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It is the end of their 24-hour shift. Buck can't stop himself from buzzing with excitement as he has been looking forward for his next 48-hour off. He's been planning this for about a week. He wants to be productive. He'll sleep off to recharge, go on a hike that he has been pushing off for a month now, do house chores, sort through his wardrobe, and look for a new place. Buck likes the loft. It's in a nice neighborhood and near the 118 but with the housing crisis, his landlord increasing his rent by 4%, it's hard for him to keep it anymore and live comfortably with a firefighter's salary.
"Leave it to Buck to still have so much energy even with all the calls we had today." Hen said as she leans on the entrance of their locker room.
"What's got you going?" Chimney asked.
"Nothing. I- I'm just excited. I am going on a hike tomorrow. You guys are free to join me if you want." Buck says to the team.
"I'll pass man." Eddie answered beside him and tapped his shoulder. "I'm going to Abuela's house in the afternoon and Chris will have his friends at the house for a stay over so I have to clean up and do groceries."
"Maddie and I will work on some wedding errands, so I can't go too." Chimney says and looked at Hen.
"What? Don't look at me like that. We have a meeting with a case worker tomorrow so I am also unavailable." Hen says as she looks at Buck.
"That's fine guys. No pressure. Maybe next time we can schedule when our offs coincide and everybody's available." Buck smiled at them as he picked up his bag and walked out of the station.
"Be safe, Buckaroo! We don't want you getting hurt with us not around to help you." Hen shouted and Buck nod at that, gave her a double thumbs up before he got in to his jeep and drove back home.
Buck woke up to his alarm. He checked the time on his phone and it says 4:30AM. He walk down to his kitchen for a whip up a light breakfast, got dressed up, and left the house.
Buck arrived at the trail early so there wasn't many people around. He got out of the car and the early morning mist greeted him, a soft palette of pre-sunrise colors painting the sky, and the crisp, cool air filled his lungs. He started a casual walk on the trail, pacing himself but trying his best to get to his favorite spot on time to watch the sunrise.
After a good 40 minutes walk, he's already on the spot. He sits on one of the big stones and grabs his water bottle as he waits for the sun to rise. He took his phone out of his pocket and tries to capture the moment as the first rays of sunlight begin to break over the horizon.
"It's beautiful." Buck says to himself as he watch as the sun rises. He scrolls through his phone, looking at the photos he took when he hears the leaves rustle. He thinks he never saw any wild animals on the area but as he looks back to where the sound came from, something pounces on him that causes him to fall on the ground.
He felt something cold and wet lick on his face and he yelps at the sensation. He opens his eyes and is greeted with a pair of blue and brown eye. It took a few seconds for his mind to register that a dog is on top of him. It sniffs his face, barks, and licks his face again.
"Hey there buddy." Buck tries to sit up slowly and greets the dog. He is greeted back by a friendly bark and a wag of it's tail. He looks around but sees no one else.
"Where's your human buddy?" and he gets a bark for an answer. He laughs and tries to extend his palm for it to sniff. When it didn't pull away, he gently petted it and felt it lean to his touch and continuously wagged it's tail.
As Buck gives the friendly canine his deserved pets, he hears it's owner call from a distance. A figure emerges from the bush and Buck can't help but look at the man's physique. He's taller than Buck maybe by a few inches, he's wearing a muscle tee with the fabric clinging to his sweat-drenched skin, accentuating the contours of his body. He looks at the man's face and sees his piercing blue eyes, and he notices that he has a cleft chin.
"Skyler!" The said man spoke with a command in his tone. Skyler the dog barked and then left Buck's lap to go to his human.
Before he can stand up, he saw a hand reached out to him and grabbed it.
"Sorry about that. Are you okay? I hope he didn't give you any trouble. I usually have him on leash but when I saw that there wasn't much people in the area, I let him ran around. Might have picked up your scent along the trail and followed you." Skyler barks at that as if trying to agree.
"It's fine and I'm okay. He's a very lovely dog." Buck says and then he saw Skyler walk to him and nuzzles his leg. Buck squats down to pet it's head.
"He's usually pretty reserve when it comes to strangers but he might have liked your scent because he really seems friendly to you."
"He is." Buck laughs and rubs the back of his neck. "He actually licked my faced and let me pet him."
The man in front of him laughs at that and Buck can't help but feel a little hot from the sound of it. He's hoping he isn't blushing because it would really be embarrassing. Why would he even blush?
"By the way, my name is Tommy and this little fella here is Skyler." Tommy, the man in front of him reached for his hand and Buck grabbed it.
"E- Evan. My name is Evan but everyone else calls me Buck."
"Do you prefer to be called Buck or should I call you Evan?" and Buck's mouth dries at that. He likes how Evan, his name that he usually isn't very fond of, sounds when Tommy says it.
"I don't mind either." Buck can't help but smile and he feels Skyler's tail wagging beside him.
"Okay. Ohh did Skyler pounce on you, Evan? Looks like you hit the side of your head." Skyler barks at the mention of his name while Tommy tries to reach for his left side but hesitated and instead pointed at it.
