Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Leora pulled up in front of the school, smiling when she caught sight of Christopher standing right in front of the building. She came to a stop and climbed out of her car, walking over to them.

“Hello there my love. Did you have a good day?” She asked, crouching down so she was at his level.

“Hi Leia, it was a great day.”

“Excellent, good days are the best. Shall we go home and cook before Dad gets home?”

“Yeah.”

Leora thanked his teacher, took his backpack, and followed the little boy to her car. After getting him situated in his car seat, she settled into the driver’s seat.

“Music or book?”

“Book, please Leia.”

She smiled and turned on the audiobook for ‘The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe’. When she had first met Eddie, it was in the children’s section of the library and he had been looking for a book for his five year old. A year and a half later, she made sure to expand Christopher’s reading catalogue. When they got home, she got him settled at the table to do homework while she started making the stuff for tacos. When Eddie got home, he found his fiance and son setting the table.

“Hello family.” He smiled, putting hsi stuff on the counter.

“Dad!” Christopher exclaimed, making his way over to hug Eddie.

“Hi buddy, are you helping Leia?”

“We made tacos.”

Eddie smiled, hugging Christopher into his side again.

“Hello soldier, good day?”

Leora stood on her toes and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“Eh, between training and working with the army to finish my discharge, which should be official in a few days.”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“I’m sorry. Why don’t you go shower while we finish dinner? Come on, my little love, we have to finish setting the table.”

She pressed another kiss to Eddie’s cheek. He watched them go back into the kitchen, smiling. Unlike his relationship with his ex-wife, he was with Leora for all the right reasons.

After taking his shower and changing his clothes, he went to eat dinner. Christopher happily told them about his day while they ate, which led to him telling his dad about the most recent chapter of his audiobook. The animation on the little boy’s face made Eddie smile, the day slipping off of his shoulders.

After dinner, the two boys set about cleaning up, much to the disagreement of Leora.

“Baby, you made dinner, the least I can do is clean up.” He said, putting the leftovers away.

“Team effort. You wash, I dry, and Chris can sit over there and he can boss us around.” Leora said, smiling.

“Yeah, Dad, team effort.” Christopher said from his stool. Eddie put his hands up, surrendering.

“Yes ma’am. We know the boss around here is. Don’t we, mi hijo?”

Christopher giggled as Leora rolled her eyes.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After they got Christopher into bed, and a couple chapters of his book had been read, the couple settled on the couch. Leora leaned back against Eddie’s chest, letting him hug her as tight as he wanted.

“So, we need to talk.” He said, holding her tight.

If it was a bad thing, he wouldn’t have held on tighter, so she knew that it was a serious topic instead.

“Okay, what do we need to talk about?” She asked, tipping her head slightly so she could look up at him.

“I got offered two position today, open firefighter positions. I need to make a decision before I finish the academy. I wanted to talk to you first before I made a decision.”

She shifted so he had her full attention.

“Okay, let’s discuss it then.”

He smiled, dropping a kiss to her forehead.

“I was offered a spot in Chicago and in LA. I am leaning more towards LA, because Chris doesn’t deal with the cold well.”

“I will follow you anywhere, it’s not that hard to get a new job when you are a librarian and a historian.”

She smiled as he chuckled.

“I need your opinion. Do you think that this is a good idea, to take Christopher to California and away from my parents?”

“Eddie, at the end of the day, you are his dad. You get to make the choices that you think will better both of your lives. I am along for the ride, wherever you decide to go and whatever you decide to do, I will back you 100 percent. You get to make the choices that will make you happy. If you want my opinion, your parents are determined to make you miserable just to keep Chris close to them. They hate me, they hate Shannon, and they only care about how much time they get with Chris. Look how they have treated you ever since I started watching him after school, while you are at work.”

He sighed, holding her close and resting his head on top of hers. She was right, of course, they had gotten angry at him when he had informed them that she would be picking Christopher up after school and taking him home.

“You’re right. I have always worried about upsetting my parents, afraid that they were going to try and take him away from me. Before you came into my life, I never would have realized that they were more interested in their grandson than they were in me.”

She buried her face in his neck, taking a deep breath.

“If you want to move to LA, we can start the process of doing just that. It wouldn’t be that hard to pack up the house and get Chris disenrolled from the school. Tell me when and we will start the work.”

“I love you.” He breathed out, resting his head against hers.

“I love you too. Sadly, for you, Chris will always be my favorite Diaz.”

He laughed, turning to press a kiss to her forehead.

“You and me both.”

They sat there for another half an hour, before they headed off to bed. They had to wake up and get Christopher off to school and Eddie had to be at the academy around the same time.

Leora was asleep before her head even hit the pillow, a grip on Eddie’s arm as he laid beside her. He laid there, watching her sleep for a few minutes, taking her in. He had helped her sweep her long, blonde curls into a braid before they had laid down, leaving him free to look over her face. If he hadn’t known any better, he would even swear that she looked way younger than she actually was. With a final kiss to her forehead, he drifted off to sleep.

Chapter Text

Over the next few days, they packed the essentials and got all of the necessary things that they needed to get done to move to LA. On the last day that they were going to be in El Paso, Leora put the last few things in the boxes and carried them out to the Uhaul that was hooked up to Eddie’s truck. They had elected to throw out things like the couch and dining room table, figuring that they could just get new ones when they got to their new place. They had gone apartment/house shopping online, and had done some virtual tours, just so they had a good idea of what they were looking for and where they needed to look.

When it came time for Christopher to get out of school, they had finished with the out process of the house and were headed in separate directions.

“Alright, we have to get going if you are going to make it out to talk to your parents before we leave.” She said, turning her attention to Eddie.

He sighed, pulling her into a hug. He knew how this discussion was going to go, especially with the way they had reacted to all the decisions he had made in the past few years.

“Okay. You go and get Chris and I will head out there. Hopefully, we will have all the yelling over with before you guys get there.”

She stood on her toes and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“Alright, we will be there in a bit. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead and stepped back. He watched her climb into her car and waved as she drove off in the direction of the school. He sighed, resigned himself, and climbed into his truck.

---------------------------------------------------------------

While he drove out to his parents’, Leora arrived at the school. As always, Christopher was waiting outside with his teacher and got excited as soon as she stepped out of the car and walked up to them.

“Leia!” Christopher exclaimed.

“Hello my love. Are you ready to go? We have a long drive ahead of us.”

“Yeah.”

They had sat the eight year old down and explained to him what was going on and why they were packing things. He had been upset at first, but he understood why they were making this decision and why they had included him. After a quick trip into the office, to pick up his records, they got loaded up into her car and headed out to the Diaz house. She elected to turn low music on today, saving the audiobooks for the long drive ahead of them.

“Leia, why are we going to my Abuelos?”

“We are going to say goodbye. You’re daddy thought it would be a good thing for you to tell them that you love them and will see them whenever we can make the trip.”

He was quiet for a moment, looking out the window.

“They are going to yell at Daddy.” He said quietly.

“I know. But, Dad and I get to make the decisions that we think will make you, and us, the happiest.”

“I don’t like it when they yell at Dad.”

“Me either my love, me either.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

When they arrived at the Diaz house, she helped him out of the car and they walked up to the house. She could hear the yelling as they approached the porch, making her anxiety levels rise.

“Leia?”

“You stay out here Chris, I’m going to get your dad.”

“Okay.”

He took a seat on the edge of the porch while she went into the house.

“You are not his parents, we are! Leia and I get to make the decisions when it comes to our family!” She heard Eddie exclaim.

“She is not his mother. You should not be uprooting him from the only home he had ever known.”

Before Eddie could reply, Leora stepped into the room.

“Eddie.” She said simply, keeping her voice even.

He immediately eased at her soft voice, keeping his attention on his parents.

“This is a family matter.” Ramon said, glaring at the woman.

“Your ‘family’ matter is scaring Christopher, hell, it’s scaring me.” She turned a pointed look to her soon-to-be father-in-law.

“Leia…”

Eddie walked over and took her hand.

“I have stood by for almost two years and let you judge and berate Eddie for every choice he has made. You talk about Christopher’s needs, you talk about me like I’m the worst thing that has ever happened to your family. Not for a minute do you think about what your son needs, what makes Eddie happy, what he wants. You helped take care of Christopher when Eddie needed help, and he will always be thankful for that. But, he is his dad and he is here. You no longer need to step in and take over, because it’s your place to support your son, not criticize his every move. ”

Ramon and Helena stared at her in shock.

“It’s not worth it Leia, I think it's time to go.”

She looked up at Eddie as he spoke, squeezing his hand.

“You’re right. I will go and get Chris loaded into the car.”

“Edmundo…”

“No Mama, we are going now and you are not going to stop us. If you want to say goodbye to Chris before we go, you can do it once he is in the car.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Halfway through their trip, they stopped for the night. There was no way they could make the 20 hour drive in one go, especially not with Christopher. So, they got a hotel and situated Christopher in one of the beds.

“I’m sorry for getting between you and your parents.” She whispered, tracing shapes on his chest as they laid in bed after getting Christopher asleep.

“Don’t apologize for pointing out the truth. I’ve held my tongue for years, trying to keep the peace so they wouldn’t try to take Chris.” He replied, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

“Still, it wasn’t my place…”

He tilted her face up to look at him.

“Leora Marie Ryder, you are my fiance. It will always be your place to step in if you think that I am being treated unfairly, by anyone. I will never criticize you for wanting to defend me from my parents.”

She searched his face, looking for any hint that he was trying to spare her feelings. When she didn’t find anything but love and understanding, she sighed.

“Okay. They already hate me, so I figured that I couldn’t make it any worse that it already was.”

“They do not hate you. They were the same way with Shannon. I am starting to think that no woman will be good enough for them.”

“Well, good for you that I love you so much and I am here for the long haul.”

He smiled and cupped her face.

“I love you too.”

He softly pressed a kiss to her lips, a kiss that she returned with a smile. She resituated her head on his shoulder and they both drifted off to sleep, preparing themselves for the long day of driving that they had the next day.

Chapter Text

Eddie watched as Leora, Christopher, and his aunt put the finishing touches on Christopher’s room. Between him finishing up the academy, her new job, and school, the family had a lot of upheaval and struggles to overcome. So far, Christopher’s room was the most put together.

“Hello familia.” He said, leaning against the doorframe.

“Edmundo, welcome home. What do you think?” Pepa asked.

Leora came over and wedged herself under his arm, pressing herself against his side.

“You guys did an amazing job. Does it meet your approval, mijo?”

“Yeah Dad.” Christopher said, smiling from where he sat on his bed.

Shortly after, Pepa left and Leora grabbed the pizza boxes she had stuck in the oven when she had gotten home.

“How was work, baby?” He asked, wrapping his arms around her waist.

“It was okay. I hate not being able to pick him up from school.”

He sighed, pressing a kiss to the back of her head.

“I know baby, I’m…”

“Don’t you dare apologize, I offered to go back to work, just so we aren’t going to struggle while we deal with the VA and all that stuff.”

She tilted her head to look up at him.

“This is all just…”

“More than we expected? Yeah, it is. But, we have each other, and Christopher is happy, so that’s all that really matters. We’ll get into a routine soon and it won’t feel quite as overwhelming.”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead before stepping back to put the food on the table.

After they had eaten, they began their nighttime routine. Eddie got Christopher sent off to the shower, while Leora cleaned up the kitchen. After Eddie and Christopher had showered, Leora went to take hers while they picked a book to start reading. She found them in Christopher’s room, Christopher almost asleep as Eddie read.

“Good night my love. I wish you all the good dreams in the world.” She whispered, pressing a kiss to the little boy’s head.

“Night Leia.” He sighed out, snuggling down.

She smiled, leaving the boys to finish their story. When Eddie emerged, she was sat on the new couch, holding a glass of wine in one hand and a beer in the other.

“Have I told you that I love you today?” He asked, taking the beer and settling down next to her.

“You have, but I never get tired of hearing it.”

She smiled, dropping her feet in his lap.

“I never get tired of telling you. How was your day?”

He kneaded at the muscles in her leg.

“Mmm, good. The museum is beautiful and I missed it, dealing with history. How was your day?”

“Oh, you know, boring. Put out some fires, pulled a live grenade out of a guy’s leg, saved some cats from trees.”

Her hand froze as she lifted her glass to her lips.

“What was that?”

“Put some fires out…”

“No, the other one.”

“Saved some cats from trees.”

He grinned as he took a drink from his beer, knowing that he was frustrating her a little bit.

“The one in the middle, asshole.” She said, tapping his leg with her foot.

“A guy had a live grenade in his leg and the bomb squad couldn’t get there fast enough, so I took the jump, me and Buck.”

“Isn’t that the guy you said didn’t like you?”

He nodded, putting his bottle on the end table to rub at her feet.

“Yeah, evidently, he just needed to see me in action.”

She snorted, putting her glass down.

“Yeah, I’m sure that’s what it was.”

She pulled her feet out of his lap and scooted over, so she was pressed against him.

“I am enjoying this job. Thank you for encouraging me to chase it.” He whispered into the side of her head.

“Be honest love, you completely got the idea from Judd, it had nothing to do with me.”

He chuckled, making her laugh a little.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

The first weekend that Leora had to work, she took Christopher along with her. After explaining the circumstances, her boss had said it was fine to bring him, as long as he didn’t impede on her work.

“Alright Chris, I have to catalogue all of the new boxes. Your job is to make sure that I get every box that is in this room.”

“Okay Leia, where do we start?”

She smiled and grabbed her clipboard, getting Christopher situated in a chair. As she made her way around the room, she let him put the stickers on each box as she put the stickers for which department they needed to be sent to.

“Alrighty my love, we have all the boxes labeled. Now, we have to go and get one of the interns to take them to the appropriate department. You want a ride?”

“Yes please.”

She smiled and boosted him up onto her back. It hadn’t taken long for her to work up the strength to carry the little boy around and she was always up for giving him a ride when he needed one. Once the boxes were delivered to where they needed to go, she only had to go to the paleontology department, to make sure all of the bones had been delivered like they were supposed to.

“Hey Chris, why don’t you go and look at all of the skeletons. I know how much you like dinosaurs.”

“I love dinosaurs.”

She smiled and set him down, getting him onto his crutches and watching him walk over to one of the skeletons. As she was looking over the deliveries, she kept an eye on the little boy. She was unsurprised to see him asking one of her coworkers about one of the dinosaurs and looked very excited about the answer that he was given.

“He’s sweet.” One of the interns said, watching him.

“He is very sweet.” Leora agreed, smiling as she catalogued.

“Is he yours?”

“My fiance’s. His name is Christopher.”

“Leia! Look at the dinosaur!” Christopher called.

She walked over and crouched down next to him.

“I see them, my love. I am almost done here and then we get to go and have lunch.” She said, laying her head on top of his.

“Okay.”

Chapter Text

The earthquake was the first for the family, which was very worrisome for Eddie. He wanted nothing more than to be with his family and not let them out of his sight for the foreseeable future. He worried, not just about Christopher, but also about Leora. While it did worry him that he couldn’t reach the school, he also couldn’t reach the museum, which meant the school couldn’t either.

“Schools are the safest place you can be.” Buck assured him.

“The school isn’t what I’m worried about. My fiance works at the museum and I can’t reach her either.”

“Why didn’t we know that you were engaged?” Hen asked, looking at him very surprised.

“You never asked. Her name is Leora.”

Eddie smiled softly and turned his phone to show them his background. It was a picture of Leora and Christopher, blowing bubbles in the backyard. Buck looked surprised, while Hen and Chimney both were too enchanted.

“She’s beautiful and he is so adorable.” Hen said, smiling at him.

Eddie smiled, turning his phone back to him. The picture lifted his spirits a bit, the bright smiles on his family’s faces easing his heart a bit.

“I love kids, he looks happy.” Buck said, smiling at him.

“He is, he is the happiest kid I know.”

When they got to the scene, he took one last look at his family before him and Buck made their way up the building. The same warning that she had given him ever since he had started the job rang through his head.

“Be careful, I love you, please come back to me in at least one piece.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, Leora was packing up her stuff to go to the school. Leora cleared it with her boss before she headed over to the school. She had tried to call Eddie, but the towers were overloaded, so she had to wait to get a hold of him. She knew that he was safe and that he had the crew to help him if he needed them, so her priority was Christopher at this point. When she arrived at the school, she immediately went looking for Christopher’s class.

“Leia!” She heard Christopher call out.

“Chris. Hello my love, you look a bit shaken.”

She crouched down to his level, looking him over. He was a little scared, she could see it in his eyes and the way that he tried to get closer to her as he looked her over too.

“First earthquake?” His teacher asked.

“Yes ma’am.” Leora said, standing up.

Christopher pushed himself into her side, hiding his face.

“Well, if you don’t feel safe enough to go home, we don’t mind if you guys stay here.”

“Thank you, I think it will be easier for Eddie to find us if we are both in the same place.”

Leora led Christopher over to a semi-private area and pulled him into a tight hug. He returned the hug, hiding his face in her neck. She lifted him up so she could sit down, letting him settle himself in her lap.

When her phone rang a few hours later, she smiled at Eddie’s name on the screen.

“Hi honey, I am at the school with Chris.”

“Thank god, I thought I was going to have to get a ride to come and get you after I got Chris. I am on my way.”

“Okay. I love you, please be careful.”

“I love you too.”

When she hung up, Christopher looked up at her.

“Daddy’s coming?”

“Yeah, Daddy’s coming.”

He responded by snuggling closer, closing his eyes.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Buck’s first time meeting Leora was at the hospital, when he brought Eddie to see his Abuela. The woman came rushing in after they got there, and was immediately pulled into a hug by Pepa.

“Pepa, por favor. Where is Eddie?” She asked, looking at the older woman.

“Just down the hall, with Chris. You and him need to come up with a better system, Mami can only take so much babysitting.”

“I know, I know. Paperwork is… Oh, hello, you must be Buck.”

Buck looked surprised to see green eyes looking at him. He slowly held his hand out, for her to shake.

“I am, you must be Leora.”

She smiled brightly, reminding him very much of the picture that Eddie had shown all of them.

“I am, you can call me Leo or Leia, if you want. Thank you so much for having Eddie’s back, I was worried that his hero complex was getting too big and he would get himself killed.”

He laughed, pulling his hand away just as Eddie and Christopher came back.

“Leia, I missed you.” Christopher said, walking over to hug her.

“I miss you too, my love. You are sure a big boy, calling 9-1-1 and waiting for the paramedics.” She crouched down, cupping his face.

“Do you mind if we take him back to the firehouse instead of the museum, I know you said that you had a very busy day today.”

“That’s fine, really. I will pick him up after work and we will make dinner.”

She stood, hugging Christopher into her side. Eddie smiled and cupped her face.

“No kisses, I want to see the firehouse.” Christopher said, poking them both in the stomach.

“The boss has spoken. Alright, firemen, I will be on my way back to the museum then. Buck, it was nice to meet you finally, and I hope you take care of my boys for the day.”

“Yes, ma’am. “

She smiled and leaned down to press a kiss to Christopher’s forehead. He smiled up at her, hugging her tight again. Eddie leaned down and kissed her softly, making her smile. This was a way different side of his new partner that Buck wasn’t expecting to see, especially since he was so stoic most of the time.

“Buck, you are coming over for dinner sometime this week. Let me know when you have a day off and I will make you something good.” She said, shaking his hand one more time.

“That’s not…”

“Just let her cook you dinner, it’s best not to argue with her. You will never win.” Eddie said, smiling.

