Chapter Text
Eddie’s eyes met Buck’s. The telltale groan of the parking garage's foundation confirmed what Eddie had already suspected.
There was no getting out.
***
It was a lovely day in Los Angeles. The heat had finally begun to drop after months of scorching sun. The sky was dotted with only a few tufts of clouds, and the wind was just soft enough to put a smile on Eddie’s face as he walked into the station.
Buck had beaten Eddie there, leaving the house after movie night turned into an impromptu sleepover earlier that morning. Eddie smiled as he dropped his bags in the locker room, looking out through the glass walls at Buck, already in his uniform, chatting with B-shift.
“You know you don't get extra points for showing up 30 minutes early,” Eddie said jokingly as he walked out of the locker room.
“An early fireman is a prepared fireman.” Buck said, as if he were a cheesy photo in a CPAT prep textbook. Eddie rolled his eyes.
“Thanks for the coffee this morning.” Eddie said, remembering the paper cup that had been awaiting him when he finally managed to drag himself out of bed.
“If you got your ass out of bed a little sooner you could have had breakfast too.” Buck quipped, and Eddie just smiled.
Life was good.
***
As hours passed, the station remained eerily silent. No tones had dropped since four that afternoon, and it was nearing midnight. The team took advantage of the unusual downtime, sitting around the couches, passing mindless chatter while scrolling on their phones.
“Did you know that most fish have the ability to recognise human faces?” Buck asked, looking up from his phone. Eddie's eyes crinkled, remembering Buck’s visit to the aquarium with Christopher earlier that week.
“I wonder if they hold grudges against the fishermen who catch them.” Chim said, not looking up from his phone. Buck nodded contemplatively.
“If I were a fish, I would make it my life's goal to hunt down anyone who tried to fish me,” Hen said, but before Eddie could interject that fish have no way of seeking out humans, the alarm finally rang through the hall. Eddie watched as Buck stood from his chair with a groan, still sore from his sleep on Eddie’s couch last night. As the team ran towards the bay, Eddie followed.
“single vehicle collision.” The robotic voice emerged from the speaker. “415 Elms Blvd. Story 3”
“That's a parking garage,” Buck said as he climbed into the engine next to Eddie. “The one near the stadium,” Bobby nodded from the captain's chair, turning the key in the engine and backing out of the station.
You're coming over tonight, right, Buck?” Eddie said, pressing his thigh against Buck to get his attention in the loud engine. “Chris has a science project, and I have no idea how to help him.” Buck nodded, a smile plastered on his face.
“Have they moved on to the space unit yet?” Buck asked excitedly, and Eddie nodded, grinning almost as wide as Buck.
“I hate to interrupt this incredibly domestic conversation that you two are having, but we are here. “ Chimney said, yelling back to them from the passenger's seat. They began to move, their focus returning. Eddie grabbed the med kit, turning to run through the tall grey building.
As the team exited the elevator on the 4th floor, something seemed off. Buck spotted the car first, a massive truck that had somehow pancaked into the inner support beam of the garage. Eddie could see that the airbags had gone off through the window, and he ran towards the truck.
They extracted the man in record time. For as bad as the crash looked, he was relatively ok, with only a broken arm and a bit of a concussion to show for it.
“Ok, we are gonna take him down for transport, go ahead and collect your gear and secure this scene. Bobby said, gesturing to Buck and Eddie.
“Coppy that cap.” Buck remarked, and they turned to begin cleaning up.
“Can you hand me that bag?” Eddie said, gesturing to the med kit that he had left near the car.
“I'm a little busy here, man,” Buck said, his arm flexing as he lifted the jaws of life. Eddie chuckled and walked over to the bag.
“Excuses, man.” Eddie remarked, laughing, but as he grabbed the bag, a crack in the pavement caught his eye.
Eddie's stomach dropped.
“Buck, don't move.” Eddie nearly yelled, his eyes full of terror. Buck looked confused, but did as he was told.
Eddie's heart sank further and further as the crack began to grow, the concrete floors buckling under the weight of the truck.
