#but make it clipboard 118 instead

[typicalopposite]

Oh I should not be thinking about marriage proposals for a couple we have no confirmation will be long term…

Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut…

Imagine with me, if you will, Buck getting ready for a date with Tommy and there’s a knock on his door. It’s Eddie and— and he’s holding a—

“What’s with the clipboard,” Buck laughs. Eddie flicks his eyes up from where he is busy scribbling something that Buck tries to see but Eddie pulls the clipboard up so he can’t.

“You… are late,” Eddie responds — matter of factly, albeit nonsensically because… late for what? Before he can ask, Eddie swoops the pen around elegantly like he does with his signature and then tucks the board under his arm. “Let’s go.”

And then they are off on a very wild (very confusing for poor Buck) adventure of Buck being passed — with the constantly hidden from his eyes clipboard — from person to person and place to place until he finally ends up at the 118 with Athena who hands the clipboard one last time to Bobby and after some sentimental fatherly speech he gives it to Buck.

On it is a picture frame boarder and what everyone had been scribbling the whole time were their signature and little messages. In the middle where a picture would go it just says turn around.

Buck does and there’s Tommy down on one knee and his whole entire family (his whole entire world) is watching as one of the happiest days of Bucks life unfolds.

And of course he says Yes!

And yeah…. Imma need to get a google doc going for this because it’s made me feel all soft inside!

[rcmclachlan]

Return of the Mack

For @alchemistc. Hope you feel better soon!

At the fire academy, three things are beaten out of every trainee: fear, a normal sleep schedule, and the social influences that prevent one from intervening in the event of an emergency. Some have jokingly called the third one the Anti-Bystander Effect, because if someone needs assistance—whether it's to stop an assault, run into a burning building, or help a little old lady find a quarter she dropped—a firefighter will immediately rush in to save the day. It's a special brand of classical conditioning that instills an elevated sense of responsibility in every trainee, and it's paid in full by the state of California.

Which is why it's so odd for there to be three capable firefighters standing around doing nothing while there's an old man clearly in need of dire assistance. If the LAFD higher-ups knew they were actively choosing to watch the carnage unfold instead of lifting a finger to help, they'd all be shitcanned. 

Luckily, there's a fourth firefighter on the scene doing the absolute most. 

"I thought we made a pact to keep him from using his powers for evil," Eddie says, taking a dispassionate sip of his coffee. 

"Is it evil if he's actually using them in service of a greater good?" Hen's attention is half on what's going down and half on the Notes app on her phone, where she's typing out the week's grocery list. "You know, the enemy of my enemy is my friend?"

Draped over the railing like his bones have melted, Chimney gives a sage nod. "He's like a one-man Suicide Squad." 

In the apparatus bay, they watch as Vincent Gerrard uses the distraction of B Shift heading home to duck behind one of the engines, most likely to regroup after being thoroughly ambushed the second he stepped into the station five minutes ago. He slumps back and breathes. The moment of weakness costs him: a grinning demon rounds the corner and makes a bee-line for him as though he can taste blood in the air.

"So, which one of you said 'spreadsheet' three times in a mirror?" Ravi sidles up next to Chimney and unwraps a breakfast burrito from Delia's. 

Chimney gives him the stink-eye. "I hope you brought enough for the whole class."

"Nope," Ravi says, taking a cheerful bite.

"None of us summoned him," Eddie says. He leans down to try and catch the conversation being had, but he's too high up. For a second, he thinks he hears the words 'crack whore' but it's probably a trick of the bay's acoustics. "He's everywhere, always, just watching and waiting for you to slip up. Like God."

"Or the Devil," Hen says in agreement.

"Or Santa," Chimney adds.

Ravi chews thoughtfully. "I thought we threw out all the clipboards. Who gave him that one?"

"Tommy," Eddie, Hen, and Chimney say through a simultaneous, long-suffering sigh. 

It's not just any clipboard. It's the king of clipboards. It's the only clipboard that has ever fucked. The thing is a navy blue polycarbonate beast with "Buckley 118" embossed in fire engine red on the back, and the clip looks like it was forged in the fires of Staples HQ. 

At the bi-weekly Beer and Bitch Night last Friday at Golden Road Pub, Tommy had pulled it out of a bag and presented it on one knee like he was proposing, or bestowing a sword to a king. The entire brewery was then given front-row seats to an intense game of tonsil hockey that nearly went into overtime until Eddie threatened to call Athena because Bobby looked like he was seriously reconsidering sobriety.

"Does he know what he's unleashed?" Ravi sounds genuinely curious. 

As if on cue, Chimney's, Eddie's, and Hen's phones chime with three incoming messages. 

T.K. 07:26am: Has it started? T.K. 07:26am: Remember: you promised one of you would film it T.K. 07:27am: I'm offering 3 nights of free babysitting to the first person who delivers

That last one is followed by a gif of J. Jonah Jameson shouting "Bring me Spiderman!"

Hen frowns down at her phone. "Who the hell is that?"

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," Chimney mutters.

H.W. 07:28am: Why are you so desperate for video?  E.D. 07:28am: What 40-something year old still pinky swears? H.H. 07:28am: Clipboard Buck better not be a weird sex thing for you, Kinard

Tommy's typing indicator appears, then disappears. Then appears and disappears again. Then appears—

"Yeah, no." Chimney hastily pockets his phone. "Those two were made in a lab for each other, I swear to god."

Down in the bay, Gerrard has moved to stand almost directly underneath them. While they can't hear what Gerrard says to Melanie Wu, an electrician so talented she could probably take down the entire grid with her eyes closed, that puts such a dour expression on her face, they can hear it when Buck, popping up behind Gerrard like an insane Jack-in-the-box, says, "Don't worry, Melanie! This is something to bring up during Thursday's workplace conflict seminar."

"What seminar?!"

Buck isn't cowed. He taps his clipboard and says, "The one I scheduled with Chief Alonso. You know, the mandatory one we all need to do in order to keep our certification—well, we'll keep it as long as nothing comes up during the seminar that might call into question our ability to do the job."

There's a charged moment where it almost looks like Gerrard might take a swing at Buck, but then he notices the audience hanging above him like a Greek chorus and shouts, "Someone'd better top off the fuel and DEF or—"

"Already done, Cap." Buck makes a show of turning to the second page on his clipboard and lists off, "All fuel, DEF, oil, and coolant are set. Tires have been aired up. Hoses have been drained and cleaned, and re-rolled. Engines were all waxed yesterday, all medical supplies have been inventoried and stocked, and I've made a list of the harnesses and cutting torches that need replacing. Just need you to sign off on everything. Sir."

The ingratiating smile on Buck's face would fool even the wiliest of senior officers, and Gerrard himself looks like even he's not sure if what just happened was disrespectful, but they know better. 

"Diabolical," Ravi whispers, awed. 

Hissing through his teeth, Gerrard spins on his heel and storms away in the direction of the little office in the administrative section of the firehouse where he's taken to holing up like a miserable groundhog until they get a call that forces him back out. If he sees his shadow on the firehouse wall, it's six more hours of bullshit.

As soon as he's gone, all the firefighters that had stopped to watch the show burst into laughter and applause, and Buck cracks up, taking sweeping bows and blowing kisses to his adoring fans. 

Chimney rolls his eyes and looks to see what Hen's expression is doing, because no one gives good face like she does, but she's holding her phone in a way that clearly means—

"You're filming this?" Chimney demands, betrayed.

She gives an unrepentant shrug. "Three nights of free babysitting? I'm not proud."

"You do know this means Buck's going to get laid and be absolutely insufferable about it, right?"

"Three nights," Hen bites out through very audible regret.

Buck looks up, flashes a grin, and the second he clocks the phone he salutes it with the clipboard. Then he struts after Gerrard, calling almost lazily, "Cap, wait up! I wanted to talk about setting up a mock exam for everyone who's planning on taking the TCFP D/O!"

They all watch him go. Silently, Hen sends off the video with the air of someone about to make a drug drop. 

"So, when does Taylor Kelly's exposé come out again?" Eddie makes a dubious face in the direction of the administrative offices. "Because I don't know that Gerrard won't off himself before it does."

"We win either way," Chimney points out. 

"It comes out next Monday," Hen says, slipping her phone into her pocket and elbowing Chimney in the arm on her way to the stairs. "Karen and I are hosting a watch party that night and you're all invited."

Ravi beams. "Thanks, Hen. I'll definitely be there."

"And you'll be bringing dinner from Taco Azteca—for everybody. Make sure you get enough carne," Chimney calls over his shoulder as he follows Hen. 

"I'm not a probie anymore," Ravi whines. "You can't haze me like this."

Snickering, Eddie pats him on the shoulder and says, "You do this and I'll make sure you're not sitting anywhere near Buck and Tommy when Taylor drops the bomb about Gerrard and Ortiz."

"Extra al pastor and buche it is!"

[talktonytome]

hi! what about: "rest my head in your lap, feeling fully restored" from your prompts if you're feeling it <3 ty!

12. Rest my head in your lap, feeling fully restored

<3 <3 <3

“What can I bring you?” Buck asks, voice doing nothing to hide his concern. Tommy had called to let him know him he had a bad migraine and wouldn’t be great company, telling him he could come over the next day, instead. Of course Buck being who he is, insisted on coming over to help- he couldn’t just do nothing. 

He hears Tommy sigh over the phone and smiles at how easily he yields to him, not in a controlling asshole kind of way, but it makes him happy, to know Tommy trusts him, in more ways than one. 

“It’s gonna sound weird,” Tommy says, “but an order of salty fries and a cold bottle of coke would actually help a lot. I would have gone out myself, but just the thought of sunlight hitting my eyes- ” 

“Hey, don’t sweat it, one order of fries and a coke coming right up,” he promises. He actually doesn’t find Tommy’s migraine coping method that weird, he’d seen friends try any number of things, in their desperation- the sodium, caffeine, and sugar make sense. “Try to get some rest. Unfortunately, we can’t all fly helicopters and crosstown traffic’s a bitch, but I’ll see you in about an hour, okay?”

