Chapter Text
The morning had been like any other for Christopher. He got up, got himself Dressed, and ate his breakfast. Nothing short of normal for him. But there was something about today he was dreading. He was having one of those days where he could not shake that his world would come crashing down around him, or better put turned upside down. It was not long before Buck showed up, which helped to lift Christophers spirits and remove that feeling of dread. That was his second father, no doubt about that. He was not sure why, but for a split moment a vision flashed across buck's face. A cold, dead, lifeless expression. Chris never had those, so it was a shock at first, but since it only lasted a few seconds, he paid no mind to it to it.
“Earth to Chris”
Christopher looked around to see his dad standing there.
“You better eat your breakfast lest we be any later than we already are.”
Chris looked at the clock, it was 8:15. He knew he was late, but it did not bother him. He was content hanging out with his Father and Best Friend.
“I know dad” he said with a defeated sigh.
“8:30 and we are leaving. With the traffic as it is now, it will take 30 minutes to get to your school. The good news is, Buck gets to take us, while my truck is down at the shop.”
Christopher does not mind now; he likes riding with Buck. Soon enough, 8:30 rolls around and everyone is out the door, piling into Buck’s Jeep. Just as his father said, it did indeed end up being a 30-minute drive and then another 15 getting him checked into the school late. Chris never understood why the check-in process here was so long. After a quick kiss from his dad, he went off happily to class. It was not long before his world would be turned upside down.
It is now 11:50 AM PST. Chris is outside doing an activity with his classmates when a teacher comes over and ask him to come with her to the principal office. Chris keeps asking if he did anything wrong and the teacher assures him, he did not. As he enters the principal office, He sees several people. Athena is one of them.
“Chris, I’m sure you’ve met Mrs. Grant here before” the principal says and Chris shakes his head that yes, he has.
“Hey baby, we need to talk about your father and friend. This is never easy for me to say, and I have been in this job some 20 years or so.”
“Wow, that’s a long time Athena.” Chris says smiling, and Athena does not even take offense to it or comes back with a quick snappy joke.
“What I wanted to say Chris, and I am going to be upfront about it is that Eddie and Buck passed away today in that pile-up on the I-405”
It's in that moment that everything around Chris freezes in place. Time seems to stop, all laughter seems to stop, everything remains frozen while Chris processes what he was just told. Suddenly, it hits him full force and he begins to practically wail at the top of his lungs. Athena goes over to comfort him. The on-site counselor does the same. They all stay like that for a good 15 minutes, watching as the young child just does not stop crying. The other office ladies also check in on Chris from time to time. After about 15 minutes, Chris finally calms down enough, and Athena asks him.
“Do you want to come with me? You can ride in my Cruiser back to the Firehouse?”
Under normal circumstances, the school would have to refuse this unless Athena was on the check-out card, but since Athena was a part of the LAPD and a good close friend to Chris’s father, they just let him go with her. Back at the firehouse, it is a somber, quiet mood. No Jokes, No Laughs, No home-cooked meals. Everyone just sits around, doing their own thing. Bobby has been in his office ever since they got back. Athena arrives with Chris in tow.
“Is anyone here?” She calls out.
No one, so she goes to the office to find bobby. The firehouse is a visual reminder to Chris of what he has lost and what is never coming back and so he breaks out crying again. Athena comforts him again this time, with Hen by her side
“Poor Guy has not really stopped crying since we left the school” Athena says, still rubbing the child’s shoulders.
“Well, I cannot say I blame him. How do you handle losing not only your father, but also you best friend to some idiot who got too drunk and decided the interstate was the best Travel choice?”
“We do not know he was Drunk Hen; all know is he was very dazed from the crash. It’s a wonder how he did not end up in the pile-up he caused by doing something as stupid as that.”
By this point, Bobby had come out of his office to see what all the commotion was. He looks down and sees Christopher. His heart nearly breaks at the sight. Bobby walks over to Chris and comes down level with him.
“Hey Chris, it’s going to be all right. We can get through this together. What do you say, I take you for a ride in the fire engine?”
Chris looked up, the tears in his eyes slowly fading away. He had always been told; it was ok to cry but now he just felt embarrassed.
“I’d like that” he says in between breathes.
“Are you even allowed to do that Bobby?”
“Of course! Sometimes we take the truck out and just drive around. It is not idle very long”
With that, Bobby asks Hen to come along with He and Christopher.
“Bobby, a word with you please” Athena calls out.
“Go on Hen, I’ll catch up in a minute.”
“What’s up Athena.”
“We got some more results back from the reckless person that has caused all this grief.”
“And, what’s new about it.”
“Turns out, it was his Intention to cause a pile-up. Several of his friend’s had stated that apart from Drugs and Alcohol that he was very unstable. No one read too far into it though as every time we questioned him, he acted like everything was normal. His friend’s had come to the station that morning to say that they feared for his life.”
