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Buck’s heart stopped the moment he heard Christopher’s tiny body hit the water.
He didn’t remember jumping off after him, or the people he’d rescued trying to call him back to the fire truck.
But the second his arms closed around Christopher, Buck’s heart started beating again, seeming to kick it into overdrive to make up for lost time.
“I’ve got you.” Buck panted as the water carried them further away from the concerned voices. “I’ve got you.”
Buck wasn’t quite sure how long they clung to each other in the turbulent water, but, by the time they washed up on the dry pavement of a street on a hill, the sky was already fully dark.
It had to have been around noon, maybe even before, when Christopher fell off of the firetruck.
Buck’s limbs were tired and aching from the effort of keeping their heads above the waves for half the day, and there was blood running down his face from an injury he didn’t remember getting, but, other than that, they were both unharmed, so far as Buck could tell.
But he was a firefighter, not a paramedic.
Sure, he was trained in the basics, but anything major was always given to Hen, Chimney, or Eddie.
Eddie.
He probably didn’t even know that Christopher was in danger.
That Buck had put him in danger.
Once he found out, he’d probably never let Buck see the kid again, and Buck wouldn’t even be able to blame him.
“Bucky.” The little boy whimpered, burying his head into Buck’s damp shoulder.
Buck held the child tighter, and forced himself to his feet.
Christopher needed to be looked over, and Buck didn’t know enough to properly do the looking.
He also needed his dad, and Buck had no idea where, in all of the chaos, Eddie would be.
Probably a field hospital or reunification center, but Buck had no way of knowing where they were, or which one Eddie would be at.
But, no matter where Eddie was now, he’d be going back to the firehouse before going home.
So would Hen and Chim, and both were perfectly capable of making sure Christopher was as okay as Buck hoped he was.
Mind made up, Buck started staggering up the street, ignoring the way his bad leg protested with every step.
“It’s okay, Superman.” Buck said, words slurring just slightly, though if it was because of his exhaustion or his head injury, Buck did not know. “I’m taking you to your dad.”
Christopher tightened his hold around Buck’s neck, and sniffed pitifully. “Promise?”
“I promise.” Buck replied immediately.
“Where is he?” Christopher asked in a small voice.
Buck swallowed thickly and just kept stumbling in a direction that he hoped was the right one. “I don’t know, bud. But we’re going to the firehouse, and he’ll be there eventually.”
‘If he hasn’t already left.’ Buck thought.
Because Buck had no way of telling what time it was, and it was entirely possible that the 118 had already been sent home for the night.
He doubted it, though. First responders’ shifts always ran over when something big happened, and that tsunami had certainly been big.
Christopher’s breaths turned deep and even at some point, the little boy sleeping peacefully in Buck’s arms as he continued on his unsteady way.
At long last, Buck spotted a street sign, and he was able to get his bearings.
They weren’t near the 118’s firehouse, but it was closer than Buck had feared it would be. The water must have carried them a long way.
Buck let out a breathy laugh of triumph, and turned to the right, staggering and tripping down the middle of the empty street.
It wasn’t long before a reunification center came into view.
The VA, if Buck wasn’t mistaken.
But Buck skirted around it, not wishing to be stopped.
Sure, Christopher could get medical attention there, but Eddie wouldn’t be there.
And Christopher needed Eddie.
Eddie, who still didn’t know that his son now had the trauma of a lifetime.
He’d left Christopher with Buck.
He’d trusted Buck to keep his kid safe.
And Buck had dragged the boy into a natural disaster’s crosshairs instead.
Christopher shivered against him then, the chill night air doing nothing good for the child’s damp body.
Buck paused, leaning Christopher against the hood of an abandoned van, and took off his overshirt.
The shirt was just as damp as Christopher was, but Buck wrapped it around the boy, anyway, hoping it would provide at least some relief.
Christopher barely stirred through the whole thing, and had settled back into a deep sleep by the time Buck started walking again.
Around 45 minutes later, a pair of headlights fell on them, but Buck was too delirious, too single-minded in getting Christopher to Eddie to really register what that meant.
Nor did he fully register the rumble of a large engine moving closer, or the brakes of a heavy vehicle squealing.
“Sir!” Someone called out.
But Buck didn’t hear it. He just continued staring straight ahead.
His eyes weren’t fully focused anymore, and maybe he should be alarmed by that, but Christopher was more important than anything related to himself.
“Sir!” Someone called again, more than one pair of footsteps moving towards him.
Buck just kept going, still oblivious to the presence of anyone else.
“My God…” A female voice said in shock. “is that—”
“Buck!”
Buck’s head lolled a bit, but he didn’t stop moving, didn’t even pause in his stumbling steps.
Not even when a pair of hands fell on his face.
“I’ve got blood, Cap!” A new voice called from right next to Buck. “And a lot of it!”
Another pair of hands grabbed Buck’s arms, pulling him to a swaying stop.
Buck blinked, disoriented, and only then did he register the hands on his face connected to a body in front of him.
“Eddie?” He croaked.
Eddie’s eyes were wide with concern, flicking back and forth from Buck’s face to the sleeping form of his son.
“What happened?” Eddie asked.
“Water…” Buck trailed off, clutching Christopher tighter, and causing the boy to mumble something unintelligible in his sleep. “So much water…”
A pair of hands that didn’t belong to Eddie started to carefully pull Christopher out of Buck’s arms, but stopped when Buck made a distressed noise.
“It’s okay, Buckaroo.” Hen’s voice said soothingly. “I just need to take a look at him, okay?”
