Chapter Text
It wasn’t very often that Tommy and Eddie got the chance to hang out just the two of them. Time was a limited resource for them as first responders with their shifts and all, and when their schedules would align, it normally meant that Evan's schedule also aligned.
"Not that I don't appreciate hanging out with you, Tommy, but I'm just used to you being with Buck all the time, you know?" Eddie explained as he sat down across from Tommy at the patio table.
"Hey, we hang out the three of us sometimes," Tommy pointed out.
"Not enough," Eddie commented quietly almost as if speaking to himself, not a trace of accusation in his voice.
"You kind of had your own thing going on..." Tommy's voice trailed off, not continuing that thought but instead pivoted and changed the subject. "So you and Liv seem to be getting along really well."
"Yeah, I didn't expect to hit it off with her, especially after that factory explosion call and everything."
Tommy chuckled quietly. "But she went out of her way to reach out and thank you afterwards, so I think you did all right. You did save her partner's life."
"Speaking of which, what's their deal?" Eddie wondered aloud, curiosity getting the best of him. "Are they dating, or what?"
"River and Olivia?" Tommy's eyebrows furrowed. "Honestly, I don't know what to tell you. Liv doesn't tell me much about her love life. And if she and River have anything going on, I wouldn't know about it. It's the one thing she keeps close to the chest. She's relatively private about that kind of stuff, even with me."
Eddie nodded before taking a sip of his beer again.
"It was Evan's idea to introduce you guys, you know? He was worried about you after Christopher left," Tommy went on.
"Yeah...she's been a really nice distraction."
Eddie couldn’t help but hear Tommy’s words, ringing clearly in his head, the advice and the warning and everything in between. Not that he had ever planned to pursue her or even had a thought about it when they first met, but when Olivia had texted him about making plans for the weekend after the Charity Gala, he had to seek Tommy’s advice out. And maybe his permission? His blessing?
"She's...a force of nature. She's the most social, most outgoing person I know, and yet she doesn't really let people in. If she's reached out to you and wants to hang out, that means something. I don't know what. But it means something."
It wasn’t just about getting Olivia’s best friend’s approval. Tommy was quickly becoming his best friend too. In a lot of ways, he already thought of the older man as his best friend, the older brother he never had. He never wanted Tommy as a sounding board more than he did when it came to Olivia.
"So you would be fine with me...finding out?"
"Yeah, if you can even get that far. Olivia has a tendency to run when most people get too close. I'm the only person she hasn't run away from. Just don't be surprised if she freaks out when you get too close."
But he gave her his word that he wouldn’t tell anyone. If it was the only way he could have her, the only way he could get close to her, then he would keep his mouth shut.
He busied himself with cooking bacon and eggs, something he doesn’t usually mess up, making breakfast for the two of them.
Closer to 7am, he heard footsteps from the hallway and Olivia emerged in grey sweatpants and her LAFD t-shirt.
“Good morning, Sleeping Beauty,” Eddie teased her as he set the table.
Olivia sat down at the table, pouring herself some orange juice to drink. “How long have I been out for?”
“You slept for a solid 8 hours,” Eddie pointed out, “You doing okay?”
“Yeah...I just gotta figure out my new normal, I guess. And I’m sure it’ll be fine. I’ll adjust; I always do,” she assured him in between bites of bacon and eggs.
“Good." He paused to settle in for breakfast himself. “Am I going to see you this weekend?”
“Maybe. I have time. I’m sure I can fit you in between movie night with Tommy and all the training and working out I’ll be doing. Things always feel a little off when there’s a change in routines. I’ve been this way since I was a kid.”
Olivia was casual and noncommittal, which drove Eddie nuts to try to figure out, so instead, he settled into quietly having his breakfast alongside her.
“Well, let’s figure something fun out. We could go dancing again, if you want. Or literally whatever you want,” he suggested at the tail end of their meal.
“We’ll figure it out, Eddie,” Olivia replied gently, her energy seemed more subdued than he was used to. She stood up and leaned to give him a kiss on the cheek. “I’m gonna head out. I’ll see you later.”
A part of him wanted to go after her, to properly kiss her, kiss whatever was bothering her away but Eddie could sense that it wasn’t what Olivia wanted.
