#i know buck and christophers relationship is important and they love each other

[freakshowcowboy]

people making chris leaving about buck..........

[wikiangela]

"I'm going to ask Tommy to marry me." Buck says out of the blue one random evening, sitting in Eddie's living room, spread out in the armchair, sipping a beer, eyes on the TV, where Eddie and Christopher are playing a video game. His tone is even and firm, not even a hint of hesitation, it's not a huge revelation, or even a decision he's made just now. He's been thinking about it for weeks, maybe months. He doesn't know why he says it now, it just slips out - maybe he just needed to talk to his best friend about it.

"Really?" he hears a hint of surprise in Eddie's voice, but when he looks at his best friend, he's still focused on trying to beat his son at the game. He's smiling, sparing a glance at Buck. "That's great, Buck."

"Yeah?" he breathes out, feeling even more settled now. He wasn't nervous, exactly, but still felt kind of like he did when he came out to Eddie. Like he just wanted his best friend to approve, to support him - and he had no doubt he would.

"Of course," Eddie answers easily. "You guys are perfect together, and you love each other, and if you're sure you want to spend the rest of your life with Tommy, yeah, go for it. I'm happy for you," he adds, finally looking at Buck, a soft, genuine smile on his face. Christopher uses this moment to win the game, and Eddie groans at his triumphant yell. "Aw, not fair, Buck distracted me." Both Buck and Chis laugh, while Eddie pouts for a moment, before a smile breaks through anyway.

"Well, I won." Chris shrugs with a grin. "And I think it'd be so cool if you and Tommy get married," he adds, moving his attention to Buck.

"Yeah?" Buck repeats, his smile even wider now. Having two of his favorite people not only really love his partner - Buck's pretty sure Tommy's the first one to spend so much time with all of them together, and it feeling so right - but also approve of Buck wanting to tie him into their family forever.

"Duh, Tommy's the coolest." Chris rolls his eyes. "Better lock him down while you can," he jokes, and Buck gasps in surprise. He's such a teenager.

"Wow, rude. He's not going anywhere." he shakes his head with a laugh. That much he's sure of, for the first time in his life he's not scared of getting left, of his partner getting bored or fed up. He knows Tommy's gonna be right at his side no matter what.

"Not if you put a ring on it." Eddie joins his son's teasing. Laughing, Buck reaches over to the table to pick up a chip from a bowl and throw it at Eddie, who dodges it as it lands somewhere on the couch. "Hey!"

"But seriously, you don't think it's too soon?" Buck asks after a moment, a little bit of nerves seeping into his tone. He's more than sure about wanting to marry Tommy. He's just a little scared that he's gonna freak him out. They have talked about this, about their future, what they want out of this relationship, out of life, but they never really discussed any timelines, and Buck might be a little in his head about this. Hence why he needed to talk to someone about it, probably.

"Buck, you've been together for over a year. Some people get married after less." Eddie raises an eyebrow. "When you know, you know." He shrugs, and Buck releases a breath. Because he does know. He has known for a long time now.

"So you think he'll say yes?" Buck asks, but he knows the answer before Eddie has a chance to roll his eyes with fond exasperation. Tommy loves him. He loves Tommy so much his heart wants to burst out of his chest and live in Tommy's. Tommy is his forever, he's sure of it, and he knows that when he asks, and it's going to be very soon, he'll get a positive answer.

"He'll say yes." Eddie says with a small shake of his head and a wide smile. "Now, two important questions from me: who's gonna be your best man, and do you need help planning and picking out a ring?"

[buddierecs]

friends with benefits buddie fics

all mature rating!!! make sure to kudos/comment on these amazing works :)

if i'm honest, it felt like love by: allyasavedtheday "buck and eddie try friends with benefits. it's great, easy, exactly what they need. except for the fact they're in love with each other." word count: 9.3k important tags: friends to lovers, fluff, angst, feelings realisation, miscommunication, love confessions a bleeding sun on a silver screen by: rarakiplin "the actors au" word count: 130k important tags: actors au, slow burn, idiots in love, pining, getting together a little bit of something (god, it's better than nothing) by: justhockey "the friends with benefits fic that no one asked for." word count: 7.1k important tags: miscommunication, mutual pining, team as family, getting together, praise kink, smut to wake up by your side is all i wanna do by: smilingbuckley "after a fire destroys his loft, buck moves in with the diazes indefinitely. except neither he, christopher, nor eddie wants him to move out. buck gets used to being fully included in the diaz family and the changes it brings to be with them full-time. it's a dream come true, especially when things between him and eddie start developing in a certain way." word count: 14k important tags: didn't know they were doing, roommates, mutual pining, time skips, light angst, hurt/comfort, domestic fluff, explicit sexual content yearning from wanting you by: farfromthstars "while christopher is at camp, buck and eddie strike up a friends with benefits situation. it doesn't really get complicated until the kid comes back" word count: 18k important tags: mutual pining, there was only one bed, getting together, non-explicit sex maybe i'll deserve you one day by: stlesismylover "eddie knows he's in love with buck. buck is oblivious to his feelings. somehow, they manage to end up in a relationship before having a proper conversation about it." word count: 24k important tags: slow burn, mutual pining, sharing a bed, idiots in love, fluff, smut don't push me so far away i can't reach you by: gisellelash "the one where buck thinks he and eddie are just friends with benefits so he pushes eddie to date other people because he’s an idiot." word count: 12k important tags: misunderstandings, mutual pining, getting together, idiots in love what started in beautiful rooms by: weewooforever buck and eddie have been hooking up since the day they met and eddie is too afraid to make their relationship official. until one day he can’t take it anymore. word count: 4.4k important tags: jealous!eddie diaz, possessive!eddie diaz, secret relationship, angst, minor buck/tommy, no explicit smut

[thetrialsandtribulationsofeb]

no, but it’s the way eddie saved buck by showing him how important his life is, and how he is so much more than he thinks

and the way buck saved eddie by showing him that he’s not broken and irredeemable, that he doesn’t destroy everything he touches, that he deserves understanding and forgiveness, that he has the light inside of him, that he deserves to be free and happy despite all his mistakes and failures

buck always loved eddie just for who he is - not only for how cool and “macho” he is, but for his silly, carefree side too

eddie always loved buck for his kind and brave heart, for his wisdom and stability (he’s the only one who sees and appreciates how reliable buck is, how he’s willing to stay and make broken things work, how he never gives up)

buck doesn’t see eddie only as this serious, cool guy with a dark past and a silver star - he sees his soft and pure side, the one that wants to be carefree. he lets eddie be himself, let go, and have fun (“i can know weird stuff too” you can tell that being around buck rubbed off on him so much “i know you watch telenovelas with christopher”)

eddie doesn’t see buck only as a funny and reckless himbo - he sees his reliable, selfless, mature, helping, supportive side (that’s why, when eddie is angry at buck, he accuses him of being selfish - and it hurts so much). he takes buck, his words, and his actions seriously

that’s why they’re perfect for each other - they’re each other’s missing pieces

and that’s why eddie’s love for buck is one of the major things that finally set eddie free from all his “catholic guilt”

because buck taught him how to love himself by loving him

thanks to buck’s love, eddie finally realized that he deserves forgiveness, and he deserves joy

and thanks to eddie’s love, buck finally realized how much he matters - how important he is as a person outside of saving people

eddie spent his whole life living a life that doesn’t fit him, but buck saw him and showed him, through his own freedom, that eddie can be free too. be himself. start living the life he actually wants, not the one that was forced onto him by his parents

buck spent his whole life feeling unseen, unappreciated, and abandoned, searching for a place in the world he could call home (he already found one in the 118, but it turned out to be trickier with romantic relationships). and eddie saw him and built a home for him, showed him that he never wants to leave, that buck is someone worth staying for (“there’s nobody in this world i trust with my son more than you” “but i hope you know, you do matter to me” “it’s not nothing” “i don’t like it anymore than you do”)

when ryan described his character in an interview, he said eddie is a team player kind of guy - and that’s exactly what he offered buck in the very beginning (“you can have my back any day”) as an olive branch, and he kept proving it throughout the show

he sees right through buck’s abandonment issues and even gets annoyed when they kick in, because he’s like, “damn, buck, when will you understand that we’re not going anywhere? that we’re a team? that i have your back? i trust you, i need you - in my life, on the field, with chris, as a best friend who gets me like no one else does” (“you’re stuck with us”)

eddie’s pov of himself: i’m broken and i can’t fix it

buck’s pov of eddie: i love all of him, with all his flaws and imperfections - he’s literally perfect in my eyes

buck’s pov of himself: i’m not good enough for people to want to stay with me

eddie’s pov of buck: this guy feels like coming home

the guy who likes to fix things fixed the guy who felt broken

a nester built a nest for someone who never had a home and was abandoned by everyone he loved

buck is eddie’s joy, eddie is buck’s home

eddie joined the 118 and met buck after he left his abusive home - his start of the journey to finding joy

buck met eddie after abby left - his start of the journey to finding home

everything happened the way it was meant to

i know that initially buck liked eddie because he’s this cool action figure brought to life, and eddie liked buck because he’s kind, cheerful, and reliable - but little did they know how interconnected they were

