Chapter Text
The knock came on a Wednesday afternoon. Buck was sitting at his kitchen table trying to figure out how to get another job until this lawsuit was over and done with. He is sorting through resumes when he heard a knock at the door. He puts the papers aside and goes to answer the door.
“Hello, Mr Evan Buckley?” the lady said. Buck thinks she probably works for the city, something to do with the lawsuit.
“Uhm yea that's me. May I ask who you are?” Buck asks, looking the lady up and down. She seems to be in late 30’s to early 40’s. Lawyer, super official maybe?
"Yes, I'm Brooklyn Madison with the social services, I'm here in regards to your daughter Lucy Marie Buckley” The lady stares at Buck while he's trying to process the words she just said.
“My w-what?” He says while looking down at the lady in disbelief, still trying to process the words she just said.
“Your daughter, she is 14 years old. Her mother is Amelia Jones, she passed away a couple of days ago, and we would like to place Lucy in your hands before we talk to grandparents and other relatives. You are also listed as her other guardian.” Brooklyn says while looking at the file she has in her hands.
Bucks trying to do the math in his head. 14-15 years ago is when he was going around the country trying to figure out what he wanted to do with his life. And yes he did sleep around a lot but he did remember Amelia. They dated for a few months, Amelia was a very bubbly person, never let anyone tell her what to do, and was not afraid of anything. If Bucks honest, it scared him a little bit. They even went sky diving once, which he is never going to do again because it takes some real guts to do that.
“Yea, I remember Amelia. We dated for a few months but she never told me she was pregnant." Buck says standing there thinking, before he gets cut off by Brooklyn.
“Do you mind if we go inside and talk?” Brooklyn says tucking the folder away under her arm.
“Yea, no of course come in.” he says moving over so she can come in. Still in disbelief that he has a daughter.
"Mr. Buckley, if you don't mind me asking, do you have any idea on who Mrs. Amelia is?” Brooklyn says with an expression Buck can't quite read.
“Umh yea we dated back in 2009 to 2010 not long though just a couple of months I told you that we didn't really keep in touch much after we split. I know she was a freelance director here and there. Why did she marry some fancy famous rich dude and become famous or something, I'm not really understanding your question?” Buck says while looking Brooklyn up and down searching her body language for any answers.
“We will discuss it later. Right now we need to talk about your living situation and your source of income.” Brooklyn says while sitting at his kitchen table opening her folder.
“So Mr. Buckley, will the child be living here with you?” Brooklyn says while looking up from her folder to stare at Buck.
“Yes she will be living with me. I would have to look for a bigger place, which I was looking to get a different place so this is pretty convenient.” Buck says, giving a chuckle to lighten the mood. Because yea he was looking for a house.. Just not here.
“Ok.” Brooklyn says while writing down notes. “On your file it says you're going through a lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles and station 118. Is that correct?”
“Yes ma’am, that is correct. I was planning on dropping it this afternoon when I had a meeting with my lawyer. I felt like I was over reacting and it would just be best for all of us.” Buck says while looking down at his hands. Bucks not lying about dropping the lawsuit, he was really going to do it, If he was planning on moving for sure.
“Ok well you will need to get that resolved before the child is placed in your custody. You will also need to have a steady income within the next 14 days. Money also needs to be hitting your account before the child is placed in your care. Is that understood?” Brooklyn says, staring at Buck now.
“Yes Ma’am understood.” Buck says, looking at his hands.
“Now before we finish here, may I take a look around the apartment?” Brooklyn says while getting her stuff away and standing up.
“Yes, no of course. But would I be able to take a look at Lucy's file while you do that?” Buck says while standing up to meet her.
“For sure here you go, I'm gonna go look around and I'll be out of your hair.” she says while handing the file to Buck and starts walking around.
Buck sits back down at his kitchen table staring at the folder unable to open it for a moment.
This is something that Buck has wanted for his whole life and he's finally getting it. But why under these terms? Buck opens the folder and stares at Lucy's picture. She has Buck's eyes, and his face. She has Bucks hair, it's kinda uncanny a little. She looks just like Buck but smaller, softer. But she looks just like her mother too from what Buck can remember.
She has her moms nose and her smile. Would she have her sense of humor too? The way her head would tilt when she was confused? His brain is running miles per minute, because what do you mean he has a daughter?
A daughter.
Something Buck wanted his whole life and never got, something he’d convinced himself wasn’t meant for him. He never felt like he would be able to settle down with anyone who truly loved him, never felt like that kind of life was possible. And now this. Now he’s realizing he’s missed over fourteen years of her life that he’ll never get back, never watched her learn to walk, never heard her first words, never saw her grow up. She’s probably in middle school, maybe even high school now, and Buck wasn’t there for any of it.
He looks at the photo one more time and makes a promise to her, or maybe even to himself. That he will be there for her always and never, ever let her get hurt, and that he will make sure she always feels welcome and loved, like he never was. He also promises to never, ever treat her the way his parents treated him.
Brooklyn comes back into the kitchen to tell him that she has finished her walk through and they will contact him about Lucy in the next 3-5 business days when he clears and background and a drug test.
He leads Brooklyn to the door when he stops for a second “Mrs. Madison I have one last question before you go?”.
Brooklyn turns to look at him “Please call me Brooklyn, and yes ask away.”
“Ok sorry, Brooklyn What did you mean by “do I have any idea on who Mrs. Amelia is?” Buck says while waiting for a response.
“Oh right, yes. I didn’t want to discuss this today but you should know.” Brooklyn says before continuing “ Mrs. Amelia is a famous actor.. that's when I was surprised when you did not know what she did. She's played in a couple of really big hits over the years, that I know pretty sure everyone and the grandmothers have watched, but not you apparently. Her acting career sparked in 2017 when Lucy would have been about 6.” Brooklyn says while watching Buck's face for a reaction Buck didn't really know what Lucy had to do with that but let her go on anyway.
“Lucy has appeared with her in some of the movies over the years including the most recent one she filmed. And that may cause a little bit of conflict. Now the reason I did not want to discuss this right now is because you need to pass the background check before I can tell you anymore. I already went over a line telling you that. Now that information is public so I don't know why I couldn't have told you that but anyway, do you have any more questions before I leave?” Brooklyn says walking to the door.
“Um no, but here's your file back.” He hands it over.
“Thank you Mr. Buckley, we'll keep in touch.” Brooklyn says while she closes the door behind her.
Buck doesn't know what to do with all this information. It's like telling a third grader how astro psychics work. Too much information that overwhelms your brain to the point of blanking. But He can't blank right now. He needs to figure out how to get a job to care for this child.
Buck has a daughter.
That thought alone is enough to snap him back into a focus. He needs to call his lawyer to get the lawsuit figured out within the next 14 days. Buck needs a job, He needs His job back to be able to care for her.
Buck starts off by calling his lawyer and scheduling a meeting for this afternoon.