Tommy chuckles, then groans in pain on the other end and even though a migraine is, objectively, not a big deal compared to their job incidents, it still pains Buck to know he’s suffering at all. “Sounds good,” he mumbles. “Thank you, love you.”

“Love you, too.”

As promised, an hour later, Buck’s letting himself in Tommy’s house and he tries to be quiet, in case he did manage to fall asleep. He rubs his thumb down the little LAFD helicopter keychain Tommy had given him, along with a key just a few weeks back. It still gives him butterflies to think about. 

“Evan, s’that you?” 

The living room is cool and dark, but Buck makes out the lump laying face-down on the floor that is his boyfriend. He chuckles, “yeah baby, I got the good stuff.” He holds out the bag of fries and coke bottle, which is silly, now that he thinks about it, since Tommy can’t see from his place in the floor. 

He toes off his shoes by the door and shuffles over to Tommy as gently as he can so as to not rattle the boards. He sets the goods on the coffee table and settles on the floor next to him. “Do you think you can sit up long enough to eat?” He rubs his neck soothingly. 

Tommy grunts, reluctant to move, but shoots out a hand to squeeze Buck’s ankle in thanks. “Yeah,” he sighs, “just give me a minute.” 

“Of course.” Buck continues rubbing circles up and down his neck and back, until some of the tension bleeds from Tommy’s body. Slowly he pushes off from the floor and Buck gets his arms around him to help him sit up and against the couch. 

“Hi,” he smiles. “I’m glad you’re here.” 

“Wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” Buck tells him truthfully. “Now, how about these fries?”

“Yes, please.” 

Buck grabs the box of fries from the bag and hands them to Tommy, who immediately grabs a handful and stuffs them in his mouth. Buck laughs, grateful every time he gets to see a new side of Tommy, especially when it comes to the little things. 

“What?” Tommy asks around a cheek-full of fries. “Nothing, I just love you.” He opens the bottle of coke next and passes it to Tommy. “Wash down those fries before you choke,” he instructs, in what the 118 would describe as his “clipboard Buck” tone. Whatever. 

“Sir, yes sir,” Tommy mock salutes with two fingers and takes a long swig of coke. “Ah, that’s the stuff,” he sighs happily, which is a good sign, so Buck will take it. They pass the time it takes Tommy to finish the rest in comfortable silence. Then, Buck gets up to clear the trash and rummages in the kitchen for a heating pack and an ice back. 

He brings both with him and sits back down on the floor, and moves Tommy to lie down, until he’s perpendicular to where Buck is sitting, then tenderly lifts his head onto his lap, pressing the heating pad on his neck and the cold pack on his forehead. 

“Ohh, that feels nice,” Tommy moans in relief. “How’d you know?”

“I might have done some research while I was waiting in the drive-thru line,” Buck admits. 

“You’re the best, Evan” his eyes are closed, but a smile dances across that handsome jaw. “An angel, truly.” 

“Anytime,” Buck whispers. They sit in silence, as he gently massages Tommy’s head, occasionally dipping down to rub his temples. 

“Feeling any better?” He checks in after some time.

“Mhm, much,” Tommy affirms, finally opening his eyes, and reaches up to cup the side of Buck’s face. “More or less restored, all thanks to you. Any chance I can request Dr. Buckley for all my future medical needs?” 

Buck smiles and turns to kiss his palm, “I think that can be arranged.”

[cecilyv]

wip wednesday

I'm making @liminalmemories21 write sports ball. Well, let's be fair -- I'm writing sports ball references and she's writing all the "wtf the are you talking about, none of this makes any sense," parts.

Buck/Tommy, 9-1-1

++

“So you found the picture.”

“When I was looking for the manual,” Buck agrees, “I didn’t know you played baseball. I played football-- “ 

Tommy snorts, “Of course you did.” 

And hey, “Hey!” 

Tommy squeezes his shoulders and steps back. “You kind of have a thing for running headlong into danger, Evan, I’m not sure if you noticed.” 

The end of his thought is muffled, like he’s talking with his shirt over his head, and Buck twists in his seat to watch as Tommy drops his shirt at his feet and starts popping the buttons on his pants, and “Oh, hey, no distracting me, you played baseball--” 

“I was drafted out of high school,” Tommy says, as he kicks off his pants and reaches for Buck’s hand, tugging him up, kissing him softly. “Enlisted in the army instead.” He shrugs and looks down the hallway, “Can I distract you now?” 

Turns out, the answer is definitely, yes. 

------

and:

Now that it’s all out there, Tommy really opens up about things Buck never heard him talk about before -- which mostly, it seems, is how much Tommy hates the Dodgers. But he puts his hatred aside for the good of the group -- he’s got a friend who made it to the show but is now on the training staff, one of the guys from his old Little League days. He sets Tommy up with a suite at Dodger stadium.

"Who," Eddie hisses as they bypass all the lines at the park heading for one of the boxes, "exactly does Tommy know?  Is he secretly a mob boss who moonlights at the LAFD?"

Buck does actually know the answer to this, and not because he'd wondered that once or twice too.  But letting Eddie dangle is more fun, so he just raises his eyebrows and shrugs.  "He knows a guy,” and Eddie sighs, and Buck tries to distract him, “Did you know Chavez Ravine used to be a neighborhood?” 

Ravi and Tommy bond about the unfairness of the Dodgers getting Shohei Ohtani for steal (like, a literal steal, Tommy spends 20 minutes trying to explain it to Buck, who just nods and backs away slowly) and decide that they’re going to the Angels game next time (heartbreak and bad seats be damned). None of them are actually Dodger fans, except Hen, who’s fully decked out in her blue and white and they try not to hold that against her. 

They all cheer when Station 118 is welcomed on the big scoreboard in the outfield. 

During the game, while everyone else mills around, grabbing food, gabbing, and halfheartedly cheering, Tommy sits with a clipboard, pencil and complicated sheet of paper that he dutifully fills out after every pitch. Buck sits down next to him, watches for a while and then Tommy quietly starts explaining the scorecard and all its abbreviations and rules. 

It does make the time go faster.

[faramirsonofgondor]

Reasons why I think Buck might have OCPD (Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder) as someone with OCPD and ADHD

He seems very preoccupied with his work, lists, systems, and order. Especially when he’s in “clipboard Buck” mode

OCPD usually starts in your teens to early 20s, and can be caused by trauma and feeling like you need to be “perfect”

Perfectionism and extreme focus on working (the way he was incredibly determined to get back to work during the Lawsuit Era)

Inability to let things go even when they lose their worth

Inability to share or delegate work to others for fear it won’t be done right (while Buck very often chooses to be the one to take risks on the job because he doesn’t want others to get hurt, this could be a part of a moral/methodical obsession. To him, Buck wouldn’t be doing his job correctly if he let one of his coworkers get injured when he could be the one injured instead)

Being obsessive, judgemental, and inflexible in matters of morals and judgement (this literally reminds me of S1 ep1 when Buck didn’t want that teen mom to ride in the ambulance)

Difficulty forming and maintaining close relationships with others (again S1 Buck and lawsuit era)

Excessive doubt and conscientiousness

Rigidity and stubbornness

Compelled to do things a certain way

Low threshold for humiliation, criticism, and emotional hurt

Bye why did I find a med journal that says “loved ones on the receiving end of the relationship will experience exhaustion, unhappiness, and frustration” like Lawsuit era who???? (ok but this journal is lowkey so critical of people with OCPD wtf 😭)

Obviously not all of these things are stuff that Buck does throughout the entire show but I think S1 and a bit of early S2 era Buck was more obsessed and preoccupied with his own morals and as he matured he bent his behavior more towards following the rules at the 118 and he became obsessed with his work and doing his job as best as he can. I think part of this duality stems from the fact that in his teens he would’ve felt pressured to adhere to the standards his parents set, with the only times he really went against them being when he would injure himself for their attention because in his mind the right method to get someone’s attention is through injury (which we see come up multiple times throughout the show). However, as he entered his early 20s he got stuck into a routine of traveling from place to place and learning new skills, which probably would’ve impacted his ability to be preoccupied over his works rules/systems and would’ve probably caused him to obsess more over morals, as we see when he quits the marines because they don’t align with his approach to morals and emotion.

**Also I know some people might be confused when I say early S1 Buck had an obsession with morals considering he slept around, stole the fire truck, etc. but I want to point out that with OCPD your own rules surrounding morals and judgment might not be completely logical, and more “Black and white” so Buck might not have seen casual sex as morally wrong (which it’s not, but I digress) and he probably didn’t see an issue with stealing the fire truck at the moment. People with OCPD can still mature and have changing moral values over time and that’s part of Buck’s development. He probably took Bobby firing him as a very harsh judgment on his own behavior and we see that even in S2 he was obsessing over that when Eddie was hired.

Sorry this is kind of a messy post where I just word vomited all over the place I hope this makes sense even though I probably ended up contradicting myself at some point.

[buckslafdhoodie]

give us the explanation !!!!

Without further ado—

the list of reasons that I wholeheartedly believe the Buckley siblings are, in fact, just a torti and a goldie in disguise as humans:

Maddie is so spunky. We may not see it when we first meet her, still reeling from her experiences and the escape from her ex-husband, but it is so abundantly clear that she has this lovely, quirky, fire-y attitude that is, coincidentally, often a trait seen in tortoiseshell cats! Many call it a tortitude! Tortoiseshell cats are often hailed by vets and cat owners alike as super spunky, independent, and occasionally feisty. Sound familiar? (Josh and Maddie’s friendship is one very stellar example of it in action!)

Buck’s often blind loyalty, even when it turns toxic, is so quintessential golden retriever. From his trust in ex-partners to his trust in Bobby, the 118, his parents, Buck has had SO MANY INSTANCES of his trust being broken, of his blind faith and loyalty being used as a shield, leading to Buck himself getting ruined mentally and occasionally physically as a result. Many breeds of dogs are known to be loyal to a fault, but golden retrievers are on another level. One of the reasons that a decent portion of service dogs are goldens is due to their temperament, their ability to focus on a task for the purpose of helping their person out, while still being social enough to handle large crowds of people.

