wiped the damp cloth over her sweaty forehead and answered, "This one was a little longer. But they are still eight minutes apart." Arizona closed her eyes and admitted, "I don't know how long I can do this Calliope." Callie leaned over the bed, kissed her chastely on her dry lips, and reassured her, "You can do this as long as you need to honey. You're doing great. Do you want some more ice chips?" Arizona nodded and whined, "Since the stupid nurse said that's all I can have, yeah I guess. We let our mothers eat now, I think she's just doing this because she's working a double and she's mad at me." Looking at her sympathetically, Callie stuck the spoon in the cup of ice, lifted it to her mouth, and carefully fed her the cool treat." Feeling the cold substance on her dry tongue, Arizona sighed in relief once again and muttered, "I'm trying to pretend it's lasagna cupcakes. So not the same." Apparently Callie's stomach agreed with her as it chose that exact moment to let out a loud rumble.
Turning to look at her wife, Arizona could see the exhaustion on her face and knew she must be starving since they really hadn't gotten a chance to eat lunch and only had a light breakfast. Reaching out, she caressed her face, ran her thumb over the dark circles under her eyes and suggested, "Why don't you call Max or Addie in to keep me company and go get something to eat?" Callie shook her head and argued, "I don't eat until you do." Arizona huffed, "That's ridiculous Calliope, you need to keep up your strength. You are already running on empty and the babies and I need you to be strong for us." Callie turned her head, kissed Arizona's palm and insisted, "I'm okay. I don't want to leave you, not even for a second." Arizona nodded and replied, "I appreciate that baby, but you need to eat. At least order something and have it delivered." Callie argued, "I'm not eating in front of you either, that is just mean." Arizona opened her mouth to try to convince her wife to change her mind when Max poked his head in the door and asked, "Is anybody hungry?" Arizona perked up and replied, "We are both starving. I know I can't eat, but can you convince my stubborn wife to get something in her stomach please?"
Walking further into the room, Max lifted a medium sized thermal lunch bag up and proclaimed, "You can't eat anything heavy, but since you won't be under general anesthesia, there's no reason you can't have something to eat. Luckily for you, a certain five-starred chef heard your request for a doggy bag, packed up some of the food from the party, and made you his special chicken and rice soup." He placed the bag on the bedside tray and laughed when both women lunged for it. Callie had just unzipped the bag when Arizona let out a loud cry and instantly turned her attention to her wife, letting her grasp her hand and coaxing her to breathe. Once the contraction passed, Callie went through the ritual of wiping Arizona's brow, rubbing her stomach, and offering her a drink of water. Max looked at the clock and asked, "Any change?" Callie shook her head and answered, they seem to be getting stronger and lasting a little bit longer, but they're still eight to nine minutes apart." Max shook his head and muttered, "Well that's no good."
Arizona eyed him suspiciously, pulled the tray closer to her and nearly growled, "You aren't taking my food." The older man smiled softly and replied, "I wouldn't dream of it. You need your strength. Oh, along with the food, came a few delivery people." Arizona tilted her head and asked, "What do you mean?" Max smiled and replied, "Well, quite honestly, the whole crew is here, but they are respecting your privacy and waiting in the conference room." Surprised, Arizona arched her brow and asked, "The whole crew?" Max nodded and provided, "Maria, Lorraine, Michael, Jordyn, Kim, Julie, Nicole, Aria, Sofia, and both sets of parents. They wanted you to know they were here and were waiting for the newest member of our family." Arizona's eyes welled with tears and she looked at her wife who was already pulling tissues from the box and handing them to her.
Callie smiled, not at all surprised by the information and offered, "Can you tell them all we appreciate their support and send them our love?" Max nodded, then looked at Arizona and asked, "Can I get you anything? How's your pain?" Arizona pulled the container of soup out of the bag and responded, "It hurts like a bitch honestly." Tilting his head, he asked, "What would you say about a stronger dose?" Arizona bit her bottom lip nervously, she hated taking opioids, but the pain was far worse than she could have imagined. She looked at Callie, silently asking her what she thought, and wasn't surprised when once again she knew exactly where her mind was as she declared, "It's up to you honey, but I don't think it would hurt to get something a little more powerful." Arizona nodded, then looked at Max and answered, "Yeah, I think that's a good idea." The OB nodded, took his tablet from the pocket of his white coat, quickly tapped in the order and proclaimed, "It shouldn't take long for the nurse to come in and switch out your IV. In the meantime, eat your dinner and try to get some rest." Arizona nodded, took a spoonful of soup into her mouth and let out a delighted hum as the rich broth hit her taste buds and soothed her aching throat. As Max turned to leave, Arizona gushed, "This tastes amazing. Can you thank Michael for us please." The man nodded and waved as he left the room.