“We need to get everyone out of here now,” Eddie said sternly, but as Buck carefully set down the Jaws of Life, Eddie heard a deathly creak.
Eddie’s eyes met Buck’s. The telltale groan of the parking garage's foundation confirmed what Eddie had already suspected.
There was no getting out.
In the moments before the floor gave in, Eddie’s body took control of him. If he had thought logically, he would have run from the cracking floor, desperately trying to evade the imminent possibility of being buried alive. Instead, his legs pushed him forward towards Buck, and he grabbed onto him right as they began to fall into the dusty pit that the parking garage had become.
It felt like they were falling for hours, clinging onto each other as their faces were pelted with debris and dust. They landed with a thud, both yelling out in pain as the walls crumbled in around them, encasing them in a living grave.
“Are you hurt?” Buck said between sputters and coughs in an attempt to get the dust out of his lungs. Eddie was silent for a second, taking stock of his injuries.
His arm was bleeding, there was a sharp pain in his back, and a small stone had lodged itself in his calf, but other than that, he was miraculously unscathed.
“I think I'm ok, are you?” Eddie asked, squinting to try to see in the pitch black room.
I'm better than I should be, I think.” Buck replied, and Eddie let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
“We need some light in here.” Eddie said, moving slowly not to disturb the rocks around them, and turning on the light on his helmet.
The newly formed cavern was filled with the soft light of Eddie’s flashlight.
“If we get out of here, I'm buying a lottery ticket because we must be the luckiest people alive.” Buck said, shifting around in his position, looking at the surprisingly large pocket that had formed around them. A large iron beam had landed about 4 feet over them, keeping them from being crushed in the collapse. The cavern was a few feet longer than they were, but they had just enough space to sit up.
“When we get out of here,” Eddie said curtly. “If we have any chance of surviving this, we need to keep a positive attitude.
“Wow, Eddie Diaz is telling me to be positive.” Buck joked. “I never thought I'd see the day.” Eddie smiled, his worry fading slightly. At least he was here with Buck.
“Eddie look at your med kit,” Buck said excitedly, pointing to the bag sitting a few feet away from them. ‘We realy are lucky.’ Eddie thought as he grabbed the bag. When he turned back, he caught a glimpse of Buck's arm. A large gash ran down the side of his shoulder, slowly oozing blood into the cloth of his turnouts.
“Shit Buck you’re hurt.” Eddie said, his face clenching in worry. Buck looked surprised before Eddie took Buck's arm out of the jacket, swearing under his breath as he saw the blood-soaked shirt beneath it.
Eddie really liked that shirt. It was old, back from Bucks 1.0 phase before he bulked up so much. He only wore it when all his other shirts were dirty, but when he did, the cloth would cling to him in a way that was weirdly distracting whenever they were working together.
Eddie rummaged through the med kit, pulling out the trauma shears and cutting away the blood-soaked cloth.
“Is it bad?” Buck asked, his voice small, almost like a child's. Eddie couldn't lie; the wound was caked in dust and debris, and the gash went deep.
“I need to clean it up and wrap it until we can get somewhere to patch you up.” Eddie said, in a voice he usually reserved for worried patients. Buck nodded, adrenaline wearing off a bit, making his arm sting more.
Eddie worked quickly and carefully, cleaning the wound and preparing the gauze.
“This is going to hurt.” Eddie said in a soft and apologetic voice as he poured hydrogen peroxide onto the gash.
“Holy shit,” Buck yelled, his pained voice filling the cavern before grabbing onto Eddie's free arm and squeezing it tightly.
“That was the hardest part,” Eddie said soothingly, squeezing Buck's hand as he began to breathe normally again. After a moment, Eddie smiled at Buck. “I'm sorry, I need my hand back to wrap this wound.” Eddie said, a bit of humor in his voice. Buck smiled dryly as he released Eddie's grip, shifting his hand over to Eddie's waist. Eddie was surprised at first, but as he continued to wrap Buck’s shoulder, the warm pressure of Buck's hand on his side grounded him.
