Work Text:
Tuesday
Bobby had begun to notice that the attention span of his team had dropped. The crew were too invested in what was going on with their phones than what was happening in the real world. Bobby understood that three of them: Hen, Eddie and Chim had kids, and had to have their phones on them in case of emergency, and that even Buck had to have his if Christopher's school couldn't reach Eddie, But this was getting ridiculous. As each member sat around the table for Bobby's famous Lasagna, they were still glued to their phones and Bobby had had enough.
“No phones at the dinner table,” Bobby sighed, settling his knife and fork back on the table he looked around.
“Yep, just one minute cap,” Buck responded, eyes still glued onto whatever Wikipedia page he was reading.
Feeling exasperated, Bobby stood up from his seat at the head of the table. He walked around removing the devices from every single person on his team. He was met with a range of moans and disgruntled sighs “Bobby, c'mon I was reading that,” Buck whined.
“You can't do that, Cap.” Hen rolled her eyes.
“I'm going to sue this goes against my rights.” Buck crossed his arms and sat slumped in his chair. The room had gone silent as all eyes faced him. “WHAT?” Buck raised his hands. “…noted don't joke about suing the department.” Buck glanced between Hen and Chim.
Bobby gathered the phones and put them in a box in his office. Taking his seat again, he looked at the table.
“Now we are going to say grace and enjoy a nice meal, without any distractions, understood?”
“Yes, Cap.” Everybody reluctantly agreed. As Bobby began to say grace the alarm began to blare throughout the station.
“Oh come on, who said the q-word.” Hen rolled her eyes as the cutlery was discarded as the team rushed to the engine.
Wednesday
Following a wine night – a regular event attended by Athena, Maddie, Karen and Eddie – Bobby had learnt that his team had no plans for the weekend. It was the perfect opportunity for Bobby to arrange for his team to go on a team building exercise to “help them reconnect with nature”.
The announcement caused Eddie sigh when yet another group chat had been created. Whilst Buck was left more perplexed by Hen and Chim who had randomly come out with “I just can't quit you” and “we could have had a real good life…But you didnt want it” which pressumed had been from a film, but Buck had only seen - if he had to guess - less than fifty films in his lifetime. Hen had dubbed herself Buck’s fairy godmother in an effort to support him after he came out as bisexual. She made it her mission to show him significant moments in queer culture including films and had insisted on a movie night.
To prepare for the trip Hen had hosted a movie night after finding out Buck hadn't seen Brokeback Mountain, after Bucks coming out Hen had made it her mission to support Buck and provide him with significant moments of queer culture, that included films as well. Where there are films, there's Chim and where there's Buck there's Eddie, which is how the four of them ended up watching Brokeback Mountain at hers.
Halfway through the film, Hen had gone to top up everyone's drinks - dubbing herself ‘the hostess with the mostess’ as she shimmed into the kitchen - returning moments later with four beers in tow. She sat them down on the coffee table before taking her seat next to Chim.
“Is this really the best “camping” film to watch?” Chim took a swig of his beer.
“What? I like it?” Hen laughed. “And besides by the looks of things I'm not the only one.” Hen and Chim both glanced over to where Eddie and Buck were sitting.
“Did you know Anne Hathaway lied about being able to ride a horse to get the role?” Buck glanced up at Eddie, waiting for a response.
Eddie's eyes had remained glued to the screen.As he watched the two men on screen sit in silence with nothing but each other's company, he let his mind wander to all the time he and Buck had found themselves in a similar situation.
“Eddie?” Buck's voice was barely above a whisper as he leaned into Eddie's space, knees pressed together just like how they always were at home or in the engine. It was comfortable and grounding. Eddie felt his breath hitch as he blinked away the stray tear.
"Eddie? Are you okay?” Buck brushed his pinkie against the back of Eddie's palm. Eddie glanced at their hands before looking at Buck with a sympathetic smile.
“Yeah Buck, I'm okay…it's just reminding me of growing up in Texas." Eddie reached over to take the first sip of his now lukewarm beer. Wincing at the taste, he disregarded it on the table.
