Work Text:
The bright, sweltering heat of Los Angeles was doing nothing to stop the sweat dripping down Buck’s face from all the exertion from their previous calls. He swiped at his face and jokingly wiped his sweat all over Chimney whose face scrunched in disgust.
“Buck!” He whined, causing everyone in the rig to snicker. “That’s disgusting. You’re officially uninvited to movie night later.”
“You’re uninviting me to the Buckley Family Movie Night?” Buck gasped, clutching his chest in mock offense. “How dare you? Do you even know I’m a Buckley?”
Chimney just glared at him, “It isn’t Buckley Family Movie Night. It’s just movie night.”
“Which was originally co-hosted by the Buckley’s. By the way, I’m choosing a superhero movie. I haven’t decided which one.”
“A superhero movie? Really?” Chimney shook his head. “Nope. I’m not allowing you to choose movies again.”
“Okay, boomer, it isn’t my fault you’re not down with the current trends,” Buck winked at Chimney causing Hen to giggle. “Plus, it isn’t for me. Christopher really likes them.”
At the mention of his son’s name, Eddie’s eyes flashed to Buck. His features softened as he stared at the blond man. Something spurred inside his chest, but he ignored it as he gazed at the blond fireman.
“You don’t have to do that, Buck,” Eddie whispered softly. “We can save that one for some other time you come over. Christopher is staying at my abuela’s house today anyway.”
“Yeah, save it for date night, fellas,” Chimney clapped Buck’s shoulder and jumped out of the truck just as they pulled into their destination.
Hen wiggled her eyebrows at them and followed Chimney, “Coming boys?”
Buck and Eddie were rooted in place, both flushed red from Chimney’s teasing. It wasn’t like Hen and Chimney and really all of the 118 didn’t tease them about their special bond, it was just becoming more frequent lately. Eddie awkwardly cleared his throat and motioned for Buck to step out first. Buck stumbled out of the truck, avoiding eye contact with him.
“What do we have, Cap?” Buck asked, jogging towards the rest of the team, completely ready to get into action.
“Sorority party gone wrong maybe,” Hen shrugged.
“Isn’t it too early for a party?” Eddie questioned taking a stand away from where Buck stood, feeling a surge of heat creep up his neck thinking about the implication of their ‘date night’.
“Not for college students,” Buck answered, glancing around the small knook of houses with banners stating the sorority they belonged to. “Man, they party hard no matter the time. Especially this one and especially if their houses aren’t located too close to campus...what?”
Bobby stared at him in amusement, “Right. Well one of the girls got stuck doing some dare, I’m guessing some kind of initiation. It’s a simple task, hopefully we’ll be in and out in no time. We’ll assess the situation first and go from there, got it?”
“Yes, Captain!”
It hadn’t been much of an exciting call after all. Just a dumb dare gone wrong. Hen and Chim immediately went to help one of the girls who had gotten her head stuck in some tubing in the washing room. Another girl had slipped down the stairs and was badly bruised. Some of the others were sporting small bruises and the glass table in the living room was shattered.
Eddie and Buck were on check up duty in the living room, working through the crowd of slightly inebriated college girls to make sure none of them had been injured by some other dare or prank.
One in particular was very giggly and kept staring at them in a salacious manner that had Buck shifting uncomfortably and Eddie irritated. She tossed her strawberry blonde hair back and gave Buck an eyeful down her blouse as she leaned in so he could check for any cuts near her head. Eddie tried his damndest not to roll his eyes at her lewdness.
“My head landed there,” She pointed towards some of the shards of glass on the carpet. “It was after Brittany thought it’d be funny to reenact one of the Diva fights from WWE.”
“I knocked Sheila down by accident, I swear,” Brittany insisted as Eddie carefully cleaned a cut on her arm. “Am I going to jail for reckless endangerment or something?”
“That’s not how it works,” a small brunette in the back murmured, rolling her eyes.
“Wow, you are so strong,” Sheila’s green eyes glimmered with a darkness that Buck knew all too well. She poked the muscles in his arm and giggled. “I wouldn’t mind you manhandling me and throwing me onto a glass table. Damn, baby, you can lift me any time!”
Eddie’s hands faltered as he dressed Brittany’s wounds. His shoulders had tensed and his eyes flickered over to Sheila, dark eyes icy and penetrating.
