#911readerweek

To say you were pissed at what you’d been told one of your closest friends had done would be an understatement. You were livid, outraged, and ready to tell him off like nobody ever had before. 

It was the first time you’d ever been so upset with the man, and you hoped it would be the last, as you truly didn’t enjoy feeling such intense negative emotions. Any attempts at calming yourself down in the fifteen-minute drive over there were useless, Buck’s words only echoing louder and louder in your head as you pulled into Eddie’s driveway.

You slammed your car door behind you a little harder than necessary, not paying much attention to it as you stormed up to Eddie’s front door. You held yourself back from knocking too loudly however as you didn’t wish to wake his son up. 

Eddie answered the door half a minute later, already in pajamas looking half asleep as he ran a hand through his messy chocolate brown hair. He eyed you in a mixture of confusion and surprise.

“___, what are you doing here? Is everything okay?” He asked, fighting away the tiredness in his voice as he searched your face.

“No, everything is not okay, Eddie.” You fumed, “Please come outside so we can speak. I don’t want to wake up Chris.”

His eyebrows furrowed at that and he shook his head once, “He’s spending the night over at Abuela’s with his cousins. Just come in.”

“Fine,” you muttered as you walked past him, relieved to hear you could speak freely. 

You walked over to the green floral couch in the living room and sat arms crossed. 

If gazes could kill, you were sure Eddie would be about six feet under as you regarded him right now. He seemed unfazed though as he took a seat on the brown recliner across from you, eyeing you with questions in his eyes. 

“So… Are you going to let me know what’s going on?” He prompted after a moment.

Eyes narrowed, you crossed your arms over your chest.

“Oh no, it’s you who’s going to do that, Eddie.”

He scratched his head at that. “Uh, I’m lost.”

Well, you would just have to enlighten him then.

“I had a very interesting conversation with Buck earlier.”

That seemed to click something in his mind, and he shifted uncomfortably in the chair. His jaw tightened and he averted his gaze from yours.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, he told me that two of you went out with some of the crew from the 121 last night. Said things got heated between you and one of their firefighters, Drew.”

“Now hold up a second,” Eddie quickly spoke up, already knowing where this was going as he leaned forward with a look mingling with guilt and frustration, “I’d had a few beers that night and I wasn’t thinking straight.”

“Really?” You scoffed, bitterness soaking your tone, “that’s your excuse for telling Drew ‘back off, she’s mine’? We’re not together Eddie, I am not yours. Don’t you remember? I told you how I felt about you, asked you on a date, and you rejected me.”

The memory of the night you’d finally got the courage up to ask Eddie out only a month ago still stung. 

You really thought he was interested in you considering the two of you flirted all the time and hung out nearly every day outside of work. But then he’d rejected you so completely, and now had the nerve to claim you were his, which pissed you off more than anything.

“I only said you were mine because I had to alright?” He defended, standing with his fists balled at his sides, “I mean you should have heard the way he was talking about you! Like you were just some piece of meat he was dying to get a piece of, honestly had Buck not been there to calm me down, I probably would have punched the guy.”

You stood up too, not baking down at all. Sure, this Drew sounded like an absolute asshole, and you wanted nothing to do with him, but you were determined to call out Eddie on his bullshit.

“That’s no excuse for what you said, in my opinion, you’re acting just as worse as him.”

“I am not!” He said, outraged. “I was trying to protect you from that creep.”

“I don’t need your protection, Eddie. I’m an adult perfectly and capable of looking after myself.”

He sighed, “I know that.”

“Then why?” You pressed, trying to figure out why he did what he did. A part of you suspected the answer, but he needed to say it, not you.

He opened his mouth to reply, unknown emotions smoldering in his eyes, only to stay quiet. 

You waited, hand on your hip for him to say something, anything to explain his unreasonable behavior. 

However, he simply looked away, his face unreadable, not offering you an explanation in the slightest.

“Whatever, I’m leaving,” you huffed, turning around and heading for the door.

If he didn’t want to tell you why then you weren’t going to stand around and try to force him to.

Eddie seemed frozen for a second, not moving until the thud of your footsteps shook him out of his own thoughts.

