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“So… how’s Buck’s dance practice going?”
Eddie turns to look at Hen briefly as she joins him in looking over the railing. After a moment, they both stare down at the empty bay in the fire station where Buck’s dancing with a man who looks remarkably like he could be Eddie’s twin.
“Shouldn’t you be asking Buck that question?” Eddie eventually responds. “He’s the one dancing, after all. Him and Eduardo,” he adds, trying not to glare while saying the other man’s name.
“And yet here you are”—Hen pauses for dramatic effect—“watching”—Hen pauses again—“yet again.”
“Is there something you’d like to say, Henrietta?” Hen gives him a look, and Eddie immediately regrets his decision. “Right, sorry; that may have been slightly uncalled for.”
“May have?” Hen raises an eyebrow. “Buck’s got you all kinds of messed up over this, hasn’t he?”
Eddie keeps his face blank. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I think you do.”
“Pretty sure I don’t.”
He very much does know what Hen’s talking about, and he wishes she’d drop it.
“On the upside, the charity event’s tonight,” Hen points out. “You won’t have to see them together after that.”
“You never know,” Eddie grumbles. “Buck might start dating him, and then they’ll get married because Buck’s amazing. And then I’ll have to watch them dance together for the rest of our lives while wallowing in my own misery.”
Hen levels him with an unimpressed look. “Really?”
Eddie shrugs. “It could happen.”
Eddie goes back to glaring.
“You know, if you told him how you feel…” Hen trails off, and Eddie studiously avoids making eye contact. “Eddie! Come on, you’re being ridiculous. It’s obvious Buck loves you back.”
“It’s not obvious, actually,” Eddie throws back at her. “It’s entirely up for debate.”
“What happened to all that silver star bravery Buck’s constantly bragging about?”
Eddie grimaces. “I think getting shot at again is more appealing than ruining my relationship with my best friend by telling him I’m in love with him.”
“Wow.” Hen stares at him judgementally, and Eddie resists the urge to shrink under her gaze. “That’s not excessive at all.”
Buck laughs at something Eduardo says, and Eddie’s eyes snap back towards them again. He watches as Eduardo gets his stupid hands all over Buck as he helps him with positioning for the next part of their dance.
“You know what’s excessive?” Eddie points at Buck’s dance partner. “How much Eduardo feels the need to touch the love of my life.”
Hen shakes her head in response, backing away. “I think I’m gonna leave you to it.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Eddie responds, not taking his eyes off of Buck and Eduardo. “Leave me to my eternal suffering.”
*
Eddie manages to make it through the rest of their shift without pushing Eduardo in front of a moving vehicle. It’s a close call when the other man has the nerve to put his hands on Buck’s waist eight more times for whatever reason—probably to adjust his stance, but Eddie doesn’t really care about his excuses—and it leaves Eddie feeling glad that Eduardo will be gone from their lives after tonight.
“How was practice?” Eddie asks later, as they’re getting dressed for the charity event. “You and Eduardo looked good today.”
The words pain him, but Buck knowing how good his dancing has gotten is more important than his unrequited feelings.
“Thanks, man, it was pretty good actually. I think I’m as ready as I’m ever gonna be,” Buck says, struggling to adjust his tie in the mirror. “Damn it,” Buck mumbles after a moment. “You know, I’ve never quite gotten the hang of these damn things.”
Eddie looks over in time to see Buck untying his tie and starting from scratch. He sighs, and walks over towards Buck.
“Here,” Eddie says, reaching out for the tie as Buck turns towards him, “let me.”
Buck hands it over without argument—almost glad to be rid of the responsibility—and it takes Eddie no time at all to have it perfectly tied for him. Before he lets go, he allows himself a single moment for his gaze to drift down Buck’s body and admire him in his suit.
Buck’s beautiful, and for a split second Eddie considers telling him how he feels.
“I—” Eddie tries to tell him, he really does, but the words won’t come out.
“Huh?” Buck questions, meeting Eddie’s eyes. “What’s wrong?”
Eddie feels faint.
“Nothing,” he says with a reassuring smile, dropping his hands. “You ready to go?”
