So they study together that day, and then a few days later they get coffee in between classes, and a few days after that they have a movie night, and the day after that they study together, and. Maybe Callie is getting kind of attached to her mean blonde goalie friend, because it turns out that Erica is fun - she's not fun all the time with everyone, but she's fun with Callie, they have fun together, even just doing normal stuff like watching TV and doing homework and whatever.

Most of the time they hang out at Erica's place, which Callie prefers because she can subtly snoop; there's so much she doesn't know about her enigmatic friend. Also Cristina always tries to hang out with them at Callie's and her shared apartment because she, like, wants to be Erica when she grows up. She skulks around the living room and says stuff to Erica like, "You made such a good save last game."

Erica stares at her blankly, then responds, "You're blocking the TV."

When Cristina finally retreats to her room and Callie punches Erica's shoulder for being so mean, Erica just laughs and says, "She's growing on me, but don't tell her, okay?"

Basically, Callie's so busy being best friends with Erica that she doesn't even think about the dream anymore, really, except sometimes when she's really fucking drunk. Then maybe she stares at her a little.

But that's not that weird. Girls do that when their best friends are hot.

Sometimes - also when they're drunk - Callie sits in Erica's lap at the bar. And then there are a few times when they end up at Callie's after, and Erica says, "I can just crash on the couch."

"Nooooooooo," Callie always insists, because she's always still drunk. "Share with me!"

And then she makes Erica be the little spoon, and Erica teases, "What, you want to sniff me again?" And Callie laughs but doesn't respond, because she does, okay? Erica just smells really good. Like peaches and sunshine.

After a few weeks, though, they have to stop going out for a while. They're training for a really big game against their number one rivals, so all they do is practice and study and eat. They still have sleepovers, but that's just because they pass out while studying on the couch so often.

During this time, Callie does not get to sniff Erica's hair. She feels a normal amount of bummed out about this.

Anyway, it's all worth it when game day finally comes. Erica pulls a shut out and Callie scores a goal and assists another, which is like literally so impressive of them both, and they fucking win.

When the final whistle blows, she sprints back down the field whooping and hollering - heedless of how sore her legs are after running for 90 plus minutes - and jumps into Erica's arms. Erica catches her easily, laughing.

Then, without thinking about it at all, Callie wraps her arms around Erica's neck and kisses her.

It's just a quick peck, really. Except that when she pulls back, she doesn't go far - doesn't even open her eyes. And then somehow her lips are brushing over Erica's again.

Erica hesitates, then kisses her back, her mouth firm and gentle against Callie's; and maybe Callie's impulsive not-thinking brain could write the peck off as a joke, but this doesn't feel funny at all. Erica's lips are soft and warm, her hands under Callie's thighs holding her steady, and Callie can taste the salt of her sweat and that should be gross but somehow it totally isn't. And then they separate, and they just look at each other.

"We won!" Callie tells her, and Erica laughs some more, says, "Yeah, we did."

And Callie just keeps holding onto her and Erica doesn't put her down, just starts walking towards the sideline until Addison and Teddy and Miranda jump on them, and they all finally collapse into a heap.

Then, while they're walking back to the locker room, Erica touches her arm. "Hey," she says quietly. "Wanna get a drink to celebrate later?"

"We're all getting drinks to celebrate later," Callie points out.

"Yeah, I know," Erica says, rolling her eyes playfully. "But we worked extra hard for this, so we should get an extra drink."

"We should," Callie agrees. "Let's do it."

Somehow, she feels normal until she gets into the shower. Once she's under the spray, though, it all catches up to her.

She didn't mean to kiss Erica, is the thing. She really didn't. She was just going to jump on her, but then her arms were around Erica's neck and she was looking down at Erica's face with her shining eyes, and she saw her mouth, and she just went for it -

And it was kind of, well, perfect. The thing that's so weird about it is that it didn't feel weird at all.

And now she's thinking about Erica's boobs again, and god, what is wrong with her? What is she doing? That's her teammate she's thinking about - her teammate who's showering just a few stalls over. She can't just kiss her, she shouldn't be thinking about kissing her -

Callie manages to keep it together while they're all chatting and getting ready to go out. She gravitates towards Cristina, then Addison; keeps Erica in her peripheral vision but doesn't approach her. Avoids getting too close to her.

Before they leave, she texts Mark to meet them at the bar. He'll want to toast them and buy their drinks. He's a good friend - who also is always down for some benefits.