Archive of Our Own

It's midday in the middle of July when a fury bigger than the state of Texas arrives at Eddie’s door. The knocking is incessant and it’s a miracle that Christopher isn’t yelling at him from his room to answer the door. He must have his headphones on, which is maybe a great thing all things considered. It means he’ll be out of the way until Eddie finds out what the hell is going on. 

His heart is beating erratically in his chest as he wipes soap suds off of his hands and throws the towel on the kitchen counter, dirty dishes now the last thing on his mind. He rushes to the door, just barely remembering to check the peephole. 

“Adriana?” Eddie asks with a slight tremor in his voice. He’s not entirely sure whether he’s relieved or if her unannounced visit is heralding bad news. “What are you doing here?” 

“And Sophia,” she says with a wide grin, which helps a little to settle his nerves. Though, he’s not sure what it means to have all three of them together again. The last time they saw each other was at Abuela’s funeral and none of them were exactly in the mood to catch up with each other. 

Guilt floods him and he wonders if his sisters ever feel it too. Do they regret the distance between them, both physically and emotionally? They were once so close and now they barely find time to talk to each other. 

“And Sophia,” his other sister repeats as she walks up from the driveway with a bag in each hand. “Are you going to let us in or do we have to tell you the secret password?” 

Eddie huffs out a laugh and closes the latch. The door isn’t halfway open when Adriana shoves at it and barrels into Eddie, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and pulling him down. “I missed you so much.” 

“We just saw each other,” he says, but returns the hug immediately. She laughs as he lifts her up and swings her from side to side slightly–a move from when they were kids. 

“About six months ago,” Sophia says and shoves her sister out of the way with her hip the moment Adriana’s feet touch the ground. She lifts the bags up and toward Eddie. “Take these?” 

Eddie takes them from her and doesn’t think twice about the lack of greeting. Sophia was never the type to show affection in the same way Eddie and Adriana did, which was fine. He never felt like she loved him any less growing up, so he never felt the need to push. Adriana took a little more time to understand, but she got there. 

“So, am I allowed to ask why you’re here or are you going to keep that a secret?” Eddie asks as he kicks the door shut behind him. His sisters have now made their way to the couch, throwing themselves back against it. 

“I forgot how much I hated flying,” Adriana says and Eddie has to stop himself from scolding her as she kicks her feet up on his coffee table.

“Adi, don’t be rude,” Sophia hisses, kicking at her sister’s leg. “Your shoes are still on, heathen.” 

“I’m not going to take my shoes off,” his youngest sister says incredulously. 

“Okay,” Eddie cuts the conversation off, dropping their bags near the couch. “I really need to know what’s going on here.” 

“Well,” Sophia starts, turning to face him. “Obviously, we wanted to come see you and Christopher. We didn’t get a chance to talk last time and we miss you both.” 

“Okay,” Eddie says slowly, sensing there’s something they’re not telling him. This is only confirmed when Sophia pushes Adriana and raises her eyebrows, prompting her to do something. 

“We may have also been stalking your Instagram,” she says. 

“I think what Adriana means is that we wanted to see what you’ve been up to, so we went to your Instagram. Then, because we didn’t want to jump to conclusions, we called Christopher.” 

“You called Christopher?” Eddie asks and turns behind him, as if talking about him was magically going to make Chris appear. Turning back, he looks at his sisters suspiciously. “Why didn’t I get a call?” 

“Well, we usually don’t want to gossip with the person we’re talking about,” Adriana says with a shrug. 

“Holy shit, Adi,” Sophia hisses and slaps her arm with the back of her hand. 

Eddie can’t help but roll his eyes. “And what exactly are you gossiping about with my son?” 

“Hey, he’s not just your son! He’s our nephew, too, and he had a lot to say.” This time Sophia doesn’t hit Adi, just looks to her big brother for answers. 

Eddie bites the inside of his cheek and tries to think back to what he’s posted. It’s not like he’s obsessed with social media and really, he keeps his posting to a minimum. A few pictures here and there to appease his parents who claim they don’t like being left out of his life. 

He can’t really think about anything that’s too incriminating and certainly nothing to gossip over. Eddie can’t even imagine Christopher having any exciting life updates, well other than the fact that he got stabbed, but he figured his Tia Pepa had that chisme covered. “Which was?” 

“Tia Adi! Tia Sophi!” Eddie hears from behind him as Christopher barrels past him and towards his tias. He throws himself into them, laying across their laps with a giggle. They, of course, eat it up–their own giggles filling the room. 

“My Chris-Cross-Apple-Sauce,” Sophia sings, running her fingers through his curls. “It’s been so long.” 

“Too long,” Christopher agrees and reaches up to hold her hand. 

Adriana pats his legs like a drum. “Well if it isn’t one of my favorite nephews.” 

Eddie quirks his head to the side and wonders if one of them is keeping a secret for the other. Is Sophia pregnant again? Is he going to have a nephew? 

“Is there something you’re trying to tell me, Soph?” Eddie asks, immediately regretting the question when the three of them turn their attention to him. 

“No?” Confusion coats her words, as if she’s the one who has no idea what’s going on. “Is there something you want to tell us, Eddie?” 

“Do I have something I want to tell you?” Eddie repeats and begins to wrack his brain for something that could be so interesting, it’d bring his sisters to California. 

“Should I put him out of his misery?” Christopher asks, pulling Eddie’s attention toward him. His grin is worrying because it’s clear he’s up to something. 

“Please do so at any time,” Eddie deadpans, though he’s not exactly sure he’s ready for the answer. 

“Theo, dad,” Chris says as if it clears everything up. 

“Theo?” 

“We’re here to see Theo,” Sophia clarifies as if that clears everything up. “I saw a few posts that you posted and then more that you were tagged in and then I sent it to Adriana because holy shit, Eddie, were you ever planning to tell us? Then, because clearly we couldn’t trust you to tell us, we called our favorite sobrino.” 

“And what exactly did your favorite sobrino tell you?” He looks down at Chris, who does not look the least bit guilty about this whole thing. 

“I told them about Theo,” Christopher says with a grin. 

“I’m still not understanding.” 

“They want to meet my brother.” Brother. That’s not– They’re not– Wait, what? 

“Christopher,” Eddie hisses, eyes wide. He’s only met with the same easy grin. 

“Was it supposed to be a secret because you’ve been posting about him and el guero more often.” 

And okay, yeah, Eddie’s been posting pictures of Theo, but mostly because all his photos include him and Christopher. He always posts pictures of his son or what they’re doing–again, for the sake of his parents. 

“I told you not to call him that,” he says because he doesn’t know how to address everything else without implicating himself further.  

Adriana hums, but shakes her head. “No, you told me not to call him ‘el gringo.’ This is nicer.” 

“I think we’re missing the point,” Sophia cuts in. “Which is, where is our nephew and the baby daddy?” 

“Sophia,” Eddie hisses out in warning. It’s ultimately too late to stop the round of laughter coming from his now very grounded son. 

“What? Is that not what he is?” Sophia asks like she’s daring Eddie to argue. 

“Maybe we’d be nicer about him if you ever let us meet him,” Adriana shrugs. “Christopher has nothing but great things to say about Buck. Maybe we’d be best friends.” 

“He’s my best friend,” Eddie says sharply. 

“Down boy, no one is taking him away,” Sophia says. Has she always been like this? He can’t remember if she’s always been the bane of his existence or if it’s a recent development. 