“So says the man that speaks from experience.” Pepa said, chuckling.

Chapter Text

Buck knocked hesitantly on the door of the house he had pulled up to. He was a little scared, he had never been invited over by a couple before. Well, he had, but TK and Carlos weren’t really a couple so it wasn’t really the same. The door opened, revealing a smiling Christopher and Leora.

“Buck, please come in.” Leora said, pulling Christopher back against her so he could come in the door.

“Thank you for inviting me.” Buck said, stepping in.

Leora closed the door behind him, leading him further into the house. He looked around and didn’t quite expect the homey feeling of the house. When he found out that Eddie was former military, he was expecting something...different. If it wasn’t for the military awards hanging on the wall, and the LAFD jacket that hung next to the door, he never would have expected this to be his partner’s house.

“Make yourself at home. Eddie is at the store, getting the last few things that we need for dinner. Would you like something to drink?”

Leora fired off questions as she went, Christopher laughing the entire time.

“Water is fine, really. Umm, my sister says that it’s impolite to show up at someone’s house empty handed, so I brought a cheesecake.”

He handed her the bag in his hands.

“You didn’t have to do that, but thank you. So, I hear you are pretty handy in the kitchen.”

“So I’ve been told.”

She led him into the kitchen. After getting Christopher settled on his seat and putting the cheesecake in the fridge, she turned her attention back to Buck.

“Well then, you can help me finish the sauce. I love Eddie, but he is the worst in the kitchen.”

Christopher let out a laugh, making Buck think that she was definitely telling the truth.

“Sure, what kind of help do you need?”

When Eddie got home from the store, he followed the sound of laughter to the kitchen. He found his fiance and partner cooking, while Christopher was helping to tear up the lettuce for a salad.

“Hello family and Buck.” He said, putting the bags on the counter.

“Hello my love. You were right, Buck is amazing at cooking. I think I’ll keep him.” Leora said, walking over to press a kiss to his lips.

“Oh, so I should inform your brother that he has been replaced?”

“I would rather you not, I don’t want Judd to get his feelings hurt.”

Buck listened to the conversation, a little overwhelmed by this side of Eddie that he hadn’t seen at all, or expected from the stoic figure that was always focused on work. He felt a little insecure, until he realized where he had heard that name before.

“Judd? You don’t mean Judd Ryder do you?”

Leora turned and looked at him in surprise.

“Yeah, he’s my older brother. How do you know about Judd?”

“I have a friend who is a cop in Texas, Carlos Reyes. His best friend, Michelle, works with the 126 and has told him stories about Judd.”

Leora laughed, smiling brightly.

“I can imagine the stories he’s heard. Well, that makes it official, I am most definitely keeping you now.”

Buck looked at Eddie, who shrugged and went about unloading the bags he had brought home. He was used to Leora claiming people and often joked with her that she would have a house full of lost people, rather than lost animals, because she thought that all people deserved and needed someone to love them. Buck was just the latest in a long line that was never ending, but Eddie didn’t care, as long as Leora and Christopher were happy.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leora made the horrible mistake of showing up at the firehouse just as Taylor Kelly arrived to do a story on the house. She was meant to just stop in and have lunch with Eddie, but she knew that this was not going to go the way that she had thought.

“Hello, are you a firefighter?” Taylor asked.

“No, I am not. I am a historian and I’m just here to see my fiancé. Excuse me.”

She quickly made her way up to the loft, walking over to Eddie and pressing against his side.

“Hello carino, what’s wrong?” He asked, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

“There is a reporter downstairs and I am getting a very bad vibe from her.”

“There’s a what?” Bobby said.

He went down the stairs, leaving everyone else upstairs to look at each other very confused. Eddie shifted his arm so that he could hold Leora tight against his side, a little worried about her.

“So, this is the famous Leora.” Chimney said, looking over at her and Eddie.

“Oh, I am so sorry. Hello, I’m Leora Ryder, it’s nice to meet you finally. You can call me Leo or Leia.”

Chimney smiled and shook her hand.

“Nice to meet you as well, I’m Howard Han, you can call me Chimney.”

Hen approached her next, holding out a hand.

“It is nice to finally meet you. I'm Henrietta Wilson, you can call me Hen.”

“It’s nice you meet you Hen, you can call me Leo or Leia.”

Eddie smiled as Leora pressed herself back against him. He knew how much people took out of her in general, so he had expected this when she met his team.

“How long until you have to go back to work?”

“An hour. What are you thinking, Private?”

He smiled and led her over to the stove. She smiled as he let her go to dip some food out on a plate for her. As is the curse of a firehouse, the bell rang just as they sat down to eat.

“I’m sorry baby.”

“It’s okay. Go save some lives, I will be here waiting if it doesn’t take long.”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead and took off. She happily settled into her lunch, calling her brother.

“Hello baby sister, where are you?” Judd asked, looking at her over FaceTime.

“I am at Eddie’s firehouse. I was supposed to be having lunch, but, you know how it is.”

“Oh yeah, I do. Gracie refuses to come to the house for lunch or dinner, because she knows how it goes.”

“I had to meet the rest of his team eventually. The only one I haven’t properly met yet was his captain, but there was other stuff going on before the bell.”

As they talked, the conversation eventually turned to Buck and the revelation that he knew about Judd and he knew Carlos.

“How did he connect the dots?”

“It’s not that hard Judd. My last name is still Ryder, I have a brother named Judd, I used to live in Austin. Plus, Carlos apparently relays all of the stories that Michelle tells him about you to Buck, so. Not everyone is as dense as you are, big brother.”

Judd laughed.

“I would take offense to that if it wasn’t so true.”

“Daddy always said that not even a kick in the head from a horse would be enough to knock some sense into you.”

Both siblings laughed, knowing how true that statement was.

Chapter Text

Eddie got quite used to coming home to find Buck in the house, whether he was helping Christopher with his homework or cooking with Leora. He came to accept that his partner at work was now a constant at home too, and he couldn’t bring himself to care. Today, he came home with dinner and found Buck helping Christopher research something about space.

“The galaxy is never-ending, for all we know,” Buck said, smiling.

“That is so cool Bucky,” Christopher said.

Leora walked over to Eddie when she spotted him from her spot on the couch.

“They’ve been like this since he got here. I figured, learning about space is not a bad thing, so they can research away.” She whispered, laying her head on his shoulder.

“It’s a good thing I figured he would be here and I brought his favorite take-out too.” He whispered back, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

“Did I hear the words ‘take-out?” Buck said, coming over to them.

“Oh, so out of our entire conversation, those are the words that you heard? I should have known.” Leora said, smiling brightly.

They all settled down at the table, putting away the school stuff so that the table was clean. While they ate, they talked about their days. Buck and Eddie skimmed over the not-kid-appropriate stuff while Leora shared the most recent acquisitions that the museum had gotten. Christopher shared all of the things that he had learned at school.

“Buck, you should bring your sister to dinner with you at some point. I would love to meet her.” Leora said when they were cleaning up after dinner.

“I will be asking her if you promise to make that pasta that you made last week.”

“Deal.”

Eddie sent Christopher to take a shower while they finished cleaning up, Eddie going to take his own at the same time. When he came back, he saw Buck disappearing into Christopher’s room.

“Where is he off to?” He asked when he found Leora in the kitchen.

“Chris asked him to read a book about space tonight. I figured that you and I could use the time to…”

Eddie smiled and pressed a kiss to her lips, cutting the end of her sentence off.

“I love you.” He said, pressing his forehead against hers.

“I love you too. I was going to say eat ice cream before Buck comes back, but I could go for more kisses.”

Eddie laughed, cupping her face carefully, and pressed another kiss to her lips.

“Gross, I left you alone for ten minutes to read to your kid, and I find you making out,” Buck said, groaning.

---------------------------------------------------------------

When Maddie woke up in the hospital room, she was surprised to see a woman sitting next to the bed. She had fully expected to see her brother, but she wasn’t expecting a stranger.

“Hello?” She said softly.

The woman looked up and smiled softly.

“Hello, my name is Leora. Buck didn’t want to leave you alone, so he asked me to stay with you.”

“Are you a nurse?”

Leora laughed softly, squeezing her hand.

“No, I’m Eddie’s fiance. I’ve been trying to get Buck to bring you over for dinner but all our schedules never aligned the right way.”

Maddie smiled at that. She had heard about Leora, of course, but she had yet to meet her. She was thankful that Buck didn’t want her to wake up alone.

“Thank you for staying. How’s Chimney?”

Leora smiled softly.

“He’s alright. Buck got home not long after it happened and was able to keep him stable until the paramedics got there. Would you like to see him? I’m sure I can talk a nurse into a wheelchair and a little visit.”

“Please, I need to see him.”

Sure enough, not even a few moments later, Leora came back into the room with a wheelchair. She calmly helped her into the chair and grabbed her IV stand.

“Now, the nurses said five minutes, but I think it’s because they like you. So, they aren’t going to bother you until someone higher up notices you are gone.”

Maddie smiled at the other woman before she started wheeling her down the hall. Buck had only ever told her good things about Eddie’s fiance, only making her out to be a nice person. She would never doubt her brother when it came to people’s personalities.

While she talked with Chimney, Leora went to call Buck and Eddie.

“Leo…”

“She’s fine Buck. I brought her down to see Chim and I will be escorting her back up to her room in a little while.”

“Thank you, so much.”

“It wasn’t even a question.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leora opened the door to the house and gave Buck and Maddie a bright smile.

“Hello, Buckleys. Come in, come in.” She said, stepping aside so that they could enter the house.

“Thank you for inviting me,” Maddie said, kicking her shoes off as she entered.

“No need to thank me. Buck, I require your cooking skills, if you please.”

Maddie laughed as Buck happily went into the kitchen, not even waiting for instructions that he needed.

“Does he do that a lot? I swear I raised him better than that.”

“It’s fine. Chris is in there and he knows exactly what I need Buck to do. I would ask Eddie, but I would prefer we have edible food to eat tonight. I don’t want to put you back in the hospital with food poisoning.”

“I take offense to that statement!” Eddie exclaimed from the living room.

“You can take offense all you want, my love, that doesn’t make it any less true,” Leora said, leading Maddie into the living room.

She stopped at the couch, after getting Maddie settled on the loveseat, and pressed a kiss to Eddie’s forehead. He grabbed ahold of her arm as she went to walk away, pulling her down for a kiss as she laughed. Maddie smiled at the simple action. Buck had told her that Eddie at home was a completely different Eddie at work, but she wasn’t expecting it to be like this.

“Would you like something to drink, Maddie?” Leora asked, finally extracting herself Eddie a moment later.

“Water would be wonderful, thank you,” Maddie said with a smile.

“Coming right up.”

Chapter Text

Leora was not looking forward to Eddie’s parents’ visit. She was thankful that Pepa was hosting them at her house because she wouldn’t have to worry about them being in her house while both she and Eddie were at work. The few times that Eddie and Christopher had video-called them, she had made herself scarce. She still believed everything that she had said to them before they left Texas, and she was not going to apologize under any circumstances, and Eddie wasn’t going to make her do anything that she didn’t want to.

“Hey baby, can we talk?” Eddie asked, leaning against the bathroom doorframe.

She was brushing her teeth and getting ready for bed after a long day.

“Of course. Chris tucked into bed?” She asked, taking the toothbrush out of her mouth.

“Yeah.”

He waited until she was finished brushing her teeth and had started to braid her hair before he started their discussion.

“How would you feel about getting married before my parents get here?”

She froze, fingers still in her hair.

“Ed…”

“Just, hear me out. We’ve been engaged for over a year and I want nothing more than to call you my wife. I want to do it for us before my parents come and put you in a bad mood. I want it to be you, me, and Chris. It’s not about them, it’s about us. I want you to be my wife and Chris’ mom.”

She finished braiding her hair, the tip of her tongue sticking out as she thought.

“Eddie, I would marry you right now if it was legal. Of course, I would love to be married to you before they get here, just to avoid the topic of it with them.”

She turned around and found him standing up straight, holding open his arms. She walked into his arms, squeezing him tightly. He squeezed her back, resting his head on top of hers.

“Is that a yes then?” He asked.

She laughed, looking up at him.

“That is the biggest yes.”

He smiled and leaned down to press a kiss to her lips.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leora and Eddie worked fast, well, as fast as the state of California would allow them to go. They turned in their marriage license application and got the license, only to turn around and try to figure out who they wanted to be their witnesses.

“Buck, no question,” Leora said, laying on the bed as Eddie put away the laundry she had washed.

“No question. The question that we have is who else.”

He turned into the closet, leaving her to think for a moment.

“Maddie.”

He turned to look at her.

“You two have gotten really close. We only need two, right?”

“Yep.”

He smiled and finished putting the clothes away. Then, he came over and plopped onto the bed beside her, throwing an arm over her to pull her close to him.

“I love you, Leora Ryder.”

“I love you too, Edmundo Diaz.”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. She smiled up at him, turning her head so that she could look up at him.

“In a few days, you will officially be a Diaz.”

“That I will. I can see the uproar in your parents' house when they find out.”

“Maybe Judd will finally get off my back.”

She laughed.

“He will never stop hounding you. You are ‘stealing’ his baby sister and he is never going to let you live that one down.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By the time his parents arrived, Leora was freaking out about Buck. For a moment, he regretted letting her get so close to him, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. Watching her as she fretted about the room, straightening the blankets and fretting over Buck.

“Leo, calm down. I am fine and my leg will be back to normal in no time.”

“Uh-huh, sure it will. If I had it my way, you would be staying with us until you are completely better. As it is, Maddie is going to make sure that you are okay.”

Buck groaned, dropping his head onto the back of the couch.

“I don’t know who is worse, you or Maddie. Overprotective.”

“I don’t want to hear about overprotective. You haven’t met my brothers, so you have no clue what overprotective is.” She said, sitting on the end of the couch.

“How many brothers do you have exactly?” Buck asked, sitting up.

“Four.”

His jaw dropped, looking over at Eddie. Her husband shrugged and smirked.

“How did you ever whisk her away to California?”

“Oh, you know how it goes. I sweet-talked her Daddy and her brothers feel in line with what he said.”

Leora smacked him in the stomach, making Buck laugh.

“Alright you two, behave. Buck, what do you want for dinner?”

Pepa brought Christopher over to Buck’s when it was time, making both Christopher and Buck smile. Leora cooked dinner, leaving the three boys to play video games. She couldn’t help the giant smile that spread across her face at the laughter coming from the living room. She had been a bit worried about Buck the past few days since he wasn’t very happy. She had noticed some things though, like the soft smile that spread across his face when his phone rang.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eddie hugged Leora tight to his side as they waited for the ceremony to begin. So far, she had been able to avoid his parents, using helping Buck as a legitimate reason as to why she hadn’t been over to family dinner yet.

“You are going to have to talk to them eventually.” He whispered, pressing his lips against her forehead.

“I will, I just prefer to do it in an environment where I feel like I have back up in someone that isn’t just you.”

She looked up at him. He sighed, letting her lay her head on his shoulder and bury her face in his neck. When the ceremony actually started, she was sitting next to Christopher, who was smiling brightly at everyone who looked like him.

“Evan Buckley,” Leora said when the ceremony was over and she saw the other man leaning on his crutches.

“Don’t Leo, I wanted to see my best friend officially become a part of the 118. I promise to sit down and not move for the entire party.”

“Uh-huh, that better be what happens or I will send Chris after you and you know that he will make you sit down.”

Buck smiled, letting her press a kiss to his cheek before making his way over to a chair near Eddie.

Chapter Text

Eddie watched his wife as she packed a bag. She hadn’t been able to get time off of work to go to Texas before now, so she was going to see her brother and sister-in-law. She was also going with Buck, who had gotten a call from a friend of his that another friend was having some trouble and had recently moved to Texas. She claimed it was to make sure that he stayed out of trouble, but he knew it was because she was worried about him overdoing it on his leg.

“Just a week, right?” He asked, looking at her.

“Just a week baby, I promise.”

She smiled, zipping her bag shut. She put it on the floor at the foot of the bed and climbed up on the bed next to him. He smiled as she settled against him, her head on his chest. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

“I’m glad that you get to see your brother. I know how close you are to him and Grace.”

“Yeah, Grace says it is bad. I can imagine, his house was his family too. I couldn’t imagine going through something like that.”

“Me either. When Buck was under that ladder truck, I thought my heart was going to stop. I can’t imagine what would happen if we were in Judd’s situation.”

Leora sighed, tilting her face up to him. He pressed his lips to her forehead, just resting there. She hummed softly, tightening her arm around his waist.

“I just...I need to see him with my own eyes. I need to assure myself that he actually is doing better and it’s not just Grace trying to placate me.”

“I know baby, I know. I don’t blame you in the least.”

She sighed into his neck.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Stop fidgeting, Buckley or I will smack you,” Leora said, glaring at Buck.

“I’m sorry. I know that Carlos is keeping something from me and it’s stressing me out. I will endeavor to stop fidgeting.”

She reached over and took Buck’s hand, squeezing it.

“I am so sorry my friend.” She said softly.

“It’s not your fault. I’m just not used to them keeping secrets about anything, we have never been able to keep secrets very effectively from each other.”

“I know that feeling. Eddie is terrible at keeping secrets from me, even when he thinks he’s being sneaky.”

“Oh, we aren’t…”

“Bucky, I can read it all over your face. Even if you aren’t dating, you are very much in love with them. I don’t think you have talked about anyone more than them since the first time I met you.”

Buck blushed.

“They don’t know, so please don’t tell them. I don’t think that I could live it down if they don’t feel the same as me.”

“I promise to not say anything.”

She laid her head on his shoulder, looking out the window. While flying was not her preferred method of travel, she didn’t mind being up above the clouds.

When they landed in Austin, she got a rental car. Buck had insisted that Carlos would drive him around or let him borrow his car if he needed to. She loaded all their stuff in while Buck dealt with working out the kinks in his leg from the flight.

“Hey, I want to stop at the firehouse, Grace said there is a memorial for the guys they lost.” She said, climbing into the driver’s seat.

“That’s fine by me. Maybe I will get to see TK before dinner at Carlos’ tonight.”

She got more anxious the closer that she got to the familiar firehouse. She had spent a lot of time there when she still lived in Austin, cooking and messing around with the crew that worked so closely with her brother. When she pulled up by the building, she had to take a few deep breaths before she could get out of the car. Buck wrapped an arm around her as they walked in. She wanted to break down when she saw the memory wall, holding tight to Buck as she looked at all of their faces.

“Leora?”

She turned at the sound of her name, coming face to face with Judd.

“Surprise big brother.” She whispered, walking over to him.

Judd immediately pulled her into a hug, burying his face in her hair. She hid her face in his chest and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm her racing heart. She could feel him shaking a little, keeping a tight grip on her.

“Did Gracie call you?” He whispered when he finally pulled back.

“Of course. She knew that you weren’t going to, and she knew that I would want to know. They were my family too Judd.”

She looked up at him, concern written all over her face. He smiled softly, cupping her face.

“Who’s your friend, baby sister?”

“This is Buck, he’s Eddie’s partner at work. He recently got hurt and came down with me to visit some friends. You might know one, TK Strand.”

Judd let out a laugh, reaching a hand out to shake Buck’s hand.

“Nice to meet you, Buck. So, how do you know the New Yorker?”

Buck shook his hand, offering him a smile. He noticed that Judd didn’t let go of Leora once.