“Hey, what’s going on?” Eddie asked as he approached the kitchen area shortly after coming into work.
“Just because Bobby isn’t here doesn’t mean we can’t eat together.”
“You’re stress cooking, aren’t you?” Eddie’s eyes narrowed at Buck as he walked up to the counter.
“I just made a tuna casserole for lunch. It’s all prepped and ready to go in the oven.” Buck followed Eddie’s gaze to the living room area, where Olivia was sitting with a book, then added, “I’m glad you guys are getting along but...You’re staring at the new girl.”
Eddie rolled his eyes at the comment before he explained, “She just seemed off this morning at breakfast. Distant.”
“Yeah, Tommy suspects something’s up. She hasn’t been checking in. July’s historically been a tough month for her so we should probably keep an eye on her.”
“Do we know if we should just leave her alone? Is this one of those moments she needs space?” Eddie wondered, his face looking concerned.
“I’ll check in with her in a bit,” Buck offered, “Maybe she’ll talk to me.”
A new message in the group text thread popped up on both Buck and Eddie’s phones. It was Tommy.
Tommy: I have movie night with her soon but you two should keep an eye on her on shift
Tommy: It’s the anniversary of her dad’s death next week
After reading the messages from Tommy, Eddie made his way towards the couches in the living room area. He knew he had to play it cool around her at work because he made a promise, but he couldn’t help but be drawn towards her. Behind him, Buck followed, still texting.
“You know, your best friend’s been looking for you,” Buck declared as he sat on the couch to her left.
Olivia pulled her phone out of her pocket and saw the 10 unread texts but didn’t read them, putting her phone back in her pocket before going back to her book.
Eddie leaned forward against the couch to her right, opting to stay standing. “What’s that you’re reading?”
“Austen’s Sense and Sensibility. You know, I could never figure out which Dashwood sister I related to more.” She paused to turn a page in her book. “Sometimes I feel like I’m Elinor...’She was stronger alone, and her own good sense so well supported her, that her firmness was as unshaken, her appearance of cheerfulness as invariable, as with regrets so poignant and so fresh, it was possible for them to be.’ And sometimes, I feel like I’m Marianne. ‘...the more I know of the world, the more am I convinced that I shall never see a man whom I can really love.’ But it’s interesting to see how two very different women handle the dichotomy of reason and emotion within themselves and what they place value on. If you can pull the text out of its context, even Austen’s work has some degree of relatability.”
She managed to stun Buck into silence, which would have impressed Eddie, if he wasn’t struggling to figure out how to respond to her too.
“It’s a comfort book. Elinor and Marianne have gotten me through it over the years.”
Buck narrowed his eyes at Olivia as he asked, “Do the sisters find love and happiness in the end? Never read any Austen. Was never really my cup of tea.”
“They got there in the end...”
“Is that why it’s your comfort book? Because they get there in the end?” Eddie asked carefully.
“The love of Elinor’s life was engaged to a gold digging bitch and Marianne got rejected by the man of her dreams. Sometimes, it’s just comforting to know other people are having a worse time than I am.”
“Who hurt you?” Buck teased playfully.
Olivia rolled her eyes as she tossed a pillow from the couch at Buck. “Actually, I’m going to go get a workout in while things are still calm around here.” She slammed her book shut and headed towards the stairs. Before she could get there, the alarm sounded, and the three of them sprung to action.
The morning had come and gone. It had only been a few days since Olivia had joined the team and she seemed to work well under the leadership of both Hen and Chimney. But there had been an underlying frustration bubbling under the surface as they all split up to do their own thing. And he could sense it in the air as she was in quiet discussions in the ambulance during a restock with Hen.
“I think someone downtown pulled strings to get him here again. Someone with a vendetta, specifically against me.”
“How do you know?”
“I don’t know for sure. All I’ve got is a hunch. But it tracks with a lot of things going on in my life, at least.”
“We’re gonna stop this, right? We can get him out again. You’ve got me to help this time. I’ll throw the full weight of my father’s name around to get this done.”
“I can’t ask you to do that. For right now, I need you to keep this conversation between the two of us. I just thought that you should know, considering your history with the man.”
