(Semi)Professional Fangirl

You headed back to the hospital, feeling a bit more refreshed than you had before your shower.

You entered through the emergency room once again and took the elevator up to the step-down ICU.

You walked back to Buck's room and opened the door, pausing briefly when you saw someone talking quietly to Heather. "Sheila."

The older woman turned and said your name. "I just came to see how Buck was doing."

You glanced over at Buck, who was still sleeping peacefully. "He's expected to pull through. Thanks so much for calling the ambulance last night."

Sheila nodded. "Of course, anything I could do to help."

"Did everyone else make it out of the courthouse? I haven't been keeping up with the news."

"There were some… injuries… among the protesters, but ultimately your father agreed to the AG's terms — apparently with a few added conditions, it seems."

Your brow furrowed. "Like what?"

"Like the AG decline to press any charges against Buck."

Your heart fluttered. You were happy to let people believe your father made a deal for Buck's freedom, as long as Buck actually did remain free. "Anything else?"

Sheila nodded. "While this wasn't exactly a condition, he insisted that you weren't involved in anything outside the scope of your employment as the Director of Community Engagement."

You shook your head. "I really wasn't. I had no idea about anything that was going on." Until now.

"You should also know…" Sheila paused. "The Governor has named me interim Mayor in your father's absence."

You nodded. Looks like I'll be job-hunting while Buck's recovering. "Okay. I'll have my office cleared out as soon as possible."

"No, that's not…" Sheila shook her head. "I know you'll need some time off to deal with things, but your position will still be here when you're ready to come back — if you want it, that is."

You were shocked. "Are you sure?"

Sheila nodded. "While your hiring was… unconventional, it's not an appointed or elected position, so you don't automatically lose it when there's a mayoral change. And even if it was, you clearly care about the community and are wonderful at your job, so I'd hate to lose you."

"Sheila, I— I don't know what to say." You shook your head. "Thank you."

Sheila shrugged. "I would be happy to grant you paid vacation while Buck is in the hospital, then allow you to work from home for as long as you need while you help him recover."

"I appreciate it."

Sheila sighed. "Now if you'll please excuse me, I have a press conference I need to go prepare for."

You nodded. "Thank you again."

As Sheila left, you wheeled your suitcase into the closet before checking on Buck, who was still sleeping. "Has he woken up again yet?"

Heather shook her head. "No, he slept the entire time you were gone."

"How long was Sheila here?"

Heather shrugged. "Few minutes before you got back."

She sighed. "Just so you know, I'm resigning my position, going back to private practice. Sheila offered to keep me on but public service is just not for me."

You nodded. "I understand."

Heather looked at you. "I'm glad you're sticking around, though. The community needs someone like you to be their voice."

You smiled. "Thanks."

Heather picked up her purse. "I'm gonna go start cleaning out my office. Text me if you need anything, okay?"

You nodded. "Thanks, Heather. I really appreciate it.'

You unpacked your laptop as Heather left. Since you still had a job, there were a few things you wanted to get done before your time off.

You silently worked for the next hour and a half, pausing when you heard Buck stirring next to you.

You closed your laptop and stood. "Well, hello there, sleepyhead. How're you feeling?"

Buck stretched, then groaned as a hand flew to his stomach.

You gently grabbed his arm. "Hey, hey, careful, you don't want to tear your stitches."

Buck let out a deep breath. "Fucking hell."

You took his hand. "It's okay, you're okay, you're going to be fine, just take it easy. Do you need anything?"

Buck nodded, still grimacing. "Water? I'm thirsty."

You nodded as well. "Okay, yeah, lemme get your nurse. One second, sweetheart."

You pressed the call button for the nurse's station.

"Yes?" a voice answered.

"Hi, yeah, Mr. Cashman in S-4 is awake and asking for some water?" you replied.

"Okay, we'll be right there."

You gave Buck's hand a light squeeze. "They're coming with it."

A minute later there was a light knock on the door and Brooke walked in carrying a pitcher and a couple of wrapped plastic cups. "Hi, I hear we're awake and asking for some water?"

Buck nodded. "Yes, please."

Brooke set the pitcher down on the bedside tray before pulling on a pair of gloves and unwrapping one of the cups.

She poured some water into the cup, then pulled a wrapped straw from her pocket, unwrapped it. then set it into the cup. "Here you go. Sip slowly though, you don't want to drink too much all at once or else you'll make yourself sick."

Buck carefully picked the cup up and sipped at the water.

"Good?" you asked.

Buck nodded. "Much better."

"Can I get you anything else?" Brooke asked, glancing at Buck's IV fluids and foley bag. "Another pillow or blanket?"

Buck shook his head. "No, thank you."

"Can you tell me where there's a coffee machine on this floor?" you asked.

Brooke made a face. "Oh, you don't want that. I'll bring you some of the good stuff from the cafeteria. Give me just a few minutes."

You nodded. "Thanks."

Buck sighed and leaned back as Brooke left. "I'm sorry, darling."

You shook your head. "You have nothing to apologize for. The important thing is that the doctor said that you're going to be okay."

You took Buck's glasses and contact case out of your purse. "Here, let's get your contacts out. I'm sure your eyes must be starting to bother you."

You waited as Buck took his contacts out and put his glasses on. "Better?"

Buck nodded. "Yeah. Thank you, love."

You're welcome, sweetheart." You paused. "I suppose I should fill you in on everything you've missed while you were sleeping, though…"

You told him about your father taking the AG's deal — with the (false) caveat that no charges were brought against Buck.

Buck's eyebrows raised. "Really?"

You shook your head. "It's the least he can do after making you sit on a dirty courtroom floor for hours after you'd been shot."

Buck chuckled, then groaned. "Ah, don't make me laugh, love."

"Sorry, sweetheart." You sighed. "Also, Sheila's been named interim Mayor. She stopped by to check on you and to tell me that I still have my job if I want it."

"And do you?"

"I do. I love helping the community grow and thrive, and as long as I'm allowed to do that I'll stay at the Mayor's office."

Buck nodded. "Okay then, darling. Whatever your decision is, I support you."

"Sheila gave me paid vacation while you're here in the hospital and is allowing me to work from home while you recover."

"That's very generous of her."

You nodded. "Also, Heather is resigning her position. She said private practice suits her best. Oh, and she stayed with me last night while you were in surgery and came to check on you again this morning, which was so incredibly sweet of her."

Buck took another small sip of water. "Have you heard from your father?"

You shook your head. "Possibly? I haven't checked my texts since I charged my phone this morning."

You reached for your phone and began to scroll through your incoming messages.

Among the alarmed texts of 'OMG are you okay?' and 'I heard Buck was hurt, hope he gets better soon!' was a message from your father that consisted of two words: I'm sorry.

You huffed out a breath then replied, Are you okay?

The three dots that indicated that your father was typing popped up, then I'm fine. This is merely a setback.

You shook your head with a soft smile. Your father had tenacity, that was for sure.

How is Buck?

Expected to make a full recovery. You paused, then added, Thank you for checking on him. I know you're dealing with your own stuff right now.

Of course. He's family.

Your heart warmed. Your father had always seemed to consider Buck like a son to him, even before you and Buck started dating. "Dad did text to check on you," you said.

"How is he?" Buck asked.

You shrugged. "He seems to be okay, said this is 'merely a setback'."

Buck shook his head with a grin. "I'm sure your father has some plan up his sleeve."

"Yeah, he'll figure something out. I'm just concerned about who's going to keep the bosses in check for now. The current head of the Tracksuits isn't as hot-headed as Luca was, but who knows what might escalate with Vanessa gone and Dad in exile."

Buck huffed out a light laugh. "I think that answer's obvious, darling."

You sighed. "Sweetheart, I love you, but unless you have some sort of superhuman healing ability you haven't told me about, I don't think you'll be up for that anytime soon—"

Buck shook his head again, a small smile on his face. "No, my love, not me."

"Then who—" Suddenly it clicked. "You mean me?"

"Of course, who else could I mean?"

You huffed out a laugh. "You must be on the really good stuff if you think I'm capable of manipulating the bosses into doing what I want."

Buck reached over towards you, palm up, and wiggled his fingers.

You took his offered hand.

"Why not?" Buck said. "You have your father's determination and your stepmother's charm, and you also have me to support you however you need."

He grinned. "Besides, anyone who can single-handedly convince the CIA to take on a sociopathic assassin in exchange for keeping their boyfriend out of prison can surely handle a few mob bosses."

Your face heated. "You heard that, huh?"

"I did. I appreciate it." Buck paused. "Which reminds me, I have yet to thank you for saving my life."

You shrugged then shook your head, a small smile on your face. "Well ya know, I kinda maybe like you a little bit and want to keep you around."

Buck huffed out a laugh. "I could say the same for you, my darling. I'll do whatever it takes to protect you."

You smiled. "Same here. Just no more getting shot, okay?"

Buck chuckled. "I'll do my best, love."

There was a tap on the door as Brooke returned with your coffee. "Here you are," she said. "I didn't know if you wanted cream or sugar, so I brought both."

You nodded. "Thank you."

Brooke smiled. "Not a problem. And while I'm here, it's time for a new IV drip and to change the dressing on your wound, Mr. Cashman."

As Brooke pulled up Buck's patient chart and began scanning the new bags of fluids, you fixed your coffee to your liking.

You took a sip, your eyebrows raising in surprise at the taste. "Wow, this is good."

Brooke grinned. "I told you. Trust me, you want that over the stuff on the floor."

You huffed out a laugh. "Yeah, I had some in the ER waiting area last night. Worst coffee I've ever had."

Buck grinned over at you. "She takes her coffee very seriously."

Brooke huffed out a laugh. "Oh, so do I."

She finished changing out Buck's IV fluids and checking his drainage bags. "Okay, it's time to change out your surgical dressing. I'm going to give you a little bit of something stronger directly into your IV to help ease the pain of me having to clean around your stitches, okay?"

Buck nodded. "Okay."

You watched as Brooke took a vial out of her pocket then scanned the barcode into Buck's chart.

You bit your lip. You weren't sure if you were ready to see Buck with stitches in his stomach. "I'm actually going to step out for a minute while you do that, take a quick walk."

Brooke shook her head. "Not a problem."

You gave Buck a quick kiss. "I'll be back in a bit. Love you."

Buck nodded. "Love you too, darling."

You left the room, standing right outside the closed door for a moment to collect your bearings.

"Mmm, she's lovely, isn't she?" you heard Buck say.

"Yes, she seems like she cares about you a lot," Brooke replied.

"I care about her a lot too." Buck paused. "Can you keep a secret?"

You could hear the rustle of a package being opened. "Is it a good secret or a bad secret?" Brooke asked.

"A good secret."

"Then yeah, sure."

"I'm going to marry her."

You sucked in a breath. What had Buck just said?

"Aww, that's wonderful," Brooke replied. "Congratulations."

You shook your head. It's the meds, you told yourself. Brooke said they make people loopy. That's all it is. He's not actually serious.

You pushed the thought out of your head and walked down to the vending machine, belatedly realizing that you hadn't eaten since breakfast the previous morning.

You had stuck a little cash in your pocket when you had left your apartment earlier, so you bought a muffin to eat then and a bag of chips for later, then headed back to Buck's room.