Buck shuffled in his seat. Slinging an arm over the back of the couch, he sucked in a breath.
“Are you okay?” Eddie asked, noticing Buck’s discomfort.
“Yeah, it's just my leg it's seizing up I'll be fine.” Buck sucked in a sharp breath.
Eddie looked over at Buck, quirking a brow as he bent down to rummage through his work bag, grabbing the ointment cream and paracetamol.
“Hen, can I get a glass of water?” Eddie rattled the bottle of painkillers.
“Yeah of course is everything alright?” Eddie nodded as she walked out the room.
“Yeah, Buck's leg is just acting up.” Eddie looked over at Buck. He patted his thighs. Buck swung his legs onto Eddie's lap.
Hen returned with the glass of water, placing a hand onto Buck’s shoulder.
“Are you going to be alright?” Hen handed Buck the water.
“Yeah, I'm surrounded by three of LA’s finest paramedics.” Buck flashed Hen a smile.
Hen walked around the coffee table towards the other sofa and plopped down on the empty spot next to Chim.
“What was all that about?” Chim muttered.
“Buck was having a flair up.” Hen explained.
“God they are so married,” Chim laughed to himself.
“Not yet, but maybe after this weekend.” Hen raised her bottle and clicked it against Chim’s.
“Happy pride month, I guess.” Chim and Hen laughed.
“To the gays.” Hen nodded
“TO THE GAYS,” Chim cheered breaking whatever trance Buck and Eddie had found themselves in as their eyes now focused on him. Chim muttered an apology.
Shortly after everyone's eyes became glued back onto the final twenty minutes of the film. Eddie only cried two more times whilst Buck and Chim both wept profusely. Even Hen let out a few silent sobs, which she blamed on hormones.
Thursday
“Eddie, are you sure we have everything?” Buck said, clipboard in hand. “Maybe I should double-check, did you pack the mosquito spray?”
“For the thousandth time Buck, yes we have the bug spray,” Eddie said as he re-entered the living room, putting on his jacket. “And we also have the first aid kit before you ask, you watched me pack it last night, and then we not only double-checked this morning, but we've been over the checklist at least six times by now.”
Eddie gave a small touch to Buck's shoulder and presented him with a reassuring smile, before continuing to look for his keys.
“Seven.” Buck mumbled to himself.
“What's seven?” Eddie gave Buck a quizzical look after making his way to the door. Buck swung the bag over one of his shoulders.
“The number of times I checked this bag, it was seven, not six.”
Eddie rolled his eyes “Just get in the truck, Buck.”
The drive to Kagel Canyon was pretty uneventful. Buck had prepared a camping playlist for their journey,which mostly consisted of songs from John Denver and Bob Dylan. Eddie didn't mind as he was enjoying the comfortable silence the pair had found themselves in.
“I haven't been camping in so long, I'm looking forward to it,” Eddie said, tapping his thumbs against the steering wheel.
“Yeah, I haven't been camping, since I was in the scouts” Buck deadpanned.
“You weren't in the scouts,” Eddie laughed before stealing a glance In Buck's direction. “Oh shit, you're being serious.” Eddie glared between Buck and the road.
“No, well I mean... Technically I was only a scout for an hour,” Buck countered. Eddie raised a brow. “There was this boy who dared me to eat these berries…” Buck adjusted himself so he was now looking at Eddie.
“No, Buck you didn't.” Eddie's eyes glanced over to Buck as he let out a sympathetic breath. Buck let out a small laugh.“I did," he said wincing with humiliation as he recalled the moment “I ended up looking like a puffer fish” Buck jested with his hands as he blew out his cheeks. Both men broke out into fits of laughter as they pulled into their meeting spot.
Sitting in the bed of the truck admiring the vast view of the Canyon, they waited for the rest of the team to arrive. As Buck had over planned how long the drive would take, they had gotten there an extra hour early. Shielding his eyes from the sun, Eddie watched as Buck rummaged through the backpack.