Buck reluctantly loosened his hold on the sleeping child and let Hen pull him out of his arms.
“Chris?” Buck asked dazedly.
“He’s fine, Buckaroo.” Hen said gently. “Doesn’t even appear to have a scratch.”
Buck’s shoulders sagged with relief, and his knees immediately buckled.
“Woah!” Chim’s voice exclaimed, hands leaving Buck’s arms and helping Eddie catch his falling body, before the pair carefully lowered him to the ground.
“How is he?” Bobby asked in concern from somewhere Buck couldn’t see.
“He’s lost a lot of blood.” Chimney replied instantly. “And I think he might have re-broke his bad leg.”
“And he was walking on it?” Eddie asked, alarmed.
“He was protecting Christopher.” Hen said simply. “Buckaroo would walk a hundred miles on two compound fractures to keep that kid safe.”
One of Eddie’s hands found Buck’s face again and caressed the sweaty skin.
“Thank you.” Eddie said emotionally. “For keeping him safe.”
Buck’s eyes unfocused just a little further, and he furrowed his brow with a confused noise.
“Eddie?”
“He’s slurring his words, Cap!” Chimney called out.
“Get him in the rig.” Bobby said urgently. “Now!”
Within seconds, Buck was floating in the air, Eddie on one side and Chim on the other.
“Wha?” Buck said, brows furrowing even more.
“It’s going to be okay, Buck.” Eddie assured him.
Buck felt his body going lax, and the last thing he saw before darkness overcame his vision was Eddie’s terrified face.
He was drowning.
He was drowning and he didn’t know where Christopher was.
He’d lost him.
He’d left him.
“Buck!”
Buck clawed around in the murky water, feeling the current pulling him down, down, down.
He couldn’t move any way but down.
He couldn’t fight the pull of the water.
Then, there was a warm weight on his chest, and the water slowly receded from his vision, revealing not a flooded street, but a bright room.
A hospital room.
Buck looked down at his chest and relaxed when he saw Christopher Diaz hugging him as tightly as he could.
He was safe.
He wasn’t lost.
“Buck.”
Buck tore his eyes away from the child and met the wide eyes of its father.
“Eddie.” He croaked.
“Bucky.” Christopher sniffed, drawing Buck’s eyes back to him. “I’m sorry for asking to go to the Pier. We wouldn’t have been there if I hadn’t—”
“Hey.” Buck cut off the teary-eyed boy. “No, no, no. Buddy, you have nothing to apologize for, okay? It wasn’t your fault.”
Christopher’s bottom lip trembled. “But I asked to go. You’re hurt because I asked to go.”
Buck shook his head, ignoring the wave of dizziness that caused him. “No, buddy. I promise this isn’t your fault. And besides, I’m not even that hurt.”
“You have a broken leg, a hurt head, lots of bruises, and-and Chimney said you lost too much blood.” Christopher argued.
Buck brought one of his hands up, and ran his fingers through Christopher’s curly hair. “See? Not hurt that bad. I’ve definitely had worse.”
“But I didn’t cause those.”
“And you didn’t cause this either, Buddy.” Buck said firmly but gently. “You’re an amazing kid, Superman, but even you don’t control the ocean.”
Christopher buried his face in Buck’s chest, and started crying.
It wasn’t until Buck tried moving his other arm up to wrap around the crying kid, that he realized Eddie was holding his hand.
“You saved my son, Buck.” Eddie said tightly when Buck’s eyes flicked up to his. “You gave me something that I will never be able to repay you for.”
“You don’t have to.” Buck said. “I’d do anything for him.”
“I know.” Eddie’s free hand came up and rested gently on Christopher’s shaking back. “And I can’t thank you enough.”
Eddie then leaned down and pressed his forehead to Buck’s. “God, Buck, I was so scared when we found you guys.”
“I’m sorry.” Buck whispered.
“You’re an amazing guy, Buck, but even you don’t control the ocean.” Eddie said, lips twitching as he turned Buck’s earlier words back around on him.
Buck smiled. “You think I’m amazing?”
“Don’t let it go to your head.”
“Please.” Chimney requested from the foot of the bed, alerting Buck to his presence. “Your head’s already big enough. Soon we’ll have to use the jaws to get you through doorways.”
“You can’t be mean to me, Chim, I’m injured.”
“You’re always injured.”
Buck huffed out a half-hearted laugh. “That just means you can never be mean to me.”
“No.” Eddie corrected. “It means that you really need to stop getting injured.”
“It wasn’t my fault this time.” Buck argued. “Blame Poseidon.”
“I’ll get right on that.” Eddie said dryly.
Christopher chose that moment to look up at his dad with a sniff. “Stop being mean to my Bucky.”
Eddie’s eyes softened. “I’m not, mijo. I’m just teasing, Buck knows that.”
Buck nodded. “Yeah. Just like we tease your dad for being a bad cook.”
“How did this just get turned around on me?” Eddie asked in confusion.
“Because you’re a bad cook.” Christopher said with a little giggle.
“Oh, so I can’t be mean to Buck, but you can be mean to me?” Eddie asked with a pout.
“Yep!” Christopher answered brightly.
“Ha!” Buck crowed. “I’ve got immunity.”
Eddie shook his head fondly at the pair, and then pulled them both into the best hug he could manage from his angle.
“I’m so glad you’re both okay.” He said tightly, thinking about how close he came to losing them.
“Yeah.” Buck said, hugging Eddie back. “Me too.”