#but it is painful for me to be on eddies head and watch buck yelling at him

[lover-of-mine]

the thing that's killing me while writing this fic is that Eddie spends the whole time before Buck picks the fight telling himself something just for Buck to throw the exact thing on his face and I'm just sitting here like damn.

[havecourage-darling]

I've always been yours // Eddie Munson

Prompt: "I think... I'm in love with him.” "Congrats on being the last one to find out" + the 5 ways to say I love you without saying I love you.

wc: 14K (I'm learning what brevity means y'all)

warnings: female reader, some implied sexual stuff towards the end but not really ish, friends-to-lovers, oblivious idiots in love, the beginnings of rockstar eddie.

Masterlist || AO3

1. Covering sharp edges with their hands, so you don’t get hurt.

You were going to get Max’s birthday cake absolutely perfect even if it fucking killed you, you thought to yourself as your arm ached the harder you mixed the batter.

“Are you sure you don’t need any help Nov?” Eddie asked again.

Pushing the hair out of your eyes with the back of your wrist, you huffed. “I’m okay. I think I adjusted the recipe perfectly this time. I just need to make sure there’s no lumps or the chocolate won’t-”

“I’M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU WHEELER!” You heard Dustin yell from the basement.

Eddie snorted. “Ten bucks on Mike,” he said from his place on the counter.

“I’m telling Dustin you said that,” you said, turning from your batter and shooting him a playful look over your shoulder.

He clasped his imaginary pearls dramatically. “Fair maiden, you dare betray our sacred friendship?”

Not able to keep your laugh down, you shook your head. Loud stomping alerted you to the shift of location of whatever fight was happening.

“Do not come into the kitchen with your shit!” You shouted.

Dustin’s voice floated in from the living room. “But Mike-”

“But Mike nothing!” You shouted. “You two shitheads work it out!”

“I didn’t do it on purpose!” Mike shouted, grunting right after. “Ow! Dustin!”

Eddie immediately huffed out laughter. “I’d listen to her, she’s on her fifth batch. Her face is getting whiter and whiter with each cake.”

Your hand flew up to your face, fingers coming back dusted in flour. Turning your glare to his grinning face, you rolled your eyes. “You couldn’t have told me?”

“And ruin how cute you look with all that flour on your face?” Eddie said, nonchalantly going back to the book in his hands. Doing your best to ignore the flustered expression you knew was growing on your face, you turned back to the batter. Eddie always managed to draw out reactions from you, you were sure that was the main reason why he kept doing it.

I like unnerving you he’d said. Asshole, you thought fondly, glancing at him. A good chunk of flour dusted down towards your hands at the motion. Christ, how much flour was on your face?

“I’m going to slap you the second I put this into a pan,” you threatened, trying to get it all off.

Eddie’s grin morphed into something more. “Promises, promises,” he winked.

And there went the butterflies in your stomach.

You opened your mouth to say something else when a blur of curly hair, black shirts, and a flying white shoe flung the kitchen door open.

“Guys,” Eddie warned, placing his book down.

“For fuck’s sake, what’s wrong now?” You said, putting the bowl down onto the kitchen island and stepping towards them with your hands on your hips.

Dustin was the quickest to speak up. “He borrowed the comic that I just managed to get and got it wet!”

“It wasn’t on purpose!” Mike shouted back. “I swear, Holly was eating at the table and spilled her soda!”

“Likely story!” Dustin snapped, eyes narrowing. “You’re doing it because I accidentally broke your figurines last week. I didn’t want to hit that pothole and go flying!”

“For the love of- it wasn’t on purpose!”

Dustin’s arms swung out and Mike darted left to avoid being hit. Before they could even crash together, you knew exactly what was going to happen.

As if in slow motion, you watched as Dustin shoved Mike’s arm into the mixing bowl. Without much prompting, your perfect batter, went tumbling off the island and flew with a vengeance in a million different directions. The opened bag of flour next to it, toppled right after it.

The silence as the bowl wobbled to a stop was painful. You blinked, shocked for a few seconds and nodded dumbly.

Well, that hurt more than the demobats clawing at your neck in the Upside Down.

“I’m going to rip your spines out and play jump rope with it,” you said calmly, eye twitching, at Mike and Dustin. The flour was splattered everywhere, including your new vans and the crevices no one was ever able to clean in the cracks of the linoleum.  

The two idiots shuffled closer to the door. At least they had the decency to look somewhat mortified. Before you could go through with your threat, Eddie’s hands came down to their necks and they both winced.

“Dudes, not cool,” he said, voice uncharacteristically serious. “She said don’t come into the kitchen for a reason. Now she’s gotta wait until you two assholes clean this all up before starting again.”

“Wha-” “But!”

Their protests quickly died down when he smacked them in the back of their heads.

“You break it, you fix it,” he said.

Hiding a smile, you rounded the island towards the rag by the sink and sighed. “Try to hurry, I want to get this decorated before midnight,” you said to the two apologetic teens who were already moving towards the mess.

Pushing the door out into the dining room you tried your best not to trek batter anywhere. Swiping the rag down your face and hair to get rid of any remaining flour you leaned down to help save your vans.

A sudden hand flying out towards your face made you flinch back. Falling onto your butt, you groaned as your hip smacked into the leg of the table.

Eddie shook his head, a soft expression on his face. Your eyes trailed down to where his hand was curled around the corner of the dining table. “Did I almost go face first into that?” You asked from where you were sprawled.

“Yeah, Nova, you almost cracked your skull,” he said, huffing a laugh. “I’d tell you to be more careful but it’d be a waste of breath.” Eddie tugged the rag out your hand and sat down by your feet.

“I-I am insulted.” The indignation cancelled out by the stammering. Eddie had picked up one of your, now dirty, sneakers and plopped it into his lap. He went about meticulously cleaning the chocolate off. “I can do that. You don’t have to-”

His brown eyes darted up to yours, silencing you. “I know I don’t have to; I want to.”

Mildly surprised, and a little flustered by his earnest tone, you nodded dumbly. By the time he was done, there was a pink tinge to his cheeks that you found stupidly endearing.

“There you go fair maiden. Good as new.” He bowed, dropping the rag onto the table. He offered his hand and pulled you up with a firm grip.

Warmth bloomed in your chest at the sight of his wide smile and soft gaze. “Thanks Eddie,” you said, smiling up at him.

He tossed an arm around your shoulders and pulled you towards the kitchen. “Come on, let’s go give them a little more hell,” he whispered, his breath tickling your ear.

Not one to resist, you beamed up at him and nodded. “Dibs on Mike,” you said, laughing when he did.

2. Covering you with a blanket when you look cold.

You met Eddie when you were in middle school but, you hadn’t really become friends until freshman year of high school. You were a cheerleader, one of the few freshmen on the team, and you’d caught Tommy Hagan cornering Eddie in a hallway.

You hadn’t hesitated at the sight of the stupid bully and had thrown your pompoms at his head. With a promise of a Herkie to the face, Tommy and his entourage had left you alone.

“Are you okay?” You asked him, bending over to pick up your tossed pompoms.

Eddie, however, hadn’t looked like he was two seconds away from being shoved into a locker. He was beaming. At you.

“What?” You asked, looking around at the empty hallway. “Do I have something on my face?”

“No, I just…didn’t ever think that my knight in shining armor would be a cheerleader,” he said, tone teasing.

Biting back a smile, you crossed your arms. “Why? Because we’re vapid and only care about our hair?” You cocked your hip.

“No,” Eddie said, straightening, “I swear, that’s not what I-”

Not able to help it, you burst out into laughter. “I’m fucking with you,” you said, hiding your laugh behind your hand. “I know Tommy’s little sister and she basically rules his household. He knows not to mess with her.”

Eddie smiled and you’d realized that he had a really nice smile. With a flourish, he bowed. “Well, I’m in your debt knight.”

Scrunching your nose, you shook your head. “Not a fan of the nickname?” He asked, starting towards the exit doors. Walking backwards, he drifted closer to you. “What about Nova?”

“What?” You laughed, surprised. “How’d you go from Knight to Nova?”

“Well, you’re my knight in shining armor – what’s brighter than a supernova?”

Throwing your head back, your laugh echoed down the hallway. You’d quickly become friends.

“Novaaaa, come on,” Eddie groaned, flopping down onto the sofa, “just pick a movie.” Clearly, almost a decade later, the nickname had stuck.

“Don’t rush me!” You told him, eyeing the three tapes in front of you. “Which one do you want to watch?”

Eddie’s head lolled back around to you and he smiled. “It’s your turn to pick,” he reminded you.

“I know, but-”

“Just put on Grease,” Eddie said, voice muffled by the pillow. You were about to protest, what an absolutely rude assumption, when a knock echoed from Eddie’s front door. “Pizza’s here. Pick a movie!”

Sighing, knowing that he’d had a bad week, you pushed Indiana Jones into the VCR. The smell of hot pizza wafted over to you and your stomach immediately roared – reminding you that you hadn’t had enough time to eat before your shift.

“Alright, alright, I heard you,” Eddie said, motioning to your stomach. He brought the box over, handing you some water and frowned at the television. “What’s this?”

“Indianamph Jonesah,” you said, around a mouthful of steaming pizza. You were going to miss your tastebuds but goddamn if it wasn’t a great mouthful.

Eddie rolled his eyes, pulled the tape out and shoved Grease in. Dodging your flailing arm, he dropped to the floor by the coffee table, his shoulder brushing your knee.

The opening music started and you found your eyes drawn to the screen. “What the hell?”

“I got that because I know you like to watch one of the same five movies after a long shift,” he said, picking up his own slice.

“But-”

He bumped your leg with his shoulder. “It was your turn to pick, I promise – I don’t mind. Besides, it’s starting to grow on me. It’s definitely better than Overboard.”

“Hey, that’s a good movie!”

Eddie rolled his eyes. “Right, and I’m Ozzy Osbourne.”

“Well,” you said with a smile growing, “you had the chance to bite off a bat’s head but you wasted that opportunity.”

Choking on his mouthful of pizza, Eddie laughed and shot you a soft look. “I’m glad my brush with death is something you can laugh about now.”

“Yeah, well, it’s been almost a year. Thought it was about time we all started joking about almost dying,” you said, “besides, Max started it.”

“I’ve never met another person with such morbid humor,” Eddie said, eyes following Danny and Sandy as they kissed on the beach. A flash of something shot through you but you ignored it.

You shrugged despite the fact that you knew he couldn’t see it. “I’m kinda proud of her for having it,” you said, bopping your head to the music you knew by heart.

I solve my problems and I see the light

We gotta loving thing, we gotta feed it right

Eddie turned to you suddenly, his eyes shifting. “Yeah, I’m proud of all of us.”

You grinned at him, dropping your plate onto the table and getting comfortable on Eddie’s couch. It was one of his better purchases – Wayne had chosen to accept the new trailer the state had bought him while Eddie had moved into a small one bedroom downtown. It made more sese considering it was close to the music store you both worked at.

“I’m not pausing the movie if you knock out,” he warned as you fluffed the pillow behind your head.

“I’m not going to fall asleep, when am I ever the one who knocks out first?”

Eddie shot you a look. “Did you want me to bring out a list or?”

Smacking the back of his head, he ducked and laughed when you half missed your target. “Alright, alright, I’m missing the good stuff.”

“I knew you liked this movie,” you said, nudging him with your knee. Eddie shot you a withering glare, or he tried to, because you laughed at his attempt. Amused, his eyes drifted to over your head and you were about to turn when something dropped into your lap.

Eddie pulled the crocheted blanket over your legs and let it pool around your waist. The black and white blanket had been gifted to Eddie by Robin. She’d decided she was going to learn to crochet last year and spent the entire months leading up to Christmas lost in her projects. Your green scarf was hanging with your jacket by the door. You loved this blanket and you knew Eddie did too – it was always draped across the sofa for easy access.

 “My place gets cold at night,” he said at your questioning look, “you know that. Besides, you’ll make it an hour before knocking out.”

The sweet gesture was overshadowed by his smug look and your hand jutted out to hit any part of him you could reach. “I’m not going to fall asleep.”

Both of you went back and forth, poking fun, and as you watched Danny ignore Sandy for Cha-Cha, you heard Eddie snort.

“What?” You asked, tapping your fingers along to the beat.

“I just always thought it was funny how he leaves her behind, he just goes with it,” he said.

You pointed to the cameras. “They’re on live television,” you explained sleepily.

“So?” Eddie raised his brow. “Are you defending him?”

“Of course not!” Why was this couch so comfortable? The blanket moved around you, warm hands tucking it over your shoulders and sighing when you snuggled into it.

Eddie’s knowing smile went a little fuzzy around the edges as your eyes felt harder and harder to keep open. Before you could formulate a comeback, the exhaustion of the day pulled you under. As you were entirely lost to the world, you heard Eddie murmur, “I would never leave you behind.”

3. Holding your hand when you’re falling apart.

Four years of cheerleading practice had not prepared you for what it truly meant to run for your life. Not really.

It stood to reason that you’d really never had to run from an interdimensional monster before – up until your employment at The Gap. Honestly, it was The Gap’s fault.

You’d met Robin at the first Hawkins Middle School band practice as small seventh graders. Her mom had told her she needed to get a job for the summer and she’d dragged you along with her. She had gotten hired at Scoops Ahoy and, in your defense, who was going to say no to a daily free ice cream? So, if you really thought about it – it was Scoop’s fault. And Robin’s.

The moment you saw Steve ‘The Hair’ Harrington behind the counter, you should’ve turned the other way. But no, Robin was absolutely sure he’d changed. You snorted. Sure, he’d changed. Having all your friends drop you towards the end of your senior year would humble anyone. You’d been close enough to the source when the downfall of The Hair happened. It hadn’t been pretty. Especially after Nancy Wheeler decided to stick by Jonathan.

While he hadn’t been one of the few who liked to remind you of your low spot on the totem pole, he definitely wasn’t Mother Theresa. You’d seen how his friends treated Eddie’s friends – people who they deemed outcasts. Eddie had only been mostly spared because you two were practically fused at the hip. Besides, he knew that Nancy liked you – the two of you had hung out before considering you’d both been close friends with Barb. While you and her weren’t best friends, you knew he didn’t want to mess with anyone Nancy liked. Which, really, made him a selfish, self-centered asshole. And anyway, you’d seen what he’d spray painted onto the theater header.

It wasn’t until you saw him with Dustin, one of your favorite neighbors, that you’d conceded. How could someone who clearly held a middle schooler up to such high standards be that bad? Besides, Dustin was a kid – but you trusted him. Robin, of course, still held that against you to this day.

To be fair, Steve himself hadn’t won you over until he’d taken hit after hit to keep you and Robin as safe as possible. Russians in a secret lab under Starcourt injecting you with truth serum was not something you’d had on your 1985 bingo card.

You still remembered how Steve had grabbed each of your wrists so tightly that it’d taken weeks for the bruises to fade. He’d practically tossed you both under a massive table when the Mind Flayer had landed mid-food court. Robin clutched at your shoulders, Steve a steadying presence behind you.

He’d waited, for hours, as the EMTs cleared all of you outside the burning mall. And while you’d hoped that this was the last time any of your friends, new or old, had tried to save you – clearly that had been wishful thinking.

The muscles in your arms burned as you hauled yourself through the gate. Breath knocked out of you as you landed on your back, you glanced up to see Eddie’s hands stilling on the makeshift rope.

“Come on!” Dustin screamed. “Eddie come on!”

A flash of something crossed his expression and you knew. You knew he was going to do something stupid.

“Eddie!” You screamed, voice cracking in your desperation. His wide eyes struck yours and you knew the moment he’d decided. “Don’t you fucking dare! Edward Munson, you listen to me right now. Climb this fucking rope.”

“I’m sorry Nov,” he said, staring up at you with a sad smile. Without thinking, you scrambled to throw yourself down the gate but the rope dropped by your feet, cut from the source. “I love you. Take care of Dustin,” he said, eyes sincere and apologetic.

“Eddie!” You both screamed, voices hoarse.

Panic clawed at your chest. You couldn’t breathe – he was…he was going to get himself fucking killed. Spurring into action, Dustin pushed you aside as he grunted from the effort of pushing the dining table towards the middle of the room. “Come on! Those things will kill him, we gotta get back!”

Not one to be told twice, you shoved a few pieces of furniture on top of the table for good measure. You climbed up to the gate, barely able to touch the edges. Adrenaline rushed through you as you looked down to Dustin. “Give me a boost, I can almost reach it!”

Without hesitating, Dustin kneeled, hands on your calves and you used his knee to hoist yourself up. You didn’t have much time to adjust yourself but you channeled every tumbling move you’d ever done and tried to tuck and roll. Mostly successful, you only winced as your shoulder collided painfully with the metal chair.

“Okay, I’ll be right back!”

“You can’t just fucking leave me here!” Dustin shouted. You pointed up at him with all the authority you could muster.

“Try to tie more sheets together, the others will need help climbing through when they come back,” you glared at him, “don’t do anything stupid Henderson.”

Not waiting for a response, you kicked the trailer door open and scanned the field. A tornado of bats and a loud, heartbreaking, scream cut through you.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, you fucking idiot,” you said, panicking as you ran. You watched as the bats took turns diving for him, his spear barely keeping them back.

“Come on!” He screamed into the eye of the storm. Because of course he did. The idiot. You willed your legs to run faster, to just get you there so you could help. Then, they struck. Eddie’s hands whipped up to his throat and you watched him slam into the floor.

“Eddie!” You screamed, throat raw, but it was drowned out by the screeching bats. A flash of Billy being impaled, lifted into the air, and thrown like a ragdoll bubbled up to your consciousness. No, please, you begged, not Eddie, not him.

Slowing as you neared, you pulled the gun from around your shoulders and squared them like Hopper had taught you. The shots echoed despite the chaos, your blood rushing through your body. “Get away from him!” You shrieked, fighting your way through the opening you’d created.

You slipped on the unmoving body of the ones you’d shot down and slid directly into an motionless Eddie. Covering his body with your own, you raised your gun as they swooped down. Almost out of bullets, you’d just hit another when one managed to swipe you from the side – claws digging into your skin. Screaming, you waved the gun like Steve’s bat and swatted as many as you could out the air.

Shit, you couldn’t keep this up. There were too many.

Then, as if puppets that were cut, they all dropped to the floor. One slammed into your bad shoulder painfully and you cried out.

“Nov?”

The weak voice was like beacon and you quickly slid to the ground. You weren’t going to question your good luck. Pulling the leather jacket off his chest your heart dropped down next to the dead demobats and you immediately started to cry.

“That bad huh?” He joked, voice wet as blood poured out his mouth.

“You absolute fucking asshole. You dickhead,” you berated him as you tied your own cargo jacket around the gash in his stomach. Rising to your knees, you quickly pulled your belt off your waist and made a tourniquet around his upper thigh. Your hands were drenched in blood and you forced the bile down. Focus, you need to stop the bleeding. You needed to get him back to the trailer, you yelled at yourself.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Eddie’s weak hand came up to your forearm and your heart creaked as the cracks deepened. “It’ll be okay.”

“No it won’t you fucking moron, you’re my best friend – I – can’t watch you die. I won’t,” you said, hauling him onto your lap. You tried to stand but your shoulder immediately gave and you both crashed to the ground.

A sob wrenched it’s way out your throat, helpless and willing your shoulder to work. Just this time, please, please, you begged.

“Nova,” Eddie’s voice trailed off, weaker than before.

Cradling his stupid face, your hands left streaks of blood on his pale skin. Shaking, your fingers caressed his jaw. The brown eyes, more familiar to you than your own, slowly started to fade.

“Eddie, stay with me, someone’s coming okay – it’s going to be okay,” you said, entire body clinging to his.

“I-I told you this was my year,” he said, blood tricking down. His unseeing eyes searched for you, like they always did, and you realized that you wouldn’t survive this. Eddie was going to fade from existence, the entire town thinking him a murderer, and this would finally be the storm that broke you.

“I can’t live without you,” you stammered, words bubbling up in rapid succession, you had things you needed to say – stuff you needed to do with him still. You were supposed to have time – it wasn’t supposed to end this way. Jaw aching as you bit down your anguish, you pressed a kiss to his forehead and he sighed. “Eddie, please,” you begged, unashamed and desperate.

Take me, you begged the dark skies that mocked you, anyone but him.

“I l-love-” he gagged, choking on his own blood and you pressed your forehead against his.

“Sh, sh, it’s okay, I’m here Eddie. I’m here. I know. Me too,” you said, tongue sticking to the roof of your mouth. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

Sorry you weren’t fast enough, sorry you couldn’t save him, sorry for having to be the one to watch him die. Eddie’s hand came up to your wrist, squeezing once before dropping limp.

The silence around you was deafening. No, no, no, no.

You screamed, anguished, and the pain unbearable. Anger coursed through you, mixing with your overwhelming grief. It crashed into you from all angles, its hands grabbing onto you and pulling you under. Your throat hurt but you couldn’t stop screaming, all of you couldn’t stop screaming in the unfairness of it all.

“Eddie?” A voice shouted through the darkness. You whipped your head up, searching through the night for the voice.

