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The firefighter competition was supposed to be fun. It was supposed to be able to build bonds and camaraderie between firehouses. It wasn't like Buck was against the whole idea of getting to know other fire houses, but the whole friendship thing had gone out the window before they even started on their way to Nashville. He told himself that it was because of the dumb jokes that Hen was making about them either winning or not coming home, but he thinks that they all know it's more than that. Buck wasn’t ready to admit to himself what everyone else thought this was about. He didn’t want to think about that.
So he didn’t. On the plane ride over to Nashville, he made small talk with Eddie about everything but that. He talked about strategy. He made jokes. Anything but the weight that they could both feel crashing down on both of them for the past year. Eddie had told him that he was taking this all too seriously. That he needed to relax and have fun with the competition, or they may end up losers, and without any friends. Again, that went out the window from the day of the first conversation. Eddie told him he was being completely rude. That there was not any reason for him to be creating drama with the house that was hosting the competition. Buck brushed him off. He wasn’t taking it too seriously. It was important. The competition was important. Well, it felt important.
Buck knew that he was being pretty unfair by calling Blue and Ryan nepo babies. It wasn’t the guy's fault that they wanted to follow in the footsteps of their father. Buck was sure that he would have done the same if his father had been any sort of a role model to him in his childhood. He also never made this big of a deal when he found out that Texas firefighters captain was his dad. TK, was it? In fact, he had even empathized with the other man, comparing his own captain to his father before helping the other firefighter steal a truck. So he really had no reason to be this way towards the two Nashville firefighters, but again, he had his reasons. The competition was important.
He pretended not to notice the aggression that Eddie had shown after Blue had pushed Buck. Deep down, Buck knew that he had deserved the push. He probably deserved more than just that to be fair, but another part of him considered it necessary. He needed to win this competition. For the sake of his firehouse. Yeah.
Buck could tell that Eddie was pissed that Blue had almost gotten them killed. To be fair, it really was kind of frustrating that a literal firefighter was not trained in simple glass breaking techniques. The mess up cost them precious seconds that could have cost Eddie, or the other two, their lives. So yeah, Eddie had the right to be pissed. A small part of Buck was happy that Eddie was getting more competitive now because at least now they had a better chance of winning. They needed to win. This competition was important.
They did not tell them in advance what the final challenge would be. All they knew about it was that it would be team based. Buck was pretty confident about it because he knew that he and Eddie made an exceptional team. Even if they have been at each other's throats more lately. Especially since-
Buck sighed as he pulled on his turnouts. He really didn’t know why they had to wear them when they could just wear anything else for the final competition. Well, part of him got it. It was a firefighter competition, but still, that didn’t mean that Buck wanted to do it. He was tired from actually having to save a person at an event that was supposed to be for fun. There were far too many people yelling different cheers and chants around him for him to focus on a single one of them. Eddie was pulling on his own turnouts on the other side of him. The man looked just as enthusiastic as Buck felt at the moment. Which… wasn’t very much at all.
“You got any idea what this is gonna be about?” Eddie asks him, pulling his suspenders over his shoulders. Buck shakes his head, watching Ryan and Blue strapping up their own turnouts from across the room.
“Nope,” Buck replied, “I wish they would just tell us instead of making it some weird mystery.” He saw Eddie’s head. Buck stretched his arms above his head, hearing his back pop. He winced slightly, trying to roll the tense muscle out. Eddie flashed him a quick look, but Buck brushed it off. He pulled his helmet on and after waiting for Eddie, they began walking to where the rest of the competitors were waiting around the dispatch lady. Buck could hear some lady from the audience screaming in support for the Nashville team and rolled his eyes slightly. There was no way anyone in the audience really thought that it was that serious. Unless they were also related to these firefighters like everybody else in Nashville seemed to be.
Buck narrowed his eyes as he watched Blue wrap a blindfold around Ryan's head. He shared a look with Eddie. “So what's the game here?” Buck asked. Blue turned around, looking at the both of them.
“Something about leading each other blind,” Ryan responded, feeling around for his brother. Buck frowned. He turned back to Eddie.
“You wanna lead or be lead?” Buck asked him. Eddie huffed.
“You lead,” Buck nodded at him. He was fine with leading. He actually preferred being able to see versus not being able to. He didn’t like the idea of being led around in the dark with nothing but a voice guiding him. Even if that voice was Eddie’s.