“you wanted us to bond. we might end up real close”

they saved each other - and that’s exactly why they’re endgame

nothing can compare to this level of love

- i'll take care of you

- it's rotten work

- not to me. not if it's you

so, every day is the best day ever. is that really love? right? shouldn't it be when you're at your worst, they're at their worst, you have every reason to give up, and you still decide you want to try again

isn't that what we all want in a partner? knowing that they have your back?

a few choice words can sometimes be the life raft that gets you home. to be seen. to be found. isn’t that what we’re all searching for?

[sammki]

i'm gonna add my two cents for the zero people that asked

also i never write up posts like this so be nice to me. or don't. i'm not your mom

i love eddie as a character. i love messy characters, i love messy relationships, i love conflict and drama and flaws and shades of grey. i'm of the opinion that just about anything can make for a good story in the hands of a skilled enough writer. everyone being fluffy and getting along always and agreeing with each other can make a good story.

but that's not what 911 is about.

i'm absolutely due for a rewatch, but ever since eddie's introduction he's been a guy trying to make the best of a bad situation, but can get in over his head with the decisions he makes. he struggled with chris's schooling/care situation at the beginning, and it was after buck introduced him to carla that progress was made on that front.

his grief over shannon's death leads to the street fighting arc in season 3, where it takes almost killing a guy to snap him out of it. his treatment of buck during the lawsuit arc is an extension of this turmoil. bottling up his emotions after this, and the shooting, leads to his breakdown in season 5 that scares christopher enough that the kid calls buck in for help. his unresolved issues lead to the kim fiasco, which results in chris moving back to his grandparents. he follows chris to el paso to rebuild their relationship--yay! (ignoring the lack of addressing the kim of it all) ...but because he's there, he misses bobby's death, and the guilt and the grief of it all causes him to lash out again.

is this healthy behaviour? not really! should he probably go to therapy and maybe address some of this? everyone on this show needs to go to therapy! and maybe this is an unpopular opinion, but this mess is what makes eddie interesting to me.

stepping back for a moment, i've also seen people bring up that eddie is far from the only character to physically lash out at anyone--buck, bobby, chimney, they've all done it in the past. how was eddie putting hands on buck any different from bobby pinning him to the wall in season 1? what about buck spraining eddie's ankle due to his jealousy over the whole tommy situation?

chimney punching buck--i only recently started watching (within the last year) so i wasn't around in the aftermath of that punch, but i do see some of that bashing floating around. i'm not gonna say racism has nothing to do with it. i'm white. it's not my place to say what does and doesn't count as racism. others have and are able to put it much better than i ever will, but i didn't want to say any of this without at least acknowledging it.

the difference between eddie last night and these other physical altercations? the narrative frames the others as in the wrong.

bobby's actions are not depicted as in the right because buck was snooping through his stuff. sure, buck shouldn't be snooping, but that very same episode ends with him and hen performing a welfare check on bobby after he's fallen off the wagon. bobby is deep in his suicidal self-hatred spiral. even the score throws in a little dramatic sting here. there's reasoning behind his actions, but they're not reasonable.

chimney's punch is less in-your-face since the apology happens offscreen, but the narrative makes sure to throw in a line that there was an apology. he's at the height of this great emotional maelstrom--maddie's left him with their months-old daughter, who he's just found out had to go to the er after the incident in the bath--and he's just found out that buck's been keeping important information from him. sure, jee was fine and it was an accident, but as her father he certainly had a right to know. nonetheless, lashing out physically is presented as wrong, even if only as an afterthought with a throwaway line. there's reasoning behind his actions, but they're not reasonable.

after buck checks eddie and sprains his ankle, he spirals in his guilt. he let his jealousy get the best of him, and he maimed his best friend. bad behaviour, and it's all on buck. he says as much! in both his conversation with maddie, and with tommy at the end of the episode, he owns up to his actions! we don't see him apologise to eddie onscreen, but he's pushed to do so and i get the implication that he does call and clear the air. there's reasoning behind his actions, but they're not reasonable.

*beats that last sentence in with a hammer* see what i'm trying to get at here?

with eddie, his actions are born out of his immense guilt and grief at not being able to do anything when bobby was dying. earlier in the season, he snapped after buck told the rest of the team about eddie's plan to move back to el paso, which eddie was not comfortable sharing yet (again, putting aside whether the secret-keeping was smart, to eddie, buck still betrayed his trust by telling everyone while he's dealing with the stress of trying to find a subletter)

but... does he really apologise for either of these? in the first fight, they're interrupted by bobby hen and chim showing up at the front door and taking him out for a goodbye celebration. in the second he flies christopher in from texas as a surprise visit with tia pepa with an offhanded "heard some dick was being mean to you"

chris was the apology? eddie took responsibility? he doesn't even say i was a dick. he distances himself and throws chris and pepa at buck as a diversion. only one diaz actually said i'm sorry in that scene and it wasn't eddie.

i just. this whole thing could play out exactly the same and it'd sit so much easier with me if i knew there'd for sure be some form of payout at the end of it all. if you have two characters that are supposed to be best friends and one of them has buck's insecurities, then having the other go for the jugular in fights like that can't be fixed with a simple "aw someone was mean to you :(" and throwing a kid at him.

and backing buck into a corner, getting his face, putting hands on him? call it abuse or don't, but in what world is it at all okay to put hands on someone like that, in such an emotionally charged moment? i don't buy the argument that buck and eddie's friendship is Like That, or even that some irl friendships are. someone putting their hands on another in the middle of a heated disagreement is NOT RIGHT and the number of people i've seen calling it "romantic" is. concerning.

write him flawed. write him angry. write him aggressive. but for the love of god stand behind what you're putting on the screen.

[johanna-swann]

This got a little long and it might sound a little mean at first, but. What exactly does Eddie bring to the table that adds to the bigger picture of the show as a whole?

Disclaimer: If you are a big Eddie fan and/or disagree with me, I am happy to have a civil discussion about this. I mean that, I love debates over fandom stuff. You can comment or drop into my inbox, whatever. Please do keep it civil though and if you could actually read the post before coming at me - that would also be appreciated. I can promise you I'll be nice as long as you are and you won't provoke any sort of reaction out of me other than some polite concern for your mental well being anyway. I pick the fights worth having carefully and if you're just ignorant or aggressive, I'll end up blocking you.

As per usual I'm trying to give my rant a somewhat sensible structure, stay as objective as possible and highlight it when I introduce a new point. Alright, let's go.

Observation number one. The firefamily worked perfectly fine as a found family of 4 in season 1. They were a somewhat dysfunctional family, but that's what made them interesting and they already cared about each other so much, even called themselves a family by episode 3 or 4. The show needed Abby and Athena for their respective perspective as dispatcher/cop, but they weren't integral parts of the firefam (yet).

For Athena that obviously changed quickly when she started hanging out with the 118 more and dating Bobby, they're married now and Athena is no longer just one of Hen's closest friends, she's family to all of them.

