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Buck is pretty close to a breakdown, he's sure of that.
There's so many reasons, he’s actually impressed at himself for not snapping earlier— he's almost a week away from finishing his training as a rookie at the LAPD (which is great, but his T.O Athena Grant is… intense, to say the least), his sister is now living with him after running away from her abusive husband that then stalked and kidnapped her and then died, and now Maddie’s gotten it in her head that she should set Buck up with every person on Earth until he finds the love of his life.
It's not that Buck isn't appreciative, or that he doesn't understand Maddie’s just looking for something lighthearted and fun to focus her mind on, something she can put her energy into while she heals from the unimaginable trauma she went through. Buck gets all of that, okay? And he knows his sister cares for him and wants to see him happy, but Jesus Fucking Christ.
Buck hadn’t realized there were so many different ways a date could go wrong—until the last month proved otherwise. First, Maddie set him up with an old friend from nursing school who spent the entire night crying about her cheating ex-husband—and stealing food off his plate, even after he explicitly told her to order whatever she wanted. Then came one of their neighbors, who talked with her mouth full and shot him judgy looks for every innocent comment he made. After that, there was the guy from Maddie’s therapy group who pepper-sprayed him when Buck tried to hand back his jacket at the end of the night. And finally, a 9-1-1 dispatcher who wasn't half bad—until Buck choked on bread and nearly died. Then he got ghosted.
So… yeah. Maddie means well, and Buck loves her more than life itself. But. One more set up from his sister might actually kill him.
This is the last time he puts up with one of these sordid, awful blind dates, he tells himself. This will be the last time. He'll give it a fair chance, try to enjoy a nice meal, and then— once everything inevitably goes to shit— Buck will politely leave and tell Maddie to never play cupid for him ever again.
“I'm in front of the restaurant right now,” Buck sighs into the phone, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel nervously. “What was this guy's name again?”
“Eddie Diaz. He teaches my self-defense class.”
“You're setting me up with your teacher?”
“He’s hot, okay? And very sweet.” Even though they're on the phone, Buck can feel Maddie’s stern ‘I know better, trust me’ look through the line. “You'll love him. And , he has a kid.”
Buck sighs, rubbing at his temples with his fingers. “I do love kids,” he glances at his watch and sees he's about to be late. “Alright, I gotta go if I don't wanna be late for my date.”
“Good luck!” Maddie manages to yell just before Buck ends the call, and he shakes his head in fond exasperation. He loves his sister but she's driving him insane.
This is the last one, he reassures himself as he gets out of the car.
As he crosses the street and nears the restaurant, he starts feeling a tiny bit self-conscious— ha hasn't put much effort into it, he'll admit. Buck changed into some comfortable jeans and a worn-out sweater after his shift ended and hasn't bothered to go home and get some fancier clothes. He shaved this morning, in his defense! And spritzed some cologne that he keeps on his locker at the station, so he isn't totally hopeless.
The restaurant is way more elegant than he was expecting, though, and seems outrageously expensive, just at first glance. Like, galaxies away from what he could afford with his rookie salary, sort of expensive. Like, maybe if he sold a kidney on the black market he could perhaps pay for a meal there, sort of expensive.
It makes him stop in his steps and look up at the restaurant's sign with his mouth slightly agape like a complete idiot, and then looking down at his phone to check if he got the wrong address.
“Evan?” A soft, tentative voice asks and Buck lifts his gaze, finding himself staring right at a guy that looks straight out of a magazine, maybe one of those pretentious Rolex watch ads he's seen in passing. He's wearing a dark, midnight blue suit that looks smooth and shiny under the city lights— not extravagant, but classy and ritzy.
Buck's brain short-circuits for a moment there. “E-Eddie?” He asks, but he must have gotten the wrong guy. Surely this isn't Maddie’s self defense teacher… right?
Except, he is. Eddie smiles and nods, gesturing towards the restaurant’s door.
Buck swallows hard, his hand awkwardly hovering in the space between them like he can’t decide whether to shake Eddie’s or just turn around and flee. “Wow, uh—hi. Call me Buck, please.” He settles on a weird half-wave instead. “You look… sharp.”
Eddie chuckles, warm and low, and Buck hates how it skitters down his spine like a live wire. “Thanks. You look…” He pauses, glancing over Buck’s outfit. “Comfortable.”