“Steve?” You called out tentatively, hand reaching for your discarded gun. Was this a trick? You scanned your surroundings, vision blurry. No, you steeled yourself, this place had already taken everything from you – they couldn’t have his body too.

Swinging the gun towards the quick footsteps, you ignored your trembling arms.

“Hey, hey! Wait, it’s me,” Steve said, hands up. He stepped in front of Robin, his eyes on the still body behind you.

Eyes wild, you blinked away your constant tears, and loosened the hold on your gun. “Stevie?”

“It’s me, it’s me – I promise,” he said, hand coming out to take your shotgun. Handing it to Nancy, he pulled you into his arms. “What happened?” He winced when he saw your skin bleeding sluggishly.

“Eddie?” Robin whispered, dropping to her knees beside him.

Willing yourself to keep it together you nodded towards the house. “What happened?”

“He’s dead, we got him – Nance got him. It’s over.”

Feeling weak, you leaned on Nancy’s outstretched arm and watched as Steve dropped to examine him.

“He’s – he – cut the rope – I tried, my shoulder – it, oh God,” you said, scrambling towards the nearest wall and throwing up everything in your stomach. A warm hand came up to your back, rubbing it back and forth until your heaving stopped.

“I got you,” Nancy said, “I’m here, it’s okay. I’m here for you.”

He was dead. Eddie was gone. Nothing would ever be okay again.Your blood-soaked hands reached out and she clasped them. Eyes on yours, strong and steady, she nodded. “You’re okay. I’ve got you.”

“Nance,” your voice sounded warped. “I tried.”

She shushed you, bringing your arm over her shoulders and taking most of your weight as you crumbled. You watched as Robin and Steve grabbed him, moving quickly towards the trailer.

“What? Where are you going?” Nancy shouted.

Robin grunted under the weight as she climbed the steps. “He’s got a pulse! The tourniquets are holding! We gotta move fast!”

.

Coincidentally, the nearest hospital to Forest Park was at the town line one over. Robin had assured you that since it wasn’t Hawkins, they weren’t likely to recognize him instantly. Worry for Max joined your overwhelming weight as you glanced at the destruction the earthquake had wreaked. “Do you think he got her?” You asked, voice barely audible.

“I killed him as the clock was chiming,” Nancy said, “it only rang three times. I’ll call when we get to the hospital – they’ll be okay. We’re all okay. We have to be.”

After admitting Eddie, a concerned nurse offered you a pair of scrubs to change into. Glancing down at your clothes, you realized you were covered in blood. Eddie’s blood.

Tearing up, her eyes had softened incredibly and she helped you wash it off. “It’ll all work out honey, you’ll see,” she whispered as the blood dribbled down the drain. You’d barely felt the needle as she stitched the claw marks on your chest and neck.

It’d taken an hour of arguing but you promised the others you could keep it together for the night as they drove back to Hawkins to figure out what was going on. Robin had kissed the top of your now clean hair, and clasped her hands with yours. “I will be back as soon as I can, okay? As fast as I can.” The fierceness in her tone had your eyes tearing up again and she hugged you tightly.

Five hours after being admitted, with no news, you received the second shock of the night.

“Hopper?” You sputtered, almost bowled over to see the ghost of your old Chief of police.

Head shaved, a few pounds lighter, but the smile that came from hearing your voice was just the same. “Hey kid,” he said, bringing you into a tight hug.

It took another hour, and the arrival of just about everyone you knew, for a nurse to let you know that Eddie had stabilized. They’d needed to operate to stop the internal bleeding, he’d needed a few blood transfusions and was placed into a medically induced coma, but he’d be alright.

“He’s…he’ll be okay?” You asked, not willing to cling onto any false hope.

The nurse from earlier stepped forward, her kind eyes wrinkled as she smiled. “Yeah, honey, he’ll be okay.”

Swallowing back your tears, you pulled her into a hug. “Thank you.”

Two hours later, while you sat glued to his side, Hopper let you know that Eddie was cleared of all charges.

“Do you want to know?” He asked.

Shaking your head, you smiled up at him for the first time in the last twelve hours. The sun peaked out from the horizon, drenching Eddie’s dark room in a warm orange light. “I don’t care how. Just – thank you.”

Hopper ruffled your hair and you leaned into his touch like cat arching for more affection. “They’ll want your statement but not until a few days from now. As far as you know, you were over Robin’s with Steve for the entire night. Her neighbor, Mrs. Matthews has already said she could corroborate your alibi.”

Smiling, you nodded. “I don’t even want to know what the U.S. government had on her.”

“You don’t,” he agreed.

It took Eddie another day to wake up. Wayne had finally convinced you to go get something to eat, I won’t leave his side sweetheart, I promise.

You balanced the two coffees in your hand as you pushed open the door to Eddie’s room. Surprised to see the entire party surrounded by the bed, you blinked, a little taken aback.

Dustin was the first to catch your eye, his grin so wide it almost split his face in two. “Eddie’s awake!” Your eyes darted to the bed, the man in it grinning up at a tearful Wayne.

“You absolute asshole,” you hissed, not able to keep it down.

The party laughed, Steve shaking his head. “Hi Nova,” Eddie said, voice hoarse, and you felt your stomach swoop as those eyes met yours. “I’m sorry.”

“You better be,” you said, handing Wayne his coffee. He promised to be back, wanting to speak to the doctor. The moment the door closed; chaos reigned. Everyone talked over each other and you watched, amused. Sipping your coffee, you smacked Lucas’ shoulder as he made fun of something Mike said.

Steve’s whistle was loud enough to pierce several eardrums and you winced. “One at time! The man just woke up from a coma.”

“Medically induced coma,” Mike clarified.

You fought the urge to smack him too.

Despite the severity of what brought Eddie to the hospital, after a week – he was given the all clear. The party was at Eddie’s new trailer, decorating the larger space for his homecoming. You’d been tasked to watch over the patient. You’d arrived early, still not entirely able to have him out of your sights for too long. As you popped your head in, you realized he was asleep.

Dropping into the comfortable chair next to his bed, you set yourself up for waiting. In the past week and a half, you hadn’t managed to find a moment alone with Eddie. There was always a party member at his bedside at all times. Or a band member. Or a parent.

Eddie’s room had quickly become well known for the noise and chattering that spilled out into the hallways. At its absence, you realized you didn’t know what to do.

Smacking his lips, Eddie’s head moved towards the door, eyes still closed. As he shifted, you caught sight of the large bandage by his neck. The purple bruising on his arms looked painful and your chest clenched at the sight of them.

It seemed that before you could decide for yourself, the silence swallowed you whole. Bringing you hand up to your lips, you tried to silence your sobs. Chest heaving with the effort, you buried your face into your hands and cried. The last week of pushing everything down and resolving to deal with it later had finally caught up to you.

Everyone has their reckoning, you were reminded. This was yours.

A warm hand came up to your shoulder, the bandaged one, and softly caressed where the tape adhered to your skin. “Hey you,” he said, sleep clinging to the corner of his knowing gaze.

“I’m sorry,” you sputtered, trying to push it back down but there was no use. Pandora’s box had been opened. Turning from him, you caught sight of his frown. His pained grunt made you whip back to him and you almost tripped over your own feet as you rushed to help. Eddie’s expression was twisted as he sat up, sweat beading at his temples.

“Lie down, you psychopath,” you said once the lump in your throat let you speak. “The bed will move for you! You just had surgery on your side for fuck’s sake.” You ducked your head, trying to avoid his eyes as you adjusted the bed to his liking.

Stubborn as always, Eddie tapped your forearm. “Don’t hide from me, not you,” he said softly, his eyes searching for yours. Giving in, you let your blurry sight find his and he sighed. “Nova, you should’ve told me.”

“Told you what?” You said through desperate inhales.

“That you’d been bottling it up – come here,” he said. You wished you could climb into the bed with him but you couldn’t, his incision still very off limits to movement. You were trying to decide where to touch, when he decided for you. His right hand opened, fingers wiggling towards you. “Come on.”

Interlocking your fingers with his, relishing in the touch, you pressed the back of his hand to your cheek. His pulse beat against yours, alive – wondrously and beautifully alive. This, this was what you needed. A moment to lose it before rearranging the bricks of your mental foundation back in place. The image of him, eyes unseeing, bubbled to the surface and despair twisted it’s venomous grip around your lungs.

Choking, you let the sob come out unbidden. Not sure you could stop it if you wanted to, you let the tears drown you. Weeping, you whimpered as you accepted what could’ve been. What you would’ve had to watch. The fact that you would’ve had something so important ripped from your grasp.

He's okay, you thought, he’s alive.

“I’m here,” he said, his voice a quiet echo of Nancy’s lost words. “I’m here. I got you.” After a few minutes, your chest stopped heaving and you could take a deep breath.

“I’m sorry,” you told him, a little embarrassed. “Thank you.”

“No, I’m sorry,” he said, pulling your hand from your face and towards his own. He pressed a kiss to your knuckles and you blinked at him.

“Why are you sorry?” Christ, you were a mess. He’d been in a coma for two days and he was comforting you. He’d almost died and you were too weak to be strong for your friend.

“I’m sorry for leaving you,” he said, “I’m sorry that you had to be the one I left behind. I’m sorry for scaring you. I’m sorry that you had to see me like that. I’m sorry for hurting you even if I’d do it again if it meant you were safe. It was scary and I’m sorry for doing that to you, no matter how important it was that I did it.”

His thumb caressed your hand and you bit back the tears that wanted to wail out to the world that you’d almost lost something that couldn’t be replaced. But the silence that fell was comforting, a soft and easy kind. One that didn’t need to be filled and his pulse was a balm soothing your raw panic.

And yet -

“Don’t leave me here alone. It’s your Sam calling,” you said, eyes on his. A small real, smile broke out on his face and he squeezed your hand.

Despite the bandages across his jaw, and the wince of pain as he shifted, you hadn’t seen someone look so beautiful.

“Don’t go where I can’t follow, wake up Mr. Frodo,” Eddie whispered and you beamed at him.

4. Telling you to call them so they know you got home safe.

“For fuck’s sake,” you hissed, rubbing your temples as you watched Robin hop on top of a bar table to dance.

Eddie’s laughter hit your ear and you shivered at the warmth. “Come on Nov, she looks like she’s having fun,” he said, chest pressed against your back. Tucking his chin over your shoulder, you finally waved down the bartender.

“Can I have another club soda please?” You asked, handing her the money. She nodded, eyes drifting to Eddie and smiling.

“You two are a really cute couple,” she said, sliding the glass towards you.

Opening your mouth to correct her, Eddie beat you to it. “Thank you!” At your glance, he shrugged. “It’s easier to go along with.”

Something in your chest tightened at the thought but you shrugged. “Jesus, Eddie, can you bring her down? She’s going to end up falling and cracking her neck.”

Eddie sighed, his warm hand coming up to squeeze your waist. “We really need to stop promising to be the babysitters,” he said, lips brushing against your temple before leaving to drag a protesting Robin off the sticky table.

“Hey,” a guy to your left said, his hair long and pin straight.

You turned to him, not wanting to be rude but also not wanting to make it look like you were welcoming any type of flirting. Eddie already had to shove a creep with a persistent attitude off of Nancy. “Hi,” you said, taking a sip of your drink.

“Sorry to bother you,” he said, a little too quiet for the noise level inside, “but is that the lead singer of Corroded Coffin?”

Relief flooded through you and your shoulders dropped. “Yeah, that’s him.”

“Holy shit, I saw his band last month when he was the opening act for Riot Act. I’m a big fan! They’ve got a great sound,” he said awed. “Sorry! I’m Jack.”

“Hey, I’m-”

“-here with someone,” Eddie’s voice floated over your shoulder and towards the straightening man on the stool.

A little surprised by Eddie’s furrowed expression, and practically thrown by the small ember of something in your spine at his serious tone, you placed a hand on his and smiled up at him. “This is Jack, he’s a fan of Corroded Coffin’s.”

Eddie’s expression completely transformed, a wide smile overtaking the sharp look in his eyes. “Oh man, thanks! Sorry, you know how these bars can get.”

“Yeah,” Jack said, brightening, “totally! Are you guys going to be playing somewhere else soon? I heard a few people say you might be going to Sold Out in Indianapolis!”

Eddie rubbed the back of his neck and you could tell he was flustered by the pink tinge to his neck. “We are! We’re going to be there for a few weekends for the next couple months. We start sometime in the summer. Still ironing out a few details.”

“That’s great! I’m sorry for asking but, do you mind signing something for me?” Jack asked, excitement growing his eyes.

Both of you thrown, you felt your own giddiness build in your chest. “He’d love to,” you answered for a stunned Eddie. “In fact, the entire band is here tonight. You’ll have to excuse everyone else – we’re the designated drivers. They might be a little drunk.”

At the promise of more autographs, Jack straightened. “Holy shit, yeah that’d be amazing. Thank you so much,” he stammered, grabbing a clear napkin from behind the bar and pulling a pen from his coat. “My friends are going to shit themselves.”

You squeezed Eddie’s hand when you saw it trembling as he signed with a flourish. Shooting you a grateful look, he walked Jack over to where Jeff and Gareth were chanting chug, chug, chug! at a teetering Liam.

Jesus, you sighed, rolling your eyes when Jeff’s excited hand swatted too close to Liam and he started coughing up the beer.

Turning back to your drink, you didn’t wait long before you felt Eddie’s palm at your lower back. “Well, that happened.”

Not missing a beat, you turned with a crumpled napkin and wide eyes. “Oh my God, sir, would you autograph my napkin too?”

Eddie laughed, shaking his head, and he shoved your shoulder. “Shut up,” he grumbled, motioning to the bartender for his own club soda. “You brat.”

Grinning, you bumped his shoulder with your own. “I’m glad I’ll be able to say I knew you when you were a nerdy freshman.”

“I’m still that nerdy freshman,” he huffed, “people just actually like my singing now.”

The band on stage switched to a fast paced song and the bar emptied a little as people flew to the dance floor. You couldn’t take your eyes off of him. They really deserved this. You crossed your fingers beneath the bar and hoped it was just the beginning.

“To be fair, I always liked your singing,” you told him, poking his chest. Eddie’s eyes shifted and you felt the same tightening again.

His eyes dropped back to yours, something new swimming in them, and your breath stuttered in your lungs. “I know you have,” he said, gaze darting across your face. “You’ve always been there for me.”

Not able to take the pressure in your sternum, you huffed. “And don’t forget that when you’re rich and famous, okay? I want a fancy BMW so I can taunt Steve with it.”

Eddie threw his head back and laughed. Instead of breaking the spell, your eyes drifted to his neck and you briefly thought about how appealing the muscles there were. Straightening so quickly that your spine audible snapped, you swallowed nervously.

What the fuck was that?

The look Eddie shot your way let you know that he’d caught whatever that was. Your mind raced in a thousand different directions but before you could choose a route to go down, a body pressed itself into your side.

“You guys, Jonathan puked,” Gareth said, matter of fact. “It was funny but then Steve started gagging.”

Liam joined in next, his eyes glazed. “Steve said he’s a sy-symp- sympat-” his face scrunched together when he realized he wasn’t getting the word out.

“He’s a sympathy puker?” You guessed, already knowing Steve wasn’t the best around puke. He was always the first domino to fall during hangover mornings.

“Ugh, you’re so smart,” Jeff complimented.

Brows rising, you elbowed Eddie. “Time to corral?” Sighing, Eddie nodded.

“Grab as many as you can and shove them into the right car,” he said, hands coming out to grab his bandmates before they could drift off. “Meet outside in ten?”

“Minutes?” You asked incredulously. “It’s going to take at least that long to get Steve to stop gagging.”

“Bet you five I can get them out in fifteen.”

Rolling your eyes, you slapped his outstretched hand. “That’s an easy win.”

And sure enough, you leaned against Steve’s car with an amused expression as Eddie tried for the fourth time to load Jeff into his van. You glanced at Robin, who was talking animatedly with Gareth about what sounded like cheese fries. A blur in the corner of your eye caught your attention and you watched Liam open the passenger door and pass Jonathan his joint.

“Jesus,” Eddie groaned, “okay you win, please, just-” he waved his hand towards your friends.

“Robin get in the car we have to go now,” you said firmly, knowing she was the hardest to convince but the one everyone would follow once she was.

Her expression morphed into indignation. “Gareth thinks bacon on fries is better than cheese! That’s – that’s treason.”

“Because it is better!” He said, clutching his head.

“Alright you two, you’re both right, how about that?” You turned to Gareth and glared until he simpered off towards Eddie without a backwards glance. “And you, into the car.”

“But-”

“I’ll tell everyone what you’re hiding in the box at the back of your closet,” you threatened. She paled and tripped in her hurry to the car. She knocked into a sleeping Nancy, who grunted when she landed in the middle seat with a loud thump.

“Byers, get your ass in gear or I’m telling Joyce!”

A sheepish Jonathan crawled into the car, jostling Robin who cried out and accidentally smacked a snoring Steve in the passenger seat. You quickly shut the door and locked them in. With a flourish, you took your bow and Eddie clapped. “I admit defeat o’great knight.”

“Knight in shining armor, please,” you clarified.

“Of course, of course.”

“You okay with your lot?” You asked, nodding to where Liam was starting to look a little green.

Eddie snorted. “Yeah, they’ll be fine. What about you?”

“Jonathan and Nancy live nearby, the rest of us are crashing at Steve’s. Like the good ol’ days,” you joked, shivering when a sudden cold gust of air blew your hair into your eyes.

A pair of hands came up to your arms, rubbing some warmth into them and you smiled. “Lucky, Gareth and Liam live in completely different directions,” he said with a roll of his eyes. You pointed to car behind him.

“You should lock them in before one makes a break for it,” you said, yawning and checking the time. Without giving you time to think, Eddie pulled you into a tight hug. Never needing a reason, you wrapped your arms around his waist and squeezed just as tightly back. His cold nose nudged your temple, inhaling deeply and you lean your face against his chest. His heartbeat fast and yours quickly matched its pace. With a soft sigh, Eddie let you go.

“Hey, but seriously, I’m so happy everyone else is finally seeing what I always did,” you told him, pinching one of his cheeks for levity.

Instead, he smiled at you softly. A small, little shy smile that made your heart flip. “Yeah?” His eyes softened, the brown deepening with his gaze. You felt your chest tighten painfully this time. Turning back to hop into your car, you rolled the window down and Eddie leaned into your space.

“Don’t let it get to your big head.” Eddie smiled at your barb but his eyes trailed down your face, the look in his gaze different. You leaned back to examine it but you couldn’t put your finger on it. “What?” His eyes darted back up to yours and it clicked. It looked like he knew something you didn’t.

A little surprised at what he saw there, he shook his head. “Nothing, nothing, see you tomorrow at work?” That sounded like a diversion. You had a full shift tomorrow but he was on towards the end at closing.

“Yeah,” you said, not sure you wanted to let go of this. As if sensing it, he surged forward to press a kiss to your cheek and you blinked, surprised.

“Drive home safe, call me when you get there, okay?” He said. “Leave a message if I’m not home yet. I won’t be able to sleep if I think you’re dead in a ditch somewhere.”

That, in the end, got a smile out of you. “Who would’ve thought you and Harrington would turn into the mothers of this ragtag group?”

“Hey,” he said, hands on his hips in a clear imitation of Steve, “you love it.”

“Yeah,” you said, starting your car and rolling up your window, “I do!”

5. Bringing you something just because it reminded them of you.

“Fuuuck,” you squawked, feet sliding out from under you. Bracing for the impact, your eyes flew open when Eddie’s hands slide through your underarms and steadied you. He pulled you up, your knees aching, and you both stilled.

“That…would’ve been bad,” you said quietly, looking down at the wet pavement outside the Wheeler’s house. Eddie’s eyes were wide, his gaze on the puddles.

“Note to self, slippery driveways might take down the mighty Nova but demobats are a walk in the park,” Eddie said, grinning when you whacked him.

“Ugh, they’re still outside,” Dustin shouted from the doorway, “come on, we’re taking a vote on which movie to watch first.”

Despite his teasing, you felt Eddie’s hand on your back – steady – as you followed Dustin towards the basement. Everyone was scattered, a few conversations going on at once. The party was back for the summer from college and, as tradition stated, a movie night was set on the first weekend.

El jumped up, grinning, and threw her arms around you. “Oh, hello,” you said, squeezing her tightly, “I’ve missed you.”

“Missed you,” she said into your shoulder, words muffled. You glanced up to see Max tucked into Eddie’s embrace. He smiled when they swapped and Max’s grip bruised you. Kissing her temple, you watched them tumble back onto the first couch – Mike and Lucas waving at you both.

You made to step towards a beaming Will when a hand on your elbow stopped you. “Hey, I forgot to give this to you yesterday at work,” Eddie said, hand ruffling around in bag. He grinned after a moment, pulling it out triumphantly. A small drawstring bag swung wildly for a moment before coming to a stop. The black suede looked soft and lumpy.

“We just started that gig out at Sold Out last week and we were looking for something to eat before we drove back. I saw this in the window of a store and thought of you,” Eddie said, making your heart flip. You reached for the bag, a gold necklace spilling out the mouth.

