(no subject)
Title: Ready For A Fall (12/?)
Author: Chelle Storey-Daniel
Summary: Sometimes it hurts to fall, but if you're lucky someone may catch you. And they may be falling, too.
A/N: This has to be said. Some of you will finish this chapter and never click on the next installments. You will be done. And I will understand it and I won't complain because I know why. I *know*. And I understand. But it needs to be noted that when you hit rock bottom ... the hand that pulls you back to your feet is often the hand that you should have held all along.
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Eleven
*~*~*~*~*~
I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind.
Some come from ahead and some come from behind.
But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see.
Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!
~Dr. Seuss
*~*~*~*~*~
The concierge service called Callie the next morning at six thirty a.m.. She had nowhere to be so early, but she wanted a fresh start. George lifted his head briefly, planted a kiss on her shoulder, and burrowed under the cover. She watched him for ten minutes, recalling his valiant attempts at seduction the night before. He had tried, she would give him that much. Feeling a little stung by his new found confidence and posturing, however, she had rebuffed him, albeit gently, and feigned yawning with such conviction that she fell asleep first. She dreamed about that delicious crab dinner with Alex and decided to ask him to go again because a stress free meal was pretty much a given with him. And she needed no stress. She needed the easy laughs and corny jokes. He *got* her. And she got him which was a nice change.
She slipped from the bed, grabbed her bathing suit and after forty minutes of non-stop swimming in the pool, she pulled off her water cap, stretched her energized muscles, and sat down at the nearby tiki bar. It took a few minutes for her to realize that it wasn’t open, that the sun was barely up, but she eyed the bottles that had been locked neatly behind a glass case with longing. ‘Rehab’, she reminded herself as her mouth watered. ‘You will so wind up in rehab if you don’t get a grip.’
Standing, she pushed the chair back in place and a startling thought flashed in her mind. She could only be with George when the alcohol had numbed enough of the memory. That’s why she hadn’t been able to sleep with him again the previous night. She was sober. Too sober. And the calm she had felt after dinner, while she had relished the soul deep quiet after her father had forgiven her ... it didn’t last nearly as long as a good buzz. And when George had tried to have sex with her ... she had wondered if he had thrown away all the liquor. She had almost leapt from the bed to find out.
‘Stop this.’ She thought and headed back into the Archfield. ‘This is what alcoholics do.’
‘No,’ another voice reminded her. ‘This is what people who are unhappy do.’
By eight a.m., she had treated herself to a clinging, cleavage baring, Diane vonFurstenberg wrap dress in a size eight, thank you very much. The chocolate brown fabric hugged her body and she turned from side to side, loving what she saw. The only curves she had were in the right place and she was proud of them. She had not eaten for days after George said that to her ... no, that was a lie. She hadn’t really eaten for almost three months now. For him. To make herself worthy enough.
She purchased her dress and sighed when it didn't thrill her. She needed to spend more money. That always helped and that would chase away her demons. After falling into deep lust with a pair of Prada heels that refused to come back off her feet and splurging on a three thousand dollar Fendi purse, brown lingerie, and two carat diamond earrings, Callie nodded and headed into the salon.
While she sat in the make-up chair, she scheduled her appointment with Psych for eleven a.m., then left Alex a message telling him to clear his schedule for dinner. When Callie emerged at nine forty-five, her hair parted deeply on the side with long, loose spiral curls brushing her waist, she spotted George and her parents a few feet away, discussing something that was undoubtedly in her ‘best interest’. Seeing them together should have made her happy, but it didn’t. It felt hollow, like her parents had accepted less than the best for her.
She drew up short, wondering where that thought had come from. When Melana laughed at something George had said and leaned closer to him, she saw herself in her mother and cocked her head to one side, studying them. It was --- a strange match and she felt like she was staring at what her future would look like. Square people while her world was round. ‘Stop that,’ she thought. ‘You wanted them to accept him. You knew that they would. This is what you get."
She lifted her chin, rustled the shopping bag that contained her slightly damp bathing suit and old purse, and listened to her heels click against the polished marble as she walked toward them.
"Oh my god," George’s breath was ragged as she approached. She was *beautiful*. He forgot the fact that he had woken up alone, angry that she had not left a note, and let his eyes stretch over the length of her. The tight dress she wore stopped just below the knee and the high heels did things to her calves that he had never seen done to *any* woman’s legs. Her waist looked tiny, was tiny, but her hips ... god, her hips were the kind that demanded to be gripped, demanded to provide a comfortable rest for his hand when it was around her body.
"Hey," she said, nodding at her parents as she adjusted the strap on her new oversized brown bag. "What are you doing?"
"Looking for you." Melana’s gaze lingering for a moment over her daughter’s smoky well made eyes, over her perfectly lined rosy lips. "And what a look it is, honey. Wow."
"You’re very thin, Calliope," Raphael said, reaching out to touch her hair. "But you’re also stunning."
"Anybody can be stunning with enough money, Daddy." She tilted her head to accept the kiss he brushed against her temple and looked at George. "I should go. I have to meet with Gellar at eleven."
George blinked several times and nodded mutely. In her heels, she was several inches taller than him and he felt like he was gazing up at a reincarnation of Venus. He watched as she handed her parents her shopping bag, asking if they would hang onto it, and then she strode from the lobby and he had to jog to catch up. "Callie, wait."
She slowed down and looked at him. "What?"
"You, uh, you can’t expect me to move very fast when I see you like this unless I’m moving very fast to, you know, take it off." He reached down at took her hand, but hers remained limp in his. "Are we okay?"
"We’re fine, George." As soon as she said the words, the devil that sat on her shoulder lately hissed that she was lying, that she was being a ‘yes, girl’, that she was fooling herself if she believed that he would be trustworthy. She pushed the voice away by saying, "Gellar’s the lesser of the evils in Psych and he likes me. I fixed his tennis elbow last year."
"Callie, anyone who sees you is going to fall in love with you." He squeezed her hand, hoping she would return the favor, but she didn’t. "You seem a little distant. Did I - is this about dinner? Because I sorta knew what was coming? I - I talked to you mom while you were in the bathtub last night, okay? She mentioned that an intervention would be smart and I went along with it because I don’t want them to be down on me any more."
They paused at the crosswalk and Callie gazed at the imposing form of the hospital in the distance. "You went along with it because you agree. It would help if you tried to believe me, George. I didn’t - I didn’t want to die and if you could trust me-"
"Trust is a two way street." George gave into temptation and rested his hand on her hip. He almost swallowed his tongue when he felt the lines of what *had* to be a spaghetti strap thong underneath. "It really hurt last night when you said that you would never trust me again."
"Well, it really hurt to trust you at all. Shame on you if you fool me once and all that."
"You have to have trust in a relationship."
"Do you believe me then? Do you think I’m gonna pass this evaluation and be fine?"
"I think that you’re going to do the best you can."
The light changed and a couple of utility workers catcalled as Callie crossed in front of their truck. One of them yelled, "Lucky little fucker."
"I know, right?" George called over his shoulder and looked back at Callie, who was frowning. It completely changed her face and he pulled her a little closer. "Okay, fine. If you say that you didn’t mean it. You didn’t mean it."
"Nice try." Callie sighed and stepped up onto the curb, not breaking her stride. "This is the part where you want me to tell you that I believe you when you say that it was just a mistake, right?"
"It would be nice."
They stopped at the second cross walk and she looked down at him. "It helps deal with it to know that you were drunk, to know that you didn’t go there with a clear head. That’s the best I can do."
George’s own personal Devil chuckled a little, reminding him of the elevator lip lock he had shared with Izzie. He had groped her breast that day. He resolutely pushed away the urge to come clean and stood on his toes to kiss her. "If that's the best you can do then it's enough."
They walked the rest of the way in silence and when they crossed the parking lot of the hospital, Meredith and Izzie were climbing out of Meredith’s car. George attempted to go at least fifty feet out of the way, but Callie plowed straight ahead and addressed Meredith. "Hey."