“I met him a few years ago when I was traveling. It’s the same way I met our friend, Carlos, who lives down here.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Buck smiled at Carlos as he cooked in the kitchen. He hadn’t run into TK at the station, but he knew that Carlos had invited him over for dinner and neither one of them would turn down a Carlos Reyes dinner.

“How are you really, Buck?” Carlos asked, looking over at him.

“I have good days and bad days. On the bad days, I go over to Eddie’s house and hang out with Leora and Christopher. On my good days, I clean the entire apartment.” He said, taking a drink.

“I’m sorry Evan. And now you have the stress of dealing with TK.”

“What is going on with him? And don’t lie to me Los, I know you aren’t telling me something.”

Carlos sighed, putting a lid on the pot he had been adding stuff to.

“He had an overdose, just before they left New York. He didn’t give me any details, but I am very sure that it had something to do with Alex.”

Buck sighed.

“I never liked that guy. I think he thought that he was too good for TK.”

“Me too. I do kind of have a confession: I always thought that you and TK would end up together.”

“Really? I always thought it would be you two. I mean, you two have a way of calming each other down really fast.”

“And here I was, hoping that I could keep you both, but no. You want to pass me off on the other.”

They both looked over at the door, where TK was kicking his shoes off.

“Wait, you want us both?” Buck asked.

“Well, yeah. Has neither of you figured that out yet? I thought I had dropped enough hints over the years.”

TK came over and leaned against Buck. He subconsciously wrapped an arm around the smaller man, pulling him tighter against his side. Carlos smiled at them both, stirring the contents of the pot again.

“So, I suppose this is a good time to tell you both that I am completely in love with you?” Buck said with a bright smile on his face.

“No, that would have been a year ago, when you stopped by for a night and I let you sleep in my bed,” Carlos said.

“Or two years ago, when you made a point to fly to New York before going to California,” TK said, pressing his forehead to Buck’s cheek.

Chapter Text

Grace smiled as she came in from work and found her sister-in-law sprawled across the couch, her head in Judd’s lap. Her husband was very well aware of the fact that Leora was her favorite Ryder, and it showed when he put his hands up, letting her go when he saw his wife.

“Gracie!” She said, sitting up and reaching for her.

“Leo, sweet girl. How I’ve missed you.”

Grace walked over and hugged her tight, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

“I missed you too. I’m sorry I wasn’t here.” Leora whispered into her neck.

“Not your fault baby. You had a friend to worry about and getting married. Speaking of getting married, let me see the ring.”

Grace pulled away and grabbed her hand. Leora had always been more understated than Grace, so her engagement and wedding bands were flat, stacking rings with small rainbow diamonds on them.

“I’d say that Eddie knows me well.” She said, smiling brightly.

“I would hope that he does.”

Grace hugged her again and took a step back. She watched as Leora made herself back at home with her head in Judd’s lap. She was used to the close relationship between the two, seeing as she had gotten to know Leora just as fast as she had gotten to know Judd, even staying friends with her when she and Judd had been broken up.

“Leo, care to tell Gracie about your friend that came down here with you?”

“Buck? He’s Eddie’s partner and best friend from work. I kind of adopted him and he recently got his leg crushed by a firetruck. So, I brought him down here because he’s kinda sorta maybe dating TK Strand and Carlos Reyes.”

“As in, your new Captain’s kid?” Grace asked, looking at her husband.

“One and the same.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Daddy, you are very protective, I know. It’s not like I am in another country.” Leora said, hugging her father tight.

“I know, but my baby girl is in a different state and she married a firefighter. Look at you, all tan.” Stuart said, cupping her face and looking her over.

“Thank you, Daddy. Chris likes to keep me outside most of the day.”

Stuart smiled at the thought of his newest grandson. He might have had reservations about his baby girl moving away and starting her own life, but he got along very well with his son-in-law and grandson.

“Good, you never were one to stay cooped up all day. Judson, when did your sister get in?”

“Yesterday, she surprised me at the station. Now Daddy, don’t get mad at me, I didn’t know.”

Stuart smacked his head.

“You should have called me.”

Leora covered her mouth and let out a laugh.

“Daddy, Judd really didn’t know. I wanted to surprise him, so he couldn’t put up a tough front and pretend he’s okay when he’s not.”

“You two keep secrets from me again and it will be worse than a head smack.”

“Yes sir.”

The sibling shared a look as their father went into the kitchen, both trying not to burst out in laughter. They were both used to this behavior since they were both the babies in their family and he was like that with both of them.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Judd watched his sister as she swung up onto her horse. He knew that she would drag him out to the horses after lunch, but he had expected her to wait for a little while.

“Ready to go?” He asked, settling onto his own horse.

“You know it. There is nowhere to ride in Cali and I really miss it sometimes.”

“Oh, so we have to take this slow then?”

“Who do you think I am?”

She set her horse to gallop, leaving him in the dust. He let out a laugh and took off after her. He knew that she was trying to distract him from everything going on in his mind, but it was working and he didn’t really mind. When he finally caught up to her, she was smiling.

“Damn, I didn’t think you would still be that fast.”

“Oh, I’m out of practice alright, doesn’t mean I can’t beat you in a race down the trail.”

She reached over and squeezed his hand. He squeezed her hand in return, smiling softly at her. If there was anyone in this world that could calm him down and keep him level-headed, it would be her.

“I am the one who taught you how to ride, that’s not fair.”

She gave him a devilish grin and started trotting down the trail. He rode next to her, knowing that there wasn’t anyone else on the trail that day.

“So, why did you really come?” He asked when they were halfway down the trail.

“Does it really matter? I missed you and I worried about you. You are still my big brother and I am never going to stop worrying about you, no matter how far away I am. Even if I have to rack up miles upon miles coming down here, I will visit you every weekend until I know that you are going to be okay.”

“Leo, I am the older brother, I am the one who is supposed to worry and stress about you, not the other way around.”

“I don’t care if you are a year older than me Judson Ryder, I make a habit of worrying about the people I care about. That’s why Buck is down here with me because I worried that he would do something incredibly stupid and get himself hurt again. I don’t want to leave and get a call from Gracie that you put yourself at risk because your head wasn’t on straight.”

Judd looked down at his horse as he thought. He knew that she was telling the truth, but he didn’t want another person worrying about him.

“Baby sister, I will never stop worrying about you either. As much as I trust Eddie and I know that he will take care of you just as well, if not better, than I would, I still worry that I’m going to get a call that you got hurt somehow. So, we can stay here, getting mushy and talking about our feelings, or we can finish riding out this trail and I can take you to the bar tonight and show you off to all of my friends.”

She looked over at him and smiled.

“Last one there has to buy all the drinks tonight.”

“You are so on.”

They looked at each other one more time and then both took off down the path.

Chapter Text

Leora was getting ready to board her flight back to LA when the tsunami happened. Buck had flown home a few days earlier since he had a doctor’s appointment that he couldn’t miss. She looked up and saw the news, in complete shock. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and immediately hit Eddie’s name.

“Hey honey, I’m guessing you saw the news?” He answered, climbing into the truck.

“I did. Are you and Chris okay?” She asked, still watching the news.

“Buck was watching Chris today. I haven’t been able to get in contact with him, but I’m pretty sure that it’s the network. Will you try to get ahold of him?”

“Yeah. I board in 10 minutes, so I will try. Be careful out there Private.”

“I’m always careful, but I will be extra careful just for you.”

“I love you, Edmundo Diaz.”

“I love you too, Leora Diaz.”

She smiled and hung up, immediately clicking on Buck’s contact. When he didn’t answer, she tried again. She wasn’t getting a busy signal, which is usually what happens when the network was down. It was going straight to voicemail, which worried her. She started looking through her texts while she tried again, knowing Buck had sent her some pictures that he had taken earlier that day. She saw them at the park, playing on the swings, and at the aquarium. As she got onto the plane, she noticed the most recent pictures were from the pier.

“No, no.”

She called Eddie, only for it to ring all the way to voicemail. She tried again, the same thing happening. She resorted to calling Maddie, who was working at the call center.

“Hey Leia, are you home?”

“No, I am on the plane now. Maddie, I need you to get word to Eddie, Buck and Chris were on the pier, not even 10 minutes before the wave hit.”

She heard Maddie suck in a deep breath.

“I will let him know. I know that you are going to worry, but I need you to take deep breaths and not worry until you are back here. I will have someone meet you at the airport and take you to the 118.”

“Thank you so much, Maddie. Please, let me know what is going on as soon as I land.”

“I’ve got you, Leia.”

She hung up, turned her phone off, and let her tears fall. All she could think of was the fact that her son and one of her best friends were lost in a tsunami.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When she landed, she was met by Athena at the door. The cop pulled her into a hug, letting her sob into her shoulder. Leora took a few deep breaths, letting Athena lead her over to her patrol car.

“Eddie is helping perform triage at the VA hospital, I’m going to take you to him. Tell me now if you will be okay.”

“I just...I need to be with him, whether they...they…”

Athena gently cupped her face, wiping away her tears.

“I know baby, I know.”

They rode in silence as they went to the hospital. Athena knew that Leora had EMS training, which was why she was okayed to go to the hospital and help. When they pulled up to the hospital, Eddie met them at the patrol car.

“Hey, baby.” He said softly, cupping her face.

“Any news?” She asked, hugging him tight.

“Not yet. I know you keep your EMS certification up to date, do you mind helping out?”

She shook her head, taking a few deep breaths. He let her, holding her tight. When she finally took a step back and let him go, he led her over to the triage.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When Buck came stumbling into the triage, Leora was the first one to see him. She almost fell to her knees when she saw Christopher clinging to his back, looking around.

“Buck!” She exclaimed, running over to him.

“Leia, what…”

She started checking him over, looking for anything that would be concerning. She categorized all the injuries she could see on him before turning her attention to her son.

“Leia,” Christopher said, reaching for her.

“Hello, my love. I am so happy to see your cute little face.”

She carefully took the little boy and hugged him close.

“Buck, Christopher!” Eddie exclaimed, coming over to them just in time to catch Buck as he fell.

“He’s bleeding, I was trying not to freak him or Christopher out. You need to get him blood and get him stabilized.” She whispered to her husband as she held Christopher tight.

Eddie nodded, helping take Buck over to a gurney.

“Leia, Buck saved me.” The little boy said, looking up at her.

“He did? That does sound an awful lot like our Bucky.” She said, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

She lifted him up and carried him into the hospital after Eddie and the gurney. She never let go of Christopher, even as the other doctors looked him over and made sure that he was completely okay.

“Alright little man, let’s get some bandages on that cut and you will be all set. What do you think, Mom?”

“That is perfectly okay. Look at that, my little superhero, you lived through a natural disaster and managed to only get a scratch.”

Christopher smiled up at her, snuggling into her side.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Buck opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was Carlos’ worried brown eyes. Reaching up, his fingers came into contact with his face, reassuring him that it wasn’t part of his imagination.

“Hi, baby. I let you come back to California, and the first thing that happens is a tsunami?” Carlos whispered, looking him over.

“Not my fault. Where’s Chris?”

“In the waiting room. Last I saw, he was sound asleep on top of Leia and they were both sleeping on Eddie.”

Buck let out a sigh of relief, looking at his boyfriend. He could see the stress in his eyes, the only part of his face that would tell him how he was actually feeling.

“I’m surprised that TK isn’t here too.”

“Oh, he wanted to be, but between his NA meetings and helping his dad rebuild and get a feel for their new crew, he couldn’t be spared. He will be FaceTiming later to make sure that you are actually okay. He seems to think that I was lying when I told him that you had just lost some blood and you were bone-tired when you got here.”

Carlos gently cupped his face, pressing his forehead against Buck’s. Buck closed his eyes and let the tears fall. He was so tired, but he knew that he had done the right thing.

“I saved him, he’s okay.”

“You did good baby, you did good. He wasn’t the only one who you saved and you are okay.”

Chapter Text

Carlos spent a few days in LA, helping Buck get back to normal. It helped him a lot to have the familiarity of Carlos there, to help with the nightmares and anxiety. TK couldn’t get the time off of work, much less leave his meetings for that long because he was still in an unstable place in his life. He did, however, call every day and talk to them, making sure that the both of them were still in good spirits and happy. The hardest thing for Buck was getting over his fear of water. It took him two days to shower because he would hear the water running and his heart would start to race.

“Hey, your curls have finally come out to play,” Carlos said as he came down the stairs.

“They finally don’t have layers of dirt and other crap to hold them down,” Buck said, wrapping his arms around Carlos and resting his head on his shoulder.

Carlos reached up and laced his fingers into his hair, scratching his nails along his scalp. Buck groaned, pressing closer.

“Feel good?” Carlos laughed.

“Yes, don’t stop.”

“I have to or we are never going to eat. I’ll scratch your head more when we call Ty before bed.”

Buck whined but let him remove his hand from his head. He turned his attention to what Carlos was cooking and smiled.

“You called your mom and got the recipe for her chicken tamales?”

“No, she gave it to me free of charge, because she likes you better than she likes me apparently.”

Buck pressed a kiss to the side of his head.

“I think she likes TK better than she likes us both. How many times has she been at your house since you left?”

“You’re point has been made. Now, go sit down so we can eat this food and get you ready for bed. We have a fun day planned with Christopher tomorrow.”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When Eddie and Leora brought Christopher home, there was a lot that changed in their routine. Leora would take Christopher to work with her on days that he didn’t have school and would pick him up after school and take him back to the museum. Eddie knew that it was easier for her to be there all the time because she always made sure to give him all of the attention that he needed. The little boy had been clingy and had nightmares almost every night, often crying out for Buck. The other man had been invited, coerced, into staying in their guest room by Leora, who claimed that it was for Chris. Eddie didn’t say anything, but he knew that it was for her peace of mind, because she had also extended him an invitation for him to come with her to the museum.

When he pulled into the parking lot of the firehouse and saw Leora’s car sitting in Buck’s usual spot, he was a little confused. He parked his truck and quickly made his way into the building. He could hear the yelling before he was even the entire way into the building.

“Buck?” He questioned, seeing his best friend standing in the middle of the apparatus floor.

Buck was still glaring daggers at Bobby.

“Did you know?” Buck asked, never looking away from Bobby.

“Did I know what?”

He walked over and rested a hand on Buck’s shoulder.

“That Bobby is the reason I haven’t been able to come back to work.”

Eddie froze, looking at his captain.

“What?”

“I didn’t think that he was ready, I still don’t. Now, with this lawsuit against the department, because he isn’t allowed to work, it just reaffirms my suspicions that he isn’t ready.”

“You don’t get to make that call. I was at all his doctor’s appointments and I’ve seen all of his records, but you don’t care about any of that.”

Eddie was getting angry, he could feel the anger and anxiety coming off Buck in waves and it just fueled his anger.

“You aren’t there all the time, you don’t know if he’s capable…”

“He is currently living in my guest room, he spends all day helping my wife do things, he saved my kid from a tsunami. I think that he is more than capable of returning as a firefighter. If you don’t, then you have lost all faith in him.”

Buck turned to look at his best friend. Gone was the calm firefighter and, in his place, was the Army guy who could kill someone with his bare hands.

“You aren’t supposed to have any contact with him.”

“If anyone asks, my wife has made our home a safe place for her friend who is recovering from a natural disaster. If I happen to have a conversation while they are cooking dinner, then it happens.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eddie, Buck, and Leora sat on the couch after Christopher had been put to bed. Leora was drinking a glass of wine, scratching at Buck’s head that was in her lap.

“What do you want to do?” She asked, looking over at Eddie.

He was leaning against her, resting his head on top of hers.

“I don’t know. I don’t feel comfortable working with Bobby after all of that.” Eddie said, sitting up to take a drink of his beer.

“I wouldn’t either. How could he feel like he can make a better assumption of what his physical capabilities are than a doctor or the department? I mean, he had no problem with Chimney coming back two weeks after he essentially had to have brain surgery.”

She paused in her scratching, making Buck open his eyes.

“I don’t know what to think anymore. I used to think of Bobby as my dad, but this is going overboard. I will tell you guys that TK called, and his dad is willing to offer me a spot, as well as anyone else who doesn’t feel comfortable working at the 118 anymore.”

Leora looked over at Eddie. He had his ‘thinking’ look on his face, as she called it, and was lost in whatever he was thinking about. She could see the gears turning, serious thoughts then. She looked back down at Buck, who was looking at her.

“I think I need to start looking for a job in Austin.” She whispered.

Buck looked at her.

“You two don’t…”

“Buck, Eddie is not going to let you go work somewhere else without him to back you up and keep you from being reckless. Not to mention, I happen to have family there and I’m sure my brother will love you, my sister-in-law, too.”

Chapter Text

They agreed that Eddie and Buck would go ahead and head to Texas to start their jobs, while Leora and Christopher stayed behind and got everything settled in LA. On their last day in LA, the two firefighters decided to head into the station, to tell the 118 that they were moving on. Leora took Christopher with her to work so that they wouldn’t be distracted. Because she had already put in her two weeks, they were having her work as many hours as she could. Eddie drove himself and Buck to the firehouse, both of them stressing the entire way.

“I’m kind of glad that I already told Maddie. Could you imagine the story that Chimney is going to try to spin?” Buck said, looking out the window.

“Oh, I can imagine. I mean, Maddie understands, she knew that you would eventually want to be closer to TK and Carlos.”

Eddie saw the slight smile on Buck’s face as he turned to look at his best friend.

“You know you don’t actually have to come with me. They didn’t actually do anything to you.”

Eddie sighed, looking over at Buck when he came to a stop at a red light.

“Buck, they are tormenting you and preventing you from doing the job that you love. I am insulted by that because I trust you with my life, even with a bum leg, and it feels like they are questioning my judgment when they say you aren’t ready. I mean, you carried my kid on your back for an entire day, just to keep him safe from a tsunami, and you were on blood thinners.”

Buck smiled softly at the confidence that his best friend had in him.

“Thank you, for always having my back.”

“As long as you always have mine.”

“I’m afraid of not having your back, Leora might kill me and her brother would help hide the body. And Carlos would pretend as nothing happened.”

“That’s a lie. Carlos would be the first one mourning your loss while pretending like he has no clue what happened.”

They both laughed. Their laughter was cut short, however, when Eddie turned into the parking lot. Bobby was standing at the entrance of the station as if he had been waiting the entire time for them to get there.

“Diaz, you are late for your shift. And, we are not supposed to be talking to Buck.” Bobby said as soon as Eddie had stepped out of the truck and come around to the other side.

“I am very sure that you got the notice from the department that myself and Buck have been transferred out.”

Eddie crossed his arms, leaning against the side of his truck.

“I did, but I am pretty sure that you still work for me until you find a new home. So, go and…”

“I already found a new home. Buck and I came, as a courtesy, to inform you ourselves. We leave tomorrow for our new assignment.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two weeks between when Buck and Eddie left LA and the moment Leora and Christopher joined them in Austin, were the longest two weeks that Eddie had experienced in a long time. He was comforted by the presence of Judd and the rest of the 126, who had quickly become their new family. Buck had settled in, still a little bit wary of the new people and situations that he was in. Eddie tried to be his rock, along with TK, who made a point to let Eddie back up his boyfriend when they were in high-stress situations.

“Hello Private, nice to see that you are in one piece.”

Eddie whipped around from where he was climbing out of the firetruck, to see his wife and son standing at the bottom of the steps.

“Leia, Christopher.”

