Work Text:
Eddie was not planning on this to happen.
He has been in Texas for a week now, and he hates it. His relationship with Chris is still difficult, there are walls to break and trust to be gained again, and he gets it, he really does, but dealing with his parents and trying to get his kid back is draining him. And he misses Buck. He misses Buck a whole lot even if they call almost everyday and facetime and talk what would be considered too much for any other person.
He has not bought a house, but instead rented one for a three month period (Hen’s recommendation) because yes, he wants to get Chris back, but he’s not about to come back permanently to the place he fought so hard to get away from and if this three months are not enough to gain back Chris, he can always talk to his new landlord.
The thing is, he has been spending a lot of time with his sisters in between visits to Chris.
“Come on” Adriana drags the ‘o’ as she says it, tugging at his arm “Please come with me!” and at this point she’s dragging out almost every word, something she also used to do when they were kids.
It’s Saturday night and Adriana is determined to go out tonight. More specifically, to go out with him . Her girlfriend broke up with her a couple days ago (which is also new, the girlfriend thing, now he gets why she doesn’t talk to their parents) and she says she needs a distraction, to go out and have fun with his older brother.
“I know a good club, you’ll have fun! There’s good music and the drinks are to die for!”
“Adriana” Eddie stops her and grabs her shoulders, she’s looking at him with shiny eyes filled with emotion and a face only comparable to the Puss in Boots. He misses watching films with Christofer. “I don’t think I should go to a gay club”
“Why not?” she asks, a new pout on her face.
“Because I’m not gay, it is not my space to be in”
“Bullshit you’re coming with me, if someone flirts you can just say no! Nobody will care as long as you aren’t weird about it, and I want my brother with me” Eddie sighs, giving in, because he knows there’s no way of getting out of here.
“Okay, what should I wear?”
So, that is how he ends up on a bar stool, pink and sparkly cowboy hat on his head and fancy colourful drink on his hands as he watches too many people dance. He’s never been in a space so… Diverse. There are people of all ethnicities, all heights and weights and men in crop tops and women in mesh little shirts and he sees so many colorful hairs it looks like a never ending rainbow, like the flags hanging on the walls, he can’t identify most of them and listens carefully as Adriana, who sits on the stool next to his with her own colorful drink, explains every one of them to him because he wants to understand, if this is part of his sister’s life, he will learn everything he can. He identifies the pop music playing, some songs he knows, has heard them on the radio or the station, can’t exactly place where.
Adriana is rambling, she looks so happy here, talking with Eddie and greeting people who pass by them she might know, sparkles on her coffee eyes and blush on her rosy cheeks. Eddie realizes how much he missed her and it feels like time stopping, that happiness contaging and making him smile too, he feels lighter, not necessarily good, but better than he has for a while now. Less guilty. Like his sins weigh less.
“...Oh and that is Alex, his parents kicked him out but he’s actually doing really good! Found a good place to stay with a couple of drag queens” Adriana stops his incessant rambling about people she knows just to take a long sip of her drink “I should bring you here on a friday so you can see the drag shows! We should definitely do that next week” It looks like she already has it planned in her head, and Eddie just has to laugh.
“Yeah, we could do that” he agrees and sips his own drink. It tastes fruity and sweet and like vodka. She looks at him, her head tilts a bit to the side and her eyes squint, then she gets up and her face goes back to just joy.
“Come dance with me” Adriana leaves her half empty drink on the bar counter and lends a hand to him.
“Oh, I don’t think dancing is really my thing” he refuses, but leaves his drink beside hers anyway.
“It definitely is, if you do it as good as when you were fifteen” she’s absolutely convinced, voice loud to be heard on top of the music.
“You said you would never bring that up!” Eddie fakes offense, still, he takes her hand and lets her guide him until they are in the crowd of people. He can recognize Lady Gaga’s voice, not that he listens a lot to her, and people around them dance and jump and sing along. Adriana grabs his hands and makes him move, loosen his stiff muscles and just let go. Eddie tries his best, not really used to the whole club dancing ordeal. They dance together until he can feel his hair sticking to his forehead and his white shirt sticking to his body and his muscles ache and they’ve made a couple of friends who are now dancing with them too. Eddie likes this.