Meredith’s eyes widened and she said, "Hey right back. You look amazing. I didn’t look like that after I almost died."
Callie smiled a little and glanced at Izzie, whose mouth was slightly ajar. "I wanted to say thank you, to -uh- both of you, for what you did the other night. You saved my life and I appreciate it."
Meredith reached out at took her hand. "That’s what we do and you’re very welcome."
Callie squeezed her hand, then nodded at Izzie, who had not spoken at all. "Well, have a good day."
Meredith watched her walk off, saw the scathing look that George shot Izzie and said, "That took guts." She glanced at the blond. "Speaking of guts, where are yours? That was the perfect chance for you to take the same high road she did and you didn’t say a thing."
"I - I couldn’t," Izzie replied, adjusting her jacket as she watched Callie and George disappear into the hospital. "When did Callie get so ..."
"Hot?"
"Well, yeah."
Meredith put her arm around the taller woman's waist and sighed, "Oh, Izzie. I love you dearly, but you are a very blind girl where the dirty hot ortho chick is concerned."
"Clearly."
*~*~*~*~*~
Addison was redoing a chart for the third time because she couldn’t stop thinking about batteries. She cursed Mark Sloan, who walked past her and made a buzzing sound. She was glaring after him when she saw Callie. She forgot about the work and the batteries and met Callie halfway down the hall, hugging her tight. "I called you last night, but you didn’t answer. Apparently you were guesting on ‘Extreme Makeover’ and failed to invite me to the big reveal."
"Dinner. With my parents."
Addison pulled back. "Ooooh, scary."
"It really was, but then it wasn’t. And you need to buy a pretty dress because we’re having an elopement party and you get all the maid of honor perks without the actual duties."
Addison beamed at her, then faltered a little when she realized that Callie wasn’t smiling. "I can do that. Wanna shop with me? Clearly you know how and - oh my god, is that the new Fendi line? Can I just hold it?"
"Retail therapy." Callie handed the purse over and watched Addison fawn over it. "I’ve decided to go ahead and embrace the money again."
"Apparently." Addison handed her the purse back and added, "Red. You should wear red to the party."
"Red’s good," George said, nodding lasciviously as he eyed his wife’s backside. "I like red. And brown is really, really great today, too."
"You like anything," Callie told him. "Because you’re on your best behavior."
Alex stepped out of a nearby trauma room and pulled his gloves off. He chucked them into the wastebasket and turned, drawing up short when he saw her. He blinked slowly, licking his lips as he looked her up and down. "Jesus fucking Christ, Callie. You’re why cavemen chiseled on walls."
"Ooh, impressive, Alex. You just quoted one of the best movies of all time," Callie replied and grinned ear to ear. As amusing as everyone’s reaction to the cleaned up Callie was, his meant the most. "That would be ‘As Good As It Gets’. And I have to reply by saying that ‘you overwhelm me’, also from the same film."
"It’s amazing." He said, purposely looking at her like a lovesick puppy. "You look like you do and yet you get the one liners every single time. That makes you a rare and special breed, Elvira."
"No, that makes me a film geek who apparently has too much time on her hands."
"Come here, you." Alex hugged her, kissing the side of her face. In her heels, she was eye level with him and as he pulled her against him, he thought fleetingly that she fit perfectly in his arms. And she smelled - no, not good thoughts to be having about someone who was glowing for reasons that were very apparent. "How are you? What are you doing? Have you had breakfast? Should you be here?"
"Good. Nothing much. No breakfast. And no, I should not be here," she replied, rattling off the answers to his questions as she took a step back. "But my Psych thing is in about forty minutes and I’m trying to be calm. The hospital calms me."
Alex smirked at her. "Shattered bones calm you, Gothika. Wanna see a kickass X-ray that you are so missing out on by shirking your duties."
"I do not shirk, Jock Boy. This is all Webber." She gripped his ear and tugged him down the hall. "Show me carnage! We’ll be back, guys."
Addison watched as Alex put his arm around Callie’s shoulder, talking a mile of minute into her ear. "Oookay."
"He’s proving a point." George leaned against the nurse’s station. "He’s there to latch onto her if I’m not careful. I so don’t care because he’s full of crap."
Addy watched the duo disappear around the corner. She had definitely *not* missed the look on Alex’s face. Or the first genuine smile on Callie’s in days. "You’re not worried?"
"I am *so* not worried. We are officially married and life is good."
"She wasn’t wearing her ring."
"Give me time."
"You sound confident."
"I’m convinced."
"Be careful, George. Don’t make my mistakes. Don’t get cocky."
He simply smiled at her.
*~*~*~*~*~
Alex pinned the first X-ray and Callie groaned, practically salivating over the shattered hand. She traced a particularly nasty break with her finger and pouted. "It’s sick the way you know me. I should be scrubbing in on this! Why are you not scrubbing in on this?"
"Because Bailey decided that I’m on pit. Because of you."
"Me?"
"I think the rumor got to her that we were having sex."
"Ooooh, did we like it?"
"Absolutely. The rumor mill says that it was very acrobatic. That was my own personal contribution and I’ll be signing autographs after work. Thank you. Thank you very much." Alex pinned another film that showed a different angle and watched her mouth drop into a perfect ‘o’ and she moaned. "It’s like porn for you, isn’t it, Torres?"
"It so freakin’ is. I told you that bones are the bomb."
He watched as she licked her lips and found himself mimicking her actions. "You had sex with him, didn’t you?"
"Ugh. I had something with him. To quote a very wise and wonderful person ... it was a hailstorm of misery and self loathing." Callie bit her bottom lip and then hopped up onto the window seat. "Am I a fool? To do this thing with him? I mean, he knows that she’s in love with him. Whatever that even means anymore. I hate love."
"I had a talk with Izzie," Alex jumped up beside her. He pulled a Twix out of the front pocket of his scrub shirt, opened it, and handed her one of the bars. "She told me that she only thought that she was in love with him because she hates one night stands. And she said that he was ‘safe’ and she needed ‘safe’ after Denny. She’s hung up on a corpse, dude, and while O’Malley isn’t much better than a dead man ... she’s still into Duquette."
Callie chewed the candy thoughtfully. She finished it off before she replied. "She’s probably just trying to save face. She sees that he’s staying with me and she’s trying to act like it’s fine. That’s what I would do, too."
"I don’t think she’s doing that and you know I’d tell you if I did." He leaned into her, brushing her shoulder with his while he licked the chocolate off his fingers. "Are you happy? Is he - you know, taking care of you?"
"In his very own special George way he is trying. He’s definitely trying."
"Are you happy?" he repeated.
"I think I could be. Like, eventually."
"Like, when?"
"When I can trust him again. Which is --- never. It’s a horrible feeling to know that a supermodel wants your husband. It’s even worse to know that he went there and is probably comparing us every time he touches me."
"Any man who touches you would be rendered incapable of cognitive thought. It - it happened to me earlier so I’m speaking from experience."
Callie rolled her eyes a little. "You get points for trying, Alex, but Izzie Stevens is that centerfold who captivates anyone with a ‘y’ chromosome and I’m that girl who knows the movie quotes. George isn’t into movie quotes."
"George O’Malley is a blooming idiot and I don’t fault you for not seeing it because love makes people blind, but if you don’t stop letting him make you feel inferior then I’m going to kill him and kick you." Alex shook his head. "And you’re not just the girl who knows the movie quotes. You’re rapidly making me forget that there are any other women on the face of the planet and you’re not even trying."
Callie looked shocked, but she quickly recovered. They flirted. It’s what they did. It was harmless and in good fun. She cleared her throat and said, "So, she said that it was a mistake? Izzie, I mean. She’s over the whole love thing?"
"Yep." Alex noticed a spot of chocolate on Callie’s lip. He wiped it away and absently licked it from his thumb. "If your husband had not kissed her in the elevator after all was said and done then I don’t think she would have clung to the blind hope for as long as she did."
Callie sat up a little straighter. "Wait. What?"
Alex was looking at his thumb, some of her lipstick was on it. "Huh?"
"Kissing in the elevator?"
