Archive of Our Own

Getting stabbed is entirely inconvenient. It wasn’t even that deep of an injury, and yet here Eddie is. Stuck at home, unable to work because of mandated medical leave. The only bright side to this ordeal is that, without his shifts, Eddie is able to be there for school drop-off and pickups - for Chris and Theo. It’s given him that extra bit of time with his son, which is something Eddie will always want more of and will never take for granted. It’s also given him the opportunity to spend time with Theo, who is a great kid and is a huge part of Buck’s life now, so being able to form a bond with him is something that is important to Eddie. And secretly, the realisation of the four of them being a family is something that washed over Eddie so suddenly, but instead of feeling panic - or the need to correct the person at the beach who mistook them for a family when Eddie and Theo were buying ice-creams - Eddie had been hit with joy and relief.

He’s officially on the last few days of leave, so by the time the next shift comes around, Eddie will be back at work, and as much as he’s looking forward to getting back, he will miss these moments with Chris and Theo.

This afternoon, Chris is at an afterschool club, which means that Eddie and Theo will have a few hours from daycare pickup time until Chris is done.

‘I was thinking of taking Theo for ice-cream and then to the park,’ Eddie says. ‘I ordered those light-up spider-man shoes for him, and they arrived today, so I figured he can test them out.’

He’s just pulled up outside of Theo’s daycare, with five minutes to spare, and decided to Facetime Buck - who had thankfully been in between calls.

‘You spoil him,’ Buck chastises, his eyes fixed on the chopping board in front of him as his hand works a knife in a methodic rhythm, chopping the vegetables laid out in front of him. Not that Eddie’s staring at Buck’s hands.

Eddie fixes the phone screen with a deadpan expression and, as if he can feel Eddie’s stare, Buck lifts his eyes up to meet Eddie’s.

‘And who would buy Chris at least one thing from the gift shop every time they went to the zoo?’ Eddie questions.

‘They were for educational purposes, Eddie!’ Buck argues, pouting.

‘Okay, and Theo needs shoes, Buck,’ Eddie points out. ‘Do you want him to be shoeless?’

Buck rolls his eyes in response, but Eddie can see his mouth twitching, suppressing a grin.

‘Yeah, yeah,’ Buck says, but before he can say anything else, the tones ring out in the background. ‘Gotta go, Eddie, give Theo a hug from me! Bye bye bye,’ Buck reels off, promptly hanging up before Eddie even has a chance to say anything in response.

Eddie smiles at his phone for a brief moment after the call ends, silently commending himself for not blurting out an ‘i love you’ followed up by a mwah to the phone screen. Medical leave has been a great time for self realisations, including the fact that you’re gay, and in love with your best friend. Eddie pockets his phone and steps out of the car to walk towards the designated pick-up area.

He goes through the process of confirming who he is to the staff member who is holding a clipboard of all the kids’ names alongside the names of the people approved to pick them up.

‘Eddie!’ Theo’s little voice happily exclaims a few moments later.

Eddie grins and kneels down, opening his arms ready in time to catch Theo, who comes hurtling towards Eddie.

He stands up, lifting Theo high up in the air, who shrieks in delight. ‘I got a surprise for you,’ Eddie whispers loudly.

‘Is it Chris??’ Theo asks excitedly, attempting to wriggle out of Eddie’s arms so he can get to the car.

‘No, buddy, I’m sorry,’ Eddie starts, carefully putting Theo down, who slips his hand into Eddie’s as they walk to the car. ‘Chris is still at school and then has his club after, remember?’

‘Oh yeah,’ Theo says, momentarily crestfallen before remembering that there’s still a surprise waiting for him.

They reach the car then, and Eddie opens the door, helping Theo in his car seat and strapping him in, before leaning down and grabbing the box from the floor. He opens the box and holds it out for Theo to see.

‘SPIDER-MAN SHOES!’ Theo exclaims excitedly.

‘And they light up,’ Eddie tells him, grinning.

Theo gasps, eyes lighting up as he looks at Eddie in equal parts happiness and shock. ‘Can I wear them now?’

‘Yeah, you can!’ Eddie tells him as Theo takes his shoes off and Eddie puts the new ones on for him. Or- attempts to. Because the shoes don’t fit.

Eddie stares at the shoes in his hands, frowning.

‘Did my feet get bigger?’ Theo asks, his eyes widening.

Eddie inspects the shoes, trying to find their stated size. ‘These aren’t the size I ordered, they’re way too small,’ he mutters to himself, pulling his phone out of his pocket.

He leans his arm against the roof of the car as he scrolls through his emails until he comes across the right one.

Eddie scans through the confirmation email, his eyes landing on the details of the shoes he ordered until he finds what he’s looking for. The correct size that he’d ordered, not the ones he’s currently holding. He scrolls down further in the email, which informs him that he can make a return or exchange, subject to availability, in any of their stores.

He pulls open his internet browser, and a quick Google search tells him that there’s a store located in a mall twenty minutes from him and that they have the shoes, in Theo’s size, in stock.

‘To the mall,’ Eddie announces, grinning at Theo. ‘Let’s go get your actual shoes. And maybe some ice-cream too,’ he adds.

Theo cheers in response, and Eddie chuckles as he closes the door before getting back into the driver’s seat and entering the mall’s location into his car’s sat-nav.

Thankfully, it doesn’t take them too long to find the shop once they arrive at the mall, over twenty minutes later, and they’re able to quickly exchange the shoes for the ones in Theo’s actual size.

‘I’m just like spider-man!’ Theo announces, proudly looking at his new shoes on his feet as they walk out of the store.

‘Alright, spider-man, give me a pose,’ Eddie tells him, positioning him in front of a bench in the mall and pulling his phone out to take a photo.

Theo grins and immediately climbs onto the bench and poses for the camera as Eddie snaps away, making sure the shoes are captured too.

Once he’s done, Eddie walks over to Theo, wrapping his arm around him and lifting him up. ‘Okay, let’s go, it’s ice-cream time,’ he says.

‘Ice-cream time!!’ Theo parrots back as Eddie hoists him up higher so he’s half leaning over Eddie’s shoulder, causing Theo to giggle.

Eddie carries Theo over to the ice-cream stand and then gently lowers him to the ground in front of the window display so they can both have a look at the flavours on offer.

Once they’ve both chosen, Eddie holds their ice-creams in one hand, Theo gripping onto his other hand, and leads them over to a bench so they can sit down and eat. He also bought a couple of the giant fresh cookies from the stand for Chris, because they’re his favourite, and because Eddie couldn’t get him an ice-cream and he felt bad about it.

Eddie passes Theo his ice-cream and takes a selfie of the two of them before exiting his camera app so he can send all the photos he’d taken to Buck. A quick glance at his home screen shows him that he has no signal, so Eddie pockets his phone instead, reminding himself to send the photos to Buck later.

‘You know, I think we should head to the park,’ Eddie says, after they’ve finished their ice-creams. ‘So you can really test out your new shoes.’

‘Yeah!!’ Theo shouts excitedly, jumping up from the bench immediately, his face and hands both covered in melted ice-cream.

‘Hold your horses, Mr. Sticky,’ Eddie chuckles, lifting Theo up from under his armpits and carrying him to a nearby restroom to get washed up.

‘I don’t have a horse,’ Theo states, once he’s been successfully cleaned. ‘Can Buck get me a horse? It can live in the yard!’ he asks, his eyes widening.

‘I think the backyard is a bit too small for a horse, buddy,’ Eddie responds as they leave the restroom and head to the elevator. ‘They live in stables, and they need a big field to run around in.’

Theo contemplates this as the doors to the elevator open, and they step in. He looks at all the buttons before glancing at Eddie to check which one they need.

Eddie smiles at him, gesturing to the button for the underground parking, and Theo presses it diligently.

‘We can take you to see horses and maybe even ride one, if you’d like,’ Eddie says as the elevator doors open to the car park and they step out, walking towards the car.

Just as they reach Eddie’s car, a chorus of blaring alarms sounds out from Eddie’s phone and from the handful of other people also in the parking lot.

Eddie frowns as he pulls his phone out, his eyes widening as he reads the notification.

Earthquake Detected - Drop, Cover, Hold on. Protect Yourselves.

He’s barely read the last word before Eddie feels the ground beneath his feet begin to tremble. Immediately, he swoops Theo into his arms, holding him as close to his body as possible, with a hand covering the back of Theo’s head.

Eddie drops to the ground on his knees and tries to crawl as far away as possible from the car. He holds Theo tightly to his chest as the tremors of the earthquake quickly shift from a tremble to violent and destructive.

‘Eddie, I’m scared,’ Theo whimpers, burying his face into Eddie’s chest.

‘I know honey, earthquakes are real scary, but I promise I’m here and I’m not going to let anything happen to you, okay?’ Eddie assures him, trying to keep his tone gentle and as even as possible.

Eddie is still on his knees on the ground, the top half of his body practically folded over so he can use himself as a shield to cover and protect Theo.

He squeezes his eyes shut as he sends out a silent plea to keep Christopher safe, hoping that he was able to take cover somewhere safely. Eddie pushes down the guilt of this being the second earthquake Chris has had to experience without Eddie there to look out for him. Now isn’t the time - the guilt trip can come later. Eddie also sends out another plea that his 118 family hadn’t been out on a call or a dangerous rescue when the earthquake hit. He gets another pang of guilt that he isn’t there with them. That he isn’t next to Buck, having his back, but that quickly disappears when he squeezes Theo tighter. Protecting Theo is having Buck’s back.

What feels like an eternity later, but in reality is just thirty seconds later, the earthquake stops.

Eddie blinks open his eyes, and all around him lies debris and destruction. The sound of car alarms and the faint yelling of people is drowned out to Eddie by Theo’s soft crying.

‘It’s over now, buddy. We’re safe,’ Eddie whispers softly.

Theo cracks open one of his eyes, sniffling before opening both of his eyes fully. He looks terrified, and his face is tear stained.

‘Are you hurt anywhere?’ Eddie asks him gently, checking him over for any visible injuries.

‘No,’ Theo sniffs. ‘Are you hurt?’

‘No, I’m okay too,’ he assures him.

Eddie digs around in his pockets to find his phone, wanting nothing more than to be able to call or text Chris so that he knows he’s okay. He knows that just hearing his son’s voice will help settle some of the worry he’s feeling. He wants to speak to Buck - to know that he’s okay too and to let him know that he and Theo are safe. He frowns as both of his pockets are empty until something catches his eye on the ground near them.

His phone - smashed to pieces. Fuck.

He needs to call Chris. He needs to speak to him. He needs to know if his son is safe and if Buck is safe and if everyone he cares about is safe, but he can’t do that if he doesn’t have a working fucking phone.

Eddie lets out a slow exhale, trying to keep his stress and worrying in check, for Theo’s sake.

‘I didn’t like that, Eddie,’ Theo tells him, hiccuping through his tears.

‘Me neither,’ Eddie agrees, moving his hand from Theo’s head to his back and rubbing soft, reassuring circles on it. He looks around him then and really takes in the devastation.

The underground car park they’re in has essentially caved in on itself, crushing cars in its wake and leaving destruction and debris everywhere. There had been maybe 10 other people that Eddie could see when they had stepped out of the elevator and now, slowly, as the shock begins to wear off, Eddie can hear the terrified voices and cries of them all.

