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The building is standing in front of him looking as non-threatening as possible, and yet Buck can’t find it in himself to move out of the car and head inside. Maddie’s words of encouragement are still ringing in his head from this morning, yet they don’t seem to help him enough to move his legs.
Letting out a shaky breath, Buck’s hands grip the steering wheel before he forces his body into action. He grabs his cup of coffee and bag before stepping out of his car. He’s using his keys as a stress toy, playing with them in his hands and making them clink and jangle between his long fingers, helping him with the shake in his hands.
When he enters his classroom for the first time, it’s completely bare of any personality. School doesn’t start for another couple weeks, giving Buck enough time to bring himself into the room, but he doesn’t even know what he should do. Even his dorm room wasn’t that personable. Though, if he asks Maddie, she’d respond about him never being there enough to actually make the space feel lived in. But this? It’ll have kids in it. It’s almost a requirement to make the classroom look fun and inviting. Buck’s fairly certain the kids he’ll be teaching would appreciate it more than bare walls and floors.
He really needs Maddie’s help.
Maddie thinks this job will be good for him. He spent most of his college years sleeping with anybody who was willing-- alphas, betas, even omegas. His beta sister doesn’t quite understand the intense need for Buck’s inner omega to feel wanted; loved. Familial love only goes so far before Buck’s going crazy and looking for someone else to bed. Heats are hell without any sort of help.
Sighing softly, Buck sets his bag down on top of his desk, already trying to think of ways to liven up the room. He can’t think of anything.
~*~
Maddie’s puttering around her kitchen like normal when Buck comes stumbling into the room. He isn’t a morning person by any stretch of the imagination, and if he didn’t love kids so much, he’d threaten to quit on the basis of the schedule alone. Maddie’s smirking at him over the rim of her mug, enjoying seeing her brother’s suffering.
“It’s too early for this,” Buck mutters, wanting to cry in relief when Maddie slides over an already made cup of coffee. “I knew I loved you.”
“Not because I’m your very nice sister that let you move in with me instead of me moving in with my boyfriend because I know you can’t afford your own place yet?” Maddie teases lightly.
Buck pouts. “That too,” he mutters, taking a long sip of coffee. “I just wish school didn’t start so early.”
Maddie lightly bumps his shoulder. “You’ll get used to it. I was just as bad as you are when I started my job.”
“See, I doubt that because you’ve always been annoyingly perky in the morning,” Buck replies, raising an eyebrow at Maddie as he moves to pop some bread into the toaster. “Meanwhile, I’m not even human until I’ve showered and had a cup of coffee.”
“Are you nervous about today?” Maddie asks him gently, watching him closely. “Meeting all the kids?”
“Being the new kid, you mean?” Buck says, sighing. He shrugs after a moment. “I mean… obviously, yeah. I’m new to the area and only a couple people know who I am.”
“You’ve always been charismatic, Buck. I highly doubt it won’t be very long before you make friends. You’re great with kids.” Maddie shoots him a smile as she takes a bite of the yogurt in front of her. “Besides, this means you can’t go partying every night because you have to get up early.”
“I still have my weekends thank you,” Buck jokes, biting into the toast. “I’m taking a shower.”
“Good, you stink.”
Walking into the school this time around feels more intense. His classroom looks more lively, but it’s still empty and void of personality. It’s better than it was, he supposes. Maddie helped quite a bit in making it more inviting for his students.
Letting out a shaky breath, Buck sets his bag down on his desk and pulls out his lesson plans. Since he still has time before kids start trickling in, he turns and starts writing down the schedule for the day on the board. His stomach is a pit of nerves, but he pushes through and keeps writing.
“Mr. Buckley?”
Buck looks up as a heavyset black woman enters the room, a small white boy walking carefully on his crutches into the room. He’s wearing a blue plaid shirt that is paired with simple jeans and sneakers. His red glasses are on a band wrapped around his head to prevent them from falling off. The boy smiles and Buck’s heart grows three sizes.