"Right. She said that he kissed her in the elevator. I guess it was a few days after the debauchery and it made her believe that it wasn’t just a drunken thing. I mean, you can kinda see why." When she didn’t reply, he glanced at her. Her face was devoid of color except for the make-up and there was sweat beading on her forehead. "Holy shit, Callie!"
"Take me home, Alex."
"But -"
"Please?"
"But you’re supposed to -" He trailed off when her eyes filled with tears. It shocked him, what it did to his insides when he realized that her eyes were flecked with varying shades of brown. Some of them matched the dress. Some of them matched the freckles on her nose, some were golden, too... or maybe it was her tears reflecting the light of the X-ray panel. Whatever it was it took his breath. He was not prepared for the jarring in his heart, then. It jarred him so hard that it shook his foundation. And he was still reeling when comprehension dawned on him. She had not known about the kiss and she was going to lose control. "We’ll go down the back elevator, Cal. Come on."
He hopped down and held his hand out. When she didn’t take it, he impulsively hugged her, standing between her knees. He was struck, again, by the realization that she fit, that she felt good there, and he didn’t know where it came from or why he was thinking it all of the sudden. She looked different, prettier than ever before, but she was still the same goofy girl who got his humor and popped it right back in the exact same ways. Something was there, though, hanging in the air and it was heavy on his back. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you like this. I swear to God, I didn’t. I never would."
"You didn’t know." She wrapped her arms around him and held on tight, burying her face against his neck. "Oh wow, this is what the camel’s back breaking feels like. I deserve this for giving in. I deserve it for being weak. This is karma reminding me that I am not a doormat and that I *knew*. To quote your favorite movie: ‘We are men of action. Lies do not become us.’ And I’m living a lie, Alex."
"You are definitely not a man, though. And if we’re gonna quote it wrong, then I’m saying this," he replied, holding her closer still. "George is an R.O.U.S. and don’t you dare cry over him."
"A rodent of unusual size?"
"Don’t you agree?"
He felt her nod and when she pulled back, he wiped the tears off her face and looked at her. She really was beautiful and it was his fault that her heart was breaking. It was his fault that he couldn’t keep his mouth shut. It was *not* his fault that his body suddenly reacted to her every movement, however. He touched her hair and knew that he’d die if he didn’t heed the primordial call that had been in the back of his mind since he had wrenched her off the pavement of the Archfield and broke the sound barrier rushing her to safety. He traced her full lower lip with his thumb and said, "I actually have another quote from the ‘Princess Bride’. And I have to say it. Right now."
"Knock yourself out."
"Since the invention of the kiss, there have only been five kisses that were rated the most passionate, the most pure." He tilted her head a little, his hands holding her firm as he floated into her eyes again, losing himself. He rubbed the curve of her jaw, and whispered, "This one left them all behind."
And then his lips were on hers and Callie was so shocked, so touched, so completely floored and *desperate* for comfort ... that she kissed back. His tongue danced against hers, igniting something inside her that she thought was dormant and she wrapped her legs around him, pulling him closer. She tasted the Twix, tasted her tears, and tasted something else that was not desperation at all. It could only be described as undiluted desire and it raced through her body, causing her blood to rush to her ears.
He moaned against her mouth and she felt drunker than she had ever been. She made a sound in the back of her throat when he finally pulled away and struggled to catch her breath. Her eyes were glassy and her head was spinning like a top. "Alex, what are you doing?"
"I’m trying to kidnap what George has stolen. Your heart." He lowered his hand and rested it just over her left breast. "Because I think - no, no, wait - I know - that I can put it back together. And I want to."
"Oh my god."
"Callie, something’s changed. Between us. And I’m blindsided. I don’t know when it happened, but it did. It - it has happened."
"Stop." She reached up and touched his mouth, wondering as she did why her hand didn’t tremble, why guilt didn’t force her to pull back. "It - it changed when you believed me."
"Yeah. I think maybe it did." He took her hand in his and added, "I don’t want to complicate your life more than it already is."
"Geez, thanks. It’s a little late for that."
"What are you gonna do, Cal?"
"Addison told me that I should try to save my marriage so that I wouldn’t look back in ten years and wonder if I made a mistake by letting it go." She took a deep breath. "I tried. I really feel like I tried, Alex, but I won’t live ten years at all if I keep letting him make me feel this way."
"Then leave him."
She drew strength from his touch and soldiered on. "I haven’t felt alive until right now and if the option is mostly dead with him or completely alive with you --- then this is another one of those wrestling matches that you would win. You’d win, Alex, but I’m not a prize unless you count my money and I can’t disappoint the people who-"
"You can’t live your life for other people. Because when you live it like that ... then drinking enough to kill yourself makes sense. Because your life is not yours and you don’t value it anymore because you’re giving it away a piece at a time." Alex pushed her hair back and thumbed the diamond earring she wore. "And the prize, Callie, the prize isn’t in your bank account or who your family is. The prize is that once all that’s stripped off ... you’re still worth a million bucks without it."
"Is that from a movie?"
"Yeah. Ours."
They kissed again and when he pulled back this time, she was smiling. Alex leaned a little closer and repeated, "What are you gonna do, Cal?"
"I’m going to go take that evaluation and I’m going to ace it." She leaned her cheek against his and whispered. "And them I’m going to leave him."
*~*~*~*~*~
Cambyses Iason Torres was a man on a mission. He strolled into Seattle Grace Hospital, dressed in black leather pants and a maroon shirt that was unbuttoned at the neck. His hair was long and so black it was almost blue under the hospital’s harsh light. It brushed against his broad shoulders in soft waves and the ice blue contacts he wore were stark against his olive skin. He carried his guitar case over his shoulder and an Armani suitcase in his hand. As he approached the nurse’s station, he saw that several of the staff had stopped to watch his approach. He was used to it.
"I’m looking for my sister. Calliope Torres," he told the blond behind the counter. "Is she on duty?"
Izzie blinked several times, staring up at the man. He was tall, easily pushing six foot five and he was possibly the most gorgeous man she had ever seen. His features were rugged and he had a five o’clock shadow on his jaw. "Uh, hi," she finally muttered, staring at the hair that was visible on his chest. "She is around here somewhere, but she’s not on duty."
"Can you page her?"
"That could be a problem. She’s actually in a meeting."
"Could you tell me something? Is she okay?"
Izzie made the assumption that he already knew the gory details. "Well, anyone who has attempted suicide is -"
"What!?" He dropped his guitar which clanged against the nurse’s station, but ignored it. "What do you mean? What happened to my sister? I swear to God ... I don’t usually mind being the black sheep, but I’m always the last to know."
"Oh, god. I thought you knew what happened. She's okay. She was treated and released."
"See, I knew something was wrong. We’re twins. When she hurts, I hurt. When she lies to me, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that she’s lying." Cam exhaled and shook his head. "She lied to me. She told me she was fine."
"She is fine," Izzie replied. "Well, physically."
"What happened to her?"
Izzie took him aside and quickly explained. Cam’s eyes widened when she finished the story and he took a deep, lung filling breath. "You may want to clear the ICU, ma’am. She’ll be back in no time flat. Possible strangulation, but I won’t rule out throwing her off the balcony so be prepared for that, too."
"Mr. Torres, I can assure you that she feels worse than anyone possibly should. I’ve heard that your parents are in town and are being horrible to her."
"That’s nothing new," Cam told her. "They always do that. She’s immune. We all are. Now it’s my turn."
"Cam?"
Cambyses turned and immediately felt at ease. His boyfriend had been able to do that for him for almost ten years. Blake, who stood at just under six feet tall, had wire rimmed glasses and a slightly round belly. His receding red hair was cut short and parted on one side and the shirt and tie he wore made his hazel eyes seem green. He was seven years older than Cambyses and Cam had fallen in love with him the moment he laid eyes on him.
His temper had eased considerably by the time Blake made it to the end of the hall, slightly winded under the luggage he carried. Reaching down, Cam laced his finger’s through his boyfriend’s and looked back at Izzie. "This is my life partner, Blake. Blake, this is - I didn’t catch your name, I’m sorry."