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Addison walked into the darkened room, lit only by the bedside lamp and noticed Arizona was lying on the bed with her eyes closed and Callie was sitting in the chair next to her, arms crossed on the bed with her head resting on her wrists. She knew neither of them were asleep since the contractions seemed to be holding steady at seven minutes, but she was happy to see that apparently the new combination of meds were working better and her friends were getting some much needed rest. As quietly as she could, she checked the monitors and updated Arizona's chart, then pulled up the stool on the other side of Arizona's bed and took a seat, deciding to sit with them for a while. Seeing that Arizona's forehead was beaded with sweat, she picked up the cloth from the table, dipped it into the basin of water, and wiped Arizona's face, smiling when she murmured in appreciation. Hearing the rustling, Callie immediately popped her head up, preparing for another contraction, and relaxed when she saw her friend sitting across from her, wiping a cool cloth across Arizona's sweaty forehead.
Placing the towel back on the tray, Addison whispered, "How's she doing?" Callie shook her head and replied, "Stalled again." They both turned when Arizona complained, "They are camping out in there. I'm convinced they pitched a tent and ahhhhhh, shit…started a fucking campfire right next to my vaginaaaaaaaaa." Extending her arms, Arizona reached for the button for the pain meds with one hand, slamming her thumb on it furiously and while she tried to find Callie's hand with the other, she clutched onto the first thing she could find. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" Callie hollered out and glared at her wife as she asked, "What are you trying to do? Scalp me!" She then reached up and untangled her wife's fingers from their grip on her hair and flinched when they wrapped around her fingers just as tightly. Arizona let out a low keening wail and commanded, "Stop being a baby! Your children are literally ripping me apart from the inside owwwwwwwt!" Callie gripped Arizona's hand and tried to coach, "I know, I'm sorry. Breathe honey. That's it." Closing her eyes as the pain faded and the medicine took over, Arizona took a deep breath and licked her dry lips.
Seeing that Addie had taken over the job of wiping her wife's head, Callie reached for the cup on the table and asked, "Is your mouth dry? Do you want some ice chips?" Arizona shook her head and answered, "Not those. They're laughing at me." Callie and Addison looked at one another, both trying to contain their laughter at the ridiculous statement. Realizing the medication had kicked in again, Callie decided to play along and asked, "Why are they laughing at you?" Arizona glared at the paper cup and answered, "Because they aren't chocolate ice cream. They're taunting me Calliope. Take them to the sink and melt them." Addison snorted and Callie choked on her laughter as she stared at her wife, wondering if she was serious. Both women jumped when she snapped, "Go! They're getting louder. Kill the frozen little fuckers." Doing as her wife asked, and to walk away so she wouldn't see her laughing, Callie stood up, carried the cup to the sink, turned on the hot water, and nearly peed herself when Arizona called out, "Not so cool now, are ya?"
When she was finished, Callie turned to see that her friend was in the same state and watched while she ran into the bathroom with her hand over her mouth to hide her giggles. Returning to Arizona's side, she placed the empty cup on the table tray, and declared, "All gone. They won't laugh at you anymore." Arizona sighed and answered, "Good!" She then looked at the pitcher and asked, "Can you pour me some ice chips? My mouth is dry." Callie furrowed her brow and reminded her, "You just asked me to dump them out." Arizona nodded and chirped, "I know, I didn't like those ones. They were mean. Maybe the other ones will be nicer and taste better." Callie shook her head, poured more ice into the cup, stuck the spoon in it, lifted it to her wife's mouth, and carefully fed her the cool treat." Feeling the cold substance on her dry tongue, Arizona sighed in relief and muttered, "Yeah, these are much better, but they still aren't chocolate ice cream." Emerging from the bathroom, Addison proclaimed, "I can't get you chocolate ice cream, but I think I can find a popsicle or two." Arizona perked up and she smiled brightly as she nodded her head and chirped out, "Orange please." Addison laughed and replied, "Coming right up," then strolled out the door and burst into a fit of giggles as she doubled over clutching her stomach.