“It’s a sunflower,” you said, voice faint, thumb tracing the small blooming flower.

Eddie nodded, already rooting in his bag for something else. “You said that was Barb’s favorite flower, right?” Suddenly, it felt like the entire room had gone quiet.

“It was,” Nancy said, leaning over your shoulder to look at the pendant. “She loved them, her room was covered.” An old memory flashed through your mind.

You’d met Barb when you were six, in kindergarten. She’d shared her chocolate with you and picked you as a partner for nap time. She had a sweet smile and gave great hugs. She was good and kind, and you’d been angry at the world for taking her. For a lot of things.

“Sunflowers symbolize friendship. But really, they just make me smile.”

For a moment, just a brief second, you could hear her light laughter echo within your memory. Nancy’s soft smile let you know that you weren’t alone.

“I thought you’d like it,” he said with a smile and you knew he was thinking of the tulips you’d both left at Chrissy’s grave last week. “This way you can have her close by.”

Nancy helped you clasp it around your neck and smiled down at you. Sound filtered back in as she grunted and turned to the boys. “Don’t throw the remote!”

You scrambled to stand before Eddie could find a seat, your had grabbing his. He stilled, looking back at you – the unasked question on his lips. Taking a step forward for a hug, for a second time within a span of five minutes, you tripped on a forgotten figurine. Eddie cradled you to him, staggered, but steady.

“Okay, I stand corrected. Rainy driveways and dnd figurines,” he joked, the smile from his gaze fading when he realized how close you’d landed.

The world moved around you both in a blur. This moment, you in his arms, had happened hundreds of times. You’d known Eddie for years, both of you were affectionate people. But this…was different. Time slowed and you felt Eddie’s pulse ricochet within your own, his lips parting in surprise. You eyes darted down to the movement, his lips chapped and in this bubble you’d created – a thought crossed your mind.

You wanted to press yours to his. You wanted to press every part of you against his.

Then, quickly, a second thought rose from your subconscious.

This wasn’t the first time you’d wanted to kiss him. It wasn’t the first time that your heart felt like it would burst at the sight of him. You liked the way your skin felt electrified at his touch. The way he always seemed to focus on you. The way you both always gravitated towards each other, like sunflowers bending towards the sun. Your eyes dipped lower and you felt a lump form in your throat. The way…you were dying to bite into that tattoo on his neck. The way you wondered if he’d squirm against you. If he’d push you into the-

Holy fucking shit, you loved Eddie. You were in love with Eddie. Your best friend. How the fuck had you been so blind?

Stumbling, you staggered back from his touch – not able to think clearly with him so close. You ripped your arms away from him and greedily sucked in air.

“What’s wrong?” Eleven asked you, realizing you were all but hyperventilating.

Pulse roaring in your ears, you didn’t know what to say. Dumbstruck, your limbs went numb as you finally met Eddie’s worried eyes. He stilled at the sight of your expression and suddenly the rug was pulled completely out from under you because he knew. The look in his eyes was one of complete and total understanding.

And you knew that he knew - and he knew that you knew that he knew.

Your mind flashed back to the moment outside the bar a few months ago. That look in his eyes. The way he’d been acting strange recently. He looked at you like he knew something you didn’t. Struck, you’d honestly be less shocked if the ground opened up and Vecna swallowed you whole.

His own panic flooding his face, he took a step forward.

“No!” You shouted, a touch too loud, your soul flying out your body and staring down at the situation with terror.

“Wait, just wait,” Eddie stammered, hands raised like he was approaching a scared animal. “Let’s talk about it.”

“Oh shit,” you heard Dustin mutter. The rest of room went silent.

Robin groaned, a soft thump following. “Oh no, this isn’t good.”

“Right now?” Steve hissed. “What the hell changed?”

“What the hell is happening?” Lucas grumbled.

Max sighed. “She just realized she’s in love with him.”

Eleven’s eyes widened and Lucas frowned. “Congratulations on being the last one to find out,” he said and somehow that made it worse. Your face crumpled and everyone’s glare turned towards him.

“Jesus Sinclair, have you heard of tact?”

Were you the absolute last person to know?

He was your best friend – you couldn’t, this would ruin everything. Oh God, what if he’d known and he never said anything because he didn’t feel the same? What if he did? You honestly didn’t know which was scarier.

As your friends descended into chaos, you glanced back at Eddie and found him frozen too. Overwhelmed and feeling like you’d been knocked around the ring a few times, you let your flight instinct take over. Taking the stairs two at a time, you were at the basement door in seconds.

Chaos erupted behind you.

You were at the door and fucking Christ, you couldn’t breathe. Why couldn’t you breathe? Was the ground shaking?

“Stay here,” you heard Eddie bark at everyone, his had tone not leaving any room for argument. Despite it all, you felt the zing of something travel down your spine at the sound of it. Before you could even analyze it for what it was, it triggered another fresh wave of panic.

You knew he’d be close behind, but you were used to running for your life at this point. Practically racing down the driveway, you scrambled into your car and slammed the door shut. Your first mistake was trying to still your shaking hand to get it into the ignition.

A body half-slammed into your passenger door and you screamed, terror taking over your rational side for a moment.

“Sorry! I’m sorry! The fucking grass is wet and I slipped,” Eddie said, backing up with his palms up. “Nova, please, don’t go. Not like this. I-”

“Nope!” You said, feeling like a stupid child but you weren’t able to process right now. You’d known Eddie since you were fourteen. That was a decade. How the fuck had you been so blind? “I can’t – Eddie, I can’t! Just give me a second, okay? I need – I need to process. Alone.”

The world felt like it was crumbling. Like you were back in the hell hole, clinging to Steve and Eddie for balance as the ground shook beneath you. Oh God, this was going change everything.

Your second mistake was turning to look at him. The knot in your chest tightened beyond belief at the sight of the heartbreak in his eyes. A flash of movement brought your attention to the several heads peeking out from the windows. Eddie’s head whipped around and you could feel his glare from where you sat. “Jesus Christ, does anyone know what privacy means?” You knew it was bad when you couldn’t even muster up a smile.

“Nov…”

Like a cornered animal, you felt tears well up. “Please. I’m sorry. Please Eddie, please.” Panic clawed up your throat, threatening to pull you under. Black dots danced across your vision.

He smiled and your heart broke at the emptiness in it. “Yeah, Nov, it’s okay. I’ll go back inside, just- take a few deep breaths before you go. Okay? Don’t drive like this. Just, deep breathing, remember?”

You slammed your eyes shut; you didn’t have the strength to look at him anymore. You nodded, taking an unsteady deep inhale. How was it possible that you were the one running and he was still thinking of you?

Not sure how long you sat there but by the time you opened your eyes, your tremor had settled and Eddie was gone. Taking a deep breath, you turned your car on and peeled away from the Wheeler house.

It took Robin and Steve exactly ten hours before they showed up on your doorstep.

“I know you’re in there asshole, open up!” Robin screamed.

Jesus. You flung the door open and glared. “I have neighbors.”

“You look like shit,” Robin said, matter a fact, with a small smile on her face. You groaned, dropping your face into your palms and Steve sighed.

“For fuck’s sake Robin, it hasn’t even been a day,” he said, wrapping an arm around your shoulders and guiding you to the couch.

Not one to ever be excluded, Robin smushed herself next to you. Her thigh pressed against yours and you found yourself stuck between your two friends – friends you hadn’t ever been good at lying to.

“I know why you’re here,” you started.

Robin snorted. “Well duh, what’d you think? That we got up at nine in the morning to come wish you a good morning? Even Dingus knows better than that.”

Biting back a laugh at her quick retort, you caught Steve’s exasperated glance and nearly broke. “Do not enable the behavior,” he hissed. “How do you feel?”

What a loaded question.

“I feel a little numb. Sort of, like, if I don’t acknowledge this is happening then it isn’t,” you said, pinching the bridge of your nose, “which, I guess, is what got us both into this mess in the first place.”

Robin’s expression softened and you sighed. “I’m just…I feel embarrassed mostly. I didn’t mean to be so dramatic – I just…I was so overwhelmed and it felt like I was drowning. You were all staring at us and I couldn’t think – I couldn’t breathe.”

“Hey, give yourself some credit,” Robin said, “you needed space and time and you asked for it. Everyone needs to understand that boundary.”

“Except for you two,” you joked weakly.

Robin huffed, waving a hand in the air. “We don’t have boundaries-”

“-we should though-” Steve muttered.

“-once you’re tortured by Russians together, you’re bonded for life,” Robin continued, ignoring Steve’s scrunched expression.

They started to bicker good-naturedly and your mind drifted to Eddie. You felt horrible but it didn’t override your need to crawl under the covers and hide yourself from the world. The one question on your mind refused to be put to rest.

“How could I have been so blind?” You wondered, not realizing you’d said it out loud until Robin leaned some of her weight onto you.

Steve pulled himself closed to the edge so he could turn to look at you. His gaze was gentle, eyes on you. “I mean this genuinely with no judgement, but how could you not have noticed?”

You threw your hands out, Robin dodging your left one expertly. “I don’t know! I think I knew on some level and just ignored it? Its…scary, feelings this big for someone who’s your best friend. I’m so scared, I don’t want to lose him,” you admitted quietly. Steve sighed and you glanced at him. “When did you guys know?”

Steve frowned but Robin spoke first. “To be fair, I don’t think Eddie knew right away either. At least not that I could see and we’ve known each other for a while now too. I realized sophomore year,” she said. “You always had those damn starbursts around. I know your favorites are the red ones because Dustin tried to take one from your stash and you almost chewed his hand off.”

A pile of starbursts were tossed onto your kitchen counter now. “So?” You asked, confused at the connection.

“They’re Eddie’s favorites too and you always let him grab them. I don’t think he even knows you do that, to this day. Let’s not forget how any time either of you ever went on a date or, God forbid, had a relationship, the other was always in a constant mood.”

Before that could sink in, Steve stirred. “I realized when he’d come to visit you at Scoops. Remember when I’d smushed that sundae into you. We were waiting on Robin to come back, worried about the Russians and you’d insisted on staying to help us. You had finally decided I was worthy and we were laughing about something stupid Dustin had said.”

You knew what moment he was talking about – you’d forgotten to call Eddie and tell him you didn’t need a ride home anymore. He’d arrived, on time as always, and walked in on you and Steve wrestling over some spilled ice cream.

“I turned with your ice cream too fast and hit your chin. I was trying to clean it off but you’d taken a handful and shoved it down my uniform. Dustin was practically on the floor laughing and I was chasing you with the bowl. Eddie walked in and instantly hated me. I knew he thought I was flirting with you, which I wasn’t. It was something in the way he looked at me. He wasn’t mad that he thought I liked you, he was mad because he thought I wasn’t worth your time – you know? He wasn’t even jealous, just protective,” he said with a shrug. “With you, it took a while, I think. I wasn’t sure if you felt the same for some time. Not until I knew you better.”

“Oh,” you said, throat dry. “Did everyone know but me?”

Steve bumped your shoulder amicably. “Maybe. It’s obvious to everyone now but it’s because it’s like you’re two magnets. The second the other is in the vicinity, your gravitate together. It’s…natural, almost. Something you’d expect,” he nodded, blinking down at you. “Does that make sense?”

“No,” you said petulantly at the same time Robin nodded.

Rolling her eyes, she grasped your hands and squeezed them. It was reminiscent of that moment in the emergency room, her eyes wide but determined.

“What do you want to do about it?”

You shook your head. “Too big a question.”

Steve took over. “Okay…how do you feel? You can love him as your friend, or be in love with him as a person, but if you don’t want to risk that – it’s up to you. We can have our own opinions-”

“-that you two need to get your heads out of your asses-” Robin said, expression furrowing.

“-but,” he said, shooting her a look, “it’s your choice.”

Feeling like your chest would explode with it, you abruptly stood, needing the space to pace a hole in your carpet. Chewing on your nail, you flung another hand in the air and frowned. “Of course I love him, how could I not? He’s…he’s Eddie. He’s my Eddie. Sometimes, at night, before going to bed I think about it you know. I think about how we were too close to be just best friends. We did things that went far past platonic and it was addicting. I – fuck. I love him. I love him.”

Shoving Steve’s hand off her shoulder, Robin stood, her arms coming down to your shoulders and shaking you. “So, I ask again, what do you want to do about it?”

You started to shake your head but she shut it down. “No, enough with this. You’re the bravest of us all. What do you want to do about it?”

“Robin-”

She waved a hand in Steve’s direction, her blue eyes turning sharp. “Say it.”

The knot in your chest choked you as you swallowed nervously. You wrung your hands together but you knew. You didn’t feel unsettled and panicked because you didn’t want him – you felt off kilter because he wasn’t here. You’d run away when you really wanted to just be with him. You’d hurt the one person you never wanted to hurt.

“I want – I want to tell him. I need to tell him!” You said, spine straightening.

Robin smiled. “There she is.”

“Oh my God,” you said, hands coming up to your face. “I just ran away; he must be freaking out.”

Steve stood, grabbing a yellow starburst. “He was a little…freaked out.”

Guilt flooded you as Robin glared at him.

“Shit, I need to talk to him. Right now. Where’re my shoes? I need to go!” You ran around your living room, frantically looking for your converse.

How the fuck could you have just left him behind? Without telling him – without saying the words. Suddenly, you remembered.

“Fuck! He’s in Indianapolis,” you said, slumping into a nearby chair, “he won’t be back until Sunday night.”

Steve frowned, his hands inching towards a red starburst and you shot him a glare.

“I’m distressed but not dead, get your hands off the red ones,” you snapped.

Robin laughed, knowing glint in her eyes and she grabbed a set of keys from your front table. “You have a fucking car and Indianapolis is three hours away, not across the country. Get what you need and let’s go.”

.

“Get off, you’re squishing me!” Max hissed at Lucas.

“Where do you want me to go? It’s a small car!”

“Will you two shut up?” Dustin snapped.

Robin sighed from the passenger seat and you took the same left as Steve did ahead of you. “You know, I don’t know why you all thought it’d be fun to make this into a group road trip,” she sighed, “you really don’t know how to mind your business!”

You snorted at the hypocrisy of the situation and she shot you a look. Shutting up, you made sure to stay behind the maroon BMW.

“We can’t miss this,” Dustin stressed, “he’s been in love with her for the entire time I’ve known him. I can’t deal with all the pining anymore. I get to see this through!”

You glared at him through the mirror. “We are not a soap opera to entertain yourself with,” you snapped.

By the time you’d made it out to your car, the rest of the party had managed to bike to your apartment with their own nosy agendas. Once they’d found out you were going to drive down to Eddie’s gig, they climbed into your cars – not leaving room for arguing. Because God forbid any of you do something without the entire party knowing.

“You probably won’t even be let in, this is a twenty one or older bar. As in, where they serve alcohol.”

“So?”

Robin shifted around to glare at them. “As in, you’re all not twenty-one yet?”

“Robin, please, what do you take us for? Rookies?” Dustin asked, his brow quirking. “I’m basically Corroded Coffin’s manager-”

“-you’re really not,” you said, thinking of Charlie, Gareth’s cousin who handled all the gigs and scheduling.

“-and I’ve got passes to all their gigs, it’ll be easy.”

Sharing a look with Robin, she shrugged. “Whatever, don’t whine about it to me when you’ve got to stay in the car the whole time.”

Not twenty minutes later, you both rolled your eyes at Dustin’s smug look as the bouncer let them all through with bright green bands indicating they couldn’t be served alcohol.

“Shut up,” Robin hissed.

“What time is it?” You asked, grabbing Steve’s wrist. “Shit, they go on soon – I think I can still catch them backstage.”

“Go, go!” Robin urged, shoving you forward.

Shouldering your way through the crowd, you were astounded at how packed the bar was. Determined, you kept slipping through the restless horde of people. You’d gotten halfway through when a loud strum stopped you. The crowd came alive, cheering and screaming as Eddie sauntered on stage.

Your heart dropped at the sight of the bags under his eyes. “Hello Indianapolis! How are you all tonight?”

The crowd went wild and you were jostled forward, right towards the front. Eddie was a few feet away and you sighed. Of course.

The band went through with introducing themselves, like they always did before starting, and you resigned yourself to catching him after their set. You watched Eddie swing his guitar over his shoulder, adjusting the strap. You don’t know how, in the sheer amount of people in the crowd, but as his eyes swept across the front row – they zeroed in on you.

Surprised, you blinked up at him. His answering grin was so wide, it cracked your heart further. Your breath rushed right out your lungs. Frozen, you stared up at him, and wondered how you could have ever been so blind as to not notice the way your heart always leapt around him. It rattled around in your ribcage, like a police siren. Him, we want him, it shouted at you, grinning up at you when you tried to knock it back into place.

I know, I know we do, you told it.

Of course you loved him, it was Eddie. How could you ever have thought otherwise? You wanted his friendship, because that was the most important part, but you wanted more. You’d always wanted more and you weren’t going to let fear keep you from reaching for it.

Eyes not leaving yours, he grabbed the mic again. “So, I have someone important in the audience today – someone who means a lot to me. She hasn’t heard our newest cover yet but, it’s one of her favorite songs. I’ll admit, it’s never been one of mine but I changed it around a little for her and hope you all like it too.”

Raising your brows at the first few notes, you couldn’t keep your delirious laugh in when you heard him start singing.

“Ooh, baby, do you know what that's worth?

Ooh, Heaven is a place on Earth.”

Eddie’s voice lowered as he rasped out the vowels, the drums transforming the song entirely.

You watched Eddie transform, he always put his entire being into the performance and you loved watching him relish in it. Bobbing your head to the song, you danced alongside the three girls to your left.

Catching his eyes towards the end, he grinned as he inhaled.

“In this world, we're just beginnin'

To understand the miracle of livin'

Baby, I was afraid before

But I'm not afraid anymore.”

A smile made it’s way onto your face as you shook your head and you knew he’d caught it by his laugh. Staying right in the middle, with the crowd’s energy pulsing around you, you sat through the entire set.

As Metallica rung through the speakers, you knew it was their closing song. Eddie nodded towards the side door and you started to make your way there.

The guard at the door stood at your approach but the door behind him opened in time for you to catch Charlie’s smile. “She’s good,” she told him, “whenever you see her around this summer, let her through. She’s with Munson.”

The burly guard smiled then. “Oh, you’re his girl? Don’t worry, I never forget a face.” He waved you through and you knew she could read the mild embarrassment in your eyes.

“Don’t worry, I won’t pry,” she said, elbowing you, “but I’m happy for you two. Anyone with eyes can tell you’re gone on each other.”

Right.

“I’ve got to help them pack but you’ve been to the green room in the back – he’ll come by when they’re done.”

Thanking her, you stumbled your way there – nerves finally taking over you. You should’ve thought about what to say – how to say it. God, why did you feel so awkward? You’d fought monsters from another dimension but you couldn’t tell your best friend that you loved him?

The door suddenly burst open and Eddie came in, guitar still in hand and hair stuck to his skin. “Hey you,” you said, standing from the velvet couch. “You were amazing.”

“Yeah?” Eddie said hopefully, putting the familiar guitar down and turning his full attention to you. “I thought you weren’t going to come.”

“There was a full house, I – I’m so happy for you guys. Are you booked full for tomorrow night too?” You asked despite knowing the answer. You needed a moment, just a brief moment of normalcy before you flung yourself off the metaphorical cliff.

Eddie nodded, a ghost of a smile flashing across his face. He knew. He knew that you knew that he knew. Because of course he did. But he was letting you take this at your pace, because Eddie never did anything you didn’t want to. He always let you lead.

He opened his mouth, no doubt ready to let you distract yourself, but you were done with the pretenses.

“Fuck it,” you said, surging forward. A flash of surprise was the last thing you saw before you slammed Eddie into the wall and pressed your lips to his.

Finally! Your heart sang, finally, we’re home.

Eddie took a second but after a beat he met you just as fiercely. His grip was bruising on your waist, his other hand coming up to the back of your neck. Not giving him a chance to take the lead from you, you ran your fingers through his hair and pulled his head back. He moaned and the sound shot straight to your stomach. Butterflies in full force, you leaned back, out of breath and saw the dazed look in his eyes.

“Nova,” he begged, unseeing eyes darting around your face. “Nova.”

“I know,” you said, right before you dove back in and pressed open mouth kisses to his neck. And then, after all these years, you finally sunk your teeth into the meaty part of his neck. Right at the base of the skull tattoo. Eddie jerked, as if electrocuted, and shoved you back. Stumbling, you let him cradle your jaw, the other lowering you onto the couch.

Needing more, you whimpered and Eddie grinned. His knee pushed up between your legs and the pressure was amazing. Your hips stuttered, bumping into his and you both hissed. His teeth worried the sensitive skin of your neck and you whined as he lapped at the bruise he left.

“Eddie,” you gasped, “Eddie, please.”

His forehead came down to your shoulder, his chest heaving like he’d run a marathon, and you both just breathed the other in. At your nudging, he dropped his weight onto you and you jerked at the hardness you felt by your hip.

“Sorry,” he said, not sounding at all sorry. “The amount of adrenaline going through me right now-”

“It’s okay,” you assured him, hand drifting down his side but Eddie caught it. “I can help,” you offered. Jesus, you wanted to help if the pressure between your legs was any indication. Eddie’s face softened, his eyes drifting down your face and he groaned.