Buck winces. “Yeah. I, uh—came straight from a shift.” (He did take the smallest of naps in his car, but Eddie doesn't need to know that.)
“You look good,” Eddie says, sounding genuine to Buck’s utter shock, and pulling the door open for him— when he extends his arm, the sleeve of his suit riles up a little bit, showing ip an expensive watch and a bracelet clearly made by a kid, colorful and a tad messy in an endearing way. Buck clocks it and smiles to himself at the sight.
“Your kid made it?” He nods towards it.
Eddie frowns and tilts his head before looking down and flicking his wrist, the smile that graces his lips turns into the softest, fondest thing Buck's ever seen. “Oh yeah, they made friendship bracelets at summer camp and he made one for me. I never take it off.”
Buck steps inside, trying not to trip over his own feet. “Cute. Wait, stop—” Buck comes into his senses and grabs Eddie by the elbow, gently pulling him to the side and gesturing for the restaurant's host to hold on a second. “Look, I really don't want to sound like an asshole here, but there’s no way I can afford dinner at this place.”
He can afford fancy, okay? Just… not this fancy.
“Oh, no worries. My treat.” Eddie says simply, waving him off. and Buck thinks Oh, okay. I see. Maddie’s set me up with some rich asshole.
Buck knows the type— spoiled, entitled brats that have no idea how hard some people have to work for what they have. He doesn't even know how a self-defense instructor could even afford a place like this, so Buck assumes Eddie’s family must be rich or some shit like that.
He has half a mind to make a hasty escape, cut his losses and tell Maddie he just wasn't feeling it— but before he knows it, he's being escorted through the restaurant and up the stairs into a private section, with a view of the city and decorated by dim, warm lights that make the atmosphere soft and romantic.
It makes Eddie’s tanned skin look almost golden in their glow and his eyes like a syrup, honeyed brown that almost causes Buck to forget he's probably a jerk with too much money in his hands.
They step into the private mezzanine, and Buck’s jaw almost drops. The floor‑to‑ceiling windows look out over the city’s twinkling lights—like someone bottled up all the stars and sprinkled them at their feet. Buck catches himself staring too long and clears his throat.
“Wow,” he manages, sliding into the plush booth across from Eddie. “This is, uh, really something.”
Eddie smiles and he says something that Buck misses in his distraction. So far, the guy hasn't really been an asshole at all or a rich snob. Buck might be making a lot of assumptions here, but… can you blame him?
“So, do you do anything else besides teaching self-defense classes?”
“Are you asking how I can afford a place like this?” Eddie raises an eyebrow.
“Well, yeah.” The duh in Buck’s tone is loud and obvious.
Eddie chuckles and shrugs. “I have some private security gigs here and there, which they paid well. And I don't usually do… all of this—” he gestures with his hands to the restaurant in general, around them. “I guess I don't date much at all. And this is my first date in… a while. I wanted to impress you?”
Eddie wrinkles his nose and winces. and it makes Buck completely soften inside. Okay, maybe he's been a little too quick to judge, but all the bad dates have turned him into somewhat of a cynic (He blames Maddie for that).
“Alright, yeah, that's fair, actually. And hey, you won't see me complaining.”
Eddie smiles at him, making his eyes wrinkle at the sides. Buck busies himself with the menu, skimming through it quickly and deciding on something simple, but it allows him a few moments to centre himself.
He ends up ordering a salmon dish, a salad and a slight champagne— the cheapest he could find, because the prices still made him squirm in his pants just at the mere idea of spending that much money on dinner. Eddie smirks a little but doesn't really say anything, and Buck takes his time to study him.
He has a beauty mark right under his eye, which he finds oddly endearing, and a weird but pretty smile. Maddie definitely knew what she was doing, at least in that department, Buck can't argue there.
“So, I don't think Maddie mentioned what you do for work?”
“Oh, I'm a cop.” Buck says, hesitating just for a fraction of a millisecond. People have very different reactions to that revelation, depending on who they are, and Buck's prepared himself for pretty much every possible scenario.
“Oh,” Eddie says after a beat, voice neutral, impassive and cool. “Maddie didn't mention you were a cop.” His date sounds too put together— So effortless that you just know a great amount of effort has been put into sounding as natural and indifferent as Eddie has. Buck thinks and knows that Officer Grant would immediately be suspicious of it and he tries to push the thought away. She can be a little paranoid.
