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“Christopher can stay here today if you and Edmundo want to go out.” Buck’s head snapped up from the book he was looking at with Chris. She couldn’t mean - could she?
“I - uh - “
Buck struggled to find the right words to reply but Chris had no such problems. “She means if you and dad want to go on a date, Buck,” the kid explained with a mischievous grin, a facsimile of which Buck could see on Abuela’s face as well.
“No! I mean - uh - we don’t - Eddie’s not - “
“Buck, I have known Edmundo since he was a child. I can tell how he feels before he realises it himself.”
“But - are you sure?”
“Sí nieto, he has been in love with you for years now. Just like you have been with him. You both are the only two blind ones who cannot see it.”
Buck’s eyes widened and he felt a momentary hope before he remembered why he had been holding on to it as a secret for so long. “What if you’re wrong? What if this is how Eddie is with friends?”
“Which other friend of Edmundo’s is the second parent to his son?”
“Abuela, I’m not - “
“You are, Buck!” Chris smiled at him widely and rested his head against Buck’s arm. Warmth gushed through Buck. He kissed the top of Christopher’s head and put an arm around him.
“See! Do you know any other friend my grandson spends his days off with? I have not even met any of his other friends except at your Christmas parties.”
Buck looked from Abuela to a grinning Christopher and back to Abuela. “I’m an idiot, aren’t I?”
“You can stop being one now. Now tell us what you are going to do tomorrow,” Abuela ordered.
“Today?” Buck sputtered, sending Christopher into a fit of giggles and making Abuela roll her eyes.
“Dios mio! Yes, what’s wrong with today? You want to wait another year?”
Buck glared at the still laughing Christopher who stuck his tongue out in response. “Today - I can’t just tell him I came over to pick up Chris and then went back without him.”
Abuela shook her head but did not say more about the topic that day.
To Buck’s relief, Christopher was also quiet about it when they went to the park with Eddie. They had a picnic lunch, played around and went to see the ducks. Returning home, they tried out different slime making recipes that Buck had found online, comparing which ones did best. By the time Christopher was satisfied with the result, their hands, faces and even hair were coloured with patches of slime. Eddie cleaned Chris up and sent him to change while he and Buck cleaned up.
“You have - “ Eddie pointed to Buck’s cheek. Eddie was close enough for Buck to feel the heat of his body, which made it difficult to follow Eddie’s directions on where the smudge was. Buck’s breath hitched as Eddie moved closer, smiling fondly. He stood frozen for a moment after Eddie had swiped his thumb across his cheek.
Fifteen minutes later, the three of them settled on the couch to watch Star Wars (Chris being obsessed with space at the time). Buck should have anticipated this. He should have known that Christopher would not stay the innocent angel he was all evening. He was Eddie’s son after all. And yet, he was surprised when the kid snuggled into both him and Eddie, pulling at the two of them until they were sitting close enough for their bodies to touch from shoulders to feet. He glared at Chris who grinned back at him. Buck found it hard to focus on the movie as heat seeped into him from Eddie through the layers of clothes. Sometime during the movie, Eddie’s arm moved to the back of the couch, across Buck’s shoulders. Buck felt his self-control crumbling and he leaned to settle the back of his head against Eddie’s arm. Tonight, just tonight. Tomorrow, he would go back to hiding it, he told himself. But then, Eddie’s arm tightened around him, his hand holding Buck’s shoulder firmly and Buck wasn’t so sure anymore.
Through the rest of the week, it seemed that both Eddie and Christopher had made it their mission to mess with Buck. Had Eddie always stood that close to him? Did their fingers always linger, touching when they handed over something to the other? How often did Eddie put his hand on Buck's back, guiding him?
Christopher, for his part, missed no opportunity to push Buck closer to Eddie. But it was when Buck catches him about to spill soda on the couch that he drew the line. “Chris, what are you doing?”
“Buck, I - “ Chris looked at him guiltily.
“Chris, I know you mean well but we can’t go on this way. You can’t force two people together like this.”
