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"…Give me your hand, I'll pull you up!"
Buck is clinging to the top of a roller coaster loop with Eddie spotting him from behind. His arms are marginally longer than Eddie's, which is why he's the one reaching for the young man dangling off of an upside down car more than a hundred feet above the ground.
"I can help you, Devon," Buck continues, trying to stay calm while he stretches his arm out, fingertips mere inches away. "I'm right here, it's gonna be okay, I just need you to grab my hand."
The unfortunate coaster rider sobs and shakes his head. "I…I can't!"
"You can," Buck insists, "I know you can!"
Devon looks to the very distant ground then back up at Buck. His panicked expression has become eerily calm, as if he's suddenly resigned to his fate.
"Please," Buck practically begs. "You just gotta—"
Devon lets go. Buck lunges forward with a cry and feels Eddie grabbing his harness to steady him, but even if Devon hadn't suddenly dropped he still was too far out of Buck's reach. When the young man's body hits the ground below it's with a dull thud that sends a violent shudder through Buck. He gapes in horror, hand still outstretched until Eddie pulls him back to a more stable position on the coaster track.
"Buck," Eddie says gently. "We need to help them now."
The girls still strapped upside down in their seats are sobbing hysterically while they wait for rescue. Buck nods at Eddie before sniffling and blinking away his tears. The girls are easier to get to, so Buck has no trouble putting them into harnesses and carefully hauling them to safety one at a time. He keeps his mind on his work and pushes away the tragedy he'd just witnessed, knowing that Devon's fall will have plenty of time to haunt him later.
-_-
"For the millionth freaking time, Bobby, I am fine."
Buck has been insisting he's fine all week. He's repeatedly brushed off Bobby's and the others' concern while he acts as normally as possible at the firehouse. He never mentions the funeral he probably shouldn't have gone to, or the recurring nightmares, or his sudden irrational fear of heights until the latter issue becomes a problem on emergency calls.
When Buck is suddenly encouraging Eddie and even Chimney to climb ladders and perform his favorite daredevil rescue maneuvers in his stead it becomes painfully obvious to everyone at the station that he's not coping as well as he wants them to think he is.
"We all know you're not, Buck," Bobby states plainly. "I think it's time you saw a trauma counselor."
Buck immediately opens his mouth to protest but Bobby stops him with a shake of his head. He sits Buck down in the otherwise empty locker room and hands him a small white card.
"I know you somehow managed to get out of therapy after what happened with Doug—"
"What, no, I totally went!"
"One session wasn't enough," Bobby says firmly. "I really think you need to talk to a professional again. About everything you've been going through."
"But, Cap, I'm f—"
"Don't," Bobby interrupts. "Please, kid. I'm worried about you, we all are. And don't think I don't know about the dating apps, all those hookups you've been sneaking off to. Next time you take an engine out for one of your little joy rides I'm coming after you."
Buck feels his face flush. "Aw, c'mon, Bobby—"
"No, Buck, I'm serious," Bobby tells him. "Meaningless sex is no way to cope. You need real help."
Buck swallows hard and fiddles with the tiny piece of cardstock in his hands. Maybe he does need to talk to someone. Frank had been so patient with him that first time he went, but one unproductive meeting only left him feeling frustrated and unwilling to continue with the therapy. Though Buck does know that Maddie's been keeping up with her appointments since the whole Doug thing, and she seems way better.
Dr. Wells, the raised print on the simple business card says, along with a phone number.
Maybe giving therapy another chance is all that Buck needs to ease the crushing guilt and anxiety he's been feeling since Devon's death. Maybe he'll finally be able to sleep alone through the night without being haunted by Doug's bloody specter.
"Okay," he tells Bobby. "I'll try therapy again."
-_-
Bobby reminds Buck of his appointment every chance he gets.
"Yeah, Cap," the kid insists. "I know, I didn't forget!" Then, "no, I got it, Bobby, I don't need a ride." And, "yes, Pops, I'm fine. Jeez."
Bobby keeps up with his badgering only because a petulant, whiny Buck is better than the haunted, too quiet Buck who's been sulking around the station lately.
Buck's appointment is on their next off day and Bobby texts him an hour before to remind him about it again. Buck responds with a rolling eyes emoji face, then a thumbs up. It's in the back of Bobby's mind all day but he doesn't send a follow up text. He doesn't want to push the kid to see how the meeting went—he wants to give Buck the chance to reach out to him first.
But Buck never does, so the next morning Bobby is waiting on the cleared out loft's sofa when Buck shuffles tiredly up the stairs.
"How'd your session with Dr. Wells go?" Bobby asks in greeting.
Buck shrugs a little and refuses to meet his Captain's eye, which has an alarm bell ringing in Bobby's head, though he's not entirely sure why. There's a sick feeling in his gut when he takes in Buck's guilty expression and guarded posture, the opposite of how he'd hoped Buck would look after a therapeutic session meant to make him feel better.