“I’m not-” Eddie lets out a frustrated huff. “Look, I don’t know what Christopher told you, but Theo and Buck are at their own house. Because they live there. Because Buck is Theo’s guardian and that’s it.” 

Christopher frowns and attempts to sit up, but the angle is awkward. Sophia and Adriana help him, all too eager to hear what Chris has to say. “What do you mean that’s it?” 

“Christoph-

“They’re here every day or we’re at Buck's,” Chris says, his face scrunched up in frustration. “You help Buck with Theo all the time. I showed him how to play Mario Kart. We built legos together. He’s basically my little brother, right?”

“I mean,” Eddie starts, unable to argue the point. Really, he and Buck should have seen this coming. The accidentally-on-purpose nature of them raising their children together did give the allusion that those children were siblings rather than… well, rather than nothing. Cousins, at best, maybe? And even that felt wrong. 

“Oh, you broke him,” Adriana whispers and Eddie’s not sure she’s wrong. 

“Dad,” Christopher says uneasily, pulling Eddie out of whatever spiral he was beginning to have. 

“I think I need to talk to Buck,” Eddie says, then thinks about the implications of what he’s just said. His sisters are too smart to miss the way his voice shakes with uncertainty. Christopher is too smart to miss the sharp breath he makes after he turns away from them. Still, he feels the need to continue. “To stay away from here–from you menaces.” 

His sisters laugh and it takes everything in Eddie to ignore the silence from his son as he walks into the kitchen. This is all a disaster–a carefully organized by his son type of disaster. He’s not sure he can call Buck without everything else spilling out. 

And sure, maybe he thought about it once or twice, but the reality was that Eddie and Buck are just best friends. Eddie's straight, has been married to a woman who he genuinely loved and has never so much as looked at a man. 

Before Buck.

He's never so much as looked at a man before Buck, he corrects belatedly. He just never thought past what it might have meant when Eddie appreciated his… everything. Maybe it wasn't straight or platonic. And maybe—fuck, maybe he's just been lying to himself this whole time. 

Lying or purposely ignoring what was right in front of him. Self preservation at it's finest because now that he's faced with it, he feels a little insane.

Once he’s in the kitchen, he slumps against the counter and wonders if he should even call Buck. They already had plans to meet today, but his sisters clearly threw a wrench in those plans. But maybe Christopher had somewhat of a point. He had taken to Theo like an older brother would. Would it be fair to take this moment from him when he so clearly wants it to happen? 

Before Eddie realizes what he’s doing, he’s putting the phone up to his ear and listening as the phone’s rings turn to static silence. Then, “Eddie, hey.” 

“Buck,” Eddie says and he must sound some sort of way because Buck’s tone switches immediately. 

“Is everything okay?” 

Eddie wants to say no, that this is d-day level bad, but it’d be a lie. It’s not bad at all, just nerve wracking, just new.  “Yeah, everything’s fine. My sisters are here.” 

“Both of them? Adriana and Sophia?” Buck asks, voice matching Eddie’s level of shock. “In California?” 

“In my house, right now,” Eddie responds. “Apparently Christopher invited them without telling me.” 

“Oh, Eddie,” Buck whispers empathetically. 

He pauses, confused at the change of tone. Sure, he sounded a little panicked, but altogether his sister's showing up uninvited wasn't the true issue at hand. "What?" 

“Are you okay?” Buck asks, still just as soft.

“I–yeah, I think so?” 

“Do you want me there?” Yes, he thinks immediately, but manages to stop himself from vocalizing it. Eddie doesn't know if that's the best idea, honestly, not when his sister's are out for blood. Or at least out to embarass them both. 

“Are you sure you want to be here?” Eddie asks. “They’re being nosey. They want to meet Theo.” 

“Theo?” Buck asks, confusion lacing each syllable of the kid’s name. There’s a voice in the background, low enough that Eddie can’t make out what’s being said. “No, honey, I’m talking to Eddie. Hey, no, you need to stay in your carseat, Theo. Eddie, we’re close by. If you need me there, I can handle your sisters. Besides, maybe they’ll be too distracted by Theo to give you a hard time.” 

“How do you know they’re giving me a hard time?” Eddie asks, but he’s lost Buck to Theo. He feels his lips tugging upward in a smile as he listens to half an argument that he knows Buck is going to lose. 

“I’ll see you soon, Eddie,” Buck says quickly. “Yes, Theo, we’re going to see Eddie. He said for you to stay in your seat.”

“Does that work?” He’s heard Buck use it more than once, which means it has to do something. 

“Every time,” Buck says through a sigh. “I don’t know why he listens to you and thinks it’s funny to ignore me.” 

“It’s your fault,” Eddie chastises. “You make me sound like a superhero, Buckley. Besides, you shouldn’t feel down about it. It just means he feels comfortable enough around you to joke around, but he’ll learn. You’ll learn. There’s a learning curve with this whole being a parent thing.” 

“Yeah?” 

“You know it,” Eddie confirms. “How long did it take for Chris to listen to you as Buck and not as his best friend? It definitely wasn’t overnight.” 

Buck doesn’t say anything and Eddie wonders if he’s said the wrong thing. He’s about to talk it back, add on to the statement so that Buck knows he’s not insulting him, when Buck finally speaks. “You really think that?”

Eddie frowns. “Well, yeah. He listens to you now, doesn’t he? He rarely argues back, which I think is unfair because he definitely doesn’t hold back with me.” 

“Right,” Buck says softly and Eddie lets out a relieved breath. “I’ll be there soon, okay? Don’t let Chris and your sisters eat you alive before I get there.” 

“Thanks Buck,” Eddie says and listens to the empty air between them until the call disconnects. 

“Well, that’s adorable.” 

Eddie twists to see his baby sister leaning against the doorframe. “Adi, how much of that did you hear?” 

“Enough to know that you’ve built yourself something really great,” she says and moves forward, stopping right in front of him. “I know we gave you a lot of shit, but we are happy for you.” 

“I-” He says, then pauses. He’s not sure how to respond, considering she’s not exactly seeing the full picture. Did he build himself something great? Yes, brick by agonizing brick. Is that ‘something great’ what they think it is? Absolutely not, but they all have that in common at this point. 

She raises an eyebrow, eyes darting back and forth as if she can read something in his lack of response. Maybe she can and isn’t that a terrifying thought? “Eddie?” 

“Thank you,” he says under his breath because anything else would be saying too much. 

“Of course,” she responds in kind, reaching out and wrapping a hand around his forearm. She squeezes reassuringly. “You know, we’re not just here for our nephews, you know? We also wanted to see you.”

He places a hand on top of hers, the corner of his lips tugging upwards into a smile. “I guess I did miss you both.” 

“Oh, I know you did,” she says with a wide grin. “Now come back to the living room, we’re not done with you.” 

In the living room, Chris is waiting for them on the couch while his sister is nowhere to be seen. “She needed the bathroom.” 

“Ah, then I’ll take my cue to move these bags somewhere else,” Adriana says, leaning over to pick up their duffles.

“My room is at the end of the hall, to the right,” Eddie says. “I’ll change the sheets in a bit.” 

“Got ya.” 

As soon as she turns down the hallway, he takes a seat next to his son and bumps their shoulders together. “Hey, bud.”