"Dr. Stevens," she replied.
"She was just telling me that my sister is a fool."
Izzie quietly listened while Cam relayed what had transpired with Callie. They were certainly an odd looking couple. ‘Greek God meet Joe Everybody’, she thought. But then the same could be said about George and Callie. She glanced at Blake and realized that he actually reminded her of George in a way. He was straight laced and when he spoke, she heard that he was just as soft spoken.
"Don’t be mad at her," Blake said, squeezing Cam’s hand. "You don’t kick someone when they’re down and from the sounds of it she’s at the bottom of the barrel."
Cam stared down at the other man, one eyebrow raised. Izzie smiled a little. He looked like Callie now. He certainly had her disposition. She answered a few more questions that the men had and then Addison appeared and Izzie asked her which room at the Archfield Callie was staying at. Addison took one look at Callie’s brother and said, "You’re the twin!"
"You’re the Addison!" Cam replied, then stepped forward and hugged her. "I’d recognize you anywhere. Callie sent me photos of you guys from ... Joe’s ... is it? Dancing on the bar."
"Oh my god." Addy buried her face in her hand. "She said those would never see the light of day. That was after a very bad case we worked on together."
"A case of what?" Bailey, who had heard the introduction, stepped forward. "Y’all need AA, stat."
"You would have to be Miranda Bailey. Callie loves you. Talks about you all the time." Cam shook her hand and introduced Blake.
The made small talk for a moment longer and Addison finally said, "Callie’s in room twenty two seventy seven at the Archfield. It’s five blocks south on the right. You’re welcome to take my car, but I’m not sure that the luggage will fit. It’s small."
"Aww, thank you. It’s fine. We’ll walk. We spent over four hours on stand-by and then suffered an eight hour flight in economy. We must walk," Blake replied. "It was nice to meet you all."
Bailey and Addison stood side by side, watching as Cam retrieved his guitar and laid his arm over Blake’s shoulders. "All the good ones are gay," Addison finally said. "Every single last good one."
"Tell me about it," Izzie interjected, craning her neck to get a good view of the man’s backside. "He’s hot."
"He looks like Callie." Addison glanced at the blond and narrowed her eyes. "She’s beautiful like that."
Izzie watched as Bailey and Addison walked off, talking about Greek men and women. There was no one for her to talk to anymore. Cristina and Meredith had each other, Alex ignored her, and George pretended that she had died. She glanced up in time to see George coming out of the restroom at the end of the hallway and hurried forward. "You just missed Callie’s brother."
"Which one?"
"Uh, the twin. He looks like her only he’s a giant."
George smiled. "Did you see my wife in the heels? She’s six foot tall."
"She looked good," Izzie said, nodding at him. "Uh - I know you hate me and I don’t have any right to ask, but I need to tell you something. About the night Callie came in. And I wouldn’t bother, but I think it’s worth mentioning because it might may help you see that I’m not evil and I - I did something for her. For you, really."
George sighed and glanced at the clock on the wall. He had already missed Callie’s appoint. Alex had undoubtedly taken her up. "Make it fast, Izzie."
"Come on."
They walked together into the stairwell and Izzie began to talk.
She talked for a very long time.
*~*~*~*~*~
A little over an hour later, Dr. Gellar smiled at Callie. "You’ve had all the right answers, Dr. Torres. And you look as happy as anyone I’ve ever seen. But I do have one more question."
"Go ahead."
"You’ve explained to me that the stress of a failed marriage pushed you over the edge and that’s understandable. What happens the next time you’re under that much stress, though?"
"First of all, I’m going to eliminate the source of the stress," she replied, her eye contact never wavering. "But if I do find myself in a situation where I can’t breathe again ... I’m going to go look at X-rays. I’m going to look at broken bones. Because it relaxes me. It gives me something to fix. And that fixes something inside me, too."
"Nicely done, Doctor." Gellar picked up her chart and said, "I’m recommending that you are fully reinstated beginning tomorrow."
Callie nodded, then held up her hand. "Wait. Two weeks."
"Pardon?"
"I need two weeks. I have a lot to do."
The man nodded and pushed his glasses up on his nose. "Two weeks. Consider it done."
Callie stood and held her hand out. "Thank you, sir."
"You’re welcome, Callie." He shook her hand and held it for a moment longer. "What are your plans? Off the record?"
Callie couldn’t help but chuckle. Her heart felt light, better, than it ever had before. "I’m going to take the road less traveled. And I’m going to enjoy every single curve. They’re really not bad, you know. Curves. Sometimes something unexpected is waiting just around the bend."
*~*~*~*~*~
Alex was waiting in the small lobby when she walked out. He dropped the magazine he was reading and jumped to his feet, looking at her. She gave him a thumbs up and he grabbed her, spinning her a little. She threw her head back and laughed, holding onto his shoulders. "Let’s take the stairs out of here."
"I called Bailey. I told her I needed a some time off."
"What did she say?"
"She didn’t say anything. I’ve never taken my vacation."
They headed for the stairwell and Alex grabbed her once they were inside. Looking left and right he kissed her again and said, "We’re still doing this, right?"
"We are."
"Are you sure?"
"Shhhh." Callie put her hand on her lips when she heard someone sobbing. She leaned over the railing and realized that her husband was sitting two floors below, his arm around Izzie. She waited for the pain, waited for the jealousy, but nothing happened. "Fuck him," she sighed.
Alex joined her at the railing and said, "I’m kicking his ass."
"Alex-"
She ran after him and the clatter of her heels caused George and Izzie to jump to their feet. Izzie brushed the tears off her face and looked at Callie, "Hey, how’d it go?"
"Don’t you talk to her." Alex stood six steps lower than Callie, glaring at Izzie. He looked at George and said, "Where were you? You never came up to the lobby to see about your *wife*."
George looked up at Callie and swallowed hard. He knew that there would be hell to pay. "I - Izzie was just telling me that she took your DNR paper from your chart, Callie. She said that she couldn’t let you be my Denny."
"Wow." Callie put a hand on her chest and tried to look shocked. "Thank you, Izzie. That was really generous of you. You should be canonized."
"Don’t. I - I know that it was wrong and that you wanted to - no, I don’t know." Izzie wrapped her arms around her waist. "I just - I’m sorry that this happened. All of it."
"Someone should be," Callie replied and her voice was so sugary sweet that it hung in the stairwell like molasses. She stepped down one of the steps and tilted her head to one side. "Cause I’m not. You did want me to be his Denny, right? So, I’m going to do what Denny would have done if he had lived."
Izzie looked up at her, not sure what to expect. "Oh? What’s that?"
Callie smiled. "I’m going to get as far away from you and your drama that a person can get. Because it’s toxic. And George? You’re the star in her drama and you thrive on it. You don’t live at the Archfield anymore. We’re not together. We will *never* be together. I’m divorcing you."
"What?" George looked like he had been slapped. He started up the stairs, but Alex stepped in front of him. George stumbled and almost fell. "Callie, don’t. Don’t! We fixed this! We’re happy."
"No," Callie replied. "We’re not. We’re not happy together and someone has to admit it. I can only be near you if I’m drunk. But I bet if you go back in the elevator with Izzie and kiss her again, you’ll feel great."
"No! NO!" George looked at Izzie and shouted, "Why did you tell? It didn’t mean anything! Damn you, Izzie!"
"I don’t know! I just-"
"Shut up!" Callie shouted. She looked down at Alex and shook her head. "Can you believe them?"
"What I can’t believe is that we’re still standing here." He reached up, his hand outstretched, and said, "Let’s go, gorgeous."
Callie stepped down another step and stared at Alex. His back was to the large floor to ceiling window and the it seemed to signify freedom, that the world lay in front of her. With him. She glanced back at George, who stood beside his mistress, and she realized that it was wasteland. George had pulled her into a wasteland and she had almost drowned in his lies. She almost let it kill her.
She put her hand in Alex’s and nodded. "As you wish."
