Covert Affairs 18/18
Title: Covert Affairs 18/18
Author: GreysAddictJ
Pairing: Callie/Arizona
Rating: NC-17/M
Disclaimer: The characters are not mine. No infringement intended. Also, I don’t use a beta, so all mistakes are mine.
Summary: A/U - Callie Torres is a badass. A professional badass. As a spy working for the United States government, it is her job to protect the American people from threats that they don’t even know exist. She’s awesome at her job. Focused and in control. Except when it comes to the mysterious blonde she needs to help her with her most dangerous mission yet.
* * * * *
Callie sprinted back into the building, hoping and praying that she could reach Tim in time. Yes, it was a risk. A giant one. She didn’t know exactly how much time she had before the building blew, but it wasn’t much. That she knew. It was also a risk because there was evidence the man she was risking her life to save was a traitor. But despite her doubts, she knew that she needed to trust Arizona. Trust her in spite of what had happened. Trust her completely. Trust her with her heart. Perhaps for the rest of her life. However, right now, how long that life would be was up in the air. It could be over within a matter of minutes.
She prayed that her memory served her correctly. Prayed that she wouldn’t get lost on the way to where they’d guessed Tim was located. She continued running - there was no time for hesitation. She needed to be right. The first guess had to be right. After a few twists and turns down various corridors, she came to a screeching halt at the end of a hallway. There was a door. The door she hoped led to Tim’s cell. Somehow, through a stroke of luck, it wasn’t locked with some fancy electronic lock. She hadn’t thought that part through - it would have been awful to get all the way here and not be able to open the door.
She took just a moment to take a deep breath. Then she reached out and tried the door handled. It was locked. She cursed under her breath and ran a hand through her raven locks. Now what? Then she remembered. She pulled out the key that Alex had given them, thankful that it hadn’t been confiscated. Had they stayed put longer, surely Paolo and company would’ve found it. Her hand shook slightly as she aimed the key at the lock. She prayed it work. She let out a small sigh of relief as it entered the lock and turned the mechanism.
As the door swung open, she saw a man pacing back and forth. Even though he was covered in bruises and cuts, she was sure it was Tim. The all too familiar blond hair and blue eyes left her no doubt as to who it was. He was definitely a Robbins. “We have to get out of here.” She said.
He nodded and followed her from the room.
“Can you run?” She asked. He’d clearly been through some trauma and she wasn’t sure he was up to it.
He nodded again. She knew that the time was running out. The alarm that had been blaring above took on a new and more urgent tempo and tone. Seeing a door at the end of the hallway, she sprinted for it, hoping Tim followed. She prayed that her gut was right, that she hadn’t gotten turned around. Prayed that it led to the outside. She opened the door and was elated to be hit with the hot desert air. Freedom. She turned and motioned Tim through the door. Once he was out she followed and they kept running, trying to put some distance between them and the building. They’d gotten only a few feet away when it blew. Before Callie could register what was happening she was airborne. She felt searing hot pain as she was hit with shrapnel. And then everything went black.
* * * * *
Arizona knocked back another tequila and stared blankly at the empty shot glass. She was not a drinker. At least not a heavy drinker. And certainly not a tequila drinker. But she’d acquired a taste for the stuff since the “incident.” The “incident” - that was all she could bring herself to call it. She’d escaped with Alex. She’d gotten the terrorist information to HQ in time to stop the attacks. She’d even figured out who the snitch was - not her brother. But rather, his best friend. Travis Ravensberg. “T.R.” “Birdie.” Bastard more like it. Her stomach roiled at the thought. He’d even been the one to comfort her when she heard her brother was missing.
She ordered another drink. As much as she didn’t want to think about Travis and his deception, there was plenty more she didn’t want to think about. Namely the loss of both her brother and her . . . whatever Callie was. Her heart. Her everything. Her soulmate. She knew it was silly to think that. They’d only known each other a short time and she’d only scratched the surface of the woman that was Calliope Torres. But she knew. She was it. There was no one else for her. So now she’d be alone. So she drank. Because she couldn’t, wouldn’t, desperately needed to just be numb. She didn’t want to feel. Anything.
As Arizona reached for the newly full glass before her, she heard a voice from behind her. It made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. It was a deep, soothing voice. A very familiar voice. One she’d never expected to hear again. “Tequila? Really sis? And at noon? You’re lucky Dad’s not around.”
Arizona continued to stare down, focusing on the worn, scratched surface of the bar top. She’d stopped breathing, but she hadn’t noticed. She was frozen. She couldn’t move. Too scared to hope. Not trusting her ears. It wasn’t until Tim slid onto the stool beside her and ordered her a glass of water that she really believed it. She looked up, unshed tears shimmering in her eyes. “Tim? Is it? Really you?” She reached out gingerly and cupped his cheek, feeling the very real warmth of his skin, the prickly stubble of his unshaven chin.