"It was okay," Buck says dismissively. "We just…you know, talked and stuff."
"Good, that's what you're supposed to do in therapy. Do you think it helped?"
"I mean, kinda, I guess, I dunno," Buck mumbles. He shrugs again, and then points to the empty kitchen. "Um, should I start breakfast, or…?"
"In a minute, come sit with me first." Bobby pats the cushion next to him. "I want to make sure you're alright."
Buck ducks his head and slinks to the sofa as if he's already expecting a reprimand, though for what Bobby has no idea.
"Did you make a follow up appointment yet?" Bobby asks once he's seated.
"Not yet," Buck admits. "I…I don't really think I should."
"We talked about this, Buck," Bobby says with a heavy sigh. "One session isn't going to solve all of your problems. You've gotta keep up with it."
"B-but maybe I should try seeing someone else instead." Buck squirms in his seat. "This wasn't even like the time with Frank, that was just boring. With her it was…weird."
The alarm in Bobby's head is suddenly much louder. "What do you mean, 'weird'?"
"I mean, I…uh, I don't think I did therapy right."
"Why," Bobby asks slowly, "what did you do, Buck?"
Buck bites his lip. His eyes dart from Bobby to stare down at his hands where they're fidgeting between his knees when he finally sputters, "I…um, we…m-me and Dr. Wells, we mighta kinda…had sex?"
The bell turns into a siren wail and Bobby sees red. "Of all the idiotic things you could've done."
"But I didn't mean to," Buck blurts. "It just kinda happened!"
"How does having sex with your therapist 'just kinda happen'?!"
"I-I dunno!"
"You don't know."
"No, I just…I-I really didn't mean to—"
"Buck, you cannot do this," Bobby snaps. "You do get why you can't do this, right? You can't have a therapy session with a professional doctor, a woman who's there to help you, a woman who works for this department, and then sleep with her like she's just another one of your floozy one night stands!"
"I-I know, it was totally unprofessional of me and I'm really really really sorry, Bobby." Buck hunches lower in his seat. "But I swear I-I-I didn't mean to."
Bobby wants to reprimand Buck further, to tell him he's apologizing to the wrong person, that he needs to march himself back to Dr. Wells' office that very second and make things right with her. Bobby's on the verge of totally losing it with the irresponsible, hormone driven kid when he finally takes a second to really look at Buck, at how small he's making himself on the couch.
Then Bobby registers what Buck's been repeating and his heart skips a beat. I didn't mean to…
"Buck," he says, still in his firm Captain's tone. "I need you to tell me exactly what happened between you and Dr. Wells."
Buck flinches, hugs his legs to his chest. "Do I have to?" he mutters from behind his knees.
"You do," Bobby tells him slowly, "and if I'm going to understand your situation you've gotta tell me the truth, kid. What happened after your appointment, did she contact you first? Did she instigate your little hookup?"
"It wasn't after," he admits quietly, still refusing to look up at Bobby. "It was kinda…during? I mean, at the appointment, we…sh-she, um…"
Bobby swallows hard. Pieces are falling into place to form an inconceivable situation in his mind that makes his gut churn uncomfortably. His initial anger has festered into an awful, sickening guilt as the alarm bells in his head dissolve into numbing static.
"Just start from the beginning, Buck," he says as composed as he can. "You went to your session with Dr. Wells…"
Buck lifts his head enough to raise an eyebrow in Bobby's direction. "Wait, isn't this against some, like, doctor patient privacy thing?"
Bobby shoots him a no-nonsense look in return.
Buck rolls his eyes away, his cheeks tinged pink. "God, this is so embarrassing."
"Buck, please tell me what happened."
"Why? You're just gonna yell at me some more."
"I promise I won't yell at you," Bobby patiently assures him. "Tell me what happened and then I'll decide if you're in trouble or not. Okay?"
Buck looks at him for a moment, as if to gauge just how much trouble he thinks he'll be in if he tells the truth. Bobby can practically see the insecurities spiraling around in the teenager's head.
"Buck…"
"Ugh, okay, okay, fiiine," Buck groans, then says, faster than Bobby's ever heard him speak, "I went to my appointment but I didn't want to be there, and I told her I didn't want to be there, then she wanted to talk about why I was there, so I told her what happened with Devon and how I couldn't save him and then I was crying and it was super embarrassing, I was just being a big dumb baby about the whole thing—"
Bobby has to keep himself from reaching for the kid. He's afraid Buck will stop talking if he does.