His face lit up when he saw you. "Darling, there you are! I missed you."

You huffed out a light laugh and shook your head. Definitely the meds. "I missed you too, sweetheart. How are you feeling? Want to watch some TV?"

Buck shook his head. "I'm getting tired again. Just wanted to see you before I went to sleep."

You nodded. "Okay, that's fine. I'm gonna try to get a bit more work done while you nap."

Buck settled down and closed his eyes.

You huffed out a laugh. "Wait, you gotta take your glasses off, silly."

You took Buck's glasses off of him and set them on the beside tray before pressing a kiss to his forehead. "Now get some rest, okay? I'll be here when you wake up."

Buck nodded, already drifting off to sleep. "Love you," he murmured.

You smiled. "Love you too."

You finished typing up the report you had been working on and emailed it to Sheila with the note, Report for the meeting with the S.I. Council on Aging on Friday. Anything else anyone will need for the next couple of weeks should be in my folder on the network.

You closed your laptop, then stood and stretched. You felt like you could use another cup of the good cafeteria coffee, but you still didn't want to leave Buck alone in case the doctor came in.

Against your better judgement, you decided to scroll the news websites for any new information about the riot at the courthouse or your father's plea deal.

As expected, the keyboard warriors were out in full force, both for and against your father.

You ignored the comments, instead focusing on factual reports.

After gleaning nothing new, you replied to some of the text messages you had received.

Thank you, was your standard reply. Buck is expected to make a full recovery.

You had replied to most of the well-wishes when there was a knock on the door and a man in a white doctor's coat walked in.

"Good morning," he said.

"Morning," you replied.

"I'm Dr. Jackson, one of the staff physicians on call today. I wanted to follow up on Mr. Cashman's post-op plan of care."

You nodded. "Okay."

"He's going to remain in here in the step-down unit for at least a few days on a liquid diet while we make sure there aren't any complications after his surgery, then once we transition him to a regular room we'll get him started on solid foods and light exercise while weaning him off of the IV pain medication and switching to oral. We also put him on a light antibiotic just to combat any kind of infection that may be brewing, but he may not need to stay on it long depending on how his next round of blood work comes back. Hopefully, barring any unforseen complications, Mr. Cashman should be able to go home in about a week."

You let out a breath. A week. You'd have Buck home in a week. "Okay, great. Thank you, Doctor."

Dr. Jackson walked over to Buck. "How's he been feeling?"

You shook your head. "No complaints, but he has a pretty high tolerance for pain."

Dr. Jackson pulled out his stethoscope and listened to Buck's heart, then carefully pulled the blanket down and palpated his stomach. "Has he said he was hungry?"

You shook your head. "No, just thirsty so far."

"When was the last time he ate?"

"Probably breakfast yesterday?"

Dr. Jackson nodded. "His digestive system should be waking up soon. He might be feeling bloated or gassy, which is perfectly normal."

You nodded. "Okay."

"Did you have any questions for me?" Dr. Jackson asked as he covered Buck back up.

You nodded. "Yes, how long is his total recovery time?"

Dr. Jackson shrugged. "Well, that all depends on Mr. Cashman, but a full recovery could be anywhere from three to six months."

You nodded. "Okay, thank you."

"Anything else?"

You shook your head. "No, not at this time."

"Okay then. Have a good day."

"You too."

The doctor left.

You picked up your phone. Doctor just came by, you texted to Sheila. Plan is for roughly a week in the hospital, then 2-3 months recovery at home.

Okay, that's not a problem, was Sheila's reply. Thank you for letting me know.

A few minutes later, the hospital nutritionist came by to discuss Buck's dietary selections for the rest of the day.

Since Buck was still asleep, you chose what you thought he'd like best from his very limited options — chicken broth, orange Jello, and ginger ale for dinner.

While you were speaking with the nutritionist, Brooke came back to check on Buck and do a blood draw.

Once the nutritionist had left, she glanced over at you. "Clear liquid diet?" she asked.

You nodded.

"Does he drink coffee?"

"Yeah, just plain black coffee though."

"I'll bring him some. What about you, ready for a refill?"

You shook your head. "Actually, I might run down to the cafeteria and pick something up to eat after he wakes up again. I've only had a muffin since breakfast yesterday."

"In that case, how about a sandwich? We had a staff appreciation thing yesterday and there's plenty left over."

You nodded. "Then that would be wonderful, thanks."

"Coffee too, then?"

"Yes, please."

"Okay, I just have one more patient to check on, then I'll go get that for you."

"Thank you."

Once Brooke completed her tasks and left, you made a mental note to nominate her for whatever kind of 'nurse of the month' award the hospital may have had.

You weren't sure if it was because Buck was in the step-down ICU instead of the regular one or that the formidable figure of your father wasn't looming about, or even simply that the hospital staff had no idea who you were, but you felt like the staff was a little less on edge than they had been when you had been there with Vanessa the previous week.

You decided to continue reading the book you had brought with you, so you pulled it out of your suitcase and settled back in the recliner.

You had gotten about a chapter in when movement caught your eye.

You looked over and smiled when you saw Buck watching you. "Hey, how long have you been awake?"

"Few minutes," he replied.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Buck shook his head with a soft smile. "You looked so beautiful that I didn't want to disturb you."

Your face heated. "Okay, Romeo. How are you, do you need anything? Brooke is bringing you some of the good cafeteria coffee."

"Coffee sounds divine."

"Need anything else?"

Buck shook his head. "Just you."

You took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "You have me, love. I'm not going anywhere."

Buck shifted uncomfortably. "You know, darling, I actually could use some help sitting up a bit."

You nodded and put your bookmark in your book before setting it down on the end table next to you. "Of course."

You stood. "Okay, think you can lean forward for me a bit?"

Buck nodded, leaned forward… then passed gas.

He looked at you, a look of sheer mortification crossing his handsome face. "Oh my God. Oh my God, I am so sorry —"

You shook your head. "It's totally okay. The doctor came by a little while ago to talk about your plan of care and recovery time and said you'd probably be gassy since your digestive system is waking back up after surgery. He also said that you'll be here in the step-down unit on a liquid diet for a few days until they can make sure there's no complications, then they'll move you to a regular room and get you on solid food for another day or two before sending you home for the rest of your recovery — which the doctor said could be anywhere from three to six months depending on how quickly you heal."

Buck huffed out a breath. "I suppose it could be worse."

Yeah, a lot worse, you thought. "Also, the nutritionist came by to discuss meal options, which I'm not gonna lie, aren't the greatest, but you get chicken broth and jello for dinner today — and tomorrow too, from the sound of it."

You adjusted his pillows. "How's that?"

Buck carefully sat back. "Good."

You grinned. "Hey, new couple milestone unlocked. One of us has passed gas in front of the other."

Buck chuckled. "If you want to look at it that way..."

"How's your stomach feeling?"

Buck paused as he thought for a moment. "Actually, a bit better. Not as full."

"Are you hungry?"

You were interrupted by a knock on the door.

A woman holding a tray with a Jello cup, a can of ginger ale, and a covered dish walked in. "Good afternoon, I have your dinner here."

"You can set it here on the table, thank you," Buck replied.

"You're welcome. Have a good day."

"Are you ready to eat?" You asked Buck as the woman left.

Buck lifted the cover and blanched. "I wouldn't exactly call this eating."

You had to agree. The chicken broth resembled dirty dishwasher and was probably flavorless. "I think I might have some salt and pepper packets in my purse if you need it. No one said you couldn't have any kind of seasoning."

Buck picked up his spoon and dipped it in the broth before carefully tasting it.

He made a face. "Please."

You huffed out a light laugh and picked up your purse. "Okay, just a second."

While you were looking, there was another knock on the door.

This time, Brooke walked in carrying two cups of coffee as well as a rectangular box. "Here we are," she said. "Ah, right on time, too."

"Is he allowed to season his broth, do you know?" you asked, holding up the salt and pepper packets.

"Salt only," Brooke replied as she set Buck's coffee on his tray. "No pepper."

Buck smiled at her. "Thank you."

"You're more than welcome." Brooke handed your coffee and sandwich to you. "And for you."

You thanked her then handed a salt packet to Buck. "Here you go, sweetheart."

"Thank you, darling," Buck replied.

"You're welcome."

Brooke checked Buck's vitals while he stirred a bit of salt into his broth. "Okay, so your labs came back and the doctor wants to do one more round of the antibiotics, but the good news is that your white blood cell count is back closer to normal, so you'll probably be off of that by tomorrow. How's the pain?"

Buck shrugged as he took a sip of his ginger ale. "Tolerable."

Brooke smiled. "I'm sure the meds are helping with that. Just wanted to make sure we didn't need to get you on a higher dose."

She looked at her watch. "It's almost time for shift change, but can I get the two of you anything else before I go?"

You and Buck both shook your heads. "No, you've been more than helpful today," you said. "Thank you so much."

"Not a problem! I'll be back tomorrow."

You suddenly remembered the phone charger you had borrowed from Lauren, the nurse from the previous evening. "Oh, wait."

You unplugged it and handed it to Brooke. "I borrowed this from Lauren, Buck's nurse from last night."

Brooke nodded as she took it. "Oh, okay, yeah, I'll get it back to her."

"Thank you again for your assistance today," Buck said.

Brooke smiled again. "Of course! That's what I'm here for — to help you get better."

"I appreciate it."

"See you tomorrow, hope you have a good night tonight!"

After Brooke left, you sat down to eat your sandwich. "How's your broth? Any better with the salt?"

Buck dipped his spoon into it and took a sip, then nodded. "It's… paleatable."

"Good, I'm glad." You opened your sandwich box, which also contained a bag of chips and a cookie.

The two of you ate in silence, Buck giving a small burp in between sips of ginger ale. "Pardon me," he said, looking embarrassed again.

You shook your head. "You're fine, sweetheart."

Once you both were done, you moved Buck's dinner tray for him. "I think I'm gonna shower and get ready for the night. Want your phone? I charged it for you."

Buck nodded. "Yeah. Thank you, love."

You got his phone and handed it to him. "I also brought your book with me in case you wanted to read."

Buck shook his head. "Maybe tomorrow. I don't think I can focus on reading tonight."

"Okay." You pressed a kiss to his forehead. "I'll be out in just a minute."

You got your pajamas, slippers, and toiletry bag out of your suitcase then went into the bathroom.

You took a quick shower then did your skincare before getting dressed in your pajamas and robe.

You slid your feet into your slippers and headed back out into Buck's room.

Buck looked up from his phone and smiled at you. "Have a nice shower?"

You nodded then put your dirty clothes into your laundry bag next to your suitcase. "Yeah, it was okay."

"Your father texted while you were in the bathroom."

You got your pillow and blanket from the shelf above your suitcase. "Oh?"

Buck nodded. "He apologized for not visiting today and said that he is under house arrest while waiting for arrangements to be made for him to leave New York, but that he would like to visit before he goes."

You nodded as you made yourself comfortable in the recliner. "Okay. Did he say anything else?"

Buck shook his head. "Just that he's making arrangements for the rest of your stepmother's jewelry to be delivered to you."

You smiled. To your surprise, Vanessa had bequeathed her jewelry to you in her will — including the diamond and ruby pair you already had posession of — along with a collection of (you suspected very valuable) artwork she'd had kept in storage. "Oh, that reminds me, I should probably have our mail held until you get out of the hospital."