“What, it's better to be over prepared than under prepared, and besides, it’s bad luck to be late.” Buck handed Eddie a bottle of water.
“It's a team building exercise, not a wedding.” Eddie took a gulp of the water. Buck stared in awe as he watched Eddie's adam’s apple bob up and down. He looked Eddie up and down while he basks in the warm sunlight.
Ever since their movie night, Buck had begun to understand his feelings better which led him to re-evaluate his and Eddie's friendship. He remembered Maddie referring to it as a “boy crush” - maybe she was right. She always said “sisters know better”
“Buck.” Eddie nudged the bottle back into his direction.
“Huh, did you say something.” Buck looked down and grabbed the water. “Oh, yeah, thank you” he said, wriggling the bottle back into the side of the bag.
“I think we should move out of the sun, we don't want you getting heat stroke before everyone's arrived.” Eddie slid off the back of the truck and made his way over to a large tree. “Unless you want it to be like a repeat of you ‘boy scout days’, Eddie joked, knocking his shoulder against Buck’s.
It wasn't until an hour and a half later that Bobby arrived, shortly followed by Hen and Chim who decided to carpool together.
“Guys settle this debate: would you rather be stuck in the woods with a bear or a man?” Chim demanded “Hen says bear but I…”
Sharing a look Buck and Eddie turned to Chim.
“Bear” they said in unison before Chim had even finished his sentence.
“Sorry Chim.” Buck clasped his hands together.
“Yeah, better luck next time,”Eddie added. Both men patted him on the shoulder.
Eddie begun to walk ahead to help Hen carry the tent bags while Buck made a b-line towards their captain.
“So how long is the walk?” Buck peeked at the map Bobby was holding.
“About 45 minutes, it's not that far,” Bobby said. Buck hummed to himself.
“Nature is so beautiful, isn't it?” Buck studied every tree, rock and creature they passed. Bobby squinted towards Buck's direction.
“Yes Buck, I guess it is,” Bobby smiled.
“I love nature,” Buck yelled, causing Eddie to grin and shake his head.
“How long do you think it will take them to realise?” Hen muttered to Chim.
“Well it's been over seven years that I've had to deal with these two verbally edging each other. I think this trip will break them,” Chim lightly giggled, raising a hand out to Hen. “Bet?”
“Bet.” The pair shook hands. Now they just had to wait.
The walk to the camp site took nearly over an hour. Buck complained he would die if he couldn't use the toilet.
“Man, I hate nature,” Buck huffed.
“But I thought you said: ‘I love nature’. ‘It's so beautiful,’” Chim mocked.
“Well, that was before, now I hate it.” Buck sulked.
“You only hate it because you tripped and fell into manure,” Hen said, trying and failing to hold her laugh alongside Eddie and Chim.
“Cap,” Buck pleaded, pointing to the trio now behind him as they clutched at their sides.
“Hey, everyone just settle down, the camp is just ahead. There is a river nearby so we won't have to put up with the stench for too long.” Bobby continued to march on.
“Bobby it's not that bad, c’mon.” Buck pulled at his shirt and inhaled. “Okay. Maybe it is that bad.”
Chim and Hen scrunched up their noses at Buck as they passed him.
Eddie chose to hang back and walk side by side with Buck, cautiously as he tried not to knock into him.
“You can go on without me if you want.” Buck offered. “I won't be offended.” He plastered on a smile as he turned toward Eddie.
“Don't be ridiculous, like Bobby said it's right there. Plus, I've smelt worse.” Eddie grinned back at Buck.
Chim glanced over his shoulder at the pair who was now laughing.
“Are they?” Chim paused he turned his attention back towards Hen.
“You know what, if that isn't love I don't know what is” Hen shook her head and continued to follow her captain.
The campsite was an empty clearing next to a scenic river that flowed gently in front of the fire pit.
After they dumped their bags, Bobby set out a criteria list: pitch tents, gather firewood and, most importantly, Buck was to clean himself up. Bobby decided to remain at the camp to prepare dinner.