Maddie values her own space and independence while also being close to a select few, sometimes finding herself drifting far away from those she cares about for longer periods of time but always. coming. back. Much like a cat and their people, Maddie spends a solid portion of her time separated from the rest of her family (and extended 118 family), between her job in dispatch, where it is almost always her alone on each call, and her yearning to have her own place, her own stuff, her own memories after moving to L.A, I’d argue that Maddie is one of the most solitary characters in the show, but that does not make her cold or rude, but instead highlights how happy she is when she gets those moments with Chim or Buck or Josh or the many MANY members of her new west coast family!

Buck is task-oriented and “trainable”, for the lack of a better word. This one doesn’t need much explanation— look at his history of rehabilitation! Buck wants to get back to work? He will break records doing so. He found a structure and a skillset in firefighting that he loves and genuinely continues to improve upon. You can also insert here Clipboard Buck, the ultimate malicious compliance, task-oriented, trying to be helpful golden retriever in a man costume. Many Goldens are renowned for their technical abilities, and some are even known to take advantage of their knowledge to open doors they shouldn’t open or game their owners for extra treats.

Here are some rapid fire extras as well:

This is not the case in every house, but with every cat/dog house I have been in with bonded animals, the dog is always enthusiastic and ready to play but tries to respect the cat’s boundaries (sometimes the dog forgets and they get into spats but they always somehow end up playing or napping nearby by the end of the night anyway). Buck and Maddie may have their moments of upsetting one another but at the end of the day, they will always be there in each-other’s corners.

Color-scheme wise, it tracks.

Siblings who would go to war for their loved ones would of course be some of the most loyal yet often underrated protectors (cats being prone to sensing mood shifts and often moving to comfort and stand by their side while dogs will get defensive and physically fend off any who wish their people harm).

Buck and Goldies both being eager to experience anything and everything while Maddie and Tortis are more cautious and selective, more likely to stick to what they know (Maddie hopping jobs to dispatch to continue helping people in dire situations like when she was a nurse, for example)

I have more, honestly, but this list ALREADY got away from me. ,:))

(special shoutout to @kinkley-are-adorkable-flirts and @operator-please-take-my-call for requesting more!!)

[eddiediazismyhusband]

Do you think Buddie would have another kid after getting together? What are your headcanons for that?

Personally, I say yes and see them worrying that Chris would feel some type of way about it and then approaching the conversation very carefully and then Chris is just like “so I get a sibling FINALLY? Awesome”

Oh bestie i absolutely think they would… especially with how much buck wants a kid and how eddie would love the chance to be there for the important things he missed with chris.

(i actually have an ongoing fic series called “Never Grow Up” centered around buddie being baby-girl dads; i will link it below if you want to check it out ☺️☺️)

but one of my headcanons is that they would name their baby girl after maddie- i don’t think she would be maddie diaz, i think they would make her full name Madeline (or any similar spelling) followed by her middle name being Isabel after abuela.

if they had a baby boy, i could 1000000% see them naming him after bobby in some capacity whether that be his first name or not (i also love the idea of him being called robbie instead of bobby so that it’s like the same but different)

i think buck would immediately become the helicopter parent for whatever extracurricular activity they join (im talking coaching the kindergarten soccer team, sewing dance costumes for dance competitions, volunteering as a kid wrangler for school plays, etc.)

i think eddie would sing old lullabies to their children as he rocks them to sleep at night, buck would tell him he has a beautiful voice (he would), and eddie would shake his head and say he doesn’t think so

buck and eddie would both find moments during the day when chris would sneak into the nursery and be telling the baby a story about their family, or saying sweet things like “im slways gonna protect you” or “i will never let anyone hurt you” “if anyone gives you a problem you come to me”

buck would go all out for their birthdays, often bringing out clipboard buck to make sure everything goes exactly the way he planned

their kids would call all of the 118 uncle/aunt/auntie

i think buck would be the one who everyone thinks spoils the kid, but in reality eddie is much worse about it than buck is (although they are both bad about it)

i think they would have at least one baby via surrogate, so that buck would have the chance to he a biological father, but any more, they would look into adoption, getting help from henren through the process

i think they would raise the kids to be bilingual (buck would come home raving about research he did on how beneficial it would be to raise them in a bilingual household, and eddie couldn’t say no to buck)

eddie would get really insecure over messing up again (bonus points if he panics about not knowing how to raise a little girl) while buck reminds him that he is an amazing father and he will be just as amazing with their kids

I am so sorry this took me like over a week to post, anon… I started a draft of these and then life kinda blew up and i only just thought about it… i guess better late than never, right?

If you are interested in reading my baby-girl-dad!buddie fics, i am going to link the series below (there are currently only two one-shots, but i am sure there will be more to come!)

Thank you for the ask, anon! and again, i am so sorry it took me so long to get to it! 😭🙏💕

[dreemurr-skelememer]

You don't have to answer this, but I was wondering how big do you usually make your canvas when you start a drawing? It might be silly, but I never know how big to make mine so I end up with things to big or too small for the canvas and I'd really like to know what a normal size should be...

here are the sizes i usually use depending on what i want to draw!

i most often use "big chunko" because i like drawing multiple pieces in a big canvas over anything else, gives me more freedom and it's a little more fun and has more space

these are usually my settings!

it's important to note that i usually draw zoomed in at 80-150% (118% is my standard), i do this because i get really particular in how my lines look

and since i zoom so far in, i usually just screenshot the piece then paste it into whatever i'm posting it does kill the quality, but it's not something that really bothers me personally because i like the lower quality look lolz

when it comes to an artwork ive drawn on a zoom level less than 100, i usually select a rectangle around the artwork (merged into the background!) and copy it into my clipboard to paste instead of a screenshot

drawing bigger gives more space for detail and improved quality 100% zoom is what you usually see when opening an image without zooming out or zooming in, so any more or less than that, the quality increases or decreases :)

[niirialnox]

Episode 4;

Oh boy here we go with clipboard Buck lmao

Ugh not Chase already. Gross

Gotta love Athena's mom voice 🤣🤣

Oop Jealous Husband Buck with Lena

Not gonna lie I kinda wish instead of the lawsuit they went with like Buck transferring stations and then Bobby realizes how much he messed up when he basically loses another kid

Oooh Chris and his nightmares my heart :(

They love to traumatize Maddie, don't they? Ugh

I just wish everyone COMMUINICATED more and then we wouldn't have these problems (but then we also wouldn't have this drama either lmao)

Not Maddie being a vigilante lmao I kinda love it

OH BOY NOT READY FOR BUCK TO KNOW ABOUT BOBBY BEING THE REASON HE CAN'T COME BACK BUT HERE WE GO

I kind wish Maddie ran his ass over lmao

The blender pettiness I LOVE IT hahaha

Ooooh Maddie whatcha doing girl

Chim loves Maddie so much my heart

Christopher my heart hurts so much for him

As much as Bobby deserves what happened, again communication would have saved them (AND US) the heartbreak of this damn lawsuit arc

Episode 5;

As shitty as it was about all the 118s dirty laundry being aired out. . .it just shows how much Buck was treated differently with everything and while I understand why everyone was so angry about Buck talking about their lives (which I'm sure a lot of things COULD be found out if Chase did his own digging) it in reality should have shown them all how MUCH they treated Buck differently

You can tell how much Bobby loves Buck by the way he treated the duck farm guy (not that he should have shoved him and yelled at him BUT STILL. And we all know the idiot kids line was def made in his anger to Buck)

The racial profiling scene also hurts me so much.

Even though Eddie shouldn't have hit the guy I would have loved for him to have asked if he wanted his other knee to be messed up lmao

I love that they used Ronda's fighting background as a way to have the fight ring arc happen. I know a lot of people probably don't like Lena for introducing Eddie to the fighting ring, but I actually really like the character and I kinda wish they would bring her back

Kinda wish that guy gave Athena a reason to arrest him

The supermarket scene my heart :( Buck is so sad to be yelled at by his husband

I feel so bad for Karen and Hen. They want a baby SO bad and to have all of these roadblocks (ESPECIALLY with that's coming soon and the later seasons) and it makes me so sad for them

Some part of me wishes Buck didn't go to the rage room for some reason. And not gonna lie I don't like petty Bobby.

While fight ring Eddie is hot, I still don't like it!

[wearerandomlyyours]

Ever since I made that single post about 911 it's started showing up more and more on TikTok and I have unwittingly/unwillingly absorbed a ton of information about a show I don't even watch (which is how I learned so much about Supernatural now that I think about it....) but all that's done is make me imagine how the 118 would support each other now that the old bigot captain is back.

Specifically, I keep imagining Chimney, after one too many 'comments' from the crusty old man, doing that 'Go, do a crime' meme but instead of a weapon he hands Buck a clipboard.

[xunandran]

Calendar (Buddie Week 2024 - Day 2)

prompt - Coparenting

Hope you all enjoy!

=================

“Honey, we’re home!”

At the sound of Buck’s voice, Eddie lifts his head from the study guide that has long since shifted into some indecipherable script. A warmth filters through him from the words. Buck’s said those words hundreds of times over the years as a comfortable tease to those around him. He says them when he goes to the firehouse. He says them when he gets back to his loft, even though the both of them know it’s empty. 

It’s the first time he’s said them since their kiss.

He listens to his boys in the other room. By the sounds, Christopher’s in a mood. He can hear the rapid staccato of the boy’s crutches on the floor as he stalks away from the front door. It’s probably nothing. Hormones. He’ll ask if Buck knows anything when the other man makes his way to the kitchen. 

“Christopher? Backpack in your room before video games. You know the rules.” Buck’s voice is kind, but firm, and Eddie’s stomach does a small flip.

Eddie listens for the groaning huff that he’s come to learn is part of raising a thirteen year old. Christopher does not disappoint, but the click of his crutches matches the beating in Eddie’s heart and he’s just so.

Happy.

“Someone’s in a mood,” he observes when Buck enters the kitchen. The other man nods and peeks down the hall to make sure the coast is clear before planting a small kiss at the crown of Eddie’s head. 