Abby didn't leave that big a hole because she was only really connected to Buck and no-one else in the first place. Other characters had scenes with her, but she was always there as Buck's girlfriend. The show needs one main character at dispatch, but that didn't have to be Abby. She was replaceable.

In season 2 we got two new main characters that weren't established members of the found family (yet), kind of like we had Abby and Athena in season 1.

Maddie was immediately connected to Buck of course, but then she also got together with Chimney (another main character) and they became a family as well, she has a handful of lovely scenes with Athena and the Wilson-Han family bonds are stronger now than ever. She is integrated into the firefam, her role as dispatcher is important and she's being played by thee JLH which makes her existence in the show load-bearing and basically irreplaceable.

[Side note: Everybody who has been following me for a bit probably knows I'm not exactly a Maddie fan - personally I wish she was written a little more active than reactive, a little more flawed instead of "crying white woman who suffers more than Jesus Christ himself" (I'm exaggerating to bring across my point) - but objectively speaking I know that Maddie is a perfectly normal character on a show that has much bigger issues and that doesn't change just because I personally find her annyoing. I get why the show needs her and why other fans like her.]

Which makes me ask again though, what does Eddie bring to the table? It's nice to have him, sure. I like all the Diaz family dynamics. I love Christopher. The friendship between Eddie and Buck is amazing. Buck's and Chris' relationship will always be special to me. I like Eddie and his weird ass drama. Does the show need him though?

To go with the "bigger picture" metaphor - it's like the show is one big picture and Eddie is a smaller picture that hangs on the same wall. It has its own frame and exists separately, it can be taken down or to a different floor of the museum without destroying either of the pictures. Walk with me:

On a meta level we just have to be realistic. Ryan Guzman is not a name that will draw a crowd like the names "Jennifer Love Hewitt", "Angela Bassett" or "Peter Krause" do. If people know him at all from previous projects then they'll either know him as Jennifer Lopez' eye candy or as that guy who was in one of those dance movies. (I wanna add here that I actually watched Step Up Miami Heat a few times as a teenager, it's a guilty pleasure movie for me that I come back to every now and then and I didn't even realise it was the same guy until somebody else told me.) So yeah, he's an okay actor and I'm sure he's a nice person (or maybe he's not, idk and idc about the actors that much), but I don't think a lot of people started to watch 911 because they found out their favourite superstar Ryan Guzman was in it.

As for Eddie in his function as a firefighter/army medic: We already have 2 firefighters and we already have 2 paramedics at the 118. Eddie is just extra. No disrespect, but we never needed him the way we need a Maddie to man dispatch or like we need an Athena for the police's perspective. The firefighter/paramedic front was already more than well covered.

So, we don't need him for the actor's star power or the character's unique career, what about personal relationships? Eddie's not particularly close to anyone in the firefam other than Buck whereas everyone else has multiple close connections. His friendship with Bobby is there I guess, but it's only shown in one scene every other season or so. I'd put it in the same category as the Maddie&Athena friendship. Heartwarming and nice to have, not integral to the show though. Nobody watches the show just because they love this friendship in particular so much. Eddie has very casual friendships with Hen and Chimney where they exchange banter or gossip here and there when they all sit in the truck together, but I don't remember many (if any) really meaningful scenes between them. To this day I don't think Eddie ever had scenes with Maddie or Athena at all.

Then there's the fact that next to none of his story lines are connected to the 118. All the other characters have had impactful story lines concerning their job at the 118 itself or their personal drama really involved other main characters. [I got side tracked thinking about this, but I don't want to derail the main train of thought too much here, so I put this part under the cut.*]

The Texas arc, beginning with Kim entering the stage in 7x07 and up until 8x13, only proved once again how disconnected Eddie is from the other main characters.

I don't think anybody except Buck knows what happened between Eddie and Christopher or at least nobody mentioned it. Nobody mentioned the break-up between Eddie and Marisol or Kim's existence either. Not even Eddie really talks about Marisol, nor Kim or Shannon for that matter. He is very focused on his son which, you know, fair enough. But moving to Texas, confronting his parents, stepping up as an actual parental authority again (instead of being a bit of a pushover because he's scared to mess up again) is only treating the symptoms, not the cause. The reason all of this happened in the first place is the Shannon-Marisol-Kim disaster and that hasn't been adressed at all by anyone.

Anyway. None of the other main characters were involved in the love triangle (square?) doppelgänger mess and even Buck took a very passive role here where Eddie told him about what was happening, but he didn't do much. Christopher hasn't interacted with Buck at all in season 8 which feels strange considering he was still willing to talk to Buck immediately after he walked in on Eddie and Kim and Buck was there when Christopher left - all in all they were still very close only one season ago. Now Buck is worried about Eddie, but he doesn't talk about missing Christopher. Not to Eddie or Maddie or Tommy.

Then Eddie moved. He's been in Texas for a while now and Buck has expressed that he misses his best friend, but he doesn't seem to be struggling that much to be honest. Before the move he was mostly upset because it seemed like Eddie didn't care, but they cleared up that misunderstanding. After the move it took him one episode to get over it. In the meantime he's getting closer to Ravi, spends time with his sister, still has fun with his job, settles into his new house - yes, he misses Eddie, it was an adjustment, but he's doing fine without him. They still talk to each other, phones exist. But Buck is okay and nobody else really mentions Eddie.

In comparison: When Chimney left in season 5 to get Maddie back everybody was affected. Eddie suddenly worked medical calls, Hen got snappy with Eddie because they hadn't found their rhythm yet, Buck blamed himself and thought about leaving the 118, Ravi had to step up because he wasn't just the new probie anymore, Bobby had to manage that entire mess and vented to Athena.

Eddie left to get Chris back, Ravi replaced him, even Buck got over it within a single episode. More at eleven. You see the difference?

Conclusion: Eddie is replaceable, you could argue that he doesn't even need replacing since there are still four other main characters working at the 118 who are also all friends with each other. When you pay a little attention it's obvious how disconnected Eddie is from the other characters, even Buck sometimes who shares emotional conversations with Eddie, but isn't always an active participant in Eddie's story lines. I don't like this, I'm not sitting here gloating that "my favourite character is superior", I'm just observing this and it's sad. I usually enjoy Eddie's story lines even when the writing could be better (see Texas arc), I see a lot of potential in his character, I spent the better part of 2023 reading Buddie fanfiction mostly from his perspective. But this insistence that "Eddie completes the firefamily" or that it's "just not the same without him" is more than a little exaggerated. The show is exactly the same without Eddie. It's almost funny how god damn unbothered everybody is by Eddie's absence. How did the Texas arc not make that clear?

*On the career themed story lines:

Chim was feeling like Bobby favours Buck which resulted in a bigger fight, a horrific car crash and the first moment where anybody actually said out loud that the 118 is a familly. He later had his turn as Interim Captain where we saw that while he does have a lot of experience and has been at the 118 the longest, he might not want to be Captain in the long run. As we learn a few seasons later, he could very well be cut out to become an instructor at the academy though, proving leadership qualities in a different way.

Hen had her med school arc and while that didn't lead to anything, it did emphasise and confirm for her that she is exactly where she wants and needs to be. She was also instated as Interim Captain several times which showed that she is Captain material and might take over a station at some point.

Buck was kept from his job and had a whole identity crisis about it in season 3, later "Buck Begins" sort of confirmed that after a lot of searching he found the job that is exactly right for him. In season 6 he was wondering if he could make Captain one day himself and in that season finale got a chance to prove that he can not only work under extreme pressure, he can lead under those same circumstances, too. (It was sadly a very short scene and we haven't seen "potential Captain Buck" since, but the point stands and the idea is out there.)

Bobby had to learn to trust his team so they could trust him in return back in season 1, a theme they also picked up again in "Bobby Begins Again" where he started settling in and making the team into, well, a team instead of just co-workers. We've seen him fighting to stay their Captain both in season 2 and recently in 8a.