“Sorry, Buck. I just want both of you to be happy.” He looked down at the floor and Buck couldn’t resist crouching down and pulling the kid into a hug.
“I know, buddy, I know,” Buck said softly. “But I think it’s best if I do this myself and tell your dad how I feel.” Chris’ expression changed into a grin instantly.
“When? Can I be there? What are you going to do? Are you going to kiss him?”
Buck blinked. He opened his mouth to speak but closed it again. It took a while for words to come out. “You are way too young to be having this conversation, kid.”
“I’m not five, Buck!” Chris retorted with a laugh.
“Well, I am not ready for it yet.” Buck laughed weakly but then Chris brought out his puppy eyes and Buck was gone. “Tomorrow. But that's all I'm saying,” he told him. The 118 and their families had planned an outing for the next day to go to a nearby laser tag arena. Buck expected that he would come back to Eddie’s as he always did after these team activities. He could cook Eddie’s favourite dinner and talk to him after Christopher was asleep.
"Buck!" Christopher whined but Buck was definitely not planning his date with Eddie along with Eddie's son. He picked Chris up from his waist and lightly threw him onto the sofa, grinning. Luckily, Eddie came in right then and joined him in tickling Chris until the kid was red in the face from laughing. Buck's eyes caught Eddie's and suddenly, Buck was much more optimistic about his plan than he had been five minutes ago.
Buck and Eddie were not allowed to be on the same team because everyone complained about their telepathic superpower. Buck had always known that he and Eddie worked great together on and off calls. If one of them turned with their hand out, the other always had what was needed without a word being said. They could perfectly communicate in glances and pointed looks. Buck knew this was not common. This was not something all partners had. But he still couldn’t help feel a warmth inside him when the others validated how special it was. It was their thing.
Buck grinned at Christopher. “Wanna fill in as my partner, superman? I need a Diaz with me.”
“Nope, Denny’s my partner.” The kid stuck his tongue out and high-fived Denny. Buck pretended to be hurt as he took his position.
If asked later, Buck would barely have been able to list out everyone who was on his team, let alone given a play by play of the game as he usually could. All he could think about was a million ways his plan for the evening could go wrong. It was only after a stern “At least save your own life if you are too chicken to kill your sister, Buck!” from Captain Han that Buck realised he had almost been eliminated, saved only by Chimney shooting at Maddie (who clearly was going to take her revenge at home). He gave Chimney a tight smile before he turned a corner, and saw Eddie a few feet away, his back to Buck. He smiled to himself as inspiration struck.
He walked up to Eddie as silently as he could, which was not difficult, given that the arena was loud and Eddie was focused on trying to draw Athena out on the other side.
“Got you, Diaz,” he smirked, placing his hand on Eddie’s shoulder. Before Eddie had a chance to reply, Buck moved his hand to the other man’s chest and pushed him against the wall, following him himself, stopping only when they were almost touching. He could feel Eddie’s breath against his face. For a moment, he considered backing off and running away. But then, he saw the look on Eddie’s face - surprised, but without any trace of negative emotion. His pupils were dilated as he stared at what Buck assumed were his lips. Buck leaned in, giving Eddie enough opportunity to pull away, until their lips finally brushed against each other. Eddie’s lips pressed against Buck’s and his hands found their way into Buck’s hair, fingers running against his scalp, making Buck let out a low moan. Eddie pulled his head closer still, as if unwilling to leave even a molecule of air separating them. Their tongues moved against each other in frenzy. Buck suddenly pulled himself away and took a step back, even though his own thoughts mirrored Eddie’s disappointed expression. He smirked as he lifted his gun and shot at Eddie. It took all of his willpower to walk over to Christopher without turning around. Christopher, who had been watching from a few feet away, grinned and high-fived him instantly. Only then did Buck turn back to see Eddie still leaning against the wall, dazed, staring at Buck and Chris.
“Don’t worry, next time, I won’t kill you. Much.” He winked at the still staring Eddie and walked away with Chris in tow, already imagining what the evening would be like.