“Apparently Stacey told Darcy told Francine told Erika that Chris said he would take her to their upcoming dance.”

Eddie looks up. “Which one’s Erika?”

“The new interest.” Buck pulls open the fridge and grabs a beer. “You want one?”

Eddie shakes his head. “I’m studying. Thanks though.”

“How’s that going?” Buck turns the chair next to Eddie so he can straddle it. His left foot idly toes at Eddie’s feet under the table. 

Eddie sighs. “It’s a lot. There’s a lot to learn, but Tommy’s been a great help, and everyone over there has been so welcoming.”

“Everyone at the 118 misses you,” Buck says before he spins the lid off of the beer and takes a drink. “The new guy is working out though… mostly.” When they had decided to give this a go, Buck and Eddie together instead of Buck and Eddie as friends, it had come with some sacrifices. Because of regulations, they couldn’t be on the same team anymore, so it was either split all of their shifts, or have one of them transfer so they could maintain at least a semblance of a matching shift. 

They had opted for the latter, and Tommy had pulled strings to get Eddie to LAFD Air Ops. And while Buck misses seeing Eddie at work, he loves seeing him here after work. Some sacrifices are worth it.

Eddie looks up from his notes, a teasing fire in his brown eyes. “Be nice to him, Buck.” After a brief bit of silence, he laughs and adds, “But not too nice. I’m not interested in sharing.”

Buck laughs, cheeks pink with warm embarrassment. Eddie wants to kiss along the rosy hue. But that would involve telling Christopher. And of everyone knowing, him being the last, Eddie’s scared of Christopher’s approval most of all. 

“Speaking of Tommy, I invited him over to watch the fight the weekend after next. That okay?

“I think so,” Buck says. And Eddie already knows what’s coming before the next sentence exits the other man’s mouth. “Let me check the calendar.” 

Buck pulls the upgraded calendar from its spot beneath the takeout menus to Eddie’s favorite places and sets it on the table. From the drawer next to the fridge, he grabs a series of pens, color coded to each of them. Eddie was blue, like Buck’s eyes. Buck was purple, one of his favorite colors, and Carla was a lovely shade of red. 

Eddie loves calendar Buck almost as much as he loves clipboard Buck. Not that he’s going to admit that to the other man. But watching Buck make notes and annotations, block out their shifts with color coordinated bars along the top of the days, and sort who was taking Christopher to what activity was probably the sexiest thing he’s ever seen. 

Buck’s even kept some of the old terminology. Eddie’s eyes dance over every other Thursday. BBPUG w/Tommy Kinard. Circled. Buck hasn’t gone since that fateful day. But he still marks it so that it’s accounted for in their daily lives. 

“So what’s the verdict?” Eddie asks.

“I have a shift that day, so you’ll have to deal with scowly and moody.”

“A chore I think I can manage,” Eddie laughs. He looks over the calendar again before Buck picks it up, and his eyes fall on a particular date in both Blue and Purple. The text read simply the talk. “What’s that?”

Buck follows Eddie’s eyes. “Oh. That. I figured we could take Christopher out and bribe him with ice cream and dinner before telling him that ‘his Buck’ has also become ‘your Buck’.”

“My Buck, huh?” He reaches under the table to circle his thumb against Buck’s knee. It’s such a simple gesture, but the absurdity of hiding and planning on bribing a thirteen year old kid to be okay with your new boyfriend makes Eddie laugh. But he loves how much Buck loves Christopher. 

And over time, with pens in Red and Purple and Blue, the Diaz household slowly shifts into the Diaz-Buckley household.

[911prompts]

911 Prompt Masterlist

eddie and abuela watch telenovellas together

the 118 goes to the beach and buck decides to surf for the first time in years

buck asks about becoming a lieutenant

bobby sends linda recipes to give to eddie; its his way to take care of eddie

buck and christopher nurse a bird back to health

eddie doesn't like scrabble because he's dyslexic *

phillip & margaret were doomdayers - aka buck & maddie grew up in a bunker (blast from the past inspired au)

eddie knits

gregg's widow shows up at the 118 to thank eddie for bringing his body home

buck was a ranch hand on an alpaca farm

chimney actually cashes in on his snuggie idea

the buckley family immigrated froma soviet country when buck was little

the 118 gets a nice bonus and buck blows through it right away to get a new motorbike

buck was a tour guide to the penguin colonies in peru instead of a bartender

christopher gets his own clipboard

buck is a beekeeping enthusiast

buck traveled with the circus pre-118 and is now an insane juggler

buck's first teen romance resulted in a pregnancy

buck or eddie get a traumatic injury and have to relearn how to walk and talk

buck and his son go to the barber together

buck handling horses

eddie's breakdown but buck was on shift when christopher calls

eddie didn't answer anita mills call in august; in april, he wishes he had

angsty phillip buckley character study

abuela adopts buck from foster care *

chimney's dad is a crime lord

doug dies and buck helps maddie cover it up pre-canon

eddie and his company are haunted by the spirits of the valley of the dead

buck and his childhood friends that helped him survive hershey

abby comes back to la after seeing buck and the ladder truck accident on the news

Buck and Taylor have a one night stand as strangers in college that results in a pregnancy

the buckleys are amish; buck and maddie leave amish life at 18

eddie and abuela crocheting and gossiping

bobby and athena get together on the bachelor

buck makes up random facts to see if anyone ever realizes they aren't real

buck was one of youtube's first vloggers as he documented his travels

christopher's friend has a massive crush on him and he's completely oblivious

buck was a lifeguard in peru - ends up putting those skills to use on a call with the 118

eddie had a mustache while in the army. pictures are found.

buck teaches some kids skateboard tricks while on a call

taylor kelly's dad took the fall for her killing her mom

buck goes to maddie after her suicide attempt and he brings her to a clinic in LA

eddie was a secret agent *

Phillip Buckley tells hospital Buck’s past history of suicide attempt after the warehouse fire - medical history that neither Margaret, Maddie or the 118 knew

buck was in the quiz bowl league growing up

eddie does goofy dances to make christopher smile

bucks runs into abby on a layover on his way to oklahoma for taylor

photojournalist captures a picture of buck and christopher in the tsunami *

buck comes into custody of the children of his childhood friends

anita mills comes to eddie for help with her ptsd

different buckley family secret; buck is the product of an extramarital affair

maddie writes dear daniel letters

buck married in peru and didn't the divorce didn't go through

buck is older then maddie

margaret buckley died young; buck & maddie struggle growing up with a grieving absent father

buck worked as a sales pitchman on tv before the 118

buck is connected to a murder in Peru that happened on a night he has little to no memory of 

terrorists put eddie and his army company publicly on a hit list

buck adopts a homeless teenager

buck has donated sperm in the past and has dozens of kids (delivery man inspired)

the 118 gets called to a suicide in progress - patient is anita mills

buck is paralyzed by the ladder truck bombing

bodycam footage is leaked of Eddie’s shooting and inside the ladder truck 

buck was on scholarship and was scouted for the nfl, before dropping out

daniel died in an accident as a teenager instead

shannon comes back after tsunami - eddie/shannon redemption arc

buckley parents are love guru radio personalities - chimney starts using their advice for maddie and buck wants it all to end 

buck was a teacher before deciding to change careers to be a firefighter; he runs into some old students on a call

buck and phillip have only ever teamed up to take care of the girls; buck just never thought his dad would push it to the extent he does

mental illness runs in the buckley family; daniel committed suicide as a teenager

buck has a pre-teen from a past relationship who he's only allowed to see sparingly (aftersun inspired)

buck was treasure hunting in peru until things got too real. he leaves the mystery behind until it comes knocking back into his life years later (outerbanks inspired)

buck and maddie grew up poor 

buck got his high school girlfriend pregnant. they panic and hide the pregnancy - giving the kid up for adoption. it goes well until the child shows up as a teenager wanting buck to sign emancipation papers (life unexpected inspired)

in college buck helped make an app to help people out of unsafe situations with strangers; it ends up being used when eddie is trying to flirt with someone. buck finds it hilarious

daniel buckley was kidnapped as a child - it turned into a cold case until new information came to light 20+ years later

buck is peter pan au

eddie is unwell and starts hallucinating shannon

buck is a secret airbender

the buckley family immigrated from belarus - to the surprise of the 118, buck speaks russian on a scene to help locate a family in distress

buck and his dad are involved in the disappearance of doug; maddie is none-the-wiser

buck makes a career change after lightning strike

chief is harsher on buck because he has big plans for buck's LAFD future

updated 4/2/24

prompts with * means there has been a fic posted inspired by this prompt (confirmed by author).

prompts typed in red are the most recently added prompts.

You can find all prompt fills in the masterlist here. You are welcome to use a prompt that already has a fill.

Please let me know if you post any cause I would love to read and link.

[kitchenscene]

engaged buddie ?

first of all, eddie's the one who proposes, so jot that down. not only is he an undercover romantic, but he's also the only one who's been married before, so buck would want to follow his lead on this. and eddie really doesn't want to make a huge deal out of it because that's just not who they are, but he also wants it to be special and he gets stuck on trying to find the "perfect moment"

but of course it happens while they're doing dishes or writing a grocery list or something so incredibly mundane because when eddie's with buck, there's about five dozen perfect moments in a day. and even though eddie proposes, buck gets a ring for him too because he's a sap they're both saps.

then when it comes to wedding planning, just image clipboard buck except instead of being in charge of fire engine inventory he's in charge of place settings and seating arrangements and catering and eddie just. he's like "you're lucky i love you because oh my god you're insane." it gets to the point where eddie has to tell him i don't care about any of this extra stuff i just want to marry you i'd do it right here in the living room, i'd do it at the courthouse, i'd marry you in the 118 parking lot if that's what you want, but i don't need perfect.

they go to way more wedding cake tasting than necessary because. hello free cake with my fiance this is great.

and when it comes to writing vows buck's like. this literally isn't fair you say the most romantic shit without even trying you're gonna improvise your vows and make me cry and make bobby cry and everyone is crying while you're just winging it. so he gets himself a journal. he writes down every scatter brained thought he has about eddie. and just hope that it comes together into something semi coherent.

