Work Text:
The fire was a beast that had been hellbent on devouring anything it could reach. Every time they’d nearly gotten it under control, some small tendril reached around their efforts and the firebreaks. There were four houses here on top of the usual wildfire house. There’d also been several overflights by fire suppression helicopters and planes. Buck had recognized Tommy over the radio, his voice confident and calm in the face of the blaze they were all fighting. A thrill still ran down his spine and trembled in his belly hearing Tommy’s voice.
Especially now that they’d gotten back together.
No one knew yet. Well, except for Ravi because he’d been at the same restaurant on a date at the same time Buck and Tommy had been. Though Ravi had promised to keep it a secret. Nor did Buck miss the almost-comical sigh of relief. Well, that was fair. He’d not been able to shut up about Tommy at times. No one else at the 118 seemed to notice that he was in better spirits. At least, no one mentioned it. They were all mostly ignoring him. In fact, they seemed relieved that he was quiet. Especially Eddie.
But that meant, on top of being professional at work, Buck couldn’t make any outward show of what hearing Tommy’s voice on the radio did to him. He could admire the precision with which Tommy flew. Nor was he the only one. But, although they were all working at containing the same fire, Buck never saw Tommy. They were almost on opposite shifts for rest breaks. Still, Buck could listen to his voice and know Tommy heard his over the radio.
It took nearly three days but they finally did it. The fire was done. There was a ton of burned forest and so many of the wild animals had been displaced. But that wasn’t really anything the fire houses could do anything about. Nature would have to heal on its own, maybe with help from environmentalists and scientists. After a quick shower, two of the extra houses left. That left two houses and the main wildfire house. While they hadn’t had a problem with having enough cots during the fire, now there just weren’t quite enough. And everyone who had stayed only stayed because they were too exhausted to leave.
Buck was the last one out of the showers, Ravi and Harry having finished up early and gone to find a cot. He also had a nasty scrape on his forearm that the onsite medic had told him in no uncertain terms to come see him about. Honestly, Buck had no plans to disobey. The medic scared him a little bit. So, by the time he was done with his shower and getting the scratch cleaned and wrapped, all of the cots were taken. He stopped in the doorway, blinking miserably as he counted the filled cots again.
“Sorry Buck,” Harry called from where he was sprawled over a cot. He winced sympathetically. “Maybe we can get some extra blankets and make up a spot on the floor for you?”
Buck groaned and shook his head. After three days of fighting the wildfire with minimal breaks, his body was aching. His leg especially. It had taken some work over the past day or so to hide the limp that had developed. All he wanted was to collapse in a cot and sleep for a few hours. The floor was the last place he wanted to sleep. He started to groan again when a familiar snore caught his attention.
In the back corner, a tuft of curly hair was tucked into the nearly flat pillow all the cots had. Tommy lay sound asleep, his back to the wall and his arms curled up against his chest. Buck’s heart melted into soft goo at the sight. And, after a moment to debate with himself, made a decision.
“Hey, Buck, where...” Harry started to say as Buck walked past him to beeline towards Tommy. Harry’s eyes widened when he saw who Buck was going towards. “Uh, are you sure?”
Buck didn’t say anything. Just kept walking until he stopped next to Tommy’s cot. He skated his fingers through Tommy’s hair, over his forehead, and down his cheek. He kept going until his hand rested on Tommy’s shoulder. Then, Buck shook his shoulder gently.
“Hey, Tommy,” Buck murmured, quiet enough that he didn’t think Harry could hear. “Wake up for me, sweetheart.”
“Mmmm,” Tommy grumbled, stretching a little as his eyes opened. He smiled when he saw Buck. “Hi, baby.”
“Scoot over?” Buck asked, nudging Tommy’s shoulder. “There’s no more cots left.”
Tommy slid back on the cot, opening his arms for Buck to settle into. Carefully, so that he didn’t tip the cot or hurt Tommy, Buck settled on the cot and into Tommy’s arms. He slotted one leg between Tommy’s and wrapped an arm over his waist. Tommy hummed contentedly, wrapping an arm over Buck’s shoulders. They shared the pillow, their foreheads nearly touching. The last thing Buck remembered before falling asleep was hearing Harry snort once.
Some time later, Buck woke up somewhat rested, warm, comfortable, and safe. He opened his eyes to see Tommy watching him, eyes crinkled with a fond smile. Buck smiled back and couldn’t stop leaning forward enough to press a quick kiss to Tommy’s lips. Behind them, someone sighed.
“Guess I don’t have to keep it secret anymore, huh?” Ravi asked when Buck turned his head to look behind him. Ravi was sitting on the cot across from them, tying his boots.
“Guess not,” Buck said a little sheepishly. His split second decision suddenly seemed like it might have been a bad idea. Especially since he hadn’t asked Tommy. Looking back at Tommy, Buck continued, “Are you okay with that?”
“With people knowing that you’re mine and I’m yours?” Tommy asked, his tone dry but his expression fond. “Not at all.”
“That’s good news,” Ravi smiled then chuckled wickedly. “Besides, you two being together again means more cots for the rest of us.”
He continued laughing for a moment then yelped when Buck threw the pillow at him. Tommy laughed heartily, holding Buck close. For a moment, Buck snuggled into the side of his neck. He wished they could stay a little longer like this. But, the rest of the firefighters had left and he could hear engines rumbling to life outside. Besides, if they left, they could go home and fall back asleep in their own bed. One more kiss, which both of them lingered over, and they got up. Ravi nodded at them, finished tying his boots, and left. Buck was pretty sure the news would be in the groupchat. But that was okay. He was happy, Tommy was happy, and they were together again.
Though, when the news finally did drop, Buck was surprised to see a picture Ravi had snapped on his phone and added to the chat. He and Tommy were curled up, almost seeming to be one body with how close they were on the cot. But they looked content and happy. He saved it to his own phone, intent on showing Tommy later. And a part of him was thankful there hadn’t been any cots left for him to sleep on.