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Buck stepped out of the specialized tool shop. It was one of the few places open this late, tucked away between abandoned warehouses and railroad tracks. He carried a heavy bag filled with small cans of paint. The street was sloped, the streetlights were flickering, and a damp mist rose from the asphalt.
He walked fast. His sneakers echoed on the cracked sidewalk. His Jeep was parked a bit further down, under a blinking lamppost.
« Hey, Big Guy ! »
The voice came from the shadows, between two dumpsters. Buck stopped dead, gripping his bag’s handle. His instinct, always on alert, screamed a warning. Four silhouettes emerged from the darkness. They were young, hooded, faces hidden. One of them flicked a butterfly knife, the metal clicking menacingly.
« Got some change for your new friends ? » the tallest one asked, stepping forward with arrogance.
Buck sized up the situation. Four against one. No witnesses. No easy way out.
« I don’t carry cash, » Buck replied, his voice calm but firm, shifting into a defensive stance. « Let me pass. »
The group burst into laughter—a cruel sound, devoid of empathy. They surrounded him, cutting off his retreat.
« We’ll check that ourselves, » another said, pulling a crowbar from along his arm.
The first blow came from the iron bar, aiming for his knees. Buck dodged just in time, using his bag as a shield ; the paint cans shattered under the impact, staining the ground. He followed up with a punch that sent the attacker to the floor, but the other three lunged at him simultaneously.
It was a blurred, violent scuffle. Buck fought with the strength of desperation, parrying blows and landing others. He managed to throw one against a dumpster, but the numerical superiority began to take its toll. A well-placed kick to the ribs brought him to his knees, gasping for air. One of the attackers raised the crowbar, ready to knock him out. Buck closed his eyes, teeth clenched, bracing for the impact.
Then, a sound tore through the night. It wasn’t the crash of metal, but the shrill, familiar wail of a police siren. Red and blue lights exploded in the dark street, blinding the attackers. The headlights of an LAPD cruiser swung into the alley, forcing them to scatter like rats.
« POLICE ! EVERYONE ON THE GROUND ! NOW ! »
The voice was powerful, commanding. Athena Grant stepped out of her car, her service weapon trained on the group. Panicked, the attackers dropped their weapons and hit the pavement. Once the scene was secure and backup called, Athena turned to Buck. He was sitting against a brick wall, clutching his ribs.
« Buck, » Athena said, her voice softening. « Are you okay ? Can you stand ? »
Buck nodded, grimacing as he leaned against the wall.
« Athena… » he whispered. « What are you doing here ? This isn’t your sector, is it ? »
Athena looked down the dark street, then back at Buck.
« No, » she replied thoughtfully. « I shouldn’t have even been patrolling here. But… I just had a feeling. A sudden impulse, like something pushed me to turn onto this avenue. It was inexplicable, but I’m glad I listened. Come on, let’s get you to the hospital. »
The 118’s Denial
The next morning, Buck arrived at the station, medical leave papers in hand. He slowly climbed the stairs to the loft where his team was already gathered around the table. Even Ravi was there, sitting at the end ; he had worked all night with B-shift and had been off the clock for ten minutes, but he hadn’t left yet.
« Damn, Buck ! » Eddie exclaimed. « What happened to you ? Did you run into a wall or something ? »
Buck sat in the last empty chair.
« I got jumped last night. Four guys in the industrial district. »
Hen stepped closer, her medic instincts taking over, but her tone remained sharp.
« Four ? Buck, you know that’s a sketchy neighborhood at night. What were you doing there alone ? »
« I needed paint for my new place, » Buck replied, ignoring the reproach. « It could have ended badly. They were armed. But Athena showed up. »
Chimney let out an incredulous laugh, crossing his arms over the table.
« Athena ? In the Wilmington sector ? She patrols Hollywood, Buck. That’s forty minutes away. »
« I know, » Buck snapped. « She told me it wasn’t her sector. She had no reason to be there. But she had a ‘feeling.’ She felt she had to turn onto that specific street at the exact moment they were about to knock me out. »
Silence fell over the loft. Buck took a deep breath, despite the pain.