“I know what you’re going to say and I’m sorry,” Christopher says in a low whisper. “I know I shouldn’t have invited them without asking you, but they really just want to meet Theo. And see us. I didn’t think about how you’d feel about it.” 

“Whoa,” Eddie says and places a hand over where Christopher’s is settled on the couch. “Buddy, I’m not mad. I do wish you would have told me, but I know your heart was in the right place.” 

“I just… Tia Sophia warned me, told me to tell you, but I wanted it to be a surprise,” Christopher continues on as if he can’t even hear him. “A good surprise. I didn’t stop to think that I was doing it again.” 

“Doing what again, mijo?” Eddie asks. He curls his fingers around his son’s palm with a soft squeeze.

“Bringing our family here to be mean to you,” he says. “I did it with grandma and abuelo and now with Tia Sophi and Adriana. I didn’t think it’d make you sad.” 

Something in Eddie wilts and suddenly he’s brought back to the last time he had family show up unannounced. Suddenly, it makes sense—Christopher keeping this a secret, Buck’s worry, his own slight unease since the moment he opened the door. 

“I’m not sad,” Eddie says quickly, hoping it eases any of Christopher’s guilt. “I didn’t even think about that, Chris. Trust me, I may have been a little surprised that they were here and why, but I wasn’t upset to see them. It was a good surprise.” 

“Are you sure?” 

Eddie lets go of Christopher’s hand to wrap an arm around him instead, pulling him close into a hug. “More than sure. I’m grateful, even if they’re a little mean.” 

“We can be mean back,” Christopher offers, drawing a laugh out of him. “I mean it, I can tell Adriana that she’s unc now. It’ll drive her insane.” 

“I’m scared to ask what that means,” he says and he really, truly is. 

“I can tell Theo to ask Tia Sophi if she’s my grandma or-”

“Or you can be nice to your favorite Tias and we’ll give you the gifts we brought you.” Christopher turns and doesn’t look the least bit ashamed. Part of him wonders if he should warn him about the dangerous game he’s playing or just let him go for it. 

“You’re not my favorite Tias,” Christopher says and Eddie laughs at Sophia’s dramatic gasp. “You’re like top three.” 

“Eddie, we have to return him to the stork,” she hisses as she walks toward them, wrapping her arms completely around Christopher’s shoulders. She shakes him a bit and Eddie relishes in his son’s giggle. “Or maybe, he can admit that I’m number one and we’ll let Adi be third.” 

“Tia Pepa is first,” Christopher admits and it earns him more dramatics. 

“You know I can’t compete with Tia Pepa,” Sophia whines. “Fine, can I be second?” 

“Maybe,” his son says with another giggle. 

“Hey,” Eddie says, remembering suddenly that there’s someone missing. “Is Adriana still in the restroom?” 

“No, she went into the room,” Sophia says, a grin pulling at her lips menacingly. “She said something about snooping through your closet.” 

“That little-” Eddie begins to get up from his seat, but his attention is fully pulled to the sound of the doorknob rattling. “Oh.” 

Three things happen at once. 

“He has a key?” 

“Eddie!”

“Edmundo Diaz, you better explain this right now.” 

It feels as if the floor has suddenly vanished beneath him and he slumps back into the couch next to Christopher. He huffs out a breath of air as Theo runs directly to and into him. He immediately tries to climb on top of Eddie, his little feet digging painfully into his side. 

Still, softly, Eddie grins at the boy. “Hey, bud.” 

Eddie can’t see Buck, but he knows he’s there–can hear the muttered sorry and shuffle of his shoes as he tries to rush after Theo without pulling too much attention. As if he wasn’t one half of the guests of honor. 

He knows it’s only a matter of seconds before one of his sisters repeats their question and he’s not too sure he has a reasonable answer for either of them. He supposes Sophia’s question is less mysterious, he can work with that. 

God knows what the hell Adriana found in all of her snooping. He doesn’t really want to find out, not with present company. 

“Adriana, go put that away,” Sophia says sharply. Before Adriana can so much as suck in a breath to argue, she repeats herself. “Away. We can talk about all of that later, yeah?” 

“Right,” Adi squeaks. “Right, yeah, going.”

“Sorry, I tried to get him to wait for me, but you know how he is. He was excited to see his Eddie and his Chris, right Theo?” Buck asks with fond exasperation. 

Theo simply grins wide and nods before he makes himself limp, falling backwards. Eddie hangs onto him for dear life–it’s not the first time he’s done it, it won’t be the last. It’s almost expected at this point. The kid is practically a bat with the way he likes to hang upside down. 

Christopher laughs, like he usually does when Theo does this, and tries to push his head up with a finger. It causes Theo to giggle wildly as he lets it thud back down. It’s a miracle that Theo doesn’t deal with chronic neck pain at this point.

“So,” Sophia says, turning her attention to the two of them and effectively breaking Eddie out of his safe, little bubble. He tilts his head to get a better look at her, which he immediately regrets when he sees she has her sight set on Buck. “A key.” 

“Right,” Buck says sheepishly. “I used to live here while Eddie was in El Paso. Kind of kept the key after I moved out. Emergencies and all that.” 

“Dad also has a key to his new house,” Christopher adds unhelpfully. “Buck has a hot tub!” 

“It’s good for my knee and I know it helps Chris, too, so they have an open invite.” 

Sophia hums. “And this must be Theo.” 

Theo, for all of the energy he entered with, must finally realize that there is someone he doesn’t know in the room because he slumps further down in Eddie’s arms. “He’s not usually shy around strangers.” 

“It’s because Tia Sophi has strict teacher energy,” Christopher remarks and receives a light smack upside the head for his troubles. He only laughs. “What? It’s the truth.” 

“I’ll have you know that my students think I’m the best math teacher in the world,” Sophia says. “I have a mug on my desk that proves it.” 

“Oh! You’re a teacher?” Buck asks. 

“Third grade!” She says with a proud smile. “First year, too. Late start, I know, but I thought I wanted to do agriculture. Turns out, animals hate me and plants fear me.” 

“I think I was supposed to be a teacher in another life,” Buck says right as Adriana makes her way back into the room. 

“Oh good, you’ve got her started,” she says sarcastically, dodging as Sophia tries to smack her arm.

“Buck was a teacher in his coma dream,” Christopher continues on, as if it's general knowledge that Buck was in a coma. Who knows, at this point? It might be with all the conversations the three of them have been having over the phone behind Eddie's back. “When he woke up he was really good at math. Maybe you were a math teacher, too, Buck. 

“Maybe,” Buck laughs and leans forward to pick Theo up. “Hey Theo, this is Christopher’s tia. Her name is Sophia.” 

“You can call me Tia Sophi, if you’d like,” she says all too kindly. It’s soft and sweet and Eddie can see right through it. He knows exactly what his sister’s doing and it’s unfortunately working if Buck’s face has any say in it. 

“I’m Tia Adi,” Adriana adds with a smile. 

“What’s a tia?” Theo asks, a little of his usual confidence coming back to him. He looks over at Christopher and asks again like he holds all the answers. 

“A tia is an aunt,” Chris says and because he can anticipate what Theo’s going to ask next, he continues. “They’re my dad’s sisters, so they’re my tias. Just like Buck and Aunt Maddie.” 

His eyes widen and fixate on Eddie. “You have sisters?” 

Eddie laughs and shifts himself to be able to face his sisters. He’s maybe a little shocked to find them completely in awe of the boy, but then again it was Theo. He had that effect on people.  “Two of them.” 