“Wait, ___. Please don’t go, stay,” Eddie begged, hurrying forward and grabbing your wrist. His grip was loose enough that you could easily pull away, but you decided not to, instead stopping like he’d asked, but refusing to turn and face him.

“Why should I?”

Your words were short and distant, but you would give him one more chance to make things right between the two of you.

“I’m sorry, okay? It was stupid of me to do that and I only did out of jealously because....” He trailed, taking in a shaky breath before he continued, “I have feelings for you.”

Butterflies fluttered in your stomach at his confession, heat flaring behind your cheeks as you fought to keep a composed expression. You knew that might’ve been why, but with all the mixed signals Eddie had given, you hadn’t wanted to hope. Still, you needed to understand fully.

“Why didn’t just tell me that?”

“I was scared alright? You’re the first person I’ve had feelings for since Shannon passed away, and I have to consider my child too and the changes it would have on our life if I started dating. But I just can’t deny it anymore. I mean everyone at the station knows I’m head over heels for you, hell even Chris has noticed it, but I know I’ve screwed things up and hurt you, and I’m so sorry.”

As he finished, he dropped your wrist, causing you to turn and gaze at him with concern. Many expressions spread across his face: apprehension, hope, shame, but most of all sincerity. 

You knew without a doubt how hard it must have been Eddie to confess all of this to you, and you appreciated it more than he would ever know. You’d had no idea he was holding all of these deep feelings inside and he truly must have been hurting.

Not wanting to waste another second, you turned to him and slowly brought your hand up to his left cheek, caressing tenderly as your eyes locked. Eddie shivered beneath your touch, watching your every action with bated breath.

“Eddie, I still feel the same about you, and while I wish we could have talked about this sooner, I understand. You’ve gone through a lot and you’re a devoted father. I could never fault you for any of that.”

“Thank you, that’s more than I deserve,” he murmured, leaning into your warm touch.

“You deserve everything,” you responded simply, moving closer and closer to him until there were only inches left between your lips and his.

The kiss was sweet and slow, lips moving together gently until you both pulled away, gauging each other’s reaction, and then you were entangled again, pulling him in closer as he wrapped his arms around your waist.

By the time the two of you parted fully from the passionate embrace, you were both a bit out of breath, your foreheads pressed against each other.

“So,” Eddie started after a moment, a soft smile on his face, “does this mean your really mine now?”

You chuckled at that, “Hmm, are you asking me to be?”

“I am.” He responded a bit of nervousness in his tone.

“Then I’m all yours and you’re all mine.”

My Masterlist || My AO3 || Please leave feedback, helps motivate! :) Thank you for reading~

              Digging through your apartment’s tiny storage closet, you eventually located the backpack-style carriers.  You could hear other doors on your floor opening and closing as your neighbours made their way down to the muster point outside and you hurried to the living room.  Setting the carriers down, you glanced around in search of your cats.  You found one of them easily enough, scooping him up and depositing him uneventfully in one of the carriers.  The other one, however, was a bit more troublesome.

              You called his name, pausing between shouts to listen and watch for any signs of movement.  You knew how much he hated the fire alarm, you’d seen it before - every other time you’d had to evacuate the building.  Sighing in resignation, you walked over to the pantry and pulled out a bag of cat treats, giving it a shake as you headed back to the living room.  Thankfully, he appeared a moment later in spite of the noise and with a bit of a struggle you stuffed him into the second carrier.

              Slinging one carrier onto your back, you held the other one in your left hand, freeing up your right to grab your phone and your keys.  You stuffed both into your hoodie pocket before heading for the door.  As you approached it, before you even turned the door knob, both cats started to assert their distress.

              “I know, babies,” you murmured softly, steeling yourself before unlocking the door.  “It’s okay.  We’ll be outside soon.”

              You opened the door, wincing as the alarm got louder, hurting your ears.  You could only imagine how bad it was for the cats.  Moving quickly, you locked the door behind yourself and jogged down the hallway toward the stairwell at the end, doing your best not to jostle the animals.

              The alarm was much quieter once you reached the stairwell, but the echoing of the cats’ meows was liable to drive you to madness instead.  You reassured them as you rushed down the steps, gripping the railing hard with your free hand for balance.  You didn’t hear anyone else and you figured you were probably the last one out, what with having to wrangle the animals.

