Chapter Text
Eddie was ready to go the fuck home and cuddle with his 8 year old who would hopefully be in a good enough mood to let him.
Today had been rough. Beyond rough, actually. Most of the first 11 hours of their 12 hour shift had been taken up by the same call, and it was a rough one.
What'd happened was, a whole load of teenagers had decided that a secluded section of abandoned beach that had not yet been cleared of tsunami debris under a smaller now semi-wrecked fishing pier was the perfect spot for a rager. On one of the few days a year in LA where they were supposed to get a storm.
Had any of them checked the radar to know that a storm was coming before hand? No.
Had any of them been sober enough or had the good sense to leave once the tide started coming in? No.
Had some of them thought it was a good idea to bring boogie boards and start riding the rapidly growing waves as the storm approached and made landfall? Yes.
Had the tide finally overtaken the area under the pier where the party was going on with sudden and strong waves among the debris field sweeping drunk kids out or otherwise injuring them on the shore? Also yes.
It was a fucking wreck. And also technically not their usual area of response, but there was upwards of a hundred drunk teenagers there who needed help, so all available houses in the surrounding area, including the 118, had been dispatched.
Once they'd arrived they were split up, Hen and Chim being sent to triage on the shore while he, Buck, and Bobby were given a rescue boat to start fishing out teenagers.
Eddie should've seen what happened next coming from a mile away. The first couple kids they fished out went by easily. They were lone drifters close to the shore who were calling for help. Soon enough though, they were approaching a whole group of kids who were much worse off.
They were further out, all bunched together, and clearly either naturally not good swimmers or too drunk to be able to swim well. Eddie's first count said six, but as they got closer he recounted and only found five.
"Caleb went down!" One of the girls screamed as they tried to pull the others into the boat.
The teenagers were all clambering on top of one another, actively drowning each other in their fight to get into the raft. Eddie had his hands full with two girls clinging onto him and still half in the water and Bobby was in a similar predicament. Buck had been sitting on the other side of the boat though, and was therefore free.
He immediately dove into the water at the girl's scream and didn't resurface. Eddie and Bobby pulled the rest of the kids in, and Buck still hadn't resurfaced. They were looking around wildly, with the storm and the tides, Buck could realistically end up anywhere.
It'd been about a minute and Eddie was about to go in after him when one of the boy's screamed, "Over there!" Pointing behind them.
Eddie whipped around and saw Buck treading with the dead weight of a teenage boy about twenty feet behind the boat. He was in the water and swimming towards Buck before Bobby had the chance to turn the motor on.
As he got closer he noticed a girl about ten feet past Buck who was struggling badly. Her head repeatedly going under. She wasn't going to last more than a minute longer, and he knew Buck knew it too.
"Take him!" Buck shouted over the sounds of the sea and the storm, shoving the unconscious boy into Eddie's arms and taking off towards the girl.
Eddie had no choice but to take the boy and start swimming back towards the boat where Bobby was helping someone else out of the water. He felt for a pulse and thankfully found one. He handed the kid over to Bobby and then climbed back into the boat. Bobby laid the kid out in recovery position as Eddie switched on the motor and steered them over to where Buck was holding the other girl's head above water.
They pulled both Buck and the girl in, both of them seeming physically ok. Buck had a sort of frantic energy about him though. He made eye contact with Bobby, who also looked concerned. There wasn't anything to do about it at the moment though, this was an emergency and Buck was still functional. It was harsh, but it was the job. Plus, Buck had always been their person for in water rescues thanks to his training both with the SEALs and as a lifeguard. Hen was it if he wasn't there because she had also been a lifeguard, but her expertise was needed medically on shore.
They heard a scream for help and before they knew it Buck was back in the water.
It went on like that. Buck being the one who was in the water the most. Bobby mostly staying on the boat to watch the victims and man the motor while Eddie alternated between pulling people into the boat and helping Buck with the in water rescues.
At one point, Buck had been holding two struggling girls above the water while his head stayed under. After Bobby had taken them from him, Eddie grabbed his arm and pulled him halfway into the boat, Buck gasping and coughing up water. Eddie had held his arm in a death grip, trying to pull him back into the boat, but then there had been another scream for help and Buck had pushed himself away and was swimming towards it.
Bobby and Eddie made a silent agreement after that incident that next time they ferried their victims back to the triage on the shore that they'd drop Buck off too. Someone needed to cut him off, because Eddie didn't see him stopping of his own accord anytime soon. Especially not when there were still people, still kids, to save.
Of course, that was when the Coast Guard showed up, and they stopped ferrying people back to shore. Instead the Coast Guard, with their big medical ship, started taking the victims directly from the rescue rafts and just triaging them onboard. They couldn't even send Buck up with the victims because he was in the water diving down after a boy who'd just gone under. The ship moving on to another rapidly overflowing raft before he'd even surfaced again.