“I want that too but, maybe we should talk first? Before going past the no return point?”

You blinked. “Munson, I’m past the no return point,” you said, matter of fact. And it was true. There was no going back now.

His answering smile blinded you and you heart threatened to burst at the happiness you found there. “Yeah?” He asked, tone a little uneven.

You nodded, fingers trailing down his face. Eddie lifted himself off you, sitting on the couch and pulling you into his lap. “Yeah, me too.”

“When did you realize? And why didn’t you tell me?” You asked, ripping the band aid off.

“Because I was scared,” he admitted, “I...think I’ve always loved you. From that moment in the hallway when you chased away Tommy and his gang of assholes. You took one look at me and I think I was yours. I didn’t want to ruin what we had but there were times where I’d catch us in moments and I thought yeah, this could work. I wanted it so badly but I didn’t want to lose you. Then, years later, I realized you felt it too. I just, wanted you to get there on your own. I never wanted you to feel like you had no choice or no out. You’ll always have me, in any form you want me.”

Your heart melted. “You’re killing me,” you groaned, dropping your forehead to his shoulder.

Eddie laughed, his chest rumbling with it. “I’m sorry but, it’s the truth.”

“I know I’ve said it before but, I love you Eddie. How could I not?” You said, cradling his jaw in your hand.

Eddie pressed his lips to yours, eyes suspiciously red, and you decided to be mature enough and not tease him.

“Hey, you didn’t answer the first question. When did you really realize?”

“To be fair, it took me a while. Everyone knew I hated Mason,” he said and you thought back to your first boyfriend who’d moved to Texas your junior year, “which made the guys tease the shit out of me but I think I fully realized it for our senior prom. I was so bummed that you were going off to college and I was stuck in Hawkins. Then, you managed to blackmail Higgins into letting me go-”

“I didn’t blackmail him, I just asked,” you laughed.

“-I knew you knew I was upset and I could tell you wanted to cheer me up. But then you did that stupid promposal-”

“Hey!”

“And you had that big bouquet of daisies. And it hit me like a fucking truck, I’m not going to lie. That’s why – I don’t blame you. It was a lot,” he said, his fingers trailing down your cheek. “We’d been friends for years at that point. It was both shocking and stupidly obvious. How could I not have realized? It took you, standing in that meadow behind my old trailer, that massive glitter poster and those flowers. It was like…lightning. One moment I was totally oblivious and then the next, I just knew.”

“Is that why you never dated anyone after that? I thought you were hung up on Joan,” you said, thinking back on the girl he dated through high school.

He smiled, looking down at you. “No, I’ve always been yours. You’re branded on my soul, Supernova. From that first moment in that old gross hallway.”

“How did you know that I felt the same? I didn’t even know.”

Your heart sung, breath completely stolen at the look he gave you. “I mean, I didn’t know-” You leaned back to shoot him a look and he snorted. “There wasn’t an exact moment! After you went to Indie State and we’d hang out there were just small moments, I promise. Like, how you’d wait up for my call when I got home after visiting you. Or, how you stayed up all night to help me study for my finals – like two years in a row. Or that time that I caught the flu and you hit every pharmacy in Indiana getting me what I needed. Or the way Wayne just downright loves you – there’s no competition. You’re his favorite.”

“Because I bring him baked goods,” you said, laughing.

Eddie smiled. “Yeah, but he’s always loved you because you care. You just – you do all these little things and I didn’t notice until I did. I don’t know.”

You mulled that over and realized he was right. The way Eddie would steer you away from sharp corners, or always made sure you walked on the opposite side of the curb. How he always knew your order or how you liked you take your coffee. You flashed back to his broken body and how you’d snapped and lost it. How he’d only thought of making sure you were okay when he woke up.

In hindsight, you realized, he was right. It wasn’t one big moment. It was a lot of little ones.

“I’m sorry it took me so long to get there,” you whispered, thumb tracing his bottom lip, “I’m sorry for leaving you at the Wheeler’s house. I should’ve been braver.”

“You are brave,” he whispered back, “I knew you just needed time. Besides, I was going to give you a week before I hunted you down.”

Laughing, you wrapped your arm around his shoulder, the other played with his necklace. “Yeah?” You felt suddenly shy.

“Yeah. Even if I was wrong and you didn’t feel the same way,” he shrugged, “I wasn’t scared enough to let you go. Romantic or platonic, Nova, we’re for life. Between Vecna and surviving ninth grade gym class together, we’re practically trauma bonded at this point.”

You laughed realizing you’d already had a lifetime of experiences with him. Eyes trailing down his content expression, you kissed the corner of his mouth. But a lifetime wasn’t enough. You wanted more. And you’d have more – you had all the time in the world.

“Yeah, Munson, we’re for life,” you agreed and leaned back down to kiss him.

Because hey, even he was right sometimes.

A/N: thank you all so much for the comments on my other fic, you cannot imagine what it means to me! This is the cover I was thinking of if anyone's interested.

[fandomgirlz01]

You Matter Most  Pt. 2

Evan “Buck” Buckley X Reader

Imagine on my fandom Instagram?: No  

Prompt or Request or Requested Prompt?: No

Style of Writing: Mini Series  

Edited: Yes

Word count:  5,635

Post Date & Time: June 6th 2024 at 12:31 AM

Ko-fi

Masterlist

Warnings here

You can listen to the story be read out loud here.

Summary: {Based off of S6 E18 Pay it Forward} When a series of freeway accidents lead to a big catastrophe, Buck must worry for his team as he rushes to help them all before it only leads to  an even bigger disaster. All while working on helping his team he worries mostly for his best friend who’s unconscious for most of it. 

Buck’s Pov:

We watch the van as it shifts for a few minutes before it starts to wiggle out of its spot. 

“Get back! Get back!” I yell out to everyone and soon everybody rushes to get out of the way. 

Hen groans as me and Eddie quickly push her away. The van now starts to roll and it rolls a full 360 before landing on the ground, making dust fly up around all of us as we all duck for cover. When we are clear of anything hitting us, me, Eddie and Hen all stop to turn and look at it. The ambulance shifts around now that the van isn’t holding it up and it’s only held by the rope I had tied to it. We all helplessly watch as the back doors fly open and Chimney comes flying out. He quickly grabs onto the back of it and hangs there, trying not to let go. 

“Chim!” Hen screams out in fear as she and Eddie take a step forward. 

“Hey, Chim! Chim, hang on!” I quickly call out from behind Hen and Eddie as I race back to the wreckage. 

“Hang on! Hang on, Chim,” I call out as I run through all the dust and cars. 

I quickly climb back up to where he is and I can hear him groaning as I do. He continues to hold onto the back of the ambulance as I grab the rope beside him and quickly jump over to him. 

“I got him. I got him,” I call out when I’m with him. 

I grab onto him and together we both climb to the side and away from the ambulance. Slowly, I start to scale down with him as he continues to groan out in pain. Soon we make it to the bottom and we turn around when we hear more sirens from other trucks. Chimney and I both sigh out in relief at the sound. 

“Dispatch. I’ve got firefighter Han, going back for firefighter Maysen now,” I use my radio to let Maddie know Chimney is okay. 

“Copy that,” Maddie replies over the radio, making me and Chimney smile at each other. 

“I got him! Come on!” I yell out as I pick him up and rush him over to the other paramedics. 

“All right. Let us though,” the other paramedics call out as they meet us in the middle with a gurney that I set Chimney on. 

“I think we’re gonna need a new gurney,” Chimney jokes as Hen comes up next to him. 

We all laugh as Hen and the others quickly assess him and get his wound wrapped up. He turns to me and pushes my hand away. 

“Go get her. I’ve got Hen. Firecracker needs her best friend. Go,” he tells me and I smile at the nickname all of us use for her. 

“Okay,” I finally agree, nodding before quickly heading back for the rope again. 

“Ravi, I’m going to need you to send down the band saw once I get to y/n. Can you do that?” I ask into my radio and pause as I continue to climb. 

“Yeah. You got it. Just let me know when,” he replies over the radio. 

I climb for a few more minutes before getting closer to the slab. I go to pull myself up onto it, but it shifts so I stop for a moment. Once it settles, I try again more carefully and finally I’m right next to y/n. I stay on my knees in hopes of not being too much weight and take in a deep breath at how bad it actually is. Once I’m more calm, I start to move the ruble away from her. 

“Ok, Ravi, send the bandsaw down,” I command through my radio. 

It takes a few minutes, but soon the bandsaw that’s connected to a rope is next to me. I quickly grab it and start to saw the rebar as close as I can to the cement underneath her. 

“Hen, do I pull her off or do I keep her attached?” I ask through my radio. 

“Is there a lot of blood?” she asks me back though the radio and I gulp before pressing down on the button again. 

“There’s a fair amount,” I push out my words as my throat starts to feel tighter.  

“Then yes, keep her connected. They’ll have to remove it at the hospital,” she replies through the radio again and I nod even though she can’t see me. 

I quickly saw as fast as possible while trying to keep it away from her skin. It takes a good few minutes of sawing back and forth at the rebar, but soon it comes apart. I can’t help but be thankful that the rebar wasn’t incredibly thick. With one last sigh, I throw the saw aside before gently moving her to the best position that I can. 

Next, I jump lightly off the slab while a couple other firefighters from the 256 come over. They take her from me as I carefully try to move her down by myself, cooing softly into her ear that I’m here with her and that she’ll be okay. After finally getting down, they place her on a gurney and I follow as they wheel her over next to Chimney. 

“Hey. You got her. How’s she doing?” Chimney asks as he lolls his head to the side to look at her. 

“I don’t know. She’s lost a lot of blood…” I inform him as I watch the other paramedics work on her and prepare her to be transferred. 

“This is Sargent Athena Grant. To anyone on scene. I have captain Nash of the 118 and a civilian. We’re trapped in the container at the bottom of the collapse,” comes Athena’s voice over the radio and we all pause to listen. 

“He’s pinned. We’re in need of an assist with extraction,” she continues to explain and Chimney sits up, ready to help. 

“No, Chim. Chim, stay,” I tell him, pointing at him as I start to head over while Hen and Eddie push him back down. 

Eddie, Hen and I rush over as I call out for Bobby. We quickly look around for any way in and I climb a bit to get a better idea of what needs to be done. 

“Hen, the door is completely blocked by debris,” Eddie voices to us as he leans against the container. 

“Dispatch? Dispatch, we’re gonna need heavy rescue on the lower level of the interchange. There’s no way we’re going to be able to move all this debris,” Hen speaks into her radio while Eddie tries pushing on the doors. 

We keep looking for a way in, but keep finding none. I climb back down and we keep trying, but still nothing seems to work. 

“118, be advised. Caltrans crew is on site, prepared to assist,” Maddie’s voice comes over the radio and we all stop to look around. 

Soon the crane drives over and I quickly reach out for some chains that were brought over. I loop the chains though whatever I can before the crane hooks come down. Once they get closer, I reach up and grab onto the first one I can reach and click it onto the chains. 

“Yeah. Okay, up, up, up! Go, go, go!” I yell out as I motion for the driver to go up. 

He does it and soon the slab of concrete debris is moving. I’m the first to rush in as it falls to the ground behind me and I open the door to the container with Ravi’s help. We immediately find them and with the civilian's help, Eddie and I lift the biggest piece of concrete off of Bobby. Once it’s out of the way, Hen and a few others come in with the airbag. Eddie quickly takes it out of the bag and shoves it under before grabbing the pump. He then starts to air it up, making the concrete lift off of Bobby. 

Once it’s high enough, we all move back and I grab Bobby’s hand. I quickly pull him out and a stretcher is waiting for him when I do. 

“I’m going with y/n. Hen, you got him?” I ask her and she nods. 

“Yeah. Yeah. Go with Firecracker. Me and Athena have Bobby and Chim,” she tells me and I quickly nod before running off. 

I quickly run over to her ambulance and they let me hop in with them before heading to the hospital. I hold her hand the whole way and force myself not to cry until I know more about her condition. Once at the hospital, they quickly open the doors of the ambulance and start to push her out. Just as we get out, everyone else seems to arrive as well. They push her farther into the hospital and I keep hold of her hand as all the others get pushed in as well. 

“We’ve got an abdominal puncture wound. Seems to have missed major organs,” Hen quickly explains about Chimney as they wheel him though first. 

“Already pushed two milligrams of morphine,” she shouts out, pointing to Chimney as they continue in and she spins back around. 

“This one’s got a couple of broken ribs, refused to take anything for the pain,” she explains about Eddie as she helps Athena walk him in. 

“I’m fine!” Eddie groans out through clenched teeth before Hen turns back around. 

“No. You’re not,” Hen sternly tells him before moving on to Cap as they roll him in next.

“Captain has a probable AC joint sprain, over a dozen lacerations and too many bone bruises to count. Aside from that, he’s in one piece,” Hen informs them as they continue to push Bobby though and she walks by his side. 

“Gonna take more than a couple tons of asphalt and a semi to take Cap down,” I comment as I walk in right behind them with y/n. 

“Thanks to you guys and LAPD’s finest,” Bobby tells us as he nods at Athena. 

“Just another day on the job,” Athena tells him before he too gets rolled off. 

“We’ve got another abdominal puncture wound, not really sure if it hit any organs. Had to leave the rebar in her side due to major blood loss and still unconscious,” Hen updates y/n’s nurses that had taken over from the paramedics right before they got to the doors. 

I keep a hold on her hand, not ready to leave her side. The nurses come to a stop, making me look up at them. 

“Sir. You’ll have to stay out here while she’s in surgery,” the paramedic tells me as he holds a hand up and my eyebrows furrow. 

“I’m not leaving her,” I disagree, shaking my head as anger takes over. 

“Sir. I promise we’ll take the best care of her, but you can’t come back into surgery with her,” he again tells me and I unintentionally let out a growl. 

“I am not leaving her. I can’t…” I petulantly fight back and he sighs, pinching at his nose. 

“Sir. You can’t. I’m sorry, but you have to stay here. Why don’t you get yourself checked out so you’ll be ok when she needs you?” he offers and I take a moment to think about it. 

“Buck. Let them take her back. She’ll be okay,” A voice speaks up as they grab onto my shoulder and slightly pulls me back. 

I turn to the voice and see Maddie giving me a sorrowful look. Before I even have time to say anything, my big sister is pulling me into a hug. I sigh and relax into the hug, gripping onto my sister's shirt. 

“She’ll be okay, Buck. She’s strong, remember? She’s not leaving you yet,” Maddie softly tells me as she rubs my back and I nod. 

“Why don’t you go get checked out and I’ll make sure you're the first to know if there’s any news?” she asks me and I hesitate, but agree. 

“Good. Umm, excuse me, ma’am. Can you please have my brother checked out? He’s part of the 118,” Maddie explains as she stops a nurse that was walking past us. 

“Sure. If you would just follow me this way, sir,” the nurse says and I again hesitate, but follow her when Maddie gives a nod. 

“I’m going to find Chim. When you're done, come find me, alright?” she asks me and I nod at her before turning and following the nurse. 

The nurse takes me back to a bed and has me sit down on it. She then proceeds to look me over and only takes a few minutes before smiling softly. 

“Well, Mr. Buckley, you only seem to have a very moderate concussion and very little cuts along with some bruising. You should be okay, just have someone be with you just in case,” she tells me and I nod as she takes off her gloves. 

“Am I good to go?” I ask her and she nods softly with a ’Hmm’. 

Once she gives me the okay, I pull back the curtain and head back out to the waiting room. I walk through the two double doors I’d gone through and find Maddie sitting and talking with Athena. 

Third Person Pov: 

After getting Buck to agree to get checked out, Maddie can breathe just a little easier. In her head she checks him off, happy that one of the three people she was most scared for is okay. She watches as he disappears with the nurse before rushing off to find Chimney. It takes her a few minutes, but finally she finds him and rushes over to him. 

“Chim,” she calls out to him as she comes up next to him on the stretcher. 

“Hey,” he tells her as he takes his oxygen mask off when he sees her. 

“Hi,” she tells him with tears in her eyes. 

“Don’t worry. It’s worse than it looks,” he jokes with a chuckle. 

“Oh,” he moans as he doubles over ever so slightly. “I’m fine,” he groans out after the wave of pain hits him and she rubs his shoulder. 

“Good. ‘Cause you’re not getting out of marrying me that easy,” she jokes back with a small laugh, making him chuckle. 

“Plus, I think we may have a new couple you’ll want to see when all of this is said and done,” Maddie comments and Chimney gives her a shocked yet hopeful look. 

“Really?” he questions and Maddie nods. 

“Ha. I called it! Hen owes me 50 bucks!” Chimney calls out before groaning in pain and Maddie laughs. 

“You two bet on Buck and y/n?” she questions with a raised eyebrow. 

“Well to be fair, we were just betting they’d be together by the end of this month, not that one would get hurt. But in all fairness, it worked out in my favor…” Chimney tells her as he bounces his eyebrows weakly and she laughs. 

“Oh…” she comments as she finally really looks him over. “Honey…” she whispers out as he grabs onto her hand. 

“I love you,” he tells her and she grins. 

“Love you, too,” she parrots him with a nod and he smiles at her. He lets out a breath as he lays his head back and she squeezes his hand. 

Maddie comes walking back though the waiting room with two coffees in hand just as Athena walks out one of the other members of the 118. Maddie rounds the chair and meets up with Athena in the middle. 

“So that’s everyone?” Maddie asks as she holds one of the coffees out for her. 

“Yep. All the 118ers have been released and sent home. Except for ours,” Athena informs her as they both take a seat. 

“Doctors think they can release Bobby tonight, though. And you?” Athena explains before pointing at Maddie, who sighs. 

“We have one more scan for Chim, if it’s clear, then tomorrow morning. You can guess how he took that news,” Maddie jokes even though she still worries for one more. 

“Bobby tried to roll himself into the elevator when I wasn’t looking,” Athena jokingly tells her and Maddie laughs. 

“You know they spend all of their time with the sick and injured, and yet…” Maddie starts trailing off at the end. 

“They are the worst patients,” Athena finishes off for her. 

“Still doesn’t seem real,” Maddie comments as she watches the news on the Tv in the corner. 

“That it happened, or that anyone survived it?” Athena asks and the mood becomes more serious. 

“Both,” Maddie tells her with a nod. 

“And they all can’t wait to get back out there again,” Maddie says, trying to lighten the mood again.

“It takes a special kind of crazy to want to live this life,” Athena jokes right back, making Maddie laugh. 

“Oh, by the way. Congratulations on your engagement,” Athena reverently tells her and Maddie smiles. 

“Thanks,” Maddie says with a smile before they clink their coffee cups together. 

“So, how’s y/n?” Athena asks after a minute of silence. 

“She’s doing okay, out of surgery,” Maddie starts to explain after sighing and shaking her head as she fights tears. 

“The rebar missed all vital organs thankfully. It did however rupture part of her large intestine as well as her small intestine. The nurse said y/n got lucky, that it pierced between the two almost perfectly, that’s why there was so much blood, but the doctor was able to fully repair any damage and she’s in the ICU now,” Maddie continues to explain but pauses a moment when she gets choked up. 

“They are saying hopefully she’ll wake up tomorrow morning and if she does, she’ll be in a regular room,” Maddie finishes explaining and takes a big breath of air in as more tears come up. 

“She’ll be okay. How’s Buck dealing with it all?” She asks, making Maddie chuckle. 

“How do you think he is? He wouldn’t even let go of her hand to let them take her to surgery,” Maddie explains with a roll of her eyes. 

“Sounds like Buck. Where is he now?” Athena asks as she looks around for him. 

“I sent him to get checked out too. He’s going to come find me soon hopefully. I’m going to try and get him to go home, but I don’t know if he will,” Maddie explains and Athena gives her a knowing look. 

“That’s going to be one tough mission,” she comments and Maddie nods just as Buck walks through the door.

Buck’s Pov: 

I sigh and rub my face as I walk over to Athena and Maddie. I stop just before them and Maddie pats the seat next to her. 

“So?” Maddie questions and I huff as I sit down next to my sister. 

“I don’t know why you had me get checked out. I just have a moderate concussion along with a few cuts and bruises, which I figured,” I inform her and she shakes her head. 

“It made you think about something other than worrying about y/n,” she tells me and Athena gives me a soft, sympathetic smile. 

“We’re glad you're okay too, though. You never know what could have been, especially with what you went through today,” Athena explains and I sigh before agreeing. 

“And the last few years… like electrocution, the engine falling on top of you… ya know only to list a few…” Maddie adds on with a roll of her eyes making Athena chuckle. 

“She is right you have been through a lot the last few years,” athen adds in her two cents. 

“Yeah. Yeah. I guess you're right. How’s y/n and Chim?” I ask Maddie and she sighs. 

“She’s out of surgery and in the ICU to be watched over. If she wakes in the morning, she’ll go to a normal room for recovery,” Maddie explains as she rubs my shoulder. 

“The doctor says she should be just fine. Just like I said she’d be. Chim gets to go home tomorrow morning maybe,” she continues and I go to get up, but she pulls me back down. 