“It’s me, Arizona. I’m here. I made it out. Thanks to you.” Tim reached up and took her hand from his face, lacing his fingers through hers.
“How?” She asked incredulously. “I saw the building blow up. And what ab . . .” She cut herself off. She was petrified to ask about Callie, fearing it would not be the answer she wanted.
“Callie got to me in time. We got out just before the explosion.” He replied.
“It’s been two weeks. What took so long? I’ve been grieving you for two weeks!” Arizona said, suddenly a bit angered.
“We were stuck out in that desert for some time. And Callie wasn’t in good shape - she was floating in and out of consciousness. We were finally rescued, but she’d slipped into a coma. I had no idea you were even involved in the mission. Or that you’d even been told I was in danger. I was stuck in debriefing for days. Then I came here. I’m sorry, sis.” He squeezed his hand.
She noted that he hadn’t said anything about Callie. She swallowed hard and gathered her courage. She needed to know. “And Callie? Is she . . . is she . . .” She couldn’t finish her question.
“She was out cold for two days after our rescue.” Tim said. “She saved my life, Arizona. I’ll forever be in her debt. I waited by her bedside for her to wake up. It wasn’t until she did that I found out that you two were . . . involved.”
Arizona let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. Callie had woken up. That must mean she was okay. Right? Then doubt crept in. “And she’s okay? Please tell me she’s okay. Tim, if anything happened to her . . . she risked her life to make me happy. She was in that situation because she trusted me, despite the fact that I gave her little reason to. Please Tim. Is she okay?”
Tim smiled and reached up, wiping away the tears that had begun to spill down her cheeks. “Why don’t you ask her yourself?” He said.
“Hey you.” Arizona heard from behind her. That voice. The sultry, sexy, comforting voice that was unmistakably Calliope Torres.
She turned to smile at Callie. “Hey.” She whispered back. They said nothing, simply gazing into each other’s eyes. Time stood still. She was here. She was alive. And she was standing right in front of her. Callie’s beautiful smile, her gorgeous brown eyes, her smell, her presence. Arizona felt the deep wound that had ripped open her soul begin to heal.
After a few awkward moments, Tim cleared his throat. “Well, I’m going to get going. I’ll leave you two to catch up.”
Arizona snapped out of her daze and turned to Tim, wrapping him in a big hug. “I’m so glad you’re okay, Timmy.” She said, calling him by his childhood nickname. “So, so glad.”
He chuckled. “I’m glad as well. And I’m glad that something else good came out of that situation. I’ve gotten a chance to get to know your Callie over the past few days. She’s a keeper.” He kissed her on the cheek, gave Callie a quick hug, and left.
Unable to stay apart for one second longer, they came together in a deep bear hug. Arizona couldn’t help it as her body was wracked with sobs. In the course of 10 minutes, she’d gone from complete desolation, having lost both her brother and the woman she loved, to sheer joy, having gained both back.
“Calliope. I don’t know how I would have lived without you. Or Tim. I am forever in your debt. Thank you. For so much. I can’t even begin to express.” Her eyes filled again as she gazed into those chocolate orbs. “You are the most amazing person I’ve ever met. I am so lucky that you’ve taken a chance . . . or rather multiple chances on me. And I’ll understand if you want to move on. I get it if it’s too much, if . . .” Arizona’s ramblings were cut off as Callie placed a gentle finger on her lips.
Callie pulled back slightly, cupping Arizona’s face gently between her hands. “I love you, Arizona Robbins, of course I want to take a chance on you. I trust you. With my heart. With my life. And I’d run into that building all over again for you.”
“I love you too, Calliope. But don’t you ever, ever do that to me again.”
Callie laughed. I think I can promise that. I’ve tendered my resignation from the CIA. No more spying for me.”
“But you love your job.” Arizona said, protesting half-heartedly. She hated the thought of Callie giving up her dream job just for her. But at the same time, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief.
“There are some things, or rather someone, that is more important to me. I wouldn’t be any good at my job anymore anyway.” Callie said.
“Why?” Arizona asked, confused.
“Because before you. Before I met you. Before I fell deeply, hopelessly in love with you, I wasn’t afraid to die. I wasn’t afraid to take risks. I lived for adventure. Now, I just live for you.” Callie said before capturing Arizona’s lips in a deep, passionate kiss.
Arizona sighed into the embrace, allowing herself to savor, to enjoy, to just live in the moment. They definitely had a lot to learn, a lot to work out. But they had the rest of their lives . . . their hopefully very normal, ordinary, and unexciting lives, to figure it out. And she couldn’t wait.
The End