“That’s me,” Buck answers as he sets his materials on his desk. “Is Superman here ready for the school year?”
The boy’s smile grows wider, if possible. “Dad told me we had a new teacher this year. Are we going to learn about dinosaurs this year?”
“I’m sure arrangements can be made,” Buck answers with a wink, smiling as the boy laughs. “I’m Mr. Buckley, it’s nice to meet you.”
“I’m Christopher.”
Buck turns his attention to the woman. “Are you his mother?”
“Oh, no. I’m his caretaker. Eddie wanted to be the one to bring him in and meet you, but a work issue popped up,” she answers. “I’m Carla.”
“Nice to meet you, ma’am,” Buck responds, shaking her hand. “You two are a bit early, though. I wasn’t expecting anyone for a few more minutes.”
“I tried telling Eddie that,” Carla says with a laugh. “He was stressed out this morning, so times got mixed.”
“No problem at all. Hey, Chris, want to help me decorate the room? It’s a bit boring, still,” Buck says to Chris, who perks up at the suggestion.
“Dad told me not to say anything at all if isn’t nice,” Chris says, causing Buck to snort. “But you could do with some decoration.”
“I wholeheartedly agree. My sister wasn’t much help.”
“Is your sister Maddie Buckley, by any chance?” Carla asks.
Buck’s smile turns warm. “Yeah, that’s her. She’s the one who suggested this school, and I’m living with her right now.”
“She’s a sweet woman.” Carla gently squeezes Chris’s shoulder. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
“Okay, Carla.” Chris turns and gives her a big hug, making Buck’s cheeks hurt from smiling. “Time to draw, Mr. Buckley.”
~*~
Buck swears up and down he’d never pick favorites, but it’s hard when a kid like Chris always knows how to make things light. He’s the sweetest kid Buck’s ever met, and he’s funny. More than most people Buck’s met, and, if you ask his sister, is far too many. Buck isn’t sure if he’s ever seen his sister look as pleased as she does whenever he talks about Chris or the other kids in the class.
(“You’re picking favorites, Evan.”
“I am not.”)
Things are going relatively well for his first year of teaching. He finds that specializing in special education was the best decision he’s ever made as he grins at all the happy students in his class. They’re a small bunch, but they’re the best kids. There are hiccups, sure. He has another teacher with him to help him handle the meltdowns some of them have and the occasional moodswing. Kids are kids.
Chris is struggling with some of the math assignment, so Buck swoops in and crouches near him with the usual smile as he peeks at the paper on Chris’s desk. He’s gotten most of them done, but seems to be struggling with some of the later problems.
“Math is hard,” Chris complains, causing Buck to chuckle softly.
“It’s not my favorite, either,” Buck admits. “It’s too bad that I have to teach it.”
Chris smiles. “You make it make sense,” he says, and if that isn’t one of the best things Buck’s heard yet. “Even if math is confusing.”
“So let’s make it less confusing, yeah?” Buck says, smiling as he settles in to get more comfortable to help.
Buck knows that Chris has a habit of getting distracted easily when he’s bored. As his teacher, Buck’s gotten used to it. Chris isn’t the type to get disruptive on purpose, so Buck doesn’t think much of it. But now, Buck’s feeling a little stressed out when Chris’s attention is suddenly on something outside when he’s trying to help with his math problems.
“Chris, buddy, we’re almost done,” Buck says, trying to capture Chris’s attention again.
“But there’s a cat stuck in that tree,” Chris replies, pointing at something over Buck’s shoulder. Buck turns and spots what the boy’s talking about.
Buck sighs and turns back. He opens his mouth to say something to dismiss it, but Chris gives him this look and Buck folds like a house of cards. “You have to finish this worksheet while I’m out there. Deal?”
“Deal.”
Sighing, Buck stands up and rubs at his knees. He tells the other teacher something quickly before heading outside towards the tree. Frankly, he feels weird doing this. Sure, he’s climbed trees plenty of times, but mostly when he was younger and still lived back in Pennsylvania. Not all the way here in LA. Buck glances over to see Chris watching him and gives him his own look before Chris is going back to his math.
