Work Text:
~*~
Previously on 'Family With A Twist: Brotherly Blues'
After Owen's successful surgery, he's home recovering. Buck had come to visit for a short time after surgery, but when a dust storm threatens Austin, he books a flight back to LA, so he doesn't get stuck. When he's dropped off at the airport, he's due to leave long before the storm is expected to hit the city. A short time after TK and Carlos return home, the beginning of the storm hits, impacting the cable lines and cell service. Unable to reach Buck, whose flight hasn't left yet according to the time, Carlos, TK, and Owen grow concerned for him. Unfamiliar with the impacts of the dust storm, as TK and Owen have never gone through one before, Carlos promises to stay with the Strands to help them with anything that may come up. Unfortunately, all they know is the airport is still running like normal, so they're hopeful Buck is able to fly out before the storm hits the airport, but no one knows anymore.
~*~
"Ugh, damn it!" TK exclaimed, throwing his cell phone on the couch, "I thought calls were supposed to go through!"
Carlos rubbed TK's back and bit his lip, "I wish there were more I could do. Have you tried sending him a text message?"
"Yes, as an iMessage and a text message, and nothing is sending," TK sighed, slumping against his boyfriend. Before he could say anymore, his dad stood up from the couch he'd been sitting on, "dad, where are you going?"
Owen eyed TK, able to see the worry in his eyes, "I'm going to my office to see if my radio is still in my desk somewhere. I don't use it much, but I have a feeling we're going to need it."
"You have a radio here?" TK gasped, sitting up.
"I do, but it might be dead. I haven't used it for a while," he explained, taking easy steps as he disappeared down the hallway to his office.
"Have you been able to get in touch with your parents?" TK asked softly, looking up at Carlos.
Carlos looked at his phone, "uh, yeah. Well, dad at least. My texts are going through, but not my calls."
"At least you can get a hold of him," TK sighed.
"I'm sorry, cariño. I've tried texting Buck and he's not responded, but the phone says they've sent," he explained.
"Okay. At least they're going through. I'm hoping he's already left on maybe an earlier flight, so that's why he's not responding," TK replied softly.
"That's my prayer, too, love," Carlos agreed, "have you messaged Eddie?"
"No," TK shook his head, "I don't want to worry him until we know more."
"Right, good thought," Carlos nodded, and rubbed TK's back as he jumped at another wind gust.
Buttercup sauntered over to them and rubbed his head against TK's leg and TK reached out to scratch his head behind the ears, "hey, boy. Thanks. I'm sure you're scared, too, huh?" TK asked and shifted a little to pet him more, "but at least most people are home safe that I care about. Just wish we could hear from Evan."
~*~
Eddie hated being on leave, especially without his husband home to enjoy the time with. He was grateful for extra time with Chris, but even their son was missing Buck and their family time, so both Diazes were looking forward to his return. Eddie and Chris were completely supportive of Buck visiting Owen after his surgery, and just as Eddie was considering that he and Chris venture to Austin to join him, Buck was sharing his return information.
"Dad! When does papa get home?" Chris asked sometime in the late morning.
"He should be home in a few hours. He sent me a message when he was at his gate," Eddie explained, "you were playing games."
"So he'll be back today? Awesome!" Chris grinned.
"You know, you say that like you don't like spending time with me," Eddie mock pouted.
"Dad," Chris groaned, "that's not it. I just miss him! I wish we could have gone to visit granddad, too," he admitted, moving to sit next to Eddie on the couch.
"I miss him, too, kid," Eddie draped his good arm around Chris' shoulders, "do you want to come with me when I go get him?"
"Uh, yeah!" Chris nodded, "can we go for ice cream after?"
Eddie smiled and ruffled Chris' hair, "sure, kiddo. I'm sure that will go great before lunch. How about we go out to lunch and then get ice cream?" Eddie suggested.
Chris contemplated his idea and nodded, "that's probably a good idea because he's not going to want to cook when he gets home."
