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Chapter Text

June 2010

Erica Evans, who had her boyfriend's hoodie on and hood up, was looking at pregnancy tests when a hand rested on her shoulder. Erica turned around to find Margaret Buckley, who had a pissed look on her face, "Good morning, Mrs. Buckley.

"How far are you, Ms. Evans?" asked Margaret.

"I think Evan and I got pregnant when we were stargazing after prom," said Erica.

"You better go get an abortion, or I'd be telling your father's congregation you got pregnant out of wedlock, which would ruin your father's reputation as an Episcopalian minister."

"What if I don't get an abortion and keep Evan's and my child?" asked Erica.

"If you keep the baby, I will make sure your college acceptance gets rescinded, and I'll be smothering your bastard child as soon as that bastard is born. Evan doesn't deserve to have kids," said Margaret snidely. She then felt a hand on her shoulder and gasped when she saw the high school principal where she taught math, "Oh, hello, Mr. Tyson. How are you?"

"Did I just hear you give a death threat against your unborn grandchild?" asked Mr. Peter Tyson.

Erica nodded, "Even if you're no longer my principal after I graduated last month, Mrs. Buckley threatened to tell my father's congregation about me getting pregnant out of wedlock, she'd make sure I can't attend college and threatened to murder Evan's and my child, Mr. Tyson."

Within a few minutes, Margaret was guarded while the police got involved.

An hour later, Erica was sitting in an office at the police station with the only female officer as her parents ran into the room.

"What happened, Erica?" asked Tina.

"Your daughter didn't shoplift, but Margaret Buckley threatened your daughter to the point that a bystander who heard the threat called the cops," said the officer.

"What did Evan's mother threaten you about?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Erica opened up her shopping bag and showed her parents the unopened pregnancy test, "Even if I'm on birth control, I might be pregnant. Margaret told me that I need to get an abortion or she'd tell your entire congregation that I got pregnant out of wedlock while she'd ruin my chances of becoming a lawyer and smother the baby in their sleep after I give birth."

Tina hugged her daughter, "Oh, sweetheart."

"You're not mad about the possibility of me being pregnant before I start college this fall?" asked Erica.

Tina shook her head, "Even if I placed you on birth control so you could practice safe sex, I know birth control isn't always effective.."

"Are you going to keep the baby?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Erica nodded, "I want to because I've known for a while that I've want kids with Evan."

"Even if I had hoped that you and Evan would attend college before getting married and having kids when you two are working, I'll support you two," said Tina.

"I'll support you two two, but I hope Evan doesn't run off," said Reverend Ryan.

Fifteen minutes later, Phillip entered the room and looked at Erica, "Are you pregnant with Evan's child?" asked Phillip.

"I haven't taken the test yet, but I've been late for a few months and been puking the past couple of weeks," said Erica softly.

"Erica told us what Margaret said, and I hope you're not going to support your wife through threatening death to any kids Erica and Evan might be having," said Reverend Ryan.

Phillip, who had kept Daniel a secret over the years, nodded, "I'm not going to allow Margaret's actions slide because I was told that she was ranting that Evan doesn't deserve to have kids, and she's going to smother her bastard grandchild after it's born. A psychiatrist will evaluate her before further action is taken."

"Why would Margaret say that Evan doesn't deserve to have kids?" asked Tina.

"Even if I already explained why Margaret would say that to the Detective, I only want to explain once with Evan in the room," said Phillip.

"I want to go home and take the test before I tell Evan what's going on," said Erica.

Phillip looked at Erica, "I'll go pick up Evan and Isaac from camp."

"That would be helpful because Isaac would want to come home as soon as he gets the news," said Reverend Ryan.

Hours later, in the Ponoco Mountains, Evan and his best friend Isaac, working at a sports camp, led the ten-year-old boys. They were playing a game of scrimmage towards the showers when the camp director approached them.

Jason looked between Evan and Jason, "There's an emergency back home, and your father is on his way to pick up the two of you, Evan."

"Why would I be picked up?" asked Isaac.

"Phillip said something happened to Erica," said Jason.

"She's my girlfriend," said Evan.

"My twin sister, who I dared Evan to kiss when we were 15, and they've been dating ever since," said Isaac.

Hours later, Evan and Isaac ran into Erica, Isaac, Alice, Reverend Ryan, and Tina's house to find Erica on the couch, crying in her parent's arms.

"What's wrong, Erica?" asked Evan.

Isaac looked at his twin sister, "Who hurt you while Evan and I are away, Erica?" asked Isaac.

Erica looked at her boyfriend, "Even if I'm 18 and might get scolded for my language, but your mother is a fucking bitch, Evan."

Tina stroked her daughter's hair, "It's alright, sweetie. I never liked Margaret after watching her be mean with her words since you, Isaac, and Evan were seven."

Phillip, who had trailed after his youngest and his best friend with their bags and heard what Erica said, spoke up, "I can't blame you for saying that about Margaret after learning why she got arrested."

"Why did she get arrested?" asked Evan.

Erica, who still managed to buy the pregnancy test she was looking at when the store clerk helped her pick one out as she waited for her mother to pick her up to drive her home, reached into the pocket of Evan's hoodie and passed the pregnancy test.

Evan's eyes went wide when he saw a positive pregnancy test, "You were on the pill and I used a condom."

"Which broke," said Erica. She looked into her boyfriend's eyes, "Your mother is a fucking bitch because she told me to get an abortion or she'd tell Dad's congregration that we got pregnant out of wedlock and she'd make sure I can't attend college this fall and smother the baby after he or she is born."

Evan's blue eyes filled with fury as Isaac grabbed him from going to the door.

"Your mother's in lockup until her sentencing for death threat against an unborn child, and I refused to pay her bail and refused to get our lawyer to represent her," said Phillip. He looked into Evan's eyes, "Plus, I'm already planning on divorcing her because I allowed the way we both treated you since you were one to go on long enough, and today's behavior is the last straw."

"What do you mean since I was one?" asked Evan.

"You should sit down," said Phillip.

Evan sat down.

Phillip looked at his son, "I'd understand if you never want to see or speak to me again after I tell you this, but with you being about to enter college and go out to the world, you should know for family medical history information and future employment opportunities when you finish college. You had an older brother named Daniel, who you were conceived as a savior sibling for, who passed away from juvenile leukemia when you were one and he was eight."

Evan's eyes went wide, "Maddie never told me."

"Margaret and I made her promise never to tell you, and we made the wrong choice because you should have been told about Daniel as soon as you were old enough to understand," said Phillip.

Evan then flashed back to the day Maddie showed him a house she said they used to live in and was going to tell him something very crazy before Doug called. Not long after, he and Maddie went home, and his parents were yelling at Maddie about moving to Boston with Doug before Margaret called him stupid when he said they should be happy for him before he got on his bicycle and rode off with Erica, Isaac, and Alice meeting with him a while later and they went out for ice cream on Reverend Ryan's dime before he ended up spending the weekend at Reverend Ryan's house after his father told him he wasn't stupid, "Maddie tried to tell me before Doug called her, and she didn't tell me."

Phillip nodded.

"I wonder if she gave Erica those threats because she probably thinks that I don't deserve to fall in love and have kids because I was defective," said Evan bitterly.

Erica got up and hugged Evan, "You're not defective, Evan. You're perfect the way you are, and I've loved you since we met when we were seven."

Isaac nodded, "You're the best friend I can ever ask for."

Sitting by her big sister's feet, 14-year-old Alice nodded, "You're a great bonus older brother, Evan."

"I'm going to need that information about Daniel because no matter what Maggie said, I'm keeping the baby and I'll be asked about the father's past medical history," said Erica firmly.

"I'll make sure to get you that information," said Phillip.

Evan looked at Erica, "I decided to spend this summer working as a camp counselor so I could save up and buy you an engagement ring and propose to you on your 19th birthday in September."

"Really?" asked Erica.

Evan nodded, "Yes."

"This means you're going to be stepping up and do the right thing by marrying my daughter and be a father to your son or daughter?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Evan nodded, "I've been dreaming of marrying Erica for a couple of months now," said Evan. He looked between the reverend of the Episcopalian church he attended with his parents and older sister and his girlfriend's and best friend's mother, "Are you two mad about us getting pregnant at 18?" asked Buck.

"We're not because I got Erica on birth control so she'd be practicing safe sex when she started dating you, and it's not always effective. What matters is that you two were practicing safe sex despite the condom ripping," said Tina.

Reverend Ryan nodded, "And I don't expect you two to rush into marriage."

Erica looked between her parents, twin brother, and little sister, "I wouldn't mind getting married within the next couple of weeks, so the four of you and everyone from our church who told Evan and me that they expect an invite when we eventually get married can attend the wedding, and then I want Evan and myself to move out of Pennsylvania," said Erica.

"You'd want to live in a different state?" asked Tina.

Erica nodded, "Margaret's threats made me realize that I don't want to live in the same state as her anymore out of fear of the safety of Evan's and my child."

"What about college?" asked Reverend Ryan.

"I'd take a gap year so I can focus on the pregnancy and bond with the baby before I see about getting into college in whatever state Evan and I choose to reside in. Then we'd get the baby into daycare so we can study for our degrees," said Erica.

"It's a good thing you're thinking about getting out of Hershey because I don't want to be in the same state as my egg donor or follow hers and Dad's footsteps of becoming a teacher," said Evan.

Erica glared at Phillip before looking at Evan, "You shouldn't become a teacher if you thought that becoming a teacher like your parents would be a way to get your parents to finally be proud of you and treat you right."

"What are you thinking about doing, Evan?" asked Phillip.

An emotionally drained Evan said, "I'm not sure yet."

"One thing for sure is you should start attending therapy before you make any major career decisions or marry Erica," said Reverend Ryan.

Erica nodded, "I agree, Evan. A major secret has been kept from you for 18 years, so you should start seeking therapy before we hold our first child."

"You're 18 and out of high school, so your parents won't be able to keep you out of therapy," said Tina.

"I'd need to talk to a therapist about the threats the egg donor of my fiance gave me," said Erica.

"Yes," said Ryan and Tina in unison.

"You consider us engaged?" asked Evan.

Erica nodded, "I want to marry you before we pick a town or city to move to."

"Then I'll marry you," said Evan.

"I know you all must hate me right now for keeping a major secret for years, but I want you to give you access to your trust fund you would have earned if you were 30 unless you get married sooner," said Phillip.

"Trust fund?" asked Evan.

"It's a $7,000,000 trust fund, and it'd help you and Erica out in the long run for finding a place to live, pay for medical bills, get suitable transportation, find child care, and anything else you two would need while you figure out what you want to do with your life together," said Phillip.

"That would help, but offering me my trust fund isn't going to give you a right into my son's or daughter's life because you had all this time to tell me about Daniel, get proper help over Daniel's death, and treat Maddie and me better," said Evan.

"I understand, and I'll forever regret my choices over the years. You deserve better," said Phillip.

Chapter Text

July 2010

A week after Margaret's arrest and Evan quitting his job as a camp counselor, Evan was sitting with Erica in the OB-GYN's office.

"You're definitely pregnant, Erica," said Dr. Lillian Peterman. She held up the papers in her hand, "I'd like to do an abdominal ultrasound instead of a sonogram."

Evan looked at Tina's gynecologist with concern, "Is everything alright with the baby?" asked Evan.

Dr. Peterman looked at Erica, "With you being a fraternal twin yourself and your hCG test showing your hormones being higher than usual, "I believe an abdominal ultrasound would be your best answer to see if you're carrying twins."

Erica smirked at her fiance, who looked pale, "My mother did warn you that I could be carrying twins due to me being a twin myself."

"I knew there would be a chance of twins with you," said Evan.

"I'll schedule an abdominal ultrasound to get a better look," said Erica.

Three days later, Evan held Erica's hand as an abdominal ultrasound was completed, confirming Dr. Peterman's suspicion about them expecting twins.

After the ultrasound appointment, Evan and Erica walked at a nearby hiking trail.

"What are we going to do? We agreed that we would be moving out of Hershey and to the city and state of our choosing before you give birth," said Evan.

"I know where I'd like to settle down before the twins are born," said Erica.

"Where?" asked Evan.

"Aside from Penn State, you know I got accepted to the University of California, San Diego, on scholarship, too," said Erica.

Evan nodded, "I know. You chose Penn State because I got a sports scholarship to play football, and we'd be attending college together."

"I'm for sure going to take a gap year because my pregnancy is now labeled as high risk," said Erica.

"What's your plan with becoming a lawyer?" asked Evan.

"After I do my gap year, I'd just earn my bachelor's degree in political science in 2015 and hopefully earn my Juris Doctor in 2018 if we manage to time future pregnancies until after I earn my Juris Doctor or I give birth at the start of summer break," said Erica.

"Then we'll move to California," said Evan.

"Are you thinking about attending college?" asked Erica.

"I'm not sure because I've been thinking about the ASVAB test results I got after I took the ASVAB test when a Navy recruiter who attended my final swim meet convinced me to take the test," said Evan.

Erica nodded as she thought about her fiance scoring a 75 on the test while Evan graduated with honors like her in high school, thanks to her helping him with his math homework over the years. Phillip had told Evan he needed to be in the A-honor roll to play football in middle school and even play a year of basketball until he realized he hated the sport, joining the swim team and participating in other sports between hanging out with her and Isaac kept him out of the house after Maddie left for college, "You're thinking about joining the Navy?" asked Erica.

Evan nodded, "Even if it means missing out on the part of the pregnancy, I want to join the Navy Reserve. I can go to college, work some odd jobs here in San Diego, be there for you and the twins, and then be deployed when I'm needed."

"If joining the Navy Reserve is something you'd want to do, then do it, Evan," said Erica.

"You don't mind me joining the Navy Reserve?" asked Evan.

Erica nodded, "Not at all."

"Thank you," said Evan.

"What are you doing to do between once a weekend drill and spending two weeks away?" asked Erica.

"Focus on earning a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Emergency Management so I can eventually become a firefighter because part of me thought about becoming a firefighter when we were 15 and went to see Firehouse Dog with your parents and Alice when Alice asked me if I wanted to come with," said Evan.

Erica laughed, "With your fearlessness of climbing trees, being athletic, and how great you were in science class, I can see you eventually becoming a firefighter."

"You don't mind me joining the Navy Reserves and eventually becoming a firefighter?" asked Evan.

"I know you need to be kept busy, but you better continue therapy and come home in one piece," said Erica.

Evan held out his pinky, "I promise."

"Now I don't know about you, but we should get to my parents, Isaac, and Alice and tell them how the ultrasound went and the plans we made," said Erica.

Evan thought about Maddie remaining in Boston for another year while his brother-in-law Doug, whom he hates, finishes his residency, "While we should plan a trip to Boston so we can tell Maddie what's going on."

Later that evening, during dinner, Evan, Erica, Reverend Ryan, Tina, Isaac, who didn't return to camp as a counselor, and Alice ate dinner together.

"How did your ultrasound go, Erica?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Erica quickly went towards her purse, grabbed the envelope, and passed it to her parents, "Look."

Reverend Ryan opened the envelope, and Tina teared up when she realized what she had seen.

"Twins," said Tina.

Erica nodded, "Dr. Peterman had a feeling that being a fraternal twin myself would give me a slightly higher risk of conceiving twins when I told her I'm a fraternal twin myself and my hCG levels were higher than normal."

Within seconds, Reverend Ryan, Tina, and Alice hugged their daughter or big sister.

Isaac grinned at his best friend, and he clapped him on the shoulder. "Dang, you have some powerful swimmers, Evan."

"Even if you're 18, no talking about sex at the table," said Tina.

"Before any of you ask, we decided to be surprised with the genders at birth," said Erica.

Reverend Ryan looked between his daughter and soon-to-be son-in-law, "Have you two figured out where you're going to move to, study, or do for work?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Erica nodded, "I'm taking a gap year before I start at the University of California, San Diego."

"Where you've also been accepted for four years," said Tina.

Erica nodded, "Moving to San Diego would give the twins, Evan, and me a lot of distance between Margaret and ourselves."

"If you want to move to San Diego, we'll support your decision," said Tina.

Reverend Ryan nodded, "While I know as a Reverend's daughter, you'll still join an Episcopalian church."

"I will, Dad," said Erica.

Reverend Ryan looked at Evan, "Have you thought about what you're going to do?" asked Reverend Ryan.

"After the wedding and moving to San Diego, I'm going to be going to Great Lakes, Illinois, for ten weeks on August 15th," said Evan softly.

"To join the Navy after that Navy recruiter who showed up at your final swim swim meet approached you about joining the military and convinced you to take the ASVAB test?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Evan nodded, "I'm joining the Navy Reserve because I feel like it's better not to be away for long periods during Erica's pregnancy."

"Even if it means missing out on part of the pregnancy for boot camp?" asked Tina.

"I already told Evan I'm fine with him joining the Navy Reserve and eventually becoming a firefighter after we move to San Diego following the wedding because I know he needs to do something that keeps him active," said Erica.

"Then I support your decision," said Reverend Ryan.

Tina nodded, "Me, too."

Reverend Ryan thought about how his congregation weren't upset about Evan and Erica being pregnant before marriage because all the women who were old enough to be Erica's and Evan's grandmothers were always talking about watching them get married and have beautiful babies together when they were kids, "With what you two are planning, at least we decided that you two would be married at the start of church on August 1st with a celebration happening during fellowship hour following the service."

Erica nodded, "I agree because finding out that I'm expecting twins would keep me from fitting in my dress later on."

Reverend Ryan looked at Evan, "Have you talked to your father ever since you found out about Daniel ten days ago?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Evan shook his head, "After never learning about having an older brother until ten days ago, I haven't talked to him at all. We don't talk when I'm not in my bedroom or over here."

"I understand you're mad at him for treating you the way he did all these years. When his and your mother time comes, they'll be dealing with their sins of dishonoring Daniel's memory for so long and treating you the way they did," said Reverend Ryan.

"If you decide not to allow your father to attend the wedding and be part of your kids' lives, we'll back up your decision," said Tina.

"I appreciate you being there for me ever since you moved here when I was seven and now supporting the choices Erica and I made after we found out that birth control and condoms failed," said Evan.

Two weeks later, Evan and Erica were at a park near the hospital where Maddie was working, and Maddie ran over to them.

"Shouldn't you be at camp, Evan?" asked Maddie.

"Change of plans after some things happened," said Evan.

"What happened?" asked Maddie. She then noticed an engagement ring on Erica's left ring finger, "Are you two engaged?" asked Maddie.

Evan nodded, "Yes, and Mom and Dad are getting a divorce."

"Why are they getting a divorce?" asked Maddie.

"Have you heard from Mom or Dad?" asked Evan.

"They cut me off for marrying Doug," snapped Maddie.

"Mom's been committed to a psychiatric hospital and then prison for the next five years," said Evan.

"Why?" asked Maddie.

Erica moved her baggy shirt to reveal her ten-week pregnant baby bump, "Your mother threatened to smother Evan and my twins if I don't get an abortion."

Maddie glared at her brother, "Even if you're dating our Episcopalian minister's daughter for the past couple of years, you knocked up Erica before marrying her?" asked Maddie.

"I'm on the pill and Evan used a condom, but it ripped," said Erica.

Maddie glared at Evan, "You have your whole life ahead of you, Evan. You're too young to become a father, and you should have kept everything in your pants."

"We're both 18 and will be 19 by the time the twins are born, so we're both legally adults. My parents are supporting our decisions because I can still become a lawyer after taking a gap year to focus on getting the heck out of Hershey, so we're far away from Evan's egg donor and pregnancy," said Erica.

"No matter what, Erica and I will get married on August 1st. Then we're moving far away from Hershey after the wedding before I join the Navy Reserve. Eventually, I'll become a firefighter after serving for four years and earn a degree in emergency management," said Evan.

Maddie paled, "You can't join the Navy or become a firefighter, Evan. I can't lose-," said Maddie before putting her hands over her mouth.

"Another brother due to you not wanting to lose another brother after Daniel died when I was one?" asked Evan.

"You know?" asked Maddie.

Evan nodded, "Dad told me about Daniel and my conception after he explained why our egg donor told Erica to get an abortion for the sake of me having family medical history available and for future employment opportunities," said Evan. He looked at his sister as he shook his head, "Even if I'm mad at you for keeping Daniel a secret all this time, I'd thought you'd be supportive of the decisions I've been making after I supported you through marrying Doug and becoming a nurse when it was us against the world."

"As I said earlier, you have your whole life ahead of you, and I can't lose another brother," said Maddie.

"Then you're losing your remaining brother. Don't bother coming to Hershey for the wedding," said Evan before he got up and walked away while Erica followed him.

Chapter Text

On the morning of August 1st, Evan was up early as he finished packing up the last of his belongings he was going to keep, donate, or throw away before he and Erica started their long drive to San Diego in the U-Haul they rented after their wedding and small reception when a knock sounded on his open door.

Phillip, who didn't know where Evan and Erica were moving to because they weren't talking to him while Erica's family wouldn't say anything to him, looked at his son, "Evan?" asked Phillip.

Evan turned around to find his father, who hadn't been to church since his birth mother's arrest. He wasn't shocked about his father looking worn out because he knew that his father became a social outcast following word being spread about Margaret and Phillip Buckley having him as a savior sibling and blaming him for their eldest son's death. Even the school district decided to fire and revoke his father's teaching license after his egg donor's teaching license was immediately revoked following her arrest for threatening to kill his and Erica's unborn twins. "What do you need?" asked Evan.

"I'm sorry about how I've treated you over the years, Evan. This past month, I've been going to therapy like you've been and talked with your soon-to-be father-in-law. My therapist and your father-in-law both ripped into me by reminding me that I've been dishonoring Daniel's memory by not getting your mother, Maddie, and myself grief therapy and Margaret getting treatment for postpartum depression following Daniel's death, erasing Daniel's existence, and allowing your mother to treat you the way she did," said Phillip.

"I remember Reverend Ryan looking pretty angry when he heard Mom call me stupid when I was 12," said Evan.

Phillip nodded, "He gestured for you to get on your bicycle before giving Erica, Issac, and Alice money and tell them to follow you and treat you for ice cream. When Erica, Isaac, and Alice were out of our earshot, he and Tina yelled at Margaret and me before telling me to pack you a bag because you're staying with them for a couple of days." 

"And then in church on Sunday, you and my mother surprised me with four tickets to attend a future Philadelphia Eagles game with you, Erica, and Isaac," said Evan.

"I know forcing Maddie to take care of you before she left for college is a form of child abuse," said Phillip.

"It is," said Evan.

"I do love you and I'm proud of the man you're becoming," said Phillip.

"Even if you said you love me and you're proud of me, Erica and I are still cutting you, Mom, and Maddie out of our lives," said Evan.

"You're cutting Maddie out of your life?" asked Phillip.

Evan nodded, "When Erica and I went to Boston two weeks ago to tell her we're getting married and expecting twins, she me I'm ruining my life by marrying Erica and having kids now."

"Forcing Maddie to raise you doesn't help," said Phillip.

"It doesn't because my therapist and Erica believe that Maddie developed a mindset to treat me like a son rather on than treat me like a little brother. She got angry and stated she couldn't lose me when I told her I decided to join the Navy Reserve and eventually become a firefighter," said Evan.

"You're entering the Navy Reserve and eventually becoming a firefighter?" asked Phillip.

Evan nodded, "I know that becoming a teacher isn't for me, and I feel like the Navy Reserve and firefighting would be better for me."

"I'm not surprised you decided to join the Navy Reserve because I once ran into your guidance counselor in the hallway, and he stated that your athletic abilities, your grades, a career aptitude test, and scoring a 75 on the ASVAB test you were given shows that you have potential for the military and careers like firefighting or law enforcement," said Phillip.

"And you didn't tell me about that conversation?" asked Evan.

"I didn't want your mother to find out because she was already upset about you having to register for the selective service after your 18th birthday," said Phillip.

"And we're still at war following 9/11 over nine years ago," said Evan.
 
"Is Erica supportive of you joining the Navy Reserve and becoming a firefighter?" asked Phillip.

"She thought those career choices suit me," said Evan.

"I can see you working those careers because you've loved the water after I signed you up for swimming lessons and your fearlessness over the years. Are you going to attend college at some point?" asked Phillip.

"I'm already looking into in classroom and online programs for a bachelor's degree Emergency Management next year," said Evan.

Phillip nodded.

Evan thought about the therapy appointments he's been attending, and his therapist told him and even Reverend Ryan that it'd be best he open up to his father before he leaves Hershey. "You remember all the cuts, scrapes, and occasional broken bones I would get until Erica and her family moved across the street, and I quickly became friends with Erica, Isaac, and Alice while Reverend Ryan and Tina would invite me on family outings to the movies, Hershey Park, and other places?" asked Evan.

Phillip nodded, "I remember."

"I purposely got hurt when I realized that getting hurt would get your and Mom's attention," said Evan softly.

"I'll forever regret how I handled everything following Daniel's death," said Phillip.

"I remember hearing my mother yell that you two have to look at a reminder every day," said Evan. He sighed, "I know that if you, Mom, and even Maddie didn't want to look at a reminder every day, I could have been given up for adoption after Daniel's death."

"Your mother wanted to, but Maddie wanted to keep you. Even if I wasn't the best father to you, I didn't want to give you up either. Even if I distanced myself from you, I enjoyed watching you smile, laugh, fall in love with Erica, and thrive in school and sports," said Phillip.

"Even if I quit playing basketball after one season and switched to swimming?" asked Evan.

Phillip nodded, "I'd rather have you play a sport you love than something you hate, and you excelled in swimming since you were a kid that you and your teammates managed to be undefeated during the season and then win the state championship," said Phillip. He thought about attending both the district and the PIAA state championship meet at the insistence of his boss due to being a teacher and father of a student at the school, "Even if I didn't show it when I attended the meet and saw that Erica and her family who attended the PIAA state championship meet were cheering you on, I was so proud of you as I watched you contribute in winning the state championship this past school year and watch you celebrate with your team before you kissed Erica in celebration."

"Even if I wasn't the best father to you and never got your mother's postpartum depression taken care of, I can't regret keeping you after Daniel's death. 

"I wish you happiness with Erica and all I wish for is you two don't make the same mistakes as me," said Phillip.

Evan then noticed a wooden box in his father's hands. "What's that?" asked Evan.

Phillip placed the box that had Evan's name engraved on it onto Evan's bed, "When you and Erica were out of state to take care of some things for your upcoming move, I had this made for you because your mother and I never made you a baby box like we did for Maddie and Daniel when they were little and filled it up with some mementos I managed to keep over the years or collected from some former neighbors and friends during a trip I took to the previous town we lived in prior to Daniel's death."

Evan opened the box and first noticed a box holding cuff links.

"They were my father's, and he wore them on his wedding day while I wore them on my wedding day. I want you to wear them tomorrow and pass them down to any sons you and Erica could end up having," said Phillip.

"I'll wear them," said Evan. He then found a little white Christening suit in a protective plastic cover and little white shoes that looked to be from the 1980s, "A Christening suit."

Phillip nodded, "Both you and Daniel wore this to be baptized following your births, and I figured that you could use this if you and Erica end up having a boy."

"I'll be sure to use this," said Evan.

"There's more," said Phillip.

Evan then saw a photo album, and while going through the album, he saw a bunch of pictures of him as a baby with Maddie and a frail boy who he assumed was Daniel, pictures of him with just Daniel, photos of him as a toddler and a little boy with Maddie, and various school pictures involving the multiple sports he played or portraits from picture day in preschool to his senior portrait, "Is that Daniel in some of these pictures?" asked Evan.

Phillip nodded, "I know it's not much, but I managed to hide these pictures for the past 17 years."

Evan finished going through the wooden box, which included some drawings he drew as a kid to give to his father, "You saved these?" asked Evan.

Phillip nodded, "I hid these before your mother could throw them in the trash."

"Even if I'm still mad about the way I've been treated and learning that I would never been born if it wasn't for Daniel getting sick and no one was a match to donate bone marrow, thank you for this box of mementos," said Evan.

"I know this won't be enough to allow me to attend your wedding tomorrow, but I wish you happiness with Erica and the family you two are starting together. Knowing Daniel, he'll watch over you, Erica, the twins you two are expecting, and any other children if you and Erica have more together as a guardian angel," said Phillip.

Evan looked around his childhood bedroom, "With you divorcing Mom and me moving away, what are you going to be doing to the house?" asked Evan.

"I'm going to be putting it on the market and move away after the divorce is final. Then I'll be spending time traveling around the world before choosing somewhere to settle down," said Phillip.

"Which means I should make sure to get whatever I want to keep into the moving van Erica and I already rented," said Evan.

Phillip nodded, "Yes, and I won't change my number or email address just in case you or Erica need me for anything."

Evan looked at all the four boxes that were still in his bedroom. "It's time to get these final boxes into the U-Haul, which already holds Erica's belongings."

Phillip looked at the tuxedo that his son got fitted to for prom and decided to wear for his wedding, "Then you'll be showering and changing into your tuxedo?" asked Phillip.

Evan nodded, "Yes."

"Let me help you," said Phillip.

A minute later, Evan and Phillip carried a box downstairs. As they loaded up boxes in the U-Haul that movers will be driving for them across the country, Evan mentioned that his bedroom furniture could be donated or thrown away because he and Erica decided to buy new furniture. 

In the church that was more packed than usual for a Sunday with relatives of Erica's who were able to make it to Hershey, classmates that Evan and Erica graduated with, some former teachers who taught them, and neighbors, Evan was standing at the altar with his best friend and soon-to-be brother-in-law Isaac by his side after Reverend Ryan finished his Sunday service and headed to the bridal suite where Erica who skipped the service to get ready.

Isaac watched his mother take her seat in a front pew before looking at Evan, "Nervous?" asked Isaac.

"A bit," said Evan.

"Knowing my twin sister, she'll be coming down the aisle because she's been in love with you since we were seven," said Isaac.

After a few of Evan and Erica's friends from football, swimming, gymnastics, and cheerleading walked down the aisle as bridesmaids and groomsmen before Alice made her way down the aisle as maid of honor, then five-year-old Vincent, the son of Erica's 28-year-old cousin Jenny through Tina's sister, walked down the aisle as the ring bearer.

After Vinnie took his seat by his parents, five-year-old Angelina, Vinnie's twin sister, made her way down the aisle as the flower girl.

When Angelina took her seat, the music changed, and Reverend Ryan, also serving as the officiant, started walking Erica down the aisle.

Evan forgot to hold his breath as he saw Erica wearing a short-sleeved lace and satin floor-length wedding dress with a boat neck and a ballgown skirt. Erica's long armpit-length brown hair was in a half-up/half-down hairstyle, with her hair cascading with curls.

"Breathe, Evan," said Isaac.

Evan exhaled as Erica and Reverend Ryan reached closer to him and Isaac. A few minutes later, Reverend Ryan started the ceremony, struggling to withhold his emotions about his eldest daughter getting married.

After the ceremony, Evan and Erica greeted everyone who attended their wedding before they got to eat a potluck lunch that various members arranged with sparkling cider, soda, and other non-alcoholic beverages being served in the fellowship hall.

When everyone got their fill, Reverend Ryan took hold of the microphone, "I know you all might have noticed how emotional I was during the service I gave for church and then my eldest daughter and new son-in-law's wedding ceremony."

Multiple people voiced their agreement.

"I was a bit emotional because today was my last Sunday as Reverend Ryan Evans in this church. As a husband, father, and soon-to-be grandfather, it was decided that Tina, Alice, and I will be joining Evan and Erica in California. Isaac will still attend Episcopal Divinity School in New York City," said Reverend Ryan. He wiped some tears from his eyes, "Thank you for the love and support over the past 12 years, and my Associate Pastor will be stepping up as the new minister of this church."

After dealing with emotions from the congregation, it was time for Evan and Erica to have their first dance as husband and wife to the song "You and Me" by Lighthouse before Erica shared a dance with her father, and Tina offered to have the mother/son dance with Evan.

After spending a few hours dancing and saying goodbyes, Evan and Erica headed to Reverend Ryan and Tina's soon-to-be former house, where they showered and changed before Isaac drove them to Philadelphia for their flight to Phoenix, Arizona, before they caught another flight in San Diego, California where they'd be able to move into the one-bedroom apartment they found during a week they spent in San Diego following their trip to Boston for their ill-fated conversation with Maddie.

As Evan and Erica sat beside each other during their flight to Phoenix, Evan squeezed Erica's hand, "I can't believe that about 11 years after meeting, we're now married and expecting twins together."

"Me too, Evan," said Erica. She ran a hand through her husband's curls, "I'm going to be sad when these curls are gone in a couple of weeks."

"I know," said Evan.

Erica rested a hand on her 13-week pregnant baby bump, "I hope the twins inherit your curls and birthmark."

"You want them to have the birthmark I used to be bullied about?" asked Evan.

Erica nodded, "If they inherit your birthmark, they were kissed by an angel like you were."

Chapter Text

Evan was standing by the entrance for his flight to Chicago as he kissed his 15-week pregnant wife goodbye for the final time before their eight-week separation, "I'll write weekly letters to you before we see each other in eight weeks."

Erica kissed her husband back, "I love you, too. I will miss you, but the babies and myself will be fine, Ev."

Within a few minutes, Evan entered the airport with a bag that included everything he could bring to get him through the next eight weeks.

Erica opened the door to the backseat of the driver's side of her 2010 Jeep Liberty that she picked out when she and Evan went to pick out Jeeps for themselves with her husband's trust fund to remove the grocery bag of pickles and caramel sauce she bought when she heard a meowing sound, "What the heck?" asked Erica.

A meowing sound let out again, causing Erica to turn around and see a cat sitting one foot away. She frowned when she saw how thin and dirty the cat looked, causing her to tear up, "Are you homeless?" asked Erica.

The cat meowed again before jumping into her Jeep Liberty's backseat and rubbing itself along her baby bump.

"I don't think you belong there," said Erica.

The cat rolled onto his back, causing Erica to see that the cat was a boy, and meowed at Erica with a look that said, 'I'm not leaving you.'

"I might as well take you to the vet to get checked out and to the shelter," said Erica.

As Erica sat in a chair while the stray cat was being examined, she looked at the female veterinarian, who looked to be in her late 20s. "What type of breed is he?" asked Erica.

"This is a blue Abyssinian cat, and this is the fifth Abyssinian kitten I came across in the past four months by people who were bringing a stray kitten they found. It looks to be around six-months-old," said Dr. Elena Cortez.

Erica sniffled as she rubbed her baby bump, "He must have been homeless with his mother and siblings."

Dr. Cortez looked at Erica, "Pregnancy hormones?" asked Dr. Cortez.

Erica nodded, "The twins I'm 15 weeks pregnant with, this kitten, and my husband being away for boot camp is making me cry a lot. I only came across this kitten because I was craving pickles with caramel sauce and went to the store to get what I wanted."

Dr. Cortez laughed, "I get the hormones. My husband and I have one-year-old twins ourselves, while I'm also 15-weeks pregnant with our third child."

Erica chuckled, "I'm a fraternal twin myself, so I'm not surprised that my husband got me pregnant with twins."

Dr. Cortez frowned at Erica's accent, "Are you new to San Diego?" asked Dr. Cortez.

Erica nodded, "My husband and I moved here from Hershey, Pennslyvania, the night after our wedding at the beginning of this month."

"The chocolate town?" asked Dr. Cortez.

Erica nodded, "Yes, and I'm grateful that I got out of Hershey because living in a town that smelled like chocolate all the time gave me all-day morning sickness."

"It eased up when moving here?" asked Dr. Cortez.

"Even if buying a Hershey bar or a pack of Reese Peanut Butter cups made me vomit when I opened up the package, the smell of the Pacific Ocean is much better than smelling chocolate all day," said Erica.

"I can imagine," said Dr. Cortez.

"This was my husband's and my first time seeing the ocean, and we both love it. Evan's excited about living near the ocean when he finishes Navy Reserve training in October," said Erica.

"My husband's in the Navy himself, and he's currently stationed at sea while my two kids and I live here," said Dr. Cortez.

The kitten broke out of Dr. Cortez's hold, went to Erica, and jumped onto her lap, rubbing himself against her belly while Erica stroked the dirty kitten.

Erica looked at the kitten, who was giving her eyes that reminded her of a dog, "I guess you claimed me, Pickles. I'll take you home, get you cleaned up, and run you to the pet store to buy food, litter boxes, toys, and other supplies."

Dr. Cortez laughed, "Let's finish up."

After Pickles received his shots and an employee kindly bathed him, Erica drove him and herself to the pet store.

The second Tuesday after her husband left for training, Erica smiled when she noticed a letter from her husband in the mailbox. As soon as she entered the two-bedroom apartment, she greeted Pickles, who rubbed his body across her legs before fixing herself a cup of tea. When the tea was finished brewing, Erica grabbed some pickles and the jar of caramel sauce before she lay down on the couch she and Evan bought together. She opened the letter as Pickles jumped onto her baby bump and laid down on it.

Dear Erica,

Even if I got to talk to you for a few minutes when I was being processed to let you know I made it; I want you to know that I miss you and our unborn twins a lot. I'm pleased to tell you that I made it through my first week at boot camp. I've befriended a few other recruits, who Christened me as Buck during downtime because Buckley was a mouthful to them, while there were a few others named Evan, too. I kind of like it, so I'm going to call myself Buck because I hate how my egg donor, sperm donor, and Maddie called me Evan, even if you, your parents, and siblings call me Evan in a loving way. With your middle name being Ayala and it meaning Gazelle, I'm thinking about my unique nickname for you being Gazelle for you.

How are our twins doing? I know that at 16 weeks, they should start hearing our voices, which makes me grateful that I recorded myself reading multiple children's books while you covered reading the Bible aloud to them. Are there any new crazy pregnancy cravings yet? Please let me know how your 16-week check-up went.

Even if I had gotten to see the Pacific Ocean for two weeks before it was time to fly to Chicago, I'm missing the ocean and can't wait to see the ocean again when I come home.

I got to go, and I love you and our twins so much. I'll see you in seven weeks.

Love,

Evan 'Buck' Buckley

A week later, Evan smiled as he saw that he got a letter from Erica during mail call before he opened it up.

Dear, Buck.

I laughed out loud and peed my pants after I wrote 'Dear, Buck' because the word dear is a homophone for deer, and a male deer is known as a buck. I know how much you dislike your first name based on how your egg donor, sperm donor, and Maddie called you Evan, so I'll be glad to call you Buck while you'll be the only one to call me Gazelle.

The twins and I miss you so much. My 16-week check-up went well, and my new OB-GYN was pleased about the progress our twins are making in their growth and that I'm taking care of myself and the twins after I mentioned you left for boot camp.

Speaking of nicknames, Buck or Gazelle, our nicknames for each other, made me think of some beautiful first names with animal name meanings that can serve as nicknames. For girls, I've been thinking about Melissa, Ava, Delphine, Beverly, and Vanessa, which means honeybee, birdlike, beaver stream, and butterfly in that order. For boys, I've been thinking about Callum, Arthur, Conan, Drake, Leon, and Jonah, which means dove, bear-like, wolf, duck/dragon, lion, and dove again. I also love the name Catherine for a girl, and even if it means 'pure,' we could call her Kitty and eventually Cat as a nickname. The idea of naming our kids with names with animal-themed nicknames like our last name and my middle name already made me order a sign saying WELCOME TO OUR ZOO from Amazon. I know we're not going to go with any names that mean 'pearl' because your egg donor's name means 'pearl.'

I enclosed a picture of a stowaway who got through the open driver's seat window that I found in the backseat of my car when I was leaving to run to the grocery store for the pickles with vanilla frosting I've been craving. I decided to keep the stowaway when I found out it was a stray following a trip to the vet and to help me with loneliness when I'm not spending time with my parents and Alice. I already talked to the landlord who approved cats, so please meet our new Abyssinian cat, Pickles. I've had Pickles for three days now, and he loves sprawling out on my baby bump while I've caught him lying on an unwashed shirt that you left on the floor. Pickles reminds me so much of you with the mischief he has caused the past three days, and I know he'll be a great addition to our family.

After learning that you were missing the ocean, I went to the beach and took pictures of some spectacular sunsets for you. When you come home, we'll spend the day at the beach.

I will close off this letter before I write too long of a letter.

Love, 

Erica Buckley

Buck smiled when he saw a picture of Erica lying on the couch with a blue Abyssinian cat on top of her growing baby bump. A photo of a smiling Erica, who was in a sun dress with her, standing in ankle-length water of the Pacific Ocean with the sunset behind her as she cradled her 16-week baby bump.

Another recruit named Jeremy looked at Buck, "A letter from your wife?" asked Jeremy.

Buck nodded, "She included a picture of a new addition to our family and a picture of her with the ocean in the background."

Jeremy looked at the picture of Buck's pregnant wife with a kitten on her baby bump, "That's a blue Abyssinian. I had one growing up."

"Erica rescued him while she was out buying pickles and frosting to ease her pregnancy cravings, so she named him Pickles," said Buck.

Jeremy laughed, "Reminds me of Stu, DiDi, Tommy, and Dill Pickles."

"I didn't get to watch Rugrats until I was seven and met my wife and be at her house to play with her and her twin brother. We'd be watching cartoons when it was raining outside," said Buck.

"You're not mad your wife adopted a cat without your permission?" asked Jeremy.

Buck shook his head, "I've always wanted a pet growing up, but my donors said no. Erica and her family didn't have a pet either because they were busy with sports, dance classes, and church."

"Church?" asked Jeremy.

"My father-in-law was the minister of my childhood Episcopalian church until he decided to follow us to San Diego so he and my mother-in-law could help Erica out," said Buck.

"Ahh," said Jeremy.

Buck's second letter to Erica

Erica smiled as she read her following weekly letter from her husband.

My precious Gazelle.

This letter has helped me deal with homesickness away from you and the little cubs we're expecting together. This past week has been exhausting with all the bookwork and physical training I'm doing, but I am grateful I love doing research and have been active throughout my childhood and teenage years.

I love the names Melissa, Ava, Vanessa, and Catherine because I can imagine myself calling our daughters my sweet honeybee, birdie, butterfly, or Kitty. For sons, I love the names Callum, Conan, Leon, and Drake because I'd be calling him or his twin brother Dove, Wolfie, Lion, or Duckie as a nickname.

I laughed as you told me the story about how you acquired Pickles in your life, and I'm grateful you rescued a kitten because I was thinking about getting a cat for us myself. He's adorable, and I'm excited to meet the newest member of our family when I'm finally allowed to come home.

Even though I'm eating a lot during breakfast, lunch, and dinner to keep my energy up after a day of training, I miss your and your mother's cooking.

Speaking of your family, I appreciate their letters and will happily get more letters from them.