“Wow,” Theo says quietly and looks toward them. He’s still anxious, Eddie can see it in the way he’s clinging to Buck and not trying to push off of him. Then, “and you’re my tias, too?” 

Eddie’s heart stutters in his chest, briefly looking over at Chris and feeling the warmth of his son’s soft smile, before fixing his gaze on Buck and Theo. Theo looks over to Buck, then to Eddie. When Sophia confirms that they are his tias, too, his head tilts to the side. “Is Aunt Maddie Christopher’s tia?” 

Buck’s eyes widen, turning just to the left of Eddie, towards Christopher. “I mean… I think so. I kind of think of Jee and Nash as my little cousins.” 

“Oh my god,” Buck says under his breath, wonder coating each word. Eddie kind of feels the same way. 

And while Eddie's thought about the unit they've become, he never stopped to think of themselves like an honest-to-god family. He feels stupid, in retrospect. Of course it wasn’t only Theo that Christopher connected to. Of course he’d see Maddie and Chimney as his aunt and uncle, their children as his cousins. 

“I mean,” Christopher says hesitantly, “I don’t know if I should or not.” 

“You definitely can,” Buck responds quickly. “They love you, obviously.” 

Just then, Theo begins to kick his legs, trying to wiggle his way out of Buck’s arms. All of his earlier apprehension gone and replaced with a newfound eagerness.  “Down, down.” 

As soon as he’s down on the ground, he runs up to the couch, climbing until he’s directly between Eddie and Chris. Theo leans into him a little, but keeps his sights on Eddie’s sisters. “Did you bring me a present, too?”  

Buck winces. “Sorry, the first time he met my sister, Maddie, she kind of showered him with gifts.” 

“It’s okay,” Adriana says quickly, hands waving in front of her. “We did get you a present, Theo.” 

“One or two?” Theo asks, head moving back and forth as he looks at each of Eddie’s sisters.

It draws a laugh out of his sisters before either he or Buck can apologize for the question. “I like you, kid. What if we said we brought you four gifts?” 

Theo looks down at his hand, wiggling a finger each time he counts up from one. He seems appeased with what he sees, immediately jumping up and down on the couch. “Gimme, gimme! I want gifts!” 

“Theo, you need to ask nicely,” Eddie reminds him softly, placing a steadying hand on his back so he doesn’t tip backward. It doesn’t deter the kid’s energy at all, but he’s pleased when Theo adds a small ‘please’ to his demands. 

“We’re working on that,” Buck says, to which Sophia just waves away. 

“It’s okay, we like the energy,” she says with a bright smile. “It’s a warmer welcome than our dear brother gave us.” 

“Yeah, yeah,” Eddie mumbles, but it’s disingenuous. In truth, he’s never felt warmer than he does at this moment–completely content with the family they’ve made for themselves. 

Maybe he should be worried. Panicked, even, but he's never been more calm—more sure of something in his whole life. 

He turns and catches Buck looking at him, his eyes softening into a smile meant only for Eddie. Impossibly, he feels the blush warm his cheeks further. Buck tilts his head in the direction of the kitchen and all Eddie can do is nod, ready to follow Buck wherever he asks. 

“I’m gonna go put all this away,” Buck says, lifting Theo's backpack, though Eddie’s not sure anyone is listening to him at this point. Theo’s completely taken up his sisters’ and Christopher's, halfway through recounting exactly what Maddie bought him and how he uses it to play.

Eddie follows after Buck, slipping out of the living room without much fanfare. The moment they're alone, Buck turns to him. “You know, that’s the calmest I’ve seen him all week. Is this like a Diaz Family thing?” 

He pauses, breath caught in his throat. Eddie tries his best to play it off, to not let his best friend know how much that simple question is affecting him. He's not even entirely sure why and any honest answer would bring forth more questions that he can't answer. "What?" 

“He’s only ever like this when he’s here,” Buck says, oblivious to his inner turmoil. 

“I’m pretty sure it’s a Christopher thing,” Eddie corrects weakly and tries to course correct by throwing Buck a goofy grin. “Though, I guess my sisters have his attention right now. Give it a few hours. He'll be running all over the place and leaving his mark like usual.” 

“Sorry about that, by the way,” Buck sighs. Eddie knows that Buck's thinking about the last time he and Theo came over—the juice storm. Honestly, it wasn’t even a big deal. Rugs can be replaced, the laughter ringing through the house was irreplaceable. “He hates that cup, he says the juice doesn't come out fast enough. Clearly he was wrong.” 

“I already told you that it was okay,” he says and walks toward the fridge, holding out his hand for the apple sauce pouches that he knows Buck packed. “We just have to find a happy medium. I hated that rug, anyway. It seemed kind of counterproductive to have a vacuum for one carpeted patch anyway.” 

“Eddie.” He hands over the pouches.  

“Fine, I loved that rug, but still,” Eddie says and looks down. Strawberry. He’d have to steal one later. For research purposes, of course. “It’s fine. I promise. It was just apple juice. Besides, we can blame it on the dog.” 

“We don’t have a dog.” 

“We can get a dog and blame it on him.” Eddie closes the fridge and flashes a smile at Buck. 

“Are you planning on sharing custody, Diaz?” Buck's wearing a lopsided grin, eyes twinkling the way they do every time he's about to tease Eddie about something. His heart putters a little with anticipation.  

“Maybe just every other weekend,” Eddie amends, unable to resist the bit. “You have the bigger yard.” 

“But he’ll miss you.” 

“I’ll miss him.”

Buck watches him, eyes widening ever so slightly that Eddie almost misses it. He can feel the pull of tears behind his own eyes and wonders how embarrassing it would be if he finally let one of them fall. 

Before it can get to that point, Buck clears his throat and turns toward the cabinet by the sink. "So, how are you really feeling about your sisters’ visit?"

"Better now that I've talked to Chris about it," Eddie says, taking the out. He blinks a few times just to make sure any tears that did form dissipate. "I mean, I'm sure they're here to give me hell in some way or another, but they seem to really be here for Chris and to meet Theo." 

Buck pauses, shoulders hunched a bit, before turning back to Eddie. "About that." 

"Yeah?" Eddie asks softly. He's not sure where Buck is heading with this and if he's honest, he's not sure if he has any real answer to give him. 

"They called themselves his tias. Chris, he—" Buck stops and takes a shallow breath in, eyes shifting downward. Away from Eddie, away from allowing Eddie to understand what's going on in his mind. 

"Buck?"

"He called Theo his brother," Buck says under his breath, just loud enough for Eddie to hear him. "I didn't know he felt that way." 

"It was a new discovery for me, too," Eddie says. "We probably should have seen this coming." 

"Should we have?" 

Eddie shrugs, even though Buck's still not looking at him. "I think, yeah. They're always together, we have family dinners and Chris did show him how to play Mario Kart. We put Theo in Christopher's old school, he helps him with his homework, Buck. It kind of feels like we've set them up to be brothers, you know?"

Buck looks up then, their eyes meeting once again. His brows furrow as he visibly begins to process everything Eddie's just told him. "I didn't reali—I didn't mean to." 

"Does that matter?" Eddie asks despite the fact that his hands are trembling a little and it feels like wherever this conversation is heading might actually matter.

He's nervous, he realizes suddenly. Of course he is. Because whatever this is, wherever they’re heading to? Eddie wants it more than anything. He wants his family, his sons, and Buck. He wants Buck. 