Max rounded the corner in time to see Addison leaning against the wall, hunched over yet again, and rushed to her side asking, "Another fight?" Addison laughed harder, shook her head, and breathed out, "Nope, talking ice cubes." Max scratched his head and asked, "What?" Addison stood up, waved her hands in front of her face and answered, "Whew! She's high as a damn kite and just made Callie dump out the ice chips and in her words, 'Kill the frozen little fuckers.'" Max chuckled and asked, "What did they do?" Addie laughed and responded, "They weren't chocolate ice cream." Max shrugged and replied, "Well, can you blame her?" Shaking her head, Addie pushed off the wall and answered, "Not at all. I gotta go. I promised orange popsicles." As she started to walk away, they heard Arizona scream out, "What the hell is taking so long? Is she squeezing the oranges herself?" Addie shook her head and Max reminded her, "You wanted to see her cranky." Addie continued walking as she called out, "I said cranky, not bitchy." Max laughed, put his hand on the door, and took a deep breath to steel himself.
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Addison took her gloves off, stepped on the pedal for the trash can, tossed them in and announced, "You're at 9 centimeters. Looks like it won't be long now. We should probably get you over to the birthing chair." Arizona nodded, threw back the covers and started to move when she felt a jolt of pain shoot straight to her core and a gush of warm liquid pooling between her legs. Alarmed, she looked at Callie and let out a loud animalistic scream. Gasping in pain, she managed to huff out, "Wa…wat…water." Callie reached for the glass and Arizona shook her head and tried again, "Broke." Callie's eyes widened, and her stomach roiled as she realized what this meant and dumbly asked, "Your water broke?" Addison's head snapped up and she rushed to the door and called out, "A little help in here." If she weren't in so much pain, Arizona would have been proud of how quickly and efficiently her staff responded as several nurses rushed into the room.
While one nurse quickly prepared the birthing chair, another helped Callie get her out of bed and onto the birthing table. She watched her staff as they changed her sheets, then one by one, the incubators were pushed into the room. As Callie, Max, and Addison all stood at the sink scrubbing their hands furiously and nurses scurried around the room, reality hit Arizona in the form of a searing pain shooting down her leg. Shaking her head, she commanded, "Stop!" Seeing that no one heard her, she yelled, "Stop!" She then tossed the sheet aside and declared, "I…I can't do this. Nope, I'm going home. Calliope, get my coat." Callie ran to Arizona's side, covered her back up and soothed, "Honey, you can't go home. The babies need to come out now." Arizona shook her head and argued, "I didn't think this through. We need to go home, talk about this. There has to be another way." Callie shuffled her feet, bit her bottom lip, and soothed, "Honey, there is no other way to get the babies out unless you want a c-section." Arizona shook her head, flung her leg over the edge of the table and proclaimed, "No, no, there has to be another way. I'll figure it out. I'm the top fetal surgeon in the world, I can think of something." Worried that her wife was going to hurt herself, Callie placed her hands on her shoulders to keep her from getting off the table, looked her in the eyes, and scolded, "Arizona Robbins-Torres, you are not going anywhere. Now get your ass back on that table and give birth to my babies!" Arizona opened her mouth, snapped it shut, opened it again, and asked, "Your babies?" Callie nodded and replied, "Our babies. I know it hurts honey, but you can do this, you're so strong." Arizona closed her eyes; she knew she was being unreasonable and she wasn't going anywhere. Nodding in compliance, she slumped over onto Callie's shoulder and allowed her to help her get back onto the chair.
That crisis averted, everyone got back to work. Callie took her place by Arizona's side, ran her fingers through her tousled hair, bent down to kiss her forehead and whispered, "I love you so much, you are so strong." Arizona's eyes fluttered closed and she asked, "Calliope?" Callie answered absentmindedly, "Hmmm?" Peeking one eye open, she chewed on the inside of her cheek and requested, "Will you sing to us? The babies love it when you sing." Callie looked around the room nervously and whispered, "Arizona, I don't sing in front of people." Turning her head, Arizona opened both eyes and begged, "Please Calliope, I need something to help me relax and your voice always relaxes me." Knowing she couldn't say no, Callie nodded and started, "Arroro mi nino…" Arizona shook her head and said, "No not that." Callie arched her brow and asked, "What do you want me to sing?" She watched as a blush crept up her wife's pale chest, shook her head fervently and hissed, "Nope! I'm not singing that here." Arizona poked out her lip, took her hand, and pouted, "Please." Callie sighed, nodded her head, and started again, "Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur…" Max looked up from the sink and asked, "Is she singing Soft Kitty?" Addison shook her head in disbelief at the lengths her friend will go to in order to appease her wife, and responded, "Sounds like it." Max chuckled and declared, "I never would have taken her for such a softy." Addie smiled at her friends and corrected, "Only for her."
