Well Maybe What You Want is Right Here 39/39
Title: Well Maybe What You Want is Right Here 39/39
Pairing: Arizona/Callie
Rating: M
Summary: Sometimes we don't realize what we want until we just know. And sometimes we realize that certain things are worth fighting for. Starts a day or two after the scene in 11x08, and follows Callie and Arizona over the next year and possibly more. Timeline may not be perfectly canon.
Disclaimer: All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for-profit, it constitutes fair use. Reference to real persons, places, or events are made in a fictional context, and are not intended to be libelous, defamatory, or in any way factual.
Chapters 1 - 38
A/N: Well, here we are -- the end. I hope this last chapter doesn't disappoint. This story has become very near and dear to my heart, and I sincerely thank everyone who has been reading along with me. From something I thought would only be a one-shot, well...it's come a long way!
Four years later.
Arizona
"Audrey, stop it! Those are mine! Momma!"
Glancing over from the kitchen island, I watch as Sofia yanks a purple pencil crayon back from her younger sister and shoots her an angry look. The small brunette certainly inherited a fiery temper from...well, both of us...and although I know it never lasts more than a few minutes, I sigh softly as our younger daughter reaches for the drawing implements again with a determined face.
"Sofi I wanna colour too!"
"Sweetie, please share with your sister."
"She always presses too hard and breaks the point!"
"Audrey, be gentle, okay?"
I turn and raise my eyebrow slightly at our youngest and she just looks up with big, blue eyes, her waves of chestnut hair framing her face into the perfect picture of innocence. I know those eyes make my wife cave in almost every time, but I'm immune to the Robbins look...mostly, at least.
"I won't break it."
Grabbing the pencil crayon in question with a self-satisfied look, she settles back in her chair and contemplates whatever she was busy drawing. At four years old, Audrey is exactly how her sister was at that age -- feisty, verbose, and intelligent far beyond her years. We're lucky, and the two of them get along about 90% of the time, but sometimes their two personalities are just a little too alike and it implodes right before our eyes.
They're still the most amazing thing I've ever done though, there's no question about that.
The kitchen settles into a relative silence again as both girls colour, and I slip dinner into the oven and look over, just watching them for a moment. I perform unbelievable, life-saving surgery every day -- perform surgery in miniature on children who aren't even born yet -- but this? making dinner and settling arguments about pencil crayons and helping with grade four homework...this makes me happier than I could have ever imagined. A decade ago I wasn't even sure I wanted children, but now there's a nine-year-old and a four-year-old who hold my heart in the most beautiful way possible.
I hear the front door open and close, and the sounds of my wife arriving home bring another smile to my face.
"HI MOMMY!"
I laugh softly as Audrey yells out a greeting at the sound, and Sofia follows suit, and a minute later the older brunette appears around the corner into the kitchen, a wide grin on her face.
"Hi, mijas."
She circles around the table and drops a kiss on each small head, looking down at the works of art coming to completion in front of them.
"I like your..."
She trails off a bit, studying Sofia's drawing, but the girl pipes up with a slightly exasperated tone.
"It's a brain, mom. Like the brain inside your head, like Aunt Amy cuts open at work. See? Here's the stem bit and this is the noodly bit. This is the frontal...um. The lobe!"
Tilting her head slightly, she studies the picture and glances over at me. I just shrug, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world -- what normal nine-year-old doesn't draw anatomically correct brains? Callie just grins and makes her way over, a warm palm cupping my neck as she leans in to kiss me in greeting.
"Mm, and hi to you too."
My hand automatically comes up to curl around her waist and I sigh happily, tugging my wife a fraction closer. Our life is amazing in so many ways; our relationship, our kids, everything I could possibly want I've found with her. We've been married for five years now -- three longer than our first time around -- and yet every single night, I still look forward to the little things like watching her with the girls and getting a kiss hello. I look forward to her coming home, or coming home to her. We've built a home and a family, and although things might not be perfect, they seem pretty damn close to me.
You always hear people talk about the magic wearing off, but all I can see is magic growing stronger. Family growing stronger, and two people growing stronger and more in love with every passing day.
And there is absolutely nowhere else in the world I'd rather be.
----
Five years after that.
Arizona
"Hey there, superstar."
Callie laughs as I sidle up behind her and wrap my arms around her waist, gazing at her reflection in the floor-length mirror. She looks incredible tonight -- every night, really, but tonight she's dressed in a long, dark blue, satin dress, her hair pinned loosely at the nape of her neck with a simple pearl necklace as her only accessory. Tonight, she looks like a star. Like a Harper Avery winner.
"I honestly never expected this."
She meets my eyes in the mirror, a mix of pride and excitement and nervousness flitting across her gaze.
"I did. I knew as soon as you were nominated that you were going to win. Your work over the last few years has been incredible, Calliope."
"It's still because of you, you know that, right?"
She turns to face me and I loosen my arms a little, letting my hands rest lightly over the silky fabric covering her hips.
"Maybe it was inspired by me, but I'm not taking any credit here," I laugh softly, reaching up to trail my fingers along her jaw, "all I did was lose a leg. The rest was you and that brilliant mind of yours."
