Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Buck looked down at the pavement below, his mind swirling. The building was already leaning hard after its near complete collapse, and here he was standing on the edge. Ravi looked around, perhaps to distract himself from the thought of the building coming down on them. The old man sandwiched between them groaned. Buck's radio crackled. “Can't go back the way you came?”

Buck exhaled, leaned over and pushed his radio to respond. “No,” he said, breathing through his words. “Ceiling came down, we lost our anchor point.”

Something buckled and blew below their feet. Buck lurched forward and just managed to brace himself on the wall in front of him. As soon as the ground steadied, Buck reached for his radio. His ears were ringing. “Hey Cap, its really unstable up here.”

“Yeah,” his radio crackled. “It's raining concrete down here too. I'm calling for more…”

Gerard's word got lost among Buck's ringing ears. Dust rolled through the air, spiraling like disturbed water. Whatever the captain said down there must have been hopeful. “Any news?” Ravi asked, brushing some debris from the old man's shoulder.

“Uh,” Buck said, trying to think of something. He really didn't want to lead Ravi on. “I think so. Ears are ringing from that explosion. Couldn't hear Cap clearly.”

“Lucky us. At least we didn't end up down there,” Ravi said, gesturing with his head over the chest high wall keeping them from the pavement below.

Buck narrowed his eyes at Ravi. “What? Just trying to lighten the mood,” Ravi muttered, tending to the old man. “No one else is trying to keep things together nowadays.”

“Can we not do this right now,” Buck said, exhaling slowly. “I don’t feel like now is a good time.”

The old man between them groaned and glanced at them. “Sounds lovely guys. Can we wait until we're on the ground to get pushy?”

Another groan arched from the man's throat. Buck looked over. Ravi's brow was furrowed. He was getting frustrated. “Hey Rav,” Buck said, reaching towards him. “Hey, easy easy-”

Something exploded under their feet and the building shook. Buck reached for his radio, praying for something to happen. “Hey Cap! Any updates down there?”

“I don't know about down there, but I have an update up here.”

It wasn't Gerard's voice but… he locked eyes with Ravi. “Eddie?” Ravi said, his eyes wide.

The radio crackled to life and Buck's ear began to ring. Eddie's words fell into the ringing, but Buck didn't care. Eddie came for him. Eddie, the same guy who was supposed to leaving for El Paso only a couple of hours later, stayed and came for him. The radio beep pulled Buck out of his thoughts. Buck quickly reached for his radio. “Uh,” he said, fumbling through his words like a child. “Where are you?”

“Right in front of you.”

Loud, crystal clear words rang from Buck's radio. He's right in front of you. Buck felt a lump grow in his throat. Sure enough, there he was. Sure, he was a tiny speck a top the parking garage across the street, but he was there. “Going to take too long to get the ladder up here, so I grabbed the line gun off the rig.”

Dammit. Hearing that steady voice calling to him from the other side squeezed Buck's heart. He found another way. Another option. “He's got a gun?” The old man said, his voice suddenly urgent.

“A line gun,” Ravi said, his voice easing. Surely this was the mood lightening that he wanted.

“Yeah, we, uh, we better get down,” Buck said, positioning himself behind the wall. “Okay Eddie. Fire away.”

Pop! A hook with a line flew over the wall and right beside Buck. He grabbed it and quickly began securing the line. Eddie’s here. He really is here. Ravi got the old man secured into a harness, but all Buck could do was think about the man just across the street. His heart throbbed in his ribs, threatening to crawl out if he couldn't see him closer – if he couldn't make sure this was real. “Okay, Eddie. How are we doing over there?” Buck said into his radio.

A crackle. “Ready when you are.”

Buck motioned to Ravi, who nodded. Ravi helped the old man over the wall. “Okay. We're set.” Buck said into the radio.

Once the man was over the wall, barely hanging onto the broken ledge on the other side, Buck and Ravi placed their hands on his back and looked at each other. “Alright,” Buck said, nodding at Ravi. “Ready? One-”

They both shoved the man, who was sent screaming and bobbing down the line to Eddie’s side of the street.

The building shook again and Ravi's brow furrowed. “D-do you want to…”

Buck shook his head, the lump in his throat catching. “No, no, no,” he said quickly, pushing Ravi toward the line. “J-just go, Rav. Come on.”

Ravi didn't argue, just prepared himself. Buck hooked him up to the line and urged him across. As he slid down the line, Buck stabilized himself against the building. Just one second was all he needed. Link his harness and he could slide to safety. He could slide to Eddie. The building shook dangerously as Buck worked. Linked. He climbed over the wall and slid himself into position. All he needed was that radio signal. Dust rattled from above. Buck really wished he brought his eye gear.

“Clear!”

Buck jolted, pushing away from the wall. Debris fell from above, narrowly missing him as he slid down the rope. The parking garage got closer, and closer. Then it was there, and Buck flew into a blanket. Buck's eyes darted around, finding Eddie’s already on him.

The world paused and went quiet. For a sweet moment, the firefighters rushing to remove his gear were not there. The rubble crashed on feathers instead of concrete. Buck made it, and it was all because of that sweet man watching him a few feet away. C’mon, get this freakin’ gear off already… Buck kept staring at Eddie. He couldn’t take his eyes off of him. Eddie's messy hair, his bright brown eyes watching every move with care. God, he's-

“Dude!” Ravi said, rushing Eddie and wrapping his arms around him.

Buck grinned. “That was genius, man! How'd you even think of that?” Ravi continued, releasing Eddie from his grip.

He's Eddie. “Well, I thought if Bobby were here, what kind of crazy stunt would he be yellin’ at Buck for pullin’?”

Buck’s grin grew. Sure… “No,” he said, pressing his lips together. “This one was all you.”

