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It’s a quarter after one when Buck parks in front of Eddie’s house, and he can’t help but laugh to himself as long forgotten song lyrics flash through his mind. Shaking his head, he climbs out of the truck and shuts the door as quietly as he can before heading toward the house. He’s already thumbing his copy of Eddie’s key on his ring, content to steal a drink and crash on the couch, when he notices there’s a light still on inside.
Changing tactics, he tucks his keys in his pocket and knocks gently on the door. He figures if Eddie doesn’t answer, he must have just left a light on and Buck can go back to the creep and sleep plan.
“Buck?” Eddie asks a moment later, opening the door with a concerned look on his face.
Buck gives him a sheepish grin and tucks his hands into his pockets as he sways slightly on his feet.
“Hey.”
Eddie cocks his head, but steps back to let Buck in, closing and locking the door behind him.
“You should be sleeping,” Eddie says wryly.
“Pot, kettle, black,” Buck huffs, breathing out as his body relaxes in increments the further into the house he gets. “We have the same shift to get to in like… six hours.”
“Well, someone knocked on my door when I was trying to sleep,” Eddie says, as if Buck can’t smell the fresh coffee coming from the kitchen counter.
“Liar.”
Eddie rolls his eyes, ducking his head to hide the amused grin, and heads toward the kitchen to pour Buck a cup.
“So, what was the game plan here?” Eddie asks, leaning against the counter and staring Buck down where he sits at the table. He takes a long sip of his coffee before putting it on the counter and waiting.
“Didn’t really think that far,” Buck admits, fiddling with the warm mug between his hands. “These damn things are driving me crazy,” he says, gesturing to the lessened but still angry looking boils across his face.
“They hurt that much?” Eddie asks, frowning. “Maybe we should take you back to the doctor.”
“Not really,” Buck says, shaking his head. “I mean, yeah, it hurts, but it’s the itching that’s keeping me up.”
Eddie tilts his head, eyes narrowing as he assesses Buck’s skin. “Is your throat closing up at all?”
Buck shakes his head.
“Good,” Eddie says, breathing out with relief. “And you aren’t taking naproxen, right?”
“Rotating ibuprofen and tylenol,” Buck sighs, gripping the mug so that he doesn’t claw at his face.
“Might want to avoid the ibuprofen,” Eddie advises. “You could be sensitive to all NSAIDs, even if you aren’t super allergic.”
“Fucking NSAIDs,” Buck groans. “How come I couldn’t get a cool allergy?”
“Can’t answer that for you, bud,” Eddie laughs. “Have you tried Benadryl? You can’t be itchy if you’re unconscious.”
Buck wrinkles his nose.
“I hate how groggy it makes me feel the next day.”
“Princess,” Eddie teases. “The topical cream could help, though.”
Buck perks up, interested.
“There’s a cream?”
“Close your eyes and hold still,” Eddie instructs a few minutes later.
Buck does as he’s told, letting Eddie tilt his head up into the light so that he can apply the topical itch cream. He flinches when he feels Eddie’s bare fingers gripping his chin, and Eddie pulls his hand away in concern.
“Did that hurt?” Eddie asks. “I barely touched you.”
“No,” Buck says, “I just.. don’t you want to wear gloves?”
“I washed my hands,” Eddie huffs, “you’ll be fine.”
“I trust you,” Buck says automatically. “Not worried about me. Just figured, you know, I’m kinda gross right now.”
“Buck,” Eddie says, tapping Buck’s cheek gently until he opens his eyes to look up at him. “You aren’t gross, you’re injured. That’s not on you.”
“I’m the one who got cursed by a vengeful skeleton,” Buck pouts, hoping his flush at Eddie’s words blends into the redness of his face. “I thought visiting his grave would help break the curse, but no, I’m still itchy and achy, and my own boyfriend wouldn’t even kiss me while we… you get the point.”
“Yeah, well,” Eddie says, still cupping Buck’s face. “Your boyfriend is being a punk-ass bitch.”