The dispatch lady, Cami, began saying something to the crowd about the next game, but Buck couldn’t really listen very hard. The idea of the game seemed pretty self explanatory. Separated on either side of a glass. Lead your partner through an obstacle course using your voice. Simple enough. Cami was overexplaining about everything that she said, only confusing Buck’s ideas of the rules, so he tuned her out. He'd just figure it out. He always did. Besides, if he didn’t, Eddie would help him. It would be fine.
“We will now lead you guys to the rooms,” Cami laughed, voice booming in that showy way. Buck followed Eddie as they made their way towards the room that they would all be in. There were two doors. One for the first partner, and one for the second. Eddie turned back to him.
“Good luck,” he hummed, “lead me well.” Buck rolled his eyes fondly, a small smile playing on his lips.
“Yes sir,” he jokes and he watched Eddie sigh in amusement. He watched Eddie be led into the other room with the group of other firefighters that would be blinded. Once the door was closed, shutting them inside the room, Buck’s own side was ushered into a different door. He didn’t recognize anyone on this side of the door but Blue. It wasn’t like he had tried to get to know any of the other firefighters though, so he supposed that it was his own fault.
The lighting in the room was weird. A deep mix of blues and greens. A thick sheet of glass separated him from Eddie. Stepping into the room, he could now see where Eddie was standing on the other side. The man was now blindfolded along with the other competitors there.
A shiver ran up his spine which Buck quickly shook off. He had no reason to be this nervous about the competition. It would be fine. All he had to do was lead Eddie through using his walkie. It was as simple as that.
“Please get behind the starting line,” Cami told their group and Buck mindlessly followed the rest of them back where they were supposed to go. There was this sinking feeling in his chest. Something that reminded him of dread and fear, but he didn’t understand where it was coming from. He had no reason to be scared here. It was just a game.
“Three,” Cami’s voice rang out. Buck could hear cheers from the audience. There was something about the lighting in the tunnel that threw Buck off. Light blueish green. He couldn’t place what it reminded him of.
“Two,” his gas mask was on his face. The game required a full suit up for both partners. His equipment felt heavier than normal on his shoulders. His stomach felt uneasy in his body. He shook his head. He needed to get it together. What was going on with him?
“One,” the other firefighters took their marks. Buck followed the motion a second after. He could feel drops of cold sweat slowly forming along his back. What was going on with him? He felt stupid. He had never been to this place before in his life. It was just a game for god's sake. He had absolutely no reason to be shaking. He looked down at his hand. He was shaking?
“Go!” There was movement around him. His own was seconds off. He rushed into the room and immediately made contact with the glass. His hands pressed against it as he locked for Eddie. His body froze. Buck tried to get himself to move, but he couldn’t. His legs felt like they were made of jelly. What was going on? He couldn’t get himself to understand why his body was so scared. Why his heart was pounding outside of his chest. Why there was a cold sweat slowly trickling down his back. He didn’t understand.
He opened his mouth to call for Eddie over the radio when something in his brain snapped. His hand was on the radio. Blue green light flooded around him. His turnouts were heavy on him like he had been running all over the city.
Oh.
“Cap?” He could hear his own voice as the world blurred around him. He wasn’t looking at Eddie anymore. There weren't any firefighters around him or any sort of competition going on. All he could see was the glass in front of him. The glass he couldn’t break through. As Bobby pulled his mask off of his head. Buck's heart dropped into his stomach and his breathing hitched. He could hear himself speaking, but his mouth wasn’t moving. Nothing was moving. He felt frozen in place.
“Bobby, no wait, what are you doing,” He could hear how frantic he sounded. How terrified. He hadn’t let himself think about this night in the past 11 months. He refused to. He didn’t want to face this.
His lungs felt like they were crawling up his throat. He couldn’t suck air into them.
“You’re gonna be okay, Buck.”
No he wouldn’t be. He really wouldn’t be. Not a single thing after Bobby had died was okay. His funeral was the worst day of Buck’s life. He spent every single moment in the firehouse looking over his shoulder praying to a god he didn’t believe in that he would see his captain there. He spent time trying to check up on his friends that had also lost the man but they had only pushed him farther away. Saying he was too much. He and Eddie had gotten into fight after fight and the only reason they even half resolved it was because Eddie had brought Chris back. Everything reminded him of the man and he even had convinced himself that his ghost was in his house giving him cooking advice, yet his team was never there for him. They called him crazy instead of trying to help him even for just a moment. He couldn't hide how much it had destroyed him and still they didn’t help him.