“All done.” Eddie said softly, and Buck let out a breath.
“You got any pain meds in that bag of yours?” Buck asked, and Eddie handed him a bottle of Tylenol.
“Thats all you get,” Eddie said, throwing the bag to the side. If they had been stuck down here with Hen or Chim’s bag, it would be a different story. “Only the EMT’s get the good stuff man.” Eddie said, and Buck groned.
“It dosen’t matter anyway.” Buck said hopelessly. “We are stuck here.” Eddie sat down next to Buck again, being mindful of his arm.
“There are people looking for us, and I dont think they would ever give up on finding us.” Eddie said, thinking of how scared Bobby, Hen, and Chim must be right now. For a moment, Eddie wondered if they had even made it out in time, but he pushed that thought away. They had to be searching for them. It's what the 118 does; they survive.
“I would never give up on finding you.” Buck said softly, his eyes starting to droop from exhaustion and blood loss. Despite the chill filling the cavern, Eddie felt his face fill with a twinge of warmth.
“I know you woulden’t.” Eddie said, looking over at his best friend, wondering for the thousandth time how the hell they had gotten themselves into such precarious situations.
“Can I tell you something?” Buck whispered, his eyes more alert now, glancing over at Eddie.
“Anything.” Eddie said, moving imperceptibly closer to Buck’s side.
“When the well collapsed,” Buck said without meeting Eddie’s gaze. “They all thought you were dead.” Eddie let out a breath. He can still remember the stabbing cold as he fought to the surface of that well. He would never tell the others, but the memory of being trapped underground with no way out still haunted him on dark and quiet nights. “I was the only one that knew you were still alive down there.”
“How?” Eddie asked, and Buck was silent for a moment, a vacant stare on his face.
“If you were dead, than a part of me would have died too.” Buck said. Eddie felt closer to Buck now, the heat of their bodies warming them even in the cold space. Eddie hoped that Buck couldn't hear his heart pounding in his chest. Buck was more alert now, the seriousness of the conversation keeping his attention despite his injury.
“Buck, I don't think that I could live in a world withough you in it.” Eddie said, his words cutting through the silence. They felt too vulnerable, too loud, like when the room goes silent the moment you say something personal to a friend. He held his breath for a moment, scared that if he opened his mouth, he wouldn't be able to control the words that would come out of it.
Buck was a massive part of Eddie's life, and someone would have to be blind not to see that, but for some reason, his words felt more like a confession than a statement of fact. Buck looked over at Eddie’s face, the realisation of what Eddie had just said washing over him.
For the first time in a while, Eddie allowed himself to really look at Buck. He let his eyes wander over the light pink birthmark on his eyebrow, the t-shirt that stretched tight over Buck's arms, showing the faint shadow of muscles that could lift him with ease, and the sparkle still present in his bright blue eyes even after all they had been through. Eddie had seen Buck more times than he could count, at the station, on his couch, with his kid. This felt different. Like something shifted the moment they fell.
“Buck. You are the person I go to when I am sad, or happy, or just tired of everyone else's shit.” Eddie started, searching for Buck’s gaze. “You are the person I want to see every morning, and come home to every night.” Buck looked up then, and only then could Eddie feel Buck's warm breath on his face. “ Since the day I met you, you took a part of my heart and made it yours, and I dont think I will ever get it back, nor do I want to.” Eddie’s heart was racing now, because he knew what all these words meant, and he had known for a long time. “I love you Evan Buckly. I always have and I think I always will, and you dont have to feel the same, you dont even have to say anything but if we are going to die down here I need to tell you that you are the only person that I have ever truly wanted. You are my everything, and I love you-”
Buck tenderly grabbed Eddie’s cheek with his good hand, cutting off Eddie’s rambling with a kiss. It was timid at first, as if Buck thought Eddie would shatter like glass. Eddie let out a sigh, giving in to the kiss and allowing his fingers to weave through Buck’s loose curls, His large hand a perfect fit.
Buck pulled away first, his face red and grinning. “Eddie I Lo-”
With a loud crack, the world went dark.