“Here, kitty,” Buck calls softly, spotting the cat quite a few branches up. He’s 6’2 and the cat is just out of his reach, watching semi-calmly from its spot on the branch. “Are you serious?”
Buck looks around for a moment to see if there’s a ladder or anything with little success. He can feel Chris’s eyes on him along with the other kids’ and the teacher’s. His cheeks burn a little, but if he doesn’t get the cat down, he’ll disappoint Chris, and that’s not something Buck likes seeing. So he rolls up the sleeves of his button up and starts climbing.
The cat, of course, startles when a man starts climbing the tree and jumps up a few more branches. Buck curses under his breath, and wiggles up a few more. “C’mere, little one,” he coos softly, reaching for the cat and carefully getting it.
He’s about to start climbing down when a belt loop catches on a branch, and other parts of his clothes are sticking to other small twigs and branches. He nearly falls trying to disentangle himself.
“This cannot be happening,” Buck groans. The cat is wiggling in his arms, but calms when Buck starts petting it. He’s even left his damn phone in a drawer in his desk. He sighs and stares down at the cat. “Well, bud, I don’t know what we’re supposed to do now.”
There’s a flash of red in his peripheral and he goes beet red when he notices it’s a fire truck pulling up. He freezes, hoping desperately there’s some sort of fire and they’re not there for him.
Of course, he has dumb luck, and someone strolls right over to the base of the tree. “I hear you’re stuck,” he states, smirking.
“I’m not stuck, I’m just… relaxing in a tree. That’s all,” Buck says, ignoring the way the blush is going down his neck now. “I can get out whenever I want.”
“Then get out.”
The man’s still smirking, and Buck has the overwhelming urge to prove him and all the other firefighters watching him wrong. Buck’s fingers fumble to try and find the damned belt loop that’s stuck, but he can’t see which one, and he can only do so much searching while still holding the cat. Buck settles back with a huff, admitting defeat.
“We’ll get you down in a minute,” the same man calls out. He turns and sees ‘Nash’ written on the back of his jacket and groans, knowing exactly what unit had been sent.
“I don’t want it to be Chimney,” Buck calls down, frowning when said man just laughs. “Don’t you dare tell Maddie.”
“I’m already texting her,” Chimney calls back.
“You’re the brother who’s a teacher?” Nash-- Bobby-- calls up.
“Yeah, that’s me,” Buck replies, the blush that was starting to fade coming back in full force. “Can we please do introductions when I’m down, please? Dress slacks aren’t the most comfortable to be climbing trees in.”
They’re all snickering and Buck wishes nothing more that Maddie wasn’t dating a firefighter. Actually, he just wants the ground to swallow him whole.
A ladder is placed against the trunk of the tree, extended out to reach where Buck’s still sat pouting. Though, the pout quickly disappears as the most gorgeous man Buck’s ever seen climbs up and grins at him.
“Well this isn’t how I expected to meet my son’s teacher,” he says, laughing.
Buck really wants the ground to swallow him whole now.
“You’re Chris’s dad?” Buck guesses based on all the stories Chris has told him.
“Yeah, he’s actually the one who called,” Eddie says, gesturing towards the window where all the kids are pressed against the window watching.
“He’s also the reason I’m up here,” Buck grumbles, holding up the cat.
Eddie laughs. “Maybe leave the cat rescuing to the professionals, yeah?”
Buck grumbles something in response as he hands over the cat. Eddie disappears for a moment before reappearing to get Buck down. Buck kind of hates how attractive he finds the smirk the alpha’s sending his way. The hands near his hips are making him feel hot all over, and he thinks of everything he can so he isn’t affected as Eddie gets his pants unstuck from where they’re tangled.
“Do you want me to carry you down, too?” Eddie asks, making Buck flush hotter as the people under him laugh.
“No, m’fine,” Buck mutters, unable to meet Eddie’s eyes as the man starts climbing down. Buck takes a second to take a shaky breath before he starts down the ladder as well. “I imagine I’m not hearing the end of that for a while.”