It was fucked. It was all fucked. Hours of in water rescues in dangerous currents and large swells all while it was pouring, then even more searching through and pulling drunk and injured kids out of rubble on the shore. Plus a handful of missing and also flat out dead kids. It was like the tsunami all over again.
Buck didn't stop coughing the whole way back to the station, and Eddie didn't stop rubbing his back from where he was hunched over either. It was a silent ride, none of them really having anything to say and even if they had they were too exhausted to actually say it after all of that.
When they got back to the station, they all split off to shower, Bobby having told them that dispatch said they'd do their best not to give them any more calls until shift change in an hour. Eddie thanked god it wasn't a 24 hour shift.
He took a longer shower than normal, they all did. Basking under the hot water and letting it thaw out the bone deep cold that'd settled in. They'd be lucky if they didn't all get sick. Him especially considering he was in and out of the water a bit. Buck who had spent most of the day in the water was already as good as sick.
He thought a lot about Buck while he was under the warm spray. About how hard he'd pushed today and how many kids he'd saved, how he just kept pushing. Beyond what he should've been able to do without even taking a break. He thought about just how much today was caused by teenage stupidity, but also the direct fallout of the tsunami. How much today's call had reminded him of the tsunami.
How maybe the way Buck had seemed today was a little bit too similar to how he must've been during the actual tsunami. Except, what Buck had been like today would've had to have been multiplied tenfold at least during the tsunami, because then it hadn't just been a bunch of drunk teenagers, but Christopher who needed saving. It took him out at the knees a bit every time he thought about just how hard Buck had fought for Christopher, but today it felt like it was just knocking him flat on his ass.
And sure, Buck had fucked things up afterwards with the lawsuit, but he also knew Buck well enough to know that that hadn't been intentional. He also knew that Buck was genuinely and truly sorry. He knew with an absolute certainty that he didn't have about anything else that Buck would not do it again.
It was then, after the wreck of that day, that he decided it was time to let Buck back in completely. So once he got out of the shower, he went in search of the other man to ask him to come home with him tonight after their shift ended in half an hour.
Buck wasn't anywhere to be found though. He wasn't in any of the other shower stalls when he checked. He wasn't in the locker room getting dressed. He wasn't in the gym or by the trucks. He wasn't in the lounge or in the kitchen helping a recently showered Bobby whip up a quick snack/dinner for them to eat so they didn't pass out driving home.
B shift was starting to trickle in with only twenty minutes left in their shift, but there was still no sign of Buck. He checked the parking lot, but his jeep was still parked out there.
"Uh, hey man, Diaz, right?" One of the new B shift probies came up to him, looking sort of nervous.
"Yeah?" Eddie asked, a little distracted trying to spot Buck somewhere in the station.
"Uh, I just found Buck throwing up. He said he was fine and to leave him be though, so I figured I should come get one of you guys?" The probie, Jake or Jack maybe, explained nervously, suddenly getting Eddie's full attention.
"Where is he?" Eddie asked.
"In the bathrooms." The probie answered, pointing behind him.
"Thanks." Eddie threw over his shoulder as he beelined for the bathrooms.
He pushed the door open and started peaking under stall doors until he saw a pair of familiar boots. They were technically all in the same boots but he still knew every scuff and tread mark on Buck's.
He jimmied the lock on Buck's stall door and pushed it open to find Buck sitting with his head between his knees and his back to the stall wall. He'd clearly been throwing up if the contents of the toilet bowl were anything to go by, although a lot of it looked like seawater. Buck also very clearly hadn't showered like the rest of them and he was still sat in his uniform shivering.
He'd thought Buck was just stopping to grab something in his locker before he showered. In hindsight, given how similar today had been to the tsunami, Eddie probably should've made sure Buck made it into the showers with the rest of them.
There was nothing he could do about that though, so instead he kneeled down in front of Buck in the cramped stall, placing a hand on his shoulder and getting Buck to raise his head to look at him. Buck's eyes were clear and lucid, so at least there was that.
"Hey, man." Eddie said softly, "You alright?"
No, clearly not, but he didn't really know what else to ask.
"I'm so sorry, Eddie." Was what came out, his voice sounding wrecked from all the water and coughing. "I- I fucked up so bad, and I'm so sorry."
"It's ok, Buck. It's ok now, I promise." Not really sure exactly which thing Buck was apologizing for.
Going too hard today? Unlikely.
The tsunami and losing Christopher? A strong possibility.
The lawsuit? Also a strong possibility.
