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Buck stood in the quiet of Tommy’s hospital room, the weight of everything they’d been through—both recently and in the past—heavy on his shoulders. The chaos of the fire had settled, but now, with Tommy awake and watching him, the air between them buzzed with unspoken tension. Buck took a deep breath, unsure of how to start. His heart raced, not from adrenaline this time, but from something deeper. He glanced at Tommy, still looking a little worse for wear, but alive.
That’s what mattered. He was alive.
“I’ve been thinking,” Buck started, his voice low as he crossed his arms over his chest. “About us. About… everything.”
Tommy’s gaze softened as he studied Buck, waiting for him to continue. There was something unreadable in his eyes, something cautious, like he was bracing himself for whatever Buck was about to say.
Buck took another breath, stepping closer to the bed. “You’ve probably worried about Eddie. Hell, everyone knows about me and Eddie. We’re like two peas in a pod, always working together, always… well, we’re close.” He stopped, feeling a strange pressure in his chest as he searched for the right words.
Tommy’s lips pressed into a thin line, his expression neutral, though Buck could tell he was trying not to react. Buck wasn’t sure how much Tommy had pieced together, or what assumptions he had made, but he needed to clear the air.
Part of Tommy feared this was the breakup, where Buck would tell him that he was leaving him for Eddie.
“And I know what people think,” Buck continued. “That Eddie and I have this… thing. This connection. And they’re not wrong—we do have a connection. He’s my best friend. He’s been there through some of the hardest moments of my life, and I’ll always care about him. But Tommy… it’s different with you.”
Tommy’s brow furrowed, uncertainty flickering in his eyes. “Different how?”
"Eddie is my best friend, and I love Chris like a son, but Eddie isn't on the same level of emotional maturity as you are, you've never lied to me or belittled me while still standing your ground and calling me out on my bad behavior" He took a step closer to Tommy, his eyes locked on him, the truth finally coming to the surface. “You challenge me. You keep me on my toes in ways that no one else can. From the moment you walked into my life you’ve been this whirlwind of passion and... everything I didn’t know I needed; you showed me who I really was.”
Tommy lay in the hospital bed, silent for a moment as Buck shuffled awkwardly on his feet as he continued. “I’ve spent so much of my life trying to fit into other people’s expectations, trying to be the person they thought I should be. With Eddie, I thought that’s what I needed—to be the version of he needed me to be. But with you… I get to be me. All of me. The messy, reckless, sometimes too intense version. You see all of that, and you don’t turn away.”
Tommy blinked, something warm and almost hesitant in his expression. “So, what are you saying Evan?”
Buck took a deep breath, stepping even closer to Tommy’s hospital bed, his heart pounding in his chest. His hands fidgeted at his sides as he struggled to put everything into words. The room felt too quiet, the beeping of the heart monitor the only thing anchoring him in the moment.
“I’m saying,” Buck began, his voice soft but steady, “that I don’t want to spend another minute pretending that what we have isn’t real. That what I feel for you isn’t… everything.”
Tommy’s eyes widened, his breath catching as Buck knelt down by the side of the bed. For a moment, the whole world seemed to hold its breath. Buck swallowed hard, his nerves getting the better of him, but he kept going, his voice growing more certain with each word.
when I’m with you, Tommy… you make me feel alive. You challenge me in ways no one else ever has. You make me want to be more, to be better. Not because you ask me to, but because you see me—the real me, flaws and all—and you stay.”
Tommy blinked, speechless, as Buck reached into his pocket, pulling out a small box that he had been carrying with him ever since the fire. He had intended to wait, to find the perfect moment, but now—sitting here in this hospital room, after everything they had survived—he realized that this was the perfect moment.
He opened the box, revealing a simple but elegant ring inside. “Tommy,” Buck said, his voice steady but filled with emotion, “I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Not because it’s easy, or because it’s safe, but because it’s real. Because I love you. And I know I’ll always choose you—every single day, no matter what.”
Tommy’s eyes filled with emotion, his breath shallow as he stared at the ring, then back up at Buck. He could hardly believe what was happening, the weight of Buck’s words crashing over him like a wave. For a moment, he couldn’t speak, couldn’t even think clearly. But then, the corners of his mouth twitched into a soft, overwhelmed smile.
“Are you serious right now?” Tommy finally asked, his voice shaky but laced with a touch of disbelief, almost as if he were afraid this was a dream.
Buck smiled, his heart swelling with every second. “Yeah,” he whispered, “I’m serious. I want you, Tommy. Forever.”
Tommy stared at him, the emotions swirling in his chest too powerful to put into words. He had never imagined this—never thought that someone like Buck would look at him, with all his flaws and all the chaos that came with his life, and want this. But here he was, kneeling beside his hospital bed with a ring in his hand and a love in his heart so fierce, it scared him.
Tommy swallowed, blinking back the tears that had started to well in his eyes. ““Of course, I feel the same way.”
A wide grin spread across Buck’s face as he held up the ring. “So… is that a yes?”
Tommy let out a breathless laugh, his heart full. “Yes. It’s a hell yes.”
Without another word, Buck slipped the ring onto Tommy’s finger, his hands shaking slightly from the intensity of the moment. He stood up, pulling Tommy into a gentle embrace, careful not to hurt him.
“I love you, Tommy,” Buck whispered, his lips brushing against Tommy’s hair.
Tommy smiled, leaning into him, feeling the weight of the ring on his finger—a reminder of the new beginning they were about to embark on together. “I love you too, Evan. Always.”