It’s directed towards Chimney when he asks it, but Eddie’s laughing, and Buck can’t help the pleased feeling in his chest at the sound. “I imagine Chris is going to bring it up a lot, yeah,” he replies. He continues smiling, even as he turns serious. “Look, I really appreciate all you’re doing with Chris. He’s… it’s been hard for him lately. Especially this time of year. His mom died a few years ago, and it was around this time of year…”
“I get it,” Buck interrupts before Eddie can say more. “Chris is a great kid, honestly. It’s hard not to get attached to him.”
Both men turn to look where Chris is watching them. When he realises they’re both looking over at him, he beams and waves at them. Buck chuckles softly, feeling that warm feeling bloom further in his chest.
“Kids like Chris are the reason I got into teaching,” Buck admits. “Hard not to enjoy being around such… pure happiness.”
There’s an unreadable expression on Eddie’s face, but he’s smiling, so Buck doesn’t think it’s bad. Blushing still, Buck turns away, watching as the cat’s taken to its owner.
“I should get back to the class. It was nice meeting you, Mr. Diaz,” Buck says, extending his hand.
“Oh God, just call me Eddie,” Eddie says with a laugh.
“Then you can call me Buck,” Buck replies, ignoring the way Eddie’s hand feels warm in his. Not in an uncomfortable way, but Buck could get used to the feeling if given the chance. He takes a shaky breath. “Right. Bye.”
Chimney’s saying something to him from somewhere behind him, but Buck adamantly ignores it as he heads back into his classroom.
~*~
After the first meeting, it seems like Buck’s running into Eddie a lot. It isn’t intentional most of the time. Parent-teacher conferences, Eddie occasionally dropping Chris off at school and taking him all the way into the classroom to talk to Buck about Chris’s homework, etc. Though, there was that one time Chris spotted him in the grocery store and nearly gave Eddie a heart attack when he turned around and Chris was gone.
Buck’s usual stories about Chris slowly turn into stories including Eddie. Other than the one time, they only meet up at school or other school related activities. At Buck’s insistence, Chris joined the science club and every once in a while, they would do some small scale competitions throughout the year. Since Chris joined, Buck volunteered to supervise despite science being one of his poorer subjects. If he so happened to talk to Eddie more because of it, then so what?
“So your stories of Eddie and Chris have nothing to do with your little boy crush on him, do they?” Maddie asks one night while they watch a movie. Buck nearly chokes on his sip of beer.
“What? No! I-- Maddie,” Buck sputters out, trying in vain to clean up the stain now on his shirt. “I don’t-- not Eddie.” He sighs and gives Maddie what he hopes is a confident smile. “Besides, I’m a ladies’ man. A great one at that, may I add.”
Maddie rolls her eyes so hard that Buck gets a little worried they’ll get stuck. “I’m well aware of your history,” she says lightly before turning serious. “Buck, you know I love you no matter what. You’ve already clearly shown you don’t care if someone’s an alpha, beta, or omega. What’s it about men versus women that has you so hung up?”
“I’m… shit, Maddie, I don’t know.” He runs a hand over his face. “Sex is different. One night stands in general are different. You don’t see them past the night you hook up.”
Maddie sighs softly and puts her hand on Buck’s shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. “If I may be honest, I think there’s a different reason you’re fighting this so hard. I have a feeling I know what it is, but I know when not to push. Just… know that I love you, and you deserve to be happy.”
Buck nods, unable to say anything else. The hand drops from his shoulder, and Maddie easily changes topics to something lighter. Despite the relief he feels from not being pressured, her words still ring in his head.
Buck doesn’t see Eddie much for a while after that. Most of the time, Carla’s dropping Chris off or picking him up, so Buck doesn’t think much of it. Plus, the next parent-teacher conference won’t be for another couple months, so other than Chris’s usual after school activity, there’s really no reason for Eddie to hang around.