“Yeah, well, technically not yet. I'm still a rookie, I'm a week away from finishing my training.” Buck straightens up in his seat, puffing his chest out a bit. He's worked hard, and really? He chose this job because he wanted to help people, make a difference, fix a broken system (as naive and stupid as that might sound) and he's proud of how far he's come.
He rambles a little about that and then catches himself and stops, feeling some heat rush to his cheeks. “So,” Buck shakes his head and laughs, awkward. “What do normal people talk about on dates anyways?”
Eddie arches an eyebrow.
“I meant— You would not believe the dates I've been having lately. I think I've forgotten that a date can actually end well, even, or at least with no hospital visits.” He clears his throat and forces himself to maintain eye contact.
“Now I'm intrigued.”
Buck gives him a crooked smile and leans forward a little, pulling the neck of his sweater down with his fingers and showing off his most recent scar. “Choked on bread. My date performed an emergency tracheotomy and then ghosted me.”
Eddie winces in sympathy and makes a hurt sound. “That’s rough, man.”
Buck chuckles, letting go of his sweater collar and slouching just a little more in the plush booth. “Tell me about it. I’ve had dates end with crying, over the top drama, pepper spray… I’m like a walking romcom cliché, but the tragic kind. I think Maddie’s trying to kill me slowly, one setup at a time.”
Eddie laughs—really laughs this time, warm and open and full-bodied—and Buck finds himself laughing along, the weight in his chest loosening just a bit.
“Well, for what it’s worth,” Eddie says, taking a sip of his drink, “you’re doing okay so far. No one’s cried, no bodily harm. I’d call that a win.”
“Don’t jinx it,” Buck says, mock-serious. “There’s still dessert.”
Eddie smirks over the rim of his glass, and it makes Buck’s stomach flutter unexpectedly. It's been a long time since he’s felt something like that on a date—actual interest, curiosity, even the smallest spark of hope. He doesn’t want to think too much about it yet, but it’s… nice.
“So,” Buck tries again, shifting gears. “What about you? Kid at home, scary good at self-defense—what’s the rest of the story?”
Eddie softens immediately, his posture relaxing as he leans back slightly. “My son’s name is Christopher. He’s eight. Smart, hilarious, way cooler than me” His smile gets a little wistful, and Buck feels a tug in his chest at how much love is packed into that simple sentence.
“And his mom?” Buck asks gently.
“She’s… not in the picture,” Eddie replies carefully. “It’s just the two of us. Which is hard, but—he’s everything. I don’t really know who I was before I became his dad. He kind of grounded me, gave me a purpose. There's nothing I wouldn't do for him.”
“Well, I, uh, love kids.”
“I love this one.”
Most of the date passes by with Eddie telling Buck stories about Christopher— here and there, he slips up and Buck notices that behind the confident, elegant exterior, Eddie really is just kind of a dork. It's charming, and Buck is absolutely smitten by the time they're finishing up their dessert.
He also learns Eddie used to hate math in high school, but his father forced to get some tutoring classes and ended up being pretty good at it after some practice. Eddie also has like a hundred cousins, and two sisters that sound like they would love Maddie and gang up against them.
By the time they're leaving the restaurant, Buck is intrigued by Eddie Diaz like he's never been before— and he's also shocked by how much time has passed. Hours with Eddie felt like minutes, and Buck just wants more. More anecdotes, more little, funny facts about Eddie… just, more.
“I should probably be heading off,” Eddie says, idly checking his watch. “Have some errands to run very early in the morning tomorrow.”
“Oh, yeah, of course. That's, uh, okay.” Buck nods, the cars driving past them as he leans against the wall and looks at Eddie. “So…”
“Second date? I had a lot of fun tonight.” Eddie grins and Buck thinks he might pass out from relief.
“Yeah,” he echales and chuckles a little, bashfully smiling at the floor as he scratches the back of his neck. “I would love that.”
“I might be a little… busy, in the next couple of days or weeks. Family's in town, they can be a lot. But, I'll call you.” Eddie tilts his head and smirks, leaning forward a little until their noses are almost brushing against each other and Buck can feel Eddie’s warm breath fanning against his face, raising goosebumps all down his spine. “Promise.”
Buck rolls his lips into his mouth as his cheeks go red. “Can't wait.” He's almost certain that Eddie will close the distance and kiss him, but he pulls away at the last second and disappointment pools in his stomach.
