(no subject)
Title: Ready For A Fall (8/?)
Author: Chelle Storey-Daniel
Pairing: Addison/Mark, Callie/George, Callie/Alex (friendship), George/Izzie (implied)
Summary: Sometimes it hurts to fall, but if you're lucky someone may catch you. And they may be falling, too.
A/N: This is my favorite chapter so far. I have laughed, cried, and amused myself to the point of releasing too much seratonin in my brain. Brace yourselves. A vague disclaimer is nobody's friend. :)
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Now my wonders rally
Around the person I once was
Like a bird that I've been helping
Hope you're healed and strong
You never know when you might have to fly
*~*~*~*~*~
"I put the top up on your car last night. It corners like it’s on rails."
"Okay. Now you’re quoting ‘Pretty Woman’. You really are the perfect man."
"Well, yeah."
Callie pointed at his arm. "And you’re carrying my purse."
"Oh! This has been in my locker all night." Alex handed Callie her black leather bag. "It’s not really my style, but I think I could make it work."
"I know I have something for pain in here."
His mind raced back to the empty bottle Addison had found. "What kind of something?"
"Tylenol. Extra strength. A sledgehammer would do in a pinch." She dug through every compartment and sighed. "My head is going to blow off. I’ve had intimate relationships with hangovers before, but we’ve never been sadomasochistic in our endeavors."
"There’s a difference between nearly dead and hungover."
"O’ death, thou comest when I had thee least in mind." She gave up the search and looked at him. "You know, everyone thinks I was trying to murder myself. Webber is actually saying things like ongoing counseling and mentioned a monitoring anklet like I’m Lindsay *freakin’* Lohan."
"That’s insulting. You? So much better looking. You want me to talk to him? Put in a good word?"
"You don’t agree with him?" Her eyes widened. "You believe me?"
"I believe you."
"Really?"
"I think that if you were going to put your own lights out you’d be a little more creative." He leaned forward and smiled at her. "And you did tell me exactly where you were."
"I thought Addison and Mark-"
"No, I called you. You answered," he said. "People who want to die don’t generally answer the phone. Even when the ring tone is as annoying as yours. Seriously? Marilyn Manson?"
"I’m gonna change your tone to ‘Pretty Woman’," she said, laughing a little. Then she hissed and grabbed her head. "Shit. This sucks."
"That bad, huh?"
"That bad. Oh! I didn’t tell you," she replied, massaging her temple. "George has been professing his love all day and as an added bonus, he got his mom to plead his case and tell me a story about how Harold ... *Harold*, Alex, had cheated on her. And the moral of the story was that they were happy anyway."
"Oooooh, mom scores for the dirty win." Alex sat down beside her. "You think she was telling the truth?"
"Who knows? Mothers have a tendency to protect their kid. Well, except mine. I have no doubt she would throw me to the wolves and then stay to monitor the scoreboard." She shrugged, then her face fell. "And my mother is on her way. I can't repress it anymore. Think you could help me out of this bed?"
Alex shook his head. "No. You’re right where you need to be. And as much as I’d like to grab you and go -"
"I just need to go to the bathroom." Callie held up a comb and a small bottle of hairspray that she pulled from her purse. "I should probably fix my hair before the Devil comes calling."
"Is she really that bad?"
"She’s me." Callie nodded. "On ten. And you've only seen me on *four*."
"Holy hell. That is scary. Come on." He lowered the side of the bed and untangled the wires on the IV and heart monitor. The monitor was small, portable, and he laid it on her lap. He pulled the pulse oximeter from her finger and silenced the machine before it could protest. Finally, he stepped up beside her and gently eased her legs from beneath the cover.
"Alex?"
"Yeah."
"I’m not broken."
He looked down at her then and realized that he was handling her like a newborn. "Are you sure about that?"
"Well, my voice barely works and my throat feels like I’ve been swallowing fire, but on the whole I’m in one piece."
"What about your heart?"
She looked away. "I’m a big girl and you don’t have to use kid gloves with me."
"I’d never insult you by doing that. You know I tell you exactly how it is." Alex helped her stand and waited while she adjusted her gown for modesty’s sake. "They cut your clothes off, by the way."
"I bet you loved that."
"You’d be proud of me. As much as I was tempted to watch, I didn’t."
"Wonders never cease." Callie walked into the bathroom and was pleased to see that someone had set out a few toiletries. She couldn’t wait to wash her face, brush her teeth, and pull a comb through her hair. She glanced at her reflection and drew up short. "Holy shit! I did kill myself. I’m a zombie."
"Not quite zombie. More like the walking wounded." Alex joked and closed the door. He straightened her bed and sat down. The rumors were flying in the hospital. Everyone was speculating about who and what had caused Callie Torres, the ‘Bonecrusher’, to crack. Gossip, especially in a place like Seattle Grace, spread faster than wildfire and before Alex had gotten up to the fifth floor he had heard no less than three different first hand accounts of what had transpired. By people who had not even been on duty.
None of it painted Callie in a nice light and that, despite any evidence to the contrary, would keep him firmly on her team. He refused to even entertain the thought that what people were saying could be possible. He may not have known Callie very long, but she knew how to play the game, and she wasn’t likely to just stop batting before the last inning was finished.
He stood when the bathroom door opened and met her halfway. "Where are you hiding the magic wand? You look like yourself again!" He wolf whistled and leered at her, but she didn’t smile. "Hey? What are you thinking?"