After being gowned and gloved, Addison settled on the stool between Arizona's draped legs, which were now in position to give birth, reached for the needle and warned, "You're going to feel a little pinch, then you shouldn't feel much of anything." Arizona popped her head up and she asked, "What are you doing?" Addison furrowed her brow and explained, "I'm giving you the pudendal block like you requested." Arizona shook her head and commanded, "Oh no. You aren't going anywhere near my vagina with a syringe. That's what got me into this mess in the first place." Addison, Callie, and Max laughed while the nurses shook their heads at their boss' ridiculous behavior. Tapping on the syringe, Addison declared, "You are done calling the shots Arizona, I'm running the show now." Arizona huffed and cringed when she felt the sting in her vagina, slapped Callie and yelled, "Your friend just poked my va-jay-jay!" Then she let out a scream and arched her back as another contraction ripped through her before the medicine could take effect.
Addison took the distraction as an opportunity to examine Arizona once again and gasped as she saw just how close they were to finally meeting these babies. Looking up, she declared, "Okay Arizona, on want you to relax and on the next contraction, I need you to push as hard as you can." Arizona nodded, reached for Callie's hand, looked into her deep brown eyes, and whispered, "This is it." Callie smiled and answered, "It sure is." She then grimaced as the small girly hand squeezed her fingers so tightly she was sure she would break them, and looked up when she heard, "That's it, okay, give me a good strong push Arizona." Arizona sat forward and let out a growl as she pushed as hard as she could. When the contraction was over, she leaned back against the chair, panting and out of breath, and smiled when Callie wiped her face, kissed her forehead, and murmured, "You did great."
After thirty minutes of pushing, Arizona turned her head, glared at Callie, and snapped, "Oh my God, they inherited your stubborn streak. Why aren't they cominggggggg?" She then reared up and screamed as another contraction took over and Addison yelled, "That's it, push, push, push, push. I see the head, keep pushing." Arizona fell back and huffed, "I can't, I can't." Addie looked at Callie and suggested, "Climb on the chair behind her and help her push." Callie nodded, waited until the nurses adjusted the chair and climbed behind her wife, straddling her back. Arizona leaned against her and murmured, "Thank youuuuuuuu fuuuuuck!" She then leaned forward and Callie followed as Addison and Max cheered, "Push, push, push." Addison looked up and smiled, "Okay the head is out, now I need you to take a deep breath and give me one big push." Arizona swallowed thickly, dropped her head on Callie's shoulder, took a deep breath, then clutched her wife's knees as she surged forward and screamed while pushing with everything she had. Addison carefully slipped her fingers under the baby's chin and guided it out as Arizona pushed. Looking up, she declared, "Baby's coming! Baby's coming, oh goodness…there she is!"
Hearing the shrill angry cries fill the room, Arizona slumped against Callie's chest and both women let out a sob, as the tiny little girl, covered in blood and goop, still attached to her mother's lifeline, was laid on the blonde's chest and instantly settled down. Arizona gently wrapped her arms around her baby girl and smiled when Callie's arms encompassed both of them. Turning her head, she whispered, "She's here Calliope. Our baby girl is here." Callie ran her finger across the tiny little hand and felt the tears run down her face when itty bitty fingers curled around it. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she whispered in awe, "She's perfect honey." Arizona stared down at her daughter, smiled through her tears, and agreed, "She is. She really is." Callie kissed her temple and the two women sat quietly, tears running down their faces, as they marveled at the beautiful little baby. Arizona traced her pouty lips, watched her eyelids flutter, and confirmed, "Her name fits." Callie carefully ran her fingers over the full head of sticky, baby fine, yellow-white hair, kissed her wife's cheek, felt the fluttering in her stomach, and agreed, "It does and I'll never get over her either." Touched, Arizona brushed their lips together, then the two of them whispered their daughter's name for the first time as they rested their foreheads together and felt their love for her and for each other fill their hearts.