Eddie on the other hand quit the 118 during his season 5 breakdown arc, but it wasn't about the job, it was about Chrsitopher. Then he had to extend his time away from active duty because of his ptsd. He never thinks about advancing in his career (everybody else either was Interim Captain at one point or at least showed interest in it) or tries anything else unless he sees himself forced to do it for Christopher. I don't think he even is officially a paramedic. Similar to Hen's med school arc it probably wouldn't really change anything because he's usually paired with Buck and he already (occasionally) works medical calls anyway, but (similar to Hen's med school arc) it would at least give him something to do and show that he is generally invested in his career. I haven't seen "Eddie Begins" in a while, but does that episode give us a moment where Eddie truly finds his calling as a firefighter like the others did? I don't think so, we just got two lines or so about "missing the camaraderie, seemed worth the shot" in season 2.

On to the "personal" stuff. Do any of Eddie's big story lines have any impact on the firefam?

Eddie's love life is a mess. Season 2 was all about Shannon and their marriage and the others gossiped a little about it, but what difference does it make to the firefam who Eddie is dating? None of Eddie's love interests ever have any connection to the other family members whereas the other couples are a) both main characters or b) in Buck's case do often have connections to the others. Abby was a main character who wasn't close to the 118, but still shared a lot of scenes with them. Taylor showed up on calls, had her own story lines when she investigated stuff, asked Bobby about Christmas presents, had dinners with Buck that involved other characters like Albert or Eddie. Tommy of course was good friends with Eddie and Chim, but also acquainted with Bobby, Athena and Hen. Even Veronica who only had one date with Buck then turned out to be his neighbour and dated Albert for a while.

Other than Buck I don't think anybody ever really had scenes with Eddie's love interests and even Buck barely met those women as far as I remember. Eddie talks about Ana and Marisol, sure, but do they interact with Buck much?

Then Eddie of course has story lines about being a (single) father, but somehow he always ends up talking to Buck about this instead of literally any of his friends who actually have children of their own. Denny and Harry are shown to be friends, but despite being about Denny's age, Christopher doesn't have scenes with them outside of that one season 3 Christmas episode. Only Buck ever babysits Christopher for Eddie. Recently even Buck hasn't had anything to do with Chris. He coached Eddie through some parenting decisions, but he doesn't have contact to Chris at all. Neither Chris nor Buck express that they miss each other or anything.

There's Eddie's fight club era which ended after one heart to heart with Bobby, but mostly affected his and Lena's friendship who, again, is a character who was Eddie's friend but barely had scenes with the other mains. This is connected to the fight he had with Buck of course, but while Buck's absence and the lawsuit impacted the entire family who picked sides or felt the tension in the firehouse, Eddie's personal issues with Buck are between the two of them. There are raised eye brows during that supermarket fight, but that's it.

He had the shooting story line and while the other characters worried about Eddie of course, it was Buck who was with him when it happened, Buck who took care of Christopher, Buck who rushed to the hospital when Eddie woke up, Buck who picked him up from the hospital and had a heart to heart with him, etc. The other characters existed in the vicinity of this story line, but only Buck was really in it with Eddie. Compare that to when Buck was struck by lightning. Every single main character had emotional scenes with Buck in that story line.

Eddie eventually started dating again and, once more, this was casual gossip fodder in the firehouse, but it was Eddie's aunt who had an actual, serious conversation with him.

The season 7 stuff is part of the Texas story line for me, so I'm not getting into that again.

[exploring-the-cosmos]

Haven't posted in a while, but I have some thoughts about Eddie, the upcoming episode, and the confessional still we got earlier today, so here's my little rambling rant about Eddie Diaz and 8x17:

Okay, so I have had many thoughts about how the church/confessional scene could go, but this seems the most plausible to me:

I think Eddie is going to go back to the church, mainly because it's the one place besides the firehouse he would feel most connected to Bobby. They had multiple conversations revolving around their shared Catholic background at this point, and Bobby's advice to Eddie about his relationship struggles had also led him back to church more than once. Seeing as Bobby is gone (I'm still holding out hope he's alive, Tim please do not disappoint me more than you already have), the next logical place for him to turn to to deal with his grief and guilt, imo, is the church. From the stills, it looks like there is going to be a confessional scene and the only character we've seen go to confessional besides Bobby is Eddie so it makes sense that he would be in that scene talking to Father Brian. Father Brian also has an established relationship with Bobby, so I would love to see how he is personally dealing with that loss, too. On Eddie's part, we know from the last episode that he is likely dealing with a lot of guilt regarding him not being there to help when the 118 was trapped in the lab. Guilt also continues to be a recurring theme for Eddie. He feels guilty over what happened with Shannon, what happened with the whole Kim and Marisol situation and how that affected his relationship with Christopher, he has a "reservior of untapped Catholic guilt" as he puts it, etc. It wouldn't surprise me if he is unfairly blaming himself for Bobby's death and that's the main issue he's going to confession to deal with. At some point I think this conversation will circle back to the last conversation the two had in "Confessions": the water vs. juice conversation. Father Brian had previously commented that he thinks the reason Eddie chose the water over the juice is because he's punishing himself. Because he doesn't feel worthy of joy (the juice). I can see the current conversation with Father Brian leading back into how Eddie is once again punishing himself by blaming Bobby's death on himself and his choice to leave LA (even though he had a good reason to leave), and he isn't working through his grief and moving on with his life. But even if he was there, there likely would have been nothing he could have done to save him, no matter how much skill and experience he has as a medic. It's okay for him to have regrets, to feel sad, and to mourn the loss of an important person to him, but he cannot put blame on himself for not being there. And it's also okay for him to forgive himself, to move on, and to continue to pursue joy. It's what Bobby would have wanted for him, and for everyone in the 118. The water vs. juice convo also feels like a very clear analogy that can be applied to Eddie's romantic relationships. Choosing water is choosing to pursue relationships with women-- to conform to societies expectations, to punish himself for wanting what he "shouldn't"/can't have, repression-- and choosing juice would be choosing to pursue relationships with men-- joy, self-acceptance, choosing himself and what he wants/not what other people expect of him. Also juice=fruit=fruity. That feels so obvious it's like a punch to the face. Don't even get me started on his comment about not liking dating (women) because he "feels like he has to perform". I really hope Hen brings that little comment up in their upcoming conversation because OH BOY is there a lot to unpack. I don't know that this conversation or his convo with Hen will necessarily directly address his sexuality and feelings for Buck, but considering the title of the episode being "Don't Drink The Water", how the two of them have been acting toward/talking about each other, the last scene of 8x9 almost seeming to be an "oh" moment for Eddie, and there being multiple stills of Buck next to juice? I would be surprised and frankly a little disappointed if it didn't come up.

I really hope that's along the lines of how things go next episode, but who tf knows. The writers have not been putting out their best work recently, imo. I am pleasantly surprised to see that it seems Eddie will be in this episode more now that he's back, and I really, really hope his storyline is the focus of the episode because he's been absent for so long.

[lover-of-mine]

Far from me to make Shannon about Buck, but I keep saying the way that Eddie reacts to Buck during the lawsuit is about the effort and that Eddie would've reacted differently to Shannon if Shannon had made the choice to come back herself when people try to make that comparison, and I feel like the episode proved me right on that front. Shannon left Eddie and Chris and Eddie reached out and that was why she came back, and she never told Eddie why she left Eddie, Eddie had no closure on the way she left him in the middle of the night. And that's the thing that gets him, because he seemed to accept in some level he could trust she wouldn't voluntarily leave Christopher again, but he never managed to trust she wouldn't leave him, and she did leave him before she died, he thought that her not coming back on her own would always mean maybe she would leave again and Shannon asked for a divorce and that confirmed that fear. All Eddie wanted from her was the explanation "if you loved me, why did you leave me? What wasn't enough? Me or your love for me?" if she didn't want to stay, and he will never get that because they made statements about each other using Christopher, as if the effort towards Chris would be enough to keep their relationship together. Considering the whole way Eddie proposed because she was pregnant and he decides to try again for real because he thinks she's pregnant again, and the way she demands for a stance regarding being brought back into Chris' life to define their relationship, and "is that who I am to you? Christopher's mother" they never really talked to each other about each other with Chris removed from the equation, and that was what they needed, to have an honest conversation about each other without believing Chris could magically keep them together. Eddie needs his own letter and he'll never get it because neither one of them ever sit down to talk about what all the running did to the other. Not beyond Shannon yelling at Eddie that what she needed was him and he wasn't there. And considering the way Shannon is all Eddie knows with how young they were when they met, his reactions when it comes to relationships come from what he was taught to expect there. It's why he folds the way he did when Buck apologizes and explains how he was feeling and why he did what he did. Because Buck apologizing the way he does validates a part of Eddie abandonment issues that's not validated often enough. Buck realized what happened hurt Eddie and he made a direct effort to make it up to Eddie without going around the issues. And that's interesting because Eddie himself hides behind Christopher during the whole situation, he calls Buck out for leaving him by putting Chris in the middle so he won't have to say that he misses Buck.

