"Someone page Ortho."
"On it, Dr Karev."
That triggered an interest. "You got an Ortho case there Karev?"
"Yeah, Emma Farmer, seven years old, suspected broke-"
The chart was quickly snatched from his grip. "It's okay, I've got this one, thanks Karev."
"Bu- but she's my patient-"
"I said thanks Karev, that will be all."
"Pffft. Whatever." Alex walked away from his stolen patient, grumbling under his breath as he went. He didn't have the strength nor want to fight over a surgery with his boss. Seemed weird she was so keen to have an Ortho case though, was Dr Minnick back? She'd definitely have a lot to say to her. I mean, she wouldn't be that keen to have a patient requiring an Ortho consult if it meant working with Torres right?
Right?
Hmm…
"Hey, got an Ortho consult, what's up?"
Arizona raised her head from the chart and arched an eyebrow, confused. "You're not Dr Torres."
"…No, I'm Dr Wilson."
"Where's Dr Torres?"
"In the Ortho wing, she sent me," she looked round the pit, "Where's Alex? It was his page?"
"Change of plan, Dr Karev is no longer on this case, this is my patient now, and I need Dr Torres."
"Oookay, I'll give her a page… is there anything else I can do Dr Robbins?"
"Nope, all good, thank you Wilson."
A couple of weeks ago, Callie & Arizona picked their donor and had their chosen surrogate in place. The final piece was to harvest some eggs which had been done a few days before. The blonde wanted to use the brunette's and vice-versa, each longing for a mini version of their fiancé. In the end, Arizona's practical reasons won out, she was keen for Sofia to have a sibling who shared the same DNA and looked like her. Their daughter was already going to be a minority due to having two mum's and a Latin heritage, she was eager for her to have a clear ally. Neither minded the gender, but Arizona inwardly knew if she had three Torres women to deal with, she'd be in trouble.
A heavenly voice brought her out of her thoughts. "Hey, Ortho page, what's up? I thought I sent Dr Wilson…" The question ladened with subtle teasing.
Arizona noted the slight smirk on her Callie's face, she was 100% busted. "Yes sorry, I needed an expert opinion on this one, so I asked Wilson if she could page you."
Callie silently took the chart, not breaking eye contact whilst giving her fiancé a very well-hidden, mischievous look as she inspected the notes. Once she'd completed her review, she turned her attention to the patient and parents. "Hey Emma, I'm Dr Callie, how are you feeling?"
The voice was small, clearly shaken from the trauma. "My arm hurts Dr Callie."
"I bet it does sweetheart. Well, my friend here", she gestured towards the Peds surgeon, "Dr Arizona has ordered an x-ray and our local superhero, Nurse Tina", Tina gave a wave, "Will be taking you to the special room where we will be able to take really cool pictures of your bones." The young girl's face lit up; her doctor made it sound like the most amazing experience in the world. "Your parents can even watch too, but they can't come into the room…" She leant in slightly, feigning a secret, and loudly whispered, "…Because they're not as cool as you." After a quick, playful wink, she stood up straight with a beaming smile. "How does that sound?"
The girl was enchanted, but still skeptical. "Will it hurt?"
The warmth in Callie's smile was enough to melt icecaps, "Not at all, in fact, it's just like taking a regular picture with your friends or mum & dad, do you want me to show you?" She received a shy nod in response and without prompting, the father grabbed his phone and took a picture of his daughter and the Ortho surgeon. Noticing Callie's left hand held the 'rock star' pose, the small girl mirrored it. Dr Torres would say it was badass, but not around a seven year old.
Not whilst the parents were there anyway.
Happy she'd allayed fears, she confidently asked; "You ready to rock?"
"Yes Dr Callie, I'm ready to rock!"
Arizona fielded some more questions from the parents whilst Callie chipped in with the odd reassuring comment. Both were on the same page for the surgery and course of treatment. Once all parties were satisfied, the pair walked away discussing the practicalities of the surgery.
"Forth floor on-call room. Now."
"What?"
"There is nothing hotter than seeing you being an amazing parent Calliope, and I need to show you just how hot you are. NOW."
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"So Dr Robbins, I thought this was Karev's patient, what happened?"
Her reply was as cool and calm as they come. "I thought this case required an expert eye; Wilson is good but there's a reason you're the head of your department Ca- Dr Torres."