"No it isn't." Buck shook his head, "It isn't ok and I'm sorry, but I have to ask. I know it's crossing a line, but I have to ask right now."
"You can ask whatever you need to, Buck." Eddie promised, not entirely sure what this was about but knowing he'd happily answer anything to put his partner at ease.
"Is he- Christopher, is he alright?" Buck stuttered out, "I don't- I mean, I know a lot has happened, but I just mean. Is he physically ok? I know in my head, a-and in my camera roll he is, but I just- today was just so much like it, and I-"
Eddie placed both his palms on Buck's cheeks, guiding his head so Buck was making eye contact with him as he trailed off. His skin was cold, too cold, but one thing at a time.
"Christopher is ok." He assured Buck, injecting as much conviction into his voice as possible, "He is completely fine. You both are. Today was not the tsunami. That happened 5 months ago. You survived, and you saved him, and then you found him again. He made it, you both made it home safely to me."
Buck's eyes fluttered closed, he sighed in relief and sort of crumpled back against the wall. Eddie let him take a couple steadying breaths before he was placing the back of his hand against Buck's forehead.
"You're really cold." He points out, "and clearly nauseous."
Buck shakes his head, "I'm alright, just tired and upset mostly. Thank you, for, you know, letting me know about Chris."
Eddie hadn't let him know anything he didn't already know about Chris, just reaffirmed what's happened in the past so Buck didn't have a panic attack or a flash back or something. He could do better than that when it came to reassuring Buck about Chris, in fact he was already planning on bringing him to the real thing. He just needed to get Buck cleaned up and a bit more stabilized first.
"C'mon, get up." Eddie said, standing and then helping Buck to his feet, "You're showering and then I'm taking you home with me."
"But isn't Chris-" Buck starts to ask before Eddie cuts him off.
"Yep."
.................................................
The ride home was a fairly quiet affair other than the music playing softly over the radio and the sounds of the rain and LA traffic. Buck kept sending panicked and unsure looks over at Eddie, which he was choosing to ignore.
When they pulled into his driveway, Eddie shut off the headlights and then the car, but Buck stopped him before he could hop out. He was staring nervously at the front door.
"Eddie, I fucked up, I really shouldn't." He said, sounding like the words were tearing out pieces of his soul to say.
"You did fuck up." Eddie acknowledges, because there was no sense pretending Buck hadn't left for weeks, "but you came back, you're sorry, and you're trying. Besides, no one in the world is good enough for that kid, myself included, but he still needs me. He needs you too, so just love him and try not to fuck it up again."
Buck took a deep breath at that, hand on the door handle, about to get out before he turned back to Eddie once more. "I just- are you sure?"
"Do you not want to?" Eddie asked, already knowing the answer.
"I want to more than anything else in this world." Buck breathed out in reply, words dripping in honest conviction.
"Then yeah, I'm sure. Now c'mon." Eddie replied, hopping out of the truck before Buck could argue against himself some more.
He'd be great at devil's advocate if it was anything positive about himself being debated, Eddie mused as he ran to the door, Buck's footsteps following him. He unlocked it quickly and stepped inside, toeing off his shoes and shaking the water out of his hair. Buck did the same.
"Hey, mijo." He called, padding into the living room where he could hear the TV. "I've got a surprise for you!"
Chris turned around from where he was sitting on the couch and gasped when he spotted Buck standing behind him.
"Buck?!" Chris scrambled to get up and Buck scrambled to cross the room to get to him and swept him up into his arms.
"Hey superman!" Buck said, burying his face in the kid's curls while Chris clung onto him with all of his 8 year old might.
"You're back!" Chris exclaimed, once Buck had set him back down.
"Yeah buddy, and I'm not going anywhere anytime soon." Buck promised.
"Except for right this second." Eddie said, coming up behind Buck and clapping a hand on his shoulder, "because he's going to go to my room and grab some sweats and a hoodie to change into."
He gave Buck a little shove and a no nonsense look, and Buck did as he asked without argument. Although there was definitely a pout.
"He was freezing." Eddie stage whispered dramatically to Chris, pretending to shiver, as Buck disappeared into the hall, "I bet you felt it when he picked you up, huh?"
"Like an icy pop." Chris giggled, nodding in agreement.
"Hmm, how about I get a hug too." He suggested, crouching down and holding out his arms which Chris fell into easily, "I bet I'm warmer, right?"
"For sure!" Chris declared, laughing against Eddie's neck.
It tickled, but Eddie didn't dare dislodge him, instead just soaking up Christopher's warmth for as long as the little boy let him. He needed it after the shift he'd had. Eventually though, Chris flipped out of his arms and back onto the couch.