You picked up your phone and made a mail hold request with the postal service, then set your phone back down. "Okay, that's all done."

You stifled a yawn. "Oh, gosh, what a day."

Buck nodded. "You should get some rest, darling. I know you probably haven't slept much."

You shook your head. "I will after your evening nurse comes in."

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door and Lauren poked her head in. "Good evening!" she said cheerfully.

"Lauren, hi," you replied as she walked in, glad to see that Buck's nurse was someone already familiar with his case.

Lauren grabbed a pair of gloves. "Mr. Cashman, I'm Lauren, your nurse for tonight. You slept pretty hard last night, so we weren't able to meet then. How are we feeling?"

Buck shrugged. "I'm okay."

"Any increased pain or discomfort?"

Buck shook his head. "No."

"That's good."

"I gave your phone charger to Brooke," you said. "Thank you again for letting me borrow it."

Lauren nodded. "I got it, and it's not a problem."

She did her usual tasks of changing out Buck's IV fluids and emptying his foley bag, then gave him some pain medicine in his IV before changing his surgical bandages. "Okay, can I get you anything else for now?"

"Maybe some ice water, please?" Buck replied.

Lauren nodded with a smile. "Certainly. I'll be right back with that."

She took Buck's pitcher of now-room temperature water and emptied it, then left for a few minutes before coming back. "Here you go. Did you want some water now?"

Buck nodded. "Yes, thank you,"

Lauren poured some water into Buck's cup. "There you are. If you need anything else, just buzz the nurse's station."

You nodded. "We will. Thanks, Lauren."

"You're welcome."

As Lauren left, Buck yawned.

You smiled softly. "Bedtime?"

Buck nodded. "Getting tired."

You stood. "Need me to help you adjust?"

Buck shook his head. "Gonna try to sleep like this. It's more comfortable for my stomach."

"Okay."

Buck reached for you. "Kiss?"

You smiled again. "Of course, sweetheart."

You gave him a kiss. "Love you. Now get some rest, okay?"

Buck nodded. "Love you too, my darling. You get some rest as well."

"I'll try."

After what felt like the longest ride of your life, the ambulance stopped.

The doors opened, a team of doctors and nurses at the ready.

You followed them into the hospital as the paramedic filled them in on the treatment Buck had received en route.

You were relieved to hear that his blood pressure had slightly improved with treatment, although he was by no means out of the woods just yet.

You were stopped at the entrance to the ER by a nurse. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but you can't go any further," she said.

You shook your head. "But my boyfriend —"

"—Is receiving the best possible care," the nurse gently interrupted. "Now, please take a seat and someone will be with you shortly."

You briefly considered arguing, but you weren't sure if making a scene and playing the don't you know who I am card would even get you anywhere at this point.

You sighed, then nodded.

Instead of sitting, you walked over to the coffee maker and poured yourself a cup of coffee.

You took a sip and made a face. As expected, it was terrible, but you knew it was going to be a long night and that you'd need the caffeine.

You took a few more sips then went to go sit, cringing when you saw the local news's coverage of the courthouse riot on the waiting room TV. You were just thankful that you had managed to get Buck safely out of there and to a hospital.

"—Cashman?"

You looked up at the nurse who had barred you from going further into the ER, then stood. "Yes? How is he?"

"Mr. Cashman is being taken in for surgery," she replied. "You can come with me."

She handed you a bag. "Here are his personal items."

You took it, glad that Buck had had the thought to put his gun and holster in your purse while you were still at the courthouse. "Oh, yeah, okay, thanks."

The nurse swiped a badge on an electronic keypad and opened the door.

You followed her down a hall to another waiting room. "You can wait in here."

You nodded, relieved to hear that Buck was at least stable enough for surgery. "Thank you."

The nurse handed you a card with a number on it, then pointed to a TV hanging on the wall. "You can follow along on that monitor."

You looked at the number on the card, then which matched the only number currently on the monitor. Preparing for surgery, it read.

You sat once again as the nurse left and slumped over with your head in your hands.

The events of the day were quickly catching up to you — from the verdict in the trial being not what you expected to Matthew Murdock outing himself as Daredevil, to your father getting accused of attempted murder of the governor (because really, what the actual fuck), to Buck getting shot, to now whatever was currently going on at the courthouse…

You startled as a hand touched your shoulder. "Heather," you breathed out. "What are you doing here?"

Heather put her hands up as if in surrender. "Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you," she said. "I thought you could use some company."

You nodded. "Yes, thank you."

"How's Buck?"

You glanced at the board, which now read surgery in progress. "He's in surgery to remove the bullet and try to repair the damage."

You looked down at your hands, belatedly noticing that they were still coated in dried blood. Buck's blood. "Oh. Oh my God, I didn't even realize —"

Heather shook her head. "It's okay."

She gently pulled you up and led you over to a sink in a corner of the waiting room. "Here, let's get you cleaned up."

You scrubbed the blood off of your hands, your thoughts spiraling as the water turned crimson. What if Buck goes into shock again, or what if there's complications during surgery? Or worse, what if he—

You stopped yourself just short of thinking, What if he dies?

Heather must've noticed your distress, because she gently took you by the arms and turned you towards her. "Hey, hey, it's alright, just breathe, okay?"

Tears welled up in your eyes as your voice shook. "I can't — I can't lose him. I just lost — lost Vanessa and who know — knows what's going — going to happen with my — my dad."

Heather pulled you into a reassuring hug. "Buck's a fighter, he'll pull through."

"I love him, Heather," you sobbed. "I can't lose him."

"You won't," Heather murmured reassuredly. "You won't lose him. He'll be okay."

She continued to hold and comfort you until your sobs slowed.

You sniffled and took a step back. "I'm — I'm sorry."

Heather shook her head. "No, it's okay. You've had a traumatic day, it's perfectly normal to experience mental exhaustion once the adrenaline wears off."

She shrugged. "Besides, I've been in your situation. It's nice to have some moral support."

Oh, shit, that's right. You had briefly forgotten that she had been dating Mr. Murdock when he had gotten shot at the Black and White Ball.

You sniffled again. "Thank you again for being here."

Heather shook her head. "It's not a problem."

She guided you back over to the chairs, where you sat for the next two hours, your eyes glued to the monitor for any kind of change to Buck's status.

Finally, the phone on the wall began to ring.

Heather stood and went to answer it. "Hello?"

She glanced at you. "Yes, she's here. I'll let her know."

She hung up. "The surgeon wants to meet with you to discuss Buck's surgery. They'll be here in a few minutes."

You looked up at the board, which in the few seconds your eyes had diverted from it changed from surgery in process to surgery complete.

Heather picked up her purse. "Here, I can step out while you talk to them —"

You shook your head. "No, will you — will you please stay?"

Heather nodded and sat back down next to you. "Of course."

Your stomach twisted. "Did — did it sound like good news?"

"I don't know," Heather answered honestly. "But it didn't sound like bad news, either."

You chewed on your lip as you waited, only stopping when the door opened and the doctor walked in.

"Family for Cashman?" she asked.

You and Heather stood. "Yes, I'm his girlfriend," you said.

The doctor shook your hand. "I'm Dr. Ashmore. I'm very pleased to report that surgery went very well and that Mr. Cashman is expected to make a full recovery."

You breathed out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank God."

Dr. Ashmore nodded. "Mr. Cashman was suffering from moderate hemorragic shock when he first arrived, but we managed to stablize him by giving him both blood and medicine to raise his blood pressure while we prepared him for surgery to remove the bullet. He was extremely fortunate — the bullet managed to miss any vital organs and lodged itself between his ribs, which kept it from passing clean through."

She paused. "May I ask who dressed his wound after he was shot?"

You nodded. "I did."

Dr. Ashmore nodded as well. "I have to say, that was some of the best field dressing I've ever seen."

You shook your head. "Oh, I didn't — I mean, Buck actually guided me through it. He was in the military, so I guess he had some basic medical training in stuff like that."

Dr. Ashmore smiled. "Either way, Mr. Cashman is a very lucky man. I believe you helped saved his life."

Your heart fluttered. "Can I see him?"

Dr. Ashmore shook her head. "He's in recovery at the moment, but he should be able to be moved to the ICU for monitoring in about an hour. You'll be able to see him then."

You nodded. "Thank you, Doctor."

You let out a sigh of relief as Dr. Ashmore left. Barring any kind of complications like sepsis (which you were sure the doctors would be closely monitoring for) you were confident in his prognosis. "He's going to be okay. He's going to be okay!"

Heather smiled. "I heard. That's quite a relief."

You sat once again, willing for time to move faster so you could see Buck for yourself.

Eventually the phone on the wall rang once again.

You jumped up to answer it. "Hello?"

"Hi, yes, I'm looking for the Cashman family?" the voice on the other end said.

"Yes, this is his girlfriend."

"I wanted to let you know that Mr. Cashman has been moved to the step-down ICU on the second floor and that you can go see him now. He's in room S-4."

You couldn't help but smile. "Oh my gosh, thank you."

"You're welcome. Bye-bye."

You hung up and turned to Heather. "He's been moved to the step-down ICU, whatever that is. Room S-4. We can go see him now."

Heather smiled. "That's wonderful."

She stood and grabbed her purse. "I think it's actually best if I give you two some time alone, so I'm going to head out and come back in the morning."

You nodded. "Okay, yeah, thanks."

You gave Heather a hug. "Thank you so much for being here with me. I really appreciate it."

Heather hugged you back. "You're welcome."

You and Heather walked back out to the emergency room waiting area.

"Which room is Buck in again?" Heather asked.

"S-4 in the step-down ICU," you replied.

Heather nodded. "Okay, see you in the morning."

You hurried towards the elevator as Heather left.

You pressed the up button, glad when the doors immediately opened.

You stepped inside then pressed the button for the 2nd floor.

Once the elevator arrived, you stepped off and looked at the directory in front of you, then followed the arrows to the step-down ICU.

A nurse sitting at the nurse's station looked up at you. "May I help you, miss?" she asked.

You nodded. "Yes, my boyfriend was just brought here after surgery, name is Buck Cashman? He's in S-4."

The nurse looked at her computer screen. "Ah, yeah, I see him right here. Hall on the left, you can go on in."

"Thank you."

You walked down the hall to Buck's room, taking a deep breath before entering.

Your heart clenched. Buck looked frail in his hospital bed, his usually healthy complexion still wan. His eyes were closed, but it at least appeared that he was breathing on his own.

You walked over to the side of his bed and pressed a soft kiss to his forehead, which was pale, but warm. "Hi, sweetheart," you whispered to him. "I'm here."

You took in the machines in the room. There was one that displayed Buck's vital signs, while an IV line that was hooked to his arm delivered several different fluids.

You moved a chair that was in the corner of the room next to Buck's bed and sat before taking his hand. "You're going to be fine," you continued to whisper. "We're going to make it through this, okay?"

You sat watching Buck sleep, feeling yourself getting drowsy as well.

You shook your head, trying to shake the sleepiness off. No, I need to be awake when he wakes up, you told yourself firmly.

You fought sleep until you could fight no longer, eventually dozing off at Buck's bedside.

You awoke a little later to find a nurse quietly moving about the room.