Callie's head didn't move but her tone became one of faked confusion. "Ah yes, a broken ulna is a very complex and rare case, we never get these…" She looked up and knew by Arizona's eyes she was blushing. "Seems like after avoiding me for so long you're now keen to be in my presence. Wouldn't you agree BokHee?" The scrub nurse laughed behind her mask as Arizona's eyes remained fixed on the patient, if she looked anywhere else god knows her complexion would give her away. Damn her fiancé was good at teasing her. Dr Brooks was also in attendance, patiently standing by, ready to dip in when asked.
"So Dr Robbins, I propose to you, why are you so keen to keep me company in the OR?"
Blue eyes flew up, "You propose to me?"
Now it was Callie's cheeks that turned red. "POSE, I meant I pose… the question… to you. I pose the question to you- why are you so keen to keep me com-"
Arizona took chance to take the upper hand. "I say Dr Torres, I'd expect a ring and to be wined & dined before such a request, wouldn't you agree BokHee?"
They heard a distinctive buzz from above. "Dr Robbins, Dr Torres, any chance you could tell these interns and residents what you're doing instead of including our best scrub nurse in your little back and forth?" Scolded, like children, but this time it was from their Chief rather than a very irked Kepner.
Their reply was in unison, almost like they'd planned it. "Yes Chief." With that, both surgeons were forced to hold back their giggles. They knew they were slipping and knew it wouldn't be long until the hospital found out, but they were still enjoying their happy little tryst. It was just getting harder and harder to hide their happiness.
Regaining a level of composure, Callie returned to professional mode. "Would you like to proceed Dr Robbins?"
"As I'm the lead surgeon here Dr Torres, I'd be grateful if you could take the reins in explaining the procedure to the class whilst I concentrate on our patient."
"As the secondary surgeon Dr Robbins, I'm here to do as you instruct during the surgery. Therefore, as I won't know your next steps, I feel it's best you teach our colleagues."
"As an Orthopaedic surgeon Dr Torres, are you telling me you don't know what the next steps are for a basic ulna repair?"
Callie didn't miss a beat. "Well you didn't deem it basic when you asked me to join you rather than a very capable Dr Wilson."
"Dr Torres, as lead surgeon-"
The noise of the intercom stopped their interaction, again. "Neither of you will be the lead surgeon if I don't hear some excellent commentary in the next five seconds."
They just couldn't help their selves and they knew it. With that threat from the Chief, Callie took control and explained each step her & Arizona were taking. They worked well together, in tandem, like it was a second nature. Orthopaedics is rarely a gentle surgery, but the speed and ease in which they worked together, around each other, it flowed, there was complete understanding. If Arizona needed an added clamp, Callie was there, if Callie needed a second pair of eyes, Arizona was there. They were perfect, they were in-sync.
After successfully finishing the internal repairs, they silently agreed their involvement was no longer required. Arizona was first to announce it to the room. "And there we have it guys, Dr Torres, would you like to close?" She knew she'd pay for that later. Hopefully in a sexy way.
"Thank you Dr Robbins, but maybe Dr Brooks would like that honour?"
"Really?! Yes please Dr Torres!" Receiving a nod from each surgeon, Brooks eagerly dived in. Both Callie & Arizona were grateful in that moment to whoever made surgical masks opaque. Their wry smiles, happy smiles, knowing smiles, tender smiles, infectious smiles, smirks and pouts all concealed by that one piece of fabric.
They scrubbed out together, silence falling, they knew if they were to talk, they'd start their laughing fit, again. After a few knowing looks, Callie had to raise a very important matter. "You know, asking me would I like to close like a lowly resident is a punishable offence, Dr Robbins."
Now those dimples were visible. "Oh I'm counting on it, Dr Torres."
xxxxxxxxxx
"Robbins, wait up!"
Alex.
Arizona had finished scrubbing out and passed the post-op work to Callie and Brooks, their patient obviously formed a bond with her fiancé. She paused midstride, turned and flashed a 'this-better-be-about-a-patient' smile. "Hey, what's up?"
He approached and they made their way across the bridge. "I saw Herman earlier, she said you've been annoying her lately."
Love you too Nicole. Erugh, Arizona's perkiness had always irritated Herman, she could go back to being stroppy if she'd prefer. No, no she couldn't, she was just too damn happy. Screw Nicole!