[valenschmidt]

IT'S 3AM AND CALL ME A CLOWN BUT....

This is gonna be a little long but bear with me cause I have a point.

I believe this entire Eddieana and what happened this episode is heavily hinting that something big is coming...

This entire season we have had subtle Buddie moments AND also moments that hint that Buck and Eddie co-parent Christopher together and I'm gonna list it for you:

We start in 4x03 where Eddie and Buck have this 'good cop, bad cop' scene with Christopher and the video games where Buck tells Christopher no after a silent very mom/dad like pose which says 'Try and defy me' which is very common between married couples who co-parent (I've seen it with my parents a few times). We continue this episode with this cute little prank with the coffee maker that Buck and Chris play on Eddie (which was hilarious and really cute btw)

We move on to the crossover when Buck gets sad (and kind jealous when he finds out that Eddie is gonna work with Marjan instead of him

Later in the ep we have TK (an openly gay man) who thinks Buck is flirting with him AND OPENLY TELLS BUCK he has a boyfriend when Buck suggests they "get together" if TK's in LA sometime... AND on top of that when TK disappears of the frame who appears right after? Yup Eddie

We move on to 4x04 in which we have the scene with the 'Karen's murder' where we have Buck and Eddie playing detective together in a very cute way trying to discover the woman's killer. Then we have the punching bag scene in which after being angry for a while, a conversation with Eddie helps Buck with his anger.

We move on to Buck begins!!! Where in the factory fire JUST AS BUCK is about to give up, the 118 shows up to help him. Who is the first one there??? Eddie. Then we have the scene with Eddie waiting for buck's clean bill of health... And then the whole "Show off" scene which honestly?? EDDIE YOUR FONDNESS!!!

Now we get to the good stuff.... 4x06. JINX. My favorite episode! Where we have the clipboard scene with fond Eddie and the cutest moment with Buck and Eddie laughing in that whole helium scene but also it's the one where we get an incoming... Ana. Bobby tells Eddie this advice which resonates with me

"They're so focused on what they don't have, that they miss the chance to have something else. Something real" and tells Eddie to try and move on... But this line I believe it's more for us. Eddie will be SO focused on what he doesn't have (a 'mom' for Christopher) that he misses the chance to have something real. Something that is right in front of his face (Buck) and tries to find it on Ana (which is where our misery begins)

We have 4x07 where the focus of story arcs shifts to other characters and we don't get that much here BUT we get Buck trying to 'date' and failing miserably with Veronica.

In 4x08 is where the fun starts and co-pareting buddie starts to show... We have on one side Buck who is having issues with Albert and Veronica dating which leads to uncomfortable Buck in his own apartment. Our dear Taylor Kelly comes back but we see her relationship with Buck change to a really nice friendship. On the otherside we have Eddie who starts dating Ana and Christopher finds out which leads to his outburst to Eddie (which had never happened before) and then... HE RUNS AWAY. WHERE!? To Buck. To his other parent. The only other person who makes him feel safe (we get kind of like a divorced!buddie vibe here too). This beautiful scene between them shows us how Buck is Chris other parent AND ALSO that Buck and Taylor are truly becoming friends now. And then we get this really rushed scene where Edmundo (not eddie, Edmundo) introduces Christopher to Ana as if that's gonna make him feel better after the outburst he had and that made no sense at all to the point of the episode

In 4x09 we get a little bit of Buddie working together as the partners they are but the focus is on Chimney and Hen this ep so we just get breadcrums

In 4x10 we get the biggest hint so far... The episode is called PARENTHOOD! And it focuses on obviously the parents of the 118. Bathena and Michael, Henren and Madney. Who is the only parent who gets left out here?? Eddie... Why?? Because we all know that Chris has two parents and they don't want to acknowledge that just yet cause... Reasons. BUT we get nice hints. The few scenes in which we have Buck we get him talking about children at the same level as the rest of the 118. He acts and talks like he's already a parent. Why? Because he is!!!

We get this scene which is very subtle (BUT ALSO VERY NOTICEABLY) where we have the 'good cop, bad cop parents' and their kid. Chimney asks if both parents can be the 'good cop' AND BOTH BUCK AND EDDIE RESPOND NO! As if they know by first hand that a kid needs both, good and bad. This HEAVILY hints buddie co-parents or there's no point to this moment. In the same epsiode we get this AWFUL and very rushed scene with Buddieana and Chris in literally the last minute of the parenthood episode where Chris didn't even show up. The show portrays them as the 'adorable family who watches tv together' when they showed us JUST a few scenes ago the very noticeable buddie co-parenting scene. Why you say?? To remind us Eddie and Ana are still dating.

My point??? It's all on purpose. This is all hinting that something big might be coming. That's why we are getting so little scenes, why buddie is "pulling away". Also the fact that Ana is just here as Eddie's love interest and has literally no personality whatsoever is making me believe she's just being used as a background character. Even David (Michael's partner) has more personality than her and I think this is done on purpose. I believe something is gonna happen and this might all lead to Carla's appearance in an upcoming episode which could be the turning point of this storyline. Cocoa hinted that Carla will be coming back and she might be anti Ana (and possibly team buck). Will she knock some sense into Eddie? I really hope so

This took me an hour but it's here... Am I a clown? Yes. Am I reaching? Probably. But I had to get it out of my chest... Buddie is coming

[halcyonstorm]

The Girl at the Library Chapter 1

Short Fic - Levihan

Themes: College AU, Library, Fluff, Slow Burn, Falling in Love, Female Hange Zoe, Student!Levi

Word Count: 5730

Chapter: 1/3

Warning: Mild Language

Read on Ao3 - The Girl at the Library

Summary: Levi is a college student who needs help on his research paper. Luckily, Hange is a book worm and works at the library. 

Levi was stressed and annoyed, mainly because he was in college. Of course with college comes infinite amounts of homework assignments, 100-question exams with astronomical amounts of topics on them, unnecessary research papers, and staying in a dorm room with a kid that happens to have no problem inviting his friends over every night to hang out and party with no regards to his sullen roommate.

Levi had a paper coming up. He had to come up with a topic, find sources, and finish his paper by the end of the semester. With three weeks left to go, he decided he’d rather get it over with. He began his brainstorming in the study lounge at the center of his dormitory floor. He was starting to stress. He sat on the big yellow leather couch in the way-too-bright study lounge with his laptop in his lap. He tapped his pen against his head as he tried to think of an idea. 

“You have to write about a topic related to your major,” The professor explained. “This is the one and only paper you will have assigned this semester. I suggest you get it done as early as possible.”

If only it were that easy. He had the rubric pulled up in one tab, and a ton of “How to pick a research topic” websites in others. His major was pharmaceuticals, a field he was inspired to take on because of his mother. She was very ill when he was very young, so they were in and out of hospitals. He was sitting on the edge of his mother’s hospital bed when a nurse came in the room to administer her medications. 

“This is…” His memory was blurry. “This medication will help… and make you feel better.” And it did. 9 year old Levi was fascinated. This one little pill or bag of what looked like water helped his mother feel better. Within hours, his mother’s skin went from pallor to beige. Her hands were warmer. She looked more awake, more alive. She didn’t wince at Levi’s touch. She was in less pain. She got better, like the nurse predicted.

Since then, Levi always asked questions whenever they visited the hospitals again and again. “What kind of drug is that?” “What does it do?” “How long does it take to take effect?”

Levi recalled the memory with a deep sigh. He missed his mother. She was at home, not too far away. Levi never had the time to travel the hour through the big city to visit her. When he did have free time, he spent it studying or sleeping. He felt his heart twinge at this. She had sacrificed everything to help him attend college and to give him a good life.

Now with his head cloudy, he went to reach his water bottle in his backpack. He opened the lid and took a sip. At that moment, he could hear some obnoxiously loud students throwing tennis balls back and forth to each other. He recognized these kids too, they were some (of many) of the lovely visitors his roommate had over most nights. Suddenly in the blink of an eye, Levi’s water bottle spilled all over his laptop, a tennis ball on the floor next to him, and some worried voices approaching him. Within seconds, the laptop started to steam and the screen went black.

His laptop was fried, he determined. He felt heat start to rise inside of him. 

“Oh my god, man. I am so sorry,” One of the kids said, trying to hold back a laugh. 

“Yeah, man. We didn’t mean to.”

Levi took a deep breath and stood up. These kids… were gonna pay.

He closed his broken laptop and stood up. These kids were much taller than him, but looked to be easily intimidated by Levi’s presence. 

“Do you have the money to pay for this?” He sneered, getting very close to their faces. 

“Eh… no, but we have jobs! We can pay you back over time,” One of the kids trailed off. They seemed to be intimidated by the short man. “You live in 112 right?”

Levi nodded, his face heating up with anger. “This laptop cost me a lot of money.”

“We get it, man! We said we’re sorry,” the other kid explained. “We’ll pay you back or whatever.”

“Tch,” Levi clicked. He was extremely pissed. These kids should not be throwing balls at each other in the hallway. Also, they spilled his water which made a mess. “Which room are you both in?” They responded with 118. The one kid explained they get paid on the 15th and 30th of each month. Luckily, their pay day was 4 days away.

“I’ll stop by Tuesday, the 16th,” Levi decided, before gathering his things and heading to the stairs. He began to walk through the campus. Fuck, now where was he gonna go? How was he gonna find his topics? His computer was fucked. Putting it in rice wouldn’t have helped. He was so occupied having a debate with himself about where to research, he almost missed it. If he looked the other way or even blinked in that moment, he wouldn’t have seen it. It was the campus library. No, not the campus library, but a campus library. It blended into the surroundings, hidden from the passerbyers. There was a sign in the window “We’re Open!”. 

The library was small, to say the least. It was old fashioned, which contrasted the modern aesthetic of the university. It was a small, dark brown, wooden building with four-pane windows. The door was a lighter shade of brown. He decided it was easier to check out this little library instead of walking another 10 minutes to get to the main library. He didn’t have time to waste. He had to get started with his paper right away. He walked up to the door and opened it. When he did, a little bell rang at the doorway. 