"Oh, sorry," she whispered. "I didn't mean to wake you."

You shook your head. "You didn't."

Buck's nurse smiled. "I'm Lauren, Mr. Cashman's nurse for this evening."

You introduced yourself, then looked at Buck. "How is he?"

Lauren smiled. "Vitals are great and urinary output is normal, which are all very good signs."

"Has he woken up yet?"

Lauren shook her head. "Not that I'm aware of, but he's on some pretty strong pain medication as well as is probably still coming off the anesthesia from his surgery. It's okay though, rest is what he needs for right now."

You nodded. "I just wanted to make sure I didn't miss it."

Lauren nodded as well. "Did you need anything in the meantime? I can bring you a pillow and blanket, or some ice. There's a vending machine just down the hall down by the nurse's station if you'd like a soda or anything like that."

You nodded. "Actually, a pillow and blanket would be great, thank you. And is there any way I could borrow a phone charger?"

"Not a problem. I can get those for you."

You turned your attention back to Buck as Lauren finished doing what she needed to do and left. "Sorry I fell asleep on you, sweetheart," you whispered to Buck. "I didn't mean to."

Buck's steady breathing was your only answer.

You sighed. You had no idea what time it was, just that it was sometime before daybreak. Of all the days to forget to charge my phone.

Then again, you had expected to be returning to City Hall at the end of the day rather than at Metro General with Buck.

You shook your head and gave Buck's hand a light squeeze. "I don't know what I'd do without you, so no more getting shot, okay? You're only allowed to scare me like this once in my life."

You were interrupted by a soft knock on the door.

Lauren cracked it open. "Hi, I have that pillow and blanket for you."

You smiled. "Thank you."

Lauren brought it over to you. "And here's a phone charger."

You nodded. "Thank you. I'll get this back to you as soon as I can."

"Not a problem. Let me know if you need anything else, otherwise I'll be back in a bit."

As Lauren left once again, you made yourself comfortable — or as comfortable as you possibly could in a lumpy recliner in a hospital room then plugged in your phone to charge. A little more rest wouldn't hurt, especially if it would be a while before Buck woke up.

You closed your eyes, hoping that you'd be able to sleep without having any nightmares.

The next time you awoke, daylight was just beginning to peek into the window. You stretched, wincing when you felt a crick in your neck.

You massaged it out as best as you could, wondering if you should try to get some more sleep or go in search of some coffee.

There was a light knock on the door and Lauren poked her head in. "Hi," she said softly. "Just coming to switch out Mr. Cashman's IV fluids and change his dressings before shift change."

You nodded, then got up to go use the restroom and get cleaned up as best as you could.

You cringed when you saw your appearance. Your hair was a mess and your makeup had mostly worn off. At least I wore waterproof mascara yesterday.

You noted that there was a shower in the bathroom and made a mental note to see if you could run home while Heather was visiting so you could shower, change, and grab some clothes for the hospital. You definitely didn't want to leave Buck alone if he awoke while you were gone.

You finished cleaning up and exited the bathroom just as Lauren was finishing up her tasks. "Thank you for taking care of Buck," you said.

Lauren nodded. "Of course! Hope he heals quickly."

You looked over at Buck. "Me too."

You were still tired and you knew Heather wasn't going to be stopping by super early, so you decided to try to get a little more sleep.

You fell asleep fairly quickly, and the third time you woke up, daylight was a bit more prominent through the hospital room window.

You sighed. Doesn't seem like I'm gonna get much more sleep.

You got up and looked out of the window. The city outside moved as if nothing had happened the previous evening, as if your entire life hadn't been turned upside-down for the second time in less than a week.

You had meant it when you had told Heather that you couldn't lose Buck and now that you were sure he was going to pull through, there was one other thing you needed to do to ensure his safety.

You unplugged your phone, then went into the bathroom to power it on so as not to disturb Buck.

You ignored the flood of texts and emails that came pouring in and went to your contacts instead, scrolling down to one contact you honestly never thought you'd dial.

You took a deep breath and pressed the call button.

The phone rang twice before the call connected. "Miss Fisk, I thought I'd be hearing from you," the voice on the other end said.

"Mr. Charles," you replied. "I need a favor."

"I heard your father got a pretty sweet deal, Mr. Charles replied. "Afraid I can't do much else for him."

You shook your head even though you knew he couldn't see you. "Not for my dad, for my— for Buck. I need you to make sure no charges are filed against him."

Mr. Charles hummed. "And what's in it for me?"

You took a deep breath. "I can get you Bullseye."

There was silence on the other end.

"I know your current asset wants out," you continued. "I can get you Bullseye, I— I just need a way to contact him."

Mr. Charles sighed. "Let me see what I can do."

Before you could say "thank you" he hung up.

You nervously chewed on your bottom lip. You just hoped your plan worked.

A few seconds later, your phone chimed with a new text message from Mr. Charles.

You opened it with shaky hands.

(917-555-8619)

You tapped the number to dial it, then hit call once again.

"Hello?"

You nearly threw your phone across the room at the sound of Benjamin Poindexter's voice. You can do this, you chided yourself. It's for Buck.

"Hello?" he said again.

You cleared your throat. "Mr. Poindexter, this is Y/F/N Fisk, and I have a proposition for you."

Bullseye huffed out a mirthless laugh. "Listen, lady, I have no interest in working for you or your family ever again —"

"No, not for me — us," you corrected. "For the CIA. They want you for a special op."

When he didn't immediately answer, you continued, "Think about it — you'd be back in good with the feds. You'd have immunity. You'd have purpose again."

Your voice sharpened. "Listen, whatever went on between you and my parents, that's on them. But you almost killed my boyfriend yesterday. You owe me."

You weren't actually sure that Bullseye had been behind yesterday's shooting, but based on the number of times he had tried to kill your father, you could make an educated guess that he was.

After a few more moments of silence, Bullseye sighed. "Fine."

You huffed out a relieved breath. "Thank you. They'll be in touch."

You hung up, then called Mr. Charles back. "He said he'll do it."

"A'ight, gimmie 5," Mr. Charles replied before hanging up.

You made sure your phone was on silent, then went back out to Buck's room, his steady breathing a comfort to you.

You sat back in the recliner, closing your eyes briefly as you waited for Mr. Charles to keep up his end of the deal. Come on, come on…

Finally, your phone buzzed.

You hurried to unlock it, breathing out a sigh of relief when you read his message.

Done. Your boyfriend gets off scot-free, no investigation, no charges filed.

"Thank God," you whispered aloud. That was one less thing you had to worry about.

You looked up as there was yet another knock on the door.

This time, a different nurse walked in. "Good morning," she said. "I'm Brooke, I'll be Mr. Cashman's day shift nurse today."

You introduced yourself. "I'm his girlfriend."

Brooke nodded as she went to change the information on the whiteboard across from Buck's hospital bed. "I hear he had a restful night."

You nodded as well. "Yeah, he didn't wake up at all last night as far as I know, but Lauren said that was normal because of the medicine and surgery."

"Yeah, it takes a while to come off of the anesthesia, especially while the body is healing, but he'll likely be waking soon." Brooke smiled as she turned towards Buck. "And speak of the devil. Good morning, Mr. Cashman."

You quickly looked back at Buck, who was blinking his eyes open. "Mmm," he groaned.

"Do you know where you are?" Brooke asked him.

Buck looked around. "Hospital," he said hoarsely.

Brooke nodded. "Very good. Do you remember what happened?"

Buck nodded. "Shot."

"Yes, unfortunately that's right." Brooke pointed towards you. "Do you know who this is?"

Buck looked at you, then smiled and said your name.

You smiled back at him. "Hi, sweetheart. How are you feeling?"

Buck closed his eyes. "Tired."

You took his hand and gave it a light squeeze. "You can go back to sleep, love. I'll be here when you wake up again."

Buck nodded. "Mmm. Love you."

"I love you too." You pressed a light kiss to his hand. "Get some rest."

After a few moments, Buck's breathing deepened once again.

"Cognitive functions are good," Brooke noted. "Sometimes the meds make patients a little loopy."

She picked up a bag of IV fluid and hung it on his IV pole before hooking it up to the machine.

"What is that?" you asked.

"This is an antibiotic," Brooke explained. "His white blood cell count came back slightly elevated in his last set of labs, so the doctor ordered this to combat any kind of infection that might be trying to occur."

You nodded. "Ah, okay."

There was a knock on the door, but this time the person knocking didn't immediately open it.

"Yes?" you said.

Heather poked her head in. "Hi."

You smiled. "Hey, come on in."

"How is he?" Heather asked as she walked in.

"He just woke up for a few minutes," you replied. "The pain medicine is keeping him pretty sleepy."

You turned to Brooke. "This is Heather, she's a friend of ours. Heather, this is Brooke, Buck's nurse for today."

"Nice to meet you," Brooke replied before busying herself again.

"You too," Heather said.

"Is it possible for you to do a favor for me?" you asked Heather.

Heather nodded. "Yeah, of course."

"Would you mind sitting with Buck while I run home to shower and pack some things to bring here? I don't want him to be alone if he wakes up while I'm gone."

Heather nodded. "Sure, I can do that."

"Thank you so much. I shouldn't be more than like an hour or so."

You pressed a gentle kiss to Buck's forehead. "I'm going to run home for a minute, but I'll be back as soon as I can," you told him. "Don't go anywhere without me, okay?"

Buck took a deep breath, as if to say okay.

You brushed a lock of hair out of his face as his breathing evened out again. "Okay, I'll be back soon. Call me if anything changes."

You left the room then headed back down the hall to the elevator, ordering a rideshare back to your apartment.

Thankfully traffic wasn't too terrible and you made it home quickly.

You took your private elevator up to your apartment and set your purse down on the table in your foyer, then took Buck's gun and holster out.

You hung the holster in its usual spot in your walk-in closet and locked the gun in the safe in your bedroom before heading into your bathroom to shower and scrub off the rest of your makeup.

After your shower, you reapplied the bare minimum then dressed in something comfortable before grabbing a medium-sized suitcase and packing enough clothes to last you at least a week at the hospital along with Buck's glasses and something comfortable for him to wear home.

You double-checked your toiletry bag to make sure you had, in fact, replaced the skincare products you had used the last of during your last vacation before adding your makeup to it and grabbing Buck's contact lens case and solution.

You grabbed an extra wall charger for your and Buck's phones as well as your laptop and some books, including the one that Buck had currently been reading for when he felt well enough. Okay, I think that's good.

You wheeled your suitcase out to the foyer then moved Buck's glasses and contact case to your purse before taking your phone out.

Shit. Shit, shit, shit, you thought to yourself as you sat in shock in the courtroom where the Karen Page trial had just been dismissed.

Not only had Miss Page been acquitted on all charges, but Matthew Murdock had just reduced your father's entire enterprise to rubble once again while simultaneously revealing himself to be Daredevil. What the fuck is happening?

You angrily stood, intending to go give Mr. Murdock a piece of your mind but were immediately pulled back down by Buck, who was seated next to you. "You don't want to do that, darling, trust me," he murmured lowly into your ear.

You sighed and sat back. Buck was right — getting into it in a public courtroom with the man who had not once, but now twice demolished your father's business endeavors would just make matters worse and was therefore not a good idea. At least that explains how he knew so muxh.