Maybe he’s just used to be around queer people, with Hen and Buck being some of his best friends, so he doesn’t feel as out of place as he thought he might be.
Eventually the inevitable happens, a guy gets closer, spins him around, Eddie’s skin burns where he’s touching him. He’s wearing a crop top and jeans that might be sitting too low on his hip, skin dark like chocolate and shiny eyeshadow on his eyes.
“Hey there, cowboy” the guy’s dancing in front of him, Adriana now long lost in the crowd “first time here?”
“Yeah!” he gets closer, just so they can hear each other on top of the loud music “Came with my sister, she’s…” Eddie looks around, trying to find Adriana’s dark hair and pink top, only to find her flirting with a girl that looks like she’ll be able to beat him in a fight, strong muscles showing through her shirt. The guy looks too.
“Oh! I know Adriana!” The guy says excitedly “Didn’t know she had a brother this good looking, though” his hands end up on Eddie’s waist and he just smiles at the compliment.
“Look, I… I just came with her, I’m not gay or anything” Eddie feels the need to clarify, trying his best at not being weird about it. The guy just shrugs, still smiling.
“We can still dance, can we?” he asks “My name is Erik by the way”
“Eddie” he says, introducing himself too, then the guy, Erik, places his hands softly on his elbows and guides his hands to his wrist. Exposed skin too hot, shining in the colorful lights. Eddie has to remind himself to close his mouth, suddenly too dry.
“If you’re uncomfortable with anything just say it, okay? I like to dance close” Erik’s hands are resting behind his neck “I won’t try to flirt, I promise” He can feel the man’s muscles shift under his skin as his hips move, his fingers twitch at the feeling and he’s not sure where to look. He’s more used to slim and soft bodies but this feels good too, firm muscle under his hands, not so slim waist.
The song changes and so does Erik, now facing the other way, arms in the air and body moving swiftly against his, too close, too hot. He can now see a tattoo in the small of his back, some trivial design with white ink that contrasts perfectly against his dark skin, his jeans so low he can see his underwear too, and that is definitely not boxers. He’s definitely too hot now.
“Edmundo!” Adriana is suddenly on his side and he lets go of Erik, the guy spinning again to face them “Erik! Dance with me, I love this song!”
So, they all dance together until he’s too tired to keep going and retreats to the bar counter once again, his sister following along, Erik gets to them, takes the pink sparkly cowboy hat of Eddie’s head and puts it on his own, winking at him just to disappear again going to dance with someone else.
It’s not long after they head back home, his sister’s arm hooked on his to stabilize herself, heels hanging off his hand and shoes too big on Adriana’s feet.
“Did you have fun?” Her words are slurry now, too tired to bother on speaking properly, Eddie just nods, light smile on his lips “Will you come with me next week? To see the drag queens?”
“If I don’t have anything to do with Chris, yeah” it’s a hot night, just enough chill air to be comfortable, he can hear the electricity of the street lamps and crickets that seem too loud. Adriana stays silent for a bit, thinking too difficult with the alcohol still running on his body.
“Why don’t you just grab Christofer and go back to California?” Eddie shakes his head, smile fading and brows furrowed.
“I don’t want to force him to come back, I want him to want to come back, if it makes any sense” Eddie sighs, stopping his steps as he feels Arianna stop.
“You’re a good father” she says looking into his eyes “I hope you know that” and Eddie just nods, tugging at her arm to keep going. It’s easier than to admit he doesn’t feel like it. He doesn’t feel good, just like a constant disaster, not worthy of Christofer’s trust anymore. “Do you have someone waiting for you at home?” Adriana asks lightly, voice soft and more steady than before.
“Something like that, yeah” he mumbles. Buck .
“Hey, you didn’t say you were dating someone”
“I’m not, it is not like that” he tries to explain “Buck sub rented my house so I could come here for a while” Adriana’s brows shoot up.
“Buck? Isn’t he the guy who came here with you when the wildfires happened?” Eddie nods, she cackles a little laugh “He did that?” he nods again, not sure what to say “You know, the first time I saw you together I really thought you two were dating, he showed me some photos of you and Chris on his phone, and let me tell you, he had a lot ”.