"—and she came over and held my hand and she said, I dunno, some more therapy stuff I guess, but then I thought I recognized her picture from my Instagram since I've been getting, like, a bunch of random new follower requests after the roller coaster thing was on the news so I asked her if she did and then she got even closer and said I should delete her which I thought was weird, her profile didn't say, like, doctor or shrink or whatever on it so it shouldn't matter if we follow each other, right? If that's why I'm in trouble then, Bobby, I swear I deleted it, I did! As soon as I got out of there I totally blocked her."
Bobby shakes his head. It would certainly be inappropriate for them to correspond on social media while he's her patient, and Bobby wishes that was all that happened between them. "What else did she say to you?"
"Oh, uh, then she was asking me about my DMs and if other women followed me like she did and if they talked to me and if I've ever…you know, been with any of them, which made me uncomfortable I guess, like I get that she's a therapist and talking about personal stuff is her thing, it just…i-it weirded me out a little."
His cheeks are red when his eyes dart to Bobby's. He looks humiliated by the admission while Bobby stares, his own expression kept painfully neutral to hide his mounting horror.
"But, I mean, you know it's not like I'm a virgin or anything," Buck quickly adds, "I've had sex before, loads of times! I like having sex, I just didn't want to talk to her about that stuff, and it was really creepy when she was asking 'cause I was still kinda crying about the whole Devon thing, but she said she could make me feel better and I thought she meant with more therapy talking but then she was like right there on top of me and I swear, Bobby, I-I didn't mean to, it just happened, I didn't even really do anything, I just…sat there."
Buck shifts uncomfortably in his seat, his face somehow even more flushed than before. Bobby has to swallow hard against rising nausea. "Then what happened?"
"Oh, that…that was kinda it? And I guess I did feel better, until I left her office and thought, wow that Dr. Wells is good at sex but a really bad therapist, 'cause I still felt pretty sad about Devon and everything afterwards, especially when she got mad and told me we shouldn't have, like, done it, and that we'd both get in big trouble so I shouldn't tell anybody, and I wasn't gonna tell until you got pissed at me for it, a-a-and I don't like when you're pissed at me."
Buck lets out a huff of breath after his long winded rambling explanation of events. Bobby doesn't think he's breathed at all since Buck started speaking.
"So there you go," Buck concludes, "that's everything that happened. I promise I'll apologize to Dr. Wells and you can write me up or whatever if you have to, but I just wanna say that I really don't think that's fair since I didn't actually mean to do anything wrong, it just kinda happened like I said."
Buck's cheeks are still pink and he looks genuinely more embarrassed than upset. It's obvious he's uncomfortable and knows he shouldn't have had sex with his therapist during his appointment, but he clearly isn't seeing the horrifying reality of the situation like Bobby is.
Buck has been through so much already in just under nineteen years of life, it seems especially unfair for this to have happened to him now too.
The boy shuffles restlessly in his seat when Bobby doesn't say anything. "Uhhh, can I go now, or—"
Bobby shakes his head and clears his throat. "Buck," he croaks and finally reaches over to grip Buck's shoulder. He waits until Buck looks at him before saying earnestly, "Buck, you're not in trouble, but I need you to listen to me, okay?"
Buck's brows furrow like he's confused by Bobby's abrupt demeanor change. "Um, yeah, okay."
"I am so sorry I misinterpreted what happened between you and Dr. Wells. You have no idea how sorry I am."
"It's really not a big deal."
"No, Buck, it is a big deal. I know it might not seem like it but what she did to you was wrong. I'm—" Bobby chokes on his words and has to put a hand over his face for a moment before he can find his voice again. "I'm so sorry I ever sent you to her."
Bobby is struggling to keep his emotions at bay when he feels Buck put a comforting arm around him. "Aw, that's okay, Cap," Buck soothes. "You didn't know she was a sucky therapist."
Bobby breaks with a choked off sob. He yanks the kid to his chest and holds him close while he bites his lip to keep from outright bawling. Buck continues to awkwardly console him until he regains his composure, but even then Bobby doesn't let Buck out of reach. He keeps a protective hand on the back of Buck's neck while he swipes away his tears then fishes for his cell phone.
"I'm calling Athena to come down here," he announces in a thick voice. "We are going to my office and I need you to tell her everything you just told me so it's on record, okay?"
Buck's eyes go wide with betrayal. "What?! You said I wasn't in trouble!"
"You're not, sweetheart, I promise you're not," Bobby assures him. "Dr. Wells is the one in trouble for hurting you."
"But she didn't—"
"She sexually assaulted you, Buck. She was the one in control during your session and it sounds to me like she took advantage of you while you were upset."
Buck startles at the words. "No, that's not…I-I mean, I still had sex with her, like I definitely had sex with her."
"Is that what you wanted while you were there?" Bobby asks gently. "Did you consent to having sex with your therapist?"