“Where are you going?” she asks me with a raised eyebrow. 

“I’m going to be with her,” I remark in a matter of fact tone and she sighs. 

“No. You're going home. You need rest. Plus there’s no visiting in the ICU right now,” she commands and I shake my head before groaning. 

“No way in hell am I going home. I’ll stay right here,” I fight back and she gives me the same stern look that she’d give me and Y/n as kids growing up. 

“Buck. I will be here the whole night. I promise I will call if something happens, okay? Just please go home and get some rest. Plus, don’t you need to check in on Kameron?” Maddie questions and my eyes widen. 

“Shit. I forgot about Kameron. Yeah, I probably should, seeing as Connor probably hasn’t,” I groan out, rubbing at my face. 

“So, go home. Shower. Rest up a bit and then come back in the morning,” Maddie softly appeals to me as she rubs my back. 

“I can’t leave her though, Mads,” I speak with my voice trembling ever so slightly and my eyes filling up with tears. 

“I know, but baby brother you need to think of yourself too. I promise I will call right away if anything happens, okay?” she practically begs me and I sigh, nodding slowly. 

“Okay, but the MOMENT something happens, I am called…” I sternly tell her and she nods admittedly. 

“The very moment,” she promises me and I sigh, nodding. 

“Okay. I’ll go home then,” I agree, making Athena and Maddie give each other triumphant looks. 

“Okay. Try and get some form of rest,” she commands me as I stand up. 

“I’ll try, but no guarantees,” I promise her and she smiles, nodding softly. 

“All I ask is that you try, okay?” she asks me as she gets up too. 

“Okay…” I agree before she’s pulling me into a hug. 

I close my eyes and grip onto my sister a little harder, letting the comfort take over. She rubs at the back of my head and I hold back tears at the thought that she’s not the only one that does that. She pulls away and I open my eyes to look at her. She gives me a soft smile of encouragement before squeezing my arm. 

“She’ll be okay, baby brother. You just have to believe it,” she promises me and I nod, not trusting my voice at the moment. 

“Maybe by then Bobby will be released,” Athena comments and I just nod, unable to get any words out. 

“Buck. You’ve been through so much, so has she. She’s not going to let this be what takes her out. I just know it,” Maddie encourages me and I sigh, nodding as I wipe at my face quickly. 

“Okay. Ready to go?” Athena asks and I hesitate again, but slowly agree. 

Athena nods solemnly, then nods to Maddie before we both turn and start to walk towards the doors. We quietly walk to her patrol car and she unlocks it. Both of us get in and she starts the car up. 

“Do you want me to take you to get your car in the morning?” she asks me as she starts driving and I pause a moment to think about it. 

“If it’s not too much trouble, yeah,” I agree and she smiles softly at me. 

“It’s never too much trouble for you, Buck,” she tells me in a soft tone and I weakly smile. 

“Thank you, Athena. Really,” I speak in a reverent tone and she nods. 

She continues to drive for a little while longer before pulling up at my apartment complex. She parks the car and turns to me. 

“You take care of yourself, okay. I know you’re worried for our girl, but I know she’s strong. She’ll be awake before you know it,” Athena sympathizes with me as she reaches over and squeezes my arm. 

“I promise. Plus, I’ll probably have Kameron nitpicking all over me the second I walk through the door. I’ll be good,” I inform her and she smiles softly. 

“That’s all we ask, Buck. I’ll call you in the morning when I’m on my way to come get you,” she explains and I nod softly at her before getting out of the car. 

After closing her car door, I walk up to the entrance of the complex before going inside. Once I’m in, I walk over to the elevator and press my floor’s botton. As I wait for the elevator, I lean against the wall and let out a sigh while frustratedly rubbing at my face. The elevator finally starts to go up and I let out another puff of air as it feels like a forever ride. 

Finally the elevator comes to a stop and the doors slowly open. I let out one more huff at the thought that just this morning, she was walking these halls with me. I slowly walk down the hall, almost dragging my feet to my apartment, pull out my keys and unlock the door. The door clicks open and I turn the knob until I can push it open. 

The lights are still on when I walk in, making me confused so I walk a little farther in. Kameron sits on the couch watching some TV with a jar of peanut butter. She slowly turns to look at me and drops her spoon. 

“Oh my goodness, Buck. I saw the news. Is everyone doing okay?” she asks me and I pause before shaking my head. 

“Almost everyone is fine. Y/n’s the only one that got injured badly,” I tell her and she frowns, getting up to come over to me. 

“I’m sorry. I know you want to be with her,” she tells me as she pulls me into a hug. 

“I’ll see her in the morning. For now I’m nursing a concussion, so you’ll be in charge of keeping me up,” I tell her and she smiles softly as she nods. 

“Of course. I can do that. Hold that thought, I gotta go pee,” she informs me before rushing off and I chuckle, shaking my head. 

I sit down on the couch and immediately my mood falls again when I see the picture of us that sits on my coffee table. I gulp and pick it up, remembering the memory for a small moment before Kameron walks back out. 

“She’ll be okay, Buck. I’ve only known her for a year at most, but I know she’s strong,” Kameron comforts me and I sigh, nodding as I put the picture back. 

“It’s only been a few hours, but I miss her so much, Kam,” I cry out and she smiles sympathetically before sitting down next to me. 

“I know, honey. I know,” she sweetly tells me as she pulls me into a hug and strokes my head lovingly. 

“You’ll be a great mom, Kam. I’m glad I could help you guys have that,” I tell her and she giggles lightly. 

“You really think so?” she asks me and I pull back, nodding. 

“Look how you just comforted me. I know so, Kam,” I promise her and she smiles softly at me. 

“Well thank you, Buck. That makes me feel a lot less scared,” she informs me and I smile softly at her. 

“Of course, Kam. I can’t wait to watch your little family grow,” I again promise her and she swats at me. 

“Enough you big ol’ sap! I’m hormonal, you’ll make me cry,” she tells me and I chuckle. 

“Okay… okay… I’m done. I swear,” I tell her as I throw my hands up in surrender and lean back into the couch. 

“Let’s just watch some TV, yeah?” she asks as she picks up the remote and I just nod at her. 

It’s now been a few hours since I got home and so far I’ve done laundry, watched some mindless TV with Kameron, and done a little bit of cleaning. I even do some of y/n’s laundry for her, knowing how much she’d need clean clothes when she gets out of the hospital. Maddie texted a little while after I put the last load of laundry in. She informed me she took Chim home, but that she’s back at the hospital with y/n. Now I stand at the counter, doing some dishes as Kameron goes to the bathroom for the fourth time.

“Uh, hey, you… you doing okay?” I ask as I turn around from putting one of y/n’s cups into the cupboard as she comes out of the bathroom. 

“That’s the fourth time you’ve gone in the last hour,” I observe as she stops at the bottom of the stairs. 

“Well, I have a whole human leaning on my bladder,” she snarkily replies as she rubs her belly. 

“So the struggle is real,” she finishes with a sigh as she turns back to the living room and I turn back to another dish as she continues to the living room. 

“Ow?” she says after she lets out a hiss and stops where she’s at, grabbing onto the stairs with one hand as she holds her stomach with the other. 

“Uh… what… what was that?” I ask her in concern, stopping what I’m doing to look over at her. 

“Um, I don’t know…” she trails off before trying to start walking again. 

“Ow, ow, ow, ow…” she repeats over and over as she doubles over. 

“Uh… was it… was it a contraction?” I ask her as I jog lightly over to her. 

“Uh, I think so,” she informs me as she doubles over again and I put my hand on her back. 

“Um, I don’t know. I— I felt something earlier, but it didn’t feel like this, you know?” she explains as I lead her over to the couch. 

“It wasn’t that stro— oh, my God!” she continues before doubling over halfway to the couch as she screams out in pain. 

“Uh, okay, why don’t we have you sit down?” I calmly ask her as I point at the couch. 

“I’m gonna call your doctor—” I start to say but she cuts me off. 

“I’m in labor,” she informs me in a matter of fact tone and I reach out for her. 

“You—you don’t know that,” I say just as I hear the sound of liquid trickling. 

“My water just broke,” she says in realization and she stands straight again. 

“Something’s wrong. This is too early. This is too early,” she starts to panic and I quickly reach out for her again. 

“Um, okay, it is early, yes, but it’s— it’s not too early,” I rush to calm her as I hold onto her hands. 

“Let's sit you down, okay?” I calmly ask her and she nods, giving a small ‘okay’ of her own as I lead her the rest of the way to the couch. 

“Let’s focus on our breathing,” I gently command as she sits. 

“Okay… in…” I tell her before breathing with her and soon she starts to groan in pain. 

“You got it, you’re a pro,” I try to coach her though, but her groans only intensify. 

“Come on, it's okay. Let’s— let’s lay down,” I lightly command again as I grab her shoulders and guide her into a laying down position. 

“Go on, I got ya. Nice and easy. Nice and easy,” I tell her calmly as I lift her legs for her and guide them onto the couch as she gives a head nod as well as a small ‘okay’. 

“Okay, just keep that breathing going. In. There you go. You're doing great. Just breathe,” I continue to coach her for a few minutes and she seems somewhat calmer. 

“Uh, you know, I’m gonna call the paramedics. Just in case. Okay?” I inform her as I pull my phone out and quickly dial 911. 

“Uh, you’re doing good. You’re doing great. Don’t panic,” I try to keep her calm and possibly myself from freaking out as I put the phone up to my ear. 

“911, how can I help you?” One of the dispatchers pick up the phone. 

“I’m at 574 Grand Street. I have a woman in premature labor; it’s coming on fast,” I pause as the woman asks me some information while Kameron groans out in more pain. 

“Close. Minutes,” I inform her as she types up the information. 

“Uh, hey, hey, just stay calm, paramedics are on their way,” I tell Kameron as I quickly move the phone away from my mouth so I can try and calm her. 

“I’m gonna grab some towels and hot water. Just in case. You’re doing great,” I encourage her one last time before rushing to the bathroom and starting to grab the towels. 

“Buck!!!” she calls out for me and I rush a little quicker. 

“Hurry up,” she groans out in pain as she lays back on the couch again and I open the door so the paramedics can come right in. 

“Yeah. I’ll be right there,” I tell her before I rush around the kitchen for all the supplies I need. 

“Hello?” A voice calls out and I hear a light knock on the door as I finish filling a bowl full of warm water. 

“Wow, that was fast. She’s- she’s on the couch,” I call out over my shoulder as I keep my attention on the water. 

“Who?” The voice calls out again, making me turn to look at the door to see Natalia, the girl I’ve been going out on dates with for a while. 

I silently curse to myself, remembering we had agreed to talk before all of the events today. I stop the water and turn around to her. 

“Natalia… uh, hi…” I say awkwardly, pausing for a moment. 

“Buck!!!” Kameron shouts out and I quickly snap back into action. 

“What- what is happening?” Natalia asks and I quickly grab all the towels and the bowl. 

“I— I need your help. Come on. This way,” I inform her quickly as I rush over to Kameron and she follows me. 

As we quickly walk over, my mind races a mile a minute as I try to place all of my energy on Kameron. I try to keep back the thought of just wishing y/n were here right now and how I’m going to have to have a talk with Natalia, but it’s really hard to just focus. I don’t want to hurt Natalia, but after today I realized y/n is the one for me. How do I tell Natalia that? Soon, though, I’m pulled out of my thoughts and back into rush mode when Kameron yells out for me again. 

To Be Continued…

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[newobsessionweekly]

Listen to me

Main masterlist | 9-1-1 masterlist

Evan “Buck” Buckley x fem!reader

Fandom: 911

Summary: You and Buck have been fighting, deciding to take a break from the relationship. But he wants to make it right.

Warnings: Angst, fighting, not proofread

Requested: No

Words: 1.7k

Requests are open for Buck / Eddie!

Gif not mine, credits to the owner!

You and Buck had been arguing for days, each feeling like the other wasn't listening. You didn’t know where all this fighting came from, but you sure do know it hasn’t stopped since then. You both knew something was wrong but couldn't put your finger on it. The tension was palpable, and it was only a matter of time before something gave.

It all came to a head one evening, with you and Buck yelling at each other in the living room of your shared apartment. You moved in a few months back, all cozy and peaceful. Enjoying each other’s company, being able to see one another all day. It felt like a date that never came to an end.

You had been fighting about the little things, but it was clear there was something deeper bubbling beneath the surface.

"Why can't you just listen to me for once, Buck? I feel like I'm talking to a wall!" you yelled, patience running out now.

"I am listening, but you're not hearing me either!" Buck shot back, frustration lacing his words.

The other night, Buck’s messages suddenly stopped and they never come back. You couldn’t sleep during all his shift, not knowing if something had happened to him. Your thoughts were filled with worry and anger as you waited and over checked your dms. Maybe, maybe he texted you but you missed it.

Eventually, a few hours before his shift was about to end, you text Eddie, asking if they were ok. He replied that everything was fine and you didn’t need to worry. But that was something that made you question even more.

“I was waiting for you to text back! Or even a small reminder that you’re ok, you haven’t died. Or to tell me you’re on your way to a call and you can’t talk! Is it that hard?” you

“I was on a call, then I went to bed! It just slipped my mind!” he yelled back at that point.

You couldn’t believe his words. It slipped his mind. Talking to his lover slipped his mind. Reassuring them he’s alive slipped his mind. Maybe you were asking too much.

“Okay, fine!” you gave up. You gather a few things from the apartment, stuffing them in your bag as Buck watched your every step, his eyes filled now with worry less than anger.

“Wha-What are you doing?” your boyfriend placed his hand on top of yours, stopping you from circling around.

“We should take a break. I’ll spend the night at May’s and we'll see after that.” you were just texting May as his hand dropped, now resting on the kitchen counter. His eyes show the pain and fear that’s bubbling inside, and, maybe, because you were hurt as well, you chose to ignore it.

Your chest aches and your head was spinning trying to keep inside the feelings. You didn’t want to show him you were hurting just as much, he wouldn’t care anyways. It is a painful decision, but you need some time to clear your head and you both knew that.

Buck was afraid he’s being left behind again. Forgotten by the person he’s loving the most. More that he loved Abby. More than he loved Ally. And even more than he loved Taylor. And that’s something. But he gulped the lump in his throat and nodded.

“Yeah, maybe that’s best.”

“Take care of you, Buck!” and with those words, you shut the door behind, leaving Buck all alone in his apartment.

One night turned into days and then into a week, and Buck found himself missing you more than he ever thought possible. He texted you every single day, babbling about every little thing that happened in his life.

//

“I think it’s over. Uh, me and Y/n.” Buck admitted between the siren’s wiling.

“We’re just having a little girl’s week. It’s been ages since we had a proper hangout. We just catching up.” Hen said, watching Buck swallow the lump in his throat. “How is that code for it’s over ?”

“Well, what’s past is prologue, right?” Buck sighs, “And, based on my past, Y/n and I have reached the point in a relationship where the woman flees.”

“Women flee you? Routinely?” Ravi asks, surprisingly turning his head in Buck’s direction.

“Starts out small. Uh, she's-she's canceling plans. She's got to work. She needs to wash her hair or do her laundry, and before you know it, poof. Dropping them off at the airport and never seeing them again.” your boyfriend explained, hoping his words won’t coincide with the reality.

“Okay, Buck, you're being a little too Buck about this. “ Hen shake her hands, waving off Buck’s worries.

“A little? When was the last time a woman told you she had to go home to wash her hair? 1952?” Eddie chuckles from his seat.

“Listen, Y/n is not Abby or Ally or Taylor. It doesn't even rhyme. I mean, that's a good sign, right?” Hen asks.

“The thing is... she’s been living with me for a few months now. And it’s been great and I do think I really really love her and I don’t want to lose her. Not her-“ Buck let out from his mouth some words he never had the chance to say to you. Well, he had the chance, millions of times, but never seemed the right time.

“Why does this keep happening to you?” Bobby turned his head to watch Buck as the truck rolled down the streets.

“Well, to be honest, I think...”

“No. I'm gonna tell you why.” Cap stopped him before he could explain. “Because you don't talk to the women you're dating. You just go with the flow and find yourself in a relationship with no idea how you got there or what to do when things start to go wrong.”

“Yeah. Who does that?” Eddie sarcastically laughed.

“My point is, breaking up is not inevitable. You can turn it around. You just have to make the effort. Talk to Y/n. Tell her how you're feeling. Find ways to reconnect.”

And that was the moment Buck realised he gotta do something. He’s never done anything to stop the women from his life leave. He never fought. It was their decision to leave and he never said a word. It wasn’t like he’ll force you to stay with him. It was more like showing you he wants you to stay by his side. He needs you to stay by his side.

So, he spent all night planning a grand gesture. He always wanted to do that, but he never felt like it was the perfect moment. Until now.

The day after his shift ended, he showed up on May’s doorstep. He had a little hint you’ve been crashing on her couch all week, and after a few texts exchanged with May, she tricked you into putting some nice clothes on and let her do your makeup. But she never said why.

The door bell rang, sending shivers down your spine. “Please answer that for me!” Athena’s daughter shouted from the bathroom, making you roll your eyes. What’s she up to?

When you saw Buck standing in the doorway with a beautiful bouquet with your favourite flowers gathered in his hands, your heart melted. He was the last person you’d expect to see. You didn’t think Buck would show up; he always gives you time to think and heal until you’re ready to go back to him. That’s how it’s always been.

"I'm sorry," Buck said, taking your hand in his. "I know we've been fighting a lot lately, but I want to make it work."

“I know, Buck. I want to make it work too.”

your eyes softened, and you could see the sincerity in his words.

"You trust me?" Buck whispered.

“Yeah?” your response was more a question than an affirmation when you saw him pulling out a scarf. He motioned and you turn around, letting him cover your eyes. He led you outside, hearing a car door open you realised he was taking you somewhere.

“Where are we going?” you broke the silence a while after the car was rolling down the streets of LA. Hoping it was on the streets of LA.

“You said you trust me!” he chucked, turning right and left on the roads, as he entered the off-roads. “It’s a surprise, Y/n!”

When the car finally stopped and he helped you out and took off the blindfold, leaving you speechless. There was this giant hot air balloon, ready for you to wonder above Los Angles.

“Come on!” he smiled at your reaction, all you can do was nod and return his smile, feeling the anger and tension slowly dissipate in the air.

“I’m sorry, I know I was wrong. I should’ve texted you back. In my job there’s no such thing as ignoring a text. I did had the time to text you back, but I was stubborn. I don’t know why.” finally opening up to each other and sharing your fears and concerns after weeks of constant fighting and silence. It wasn't an easy conversation, but it was necessary.

“I want you to stay by my side. I need you. And I don’t want to give up on you. On us.”

“I’m not leaving you, Buckaroo. I promise!” you extended your pinky and waited for Buck to intervene with his.

“I love you!” he suddenly spoke, his words echoing through your mind. You knew he loves you, you’ve known for a while. His actions spoke louder than his words, but that night you decided to ignore everything your heart’s been telling you.

“I love you, Buck!” he smiled softly as he grabbed your waist and pulled you closer, sealing your lips together in desire, love, warmth and longing.

By the end of it, you both knew you wanted to be together and were willing to work on your relationship.

As the sun began to set, Buck held you close, refusing to ever let you go again. And you both knew you were going to be okay. It was the first step in a long journey, but you were in it together.

[babygirl-diaz]

Something Blue (BuckTommy Future Fic)

“Hold still!” Buck scolded his best friend as he climbed on his back and tried to get to the second-floor window. 

“I didn’t sign up for this!” Eddie groaned and wobbled, making Buck kick him. “I will fucking drop you, dude!” Eddie yelled. 

“What the hell is going on?” The window opened and Tommy peeked out. Buck felt his heart melt into a puddle of goo as he watched the love of his life dressed in a baby blue tuxedo. 

“Hi,” Buck awkwardly waved at Tommy and jumped up, hanging onto the windowsill. 

Tommy moved back and glared at him. “What are you doing here?” 

Buck climbed through the window and sheepishly looked at him. “Uh…. I came to tell you something,” he said as he approached his ex-boyfriend. 

“Tell me what?” Tommy asked, narrowing his eyes at him. 

Before Buck could reply, something crashed in the room and he turned around to see Eddie lying face flat on the hardwood floor. “Hey, Tommy,” Eddie awkwardly waved at Tommy. “I’m fine. You two continue.” 

Eddie groaned in pain and both Tommy and Buck ran to his side to help him up. 

“What is wrong with you two? You could have gotten hurt,” Tommy chastised them, but an amused look crossed his face. 

“We do this every day, Tommy, or did you forget? We spider-man our way into any situation,” Buck reminded him. 

Tommy let go of Eddie once he was steady and Buck did the same. “Evan, what are you doing here? I am getting married in 30 minutes.” 

“That’s why we’re here,” Eddie chimed in. 

“To what? Walk me down the aisle?” Tommy asked crossing his arms across his chest. 

“That should be done by the guy you’re marrying,” Buck scoffed. “He’s old enough to be your dad.” 

Tommy glared at him in return. “How dare you?” 

“You said you didn’t have daddy issues, but not from where I stand,” Buck continued to rile him up. 

