#buck in turnouts and tommy in blue

[xofemeraldstars]

turnouts & blue

[screamlet]

08x06 fix-it fic: break and be mended

not connected to that excerpt i posted before, just something completely different. 4.5k, read on the ao3

---

Another hospital room. Buck takes a deep breath and closes his eyes again, letting it out and hoping he gets back to sleep. It doesn't happen, though, because his brain catches up to his eyes:

Maddie, wearing a yellow paper hospital mask, a hand anxiously on her belly, sitting in the chair next to him with that too-familiar oh-thank-god-you're-finally-awake face… and Tommy leaning in the doorway.

He takes another deep breath and opens his eyes again.

"You're okay," Maddie says patiently, slowly, as Buck tries to slam the door shut or set the doorway on fire with his brain. "It's just the turkey flu, it hit you hard."

That breaks Buck's concentration. "Wait, is this a dream? Another coma dream? Turkey flu has to be something I made up."

Maddie raises her eyebrows and looks over her shoulder at Tommy before turning back to Buck. "Another one?"

"No, no, don't look at him," Buck interrupts. "He's not supposed to be here, not when I have turkey flu, not ever. He broke up with me, remember?"

In the doorway, Tommy shifts his weight from one foot to the other. He's wearing the dark blue LAFD t-shirt and pleated pants, a special Air Ops patch on his shirt sleeve. They always lurked under his flight suit, under his turnouts when they were on the same scene, but Buck didn't get to see them often. It was for the best, he thinks now, because the shirt fits perfectly across Tommy's chest and shoulders, the pants belted low. His shirt is tucked in better than Buck's ever is. He almost never got to see him like this so it feels like some new Tommy he's seeing, a Tommy that hangs around Harbor long enough to take off his flight suit but doesn't peel the rest of his work self off. He doesn't get off his shift, put the pilot away, shower and go home.

Buck looks away. He's looked too long.

"I'm actually here, you know." Tommy raps his knuckles on the door like that's proof of anything except a very strong poltergeist. "I can hear you."

Buck watches something that he hasn't seen in years sweep across Maddie's face (mostly her eyebrows, because of the mask).

She turns around and snaps, "I let you come within ten feet of my brother and you think bitchy fun Tommy was invited, too? He was not." Tommy looks shocked and abashed; Buck loves her so much.

"Why was he invited at all, Maddie?" Buck asks. "And you're both real, right? Like I'm not hallucinating both of you. Is that a turkey flu symptom? Can I have my phone? I need to look up turkey flu."

"It's a strain of avian flu, you just happened to get it from a turkey farm. Hen said you had a call to one of those last week," Maddie explains. "And you kept giggling when I said the words turkey flu so, you know, why not?"

"It's pretty funny," Buck admits. "Hey, why's he here?"

Maddie turns around and looks at Tommy expectantly. Buck still knows his face, still knows him, and can see the quip that wants to escape past his lips. He can see the work it takes to hold it back and look sincere, really sincere, for them.

"You collapsed at a scene and I flew you over," Tommy says. "I wanted to make sure you were okay."

Buck stares at him as he presses his lips into a fine line. "I'm okay. Thanks."

Tommy nods, then asks, "Can we talk? Alone?"

It's taken four months, almost as long as they were together, but Buck's finally hearing the words he's wanted to hear since Tommy walked out his door. I'm sorry, I was scared, I love you, yes let's take the next step together, from now on let's take every step together—that was Buck's first choice. Can we talk as a jumping off point for all those other things—that was Buck's second choice. Was.

Buck glances at Maddie and knows his face does something dumb. "I'll be outside," Maddie says. "And I'm not far, if you want me to throw him out." She looks over her shoulder at Tommy. "I'll do it."

Tommy nods. "Wouldn't doubt you for a second."

She squeezes Buck's hand and lingers for a beat, one long look at him like she's waiting for him to say actually, wait, don't, stay, but he doesn't. He hates that he doesn't. He hates that he wants to hear what Tommy has to say.

She and Tommy swap places; he takes the chair next to Buck's bed and she leaves, shutting the door behind her. Tommy doesn't see the way she passes by the window like a shark, watching, but Buck laughs. When Tommy looks back, she's gone.

"Your sister's changed a little," Tommy says casually. "Her sense of humor, I mean."

Buck licks his lips. "Yeah, well, when you were my boyfriend, you were her friend. Now you're neither."

"Yep, got it," Tommy says. He sits back in the chair, but looks so uncomfortable that someone would think he'd never sat in one before.

"Are you okay?" Buck asks. "Why are you here?"

"This chair is so weird."

"Tommy, what do you want to talk about?"

It startles Tommy, and it should. He only got soft and smitten, totally-in-love (even if he couldn't admit it out loud) Evan Buckley, cute and bratty Evan Buckley. He doesn't get that Evan anymore. No one has.

Tommy sits with his feet flat on the floor and his hands folded in his lap. He takes a minute, a long minute, of staring at the floor before he looks up and stares at Buck. "You asked me to move in with you."

Buck blinks. "I did."

"You asked me to move in with you."

"You said that. I mean, I said that, but you—"

"Evan," Tommy interrupts.

"I thought I was Buck now," Buck interrupts.

Bitchiness lurks on Tommy's tongue, but he holds it back. "You asked me to move in with you. Into the loft."

Buck tilts his head. "Yeah?"

Tommy shuts his eyes hard and shakes his head before he looks at Buck again. "Evan, I own a house."

"... okay?"

"Did you ask me to move in with you and expect me to give up my house?"

"What, no—" Buck says, then stops himself. "I don't—I didn't think—"

"Did you even think about that?" Tommy asks. "Like when you talked about moving in together, getting married, the future, all of that—did you even remember that I own a house?"

"You know," Buck interrupts. "Four months ago, you could have said, haha, wow, that's moving pretty fast, also I own a house, maybe when we're ready, we could move into MY HOUSE and make it OUR HOUSE, but you needed to run out the door so why would you say any of that?"

"Yeah! I was freaked out! Because here was this guy I—this guy I really liked, and he asked me, a 40-year-old man, to move into his loft?"

"What's wrong with it? Why do you keep saying it like that?"

"It's downtown! Downtown is loud and filthy and did I mention it's noisy? It was hell sleeping there in the summer because even with your central air, heat rises and it rises right into the bedroom. I saw your electric bill, Evan, it was unforgivable."

Buck wants to throw something at him. "And we could have been at your house, quiet and with better temperature control, but we weren't because…?"

"I'm just saying," Tommy continues. "Yeah, all that's true, but I realized you wanted me, wanted a future with me, and you didn't even remember that when I wasn't working or with you, I was at my house."

"I get that," Buck says. "Now how many times did we hang out at your house?"

Tommy sighs. "It's out of the way, your place was always closer to the 118 and to Harbor, and I kept—I was going to, okay? Like maybe after our anniversary, we'd take a week off together and we'd actually be at my house, or take a trip somewhere—"

"You got me basketball tickets," Buck snipes at him.

Tommy stops completely.

"For our six month anniversary, remember?"

"How the hell am I going to forget that?"

"You got me tickets to see the Lakers. Really good tickets."

Tommy rolls his eyes. "Alright, well, that's the last time I call that guy I know in the press office for anything."

Buck thinks he's getting closer to setting something on fire with his mind. "I hate basketball."

Tommy stares at him. "What the hell are you talking about? We met because of basketball."

Buck sits up so quickly and angrily he starts wheezing and that turns into a coughing fit. Tommy's immediately there, sitting on the edge of his bed with water, getting him to take a small sip as he rubs his back. When Buck realizes what's happening, he covers his mouth with his blanket and shoves Tommy away, coughing even more.

"Sorry, I was just—"

"I have turkey flu!" Buck yells through the blanket covering his mouth.

"The doctor said you're not contagious anymore."

Buck points at a small paper box across the room. Tommy, so put-upon, grabs a pale yellow mask and slips it on before he sits in the chair again. "Sorry."

"It's—" Buck halts because Tommy had grabbed two masks and was holding one out to him expectantly. Tommy motions to it again and Buck can see how he wants to make a bitchy comment about not having this conversation through a hospital blanket, but he doesn't. That's what makes Buck reach out and put the mask on. The icy fist around his heart thinks about melting.

"We didn't meet because of basketball, we met because of Bobby and Athena and the cruise ship," Buck corrects. "I wanted to see you again after that tour at Harbor but I couldn't think of another reason—"

"I gave you the widest of openings," Tommy interrupts. "Hello? Flight lessons? When you finally offered to buy me a beer, I almost dropped to my knees right then and there."

"But you never called me! You're the one who left to hang out with Eddie!"

Tommy throws up his hands. "Ball was in your court! Speaking of basketball."

Buck sighs, exasperated. "We weren't, like, running into each other, I didn't have a reason to call you—don't say the beer—so finally I saw Eddie was going to that pick-up game with you and I dragged Chimney along."

"Right," Tommy says. "And you played basketball with us. We kicked your ass in a way that made me think you were pretending to be bad at it to make me feel good or something? And then there was the whole thing with Eddie's ankle."

"I hate basketball!"

"You brought your own ball!"

"I same-day ordered a basketball so that when I showed up you'd be like, wow, that guy's ready for basketball, what a cool guy!"

"So you're mad that your basketball ruse worked on my dumb ass, and worked so well for six months that I got you Lakers tickets for our anniversary."

Buck's so annoyed that he put it like that. Maybe that's true, but he didn't have to say it. "I don't like basketball! It was a ruse but I didn't hide it after. You watched games with Eddie and I never came along because I don't like basketball."

"You said you wanted us to have our Eddie-Tommy friend time!"

"Why do you make me sound and feel like a five-year-old? Eddie-Tommy friend time? Seriously?"

Tommy folds his hands together like he's in prayer and shuts his eyes. "Okay, listen, I just. I wanted to get the house thing off my chest, alright? Because it's—it's bothered me so much."

Buck could argue about the basketball thing for about another 500 years, except that Tommy has said what he said. "Has it?"

Tommy puts his hands in his lap again, folded politely as he looks at Buck. "I meant what I said. You were so swept away in how new and exciting everything felt, that I felt like you forgot who you were talking to. Like… I'm not a guy who's going to move in with you. I'm a guy who has a house with a home gym and a car lift, and—and the winter was so mild that I put in this little patio space in the backyard. I bought furniture for it. I took this corner of my front lawn, too, and started to plan a pollinator's garden because they sounded really interesting after those three days of bee hell. Evan, I have a house."

"You keep saying that," Buck says. His ears are burning, but he's listening too intently to feel embarrassed about it (much).

"I freaked out, alright? Because I heard: give up your house to live in this downtown loft with a couch that has a faded but GIANT blood and placenta stain on the other side of the cushion, and then the words engaged and married got thrown in there, too? All in the same breath?"

Buck stares flatly, then nods. "Yeah. I get it. Sorry." He clears his throat and grabs his water before Tommy can offer it to him. He takes a sip, looking at Tommy before he nods at the closed door. "Are we done here?"

"And I'm not a gay rights hero," Tommy adds. "You said that, too." Tommy looks away, and looks so miserable. "I'm just a guy, Evan. I've been burned before by younger guys who thought I was everything that their first gay boyfriend should be, and then—and they didn't see who I was. It's always—" Tommy holds out his hands like he's balancing scales. "Not straight enough to fake a life with a woman, not gay enough to have a real life with a man."

Buck hasn't done this in so long that his throat almost aches with it. He sighs, pained and breathless, the word crinkling against the mask: "Tommy." He swallows again and asks, "Did you really think that was me?"

Another long pause. It ends with Tommy saying, "I thought you were too good to be true."

"I'm not, though, I'm—I'm just me," Buck says. "And I did have a lot to figure out, but not about you."

Tommy laughs suddenly. "Really? Because you forgot I was a homeowner and I didn't know you hated basketball. Did you even go to that game?"

Buck coughs. "I gave the tickets to Karen and she took one of her brothers. They're nuts about the Lakers."

"Huh," Tommy says. "Well. I'm not mad about that."

The two of them are quiet until Buck says, "Seems there's a lot of things we don't know about each other."

Tommy glances at him; Buck can see the shape of his smirk beneath the mask, and the very specific way it makes his eyes crinkle. "And just when we thought we knew everything about each other."