"I’m not this person."
"What person?" He waited for her to reply and when she didn’t, he lifted her chin. "What person, Cal?"
"I’m not that girl. I don’t let a guy make me crazy. I just don’t. I never have. And last night-"
"What about it?"
"I became that girl. I became that idiot who can’t think straight because the only guy she ever loved is an asshole so she takes it out on herself. This is *not* my fault. My brain just stops working when he’s around or when he’s not around at all and I just happen to think of him and then I want to tie him to an anchor and drop him in the ocean. And then die rescuing him. BECAUSE I AM AN IDIOT."
"There’s a simple explanation."
"I’m going with the idiot thing. I should get that put on a little round pin and wear it on my scrubs so that all doubt is erased and the next guy who wants to screw me over will just do it up front. At least they’d be open about it."
"You’re talking way too much. I don’t mind, but your throat’s not getting any better." Alex shook his head. "And the reason your brain stops working is because you still love him. And as hurt as you are, you’re not ready to let him go."
"I could be. Maybe I am."
"Liar."
Callie groaned and laid her head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin against her soft curls for a long while. "What I am gonna do, Alex?" she finally said.
Neither realized that they had an audience.
"You’re going to explain yourself. And you will do it now, Calliope."
"Son of a bitch." Callie cringed, took a step back and looked at her parents, then at George, who was glaring at her with his arms crossed. "Perfect timing as usual, Mom. Hi, Daddy."
Melana crossed her arms over her chest and stared back and forth between Callie and Alex. Raphael started toward his daughter, but his wife stopped him. "Do you know what they’ve been telling us, Callie? What your *boss* has told us about you?"
"Go ahead. Get it out of your system, Mom. I’m listening."
"I gave you the life that you have! And the only one of us who gets to take it is *me*!" Melana snapped, her eyes blazing. "What is it with you and Cambyses? I think sometimes that the two of you conspired against me in the womb together while you were stretching me half to death! Do you know what it’s like for a parent to get this kind of news? Do you even care what you put us through? All your life you have been pampered, spoiled, and this is how you thank us? How you thank me?"
Callie simply looked at her. Melana took a step forward and pointed her finger at her daughter. "Are you going to explain? Are you? Who is this man? And what the hell are you doing?"
"Is that it?" Callie asked her. "Are you done? Or do you want me to wait while you load the other barrel."
"YOU ARE TRYING MY PATIENCE!"
"You confused me a little, Mom! You usually jump straight into the condemnation, then the guilt trip, and *then* you threaten to kill me. You did it backwards this time."
"Raph, will you do something about your child?"
Raphael moved around his wife and hugged Callie. Behind them, Melana began to curse, very well, in Greek *and* Spanish, but Raphael ignored her and gave his daughter a kiss. "Mija, your voice. You don’t need to explain anything right now." He glanced at Alex and extended his hand. "Hello, I’m Raphael."
"Alex Karev." Alex, who had been staring at Melana with wide eyed wonder, turned to the older man and shook his hand. "Callie’s told me all about you. It’s so nice to finally meet you."
"Who is he?" Melana asked George, who was standing next to her. "This man with the shifty eyes and smooth tongue?"
"I’m a doctor. I work with Callie." Alex extended his hand, but the woman simply glared at him.
"Don’t expect her to be nice, Alex. You saved my life. She may push you off the roof later on as punishment." Callie pushed Alex's hand down. Her mother looked shocked. "Yeah, Mother, as usual you know nothing about everything."
"You saved her?" Melana asked Alex. "You were with her?"
"Well, I - I brought her to the hospital." Alex barely had the words out before Raphael had him in a bear hug. He patted the older man on the back, clearly uncomfortable, and waved away the gratitude. "I was just in the right place at the right time, Mr. Torres. It was my pleasure."
"Oh, I’m sure it was," Melana said, eyes narrowed. "Callie, are you so generous with your affection with all of your co-workers?"
"What is that supposed to mean?" Callie growled. "Usted es muy loca en la cabeza!"
"English is your first language, Calliope. I saw to that," Melana pointed out. "And don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m suggesting. You’re being purposely obtuse or perhaps you really are as ignorant as your behavior last night would imply."
"Okay, that’s it," George said, watching his wife’s face fill with color. "Callie’s not ignorant and I can’t imagine that calling her names is going to make either one of you feel any better, Mrs. Torres. So, why don’t we let her get back into bed, where she needs to be, and everyone try to calm down."
Melana spun around to face George. "You had us sit in that room and listen to the Chief of Surgery tell us that our child could have died during the night. You had him tell us that it was by her own hand and you agreed with him. You will have to forgive me if I don’t understand how that could possibly happen to a girl who called me weeks ago to tell me that she was married, that she was happy, that her life was perfect. I want answers and I want them now."
"I’m gonna go." Alex reached over and squeezed Callie’s hand. "I’ll come back later and -"
"You will stay where you are." Melana moved a little closer to Alex. "And tell me what you were doing with her last night. She claims you saved her, but I wonder how much you contributed to the problem. I see the way you look at her, Alex Karev. My daughter is married. Leave her alone."
Raphael glared at Callie. "Mija, are you - is this - are you being *unfaithful*?"