And I think the whole thing adds to the way Eddie changing his will feels inherently romantic, because simply asking a friend to be your kid's guardian isn't romantic, but doing it and hiding it when you have a history of making statements about your romantic life using your kid is. Shannon demanded a statement about what she and Eddie were through Christopher and Eddie makes a statement about what Buck is to him through Christopher. And it's an interesting contrast in the situation when you consider the similarities between the fight Shannon and Eddie have at the station in 210 and the will reveal (same color palette, same general feeling of defining relationships through Chris) because Shannon was only getting Eddie and Buck only got Christopher, and neither relationship could go anywhere until they addressed the balance that needs to exist between the two. Obviously, any relationship Eddie enters needs to consider Christopher, but Chris can't be the defining factor and that's the thing that Eddie himself keeps failing to realize. Yes, Christopher's needs are important, but Eddie needs to also consider his own needs if he wants to make a relationship work, but he never acknowledged that until he was yelling at Kim that Chris got a letter but Eddie never did. Because that's what Eddie needs to move on, to not look for a mother for Chris, but for a partner for him who also happens to love Christopher. But he can't see that because what he wants is the fantasy he had as a teenager of growing old with Shannon and he can't let that go even though he's never going to get that.

And I feel like this rambling also adds to my general rambling about how Buck is the one who needs to start his endgame relationship, so he's the one who needs to make the choice to fight for Eddie, because in the same way that Buck keeps being pursued by people and he keeps letting himself be chased because he doesn't want to make a choice in a fucked up mirror of that first relationship with Abby, the relationship that shaped Eddie is a relationship where he wasn't chosen to be in. From marrying Shannon before they were ready because she was pregnant to being the one to ask her to come back, he never knew if she was with him because she wanted to be with him or out of obligation to Chris and the same sense of duty that made them get married in the first place, in the same way that Abby took the agency away from Buck by crashing into his life the way she did and forcing him into this waiting position that he needs to leave. Buck needs to make a choice because he needs to stop waiting for love to find him and Eddie needs to be chosen because he never knew what that feels like to have love choose him.

[coderooster]

Buck and Eddie plan to propose to each other on the same day (anniversary or coincidence). In preparation, they make the rounds to ask permission for the other’s hand, because even though it’s a bit outdated they feel it’s important for them as a couple to do.

Eddie goes to Maddie first. She’s over the moon, telling Eddie it’s about time and that he’s had her blessing since the day Buck came home raving about the insufferable new guy at work. She feels a little guilty allowing this because she’s been helping Buck plan his own proposal, but if anything, the fact that the two are planning to propose at the same time shows just how much they belong together.

Bobby is the other person Eddie asks. Despite not being related, everyone knows how significant Bobby is in Buck’s life, with their father-son bond being seen but unmentioned. Bobby initially doesn’t understand why Eddie is asking him so Eddie has to explain how important Bobby’s blessing would be to both of them. He happily agrees, fighting off tears of pride over the thought of his kid settling down with the man he handpicked for him.

Buck obviously asks Christopher first. It’s so important that Christopher is onboard with the whole thing, having had many similar conversations over the course of Buck and Eddie’s relationship to avoid anymore broken salad bowls. Christopher is ecstatic at the thought of Buck legally becoming his family, eagerly giving his blessing with an air of ‘you’re an idiot to think I would say no’ that only a teenager can pull off. Their conversation ends with an ominous remark from Chris that Buck better hurry up and do it soon, stemming from the exact same conversation being had days prior with Eddie.

Abuela is next on Buck’s list. Being the matriarch of the Diaz family, her approval would be significant for Buck’s family-oriented ‘nester’ of a boyfriend, who had struggled to shake the last few teachings from his upbringing. Besides, even though she moved back to Texas, Isabel is Eddie’s favourite Diaz outside of Christopher. She respects Buck for asking her and gives her full blessings on the condition that he send her a picture of the ring and a video of the proposal.

Finally, Buck goes to Shannon. Despite their tumultuous relationship, there is no doubt that Eddie loved her fiercely, comparing every subsequent partner to her until he got together with Buck. Because of this, Buck feels it’s important he let her know about his plans. He visits her grave, sharing updates on how Eddie and Chris are doing, assuring her he doesn’t want to replace her but explaining how he feels both he and Eddie are finally ready to take that final step in their relationship. He thinks the best way to honour her memory and her own relationship with Eddie is to ask for her blessing. While he knows he won’t get an answer, Buck swears he hears a whisper on the wind saying ‘yes’.

[candyspandemonium]

The 2024 Wrap Up

Aaaaaaand she's back. It's been a *year* but I wanted to do a post for the end of it, showing how many stories I've written and what type of project I did.

Writing :

9-1-1

To Forget Or Not Forget

When Christopher asks Buck for help when he's supposed to stay with Ana for the night, Eddie has to think about what he really wants to do with his romantic life.

Baby Whisperer

Athena and Hen open the door quickly and they look relieved to see them. “Buckaroo,” Athena sighs. “Thank God you’re here.” “This is a rescue mission,” Hen whispers. “We need your help.” “What’s going on?” Buck asks, his voice full of confusion. (...) “Baby whisperer!” Chimney calls. “Good. Tag, you’re it. Margaret, please give Jee to Bu – Evan.”

Another Side Of You

“Am I in trouble?” Chris asks as soon as he sees their faces. “No, Superman.” Buck smiles. “We just want to talk to you about something important,” Eddie says. Chris sits at the table, with Buck and Eddie across from him. “Are you and Buck going to date?” Chris asks. Eddie almost chokes on thin air, not expecting the question. Buck passes a nervous hand through his hair.

Child Whisperer

Or after Eddie and Buck get officially together, the 118 kids make sure that Eddie knows he can't mess with their Buck.

To Have A Home

After their break up, Taylor announces that she's pregnant. Buck must decide whether he wants to be a father. A story of the importance of family and of how to build a home.

Howling Love

Or the one where Eddie and Chris are werewolves and just cuddle with Buck.

Howling Protection

Or the Buckley parents are in town and Eddie loses his mind a bit.

Loving You Without Losing You

A 7x04 reaction. Buck goes on his date with Tommy. Eddie and Buck finally talk about their feelings.

Leap Of Faith

Eddie has to deal with the consequences of telling Buck to date Tommy until they're both ready to finally do something about their relationship.

I Think I Wanna Marry You

“Eddie,” Buck whispers-shout. “Do you remember last night?” He watches as Eddie looks down, sees the moment he notices the band around his finger, and can tell the exact moment the memories hit him. Buck looks at his own hand. Fuck. Yeah it’s real. “We – we got married.”

Bingpot

Or Buck, Eddie, Chimney, and Hen plan a heist to settle the debate of "who is the best duo of the 118". Buck and Eddie find love in the process. Bobby just wants to have some peace. A Brooklyn 99 inspired one shot for @gremlinsdiaz.

Raise Me Up

Or Buck and Eddie use a MMO to get Christopher to come back home, and maybe they get more than they planned.

500 Days Of Buck

Or 500 days of Eddie Diaz pining after his best friend.

Crossovers

Clarity a 911/RWRB crossover

Or while in Texas, Eddie confronts his own feelings with the help of his cousin and the Prince of England.

Tales of Lizards and Love a 911 Lone Star/RWRB crossover

 in which Carlos and Alex were high school friends and talk about their boyfriends after their engagement.