"Yeah, I thought that, too, and then you dropped that you were engaged to my first serious girlfriend at our six month anniversary dinner." Buck raises his eyebrows. "Do you land helicopters that smoothly, too?"

"I got you here, didn't I?" Tommy bites back, then catches himself with a laugh. "Okay. Fair point."

It's so easy, it's so easy, it's so easy, it's so easy and Buck hasn't had it easy for months. He hasn't had these quips, this back-and-forth, this person who got him until he didn't, who—Buck rubs at his eyes. Tommy made it easy. He made everything easy. Not perfect, not effortless, but easy. Easier.

"So, uh." Buck fusses with the blanket in his lap. "What have you been doing for the past four months? You, uh…"

"Am I seeing anyone?" Buck nods. "I was, yeah. Didn't last that long."

Buck can't help himself: "Neither did we."

"Ouch." Tommy looks back. "And you?"

"Yeah," Buck says. "I liked them but I broke up with them because it just—it wasn't going anywhere."

"And what's wrong with that? Staying in one place? Isn't that what you wanted for us?"

It's not, but Buck can't articulate it, so he says, "Do you think that's the same?"

A beat, and then Tommy says: "No. No, I don't."

"Tommy," Buck says quietly. "How many people do I have to be with before you decide I've figured it out?"

Tommy's eyes widen. "What? I never said that."

"Tell me what you said, then." Buck swallows painfully, that turkey flu kicking his ass harder than he thought. "Tell me what you meant when you said I didn't know what I wanted. Because I told you what I wanted. I told you I was ready for something and all the things we did together, I thought that you believed me. I guess you didn't, so tell me how many bodies it'll take before you believe me."

Tommy doesn't say anything.

"God, and you know what really sucks?" Buck asks. "That we were together long enough to talk about who we'd been with so we could get tested and be safe. We talked about all that, but I never told you how many times I'd had my heart broken and you never told me yours."

"Three," Tommy eventually says. "Shawn, who was like… all of 25. He was all-in, knowing for sure that the first time was the charm, and I was old enough and steady enough to be That Guy. I believed the hype even though I was barely out of the closet. I shouldn't throw stones at Abby's House of Himbos when I set up my own on the other side of town. And then there was Raúl, my Army buddy who came out to his family and immediately moved to LA to get away from them. Everything felt like a fresh start for him, but… not quite for me."

Buck thinks to ask, but Tommy beats him to it. "Do I need to say the third?" Buck shakes his head. "What about you?"

"Abby, and you." Buck looks at Tommy as he says, "It's not just ending things with someone because it doesn't work. It's heart break. Something's gotta break and be mended."

"I don't think I did that part. You've one-upped me there."

Buck wouldn't have believed that 20 minutes ago, but he believes it now.

"So Bobby's been there, watched me since I was Abby's himbo and helped me to grow into the person who wanted that stuff with you. Once he, kinda, told me that if I care about how people see me, then I haven't learned a damn thing," Buck says. "And that is and isn't true, here. I can't live hoping I meet people's expectations of what they think I should be. I want people—I wanted you—to see me as I am. I thought you did but you didn't, and I didn't either because I didn't see how scared you were. I've made my peace with that. We had something really special and made each other feel really good but, in the end, I guess we were saying all the right things to people we didn't know."

Tommy listens, considers, and nods. "Whole lot of past tense, there."

Buck glances at him and doesn't want to look away, but he does. He doesn't meet Tommy's eyes. He's scared, too. He's done enough today: said a lot of things he's been thinking about for four months and said them very calmly and thoughtfully, but this is gonna hurt. It hurt Buck to realize it and it's gonna hurt Tommy to hear it.

"You got what you wanted, right?" Buck asks. "You got to keep your heart, and I don't feel new and excited anymore." Buck inhales deep; it hurts. "I feel like I did before, like I'm short one piece of being whole. Now the ocean I have to search is so much wider and deeper. So thanks for that, I guess."

"Evan—"

"I let you into my family," Buck interrupts sharply. "Because I cared about you and because you fit. I fit because they're mine and that's my family I made, and you fit there right next to me. With us."

"You're absolutely right."

Buck watches him, tries to see behind the sunshine yellow and white mask on his face, but all he sees are his eyes that, like always, make Buck feel too much, like laser beams disintegrating him.

"Were you really that scared?" Buck can't help the way his voice cracks. "You were that scared of me?"

Tommy looks up again, lasers in place. "I was that in love with you." He shakes his head like he did that last night in the kitchen, and looks up like he'll tip the tears back into his eyes. "And those heartbreaks—you'd leave them light-years behind if I let you. You'd leave me light-years behind."

Buck nods, then says, "Could you leave, please." His wet breathing crinkles grossly in the mask. "Thanks for telling me all this, thanks for the closure, but I don't need to see what someone looks like after they've walked away from me."

"You collapsed at a scene three days ago and I was the closest pilot to medevac you here," Tommy says slowly. "You were delirious and told Shreya, Don't tell Tommy I'm sick, he doesn't care anymore."

Tommy clears his throat. "I do care. I never stopped."

Buck sits back in his hospital bed and pulls the blanket up to his neck, the only comfort he's got right now. "If this is a turkey flu dream, I'm gonna be so pissed at you, real you," Buck says.

Tommy laughs quietly, sadly, then hesitates for a moment. "Can I ask you something? Can I ask you the scariest thing I've ever asked anyone in my entire life?"

Buck doesn't move, doesn't breathe. "What is it?" he finally asks.

"Will you give me a second chance?"

Buck, hearing what he's quietly dreamed of hearing for four months, doesn't feel the euphoria he thought he would. He feels something else, though: a strange kind of wonder that someone wants him again. Again. He swallows hard, feeling the pain right in his turkey-flu-ridden throat. Someone knew him. Someone left him. Someone came back—came back for him.

Tommy left. Tommy came back. Tommy wanted him then. Tommy wants him now. Tommy's wanted him all along.           

Buck asks, "Will you invite me to your place more than once every six months?"

Tommy's half-smile is still wide enough for Buck to see behind the mask. It falls, though, back into something serious. "Will you forgive me when I'm not a paragon of queer virtue?"

"Will you believe me when I tell you I've fucked around and found out enough for a lifetime?"

Tommy raises his eyebrows ever so slightly. "Will you believe me when I tell you I've fucked around and found out enough for a lifetime?"

Buck thinks he smiles a little behind his mask, but it doesn't stay. "Are we gonna break up again?"

"I don't know," Tommy admits. "But maybe next time we can stop each other and hit the brakes. I love romcoms, but maybe we don't do that again: you don't propose fixing a problem with marriage and a baby, and I won't run out the door."

Buck raises his eyebrows, too. "Who said anything about a baby?"

Tommy sputters. "I mean, you were the one raising the stakes before."

Buck laughs. "Right, right."

The quiet stretches out between them. They look at each other and don't look away. The stubborn, proud, cocky side of Buck feels annoyed that this feels like—like he can't get out of this. Like all roads lead back to Tommy, like he doesn't have a choice. Like if he wants to be happy, it's with this person.

A part of him wants to run and throw himself into the hunt again. He wants to thrive in the search for someone who makes him feel that euphoria and fondness and love that he felt with Tommy. He tries to imagine someone else, some vague smoky figure that isn't Tommy's height, Tommy's build, Tommy's arms crossed over his chest and that tilt of his head. The problem is that Buck feels more looking at that furrow and arch of his eyebrows than he's felt for anyone he's met in the past four months, maybe even longer.

Not all roads lead to Tommy—only the ones he wants to take.

"Say it again?" Buck asks.

Tommy nods ever so slightly. "I'm in love with you." He pauses and a smile reaches his eyes. "I love you."

Buck can't help the way his eyes water; neither can Tommy.

"Ask me again," Buck says.

"Will you give me a second chance?"

"Yeah." Buck wonders if his own smile reaches his eyes. He hopes it does. "Yeah. Will you?"

Tommy chokes out a laugh behind his mask. "Yeah, god, of course. Of course. You sure?"

"About you?" Buck asks. "Yeah. I mean, I want to be. Don't make me regret it."

"Don't make me give up my real estate."

"Don't make me go to any sports events."

"Seriously? Not even baseball?"

"God," Buck moans. "The sleepiest one of all."

"Hockey's good."

"You hate the Kings."

Tommy scoffs. "Of course I do. You always hate your local teams—you just hate visiting teams more. Can't let management get comfortable."

Buck attempts to take a deep, exasperated breath, but he forgets that he has the fucking turkey flu. He chokes and starts to cough and wheeze, but Tommy's there again. He freely, lovingly pushes Buck further to the other side of the hospital bed so he can sit and take care of him: water, tissues, hand on his chest to steady him, eyes worried and on him.

"It's not official until you kiss me," Buck says. "I'm not contagious."

"I mean, not with turkey flu," Tommy says. "Your Buckness? That I'm not so sure."

"Don't call me that anymore," Buck says.

Tommy puts his cup of water on the table next to Buck's bed, then shifts so he and Buck are closer, face-to-face, head on looking at each other. "How'd you get even brattier in only four months?"

"How'd you forget I was this bratty?"

"At my age, well, everything's starting to go."

Buck laughs, then coughs and wheezes. "Stop making me laugh."

"How'd you forget I was this funny?"

Buck tilts his head. "I didn't. I didn't forget a thing."

Tommy searches his face, then cups his jaw with one hand. Buck doesn't lean into it, just lets Tommy hold him as he tips Buck's chin up ever so slightly.

Then Tommy kisses his forehead and his birthmark, and wraps his arms around Buck. It's the warmest Buck has felt all winter. It finally feels like spring.

---

read on the ao3

[peppermintquartz]

Josh sees Buck and Maddie in the break room and decides, heck it, he can inject himself into their sibling bonding time.

"Hello Buck, it's good to see you," Josh says, grabbing a chair and planting himself down before either of them can say anything. He opens his bento box - he's trying this whole thing, it's going okay so far but he's running out of ideas for foods - and says, "How is life treating you?"

"Pretty well, actually," Buck says with a coy smile.

Maddie snorts. She focuses on her sandwich and dino nuggets. "That's not what he was saying just now," she tells Josh, her pretty eyes twinkling.

Josh gasps theatrically. "Evan Buckley, am I not your friend? Am I unworthy of the truth?"

"Maddie!" Buck nudges his sister's hand with his own, a cute pout on his lips. Finally, he rolls his eyes and says, "Alright, fine. It's... kinda, uh, not great."

He looks a little dejected, even, but Maddie doesn't seem too concerned, so Josh aims for the middle with his response. "What's the matter?"

"I kinda wanna...sndsmnstotommy." The last words are so mumbled that the only thing Josh makes out is "Tommy".

Josh is a great listener. He is literally a professional at listening to people. "What was that?"

Buck rolls his eyes and plops his chin on his hands on the table. "I wanna send some pictures to my boyfriend."

"Hot pilot boyfriend," Maddie says, fanning herself.

"I'll take your word for it," Josh says, having only seen photos of him in dirty turnouts and mussed hair.

Buck frowns at them. "He is hot. Look." Unlocking his phone, he swipes through some pictures. "See?"

"Oh, he is very hot." Josh is happy to be proven wrong by a picture of a buff older man in a tight navy blue tank top and jeans, with smears of engine grease on his very muscular arms and a smudge over his cheek. That profile alone... There has to be some sort of deity smiling down on the Buckleys, giving them incredibly handsome partners after their shitty childhoods.

Buck sighs dreamily as he gazes at the picture. "Yeah. I haven't seen him for more than twenty minutes at a stretch for nearly three weeks." His pout returns at full force. "Dumb wildfires. I am declaring them homophobic and biphobic."

Josh pets Buck on the head in sympathy. "So you wanna send him pictures? I bet you have lots of nice ones with Maddie and Jee and your friends."

"Not that sort," Buck says, his cheeks flushing.

Then Josh gets it. "Ah, nudes. Good and reliable communication methods for long distance relationships."

Buck buries his face in his hands, but the tips of his ears are still bright red.

Laughing now, Maddie ruffles the curls on top of his head. "I can't give you much advice since I don't get sent nudes," she says, giggling, "and I wouldn't know what a gay man would like to see, so why don't you pick Josh's brains here?"