~*~
The static on the TV was not helping TK's stress, but with their cell phones getting limited messages through, all they had was the TV and Owen's work radio. Owen had slipped back into his office to see if he could find his portable AM/FM radio in case the power went out and they'd not have any TV.
Thus far, the local stations were still broadcasting, with suggestions that certain areas of the city remain indoors for safety. Nothing had been said about any flight delays, and with the locations where the storm was hitting, they were hopeful the airport had not been impacted yet.
The last Carlos heard, his parents had packed a few things and were on their way to hunker down at the Strand's house, as no one wanted Owen to go out into the storm, so for the time being, their house would become basecamp.
Unsure what actually to do, Carlos had gone into the kitchen to cook up a few things. They had no idea if they'd lose power and if they did, he didn't want them to get stuck without any warm food to eat.
TK had gone to help Owen look around for the radio, which left Carlos with the station's radio. While he was sitting on one of the stools, he heard the signal someone was trying to talk so he reached for it.
"Carlos, you around?" Judd's voice echoed from the device.
"Copy that, Carlos here," he replied.
"Are you alone?" Judd wondered, his voice lowering slightly.
Carlos glanced around the area, not seeing Owen or TK, but moved further to the backdoor where Buttercup was curled up on one of his beds, "I am now," Carlos whispered, lowering the volume a little.
"Just got a call. We really should not go out in this, but the airport needs backup," he explained softly, "there's a plane crash. Wasn't Buck leaving today?"
Clenching his eyes shut, Carlos gathered his thoughts, "yeah we dropped him off at the airport a few hours ago. He was supposed to leave," he glanced at his watch, "about 45 minutes ago. We can't get calls through so we have no idea if his flight left, or what. You think it's..."
"I don't know. There's not much information, but I thought... I thought it might come better from you than you know, the news, just in case," Judd cleared his throat.
Lifting a silent prayer for Buck's safety as well as the 126 crew, Carlos took a deep breath, "copy that. I'll pass on the message. Keep us posted, will you?"
"As much as I can," Judd promised, "Ryder out."
"10-4," Carlos responded, turning the radio back up a little and then setting it on the counter again, jumping when his boyfriend came around the corner, "oh!"
TK stopped, "sorry, babe. We found the radio," he held it up, then noticed Carlos near the radio, "was there a call?"
"Uh, yeah. Judd just checked in," he admitted, shaking out of his thoughts, "does the radio work," he motioned to what was in TK's hands.
"No, it needs new batteries," TK explained, moving over to the drawer Owen kept batteries and other miscellaneous items, "what did Judd have to say?"
"Oh, um, where's your dad?" Carlos asked.
"He went back upstairs to lie down. Why?"
"Just thought I could tell you both at the same time," Carlos explained, "we should go upstairs."
"Babe, what's going on?"
Carlos silently walked past TK, grabbing his hand as he walked past him and guided him toward the stairs.
"Carlos, you..."
"Please don't make me repeat this," Carlos whispered. Reaching Owen's room they found him just crawling into bed, "Owen, Judd just checked in with some news."
Owen's attention turned to them, and then he saw the worried look on his face, "what's going on?"
"Judd asked me to pass on some news," he started, glancing between TK and Owen, "he explained they'd been called out to assist at the airport. There's been a plane crash."
"What flight is it?" TK asked quickly, "what airline?"
"He didn't say and I don't think he knew. I think he just wanted to give us a heads-up so you two weren't shocked if you heard about a crash on the news. I swear, I know nothing more than that, but I wanted to tell you two."
"Oh no," TK gasped, sinking down on the corner of Owen's bed, "could it be his... What if it's his flight?"
"TK we don't know anything right now. This could be completely unrelated to it and just a coincidence something happened at the airport," Owen replied optimistically.
"We have to go out there. We have to know," TK stood up and looked at Carlos, "can we go?"
"TK, I love you, but we're not going out in this. It's not safe and also came on faster than expected," Carlos explained, resting his hands on TK's shoulders, "and I'm not letting you go out by yourself. Or we'll be looking for you and Buck. Judd promised he'd keep us posted and if Buck was still at the airport when this happened or on that plane, he will find him and let us know."
