It was barely a quarter past 5 when a sharp tone roused Arizona out of her sleep, the loud noise almost painfully piercing against her eardrums. She whimpered quietly and rolled over in bed, covering her head with her pillow and jabbing her elbow sharply into the side of the woman sharing the bed with her. There was a time, years ago, when she was gentler when waking her girlfriend, but the blonde had very quickly discovered that Lucy slept like the dead. Nine times out of ten, she had to wake her up when the younger woman's pager didn't.

"Turn it off," she whined through clenched teeth. She had at least another 30 minutes of sleep before she needed to get up for her shift at the private OB/GYN office she had been practicing at for a whopping six days total. She was a morning person, but the adjustment to the new patients and place of practice was taking its toll on her, and she was tired. She would greedily take every minute of sleep she could.

She longed, momentarily, for the practice she had left behind in Seattle. She missed the friends she had made and the patients she knew well and the unquestioned respect from her coworkers.

And the weather, Arizona thought with a scowl, kicking the sheets off of her warm body and pulling her long hair away from her neck. She had forgotten how hot Georgia was even when approaching autumn.

Beside her, Lucy scrambled to silence her pager, sitting up in bed and rubbing her sleepy eyes. "Sorry, 'Zona," Lucy whispered, before pushing herself out of bed and moving about their bedroom as quietly as possible, careful to step over the boxes they had yet to unpack as she readied herself for the day.

Arizona had met Lucy Kavanaugh four years prior, when she was still a resident and Lucy was in her first year of medical school at the University of Washington in Seattle. They had hit things off instantly, and it was fun and easy, and Lucy was pretty. Very pretty, even, with straight light brown hair recently chopped to her shoulders and gray eyes and freckles dusting over her cheeks and nose, and flushed, creamy skin.

When Lucy graduated medical school and was matched to the residency program at St. Mary's Hospital in Savannah, Georgia, she asked Arizona to move with her. To which Arizona had hesitated. Because things were just so good in Seattle, and she hadn't been back to visit her home state in over 12 years, so how could she possibly move back out of the blue? She had made excuse after excuse after excuse, for years, to avoid that place. During undergrad, she had been too swamped with internships and volunteer research and preparing for the MCAT to make it home for Christmas or summer break, she had told her parents. By the time she reached medical school, they had stopped asking, settling to fly to wherever she was for the holidays instead to avoid the entire argument altogether.

But then she had seen the sad look in Lucy's eyes when she hesitated, and she immediately felt guilty. Lucy was so good to her and loved her so much and on paper, she was perfect. They were perfect. Soulmates, all their friends had said, which would always make Arizona laugh airily and roll her eyes and rush to change the subject.

Besides, she was an adult now. She had changed. Her past was in the past and it couldn't hurt her anymore, she vowed, so there really was no reason to continue running from Sweetwine.

So she had said yes and handed in her notice at Seattle Grace Mercy West, but only after securing the only OB/GYN position open within an 80 mile radius of Lucy's hospital in Savannah. It was a tiny family-owned private practice, just outside of her hometown, whose doctor was retiring after 40 years of faithful service. It all happened so quickly after that. She and her girlfriend signed a lease on an apartment about halfway between the two cities, leaving a twenty-minute or so commute for each of them every morning in opposite directions. Only a few more stray boxes to unpack and they would be entirely settled in.

Arizona fluttered her eyes open and sleepily watched Lucy jump around to get her shoes on and then scramble out their bedroom door in a hurry. She frowned. She really didn't miss the days of her own residency. The tall woman reappeared in the doorway only moments later, purse and a granola bar in hand, and leaned over the bed to kiss Arizona's temple. "Have a good day, Z. I love you."

"Mmm," Arizona mumbled, still half asleep but grinning lazily. "Love you back." The sound of the front door closing was her answer, and the blonde sighed, resigning herself to the fact that she likely wouldn't fall back asleep anytime soon. She was a Robbins, after all, and when she was up for the day she was up. She made their bed quickly and took a scalding shower, lathering her hair with a generous palmful of her cherry blossom shampoo. Her hair was currently the longest it had ever been, reaching past her breasts, and as she was lathering Arizona remembered why she had always gotten frustrated and chopped it to her collarbones before. It was annoying and far too time consuming. She made a mental note to get a haircut soon.