She grins then, leaning in to capture my lips under hers, and even though I want to be mindful of her carefully applied makeup I can't bring myself to pull back even a fraction of an inch. She kisses me for several long moments, her long fingers sliding up and into the loose waves of my hair, before finally sighing contently and trailing her fingers down my back.
"Are the girls ready to go?"
"We're ready!"
I glance over my shoulder as a young voice pipes up from the doorway to the adjoining room of our hotel suite, and see our nine-year-old daughter grinning at us with a look that reminds me all too much of my wife. She may have my physical features, but so much of her personality is exactly like her other mom, especially the older she gets.
"Where's your sister?"
The older girl appears behind her a moment later, looking very grown up in her new dress and low heels. I'd loaned her a simple necklace of mine, and the dusting of makeup she'd recently taken to wearing only served to enhance her youthful beauty.
"I'm here, I'm ready. I just didn't want to watch you guys make out like someone here."
"Kissing means they love each other!"
"Yeah but I don't want to see it!"
Callie laughs -- a rich, throaty sound that still gives me a tingly feeling in my belly -- and picks up her clutch from the small side table by the bed. She smooths her dress down a little and I motion to the girls, grabbing the key card and ushering them out of the hotel room so we can head to the awards ceremony downstairs. They head down the hall together, and the older brunette slides her hand into mine as we follow, leaning in close to my ear.
"I guess we officially still love each other, huh?"
*
"....and for groundbreaking contributions to the field of bionic medicine, this year's Harper Avery winner -- Dr. Callie Torres."
There's a wild round of applause around the room, most notably from our table where Alex and Jo, and Amelia and Elise have all made the trip to see Callie accept her award. The brunette makes her way to the podium with a slightly nervous look in her eyes, but she soon finds me in the crowd and delivers her thank you with grace and poise, pride evident in the way she speaks about her work.
"So how does it feel to be the wife of a Harper Avery-winning surgeon?"
Amelia leans in as applause sweeps the room again, and I can't help but smile as my eyes remain fixed on the woman slowly making her way back to the table, people stopping her for congratulations every few steps.
"It feels just as amazing as it has for the last ten years."
"You know there's already rumours that you're on the preliminary list for next year. Ten bucks says we're all back in this room again next spring."
Callie returns to the table, easing back into her seat beside me and setting the prestigious award in front of us with a smile, and I can barely even hear the words the neurosurgeon is saying. I don't need an award -- all I need is right here. As long as Callie's by my side, I'm the biggest winner of them all.
----
Four years after that.
Callie
"I'm not ready for this."
Arizona turns to look at me over her shoulder, and before she even asks I cross the bedroom and carefully slide the zipper up on the back of her dress. Sofia is graduating from high school tonight -- high school -- and my emotions are getting the better of me before we've even arrived at the ceremony.
"I know, I can hardly believe it."
The blonde turns with a small smile, sliding her hands over my shoulders and along the sides of my neck in a comforting gesture.
"Our baby is all grown up."
"God," I let out a sigh, pulling away and going back to the mirror to check my hair, "doesn't it seem like just yesterday we were going to her little dance recitals and...and tying her shoes for her? How did this happen?"
*
"Mom, it's going to be okay."
Our eldest daughter hugs me tight when she meets us after the graduation ceremony, and my face is clearly tear-stained and a wadded up tissue is still clenched in my hand. It's official now. She's eighteen, she's a high school graduate -- there's no turning back the clock.
"I'm not even leaving until August, we have lots of time."
"I know, I know."
I squeeze her extra tight before letting go, a small smile tugging at my lips as I look over her face again. She's grown into such a wonderful young woman -- she's beautiful, thoughtful, smart...unfortunately for us all she inherited Arizona's sense of humour, but that just endears her even more. And now she's going off to Johns Hopkins to become the next doctor in the family.
She tilts her head just slightly, her happiness barely contained as she beams at me, and the expression is simultaneously so little girl and so grownup that it makes a striking comparison.
"We're so proud of you, Sof."
"We really are."
Arizona is suddenly by my side again with Audrey, and I watch as the blonde pulls our older daughter into a fierce embrace. She definitely cried during the ceremony, watching Sofia walk across the stage, but she's managed to contain her tears and now nothing but absolute pride radiates from her eyes. The two of them have had a special bond ever since she was a toddler, and they're both so alike that sometimes looking at and listening to the young brunette is like having a spitting image of Arizona in front of me.
I watch as my wife pulls back and reaches up to tuck a stray bit of hair behind Sofia's ear, her fingers lingering slightly along her cheek.
"Your dad would be so proud of you, too, sweetie."
"Yeah, I know," the young girl smiles and looks down at the diploma in her hands for a moment, then directs her eyes toward her younger sister, breaking out into a grin, "and what about you, little A?"
Audrey rolls her eyes slightly at the affectionate nickname, but grabs her older sister in a hug and holds on for a long minute. It's hard enough to believe Sofia is going off to university, but our youngest is quickly becoming a teenager as well and that's another fact I just can't reconcile in my mind. She'll be thirteen in six weeks, and with her mother's blue eyes and dimples and her long, dark chestnut hair, I just know she's going to have the attention of every boy -- and girl -- in a twenty foot radius.