"You're still in love with her aren't you?"
Arizona never thought about Nicole romantically, not once, she was her mentor, her friend. She certainly had never been in love with h- oh crap. It dawned on her. "What? Who?"
As if it was obvious, "Duh, Torres." Yep, that's what she thought. "Well, I know Herman finds petulance annoying so I'm guessing you're feeling like crap?"
Petulant!? Herman's annoyed because I'm happy, not sad! And yeah, Calliope's happy, I'm a frickin' delight! Noticing the half annoyed, half concern expression in front of her, and realising she hadn't responded, she pulled her friend aside. "Karev, listen. I am not upset, I am not sad, I am not petulant and I certainly do not miss Callio-llie- Torres." Nice one, good save, not.
If he did notice those slips, he didn't acknowledge them. "Boss, I know this is kinda soft and mushy and stuff but you can talk to me."
All she wanted to say was that YES, she was happy because she was with Callie and Callie was happy because she was with her. In fact - they were engaged and about to extend their family. But she didn't, she had to talk to Callie first. She let out a defeated sigh, not because she was upset, but because she didn't like lying to him. It was okay when it was a group of people and they simply weren't telling anyone, but this was an outright lie to a direct question. "Karev, I'm fine, honestly. Nicole has always found me annoying, even when I was saving her life."
He looked around, making sure no one else was in ear shot, he was clearly embarrassed with his next words. "It's jus- just we're friends, kinda, and I worry about you."
Ouch. She had to talk to Callie, she couldn't keep this up anymore. To leave her friend with a glimmer of genuine reassurance, her expression changed from 'work' Arizona to her less formal 'home' Arizona. "Kar- Alex," she sighed. "Listen, there is something I've been hiding but it's a delicate situation. I'm so happy though, so so happy, the happiest I've ever been but it's complicated. I promise I'll tell you soon but at the moment I can't. I'm so, so sorry."
Alex nodded, accepting the explanation. "It's okay boss, I'm pleased you're hiding something that makes you happy. If you need me, I'm here." His tone reverted to the Karev everyone was used to. "But it's a one-time offer. And keep this between us."
She hesitantly rubbed his shoulder, and when he didn't pull back, she knew how heartfelt his concerns were.
She had to find her fiancé.
xxxxxxxxxx
Callie sat scrolling through the tedious number of social media platforms when a tray forcibly landing on her table snapped her to attention. "I spoke to Addison, why didn't you call her neighbour? Is it because of the intern? I didn't tell her about him by the way."
Meredith.
Once again Callie was forced to think on her feet. Give her three seconds to make a life-or-death decision in the OR and she'll make it (and it would always be the correct one), two seconds to make a decision that would result in a man walking again or not, and she'll make it in one. But questions about her personal life? Well, so far she'd made up a conference in another state, found a fake dollar, was texting the wrong people, said she was sleeping with a made up intern and that she'd call Addison's neighbour. "I err, I chickened out, I'm just not ready to date, I know it's been a couple of years but I'm not looking for anything serious." It was true at least, she had something serious already. "And you know, hot intern sex is well, hot."
"So a quick screw and then doing the walk of shame?"
How romantic. "I did that in med school, not keen on repeating it in my mid-to-late-thirties thank you, it was a one, erm, two off." She gently placed her hand on her friend's forearm, trying to bring calm to the situation. "Seriously Mer, I appreciate you looking out for me and wanting to set me up with hot people, but with the award, my exposure and requests have increased, and I'm just looking to concentrate on that, perform surgeries and most importantly, spend time with Sofia."
"What award?"
"Err, Ortho award, for my cartilage generation." This was okay, these were simple questions, no need to panic.
"Where was it?"
Detective Grey strikes again. "Portland."
"And you went by yourself? You should have said, I'd have come! We could have used the opportunity to go wild, have a night on the town. You do remember what that's like don't you?"
Although slightly offended, these were still answerable questions. "Gee thanks Mer, of course I know, I've just been-"
"'Busy with Sofia, your research and you're not ready to date', I know the rhetoric."
Callie nodded and took a bite of her food, hoping that would conclude matters. After a brief moment of silence however, her hopes were dashed, she heard six words she didn't think she'd hear today. "You're not over Robbins are you?"
Thankfully she had finished her mouthful, otherwise it probably would have ended up all over the General surgeon. "Excuse me?"
