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He thought it was a joke at first, when Tommy said to take Eddie. It was a gift for their six month anniversary, right? He was also confused at the fact that his boyfriend got him amazing seats for a sport that he definitely doesn’t like; but someone very close to him does.
“I’m your first, not your last,” said Tommy. Buck was at a loss for words. Things were going well, and after Josh’s speech about Glee and trusting him, he thought he knew what to do next; ask Tommy to move in with him. He was far from right. Tommy left, and Buck sat at his island with his sadness for a bit, until the ding of a text notification intruded his thought spiral. Huh. It was a text from Tommy. This was probably the last person he expected to hear from, especially so soon after breaking his heart. It read: “Seriously, take Eddie to the game, and have a good time.” Oh. He has to call Maddie.
“Hey! What’s up?”
“Tommy broke up with me.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, if anything, I’m a little confused?”
“What do you mean?”
“Remember how I told you he got us tickets to a Lakers game?”
“You hate basketball, how did he not know that?”
“Exactly. But what I didn’t tell you was that when we were at dinner, he jokingly said I should take Eddie to the game instead.”
“…”
“And I just got a text from him saying that I really should take Eddie, and to have a good time.”
“…”
“Are you still there? Why aren’t you saying anything?!”
“God you’re an idiot, and Tommy, despite this, is still an asshole. I have to go, it’s time to put Jee to bed. Let me know if you need anything. Love you Buck.”
“Uh, thanks, I guess. Love you too.”
That call really did not help his hurt, so onto the next one. Buck didn’t really give much thought as to how he was going to get into all of this on his drive over; the break up, the tickets, and asking his best friend on a date. One stop at the liquor store later, he finds himself at Eddie’s front door. He just needs some serious R&R with his best friend and maybe they can talk about the brake up later. What he wasn’t expecting to find was his best friend pantsless, and sans mustache. (It will be missed.) He hands Eddie a beer and walks past him, immediately getting comfortable on the couch. Eddie sits next to him, they clink their bottles, and share the six-pack.
They both broke the silence at the same time.
“You shaved.” “What’s going on, Buck?”
“You first.”
“I had an interesting chat with a Fr. Brian.”
“Tommy broke up with me.”
After another gulp of his beer, Buck got into what happened, and Eddie just took it all in. His best friend was hurting, but he couldn’t help but notice how despite the redness and singular tear that fell, Buck had the most beautiful blue eyes. Also, despite being friends with Tommy, he could tell he wasn’t up to his standards for dating his best friend. Now that he thought about it, none of Buck’s past partners were up to his standard. His best friend was incredible, and deserved someone equally as such.
Finally, Buck asked about Father Brian. Eddie explained that he went to confession, after Bobby told him it might help, despite the Catholic guilt. He didn’t think so, and left the confessional more confused than when he entered. It just so happened that Fr. Brian was behind him in line at the local cafe, and they chatted over coffee and water. (Not Juice) Eddie didn’t go into all the details about what they talked about, but explained that he needed to seek out joy. He also told Buck that the mustache was a beard, and he was hiding behind it, hence shaving it off.
This was the moment to ask, so Buck put on a brave face. “Are you up for some more joy in the near future?” he asked. “I’ll take any joy I can get right now, Buck. What did you have in mind?” “Well I do have some pretty awesome seats for the upcoming Lakers game, would you like to come with me?” Buck replied. Eddie was at a loss for words; “You…don’t like basketball. Why do you have these tickets?” “The details don’t matter right now, but lets just say I would definitely enjoy the game more if you came with. Plus you could answer all of my questions about basketball in real time!” Buck smiled, and Eddie let out a chuckle. “Sure, Buck, I’d love to.”
Tommy might have been Buck’s first, but Eddie would be his last, he thought to himself. And who’s to say those can’t be the same for Eddie?