Love,

Buck

Erica's second letter to her husband

Dear, Buck,

I'm grateful you're accepting the addition of Pickles to our family. He has helped me deal with my loneliness when I'm not spending time with my parents and sister. I miss you a lot, but I'm not asking you to quit training for the Navy because I know you've been interested in joining the Navy ever since you were approached by recruiters who told you about the Navy and Navy SEALs and took the ASVAB test and scored pretty high. Even if it means you are missing out on most of my pregnancy, the delivery of our twins, and even a couple of months of their lives due to boot camp, deployment, or any further training, I'm documenting the pregnancy by having my mother take pictures of my baby bump once a week, journaling the pregnancy.

Speaking of cooking, my mother, Alice, and I are already planning a big welcome-home meal for your future return.

Dad's already a minister at his new Episcopalian church, and I became a member. Even if he mentioned that he'll be staying in San Diego until you, the twins, and I move to a different city; everyone seems to like him so far. They're not judging me for being pregnant with twins at 18 while you're at boot camp for the Navy when I was asked where you were. There are a bunch of servicemen from the Navy who attend the church with their wives, girlfriends, and kids.

I've been taking it easy while going for walks and swimming, and my latest craving has been zucchini covered in peanut butter.

Buck's third letter to his wife

My beautiful Gazelle,

I'm sorry that this letter's short, but I've been busy and tired from training.

I'm happy you're enjoying your father's new church, and I'm looking forward to meeting the people you've befriended.

That craving sounds gross, and I've been talking to other recruits who also have kids or are expecting a baby about weird pregnancy cravings. I won't list them because I don't want to give you an idea to try them out.

Love, Buck

Erica's fourth letter to her husband

Buck,

I had my 20-week ultrasound, and our little cubs are growing safely in my womb and developing on schedule. I firmly told my OB-GYN that I refuse to find out the genders without you present. Mom and Alice were disappointed when I told them I was going to this appointment alone so no one could pressure me or the tech to find out the genders or study the screen themselves and yell out the genders. I was told that if I don't deliver by 38 weeks, I'll be getting an induction or emergency c-section if one or both are breech. I'm praying that your weekend away won't be at the time my water breaks, labor gets induced, go through a planned c-section, or go through an emergency c-section.

One of the biggest milestones in this pregnancy was when I finally felt the babies kick, and boy, did I cry when they kicked the first time because I was sad about not being here to miss their first kicks. At least you'll finally feel them kick when I attend your graduation from boot camp next month.

Alice started freshman year of high school, and she's been hanging out with the other freshman girls from our church at school. She even made some friends in her ballet class.

Isaac is enjoying himself in New York City. He had already started dating a student named Jane, who had just begun attending another university in Manhattan to become a dental hygienist. They met when they bumped into each other while running in Central Park, and Isaac treated Jane for coffee as an apology for causing her to skin her knees. If they're still dating, Isaac will bring Jane to San Diego by Thanksgiving or Christmas. Isaac said he hoped to be married before he became an Episcopalian minister, so maybe Jane would be the one because he sounded very smitten with Jane when we Skyped.

Buck's fifth letter to Erica

My precious Gazelle,

Even if I'll be home soon, I've been feeling homesick since I read in your latest letter that the twins kicked for the first time.

I know that Isaac is dating because he told me about Jane in his last letter. After all, your parents and siblings sent me letters, too. Based on what Isaac told me, Jane seems lovely. I know he was upset when his girlfriend Louisa broke up with him due to not wanting to continue dating and possibly marry a future Episcopalian priest. Some recruits stopped talking to me when I mentioned I'm married to a daughter of my childhood Episcopalian minister.

Speaking of Episcopalian ministers, your father is pleased that I make sure to attend services given by the Episcopalian chaplain who offers services to fellow recruits who are Episcopalians like us.

Reading that our little cubs had finally kicked made me struggle not to cry in front of fellow recruits, so I ended up talking to the Episcopalian chaplain who also counsels recruits. He reminded me I'm almost finished because I'm only in boot camp for eight weeks.

I have to get going so I can make my scheduled therapy appointment. I love you and the babies.

Love, Buck

When Buck finished boot camp for the Navy Reserve and flew home to San Diego, he was greeted at the baggage claim by Erica, Reverend Ryan, Tina, and Alice, holding a sign saying WELCOME HOME, BUCK!

Buck set his carry-on on the ground and hugged and kissed his 23-week pregnant wife as his eyes widened when he felt two kicks.

Erica laughed, "It seems like they're welcoming their Daddy home."

"It's good to be home until I attend my next weekend training session," said Buck.

"It's alright," said Erica.

"I don't know about you, but let's go to my house where I have a welcome home dinner waiting for you in a crock pot," said Tina.

Buck nodded, "Let's go."

Reverend Ryan picked up his son-in-law's duffle bag as Buck walked out of the airport with his arm wrapped around Erica.

After having a delicious meal to welcome Buck home, Buck and Erica went to their apartment, where Buck met Pickles. When Pickles had enough time to bond with his new owner, Buck and Erica had a private celebration to welcome Buck home.

Chapter Text

At 5:30 P.M. on January 10th, 2011, 19-year-old Buck, who was gone for his monthly training weekend, returned home from the construction job he got two weeks after returning home from boot camp to help build a house as a way to get health insurance for him, Erica, and the twins while he also started working on a Masters degree in Emergency Management online thanks to transferring universities to a local university, "I'm home," called out Buck.

"In the kitchen," called out a pained Erica.

Fifteen-year-old Alice, who stayed with them after her parents had to rush to New York City on Sunday afternoon when her older brother got into a car accident on his way to the store to get some essentials, called out, "Erica's in labor, Buck."

Buck ran to the kitchen to find his 19-year-old, 36-week pregnant wife gripping the kitchen sink while her yoga pants were soaked, "Are you in labor, Erica?" asked Buck.

Erica nodded, "I've been having what I thought as Braxton hick contractions all day, but I guess the twins decided to welcome you home by deciding to break my water."

"And you didn't call your parents due to them visiting Isaac in New York City," said Buck.

Erica nodded, "Even if they've been helpful ever since I told them I'm pregnant, Isaac deserves time with them, too."

"Let's get you to the hospital," said Buck.

"With me trying natural, I just want to spend some time here until the contractions are closer together," said Erica.

"Alright," said Buck.

"I want to shower to clean up, though," said Erica. She looked at her sister, "Your parents already arranged with your friend Olivia's parents about you staying with them if I went into labor while they're in New York City. So please pack a bag."

Alice nodded, "I will after I mop up the kitchen floor."

Within a few minutes, Erica was sitting in a shower chair while she and her husband took a shower while Alice cleaned up the kitchen floor, grabbed her sister and brother-in-law's hospital bag, and packed a bag for her to stay with her friend Olivia.

At 11:45 P.M., Buck and Erica were in the delivery room.

Buck, who had attended Lamaze classes and did yoga with his wife throughout Erica's pregnancy, held his wife's hand as he coached her to push, "You can do it, my precious gazelle."

Erica, whose elbow-length brown hair was in a messy and sweaty ponytail, glared at her husband as sweat ran down her forehead. She snapped, "I don't feel like a precious gazelle right now, Evan."

Buck looked away when he realized his wife said his first name in a way his egg donor and even Maddie would say it.

Dr. Tracy Matthews looked at her patient's husband, "Those are the hormones talking, Buck."

Buck used the washcloth he was given to wipe his wife's sweat, "I know because Erica told me that she might say hurtful things like my egg donor did."

After pushing for another ten minutes, a sound of cries sounded in the delivery room.

"Congratulations, Mommy and Daddy. Baby A is a beautiful baby girl," said Dr. Matthews.

Buck and Erica grinned at each other as tears streamed down their face.

"Born at 11:56 P.M.," said a nurse.

Buck laughed, "It seems like the twins will have different birthdays."

Dr. Matthews continued holding Baby Girl Buckley as she looked at Buck, "Do you want to cut the cord, Daddy?" asked Dr. Matthews.

"Yes," said Buck.

Within a minute, Buck was shown where to cut on the clamped umbilical cord as his daughter was placed in his arms. He looked at his daughter, "You're perfect, Kitty."

"I take it you already picked out her first name?" asked Erica.

Buck nodded, "Katherine Audrey Buckley, but with the spelling with a K instead of a C so she could be called Katie and even Kate by her sibling and future classmates if Katherine is a mouthful for them."

Erica thought about the baby name book she had read, "Pure Noble Strength."

Buck nodded, "Kitty deserves a strong name."

"I love it," said Erica before groaning in pain. She looked at her doctor, "I need to push again."

"I guess Katherine's twin is impatient," laughed Dr. Matthews.

A nurse quickly took Katherine from her father as Buck resumed his place on the stool.

Fifteen minutes later, another screaming baby made itself known in the delivery room.

"Congrats, Mommy and Daddy. You two have a son," said Dr. Matthews.

"Born on January 11th at 12:13 A.M.," said a nurse who announced Katherine's time, too.

"This is the first time I ever delivered twins on two separate days," said Dr. Matthews. She looked at Buck, who was grinning and glowing with happiness, "Want to cut this cord, too?" asked Dr. Matthews.

"Yes, please," said Buck.

Erica smiled as she watched her husband cut the umbilical cord that connected their son to her as he told their son that he was perfect, too, "One of each until we're ready to have another baby when Kitty and Wolfie become older siblings."

"Wolfie?" asked Dr. Matthews.

"Ethan Conan Buckley. Ethan has various meanings, such as strong, firm, and enduring, while Conan means wolf," said Erica.

"Strong wolf," said Buck.

"Good strong name," said Dr. Matthews.

"Unless he's in trouble and in school, he'll be called Wolfie," said Erica.

"With our nicknames, the four of us will be Buck, Gazelle, Kitty, and Wolfie," said Buck.

Dr. Matthews laughed, "It seems like your household is going to be called a zoo."

Erica smirked, "We already got a sign on the door to our apartment saying WELCOME TO OUR ZOO, and neighbors have laughed when we mentioned our nicknames and that we're naming our twins with a first or middle name with an animal meaning to call them as a nickname."

"Very creative, but let's have you deliver the placentas and get cleaned up," said Dr. Matthews.

Erica looked at her husband, who was looking towards where Katherine and Ethan were getting looked over, "Go be with Katherine and Ethan while I deliver the placentas and get cleaned up."

Buck went over to his wife and kissed her lips, "I love you, Gazelle. Thank you for giving me a family that will love and cherish me."

Erica smiled as she linked pinkies with her husband, "I love you, too, Buck."

Before Buck could walk away, Erica called out, "Buck."

"Yes?" asked Buck.

"Even if I snapped at you multiple times ever since my water broke, I don't mean anything harsh I said to you," said Erica.

"I know because you asked me not to take anything you said to heart," said Buck.

Two hours after giving birth, Buck and Erica lay in Erica's hospital bed, where Buck held Katherine and Erica held Ethan, following Ethan and Katherine's feeding and burping.

Erica removed the knitted hats from Ethan and Katherine's heads to look at their hair, "Look at their blonde hair. I'm hoping they inherit your curls."

Buck ran a hand through his wife's brown hair, "Even if Katherine and Ethan both inherited my birthmark, I'm hoping Katherine ends up with your hair color when hers and Ethan's hair color change."

"Instead of being a dark blonde like yours?" asked Erica.

Buck nodded, "You've seen my hair darken over the years."

"Even if my eyes are brown like my father's, I'm hoping Kitty and Wolfie end up with your blue eyes," said Erica. Her eyes widened, "I forgot to call my parents to tell them what's happening."

Buck laughed as he thought about him and Erica dropping off his wife's 15-year-old sister at her friend Olivia's house so she could still go to school, "When I called Alice on her phone at 9:30 to check on her, she told me she already called your parents to let them know that you're in labor. I took and sent them pictures before we were brought into this room, and they told me they're catching a flight at 5 A.M. Eastern time."

"With it being 2:30 A.M., that means they're in the air right now," said Erica.

Buck nodded, "They are, Gazelle."

A nurse entered the room, "With it being 2:30 A.M. and knowing that Ethan and Katherine are fed and burped, why don't I take them to the nursery so you two can get some rest."

Buck kissed Ethan and Katherine on the forehead, "Daddy loves you two so much."

"Mommy will see you two in a couple of hours," said Erica.

A few minutes later, Buck, wearing a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, settled on the extended couch he had pulled out before looking at his wife, "I love you, my precious Gazelle."

"I love you too, Buck," said Erica.

When Tina and Reverend Ryan got off their flight, they turned on their phones and grinned when they saw a picture message from their son-in-law.

CONGRATULATIONS, GRANDMA AND GRANDPA; YOU TWO HAVE A GRANDSON AND A GRANDDAUGHTER. NAMES WILL BE REVEALED WHEN YOU TWO COME TO VISIT.

Tina smiled at her husband, "I just knew that Erica and Buck were going to be having a boy and a girl."

At 10 A.M., Erica and Buck had just finished feeding and burping their son and daughter when a knock sounded on the door.

"Come in," said Buck.

Within a few seconds, Erica grinned when she saw her parents, "Mom. Dad."

Reverend Ryan smiled at his daughter, "You look beautiful, Pumpkin."

Erica smiled, "Thank you, Dad."

"I can't believe that over 19 years after holding you and Isaac, I'm a grandmother to twins," said Tina.

"Even if Katherine was born at 11:56 P.M. and Ethan was born at 12:13 A.M.," said Erica.

"Katherine and Ethan?" asked Reverend Ryan.

"Katherine Audrey Buckley and Ethan Conan Buckley, who will be affectionally called Kitty and Wolfie by Buck and me while others can call her Katie, Kate, or Katherine," said Erica.

"We decided Katherine with a K," added Buck.

Tina laughed, "Love the names."

"I know my egg and sperm donor don't like nicknames and called their former students by their full name instead of shortening their names when their students asked, but I don't care because Kitty and Wolife are my and Erica's kids and we get to pick their names and call them what we want," said Buck.

Reverend Ryan smiled at his son-in-law, "I'm proud of you for your progress since your first therapy appointment in July."

"There's times I have self-doubt, but I know moving to the opposite side of the country helped me," said Buck.

"It did, and I know that Erica, Isaac, and Alice being friends with you over the years helped you, too," said Reverend Ryan.

"Even if I ended up dating, knocking up, and marrying Erica?" asked Buck.

"Since the day you introduced yourself to Erica, I knew you would end up as my son-in-law someday," said Reverend Ryan.

"How's Isaac doing? He hasn't responded to our text messages or Skype calls," said Erica.

"He has a nasty concussion and a broken arm, so he's in the hospital until tomorrow. He'll Skype as soon as he can handle looking at a screen, but he's excited about being Uncle Isaac," said Tina.

"When Alice called, Isaac told us to get to you two," said Reverend Ryan.

"Even if we missed the births," said Tina.

"How does it feel being a father?" asked Reverend Ryan.

"Even if I'm afraid of messing up, I'm pleased about being a father now," said Buck.

"No parent is perfect, Buck," said Reverend Ryan.

"I know," said Buck. He thought about his sperm donor, "Even if I haven't talked to him since the morning of my wedding, have you talked to him?" asked Buck.

"Your father?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Buck nodded, "Yes."

"We email each other once a month to update each other. He moved to Portland, Maine, last month and has changed his phone number and email address due to Margaret and Maddie constantly calling him, but I didn't email him to tell him that yours and Erica's twins were born," said Reverend Ryan.

"Ryan, Isaac, Alice, and I even changed our numbers and unfriended and blocked Margaret and Maddie from Facebook like you two. Margaret and Maddie can't even like or be part of the group for the church's Facebook page that Erica moderates for us," said Tina.

"Even if I don't want him in Kitty and Wolfie's lives, I should probably let him know they're here," said Buck.

"Are you sure?" asked Erica.

"I've worked on forgiving him during therapy, but I can't forget because he enabled his ex-wife for 17 years," said Buck.

Meanwhile, in Portland, Maine, 57-year-old Phillip Buckley was drinking a mug of hot chocolate as the fireplace in the two-bedroom house he bought was warming the house with fire as it snowed heavily outside. He was watching the news while looking something up on his laptop when he got an incoming Skype call from Reverend Ryan Evans on the Skype account he got at his therapist for when bad weather would keep him from getting out of the house to his appointment. He quickly accepted the call, "Hello Reverend Evans."

"It seems like life in Maine is doing well for you, Phillip," said Reverend Ryan.

"Looks like you got a tan in California," said Phillip. He then noticed that the background was in a hospital room, "Why are you in the hospital?" asked Phillip.

"We're finally grandparents now, and someone wants to talk to you," said Reverend Ryan.

Within a few seconds, his son's face came into view.

"Hi," said Buck.

"Hello, Buck," said Phillip.

"I take it Ryan told you I go by Buck now?" asked Buck.

Phillip nodded, "Yes, and I don't care that you're calling yourself Buck because I know you disliked how you were called Evan by your mother, sister, and me."

"Thank you for accepting my chosen name," said Buck.

Phillip noticed his son had bulked up; he developed a tan, while his blue eyes sparkled with happiness. "It looks like moving to California did you some good. Even if your wife and in-laws made you happy, you look happier than ever."

"Moving to San Diego was something I needed because it's a much-needed distance, and I'm somewhere sunny, warm, and near the ocean that I fell in love with. I'm working as a construction worker when I'm not away for once-a-month weekend training for the Navy Reserve. When not working and spending time with Erica and my in-laws, I've been working out, taking surfing lessons, and even learning how to cook so I don't have to rely on Erica cooking all the time before she went on bed rest," said Buck.

"I'm glad you're happy and enjoying yourself," said Phillip.

The screen showed Erica sitting in a hospital bed, "Hello, Phillip."

"Hello, Erica," said Phillip.

Buck's face reappeared, "I want you to meet two people."

The screen moved to show a baby girl in a pink hat sharing a bassinet with a baby in a blue cap, "Meet Katherine (With a K) Audrey Buckley and Ethan Conan Buckley. Erica and I have been calling Katherine 'Kitty' since her birth at 11:56 P.M. last night and Ethan 'Wolfie' since his birth at 12:13 A.M. this morning."

"Only Buck and I will call the kids Kitty and Wolfie, but Katherine can go by Kate or Katie if she wants, too," said Erica.

"I do love their names because I recall that Katherine Audrey means pure, noble strength, and Ethan Conan means strong/enduring/firm wolf," said Phillip.

"You're not going to say anything about the nicknames we gave them?" asked Buck.

"They're your kids, and you're allowed to name them what you want and give them special nicknames as terms of endearment," said Phillip.

Katherine and Ethan opened up their eyes.

Phillip teared up as he took in Katherine and Ethan's blue eyes and birthmarks from his laptop screen, "They're beautiful and look so much like you down to their birthmarks, Buck."

"I don't consider them the mark of the devil like my egg donor might consider like she called mine, but I belive that they're kisses from Daniel," said Buck.

Phillip teared up again, "Knowing Daniel, he gave them permanent kisses . He loved kissing your own birthmark until he passed away."

"And now he's Buck, Kitty, and Wolfie's guardian angel," said Erica.

"Exactly," said Phillip.

After talking for a couple of minutes, Phillip hung up as he cried.

Chapter Text

August 15th, 2017, Los Angeles, California

Buck, Erica, and six-year-old twins Katherine and Ethan just finished unpacking the fully renovated single-level six-bedroom and four-bath house they bought in March of 2016 while living in a two-bedroom and two-bath apartment when they moved to LA in July of 2015. They couldn't move into their new house right away due to a complete renovation being needed in the living room, dining room, sunroom, den, kitchen, all six bedrooms, all four bathrooms with new floors, counters, sinks, toilets, tubs, showers, walls needing fixing, a new AC, water heater, and heater needing to be installed, and even the stucco walls outside the house needed a fresh coat of paint and the roof needing replacing. Between shifts at the 132, Buck put a lot of work into renovating the house with the help of his coworkers and even a few members at the Episcopal church Reverend Ryan is now preaching at. Reverend Ryan and Tina decided to move to LA with their eldest daughter, son-in-law, and two eldest grandchildren to Los Angeles due to realizing how empty their three-bedroom house was following Alice's leaving for college in Montana in 2014. They found a four-bedroom house. Alice had decided to become a social worker for Child Protection Services so she could work towards giving kids a safe and stable home that wouldn't be physically or even emotionally abused by their parents. A now 21-year-old Alice was already dating the 22-year-old son of a ranch hand named Leon, who had allowed the Buckley family to visit, ride horses, go camping, and go on hikes.

Between renovating the house, Katherine and Ethan attended preschool and kindergarten at the YMCA and then a public school before they got accepted to start attending Durand for the 2017-2018 school year, which they started their first day of first grade the day before and already love their new elementary school despite hating that they have to wear uniforms. Erica earned her Juris Doctor within two years instead of three and started working as a child advocacy attorney two months ago.

Erica, who had yet to tell the kids that she was expecting their new little brother or sister, smiled at her husband, who was hanging the family and individual portraits of them that were done at the beach two months ago. Katherine and Ethan enjoyed getting their dress or khaki pants wet as they sat in the ocean or stood in knee-length water. After the photographer took pictures of the family of four in all the combinations that could be thought of, Katherine and Ethan were allowed to splash around in the shallow area in their wet clothes. She and Buck joined in while the photographer decided to take a final picture of the family of four engaging in a splash war. "I'm glad we could finally move into this house, Buck."

Buck nodded, "It was nice buying this house outright for $800,000, and then we used my trust fund to fix the house on my days off from the 132."

Erica thought about her husband now having over $4,000,000 left in his $7,000,000 trust fund despite the trips they've taken to Montana in the spring and fall to visit her sister or even to Colorado, where her twin brother, who's now an Episcopalian Reverend decided to call home with his wife Jane, three-year-old son Matthew, and 16-month-old son Benjamin, "Even if we took trips to visit Isaac, Alice, Oregon, Arizona, Canada, Peru, Disneyland, Disneyworld, and a few other areas the past six years, we managed to budget that we still have quite a bit of your trust fund left to pay for Durand and have some future family vacations."

Six-year-old Katherine Buckley, who now had long armpit-length wavy blonde hair, her father's big blue eyes, a birthmark that matched her father's, her mother's facial features, and her father's big 'Buckley grin', and was excelling in swimming, surfing, and gymnastics looked at her parents, "I'm finally happy to have my own bedroom after sharing with Ethan since we were babies. I already made friends with my classmate Nicole today, and I want to have a no-boys-allowed slumber party with Nicole and any other friends I make."

Erica chuckled at her daughter, "Your father and I planned you'd eventually get your own bedroom, Kitty."

Ethan was a replica of his father, except for inheriting his mother's brown hair, which he didn't gel up daily like his father did with his own curls. Ethan loves swimming, surfing, getting on a skateboard, and playing soccer as his chosen sport to participate in.

"Are you happy about having your own room now, Wolfie?" asked Erica.

Ethan grinned, "I can't wait to have friends sleep over with no girls allowed in my room."

Katherine looked at her parents, "Now that we're living in an acutal house with a backyard and has room for an office for Mommy and a home gym for Daddy, can I please have a baby sister?" asked Katherine.

Ethan glared at his sister, "I want a little brother."

"You two will have to wait about another nine to 29 weeks to find out if you're getting a little brother or sister," said Erica.

Katherine and Ethan's eyes widened.

"We're getting a baby brother or sister?" asked Katherine.

"I'm 11 weeks pregnant, and the baby will be born in the beginning of March," said Erica.

Buck nodded, "Mommy told me a few weeks ago."

"Yay!" cheered Katherine and Ethan.

"Since I have to be at the 132 in three hours, let's head to the grocery store so we can buy groceries to get us through until my next day off, and then we'll stock up," said Buck.

"Do seperate vehicles to be safe?" asked Erica.

Buck nodded, "That's what I'm planning."

Katherine, a Daddy's girl since birth, looked at her twin brother and said, "Dibs on riding with Daddy."

"What if I want to ride with Daddy?" asked Ethan.

"You both can ride with me, but then you two are riding home with Mommy and helping her carry in groceries," said Buck.

Katherine and Ethan ran over to their seven-year-old cat, Pickles. They said goodbye to him before they went outside with their parents and buckled themselves into their booster seats inside the backseat of their father's Jeep Wrangler. Their father inspected the seat belt and harnessed the twins because the top of his Jeep had been removed.

Buck then harnessed himself into the driver's seat before pulling out of the driveway with Erica following him in her Jeep Liberty.

Bobby Nash was grocery shopping when he saw a boy and a girl with curly blonde or brown hair and big blue eyes. Both kids' white skin complexion showed that the twins spent a lot more time outdoors than indoors, and around their right eyebrows, there was some red mark that wouldn't be black eyes.

The little girl, who was wearing an overall dress and a pink t-shirt underneath with pink Converse sneakers while her blonde hair was pulled into two French braids, looked at her twin brother, who was three inches taller than her, "When we walked away from Mommy and Daddy, they were looking to choose a box of lasagna to make for dinner tomorrow, Wolfie."

The little boy wearing denim shorts and a t-shirt with a Dalmatian and a fire hat on it with red Converse sneakers looked at his sister, "Mommy and Daddy could have left without us, Kitty."

Bobby approached the two kids, "Excuse me, did you two wander away from your parents?" asked Bobby.

The little girl turned to look at Bobby with a determined look in her blue eyes while crossing her arms, "Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, and Grandpa told us we're not allowed to talk to strangers, sir."

Bobby looked at Katherine and Ethan and noticed the flash of mischief in Katherine's and Ethan's eyes that reminded him of Brooke, "It's good that you two know not to talk to strangers, but I'm a fire captain."

Katherine looked at Bobby, "Are you lying, sir?" asked Katherine.

Ethan remained silent while he held his twin sister's hand.

Bobby pulled out his wallet to show a picture of him with his teammates, "Those are the firefighters and paramedics who work under me at the 118. Let me help you two find your parents."

Ethan's eyes widened, "Daddy worked as a firefighter in San Deigo for three years before we moved here in 2015 so Mommy could go to law school and Daddy work B-shift at the 132. We just moved into a new house that Daddy spent two years fixing up."

Katherine punched her twin brother's arm, "Don't talk to strangers, Ethan."

"Mommy said hands are for helping and not hurting, Katherine," said Ethan.

"Your brother is right about hands are for helping and not hurting," said Bobby.

Then a voice sounded on the overhead speaker, "Six-year-old twins named Katherine and Ethan Buckley missing in the store. Katherine is wearing an overall dress with a pink t-shirt and could be called Kitty by her twin brother, and Ethan is wearing denim shorts with a PAW Patrol shirt with Marshall on it and might be called Wolfie."

"I guess your parents are looking for you," said Bobby.

"KATHERINE! ETHAN!" called out a man.

Ethan looked up and noticed the aisle he was in, "WE'RE HERE WITH A FIRE CAPTAIN, DADDY!" shouted Ethan as he included the aisle.

Within a minute, Bobby noticed a muscular and tattooed man with dark blonde hair that was slicked up, mark around his left eyebrow that matched the Buckley twins, jeans, sneakers, and an LAFD t-shirt. Looking at the young man, he thought about how Robbie could have looked like the man if he had made it to adulthood.

"Katherine! Ethan!" exclaimed the man.

"Daddy!" called out Katherine and Ethan as they ran to their father.

The man quickly scooped up a twin in each arm and peppered their faces with kisses, "What did Mommy and I tell you two about wandering away in the store?" asked the man sternly yet gently.

"That Mommy won't take us out for a Happy Meal and ice cream if we wander off," said Ethan.

"Exactly," said the man. He then looked at the store clerk, who followed him and nodded as the man spoke in the walkie-talkie, and within a few seconds, a voice sounded over the intercom.

"Katherine and Ethan are safe with a parent. Thank you everyone," said the voice.

Bobby looked at the man, "I'm Bobby Nash. I found your twins and stayed with them until you found them."

"I'm Evan Buckley, but I go by Buck," said Buck.

Ethan grinned at his father, "Captain Bobby is a fire captain at the 118."

Buck perked up, "He is?" asked Buck.

"I'm Captain for A-shift at the 118, and I moved here from Minnesota last year," said Bobby.

"Nice. My wife and I are originally from Pennsylvania, but we moved to San Diego seven years ago. Then my wife, kids, and I moved here two years ago so Erica could attend law school," said Buck.

Bobby looked at Buck, "Your son mentioned you're a firefighter, too."

Buck nodded, "I've been one for five years now. Three years in San Diego and the past two years working B-shift at the 132 after I completed a hybird course at the Academy to learn LAFD regulations, protocals, and pass their fitness tests."

"Daddy broke records during those tests," said Katherine.

Buck smirked, “Records that no one else broke yet.”

"Impressive," said Bobby.

"Now I'm looking for a transfer because my wife, kids, and I just moved to this area due to Kitty and Wolfie starting first grade at a private school we fell in love with yesterday," said Buck.

Bobby nodded, "I see."

Buck looked between Katherine and Ethan, "We should catch up with Mommy because I have to get to the 132 for a 12-hour night shift."

"No need to catch up," said Erica as she hurried over while pushing a cart.

"I'm sorry for wandering off, Mommy," said Katherine.

"Me, too," said Ethan.

"I already told them no rare Happy Meal or ice cream today," said Buck.

"Even if I'm the bad cop parent, good," said Erica.

Buck looked at Bobby, "Captain Nash, this is my wife Erica."

Bobby looked at the young woman who was wearing dark gray dress pants and a white short-sleeved button-up blouse while her long brown hair was pulled into a ponytail, "Nice to meet you, Erica,"

"Captain Bobby stay with us until Daddy came," said Ethan.

"Thank you," said Erica. She looked at her husband, "If you haven't noticed the time, we have to check out so you can make it to work on time."

Buck nodded, "Let's get going."

Within a few minutes, Buck, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan were checking out before Buck helped load the groceries into the backseat of his wife's Jeep. After buckling in the kids and kissing his wife and kids goodbye, Buck was heading to the 132 in his Jeep.

During his next shift at the 118, Bobby logged into the LAFD system on his laptop, where he found Evan Buckley's digital file and pulled it up.

Bobby read that Evan Buckley was 25 years old, married, a father to six-year-old twins, and active at the Episcopalian church, where his father-in-law is the minister at. Buck will help with maintenance, daycare, and even youth groups on his days off. Buck worked for the San Diego Fire Department from 2012 to 2015 while being in the Navy Reserves from 2010 to 2014 before an injury during deployment in Afghanistan got him an honorable discharge in 2014. He noticed that the young firefighter had certifications for swift water, confined space, rope, heavy, and various other rescues and was Advanced EMT certified. Regarding education, Buckley, who played multiple sports from kindergarten through high school, had graduated high school in Hershey, PA, with honors. For college, Buck has earned a Master's degree in emergency management and is now working on a bachelor's degree in fire science. Past careers even involved construction jobs. Buck has been in therapy since July 2010 and still goes to therapy once a month unless there's a bad call on the job. There was also a note that his mother, Margaret Buckley, wasn't allowed within 500 feet of him, Erica, Katherine, Ethan, and even Buck's in-laws, and police were to be contacted if she showed up. Letters of recommendation from Buck's former Captain in San Diego and current Captain at the 132 stated that Buckley could have moments of recklessness when a teammate is in peril, but he's calm under pressure, knows how to cook, helps distract children and patients during calls, and is very protective of children.

Hen went over to Bobby and noticed the impressed face on her Captain's face, "What are you looking at with an impressed look on your face?" asked Hen.

"You know I originally planned on getting a probationary firefighter from the Academy following graduation in two weeks?" asked Bobby.

Hen nodded, "With you transferring Sal last year and Tommy soon transferring to the 217, you need to get two heavy rescue assets within the next year."

"He's not a current trainee at the Academy, but I found someone who'd be a good fit for what we need," said Bobby as he made the information about Buckley's wife and kids disappear.

Hen looked at Bobby's laptop and read the information, "That's quite the impressive jacket he got there. He's dedicated to the job if he got all of these cerficiations, multiple comdemations and medals for his service, and has a Master's degree in emergency mangament and is working on a bachelors in fire science."

Bobby nodded, "I only pulled up his file after meeting him at the grocery store the other day. We talked for a couple of minutes before he had to leave to make it to his shift at the 132 on time."

"Are you thinking about asking him if he wanted to transfer here if you pulled up his file?" asked Hen.

Bobby nodded, "I'm planning on asking him."

"Asking him to join the 118?" asked Chimney as he and Tommy joined Bobby and Hen.

"Looking for someone to replace me when I leave?" asked Tommy.

Bobby nodded, "While grocery shopping, I met a firefighter from the 132 who recently moved into our zone. He mentioned that he needed to transfer so he doesn't have to drive up to an hour or even longer to the 132, and I was able to look him up thanks to him giving me his name."

"Who?" asked Chimney.

"Firefighter Evan Buckley from B-shift at the 132," said Bobby.

Chimney looked at the picture of Evan Buckley to see a young smiling man with blonde hair, blue eyes, face looked tan from the California sun, broad shoulders, and a mark around his eyebrow, "He looks like one of those California frat boys who can be assholes."

Tommy, who thought the young firefighter looked adorable and was happy that he recently broke up with Abby Clark due to not wanting to hide his sexuality anymore, spoke up, "Don't say something like that about someone you don't know."

Bobby nodded, "Don't judge a book by their appearance. During the few minutes I talked to him, he turned out to be a sweet kid and very dedicated to this job based on his time in the San Diego Fire Department and at the 132 following his move here two years ago. He has a good head on his shoulder and has a good support system outside of work."

Tommy, who noticed Buckley is currently 25, spoke up, "Plus, none of us are getting any younger, so it makes sense that Bobby is looking for someone in their mid-20s to work in this firehouse. We can only handle rope rescues for so long, so I'm switching to becoming a firefighter pilot next week."

"Exactly," said Bobby.

A few hours later, Bobby decided to call Buck about an interview.

"Hello?" asked Buck.

"Evan Buckley?" asked Bobby.

"Your Captain Nash from the grocery store the other day. Captain Peterman contacted me earlier telling me to expect a call from you so I don’t ignore your call," said Buck.

"Good," said Bobby.

"Are you in need of a floater for a shift?" asked Buck.

"With you mentioning you're looking for a transfer, I looked into your file, talked to your past Captain in San Diego and current Captain at the 132, and told your possible future coworkers about you without mentioning your married and a father."

"You're offering me a position at the 118?" asked Buck.

"If you're willing to switch to A-shift at the 118, you could come over for a tour right now," said Bobby.

"Can it wait a few hours? I'm heading to Katie and Ethan's school to pull them out early for a dentist appointment. It's my day off, and out of Erica and my in-law's I'm the only one free to take my kids to the dentist," said Buck.

"You can come anytime after your kids dentist appointment," said Bobby.

"Would it be alright if I bring the kids with me? My wife’s busy with her newest case; my father-in-law is an Episcopalian Reverend and is busy composing a Mass for a congregant who passed away yesterday, and my mother-in-law is currently in Colorado visiting my brother-in-law and two nephews," said Buck.

"You can bring your kids with you," said Bobby.

"Thank you, and I'll call the number you just called me from when I'm leaving the dentist to let you know I'm on my way," said Buck.

After saying goodbyes, Bobby and Buck hung up.

Three hours later, Buck showed up at the 118 for a tour with Katherine and Ethan and found fire engines and an ambulance gone, but Bobby was waiting outside for him.

Ethan, excited about visiting the 118 when his father mentioned they were making a detour to meet with Captain Nash, grinned, "Captain Bobby!"

Katherine grinned at Bobby, "Hi, Captain, Bobby."

Bobby smiled at Katherine and Ethan, "Hello, Katherine and Ethan."

"Even if we met a few days ago, thank you for calling me about an opening," said Buck.

"When looking through your file, you have a skillset that would be good for this house," said Bobby.

Buck looked between Katherine and Ethan, "Even if you told me I could bring my kids, thank you."

Bobby looked at Katherine, who was in a short-sleeved light blue blouse and a navy blue jumper dress over her shirt, while Ethan was in khaki shorts and a light blue polo shirt, which made him realize that Buck's twins must be attending a private school, "You’re welcome, Firefighter Buckley."

"Please call me Buck," said Buck.

"Alright," said Bobby.

Buck, Katherine, Ethan, and Bobby entered the 118.

"Wow," said Katherine.

"This station looks more cool than the 132, Daddy," said Ethan.

Buck frowned when he saw the glass doors in the locker room but kept his mouth shut and motioned to Katherine and Ethan, who also noticed the glass walls, to keep their mouths shut as he listened to Bobby about the station before going up to the loft where Bobby kindly cut up some slices of pie for Katherine and Ethan when he heard their stomachs growl.

Buck looked around the kitchen and entertainment areas as he watched his twins eat pie at the kitchen island, "That's quite the kitchen and loft set up you got there."

Katherine swallowed her blueberry pie and grinned at Bobby, "We just got a new fridge, stove, counters, floor, and kitchen cabinets at our new house."

Ethan nodded, "Mommy and Daddy also bought a pasta maker so we could make our own pasta."

Bobby looked at Buck, "I read in your file that you know how to cook. Even if a few members from A-shift know how to cook a bit, I pretty much take care of cooking."

"Getting married at 18 and becoming a father at 19 can do that because I didn't want to leave my wife to cook all the meals or just fixing ourselves sandwiches or ordering takeout," said Buck.

"Mommy and Daddy found knives and peelers that don't cut us, so we can make meals together at home and at Grandma and Grandpa's house when we have Sunday dinner after church," said Katherine.

Bobby, who remembered Robbie and Brooke helping him, smiled a bit, "You two must be great at helping out in the kitchen."

Katherine grinned, "We help out with making cookies in the church kitchen so fresh cookies can be served after church."

"Grandpa Ryan is the preacher at our church," said Ethan.

Bobby nodded, "I know because I read that in your father's file, and your father told me over the phone earlier," said Bobby. He then looked at Buck, "Even if you haven't met other 118 members yet, what do you think about transferring here?" asked Bobby.

"Even if the glass walls in the locker room throws me off a bit, I'm in for transferring here. Junior high and high school helped me get rid of the modesty when changing for gym class, football practice, swim practice, and practice for other sports I participated in," said Buck.

"We do have an area where everyone starts getting dressed," said Bobby.

The sound of an engine and ambulance came pulling in, causing Katherine and Ethan to grin.

"Why don't we have you meet everyone before transfer paperwork can be started," said Bobby.

Katherine looked at Bobby, "Can I please go down the pole instead of going down the stairs?" asked Katherine.

"Can I please go down the pole, too?" asked Ethan.

Bobby chuckled, "Go ahead."

"Come right upstairs when you're done," said Buck.

As Katherine and Ethan ran towards the pole, Bobby looked at Buck, "Seems like your twins are quite the firecrackers."

Buck chuckled, "They're mischievous little shits like me, but I love them, and my wife loves the kids and me."

Buck's phone then rang, causing him to answer a call from Erica, who mentioned that she was home from work and wondering where he, Katie, and Ethan were. When Buck mentioned that he got called up by Captain Robert Nash from the 118, he agreed to show up for a tour, took the twins with him, and said he'd be leaving shortly. Before hanging up, Erica mentioned that she was craving blueberry pie, and Buck promised he'd bring her some blueberry pie home before hanging up.

Buck looked at Bobby, "Sorry about that. Erica got home from work wondering where the twins and I were."

"It's alright," said Bobby.

"I better go find where the twins snuck off to and get some blueberry pie Erica's craving," said Buck.

"Erica's craving blueberry pie?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "Erica's currently 11 weeks pregnant with our third child."

"Congratulations, and we can see about you taking a few weeks off after the baby's born," said Bobby. He got up and went to the fridge, "I can spare a slice of blueberry pie I made today for your wife."

Buck gave Bobby a grateful smile, "That would be great, Captain Nash."

"Since you agreed to accept my transfer offer, please call me Cap or Bobby," said Bobby.

Hen, Chimney, Tommy, and other firefighters got out of the engine and ambulance just as they saw a young boy with curly brown hair, khaki shorts, and a light blue polo shirt go down the pole before a little girl with long, wavy blonde hair, a light blue blouse, and a navy blue jumper dress go down the pole.

Both the young girl and boy gave each other a high five.

"That was fun, Kitty," said Ethan.

Katherine nodded, "We should thank Captain Bobby for letting us go down the pole after he gave Daddy and us a tour of the station, Wolfie."

"If Daddy's new coworkers are nice, we can invite them to our seventh birthday party in January," said Ethan.

"Even if I was born first before midnight on January 10th with you being born about 15 minutes later on January 11th," said Katherine.

"Even if we don't have the same birthday, we're still twins, Kitty," said Ethan.

"But I'm older than you, Wolfie," said Kitty.

Hen and Chimney looked at each other.

"I guess Firefighter Buckley has kids around Denny's age," said Hen.

Chimney nodded, "Fraternal twins with their own birthdays."

Tommy looked at the twins he considered adorable, "Where are your parents?" asked Tommy.

"Do you work here with Captain Bobby?" asked Ethan.

Tommy nodded, "Not for long because my last day is in a few days before I transfer."

"Daddy will be transferring here," said Katherine. She snapped her fingers, saying, "Mommy would scold me about my manners. My name is Katherine Buckley, but please call me Katie."

"I'm Ethan Buckley," said Ethan.

"We're six-year-old twins with our own birthdays," said Katherine.

"We're first graders, too," said Ethan.

Hen smiled, "I have a son named Denny who'll be seven in a few months and also in the first grade."

"Can I meet him? We can play soccer, board games and ride our bikes and skateboards together. Mommy and Daddy can take us and Kitty hiking, to the park, zoo, rock climbing gyms, bowling, and to the beach or pool, too," said Ethan.

"We also go to children's museums, gardens, and other places, too," said Katherine.

Chimney, who's a movie buff, spoke up, "No video games or watching movies?" asked Chimney.

"We do watch movies and have some video games to play, but Mommy, Daddy, Wolfie, and I like to be outside more than stay inside all day when Wolfie and I aren't at school, and Mommy and Daddy aren't working," said Katherine.

"No movies or video games on school nights, and we only watch movies or play a video game on Friday evenings," said Ethan.

Hen smiled as she realized that the Buckley twins play outside more than sit inside, play video games, and watch TV like Denny and his friend Harry Grant, "I'll exchange numbers with your father so a play date can be set up with Denny."

"While I'm Evan Buckley, and I'd love to arrange a playdate for Kitty and Wolfie to have with your son because we just moved to this area of Los Angeles for Kitty and Wolfie's new school," said Buck.

Hen, Chimney, and Tommy turned around to notice Bobby and the man they saw on Bobby's laptop, who was just around Bobby's height and had a gold wedding band on his left ring finger.

Tommy inwardly deflated when he realized the young, handsome firefighter was married.

"Firefighter Evan Buckley will be transferring here next week," said Bobby.