"I think you're hesitant to move on, due to her."
You think? "Err no, why would you say that?"
"I saw you both, a few months ago, when Amy was stood right here, flirting with you. You completely dismissed her and kept looking over to Arizona..."
Yeah, we weren't exactly subtle were we?
"…Come on Callie, tell me the truth, are you over Arizona?
I was positioned over her this morning if that counts? "No, I mean yeah, yeah I am. It's complicated sometimes, but we've both moved on and-"
"You're lying to me Torres. Come on, you helped me out with Derek and Riggs, I just want to lend my friend a hand in return. I care Callie, I want you to be happy." Great. What was once their own fun little world was now being torn apart due to friends. Erugh, friends! Lame caring, supportive friends.
She was defeated, partially, she couldn't keep up the full façade anymore. "I will tell you Mer, it's just we- I need to figure some things out. It's big, yeah, but I'm not quite there." A contented grin slowly covered her face. "It's good though, I promise, great in fact, but just give me a little more time and I'll tell you everything." Her eyes were pleading, she loved her friend, she hated to deceive her, but she needed to speak to Arizona before confessing to anything.
Meredith placed her palm on her shoulder, mimicking the reassuring sentiment she'd received earlier. "Okay, I understand. Whatever it is Callie, we're friends first and foremost. As long as you're having amazing cheeseburgers and you're happy, then we're good. Always."
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"Oh my GOD! Really Dr Torres?!" Her protégé's excitement at being her fellow after she'd passed her boards was evident in both sight and sound, her voice pitching slightly higher than usual. "I have to tell Alex!"
They were walking to the exam room when that sudden, excitable slip caught Callie's attention. Alex? She squinted, her demeanour one of devilish glee. "Something you want to tell me there, Dr Wilson?"
"I'm err, I'm kinda seeing Ale- Dr Karev. Are- are you mad?"
Mad was probably the last emotion Callie felt, who in that hospital hadn't been in a romantic relationship/situation at one point or another? She had been in one. Or Three. And she liked Alex, a lot. Her smile was about to show Wilson was wrong in her assumption but as her eyes moved to make contact, she spotted a very keen looking blonde making her way towards them. She duly slowed down when she noticed the brunette had company, but her eyes indicated her attention was urgently needed.
"Of course not, I think it's great." Relief quickly spread over the resident's face. "How about this, after this exam we'll review your first solo surgery, and you can fill me in on everything?"
"First… solo?!"
"I have every faith in your Dr Wilson." She took a quick glance at the chart. "Head to exam room two and I'll be with you in a sec, okay?"
The resident was pleased she had finally told her mentor about Alex and elated she was getting her first solo surgery. After noticing Callie's gaze had landed on Arizona, she made her excuses and skipped away, leaving the Ortho surgeon standing there, highly amused. The coast was clear, Arizona approached. "Dr Torres, just looking to follow up on Emma Farmer, do you have a moment?" She didn't even bother with small/patient talk, she was on a deadline. "Karev knows."
Callie was dubious. "The way Teddy knew or the way Nicole knows?"
"Erm, both?" She rolled her eyes; this is not how she wanted their relationship to be revealed. "He said I wasn't over you, and that it was obvious."
She thought back to her lunchtime conversation, "Meredith told me the same thing."
"I think we've lost the ability to be subtle." Her accepting tone turned to one of light blame, "I mean, you've been very happy lately."
What?! She was actually offended at the insinuation she had burst their bubble. "Me?! You're the one wheeling around the wards, halls and pit on those shoes!"
There was no point, they had both been obvious for a while now, certainly since they moved in together. "I mean it has been over a year, do you think we should tell people?"
Callie let out a deep breath. "I do feel bad, these are our closest friends, but by keeping it to ourselves we've managed to build a better, stronger relationship than before, at least I feel that way?"
Arizona nodded and discreetly grabbed Callie's hand, "I do too."
"I don't think they'd be mad either you know? We've only kinda lied to the two people, Mer and Karev - and they'll just be happy we're together more than anything. She stroked her thumbs over Arizona's hand, "I mean, I'm happy for Wilson and Karev, even if they did keep it a sec-"
"WHAT?!"
"What?"
"Wilson and Karev?!"
"You were the one who told me!"