Josh beams at Maddie. "I like this assignment."

"He's taken, remember that," Maddie warns, wagging a finger at her friend as she heads to the sink to wash her hands.

Josh puts on a wounded air. "I don't poach. And I give great advice." He returns his attention to Buck and says gleefully, "Alright, first things first: is your Tommy a legs guy, an ass guy or a chest guy?"

Buck lifts his head enough to glare at him. "I'm not gonna gossip about him with you."

"Fine. Spoilsport. Anyway, post workout selfies sans shirt, always a winner. Low angle shots up your torso, especially since you are built like a fridge, that should work too. Oh, post-shower photos when your skin is all scrubbed and pink? Highly recommend." Josh lowers his voice and says, "Dick pics are really good if you don't show all of it, keep him wanting more, but make sure to encrypt them if you can, and warn him to go somewhere private so he doesn't open them in company."

Buck hides his face again, but then he takes a deep breath and sits straight up once more. He seems determined not to look directly at Josh, however. "Thank you."

Grinning, Josh digs into his bento. "You're welcome. Now, tell me what you're willing to share about your boyfriend. Oh, and welcome to this side of the rainbow by the way. I'm very proud of you."

Buck does look at him now and ducks his head shyly. "Thanks." He licks his lips (Josh doesn't think too much about those lips) and starts saying, "Well, Tommy's a pilot at the 217..."

[cliophilyra]

Honey, I’m Home

“Hey honey I’m home,” Buck murmurs to himself, half-falling through the door into the dark entrance hall of Tommy’s house. The whole day has been a seemingly endless stream of small, silly calls, each bell draining him further and further, leaving him a shell of the man he was when he left that morning.

It had been a great morning too. Two orgasms before he’d even had his coffee had seemed like a pretty promising start to the day and then he’d spent most of his shift on a constant simmer, half hard in his turnouts because his boyfriend, who was having the opposite sort of day at work, decided it would be a good idea to send him shirtless selfies taken in the Harbor locker room that would have been rejected from the firefighter calendar for being too pornographic.

The whole day there was nothing in his head but the need to get back home, drop to his knees and let Tommy fuck his mouth until he comes down his throat. But with every alarm his energy had drained and drained and now here he is, a mere 18 hours later, all alone in an empty house, feeling dead on his feet and Tommy is still on shift for another four hours. He lets out a deep sigh and drops his bag, trudging up the stairs with leaden feet.

After the quickest possible shower he wraps a towel around his waist and heads to the bedroom. As he approaches he notices to his surprise that there’s a dim light coming from under the door. He pushes it open, thinking Tommy must have left a lamp on, only to be greeted by the most wonderful sight he has ever seen. Tommy is in bed - their bed - wearing nothing but grey sweatpants and his reading glasses. He looks up from his book and smiles. “Surprise,” he says. “Lucy came in early and took pity on me. Apparently I was “annoying”, which I would dispute but I didn’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth. So I got out early.”

Buck just stands there and takes him in. His hair is all soft, messy curls, sticking up at random and his glasses make his beautiful eyes seem even more impossibly blue than usual. His chest is just so huge. Buck finds himself transfixed by his pecs again, mouth filling with saliva. They’re just so big and strong and so, so…inviting. Buck doesn’t have any coherent words left in his head so he just crawls onto the bed and faceplants into Tommy’s chest, pressing his face into the soft warmth of his pecs with a long, drawn out sigh of contentment.

Tommy lets out a sound somewhere between a grunt of surprise and a laugh as he effortlessly takes his weight, wrapping his arms around him and carding his fingers softly through Buck’s damp hair, kissing the top of his head.

Buck takes a deep breath, letting the warm, subtly spicy smell of Tommy’s soap and the soft musk of his skin become his whole awareness. He feels the tension begin to drain away immediately, his muscles heavy and lax, the scratch of Tommy’s nails against his scalp sending tiny shivers down his spine as he rubs his face into his chest, Tommy’s soft chest hair tickling his nose.

“Hard day?” Tommy asks, sounding amused.

Buck just hums in agreement, pressing his lips to Tommy’s chest.

“I probably shouldn’t have sent you those pictures at work,” Tommy laughs quietly.

Buck makes a sharp noise of protest because he absolutely cannot agree with that, although he may not be at his most coherent right now. The scent of Tommy’s skin is making his mouth water and his dick twitch in a frankly heroic effort. He bites down lightly on Tommy’s pec and smirks when he hisses.

“Baby,” he says, mumbling the words into his chest. “I—I—I am…so fucking tired right now,” he sighs in frustration. “But when I wake up I am going to suck your brain out through your cock and then I am going to fuck you til you forget your own name,” he says with absolute assurance.

He feels Tommy’s throat move as he swallows hard and smiles as his big hands slide down Buck’s back to squeeze his ass.

“Well if you insist.”

“I absolutely do,” Buck says, his voice already thick and slow.

Tommy kisses his head again and curls his leg around Buck’s. Buck is asleep between one breath and the next.

[daddy-kinard]

a relatively unimaginative little thing for @bucktommypositivityweek prompt scenes from a fire truck

It’s not the first time they’ve responded to the same call as the 217 engine working ground support, but it doesn’t happen often. Buck thinks this is only the fourth time since Harbor station came to mean something more to him than any other, and two of those times he knew Tommy wasn’t even on shift. Today though, today Tommy’s working, which means probably Tommy’s here. Buck feels his heartbeat pick up in anticipation before their engine has even rolled to a stop, parked up right next to the one branded 217. It hadn’t sounded like the sort of call that would have any of their lives in imminent danger, but Buck knows as well as anyone how quickly that can change.

Thankfully, things don’t escalate any further than expected, and as they start winding down operations the knot of anxiety in Buck’s gut loosens to its baseline - he’ll never be completely calm when he knows Tommy’s out there, trying his utmost to stay safe, to make it back home - to their home - of course, but putting his life at risk nonetheless - and he wonders whether he’ll maybe get the chance to see him before they have to leave.

He’s repacking their gear when he feels a body behind him. The space is tight in between the trucks, and when a hand lands on his hip, he’s about to apologise, to try to squeeze out of the way so whoever it is can pass, when a warm, familiar, voice speaks, right in close to his ear.

“Bobby said I’d find you here.”

“Firefighter Kinard.” Buck smiles as he lets himself be spun around, until he’s face to face with blue eyes that sparkle back at him.

“That’s Firefighter Pilot Kinard, I’ll have you know.”

“Hmm,” Buck muses, pretends to consider it, “you know, I can think of something else I’d rather call you” he lowers his voice to barely above a whisper, “Daddy.”

Buck swears he can see Tommy’s eyes darken in the moment before all 200-something pounds of him is pressing Buck back against the hard metal of the engine. Their lips meet and Tommy kisses him deeply, hungrily, his hand coming up to tangle in Buck’s curls, angling his head the way he wants. Buck goes easily, willingly. He rocks his hips into Tommy’s, wanting more, even though there’s only so much he can feel with two layers of turnouts in between them. He lets Tommy’s mouth wander, to his jaw, to his pulse point, the scrape of teeth and stubble making Buck moan his name softly.

“God, you’re a troublemaker, aren’t you kid?” Tommy huffs as he pulls back.

Images of stolen firetrucks, of being caught with his dick out on the roof of the station, of the countless times he’d given out his number to women on calls, of the few times he’d asked for one of theirs, of an ill-advised appearance at a basketball game, of a soot-covered face in a hospital bathroom mirror, flash through Buck’s mind. A decade’s worth of trouble, now, and he wouldn’t trade where it’s eventually led him for anything. He can’t keep the smile off his face as he snakes one arm beneath Tommy’s coat, resting against his sweaty lower back, to pull him closer for one last kiss.

“Don’t tell me that wasn’t what you came here for?”

Tommy holds up both his hands.

“Alright, alright, busted.” He laughs. “Couldn’t last until tomorrow without kissing my hot boyfriend.” Buck feels his cheeks heat up, turns out there are certain things that don’t get old no matter how many times he hears them.

“118, we’re heading out.” Buck assumes the crackle of Bobby’s voice over the radio is a deliberate warning so he and Tommy can avoid being caught by their co-workers in some compromising position, and he might be peeved if there hadn’t been precedent. Instead, by the time Buck’s team start appearing, the only evidence of their not-quite-PG activities is the state of Buck’s hair - he’ll blame the helmet if anyone dares question it.

“See you at home?”

“Of course. Love you.”

“Love you more, be safe.” He studiously ignores the exaggerated gagging sound Eddie’s making from behind him as Tommy presses one last, chaste, kiss to his cheek.

“Be safer.”

Buck swings himself up into the truck.

“Thanks, Cap.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Buck.” Bobby replies with a smile.

[littlechivalry]

Eddie Diaz, Pervert

Buck has put on some weight

Eddie likes it

- inspired by the bts scenes with just a little tummy

**

Eddie has always known Buck is hot. It's a given. The sky is blue, the grass is green (sometimes brown, it's been a dry summer), and Evan Buckley is almost unreally good looking.

He never planned to do anything about it.

But Eddie had never been challenged like this.

According to Buck it was the 'best break up I have ever had' and Eddie could tell. Buck was single again but instead of carrying the load of gloom that had accompanied his past break ups he seemed lighter. Emotionally, at least.

Physically was a whole different situation. And very much the source of Eddie's current torment.

While Tommy and Buck were dating Buck had gotten comfortable with himself. He no longer obsessively tracked his body fat and the cut of his muscles. He was still strong, firefighters had to be. And he was still in shape.

But he was softer now.

And it was driving Eddie crazy.

He had never been a biter, it wasn't his thing. But something about the thin layer of fat that had overlaid Bucks muscles, the signs of someone well fed and hydrated, someone who was rested and happy-- had taken Eddie's breath away.

Still firm and muscular, but thicker. All over. But Eddie's fascination was centered on Buck's tummy.

And his teeth itched.

Still, Eddie thought he was covering it pretty well.

"Put that look away, we're at work," Hen hissed at him.

Eddie felt his shoulders drop and he leaned his forehead against the bus. "I could put in the work," he muttered, watching as Buck took off his turnout jacket. His shirt pulled loose from his pants exposing a strip of his stomach and Eddie groaned at the flash of tan skin.

"Damm, you got it bad," she laughed.

"I could give it--"

Hen's glove covered hand plastered over his mouth cut off the rest of his sentence and Eddie could only be thankful for the reprieve.

"Be cool, Eddie."

It was only after Eddie nodded that she took her hand away. He was able to keep his thoughts on the inside for a few hours, but after the others had gone to get some sleep, he found himself stuck.

Eddie was standing at the counter, debating another mug of coffee. He didn't even want one but he was bored and it would at least be something to do.

"If you drink any more coffee you're gonna keep me up all night," Buck murmured against Eddie's ear.

Eddie had heard Ravi talk about 'blue-screening' and he didn't understand what that meant.

Until now.

"Eddie," Buck said, now pulling away. "You okay?"

Before Buck could move too far Eddie spun around until they were facing each other and they were so close.

Too close.

Eddie tried to shuffle back but the counter behind him wouldn't let him move. He was frozen in place, trapped as Buck raised a warm hand and pressed it against his forehead, then around to the back of Eddie's neck.

"You don't feel hot," Buck said.

Eddie, in some fit of horny-induced lunacy pressed his own hand against Buck's pec and said, "Now, I do."

Buck looked confused and it was the perfect moment for Eddie to take his hand off and make a joke. And he wanted to. But his hand had somehow fused to the worn cotton material of Buck's shirt. He tried to pull his hand away and only succeeded in moving softly, carressingly, over Buck's chest.

"Eddie," Buck said softly, "What are you doing?"

Eddie shook his head. "I'm losing my mind, I think."

Buck stepped back and Eddie fought the urge to follow him. There was a heavy concern in those deep blue eyes. "Are you okay? Do we need to call Frank?"

Eddie laughed. It felt oddly bitter in his mouth. "No. No. Hey, I'm fine." He turned and moved past Buck, walking away from the counter. "I'm gonna go splash some water on my face, cool down a little bit." He jogged down the stairs and headed for the bathroom.

Standing in front of the mirror, Eddie could barely meet his own eyes. This was getting embarassing.