She braided the front of her hair back, letting the rest fall loosely around her shoulders, and applied a light layer of makeup. She pulled on a clean pair of scrubs and poured herself a cup of freshly brewed coffee, sitting down in their kitchen nook to read for a few minutes before she left for work. Arizona had always been a bit of a bookworm, even as a child.

She remembered being 7 years old on the playground and telling another girl on the swings that the yellow ribbon in her hair reminded her of Matilda, a book she had recently read and loved because Matilda was small and smart like she was. And when the girl with the yellow ribbon had scrunched her nose up in confusion, Arizona had sat with her for the rest of recess, telling her all about the different books she was reading—from Matilda to Nancy Drew to her complete index of dinosaur species—and drawing pictures of the most exciting parts with chalk on the sidewalk to help her new friend visualize the pure magic she was missing out on.

That had been their very first day.

Things had fallen together perfectly after that, the way that perfect things always seem to do. Their childhood was filled with playdates and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and pinky promises. Skinned knees and Chuck E. Cheese birthday parties and matching bikes. Chlorinated hair and sunburns and Halloween. They were thick as thieves, never one without the other.

Some nights, Arizona still longed for that simplicity, that innocence and genuine joy, but the knowledge of how their story ended always ruined any little trips taken down memory lane.

With a sigh, she snapped her book shut. She realized she had mindlessly reread the same paragraph four times as her mind wandered off into territories she rarely let it go to. Being in Georgia again was getting to her, and she tried her best to shake the nostalgia off her back. It was childish and impractical to dwell on the past, and a marine's daughter was raised to be anything but.

Grabbing her keys and jingling them against her nails lightly, Arizona decided to head into work for the day early. Maybe she'd even get the office donuts to thank them for welcoming her so warmly during her first week. It really had meant a lot to her, and it helped her transition go at least a bit smoother.

She was particularly fond of her nurse, April. She was a bit… squirrely, sure, but Arizona found it endearing. She had that softness and hospitality about her that was so distinctly southern, and Arizona had found she missed it while up north. She was good at her job, too, which made liking her even easier. She was contemplating inviting the redheaded nurse and the receptionist, Teddy, out for drinks some night because, who was she kidding, she really needed friends. Everyone she had known from high school had long since moved away to start their new lives elsewhere. Not that she really blamed them for getting the hell out.

She pledged to call her mom during her commute today too, to set up a dinner with her parents to catch up and to meet Lucy. She figured four years was probably long enough to wait in a relationship for introductions. Probably too long in most people's eyes, but Arizona was kind of new to dating seriously. She just didn't do it, not since… Don't think about her, Arizona. She was more of a serial dater, more of a turn-them-into-a-moaning-mess-and-leave kind of girl. There were no feelings that way, and everything hurt a lot less. So when Arizona and Lucy kind of fell into a serious relationship on accident, she didn't really know the proper steps to take. Lucy didn't seem to mind, though. The blonde knew that girl would've followed her anywhere for however long, big lovesick puppy dog eyes and all.

She pulled into her parking space outside of the practice, cringing internally at how wrong her new Lexus looked parked next to all of the old pickup trucks and beat up Chevrolets. She used to make fun of people like this version of herself. Who are they trying to impress in Sweetwine? she would whisper into her friend's ear as they walked, and both girls would giggle as they ran away in their dirty shoes, off to the town fields to play a game of softball or tag.

She grabbed the box of (only 11, she would admit, as she had eaten one during the drive) donuts sitting in the passenger seat and scraped her eyes over the quiet small-town street, refamiliarizing herself with it. The magnolia trees lining the curb, the bluebirds loitering along telephone wire, couples on white porches drinking sweet tea. She had known it all so well once. It was all she had known at the time, really.

She entered the small clinic with a warm smile, her lab coat tossed over her arm. "Good morning," the perky woman greeted, placing the box of sweets on the front counter in front of Teddy. "Y'all help yourselves," and she cringed at herself. Less than a week back in Georgia and the y'all had returned full force.

Teddy noticed. "Morning, southern belle," she teased, typing a few notes into the computer in front of her.