"But I feel so helpless!" TK snapped, biting his lip, "I'm a paramedic. I was a firefighter, I need to do something."
"Keeping yourself safe, staying together with us is what we need to be doing right now. Evan is smart. He'll be okay. We have to believe that," Owen admitted, "I wish we could be out there, but if we need to be reached, we're right where we need to be. And maybe he's already on his way back here. Maybe they did cancel or delay flights and we just didn't see it online."
"You think so?" TK took a deep breath.
"Your dad is right, for all we know he'll walk into the front door in ten minutes and explain everything, but if he isn't, Judd will let us know," Carlos promised, holding his boyfriend tightly and kissing his cheek.
Relaxing a little, TK nodded, "I just... I hate not knowing."
"I know, I do, too, but I'd rather be safe here than go out in this," Owen motioned outside his window where a cloud of dust was blowing past.
Before anyone could say anymore, the doorbell rang, "that could be Evan!" TK darted out of the room and downstairs towards the front door.
Carlos followed him quickly, nervous about who was on the other side of the door, "TK, hold on, be careful. We don't know who that is."
~*~
Eddie honestly didn't know what else to do. He was bored. Chris was using his free time to play games online with friends, so Eddie found himself wandering around the house putting things away. He couldn't wait for Buck to get home and definitely didn't want his husband to come home and feel he had to do chores. So far, Eddie had done dishes, cleaned the kitchen, started laundry, put a lot of things away, and taken out the trash.
Feeling a little restless from not sleeping well while Buck was gone, and unsure exactly when he and Chris should leave, Eddie sat down on the couch. Grabbing the TV remote, he flipped it on and found it settled onto one of the stations Chris often watches, so he clicked through until he found a random baseball game.
Before he could get into the game too much, he heard the doorbell. He wasn't expecting anyone, so he pushed himself off the couch and moved towards the door. Through the small window he couldn't see anyone, but that didn't mean someone wasn't there, so he placed his hand on the knob and pulled it open a few inches to see who it was.
~*~
Carlos was close to his boyfriend's heels, but TK made it to the door first, so he pulled it open.
"Evan?" TK questioned hopefully, but his answer came with a glance outside. Andrea and Gabriel were standing just inside the little doorway out of the wind, with a bag over their shoulders, "oh, Andrea, Gabriel! You could have just come inside," he explained, stepping aside and motioning for them to come in. He was really trying to not show his disappointment that it wasn't his brother on the other side of the door.
"That's what I said," Gabriel commented as he ushered his wife inside.
"It's a little dust, but that doesn't mean we get to be rude. We knock and wait until we're let in," Andrea explained, shaking her hair a little as some sand fell from her curls.
"Mom, dad, how was your trip? Are you both okay?" Carlos asked, looking between them.
"Of course, mijo, we're alright," Gabriel replied, nodding at his son.
"TK, what's wrong?" Andrea asked as she dropped her bag near the door and took off the coat she'd had on that was sand stuck to it, "where is your brother?"
Biting his lip, TK took a deep breath, "we dropped him off at the airport this morning and he was supposed to be leaving before it got bad. We couldn't get a hold of him and Judd just radioed and said that there's a plane accident at the airport he and the team were going to respond to."
"Oh, sweetheart," Andrea wrapped her arms around him, "that must be terrifying," she replied, looking at Carlos and Gabriel, "is there anyway else to find out about the airport?"
"I'm sorry about your brother, TK," Gabriel replied, "but we shouldn't bog down the radios looking for one person when there's a lot of things going on out there. We passed four accidents on our way here."
"I understand," TK nodded, "we're all first responders, I just hate not knowing and sitting here isn't helping."
"Well, you're not going out in this," Andrea said firmly, "none of you are. We're all staying right here. It's times like these I'm grateful that right now both my daughters are not living here, so I don't have to worry about them out in this," the woman guided TK into the kitchen and forced him to sit down on one of the stools, "I'll make you some tea."