He misses Buck. He misses Chris.
They don’t talk much more as they get to Adriana’s house, she gives back his shoes, stumbling and almost falling if it wasn’t for him, she laughs lightly and gets back her heels, they hug and say their goodbyes and Eddie waits until he sees her bedroom light go out to get back to his own house.
It doesn’t feel like a house, and it probably won’t, just an empty shell to contain him until he goes back to where he belongs. With Chris and Buck, in the house he worked so hard to build.
The next day he gets Chris from his parent’s house and they go for an ice cream. It is still tense between them, Eddie doesn’t know what to say to his own son half the time, not wanting to scare him away by saying the wrong thing, so he limits himself to questions about school and chess club and his new friends. Eventually they sit in a wooden bench in front of a kids park, he tends Chris his ice cream, already melting a bit and they both eat in silence.
“Did you sell our house?” Chris talks after a couple minutes, not looking at him. Is that what is worrying him? Does he just want to know?
“No, I didn’t sell it” Eddie looks at him, and can feel cold drops of melting ice cream reaching his hand.
“Good” Does he want to go back? “Did you rent it?”
“Buck is taking care of the house” he answers with a slight nod, just so Chris knows there is not a stranger in their home, that they can go back whenever he wants and it will be exactly as they left it.
“I miss Buck” Chris talks lower now, like admitting it is some kind of big ordeal in his head, gaze down, like the gravel ground is the most interesting thing he’s ever seen. Like if he looks up again Eddie will be able to read his whole soul.
“Yeah, I miss him too” Eddie answers with the truth, because he’s not about to lie to his son ever again.
“Do you think he could come here? For a day?” he’s still looking down, pausing every now and then to eat the sweet.
“Maybe, why don’t you ask him? I’m sure he misses you too” Chris shakes his head.
“You do it” he stops only to look at him again “Please”.
“Okay, I’ll see what I can do”
There is less tension now, and he goes back to his own ice cream and trivial talk, even getting Chris to something similar to a laugh. He counts it as a win and when they’re done eating, they head back to his parent’s house. He willfully ignores the look they give him, one he knows very well. One that says they don’t agree on what he’s doing.
He goes back to his own house and falls to his bead with a groan, hands rubbing his face and pulling his hair. He’s mentally exhausted. Still, Eddie grabs his phone and messages Buck to call him when he can, and half an hour later he gets a call.
“You won’t believe what we just attended, a guy got an iodine intoxication by eating too much shrimp at an all you can eat buffet, I didn’t even know that could happen, apparently it happens to baby seals too because-”
“Hello Buck” Eddie stops his rambling, not being able to catch onto everything he’s saying.
“Hi!” he can almost hear the smile on Buck’s face “Is everything okay? How’s Chris?”
“He’s good” Eddie’s not sure how to start, feels like he’s asking too much “Uhm… Actually he asked if you could… Come here? Only for a day? I know it’s a lot to ask, you already rented my house and now-”
“I’ll talk to Bobby” Buck cuts him now, not letting him continue with that train of thought “I miss Chris too”
“Good, great, thank you” before he can say anything else, he hears the station siren go off and Buck sighs.
“I swear Ravi jinxed the day again, talk to you later!” he doesn’t get to say goodbye before Buck hangs up.
It’s two am when he gets a message again, he’s watching a telenovela he’s seen too many times on the old tv this house has when he hears his phone buzz. “I have friday and Saturday free, see you at the bus station” the message reads and he smiles. Buck will never cease to amaze him.
The week passes by painfully slow between dinners with his parents and bringing Chris school, home, or to the chess club. He spends time with Sophia too, she just had her second child and is too busy to do anything else than have some tea with him on a wednesday evening.
Before he knows it it’s Friday morning and he’s driving to the bus station to get Buck, hands sweating against the steering wheel and heartbeat too fast. He parks and waits, back reclined on the car door, for Buck to come out of the station. It only takes a couple of minutes and he looks as radiant as always, blonde curls shining in the sunlight, bright smile on his face and a hand waving at him. Only a gym bag hanging from one of his shoulders.