"Uh, I guess…not exactly…I just, I-I didn't…" Buck makes a frustrated noise. "Man, I don't even remember, it happened super fast and then it was over! I don't get why you're making such a big deal out of it!"
"Because what you're describing is rape," Bobby tells him bluntly, unsure how else to explain it to the boy. "Dr. Wells raped you, Buck."
Buck rears back with wide eyes, staring at Bobby like the man's grown a second head. "What?! No way, that's not how it went down. We just had kinda awkward therapy sex, that's all it was."
Bobby wants to cry all over again. Instead he holds the bewildered Buck close while he puts his phone to his ear.
"It's okay, kiddo," he says softly. "You're gonna be okay."
-_-
"So what do we think all that's about?" Eddie asks, nodding up to the loft they'd been banished from.
"I dunno," Chimney admits with a shrug. "Least Cap stopped yelling."
Hen looks warily upwards. "I think the quiet might be worse," she mutters, and no one even calls her out for using the dreaded "q" word.
When Bobby had ordered them to steer clear so he could talk to Buck that morning—in the loft, Eddie noted, a place less daunting than Cap's claustrophobic office—they had all sniggered along with Chimney's childish muttering of "oooh, Buckaroo's in trouble…"
They couldn't tell what was being said but the sound of Bobby's raised voice not long after Buck trudged upstairs confirmed their suspicions, and the teasing stopped right then and there. They can't even imagine what Buck might have done to get Cap so heated all of a sudden, not when he's clearly been having a hard time since the roller coaster incident.
And Eddie knows all too well that it's the kind of lingering trauma even game nights and sleepovers with Christopher can't fix.
Now that the shouting is over and both voices have gotten suspiciously softer Eddie feels a sinking sense of foreboding in the pit of his stomach. Nobody says anything for a long time while they stare up at the loft, until Eddie can't stand the uncertainty any longer.
"I'm gonna go see what's going on," he announces, and is just about to head upstairs when Bobby and Buck are suddenly descending towards him. The state of the 118's Captain and youngest probationary firefighter is not what any of them expected.
"Cap," Hen says with a gasp, "are you alright?!"
Bobby chokes a little but waves her off. His other arm is around Buck's shoulders in a comforting gesture, despite the fact that it's Bobby's face that's red and splotchy from tears. Buck is the one who appears concerned for his Captain, as well as very, very confused.
Eddie mouths, what happened? but Buck only answers with a jerk of a half shrug and ducks his head, not meeting Eddie's or anyone else's eye after that.
"Do you need something, should we call someone?" Hen asks, her gaze darting between the two like she's not sure what level of concern she should be expressing. "'Thena?"
Bobby shakes his head. "She's already on her way," he croaks. "Send her to my office when she gets here. Chim, you're in charge."
Chimney, under any other circumstance, would've been thrilled by the temporary promotion. Instead he just looks more alarmed. "Wait, Bobby, seriously? Are you sure you guys're okay, what the heck's going on?!"
Bobby shakes his head again as he leads Buck into his office and closes the door behind them.
Eddie exchanges a confounded glance with his equally baffled coworkers. They pretend to stay busy while they hover close to the shut office door, their questions going ignored when a tight lipped, speed walking Athena brushes by them not long after Bobby informed them she was coming.
When they finally emerge from the office over an hour later the juxtaposition of the scene from before breaks Eddie's heart. Because it's clearly not Bobby who's recovering from tears the second time around.
-_-
Buck only makes it partway through his slightly more coherent explanation of events to Athena in the privacy of the Captain's office when Bobby's earlier words seem to finally sink in.
"…I was still crying and she…she started touching my, um, m-my pants, a-and…and then she, um…she said…but I was just…I mean, I-I wasn't…" Buck trails off looking lost for a moment before his face pales and his wide blue eyes meet Bobby's. "I didn't want to," he says in a tiny voice through quivering lips. "I-I-I r-really d-didn't."
Then his expression crumbles and he bursts into tears. Bobby surges forward to take Buck into his arms and Athena abandons her recording so she can join him. Together they hold Buck close, rocking him gently while he sobs.
These aren't the same cries they heard after he'd been kidnapped and terrorized by Doug—his cries now are filled with a different but still agonized sounding pain, made so much worse because Buck hadn't even fully understood what was happening when Dr. Wells took advantage of him.
Athena catches Bobby's eye and looks just as horrified and upset as he feels. But he also sees a hard determination in her dark gaze and knows that with Athena on the case there is no way Buck's therapist will get away with what she's done to him.
They take Buck home after he composes himself enough to finish his statement. Bobby shakes his head at Chimney, Hen, and Eddie's obvious concern and mumbles to them that he and Buck need to take the rest of the day off. The three follow them out, all in clear distress while they demand to know what's going on even as Bobby ushers Buck into his truck. Buck doesn't acknowledge any of them or say a word, just keeps his head bowed in an attempt to hide the evidence of his tears.