He looks around at the cars and- shit.

What if people had been in their cars when the earthquake hit? Just from a quick glance around, Eddie can see that most of the cars are wrecked - some with their windows smashed, some with structural beams now on top of them. There could be people stuck inside any number of the cars - 30, if Eddie had to guess - needing help.

Eddie slowly and shakily stands up, holding Theo in his arms and shielding him closely as he does. He’s very aware that an aftershock could hit at any moment and his priority is making sure nothing happens to Theo. But he also can’t just ignore it if people need help. If he had to guess, a rescue mission would be an arduous task, given that this had been an underground lot.

He sees a few people sprawled on the ground near them as he carefully makes his way back towards his car.

‘Are you guys okay?’ he asks them, pausing in front of what he assumes is a family of two parents and two small kids, probably around Theo’s age.

‘Yeah, thankfully,’ the woman replies. ‘Our phones are smashed, though. We can’t call for help.’

‘They’ll be coming for us,’ Eddie responds. ‘It might be a while, though. You guys sit tight.’

‘Are you both okay?’

‘Yeah,’ Eddie swallows. ‘Yeah, we’re okay.’

‘Are you trying to get out of here?’ The man sitting beside the woman asks.

‘I’m going to see if anyone needs help,’ Eddie explains.

‘He’s a firefighter,’ Theo pipes up suddenly. His voice is small and muffled from where he’s still buried into Eddie.

‘I’ll come with you. I’m first aid trained,’ the man says, standing up, kissing the top of his wife and children’s heads as he does.

‘Alright, just- be careful. Everything is a hazard, and there’s still the possibility of-’ Eddie cuts himself off hesitantly. He’s too aware of the children looking up at him with wide, fearful eyes and, particularly, of the one with his arms wrapped around Eddie’s neck. Eddie glances at the couple, hoping they understand the possibility of the aftershock without him having to say it.

They exchange a look then, having a wordless conversation that reminds Eddie of him and Buck, before they turn to Eddie and nod.

‘You can leave the little one with us if you’d like,’ the woman offers. ‘I’m Devi, that’s my husband Billy and our daughters, Sophie and Rosie.’

Theo tenses in Eddie’s arms, and his grip around Eddie tightens.

‘I’m Eddie, and this is Theo,’ Eddie smiles. ‘And that’s really kind of you to offer, but Theo here is my little assistant, so I think he’s gonna have to stick with me.’

Eddie feels Theo relax against him, and Devi smiles at him understandingly.

He continues over to his car then, Billy following closely behind.

Eddie winces when he takes in the damage to his car - the roof crushed by a structural beam.

He takes out his car key and turns off the alarm before opening the boot and pulling out the first aid kit he keeps in there.

‘I have one of those in my car, I can go grab it?’ Billy says.

Eddie nods. ‘Yeah, stay safe, and if you’re not sure about something, just call out to me. I’m gonna go around and check the cars to see if there’s anyone in them. I’ll go down this row, and you can do the same on the opposite side.’

‘Got it,’ Billy responds before turning on his heel and heading towards his own car.

‘Alright, Theo. Let’s go and see if anyone needs help, yeah?’ Eddie murmurs softly.

Theo finally unburies his face from where he’d been hiding in Eddie’s chest and blinks up at him.

‘Yeah, I’m your ‘sisstant,’ he tells Eddie seriously.

‘You are,’ Eddie nods in agreement.

Eddie continues walking down one side of the car park then, seeing a few people dotted around as he does. He checks in with them as he passes, stopping to help those who need help with - thankfully minor - cuts and bruises.

‘HELP! HELP US!’

Eddie stops in his tracks when he hears a voice - one sounding like it belongs to a kid - calling out for help.

‘HELP!’ the voice yells again.

Eddie immediately follows the sound of the voice as it continues to desperately call for help.

‘MOM! WAKE UP!’ the voice cries as they get closer. ‘Someone please help!’

When Eddie reaches the source of the voice - a young teen, probably only a little younger than Chris - he sees the reason for their cry for help.

A car, with its roof crushed by a fallen structure pillar.

‘My Mom is in there, and she won’t answer when I call for her,’ the teenager cries when they see Eddie approaching. ‘You have to help her, please. We were arguing before the earthquake hit, and I stormed out of the car and told her she’s embarrassing, but she’s not. She’s the best mom, and I- I can’t lose her, please. You have to help her.’

Eddie glances down at Theo. He’s already seen and experienced so much trauma at such a young age, and now this whole day will be added to that. He holds Theo tighter, who is too preoccupied watching the teenager, with wide eyes.

‘Hey, it’s okay. We all say things we don’t mean sometimes,’ Eddie says gently, averting his gaze to the teenager, who looks up to meet Eddie’s eyes. ‘An argument won’t change how much your Mom loves you.’

‘I- I can’t lose her,’ the teenager whispers.

‘I’m gonna help your Mom,’ Eddie replies, kneeling down so he can lower Theo to the ground. ‘Can you tell me her name?’

‘Carina. Her name’s Carina,’ he responds. ‘I’m Julian.’

‘Julian, I’m Eddie, and this is Theo. I promise I’m gonna do everything I can to help your Mom, but I need you both to listen to me carefully, okay?’

Eddie glances from Julian to Theo, letting his gaze linger on Theo, who is already watching Eddie with his full attention, in a way so similar to Buck.

‘It’s still really dangerous, especially near the car, so I need you both to sit down, really close to the ground over there,’ Eddie says, gesturing to a spot close enough to the car that Eddie can still see and hear the kids if they need him, but far enough away that they’re not at risk of getting hurt.

‘But I’m your helper,’ Theo says, his bottom lip jutting out. Eddie feels his heart ache, torn between wanting to scoop Theo in his arms and keep him close, but wanting - and needing - to help Julian’s Mom.

‘I’m really scared,’ Julian says suddenly. ‘Would you hang out with me, Theo?’

Theo’s eyes widen as he looks up at Julian, and then back at Eddie. He still looks scared, but now his eyes are full of pride at being asked such an important request from someone older than him.

‘That’s a really important job, buddy. You think you can do it?’ Eddie asks, crouching down in front of Theo.

Theo nods furiously. ‘I can do it,’ he says seriously.

‘I know you can,’ Eddie smiles at him softly. ‘That’s why you’re the best assistant.’

Theo beams at Eddie upon hearing that, before turning to Julian and holding his hand out for him to take.

‘My Buck says it’s okay to be scared and he gets scared sometimes too,’ Theo starts to tell Julian after he takes his hand and the pair walk over to the spot Eddie had pointed out. ‘He says I help him be brave when he’s scared. And he always helps me when I’m scared. And Eddie and Chris, they always help me and Buck feel brave. I know because he told me they do, and I told him the same.’

Eddie feels warmth spreading through his body as he listens to Theo talking to Julian. He watches as the pair sit down and Julian wraps his arm around Theo’s shoulders, pulling Theo close to his side.

He pulls his eyes off Theo and Julian then and walks over to the car, assessing the scene. Eddie inspects the car to make sure nothing is leaking, and there’s no risk of anything starting a fire, exploding or causing any other sort of damage. He then moves on to finding a way into the car. It’s not going to be an easy job without any of the tools he’d normally rely on at work. Not to mention, he doesn’t even know Julian’s Mom’s condition. The risk of moving her could be too great, and then they’d be stuck until help arrives, and Eddie has no idea when that will be.
The odds aren’t looking great, but then a small miracle presents itself in the form of a broken back window of the car. Eddie stretches his arm carefully through the window and is able to unlock - and then open - the door.

Eddie crawls carefully into the backseat of the car and winces when he sees Julian’s Mom. She’s slumped back in her seat, with blood dripping down her head and onto her face, probably from a head injury caused by the crushing weight of the pillar. Her eyes are closed, and there’s no rise and fall to her chest. The deployed airbag has her trapped against the back of the driver's seat, and a piece of broken glass, presumably from the shattered windshield, is wedged into her shoulder. It’s also likely that she has some sort of spinal injury, which would make moving her impossible.

Eddie reaches out to check for a pulse, which is weak but there. He clambers out of the car again to get his first aid kit, and as he does, he calls out to Julian and Theo.

Both Julian and Theo turn to look at him when they hear their names.

‘You both doing okay?’ Eddie asks.

‘We’re okay,’ Julian calls back. ‘How’s my Mom?’

‘Working on it,’ Eddie promises. ‘Julian, is your cell working?’

‘I left it in the car after I stormed out after Mom and I argued,’ Julian replies mournfully. ‘I’m sorry.’

Eddie shakes his head, offering him a soft, reassuring smile. ‘You did nothing wrong, I promise.’

‘Maybe we can-’

But Julian is cut off from the rest of his sentence by a rumbling of the ground.

Aftershock.

Eddie’s eyes widen as he looks over to Julian and Theo.

‘GET DOWN!’ Eddie calls out, but before he can say or do anything else, the tremor of the unstable ground sends him flying backwards, head first into a wall behind him.

The last thing Eddie hears before he blacks out is Theo’s scream.

Eddie wakes up to a pair of tiny hands nudging at his shoulder, shaking him gently.

Before he can even open his eyes, he’s instantly aware of the pain in his head. A persistent, throbbing ache reverberates through his skull, and when he manages to open his eyes, he’s hit with an intense wave of nausea and the deep urge to close his eyes again. The pain is excruciating, and if it weren’t for a pair of wide, terrified eyes looking at him, Eddie would probably close his eyes again to escape the pain.

He glances over and sees Julian hovering close behind Theo, and thankfully, they both seem unscathed.

Eddie musters up a weak smile, hoping it’s convincing enough for Theo to stop looking so scared.

‘Teddy,’ Theo sniffs. Teddy had been a nickname that Theo had given to Eddie when Buck and Theo had been shopping with Maddie and Jee. Buck had sent Eddie a photo of Theo clutching a teddy bear close to him because Buck had joked that the bear’s eyes “reminded him of Eddie” - a comment that did not have Eddie’s cheeks turning pink, thank you - and Theo had spent the rest of the walk around the shop, holding the teddy bear and calling it “Teddy Eddie” and Buck had said it “felt like I was abandoning you, Eddie! I had to buy it for him!” The nickname didn’t come out too often - mostly when Theo’s tired, but every time Eddie hears it, it pulls on his heartstrings.

‘Hey, honey,’ Eddie greets him gently, slowly lifting his arm - which is a painful feat in itself - and cupping his hand around the back of Theo’s head. ‘I’m sorry for scaring you.’

Theo flings himself onto Eddie then, burying his face in Eddie’s chest. Eddie squeezes his eyes shut, wincing internally but not wanting to disrupt Theo’s comfort.

‘I wanna go home,’ Theo mumbles, his voice wobbly.

‘I do too,’ Eddie agrees. ‘But people will be coming to help us real soon, and then we can all go home, yeah?’

Eddie peers down and sees Theo nodding into his chest.

‘I want Buck,’ Theo whispers, sniffling through his tears.

Eddie ignores the pain coursing through his body as he lifts his arms to wrap around Theo. ‘I know, buddy. And I bet he can’t wait to see you again so he can give you the biggest, squishiest hug ever.’

‘Sometimes, Buck gives me such a squishy hug, and he’ll pretend he can’t find me anymore, but he’s just being silly, ‘cause I’m right there,’ Theo giggles. ‘But he always says “Oh no, I’ve lost Theo” and I have to tickle him to let me go.’