“Hi, thanks for coming” Eddie talks and Buck hugs him tight.
“I’m here for whatever you need” Buck answers in his neck and after a few seconds, lets go. “Now, I want to see what shithole you’re living in” he surrounds the car, walking backwards so he’s still looking at Eddie with a smirk placed on his lips. They both get in the car and Buck shoves his bag on the backseats. He does not stop talking during the twenty minutes that it takes to get to the house, catching up on the strangest things that had happened this week at the station.
Apparently Maddie is pregnant, Ravi has a new situationship, it was also Mara’s birthday and the iodine intoxication by shrimp is called the baby seal disease.
“Home sweet home” Eddie says sarcastically as he opens the door to the house he’s staying in. It doesn’t look exactly bad, but it's cheap. Yeah, it looks cheap.
“It is… It has its appeal” Buck lies blatantly. Eddie looks at him, one of his brows arched in question “Okay it looks bad, but it’s temporary and gets the job done, is good enough” Buck goes to sit on the couch as if he was at his own house –Eddie’s house? Should he call it his own house now?– “What is the plan for today?”
“Chris gets off school at three so, do you want to get something to eat while we wait? I thought about going to the zoo later but he might be too old for that, I don’t even know where to start” Eddie sits beside him and sighs “Buck I am so lost, I feel like… Like I don’t know him anymore, I don’t know what he likes and he’s my son”
“Hey, it’s okay, we’ll figure it out” Buck’s hand places on his back and soothes him a bit “You said he was in a chess club? That is a place to start, we could do a little tournament between us or something”
“I don’t even own a chess board”
“Well, then you buy it, now, I want to go to that taco place you promised last time”
They do exactly that. Find a store to buy a chess, which turns out to be more expensive than he thought, see some more stores just for something to do and buck buys a pastel pink t-shirt that fits him too well, then drive to the taqueria. It is a small, crowded place, the family business of a guy he went to school with. The walls are wooden and filled with pictures pinned together with thumbtacks, hardwood tables and chairs with worn out cushions and glass decorations hanging from the colorful ceiling. Buck swears these are the best tacos he’s tasted in his whole life and Eddie can’t disagree because he knows damn well they are.
“Can we eat here tomorrow too?” Buck asks, sipping at his mango smoothie, looking at him with puppy eyes. Eddie smiles looking at him too, back reclined on his chair and head tilting sideways.
“I don’t think that’s healthy, and I don’t have the economy to eat out two days in a row” he explains calmly.
“I can pay” Buck says quickly.
“You don’t have the economy for that either” Eddie holds his laugh, lips pressed together. He feels lighter when Buck is around, like he can breathe properly.
“Yeah but my bad financial decisions are my problem”
“I’ll cook tacos for you” he offers, completely convinced about it.
“Eddie, you don’t know how to cook” Buck says, pretending to be concerned.
“I grew up in a Mexican household, I know how to cook this” . They stay silent for a moment, gaze on each other's eyes, then laugh at the same time and look another way. “Let me try that” Eddie holds out his hand and Buck gives him the smoothie without question.
“It’s spicy” he warns.
“It’s mango con tajín, I know it’s spicy” Eddie takes a sip then, not even bothering to change the straw. Buck looks at him in a way he can’t quite identify “Oh this is good, I’m taking it with me” Eddie gets up and Buck follows quickly, once they’re at the register they pay each one their own and then keep bickering about the smoothie until they get to the car and Eddie’s forced to give it back so he can drive safely.
In less than ten minutes they’re waiting for Chris at the parking lot of the school, placed where they can perfectly see the front door. Buck is almost jumping in excitement, changing his weight from the tip of his toes to his heels once and twice and oh he’s not stopping.
“Buck, it will be fine” Eddie tries to calm him, even if he's as nervous.
“I know, I just missed him a lot” they keep waiting until the bell rings and kids start coming out looking for their parents. Eddie waves his hand up so Chris can see him.
“Buck!” Chris almost screams in excitement when he sees him, walking faster towards them.