"I guess I'm proud of you too. Nerd."
"Oh yeah, look who's talking Miss I-read-Shakespeare-for-fun."
The younger girl swats at her sister and mutters something in reply, and the two dissolve into giggles and another warm hug, the friendship and the bond they share clearly evident. Neither have talked about it -- or at least not to Arizona and I -- but I know they're going to miss each other like crazy come fall.
Sofia spots her best friend across the room and waves, and she takes off toward her, slinging her arm around her sister's shoulders as the two continue to chat. I look at my wife and she just takes my hand, our fingers linking together with ease after twenty years of practice. We follow the girls slowly toward the doors at the front of the school, and I can't help but sigh, glancing sideways.
"I think...I'm starting to feel old."
"Don't."
The blonde replies softly, blue eyes smiling up at me, and she squeezes my hand as she looks forward to watch the girls.
"Calliope, there's still so much to look forward to."
----
Three years after that.
Arizona
"What's all this?"
Callie and I have just gotten home from the hospital, and the kitchen table is set with four places, and candles, and the smells of a delicious homemade meal are wafting toward us. Christmas is in a week and the girls are both on winter break -- Sofia just flew home last night -- but I assumed they'd both have plans with friends on their first free Friday evening.
"This," Sofia announces, pulling a pan from the oven, "is chicken piccata. And that," she sets the pan on a wooden board and motions with an oven-mitted hand, "is a plate of double fudge brownies."
Our youngest daughter swoops around the island, bottle of wine in hand like some kind of sommelier, and carefully fills three of the glasses at the table...and a fourth when she thinks we're not looking.
"Dinner is served!"
"Audrey -- you're not supposed to say that until I actually bring food to the table."
"Well you took it out of the oven, it's ready."
"But it's not served. Get it right."
I just look at Callie and laugh, taking in the scene before us.
"You guys didn't have to do all this."
"It does smell amazing though," Callie sniffs the air and wanders over to the island, trying to peek at the dish, "I knew I taught you well."
"Hey! Hands off. You two just make yourselves comfortable over there."
She gives us a mock stern look, and I nod seriously, pulling out a chair and taking my place at the table. Callie follows suit, and the girls busy themselves over in the kitchen for a few minutes getting everything served up.
"We just felt like doing something nice, and having family dinner," Sofia sets plates down in front of us, dropping a kiss on each of our cheeks in passing, "and I missed you."
"How's school? Are you ready for your MCAT in February?"
The girls settle in at the table, and our budding doctor's eyes light up with excitement at the mention of the big test.
"I'm so ready. Your flash cards are amazing, mom. I mean I'm nervous about it, but I'm feeling really confident and I've still got two months to study."
"When you're not busy kissing Annnndrew."
The older girl's eyes widen perceptibly, and I raise a curious eyebrow, slowly spearing a bite of chicken on my plate.
"And who's Andrew?"
"He's nobody," she shoots her sister a dirty look, but Audrey just smirks a little into her glass, "he's a friend. A little more than a friend. But it's nothing serious."
I glance at Callie and she gives me a knowing look, a smile creeping onto her face. There hadn't really been many boyfriends yet in Sofia's life -- she'd always just been focused on her studies.
"That's what they all say."
"Well Audrey's been kissing someone too, so."
"Sof!"
The sixteen-year-old's cheeks immediately heat up with a slight blush, and she throws a bread roll that her sister catches without batting an eye.
"Wait," I glance over at the younger girl, "you're sixteen! Who are you kissing?!"
"No one!"
"Audrey and Emmmma siiiitting in a tree..."
Sofia grins mischievously at her sister and bursts out laughing as the younger girl's blush deepens and she swats at her shoulder in protest. My eyes widen slightly at the revelation -- and I make a note to make sure bedroom doors stay open from now on when Emma's here -- but I can't help the soft chuckle that escapes me as I watch the two of them rib each other. Callie's laughing right beside me, and she slides her palm over my thigh, squeezing lightly until I take her hand and twine my fingers softly with hers.
I meet her eyes over the laughter and banter still ringing out in the kitchen, and I can see exactly what she's thinking. We missed this.
Because this -- the chatter, and the teasing, and the family dinners around our well-loved table -- this is home.
----
One year after that.
Callie
-Just tell them. Honest, they're not going to be upset.
-Everyone in our family is a doctor.
-Not everyone.
-Basically everyone!
-Just TELL THEM.
*
I glance over to where Audrey is curled up on the couch, propped against the arm tapping away at her phone with a worried look on her face. She's been in a weird mood the last couple of days, and unlike her usual bubbly self, and I know something is bothering her. She's good at compartmentalizing emotions -- just like Arizona -- but her eyes tell it all. And eventually she always bursts.
"Everything okay, honey?"
"Hm?" she glances up, just barely, and bites her lip a little as she looks at her phone again, "yeah...I..."
She trails off a bit, and I see Arizona look up from her book. She's sitting on the other end of the couch from our daughter, and the young brunette lets out a sigh as she stretches one leg out, her toes burrowing under the edge of her mother's thigh.