Eddie smiles as he listens to Theo - his smile widening at the way he deepens his voice to impersonate Buck. It’s a story Buck’s told Eddie before - something that never fails to make Theo laugh, and Eddie can still recall Buck’s wide smile and shining, happy eyes when he’d told Eddie this story.

‘Hey! Hey man, are you okay?’

Eddie and Theo look up in unison at the sound of the voice.

The man from earlier that was helping Eddie check on people - Billy, Eddie thinks, is his name.

‘Yeah,’ Eddie responds, trying to keep his voice even for Theo’s sake. He gently shifts them so he can slowly sit up, whilst still keeping Theo on his lap. ‘Just got a little hurt in the aftershock, but we’re okay. I just- I need to get back to helping someone. Are you guys okay?’

‘Yeah,’ Billy responds. ‘I’d gone back to check on my wife and kids when the aftershock hit, and thankfully we’re all okay. I’m gonna go back to checking on everyone on the other side now, but I came to ask if you need to call anyone? I found someone with a working phone, and they’ve offered it around,’ he explains. ‘She’s already called 911, and they’re aware we’re trapped here and apparently help is on the way.’

‘My son,’ Eddie responds immediately. ‘I need to call my son.’

Billy leans down and passes the phone over to Eddie.

‘The phone belongs to the lady sitting by the yellow car, down that way,’ Billy replies, nodding to the other side of the parking lot. ‘You sure you’re good?’

‘Yeah,’ Eddie replies, typing Christopher’s number into the phone. ‘I’ll be good as soon as I hear my kid’s voice.’

Eddie presses the phone against his ear, absently-mindedly placing a soft kiss to the top of Theo’s head as he waits for Chris to answer. Each passing ring fills him with an intense sense of dread and anxiety. He just needs to know if Chris is okay.

‘Hello?’ Christopher’s voice sounds small and scared, and it takes everything in Eddie not to break down crying.

‘Christopher,’ Eddie says softly, blinking away tears.

‘Dad!!’ Chris responds. ‘Oh my God, Dad, I couldn’t get ahold of you, and I called Buck, and he couldn’t get hold of you either, and I was so scared.’

‘You’re okay?’ Eddie asks. ‘You’re safe? You’re not hurt?’

‘I’m safe, and I’m not hurt,’ Chris promises. ‘Are you and Theo okay?’

‘Yeah,’ Eddie breathes out, feeling some of the tension in him slip away. Chris is okay. ‘Yeah, we’re okay. We were at the mall, and we’re trapped in the underground parking lot, but someone’s called for help, so hopefully we’ll be out of here soon. You’re still at school, yeah?’

‘Yeah, we’re in a classroom, and nobody’s hurt.’

Eddie breathes a sigh of relief. ‘I love you so much,’ he says.

‘I love you too, Dad. I was so worried about you and Theo.’

‘You said you spoke to Buck?’ Eddie asks.

‘Yeah, I called him after I couldn’t get hold of you, and he was so worried, but he was doing that thing that you both do where you try and pretend for my sake,’ Chris says and Eddie can almost hear him rolling his eyes. ‘But everyone’s okay, he told me. He was just trying to get hold of you, too.’

‘I’ll call him after we hang up,’ Eddie responds. ‘It’s so good to hear your voice, Chris. I’m sorry I wasn’t with you, but I can’t tell you how relieved I am knowing you’re okay.’

‘Me too, Dad,’ Chris replies. ‘I feel better now I know you and Theo are okay.’

They stay on the phone for a few moments longer then and Eddie only hangs up because he’s using someone else’s phone. Chris is okay and is being taken care of; he tries to remind himself as they hang up.

Eddie is hit with a combination of relief that everyone has been accounted for and is safe, as well as a wave of guilt for worrying his son, and for worrying Buck, who is probably still going out of his mind with worry about Theo, and not being able to get hold of Eddie. If only Eddie had just taken Theo straight back to Eddie’s house, Theo would be safe, and Buck would know exactly where they were. Instead, Theo has experienced yet another trauma at such a young age, and it’s Eddie’s fault.

Another person in his orbit, Eddie thinks, that has to suffer because of him. Eddie pushes the thought down as he dials Buck’s number. He has other things - like keeping Theo safe and helping people here - to worry about right now.

The call goes straight to voicemail, and so Eddie leaves a short message for Buck, telling him that he and Theo are safe and they’re okay and are just waiting to be rescued. He also tells Buck to call this number and ask for Eddie if he listens to this message before they talk.

‘Okay, Theo, Julian - you both good?’ Eddie asks, wincing again as he slowly stands up, holding Theo in his arms as he does.

‘Yeah, I’m okay,’ Julian says, frowning in concern as he looks over at his Mom’s car.

‘I’m gonna go help your Mom, I promise,’ Eddie says gently.

‘Are you sure you’re okay, though? You seemed to hit your head pretty bad,’ Julian says, chewing on his lip as he turns to look at Eddie.

‘It’s just a little sore, but nothing for either of you to worry about,’ Eddie says assuringly, glancing down at Theo. ‘I’m gonna go check on Julian’s Mom again, okay? Do you think you can go back to your spot with Julian and wait for me?’

‘You have to be careful,’ Theo tells him sternly, fixing Eddie with a facial expression that he definitely learnt from Chris. ‘In case the ground shakes again,’ he clarifies, reaching up and softly patting Eddie on the top of his head.

‘I will,’ Eddie promises, carefully putting Theo down as Julian reaches out his hand for Theo to take.

Eddie watches the pair of them walk back down to the same spot as before, lowering themselves down and sitting firmly on the ground.

He squeezes his eyes shut as a surge of pain courses its way through him - like an unpleasant reminder that he did, in fact, hit his head against a concrete wall.

‘Yeah, yeah, I know,’ Eddie mutters, taking in a deep breath through his nose before exhaling slowly. ‘I’ll get it checked later.’

Eddie opens his eyes again before carefully making his way back to the car. He sits in the same position as before, directly behind the driver’s seat. Julian’s Mom - Carina - is still unconscious, and when Eddie checks her pulse, it’s the same as before - weak but there. He carefully lifts the back of her hair and hisses through his teeth when he sees deep bruising at the top of her spine.

‘Spinal injury,’ he mutters to himself. Definitely not going to be able to move her until an ambulance gets here.

Eddie leans over the backseats, trying to find anything in the boot that he can use for a makeshift neck brace to keep her head still and - hopefully - prevent further injury.

He eventually settles on a blanket and a hoodie, folding them both up and carefully wedging them on either side of Carina’s head.

‘Eddie!!’

Eddie’s head snaps up as soon as he hears Julian calling for him. He jumps out of the car as quickly as possible, ignoring the dizziness and nausea that slams into him as he does.

‘What’s wrong?’ Eddie asks, rushing over to Julian and Theo, who are both looking at him with hopeful eyes and big smiles.

‘Listen!’ Theo tells him excitedly. ‘Buck’s coming to get us!’

And that’s when Eddie hears it.

Sirens.

‘Is my Mom okay?’ Julian asks, turning to look at the car.

‘We’re gonna get her the help she needs,’ Eddie promises, nodding towards the entrance of the parking lot in the distance. It had completely caved in after the earthquake, but through the rubble, Eddie can make out flashing lights and the distant, but distinct, sounds of rescue teams.

‘How are you guys getting on?’

Eddie turns around and sees Devi and Billy, along with their two kids.

‘There’s firefighters here to rescue us,’ Devi continues. ‘We wanted to come and let everyone know that they said they’re working as fast as they can to get to us.’

‘Firefighters!’ Theo repeats excitedly.

Devi smiles at him and turns to Eddie. ‘You’re a firefighter, right? Theo mentioned it earlier?’

‘Yeah,’ Eddie responds, smiling. ‘I’m off work at the moment, but the rest of my team are on shift. My best friend, Theo’s foster parent-’

‘That’s my Buck!’ Theo announces proudly.

Eddie’s smile widens. ‘Yeah, he is,’ he agrees. ‘But that might not be Buck and our 118 family, buddy. It could be another station.’

Theo frowns at him. ‘It is ours,’ he insists.

And the thing is, he might not be wrong. The mall is technically within the 118’s vicinity, but it just depends whether they’re on another call or occupied because of the earthquake.

Time seems to drag on as they wait. An eerie silence takes over, everyone filled with the anticipation of being moments away from being rescued.

‘EDDIE?! THEO?!’

Both Eddie and Theo’s heads snap up at the sound of the voice from the other side of the parking lot.

Buck’s voice. Buck’s here. That, or Eddie hit his head harder than he thought and is now hearing the voice of his best friend.

Eddie and Theo exchange a look and Theo lets out a theatrical gasp.

‘IT’S BUCK!!’ Theo jumps up, reaching out for Eddie.

Eddie immediately scoops Theo up and starts moving as though on autopilot.

A million thoughts race through his brain, but the one that stands out the most is how did Buck know Eddie and Theo are stuck here?

The answer becomes clearer when they get closer to the sound of Buck’s voice. He has his back to them, facing the wreckage of Eddie’s car. The sound of Buck’s voice when he called their names plays again in Eddie’s head, but this time, he hears the fear and sorrow in it. Buck hadn’t been calling out because he knew they needed rescuing. He thought they were in the car.

‘BUCK!!’ Theo calls out as they approach him and Ravi.

Eddie watches as Buck’s head whips up and he spins around on his heel. His eyes are red rimmed, and Eddie can see the tension in his body, which immediately relaxes as soon as he lays eyes on Theo.

Eddie gently lets Theo out of his arms, unable to take his eyes off Buck.

Buck immediately crouches down, opening his arms for Theo who runs straight for him, crashing into him as Buck wraps his arms tightly around him.

Eddie watches with a smile on his face, feeling like his heart could burst out of his chest, as Buck lifts Theo off the ground and swings him about as Theo shrieks and giggles.

Buck’s eyes lift up to meet Eddie’s then and Buck’s smile widens, looking at Eddie like he hung the moon and stars. Eddie feels warmth spreading through him under Buck’s gaze, and he wants to move forward to Buck - wants to take Buck in his arms and tell him he loves him. Except - his whole body starts feeling heavy and something warm trickles down his face from his nose. Eddie slowly moves his hand up to touch his face, and he frowns when he looks at the blood on his fingers. Why is his nose bleeding?

‘Eddie? Are you okay?’ Ravi asks. Except - he sounds warbled and far away. Like he’s under water.

Eddie realises then that his eyes - still watching Buck and Theo - have gone blurry. He blinks, trying to refocus his vision, but it doesn’t help.

Through the blurrieness, Eddie can see Buck’s hand reaching out towards him. Eddie’s own hand comes up, reaching out for Buck in return, their bodies moving in their own synchronised movements.

Chris is safe. Buck and Theo are together again. They’ve all got each other. You can relax, Eddie thinks.

‘Yeah,’ Eddie mumbles out loud, his legs - and entire body - starting to feel wobbly. ‘Yeah, I think I will.’

It feels like he’s falling. But as he falls, the pain in his head that had gotten worse, starts to ease off. Eddie just feels numb now. Relaxed.