Buck can’t help it, he cracks up, twitching in Eddie’s grip as he laughs and cringing when it puts pressure on the boils.
“Shit,” Eddie swears, “sorry, sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Buck says, still chuckling. “He is kind of being a punk-ass bitch.”
“Close your eyes,” Eddie instructs again, and again Buck obeys.
“Wasn’t he staying with you?” Eddie asks as he starts to carefully apply the allergy cream to Buck’s face, trying not to press down more than necessary.
“He, uh,” Buck says, smiling slightly beneath the thumb Eddie runs across his upper lip. “He might still be passed out in my bed.”
“Oh man,” Eddie says with a snicker. “That’s gonna be hard to explain when you aren’t there in the morning.”
“Whatever,” Buck says. “I’ll tell him the truth.”
“Yeah?” Eddie asks, tilting Buck’s head down so he can cover the last bit of irritation skin at his hairline. “And what’s that?”
He removes his hands at last and takes a step back, closing the tube of cream and tossing it back in the kit on the table. He wipes his hands on a rag as Buck blinks his eyes open against the stark kitchen light and meets his gaze.
“I needed my best friend,” Buck answers easily, before pausing and shrugging slightly. “Even if I am being ridiculous.”
“You’re not ridiculous,” Eddie says. “I mean, you are,” he laughs kindly, “but no more than usual. The curse thing is ridiculous, but this? Needing someone to give a fuck about you and help you out? That’s not ridiculous.”
“I probably could have just texted you, though,” Buck says, taking a deep breath as he feels the medicine start working. “Oh god, this stuff is magic.”
“I’m cheaper than CVS, at least,” Eddie jokes. “And if I have to be stuck with insomnia, the company doesn’t hurt.”
Buck smiles up at him as the persistent itch fades for the first time in days.
“I am absolutely going to crash on your couch and abandon you,” he warns. “So you might want to switch to decaf.”
“Not with that shoulder still healing,” Eddie frowns. “Come sleep in the bed with me, you can at least prop yourself up and still stretch out your legs.”
“My shoulder is mostly fine,” Buck dismisses the concern with a wave of his hand. “I’ll be 100% again in no time.”
“I can take the couch if you’re so scared of sharing with me,” Eddie says, pointedly ignoring Buck’s dismissal.
“I’m not scared, you weirdo,” Buck laughs. “We’ve shared a bed before.”
“Exactly,” Eddie says, “so what’s the issue?”
Buck sighs deeply but eventually nods in acquiescence.
“No issues here,” he says as he stands up, pointing at Eddie as he starts to open his mouth, no doubt to tease Buck again. “Zip it, Diaz.”
“Whatever you say, Buckaroo,” Eddie sing-songs, before yawning widely. “Fuck, I feel loopy. We probably should try to get at least a few hours of sleep.”
“We should,” Buck agrees, just barely brushing Eddie’s shoulder as he shuffles past him. “I’m going to steal some sweats.”
“Good,” Eddie says, glancing down at Buck’s outfit. “You’re not bringing jeans into my bed.”
Buck just laughs and heads for the bedroom.
Buck uses the bathroom and changes into the borrows sweats and t-shirt, tossing his dirty clothes in Eddie’s hamper to deal with later. He brushes his teeth and puts the brush back in the holder, pausing to consider for the first time that it might be a little strange that he has a toothbrush at Eddie’s place that he is around enough to use frequently. Staring in the mirror, he flinches at the sight. The boils are fading down, but they are still bumpy and inflamed, red peeking through the dried antihistamine cream. All in all, not the best he’s ever looked.
Eddie is sitting up in bed when Buck emerges, wearing a loose grey tank top and the reading glasses that he thinks nobody knows about as he flips through whatever Mystery-Thriller he’d picked up at the second-hand bookstore recently. Buck stops in the doorway for a moment, just watching him with a sure to be goofy smile on his face.
“What?” Eddie huffs when he realizes he’s being watched. “Don’t make fun of my glasses, asshole.”