*~*~*~*~*~
Author: Chelle Storey-Daniel
Summary: Sometimes it hurts to fall, but if you're lucky someone may catch you. And they may be falling, too.
A/N: This has to be said. Some of you will finish this chapter and never click on the next installments. You will be done. And I will understand it and I won't complain because I know why. I *know*. And I understand. But it needs to be noted that when you hit rock bottom ... the hand that pulls you back to your feet is often the hand that you should have held all along.
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Eleven
*~*~*~*~*~
I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind.
Some come from ahead and some come from behind.
But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see.
Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!
~Dr. Seuss
*~*~*~*~*~
The concierge service called Callie the next morning at six thirty a.m.. She had nowhere to be so early, but she wanted a fresh start. George lifted his head briefly, planted a kiss on her shoulder, and burrowed under the cover. She watched him for ten minutes, recalling his valiant attempts at seduction the night before. He had tried, she would give him that much. Feeling a little stung by his new found confidence and posturing, however, she had rebuffed him, albeit gently, and feigned yawning with such conviction that she fell asleep first. She dreamed about that delicious crab dinner with Alex and decided to ask him to go again because a stress free meal was pretty much a given with him. And she needed no stress. She needed the easy laughs and corny jokes. He *got* her. And she got him which was a nice change.
She slipped from the bed, grabbed her bathing suit and after forty minutes of non-stop swimming in the pool, she pulled off her water cap, stretched her energized muscles, and sat down at the nearby tiki bar. It took a few minutes for her to realize that it wasn’t open, that the sun was barely up, but she eyed the bottles that had been locked neatly behind a glass case with longing. ‘Rehab’, she reminded herself as her mouth watered. ‘You will so wind up in rehab if you don’t get a grip.’
Standing, she pushed the chair back in place and a startling thought flashed in her mind. She could only be with George when the alcohol had numbed enough of the memory. That’s why she hadn’t been able to sleep with him again the previous night. She was sober. Too sober. And the calm she had felt after dinner, while she had relished the soul deep quiet after her father had forgiven her ... it didn’t last nearly as long as a good buzz. And when George had tried to have sex with her ... she had wondered if he had thrown away all the liquor. She had almost leapt from the bed to find out.
‘Stop this.’ She thought and headed back into the Archfield. ‘This is what alcoholics do.’
‘No,’ another voice reminded her. ‘This is what people who are unhappy do.’
By eight a.m., she had treated herself to a clinging, cleavage baring, Diane vonFurstenberg wrap dress in a size eight, thank you very much. The chocolate brown fabric hugged her body and she turned from side to side, loving what she saw. The only curves she had were in the right place and she was proud of them. She had not eaten for days after George said that to her ... no, that was a lie. She hadn’t really eaten for almost three months now. For him. To make herself worthy enough.
She purchased her dress and sighed when it didn't thrill her. She needed to spend more money. That always helped and that would chase away her demons. After falling into deep lust with a pair of Prada heels that refused to come back off her feet and splurging on a three thousand dollar Fendi purse, brown lingerie, and two carat diamond earrings, Callie nodded and headed into the salon.
While she sat in the make-up chair, she scheduled her appointment with Psych for eleven a.m., then left Alex a message telling him to clear his schedule for dinner. When Callie emerged at nine forty-five, her hair parted deeply on the side with long, loose spiral curls brushing her waist, she spotted George and her parents a few feet away, discussing something that was undoubtedly in her ‘best interest’. Seeing them together should have made her happy, but it didn’t. It felt hollow, like her parents had accepted less than the best for her.
She drew up short, wondering where that thought had come from. When Melana laughed at something George had said and leaned closer to him, she saw herself in her mother and cocked her head to one side, studying them. It was --- a strange match and she felt like she was staring at what her future would look like. Square people while her world was round. ‘Stop that,’ she thought. ‘You wanted them to accept him. You knew that they would. This is what you get."
She lifted her chin, rustled the shopping bag that contained her slightly damp bathing suit and old purse, and listened to her heels click against the polished marble as she walked toward them.
"Oh my god," George’s breath was ragged as she approached. She was *beautiful*. He forgot the fact that he had woken up alone, angry that she had not left a note, and let his eyes stretch over the length of her. The tight dress she wore stopped just below the knee and the high heels did things to her calves that he had never seen done to *any* woman’s legs. Her waist looked tiny, was tiny, but her hips ... god, her hips were the kind that demanded to be gripped, demanded to provide a comfortable rest for his hand when it was around her body.
"Hey," she said, nodding at her parents as she adjusted the strap on her new oversized brown bag. "What are you doing?"
"Looking for you." Melana’s gaze lingering for a moment over her daughter’s smoky well made eyes, over her perfectly lined rosy lips. "And what a look it is, honey. Wow."
"You’re very thin, Calliope," Raphael said, reaching out to touch her hair. "But you’re also stunning."
"Anybody can be stunning with enough money, Daddy." She tilted her head to accept the kiss he brushed against her temple and looked at George. "I should go. I have to meet with Gellar at eleven."
George blinked several times and nodded mutely. In her heels, she was several inches taller than him and he felt like he was gazing up at a reincarnation of Venus. He watched as she handed her parents her shopping bag, asking if they would hang onto it, and then she strode from the lobby and he had to jog to catch up. "Callie, wait."
She slowed down and looked at him. "What?"
"You, uh, you can’t expect me to move very fast when I see you like this unless I’m moving very fast to, you know, take it off." He reached down at took her hand, but hers remained limp in his. "Are we okay?"
"We’re fine, George." As soon as she said the words, the devil that sat on her shoulder lately hissed that she was lying, that she was being a ‘yes, girl’, that she was fooling herself if she believed that he would be trustworthy. She pushed the voice away by saying, "Gellar’s the lesser of the evils in Psych and he likes me. I fixed his tennis elbow last year."
"Callie, anyone who sees you is going to fall in love with you." He squeezed her hand, hoping she would return the favor, but she didn’t. "You seem a little distant. Did I - is this about dinner? Because I sorta knew what was coming? I - I talked to you mom while you were in the bathtub last night, okay? She mentioned that an intervention would be smart and I went along with it because I don’t want them to be down on me any more."
They paused at the crosswalk and Callie gazed at the imposing form of the hospital in the distance. "You went along with it because you agree. It would help if you tried to believe me, George. I didn’t - I didn’t want to die and if you could trust me-"
"Trust is a two way street." George gave into temptation and rested his hand on her hip. He almost swallowed his tongue when he felt the lines of what *had* to be a spaghetti strap thong underneath. "It really hurt last night when you said that you would never trust me again."
"Well, it really hurt to trust you at all. Shame on you if you fool me once and all that."
"You have to have trust in a relationship."
"Do you believe me then? Do you think I’m gonna pass this evaluation and be fine?"
"I think that you’re going to do the best you can."
The light changed and a couple of utility workers catcalled as Callie crossed in front of their truck. One of them yelled, "Lucky little fucker."
"I know, right?" George called over his shoulder and looked back at Callie, who was frowning. It completely changed her face and he pulled her a little closer. "Okay, fine. If you say that you didn’t mean it. You didn’t mean it."
"Nice try." Callie sighed and stepped up onto the curb, not breaking her stride. "This is the part where you want me to tell you that I believe you when you say that it was just a mistake, right?"
"It would be nice."
They stopped at the second cross walk and she looked down at him. "It helps deal with it to know that you were drunk, to know that you didn’t go there with a clear head. That’s the best I can do."
George’s own personal Devil chuckled a little, reminding him of the elevator lip lock he had shared with Izzie. He had groped her breast that day. He resolutely pushed away the urge to come clean and stood on his toes to kiss her. "If that's the best you can do then it's enough."
They walked the rest of the way in silence and when they crossed the parking lot of the hospital, Meredith and Izzie were climbing out of Meredith’s car. George attempted to go at least fifty feet out of the way, but Callie plowed straight ahead and addressed Meredith. "Hey."
Meredith’s eyes widened and she said, "Hey right back. You look amazing. I didn’t look like that after I almost died."