When Athena meets them at the condo where Buck has been staying for the past five months she gently asks for Buck's clothes from the day before, explaining to him that they could still have evidence on them. Buck pulls the unwashed clothing from his hamper—his jacket, his shirt, his jeans, his boxer briefs—and hands them over to her with flushed cheeks.
"Buck, baby," Athena starts, her voice softer than Bobby's ever heard it. "Is there anything else?"
Buck sniffles. "L-like what?"
Bobby can see Athena's composure start to crack when she clarifies, "anything we can use as evidence, if she left some kind of mark on you…"
Buck swallows hard and doesn't say anything as he takes off his shirt. There are little bruised indents from fingernails on the back of his shoulders, where a woman's hands would have gripped him tight while she straddled his lap. The marks are faint, but obvious when one knows what to look for.
Athena takes quick pictures with her phone. Bobby feels sick just looking at the tiny blemishes.
"I-I don't have to show more, do I?" Buck asks, voice so small they can barely hear it.
Athena's frown deepens with concern. "Is there more to show? If you need Bobby to—"
"There's nothing else," Buck says quickly, his cheeks flushing while he shakes his head, though it's unclear if he's telling the truth or not.
"Okay, baby," Athena soothes. "You said Wells didn't use a condom so I want you to go with Bobby to the clinic and get checked out just in case, okay?"
Buck ducks his head and fumbles to put his shirt back on. "'Kay," he whispers.
"Would you like us to call your sister for you?"
"NO!" Buck's head snaps up and his eyes widen. "I don't…I-I mean, can we not tell her?"
"Buck…"
"Can we just not tell anybody, n-not Maddie or…or Eddie or anybody? I don't…I don't want them to know."
"Honey, it's going to come out, one way or another," Athena tells him gently. "Your sister and everybody will just want to know you're okay."
Buck whimpers, shakes his head. "C-can we not tell 'til later maybe? I…I'm just…I-I'm really tired."
Athena purses her lips but doesn't argue. "Bobby's going to stay with you, alright?" she says, and Bobby nods adamantly. "You just let him know if you need anything, anything at all."
"O-okay."
She holds him for one last long embrace before she goes, her cell phone already to her ear as she's leaving. Bobby stares after her and swallows hard as he turns to Buck, who hasn't moved or looked up from where he stands in the hallway.
"Buck," he starts gently, "are you—"
Buck shudders and shakes his head. He retreats briefly to pull on a baggy LAFD sweatshirt despite the warm Spring temperature outside, then his eyes dart up to meet Bobby's when he mutters, "let's just get this over with," and Bobby follows him outside.
The trip to the clinic is thankfully as straightforward as it is brief, and they're told the results will be available the following day. Buck is beyond exhausted by the time they return to the condo, and Bobby doesn't stop him when he makes a beeline to the bedroom without a word.
Bobby stands there, lost for a long moment. He ends up settling onto the sofa with some daytime drama playing out on the television turned low so he can hear into the rest of the condo. He listens through the cracked open door as Buck tosses and turns in bed and wars with himself over whether he should go to the kid or not. But Buck clearly wanted some space after the day's revelation, and Bobby has already broken down on him once that morning.
So Bobby jerks to attention, about to shoot to his feet every time he hears Buck make a sound, but ends up sinking back into the cushions when Buck eventually settles again. He does this countless times until he hears Buck's bare feet patter across the floor behind him. Bobby assumes Buck is going to get something from the kitchen, or maybe heading for the bathroom. What he doesn't expect is for Buck to flop down next to him before he can even say anything.
"'M too tired to sleep," Buck announces with a huff. "What're you watching?"
"I…honestly have no idea," Bobby admits.
Buck takes the remote and idly flips through the television's apps until he settles on some home and gardening program. A Martha Stuart looking woman is smiling to the camera while she describes the herbs she's grown in her garden and how she intends to use them in her newest recipe.
Bobby's mouth quirks up with amusement but he doesn't say anything, not until Buck does.
"I don't wanna talk about stuff," the boy mutters. "I just wanna watch cooking shows."
"We can do that," Bobby says softly as he drapes a comforting arm around Buck's shoulders. "And maybe later we'll do some cooking of our own."
"Yeah, okay," Buck nods and curls up against Bobby's side. "Thanks, Cap."
-_-
Athena gets Rick Romero on the line the moment she leaves Buck with his clothing secured into evidence bags. It doesn't take long for the detective to get a warrant, and within just a few hours he has officers combing through Dr. Wells' files after she's been brought in for questioning. Athena's grateful that Rick doesn't even try to keep her out of the investigation, though she knows she's far too close to it.
