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He hated standing outside hospital doors, waiting for news that he knew wasn’t going to be good.
Every minute he waited was another minute he worried. And every minute he worried, he was thrown back to their last scene, and how everything went wrong in such horrific fashion. But it started before that emergency, didn’t it? A week previous to be exact.
They finally had a new probie at the 118, now that Ravi was a full firefighter. He’d been happy to welcome the man aboard, as he apparently had great scores at the academy (not record breaking, but not everyone could be Buck or Eddie). Bryce Locklear was meant to start on B-shift, but some last minute shuffling put him in as shadowing Buck for at least this past week.
Normally he would have been happy about it (any time the brass recognized Buck for his achievements, he was proud, that meant they weren’t currently looking at their relationship with a series of microscopes again). But Locklear hadn’t taken to Buck like everyone else had in the past. Instead, he seemed to almost resent him.
If Buck was showing him something that wasn’t part of his training at the academy, he’d nod, and the moment he could, he’d get someone to reteach him. If Buck tried to suggest something be done differently (a different grip on the wench, for instance), he’d purposely do it his way again, just to try to get a rise out of Buck. And when Buck wasn’t present, Locklear would complain constantly about him. Nothing that would get him outright fired, but enough that it was causing problems.
B-shift washed their hands of him after ten minutes of hearing him complain during shift change, and C-shift wouldn’t even let Bobby ask the question about shifting him onto them.
The final straw for Bobby had been the night before, when he happened to overhear Locklear on the phone saying that he’d do anything to go to any station that didn’t have “that showoff Buckley”. Bobby had quickly left a message with the chief to have the man transferred somewhere, anywhere, that wasn’t the 118.
And what hurt was that Buck was trying. He worked hard to make sure Locklear was prepared, and he wasn’t doing it by chasing him around with a chainsaw like he unintentionally did with Ravi (which had resulted in a very heated argument after that shift). He ignored the jibes and minor insults. He taught him like he wanted to be taught, only to get it thrown back in his face.
Chief Alonzo had already agreed to make the immediate transfer to Station 6 as soon as their shift was over, to Bobby’s extreme thanks. But the conversation was cut off due to yet another emergency. They’d agreed to talk as soon as the 118 returned to their station.
The emergency ended up being one with Buck in his harness (and Bobby having to think other thoughts for the two seconds they made eye contact before focusing on the victims). A tiny pop-up trailer was hanging off the side of a bridge, with the truck that was holding it up already on fire. Normally they’d just help lower it, but the screams about someone being inside had Buck suiting up and setting up the winch for Locklear to help him save them.
Bobby would have given anything to have put someone else on that winch. But there was no one. It was a massive multi-vehicle pileup, all hands on deck with multiple houses coming to help. Buck had caught his lover’s eye before making his descent and gave him a big grin and thumbs up. The same as always.
Don’t worry, I’ve got this.
It had only taken him a moment to descend to the door of the little trailer, with Locklear actually focusing on the job. There was a pause as Buck popped open the door, and then his voice came over the radio.
“Cap, there’s no one here. Just a bunch of dolls. I’m-”
And everything went wrong.
The chains they’d used to secure the truck and trailer hitch snapped. The sound startled Locklear, who let go of the rope and watched it slither over the edge, not raising the alarm or making any attempt to grab the it again. The trailer broke free of the hitch and plummeted to the road below.
With Buck inside.
Bobby had just leaned over the concrete barrier to see what had stopped Buck from finishing his sentence. And he got a front row seat to the horror of the trailer dropping thirty feet past one highway, only to crash down to the bottom of the third.
The trailer had been mostly made of fiberglass and fabric and had quickly crumpled when it made impact with the ground with a sickening thud.
“BUCK! 118 Captain to Buckley, respond!”
No answer.
It had taken the 136 nearly five minutes to get to the crash site, with Bobby watching on, unable to go down to help. It was the longest five minutes of his life, until Bosko personally reported over the radio that Buck was alive and they were transporting him immediately.
As soon as the news came over, Eddie and Ravi (both having finished with their own tasks) immediately made their way to Locklear, who was looking over the concrete barrier with a bored expression. It was only then that it hit Bobby: there was at least fifty feet of rope left in the bag. And Locklear had just let it all slip by.
Sergeant Grant took care of dragging Locklear away, apparently for his safety. (Eddie glaring at him with a Halligen was a terrifying sight on a good day, and right now it was absolute not a good day.) Of course, as soon as they reached her SUV, she was slapping cuffs on him with a list of charges she’d be suggesting a mile long.
If Bryce Locklear wanted to leave the 118, he sure picked a way to do it.
The 118 packed it in quicker than they ever had before and booked it back to the station. On their way, they dropped Bobby at the hospital, with the knowledge they’d be coming back as soon as they did handover to the next shift and grabbed their stuff. Chimney promised to grab both Bobby and Buck’s bags, for when he would finally be able to see him.