Though she really didn't want to break up the precious moment, Addison knew they were nowhere near finished. Picking up the scissors from the tray, she walked to the side of the bed, held them up to Callie and asked, "Do you wanna cut the cord mama?" Staring at the miracle that was her daughter, Callie was startled out of her revery, looked up at her friend, then her words registered in her mind as she saw the scissors being offered to her. Looking at Arizona, they smiled softly at one another, and Arizona took the scissors while Callie wrapped her hand around her wife's, and they reached down, placed the blade between the two clamps and cut the cord together. Holding out her arms, Addie poked out her lip and apologized, "I'm sorry to have to do this, but baby girl needs to get checked out." She then looked at Arizona and commanded, "And you still have a job to do." Almost forgetting she still needed to push out two more babies, Arizona sighed, kissed the sweet baby on the top of the head, then looked at her wife and asked, "Will you carry her over?" Dying to get her hands on her daughter, Callie nodded excitedly, scrambled off the bed, then took her little girl into her arms for the first time.
Callie took pictures and watched while the nurse cleaned and examined her tiny baby girl under the warming lamp, in awe at how something so tiny could cause her to feel so much love. She looked up when the nurse announced, "Baby girl Robbins-Torres is a whopping 2 pounds 11 ounces, with an apgar score of 7." She willingly held out her arm so the second band, this one matching her daughter's, could be fastened. She smiled when the nurse handed her a diaper, then fumbled, slightly out of practice, as she attached the adhesive strips. Carefully picking up her baby girl, she cooed, "Hi sweet baby. I'm your mama. Let's get you settled so I can help mommy bring your brothers into the world." The tiny baby let out a sharp cry at the same time as her mommy and Callie whispered, "I know, yucky old boys. Mommy needs me now little one, but we won't be far away. We will never be far away from any of you." She gently lay the baby in the incubator then rushed to her wife's side just as she yelled, "Calliope Iphigenia Torres, you put them in here, you damn well better help me get them out!"
Taking her place on the birthing chair behind Arizona once again, Callie kissed her head and murmured, "I'm sorry baby." Arizona growled in pain and panted, "Is she…agh…is she okay?" Callie nodded, gripped her hands, and answered, "She's amazing." Addison looked up over the curtain and asked, "Are we ready to meet baby number two?" Arizona glared at her and quipped, "Ready to meet him yes, ready to push his big head through my little vagina, not so damn much. You make it sound like he's about to knock on the door Addisaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhn!" Through her laughter, Addie coached, "Push Arizona, give me a long hard push." Callie leaned forward, trying to support Arizona and encouraged, "You're doing so great baby. Keep pushing, that's my girl." Feeling as if she couldn't give anymore, Arizona shook her head and huffed, "No more. I can't. Ughhhh!" Max chimed in, "You can do this Arizona, another big push." Arizona's nostrils flared as she turned her gaze on the OB and shouted, "Unless you are going to push the next one out of that teeny tiny hole in your…" Callie interjected quietly, "Okay honey, why don't we sit back and try to rest before the next contraction?" Arizona snapped her mouth shut and slumped against her wife, whining, "He doesn't get it Calliope." Callie chuckled and replied, "I know sweetie."
Feeling the baby's head, Addison looked up and said, "Okay, I need you to take a deep breath and when I say go, I need you to push until I say stop." Arizona nodded, closed her eyes, inhaled deeply, felt another contraction coming on and heard Addie say, "Go! Push, push, push, push, push. Keep pushing Arizona." The blonde screamed, "I AM PUSHING! AGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!" Addison watched as the head slowly emerged and listened to Arizona as she panted and cried at the same time. Glancing up, she directed, "He's almost out. Can you give me several short pushes now?" Arizona huffed, "No, I think I'm done. I'll just walk around with my baby's head between my legs for the rest of my life. What the hell else would I do Addison? I have no choice but to push." Callie couldn't contain her laughter and completely lost it. When Arizona turned on her, she tucked her lips between her teeth and tried to hold it in when her wife asked, "Are you laughing at me?" Callie shook her head back and forth, then wheezed out, "I would never laugh at you honey."