Eddie smiled, which drew out Buck's unconscious stupid grin. Hook, line, and sunk. Eddie raised his fist. Buck held up a finger, fidgeting with the straps of his harness until they finally clicked free and released him. “Come on, Eds,” Buck said, opening his arms. “If Rav gets one, where the hell does that put me?”

Eddie shook his head, walking into Buck’s arms. “Top of my list, Buck.”

Buck nestled his face into Eddie's shoulder and took a breath. Smoke and concrete dust filled his nose. Normally, he would have shied away from the scent, but it was Eddie. He wouldn't dare let him go again. Especially since… “I thought you were leaving,” Buck whispered, mere inches from Eddie's ear.

Buck could feel Eddie's spine stiffen, even through the layers of turnouts. “I, uh,” he said, backing away. Buck held Eddie's elbows, keeping their connection just a little bit longer. “FOMO. Like I said. Couldn't let it go.”

Buck grinned at Eddie, but it wasn’t the same, stupid ear-to-ear grin like before. Eddie shifted away and ran a hand down his face. “See you at the house, Buck.”

And he was gone.

Chapter Text

A slice of bacon snapped and popped against the heat in a pan as Buck prodded at it with a fork. Scrambled eggs sizzled in the pan on the burner next to the bacon. It was a rather pleasant morning considering a building nearly fell on him a couple of days prior. That, and the torment of the unending and unyielding search for a new place to live.

Now that Eddie was moving back to LA, Buck felt a little weird living in Eddie's house. Sure, he had taken it off of Eddie's hands while he was away, but… Buck stirred the eggs. “Hey, smells good in here.”

Buck turned toward the voice. There, standing in the doorway with that bright smile on his face, was Eddie, dressed in sweats and a t-shirt. His hair was messy, and his eyes were heavy. He sauntered across the kitchen, his eyes flitting between Buck and the floor. Buck furrowed his brows. “Hey. You okay, Eddie?”

Eddie looked up at Buck, watching him for a moment. “Yeah,” he said, nodding lazily. “Everything's fine. Thanks for making breakfast."

“Yeah, of course. Just thought I'd take care of things after you saved my ass, you know?”

Eddie chuckled, brushing a hand down the back of his neck. “Well, what can I say? I can't just leave you behind.”

The bacon and eggs sizzled. Buck slowly turned away and returned to the pans. How should I… What do I say? “Yeah. Thanks.”

Eddie walked up beside Buck and put a hand on his shoulder. “You alright, Evan? You seem a little off this morning.”

Buck looked at Eddie, his eyes narrowed. “What did'ya just say?”

“You seem a little off. Do you want some help?”

He called me Evan. He never calls me Evan. “Yeah, sure. If you want.”

Eddie nodded and tapped Buck on his shoulder. Buck shifted over and handed the egg spatula to Eddie. Buck stepped back and watched as Eddie pulled a piece of the bacon off the pan and placed it onto a plate. He grabbed a slab of raw bacon from the package on the counter and rested it on the heat, where it snapped and hissed. “Dad!”

Buck looked over toward the voice calling from the living room. “Yeah buddy?” Eddie called back, his voice a little coarse from the morning.

Christopher? I thought he was back in El Paso… “Hey Ed,” Buck said, moving closer to Eddie. “I thought Chris was in Texas for a couple more days. I didn't think he was back yet.”

Eddie turned to look at Buck, his eyelids heavy as he looked at Buck’s face. Slowly, Eddie’s eyes wandered up to his eyes, down to his mouth, then back up to his eyes. Buck's stomach twisted. “He's been back home for a couple of days now. Where've you been this whole time?”

Something isn't right. Eddie's acting…weird. Buck looked down at Eddie, his own eyes wandering to and fro around Eddie's face. Has he always- no. He's my best friend.

Buck took a deep breath, trying to steady his heart as it tried to claw its way from his chest. Eddie tilted his head away, but his eyes lingered on Buck. “Not yet,” he called to Chris, his voice growing softer.

Eddie slung an arm around Buck's neck, his eyes finding Buck's. “Not yet.”

Eddie leaned in, his lips parting. Buck's mind swirled. What is happening? The bacon hissed and popped.

Eddie paused an inch away from Buck's parted lips. “Wake up, Evan.”

*

Buck sat up, his forehead glistening with sweat. “Mornin’ Sleeping Beauty. Thought I would have to check for a pulse when I came out here. You looked dead.”

“Damn, Eddie,” Buck said, stretching out his arms. “Certainly didn’t feel like it.”

Eddie looked at Buck, studying his face. “Want some breakfast, Buckley?”

Buck looked at Eddie, grinned, and nodded. Eddie grinned and walked to the kitchen. “Hey, Eds,” Buck said, flipping the blanket over the back of the couch. “When's Chris coming back to LA?”

“He's flying back tomorrow morning with Pepa,” Eddie called from the kitchen, his voice accompanied by the clinking of silverware on a glass plate. “Why?”

“No reason. Just wondering,” Buck said, sitting up and leaning over. Must have been a dream.

“What? You missin’ him, Buck?” Eddie asked, coming back into the living room with a plate of breakfast.

With a single quick motion, Eddie put the plate down on the coffee table and turned to find a spot in one of the chairs across from the couch. Buck looked down at the plate and his stomach clenched. Bacon and eggs. Eddie a mere inch from brushing his lips against Buck's.

Buck grabbed the plate and cleared his throat. “Thanks, Eddie.”

“Don't worry about it. Consider it thanks for holding down the fort while I was in Texas.”

Buck nodded and picked up his fork. He stabbed a piece of bacon, held it up, and looked at it. Just a dream, Buck. It's just a dream.