« I think it’s Bobby. I think Bobby sent her there to find me. »
The Veterans’ Anger
The reaction was immediate. Eddie stood up so abruptly his chair crashed to the floor. His face was flushed with sudden anger.
« Stop it, Buck ! » Eddie yelled. « Stop with the mystical theories ! Bobby is dead ! He isn’t sending anyone anywhere. It’s just a statistical coincidence. Athena is a cop ; she was patrolling, and she stumbled onto you by pure chance. »
Buck didn’t blink. Despite the pain, he sat upright.
« It wasn’t chance, Eddie, » Buck replied, his voice steady. « She doesn’t even know why she was there. She took a forty-minute detour for no reason. What do you call that ? »
« I call it a cop doing her job ! » Eddie snapped, pacing back and forth. « You’re trying to turn a botched mugging into a miracle. Enough ! »
Hen intervened, shaking her head with a look of pity that made Buck’s blood boil.
« It’s ridiculous, Buck. Your brain is looking for meaning where there is none. We know you miss Bobby—we all do—but he isn’t watching over us like a guardian angel from the afterlife. This is pure fantasy to comfort yourself because you were scared. »
« I wasn’t scared, Hen. I had a certainty, » Buck replied, staring her down. « I was on the ground, about to be hit, and I felt a warmth. A second before the siren started. Bobby was there. I know it. »
Chimney let out a sharp, almost cruel laugh.
« You’re just looking for attention, Buck. As usual. You want us to believe you’re the ‘chosen one’ ? The favorite son ? We all lost Bobby, not just you. But we stay in reality. We don’t make up ghost stories to feel special. »
Ravi, sitting between Hen and Buck, finally spoke up. His voice was calm but firm. He wasn’t the hesitant rookie anymore, and he wasn’t going to be intimidated.
« And what if it’s true ? Why is it so hard for you guys to believe ? We’ve all seen unexplained things in the field. People who survive by miracles… If Athena says she felt something, why are you attacking him ? »
« Shut up ! » Eddie cut him off without even looking at him. « You don’t have the perspective, Ravi. You don’t know what you’re talking about when it comes to Bobby. »
Buck turned to Eddie, his eyes flashing with defiance.
« No, Eddie. You’re the one who doesn’t know what he’s talking about. You’re so full of anger that you refuse to see what’s right in front of you. Bobby loved this team, but he loved me enough not to let me die in an alleyway. Whether you believe it or not won’t change what happened. Athena came. He guided her. And I’m standing right here. »
A heavy silence settled. Buck refused to break eye contact, standing his ground against their cynicism. He wasn’t trying to convince them anymore ; he was simply stating what he knew to be true.
The Arrival of the Grants
The tension was at its peak when footsteps sounded on the stairs. Athena appeared in civilian clothes, flanked by May and Harry. Athena’s face was like marble, but her eyes glowed with a protective fire. She had heard the last few shouts from the staircase.
May rushed toward Buck, ignoring the others, to check his face. Harry stood right beside him, glaring at Eddie.
« May and Harry insisted on seeing you when I told them about the attack, » Athena said, her voice instantly dropping the temperature in the room. « Since you weren’t home, we figured you were here. But I see the welcome is… warm. »
« Athena, » Hen started, trying to soften her tone. « Buck is telling us you saved him because of Bobby. You realize how crazy that sounds ? »
Athena stepped forward until she was face-to-face with Hen and Eddie. She didn’t flinch.
« What I know is that I followed my patrol route until a certain point. But I felt a pressure, right here, » she said, placing a hand over her heart. « An absolute certainty that I had to go down that dark street. I had no reason to be there. I agree with Buck : for me, too, it was Bobby who guided me. »
« It’s your grief playing tricks on you, Athena, » Eddie blurted out, though he sounded less sure of himself.