“Just a minute!” A woman’s voice called from the back. Levi decided to wander around. There were many books crammed on the shelves. There were two computers on each side when he walked in. They looked out of place, considering they were very modern compared to the architecture of the library itself. The books were all shades of bright, vibrant colors. It was strange. From the outside, it seemed creepy and gloomy. Once he walked in, it was very cozy. The dark walls of the library contrasted the beautiful colors of the books.

Then, he saw the woman come out. She came up to the desk. He expected an elderly lady with her glasses on a chain, but he assumed this woman was a student. She was a young woman who wore thin oval glasses and her brown hair thrown up in a messy half-up-half-down ponytail. 

“Hi!” The woman said. “How can I help you?”

“I want to use a computer, please,” He announced. He glanced at her nametag which hung like a necklace around her neck. “Hange” was the name on the tag. It was strange and unordinary, but it had a nice ring to it. The name seemed to suit her.

“Sure! You are allowed up to two hours a day,” Hange explains. “You can choose whichever computer you’d like.”

The computers were unoccupied. In fact, the entire library seemed vacant except for him and the employee. 

“Does anyone actually come here?” Levi asked, setting his stuff down next to a desk, and looking her way. She looked like someone who would work at a library. 

The brunette chuckled. “You are my third visitor today!” She exclaimed proudly. It was already about 3pm. He remembered the sign in the front says “12pm-6pm weekdays”. 

Levi chuckled silently, air huffed out his nose. “How do you stay in business?”

“Well, the university thinks it’s good to have a small library in the outskirts of the campus so students have access to books and computers because the main campus library is in the center of the plaza. Sometimes we get about ten people a day, and sometimes they don’t even take anything out. Sometimes I wonder how…” She began to ramble now. She definitely has not had anyone else visit her today.

She was starting to get on his nerves. It’s been 20 minutes since he arrived, and she was still talking. He zoned out until she caught his attention.

“Hey,” She said. “What’s your name? I have to track whoever comes in to use the computers.” 

Why? No one else comes in. He noticed her clipboard with the sign-ins was blank.

“Levi Ackerman,” He announced. She scribbled his name down. “Okay, it’s 3:30 now, so you have till 5:30 if needed.” She pointed to the clock with her pen as she explained. He nodded and proceeded to walk towards the table with the computer he claimed. He sat down and began working.

-

He was an hour into his research when he finally threw his hands up in the air in frustration. He still couldn’t think of a topic. He groaned aloud.

Hange was leaning against the main desk, her nose stuck in a book. “How Trees Communicate” was the title. When she heard the young man groan, she looked up. 

“Is everything okay?” She asked, peering over her book at him.

“Yeah, yeah,” He mumbled. “Fine…”

Hange raised an eyebrow. She placed her bookmark at her spot, then strolled around the desk and walked over to him.

“What are you working on?” She asked, sitting in the seat next to him and put her hands on her knees, looking at him curiously. He scoffs. It was none of her business, he thought to himself. And it’s an invasion of privacy.

He was frustrated and desperate. Hoping for a miracle, he managed to tell her anyways.

 “I need a topic for my paper and I can’t think of any…” Levi began. “It needs to be based on pharmaceuticals, my major. It also needs scientific evidence to back up my research…”

She was fully absorbed in what he had to say. She was bored, so helping Levi would’ve been something to do at least. Besides, Levi was in luck. She was an avid reader, always reading about anything and everything. She was studying plants and botanicals, but she found herself frequently taking out books about cooking; religion; war; animals; and medical topics including surgery, pathophysiology, anatomy, and pharmaceuticals.

“What about how diuretics affect blood pressure?” Hange suggested. Levi was taken aback. His eyebrows furrowed, and he shook his head in confusion. “Or if anti-alzheimer drugs actually help slow the progression of Alzheimer’s? Why do you take different medications during certain stages of Alzheimer’s disease? Or how do anti-seizure medications work? That is something I ask myself all the time. You take this little pill and BOOM! You’ll be fine, no seizure! Oh, oh, oh! Or, how certain medications cause certain adverse effects? How come so many medications cause anxiety?” Her eyes started to light up as she talked. They were a dark brown, but when she started to talk, they seemed to morph to a captivating hazel. He felt he could see every color in her eyes. He saw brown and green and the little lines of her iris. Hange’s hands would move as she talked, and her smile grew wide. She couldn’t keep still. She was getting excited by coming up with all these ideas. She seemed so passionate and so willing to help; he was overwhelmed by her.

Levi was in shock. His day started off horrible. Now, he was almost glad his laptop was fucked. This woman was making his mind race with ideas. 

“Are you okay?” Hange asked for the second time within his visit there. Levi nodded slowly. “I am just… How do you know all that? Are you a med student?”

Hange chuckled and waved her hand at him. “No… I am a bookworm! Also, my mom is a nurse, so she used to teach me about nursing stuff all the time. Oh! You could write about the pathophysiology of anticholinergics! Or beta blockers! Or how the body reacts to the use of long-term steroids?”

Levi took a deep breath. He felt euphoric. He had been casually trying to think of topics since last week. All of a sudden, this woman can just ramble off hundreds of ideas? Levi smiled visibly.

“Actually… I really like the final topic you suggested. About steroids.” Levi admitted.

Hange smiled back at him. “Great! I can try to help you find some sources or books.” She directed him to open a new tab and to go to a certain database. “This is where you can find reliable sources. Over here,” She pointed to his screen at the left side. “You can add filters. You can change how old or new you’d like the sources to be, filter out certain words or phrases, et cetera.” She had been closer to him now; she scooted her chair closer so she could explain the database to him. It was hard not to look at her as she explained. She was captivating.

Levi began to type in words for his topic.

“Steroids”, “Long-term use”, “Cushing’s Disease”, “Addison’s Disease”, “Addisonian Crisis”, “Pathophysiology”.

He felt like he was finally getting somewhere. He was finally making progress.

-

As Levi was walking home, he couldn’t get his mind off that girl. He decided to brainstorm about his topic in his room once he got there. The thing was, though, he couldn’t think of any more ideas. He found it funny. Of course he was full of ideas and inspiration when he visited that library, but now he’s void of any.

-

Levi’s weekends were no different than the weekdays. He made it appoint to visit the library again the next day, Saturday. It was a sunny, cool Saturday morning. Levi had inspiration to write. He needed a computer and Hange’s ideas. When he arrived, it seemed busy. There were three other patrons at the library.  He recognized Hange right away, helping a tall blonde man with a big nose. He wondered if she was the only employee there. The man she was helping was taller than her, so she had to reach up on her toes to point to items. She was an average height, but this action made her seem shorter than she actually was.

Hange looked his way and greeted him with a toothy smile. Levi waved at her and started to head down one of the aisles of books. He was in the nonfiction section, but was lost. For now, he just casually browsed the section, but quickly got impatient. He needed Hange’s help to find books for this paper. He heard her laugh with the patron. Maybe he’s a friend, he thought to himself. Her laugh was airy and full of heart. It seemed genuine and passionate. Levi felt an urge to make her laugh, too.

She finally made her way over to him. Levi was looking down at a book when she caught his eye. “Hey, stranger!” She greeted him with a wave. “Whatcha looking for?” She placed her hands on her hips.

“I’m trying to find some sources for my paper. Steroids is the topic,” Levi explained.

“Oh, right. I remember! After you left last night, I tried to look for some books for your topic,” She said. She was trying to help me? Levi thought to himself.

She curled her finger in a “follow me” gesture and he did. She brought him to another aisle or two over from where they were. “These are the 600’s, where you’ll most likely find what you’re looking for. I found a book or two about Addison’s disease, but it’s more of a memoir. You can look around though if you’d like. Anything in the 610’s should be right up your alley.” She explained as if she was going to leave, but she didn’t. Hange looked for books with him. 

After a moment, she made a noise. “Look at this!” She exclaimed. She reached next to him to reach for a book. She was on her toes again. “Mmmm,” She moaned as she tried to reach. “Actually, I’m gonna get the step stool. I don’t think I can reach it.” Quickly, she left and came back with the stool. It looked unreliable, but Levi was sure he’d be able to prevent any accident from occurring. Hange placed it on the ground and stepped up on it, grabbing the book with ease. She stepped down with the book in her hand. This book had a white cover with a blue label and was titled “Coping with Prednisone”. Levi was surprised she even knew what prednisone was. 

“Here!” She reached it out for him to grab. He took it and looked at her face. She had that same look in her eyes. “Did you want to use the computer?” He nodded and she led him towards the front of the library. The library was small from the outside, but very deep inside. It reminded him of a forest. 

“I got your name, don’t worry,” She said, clicking her pen and writing his name down on the sheet. 

“Oops!” Hange made a quick grimace. “I added an ‘e’ at the end. I’ll just cross it out.” The statement sounded like it was addressed to herself rather than to anyone else. She crossed out the extra letter.

“Ackermane”. Levi was gonna attempt to make her laugh.

“If you thought I looked like a horse you could’ve just said so.” 

Mane, horse mane. Get it?

It felt like forever before Hange responded. She looked up at him, starting to laugh. It was a short but audible laugh. Her head nodded back and she smiled. Her cheeks turned pink and her eyes lit up for a moment. It made his heart skip a beat. It was a bad joke yet she still laughed. She chuckled. Giggled? No. Laughed lightly. Chortled? Maybe that’s the right word. Whatever it was, he wanted to do it more, maybe even more than that.

He followed her to the computers. The blonde guy she was helping earlier was on one computer. She led him to the two computers across from the other ones and sat down in the chair next to him.

“What are you doing?” Levi asked, placing the book she found for him on the table.

Her eyebrows raised, and after a moment she reacted. She waved her hands in front of her.

“I’m sorry! I thought you may have needed help. I should get back to work anyway. I gotta go through a new box of books that just came in.”

Levi looked up at her. Is she blushing? he asked himself.

“I’ll let you know if I need help.” Levi responded. She smiled at him before quickly walking away.