"Please call me, Buck. That's been my nickname since I was 18 and in boot camp and it stuck when I was working for the San Diego Fire Department and the 132 here in LA," said Buck.

Tommy perked up, "Boot camp?" asked Tommy.

"I served for the Navy Reserves for four years, and I did a nine-month tour in 2014 before I got an honorable discharge following an injury," said Buck.

"I'm Tommy Kinard. I was a pilot for the Army, which is your rival branch," said Tommy.

"Especially those Army vs Navy football games," said Buck.

"I'm Howard Han, but I go by Chimney. I'm a paramedic," said Chimney.

"Don't ask how he got the nickname because it's unsafe for little ears," said Hen. She grinned, "I'm Henrietta Wilson, but please call me Hen. I'm a firefighter paramedic."

Katherine, who was amazed about Hen being a firefighter paramedic, looked at Hen, "You have an animal-themed nickname like Mommy, Daddy, Wolfie, and me."

Buck grinned, "During letters I wrote with my wife during boot camp, I started calling my wife Gazelle because Erica’s middle name means Gazelle."

"We have a sign saying WELCOME TO OUR ZOO on our front door," said Katherine.

"And we're going to give our new little brother or sister a name that will include a name with a meaning that's the name of an animal," said Ethan.

"Ethan's middle name is Conan, which means wolf," said Buck.

"And Mommy and Daddy call me Kitty and Kat," said Katherine.

"Due to your name being Katherine with a K," said Buck. He looked at Katherine and Ethan, "Kitty and Wolfie, it's time to go. Mommy's waiting at home for us and decided to order pizza for dinner to reward you two for having no cavities."

"Yay!" cheered Katherine and Ethan.

"And Cap was nice enough to give us a parting gift of blueberry pie when your mother told me she and the baby want blueberry pie," said Buck. He looked at Hen, Chimney, and Tommy, "It's nice meeting you three, and I'll be working here on Monday."

Katherine and Ethan grinned.

"I hope you'd agree to work for this firehouse, Daddy," said Katherine.

"I like Captain Bobby, Daddy," said Ethan.

"I'll be at the 217 by then, but it's good to know that you'll be replacing me," said Tommy.

Hen and Chimney nodded as they watched Buck leave the station. He held Katherine's and Ethan's hands, and Katherine was honored to carry the pie container.

After watching Buck load his kids into his Jeep Wrangler and ensure their seat belts were secured, before pulling away, Hen smiled at her coworkers and said, "Katie and Ethan are cute."

"They're adorable spitfires," said Tommy.

"They seem like adorable menaces, and I'm appalled that they don't watch a lot of movies or play a lot of video games," said Chimney.

"I don't have kids myself, but some parents choose to have their kids spend as much time as possible outside and away from a lot of electronics," said Tommy.

"And I think Karen would be pleased about Denny having two new friends who'd lure him away from video games and play outside more," said Hen.

Chapter Text

Three weeks after Buck started working at the 118, he ate lunch with his teammates, "Are any of you free on Saturday?" Buck asked.

Hen nodded, "Karen and I were just going to have a lazy day at home with Denny."

"Was planning on watching movies, but I'll come," said Chimney.

"Nothing going on," said Bobby.

A few others mentioned they were free.

"Now that Katie and Ethan have been settled into school, I adjusted to working a different shift, and my former teammates from the 132 are off on Saturday, and my brother-in-law Isaac, sister-in-law Jane, and their two kids Matt and Ben, and my sister-in-law Alice and her boyfriend Leon are all coming to visit from Colorado and Montana this weekend, Erica and I decided to host a house-warming party," said Buck.

"Even if Erica, Karen, you, and I took Denny, Katie, and Ethan to the park two weeks ago, I'd love to see your house," said Hen.

Chimney nodded, "Me, too."

Buck looked at Bobby, "What about you? Katie and Ethan asked me if you were going to come."

"I'll come, and I can help with cooking or grilling out," said Bobby.

"Here's a reminder that we also have a cat," said Buck.

"I figured you'd be more of a dog person," said Hen.

"I didn't pick out Pickles because Pickles adopted Erica as his owner by jumping into Erica's Jeep and rubbing himself against Erica's baby bump when Erica went out to buy pickles and caramel sauce she was craving during my first week of boot camp. After taking him to the vet and learning that it was a stray, Erica took him home with her," said Buck.

"Now that's a cute pet adoption story," said Hen.

"I laughed a bit as I read about Pickles adopting Erica when I got my first letter from Erica while I was in boot camp," said Buck.

"Erica named the cat Pickles due to pregnancy cravings at the time Pickles entered her life?" asked Chimney.

Buck nodded, "She did, and the name Pickles reminds us of us watching Rugrats in Erica's living room when we were kids when it was raining or during a blizzard."

"Do you miss Pennsylvania winters? I sometimes miss the snow in St. Paul, Minnesota," said Bobby.

"I hated cold and snow, so I was willing to grand Erica's wish to move to San Diego when she told me she wanted to move far away from Hershey after the wedding," said Buck.

Hen thought about learning that Buck's wife is a child advocacy attorney, and his mother-in-law and father-in-law work as a librarian and an Episcopalian minister. At the same time, Erica's twin brother is also an Episcopalian minister, and Erica's little sister Alice is studying to become a social worker. "And then you moved up here due to Erica wanting to attend law school here."

Buck nodded, "Yes."

"Were Katie and Ethan happy about the move here?" asked Chimney.

"Even if they were four when we moved here, they were sad to leave the friends they made in preschool, but they were excited to make new friends and still be close to the ocean," said Buck.

Hen, who had already met Erica, Katie, and Ethan a few times outside of work thanks to playdates with Denny, while Katherine and Ethan were starstruck about her wife Karen's career as a scientist and would ask her questions, looked at Buck, "Now that Erica's 14-weeks, are you two going to be finding out if you two are having another little boy or another little girl within the next six weeks?" asked Hen.

"We're debating if we want to find out this time," said Buck.

"You and Erica chose to be surprised with Katie and Ethan?" asked Hen.

Buck nodded, "We agreed to be surprised as soon as we found out we were expecting twins because I'd be in boot camp during the anatomy scan, and we didn't care if we ended up with a boy and a girl, two girls, or two boys because we'll love them no matter what and we bought a six-bedroom house because Erica dreamed about having four kids."

"Four kids?" asked Chimney.

"A family of six ensures that no one is sitting on their own or a stranger on rides during trips to amusement parks," said Buck.

"You visit amusement parks on days off?" asked Bobby.

"Last summer and earlier this summer, before Erica started working as an attorney, Erica and I would take Katie and Ethan to Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm, Six Flags Magic Mountain, and a few other nearby amusement parks once a month on my day off from the 132 before Erica and I decided to finish getting our new house finished and moved into when we found out we were expecting again," said Buck.

"You sure love taking your kids on outings," said Chimney.

"We prefer being outdoors as much as possible while I'm making sure to be making memories with my kids-," said Buck just as the alarm went off.

Buck grinned as he allowed Bobby, who brought a dish into the house, "I'm glad you could make it, Bobby."

"I thought coming would be a good way for me to get to know you outside of your file and conversations you might not want to have in front of the rest of the house," said Bobby.

Buck nodded, "Erica thought this would be a good way to get to know you, Hen, Chimney, and other 118 members outside of work."

"It is," said Bobby. He held up the large dish, "I brought my macaroni and cheese."

"Thank you," said Buck.

Bobby looked around the foyer and noticed brand-new medium oak floors and light blue walls. Shelves were filled with books, pottery that Katherine and Ethan must have painted, and travel knicknacks. Filling the walls, various family pictures, artwork, and a crucifix were displayed. For furniture, a large navy blue couch arranged into a large bed was in front of the TV, while two navy blue recliners were set up, too.

"That's a Lovesac couch. It fits up to eight people, and the sactional can be arranged to make a big bed where Erica, the kids, and I snuggle on the couch together for family movie night or in different variations. We had a movie night last night and didn't bother putting it back to normal because we're going to be outside," said Buck.

"This is a nice living room," said Bobby.

"It took a lot of work after the original white walls were discolored from the previous owner being a heavy smoker. Aside from having someone to come and do a deep clean of the house, the drywall, insulation, floors, kitchen appliances, and even sinks, tubs, showers, and toilets got replaced," said Buck.

"Must have cost a fortune to do all of this work," said Bobby.

"My father came from old money, and I was given access to my trust fund when Katie and Ethan were on the way, and Erica and I managed to get this house for $800,000 in full and pay for a complete renovation I pretty much did myself with the help of other members from the 132 and from my father-in-law's church in over a year. We still have a lot of money left to pay for private school, future vacations, and putting money aside for college," said Buck.

"Must have been worth every penny to get yours and your wife's dream home," said Bobby.

"It took time due to me being a firefighter and taking time off from working on the house to spend time with Erica and the kids, but what matters is the house got finished and inspected before we could move in before Katie and Ethan's first day of first grade," said Buck.

"Mind if I see the kitchen?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "Come on."

Within a minute, Bobby was holding back his drool at the counters, refrigerator, stove, microwave, and large dining room table in the dining room. He noticed two footstools for Katherine and Ethan to stand on to help their parents prep meals and the spice rack filled with various spices. On the fridge and freezer were drawings that Katherine and Ethan did and a calendar filled with upcoming appointments, schedules for the kid's school and extracurricular activities, Erica's court appearances, and Buck's schedule, "This is a nice kitchen you got there."

"Thanks, and the past couple of weeks, Erica, Katie, Ethan, and I enjoyed having more room to move around as we cook," said Buck.

"Or even have dance parties while we prep breakfast, lunch, or dinner," said Erica.

Bobby turned to find a 14-week pregnant Erica with a grocery bag.

"Let me take this, Erica," said Buck.

Erica sighed as she passed the bag to her husband, "I'm 14 weeks pregnant and not invalid, Buck."

"I know," said Buck.

Katherine and Ethan grinned when they saw Bobby.

"Captain Bobby!" cried out Katherine and Ethan in unison.

Within a few seconds, Bobby hugged the twins, who threw themselves at him, "Have you two been good for your parents and grandparents?" asked Bobby.

Katherine nodded, "I eat all my food, do my math, reading, and spelling homework, say my prayers, do my chores, and listen to Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, Grandpa, and my teacher."

"Me, too," said Ethan. He grinned as he showed off the gap from the recently lost upper tooth, "I even scored the winning goal at my soccer game this morning."

Buck grinned, "Which I was excited to see, thanks to not being on shift today."

"What matters is you come to the games you're not on shift for, Daddy," said Ethan.

Katherine nodded, "And you take me to gymnastics when you're not on shift."

Erica started rummaging through the kitchen and grabbed a banana before she found the ketchup in the fridge. After peeling the banana, she squeezed ketchup on it before taking a bite while sighing in relief.

Ethan grimaced, "That's gross, Mommy."

"It's what your baby brother or sister wanted, Wolfie," said Erica.

"Am I going to eat gross combos like that when I get pregnant in the future?" asked Katherine.

Erica nodded, "You will, Kitty."

Buck sighed, "I don't even want to think about my little girl getting pregnant in the future."

"I'm no longer a little girl but a big girl, Daddy," said Katherine.

Ethan looked at Bobby, "Can I please show you my bedroom?" asked Ethan.

Katherine glared at her twin brother, "I want to show Captain Bobby my bedroom."

Buck chuckled, "If Bobby wants to see your bedrooms, you both can show him your bedrooms."

"You two can show me your bedrooms," said Bobby.

Katherine and Ethan cheered as they each took a hand, and within a few minutes, Buck, Katherine, Ethan, and Bobby were standing in Katherine's bedroom, which was painted light green with white wooden letters spelling out KATHERINE on the wall. At the same time, a crucifix and wall decals of flowers and butterflies in various colors were stuck on the wall. There was a white iron daybed with a lavender comforter with dark purple flowers on it, a white wooden desk, a tall white dresser, a lavender armchair with a matching ottoman footstool, and built-in bookshelves that were filled with picture books and had more room for books as she gets older.

Katherine went over to her bed and pulled out another bed with the same bedding, "My new daybed is awesome because it has a trundle for when I have a friend sleepover."

"This is a pretty bedroom," said Bobby.

Katherine grinned, "Thank you, and Daddy did all the hard work after Mommy took me shopping for a new bedroom furniture for this move."

"Now it's my turn to show off my bedroom," said Ethan.

A minute later, Bobby was standing in a bedroom that was painted orange, and there was a framed jersey that said BUCKLEY on the back and white letters that spelled out ETHAN, a crucifix, and wall decals of firetrucks, police cars, and construction vehicles. For a bed, there was a wooden daybed with bookshelves and a navy blue comforter on the bed. Ethan's bedroom also contained built-in bookshelves, an oak desk, a tall oak dresser, and a navy blue armchair with an ottoman footrest.

"My bed is also a trundle bed for when a friend sleeps over," said Ethan. He pointed at the jersey hanging on the wall, "That jersey was in Daddy's childhood bedroom."

"Your room is pretty cool, Ethan," said Bobby.

"Dad took me shopping before he painted and put together the dresser and desk for me," said Ethan.

"Now, the next room Daddy will be doing is for my little sister," said Katherine.

"We might be getting a little brother instead, Kitty," said Ethan.

Buck and Erica, who had finished her snack and joined in on the tour, looked at each other.

"Think we should find out the gender at my 20-week check-up so Kitty or Wolfie have 20 weeks to get over their disappointment and learn to love their little brother or sister?" asked Erica.

Buck nodded, "I think we should."

Bobby was looking at the pictures that the Buckley family had displayed on the wall from Buck and Erica's wedding day, a picture of Buck and Erica sitting in Erica's hospital bed together following the twins' births, a picture of Buck in his football uniform and Erica in a cheerleading uniform as they celebrated a win after a high school football game, pictures from vacations, Katherine's and Ethan's picture days from preschool to kindergarten, two photo frames that featured school pictures to senior portraits of Buck and Erica, various family portraits of Buck, Erica, and the twins. He then noticed a picture of a bald young boy with blue eyes, a girl with dark brown hair and big brown eyes, and a baby boy with blue eyes, curly blonde hair, and a birthmark as the three siblings grinned for a picture in front of the Christmas tree.

"That's the last picture of my two older siblings, Maddie and Daniel, with me," said Buck softly.

"Cancer took your brother?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "I don't want the rest of the 118 to know, but I wouldn't have been born if it wasn't for Daniel having leukemia and there being no match for bone marrow in the family."

Bobby connected the dots, "You're telling me you were born to be a savior sibling?" asked Bobby softly.

Buck nodded, "I was engineered in a test tube to be a perfect match and free of diseases through IVF, but due to doctors refusing to extract my bone marrow until I was a year old, my bones not being fully developed, and how sick Daniel was: the marrow didn't graft, and Daniel relapsed before passing away when he was eight, Maddie was nine, and I was one. People judged my parents for having me in the middle of one of their kids battling cancer, the reason why I was born in the first place, and how my parents conceived me because of other embryos being discarded, so we moved to Hershey, PA after Daniel’s death to help with grief and being around other judging WASPs. Even if I became friends with Erica and my brother-in-law Isaac when they moved across the street from me when we were seven, my sister was forced to raise me until she left for college because my father, who decided to keep me at Maddie's insistence and believing that having a lively little boy running around help them with their grief focused on my egg donor to keep her from doing something drastic to me out of anger for me not saving Daniel. My egg donor would barely touch me, always give me disdain looks when not in public, and would constantly criticize me, scoff whenever I talked, or not even compliment me."

"Aside from seeing a picture of you at your high school graduation with your parents, I don't see pictures of your parents after graduation," said Bobby.

"That's because I haven't talked to my mother since graduation, and she ended up serving five years in jail a few weeks after graduation while I haven't talked to my father less than 12 hours after Katie and Ethan were born," said Buck.

"What did your mother do?" asked Bobby.

"She had a feeling that Erica was pregnant, so she stalked Erica that she’d announce to the entire church that Erica and I got pregnant out of wedlock, get Erica's acceptance to the colleges she got accepted to rescinded, while she'd smother the baby to death if Erica didn't get an abortion," said Buck.

Bobby, who felt guilt about the faulty space heater and apartment building with various violation codes being some of the reasons why his kids and other children in the apartment building he once resided in were dead, held back his anger over a mother wanting her grandchildren dead, "Death threats against your children is the reason why there's a restraining order against your mother?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "Yes, and she hasn't violated the restraining order because from her lawyer to my lawyer through a prison psychiatrist who treated her for the depression my father never got my egg donor professional help for. She considers Erica, my kids, who she called spawns of the devil, and myself dead to her."

"How do you feel about you, Erica, and your kids being considered dead by your mother?" asked Bobby.

"That's fine by me because I consider her dead to me because I'm not going to allow someone who blames me for not saving my brother when she was warned that there was a chance that the bone marrow transplant wouldn't work and doesn't believe I deserve to live the life I'm living near my wife, kids, and me," said Buck.

"What about your father?" asked Bobby.

"Even if he sought therapy after his ex-wife got arrested and was supportive of me marrying Erica, having kids with her, and joining the Navy Reserves and becoming a firefighter during the talk we had before my wedding and got to see Katie and Ethan through Skype after their births, I decided I don’t need him in my life. I have my father-in-law, who stepped up when he realized that my parents rarely gave me attention unless I got hurt or caused some trouble. He cheered for me from the stands during sporting events that Isaac and I participated in together, or he would take a break from his duties as a minister and show up to cheer for me with my mother-in-law, Erica, Isaac, and Alice when I was participating in a game or meet that Isaac didn't participate in that season."

"You must have really enjoyed playing sports growing up," said Bobby.

"Practice, a game, or a meet kept me out of the house after school for a few hours, and even if I once forged signatures to play football in middle school, my father was willing to let me play whatever sports team I was able to get on, attend various summer camps, and have a lot of sleepovers with Erica and Isaac and even help out at the church when I was a teenager because I got out of my egg donor's hair," said Buck.

"While you grew to fall in love with Erica, too," said Bobby.

Buck nodded, "And now we've been married for seven years, parents to six-year-old twins, and expecting our third child within the next 26 weeks."

Katherine and Ethan ran over before Bobby could say or ask something else.

"Daddy," said Katherine.

"Daddy," said Ethan.

Buck smiled at his daughter, "Yes, Kitty and Wolfie?" asked Buck.

"Can we please kick a soccer ball around?" asked Ethan.

Buck smiled, "We can kick a soccer ball around before more guests show up."

Within a few seconds, Buck was being dragged to the back patio door to the backyard where there was a swingset that Buck and his former coworkers at the 132 put together that had swings, a slide, and bars that were good for doing pull-ups.

For the next couple of hours, 118 members got to know Erica and her parents and siblings, Katherine and Ethan got to play with Denny and a few other kids from A-shift at the 118, and Buck got to know his new teammates a bit in an informal setting.

Over a month later, Buck, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan were at Erica's 20-week anatomy scan as Dr. Yolanda Daniels did the 20-week scan.

"It looks like Baby Buckley is showing its gender," said Dr. Daniels.

"Am I getting a little sister?" asked Katherine.

"Am I getting a little brother?" asked Ethan.

Dr. Daniels looked at Buck and Ethan, "I hope you two are alright about being outnumbered by girls."

Katherine cheered while a grinning Buck kissed Erica, who had tears streaming down her cheeks.

"I can't wait to meet Eleanora Allison Buckley," said Katherine.

"Eleanora Allison Buckley?" asked Buck and Erica in unison.

"I've been reading the baby name books lying on the coffee table, and I love how pretty Eleanora Allison Buckley sounds together," said Katherine.

"Eleanora Allison Buckley does sound pretty," said Erica.

"It does," said Buck.

"Does that mean we can name my baby sister Eleanora Allison Buckley?" asked Katherine.

Buck looked at his son, who was looking at the monitor that still showed, "What do you think, Wolfie?" asked Buck.

"We can give Eleanora Allison Buckley the nicknames Alligator, Ellie, and Nora," said Ethan.

"Does this mean you love the idea of getting a baby sister?" asked Erica.

"I love both Kitty and Alligator," said Ethan.

Buck looked at the screen, "Eleanora Allison Buckley, you're going to be loved by your Mommy, older brother, older sister, Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents, and me."

"Now let's finish up this ultrasound because I have to pee and want ice cream to celebrate," said Erica.

Thirty minutes later, Buck, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan were out for ice cream to celebrate.

Chapter Text

On January 3, 2018, Buck ate breakfast with his wife and kids before his shift at the 118.

"Since you're on winter break, are you looking forward to spending the day at your friend Gianna's house, Kitty?" asked Buck.

"I don't want to me called Kitty anymore, Dad," said Katherine.

"You don't want to be called Kitty while you're calling me Dad instead of Daddy?" asked Buck.

"I'm going to be turning seven next week, and my baby sister will be here next month. As a big girl, I want to be called Kat, Katie, or Katherine," said Katherine.

Ethan, who was also going over to Gianna's house due to Gianna having an older brother who's one year older than him and his twin that he gets along with, spoke up, "While I rather be called Wolf, Dad."

As she looked at her husband, Erica felt tears leak from her eyes, "With how fast our babies are growing, I'm glad we have another baby on the way, Buck."

"Me too, Gazelle," said Buck.

Later on at the 118, Buck, who quickly became Bobby's sous chef over the past four months he's been working for the 118 due to Bobby wanting to give Buck some tricks in the kitchen and teach him some recipes to expand his kids' taste buds and make whatever Erica was craving, was helping Bobby make lunch as they listened to Chimney talk about his girlfriend Tatiana he's been lying to about rescues and would have Bobby prepare meals for him to impress Tatiana with about possibly no longer being interested in him anymore.

Buck, who had snagged a piece of broccoli and popped it into his mouth, looked at Bobby after he finished chewing as he spoke softly, "As someone who's been married to the only one I dated in high school, I have some things to say about his relationship with Tatiana, but Erica and I aren't trying to be like the judgemental WASPs I lived with, or we were around at church when we were kids and teenagers."

Bobby drained the pasta, "Good to keep your opinion to yourself."

Buck nodded as he snuck a noodle from the colander and popped it into his mouth.

Bobby shook his head, "You and your love of swiping food."

Buck gave an angelic smile, "I have to keep it up to teach Katie, Ethan, and Ellie how to swipe food from other people."

"Are you ready for Eleanora's birth in nine weeks?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "Even if you and Chimney helped me paint the nursery pink, we're almost done with the nursery while Erica's two best friends and co-owners of her law firm, Tina, Alice, Jane, a few wives from the 132 Erica's still in contact with, and a few other members at church are hosting a baby sprinkle in the fellowship hall of the church due to Erica and I donating all of Katie's and Ethan's baby and toddler clothes they grew out of to the church donation bin before we moved here two and a half years ago."

Bobby thought about Ethan telling him that he was allowed to pick out the theme of his baby sister's nursery after his twin sister picked out their baby sister's name, "What nursery theme did Ethan pick out?" asked Bobby.

Buck grinned, "Due to Ellie's nickname being Alligator and her middle name being Allison, Ethan decided his baby sister must have an Alligator-themed nursery."

"That's sweet," said Bobby.

Buck nodded, "When we were living in San Diego, Erica and I gave the twins a zoo-themed nursery with wall decals of cats and wolves."

"While you'll need to get an alligator added to the WELCOME TO OUR ZOO sign on the front door of your house," said Bobby.

"We're planning on it after Eleanora is born," said Buck. He pulled out his phone to show some of the decorations he and Erica ordered, "We found these cute alligator wall decals, and some of the alligators have tutus on them."

"They're cute," said Bobby.

Buck then showed a sign with an alligator and the words ALLIGATOR SIGHTED. ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK, "That's going to be hung outside Eleanora's bedroom door."

"Cheeky," said Bobby.

"Being cheeky, mischievous little shits are Katie's, Ethan's, and my specialty," said Buck.

Within two minutes, everyone was sitting at the table.

Buck, enjoying his spaghetti, looked at his coworkers, "Speaking of my kids, I can't believe Katie and Ethan are going to be turning seven next week."

"I bet Katie and Ethan turning seven makes you and Erica feel glad about having another baby on the way now. Karen and I are sad about Denny now being seven," said Hen.

"Erica and I talked about it this morning, and the sad part about Katie and Ethan turning seven next week is before this shift, they started calling Erica and me Mom and Dad instead of Mommy and Daddy, and they asked that we stop calling them Kitty and Wolfie and call them Katie, Kat, Wolf, or Ethan," said Buck.

"Aww," said Hen.

Chimney thought about Buck explaining that the twins will have a joint birthday party to save time planning, easier on setting a date, and even if Buck and Erica could afford two separate birthday parties, they're saving money on food, party favors, and a venue, "Where's their birthday party going to be held again?" asked Chimney.

Before Buck could respond, the bell went off, which made Buck, Hen, and Chimney shovel a few more mouthfuls of food into their mouth before rushing down the stairs.

When they reached the apartment building, Buck looked at Bobby, "Should I grab the saw and thermal imaging camera to look through the wall and pipe instead of using a stethoscope to find the pipe and listen inside?" asked Buck.

Bobby nodded, "Good thinking."

"We might be being punked, Buck," said Chimney.

"No matter what, we're supposed to see what's going on," said Bobby.

A few minutes later, Buck, who had run up the stairs to the fourth floor due to lack of elevator space, was turning on the thermal imaging camera, which showed a baby inside the pipe.

"I see the head and feet, Cap," said Buck.

Bobby, who heard Chimney and Hen comment on the caller about being high and Chimney calling the caller Spicoli, looked at his youngest firefighter as he studied the wall before he used a marker to make marks on the wall for cutting an opening to get the pipe out, "I do, too, Buck. Let's use the saw to get the baby out."

The wall and pipe were cut within a few minutes, and the pipe was carried to the table. Lube was being used to extract the baby before Buck grabbed the same type of nasal aspirator he had used on Katherine and Ethan when they were sick as babies and toddlers to clear up the baby girl's nose. Bobby put his fingers in the baby's mouth to remove residue from the pipe.

As soon as the baby breathed again, Buck ran down the stairs with the baby girl in his arms. He cooed reassurances at her before climbing onto the bench in the back of the ambulance as Bobby hooked up the baby girl to a monitor.

When a police sergeant and another officer he had seen on calls before and never spoken to him brought over the teenage mother before the ambulance could be pulled away, Buck didn't say a word out of anger, even if he was dealing with memories about his mother.

When the mother and baby were rushed into the hospital, Buck, who didn't try to go in thanks to being on the job since 2012 despite the nine-month deployment to Afghanistan, looked at Bobby, "I know you're in charge, but even if we don't know if the baby was accidentally flushed down the toilet or flushed down there on purpose, we need to call CPS for the safety of that baby girl while we shouldn't have allowed them to ride together. Erica takes child abuse cases like this, and she'll be mad if I told her what we allowed to happen."

Bobby, who knew that Buck was highly protective of children due to his own childhood, noticed the anger in Buck's eyes, which made him realize Buck was thinking about his wife's job as a child advocacy attorney and the treatment he and Erica faced from Margaret Buckley, "You're right, and CPS will be contacted when we get back to the station."

"While I'll need to contact Dr. Copeland," said Buck.

Bobby recognized Buck's therapist's name and said, "Please do."

Just then, a black and white police call pulled up. A female police officer approached Buck, Bobby, Chimney, and Hen and made her way to Buck.

"Why did you look angry?" demanded the officer.

"My name is Evan Buckley, and instead of telling you why in front of the hospital where doctors, nurses, and my coworkers would be listening, do a background check on my parents, Margaret and Phillip Buckley, and me from Hershey, Pennsylvania. What you read in police reports from June 2010 will explain why I'm angry," said Buck as he watched Athena storm back into her car before driving off. He looked at his watch before looking at Bobby, "May I please go to the truck? Since my kids are in school right now and Erica is in court right now, I need to look at pictures of my kids before seeing about getting an emergency appointment with my therapist."

Bobby nodded, "Get in the truck."

Buck looked at Hen and Chimney, "I'll explain later."

Buck made his way into the truck and pulled out his cell phone. He turned it back on and looked at pictures of him and Erica holding their twins when they were babies and the last ultrasound picture he took a photo of.

As he watched Buck dial the number for his therapist's office, Bobby looked at Hen and Chimney, "On the other hand, we're going to be having some words when we get back to the station."

"About what?" asked Chimney.

"Even if the man who called to report the sound of a baby crying inside his bathroom wall looked and sounded high, calling the man Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and we all need to remember that a baby's are born with 300 bones that are much softer to the point where they can fit in tight spaces like a mother's womb and squeeze through the birth canal which is why a baby that premature can fit in a pipe."

When they returned to the station, Buck was taking a shower to clean up before his FaceTime appointment with Dr. Copeland since he couldn't leave the station, and Bobby would let him go into the bunk room or roof to talk to his therapist. As Buck had his shower, Bobby contacted CPS and wrote up and reprimanded Chimney for his behavior towards the 9-1-1 caller.

An hour later, Sergeant Grant did the background check the young firefighter told her to do. She was horrified when she read the police report from July 28, 2010, about Margaret Buckley threatening Escopalian minister Reverend Ryan Evan's eldest daughter to get an abortion or she'd be announcing to the entire church about her 18-year-old Evan son and Reverend Ryan's 18-year-old daughter Erica getting pregnant out of wedlock, get Erica's college acceptances rescinded, and smother her grandchild to death after it's born because she resented her son Evan, who was initially born to be a savior sibling for not saving his older brother Daniel Buckley who passed away from leukemia when Evan was one, and Daniel was eight. In a police interview that Phillip Buckley went through following Margaret's arrest, Phillip mentioned that he focused on Margaret and forced his daughter Maddie Buckley to take care of Evan out of fear that Margaret Buckley would kill Evan out of her grief. When asked why he didn't give up Evan to relatives or social services so he could be safe from Margaret following Daniel's death, Phillip explained that he didn't want to give up Evan because he thought keeping Evan would help them with their grief.

Athena read that Margaret Buckley spent five years in SCI Muncy. There's a permanent restraining order and no contact order issued to keep Margaret Buckley away from Phillip, Evan, Erica, Katherine (born January 10, 2011), and Ethan Buckley (Born January 11, 2011), while there's a restraining order against Reverend Ryan Evans, Tina Evans, Isaac (Jane, Matthew, and Benjamin) Evans, and Alice Evans. Margaret Buckley, now 65, currently resides in Philidelphia, Pennsylvania, in an apartment for residents aged 60 and older, while 66-year-old Phillip Buckley lives in Portland, Maine. It also turns out that Evan Buckley's older sister, Maddie Kendall, and her husband, Dr. Doug Kendall, live in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Maddie and Dr. Kendall work at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, where Maddie is a nurse, and Doug is a cardiothoracic surgeon.

When looking up Evan Buckley, she learned that he's married to a child advocacy attorney named Erica Buckley, who works at Buckley, Edgar, & Kelson Attornies at Law, which opened up on June 26, 2017, when Erica graduated from the University of California Los Angeles School of Law with personal injury attorney Luella Edgar and civil rights attorney Sadie Kelson. Their law firm has been getting five-star reviews and gaining popularity.

"I need to talk to you about that call you were at earlier," said Captain Maynard.

"Everything alright?" asked Athena.

"Captain Nash called about you just putting the teenage mother who wasn’t brought out on a gurney in the same ambulance as the baby who was flushed down the toilet when it's protocol to have them ride in separate ambulances and confronting one of his firefighters about why he's angry before getting back into your car instead of going into the hospital to deal with the mother," said Captain Maynard.

"The mother who's still a kid herself was bleeding out and kids make mistakes," said Athena.

"I understand because you're a mother to a teenage girl yourself, but protocol involves allowing firefighters and paramedics to bring out patients and not allowing the victim to ride in the same ambulance as their attempted murderer and CPS being contacted for an investigation," said Captain Maynard sternly.

Buck had just finished an emergency phone appointment with Dr. Copeland and took time to talk to Katherine and Ethan about their day in the first grade and talked to Baby Buckley through Erica, placing her phone against her 31-week pregnant baby bump was sitting with Bobby, Hen, and Chimney.

"I was angry after that call because I was reminded of my egg donor who could have killed me out of anger and grief when I was one and then threatened to smother Katherine and Ethan to death after they were born," said Buck.

Chimney, who was left in Los Angeles by his father, who returned to Korea and hadn't talked to his foster parents, Mr. and Mrs. Lee, in over a decade, frowned, "Egg donor kill you out of anger and grief?" asked Chimney.

"Smother your twins?" asked Hen.

"My kids and I wouldn't be existing if it wasn't for my late older brother Daniel getting sick with juvenile leukemia and my parents deciding to have another child after they couldn't find a bone marrow match," said Buck.

"Are you saying that your a My Sister's Keeper type of savior sibling?" asked Hen.

Buck nodded, "It turns out I'm one of the first few savior siblings, but by the time doctors thought I was old enough, Daniel was very weak while my bones weren't fully developed yet. The bone marrow didn't graft, so Daniel remained forever eight, which my egg donor hated me for. She never showed me love or affection, constantly criticized me, and never stated that she's proud when I made the A-honor role, winning games and meets through sports teams, got a full scholarship to college, or even be excited over becoming a grandmother to Erica's and my kids."

"I understand having an awful parent. My father is just like your mother," said Chimney.

"Back on topic, I was in the Ponoco Mountains with my brother-in-law working as a camp counselor at a sports summer camp before Erica and I were supposed to attend Penn State together when Erica realized she was pregnant. She was at the drugstore picking a pregnancy test when my egg donor, who stalked her, followed her to the store and threatened to get her acceptance to Penn State rescinded, tell my father-in-law's congregation that Erica got pregnant out of wedlock, and smother the baby to death if Erica didn't get an abortion," said Buck.

"Please tell me that witch got in trouble for wanting to kill two of the cutest soon-to-be seven year old twins," said Hen.

Buck nodded, "Thankfully, our former principal was there and kept my egg donor from running off and got an employee at the store to call the police. It was after my father showed up to pick Isaac and me from camp and took us home that he told me that my egg donor blamed me for not being able to save my brother, and she thought I didn't deserve to fall in love, get married, and have children."

"Your parents and sister were going to take that secret to the grave?" asked Chimney.

Buck nodded, "They were, but my father realized that I needed to know about Daniel so I could include the information about Daniel for my family medical history for Erica's OB-GYN appointments and even future employment opportunities."

"Have you talked to your parents since your mother's arrest?" asked Chimney.

"I haven't talked to my egg donor since my high school graduation day, and the last two times I talked to my father was on Erica's and my wedding day and less than 12 hours after Katie and Ethan were born. I'm still debating if I will contact him after Eleanora is born because I'm doing fine without my parents and even my older sister," said Buck.

"What about your sister?" asked Chimney.

"I cut her out of my life because she wasn't supportive of me marrying Erica after we got pregnant with Katie and Ethan and my career choices while she rarely talked and visited me after she moved to Boston with her husband," said Buck.

Following the call with the giant albino python that involved Buck suggesting the idea of pouring rubbing alcohol into the snake's mouth thanks to trips to reptile zoos he and Erica took Katherine and Ethan to and the research they've done together, Jesse looked at Buck who was setting Spartacus down with Bobby, "May I have your number?" asked Jesse.

Buck remained silent as he walked away.

"That was rude," said Jesse.

"Firefighter Buckley has a wife," said Bobby.

A few hours later, Buck was talking to Katherine and Ethan about their day, and before Buck could hang up to work on some chores, Ethan spoke up.

"My friend Lucas has a new pet snake named Marshmallow, Dad," said Ethan.

"I know because your mother sent me a picture of you holding Lucas's pet corn snake this afternoon," said Buck.

"Can I please get a pet corn snake for my birthday next week, Dad? I asked Mom, but she told me to ask you, Dad," said Ethan.

Buck thought about the snake hoarder call he had just returned from, "I'll think about it, but I can't make any promises. I have to go to work on some chores now."

"Love you, Dad," said Katherine and Ethan in unison.

"I love the two of you cubs so much," said Buck before hanging up.

Chimney, who approached Buck to rib him about giving his son the middle name Conan when he doesn't know the movie Conan the Barbarian is, looked at Buck, "I'll think about it, but can't make any promises, what?" asked Chimney.

Buck found the picture he found delivered to him on his phone when he returned to the firetruck after the snake order call, "Katie and Ethan spent some time at a friend's house today, and they got to hold this little cutie."

Chimney blanched when he saw two pictures of Katherine and Ethan holding a corn snake with huge Buckley grins on their faces, "Seriously, Buck. You allow your kids to hold snakes?" asked Chimney.

"Snakes are cool, and during hiking trips, I make sure to educate Katherine and Ethan on how to identify snakes that are venomous and non-venomus and how to treat snake bites. Their birthday party will be happening at the nearest reptile house next week Saturday," said Buck. He grinned, "Aside from planning you be the first one to hold a snake after Katie and Ethan at their parent, Ethan asked for a corn snake for his birthday learning that you're scared of snakes might make me go ahead and get a corn snake at Petco."

"You're a little shit, you know that?" asked Chimney.

Buck gave an angelic smile, "I know."

Buck, who was taking his turn as the man behind while the others were on a call, was folding a load of laundry from the dryer when his cell phone rang to see a call from Hen.

"Is everything alright?" asked Buck.

"Can you go to this address to assist Sergeant Grant on a call? She needs a firetruck because a little girl does not know her home address, and the address is not being pinpointed at Dispatch. I already cleared it with Bobby," said Hen as she listed the address.

"I'll head there now," said Buck.

After Buck used the hose to save Athena from being shot and gave his statement, Athena looked at Buck, "I'm sorry for confronting you the other day."

"I take it you did a background check on me like I suggested to see why I looked angry?" asked Buck.

"Yes, and I'm sorry you grew up with parents like yours," said Athena.

"I'm just grateful I had Erica, her siblings, and her parents who were there for me since I was seven, and my in-laws treated me like one of their own and didn't get mad when I started dating their eldest daughter or got her pregnant before marriage," said Buck.

"When conducting the background check, I noticed you, your wife, and kids' moved two blocks away from my house this past August. My daughter May is a high school sophomore and does some babysitting on the weekends and during school breaks," said Athena.

"Really?" asked Buck.

Athena nodded, "She babysits for extra pocket money outside of allowance."

"I'd like her number if she's in for babysitting Katie and Ethan," said Buck.

"If Hen hasn't told you, I also have a son who'll be nine in April. Harry doesn't care about Denny being younger than him, so I'd think he'd get along great with your twins," said Athena.

"Hen told me, and she wanted to wait until we finally met to include Harry on playdates," said Buck.

Athena reached into her shirt pocket and pulled out a business card, which Buck accepted, "Here's my number, and you better get back to Bobby."

Chapter Text

Buck and his teammates returned to the 118 following a call at the winter carnival, where Buck couldn't get Devon to take his hand, "You alright?" asked Bobby.

"Even if I found out that I was engineered in a lab to be a savior sibling for my late older brother before I decided to become a firefighter, I know I can't save everyone," said Buck.

"I know you're handling everything well because Devon wasn't your first loss as a firefighter," said Bobby.

Buck nodded, "Exactly, but I'm already planning on getting an emergency appointment with Dr. Copeland in the morning because she'll most likely send me a message about an opening for an emergency appointment as soon as she sees or hears that I was on TV."

"Good," said Bobby.

Buck pulled out his phone to see that he's been already getting friend requests on Facebook, requests to follow him on his private Instagram account, and seeing that he has already gained an additional 5,000 followers on his public LAFD Instagram account, "Now that I've gone viral, I have to keep Katie, Ethan, and possibly Erica safe which means I'll be declining friend requests from people I don't know on Facebook or my private Instagram account and have myself wear a baseball cap and sunglasses to hide my hair and face when I'm out with Erica and the kids in public."

"We can have you do another interview which would allow you to ask for privacy," said Bobby.

Buck then noticed missed calls and texts from Erica, his in-laws, and former coworkers about seeing him on Instagram and the news, "I better call Erica because I've been getting calls from her, in-laws, and even former coworkers from San Diego and the 132 about trending on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram."

"Go call Erica," said Bobby.

Buck was in the gym a minute later as he got Erica on FaceTime.

Erica smiled at her husband as he took in her husband's face, "Oh, Buck."

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" asked Buck.

"Eleanora inherited your genes because she's been kicking away for hours and is always hungry," said Erica. She got serious, "Are you alright? I saw your shocked face on a video that's already trending."

"It's sad when someone refuses to be saved, but I regained my bearings and continued to save the rest of the victims," said Buck.

"Even if this isn't your first loss on the job since there were lives you couldn't save while working for the San Diego Fire Department and then the 132, I hope you're going to talk to Dr. Copeland," said Erica.

"I will be calling her first thing in the morning, Gazelle," said Buck.

"Since you went viral, do you think we should keep Kat and Ethan out of school until things die down?" asked Erica.

"I think it'd be best to follow our normal routines, and we can just let the school know to interfere if their classmates confront Katherine and Ethan about me being unable to save Devon's life," said Buck.

"Even if they consider you a superhero, Kat and Ethan know you can't save everyone as a firefighter. But I agree, we'll talk to the school to ask the teachers to talk to Kat and Ethan's classmates about leaving Kat and Ethan alone," said Erica.

"While I'm not going to allow this call stop me from celebrating Kat and Ethan turning seven this week," said Buck.

Erica yawned, "I'm going to head to bed, but I'll see you in the morning."

"I love you and the kids," said Buck.

"We all love you, too," said Erica before hanging up.

Buck was heading to the showers a minute later.

Athena, who ended up joining the 118 for a meal, looked at Buck, who was eating his meal with his usual gusto like he did the one time she, May, and Harry went over to Buck and Erica's house the other day for dinner so May could meet Katherine and Ethan, and didn't look unfazed over losing someone on a call, "How are you doing?" asked Athena.

"Asking me due to the call at the winter carnival?" asked Buck.

Athena nodded, "Yes."

"This isn't my first loss because I dealt with losses when I worked for the San Diego Fire Department, losing a few people I was teamed up with during my one deployment for the Navy and the 132 here in LA," said Buck.

"Are you looking forward to Katherine and Ethan turning seven this week?" asked Athena.

"I am because they're going to be excited when they open up their gift of the tank, decorations, and water dish for the corn snake Erica and I got them for their birthday," said Buck.

"You really got them a snake?" asked Chimney.

Buck nodded, "Even if they just got new toys, clothes, books, and a few other gifts from Santa, other relatives, Erica, and me for Christmas, they're being well-behaved, helping out with chores that are appropriate for their age, picking up after themselves so their mother doesn't have to bend down, and doing well in school."

"Speaking of Erica, is she looking forward to giving birth in eight weeks?" asked Athena.

Buck nodded, "Yes."

"I can't wait to hear if you faint in the delivery room or not," said Chimney.