TK nodded and leaned into Carlos as he sat down next to him, Gabriel taking the final stool at the island, "for now, we'll just continue to pray that he either made it out before the storm hit, or he's stuck and just is waiting for a ride back here," Gabriel explained, "and I'll do what I can. I might be able to radio and get some more information on the flight that is involved."
"Thank you," TK smiled at him, "that would be nice, but you're right. I don't want to bog down the radio when it should be for emergencies. We don't actually know if he's in an emergency."
Carlos tightened his arms around his boyfriend and kissed him gently, "Buck's okay."
Taking a deep breath, TK burrowed more into Carlos' embrace, "right now, I'm freaked out, so I'm just going to lean on your faith and pray you're right."
~*~
When Eddie pulled the door open, he was surprised to find his husband leaning against the doorframe, "Evan? Oh my God," Eddie rushed forward and threw his arms around him, "why didn't you call?"
Buck happily slipped his arms around Eddie's body and buried his face in Eddie's neck, soaking in his familiar scent, "I wanted to surprise you," he murmured.
Pulling back a little, Eddie pressed a soft kiss to his lips, "consider me surprised," he shifted to take Buck's bag from him in one hand, and hold Buck's other hand to guide him into the house, "why didn't you use your key?"
"Uh, so about that," Buck laughed lightly as he followed him inside, "when you dropped me off and you were taking the Jeep, I never took the house key off of the keys, and the door was locked."
Eddie dropped Buck's bag on the floor and he wrapped his arms around him again, "my husband hasn't been home and I didn't want some random person walking in the house," Eddie explained casually, before kissing him again, this time longer than he had on the front porch, "welcome home, babe."
Buck pressed his husband back against the wall near them and smiled when Eddie dropped kisses along his neck to his shoulder, "good to be home. Really, really, good to be home. I feel like I should go away more often if you get like this when I get home," he added, pulling back to smirk at him.
"I've missed you, and we're still in our honeymoon phase. I can't keep my hands off of you."
"No objections here, but where's Chris?" Buck asked.
"Playing games on his computer in his room," Eddie whispered, "he'll be distracted for a little while."
Buck grinned and nodded, "Eddie Diaz, I think I might know just how much you missed me, because I missed you, too."
~*~
Owen gave up resting and joined his son, Carlos, Andrea, and Gabriel downstairs. Everyone was seated around the kitchen table now, passing around snacks as there was not much to do. TK and Owen were primarily nervous about news on Buck, and the other three were trying to help distract them from waiting on news.
It wasn't more than twenty minutes after they'd settled around the table that the radio crackled to life. "Captain 126 to Captain Strand," Judd's voice came through.
Owen immediately picked up the radio, "Captain Strand, go ahead Captain 126," he replied.
"So far what I can tell is the accident involves a Delta flight bound for LA, but I haven't found anything else out. So far, no sign of Buck."
TK's eyes widened, "that's the airline he was using this time," he chimed in softly.
"Thanks for the update. TK just said that he was using that airline," Owen took a deep breath, as he eyed TK, "if you hear anything else let us know."
"Copy that," Judd responded, "if Buck's here, we'll find him."
TK stood up and shook his head, "no! This can't be happening. Where is he? That's... That's got to be his flight. Why haven't they found him?" He asked quickly, starting to pace in the kitchen, "we have to go look for him!"
"Mijo, it's not safe," Gabriel replied softly, "not for any of us right now."
"But it's not safe for Evan to be out there either!" TK snapped, feeling his lip quiver as his eyes filled with tears, "we just got him back in our lives. We can't lose him! And oh God! Eddie and Chris are going to be devastated!"
Carlos moved to stand up, but Andrea was up before him, pulling TK into her arms, "aye mijo, no te preocupes, cálmate (Spanish: don't worry, calm down). He is going to be alright," she whispered to him, "I don't know him well, but from what I've heard, he's a smart and skillful man. He will be okay."
TK sank against her, trying to take a few calming breaths, but the fear he had was building and he could feel a tightness in his chest he'd never felt before, so he pulled back, "I..." His hand came up to rest on his chest and he gasped, wincing in pain.