And then everything goes black.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The moment Buck has Theo in his arms again and has eyes on Eddie - knowing they’re both safe and okay, after initially seeing Eddie’s wrecked car and fearing the worst, he feels himself able to breathe again. He’d felt a similar relief when everyone in the 118, and their families, had confirmed they were all safe. He also felt that relief when he’d called Chris after the earthquake and confirmed that he was safe and unscathed. But then Chris had revealed that he also hadn’t heard from Eddie and that he was scared. Buck had done everything he could to make sure his voice was steady as he assured Chris that Eddie and Theo were both likely fine and that maybe Eddie’s phone had fallen out of his pocket and gotten damaged.

As soon as he’d hung up, though, Buck felt the panic rising in his chest. He knew, without a shadow of doubt in his mind, that Eddie would do anything to keep Theo safe. But the thought of them being caught in an earthquake filled Buck with overwhelming dread. Theo is so small, and it is, unfortunately, so easy to get separated in a natural disaster. And then Eddie - Eddie, who is only just on the last leg of his recovery journey from being stabbed. The idea of two of the most important people in the world to Buck being in danger, and Buck not knowing how they are and not being able to do anything, had him feeling sick and anxious from the second he first tried to call Eddie and couldn’t get through.

Holding Theo again and hearing his happy giggle, as well as having his eyes fixed on Eddie - who had been watching Buck and Theo with a warm smile - had felt like someone had just restored all the oxygen to Buck’s lungs again. His heart had felt like it was being squeezed in an iron-clad grip, but the second he turned around and saw Eddie holding Theo and both of them looking at Buck like he was their own sunshine, his heart felt like it could beat again.

That feeling didn’t last long.

It happens too fast. Eddie, standing and watching Buck and Theo, with a fond expression on his face. Buck opens his mouth to say something to Eddie, but before any words can even come out, Buck watches in horror as Eddie’s eyes roll to the back of his head. Eddie starts to collapse, like a puppet whose strings have been suddenly cut, and his hand reaches out towards Buck at the same time that Buck reaches out for him.

But Buck’s too far away to catch Eddie from falling to the ground. Thankfully, Ravi and Harry are closer. They catch him just before the back of Eddie’s head can hit the ground, calling his name loudly.

Buck feels his entire world slow down then. Like everything is moving in slow motion.

That is, until Theo calls out Eddie’s name fearfully.

In an instant, Buck is snapped back to himself, and he places a gentle hand on the back of Theo’s head, gently coaxing his head away from the direction of Eddie.

‘It’s okay, baby, Eddie’s going to be okay,’ Buck murmurs into the top of Theo’s hair as he keeps his eyes trained on the scene unfolding in front of him. Too many bodies appear now, rushing around trying to help Eddie. It’s a good thing, Buck knows. But it also means he can’t see Eddie anymore. And no matter how irrational it may sound, as long as Buck can have eyes on Eddie - he knows he’s okay.

‘He won’t!’ Theo cries. ‘I don’t want Teddy to go away! I don’t want him to go away like my Mommy and Daddy.’

Buck feels his heart breaking. This sweet little boy, who has seen more trauma than any four year old should have to. It’s Buck’s job to protect him, and he hadn’t even been there with Theo when the earthquake happened. The guilt he feels is immeasurable. Buck holds Theo closer to him, leaning down and placing a soft kiss into Theo’s hair.

‘But his head!’ Theo says, his voice muffled from where he’s nestled himself further into Buck.

Buck frowns, but before he can ask Theo what he means, he feels someone tap his shoulder.

‘Hi, um, I’m Julian,’

Buck looks over to the sound of the voice of a teenager - probably similar age to Chris - looking at Buck anxiously.

‘My Mom was trapped in her car when the earthquake hit,’

The realisation that he’s supposed to be working right now hits Buck like a freight train. But the thought of putting Theo down right now makes him feel uneasy.

‘Okay, if you just lead me over to her car, I can help,’ Buck says, because he’s not going to not help someone, especially when everyone else is busy.

Julian shakes his head. ‘No, she’s getting help. I think she’s gonna be okay. I just meant- Eddie was helping my Mom when the aftershock hit. He was balancing out of the car and it sent him flying backwards. He hit his head pretty bad, and he passed out for a minute.’

Buck freezes. His head, Theo had said.

‘Okay, thank you for letting me know,’ Buck rushes out, attempting what he hopes is a grateful smile.

Buck keeps one hand gently on the back of Theo’s head, shielding him as he rushes over to where Hen and Chim are getting Eddie on a stretcher.

‘Hey!’ Buck calls out.

Chim turns around at the sound of Buck’s voice, instinctively putting his hands up.

‘We’ve got him, Buck. Just focus on Theo,’ Chim says gently. It’s the same tone Chim uses when he’s talking to the spouses of victims on a scene. Buck really doesn’t have time to unpack that right now. Or why he feels like he’s had that voice used on him before, when it comes to Eddie.

‘Eddie hit his head,’ Buck says. ‘When the aftershock hit, he hit his head against a wall.’

Chim’s eyes widen as he relays information back to Hen.

Buck watches helplessly as Eddie is carted away. He blinks away the tears in his eyes and wills his body to stop shaking, so he doesn’t scare Theo more than he already is.

‘Buck, he’s gonna be-’ Ravi starts to say.

‘I need to get Theo checked over,’ Buck cuts him off, with a look that he hopes conveys Not in front of Theo.

Ravi simply nods understandingly.

‘Hey, mini probie,’ Ravi says gently. Mini Probie had been a nickname that Ravi and Harry had coined for Theo, and now it kinda just stuck at the 118. ‘Wanna come and sit in the fire engine with me?’

‘I wanna stay with Buck,’ Theo sniffs.

‘Oh, Buck’s totally coming too, but I thought you and me could go first,’ Ravi starts, leaning towards Theo in an overdramatic manner.

Buck moves his hand from Theo’s head, who turns to face Ravi curiously.

‘Uncle Harry left his snacks in there so I thought we could go and look after them for him,’ Ravi whispers conspiratorially.

Theo manages a smile at that, and Buck nearly cries at the sight.

‘Yeah, we’re good at that,’ Theo nods, reaching out his arms for Ravi. They’ve definitely done this before then. Maybe Buck needs to have a talk with Theo - and Ravi, apparently - about taking things that aren’t theirs.

Theo turns back to look at Buck. ‘Will you come to the fire engine soon?’

‘I’ll be right there, I promise. I’m just gonna let Uncle Chim know where we are,’ Buck assures him.

Theo nods as Ravi carefully walks away, towards where the engine is parked outside.

Buck jogs over to Chim, not wanting to be away from Theo any longer than he has to be.

‘Eddie?’ Buck questions immediately.

‘Hen’s gonna call as soon as they get to the hospital,’ Chim explains. ‘There was bleeding from his nose - probably from the head injury, but we’ll know more once he’s at the hospital and they can take him in for scans.’

Buck swallows. He feels his body start to shake again, but he can’t afford to break right now. Theo’s waiting for him outside. And Chris is also waiting for him.

‘Cap, I need to-’ Buck starts.

‘You’re off shift now, Buck,’ Chim cuts in. ‘Go be with Theo and go to Chris. Those boys need you right now.’

Buck’s shoulders sag in relief.

‘I- Eddie-’ Buck tries, feeling like all the words he wants to say are stuck in his throat.

‘I know, Buck,’ Chim says softly. ‘He’s gonna get through this, though. Go and be with your family.’

Buck nods, torn apart by the feeling of guilt of leaving his team, but also knowing that he needs to stay with Theo, and he needs to go to Chris.

He pulls out his phone as he walks outside, frowning when he sees a voicemail from an unknown number from about an hour ago. He makes a mental note to listen to it later. He also has a message from Chris, but he’s calling him now anyway, so he’ll read the text after.

Buck dials Christopher’s number then, squeezing his eyes shut as he waits for Chris to answer.

‘Buck!’ Chris answers almost immediately, relief in his voice. ‘I spoke to Dad! He called me off someone’s phone! Him and Theo are okay! They were-’

‘At the mall,’ Buck gently cuts in. ‘I know.’

‘Did Dad finally get hold of you?’

‘We were the station called to the parking lot of the mall to rescue them-’ Buck starts.

‘So, you’re with Dad and Theo now? Are they okay? Are you guys coming to get me?’ Chris asks.

Buck’s free hand squeezes into a fist as he tries to control his breathing.

‘Your Dad got hurt, Chris,’ Buck whispers, blinking away the tears pooling in his eyes. The words feel like acid on his tongue, and he feels as though the universe is mocking him with a sick sense of deja vu. ‘He hit his head pretty badly during the aftershock, and when we got to them, he- he collapsed. Hen’s taken him in the ambulance to the hospital, and they’re gonna call me when they have more updates.’

The line goes quiet then, and if it weren’t for the sounds of Christopher’s shaky breaths, Buck would assume he had hung up.

‘But he’s gonna be okay?’ Chris asks eventually, his voice small.

‘I-I don’t know, buddy. They’re gonna make sure he gets help, though,’ Buck replies, not wanting to lie to Christopher, but not wanting to scare him either. He may not be that little boy that Buck met all those years ago anymore, but he’s still just a kid. He’s a kid who has been through more than any child should have to go through, and Buck wishes he could protect him from it all forever. He’s already lost his Mom, he’s already come close to losing his Dad on multiple occasions, and now he’s having to face it again. He’s so brave, but he shouldn’t have to be. Not for things like this.

‘Will you come to pick me up?’ Chris whispers.

‘Already gonna,’ Buck promises. ‘I’m just gonna get Theo checked over, and we’ll be on the way, yeah?’

‘Is Theo okay?’ Chris asks, alarmed.

‘He’s fine,’ Buck assures. ‘He’s shaken up, I think, but physically, he’s okay. I just wanna make sure.’

‘He’s a really brave kid,’ Christopher replies. ‘He’ll be okay.’

Buck smiles ruefully. ‘Just like his hero,’ he comments.

‘You? Dad?’

‘You, buddy,’ Buck corrects. ‘He looks up to you, and he always tells me how cool you are and how funny you are and how he wants to be just like Chris when he grows up.’

‘I can’t wait to see you guys,’ Chris replies softly.

‘We’ll be there soon,’ Buck promises. They say their goodbyes then, and Buck takes a moment to compose himself.

By the time Buck reaches the engine, Ravi and Theo are sitting at the front, sharing a chocolate bar.

‘Hey, buddy,’ Buck says, climbing into the driver’s seat where Theo is sitting. He pulls Theo onto his lap and smiles as Theo offers him a piece of the chocolate that’s half melted in his hand. Buck gladly accepts it.

‘How are you feeling?’ Buck asks him, as he examines Theo properly now that they’re out of the dark parking lot.

‘I’m fine,’ Theo replies. ‘Eddie saved me.’

‘He did,’ Buck whispers in agreement.

‘And he said I was his assistant because we were making sure everyone was okay. But Julian’s Mom wasn’t okay,’ Theo tells him.

‘I bet you were the best assistant,’ Buck smiles down at him, feeling grateful that he has Theo back with him, safe and well - all thanks to Eddie.

Theo beams then as he cranes his neck to look at Buck.

‘What about when Eddie got hurt? Did you get hurt then, too?’ Buck asks.