“Hey, bud, where’s Carla?” Buck asks. He’s surprised to find Chris walking back into his classroom. He always walks outside to wait for Carla, who’s never late in picking him up.
“Something came up, and she can’t bring me home,” Chris says, sitting in his seat. “Dad also says Abuela can’t pick me up either, so he asked me to wait for him, but I don’t know how long he’s going to be. I hope you don’t mind me waiting.”
“What? Of course not!” Buck says instantly. He sets aside the tests he’d be grading and gets up. “Why don’t we do something fun while we wait?”
Chris lights up. “Yes!”
Throughout the year, Buck’s been able to decorate his classroom with various artwork the kids have made him. Chris’s tend to be more prominent from how often the kid loves to color, but Buck can’t even find it in himself to mind. The way Chris always lights up whenever Buck hangs up another of his drawings makes getting up every morning entirely worth it.
Chris helps Buck start putting up Valentine’s Day decorations around the classroom. February doesn’t start for another couple days, but Chris is excited to help his favorite teacher.
For some reason, Buck ends up wearing a bright pink headband he had stashed away in one of the bags. It has hearts stuck to it, bouncing slightly as he laughs along with Chris as they string stuff up. Chris is delighted in the way Buck has no qualms about doing whatever he asks, and Buck can tell by the glint in his eye that Chris already knows this.
“Isn’t it a bit early for all this?” a male voice asks from the doorway.
Buck startles and spins to find Eddie leaning against the classroom door watching the two. “I’ll have you know that Chris is the best decorator that I have ever met.”
“Yeah, his classroom looked super boring at the beginning of the year,” Chris pipes up, earning laughter from the two men.
“Sorry I wasn’t able to swing by sooner. We were in the middle of a call when I learned Carla couldn’t pick him up,” Eddie says. He pushes off the door frame and comes further into the room.
“It’s absolutely no problem with me,” Buck says, grinning. “Chris is easily one of my best students. I’d be a fool to turn him down.” He shrugs. “Besides, taking him home myself would’ve been crossing a line.”
Eddie hums softly, watching as Chris hangs up a tacky looking heart onto the wall. “He talks nonstop about you,” he says suddenly. “Every day, I hear about the cool Mr. Buckley and his amazing stories.”
Buck blushes, smiling over at the kid. “Yeah, well… kids are biased when you spend the majority of the day with them,” he jokes. “I would know. He talks about how cool you are, and I have yet to see it.”
Eddie snorts, and it’s admittedly one of the cutest things Buck’s ever heard. “Look, I…” he clears his throat. “I want to thank you. For everything, really. This school in general has been a lot of good for him, but I think a lot of that has to do with his teacher.”
“Hey, most of my teaching skills are still wonky. I’m freshly out of school myself,” Buck dismisses, ignoring how bright his face gets. “Still a work in progress.”
There’s a fond look on Eddie’s face that Buck’s having a hard time ignoring. “You should give yourself more credit, you know. A lot of teaching is being good with kids, as well.” He lightly knocks his shoulder with Buck’s. “Let me take you to dinner, at least? You know, as a thank you.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Buck says quickly, his heart thudding in his chest. “Chris is a great kid, it’s hardly any work.”
“I want to, though.” Eddie gently squeezes his shoulder. “Please?”
Buck swallows thickly as his eyes search the warm brown of Eddie’s. It’s quickly become one of his favorite things. The way Eddie’s eyes can simultaneously see right through him, and look at him with such emotion that it leaves Buck’s head reeling.
Still, Buck doesn’t want to intrude. Whatever this dinner means, Buck knows he gets attached easily. It’s essentially a date, even if Eddie doesn’t mean for it to be that way. He can’t ruin the family dynamic the father-son pair have, even if his heart is telling him otherwise.
In the end, it’s Maddie’s words ringing in his head that leads him to nod. The smile Eddie gives him afterwards makes it more than worth it.
~*~
“I know this is probably a weird way of thanking my son’s teacher,” Eddie says, laughing a bit.