“I don’t have daddy issues. I genuinely love Hamish,” Tommy replied. 

As Buck was about to reply he heard a loud crunch from behind them and turned around to see Eddie munching on caramel popcorn from a gift basket. Buck and Tommy glared at Eddie who just shrugged in return. “What? Don’t glare at me. I told you I was just here for the food,” he told Buck. 

Buck sighed exasperatedly and shook his head. “If you genuinely love Hamish, why haven’t you called the security yet? I saw them outside. Hamish is some fancy aristocrat, isn’t he?” 

“He’s a Lord,” Tommy replied and Buck could see him visibly cringe as the words were out of his mouth. 

“A lord? Are you even listening to yourself? Since when do you wanna marry that?” Buck asked. “Since you broke my heart and left me,” Tommy snapped. “Hamish picked up the pieces and put me back together.” 

“Tommy…” 

“No! Just- just go, Evan. I don’t want to talk to you right now,” Tommy told him. He looked like he was on the verge of tears and Buck immediately felt bad, but he knew this was his last chance. 

“Tommy…” Buck tried again and backed Tommy against the wall. He looked into his eyes and noted the deer caught in headlights look on Tommy’s face and reached out to touch him. 

Tommy leaned into his touch and nuzzled Buck’s hand immediately. 

Buck smiled in triumph and trailed his hand down to Tommy’s neck. He stopped and asked, “Where’s the locket I gave you?” 

“I gave it to Eddie after we broke up,” Tommy replied. 

Both Buck and Tommy looked at Eddie again, who was still practically inhaling the pack of popcorn. “Ohhh…. That locket…. Look I knew if I gave it to Buck, it would break his heart so I didn’t,” he admitted. “Besides, I  always thought you two would get back together.” 

“I thought you kept it- that- that’s why-” 

“That’s why you were here today?” Tommy asked Buck. “Thinking we still had a chance?” 

Buck took a tentative step back. “That locket was the sign of our love…” 

“No, the sign of our love was us. We made and broke the relationship, not the locket,” Tommy replied. 

Buck shook his head after a while and took another step towards Tommy, pressing him into the wall again, caging him there. “Doesn’t matter. I love you and I know you love me too.” 

“You’re full of yourself,” Tommy huffed. 

“And you didn’t deny it,” Buck smirked. 

There was a knock on the door and a voice came from the other side, “Tommy? Are you ready? Hamish is getting impatient out here.” 

“I’ll be right out, Ma!” Tommy called out and then glared at Buck, “Lemme go!” 

“You never met Buck 1.0, did you?” Buck asked. 

“What?” Tommy frowned at him. 

“I once stole the fire engine to fuck someone,” Buck replied and leaned in close to Tommy’s ear. “If I bring out Buck 1.0, then you and Hamish better watch out.” He winked at Tommy and stepped back. 

“Your threats don’t scare me, Evan,” Tommy pushed past him and went to the door. 

“It should,” Buck replied. 

“What now?” Eddie asked once Tommy left. 

“Now we steal a fire engine,” Buck replied. 

“Huh?” 

***

[whumpdoyoumean]

Whumptober #4

xxx alternate prompt: venom

The call is a surprisingly straightforward one, considering dispatch had told them that the caller, a hiker named Aimee, had reportedly fallen off a cliff. It turns out to be less of a cliff and more of a hill. A steep hill, Eddie will give Aimee that, but still. A hill. They're able to get down to her just fine without any equipment, and though getting her back up the hill is a little more complicated due to an ankle fracture that Hen splinted, it isn't nearly as complicated a rescue as they'd been prepared for. All in all, things go pretty smoothly, right up until the paramedics start wheeling the patient to the ambulance.

"Oh, no," she says suddenly. "No no no!"

"You okay?" Chimney asks, and she shakes her head.

"What's happening?" Hen says, immediately on alert. "Are you experiencing dizziness, shortness of breath?"

"No, I'm not – it's not that," Aimee says, and her cheeks flushing. "My phone. I think I dropped it back there. Can't I just go get it real quick?"

"Aimee, we need to get you to the hospital. And we're definitely not going to let you walk on a broken ankle. Definitely not down that hill."

She lets out a choked sob. "Oh god, my whole life is on that phone! What am I gonna do?" Her breathing starts to quicken, coming in little gasps, and she seems a second away from going into a full-blown panic attack.

"I can go take a quick look," Buck offers, which doesn't surprise Eddie even a little. It has the intended effect, too, and Aimee's breathing starts to even out as she looks over at Buck with wide eyes.

"Really?" she says, and beside her Hen mouths thank you.

"Yeah!" Buck says with that wide, goofy grin he gets. "Yeah, you just. You get that ankle taken care of. If I find it, I'll drop it off at the hospital for you."

"Oh my god, thank you! You're literally my hero!"

It takes everything Eddie has not to roll his eyes. He's surprised when Buck doesn't say anything flirtatious in response. Instead, he just says, "No problem!" and starts carefully picking his way down the steep hill to the spot where Aimee had fallen.

"Make it quick, Buck," Bobby calls down.

"Yeah, Cap, I'll just be a minute!"

"Hen, will you come with me?" Aimee asks, and Hen looks at the other paramedic, who raises her shoulders indifferently.

"If they don't need you that's fine by me."

Hen turns to Bobby. "Cap?"

"Go ahead," Bobby says. "Shift's almost over. I'll let dispatch know."

Eddie watches as Hen climbs into the back of the ambulance. It's pulling away when Chimney nudges Eddie with his elbow. Eddie looks at him, and Chim nods down toward Buck.

"You think he'll actually find it?"

The area is grassy and overgrown, and there are dozens of shrubs where a phone could disappear and never be found again. That's if it didn't take a tumble down the next part of the hill, in which case the screen probably will have shattered into a million pieces. Eddie snorts.

"I guess we'll see."

Not even two seconds have passed before there's a cry from below them. It sounds more startled than pained, but Eddie still moves forward, ready to go down the hill if he needs to.

"You good?" he yells down.

"Uh – yeah. I found the phone!"

Chim makes a sound. "Of course he did."

"Good job," Bobby says. "Now let's get going!"

"Coming!"

Buck scrambles up the incline, and he could be imagining it but Eddie thinks he looks a little clumsy, more uncoordinated than usual. When he makes it up the hill, he's breathing hard, harder than he should be, and there's a thin sheen of sweat on his forehead. His left hand is held tightly against his middle.

"Buck, you okay?" Bobby says with a frown, taking a step toward him. Buck looks up at him with wide eyes and a slightly guilty expression.

"Yeah. Er – no, actually. Um. I got bit by a rattlesnake."

Eddie's stomach drops. Beside him, Chimney starts to laugh but it dies off quickly.

"You're serious?"

Buck pulls his left arm away from his body and holds it out for them to see. There are two puncture wounds on the inside of his forearm, leaking blood. His arm is already starting to visibly swell.

"It happened really fast," Buck says, weirdly calm. Eddie doesn't know how he isn't freaking the hell out. "I was reaching for the phone and I – I didn't see it. They don't always rattle first, you know, if you. If you catch them by surprise."

Bobby's eyes are still on Buck's arm when he says, "What are our steps here, Chim?"

"Get him to the hospital ASAP so they can administer the antivenom. I can bandage him up, monitor his vitals and the swelling--"

"Can you do that on the move?"

Chimney nods.

"Right," Bobby says, finally tearing his gaze away from the bite He looks shaken, but his voice is steady. "Okay, then, let's move. Eddie, you help Chimney with Buck. I'll drive."

"You need to take your watch off," Chimney says as they start toward the engine, Eddie walking close to Buck, ready to catch him if he stumbles. "Before the swelling gets too bad."

Buck does as he's told, shoving his watch into a pocket. "You know, something like ten to twenty percent of rattlesnake bites are dry. No venom."

"Maybe you got lucky," Eddie says, and Buck lets out a breathy laugh.

"Yeah, maybe."

He's pale by the time they get him into the cab, his face drawn in pain. Bobby is already behind the wheel, explaining the situation to dispatch. He looks back at them as they climb in, Eddie and Buck side by side and Chimney across from them, the trauma kit on the floor between them.

"You guys ready?"

Eddie nods. "Let's go."

Buck makes a small noise as the engine lurches into motion, wincing.

"You okay?" Eddie says.

"I'm okay," he responds, a little breathlessly.

"Really?"

Buck eyes him for a second, then sighs. "Pain's getting worse. Sort of feels like I'm being...stabbed with a hot poker or something."

"Let me see," Chim says, and Buck holds his arm out. "I'm gonna bandage it up."

"Do you need to clean it?" Eddie says.

"No. If there's any venom on my skin, the doctors might be able to use it to figure out the right antivenom," Buck responds. Eddie's eyes narrow, and he's about to say That sounds made up when, to his surprise, Chim nods.

"He's right," he says.

Buck is quiet as Chim wraps the bandage around the bite, but the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and the tightness of his mouth speak volumes. Eddie wishes there were something he could do, some way to take the pain away. He can't, though, so instead he sets a hand on Buck's knee.

"There we go," Chim says, finishing up the bandage. He pulls something out of his pocket and hands it to Eddie. A Sharpie. "I'm gonna take his vitals. Eddie, I need you to mark around the edge of the swelling and write down the time."

"Got it," Eddie says, pulling the cap off of the marker and tracing around the edge of the swelling.

"It wasn't the snake's fault," Buck says suddenly, and Eddie and Chim both look up at him.

"Stop talking for a minute while I take your blood pressure, k, Buck?" Chimney says before Buck can continue.

"How's he doing?" Bobby asks.

"His pulse is high but his blood pressure seems okay for now. I'm definitely going to be keeping a close eye on it, though. Now what were you saying, Buck?"

"The snake. It wasn't its fault. Snakes get a bad rap, but they're really important for the ecosystem. And really they very rarely hurt people, as long as you leave them alone." He's speaking quickly, his voice pitched slightly up, and Eddie knows nervous chatter when he sees it. If talking will help, he doesn't mind keeping Buck talking.

"Didn't you cut of a boa constrictor's head once?" Eddie says, and a little color goes into Buck's pale cheeks.

"It was a python. And I feel really bad about that. I did some reading on snakes after and...anyway. I should've been more careful." He looks up at Chimney. "My hands're starting to feel tingly."

"I'm not surprised. Rattlesnake venom can do that."

"My mouth, too."

Chimney and Eddie lock eyes for a brief second before Chim looks at Buck and forces a small smile.

"You're gonna be fine, Buckaroo. Just try and relax if you can, the calmer you are the better."

Chimney checks his vitals again a few minutes later, and Eddie marks the swelling. He's surprised at how far it's spread in such a short time.

"Pulse is still high, but holding steady," Chim says. "How are you feeling, Buck?"

"Thirsty," Buck responds. He blinks heavily, letting his head fall back against the headrest. "'n tired."

It makes Eddie's gut twist with worry. He does his best not to show it – Chimney literally just said the calmer Buck is the better, and Eddie freaking out isn't going to help anything.

"I loved snakes as a kid," he says, to distract himself, and to try and keep Buck alert. Eddie rarely talks about his childhood if he can help it, even when Buck pesters him about it. He hopes maybe the novelty of him willingly opening up will be enough to keep Buck's attention. "My sisters hated them, though. Adriana especially. There was this one time we were playing in the backyard, and – Buck, you okay?"

All of the color has drained from Buck's face, and his breathing has noticeably quickened.

"Buck?" Chimney says, leaning forward.

"'m really dizzy," Buck murmurs, the words running together. And then his lashes flutter and his head lolls forward.

"Buck!" Eddie cries.

"What's going on?" Bobby, his voice tight with anxiety.

"He just passed out!"

"Hey, c'mon Buck!" Chimney is saying, and he's inflating the blood pressure cuff again, a frantic look on his face. "Shit. His blood pressure just dropped. Cap, I think he's going into shock. How far out are we?"

"About seven minutes. The hospital knows we're coming, they'll be ready for him."

"Okay. Eddie, we need to get him laying down, help me move him."

"Yeah," Eddie breathes. He barely gets the word out; his heart is pounding so hard it's making his chest ache.

It's tricky in the confined space, but they manage to get Buck onto his back, his legs propped up on the trauma kit. Chim grabs an emergency blanket and drapes it over him. And Eddie...Eddie feels useless. He reaches under the blanket, grabbing Buck's good hand and gripping it tight.

"Hang on, Buck," he says. "You got this, man. Hang on."

xxx

A/N: Shout-out to Emergency! episode 3x06 for the inspo on this one. Legendary show, which you can watch on archive.org

[honestlydarkprincess]

WIP Wednesday!

tagged by the lovely @giddyupbuck, @ravens-words, @disasterbuckdiaz, @devirnis, @wildlife4life, @alyxmastershipper, @911onabc !!

since you guys seemed interested in the crane fic, here have some more! maybe it'll motivate me to work on it again, i might try and get it done for angst in autumn

Eddie was pulled out of his thoughts as a nurse walked into his room.

“Oh, good! You’re awake!” She said brightly, coming up beside his bed to check on his vitals. “You’ve got some very eager people waiting to hear how you’re doing.”

“Buck,” Eddie rasped out, turning his head with only slight difficulty to the nurse. “Christopher.”

“We’ll notify your captain that you’re awake, I’m sure he’ll get Christopher for you,” the nurse said gently, scribbling something down on his chart.

Eddie was confused. “Cap’s not…Buck’s my ‘mergency contact,” Eddie slurred, trying to force himself to focus on the nurse. The pain in his shoulder was throbbing now as he became more aware of his surroundings.

The nurse gave him a soft, pitying look. Obviously she knew something that Eddie didn’t. “I’ll go call your captain, Mr. Diaz.”

Eddie watched her retreat from his room, making her way to the nurses station. What was he missing? Had something happened? He tried to think back to what the last thing was that he remembered.

He remembered the pain, the blood, the way the cement below him stained red as he laid there in the middle of the street, bleeding out. He remembered reaching out to Buck, making eye contact with him under the firetruck. Eddie kept his eyes on Buck. If this was going to be his last day and he couldn’t see Christopher, he wanted the last thing he saw to be Buck. His eyes had fluttered shut as more shots rang out, he could hear yelling, frantic words being screamed as everyone reacted to the chaos around them. He couldn’t make sense of any of it, all he could think about was the fact that he wished he had given Christopher an extra long hug this morning. He wished that he had told Buck how he felt.

no pressure tagging: @bigfootsmom, @lovebuck, @housewifebuck, @oliverstaark, @useramor, @roy-kents, @folk-fae, @swiftietartt, @shortsighted-owl, @hippolotamus, @transbuck, @princessfbi, @diazblunt, @brokenribsdiaz, @forthewolves, @moonlightbuckleys, @firemedicdiaz, @loserdiaz, @monsterrae1, @spotsandsocks, and @barbiediaz mwah

[mrsbarnesxxx]

Hi, I saw you were after requests and thought I'd send one in! I have a few in mind but o won't overload you with them all haha. I'm going to leave one or two here for Eddie diaz.

Reader feels ill at work but brushed it off as a bug or something and eddie asks if she's okay. When they get back from a call she gets out of the truck and nearly falls on the ground in pain. Eddie catches her and helps put her on a gurney. After they get to hospital they find out she has appendicitis and they risk her to surgery. After she's back in a room eddie is there holding her hand and she wakes up and it's all fluffy and cute especially when he takes her home and takes care of her. Chris could also turn up with a handmade get well soon card

The other idea is eddie plans on proposing to reader and discusses it with the team but eventually gets chris involved and eddie ends up on one knee when they are at the station or just come back from a call or something? All fluffy and cute.

Thank you! Hope this wasn't too much!

A/n: Not me having to google appendicitis symptoms even though I literally had it last year...

I'm working on the second idea and will post it ~here~ when I'm done

Warnings: mentions of fainting, mentions of hospital and all that jazz, mentions of sickness, slight angst, love confessions, female reader, Christopher Diaz

You had woken up feeling awful. Your whole body hurt, your back, your side, your stomach. You had a 24-hour shift today and since they were always short-staffed, you couldn't call out. You pulled yourself out of bed, pain shooting through your stomach. As soon as you made it to the kitchen, you took two Tylenol and got dressed for work. Once you reached the fire station, you sat in your car for a minute, trying to ignore the sickly feeling spreading throughout your body. Eventually, you got out of your car and walked in, changing and heading out to greet your friends. "Morning, Hen." You fake a smile, walking over to the coffee pot before deciding better of it and putting your cup away. "You feeling okay?" She asks giving you a raised brow. "Yeah, just feeling a little queasy. I think I had bad Chinese food last night." You smile waving her concerned glance off.

The alarm goes off just as Chimney, Buck, and Eddie start to get breakfast. They all sigh before we head to the truck. We head off towards a call of a small apartment fire with minor burns. You hop out of the truck when we get to the scene, immediately feeling really dizzy and queasy. Apparently hiding it poorly due to your slight swaying back and forth, Eddie comes over to stead you. His hands coming to rest on your waist lightly. "Woah, you okay?" He asks searching your eyes. "I'm fine Eddie." You assure him with a smile. "I just got a little dizzy."

He watches you throughout the whole call as you bandage a woman's first-degree burn on her arm. He watches you cautiously as you climb back into the truck, opting to stand behind you in case you try to fall again. His eyes catch yours as the truck backs into the station. He watches you the whole time you're getting out of the truck. Even offering you his hand. "I told you, Eddie. I'm fi-AH!" You exclaim, clutching your side as a sharp pain shoots through your right side. Eddie closes the 2-foot distance between you in a second, holding you as you faint in his arms due to the pain.

"CAP!" He yells moving to carefully set you on the ground. "What happened?" Hen asks rushing in with Cap and the others behind her. "I don't know, she just collapsed." He explains checking your pulse. "She grabbed her side and then just passed out." "Which side?" Hen asks looking up at him with wide eyes. Realization comes across his face as he looks up at her "right." "Okay, let's get her to the hospital, she could have appendicitis," Hen says. "Buck, chim, get a gurney."

They put you onto a gurney and load you into the ambulance before rushing you to the hospital. Eddie gets there in 3 minutes instead of the normal 5 or more it would usually take them.

"27-year-old female collapsed after clutching her right side, possible appendicitis, complained of upset stomach, bp stable, tachycardic, fever of 100.7" Hen explains once they reach the emergency entrance.

"Her appendix probably ruptured, we're going to have to take her into surgery right now." The doctor says wheeling the gurney away.

Eddie just watches as they wheel your unconscious form away. "Hey, she'll be okay," Hen assures him softly. "Why don't you go wait for her?" "I can't I have work and then Christopher-" "We'll take care of everything. Go sit with your girl." Hen smiles putting a hand on his shoulder. Eddie gives her a puzzled look. She just laughs, "Please. You think we didn't notice the two of you giving each other googly eyes every day?" Eddie laughs, giving her a hug before heading inside. After about an hour, a doctor comes to the waiting room and finds Eddie.

"Excuse me, sir?" She says and Eddie snaps his head up. "Your friend is out of surgery. It went very well. Her appendix had burst, so we have her on antibiotics and will have to monitor her for a few days to make sure she doesn't develop an infection." "Can I see her?" He asks standing up. "Of course, I'll take you to her now." She smiles and leads him to your room. "She's still under anesthesia, so she'll probably be asleep and a bit groggy for a while, but you're welcome to sit with her." "Thank you." He says giving the doctor a small smile before walking to the chair next to your bed. "You scared me, Vida mía." He says taking your hand and pressing a kiss to it.

Eddie responds to the messages he has asking how you are. Telling everyone that you'll be okay. You start to shift suddenly causing him to stop the text he was writing to Buck and look up at you.

"Ow," is the first thing you say. Eddie smiles so big hearing your voice again. A part of him didn't know if he would ever hear your voice again. "What happened?" You ask seeing that you're in the hospital.

"Your appendix burst. They have you on antibiotics and you should be fine." He explains never letting go of your hand.

"I guess it wasn't the Chinese food." You groan dropping your head.

"No it wasn't." He says sadly. "I wish it had been."

"What are you doing here? What about work? What about Chris?" You ask suddenly.

"Relax," he says softly his thumb caressing the back of your hand. "you're going to hurt yourself if you keep worrying. Bobby understands, told me to stay with you. Chris is fine. He's at school and then Carla is going to get him. And I'm going to stay here with you."

"Okay." You smile looking over at him. "Eddie.." you whisper a minute later.

"Yeah?" He asks.

"Come here." He stands up and walks closer to you, leaning down to be able to hear you. What he doesn't expect is for you to wrap a hand around the back of his neck and pull his lips to yours. Not that he's complaining. He's not at all. He's just shocked. He never would have expected you felt the same way.

"Thank you." You whisper after pulling away from his lips. "For staying with me."

"Always." He smiles.

"Y/n!" Christopher exclaims coming into your room. "Hey!" You exclaim sitting up to see him better but wincing in the process. "Careful." Eddie chastises you. You just glare at him before turning back to his son. "What are you doing here, buddy?" You ask as he reaches you. "I came to see you. The team and I made cards." He explains. "Yeah?" You ask and he holds up a stack of paper cards. You try not to laugh at the sass he inherited from his father. "Here, why don't you hop up here so you can show me?"