Callie smiled a little and glanced at Izzie, whose mouth was slightly ajar. "I wanted to say thank you, to -uh- both of you, for what you did the other night. You saved my life and I appreciate it."
Meredith reached out at took her hand. "That’s what we do and you’re very welcome."
Callie squeezed her hand, then nodded at Izzie, who had not spoken at all. "Well, have a good day."
Meredith watched her walk off, saw the scathing look that George shot Izzie and said, "That took guts." She glanced at the blond. "Speaking of guts, where are yours? That was the perfect chance for you to take the same high road she did and you didn’t say a thing."
"I - I couldn’t," Izzie replied, adjusting her jacket as she watched Callie and George disappear into the hospital. "When did Callie get so ..."
"Hot?"
"Well, yeah."
Meredith put her arm around the taller woman's waist and sighed, "Oh, Izzie. I love you dearly, but you are a very blind girl where the dirty hot ortho chick is concerned."
"Clearly."
*~*~*~*~*~
Addison was redoing a chart for the third time because she couldn’t stop thinking about batteries. She cursed Mark Sloan, who walked past her and made a buzzing sound. She was glaring after him when she saw Callie. She forgot about the work and the batteries and met Callie halfway down the hall, hugging her tight. "I called you last night, but you didn’t answer. Apparently you were guesting on ‘Extreme Makeover’ and failed to invite me to the big reveal."
"Dinner. With my parents."
Addison pulled back. "Ooooh, scary."
"It really was, but then it wasn’t. And you need to buy a pretty dress because we’re having an elopement party and you get all the maid of honor perks without the actual duties."
Addison beamed at her, then faltered a little when she realized that Callie wasn’t smiling. "I can do that. Wanna shop with me? Clearly you know how and - oh my god, is that the new Fendi line? Can I just hold it?"
"Retail therapy." Callie handed the purse over and watched Addison fawn over it. "I’ve decided to go ahead and embrace the money again."
"Apparently." Addison handed her the purse back and added, "Red. You should wear red to the party."
"Red’s good," George said, nodding lasciviously as he eyed his wife’s backside. "I like red. And brown is really, really great today, too."
"You like anything," Callie told him. "Because you’re on your best behavior."
Alex stepped out of a nearby trauma room and pulled his gloves off. He chucked them into the wastebasket and turned, drawing up short when he saw her. He blinked slowly, licking his lips as he looked her up and down. "Jesus fucking Christ, Callie. You’re why cavemen chiseled on walls."
"Ooh, impressive, Alex. You just quoted one of the best movies of all time," Callie replied and grinned ear to ear. As amusing as everyone’s reaction to the cleaned up Callie was, his meant the most. "That would be ‘As Good As It Gets’. And I have to reply by saying that ‘you overwhelm me’, also from the same film."
"It’s amazing." He said, purposely looking at her like a lovesick puppy. "You look like you do and yet you get the one liners every single time. That makes you a rare and special breed, Elvira."
"No, that makes me a film geek who apparently has too much time on her hands."
"Come here, you." Alex hugged her, kissing the side of her face. In her heels, she was eye level with him and as he pulled her against him, he thought fleetingly that she fit perfectly in his arms. And she smelled - no, not good thoughts to be having about someone who was glowing for reasons that were very apparent. "How are you? What are you doing? Have you had breakfast? Should you be here?"
"Good. Nothing much. No breakfast. And no, I should not be here," she replied, rattling off the answers to his questions as she took a step back. "But my Psych thing is in about forty minutes and I’m trying to be calm. The hospital calms me."
Alex smirked at her. "Shattered bones calm you, Gothika. Wanna see a kickass X-ray that you are so missing out on by shirking your duties."
"I do not shirk, Jock Boy. This is all Webber." She gripped his ear and tugged him down the hall. "Show me carnage! We’ll be back, guys."
Addison watched as Alex put his arm around Callie’s shoulder, talking a mile of minute into her ear. "Oookay."
"He’s proving a point." George leaned against the nurse’s station. "He’s there to latch onto her if I’m not careful. I so don’t care because he’s full of crap."
Addy watched the duo disappear around the corner. She had definitely *not* missed the look on Alex’s face. Or the first genuine smile on Callie’s in days. "You’re not worried?"
"I am *so* not worried. We are officially married and life is good."
"She wasn’t wearing her ring."
"Give me time."
"You sound confident."
"I’m convinced."
"Be careful, George. Don’t make my mistakes. Don’t get cocky."
He simply smiled at her.
*~*~*~*~*~
Alex pinned the first X-ray and Callie groaned, practically salivating over the shattered hand. She traced a particularly nasty break with her finger and pouted. "It’s sick the way you know me. I should be scrubbing in on this! Why are you not scrubbing in on this?"
"Because Bailey decided that I’m on pit. Because of you."
"Me?"
"I think the rumor got to her that we were having sex."
"Ooooh, did we like it?"
"Absolutely. The rumor mill says that it was very acrobatic. That was my own personal contribution and I’ll be signing autographs after work. Thank you. Thank you very much." Alex pinned another film that showed a different angle and watched her mouth drop into a perfect ‘o’ and she moaned. "It’s like porn for you, isn’t it, Torres?"
"It so freakin’ is. I told you that bones are the bomb."
He watched as she licked her lips and found himself mimicking her actions. "You had sex with him, didn’t you?"
"Ugh. I had something with him. To quote a very wise and wonderful person ... it was a hailstorm of misery and self loathing." Callie bit her bottom lip and then hopped up onto the window seat. "Am I a fool? To do this thing with him? I mean, he knows that she’s in love with him. Whatever that even means anymore. I hate love."
"I had a talk with Izzie," Alex jumped up beside her. He pulled a Twix out of the front pocket of his scrub shirt, opened it, and handed her one of the bars. "She told me that she only thought that she was in love with him because she hates one night stands. And she said that he was ‘safe’ and she needed ‘safe’ after Denny. She’s hung up on a corpse, dude, and while O’Malley isn’t much better than a dead man ... she’s still into Duquette."
Callie chewed the candy thoughtfully. She finished it off before she replied. "She’s probably just trying to save face. She sees that he’s staying with me and she’s trying to act like it’s fine. That’s what I would do, too."
"I don’t think she’s doing that and you know I’d tell you if I did." He leaned into her, brushing her shoulder with his while he licked the chocolate off his fingers. "Are you happy? Is he - you know, taking care of you?"
"In his very own special George way he is trying. He’s definitely trying."
"Are you happy?" he repeated.
"I think I could be. Like, eventually."
"Like, when?"
"When I can trust him again. Which is --- never. It’s a horrible feeling to know that a supermodel wants your husband. It’s even worse to know that he went there and is probably comparing us every time he touches me."
"Any man who touches you would be rendered incapable of cognitive thought. It - it happened to me earlier so I’m speaking from experience."
Callie rolled her eyes a little. "You get points for trying, Alex, but Izzie Stevens is that centerfold who captivates anyone with a ‘y’ chromosome and I’m that girl who knows the movie quotes. George isn’t into movie quotes."
"George O’Malley is a blooming idiot and I don’t fault you for not seeing it because love makes people blind, but if you don’t stop letting him make you feel inferior then I’m going to kill him and kick you." Alex shook his head. "And you’re not just the girl who knows the movie quotes. You’re rapidly making me forget that there are any other women on the face of the planet and you’re not even trying."
Callie looked shocked, but she quickly recovered. They flirted. It’s what they did. It was harmless and in good fun. She cleared her throat and said, "So, she said that it was a mistake? Izzie, I mean. She’s over the whole love thing?"
"Yep." Alex noticed a spot of chocolate on Callie’s lip. He wiped it away and absently licked it from his thumb. "If your husband had not kissed her in the elevator after all was said and done then I don’t think she would have clung to the blind hope for as long as she did."
Callie sat up a little straighter. "Wait. What?"
Alex was looking at his thumb, some of her lipstick was on it. "Huh?"
"Kissing in the elevator?"