The proof they find in the therapist's office alone is more than enough to put Wells away. All it takes is quick follow ups with a couple of her other patients, young probationary firefighters and rookie police officers who fit similar profiles to Buck and had also fallen prey to her gaslighting and assault. Two other men readily share stories similar to Buck's, stories that they hadn't admitted to earlier for fear of losing their jobs.
But the most damning evidence is an old recorder and small box of tapes pulled from an almost overlooked hidden compartment in Wells' desk. It's not uncommon for a therapist to save audible as well as written documentation of sessions with a patient, and most of the work appears to be genuinely legitimate when they listen and flip through it. The doctor took basic, tedious notes for her discussions with the young men she assaulted—including Buck—but the unlabeled recordings she'd tried to hide reveal what really happened during those sessions:
"…and you feel better, don't you, when you're with a woman? After you've slept with her?"
Buck can be heard shuffling on a leather couch cushion, a seemingly uncomfortable fabric choice for a therapist's office, Athena notes, but essential when it comes to easy clean up.
"Um, I…yeah, I-I guess so," Buck sniffles. It's painfully obvious that he's been crying.
Wells tsks, then there's the sound of movement, more creaking of the sofa and a rustling of clothing. "I just want to help you, Evan." Athena can practically see the woman cozying up to a distraught Buck when she hears more shuffling movement through the recording. "I'm going to make you feel better."
Then Athena hears the distinct sound of a zipper being undone, followed by a loud, surprised yelp.
"Wh-what're you—" Buck's unusually high pitched voice is cut off to a muffled squeak.
"Shhh," Wells coos. "Just relax, okay?" There's the sound of more clothing being rustled, then she says in a low, seductive voice, "oh, look at you, big boy."
Buck's breath hitches, otherwise he's alarmingly silent.
"It's alright, relax," Wells tells him again. "I want to help you, remember? Let me help you."
More movement can be heard from the sofa, then the distinctive sounds of kissing and heavy, labored breathing.
"Mmm, see, there you go, looks like you're feeling better already, huh? That's a good boy…"
The little whine Buck lets out in response sounds anything but pleasurable. Athena has to rip the headphones off of her ears and lurch for the nearest trash can so she can empty her stomach.
Rick hands her a wad of napkins from his pocket, looking just as uncomfortably ill as she feels. "Told you you wouldn't like it."
Athena swipes the bile away from her mouth. "That bitch is going down for this."
"She is," the detective confirms. "Between what we've got here and the patients we're still following up with she's going away for a long while. Your kid probably won't even need to testify."
"Good," Athena croaks. "He's been through enough."
Rick nods his agreement. "I assume you'll want to be there to charge her?"
"You assume correctly."
He shoots her a wry smirk then quickly gathers what they'll need for when they confront the doctor. "We've had Wells waiting since we searched her office but haven't told her what we were looking for," he explains as he leads Athena through the precinct towards the interrogation rooms. "Her lawyer showed up a couple hours ago, figured we'd let them both sweat for awhile."
Through the two way glass Athena can see the therapist who hurt Buck, looking prim and not the least bit concerned about why she's there. Her lawyer is the more agitated one as he taps his fingers impatiently against the metal table.
"You ready?" Rick asks Athena.
She narrows her eyes at the mirror and nods. "As I'll ever be."
The moment they're through the door the lawyer starts babbling about the unlawful holding of his client and the illegal acquisition of her private medical documents, but Rick gets straight to business and lays three open files on the table. He turns them so the patients' names and department photos are in clear view of the accused, but Wells' carefully neutral expression doesn't even twitch.
"Rookie Officer Rodriguez, Probationary Firefighter Wiseman, and Probationary Firefighter Buckley," he says, indicating each file as he goes. "All patients of yours from the past few months, correct?"
"Yes," Wells confirms. "They were each mandated to see me for trauma counseling after an incident on the job."
"That's right," Rick says. "Rodriguez was sent to you after he responded to an unexpectedly brutal murder-suicide. Wiseman when he struggled to go back to work after being trapped in a five alarm blaze. And Buckley after a man he was attempting to rescue fell from the top of a roller coaster.
"All of these young men came to you for counseling after going through seriously traumatic experiences on the job, and yet you cleared each of them for duty again after a single session. You must be one hell of a therapist, Dr. Wells."
"My client has worked with Los Angeles' first responders for nearly a decade," the lawyer pipes up. "She has experience treating all kinds of trauma and mental health issues that come from working in a high stress job. You have no right to hold her when she legally cannot disclose anything one of her patients may have allegedly said or done during a therapy session."
"Oh, it's not a patient we're after," Rick informs him with a humorless smirk. "Is that what your client told you? I'll bet she thought she could get away with dismissing any accusations against her, it's always the therapist's word against their patient's, after all." He looks to the doctor. "I mean, those young men were in distress, right? They could be lying about what they said you did to them. But—" He nods to Athena who stares directly at Wells when she reveals the old recorder and tapes. "—You didn't think we'd find these, did you?"