“Ma’am, please let him do his job,” He sounded agitated and had an edge to his voice. “The faster he’s finished with you, the faster he can help someone else in need.”
“I’d rather him do something else,” She ran a finger up his chest and pressed it at the hollow of his throat causing Buck to choke on his own spit. “I don’t want him to finish fast with me but I do want him working fast.”
Eddie seemed to snap at that exact moment. He pressed the bandage onto Brittany and shoved Buck out of the way. Sheila looked ready to fight back but Eddie was already cleaning her cuts and apparently didn’t care for the stinging it caused her.
“Go check if they need help in there,” Eddie nodded down the hall where the rest of the crew was working with the other girls who had fared the worst. “I’ll help Sheila, Buck.”
“I want him,” Sheila whined, moving her head to get a glimpse of Buck. “No offense, but I’m into blondes.”
“No offense, but I really don’t care, “Eddie griped, patching up the cuts on her face. He was trying his best to remain level headed. “We’re just trying to do our jobs. We’re not here to socialize.”
“I’m gonna report you for being rude to me,” She hissed, pushing his hands away. “Stop, I’m good. It wasn’t that serious, I was faking pain to get him to touch me.”
If looks could kill, Eddie was sure he had murdered Sheila on the spot. He got up and hovered close to Buck, who was still standing dumbfounded in the middle of the messy living room. He was free to ogle and Sheila certainly wasn’t subtle with her staring.
Thankfully Hen and Chimney were all done and wheeling the girl away. Bobby and the rest of the crew were already packed and ready to go.
“Okay, we will be transporting Michelle to the nearest hospital,” Bobby explained to the living room full of delirious girls. “We want to make sure she’s fine and doesn’t have any serious trauma from her head being compressed in the tubing…is anyone sober enough to fully grasp this?”
“Yes,” the brunette from early had spoken up. “I actually was gone when this all started and called 9-1-1 as soon as I noticed this crazy mess. I’ll ride with her if you don’t mind.”
Bobby nodded and motioned for her to follow Chim and Hen. She was halfway there when she stopped in front of Buck. Before Eddie could blink, she had brazenly squeezed Buck’s arm and gave him a soft smile.
“I want to thank you and say sorry for Sheila being so...forward.”
“Sure, no problem.”
Eddie hates how Buck’s voice slightly cracked. He hated how the blond man looked like a spluttering high school boy trying to talk to a pretty girl. She stepped on her tiptoes and pressed her lips faintly on Buck’s cheeks. The brunette blushed, squeaked another thank you, and ran out the door.
Buck looked around, face red, as Bobby rose his eyebrows at him and grabbed him by the neck in a fatherly, teasing manner.
Eddie felt his stomach twist in knots. It must’ve been his lunch not sitting well with him. Sure, that was totally it.
“Damn bitch stole my man. So much for sisterhood Esme!”
Eddie remained quiet the whole way back to the station. Ignoring the ache in his heart and the boiling in his blood at the thought of those sorority girls all over Buck. He was just being overprotective, Buck is his best friend and frankly, he thinks Buck being seduced by those sorority girls will stunt all the growth he has gone through.
“You okay there, Eddie?”
“W-what? Oh, yeah.”
“Mhmm,” Hen looked unconvinced. “Help me restock the ambulance, will ya.
Eddie helped Hen assemble all the supplies they needed to restock the ambulance. His eyes avoided her completely, but he can feel her inquisitive gaze on him. She was making him feel like he was hiding something or as if she knew something he didn’t, he wasn’t sure how he felt about that. He was just about ready to find an excuse to leave when she spoke.
“So, Buck was getting a lot of attention back there.”
“Uh, yeah, I guess he was,” He couldn’t help the frown that marred his face, or the trail of words that blurted out of said frown, “He doesn’t really need that though. They---they just wanted him for a good time.”
“You don’t think Buck wants that?” Hen asked, taking the last of the supplies Eddie handed her. “Buck 1.0 sure as hell wasn’t shy about sexcapades. He’s a young, handsome man and I think he wants to date.”
“They didn’t seem like they wanted something serious,” Eddie insisted, feeling utterly frustrated. Why didn’t Hen see what he was trying to explain? “He’s past that. They’re not his type anymore.”