He wasn’t even religious and he had gone to confession just because that was supposed to bring you closer to the dead. Then Hen got sick and accused them all of not caring when it was caring in the first place that had got her all pissy. Eddie had gotten stabbed. The team constantly ignored his problems. His parents had gotten divorced. Nothing would be okay.
Nothing was okay.
His hand moved on its own, pressing harshly against his throat trying to urge himself to breathe. He felt light headed as he stared at Bobby through the glass. He wanted to throw his own mask off, open the door, and just be with the man one last time. Even if it killed him too.
He couldn’t breathe.
“I love you, kid.” He heard distantly. He shook his head. No. No if he had really loved him, then he wouldn’t have left. Bobby had said that they would need him. They didn’t. Not once had they needed him. Everything that had happened after the man had died had only pushed everyone that he called family farther and farther away. His heart ached inside of his chest. He couldn't help it when his bad leg gave out beneath him and he dropped to the floor.
Everything around him was spinning. He couldn’t tell what was real and what wasn’t. The world felt like mush around him slowly seeping into his veins until it suffocated him completely. He could hear voices through muddled ears, but he didn’t recognize what they were saying. His hands clawed at his throat. He couldn’t breathe. He needed to breathe. He needed to-
Blue had thought that this final challenge was dumb from the moment it had been explained. What did being able to lead his brother around in the dark have anything to do with being a firefighter? He didn’t wanna act like a baby in front of all of these people and complain about the relevance of the game, but cmon, nobody could convince him that this had any way in what made a good firefighter.
The room that they had been cramped into was weird too. The lighting was swampy green and blue and it was freezing cold in here. It all seemed pretty unnecessary in the grand scheme of things. He could distantly see Ryan across the glass from where he was. He really hoped that his half brother would be able to understand his directions through the walkie with all the other noise going on around him. He didn’t know if they had been around each other for a long enough time to be able to pick out each other's voices in a crowd of people like this.
Getting to know his half brother had been amazing, but Blue wasn’t sure they had exactly reached the level of being in sync like that. Hell, even these LA firefighters seemed to have it together more than they did. They were constantly in each other's exact steps. If Blue didn’t know any better, from their chemistry, he could have thought that the two were brothers rather than just co-workers.
He wasn’t such a big fan of what Cami had been talking about this next event being. He assumed that Ryan would be better at navigating with just instructions because he had been doing this so much longer than Blue had, but he was also worried that he wouldn’t be able to lead the man very well. He looked around at the firefighters that were on his side of the glass. Buckley was the only one that he could immediately place the name of. Everyone else he hadn’t really cared enough to get them names of, let alone memorize. Buck looked the most tense that Blue had seen him throughout the competition. He even looked more relaxed earlier when there was an actual victim's life in their hands than he did now. Part of Blue wanted to say it was because of his competitiveness, and that the man was just being egotistical, but the other part of him screamed that there was something more going on here. He didn’t know why, but there was just something about the look on Buckley’s face. It was as if he didn't even know that he was making the face himself. That his body was more scared than he felt.
Blue knows he hadn’t been in the firehouse for long, but growing up from town to town with his momma on their tours, he had learned to read people pretty well. Well, most of the time that was. The other party of the time he was so oblivious that it made him quite the laughing stock. Blue shook off the thought.
Someone was spinning Ryan around in circles on the other side of the glass. Blue scoffed under his breath. That was pretty unnecessary. He didn’t think that dizzying them made any difference in how well they would perform at teamwork, but okay.
“Three, two, one,” Blue heard Cami’s voice ring out, “Go!” Blue imminently clicked the button on his walkie. ‘
“Okay Ry, just walk forward,” He ordered. He saw the hesitation before Ryan began taking slow steps forwards. “Faster.” He saw Ryan’s hand move up towards the walkie before putting it back down. Blue guessed that his brother was about to make some snarky remark into the radio and he rolled his eyes gently. “Yeah, Yeah.” He laughed, “Just straight for now, paths clear.”
Ryan's steps picked up slightly as he made his way forward. The firefighter from Boston was the only team that was in front of him at the moment and Blue smiled. He just had to get Ryan in front of them and they would have it in the bag. Blue’s eyes scanned around for the LA firefighter, Eddie, if he remembered correctly. He didn’t see the LA firefighter anywhere near where Ryan and the Boston one were. He looked farther ahead. Nothing. He looked farther back.
