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Buck should have known, really. He should have known something was off the second he saw Eddie pull up to the station in a brand new truck; a very nice, very expensive, brand new truck.
He had known, though. Just never imagined it was this sort of truth bomb being dropped in his lap.
Street fighting.
Fight club?
Whatever it was, it was not good.
Buck could do nothing but sit there, staring at his best friend in disbelief, letting the words wash right over him.
Eddie had been fighting people. In an underground fight club of sorts. And had nearly killed someone. God. What the fuck.
“You—” He stopped himself, not really sure what to say. “The bruises! The car!”
Eddie shrugged, though he ducked his head sheepishly, “I don’t know, man.”
“But why?”
“I was just so…angry. After Shannon. After you were hurt…” Eddie paused as if trying to figure out how to say the next thing down the list. Buck watched as he breathed in deeply before exhaling on a sigh. “And the lawsuit.”
Buck’s swallowed hard at those words.
They were okay now. Better than ever; their friendship tighter and closer than ever before. But the lawsuit was still a sore point, one they never really brought up because it was just better to not think about it, really. Out of sight, out of mind, so they say.
“Eds…”
“Look, it’s over and done with now. We’re good, and I’m done fighting.” Eddie now had a determined glint in his eyes as he held Buck’s gaze.
“After you nearly killed someone!” Burst forth out of Buck.
“But I didn’t and now I’m going to therapy.” The last part was muttered with more than a few ounces of disdain. “Bobby’s making me.”
Buck almost laughed at the indignation coloring Eddie’s face and his tone. But he also couldn’t help but think back to the last time he was in therapy—department mandated therapy. Honestly, maybe therapy would have been helpful after the ladder truck explosion. It might have saved him (and everyone else) a lot of grief if he had gone to one. Would have likely mitigated there ever being a lawsuit in the first place. But Buck hasn’t even thought about entering a therapist’s office since that one time with her, after Devon, when he was still a probie.
He shuddered internally.
Bad thoughts.
He looked up and caught Eddie shooting him a soft look of concern. Clearly his thoughts weren’t as internal as he thought; he’d always been a fairly emotive person.
“So, Frank?” Buck attempted to shift the topic before Eddie could ask him anything. “How’s that going anyway?”
“He’s fine,” Eddie sighed. “Not sure we’re clicking, though.”
“You should go to Rosemary. She was great after I got stabbed.” Chimney piped in from the corner of the loft he decided to hole up at during their down time.
“Not sure me and therapy are clicking either.”
“At least with Frank, you can’t pull a Buck and sleep with your therapist.” Chimney joked.
He didn’t notice Buck stiffening at his words. It wasn’t the first time jokes were made at the expense of Buck 1.0. Even Buck himself has laughed about his own exploits pre-Abby. But the whole therapist thing was not something he wanted brought up at all.
“She no longer works for the department.” Bobby interjected, directing a pointed look at Chimney, who at least had the decency to look a little apologetic for bringing it up.
“You slept with your therapist?” Eddie sounded incredulous.
“I—uh, was going through a phase.” Buck shifted uncomfortably in his chair. He gripped the arm rest to stop himself from simply bolting. “Hey! Didn’t you just go through one of those?”
“Uh. Ah. Yeah.”
Diversion successful.
And saved by the bell as the alarm blared across the station house and they were dropping everything to run and gear up.
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The next night they had off found Buck, Eddie, and Chris over at Buck’s apartment rather at Eddie’s house, where they usually hung out.
The adults were cleaning the kitchen and packing away the leftovers while Christopher was tasked with setting up whatever video game he wanted them to play tonight. So of course, the topic of Eddie’s recent exploits came up once more. Eddie had tried to direct the conversation to Maddie and what had been happening to her with the whole Tara deal, but inevitably, it came back around to him.
Buck fidgeted with the beer bottle in his hands as he kept sneaking glances at Eddie, trying to gauge the other’s reaction even as he forged onwards with his words.
“...can’t save someone from themselves, not if they don’t want it.”
“Ain’t that the truth.” Self-deprecating, but not as upset as Buck had thought Eddie would be. That was good.
So he continued.
“Especially…” Buck slowed his speech down, making sure to word everything carefully. “If you aren’t around to see that they need saving.”
There was a heavy moment of silence where Eddie simply looked at Buck unmovingly. The intensity of the other man’s gaze had Buck wanting to squirm. He forced himself to stand still. Setting his beer aside, he tried again to apologize, but couldn’t get the words out. Instead, Eddie beat him to it.
“No.”
Eddie was moving forward and Buck quickly found himself trapped against his own kitchen counter. Boxed in and not really wanting to escape despite the weird sensation starting up in his stomach. He swallowed audibly.
“We’re past that and we aren’t talking about it. Okay, Buck? It’s been dealt with and should remain in the past.”
The conviction in Eddie’s words effectively shut down any further protest Buck had. Though he was never one to give up.
“I—had I been there maybe I could have talked some sense into you, that’s all.”
Buck’s words caused Eddie to grin, his canines exposed making him look just a touch feral.
“You? Talk sense into me? You’d talk me into buying something more expensive.”
Eddie was even closer now, ending his sentence with his face mere inches from Buck’s own. Buck held his breath, hardly daring to move a muscle, but his mouth seemed to have no problems working on its own. He licked his lips, tongue peeking out before disappearing once more, leaving a wet sheen behind. Buck watched as Eddie’s eyes trailed lower, zeroing on his mouth.
“Ha, yeah. Good point.” He didn’t know why he sounded so hoarse all of a sudden.
And the kitchen felt extra warm, too.
“So…things got a little out of hand,” Eddie shrugged and somehow that move brought him even closer to Buck. “Don’t beat yourself up about it.”
“Why?” Buck gulps in some air and succeeds in only breathing in more of Eddie’s warm and spicy scent. “Cause you’d rather do it?”
There was nowhere for Buck to back up into, so instead, he squared his shoulders and stood taller. Now their chests were brushing, barely, but Buck’s heart is pumping so hard he swears everyone in the apartment can hear it.
“You’re on blood thinners,” was whispered into his ear.
“I could still take you.”
It was a relief that his voice sounded much stronger than he was feeling at the moment, caught under Eddie’s intense focus.
“Hah, you think so?” Lips brushing against his ear now.
“I—” Buck’s voice broke on the last word as Eddie took one more step forward, effectively closing whatever gap they had left between their bodies.
“Daaaaad!”
Christopher’s voice was like a splash of ice water; Buck and Eddie stumbled away from each other in a near scramble. They turned their attention towards the living room, sharing a small sigh of relief between them when it appeared Christopher was none the wiser about what had nearly happened in the kitchen just now.
What was about about happen? Buck can’t help but question. What even was all that?
And with Eddie!?
Yet even Buck can’t deny that none of it felt wrong. Odd, but not wrong.
“Dad! Buck!” Chris’ voice penetrated again and this time the eight year old turned to look at them through the slats of the loft stairs. “Hurry up!”
“Uh…” Eddie cleared his throat before calling out. “Be right there.”
Buck froze, standing not far from where Eddie had previously had him up against the counter—and isn’t that a weird thing to even think about, much less have happened in reality.
“Buck…”
Another discussion for another day.
Buck shook his head lightly, a clear dismissal of whatever Eddie must have wanted to say next, but there was a smile on his face.
“Come on, Diaz.” Having regained control of his legs again, he sauntered up to Eddie. “Wanna go for the title?”
Before he walked right past a gaping Eddie and joined Chris on the couch, ready to spend an evening playing video games with his two favorite people in the world.