Theo shakes his head. ‘No, I was with Julian on the ground like Eddie said. But it was scary because Eddie hit his head and then wouldn’t open his eyes even when I shouted his name, and he always replies, but Julian said we had to wait for the ground to stop shaking, and it took forever, but it did stop and then I went to Eddie and I was shaking him,’ Theo sticks his chocolate covered hands up in the air. ‘I used gentle hands, and it worked because he woke up and he said he was okay, but now he fell down again.’

‘I know, buddy,’ Buck says softly. ‘But he’s with Aunty Hen, and she’s gonna make sure he gets lots of help from the doctors.’

‘I wanna go now, Buck,’ Theo whispers, looking up at him with wide eyes.

‘We’re gonna go pick up Chris from school and then go home, does that sound okay?’

‘Yeah, let’s get Chris,’ Theo agrees, yawning.

Ravi drives them the short distance back to the firehouse, and Buck carries Theo into the station, going straight to grab his things from his locker, before heading to his car. He straps Theo into his car seat before jumping into the car himself.

Guilt eats away at Buck as he starts to drive towards Christopher’s school. It’s late now, getting darker, and Chris has been stuck at school this entire time, scared and worried. It reminds Buck of the first earthquake they experienced, not long after Eddie had joined the 118, and how Buck had driven Eddie to collect Christopher from school. From the moment Buck met Christopher that day, he had nestled his way into Buck’s heart and became a firm occupant. Eddie had too. Even if Buck hadn’t realised at the time, or in the years to follow, what that carved out space in his heart for Eddie had meant.

Eddie is his best friend. Eddie is his family. But in between the close calls and the movie nights on the couch, Buck’s stupid heart had gotten the wires crossed between moments that carefully toed the line between friendship and something else, and it had chosen to subconsciously cling to the something else. It hadn’t even been something Buck had been aware of happening until the past few weeks. One day, the four of them - Buck, Eddie, Christopher and Theo - had been hanging out at Buck’s house. They’d gone to the beach for the day, and they all collapsed onto the couch, tired from the heat and from a day of fun. Buck disappeared into the kitchen for a moment to get them all water, and by the time he got back, Theo was fast asleep on Eddie’s lap, and Eddie’s head was resting against the back of the couch, also asleep. Chris was sitting in the middle of the couch, searching for a movie to watch on TV. When Buck sat back down on the couch on the other side of Chris, he had turned to look at three of the occupants of his heart and had thought - This is it. This is what I want the rest of my life to look like. (Later that night, he had proceeded to freak out about the fact that he is, in fact, in love with his best friend)

The drive to Christopher’s school doesn’t take too much longer than it normally would. The roads are mostly eerily empty, apart from the people working tirelessly on relief efforts following the destruction of the earthquake.

By the time they pull up outside the school, Theo is practically wiggling out of his car seat - overtired and wanting to see Chris.

Buck gets out of the car, taking Theo out of his car seat and holding his hand as they walk into the school.

It’s rammed with people trying to get to their kids, and it makes Buck feel a little better that Chris, hopefully, at least had his friends with him.

‘I can’t see him,’ Theo whines, his voice thick with exhaustion.

Buck lifts Theo up, carefully placing him on his shoulders as Theo’s hands automatically come to rest in Buck’s hair.

‘CHRIS!’ Theo calls out.

‘Whoa, Theo, you’ve gotten tall!’

Buck turns to his side slowly, keeping one arm hooked around Theo’s ankles, and he lets out a sigh of relief when he sees Chris.

He immediately pulls Chris into a one armed hug, squeezing him tightly as Chris buries himself into the hug.

Above them, Theo giggles. ‘No, silly,’ he responds. ‘I’m on Buck’s shoulders!’

Chris looks up at Buck, and they both smile before Buck maneuvers Theo off his shoulders and onto the ground again.

Theo immediately throws his arms around Chris, and Buck pulls them both into an encasing hug. He feels better for having them both safely with him, but it still feels wrong. Eddie should be here.

Just then, Buck’s phone starts to buzz in his pocket, and he quickly pulls it out.

‘Hen? How’s Eddie?’ he asks immediately, realising he hadn’t even checked to see who was calling first before he automatically answered the call.

‘It was a brain bleed, like I thought,’ Hen responds. ‘They’ve taken him in for a craniotomy.’

Brain surgery.

Buck feels all the air leave his lungs at once, blinking as he tries to focus on what Hen is telling him, but her voice suddenly sounds warbled and far away. All Buck can see is the faces of two young boys looking up at him, fear and hope combined on their faces.

Buck swallows thickly. He wants to fall to the ground and scream. He wants to run to the hospital, pacing the halls until Eddie’s out of surgery.

‘I’ll- I’ll be there as soon as I can,’ Buck says, his voice breaking. ‘Are you-’

‘Yeah, Buck,’ Hen says softly. ‘I’ll be here. I’ll let you know as soon as I have any updates.’

‘Thank you,’ Buck whispers, looking at the wall behind Chris and Theo’s heads, trying to steady his breathing.

Buck hangs up the phone, feeling Chris and Theo’s expectant gazes on him.

He takes a deep breath before lowering his gaze to them.

‘Is Dad okay?’ Chris asks, his voice small, as though he’s already expecting something bad.

‘He’s in surgery,’ Buck says softly, glancing between Chris and Theo.

‘Why?’ Theo asks, frowning.

‘Eddie’s head got hurt pretty badly when he hit it on that wall,’ Buck explains. ‘And our heads are really important because that’s where our brains are, right? So the doctors are helping him and making sure they can fix any of his boo-boos.’

‘Then Eddie will wake up and be better?’ Theo asks, his eyes wide and hopeful.

Buck glances at Chris, who’s looking back at Buck, a more subdued version of Theo’s expression on his face.

‘Yeah,’ Chris replies, before Buck has a chance to reply. ‘He will.’

‘Okay,’ Theo says, seemingly appeased by Christopher’s reply. ‘Can we go now?’

‘Yeah, let’s go,’ Buck replies, placing one hand on Theo’s shoulder and the other on Christopher’s back.

‘I want to go to the hospital,’ Chris says, as they make their way back to the car.

‘We will,’ Buck tells him. ‘But the surgery’s going to be a few hours, at least, so we’re gonna go home first. You both need to rest up, have something to eat, and we could probably all do with a shower.’

Theo turns around as they reach the car, sniffing the air dramatically.

‘Yeah, you’re stinky,’ he tells Buck, wrinkling his nose.

Both Buck and Chris let out a laugh at that, and Theo beams up at them in response.

‘Buck?’ Chris says softly, after Buck’s put Theo in his car seat and closed the car door.

‘Yeah, buddy?’ Buck asks, turning to face him.

‘I know I said to Theo that Dad’s going to be okay, and I know he will be but,’ Chris trails off, his eyes glistening wet.

‘But you’re scared?’ Buck says gently.

Christopher nods silently.

‘I am too,’ Buck admits, his voice quiet. ‘But it’s okay to be scared, and it’s okay to be upset. Your Dad is strong, and he won’t let anything stop him from coming home to you. And he’s in good hands, so we just gotta hold onto those things.’

‘And to you and Theo,’ Christopher adds. ‘You guys are home too.’

Buck pulls Christopher into a tight hug, only letting go when Theo taps on the window of the car.

‘Are you guys coming?’ Theo’s muffled voice says through the glass.

Buck and Chris both let out wet laughs then.

‘I want to be at the hospital when Dad wakes up,’ Chris says.

‘We will be,’ Buck promises, before helping Chris into the car and then getting in himself.

The drive home is filled with the quiet chattering of Chris and Theo, which Buck is grateful for. He lets his brain focus on their conversations instead of it drifting off with worst case scenarios and big bad what ifs.

When they reach Buck’s house, Buck settles a half asleep Theo on the couch, before getting Chris his spare clothes and pyjamas that Eddie had left here a while back. Whilst Christopher is getting freshened up, Buck puts a large frozen pizza and some fries in the oven for the three of them to share and sends a text to Hen to check in on Eddie’s status.

After Chris is done, Buck carries Theo through to the bathroom, giving him a quick bath and getting him changed into fresh pyjamas.

‘M’tired, Buck,’ Theo whines.

‘I know, buddy,’ Buck says. ‘Do you wanna try to have a little bit of pizza first?’

Theo’s eyes light up. ‘Pizza?’ he repeats happily.

‘Yeah, it’ll be ready soon,’ Buck tells him. ‘Why don’t you go and wait with Chris on the couch whilst I have a quick shower?’

Theo nods before heading out of the bathroom, calling out, “CHRIS! We’re having pizza!”

Buck smiles, closing the door behind him and leaning against the back of it. He feels his smile faltering as soon as he’s alone with the loudness of his thoughts.

He makes quick work of getting out of his clothes and getting into the shower.

As soon as Buck steps into the shower and the water hits his body, he breaks.

Comforted with the knowledge that his cries will be drowned out by the sound of the shower, Buck lets himself process the entire day. As though his body has been giving permission to finally let it all out, he rests his forehead against the wall of the shower - his tears and the shower water mixing together, as they stream down his face. Even with the safety of the shower masking his crying, Buck does try to stay as quiet as he can, not wanting to risk either of the kids hearing him.

Buck could spend hours waxing poetic about how strong Eddie is, and he knows, deep down, that Eddie will get through this. In fact, Buck firmly believes that his body would just know if Eddie Diaz stopped existing in this world. But the words brain surgery have not stopped ringing in Buck’s ears since Hen called him with the news of the surgery.

The possibility of losing Eddie, despite it being something that Buck has had to face - more than once - in the past, terrifies him to his core. He feels his body trembling silently as the mere thought of it claws its way into his brain. A world without Eddie Diaz is a world Buck has no interest in seeing. Matter of fact, when Eddie is out of surgery and is awake and alert, Buck is going to make him promise that - when they’re both very, very old and it's their time to go, Buck goes first. And then Eddie can follow a long time after. Buck almost smiles at the image that pops into his head of having this conversation with Eddie. He can clearly see Eddie shaking his head in that fond way he does, with a smile tugging at his lips as he says, ‘Sure, Buck.’ Because Eddie indulges Buck in ways that Buck isn’t sure he even deserves. Not that you’ll ever find him complaining about it.

Realistically, Buck knows that they won’t be growing old together. Eddie will find a nice woman to settle down with, and spend the rest of his life with. And she’ll, understandably, have something to say about it if Eddie’s best friend is still hanging around when they’re old and retired, and just wanting their own space. Because the truth of the matter is, there won’t be anyone else for Buck. Now that he has become aware of his feelings for Eddie, activated like a sleeper agent, the idea of being with anyone that isn’t Eddie is something Buck cannot fathom. He knows his feelings won’t go away. Now that he’s aware of them and can put a name on what Eddie is to him, Buck realises that it’s always been there, from the very beginning, taking form until his subconscious decided it was time for Buck to wake up to his feelings. So Buck’ll take his feelings to his grave, will not burden his best friend with it, and he’ll die an unfortunate cliche.

Once his tears have dried up, Buck scrubs his hand roughly over his face before making quick work of showering properly.

By the time he’s stepped out of the shower and dried off, the timer on his phone goes off, letting him know the food is ready to be taken out of the oven.

Buck pads into the kitchen after throwing some fresh clothes on and takes the pizza and fries out. He sets it down to cool before getting out one of Theo’s plates and then two plates for Christopher and himself.

He cuts up some strawberries, too, placing them in one of the partitioned sections of Theo’s plates and then putting the remainder in a bowl for him and Chris to share.