Arizona flushed and shook her head, "Shut up," she laughed, pulling her white lab coat on over her scrubs, yanking her long hair out from beneath the collar. "Guess you really can't take the Georgia out of the girl. How many appointments today?"

"Twelve, not too busy."

"That's not so bad for a Friday," Arizona smiled warmly, always the optimist, always the go-getter. She was still getting used to the slower pace and smaller pool of patients in Sweetwine. In Seattle, she sometimes had up to 30 appointments a day and emergency deliveries multiple times per day. She was becoming a bit bored and restless, missing the excitement of the larger city. "Are you busy tonight?"

Teddy's eyes finally lifted from the computer in front of her and she lifted an eyebrow. "I'm flattered, Dr. Robbins, but I really don't swing that w—"

Arizona giggled and rolled her eyes. "I have a girlfriend, Teddy. I was just looking for…" She blushed a little, a bit embarrassed. "I just wanted friends. I'm a very good friend." She nodded firmly, straightening her spine a bit.

Teddy smiled fondly at Arizona, finding her obvious nervousness cute. "April and I are going out for drinks tonight. It's sort of a Friday night tradition. You should come."

Arizona's dimples popped. "That sounds fun! I'll be there," she squealed happily, excited to finally have friends to talk to and spend time with. She loved Lucy and all, but she really, really needed human contact outside of her. "Just know that I don't karaoke," she giggled, before collecting her patients' charts in her arms and bouncing towards the examination room, where her first patient was waiting for her.

For the first time since returning to Sweetwine, Arizona felt herself start to relax. Things were fine. She was making friends and the clinic was running smoothly and Lucy was happy. She hadn't seen a single Torres since her return, and the little white house down the street from her childhood home they had once occupied had a brand new family in it. Arizona figured they had moved out of town years and years ago. It disappointed her a little, but it also made her feel significantly less anxious.

Skimming her blue eyes over the chart before her, Arizona went over the basics. 29 years old, 7 weeks pregnant, in for a routine check-up. It'd be a quick appointment, she was sure.

She opened the door with a bright smile. "Good morning, Mrs. Moore," Arizona chirped, too preoccupied with putting on her examination gloves to look up at her patient. "My name is Dr. Robbins, and today I'll be your—" she froze instantly when her eyes raised, nearly dropping the chart in her hands.

Because there, sitting on the examination table with a yellow ribbon in her hair, was Callie.

Her Callie.

Callie Torres.

Or Moore, she supposed.

She's married, Arizona thought to herself, and she hated the way her heart actually dropped in her chest. Married with a child on the way, which hurt even more.

She swallowed thickly, staring at the Latina as if she was looking at a ghost, blue eyes wide. She was still so fucking beautiful, maybe even more so now. Those big brown eyes were staring back at her, lips parted in surprise. Neither woman moved, terrified to speak, terrified to make it real.

Arizona felt small. She was suffocating. She wanted to curl up like a child and hide. Callie was the first and last person that had ever been able to hurt her that way, and deep down she was still so angry about all of it. She wanted to scream and call her names and ask her why she had done what she did twelve years prior.

And another part of her just wanted to hold her.

And another part wanted to kiss her, wanted to pin her to the table and make her moan and scream her name and come unraveled underneath her. She wanted to gain back an ounce of the control Callie had stolen from her all those years ago.

She could feel her cheeks flushing hotly at the memory of Callie wrapped around her fingers, head thrown back and cursing in Spanish.

She blinked a few times and sucked in a breath, attempting to regain her composure. She knew she had to say something, anything, even if it broke them out of their staring match. It felt like razorblades were stuck in her throat as she called her name softly, for the first time in twelve years. "Calliope?"

Smoky brown eyes darkened considerably at the sound of her own name. "Arizona," her voice was huskier than normal, but the blonde remembered that tone well. It was all she could do not to run away or cry or jump her bones then and there, but from the look in Callie's eyes, it appeared she was struggling to contain herself too.

God damn it, Arizona thought to herself. God fucking damn it.

Callie outright stared at the woman before her, finding herself at a genuine loss for words.