He does just that. Carefully maneuvering his way onto your hospital bed. He sits next to you and flips through each card. Finally you get to his, it's a card with a drawing of you on the front. You and him and Eddie. Your heart melts as the boy shows you this. He opens the card to reveal a message he wrote

Get well soon y/n. We miss you.

P.s. my dad is in love with you

You can't help but laugh at the message inside. "Thanks, Chris." You smile before looking over to Eddie. He has the biggest smile on his face watching you entertain his son. He doesn't think he could fall any more in love with you.

"You should be at home with Chris." You complain as Eddie helps you into your apartment. "Chris is fine. He's at home with Carla." He says unlocking your door and walking through the door. "I'm fine, Eddie. I can take care of myself." He only gives me his sassy look to which you roll your eyes. "You can't stand by yourself or walk up the stairs. How exactly do you plan to take care of yourself?" He asks. "I can take care of myself just fine, Diaz." You insist with sass of your own. "Just...let me take care of you, okay? You could have died." He sighs. "Okay." You smile as he helps you into your bed.

"Are you hungry?" He asks

"There's no way in hell I'm letting you cook for me Diaz. I'm not getting food poisoning." He just flares at you. "I'm fine, Eddie. Just...lay with me?"

"Whatever you want." He smiles climbing into bed next to you, wrapping an arm around you.

[rockermybuddie]

Comfort

A/n: this might be the first story i actually post. I have one finished and one in the works in my drafts im just too scared to post them lol.

Tommy x Evan (Buck)

Summary: When Tommy comes home and sees broken glass everywhere his first thought is Evan. He finds Evan pretending to be asleep in bed after a really rough shift and comforts him.

—————

~Bucks POV~

The moment the engines came to a stop in the bay i jumped out and went straight to the locker room grabbing my bag. “Buck!” Eddie calls out. I’m supposed to help stock the engine back up on supplies and clean up since its after shift but i’m too upset. “Leave him be.” Cap told Eddie.

I felt everyones eyes on me as i threw my bag in my jeep slamming my door shut. I drove out of there fast and went straight home.

When i arrived at home i saw that Tommys truck wasnt in his spot. I remembered that he said he picked up a shift which means he wont be home till later. That just made me a little more mad.

I unlocked the door and threw my bag down, I immediately went up stairs and took a shower to wash all the blood and soot off. I watched the red and black color go down the drain.

I got a flashback from the call and its all i could think about. My anger building inside of me about to burst. I got out of my shower and I couldn’t tell if the steam coming off of me was from the hot shower or if i was just that angry.

I walked downstairs to make dinner so i could try and get my mind off of the call. I got out the ingredients to make chicken parmesan pasta, Tommys favorite. I figured if i could just focus on Tommy i could get past this.

I got out a glass pan for the oven but set it down too hard out of anger causing it to shatter.

I didnt feel bad. It was just a glass pan. Usually i would be upset that i broke it but i dont feel anything but anger, not towards the broken glass.

Next thing i know im ripping open the cabinets knocking out everything, hearing the glass shatter on the floor and the need to break everything that can break.

I don’t remember anything after that, whatever happened after that was a blur.

————

~Tommys POV~

I pulled into the driveway and saw Evans jeep in the drive way, making a smile appear on my face because my love was home.

I walked into the house, i saw Evans bag tossed on the floor untouched which is weird because he always unpacks it and does the laundry.

“Evan?” I call out. No answer.

I put my bag next to his and make my way into the kitchen. I stopped in short when i saw all the cabinets open and they were empty. When i walked in further i saw all the broken glass everywhere. My first thought was we had an intruder. My instincts went straight to Evan. Where is he?!

“Evan!” I yell. I ran upstairs and swung open the bedroom door. My heart beating fast but slowed down a little when i saw him laying in the bed.

“Evan?” I say turning on the light, its only 7pm theres no way hes already asleep. “Evan i know you’re not asleep.” I walk over to his side of the bed.

I see his tear stained face as he looks up at me, his eyes are filled with sadness and his hands are shaking ever so slightly.

“Did someone break in Evan?” I ask him, maybe thats why hes so shook up. He shakes his head no.

“Whats wrong my love?” I crawl over him sitting on the other side. Buck moves to sitting between my legs leaning against me, his head resting on my shoulder.

He tells me about the call he was on about the call he was on and the whole time i just rubbed his head with my hand.

“I’m so sorry Evan. That had to of been rough.” I say when he finishes talking. “I know everyone there did their best. But sometimes those things happen. You had no control over that.” I tell him trying to comfort him.

“I’m sorry about the mess downstairs. I’ll clean it and buy new stuff.” He says. “Shhh, dont worry about that. I’ll deal with it okay?” I tell him, I kiss his forehead wishing i could take all his pain away.

“Thank you for this. I really needed it.” He says nesting his head deeper into my shoulder.

“Anytime.” I plant a kiss on his lips as we sat there a little longer.

———

A/n: i know this is a basic story, but my first ones gotta be a little rough to read. I hope you thought it was ok, lol. I will write more because of my non-stop brain but if this gets positive feedback i will post the others when i write.

[mvltisstuff]

Eddie Diaz coma fic if possible? The reader gets shot like eddie in 4x14 and ends up in a coma. Lots of angst, heartbreak if possibly but also fluff too please. 🩶

hold on to me - e.d

summary: request :)

eddie diaz x reader

gif from @agentoutofdiaz

a/n: guys i def just ate my history final up and left no crumbs, enjoy this request 🤌🤌

the gunshot passed right through y/n’s stomach. the massive bang had ricocheted throughout the street and off the buildings, every crouching down as an instinct to the echoing noise. she immediately felt the impact it had right in the center of her abdomen. she brought her hand slowly down, pulling it away to see the overwhelming amount of blood on her fingers. she brought her head back up weakly, before falling onto the concrete.

eddie was held back by buck, who yanked him under a wall. he watched as his girlfriend was thrown to the stained ground, the blood pouring out of her. this couldn’t be a mistake, it was a perfect shot. she was saving someone’s life, and an evil person wanted to take hers. eddie thought he was dreaming. he thought he would be shaken awake by y/n and she would be next to him without a bullet inside of her.

eddie was screaming her name over and over again, and she heard every single time. she wanted to respond, but the blood gurgling in her mouth made it near impossible. she turned her head on the ground to look at her boyfriend. he was laying on the ground, looking directly at her.

he couldn’t contain himself anymore, he had to get out there and save her. “y/n!” he yelled. “hey, y/n?” he pulled her head up as her breathing slowed down. “come here, come help me!” he shouted at his coworkers, who came piling over and putting her into the truck. eddie sat by her head, cradling it gently. a part of him wanted her to pass out, to not have to feel this pain anymore. when she finally lost consciousness from the strain, he panicked as he still wanted to see her eyes, completely contradicting his earlier thought. buck had been applying pressure to the wound, switching out the cloths multiple times as they were drenched with y/n’s blood.

he carried her out of the truck, yelling at the doctors to help her. they took her and placed her on a gurney, turning her on her side. “y/n y/l/n, female, GSW to the abdomen, severe bleeding, may have hit a major organ but pulse is steady. wasn’t through and through, bullets still in here,” he spat out rapidly at the mob of nurses and doctors. as she was wheeled away, the tears in eddie’s eyes were reappearing, dripping down his face. buck had pulled him into an embrace, trying to erase the violent sight in front of him. the constant reminder was the her very own blood on their uniforms.

y/n woke up in her old apartment in her home city, still recalling the smell and feeling of her old rooms. she stretched out of bed, looking around. the confusion in her head was very abnormal. she moved to LA years ago, and her lease was up. she knew this place like the back of her hand, one of her first places that she was able to escape from home. her home life wasn’t bad, but certainly not memorable.

she heard a knock on her door, stepping out of the room to pull it open. in front of her stood her siblings behind her parents. “hi, sweetie!” her mother exclaims. y/n doesn’t recognize the change in attitude.

“hey, mom, what are you all doing here?”

“we had lunch plans, remember? it’s ok if you forgot, you’re under a lot of pressure.”

“w-we did? i mean since i’m visiting from LA?”

“visiting? from california! how hard did you hit your head?” her mom laughs, walking into the apartment, her brother and sister following in with her father.

she sat down on the couch slowly, feeling awkward at how kind her parents were being. she picked up the glass of water on the table next to her. “did something happen?”

“no, just coming to see you and brian, where is he?”

“brian?”

“your…fiancé?” y/n chokes on her water, wiping it off her face.

“my what?” she asks.

“honey, now you’re really scaring me.”

“i’m not engaged, who the hell is brian? where’s eddie?”

“y/n, eddie left, remember?” y/n remains silent. she knows eddie would never leave her. he’s been left before, and he could never put that weight on someone’s shoulders.

back in the hospital, eddie sits with a recovering y/n. her waist was wrapped with a bandage, several IV’s in her arms pumping the drugs into her system. the tube in her throat was forcing the air into her lungs, being unable to do it alone.

a coma. the state of deep unconsciousness. the state that lasts for an unknown amount of time. eddie has heard the words thousands of times being a paramedic. but it doesn’t feel the same when someone you love has been purposely separated from her body.

he wondered what she was thinking, or even if she knew he was there. “i, um,” he starts, stuttering. “i don’t know if you’re there, completely, but you are coming back. i know you are, because you have to. there are too many people relying on you, y/n. i need you to survive or i don’t know if i’ll be able to. so i’m begging you, for the sake of how much i love you, please wake up,” he looks back at her sleeping figure, figuring it’s no use. he just sits in the chair, staring at her condition and the monitors.

“no, eddie wouldn’t leave me, i live in los angeles and i am a firefighter,” y/n speaks harshly to her parents.

“c’mon, y/n. what kind of crazy dream did you have?” her brother says, shoving his face full of food. “i think you need to go back to bed.”

“shut up,” she tells him. “i am not where im supposed to be.” she didn’t say the one detail that gave it away. the one that she’s well aware of. her parents have never been that nice to her, at least not as much as they are in this reality. she kind of loves it, but certainly not as much as eddie. “i am a firefighter,” the memories of the previous day came back to her, the images flashing in her eyes before they faded away again. “i… i was hurt.”

suddenly, y/n has convinced her parents to take her to the psych ward. almost, but they bring her to the ER instead. she must’ve hit her head or something, but y/n knows she is not supposed to be here.

she sits on the bed, her mother in the chair next to her. she looks around, trying to figure out a way to escape. “mom, can you get me some water, please?”

“of course, sweetie. i’ll be back.” she leaves a kiss on her forehead and exiting to get her daughter a drink. y/n takes her opportunity to leave. not the hospital, but the ER is not where she can be. she sprints around, desperately looking for a sign of herself. she goes the the ORs, the regular rooms, and finally she stops in the ICU. she looks in each of the rooms, every single one being dark and empty until she comes across one in particular.

her frail body lay in the bed, with the muffled sounds of doctors speaking and beeping. she looked so weak, and watching herself not be able to fight back against the storm broke every part of her. she stands in front of the doors before hearing a voice behind her. the same voice she fell in love with years ago, and the one that saved her heart and stole it like a thief. y/n whips around at the quick sound of her name. “do you think you should be there?” the duplicate of eddie says.

“why am i here, and not there?”

“because that wound on your body is not the only thing that needs to be healed. you’ve imagined a perfect world. and this is death, y/n.”

“why are you here?”

“i’m your imagination. because if you go back, you don’t know what’s going to happen in a few years. that’s the point of this.”

“because i don’t know if you’ll be there?”

“because you want to be loved forever. and there’s a guarantee at this place,” eddie explains. y/n looks at him calmly, but confusion is written all over her face.

“you love me. i know you do. you said you would forever, and you don’t here. why are you even talking to me? why are there no dead people or something?”

eddie steps closer to her, looking down into her eyes as she stares back at herself. “you want to be loved by these people. why do you think i’m just showing up now?”

“don’t play this game with me, diaz. i do not know why i’m here or why you are here because nothing makes any sense!”

“you said the answer yourself. you know, you know,” he repeats. y/n is scared. she’s a fearless person, but dealing with this alternate life has shown her a whole new side. the world is an uncertain place and no one knows what’s on the other side until you get there. once you’re on that side, there is no going back. that’s it.

the repetition of something she knows runs through her frightened mind at a hundred miles an hour. from the moment she entered that fire station and saw his beautiful face looking at her. she knew she’d be loved. over and over again, he’d told her. and it was enough.

what felt like minutes to y/n was a week to eddie. a week of the prolonged unconsciousness from y/n with no signs of living other than her steady heartbeat. the doctors said it was a good sign, but until eddie saw her eyes again, he didn’t believe it. he’s not one to take something for granted, but if he’d known he would never see her mesmerizing irises again, he would’ve never looked away.

the team of surgeons and interns had piled back into the room, attempting to remove the tube. eddie’s stomach ached from the anxiety of this being her last shot. it was now or never, and he despised that he couldn’t control it. if the tube is removed and she takes a breath on her own, there is a high likelihood that she’ll wake up in the next few hours.

eddie prays to any god that might listen to him, begging, almost on his hands and knees that he will be able to hold her again. when the harsh rise of her chest puffs up, eddie’s own drops. he releases the breath and all his pain, sending it away with her coma.

after the dark clouds rolled over, the sun of y/n’s smile came out. she was giggling and happy, and no one would think that she was just in the condition she was in. the doctors have finally cleared her to go home, no longer needing medical supervision and observation. she was regaining strength at an impressive rate which was optimistic to eddie. several visits from christopher and carla, along with her co-workers had happened over the week of her spell. eddie helped her gather her stuff, still needing help to lift things and stand. the second she tries to stand on her own, eddie is there in the speed of light.

“hey, hey, don’t stand up yet,” he says, walking over to the straining woman on the hospital bed. “if you push yourself it’ll be worse.”

“i’ll be ok, eddie,” she says a little passive-aggressively. eddie knows how hard the recovery stage can be, especially when you have a lot of people nagging you about it. she loves to work more than anything. it’s her mission to save people and make the worst day of their life as easy as it can be. y/n’s clearly frustrated with herself and her situation, but she never wants to make eddie feel bad about his good intentions. “shit, i’m sorry.”

“amor, i told you not to apologize. this trauma is yours to carry, and it sucks. i just want to make this easier for you.”

“i just, i saw you and my whole family. in my… coma,” she cringes at the word. “they loved me, eddie. they really cared instead of putting on a face. i considered staying. but you had, um,” eddie places a reassuring arm around her shoulder, silently letting her know it’s ok to say what’s on her mind. “you left me and i had no clue.”

“god, you know i would never do that, right?”

“i do, it just felt so real. the way you looked at me in that reality and how couldn’t say you loved me hurt so bad and i had to come back to you.”

“i love you, so much,” eddie touches his forehead to hers. “i would never, ever leave you. i couldn’t imagine my life without you when you were sleeping.”

eddie looks into her eyes. he takes in every speck of color, and the movement of her pupils. his hands wander across her body before pulling her in, helping her get a sense that he is real. the knowledge that he is not going anywhere away from her until their last breath.

[weewootruck]

⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️ please and thank you 💞🦛

Hello, dear Hippo, apologies for the long wait

⚡ - Soulmate AU

There’s a bright flash of light and Eddie is blown back from an explosion.  He lands with a thud on his back – knocking the wind out of him, and his helmet slips off clattering to the rain soaked tarmac beneath him. Eddie lets out a groan at the pain, taking a short moment to catch his lost breath before rolling over to his hands and knees and reaching for his helmet. His ears are ringing from the explosion but he has to get back to his position on the ladder truck watching over Buck. So he shakes his head, trying to rid himself of the noise and places his helmet back on his head. As he’s climbing up the side of the truck he notices the figure dangling from the end of the ladder. He has to do a double take at the sight, not quite believing what’s in front of him. Buck was the one at the top of that ladder. That means the one hanging there is Buck too. “Buck!” He yells, now scrambling to climb the ladder as fast as he can. The explosion that threw Eddie off the truck wasn’t caused by nothing, and in this storm it’s not hard for Eddie to guess what caused it to be a lightning bolt, striking not only the ladder but Buck as well. The distinct lack of movement from Buck’s limp body is not a good sign, only swaying gently in the wind and whatever left over momentum there is from the fall. He shouts Buck’s name again, desperate for a reaction, “Can you hear me?” Eddie realises - calling to Chim for more slack in Buck’s line - that in his haste he didn’t even secure himself to a line; the care for his own safety at the back of his mind as his focus is fully committed to rescuing Buck. Eddie lowers Buck slowly to the waiting ambulance below them and as soon as he’s on the gurney Eddie begins rushing down the ladder. He needs to get to Buck.

Make me write

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

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129 for 🦷:

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Eddie is lucky. He gets Chris a consultation with a surgeon tomorrow. Early in the morning, due to a cancellation. Chris might not be happy to wake up early, but in Eddie’s opinion, the sooner the better. 

When he’s done on the phone, Eddie rejoins Chris in the living room. He’s curled up under a blanket, waiting for the pain killers to set in. He’s got the TV open to one streaming service or another, searching for something to watch, and he’s eating small spoonfuls of cold rice pudding that Buck made when he heard Chris was coming home. Because Buck knows how much he likes it. 

“Okay, tomorrow morning you have an appointment,” Eddie tells him. 

“Thanks, Dad,” Chris says, in a very quiet voice. 

“Of course,” Eddie says. “Chris, how long has this been bothering you?”

Christopher’s eyes shift down. “A week.”

Eddie tries to keep his expression neutral. Really, though, he feels horrified.

“Your grandparents didn’t tell me,” he sighs. “I’m sorry.”

Christopher’s cheeks redden again. “They don’t really know.”

“You didn’t tell them?” Eddie asks. 

“I mean, I tried,” Chris explains. 

Eddie feels very close to getting mad. And not with his son. 

“What happened?” Eddie asks.

“Does it matter?” Chris replies. “You’re fixing it now.”

“Well, I’d like to know,” Eddie says. But he’s not going to push. Not when their relationship is so fragile. “No matter what, though, Chris, you’re not in trouble.”

Christopher exhales heavily. “They wanted to go to church on Sunday morning and I asked if I could stay home because I was in pain.”

“Okay,” Eddie nods, a little uncomfortable with the thought of his kid being dragged to Mass every Sunday. 

“And Abuelo asked if it was my legs,” Christopher continues. 

Eddie narrows his eyes. 

“And I said, no, that it was my mouth.” Chris explains. “And Grandma said, ‘well, Chris, stress is all held in the jaw. Church will help.’”

Eddie’s mouth twitches. He can’t help it. 

Chris looks worried. Like he will be in trouble.

“Sorry,” Chris mumbles. “I should have explained it better.”

“No, Chris. No.” Eddie shakes his head. “You didn’t do anything wrong. They should’ve taken you seriously, okay? I’m really sorry they didn’t.”

Eddie wants to call and shout at them. Make them feel bad. You took my baby from me and you couldn’t even make sure he was healthy and not in pain? Since when did they want Chris to suck up his pain, just like Eddie always had to? Or did they just assume the stress in his jaw was Eddie’s fault? But calling and yelling won’t fix it. In fact, Eddie wants to call them as little as possible, going forward. 

“Okay,” Chris whispers. 

“We’re going to take care of it and it’ll be better before you know it,” Eddie promises.

“Okay,” Chris says again.

“Can I get you anything else, bud?” Eddie asks.

Christopher considers. 

“Do you want to watch old episodes of Million Dollar Listing: Los Angeles with me?” He asks, a little sheepishly.

“Yes!” Eddie answers, a little too quickly. His heart might explode. His son wants to spend time with him. “Yes. Yeah.”

“Okay,” Chris says for a third fucking time.

Eddie rounds the coffee table to sit next to Chris on the couch.

“When did you start watching real estate reality television?” Eddie asks. “Not that that’s a problem!”

“Since Buck said he was watching it and it made him laugh,” Chris explains. “And that he’d drive me around fancy neighborhoods to be nosy when I came home.”

Eddie’s chest floods with affection for them both. If it took the promise of laughing at obnoxious McMansions to bring his son home, whatever. He’ll take it. Thank you, Buck. 

“Well, that’s cool,” Eddie says. 

“Yeah,” Chris shrugs. He presses play on the remote. 

Eddie’s television screen is overtaken by dramatic music, expensive cars, and white, boxy modern architecture. Oh, yep. This is exactly the kind of thing Buck would watch while cooking. Eddie knows the formula for his reality show taste all too well. 

“Is this appropriate for kids?” Eddie asks.

“Dad.” 

“Right. Sorry.” Eddie stammers. “You’re good.”

Eddie sits very stiffly beside Chris, switching between watching the show and watching his kid. Normally, he’d sit a lot closer. Be more affectionate. But he doesn’t want to push his limits. He knows Chris is in pain and tired, and that there still is a lot of trust to rebuild. He knows that being invited just to sit with him now is better than he thought he’d get. So he cherishes it. 

Chris finishes his rice pudding and puts the bowl down on the coffee table. He yawns and leans back against the couch cushions. 

“How’s your mouth?” Eddie asks over the sound of a house tour.

“A bit better,” Chris mumbles. “Medicine helped.”