"Get it together," Eddie muttered to himself. "That is your best friend. Not-- not some piece of meat." He glared down at his own crotch. "You need to chill out. This is not cool."

Eddie closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He's known Buck for years, probably been attracted to him almost the whole time, so why was it a problem now? Yes, that was a weird interaction but he could brush it off as fatigue or something.

It was fine.

Well, he could pray on it. God knows it wouldn't be the first time he asked the saints to help him hide an awkward boner.

Eddie took another breath and opened his eyes.

Reflected in the mirror was Buck. Holding a mug in one hand and his shirt in the other. Bare chested and beautiful even under the fluorescent light of the bathroom.

"Man, Bobby's new milk frother does not play around. I made you a fancy cocoa -- Eddie, are you okay?"

"Jesus Christ," Eddie swore, meeting his own terrified gaze in the glass and watched that fear transform into confidence and a ravenous heat. "This is too much. I give up."

"Give up on what," Buck said, a concerned edge to his voice.

Eddie turned around and walked towards Buck. He felt like a tiger, like he was stalking the man to hunt, to devour.

His teeth itched.

Buck calmed down for a moment, not afraid anymore, then he grinned.

"Eddie? Is this--?"

Eddie felt like he traveled miles from the sink to the door but in truth it was only a few steps before he was standing in front of Buck.

Buck opened his mouth to say something but Eddie never gave him the chance, pressing a hard kiss into Buck's plush lips. Eddie heard Buck groan against him and that only made him delve deeper. He heard a low thunk as the mug fell out of Buck's hand but then those hands immediately clutched onto Eddie's back, pulling him closer. And all thoughts were swept away.

Eddie's own hands had run up over the dense muscle at Buck's waist and the indents of his ribs, his shoulder blades, to sink into the curls at the back of the other man's head.

Eddie thinks if he kissed Buck hard enough he could somehow climb inside the other man and live, safe and warm and loved, forever. But then firm hands were on his chest and pushing him back. Eddie stopped, pulled away. He untangled his fingers from Buck's hair and wrapped them around the hem of his own shirt somehow pulled free from his pants in their frantic scrambling.

Eddie felt himself panting harshly. He looked up to see Buck's chest, still bare but now shining with sweat, heaving with his own breaths. He didn't dare look higher, not sure what expression he would see on the other man's face.

"Eddie... I'm not... I'm not saying no," Buck said softly. "Just-- what is this? To you?"

Eddie opened his mouth, then closed it again. He had never known what to say, always let his actions tell the people he loved how he felt but they had already kissed and -- "I want to bite you," he blurted, finally.

A firm hand settled under his chin, lifting his head until he was looking into Buck's wide grin.

"You want to bite me?"

Eddie nodded, only a small movement but he could feel the strength in Buck's grip.

Buck slid his hand until it was cupping the side of Eddie's face and he was helpless to resist the gesture, leaning into that warm caress.

"That's pretty aggressive for a first date but I could be persuaded."

Eddie scoffed. "We have been dating for six years. There are more of your clothes in my closet than in your own. I gave you a son. You're lucky I'm not proposing right now."

Buck laughed, loud and bright and with the edge of tears in his eyes. "Oh my God, you're right. Forget the proposal, I think we might actually be married."

"Yeah," Eddie said. "Now can I bite you, or..."

"Oh," Buck said. He stepped forward into Eddie's space. "You're gonna bite me? What if I wanna bite you?"

Eddie stepped back, watching as Buck moved forward after him. "We can take turns?"

Something in Eddie wanted to run, wanted to see if Buck would chase after him, what might happen when he was caught.

He saw a light in Buck's eyes that made him think the other man might be having the same thoughts.

Eddie kept backing up, letting Buck follow him, until he was pressed against the cool tile wall.

"The bathroom, Eddie, really," Buck murmured, leaning forward until his lips were barely a breath away from Eddie's own.

"Would you prefer the storage closet," Eddie replied before nipping lightly at Buck's mouth.

"I would prefer you did this at home," Chimney said, flatly.

Buck pulled back, turning on his feet and almost falling over. Eddie lunged away from the wall to help keep him on his feet.

"Uh," Buck said before turning to look at Eddie.

Eddie looked past the other man. "Hey Chim. We're still on shift for a while actually so we have to stay here. If you could just give us about ten minutes?"

Buck gasped and Chimney cackled.

"Ten minutes, Buckaroo? Wow, a little embarassing."

Buck squawked.

Whatever he was about to say was drowned out by the alarm. The three men moved towards the door, Buck stopping on the way to pick up his shirt from the floor where it had fallen and pull it on in one smooth motion.

Hen was already standing next to the ambulance. As Chimney broke off to join her Eddie could hear the other man whisper-shouting. He expected there would be gossip flying around the station by the time they got back but as he watched Buck bend over to pull on his boots Eddie couldn't bring himself to care.

"Hey, Buck," Eddie called, "Raincheck?"

When the other man looked up Eddie snapped his teeth at him.

Buck turned back to his gear but not before Eddie watched a hot red flush bloom on his cheeks. Even over the clamor of the alarm and the crew getting ready to roll out Eddie heard Buck mutter, "Jesus Christ."

[buckevantommy]

buck meeting tommy for the first time while tommy is wearing his flight jumpsuit.

buck spending time with tommy in the company of his friends for the first time while they're dating (on the dl) while tommy is wearing his 80s 'costume'.

buck kissing tommy for the first time/publicly announcing their relationship while tommy is wearing sooty turnouts.

buck officially having a boyfriend in the company of his coworkers at work while tommy is in his dress blues.

[cosyvelvetorchid]

for bucktommy prompts - tommy smiled as he looked down the aisle at his extremely soon to be husband.

This prompt actually came at the perfect time because I already had some semblance of an idea on my head, so thanks for pushing me to write it!

If anybody else has a prompt, send to my ask and I'll write a little something something ❤️

********

Buck nuzzled further into Tommy's warmth. He'd slip beneath his ribcage and tightly wrap around his actual heart if he could. Tommy squeezed his arms around him tighter

"We should probably get up." He said placing a kiss on the top of Bucks head.

"I don't wanna." He replied muffled into Tommy's chest.

"Me neither, kid, but we've got a big day ahead, plus an early flight tomorrow - I'd like to be at least somewhat prepared."

Buck knew he was right. The plans had all come together in a rush last minute. One minute they were discussing ideas for Bucks birthday, and the next the plans were made, tickets bought, and bags were packed. Despite Tommy insisting, much to Bucks chagrin, that he leave the clipboard at the station, everything had ran pretty smoothly. Mostly because Tommy was the one doing the organising. He may not have had a clipboard but he had a way of making sure things were done properly.

"What time is everyone arriving, again?" Buck asked.

"Food is coming at 6pm, everyone arriving 6:30pm."

"So we have some time then.." Buck climbed on top of him. Tommy always struggled to resist Bucks advances. The way he so eagerly wanted to show Tommy how much he loved him. He indulged Buck for a few moments, leaning up into his languid kisses, before gently pulling away.

"Hold that thought til tonight." He said, half lifting Buck from him.

"But-"

"Nope. Later, Romeo." He placed a kiss on his forehead and got out of bed.

***

"I still don't understand why we had to get this dressed up." Chimney complained pulling at his shirt collar.

"Because it's Bucks birthday and he wanted a nice celebration. Besides, it'll be good seeing eveyone and not have half of you in uniform or dirty turnouts."

They got out if the car and Maddie took a bag from the trunk.

"Whats that?" Chim asked.

"Oh just some party favours Buck asked me to bring."

"There's my favourite girl" Buck greeted them at the door immediately picking up Jee-yun into a hug.

"Look at you!" Maddie admired Bucks deep burgundy suit. "It's nice to see you dressed like a grown up." She teased. Buck smiled.

"It is a special occasion. Gotta make some effort."

"Since when have you thought birthdays were special?" Chim asked.

"I think that's kind of obvious Howie.." Maddie answered pointing behind Buck. Tommy walked toward them in a navy blue suit so perfectly fitted it had to have been tailored she thought. He smiled them and reached a hand to stroke Jee-yun's hair.

"Hi sweetheart."

"Hi uncle Tommy!" She excitedly responded.

"Hey guys." He kissed maddie on the cheek and gave a hug to Chim. Everyone else is in the kitchen"

"Yeah sorry were late. Someone wouldn't leave until she found her rabbit." Chim gestured to Jee-yun.

"No problem. Come on." Tommy and Buck led them to the back ontonthe kitchen where the rest of the 118 were. A buffet was laid out along the entire length of the counter, and an array of drinks sat on the island.

"Finally!" Hen called out to Chim as she walked over. "Whats with the curtains?" She asked pointing to the heavy black drapes covering the bifolding doors that lead out to the back deck. "That ocean view is the best part of this house."

"Uh.. there's a problem with the deck. Couple of the boards have weakened, and didn't want the kids to go out there when it's not safe." Tommy answered. Chimney noticed a look between him and Maddie buy didn't acknowledge it.

"Ah. Good thinking."

"Happy birthday, kid." Bobby said walking over.

"Thanks cap."

"You looking forward to your trip?" He asked.

"Trip?" Lucy asked

"Buck here is abandoning us for two weeks to go on vacation." Chimney answered.

"Ooh where you going?" Lucy.

"I'm taking him to a cabin in Vermont." Tommy replied kissing Buck on the cheek.

"Stop being so adorable" Lucy responded.

"Is everyone here?" Tommy asked Buck.

"Yeah, I think so."

"You ready?" He leaned in and whispered quietly into his ear.

"I am." He smiled warmly back. Tommy nodded knowingly at Maddie.

"Right, I think it's time for some real celebratory drinks." She announced before removing a couple of bottles of champagne from the fridge?

"Champagne? Fancy!" Lucy declared taking a glass. Maddie handed everyone a glass and asked for everyone's attention.

"I just wanted to wish my big little brother a happy birthday. I know that you wouldn't want to share this day with anybody else than those here in this room. I love you so much and I'm so ridiculously happy for you." She raised a glass and everyone followed suit.

"Happy birthday!" They cheered together.

"Also! I think Tommy has something to add.

Everyone looked to him standing a little awkwardly. The man fought fires for a living but standing in a room full of people made him nervous. He hated being the center of attention.

"Thanks everybody for coming. So, as you know tomorrow Evan and I are going on vacation-"

"Boooo!" Eddie called out eliciting a laugh from everyone.

"However, it's not just a typical vacation were going on."

Everyone's faced were a wash of confusion.

"You getting married or something?" Karen suggesting jokingly. Tommy and Buck looked at one another with a smile neither of them could hide.

"Wait.. you're.. are you eloping?!" Chimmed asked. Everyone was standing wide eyed waiting for the answer.

"Uh.. not exactly." Buck answered. "We're going on our honeymoon." Tommy moved to the back and pulled away the black curtains to reveal the deck.

Chairs were placed all around - a mismatch of them, begged and borrowed - facing two small potted palm trees, a few feet apart wrapped in twinkling lights. More twinkling lights and lanterns hung all above and around giving the whole deck a beautiful warm glow.

"My uh.. my sister was right." Bucks voice was a little croaky, thick with emotion. "There's nobody else we would rather share this moment with that you guys. Our family." He turned his attention to Bobby. "What do you say. Cap? You wanna marry us?".

Bobby smiled broadly.

"My pleasure, kid."

There was a few moments of silence before the room erupted into joyous noise.

Oh my god!

Congratulations!

I can't believe it!

You sneaky son of a..!

The next 10 minutes were spent with everyone embracing them both. And chastising them for keeping it a secret.

Maddie opened up the bag she had brought in, took out a box and opened it to reveal an array of small  buttonhole flowers.

"Wait, you knew?!" Chim said to Maddie.

"Of course I did. Who do you think helped decorate?"

"I knew two of those chairs looked familiar. They're ours! Why didn't you tell me?"

"Howie, I love you - but you can't keep a secret to save you're life." Chimney started to protest but quickly conceded.

***

"I can't believe my little brother is getting married." Maddie told Buck after pulling him aside. Everyone else was taking their seat outside.

"I know, right?" He said, almost not believing it himself. "Is it.. is it weird that I kind of wish that Daniel was here to see it?" Tears formed in Maddies eyes, remembering their brother.