"I didn't faint when Erica pushed out Katie and Ethan or when I cut the umbilical cords in the delivery room. Plus, as an Advanced EMT, I have assisted in delivering eight babies in San Diego and even here in LA since 2013," said Buck.

"So you're prepared to deliver your own daughter if you can't get her to the hospital in time," said Hen.

Buck nodded just as the bell rang, causing Buck to eat a few more mouthfuls of food as he stood up and rushed downstairs.

Abby Clark's eyes went wide when she saw the man she talked to on the phone a while back as they worked together to save Lily, "Holy crap, he's gone national."

Carla Price, who has known Buck for almost two years, looked at Abby, "You know that big hunk of man meat?" asked Carla.

"Mm," said Abby.

"I was just doing my job. I'm happy we were able to help the people we helped, and I'm really sorry about those we couldn't save," said Buck.

The reporter looked at her phone, "Oh, we're getting a lot of Twitter questions from our audience. Most just want to know if you're single."

Abby perked up.

"This question is highly off-topic and inappropriate to be asked on camera, but I'm married," said Buck, holding up his left hand to show his silicone wedding band.

The reporter looked at Buck, "I apologize for asking that question, and you're right that the question about your relationship status was highly inappropriate when I noticed the ring on your finger."

Buck looked at the camera with a determined look, "I need to ask for privacy for the sake of mine, my wife's, and our children's safety and privacy. I know my birthmark is a feature that will make me recognizable in public, but please don't approach me during calls or when I'm out and about with my family. Aside from my public LAFD Instagram page, my Facebook and personal Instagram accounts are marked private for the privacy and safety of my wife and children. I won't accept friend requests, requests for you to follow me, or even answer phone calls from phone numbers I don't recognize."

Carla noticed Abby deflating when they heard Buck state that he'd been married for over seven years, "You didn't know that he's married?" asked Carla.

"We only talked once on the phone during the call he assisted me on," said Abby.

"Then you don't know him at all, but I know him because I met him, his wife, and children when my husband and I were at the hardware store almost two years ago so my husband and I could pick out a new carpet at our house. Howie ended up helping Buck renovate the house he and his wife bought almost two years ago," said Carla.

"Really?" asked Abby.

Carla nodded, "Yes," said Carla. She then thought about the conversation they just had about Abby's ex, Tommy, "And with the talk about dating, as a healthcare professional, I think it'd probably be for the best that you just focus on whatever remaining time with your mother, your job, and talking to a therapist than look into balancing your mother, your job, and a romantic relationship."

"Why?" asked Abby.

"Your mother has both good and bad days, and bad days would require you to be with your mother, which can affect your dating life," said Carla.

"You think so?" asked Abby.

Carla nodded, "Having to cancel dates to care for your mother would probably lead to a breakup happening," said Carla. She then serious, "Then when your mother eventually passes away, you're going to change, and no guy deserves to have his heart broken if you decide not to remain in LA following your mother's death."

Abby sighed, "You're right."

Abby then pulled out her phone and the new contact she created.

Carla frowned when she saw BUCK and his phone number, "How did you get his number? As a married man, he wouldn't accept numbers from people he saved on the job or even give out his number."

"I took it from the report," said Abby.

Carla gave Abby a look, "What you did is highly illegal and an invasion of Buck's privacy. Delete his contact right in front of me right now."

Abby nodded as she deleted the contact right in front of Carla.

"Now I'm going to get going," said Carla.

A minute later, Carla left Abby's apartment and called her boss to explain that she must violate HIPAA before explaining why. After describing the situation, Carla's boss agreed that Abby's actions were illegal and received her permission to violate HIPAA laws so she could tell Buck that she found out the daughter of a client of hers stole his number from a 9-1-1 report since Buck had a right to report Abby Clark's actions to her boss.

In a camper, a lonely guy was watching the news and heard Evan Buckley state that he's married and asking for privacy for the sake of himself, his wife, and his children. Learning that Evan Buckley is married made him decide not to continue the MySpace account he is beginning to create under the name Evan Buckley. He quickly exited the page before he could create the account.

Inside the emergency room department at Allegheny General Hospital, Nurse Maddie Kendall was taking a dinner break from her overnight shift. She was glaring at the television following the news segment of her little brother, now a firefighter all away in Los Angeles, being interviewed by a reporter for saving four of the five people on a malfunctioning roller coaster.

"He didn't listen to me," said Maddie to herself. She noticed her brother was stationed at the 118 in Los Angeles, California, based on the engine she could see in the background as she started mentally planning on escaping Doug with the money she had long saved up after Doug stole the money she had previously set aside in 2012 to escape.

In Portland, Maine, Phillip was beaming as he saw his son's face on TV and heard that he was still married even if he lost contact with Reverend Ryan and Buck hadn't called him from the hospital following Katherine and Ethan's births.

In Philidelphia, Pennsylvania, Margaret Buckley, who was working as a waitress so she could afford to live in her apartment after she lost the pension she could have gotten after retiring due to being fired and wasn’t given a share of her ex husband’s trust fund, was glaring at the TV as she recognized the child she considers dead to her now working a dangerous job as a firefighter in Los Angeles, California, is married to that jezebel or some other jezebel, and have multiple children based on him saying children instead of child.

"You better not be thinking about going to Los Angeles," said a man.

Margaret turned to see the lawyer assigned to her in 2010, "What are you doing here, Jackson?" asked Margaret.

"I got word that your son was going to be on the national news, so I decided to track you down and remind you that you'll be going back to prison if you violate the restraining order your son and daughter-in-law filed against you," said Jackson.

"Evan's dead to me," said Margaret.

When Buck returned to the station, he frowned when he saw Carla Price in front of him. Carla and her husband Howie were godsends for him, Erica, and the twins for almost two years after he, Erica, and the kids met Carla and Howie when they were shopping for new floors for their house, and Howie gave them tips before offering his help with renovations. At the same time, Carla helped him file paperwork for the VA services in LA since the paperwork was a nightmare for him. Carla even helped him and Erica find a better pediatric doctor, dentist, and even a nanny service they occasionally use when they don't want Erica's parents to babysit Katherine and Ethan. She even helped them get Katherine and Ethan a tour and interview for Durand when it was discovered that the twins were too smart for public school and needed smaller class sizes and challenging schoolwork.

"Buckaroo," said Carla.

"Even if I was about to hit the showers, is everything alright, Carla?" asked Buck.

"I have some news about a patient's family member I have to tell you, and I already got approval from my boss to break HIPAA laws this one time," said Carla.

Buck became serious, "What about a family member of your patient?" asked Buck.

"Abby Clark, the daughter of my latest patient, works at the dispatch center. She stole your number from the report you had to fill out following a call you worked with her last week and added it to her contacts on her phone. After I made her delete your number in front of me, I left her apartment and contacted my boss to explain the situation. My boss permitted me to tell you because she agreed you deserved to know about Abby's illegal actions so you can report Abby," said Carla.

Anger flashed through Buck's eyes before he spoke calmly, "Thank you for coming forward with this development. I'll be reporting her actions to her boss and changing my number so I can stop getting calls about my rescue the other day."

"Will I get your new number?" asked Carla.

Buck nodded, "You will be because you and your husband became great friends ever since your husband told me that Erica and I should pick out a different type of floorboards, and he offered a discount to help me fix up the house."

"While I'm expecting a call and pictures after Miss Eleanora Buckley is born," said Carla. She then got serious, "I should get going, and I'll see you at Katherine and Ethan's birthday party on Saturday."

"I appreciate you coming to me about what you found out," said Buck.

"I care for the safety of your not-so-little-anymore-cutie-pies and the soon-to-be cutie pie I'm looking forward to getting cuddles with," said Carla before walking away.

Bobby approached Buck, "Is everything alright?" asked Bobby.

"I just found out that 9-1-1 dispatcher Abby Clark stole my phone number from the report I had to fill out last week. I'll have to file a complaint against her and go through changing my number like Erica and I've been talking about," said Buck.

Bobby nodded, "Good."

"Did I just hear the name Abby Clark?" asked Chimney.

Buck nodded, "I just found out she stole my number from the police report I had to file last week after I teamed up with Dispatcher Clark and Athena to find out where that little girl lives."

"She's Tommy Kinard's ex-girlfriend," said Chimney.

"Really?" asked Buck.

Chimney nodded as he pulled out his phone and dialed Tommy's number.

"Is everything alright, Howie?" asked Tommy.

"I have Buck with me, and I just want to ask you questions about your ex-girlfriend Abby," said Chimney.

"What about Abby?" asked Tommy.

"I found out through a friend that Abby Clark stole my number from a report I had to file during a call I assisted with by driving a fire engine through a neighborhood last week to pinpoint the address of a house for a little girl who was hiding from burglars," said Buck.

"She stole my number from a report, too. She wasn't happy when I broke up with her last year," said Tommy.

"Did you ever report her actions?" asked Buck.

"I didn't, but I changed my number after I decided to break up with her and transfer to the 217," said Tommy.

"I'm going to file a complaint against her after this shift and then change my number so she can't call me," said Buck.

"To prevent her from stealing numbers from the next firefighter she talks to during a call, you should report her too, Tommy," said Bobby.

"I will," said Tommy.

"Thank you for clarifying this for me, Tommy. Buck, his wife, and kids became a little brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew to me, and I wanted to keep them safe from a dispatcher who stole Buck's number from a report," said Chimney before hanging up.

Bobby looked at Buck, "Go ahead and shower because you're at the end of your shift and can take care of reporting Dispatcher Clark and getting your phone number changed."

After Buck finished his shift, he took advantage of his wife and kids being at school or work to head to the dispatch center, where he told Sue Belvins about being told that Abby Clark stole his number from a report last week, which was confirmed when Sue Blevins had Terry Flores see if anyone gained access to the report from the call he worked on with Abby to find out that Abby did log into the system to gain access to the report that included Buck's and Sergeant Grant's phone numbers.

Sue looked at Buck, "I'm sorry about Dispatcher Clark stealing your number. Even if she's going through a lot right now with her mother, I'll make sure her actions go unpunished."

"I appreciate it," said Buck.

When Buck left the dispatch center, he headed to Erica's and Buck's cell phone provider, where he could change his phone number.

After running his errands, Buck headed to his wife's law firm with the pizza he picked up for lunch and knocked on his wife's office door when the secretary, Eliana, told him that Erica was free after he told Eliana that the other two pizzas he brought were for her, Luella, and Sadie.

"Come in," said Erica.

Buck grinned as he entered his wife's office with a pizza box, "There's my beautiful Gazelle."

Erica smiled at her husband, "Shouldn't you be at home resting from your latest shift?" asked Erica.

Buck set the pizza on his wife's desk, "I brought you lunch."

Erica's mouth watered as she smelled the pizza and opened the box, "Just what I was craving because I was just about to ask Luella and Sadie if we should order pizza for lunch."

Buck smiled as he watched his wife dig into a slice, "I picked up their favorites and left them with Eliana."

"Thank you for thinking about my colleagues," said Erica.

Buck pulled out his phone as he texted his wife, "I ended up having to file a complaint against a 9-1-1 operator and change my number."

I LOVE YOU, GAZELLE.

Erica's phone chimed, causing her to see a text, "No wonder why I got an automated voice saying your number was disconnected, and when I called Bobby, he mentioned you'd explain. So what happened? Were you tired of people finding out your phone number?" asked Erica.

"Carla stopped by to tell me that she found out that the daughter of a new client is the same dispatcher I worked with last week, and she stole my number from the report I had to file," said Buck.

Erica sat up straight in her office chair, "Carla violated HIPAA if she told you that."

"Carla went to her boss to tell her what she learned, and her boss agreed that Dispatcher Clark's actions were highly illegal and I had the right to know about my phone number being stolen from a report," said Buck.

"I agree that that dispatcher's actions were illegal, and changing your number is safer just in case she wrote it down to contact you through a landline or someone else's phone," said Erica.

Buck nodded, "Exactly, and I've sent my new number to the people I talk to the most."

During Abby's next shift, Abby learned that she was being suspended for one month without pay while she was signed up for training courses and sent to therapy.

On the morning of January 10th, Buck, who had the day off for both Katherine's and Ethan's birthday before he worked a 24-hour shift on Friday morning into Saturday morning, grinned as Katherine and Ethan, who were both in their school uniforms and combed their hair entered the living room to find the tank he already set up while Katherine and Ethan were still sleeping, "Happy seventh birthday."

Katherine and Ethan both accepted a hug and kiss from their father.

"I'm not seven until tomorrow, Dad," said Ethan.

"I know, but go to the living room to see what your mother and I got you two for your joint birthday present," said Buck.

"Aside from our weekly allowance being bumped up from $6 to $7?" asked Katherine.

"Yes, you two will be getting $7 a week instead of $6," said Buck.

"Even if we both have to put $1 in the collection plate at Grandpa Ryan's church every week," said Katherine.

Buck nodded, "Your mother still wants you two to put a $1 in every week."

Ethan's eyes widened when his father unveiled the gift, and he saw a 10-gallon tank in the living room, "We're getting another pet?" asked Ethan.

Buck nodded, "Come meet your new pet."

A few seconds later, Ethan cheered when he saw a baby red and orange corn snake in a 10-gallon enclosure, "A baby corn snake."

"Your mother and I thought you two did deserve a corn snake as your birthday gift, but I couldn't pick it up until I got off shift this morning," said Buck.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" asked Katie.

"A girl," said Buck.

Katherine looked at her twin brother, "Since I'm older and a girl, I'll pick out her name."

"If you pick out her name, I get to hold her first," said Ethan.

"Deal," said Katherine.

Erica entered the room following her fifth trip to the bathroom for the day, "What are you going to name her, Kat?" asked Erica.

"Pumpkin Elizabeth Buckley," said Katherine confidently.

"Because Pumpkin is orange like a pumpkin?" asked Ethan.

"Yes," said Katherine.

A minute later, Ethan was holding Pumpkin under the supervision of his parents, "Hi Pumpkin. My name is Ethan Buckley."

Katherine ran a finger along Pumpkin's body, "You're cute, Pumpkin."

"She sure is," said Buck.

"Now you two know the rules that the top of Pumpkin's enclosure have to remain closed because corn snakes are known to be escape artists," said Erica.

"While neither of you are going to hold Pumpkin without an adult supervising," said Buck.

"Yes, ma'am. Yes, sir," said Katherine and Ethan in unison.

A few minutes later, Buck sent pictures of Katherine, Ethan, Erica, and himself, each taking a turn holding Pumpkin before sending it to his in-laws and his 118 teammates.

MEET THE NEWEST BUCKLEY. A CORN SNAKE NAMED PUMPKIN ELIZABETH BUCKLEY. PUMPKIN IS KATHERINE'S AND ETHAN'S JOINT BIRTHDAY GIFT FROM ERICA AND ME. ERICA AND I FIRMLY TOLD THE TWINS THAT THEY WERE FORBIDDEN TO HOLD PUMPKIN WITHOUT ADULT SUPERVISION.

Buck laughed as he got a text message from Chimney full of middle finger emojis while Bobby and Hen told him not to collect as many snakes as the snake hoarder girl.

"Now, let's hurry up to go out for breakfast," said Erica.

A few minutes later, Buck, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan left the house to eat breakfast at a diner where they had reserved a table.

Chapter Text

Erica frowned when she saw Athena and a man enter her office. She stood up and shook Athena's and Michael's hands, "What's going on that an urgent meeting was requested and not to tell my husband that you two called me to be a lawyer for one of your kids?" asked Erica.

Athena looked at the 26-year-old wife of Evan Buckley, who was wearing a short-sleeved ruby maternity dress that reached her knees and had a small slit. At the same time, Erica's long brown hair was pulled back into a sleek ponytail, "May tried to kill herself yesterday, and I managed to get to her in time. She's currently in the hospital for the next 24 hours and will be in a group home for a while, much to Michael's and my chagrin."

"It's protocal to have the minor be living elsewhere while a suicide attempt is investigated," said Erica.

"I'm Athena's husband, Michael. With you working as a child advocacy attorney, I wonder if you've been given cases to represent who is a victim of bullying," said Michael.

"I have," said Erica.

"Can you help give May justice before Athena does anything that will get her fired and keep May from coming home and possibly get Harry removed?" asked Michael.

Erica nodded, "Since I've only met Athena once before today, I'll be glad to help out. Just let me see if Luella who is the personal injury attorney is able to help out, too."

"Why not just you?" asked Athena.

"I only met May once, and to make sure that I don't lose my license to practice law over me representing a minor I only met once and the mother of said minor being friends with a paramedic at the firehouse my husband works at, I need to have my personal injury attorney colleague Luella Edgar with us. Luella can help you two and May seek justice for emotional damages caused by May's bully," said Erica.

"We'll accept Attorney Edgar's help, too," said Michael.

A few minutes later, Erica and Luella listened to Athena and Michael explain what was happening and what May had said.

When Athena was finished, Erica stood up and started pacing while grimacing. She rubbed her lower back to ease the discomfort.

Luella looked at her best friend, "You alright, Erica?" asked Luella.

"Aside from believing that Eleanora is going to be into tap dancing or playing soccer like her big brother, she's putting a lot of strain on my back. I just need to move around the room to ease the pain in my back," said Erica.

"I remember being in the third trimester with May and then Harry," said Athena.

"Third trimester was worse with Katie and Ethan because I was on bed rest," said Erica.

"How much longer?" asked Michael.

"About seven weeks to go, and Buck, Katie, Ethan, and I are very excited about Eleanora's upcoming birth," said Erica.

"May loved Harry until Harry started to get into all of her things," said Athena.

"I understand because Isaac and I loved Alice until Alice started getting into our belongings," said Erica. She then got serious, "Back to the case, I'm going to contact officers from a different police station to help Luella and me investigate May's social media pages and text messages, go through May's bedroom for any written evidence of words that led to May attempting her life, interview students close to May and her bully, teachers at school, and Laila's family while going through security camera footage to see if there's any cornering, pushing, and shoving involved."

"Why can't officers from my station help you two investigate?" asked Athena.

"If you've been working with them at your current station since May was born, they watched your daughter grow up and probably not have a level head to create a clean case," said Erica.

Luella moved a strand of blonde hair behind her ear as she held up her tablet from her research, "Plus, my suspicion about Laila Creedy being the daughter of tax attorney Paul Creedy is correct. So, to keep the case clean, we need to go by the book, involve officers who don't know May, and talk to a judge who's not connected to Attorney Creedy about getting a warrant to search May's electronics, bedroom, locker, and search Laila's and her friends' electronics, lockers, and even their cars if they have a driver's license."

"Attorneys Buckley and Edgar are correct, Athena," said Michael. 

"Another things I'd suggest is transfer your daughter to a different school," said Luella.

"Are you sure?" asked Athena.

Erica nodded, "I know about the background check you did on my husband, so you know that Buck, my parents, little sister, and I all moved to San Diego for a fresh start after my mother-in-law tried to bully me into having an abortion or ruin my father's reputation as a minister in our small town Episcopalian church so my husband couldn't have the happiness he deserves after he couldn't save Daniel."

"Save Daniel?" asked Michael.

"Buck, Katie, Ethan, and now Eleanora wouldn't have existed if it wasn't for Buck's older brother Daniel getting sick with juvenile leukemia. Daniel wouldn't respond to treatment and no one in the family was a match for a bone marrow transpant, so my in-laws chose to have my husband through IVF to create a match for Daniel," said Erica.

"Your husband was a savior sibling?" asked Michael.

Erica nodded, "Yes, and the treatment I watched my husband face from his birth mother for not saving Daniel led me to become a child advocate attorney because no child should face emotional abuse from their parents."

"Back on topic, I'd suggest you transfer May to a different school because if the teachers saw what was going on and didn't do anything, you could sue the school," said Luella.

Erica nodded, "While I think May's case could also warrent that Laila and her family be sued to pay for May's hospitalization and the therapy she'll be forced to go through."

"Exactly," said Luella.

After Chimney said he would get some air, Buck said, "You shouldn't be driving anywhere while this angry, Chimney. Stay here until you calm down, or call an Uber or a taxi to take you home, and then call a therapist in the morning."

Chimney turned and glared at Buck, "Fuck you, Buckley. Within the past four and a half months you've been here, you became Bobby's golden boy because you're married, a father, go to church like him, can cook, and always get to do the maneuver instead of me. I wish your mother didn't get arrested so she could have smothered your little brats after birth, and Erica rejected your marriage proposal years ago or divorced you the past couple of years."

Buck had to control his anger as he gripped a chair and felt a few other coworkers hold him back. 

Hen glared at her best friend, "I'm sorry that Tatiana didn't say yes to your marriage proposal, but what you just said is uncalled for. Buck's right that you shouldn't be driving right now."

"You're fired. Get out of my firehouse, and I'll be telling HR and the Chief what you said about a coworker's children," said Bobby.

Chimney flipped the bird as he walked away, "Fuck you all."

Two minutes later, everyone was sitting down to eat dinner.

As he sat down at the table with his teammates sans Chimney, Buck looked at Hen, who knew Chimney the best, "Even if he called me his little brother last week when he called Tommy to ask about Abby Clark and spoiled Katie and Ethan with DVDs for their birthday, was he really jealous about me having a third child on the way?" asked Buck.

"He did seem a bit jealous when he realized you had a wife and children on the day you, Katie, and Ethan showed up for a tour at Bobby's invitation," said Hen. 

Buck looked at Bobby, "You don't regret choosing me out of probies you could have picked out from the Academy or firefighters you could have chosen from a different station?" asked Buck.

"Not at all, Buck. You're good at your job and have a good support system out of work," said Bobby. 

"And I never lied to Erica because we grew up together as children before we fell in love as teenagers," said Buck.

Another firefighter who knew that Buck and Erica started dating in September 2007 said, "And not many high school sweethearts are still together after being a couple for over a decade."

Hen looked at Buck, "I'm glad Bobby asked you to transfer here. Your golden retriever personality, infectious smiles & laughter, and your skills as a firefighter are appreciated here. Even Denny loves you because he loves all the fun facts you tell him and you invite him on outings you take Katie and Ethan on."

Chimney, who knew about the rebar in his head, noticed the lack of Buck around him, Bobby, and another 118 members, "Where's Buck?" asked Chimney.

"He refused to see you after what you said to him about Katie and Ethan, and I can't blame him. I told him to assist in extracting other people from their vehicles and treat minor injuries," said Bobby.

"If I get out of this alive, I should probably stay far away from Erica if Buck tells her what I said," said Chimney.

"You better because I know whether Erica is 33 weeks pregnant or not; Buck has a right to tell his wife what you said because Erica might not allow you inside hers and Buck's home anymore, nor Buck would hold his wife back from going after you. A pregnant woman is someone no one would ever want to anger, and I know Karen and I wouldn't hold Erica back from you for what you said earlier about Katie and Ethan. I know Karen and myself wouldn't be able to welcome you in our home or around Denny anymore," said Hen.

"Even if I'm Catholic, I don't think I'd have the heart to hold Erica back from attacking you for what you said. Even if Buck's father-in-law is an Episcopalian minister, I doubt Reverend Evans would hold his wife or children back from going after you for what you said about his eldest daughter or grandchildren," said Bobby.

"Even Athena wouldn't be held back from you because she became protective over Buck after he saved her from being shot at two weeks ago," said Hen.

Chimney paled, "I want to apologize before I'm taken to the hospital, just in case I don't make it."

Buck was loading a patient into an ambulance when he heard Chimney shout.

"BUCK!" shouted Chimney.

Buck glanced towards where the car Chimney was strapped into was already put onto a tow truck, "Got anymore hurtful things you want to say about my wife, kids, or me, to me?" asked Buck.

"I don't expect your forgiveness, but I'm sorry for what I said earlier," said Chimney.

"I'll accept your apology, but I'm not sure if I'll ever forgive or forget about what you said. I don't want you around Erica, my kids, or me ever again," said Buck.

A minute later, Buck was driving the 118 engine to the hospital, and he went back into the engine after hospital staff members had taken Chimney away.

Hours later, Erica woke up to her phone ringing as she answered without checking the caller ID, "What?" growled Erica.

"I'm sorry for waking you up after midnight, but Chimney was in a car accident," said Buck.

"Is he alright?" asked Erica.

"I don't know. He had a rebar in his head and survived, but he's currently in surgery," said Buck.

"Are you at the hospital he was taken to?" asked Erica.

"The station because as the last people who've seen Chimney, we had to be interviewed by HR," said Buck.

"Being interviewed by Human Resources?" asked Erica.

Buck took a breath, "Please don't let your blood pressure ride from anger because even if Eleanora could be born now, she'd be living in the NICU for a while, but Chimney came in angry after Tatiana didn't accept his marriage proposal."

"As a preacher's kid, I wouldn't want to marry someone who lies to their girlfriend about being able to cook and taking credit of a coworker's rescues," said Erica.

"And I didn't say anything to him about lying to Tatiana the past couple of months due to not wanting to be a judgemental WASP like my egg donor," said Buck.

"I know, but what hurtful things did Chimney say?" asked Erica.

Buck repeated the words, and when he was done, Erica took some calming breaths before speaking up.

"I hope his ass gets kicked out of the LAFD and be banned from working as a first responder ever again for saying those things to you about our kids. I wouldn't trust Howard to be the paramedic to keep you, our kids, my parents, friends, and me alive," seethed Erica.

"Bobby fired him and he already told the Chief and HR what happened. I told them I can’t trust Chimney anymore either," said Buck.

"Good, and he'll never be welcome in our home again, and better stay away from the kids, my parents, and us," said Erica.

"Due to what Chimney said to me, another firefighter helped Bobby and Hen get him stable for transport so I didn't have to see him," said Buck.

"Good," said Erica.

The following morning, Erica and Luella approached CPS worker Karen Williams, whom she has worked with multiple times with Detective Kendra Samuels from a police station that Athena has yet to work with, "Good afternoon, Mrs. Williams. Detective Kendra Samuels is helping me on a case."

Karen Williams smiled at Erica, "What can I do for you, Erica?" asked Karen.

"I know this is personal, but I just met May Grant over a week ago after my husband saved her mother from getting shot at almost two weeks ago. Buck and I hired her to be a new babysitter for our twins and soon-to-be-born daughter," said Erica.

"I take it May's parents called you for legal advice and to launch an investigation against May's bully?" asked Mrs. Williams.

Erica nodded, "They told me what May said before you prevented them from talking to May."

"And you've worked a few cases dealing with bullying already," said Mrs. Williams.

Erica nodded, "Exactly, and even if I met May once, I'm going by the book by involving officers who never worked with Sergeant Grant or at Sergeant Grant's station if you allow me to start an investigation to give May justice over her school bully."

“I’m helping, too,” said Luella.

"I'll let you talk to May with me present," said Mrs. Williams.

May, who was residing in a group home, now frowned when she saw Erica Buckley, a young woman in a blouse and dress pants, and a female police officer she had never seen before being escorted into the room by Mrs. Williams and an unfamiliar police officer, "What are you doing here with a police officer, Erica? Are you here to take me back to my Mom and Dad?" asked May.

"I'm not here to take you home to your parents, but your parents came to me for help because your father is afraid your mother would go after Laila on her own in a way that would get her fired and not allow you to come home," said Erica.

"I'm personal injury attorney Luella Edgar. I'm one of the co-owners of Buckley, Edgar & Kelson Attorneys at Law. Due Erica meeting you once before today and me being a personal injury attorney, Erica thought I should assist her with the case due to the emotional damaged Laila Creedy and her friends caused you," said Luella.

May nodded, "Knowing Mom, she'd go all Mama-bear and stalk Laila and her friends to the point she arrests Laila and possibly her friends after I told them that Laila and her friends told me "you're nothing" and "You're the worst" and "you should go kill yourself" and "no one would care if you did" and "you should die" due to me talking to a boy that Laila likes."

"Even if this is the second time we met, you're none of that and you're an amazing girl, May. Katie and Ethan were looking forward to you babysitting them," said Erica.

"I know," said May.

"I know high school is rough, but I'm sorry girls got jealous over a boy talking to you," said Luella.

May thought about learning that Erica and Buck are childhood sweethearts, and Erica is the daughter of an Episcopalian minister who preached at Buck's Episcopalian church, "Did other girls at school or church get jealous over your relationship with Buck."

"A few did, but they didn't say mean things to me like my mother-in-law did," said Erica. 

Luella got serious, "Your mother confessed that she wants to personally arrest your bully, but we're going to be doing a by the book investigation."

"I'm Detective Kendra Samuels, and I'm assigned as the detective to work your case," said Detective Samuels.

"You don't work at my mother's station," said May.

Detective Samuels nodded, "It was agreed by Erica and Luella that an officer who doesn't work at your mother's station needed to be assigned to your case for level-headedness after learning that Laila's father is a tax attorney."

Luella looked at May, "Would you like Erica and me to be your lawyers, or would you like me to ask a different child advocacy attorney and personal injury attorney to take your case so Laila can face consequences?" asked Luella.

"Is Erica allowed to work my case?" asked May.

"The judge who we already got warrants from agreed to allow me to work your case as long as another lawyer works with me and we involve officers who don't work with your mother," said Erica.

"And I'm fine with Erica working your case because she's the lawyer I've contacted to represent children assigned to me," said Mrs. Williams.

"I want you to be my lawyer, Erica," said May. She looked at Luella, "You too, Luella.

"First question I need to ask is do you have any hurtful messages on your phone from Laila and her friends that you didn't delete or any notes that you didn't tear up or threw away?" asked Erica.

May nodded, "I didn't delete the latest messages I received right before my suicide attempt, and I changed my passcode on my phone as soon as the threats started to keep Mom from arresting Laila and her friends if she snooped through my phone when I started acting off."

"I'll need access to your phone so we can gather those messages," said Detective Samuels.

"You have my consent to look through my phone," said May.

"Now did you tell your teachers, guidance counselor, the principal, or any other staff members what was going on?" asked Luella.

"I did, but they wouldn't do anything about it because Laila's father is a tax attorney," said May.

Buck returned to the station with Bobby and Hen, and Hen looked at Buck, "I didn't know you speak and understand Spanish, Buck."

"I took Spanish classes in middle, high school, and even college and a bunch of neighbors in the apartment Erica, Katie, Ethan, and I lived in back in San Diego spoke a lot of Spanish," said Buck. He grinned, "Plus, Erica, Katie, Ethan, and I did multiple day trips to Tijuana, Mexico while we did a family vacation to Peru in 2015."

"Does Erica know Spanish, too?" asked Hen.

Buck nodded, "She's fluent, too."

"And it helped you today on the job, too," said Bobby.

Buck nodded, "It does."

"Do you know about the bilingual bonus?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "I've been getting it."

Chief Alonzo approached the loft before anything else could be said.

"What's going on, Chief Alonzo?" asked Bobby.

"Can I speak to you in private?" asked Chief Alonzo.

A minute later, Bobby led Chief Alonzo to his office.

Bobby came into the loft area an hour later to find Buck, Hen, and the rest of the 118 waiting.

"Did something happen to Chimney?" asked Hen.

"No matter if Chimney makes it out of his medically induced coma or not and he fully recovers from his injuries, Chief Alonzo backed up my request to fire Chimney because of what he said to Buck about his kids and now the fate of two of the victims from last night's," said Bobby.

Hen, who couldn't blame Bobby for telling Chimney that he's fired for wishing that Buck's mother smothered Katherine and Ethan, spoke up, "What do you mean he's also being let go due to the fate of two of the victims from last night's accident?" asked Hen.

Buck quickly connected the dots as he thought about Chimney's anger as he left the station, "He's the reason why all those cars and trucks crashed in the first place?" asked Buck.

Bobby nodded, "The LAPD police department started investigating the accident as soon as they joined the scene, and they discovered through traffic cameras and interviews conducted at the scene or hospital that Chimney was the cause of the multi-car accident on the highway. He was driving over 80 MPH, weaving in and out of traffic to the point that cars were swerving, and passersby mentioned that they saw an angry Asian man driving in a blue car before Chimney stopped when he was about to crash into leftover equipment from construction work."

Hen connected the dots, "Which caused that truck that possibly swerved from Chimney's driving to hit behind Chimney and led Chimney to get a rebar in his head and other cars and trucks crashed as they stopped driving when they saw Chimney get hit."

Bobby nodded, "There were even 9-1-1 calls before the accident when people complained about Chimney's driving, and his license plate was mentioned."

"As a husband of an attorney, I know Chimney can be sued to pay medical bills, damage to vehicles, and even to pay for the funeral if someone died in last night's accidents," said Buck.

Bobby nodded, "If Chimney survives his medically induced coma, he'll be faced with charges of reckless driving and vehicular manslaughter because two of the accident victims passed away from internal bleeding and a cerebral hemorrhage."

"He'll never be allowed to be a firefighter or a paramedic again, and future career opportunities might not happen due to charges he could face," said Hen.

Bobby nodded, "We need LAFD to trust us, which means following the code of ethics on and off duty as a firefighter. Chief Alonzo already wasn't happy about Chimney calling the man who called 9-1-1 about hearing a baby in a pipe Spicoli. Now he's even furious about Chimney lying to his girlfriend by telling her he did the rescues another coworker did, wishing that children of a coworker were killed after birth, and his angry driving causing last night's accident to happen."

Two days later, Chimney finally woke up from his coma to find police officers, Chief Alonzo, and a Union representative from LAFD by his hospital bed. He listened as he was arrested and handcuffed to his hospital bed for reckless driving and vehicular manslaughter as he was shown traffic cam footage of him driving before his accident and Chief Alonzo firing him.

Chapter Text

At 4 P.M., Erica, Luella, and Athena were waiting in Erica's office for a phone call from Detective Samuels.

Athena looked at Erica, "When I heard about what Han said to your husband, it took me a lot of restraint to show up at the hospital after he woke up from his coma to confront him."

"I take it my husband quickly grew on you?" asked Erica.

"Even if I heard from other officers and firefighters from the 132 that your husband is contempt, a hoot with kids during calls, and had a good head on his shoulders, I didn't know what to think when I saw him looking angry but kept his mouth shut when I called for the 118 to wait up in the back of the ambulance," said Athena.

"He hates it when a mother doesn't love her child, and the father doesn't have the backbone to stand up for their child and only cares for the mother of their child," said Erica.

"After reading the police reports, I couldn't blame him, but I'm glad he kept his mouth shut and focused on the baby in his arms," said Athena.

"It took a lot of therapy for him, and I'm glad that even over seven and a half years later, he still attends therapy. He talked to his therapist following Mr. Han's blowup at the 118 and Mr. Han's accident subsequent arrest," said Erica.

"Have the children asked about where Han is?" asked Athena.

"We told them the truth because their classmates would have seen the news or heard their parents talking about a paramedic killing two people in a car accident off-duty, " said Erica.

"While people are wondering if they can still trust firefighters and paramedics after a reporter revealed that Howard Han's driving was the reason why the multi-car accident happened in the first place," said Athena.

"When it came to Buck trying to reach Devon's hand three weeks back, people filming the rescue attempt saw that Buck tried to take Devon's hand," said Erica.

Athena, who had seen some of the videos, said, "But videos showed Devon not reaching for the strap Buck offered him and Buck's hand."

Luella, who had talked to another personal injury attorney about the roller coaster accident when Erica asked her to see what she could find out about the investigation, spoke up, "While my cousin who was trapped on that ride told me that the roller coaster only had a restraint bar that went over the lap and instead of over the shoulders and between your thighs. She also stated that Devon’s friend pressured Devon to ride and the operator struggled to put the bar over Devon's lap. His weight caused the bar to become undone."

"No one should pressure someone to ride an amusement park ride with them if they don't want to. Buck, my siblings, other friends, and I didn't pressure each other to ride a theme park ride we didn't want to ride in Hersheypark when we were teenagers. Now, as parents, we don't pressure Katie and Ethan to ride a carnival or theme park ride," said Erica.

"May knows she'd be grounded for a long time if she bullied friends into riding a theme park ride they don't want to ride," said Athena.

Then the landline on Erica's desk rang, causing her to answer the phone, "Attorney Buckley speaking."

"It's Detective Samuels, and I want you to know that Laila Creedy has been arrested at her house along with a bunch of other students at a party Laila's been throwing. There was underage drinking and Laila and a few other students were high from controlled substances that Laila was possessing," said Detective Samuels.

"Good, and if Attorney Creedy and his wife didn't have their liquor locked up in a cabinet or a locked up fridge to keep their daughter and her friends from underage drinking, I think they can face the consequences due to social host liability laws. If they knew their daughter was throwing a party and weren't going to be home, they should have liquor locked up, give strict rules, or be there to supervise to prevent underage drinking," said Erica.

"I found out that Laila's parents didn't have their liquor locked up while a few teens had fake IDs, so Laila and even her parents are going to be facing charges for breaking social host laws," said Detective Samuels.

"Another two charges for Laila are good, and because his daughter and her friends are participating in underage drinking under his roof, I'll see about getting Attorney Creedy's California Bar license examined," said Erica.

A while later, Erica and Luella entered the interrogation room. Paul Creedy was secured while Paul's wife Candance was in a separate interrogation room.

"I'm Child Advocacy Attorney Erica Buckley," said Erica.

Paul glared at Erica, "I know who you are because one of my colleagues attends your father's Episcopal church and mentioned you're also an attorney."

"I'm Personal Injury Attorney Luella Edgar," said Luella.

"Are you here to represent Laila for her charges of underage drinking and controlled substance?" asked Paul.

"We were assigned to represent May Grant after she admitted that your daughter Laila was cyberbullying May Grant," said Erica.

"To the point that May attempted suicide," said Paul.

Luella nodded as she handed Paul a picture of the text messages his daughter sent May that were printed off, "Yes, and your daughter will be facing charges for assisted suicide, possession of controlled substances, and social host liability due to your daughter and her friends who are all under 21 getting ahold of your alcoholic beverages and could have driven home while drunk."

"While you'll be facing charges for not preventing underage drinking from happening in your home," said Erica.

Paul looked at Erica, "Your last name is Buckley. Any relation to Firefighter Evan Buckley, who went viral a few weeks ago for climbing that malfunctioning roller coaster that led him to saving four lives even if the fifth person who was stuck died and works at the same firehouse where a paramedic is now facing charges for driving recklessly and vehicular homicide?" asked Paul.

"He's my husband. Firefighter Buckley wasn't at fault for the death at the winter carnival a few weeks ago, and his former coworker wasn't on duty when he was driving recklessly," said Erica.

"The wrong type of safety restraining system was used on a roller coaster that goes upside down while it wasn't safe for Devon to ride that roller coaster in the first place," said Luella.

"Now, how did I not even find out that you two and police officers were investigating my daughter without me finding out?" asked Paul.

"We made sure to get warrants from a judge who isn't connected to you or the trial attorney you play golf with and made sure to include detectives and officers from a different police station that's not affiliated with Sergeant Grant's station," said Erica.

"And Attorney Buckley had me help her because Sergeant Grant was friends with one of Firefighter Buckley's coworkers, so I could make sure Attorney Buckley went by the book," said Luella.

Paul looked at Erica, "For an Episcopalian minister's daughter, I think you shouldn't have become an attorney and just be a quiet and obedient little housewife who's barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen while wrangling children."

"It's the 21st century, and my parents told me if I work hard for it, I can be anything I want as long as I don't break the law," said Erica. She smirked, "I hope you know that your license to be a tax attorney is under review because you didn't hide or secure your alcohol; if you were or weren't aware of your daughter throwing a house party after school. Parents get in trouble if their kids are caught drinking underage."

"When you and Mrs. Creedy get released, good luck at dealing with angry parents because their kids are now facing charges for underage drinking and using drugs under your roof," said Luella.

A minute later, Erica and Luella left the interrogation room before going to talk to Cadence and Laila about the charges they'll be facing.

Buck looked at Hen as they prepped dinner together. "How are you doing?" Buck asked.

Hen thought about it being two weeks since Chimney's accident and then arrest, "With my now former best friend getting fired and now being out of the hospital and in lock-up until the trial?" asked Hen.

Buck nodded, "Yes."

"After everything he did for me when I first joined under Gerrard, I miss him, but he's always been a liar and a manipulator," said Hen.

"Always been?" asked Buck.

"Aside from Chimney lying to set us up on a blind date, which brought Karen and me together, I was asked to raise Denny by my ex Eva, who got pregnant in prison and is still in prison today. Karen, who wasn't thrilled about adopting Denny at first, got an opportunity to follow her dream in Houston, and we broke up. Then, I got into an accident that involved some broken bones, and Chimney called Karen who was at the airport to fly to Houston, and told her I was killed during a call to get her to return to me," said Hen.

"Wow," said Buck.

Hen nodded, "Karen's not suprised that his lying and manipulation finally bit him in the ass, and she said that no matter if he faces prison time or not, he's no longer welcome in our home and is making me see a therapist."

"I've been talking to my therapist, too," said Buck.

"Good," said Hen. She sighed, "I'm not looking forward to having a new partner when the paramedic transferring here starts on February 13th, but I know I'll have to accept the changes happening."

Buck nodded, "I understand because Bobby is supposed to find a partner to work with me on calls by the end of September."

Hen nodded, "I'm pushing near 40, and Bobby is in his 50s. You need someone young enough to keep up with you during calls."

Buck looked over where Bobby was looking through a book that he once thought about looking through when he saw it, but he didn't because he knew Erica and his father-in-law would get onto him if he looked through someone else's property without permission, "He's doing it again."

After talking about the little black book with Hen, Buck walked over to Bobby, "I know you're dealing with guilt for what you said to Han before he left the station, but the accident that killed two people and caused him to get a rebar in his head isn't your fault, Bobby. He chose to drive the way he did when he was angry, didn't choose to get to know Tatiana personally by discussing past relationships, and created a fantasy version of himself to impress Tatiana by feeding her lies instead of just being himself."

"I know," said Bobby.

"If you're ever struggling with anything, don't be afraid to ask for help. Erica and I have a comfortable guest bedroom you can stay in if you don't want to go home alone after a bad shift," said Buck.

Before Bobby could say anything, the alarm went off.

Following the 118 returning to the station after helping with rescuing survivors from the plane crash, triaging injuries, and even collecting dead bodies from the ocean, Bobby found Buck putting on his LAFD-issued sweatpants and sweatshirt following showers to wash off the saltwater from the ocean and the smell of jet fuel, "I want to take your offer of sleeping in your guest bedroom because I need help."

Buck nodded, "Here's a heads up that Erica already cancelled meetings with clients today and called Katie and Ethan out of school with the excuse of a mental health day. Plus, I'm supposed to call Dr. Copeland as soon as her office opens."

"Really?" asked Bobby.

"I never dealt with a plane crash when working as a firefighter in San Diego and then the 132 in LA, so Erica feels like I shouldn't be home alone sleeping off the shift even if I told her I could just spend the day helping out my father-in-law at the church," said Buck.