"No! No! That is absolutely not the case," Alex replied before she could. "We’re friends. That’s it. George, you better say something, man. Because Callie’s not going down like this."
"What do you mean?" Raph glanced at George who looked away. "What the - O’Malley, what did you do to my daughter? I warned you! I got in your face and I -"
"STOP! Ow! Oh my god!" Callie clutched her head because of the pain that shot through it. "Stop. Just stop."
"Why aren’t they giving her anything for the headache? Why is she suffering?" Raphael demanded.
"Perhaps to teach her that moderation is the perfect measure for everything," Melana said.
"Mom, for the love of God!" Callie shouted, then began to cry as she clutched at her throat. "I’m suffering. Okay? I’m suffering enough without your help so just enjoy the view in silence because I can’t *take* anything else. I’ve had enough. You win. I’m miserable. Inside and out! I’m miserable!"
Melana covered her mouth as Callie completely broke down. Her eyes widened in shock. Never, in Callie’s entire life, had she cried the way she was currently crying. It cut through Melana, wounded her to the bone. Looking at Raphael, she saw that he was as shocked as she was, so she took a step forward, pushing George, who had started toward Callie, out of the way. She pulled her daughter into her arms and held her tight. Very tight. "Oh, baby," she said softly. "I’m sorry. Whatever it is, whatever’s hurting you, I’ll take care of it."
Callie sniffled against her mom’s shoulder. "My head. Can you start there?"
"I- I’m sure I have something in my purse," Melana took a step back and patted Callie’s face. She lingered for a moment, then pressed a kiss against her cheek. "Let me see what I can find."
"No." George stopped her. "She can’t take anything yet, Mrs. Torres. The liver testing is -"
"But, I have just the thing. Just the right medicine." The older woman shifted a little and unzipped her bag. She clicked her tongue and out jumped a small black and white monkey, more tail than body, and it raced up her arm and settled on her shoulder. It blinked several times, using tiny hands to rub his eyes. Then it spotted Callie and opened it’s mouth wide, revealing enough deadly teeth to be intimidating.
"Who are you smiling at? Come." Callie grinned through her tears, held out her arm and the little monkey leaped and whistled, landing gracefully on her wrist. She straightened the denim covered diaper the animal wore and gave it a kiss on the head. It scampered up to her neck and ducked under her hair, peeking out at everyone from between the two handfuls that it clung to. "Yeah, I’d hide, too, if I could," she softly said. "Now stop pretending to be bashful, old man. Say hello."
The monkey came out from under her hair and waved at Alex, who stood closest.
"You can’t just watch ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’? Now you have to get a matching monkey," Alex said, taking a step back as the monkey ‘smiled’ again. "It’s all teeth."
"You told me you slept through the movie, ass!" Callie told him. "And I had Gucci first. Before all the cool kids were doing it."
"Why is it looking at me? Is it going to bite me?"
"Only if I tell him to."
Alex held his hand out and the little monkey grabbed his finger and lifted it up and down. "Is he shaking my hand?"
"Monkeys are much more civilized than people. Especially my people." Callie stroked the monkey on the back and he turned into her, hugging her around the neck. She cradled it like baby and glanced at her mother, who was glaring at her. "You had that one coming, Mom. Now, this is Alex. He’s one of my best friends and later on you’ll meet Addison. She’s the other one."
"You always have to get the last word." Melana reached out and shook Alex’s hand. "Thank you, Dr. Karev. For whatever you did."
Alex shook her hand and glanced at George, who was watching the exchange with a stricken look on his face. "No problem. As weird and amusing as all of this has been ... I really need to head out. So, it was nice to meet you both. Callie, I’ll see you later." He walked across the room and paused next to George. "Can you come outside for a second?"
George took a deep breath. Callie was ignoring him again, openly, brazenly. He watched as her mother helped her into the bed and pulled the cover over her lap. "Yeah," he finally said.
Alex led him across the hallway into the same empty conference room that Chief Webber had used. He waited for George to enter and then closed the door and leaned against it. "Listen, man, I told the truth in there. Nothing’s happened between me and Callie."
"Really? You didn’t kiss her? You didn’t touch her?"
"I know this is hard to believe because she’s cool as hell, but all we’ve done is hang out so far. That’s it."
"So far? So far!? I will kill you, Alex! Dead! Stay away from my wife!"
"Nah, I don't think I will. Now that I’ve gotten to know her I can tell you that she is one hell of a woman and you’re an idiot."
"You think I don’t know that?"
"No. I don’t think you do. I told you once before that she was out of your league. She’s hot. She’s smart. She’s our boss. She’s *fun*. She's the kind of girl that you wake up with, twenty years from now, and she *still* makes you forget every woman you ever had in your entire life."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"I like her. A lot. And if you don’t hang onto her with both hands then she’s fair game and I’m going to swoop in and do what you should have."
"Oh? And what’s that?"
"Grow up. Be a man." Alex smirked at him. "I leveled the playing field, see. Izzie’s your best friend and now Callie’s mine. And I’m just as demanding as Izzie is. We’re gonna hang out. Me and Callie. And I’m telling you upfront that I’m interested. So, all the times that I call her or you see us together in the cafeteria or she chooses me over you ... you better not say a damn thing to her. Because turnabout it fair play."