"No, its not weird. I think he'd be happy for you too." She said with a sad smile. "But hey, mom and dad are going to lose their mind when they find out, so you have that to look forward to."

"They're only now just starting to accept I'm dating a guy - I did not want to have to deal with their thoughts and feelings about marrying one. Besides they missed your first wedding so really im just carrying on the Buckley tradition."

Maddie lightly smacked him on the arm. He raised his hands in defence.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry." He laughed.

"Seriously, I'm so happy for you, Evan." She brought him into a hug.

"I'm happy for me too."

***

"So Buck told me you dont have a best man?" Eddie asked Tommy as they walked outside.

"Actually I wanted to talk to you about that." He turned his attention Chimney. Chim looked around before looking back at Tommy.

"Me?"

"You saved my life. I wouldn't be alive right now if it weren't for you." Chim smiled at him. "More importantly, if you hadn't of called asking for my help I wouldn't have met Evan. So all this-" He gestured to everyone taking their seats on their beautifully decorated deck "-wouldnt be happening if it weren't for you."

Chimney sniffed away the emotion he felt and reached out to shake Tommy's hand.

"Absolutely." He smiled and Tommy pulled him into a hug. The same type of hug he gave him after he saved his life - tightly held with his face against Chimneys to show just how grateful he was.

"Speaking of best men, you better go see if your boy is ready." Chim told Eddie. It was a given be would be Bucks best man.

Things started to quiet down as eveyone started to settle into their seats. Tommy stood at the front. Chimney to his side, looking towards the doors waiting for the love of his life to come out.

Tommy thought that it was only when you were about to die that your life flashed before your eyes. As he stood waiting, heart thumping in his chest so hard he thought for sure everyone could hear it, he thought about all the choices and moments in his life that lead to here.

All the hiding, all of the hate, all of the heartbreak. His parents, the army, even Captain Gerrard. All people and experiences that pushed him further away from who he wanted to be. Further away from happiness. He thought about all the times he'd come home from work to an empty house. All of the birthdays he'd spent alone. All those moments that he was convinced that he would never be loved.

As his eyes swept across everyone sitting in front of him - Chimney, Hen, Bobby, and everyone else he'd gotten to know at the 118 since they reconnected - his heart warmed even more. He finally had the one thing he had yearned for since he was a child. A family.

And as Maddie pressed play and the sound of Lauren Daigle's 'Hold On To Me' began playing out, the biggest smile spresd across his face as the most beautiful man he'd ever had the privilege of knowing walked out and he saw the rest of his life walking towards him.

Evan.

***

Tommy helped a drunken Lucy into Hens car, the last of the guests to leave, then walked back into the house and closed the door behind him. Buck was leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets, waiting. Tommy walked towards him slowly.

"So, Mr Kinard, what do you want to do now?" Buck closed the gap between them and wrapped his arms around Tommys neck.

"Show my husband how much I love him." Then he crashed his lips into Tommy's.

[theclaravoyant]

boyfriend material ~ a 7x06 bucktommy coda (T)

AN ~ inspired by this post ... ~1200 words of shamelessly self indulgent domestic bucktommy fluff

-

“I'm sorry we couldn't stay,” Tommy says again, as Evan helps him through the door. Going on hour thirty-something awake – and a pretty strenuous thirty something at that - is taking its toll, but his heart still flutters when Evan laughs.

“Nothing to be sorry for,” Evan promises. “All the reception stuff's been pushed anyways. Tonight, I'm all yours.”

A smile lifts Tommy's weary lips. “I like the sound of that.”

Evan pauses a moment, hooked under his arm, to gaze admiringly with his beautiful blues. He likes the sound of that too, and he leans up on his toes to press a tantalising a kiss to Tommy's lips – a promise to pick up where they had left off earlier, but not right now.

“You want to shower first or eat first?”

“Uh...” What he wants is to collapse into a heap in the entry way and sleep like a log for the next several days. But Evan is right: if he doesn't eat something (other than that beautiful, light, fluffy, sugary cake), he'll be sick, and it's not like he can sleep in his turnouts anyway (although his heavy eyelids beg him to make an attempt).

“How about this,” Evan proposes. “You shower. I'll make us something to eat. Where's your bathroom?”

The words on the tip of his tongue are, you don't have to stay, but Evan is already leading him through the living area and toward the hall. His shoulders are steady bearing Tommy's weight. It's been a long time since he let himself lean on somebody like this.

“Second on the left.”

Evan steers them in and still doesn't leave. He helps Tommy shrug off his jacket and turnout pants, and heave off the boots Tommy's tired feet have swollen into. He turns the tap onto a hot, steamy setting and blasts it, then presses a drink bottle into Tommy's hands. “Get some electrolytes in you, too,” he insists. “When did you...” You know what, never mind. Tommy unscrews the lid and all but swallows the bottle in one go. It sends a tingle through him – he did not realise how dehydrated he was. It's also a little lemony, which is a nice touch. The lemon ones are his favourite.

“Take your time,” Evan instructs. “Dinner will be waiting when you get out. I'm right here if you need me.”

Only then does he finally peel away, leaving Tommy to extricate himself from his remaining sweat-slicked inner layers of clothing and stumble into the sweet beckoning call of the shower. With the help of the steam and citrus scrub he begins to wash the day – days? - off himself. It's a familiar ritual as the sirens and screaming and falling trees and the stench of melting asphalt fall away and leech out of his pores and wash down the drain. Even his head feels a little clearer, his limbs a little lighter by the time he's done and ready for the less familiar part... an enticing smell from the kitchen, something involving garlic, lime and chilli? His mouth waters.

-

Buck beams as a soft, clean Tommy pads back out into the kitchen in the soft, clean pyjamas he'd laid out for him. His soft, clean curls are even starting to puff back up already, and the promise of a meal has put a bit of pep back in his step.

“Feel better?” Buck asks. “You have no idea.” Tommy hums in satisfaction, deep and rumbling in his chest as he pulls Buck in for another kiss. Buck takes a deep breath and the musky deodorant that's meant to smell like some kind of forest – one that isn't on fire – makes his head spin. He very much does have an idea of Tommy's relief, is the thing, and the bone-tiring, soot-drenching work and the power of good old citrus scrub is something nobody he's ever dated can really understand. If Tommy's knees weren't about to drop out from under him, Buck thinks, he might just climb the man like a tree. But not tonight.

“You like stir fry?”

“God, yes.” Tommy all but snatches the proffered bowl. He moans as the first delicious mouthful forces him to savour it. It's positively indecent, but he's so hungry he's going to puke, so he continues between enthusiastically shovelled mouthfuls - “This. Is incredible. Where'd you learn to cook like this?”

Buck can feel himself blushing and puffing his chest up with pride at the same time. He humble-brags the best he can about how Bobby's taught him everything he knows. And about that one time he worked a kitchen in Phuket and learnt this killer Thai chilli sauce recipe. Tommy likes spicy food too apparently and jumps in with a story about how he, Chim and the other 118 crew back in the day had once challenged each other to eat prik kee noo and ended up with all of them (or as Hen would later correct it, all of them stupid enough to try) weeping over various sinks. It's easy, regaling each other back and forth and laughing until both of them are fed and blood sugar stabilised and Tommy's had as much water as he dares force through his poor kidneys. Still, the day they've had bleeds back through eventually – not least because Tommy sways dangerously with exhaustion on his way back from the bathroom, and Buck takes this as his cue to make his exit. He offers for Tommy to text when he's up, for a lift to Harbor for his truck, to do the dishes sometime the next day, but Tommy counter-offers;

“Stay.”

Yes. Buck's already thinking about what to make for breakfast tomorrow. Or today. Or whatever it is. But he manages -

“Are you... sure?”

“Evan,” Tommy scolds, with a fond, fatigue-addled smile on his face. “You've been up over a day and a half too, you know. And no, passing out in Chim's hotel room doesn't count. Frankly, it would be counter to my sworn oath to let you drive home. Please. Come to bed.”

“Oh, well, if it's for the greater good...”

They didn't get a wedding dance, but there's something of a whisper of it in the way Tommy reaches his hand out to lace his fingers through Buck's and draw him into the bedroom. It's so pleasantly dark in here on burning eyes, and the pillow is so blissfully cool on Tommy's face, that by the time Buck has kicked off his shoes and pulled his belt from its loops the time for any more flirting or kissing or talking has well and truly passed. Nevertheless, he smiles to himself, and settles in beside Tommy, and finally falls asleep to the sound of gentle snoring.

[salty-autistic-writer]

Snippet: Buck saves a cat. She doesn't want to let go.

Buck has always loved animals. He smiles at dogs when he meets them on the street. He also pets them whenever he gets the chance to. Buck thinks that coming home to a dog with a wagging tail would be pretty amazing. But he also wouldn’t mind a cat or a bird or any kind of pet, really.

A lot of his childhood friends had pets. His parents never got any. Too much work, too much trouble, too expensive.

Now, as a firefighter, Buck is never sure if he should get a pet, since neither he nor Tommy are home a lot. But he does think it might be nice to have a pet in the future. Someday.

Buck didn’t know that “someday” would come so soon when there’s a fire at a farm and he fishes a screaming kitten out of an already smoking heap of hay.

Thick smoke is still rising up from the charred remains of the barn. Fortunately, neither humans nor animals were harmed. Quick thinking and acting saved a lot of lives today.

Buck looks at the saved kitten, making sure she’s alright. Underneath a thin layer of soot, her fur is white. She looks like a little fuzzy marshmallow.

And … she just won’t let go. Her little claws are digging into the thick fabric of his turnouts and she keeps rubbing her face there, making little pitiful noises. Buck looks down at her, amused. She’s so cute. But he clearly has to hand her over to someone. He already asked around, trying to find an owner. But no one wants to claim the white ball of fur.

“Cats just live here,” one of the farmers tells Buck, shrugging. “They sleep in the barns and hunt the mice. Sometimes they multiply and sometimes a few of them are driven over by a car. Nature balances itself, you know?” “Sure,” Buck mutters, glancing at the kitten which looks up at him with wide-open blue eyes.  He swallows and chuckles nervously. “Uh. Marshmallow. You really have to let go now, ok? Maybe your mother is somewhere around, huh?”

The kitten just rubs her head against his chest again, purring.

“Looks like this cat is going home with you,” Chimney says with a grin.

Buck perks up, eyes widening. “What? Uh. No. I can’t, I …”

“Cats choose their family,” Hen chimes in, smiling. “Seems like this one made her choice.”

“I …,” Buck turns to Bobby, begging him with his eyes to save him. But Bobby just laughs and says, “Congratulations, Buck. You’re a father.”

Buck sighs. When he looks down into those eyes again, he realizes he’s ready to admit defeat. For now. “Come on, Marshmallow. We’re going home.”

When Tommy comes home, Buck is sitting on the couch and Marshmallow is lounging on one of his knees like a little white Queen. He washed the soot off, brushed her fur and gave her some water as well as cheese. He really has to buy some proper cat food.

Tommy stops and stares at the picture in front of him, clearly astonished. Buck smiles weakly. He gestures at Marshmallow, who looks at Tommy attentively and with her ears pointed towards him, but remains sitting on Buck’s knee confidently, licking one of her paws, probably chasing after the taste of cheese. “Yeah. So … this happened.”

Tommy blinks. “Ev. Why is there a tiny white cat sitting on your leg?”

Buck clears his throat, stroking down the arch of Marshmallow's back. “That’s Marshmallow. We got called to a farm fire and I saved her. She apparently decided I’m her new father now.”

“Marshmallow. You called a cat Marshmallow?!” Tommy asks, raising his brows. Buck shrugs. “I couldn’t think of anything else. She’s small, white and looked a bit burnt before I washed her. But … We can still re-name her right?”

“You want to keep her,” Tommy says. It’s not a question.

Buck swallows. He looks at Marshmallow and can feel the love for her blooming in his chest. “Yeah. What do you think?”

Tommy tilts his head and approaches the couch. “I’m more of a dog person. But cats are fine, I guess. Hey there,” he smiles at Marshmallow and carefully reaches out to pet her. Marshmallow ducks and makes a hissy noise, her claws piercing Buck’s jeans and stinging like little pinpricks.