Hen only nodded understandingly and pushed them out of the ambulance. Her tender brown eyes were sparkling with mirth as she looked him dead in the eye.
“Careful, Eds, one might think you’re jealous.”
“I’m not jealous of him getting more female attention than me, Hen.”
“Not what I meant, Eddie,” She left him there standing in his own thoughts.
“What does that even mean, Hen? Hen?!”
****
Eddie wanted this shift to be over, namely because he was dead tired and all he wanted to do was crash into his bed and sleep.
“Careful, Eddie, don’t hurt yourself?” Eddie had been put on chopping duty, since Buck had yet to come back to resume his job as Bobby’s apprentice.
Bobby frowned at Eddie’s aggressive chopping skills. The vegetables were meant to be sliced into even pieces but now were looking like collateral damage of huge accidents they had tended to. Bobby knew having Eddie take over Buck was going to be a disaster, it was well noted that it was a good thing Eddie was a trained firefighter because the kitchen was clearly not his friend.
“Sorry, Cap, I’m not much of a chef,” Eddie flicked a piece of angular carrot around the cutting board, trying his best to avert his attention elsewhere.
“S’okay, that’s why I’m training you now,” Bobby smiled at him, but it was strained, his eyes weren’t on Eddie. “Buck says he’s tired of him doing the cooking at home.”
“Home?” Eddie choked, he had never heard anyone describe his home as his and Buck’s. Frankly, it felt nice to hear and it gave him a grip on reality, something he was thankful for.
Bobby just smiled and shoved another carrot his way, “Hopefully he’ll come join us soon. He wanted to be here to see your progress.”
“Not much progress,” Eddie muttered his eyes narrowing at the sight in front of him and he began to hack at the carrot with renewed vigor and hostility. “He’s got better things to do anyway.”
Eddie looked up from the vegetables he had massacred and stared up at Buck who was chatting with a pretty redhead. They had saved her on a call yesterday and had brought Buck some thank you pastries. She had immediately been enamored with Buck’s charms. Eddie can’t say he blames her, Buck wooed everyone unintentionally. He just had a magnetic charisma that pulled everyone in, himself included.
“Damn, Eddie, what do you have against vegetables?”
Eddie groaned. He wasn’t in the mood for Chimney’s ribbing.
“I don’t know how he does it?” Chimney said stealing a piece of carrot from under Eddie’s supervision. “He’s handsome, sure, but he really reels them in like a moth. She’s practically tripping at his feet, but he doesn’t seem to mind.”
Chop. Chop. Chop.
“I think you’re on stirring duty now, can you handle that?”
“Sure, Cap.” He was thankful to turn his back on the redhead who was batting her eyelashes on Buck.
“Looks like someone’s getting lucky tonight!”
Eddie can hear some of the guys wolf whistle at whatever was happening behind his back.
“You’re gonna splash the sauce everywhere, Eddie,” Bobby sighed aggravated as he took the spoon from Eddie’s hands and gently stirred the sauce, “Gentle, that way we actually have some to pour over the vegetables.”
“Sorry,” Eddie said sheepishly, taking the spoon and focusing all his energy on not breaking the wooden spoon in half, “Slow and steady, right?”
“Right,” Bobby nodded, adding a pinch of spices into the mix. A glimmer of mischief in his eyes. “You know this could be a very good...reliever. Of stress…of, um, anger…”
Chimney snorted. “Yeah, definitely better than street fighting, Eddie.”
Eddie just rolled his eyes and went back to splitting the broccoli and cauliflower. Buck was thankfully not with the redhead anymore. He was walking up to them a pinkish hue colored his cheeks as Hen elbowed him and wiggled her eyebrows.
“Nah, it’s not like that,” Buck said, beaming at Eddie as he approached. Eddie felt his stomach quiver.
Hunger. It was hunger.
“What’s not like that?” Bobby said handing Buck another cutting board and knife.
“Buck’s got a date!” Hen’s eyes were on Eddie, scrutinizing his every move.
He kept his eyes fixed on the knife in his hand and took a deep breath. He just needed to focus on finishing his task. He wasn’t fast enough to school his features and Hen wanted to laugh at his twitching left eye.
“She gave you her number?” Chimney was astounded before he began hollering, “Guess you won’t be third wheeling next game night with Maddie and me.”
