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The flash of lightning made Buck freeze up.
He had never hated storms before the strike. Hell, as a kid he had loved storms. Staying out in the rain screwing around with friends. Sitting in his room watching the snow come down thick and fast, the flakes being illuminated by the intermittent lightning strikes. It was fun. The closest he came to hating storms was hating how it turned everyone into terrible drivers.
But now he had been struck by lightning. He had spent days in a coma. He had died.
So now he hated storms. Lightning straight up scared him. He preferred to be man behind on days when storms were forecast, the solid building of the firehouse feeling safer, preferable to traveling around in the metal box that was the engine, or worse, the ladder truck. When he had to go out during a storm, he was insistent on keeping his feet firmly on the ground.
And now this was his first major storm, and his first storm shift since losing Bobby. The one thing that had made storms bearable was being able to check in with Bobby, especially the next morning.
Now he didn't have that reassurance. Knowing Bobby was okay, that he was alive was the thing that made buck feel safe in not still being trapped in the coma dream.
So being on scene. A fire at an apartment complex. Attacking the blaze from outside. Flashes of lightning coming across the sky far too frequently for comfort. Buck couldn't help freezing up as the lightning got closer, the rumbles of thunder being too soon after the flash. He felt like he couldn't breathe, the moment feeling too reminiscent of that day.
"Buckley, drop the line. You're taking over driving the ambulance." He heard coming over the radio.
He followed the instructions, feeling numb. Someone else came over to take his place, but he didn't register who.
"Buck. I could see you panicking. Get in the ambulance. You're not any help here like this, we don't need you becoming another patient, we already have enough of those." Chimney said as Buck got closer.
"Thanks." Buck climbed into the drivers seat, feeling less anxious instantly. His mind wasn't solely on the coma dream. But he knew the next morning would be the hard part. He would want, would need Bobby to let him know he was okay. Just to confirm he wasn't back in that coma, that alternate world where everything was wrong. But he wouldn't get it. He would never get that confirmation again.