Tommy frowns, pulling his hand back. “I don’t think she likes me,” he says and sounds disappointed.

“Give her a few hours,” Buck says, amused. ��She just got here. I'm sure she's going to get used to you soon enough."

Turns out Marshmallow doesn’t want to leave Buck’s side at all. She follows him everywhere on her small paws, her tail raised and butt wiggling while she hurries to keep up with his steps.

When he goes to the bathroom and closes the door, Marshmallow sits outside, meowing in a demanding way and scratching at the door.

When he goes to bed, Marshmallow sits on the floor and meows until he picks her up and she can snuggle up against him, purring. A small, soft, warm ball of fur.

“I’m starting to feel jealous,” Tommy says, kissing Buck’s neck from behind and glancing at the cat.

Whenever he tries to touch Marshmallow, she ducks and looks at him skeptically. At least she doesn’t hiss anymore. Still, Tommy sulks over the fact that Marshmallow is so focused on Buck and Buck tries to convince him it’s just a matter of time.

Then, two days after Buck became a cat Dad, he comes home after going to the grocery store for some cat food as well as proper bowls for Marshmallow. He opens the door and is greeted by silence. When he walks into the living room, he stops and has to keep himself from laughing.

Tommy is taking a nap on the couch. And curled up on his evenly rising and falling chest, is little Marshmallow, also fast asleep.

Buck takes a picture with his phone and leaves the room on tiptoes, with a smile on his face.

They’re both cat Dads now.

[kinley-cafe]

Kinley Café Current Menu

The menu may change based on the season or special holiday. Text version with full menu and item descriptions can be found below the cut

ORDER NOW

CONTACT DISPATCH

Drinks

🔥 "You Still Owe Me that Beer" Float  A deliciously tart and creamy root beer float made with quality craft beer and decadent French vanilla ice cream. This delightful treat comes with one turnout straw and one flight suit straw. 🔥 Fake Mouth Static Sparkling Tea  Extra fizzy kshhh butterfly tea ksshhh with honey, berries ksshhh and a helicopter ice cube 🔥 Cat 5 hurricane Cappuccino A rich and creamy cappuccino in a (possibly stolen) LAFD Helicopter themed mug.  🔥 “I took a guess” Mystery Coffee  Not like that. It’s definitely not what you want, but Buck tried his best and that’s all that matters. It's a random coffee with undisclosed, completely random ingredients, served in a green to-go coffee cup wrapped in a cardboard coffee cup sleeve, decorated all over with brown hearts and flames. 🔥“That Fire Was A Beast” thirst quencher  Hydrating strawberry dragon fruit, topped with whipped cream and soot colored chocolate drizzle. Served in a fire hydrant cup.

🔥 “You’re a vision” Birthday Cake Hot Chocolate A flirty and festive Belgian hot chocolate served in a red and blue cup, topped with a cloud of confetti whipped cream.

🔥 Buck’s Cozy Cup of Tea A nice, hot cup of black tea with lemon and honey. Each cup is wrapped securely with an (un)official LAFD crocheted cozy.

🔥 Harbor Station Pumpkin Spice Latte A mix of delicious traditional fall spices, topped with whipped cream and cinnamon. It’s served in a special Air Ops Winged Cup with a golden pumpkin stirrer.

🔥 Saturday Sparkling Cider A warm malted cider, with all the Saturday Night craft flavor, and none of the alcohol. Served at room temperature so it’s not too hot, and not too cold. It’s just what you’re ready for.

Desserts

🔥 118 Cream Donut Bavarian Cream Donuts with fire engine red strawberry frosting and ember sprinkles.

🔥 Flying Lessons Fudge Bon Bons Delicious fudge-filled bon bons molded with a headset and wrapped in a pilot jumpsuit colored wrapper.

🔥 Are We Still Talking About Cake? Layered Vanilla cake with Strawberries, buttercream icing and a candy LAFD logo. Go ahead and take it to your table. So you can eat it.

🔥 Open Channel Chocolate Muffin Chocolate muffins topped with cream cheese frosting and chocie talkies (chocolate walkie talkie shaped chips) 🔥“I’m An Ally” Cookie Bar Delicious copycat Italian cookie bars with bisexual flag layers. Made for any ally, or…more than an ally.

🔥 Date Night Cookie Pizza A delicious skillet cookie pizza topped with ice cream strawberries and. A perfect treat for your (hopefully) uninterrupted first date.

🔥 “Be With Your Man” Brown Sugar Mug Cake This warm and delicious brown sugar mug cake captures the ambiance of Buck and Tommy’s cozy dinner at home. The patterns on the cup are inspired by items from Buck’s dinner table.

🔥 Adorable Apple Pie Super sweet mini apple pies baked by Tommy as an ode to Buck and just how adorable he is. Each one is baked in a turnout tin and brushed with strawberry jam to resemble Buck’s birthmark.

🔥 Firefighter’s Flaming Candy Apple A sweet, sugar candy coated California grown Gala apple, decorated with a blazing flame.

Buck’s Happy Hour

🔥“I am free” This eye opener cocktail is a refreshing and invigorating beverage that features rich coffee with deep, malty notes of stout that lingers in your mouth, much like the sweet taste of a first kiss. It combines vodka, cold-brew coffee, coffee liqueur, stout beer, and a sweet brown-sugar syrup. Garnished with heart shaped mint.

🔥The 24 Hour Shift A highly caffeinated, creamy cocktail with sweet and smooth flavors, made to keep you going for hours. This cocktail is blended with nitro brew, bourbon, brown sugar, and half and half, topped with whipped cream and a cinnamon stick. 🔥Intermittent Showers This cocktail is excitement in a glass. A rush of sweet, smooth and fizz, made with cold-brew coffee, club soda, berry infused rum, simple syrup, topped with silver storm cloud whipped topping and a mini chocolate helicopter.

🔥The “Tommy, Actually” Made with craft beer and espresso to combine strong, bold coffee with the rich flavors of beer, featuring the unexpected sweetness of the heavy cream, coffee liqueur, and whipped topping. Topped with whipped cream and Edible gold Air Ops Pilot Wings.

Anytime Menu

🔥 The Q Word Have you been jinxed? Order one of these special to-go combos to help you get through the chaos ahead.

🔥 “Badass Coffee Mug” Ready to go up? Order this combo whenever you’re in the mood  for a Harbor Station tour from a hot pilot to put a smile on your face.

🔥 “I Need Mo Joe” Looking for a little comfort? Maybe a certain adorable  firefighter can whip up a firehouse family combo for you

Call Dispatch (send an ask) anytime you’re looking for a little pick-me-up and put in an order for one of these combos. 

[loullaby]

in the first time they touched and in the last (so far) they are wearing matching clothes???? tommy is blue, buck in turnouts. buck in blue, tommy in turnouts.

i just rebloged something about this, but wtf...

[bekolxeram]

I had an idea of Buck finding out who Maurice was through Athena months ago. No one gave me that fic, I guess I'd better feed myself. I've never written any fic before, (You read that right, I don't mean for this fandom, I've never written any fic in my life) so I was planning for a short little humorous piece. Well, I'm around 2/3 of the way done, and it's already over 2.5k words long. I don't think I'll able to finish it in the very near future, and I still don't have an AO3 account, so I decide to share the first half of it with you? To give myself the motivation to keep writing?

I just want to get my ideas out there, I'll probably correct the grammar and refine the word choices when I finish the whole thing. Please enjoy and give me feedback. (Gently, it's my first time writing anything fictional outside of high school English exam)

The first time Buck heard the name Maurice, was at Chimney and Maddie’s hospital wedding.

Neither his sister nor his now brother-in-law had much luck in love. Murderous ex, surprise pregnancy, all sorts of trauma, mental health struggle, break up, make up, you name it, they had been through it all. Even on their wedding day, the universe decided to sprinkle in a little viral encephalitis as a last minute wedding gift. Any other couple would have taken all this as a sign of destiny’s disapproval of their relationship, but not Chimney and Maddie. Life kept trying to set them apart, but they chose to get back together, time and time again. Even when they were deep in delirium, when they had lost all sense of self, they always instinctively crawled back to one another, like it was in their very nature to love each other.

Buck agreed with his mother, getting married at a hospital was indeed appropriate. Plenty of newlyweds said their vows just for the sake of traditions, but when Maddie and Chimney pledged to their lives to each other, in sickness and in health, they had their entire relationship to back it up.

Buck was ecstatic, when Bobby pronounced them officially married. He envisioned how the day would be panning out quite differently, but he could not complain. Sure, he would prefer to have his date by his side, but as a firefighter himself, he understood the safety of the city was more important than his own feelings. If anything, on that day, he learned that life would not always let you have your dream wedding, or your dream date, but as long as you treasure and prioritize each other, everything would work out in the end.

Then Tommy walked into the hospital, still in his turnout gear, covered in soot, all apologetic.

Buck just knew he had to close their distance, taste the alluring flavor of smoke straight from his lips.

Tommy came, without stopping by to get changed or to wash up, because the wedding was important to Buck, because he promised to come. Buck once thought duty and romance was a question of either/or, but Tommy made enough of an effort to make them both work.

Buck knew very well how dirty his face must have been after making out aggressively with his date, but he did not care one bit. He had not been this happy for so long, he wanted everyone in the room to see how elated he was. He wanted to wear his happiness on his face.

He briefly congratulated the newlyweds. His sister, like the caretaker she was, pulled out a baby wipe for him to clean up his lower face. He tried his best to wipe off all the soot, then he took a piece a cake and started looking around the room for his date. He found Tommy having a conversation with the Wilsons.

“Hey,” Buck put his hand on Tommy’s lower back, “What are you guys talking about?”

“Just what an entrance you two have made,” Hen said with a smirk. Karen was struggling to hide her chuckle.

“Look at him, can you blame me?” Buck gazed adoringly at Tommy, “I was planning to show him off on the dancefloor anyway.”

“You’re full of surprise, Evan, you know that?” Tommy smiled, the ocean blue in his eyes filled Buck’s heart with affection.

“I’m sure it went a lot better than the last time you tried kissing someone in front of me,” Hen interrupted, with a devilish grin.

“Huh?” Tommy reacted, puzzled.

“Maurice.” The Wilsons were fully giggling at this point.

“Oh no.” Tommy covered half of his face with one of his hands, seemingly embarrassed by Hen’s teasing, “You guys are never going to let me live this down, aren’t you?”

The conversation kept flowing, but Buck was deafened by the thousands of questions in his head.

Who’s Maurice? Why have I never heard of him? Why was Tommy trying to kiss him? In front of Hen too? Was he Tommy’s crush? Who rejected him? No, were they… together?

“Evan?” Tommy noticed Buck’s lapse in focus.

“Uh… yes… yes, Tommy?”

“The cake?” Tommy pointed at the piece of dessert in Buck’s hand.

“Sure… Of course.” Buck handed the plate over. He really wanted to find out more about this Maurice, but at the same time, he recognized the recency of his budding romance with Tommy. Tommy would get around to mentioning this mysterious figure from his past eventually, Buck thought, so he decided to let it go for now.

“Sorry, I haven’t eaten since last night. I’m starving.” Tommy explained, while shoving a sizable chunk of wedding cake into his mouth. “Mmm, this is so good. This is everything I’ve been waiting for.” This man loved his cake, even the soot and fatigue on his face could not hide the genuine joy radiating from his face, in all its crinkly, wrinkly glory.

“The cake huh? Is that all?” Buck asked, flirtatiously.

Tommy flirted back, with his signature deadpan expression but burning lust in his eyes, “Well, I have to refuel my body before engaging in whatever activities await us tonight.”

Buck’s heart skipped a beat, probably from the sudden rush of blood down south. Yeah, Maurice could wait.

The second time Buck heard the name Maurice, was at the medal ceremony.

It was supposed to be a joyous occasion.

Not only did none of them get fired, they were all given medals for borrowing LAFD property and leading a pre-authorized rescue mission off the coast of Mexico. None of that would have been possible without the pilot. Yes, all of them played their part in saving Bobby and Athena from the sinking cruise ship, but Tommy in particular put his career, even his own life at risk just to help a few old colleagues he had not seen for years, just because there might be people in need. Judge him all you want, but seeing Tommy on that stage, being awarded for his skills and heroism, Buck simply could not conceal the fondness and enamorment written all over his face. Bobby and Athena being alive and well, looking like a classic Hollywood power couple, was obviously the most important part, Buck told himself. Although, Tommy being appreciated for the absolute ace he was, while in his dress blue, came as a close second.