He watches Eddie walk away, getting into a sleek black truck that ought to be keyed or stolen if he's not careful. (As a rookie, Buck's seen like a million of those sorts of cases.)
Eddie glances over his shoulder to give Buck one little smile, something Buck wants to hold and cherish in spite of only just meeting the guy a few hours ago. As the car skids away, Buck remains stuck in his place, emotions swirling inside of him as he reluctantly has to admit that Maddie did an amazing job of setting him up this time. She'll be so insufferable once she finds out, but Buck thinks it might be worth it.
—
Eddie doesn't know why he wants to go on a second date with Evan Buckley, a cop — the mere idea of it should be too ridiculous to even consider it for a fraction of a second… and yet, Eddie's heart threatens to fly out of his chest when he thinks of those blue eyes, that smile.
He should've stopped the date and walked away as soon as he found out Buck is a cop, but something kept him glued to his chair. Something made him want to see this through, as stupid and reckless as that might sound in his line of work.
Eddie’s playing with fire here, risking not only himself but everything he's built, everything he's fought for, everything he's accomplished carefully, painstakingly so. He's risking his life and Christopher's as they know it… but it's like a magnetic force is pulling him closer to Buck, more powerful than gravity itself. Hell, Eddie hasn't felt as giddy and excited about someone since he met Shannon back when he was just a dumb teenager full of hormones.
This feels different, though, like it could actually be something.
A part of Eddie resists, but it's very small. And well… he hasn't been caught yet. He's been smart and more than cautious, to a fault even. Buck's just a rookie. There's no reason why things should change at all, Eddie concludes.
Even if this thing ends up flickering out by the fifth date or whatever, Eddie just… he wants more. He always has, that's the problem.
He goes to sleep that night with a million calculations swirling in his mind, which is not unusual, but it's the first time Eddie takes into consideration someone who isn't Chris for the equation. And he wakes up four hours later, still thinking about Buck. The man might be a bigger problem than Eddie first thought of. He can't really afford d
stractions like that. But at the same time… it adds a new thrill to his system, makes his heart flutter like never before and has him smiling like a fool down to his phone eve. without any new texts to read.
Eddie watches the sunlight stream through his curtains as he finishes a third round of sit-ups on the floor of his apartment. The physical exertion helps a little—grounds him, quiets the itch under his skin that started the moment he got home from the date.
Buck.
The rookie cop with a crooked smile and a battered heart, someone who should be the last person Eddie allows into his carefully structured world.
But Buck’s eyes had lit up like a kid at Christmas when Eddie talked about Chris. And not in that fake, polite way people sometimes use when humoring parents—no, Buck had listened. Had cared. Had asked follow-up questions and laughed at Christopher's antics like he already knew him.
Eddie swears under his breath and pushes up off the floor. He can't afford this. Buck is a rookie now, but in a year? Two? He could be assigned to a case that leads him right to Eddie’s doorstep. Especially if Eddie keeps slipping—keeps entertaining the possibility of seeing him again.
He stops those thoughts right there and pushes them to the back of his head, shoving them into a tiny box and locking them there for later. Or never. Eddie's always been good at ignoring the blaring problems and he isn't going to stop now.
Still, he texts Buck, despite everything in his brain telling him it's a bad idea.
Had fun last night. We should do it again.
I'm free next Saturday, I think.
A while later, Eddie stands in a nondescript warehouse on the outskirts of town, blueprint-laden table in front of him, the buzz of fluorescent lights overhead. His crew, tight-knit and silent, waits for his go-ahead.
The plan is tight—flawless, like always.
But for the first time, Eddie finds himself distracted.
He should be thinking about the digital lock schematic and the exact guard rotation schedule. Instead, he’s thinking about Buck’s laugh and the way he’d said, “I’d love that,” with just a touch of disbelief in his voice—like people didn’t say yes to him very often.
“Diaz,” someone says, snapping him out of it.
He refocuses, sharp and efficient. “We hit the bank Tuesday. Five a.m. in and out in ten minutes. Masks stay on until we're in the clear. No mistakes.”
They all nod. No one questions him. No one ever does.
Because Eddie Diaz? He doesn't make mistakes.
Except… he’s seeing a cop.
—
He receives a text from Buck just when his crew is getting everything ready for the heist.
Great. Can't wait to see you. ;))