Chapter Text
Buck shows up at Eddie’s door, unannounced.
Which, actually, has never happened before. Any time that they’re not working or studying or sleeping, they’re texting each other non-stop. Sometimes it’s SMS and sometimes they tackle the new Instagram Direct feature that just came out. Technology is so cool!
So, if either one of them wants to spend time together, they kinda just have to mention it in a message they were going to send anyway. A ‘btw can i come over’ here, a ‘oh also i’m omw rn’ there.
But today, Buck didn’t message Eddie about coming over.
He shows up at the door still wet from his post-practice shower, wearing athletic leggings and an old KE$HA tour hoodie, clearly coming straight from the locker room.
He raps on the door over and over until Eddie answers, holding Chris on his hip.
“Buck? What are you doing here?” Eddie asks, surprised but not at all unhappy to see his boyfriend.
“I just– I need to tell you something.” Buck walks past Eddie into the small dorm, dropping his heavy duffel on the floor by the bed. His cheeks are red and Eddie knows why.
They’ve only been together for a little over a month but Eddie already knows all the different Buck expressions. Buck’s cheeks are burning up and it’s not from embarrassment or guilt or him cutely blushing. It’s from exertion. The same flush he gets when he’s been riding Eddie into the mattress for a good 20 minutes straight.
Buck must have run over straight from the stadium. What could be so important that he didn’t even get his phone out to send a text?
“Baby. Baby, sit down,” Eddie says, guiding Buck to the bed and running his fingers through Buck’s wet hair, scratching his head like he does when he calms Buck down after losses on the field.
Buck lets out a big breath and goes to sit on the bed, bouncing his knee and playing with the rings on his right hand. He’s nervous. Why is he nervous?
Eddie sits down beside him and rubs his back now instead. Chris is getting wiggly in Eddie’s other arm and Eddie lets his boyfriend take him when it’s clear Chris wants time with his Buck.
“Hi, buddy,” Buck smiles, gratefully taking Chris into his arms. Chris babbles just a tiny bit and bites aimlessly at the collar of Buck’s hoodie. Yummy.
“Evan,” Eddie knows his son is irresistibly cute, but he can’t let Buck get distracted from why he came rushing over here. “What’s going on?”
“I just. Like, I got out of practice, right? And everything felt off. Like, we had a good practice and the guys are great and everything is fine. But I felt, just, like. This weird feeling of being really, really happy and also, like, slightly lost? At the same time? Like I’m exactly where I want to be but it feels like– it’s like there’s this longing for a piece of the puzzle that’s here somewhere but it’s not in its place right now? Does that make sense? And it’s like–”
“Where’s this going, hun?” Eddie asks, knowing he’s going to start a famous Buck Tangent if he doesn’t focus.
“Right. And– and then I realized. It’s you. Like, being with you, dating you, being your boyfriend. It just makes me so happy– I mean! I knew that before! Of course I knew that before. I knew it from the moment you asked me to be your boyfriend. But I mean– like, being with you. I miss it, all the time. Like I’ve never missed anything else in my whole life. Every moment you’re not around me, there’s a puzzle piece out of place. Like the picture is fabulous even without you physically there but when we’re together, Eds. When we’re together it feels like the whole world, everything that’s ever happened, was made just for us.”
“Baby–”
“And you take such good care of me. And you’re the most compassionate person I know. And you’ve gotta be, like, the best at sex out of everyone in the world–”
“Evan!”
“Because I swear, Eddie, you make me feel crazy. And– and you and Chris? You two make me so happy. Like I never thought I could be this happy. And I–,”
“Ev,” Eddie smiles, “What are you saying here?” It's so hard to not kiss Buck when he knows exactly where this is headed.
“I got out of practice earlier, and I– I just realized– I mean, I think I knew already. But something about that feeling today just made me have to tell you.” Chris has gotten bored of Buck’s hoodie and instead now wants to wriggle out of Buck’s arms for tummy time on the bed, which Buck happily lets him do. “Eddie.”
“Yes?” Eddie bites his lip, giddy and impatient.
“I love y– mmph –” Buck is cut off by Eddie’s mouth, pulling him into a hard, messy smooch. It’s warm and lovely and perfect and it feels like their first all over again.
Eddie rests their foreheads together when they pull apart. “I love you, Ev. So much,”
“Hey! I just ran over here and had this big monologue moment and you beat me to it? I was gonna say it first!”
“Say it now, babe. Tell me now,” Eddie grins, leaning back so he can cradle Buck’s face in his hands and look him in his gorgeous ocean eyes.
“I love you.”
They kiss again and kiss and kiss and kiss until Buck’s crying little tears of joy. Overwhelmed by adoration.
Eddie scoops Chris up and places him in his crib, it’s way past his bedtime anyway. He was just putting the little man to sleep when Buck showed up like Prince Charming.
Buck welcomes Eddie back to bed with open arms, burrowing into Eddie’s chest.
Eddie rubs up and down his back and tangles their legs together under the blanket. He’s so happy to have Buck in his arms. He loves him so much.
Buck hums happily, “I love you, Eds. I can’t believe I get to say it now. I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I lov–”
“–I love you too, mi Evito,” Eddie smiles, pressing a kiss to Buck’s head.
“You’ve never called me that before,” this time, Buck does blush, taking his face out of Eddie’s sleep shirt to look up at him with bright eyes.
“Can I? My little Ev? ”
“I’m taller than you. Think I might be heavier than you too. And my di–”
“But you’re my baby, Evan.”
Buck blushes even more.
“I love you.”