“Definitely not something I pictured doing my first year of teaching,” Buck replies with a smirk. He takes a sip of his water, swallowing back any other comments he wants to make. Eddie… Eddie smells good. His inner omega whines at the thought of the alpha courting him, but he shoves it down. “I just hope all the stories Chris says are nice.”
“He has nothing but nice things to say about you,” Eddie says, smiling at Buck, and the omega wants to melt. “I’ve gotta agree with him, too, from all the times I’ve talked to you.”
“I’ve done nothing but talk about Chris whenever I see you,” Buck says, a little confused.
“Yeah, but… you climbed a tree in the middle of class because there was a cat and Chris was worried.” Eddie raises an eyebrow as he laughs a little. “Buck, that was one of the sweetest things anybody’s ever done for him.”
“Anybody would,” Buck mutters, blushing hotly. “It was a cat.”
“Not during school, and definitely not a teacher,” Eddie insists. “I’ve never seen Chris so excited to go school, like, ever. I remember the mornings before we moved to LA. He considers you his best friend.”
Buck’s blush deepens, and he can’t meet Eddie’s eyes. “He has lots of friends. I’m sure he has multiple best friends.”
Eddie shrugs. “Maybe, maybe not. Either way, he’s specifically told me you are.”
There’s a lump in his throat at the admission. He’s not sure quite how to reply, only flush and preen that this attractive alpha’s pup likes him. Of course, being at dinner alone with Eddie isn’t helping any.
“Thank you for this, by the way,” Buck says after a bit. They’re making some small talk while they wait for their food, but it isn’t awkward. Buck isn’t sure he’s ever had a conversation with Eddie that’s been weird to manage. “You’re not the only one who’s recently moved to the area. I’ve tried befriending other teachers, but they’re all mated with kids of their own. Hard to relate to them when I’m nearing thirty and still single.” He bites his bottom lip. “I mean… I’ve heard things about the 118 through Chimney, of course, and it just… makes me wish I had something like that.”
“You’re more than welcome to join us,” Eddie says easily, surprising Buck. “We have these family dinners together, or we get together. I’m sure Chris would love having you there.”
Buck mulls over the words, not sure what to make of them. “Would anybody else want me there, though? I don’t want to intrude on your pack or anything.”
“You aren’t, I promise.” Eddie smiles at him. “Chris has done nothing but talk about you whenever we all get together. Despite Chimney’s complaints, everybody wants to meet you.”
Buck laughs. “Yeah, well… Chimney will be Chimney. Not much we can do about that. He, uh, he’s good for my sister, so I can’t really complain.”
“Oh yeah, I heard you’re the reason Maddie didn’t move in with him. Heard about that for a while.”
“It was Maddie’s idea,” Buck says, snorting. “I was going to get my own place, but…”
Eddie laughs softly, but it turns more serious. “You really are welcome to the next hang out, though. I’ll text you the details.”
“I’d really like that,” Buck says softly, blushing as he smiles at Eddie.
Buck does end up going to the next cook-out, and despite tons of ribbing from his sister’s boyfriend, he has a great time. Chris is more than excited Buck is there, even if he doesn’t fully understand all the teasing comments and looks coming from his dad’s co-workers turned pack. Despite the want and need running through him to join such a welcoming pack, he doesn’t want to get too comfortable. It’s days like these he wishes he wasn’t an omega and so sensitive to being alone. Maddie will always be pack, but she’s going to be mated to Chimney soon, and join his pack. Soon Buck will be left on his own. And, frankly, it’s a day he isn’t looking forward to.
Maddie doesn’t understand why Buck is upset as they leave that night. They both had a great time, and yet Buck feels worse than when they got there. The whole atmosphere was familial and comforting, and all it did was remind Buck of what he didn’t have. Not even when they were growing up did they have that sort of warmth.
“I just don’t get it. You obviously get along with everybody,” Maddie rants as she drives them home. “Eddie and Chris adore you. Hell, I thought Bobby and Athena were going to adopt you at one point.”