Bobby thought about the times he would call Robbie and Brooke out of school after a bad shift before his relapse, "And there's nothing wrong with allowing kids to take a mental health day from school. My father used to do that with my brother and me before his death."

"Even if Erica and I decided to keep the kids out of school today, Katie and Ethan know that a mental health day doesn't allow a fun outing to the zoo, museums, the park or being allowed to spend all day watching TV, movies, or play video games," said Buck.

"What does a mental health day of playing hooky from school consist then?" asked Bobby.

Buck grinned, "You'll have to wait and see, but make sure to have pajamas with you because we spend the day in pajamas."

Katherine and Ethan grinned as their father entered the house with Bobby.

"Mom told Ethan and me that we get to play hooky from school today to take care of you and Dad, Captain Bobby," said Katherine.

"Your father told me that you, your brother, and your mother were playing hooky today," said Bobby.

Katherine quickly hugged her father and Bobby before she wrinkled her nose, "You and Captain Bobby smell like oil and saltwater, Dad."

"We had to go swimming in the ocean to pull out people," said Buck.

Ethan noticed the sadness in his father's and Bobby's eyes, "Did a plane crash into the ocean or a big boat explode that people died?" asked Ethan.

"A plane crash," said Buck. He looked at Bobby, "After my parents and sister kept my older brother a secret from me, Erica and I agreed that we would be truthful and not keep secrets because they know there's both good and bad in this world."

Wearing purple flannel pajamas with flowers, Katherine grinned at Bobby, "Come meet Pumpkin, Captain Bobby."

Wearing flannel pajamas with firetrucks, Ethan grinned, "Pumpkin will love you like he loves Katie, Dad, and Mom."

Katie giggled, "Even if Pumpkin pooped on Denny when Denny came here for a few hours while Hen and Karen did some errands."

Erica hugged her husband as she felt Eleanora kick multiple times and looked at her twins. "Bobby can meet Pumpkin after he and your father take showers to get the residual smell of jet fuel off their skin."

Buck noticed how pale his wife was. "The smell of jet fuel is making you sick?" Buck asked.

"Even if I'm 35 weeks pregnant, I still occasionally get morning sickness," said Erica.

Buck looked at Bobby, "Let me show you the guest bathroom and where towels are."

"I'd appreciate it," said Bobby.

Erica looked at her seven-year-old twins, "While we'll start getting ingredients out for breakfast."

A few minutes later, Buck took a shower in the primary bath, and Bobby took a shower in the guest bedroom before Buck and Bobby, both in sweatpants and sweatshirts, entered the kitchen.

Buck noticed Katherine and Ethan pointing at a playlist on Erica's Spotify account for the Bluetooth speaker on the tablet kept in the kitchen, "What music are you two planning for breakfast?" asked Buck.

"Bruce Springsteen," said Ethan.

Bobby, who knew that Buck liked Bruce Springsteen like him after he ran into Buck and Erica at the Bruce Springsteen concert he attended when Erica was 15 weeks pregnant with Eleanora, smiled a bit, "Sounds like a good choice."

"Katherine and Ethan were kicking away whenever a Bruce Springsteen song played on the radio, and now Eleanora is kicking away to Bruce Sprinsteen and even Avicii," said Erica.

"Avicii?" asked Bobby.

Katherine, who loves the Avicii songs Wake Me Up, The Nights, The Days, and Trouble grinned, "Tim Bergling is a Swedish DJ known as Avicii, and I already memorized his songs Wake Me Up, The Days, The Nights, and Trouble."

Bobby, who knew that seven-year-old Katherine had a beautiful singing voice that caused her to stand in front of her grandfather's church and sing one song during every service she attends, and is already practicing her song for Eleanora's future Christening, looked at Katherine, "Why don't you sing out loud while we make breakfast?" asked Bobby.

Katherine grinned, "OK."

A minute later, Katherine started singing Trouble by Avicii.

Following the Buckley family and Bobby eating breakfast and Katherine and Ethan proudly introducing Pumpkin to Bobby, who couldn't say no to holding them as he fell for the same puppy-dog eyes that his father would give to him about making certain meals and snacks during shifts was standing in the living room with Buck, Katherine, and Ethan.

Katherine looked up from her purple glittery clipboard with flowers and KATHERINE BUCKLEY on the back and looked at Bobby, "Now that breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes is eaten, it's time to build a fort."

Ethan, holding a red clipboard with red flames and ETHAN BUCKLEY printed on it, looked at Bobby, "We need to grab all the spare sheets, blankets, and the couch cushions."

"Alright," said Bobby.

As Katherine and Ethan went to grab the supplies, Bobby looked at Buck, who always got excited about being assigned inventory at the station, and Hen and now the fired Chimney both feared Buck with a clipboard, especially when Katie or Ethan and sometimes both twins end up spending a few hours with their father at the 118. On planned days that Buck would bring one or both of his kids to work, Katherine and Ethan would bring their clipboards with them and help their father do inventory, which half of the 118 members find adorable and call them Captain Kat and Captain Wolf as they allow Buck's kids to order them around while others like Hen and Chimney would hide when they see Buck and one or both of his kids with all holding a clipboard, "Katie and Ethan sure love clipboards like you."

Buck chuckled, "I know, and I already ordered a personalized clipboard for Eleanora."

"You two better go help them," said Erica.

Within a few minutes, Buck, Katherine, Ethan, and Bobby were using the Lovesac couch, cushions, chairs, and blankets to build a giant fort that would be big enough to crawl in and out of while there was plenty of padding to make the fort comfortable for a 35-week pregnant Erica.

Ethan looked at his clipboard containing a list of what they grab for hiding in a fort day, "Now that the fort is built and stable, it's time to grab various board and card games, books, and flashlights."

"Nail polish and my tea party set, too," said Katherine.

Erica smiled at her daughter, "Are you going to paint my nails?" asked Erica.

Katherine nodded, "I'm going to paint yours, Dad's, and Ethan's nails, Mom."

Ethan glared at his twin sister, "I don't want my nails painted, Kat."

"You make me toss a football around with you when Dad's on shift so you can do something girly with me," said Katherine.

Buck looked at his son, "Allowing your twin sister to paint your nails will prepare you for Eleanora and any daughters, nieces, and granddaughters you end up with wanting to paint your nails."

Erica nodded, "As a family, we compromise on activities that both males and females like. I stocked up on nail polish remover so you can remove the nail polish later."

Ethan sighed, "Alright."

Following everyone, each picking out a board game and one card game from the wide assortment of board games that the Buckley family had to offer, Ethan pointed at Bobby's phone that was on a coffee table as he watched his parents send texts to a few people before turning off their cell phones and placed it in the basket, "Now before we crawl into the fort, let family members, friends, and coworkers know that your cell phone will be turned off and only to call the landline at this house if it's an emergency."

Bobby raised his eyebrows, "Turn off my phone?" asked Bobby.

"We choose to disconnect from smartphones, iPads, laptops, and the TV on mental health days. We play games, sing songs, read books out loud, make up stories, eat junk food, and nap together in our fort," said Erica.

"You can leave your phone on, but you can set your phone to ring if Headquarters or another Captain needs you for something," said Buck.

"I can do that," said Bobby.

"Another rule we have for mental health days is we only leave our fortress to use the bathroom or get something to eat and drink," said Katherine.

"While I'll be allowed to leave to walk around," said Erica.

"We'll be ordering pizza for lunch and making homemade pizza for dinner," said Buck.

"Alright," said Bobby.

During the next couple of hours between eating pizza that was ordered for lunch with Katherine and Ethan being allowed a rare treat of soda, the soon-to-be five Buckley family and Bobby were in the fort where they played 20 Questions, Would You Rather, a rousing game of Uno Attack, Apples to Apples Junior, Hedbandz, Chinese Checkers, and Katherine and Ethan were taught how to play Skip-BO as they munched on popcorn, potato chips, and drank hot chocolate.

After Katherine and Ethan were fast asleep in the fort, Buck, Erica, and Bobby prepared pancake batter and fruit for breakfast in the morning because Erica was firm about Katherine and Ethan returning to school the next day before Buck and Bobby worked on using nail polish remover on their nails.

Bobby, who allowed Katherine to paint his nails after Katherine gave him her puppy-dog eyes and gave him a pout that was like her father's pouts, was using the nail polish remover to get the purple nail polish removed.

"Thank you for indulging, Katie today," said Erica.

Bobby chuckled, "I've dealt with little girls painting my nails while I kept them company at accident scenes."

Buck nodded as he worked on getting the blue nail polish Katherine painted his fingernails with, "I've done it on the job and even with Katie, too."

Bobby looked at Buck, "Thank you for allowing me to spend the day and night here. Going home with you was a better choice than I was thinking about doing."

"Are you alright?" asked Buck.

Bobby looked between Buck and Erica nervously, "I'm a recovering addict who's been sober for over 18 months. My father got me into drinking when I was a minor, and then it was using drugs on and off after injuring my back."

"And coming to our house where all alcoholic beverages are locked up so Katie and Ethan can't get into them while knowing that I can't drink any wine and Buck is remaining sober in support made you decide to spend the day here with us," said Erica.

Bobby nodded, relieved that Buck and Erica didn't look angry or kick him out, "The innocence of your children, with their smiles and laughter, was a huge help to keep me from relapsing after leaving work."

"That crash was hard-core, Bobby. I'm forever grateful that Erica was willing to allow her and the kids to play hooky from work or school so I wouldn't be home alone today," said Buck.

"My father has both AA and NA support groups at his church, so if you haven't been to a meeting for a while, you can attend the support group at his church, and my father won't say anything," said Erica.

"I haven't been to a meeting in a long time, but I regularlly talk to my Priest," said Bobby.

"With a plane crash like yesterday evening, you should talk to a therapist, Bobby. Episcopalian ministers, Catholic Priests, Pastors, Rabbis, and other ministers for other religions can counsel people for marriage and rough patches in their lives. Still, they'll send their congregants to an actual therapist. My father sees an actual therapist once a month because the difficult part about his job is officiating the funeral of someone from his church, giving Last Rites, and having to sacrifice spending time with his family to be there for a member of his church," said Erica.

"Reverend Ryan forced the both of us to get therapy after my egg donor made those threats to Erica, and I learned about my older brother," said Buck.

"And he wasn't going to marry us until we completed pre-martial counseling," said Erica.

"I'll start looking into therapists," said Bobby.

"Good, and if you ever feel like opening up an alcohol bottle or taking drugs, you're always welcome here because we keep alcoholic beverages and all the medication locked up," said Erica.

Buck looked at Bobby, "If you're interested in attending a meeting, I can help you find a new AA group to attend."

"I'd like that," said Bobby.

Erica yawned, "I don't know about you, but Eleanora stopped kicking and is asleep so I better get some shuteye myself."

"I agree because I'll be doing the school run tomorrow morning," said Buck. He then glanced towards the living room where the fort he, the kids, and Bobby built that would have enough space for him, Erica, Katherine, Ethan, and Bobby to lie down and still have space, "Are you going to keep the pinky promise you made to Katie and Ethan about sleeping in the fort with Katie, Ethan, and me?" asked Buck.

"Yes," said Bobby. He looked at Erica, "I take it you're going to sleep on the couch that Buck arranged to make a bed for you?" asked Bobby.

Erica nodded, "I'm 35 weeks pregnant, and despite the padding that was created, it'd be complicated to sleep on the floor after spending most of today in our fort due to how many times a night I've been using the bathroom."

"Excited to give birth in about five weeks?" asked Bobby.

Erica nodded, "I'm happy that I'm nearing the end, and I'm looking forward to no longer being pregnant for another four years."

Bobby woke underneath his loaned quilt and turned on his penlight flashlight to find a snoring Buck between Katherine and Ethan with an arm protectively wrapped around each twin, softly snoring with their little heads on their father's chest.

He crawled out from the fort and headed to the kitchen to find Erica dipping a pickle in peach-flavored Greek yogurt and moaning in delight, "Now that's a pregnancy craving I never expected to see."

Erica, who was five feet and two inches tall and was wearing a maternity tank top and shorts, grinned, "Just craving pickles and peach Greek yogurt."

Bobby shook his head.

"When did they die?" asked Erica.

Bobby turned his head and looked at Erica, "What?" asked Bobby.

"Your wife and kids," said Erica.

"Did someone do a background check on me?" asked Bobby.

Erica shook her head, "Aside from attending hundreds of funerals of congregants from my father's church as the daughter of an Episcopalian minister who never missed church unless I was sick or recovering from giving birth, I grew up across the street with three out of four people who had the same sad look in your eyes that they've tried to hide so much from my husband who knew something was wrong with his parents and sister," said Erica. She then pointed towards the living room, "When we were at the grocery store the day we met, I saw the wistful look on your face as you looked at Buck, Katie, and Ethan while realizing that Buck could actually look like one of your kids. With how you are with Katie and Ethan, that told me that you have at least had a son and a daughter before you transferred to LA."

Bobby sighed as he spoke softly, "Please don't tell anyone ,including your husband, but I had a wife, son, and daughter who passed away in an apartment fire that involved in over 140 deaths. The building wasn't in code, and I was so deep into alcohol and drugs that I didn't realize there were no working sprinklers or smoke detectors throughout the building."

"I'm sorry for your losses," said Erica.

"Thank you," said Bobby. He sighed, "Brooke was eight when she died, and Robbie was ten, and they would have been 12 and 14 if they were alive right now."

"With Katie's and Ethan's antics, I take it they remind you of your children?" asked Erica.

"Brooke was quite the outgoing firecracker like Buck, Katie, and Ethan are, and Robbie was also like your husband and Ethan with their love for learning new things, asking questions, and noticing that something was wrong," said Bobby.

"Knowing God, he planned on having yours and Buck's paths intertwine because my husband was born to save lives and has been looking for his true father even if my father stepped up when he realized that Margaret and Phillip barely looked or spoke to their son," said Erica.

"Your husband saved me from drowning myself in a bottle at home by offering me the guest bedroom when he saw me looking at the little black book before we were called to assist with getting passengers off the sinking plane," said Bobby.

"And you accepted his offer after the plane crash," said Erica.

"Even if I got to witness the out-of-the-box thinking his former captain told me about as I watched him instruct Hen to tie the rope to the trapped cart and Buck had the zodiac operator tie the rope to the zodiac before driving away to get two trapped people out of the bathroom, I wasn't happy when your husband came back onto the plane to try and hand me a carabiner attached to the rope before I watched him be swept away, I was relieved when I saw him on a zodiac with Hen," said Bobby.

"My husband is good at making sure he comes home to the kids and me alive with his older brother watching over him as his guardian angel, but sometimes he'll risk his life for people he loves," said Erica.

Chapter Text

Buck was driving home from work, knowing that the house would be empty due to Erica being at work and the twins being at school, when his phone that was on a mount on the dashboard gave off an alert of a silent alarm going off at his house after the glass was broken and the security system didn't get deactivated within a certain amount of time. He quickly pulled over and opened the Ring camera app. He found footage of someone with jeans, a sweatshirt over their head, and two suitcases breaking the side door window and putting their hands through it to unlock the door to get inside.

After calling 9-1-1 to let them know he got an alert about the silent alarm going off when no one was home, and he was told that the alarm company had already contacted the police, Buck started making his way home after he got a call from Erica, stating she got a broken glass alert, too.

Thirty minutes later, Buck was waiting outside his house with a uniform-clad Athena standing by him with a hand on his shoulder in support.

"We'll be finding out who the intruder is soon, Buckaroo," said Athena.

Officers led a woman wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt a few minutes later. At the same time, the woman's hair was sopping wet and still had shampoo in it, thanks to officers not giving her time to rinse the shampoo.

"THIS IS A MISTAKE! I'M TRYING TO SURPRISE MY BROTHER, SISTER-IN-LAW, NIECE, AND NEPHEW!" screeched the woman. She then looked around and noticed Buck, "EVAN! TELL THE OFFICERS TO LET ME GO!"

Buck's eyes widened when he recognized Maddie for the first time in over seven and a half years, "What the hell, Maddie? How did you find me when we haven't seen each other or talked in seven and a half years?" asked Buck.

"I saw you on the news a few weeks ago after you blocked me on social media and changed your number years ago. You didn't listen to me about the Navy or firefighting because both jobs are dangerous. You also didn't listen to me about marrying Erica and having kids with her," said Maddie.

Buck crossed his arms, "How did you get this address?" asked Buck.

"I found your name and address by Googling your name," said Maddie.

Erica then pulled up and got out of the front passenger seat of her Jeep while Sadie got out of the driver's seat. Erica recognized her sister-in-law, Maddie Kendall, and glared at her, "Why did you break into Buck's and my house instead of waiting until someone was home to ring the doorbell like a normal person does, Maddie?" demanded Erica.

"Or even just show up at the 118 because my station number was given on the news," said Buck.

Maddie glared at her sister-in-law when she realized that Erica was pregnant again, "You shouldn't have allowed Evan to knock you up again, Erica. He's too irresponsible and reckless to be a husband and a father. Having one of each is enough."

"Buck and I are allowed to have as many children as we want," snapped Erica.

Buck looked around for his brother-in-law, whom he hadn't seen since Maddie married Doug, "Where's Doug?" asked Buck.

"Don't know and don't care because I left him," said Maddie.

Buck looked at the officers, "I want to press charges for breaking and entering."

Erica nodded, "Throw the book at her."

"We're family, so you shouldn't press charges for me wanting to surprise you two with a visit," said Maddie.

"Family members would ring the doorbell or knock on the door, not break a window to get into the house," snapped Erica.

Officer Williams looked at Buck and Erica, "You should also consider pressing charges for property damage because before we found your sister taking a shower in the primary bathroom, it turned out Mrs. Kendall destroyed many belongings."

Officer Quinn, who looked pale, said, "Should consider pressing charges for animal cruelty, too."

Erica paled, "What do you mean about animal cruelty?" asked Erica.

"I found a cat stabbed to death in the litter box and a headless snake in its broken tank," said Officer Quinn grimly.

Erica started sobbing in her husband's arms as she felt Athena rub her back.

Officer Quinn looked at Buck, "Your sister is covered in bruises that are in various healing stages, so I'm thinking she's been in an abusive situation."

"My brother-in-law Doug," growled Buck.

"Even if Maddie was abused by her husband, it doesn't give her a right to break into your house where she destroyed your belongings and kill your pets after you did what she told you not to do seven and a half years ago," said Athena.

"I agree," said Erica.

"I know, and I'm not going to drop any charges that are filed against her," said Buck.

After Maddie was driven away in the back of a police car, Buck looked at his wife, "You stay out here just in case seeing Pickles and Pumpkin causes you to go into early labor."

A few minutes later, Buck was going through the house with officers and crime scene techs who were taking pictures of the damage to a broken smart TV, X-Box, Nintendo Wii, and PlayStation 4, which were all smashed. Even the Nintendo Switches that belonged to him, Katherine, and Ethan were thrown to the ground and broken.

Buck also found his Purple Star and Navy Cross, which he received after one deployment to Afghanistan to find the ribbons on the medals cut.

He paled when he found the glass tank that held Pumpkin shattered with a headless Pumpkin lying in the tank. When searching for Pickles, he found Pickles lying in his little box in the laundry room with a knife sticking in its side. Tears leaked from his eyes when he didn't feel a pulse.

"Sister or not, I'm going to sue her for animal cruelty, property damage, emotional damage, and breaking & entering," growled Buck.

A few minutes later, Buck was outside by Erica.

"Did Maddie really kill Pickles and Pumpkin?" asked Erica.

Buck nodded, "She did, and I'm sorry that another person who shares my DNA hurt us again."

Erica hugged her husband as her tears soaked her husband's shirt, "I'm not mad at you, Buck. Maddie's the one who chose to break into our house instead of showing up at the 118 or waiting until one of us were home to ring the doorbell."

"And we can replace the TV, video game consoles, Nintendo Switches, and eventually get a new cat and pet snake," said Buck.

Erica nodded, "Even if it won't be the same Pickles and Pumpkin, you're right about replacing everything."

"I'll have to make some calls to someone from the Navy, though," said Buck.

"Why?" asked Erica.

"She cut the ribbons of my Purple Heart and Navy Star, too," said Buck.

"We'll get your medals fixed up," said Erica.

A while later, Buck was interviewed by Detective Marks about his sister's arrest, and he talked about what he knew about his brother-in-law Doug.

"If Doug's been abusing my sister, I need to think about the safety of my wife, kids, my coworkers, and myself; due my five years as a firefighter who assisted on domestic abuse calls taught me abusers will go after loved ones to get their girlfriend, boyfriend, or spouse back. Is Dr. Doug Kendall still in Pennsylvania?" asked Buck.

Detective Marks typed in Dr. Doug Kendall's name, and he shook his head, "He's currently in the morgue here in LA after his body was identified thanks to his ID being found in his pocket following Flight LB46 from Chicago crashing into the ocean a couple of days ago."

Buck's eyes went wide, "If Maddie ran away from Doug two weeks ago, Doug must have known I've been in LA after I was on the news over three weeks ago and decided to fly out here and confront me at the 118 to see if I was hiding my sister."

Detective Marks nodded, "I think so, too."

"And a plane crash killing him saved my wife, kids, and me from being confronted by Doug," said Buck.

"Everyone is safe from Doug," said Detective Marks. He then saw something from the police station in Pittsburgh, "Your sister was listed missing in Pittsburgh yesterday after the police were unable to find your sister to tell her the news about Dr. Kendall's death the past few days."

"You should let Pittsburgh police know that she's currently in an interrogation room here," said Buck.

"I will, and another detective is currently interviewing your sister, so I'll give her the news about her husband being dead," said Detective Marks.

Detective Kellner looked at Maddie, "Why did you kill your brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew's pet cat and snake and smash their TV, iPads, video game consoles, and handheld video games, Mrs. Kendall?"

"Cats and snakes don't belong around children, and I wanted my brother to feel the same pain I felt when he didn't save my brother Daniel like he was born to do. I smashed the TV and video game consoles because children shouldn't be watching TV or playing video games," snapped Maddie.

"I saw your bruises and the wedding ring on your finger. Is your husband abusing you?" asked Detective Kellner.

"Yes, and I wanted my brother to keep me safe," said Maddie.

"You knew your brother had a wife and children when you saw him be interviewed on TV, but going to your brother instead of straight to the police with evidence of abuse placed your brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew in danger," said Detective Kellner.

"In danger?" asked Maddie.

"Even if you haven't heard from your brother in seven and a half years, abusers will go after loved ones to get their significant other to get them back. Dr. Kendall could have also seen your brother on the news a few weeks back and decided to fly out here to confront your brother and sister-in-law about your whereabouts. He could harm your niece and nephew right in front of your brother and sister-in-law to get them to give away your location or even find out where your niece and nephew attended school where he could hold your niece, nephew, other students, and teachers hostage and tell police that he'll kill them if you don't show up," said Detective Kellner firmly.

Maddie started crying as she realized Detective Kellner was right about her putting her brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew in danger.

A knock sounded on the window, and Detective Kellner left the room.

Detective Kellner returned to the interrogation room ten minutes later with a file, "I have a new development on your husband."

"Did he go after someone?" asked Maddie.

"He did go after your boss in Pittsburg to the point that Laurie got injured, but Doug's dead," said Detective Kellner.

"My husband is dead?" asked Maddie.

"Even if you mentioned you took various Greyhound busses the past three weeks to get to Los Angeles, did you hear about the plane coming in from Chicago that recently crashed into the Pacific Ocean?" asked Detective Kellner.

"Even if I dumped my phone and laptop, I heard about the plane crash on the news at the St. George, Utah bus station," said Maddie.

"Your husband must have also seen your brother on the news a few weeks ago and decided to fly out here to Los Angeles. He flew from Pittsburgh to Chicago, but got on that flight from O'Hare to LAX," said Detective Kellner.

"Doug died in that plane crash?" asked Maddie.

Detective Kellner opened the file to show Maddie a picture of Doug lying on the exam table in the morgue and a picture of Doug's driver's license.

"That's him," said Maddie.

After picking up Katherine and Ethan from school, Buck and Erica sat in the sanctuary at Reverend Ryan's church.

"Why aren't you at work right now, Mom?" asked Katherine.

Ethan noticed the sadness in his parents' eyes, "Why do you two look sad."

"Did Grandma, Aunt Alice, Uncle Isaac, Aunt Jane, or someone else we know die?" asked Katherine.

"We won't be going home for a few days," said Erica.

"Why?" asked Katherine.

"You know that I have an older sister whom you two never met and I haven't talked to for seven and a half years?" asked Buck.

Katherine nodded, "You said she took care of you when you were a little boy, but she wasn't happy about you marrying Mom and having Ethan and me with Mom."

"Or about you joining the Navy Reserve and becoming a firefighter," said Ethan.

Buck nodded, "Instead of waiting until your mother or I was home to ring the doorbell or show up at the 118, she broke into our house by breaking the glass window of our side door to unlock it."

"And her actions set off the silent alarm we had set up because she doesn't have the code to deactivate it," said Erica.

"Did the police get called?" asked Katherine.

"The alarm system going off did notify the dispatch center about a break-in while I called 9-1-1 myself when my phone let out an alert to let them know that your mother, you two, and myself weren't home," said Buck.

"Good," said Katherine.

"The bad news is, between my sister breaking into our house and her being arrested, she destroyed multiple of our belongings," said Buck.

"What did she destroy?" asked Ethan.

"She broke our TV, video game consoles, and Nintendo Switches," said Buck.

"And Pumpkin's tank," said Erica.

"Is Pumpkin alright?" asked Katherine.

"What about Pickles? He'd be home alone until Dad got home from work," said Ethan.

As tears leaked from her eyes, Erica took hold of Katherine's and Ethan's hands, "She made Pickles and Pumpkin go over the Rainbow Bridge."

Katherine and Ethan started to sniffle since they had classmates whose cats and dogs had gone to Animal Heaven.

Katherine sobbed as she looked between our parents, "Why would one of our aunts make Pickles and Pumpkin die?" asked Katherine.

"Or break our TV and video games?" asked Ethan.

"Some people don't think children should have pets, play video games, or watch TV, and I grew up in a household like that. She's just like the woman who gave birth to me because she never got proper help over the death of your Uncle Daniel when she was a kid and ended up in a marriage with a mean man," said Buck.

"And that's why your father's parents and sister weren't in our lives," said Erica.

"Will your sister be going to jail for breaking into our house, breaking our belongings, and taking Pickles and Pumpkin away from us?" asked Katherine.

"I want her to go to jail," said Ethan.

"We're making sure she gets punished," said Buck.

"She can be in prison until you two are 16," said Erica.

"Good because it's not nice to break or kill things we love," said Katherine.

"And I don't want your bitch of a sister in my life, Dad. My friend Eric said his 15-year-old sister is a bitch," said Ethan.

"No swearing in church, Ethan. And that's an extra dollar in the collection plate in church on Sunday," said Erica firmly.

"Sorry, Mom," said Ethan.

"I don't want Dad's big sister in my life either," said Katherine.

"We're going to be staying at your grandparents' house until the police tell us we can go home again, and the police said we'll be able to go home within the next week," said Buck. He looked between Katherine and Ethan, "We'll make sure to replace the TV, video game consoles, and the Nintendo Switches during the next couple of days."

"Will we get another cat and snake?" asked Katherine.

"We'll get a new cat and corn snake after we take time to grieve for Pickles and Pumpkin, and we settle into life with Eleanora following her birth," said Buck.

"While we're all going to see a therapist about our home being broken into by someone who's supposed to be family," said Erica.

A while later, in Portland, Maine, Phillip Buckley, who hadn't heard from Reverend Ryan in years, frowned when he saw a Skype call from Reverend Ryan for him.

"I know it's been a long time since we talked, but something happened today," said Reverend Ryan.

"Is Buck alive?" asked Phillip.

Buck then appeared, "I am."

Phillip noticed the anger in his son's eyes, "What happened that makes you look angry? Did Margaret ignore her restraining order and show up in Los Angeles."

"I take it you saw me on the news a few weeks back?" asked Buck.

"Yes, and you look good in uniform," said Phillip.

Buck then told his father about Maddie running away from Doug and breaking into his and Erica's house, where she killed the family cat, Pickles, and the twins' pet corn snake, Pumpkin, before destroying the TV, video game consoles, and Nintendo Switches. He explained that the police were contacted due to the silent alarm activating when Maddie broke the window to unlock the door. He told him Maddie is currently in a jail cell awaiting her transport to a nearby prison until the trial, while Doug is one of the dead victims of the plane that crashed into the ocean days ago.

Phillip, who had paled as his son described Maddie's crimes and Doug was supposedly on his way to confront his son, spoke up, "Even if that plane crash was a tragic event, I'm grateful that Doug died in that plane crash so he couldn't confront you, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan about your sister's whereabouts."

"Even if a lot of people died in that crash, I'm glad Doug was one of the victims who didn't make it out of the ocean alive. I know the most dangerous part about Maddie running away from Doug is Doug going after family and friends of Maddie to get her back," said Buck.

"I know you might not want me to come to Los Angeles, but I'll support your decision to press charges against your sister," said Phillip.

"I don't think I'll be asked to, but if Maddie ends up going to prison for a couple of years-," said Buck.

"Someone is going to need to deal with hers and Doug's belongings if Maddie puts hers and Doug's house up for sale," said Phillip.

Buck nodded, "I'm not going to be able to get any time off to deal with Maddie's and Doug's belongings and house because I'm saving my time off for when our third child is born in less than five weeks."

Phillip's eyes widened, "Your twins are getting another sibling?" asked Phillip.

Buck nodded, "Thanks to me using my trust fund to buy a fixer-upper house while Erica managed to finish law school in two years and started her own firm, we finally moved into our dream house this past August after we found out we were expecting our third child before the twins started first grade at a private school we fell in love with."

"I'm glad you and Erica were able to reach your dreams career-wise," said Phillip.

"Me, too," said Buck.

"Do you and Erica know what you're having or choosing to be surprised again?" asked Phillip.

"We chose to find out because Katie wanted a little sister and Ethan wanted a little brother, so we found out so the one who'll be disappointed has time to accept," said Buck.

"Girl or boy?" asked Phillip.

"A girl whom Katie decided to name Eleanora Allison Buckley. Ethan decided his baby sister would get the nicknames Ellie and Nora, and her animal nickname is Alligator because we have a Buck, Gazelle, Kitty, and a Wolf," said Buck.

Phillip laughed, "Animal nicknames between you, your wife, and your children suit you, Erica, and your kids, Buck."

"It does because my firefighter nickname is Buck, and my coworkers call the twins Captain Cat and Captain Wolf when the kids are allowed to spend a few hours with me at work," said Buck.

"Back to your sister; I'll come to LA and see what Maddie wants done with her belongings in-," said Phillip.

"Pittsburgh," said Buck.

"In Pittsburgh so you can focus on Erica, your children, and your job," said Phillip.

"I'd appreciate you taking care of Maddie's house because after what Maddie did, I don't want to see her again until the trial and never talk to her again. Even the kids don't want to meet her because they're upset about an aunt who's not part of their lives killing Pickles and Pumpkin," said Buck.

"I can't blame you because she could have shown up at your station or waited until someone was home to ring the doorbell, than break into your house and destroy belongings and murdered your pets," said Phillip.

When Buck showed up at the 118 for his next shift, his eyes widened when he saw boxes that held a new kitchen knife set, a 60-inch smart TV, an X-Box, iPads, a Playstation 4, a Nintendo Wii, and three Nintendo Switches.

"Everyone in this firehouse and other firehouses passed around a hat in their station to come up with the money to help replace the electronics your sister destroyed," said Bobby.

Tanika looked at Buck, "I know it's not the same breed Pickles was, but my Maine Coon cat Pepper will be giving birth to ten kittens in the next four weeks. If you, Erica, Katie, and Ethan are ready to have a cat again, I'll give you two kittens to take home for free when they're nine weeks old."

Martin said, "My brother works at the same pet store where you got Pumpkin, and he told his coworkers about Pumpkin after I told him about your sister killing Pumpkin. They remembered you because you mentioned that the corn snake was yours and Erica's shared birthday gift for your twins, and all the employees pitched money to buy a new tank, decorations, and two new corn snakes for you. Both corn snakes will be arriving in one month due to no new ones being available for another month."

"Even if Erica and I had insurance on the smart TV we bought last year and the Nintendo Switches we got Katherine and Ethan for Christmas last month and the judge who'd be taking the case would most likely force Maddie to pay restitution to replace everything she destroyed, thank you. I know Erica, Katie, and Ethan will appreciate everything you guys did after hearing about my sister breaking into my house and destroying property," said Buck.

"Are you, Erica, Katie, and Ethan going to get therapy?" asked Hen.

Buck nodded, "We already scheduled appointments."

"You should probably let Erica and your lawyer know what we've done for you, Erica, and the kids," said Bobby.

Buck pulled out his phone, just as the alarm went off, "I'll do it later."

Following a call that got Buck, Hen, and Bobby howling with laughter when Buck was watching the video feed of what happened burst out laughing to the point Bobby and Hen came to find out what happened, Buck looked at Bobby and Hen, "After what my sister did the other day, I needed the laughter."

After returning to the station where Buck had taken time to tell Erica what his coworkers did and told his lawyer that his coworkers at the 118 managed to replace the electronics quickly, he got an offer to get two new kittens from a coworker whose Maine Coon is expecting kittens, and another coworker secured two new corn snakes, looked at Bobby who had told him and everyone else about Marcy, Robbie, and Brooke, "As someone who grew up in a household of three people who never dealt with their grief properly, I knew it."

Bobby looked at Buck in shock.

"You looked a bit shocked at my appearance and had the same look of grief my sister and egg and sperm donors always had on their faces when we met in the grocery store, and those looks told me you must have had a son who could have looked like me in adulthood due to how candidly similar in appearances we both look and how you stared at a picture of a 12-year-old me on the wall at my house. You also had a daughter due to how you indulge Katie whenever you're over at my house, or she's spending time with me here. I never said anything because it wasn't my business until you said something yourself."

Bobby, who knew that Buck graduated high school and college with honors, said, "You're too smart for your own good, Buck."

Chapter Text

Buck's eyes widened when he saw Paramedic Lucas James unpacking an LAFD duffel bag. He grinned when he saw his friend from when he worked for the San Diego Fire Department. "Cricket?" Buck asked.

The 28-year-old paramedic turned around and grinned when he saw Buck, "Buck."

A moment later, Buck and Lucas were giving each other hugs with Buck lifting the shorter man.

"Even if we talk once a week so Katie and Melissa can FaceTime each other, did you miss me so much that you decided to transfer to LAFD?" asked Buck.

"It was planned before Christmas following Samantha's father passing away from cancer, so Samantha and I decided to move here to be closer to Lisel," said Lucas.

Buck nodded as he thought about Samantha's 55-year-old mother, "And you couldn't tell me that you were moving here?" asked Buck.

Lucas grinned, "And ruin the surprise about me transferring to LAFD so Melissa can be in the same city as her friend Katherine?" asked Lucas.

Buck grinned as he thought about Katherine's friend and playmate, Melissa James, who was three months older than Katherine and Ethan. When moving away, four-year-old Katherine was upset about moving away from Melissa despite the occasional visits they did to San Diego on his four days off, which landed on the weekend and weekly FaceTime calls, "Katie's going to be thrilled to no longer see Melissa on FaceTime or visits when one of us has four days off that lands on the weekend or school break."

"Melissa is looking forward to surprising Katie with moving here because she was upset that catching the flu made her miss coming up here for your twins birthday party last month," said Lucas.

Buck thought about Lucas's three-year-old son Jason, "How's Jason?" asked Buck.

"He'll be excited to see you again and get to annoy Ethan by following him around like a puppy," said Lucas.

Buck thought about Lucas's 27-year-old wife, Samantha, who was a nurse, "Is Samantha going to work as a nurse at a hospital or a clinic?" asked Buck.

"She decided to become a 9-1-1 Dispatcher, and she starts her new job today," said Lucas.

"Nice," said Buck.

Hen then approached them and noticed the happy look on Buck's face, "Who's this, Buck?" asked Hen.

"Hen, this is Firefighter Paramedic Lucas James. We went through training together at the Academy before we were placed on the same shift and firehouse together in San Diego," said Buck.

Lucas held out his hand, "You must be my new field partner Henrietta Wilson."

Hen shook Lucas's hand, "I'll allow you to call me Henrietta just this once, but please call me Hen."

Buck looked at Hen, "Cricket's great at his job."

"Cricket?" asked Hen.

Buck laughed, "Back at a fire department picnic in 2013, Lucas's then two-year-old daughter Melissa and a two-year-old Katie kicked at a cricket that landed on Lucas's crotch."

Lucas laughed as he knocked shoulders with his friend, "After that incident, Buck and the rest of the house, who were laughing their asses off at me freaking out, started calling me Cricket that day."

Hen laughed, "Fitting," said Hen. She became serious, "I hope you don't mind me being a black lesbian."

Lucas shook his head, "Not at all. My older sister Mandy is a proud lesbian, and Buck's father-in-law officiated Mandy and my sister-in-law Addy's wedding in 2016."

"You knew Bobby would find a paramedic who'd be accepting, Hen," said Buck.

"And I'm excited about getting to spend more time with you, Buckaroo," said Lucas.

"Me too, Cricket," said Buck.

Bobby approached them and noticed the happy look on Buck's face, "I see you reunited with Paramedic James, Buck."

Buck grinned, "I did."

"I asked Captain Nash to keep my transfer to this house and shift a secret when I told him that we worked in the same firehouse in San Diego," said Lucas.

"You joining me here is a wonderful surprise, and at least you, Samantha, Melissa, and Jason will be here when Erica gives birth to Eleanora within the next couple of weeks," said Buck. 

"I know," said Lucas.

Before anything else could be stated, the bell rang about a plane landing on a golf course. 

At the Dispatch Center, Dispatcher Samantha James, who had just heard Abby hang up a call with a doctor, watched Abby, who was stationed next to her, ask a doctor about thyroid medication a woman named Kate was on before thanking the doctor and hanging up. Then she saw Abby type Evan Buckley's name into the system, and she quickly found the cord to the monitor in front of Abby and yanked it out before Abby could type the number into the landline on her desk.

Abby glared at Samantha, "Why would you do that, Samantha?" demanded Abby.

Samantha glared at Abby, "Stopping you from passing on information you just got a doctor to violate HIPAA laws for. Your actions can cause a doctor to lose their job."

Sue walked over and glared between Samantha and Abby, "What's going on you two?" asked Sue.

"Samantha pulled the plug to my monitor," said Abby.

"Why would you do that, Samantha?" asked Sue.

"Even if this is my first day here following my transfer from San Diego, I caught Dispatcher Clark getting a doctor to violate HIPAA laws to find out what thyroid medication the patient from a call was on and then she pulled up a report to find Firefighter Buckley's number. I pulled her away before she could call Buck," said Samantha.

"You know him?" asked Abby.

Samantha nodded, "From San Diego, and my husband just joined Buck's firehouse this morning. I know about you stealing Buck's number last month because Erica called me to complain about a 9-1-1 Dispatcher stealing her husband's number from a report," said Samantha. She looked at Sue, "I'm sorry for pulling the plug off of Abby's monitor, but it was the best way to stop her from illegally accessing my friend's phone number for a second time to give the information she got a doctor to break HIPAA laws without putting my hands on her and drag her towards you or Josh."

"I prefer you unplug the monitor than putting your hands on a cowoker. Now back to work and you can tell me what you heard and saw Abby do during your next break, Samantha," said Sue. She looked at Abby, "Miss Clark, come with me."

Lucas looked at Kate's boyfriend, "Dispatch told us that your girlfriend is on thyroid medication. Do you know what Kate's on?" asked Lucas.

"It starts with an L, but I can't remember the rest of the name," said the boyfriend.

Buck thought about Tina being on Levothyroxine, "Is it Levothyroxine?" asked Buck.

The boyfriend nodded, "That's the one."

Buck looked at his coworkers, "That can cause heart palpitations if a patient gets scared."

"Buck's right," said Lucas.

Within the next couple of minutes, Kate was given the proper medication and woke up as the 118 watched her accept the engagement ring before slapping her fiance on the face.

During the next couple of hours, Abby was forced to give the name of the clinic and doctor she contacted so Sue could report the doctor for violating HIPAA laws before she got fired by Sue, who told her that she'd be making sure she could never be a 9-1-1 dispatcher again in the United States and even a different country.

Abby was packing up the last of her belongings from her locker as she glared at Sue and the security guard who was there to walk her out, "Now I lost everything I cared about because my brother placed my mother in a nursing home a week after I got suspended, the home health aide I hired for my mother's care who quickly befriended quit taking care of my mother and blocked me, I haven't been in a relationship for over a year, and I'll be evicted from my apartment if I don't pay rent next month."

"Actions have consequences, Abigail. You didn't learn from your unpaid suspension and violated code of ethics again while the doctor who'll be facing consequnces for breaking HIPAA laws for you will most likely be fired and possibly face jailtime. You'll possibly face a lawsuit from the doctor who could lose their job over you making them violate HIPAA laws," said Sue sternly.

Hen looked at Erica as the 118 held a small baby sprinkle for Buck and Erica, "Are you excited about being three weeks from your due date?" asked Hen.

Erica nodded as she moved a strand of hair behind her ear, "Yes."

Samantha, who was able to attend the baby sprinkle and was happy to be reunited with Erica again, grinned, "I'm looking forward to seeing whatever mischief our daughters get into together again."

Erica looked over where Buck was laughing over a joke Lucas told as she rubbed her lower back, "Especially with our husbands."

Buck joined them and started massaging his wife's lower back, "Feeling better?" asked Buck.

Erica nodded, "Yes."

Athena, who managed to attend the baby sprinkle too, looked between Buck and Erica, "What are you two planning on doing for Valentine's Day?" asked Athena.

Erica grinned, "Tomorrow evening, we're going out for pancakes before we attend the date night yoga class at the prenatal yoga studio I've been attending since I was six months pregnant."

"Where will Katie and Ethan be?" asked Hen.

"My parents are taking them out on a date," said Erica.

"That sounds fun," said Hen.

"Sadly, Lucas and I won't be getting tomorrow off because we're new to LAFD and the Dispatch Center," said Samantha.

"But at least your mother is looking forward to babysitting Melissa and Jason when we're both working night shifts," said Lucas.

"A benefit over us moving into my mother's six bedroom house," said Samantha.

The following evening, Buck and Erica, who had enjoyed going out for pancakes for dinner, were at the yoga studio for the date night prenatal yoga class.

Buck, who was doing the locust pose with his wife, noticed his wife wincing in pain. "Are you alright, Gazelle?" Buck asked.

Erica grinned as she realized her husband was in EMT mode. "Ellie is just moving around a lot as she tries to thank me for the pancakes we had for dinner and doing prenatal yoga, Buck."