"What?" 

Eddie takes a step forward, but stops himself from reaching out to Buck like he usually would. Everything about this conversation feels different, even if every part looks familiar. Yes, they are still Buck and Eddie. They're still standing across from each other in the middle of Eddie's kitchen. They're still best friends. 

But Eddie knows now. He's not oblivious to the truth that's been in front of them. "Does it matter that we didn't intend for this to happen?" 

"Eddie," Buck whispers, attempting to move back, but he's already pressed against the counter. "Of course it matters. I don't want you to think I did this on purpose or without a conversation." 

"It's always I with you, Buckley," Eddie says with feigned seriousness. It takes everything in him to bite down his smile. Yeah, he can definitely see it now. "We did this together." 

Eddie looks down as Buck parts his lips in a tiny huff. Whatever answer he had loaded is now forgotten, expelled from him in the same breath. 

Buck swallows, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down. Still, he doesn't respond. 

"Buck," Eddie states with a confidence he's only just beginning to feel. "We both chose this for our sons. Subconsciously, sure, but it's on us—not on you alone. I have your back."

"I know," Buck says quietly. 

"Do you?" Eddie asks and reaches forward to push at him, drawing a laugh from Buck. He leaves his hand on his bicep, not daring to move it now that he's finally got his hands on him. 

"Yeah, yeah," Buck responds, sounding every bit as airy as Eddie feels. "You have my back." 

"Just like you've had mine," Eddie confirms with a nod, squeezing slightly before letting his hand finally drop. "That was our promise, right?" 

Buck nods slowly. "Right." 

"So, then—"

"Edmundo!"

Their attention both snap towards the doorway and whatever it is, Eddie knows it's not serious since his full name is immediately followed by a round of giggles—Theo's louder than the rest. "That's trouble." 

Buck hums, soft and content, pulling Eddie's attention back to him. "What?" 

"Mundo!" And this time it's neither Sophia nor Adriana calling him, but Theo himself. It's followed by a squawk of laughter that Eddie knows comes from Christopher. 

"We should go back and see what they need," Buck says, his lips curling upward in a grin. "Sounds urgent." 

Eddie expels a laugh and pulls away, providing Buck the space to walk past him. He follows, heart hammering contentedly, despite the fact that he knows he's walking into some sort of a trap. "I was summoned?" 

"Mundo!" Theo screams, jumping up from his spot on the couch. "Mundo!" 

"Absolutely not, little one," Eddie scrunches up his nose and rushes up to Theo—scooping him up, only to dip him down immediately. His grin widens as soon as Theo's squeals fill the room. "I'm Eddie to you, sir." 

"I'm not a sir! I'm a little kid!" Theo yells through his giggles, reaching up to wrap his arms around Eddie’s neck the moment he’s right side up again. 

“Yeah, Eddie,” Buck goads, running a hand through Theo’s hair and scrunching it up playfully. “He’s a little kid.”

“My mistake,” Eddie amends. 

Theo taps the side of Eddie’s cheek twice, smiling wide as he says, “That’s okay.” 

It feels a bit like deja vu—a memory from Christopher’s childhood fighting to come to the surface, but cut short by the snort of laughter coming from his left. His attention snaps to Adriana, her cheeks red with what he can only assume is embarrassment. 

“Y’all are cute,” Sophia coos in typical aunt fashion. He remembers her just staring at him and Christopher before she moved away—before they all fled El Paso. “Oh, don’t look at me like that. Y’all are cute.” 

“Miss. Woody says that, too,” Theo adds with a nod, though Eddie’s not too sure who Miss. Woody is supposed to be. 

“Miss. Murray,” Buck corrects with a long sigh—this has clearly been a conversation he’s had with Theo already. “She’s getting married and told the kids that her last name was changing to Woods… and I had just shown Theo Toy Story, so…”

“Miss. Woody says that I am cute and that Buck is cute, too,” Theo says. Eddie’s not too sure a teacher should be letting her students think that any parent is cute, but what does Eddie know?

Buck lets out yet another drawn out sigh. “She said we were cute because I had just chased Theo into the building and Theo thought it was the funniest thing in the world. I’m pretty sure she was being sarcastic.” 

Eddie hums, not sure of what else he can say. 

“Oh my god,” Sophia says suddenly, then sucks in a sharp breath. 

“Soph?” He asks, eyes narrowing suspiciously. 

“Nothing, sorry, I just remembered that I’m starving.” It’s a lie, he knows it’s a lie. She knows it’s a lie. He’s pretty sure everyone in the room knows it’s a lie… maybe. 

“Oh!” Buck says, as if she just said his favorite word. Okay, so maybe Buck doesn’t know it’s a lie. “I can cook!” 

At least his sister has the decency to look ashamed. “Oh, no, it’s okay. We can just order something.” 

“You should let him cook or else he’ll get sad,” Christopher says before Buck can double down on his offer. 

“Christopher,” Eddie warns, which is only met with a shrug. Shameless, but he supposes the kid is right. 

“I mean, I won’t get sad, but I do like to cook,” Buck says sheepishly. “Honestly, it wouldn’t be a bother and I think Eddie has all the ingredients for spaghetti. It shouldn’t take too long.” 

“If you’re sure,” Sophia says. 

“More than,” Buck grins and just like that, lunch plans are cemented. 

—

Lunch passed by uneventfully. Eddie had worried a bit, but overall, his sisters gave him a break—or rather, they gave Buck a break. Most conversation centered around Chris and Theo, which worked out well for Eddie. He loved to talk about the kids, to brag about how well they were doing. 

Now, however, it was approaching dinner time and mostly everyone had wandered off—Adriana and Sophia to Eddie’s room, Chris and Theo to go play some game, and Buck and Eddie in the living room. 

“I’m not sure how you slept on this couch for so long,” Eddie mutters as he places the blanket and pillow on the coffee table. “The last time I slept on this couch, I woke up with a kink in my neck.” 

“Ibuprofen.” Eddie turns to look at him with narrowed eyes, but he’s only met with a shrug. “Hey, it does its job.” 

“I’m sure it does,” he sighs, letting himself fall backwards on the couch. 

“You could always come stay at my place,” Buck offers. 

“Nah,” Eddie says with a sigh. “My sisters would absolutely snoop through everything without my supervision.” 

“Shame on you for thinking we won’t do that anyway,” Sophia interrupts, pulling both his and Buck’s attention towards the hallway. “Or that we haven’t already.” 

“I absolutely have.” Adriana grins and walks up to them, sitting on the armrest. “To which I have sooooo many questions.” 

“I’m sure you do,” Eddie says, throwing his head back. “Can it wait until tomorrow?” 

“Absolutely not. I’m not giving Buck a chance to escape this, now that the children are distracted.” 

He lifts his head, meeting Buck’s eyes with a matched panicked expression. “That’s-”

“Not great,” she finishes, her grin widening. “I know, but I promise to be nice about it.” 

“Doubt it,” Sophia says as she comes up behind Eddie and pats his shoulder twice. “Good luck, Mundo.” 

“Can you all not make that a thing?” 

“Maybe,” Adriana offers, though he doubts she really means it. “Depends on what you have to say for yourself.” 

“What?”

“Earlier,” she says, standing up and rounding the table to stand in front of them, “I found something interesting in your room.” 