"Alex, I swear to God-"
"How does it taste? Your own medicine, that is." Alex raised his eyebrows and opened his arms, shrugging a little. "What you’ve been feeling the past couple of days? What you’re feeling right now ... knowing that I want her, knowing that I'm ready to go for it. That’s how she’s felt for months. Think about that."
"Get out."
"Oh, I’ll go, but I’ll always be around."
*~*~*~*~*~
"You’ve lost weight since the last time I was here," Raphael told his daughter. "Quite a bit."
"Yeah."
"More than you should."
"You can never be too thin."
"It’s unhealthy, mija."
Callie played with Gucci, feeding him ice chips and hiding his favorite toy, a marble, in the folds of the cover. She was aware that her parents, who were standing on either side of the bed, were watching her every move. Feeling very much like she was about to spanked, she looked up at her father and said, "I - I didn’t try to kill myself, Daddy"
"Of course you didn’t, darlin’. I know."
Callie bit her bottom lip, trying not to cry, but it was futile. Tears rolled down her face and she added, "I don’t want to be a disappointment to you. To either one of you." Callie looked at her mother. "I just - I need to admit something to you."
"Baby." Melana put a hand on her shoulder. "You can tell us anything."
Nodding, Callie took a deep breath and pulled Gucci a little closer. She rubbed her nose against his and took a deep breath. "I didn’t try to kill myself, but - but I wouldn’t have minded dying all the same."
She looked up in time to see her parents exchange a look that made her break completely. "I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Mama. Daddy, please don’t be mad at me," she sobbed.
Raphael leaned down, kissing her cheek. "I have never been mad at you. What makes you think I’d start now?"
"You always taught me self respect."
"What you did last night - Callie, that doesn’t strip your self respect or -"
"That’s not what I mean." Callie looked into his eyes, drawing strength from him. "I want to stay married to a man who cheated on me. I want to give up the self respect you taught me and take him back. And I’m scared, Daddy. I’m so scared that he’ll do it again and I’m terrified that I’ll just look the other way if he does because I love him that much. And I’ll never have any dignity again."
Raphael yanked off his jacket and began rolling up the sleeves on his shirt. He looked at his wife and said, "You’ll need to keep a straight head, Melana. I’m sure the bail for murder will be very high and I’ll need you to post it quickly, arrange a flight out of the country, and we’ll take Calliope and go."
Melana visualized a few of the more painful ways to kill a human, then her jaw tightened and she ground her teeth as Callie buried her face in her hands. "If she wanted to be a widow, Raph, she would have taken matters into her own hands."
"She did!" Raphael snapped. "Do you not see what she’s doing? She’s punishing herself for his mistakes."
"Quiet!" Melana pointed at her husband. "You always do this. You always try to rescue her."
"He hurt her!"
"Sit down, Raphael, before one of us has a stroke." Melana glared until he acquiesced, then put a hand on her daughter’s leg. "Look at me, Calliope." She waited until she had her daughter’s full attention, then said, "If God had intended love to be a dignified affair then he’d keep the heart out of it. He made it very clear that love was a battlefield."
Callie blinked at her mother. "No. That was Pat Benatar."
"Whatever." Melana sat down beside her. "What I’m trying to say to you is that your father and I could never be disappointed in you just for falling in love. Never. And it’s not your fault if he’s unworthy. It’s not your fault that he’s a piece of sh-"
"Mom, he’s not unworthy." Callie covered her mother’s hand with her own. "And that’s the problem. I want to hate him, but I can’t. He keeps begging and pleading with me. And he keeps crying and telling me how sorry he is and I want to believe him. I do. I need to believe him. I just want him, you know. I just want him back."
"I’ll give him back to you one piece at a time, mija."
"Raphael, that is enough!"
"I won’t abide it, Melana! He-"
"You can’t understand this, Raph. You are not a woman!"
"I don’t need a vagina to know how to treat a woman!" Raphael shouted. "And I will not see her like this for another moment! It’s over! Calliope, it’s over. You will end this marriage and you will hold your head up while you do it."
"And this is why women have the babies." To her husband, Melana said, "God created women to carry love. I’m not just talking about carrying a child in your womb, Raphael, I’m talking about the way love stains a woman’s soul. It gets inside of her and blinds her. It hurts her, amazes her, and makes her hold on with both hands. You can’t fix this with violence. Only Calliope can do this."
"You just said love was a battlefield, Mel! I'm killing him."
"Stop fighting!" Callie said. She looked up at her mother and said, "You get it. You really get it, don’t you? You get *me*."
"If you feel that this is something that you can live with, we’ll support you. If you feel like it’s something that you want out of, I’ll call the lawyer myself and make sure it ends." Melana saw the shock on Callie’s face. "I know what I’ve always said and that should prove to you that love makes us all lose a little self respect. I love you, honey. Divorce is ugly, but it’s uglier to stay where you’re unhappy. I won’t judge you for this and I'll be there every step of the way, regardless of what you do."
The door opened and George walked in, carrying a tray from the cafeteria. He sat it on the rolling table in the corner and pushed it to the edge of the bed. "You really do need to try and eat something, Callie. I got everything that you like and - and I brought extra fruit for the - the monkey."
"Oh, that’s right." Melana picked up the capuchin and held it. "I was remiss in my introductions. George, this is Gucci." She stared at her son in law for a moment. "Gucci, this is Cheater. ATTACK."
The monkey sprang.
Callie screamed.
