#some fluffy balm to soothe the angst of the past few days

[chronicowboy]

accidents happen (but i will love you on purpose) | 4.4k

They're in the baking aisle when Christopher brings it up.

"Am I just supposed to pretend I didn't see that earlier? Without a bribe?" he deadpans, eyebrows raised expectantly. Its such an Eddie look that Buck can't help but grin down at the price tags on the shelves.

"Pretend you didn't see what?" he asks as he compares the prices of self-raising flour.

"Buck." Chris sighs, long-suffering. Another Eddie-ism that Buck wants to bottle to give to Eddie on his worst days.

"Kid, I'm gonna need more than that." Buck grabs the bigger bag and drops it into the cart before turning to give Chris his full attention.

"I saw you kiss dad." Chris rolls his eyes. "You did it right in front of me."

"What?" Buck blinks. Of all the things he'd been expecting, well, let's just say that hadn't made the list.

He glances down at his list, tries to decipher Eddie's handwriting at the bottom of the page and promptly rolls his eyes at the unnecessarily expensive snacks he added there, gets a little chastened when he sees his own favourite brand of chips that he never allows himself to buy in Eddie's chicken scratch.

"Buck, you can't gaslight me," he scoffs, rolls his eyes harder. "I saw you French my dad."

"Where are you learning these words?" Buck blurts out, unwilling to face up to what his heart already seems to know as it pounds against his sternum.

"Mason." Chris shrugs. "He made a Tumblr account."

"He's eleven!" Buck squeaks, shooting an apologetic look at the single mother who flinches at the sound. "I'm telling his mom."

"No, Buck!" Chris groans, turns his puppy eyes up at Buck. "Pretend you didn't hear that, and I'll pretend I didn't see you French dad."

"I did not French your dad!" The words come out louder than expected, and Buck grimaces as the woman's baby starts to sniffle. She shoots him a dirty look, and he can only mouth a red-cheeked apology. "I did not French your dad," Buck hisses at Chris.

He'd know. Right? Like that's something Buck would know he did. Or, at least, he thinks so. Doesn't see how he could ever miss something like that. He's pretty certain he'd know if he'd kissed his best friend. This is probably just some evil mastermind plot to get something out of Buck. For all he knows, Eddie is probably in on it. A joint effort to turn Buck away from all the mushrooms he's been sneaking into their meals lately.

Yeah, that has to be it.

There's no way he kissed Eddie Diaz. Of all people! His very straight, totally platonic best friend. Buck doesn't even want to kiss him. Like, sure, he's objectively gorgeous. Handsome in his dumb dad Henleys, downright hot in his navy blue uniform, adorable in his cut-off sweats with that grumpy morning frog face of his. But a blind man could see how attractive Eddie is. That doesn't mean Buck wants to kiss him.

"I didn't French your dad," Buck repeats, just for certainty's sake, before heading towards the cocoa powder.

(OR: buck kisses eddie, goes grocery shopping with christopher, then realises he's in love with eddie - in that order)