“Doesn’t he usually invite Eddie?” Hen’s voice was starting to grate Eddie’s ears. She was teasing him mercilessly at this point. “But I guess this is a date. What do you think about your boy dating, Eddie?”
Eddie’s eyes flickered to Buck who had suddenly stopped cutting perfect pieces of squash. His cheeks were as rosy as his birthmark and Eddie wanted to poke them to see if they felt as warm as his own at the prospect of being said Buck was his. Bobby unknowingly stopped him as he wedged himself between the oblivious pair and took the squash and added it with the other veggies he was sautéeing.
The veteran shook his head and handed off the broccoli and cauliflower to Chimney to rinse.
“It’s not like that,” Buck was looking straight at Eddie, who was busying himself with spreading garlic butter on the bread Bobby had given him. “She just wants to properly thank me by buying me drinks tomorrow.”
“Isn’t that what the pastries were for?” Eddie gritted his teeth and squashed down the burning that rose in his body. He had no reason to be angry or want to track down the redhead and flick Bobby’s sauce all over her.
Buck stared at Eddie helplessly not understanding why his best friend was so fed up. It wasn’t like they had any plans for tomorrow night.
“I gotta say I’ve got mad respect for the girl,” Hen said, taking the garlic butter bread and helping Bobby put it in the oven. “She had guts; she was just shooting her shot.”
Eddie wanted to bang his head on the fridge, but opted for grabbing the lemonade and forcing a smile on his face. Clearly, he wasn’t successful as Bobby grimaced at the man.
“Okay everyone wash up and tell everyone to come eat. The chicken and vegetables are ready,” Bobby gave everyone a stern look. “Eddie help me with the bread please, it should be ready.”
The rest of the crew went down to go wash up in the locker room and to announce dinner was ready.
“You okay, Eddie?” Bobby had his dad voice on and Eddie wasn’t usually on its receiving end. He easily could pry anything out of him with that voice.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Eddie hummed, propping the sheet pan of bread on the countertop to cool.
“You murdered my vegetables.”
“Sorry, Bobby. I told you I’m not a good chef.”
“Yeah, but that wasn’t the reason they look like they’ve been run over by a tractor,” Bobby placed his hand on Eddie’s shoulder and Eddie felt a comforting warmth wash over him. “You know what you and Buck have is special. He’s not going anywhere, you don’t have to worry about that.”
“I,uh, what?”
“I know jealousy when I see it, Eddie,” Bobby started taking the bowl of vegetables and sauce.
“Why would I be jealous? Why does everyone keep saying that?”
Bobby gave him a knowing look and sighed. Before they had the chance to continue their conversation, the rest of the 118 were stampeding up the stairs.
****
“How about this one?” Chimney asked for the billionth time holding up a navy sweater.
“Nope.”
Chimney exchanged the sweater for a maroon blouse with a swoop neck.
“Kinda looks like her work shirt.”
Chimney sighed, dragging a hand down his face in agitation. He was currently stuck with Buck and Eddie at the mall trying to find the perfect present for his girlfriend. He initially invited said girlfriend’s brother only, but of course Buck invited Eddie. Chimney didn’t mind Eddie tagged along, he provided another opinion, but half an hour later and they still were empty handed.
“This is useless, we should’ve called, Hen,” Eddie said, eyeing a frilly top. “Or Karen, or Athena, even May would’ve helped!”
“Come on guys we can do it!” Buck grinned grabbing a bright red top. “How about this one?”
“She’s gonna look like our rig,” Chimney hadn’t realized picking out a woman’s outfit would be so complicated. “How about we look elsewhere? Maddie likes makeup and the other day I caught her talking to May about this new face paint coming out.”
“Makeup? You think we’ll have better luck picking up makeup?” Eddie questioned, dubious.
“Face paint?” Buck laughed, but led the trio to the Sephora inside the JC Penney. “At least they have helpers here.”
Buck was quickly off grabbing a basket and playing around with various glittery eyeshadows. Eddie and Chimney followed him hesitantly.
“I’m gonna be honest guys I have no idea what I’m doing,” Buck said sniffing a test tube of lipgloss. “This cannot be sanitary.”
“We have dispensable appliances for that, sir,” A petite blonde said making her way towards the confused men. “If I may, this pink shade will bring out your eyes.”