Christopher met his dad halfway across the floor, wrapping his arms tight around his waist. Leora let them hug for a moment before walking over to them and wrapping her arms around Eddie’s neck.

“I missed you, so much.” She whispered, pulling back to cup his face.

“I’ve missed you both so much. Let’s not do that ever again.”

“Hopefully, we never will.”

Just then, the rest of the firehouse came over to them.

“Hello there baby sister, it is so good to see your face,” Judd said, hugging her when Eddie finally let her go.

“Hey big brother, it is so good to see you.” She whispered into his neck.

“Leia!”

Suddenly, she found herself lifted into the air. She laughed and hugged Buck tightly.

“How is my favorite Buckley?” She asked once he had put her back down on her feet.

“Much better, thank you.”

“Bucky, you’re smiling,” Christopher said, making his way over to them.

“I am, thank you for noticing, superman. You want to meet everyone else?”

“Yeah.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leora looked around her new backyard and smiled. It was full of her family and all of their new friends. She knew that Eddie had been stressed, having had received several texts from the members of the 118, as well as from his ex-wife. So, she had decided that nothing was better than a good, old-fashioned barbeque. Her brother had insisted on cooking, which made her feel a little bit better, especially since he was all for Buck helping him.

“Hey baby, why the long face?”

She turned and smiled at her father.

“Nothing Daddy, we left a mess in Cali and I don’t know what we are going to do to fix it all.”

She leaned into his side. He wrapped an arm around her and held her tight.

“From what your brother tells me, you didn’t leave a mess. Anything that is your fault, will be cleaned up by the distance. Now, let’s go and join the party, Gracie is over there making eyes at us.” Stuart said, dropping a kiss to the top of her head.

“Can’t have Gracie making eyes at us, now can we, Daddy?”

He laughed and led her off of the porch.

Eddie came walking over and distracted her father with the idea of helping Christopher learn how to ride a horse.

“Hello, sweet girl,” Grace said, making her way over to her.

“Hi, Gracie. How are you doing?” She asked, leaning into her sister-in-law’s side.

“I’m good. I am completely in love with your little boy and I will be stealing him.”

Leora smiled.

“Everyone says that. He is the most loveable kid that I have ever met, but I don’t think Eddie and I can part with him.”

Grace laughed and pulled her into her side, leading her over to the barbeque.

Chapter Text

Once Buck and Eddie had gotten the approval from the department to travel, they both decided to tell their respective loved ones who did not know what was going on. Eddie headed directly for Abuela’s, where Leora and Christopher were having dinner with her and Pepa. Buck, meanwhile, went back to his apartment to call Carlos. He never got to surprise TK, so he figured this was a perfect time since he knew that Owen wasn’t telling him.

“Hello, amor, how are you?” Carlos answered.

“I’m good, how are you?”

“Tired, I just got off a 24. What are you up to?”

Buck smiled to himself.

“I am currently looking at my apartment and trying to figure out what to pack.”

“What?”

He heard the note of disbelief in his boyfriend’s voice. They had been doing long-distance...whatever they were for so long, that they never knew when Buck was going to move again, or where he was going.

“I got a new assignment since I don’t trust the 118 to have my back.”

“Really? Where?”

“Austin….”

“As in, Texas?”

“Yep. Just, don’t tell Ty, I want to surprise him when I get there.”

“Is it just you?”

“Nope, it’s me and Eddie.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Carlos picked him and Eddie up from the airport, a big smile on his face when he spotted his boyfriend. He pulled Eddie into a hug first, making the other man laugh. Then, he turned his attention to Buck.

“Hello, mi amor.” He said, hugging him tightly.

“Hi honey, I’m home,” Buck whispered softly into his neck.

“Yes, you are.”

They stood there for a few minutes longer until Eddie cleared his throat and got their attention.

“I can appreciate the fact that ya’ll missed each other, but I would really love to go and see my brother-in-law and take a nap.”

Carlos laughed, letting Buck go.

“So, am I taking you to the station too?”

“Yea, I’m getting a ride home with Judd.”

There was silence in the car as they rode to the station, Eddie falling asleep in the backseat as they went. Buck just laid his head on Carlos’ shoulder, making the younger man smile brightly. By the time that they arrived at the station, Eddie had to be shaken awake as they all climbed out of the car.

“Come on Eds, I want to surprise Ty.”

Eddie chuckled and yawned, unfolding himself from the back of the car. He then followed his best friend into the station. He hadn’t been before, since he couldn’t get off work to go with them, so this was his first time seeing his new workplace.

“Eddie? I heard we were getting new people but...Evan?” TK said, coming around from the kitchen.

“Hey baby, mind if I move to Texas?”

TK darted over and hugged Buck tight around the waist. Just as both Buck and Eddie had suspected, no one had told the smaller man that they were the ones transferring in.

“Hey brother, it’s nice to see you again,” Judd said, clapping Eddie on the shoulder.

“Nice to see you too. Leia and Chris send their love and they should be here in two weeks.”

Eddie hugged the taller man.

“Gracie will be excited.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The three, surprisingly, settled in together well. When Leora and Christopher arrived, they all found themselves with guests every few days. Christopher completely enjoyed getting to know both TK and Carlos, getting along very well with TK. Buck understood that, since TK was still very much a kid, just like himself.

“Carlos, let me invade your kitchen. As delicious as your food is, you have been doing all the hosting for the past week. It’s the least I can do, making dinner.” Leora insisted, standing from the couch.

“Leia…” Carlos started to say.

“Los, you should let her. She will definitely let you help, but she is an amazing cook.” Buck said, laying his head on Carlos’ shoulder.

Carlos looked at him, sighed, and pressed a kiss to his forehead.

“Okay, as long as I get to help.” He said, looking up at Leora.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way. I don’t trust Edmundo.”

Eddie simply stuck his tongue out at her. Christopher, who was playing on the floor with TK, let out a laugh at the familiar exchange. TK was looking at the couple with a confused look on his face.

“Why don’t we trust Eddie?” He asked.

“Eddie is more likely to poison us with anything more complex than toast or canned soup,” Buck explained, receiving a smack from his best friend for his efforts.

“Don’t smack him, it’s the truth. There is a reason why I do all the cooking in our house and we have take-out on the days that I don’t really want to cook.”

Carlos wiggled his way off of the couch and made his way into the kitchen with Leora. Buck took that as his sign to get on the floor and play with TK and Christopher.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After Leora had been released from Grace, Buck wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She simply leaned into his side, letting out a sigh of relief.

“Happy Leia?” He asked, resting his head on top of hers.

“I am. I loved LA and I loved my job, but I have always felt more at home when I was in the same place as Judd. I spent more time at the 126 than I did anywhere else, and have always found this to be home.” She said softly.

“I like to make people my home, it makes it so much easier. I floated around for so long, looking for a place to plant roots. I’m glad that I met every person I have ever met, but there are some people that make me feel like I am actually included.”

“Who couldn’t love you, Bucky?” She looked up at him.

“That is the question, isn’t it? You’re pretty amazing, Leora Diaz.”

“Thank you, you aren’t so bad yourself, Evan Buckley.”

She then found herself squished between Eddie and Buck. She smiled up at her husband, wrapping an arm around his waist.

Chapter Text

One of the first things that Eddie had learned about Leora when they had first started seriously seeing each other, was the fact that she was a very affectionate person. She like hugs, cuddles, and any kind of intimacy that she could find. He often found himself with a body pressed against his, especially when he was reading or laying in bed. Christopher had also picked up the habit, searching for as much human contact as he could get. No one really complained about it, simply cuddling either the small boy or the small woman when they decide that that is the person that they were going to cuddle with.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When he came out of the bunk room, Eddie was completely unsurprised to discover that his wife was pressed up against her brother. If he hadn’t known any better, he could swear that she was sleeping.

“Hey Judd, it seems you’ve grown somethin’.” He said, going to make himself a cup of coffee.

“I have, indeed. It’s come and gone for the past couple of years,” Judd said, smiling brightly over at his brother-in-law.

“I can hear you both, and Daddy will help me hide your bodies,” Leora mumbled, her face still buried in her brother’s back.

“I wouldn’t doubt it, my love,” Eddie said, pressing a kiss to the side of her head.

Judd continued to cook, reaching back to rest a hand on his sister every few minutes. It was more affection than any of the rest of the 126 had seen from him, except for with Grace. Buck and Eddie didn’t say anything, just continuing about their day. When a call came in, she immediately separated from her brother, pressed a kiss to both his and Buck’s cheek as they ran, and landed a fleeting kiss and a ‘be safe’ on Eddie’s lips as he went.

When they got back, she was gone. When she returned, she had Christopher in tow, who was very excited to see everyone.

“Hey Chris, homework first, then we will invade the truck,” Leora said, leading the little boy into the kitchen.

“Aw, Leia, do I have to?” He whined.

“Yep, scoot. Maybe I can convince Marjan to come and help you with your math since we are all hopeless.”

She turned pleading eyes to the other woman, who smiled and nodded.

“Sure, I love doing math.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If TK was surprised to see Buck laying in Leora’s lap, sound asleep, when he arrived for dinner at the Diaz house, he didn’t act like it.

“How long has he been asleep?” He asked, dropping a kiss on Carlos’ cheek.

“About 20 minutes or so. Leia did this thing where she scratched at his head and ran her fingers through his hair, and he just went right to sleep.”

Carlos smiled at his boyfriend as he went into the kitchen to get a drink.

“Someone is either going to have to wake him up or take my place. I need to finish dinner before Eddie and Chris get back with the dessert.”

She looked over at the other two men.

“I’ll do it,” TK said, coming back into the room.

He leaned over a pressed a kiss to the side of Buck’s head before starting to whisper in his ear. Leora pretending not to listen, pulling her hand out of his hair. Buck woke up slowly, blinking rapidly before his eyes settled on TK’s face.

“Hey, babe.” He croaked out.

“Hi, honey. You need to wake up, Leia needs to cook.” TK whispered.

“Oh, I’m sorry Leia,” Buck said, quickly sitting up.

“Not a problem at all, Bucky. You can lay down with your boys and dinner will be done super quick.”

She stood, stretched, and went into the kitchen.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hello, love of my life. You look like you’ve had a stressful day.” Eddie said, looking up at her.

When they had moved, she had decided that she was better suited for working at home. She was offered a research job with one of the professors at the museum, which she had taken immediately. However, that did mean that there were days that she had to go into his office and go over either information that she had found or organize all the information they had already gathered.

“Just, a lot of information. How was your day?”

She laid down on the couch, putting her head in his lap. He moved the book that he was reading, smiling down at her.

“It was good. Went to work, came home, went and picked up Chris from the Reyes ranch, and then we had dinner with Buck and his boyfriends.”

“Mmm.”

She closed her eyes as he ran his hand over the top of her head.

“You look so pretty, even when you’re tired.”

“Don’t tell me lies.” She whispered, cracking her eyes open to look at him.

He chuckled, running his fingers over her cheek. She sighed, leaning into his hand.

“Leia?”

She sat up and looked at Christopher, who was standing in the hallway.

“Hello, my love. I thought that you were asleep already.” She said, standing up.

“I was, but I need a mom hug.”

She looked back at her husband, who had a knowing look on his face.

“Alright, my sweet boy, let’s get back to bed and I will give you all the mom love that you can hold.”

She pressed a kiss to the side of Eddie’s head and walked over to their son. He smiled as she swept the little boy up and carried him back down the hall. Once she had him settled in bed, she laid down beside him and hugged him tightly.

“Leia?” He whispered.

“Yes, sweet boy?” She whispered back.

“Is it okay if I call you Mom?” He asked.

She startled a little, looking at his little face.

“Is that what you want to do? I don’t mind if you call me Leia.”

“Well, you married my dad, and you do all the things that moms are supposed to do for their kids. My mom left me and didn’t want me anymore.”

She sighed and pressed a kiss to the side of his head.

“If you want to call me mom, then you can. You can call me whatever you want. Just know, that I will always be here when you need me.”

He smiled and laid his head on her shoulder. When he finally went to sleep, she pressed another kiss to the side of his head and snuck her way out of his bedroom. She found Eddie standing in the hallway, standing next to the open door.

“Did you know about this?” She asked, closing Christopher’s door.

“I did, we talked about it the entire way home from the Reyes’. He’s mentioned it on and off for a while, and he finally concluded that he wants you to go by mom.”

Chapter Text

Eddie was at work when he got the first call about Shannon. He was helping to wash the truck and felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. After drying his hands, he pulled it out and was surprised to see Abuela’s name on the screen.

“Hola, Abuela.” He answered.

“Mi hijo, have you talked to your ex-wife since you left?”

He was startled at the statement.

“No, I didn’t even talk to her while we were living there. Why?”

He made his way into the station, giving Buck a look as he walked by. The other man returned the look, taking his phone out when he mouthed who he was talking to. Buck was probably reaching out to Pepa, to find out what was going on.

“She showed up at the house today and asked about you. When I told her that you guys were no longer in LA, she lost her mind. She kept going on and on about how you kidnapped her son. Does she not know that her rights were terminated?”

“She was told when it happened. I got a series of calls from her after, screaming the same thing. But she wanted nothing to do with Chris and she hasn’t tried to make contact in years.”

He sighed, sitting down on his bunk. This was what he had been so worried about when they had decided to move to California, that she would try to come back into their lives.

“Well, your Tia got rid of her rather quickly, so I’m sure that she won’t be showing up here anytime soon. I just wanted to give you a heads up.”

“Gracias, Abuela.”

“De nada, mi hijo. Give my great-grandson and my Leia my love.”

“I will love you.”

“Te amo.”

He hung up just as Buck came into the room. His best friend gave him a look that told him that he knew everything that was going on, probably with more curse words. He simply took a seat next to him on the bed and bumped his shoulder. Eddie looked over at him and gave him a half-smile.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leora tried not to think too much as she helped Christopher with his history homework. She had been stressing, thinking that she had a stomach bug and she didn’t want to pass it on to Christopher, but she was still nauseous a week later, so she knew that it was something else.

“Are you okay, Mom?” Christopher asked, looking up at her.

“Just worried, but I’m always worried about your Dad. Do you have anything else you need to work on with me?” She asked, cupping his face.

He smiled and shook his head. She dropped a kiss to his forehead and went down the hall to the bedroom. Leaving the door open so she could hear Christopher if he needed her, she sat down on the bed for just a moment. The answer to her question was on her bathroom counter, but she couldn’t bring herself to actually go in there yet.

“Come on Leo, you can’t be afraid of a couple of pregnancy tests.” The voice in her head, that sounded very much like her brother, said to her.

She took a deep breath, stood up, and went into the bathroom. She had her eyes closed, not wanting to accidentally see the results. She didn’t know what she wanted for them to be, positive or negative, but she knew that she needed an answer, even if it was for her peace of mind. Taking another few deep breaths, she opened her eyes. She almost fell to her knees when she saw that all three tests were positive.

“Mom, are you okay?” Christopher asked, coming into the room at that moment.

“Yeah, baby, I’m okay.” She said, trying to keep her voice even.

“What’s wrong?”

She turned and hugged the little boy.

“Nothing is wrong, nothing at all.” She whispered, looking back over at the tests.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

When Eddie got home, he could hear his wife and son giggling in the kitchen. He didn’t want to disrupt their happiness at that moment. Their discussion about Shannon could wait until after Chris was tucked into bed that night. Walking into the kitchen, he smiled when he saw them both standing at the stove. The big pots were out, which meant that Leora had made one of Abuela’s soups and tamales.

“Hello, family.” He said, smiling.

“Dad!” Christopher said, turning his attention to his father.

“Hello, mijo, did you have a good day?”

Eddie hugged his son and dropped a kiss to the top of his head.

“I did. Mom helped me with my homework.” He smiled up at him.

He smiled as Leora came over and pressed himself against his side. He shifted to wrap an arm around her too, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

“Hi baby, did you have a good day?” She asked, leaning her chin on his chest.

“I did, but it's always better when I come home to your smiling faces.”

After dinner was eaten and the dishes had been washed, Eddie and Christopher went to take their showers and get ready for bed. Eddie tucked Christopher in and then Leora went in to read his story to him. When she came out, Eddie was sitting on the couch, having relocated their drinks from the kitchen counter to the coffee table.

“That’s your ‘we need to talk’ face.” He said, looking at her.

“You’ve had your ‘something is wrong’ face on since you walked in the door.” She commented, taking a seat next to him/

“I know. I got a call from Abuela. Apparently, Shannon has been starting nonsense again, the same stuff she was spouting when she found out that we had moved again.”

She sighed, picking up her glass of tea.

“I wish she would just disappear sometimes.” She whispered.

“You and me both baby.”

“I do have something that I need to tell you. Hopefully, it makes you feel better.”

She stood and went to their bathroom. She had hidden the tests in a box under the sink, wanting to surprise him. Carrying the box into the living room, she handed it to him and took a seat on the couch again. She picked up her glass and watched him as he opened the box.

“Babe?” He asked, looking at the tests.

“I took three, just to be sure. Congratulations, my love, we are going to have a baby.”

He looked from the box to his wife. She was starting to get a little stressed until she saw his spread into a giant smile.

“We’re going to have a baby.” He said, putting the box on the coffee table and reaching up to cup her face.

She smiled as he pressed kisses all over her face and then several on her lips.

“I take it you are excited about this?” She asked, cupping his face.

“This is some of the best news I’ve heard in a while.”

Chapter Text

The first ultrasound was something else for all of them. Christopher had never seen an ultrasound, so he was particularly invested in seeing what his new little sibling looked like before they were here. Eddie, on the other hand, was more worried about how his wife was doing. She wasn’t really having any more morning sickness, but she was tired all the time, and he worried about her. The others had noticed how tired she was and they weren’t sure what to say because they weren’t quite ready to tell anyone yet.

“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Diaz. Who is this handsome young man?” The doctor said, coming into the room.

“Hello, my name is Christopher. I get to see my baby brother or sister.” Christopher said with a bright smile.

“That is very exciting. I see this is your first visit, did you just find out?”

“Yes sir. I got a blood test yesterday and they said that they would have put my results in my records for today.” Leora said, squeezing Eddie’s hand.

“Alright, let me see.”

Eddie pressed a kiss to Leora’s forehead, smiling at her.

“Alright, according to the blood test, you are about 13 weeks along. So, shall we see how the little one is doing?”

“Yes please,” Leora said, smiling brightly.

Eddie let go of her hand in exchange for pulling out his phone. He already had an idea of how he wanted to tell Buck and it involved showing him Christopher looking at the ultrasound. Sure enough, as soon as the ultrasound was up on the screen, Christopher’s eyes went huge.

“That’s the baby?” He asked, making his way over to the screen.

“Yep, that’s your new sibling. We are measuring just right for 13 weeks, so there is nothing wrong on that front.”

When the heartbeat came through the speakers, there was silence in the room. Leora looked over at Eddie, tears in her eyes. He smiled, reaching for her hand.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The first person that Leora told was Grace. She knew that she could keep a secret from Judd, so she had no issue disclosing anything to her. She invited her sister-in-law over for lunch one day when she didn’t have to go into the university.

“Leo, my sweet girl. I have missed you.” Grace said, hugging her tightly.

“I just saw you a few days ago.” She replied, hugging her back.

“I know, but I still missed you. Where is my sweet boy today?”

“School, then he has an afterschool program. Come in, I have tamales and tea.”

“That’s quite the mix.”

Grace kept her tight against her side as they went into the dining room. Leora just smiled, leaning against her. Once they had sat down and both had some food, they started talking about some of the things that had been going on in their lives the past few days.