Eddie was still at the very beginning, fumbling with his radio. Blue smiled slightly. Yes. This is exactly when they needed to get the win. He gave Ryan another order, watching as he made his way past another obstacle. He looked back to Eddie. The other man was pulling his blindfold off. Blue frowned. Oh those cheating sons-
Eddie ran towards the glass, banging against it. Blue looked on his side. Buck was on the floor. His hands were clawing at his throat. He wasn’t breathing. Blue’s eyes went wide.
“B, what now?” Ryan asked through the radio. Blue couldn't answer. He looked at Ryan, then back at Buck. His hand moved up to the radio.
“Ry, we have a problem.” He distantly heard the older man make a noise of confusion through the radio but he wasn't focusing on it anymore. He ran towards Buck, dropping down to his knees in front of him. His eyes were blown wide, unshed tears shining in the light.
Blue cursed under his breath, slightly unsure what to do at the moment. He could hear Eddie's voice screaming as he banged on the glass. Blue looked back. None of the other teams were coming to help. They were all just watching. Blue huffed under his breath, turning back to Buck.
“Hey man,” he started, “I know we don't know each other very well, but you need to breathe.” He heard more banging and Eddie cursing at him for being “shit” at this. Blue chose to ignore the insult because he knew the other firefighter was scared.
He gently pulled Buck’s mask off of his face, making sure not to startle him. Buck flinched at the movement and Blue quickly whispered an apology under his breath. When he was finally able to get the mask off of the older firefighter, he pressed two fingers against Buck’s neck. His pulse was racing. He gently pulled Buck’s hands away from where they were clawing at his neck.
“You need to breathe man,” Blue tried again, but Buck’s eyes were still glassed over. He wasn't seeing this. He wasn’t here. Not in his mind. Blue shifted to where he was completely sitting down. He tried to think of all the times he panicked over the years. How he's calmed himself down in the face of it without help. What he wished someone else would have done for him.
Blue never had anyone to pull him out of the panic, but he was there for Buck now. Blue took in a deep breath. He grabbed Buck’s hand and pushed it against the man's chest. Blue could feel his heart pounding underneath his fingertips.
“Youre alive. I don't know where you think you are,” Blue hummed to him, keeping his voice steady, “But you're alive.” Buck’s body shook with another dry sob and he shook his head. He could hear him. That was progress.
“Youre in Nashville. You're okay. You are alive. Nothing happened to you.” He was still hyperventilating. Blue looked around. Why haven't they sent anyone to help them yet? Why is nobody coming? They needed help. He wasn't breathing. “It's not real,” Blue tried again, his own voice getting more frantic as Buck’s breathing got shallower and shallower. “Whatever is happening, you're gonna be okay, Buck.” The man’s body jerked hard under Blue’s hands.
“c-cap,” the whisper tore from his throat, hardly distinguishable. Blue looked around. Buck was still shaking. He still wasn't breathing. He still-
The door next to them slammed open and Eddie sprinted in, sliding to his knees in front of Buck. Blue took a step back, giving the two a bit of space. Eddie’s hands cupped Buck’s face and tilted his gaze upwards.
“Youre not there anymore. You're here, with me in Nashville.” Eddie whispered. Buck shook his head, heaving around a sob. “I know.” Eddie’s voice cracked. “I know. Hes-“ he closed his eyes- “Hes gone. An- and things are never going to feel okay ever again.” Blue suddenly felt like he was intruding on a moment he wasn't supposed to see. “Because it's not. Because you- and me too- we both loved him so much-“ his voice broke again- “and we needed him, and he's gone.” Blue looked away. He turned, making sure that nobody else was trying to intrude on such a private and vulnerable moment.
“But Buck, we need you here. I need you. I need you right now to fucking breathe for me.” Eddie pleaded. Blue tried not to notice the tears in his eyes as well. “In and out. Fucking breathe.” Eddie pressed his hand against Buck’s chest, exaggerating his breaths for the other to follow.
Buck couldn't at first. He continued to choke around half form sobs, shaking from the force of it. But eventually, the trembling in his limbs began to slow. His pupils slowly dilated more naturally. And finally, his panic breaths began to even back out.