Buck then heard a splash onto a yoga mat and looked around before looking at his wife, "You were lying about your back pain. Unless you peed your pants, you're in labor."

Erica then groaned in pain and looked into her husband's eyes, "It looks like Ellie wants to be delivered by her father because I need to push now, Buck."

Buck snapped into EMT mode as he helped his wife onto the ground and asked for a bowl of hot water, towels, and hand sanitizer, which many people agreed to get, while someone else offered to call 9-1-1. He pulled down Erica's yoga pants and underwear before moving his wife's legs into position and checked to see how dilated his wife was. He looked over at one of the women, who he knew was a birth doula and already on her phone, "Can you please let Dispatch know that Erica is already nine centimeters dilated and is already crowning and I'm going to start guiding my wife in labor thanks to being an off-duty firefighter?" asked Buck.

The woman nodded as she told Dispatch the information.

Buck looked at his wife as he placed a towel over his wife's knees and wet his hands with the bowl of hot water one of the husbands that came to the class grabbed for him, "Push on the next contraction."

Erica nodded as she squeezed the hand one of the pregnant women took as she pushed while screaming while someone else wiped the sweat off her face.

Three pushes later, a grinning Buck caught his daughter in a towel just as paramedics from a house that wasn't the 118 came up into the yoga studio.

Captain Mehta shook his head as he recognized Buck holding a newborn baby with tears leaking from his eyes, "I see Firefighter Evan Buckley from the 118 already delivered his newborn daughter without the aid of paramedics or a doctor."

Buck grinned at the fire captain he'd occasionally work at as a floater for when the kids are at school during his four days off, "At least being a firefighter over five years helped me become a professional."

A male paramedic looked at Buck, "Since you know what to do, go ahead and cut and clamp the cord."

Buck grinned as he took care of the umbilical cord that connected his wife and Eleanora before he took his daughter and placed her in Erica's awaiting arms.

The female paramedic examining Erica looked at Buck, "You did a good job, Buckley."

Erica, who was now on a gurney and holding Eleanora, grinned, "Even if I didn't get an epidural this time, my husband's the only EMT I'd want to deliver our child outside of a hospital."

Captain Mehta, who planned on calling Bobby Nash, smiled at Buck and Erica, "Now let's get you three to St. Matthews."

"I'll ride with you after I run to my Jeep to grab the hospital bag with comfy clothes for Erica and me, and I can always come back tomorrow to fetch my Jeep due to Ellie's car seat already being installed," said Buck.

Another firefighter said, "If you give me the keys, I can drive your Jeep to the hospital and fetch a ride back in the ambulance to help you avoid getting a ticket for parking over the time limit here, Buckley."

"I'd appreciate it," said Buck.

Two hours later, Erica was finally settled in a hospital room watching her husband burp Eleanora, "I'm sorry for not telling you that I've been dealing with contractions all afternoon, Buck. I just wanted to get one last date night in before we finally have our next date night after I get the all-clear."

"Apology accepted," said Buck.

The sound of running feet sounded, and Buck and Erica grinned as their two eldest kids, Reverend Ryan and Tina entered the hospital room.

"Alligator is here?" asked Katherine.

Erica nodded, "Your Daddy delivered Eleanora himself in the yoga stuido before paramedics showed up."

Tina laughed, "It seems like Eleanora is going to have her father's tendency of creating chaos if she chose to be born during a prental yoga class."

Buck laughed, "Don't I know it."

Erica looked over at her two eldest kids, who looked at Eleanora with awe, "Why don't you two monsterbutts join me in bed."

A minute later, Katherine and Ethan sat on either side of their mother in bed.

Katherine grinned at the wide-awake baby girl who was wrapped in a white blanket with a pink and purple hat that she loom knitted with multi-colored yarn she used her allowance to buy from Hobby Lobby after her Grandma Tina got her a circular loom knitting kit for Christmas, "Ellie is wearing the hat I knitted for her."

Erica smiled, "Your father told the nurses that Ellie had to wear the hat her big sister knitted for her as he watched Ellie be looked over, bathed, and dressed while I got cleaned up."

"The nurses thought the hat you knitted for Ellie was so beautiful that they think you should start a baby hat knitting business," said Buck.

Katherine looked at her sister, who had a birthmark just like hers on her left eyebrow, "Ellie's very pretty, and Uncle Daniel left Ellie a kiss just like he did for Ethan and me when he picked her out for us."

Buck nodded, "Your Uncle Daniel kissed your baby sister from Heaven."

Ethan looked at his baby sister in awe, "She's very little."

"She's eight pounds and five ounces and 20 inches tall," said Erica.

"You two were much smaller than Eleanora when you two were born," said Buck.

"Really?" asked Katherine.

Erica nodded, "You two shared a womb, so that meant less space for you two to grow while you two were born at 36 weeks instead of 37 like Ellie was today." 

"How much did we weigh? How tall were we?" asked Katherine.

"You were five pounds, ten ounces, and 18 inches tall, Kat," said Buck.

"While you were six pounds, and 19 inches tall, Ethan," said Erica.

Katherine looked at the clock and saw that it was 9 P.M. "Since it's still February 14th, is Ellie your Valentine's Day gift for each other?" asked Katherine.

Buck smiled at his wife, "Eleanora is our Valentine's Day gift for each other."

"Speaking of Valentine's Day, Grandma and Grandpa took us out for pizza before going to an ice skating rink," said Katherine.

Erica grinned, "They did?" asked Erica.

Ethan nodded, "Yes."

"They knew we miss ice skating with you, Mom," Katherine said.

Ethan, who knew that his father first learned how to ice skate with the help of his mother and Uncle Isaac during his mother's and Uncle Isaac's eighth birthday party, grinned, "While they know that Dad doesn't go ice skating unless you tag along."

"When I get the all clear to be active again, we'll leave Ellie with Grandma and Grandpa so Dad and I can take you two ice skating," said Erica.

"While your mother won't be able to go swimming with us until she gets the all clear, too," said Buck.

"Why can't Mom go swimming tomorrow? We went swimming this past weekend and she was fine," said Katherine.

"You know how cuts can get infected if you don't keep them clean and dry?" asked Buck.

Katherine and Ethan nodded, "Yes."

Erica, who believed in teaching her children proper terminology so the twins knew why they had different body parts and how their baby sister would be born, spoke up, "I can't soak or swim in a bathtub, hot tub, swimming pool, or ocean for the next six weeks to prevent an infection."

"That sucks, Mom," said Katherine.

"Now I don't know about you two, but you two should each take a minute holding your baby sister before your father joins us in bed for a family picture. Then Grandma and Grandpa need to hold their youngest granddaughter before they take you two home so you can still get a decent amount of sleep before school tomorrow," said Erica.

Within the next couple of minutes, Katherine and Ethan each took a turn holding their baby sister with their father, taking a picture before the family of five squeezed onto Erica's hospital bed for their first family picture.

When Buck was given his phone back, Reverend Ryan took Eleanora from his eldest daughter.

"Should we plan Eleanora's Christening to happen in two months?" asked Reverend Ryan.

Erica nodded, "That's when my old Christening gown should fit her."

"I thought about Easter weekend, but Isaac would miss out due to being busy with his church for Easter," said Reverend Ryan.

Erica nodded, "I agree."

"Downside of one of your kids following your footsteps, Ryan," said Tina.

"We can just do a weekday baptism if you can figure out your shift schedule ahead of time, Buck," said Reverend Ryan.

Buck nodded, "I know it's not easy to figure out because I can either be working a 24-hour shift or a 12-hour shift that happens for four days during the day or a 12-hour night shift with four days off after working 12-hour shifts for four days in a row."

"Then there's times that Buck's asked to fill in for a 12-hour shift for the 118 or a different firehouse during his four-days off. Then there's the possibility about him being called in to assist USAR or with wildfires in other parts of California or other states due to him being FEMA certified after taking and passing classes from the National Fire Department Academy and his name being on the special deployment list and even getting ," said Erica.

"We'll figure it out, Erica," said Buck.

Tina, who was now holding Eleanora, looked at her son-in-law, "How many weeks are you taking off work?" asked Tina.

Buck looked at the calendar on his phone, which gave a list of upcoming shifts. "Two weeks, so my first shift back will be on the 28th, which will ironically be the next full moon."

"Two weeks is better a few days off," said Erica.

"I know because I was only given one week off when I was working construction at the time Katie and Ethan were born," said Buck.

Erica then heard soft snoring as she smiled, "Speaking fo Katie and Ethan, they're both asleep."

Buck looked at his in-laws, "I'll help carry them to your car."

"I can carry Katie," said Reverend Ryan.

A minute later, Buck was scooping up a sleeping Ethan into his arms as he felt his son instinctively wrap his legs around his waist and wrap his arms around his neck and shoulders, "I feel like I'm still going to have years to carry him because I make sure I can carry the weight of my coworkers."

Reverend Ryan groaned as he lifted a sleeping Katherine into a fireman carry like his son-in-law had taught him when his son-in-law taught staff members, teens, and other adults from the church about fire safety and everyone wanted to learn how to do a fireman carry, "I feel like my days of carrying Katie is coming to an end, soon."

"Katie was weighed at 53 pounds and measured at four feet three inches and Ethan was weighed at 55 pounds and measured at four feet six inches during their check-up last month," said Erica.

"They're going to be tall like their father," said Reverend Ryan.

"Even if I'm one foot shorter than Buck," said Erica.

"Either way, your beautiful and perfect," said Tina.

"I know," said Erica.

A minute later, Buck carried his son out of the hospital while Reverend Ryan carried Katherine.

After Buck helped Reverend Ryan settle the twins into their booster seats in the back seat.

"When they each reach four foot nine inches tall and weigh over 80 pounds, they'll be allowed to ditch their booster seats," said Buck.

"You must hate calls where kids who aren't in car seats or booster seats when they're within the guidelines to require a carseat or a booster seat," said Reverend Ryan.

Buck nodded.

After kissing Katherine's and Ethan's foreheads, Buck, who had a hospital band around his wrist that gave him access to the maternity ward 24/7 until Erica and Eleanora were discharged, headed back into the hospital for the night.

A few hours later, a shirtless Buck was fast asleep on the couch. He expanded with a sleeping Eleanora on his chest for skin-to-skin contact.

Erica snapped a picture of the father/daughter moment just as a knock sounded on the open door. She grinned when she saw Bobby before speaking softly, "Hi."

Bobby looked over where Buck was asleep on the couch with Eleanora on his chest and a protective hand over Eleanora's back, "Skin to skin contact?" asked Bobby.

Erica nodded, "Aside from already having her Daddy wrapped around her little finger, Eleanora already loves skin-to-skin contact with her father just like Katie and Ethan did when they were born." 

"Brooke was like that with me, too," said Bobby softly. He then thought about the call he got from Captain Mehta, "I heard you and Buck had quite the Valentine's Day date, which led to Buck delivering Eleanora in a yoga studio."

Erica blushed a bit, "I was too stubborn to tell my husband that I was dealing with contractions because I just wanted one more child-free date night before giving birth."

"At least you married an EMT," said Bobby.

"Even if I haven't delivered a baby since I transferred to your house," said Buck.

Bobby and Erica turned their heads to find Buck wide awake and starting to sit up with Eleanora secure in his arms.

"Sorry about waking you up," said Bobby.

Buck chuckled, "It's alright because I woke up to the smell of a poopy diaper."

"Even if I love the view of you shirtless, why don't you change Ellie's diaper and hand her to Bobby before getting your shirt back on," said Erica.

Buck nodded, "Yes, ma'am."

A minute later, Bobby was watching Buck unswaddle Eleanora, undo the snaps on her white onesie with pink hearts on it, remove Eleanora's diaper, wipe and powder her bottom, and change her diaper with ease, "You're good at this."

"You know I help out in the daycare at my father-in-law's church on my days off," said Buck. He softly chuckled, "At least our third child ending up being a girl instead of a boy."

Erica nodded, "All those showers Ethan gave us until we found out about a pee cone."

"Even if a one-year-old Katherine once peed on me after I caught her when she started streaking around the apartment naked following a bath," said Buck.

Erica laughed, "I remember that day, and it'll be a story to tell on Katherine's wedding day."

A minute later, Bobby sat in a chair while holding Eleanora, staring at him with baby blue eyes, "She's beautiful, and she inherited your birthmark, Buck."

"Which I'm pleased about," said Erica.

Buck, who was now sitting on his wife's hospital bed next to his wife, leaned over and gently removed Eleanora's hat to reveal a head full of blonde curls, "She currently has blonde hair like Katherine and me, but I'm hoping she ends up with her mother's hair and eye color."

"If she inherits my hair color, I want Eleanora to have her father's natural curls and facial features," said Erica.

"So she can be a perfect mixture of you two like Katie and Ethan are?" asked Bobby.

Erica grinned, "Yes."

"No matter what, Katie, Ethan, and Ellie are perfect in my eyes," said Buck.

Erica reached over and rubbed her husband's shoulder, "I'm forever grateful that your mother isn't in our life. She'd be judging us for not getting the twins' birthmarks removed and allowing Katie and Ethan to learn how to surf, skateboard, visit rock climbing gyms, and a few other things."

Buck nodded, "And even judge us for having a third child if she was supportive of me having kids."

"After learning how your parents are and your sister's behavior that led to her arrest, I'm grateful they aren't in your life," said Bobby.

"I did talk to my father after Maddie's arrest to tell him what Maddie did and admit that Erica and I are expecting our third child, and he was appalled and supported my decision to press charges but happy about us having a third child together," said Buck.

"Even if I didn't talk to him that evening, I think divorcing Maggie and getting into therapy was what he needed," said Erica.

"It's going to take time adjusting to therapy after I quit following the minimun sessions after Marcy, Robbie, and Brooke died," said Bobby.

"It's a lot of hard work, but it helped me in the long run," said Buck.

Erica looked at her husband, "Before Bobby leaves, do you want to ask him what we talked about doing?" asked Erica.

"What do you ask me?" asked Bobby.

"Before I return to work, would it be possible for me to take my turnout gear to the portrait studio for the newborn photoshoot Erica and I will schedule for Katherine, Ethan, Eleanora, and the two of us?" asked Buck. 

"You can, but make sure to throughtly clean your turnout gear, boots, and helmet if you're going to have Eleanora lay on top of your gear," said Bobby.

"We'll make sure it's clean," said Erica.

"You should see the turnout gear I had Katie and Ethan get fitted for," said Buck.

Erica nodded, "The pictures are going to be adorable, and Katie and Ethan already decided that they're going to wear the turnout gear we had made for them for Halloween while Ellie is dressed up as a dalmation."

Bobby chuckled, "No matter what, whatever costumes your kids pick out will be adorable."

Buck laughed, "Especially when they dressed up as clipboards and had had antlers on their heads due to wanting to dress up as Clipboard Buck for Halloween last year which got Hen and Howie running away from them."

"Clipboard Buck was a creative pun Halloween costume," said Bobby.

Erica noticed Eleanora was fast asleep, "We should probably get Ellie into the bassinet before Buck and I get as much sleep as possible."

"Especially if we're going to be getting a lot of visitors tomorrow," said Buck.

Bobby nodded as he gently placed Eleanora into the bassinet, "I'll stop by tomorrow wityour favorite dishrs for lunch, Erica."

"I'd appreciate it," said Erica.

"Be prepared for many firefighters and their significant others will be prepping meals to take to your house and deliver flowers," said Bobby.

Erica laughed, "I know because I've prepped meals to take to an injured firefighter's apartment or house in San Diego and even at the 132 here in LA and even prepped a dish to take to a fellow church member following a birth, death, or injury."

"Knowing our church, we shall be expecting meals to be delivered by other members, too," said Buck.

Erica nodded, "We will be."

Buck looked at Bobby, "Now how did you like working with Cricket while Hen and I were both off for Valentine's Day?" asked Buck.

"Cricket's humor is much less caustic than Howie's was, and he handled a Casanova fracture like a pro," said Bobby.

"So, who won the pool about when Erica would go into labor?" asked Buck.

"I did, and I decided I'll be giving you two the money to pay for the next date you two go on while I babysit Katie, Ethan, and Ellie," said Bobby.

Chapter Text

Buck and Erica had just enjoyed eating breakfast together in Erica's hospital room and admiring their youngest child.

"Even if we admired Ellie last night, she's beautiful like you and her older sister," said Buck.

Erica grinned at her husband, "We make beautiful children together, Buck."

"We sure do," said Buck.

Erica looked at her husband, "I'm here until tomorrow, I think you should pick up the twins from school and spend the night with them."

"Are you sure?" asked Buck.

Erica pointed at the couch where a blanket was folded up with a travel pillow on top, "I know that couch was uncomfortable for your six foot two tall frame and you should sleep in our own bed that's comfortable before we start dealing with Ellie waking us up multiple times a night."

"While Katie and Ethan would enjoy getting to have dinner with me while I tuck them into their beds tonight and take them to school tomorrow," said Buck.

Erica nodded, "Exactly, and I can always have tonight's nurse take Ellie to the nursery tonight with bottles of milk I pump today."

"Alright, I'll go home with Katie and Ethan tonight," said Buck.

Buck and Erica grinned when Hen, Karen, and Denny entered the hospital room with balloons, flowers, and a stuffed animal.

Buck looked at Denny, "Shouldn't you be in school right now, Denny?" asked Buck.

Denny grinned, "My Mom and Mama pulled me out early due to me having an evaluation at the orthodontist and they told me they could bring me to meet Ellie."

"Katie and Ethan will be having their first evaluation soon, too," said Buck.

"How are you feeling, Erica?" asked Hen.

"I'm sore from giving birth, but I know to expect soreness for a while," said Erica.

Hen looked at Buck, "I take it you're grateful you had five years of experience of delivering babies on the job to prepare yourself for delivering your own daughter last night?" asked Hen.

Buck nodded, "Extremely grateful."

Hen looked at Erica, "Was Buck calm or freaking out?" asked Hen.

"Very calm when my water broke and when he realized I wasn't going to make it into the back of an amublance or the hospital in time," said Erica.

"It's cool that both firefighters and paramedics get trained to deliver babies," said Denny.

"Sure is, but I didn't expect Erica to give birth in a yoga studio," said Buck.

Erica, who was holding Eleanora, smiled at Denny, "Would you like to hold, Ellie first, Denny?" asked Erica.

Denny's eyes widened, "Can I?" asked Denny.

Buck nodded, "We consider kids getting the first honor to hold Ellie."

"Katie and Ethan got to hold their baby sister before my parents did," said Erica.

A minute later, Denny was sitting in a chair holding Eleanora, "She's so little."

"All babies start off this small before they grow big and strong," said Buck.

Now taking a turn, Karen grinned, "Eleanora even has your birthmark, Buck."

Buck grinned, "A kiss from her Uncle Daniel who's her guardian angel from Heaven."

Hen took Eleanora from her wife and held the youngest Buckley, "She looks so much like you, Buckaroo."

"I'm hoping she ends up with Erica's hair color," said Buck.

"I'm fine with Ellie inheriting my hair color as long as Ellie ends up keeping those natural curls and her Daddy's ocean blue eyes," said Erica.

Hen looked at Buck and noticed he didn't even bother gelling up his hair, "Who did you inherit your curls from, Buck?" asked Hen.

Buck shifted in his chair.

"He's a perfect mixture of his parents due to him inheriting his mother's curls, hair, and eye color while he inherited his father's facial features, height, and hairline," said Erica.

"My sister has our father's hair and eye color before my father went gray when I was a teenager, but she inherited her height from our mother," said Buck.

"Will your Mom, Dad, and sister be coming to visit, Buck? You don't talk about them like Erica does about her parents, brother, sister, and nephews," said Denny.

Buck, who had contacted his lawyer to update the restraining order against his mother to include Eleanora as someone his mother can't be around after breakfast, looked at Denny, "I have something called a restraining order against my mother to keep her away from Erica, Katie, Ethan, Ellie, and me because she wanted to hurt Katie and Ethan due to resenting me."

"Resenting you?" asked Denny.

"My older brother Daniel got sick with cancer few years before I was born, and the medicine his doctor gave him wasn't helping him. So my parents decided to get help getting pregnant with me as an attempt to donate blood, bone marrow, or any other organs if my brother needed," said Buck.

"But Daniel died?" asked Denny.

Buck nodded, "He did, but it's not my fault because I was still a baby and his doctor warned my parents that he was very sick."

"So your Mama hated you for not saving your brother?" asked Denny.

Buck nodded, "She wasn't happy about Daniel remaining forever eight and me making it to adulthood, getting  falling in love with Erica, marry Erica, and have kids with Erica."

"That's how old I'll be later on this year," said Denny.

Buck nodded, "And how old Katie and Ethan will be next January."

"So to keep our kids and ourselves safe from Buck's mother, we had a judge order my mother-in-law to stay within a certain amount of yards from us," said Erica.

"What about your Dad, Buck?" asked Denny.

"I talked to him a few weeks back after my sister broke into my house and told him I'm pressing charges so my sister can go to jail," said Buck.

Denny, who knew what happened because Katie and Ethan told him he wouldn't see Pickles and Pumpkin again, looked at Buck and said, "Did your sister kill Pickles and Pumpkin?"

Buck nodded, "She did, and I decided to talk to my father for the first time in seven years to tell him what my older sister did to Erica, Katie, Ethan, and me."

"Why wait seven years to talk to your Dad?" asked Denny.

"Between not standing up to me when my mother said mean and hurtful things to me when I was a kid, he kept my dead older brother a secret from me for 18 years and never got my mother, sister, and himself help over Daniel's death. He's been getting therapy for over seven and a half years, but I decided I don't need my parents to be involved in the life I'm living with Erica, Katie, Ethan, and Ellie."

"Did you tell him about Ellie when you told him about your sister breaking into your house?" asked Denny.

"I did tell him that Erica and I were expecting our third child, and he's happy for Erica and me," said Buck.

"Will you allow your Dad into yours, Erica, Katie, Ethan, and Ellie's lives someday?" asked Denny.

"I'm not sure if I will because I've been fine without my parents for over seven and a half years because I have my mother-in-law, father-in-law, my brother-in-law, and two sister-in-laws. Then there's a few people from my father-in-law's church that have treated Katie, Ethan, and now Ellie as grandchildren," said Buck.

"While I know Bobby basically stepped up the past couple of months," said Hen.

"He has," said Buck.

"While I noticed that Athena has developed a soft spot for you after you saved her life last month," said Hen.

Buck grinned as Katherine and Ethan exited Durand and got into the backseat of his Jeep, "How was school today?" asked Buck.

Katherine finished buckling herself into her booster seat, unzipped her backpack, and pulled out a handmade card, "I made a card for Mom and Ellie."

"It's beautiful, Katie," said Buck.

"I made a card for Mom and Ellie, too," said Ethan.

Buck grinned as he saw the card from the rearview mirror, "Good job."

"Grandma printed off the photos that were taken last night, so we got to show our teachers and classmates a picture of Ellie today," said Katherine.

"That's cool," said Buck.

"Show and tell is happening next month, and I want to show off Ellie to my friends and teachers," said Ethan.

"I want to show off Ellie, too," said Katherine.

Buck chuckled, "You two will have to ask your mother about taking Ellie to school for show and tell."

"We'll ask her," said Ethan.

"Are Mom and Ellie home from the hospital yet?" asked Katherine.

"The doctor wants them to stay until tomorrow, so when you two come home from school tomorrow, your mother and little sister will be waiting for you two," said Buck.

"Can we go visit, Mom?" asked Ethan.

"Let's get any chores or homework you two have completed first before we can prepare a meal to take to the hospital to eat with Mom," said Buck.

Katherine sighed, "Alright."

While Buck was at home supervising Katherine and Ethan with their homework and chores, Athena, Michael, May, and Harry entered Erica's hospital room.

Athena looked around the room and frowned when she noticed the lack of Buck, "Where's Buck?" asked Athena.

"I kicked him out until tomorrow morning so he could pick Katie and Ethan up from school, help them with homework, eat dinner, and tuck them in before sleeping in an actual bed tonight," said Erica.

Michael looked at the couch in Erica's hospital room, "I can't blame you. Your husband is very tall and that couch right there has to be uncomfortable."

Erica looked at May, "Would you like the honor to be the first one to hold Ellie?" asked Erica.

May nodded, "Sure."

A moment later, May held Eleanora, "She's beautiful, Erica."

"Thank you," said Erica.

"She has Buck's birthmark, too," said Harry.

Erica nodded, "She's kissed by an Angel from Heaven."

May looked at Erica, "Thank you for everything you did for me last month regarding Laila and her friends. Even if Mom and Dad paid you and your coworker Luella to help me, I'll babysit Katie, Ethan, and Ellie for free as my way to thank you for getting Laila and a bunch of her friends to face the consequences for bullying me."

"Buck and I aren't going to make you babysit for free, May. You deserve extra money to spend outside of the allowance your parents give you or any other kids you babysit in your neighborhood," said Erica.

"I heard from Hen that Captain Nash gets to be the first 118 member to babysit the kids after winning the 118 A-shift pool about when Eleanora would be born," said Athena. 

Erica nodded, "I was slightly upset about Hen setting up a pool until she told me that the money for the pool would pay for a date night for Buck and me while the winner gets to babysit the first night Buck and I go out for a date night."

"Were you and Buck out on a date for Valentine's Day when you went into labor?" asked Harry.

Erica nodded, "We were at a yoga studio for a yoga class for pregnant women, offering a night for significant others to attend the session."

"Since you couldn't drink alcoholic beverages and being 37 weeks pregnant would make you not want to do much," said Michael.

Erica nodded, "Correct, but the date ended with Ellie ended up joining her father and me on our date in the middle of a yoga studio."

Athena, who heard about it through her coworkers despite a crazy woman holding her hostage, grinned, "With Buck delivering Ellie himself."

"Buck really delivered Ellie on his own?" asked an amazed Harry.

Erica nodded, "He did, and Eleanora was the ninth baby he delivered."

"Buck can deliver babies?" asked Harry.

"All firefighters and even police officers are trained to deliver babies just in case a delivery has to be done on the scene of a call and the back of the ambulance if they can't get the mother who is in labor to the hospital in time," said Athena.

"Firefighters, paramedics, and police officers aren't allowed to do C-sections, though," said Erica.

Harry, who got to play with Ethan multiple times, looked at Erica and said, "Are you going to have a baby boy someday so Ethan isn't outnumbered?" Harry asked.

"Buck and I do want to have another son someday, but for now we're just going to enjoy Eleanora for the next couple of years before she starts going to school for half a day or all day like you, May, Katie, and Ethan," said Erica.

"While you get to focus on your career for a bit because you haven't been out of law school for a year yet," said Athena.

Erica nodded, "You're correct, and Buck and I know that at 26-years-old we have plenty of time to have our fourth and final child."

At 6 PM, Erica grinned as she watched her husband and two eldest children enter her hospital room, "There's two of my three babies."

"We're no longer babies, Mom," said Ethan.

"Ellie is a baby not us," said Katherine.

"No matter how old you two and Ellie get, you three will aways be my little babies," said Erica.

"I agree with your mother," said Buck.

"How was school today?" asked Erica.

"Good," said Ethan.

Katherine nodded as she thought about her best friend she left behind in San Diego reuniting with her a few days ago, even if Melissa is attending a public school instead, "Even if I'm sleeping over at Melissa's house on Friday, I also got invited to spend the night at Penny's house next week Friday. Can I please go?" asked Katherine.

"If you keep up with your chores, homework, and don't wake up Ellie when she's sleeping, you can spend the night at Penny's house," said Erica.

"Thank you, Mom," said Katherine.

"Did you get invited to any upcoming sleepovers, Ethan?" asked Erica.

Ethan nodded, "James invited me to sleep over next week Friday."

"You can go as long as you follow the same rules I gave Katie," said Erica.

"Thank you, Mom," said Ethan.

"Now I don't know about you guys, but we should eat what you two and your father cooked and get get time to hold Ellie before going home for showers and bedtime," said Erica.

A minute later, Buck, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan ate dinner together while Katherine and Ethan continued discussing their day at school.

A week following Eleanora's birth, Phillip Buckley entered the room where Maddie was wearing traditional clothes that a prisoner would wear. Maddie looked worn down due to her dark brown hair hanging limply past her shoulders; her face was free of makeup, and her dark circles were underneath her eyes.

Maddie's eyes lit up when she recognized her father for the first time since 2004 because her parents refused to attend her wedding while she missed her brother's high school graduation in 2010 due to Doug refusing to let her go, "Are you here to bail me out, Dad?" asked Maddie.

"I'm not, Maddie. Even if your mother and I rarely focused on you and Buck while I focused on your mother to keep her from attacking Buck out of grief, I didn't raise you to break into a sibling's house, destroy property, and kill their pets," said Phillip sternly. 

"I thought you hate nicknames," said Maddie.

"Even if your brother and I are estranged, I'm following your brother's boundaries by calling him by his chosen name," said Phillip. He looked into his daughter's eyes, "I know you've been diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder just like your mother was when she threatened Erica, but I highly suggest you use whatever sentence you're given on Friday to speak to a psychiatrist about losing your brother Daniel to cancer, being forced to raise your youngest brother until you left for college, and being married to an abusive man for over a decade."

"I thought you hated therapy because you never got Mom, yourself, and me to see a grief counselor?" asked Maddie.

"I did, but I started therapy after your mother threatened to kill your niece and nephew before her arrest because I realized Daniel would be upset about us erasing him for 18 years, me enabling your mother's grief for so long, not getting you into therapy, and forcing you to raise Buck until you left for Boston with a man who abused you," said Phillip. 

"Evan and the police told you I've been in an abusive marriage?" asked Maddie.

Phillip nodded, "I ended up being asked what you were like as a child and teenager due to the concern over you killing your brother's pets, and now the all the regrets I worked on over me being an awful father in therapy are emerging again after learning about you being in an abusive marriage for over a decade and breaking into your brother's home where you destroyed his and his family's property and killed their pets."

Maddie sniffled, "I'm sorry."

"Even if it's my fault over how I handled yours, your mother's, and my grief, we have to accept consequences for our actions. So I suggest you take advantage of physiatrics and psychologists that are avaialbe in whatever prison or psychiatric hospital you're sentenced to and don't complain if you're presented a restraining order to stay away from your brother and his family."

"How's Evan doing?" asked Maddie.

"Even if I FaceTimed with him the night of your arrest and talked to Reverend Evans, Buck and Erica are rightfully angry at you because you chose to break the window to unlock their door, destroy their property, and kill their pets which made them not return home for one week. Even your niece and nephew are scared becuase they're afraid that another break-in would happen," said Phillip.

"I was scared about Doug going after me before I found out that he died in a plane crash a few weeks back," sniffled Maddie.

"I get that, but you knew your brother was married and a father and as a nurse you would know there are other options than breaking into a relative's house," said Phillip.

"I need to apologize so Evan could drop the charges and get back to my life," said Maddie.

Phillip shook his head, "As I told you earlier, you need to accept the consequences for your actions, Maddie. Knowing Daniel, he would be disappointed in you like I am." 

"Will Mom be coming to see me?" asked Maddie.

Phillip shook his head, "Even if she said she was right about Doug not being a good husband for you when I tracked her down following your arrest and she considers Evan dead to her, she can't attend your hearing due to your brother filing a restraining order against her."

"Evan really filed a restraining order against Mom?" asked Maddie.

"Buck has a right to because of wanting to keep his wife, kids, and himself safe from your mother," said Phillip.

A minute later, Phillip left.

Buck, who had Eleanora in a baby carrier on his chest, stepped into his father-in-law's office, where he saw Reverend Ryan sitting with his father, "Hi, Dad."

Phillip turned around in his chair and took in the sight of his son. He noticed the baby carrier with a baby with tuffs of curly blonde hair on her head. "Is that Eleanora?" asked Phillip.

Buck nodded, "I ended up delivering Ellie myself during the date night prenatal yoga class I took with Erica on Valentine's Day last week. Both Erica and Eleanora came through fine with no complications."

Phillip, who knew firefighters would get basic training in delivering babies, smiled, "I bet it was a special moment for you to deliver your youngest daughter while off-duty."

Buck nodded, "It was a special moment I'll remember for the rest of my life. Katie and Ethan were in awe over me delivering their baby sister in the middle of a  yoga studio, and I'm looking forward to telling Ellie about me delivering her myself."

"You were born by C-section at 36-weeks gestation in hope of there being extra time for Daniel," said Phillip.

"Even if the doctors refused to extract my bone marrow until I was a year old, so, there'd be time to allow my bones to develop," said Buck.

Phillip nodded, "Yes, but we were told that there would be a chance that Daniel might not survive due to how advanced his leukemia was and the time it took to get pregnant with you through IVF."

Reverend Ryan glanced toward his youngest granddaughter, "Is Ellie sleeping or awake?" asked Reverend Ryan.

"She cried on the way here, but she fell alseep as soon as I strapped her into the carrier on my chest with the buttons on the top of my polo shirt undone," said Buck.

"A Daddy's girl who loves skin-to-skin contact on you just like Katie did," said Reverend Ryan.

"I'm cherishing these moments until I'm required to return to work next week," said Buck.

Phillip looked at his son, "I'm surprised you asked to meet when I asked Reverend Evans to let you know I'll be in town for Maddie's arraignment hearing tomorrow."

Buck thought about the judge declaring that a psychiatrist to evaluate Maddie for any mental illnesses. At the same time, an investigation was conducted to see if Maddie was an Angel of Death to any of her patients in the emergency room in Boston and Pittsburg due to the concern over Maddie watching her eight-year-old brother battle and die from cancer within a couple of years, emotional neglect from their parents, spending over a decade in an abusive marriage, and their mother being diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder. Maddie didn't kill any patients, but she did get diagnosed with Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, "I'm attending the hearing tomorrow, too."

Phillip nodded, "I know about your sister's diagnosis, and your mother got diagnosed following her arrest." said Phillip. He looked at Reverend Ryan, "I appreciate everything you, your wife, and your children did for Buck when we first became neighbors. You and Tina gave Buck the love and attention Margaret and I never gave Buck and Maddie."

"Your welcome, and I hope you're learning your lessons on how your actions can affect your children years later," said Reverend Ryan.

"Ever since I heard about Maddie's actions, I realized that my choices following Daniel's death can still have consequences. I should have done a better job at raising my kids so Maddie didn't have to escape Hershey by marrying an abusive man," said Phillip. He looked at Buck, "Even if I'm beginning to regret not allowing another relative to raise you or put you up for adoption, I still don't regret keeping you."

"I can't regret not being given up either because I wouldn't have fallen in love with Erica and have Katie, Ethan, and Ellie with her," said Buck.

Eleanora then let out some cries, causing Buck to gently remove Eleanora from the baby carrier on his chest and settle her into his arms as he gently rocked his youngest daughter, "What's wrong, Alligator?"

Eleanora, wearing a pink long-sleeved onesie with an alligator on it and blue leggings, stopped crying and looked at her father even if her father was all blobs.

"I guess she wanted to be held in your arms," said Reverend Ryan.

Buck looked at the clock, "She's also due for a bottle."

Reverend Ryan got up, went to the diaper bag, and found an already prepped bottle, "I'll heat it up for you."

"Thank you," said Buck.

After Reverend Ryan left his office, Phillip studied his son, who gave Eleanora a loving look, "You're great with her."

"I know," said Buck.

Phillip looked towards Reverend Ryan's desk, where he saw a picture of a uniform-clad Buck, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan together in front of a firetruck with Santa hats on their heads, "Even if Reverend Evans didn't show me the pictures of Katherine and Ethan on his desk, your kids look cute. They are perfect mixtures of you and Erica."

"Thank you," said Buck.

"How are the twins handling their new little sister?" asked Phillip.

"The past couple of days, they're fighting over who gets to give their baby sister her bottle," said Buck.

"Maddie and even Daniel, when he wasn't in the hospital, were like that with giving you your bottles and giving you a bath, but I took charge of feedings, baths, and changing your diapers before and after you were born due to your mother focused on Daniel," said Phillip.

"Until Maddie had to step up while you focused on my mother to keep me safe," said Buck.

Phillip nodded, "And I shouldn't have forced Maddie to have those responsibilities."

"We can't change the past, but the best I can do is make sure not to make the same mistakes you and Mom made," said Buck.

Phillip nodded, "I hope you know I'm proud of the man you became. You're working a job you love, married to a smart and beatiful woman, and became a wonderful father."

The next afternoon, Buck and Erica were sitting in the courtroom as they heard the judge sentence Maddie to nine years at California Institution for Women for breaking & entering, vandalism, and animal cruelty while she was required to attend therapy twice a week, pay some fines, and pay back the money Buck and Erica spent to replace the window she broke and cremation for Pickles and Pumpkin.

Chapter Text

Buck was getting ready for his shift as he looked at Erica, "Are you sure you're fine with me going back to work tonight? I was told I could take up to six weeks off."

"It's best you get back to your normal routine so you don't have to adjust to eating and sleeping schedules that you follow as a firefighter. There's going to be a full moon tonight, so the 118 is going to need you," said Erica.

Buck looked over where Eleanora was napping in her bassinet by the side of Erica's bed, "Plus, it'd be better to confront separation anxiety with a new baby sooner than later."

Erica nodded, "Exactly, and you know my parents are going to stay in the guest bedroom for the next few night shifts you have."

A while later, Buck was heading to the 118 for his first shift back at work.

Buck entered the 118 and shook his head as he saw a banner welcoming him back, some pink balloons that said IT'S A GIRL in the loft and even a pink cake with a stork on it, "This is a sweet welcome back."

"Even if you stopped by with Katherine, Ethan, and Ellie to clean out your locker of anything that would stink up the locker room until you returned and a couple of lunches and dinners, you were missed the past couple of weeks," said Hen.

"Any new pictures?" asked Bobby.

As everyone enjoyed a slice of cake, Buck showed off pictures from Ellie's first bath at home, the twins holding their baby sister, the twins giving their baby sister a bottle of breast milk that Erica had pumped, and multiple pictures Erica took of him dosing on the couch or in bed with Eleanora on top of him.

Lucas looked at his friend, "Thanks to Erica sending Samantha pictures of Katie, Ethan, and Ellie together, and the couple of times Melissa and Jason have been at your house since Ellie was born, Melissa has been begging Samantha and me for a baby sister."

"Are you two going to try to give Melissa a baby sister or wait until Jason starts going to school like you and Sam planned?" asked Buck.

"We told Melissa and Jason that we're going to wait another year or two so we have time to settle in a new city and their mother and I can establish ourselves at the Parker Call Center and the 118 here," said Lucas.

Buck nodded, "That makes sense because Erica and I told Katie and Ethan that they weren't going to get a little brother or sister until we moved into the house we bought, they started going to school all day, and Erica graduated from law school."

A moment later, Bobby told everyone that Dispatch wanted them to work in teams of two that evening, which led to Buck learning he'd be going out on calls with Bobby while Hen and Lucas worked on calls together.

Erica, Katherine, and Ethan were playing some arcade games together, following the three of them going out for pizza and deciding to spend some time riding some rides and playing arcade games when people started forming a crowd while talking.

Katherine turned and saw a toddler in the claw machine before giggling, "Look, Mom. A little girl climbed through the prize slot to get into the claw machine to get her own toy."

Erica shook her head, "I'm not surprised this happened on a night of a full moon. You two did this during various full moons when you two were two and three."

Katherine noticed a worker frowning, "It looks like there's no key."

A while later, Erica touched Katherine and Ethan's shoulders when she realized her husband entered the arcade to get the little girl out. Despite being two weeks post-partum, she felt her ovaries burst as she watched her husband make funny faces at the toddler, talk to her in a voice he used to talk to Katherine and Ethan in before he now started talking to Eleanora in that tone as he unscrewed the wall of a machine before lifting the little girl out and passed her to her mother.

After watching Buck give the little girl a stuffed cow, Erica walked over to her husband and held Katherine and Ethan's hands as they watched Buck close the machine back up and pack up the drill.

"You consider these calls one of your favorite types of calls, but you really shouldn't encourage kids to climb into the machine by giving them a free toy," said Erica.

Buck turned around and grinned at his wife and two eldest children, "What are you three doing here?" asked Buck.

Katherine grinned as she hugged her father, "Hi, Daddy."

Ethan grinned as he joined the hug, "Hi, Dad."

Erica pecked her husband on the lips as she flashed her bridal set and heard groans of disappointment from the crowd that had gathered, "I took our twins out for dinner and decided to let them run loose in the arcade and on some rides to reward them for being very helpful following their baby sister's birth two weeks ago."

Buck kissed Katherine and Ethan's curly hair, "Sounds like coming out here during my first shift back from paternity leave is a clever way to tire our cat and wolf out before bedtime during a full moon.

Ethan nodded, "Even if I have never changed into a wolf, I hope to change into a wolf during a full moon."

"We had pizza for dinner," said Katherine. 

Buck looked around for his two-week-old daughter, "Where's our little Alligator?" asked Buck.

"My parents offered to watch her for a couple of hours because I didn't feel comfortable bringing her to a crowded pizza parlor or an arcade yet," said Erica.

Buck nodded. "Makes sense because she's only two-weeks-old and hasn't been updated on her vaccinations. I need to get back to work, so walk with me outside and we can talk until I return to the vehicle I came in."

Erica nodded, "We can do that."

As soon as Buck, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan made it outside, Buck and Ethan looked at the moon and started howling.

Katherine giggled, "You two are silly."

Ethan laughed, "Mom and Dad did give me a middle name that means wolf, so I do have to howl when the moon is full."

Buck laughed as he ruffled his son's brown curls, "That's right, Wolfie."

Buck and Ethan howled again.

Erica fondly shook her head, "I married a cute and adorable dork."

Erica's phone vibrated, causing her to see a picture message from her mother of Eleanora with a diaper blowout.

LOOKS LIKE THE FULL MOON CAUSED ELLIE TO HAVE HER FIRST DIAPER BLOWOUT.

"Look, Buck," said Erica.

Buck looked at the picture and laughed, "You'll need to buckle up for a wild ride tonight. Every full moon, the freaks come out.
Crime increases, emergency rooms are packed, animals and kids go nuts."

Katherine and Ethan looked at each other before howling, which made Buck howl, too.

"We are our own little zoo," said Erica.

Katherine and Ethan laughed over the picture of their baby sister with a diaper blowout.

"That's gross," said Katherine.

"This is too funny. I can't wait to tell Ellie's future boyfriends about her dipaer blowups," said Ethan.

Erica smirked at her son, "Then I'll tell whoever you date about your diaper blowups and show pictures your father and I took." She looked at her husband, "Even if this is your first shift back following Ellie's birth, maybe you should have taken an extra week off, Buck."