The doctor pales, her composed facade finally cracking.
"It is common practice for a professional therapist like my client to keep audible records of their sessions," the lawyer says, "even without the patient's explicit knowledge."
"But is it common for certain recordings to be kept hidden away?" Athena presses, barely able to keep her rage in check. "And do you get off on reliving all of your sessions, Dr. Wells, or just the more vulnerable patients you've raped?"
The lawyer's jaw falls open then snaps shut again, clearly at a loss for words. Wells' jaw on the other hand is rigid, her teeth clenched tight enough to crack. She knows she's been caught, and knows she's not getting away with just losing her certifications or a light slap on the wrist. Her lawyer will be hard pressed to prove that she's innocent, especially if more victims come forward and Rick is certain that they will. There's no way Wells is getting out of prison time for what she's done.
"You hurt one of my babies," Athena snarls at her. "And I'm gonna make damn sure you pay for it."
Rick has his cuffs out and ready when he declares, "Megan Wells, you have the right to remain silent…"
-_-
"But she didn't say anything was wrong?" Eddie asks, not even trying to hide his frantic desperation after a long string of unread texts and unanswered FaceTime calls finally ended with Buck's late night reply of im fine see u tomorrow. Most concerning was the lack of emoji following the brief text. "Maddie still didn't tell you what's going on?"
Chimney answers with a grim shake of his head. "Like I said, I told her something weird was going on with Buck and Cap last shift so she went to go check on the kid that night, then she went radio silent. She didn't come home at all yesterday, and we were both off."
"'Thena's been ghosting me ever since too," Hen adds gloomily. "It's probably safe to assume she and Maddie have been with Bobby and Buck since whatever happened happened. Are we even sure they're coming in today?"
"I think so," Eddie says. "Buck's text—"
Chimney interrupts him by suddenly shooting to his feet with a gasp and pointing to the side doors. "Oh my god, they're actually here," he hisses with a dramatic flap of his hand. "Quick, act normal!"
Eddie's not sure what's more normal than him sitting on the locker room's bench with his coworkers first thing in the morning so he stays put next to Hen. She gives him a comforting shoulder nudge and a reassuring little smile that doesn't quite meet her anxious gaze.
From his vantage point Eddie can see the two of them in Bobby's truck. Bobby is saying something to Buck, who nods then exits the passenger seat. The pair walk inside together, both already dressed in their firefighter blues. Bobby nods to his team and gives Buck one last supportive pat to the back before heading to his office with the announcement, "briefing's in five, everyone," like he would any other day.
Buck goes straight for his locker to put his things away per usual, only his smile is obviously forced when all he says for a greeting is a quick "good morning" in a tone pitched slightly higher than normal.
The others exchange a worried glance. "How've you been doing, Buckaroo?" Hen asks gently.
Buck's shoulders tense but he doesn't turn around. "Oh, I'm fine," he answers, his words barely audible while his face is hidden in his locker. "Everything's just totally fine and normal!"
Chimney stares at him. "You're sure?"
"Yeah," Buck says. "I mean, some stuff happened, but it's really not that big of a deal anymore so, like, everything's, you know, just fine. And normal."
"Riiight…"
"Yup!" Buck slams the locker shut, then flinches like he hadn't meant to use so much force. He recovers quickly and brushes by them with a slightly manic looking grin. "Fine and normal everything!"
"Buck, wait," Eddie calls as he extends an arm into Buck's path, stopping him in his tracks. "Seriously, man, we've been worried about you," Eddie says gently. "What's going on, are you okay?"
Buck's mask falls and he swallows hard, his Adam's apple bobbing in his throat while he looks from Eddie to Chimney to Hen and sees the obvious concern in each of their expressions.
"I…I'll tell you guys later," Buck mutters, ducking his head and breaking eye contact as he heads into the station.
Later comes over lunch. Bobby's briefing is straightforward as ever, then he and Buck disappear to take advantage of the slow morning and make an elaborate smorgasbord of food, not at all typical for the team's midday meal. When it's ready they settle around the loft's dining table and Eddie doesn't miss the hushed words and meaningful looks Bobby and Buck share before they take their usual seats, Bobby at the head of the table with Buck to his right.
They're all about to eagerly dig in when Buck suddenly stands with a noisy scraping of his chair against the floor as he clinks his fork against his water glass to get everyone's attention. Once he has it he loudly clears his throat, then announces to the crowded firehouse dining table:
"I just wanna say that I had sex with my new therapist during our session the other day but I didn't mean to so now she's in big trouble, and no I don't want to talk about it, I just wanted you all to hear it from me first in case this becomes a big deal or whatever even though it's definitely not. That…that's it. Um, thanks everybody."