Once the pizza has cooled down enough, Buck cuts some up for Theo and puts it on his plate before placing some slices on Christopher’s plate. He puts two slices on his own plate, unsure if he can even stomach anything whilst equally aware that he needs to eat.

He carries the plates into the living room, where the boys are sitting on the couch.

The Lilo and Stitch TV series is playing on screen, and Theo is snuggled into Christopher’s side.

Buck places the plates onto the coffee table as Theo scrambles to the floor, sliding closer to the coffee table as Buck moves Theo’s plate in front of him.

Buck leans down and places a soft kiss to the top of Theo’s head, before passing Christopher his plate and sitting beside him on the couch.

His body aches as he flops back against the couch, letting out a quiet groan as his muscles attempt to relax.

They eat in mostly silence, apart from the sound of the TV and Theo’s occasional giggling.

Buck manages to finish his pizza slices and a couple of strawberries before moving the bowl over to Chris, who picks at them mindlessly after he’s finished his own pizza.

Once Buck has cleared everything away after they’ve all finished eating, Theo immediately clambers back onto the sofa, plopping himself directly onto Buck’s lap, curling into him with his face still turned to face the TV. He’s fast asleep within minutes, and Buck carefully wraps an arm around him, letting the soft sounds of Theo’s breathing settle some of his anxious energy.

‘He’s had long and scary day,’ Christopher comments, glancing over at Theo.

‘You both have,’ Buck comments, patting the empty space next to him on the sofa.

Chris shifts closer to Buck, a small smile on his lips as he rests his head on Buck’s shoulder.

‘I wish Dad was here,’ he whispers.

‘Me too, buddy,’ Buck agrees softly, looking over at Chris with a sad smile.

‘I don’t want to fall asleep in case Dad gets out of surgery, and we miss it but,’ Chris trails off, chewing on his bottom lip worriedly.

‘But you’re tired?’ Buck guesses.

Chris simply nods in response, his eyes falling to his lap.

‘Go to my room and get some sleep,’ Buck tells him gently. ‘I’ll wake you up as soon as I get word your Dad’s out of surgery. He won’t be awake straight after anyway, so we’ll have some time to get there.’

Chris looks hesitant for a moment, but Buck holds his gaze pointedly, and it seems to do the trick as Chris stands up, turning the TV off before making his way to Buck’s room.

Buck watches after him for a moment, before lifting Theo up carefully so he doesn’t wake up. He carries him down the hallway, hesitating outside of Theo’s bedroom for a second, before turning on his heel and heading to his own bedroom.

‘Come in,’ Christopher responds quietly after Buck softly knocks on the door.

Chris is pulling the covers over himself as Buck walks into the bedroom.

‘You need anything?’ Buck asks.

Chris shakes his head in response, and Buck moves towards the bed, gently placing Theo in the middle and tucking him in.

‘Thought today called for a sleepover,’ Buck tells Christopher softly as he brushes his hand over Theo’s hair.

‘Are you staying too?’ Christopher asks, looking at Buck with hopeful eyes.

Buck glances back down at Theo, whose little hand is firmly clasped around Buck’s t-shirt.

‘Of course I am,’ Buck assures Chris, gently unclenching Theo’s closed fist and lying on top of the covers next to him.

‘Night, Buck,’ Christopher whispers.

‘Goodnight, Chris,’ Buck responds. ‘I’m right here if you need anything.’

It doesn’t take long for Chris to fall asleep either, and as Buck lies in the dark, staring up at the ceiling, he finds comfort in the peaceful and soft sounds of both boys fast asleep.

He pulls out his phone from the pocket of his sweatpants, ignoring all of the messages and notifications that can be dealt with tomorrow, instead clicking on the message from Hen that had come through five minutes ago.

Hen: Just got the update that the surgery is going well. Still a while to go though. I’m gonna head home but Ravi and May just got here so I’ve told Rav to text you updates.

Buck sends out a silent thank you to the universe. He knows that the surgery is still ongoing and that Eddie isn’t out of the woods yet, but there’s been no complications yet, and that’s a good thing.

Buck: thank u. go home to your family and get some rest now

Hen: You too, Buck.

Buck sighs, exiting out of the messaging app. He sets an alarm for two hours from now before placing his phone on the bedside table beside him.

He spends a lot of time staring at the ceiling, wanting nothing more than to be able to fall asleep, but his mind simply won’t let him. Buck finds himself picking up his phone every two minutes, afraid that he somehow missed a call or text from Ravi.

Time seems to move slower as he lays in the dark, and the feeling of needing to be at the hospital gnaws away at him. But then he glances over at Theo and Chris sound asleep, and he swallows the lump in his throat, knowing they need him with them right now.

Two hours pass before Buck feels his eyes starting to flutter shut, but he’s jolted out of it by a shrill buzzing next to him.

Buck immediately grabs his phone off his nightstand, seeing Ravi’s contact filling up the screen. He carefully moves off the bed so to not wake up Chris and Theo, and then he quickly and quietly slips out of the bedroom.

‘Rav?’ Buck answers, his voice thick with exhaustion as he walks into the kitchen. The clock in the kitchen informs him it’s 1:28am - Buck’s alarm is due to go off in a couple of minutes.

‘Eddie’s out of surgery,’ Ravi replies, in lieu of a greeting. ‘It was successful, he’s okay but-’

Eddie’s okay.

Buck feels his legs turn to jelly as he grabs onto the counter to steady himself, a small relieved laugh bubbling its way out of his chest.

‘Eddie’s okay,’ Buck breathes out.

But, Ravi had said. Eddie’s okay but- and then Buck had cut him off, too focused on the words Eddie’s okay thrumming through his skin in rhythm with his own heartbeat.

Buck frowns and it’s as though the world comes to a screeching halt.

‘You said but,’ Buck whispers.

‘He’s okay,’ Ravi emphasises. ‘But they’ve put him in a medically induced coma so the swelling in his brain can reduce. They’re gonna be monitoring him in the ICU. Doc’s hoping to wake him up out of the coma tomorrow night.’

Eddie’s okay and out of surgery, but he’s in a coma. Rationally, Buck knows that this was probably the best course of action for Eddie, and he knows that the doctors are giving his body every fighting chance. But it still scares the hell out of him.

‘Okay,’ Buck responds eventually. ‘Thank you for calling me.’

‘Are you coming to the hospital?’

Buck scrubs a hand over his face.

‘I don’t know, man,’ he sighs. ‘I don’t really want to wake the boys up, it was such a long day for both of them. And I definitely don’t want to bring Theo there right now. Chris wants to be there for Eddie, though.’

‘Maybe just come by in the morning?’ Ravi suggests.

‘Yeah,’ Buck replies. ‘I’m gonna wake Chris up to update him because I promised I would, but I’ll see if I can convince him to wait until the morning.’

‘What about you?’ Ravi asks.

‘What about me?’

‘I mean, do you want me and May to come to you to look after the boys, and you can come to the hospital?’ Ravi offers.

‘I appreciate it, Rav,’ Buck responds. ‘But I can’t. I don’t want to not be there when the boys wake up.’

‘You and Eddie make a really good team, you know that?’ Ravi says, after a beat of silence. ‘I’m really glad Chris and Theo have you guys. You make a hell of a good family.’

Buck feels his chest tighten at Ravi’s words, as a lot of complicated emotions pass through him at once. Grief over Connor and Kameron, but relief that he’s able to provide a safe and loving home for Theo, mixed with the deep love Buck has for him. Happiness because yes, Eddie is an amazing Dad and should be recognised as such. And then the implications behind him and Eddie being a team that are raising Chris and Theo together. Ravi using the word family to describe the four of them in a way that someone might talk about a couple.

‘Th- thank you,’ Buck swallows the lump stuck in his throat. ‘But me and Eddie aren’t- we’re not - it’s not like that.’

‘You guys are a family, Buck.’ Ravi says simply, not giving Buck a chance to respond before he moves the conversation on. ‘I’ll be here for another couple of hours, but May’s working the night shift, so she’ll be around all night and will be checking in on Eddie.’

‘I appreciate it,’ Buck responds. ‘And I know Eddie will too.’

‘It’s what we do,’ Ravi says.

After he hangs up the phone, Buck takes a moment to steady his breathing and slow his thoughts down.

Just as he’s about to head back to the bedroom to talk to Chris, he hears the quiet padding of feet on the floor.

‘Hey,’ Chris says quietly as Buck looks up and sees Chris walking into the kitchen. ‘I woke up to pee and saw you were gone. Thought something happened.’

‘Sorry, buddy,’ Buck starts, smiling softly at him. ‘I just got off the phone with Ravi. Your Dad made it through surgery.’

Chris grins. ‘I’ll get changed, and we can go! You should probably let Theo keep sleeping though. Maybe someone can come and stay with him until he wakes up in the morning?’

‘Chris, wait,’ Buck cuts in gently.

Chris freezes on the spot at Buck’s tone and turns to look at him. ‘What’s wrong?’ he asks.

‘Nothing bad,’ Buck assures him. ‘They’ve just put your Dad into a coma to give his body the proper chance to heal.’

‘He’s in a coma?!’

‘A medically induced one,’ Buck replies. ‘It’s controlled, and they’re gonna try bringing him out of it tomorrow night. Technically, later today.’

‘We’re not going to the hospital right now, are we?’ Chris asks sadly.

‘We’ll go first thing in the morning,’ Buck promises. ‘I just want you and Theo to get some proper rest first.’

‘But I don’t want Dad to be alone,’ Chris whispers.

‘He’s not, I promise. Ravi and May are there, and then we’ll be there in the morning.’

Chris mulls it over silently, before nodding in agreement.

‘Okay,’ he concedes. ‘And maybe we can stop by my house on the way to the hospital? I want to bring some stuff to Dad.’

‘That’s a good idea, Chris,’ Buck smiles. ‘Let’s go back to bed.’

After they’re back in bed and Chris is asleep again, Buck lies awake, staring at the ceiling.

I’m sorry, Eddie. I’m sorry I’m not with you right now, but I know you’d understand, Buck thinks as he finally drifts off to sleep.

Buck wakes up to two little hands squishing his face.

‘Buuuck,’ Theo’s voice sings out. ‘It’s morning!’

Buck blinks awake, letting his eyes adjust to the morning light.

‘It’s 6am, it hardly qualifies as morning,’ Chris grumbles.

Theo blinks at him. ‘Grumpy!’ he declares, pointing an accusatory finger towards Chris.

‘I’m grumpy because you woke me up before 6,’ Chris mutters.

‘Did not!’ Theo argues.

‘Did too!’

Buck lets out an amused huff at their bickering before tickling Theo’s stomach. ‘Theo, honey, if you woke up and you were bored, you should have woken me up and let Chris sleep, okay?’ he explains gently as Theo clambers on top of Buck.

‘I’m sorry,’ Theo turns to look at Chris. ‘I was excited because we were having a sleepover.’

‘It’s okay,’ Chris sighs, scooching closer to Buck so he can reach out and pat Theo on the shoulder reassuringly.

‘Where’s Teddy?’ Theo frowns.

‘He’s getting his boo-boos fixed, remember?’ Buck tells him, sitting up and carefully repositioning Theo on his lap.

‘Oh, yeah,’ Theo replies, crestfallen.