“Chris is struggling a little with math, but Eddie and I can’t really help with that. Do you think that you could help?” Leora asked, cleaning up the lunch dishes.

“I definitely can,” Grace said with a smile.

While Leora was in the kitchen, putting the dishes in the sink, she got the ultrasound picture and put it in her pocket. When she went back into the dining room, she noticed that Grace had moved to the couch.

“So, tell me something, Gracie.”

“I will tell you almost anything.”

“Can you keep a secret from my brother? Just for a few days?”

Grace’s eyes went wide before they narrowed at her.

“I can. Why?”

Leora smiled and pulled the ultrasound out of her pocket, handing it to Grace. She gasped, taking the paper. She looked it over as if she couldn’t process that it was real.

“Leo?”

“It’s real, I promise. According to all the tests, I am 13 weeks. Baby has a good, strong heartbeat and is measuring perfectly.”

“Oh, my. You’re having a baby?”

She smiled brightly.

“I am. Eddie and I are going to have a baby.”

“Oh, sweet girl.”

Grace hugged her tight, pressing a kiss to her cheek. She returned the hug, smiling.

“You can’t tell Judd yet, I am going to in a few days.”

“I promise I won’t. Am I…”

“You are the first one to know, outside of us and Christopher.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Buck, Judd, and Grace came over for dinner a few days later. Leora was noticeably tired, laying on the couch instead of in the kitchen, where she wanted to be.

“Hey Leia, still not feeling good?” Buck asked, leaning over to press a kiss to her forehead.

“Yeah, can you make sure that Eddie doesn’t burn down my kitchen? I left him and Chris in charge of the tortilla soup.”

“You trust him that much, huh? I mean…”

“That’s why I left Chris in charge.”

Buck laughed and pressed another kiss to her forehead before going into the kitchen. Judd came over, pressed a kiss to her forehead, then also made his way into the kitchen as well. Meanwhile, Grace came around the couch and lifted her head, laying it in her lap after she sat down.

“You doing okay, baby?” She asked, running her fingers through her hair.

“Yeah, just tired. Apparently, making a human is hard. And my doctor said something about my blood sugar and pressure being off, which they have been my whole life, so.”

Leora sighed, closing her eyes. Grace was not surprised when she just fell asleep, her hand resting on her stomach.

When dinner was ready, Eddie came over and gently woke his wife. She smiled softly and let him lead her over to the dining room table.

“Hello there, baby sister. It’s nice to see your face when you are awake.” Judd said, taking her hand.

“Thank you, big brother. Shall we see if my husband managed to not poison us?”

“Hey, I had a lot of supervision, thank you very much.”

That made everyone at the table laugh, including Eddie.

After dinner was finished, they made themselves at home on the couches, Buck and Christopher making themselves at home on the floor with the Legos.

“So, I have something I need to tell you, Bucky and Judd,” Leora said, looking at her husband. He smiled and pulled his phone out. Once he had the video pulled up, he turned it to face the other two men. They waited with bated breath for them both to realize exactly what they were watching. Judd caught on a little bit faster, his jaw-dropping.

“Leo?” He asked, looking at her.

“What do you think, big brother?” She asked.

“About what?” Buck asked, still trying to puzzle through the video.

“I’m going to have a baby brother or sister,” Christopher said, smiling brightly at Buck.

Buck did a double-take, looking between all of the Diaz’s.

“We are going to have a baby Diaz?” He asked, a bright smile spreading across a face.

“Yes Bucky, we are going to have a baby Diaz.”

Both Buck and Judd let out a whoop of joy, while Grace and Eddie just shook their heads. Leora giggled, leaning forward to hug her brother when he reached for her.

“I’m so happy for you Leo.” He whispered against the side of her head.

“Thank you, Ju.”

Then came Buck, who squeezed them both into a hug.

“This explains why you are so tired.” He said, cupping her face.

“Yes it does, it’s hard work to grow a tiny human.”

Chapter Text

They decided that the best course of action to reveal the fact that they were pregnant to everyone else, was to have a barbeque. When they got around to it, Leora was 15 weeks pregnant and she wasn’t getting as tired as she had been. She would always have an issue with her blood pressure, and they would be keeping an eye on it throughout her pregnancy.

“Good morning, are you ready to have a party?” Eddie said when she came wandering out of the bedroom.

“Ugh, I just want some coffee.”

She made her way over to the coffee pot. Because of her issues with her blood pressure, her doctor had recommended that she drink coffee or caffeinated tea whenever she felt herself becoming abnormally tired.

“Be careful around the crew, they will yell at you.” He said, scooping some eggs out of a pan and onto a plate. Just then, Christopher came into the room, still yawning.

“Good morning my love, did you sleep well?” Leora asked, dropping a kiss to the top of his head after he had made himself at home at the island.

“I did. Did you sleep okay, Mom?” He asked, rubbing his eyes under his glasses.

“I did. Your dad kept me warm all night. Are you ready for all of the guests to come over tonight?”

She took a seat next to him, not looking at the plate of eggs that Eddie placed in front of him.

“Thank you, Dad. They aren’t guests, Mom, they are family.”

“Yeah, Leia, they’re family,” Eddie said, smiling.

He handed her the meds that she needed to take, as well as some yogurt and fruit from the fridge. She smiled softly at him, mouthing a soft ‘thank you’ as he went to clean up. He knew that the smell of eggs was nauseating to her, so he tried to clean it up as quickly as he could.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hey, have you told Maddie?” Buck asked.

He had been the first to arrive, so he had immediately taken over sues chef duty so Eddie could go out back and set everything up. He was being supervised by Christopher, who had been very excited to keep a small secret from the rest of their family for just a little while.

“No, I haven’t had a moment to sit down and call her. Do you want to do it now? The others who don’t know won’t be here for at least an hour.”

Buck smiled and pulled out his phone, hitting the FaceTime button for Maddie. While it rang, Leora retrieved one of the ultrasound pictures that she kept in the bedroom.

“Hello Evan, I thought you were having dinner with Leora and Eddie.”

“I do, Leia just wanted to tell you something, so you don’t hear it second hand.”

Buck smiled and turned the camera so Maddie could see Leora. She held up the ultrasound, a broad smile on her face.

“Oh my god, is that what I think it is?” Maddie asked, covering her mouth.

“If you think that it is an ultrasound of baby Diaz, you would be very right,” Leora said.

Buck turned the camera back around, so it showed him and Leora, the other woman’s head on his shoulder.

“Oh sweetheart, I am so happy for you. Were you trying?”

“No, it was a complete surprise. How is everything going up there?”

Maddie sighed.

“Between Eddie’s ex showing up and demanding we tell her where he went and the rest of the firehouse still trying to figure that information out, I don’t know what to do. Chim already apologized to you guys and accepted his part in all of this, but the others haven’t.”

Leora shook her head. Just then, there was a knock at the door.

“Hey Mads, I will definitely keep you updated, but we haven’t told everyone here yet,” Leora said.

“Alright, I will let you go and keep your secret. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

Leora went to open the door, hiding the ultrasound in her pocket as she went.

“Captain Strand, TK, and Carlos, three of my favorite people. Please, come in and make yourselves at home.” She smiled, stepping aside so they could enter. All three hugged her as they came in, Carlos hugging her as tight as he could. During his stay in LA, he had gotten very close to the Diaz’s

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once everyone had arrived and they had started mingling. Leora was finishing up the food in the house, having Buck and Judd carry the stuff out to the picnic table that they were using in the backyard. Grace had joined her in the kitchen, where they were whispering over the plans for the evening. It didn’t escape her notice that Leora kept a hand on her belly, almost as though it were a subconscious thought.

“Are you still tired?” She asked, seeing Leora hold her head for a moment.

“A little, mostly dizzy. Could you make me a cup of coffee, with just a splash of milk?”

“Are you supposed to be drinking coffee?” Grace asked, even as she stepped over to make her a cup.

“Because of my blood pressure, my doctor recommended that I drink caffeine and up my calorie intake just a bit. It’s loads of fun trying to coordinate between my blood pressure and my blood sugar.”

“Oh, I’m sure sweetheart.”

When the rest of the food was done, and she was feeling less dizzy, they made their way outside.

“Hey guys, before we dig into all of this delicious food, Leia, Christopher, and I something that we want to share with you.”

Eddie walked over and wrapped an arm around his wife, while Christopher came to stand in front of them.

“Oh no,” Paul said.

“Nothing bad, I promise. Chris, do you want to do the honors?” Eddie asked, dropping a hand on his son’s shoulder.

“I’m going to have a brother or sister,” Christopher said, a big smile on his face.

There was a moment of silence before the entire backyard was filled with cheers.

“Oh, Leia, I am so happy for you,” Carlos said, the first one to reach them.

“Thank you so much, Carlos.” She said.

“Yes, because this child was created with no input from me,” Eddie said, rolling his eyes.

Slowly, everyone came over and congratulated them, Christopher smiling the entire time. Finally, all the was left was Stuart. Leora looked at her father, a bright smile on her face.

“What do you think, Daddy?” She asked, looking up at him.

He pulled her into a tight hug, letting her rest her head on his shoulder.

“I think this is wonderful. At least one of my children is giving me grandchildren.” He whispered.

“I can hear you, and I will sic Grace on you,” Judd said, stepping back from where he was hugging Eddie.

“She won’t do nothing, she likes us better than she likes you,” Leora said, not moving her head.

Chapter Text

Leora was not surprised to wake up the morning of her 18-week appointment to find a Diaz boy on either side of her, talking to her stomach. Eddie had started doing it when her bump had first appeared, and he had roped Chris into it when Chris realized that the baby could hear him. She pretended to be asleep, listening to the boys talk to the baby.

“Hello, baby. We might find out if you are a brother or a sister today.” Christopher said, trying to speak as softly as he could.

“That’s right. I promise that we will tell you as soon as you get home. Are you going to be good or are you going to be stubborn like your Mama?” Eddie said.

The baby was moving as they spoke, a fluttering feeling that only she could feel at that moment. The baby always moved when the boys were talking to her, but not as much as they moved when Buck was the one talking to her bump.

“I think they are going to be stubborn, like Mom.”

“You know, I can hear you.” She said, softly.

“Yep, we know. What do you think Chris? Should we go and see what we can cook up for breakfast?”

“Oh no, you are not cooking today. Let me get up and go to the bathroom while you get Chris ready.”

“Yes ma’am. You heard the boss Chris, time to get ready for school.”

Before they climbed off of the bed, Christopher leaned up and pressed a kiss to Leora’s cheek, which was followed by a kiss from Eddie.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eddie squeezed Leora’s hand tightly as they waited for the doctor to come in. She hadn’t been feeling the best that morning, tiredness hanging over her like a cloud.

“Hello there. How are we today?” The doctor asked, coming into the room.

“Tired. I’ve been having some issues with my blood pressure this week.” Leora said, giving the doctor a half-smile.

“I see that your pressure was a little on the low end. Have you upped your caffeine intake, as we had discussed?”

“Yes, and it helps. But, when we are having a busy day, I forget that I need that little bit of a caffeine boost halfway through the day.”

The doctor nodded.

“That does sound about right. Well, let’s see what we can find out about this little one today, shall we?”

“Yes, please. Our son is looking forward to finding out what his little sibling will be.” She said, smiling.

Eddie watched in awe as the ultrasound came up, as he always did. Leora smiled as she watched him, listening to the heartbeat.

“Alright, we are measuring just right for 18 weeks. A little on the small side, but you aren’t very big, so that’s about right. Very strong heartbeat, always a good thing. Shall we see if we have the gender?”

“Yes, please,” Eddie said, squeezing her hand.

She squeezed back, watching as the image changed. They both burst out into laughter as it became very obvious exactly what they were having.

“Well, I don’t think we can get a clearer picture.”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After they had told Christopher, they asked him to keep it a secret, just until after the following day. They had a plan on how they were going to tell the crew during Eddie’s next shift and they didn’t want Christopher spilling the beans before then.

Eddie looked down at his phone as it started ringing. The unknown number had a California area code, so he got Buck’s attention and showed him his phone. After Buck nodded and turned to look back at where TK and Christopher were playing, he took a step outside and answered.

“Hello?”

“Edmundo, where the hell are you?”

He sighed at the sound of his ex-wife’s voice.

“That is none of your business, Shannon. You wanted a divorce and you lost your parental rights years ago, so I don’t actually have to tell you where we are.” He said, resisting the urge to hang up.

“That is my son, Edmundo, and you will tell me where he is before I get you arrested for kidnapping.”

“How did you get my phone number?”

“It doesn’t matter. Tell me where my son is, or I will have you arrested by morning.”

“The hell you will. It won’t take much investigating for anyone to find out exactly what is going on with all of this, or the fact that my wife and I have custody of Christopher.”

He promptly hung up and went back into the house.

“Eds?” Buck asked.

“Shannon. Don’t worry about it.”

He went into the kitchen, where Carlos and Leora were cooking away.

“Hey, babe, who was on the phone?” She asked, leaning back against him as he wrapped an arm around her.

“Shannon, I don’t know how she got my number. Hey Carlos, quick question. If someone lost their parental rights, can they get someone arrested for kidnapping?”

“No, as long as there is a record of the loss of rights. Ex-wife stirring up trouble?”

“Trying to.”

Leora looked up at him. He pressed a kiss to the side of her head and let his hand rest on top of her bump.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Leora walked into the firehouse, carrying a box. She smiled at the echoes of ‘hellos’ that she heard throughout the house.

“Hello everyone. Could someone please direct my lovely husband this way and could you all join us in the kitchen?” She asked.

“Yes, ma’am. Hello there, baby sister.” Judd said, coming over and pressing a kiss to the side of her head.

“Hello, big brother. Why are you… I am not an invalid.” She protested as he took the box from her hands and carried it the rest of the way into the kitchen.

“Never said you were. What’s in here?” He asked.

“You open that lid and I am cutting your fingers off.” She said.

He took a step back and lifted his hands in the air in surrender. Soon, they were joined by the rest of the house, Eddie coming to stand next to her.

“So, you going to tell us what’s in the box?” TK asked, leaning against the counter.

“So, as all of you probably know by now, we had our 18-week check-up yesterday. We got to find out the gender of baby Diaz. In this box, there are cupcakes and the color of the frosting is what we are having. On the count of three, I am going to open the box and everyone is going to find out at the same time. Ready?” She said, taking a hold of the lid of the box.

“Come on, we want to know before we get a call,” Judd said.

“Alright. 1, 2, 3…” She opened the box.

“It’s a boy!” They all cheered.

Leora and Eddie were then swarmed by the rest of the crew, receiving hugs and congratulations from everyone. Slowly, they all took a cupcake and wandered off, leaving only Buck, TK, and Judd.

“Why didn’t you tell us last night?” Buck asked, leaning against Leora.

“We wanted to surprise you all at the same time. The only one who knew was Christopher, and he will be very happy that he doesn’t have to keep that a secret from his Bucky anymore.”

She wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning against his shoulder.

Chapter Text

Eddie should have known that it was going to be a bad day from the moment he woke up for his shift. Leora was sleeping on her side, Christopher asleep between them since he had a nightmare at some point in the night. When Eddie extracted himself from the bed, both of them protested, Christopher, letting out a little whine before Leora wrapped an arm around him. He knew that he needed to wake them both soon, so the little boy could get to school, but he didn’t want to disturb his sleeping family. When he came back to get dressed, Leora was sitting up, looking down at Christopher.

“Good morning mi amor.” He said, leaning down to press a kiss to her lips.

She responded with a kiss of her own.

“Good morning. You want me to wake him?” She asked.

“Nah, let him sleep a little longer. Do you want me to make some toaster waffles?”

“Yes please, I don’t think that I can be bothered to make much of anything to eat right now.”

She extracted herself from under the sleeping child and made her way into the bathroom. Eddie looked at his son as he snuggled down into her pillow. He couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face as he watched him, the ease that he got from her.

When his son and wife emerged from the bedroom, he had put a plate of waffles on the table for Chris and had set out all of the vitamins and a cup of coffee for Leora.

“Thank you, Dad,” Christopher said, sitting down.

“Yeah, thank you, Dad,” Leora said, pressing a kiss to the side of Eddie’s head before sitting down.

“You two are welcome. I am going to get myself some more coffee and then I am putting my shoes on. Chris, you have 15 minutes before it’s time to go to school.”

“Okay, Dad.”

Eddie stood, grabbed his cup, and headed towards the kitchen. As he passed them, he pressed a kiss to the top of each of their heads.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hey, Eddie, someone is looking for you,” TK said, coming into the gym from the apparatus floor.

“Really? Thank you. I guess it’s not my wife?”

“If it was Leia, I would have taken her hostage and just yelled for you, like I always do.”

Eddie smacked him in the back of the head, Buck making a noise of surprise and pulling his boyfriend into a hug as Eddie walked by. Eddie shook his head and walked out to the floor. He stopped in his tracks when he caught sight of Shannon standing by the rig. Turning around to head back to the gym, he popped his head in.

“Hey, could one of you please call your fantastic cop boyfriend? My ex-wife is here and I don’t want to deal with it right now.”

“Yep, Carlos is on his way with lunch anyway. But, that means Leia is almost here too.” Buck said, giving Eddie a look.

Eddie sighed and turned to go out to the floor. He didn’t want his wife to end up confronted by Shannon, even if his ex-wife didn’t realize that she was his wife. When he stepped out onto the floor, he saw Judd leading Leora into the kitchen through the ambulance bay. He was never more thankful for his brother-in-law than he was at that moment.

“Shannon?” He said, pretending to be surprised to see her.

“Did you think that I wouldn’t find you? Where is my son?”

“He’s not your son anymore, we have been over this. Chris is at school right now, and you are most definitely not on the list to see him.”

He crossed his arms over his chest as he spoke.

“You cannot keep me from my son, Edmundo.”

“Eddie, what seems to be the problem?” Carlos said, coming into the station, pizza boxes in hand.

“Excuse me, officer, this man kidnapped my son and refuses to return him.”

Carlos looked over at Eddie, who rolled his eyes and shrugged.

“You must be Shannon. I am very aware of the situation in question, so I know that Christopher was not kidnapped and that you do not have any kind of custody of him.”

Shannon turned to look at Eddie, who had the same defiant look on his face as he looked back at her.

“Babe, what is… Oh.” Leora walked into the room, followed by her brother.

“Sorry, Eddie. I tried to stop her but…” Judd shrugged.

“Judson, is this the reason you whisked me off as soon as I got here?” Leora turned to glare at her brother.

“Don’t look at me like that, Leora, I was just trying to keep you out of jail today.”

Judd put his hands up.

“Leora...you must be the woman my husband left me for.”

Leora whipped around and pinned Shannon with a glare.

“You must be the woman who decided that her husband and son were too much work and ran.”

Carlos took that moment to escape to the kitchen, while Judd and Eddie situated themselves so they could get between the two women if they needed to.

“Shannon, we got divorced long before I met Leora. You have no right to say anything about my wife, especially in my workplace.”

“I want to see my son, Edmundo. You will deliver my son to me and then I will leave you alone.”

“I don’t have to do crap, you have no legal right to see him. And he doesn’t want to see you.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Christopher curled up next to Leora, looking at Eddie. They had just finished telling him about what had happened at the station that day and Eddie had asked him if he wanted to see Shannon. Christopher had his hand splayed across Leora’s belly, feeling the little flutters of his brother.