"I have to tell you something."
She sounds nervous, and I frown a little, hitting mute on the remote for the television.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine...I'm..it's nothing bad," she pauses for a second, a slightly cheeky grin briefly crossing her face, "I mean, at least you know I'm not gonna say I'm pregnant, right?"
Arizona lets her hand drop to the ankle beside her, and she gives her a smile, rubbing softly in encouragement.
"I got into University of Carolina. And Northwestern."
My eyes immediately light up -- those were the two pre-med programs she'd applied for, and not only that, they were two of the most prestigious in the country. She'd always been bright, just like her sister, and I knew she'd be bound for great things after high school no matter what she wanted to do.
"That's great news!"
"I don't want to be a doctor."
She rushes her next words out, biting her lip as she glances between Arizona and I. There's a silent pause for the briefest of moments, and our daughter looks like she's ready to run out of the room. Is this what she was so worried about telling us?
"Okay, well, have you heard about the other schools? What about NYU?"
She'd applied for two other schools this past fall as well, both of them in combinations of journalism and arts programs. Audrey always had way more creative and artistic talent than the rest of the family, so it hadn't come as a great surprise to either of us that she wasn't single-mindedly focused on science like Sofia. She'd taken music lessons growing up, had played in a garage band with some friends, and she was responsible for most of our family photos and a lot of the pictures hanging around the house. She was good at math and science, but I think we both knew that wasn't really where her heart was.
"I think I saw an envelope from NYU the other day in the mail."
Arizona speaks and looks expectantly toward her, and Audrey just blinks a little in surprise.
"I...yeah, I got in there too," her face brightens a little, a sudden grin lighting up her eyes, "I got into Tisch actually, the photography and imaging program. They liked my portfolio."
A matching grin immediately graces Arizona's face, and I feel my own lips pull into a smile. I'd done some research on those programs when she was sending in her applications months ago, and they were almost as exclusive as pre-med in the arts world.
"Sweetie! That's amazing!"
"You guys aren't disappointed?!"
"Why would we be disappointed? Are you happy?"
She looks between the two of us again, and her answer is evident on her face before she even speaks.
"I want this so bad. And Aunt Amelia and Aunt Elise already said they'd sell me their car after grad and there's some awesome looking apartments right by the school and I mean it's only like a three hour drive from Sofia and--"
Arizona grins at me, and I can't help but beam with pride at the happiness and the accomplishments of our youngest daughter -- even if I'm having a hard time believing she's all grown up already. We couldn't have asked for two better children in our lives.
"If you're happy, we're happy. And you're going to be awesome."
----
And two years after that.
Arizona
Twenty years.
It's been twenty years today since Calliope and I got married, and I have honestly never been happier than I am at this moment. We've had ups and downs, sure -- but contrary to thinking that makes our marriage less than perfect, I actually think it makes us...more perfect. We learned that every disagreement isn't the end of the world. We learned that, at the end of the day, being with the person we love is really more important than anything else. We learned how to raise two children together, and how to have a truly happy family.
Twenty years, and not a morning goes by that I don't marvel at waking up to this amazing woman beside me.
"Mm, morning already?"
Callie mumbles sleepily, her eyelids fluttering open, and I still my fingers that had been running lightly through her hair.
"It is," I whisper in reply, smiling softly, "good morning."
Dark eyes blink open at me then, and a smile meets my own.
"Morning."
Her eyes flicker upwards and focus on the small white box laying on the pillow between us.
"What's that?"
"Happy anniversary, Calliope."
Letting out a content sigh, the brunette reaches a hand up to trace the elegant red bow before she lifts the cover off the box and peers inside. Nestled beside each other on the velvet interior rest two heart pendants, yellow and white gold -- and her eyes flicker over them in confusion before she looks up to me and instinctively slides a hand to her throat, feeling for the missing chain.
I'd planned it carefully -- and it hadn't been easy. Neither one of us ever took those pendants off, save for the occasional time we wore something else instead. I'd taken her out for an early anniversary dinner the night before last, and we'd dressed up and I'd casually suggested she wear another necklace of hers -- the pearls I'd gotten her when she won her Harper Avery. I'd stolen the heart necklace away then just before we left the house, and in the morning rush to get to an early surgery...miraculously she had not even noticed.
"How did you...what.."
"Just look at them."
Curiosity evident in her eyes now, she picks up her silver coloured heart and runs her thumb over it, turning it over in the morning light until she sees it -- along the bottom on the back of the heart, I'd had a simple word engraved. A word that encompassed my love for her from day one -- our love for each other.
Always.
Picking up my gold coloured heart, she turns it over to read an identical engraving, and the smile on her face grows even wider.
"Arizona, I'm so in love with you."
She leans up just enough to pull the chain around her neck and clasp it, and then she picks up mine, shifting closer to slip it back on as well. Her warm fingers trail along my neck, following the cool metal down to its resting place, and I tilt her chin towards me, leaning in for a kiss.
"I know you are. Because I'm more in love with you every day."
And I am. With her, with us, with our family. With who we were...and who we've become.