“Oh, it’s not for me it’s for my sister!”
“Yeah, my girlfriend,” Chimney quickly stated. “We’re birthday shopping and we’re desperate for help. Please help us.”
“Separate gifts?” The blonde asked and they nodded. “Okay, sir, I’ll have Cynthia help you find your girlfriend’s gift and I’ll stay here and help him out.”
Chimney thanked her and followed a brunette who was eager to help Chimney find the perfect gift. Eddie stayed back, not liking the way the petite blonde stared at his best friend.
Eddie hung back, hovering behind a display of mascaras. He stood there, arms crossed, and glare fixed at the two giggling blondes. The girl, Sarah, was telling Buck all about the newest collection of highlighters they had gotten. Buck was fascinated by the shimmer and had blabbed about how his honorary sister May loved the product. Sarah has successfully conned Buck into buying all the women in his life new makeup and a small perfume for Maddie.
Sarah has also successfully made Buck blush redder than the red lipstick painted on her lips. She reached up and brushed her fingertips across Buck’s cheekbone and smeared it with shimmer. Eddie wanted to knock down the display in a fit of rage and hoped she left her spot in order to fix the mess he caused.
“He’s a real Don Juan,” Chimney said, coming up to Eddie bag in hand. “You know, the green isn’t suiting you, Eddie.”
Eddie quickly wipes at his face. He was sure he had gotten off all the eyeshadow Buck had been testing on his face.
“Not what I meant,” Chimney frowned. “I meant a different kind of green, not makeup. You know…”
Eddie sighed. Not this again.
“I’m not jealous, Chim.”
“You look like you’re about to go full on Rocky on that display.”
Before Eddie could respond, Buck was barreling towards them clutching a full basket of products. He was covered in glitter and various shades of eyeshadow.
“Okay, let’s go before they leave me with zero dollars to my name,” Buck said, grabbing Eddie and Chimney to the register. “This place is a black hole for my wallet guys. Sarah is too good at her job!”
Eddie snorted. Sarah was good at her job, but she was also good at flirting. She was making her way towards them with a determined look in her eyes and without thinking Eddie brushed the highlighter off Buck’s cheek tenderly. Buck faltered as he paid for the stuff and shot him a questioning look.
Eddie smiled at him and squeezed his shoulder reassuring him softly that everyone would love their gifts, especially Maddie. Buck beamed at him. Sarah, catching the intimate action, made a quick turn, lost her footing and tumbled towards the mascara display.
Eddie ignored the raise eyebrows, knowing look, and smirk playing on Chimney’s lips as they left the stored
He was not jealous.
****
Okay, so some part deep down did register the jealousy brewing inside of him. This time it had hit Eddie full maximum force.
They had been at a call, a bad accident at the edge of the freeway exit. A mass of cars tangled and bloody passengers. It was a regularly hot day in Los Angeles and they were shackled into their gear, rushing about making sure everyone was safe and well. They were pretty much done, having helped people and shipped them off to several ambulances.
The 118 was ready to leave the scene when a tall, muscular guy came tumbling towards them shaking like a leaf. Hen and Chimney were quick on their feet, ready to assess for any injuries they would have missed. The guy waved them off assuring them he had taken the least brunt of the car accident, as his car had barely grazed the others and only managed a small cut and a bump on the forehead. Buck had confirmed this, having been the one who had checked his injuries.
“I just wanted to--” The guy looked ready to pass out as he turned to face Buck. The man’s face was turning maroon, matching his shirt. “Look, I’m usually not one to shoot my shot, but you’re hot and I have a thing for men in uniform.”
The crew was left slack jawed at the guys confession and Eddie truly did think the guy was half a second from passing out. Eddie watched in horror as Buck chuckled, rubbing his hand on the back of his neck sheepishly. The blush spreading across his cheeks was a delicious shade of pink that matched his birthmark. Eddie scowled at the pair, loudly snapping his gloves off his hands and disposing them into the wastebasket.
“Thanks, man, but…”
“You’re not into men.” The guy looked down dejectedly, probably wanting the ground to swallow him. “Eh, it was worth a try, right? My therapist says I should stop living in fear and be more confident.”
