I'm sorry if this seems a bit disjointed. It's really just meant to be a setup for a larger story that you will be seeing unfold. This first chapter is formed from bits and pieces of a fic I started writing in my dear friend, Rachael's ask box on Tumblr.

Rachael, this is for you as we all well know. I love you, my dear twin.

Disclaimer: I don't own a damn thing

As the sun rises, Callie Torres pulls the car into the driveway of her best friend's beach side abode. Her daughter is sleeping restlessly in the back, legs and arms all akimbo in her carrier, and raven hair matted to her face from sleep sweat. She parks the car and climbs out, wiping at her face and praying that she doesn't look like she's been crying for the last sixteen hours. Even though she has. She has been since she and Arizona faced off, since she went home and stuffed everything she could find into bags and stuffed them in her car, all through Oregon and part of California too. Her eyes are swollen and her throat is raw, she feels about twelve different shades of ugly, but she's sure Addison won't care.

Sofia is soft and malleable in that way that only comes with deep toddler sleep and forms against her mother, sinking into the familiar embrace. Her heart nearly shatters again because Sofia is so attached to Arizona and everything is so fucking broken. She shakes away the sadness and makes her way to the front door that's already open and her best friend is looking out at her with tired eyes. Addison opens the screen door and lifts her arms for an embrace that Callie readily sinks into. "Arizona cheated."

"Come on," Addison whispers and takes one of Callie's wrists in her own, pulling her toward the stairs. They climb in silence as Addison leads her through the beach house to her son's room where she lifts Sofia from her mother and settles her in the crib next to Henry with a kiss to both their foreheads. Then she's taking Callie's hand and leading her down the hallway to her own room.

They fall to the bed and Addison molds herself protectively around the brunette, pressing idle kisses to the crown of her head as her shoulders shake with exhaustion and overwhelming sadness. She twirls a raven lock around her finger and lets it go, repeating the action over and over until she feels Callie slip from consciousness. Obviously there is talking to be done but that can wait a few hours.

–

"It really happened," Callie murmurs as she awakens to meet her best friend's blue eyes staring right into her. "Shit."

Addison offers her a sad, tight smile and brushes the hair back from Callie's face. "Talk to me."

"Her name is Lauren. She's new." She talks idly, her fingers seeking out Addison's on the bedspread, as if to borrow some of her strength. Her eyes flutter close as she tries to find the words. "She's been through a lot and I guess this woman... She... God, Addison, it's almost sick because they're both perky blonds that look like they could be related." Callie sighs as the tears start to pool again. "She had on Arizona's scrub top. Her wedding ring pinned to the fucking shirt and that woman was wearing it like a fucking medallion."

"Oh, Callie..."

"And Arizona had the audacity to pin this on me because I cut off her fucking leg." She bites her lip and breathes deeply for a moment. "I think I hate my wife, Addison."

"I'll hate her too," she vows. "Power in numbers."

Then she's laughing for the first time in twenty-four hours and she rolls into her friend, Addison's arms coming up to shelter her. "I... Last night, when it all hit the fan... I just wanted Mark because he's always been the one I ran to. And he's not here. So I just took Sofia and I left because I couldn't breathe and then, somewhere in Oregon, all I wanted was you."

"You have me," the redhead promises with a kiss to her forehead. "I've been missing him too." He had always been Addison's port in the storm – ever since they were wide eyed kids in medical school. When the shit hit the fan, Mark Sloan was the one you wanted by your side. That's just how it was. And Addison knew all too well what it was like to have that and now it was ripped away from them both. "Mark's head would be exploding if he could see us right now," she mumbled with a glance down at their tangled limbs.

Callie let out a deep throaty laugh at that. "Mmm," she hummed. "I'm pretty sure that this was his idea of heaven."

"Yeah."

"Hey Addison?" She turns to lay on her side, hovering over and tangling her hand in the fiery locks that had slid across Addison's frame of vision. "You were wrong, you know?"

"Oh?"

"Yeah," she nods. "Erica wasn't the first time I was interested in a woman... You were."

"Huh," Addison shrugged. "You were mine too."

It's so nonchalant that it takes a few seconds for her words to sink in but then they do and Callie is kissing her best friend. Her brain is screaming that it's all too soon, too much, too fast. She only just found out about her wife's infidelity the night before, her child is sharing a crib just down the hall, there's all kinds of reasons and logic that are screaming against her actions. But then Addison is kissing her back, rolling their bodies, canting into her and it's all so much and so right. Her hands are everywhere; Addison's hips, her shoulders, her hair. She can't get enough and it's making her insane.

"Callie," Addison pulls back momentarily. "I can't... If..."

"Stop," she whispers with a finger at Addison's lips. "Stop thinking so damn much."

"Can't help it," she mumbles against the tip of Callie's fingers before pressing a sweet kiss to the soft skin there. "I don't want to be a regret, Callie."

"Never," Callie promised and rolled them over again. "Now, will you please stop thinking so damn much?"

"Yes ma'am."

Just as their lips were brushing again, two cries in unison came over the baby monitor perched on Addison's nightstand. Callie sighed and dropped her head to Addison's neck as she listened to her daughter's half babble and half cry of 'mami' over and over again while Henry wailed. Addison let out something resembling a chuckle. "Why did we decide to have children?"

"I'm sure there's a reason but right now all I have is that it's a good thing they're cute."

Another peck to her cheek and Addison slid out from under her to make her way down the hall. Callie took a moment before following. She watched from the doorway as Addison scooped up not just her son but Callie's daughter and comforted them. She watched as Addison propped Sofia on the edge of the changing table and protectively kept her there with a well placed hip as she changed Henry. Then she watched as Addison changed her daughter before making her giggle with raspberries on her exposed stomach.

She walked across the floor to look over Addison's shoulder, her fingers coming up to curl at the smaller woman's hips. "Hey pretty girl. Does your Addison think she's funny?"

"To a seventeen month old, I'm hilarious." Addison made a goofy face and Sofia erupted in another bout of giggles. "She looks so much like Mark."

"Yeah," Callie agreed. So often everyone got caught up in the color of Sofia's skin, the crooked grin on her face, all they could see was Callie. So much of Mark had ended up in their daughter; the way Sofia laughed, the attitude she copped when she didn't get her way, the way she could flirt herself out of any punishment. "She does."

"We okay," Addison asked as she sat the toddler on the floor and placed her son next to the little girl. Sofia observed the little boy for a moment before leaning over and placing a kiss on his nose and letting out an excited cry of 'baby'.

Callie nodded against her shoulder, wrapping her arms even more tightly around her friend. "We're more than okay."