Hen and Chim managed to pitch their tent in “record time” according to the loud whoop and high five that came from their direction. Eddie was still struggling to understand how his went together. It was hard enough building a tent itself, but he had decided to pack the tent that belonged to his Tía, which didn't even come with instructions and he swore had pieces missing.
Reluctantly he decided to give in and wait until Buck had come back from washing up, instead opting to help gather wood for the fire. As he walked into the forest, he began picking up odd pieces of wood and sticks. Eddie recalled Buck saying dried leaves and bark could act as kindling, so he added them to his pile that was getting bigger.
He made his way down a path that opened out to the stream. Eddie took in the natural beauty, feeling a sense of peace wave over him, he reached into his pocket for his phone so he could take a photo for Chris. When he moved, he felt the logs slip from his grip and thud against the large stones at the riverbed.
“Shit,” he muttered to himself, as his phone had also slipped out his grasp and landed into the river. Removing his boots, he waded into the cold water.
“Hello,” Eddie heard a familiar voice echo out. He looked down toward where the voice came from and saw Buck standing in the water, his hair golden in the sun and his body gleaming with a mixture of water and sweat due to the heat.
Eddie couldn't help but stare at his best friend. He had begun to do some reflecting with Father Brian, trying to unpack his feelings when it comes to his relationships, which lead to him doing a Google deep dive on internalised homophobia and repression, after he realised that the role of his partner and co-parent to Chris had already been filled by the half-naked man that stood in front of him.
“Hey Eddie,” Buck shouted, waving Eddie over. “The waters nice, huh.” He smiled. Slowly he made his way over to Eddie's direction.
“Fuck” Eddie cursed himself “not now” feeling himself harden. He patted himself down, turning in a state of panic he began to sink himself deeper into the river to help conceal not only his manhood but his dignity.
He noticed his phone at the bottom of the riverbed grabbing it he quickly pocketed it.
Eddie felt a tap on his shoulder.
“Hey.” Buck gleamed. He looked down at Eddie with fondness in his eyes. “What are you doing there, Eddie?” His voice filled with a hit of playfulness as he gently splashed water in Eddie's direction.
“Nothing. Just enjoying the water,” Eddie flicked the water back in Buck's direction.
“Why are you fully clothed, swimming in the shallowest part of the river?” Buck inched closer to Eddie, smirking. Eddie's gaze wouldn't leave Buck’s.
“I, um-” Eddie stuttered, feeling his throat suddenly become dry. He grabbed his smashed phoned from his pocket and passed it towards Buck. “I dropped my phone in the river. I was trying to take a picture of the sunset for Christopher.” Suddenly Eddie felt a warm flush creeping up in his cheeks. He cleared his throat.
Buck inched away from Eddie's face, trying to figure out if he understood it right.
“So you're sat, fully clothed in a shallow part of a river because you dropped your phone?” He questioned, not fully believing the other.
“Yes, Buck. That is exactly what I am saying,” Eddie huffed out. He stuffed the phone back in his pocket.
“No other reason?” Buck’s tone had become playful. He put a hand to Eddie's shoulder.
Eddie shook his head “nope, no other reason”.
Buck moved his hand down Eddie's torso.
“Only because I could have sworn I caught you watching me.” He smirked. Eddie was now lost in a trance. He could feel his chest tighten. His breathing had become hitched. Buck leaned in close to Eddie's ear. “I don't mind, I find it flattering.” He whsipered before he gave Eddie a little shove to the chest, causing him to fall backwards into the water.
Eddie sat looking up at Buck, spitting out the water that had ended up in his mouth. Buck loomed over him. He laughed at how cute Eddie looked when he was mad.
“C'mon Buck. Help me up before it gets dark.” Eddie reached out his hand.Buck immediatly grabbed it., Eddie gave Buck’s hand a strong pull and dragged the other man down with him, Buck falling face first on top of Eddie. Buck choked out gasp as he felt the bulge in Eddie's pants press against his thigh.