-

He started to find some evidence-based practice articles about how steroids can cause long-term side effects, especially if stopped abruptly. He made sure to keep the tabs available. He’d have to cite them later. Levi’s mind was racing with words and sentences and ideas. He had to get them down on paper. He opened Documents on the computer and started typing away.

The clicking of the keyboard soothed him. He was a pretty fast typer, he didn’t make many mistakes either. The library around him began to become quiet as his typing got louder and he got deeper in thought. Before he knew it, his two hours were up. He felt someone approach him from his right.

“Hey,” Hange said, gently tapping the table next to him. “It’s 2pm. I gotta close up.”

Levi snapped out of his focused trance with a quick head shake. “Right. Sorry.” He pulled out a flash drive from his backpack and plugged it into the computer. He transferred his document. “I got the first page done.”

Levi asked himself for a brief moment why he was sharing this information with someone he just met. Maybe since she helped him, he felt she should know.

“That’s great! It seemed like you were really focused,” Hange said, walking away to shut off some lights. Only then did he notice the white noise of the overhead lights quickly dissipate. The room buzzed with silence now. Levi and Hange were alone in the library. Suddenly, Levi felt nervous. He watched Hange walk around the room frantically, making sure to shut off all the lights and computers. She grabbed a bag. The bag was a fabric material with a patchwork design that had a long strap that hung on on her shoulder. Maybe she made it herself. She grabbed her big mess of keys and walked towards him.

“Ready?” She said. He nodded and walked outside, holding the door for her. She thanked him, locking the door behind her. They began to walk down the street slowly. 

“Want to grab lunch?” Hange asked, looking at him. Levi looked back at her. She looked pretty.

“Sure, I can eat.” Hange chuckled at that. He didn’t try, but it made her happy for a brief moment. He seemed nervous but she was too.

They decided to eat at a cute restaurant on campus called “Life in Paradis”. It was a small, dainty place with a green and yellow checkered awning. The building was made of yellow brick, and the door was bright green. There were flower pots outside on the windowsill. Again, this place seemed totally out of place in the modern aesthetic of the university. 

“This place is adorable!” Hange exclaimed. “I love the food here. You’ll love it too. They have all kinds of food here.” Levi felt a smile grow on his face. The way she talked made his heart flutter. She was always so passionate. They entered and got a table for two. This is not a date, Levi kept telling himself. Then why were his cheeks red?

They sat down and looked through a menu. Levi wasn’t extremely hungry even though he hadn’t had anything but tea this morning. He peered over his menu to look at the girl. Her hair was different today, he determined. Today all her hair was in a ponytail, and it was higher on her head. She wore a light yellow button-down with a long, light blue cardigan. Hange caught him staring at her and blushed.

“What would you two like to order?” The waitress asked him first.

“I’m gonna get a sandwich, I think,” He said, crossing his arms across his chest. “Turkey sub.” “I think I’m gonna get a chicken caesar salad,” Hange said. He nodded, grabbed the menus, and walked away.

Hange began to talk about how beautiful the flowers outside the restaurant were. They were all variants of pink, purple, yellow, and red. She described the petals and the leaves, the flowers’ origins, and all the meanings of the flowers. Levi wasn’t annoyed by her tangent this time. He actively listened to this girl talk about what fascinated her so much. He found it soothing. It made him wonder how her brain can contain all the information she was spewing at him. He enjoyed watching the way her eyes lit up when she talked. The beautiful green that blossomed at the bottom of her irises when the light hit her eyes at the right angle. The way her lips curled into a big smile when she talked to him. Her cheeks flush to a light pink when she describes the petals of the flowers or how flowers were used to express feelings when words cannot. It made his heart race. 

“Levi,” Hange said. Her affect was the opposite of earlier when she was rambling. She wore a frown on her face, feeling guilty.“I’ve been rambling… sorry. It’s such a bad habit of mine. I can talk for hours and hours.”

“Don’t apologize, four-eyes,” Levi replied, leaning his elbows and forearms on the table in a crossed position. Hange smiled at him. Levi meant it. She shouldn’t apologize for talking, especially if it’s about something she loves. The food had arrived at the table. They ate. Levi felt the need to open up to her about something. He already learned so much about her, and her presence made him feel like he can open up. 

“I like to run,” Levi said abruptly. Hange looked at him intently, chewing on a forkful of salad. “I don’t do it competitively or anything, but I enjoy running. I try to run once or twice a day.” Hange’s eyebrows raised and she nodded in agreement.

“That’s awesome!” She smiled again at him. “I like to run too. I’m really slow and get tired easily, but I enjoy feeling the wind in my hair and feeling my heart pound.” She took a bite of her meal again. Levi nodded and began to eat too. This sandwich was really good.

-

After talking some more about hobbies and school, they both finished their meal. The waiter brought over the check. Hange reached into her pocket for her wallet.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Levi asked. Hange furrowed her brows.

“I invited you out to lunch. I will pay,” Hange determined, her wallet now in her hands.

“No,” Levi said too quickly. “I will pay. It’s the least I can do. You helped me with my paper after all.”

The bickering lasted a very long minute. Before she got to think of the idea, Levi grabbed the checkbook and shoved his card inside before handing it to the waiter. Hange looked surprised. She sighed, putting her wallet away.

“Thank you, Levi. But you really didn’t have to.”

“I wanted to.”

In all honesty, Hange didn’t have much money. She worked at that library four times a week, but the money she made went towards paying off her tuition. She really wanted to treat this man, her new friend. She wasn’t sure if he thought the same way about her. Did he consider her his friend? She felt slightly embarrassed. She did most of the talking and felt like she was annoying him. Maybe he just wanted to pay so she would lay off. 

But the truth is, Levi felt the opposite way of how she was thinking. He was interested to hear more from her. He was addicted to the way his heart raced when he saw her. 

-

Over the next couple of days, Levi would go to that library whenever he was available. He knew it was closed on Sunday, so he went Monday and Tuesday to the library. Fortunately, he got his first batch of money from the brats that fried his computer. He received $100. Of course it was not enough, but it was a start. Wednesday the 17th came around. This specific day was a wild card. The weather was unpredictable. Levi entered the library just in time; it had started to downpour. The little bell rang as he entered the library. To his surprise, Hange was not working that day. There was a boy behind the counter who was tall and had a brown bowl cut hairstyle.  He almost thought about turning around and leaving when he realized she wasn’t there. The rain charged towards the earth viciously, so he decided to seek shelter in the small library. It almost looked like a hurricane. He felt his mood change into a bad one. He didn’t remember to ask how often she worked. 

“Hi there!” The man said. His name tag read “Moblit”. That’s a dumb name.

“I wanna use a computer,” Levi muttered, walking up to the main desk.

“Okay. Name?” Moblit grabbed the clipboard and a pen.

“Levi Ackerman.”

“Oh, I see you’ve been here before. A lot, actually.” Levi scoffed and rolled his eyes at his comment. He turned around, picked a computer, and sat down. He felt really stupid to not ask her about her schedule.

The two hours he spent working on his paper was incredibly slow. He didn’t get much done that day. He had writer’s block. He was almost done, so he didn’t worry about it too much. He didn’t know Hange’s schedule. He knew she worked Friday, the day they met; Saturday; Monday, and Tuesday. Maybe she only worked four times a week? Before he knew it, he asked Moblit aloud. It was almost an accident.

“Uh, she’ll be in on Friday,” Moblit replied. He probably couldn’t give out that information to some creep who began visiting daily with an attitude. He muttered a “thanks” before finishing up and heading out. The weather was holding up for now, so he decided to make a run for it. He didn’t say goodbye to Moblit.

He didn’t have an umbrella. The sun was trying to shine through the dark, eerie clouds. It wasn’t trying hard enough. He heard thunder rumbling in the distance.

Levi realized that this girl was all he thought about the past few days. Something about her enticed him. Something about her eyes and her presence drew him towards her. His heart skipped a beat whenever she’d graze his hand on accident, or even when she just talked to him. She made him happy. He hadn’t had too many friends in college. Although they just met last week, he felt a deep connection with her. 

Suddenly, the sun poked through the clouds for a brief moment. The world lit up. It was at that moment he recognized a familiar face. Hange. She was walking towards him. She grinned when she saw him. She wore a fitted black t-shirt and baggy, light blue jeans. 

“Levi!” She exclaimed. “I forgot my jacket in the library, so I came down to get it.” 

“You didn’t tell me you weren’t working today.” Is all Levi said. Once he said it, he realized how creepy it must’ve sounded. A man she just met happens to go to this library to work on his project every day, who happens to come up with multiple reasons to interact with her. Maybe she thought he was a perv.

“Ehh!” She sighed. “I’m sorry! I thought I told you I was off today.” Levi shook his head. The comment itself may have sounded rude, but it wasn’t. She genuinely felt bad. “Walk with me.” Levi followed. Guess not.

“I don’t work Wednesday’s and Thursday’s. Well I’m not supposed to be,” Hange explained. “Mobilt, one of my co-workers, is always calling out sick. So I basically run the place.” They walked towards the library again and entered. 

“Hey, Moblit. How’s it going?” Hange said in a normal tone, heading towards the back of the library. Moblit responded briefly, following Hange. Levi decided to hang back, he figured it was a secure area. He looked around awkwardly.

“Hange, you didn’t tell me you had a boyfriend,” Moblit said, following her towards the back. 

Hange chuckled nervously. “He’s not my boyfriend,” she said bluntly. “He’s just a friend.” Moblit scoffed, rolling his eyes. “If he’s not your boyfriend, how come his mood entirely changed once he saw you?”

Hange found her jacket, folding it over her forearm. “Huh?”

“He was, like, in a bad mood when he came in. He used the computer but he seemed to be pissed or something. Now that he’s with you, he seems… tolerable.”

Hange laughed, feeling her cheeks blush. “It’s nothing like that. People have bad days, you know.”

Hange rolled her eyes and smirked, then headed towards the front of the library. “Ready?” Levi nodded and turned around.

“See you Friday,” Moblit called out. “See ya.” Hange replied.

The two started walking down the street. The air smelt of rain, and the ground was wet from the rain earlier. “Which building is your dorm in?” Hange asked. He was a bit surprised she asked him that, and she was so direct about it.