Arizona opened her mouth to argue when she was struck with another contraction and howled with pain as Addison commanded, "Push for me Arizona. Come on, short quick pushes." Arizona leaned forward, pushed, took a breath, pushed again, took another breath, pushed again and felt the pressure subside and cried in relief when she heard the angry cry fill the room once again. Callie nearly collapsed into her wife as they both were brought to tears for the second time, hearing the first cries of their baby boy as he was lifted in the air in front of them and placed in Arizona's arms. Just as they did with their daughter, the two women stared at their son in amazement. Callie skimmed the pad of her thumb over his ruddy little cheek and whispered, "We have a son Arizona." Feeling her wife shake in her arms, she held her close and asked, "What is it baby?" Arizona shook her head and answered, "Nothing…he's…he looks just like him. Can we…he fits the third name better." Callie rested her chin on her wife's shoulder, stared down at the tiny baby who was clearly all Robbins and agreed, "Yeah, if that's what you want, I think it's perfect." Arizona nodded and replied, "He's perfect and he's ours Calliope. Our baby boy is perfect." Callie smiled softly, nodded, and answered, "Just like his mommy." Arizona turned her head and the two women engaged in a sweet soft kiss, and just as they did before, rested their foreheads together and stared at their amazing son.
Feeling that now familiar sensation, Arizona lifted her head and announced, "Ahh, Addie, it's time." Standing across the room, admiring her niece, Addison looked up and asked, "Time for what?" Arizona groaned and hissed, "For the next one. Apparently he doesn't like being alone in there." Rushing across the room, she gestured to a nurse to get the baby from Arizona and took her place on her stool once again. Callie took the offered scissors, quickly cut her son's cord, and watched while he was whisked away. She passed her phone to Max, who nodded, knowing exactly what she wanted. Reaching out, she grabbed the wet cloth from the tray table, wiped Arizona's face and encouraged, "One more honey. You can do it." Arizona chuckled and answered, "I don't really have a choice." She then wrapped her hands around Callie's bent knees and yelled, "I need to push!" Addie shook her head and commanded, "Nope, not yet. You only push when I say and not a minute before." Arizona closed her eyes, breathed through the pain and groused, "You're so damn bossy!" Addie looked at her friend, smirked, and retorted, "Hi kettle, I'm pot, you're black." Arizona stuck out her tongue and muttered, "You're gonna have a black eye if you don't get that baby out of there." Callie merely shook her head at the banter and continued to run the cool cloth over her wife's face and neck.
After another forty-five minutes of pushing to no avail, Arizona pushed one last time and yelled, "AAAAAAAGGGHHHHH! Jeepers creepers this hurts." Addison laughed and asked, "Jeepers creepers? After eleven hours of cursing us all like a sailor, you suddenly turn into Mary Poppins?" Callie laughed when Arizona shrugged, looked lovingly at the two incubators on the other side of the room and answered, "There are kids in the room now…owowowowwwwwww." She doubled over in pain once again, and Addison jumped into action as she ordered, "Long hard push now." Arizona cried, "I'm trying!" She buried her head in Callie's shoulder and sobbed, "I'm sorry, I'm just so tired and it hurts so bad. I'm failing you and our baby again." Callie wrapped her arms around her wife, rubbed her back in slow soothing strokes and whispered, "No, no honey. You aren't failing us. You are doing awesome. You just pushed out two babies and have endured so much pain without an epidural. You are absolutely, without a doubt, the strongest person I know. You can do this." Arizona buried her head in Callie's neck and asked, "Can I just take a little nap?" Callie kissed the top of her head and answered, "I'm sorry sweetie, not yet. But as soon as our son is out here, we can get you all cleaned up and dressed in some comfy pj's and I'll hold you while we fall asleep staring at our babies." Arizona sighed, "That sounds nice." Callie squeezed her tighter, then lifted her head and asked, "What do you say, just a few more pushes?" Arizona took a deep breath, sat up, and nodded as she relented, "Okay."
As soon as her next contraction started, Arizona leaned forward, put her chin to her chest and pushed as hard as she could. She cried out in relief when Addison said, "There we are. Hey there little man. Just a few more pushes now Arizona and you're all done." Feeling as if she wanted to pass out, Arizona took several deep breaths and when her next contraction hit, she gripped Callie's hands and as she felt the baby slide out, her entire body relaxed, no longer feeling heavy and full and she screamed, "Fuck that feels good!" She could barely hear her baby's cries over the roar of applause and wishes of congratulations that filled the room. Looking up, she saw Max standing in front of her with her nurses surrounding them, all clapping with tears running down their cheeks. She fell back against Callie's chest and sobbed in relief while her wife whispered, "I'm so proud of you baby. So fucking proud. My wife is a rockstar." When Addie stood up holding the screaming infant towards her, she reached out, took her son in her arms for the first time, and the two women stared down at their gorgeous son, thinking once again just how perfect he was. When their other two newborns were placed in her arms, and two strong arms wrapped around her to support them, Arizona couldn't help but wonder how she got lucky enough to have this second chance at love and life with her soulmate.