Buck looked at his wife, "We both agreed I should take at least two weeks off so I can get back to my usual routine as soon as possible and your parents decided to spend the night in our guest bedroom for my first run of shifts back at work."

"While Dad's needed during a full moon shift, Mom. Dad is the best at getting kids out of claw machines," said Katherine.

Buck smirked, "While I get to enjoy being a little shit to Bobby tonight."

Katherine thought about her and Ethan putting $1 of their weekly allowance into the collection plate at her grandfather's church every week while her parents put $5 into the plate. She and Ethan would put an extra $1 to $5 in the collection plate if she or Ethan swear in front of their parents and her parents swear in front of her and Ethan, "That's an extra $5 for the collection plate at church, Dad."

Buck grinned and pulled out his wallet, where he found two $10 bills, "Here's $10 for each of you to either get ice cream or play more arcade games before Mom takes you two home tonight so you two can get a decent amount of sleep before school tomorrow."

Katherine grinned as she accepted the $10 from her father, "You're forgiven, Dad."

Ethan nodded as he accepted the $10, "I agree with Katie, Dad. You don't have to put an extra $5 in the collection plate."

Buck laughed as he watched his wife flipping the bird at him without Katherine and Ethan noticing.

"Now that we're near the truck, it's time to let Dad get back to work. A bunch of people will need your father's help tonight, and you two need to spend the $10 before we go home and get ready for bed," said Erica.

Katherine grinned when she saw Bobby waiting for her father, "Hi, Captain Bobby."

Bobby grinned at Katherine and Ethan as both twins quickly hugged him, "No wonder why your father didn't hurry back."

"I couldn't help but spend some time walking and talking with Erica, Katie, and Ethan when they announced their presence," said Buck.

"Dad gave a little girl he lifted out of the claw machine a stuffed cow," said Katherine.

"And Dad gave us each an extra $10 to spend before Mom takes us home when he said he said the naughty word for getting to be a little turd around you tonight," said Ethan.

"You know we have a rule that if the kids swear in front of us or Erica and I swear in front of the kids, we slip an extra dollar or five dollars into the collection plate at church," said Buck.

Erica thought about her parents deciding they'll pick up Katherine and Ethan for church during the Sundays Buck is on shift due to her father telling her to stay home from church until she feels comfortable taking Ellie to church, "Even if I'm taking a break from attending church for a few weeks of my post-partum recovery, Buck decided to have Katie and Ethan give me a hard time tonight by spoiling them to get out of putting an extra $5 into the collection plate during the next time he can attend church."

Bobby shook his head as he looked at Buck, "You and your love for rewarding kids for climbing into a claw machine."

"It's a habit I started during calls like this in San Diego, and both the San Diego Fire Department and now the Los Angeles Fire Department knows giving a kid a stuffed animal after pulling them out of the claw machine is my service fee," said Buck.

"Katie and Ethan would climb into claw machines when they were toddlers, too," said Erica.

"And I'm looking forward to the day Ellie climbs into a claw machine for the first time," said Buck.

"You just jinxed us," said Erica.

"How are you feeling, Erica?" asked Bobby.

"Aside from Ellie waking up a couple of times a night, I'm feeling much better than I did two weeks ago," said Erica. She looked at her husband, "When you come home tomorrow, I'd like you to take the thank you cards we've been signing for everyone from our church, firefighters and their families, and even police officers and their families for bringing us prepared meals to pop into the oven or cook on the stove and gift cards for takeout the past two weeks to the post office when you pick up the twins from school tomorrow."

Buck nodded as he thought about working a run of 10 to 12-hour shifts for the next four days before getting four days off, "I'll do that before my next 12-hour shift tomorrow night."

The radio went off, causing Buck to look at his wife and kids, "It's time for me to go. Please let me know when you make it home safely."

"Quickly hug and kiss your father goodbye, munchkins," said Erica.

After Buck gave Katherine and Ethan both a hug and a kiss, Buck, Katherine, and Ethan looked at the moon and howled.

Erica laughed as she looked at Bobby, "I married a cute and adorable dork," said Erica. She kissed her husband, "Love you and stay safe."

"I love you, too. I'll stay safe," said Buck.

After climbing into the ambulance, Buck grabbed his phone and grinned when he realized his in-laws had sent him a picture of Ellie's diaper blowout, "My wife and in-laws are in for a wild ride tonight, and it's a good thing Reverend Ryan and Tina decided to stay in the guest bedroom during my first shift back."

Bobby looked at the picture, "I remember the diaper blowout days with Robbie and Brooke."

"Katherine and Ethan dealt with diaper blowouts when they were babies and toddlers, and I'm proud of Ellie for already going nuts during her first full moon," said Buck.

"You really believe in full moons causing chaos?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "I've been a firefighter for five and a half years, and I had some family members who worked in a hospital."

Buck looked at Bobby, "This is the yoga studio Erica did prenatal yoga at when she reached six months pregnant and where I delivered Ellie two weeks ago." 

After dealing with the woman who was stuck and multiple women going into labor at once, the instructor looked at Buck as Buck packed up, "It's a good thing Erica gave birth two weeks ago because she could have gone into labor at 39 weeks if she attended this class tonight."

Buck nodded, "Which I'm grateful for, but now Ellie gets to go nuts with her big brother and sister tonight."

Later on, Buck and Bobby respond to a call about a man who feels like he has a monster inside him. 

As Buck and Bobby examined Connor while asking Connor and his boyfriend Paul questions, Buck whipped his head towards Connor and Paul when he heard the word sushi while Bobby felt around Connor's stomach, "Do you guys eat a lot of sushi?" asked Buck.

"He does. About four or five times a week," said Paul.

"You could be sick with salmonella or there's a tapeworm making its way through your small intestines right now," said Buck.

Connor paled, "A tapeworm?" asked Connor.

Buck glanced at Bobby, who looked a bit green, before he focused on Connor, "Eating raw fish or meat that's not frozen properly or cooked thoroughly can cause you to get sick with salmonella or unknowingly ingest a tapeworm. Both salmonella and tapeworms can cause a lot of stomach cramping and diarrhea."

"Which he has been dealing with," said Paul.

Connor groaned and cried in pain while Buck gestured to the door with his chin to Bobby as his way to tell Bobby that Connor needed to get to the hospital ASAP.

Disgusted at what Buck described and knowing that Buck could be onto the symptoms Connor was suffering from, Bobby said, "Let's get him into the ambulance."

A few minutes later, Buck and Bobby were helping Connor get onto the gurney and into the back of the ambulance they climbed into.

When they were heading to the nearest hospital, Buck had just finished putting an IV into Connor's hand and was placing medical tape over Connor's hand and fixing the line soon ended up gently removing the tapeworm that was coming out of Connor's ass as he grossed-out Bobby, Connor, and Paul with facts about tapeworms.

Bobby glanced at Buck, who was calmly and gently removing the long tapeworm with his gloved hands with ease. "How do you know so much about tapeworms?" asked Bobby.

"Erica, my brother-in-law, and I went on a couple of youth mission trips to to countries where tapeworms were common as house cats, and even when I was deployed for the Navy, there was the risk of tapeworms due to unsanitary conditions and lack of clean water," said Buck as he pulled out the tapeworm with a grin while calling it a boy much to Bobby, Connor, and Patrick's chargin'.

Bobby, who knew that the one deployment Buck went on was pretty much classified, looked at Buck, "Youth group mission trips?" asked Bobby.

"It wasn't difficult to convince my parents to agree on me joining in on yearly mission trips every summer from when I was 14 until I was 17 with Erica, Isaac, and the youth group leader because attending summer camp and then youth group mission trips when I was 14 every summer made my mother realize that I wouldn't be home for most of the summer," said Buck.

"As someone who attended summer camp every summer when I was eight until I was too old, I can understand the part about going to summer camp for a couple of weeks. What surprises me about your parents after learning how they treated you was that they didn't send you to boarding school," said Bobby.

"My mother thought about sending me to boarding school in a different state or even a different country after Maddie left for Boston with Doug, but my father talked her out of it because he knew Reverend Ryan could ruin their reputations if I was sent away to boarding school outside of the one boarding school that was already in Hershey," said Buck.

"After everything you've told me about your parents so far, I'm grateful you had Erica and your in-laws in your life since you were seven," said Bobby.

"If it wasn't for them convincing my parents to sign me up for various sports, summer camps, spending as much time as possible with them when not in school, and doing volunteer work with the church when I was a teenager, I would have still been self-harming myself through stunts on my bicycle, skateboard, and climbing anything I could climb to get my parents' attention and doing something more stupid than going through a teen pregnancy with Erica," said Buck.

"Even if you're a little shit regarding you telling me facts about full moon and tapeworms tonight," said Bobby.

Buck gave his Captain an angelic smile.

After the shift ended, Buck caught up with Hen as he headed towards his Jeep. "How has it been working with Lucas for the past two and a half weeks?" Buck asked.

"I'm still adjusting, but Lucas is a great paramedic. He's more professional and his humor is less caustic than Howie's was," said Hen.

"You're enjoying working with Lucas then?" asked Buck.

"Yes," said Hen.

"I couldn't attend Han's trial because I had to attend Maddie's hearing instead; how are you and others who were closer to Howie handling everything?" asked Buck.

"I know the foster parents I never knew about him being raised by until the hearing were shocked and devastated about Howie being sentenced to four years of prison while he was sued to pay for the funerals of the two victims and is forced to do community service and attend therapy and anger management classes during his sentence," said Hen.

"Anything else happened?" asked Buck.

"I did receive a letter from him stating that our former captain Vincent Gerrard visited him and told him to enjoy scrubbing his own toilet, mopping floors, and doing laundry for the next four years," said Hen.

"I thought he'd be dead based on the way you and Han talked about him," said Buck.

"He's still alive, and I'd think he'd try to find an ally in you due to you being white and married to a woman until he finds out your father-in-law's Episcopalian church is LGBTQ friendly and officiates same-sex wedding ceremonies and your wife is an attorney due to how he feels about women working careers that were once only worked by men," said Hen.

Buck looked around before whispering to Hen, "I know everyone thinks I'm straight due to being married to a woman, but when I was a teenager, I realized I was bisexual when it came to looking at the asses of other boys while playing football in school not long after I first kissed Erica and Erica was still willing to date and eventually marry me because I told her I knew since I was 12 that I would marry her someday. Erica, my in-laws, and even Katie, Ethan, and even Lucas and his family know because we have a Pride party at church at the beginning of June and have attended multiple Pride events every year since moving to California."

Hen grinned as she hugged Buck, "Thank you for trusting me with that information. I'm grateful that you and Erica have a strong and loving relationship, and I can't wait for you, Erica, our kids, Karen, and I to attend Pride together."

Buck then got a message from Erica stating that both Katherine and Ethan had just thrown up or had diarrhea for the third time since eating ice cream as a treat and the warm milk she had heated up to them to help them sleep. She had already called the 24/7 hotline the kids' pediatrician's office had, and the pediatrician had contacted her personally, telling her to have the kids skip breakfast in the morning and bring them to the clinic at 7 AM for a fasting lactose tolerance blood test.

"I should get going because Erica sent me a message about Katherine and Ethan getting sick again after having ice cream and warm milk tonight. She already called the 24/7 hotline the pediatrician has, and Erica was told to have Katie and Ethan skip breakfast and bring them in for a fasting lactose tolerance blood test," said Buck.

"Erica mentioned that you two were watching for possible lactose intolerance symptoms after Katie and Ethan getting sick after eating dairy the past couple of weeks," said Hen.

Buck nodded, "When Erica first called the twins' doctor, we were told to avoid giving the kids dairy for a bit before trying again."

"And you two gave the kids dairy again, as the doctor wanted you and Erica to," said Hen.

Buck nodded, "Ice cream and warm milk, and they still got sick."

"So they're now being tested later on," said Hen.

Buck nodded, "Yep, and I think the kids will be happy about missing school even if they'll have to let me sleep."

"Get going," said Hen.

A minute later, Buck was leaving the station in his Jeep.

After Buck managed to get a couple of hours of sleep to make him functional for lunchtime, Buck made Erica, the twins who were pulled out of school for the day, and himself pad thai with brown rice noodles due to them and the kids eating carb-free and fat-free as much as possible due to him having to keep his body in shape for work, Erica eating healthy for her post-partum recovery as she continues to lose the weight she gained during pregnancy and to produce breastmilk for breastfeed, while Katherine and Ethan both want to eat healthy so they could keep in shape for gymnastics, soccer, swimming, and other sports they want to participate in so they could reach their dreams of being in the Summer Olympics or state-wide or national sports teams.

Buck, Erica, Katherine, and Ethan ate lunch together. At the same time, Ellie had skin-to-skin contact with her father; Bobby was sent two pictures of a bowl of brown rice noodles with broccoli, carrots, and bell peppers and a few different types of vegetable photos of him and another picture of Buck, Katherine, and Ethan eating their pad thai with noodles hanging from their chopsticks with huge grins on their faces.

I MADE ERICA, THE TWINS WHO MISSED SCHOOL TODAY DUE TO GOING TO THE DOCTOR TO BE TESTED FOR LACTOSE INTOLERANCE, AND MYSELF HOMEMADE PAD THAI FOR LUNCH WITH BROWN RICE NOODLES AND AN ASSORTMENT OF VEGETABLES. THE NOODLES REMIND ME OF TAPEWORMS, BUT MY SERVING OF PAD THAI  WAS DELICIOUS.

He sent Buck a reply.

YOU'RE GOING TO BE A LITTLE SHIT WHO NEVER GOING TO LET ME LIVE IT DOWN FOR BEING GROSSED OUT OVER A TAPEWORM, ARE YOU? 

A minute later, Bobby received a text message full of grinning and winking emojis.

YEP

Chapter Text

Two weeks following the full moon shift, Buck walked into the 118 with a massive grin.

Getting ready in the locker room, Bobby looked at Buck, "What are you happy about, Buck?"

"The newborn photoshoot pictures arrived, and copies were even emailed so I could save them on my tablet," said Buck as he hung a professional portrait of him, Erica, and all three kids together inside the open door of his locker and a picture of him in his turnout gear with Eleanora in his helmet.

Bobby thought about Buck coming in to pick up his turnout gear and helmet for some of the pictures, "Are you going to show them off?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "I'm planning on it."

During downtime between calls, Buck showed off pictures of Eleanora lying in various positions and wearing different outfits while asleep and awake. There were pictures of Buck and Erica with Eleanora together and of Eleanora with each of her parents, which involved Buck in his turnout jacket with Eleanora in his helmet and a picture of him in regular clothes while holding Eleanora, too. There was a picture of Katherine in a white dress and a white bow on her head as she held Eleanora, who was swaddled in a white lace blanket. There was a picture of Ethan, who wore khaki pants and a white polo shirt, as Ethan held his baby sister. There was a picture of Katherine and Ethan grinning as their baby sister lay between them. There were pictures of the twins together, on their own, and with a parent. The final photos involved the family of five being together.

"These are beautiful pictures, Buck," said Hen.

"I love the ones involving your turnout gear and Katie and Ethan wearing their firefighter costumes," said Bobby.

"Katie and Ethan enjoyed those photos being taken, and the photographer was kind enough to do various combinations since our next family photo session will be for our Christmas cards," said Buck.

"How do you feel about Ellie being a month old now?" asked Bobby.

"A bit sad due to how much she's grown this past month, but I'm looking forward to Ellie having more wide-awake moments and start developing a personality," said Buck.

Buck was pushing a cart through the grocery store to get groceries and was turning the corner when his cart bumped into another cart.

"Watch it," said a man.

Buck's eyes widened when he recognized Eddie Diaz from his one deployment that made him spend some time in Afghanistan, "Well, isn't it Staff Sergeant Eddie Diaz." 

The man looked up, and his eyes widened as he recognized Buck, "Buck."

Within a few seconds, Buck and Eddie were hugging each other.

"Aside from seeing you on the news two months ago, the last time I saw you was when I stablized you for transport to Germany," said Eddie.

"Even if you spent a couple of times stitching me up, too," said Buck. He tilted his head, "How's Shannon and Christopher?" asked Buck.

"You remember them?" asked Eddie.

Buck nodded, "I was right next to you video chatting with Erica, Katie, and Ethan while you video chatted with Shannon and Christopher. I thought he looked adorable."

Eddie pulled out his phone and showed the most recent picture of Christopher.

"He's still cute like Katie, Ethan, and Ellie," said Buck.

"If you're mentioning a kid named Ellie, did you and your wife have another child?" asked Eddie.

Buck nodded as he pulled out his phone to show Eddie the picture of Katherine, Ethan, and Eleanora together before showing a single picture of Eleanora he took that morning since he developed a habit of taking a picture of his three kids every morning he's not on shift, "I ended up delivering Eleanora Allison Buckley on Valentine's Day in a prenatal yoga studio. She's been given the nicknames Ellie and Nora by everyone while Erica, the twins, and I call her Alligator."

Eddie looked at the picture of the one-month-old baby girl with baby blue eyes, a full head of blonde curls, and a birthmark similar to Buck's, "She's beautiful, Buck."

"Thanks," said Buck. He tilted his head, "No other kids for you?" asked Buck.

Eddie shook his head, "Just Christopher because Shannon left me after I got honorably discharged two years ago."

"I'm sorry," said Buck. 

"We just didn't see eye to eye about me being in the Army and to live in either El Paso or Los Angeles after my discharge," said Eddie.

"What are you up to now?" asked Buck.

"After you mentioned you were a firefighter for the San Diego Fire Department and you'd be moving to LA to join the LAFD in the summer of 2015, I thought firefighting would be something I could do. If I don't washout of the Academy, I'll be a firefighter in September," said Eddie.

"Despite our few interactions a few years ago, maybe I could convince my Captain to give you a chance as a probationary firefighter at the 118. I don't have a field partner right now and my Captain has to get me one by the time cadets graduate from the Academy in September," said Buck.

"We'll have to wait and see," said Eddie. He tilted his head, "Think a playdate could be set up? Christopher is struggling to make friends at the school he's currently attending and he could use some friends outside of his cousins in the area."

Buck pulled out his phone and sent Erica a text message.

I JUST REUNITED WITH FORMER STAFF SERGEANT EDDIE DIAZ, WHO I MET DURING MY ONE DEPLOYMENT, AND I WAS HOPING HE AND HIS SON CHRISTOPHER COULD COME OVER FOR DINNER. EDDIE'S GOING TO BE ENTERING THE ACADEMY TO BECOME A FIREFIGHTER, AND KATIE AND ETHAN ARE AROUND CHRISTOPHER'S AGE.

A minute later, Erica replied.

THEY CAN COME OVER.

"You and Christopher could come over for dinner. Erica, the twins, and I are going to be making lasagna," said Buck.

"That would be nice because I'd be ordering takeout," said Eddie.

Buck smiled as he allowed Eddie and Christopher into his and Erica's house. "I hope you had no trouble finding the house," Buck said.

"I used the GPS device on my phone," said Eddie. He gestured to Christopher, "This is my son Christopher."

Buck grinned at Christopher, "Hi, Christopher. I'm Evan Buckley, and I met your father when he was deployed for the Army."

"Were you in the Army with Dad?" asked Christopher.

Buck shook his head, "I was in a different branch known as the Navy."

"Cool, and Daddy said you're a firefighter," said Christopher. He pointed by Buck's eyebrow, "You have a black eye."

"That's a birthmark, and you'll see three of the four people I'm going to be introducing you to having the same birthmark as me," said Buck.

Buck introduced Eddie and Christopher to Erica, Katherine, Ethan, and Eleanora a minute later.

"Hi, Christopher. My name is Ethan," grinned Ethan.

"Hi, Chrisophter, my name is Katherine, but you can call me Katie or Kat," said Katherine.

"We're twins," said Ethan.

"Who don't have the same birthday," said Katherine.

"Twins who don't share the same birthday?" asked Christopher.

"I was born before midnight on January 10th, 2011," said Katherine.

"While I was born 15 minutes after midnight on January 11th, 2011," said Ethan.

"That's cool to have your own birthdays. I'm still six," said Christopher.

Erica, holding Eleanora, smiled, "I'm Buck's wife, Erica, and this baby girl in my arms is Eleanora."

Christopher looked down at Eleanora, "Eleanora is cute. Can I please hold her?" asked Christopher.

"You sure can," said Erica.

A moment later, Christopher sat on the couch, holding Eleanora, with Katherine and Ethan seated on either side of him and Eleanora.

"Ellie is loud at night, but I still love her and vow to protect her as she gets older," said Ethan.

"When you're done holding Ellie, we'll take you to meet our pet snakes," said Katherine.

"Snakes?" asked Christopher.

"We have two corn snakes," said Ethan.

"They're not venomous," said Katherine.

"I've seen rattlesnakes in Texas," said Christopher.

"You're from Texas?" asked Katherine.

"Mom and Dad are from the chocolate town Hershey, Pennsylvania while we were born in San Diego," said Ethan. 

Christopher nodded, "My Abuelo and Grandma live in El Paso where I was born, but Dad and I moved up here to be closer to Bisabuela and Tia Pepa."

Katherine grinned, "Todos hablamos español. Primero vivimos en San Diego e íbamos a viajes de un día a México e incluso visitamos Perú juntos".

Ethan looked at his twin sister, No sé si Christopher sabe hablar español con fluidez como nosotros."

"I know some Spanish," said Christopher.

A few minutes later, Buck got the two female corn snakes, Zinnia and Daisy, out of their tank.

"These are Zinnia and Daisy," said Katherine.

"How do you tell them apart?" asked Christopher.

Katherine, holding Zinnia, said, "Zinnia is the dark red and orange one."

Ethan, holding Daisy, said, "Daisy is light and dark orange."

"OK," said Christopher.

"Plus, we're getting two Maine Coon kittens on May 2nd. Nemo and Dory were born on February 27th, and they'll be ready to come home on May 2nd," said Katherine.

"Dad's older sister Maddie killed our cat Pickles and corn snake Pumpkin, and Dad's coworkers got us two kittens and two new corn snakes for free," said Ethan.

"Dad's sister is in prison for nine years because she broke into our house and destroyed our electronics, too," said Katherine.

"She didn't want Dad to be happy and wasn't happy about Dad having us with Mom, marrying Mom, and Dad joining the Navy before becoming a firefighter," said Ethan.

"She acts like my grandparents in Texas. They treat me like a baby due to my CP," said Chris.

"CP?" asked Katherine.

"Cerebal Palsy. Christopher needs crutches to help him keep his balance," said Eddie.

"I don't see you as a baby like I do with Ellie," said Katherine.

"Me either," said Ethan.

After dinner, Katherine, Ethan, and Christopher sat together as they did their homework for Durand or the public school Christopher attended.

"I hope I'm not rude, but where's your Mom, Chris?" asked Ethan.

"She left Daddy and me a few years ago," said Christopher.

"Did she die?" asked Ethan.

"No, and I haven't seen or heard from Mom since the night placed me in bed with Dad with a note," said Christopher.

Erica, who had heard what the kids were talking about, looked at Eddie, who was enjoying a bottle of beer with her husband, "I hope I'm not overstepping, but if your wife abandoned you and Christopher a few years back, did you file for abandonment, divorce, or set up a custody agreement?" asked Erica.

Eddie shook his head, "I didn't file for abandonement, divorce, or set up a custody agreement after we argued about Shannon wanting to move here due to her mother being sick while I wanted to stay in El Paso with my parents and sisters. When Shannon left, I thought she would come back, but she didn't nor she has contacted me. Even if Shannon came here to take care of her now late mother, I chose to move Chris and me here because LAFD is one of the best fire departments in the country and I wanted to be closer to my Abuela and Tia Pepa."

Buck and Erica looked at each other as they thought about how they compromised on Buck joining the Navy. Erica wanted to attend college in San Diego and then law school in Los Angeles, and they compromised on everything.

"Did you tell Shannon you were planning on moving Christopher and yourself to LA?" asked Erica.

Eddie shook his head, "No." 

Erica gave Eddie a look, "You better file for a divorce while mentioning that Shannon abandoned you two years ago ASAP."

"What do you mean?" asked Eddie.

"I'm a child advocacy attorney, and I can tell you, things can get ugly for you personally and professionally if Shannon shows up on your doorstep asking to see Christopher and you refuse to let Chris see his mother," said Erica.

"Why would things get ugly?" asked Eddie.

"If Shannon found out you and Christopher moved to LA and showed up on your doorstep asking you to see Christopher and you refused to let her see her son, she could probably tell the police that you kidnapped Christopher and took him across state lines," said Erica firmly.

"Why would Shannon claim that I kidnapped my son?" asked Eddie.

"You left the state of Texas and moved Christopher and yourself to Los Angeles without getting Shannon or even a judge's permission to move a minor across state lines with custody papers or notarized paperwork on hand to prove you didn't kidnap your son," said Erica.

"And those charges can affect you becoming a firefighter or working as a firefighter," said Buck. 

Eddie paled, "Dios mío. I should have agreed to come to LA with her when she wanted to."
 
Erica grabbed a business card and scribbled a personal cell phone number before passing it to Eddie, "Before I started maternity leave, a divorce lawyer joined my law firm after some issues at her previous firm. If you have the note Shannon left you or copies of texts, emails, and voicemails you sent her asking you when she'd be back with or without responses, Jasmine can help you file for divorce due to abandonment, and you can tell the judge that you moved Christopher and yourself to LA for work and you spent time tracking down your wife so you can send her divorce papers after not hearing from her for two years."

"Even if I married Shannon due to being Catholic, and I haven't been practicing since Shannon left, we don't believe in divorce," said Eddie.

"I'm the daughter of an Episcopalian minister, and when learning about religious ramifications for divorces in law school, I learned that Catholics can file an annulment and a civil divorce to protect their children and themselves. I believe abandonment for two years would qualify you for an anullment and civil divorce," said Erica.

"I'll call Jasmine tomorrow," said Eddie.

"Call her now because I wrote Jasmine's personal number on her card. Just mention that Erica Buckley referred you because it's urgent. Knowing Jasmine, she can grab the paperwork you'd need to fill out before bringing it here before you take Chris home," said Erica.

Buck looked at Eddie, "I suggest you listen to my wife."

"I'll call her now, and you'll need to present evidence that she hasn't contacted you in two years and that she came to LA," said Erica.

"I still kept the letter," said Eddie.

"Shannon didn't send money to help support you and Chris?" asked Erica.

Eddie shook his head, "I had to work three jobs to support Christopher and myself, and I chose to bring Chris and myself here after my parents tried to get me to give them custody of Chris due to me always working."

After Eddie called Jasmine, who stated she'd be over in 45 minutes, Erica looked at Eddie, "Since your wife hasn't been in your life, who watches Christopher outside of school if you're working to pay bills and have time for yourself?" asked Erica.

"My Abuela and Tia Pepa, and I know I need to find a nanny or nurse who is trained to help children with CP because my Abuela is pushing 80 and my Tia Pepa is still working. It's just I'm struggling with paperwork from the VA," said Eddie.

"I remember how hard it was dealing with paperwork from the VA myself in San Diego and then here in Los Angeles, but meeting a home health aide at the Home Depot helped me get the benefits Erica, the kids, and I qualify for," said Buck.

Erica nodded, "Both Katherine and Ethan have ADHD like their father does. Carla helped us find Durand School for Katie and Ethan. It's an inclusive school with smaller class sizes and doesn't discriminate against physical and learning disabilities.

"That seems like a school that would be nice for Christopher," said Eddie.

"Let's help you start the divorce process and hook you up with Carla, and maybe Christopher could end up in Durand in January after you deal with Shannon's abandonment and start working," said Erica.

"I appreciate it," said Eddie.

"I also suggest you get therapy," said Erica.

"My parents don't believe in therapy," said Eddie.

Buck gave Eddie a pointed look, "I've been in therapy since July of 2010 after I found out the only reason why I was born was to be a savior sibling for my dead older brother and I was primarly treated like shit by my mother who blamed me for not saving Daniel."

"Plus my mother-in-law threatened to kill Katherine and Ethan, so I attended therapy, too," said Erica.

"While I sought therapy for the PTSD I dealt with during my one deployment and I still see a therapapist due to working as a firefighter isn't always sunshine and roses because I can't save everyone on the job," said Buck.

"And if you're going to work with the VA, you know they'll want to send you to a therapist if you never got the chance to talk to a therapist about your time in Afghanistan," said Erica. She pointed at the door, "Now go gather the evidence that can protect Christopher and yourself when you file for a civil divorce."

"Chris can stay with us while you go grab what's needed to show that Shannon left and has avoided your contact attempts," said Buck.

"I'd appreciate it," said Eddie.

An hour later, Jasmine was over helping Eddie fill out the divorce papers with the claim of abandonment while there was evidence of abandonment and no further contact included.

After the paperwork to file for divorce with evidence that proves abandonment, Eddie looked at Buck and Erica, "Thank you two for opening up my eyes about what can happen if Shannon finds out I'm in LA and asks to see Chris."

"Even if I haven't been an attorney for less than a year, I know how serious this can be," said Erica.

"Thank you again," said Eddie.

"I sent the home health nurse a message, and she's willing to help you with paperwork tomorrow morning to help you with paperwork," said Buck.

"Thank you, Buck," said Eddie. 

Chapter Text

On March 28th, Buck was lying shirtless in bed when he felt Erica run her hand over his heart where a tattoo with gazelle with the day they met, a cat with Katherine's birthday underneath, a wolf with Ethan's birthday underneath, and an alligator with Eleanora's birthday underneath, "I just love the tattoos you got to represent the kids and me."

Buck smiled as he felt Erica touch the alligator tattoo he got three days after Eleanora was born, "I figured the tattoos above my heart should honor you and our three munchkins."

Erica ran a finger over the blank space, "While there's space for one more baby Buckley in the future."

Buck nodded, "That's my plan."

Erica thought about getting the same style of tattoo on her back, but with a buck instead of a gazelle, "When I'm not going to be breastfeeding Eleanora anymore, I'll go get my own alligator tattoo with Ellie's birthday underneath it, too."

Buck smiled, "I can't wait to see your updated tattoo."

Erica then moved to straddle Buck, "You know I had a doctor's appointment the other day?" asked Erica.

"Your six-week check-up," said Buck.

"I got the all-clear, and I got the birth control implant in my arm to keep us from making Eleanora a big sister until she's three years old," said Erica.

Just as Buck and Erica started kissing each other, Eleanora made herself known from her bassinet along the wall.

Erica groaned.

"I got her," said Buck.

A moment later, Buck removed Eleanora from the bassinet, "Hey there, Alligator. What's wrong?" asked Buck.

Eleanora stopped crying when she recognized her father's voice and scent.

"I guess you were just wanting your Daddy," said Buck.

Eleanora blinked and cooed at her father.

A moment later, Buck climbed back into bed with Eleanora in his arms as he started rocking his youngest daughter, "You're turning out to be a lot like your big sister Katherine was when she was a tiny baby like you. She'd wake up because of wanting to be held by me."

Eleanora's closed lips twitched up in a slight smirk.

"I see you're smirking about being successful about getting my attention little miss Alligator," said Buck.

Eleanora cooed.

"As much as I love watching you with our daughters, I dislike the competition I have with Katherine and Eleanora," said Erica.

"You know what they say about a little girl's first love being their father. Your parents told me stories about you being a daddy's girl when you were a baby and a toddler until you started gravitating towards your mother," said Buck.

"Just like Ethan being a Mama's boy until he started going towards you more," said Erica.

Buck nodded just as a knock sounded on the door.

"Daddy?" asked Katherine.

"Come in, Kat," said Buck.

A moment later, Katherine entered her parent's bedroom with her stuffed firefighter bear that had him telling her he loved her, "I had a bad dream. Can I please sleep with you and Mom?" asked Katherine.

Buck nodded as he patted the bed. He was grateful he chose to wear sweatpants to bed despite being shirtless, "Come on, Kitty Cat."

A moment later, Katherine was wiggling between her parents in bed and rested her head on her father's shoulders, "Is Alligator alright?" asked Katherine.

"She just wanted some snuggles from me," said Buck.

Erica, who had grabbed her phone and snapped a picture of her husband and two daughters together, looked at her eldest daughter, "What did you dream about?" asked Erica.

"That I dismounted on the uneven bars wrong and broke both of my arms and legs," said Katherine.

"I remember those dreams about landing wrong in gymnastics and when I became a flyer in cheerleading," said Erica.

Buck looked down at Eleanora and noticed that his youngest daughter was asleep, causing him to slowly get out of bed and place his youngest into the bassinet. He sighed in relief when Eleanora didn't wake up.

After climbing back into bed, Buck kissed his eldest daughter's curls, "Get some sleep, Kitty Kat. You have school tomorrow while your mother and I both work."

As soon as Katherine was asleep, Buck's phone vibrated to see a text message from Erica.

AS MUCH AS WE CHOOSE TO CHERISH OUR KIDS WANTING TO SLEEP WITH US, ONE OF THESE NIGHTS, WE NEED TO DROP THE KIDS OFF AT THEIR FRIENDS' HOUSES OR GRANDPARENTS' HOUSE FOR A SLEEPOVER WHILE ELEANORA ONLY STAYS WITH SOMEONE WE TRUST TO WATCH ELEANORA FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS SO WE CAN MAKE UP FOR THE SEX WE HAVEN'T HAD IN TWO MONTHS.

Buck looked at his wife and nodded.

Buck showed up for his shift at the 118 as he munched on a granola bar he had stashed in his vehicle. 

Bobby noticed the wrap around Buck's elbow, "Everything alright?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "Ever since I found out about Daniel, I became a blood and plasma donor as a way to honor Daniel because Katie, Ethan, Ellie, and I wouldn't have existed if it wasn't for Daniel and blood donors being in demand."

"I have never donated blood because I don't like needles. I once bit a doctor as a kid and fainted when another doctor tried to take my blood as an adult," said Bobby.

Buck raised his eyebrows.

"It's not funny," said Bobby.

"I'm not laughing because I witnessed Katherine and Ethan biting doctors and I know Eleanora will have her moments, but I have a serious question question," said Buck.

"What?" asked Bobby.

"Since you admitted that you once bit a doctor and even fainted when bloodwork was being attempted, does that mean your Complete Blood Count or Lipid Panel doesn't get checked during your annual physicals?" asked Buck.

"I manage to avoid getting my blood drawn," said Bobby.

"Getting out of getting your CBC or Lipid panel checked isn't healthy, Bobby. As someone who lost a brother to cancer, I don't fight over getting my blood drawn to keep an eye out for possible illnesses like cancer, make sure my body is getting the nutrients I need, and my cholesterol is good," said Buck. He looked into Bobby's eyes, "Katherine and Ethan don't like getting their blood drawn or vaccinations, but they know their blood needs to be drawn to ensure they're healthy, and they get their vaccinations to keep themselves from getting sick and being allowed to attend school and play with their friends."

"Speaking of the twins, how are they handling their lactose intolerance diagnosis?" asked Bobby.

"It's been an adjustment for Erica, the kids, and me to switch to lactose-free milk, cheese, and exploring what ice cream they can eat as a treat. We even found a cooking class that caters people who are lactose intolerance, and Erica, Katie, Ethan, and I have attended two classes so far," said Buck.

"I've been experimenting on my recipes so people with lactose intolerance can still enjoy my macaroni and cheese and various other dishes," said Bobby.

"You have?" asked Buck.

Bobby nodded, "I don't want to make Katie and Ethan sick with my cooking, so I'm doing what I can so they can enjoy my cooking when they spend a few hours with you here or I go over to your house for a meal."

"I appreciate it," said Buck.

Buck noticed Bobby with a cling bandage around his elbow, "Are you alright, Bobby?" asked Buck.

"After you explained why you donated blood and reminded me how important it was to get our blood drawn during check-ups, I decided to donate blood myself and finally got blood drawn during a physical," said Bobby.

"Good," said Buck.

"My doctor did yell at me for avoiding bloodwork as long as I did," said Bobby.

Following a call at a gym with the owner burning to death after leaving his dog in a car, Bobby's phone rang to answer a call from Cedars-Sinai only to find out something was found in the blood he chose to donate. 

Buck, Cricket, and Hen looked at each other and saw how nervous Bobby looked.

"Would you like someone to go with you?" asked Hen.

"I think so," said Bobby.

"Since my story about why I donate blood made you spontaneously decide to donate blood, I should go with you," said Buck.

"If it's something like cancer, I don't want to trigger you, Buck," said Bobby.

"Since I just started working with you guys six weeks ago and don't know you well like Buck and Hen, why don't I go with you, Cap," said Lucas.

Bobby thought about Buck, Hen, and Cricket all having wives and either one, two, or three children to go home to, "Are you sure? You have Samantha, Melissa, and Jacob you could be spending time with instead of going to the doctor with me," said Bobby.

Lucas, who had already texted his wife, showed Bobby the text message, "Samantha said it's alright I accompany you to the doctor's office. Samantha will be on shift, and Melissa and Jacob will be at school or preschool anyway, and going to the doctor with you beats spending a few hours completing the chore list Sam most likely set up for me to work on."

After Buck took Eleanora with him to surprise Erica with lunch, Buck had just secured Eleanora into the backseat of his Jeep and was climbing into the driver's seat when he got a text message from Lucas.

I KNOW YOU TALKED ABOUT SURPRISING ERICA AT WORK WITH ELEANORA AND LUNCH AT LUNCHTIME, BUT I'M DRIVING BOBBY TO YOUR HOUSE RIGHT NOW. HE'S UPSET ABOUT SOMETHING, AND I THINK HOLDING ELLIE WOULD DO HIM SOME GOOD.

Buck typed a reply.

I'M LEAVING THE LAW FIRM WITH ELEANORA RIGHT NOW. 

After arriving at home, where Bobby and Lucas were waiting for them, Buck placed a freshly changed Eleanora into Bobby's arms, "She was fed and changed while Erica and I ate lunch, and she should be in good spirits thanks to the nap she took on the way home," said Buck.

Bobby smiled down at the wide-awake baby girl as he gently ran his fingers through Eleanora's curls, "Ellie keeps on getting more beautiful everyday I see her in person or in new pictures."

"Even if she inherited my birthmark, I'm hoping she looks like her mother," said Buck.

Bobby looked at Buck, who didn't even put the product in his hair to straighten his curls, "And has yours, Katherine's, and Ethan's curls, too."

"Aside from Erica wanting Ellie also to inherit my blue eyes, Erica doesn't want Ellie to lose her curls either," said Buck.

"No matter what, Katherine, Ethan, and Eleanora will be breaking tons of hearts like you. I know thousands to millions of people were disappointed when they found out you're happily married during that interview you did in January," said Lucas.

"Just like the hearts we both broke when we were either a probationary firefighter or paramedic," said Buck.

Bobby decided to get to the point, "Have either Hen or Buck tell you about my life in Minnesota before I moved to Los Angeles, Cricket?" asked Bobby.

"I haven't because it's not my story to tell to my friend," said Buck.

"I told Hen I rather get to know my coworkers by talking to them myself than learn through gossip of others," said Lucas.

"Thank goodness you're the opposite of Han. He loves to gossip and couldn't keep a secret to save his life," said Buck.

"What happened in Minnesota?" asked Lucas.

Bobby told Lucas about Marcy, Robbie, and Brooke and their deaths.

When Bobby was finished, Lucas looked at Bobby, "Good for you, and I'll make sure not to serve you any alcohol if Samantha and I host a 118 cookout."

"You don't judge me?" asked Bobby.

"What matters to me is you're now sober, and even if you forgot to turn off the space heater, it's the landlord's fault for not keeping the sprinklers and smoke detectors up to date," said Lucas.

"Now what's up with your blood?" asked Buck.

Bobby then started telling Buck about what the doctor found in his blood.

Buck's eyes widened when he learned that Bobby had blood that could save babies from rhesus disease, "That's impressive you have blood to save babies from rhesus disease, Bobby. When Erica and I were expecting Katherine and Ethan and eventually Eleanora, testing was done for rhesus disease," said Buck. He then saw the sadness in Bobby's eyes, "I take it you're now thinking about Marcy, Robbie, and Brooke?" asked Buck.

Bobby, who had been in therapy for over a month now and had stopped thinking about committing suicide after he had spent an entire day playing games at the Buckley family home following the plane crash and his will to stay alive even deepened when he first held Eleanora looked at Buck nodded, "I couldn't save Robbie and Brooke, and now God is wanting me to save the lives of babies with my blood."

"After I learned about Daniel, I briefly blamed myself for not saving my older brother even though my father told me the doctors warned him and my mother that the bone marrow transplant might not work because Daniel was very sick and my bones weren't fully developed," said Buck. 

"I know I'll be talking to my therapist about this," said Bobby.

"As you should," said Buck.

Bobby then felt a small hand taking his finger as he realized Eleanora took hold of his finger, "I see you're holding my finger, Ellie."

Eleanora cooed at Bobby before smiling.

Buck's eyes widened as he took a picture of Eleanora smiling at Bobby, "As far as I know it, that's Ellie's first real smile that isn't from being milk drunk or being gassy or if she's smirking."

"It looks like Ellie inherited your smile just like Katherine and Ethan did," said Bobby.

"Smirking?" asked Lucas.

"Ellie might not understand everything that's talked about around her right now, but its like she knew her mother was upset when she intruppted a moment between Erica and me so she could be held by me the other night," said Buck.

"Seems like Ellie is going to be mischevious little shits like you, Katherine, and Ethan," laughed Lucas.

"That's what Erica thinks because she now claims she's a mother to four kids instead of three," said Buck.

Bobby looked down at Eleanora in his arms, "Even if I'm not a fan of being poked and prodded, I'm not going to complain about God giving me blood that can allow babies to go home with their parents."

Following the call at the zoo, Buck looked at where Kobe was lying on a table, "Katherine and Ethan are going to be pleased when they find out that the dentist from Riverside who had Ellie the lion killed met his fate for throwing rocks at Kobe and they're probably going to pray that Kobe doesn't get put down."

"You've been to this zoo a lot?" asked Athena.

Buck nodded, "Erica, the kids, and I get an annual family pass every year."

Erica had just left the restroom to find Athena leaving Jasmine's office, "Athena."

"I was just about to pop by your office to say hello when Jasmine told me you didn't have any clients this hour," said Athena.

Erica frowned, "Are you OK?" asked Erica.

"I finally decided to divorce Michael due to May and Harry getting onto me about being honest and needing to stop faking it every day," said Athena.

"And out of all the lawfirms in Los Angeles, you decided to come to my firm?" asked Erica.

"You and Luella did a great job with getting the Creedy family to face consequences, so I decided to trust your lawfirm again when Hen told me a divorce lawyer joined your firm," said Athena.

"Despite the circumstances of you hiring a lawyer again, I'm glad you're bringing this firm business," said Erica.