“I’m not,” Buck says, eyes catching the bottle of water, packet of Tylenol, and tube of cream that Eddie has left on the nightstand by Buck. “Promise.”
“Then why are you staring?” Eddie asks, closing the book and putting it on his nightstand, before removing his glasses and folding them to rest atop it.
“Because you’re adorable,” Buck says after a moment. “Don’t make it a thing.”
He crawls into the bed, stretching out carefully, propped up on the veritable mountain of pillows Eddie left piled for him.
Eddie huffs again but lets it go, clicking off his lamp and laying down, turning on one side so that he can see Buck in the faint moonlight glow from the window.
“Comfy?” he asks, hand hovering as if to adjust any wayward pillows that might be bothering Buck.
“I’m perfect,” Buck says, tilting his head to give Eddie a grateful little smile. “I didn’t say thank you yet, did I? For taking care of me.”
“You don’t have to thank me, Buck,” Eddie says, as if the very idea is ludicrous to him. “It was nothing.”
“Still,” Buck says. “You make me feel better even when I look like a leper. That’s not nothing.”
“You’re just a little bumpy,” Eddie teases, feeling brave enough to trace Buck’s face with a featherlight touch. “Wouldn’t stop me from kissing you.”
“What,” Buck says, suddenly feeling more awake than he has any right to. “Eddie… what?”
“You heard me,” Eddie says quietly. “Sorry that I figured it out too late.”
Buck tries to get up, only to be stopped by a shooting pain in his shoulder followed quickly by Eddie’s hand pressing his chest back down onto the pillows.
“You’ll hurt yourself,” he chastises. “Again.”
“I don’t care,” Buck says, “not if it means you can’t run away.”
Eddie leans over until he’s hovering right above Buck, his hand still holding steady against Buck’s chest.
“Does it look like I’m running?”
Buck frowns, because no, it really doesn’t.
“You’re not running,” he agrees, “but you’re also not kissing me. Kinda rude of you, actually.”
Eddie’s eyes widen in surprise even as he laughs.
“You have a boyfriend,” he feels the need to remind Buck.
Buck frowns, because well, Eddie isn’t wrong there. But on the other hand.
“I think I’ll like my new one better,” he says with a crooked grin. “If he ever gets his ass down here and kisses me.”
“You’re terrible,” Eddie teases, still smiling as he leans down and presses a gentle kiss to Buck’s mouth.
Buck arches up, deepening the kiss and looping his uninjured arm around Eddie’s neck to hold him close. Eddie quivers above him, gasping as Buck tries to pull him down on top of him and grind up against him.
“Easy,” Eddie cautions him as he pulls away. “Your shoulder.”
“Fuck my shoulder,” Buck says, uncaring. “You’re worth it.”
“That would not be comfortable for either of us,” Eddie can’t help but tease, laughing when Buck rolls his eyes.
“You’re so lame,” Buck laughs. “We could be naked by now.”
“When you’re all healed up,” Eddie promises. “I’m not going to hurt you just because I’m horny.”
“Ugh,” Buck says, watching sadly as Eddie moves away.
“I’m not going far,” Eddie laughs, sidling up to Buck’s uninjured side and wrapping an arm securely around his stomach.
“You better not,” Buck says, losing the pout when Eddie leans in to give him another kiss. “I just got you, you can’t run off already.”
“Cross my heart,” Eddie says sleepily, burrowing into the warmth of Buck’s body. “Go to sleep, sweetheart. We’ll figure it all out when the sun comes up.”
A million thoughts swirl inside Buck’s head. What are we doing? Is this actually happening? Since when does Eddie even like guy?. Sweetheart???
“Stop spiraling,” Eddie mumbles against his good shoulder, squeezing Buck’s ribs comfortingly. “It’s just you and me. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.”
“You’re so dumb,” Buck laughs quietly, voice fonder than he knew he was even capable of.
Still, Eddie’s simple confidence goes a long way to calming his frayed nerves, and he finally feels the beckoning wave of sleep calling to him.
Closing his eyes, Buck lets it come.
The end