“I don’t know. Can we meet her somewhere with a lot of people?” He asked, looking up at Leora.

“If that’s what you want to do. Carlos said he would come with us if that makes you feel better.” She said, running her fingers through his hair.

“Okay. I want to tell her to leave me alone. She didn’t want to be my mom and she doesn’t get to change her mind now.” He said, turning his attention back to her bump.

“This is your decision, Chris. Mom and I will stand by you and defend your choice.” Eddie said, taking a seat in front of them.

“Thanks, Dad.”

Leora pressed a kiss to the top of his head, looking at her husband. She could still see the anger radiating behind his eyes, even as he tried to remain calm for their son.

Chapter Text

Leora and Eddie let Christopher wander around the park, having gotten there a little earlier than they had planned. Carlos, Buck, and TK were a short distance away, having their own date while also keeping an eye on the situation between Shannon and Eddie.

“You okay, Eddie?” Leora asked, turning to face her husband.

He had been quiet most of the morning, only whispering to the baby when he thought that she was asleep.

“No, I’m not. She left, she wanted a divorce, she wanted nothing to do with Chris. Who does she think she is, coming back years later and demanding to be a parent to a child that already has parents.”

She reached over and took his hand, squeezing it tightly.

“Dad?” Christopher said, coming back over to their picnic table.

“Hey, buddy. Do you want to take a seat? She should be here in a few minutes.”

He nodded, making himself at home between Eddie and Leora. He leaned into Eddie’s side, resting his head on his shoulder while they waited. Eddie rested his head on top of his son’s, looking over at his wife over his head. Leora smiled softly, digging around in her bag for a bottle of water and her thermos that had some coffee in it.

Just then, Shannon came walking over.

“Christopher, I’ve missed you so much. Can you give Mommy a hug?” She said, looking at the little boy.

She got visibly angry when he looked between Eddie and Leora, who both smiled at him, and then shook his head. He then curled up closer to Eddie, who wrapped an arm around him.

“Have a seat, Shannon. Christopher has a few questions for you.” Eddie said, trying not to really look at her.

She huffed and took a seat across from them, reaching over to try and take Christopher’s hand. He recoiled and reached for Leora’s hand instead. He transferred his attention from Eddie to Leora, who whispered to him and let him curl up against him.

“Christopher, you are supposed to be talking to me. I have missed you so much the past few years.” Shannon said, glaring at Leora.

“Why did you leave then?” He asked softly.

“I had to, I was no good to anyone the way that I was. There was a lot of grown-up stuff going on.”

“Shannon, we don’t lie to him,” Eddie said, glaring at his ex-wife.

“I am not going to tell my baby any of that. Besides, it’s in the past.”

“I already know. Dad was gone and I was too much work for you by yourself. You decided that you didn’t want to be my mom anymore, and you don’t get to come back now. You don’t get to change your mind.”

Christopher sat up and just stared at Shannon.

“Who told you that?”

“Abuelo. Leia protected me from Abuelo and Grandma when they tried to take me from Dad, and I won’t let you hurt her feelings.”

Shannon turned a glare up at Leora, who simply blinked and took a drink of her coffee. She wasn’t feeling the best that day, so she was not looking to start anything.

“Sweetheart, I always wanted to be your mom. I wanted to take you with me, but I couldn’t. I always planned to come back for you.” Shannon said, turning her attention back to the little boy.

“That’s why you disappeared, completely, for four years?” Eddie interrupted, staring at her.

“Eddie, can I just talk to my son without your input?”

“No, don’t leave me, Dad,” Christopher said, grabbing hold of Eddie’s arm.

“I’m not going anywhere, I promise. Leia and I are going to stay right here.” Eddie said, dropping a kiss to the top of his head.

“Alright, Shannon, it’s my turn to talk. You go on and on about ‘your son’ and ‘your baby’, so I have a few questions. What is his favorite kind of food?” Leora said, giving Christopher his bottle of water, to help him calm down.

“Easy, hot dogs.”

“Nope, he likes homemade waffles and pizza. What’s his favorite color?”

“Blue?”

“Green,” Christopher said.

Eddie caught on, pretty quickly, to what his wife was doing. He noticed that she had taken to resting her hand on her bump, which meant that she was starting to get dizzy and anxious.

“What does this have to do with anything?”

“A parent knows the things that their children like. They know their favorite activities, and what to do when they are upset. I might not be Chris’s biological mother, but I know him better than you do. I’m the one who held him when he was having nightmares, I’m the one who cooks for him every day, so he doesn’t die from food poisoning. I’m the one who reads him stories and tucks him into bed at night. You are the one who decided that it was too stressful to, essentially, be a single parent to your child, so you left him with Eddie and ran. I picked up the pieces that you left behind. I’m the one who taught Christopher to read and enjoy it, I’m the one who encouraged Eddie to do whatever his heart desired. So, I am tired of you trying to butt your head into our lives, because we just got back to being happy.”

Shannon let her jaw drop as she stared at this woman. She was shocked when someone came walking over to the table and crouched in front of Leora.

“Leia, you are getting really pale. Are you okay?” He asked.

“TK...I…”

“Eddie, I’m going to take her to the car and check her vitals.”

“Okay. Baby, go with TK.”

TK helped Leora stand, Buck coming over to help escort her to the car. Christopher didn’t hesitate to get up and follow them.

“That was rude,” Shannon said.

“No, it wasn’t. Leora would have actually kicked your ass, but she is 22 weeks pregnant and her blood pressure is too low. TK is going to make sure that you didn’t cause my wife to need to go to the hospital. Leave us alone, Shannon, Chris doesn’t need you in his life if all you are going to do is cause stress for everyone around him.”

Eddie promptly stood up and started making his way over to the car. He immediately saw the look of worry on Buck’s face as TK took her vitals.

“We are going to have to go to the emergency room,” TK whispered, taking a step away from Leora.

“How bad?” Eddie asked, looking between TK and Leora.

“Not too bad, but better safe than sorry. I wouldn’t be as worried if her pulse wasn’t so fast compared to how low her pressure is.”

Chapter Text

It only took a few hours at the hospital. Eddie watched them run test after test on his wife, making sure that her rapid drop didn't hurt her or the baby. By the time all of the testing was finished, Leora and Christopher fell asleep on the hospital bed as they waited for the doctor to clear her to go home. Eddie watched them, a small smile on his face. He was still worried about his wife, even though the doctor had said that her drop in blood pressure hadn’t impacted the baby at all.

“Eddie?”

He looked up and saw TK in the doorway.

“Hey TK, come on in. We are just waiting for the all-clear.” He said, offering him a small smile.

“She’s good?” TK asked, walking over to stand next to him.

“Yeah, just the same problem we have been dealing with. I just wish it hadn’t gotten to this point.” He said, looking back over at the bed.

“How was the talk going, before this?”

Eddie sighed.

“Bad, she didn’t really want to listen to Chris, and you know how much independence Leia and I have tried to instill in him. Shannon is just lucky that it was you guys who were backing us up today and not Judd.”

“You know Grace would have punched her in the face for stressing her favorite person.”

They both chuckled at that image. It was a well-known fact around the firehouse that Leora was the favorite Ryder and Diaz, with Christopher a very close second. Soon, the doctor came back with the discharge papers, leaving Eddie and TK to wake the sleeping duo on the bed. Leora woke faster than Christopher, letting TK help her up while Eddie got their son.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

“You are all hovering, I would appreciate it if you would stop now,” Leora said, glaring at the three figures standing in her kitchen.

Buck and Eddie quickly darted out to the backyard, immediately getting attacked by Christopher and his pool noodle. It had been one of Leora’s brighter ideas, a pool noodle to smack people with instead of the lightsaber that Buck was trying to convince her to get. The only person left in the kitchen was Judd, who simply sat down at the island and looked at her.

“I think I will stay right here.” He said, resting his chin on his hands.

“Fine, if you want to play over-protective older brother. You have to make yourself useful and chop salad to go with my enchiladas.” She said, handing him the cutting board and a knife, followed by a head of lettuce and carrots.

“Fine by me. Anything to keep an eye on you.”

She rolled her eyes and turned back to check on the baking pans. She had gotten used to the overprotective acts of all the men in her life, so she simply went about finishing dinner. She heard the front door open and close, and footsteps walking towards the kitchen.

“Gracie,” Judd said, smiling at his wife.

“Judd, are you hoverin’ over your sister again?” Grace asked, putting her hands on her hips and glaring at her husband.

“Maybe I am. She needs someone to hover, Eddie and Buck are too scared.”

“Go outside with the rest of the boys. Only Carlos is allowed back in here since he seems to be the only one of you who can seem to not hover over Leia.”

“Leo…”

“Scoot, before I let Gracie have access to a knife and she stabs you,” Leora said, smiling softly at her brother.

He put his hands in the air and, after dropping a kiss on his wife’s cheek, went outside.

“Thank you for coming to my rescue, I don’t know what to do with those boys today.” She said, turning her attention to her sister-in-law.

Grace wrapped her in a hug, letting her rest her head on her shoulder.

“They are just worryin’ about you, sweetheart. I know it seems like they are hovering and it’s stiflin’, but they are trying to keep you safe.”

Leora sighed.

“I know that I do, it just feels like they are tryin’ too hard. This is something I’ve been dealin’ with my entire life, so I’m not used to all this attention.”

“I know. But, they are tryin’ to keep you and baby safe, and you can’t really fault them. After yesterday, they are goin’ to worry about you.”

Grace dropped a kiss to the side of her head before tilting her head so she was looking at her.

“You are always the voice of reason, Gracie.” She said, smiling brightly.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leora brushed a hand over her bump as she laid in bed, waiting for Eddie to emerge from the bathroom. She wasn’t exactly tired, but she knew that she would be asleep as soon as her husband had climbed into bed with her.

“You okay, baby? You look a little lost in thought.” Eddie said, coming out of the bathroom.

“I don’t know. I still feel a little spacy, but I don’t really feel tired. Does that make sense?” She replied, looking up at him.

“Yeah, it does. The past two days have been a little weird, haven’t they?” He asked, climbing into the bed next to her.

“Yeah. I’m still trying to figure out how exactly Shannon found out where we are since no one but Maddie knows. She hasn’t even told Chim, so it makes no sense.”

She shifted herself onto her side, moving her body pillow so it was under her belly.

“Me too. Carlos said that he called Maddie to see if she could ask around up there. Right now, I’m more concerned about her showing up at the firehouse again. I just...don’t want to have to deal with her anymore. We got divorced and you adopted Chris so we didn’t have to deal with her anymore.”

He laid down and faced her. She reached over and rested her hand on his cheek.

“I know. You don’t have to carry all this by yourself, we are a team.” She whispered.

“I don’t want to worry you, you are already dealing with so much.” He said, resting a hand on her bump.

“Baby, I can deal with this. Just because I am pregnant, doesn’t mean that I can’t help you so you aren’t stressed out.”

He sighed and scooted over so he could press his forehead against hers.

“I love you.” He whispered.

“I love you too.” She whispered back.

Chapter Text

Leora had gone inside to take a little nap, leaving the rest of the guests to start discussing what had happened the past few days. Eddie, Buck, Carlos, and TK hadn’t told Judd the extent of what was said during their sit down, but they had no qualms telling Grace. Grace was more likely to let it simmer until Shannon really screwed up, while Judd would immediately want to kill her for some of the stuff that had happened.

“Let that woman come near my Leia, she is not going to like me very much,” Grace said, leaning against Carlos as they sat outside.

“I mean, if she had tried anything physical yesterday, Carlos would have arrested her,” TK said.

Carlos nodded, taking a drink of his beer. He was just as protective over Leora as Judd, only he had a badge that would help him if he really needed it.

“She’s just lucky that Eddie was more worried about Leia, he looked about ready to pop her head off and walk away,” Buck said, pulling TK back against his chest.

“I think he was ready to kill her when Christopher started trying to hide away in Leia’s side,” TK said, lacing his fingers through Buck’s.

The group at the table looked over at Eddie, Christopher, and Judd, who were sitting off to the side. Christopher had been very clingy to his father and mother, not wanting either of them out of his sight. The fact that he was still outside while Leora was inside was a big step.

“I’ll tell you one thing, she shows up unannounced again, and I might arrest her on principle,” Carlos said, looking over at his boyfriends.

They were grinning from ear to ear, nodding. Grace bumped him with her elbow.

“I will be right behind you. As long as you turn a blind eye to the fact that I plan on kicking her butt.”

“Deal.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leora sighed as she settled herself at her desk. She was having one of those days where she couldn’t settle, made worse by the fact that the baby wouldn’t settle either. She patiently pushed at a little foot that was trying to push into her ribcage.

“Mom?” Christopher said from the couch.

“Yes, sweetheart?” She asked, welcoming the distraction.

“Can we go and visit Dad and Bucky?” He asked.

“Of course. Let me put on my shoes and we will go.”

She slowly stood, resting her hand on her belly for a moment as the baby kicked her again. Putting on her shoes was starting to get difficult, especially since she got dizzy every time she had to bend over, so she had started wearing more slip-on shoes.

“You okay, Mom?” Christopher asked, resting his head against her arm.

“Yeah, your brother has decided that it is time to kick me. Come on, he’ll calm down once he hears Uncle Judd.”

They made their way out to her car, Christopher letting her help him get in the car before she eased herself in. At this point, she was all baby and she knew that she was only slightly over halfway through. As they drove, Christopher told her a story about what he and Buck had gotten up to when he had babysat a few days before.

When they pulled into the station, Christopher was the one who noticed a very familiar car parked next to the building.

“Uh oh.” He said, letting her help him out of the car.

“What’s wrong?” Leora asked, crouching down the best that she could.

“That’s Abuelo and Grandma’s car.” He whispered.

Leora looked over to where he was pointing. When she noticed that he was correct, she sighed and straightened herself up. She hadn’t changed out of her lounge clothes, so it was very obvious that she was pregnant, a fact that Eddie hadn’t thought to tell his parents when they called to talk to Christopher.

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing that Carlos just pulled up as well.” She said, smiling as the patrol car came to a stop next to them.

“Ah, my favorite Diazs. How are we today?” Carlos said, coming around the car.

“Tired. This one wanted to see his Dad and his brother has decided to try kickboxing apparently.” Leora said, hugging the cop.

As if to prove her point, the baby aimed a kick at Carlos. He chuckled and rested his hand on her bump.

“Come on, un poco, be nice to your mama.” (little bit.) He said, rubbing at the spot he had kicked.

He received a half-hearted kick in return as if to acknowledge the fact that he heard him.

“Come on, you can protect us from my in-laws,” Leora said, taking ahold of his arm as Christopher started moving towards the station.

“Of course I will.”

They made their way in at Christopher’s pace, only to come face-to-face with Eddie and his parents arguing.

“Daddy!” Christopher exclaimed, making his way over to Eddie.

“Mi hijo, this is a nice surprise. How did you convince your Mom to bring you?” Eddie said, hugging Christopher and ignoring his parents.

“I just asked,” Christopher said, smiling.

“He did, I was having a bad day anyway, and being here always makes me smile,” Leora said, drawing everyone’s attention to her.

She heard the sharp intake of breath from Helena as Carlos led her over to Eddie. He then excused himself to go and find his boyfriends before he had to go back to work.

“Hi honey, are you okay now?” Eddie asked, pressing a quick kiss to her lips.

“As soon as your son stops kickboxing, I will be perfect.” She whispered, leaning into him.

“Edmundo, why didn’t you tell us that we were going to be grandparents again?” Ramon asked, glaring at his son.

“Because you don’t approve of my wife and I am not going through that again,” Eddie said, directing Christopher into the kitchen.

Buck, who had come looking for Leora after Carlos had told him that she was there, hugged the little boy and took him to get some lunch. Leora smiled over at him, leaning heavier into her husband’s side.

“We have a right…” Helena started to say.

“No, you don’t. If you had decided that you wanted me to be happy and you were accepting of my relationship, then, maybe, you would have known everything that was going on in our lives. Let me guess, Shannon told you where we were.” Eddie said, narrowing his eyes.

“It doesn’t matter how we found out. We just want to see our grandchildren. I do have to ask, why is Christopher calling her ‘Mom’? Have you completely erased his real mother from his life?” Ramon asked.

“Why does it matter? What he calls me is between me and him, not between Eddie and us. He asked if he could, explained his reasoning, and I told him that he could call me whatever he wants to. Eddie, I’m going to see my brother, I’m feeling a bit off.”

“Baby?”

“I’m fine.”

She pressed a kiss to his cheek and went into the kitchen. She could hear them getting into an argument behind her, and she didn’t want to be privy to it anymore. She knew that they would never win, that Eddie was out from under their thumb and wouldn’t be going back. She didn’t stop walking until she was in her brother’s arms, her face pressed against his chest.

Chapter Text

“Mom! Mom! There’s a monster in my closet!” Christopher said, bursting into the master room.

“Chris, my love, there is not a monster, you had a nightmare,” Leora said, groggily, as she tried to open her eyes.

“Can you come to check?” Christopher asked, shifting back and forth.

Leora sighed. He came over to help her get out of bed and the two went down the hall to his room.

“In there!” He exclaimed, hiding behind her and pointing to the closet.

“Okay, I’ll check but I can promise you there isn’t a monster.” She said, walking towards the closet.

She opened the closet door and saw Buck standing there. She then slammed the door and took a deep breath before turning to Christopher.

“Chris, hon, how bout you go watch cartoons for a while? There’s no monster but your room is a mess.”

“Okay!”

Leora opened the closet door and waited until Christopher was out of earshot.

“Buck, what the FUCK?!” She whisper-screamed.

“I just wanted to surprise Chris. I heard him come in and heard you tell him that you were stressed out and needed a nap. Then, he came in and got in his bed, and I panicked!”

“How long have you been in there??” Leora asked, looking at him as though he had lost his mind.

“TOO LONG OKAY?!” Buck said, taking deep breaths of air.

“Well, it’s your own fault. Now, you are going to go out to the hall, open the door, close it, and pretend like you just got here. And we are not going to breathe a word of this to my husband, because he might just kill you today.”

“I’m sorry if I stressed you out, Leia.”

He leaned over and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“You didn’t, just don’t try to surprise my kid like that again, please.”

“I promise.”

Buck slowly made his way out to the door, while Leora made her way into the living room. As she went into the kitchen, she heard him close the door.

“Bucky!” Christopher exclaimed.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eddie looked over at Carlos, TK, and Buck. Leora was curled up on the couch with her brother, so he felt safe talking to the other men about the drama that was his family.

“I mean, what did your parents expect? For you to just let them back into your life, after how they have treated both you and Leia. They are lucky that she is pregnant and not wanting to put up with any of their crap.” Carlos said, taking a drink from his glass.

“I have no idea. And I still don’t know what I am going to do about them. Leia is stressed out enough about her own body, I don’t need her stressed out about all of them as well.” Eddie sighed, putting his head in his hands.

Carlos looked over at his boyfriends, who had their heads bowed together as they whispered. He knew that they were up to something, he just wasn’t sure what.

"Hey, dumbasses, do you have a plan?" He said, getting their attention really fast.

"Only a stupid one," TK said, shrugging.

"Do it," Eddie said, not moving his head.

“Do you think that’s a good idea? Letting my two dumbasses do something to either your parents or your ex-wife?” Carlos said, looking at him very seriously.

“At this point, I don’t think there is anything too damning that these two could do. I can’t deal with any of it, so. Whatever plan those two have come up with, I am down.”