Red White & Royal Blue

Maps

In which a failing mask is the cause of Alex and Henry's friendship. As time passes, they learn to navigate life but mostly love. It's a long, messy road ahead but they have each other, right?

Scratch Me (To Sleep)

Or Alex listens to FoxyAsmr to fall asleep. What he doesn't know is that his new roommate isn't as much of a stranger as he thought.

Made For Love

Ice-Dancing AU! Where Henry and June are partners and Alex is just a mess.

Pick You Up (And Put You Back On Your Feet)

He doesn’t really know what they’re supposed to do now, uncharted territories and all of that but he’s hit with another memory from years ago. A stupid mistake, a challenge Alex had thrown Henry while he was drunk out of his mind. Can you carry me? Boy, had Henry delivered. Of course he had.

Weather Boy

“Hi,” Henry smiles despite himself. “What has the grass done to you?” Alex asks. “Nothing. It’s the rain.” Henry mumbles. “You’re bothered by the rain?” There’s amusement in his voice and Henry wants to – wants to what? Groan? He can’t when Alex is nuzzling his neck and is all warm and soft from sleep behind him. He lets himself fall deeper in his embrace, puts his hands on his arm, and squeezes, enjoying the way he can feel the muscles below his fingers. “I had plans,” Henry mutters. “Now the plan is ruined because of the bloody rain.”

Knitting / Crochet :

I got back to knitting this year and made three scarves for friends.

I also finally managed to start my crochet journey, making six hats (four of those were minis for little figurines a friend of mine has) so we'll see what 2025 brings!

I might post pictures later on if anybody is interested.

That's pretty much it. If you've made it this far, congratulations <3

I'm wishing everybody a happy end of the year!

If you want to share YOUR projects, don't hesitate <3

[buddierecs]

5+1 things buddie fics

all mature rating!!! make sure to kudos/comment on these amazing works :)

a thousand ways to say i hate you by: morganofthefairies "five times eddie buys taylor fuck-you flowers, and one time he doesn't need to." word count: 8k important tags: language of flowers, taylor kelly, ana flores, awkward dates, double dates, jealous!eddie diaz, petty!eddie diaz, pining 5 times buck wears eddie's clothes (+1 time eddie wears buck's) by: coupe_de_foudre “is that my hoodie?” “i was cold.” he states, as though he didn’t totally have to go into eddie’s bedroom and dig through his closet just to get a hoodie. “it’s soft.” buck adds, bringing the material of the hood up to stroke along his cheek." word count: 4k important tags: pining, developing relationship, domestic fluff, first kiss, implied sexual content, making out, friends to lovers, sharing clothes maybe love won't let you down by: siblysleaves "five times eddie watches buck leave, and the one time he goes after him" word count: 15k important tags: mutual pining, angst with a happy ending, friends to lovers, getting together, love confessions with a smile and some hope by: iriswests "five times buck wakes up before eddie, and one time eddie wakes up before buck" word count: 6.5k important tags: established relationship, domestic fluff no one has to know what we do by: youdrewstarsaroundmyscars118 "five times the firefam find out about buck and eddie accidentally and one time it’s on purpose." word count: 4.1k important tags: secret relationship, relationship reveal, family feels do you ever long for true love from me by: smilingbuckley "5 times eddie gives buck clothes to borrow + 1 time he takes them off." word count: 5.3k important tags: whump, sharing clothes, hurt!evan buckley, sick!evan buckley, pre-relationship, first kiss, fluff, hurt/comfort, implied sexual content baby, you look happier (you do) by: frxm_theashes "five times eddie sees buck happy with someone else, and one time he realizes that buck is happy with him (and that, maybe, eddie is allowed to be happy with buck too). word count: 19k important tags: temporary buck/tommy, jealous!eddie diaz, catholic guilt, internalised homophobia, pining, getting together, making out what if i fall in love backward? by: redridingstiles "five times buck and eddie saved each other by pretending to be together and the one time christopher helps" word count: 9.8k important tags: fake dating, best friends, christopher diaz is a national treasure, protective!evan buckley, teasing, homophobia this is for my mother by: chika_lohaine "5 times buck was christopher's mom and the one time he wasn't." word count: 29k important tags: emotional hurt/comfort, grief/mourning, evan buckley acting as christoper diaz's parent, ableism, panic attacks, pining

platonic co-parents don't kiss like we do by: thelikesofus "5 times other people see buck and eddie kiss + 1 time they really mean it." word count: 7.1k important tags: kissing, forehead kisses, pov outsider, first kiss, getting together, fluff, supportive team, pda, protective!evan buckley got nothing but love for you (fall more in love everyday) by: smilingbuckley "5 times buck and eddie are almost caught + 1 time they are" word count: 6k important tags: secret relationship, hiding, mild sexual content, first dates, dorks in love, light angst, emotional hurt/comfort

[sunflowerdigs]

It's important to remember that no matter what Eddie says about Christopher, Kim is only here for Eddie. He can't introduce her to Christopher and create anything long term with her because that would be sick. So, Eddie's pursuit of Kim is fundamentally about Eddie. It's about Eddie being able to live inside this fantasy where the parts of his relationship with Shannon that didn't work don't exist. But as the flashback showed us, Eddie wasn't capable of being with just Shannon without Christopher being the glue binding them together. So the absence of Christopher in this relationship with Kim is likely what is going to finally open his eyes to the fact that his relationship with Shannon wasn't that great.

I think that Eddie's real and thriving connection to Buck has made it more and more obvious to him (subconsciously) with each passing gf that he can't make connections with these women work. So, he has inserted Christopher into those relationships in order to give them a reason to work (I think Eddie truly believes that he wants Chris to have another mother figure). And the result has been an exacerbation of Christopher's abandonment issues. Eddie encourages him to get close to these women (even after admitting that he himself isn't as close to them as he should be, in Marisol's case, which was progress) and ultimately it's not enough, the relationship ends, and Chris is abandoned. Meanwhile, who is actually playing the part a wife would play in Eddie's life? Yeah, Buck. That's why he's Christopher's other guardian in the will.

Kim may be the cold bucket of water to Eddie's head because Eddie can't insert Christopher into the relationship. It's just going to be the two of them together. And after they fuck - what's going to be there?

It's confusing because this is about grief but it's also about Eddie's sexuality. And it's about Buck, which is why the show has inserted Buck into the center of the conflict, because Buck is the one person that Eddie has managed to integrate into his life with Christopher and also care about deeply himself.

I think the resolution to this story will be Christopher's grandparents taking him to Texas with them so that Eddie can figure out what he wants when Christopher isn't there to use as a buffer. What may happen is his parents may threaten to have Christopher removed because they feel Eddie is unfit, in which case, Buck becomes the legal guardian. And so, if they don't want to take it to court and have it on record that Eddie lost custody, Buck becomes the one who has to make the call about where Christopher ends up. And that could be the thing that rips him and Eddie apart. Or it could bring them closer together if Buck can talk some sense into Eddie and make him realize just how much his issues are hurting Christopher.

(And, honestly, I think they'll go that route because, ultimately, like Ryan said, Eddie knows that he can't introduce Kim to Christopher because the relationship is a delusion. Eddie isn't a bad parent and he loves Christopher very much, he's just all tangled up in his issues).

(Or, Buck will conspire with Eddie's parents behind his back to have his kid taken away and Eddie will, rightfully, be furious with him even once he understands it's the right call).

That would explain Ryan calling next season the "new phase" of Eddie's life. And that would explain why Gavin was promoted to regular, so that they knew they'd have him for this arc.

The cheating is the wildest part, but I think people are getting so caught up in being angry at Eddie over that and wanting to see him punished, that they're forgetting that this arc isn't about punishment, it's about healing and ultimately giving both Christopher and Eddie the tools to live their best lives. So, I don't think Eddie will end the season alone - I think he and Buck will make amends and Buck will spend the hiatus by his side, helping him clean up the mess. Just like Eddie helped Buck clean up his mess back in s3.

[m3r1m4r5u333]

Okay I've settled on my head canon which is that Eddie is bi (or some version of "likes women and men"), too... I need to ramble about it because this popular idea that Eddie is gay just bothers me tbh it just feels ignorant, bi erasurery. And sure, maybe I'll be proven wrong, but in the mean time...