“Hey buddy!” Buck lowers himself to hug him, which looks a bit stupid with how much Chris has grown in the time they’ve been apart. They fall into small talk easily and Eddie is almost jealous of how fast Buck manages to do it. His small talk with Chris still feels weird, too heavy.
They get to a park and place the new chess board on a picnic table, all sitting together, Chris on one side facing Eddie and Buck.
“Be prepared because I’m about to beat your asses” Chris states confidently, placing his crutches leaning on the table.
Turns out it is true, the first match he beats Eddie, the second he beats Buck, and by the third, both adults are working together debating what piece to move and Chris still wins, laughing at them.
“You are both so bad at this” Chris looks entertained, he’s having fun, Eddie feels warm again “Play one against each other, lets see who is the real loser” They bicker for a bit and in the end it is Eddie who ends up sitting beside his son.
Even with Chris cheating and telling him discreetly where to move some pieces, Buck wins.
“How are you so bad?” Chris sounds surprised, laughing a bit. His curls shine and he feels like he might be blinded by his smile. Eddie wants to cry, can feel his eyes getting wet and has to look somewhere else and fake a laugh too.
“It’s just not my thing, you’re the absolute best, I’m sure you’ll win the tournament next week” Eddie gets up and returns beside Buck.
“You have a tournament next week? That is huge! Hey, facetime me, okay? I want to see too” Buck places his hand on the small of Eddie's back, pressing, trying to comfort him even a bit. It works.
At seven they get Chris back home, Eddie’s parents look as disappointed as always when they see Buck. Once they close the door, Eddie deflates completely, looking up with his back resting on the car door.
“It’s okay” Buck talks softly, kindly “It went well, everything turned out fine, you don’t need to worry anymore” Eddie nods.
“Yeah, I’m…” he takes a deep breath and lets the air out “I’m fine”
“You know you don’t need to-”
“Let's head back” Eddie doesn’t look at him, completely aware he’ll break if he does, and that is not about to happen on his parents porch so he gets back inside the car.
He doesn’t feel bad, he has been the whole evening with his two favourite persons in the whole world, but he feels tired, like there are too many emotions stirring in his insides and he just wants to hug Buck for a three hour period and not let go, but then Adriana calls.
“Eddie! Are you ready for tonight?” she asks, phone on speaker being held by Buck in between them.
“Tonight?” Eddie asks confused, eyes fixed on the road.
“Edmundo Diaz tell me you did not forget about our plans” her voice sounds harder, accusing.
“Shit, the drag show”
“Are you going to a drag show?” Buck asks, looking at him with surprise.
“Is someone with you?” Adriana asks through the phone.
“Hi Adri!” Buck greets her excited.
“Buck? Buck! Hey you need to come too!”
And that is how a plan is made, and his night is nothing close to peaceful.
“Why are we going to a drag show?” Buck asks him when they hang up.
“It’s a long story, her girlfriend dumped her and we went out last week and-”
“Girlfriend? Wasn’t she married to a man last time I saw her?” Buck interrupts.
“Yeah, she was, then realized she didn’t really like boys, went through a whole divorce, got a girlfriend and then got dumped” Eddie explains, he ends up parking and heads out.
“Huh, guess you’re never too late to realize some things” Buck follows him inside the house and a couple minutes later Adriana is at the front door too. She screams and jumps on Buck as she sees him, Eddie just lets it happen. Last time they were in Texas (a couple of years ago to help with wildfires) they became close really fast, and to him it makes sense, they have similar personalities and common tastes.
“Eddie told me about your breakup, I’m sorry for it” Buck says once she gets down.
“Things happen, don’t worry too much about it, but how are you doing?” Eddie gets back to his room, looking for a decent thing to wear, and hears as they talk.
“Well, my boyfriend dumped me a couple weeks ago too, so guess we’re in a similar place” Buck answers “Should I wear this? I bought it today, maybe it fits the vibe”
“Boyfriend? I didn’t know you were gay! And absolutely wear that please, just let me…” Eddie hears distantly, deciding for a white tank top.
“I’m bi, actually” Buck says “But yeah it’s fine, Tommy was an asshole so it might be better this way”
When Eddie comes out again, his sister is crouching in front of Buck, who is also wearing that pink shirt he bought.