"Wilson told you but Karev didn't tell me?!" Arizona huffed quietly, she knew the bond Callie & Jo had formed was special, whilst there was always someone interested in Peds, Ortho wasn't so sought after, especially by women. In fact, the teacher/student relationship was so strong, Arizona was pretty sure Wilson would end up being their maid of honour, if not a third bride.
Tightening the grip, Callie brought her back to reality. "Listen, let's enjoy the next few days and then review everything over the weekend? I want to do something kinda important first."
That brought out the dimples. "Sounds good, my love." She took one final look around and placed a chaste kiss on a tanned cheek. After receiving her favourite smile in response, she headed off, determined to find her target before she left for the day.
xxxxxxxxxx
Oh she was pissed. "KAREV! KAREV! DR ALEX KAREV!"
Arizona spotted her protégé as she made her way to the Peds floor. She didn't wait for him to answer, when in range, she punched him in the arm. "Ouch! What the hell?!"
"Why didn't you tell me you were seeing Wilson?"
"Err, how do you know about me and Jo?"
"Because she told Callie! What the hell I thought we were close, you know you can tell me stuff, I wouldn't have said anything." She didn't want to admit she was doing the exact same thing to him; she conveniently left that minor detail out when rationalising her approach.
He sighed and lowered his voice. "I didn't want to tell you because, well, I'm happy and you're kinda- or at least I thought you weren't you know… happy. I didn't wanna rub it in, that's all."
Arizona was annoyed, mainly at herself, but she'd deflect for now. When did Alex Karev become so caring and considerate? "Okay, I forgive you, but you owe me." (She decided he'd owe her forgiveness for doing the same thing, smart). She gave him a playful nudge before turning to head home for the day, indeed, she too had a fairly important matter to attend to.
xxxxxxxxxx
"Callie! CALLIE! Hurry up, come on!"
"I'm coming Arizona!"
The blonde had a delightful flashback, "Yeah heard that line before, like an hour ago actually."
She rolled her eyes as she descended the stairs, fixing an earring as she went. "Yeah yeah come on, let's get this show on the road, got everything?"
Arizona held up Sofia's clasped hand in hers, "Yep!"
14 months after Arizona's faux pas to Eliza, they were finally getting married. Their early morning surgery had been routine so they managed to get out the hospital by 2pm, return home, get washed, dressed, undressed, sexy time, re-washed, re-dressed, pick up their daughter, dress her, almost undress each other again and then head off to their 4pm appointment. They'd chosen the Court House, preferring an intimate (some would say secret) ceremony with just them, Sofia, a couple of state appointed witnesses and a Judge in attendance. They decided they'd done the big wedding last time, and whilst this one was technically 'legal', in their eyes they were just as married as any heterosexual couple. Their love didn't need another lavish event, another gathering of friends & family, another celebration of their love… just the three of them. There would be a celebratory dinner with Arizona's parents and Carlos in the coming weeks, and no doubt a round or two at Joe's, but for now, none of the rest of it mattered.
The rings were new, another argument Arizona won, although this victory didn't require as much convincing. She could barely look at her old wedding band without feeling sick, she couldn't imagine how Callie felt. It was non-negotiable for the blonde and she was tasked with selecting the new ones. It was a choice between traditional gold and platinum but, again, Arizona couldn't stomach the sight of another piece of gold on her ring finger, so she went for platinum and loved the final product. She couldn't wait to slip it onto Callie's finger, finalising everything they had worked towards.
Not 20 minutes later, they arrived (jointly, they were risking it) and looked up at the imposing building before them, each holding one of their daughter's precious little hands in theirs.
"Nervous?"
"Not in the slightest Calliope, you?"
"Not at all, my love."
"Awesome, shall we go in?"
"Lead the way fiancé of mine."
"In ten minutes Dr Torres, you'll have to change how you refer to me."
There's that smile again. "I can't wait."
They stood before the Judge and witnesses, both opting for smart knee length dresses with Sofia adorning a soft green number with adorable little dolly shoes. Callie's dress was crimson, Arizona's a slight darker shade of cream. The Judge's words were formal, there was no talk about their love, their dedication, their journey, their history, their efforts, their determination to get back here… but they didn't need that. They didn't want any of that. They just wanted to be married, spend their lives together and grow their family. After the most formal two minutes of their life, they repeated the same two words.
"I do."
It was perfect.