Buck took your hand as your father walked past you to leave the courtroom. "Come now, let's regroup."

You stood — calmer, this time — and let him lead you out of the row to the aisle.

The two of you followed the departing crowd and exited the courtroom just in time to hear the governor saying, "…Oh, and attempted murder of a government official. Your assassin lived. He has a lot to say."

Assassin? Mr. Murdock had no actual proof of any wrongdoing besides testimony from him and Jessica Jones (which could've easily been dismissed as a continued personal vendetta against your father), but now the governor was accusimg him of attempted murder?

You just prayed Buck hadn't been involved.

Your father looked over at you and Buck but said nothing before looking back at the governor.

"This is the part where you resign," Governor McCaffery continued.

"There's a process for which you propose," your father replied. "I suggest you start that up. If you'll excuse me."

The governor nodded and stepped out of your father's way.

"Interesting to see who you've aligned yourself with, Miss Jones," your father added as he passed Jessica Jones before turning to face her.

"Watch yourself, Kingpin," Miss Jones replied.

You and Buck stepped around the governor and Miss Jones to accompany your father as he departed, followed closely by the Task Force.

In addition to the firearm training you had received earlier in the week, you had also reluctantly agreed to have a Task Force member assigned as your security detail when in public with your father.

"I will do my utmost to keep you safe," Buck had told you. "But in the event of an emergency I would feel better if you also had extra security."

You had sighed. "Fine. But only when I'm out in public with Dad. And not Powell if it can be helped."

Buck had nodded. "That can be arranged."

You followed behind Buck as he escorted your father back towards the entrance of the courthouse, slowing as Matthew Murdock and his entourage came around the corner from another hallway.

"Where you going, Daredevil?" your father sneered as your groups came face-to-face. "You going to hide?"

"Accept defeat gracefully, old man," Mr. Murdock replied.

"Matthew Murdock… Daredevil… Defeat? You've only weakened me some."

Mr. Murdock scoffed. "You've lost the city."

Your father shook his head. "I've lost nothing."

You heard Powell mutter something under his breath before yelling, "Sir, it's a trap!"

You barely had time for the words to register before Buck pulled you behind him and stepped in front of your father right as a gunshot rang out.

"Buck! No!" you screamed in horror as the love of your life fell to the ground.

You lunged for him but was pulled back by North, your assigned security detail for the day. "Let me go," you cried, fighting against North's grip and only relenting when you saw two other uniformed Task Force members helping Buck up.

North handed you over to another Task Force member. "Makes sure she gets to safety," he instructed.

You were ushered back down the hall to the courtroom from which you had just come, following closely behind Buck, who (to your great relief) was conscious and at least able to walk with assistance.

You waited as the Task Force members who had been assisting him carefully lowered him into a sitting position in front of the judges' bench before kneeling down and pulling off the cardigan you wore over your blouse.

Buck grunted as you pressed it against his wound in an attempt to stanch the flow of blood coming from where he had been hit in his stomach.

Heather crouched down next to you. "Can I do something to help?"

Buck nodded. "See if you can find a first aid kit, will you, please?"

Heather nodded as well. "Sure thing."

Buck raised a hand to caress your face as Heather left. "Are you okay, darling?"

You huffed out a watery laugh. "Am I okay? You're the one who's been shot!"

Buck shrugged, then grimaced. "It's alright, it's not like it's the first time."

You sucked in a breath. You'd never noticed any kind of scars or anything on Buck that could've possibly been from a gunshot wound. "What?"

Buck chuckled, then winced. "Just — ah — just kidding, love."

You shook your head and pressed your cardigan harder against his stomach. "Not funny, Cashman."

"—Here you are."

You looked up at Heather as she returned with a first aid kit. "Thank you."

Heather nodded. "You're welcome."

Buck grunted again and sat up a bit. "Okay, darling, I need you to see if there is any gauze and medical tape in there."

You nodded and began rummaging around in the kit as Buck took over holding your cardigan against his stomach.

You sighed in relief when you found the items you were looking for. "Got them."

Buck nodded. "You're going to need to tape as much gauze as possible against the wound as tight as possible, yeah?"

You took a deep breath. "Okay."

You tugged Buck's shirt out of his pants and unbuttoned the bottom few buttons so you could expose his stomach and see the bullet hole.

Buck was still bleeding, but to your untrained eyes it at least appeared to be slowing a bit.

You opened the pack of gauze, cursing when your hands shook and you dropped it. "Fuck."

Buck put his free hand on yours. "Hey, it's alright, love. You've got this."

You took another deep breath and picked up the pack of gauze again, this time managing to hang on to it. "Okay, we're going to swap this out in 1, 2… 3!"

Buck hissed in a breath and flinched as you pulled your cardigan away and firmly pressed the gauze against him.

You winced. "Shit, I'm sorry, sweetheart."

Buck shook his head. "No, no, it's — it's alright, love."

You taped the gauze against Buck's stomach as tight as you possibly could. "Is this tight enough?" you asked.

Buck nodded. "Yeah. Good job, darling."

You rebuttoned Buck's shirt before sitting next to him, finally taking in your surroundings.

Darkness had fallen over the city, leaving the courtroom dimly lit. Your father was currently seated at the witness stand, cameras trained on him as he prepared to address the citizens of New York.

"New York is in a state of emergency," he began. "Following today's miscarriage of justice, we were once again attacked by a vigilante. My… aide… has been wounded."

Your heart clenched as Buck let out another small grunt of pain. You had done all that you could to help him and just hoped that it was enough until you were able to get him to a hospital.

"Right now," your father continued, "we are under seige. As we speak, our enemies are assembling — masked, hidden, and they're coming for all of us!"

He paused briefly. "I want to make myself clear to you. I will not abandon you. I swore an oath, and I intend to honor it. I will stand and fight."

His voice wavered slightly. "Will you?"

The courtroom sat in silence as your father finished speaking and the camera light turned off. You felt uneasy — while you appreciated his conviction, you weren't sure if a call-to-arms was the right move. Those still on the side of the vigilantes would certainly follow suit, especially since their de-facto leader Daredevil had been revealed to be a humble (in their opinion — you personally found the man to be cocky and overzealous), blind attorney from Hell's Kitchen.

You mentally shook your head. You shouldn't have been surprised — after all, you knew Enhanced people (like Miss Jones or some of the Avengers) existed, so it wasn't much of a stretch that the perpetual pain in your father's ass presumably was also Enhanced.

You sat quietly, looking at Buck every few minutes for signs of distress (although you had no idea what you could possibly do in such a situation) until your attention was diverted to the window as blue and red lights began to flash outside. "What's going on?"

One of the bystanders who had been locked in the courtroom with all of you looked outside. "The NYPD is here. And lots of people wearing red, it looks like."

Your father harrumphed. "Task Force, up front."

Your father stood as the Task Force gathered at the front of the room. He walked over to the window, looking out at the scene before sighing and walking over over to you.

He kneeled down to check on Buck, who gave him a reassuring nod.

Your father gently patted Buck's shoulder, then cradled the side of his head before standing.

"Whatever happens tonight, to them, to me, to you," he said, "Matt Murdock and Karen Page never leave this building alive. Now, go do your jobs."

"Sir," one of the uniformed Task Force members said weakly. "Murdock's not alone."

"Oh," your father said before glancing at you and Buck, who looked pale in the dim lighting.

You rolled your eyes. If you weren't absolutely refusing to leave Buck's side you'd grab a gun and go take care of Murdock yourself. He's not bulletproof.

Your father smiled at you, then turned back towards the Task Force member who had spoken. "Well, if you're feeling challenged by your responsibilities feel free to tender your resignations."

The Task Force member who had spoken hesitated momentarily, the exchanged a look with the Task Force member next to him, a petite woman who seemed to silently say don't be a wuss.

He nodded, then the Task Force began to move out.

You rolled your eyes again as you heard Task Force Wuss say, "We'll take care of it, sir."

Your father had just returned to the witness stand when suddenly there was the buzzzzz of a ringing phone.

Sheila pulled her phone out of her pocket and swiped to answer. "Sheila Rivera speaking," she said. "Yes. Yes, right away."

You watched as she walked up to your father. "It's the Attorney General," she said, handing your father the phone. "He'd like to speak with you."

Your father looked at the phone, then hung up and set it down roughly.

Sheila took the phone back and sat down, a frustrated look on her face.

You turned back to Buck and wrapped his suit jacket around him. He was looking even more pale than he had been a few minutes ago and was starting to shiver.

You stood. "I'll be right back, okay?"

Buck nodded.

You stood and walked over to District Attorney Hochburg.

The D.A. said your name.

"Give me your jacket," you replied.

The D.A. looked confused. "Oh, wha— it's a Canali."

You gestured back over at Buck before looking back at the D.A. "He's shivering. Give it to me."

The DA heistated momentarily, then sighed before taking his suit jacket off. "This is madness. I know Mayor Fisk is your father, but there's no reason you should burn with him."

He reached up and caressed your cheek. "You know, I've always found you attractive. Why don't you and I get out of here?"

You saw red. How dare he?

You punched him in the throat. "Don't you ever fucking touch me," you seethed as he dropped to his knees.

You walked back over to Buck and covered him with the jacket before pressing a kiss against his temple, which felt cool to your touch even though he was sweating.

Buck gave you a weak smile. "That's my girl."

You sat back down next to him. You had no idea how long your father planned to keep everyone barricaded in the courtroom, but you were getting increasingly worried about Buck and needed to get him to a hospital as soon as possible.

Sheila's phone buzzed again and she swiped to answer. "I'm here."

She sighed. "Okay."

You watched as she walked up to you father again. "It's the office of the AG… again. Final offer he says is to tender your resignation and leave the city."

"Leave New York?" your father replied. "And there I thought I had your support, Sheila."

Sheila shook her head slightly. "The office of the Mayor has my support."

You looked over in alarm at the courtroom doors as you heard shouting coming from down the hall. Oh, shit. The rioters outside made it in.

"Renouce your citizenship, go into exile, and the AG promises not to prosecute," Sheila continued as the angry mob started banging on the courtroom doors.

"No," your father said, standing angrily. "I won't leave them!"

"Speak to him," Sheila pleaded. "This is the best offer you are going to get."

Your father pointed at the doors of the courtroom. "Open that door."

Shelia said your name. "Please, talk to him."

You shook your head. You just wanted this to be over so you could get Buck to safety. "Dad, take the deal—"

Your father either didn't hear or just flat-out ignored you as he stormed towards the back of the courtroom. "OPEN IT! OPEN THAT DOOR!"

You startled as the doors flew open.

"Boo!" your father yelled, then punched some unsuspecting rioter in the face before walking out into the fray.

You instictively clung to Buck, terrified that the angry mob outside would start barging in.

Thankfully, your father managed to hold the rioters back until the doors were shut and barred once again.

Sheila walked over to you and Buck. "How is he?"

You shook your head. "I need to get him to a hospital, but I don't know how we're going to manage to get him out of here."

"—I do."

You looked over at an older woman seated in the gallery, vaguely recognizing her as the court reporter from the trial.

She stood. "There's a false bookcase in Judge Grimes's chambers that hides a door to a hallway leading to the alley outside. We can use that to get out."