It's everything, all at once.
And it is beautiful.
/fin
Pairing: Arizona/Callie
Rating: M
Summary: Sometimes we don't realize what we want until we just know. And sometimes we realize that certain things are worth fighting for. Starts a day or two after the scene in 11x08, and follows Callie and Arizona over the next year and possibly more. Timeline may not be perfectly canon.
Disclaimer: All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for-profit, it constitutes fair use. Reference to real persons, places, or events are made in a fictional context, and are not intended to be libelous, defamatory, or in any way factual.
Chapters 1 - 38
A/N: Well, here we are -- the end. I hope this last chapter doesn't disappoint. This story has become very near and dear to my heart, and I sincerely thank everyone who has been reading along with me. From something I thought would only be a one-shot, well...it's come a long way!
Four years later.
Arizona
"Audrey, stop it! Those are mine! Momma!"
Glancing over from the kitchen island, I watch as Sofia yanks a purple pencil crayon back from her younger sister and shoots her an angry look. The small brunette certainly inherited a fiery temper from...well, both of us...and although I know it never lasts more than a few minutes, I sigh softly as our younger daughter reaches for the drawing implements again with a determined face.
"Sofi I wanna colour too!"
"Sweetie, please share with your sister."
"She always presses too hard and breaks the point!"
"Audrey, be gentle, okay?"
I turn and raise my eyebrow slightly at our youngest and she just looks up with big, blue eyes, her waves of chestnut hair framing her face into the perfect picture of innocence. I know those eyes make my wife cave in almost every time, but I'm immune to the Robbins look...mostly, at least.
"I won't break it."
Grabbing the pencil crayon in question with a self-satisfied look, she settles back in her chair and contemplates whatever she was busy drawing. At four years old, Audrey is exactly how her sister was at that age -- feisty, verbose, and intelligent far beyond her years. We're lucky, and the two of them get along about 90% of the time, but sometimes their two personalities are just a little too alike and it implodes right before our eyes.
They're still the most amazing thing I've ever done though, there's no question about that.
The kitchen settles into a relative silence again as both girls colour, and I slip dinner into the oven and look over, just watching them for a moment. I perform unbelievable, life-saving surgery every day -- perform surgery in miniature on children who aren't even born yet -- but this? making dinner and settling arguments about pencil crayons and helping with grade four homework...this makes me happier than I could have ever imagined. A decade ago I wasn't even sure I wanted children, but now there's a nine-year-old and a four-year-old who hold my heart in the most beautiful way possible.
I hear the front door open and close, and the sounds of my wife arriving home bring another smile to my face.
"HI MOMMY!"
I laugh softly as Audrey yells out a greeting at the sound, and Sofia follows suit, and a minute later the older brunette appears around the corner into the kitchen, a wide grin on her face.
"Hi, mijas."
She circles around the table and drops a kiss on each small head, looking down at the works of art coming to completion in front of them.
"I like your..."
She trails off a bit, studying Sofia's drawing, but the girl pipes up with a slightly exasperated tone.
"It's a brain, mom. Like the brain inside your head, like Aunt Amy cuts open at work. See? Here's the stem bit and this is the noodly bit. This is the frontal...um. The lobe!"
Tilting her head slightly, she studies the picture and glances over at me. I just shrug, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world -- what normal nine-year-old doesn't draw anatomically correct brains? Callie just grins and makes her way over, a warm palm cupping my neck as she leans in to kiss me in greeting.
"Mm, and hi to you too."
My hand automatically comes up to curl around her waist and I sigh happily, tugging my wife a fraction closer. Our life is amazing in so many ways; our relationship, our kids, everything I could possibly want I've found with her. We've been married for five years now -- three longer than our first time around -- and yet every single night, I still look forward to the little things like watching her with the girls and getting a kiss hello. I look forward to her coming home, or coming home to her. We've built a home and a family, and although things might not be perfect, they seem pretty damn close to me.
You always hear people talk about the magic wearing off, but all I can see is magic growing stronger. Family growing stronger, and two people growing stronger and more in love with every passing day.
And there is absolutely nowhere else in the world I'd rather be.
----
Five years after that.
Arizona
"Hey there, superstar."
Callie laughs as I sidle up behind her and wrap my arms around her waist, gazing at her reflection in the floor-length mirror. She looks incredible tonight -- every night, really, but tonight she's dressed in a long, dark blue, satin dress, her hair pinned loosely at the nape of her neck with a simple pearl necklace as her only accessory. Tonight, she looks like a star. Like a Harper Avery winner.
"I honestly never expected this."
She meets my eyes in the mirror, a mix of pride and excitement and nervousness flitting across her gaze.
"I did. I knew as soon as you were nominated that you were going to win. Your work over the last few years has been incredible, Calliope."
"It's still because of you, you know that, right?"
She turns to face me and I loosen my arms a little, letting my hands rest lightly over the silky fabric covering her hips.
"Maybe it was inspired by me, but I'm not taking any credit here," I laugh softly, reaching up to trail my fingers along her jaw, "all I did was lose a leg. The rest was you and that brilliant mind of yours."