For a moment it looks like Buck might push, but then he looks down at his watch and sees the time. “Shit, yeah, we’d better get going or we’re gonna be late.”
Buck exits their temporarily shared bedroom—because yeah, that’s still a thing—and Eddie pats his suit down as he stares at himself in the mirror.
“You can do this,” he tells himself. “You can tell Buck you’re in love with him. Everything will be fine.”
He tries very hard to believe his own words as he heads out to join Buck in the car.
*
“You’re gonna be amazing,” Eddie reassures Buck as they enter the charity event. “You don’t need to be nervous.”
“How d’you know I’m nervous?” Buck asks, very much nervously. “I could be fine.”
Eddie stifles a laugh. “I know you better than I know myself some days, you think I can’t tell when you’re nervous?”
“Good point,” Buck concedes.
They make their way further into the makeshift ballroom, Eddie directing them towards the bar.
“Should I really be drinking?” Buck asks.
Eddie rolls his eyes. “You know they have water too, right?”
“Right.”
“Seriously, are you okay? You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. Nobody’s going to be upset if you say you aren’t up for it. You had a rough shift, they’ll understand.”
“I know everyone would understand,” Buck sighs. “But it’s not that.”
“Then what is it?”
“I—” Buck swallows audibly. “I don’t think I know the dance.”
Eddie’s brow furrows.
“Don’t be stupid,” he says, fully aware of how much time Buck’s spent practicing because he’s been there for every second of it. “You know the dance. You’re going to be fine.”
“What if I forget all the steps?”
“You’re not going to forget all the steps,” Eddie reassures him with an affectionate eye roll.
Buck huffs. “But what if I do?”
“Then Eduardo—as much as I hate to admit it—will cover for you and guide you through it seamlessly.” Eddie manages to force the words out despite his deep-rooted hatred for the other man. “I used to have to do it for some of my dance partners back in the day.”
“When you used to ballroom dance,” Buck says, grinning now. “I bet you were adorable.”
Eddie flushes. “Weren’t you nervous a minute ago? Why don’t we go back to that?”
“No, no,” Buck persists. “I’m fine now. You reassured me.”
“Oh I did, did I?”
“Yep, everything’s gonna be fine,” Buck insists. “Eduardo’s all I need to get through this. As long as I’ve got Eduardo, everything will be fine. ”
Eddie opens his mouth to respond, but he’s cut off by the arrival of a young woman with a headset attached to her ear.
“Firefighter Buckley?” she asks, looking between the two of them. “I was told one of you was Firefighter Buckley?”
“Yeah, that’s me,” Buck says, pointing towards himself. “Do I know you?”
“Hi, no, my name’s Bobbelina,” she holds a hand out for Buck to shake. “I’m one of the assistants helping organise everything tonight.”
“Oh, that’s—”
“Sorry, Firefighter Buckley, it’s just, I’m here to tell you that your dance partner, Mister, uh”—Bobbelina glances down at her clipboard—“Eduardo Doppel-Ganger fell down a flight of stairs earlier, and—”
“Oh god, is he okay?” Buck interrupts, looking rather concerned. “He’s not—”
“He’s got a broken ankle,” Bobbelina regretfully informs them. “He won’t be able to dance tonight.”
Buck deflates at that. “Oh.”
“I’m really sorry, Firefighter Buckley, a few of the other girls out back were saying how excited you’ve been for tonight when we got the news just before, and I really do feel awful. I wish there was a way you could still dance, but…”
Eddie tunes Bobbelina out, going over the facts in his head.
Buck’s been looking forward to this for weeks.
Buck needs a dance partner who knows his routine.
None of the other dancers can step in, because every pairing has their own slightly unique routine. Not to mention, they’re all dancing at the same time.
Buck needs a dance partner who knows his routine and who isn’t dancing with anyone else.
“Okay, okay,” Eddie mumbles, as the realisation hits him. “Okay.”
Bobbelina stops talking, and Buck turns to look at him. “Okay?”
“Okay,” Eddie confirms. “I may not be able to get you an Eduardo, but I can get you an Eddie.”