“There you go.” Eddie hummed, “in and out. In and out. Just like that.” Buck’s breaths became more intentional after that. A large pull in with Eddie’s guidance, and a soft push out.
Blue could see that his limbs were still trembling slightly and there was a thick layer of sweat over his face, but he was aware. He was staring straight at Eddie, breaths matching the younger man’s in sync.
The door opened again and Blue saw Ryan step in, blindfold off. His brother instantly moved towards him, voice dropping.
“What happened?” He whispered, careful not to disturb the two men in front of them. Blue checked around his shoulder before leaning closer to his brother.
“Panic attack, I think,” he replied, “no idea what triggered it.” Ryan hummed in response.
“Well, it's not our place to know,” the older sighed, “all we can do is protect them in moments like this.” He stared for a moment, then nodded. Suddenly, every bit of argument and rivalry that they had had with the two firefighters was pushed straight into the back of his mind. It wasn’t their place to know what was going on. To dig into whatever had caused such a harsh response. All they could do was protect them as if they were their own team. Blue looked back at the two.
Buck was breathing straight again. Eddie had his forehead pressed against his, whispering something under his breath. Blue watched as Eddie gently helped Buck out of his turn outs. Blue could imagine how nice it felt to be rid of the heavy equipment after something like that. Once his jacket was off, Eddie pulled him into a hug. Buck recuperated it quickly, wrapping his arms around the smaller man. They only stayed there for a minute before Eddie gave him a firm pat on the back.
“You okay?” Eddie asked him again, hands still on Buck’s shoulders. He took a deep breath, shaking his limbs out a bit.
“Y-yeah,” his voice was scratchy, “im okay.” Eddie nodded. He gave his friend another gentle pat on the shoulder before helping him to his feet. Buck quickly found his balance and sighed.
Blue watched the older man turn to him. “Hey,” Buck started, and Blue really hoped the man wouldn’t start something now to try and compensate for the vulnerability he had been forced to show. “Thanks. Y’know- for that.” Blue nodded immediately, masking any surprise that he felt.
“Don’t worry about it,” Blue quickly responded. “Id do it for anyone.” He watched Buck nod.
“Yeah. But thanks anyways.” Blue nodded again, not wanting to initiate any more conversation if the other man wasn’t in the mood to speak.
They stood awkwardly for a moment before Eddie shifted on his feet. “Well, we might go clean up, that is if that afterparty is still on?” Blue felt himself smile and looked over at Ryan. His brother was smirking.
“You better damn believe it.”
“You sure you’re actually okay?” Eddie asked him yet again as Buck pulled off his sweat soaked shirt and swapped it for something clean in his bag.
He never talked about that night. Not with a single person. He didn't want to think about it, let alone share a single thing about what he was feeling with anyone else.
He was tired of being brushed off about checking on everyone else, only to be accused of not checking on everyone else. He was tired of “making it about himself.” So he didn’t talk about it.
Watching Bobby die. Being sent away from the man that had been the closest thing he's ever had to a father while he says goodbye to his wife. Sobbing, unable to breathe in the hallway of a lab that he never wanted to think about again. A place that haunts his nightmares, and apparently days too.
“I'm fine.” He insisted again, watching Eddie get increasingly frustrated with him. He didn’t like seeing the man pissed, but there was a small sort of satisfaction stirring in his gut.
“Yeah because fine people break down like that.” Eddie hissed. Buck narrowed his eyes.
“It's like you said, man,” Buck shot back, “you don’t know what it was like.” He knew it was immature of him to still care about the dumb argument that they had in Eddie’s kitchen so long ago, but part of him still thought about it. About what he could have said differently to convey anything about how he was feeling.
He watched Eddie roll his eyes. “Then tell me, Buck. Tell me!” His voice was sharp. Buck squeezed his eyes shut. Then he sighed.
“It was exactly what you felt today.” He gritted through his teeth. Eddie stilled behind him. Buck took a deep breath, ignoring the way it caught in his throat. “Standing behind the glass. Not being able to do a single thing for me.” His throat ached painfully, his chest already tightening. Eddie didn’t say anything. He didn’t interrupt. He didn’t butt in. He didn't call Buck dramatic or self centered. He didn’t utter a single thing.
Buck gritted his teeth. “I watched him die. He sent me away to fucking say goodbye to his wife in private.” The memory flashed through his mind vividly. “I only made it a couple feet into the hallway before my legs had buckled.” It had been so cold against that floor. Cameras recording the absolute worst moment of his life.