"TK!" Owen jumped up, even in his own pain, and rushed to him, "come on, sit down," he told him, guiding him to the closest chair.
"What's...?" TK gasped.
Andrea rested her hand on his shoulder, "I'm no doctor, but I think you're having a panic attack," she explained softly.
Owen nodded, "yeah, I think you are, too," he agreed.
"I don't... have those," he choked out, looking towards Owen and then at Carlos.
Carlos calmly moved to his boyfriend and knelt down in front of him, taking his hands in his, "you're worried about Buck, it's understandable. There's a lot of things going on right now and your body is trying to get you to calm down," Carlos whispered.
Owen pressed his index and middle finger to TK's wrist to feel his pulse and noticed quicker beats and his clammy skin, "yeah, you're definitely having one."
TK squeezed Carlos' hands, "need to focus on something."
Carlos shifted to be right in his line of sight, "focus on me, cariño. You're safe, you're with family," Carlos explained softly, "breathe in, breathe out," he coaxed.
Doing his best, TK kept his eyes focused on Carlos, taking a small breath, then exhaling and repeating the process. Slowly he could feel the tightness in his chest easing and he nodded, leaning forward and pressing his forehead to Carlos, "thanks."
"Anytime," Carlos smiled, happy to see he was more talkative and taking deeper breaths as the moments went on.
"Carlos, could you carry him to the couch?" Owen asked, "he should lay down," he explained, his fingers returning to TK's wrist to find his pulse had slowed down, "I don't think he needs the hospital, but definitely needs to rest."
"Dad, I can..."
Not giving TK any chance to refuse, Carlos easily picked his boyfriend up with one arm behind his knees and one behind his back, slowly carrying him to the living room, where he gently laid him down on the couch. "Just let us help you," Carlos murmured.
As he pulled away, TK reached out for him, "stay," he begged.
"I'm not going anywhere," he promised, shifting to kick his shoes off and tuck himself behind TK on the couch, so TK could lay back against him.
~*~
"Okay, I really missed this," Buck murmured, pressing a kiss to his husband's bare shoulder.
Eddie grinned and shifted to look at him, "me, too, but you're home now."
"I am," Buck confirmed, his eyes glancing at the clock, as the familiar sound of Chris' crutches echoed near their door.
"We should probably put some clothes on," Eddie whispered, as the two reluctantly stood to find their clothes scattered around the room.
In a few short steps, both men were dressed, but before Buck could move towards the door, Eddie pulled him close and kissed him again, "love you."
"Love you, too," Buck assured him, tightening his arms around him briefly, before guiding him towards the door, "come on, I wanna see our son."
Pulling the door open, Buck glanced out and smiled when he saw Chris' door open, a sign he'd ventured out of his room from his game. Just as Buck stepped into the living room, he saw Chris rounding the corner from the kitchen, "hey, buddy!" He greeted.
"Papa!" Chris grinned moving towards him, "you're home!"
"I am," Buck nodded, closing the distance between them to wrap his arms around him, "I missed you. Granddad, TK, and Carlos send big hugs, too," he added.
Chris tightened his grip on Buck, "I hope they're okay. I'm so glad you're home. One of my friends said there's a storm in Austin and there was a plane crash."
"Oh, a nasty dust storm was coming in when I left, but it hadn't hit yet," Buck explained, pulling back to look down at Chris.
"How did you make it back so soon, anyway?" Eddie wondered, slipping from around him to move towards the TV.
"Uh, well, I was a passenger that didn't check any luggage, so they offered to let me take an earlier flight, as they were trying to get as many people out of the airport as possible," Buck explained, "it was only going to be like an hour early, so I didn't message about it, but it worked out. I got back home to my guys an hour earlier."
"Did you think you should let your dad and brother know you got home?" Eddie asked while he flipped through TV channels to get to a news station. Sure enough, when he landed on it, they were talking about a plane crash at the Austin airport.