"Me, too,” said Athena. She smiled a bit, “I saw your husband the other day during the call at the zoo with that dentist getting mauled to death for throwing rocks at Kobe.”

"Even if Buck knows he won't be able to save everyone on the job, Buck wasn't upset about that dentist facing Karma for his actions," said Erica.

"Karma is lovely sometimes," said Athena.

Erica nodded, "It is."

"Even if I have given birth to two children, I'm surprised you're already back at work with Ellie being six weeks old," said Athena.

"Even if this firm has been getting good business since July, there are kids and teenagers who need me to advocate for them as their lawyer," said Erica. 

"And those kids and teenagers need your compassion and ability to stand your ground like you did for May," said Athena.

Erica nodded, "Exactly."

"Are you struggling with being away from Ellie right now?" asked Athena.

"It was hard leaving Ellie on my first day back a few days ago, but I trust my husband to take good care of Ellie on his days off since Buck will bring Ellie to see me. Plus, my father's church has a wonderful daycare with caring employees who'll take care of Ellie," said Erica.

"While your father must be excited about getting all the snuggles he wants with his youngest granddaughter," said Athena.

Erica laughed as she showed Athena a picture of the set-up her father created in his office for a baby, "You know it because Dad set up his office for Ellie so he can spend quality time with Ellie just like he did after Katherine and Ethan were born so I could focus on school while Buck also studied and worked."

"Your parents really care for their grandchildren," said Athena.

Erica nodded, "They understand that my twin brother Isaac and his wife decided to settle down in Colorado, where Jane's parents live with Matt and Ben while they know Alice won't be ready to get married and have children for a couple of years."

"And they really care for your husband, too," said Athena.

"After watching how my in-laws were with Buck, they wanted to step up since Buck was the first friend Isaac and I made when we moved to Hershey and they didn't want Isaac and me to lose Buck out of revenge Margaret could have pulled if my parents tried calling CPS or report them to the school board," said Erica.

"And they got what they deserved for treating your sweet husband the way they did," said Athena.

Erica nodded. "Margaret lost her reputation and served in prison for five years, while even if he's proud of the man Buck became, Phillip knows that not doing what's right following Daniel’s death caused him not to get to know his grandchildren."

"While Buck knows he doesn't have an obiligation to have his parents involved in his or his kids life," said Athena.

Erica looked at her watch, "My next client should be here soon, but I won't tell anyone about you getting divorce paperwork filed."

"I appreciate it, and keep on sending me new pictures of your kids," said Athena.

Buck and Eddie were sitting on a bench watching Katherine, Ethan, and Christopher play on the playground equipment at the accessible playground Buck suggested to Eddie.

Grateful that Christopher quickly became friends with Katherine and Ethan, Eddie looked at Buck, "I need to thank you and Erica again for telling me that I needed to confront Shannon about getting a divorce since it's been two years."

"Does that mean Shannon got the papers?" asked Buck.

Eddie nodded, "She did, and we ended up meeting in Jasmine's office and agreed about our need of getting a divorce when we agreed that our relationship has been unhealthy ever since my parents pressured us to marry, me joining the Army, and Shannon's guilt over thinking she did something wrong which caused Christopher to develop CP. In six months, our divorce should be final."

"How are you feeling?" asked Buck.

"I'm sad because I still love Shannon, but-"

"Remaining married to her after you ran away to fight in a war a few times before Shannon left and didn’t answer your calls for two years isn't healthy," said Buck.

"While I don't want Shannon to hurt Christopher and me again if we chose to be a happy family again and she leaves again," said Eddie.

"Is a custody agreement being set up?" asked Buck.

"Shannon doesn't think she's ready to be a mother again, so I have primary custody of Christopher while Shannon will be paying child support," said Eddie.

"What about visitation?" asked Buck.

"Shannon wants to see Christopher from time to time, so supervised visitation is going to happen through my Tia Pepa, Abuela, and one of my cousins in the area," said Eddie.

"What about therapy?" asked Buck.

"Christopher will soon be starting therapy while I'll start therapy when I attend the Academy," said Eddie.

"Good because its not healthy returning from war and never seeking therapy," said Buck.

"It didn't help that Shannon ran off soon after and I had to work three jobs to support Chris and myself," said Eddie.

"I get that, but I hope you know you're not alone in parenting Chris because Erica and I will always be glad to have Chris over for a play date so you can have time for yourself," said Buck.

Eddie noticed Chris glancing shyly at Katherine, "Even if he's snarky and full of sass around Ethan and us, Chris seems very shy around Katherine."

Buck watched his eldest daughter tuck a piece of hair behind her ear as she laughed at something Christopher said, "Oh boy, Karma's happening because Erica and I were seven when we first met. Katherine and Christopher are seven right now, and Katherine has a twin brother like Erica does. Katherine, Ethan, and Christopher are going to be thick as thieves as friends before Ethan eventually dares Christopher to kiss his twin sister when they're 15.”

Eddie raised his eyebrows at Buck, "You believe Katherine and Christopher are eventually going to date each other, get married, and have children together?" asked Eddie.

"Just wait and see," said Buck.

Chapter Text

Following the call with a homeless man accidentally ending up in a garbage truck after he fell asleep in a dumpster, Buck looked at Hen after he, Lucas, Bobby, and Hen all took showers to get the stink from being inside a garbage truck off of them, "Is everything OK?" asked Buck.

"I really screwed up by cheating on Karen with Eva multiple times after she got released from prison in February. Eva's suing for custody of Denny while Karen left me and took Denny with her," said Hen.

"I know Athena is one of your best friends. Does she know?" asked Buck.

"She knows, and despite what she has going on her life, she already lectured me," said Hen.

"I know about the divorce because May told Erica and me when she came to babysit Katherine and Eleanora while Erica and I took Ethan out on some one on one time and then Erica admitted to me that she ran into Athena at her law firm," said Buck.

"I know Athena was pleased with Erica and her coworker Luella getting May justice, so I'm not surprised Athena decided to seek the divorce attorney at your wife's firm," said Hen.

"Every new client going to Erica's firm helps them gain business and hire new lawyers with a specialty they practice," said Buck.

Hen took some breaths after her freakout of Buck seeming like he was drowning, only to lift himself out of the hatch when she noticed Buck's harness and the line attached missing, "Has anyone told you you have a flair for drama, and you're a little shit?" asked Hen.

Buck grinned, "Every day,"

"Erica's going to be pissed at you for giving up your harness if she hears about it," said Hen.

"None of us thought about sending down two extra harnesses and lines instead of one because we were in a hurry to remove everyone," said Buck.

"True," said Hen.

"At least I'll be getting a probationary firefighter to train as my partner in September," said Buck.

"Which will be helpful for calls like this," said Hen.

A moment later, another harness and line was dropped down to Buck as Hen pulled up the shaft.

When Buck was back on the main floor and wrapped a blanket around himself, he looked at Bobby: "Since Todd couldn't do pull-ups like it, it was either remove my harness and put it on him while underwater or lift him like a flyer."

Bobby raised his eyebrows, "Lift Todd like a flyer?" asked Bobby.

"Erica was a flyer on her school's cheerleading squad, so she'd practice her stunts at home by having Isaac and me lift her and throw her in the air before catching her with our arms," said Buck.

"Even if none of us thought about having you grab two harnesses and two lines were sent down, you did the right thing instead of lifting Todd up to guide him through the hatch," said Bobby.

Buck exited the engine to find Erica waiting with Eleanora as he made his way to his wife and youngest child.

"Your hair and uniform are wet," said Erica.

"Broken elevator that landed in a flooding basement, and I was the one to rappel inside the elevator to get a mother and her son out. They're safe and at the hospital now," said Buck.

"Good," said Erica.

"As much as I love you surprising me with visits, I thought you'd be heading to the airport right now to pick up Isaac, Jane, Matt, Ben, Alice, and Leon?" asked Buck.

"Mom and Dad offered to pick up everyone so you could be there when Ellie gets introduced to them in person when you're off your eight hour shift at 5 PM so you're well-rested for Ellie's baptism tomorrow morning," said Erica.

"So you decided to bring Ellie for a visit before it's time to pick up Katherine and Ethan from school?" asked Buck.

"Yes, and I know our little alligator is excited to see her Daddy," said Erica.

Eleanora grinned and let out some coos when she saw her father.

"I would hug you and grab Ellie, but my clothes are still soaked despite using a towel and blanket to dry off a bit," said Buck.

"Go shower and change into a dry uniform before you get some snuggled with our daughter," said Erica.

"Just get changed into your civvies because your shift is almost over and the rescue you just did earned you to be off your shift sooner," said Bobby.

"Alright," said Buck.

Buck walked away when he heard Eleanora start crying, causing Buck to turn back and look at his youngest, "Daddy wants to hold you, but I don't want to get you wet. I'll be back in about ten minutes, Alligator."

Bobby asked Erica, "Why don't you and Eleanora come up to the loft with me."

Two minutes later, Erica was still rocking a crying Eleanora.

Bobby, who didn't care about it being April, started prepping hot chocolate, "Someone really wants her father right now."

Erica nodded, "Katherine and Eleanora are Daddy's girls just like Alice and I are."

"Knowing your husband, he'll be quick," said Bobby.

"I know," said Erica.

Ten minutes after Buck headed to the showers, he walked up to the loft in civilian clothes and found Erica rocking a still-crying Eleanora.

"She wasn't happy about me walking away to take a shower?" asked Buck.

Erica nodded, "She wasn't, but I knew you'd be quick as you could."

At the stove heating something, Bobby looked at his youngest firefighter, "Even if you weren't shivering, I'm fixing you hot chocolate, Buck."

Buck smiled, "I appreciate it."

A few seconds later, Buck had his youngest daughter in his arms as Eleanora stopped crying. Buck looked at his daughter, who'll be two months old on the 14th and was wearing a pink gingham dress with puffed sleeves and lace on the collar and hems, which he knew Erica once wore as a baby, and his mother-in-law saved for whoever had a baby girl first, "I'm sorry I couldn't hold you right away, Alligator. Daddy didn't want to get your pretty dress wet and stinky from my wet uniform. We'll be showing you off to your aunts, uncles, and cousins from your Mommy's side because everyone was finally able to come meet you today."

"To the point, we'll rarely get to hold Ellie," said Erica.

Eleanora smiled and cooed at her father.

Erica ran some fingers through her husband's damp curls, which her husband left unstyled, "I think Ellie forgives you because you're holding her now."

Buck shifted Eleanora to one arm as he wrapped an arm around Erica's waist, "Good, but at least she wouldn't ask questions about why I was soaking wet like Katherine and Ethan would if they were here with you."

"They would be," said Erica.

Hen and Lucas came up to the loft.

"Doing alright after your near-death experience in a flooding elevator?" asked Lucas.

"I'm doing OK, and I'm grateful I served in the Navy Reserves for four years and love doing pull-ups," said Buck. He looked at his wife, "I gave my my harness when there wasn't enough time for a second one to be brought down before doing a pull-up after the water was over my head."

"The cables were never replaced in the elevator after the previous times the basement flooded from old pipes," said Bobby.

"And the actions of the owners of the building for not replacing the pipes or cables almost caused some deaths today," said Erica.

Bobby nodded, "It'll be in the report."

Buck looked at his wife, "I'm sorry. The hole through the top of the elevator was too small to fit both the 18 year old kid and me while there was only a little room to fit my shoulders through."

"While none of us didn't think about sending Buck in with two additional lines and harnesses so Buck could start getting the son harnessed up as we pulled the mother through," said Bobby.

"I hope this call makes you take finding my husband a field partner seriously because you're a Captain, Cricket and Hen are paramedics, and Buck's on his own if you don't partner another firefighter from the 118 with him," said Erica.

"I've been looking at the current Academy class, and Buck will have a partner in September," said Bobby.

"Good," said Erica.

Hen looked at Buck's curls, "Sometimes I forget about you having naturally curly hair, Buck."

"Even if I wasn't mad about his hair being buzzed for the Navy, I get mad if he cuts his hair short enough that it won't curl," said Erica.

"While babies and toddlers will freak out if their father does anything drastic to their hair or facial hair," said Lucas.

Buck nodded, "Katherine and Ethan freaked out when I buzzed my hair prior to getting deployed."

"Melissa did, too," said Lucas.

"I remember, Cricket," said Buck.

Katherine and Ethan grinned when they saw their grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, and two cousins come into the house, "Aunt Alice, Uncle Leon, Aunt Jan, Uncle Isaac!"

Three-year-old Ben grinned as he ran towards his seven-year-old cousins, "Kitty, Wolfie."

Katherine and Ethan were hugged by their aunts, uncles, and two cousins, who commented about how much they'd grown since Christmas and about the missing teeth they were both showing.

Ethan, who was the one to lose a tooth recently, grinned, "I got $5 from the tooth fairy."

"You're rich. Did you buy a motorcycle or a car with the money from the Tooth Fairy?" asked Isaac.

Ethan giggled, "I couldn't because a car or motorcycle costs thousands of dollars, Uncle Isaac. I got myself an ice cream cone with rocky road flavored ice cream after I put $1 into the collection plate at Grandpa's church when Mom and Dad took me out for some one-on-one time."

"Mom and Dad have been making sure to get one on one time with us after Ellie was born," said Katherine.

"Which is a good thing," said Tina.

Isaac looked at his nephew, "I'll get you a motorcycle for high school graduation gift then."

"A Reverend buying me a motorcycle?" asked Ethan.

"Episcopalian minister or not, I'm still going to be a fun dad and uncle when I'm not wearing the collar on my shirt or vestments," said Isaac.

"And it's important to balance life in and out of church, and when I wasn't performing any duties and your parents, aunt, and uncle weren't in school I had time to take them the park, zoo, movies, out hiking, Hershey Park, and other fun places," said Reverend Ryan.

"Why you take Uncle Buck with, Grandpa?" asked Matthew.

"I lived across the street from your father, and your grandparents would invite me on outings because I was best friends with your father and Aunt Erica," said Buck.

"We'd play sports, ride our bicycles, go to school, and attend church together," said Isaac.

Buck scooped up his three-year-old and 19-month-old nephews Matthew and Benjamin, "You two have grown a lot since Christmas."

Matt gave his uncle a big grin, "Hi, Uncle Buck. I got to miss preschool to come visit."

"Is that so?" asked Buck.

Matthew grinned, "Daddy is all done with Easter church, so he said we get to meet Ellie and watch Grandpa put water on Ellie's head." 

"That's correct," said Buck.

"And at preschool yesterday, firefighters came over to teach us about fire safety and show off their firetruck," said Matthew.

"Really?" asked Buck.

Matthew nodded, "I told them my Uncle Buck is a firefighter in Los Angeles, and they thought it was very cool that I have an uncle who works as a firefighter."

"I hope you knocked their socks, boots, and helmets off by answering whatever questions they asked," said Buck.

"I sure did, Uncle Buck," said Matthew.

Ben then started babbling to his uncle, and Buck grinned and asked questions back.

After Buck set his nephews down, Isaac took a moment to pull his brother-in-law into a big hug, "Where's my twin and new niece?" asked Isaac.

"Mom's feeding Alligator in her nursery right now," said Katherine.

"Which means we'll get to meet Eleanora when Erica's done feeding and burping her," said Jane.

"Hopefully Eleanora finishes up soon because I want to hold her," said Alice.

Buck hugged his little sister-in-law, "You'll be seeing your sister and new niece soon, Alice."

Holding a bag of gifts, Leon nodded, "I hope so."

Ethan noticed the big bag of gifts in his Aunt Alice's boyfriend's hands, "Is that all for Eleanora are some for Katie and me?" asked Ethan.

"Manners, Ethan," said Buck.

"Sorry, Dad," said Ethan.

"There's a gift for you and your twin sister in here," said Alice.

Katherine, who was now hugging her Aunt Alice, noticed a chain around her neck with a simple diamond ring attached, "Does this ring mean I'll get to be a flower girl for you as you promised, Aunt Alice?" asked Katherine.

Buck looked between Alice and Leon, "You two are engaged?" asked Buck.

Alice nodded, "Yes, and I was hoping to hide the engagement ring until tomorrow evening so I wouldn't steal the limelight over Eleanora's baptism."

"It's alright, Alice. You being engaged is something we need to celebrate at the same time because your graduation next month is the next time we'll all be together," said Buck. He hugged Alice and Leon, "Congratulations you two."

Alice looked at her eldest niece, "I already hoped you'd be my flower girl when Leon and I get married this year or next year."

Ethan groaned as he thought about Leon being an only child, "Which means I'll be a ring bearer if Matt isn't chosen."

"I want to be a ring bearer for you Auntie Alice," said Matthew.

"You can be the ring bearer because I thought Ethan would love to take part of walking his Grandma Tina down the aisle," said Alice.

"What did I hear about ring bearer and down the aisle?" asked Erica.

Alice looked at her sister, "Leon and I are getting married, and I want you to be my matron of honor."

Erica grinned as she hugged her little sister without jostling Eleanora, "I'm so happy for you, Alice."

Eleanora cooed from her mother's arms.

"Now I don't know about you, but it's time for Eleanora to meet her Aunts, Uncles, and cousins while Buck and I get everyone's orders for pizza," said Erica.

"I thought Buck would be cooking thanks to him learning multiple tricks and recipes from his fire captain? I love you because you're my sister, but I love my brother-in-law more because his cooking is tied at first place with Mom and Jane," said Isaac.

"Even if I love cooking, we decided it'd be easier to just order takeout for 12 people," said Buck.

"Buck's currently working shifts that requires him to work for up to 12 hours for four days in a row," said Erica.

Buck placed his hands over Katherine's ears, causing the adults to do the same thing with Ethan and Matthew, "Even if I love rappeling down cliffs, buildings, and elevator shafts, I was required me to rappel into a flooding elevator to rescue two people today. There wasn't enough time, lines, harnesses, and space due to how much I bulked up over the years that I had to remove my own harness and give it to the 18-year-old boy  before it looked like I was drowning to Hen before I did a pull-up to get myself through the door."

"I'm not mad at my husband for sacrificing his harnesses because he's doing what he vowed to do when he became a firefighter," said Erica.

"The escape hatch on top of the elevator was too small to fit both both the 18-year-old kid and me since it was a squeeze to get my shoulders through when I was lowered into the elevator," said Buck.
 
"While learning about the flooding problem from ancient pipes and the corroded cables from the water, I'm mad at the owner of the medical building for not shutting down the building and relocating to another building so they could replace the pipes and then clean up the mess," said Erica.

"Or just not run the elevators even if it means there's patients who couldn't use the stairs," said Buck.

"It seems like the two occupants who were in the elevator when it broke could file a lawsuit if they wanted to," said Alice.

Erica nodded, "They could."

"Now after a day I had, can you blame Erica and I for deciding to order takeout?" asked Buck.

"Not at all, and we all have lives that can make it difficult to cook for 12 people at once," said Tina.

"While what matters to me is my three kids, kids I gained through marriage or engagements, and all of my grandchildren are together again," said Reverend Ryan.

After everyone ate dinner, Matthew and Benjamin were settled in the guest bedroom bed, Eleanora was settled in her bassinet, Katherine and Ethan were also in bed, and all eight adults were in the living room.

"How has everything been going ever since your sister broke into this house and destroyed your property?" asked Isaac.

"We were able to replace everything even if it's not going to be until next month when we bring Nemo and Dory home on the second," said Buck.

"It sounds like you have great coworkers if they quickly replaced what your sister destroyed and helped you guys get new pet cats and snakes," said Leon.

"The men and women you end up living with inside a firehouse for up to 48 hours become a family to you. We'll band together if one of us gets hurt, there's a new firehouse baby, something happens to our home, or there's a death," said Buck.

"And what are you doing with the money you're sister is supposed to give you to replace everything?" asked Jane.

"The judge said we could divide it up and put it into the college accounts we already have set up for Katherine, Ethan, and Eleanora when we explained that Buck's coworkers passed the hat around and replaced everything Maddie destroyed," said Erica.

Alice shook her head, "Even if I was eight when Maddie left for Boston, I still can't believe she's a different personality from the Maddie I remembered."

"It doesn't help that my egg and sperm donor never allowed her to grieve for Daniel properly and be forced to raise me until she started college and then ran off to Boston with Doug, who turned out to be both physically and emotionally abusive," said Buck.

"I never liked him when Maddie first brought him home," said Isaac.

"He gave me the creeps when Maddie first brought him to Hershey, during the wedding, and the few visits they made to Hershey so Maddie could visit Buck following their move to Boston. I was grateful when Buck decided he didn't want his sister in his life when she wasn't supportive of our engagement and pending parenthood and agreed to follow my wish of moving out here rather than remain in Pennsylvania or a different state in the Northeast," said Erica.

"With finding out he was on that plane that crashed in the ocean near the end of January, did you feel like he was going to do something to you if he survived the crash and confronted you or Buck about where Maddie was?" asked Isaac.

Erica nodded, "I think so, and I'm grateful he didn't survive so he wouldn't touch the twins or me." 

"At least he earned himself a special place in Hell," said Isaac.

Following the end of the service, with various pictures of the Buckley and Evans family being taken with Eleanora in every picture and brunch being served, Buck rushed into 118 in the suit he had put on for the service and the garment bag he had to keep his suit safe. He found Bobby in the locker room getting dressed.

"That's a nice suit," said Bobby.

"Erica insisted I get fitted for a brand new suit while Eleanora was on the way," said Buck.

"Your youngest's baptism is a good reason for getting a new suit," said Bobby.

Buck nodded, "I agree because before Erica told me that Eleanora was on the way, I was already thinking about getting fitted for a new suit."

"The tailor must have grumbled about fitting you for pants just like LAFD does about your uniforms and turnout gear," said Bobby.

Buck laughed, "He sure did."

A minute later, Buck worked on getting changed as he looked at Bobby, "Thank you for allowing me to come in late this morning so I could attend Eleanora's baptism and share a meal with my wife, kids, and in-laws before coming into work."

"It's not a problem because it's an obligation that's difficult to schedule with family members scattered around," said Bobby.

"It helps that Alice and her fiance Leon will be moving here in July," said Buck.

"So you'll have to take time off for a wedding in the future?" asked Bobby.

Buck nodded, "Erica and I are going to be one of the bridesmaids and groomsmen, Katherine is going to be a flower girl, and Ethan's going to walk my mother-in-law down the aisle."

"Just let me know when the wedding will be so I can get you off the roster," said Bobby.

"I appreciate it," said Buck.

After changing into his uniform, he headed upstairs to show off the pictures he took on his phone or were already sent to his phone, "The gown Eleanora's wearing is the same gown Erica, Alice, and Katherine wore when they were babies for their baptisms."

"Eleanora looks like an Angel, Buck," said Hen.

Buck smiled, "She was calm throughout the ceremony and grinned at her grandfather as he baptized her."

"Did Katherine and Ethan go to school?" asked Hen.

"Erica decided to keep them out for the day because their aunts, uncles, and cousins return to Montana and Colorado tomorrow morning," said Buck.

After the two elderly brothers were taken out of the house, Bobby looked at Buck, who was rubbing his head a bit, "You're riding to the hospital with them to get checked out, and then you should take the rest of the shift off."

"Alright," said Buck.

After Buck helped walk the gurney into the hospital, he looked at Hen and Lucas, "You two can head back to the 118. I have my phone on me and I'll contact Erica or one of my in-laws to get me back to the station to change and grab my belongings I brought in to get me through the shift."

"Alright," said Lucas.

Buck quickly checked in to be seen before he checked the time and contacted his wife.

Buck was waiting to be taken to an exam room when the doors opened, and Erica and Alice rushed towards him.

"What happened?" asked Erica.

"You don't smell like smoke, so it wasn't a fire," said Alice.

"Two brothers who are hoarders with one of them being a shut-in due to being blind had their house filled with booby traps, records, and newspaper articles beginning at the 1960s. I was trying to open an upstairs window when a bowling ball swung at my face and helmet, and I managed to lose my grip on the ladder and hang onto the window sill before getting myself back on the ladder," said Buck.

"And Bobby sent you to be checked out to ensure the bowling ball didn't cause serious damage," said Erica.

Buck nodded, "Yes."

Alice, who'll soon be earning her bachelor's degree in social work and moving to Los Angeles with Leon, who got a job at a nearby equine therapy ranch, looked at her brother-in-law. After they get married in August, she'll be working on her Master's degree in a year, "Will the police be arresting the brothers for their traps, or will LAFD getting social services involved due to the state of the house and conditions of the two elderly men?" asked Alice.

"I'm not going to be pressing charges for a bowling ball hitting my head, but as a mandated reporter, I'm going to contact social services in hope of them getting help for their living situation before they leave the hospital," said Buck.

"Social services should be involved because you wouldn't want the next call involving one or both of the brothers being found dead in their house," said Alice.

"No matter what, I'm supposed to leave calls behind at the glass doors," said Buck.

"Unless you end up having to be seen yourself," said Erica.

Buck, Tina, and Eleanora were together for breakfast near the Santa Monica Pier.

"I just love the days we're both free to have a mother-in-law/son-in-law breakfast together, Buck," said Tina.

Buck smiled at his mother-in-law, "You've been a better mother to me instead of my egg donor was."

"I know, and I've heard about you gravitating towards a certain police sergeant as an additional mother figure, too," said Tina.

"You don't mind that?" asked Buck.

Tina shook her head, "You deserve parental figures and siblings who treat you much better than Margaret, Phillip, and even Maddie."

"No matter what, I appreciate you being there for me for the past 19 years. Giving me hugs, words of encouragements, offering me rides to and from school or church, attending sporting events I participated in, allowing me to sleepover a lot, and taking all of those pictures of me as a kid and teenager when my parents never brought out the camera," said Buck.

"And I appreciate you for being a bonus kid who was a good friend to Isaac, a bonus older brother to Alice, loving my oldest daughter, and giving me three beautiful grandchildren," said Tina.

Chapter Text

Buck watched Katherine focus on her beam routine, only to watch his daughter miss the landing during a flip and cry out in pain.

"Oww. Oww. Oww," cried out Katherine as she gripped her arm.

Buck quickly got off the bleachers and ran to his daughter before kneeling on the floor, "What hurts, Katherine?" asked Buck.

"My left arm hurts really bad, Daddy," cried Katherine.

"I'll be taking you to a doctor, Katie," said Buck.

"Do you want to carry your daughter to your vehicle, Mr. Buckley?" asked the coach.

Buck looked at his daughter, "Aside from your arm, does anywhere else hurt? Can you wiggle your toes and move your legs?" asked Buck.

Katherine wiggled her bare feet to show that her toes could move before moving her legs, "I don't think I hurt my legs, but my back is a bit sore while I did hit my head on the ground."

"Then I'll be calling 9-1-1 to make sure you don't have a-," said Buck.

"Spinal injury," said Katherine softly.

Buck nodded, "Exactly, so be prepared to be wearing a c-collar and be lifted up with the help of a backboard."

"OK, Daddy," said Katherine.

A moment later, 9-1-1 was contacted by Buck, who mentioned that he was an off-duty firefighter and that his seven-year-old daughter missed the beam while practicing her beam routine at the gymnastics gym. He reported that Katherine's back was sore; she hit her head, and her left arm was already swelling from a possible break that showed no bone.

Later on, at the hospital, Buck was sitting by the hospital bed as he and Katherine waited for the results from the imaging tests to look at Katherine's arm, back, and head.

Katherine, who was already feeling a bit better thanks to the pain medication she was being given through IV, looked at her father, "If my arm is broken, I hope it's healed by mid-June."

Buck thought about him and Erica agreeing to send Katherine and Ethan to summer camp for one week in June. The twins would get to hike, kayak, swim, climb a rock wall, and do various other activities, "Since you're excited about going to sleepaway summer camp for the first time?" asked Buck.

Katherine nodded, "Yes."

"I don't know what I'll be doing on my days off," said Buck.

"You'll get to spend time with Ellie while Mom's at work like you already do when Ethan and I are at school," said Katherine.

"True," said Buck.

Buck's phone vibrated to see a text message from Erica.

MOM IS ALREADY AT THE HOUSE TO STAY WITH ETHAN AND ELLIE. DAD WILL DROP ME OFF AT THE GYM SO I CAN PICK UP YOUR JEEP AND DRIVE TO THE HOSPITAL TO BRING YOU AND KATHERINE HOME.

"Was that Mom?" asked Katherine.

Buck nodded, "Letting me know that your grandparents showed up so your mother doesn't have to spend a lot of money on an Uber to pick up my Jeep or the three of us ride in an Uber to pick up the Jeep from the gym."

"I'm surprised Mom didn't rush here," said Katherine.

"She knows you're consious and talking, and trusts me with the medical stuff," said Buck.

"Due to you being an advanced EMT who has delivered babies, insert IVs, treat cuts and scrapes, and splint broken bones," said Katherine.

Buck nodded, "Yep."

The doctor then entered the room where Buck and Katherine found out that Katherine does have a greenstick fracture in both of her radius and ulna while her back is bruised, and she doesn't have a concussion or skull fracture.

"Can I get a pink cast right away?" asked Katherine.

"We're just going to do a splint until the swelling goes down, and then your parents will take you to a pediatric orthopesist to get an actual cast," said the doctor.

"OK," said Katherine.

After Katherine's arm got splinted up and settled into a sling, Erica arrived to bring them home.

"Mommy," said Katherine.

"How are you feeling, Baby?" asked Erica.

"I'm not a baby anymore, but the paramedics were really nice to me and asked me about school and gymnastics on the way here," said Katherine.

"Not a different shift from the 118 or the 132, but they knew who I am due to me mentioning I'm an off-duty firefighter from the 118," said Buck.

"I figured," said Erica.

After getting home from the emergency room, Ethan gently hugged his twin sister, "Does your arm hurt?" asked Ethan.

"It hurts, but I was given pain medication through an IV," said Katherine.

"Did Dad put in your IV?" asked Ethan.

"I didn't," said Buck.

"Why?" asked Ethan.

"Even if your father personally delivered your baby sister yourself because he realized that I might deliver before paramedics arrived and was one of the people in the room who was trained to deliver babies, firefighters, EMTs, and paramedics can't treat their own family members," said Erica.

Buck nodded, "Like your mother said."

Tina gently hugged her granddaughter, "How are you feeling, sweetheart?" asked Tina.

"I'm sore, but Mom and Dad said I get to sleep with them tonight and miss a few days of school until my arm gets put into a pink cast," said Katherine.

"Can I miss school too?" asked Ethan.

"No," said Erica. She looked at Katherine, "Plus, I think we can't wait any longer to take you to the eye doctor."

"Why?" asked Katherine.

"We've noticed you squinting while reading and your teacher said the same thing, too," said Erica.

"I need glasses?" asked Katherine.

Erica nodded, "Most likely, and you'll be able to see words, numbers, and equipment at the gymnastics gym better."

Katherine stormed off to her bedroom.

"She's definitley your daughter if she has a flair for drama like you," said Erica.

Tina laughed, "You had your moments, too, Erica."

Buck, who had taken time off to be with Katherine until she returned to school, had just left the orthopedist's office with Katherine.

"What do you want to do now?" asked Buck.

"Can we please go to the 118 so I can have everyone sign my cast?" asked Katherine.

Buck, honored to sign his eldest daughter's cast first, smiled, "We can do that."

Buck walked into the 118 while holding Katherine's good hand.

Katherine grinned when she saw Lucas, "Uncle Cricket!"

Lucas grinned, "There's my favorite Kitty Kat with a pink cast."

Katherine hugged Lucas, "I can't wait for you, Honeybee, and Sam to sign my cast."

"While Honeybee is looking forward to spending the night next week Friday," said Lucas.

Bobby walked over, "I see your pink new accessory."

"Pink is my favorite color, so I had to pick a pink cast. The doctor even painted glitter on my cast to make it all sparkly," said Katherine.

Hen smiled as she walked over, "It's a beautiful cast."

Katherine pouted, "It has to stay on for six weeks, and I'm not allowed to do gymnastics, swim, surf, go to a rock climing or ninja gyms I love, ride my bike, roller blade, or play on a playground."

"These six weeks will go fast," said Bobby.

"As someone who once broke his arm when falling out of a tree, we'll still have a lot of fun during the next six weeks, Kat. We'll go on frequent trips to the zoo, aquarium, museums, library, and the mall when we're not playing games, reading, drawing, or painting together," said Buck. He also gave Bobby a wink, "Knowing Bobby, he'll come over to bake with you on Saturdays and Sundays when we're not working."

"You can help scoop ingredients with one hand," said Bobby.

"Pinky promise?" asked Katherine.

Buck held out his pinky, "Pinky promise."

"No matter what, you'll still have fun with a cast on," said Bobby.

"Can you sign my cast?" asked Katherine.

A moment later, Bobby, Lucas, Hen, and a few other 118 members were signing Katherine's cast while leaving room for Erica, Ethan, Reverend Ryan, Tina, Melissa, and other friends of Katherine's to sign the cast.

Buck supervised Ethan with his spelling homework while Erica and Katherine were at Katherine's vision exam. "Spell the word write as you would with a pen or pencil," said Buck.

Ethan tilted his head as he looked at his father, "W-R-I-T-E."

Buck grinned, "That's correct."

"Another word please," said Ethan.

"People," said Buck.

Ethan made eye contact with his father, "P-E-O-P-L-E."

Buck grinned, "That's my boy."

"I'm your only boy, Dad," said Ethan.

Buck then quizzed Ethan on more spelling words while he also had his son write the words down.

"Do you think I'll get all the words right, Dad?" asked Ethan.

"You're a smart boy," said Buck.

"Did your mom and dad sit with you with your homework when you were a kid?" asked Ethan.

"Even if my mother taught high school math and my father taught high school science, they didn't sit with me as I did my homework," said Buck.

Ethan thought about his parents meeting the summer before starting the second grade, "Did anyone before Mom, Uncle Isaac, Aunt Alice, Grandma Tina, and Grandpa Ryan enter your life before you started second grade?" asked Ethan.

"My sister Maddie did as she did her own homework," said Buck.

"So she used to be a nice person before she broke into our house and killed Pickles, Pumpkin, and smash some of our belongings?" asked Ethan.

"Yes," said Buck.

"What made her become a bitch to you?" asked Ethan.

Buck gave Ethan a stern look, "You know you're not supposed to use that language."

Ethan sighed, "I know. I'll put an extra dollar in the collection plate at church."

"His facial expressions remind me from when we were Ethan's age," said Erica.

Buck turned around to find Erica with an unhappy Katherine, who now had pink and purple glasses on the bridge of her nose, "I guess the school nurse, teachers, and our observations of Katherine needing glasses were correct."

Erica nodded, "Yes, and thankfully there was one hour service."

Buck looked at his eldest daughter, "You look beautiful with your glasses."

"I'm not happy about getting glasses because they'll affect me doing gymnastics when the arm doctor lets me return to gymnastics," said Katherine before storming off to her bedroom.

"I know puberty will be happening in a couple of years, but at least she didn't slam the door," said Erica.

"I think she can still do gymnastics with a strap on the back to keep them on. Hen doesn't allow wearing glasses stop her from being a firefighter/paramedic because she'll put a strap on to ensure they don't fall off when she rappels down an elevator shaft or cliff with me," said Buck.

"While she can switch to contacts in a couple of years, too," said Erica.

Buck thought about the date that would involve him and Erica dressing up, "I know we talked about the two of us going on a date night on Friday, but-"

"Maybe you take Katherine in my place?" asked Erica.

Buck nodded, "To cheer her up."

"Good idea, and Mom and Dad can just watch Ellie," said Erica.

"So you and I can have our own date, Mom?" asked Ethan.

Erica nodded, "That's going to be my plan, buddy."

The next afternoon, Katherine's eyes widened when Christopher came into the house with Carla, "What are you doing here, Chris?" asked Katherine.

"I heard you broke your arm and got glasses," said Christopher.

"I don't like wearing glasses," said Katherine.

Christopher looked at Katherine's pink and purple glasses. "Your glasses are pretty. They bring out the blue in your eyes."

"Really?" asked Katherine.

Carla nodded, "Glasses or not, you'll always be a beautiful girl, sweetie."

"I got something for you," said Christopher as he passed Katherine the card he made.

Katherine looked at the front of the card and read out loud, "Get well soon, Katherine."

"Open it," said Christopher.

Katherine opened the card, and something fell out. She bent down to pick up what fell and frowned at the pink thing, "What's this?" asked Katherine.

"It's for your glasses," said Christopher.

"What?" asked Katherine.

"It's a strap to help keep your glasses in place like I wear," said Christopher.

"When you get your cast off and build strength back up in your arm, you can do gymnastics with your glasses on before your mother and father decide you're ready for contact lenses," said Carla.

"I used some of the money Dad gives me every week to buy you it because I didn't want you to be sad about not doing flips in glasses," said Christopher.

Katherine teared up as she hugged Christopher and kissed his cheek, "Thank you, Chris."

Christopher blushed, "You're welcome, Kat."

Buck gently broke Katherine and Christopher apart, "I know you're thanking Christopher for the strap for your glasses, but you're too young to be kissing boys who aren't your grandfather, brother, uncle, or me."

Buck, dressed in the suit he wore for Eleanora's baptism, was waiting in his suit with a bouquet of Katherine's favorite flowers of zinnias in various colors, "Hurry up, Katie. We'll miss our reservation if you're not in the living room in two minutes."

"Coming, Dad," said Katherine.

Thirty seconds later, Buck smiled when he noticed his eldest daughter wearing a brand new light blue smock dress with pink flowers and puffed sleeves after Erica took Katherine shopping for five new dresses to cheer her up. Katherine was also wearing tights and her pink Converse sneakers while her mid-back length long wavy blonde hair was pulled into two upside down Dutch braids with space buns on the top and light blue ribbons. Buck handed his eldest daughter her favorite flowers, "You look beautiful, Princess Katherine."

Katherine smiled sweetly at her father as she accepted the flowers, "Thank you for the flowers. You look handsome, Daddy."

Erica, who had spent time prepping her eldest daughter, smiled, "Even if I'm taking Ethan out on a date myself, you're making Ellie and me jealous, Buck."

"I'll take you out on a date night soon," said Buck.

"I know," said Erica. She looked at her eldest daughter, "I'll put the flowers in a vase for you."

"Thank you, Mom," said Katherine.

Ethan, who had picked out a bouquet of sunflowers for his mother and was wearing jeans and a polo shirt, handed his mother the sunflowers, "Here you go, Mom."

Erica, wearing jeans and a short-sleeved blouse due to Ethan stating he wanted to go out for pizza and go bowling, smiled at her son, "These are lovely, Ethan."

A minute later, Katherine was buckled into her booster seat in the backseat of her father's Jeep with a pillow underneath Katherine's casted arm before Buck drove his daughter and himself to the restaurant he had gotten a reservation at.

Athena and Bobby heard a voice.

"This table is perfect, sir," said Katherine.

Bobby and Athena realized Buck had come to the restaurant with Katherine as they watched a suit-clad 26-year-old father of three kids pull out a chair for Katherine, who was wearing a beautiful light blue smocked dress with puffed sleeves and flowers on it while her pink cast already gotten various signatures to go with their own. Buck was dressed in a suit and wore a light blue tie that matched his daughter's dress.

Katherine beamed at her father with a big Buckley grin as Buck pushed her chair in, "Thank you, Dad." 

"You're welcome, Kitty Kat," said Buck as he sat across from his daughter.

"I know Buck talked about taking Erica out for a date night, but I guess Katherine breaking her arm and needing glasses made Buck to take his eldest daughter out on a father/daughter date instead," said Athena.

Bobby nodded, "Buck mentioned he was going to take Katherine out on a date tonight, but he didn't mention this was the restraunt he'd be taking Katherine to."

"No matter what, it's sweet to see Buck taking one of his daughters out on a date. It's a great way to show Katherine how she should be treated when she begins to date in the next eight years," said Athena.

"Not if Buck manages not to allow Katherine to date until she's 30," said Bobby. He watched how Buck made sure Katherine's arm was cushioned with some cloth napkins the waiter brought over for cushioning, "I thought Buck would have been very freaked out over Katherine breaking her arm, but I heard from the captain of the firehouse that showed up for the call state that Buck was very calm."

"He knows it's not uncommon for kids and adults to break their bones, and his training as a firefighter would keep him calm," said Athena.

"Buck did state he had his own fair share of broken bones growing up, and this wasn't Katherine's first broken bone," said Bobby.

"When learning about his parents, I'm grateful he's making sure not to be like his parents were to him," said Athena.

"While he has amazing in-laws who have been there for him and supported him," said Bobby.

Meanwhile, at Buck's and Katherine's table, Katherine looked around the restaurant to see people on dates smiling fondly at her and her father before she noticed two familiar people, "Look, Dad. It's Bobby and Athena. They must be out on a date like us."

Buck looked over to where Katherine was glancing, and he saw Bobby and Athena looking at him and Katherine before waving.

"Did you know they started dating?" asked Katherine.

"I did not," said Buck.

"Are you going to tell Mom and the rest of the 118?" asked Katherine.

"I'm not because Bobby and Athena deserve to be the ones to tell others if they're a couple of not, so no telling your mother, brother, or any of the 118 and their family members," said Buck.

"I won't," said Katherine.

Buck noticed the mischievous glint in his eldest daughter's blue eyes that Erica said matched his own glint of mischief, "What are you planning, Kat?" asked Buck.

Katherine grinned, "If I'm going to be asked not to say anything to anyone, I'm going to want a lot of Cap's mac n cheese with , and trips to the nail salon as payment to keep a secret."

Buck laughed, "You're really a little turd like me."

Katherine held up her glass of Sprite, which she had been given as a treat. "Cheers to that."

Buck laughed as he clinked his glass of soda.

Bobby's and Athena's phones both chimed with text messages to see a text from Buck.

KATHERINE AND I WON'T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT SEEING YOU TWO OUT ON A DATE, BUT KATHERINE INSISTS ON BEING PAID WITH MAC N CHEESE AND GETTING HER NAILS DONE BY THE TWO OF YOU TO KEEP YOUR DATE SECRET FROM HER MOTHER, TWIN BROTHER, THE 118, AND THEIR FAMILY MEMBERS.

I DON'T NEED ANYTHING TO KEEP YOUR DATE A SECRET.

Athena laughed and looked towards Katherine, who was smiling at her innocently while Buck had a shit-eating grin on his face, "Katherine Buckley is quite the firecracker and little shit like her father."

Later, on June 28th, 2018, Buck and Erica watched their seven-year-old twins army crawl around on the living room floor with a four-month-old Eleanora scooting on the floor on her stomach while laughing.

"Happy 19th anniversary of it being the day we met," said Erica.

Buck kissed his wife, "It's been quite the 19 years, but you started me on the journey of giving me the life, family, and type of home I wanted."

"Quoting Matsuo Bashō, every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home," recited Erica.