“What are you doing to him?” Eddie asks, frown on his face.
“Shh, wait, I’m almost finished” she says, concentration seeping through her voice, Buck just laughs a bit. “Voilá! Done!” she gets up again and turns Buck around “What do you think?”
Oh.
Buck’s shirt is somehow shorter, maybe she pinned it? Definitely didn’t cut it but it is shorter and Buck’s stomach shows a bit, enough to show his happy trail and the bit of fat that rests there, the fabric falling just on top of his navel. There is a soft blush on his face growing more noticeable with every passing second and suddenly Eddie can’t breathe. Too stunned to speak.
“See? You look so good you turned my brother gay” Adriana says laughing, Buck laughs small too, ducking his head but still looking at Eddie, who just now seems to come back to earth and remember how to talk.
“Shut up, you look good Buck” He’s quick to say.
“And you look like Freddie Mercury without the mustache, what is going on with your outfit?” Adriana talks again, getting to him now.
“Oh no, you’re not doing that to me, keep walking” Eddie spins her around and heads her to the door.
“You should’ve seen him with the mustache” Buck whispers to her as they walk by him.
They get to the club when the show has already started, so they only watch half of what is going on before the last drag queen comes out.
“Oh I love this song” Buck murmurs to not interrupt the performance, but Eddie can still hear him mumbling the lyrics as it goes on.
There is a black woman on the stage, fully dressed in pink. Cowboy sparkly boots, bodysuit filled with long feathers on the back just above her bum and- is that his cowboy hat? Oh, is that-
“ I know you wanted me to stay
But I can't ignore the crazy visions of me in LA
And I heard that there's a special place
Where boys and girls can all be queens every single day”
She does her playback on stage while the three of them order drinks and stay near the bar counter.
“I'm having wicked dreams of leaving Tennessee
Hear Santa Monica, I swear it's calling me
Won't make my mama proud, it's gonna cause a scene
She sees her baby girl, I know she's gonna scream”
“Sing it!” The drag points her microphone towards the crowd and then everyone is screaming lyrics he doesn’t know but feels too identified with. Buck and Adriana are holding hands and jumping while they sing to each other “I’m gonna keep on dancing at the pink pony club”.
They eventually turn to him, bright smiles on their faces and grab his hands too.
“I don’t know the song!” Eddie’s not sure if he’s about to have a panic attack but there is something spiralling inside of him. Something he can’t recognise.
“It doesn’t matter!” Adriana tugs on him and makes him jump too, still singing. He can’t do anything else than look at Buck. Their hands are holding like they fit perfectly, like this is how they’re supposed to be.
Then the song slows down again and they stop, shaky breathing as they get back to their drinks.
Buck doesn’t let go of his hand.
The drag queen gets off the stage through the choppy stairs on one side and walks through the crowd still performing.
“I'm up and jaws are on the floor
Lovers in the bathroom and a line outside the door
Blacklights and a mirrored disco ball
Every night's another reason why I left it all”
She keeps walking, making big gestures and dancing lightly until she gets to Eddie. He feels like she’s singing just to him and people scream louder when her hand is on Eddie’s chest, moving to caress his face.
“I thank my wicked dreams a year from Tennessee
Oh, Santa Monica, you've been too good to me
Won't make my mama proud, it's gonna cause a scene
She sees her baby girl, I know she's gonna scream”
She turns around quickly and people start screaming the lyrics again and he forgot how to breathe again. Then Buck is tugging at his right hand and Adriana at his left one and they’re jumping again so he jumps and screams too, now knowing the chorus of the song.
By the time the fervor of the moment ends and they stop again the song is over and the show host is announcing the end of it and thanking everyone for being a good public.
Eddie feels good, and this time it is not just less weight on his shoulders, this time he feels actually good, light like a feather and like breathing is the easiest thing he’s ever done. He also feels like he’s about to throw up because the spiral on his stomach is stronger. Ten minutes later his sister and best friend are dancing and he’s at the bar, just looking at them.