“Is that a phone in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me” Buck flirted before Eddie had pushed him off.
Somewhere in the distance they hear a small branch break, startling Buck.
“Eddie did you hear that?” Buck’s voice was laced with a hint of fear.
“It was probably just a deer or some other animal, we should really head back.” Eddie glanced towards the forest path.
“Ouch” chim winced as the branch flicked against his shin.
“Chim I told you to watch where you step.” Hen smacked the man's chest.
“I did, but it's hard when most of the ground is made up of sticks,” he replied through gritted teeth.
Hen stopped her tracks as she spotted Eddie and Buck inches away from each looking in her and Chims direction she ducked down behind a large boulder pulling Chim by the wrist to join her.
She pulled out her phone and began to record the two men in the water as Chim scoffed.
“You need to be more careful, we can't let them know that we know,” Hen whispered.
“And what exactly do we know?” Chim said, his tone full of sarcasm.
“Well, for starters whatever this was.” Hen pulled out her phone and showed Chim the photo she had taken mere seconds ago, of the two men inches away from each other.
“Yeah that's… wow. They are either so obvious or they're playing us at our own game,” Chim said. He and Hen both shared a glance before they broke into fits of laughter.
“Yeah, those boys are oblivious. Neither are smart enough to pull this off as a prank.” Hen shook her head and begun to walk back in the direction of camp.
Back at the camp, with Buck’s help Eddie had managed to successfully pitch a tent.
Bobby had prepared a grill of vegetables and burgers using a little camping stove Athena had gifted him for his birthday.
Hen and Chim had managed to get the fire going after the third attempt. After finishing up with their food everyone has took up a spot around the cozy fire. Hen passed a bag of marshmallows around the campfire found screwers for toasting.
Bobby sat in his chair reading a survivalist guide.
As the bag found its way towards Buck he discarded his skewer and stuffed his cheek with marshmallows instead.
“Chubby bunny,” he muffled through his mouthful.
Eddie couldn't help but smile. His feelings for Buck were becoming too difficult to bottle up. He decided he would confess when they went back to their tent tonight.
Eddie grabbed a handful of marshmallows from the bag and mimicked Buck, causing Buck to snort and choke on his.
“I'm not going to be the one to give you first aid if you choke. I'm off duty,” Hen stated. Buck coughed out the marshmallows that were in his mouth.
“Gross.” Chim scrunched up his nose at the two men who might as well be sitting in each other's laps.
Eddie and Buck placed a marshmallow at the end of their skewers and began toasting them over the open flame.
“Buck, Eddie they're for sharing,” Bobby murmured without looking up from his book.
“Yeah Buck,” Eddie teased as Buck brought his toasted mallow to his mouth. “You need to share.” Eddie maintained eye contact as he blew on the toasted mallow before he bit it off the stick. He smirked at his best friend when he noticed how flush Buck’s face had become.
“Payback’s a bitch,” Eddie whispered so only Buck could hear before winking in his direction.
Hen rumaged through her bag pulling out chocolate and a pack of graham crackers opting to make smores, she leans into Chim “I'm calling it, tonight” Hen snickered.
“Oh, come on, we both can't bet tonight,” Chim said, throwing his hands in the air, his voice slightly raised. It interrupted whatever flirtation was going on between Buck and Eddie.
“What bet?” Eddie asked as he and Buck turned to face Hen and Chim.
“There's a bet? Cut us in?” Buck exclaimed.
Bobby peers behind his book, he notices how Buck has leaned in closer to Eddie and that the sweatshirt Eddie is now wearing is definitely one of Bucks due to the way he drowns in it.
Bobby's eyes darted between the group, he closes his book he digs around his pocket.
“I don't even know what the bet is but put me down for five dollars tonight at eleven.” Bobby passed over the bill towards Hen. "Well, I look forward to seeing you up at 8am sharp for breakfast." Bobby picked up his book and tucked it under his arm. “Maybe you lot should think about getting some sleep too before it gets late.” He walked over to his tent as his team muttered casual good nights to him and each other.