“I had to walk away from him dying because the last thing he wanted from me was to leave so he could have time with his wife,” Buck choked, he wiped his eyes, trying to hold back the tears he knew were coming. He still wasn't looking at Eddie. “And I get it man. I get it. He wanted to spend his final moments with his wife.” Tears started streaming down his cheeks and he didn't bother fighting it. “But Eddie, he-“ he choked- “he was the closest thing I ever had to an actual dad. I don’t think I would be alive without him.” Buck’s hands shook as he scrubbed them over his face. “And I just had to leave him knowing I would never see him, or hear his voice, or hug him ever again. And I just had to leave-“ He sobbed through the last of it.
“And fuck, man. I miss him so much. I haven't been able to go a single day without the first thing I think of being the fact that he is gone- he's gone and he's never coming back.” Buck’s bad leg buckled and he let himself fall to the bench, hands pressed against his face. He didn't try to hide the sobs. It was silent besides his own cries for a moment. Then he heard Eddie sigh.
The man walked over and sat on the bench next to him, leaning into him gently. He didn't say anything at first. Buck didn't blame him. It was a lot and it was hard to comfort someone that you wish you could just fix the problems for. He always found it that way with Eddie at least.
“Im sorry.” Eddie started, "I'm sorry you had to go through that. And I'm sorry we lost him.” Buck nodded into his hands, trying to breathe through the urge to cry. He felt Eddie lean harder into him.
“I miss him too. So much-“ Eddie’s voice cracks. Buck can only nod again. He didn't think he would be able to talk anymore even if he wanted to.
They sat like that for a while. Bodies pressed against each other as silence hung heavy and thick in the room. Buck's limbs slowly loosened as he leaned against Eddie. He waited as his heart rate gradually sunk back down to normal and the world no longer felt like it was caving in every second.
Eddie shifted sideways, wrapping his arms around Buck and burying his head into his neck. Eddie’s hair tickled Buck’s nose. Buck’s eyes slipped shut and let his head relax down into his hair. He took a deep breath, inhaling the mix of hotel shampoo and something so unmistakably Eddie. Buck felt his body relax another level instantly. Eddie somehow always had that effect on him.
They stayed like that for a moment, sitting in each other's presence. Then the door opened and they jumped apart.
“Oh shit- sorry that's," Buck whipped around to see Ryan standing there, gear swapped out for a red flannel. Buck quickly wiped his eyes. “I don’t wanna intrude on anything… private.” Buck didn't know why the other firefighter hesitated. Or was flushing. Or looked more than ready to get out of there. There was no way the man was that awkward with vulnerability. And it wasn't like-
Shit.
“No! It's not- we’re not,” Buck sputtered, face turning bright red, “he was just- i was- just needed a minute-“ Buck closed his eyes in embarrassment. Nice one.
Ryan laughed awkwardly, taking a step out of the room. “Well… were starting to pass around beers upstairs when y’all are… done.” He quickly shut the door. Buck stared at the door for a moment before shoving his face into his hands with a groan.
Eddie laughed, slapping him on the back. “What was that about, bro?” Buck pushed his head farther into his hands. “You literally had a panic attack in front of him but still get so flustered from a bit of vulnerability.” Buck gave him a look that Eddie promptly ignored. Deflecting dumbass, Buck huffs to himself. Buck swears Eddie knows exactly what he's doing sometimes. Eddie kept looking at him with this goofy look. Buck rolled his eyes.
One day he'll figure it out.
“Let's go get drinks, buddy.” Buck hums, patting Eddie on the back.
After Cap gave the speech, Blue finally understood. The initial coldness from the two LA firefighters. Their captain had passed less than a year ago and then Ryan had explained to him that you have to be submitted over a year in advance. They were trying to defend their late captain's honor and honestly? Blue understood that. If the roles have been reversed, Blue knows he would probably be doing the same.
Watching the look in the twos' eyes as Don had given the speech was what finally made it click. The way they looked when he was talked about. He meant a lot to them. Blue sighed.
Ryan was distantly talking to Taylor over his shoulder and Blue took a sip of his drink. Buck and Eddie were now drinking two beers at a table together. Laughing and chatting.
Blue smirked. He leaned over to Ryan. “How much you bet those two are gonna get together.” Ryan barked out a laugh.
“Oh absolutely.”