The way the rigid fabric splayed across the pilot’s strong muscular body, buttons holding on for dear life against his bulging pecs, pants just tight enough to accentuate the curvature of his glutes, a feature Buck found enticing in all genders. Buck was not alone in ogling the real life erotic fantasy in front of him, about that he was sure, but he took comfort in knowing he was the only one there who got to touch this body, to worship it, to savor every inch of it, to feel it against his own. He might have almost missed his own call to the stage because he was too busy gawking at his boyfriend.

He was looking forward to celebrate this moment with his loved ones, maybe a little foreplay in costume with Tommy too, until Gerrard showed up and ruined everything.

Upon spotting the former 118 captain, Tommy looked as if he had seen a ghost.

The second Gerrard made a limp wrist gesture at Tommy, insinuating a homophobic slur, Buck realized he was more than an ignorant old man. He barely skirted the edge of blatant bigotry just to abuse his targets while staying on the side of possible deniability. If he used merely 10% of his brain power allocated for creative insults, Los Angeles would be a much safer place.

Tommy was clearly upset after their unexpected encounter with Gerrard. He was forking the food on his plate, without eating any, then abruptly, he stood up, “I don’t feel like eating these right now. I’m gonna get some cake, I’ll be back in a minute.”

Buck gave him a forced smile and a small peck to his temple, then he sent his boyfriend to his beloved sweet treat.

“I’m worried about him,” Buck turned to Chimney, “I’ve never seen him like this before, being so… small.”

“Working under Gerrard was not exactly a fun time worth keeping in your memory” Chimney sighed. “Like most of us, it took Tommy a long time and a lot of soul searching to become who he is right now. He did have a fat head back in the days, but I can’t say I blame the guy. Sometimes you do things you’ll regret further down the road just to survive at the moment.”

“Yeah… he told me the 118 was a regressive place back then.”

“Gerrard isn’t just another asshole, he’s an asshole with power, particularly power over his people’s safety. Tommy almost died because of him.”

“I know… Gas explosion, right? He said you saved his life.”

“I guess I did, but hey, Gerrard only gave me one month of KP duty as a reward, so that was a plus,” Chimney snickered, sarcastically.

“He punished you for saving Tommy’s life?” Buck never fully grasped the injustice, mistreatment, and suffering his loved ones faced under Gerrard’s reign of terror. He made a mental note to thank Bobby later for his gentle fatherly guidance.

“That’s who he is, Buck. All power trip, no leadership. I’ve never seen Tommy so scared of somebody,” Chimney continues, “except maybe... Maurice.”

Maurice, this name again. Buck still knew close to nothing about this cryptic individual.

Tommy was very upfront about how abrasive his was in his youth. Having to desperately hide his true self from his abusive father, then intolerant military policy, and finally his homophobic superior, he had learned very early on that the best defense was a solid offense. He was cold, distant, downright rude to anyone and everyone who tried getting too close, to the truth, to his desire, to his heart. So if Tommy was reluctant to share the parts of his life that he was less than proud of, Buck would not try to pry… At least until Chimney told him how fearful Tommy was of Maurice.

“Who…” Just as Buck opened his mouth, his brother in law rose from his seat, grabbing the red wine filled glass with him. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to take this wine to my wife.”

As soon as Chimney left, Tommy returned with a piece of cake in his hand and a subtle smile on his face.

“Heyy-” Tommy greeted Buck in his usual playful tone.

“Hey, feeling better?” Buck was relieved, sensing Tommy’s change of mood.

“Um…” Tommy looked down, seemingly pondering. Then he retook the seat he previously occupied, the one right next to Buck, and hooked one of his feet under his boyfriend’s chair. He gave the chair a swift, firm tug, and in the blink of an eye, the physical distance between them vanished.

“Now I am,” Tommy murmured with his deep, gravelly voice.

Just like that, the rest of the room ceased to exist for Buck. No Gerrard, no Maurice, only Tommy. Buck’s fingers slowly slid towards the strong, burly thigh leaning against his own, but Tommy stopped him on his track, by grabbing his inquisitive hand.

“This is not exactly... appropriate for work, don’t you think?”, Tommy said, without letting go of Buck. “People may have questions if they see us.” His grip tightened, just enough to reignite the fervent desire building up between them since the start of the day. “Hen and Karen asked me just now about my intentions with you, if they are…” He looked down at the shinny medal currently decorating his boyfriend’s chest, and used his free hand to adjust the ribbon, “honorable.”

“And what did you say?” Buck asked breathlessly, almost panting.

“I told them, we’re taking it very slow…” Tommy inched closer and closer. “You’re taking the lead, I’m just trying to keep up…” His lips ghosted over Buck’s cheek, then he whispered into his ear, “Where should we go now?”

Buck responded by simply dragging Tommy onto the station rooftop. With the “no visitors” sign blocking the stairs, it was the perfect place for some private pastime.

[bibucktrashpanda]

Princess Part 2

Okay this plot bunny won't leave me alone and all the notes and reblogs made me happy so I am just going to write while inspiration strikes. I am not sure if there will be more of this but I also didn't know there was going to be a part two. Warning for language. Not beta'ed, we die like Buck's heterosexuality.

Summary: Tommy loves his boyfriend and honestly it's not fair that he now has two sets of puppy eyes to resist. Link to part 1 below.

Princess Part 2

Tommy knows that he is fucked the moment he sees the photo from Eddie. 

It’s almost 4 am and he has just gotten home from a rough shift but he isn’t tired. He just wants Evan but knows Evan won’t be home for a few hours. 

Climbing into bed without his lover is anathema for him after a shift that was filled with casualties and so he decides to catch up on some chores. He knows better than to fuck around with Evan’s kitchen so he doesn’t do much more than helping himself to a Tupperware of leftovers that have his name in a heart on a sticky note on top of it. 

He is about to eat it standing at their counter but than hears even’s voice lecturing him about respecting the animal that gave its life for the meat in the lasagna even if it had come from the farmers market from a small farm owned by a lesbian couple in their 50’s that Evan has charmed and has been invited to visit. Evan had gone on a research binge on industrial farming and by the end Tommy hasn’t even been able to look at packaged meat in the grocery store without feeling nauseous and heartbroken. 

So Tommy takes his food to the unfinished breakfast nook and sits down to eat it, mindfully. He snorts thinking about the ‘demure’ meme that even has been quoting nonstop for weeks after learning about it from Christopher. 

He is just finishing when his phone chirps with an incoming text. The preview is just a gaudy gif of an “It’s a girl” banner. Confused, he clicks on it to see a photo of Evan cradling a tiny puppy to his chest which looks massive next to the tiny pup. A follow up text from Eddie reads “Congrats on becoming a dog dad. Her name is Princess and nothing is going to pry her out of Evan’s hands. You are so fucked.”

Tommy has to agree. The focus of the photo is the puppy but Tommy can still see the expression on Evan’s face, one that he is familiar with because Evan looks at him like that all the time, pure love. 

He is so fucked. 

Because he can be a bitch he texts back to Eddie “I mean I’m not fucked at the moment but Evan generally is very thorough. Let me know which vet you end up at?” And while Evan is the notorious list maker out of the two of them, Tommy can appreciate a good list and starts making a list of supplies they need for their newest family member, while ignoring Eddie's response of "MY EYES". 

**** 

An hour later he gets a text from Evan with an address and a request. “Her throat is bruised from her collar, can you swing by a store and pick up a puppy chest harness? This is one has good reviews and should be in stock at this  24 hour Petco and meet me at the vet?”

He smiles and responds “You’ve been busy. Aren’t you forgetting something?”

He is already moving to the door when he gets a response from Evan. It’s a photo of Evan, changed out of his turnouts, pouting, holding up the puppy, who is clean and awake. Both of them are staring at the camera with two sets of blue eyes and surprisingly the puppy has a black patch of fur over her left eye which almost matches up with Evan’s birthmark. 

Christ, he’s whipped. How is he supposed to hold out against two sets of puppy eyes one of which is from an actual puppy??

The text below the photo reads “Please, Daddy?”

He is so fucked. “Not in front of the kid!  Fine, you brat. See you in a little bit.”

The next photo is Evan grinning as the Princess licks his cheek. 

He is just getting to the store when he gets another text. “Uh, since you are going to the store anyway, pretty please?” with the pleading face emoji  and a list of supplies that pretty well matches the list he jotted down earlier. He sends Evan a photo of his list resting in the small basket of a shopping cart with the eye rolling emoji. 

The sky is just beginning to brighten when Tommy pulls up to the emergency vet, he should be exhausted but he finds that he is excited to meet Princess and to see Evan. 

The receptionist looks up as he enters with one of his shopping bags. “You must be Tommy?”

He nods and raises an eyebrow at her. “Mr. Buckley said to imagine the most gorgeous man i have ever seen and then double it. I can see what he means.” 

He chuckles and follows as she leads him back. “I mean I would describe him the same way.” 

Before she can respond they enter a room where Evan is sitting on the floor bad leg extended out, puppy snoozing pressed up against the inside. Evan is lightly petting her with one hand and scrolling on his phone with the other, humming softly. 

Tommy’s heart melts into a puddle and he quickly snaps a photo before Buck looks up. 

“Hey.” He says softly, crouching down next to Buck to give him a quick peck. 

“Thanks for coming.” Evan smiles at him. Tommy smiles back. “Of course.” It’s become a thing, echoing this exchange from what Evan calls their actual first date. In the back of his head he is toying with the idea of getting ‘of course’ engraved on the engagement ring he has had picked out since just after the Billy Boil incident. He stood at the  edge of that grave, listening to his ridiculous boyfriend eulogize a man who had been dead for over a century and knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that he wanted to spend the rest of his life indulging this man whose heart seemed to have infinite capacity. 

“So what happened?” He asks, wrapping an arm around Evan who leans into him. 

“I found her tangled under a bush as I was doing a check of a yard of a burnt out house. She was cold and crying and couldn’t free herself. Turns out she belonged to the family that lived there and didn’t make it. The one relative the police could find hates dogs and was just going to drop her off at a shelter.” Evan turned to him “I couldn’t let that happen, not when bully breeds don’t have a good adoption rate! She’s already traumatized.” His voice is distressed and Tommy presses a kiss to his birthmark. “Shhhh, of course you couldn’t.” He murmurs against the pink skin which is one of his favorite things about Evan. 

He settles in next to Evan and stares down at the puppy who is blinking awake. Closer he can see that she resembles a pitbull or at least mostly pitbull, with black freckles on her white nose.  The rest of her seems to be white except for the tip of her tail which looks like she dipped it in an inkwell and is wagging so quickly he almost expects to see a cartoon cloud of dust poofing up. 

“Hi Princess.” He holds his hand by her, letting her choose to come to him. She stumbles over and all but shoves her head into his palm. She is soft and Tommy already loves her. 

“Taking after your pop with that grace.” He teases stroking her back. Evan makes a noise and he looks up to see Evan gazing at him smiling softly.

He looks back down at Princess who is trying to climb up his leg and gently picks her up to cradle her between him and Evan. 

“Welcome to the family, honey,” He whispers as Evan brings a hand up to stroke her. They have a lot to do and he can feel the exhaustion settling into his bones, but there is nowhere in the world he would rather be then here, cuddled up with the love of his life and their new puppy. 

[atimeofyourlife]

I tried to hold back, but you drew me in

wc: 1787| rated: t| tw: referenced domestic violence, mentioned vomiting| read on AO3

Buck starts at the 118 before Tommy leaves. Tommy tries to keep his distance from Buck, but they eventually become friends and something more. Set pre- s1e1 First in a series of one shots of different times Buck and Tommy could have met.

Tommy wasn't surprised that they were getting a new probie, after all they'd been running a man down since Sal had been transferred out. He told himself he wouldn't get attached, they would only be working with each other for a few months, just until everything for Tommy's transfer to airops was finalized. He knew he wouldn't still be at the 118 to see the end of the probationary year. 