The topic of the bet was dropped not long after Hen had made up an excuse about it being a hypothetical one, involving who would be the first person to get a rash from using a poisonous leaf as toilet paper.
Everyone had begun to make their way to their own tents. Buck had begun to unpack his bag, handing Eddie one of the two sleeping bags that he had packed. He continued to rummage through the bags although soon realised he couldn’t find the second one.
“Where is it?” Buck tossed his spare clothes out of the bag with a dramatic exhale. Eddie turned his attention to unzipping the sleeping bag Buck had just given him, biting his lip to stifle a laugh. Buck begun mumbling to himself. “I know I packed it. I checked the checklist.” He pushed the bag aside and let out a sigh. Eddie threw over the unzipped sleeping bag, opting to use it as a blanket, lifted it up and patted the space next to him.
“C’mere,” he looked at Buck with a glint in his eye.
“Eddie, I can't. I know I packed another one,” Buck insisted. Turning to face Buck, Eddie reached out and grabbed Buck's forearm.
“Buck, it's ok.” His voice soothed Buck as he brushed his fingers against his skin. Buck raised his head looking in Eddie's direction.
“No, Eddie, it's not,” Buck said, shaking Eddie's arm off him. Eddie, unsure of what to do, shuffled closer to Buck, worried that he had been misreading Buck's playfulness as something more. His eyes remained frozen in Buck's direction. Buck's eyes had begun to glaze over.
“What's not? What's wrong Buck? You can talk to me.” Eddie pressed his side against Buck’s. Exhaling, Buck closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
“Us, we're not-” Buck’s words faltered. Eddie's expression shifted to a look of concern as a frown plagued his face.
“Buck, hey listen, it's okay, we're okay Buck.” Eddie placed a hand to Buck's cheek, wiping the tears that fell from his eyes.
“Eddie, I can't.” He stuttered “I can't do this, it hurts too much.”
Buck dropped his gaze, burning a hole into the tent’s floor. Eddie's hand slid down to Buck’s, he tilted his head up.
“Buck what do you mean?” His eyes flickered between Buck’s, trying to read his expression.
“I can't keep flirting back and forth with you Eddie, it's cruel, especially if you don't like me like…” Before Buck could finish his sentence, Eddie's hand brushed away another tear. His hand found its way into Buck's curls as he leaned into a tender kiss that, slowly, Buck began to reciprocate. As Buck’s tongue crept into Eddie's mouth, Eddie nipped at Buck's bottom lip before he pulled himself off the other man.
“I'm sorry Buck.” Eddie offered a sympathetic smile as Buck looked at him with a bewildered expression. “I was going to tell you tonight that I-I- I'm sorry wow is it hot in here?”
Eddie wiped his hands on his shirt, before reaching out to take Buck’s hand in his. Buck looked at where their hands entwined. He hade heard of people having a thing for hands, but he never really appreciated it until now. Eddie kept talking.
“I came to the realisation a couple of months back during a therapy appointment with Frank, that I may see… you. I might see you as more than a friend.” Eddie paused, staring at Buck, trying to read the other man's expression. “Like yeah you're my best friend and my partner at work, but maybe you should also be my partner at home, I mean you already are that…”
Buck took a fistful of Eddie's shirt and pulled him in for a second kiss. This one was more passionate and caught Eddie by surprise. Buck's hands begun to explore Eddie's body. He removedEddie's shirt in the procress, while he trailed kisses along Eddie's neck and latched himself onto it, sucking a bruise over his pulse point. Eddie closed his eyes.
As Eddie hummed satisfying sounds, he felt something tickle his leg.
“Buck, stop that tickles” Eddie laughed. Buck paused.
“Why are you laughing?” Buck pulled away and faced Eddie.
“Because you were ticking my leg” Eddie leaned back into the kiss but Buck pulled away. Eddie’s thumb rubbed small circles into Buck's shoulder. Buck stared at Eddie with a look of confusion which quickly turned to a flirty smirk.