“What?” Buck asks, sounding utterly confused.
“Me,” Eddie says, as if it should be obvious. “I’ll dance with you.”
“But—but you don’t know the routine!”
“Oh, but I do.” Eddie runs a hand through his hair nervously. “Every time you’ve practiced at the station with Eduardo, I’ve been watching. I could dance your routine in my sleep at this point.”
“Are you being serious right now?” Buck sounds cautiously hopeful. “Because if you are…”
“What do you say?” Eddie holds a hand out towards Buck. “May I have this dance?”
Buck flushes a delicious pink, but reaches out to take Eddie’s hand after a moment of hesitation. “I mean, if you’re sure, I’d—I’d love to.”
Eddie grins at him
“Okay…” Bobbelina’s voice appears out of nowhere. “So, Firefighter Buckley’s dancing after all?”
“Yes, uh”—Eddie clears his throat, letting Buck’s hand fall from his—“Firefighter Buckley will be dancing tonight.”
Bobbelina looks down to scribble something on her clipboard before looking up at Eddie again. “And you are…?”
“Firefighter Diaz,” Buck announces proudly. “He’s my partner.”
“Oh!” Bobbelina exclaims, brightening immediately. “That’s so sweet! You two are an adorable couple,” she says, hugging her clipboard to her chest as she smiles brightly at them. “Don’t worry, I’ll go make sure everyone knows the change in plans right away. I hope you enjoy the rest of your night!”
Bobbelina scurries off without waiting for a response.
“Is it just me, or did she get weird all of a sudden?”
Eddie looks at Buck incredulously for a moment before barking out a laugh. “You realise she thought you were saying we’re together, right?”
Buck looks at him, horrified, and Eddie watches in real time as he goes over their conversation, and—
“Right, yeah, no, I see how she might have—” Buck cuts himself off as Eddie snorts. “It was an accident!”
Eddie shakes his head affectionately in response.
“Come on,” he says, walking in the direction of the one-eighteen’s designated table. “We should go sit down and tell everyone about the change in plans.”
He also plans to take full advantage of Buck being distracted by their friends to give himself a pep talk.
Spontaneously volunteering himself to waltz with the love of his life in front of a room full of people? Maybe not the best idea.
*
Buck disappears somewhere almost as soon as they reach their table, and Eddie takes the opportunity to slip into the seat beside Hen.
“I think I’ve made a mistake,” Eddie says, loud enough for Hen to hear but nobody else.
Hen turns towards him, a concerned look on her face. “How big are we talking?”
“One of the assistants just told Buck that Eduardo fell down a flight of stairs earlier.”
Hen looks at him wide-eyed. “Tell me you didn’t push that man down—”
“What?” Eddie hisses, cutting her off frantically. “No! I didn’t push Eduardo down a flight of stairs. What the hell, Hen?”
“Sorry, sorry,” Hen apologises. “It’s just, you were really jealous the other day when you were talking about him dancing with Buck. It’s not that crazy of a conclusion for someone to jump to.”
“Well I didn’t push Eduardo down a flight of stairs.” Eddie closes his eyes, praying for strength. “It’s worse.”
“Worse than pushing a man down a flight of stairs?”
Eddie nods. “I volunteered myself to take his place and dance with Buck.”
Hen’s silent for a few seconds. “And…”
“And?” Eddie frowns. “That’s it. I have to waltz with Buck in front of everyone and—”
“You need to stop watching those telenovelas your Aunt keeps sending you,” is Hen’s response. “Your flair for the dramatic has been getting out of control for a while now, but this is taking it to a whole new level.”
Eddie leans in closer. “Did you forget I’m in love with him?”
“Did you forget he’s in love with you too?” Hen throws back at him with zero hesitation.
“You have no proof of that.”
“I have eyes,” Hen says, as if it’s obvious. “Which is why you should listen to me, and tell Buck how you feel.”
Eddie sits back in his seat, groaning to himself.
“You’re impossible,” he complains, pouring himself a glass of water to have something to do with his hands. “Where’s Karen?”
Hen shakes her head in response, and refuses to give up her wife’s location.