I think the reason why Eddie just can't be happy with the women he's pushing himself to date is because he's only really ever been drawn, and loved, two people: Shannon and Buck.

And these women he's since dated... are neither of those people. So the other relationships are just... fake, unhappy. Not because of sexual incompatibility, but because they're loveless, on Eddie's part.

The romance with Shannon started as a teen-age romance. They were childhood friends and lovers, but they were too young and immature to really handle the stress of parenthood, and despite that, pushed into a marriage.

It was too much for this young, immature, love to survive. Them freaking out and not being a team.... That just started to hack away at their mutual trust, and that eventually killed the romance, and the marriage. This immature love just could not handle all this pressure, and co-exist with that dying trust.

And then, Eddie meets Buck when his and Shannon's marriage is on a break. She's runs, is away for a long time, Eddie is raising Chris alone... And Buck steps in.

And Buck is insanely helpful, a major stress relief -letting Bobby know that Eddie is struggling to find a caretaker for Chris. Researching for ways to help Eddie... He finds Carla to help them. Buck takes one look at Christopher and melts, wants to spend time with them... Eddie thinks "Woah. This guy is amazing. This is someone I can count on, who has my back."

So Eddie just moved on from Shannon. He did love her once... but then they killed their love and marriage, together. Mutual destruction.

Eddie didn't trust her anymore, she didn't trust him after he'd enlisted in a panic to run from the parenthood, from Christopher's diagnosis... they were fighting all the time... and then she just left him alone with Chris.

And I refuse to demonize her for leaving btw, she was young, under a lot of stress, and Eddie was running from his parenthood. Eddie needed that push, to take responsibility, and connect with Chris!!

But still.. She left, Eddie was hurt and alone, and really doesn't trust her anymore, and then he meets Buck.

So Eddie moves on. His and Shannon's romantic love just... dies. And when she finally tries to re-connect. Yes, he still finds her desirable, and the human bond is still an important one. But where's the love?

They've known each other since they were children, they're friends, Shannon is Christopher's mother. But Eddie no longer really loves her like he once did. He tries. He forgives her, for everything, and really tries to mend their marriage, even proposes again after finding out she may be pregnant...

But it's just too late for both of them, they don't really work as a couple, and she realises she is tired of this battle, she is done.

Shannon leaving.... this made Eddie move on from her, even though he tried to deny it, even to himself. By leaving, Shannon gave the final killing blow to their already fractured mutual trust. Then she was gone for a long time, and when she finally came back, Eddie had already moved on, connected with someone else. She even says this - I was away for too long.

She realises that their marriage dead. She is shocked when Eddie keeps pushing her away from Chris, realises their mutual lack of trust. And she finally admits to herself that she doesn't really want to get back together with Eddie.

Eddie is dragging his feet, not really accepting her back, keeps looking for a "sign" that would say they should have another serious go as partners. Only proposes after there's another pregnancy scare.

Shannon thinks, this marriage is too broken, I want out. We both deserve something better than this. So it is a story of falling in love, and falling out of love.

And then she dies, and Eddie grieves, deeply. He did love Shannon, even though their marriage was a failure. He'd loved her in so many ways. She was his friend, she was his wife, she was Christopher's mother.

However, I do feel like the reason why he struggles to date after Shannon's death is a combination of grief - being afraid to try again with anyone... and it's denial of his feelings for Buck, and also fear that what if... This happens again, what if he loves and they leave. I think the key problem here really is Buck.

Eddie has already fallen for someone, and tries to deny it, ignore it. He thinks this is a road that would take him nowhere, so why try. He thinks Buck is straight!

So he starts pushing Buck away because this odd family unit they have...? Where is it going really, he thinks, Buck doesn't want him.

This line, said to Buck:

"Somehow we became a ready-made family and I... I don't know if I'm ready for that."

It's grief for Shannon, and it's unrequited love for Buck, and it's about being unable to love Ana because of those both massive things stopping Eddie from being able to connect with her.

Remember.... that Buck starts the thing with Taylor before Eddie starts dating Ana?

Eddie, looking like a zombie, hosting Buck and Taylor, telling Buck that he needs to move on, Eddie has. (Yeah it's a lie.)

And remember all these talks about Eddie needing to move on, before he goes on dates?

This is Eddie, trying to move on, and find his third family unit.

The scene with Eddie and Buck when they've just met, Buck bragging that "some of us don't need good lighting to look good..."

And then Eddie at the fire station, looking at Buck, forgetting to introduce Ana to everyone, realising his mistake and saying to Ana;

"Oh, you've never been here!"...

Because she wasn't, Buck's presence just erases her from Eddie's mind, it's like she isn't even in the same room.

It's true, Eddie realises. Buck really doesn't need good lighting to look good, not to Eddie.

"Even in the dark, this place is amazing."

It's terrible, but disturbingly true for Eddie. This feeling, of existing in the darkness, alone, and watching someone who just doesn't need good lighting to look amazing. They just glow anyway, overwhelmingly, they just erase everyone else from your mind.

I feel like this symbolizes deep, unrequited love really well. Even in the dark this place is amazing.

So Eddie keeps struggling. He won't let Buck close because that's killing him, but he also can't let go of him. He's just ...always dying.

And then Buck comes out to him? It's a shock. It's a brief moment of dumb, wide-eyed hope.

But then Eddie immediately realizes... This changes nothing. Buck is dating someone else. Buck is falling for someone else. Buck is still... Just a friend.

Nothing has changed for Buck, and therefore not for Eddie either. Eddie is still alone in this. And keeps dying.

So... The point I'm trying to make here.

I feel like this struggle we're seeing, it's not about Eddie being gay. He fell for Shannon, they agreed the sex was never the problem.

Even this new relationship with Marisol. He does feel sexual desire for her... Their sex life is great... Until he learns that she was almost a nun? Imagine being in the closet, bi, and realising your girlfriend was almost a nun?

It's truly "eyes on the ground". Would she still want her, if she really knew who, or what, Eddie is? Would she be disgusted if she learned about all of Eddie's fantasies?

How can Eddie trust her?

So... That's what making him run from Marisol. I do think he's making a genuine effort to move on from his old flames - Shannon and Buck.

I mean... Remember Eddie's talk with his tia? Learning that she had been married before, and refusing to even try dating someone else, until her friends dragged her out?

And ultimately this made her move on, meeting someone else. And soon she didn't regret trying again.

So Eddie is trying to move on from Shannon, and Buck.

But can he? Is he?

One thing about Buck's coming out, and the following scene, the talk with Eddie...

Noticed the buddie subtext, and the bisexual subtext of the lines when he talks about Marisol there? About needing to go home.

The "menu" is not the issue. The issue is that he doesn't want to go home, to Marisol. (Lol, there's btw that bicycle again, hanging on the wall behind Eddie's back. Bi subtext!!)

Eddie does desire her. ... He just doesn't love her. And that keeps happening... Because his heart is already taken.

[ashsfandomcorner]

A Seargent's Son by Buddieforever1111

Fandom: 9-1-1

Ship: Athena/Emmett, Athena/Michael, Athena/Bobby (normal timeline Athena relationships), Evan/OMC, Buck/Eddie

Rating: Mature

Status: Complete

Words: 60,692

Site: AO3

**

Summary:

What if I told you that Buck was Athena's son from the beginning. Before being a firefighter, Before meeting and loving Eddie and Christopher Diaz Before the tsunami and the truck bombing Before Athena met Micheal Before Athena and Micheal had May and Harry, they had Buck Before Emmett died... This is the tragic, loving, emotional, story of how Evan Buckley became Evan Buckley W. Carter. August 28th, 1990 Evan Buckley has been walking around the streets of Florida for a while his feet hurt and his arm hurts and he’s tired and just wants to go home but he can’t all he has to hope for is that his parents will come back for him except he doesn’t think they will, so he wanders the streets cold and tired. “Mommy! Mommy! Where are you?!” Evan cries out to anyone who is listening. He decides that he’s done walking, and he can't do it anymore for the night, so he lays down in an alleyway on a trash bag even though it’s really smelly and goes to sleep. “Happy birthday me,” he says soo softly that nobody would listen even if someone was around.

