Chapter Text
August 2025
During the summer holidays, Callie decides to take a few days free off work to go on a road trip with Sofia, her 14-year-old daughter. She has been taking care of her alone for the last eight years, after the horrible custody battle with her ex-wife. Now she feels the teenager growing up and becoming an adult more and more every day. They didn’t really have a plan for these holidays, Callie was just driving and they decided to stop whenever they felt like it. They had been travelling for three days already and it was nearing dinner time on the fourth day.
“Mama, are we lost?”
“No, Sofia, for the hundredth time, you can’t get lost during a road trip, we aren’t going anywhere specific.”
By midday they were driving through a small village by Lake Willowrest. The city sign read “Willowvale”. They were about an hour and a half away from New York, so Callie could easily reach the hospital if needed.
“Hey Sof, what do you think about stopping for some ice cream? It’s getting pretty warm.”
“Sure Mama, we could also eat something for dinner first and have ice cream for dessert.”
“Let’s see where we can stop.”
Callie parked her car in front of “Pine & Paddle Café”. They got out of the car and went into the café. It’s clear that it isn’t the usual café they would find in New York City, it’s small, but comfortable and inviting. The walls have a pattern of red bricks, covered with a lot of paintings. They decide to sit at a table near the big window that allows them to look at the lake over the street. They scan the QR-code on the table and choose what they want. A woman approaches their table.
“Good morning and welcome at Pine & Paddle Café, I’m Anna, what can I do for you?”
Callie immediately answers “Good morning, I would like an omelette with a side of potatoes, please.”
“And for me the Garden Pickle Plate, please” adds Sofia.
“Of course, to drink?”
“A big bottle of Coke, please”
“Sure, see you in a bit”
While they wait for their dinner, they start observing the different paintings on the wall. There are a lot of different ones, one with a small rowboat tied to a dock with a steaming mug resting on a table at the edge, one of the Main Street of the small village lined with trees in full fall colour, one with a pair of loons gliding through rippled water and a lot of others with different animals, dogs, cats, foxes, horses and even chickens. What all these paintings have in common is the sign at the edge: A.R.T. A few minutes later Anna comes back with their dinner. “These are for you, enjoy.”
While they eat, Callie’s gaze hovers over a specific painting. It’s colourful, elegant and portrays two people, a mother and a daughter seen from behind, walking hand in hand. The small child is energetically jumping. She immediately thinks of all the times she had lived that scene with Sofia when she was younger. Callie and Sofia speak for a bit, then, when they finish their dinner Anna approaches them again. “Would you like anything else?” Sofia immediately nods “A vanilla and strawberry ice cream, please”, Callie adds “and a chocolate and dark chocolate one for me. Could we also have some water, please?” “Of course.” Anna comes back to their table with their orders and Sofia and Callie enjoy their desserts. When they stand up and go to pay, Callie’s curiosity gets the best of her “I’m sorry, can I ask you something? Who’s the painter of all the works you have in here?” Anna smiles, she is a local painter, she likes to stay anonymous, but if you want we have some prints of her works in that corner for tourists to buy.” “Okay, we’ll have a look then”. Callie finds the print of the painting she liked so much, while Sofia finds it really hard to choose among all the ones with the animals, finally choosing one with a small Shiba-Inu near the lake. “We’ll take these ones. “Of course, it’s 10$ more for them, 5$ each”.
Callie pays and Anna adds “Thank you for coming here, I hope to see you again in the future”.
Callie and Sofia head back to the car, Callie gets in, but Sofia doesn’t notice a motorbike driving way too fast and gets hit by the mirror of the bike, the driver runs away and Sofia finds herself lying on the street. Callie immediately reaches her, and sighs in relief when she finds out that Sofia hasn’t broken anything, but she does have some cuts in her arms. “Sof! Are you okay” “Yes, Mama, don’t worry, nothing serious.” Callie helps her stand up and checks her again “It looks like a road rash. I’ll take the medkit, let’s wash your wounds and see.”
