ain't no sunshine

Callie drummed her fingers against the plastic seat, her eyes fixed on her daughter who was working on a colouring book seated on the airport floor. Since she had picked her up from Arizona's that morning, Sofia had barely spoken more than one-word answers and pouted the whole way through security.

"Whatcha drawing, Sof?"

"Picture for Mommy."

"Can I see?"

"No."

"Sofia..."

"It's for Mommy, not you." Sofia shifted her small body slightly so her work was obscured. "I'm going to send her a picture every day. D'you think she'd like that?" Sofia glanced over her shoulder, and God, if she didn't look like Arizona at that moment. Strangers always commented on how much Sofia looked like her, but all Callie could see was the way she smiled like Mark or all of the facial expressions she had picked up on from Arizona, even the cadence of her voice.

Swallowing back the lump in her throat, Callie nodded. "Yeah, I think she'd love that."

"Good," Sofia hummed, focusing back on her work, "She said that my drawings always help her not feel sad and she kept crying so much, Mama. I could hear her when she thought I was sleepin'. She cried a lot last night." Callie chewed on the inside of her cheek at the thought of her ex-wife crying so much their seven-year-old had noticed. Arizona hated crying almost as much as Callie hated seeing her cry.

She should be happier. She was going to see Penny, the woman she loved. She got to take Sofia with her and go off to New York. Arizona had said Sofia needed two happy moms, but then why was she crying so much?

"Call-er, Dr Torres?"

Callie's head snapped up. Sofia glanced up too but decided that her drawing was much more interesting than the blonde lady in front of her.

"Stevens," Callie finally said, her voice gruffer than she intended. Her grudge against Izzie Stevens died out long ago, sometime after her cancer diagnosis. That didn't mean her sudden appearance didn't stir up old wounds when she was already feeling delicate. "What are you doing here?"

Izzie shifted on her feet, looking distinctly uncomfortable before settling in the seat across from Callie. "I was up in Chehalis visiting my mom for the weekend. Now I'm headed back to Kansas." She gestured towards the gate behind her declaring it was bound for Kansas City.

"Kansas?"

"Yeah, surgical oncology. How about you? Taking some vacation?"

Callie fought the urge to pinch herself. How had she ended up in an airport making small talk with Izzie Stevens of all people? "Er, no, me and my daughter are moving to New York."

"Oh, really? That's great. I, uh, I saw your TED talk a while ago. It was really fascinating."

"Thanks, I guess." Callie glanced down at Sofia again. Normally, her daughter was all too happy to chat with anyone, a trait she had certainly picked up from Arizona. But it seemed in her agitation over moving to New York, Sofia wouldn't be bailing her out of this conversation from hell. "Look, Stevens, I-"

"Delta Flight 320 to JFK has been delayed due to adverse weather. We will shortly have more information. Thank you for your patience."

"Delta Flight 2007 to Kansas City International has been temporarily delayed due to weather conditions. We'll try to get an update out as soon as possible. Hang tight, folks."

Callie groaned, tossing her head back and pinching the bridge of her nose. "Of course. Sofia, it looks like we're gonna be stuck here for a little while longer."