“It’s not my pack, Maddie, it’s yours,” Buck snaps, immediately feeling guilty afterwards. “I didn’t… I can’t get comfortable.”
“Why not?”
“Because it could all change as soon as the school year ends. Eddie has no reason to keep talking to me ‘cause Chris won’t be my student.” Buck runs a hand over his face. “Chris could easily forget me as soon as he meets his new teacher. Kid’s sweet enough that everybody loves him. It… it’ll hurt like hell either way, but it’ll be better if I don’t fool myself into thinking it could last.”
“Buck… do you really think that?” Maddie asks softly. Buck can’t look at her. “Buck, you have to know that’s not true. Do you really think Eddie would take you out to dinner if he didn’t like you? Do you really think Eddie would invite you to a pack cook-out if he didn’t like you? Honey, he wants to court you, but doesn’t know how.”
“That’s not true,” Buck quickly denies, but he can’t ignore the way his heart races a bit. “Just… just drop it, okay?”
Maddie sighs softly. “Alright.”
Strangely enough, it’s Chris who ends up bringing it up. During class, and completely taking Buck off guard.
“Are you going to date my dad?” Chris asks, so bluntly that Buck chokes on the words he was saying.
Buck looks up from Chris’s worksheet to look at the boy with wide eyes. “Chris, that really isn’t appropriate to ask,” he says, trying to remind himself of where they are. What Buck’s relationship to the boy is.
“Yeah, but Dad always smiles really big whenever you guys text. He doesn’t think I can see it, but I can,” Chris says simply. “It reminds me a lot of what he was like around Mom.”
Buck doesn’t know what to say in return. His heart’s doing weird flips in his chest, and he feels warm all over. Cheeks hot, Buck clears his throat, still trying to save face and get Chris back on track to his schoolwork, but the boy isn’t having any of it.
“I’m serious, Mr. Buckley, he really likes you,” Chris insists. “Hen always teases Dad for talking about you all the time during work.”
Buck bites his bottom lip, allowing hope to bloom in his chest. “I’ll think about it, okay?” he replies, voice quiet. “Would it be a problem for you? If I did date your dad?”
“No!” Chris says quickly, eyes wide like he can’t believe Buck would think otherwise. “I want you to. I don’t want to lose you.”
Buck’s heart doesn’t stand a chance. He quickly pulls the boy into a hug and sighs softly. “Oh, buddy,” he says, rubbing Chris’s back. “You’ll never lose me, you hear? Even if your dad and I don’t work out, you’ll always be my best friend.”
“Do you promise?” Chris asks. He pulls back and he’s pouting a bit.
“I pinkie promise,” Buck answers, holding out his pinkie. He smiles as Chris just grins and hooks his pinkie with Buck’s.
~*~
Buck’s only slightly regretting not taking his Jeep as the plastic bags dig into his fingers. The distance between the store and their apartment complex isn’t that long, but it feels longer with the weight of the grocery bags in his hands. Granted, he didn’t get that much.
The sound of chatter nearby startles him enough to catch his attention. His pace slows enough for him to take in the sight of the 118 in front of a house on a connecting road. Buck smirks to himself, watching for a moment before heading closer. Even as he gets closer, Buck can’t really tell what they’re there for. The house is completely intact, and there’s no wreckage of a crash.
Buck can’t help the laugh he lets out when he sees Eddie cradling a cat in his arms.
Eddie’s head snaps over and he grins when he spots Buck. “Come to see the professionals at work?” he asks, and the smirk on his face should not be that attractive.
“Something like that.” Buck bites his bottom lip, feeling his cheeks heat up a little. After his conversation with Chris earlier that afternoon, he hasn’t been able to get his mind off Eddie. “Hey, um… would you want to get dinner with me? Not another thank you dinner, but like--”
“A date?” Eddie finishes, blushing himself as his smile turns soft. He feigns thinking it over before he can’t hide the smile anymore. “I’d love to.”
Chimney’s voice quickly breaks them out of their moment. “Thank god.”