“Does anyone else know about your hunch?”
“Chim’s the only one who knows what’s been going on with me. I’ll tell everyone when there’s more to tell.”
Eddie stepped away from his position leaning against the ambulance before he could get caught eavesdropping. He was on his way to work out, and he could talk to Olivia later.
...
“Hello??? Earth to Eddie!”
Eddie had been about halfway to his destination when he realized he hadn’t been paying attention and it took him a moment to realize that Buck had joined him and was trying to get his attention as he was headed towards the workout area of the station.
“Sorry, Buck, I was just a little distracted.”
“Yeah, I can tell. What’s going on?” Buck asked as he sat at the leg extension machine to begin his workout.
“Am I the only one that’s noticed things have felt a little off around here?” Eddie asked as he settled into the leg curl machine. “The paramedics have been tense about something.” His eyes drifted towards the ambulance off in the distance as Olivia and Hen stepped out and exchanged words with Chimney and they walked off together.
“Have you asked Chimney?” Buck smirked, fully aware of what he was suggesting. “That’s the easiest way to get your information.”
“I’m seriously considering it.”
“The way Chim reacted to Gerrard at the medal ceremony, I have a feeling it’s only a matter of time before something gives,” Buck commented, “From what I understand, he and Hen have a lot of history with the guy. And none of it’s good.”
Eddie nodded to acknowledge Buck’s point. “Did Tommy tell you anything about Olivia’s Gerrard connection?” he wondered out loud.
“Nothing. Either he’s been asked not to talk about it or he has no idea at all. Either way, I’m not gonna push the issue. I don’t want to rock that boat.”
“Gerrard’s trying to lull us into a false sense of security,” Eddie declared, “He knows Hen and Chim have his number.”
“We don’t have all the information, and I’m not gonna lie, it’s really irritating me right now,” Buck admitted, “And the only reason I haven’t flat out asked Chimney about any of it is because Tommy told me to trust that he and Hen would tell us when the time was right.”
Eddie knew that Tommy had a point but he too was irritated at the whole situation and the feeling of waiting for the other shoe to drop. “I’m worried about the timing of everything,” he admitted, “Especially after the texts from this morning.”
Buck said nothing more but Eddie immediately recognized the spark of mischief in his best friend’s eyes and made the decision not to call him out on it. Whatever was going through Buck’s head, it was probably for the best that he didn’t know about it.
“I wonder how Tommy would feel about stealing a fire engine...maybe I could introduce him to Buck 1.0...”
Eddie’s eyes questioned whether Buck was joking or not. But before he could change the subject, the clear sounds of the heavy bag being struck rang out from a few feet away, catching his attention.
“You know, if you want to subject your boyfriend to that, your call,” Eddie replied distractedly before his making his way over to the other side of the workout area before Buck could respond.
With a careful approach, Eddie stepped towards the bench next to the heavy bag to sit and watch Olivia’s perfectly placed strikes connect, punctuated by frustrated grunts.
“Has Evan told you the stories from Tommy?” Olivia finally asked in between strike combinations. “Even Chimney and Hen could tell you.”
Eddie raised an eyebrow as he turned his head to look at her, questions in his eyes.
“Gerrard doesn’t give a shit about his team. He’ll leave us out to die if he thinks we can’t be saved trying to save people. If he thinks it’s too dangerous, he’ll let innocent lives die.”
“Buck’s gonna hate that once he finds that out and Gerrard is going to hate him,” Eddie pointed out with an amused tone, trying to ignore how serious the implications were of Olivia’s words. “He’s the guy who’ll save as many lives as possible to his own detriment.”
All he got in response was a series of strikes hitting the heavy bag and angry grunting. Olivia was not in the mood for lighthearted banter.
“You were fine before the calls started coming in,” Eddie pointed out quietly, “What’s going on? Talk to me.” He didn’t move from the bench he was sitting on but he did watch her carefully as he spoke.
“I’ll be fine once I talk to my Mom, I think. If anyone’s going to have the answers I want, it’ll be her.”
“I get that...” Eddie stood up to leave her alone as he added, “Just...let me know about this weekend."