*~*~*~*~*~
Author: Chelle Storey-Daniel
Pairing: Addison/Mark, Callie/George, Callie/Alex (friendship), George/Izzie (implied)
Summary: Sometimes it hurts to fall, but if you're lucky someone may catch you. And they may be falling, too.
A/N: This is my favorite chapter so far. I have laughed, cried, and amused myself to the point of releasing too much seratonin in my brain. Brace yourselves. A vague disclaimer is nobody's friend. :)
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Now my wonders rally
Around the person I once was
Like a bird that I've been helping
Hope you're healed and strong
You never know when you might have to fly
*~*~*~*~*~
"I put the top up on your car last night. It corners like it’s on rails."
"Okay. Now you’re quoting ‘Pretty Woman’. You really are the perfect man."
"Well, yeah."
Callie pointed at his arm. "And you’re carrying my purse."
"Oh! This has been in my locker all night." Alex handed Callie her black leather bag. "It’s not really my style, but I think I could make it work."
"I know I have something for pain in here."
His mind raced back to the empty bottle Addison had found. "What kind of something?"
"Tylenol. Extra strength. A sledgehammer would do in a pinch." She dug through every compartment and sighed. "My head is going to blow off. I’ve had intimate relationships with hangovers before, but we’ve never been sadomasochistic in our endeavors."
"There’s a difference between nearly dead and hungover."
"O’ death, thou comest when I had thee least in mind." She gave up the search and looked at him. "You know, everyone thinks I was trying to murder myself. Webber is actually saying things like ongoing counseling and mentioned a monitoring anklet like I’m Lindsay *freakin’* Lohan."
"That’s insulting. You? So much better looking. You want me to talk to him? Put in a good word?"
"You don’t agree with him?" Her eyes widened. "You believe me?"
"I believe you."
"Really?"
"I think that if you were going to put your own lights out you’d be a little more creative." He leaned forward and smiled at her. "And you did tell me exactly where you were."
"I thought Addison and Mark-"
"No, I called you. You answered," he said. "People who want to die don’t generally answer the phone. Even when the ring tone is as annoying as yours. Seriously? Marilyn Manson?"
"I’m gonna change your tone to ‘Pretty Woman’," she said, laughing a little. Then she hissed and grabbed her head. "Shit. This sucks."
"That bad, huh?"
"That bad. Oh! I didn’t tell you," she replied, massaging her temple. "George has been professing his love all day and as an added bonus, he got his mom to plead his case and tell me a story about how Harold ... *Harold*, Alex, had cheated on her. And the moral of the story was that they were happy anyway."
"Oooooh, mom scores for the dirty win." Alex sat down beside her. "You think she was telling the truth?"
"Who knows? Mothers have a tendency to protect their kid. Well, except mine. I have no doubt she would throw me to the wolves and then stay to monitor the scoreboard." She shrugged, then her face fell. "And my mother is on her way. I can't repress it anymore. Think you could help me out of this bed?"
Alex shook his head. "No. You’re right where you need to be. And as much as I’d like to grab you and go -"
"I just need to go to the bathroom." Callie held up a comb and a small bottle of hairspray that she pulled from her purse. "I should probably fix my hair before the Devil comes calling."
"Is she really that bad?"
"She’s me." Callie nodded. "On ten. And you've only seen me on *four*."
"Holy hell. That is scary. Come on." He lowered the side of the bed and untangled the wires on the IV and heart monitor. The monitor was small, portable, and he laid it on her lap. He pulled the pulse oximeter from her finger and silenced the machine before it could protest. Finally, he stepped up beside her and gently eased her legs from beneath the cover.
"Alex?"
"Yeah."
"I’m not broken."
He looked down at her then and realized that he was handling her like a newborn. "Are you sure about that?"
"Well, my voice barely works and my throat feels like I’ve been swallowing fire, but on the whole I’m in one piece."
"What about your heart?"
She looked away. "I’m a big girl and you don’t have to use kid gloves with me."
"I’d never insult you by doing that. You know I tell you exactly how it is." Alex helped her stand and waited while she adjusted her gown for modesty’s sake. "They cut your clothes off, by the way."
"I bet you loved that."
"You’d be proud of me. As much as I was tempted to watch, I didn’t."
"Wonders never cease." Callie walked into the bathroom and was pleased to see that someone had set out a few toiletries. She couldn’t wait to wash her face, brush her teeth, and pull a comb through her hair. She glanced at her reflection and drew up short. "Holy shit! I did kill myself. I’m a zombie."
"Not quite zombie. More like the walking wounded." Alex joked and closed the door. He straightened her bed and sat down. The rumors were flying in the hospital. Everyone was speculating about who and what had caused Callie Torres, the ‘Bonecrusher’, to crack. Gossip, especially in a place like Seattle Grace, spread faster than wildfire and before Alex had gotten up to the fifth floor he had heard no less than three different first hand accounts of what had transpired. By people who had not even been on duty.
None of it painted Callie in a nice light and that, despite any evidence to the contrary, would keep him firmly on her team. He refused to even entertain the thought that what people were saying could be possible. He may not have known Callie very long, but she knew how to play the game, and she wasn’t likely to just stop batting before the last inning was finished.
He stood when the bathroom door opened and met her halfway. "Where are you hiding the magic wand? You look like yourself again!" He wolf whistled and leered at her, but she didn’t smile. "Hey? What are you thinking?"