"Since Buck's back now, can we have pancakes for breakfast?" Chris asked, and Eddie glanced up to where Buck had reappeared looking much more cozy.
"I don't know, you'll have to ask him." Eddie answered, nodding to where Buck was standing behind the couch now.
"Buck, can we have pancakes tomorrow morning?" Chris asked again, tilting his head way back so he could see Buck.
"I, uh, is it-" Buck sort of stuttered out, glancing between him and Chris, "Am I staying?"
"I mean, you're sort of stranded since I drove you here." Eddie joked, but it went right over Buck's head.
"Oh, I mean, I can always get an Uber." He shrugged, looking down, disappointment clear on his face, "I didn't meant to put you out."
Eddie rolled his eyes, "Not what I meant Buck. We want you to stay as long as you want to."
Buck's eyes snapped up to him at that, and seeing only truth, ducked his head back down, blushing. Eddie still saw the absolutely elated grin plastered across his face though.
"Then yeah, pancakes for breakfast." He told Chris, who immediately cheered.
"Alright you two, why don't you try and pick out a movie while I go help Carla in the kitchen." Eddie suggested, gently pushing Buck down onto the couch from where he'd been nervously shifting from foot to foot.
He headed into the kitchen after that, greeting Carla with a soft, "Hey, how was he?"
"An angel, as always." She replied, sending a soft smile his way, "How was work?"
"It was rough. Really rough." He sighed, sending a glance into the living room when he heard both Buck and his son laughing at something, "But I think we'll be ok."
Carla was looking at him with that knowing sort of gaze, not saying anything.
"What? What are you giving me that look for?" He asked, nose scrunched as he pretended to shiver from her gaze.
She laughed at his reaction, before getting a bit more serious, "You all have been through so much this last year. I'm just glad to see you all on your way to being happy again."
He ducked his head, letting the soft murmurs of Buck and Chris's voices float into the kitchen, "Yeah, I'm glad we're getting there too."
Before things could get any sappier, the alarm on the stove dinged and Carla moved to take a casserole out of the oven.
"Alright, that's my cue to head out." She told him, leaning in for a quick hug before he walked her to the door.
"Drive safe!" He called after her as she jogged over to her car through the rain.
He watched as she pulled out of the driveway and onto the street before he shut the door and headed back into the kitchen. He quickly plated three helpings of the casserole before bringing them into the living room and setting them down on the coffee table. Then headed back into the kitchen to grab him and Buck waters and Chris a glass of milk for his growing bones.
"Alright, what are we watching?" He asked as he settled down on the couch on Chris' other side.
"Finding Nemo." Chris informed him as Buck hit play and then helped Chris grab his bowl and fork of casserole off the table.
Which, yeah, if Eddie had thought about it for even half a second then he would've predicted that to be their movie choice. Not that he minded, quite the opposite, it was a good movie that seemed to comfort both Chris and Buck immensely, so he was all for it no matter how many times they watched it.
If he drifted off during the movie for a bit, then at least no one noticed, and hey, after the shift he'd had, he had every right to be exhausted.
Soon enough the movie was over though, and it was time to carry an already asleep Chris to bed. He picked him up easily despite his sore arms from where he'd been cuddled up against Buck. He padded softly towards Chris's room, grateful the kid had changed into his Pajamas before the movie and laid him down in his bed. He tucked the covers around him, kissed his forehead, said a quick bedtime prayer, and then headed back to the living room where Buck was stretching and stifling a yawn.
"Hey." Eddie greeted softly as he padded over towards where Buck was standing with his back turned to him by the couch.
Buck turned to face him and just immediately threw his arms around him. Eddie made a bit of an oof noise at the sudden contact, but easily returned the embrace.
"What's this for?" He asked, and Buck let him go a bit, but not too far.
Their bodies were only six inches apart at most now, and it felt like their own little bubble that Eddie had no interest in popping.
"Just, thank you." Buck said, and Eddie tilted his head a bit in confusion before Buck clarified in a hoarse whisper, "For letting me come home."
Christ, if this boy didn't just make him melt. Their breaths mingling together, and Eddie able to feel the space around them swaddling them like a safe little cocoon. Buck was right to call this his home. He and Chris were Eddie's family. He just hadn't realized how right Buck was until this very moment, or more accurately, how right Buck was about to be.
Eddie, careful as could be not to move too fast, leaned forwards and let his lips meet Buck's in a slow, soft slide. Their lips were both dry, and Buck clearly hadn't been expecting it at first, but that was alright. Eddie moved a hand up to cup Buck's jaw and steady them as he let his lips linger for one last slow kiss, which Buck was ready for and reciprocated this time.
"There." Eddie breathed, letting an inch or two of space come between their mouths, "Now you're home."