"He did but it wasn't anything I can't handle and I'm fine. It was a playful one. And this, is actually a birthmark." Tommy stares at him then smiles. Buck can't help but notice that this man smiles a lot.
Skyler then barks at Buck and then at Tommy.
"I'm sorry buddy! We weren't giving you enough attention. Are you thirsty? Why don't you drink your water before we hike back down? We still have a shift to go to." Tommy says as he kneels down and takes Skyler's bowl and water from his backpack.
Buck sits down on the big stone as he watches Tommy and Skyler. Can't help but think to himself of his dream to have his own dog. Maybe one day. Buck makes a mental note of making sure that his next house should allow dogs and maybe he can start from there.
"You're really thirsty huh buddy." Tommy talks to Skyler and Buck can't help but smile at the scene in front of him.
"How old is he? He's a blue heeler right?" Buck asks Tommy.
"He's 11 months old. And that he is." Tommy answers, not taking his eyes off at Skyler looking at him very fondly.
"So you said you still have a shift?" Buck asks, remembering Tommy's words from earlier.
"Yeah. I am a firefighter at the 217." Tommy answers him as he packs Skyler's bowl on this backpack.
"Yea- yeah? I am a firefighter too! From the 118." Buck stands up and smiles at Tommy and got confused at the look the other man gave him.
"You're from the 118?"
"Uh y- yeah. Why?"
"Nothing. I used to work there before I transferred to the 217. I think I remember now. Howie may have mentioned you a few times. Says that you actually filled in my position." Tommy looks at him with.. what is that look on his face?
"Wh- what? So you're friends with Chim? Do you know Bobby?" Evan asks delighted with the new information on his new friend. Wait. Is it too early to call Tommy his friend? He hopes not.
"Well, we do go way back. Howie and Hen, we do hangout sometime. It's a long story but we are friends now. We sometimes catch up. And I know Bobby. He's the new captain at the 118 when I left. Got to work with him for a few months but I joined the 118 under Gerrard." Tommy pulls out Skyler's leash from his pocket and attaches it to his collar.
"Would you live to hike back down with us? I am sure Skyler would love it. Right, Skyler?" Tommy asks him and Skyler barks at that. Looking at Buck as if waiting for him.
"Yeah yeah I would love that too." Buck beams at the idea. Surprised when Tommy hands over Skyler's leash to him.
"Skyler seems to be very fond of you, Evan. If you won't mind, you can walk him." Buck grabs it and kneels down to pet Skyler. He gets a lick on the face and Buck and Tommy laughs.
The hike down was too fast for Buck's liking. He really enjoyed Tommy and Skyler's presence.
"You're bringing him to work?" Buck asks as they walk towards Tommy's pick up.
"Yeah. There are times that I bring him at the station like today. But sometimes, he's okay with being left at home." Tommy says as he fixes Skyler at the backseat of his truck.
"Why? Would you like to baby sit him today, Evan?" Tommy smirks at him and Skyler barks at the backseat.
Buck blushes at that. He would love it. He's got about 40 hours more off and he wouldn't mind spending it with his new canine friend. But he remembers that he does have a busy 2 days. Buck for a moment considers to reschedule some of his plans on his next off but then gets reminded again, of the fact that his building doesn't allow house pets. Maybe Buck can sneak him in?
"I would love too. I would. I like spending time with Skyler but my place doesn't really allows dogs" Buck frowns at that as he looks at Skyler and tries to pet him as he moves closer to Tommy's car.
"Hey, Evan. It's fine. If you want, we can schedule a meet up for you two. Give me your number so we can check on both our schedules." Tommy says and touches Buck shoulder and he can't help but lean in to it.
Buck hands his phone to Tommy. Looks as he types on his number and Buck thinks why is he excited at the thought of texting Tommy? He shakes it off. He's just looking forward to the next time he's able to see Skyler again. Yes. That's right. That's the reason.
"I called myself so I can also get your number." Tommy winks at him as he hands his phone back to Buck.
Ohhh.
"So Skyler and I have to go. Still have a shift and crosstown traffic, we might just arrive on time at Harbor." Tommy opens the driver seat.
"We should get coffee next time, Evan." Tommy looks at him and Buck likes that idea.
"Yeah coffee sounds good. Next time. Yes. You guys should get going. Bye buddy!" Buck says as he gives Skyler another pet and he gets a bark in return. He hugs him and tries to bury his face on his fur. "See you again soon."
Buck hears Tommy laughing on his side.
"Still can't believe that you're able to get close to him in just a small time. See you around, Evan!" Tommy says as he taps Buck on the shoulder and enters the driver seat.
Buck watches as Tommy's car gradually pulls away. Can't help the smile that grows on his face. He has a new friend friends, that's not on his plan but hey, who doesn't like to make new friends? He tries to wipe the smile off by rubbing his hands on his face as he heads for his car.
It's a good day. Buck thinks to himself as he drives home back to the loft.