Chimney and Hen were watching the whole scene unfold, shifting their eyes to Eddie who was busy packing away their stuff. He ambled away from them, trying his best to distance himself from the scene. He knew Buck was bisexual, that wasn’t the reason he was declining any offer the guy threw his way. Frankly, he just didn’t want to know Buck’s reason to reject him.
“It’s good advice,” Buck nodded, smiling apologetically at the guy. “Look, for what it’s worth it isn’t you or the fact that you’re a man, I’m not picky. It’s just I’ve already got my eyes set on someone else...I’m just not brave enough to shoot my shot.”
Ah, there it was. Eddie wished he had walked far enough from hearing range, so he could have lived in blissful ignorance. Now he had to deal with the weight of him realizing he had less than platonic feelings for his best friend and that his best friend was definitely crushing on someone.
Eddie angril stomped away, shoving the remainder of the supplies into the rig and staying there until everyone was settled to leave. He knew he was being childish, ignoring Buck’s concerned glances or Chim and Hen’s questions.
He was just overwhelmingly distraught at the idea of Buck wanting to shoot his shot with someone, whatever that meant. Buck liked someone and Eddie was burning with jealousy.
As soon as they arrived at the station, Buck immediately grasped Eddie by the elbow and steered him gently behind the truck and away from any onlookers. His blue eyes were tracing every one of Eddie’s features.
“Hey, what’s gotten into you?”
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about.” Buck’s face hardened and Eddie felt obliged to give him a lame explanation. “I’m just tired, Buck.”
“Yeah, me too,” Buck sounded like he wasn’t talking about aching muscles and sleep deprivation. “You know, Eddie, if I didn’t know better I’d say you were jealous.”
“Of what?” Eddie blurted out hastily. “You didn’t say yes to the guy. I have no reason to be jealous of you dating--you should, you don’t have to worry about me. I understand we’ll still be best friends.”
“So, you’re okay with me shooting my shot and asking the guy I like?”
“W-what?” Eddie felt his heart plummet and a slow burn rise in his chest. He took a deep breath and nodded not trusting his voice to not come out in a strangled mess of words.
“Okay, good because I think the poor guy was ready to combust from jealousy.”
“Then you should take pity on him.” Eddie could only understand how Buck’s crush must be feeling. He was ready to combust anytime someone flirted with Buck and he absolutely had no right to.
Buck’s face broke into a blinding grin and his eyes sparkled in a way that made Eddie’s heart ache from yearning, “So do you want to go out with me, Eddie?’
“Uh, what?”
“Come on, Eds, throw me a bone here, I’m trying to shoot my shot and you’re barely registering it.”
Eddie felt like the ground was going to give in under him. Buck quickly steadied him, his body heat radiated off him and warmed Eddie. Buck’s hands never left his arms and Eddie shivered at the contact, he could only imagine the sinful feeling of Buck’s bare hands on his bare arm, when their turnout gear wasn’t in the way.
“Shoot your shot? With me?”
Buck only laughed. That jerk was enjoying every second of it.
“You’re only jealous of yourself, Eddie,” Buck teased.
“I’m not jealous.” It was a knee-jerk reaction at this point. “Wait, you like me? You want to date me?”
“Only if you want to date me, Eddie.”
“I do,” Eddie felt like an entire weight was alleviated from him and he let out a relieved breath, “You have no idea how much it sucked to think you’d end up saying yes to anybody else.”
“I’ve gathered,” Buck smirked, pulling Eddie close and pressing his lips on Eddie’s cheek. “You’re kinda hot when you’re jealous, you know?”
“I wasn’t jealous,” He jutted out his chin like a child and Buck laughed.
“Sure, sure.”
“You don’t have to be jealous, though, I only have eyes for you, Edmundo.”
Eddie shivered at the sound of his name coming from Buck’s lips. Eddie couldn’t help himself, he grabbed Buck by his coat and smashed their lips together with fervor. Buck stumbled in bewilderment, but recovered from his shock swiftly, matching Eddie’s passion.
“Freaking finally!”
“At least my vegetables will be safe now.”
“Double date on Saturday, I’m calling Maddie to give her the good news!”
Eddie only smiled into the kiss, thankful his very visible jealousy had gotten Buck to shoot his shot. Even though Eddie was sure his jealousy would have eventually gotten the best of him and he’d have landed a kiss on Buck mid-conversation with whoever had been flirting with him.