Erik gets closer to him, still in full drag, a smile on his face, and sits on a bar stool beside him. Blonde strands of the wig’s hair fall to his shoulders and he can perfectly see his whole chest as it doesn’t fully fill the bodysuit.
“I didn’t think I’ll see you again, cowboy” Erik says in a flirty voice, the barman bringing him a drink without never even asking for it, still, he grabs it and sips from the straw.
“I’ll be here for a while” He answers simply, gazing at Buck on the dance floor.
“Is your friend also straight? Because damn, he looks like a whole meal” Erik looks the same way as he is. And at this point Eddie just cackles because he is right. Buck looks good enough to eat.
“Erik, I think I’m in love” Eddie states, not taking his eyes off Buck, now dancing between a man and a woman he doesn’t know, pink crop top rolling up and hips moving like he belongs nowhere else but there, his sister lost once again.
“I mean, that girl does look good, but maybe it’s too soon for-”
“Not her” he swallows, suddenly feeling his throat too dry even if he still has a beer in his hands.
“Oh?” Erik looks at him, not quite understanding, then back at Buck “Oh!” he says with more excitement this time “Then go get your man!”
“What? I am not-”
“Listen” Erik cuts him off, takes the pink and sparkly cowboy hat off his own head and puts it in his “There is no cowboy in this wild club that deserves that man more than you” he fixes the collar of Eddie’s shirt, long press on nails brushing his neck “I’ve seen how you look at each other, and let a queen tell you, you’re meant to be. Now fly high, Edmundo” he pushes Eddie away “For now you know yourself and my work here is done”
Erik talks like he’s giving Eddie his blessing, and all of his eccentricity makes the situation lighter somehow. Easier.
“I don’t know how to-”
“Trust the pink cowboy hat, I don’t want to see you again unless it's kissing that big boy” Erik takes the beer from his hands and gestures for him to go away. Eddie obligues, not really having another option.
So, he gets closer to Buck and as soon as he sees Eddie, he leaves the people he was dancing with.
“Hey! That looks good on you!” Buck talks loudly just to be heard over the music. Trust the pink cowboy hat.
“I bet it would look better on you” he doesn’t know where the courage to say something like that comes from, but is glad he said it because now Buck is even closer, taking the hat and putting it on his own head. He has not stopped dancing and Eddie feels hot all over because his hips are rolling too close and he wants to grab, bite, leave marks all over his soft skin.
“How do I look?” Buck asks getting closer to his ear so Eddie can hear him. It’s okay, they’re in a gay club, this is a safe space, the worst thing Buck can do is say no or laugh at him. He has the power of the pink cowboy hat and the blessing of a drag queen. He can do this.
“Good enough to eat”
It’s like the world stops. He can no longer hear the music but only the thumping of his own heart, the sound his breathing makes. Buck’s eyes see right through him, lips parted in surprise, his body not moving anymore.
“Then do it” When their lips meet, the world is loud again. Their hands are cradling each other’s face and Buck’s lips are so soft he wants to bite. He does and it looks like this is the second best decision he’s ever made because Buck pants against his lips, so Eddie kisses him deeper, his hands now moving to touch the exposed skin of his waist and grabbing hard at it. Pressing their bodies closer.
“Finally!” He can hear Adriana’s voice but he doesn’t want to stop kissing Buck ever again because their lips fit like they were meant for each other, like this has always been the only possible outcome for them. Eventually, Buck pulls apart just enough to rest his forehead on each other and oh he likes to be this close. He wants to be this close for the rest of his life.
It takes them a couple of minutes to pull away from each other and when they do, Eddie looks to where he left Erik. Adriana is now by his side and they are both looking at them, cheering and clapping like this spectacle was better than the drag show.
They stay all together for a while, drinking a bit more, dancing a bit more, he keeps kissing Buck every time he can and Adriana and Erik cheer every single time. It’s three in the morning when they start heading back home.
They get Adriana home safely and Eddie insists on staying until her bedroom light goes out. Then they are on their own and maybe the decisions they took previously weigh more now that they’re outside, but their hands are still held together, their shoulders bump as they walk in comfortable silence, and tonight, Buck doesn’t sleep on the couch.