She looked stunning, somehow even more poised and breathtaking than she had been at 18. Long blonde hair—Callie had never seen it so long before—and pink lips and a sharp jaw and, Jesus, those dimples. She was even prettier than Callie remembered. Pretty in the way that kind of knocked the breath out of her.

She felt herself fill with intense pride, despite herself, because Arizona had done it. She was a doctor, just like she had always dreamed of when they were younger. The blonde had always gone on and on and on about her hopes and plans for the future, and Callie had just let her talk, smiling warmly at the passion in her voice and gazing at her, dumb in love.

She swallowed the bile rising in her throat, struggling to find the right words to say. "Where is Dr. Dennis?" she asked, genuinely confused and a little curious. He had been the county's only OB/GYN for years, he had even delivered Callie, for Christ's sake, and she had assumed the appointment Addison set her up for had been with him.

Arizona attempted a smile. "He retired last week. I'm, um, his replacement," she chewed on her lower lip before remembering her professionalism, standing up a little straighter. "And your doctor, I suppose." She hesitated before holding her hand out for Callie to shake, clearly abiding by the good man in a storm moral code her father had drilled into her.

Callie took her hand to accept the friendly handshake, stomach flipping at the electrical current that immediately shot through her veins, lighting her skin on fire for what felt like the first time in a decade. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt so much from just a touch, and an innocent one at that.

They both held on for a little too long, then Arizona ripped her hand away and broke eye contact suddenly, staring down at the chart in her shaking hands, eyes scanning over the blood results April had collected. "Um," she cleared her throat quietly, and Callie felt horrible for how shaken the once familiar woman looked. She knew it took an awful lot to affect the ever stoic, ever smiley Arizona Robbins. "Mrs. Moore," she said pointedly, as if the words burned her mouth, "it looks like you're 7 weeks pregnant. Congratulations." She finally raised her eyes to look at the Latina again, and she hated herself for smiling at her upon instinct.

But Callie wasn't smiling. She was shaking her head, nose scrunched slightly. "Not congratulations," she corrected, before launching into one of her infamous word vomit marathons. "I mean I'm pregnant, yeah, whatever. Fine. But it's not a happy, yay, super thing." God, this was embarrassing. She closed her eyes and sighed, rubbing her temples gently.

"Oh," Arizona frowned despite herself, hating seeing Callie so unsure and small. The Callie Torres she had known and loved for so many years had been so full of fire and so unapologetic. As much as she wanted to hate her, to find some sort of sick victory in her downfall, she just couldn't. She had tried. She found herself aching to reach out and touch her, to offer even a little bit of reassurance or comfort, but she restrained herself. "Well, there are always options we can look into—"

"Oh, that isn't necessary," Callie rushed to cut her off, cheeks burning red. "Not that I'm against that, I just… I'm having the baby. But please don't congratulate me or anything."

"Okay," Arizona replied gently, deep blue eyes absolutely devouring the woman in front of her. It felt sinful to even look at her, like a decadence too divine for her to indulge in. Every little thing about her was so beautiful. The logical part of her brain was screaming at her to keep things cold and professional, but this was Callie in front of her, and she was certain the soft spot she had for her would never entirely go away. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," Callie smiled weakly. Her heart melted a bit at how genuinely worried the blonde looked. "You look really good, Arizona. I mean…" her cheeks blushed even brighter, if that was possible. "I mean you look really happy and I'm proud of you for, you know, the Dr. Robbins thing. I always knew you could do it."

Arizona couldn't hide the affection in her eyes if she tried. All those years and all that hurt was still there—it just felt like it mattered so much less now that they were here, face to face. It felt like all that mattered was Callie. She would drown in her if she could. Even now. "Thank you, Calliope," she smiled sweetly, her eyes fluttering across the baby blue dress and white apron she was wearing. She'd recognize the uniform anywhere. "You work at Monday's Place?"

A nod. "I do."

Arizona's dimples popped. "That was always our place," she said dreamily, almost talking to herself more than to Callie. "Remember the first time we went? We were what, 9? And we asked every single waitress who Monday was and why it was his place," she giggled as she reminisced, shaking her head fondly.

A genuine laugh bubbled out of Callie's throat. "No one ever knew. I still don't know. I was hoping employment would get me the inside scoop," she smirked when Arizona rolled her eyes, her demeanor finally relaxing.