“You know what, I think I will go and handle your parents while these two deal with Shannon. All you need to do is worry about your wife and son.” Carlos said.

Eddie nodded. Neither he nor Carlos missed the look that TK and Buck shared.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Carlos looked over at his bed, smiling at the sight that greeted him. Even before they had all admitted that they were in love with each other, it was a well-established fact that both of the other men liked to cuddle. Carlos was always welcome to share in their cuddles, and give them some of his vast abundance of body heat.

“Carlos,” Buck whined out, wrapping himself tighter around TK.

“Oh, am I allowed to join this cuddle pile you have going on?” He said, chuckling.

“Cold, TK is stealing all of the body heat.”

Buck was half asleep, refusing to open his eyes.

“How about I just give you a blanket? I have stuff to do while y’all nap all day.”

“Nooo,” Buck whined.

Carlos sighed dramatically and climbed into the bed behind him. He carefully draped himself over Buck’s back and listened to him sigh in contentment.

“There, are you happy now, mi corazón?” (my heart)

“So happy,” Buck whispered, drifting back off to sleep.

Carlos laid there with them for a while, listening to both of them take deep breaths as they slept. He had spent many days and nights wondering what it would feel like to have the men he loved in his bed, and every day was better than he had ever imagined. He knew that he would eventually need to get up and get his chores done since they all had work the following day, but he was content to just lay there for a while and keep Buck warm.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“What is going on around here?” Eddie asked, trying not to laugh.

He had walked into the living room, only to find each member of the crew laying on the couch, talking to Leora’s belly. Funny enough, Carlos was the only one who looked a little sheepish, even though he was just as guilty as the rest of them.

“For your information, Edmundo, they have decided to have a competition to see who can make the baby move the most when they talk. Right now, Carlos is losing because Pequeno doesn’t like to move at all when he’s talking.” Leora said, cocking her head back to look at her husband.

He put his hands up.

“Who’s winning?” Christopher asked, coming to sit next to her.

She hugged him to her side, watching as Eddie leaned down to whisper to her belly.

“It’s a secret, after everyone else is done, I will tell everyone. Do you want a turn, Chris?” She asked, dropping a kiss to the top of his head.

“I had my turn this morning.” He looked up at her and smiled.

“That you did. So, TK, you’re up.”

After everyone had taken their turn whispering to her belly, she started whispering in Christopher’s ear.

“Yeah.” Christopher finally said, smiling.

“Alright, everyone. So, the person who officially makes Pequeno move the least is Buck.”

Buck smiled. He had never really cared about making the baby move because he would simply kick once when he started and then he would fall asleep.

“And the person who makes him move the most?” Eddie asked.

He thought he already knew the answer to that, but he wanted to make sure.

“The person who makes him move the most is Judd.”

The whole crew started protesting, even as Leora and Christopher started laughing. There were calls of favoritism and an unjust judge.

“Hey, you guys are just jealous,” Judd said, smiling and taking a seat next to his sister.

“You guys don’t have to feel a little boy beating up your insides. So you are all winners here, except me.”

Chapter Text

After her doctor's appointment, Leora walked into the living room and immediately regretted leaving Buck and TK to babysit.

“In hindsight, I should have known better to leave a walking-talking column of sass in an adult's body, he's tired, just-got-off-a -hift boyfriend, and my chaotic son alone together in the same room for two hours without adult supervision. My bad.” She said, looking at all three guilty faces.

There were Legos and slime materials all over the hardwood and supplies that they had been using to try and clean up the mess.

“I am so sorry, Leora. I tried to stop them, but they both have those puppy eyes.” TK said, glaring at his much taller boyfriend.

“Oh, I am aware. I will warn you now if Eddie gets home from his overtime and the living room still looks like this, he will kill you.” She crossed her arms just above her belly.

“Don’t worry, we will get it cleaned up immediately. Come on Chris, you can get the Legos with TK and I work on the slime.” Buck said, walking over to press a kiss to the top of her head before going to retrieve some cleaner to help them get the slime off the floor.

“Okay. Hi, Mom, don’t be mean to Bucky, we teamed up on Ty.” Christopher said, coming over to hug her.

“Oh, I am very sure that you did. Ty is a bit of a pushover when it comes to you two and your puppy eyes.” She pressed a kiss to her son’s forehead.

“I would take offense to that statement if it wasn’t true,” TK said, crouching down to start peeling some of the slime off of the floor.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few days later, Buck and TK decided that they were ready to go and talk to Shannon. They worked hard on finding out exactly where Shannon was staying while she was in Austin. They knew that she hadn’t left, because Eddie was still getting texts from her every day, asking to see Christopher.

“You ready for this, Ty?” Buck asked.

“Nope, you still have Carlos on speed-dial, just in case?”

“Always. Let’s just hope that we don’t need to be bailed out of jail while he’s working. That wouldn’t reflect well on him.”

TK nodded. When they stepped out of the elevator, he gave Buck’s hand another tight squeeze before letting him go. They made their way down the hall, pausing when they came to her door. Before either one of them could turn and run, Buck knocked on the door.

“Edmun...oh, you aren’t Edmundo,” Shannon said.

“Nope, my name is Buck. I’m Eddie’s best friend. You seem to be under the misconception that you have a place in his life. We,” he pointed at himself and TK, “are here to tell you that it is time for you to leave our friend and his family alone. You walked out, you asked for a divorce, you lost custody. That is the end of your chapter in all of this. So, just walk away.” Buck said, not moving from his position leaning against the doorframe.

“I can’t believe that Edmundo sent you here to fight his battles for him. What, did he make me out like the big, bad wolf?” Shannon said, rolling her eyes.

“No, actually, he is busy trying to take care of his family. We offered to come and talk to you so that he doesn’t have to deal with you and his parents at the same time. So, the way that I see it, you have two options. You can either leave Eddie and Christopher alone or you will be arrested for stalking, simple as that.” TK said, crossing his arms.

“You don’t have any proof and no cop will believe you,” Shannon smirked.

“You want to bet? Our boyfriend is a cop and he knows all about this. So, go ahead and try. The next time you show up at our firehouse, you will be leaving in cuffs. Come on Buck, we have to get to work.”

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, Carlos was waiting at the firehouse to surprise his boyfriends. He had gotten off shift a little early because it was overtime, and he knew that both of their shifts were getting ready to start.

“Excuse me, we are looking for Edmundo Diaz.” He heard a voice say behind him.

He came face-to-face with Eddie’s parents.

“I’m sorry, but he isn’t here.”

“Oh no, would you mind telling us where he lives? We want to surprise him and our grandson.”

“And Leora?” He asked, crossing his arms.

He noticed the slight look of disgust that passed over Helena’s face as he said her daughter-in-law’s name.

“Yes, of course.”

“Well, I’m sorry, but I am fully aware of the strain on your relationship with your son and his family, so I don’t think that I will be telling you where he lives.”

Ramon looked at him in shock.

“What has that woman been telling you about us?” Helena growled out.

“Ma’am, I understand how close some families are, trust me, I still go to my parents’ house every Sunday. But, I can tell you that you cannot expect to have a relationship with your son and Christopher if you are unwilling to accept the people he loves. I have had the privilege of watching Eddie and Leora for months, and I have never seen two people who love each other as much, or as purely, as they do. She loves your grandson as if she was the one who gave birth to him, and she has worried ever since she found out that she was pregnant, about how Christopher was going to react.”

Ramon looked thoughtful, while Helena had a storm of emotions on her face.

“We have a right to see our son and grandson, without that woman interfering.” Helena insisted.

“Ma’am, I am a police officer. I am going to tell you this once and only once. If I find out, from Eddie or Leora, that you are trying to find him without his permission, then I will not hesitate to arrest you for stalking. Now, would you please leave firehouse property before I have to escort you off?”

Helena huffed and stomped away, while Ramon gave Carlos a nod and followed after his wife. When he turned around, he was met with a round of applause from the 126 members that had already arrived for their shift.

“That was beautiful. I wish Eddie could have been here to see that.” Judd said, clapping him on the shoulder.

“That was hot as fuck.” Buck said.

“Workplace, I don’t want to know,” Owen said.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eddie woke up early on Leora’s birthday. He knew that Grace and Judd were taking her out for the day, so he, Buck, and TK could set up for her party, but he wanted to do something nice for her. So, he trudged his way into the kitchen and started thinking. He didn’t want to try and poison his wife, so he went for her favorite breakfast food right now: Frosted Flakes.

Going back into the bedroom, he found his wife awake and rubbing at her stomach.

“Good morning, love of my life. Happy birthday.” He said, placing the tray he was carrying over her legs.

He then leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips. She returned the kiss with a smile before looking down at the tray.

“What is all this?” She asked.

“Here you go, my dearest,” He beamed, pride evident in their speech as she let out a soft laugh at the contents inside. “I made you the finest bowl of Frosted Flakes that I could find in the cupboard. And I included a cup of coffee, just the way you like it.”

Leora laughed softly, reaching up to cup his face.

“Thank you, my love, it’s one of the best breakfasts I have ever gotten.”

Chapter Text

“Where’s my coffee?” Leora said, glaring at the empty cup that sat on the counter.

“Maybe you ran out?” TK said, walking over to make her another cup.

“No, I made coffee, walked away to pee, and now it’s gone. Where is it, you bastard?” She glared at him.

Tommy, who had been recently added to their little family gatherings, was watching from where she was sitting at the kitchen island.

“I would never mess with your coffee, Leia because Buck and Carlos would help you hide my body if I did. Here, a fresh cup just for you.” He handed her the cup, pressed a kiss to her cheek, and went in search of his boyfriends.

“Can I ask how many cups of coffee you have had already today?” Tommy asked, watching Leora take a drink from her cup.

“Four or five. I had to get up early today, so it’s been stressful. Why?”

Leora rubbed at her belly, pushing at a little foot that was pressing against her ribcage.

“How pregnant are you?” She asked.

“28 weeks.”

“Should you be ingesting that much caffeine?” She asked, looking over at her.

“Oh yeah, you weren’t around quite as much. I have low blood pressure, which includes random drops that make me pass out. So, my doctor recommended caffeine so that I don’t end up in the hospital.”

Tommy went to reply, but Eddie walked into the room before she could. He walked over to his wife and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. Leora looked over and rested her forehead against his cheek, taking a deep breath. Tommy was used to their displays of affection, but this was different. Seeing Eddie, who was very clear just coming in from playing in the water with their son, and Leora, who was still wearing the clothes that she had put on to nap in after her outing with her brother, was not an image that she had ever thought that she was going to see.

“I swear, if you take another one of my shirts, I will have no clothes.” He said softly, pressing another kiss to her forehead.

“Babe, I share your closet. I will return them, eventually.”

An hour or so later, Buck and Carlos carried out the cake that they had made her. She smiled, hugging Christopher tighter as Eddie lit the candles.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Leia, happy birthday to you!” They all sang.

She blew out the candles, smiling brightly at all of them.

“Happy birthday, Mom,” Christopher said, smiling and pressing a kiss to her cheek.

“Thank you, my love.” She replied, hugging him close.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hey. hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, are you awake yet?” Buck asked, laying his head on the pillow next to her.

“Fuck off.” Leora groaned, cracking her eyes open to glare at him.

“That sounds like a yes to me!” Buck cheered, giving her a bright smile.

“If you don’t get your head off my pillow and your face out of mine, I am going to punch you in the nose.” She said, pulling the blanket up over her head.

“Come on Leia, I know I’m your favorite and you want to wake up.”

She pulled the blanket down and aimed a light punch at his nose. He laughed and pressed a kiss to her forehead. He climbed off of the bed and went down the hall, letting her get up at her own pace.

She eventually made her way out to the kitchen, where Buck was making breakfast, and immediately put a cup of coffee in front of her.

“So, Chris is off at school, Eddie is working a short overtime shift, we have a couple of hours left until we need to spend time with people.” He said, turning back to the pan on the stove.

“That sounds amazing. Whatever shall we do?”

When Eddie got home, he was not surprised at all to see Leora and Buck on the couch. Neither one of them noticed the fact that he was there until Buck got up and went into the kitchen.

“Your husband is here!” He called.

“Thank you, Evan! Hello husband, would you like to cuddle and watch a movie with us?”

“Yes, I would.”

He took a seat next to her on the couch.

“Hey, fuckwad! Hurry up, or we’re gonna start movie night without you!” Leora shouted.

Eddie snickered and held her close, letting her rest her head on his chest.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I guess I’ll keep the ice cream to myself,” Buck retorted, coming out of the kitchen and taking a seat on the loveseat.

“The hell you will. I am almost 30 weeks pregnant, and I will physically maim you if you keep the ice cream away from me.”

She glared at him over Eddie’s chest, making both mean chuckles.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Aren't you supposed to help me?" Leora said, glaring at TK.

"What do you mean? I am helping!" He insisted, smiling up at her.

"You making paper airplanes out of the wrapping paper is not helping."

He grinned and proceeded to throw one of the airplanes across the room. Leora threw a roll of tape at him, before going back to wrapping.

“I am a much better taper than I am a wrapper.” TK insisted.

“Well, fine. You can tape the paper while I wrap. But, if they aren’t wrapped when Chris gets home, I will stab you and make you stitch up your own stab wound.” She glared at him.

“Yes ma’am, whatever you need. I am at your service.”

He gave her a salute.

While Leora’s birthday had been a big production, Christopher’s own birthday was a small affair. It was only going to be those who were the closest to family that would be attending. Leora had been stressing about it for weeks, especially since this would be the first birthday that she would be celebrating as his mom, rather than just his father’s girlfriend.

By the end of the night, Christopher was sound asleep pressed against Leora, who was sleeping with her head leaned back against the back of the couch. Eddie smiled and snapped a picture, before leaving them for the guests in the yard.

Chapter Text

Eddie was not surprised at all to see his wife come into the ER. Even though she was waddling, both him and Buck had the common sense to get out of her way when she got to them. She made a beeline for the hospital bed, where her brother laid.

“Are you okay?” She asked, looking him over.

“I’m okay, just a couple of bumps and bruises. Which one of them called you?” Judd said, looking up at her in fear.

“Does it matter? Did Owen even try to stop you?”

“Yeah.”

“Good, you dropped this!” She said, looking at him with a hard glare.

“Dropped what?” He asked.

She smacked him upside the head.

“Your common sense, you moron, what the hell are you thinking?”

“Ow, Leia. I was thinking that there were more people in there that needed help. I didn’t think after that, I just ran into the building. I didn’t realize that the building was getting ready to collapse.”

She smacked him again.

“You didn’t think that Owen was telling you to get out of there for a reason? I should smack you harder. It’s no wonder he’s worried about all you idiots. Between the three of you and TK, I don’t know who’s worse. You just wait until Gracie gets here.”

Judd had the decency to look even more terrified at the mention of his wife.

“You called Gracie?” He whispered.

“Of course I did, she deserves to know how much of an idiot you are.”

Eddie decided that it was time for her to settle down and walked over to wrap an arm around her. He patiently pulled her back against his chest and leaned down.

“Alright, mi amor, it’s time to take a breath. Save a piece of him for Grace, you know she will get jealous if you tear him to shreds before she gets here.” He whispered softly in her ear.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Okay, so what if—” TK said, looking over at Buck.

He was laying on their bed while Buck got dressed to go out.

“No,” Buck said, not even turning to look at his boyfriend.

He was trying to concentrate on buttoning his shirt, so he wouldn’t get distracted by the adorable person that was laying on the bed. He was already running a little bit behind schedule because he had been enticed into bed by TK already

“What do you mean no?” TK asked, rolling over so he was on his stomach.

“Every time you start with what if, we end up in some ridiculous scenario and I’m in some sort of trouble I don’t need to be! Carlos almost had to arrest us the last time you had a what-if thought.” He said, finally turning to look at him.

TK offered him a bright smile, laying his head on his arms.

"Carlos wouldn't have arrested us, he would have had Mitchell do it and then bailed us out. You look hot."

"Don't change the subject, Tyler. No what if situations or I will tie you to the bed."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“You know, this would go a whole lot faster if you had your other brain cell here helping you,” Leora said.

Eddie glared at her from where he was trying to put the crib together. He had the instructions laying open in front of him, but the two pieces in his hand were not going together with the way that the instructions said that they should.

“I do not need Buck’s help to put a crib together, it shouldn’t be this hard.”

Leora chuckled and rubbed at her stomach, rocking in the rocking chair that they had already put in the nursery.

“I’m just glad that you know who your other brain cell is.” She said.

He groaned with frustration and glared down at the pieces. He was determined to get the crib together, but he didn’t want to have to break it before he got it together.

“Fine, call Buck. If I don’t get some help, we are just going to have a broken crib.”

She chuckled and pushed herself up from the chair, in search of her phone. With Shannon, he had been absent for most of her pregnancy, so every part of watching his wife as she grew their child was special and exciting.

Leora returned, Christopher in tow.

“Hey buddy, you get recruited to help?” He asked, hugging Christopher tight when he took a seat next to him on the floor.

“Yeah, Mom said you need all the help you can get.”

When Buck arrived, he immediately came into the nursery.

“Have no fear, Buck is here.” He said, making Leora and Christopher laugh.

In no time, he and Eddie had the crib put together and put where Leora wanted it.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“No Eddie, you are going out with the boys, and Gracie and I are going to stay right here. You deserve a night out before our lives get a little hectic with two kids.” Leora said, cuddling with Christopher in their bed.

“Are you sure, baby? I can…” Eddie started to say.

“Are you two still in here fightin’ about this?” Grace said, leaning against the door frame.

“Eddie is trying to tell me that he doesn’t need to go out, that we can just have a quiet night at home. Could you go grab Judd? Maybe he can talk so sense into him.” Leora said, making Christopher giggle.

“No, that will not be necessary. If you are sure, I’ll go.” Eddie said, finishing putting on his shirt.

“That’s what I thought. There is no need for you to worry, Gracie won’t let anything happen to us, and it’s not like we won’t be able to reach any of you if we need to.”

Eddie sighed and leaned down to press a kiss on her forehead. Christopher laughed as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of his head as well. Leora smiled and he leaned down to rest his head next to her belly.

“You behave yourself, Pequeno, your Mama, and Bubby will tell on you if you don’t.”

The family laughed, especially as the baby aimed a kick directly where his head had just been.

When he got home, he smiled at the scene he found. Leora was letting Christopher and Grace paint her belly, and it had turned into a group effort. There were stars and hearts, as well as a couple of rainbows and smiled scrawled across the expanse of her belly.

“What is all this?” He asked, kicking his shoes off.

He walked into the room, followed by Judd.

“The baby likes when Grace talks to him and Chris wanted to draw on my belly. So, I figured, two birds with one stone.”

Leora tilted her head, accepting the gentle peck he pressed to her lips. Judd quickly pressed a kiss to her forehead, making her smile.

Chapter Text

Leora’s first instinct was to call Carlos as soon as she looked out the peephole and saw Shannon standing on her front step.

“Hey Leia, what’s wrong?” Carlos answered.

“Shannon is standing on my front step. She isn’t supposed to know where we live, Los. She isn’t supposed to have our address at all.” She whispered into the phone.

Christopher came wandering down the hall, curious as to what had caused Leora to go into such a panic. She hugged him tightly to her side.

“Alright, I am on my way. You can let her in, just leave me on the phone and put it in your pocket. Fifteen minutes, Leia, I promise.”

“Okay.”