“While you were snooping.” It’s not a question, but his sister hums an affirmative anyway. 

“And I didn’t really get a chance to read it all, but I think I got the gist of it. At first, I was really offended, but then I thought about it and I became offended for Sophia.” 

“You’re going to have to tell me what you found that could be so offensive, you’re holding court in my living room over it.” 

Adriana’s eyes narrowed into something resembling satisfaction, as if she was given the permission she was waiting for. “Well, you see, it was legal documents and as most of us know, I changed my major because law was boring. However, I still remember some of the jargon–

“Adriana, please get to the point,” Eddie interrupts, already tired of the show she’s putting on. 

“You left Christopher to Buck.”

Now, Eddie knew that this day would eventually come and that the decision would hurt more than just his parents, but he thought that he’d be… gone when it happened. Or that the decision would make more sense to everyone else with time. 

He didn’t think it would happen when he was perfectly fine, sitting in the middle of the living room, staring at his sisters’ twin looks of disappointment. 

“I did,” he says anyway, knowing there’s no way he can put the conversation to rest without somewhat explaining himself. “It’s not a recent decision.” 

“I know,” she responds, lifting the paper up in her hands. “It’s dated and everything. What the hell, Eddie? This is from not even two years after you left Texas.” 

“Yeah.” Eddie sighs, running a hand down the side of his face. “Yeah, it’s—uh, it wasn’t an easy decision. I mean, no—yes it was. It was too easy of a decision. Mom and dad, they’d just… you know.”

Adriana deflated, already moving to sit next to him. He lifts a hand to stop her, but she pushes it away and wraps her arms around him in a tight hug. “Mom and dad suck.” 

“They don’t,” he tries, but Sophia scoffs. 

“They absolutely do, Eddie,” she says. “When I found out that they took Chris, I almost flew to El Paso just to yell at them.” 

“I called,” Adriana mumbles against his chest. “Mom blocked my number, dad just refused to answer.” 

“They’ll never see what they did wrong.” 

Eddie hears his sisters and he agrees, but there’s a part of him that still feels like he can’t talk badly about them—has this need to defend them. Maybe it’s guilt, maybe it’s because they’re not here to defend themselves, maybe it’s all just pointless. “It doesn’t matter.” 

“It does matter, Eddie,” Sophia says with a wobbly voice. “They’ve always been like this, especially to you and I’m sorry that we weren’t there for you when you needed us.”

“It’s not your job to do that,” he says, which only causes his sister to hold him tighter. “Adi, it’s okay.” 

“Edmundo,” Sophia breathes out, sitting across from him on the coffee table. She reaches out and grabs his hand. “If it’s not our job, then whose is it?” 

His eyes flicker over to Buck, who tilts his head toward the kitchen. A silent question of whether he should leave, rather than asking to escape. Eddie shakes his head and hopes Buck understands before he turns his attention back to his sister. If she notices, she doesn’t give it away. Instead, she squeezes his hand in hers again. “You don’t have to continue making excuses for them or for us. For me. I let you take the brunt of mom’s criticism and dad’s arrogance because it was easier and I had convinced myself for so long that you had wanted it that way.” 

“Me too,” Adriana says softly, pulling away from him to sit at the edge of the seat. Her shoulders slump downwards in a shame Eddie wishes he could wipe from her—from both of them. 

“Look,” he starts, unsure of how to defuse the situation. “I did want it that way. It was my job to take care of you, to make sure you got a good childhood and stayed out of harm’s way. I’m your older brother—I was honored that they trusted me with that. Mom and dad were harsh, but they meant well. They wanted to see us succeed.” 

“In a very specific way that met their very specific expectations,” Sophia says. 

“And as long as it all happened under their roof so they could brag and take credit,” Adriana adds. 

He knows they’re not wrong. Their harshest statements about him had always been when they felt like they were losing control over him. Hell, they had begun when he wanted to stop being a boy scout and only amplified with each and every deviation to their plan—church, dance, college. 

Eddie remembers each claim, how they twisted and molded until it became a belief that he was incapable of being a good father without them. 

“I want to ask you something, but I want you to promise not to kick us out,” Adriana starts, then looks over at Sophia. Eddie was always somewhat jealous at their ability to communicate with each other without saying a word, but he keeps that to himself. 

Finally, she turns back to him. “Promise?” 

“I would never kick you out,” Eddie responds. Then to ease her worries, “I promise.”

“Do you really believe them?” 

“Who?”

She raises an eyebrow and it takes everything in him not to deflate. “I did. I think there were times where they were right–”

“Eddie–”

“But,” Eddie interrupts the protest gently, “I can see now that they weren’t fair. I don’t hate them, I don’t think they wanted to hurt me, but they did. I didn’t want Christopher to be raised with the kind of pressure they put on me. I didn’t want him to internalize that and put pressure on himself.” 

“You wanted to break the cycle,” Sophia says quietly. 

“You did break the cycle,” Adriana amends. “With us and with Christopher.” 

His eyes dart back and forth between his sisters before they land on Buck, who has been standing there silently. It’s clear that he wants to say something, opting to bite the inside of his cheek to keep it in. He’ll let it pass, at least until his sisters give them their privacy again. 

“I appreciate it.” 

Adriana rolls her eyes. “You don’t always have to be diplomatic. They aren’t here and we aren’t them.” 

“It’s not that.” It’s too quick and his sisters clearly see through it. “Fine, it’s not just that. I can’t talk badly about them, but I don’t have to give them power over me anymore. I made my home here and despite their best efforts, we’re happy here. I’m happy.” 

“Does this mean we can’t be mad about the will?” Adriana asks. 

“Hey, I was never actually upset,” Sophia says with a shrug. “I have enough to worry about without adding teenage sass to the mix. Besides, I’m pretty sure Chris and tiny Chris are inseparable at this point.” 

“Tiny Chris?” Buck asks, causing the attention to shift to him. 

“Do they not look like siblings? This is a loss for the Diaz gene pool,” Adriana interrupts before Sophia can respond. 

“That’s not how that works,” Eddie says with a deep sigh. He can already feel his cheeks heating up and he knows there’s no chance in hell that he’s hiding it well. 

“Duh, but embarrassing you makes sounding silly worth it.” Adriana turns to Buck, which Eddie doesn’t even try to stop. It’s no use, anyway. His sister will say what she needs to say. “I guess we’re both not mad at the will. You’re good, Buck. Thank you for looking out for them.” 

“Just invite us next time you think about signing any more official documents,” Sophia says and kicks his shin softly. 

“Right,” Eddie mumbles and pointedly ignores the low swoop in his gut. He can’t even bring himself to look at Buck. 

“I should probably warn that the moment the adoption papers go through, I’ll be adding you to the will,” Buck says and all of a sudden Eddie’s plan to avoid his gaze goes out the window. His breath catches in his throat and oh, is this how it feels to be on the other end of this conversation? 

“I’ll take that as our cue to leave,” Sophia says, standing up and pulling Adriana along with her. “Will there be breakfast in the morning?” 

“Pancakes?” Buck asks. 

“Please,” Adriana begs, giving him a tight hug, much to both of their surprise. “You’re the best.”

Buck laughs it off easily, hugging her back. “I try. Goodnight, you two.” 

“Goodnight, Buck,” Sophia says, patting him on the arm as she passes by. “Goodnight, Eddie.” 

“Goodnight!” Adriana adds as she follows her sister towards the room. 