You huffed out a relieved breath. "Can you take us there?"

The woman nodded. "Yeah, of course."

"Shelia, call 911, tell them to send an ambulance to the alley at the back of the courthouse, would you please? My phone is dead." You turned back to Buck as Sheila did as you had instructed. "Think you can stand if I help you, sweetheart?"

Buck nodded weakly.

"Okay, then." You stood, then crouched down to put one of Buck's arms around your shoulder.

You looked over in surprise as D.A. Hochburg did the same for Buck's other arm.

The D.A. shot you an apologetic smile, then shrugged.

You shook your head. Now wasn't the time. "On three. Ready, one, two, three—"

Together, you and the D.A. managed to get Buck into a standing position.

The court reporter opened the gateway behind the judge's bench. "This way."

You and the D.A. carefully assisted Buck in following her back into the judge's chambers, trailed by Heather, Sheila, and the rest of the people who had been barricaded in the courtroom.

"How did you even know about this?" you asked the court reporter as she opened the hidden doorway.

"Oh, people use it as a shortcut to go smoke in the alleyway when court's not in session," she explained. "It's faster than having to go all the way around the building."

You made it outside into the alleyway, which thankfully was empty of protesters.

"Just hold on a little longer for me, okay, sweetheart?" you said to Buck, who you were now having to brace just to keep upright as you made your way to the street. "Ambulance is on its way."

You could hear sirens in the distance. Please, please hurry, you thought, letting out a sigh of relief when you realized that the sirens were getting louder.

About a minute later, an ambulance pulled up and two paramedics jumped out.

One jogged over to the back of the ambulance to get a stretcher while the other hurried over to you, Buck, and the few people that hadn't fled the second you had gotten outside.

"Call about a gunshot victim?" she said.

You nodded at Buck. "Here, my boyfriend. He was hit in the stomach and I managed to bandage his wound, but we've been barricaded inside the courthouse for the past couple of hours."

The paramedic nodded as her partner came over with the stretcher. "GSW to the abdomen, probable psychogenic or hypovolemic shock," she said.

Her partner nodded. "Any neck or spinal injury?"

You shook your head. "No, I don't think so. He's been able to walk with assistance."

The paramedic with the stretcher looked at Buck. "Okay, sir, we're going to get you to the hospital, just hang tight for us."

You and the D.A. sat Buck on the stretcher then took a step back as the paramedics took over getting him settled.

You hurried alongside them as they wheeled Buck back to the ambulance, then climbed in after the first one while the second went to the front. "I'm coming with you."

The paramedic nodded and pointed at a bench on the right side of the ambulance. "You can have a seat there."

You sat, watching nervously as she worked to get Buck ready to transport to the hospital and answering her questions about his medical history — any medications? Pre-existing conditions? Allergies?

She unbuttoned the bottom of Buck's shirt to check his wound. "No active external bleeding," she said. "That's good."

Buck shivered. "Cold," he said weakly.

The paramedic grabbed a blanket and put it over Buck. "We're going to warm you up, okay, sir? Just stay awake for us."

Buck nodded, then mumbled your name.

You took his hand, which felt clammy. "I'm right here, sweetheart. I'm not going anywhere."

I hope he's okay, you thought to yourself as you waited in bed for Buck to come home from his latest 'assignment' for your father. He's been gone for hours.

You looked up as you heard Buck enter your bedroom, your brow furrowing with worry at the look on his face. ""Hey, you're — what's wrong?"

Buck sighed as he unlocked the safe he kept his gun in before setting it inside. "Let's just say that Daniel has resigned his position within your father's administration, effective immedately."

Your heart clenched. Shit, that probably means that he's dead.

You had genuinely liked Daniel — while he had been a bit rough around the edges, he was a sweet guy and had proven himself useful to your father's administration…

…Apparently until now.

You just hoped that whatever he had done, he hadn't gone to the police. While some non-AVTF members of the NYPD were still on your father's payroll, there were others that wouldn't hesitate to investigate if Daniel had had a sudden change of conscience and handed over a bunch of information about your father's dealings in exchange for a plea deal.

If he is dead, it's because he was a threat, you told yourself. He knew too much.

You took a deep breath. "Okay. Okay, just… tell me what you need."

Buck looked down at the floor. "You," he said softly.

You got out of bed and slowly walked over to him, raising one hand to cup his cheek.

Buck raised his head, his eyes searching yours, but for what — Permission? Acceptance? Absolution? — you weren't sure.

You caressed his cheek with your thumb. "Then have me, love, however you need me."

Buck let out a breath, then gave you a soft, chaste kiss. "Robe off, darling."

You untied the silk robe you wore and pushed it off of your shoulders, the material pooling at your feet.

Buck's eyes darkened at the sight of your naked body. "Nothing underneath? Naughty girl."

Your face heated as a wolfish smirk spread across his face. The fact that you were naked under your robe had been sheer coincidence — in your worry about Buck you had forgotten to grab your pajamas before you went to shower, so you had just put your robe on and was planning on getting dressed right before you went to sleep.

Buck took a step back. "You're going to do exactly as I say, understood?"

You nodded. "Uh huh."

"Good girl."

You sucked in a breath. While Buck usually took charge in the bedroom, so to speak, this was a new side of him that you'd never seen before…

…And you kind of liked it.

Buck nodded towards your bed. "On the bed."

You walked over to your side of the bed and got in, waiting for further instructions.

Buck nodded satisfactorily. "Eyes on me, darling."

You licked your lips as he took his shirt and pants off, leaving him in only his boxers. You would never get over just how incredibly hot he was, with his large, capable hands, solid abs, and the smattering of hair across his chest and down his stomach that tapered off below his waistline.

Instead of joining you in bed, like you expected, he walked over to the armchair in the corner of the room across from your bed and sat. "Sit back, darling, make yourself comfortable."

You did as instructed, settling yourself against your pillows.

Buck sat back as well. "Now, I want you to pleasure yourself for me. Show me what it is you do when I'm not here to satisfy you."

You nodded, already hot with desire.

You trailed the fingers of one hand across your collarbones, then slid your hand down to your chest, circling the already-taut nipple of one breast with your index finger before giving it a light pinch.

You closed your eyes and tilted your head back as you let out a small sigh, imagining it was Buck's long fingers touching you instead.

You spread your legs as you traced your fingers down your stomach, putting yourself fully on display for Buck.

He groaned. "That's it, love, keep going. Touch that beautiful cunt for me."

You traced your fingers over your clit, the deep timbre of Buck's voice stoking the fire inside of you.

You used two fingers to spread yourself open, gathering your slick before easing your fingers inside. "Buck…"

"Mmm, such a mess for me already," Buck murmured. "Tell me, darling, do your fingers feel as good inside of you as mine do?"

You shook your head as you slid your fingers out of you, then back in, your eyes still closed. The only thing better than Buck's long, skilled digits fucking you was his long, thick cock. "Uh uh. Love for you to touch me, sweetheart, feel your hands on me, feel your fingers in me. You always make me feel so good, Buck, shit."

"Yeah?" Buck's voice was strained.

You nodded. "Yeah, baby, you do, I —"

"Stop."

Your eyes flew open and you quickly removed your fingers from your core, your mind hazy with both arousal and confusion at Buck's suddenly authoritative tone. Had you done something wrong?

Buck shook his head. "Say that again," he said, softer this time.

Your brow furrowed. "I love it when you touch me?"

"And?"

"And you always make me feel good?"

Buck took a deep breath. "Would you like me to touch you right now, darling?"

You nodded, fresh arousal flooding your system. "Yes. Oh God, Buck, yes, please."

Buck stood and walked to the edge of the bed before climbing in.

He gave you a gentle kiss. "Lie back, my love," he murmured.

You did as instructed, a soft sigh escaping your lips as Buck caressed your cheek.

He made you feel safe — not just because he was your father's personal security or because he had protected you during the attack at the Black and White Ball almost a year ago, but also because you believed that he truly loved you and that he would go to the ends of the earth to prove it.

Buck caressed his way down your body, leaving every inch of you that he touched tingling with desire.

He reached your core, letting out a groan as he slipped a finger between your folds. "Fucking hell, love. You're dripping for me, yeah?"

You nodded, gasping as Buck teased your clit with his thumb. "Uh huh. Need you in me, Buck."

Buck groaned. "I need that too, darling."

He kissed his way back up your body, pausing to lavish attention to your breasts before making his way up to your lips.

You sat up and pulled Buck's boxers down over his hard cock, licking your lips at the sight of it flushed and leaking. "Looks like I'm not the only one who's dripping."

Buck smirked as he finished removing his boxers. "What can I say, darling? Touching you makes me feel good too."

He guided you to lay back down, his expression becoming more serious as he caressed your cheek once again.

You looked at him curiously. "What?"

Buck shook his head, then kissed you as he lined himself up with your entrance. "Gonna need you to tell me if it's too much, okay?"

You nodded. "Okay."

Your breath hitched as he slid inside you with one smooth stroke. He always felt so perfect as he entered you and right then was no exception — in fact, for some reason it felt even better.

Buck hissed out your name. "Fuck, darling, you feel incredible."

You bit your lip. "So do you, Buck. Need you to move, please."

Buck traced your bottom lip with his thumb. "Yeah, love?"

You gasped as Buck gave one small thrust into you. "Yes, shit, you feel so good, make me feel so good."

Buck kissed you. "You make me feel good too, my darling," he whispered against your lips before thrusting into you again, harder this time.

While Buck wasn't exactly rough with you, there was almost a desperation in the way he held you close as he made love to you, as if he was trying to entangle your very souls together.

He groaned out your name. "Please, tell me that you're mine."

You nodded with a gasp as he hit that perfect spot inside of you. "I am. I'm yours, Buck, every piece of me, body and soul."

"Fuck." Buck's breath hitched. "I love you, my darling, my everything, my reason for being."

Tears pricked your eyes at the emotion in Buck's voice. "I love you too, sweetheart, forever and always."

You felt that familiar tug of bliss as Buck began to drive himself even deeper into you, his cock grinding against your clit with every thrust. "Shit, yes, right there," you moaned. "Don't fucking stop, please."

Buck hissed in a breath. "Yeah, love? Gonna come for me?"

You nodded. "Uh huh. So close, sweetheart, you feel so fucking good. Need you to come with me, wanna make you feel good too."

Buck reached down to circle your clit with his thumb, the added pressure exactly what you needed. "I'm right there with you, my love, I've got you," he murmured. "Be a good girl and —fuck, you feel so perfect, darling— and let go for me."

The pleasure inside of you built to a crescendo then shattered, your legs shaking as your orgasm washed over you in waves.

Buck groaned and thrust into you one final time before reaching his own peak, the feel of his cock throbbing inside you as he came prolonging your ecstasy.

Buck gave you a soft kiss as he carefully pulled out of you.

You watched as he opened your nightstand drawer and took out the pack of sanitary wipes you kept in there for the occasions where neither of you felt like getting out of bed in order to get cleaned up after making love.

He took a wipe out of the pack and began to gently clean between your legs.

Your heart fluttered. That was another reason you felt safe with Buck — instead of just rolling over and going to sleep like your previous lovers, he always took care of and cuddled with you after sex.