"Right. She said that he kissed her in the elevator. I guess it was a few days after the debauchery and it made her believe that it wasn’t just a drunken thing. I mean, you can kinda see why." When she didn’t reply, he glanced at her. Her face was devoid of color except for the make-up and there was sweat beading on her forehead. "Holy shit, Callie!"
"Take me home, Alex."
"But -"
"Please?"
"But you’re supposed to -" He trailed off when her eyes filled with tears. It shocked him, what it did to his insides when he realized that her eyes were flecked with varying shades of brown. Some of them matched the dress. Some of them matched the freckles on her nose, some were golden, too... or maybe it was her tears reflecting the light of the X-ray panel. Whatever it was it took his breath. He was not prepared for the jarring in his heart, then. It jarred him so hard that it shook his foundation. And he was still reeling when comprehension dawned on him. She had not known about the kiss and she was going to lose control. "We’ll go down the back elevator, Cal. Come on."
He hopped down and held his hand out. When she didn’t take it, he impulsively hugged her, standing between her knees. He was struck, again, by the realization that she fit, that she felt good there, and he didn’t know where it came from or why he was thinking it all of the sudden. She looked different, prettier than ever before, but she was still the same goofy girl who got his humor and popped it right back in the exact same ways. Something was there, though, hanging in the air and it was heavy on his back. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you like this. I swear to God, I didn’t. I never would."
"You didn’t know." She wrapped her arms around him and held on tight, burying her face against his neck. "Oh wow, this is what the camel’s back breaking feels like. I deserve this for giving in. I deserve it for being weak. This is karma reminding me that I am not a doormat and that I *knew*. To quote your favorite movie: ‘We are men of action. Lies do not become us.’ And I’m living a lie, Alex."
"You are definitely not a man, though. And if we’re gonna quote it wrong, then I’m saying this," he replied, holding her closer still. "George is an R.O.U.S. and don’t you dare cry over him."
"A rodent of unusual size?"
"Don’t you agree?"
He felt her nod and when she pulled back, he wiped the tears off her face and looked at her. She really was beautiful and it was his fault that her heart was breaking. It was his fault that he couldn’t keep his mouth shut. It was *not* his fault that his body suddenly reacted to her every movement, however. He touched her hair and knew that he’d die if he didn’t heed the primordial call that had been in the back of his mind since he had wrenched her off the pavement of the Archfield and broke the sound barrier rushing her to safety. He traced her full lower lip with his thumb and said, "I actually have another quote from the ‘Princess Bride’. And I have to say it. Right now."
"Knock yourself out."
"Since the invention of the kiss, there have only been five kisses that were rated the most passionate, the most pure." He tilted her head a little, his hands holding her firm as he floated into her eyes again, losing himself. He rubbed the curve of her jaw, and whispered, "This one left them all behind."
And then his lips were on hers and Callie was so shocked, so touched, so completely floored and *desperate* for comfort ... that she kissed back. His tongue danced against hers, igniting something inside her that she thought was dormant and she wrapped her legs around him, pulling him closer. She tasted the Twix, tasted her tears, and tasted something else that was not desperation at all. It could only be described as undiluted desire and it raced through her body, causing her blood to rush to her ears.
He moaned against her mouth and she felt drunker than she had ever been. She made a sound in the back of her throat when he finally pulled away and struggled to catch her breath. Her eyes were glassy and her head was spinning like a top. "Alex, what are you doing?"
"I’m trying to kidnap what George has stolen. Your heart." He lowered his hand and rested it just over her left breast. "Because I think - no, no, wait - I know - that I can put it back together. And I want to."
"Oh my god."
"Callie, something’s changed. Between us. And I’m blindsided. I don’t know when it happened, but it did. It - it has happened."
"Stop." She reached up and touched his mouth, wondering as she did why her hand didn’t tremble, why guilt didn’t force her to pull back. "It - it changed when you believed me."
"Yeah. I think maybe it did." He took her hand in his and added, "I don’t want to complicate your life more than it already is."
"Geez, thanks. It’s a little late for that."
"What are you gonna do, Cal?"
"Addison told me that I should try to save my marriage so that I wouldn’t look back in ten years and wonder if I made a mistake by letting it go." She took a deep breath. "I tried. I really feel like I tried, Alex, but I won’t live ten years at all if I keep letting him make me feel this way."
"Then leave him."
She drew strength from his touch and soldiered on. "I haven’t felt alive until right now and if the option is mostly dead with him or completely alive with you --- then this is another one of those wrestling matches that you would win. You’d win, Alex, but I’m not a prize unless you count my money and I can’t disappoint the people who-"
"You can’t live your life for other people. Because when you live it like that ... then drinking enough to kill yourself makes sense. Because your life is not yours and you don’t value it anymore because you’re giving it away a piece at a time." Alex pushed her hair back and thumbed the diamond earring she wore. "And the prize, Callie, the prize isn’t in your bank account or who your family is. The prize is that once all that’s stripped off ... you’re still worth a million bucks without it."
"Is that from a movie?"
"Yeah. Ours."
They kissed again and when he pulled back this time, she was smiling. Alex leaned a little closer and repeated, "What are you gonna do, Cal?"
"I’m going to go take that evaluation and I’m going to ace it." She leaned her cheek against his and whispered. "And them I’m going to leave him."
*~*~*~*~*~
Cambyses Iason Torres was a man on a mission. He strolled into Seattle Grace Hospital, dressed in black leather pants and a maroon shirt that was unbuttoned at the neck. His hair was long and so black it was almost blue under the hospital’s harsh light. It brushed against his broad shoulders in soft waves and the ice blue contacts he wore were stark against his olive skin. He carried his guitar case over his shoulder and an Armani suitcase in his hand. As he approached the nurse’s station, he saw that several of the staff had stopped to watch his approach. He was used to it.
"I’m looking for my sister. Calliope Torres," he told the blond behind the counter. "Is she on duty?"
Izzie blinked several times, staring up at the man. He was tall, easily pushing six foot five and he was possibly the most gorgeous man she had ever seen. His features were rugged and he had a five o’clock shadow on his jaw. "Uh, hi," she finally muttered, staring at the hair that was visible on his chest. "She is around here somewhere, but she’s not on duty."
"Can you page her?"
"That could be a problem. She’s actually in a meeting."
"Could you tell me something? Is she okay?"
Izzie made the assumption that he already knew the gory details. "Well, anyone who has attempted suicide is -"
"What!?" He dropped his guitar which clanged against the nurse’s station, but ignored it. "What do you mean? What happened to my sister? I swear to God ... I don’t usually mind being the black sheep, but I’m always the last to know."
"Oh, god. I thought you knew what happened. She's okay. She was treated and released."
"See, I knew something was wrong. We’re twins. When she hurts, I hurt. When she lies to me, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that she’s lying." Cam exhaled and shook his head. "She lied to me. She told me she was fine."
"She is fine," Izzie replied. "Well, physically."
"What happened to her?"
Izzie took him aside and quickly explained. Cam’s eyes widened when she finished the story and he took a deep, lung filling breath. "You may want to clear the ICU, ma’am. She’ll be back in no time flat. Possible strangulation, but I won’t rule out throwing her off the balcony so be prepared for that, too."
"Mr. Torres, I can assure you that she feels worse than anyone possibly should. I’ve heard that your parents are in town and are being horrible to her."
"That’s nothing new," Cam told her. "They always do that. She’s immune. We all are. Now it’s my turn."
"Cam?"
Cambyses turned and immediately felt at ease. His boyfriend had been able to do that for him for almost ten years. Blake, who stood at just under six feet tall, had wire rimmed glasses and a slightly round belly. His receding red hair was cut short and parted on one side and the shirt and tie he wore made his hazel eyes seem green. He was seven years older than Cambyses and Cam had fallen in love with him the moment he laid eyes on him.
His temper had eased considerably by the time Blake made it to the end of the hall, slightly winded under the luggage he carried. Reaching down, Cam laced his finger’s through his boyfriend’s and looked back at Izzie. "This is my life partner, Blake. Blake, this is - I didn’t catch your name, I’m sorry."
