Title: Meeting in Paradise (1/?)

Author: laurenxx3 (iheartcallietorres on ff)

Pairing: Callie/Arizona

Rating: PG-13 (for now)

Summary: AU - Callie and Arizona meet for the first time in Fiji. Sparks fly.

Disclaimer: You know the drill. All characters belong to Shonda Rhimes/ABC. I don't own anything. Any similarities to real life situations/persons are purely coincidental. Not for profit; for entertainment purposes only.

A/N: I have absolutely NO medical knowledge beyond what I see/hear on Grey's Anatomy, so forgive me of any medical-related errors. Also, this is un-beta'd, so all mistakes are mine. Please let me know if you come across any. As always, comments are much appreciated (and will encourage me to write more fics in the future - *hint, hint*).

[Callie's POV]

"I have to get out of here," I said as I continued placing clothes into my suitcase, Mark brooding in the doorway.

"Where are you going? How long will you be gone? Has the chief granted you time off?" The string of questions from Mark made me pause. I suddenly realized that he really had no idea what was going on.

I sighed and stood up straight. "The chief offered me an attending position-"

"And you're not taking it? Are you crazy?"

"Mark, shut up!" I yelled, throwing up my hands. "Let me talk. I'm taking it, but I told him that I needed a few weeks to sort out some things."

He looked confused. "Like what?"

I sighed again, sitting heavily on the edge of the bed and staring at my feet. "I just… I need some time to myself. I need to get out of Seattle for a while."

Mark walked over and sat beside me on the bed. "Is this because of Erica?"

"Kind of," I said. "But it's more because of the way everyone looks at me now. Like, they pity me. I just need to get away from it all for a while. And the chief said I could take three weeks off, so that's just what I'm doing." I stood and resumed packing.

"Where are you going?" Mark asked.

"Fiji."

[Arizona's POV]

"Arizona, are you okay?" my cousin Lynn asked as she joined me at the table in the small coffee shop where, at least once a week, we would meet up and catch up on things. We'd grown up together and were more like sisters than cousins, even though she was five years older and her life had turned out a lot different than mine. She was married to a wonderful man, had five children and was a stay at home mom.

"I'm okay," I said into my cup of coffee. "Just thinking."

"About what?" she asked, stirring creamer into her own cup of coffee.

"Life," I replied. "I can't believe Heather tried to 'win' me back. As if I'd take her back after she ran off with Janet."

Lynn smiled sadly. "I am glad that you had the guts to tell her no. I wasn't sure that you would."

I returned her sad smile. "I wasn't either," I said. "But, then I remembered how devastated I was when she left me and it made it a lot easier."

Lynn chuckled. "You'll find someone."

I shrugged. "I'm not sure I want to right now. I haven't been single for more than six months since I was in college. Maybe I just need to be on my own for a while. Enjoy the single life."

"That's the spirit!" Lynn said. "You should take a few weeks vacation. I know you have like, ten weeks saved up."

"More like fifteen," I said.

"Exactly!" Lynn exclaimed. "Get out of town. Travel to Paris or Rome or… or… oh! Fiji! You can use our timeshare!"

"I don't know, Lynn," I hesitated. "I mean, I have patients and things are pretty insane at work right now…"

She glared at me over the top of her coffee cup. "You always have patients and things are always insane at work. Come on, please? If you don't use it, we're going to have to forfeit the time anyway since we weren't able to make it this year. It's a perfect plan!"

I thought about it. Fiji did sound nice. The thought of an entire week, or maybe even two weeks, without the drama of working in a hospital was beginning to sound pretty good. Not that I didn't love my job as a Pediatric Attending at Mass Gen, but I could use a break.

"You know you want to," Lynn said confidently. "So, go to your boss and tell him that you're taking time off."

I sighed. "You really think I should?"

She nodded insistently. "I know you should." She gave me her best puppy dog stare and I couldn't say no.

"Alright," I finally agreed.