‘I’ll take a large coffee for my breakfast,’ Chris says, after a beat of silence.

‘And pancakes!’ Theo adds, perking up.

‘No,’ Buck points to Chris, before turning it to Theo. ‘And yes.’

They end up having a slow-ish morning for the most part, and after they’ve had breakfast and Theo is playing, and Chris is getting ready, Buck uses the opportunity to call Maddie to see if she and Chim can take Theo for a few hours. He knows that Theo will want to see Eddie, but right now isn’t the time. Not when Eddie’s in a coma. Buck also hates the idea of leaving Theo right now, but Theo loves spending time at Maddie’s house, and Buck won’t be away from him for long. Buck reminds himself of these things after he’s spoken to Maddie.

Thankfully, Theo is sold on the idea of spending time with Jee-Yun and baby Nash, so once they’re all ready, Buck, Chris and Theo bundle into the car.

They drop Theo off first, not escaping without bone-crushing hugs from Maddie for both Buck and Chris. She also gives Buck a travel mug of coffee because “you look tired” (which roughly translates to: you look like shit) as well as a box of doughnuts (which Chris happily accepts).

After leaving the Han household, Buck drives him and Chris to Eddie’s house, where Buck packs a bag containing clothes for Eddie to change into after he’s woken up - his comfiest ones that Buck knows he likes to lounge around in, which includes one of Buck’s hoodies (he had complained to Eddie about losing it a few weeks ago and Eddie had shrugged and said ‘Maybe the washing machine swallowed it’ which - okay, washing machines have been known to steal socks but a whole hoodie? It sounded far fetched, but Eddie had said it with such certainty that Buck had let it slide. Until he showed up with Theo to Eddie’s house a few days later with surprise baked goods, and Eddie was wearing the hoodie. Buck had pointed at him in the same accusatory manner Theo used this morning on Chris, and declared THIEF! Theo giggled. Eddie blushed. Buck would give all his clothes to Eddie if it caused that reaction again). Buck also packs toiletries for Eddie and grabs the current book he’d been reading from his bedside table, as well as his reading glasses.

Buck heads to Chris’ room where he’s sitting on the bed, waiting.

‘You good to go?’ Buck asks.

Chris nods in response, gesturing to the bag at his feet.

‘Yeah, I packed all my stuff for staying at your house and I also packed some stuff I want to take to the hospital for Dad,’ Chris responds.

Buck smiles at him, grabbing both bags and passing Christopher his crutches, so they can head out.

It feels like a lifetime later when they finally reach the hospital, which is still busy from the fallout of the earthquake. Ravi had thankfully texted Buck the details of what floor Eddie is on, so they’re able to find it easily enough. When they reach the door to Eddie’s room, May is slipping out. She turns around and jumps when she sees Buck and Chris standing in front of her.

‘Sorry, didn’t mean to sneak up like that,’ Buck winces.

May waves them off, pulling them both into hugs.

‘I just finished my shift and wanted to check on Eddie before I left,’ May explains.

‘How’s he doing? Any changes?’ Buck asks, glancing over May’s shoulder to the closed door of Eddie’s room.

‘It’s looking good,’ May smiles. ‘The swelling has already reduced a bit, so they’re still hoping to start the wake up process later tonight.’

Chris grins at Buck. ‘Can I go see him?’ he asks.

‘Go for it, buddy. I’ll be right behind you.’ Buck tells him.

May steps aside and opens the door for Chris, helping him get situated on the chair next to Eddie’s bed before coming back out to the hallway and closing the door behind her.

‘How is he doing? And Theo?’ May asks.

‘They’re okay,’ Buck starts. ‘It was a heavy day for both of them. I was giving Theo a bath yesterday, and we talked about the earthquake a bit, but it’s gonna take time to process.’

May nods understandingly. ‘They’ve both been through so much,’ she smiles ruefully.

‘Yeah,’ Buck agrees, glancing through the window on the door to look at the back of Christopher’s head. He can’t fully see Eddie from this angle, but knowing he’s in that bed in a coma has Buck’s eyes falling away instantly, focusing on the floor underneath him instead.

‘And how are you?’

‘I’m- I’ll be okay,’ Buck amends.

May gives his arm a reassuring squeeze. ‘I gotta get going, but keep us all updated? And call if you need anything.’

‘Yeah, I will,’ Buck promises, pulling her into a hug. ‘Thanks, May.’

Buck hovers outside of the hospital room for a few minutes, not wanting to disrupt Christopher’s time with Eddie. As though he can sense him watching, Chris turns around on his chair and gestures Buck into the room.

He lets out a shaky exhale before opening the door and slipping into the room.

‘Buck’s here now, Dad,’ Chris tells Eddie. ‘I was just telling Dad we had a sleepover and how Theo woke me up early.’

Buck chuckles, keeping his eyes trained on Chris, finding himself unable to look at Eddie right away.

He listens as Chris keeps talking to Eddie, updating him on his school day yesterday and what happened when the earthquake started. Buck tenses as he listens to Chris recollect how scared he was at first, and Buck’s hand automatically comes out to squeeze Chris’ shoulder from where he stands behind him.

‘I know Theo wants to see you too, Dad, but he’s too little to bring right now, so you gotta wake up so he can come and see you, okay?’ Christopher says softly.

Buck feels like his heart could burst as he listens to the way Chris talks about Theo.

‘We miss you, Dad, and we can’t wait for you to wake up,’ Chris adds.

Buck finally lets his eyes fall to Eddie then, swallowing harshly as he does.

There’s no visible signs of injury on any part of Eddie, apart from the top of his bandaged head. He just looks like he’s sleeping peacefully. He looks beautiful.

‘You should talk to him, Buck,’ Christopher says.

Buck nods wordlessly, moving across to the other side of the bed and pulling up the other chair closer to Eddie’s bed as he sits down.

‘Hey, Eddie,’ Buck murmurs softly. ‘I don’t want you worrying about Chris, okay? He’s okay. Theo too. I know telling you not to worry is redundant, and you’ll worry anyway, but you also need to focus on getting better, okay? We- we just want you to come hom– back to us.’

The next couple of hours pass by in a blur, Buck letting Chris do most of the talking to Eddie, or Chris and Buck going back and forth on sharing memories. Maddie texts Buck a photo of Theo and Jee climbing on top of Chim along with the message ‘human climbing frame!’ Buck smiles and saves the photo instantly.

They end up leaving the hospital close to midday, Buck convincing Chris to leave with the compromise that they’ll come back for when Eddie is being brought out of the coma.

Buck drives them to Maddie’s house, and as soon as they get inside, Theo comes racing towards Buck and dives into his arms.

‘I missed you, buddy,’ Buck tells him, hugging him tightly. ‘Did you have a fun morning?’

‘Yeah!’ Theo replies. ‘Can we go see Teddy yet?’

‘Not yet,’ Buck tells him. ‘But soon. He’s having a big sleep because he needs a lot of rest to help him feel better.’

Theo sighs, flopping dramatically backwards as he does.

Buck chuckles, placing his hand on the back of Theo’s head to stop him from falling out of Buck’s arms completely. ‘Alright, Spider-Man. Shall we go and have lunch?’

‘Yeah! Aunt Maddie told Uncle Chim to make lunch, but he burnt it even though he’s a firefighter! So Aunt Maddie is making something new now!’

‘I was distracted!’ Chim calls out defensively.

‘Wow, Chim, you burn lunch and then make my sister redo it for you?’ Buck laughs.

‘More like she didn’t trust me to remake it,’ Chim grumbles.

After they’ve all had lunch together, Buck, Chris and Theo - armed with leftovers galore, because Maddie makes enough pasta to feed an entire village - head back to Buck’s house. Chris gets set up on the couch, with his Switch in hand whilst Theo sits on the floor in front of him, his colouring book laid out in front of him on the coffee table.

Buck nurses a mug of coffee on the dining room table, sorting out necessary admin work, like calling Aunt Pepa - who has been out of town - to update her on Eddie, calling Christopher and Theo’s schools and getting started on the insurance claim for Eddie’s car, on his behalf. Keeping his mind busy with these tasks helps quieten the noise in his brain, but he can’t get the image of Eddie lying in the coma out of his head.

He half expects the day to drag by, waiting for when he gets the call from the hospital to let him know that they’re taking Eddie out of the coma. (When Buck had enquired about who would be contacted, they’d informed him that it would be him, as Eddie’s emergency contact. Buck had just assumed it would be Pepa.)

Thankfully, Theo and Chris are both good distractions, and before he knows it, Buck is setting out the dining table with their dinner that night.

His phone starts buzzing in his pocket, and Buck pulls it out immediately, hoping it’ll be the hospital informing him when they’ll be starting the process of waking Eddie up.

‘Hello?’ Buck answers immediately.

‘Mr. Buckley? I’m calling from Cedars-Sinai. We’re just calling to follow up from the voicemail we left you earlier this evening.’ The voice on the other end responds.

Buck frowns. What voicemail?

‘It’s been a few hours since Mr. Diaz was brought out of his coma and we’re pleased to inform you he is awake now-’ she starts to explain.

‘Hold on- what?!’ Buck says. ‘I specifically asked to be told when you’d be taking him out of the coma, so I could be there.’

‘As I said, Mr. Buckley, we called you and left a voicemail, but we couldn’t wait around much longer, especially as the doctor felt it in the patients best interest to wake him up.’

Buck pulls his phone away from his ear, keeping the call on as he looks at his phone.

‘I haven’t received any missed calls or voicemails,’ Buck informs her. ‘But you said Eddie’s awake?’

‘He’s very groggy and not fully alert, but yes, he’s awake.’

‘Tell him we’re on our way, please,’ Buck says, before hanging up. He quickly deposits the dinner into a container to take with them, before rushing into the living room where Chris and Theo are watching a movie together.

‘Boys, shoes on, we’re going,’ Buck tells them, already moving to grab both of their shoes for them.

‘Did you burn your food too? That’s probably karma for laughing earlier,’ Chris points out.

‘No,’ Buck grins at him as he walks in, handing them their shoes. ‘Eddie’s awake!’

‘Dad’s awake??’ Chris repeats excitedly.

‘These are Chris’ shoes, silly Buck,’ Theo laughs, taking his own Spider-Man shoes out of Christopher’s hands.

Buck and Chris exchange a look before bursting into laughter. Chris pulls Theo into a hug, and Theo yelps as one of his shoes goes flying off the couch.

‘Hey, Theo?’ Chris says. ‘I think Teddy’s waiting to see you.’

Theo’s eyes light up then. ‘He is?!’ he asks, looking up at Buck.

Buck smiles down at him, nodding in confirmation.

Theo beams at Buck, scrambling to put his shoes on and less than five minutes later, the three of them are in the car and making their way to the hospital.

Buck had sent a message in the 118 group chat before they’d left to let them all know that Eddie was awake and that Buck and the boys were heading to the hospital, and if anyone could meet them there.

When they’re waiting for the lift after they've arrived at the hospital, Buck hears someone calling their names, and when he turns around, Ravi is racing towards them.

‘Hey!’ Buck calls, holding the lift open so Ravi can get in with them. ‘You got here fast.’

‘I was already out,’ Ravi explains. ‘This felt more important, though.’

‘Rav?’ Buck says, blinking.

‘Yeah?’