"I’m not this person."
"What person?" He waited for her to reply and when she didn’t, he lifted her chin. "What person, Cal?"
"I’m not that girl. I don’t let a guy make me crazy. I just don’t. I never have. And last night-"
"What about it?"
"I became that girl. I became that idiot who can’t think straight because the only guy she ever loved is an asshole so she takes it out on herself. This is *not* my fault. My brain just stops working when he’s around or when he’s not around at all and I just happen to think of him and then I want to tie him to an anchor and drop him in the ocean. And then die rescuing him. BECAUSE I AM AN IDIOT."
"There’s a simple explanation."
"I’m going with the idiot thing. I should get that put on a little round pin and wear it on my scrubs so that all doubt is erased and the next guy who wants to screw me over will just do it up front. At least they’d be open about it."
"You’re talking way too much. I don’t mind, but your throat’s not getting any better." Alex shook his head. "And the reason your brain stops working is because you still love him. And as hurt as you are, you’re not ready to let him go."
"I could be. Maybe I am."
"Liar."
Callie groaned and laid her head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin against her soft curls for a long while. "What I am gonna do, Alex?" she finally said.
Neither realized that they had an audience.
"You’re going to explain yourself. And you will do it now, Calliope."
"Son of a bitch." Callie cringed, took a step back and looked at her parents, then at George, who was glaring at her with his arms crossed. "Perfect timing as usual, Mom. Hi, Daddy."
Melana crossed her arms over her chest and stared back and forth between Callie and Alex. Raphael started toward his daughter, but his wife stopped him. "Do you know what they’ve been telling us, Callie? What your *boss* has told us about you?"
"Go ahead. Get it out of your system, Mom. I’m listening."
"I gave you the life that you have! And the only one of us who gets to take it is *me*!" Melana snapped, her eyes blazing. "What is it with you and Cambyses? I think sometimes that the two of you conspired against me in the womb together while you were stretching me half to death! Do you know what it’s like for a parent to get this kind of news? Do you even care what you put us through? All your life you have been pampered, spoiled, and this is how you thank us? How you thank me?"
Callie simply looked at her. Melana took a step forward and pointed her finger at her daughter. "Are you going to explain? Are you? Who is this man? And what the hell are you doing?"
"Is that it?" Callie asked her. "Are you done? Or do you want me to wait while you load the other barrel."
"YOU ARE TRYING MY PATIENCE!"
"You confused me a little, Mom! You usually jump straight into the condemnation, then the guilt trip, and *then* you threaten to kill me. You did it backwards this time."
"Raph, will you do something about your child?"
Raphael moved around his wife and hugged Callie. Behind them, Melana began to curse, very well, in Greek *and* Spanish, but Raphael ignored her and gave his daughter a kiss. "Mija, your voice. You don’t need to explain anything right now." He glanced at Alex and extended his hand. "Hello, I’m Raphael."
"Alex Karev." Alex, who had been staring at Melana with wide eyed wonder, turned to the older man and shook his hand. "Callie’s told me all about you. It’s so nice to finally meet you."
"Who is he?" Melana asked George, who was standing next to her. "This man with the shifty eyes and smooth tongue?"
"I’m a doctor. I work with Callie." Alex extended his hand, but the woman simply glared at him.
"Don’t expect her to be nice, Alex. You saved my life. She may push you off the roof later on as punishment." Callie pushed Alex's hand down. Her mother looked shocked. "Yeah, Mother, as usual you know nothing about everything."
"You saved her?" Melana asked Alex. "You were with her?"
"Well, I - I brought her to the hospital." Alex barely had the words out before Raphael had him in a bear hug. He patted the older man on the back, clearly uncomfortable, and waved away the gratitude. "I was just in the right place at the right time, Mr. Torres. It was my pleasure."
"Oh, I’m sure it was," Melana said, eyes narrowed. "Callie, are you so generous with your affection with all of your co-workers?"
"What is that supposed to mean?" Callie growled. "Usted es muy loca en la cabeza!"
"English is your first language, Calliope. I saw to that," Melana pointed out. "And don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m suggesting. You’re being purposely obtuse or perhaps you really are as ignorant as your behavior last night would imply."
"Okay, that’s it," George said, watching his wife’s face fill with color. "Callie’s not ignorant and I can’t imagine that calling her names is going to make either one of you feel any better, Mrs. Torres. So, why don’t we let her get back into bed, where she needs to be, and everyone try to calm down."
Melana spun around to face George. "You had us sit in that room and listen to the Chief of Surgery tell us that our child could have died during the night. You had him tell us that it was by her own hand and you agreed with him. You will have to forgive me if I don’t understand how that could possibly happen to a girl who called me weeks ago to tell me that she was married, that she was happy, that her life was perfect. I want answers and I want them now."
"I’m gonna go." Alex reached over and squeezed Callie’s hand. "I’ll come back later and -"
"You will stay where you are." Melana moved a little closer to Alex. "And tell me what you were doing with her last night. She claims you saved her, but I wonder how much you contributed to the problem. I see the way you look at her, Alex Karev. My daughter is married. Leave her alone."
Raphael glared at Callie. "Mija, are you - is this - are you being *unfaithful*?"