"There are easier ways to tell me you're turned on," Buck laughed before going back to kissing Eddie's neck, his hands moving down his torso.
Eddie twitched his leg to shake the sensation.
“No, Buck, can you, can you just stop that for a minute please.” Buck let out a hot sigh and pouted at Eddie.
“You did it again you were tickling my leg” Eddie accused.
“No, I wasn’t, look my hands have not moved.” Buck said. Eddie looked down to see Buck’s hands griping his sides. In the corner of his sight, he saw a spider on his upper thigh at the seam of his shorts.
“AHH, BUCK GET IT OFF” Eddie jumped begging Buck to get it off.
Eddie began frantically patting himself down unable to stay still.
“I will if you calm down and stop moving,” Buck said, struggling to contain his laughter.
“IT'S NOT FUNNY BUCK, HELP ME,” Eddie half-screamed.
“Okay, okay.” Buck raised his hands. “Is this, okay?” He placed his hands on Eddies' thigh, slowly ushering the spider towards his hands. However the spider had other ideas. It proceeded to climb up underneath Eddie's shorts.
“BUCK,” Eddie screamed. He started to wriggle out of his shorts. “GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF.” Breathing was beyond Eddie’s control now, his breath sharp and unsteady.
The chaos was quickly interrupted as their tent opened. Hen, Chim and Bobby all poked their heads through the opening.
“Are you guys okay? we heard screaming.” Bobby rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and squinted at the half naked men. Eddie froze and tried to cover what little dignity he had left by standing behind Buck.
“This isn't what it looks like,” Buck insisted with a deadpan look.
“What time is it?” Bobby inquired, looking towards Hen. She checked her watch.
“It's eleven thirty-six.” Hen glanced up at Bobby. She refused to look at Buck and Eddie. Eddie and Buck glanced at one another, confused. Bobby smirked victoriously.
“Pay up.” Bobby held out his hand. Hen and Chim dug around their pockets and handed over the money.
“Wait… you were betting on us.” Eddie could not believe the levels his team had stooped to.
“Goodnight,” Bobby grinned before he, Chim and Hen made their way out of the tent. “And remember this is a work trip. Keep it professional on the job.” Bobby called back. Eddie dropped his head onto Buck’s shoulder.
“We aren't going to live that down, are we?” Eddie mumbled into the curve of Buck’s neck.
“Nope,” Buck stated making sure to emphasise the p.
“I just can't quit you, Eddie Diaz” Buck stated before placing a kiss to the top of Eddie's head.
On the walk back to his and Hen’s tent, Chim shook his head in disbelief.
“They are going to be so insufferable now,” he said. Hen laughed.
“Like they weren't already, at least now they're self-aware.” Chim’s face suddenly crumpled.
“Oh my God, I need to tell Maddie.” He dug out his phone and sent a quick text to his wife. Hen quickly did the same sending Karen a quick message ‘lost the bet’ before they settled back into their sleeping bags for the night.
After finally getting settled, Buck finally started to drift to sleep. The spider was gone, and all was peaceful. Until he felt the vibration of his phone buzz against the nylon of the tent. It lit up.
“Who's texting you this late?” Eddie sleepily grumbled from behind Buck, his chest glued to Buck’s back.
“I don't know.” Buck reached over to grab his phone. Maddie's name appeared in big letters across the screen. He had 2 missed calls and half a dozen messages.This must be important, he thought, worrying something had happened to Jee or baby Robert, so he called back.
“Hey Maddie, is everything okay with you and Jee and the baby?” Buck sat up, ready to sprint into action.
“You and Eddie,” Maddie practically screamed down the phone, startling even Eddie despite not being on loud speaker. Buck frowned.
“Who told you?” Buck stated before it dawned on him with a sigh. He and Eddie shared a look before together they voiced what was obvious: “Chim.”
“Goodnight Maddie,” Buck cut off her screeching as he removed the phone from his ear to hang it up and return to Eddie's warm embrace.
The two of them stayed like that until they both fell asleep.