The Aftermath of Callie and Arizona

How To Save A Life

Arizona's POV:

It was Saturday afternoon and we were hanging out in our backyard with Ari for the day. We had finished lunch and a visit with Renee as Ari and Soph were playing catch.

Callie, Maddy and I had just headed back outside to join the other two, when I decided to check on the pork ribs I was making on the smoker. While any meat that is cooked low and slow is incredible, pork on a smoker is a labor of love that is worth it. The ribs alone that day were going to take at least 6 hours, so I started them early in order for the meat to be ready by dinner.

As I was checking the smoker temperature and the wood pellet box, I could hear and see Ari talking a mile a minute to Sophia and Callie. Although, I don't think it even mattered if anyone was listening to her, Ari just wanted to talk about Renee.

My sister-in-law was busy musing out loud about what or where Renee and her could go for their dinner next week. She was currently thinking out loud about which days would be best and was excited if one of us commented or acknowledged any of her conversations surrounding Renee. It's like she was trying to convince herself, more than us, about the stability of their relationship and somehow talking about it, made everything feel real and secure.

"Callie? Maybe I should make dinner for Renee, instead of going out? She loves our family's mole sauce recipe, or maybe I should make something with seafood? Renee really loves seafood too."

I could see Callie quite well from where I was standing in the outdoor kitchen. She was trying to be polite with Ari and instead of speaking, was smiling and nodding. I knew Callie was trying to diffuse Ari by not furthering the conversation and that she was also trying not to embarrass her, in front of her niece, by cutting off Ari's rambling.

Personally, I have a tendency to be more forward than Callie is, at least in certain situations, and this was one of those times. Plus, I was also getting sick of listening to conversations about Renee for the last hour. Don't get me wrong, Renee's a wonderful friend, but I had reached my limit of wanting to hear about her, by that point.

"Calliope? Can I borrow your skilled hands to help me chop a couple things for a sec?" 

Callie shot me a look that conveyed the sentiment of, 'Now what do I need to do?,' and I could also tell she didn't want to do it, whatever it was.

I gave her my 'pleading' look, which garnered me the begrudging, 'okayyy...' look with a sigh, in exchange.

It's amazing how little we can say sometimes, while saying so much in certain moments...

Callie came over and stood close to me in the outdoor cooking area so we could talk without being heard by Soph or Ari.

"So, what do I need to do now, Arizona? I assume you asked me over here to do something other than chop?"

I patted Callie on the back and said, "Sorry Callie, I needed a break from Ari's continuing conversation about Renee. I also think we should get her to change the subject, somehow. Even Sophia is starting to look uncomfortable with her behavior, just look at your daughter's face..."

We both silently turned and glanced over to Sophia. Sure enough, while playing catch, our oldest had a pained look on her face as she kept looking at Ari with puzzlement.

"Fine, so you are completely right, but what should we do Arizona, to sidetrack Ari?"

"She could weed the bed by the treehouse. I noticed this morning how bad it looked from the kitchen window..."

In spite of herself, I got the reaction I wanted and made Callie laugh, instead of her being so serious. Still giggling, she lightly swatted my butt and said, "Funny, Dr. Robbins. Very funny."