"No! No! That is absolutely not the case," Alex replied before she could. "We’re friends. That’s it. George, you better say something, man. Because Callie’s not going down like this."
"What do you mean?" Raph glanced at George who looked away. "What the - O’Malley, what did you do to my daughter? I warned you! I got in your face and I -"
"STOP! Ow! Oh my god!" Callie clutched her head because of the pain that shot through it. "Stop. Just stop."
"Why aren’t they giving her anything for the headache? Why is she suffering?" Raphael demanded.
"Perhaps to teach her that moderation is the perfect measure for everything," Melana said.
"Mom, for the love of God!" Callie shouted, then began to cry as she clutched at her throat. "I’m suffering. Okay? I’m suffering enough without your help so just enjoy the view in silence because I can’t *take* anything else. I’ve had enough. You win. I’m miserable. Inside and out! I’m miserable!"
Melana covered her mouth as Callie completely broke down. Her eyes widened in shock. Never, in Callie’s entire life, had she cried the way she was currently crying. It cut through Melana, wounded her to the bone. Looking at Raphael, she saw that he was as shocked as she was, so she took a step forward, pushing George, who had started toward Callie, out of the way. She pulled her daughter into her arms and held her tight. Very tight. "Oh, baby," she said softly. "I’m sorry. Whatever it is, whatever’s hurting you, I’ll take care of it."
Callie sniffled against her mom’s shoulder. "My head. Can you start there?"
"I- I’m sure I have something in my purse," Melana took a step back and patted Callie’s face. She lingered for a moment, then pressed a kiss against her cheek. "Let me see what I can find."
"No." George stopped her. "She can’t take anything yet, Mrs. Torres. The liver testing is -"
"But, I have just the thing. Just the right medicine." The older woman shifted a little and unzipped her bag. She clicked her tongue and out jumped a small black and white monkey, more tail than body, and it raced up her arm and settled on her shoulder. It blinked several times, using tiny hands to rub his eyes. Then it spotted Callie and opened it’s mouth wide, revealing enough deadly teeth to be intimidating.
"Who are you smiling at? Come." Callie grinned through her tears, held out her arm and the little monkey leaped and whistled, landing gracefully on her wrist. She straightened the denim covered diaper the animal wore and gave it a kiss on the head. It scampered up to her neck and ducked under her hair, peeking out at everyone from between the two handfuls that it clung to. "Yeah, I’d hide, too, if I could," she softly said. "Now stop pretending to be bashful, old man. Say hello."
The monkey came out from under her hair and waved at Alex, who stood closest.
"You can’t just watch ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’? Now you have to get a matching monkey," Alex said, taking a step back as the monkey ‘smiled’ again. "It’s all teeth."
"You told me you slept through the movie, ass!" Callie told him. "And I had Gucci first. Before all the cool kids were doing it."
"Why is it looking at me? Is it going to bite me?"
"Only if I tell him to."
Alex held his hand out and the little monkey grabbed his finger and lifted it up and down. "Is he shaking my hand?"
"Monkeys are much more civilized than people. Especially my people." Callie stroked the monkey on the back and he turned into her, hugging her around the neck. She cradled it like baby and glanced at her mother, who was glaring at her. "You had that one coming, Mom. Now, this is Alex. He’s one of my best friends and later on you’ll meet Addison. She’s the other one."
"You always have to get the last word." Melana reached out and shook Alex’s hand. "Thank you, Dr. Karev. For whatever you did."
Alex shook her hand and glanced at George, who was watching the exchange with a stricken look on his face. "No problem. As weird and amusing as all of this has been ... I really need to head out. So, it was nice to meet you both. Callie, I’ll see you later." He walked across the room and paused next to George. "Can you come outside for a second?"
George took a deep breath. Callie was ignoring him again, openly, brazenly. He watched as her mother helped her into the bed and pulled the cover over her lap. "Yeah," he finally said.
Alex led him across the hallway into the same empty conference room that Chief Webber had used. He waited for George to enter and then closed the door and leaned against it. "Listen, man, I told the truth in there. Nothing’s happened between me and Callie."
"Really? You didn’t kiss her? You didn’t touch her?"
"I know this is hard to believe because she’s cool as hell, but all we’ve done is hang out so far. That’s it."
"So far? So far!? I will kill you, Alex! Dead! Stay away from my wife!"
"Nah, I don't think I will. Now that I’ve gotten to know her I can tell you that she is one hell of a woman and you’re an idiot."
"You think I don’t know that?"
"No. I don’t think you do. I told you once before that she was out of your league. She’s hot. She’s smart. She’s our boss. She’s *fun*. She's the kind of girl that you wake up with, twenty years from now, and she *still* makes you forget every woman you ever had in your entire life."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"I like her. A lot. And if you don’t hang onto her with both hands then she’s fair game and I’m going to swoop in and do what you should have."
"Oh? And what’s that?"
"Grow up. Be a man." Alex smirked at him. "I leveled the playing field, see. Izzie’s your best friend and now Callie’s mine. And I’m just as demanding as Izzie is. We’re gonna hang out. Me and Callie. And I’m telling you upfront that I’m interested. So, all the times that I call her or you see us together in the cafeteria or she chooses me over you ... you better not say a damn thing to her. Because turnabout it fair play."
