Chapter Text
It’s not like Buck was jealous or anything, but it’s his knees that should be the ones currently pressed up next to Eddie’s, not Chimney’s. And rationally, Buck knew it didn’t mean anything.
They had all just piled in the truck as quickly as they could, each taking whatever spot was available when they got in. And Buck, unfortunately, didn’t have very much luck this round of what felt like a game of musical chairs.
So, here he was, stuck in the seat behind the Bobby, who was driving. He was doing he best not to look at either Eddie or Chimney, because every time he did, he felt his face shift into a frown and this feeling (that totally wasn’t jealousy or anything, because why would he be jealous of Chim? The man was dating his sister for crying out loud) creep up inside of him and coil around his heart.
Buck wasn’t a fan of the feeling. In fact, he hated it. And he also hated the look he kept receiving from Hen from the corner of his eye. It’s like she knew what he was feeling. And damn it, she probably did.
So, instead of focusing on Chimney sitting next to Eddie, their knees touching, and Hen’s knowing look, Buck had elected to divert his attention to the cars and palm trees passing by outside the window. He still had a frown on his face, but he kept it mostly hidden with his hand that was propping up his chin, elbow resting on the inner ledge underneath the window.
But keeping his attention away from his friends was harder than Buck imagined it would be.
Every time there was a bump in the road, Buck’s knee would jostle and knock against the solid frame of the truck door, probably hard enough to give him a bruise despite all the layers of clothing he had on. It didn’t quite help that it was his bad knee either. That fact just made the whole situation worse. And bump after bump, a light ache beginning to radiate in his knee, Buck couldn’t help but think how much nicer it would’ve been if his knee was hitting Eddie’s instead of the dumb door because at least then he’d appreciate the bruising more. But no, that wasn’t the case, and that peeved Buck off all the more. And eventually those thoughts would become too much and would pull Buck’s gaze from the window over to Chimney and Eddie’s knees and soon enough that not-so-good feeling was back, and a deeper frown would line his face. One that wasn’t from the pain of his kneecap hitting metal.
And then, if that wasn’t bad enough, all of that would draw Hen’s attention once again. She would look at him, her lips pursed out in a devious smile, and her eyes shining with amusement. Buck, being the adult that he was, would receive her look with one of his own; eyes squinted at her, and his tongue stuck out. Hen would just laugh every time, drawing Eddie’s attention to the two of them, which was something he equally wanted and didn’t want.
In Buck’s opinion, it was all a very upsetting and confusing repetitive cycle.
Especially when Eddie would give Buck the most adorable looks ever, his nose scrunched up in concern and his head tilted to the side, that asked, ‘what’s going on with you?’ and ‘are you okay?’ And by the fifth look Eddie had thrown his way, Buck was so close to saying, ‘screw it’ and shoving Chimney out of the way and reclaiming his spot next to Eddie, another one of Hen’s knowing stare-downs be damned.
Because damn it, Buck wasn’t jealous…except for the fact that he totally was.