Chapter Text
Eddie hadn’t rehearsed this.
He hadn’t thought past knocking on Buck’s door.
One second he’d been pacing his own living room, restless with the memory of Maddie’s dart sailing through the air and Chris’s voice in his head—I think he like likes you too. The next, his feet carried him across the hall before he could talk himself out of it.
Now here he was, standing inside Buck’s apartment, feeling like he’d just stepped into enemy territory in a war he hadn’t prepared for.
The place looked like a battlefield in its own right. Nerf darts littered every visible surface—under the coffee table, jammed between cushions, one balancing precariously on the edge of the lamp shade. Chris’s backpack slumped near the couch, half-zipped, Nerf blaster sticking out like a soldier who hadn’t quite made it home.
The chaos should’ve been overwhelming. Instead, it felt lived in. Comfortable. Safe. The kind of mess Eddie never minded cleaning up because it came with laughter attached.
And Buck—Buck was standing across from him, curls mussed, sleeves shoved up, looking at him like he wasn’t sure whether Eddie was here to thank him or arrest him.
Eddie’s pulse hammered against his throat.
“Thanks for watching him today,” Eddie said finally, voice rougher than he meant it to be.
Buck’s grin came quick, instinctive. “Anytime. He’s good company.”
“Good company,” Eddie echoed. He wanted to hold on to that ease, but his chest felt too tight. His palms were damp. He was hyperaware of every inch of space between them.
Buck tilted his head, reading him in that way he always did—like Eddie was a puzzle he’d already memorized the pieces for. “You didn’t come over just to say thanks.”
It wasn’t a question.
Eddie swallowed hard. “No. I didn’t.”
The silence that followed was heavier than anything Eddie had carried all day. The hum of the refrigerator filled it. The tick of the wall clock. Buck stood steady, patient, but his eyes were sharp, locked on Eddie like he wasn’t going to let him off easy.
Eddie dragged a hand over his jaw. “Chris asked me something this morning.”
Buck’s brows furrowed. “Yeah?”
“He asked if I liked you.” Eddie forced the words out, each one sharp in his throat. “Not just… liked you. He asked if I like liked you.”
The reaction was instant. Buck froze, eyes going wide, mouth parting just slightly.
Eddie laughed under his breath, bitter and shaky. “I dodged. Told him you’re important, which you are. But he didn’t buy it. He said I look at you different. That you look at me different, too.”
He raked a hand through his hair, pacing a step, then another. “And I can’t stop thinking about it. About him seeing something I’ve been trying to ignore. About Maddie looking at us tonight like she already knows.”
His voice cracked, frustration and fear tangled together. “I can’t keep pretending I don’t feel it. Not with everyone else seeing it. Not when I—” He broke off, exhaling hard. “Shit.”
When he finally looked up, Buck was still staring at him. Silent. Breathless.
Eddie’s chest tightened painfully. “Say something.”
Buck took a step forward. Just one. But it was enough to steal the air from Eddie’s lungs.
“You really don’t see it, do you?” Buck’s voice was low, rough at the edges.
Eddie frowned. “See what?”
“That I’ve been gone for you since the beginning,” Buck said, his laugh shaky. “Every time I look at you. Every time I look at Chris. I’ve been trying so hard not to give myself away, and I guess I failed, because your kid already called me out.”
Heat surged through Eddie’s veins. “You—”
“Yeah.” Buck’s grin was self-deprecating, trembling at the edges. “So when Chris asked you that? He wasn’t guessing. He was right.”
Eddie’s heart stuttered. All the noise in his head fell away, leaving just the two of them standing in the middle of the wreckage of Nerf darts and unspoken truths.
His body moved before his brain could catch up—stepping closer, closing the gap, until Buck’s breath ghosted across his skin. Buck’s eyes flicked down, almost unwilling, to Eddie’s mouth, then darted back up again, wide and nervous.
The tension snapped taut, stretching like wire between them.
“Eddie,” Buck whispered, warning and plea all at once.
And Eddie didn’t hold back anymore.
He leaned in, brushing his mouth against Buck’s—soft, hesitant, like he was testing a live wire.
Buck gasped, the sound breaking against Eddie’s lips. For one suspended heartbeat Eddie thought he’d made a mistake—until Buck moved.
It wasn’t just moving. It was crashing. Buck surged forward, lips pressing harder, parting just enough to let Eddie in. It was desperate, hungry, like Buck had been holding his breath for years and finally exhaled.
Eddie cupped his jaw, thumb sliding against rough stubble, grounding them both. Buck’s hands found his waist, fingers digging in like he was afraid Eddie might vanish.
The kiss deepened—messy, unpracticed, perfect. Heat roared low in Eddie’s stomach, curling tight, pulling him closer until there was no space left between them.
When they finally broke apart, both of them breathing like they’d just run into a fire, Eddie couldn’t look away. Buck’s lips were swollen, his pupils blown wide, his chest rising and falling fast.
Buck touched his fingers to his mouth, stunned. “Holy shit.” His voice shook. “You just—” He laughed, breathless, almost wild. “You just took my breath away.”
Eddie leaned in until their foreheads touched, steadying them both. His voice was quiet, raw. “You took mine a long time ago.”
They stayed like that, foreheads pressed together, breaths mingling, hearts pounding too loud to ignore. The air between them was charged, buzzing, every unspoken word still heavy in the room.
Nerf darts scattered at their feet, reminders of laughter and play, of the kid who had seen this before either of them had admitted it.
Eddie let out a slow breath. For the first time in years, he didn’t want to run.
And Buck—Buck looked at him like he’d just been handed the one thing he’d been waiting for.