« My grief ? » Athena repeated with terrifying calm. « My grief doesn’t make me appear in deserted sectors at 11 :00 PM sharp to save my son at heart. »
« Buck is our family too, » May intervened, looking at the team with disgust. « But apparently, you’d rather call him a liar than admit that some things are beyond you. You see him hurt, and your first instinct is to attack him ? »
Harry took a step toward Chimney. « Buck has always protected us. Bobby loved him like a son. If you can’t understand that, then you never understood Bobby at all. »
Ravi walked across the room and physically stood behind Buck, alongside May and Harry.
« I’m with them, » Ravi said simply. « I’d rather trust Athena’s instinct than your cynicism. »
Buck looked at his team—Hen, Chimney, Eddie—who suddenly looked very small, isolated on the other side of the kitchen. On his side stood his real family.
Athena broke the leaden silence. She didn’t even glance at the other three. To her, they no longer existed.
« Buck, we’re leaving, » she said firmly. « We’re going to have breakfast together. You’re coming with us. »
Buck didn’t need to be told twice. He stood up carefully and left his medical note on the table, informing Chimney that a floater would be arriving soon. Ravi grabbed his jacket, ready to leave too.
« Need a lift, Buck ? » Ravi offered. « My car’s right there. »
« He’s coming with us, Ravi, » May interrupted with a warm smile. « But you’re welcome too. We don’t leave true friends behind. »
The small group descended the stairs, leaving the 118 loft in a deathly silence. Hen, Chimney, and Eddie watched, helpless, as their team crumbled for good.
A few minutes later, they arrived at a chain café, bathed in light and the comforting scent of fresh coffee. Athena, in her « mama bear » but authoritative way, took the orders.
« Buck, Ravi, go sit at that table in the back. I’ll handle everything with Harry and May. »
Ravi obeyed, but Buck quickly noticed something. As they sat down, Ravi’s eyes never left May, who was laughing with Harry near the counter. The young firefighter suddenly seemed much less brave than he had been against Eddie minutes earlier. Buck let out a muffled chuckle, despite the pain in his ribs.
« So, Ravi… when are you planning on asking her ? »
Ravi jumped, his face instantly turning bright red.
« What ? What are you talking about ? I’m not… I’m just looking at the line. »
« Sure, and I’m the Pope, » Buck teased, leaning on his elbows. « You haven’t taken your eyes off May since we left the station. »
« I’m not denying anything, but I’m not confirming anything either, » Ravi stammered, fiddling with a paper napkin.
Buck’s expression softened, but an amused glint remained. He leaned in closer.
« Friendly advice, Ravi. May is an incredible woman—strong and independent, that’s for sure. But never forget one thing : she’s Athena Grant’s daughter. »
Ravi swallowed hard.
« If you hurt her, or even if you just annoy her too much… Athena can be worse than Bellatrix Lestrange in Harry Potter. She won’t cast spells ; she’ll make you legally disappear, and no one will ever find the body. »
Ravi looked at Athena, who had just picked up the trays with a steel gaze that could cut wood, then back at Buck, terrified.
« Are you encouraging me or trying to give me a heart attack ? » Ravi whispered.
« A bit of both, » Buck replied, smiling truly for the first time. « Welcome to the family, Ravi. »
At that moment, Athena set the coffees on the table. May took a seat next to Ravi, and Harry sat next to Buck. Athena looked at Ravi, then Buck, and narrowed her eyes.
« What were you two talking about ? »
« Nothing ! » Ravi blurted out, a little too fast.
Athena squinted, not fooled for a second, then sat beside Buck, handing him his favorite coffee.
Buck watched May out of the corner of his eye. She was smiling at Ravi’s bumbling, and it didn’t take long for him to realize she wasn’t indifferent to his charm at all. A sense of peace washed over him. He was certain : they would make a wonderful couple. And above all, he knew Bobby would have approved. Bobby would have seen in Ravi what the others refused to see : loyalty and kindness.
It didn’t matter what Hen, Eddie, or Chimney spat out. Their calculations, their statistics, and their anger didn’t matter. For Buck, there was no room left for doubt. Bobby had been there last night in that alley, and he was here today at this table, watching over his family.
In that café, away from the toxicity of the 118, Buck finally breathed. He was where he belonged.