Eddie moves on to giving himself the pep talk he’d been planning initially.
*
Less than an hour later, Eddie’s suffering is far worse than he’d ever expected.
They’re on the dance floor; he’s got his right hand resting comfortably on Buck’s left shoulder blade, and Buck’s left hand is gripping his bicep maybe a little more firmly than he technically should. Their other hands are clasped together out to the side of their bodies, and for the first time while dancing, Eddie’s having to hold his hand higher to be level with his dance partner’s eyes.
The music picks up, and Eddie offers Buck an encouraging smile. “You ready?”
“Uh, no?” Buck says nervously, staring at him wide-eyed.
“Too late,” Eddie says, gently guiding Buck into taking his first step backwards perfectly in time with all the other dancers. “Don’t worry, I’ve got you.”
They manage to complete a right turning box without any issues, but Buck’s still nervous.
“Back, side, together,” Buck mumbles as they move. “Forward, side, together.”
Eddie chuckles. “You know what you’re doing, you don’t need to say your steps out loud.”
“Okay Mister Texas Ballroom Dancing Champion,” Buck jokes, sounding a little strained. “Whatever you say.”
“You know that isn’t a thing, right?”
Buck ignores him, and as they shift to progress around the dance floor, Buck starts counting. “One, two, three—”
“Buck,” Eddie groans, cutting him off. “If you can’t trust yourself, at least trust me . I’ve got you, I promise.”
“Sorry,” Buck says bashfully, relaxing finally and allowing Eddie to rotate them around the dancefloor in sync with the other dancers. “I’m just really nervous.”
“You don’t need to be,” Eddie reassures him. “You’re far from the worst dance partner I’ve had over the years.”
“High compliment there,” Buck jokes. “‘Far from the worst.’”
Eddie rolls his eyes, pulling Buck in closer as they complete a left turning box until they’re chest to chest, and—
“I thought we were supposed to keep a little space between us?” Buck asks, breathless and looking oddly proud of himself for not tripping as they’d turned. “That’s what Eduardo said.”
“Diaphragm contact was actually preferred in most of the competitions I went to when I was a kid,” Eddie tells him honestly, even if that’s not why he decided to pull Buck close tonight. “We can go back to—”
“No, it’s—I like it,” Buck admits, slightly rushed. “But why did Eduardo teach me to do it differently?”
“I don’t know,” Eddie responds. “But I can’t say I’m not happy about it.”
They complete another turning box perfectly in time with all the other couples.
“You’ve been jealous,” Buck suddenly says, and Eddie almost stumbles over his feet but recovers quickly. “I can’t believe I didn’t realise sooner. I saw you watching us, you know? At the fire station.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Eddie says, attempting to distract Buck by deviating from the original routine—another left box turn—and using the hand on his back to steer him into an under arm turn.
Buck’s eyes widen, but he moves effortlessly under Eddie’s guidance, and the resulting excitement on Buck’s face once they successfully pull it off leaves Eddie feeling rather proud of himself.
“Nice attempt at deflecting,” Buck says through a grin. “But you’re too late. I’ve figured you out.”
“Oh yeah?” Eddie says breathlessly. “What is it you think you’ve figured out?”
“I think you’re jealous they asked me to do this and not you.” Buck huffs out a laugh. “You know I would have stepped aside so you could dance with Eduardo, right? If you’d asked me to?”
Eddie gapes at him as the music slowly fades and they come to a standstill. Applause rings throughout the room, and Buck takes a step back as he joins the other dancers in clapping too. Eddie’s still frozen.
“Hey, you okay?” Buck eventually asks, frowning. “What’s wrong?”
“You’re an idiot,” Eddie accidentally blurts out. “I’m in love with an idiot.”
“Whoa—”
“I mean, I still love you, obviously,” Eddie says, very much obviously. “But wow.”
“Eddie, I—”
“You guys were amazing!” Karen’s voice interrupts whatever Buck was going to say as she and Hen arrive to congratulate them. “I didn’t know you could dance, Eddie!”
“Oh, uh, yeah,” Eddie chuckles shyly. “Ballroom dancing prodigy when I was a kid, I suppose.”