‘You didn’t stand May up on a date, did you?’ Buck asks.

Ravi points his finger in Buck’s direction. ‘Wash your mouth out, I would never do that. I was only going grocery shopping.’

What feels like an eternity later, the doors open to Eddie’s floor.

Chris immediately heads towards Eddie’s room, looking over his shoulder when he realises Buck isn’t following.

‘You guys coming?’ Chris asks as Theo starts wriggling in Buck’s arms.

Ravi takes the food container that’s threatening to drop from Buck’s arm, so Buck can carefully maneuver Theo to the ground.

‘How about this, Spider-Man?’ Buck says. ‘How about you and Uncle Ravi go and check the vending machine to see what candy they have?’

Buck knows how much Theo wants to see Eddie, but he also doesn’t know what kind of state Eddie’s in. He could be pretty out of it still, and Theo is young.

‘No! I wanna see Eddie!’ Theo whines, trying to free his hand from where he’d been holding onto Buck.

‘Theo-’ Buck starts gently.

‘I wanna see Teddy,’ Theo starts to cry then, reaching his arms up for Buck.

Buck scoops him up immediately, stroking the back of head gently. ‘You’ll see him so soon, baby, I promise. I just thought you might want to bring him a candy bar. You know how much Eddie loves his sweet treats,’ he tells him softly.

Theo sniffs loudly, wiping his nose on his sleeve. ‘Yeah, and I pick the good ones,’ he replies.

‘Yeah, I’d probably pick Eddie something healthy,’ Ravi comments.

Theo scrunches his nose up at that and reaches out for Ravi to take him.

Buck pulls out a clean tissue from his pocket, gently dabbing at Theo’s tear-stained face. He presses a soft kiss to Theo’s forehead before Ravi takes him and they head down the hallway, to the vending machine.

‘You ready?’ Buck asks, turning to Chris, who has been patiently waiting.

Chris grins and nods as they make their way towards Eddie’s room.

Eddie’s eyes are closed when they walk into the hospital room, but somehow Buck can tell he’s awake and that he’s back.

‘Dad?’ Christopher whispers.

Eddie’s eyes immediately fly open at the sound of Christopher’s voice, and his face breaks into a grin.

‘Chris,’ he croaks out.

Buck feels the pressure in his chest, which had taken up residence since the earthquake, ease as soon as he hears Eddie’s voice again. It takes everything in him not to start crying.

‘Dad!’ Chris grins and makes his way over to the hospital bed.

Buck follows him, helping Chris back onto the chair he’d been sitting on that morning.

Eddie reaches out his hand, and Chris takes it immediately.

‘It’s so good to see you, buddy,’ Eddie rasps.

‘I knew you’d be okay, Dad. How are you feeling?’ Chris asks.

‘I’m okay, considering,’ Eddie replies, clearly trying to shift on the bed so he can sit up.

‘Okay, easy there, tiger,’ Buck tells him, instinctively moving forward to help him. He freezes instantly when he reaches Eddie’s other side, realising that was the first thing he’d said to Eddie.

Buck drops his gaze to Eddie, who is already watching him fondly.

‘Hey, Buckley,’ Eddie says.

‘H-hi, Eddie,’ Buck breathes out.

Eddie lets out a small - almost breathless sounding - laugh, but Buck very bravely chooses to focus on something else instead.

‘I need to sit up, my body isn’t enjoying being flat anymore,’ Eddie pouts.

Buck rolls his eyes but carefully maneuvers the pillows behind Eddie and then helps him sit up, clasping their hands together to support Eddie as he moves. The feeling of their hands joint together sends a shiver through Buck’s body that he’s certain Eddie feels.

Buck - mournfully - lets go of Eddie’s hand, going back to Christopher’s side and helping him onto the bed with Eddie. Eddie wraps his arm around Chris’ shoulders, who relaxes into Eddie’s embrace. Buck watches them with a warm smile.

‘Where’s Theo?’ Eddie asks, frowning.

‘He’s at the vending machine with Ravi,’ Buck explains. ‘I just wanted to make sure you were okay first, before bringing him in.’

‘Makes sense,’ Eddie says, nodding. ‘But you should tell Ravi to bring him in now.’

Just as Buck is about to get his phone out to text Ravi, the door flies open and Theo bursts in with Ravi hot on his tail.

‘I’m sorry, he got away from me, and I didn’t want to drop your dish and-’ Ravi starts explaining.

‘Teddy!’ Theo exclaims, making a beeline for Eddie.

Buck intercepts quickly, lifting Theo up before he catapults onto Eddie.

‘You gotta be really gentle with Eddie, okay?’ Buck tells him.

‘Okay,’ Theo agrees, nodding seriously.

Buck smiles as he carries Theo over to Eddie. He gently places Theo on the bed, on the other side of Eddie, who immediately wraps his other arm around Theo.

‘Did the doctor fix your head boo-boo?’ Theo asks.

Eddie smiles down at him. ‘Yeah, they did.’

‘Glad you’re okay, Eddie! I’ll give you guys some privacy,’ Ravi tells him, closing the door behind him as he leaves.

Buck falls into the chair next to Eddie’s bed, smiling and finally feeling whole again as he watches Eddie with Chris and Theo.

As though he can read his mind, Eddie’s eyes look over to Buck, and he smiles at him - a soft, for Buck only, kind of smile that has Buck’s heart racing. And then Eddie winks at Buck before turning his attention back to the boys.

Buck continues staring at the side of Eddie’s head, suddenly feeling grateful that they’re in a hospital because the effect that wink had on Buck’s heart probably isn’t healthy.

They spend the next hour, talking and sharing dinner from the dish Buck had brought. Ravi joins them too, sharing in the relief and happiness of Eddie being awake and okay.

‘I could really do with some ice-cream,’ Eddie announces suddenly.

‘I’ll get you some!’ Buck jumps up instantly, but Eddie turns to look at him in such a pointed way that Buck finds himself dropping back down to his seat wordlessly.

‘I WANT ICE-CREAM!’ Theo bolts up.

‘I bet we could find some,’ Ravi responds. ‘What do you reckon, Chris?’

‘I’m not gonna say no to ice-cream,’ Chris replies.

Buck watches as Chris and Theo leave with Ravi in search of ice-cream. The room is silent, and Buck is very aware that he needs to turn to look at Eddie, who clearly wants to talk to Buck about something.

Swallowing, Buck pulls his gaze off the door, and when he turns around, Eddie’s already watching him.

‘I was wondering if you were gonna stare at the door the entire time they were gone,’ Eddie comments.

Buck huffs out a laugh. ‘So… how are you really feeling?’

Eddie frowns. ‘Fine? A bit sore and stiff, and my head kinda kills, but I wasn’t pretending in front of the boys.’

‘Good! Well, no, I mean, not good that you’re in pain, but good that you’re not any worse. Actually, do you want me to get a doctor? Do you need more meds for your pain or-’

‘Buck,’ Eddie cuts in gently. ‘The ice-cream thing was an excuse because I wanted to talk to you about something… just us.’

Oh, God. Eddie somehow found out about Buck’s feelings, and he’s about to reject him. But in a super kind and gentle way, because that’s Eddie all over.

‘I’m gay,’ Eddie announces.

Buck blinks at him. Definitely not what he’d been expecting to hear.

‘Come again?’ Buck squeaks.

‘Maybe later, Buckley, I’m tired,’ Eddie jokes.

Buck’s head is spinning, and Eddie’s making come jokes?

‘Eddie, you just had brain surgery,’ Buck says finally.

Eddie blinks at him incredulously, before barking out a laugh.

‘I’m aware, Buck. But brain surgery didn’t make me gay. I’ve always been gay. It’s just- a pretty new realisation. Before the surgery.’

Buck’s mouth falls open and then snaps shut instantly when he realises he hasn’t said anything remotely supportive to his best friend who just came out and just had brain surgery.

‘Eddie, that’s- that’s amazing!’ Buck tells him. ‘I’m so proud of you.’

‘I know it seems like a crazy time to come out,’ Eddie starts, grinning. ‘But, one too many brushes with death will do that to a guy.’

‘Too soon for jokes,’ Buck scolds.

Eddie’s grin widens then.

‘Come here, Buck,’ Eddie tells him, patting the empty space next to him on the bed.

Buck diligently stands up, perching on the edge of the bed as daintily as a man of his size can.

Eddie frowns at him. ‘No,’ he pouts.

‘You just told me to!’ Buck says, standing up immediately.

‘No,’ Eddie whines, reaching out and pulling Buck down onto the bed. Buck is completely caught off guard and stumbles, less than gracefully, onto the bed and half on top of Eddie. ‘Better,’ Eddie sighs out happily.

‘Eddie!’ he chastises. ‘You just had brain surgery.’

‘Mm,’ Eddie hums in agreement. ‘And my brain is safely up in my head, nowhere near where you’re lying, bud.’

Buck rolls his eyes, but then he becomes instantly and acutely aware of the position he’s in. He’s lying practically on top of Eddie, and his face is inches above Eddie’s. He can make out every pretty detail of Eddie’s face from this close.

Buck clears his throat and pulls back, shifting so he’s still next to Eddie but no longer on top of him.

‘Buck,’ Eddie says softly.

‘Yeah, Eddie?’ Buck whispers, turning his head to face Eddie.

‘I love you,’ Eddie murmurs. His doe-like eyes are wide and soft as he looks at Buck.

‘Eddie,’ Buck breathes out.

‘I’m in love with you, Buck, and I think I always have been,’ Eddie continues. ‘I think I’ve been falling in love with you since the first day I met you, and I’m sorry it’s taken me this long to realise what it was and what you mean to me, but I know now. And I’m sorry for springing this on you, and it’s completely okay if you don’t feel the same. You don’t have to worry about hurting my feelings because I just had brain surgery. I’ll be okay. You won’t ever lose me as your best friend. Unless it’s too weird for you, then I-’

Buck cuts him off with a small, chaste kiss to the lips.

‘Was that okay?’ Buck asks, their lips brushing together as he talks.

‘That was- yeah,’ Eddie responds breathlessly.

‘Good,’ Buck grins. ‘Because I would really like to do it again.’

Eddie closes the gap this time, and their second kiss is deeper and more desperate as Eddie sucks on Buck’s bottom lip before licking filthily into his mouth and over Buck’s teeth, swallowing each and every sound that escapes Buck’s mouth.

Buck pulls back when the realisation that he didn’t tell Eddie he loves him too slams into him.

Eddie whines instantly at the loss of contact, leaning in again to try and chase Buck’s lips with his own.

‘I love you too,’ Buck tells him, cupping Eddie’s jaw with his hand. ‘So much.’

Eddie’s face softens, and he threads his fingers through Buck’s. ‘Good,’ he replies. ‘Now, can we go back to kissing before we’re interrupted by-’

He’s cut off by the sound of the door swinging open and Theo loudly announcing, ‘We’re back!’

‘Never mind,’ Eddie mutters, laughing as Chris and Theo make their way back into the room, Ravi trailing behind them with several small tubs in tow.

Whilst the boys are distracted with sorting out the ice-cream, Buck brings his and Eddie’s threaded hands to his lips, softly kissing along Eddie’s fingers, pausing to look up at Eddie when he reaches his ring finger. ‘It’s okay, we have forever,’ Buck whispers, sealing the promise with a soft kiss to Eddie’s finger.