She put her phone in the pocket of her hoodie and directed Christopher to go to the living room while she opened the door. He looked at her, worried, and went to sit on the couch. When she opened the door, Shannon looked surprised to see Leora.

“What are you doing here?” She asked.

“I think I should be asking you that. You are the one who isn’t supposed to know where we live. But, if you must, come in.”

Leora stepped to the side the best that she could. Shannon tried to push past her, only to trip over the carpet in the entrance hall.

“Christopher, I’m here to take you home,” Shannon said, spotting Christopher on the couch as soon as she entered the living room.

“I am home, thank you,” Christopher said, standing to walk over to Leora.

“Sweetheart, you can go and watch TV in mine and Dad’s room. I will be right here if you need me.” Leora said, pressing a kiss into his hair.

“No, I want to stay right here with you. Did you call Dad?” He whispered the question to her.

“Los. Alright, go back to your cartoons, we will sit at the table.”

Christopher went back to the couch, completely ignoring Shannon as he went. Leora pointed the other woman to the dining room table. Once they were sat down, Leora rested a hand on the side of her belly, where the baby was kicking up a storm.

“You really let him walk all over you, don’t you? Kids shouldn’t feel empowered to disagree with their parents.” Shannon said, glaring at her.

“Your kids should feel safe disagreeing with you. They should feel able to express a dissenting viewpoint, knowing that their feelings will be heard & acknowledged.” Leora said, crossing her arms and glaring at Shannon.

“That is nonsense. I was raised to respect my parents and that meant not arguing with anything that they said.”

“You see, that is where we were raised completely differently. I respect my father, and all four of my brothers, and I will be the first one to argue with that man. And, I really don’t want any parenting advice from you, seeing as you thought it would be appropriate to walk out on your child.”

She rubbed at her stomach again, starting to get a little light-headed. She knew something was wrong, but she needed to keep that to herself until Carlos got there. She didn’t have to wait long, as she heard Carlos use his key to enter the house.

“Hey, hey, Leia. You need to stay awake for me.” Carlos whispered, cupping her face.

She went to reply before her vision went black.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Why does the nurse think you’re my husband?” Leora asked when Carlos stepped through the door.

Carlos took him in and Leora can see the stress leave his shoulders as he sighs deeply.

“They weren’t going to let me see you,” he says, moving to take a seat at the chair by her bed.

“So you told them we’re married?” She teased. She doesn’t mind one bit. She’d have done the same thing if it was any of her boys in the bed.

Carlos just shrugged.

“Are you okay?”

Leora sighed and looked down at the heart monitor that they had put in her stomach. She could hear the steady beat of the baby’s heart, which reassured her.

“I don’t know. My blood pressure plummeted and the doctors are worried because I’m still 8 weeks out from my due date. I kinda want my actual husband. Not that you aren’t an awesome fake husband, but I don’t want to fight with my Bucky for you, because he will lose and I will be sad. Not to mention, you come with a TK.”

Carlos chuckled and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand that he had taken a hold of.

“It’s a good thing I called him and he is already on his way, along with your brother. I hope you don’t mind, but I took Christopher to Tommy.”

“No, that’s okay. At least I know that he is okay.”

A few minutes later, she heard her brother’s booming voice. She took a deep breath and waited for the flurry of activity that was going to come from the two most overprotective men in her life. Sure enough, as soon as they stepped foot into her room, they were darting over to the bed.

“Leia, what in the….”

“Are you okay?”

“What happened?”

“Carlos, you better…”

“Alright, both of you, cut it out before I start throwing things at you.” She raised her voice slightly.

All three men turned to look at her. She glared at them.

“Alright Leia, why don’t you tell us what is going on?” Eddie said, taking her hand.

“Shannon came to the house today. I don’t know how she got our address, so I called Carlos as soon as I saw her on the step. He was on the phone the entire time, and I’m sure he recorded everything.” At Carlos’ nod, she continued. “I took her into the dining room because Chris was in the living room and didn’t want to leave me alone with her. We got in an argument over parenting styles and I felt off. When Carlos and Mitchell came in, Mitchell arrested Shannon while Carlos called for an ambulance. I fainted.”

Eddie rested his forehead against her hand, taking a couple of deep breaths.

“I’m going to kill her.” He whispered.

“Get in line,” Judd said.

“I’m leaving before this becomes premeditated and I become a material witness. Leia, I will see you tomorrow.” Carlos said, leaning over to press a kiss on her forehead.

“Bring my Bucky and my Ty, I miss them.”

Chapter Text

“Laughter is such a wonderful thing,” Buck said, resting his chin on his hand, smiling unwavering as always. “Happiness has never been so easily wrapped up in a single sound.”

“Are you talking about me or one of your boyfriends?” Leora asked, running her fingers through Christopher’s hair.

As soon as Buck had entered the hospital room with the preteen, Chris had climbed up into the bed and fell asleep next to her.

“You and Chris. I have never felt happier than when I hear you two laughing, especially these days.”

After an hour of talking, Leora could see a look in his eyes. She prided herself on being able to read her boys, especially Buck and Eddie since they were both so hard to read for most people.

“Bucky, what’s wrong?” She asked.

He sighed.

“I got a call from the 118. They all apologized for the things that they said and did because of the lawsuit. Then, Bobby asked me if I would consider coming back to LA.”

"Do you want to go back?" Leora asked quietly.

Buck focused on fiddling with his thumbs for a moment, brow creased as he tried to decide.

"I don't know," was all he answered with.

“I can tell that you have been thinking about it. I can tell that something is weighing on you. Have you talked to your boyfriends about any of this?”

“Sometimes I can’t describe what I’m feeling. I don’t know how to talk about something I can’t put into words.”

She reached over and took his hand in hers.

“Buck, this is something you need to talk to them about. I can tell that you don’t actually want to go, it’s all over your face. But, you still have the urge that they are your family and you need to please them. You are allowed to have your own life, and you have built a life all your own. Just, talk to them, because they need to know what is going on.” She said softly.

He sighed and squeezed her hand.

“You’re right, as always. I love the life that I have built here and I don’t want them to ruin that. But, how do I tell them that?”

“Tell Maddie and she’ll set them straight.”

They both laughed softly, trying not to disturb the sleeping child.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“My bed feels empty when you’re not with me,” Eddie said, resting his forehead against his wife’s.

“And I bet it is not the only thing that feels empty.” She replied.

He pulled back with a laugh. They were keeping their voices low because Christopher was sleeping against her side.

“You’re staring.” She said after a few minutes.

“Shamelessly so, yes.” He smiled at her.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Let me get this straight-" Eddie started to say with a yawn.

Buck interrupted him.

"Good luck with that”

"That’ll take so long- Let me clarify. you barge into my house, knock at my bedroom door, walk-in, wake me up at-" Eddie looked at their watch, surprised- "4:37 am, just to cuddle?"

"Yes, and?" Buck said, flopping back down on the bed.

"My life would be so normal without you in it, Buck," Eddie said, shaking his head.

"I love you too, Eds. I figured that you would be lonely in this big bed all by yourself since my Leia is still in the hospital until Pequeno is born. Plus, TK and Carlos are both working tonight and I’m lonely in the condo by myself."

Eddie sighed and rolled his eyes.

“Uh-huh, I completely believe you. Just, go to sleep before Chris wakes up and wants to join us.”

He rolled over and closed his eyes. He heard Buck situating himself under the blankets and sigh.

“If you think he won’t be in this bed, cuddling with us until it’s actually time to wake up, you are sadly mistaken,” Buck whispered.

“Shut up and go to sleep.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I cannot begin to outline the ways in which you are a couple of goddamn idiots. I - Literally, I don’t know where to start. Actually, here’s my idea: when you dumbasses realized you had no idea what you were doing, why didn’t you simply pick up your phone and call one of the many people you are acquainted with who do know? Or, better yet, let the police officers on the scene deal with all of it?” Leora said before slamming her phone down into her lap.

The call was from Buck, telling her that he and TK had gotten into some trouble. She was always his first call, so she could help them if they needed help getting out of their trouble. How she was supposed to do that from a hospital bed, she didn’t know, but she had way too much to deal with. Picking back up her phone, she scrolled through her contacts.

“Hello?”

“Carlos, you need to go to the firehouse and talk to your idiots. They did something and I am not in a place where I can help them.” She sighed out, watching her own heart rate.

It was actually elevated to what would be considered a normal level for everyone else. The baby’s heartbeat was steady, as it had been her entire pregnancy.

“Alright, sweetheart, I will go down there. You calm down and focus on yourself. I’m sure that Eddie is on his way to you. I will let you know what is going on if one of my idiots doesn’t do it first.”

“Thank you, Los.” She said softly.

“Anytime, Leia.”

When he arrived at the firehouse, Carlos found both of his idiot boyfriends sitting outside of Owen’s office, much like being sat outside the principal’s office.

“So, which one of you wants to explain to me why I had a very distressed Leia calling me from the hospital to tell me that my boyfriends were both idiots?”

"Calm down, things could have gone much worse," Buck said, even as he cowered slightly under Carlos’ angry look.

"Worse?! How could things have been worse?!" Carlos said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Well... No one died, did they? See, could have been so much worse!" TK said, trying to come to the defense of their boyfriend.

“Really? So, when Judd stopped me and told me that you both punched a guy and none of them knows why that’s not a day gone wrong?”

“Okay, so it wasn’t for no reason. The guy was drunk and took a swing at T when he was trying to help him.” Buck said.

Chapter Text

:...that puts them in just 16 countries out of the 54 in Africa, of which 5 are island countries with no territory on the continental mainland. That's 30%, quite a long way shy of all, and as you can see many of those countries that do have giraffes only have a tiny portion of their territory within giraffes' habitats. So, we can’t say that there are giraffes in the entire continent of Africa.” Buck said, showing Leora all the different types of giraffes.

“This is what you have been teaching my kid?” She asked, smiling brightly.

After six weeks in the hospital, she was starting to get a little bit stir crazy. It had gotten worse since they put her on bed rest and they would only allow her to walk around when there was someone to help her. That included having to go to the bathroom.

“Yep. Not only that but giraffes in different areas have different patterns and it's so cool.” He said a bright smile on his face.

“I love how invested you get when you learn things. Thank you for being you, Bucky.” She said softly.

“Anytime. Want to hear a fun fact about them?”

“Yes, please. I could use a laugh.

“A giraffe’s neck is too short to reach the ground. To drink, giraffes first have to splay their forelegs and/or bend their knees, and only then can they lower their necks to reach the surface of the water.” Buck said with a smile.

“That is a rather fun fact. I would love to see that. Are you teaching my son all of these facts?”

“Of course, who else am I going to share all of my interesting facts with, since you are in here all the time?”

“Ha-ha. You are so hilarious.”

He smiled and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand that he was holding.

“I’m hilarious. You just wait until you get home. You won’t be able to get rid of any of us.”

“Wait, I was supposed to be rid of you guys at some point?”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Some studies have suggested that low blood pressure during pregnancy may lead to problems, such as stillbirth and low birth weight. Trusted Source. However, other research has shown additional risk factors are to blame for these outcomes.” Leora’s doctor, Dr. Smith, told her.

She looked over at Eddie, who was sitting beside her bed. He took her hand and squeezed it. They were working on her birth plan since they were only two weeks out from her due date and she was already starting to show signs of labor.

“What do you suggest then, Dr. Smith?” Eddie asked.

“I recommend against an epidural if we can avoid it. One common side effect of spinal anesthesia is maternal hypotension or low blood pressure, or sometimes this is also referred to as a hypotensive crisis. Maternal hypotension may cause nausea and vomiting in the mother, and can seriously harm the baby. It can also lead to stillbirth and serious birth injuries. So, we want a happy and healthy Mom and baby at the end of all this. So, we are going to try all-natural, if that is okay with you, Leia?”

“Anything to make sure Pequeno makes it into this world.” She said with a smile.

“That’s what we like to hear. So, we are going to be watching for signs of active labor and we will go from there. Do you have everything else sorted out for outside the hospital?”

“Yes, our son is going to stay with my brother and his wife, so Eddie and Buck can be here with me. My brother doesn’t tolerate seeing me in pain well, and I want to spare his feelings.”

Dr. Smith chuckled.

“I understand. I have a sister myself and that is one thing I don’t think that I could make it through.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Asian elephants can live up to 80 years or longer; African elephants, 60-70 years. In captivity, however, elephants tend to have a shorter life expectancy due to ailments caused by unnatural living conditions.” Christopher read to Leora as he laid in the bed with her.

“That is very interesting. What else can you tell me about African elephants?” She asked, resting her head on top of his.

“The African elephant was split into subspecies, the forest, and the savanna. The two African species look very different from each other. African savanna elephants, also known as African bush elephants, are the largest living land mammal in Africa. They have evolved to twice the size of the forest elephant with large pointed and triangular-shaped ears and outward-curving tusks. The forest elephants, found in dense West African forests, have longer, straighter downward-pointing tusks and rounder ears and are darker than the savannah elephant. The forest elephant has five toenails on its front feet and four on its hind feet, like the Asian elephant. The savanna elephant has four, or sometimes five, on the front feet and only three on the back. The forest elephants live in smaller family groups than the savanna elephants and have a very different diet, with a fondness for fruit when available. Also, they have smoother skin rather than the moisture-collecting deeply wrinkled skin of savannah elephants.” Christopher read, looking up at her.

“That is very interesting. Did Buck get you this book because of the giraffes?” She asked, running her fingers through his hair.

“Yeah. He said that you and I both like to learn things and you would find elephants just as cool as I do. Do you think that we can go to the zoo after the baby is born?”

“Of course we can. I would love to be able to go exploring without having to waddle my way around.”

Christopher giggled and snuggled closer to her.

“I miss being able to cuddle with you.” He whispered, placing a hand on her belly.

“I know. But, pretty soon, you are going to have your baby brother to cuddle with, and then I’m never going to get any cuddles from either of my boys.”

Christopher smiled up at her. Her eyes started to drift closed, something Christopher was used to since they had first found out that she was pregnant. What he was not prepared for was for all of the machines in the room to start going crazy.

“Bucky, what’s happening?” Christopher asked when Buck lifted him from the bed as the nurses and Eddie went running over to her.

“I don’t know, Buddy, I don’t know.”

Chapter Text

Eddie smiled as Buck helped Christopher hold his brother. Michael Evan Diaz had made his appearance into the world with as much drama as he could muster. Eddie could still hear the frantic beeping of the machines as his wife and baby’s heart rates both started to drop rapidly. They rushed her down to surgery, letting him in just in time to hear the baby’s first cries.

“What do you think, Chris? Should we keep him?” Eddie asked, crouching down next to the chair.

“He’s so tiny, Dad. Is he supposed to be this tiny?” Christopher asked, looking at the baby’s face.

“All babies as little at first. Don’t worry, he’ll grow. You were that little once, and look at you now.” He stood and pressed a kiss to Christopher’s forehead.

“He is so cute. I mean, you made Chris, so I wasn’t expecting anything less than an adorable kid, especially since Leia was involved.”

Eddie smiled softly, running a finger down the newborn’s cheek. He huffed softly, staying asleep.

“Where is Mom?” Christopher asked.

“The doctors had to look at something and then they will bring her up to us, I promise,” Eddie said, pressing a kiss into Christopher’s hair.

Buck looked up at his friend and smiled sadly. He had seen the look of utter devastation he had on his face when he had come back from the delivery room, especially when the nurse wheeled the baby into the room.

“Hey, Chris. I bet your mom is going to be really hungry when she gets up here, so how about you and I go and get some burgers and fries. Maybe, I can be persuaded to get milkshakes too.” Buck said, carefully lifting the newborn from his brother’s arms.

“Okay,” Christopher whispered.

Buck handed the baby over to Eddie and helped Christopher up. Once they had left the room, Eddie took a seat in the chair and looked down at his new baby.

“She’s going to be okay, she has to be okay.” He whispered.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Judson Ryder, I swear, if you fuss over me one more time, that baby will be the only one that you and Gracie have,” Leora said, glaring at her brother.

“Baby sister, you would look a lot more threatenin’ if you didn’t look as white as a ghost and have two kids cuddled up with you,” Judd said.

It was true, she had lost a lot of blood when they had gone in and done the c-section, so she was still missing a lot of color. She also had her newborn in one arm and Christopher sleeping against her side.

“Judd, leave the woman alone. She just had a baby and almost gave her husband a heart attack. You can pull your big brother act when she is home and completely healed. I want to watch her kick your butt.” Grace said, leaning over to press a kiss to the side of her head.

“Thank you, Gracie. Would you like to meet your nephew?”

“I would.”

Leora happily handed over the infant, turning her attention to the sleeping boy next to her. Grace, meanwhile, looked at the sleeping newborn. He had more of Eddie’s coloring and there was no doubting who’s genes had won out in the end. Grace gently ran a finger over the baby’s cheek, making him sniff at her before settling down again.

“Alright, stop keeping us in suspense. What did you name him?” Judd asked as Grace handed the baby over to him.

“Michael Evan Diaz. Micheal, after Michael the Archangel since he is already such a fighter. Evan is for Buck since he is the reason why we got to come home.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*6 months later*

“Bisabuela!” Christopher exclaimed as he climbed out of the car.

“Christopher, mi bisnieto! Oh, cuánto te he echado de menos.” (My great-grandson! Oh, how much I've missed you.) Abuela said, hugging him tight when he finally reached her.

“Yo también te extrañé. Traje a mi hermanito para verte.” (I missed you too. I brought my baby brother to see you.) He said with a bright smile.

“Hola, Abuela. Es tan bueno verte en persona.” (Hello, Abuela. It is so good to see you in person.) Eddie said, smiling as he walked over to wrap her in a hug.

“Oh, mi nieto,” Abuela said, squeezing him as tightly as she could.

“Hola, Abuela, ¿te gustaría conocer a tu bisnieto más nuevo?” (Hello, Abuela, would you like to meet your newest great-grandson?) Leora said, approaching them slowly.

She was carrying Michael in her arms since she couldn’t carry the car seat quite yet. Abuela smiled and looked down at the sleeping baby.

“Oh, mi nieta, he looks just like Edmundo.” She said, running a finger down his cheek.

“He does, it drives my brother crazy.”

“Come in, come in. Josephina, come see the baby.”

Eddie wrapped an arm around his wife and led her into the house behind Christopher and Abuela.

“I missed your Abuela.” She whispered.

“I know, me too.”

An hour later, the small family heard a knock at the door. When Pepa went to open it, she chuckled and smiled.

“Evanito, why are you knocking at the door? Get in here.” She said, ushering the other man in.

“Evanito. Edmundo, why didn’t you tell me that my Evanito was here too?” Abuela said, smacking Eddie in the back of the head.

“Ow, Abuela. I’m sorry, I didn’t know that he would be coming over after seeing his sister.”

“Don’t get mad at him, I didn’t tell him I would be stopping by. Hey there superman.” Buck leaned over and pressed a kiss to Abuela’s cheek just as Christopher came darting over to hug his Buck.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eddie came into his bedroom after a long shift and smiled at what he found. Buck, who had gotten off an hour before him, had told him that he didn’t want to go home to an empty condo, was curled up on one edge of the bed. In the middle was Leora, Michael asleep on her chest and Christopher wedged between her and Buck. He quickly stripped out of his clothes and pulled on his pajamas before climbing into bed with them.

He knew that he would wake up to the smell of breakfast, the chatter of his wife and best friend, and the giggling of his children. For now, he was perfectly happy to fall asleep with all of them right there, where they should be.