“I’m glad,” Eddie tells him.

They keep watching the show, and before long, Christopher’s eyes slowly start to close. Like he’s trying to pay attention, but days of lost sleep are finally catching up with him. He sees Christopher start to slump to the side a bit, inwards towards Eddie. Eddie scooches closer to him, grabs a throw pillow, and props it between Christopher’s head and Eddie’s shoulder. Chris falls into the pillow, conked out like when he was just a little six year-old after a long day of school. 

Eddie keeps very still. He feels a million different things. Happy. Relieved. Scared. Sad. Angry. Uncertain. He doesn’t know what’s going to happen between them, moving forward. He doesn’t know how mad Chris still is. 

[prosperdemeter2]

Teaser Tuesday - family reunion (working title)

“Hey,” Eddie said softly, firmly, pulled him out of his head as he was so good at doing. Buck blinked and he was in front of a boutique bakery, the heat wafting out through the door as a customer left, a paper coffee cup cradled in their hand. “You can just come home.” 

Buck hastily grabbed the door before it could swing shut and ducked inside. “I can’t leave Maddie here by herself.”

“Maddie’s her own person.” Eddie argued, pragmatic as always. “Just because she wants this… big family reunion doesn’t mean you have to be there with her.” 

Except he sort of did, didn’t he? “She wouldn’t leave me to deal with it alone.” Except she had… in a roundabout way. There was a dichotomy in understanding the things he did now that he was thirty - Maddie had every right to leave him behind and she probably should have sooner. Staying with their parents after everything they had tossed on her wasn’t fair to her, she had been hurt just as much as he had been, but the fact remained that there would always be a small, illogical, little boy in him that had watched his big sister drive away and leave him behind. “And it’s not like she’s making me spend time with them.” 

Maddie hadn’t even asked. They both knew that Buck was there for one reason and one reason alone - to make sure Maddie got through it all okay. The reunion wasn’t for him, after all. Buck hadn’t even known these people existed until about a month ago, he had never missed them the way Maddie had. It also meant that Buck wasn’t likely to make the excuses for them that she was. “You can’t actually think that they’re not going to try and force a conversation with you?” Eddie asked wryly. 

Eddie was even less generous than Buck was when it came to his… extended family. It wasn’t that Eddie didn’t understand where his parents had come from with Daniel - I don’t know what I’d do if I ever lost Chris, Eddie had muttered years ago, when Buck had turned up at his doorstep absolutely ripped to pieces after finding out. But I don’t think I would be able to go about pretending he didn’t exist. But this wasn’t the case of his parents. This wasn’t a little bit of sympathy for the people who had tried everything to save one son and accidentally lost two. This was… these were grandparents and aunts and uncles who had let their nephew be swept under the rug. This was a group of people who allowed themselves to be carefully cut out of two lives that needed them and then never tried to reach out again. It was so incredibly complicated and, really, thinking about it all just made Buck exhausted. But Boston had its own charm, and it wasn’t Pennsylvania and it sucked that he didn’t have Eddie or Chris with him to show bits of his past to but he had Maddie and Jee-Yun and, really, Buck had survived off of less. “They can try.” Buck conceded after pausing to order a coffee he didn’t need (“A medium lavender honey latte, please. Hot.” Eddie had laughed in his ear, sounded a bit offended by the flavor and repeated it in an echo all the way in California like he couldn’t believe how pretentious Buck sounded when he ordered it.) and a delicious looking homemade muffin the size of Jee-Yun’s face to go with it. He shuffled down to the pick-up area, and took a plastic stirrer in hand, toying with it between restless fingers and glancing at his watch to check the time. 

He had told Maddie they would meet for lunch, which still gave him a good… hour to sit in this coffee shop and ponder his life’s decisions or… something. “You’re all staying at the same hotel, Buck.” 

He wrinkled his nose at the reminder. “But if I avoid the elevator…” 

“Aren’t you on the fifth floor?” 

“The place has stairs, Eddie.” 

“You have chronic pain, Buck.” 

Okay, listen, it was his own fault for calling Eddie here. If he had wanted someone to just listen to him whine he would have called Bobby and begged him not to put the phone on speaker so Athena couldn’t yell at him for not thinking straight. If he had wanted logic and a way to fix the situation, rally the troops or something, he would have called Hen. If he had wanted someone who would tell Maddie every single thing he was thinking and feeling so that she could fix the problem, he would have called Chim. But Buck had wanted someone to knock his head back on straight. Someone to listen to him whine and gripe and read the fine print to see that, even if he was joking about it, he wasn’t entirely… okay with it. I’m not sure we should be congratulating him. Eddie had said wryly when Buck had told all of them the sperm donation had taken. I understand wanting you to be their kid’s biological dad, Buck, but you know that doesn’t make you their… actual dad, right? He had asked when Buck was mid-breakdown on his kitchen floor. No he hadn’t known, thank-you-very-much. Or he had but he hadn’t wanted to think about it. Hen would call him out but Eddie would call him out, fill him with water and squeeze him so tight that every single emotion and thought would be wrung out of him whether he liked it or not. 

“My mom looked like she was ready to chew my head off when I told Maddie I’d see her at lunch.” Buck mumbled instead, thanking the barista as they passed over his paper cup and porcelain plate. He balanced the muffin on his arm, found a table with a big, overstuffed armchair in the corner, and carefully lowered himself down onto it. The pain in his leg wasn’t all that bad, really. He had ibuprofen in his locker at work and in his hotel room for if it got too bad, a cream his doctor prescribed for after long, hard shifts. It was the cold that was doing him in, if he were to be honest about it. It was eating into his scars and reigniting where the screws had been placed in his bones. He shifted, stretched out his leg in front of him and rubbed at his knee absently. “I feel kind of bad leaving her there to deal with it all herself.” 

Eddie hummed and Buck could imagine what he was doing with his face. His eyebrows were probably pulled up, his lips pressed tightly together like he was carefully avoiding saying something he knew Buck wasn’t going to like. Eddie had worn that look the entire time Buck was dating Taylor, it was his I don’t like the choice you’re making but it’s your choice to make look. “What are you guys doing for lunch?” Eddie asked instead of digging into the wound that was Buck’s complicated relationship with his parents. 

“Have you even eaten breakfast yet?” 

“You’re the one that brought up lunch.” 

Buck laughed, a softer one than what he usually let out in deference to the stressed out college student at the table beside him. “I don’t know,” he admitted with a tiny shrug. “We might just let Jee pick.”

“She’ll just choose McDonalds.” 

“There are worse choices.” 

“McDonalds is trash, Buck.” Eddie argued like he always did. 

“You’re only saying that because it was your first job.” 

“No, it was my second job and it was trash.” 

“Just because you only like their nuggets -.” 

“It’s the smell.” 

“It’s not like there’s In-and-Out here.” 

“You can do better than McDonalds.” 

“You know how I feel about seafood.” 

“Doesn’t Boston have a bustling restaurant scene?” 

“Yeah, it’s all seafood.” 

“That sounds like a lie.” 

Buck huffed and draped a hand over his mouth to hide his beaming smile from view. This was it, he knew, the thing he had been searching the world for. No wonder he hadn’t found it until California. He thought about it sometimes, when he was lying on Eddie’s couch or watching him with Chris at his own kitchen table, a word game between them that Chris only pretended to like because Eddie did. He had left Pennsylvania in search of who he was, in search of a purpose. He had found that in the 118, in firefighting. But he had found all of himself scattered in the Diaz household. And no wonder it had taken so long - Eddie hadn’t even been in the country when Buck had started looking. Buck had avoided Texas and stopped in almost every other state altogether. What were the odds, what were the chances. Right place, right time. There was never going to be anyone else, even if things never progressed further than where they were now. “I really want to take her to the aquarium.” Buck admitted, although it wasn’t a surprise. “This one’s really small but I think she’ll love the penguins.” 

He knew she’d love the penguins. “Steal one and bring it home for me in your luggage.” Eddie commanded absently. It was… nine in Los Angeles. He was probably on his way into work, if Buck was remembering his schedule correctly. “It can be our child.” 

“You want to split custody of a penguin with me?” 

“Why not?” 

They would do this thing, sometimes, where their playful arguments would take a turn into flirting territory. Eddie used to shy away from it, he’d shake his head and hide his smile and change the topic and Buck had learned not to push after the first few times. He liked Eddie a whole lot more romantically than Eddie liked him, and that was fine. Buck could cope. Only then Eddie had gotten shot and Buck had broken down the door to his bedroom and suddenly Eddie was getting better and flirting back and Buck was the one scrambling, trying to keep up with this new, tentative side that was certainly much more bold than he had ever taken Eddie to be. It was nice. It was exhilarating. It never failed to make his blood pump hot through his veins. “We should bring her to the aquarium out here.” Eddie said like they were a unit. They did babysit as a unit, sometimes. When Maddie and Chim needed a date night. Buck wasn’t sure if Chim knew they were watching her together but Maddie certainly did. “I think she’d get a kick out of the sea otters.” 

“Who doesn’t like the sea otters?” Buck countered. “They hold hands when they’re sleeping.” 

“To not get separated.” Eddie finished. “I know, you and Chris have both told me.” 

“Well.” Buck blushed, suddenly happy Eddie couldn’t see him. “It’s important information.” 

“I think they have a few new pups.” Eddie continued. “We should go when you get back. Make it a family thing.” 

“A family thing?” 

“The three of us?” Eddie balked at Buck’s question, like the wording he had used had caught himself off guard. “Me, you, Chris.” 

A family thing. Buck smiled into his coffee lid. “I’d like that.” 

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah.” Buck cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. “And then… maybe we could… I don’t know. Do something that’s n-.” 

“Is that Buck?” Hen’s voice yelled through the speaker. Abruptly, he cut himself off, his cheeks flaming so hot that the college student beside him raised their brow when their eyes accidentally caught. Her lips twitched and she pointedly turned back down to her… statistics book. 

“Hen!” Eddie yelped. 

“Hey, Buck!” Hen must have grabbed his phone from his hand. “How are things going in Boston?” 

He smiled, shook his head, and sat back in his chair, pulling his phone away from his ear to snap a quick picture of his muffin and send it her way. “I’m having this muffin that’s, like, the size of your face.” 

Hen clicked her tongue. “Do I make better muffins?” 

“Hen,” Buck told her as seriously as he could. “Your muffins are heaven sent and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.” 

[chaoticgremlinwholikescheese]

Seismic Waves

AO3 LINK

"I just need to water my plants, then we'll head home, okay?"

Chris nods, seemingly unperturbed by the short detour. He was just happy to be hanging out with his Buck. What he doesn't understand is why Buck doesn't just move his plants to the Diaz house. Buck basically lives there anyway. Most of his clothes, books, and even cooking materials are at the Diaz house. Plus, Chris can't remember the last time he woke up and Buck wasn't there making breakfast.

Buck quickly waters his plants. They're pretty much the only reason he comes to his loft anymore. When he's not at work, he's at Eddie's. In all honesty, the price he's paying for the loft is far from equal to the time he spends here. It would probably be a more sound financial decision to sell the place, but he's not about to ask Eddie if he can move in. Even if he basically lives there anyway.

"Can we get ice cream on the way home?"

"It's almost dinner time. After dinner we can grab some, and we can bring your dad, yeah?"

"Are you making chicken for dinner?"

"Yup! And I'll need my sous chef to help," Buck smiles. 

He's about to water the last plant when it happens. He feels the faint vibrations through the floorboards before the actual quake hits. Everything seems to slow down, seconds stretching into eons. Buck sees cracks spiderweb up the wall. The ground starts to give way. He yells Chris' name, lunges towards him, bundles the boy into his arms just as the floor falls out from beneath them. He curls his body around Chris, angling them so that he'll take the brunt of the impact when they land. 

When he hits the ground, it takes him a second to register it. Then the pain sets in. All the air is knocked from his lungs, and he can feel a rib or two snap. There's a sharp ache in his left side, and he can feel wetness slowly soaking through his shirt. He's definitely bleeding. His vision won't clear and he can't seem to get his head to stop pounding. He hears someone calling his name. 

"Buck! Buck!"

Chris' voice breaks through the fog in his brain. Chris, he needs to check on Chris-

Buck sits up, which turns out to be a mistake. The pain that shoots through him makes the ringing in his ears return. He gasps, but gets himself upright. Chris is on his knees in front of Buck, looking terrified. Buck quickly scans him for injuries. Besides a small cut on his forehead, the boy seems to be unharmed. 

"You okay?"

"I'm fine. But you're bleeding."

Chris points at the wound on Buck's side. It's steadily leaking blood, red overcoming the blue of his shirt. He clamps a hand down on it. He can feel the pulse of blood beneath his fingers. They seem to have fallen into the basement below. Dust hangs thick in the air. There's concrete and rubble all around them. The whole building must have collapsed on top of them. They're completely trapped down here. 

Buck pulls out his phone. The screen is cracked, the device mangled beyond recognition. It's useless. If Chris wasn't here, Buck would be cursing up a storm. The two of them are stuck under an entire building with no way to get in touch with the outside world. This quake was a big one. The 118 is probably going to be running from scene to scene. And of course, this is the day when Eddie is on shift and Buck isn't. 

"It's dark in here," Chris says quietly.

"I know. Someone will find us soon. We're going to be alright."

Chris curls himself into Buck's good side. Buck uses his free hand to pull the boy closer. 

"Hey, you remember that documentary we watched about sharks? It got me think about megalodons," Buck starts, trying to distract Chris from their current situation.

"I asked Dad if we could go see the new Meg movie. He said it was too scary and violent."

"Mm, I'll have to agree with him on that one. The two of us watched the first one. I was jumping the whole time."

What Buck doesn't mention is that Eddie ended up holding Buck because he was so scared. It wasn't something out of the ordinary for the two of them to do. Buck had loved it though, the feeling of being held by Eddie. As if they were a proper couple. He knows that it's wrong to think of your best friend like that. But he can't help it. His heart belongs to Eddie. It was his from the first day they met. 

"Do you think there are really megalodons in the ocean?"

"Honestly, I don't know. But I wouldn't be surprised if there were."

"I want to learn how to scuba dive one day. It would be cool to explore the oceans."

"Scuba diving is fun. I used to do it before I came to LA."

"Did you ever see Atlantis?"

"Nope. But I saw some pretty cool fish. I even saw an octopus once."

Chris continues to ask him questions about his experiences scuba diving. Buck had gotten trained when he thought about becoming a SEAL. Even though he didn't go through with the enlistment, the skills he learned came in handy. He used to love scuba diving, loved the ocean. But after the Tsunami he can't see the ocean the same way. Instead of filling him with a sense of calm it fills him with dread. He almost lost Chris that day. And here they are again, in danger, all because of Buck.

Logically Buck knows he couldn't have predicted this. But he never should have brought Chris to his loft, just like he never should have brought Chris to the pier. He just wanted to water his fucking plants.

"Since we won't have time to make the chicken tonight, can we order in pizza?"

"Sure. And maybe we can convince your dad to let us watch the Meg."

"If both of us ask, he won't stand a chance," Chris says confidently. 

Read the rest on AO3

[spaceprincessem]

f&f?

hi diana!!!!!

this is my on going fast and furious 911/buddie au. i recently just re-watched fate of the furious (fast 8) and wrote a few buddie scenes for fun based off the movie. here's one of the scenes i did

Eddie’s chest heaves as he watches Jonah fall to the ground. His grip on the briefcase loosens briefly as Abby tells him good job and to get out of there. He only has a second to breathe before the suitcase is ripped right from his hands. Panic flares in his chest as he catches Buck taking off down an alleyway. “Buck!” He yells, frozen as Abby says in his earpiece, What are you going to do about it, Eddie? He swallows hard and takes off after Buck. He can’t let Buck get away, but he doesn’t know how else he’s supposed to get the briefcase back. Hurting Buck isn’t an option. He can’t bring himself to do that after all the pain he’s caused. “Buck!” He says desperately, “Stop!” He raises his gun in the air and fires off two warning shots. He watches as Buck flinches, stumbling to a stop. He slowly turns to face Eddie and Eddie can feel the way his heart explodes from his chest, pulling pulling pulling towards the only thing he’s ever truly wanted. Buck looks wrecked, but determined as he stares Eddie down with those gorgeous baby blue eyes that have always looked at Eddie like he’s the most amazing thing in the world. “I don’t know why you’re doing this, Eds.” He says hurt and confused and so many other things that Eddie wants to sooth. “But I know that you love me,” he continues with so much convocation that Eddie aches, “and you are not going to shoot me.” Eddie wants to close the distance between them. He wants to press Buck against the wall and kiss him like their lives depend on it. He wants to touch Buck, hands itching with the primal need to feel his skin against Buck’s. He wants to lick hot in Buck’s mouth and swallow all the beautiful sounds he knows Buck would make. He wants to beg Buck for forgiveness, drop to his knees, and kiss away all of the suffering he’s caused.  He wants Buck to chase away the taste of Abby and blood and betrayal from his lips. He wants to tell Buck that he loves him. That Eddie belongs to him and that he belongs to Eddie.  Always and forever. He doesn’t do any of that, though. He just lets Buck walk away and stares up at the security camera knowing that Abby has seen everything. A few seconds later he hears Buck’s grunt of pain and Josh’s voice from around the corner. “I won’t chase you,” Josh says. Eddie blindly follows the sound, the click of a gun igniting a fire in his veins. He has his gun against Josh’s temple at the same time Josh points his gun right at Buck’s head. “You willing to die for it?” Eddie growls, finger steady on the trigger. Josh tries to pull the case from Buck, but he doesn’t give it up, staring Josh down instead with that same determination that Eddie knows will get him killed. But Eddie isn’t going to let that happen. Not on his fucking life. “Buck,” he says, like a warning. Out of the corner of his eye he can see the moment where Buck gives in. His face shutters and he lets go of the briefcase, tears pooling in his lashes.  “Okay, then,” Josh huffs, “let’s go.” Josh bumps past Eddie’s shoulder, but Eddie can’t take his eyes off of Buck. They stare at each other for one heated second and Eddie wants to tell him so many things. The urge to pull Buck close to him is so fucking strong that it physically hurts when Eddie walks away.  The sound of Buck’s quiet, heartbroken sob nearly breaks Eddie in two.

i have brainrot so bad whenever i watch these movies i swear

[onward--upward]

word search game!

rules: share snippets of your work containing each of the words the previous poster selected for you. (Optional addition: if you can't find the word in your WIPs, or you simply don't have any WIPs, you can just write a sentence around the word.)

thank you to @cowboy-buddie @mysteriouslyyounggalaxy and @megsvstheworld for tagging me!! this was so much fun!

my words were shift, caught, last, effort, sideways, tugs, sleep, tender, whisper, fall, hurt, hug, gaze, caress and morning

these came from a couple of different wips, mostly (but not all) buddie! enjoy xx

shift: It always makes the kids so happy, but now Buck is miserable and trying to ignore the throbbing, shooting pain that attacks him everytime he shifts. 

caught: “I had a bad night, and it just caught me the wrong way. That’s literally all there was to it.” 

last: Their LA Kings are sitting right atop the Pacific, battling with Vegas for the division title, and everyday it seems like the press are running another story about how “surprising” their rise has been, “despite” the media circus that has been following them around since Buck and Eddie came out last summer. 

effort: His Wednesday is a wash as a whole – he downs his painkillers, makes a half-hearted effort to scramble some eggs, and parks his ass on the couch to binge Masterchef and feel sorry for himself. 

(sorry in advance for this next one...!!!)

sideways: A horn blares, and Eddie snaps his head sideways just in time to catch the sedan careening across the divider before everything is lost to the sick crunch of metal and a tooth-rattling impact. 

tugs: “Mr. Buck,” Sadie tugs on the leg of his slacks. “We made you a get well card!” 

sleep: Buck (1:58AM): you can go to sleep at any time 

tender: Eddie’s gentle, probing fingers reach the tender spot, halfway up his forearm, and Buck hisses through his teeth. 

whisper: Even more so when he leans in close, lips brushing Buck’s ear when he whispers, “You’re not very subtle, you know.” 

fall: Eddie is going to think he’s ridiculous. “I was carrying a couple of the kids, and a different kid ran into me… It – it turns out that having two six-year-olds fall on you is not a recipe for healthy bones.” 

hurt: It makes him feel better just looking at it, even if it did kind of hurt like a bitch while they were all trying to tug him in different directions to draw on him. 

hug: He’s already fucking gorgeous, obviously, but with that soft smile on his face, he looks like someone you could come home to. Someone who will wrap you up in a hug when you’re having a bad day. 

gaze: Buck watches as the other man’s gaze flickers, straying from his face, wandering down over his bare chest and then snapping back up again.

caress:  It ends up being a strangely soft gesture, more of a caress than Leon had intended. 

morning: He gets absolutely swarmed by the kids when the bell rings in the morning. “Mr. Buck!” Aidan yells. “Mr. Buck, you’re back!”

Words for people I tag: bites, fingers, flush, soft, serious

No pressure tags!! i know i am like a day behind on this so simply ignore me if y'all have done this already <3 @eusuntgratie @gayhoediaz @jacksadventuresinwriting @drysdaales