But then he met the kid. Evan Buckley. 25 years old. Legs that went on forever, an ass that didn't quit, sparkling blue eyes, and a smile that lit up the room like sunshine on a rainy day. And that adorable birthmark that Tommy just wanted to kiss.

And sure, there was the cocky facade that so many young men had when they'd made it through the academy. Evan Buckley was hot, and he knew it, showing off and flirting with anything that moved. But under that facade was a heart of gold, a kid who would try to see the best in everyone, who would try to connect with everyone. Tommy was falling, and falling hard.

Tommy tried to push it away, to forget about it, but with every shift, Evan made that harder and harder. With how hot he was when harnessed up to do a rope rescue, or in his turnouts all covered in soot after a fire. With how gentle he was with kids, a unique ability to keep them calm no matter the scene ("I think it's because they know he's one of them." Hen had joked after a call to an injury at a playground, where Evan had efficiently distracted all the other kids from their injured friend.) How he would listen to the little old ladies that became frequent fliers due to falls or issues with their medications. His ability to comfort people, no matter how bad the scene had been.

But he was still determined to keep Evan at arms length. He wasn't being hostile, just cautious. Tommy did everything he had to as Evan's training partner, answering any and all questions he had about the job, wanting to set him up to be a good heavy rescue asset. During downtime at the station, he'd make friendly small talk, and talk to Evan as part of the group, but he kept it superficial. Never opening up for anything deeper.

The call that made him reach out more, extend an olive branch more, was a difficult one for anyone. A DV call where the wife was beaten so badly, she was barely recognizable. Evan managed to hold it together just long enough for the woman to be loaded into the back of the ambulance before he was turning to throw up in the bushes at the edge of the property. He really felt for the kid, because he'd had a similar reaction on his first DV call. Evan was quiet all the way back to the station, and disappeared off alone the moment the engine pulled in. Tommy left him, knowing that sometimes after a hard call being alone was needed.

But then he didn't reappear. He would come out when there was a call, but kept to himself on the way there and at the scene. Only speaking when necessary. Then keeping himself away from everyone else when they were back. When it was nearing the end of the shift, Tommy decided to do something about it. He extracted himself from where he was watching Howie and Hen trying to beat each other at whatever videogame they'd started playing, and went looking for Evan. It didn't take him long, finding him in the locker room, his back to the glass. Tommy pushed the door open quietly, not wanting to startle him.

"It's just. It reminded me of you. Can you please call me back or something, I just need to know that you're okay, that you're safe. I love you." Evan's voice was soft, but thick, as if he'd been crying.

"Evan? Are you okay?" Tommy asked softly as he entered, moving to sit next to Evan on the bench.

"I'm fine." Evan straightened up and wiped his face, putting his phone back into his pocket. "If you're here to make comments about what happened-"

"Any first responder that tries to claim that they have never lost their lunch, or at least been close to it, at a scene, or because of a scene, they're either lying or it's just not been their turn yet. I've been doing this job for over a decade, I've seen it happen to almost everyone I've worked with." Tommy replied.

"Ever happened to you?" Evan asked after a moment.

"More than once. First time was because of a scene a lot like the one we were on today." Tommy admitted. "I always find DV scenes difficult. Some people find them harder than others."

"It made me think-" Evan started, but cut himself off. Tommy wondered if it had anything to do with who he had been trying to call.

"DV calls are so hard for me because they remind me too much of my mom." Tommy said quickly, something he'd only told Howie and his therapist. "She was too scared to leave, she never got out. Is. Is there someone it made you think of?"

"My sister, Maddie." Evan said quietly. "I think her husband hurts her. He's always been a controlling asshole, and I think it's got worse. But I don't have proof. I haven't seen her since I was nineteen, she was supposed to leave Pennsylvania with me. I didn't realize it at the time, but I think he stopped her. Did something to her to keep her from leaving. I call her and leave voicemails, and I send postcards to the hospital where she works so she knows where I am and he can't get hold of them. But she stopped responding. I haven't heard from her in over two years. I don't even know if she's-"

Evan cut himself off, but Tommy knew what he was implying. He didn't know if his sister was alive, or if her husband had killed her.

"What about your parents? Surely they would let you know if anything had happened?" Tommy asked.

"I don't really have a relationship with them. I can count on one hand the amount of times I've spoken to them since I left home. And they pretty much abandoned Maddie when she married Doug."

"That's awful, Evan." Tommy said, unsure how else he was supposed to respond. "If you ever want to talk about it, I'm here for you."

"Thanks, Tommy." Evan whispered, managing a small smile.

After that, Tommy found himself actually becoming friends with Evan. It was easy, chatting and joking around on shift, Tommy lookimg forward to when the team would go out for drinks after work. Wanting the opportunity to spend more time with Evan. And he knew he was going to miss Evan endlessly when his transfer came up. He hoped he could stay friends with Evan, and Hen and Howie, but he had seen, and knew from experience how hard it could be to keep in touch. Different shift schedules, and busy personal lives taking up too much time to have anything more than the occasional catch up text. 

For his last shift, he was expecting something. Likely something small, but at least a goodbye, maybe drinks after work. He wasn't expecting the house to be taken offline for the last hour of the shift, with Hen and Howie jumping out the back of the ambulance with balloons and streamers, or getting shoved face first into a cake. He didn't expect the cards and little gifts, the kind and friendly words. The tight hug from Evan as he said how much he would miss working with Tommy.

The evening out for drinks that lasted a lot longer than usual. People drifting out as they needed to get home for their responsibilities, wives, girlfriends, kids. Leaving Tommy and Evan alone together at the end of the night. They headed out at the same time, waiting outside the bar together for their Ubers. Evan kept up a stream of chatter as they waited.

"At first I thought you didn't like me much. Like, you did your job and taught me everything you needed to, and answered all of my questions about it, no matter how weird or repetitive they got. But other than that, you wrre almost cold." Evan said, and Tommy hated that he'd made Evan feel like that.

"I was worried about getting too attached, knowing I'd be leaving after a few months. I've had it too many times before when friends have moved on, we've said we'll keep up, still make time for each other, but life gets in the way. And soon, at the most it's texts at birthdays and Christmas. Maybe a check in if we've been on the same scene. I didn't want that to happen again." Tommy replied, baring himself to Evan. "But you're. You draw people in, Evan. You drew me in."

"I hope that doesn't happen to us. You're so easy to be around, Tommy. I feel like I can be myself around you, that I don't have to hide parts of me." Evan admitted.

Tommy saw his chance, the liquid courage pushing him to do something he never would sober. He tucked his fingers under Evan's chin, pulling him into a kiss. He could feel Evan's surprise, and nearly pulled back, hoping that he hadn't ruined their budding friendship. But after a moment, Evan kissed back. It was a little hesitant, but became more sure. Tommy kept his eyes closed for a moment after he pulled back, wanting to savor the moment. When he opened them, he could see the almost dazed look on his face. It was Tommy's first time seeing the other man speechless.

"Like that?" Tommy said softly. "You make me want to not hide this part of myself any more."

"I. Yeah. It works." Evan stumbled over his words.

"So that was okay?"

"Better than okay." Evan's smile widened, and Tommy wanted to see it everyday for the rest of his life.

"What are you doing Saturday?"

"Uh, Saturday?"

"I was thinking we could do something. You free?" Tommy asked as a car pulled up.

"Yes. I. I am free." Evan replied

"If you text me your addresss, I'll pick you up around eight?"

"Yeah. Eight's great."

"Great. I'll see you Saturday." Tommy climbed into the car, looking back at Evan.

"Yeah. Saturday." Evan replied, a soft smile still on his face as Tommy pulled the car door shut behind him.

[ganxiously]

I was really trying to keep it to myself because it does give away the plot a little bit and also perhaps misleads it a bit but apparently 'if it hurts you, make it everyone else's problem' is the mindset that I now have.

The entire street is ensconced in thick, black smoke when they arrive, pouring out like sludge from the ventilation holes they have cut on the roof for pressure release. The fire isn’t visible from the outside but from what they had been told by dispatch, Buck knows that the entire interior of the one-storey commercial building is up in flames. Given that most of the storefronts he can see are for fabrics and furniture, it is apparent why there was a need for eight teams to get the fire under control. The IC that meets them at the command tent looks calm but harried, letting out a gusty sigh when he sees that a fresh new team has arrived to lend them a hand.  They had been halfway through dinner when the call had come in so Buck’s still a bit hungry but he’s also thankful. Not that there’s anything to be thankful about so much damage and so many livelihoods lost but Chimney had looked like he was finally losing the ability to keep his questions to himself and Buck will be eternally grateful that the call had come in before Chimney could through the proverbial first stone into the glass walls of Buck’s carefully taped together life.  The IC explains to Bobby where the fire is concentrated and how they plan on getting to it by launching a double-pronged attack through the roof and through the stores. Buck exchanges a look with Eddie to make sure they are on the same page here. After all, climbing onto the roof and using ladder pipes to fight the fire from above? Cool. He’s just about to open his mouth to volunteer for the work when someone else enters the tent. “We managed to control the fire leaking out onto the roof but the structure was too unstable for any of us to go down there.”

Tommy is using his outside people voice again, he thinks before he even registers whose voice he is hearing and then slams his eyes shut because he knows what is going to happen the moment he sees Tommy again. But the temptation is too strong, has always been too strong since that very first moment Tommy stepped out of the shadows of his chopper to introduce himself. And Buck had been doing good, he had been doing great. He even had a second date coming up this weekend, though it was the bowling alley he was looking forward to more than seeing Jack again. And now he knows he will go back and make up excuses to cancel the meetup, probably even block his number to ensure he doesn’t have to think about it again because one sight of him, ash-streaked, curls flying every which way and eyes, blue, blue, blue because they are really sensitive to smoke (he must have forgotten his eye drops again), is enough to wash away everything else —  every experience he has had so far, the touch he has felt and the conversations he has had, the good and the bad and the fucking mediocre, until all that is left is the Buck of that night, sitting in his kitchen, alone again because the man he thought would be forever, decided he wasn’t worth the risk after all. Tommy’s eyes fall on him and Buck should look away, pretend he wasn’t staring, pretend it doesn’t matter but he’s missed him. The ache in him throbs, the delicate tissue of his heart exposed to anyone who wants to take a hit and yet he can’t help but drink in the sight of him, can’t help but luxuriate in the feel of those eyes on him in return. Yes, look at me and no one else, he wants to tell him. He wants to take hold of Tommy’s turnouts, tuck himself up against his neck and complain about how hard everything has been, even though Tommy is the person who is directly responsible for making it hard in the first place. He wants to tell him how hard it is to be one when he just got used to planning for two, how driving his car every day feels weird, how Eddie’s quips fall stale without anyone to back them up and the last time he told someone about his research binge, they just hemmed and hawed in a way that made it clear that they were not even listening in the first place. He wants Tommy to make his appropriately angry on his behalf noises even as Buck can feel the amusement come off him in waves. He wants to pinch Tommy’s waist in retaliation and watch him flinch away because that is his most ticklish spot. He wants to ask Tommy about his life. Did he find the problem in Lucy’s car? Make it to the anniversary party of the old friend he was considering going to? Did the cat that he feeds sometimes finally deliver her babies? Did he move on? Did he find someone who can make him believe in forever, at least better than Buck had? Tommy’s lips part like he’s about to say something and Buck turns away. He doesn’t want to hear Tommy’s voice give shape to whatever stilted, awkward or mean thing that’s about to come out of his mouth. And he definitely doesn’t want to hear him say Buck.  “Bobby? I’ll go help Hen with triage.” Bobby’s eyebrows make a valiant climb towards his hairline before remembering they are supposed to be pretending that nothing’s wrong. Buck knows he’s giving himself away, to his team and god knows, however many firefighters are there cramped in that little tent and Tommy, who knows exactly how much Buck likes being in the thick of things. Tommy who knows that were it any other day, any other time with any other team than the 217, Buck would be up on that ladder or ploughing through rolls of half-burnt fabric in search of flames. “Yes, you do that, Firefighter Buckley. We’ve got it covered here and I’m sure they could use an extra pair of hands over there.”

sorry if it sounds a bit rough. i haven't had the opportunity to edit it yet