“Night,” Eddie calls down the hall before they turn out of sight with an over the shoulder wave. 

Now that it’s just him and Buck, Eddie wants nothing more than to apologize for putting him in the middle of his sisters’ ambush. “I didn’t know they were going to do that.” 

“Really?” Buck asks, a smile playing at the corner of his lips. “I fully expected them to do that from the moment I got here. Though, to be fair, I did see her put the will behind her back when I was coming in.” 

“That… makes sense,” Eddie sighs. “I should have told them earlier. I just didn’t want it getting back to my parents.” 

“You don’t have to explain your actions to me, I’m behind you no matter what.” 

Eddie takes it in, internalizes it until the words match the steady beat of his heart. There’s never been a doubt in his mind that Buck didn’t have his back, not even at their worst. “I know.” 

“Earlier, in the kitchen,” Buck starts, then looks away. Eddie doesn’t push, just lets Buck process what he wants to say. Even if that processing makes him want to jump out of his own skin. “You said we both chose this life.”

“For our family, yeah,” Eddie confirms and tries his best not to let the stinging behind his eyes win.

“What did you mean?”

Buck’s still not looking at him, his attention focused on something to Eddie’s right. It’s obvious to Eddie that he’s waiting, hoping that Eddie says something that settles whatever he’s thinking to rest. “Exactly what I said, Buck. There have been so many points in our friendship that have led to this and I’m just calling it out. I let you in with Christopher, gave you probably more responsibility than I should have, but you accepted it.” 

“Of course I did,” Buck cuts in. “Chris is the best kid, Eddie.” 

“Yeah,” Eddie agrees with a chuckle. “I know he is and I knew you liked the responsibility, so I let you have more and more of it. I relied on you throughout his childhood and you had my back without question. Then, you got Theo and it seemed natural for us to continue what we were already doing.” 

“Except now, it was me letting you have responsibility.” 

Eddie presses his lips together in a soft smile and accepts that his battle against the tears is a lost cause. “And me wanting it.” 

“How much of it do you want?” Buck asks, finally looking at Eddie. At least he’s not the only one fighting a losing battle. He steps forward and reaches to wipe away the tear that was building in the corner of Buck’s eye. 

“All of it, Buck,” Eddie whispers. 

“It’s a lot,” he argues, drawing an exaggerated eyeroll out of Eddie. 

“I think that’s up to me to decide and I think it’s not nearly enough.” He wants it all and more—marriage, more kids, a bigger home, grandkids eventually. It’s all ahead of them and he’s starving for it. 

Buck’s eyes widen slightly before narrowing into something Eddie can only describe as trouble. “Am I not enough?” 

“Buckley,” Eddie warns, but laughs as Buck steps forward and takes a hold of him by his waist. It’s been so long since Eddie’s felt this secure. “You are the only person I know who can be enough and not enough.” 

Buck hums in consideration then pulls him closer. “What can I do to make sure I am enough?” 

“Marry me,” falls from his lips before he can think better of it. He tries to back away, but Buck doesn’t let him. “Eventually, I mean. And adoption, too—both of us, for Chris and Theo.” 

“So, paperwork,” Buck says, lips twisting up into a smirk. “I guess I was always better at that. Okay, marriage and adoption. Are we still getting that dog? It’ll be easier if we don’t have to split custody. One house and all.” 

“A dog could be nice,” Eddie agrees, even though the last thing their family needs is to introduce the chaos of a dog. “He’d need a big yard.” 

“Yours is too small,” Buck sighs. “I do love this house, but we might have to move. When does your lease end?” 

“Next month,” Eddie says and sends a silent thank you to whatever made him forget to sign the new lease agreement early. 

Buck leans in, impossibly close and Eddie thinks this is it. Buck is going to kiss him—is going to rob Eddie of his breath, his ability to think, his free will, too. Then, “you should move in. With me, I mean. I have two bedrooms, but I can convert the den into another bedroom for Chris. Or we can look for some place bigger. You know, so it can be enough.” 

Eddie grins. “Oh yeah?” 

“Yeah,” Buck agrees. “Anything you want.” 

“I’d love to move in.” It’s probably not the sanest of decisions, but he knows they’ll be okay. They have a month to figure out the logistics of the move or to buy a door for the den at the very least. “But first, you should kiss me.” 

“I could do that,” he says, closing the distance, but missing completely. Buck’s lips press against the corner of Eddie’s, then again on the tip of his nose, then along his jaw. 

“Tease,” Eddie groans, to which Buck only responds with a pleased hum. 

Eddie pulls away, or attempts to, but Buck follows after him and presses a kiss against his cheek. “You love it.” 

“I lov-” And finally, at maybe the most inconvenient moment, Buck gives Eddie exactly what he wants. 

Their lips meet and at first it’s just that—a peck, more than anything, though neither of them are pulling away. Eddie feels Buck’s fingers clench at his waist and it pulls him back to his senses. Buck’s kissing him and they’re just frozen. He’s kissing his best friend and he’s treating it like something fragile, when they’re anything but. Eddie can’t stand for that. 

He pulls away and ignores the sad, breathy sigh that escapes Buck’s lips. “Hey, we’re steady, right? We have each other’s backs, no matter what?” 

Buck nods, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “Of course.” 

“Okay, good to know,” Eddie says before placing his hands on either side of Buck’s face and pulling him in. This time, when their lips meet, Eddie all but breathes Buck in. His hands gravitate to the back of Buck’s neck, fingers tingling with what feels like static as they meet short hair, and he pulls him even closer—to the point where Buck is practically leaning over him. 

Buck makes a soft noise that Eddie can feel vibrate in his throat. It sends him reeling that he can feel each of Buck’s breaths, gasps, and moans. It shouldn’t, considering they’re practically eating each other, but it’s something new. He hasn’t had Buck like this and now he gets to feel it. 

“Eddie,” Buck breathes into him before he pulls away. It’s not more than a few centimeters, but Eddie hates the distance.

Still, he’s strong. Well, strong enough to not chase after the kiss immediately, though he’s not sure how long that will last. Eddie lets out a shaky breath, astonished at himself. “Yeah. I’m here.” 

It buys him a laugh. “You—right, yeah. You are here. Holy shit, Eddie.” 

“You didn’t let me finish, by the way, you asshole,” Eddie mutters, which only draws out another laugh. “It’s not funny.” 

“No, I love how needy you are,” Buck says, leaning his forehead against Eddie’s. His nose squishes against Eddie’s cheek. 

Eddie groans, because while yes, he’s fully learned how needy he is tonight, he didn’t exactly mean their kiss. “I mean what I was saying. Before you kissed me.” 

“Oh,” Buck huffs out and Eddie knows he’s rewinding time, trying to place what exactly Eddie had been trying to say. 

It’s clear that Buck has no clue and Eddie’s suddenly lost all patience on this subject matter. “I love you.”

“You—Me?” Buck asks, as though they weren’t just discussing their future together. As if Eddie hadn’t just accidentally proposed. 

“Yes, you,” Eddie says with a grin. “Or is there somebody else that I’ve been kissing, who also just invited me to live with them?” 

“No, that’s me. That’s definitely me.” 

Eddie’s grin widens. “Then it’s definitely you I’m talking to, Buck. I love you.” 

“I love you, too,” Buck answers back, punctuating his sentence with a quick kiss. Eddie’s not ashamed to admit that he leans in, attempting to follow the kiss as Buck pulls away, furthering Buck’s claim that he is in fact needy. 

