The Aftermath of Callie and Arizona

Being a Doctor Ain't Easy Part II

Callie's POV:

When my alarm went off at 5 am, I realized how much I had acclimated to Pacific Standard time and simultaneously, how much I didn't want to go back to work. It's always daunting to spend  time, "getting caught up," when you get behind with your hospital medical responsibilities and duties, post-vacation, as a doctor of any discipline.

I begrudgingly got up, turned off my alarm and climbed into the shower. After toweling off, blow-drying my hair and applying makeup, I went into the walk-in closet to quietly get dressed for my day. I was ultimately hoping not to wake Penny for the selfish reason that I didn't want to deal with her and our 'baggage' that morning.

As I tried to tip-toe out of our bedroom and started to close the door, I heard Penny start talking.

"Callie, I can take Sophia to school this morning, if that helps. I don't work till later this morning  in the ER, but after that, I have lab duties till who knows when."

"Thank you Penny, that would be extremely helpful for you to look after Sophia this morning. I'm exhausted and have a lot of catching up to do when I get to work."

"I figured you would be playing catch-up, after the length of your vacation, when you went back. I'm sure you will have a lot of things to get under wraps today. The least I can do, is to help with Sophia... By the way, I'm trying here Callie, I don't want to lose you."

I had walked back into the bedroom and sat down on the edge of Penny's side of the bed. As I sat there, I began to feel guilty about everything that had happened between Arizona and I, this last week. I was trying not to tear up, since I don't wear waterproof mascara, but I did, a little. Thank goodness it was dark and Penny couldn't see my tears.

I started gently rubbing one of Penny's lower legs and said, "So, you work tonight? How's it going in the lab with your research, it's been a while since I heard about your progress."

"Things are back on track and I think we're headed in the right direction now, despite the pitfalls we had last week. We found a new lab assistant, while you were in Seattle, that has tremendously helped our project." I could tell Penny was happy I had asked her about her grant research.

"That's good to hear, and thank you for offering to take care of Sophia this morning. I'm sure she will be happy to see you, it's been a long time since you both spent time together." 

I thought I had managed to sound reassuring and also be encouraging, as I shook Penny's leg and continued to rub it at the same time.

"Nonetheless, I've got to go be an Orthopedic surgeon, again. I hope you have a good day and thank you for taking care of my daughter." I got up, kissed Penny on her forehead and quietly walked out, while closing the door to our bedroom.

Before I left, I packed Sophia's lunch, laid out her clothes and kissed my daughter goodbye. Sophia barely stirred when I kissed her forehead and immediately went back to quietly, snoring. 

No matter what happens going forward, Sophia is the most, amazing thing I've ever done and I will do anything to protect her. It was in that instant, that I realized I needed to make Sophia a bigger factor in my upcoming decisions. After seeing how much she loved being with Arizona and back in Seattle with her friends, I mentally put a check mark on the Seattle side of the list that was being constructed in my head.

After I got to work that morning and saw my email inbox, I quickly sent an email to my chief of surgery at Lower Manhattan Presbyterian, at least that was easier than replying to the 100's of other messages. I was a bit shocked when he was complacent with my new timeline I requested regarding the decision for the Ortho Chief position. Nonetheless, I realized I now had more time to work on my relationship with Penny.