Unbeknownst to them, a man has seen what happened and walks towards them. “Good morning, I’m sorry to bother you. I’m Steve Callahan, I saw what happened. I’m a volunteer at the local clinic, it’s just two minutes away, why don’t you go there to get her checked? I was on my break, but the doctor is still there” “Oh, no need, thank you. I’m a doctor too.” “Oh, I see, but please, I insist, the doctor is specialized in paediatrics, I would really feel better if your daughter went to the clinic.” Callie looks at Sofia, who just shrugs. She gives her daughter some gauze to keep on the wounds. “Okay, sir. I will follow you.”
Steve opens the clinic’s door “The doctor prefers to see the patients between 5 and 18 years old alone first.” Callie looks hesitant, she doesn’t really want to let Sofia go alone, but she knows that the doctor can’t legally do anything big without her consent and that it’s probably just a normal procedure. “Is it okay for you, Sof?” Sofia rolls her eyes. “Of course, Mama, it’s nothing big, you said it yourself.”
Steve meanwhile has gone to the doctor’s office to talk about what he had witnessed. He comes back into the waiting room. “Okay, you can go into the exam room, the doc will be there in a minute.”
Sofia walks into the waiting room, clutching the gauzes to her wounds. She notices that there are some other paintings by the same artist as in the café on the walls. Then she notices the door at the end of the room opening and a blonde doctor coming in while saying “Hi, I’m Doctor Robbins, Steve told me what happened…” the doctor lifts her gaze to her and stops talking. Sofia looks at her, trying to understand why she stopped talking. She looked familiar, long blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes, but she couldn’t place why she looked familiar. She was sure she had never been here.
Arizona stops talking as soon as her eyes meet the patient’s ones. It can’t be. Sofia. My Sofia is here. She shakes her head a bit, realizing she didn’t only stop talking, but even moving. “I’m sorry. As I was saying, I’m Doctor Robbins, Steve told me what happened, I’m really sorry this happened to you, things like this don’t usually happen in our village.” Arizona puts on a pair of gloves. “I’m going to clean your wounds and check them.” “Yeah, sure. My mum is a Doctor, I know how it works.” Arizona feels something in her throat, she keeps it back at the thought of Callie. At the thought that she is about to touch her daughter for the first time in eight years. Sofia is now 14 years old. Also, it was evident that Sofia didn’t recognize her. Her heart dropped She doesn’t know who I am. Arizona, focus! Sofia is hurt and you are a doctor, just do your job. She will probably disappear from your life again in twenty minutes and you won’t see her again. DON’T get attached or you’ll end up hurting even more. Arizona nods and starts cleaning the wounds. Sofia feels safe and cared for, almost like muscle memory, but she doesn’t know why. It’s a strange familiarity, the rhythm of the doctor’s voice, the hyper gentle, almost reverent, touch, it’s like a strange déjà vu that she can’t place. Arizona finishes disinfecting, gauze pressed gently against the scrape. Her hands are steady, her voice calm, but her heart is hammering.
“I’m sorry, but there is this cut here on your forearms that needs some stitches. Nothing big, just two or three, but it would be better to stitch it than to let it heal on its own.” “Okay, you can go on” “I’m sorry, I need your parents’ approval before stitching it.” “Oh, okay… My mother is in the waiting room. Do you really need to tell her? She will worry more…” It sounds like Calliope. Callie, Arizona, she’s Callie to you now. Actually, she is nothing to you, now. “She would notice anyway that I stitched you up, especially if she’s a doctor. Moreover, she’ll want to be here for you. I learned from experience that sometimes being brave means letting people in, even when it feels easier to do it alone.” Sofia studies her. There’s a connection though, she sighs “Okay, if you think it’s better.” Arizona heads to the other door of the exam room, the one that links it with the waiting room. Never in her life have those few steps felt longer. Behind that door she knew she would find Callie. The woman she loved. The woman she loves. The woman she never stopped loving. She takes a steadying breath before opening the door. Her voice professional, but her hand lingering on the handle for a moment too long.
“Mrs. Torres, you can come in now.”