“Dad?” 

Eddie’s head snaps toward the hall, but Chris isn’t there. Right, his voice sounded further away. “Yeah, bud?” 

“Theo’s asking for Buck,” Chris calls out. “I think he’s tired.” 

“Am not!” Theo cries and Eddie hears a thud, followed by a grunt and the sounds of tiny feet echoing down the hall. He’s not sure how they’re going to play this in front of the kids, not tonight at least, but he understands that they have seconds to decide. 

“So, home?” Buck offers quietly. 

“Okay,” Eddie relents. If he really thinks about it, he was always going to take Buck up on his offer. 

Buck pulls away, walking toward the hallway to intercept Theo, who has no care in the world that it’s past plenty of people’s bed time. His tiny shrieks fill the air as Buck swings him up into his arms. Buck, who’s used to this very thing, barely flinches. “I think it’s time to head home, Spiderman.” 

“No!” Theo screams right into his ear. “I want to sleepover!” 

“Or,” Buck begins, booping Theo on the nose with his index finger, “We can ask Eddie and Chris to sleepover at our house?” 

“Yes!” Theo yells, immediately twisting his whole body to look at Eddie. Buck scrambles to not drop him. “Sleepover!” 

“You know what, that sounds like a great idea,” Eddie says. “How about we ask Chris?” 

“Chris!” 

“No need to yell, I’m right here,” Christopher says, pulling the attention in the room to him. Eddie hadn’t even heard him come in. “But, yeah, I could go for a sleepover. Dibs on the couch.” 

“We can work something out,” Eddie says. 

“Actually,” Buck interrupts. “I may have already put a bed in the den. It’s yours, if you want it.” 

“Sick,” Chris grins wide. “Haha, dad, I got a bed and you have a couch.” 

“About that,” Eddie starts, taking in a deep breath. He looks over to Buck, who smiles softly with a shrug—I have your back no matter what. “Buck and I—”

“Wait,” Chris interjects, his hand reaching forward as if it alone can stop the words from tumbling out of Eddie’s mouth. “Is it finally happening?” 

“It?” Buck asks at the same time Eddie mumbles, “Finally?” 

“Sorry, continue,” Chris says, but he’s got a smug look on his face that deeply unsettles Eddie. “Go on.” 

“Your dad and I are going to try something new,” Buck says. 

“And what is that?” 

“Platonic Co-parenting. We’ll be roommates who, like, raise you and Theo together.” Eddie turns to Buck, a protest already on his lips, when he’s stopped by the shit-eating grin spreading across his face. 

“Funny,” Christopher says with an eyeroll. “But really, are you two finally going to date? Romantically.”

“Something like that,” Eddie offers, with a soft smile. “Is that okay?” 

“Are you kidding? Buck’s the best and you’re happy when you’re with him.” Chris smiles sheepishly. “And most of my friends already think you two have something going on. It makes sense.”

“That’s concerning,” Buck mumbles. 

“Are you okay with the den becoming your permanent room?” Eddie asks. 

“Wait, are we moving?” 

He fights off the wince. Maybe he should have waited for that conversation. “Kind of long overdue, honestly, but not immediately. A month or so from now?” 

“Does that mean I can use the hot tub every day?” And right, he’s a teenager. His priorities are a bit skewed, but Eddie loves him deeply. 

“As long as you remember your homework and that you can’t be in longer than fifteen minutes.” 

“Boring,” Chris mutters, but at least he’s still smiling. “So, should I pack for the night or?” 

“Yeah, a night is fine for now,” Eddie says. “We’re coming back in the morning for breakfast.”

“Cool,” Chris says and takes that as his cue to go back to his room. 

“I’m going to get Theo’s things together, if you want to go talk to your sisters?” 

Eddie nods, sending him a small smile. “Thanks.” 

“No need,” Buck says softly, but Eddie thinks he’s wrong. All he feels is the need to thank Buck for all he’s done for him, for knowing what Eddie needs before he even has to ask. 

Eddie walks around the couch, to where Buck is standing. He’s not going to argue with him, not verbally, anyway. Eddie presses a kiss to his cheek and runs a hand along his back. “I’ll be right back.” 

“And I’ll be right here,” Buck whispers. 

“Me too,” Theo mumbles, leaning his head down against Buck’s shoulder, every bit as tired as Christopher had accused him of being. 

“Alright,” Eddie laughs and walks down the hallway. 

It’s strange, having to knock on his own bedroom door. Soon, it won’t even be his, but that’s a thought for later—for when his sisters aren’t going to tear him to shreds for any bit of information they can get. 

“Eddie?” Sophia asks through a yawn. “Forgot something?” 

“No, just… how bad of a host would I be if I left you two here alone?” He asks. 

“Did something happen?” She responds and he feels a little bad for worrying her, but he knows it won’t be for long. 

“Something,” Eddie says and feels himself lose to the smirk growing on his lips. “I’m going to go stay at Buck’s.” 

“Holy—Adriana! It happened!” 

“Oh god, not you too,” he groans, leaning his head against the doorway. “How long has everyone been waiting for me and Buck to get together?” 

“So fucking long, Eddie, you have no idea,” Adriana calls from the bed. “I thought you’d come to your senses a long time ago.” 

“Probably should have,” Eddie sighs. “But is it okay? We’ll still come back for breakfast.” 

“Or we can go over, get a sense of the place.” 

“You’re not snooping through Buck’s house, Soph,” he says and he means it. There’s no way in hell that he’s going to allow his sisters to invade Buck’s space, at least while it’s just his space. Eventually, they’ll get what they want. “We can come back and we’ll stop for coffee on our way.” 

“Deal,” she grins. “I am happy for you, though. We both are. We were just saying how jealous we are that you get to see our nephews every day, they’re perfect.”

“They are,” Eddie agrees. “We’re lucky. You know… you two should come around more often. When you can, I mean. I miss you both.” 

“We miss you, too,” Adriana says. “But it’s late and I’m tired and I’m sure you’re a few minutes away from a tantrum.”

“Yours or Theo’s?” Eddie laughs. 

“Both,” his little sister says and he believes her. 

“Alright, alright, I’ll leave. Please don’t set the place on fire,” he warns, jutting a finger past Sophia to point at Adriana. 

“We’ll be fine, you big baby,” she mutters, but there’s a smile on her face as she yawns and turns to wrap the covers around her. 

“Goodnight,” he says, again. “Love you both.” 

“Love you, please leave,” she says through the sheets. 

“Love you, Mundo,” Sophia says and reaches out to pull him into a hug. It’s brief, he barely has time to hug back before she’s pulling away. “We’ll see you in the morning. Tell Buck that I’ll give him the shovel talk when it isn’t bed time.” 

“I’ll be sure to pass it along,” Eddie grins. 

“Thanks,” she says. “Now go.” 

Adi, Soph, Eddie

Adi: pancakes

Adi: it’s 9am where’s pancakes

Adi: paaaaaaaancaaaaaakes

Adi: WAKE THE FUCK UP

Adi: I hate you all traitors

Adi: Don’t invite me to the wedding

Adi: I will NOT be attending

Adi: nvm I smell them now

Adi: pancakes (: also did you happen to lose a child because one just busted through the door to play the drums on sophia's feet

Eddie: Oh my god I’ll be right there