XXXX
An hour and a half later, Callie and Arizona were both showered and dressed in their sleep clothes, lying on the bed cuddled up with one another, as their three babies, who were also bathed and swaddled up tightly, lay sleeping on their chests. Callie ran one hand through Arizona's damp hair while twisting an almost identically colored curl around her index finger as she declared, "I think you were right." Arizona looked up at her and asked, "About what?" Callie smiled and replied, "I didn't think this through. She already looks just like you. How am I ever going to say no to her?" Arizona laughed and asked, "Oh, are you already giving up your title as the bad cop?" Callie looked at the two identical faces of her boys and the cherubic face of her baby girl, and answered, "Happily." She then kissed the top of Arizona's head and stated, "Their names really do fit them." Arizona nodded in agreement, then looked up again and whispered, "We make beautiful babies Calliope." Callie leaned down and murmured, "That we do." She then connected their lips in a long languorous kiss.
The two women pulled apart when they heard, "You seriously haven't learned your lesson?" Arizona looked up at the door and laughed, "Hi Addison." The red head looked behind her then turned back and asked, "Are you ready?" Both women nodded and Callie confirmed, "Let them in, it's time for our babies to meet their family." Addison opened the door and stepped aside, letting their little village into the room. Sofia immediately ran to her mommies and excitedly asked, "Are those my babies? They're all here?" Arizona nodded and answered, "These are your sister and brothers." She then patted the small space on the bed beside her and prompted, "Come up here and say hi." Sofia carefully climbed on the bed, settled in next to her mommy, and leaned over saying, "Hi babies, I'm your big sister. I've been waiting for you forever!" She then looked up at her mommies and asked, "What are their names?"
Both sets of grandparents, Aria, Maria, Lorraine, Nicole, Dee, Michael, Max, and Addie all stood back and watched the touching scene with tears in their eyes. When they heard Sofia ask about their names they all looked up expectantly, waiting to formally meet the newest members of their family. Callie looked up at her daughter, then at the rest of the group, turned to Arizona and asked, "Do you want to do the honors?" Arizona nodded, swallowed the lump in her throat, then looked at her parents, picked up her son and declared, "Everyone, we would like you to meet Timoteo Everett Robbins-Torres. Named for his Uncle Timothy and Sofia's father, their donor, Mark." She then passed the sandy blonde-haired, blue-eyed baby off to her mother who was sobbing so hard she could hardly breathe. Daniel cleared his throat, wiped his eyes, and choked out, "He's…that's…your brother would be honored Arizona. He's beautiful." Arizona wiped her eyes then looked at Callie, indicating for her to introduce their next baby.
Callie picked up Timoteo's identical twin, kissed his little cheek, looked at her parents and declared, "This is Santi Montgomery Robbins-Torres, named after his Great Grandfather Santiago Ortiz, his Aunt Maria Santos, and his Aunt Addison Montgomery-Riley." She then passed her son over to her mother and felt the tears stinging the backs of her eyes when her mami whispered, "Papi would be so proud of you mija, he's gorgeous." Sofia looked down at her sister and asked, "What's her name?" Callie and Arizona looked at one another lovingly, then Callie declared, "This is Mariposa Lorraine Robbins-Torres, named after her mommy, the butterfly I will never get over, my symbol of hope, and her Great Aunt and Aunt Lorraine." She then passed the baby over to Sofia who was staring at her with all the love and adoration in the world.
The two women looked at their family, at each of their four beautiful children, and at the same time declared, "Mari, Teo, Santi, this is your family."
A/N: YAY! They are here, safe, healthy, and part of a family who will love and adore them. I tried to find names that were never used before in other stories. I know a few of you mentioned you'd like to see them named after April, Merideth, or Alex, and while I totally get that, I didn't feel like it fit in with this story since they aren't really as big of a part of their lives as their New York Village. I hope you enjoyed it, got a few laughs, and shed a few tears.