She grins then, leaning in to capture my lips under hers, and even though I want to be mindful of her carefully applied makeup I can't bring myself to pull back even a fraction of an inch. She kisses me for several long moments, her long fingers sliding up and into the loose waves of my hair, before finally sighing contently and trailing her fingers down my back.
"Are the girls ready to go?"
"We're ready!"
I glance over my shoulder as a young voice pipes up from the doorway to the adjoining room of our hotel suite, and see our nine-year-old daughter grinning at us with a look that reminds me all too much of my wife. She may have my physical features, but so much of her personality is exactly like her other mom, especially the older she gets.
"Where's your sister?"
The older girl appears behind her a moment later, looking very grown up in her new dress and low heels. I'd loaned her a simple necklace of mine, and the dusting of makeup she'd recently taken to wearing only served to enhance her youthful beauty.
"I'm here, I'm ready. I just didn't want to watch you guys make out like someone here."
"Kissing means they love each other!"
"Yeah but I don't want to see it!"
Callie laughs -- a rich, throaty sound that still gives me a tingly feeling in my belly -- and picks up her clutch from the small side table by the bed. She smooths her dress down a little and I motion to the girls, grabbing the key card and ushering them out of the hotel room so we can head to the awards ceremony downstairs. They head down the hall together, and the older brunette slides her hand into mine as we follow, leaning in close to my ear.
"I guess we officially still love each other, huh?"
*
"....and for groundbreaking contributions to the field of bionic medicine, this year's Harper Avery winner -- Dr. Callie Torres."
There's a wild round of applause around the room, most notably from our table where Alex and Jo, and Amelia and Elise have all made the trip to see Callie accept her award. The brunette makes her way to the podium with a slightly nervous look in her eyes, but she soon finds me in the crowd and delivers her thank you with grace and poise, pride evident in the way she speaks about her work.
"So how does it feel to be the wife of a Harper Avery-winning surgeon?"
Amelia leans in as applause sweeps the room again, and I can't help but smile as my eyes remain fixed on the woman slowly making her way back to the table, people stopping her for congratulations every few steps.
"It feels just as amazing as it has for the last ten years."
"You know there's already rumours that you're on the preliminary list for next year. Ten bucks says we're all back in this room again next spring."
Callie returns to the table, easing back into her seat beside me and setting the prestigious award in front of us with a smile, and I can barely even hear the words the neurosurgeon is saying. I don't need an award -- all I need is right here. As long as Callie's by my side, I'm the biggest winner of them all.
----
Four years after that.
Callie
"I'm not ready for this."
Arizona turns to look at me over her shoulder, and before she even asks I cross the bedroom and carefully slide the zipper up on the back of her dress. Sofia is graduating from high school tonight -- high school -- and my emotions are getting the better of me before we've even arrived at the ceremony.
"I know, I can hardly believe it."
The blonde turns with a small smile, sliding her hands over my shoulders and along the sides of my neck in a comforting gesture.
"Our baby is all grown up."
"God," I let out a sigh, pulling away and going back to the mirror to check my hair, "doesn't it seem like just yesterday we were going to her little dance recitals and...and tying her shoes for her? How did this happen?"
*
"Mom, it's going to be okay."
Our eldest daughter hugs me tight when she meets us after the graduation ceremony, and my face is clearly tear-stained and a wadded up tissue is still clenched in my hand. It's official now. She's eighteen, she's a high school graduate -- there's no turning back the clock.
"I'm not even leaving until August, we have lots of time."
"I know, I know."
I squeeze her extra tight before letting go, a small smile tugging at my lips as I look over her face again. She's grown into such a wonderful young woman -- she's beautiful, thoughtful, smart...unfortunately for us all she inherited Arizona's sense of humour, but that just endears her even more. And now she's going off to Johns Hopkins to become the next doctor in the family.
She tilts her head just slightly, her happiness barely contained as she beams at me, and the expression is simultaneously so little girl and so grownup that it makes a striking comparison.
"We're so proud of you, Sof."
"We really are."
Arizona is suddenly by my side again with Audrey, and I watch as the blonde pulls our older daughter into a fierce embrace. She definitely cried during the ceremony, watching Sofia walk across the stage, but she's managed to contain her tears and now nothing but absolute pride radiates from her eyes. The two of them have had a special bond ever since she was a toddler, and they're both so alike that sometimes looking at and listening to the young brunette is like having a spitting image of Arizona in front of me.
I watch as my wife pulls back and reaches up to tuck a stray bit of hair behind Sofia's ear, her fingers lingering slightly along her cheek.
"Your dad would be so proud of you, too, sweetie."
"Yeah, I know," the young girl smiles and looks down at the diploma in her hands for a moment, then directs her eyes toward her younger sister, breaking out into a grin, "and what about you, little A?"
Audrey rolls her eyes slightly at the affectionate nickname, but grabs her older sister in a hug and holds on for a long minute. It's hard enough to believe Sofia is going off to university, but our youngest is quickly becoming a teenager as well and that's another fact I just can't reconcile in my mind. She'll be thirteen in six weeks, and with her mother's blue eyes and dimples and her long, dark chestnut hair, I just know she's going to have the attention of every boy -- and girl -- in a twenty foot radius.