"You still bake?" Arizona asked hopefully, her mouth watering a little when she remembered Callie's pies, always so rich and decadent.

"Mhm," Callie answered. "Every day at the diner. I still make your favorite sometimes, too. Marshmallow Mermaid, was it?" She recalled inventing that flavor specifically for Arizona, when they were sixteen. It tasted like pure sugar and was a hit particularly with kids, but Arizona had always been a child at heart.

"The only food I ever loved more than donuts," she grinned. "You'll have to teach me the recipe in case I go another twelve years without seeing you." And there it was, that hurt still inside of her bubbling to the surface, spilling out before she could stop it. She kicked herself mentally for even saying it and quickly shook her head. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean—"

"It's okay. I guess I deserved it considering the way I…"

"Yeah."

"Yeah," Callie parroted. Another staring match, the tension boiling up once more, then Callie blurted out, "Your accent faded."

"Huh?"

"Your accent," Callie blushed, embarrassed that she had even noticed, let alone mentioned it. "It's not as strong anymore."

"Oh," Arizona's cheeks warmed, touched that Callie had remembered something so small about her. "Yeah. I did undergrad at Brown up in Rhode Island, as you know," her blue eyes looked into Callie's, both women silently acknowledging the bittersweetness of Arizona leaving for college all those years ago. "and medical school at Yale in Connecticut, and my residency was in Seattle, so it was just… a lot of northerners, I guess. But I accidentally said y'all this morning, so maybe it'll make a full recovery," she shrugged, laughing a little bit as she inched closer to the Latina, her intense fear of being close to her slowly subsiding.

Callie was revelling in how close they were. Her hands longed to reached up and gently tuck a strand of Arizona's hair behind her ear. She smelled sweet, like cherry blossoms and sugar and something else she couldn't quite place. "I've never seen your hair so long. It's pretty," her voice fell to a whisper and before she could control herself, she was twirling a strand of golden hair in her fingers. Arizona seemed to lean into it, savoring the contact. What were they doing?

"You're pretty," Arizona said simply, as if it was the truest, most obvious thing in the world. Because to her, it was. "You always have been." Callie's cheeks burned and her eyes fell to pink lips, even as they were forming her next words. "I have to—" her breath caught in her throat and she quickly cleared it, stepping back to break the brief physical contact. "I have to perform a pelvic exam." She clenched her teeth, willing herself to gather enough strength to be professional. For Callie's sake and her baby's. She handed Callie a dressing gown and left the room to give her some privacy to change without another word.

Callie sighed and started to peel off her uniform, folding it neatly before covering herself in the medical robe Arizona had provided for her. She laid back on the examination table and stared at the ceiling as she waited for her return, trying her hardest to relax her body and to make her mind just stop.

But it didn't work.

It felt like her skin had been engulfed in flames. Her heart was hammering against her chest and she felt excitement and joy and that sickeningly sweet feeling of butterflies in her stomach for the first time in years. She finally felt alive, and she would do anything to keep that feeling from slipping through her fingers again. Anything.

A soft knock on the door and Arizona was standing before her again, looking much more composed than she had when she bolted from the small room. "I'll be performing a visual exam first, Mrs. Moore, so if you could just lay back. And let me know if you have any questions." She instructed professionally, pulling on a sterile pair of examination gloves and sitting on the stool in front of Callie, watching with darkened eyes as she swung her long, toned legs over the stirrups. She slid her body toward the end of the table and let her knees fall open. "Everything looks healthy," she said softly, resting a hand flat on Callie's lower abdomen in preparation for the physical portion of the exam.

But she hesitated. For the first time in her medical career, she hesitated.

Because no matter how hard she was trying to compartmentalize, this was still Callie in front of her. And touching her and looking at her like this felt like the sweetest cruelty in the world. Her eyes glazed over, glancing up at Callie's face for… she wasn't sure what. Reassurance, maybe.

She was surprised to find Callie's eyes were nearly black, staring down at her with an intensity that made her burn and squeeze her thighs together. "Arizona," Callie husked, her hand sliding gently over the one resting on her stomach. This was stupid, she knew. It was a bad idea and it was sure to make her already pretty terrible situation even worse. But she didn't care, not in the slightest. Not when the woman she never expected to see again in her life was here.