"You're going to Fiji?"

"I'm going to Fiji."

[Callie's POV]

It was times like these when I really appreciated the fact that my family was wealthy. Most of the time, I found the money to be more of a burden than a good thing, but that was not the case now. Not now when I was walking on the private stretch of beach that was a part of the tiny, but adorable beach house I'd rented for three weeks. The price was hefty, but this was the first vacation I've been on since the time I traveled across Europe right after college. That was about ten years ago. I deserved to splurge a little.

I had, after all, just been promoted to Orthopedic Attending Surgeon at one of the best teaching hospitals in the United States.

I smiled to myself as I walked in the sand towards the surf. The sun was beginning to set, casting a soft orange glow onto the water. I inhaled the salty air, feeling more relaxed than I had in the past fifteen or so years.

I've been here in Fiji for three days. Three glorious days without pagers blaring at two in the morning. I think that was my favorite part. I got to sleep in as late as I wanted.

I sighed as I sat down in the wet sand, the water swirling around my legs as the surf came in. I rested my weight on my hands behind me and tilted my head up to soak up the fading rays of the sun, allowing the warmth to engulf me.

Thoughts of Seattle infiltrated my mind, unwanted, but there nonetheless. The gossip and whispers behind my back I could handle. It was the open looks of pity that got to me. It had been a little over six months since Erica left me in that damn parking lot. Six months full of regrets and lost sleep and anger over being left like that. Six months of those damn pitying stares.

I'd made the decision to forget about love and dating for the next several years. I'm fine on my own. I'm a rockstar surgeon. I'm badass Dr. Callie Torres, dammit! I don't need anyone, man or woman, to be happy. And I was determined to prove just that to everyone else. And, perhaps, even to myself.

I was startled out of my thoughts by a rhythmic beating. I opened my eyes and looked around, squinting against the bright sun to see a figure jogging towards me. So much for 'private beach,' I thought to myself with a sigh. I just wanted to be alone. Good thing I hadn't acted on my earlier thought to try topless, or even nude, sunbathing.

I shook my head and stood, prepared to let whomever it was know that they were trespassing onto private property.

But the words died on my lips as soon as the jogger came into my full view.

[Arizona's POV]

I'm not big on exercise. I know it's necessity to be healthy and remain in good shape, but I detest it with a passion. Running, however, is my saving grace. I love the exhilarated way I feel while jogging, the endorphins that are released through my body clear my head and I feel like I'm flying.

So the first thing I did when I arrived to the timeshare house after a grueling fourteen hour flight, complete with a three hour layover, was pull out my sports bra, shorts and running shoes. I've always wanted to go for a run on the beach.

I set my iPod on my running play list and stretched while listening to The Fray. After adequately stretching, I started off at a slow pace, steadily increasing my speed until I was at my favorite pace of a fast jog. The music was comforting and familiar as I jogged several miles.

Lynn was right. I did need to get away. But maybe she was wrong about something. Maybe what I needed was to get away for good, not just a few weeks. I love my job at Mass Gen., but maybe what I needed was to find a new challenge. My career had become monochromatic the last couple of years, ever since Dr. Aarons had taken over as Head of Peds. He was a brilliant doctor, but was old school and a bit sexist. There was nothing to challenge my surgical skills because every time a major case came to the hospital, Dr. Aarons usually gave it to one of the male Attendings. Jackass.

I shook my head. 'Don't think about home, Robbins,' I said to myself. I ducked my head down and surged forward, increasing my speed.

I didn't even notice her at first. I'd kept my head down as I ran, watching the sand. It wasn't until I sensed movement ahead of me that I looked up, startled.

I halted as she stood. Or, I tried to. I managed to stumble over my own two feet and twisted my left ankle before falling oh so gracefully to the sand. "Umph!" I grunted as the wind was knocked out of me.

"Oh! Are you okay?" the woman asked as she rushed over to me. She knelt beside me in the sand as I sat up, my cheeks turning bright red.