"I guess I'm proud of you too. Nerd."
"Oh yeah, look who's talking Miss I-read-Shakespeare-for-fun."
The younger girl swats at her sister and mutters something in reply, and the two dissolve into giggles and another warm hug, the friendship and the bond they share clearly evident. Neither have talked about it -- or at least not to Arizona and I -- but I know they're going to miss each other like crazy come fall.
Sofia spots her best friend across the room and waves, and she takes off toward her, slinging her arm around her sister's shoulders as the two continue to chat. I look at my wife and she just takes my hand, our fingers linking together with ease after twenty years of practice. We follow the girls slowly toward the doors at the front of the school, and I can't help but sigh, glancing sideways.
"I think...I'm starting to feel old."
"Don't."
The blonde replies softly, blue eyes smiling up at me, and she squeezes my hand as she looks forward to watch the girls.
"Calliope, there's still so much to look forward to."
----
Three years after that.
Arizona
"What's all this?"
Callie and I have just gotten home from the hospital, and the kitchen table is set with four places, and candles, and the smells of a delicious homemade meal are wafting toward us. Christmas is in a week and the girls are both on winter break -- Sofia just flew home last night -- but I assumed they'd both have plans with friends on their first free Friday evening.
"This," Sofia announces, pulling a pan from the oven, "is chicken piccata. And that," she sets the pan on a wooden board and motions with an oven-mitted hand, "is a plate of double fudge brownies."
Our youngest daughter swoops around the island, bottle of wine in hand like some kind of sommelier, and carefully fills three of the glasses at the table...and a fourth when she thinks we're not looking.
"Dinner is served!"
"Audrey -- you're not supposed to say that until I actually bring food to the table."
"Well you took it out of the oven, it's ready."
"But it's not served. Get it right."
I just look at Callie and laugh, taking in the scene before us.
"You guys didn't have to do all this."
"It does smell amazing though," Callie sniffs the air and wanders over to the island, trying to peek at the dish, "I knew I taught you well."
"Hey! Hands off. You two just make yourselves comfortable over there."
She gives us a mock stern look, and I nod seriously, pulling out a chair and taking my place at the table. Callie follows suit, and the girls busy themselves over in the kitchen for a few minutes getting everything served up.
"We just felt like doing something nice, and having family dinner," Sofia sets plates down in front of us, dropping a kiss on each of our cheeks in passing, "and I missed you."
"How's school? Are you ready for your MCAT in February?"
The girls settle in at the table, and our budding doctor's eyes light up with excitement at the mention of the big test.
"I'm so ready. Your flash cards are amazing, mom. I mean I'm nervous about it, but I'm feeling really confident and I've still got two months to study."
"When you're not busy kissing Annnndrew."
The older girl's eyes widen perceptibly, and I raise a curious eyebrow, slowly spearing a bite of chicken on my plate.
"And who's Andrew?"
"He's nobody," she shoots her sister a dirty look, but Audrey just smirks a little into her glass, "he's a friend. A little more than a friend. But it's nothing serious."
I glance at Callie and she gives me a knowing look, a smile creeping onto her face. There hadn't really been many boyfriends yet in Sofia's life -- she'd always just been focused on her studies.
"That's what they all say."
"Well Audrey's been kissing someone too, so."
"Sof!"
The sixteen-year-old's cheeks immediately heat up with a slight blush, and she throws a bread roll that her sister catches without batting an eye.
"Wait," I glance over at the younger girl, "you're sixteen! Who are you kissing?!"
"No one!"
"Audrey and Emmmma siiiitting in a tree..."
Sofia grins mischievously at her sister and bursts out laughing as the younger girl's blush deepens and she swats at her shoulder in protest. My eyes widen slightly at the revelation -- and I make a note to make sure bedroom doors stay open from now on when Emma's here -- but I can't help the soft chuckle that escapes me as I watch the two of them rib each other. Callie's laughing right beside me, and she slides her palm over my thigh, squeezing lightly until I take her hand and twine my fingers softly with hers.
I meet her eyes over the laughter and banter still ringing out in the kitchen, and I can see exactly what she's thinking. We missed this.
Because this -- the chatter, and the teasing, and the family dinners around our well-loved table -- this is home.
----
One year after that.
Callie
-Just tell them. Honest, they're not going to be upset.
-Everyone in our family is a doctor.
-Not everyone.
-Basically everyone!
-Just TELL THEM.
*
I glance over to where Audrey is curled up on the couch, propped against the arm tapping away at her phone with a worried look on her face. She's been in a weird mood the last couple of days, and unlike her usual bubbly self, and I know something is bothering her. She's good at compartmentalizing emotions -- just like Arizona -- but her eyes tell it all. And eventually she always bursts.
"Everything okay, honey?"
"Hm?" she glances up, just barely, and bites her lip a little as she looks at her phone again, "yeah...I..."
She trails off a bit, and I see Arizona look up from her book. She's sitting on the other end of the couch from our daughter, and the young brunette lets out a sigh as she stretches one leg out, her toes burrowing under the edge of her mother's thigh.