Callie peeled the glove off of Arizona's hand, maintaining eye contact and sitting up a little on the table, just enough to pull the blonde closer by the front of her scrubs. "Arizona..." she whispered again sensually, and Arizona's brain finally shut off.

She was up in an instant, all of her carefully constructed caution thrown haphazardly to the wind. Their lips crashed against one another in a sloppy, desperate kiss, teeth nipping nearly hard enough to bruise. Twelve years of pining, of dreaming, of hating had led to this inevitable moment. Callie's hands found long strands of golden hair, knotting it up beneath her fingers as they made out. They both held to each other tightly, scared the other would slip out of their grasp and disappear forever if they let go.

They broke the kiss momentarily to suck in necessary breaths of air, and Arizona trailed her lips down Callie's jaw and neck, leaving a trail of wet kisses that made the Latina whimper. She tugged on Arizona's shirt, pulling the smaller woman completely on top of her and pushing the lab coat off of her body, discarding it on the floor.

Arizona balanced on top of her former lover, straddling her, and hissed quietly at the friction her knee provided between her thighs. She rolled her hips forward slowly and could feel how wet she was already getting, even through her scrubs. She slid her ungloved hand between their bodies and ran her nimble fingertips up her shirt, taking in the soft, warm skin of her abdomen on its ascent to her bra-covered breast.

"God, Callie," she whispered against her ear, smirking when Callie arched her back off the table and cursed quietly in Spanish. God, she had missed this. She had missed her. As much as she didn't want to. As much as she hated herself for this. She captured the brunette's pillowy lips in another kiss to keep her quiet, her small hand refamiliarizing itself with the body it had once had perfectly memorized.

Callie pushed her tongue into her mouth and Arizona gladly allowed it. She was moments away from dipping her hand lower, from filling the brunette with her fingers and fucking her right then and there, when her pager sounded, echoing off the walls of the tiny examination room.

Arizona jumped, breaking the kiss and stilling her hand's work. She struggled to focus on the words flashing across her pager's screen as Callie busied herself with kissing her neck. "I have to…" she moaned, tilting her head to the side and grinding down against Callie's knee. "I have to take that, I have to go." She sighed in defeat, lips ghosting a final kiss on Callie's lower lip. Then she was up and off of her, breaking all physical contact. "Emergency C-Section at the hospital," she explained, reaching for her lab coat on the floor and pulling it on, attempting to smooth out her hair. "I'm so sorry," she watched her with apologetic blue eyes, and Callie believed her.

The Latina sat up and covered her body, feeling suddenly very vulnerable and exposed. "No, it's okay," she whispered. "That's definitely more important. Go save a little life," she offered a weak smile and rubbed her eyes.

"We'll, um, we'll get you started on a prenatal vitamin regiment." Arizona promised. She hesitated, then scratched down something quickly on a piece of paper, before tearing it off and handing it to Callie. "My number. In case you have any questions. About, um, the baby," she smiled sheepishly and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, visibly flustered. Callie thought it was cute. "And Teddy at the front desk can get your next appointment scheduled."

"Okay," Callie said quietly, dangling her feet from the edge of the table. She kept her eyes trained on them, watching them swing.

Arizona watched her with a sad frown, gently reaching her hand out to touch the brunette's cheek. "Hey," she said softly, thumb ghosting over her cheekbone affectionately. When Callie raised her eyes to look at her, Arizona resisted pressing a kiss to her forehead. She had no idea what had happened in Callie's life in the twelve years they had been separated, but she knew it was enough to put that sad glaze in her eyes, and she hated it. "You can call me about things other than the baby, too," she whispered. "I'm here."

And then she was gone, rushing off to save the world, and Callie buried her head in her hands to ease the headache she felt forming.

I'm here.

Yes, Arizona was here. And that was exactly the problem.

A/N: welllll you've met some more characters. and they've reunited! and with so much tension and so much history. what do you think they're gonna do? what do you think tore them apart in the first place? :) thank you SO much for reading and for leaving reviews, they really inspire me to get new chapters up. i have lots of big plans for this story so i genuinely hope you guys enjoy it and stay engaged.