Work Text:
There was a small part of Eddie that was regretting bringing Buck to meet his Abuela in the hospital after her fall.
“I see the danger, it’s written there in your eyes,” Isabel whispered, hand reaching out to lightly touch Buck’s cheek.
For his part, he didn’t jump away or react badly. Instead, he replied, “All the better to bring your grandson home every shift. I’ll do the best I can, ma’am.” Nothing more was said, and only a brief nod and smile was exchanged.
Eddie found the exchange to be a bit off putting. The scene kept bouncing through the back of his head during the drive back to the station, though he did his best to not let it show in front of Christopher or Buck, who had climbed into the back of the Captain’s truck on the drive back to the 118. It was just… weird.
Once Christopher was settled and fully distracted by the rest of the team, Eddie finally was able to pull Buck aside and ask the age-old question. “Buck, what the fuck?”
Buck shrugged, hand running through his hair. “Well… Let’s just say my name precedes me?” With Eddie’s annoyed raised eyebrow, he elaborated. “Okay, so when I was traveling the country, I discovered that the Buckley name has some respect to it. Not my parents, because they’ve done their best to cut themselves off from the rest of the family, but the rest of us? We’re… protectors, for lack of a better word. Especially for military families, because the families left behind are just as important as the soldiers protecting their country.”
Eddie blinked. “You knew about my family?”
Buck immediately shook his head. “No, not until you came to Los Angeles. I was in Montana and Peru while you were serving. One of my distant cousins was keeping an eye in El Paso. I got the update around the time you started at the academy. But we don’t interfere unless there is danger.”
Eddie nodded. “Okay, say I buy that. Why did no one interfere with my family and Shannon?”
With a sigh, Buck answered, “According to my cousin, he tried. By the time Shannon had an exit plan, you were on your way back to the States. Once you were home, there was hope that you would be able to be that buffer, because we try not to step in if we don’t have to. But Shannon executed the plan without giving us a clue. That’s why you started getting more mail and calls from your family here. My cousin asked me to step in and try to convince you to come here, to protect you and Christopher.” He gave Eddie a sheepish smile. “For the record, I didn’t know it was you until later. We don’t use names if we can help it.”
A chuckle found its way out of Eddie’s throat. “So, when you met my Abuela and Tia Pepa…”
“I’d already met them, but under different circumstances,” Buck finished.
Eddie held out his hand. “Thank you for protecting my family. You and your family both.”
Buck took it. “Always.”