“So, he just up and decided that the morning of June 28th, 2018, was the day to end it all. He intentionally drove into oncoming traffic. Any idea why a pile-up was his choice?”
“Apparently, He wanted to take out as many as he could without it being Physically Painful. Sadly, Buck and Eddie were the only ones to pass through that entire crash. I said from day one that a Jeep was not a safe Vehicle and I meant it.”
“Well, the sad reality is that no Vehicle is safe. It is just draw of the cards I guess.”
The conversation is interrupted by the sound of the truck horn accompanied by a voice.
“Are you coming Bobby? I am getting impatient here.” Bobby turns around to see both Hen and Chris laughing.
“Those two are such characters. Go on Bobby, I will meet you at home.”
With that Athena and Bobby part ways.
It's now July 28th, 2018. Exactly one month since the Death of his Father and His Best Friend. He stands, looking in a full-length body mirror at the suit that he hoped he would never need to wear. He had picked it out for the off chance that he had to visit a funeral with family members. It was the same suit design as his father's. Soon he hears the footsteps of Bobby coming up the stairs.
“You ready to go Chris?” Bobby stands tall in his Formal Captains Uniform, looking down on the small child. He knows this day is tough for him.
“Ready he says.”
“Great, Athena is Already waiting in the car for us”
“Bobby, can I ask you something?”
“Sure”
“He’s not really coming back, is he?”
“What do you mean?”
“My Father, My Friend. Both of them are Truly gone are not they.”
Bobby has to stop and process what he is being asked. Here is this 10-year-old boy, asking him if there was a chance that his father and his best friend had Truly passed on. It was hard for Bobby to swallow back the lump forming in his throat and to hide the tears forming in his eyes.
Finally, He speaks “Yes, they are.”
The words nearly kill bobby, but he had to remain strong for Christopher. At that, he sees Chris come over and give him a hug.
“I know it is rough Bobby, but we can do this. We can get through this. Promise me you will be strong, and I will be strong along with you.”
Bobby is Humbled by the statement and is impressed at how well Chris is Handling the topic at hand. Together, they walk out of Eddie’s place and to the car where Athena is waiting.
The service is Immaculate. Everything is Bright and Lively, and everything seems to be going fine. It is only when the ones that did not make it back home begin to play does the overall realization hit Chris and it hits him hard. During his Crying spell, he feels a pair of Gentle hands pick him up and place him over their shoulder. He continues to cry, practically wail but everyone seems unbothered by it. The service goes on and the Funeral Processions begin. Chris at this point decided to go with the rest of the Diaz family, since his father did come first.
It is now September 28th, 2018, and Christopher sits in the office of Judge Judy Scheindlin. The judge is making sure Chris is comfortable with the idea of Adoption and understands what it means.
“Well Mr. Christopher Diaz, you seem like you have a perfect family lined up. Again, I am sorry that you lost two dear people to you.” She bends down to give him a hug and then proudly states.
“Now, if you will excuse me while I go finalize details of your Adoption, we will have you to Athena and Bobby as you call them.”
“Yes Ma’am, Can I continue to stay in here and color till it’s time?”
“Absolutely, I will send my Bailiff to get you once were ready!”
With that, The judge Proceeds out to the Courtroom. Christopher sits in the room for about 15 minutes until a Knock on the door interrupts his coloring.
“Mr. Christopher, are you ready?”
“I think so, you must be the bail·iff that the nice lady in the robe was talking about.”
“That’s right, it is my Honor and at the request of the Judge that I walk you to the Courtroom to meet your future Parent’s.” The Bailiff has a hint of joy-sadness in his voice. Chris stands up, gets his little crutches, and follows close. All the way down the hall, he keeps getting smiles and congratulations. Everyone Knew this was going on and were thrilled. Chris walked through the door and was greeted by several close people and a couple he did not know. The judge only had one question for him and that was If he had anything to say. He smiled and, looking at Bobby and Athena smiled, said “no.” Chris stood there listening to the tail end of the case.
“Without further Ado, the court here by grants Custody of Mr. Christopher Diaz to Mr. Robert “Bobby” Nash and Mrs. Athena Grant-Nash witnessed today by the Following: Mr. Howard Han, Mr. Don Blevins, Mr. Harry Grant, Ms. May Grant, Mrs. Henrietta Wilson, Mrs. Karen Wilson, Mrs. Maddie Buckly, and Mrs. Sue Blevins on this 28th day of September in the year Twenty-Eighteen.” At the bang of the Gavel, Chris is surrounded by both Bobby and Athena. He was overwhelmed a little, but he could not help sinking into Bobby and Athen’s sweet embrace. Athena then looks at him and says in, on the verge of Happy tears.
“Come on Baby, let us go home.”
To which Chris replies
“Yes Ma’am”
The walk to the car is Surrounded by Friends, Family, Colleagues, even the Judge and Bailiff are among everyone in the line. Christopher knows now that he is home.