“Saint Maria,” He replied. She smiled. “Me too! I can’t believe I haven’t seen you around!” The wind picked up and the sky turned darker than before. They both looked up. “If you can’t make it to the library, you can use my desktop in my dorm room,” Hange offered. Levi’s cheeks turned bright red. 

“Thanks, maybe tomorrow I can stop by,” Levi said. It was more of him thinking aloud than a statement. It was too late though, Hange already heard him. He could’ve sworn he didn’t say it aloud.

“That’s fine! I only have a class early tomorrow morning. Come by around 11, okay? My room number is 506.” Levi nodded. Thunder rolled and sounded closer now. They were almost at the dormitory building when it started to downpour. The rain was forcefully coming down on the two. Levi groaned in annoyance. He hated being in the rain. He hated being wet; he hated the wet socks and how gross he felt when it rained. He would’ve started to run to the building to seek cover, but he was taken aback by his new friend.

She was soaked and embracing it. She lifted her head up to face the sky and she laughed. It was loud, happy, genuine, and it took Levi’s breath away. Hange reached her hands out wide and spun around. He saw a strike of lightning light up the sky. He stared at her in awe. His heart swelled. Levi smiled big. After laughing, Hange looked at Levi and shared the look that he wore just a few moments ago. She loved his smile. She wished to make him smile more. She was also determined to make him laugh, too.

She grabbed his hand. “Let’s take cover!” And she pulled him into the dormitory hall. Saint Maria’s hall was beautiful. It had ceiling-to-floor glass pane windows that were always crystal clear. There was a big black modern chandelier that hung from the ceiling. It contained visible light bulbs. Hange secretly loved it. There were the same big, yellow, leather couches in the living room as there were in the study area on his floor. They both wiped their feet off on the big rug in the entryway. 

“I love the rain,” Hange deduced, turning her head to look at him. As if Levi couldn’t tell. Her hand was still holding his. Levi looked up at her. “I like it, too.”

[name-me-regret]

If The World Was Ending 5/?

If The World Was Ending Chapter Five: Los Angeles, I’m Yours

Read on AO3.

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

“I’d like to rest my heavy head tonight On a bed of California stars I’d like to lay my weary bones tonight On a bed of California stars

I’d love to feel Your hand touching mine And tell me why I must keep working on

Yes, I’d give my life To lay my head tonight on a bed Of California stars...”

~California Stars - Billy Bragg and Wilco

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

Buck moved with a limp through the beds that were situated outside of the field hospital, the walk from the Cupcakery on Strand all the way to Sawtell had been a long one. The terrain had changed drastically, almost no street signs were up and those that were had been swept far from where they were supposed to be. So, it had taken him at least an hour, possibly two, but he couldn’t be too sure. He’d lost his phone when the first wave had hit and all his focus had been on Chris, first on trying to shield him from the worse of things, and then trying to find him after he’d lost him.

‘I never should have let him go,’ Buck thought desperately, barely paying the rag tied to his arm any mind even when it was completely soaked with his blood by that point. It didn’t matter, nothing mattered expect finding Chris. Because Buck wasn’t sure what he’d do if that little boy... if he was gone. Buck wouldn’t be able to live with himself.

He saw a nurse and his head perked up. “Uh, hey, excuse me,” he said, remembering his manners at the last minute. “I’m-I’m looking for a kid.” His voice was rough and it broke as he spoke, and his head was aching but he had to find Christopher. “Um, he’s got brown hair. Chris-Christopher.”

“Well, I have way too many Christophers on my list. How old?”

“Um, eight... maybe nine,” he said, wincing as he couldn’t remember. His head was starting to hurt even more and he felt like he could collapse at any moment. “His last name is Diaz.”

The woman flipped through the list quickly, but suddenly paused at the third page. “Yes, I have a Christopher Diaz, he’s nine years old.”

Buck felt relief shoot through him so fast that he staggered, the feeling like a physical pain. “Oh, thank God,” he gasped, sounding almost like a sob. “W-where... where is-?”

“Buck?” a familiar voice asked. Buck turned to face Eddie, the man’s eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “Wait, what are you doing here?” His eyes locking on the bloody rag wrapped around his right arm. “Are you okay? Wait, where’s Christopher?”

“E-Eddie.. Eddie,” he croaked as he turned to look at his best friend.

“Why do you have his glasses?” Eddie asked, his eyes darkening so they looked more black than brown.

“We um,” he started, wanting to explain. Buck wanted him to understand why he was here but without Chris, even if he’d found him. He’d found him. “M-me and Christopher, we were... at the beach.”

The man was looking at him with eyes already filling with grief and Buck shook his head. “No, listen to me, okay?” The man gave a nod, his eyes already filling with tears. “I lost him...but... but I found him... Eddie, I found him,” he said, voice desperately hopeful as he motioned toward the nurse with the clipboard. He was quickly losing his grip with consciousness, the day’s stress and the blood loss starting to catch up with him, and the all encompassing relief that he’d finally finally found Christopher.

Eddie looked at the woman, moving forward and momentarily forgetting that Buck was hurt. He needed to see about his son. As the nurse pointed where Eddie had to go, Buck could only watch as he rushed away and he sighed with a smile.

In the next second he collapsed, and with no one to catch him, he crumpled to the unforgiving ground.

- ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

Tony landed on the suit on the roof before he stepped out of it and put it in sentry mode, instructing JARVIS to fly the suit back to Malibu when he confirmed that Buck was there and it was alright that he stay. It was almost midnight when he found his door, knocking on it. There was no answer after the second and then the third round of knocking, and now Tony was starting to worry.

He pulled up his phone and tried dialing his number, but it went straight to voicemail, and grew frustrated. Tony knew it wasn’t exactly legal to ping his phone, but he needed to locate Evan, hoping the man hadn’t done something reckless; like go help when he knew he had a serious blood clot condition. Even then, there was no explanation as to why he couldn’t get his location, because his apartment was out of the flood zone so there was no way for his phone to be damaged.

The man took a deep breath to keep the panic at bay, and then raced back up to the roof as he started pulling up Buck’s Facebook and Instagram accounts. It felt like a cold hand had clamped over his heart when he saw a picture from early this morning of Buck and a very familiar brown haired boy with the location as the Santa Monica Pier; half an hour before the tsunami had hit.

Tony practically threw himself into the suit, blasting up into the air. “J, check the hospitals for an Evan Buckley.” He knew that he’d left Christopher at the VA hospital in Sawtell, and cursed at not having recognized the kid when he’d picked him up earlier. If... Evan was alive (he had to be), and having been separated from the kid meant that he’d be looking for him.

The billionaire knew that Evan had always loved kids, always had card tricks for the few kids that came with their parents to charity events. Evan would make them laugh, showing them his card tricks or telling them jokes; away from their parent’s stern gazes that always told them ‘children are to be seen and not heard’. However, Evan had believed that children should be safe and happy, and he was always overjoyed to give them those secret moments filled with smiles and laughter.

So, Tony knew that Evan would look for that little boy with everything he had. He would search until he had no more strength left in his body, and without regard for his own safety. This made his worry very real, since Evan was on blood-thinners and a deep enough cut might be fatal to him.

He had to find him quickly, and was praying he wasn’t too late. “Evan, you fool,” he growled.

“Sir, there is no answer at any hopsital, and most of the patient and DOA lists haven’t been digitized as of yet.” The last part had Tony feeling cold, thinking that Evan’s name could possibly be on that list. Tony discarded that thought immediately, and instead concentrated on finding Evan, or else he was going to lose his goddamn mind.

His first stop was to go to the field hospital, hoping that maybe Evan had thought to look for Chris there. Perhaps his father had found him and knew something about the blonde man. He wanted to maybe ask his firehouse, but he didn’t remember at the moment what it was, too exhausted and panicked to think straight.

“J, pull up Evan’s file from the LAFD,” he told him. Of course he’d made a copy, since he didn’t want to go back and risk being caught hacking the LAFD again. He was sure he’d get a slap on the wrist, but it was the principle of the thing. Tony Stark did not get caught hacking, he was better than that.

He let JARVIS take control of the armor as he viewed the file, and was surprised when he saw that he was a member of the 118. “Well, I’ll be damned,” he muttered. That meant that he’d been working and helping Evan’s firehouse this whole time and hadn’t even known it. That Bobby Nash was his fire captain.

His eyebrows furrowed. That meant that Chris was one of his friend’s kid. He quickly pulled up his Instagram again and went a few posts back, almost a week ago and the picture of Evan, Chris and Eddie... Eddie Diaz. Well, this was going to be awkward when he met the man again.

Tony pushed all these thoughts to the side and brought his attention to needing to locate the 118. When he’d last seen them they had been going to drop of patients, and since the rest of the hospitals were overrun with victims, that meant the VA hospital on Sawtell. It seemed to all line up and he hoped that’s where Evan ended up as well. As he flew overhead, he saw the mail trucks being unloaded of patients.

Almost every head lifted as he came for a landing, hearing several people calling out to him; either with exclamations of gratitude or people that demanded why he hadn’t been fast enough to save their loved ones. Tony wasn’t angry, since he knew they were grieving. Honestly, he wished he could have been fast enough to save more people, but he was just one person. Even with nine extra suits to help him, he just hadn’t been enough to save everyone.

The Iron Man pilot spotted Bobby Nash right away, the man immediately moving toward him. Tony was relieved when he saw Diaz with a familiar little boy in his arms, Christopher. He wasn’t as dirty as he’d left him earlier in the day, and someone had even changed his clothes. “Tony,” the older man greeted him. “Is there something I can do for you?”

His lips twitched as Tony stepped out of the Iron Man armor and he seemed to realize he was several inches taller than the superhero. Tony would have normally gotten annoyed that he’d forgotten his lifts, but he had more pressing matters at the moment.

“Captain Nash, I’m looking for a... friend, and you might be able to help me.”

The man’s eyebrows furrowed in an expression of confusion. “I don’t know how I could,” he started.

“Evan Buckley,”he said before he could say anything else. “I’m pretty sure he’s in your firehouse?”-