Buck groaned, "yeah, I've tried texting, but now I know why it hasn't gone through," he sighed, "I've tried calling, too, but no one answered."
"Now we know why," Eddie motioned to the TV, and along the bottom, the ticker read 'Dust Storm Hits Austin Earlier Than Expected', "you should message all of them, Carlos, too."
"Right!" Buck nodded, digging out his phone from his pocket, "but first," he guided Chris toward Eddie, "let's take a selfie and send it, too. So they know I'm with you guys."
The three posed for a quick picture together and then Buck started a text thread.
To: Eddie, Carlos, TK, Owen, Judd, Grace
Buck: So my texts don't seem to be going through, but maybe this one will get through to one of you. I just got home to LA. Didn't have any checked luggage, so I was able to hop on an earlier flight. <Picture attached>
"Uh, should we try calling someone?" Buck wondered, his eyes focusing on the TV screen that was now showing a map of where the storm was hitting and its projected path. Right across Austin, so he knew if their family hadn't been hit yet, they soon would be.
"You definitely need to try calling. Does it say who hasn't received it yet?" Eddie wondered.
"No, I can't see that," Buck said, "but I can start by calling TK, then dad, and if neither answer, we'll try Carlos next."
"I'll try TK, you try your dad," Eddie replied, pulling his own phone out.
In unison, the husbands pulled up the contact information for them, and called. Each stood, listening to the repetitive pattern of the ringtone on the other end, before TK's and Owen's voicemails kicked over.
"I'm so not leaving a voicemail," Buck muttered, hanging up, and running his hand through his hair, "what if the storm has already hit them?"
"It's very possible," Eddie agreed, "the news is saying it wasn't expected to hit for another 24 hours or more," he added, moving towards him and wrapping his arms around him, "I'm so glad you made it home safely."
Buck sunk against him and nodded, "me, too. I didn't realize how close that could have been," he motioned to the TV, "that could have been my flight."
"But it wasn't," Eddie assured him, guiding him to sit down on the couch. Buck took a seat in the middle and both Chris and Eddie joined him, curling up next to him, "you're home, safe, and that's what matters. Now we just need to figure out how to let everyone know, so they're not freaking out."
"Oh, God," Buck groaned, sinking down into the couch even more, "they're probably so worried."
~*~
Carlos wasn't sure exactly how long it had been since TK's panic attack, but he was grateful he'd finally gotten him to relax. Owen, Andrea, and Gabriel were in another area of the house, while Carlos and Buttercup watched over TK.
"I'm not going to break," TK murmured.
"I know, but you scared the crap out of me, and I don't want a repeat, so we're hanging here to help you stay calm," Carlos replied softly.
"I'm sorry for scaring you. I'm okay now. Don't get me wrong. I love being in your arms, but you can get up if you want," TK explained.
"I can, but I'm comfortable right here," he said, "but we could shift a little. My arm is asleep," Carlos smirked.
TK rolled forward under the watchful eye of his dog and sat up a little, allowing Carlos to free himself from behind him, "thanks for, um, curling up with me," TK blushed.
"Anything for you," Carlos promised, carefully sitting up next to TK. Shaking his arms a few times to bring the circulation back, Carlos then stood to briefly stretch, "would you like something to eat or drink?"
"I'm not really hungry," TK sighed, kicking his feet up on the coffee table, "I'm not as bad as I was, but I'm still worried about Buck."
"I know you are, but you need to keep your strength up," Carlos replied, reaching out to brush a hand over TK's cheek, "it's gonna be a rough couple of days if you don't eat anything."
Taking a deep breath, TK nodded, "okay, um, maybe some crackers and cheese," he suggested.
"I can do that," Carlos leaned in and pressed a kiss to his boyfriend's lips, before pulling back and looking at Buttercup, "you keep an eye on him and make sure he stays put."
As if the dog responded, Buttercup leaned into TK's leg and rested his head on his lap.
TK laughed lightly as he reached out to pet him, "I'll stay here."
Carlos smiled and moved towards the kitchen, catching the attention of the parents, "he's alright," he promised, "just getting him something to eat."