And that’s where Bobby sat now, staring at the doors, waiting for something, anything. He just needed news.
That news came moments later from Buck’s favorite nurse, Marie, who had a soft spot for the man. Mostly because Buck made it a point to know everyone’s name and be kind to them. He ended up in the hospital often enough.
“Bobby,” she whispered, catching his attention. She didn’t bother with titles anymore with him. He encouraged it.
When he looked up, his heart caught in his throat. She looked worried, something she normally hid. “Marie, is he…” He couldn’t voice it. He didn’t want to face it, not yet. Not like this.
She quickly shook her head. “No, he’s still with us. But, Dr. Hale is worried about the trauma to his head. It’s… extensive. He’ll be out to talk to you soon.”
Bobby breathed out a heavy sigh. “Buck’s still holding his own, thank God.”
Marie sat down next to him, taking his hand. “He will have a long, uphill battle to climb, Bobby. Dr. Hale can explain more.”
He nodded, catching sight of David coming through the doors as she spoke. When she saw him, she clenched his hand tighter.
That’s when it hit him. She was there to soften the blow. Because David didn’t just look worried. He looked… defeated.
“Bobby,” he started. “It’s not good. His head, his brain… there may have been too much damage. He might not regain consciousness.”
The captain froze. Every part of him wanted to seize at the same time as collapse. Alarm bells were ringing in his head. He might not wake up. He might lose him right now.
I can’t lose him.
“What are his chances, David,” Bobby forced out, voice shaky with emotion.
“I don’t deal in numbers. You know that. This is in Buck’s court right now. But Bobby, if you can pray for a miracle, now would be the time.”
Bobby broke down and cried.
Two weeks later, Bobby returned to the 118, after having spent the last two weeks by Buck’s bedside in the ICU. The entire 118 had been through to see him, but watching the man that could be considered the lifeblood of the 118 lying still and unconscious had nearly broken each and every one of them.
The only reason Bobby had returned to work in any capacity was because he knew he couldn’t sit in that chair another minute. Buck would kill him. The 118 needed him, or so Buck would have said.
The tests the young man had that morning had been... promising. Buck wasn’t getting any worse, at least. But with every passing day, they were more convinced that Buck just wouldn’t be waking up.
His injuries, beyond his head, had been extensive. Shattered femur (luckily not in his previously injured leg), broken wrists, broken ribs, several puncture wounds from the twisted metal… The list had gone on. But it was encouraging to hear that those wounds were already on their way to healing. It was just his head that was the sticking point.
Bobby had come close to calling Chief Alonzo and asking for another few days, but he held off. The 118 was down three members, including himself. He could at least be there to do his job, even if it broke his heart to leave his young lover alone. But help and support came from the most surprising of places. Athena Grant had organized the families of the 118 to sit with Buck whenever he was on shift. In fact, he’d left Isabel Diaz by Buck’s side when he’d left for work only an hour prior.
His first order of business was to fix the schedule. With Buck out for an indefinite amount of time, he’d need to call in favors. Already, Lena Bosko, Tommy Kinard, and Lucy Donato had volunteered to come and help whenever they needed to, with full permission and support from their captains. That was the impact of Buck’s accident, that everyone was willing to help the 118 until he could come home.
The other hole was that of Bryce Locklear. Though he claimed that he’d tried to grab Buck’s rope, there were too many witnesses saying the opposite (including Bobby, but because of the nature of his relationship with Buck, his statement wasn’t being used for fear of bias, which he wholeheartedly agreed to). While he hadn’t been fired - yet, according to Alonzo the night before in Buck’s room - he was suspended until the end of the investigation.
“It’s a formality, Bobby. He’s not going to be a firefighter here in Los Angeles while I’m a Fire Chief,” Alonzo had promised. “Every station that reported that day already made that clear, and the rest did in the days since. Hell, Ventura’s Station 45 in Simi Valley even made it clear they want no part of him, and they usually will work with anyone.”
“Thanks for the heads up,” he’d answered. “Buck won’t be happy, but that’s because he sees the good in everyone.”
"Your man has a heart of gold, Bobby. Why do you think I refused to move him when you two went public? Broke every damn reg in the book, and I didn’t care. He changed you for the better, as well as everyone in the department, it seems like. I wasn’t about to do anything to tarnish it.”
“We owe you so much,” he had whispered, carefully taking hold of Buck’s hand, careful of the brace on his wrist.
“You want to pay me back? I want an invite to the wedding.”
The thought comforted Bobby, even as he stared at his computer, trying to figure out how he could make this all work. The LAFD was behind him in waiting for Buck to come back to them.
And he would. He believed that with his entire heart.
Before he could let his thoughts drift any more, his phone started buzzing on the desk. Seeing the number for Cedar Sinai made his heart freeze for a second, before he forced himself to answer.
“This is Captain Nash.”
“Bobby? It’s David. You might want to get down here. You got your miracle.”