Buck finished cleaning you up then tossed the wipe into the trash before putting the pack back into your nightstand drawer.

He laid down next to you and pulled you to his chest, briefly closing his eyes as he pressed a kiss to your forehead.

You brushed an errant curl out of his eyes. "Do you feel better?"

Buck nodded.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Buck was quiet for a moment, then he sighed. "There are some things I need to tell you, things about my past."

You sat up, pulling the bedsheet up to cover yourself. A discussion as serious as that probably was best had if you weren't topless. "Okay."

Buck sat up as well. "You already know that I was in the British military," he began. "My regiment — Regiment 22 — was sent to Afghanistan and assigned to night raids."

He looked down at his hands. "Our targets were opium farmers. We were tasked with eliminating all of the men of fighting age — which according to Her Majesty was fourteen and older."

You remained quiet. You didn't want to interrupt Buck while he was opening up to you.

"After my service, I moved to the States with an old squadron mate of mine intending to join a private military company before deciding that I would rather take assignments on my own terms, and so I went freelance instead, which was how I met Wes. We would often run across each other on assignments and occasionally collaborate, and eventually we became friends. One day he contacted me about an open-ended assignment — which I actually didn't complete, but your father was impressed by my ability to think outside the box and brought me on permanently."

"And now here you are."

Buck nodded, his eyes still firmly cast downward.

You took Buck's hand in yours. "I kinda already knew all that, sweetheart," you said gently.

Buck looked up at you in shock. "You did?"

You nodded. "Maybe not exactly how you met Wesley, but the rest of it, yeah."

"How long have you known?"

"Since the beginning." Your lips quirked up in a smile. "You don't actually think I'd date someone who worked for my father and not do my research on them, do you?"

Buck still looked shocked. "Why didn't you say anything?"

You shrugged. "I've just been waiting for you to feel comfortable enough to tell me yourself."

You gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. "You know none of that changes how I feel about you, right? I love you, Buck, not because or in spite of your past or because of the things you're required to do for my father, but because of who you are inside — a loving, caring, fiercely loyal man who any woman would be lucky to be with."

Buck shook his head then raised your hand to his mouth for a kiss. "I love you too, my darling."

He paused for a moment, a contemplative look on his face. "Thank you, by the way."

"Of course. I'm here for you, no matter what." You leaned in and pressed a kiss to Buck's lips. "Think you can get some sleep? It's late and I'm sure you have a busy day tomorrow."

Buck nodded.

You reached over and turned your lamp off, plunging the room into almost total darkness except for the faint light streaming in from the street below your window.

You cuddled back up to Buck as the two of you lay back down. "Good night, sweetheart."

Buck pulled the bedcovers back over the two of you. "Good night, darling."

Buck checked his phone again for the 10th time in half as many minutes. He had been waiting for the past hour for Daniel to deliver BB Urich to him with no response to Buck's texts of ETA?, You here? or even his final text of simply ???.

He sat on the sofa in the dimly lit room. To be honest, he didn't really care for this part of the job. It was messy and brutal and occasionally involved people who had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time. However, it had to be done.

The door opened. Finally.

Daniel walked up to Buck. "Hey."

Buck looked behind him, disappointed yet honestly unsurprised when he didn't see Miss Urich. "Where is she?"

Daniel shrugged. "She's not coming."

Buck stood and took his jacket off before tossing it onto the couch, then slowly walked up to Daniel. "Where is she, Daniel?"he repeated.

Daniel pretended to think for a moment. "I think she had a birthday party."

Buck sighed, then scoffed and shook his head. This wasn't the way he had planned for things to go — he'd hoped that he would just be able to intimidate Miss Urich into compliance (although he hadn't ruled out eliminating her if she refused), but unfortunately it seemed like he would have to beat her location out of Daniel first.

He sighed again as he took his leather gloves out of his pocket. "Now sooner or later," he said as he put them on, "we both know… you're gonna tell me."

Daniel glanced down at Buck's gloved hands, then back up at his face. "Fuck you, Buck."

Buck took a deep breath. He didn't want to harm Daniel, but clearly the younger man needed to be taught a lesson in loyalty.

He headbutted Daniel, then turned him and threw him down before grabbing him in a chokehold.

He held on as Daniel struggled. "Fuck," Daniel gasped, then bent down to try to loosen Buck's grip.

Buck kneed Daniel in the back and threw him down on the sofa, then began to punch him.

"No, no!" Daniel cried out.

Buck punched Daniel a few more times, then grabbed him and threw him onto the floor. "Where, Daniel?" he yelled, then added in a slightly softer tone, "I don't enjoy this." Tell me and I can let you go.

Daniel groaned. "I don't know where she is."

Fuck. Buck really didn't want to have to resort to more extreme measures, but Daniel wasn't giving him much of a choice.

He took his gloves off and tossed them away, then pulled his gun out of its holster and pointed it at Daniel.

Daniel groaned. "Oh, fuck!"

He whimpered then groaned again. "This isn't Helmand, Buck."

Buck cocked his gun and pointed it point-blank at Daniel's head with both hands. "Last chance." Come on, Daniel, just tell me where she is.

Daniel whimpered and groaned once again. "What is followin' his orders gonna do for you? How long until you're on the floor with a gun pointed at your head?"

He coughed. "Or what if it was Y/N's loyalty getting questioned, huh? You gonna beat the shit outta her too, point a gun at her?"

Buck shook his head and took a step closer. "Don't. Don't you dare bring her into this."

Daniel ignored him and continued. "Does she know about about your past? What about the body we buried the other night? You honestly think she'd stick with you if she knew what you've done, how many innocent people you've hurt or killed?"

Buck hesitated briefly. He had told you about being in the military and how he had met your father, but he had never shared specifics about Regiment 22 or Helmand, or about his time as a mercenary.

He mentally shook his head. Daniel was clearly trying to distract him.

Besides, if Daniel had been able to dig up information about Buck's past in the military, who knew what else he could find? Buck couldn't run the risk of him blowing the whistle on the Mayor and taking down his entire enterprise — and by proxy, you.

Buck fired, Daniel's head jerking as the bullet hit its mark.

Buck reholstered his gun, panting with both adrenaline and exertion, then picked up his suit jacket and stepped over Daniel's motionless body to walk back towards the entrance.

He slipped his jacket on and looked back at Daniel, a deep sense of sadness washing over him in addition to the familiar surge of adrenaline after completing an assignment. He had genuinely liked the younger man and had been hoping that Daniel could work his way up the ladder and succeed him as head of security once Mayor Fisk was ready to hand the keys to his empire over to you (with Buck presumably by your side to advise and support you however you needed).

He sighed deeply once again, then headed outside to prepare for cleanup.

Once the scene was cleaned up and Daniel's body disposed of, Buck drove home.

He parked in your private parking spot and sat in the car, unable to shake what Daniel had said about you from his mind.

He had never even considered the possibility of one day maybe having to choose between his love and fidelity towards you and his loyalty to the Mayor. He had never directly refused orders before, but in that case…

He shook his head. A highly unlikely scenario was the least of his worries.

You finding out details about his past, however…

Buck had killed people, innocent people — children, even — all in the name of Her Majesty as part of Regiment 22. And he hadn't stopped there — after his time in the Special Air Force ended, he had been recruited by a former squad mate to potentially join an American private military company before deciding to go freelance instead, which was how he had met James Wesley, and through Wes, Wilson Fisk… and eventually you.

He let out a breath, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly. He had always used sex as not only a method of burning off adrenaline after a successful job, but as a way to distract himself from the memory of his targets pleading for their lives (if they even had time before Buck eliminated them).

There was no way Buck would ever seek relief with anyone but you — you were the only woman he ever wanted to be with for the rest of his life — but he didn't deserve to be allowed to touch you. Not when he was a weapon, only good for causing harm to others.

And he would never harm you.

Buck glanced at his watch, grimacing when he noticed the time. With any luck, you'd be asleep and he could try getting himself off in the shower before going to sleep in the guest room. If you noticed his absence in your bed, he'd just tell you that he hadn't wanted to disturb you at the late hour.

Either way, he couldn't stay in the car all night.

Buck checked his watch as he hurried down the hall to your office. The Mayor had tasked him with giving you firearm training and he needed to try to catch you before you left for a meeting outside the building.

He slowed as he noticed your office door was open and your light was on. Good, she's still here.

He knocked on the open door. "Excuse me, darling."

You looked over at him briefly and smiled, then resumed typing. "Hi, sweetheart. Sorry, I have a meeting in an hour with the head of BronxWorks and I'm —"

Buck shook his head. "Actually, you don't. The mayor has cleared your schedule for the rest of the afternoon."

He had been relieved when you had agreed to join your father's enterprise — as he had told you earlier that morning, he felt like he could better protect you if you were aware of and involved in your father's business dealings.

However, he also knew that being part of the Mayor's non-mayoral business came with certain hazards, so when he had returned from speaking with you he and Mayor Fisk had discussed possible safety measures, including acquiring a weapon for you and teaching you how to use it.

You stopped typing and looked back over at him, your eyebrows furrowing. "What? Why?"

"Given… recent events, he wishes for you to learn how to properly arm and protect yourself."

You sighed. "Does it have to be now? I have so much that I need to do here."

Buck shrugged. "It's either that or I go tell the Mayor that you decided to go with the option of having a Task Force member designated as your personal security instead. I believe he said something about assigning Powell personally to the task…"

He paused as he waited for you to make your decision. Buck knew Powell made you uncomfortable — he himself had caught the man leering at you on more than one occasion — so he was pretty certain that you would wind up accepting firearm training.

You made a face, then sighed. "Okay, fine. Let's go."

Buck waited as you shut your computer down and grabbed your purse, then he and you headed to the parking garage.

Buck unlocked the car he had reserved and opened the passenger door for you.

"Thank you, sweetheart," you said as you got in.

Buck smiled. You couldn't have been that annoyed at having your afternoon disrupted if you were still using your preferred term of endearment for him. "You're welcome, love."

He shut the door and went around to the driver's side to get in.

"So which firing range are we going to?" you asked as Buck fastened his seatbelt and started the car.

Buck shook his head. "Your father has arranged for private instruction at the Red Hook port facility. Given the protests a few nights ago, he doesn't wish to stoke further dissent by having his daughter spotted taking firearm training."

You nodded. "Ah, yeah, okay, that makes sense."

Buck pulled out of the parking garage and onto the street, then headed towards Brooklyn, glancing over at you as you sighed and looked out the window. "Everything alright?"

You looked back over at him and shrugged. "Just thinking."

Buck reached over and took your hand in his. "I know it's been a difficult few days, love."

You sighed again and shook your head. "At least I slept a little better last night. I wouldn't want to accidentally shoot myself or someone else because I can't focus on what I'm doing."

Buck squeezed your hand in reassurance. "If I didn't feel comfortable with your competence in handling a firearm at the moment, I would have insisted that your training wait until another day. I would never let anything happen to you, my darling. Your safety is paramount."

You smiled softly. "Your safety is important to me too."

You both were silent for the rest of the short drive to Red Hook, your hand in Buck's a comfort. With everything that had been going on — the vigilante trials, the security incident at Red Hook, locating the first mate of the Northern Star, and now the death of your stepmother — the two of you had hardly seen each other over the past couple of weeks, much less spent any significant amount of time together, and Buck had missed you. At least it seems like we should both be home this evening.