Making up a plate of cheese and crackers, Carlos grabbed a few bottles of water but was stopped in his tracks when his phone dinged. It had been under him for a little while, by how he was laying, so he'd taken it out to set on the counter, not wanting to forget to check for any messages or news updates. With his phone back in his hand, as well as the snacks and water, Carlos returned to his boyfriend.
"Was that your phone?" TK asked, looking at him, "an actual message?"
Carlos nodded as he handed off the other items to him, "uh, yeah. It was tucked under us in the pocket of the side I was laying on," Carlos explained, and once he'd freed his hands again, he lifted his phone to see what he'd gotten. "Oh crap!" He gasped, scrambling to open the device to read the full message.
"What is it?" TK asked, seeing the surprised look on his face.
If Carlos' words didn't catch anyone's attention, TK's did, and soon Owen, Gabriel, and Andrea were scurrying into the living room, "what is going on?" Owen asked quickly.
"I don't know. Carlos got a text and hasn't said a word since he got it," TK explained.
Waving his hand at TK as if to silence him, Carlos quickly called the message's sender. After two rings, and a prayer that it would actually go through, Carlos' shoulders relaxed in relief at the voice on the other end, "please tell me you're not kidding," he started and listened to the person on the other end speak for a few moments, "hang on a second," he turned the speakerphone on, "okay, say that last part again."
"No, I'm not kidding. I got home a few hours ago and couldn't get any texts or calls to dad or TK to go through," Buck explained.
"Evan!" TK jumped up, "oh my God! You're okay? You're home? How?"
"Hey! Yes, I'm okay. I didn't have any checked luggage, and I was offered a chance to fly out earlier, so I took it. I tried getting a hold of you guys to let you know when I landed, but apparently, none of my messages went through. Then Chris mentioned he'd heard about the storm and we turned the TV on and saw the airplane accident there. Eddie suggested I try Carlos, too, because maybe you and dad weren't getting my messages. I'm just glad Carlos called because I was about to call him, and if he didn't answer, I was going to call Grace next."
TK slunk against Carlos in relief as he smiled, "it's so good to hear your voice," he murmured.
"We're so glad you're okay, son," Owen added, patting TK's shoulder and squeezing it gently.
"Me, too," Buck agreed, "I'm sorry I worried you."
"It's not your fault. I'm grateful you were able to get out before the storm hit, just wish it didn't interfere with our phones," Owen explained, "but Carlos and Gabriel's phones are working, so at least we have them. And we have a radio to the station."
"Good. Is there anything we can do from here?" Buck wondered, the sound shifting, "I just put you on speakerphone with Eddie and Chris."
"Hey you guys," TK chimed, "we miss you."
"We miss you, too," Chris added, "hope you guys stay safe and granddad, get better!"
"I'm on the mend, I promise," Owen assured him, "and to answer your question, Evan, there's really nothing to do. But now that we know you're safe, we can all relax and wait the storm out a little more at peace than we were."
"Yeah, that's an understatement. I just had a panic attack," TK sighed.
"You did what?" Buck gasped.
"I was worried about you and it just hit me. Thankfully we caught it in time and Carlos hasn't left my side since it happened," TK assured him.
"And I don't plan to do that anytime soon," Carlos added.
"Good. Keep an eye on him, I do not need to hear about my little brother having a heart attack," Buck explained, "and shouldn't you get checked out?"
"Yes, maybe, but dad checked me out and we caught it pretty quickly. If I feel yucky once the storm is over and the hospitals and clinics are no longer overrun, I'll go get checked out," TK promised.
A gust of wind outside startled everyone, and Owen sighed, "we probably shouldn't hold up the phone lines too much longer," he admitted sadly, "but I'm grateful you were able to get through."
"Me, too," Buck agreed, "you guys keep in touch, and as soon as the storm is out, call, okay?"
"You got it. Love you, Evan," TK called out as the others shared their goodbyes, and when Carlos hung up, TK sighed happily, "thank God!"
~*~