“And Buck!” Karen continues as Hen gives Eddie an amused look. “You were brilliant! We’re so proud of you!”
Buck accepts Karen’s hug but doesn’t say anything, eyes locked on Eddie.
Eddie flushes.
Maybe he should have kept his mouth shut?
Maybe he should run, actually, if it’s not too late?
He vaguely eyes the entrance and attempts to calculate whether he can run faster than Buck if he wants to make an escape.
“Buck?” Karen asks, drawing Eddie’s attention towards the man in question again. “Is everything okay?”
Buck’s staring at him—Eddie’s not entirely sure he ever stopped—and Eddie watches on nervously as Buck seems to make a decision.
“Can I have a minute alone with Eddie?” Buck asks, finally turning to look at Karen and Hen. “It’s kind of important.”
“Sure,” Hen says immediately—clearly aware something must have happened—tugging Karen away before she can say anything. “We’ll meet you at our table when you’re done.”
Wow.
Abandoned by his friends to face rejection alone.
Et tu, Brute?
Buck waits for them to leave before grabbing Eddie’s hand and leading him out into the hallway. Eddie waits for him to let go, but Buck keeps dragging him and dragging him until he finds a door and yanks Eddie inside. Eddie’s foot lands in some kind of bucket and he looks around at the small room only to realise Buck’s dragged him into—
“A janitor’s closet?” Eddie’s face scrunches up. “Really?”
“You love me?” Buck asks incredulously.
Eddie’s still distracted. “I think my foot is in a mop bucket.”
“Eddie!” Buck exclaims.
“What?” he says distractedly, trying to get his foot out of the aforementioned mop bucket. “I—yes. I love you. I said that already. You’re the one who hasn’t said anything back. Can you”—Eddie steadies himself on Buck’s shoulder with one hand, leaning down to use the other to yank his leg upwards and finally release his foot—“thanks, that was really starting to—”
Eddie’s cut off as Buck slams their mouths together. Buck presses him backwards almost immediately, and Eddie takes a step back to accommodate—or he attempts to, at least—until his foot ends up getting caught in the mop bucket again and he swears as he’s forced to separate from Buck and—
“How is this such a disaster?” Buck asks nobody in particular as he reaches down to pull Eddie’s foot out again. Buck also takes a moment to grab the mop bucket and shove it out into the hall before closing the door again. “I thought this would be a lot simpler, you know? You love me. I love you. We live happily ever after with Chris and a dog; not whatever this chaotic night is turning out to be.”
Eddie’s pretty sure he’s in shock. He’s ninety-nine percent sure Buck just said he loves him back. Which means he should probably be acknowledging that, or maybe pulling Buck into another kiss?
But unfortunately the only thing that comes out of his mouth is, “I think you mean a cat.”
“What?”
“I always pictured a cat,” Eddie explains.
Buck huffs out a laugh in response. “Sure, a cat is fine. Probably more practical, to be honest, what with our jobs. Now, if that’s sorted, can I kiss you again?”
“Yes please,” is Eddie’s only response as Buck pulls him into a desperate kiss.
And this time, it’s exactly what Eddie had hoped their first kiss would be like.
*
“So,” Hen greets them as they join her in the loft at the station the next day. “I hear you guys got kicked out of the event last night.”
Eddie flushes as Buck smirks.
“Allegedly,” Eddie attempts to deflect. “You have no proof.”
“Uh huh,” Hen says, crossing her arms as she looks at Buck. “You gonna deny it too?”
“We got caught making out in the janitor’s closet,” Buck admits, dodging Eddie’s attempt to smack his arm as he grins and heads over to hang off of Hen. “And then they kicked us out.”
“They kicked you out for that?” Hen asks. “Really?”
“Well…” Buck trails off, wiggling his eyebrows. “Maybe it was a little more than making out in the janitor’s closet.”
“Seriously?” Hen makes a disgusted face. “You hooked up in a janitor’s closet?”
“It was kind of romantic.” Eddie shrugs. “If you ignore the mop bucket.”
Buck snorts, and Hen glances between them both as they laugh.
“I don’t want to know.”