He turned into the port and parked.

You looked up at the building as you both got out of the car. "I don't think I've been here since the ribbon-cutting after the renovation," you said. "I guess I'm still in the mindset of 'port dangerous, avoid if possible'."

Buck chuckled and held the door open for you. "After you, darling."

He walked in behind you then led you to the area he had set up as a makeshift firing range.

You looked around. "Will the instructor be here soon?"

Buck shook his head. "My apologies, love, I thought you understood. I'll be training you."

Your eyebrows raised. "You'll be — oh. Okay then."

Buck eyed you curiously. "Is that a problem?"

You shook your head. "Oh no, no, that's fine. I guess I just assumed when you said private instruction that Dad had gotten the head of the NYPD's Firearms Licensing department or someone like that to teach me."

You waved a hand at him. "Ready when you are."

"Okay then." Buck nodded then guided you over to the table of various handguns he'd had sent over. "First task is to choose your armament. I took the liberty of selecting a few that I think might suit you."

"So do I just pick one based on vibes?" you asked as you looked at each gun. "They all look the same to me."

Buck huffed out a laugh. "There's subtle nuances between them that can make a rather large difference in your aim. You don't want a firearm that's too unwieldy — it should feel balanced in your hand."

He picked up the gun he had felt most would suit you and turned the safety off before handing it to you. "Here, try this one."

You took it. "It's lighter than I expected."

Buck nodded. "This one is highly recommend for concealed carry. Hold it up, get a feel for it."

You turned towards the target and pointed the gun at it, gripping it with both hands as if clasped in prayer. "Yeah, this one feels okay."

Buck shook his head. "Second step is learning how to properly hold a firearm. That gun shouldn't have much kickback, but you don't want to injure yourself should you ever have to use it."

He stepped behind you, trailing his fingers down your arms to your hands in order to adjust your grip. "You want your hands a bit closer together."

You took a deep breath. "Like this?"

"Mmm." Buck nodded. "Just like that, darling. Very good."

"What's next?"

"Next is aim."

"Which is point and shoot, right?"

Buck chuckled. "Not quite. Look down the barrel at the target, aim, then fire."

You bit your lip. "Could you show me first? Like, as an example?"

Buck nodded. "Certainly, love."

He let go of your arms and pulled his own gun out of its holster, then stepped up to the firing line he had marked on the floor. "Watch closely."

He raised his gun, aimed, then fired, hitting the figure on the target right in the middle of the head.

He reholstered his gun. "Now, your turn."

You looked at the target. "If I hit it, do I get a prize?"

Buck chuckled. Nothing wrong with a little positive reinforcement. "Sure, darling, why not?"

You raised the gun, looked down the barrel, and fired at the target, hitting it almost dead center. "Hmm, sight must be off."

Buck stared at the target for a few moments in bewilderment, then huffed out a laugh and shook his head. "You naughty little minx. You already knew how to shoot, didn't you?"

You put the safety on and turned back towards him, shrugging sheepishly. "Vanessa took me to the firing range while my dad was in prison, said a girl needed to learn how to protect herself. I don't guess she ever told him, unless he forgot."

Buck nodded. "Well played, darling. Well played."

You walked back over to the table and set the gun back in its case. "Haven't shot a gun in a while, figured I could probably at least use a refresher course."

You wrapped your arms around Buck's waist. "Besides, I thought it'd be nice to spend the afternoon together. I've missed you."

Buck gave you a soft kiss as he wrapped his arms around you as well. "I've missed you too, my love."

You hummed. "Now, I believe I was promised a prize?"

Buck chuckled. "You were. Did you have something in particular in mind?"

You bit your lip. "Pick up something for dinner, then go home to cuddle?"

Buck nodded, a soft smile on his face. "That sounds suitable."

You let go of him and took his hand in yours. "Good, then let's go."

Later that night, as you lay naked and sleeping in his arms, Buck's mind drifted to the engagement ring that was currently hidden in an empty bullet box in his gun safe in your bedroom. He had originally planned on whisking you away to Niagara Falls over the weekend to propose, but with your stepmother's death and the Mayor needing both of you closer to home, proposing would have to wait.

"I already told you, you need to input the population info first, then the stats for each individual borough," you muttered to yourself as you read an email from Starla, one of the analysts that worked on your team. "That's why your numbers are off."

You had just gotten back in the office after taking the previous two days off to mourn Vanessa and was trying to follow up on tasks that had been relegated to others in your department.

You replied to Starla as such and were contemplating going get another cup of coffee when your phone lit up with a text from Sheila.

The Mayor would like to see you, it read.

You sighed. You hadn't spoken to your father since the repast — you had returned home to deal with your own personal business while he had continued to field sympathy and prepare to settle Vanessa's estate, but apparently whatever it was he needed to speak with you about was important enough to summon you.

You picked your phone up. I'll be right there, you texted back, then got up and headed out of your office and to the elevator.

You rode up to the floor your father's office was on, then walked down the hall.

You knocked on his door then opened it, pausing when you noticed that the chair in front of your father's desk was already occupied. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Ah, yes," your father said. "District Attorney Hochberg and I were just finishing up, weren't we?"

"Oh, er, yes, of course," the DA replied before standing. "Miss Fisk, always a pleasure to see you."

"Mmhmm."

"I'll see you at the trial?"

You nodded. Karen Page had been captured and taken into custody at the protest in front of City Hall a few nights ago and was being brought to court later that day. "Of course."

You waited until he had left before taking a seat in the chair in front of your father's desk.

"District Attorney Hochberg is a interesting fellow, isn't he?" your father said.

In all honesty, you hated the man. "He's a very… skilled litigator."

Your father harrumphed. "He makes my skin crawl."

You chuckled. At least he technically agreed with you.

"Lawyers," your father continued. "You know, they… use words to twist the truth, don't they?"

You thought back to your father's unjust trial so many years ago. "I think I know what you mean."

Your father nodded. "I imagine you do."

You paused. "I've been meaning to check in with you. How are you, Dad?"

"I don't know. I haven't been asked that." Your father sighed. "I always accepted love as a prison. Not the love between a father and his child, of course, but the kind of love a man has for a woman. I just… never expected to be in it alone."

You nodded. You could never fathom losing Buck the way your father had lost Vanessa. "Condolences are meaningless. Thoughts and prayers do nothing. No one tells you the truth in times like this, which is…"

You sighed. "This is going to hurt. Losing Vanessa for me is not the same as losing her is for you, so we don't know when or even if it's going to end for both of us."

"No." Your father paused. "Well… I uh, I appreciate your words."

He opened his desk drawer. "The reason I wanted to see you was, well…"

He took something out of the drawer and set it on his desk, then pushed it towards you.

Your blood ran cold as you recognized the twin to Vanessa's diamond-and-ruby earring that was still in your purse. "Dad, I am so sorry," you began. "I, uh—"

Your father shook his head. "You don't have to apologize, she would've wanted you to have them. It's just curious, the things we do on impulse — isn't it?"

You chuckled softly to yourself. "I would've liked to have thought I'd have more control over myself than that — or at least have taken both of them so it wouldn't be as noticeable."

"Ah, but you didn't." Your father folded his hands together in front of him. "I know you've always thought of the work I do as… unsavory, but I would hope that since you've been home you might would have changed your opinion and would reconsider joining the family business."

Your eyebrows raised in surprise. "You do?"

"Purely behind-the-scenes," your father clarified. "An… administrative role, so to speak. At least until you became comfortable enough to be more hands-on."

You thought for a moment. You couldn't help but feel proud that your father trusted you enough to ask you to reconsider joining his empire, and besides, you were dating and even living with his most trusted associate…

You took a deep breath. "Can I think about it for a bit? I'd like to talk to Buck before I make a decision."

Your father nodded. "Yes, of course."

You picked up Vanessa's earring and stood. "If that was all, I have some things I need to get back to."

You turned to leave, slipping the earring into your pants pocket.

Your father said your name. "One other thing."

You turned back around. "Yeah, Dad?"

"No matter your decision…" Your father smiled softly at you. "Buck is a good man. Hold on to him."

You smiled back at him, your heart warming. "I will."

You left your father's office and headed back to yours, then grabbed your phone. Are you at City Hall? you texted to Buck. I need to talk to you about something important.

Your phone buzzed with a reply. I'm not at the moment, but will be within 10 minutes.

You looked at the time. Meet me at the fountain?

Okay. See you there.

You grabbed your purse out of your desk drawer and scrawled a note on the whiteboard attached to your office door. Taking an early lunch, back at 12:15 pm.

You texted Sheila to let her know as well then left the office, walking across City Park to the Tony Stark Memorial Fountain before taking a seat to wait for Buck.

While you waited, you weighed your options. If you rejected your father's offer, you could continue to claim plausable deniability as to what exactly he was involved in. If you accepted, however, you felt like you'd be able to figure out how best to protect both him and Buck if things ever went south again.

You smiled as you noticed Buck walking up to you. "Hi, sweetheart."

Buck smiled back at you then gave you a soft, slow kiss. "Hello, my darling."

He sat next to you. "What is it you wish to speak to me about? Everything okay?"

You nodded. "Yeah, I just…"

You paused, trying to figure out how best to word things just in case anyone nearby happened to be listening. "My dad asked me to join his… other administration."

Buck nodded. "And are you considering it?"

"Actually, kinda, but I wanted to talk to you first—" Your eyes narrowed at the nonplussed look on Buck's face. "Wait a minute, you knew. You knew he was going to ask me and you didn't say anything!"

Buck winced. "Your father asked me my opinion on the matter and if I thought you might be open to the idea, but he also specifically forbade me from mentioning the possibility to you because he wanted to speak to you himself."

Yeah, okay, that makes sense, you thought, your irritation immediately evaporating.

You let out a fake huff of annoyance. "Stop being reasonable when I'm trying to be mad at you," you grumbled.

Buck chuckled. "My apologies, darling. Would you like me to vex you further? I can steal your lunch out of the staff refrigerator or leave the toilet seat up at home."

Your lips quirked up in a smile. "Nah, that's okay. So how would you feel if I joined the family business? I'm assuming you told my dad you'd be okay with it?"

Buck nodded. "I did, although I would think that he would have asked you even if I had tried to discourage him. You're a brilliant woman with a head for business and I think you could make your father's enterprise grow even more exponentially."

He bit his lip. "And honestly I feel like I can better protect you if you're fully aware of your father's business dealings."

You nodded. "And you don't want to betray his trust by involving me without his knowledge."

"Exactly." Buck put an arm around you and pressed a kiss to your forehead. "It's entirely your decision, of course, but I do appreciate you asking me about my feelings on the matter — even if I already knew about it."

"Of course. This doesn't just affect me, it affects you as well." You took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I love you."

Buck squeezed your hand back. "I love you too."

He stood. "Are you expected back in the office any time soon? Because the food truck I passed on my way here smells amazing."

You shook your head. "You're in luck — I happen to be on an early lunch break and don't have to be back for another 45 minutes."

Buck grinned. "Well then, what do you say, darling?"

You stood as well and squeezed his hand once again. "I say let's go get in line."

You pulled your phone out of your pocket to text your father as you and Buck walked back towards City Hall together.