"Alex, I swear to God-"
"How does it taste? Your own medicine, that is." Alex raised his eyebrows and opened his arms, shrugging a little. "What you’ve been feeling the past couple of days? What you’re feeling right now ... knowing that I want her, knowing that I'm ready to go for it. That’s how she’s felt for months. Think about that."
"Get out."
"Oh, I’ll go, but I’ll always be around."
*~*~*~*~*~
"You’ve lost weight since the last time I was here," Raphael told his daughter. "Quite a bit."
"Yeah."
"More than you should."
"You can never be too thin."
"It’s unhealthy, mija."
Callie played with Gucci, feeding him ice chips and hiding his favorite toy, a marble, in the folds of the cover. She was aware that her parents, who were standing on either side of the bed, were watching her every move. Feeling very much like she was about to spanked, she looked up at her father and said, "I - I didn’t try to kill myself, Daddy"
"Of course you didn’t, darlin’. I know."
Callie bit her bottom lip, trying not to cry, but it was futile. Tears rolled down her face and she added, "I don’t want to be a disappointment to you. To either one of you." Callie looked at her mother. "I just - I need to admit something to you."
"Baby." Melana put a hand on her shoulder. "You can tell us anything."
Nodding, Callie took a deep breath and pulled Gucci a little closer. She rubbed her nose against his and took a deep breath. "I didn’t try to kill myself, but - but I wouldn’t have minded dying all the same."
She looked up in time to see her parents exchange a look that made her break completely. "I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Mama. Daddy, please don’t be mad at me," she sobbed.
Raphael leaned down, kissing her cheek. "I have never been mad at you. What makes you think I’d start now?"
"You always taught me self respect."
"What you did last night - Callie, that doesn’t strip your self respect or -"
"That’s not what I mean." Callie looked into his eyes, drawing strength from him. "I want to stay married to a man who cheated on me. I want to give up the self respect you taught me and take him back. And I’m scared, Daddy. I’m so scared that he’ll do it again and I’m terrified that I’ll just look the other way if he does because I love him that much. And I’ll never have any dignity again."
Raphael yanked off his jacket and began rolling up the sleeves on his shirt. He looked at his wife and said, "You’ll need to keep a straight head, Melana. I’m sure the bail for murder will be very high and I’ll need you to post it quickly, arrange a flight out of the country, and we’ll take Calliope and go."
Melana visualized a few of the more painful ways to kill a human, then her jaw tightened and she ground her teeth as Callie buried her face in her hands. "If she wanted to be a widow, Raph, she would have taken matters into her own hands."
"She did!" Raphael snapped. "Do you not see what she’s doing? She’s punishing herself for his mistakes."
"Quiet!" Melana pointed at her husband. "You always do this. You always try to rescue her."
"He hurt her!"
"Sit down, Raphael, before one of us has a stroke." Melana glared until he acquiesced, then put a hand on her daughter’s leg. "Look at me, Calliope." She waited until she had her daughter’s full attention, then said, "If God had intended love to be a dignified affair then he’d keep the heart out of it. He made it very clear that love was a battlefield."
Callie blinked at her mother. "No. That was Pat Benatar."
"Whatever." Melana sat down beside her. "What I’m trying to say to you is that your father and I could never be disappointed in you just for falling in love. Never. And it’s not your fault if he’s unworthy. It’s not your fault that he’s a piece of sh-"
"Mom, he’s not unworthy." Callie covered her mother’s hand with her own. "And that’s the problem. I want to hate him, but I can’t. He keeps begging and pleading with me. And he keeps crying and telling me how sorry he is and I want to believe him. I do. I need to believe him. I just want him, you know. I just want him back."
"I’ll give him back to you one piece at a time, mija."
"Raphael, that is enough!"
"I won’t abide it, Melana! He-"
"You can’t understand this, Raph. You are not a woman!"
"I don’t need a vagina to know how to treat a woman!" Raphael shouted. "And I will not see her like this for another moment! It’s over! Calliope, it’s over. You will end this marriage and you will hold your head up while you do it."
"And this is why women have the babies." To her husband, Melana said, "God created women to carry love. I’m not just talking about carrying a child in your womb, Raphael, I’m talking about the way love stains a woman’s soul. It gets inside of her and blinds her. It hurts her, amazes her, and makes her hold on with both hands. You can’t fix this with violence. Only Calliope can do this."
"You just said love was a battlefield, Mel! I'm killing him."
"Stop fighting!" Callie said. She looked up at her mother and said, "You get it. You really get it, don’t you? You get *me*."
"If you feel that this is something that you can live with, we’ll support you. If you feel like it’s something that you want out of, I’ll call the lawyer myself and make sure it ends." Melana saw the shock on Callie’s face. "I know what I’ve always said and that should prove to you that love makes us all lose a little self respect. I love you, honey. Divorce is ugly, but it’s uglier to stay where you’re unhappy. I won’t judge you for this and I'll be there every step of the way, regardless of what you do."
The door opened and George walked in, carrying a tray from the cafeteria. He sat it on the rolling table in the corner and pushed it to the edge of the bed. "You really do need to try and eat something, Callie. I got everything that you like and - and I brought extra fruit for the - the monkey."
"Oh, that’s right." Melana picked up the capuchin and held it. "I was remiss in my introductions. George, this is Gucci." She stared at her son in law for a moment. "Gucci, this is Cheater. ATTACK."
The monkey sprang.
Callie screamed.
*~*~*~*~*~