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“Oh my-” Chimney cuts himself off. Hen and Bobby look over at him in confusion.
“What?” Hen tries to look over the table at his phone.
“Did you guys know Buck was dating someone?” Hen and Bobby glance at each other.
“No, not since Taylor and him broke up.” Bobby says.
“How do you know?” Chimney turns his phone to face them. It’s a post from Buck’s Instagram. It’s in black and white and all it shows is two hands laced together. They’re resting on top of Buck’s chest, only made obvious by the familiar tattoo that peaks through the entwined hands. Buck’s fingers are settled on the back of the other person’s hand. The caption below the picture simply says
‘If I’d known how this felt, I’d have done this a long time ago.
5 months away baby, I love you .’
Hen’s eyes go wide and Bobby’s eyebrows raise. “What does that mean?” Hen points to a spot on the screen. “What’s five months away?” Chimney shrugs.
“I have no idea.” Before they can say anything else on the matter, the bell goes off, sending them all to their feet and into the trucks.
A month later, they’re on another shift without Buck and Eddie. Chim is scrolling on his phone but stops with a squeak. There’s another post to Buck’s account. Chim examines it closely. It’s in black and white again. This picture has the view from a cliff with two people standing away from the camera. The bulkier one, obviously Buck, is holding the other while their legs are wrapped around his waist. From the distance, he can’t see any defining features of the other person. They’re looking into each other's eyes, the other person just barely taller due to their spot high on buck’s hip. The caption reads;
‘I couldn’t ask for a better person to hike five miles with. Even though you complained the whole time.
4 more months sweetheart.’
Chimney sits up quickly.
“What?” Hen asks, looking over the top of her book.
“There’s another post.” She sets her book down and sits next to him on the couch. She takes his phone and examines the picture as thoroughly as Chim had.
“What is going on?” She mutters.
“I-” The bell rings, startling them before they jump up from their spots and rush to the trucks.
The pictures keep being posted a month apart. Chimney turns on his notifications for Buck’s Instagram so he doesn’t miss it. The photos are always in black and white and always either show neither of their faces, or skillfully avoid showing anything revealing about the other person. Buck clearly doesn’t want anyone to know who he’s dating. At the station, he and Eddie seem just as close, if not more. Chimney and Hen watch them mess around and joke with each other as if they hadn’t spent the weekend together. Which they hadn’t because Buck had posted about his mystery person on Saturday.
It’s not until four months later that Chimney’s phone bings with a notification from Instagram. He thumbs it open, leaning back on the couch in his and Maddie’s apartment. It’s another post from Buck’s account. It’s another black and white photo, this one a silhouette in front of what appears to be a sunset. There are two people in the frame, one on one knee and another standing just before him. The one on the ground, who Chim assumes is Buck, is holding a box out in one hand. The other hand is holding one of the other person’s. The other person is covering their mouth with their free hand.
‘I can’t believe I get to marry my best friend. I love you so much.
(Thank you for saying yes!)’
Chimney stares at the photo for a minute before he realizes there’s more than one. It’s the first of Buck’s posts to be a collection. He swipes and sees what appears to be a few moments later. The two figures are kissing. Buck has his arms around their waist while their arms are around Buck’s neck.
The third one is similar to the one from their hike. The shorter of the two is being supported by Buck’s hands on their thighs but they’re kissing still. Chim smiles, he can practically feel the happiness radiating from the pictures. He swipes one more time and promptly drops his phone.
“Chim? Is everything okay?” Maddie asks from the kitchen where she’s cooking dinner. He scrambles to pick up his phone, checking that it’s not cracked and thankful it locked itself so he doesn’t drop it again.
“Y-yeah, I’m good.” Clearly not believing him, Maddie checks the food before she comes into the living room.
“What happened?”
“Nothing. Just dropped my phone.” He waves it as if it proves his story.
“Why did you drop your phone?” She’s growing more and more suspicious. He decides to bite the bullet.
“Did you know Buck is in a relationship?” She furrows her eyebrows.
“No, I thought him and Taylor broke up a long time ago.”
“They did! It’s not Taylor.” Maddie sits next to him.
“Then who is it?” He unlocks his phone and turns it to her, showing her the picture that made him lose his grip.
The last picture of the collection is in color. Buck is holding his partner’s hand while they kiss, showing the ring off. They’re closer to the camera, revealing who accepted Buck’s proposal. Eddie. It’s Eddie’s lips that are grinning while they’re pressed to Buck’s smile. It’s Eddie’s hand he’s holding. Eddie’s finger the band is wrapped around.
Maddie’s silent for a bit, taking in the picture. She suddenly stands up.
“Watch the soup, make sure it doesn’t boil over.” Is all she says before she pulls out her phone and presses a few buttons on the screen. Doing as she says, Chim walks to the stove and stirs the soup in the pot. Just as the question of what she could possibly be doing crosses his mind, she answers it for him. “Evan Buckley! I know you didn’t just get engaged without telling me!” Chimney’s eyes widen and he feels a small amount of pity for the youngest Buckley. At the same time, however, as he listens to Maddie tear him a new one, he smirks. That’s what he gets for not telling any of them.