"I have to tell you something."
She sounds nervous, and I frown a little, hitting mute on the remote for the television.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine...I'm..it's nothing bad," she pauses for a second, a slightly cheeky grin briefly crossing her face, "I mean, at least you know I'm not gonna say I'm pregnant, right?"
Arizona lets her hand drop to the ankle beside her, and she gives her a smile, rubbing softly in encouragement.
"I got into University of Carolina. And Northwestern."
My eyes immediately light up -- those were the two pre-med programs she'd applied for, and not only that, they were two of the most prestigious in the country. She'd always been bright, just like her sister, and I knew she'd be bound for great things after high school no matter what she wanted to do.
"That's great news!"
"I don't want to be a doctor."
She rushes her next words out, biting her lip as she glances between Arizona and I. There's a silent pause for the briefest of moments, and our daughter looks like she's ready to run out of the room. Is this what she was so worried about telling us?
"Okay, well, have you heard about the other schools? What about NYU?"
She'd applied for two other schools this past fall as well, both of them in combinations of journalism and arts programs. Audrey always had way more creative and artistic talent than the rest of the family, so it hadn't come as a great surprise to either of us that she wasn't single-mindedly focused on science like Sofia. She'd taken music lessons growing up, had played in a garage band with some friends, and she was responsible for most of our family photos and a lot of the pictures hanging around the house. She was good at math and science, but I think we both knew that wasn't really where her heart was.
"I think I saw an envelope from NYU the other day in the mail."
Arizona speaks and looks expectantly toward her, and Audrey just blinks a little in surprise.
"I...yeah, I got in there too," her face brightens a little, a sudden grin lighting up her eyes, "I got into Tisch actually, the photography and imaging program. They liked my portfolio."
A matching grin immediately graces Arizona's face, and I feel my own lips pull into a smile. I'd done some research on those programs when she was sending in her applications months ago, and they were almost as exclusive as pre-med in the arts world.
"Sweetie! That's amazing!"
"You guys aren't disappointed?!"
"Why would we be disappointed? Are you happy?"
She looks between the two of us again, and her answer is evident on her face before she even speaks.
"I want this so bad. And Aunt Amelia and Aunt Elise already said they'd sell me their car after grad and there's some awesome looking apartments right by the school and I mean it's only like a three hour drive from Sofia and--"
Arizona grins at me, and I can't help but beam with pride at the happiness and the accomplishments of our youngest daughter -- even if I'm having a hard time believing she's all grown up already. We couldn't have asked for two better children in our lives.
"If you're happy, we're happy. And you're going to be awesome."
----
And two years after that.
Arizona
Twenty years.
It's been twenty years today since Calliope and I got married, and I have honestly never been happier than I am at this moment. We've had ups and downs, sure -- but contrary to thinking that makes our marriage less than perfect, I actually think it makes us...more perfect. We learned that every disagreement isn't the end of the world. We learned that, at the end of the day, being with the person we love is really more important than anything else. We learned how to raise two children together, and how to have a truly happy family.
Twenty years, and not a morning goes by that I don't marvel at waking up to this amazing woman beside me.
"Mm, morning already?"
Callie mumbles sleepily, her eyelids fluttering open, and I still my fingers that had been running lightly through her hair.
"It is," I whisper in reply, smiling softly, "good morning."
Dark eyes blink open at me then, and a smile meets my own.
"Morning."
Her eyes flicker upwards and focus on the small white box laying on the pillow between us.
"What's that?"
"Happy anniversary, Calliope."
Letting out a content sigh, the brunette reaches a hand up to trace the elegant red bow before she lifts the cover off the box and peers inside. Nestled beside each other on the velvet interior rest two heart pendants, yellow and white gold -- and her eyes flicker over them in confusion before she looks up to me and instinctively slides a hand to her throat, feeling for the missing chain.
I'd planned it carefully -- and it hadn't been easy. Neither one of us ever took those pendants off, save for the occasional time we wore something else instead. I'd taken her out for an early anniversary dinner the night before last, and we'd dressed up and I'd casually suggested she wear another necklace of hers -- the pearls I'd gotten her when she won her Harper Avery. I'd stolen the heart necklace away then just before we left the house, and in the morning rush to get to an early surgery...miraculously she had not even noticed.
"How did you...what.."
"Just look at them."
Curiosity evident in her eyes now, she picks up her silver coloured heart and runs her thumb over it, turning it over in the morning light until she sees it -- along the bottom on the back of the heart, I'd had a simple word engraved. A word that encompassed my love for her from day one -- our love for each other.
Always.
Picking up my gold coloured heart, she turns it over to read an identical engraving, and the smile on her face grows even wider.
"Arizona, I'm so in love with you."
She leans up just enough to pull the chain around her neck and clasp it, and then she picks up mine, shifting closer to slip it back on as well. Her warm fingers trail along my neck, following the cool metal down to its resting place, and I tilt her chin towards me, leaning in for a kiss.
"I know you are. Because I'm more in love with you every day."
And I am. With her, with us, with our family. With who we were...and who we've become.
It's everything, all at once.
And it is beautiful.
/fin