Then he sits as abruptly as he stood and shuffles his chair back under the table, the sound echoing in the otherwise dead silent loft until Chimney sputters and starts coughing up whatever he'd managed to put in his mouth before Buck's little speech began. Hen is sitting next to her partner but doesn't move to help him, her hands are too busy covering her mouth while she stares at Buck with wide, teary eyes magnified by her glasses. Eddie isn't sure how to react when it feels like the floor has just opened up beneath him.
They'd all seen the devastation on both Buck and Bobby's faces when things went down, and they can easily read between the lines and know what Buck isn't saying. What Buck doesn't want to say.
"Thank you for telling us, Buck," Bobby says gently, as if he hadn't been the one who encouraged Buck to get the story off of his chest in the first place. He reaches over and squeezes Buck's hand on the table top. "The whole team's here for you."
"Yeah, Buckaroo," Hen croaks when her hand moves to cover Bobby's. "We got you."
Chimney follows quickly with the hand that he isn't currently hacking into, and they all know he'll blame his coughing fit for the tears in his eyes. "A-always, kiddo," he chokes.
Eddie joins last without a word, his shaky grip on Buck's arm grounding him even when he's left reeling from the news.
"Thanks, guys," Buck mutters. "I just…thanks. But I'm okay. Really."
Their hands rest on him for a long, heartfelt moment, then Bobby encourages them to enjoy their lunch while they can. He distracts them by talking about some new equipment that's coming in and no one brings up the revelation again at the table, much to Buck's obvious relief.
Eddie doesn't know what he can do or say until he offers to help Buck clean up in the kitchen. The two stand together at the sink passing cookware back and forth for a long time before Buck finally breaks the silence.
"Sorry I've been ignoring your calls and stuff," Buck mutters while he continues to scrub at a pan that's already cleaner than it's ever been. "I was just…I-I had a lot going on."
Eddie can only imagine. "Hey, yeah, it's no problem," he says, trying his best to sound nonchalant for Buck's sake. "I was just…" worried sick freaking out not knowing if you were okay or not, and now that I know you weren't… Eddie clears the emotional lump from his throat. "I wanted to tell you about some new board game Christopher is into, it's this like kinda nerdy thing with trains but he's real excited about it. We…um, Chris, he wants to know when you'll be around to play with us."
"Now! I can play now," Buck blurts, abruptly dropping the pan when he looks over at Eddie with wide, eager eyes, then flushes when he realizes what he said. "Or I mean, not like literally now, after shift tomorrow, maybe? I-I-I could come over and play with you guys right after shift, if that's okay?"
"Yeah, no," Eddie answers quickly, "that's…that'd be great, we can order junk food and just hang at my place until Carla gets Chris from school."
Buck ducks his head with a shy, relieved little smile. "I'd really like that. Thanks, Eddie."
Eddie grins and holds his soapy fist out for a bump that Buck happily reciprocates.
Game nights and sleepovers at the Diaz house might not always make the painful trauma go away, but Eddie knows for a fact that they definitely help.
-_-
On the next call they get for a jumper—over some ridiculous squabble between a couple on their apartment balcony—Bobby sends Buck up to the roof to perform his so called "maneuver."
Buck blanches at the order at first, but with encouragement from Bobby and the others he harnesses up and saves the day, just like Bobby knew he would, and that simple act of heroism gives Buck the joy and confidence that he's been missing in recent weeks. Buck's all smiles and exuberance while he relays the story of his dramatic maneuver for the umpteenth time to the rest of the team, who smile and listen even though were very much there on the scene with him and saw what happened, until they get back to the station.
There's a young woman standing in the bay doors waiting for them when they exit the rig. She only has eyes for Buck, whose cheery disposition falls the moment he spots her. He swallows hard and heads in her direction before Bobby can ask who she is. Still, he hovers close but doesn't intrude when Buck ushers her up to the loft where they can talk more comfortably.
"I've been meaning to apologize to you," Bobby can hear the young woman saying while he pretends to be busy in the kitchen. "I was way out of line at my brother's memorial and you didn't deserve that. What happened to Devon wasn't your fault…"
Bobby listens from the counter and can't help but smile while he eavesdrops on the rest of their conversation, one that is handled very maturely by Buck.
When the young woman eventually leaves she looks relieved, like a massive weight has been lifted off of her shoulders. Buck looks about the same when he approaches Bobby, who greets him with a soft smile and gentle hug.
"You okay, kiddo?"
"Yeah, I'm okay," Buck says genuinely over Bobby's shoulder. "Thanks for always looking out for me, Cap."
"Happy to do it, Buck," Bobby grins and gives his boy a comforting clap on the back. "I love you, kid."
"Love you too, Pops."
FIN.