"I'm okay," I insisted, unable to look her in the eye. I did, however, notice that she was several inches taller than me and wore only a small black bikini. I had to force myself not to openly ogle her, but it was rather difficult since she was right in front of me.

My breathing was ragged from running and I felt the sweat drip down my neck. I tried to stand, but grimaced in pain when I placed any weight on my ankle.

"You're hurt," she said, forcing me to remain sitting in the sand.

"I'm okay. It's just a sprain, if that," I insisted, just wanted to get out of there with what little shred of dignity I had left.

"Just stay there," she said. "I'll get you some ice."

She left before I could protest. I groaned as I checked out my already swelling ankle. "Just freaking great," I muttered to myself.

"This is a private beach, you know," she said as she returned, her voice washing over me, sending chills down my spine. She pressed the ice to my ankle.

My eyes widened, taking in my surroundings. I hadn't been paying attention to where I was. "Sorry," I said, sheepishly. "I didn't realize I had run so far."

I noticed her give me the once over and I had to hide my grin. I was glad I was wearing my new hot pink and black sports bra and matching shorts. Even though I had made a complete fool of myself, at least I looked good doing it. "Sorry to interrupt you," I said. "Really, I'm fine."

"Do I… know you?" the woman asked. I gave her a questioning look. "It's just, you look familiar. Like I've seen your face before."

I grinned. "Only if you read The Journal of Pediatric Orthopedics," I replied, knowing the odds were highly unlikely.

"That's it!" the woman answered, surprising me. "You wrote that amazing article a few years ago about Infantile Osteosarcoma." She squinted a bit. "Sorry, I can't remember your name, though."

"Arizona Robbins," I replied. "And yeah, that was me." That had been my last big research expedition, three years ago. Since then, my research opportunities have been severely limited because of hospital politics and a certain Head of Peds.

"I'm Callie Torres, Seattle Grace Hospital. Newly promoted Orthopedic Attending."

I grinned and stuck out my hand. "Well, if I had to make a complete ass of myself and twist my ankle, at least it was in the presence of an ortho surgeon."

Callie gripped my hand and smiled. I nearly swooned. God, she's gorgeous, I thought to myself, feeling my cheeks heat again.

She returned her gaze to my ankle and checked it out once more. "I don't think it's broken," she said after poking and prodding. "Probably just a pretty nasty sprain. I can't really see all that well in this light, though. Come on." She stood and held out her hand. "I can give you a lift to wherever it is you're staying."

"Oh, you don't have to do that," I said, taking her hand and allowing her to haul me to a standing position. "I can make it back." But I took one step on my injured ankle and nearly collapsed again.

"No, way," Callie said, gripping my arm. "As your doctor, I'm ordering you to stay off that ankle."

"Ooh, bossy," I quipped, unable to staunch my flirtatious nature.

She rolled her eyes and offered her arm. "Come on, grace. I'd like to take a better look at it inside."

As much as I wanted to protest out of humiliation, my ankle really did hurt and I knew I'd never make it back to the house on my own. I sighed and relented, gripping her arm. We slowly made our way into the house and she led me to a chair, helping me sit. She flipped a light switch and the room was bathed in a bright light.

She knelt to examine my ankle and I took the opportunity to study her. Her long, raven hair was pulled back into a ponytail. I wondered if it was a soft as it looked. She seemed completely comfortable in just her bikini, which I, of course, didn't mind at all. It fit her perfectly, like a second skin, hugging her ample curves. I really wanted to reach out and tug at the bow at the back of her neck that was holding the top in place. Her caramel-colored skin looked incredibly soft and blemish free. I wondered what it would be like to feel her naked skin against mine.

I felt myself blushing furiously as that thought infiltrated my mind. I didn't even know this woman! She's probably straight with a boyfriend or husband anyway. And he's probably here in Fiji with her.

I had to stop thinking about her like that.