"Dr. Stevens," she replied.
"She was just telling me that my sister is a fool."
Izzie quietly listened while Cam relayed what had transpired with Callie. They were certainly an odd looking couple. ‘Greek God meet Joe Everybody’, she thought. But then the same could be said about George and Callie. She glanced at Blake and realized that he actually reminded her of George in a way. He was straight laced and when he spoke, she heard that he was just as soft spoken.
"Don’t be mad at her," Blake said, squeezing Cam’s hand. "You don’t kick someone when they’re down and from the sounds of it she’s at the bottom of the barrel."
Cam stared down at the other man, one eyebrow raised. Izzie smiled a little. He looked like Callie now. He certainly had her disposition. She answered a few more questions that the men had and then Addison appeared and Izzie asked her which room at the Archfield Callie was staying at. Addison took one look at Callie’s brother and said, "You’re the twin!"
"You’re the Addison!" Cam replied, then stepped forward and hugged her. "I’d recognize you anywhere. Callie sent me photos of you guys from ... Joe’s ... is it? Dancing on the bar."
"Oh my god." Addy buried her face in her hand. "She said those would never see the light of day. That was after a very bad case we worked on together."
"A case of what?" Bailey, who had heard the introduction, stepped forward. "Y’all need AA, stat."
"You would have to be Miranda Bailey. Callie loves you. Talks about you all the time." Cam shook her hand and introduced Blake.
The made small talk for a moment longer and Addison finally said, "Callie’s in room twenty two seventy seven at the Archfield. It’s five blocks south on the right. You’re welcome to take my car, but I’m not sure that the luggage will fit. It’s small."
"Aww, thank you. It’s fine. We’ll walk. We spent over four hours on stand-by and then suffered an eight hour flight in economy. We must walk," Blake replied. "It was nice to meet you all."
Bailey and Addison stood side by side, watching as Cam retrieved his guitar and laid his arm over Blake’s shoulders. "All the good ones are gay," Addison finally said. "Every single last good one."
"Tell me about it," Izzie interjected, craning her neck to get a good view of the man’s backside. "He’s hot."
"He looks like Callie." Addison glanced at the blond and narrowed her eyes. "She’s beautiful like that."
Izzie watched as Bailey and Addison walked off, talking about Greek men and women. There was no one for her to talk to anymore. Cristina and Meredith had each other, Alex ignored her, and George pretended that she had died. She glanced up in time to see George coming out of the restroom at the end of the hallway and hurried forward. "You just missed Callie’s brother."
"Which one?"
"Uh, the twin. He looks like her only he’s a giant."
George smiled. "Did you see my wife in the heels? She’s six foot tall."
"She looked good," Izzie said, nodding at him. "Uh - I know you hate me and I don’t have any right to ask, but I need to tell you something. About the night Callie came in. And I wouldn’t bother, but I think it’s worth mentioning because it might may help you see that I’m not evil and I - I did something for her. For you, really."
George sighed and glanced at the clock on the wall. He had already missed Callie’s appoint. Alex had undoubtedly taken her up. "Make it fast, Izzie."
"Come on."
They walked together into the stairwell and Izzie began to talk.
She talked for a very long time.
*~*~*~*~*~
A little over an hour later, Dr. Gellar smiled at Callie. "You’ve had all the right answers, Dr. Torres. And you look as happy as anyone I’ve ever seen. But I do have one more question."
"Go ahead."
"You’ve explained to me that the stress of a failed marriage pushed you over the edge and that’s understandable. What happens the next time you’re under that much stress, though?"
"First of all, I’m going to eliminate the source of the stress," she replied, her eye contact never wavering. "But if I do find myself in a situation where I can’t breathe again ... I’m going to go look at X-rays. I’m going to look at broken bones. Because it relaxes me. It gives me something to fix. And that fixes something inside me, too."
"Nicely done, Doctor." Gellar picked up her chart and said, "I’m recommending that you are fully reinstated beginning tomorrow."
Callie nodded, then held up her hand. "Wait. Two weeks."
"Pardon?"
"I need two weeks. I have a lot to do."
The man nodded and pushed his glasses up on his nose. "Two weeks. Consider it done."
Callie stood and held her hand out. "Thank you, sir."
"You’re welcome, Callie." He shook her hand and held it for a moment longer. "What are your plans? Off the record?"
Callie couldn’t help but chuckle. Her heart felt light, better, than it ever had before. "I’m going to take the road less traveled. And I’m going to enjoy every single curve. They’re really not bad, you know. Curves. Sometimes something unexpected is waiting just around the bend."
*~*~*~*~*~
Alex was waiting in the small lobby when she walked out. He dropped the magazine he was reading and jumped to his feet, looking at her. She gave him a thumbs up and he grabbed her, spinning her a little. She threw her head back and laughed, holding onto his shoulders. "Let’s take the stairs out of here."
"I called Bailey. I told her I needed a some time off."
"What did she say?"
"She didn’t say anything. I’ve never taken my vacation."
They headed for the stairwell and Alex grabbed her once they were inside. Looking left and right he kissed her again and said, "We’re still doing this, right?"
"We are."
"Are you sure?"
"Shhhh." Callie put her hand on her lips when she heard someone sobbing. She leaned over the railing and realized that her husband was sitting two floors below, his arm around Izzie. She waited for the pain, waited for the jealousy, but nothing happened. "Fuck him," she sighed.
Alex joined her at the railing and said, "I’m kicking his ass."
"Alex-"
She ran after him and the clatter of her heels caused George and Izzie to jump to their feet. Izzie brushed the tears off her face and looked at Callie, "Hey, how’d it go?"
"Don’t you talk to her." Alex stood six steps lower than Callie, glaring at Izzie. He looked at George and said, "Where were you? You never came up to the lobby to see about your *wife*."
George looked up at Callie and swallowed hard. He knew that there would be hell to pay. "I - Izzie was just telling me that she took your DNR paper from your chart, Callie. She said that she couldn’t let you be my Denny."
"Wow." Callie put a hand on her chest and tried to look shocked. "Thank you, Izzie. That was really generous of you. You should be canonized."
"Don’t. I - I know that it was wrong and that you wanted to - no, I don’t know." Izzie wrapped her arms around her waist. "I just - I’m sorry that this happened. All of it."
"Someone should be," Callie replied and her voice was so sugary sweet that it hung in the stairwell like molasses. She stepped down one of the steps and tilted her head to one side. "Cause I’m not. You did want me to be his Denny, right? So, I’m going to do what Denny would have done if he had lived."
Izzie looked up at her, not sure what to expect. "Oh? What’s that?"
Callie smiled. "I’m going to get as far away from you and your drama that a person can get. Because it’s toxic. And George? You’re the star in her drama and you thrive on it. You don’t live at the Archfield anymore. We’re not together. We will *never* be together. I’m divorcing you."
"What?" George looked like he had been slapped. He started up the stairs, but Alex stepped in front of him. George stumbled and almost fell. "Callie, don’t. Don’t! We fixed this! We’re happy."
"No," Callie replied. "We’re not. We’re not happy together and someone has to admit it. I can only be near you if I’m drunk. But I bet if you go back in the elevator with Izzie and kiss her again, you’ll feel great."
"No! NO!" George looked at Izzie and shouted, "Why did you tell? It didn’t mean anything! Damn you, Izzie!"
"I don’t know! I just-"
"Shut up!" Callie shouted. She looked down at Alex and shook her head. "Can you believe them?"
"What I can’t believe is that we’re still standing here." He reached up, his hand outstretched, and said, "Let’s go, gorgeous."
Callie stepped down another step and stared at Alex. His back was to the large floor to ceiling window and the it seemed to signify freedom, that the world lay in front of her. With him. She glanced back at George, who stood beside his mistress, and she realized that it was wasteland. George had pulled her into a wasteland and she had almost drowned in his lies. She almost let it kill her.
She put her hand in Alex’s and nodded. "As you wish."
*~*~*~*~*~