**

Sneak Peak:

Looking at Athena, Emmett speaks first. “We were looking for kids around the ages of 5-7 and I did already send the certifications for the classes we have taken correct?” “Correct, ok well that narrows it down let me just pull up my computer and yes I do have the certifications and confirmation that you have started classes and it looks like you’ve done the main, most important classes and you will continue the classes once you find a child that works best for your accommodations? Correct?” The couple both look at each other with certainty in their eyes and answer at the same time. “Yes” Charlotte continues going through the formalities with the couple in which they agree to everything she’s asking them and then she turns her computer around to face the couple so they can look at all the kids within their age limit. The couple scrolls for a while nobody catching their attention and as Athena starts to think this is not going to work after all she hears Emmett tell her to stop on a little boy, age five, with blonde hair, blue eyes, and the biggest smile Athena has ever seen on any of the other kids face. “That one?” Athena asks skeptically. Emmett is just completely and totally starstruck at the little one on the screen he barely hears Athena’s voice. “Yeah th…that’s the one.” he stutters and Athena knows he's not messing around and his eyes are glued to the screen of the little boy that looks so full of life.

**

TW:

Shooting, PTSD, Suicide Attempt

**

Link:

A Seargent's Son by Buddieforever1111

[sevensoulmates]

Buddie 7x04 Meta Part 4 (of 4)

Click here for part 1, part 2, and part 3.

This is the last part so it probably won't be as long (hopefully).

This entire conversation with Tommy includes a lot of references to Eddie. Whether Eddie's mad, how Eddie feels, why Eddie would like Tommy, how Eddie/Chris feel about Buck, how Eddie is such a great person and everyone would want to be friends with him, etc. Even when they're not talking about Eddie, they're talking about Eddie. And I love the idea of Tommy and Eddie being friends. Because honestly at the end of the day, it was Buck who was projecting more than friendship onto Tommy and Eddie's relationship. Queer men can have platonic friends that they like without wanting to be with them, and it genuinely does seem like that's what Tommy and Eddie are to each other. Their chemistry wasn't all in Buck's head, but how the two of them together made Buck feel? That was so real and super super telling.

Here's callback number ∞ to the streetfighting arc. This line in particular borrows a very particular...word...from a very particular grocery store fight. In 3x05, Eddie is the maddest he's ever been at Buck because Buck starting the lawsuit meant "I couldn't even talk to you", "Do you know how much Christopher misses you? How could you you weren't around?", "because you're exhausting!" Exhausting has been a buzzword in the Buddie fandom for many years and most people use it as an excuse for overdone and unnecessary Buck whump, but it's an interesting choice here. Especially in conjunction with Buck's acknowledgment of "making everything about him" which is another thing that is mentioned in the same episode 3x05 AS WELL AS in 3x09. But now, it's being used in a different context. Buck is falsely ascribing all of his attempts to get Eddie's attention over the last however many days to trying to get Tommy's attention. Even Tommy's like huh? "My attention?"

Lou places emphasis on "my". "My attention?" So even Tommy knows that this whole time Buck has been trying to get Eddie's attention. He's surprised that Buck is suddenly saying it's been about Tommy the whole time when quite obviously, it has not been.

Even Buck himself is not so certain about that. He "guesses so" because in this moment he's feeling infatuation, a connection with Tommy, a warm feeling that maybe reminds him of how he felt in the early days getting to know Eddie. He "guesses so" because that's the easy explanation to a question that's been circling his mind non-stop the past few days. It's an answer, and as we know Buck is always seeking an answer. It's a "for now readily available easy explanation" that Buck can take at face value because it means he can sleep easy at night knowing that his place with Eddie is safe again for the time being.

Even just a couple of seconds before the kiss happens, Buck brings up Eddie one last time in case you forget who's always on Buck's mind. He then mentions Maddie's words "There are better ways to get someone's attention", before he's interrupted. But before I dive into the kiss, I want to mention the implications that Tommy believes the best way to get someone's attention when you like them, instead of getting jealous, is to kiss them. It's an interesting suggestion, that all of this time, instead of all Buck's stupid peacocking attempts to try and get Eddie's attention this episode...he could've just kissed him. Foreshadowing? Only time will tell.

And boom. There we have it folks. Tommy kisses Buck, and the lightbulb goes off. Buck is attracted to men, he likes men AND women. This is 911's definitive statement that yes, we were right, Buck is bisexual, has been this whole time, and will always be in the future. And no, it's not just in relation to Eddie (which by the way is an IMPORTANT distinction). Buck is attracted to men in general, he's a bisexual man, and the show is not doing a "gay for you" trope here. They're committing to Buck being a queer man and this opens a world of new doors for him.

And again, I've said it once and I'll say it again: finally letting Buck realize his bisexuality, and act on it ON SCREEN (not just a throw-away mention) is REVOLUTIONARY. This representation is incredibly important and Buck's bisexuality on its own, separate from any love interest, will always be a part of him. Whether you like Tommy or not, that's not what matters. What matters is that Buck is realizing he can find happiness with a man. And more than likely, he will end up with a man, not because he has to, but because his perfect partner in the show has already been proven to be a man.

Eddie Diaz.

With this kiss, we are officially on the path towards Buddie. Buck kissing Tommy, or having a temporary relationship with him does not negate that. Just like Buck was always going to end up with Eddie even through his relationships with Abby, Ali, Taylor, and Natalia. Tommy is no different. And if after four long essays explaining point by point why that is true isn't enough to open your eyes, then I simply can't help you anymore.

Some last tidbits:

This reminded me of the Lonestar crossover where Eddie begs Marjan to "for the love of God, please follow Buck back on Insta." Just interesting since Eddie x Marjan was another fake-out love interest coupling.

And finally, the last 3x09 callback. This reminded me of the line when Buck says Eddie wanted to throw punches at him, Eddie says "I wouldn't do that", gives him a seductive look, and then says "You're on blood thinners". To which Buck says his famous "I could still take you". Yet another verbal comparison of Tommy to Eddie.

Final thoughts: This episode was fucking amazing (I really liked Athena's story too). This episode was more than enough proof for me that Buck and Eddie are going to get together. Buck is bisexual and FREE!!!!!!!

We were right about that, we're gonna be right about Eddie, and we're gonna be right about Buddie. Just unclench and enjoy the ride.

And for my fellow warriors who've been in the trenches for years telling everyone that the story will get there eventually, I salute us all! I hope yesterday's episode was vindication for you all as much as it was for me. I had a blast working with you all. See you all again for our celebrations when Eddie comes out and Buddie becomes canon. For now, I hope everyone had a Happy Bi Buck day!!

Full meta: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

[pettyeddiediaz]

if we are to take the __ begins episodes as they are meant to be, it is each of our mains' character thesis statements. and eddie's is about how he will *always* fight for his son. especially against his parents as the scenes in the past show us. an interwoven part of this is eddie's firm belief on how *buck* will always fight for christopher. it's why so many scenes in the beginning of the montage feature buck (in regards to christopher) before switching focus to solely christopher. that incident caused eddie to change his will to buck. in eddie's mind, you cannot truly love him without loving christopher, and buck has proven himself again and again.

so it would be the ANTI-thesis of both eddie, buck, and their entire relationship if buck encouraged eddie to do anything other than fight for his son. he will not tell him not to move. he will not try to convince him of another solution. buck will be sad and call eddie multiple times a day and be his biggest supporter from afar, but he would NEVER put his own wants and desires above eddie's relationship with christopher. and if he did, honestly, eddie and buck would suffer from it. right now, eddie trusts buck completely, but if they were on different pages on this.... on eddie's character thesis statement? I don't know how they would recover

a big part of the reason eddie loves buck as much as he does (even if eddie believes it to be strictly platonic) is because buck understands christopher's importance. it's tied to how buck regards christopher himself, how buck also has his own relationship to christopher. and if he didn't? well, I don't think buck and eddie would have grown to be as close as they are