              You wrinkled your nose as you passed the fifth floor landing, a faint smell of smoke reaching your senses.  It set off some more anxiety as you considered that the alarm might actually be the real deal this time and you picked up the pace even more, all but flying down the last ten flights of stairs.

              Pressing on the push bar on the door at the bottom of the stairs, you rushed out into the night.  It was dark around the side of the building where you’d come out and you carefully padded across the grass until you reached the sidewalk, heading for the front of the apartment complex.  As you neared the muster point, you started to see other residents milling about, some of them with animal carriers of their own in hand.

              Three fire trucks, an ambulance, and a police car were parked on the street in front of the building.  You watched firefighters clad in turnout gear march toward the front doors, the sound of the building’s alarm piercing the night air every time one of them opened them.  Flashing lights glinted off of every darkened window, stinging your eyes as you made your way to the curb.

              Your chest was heaving, your lungs burning from the exertion of carrying the cats down fourteen flights of stairs as you set the carriers down on the sidewalk, one after the other, before sitting beside them to check on the cats.  Your little ginger boy had stopped meowing and had settled in nicely, but your ragamuffin was still howling, causing your neighbors to cast concerned looks your way.

              “Churro, buddy, it’s okay,” you murmured, unzipping the carrier just enough to stick your hand in so you could give him scritches.

              To your relief, he settled down a little as you petted him.  You murmured wordless reassurances to him as you continued working to catch your breath.  The whole process was made more difficult by the heavy scent of smoke in the air and you felt a sharp jolt of panic go through you as you realized you left your inhaler upstairs.  Your asthma had been bothering you since the wildfire smoke started blowing in earlier in the week, and you knew you’d be in trouble if you were stuck outside for any length of time without your meds.  

              “Damn it,” you muttered, withdrawing your hand as Churro finally made himself at home in the bottom of the carrier.

              You closed your eyes, pulling the neckline of your hoodie up to cover your nose in an attempt to filter out some of the smoke.  It only sort of helped but it was better than nothing and you did your best to keep your breathing easy as you waited out the fire alarm.

              Firefighters came and went over the course of the next half hour and as they did, your breathing continued to worsen.  No one had said anything about whether or not there was a fire yet, but the lack of hoses reassured you a bit.  You called to one of the neighbors you recognized who was standing nearer the front door and asked her what was going on.

              “Looks like they’re all crowded around the alarm panel,” she said with a shrug.

              You thanked her with a nod, turning your attention back to the cats.  Your chest was uncomfortably tight and you could hear yourself wheezing as you attempted to keep your breathing under control.  You knew there were paramedics around somewhere and that they could help you, but a glance around revealed them tending to one of the other residents who, by the looks of it, had suffered a nasty fall, presumably down the stairs.  Not wanting to bother them, you simply leaned forward, pulling your shoulders back in an attempt to draw more air into your lungs while reaching out to give the cats some attention through the holes in the sides of their carriers.

              You glanced up at the sound of footsteps a moment later, watching one of the firefighters stride toward you, heading for the fire truck parked behind you.  You held up a hand to get his attention.

              “Excuse me,” you called, your voice breathless and reedy.  “Do you know what’s going on?”

              He paused, looking down at you, his expression somewhat concerned.

              “Something triggered the sprinkler system in the underground parkade,” he explained.  “We can’t access the sprinkler room to disarm it; we’re waiting on the landlord to show up with the key.  Until we can get in there, there’s nothing we can do to turn off the alarm because the circuits are linked.  Hey, are you okay?”

              He took a step closer, kneeling at your side, his gaze giving you the once-over.  You nodded.

              “Fine, my asthma’s just acting up a bit,” you replied.  “I’ll be fine once I can get upstairs and take my meds.”

              He paused for a moment, scrutinizing you, and waved to another one of the firefighters passing by.

              “Eddie, can you grab the med kit and the O2?”  He asked the second man.

              The other man nodded, continuing past you without missing a beat.

              Turning his attention back to you, the firefighter asked your name.  You offered it, and he repeated it with a smile.  

              “I’m Buck and that was my partner, Eddie.  Don’t worry; we’ll have you feeling better in no time.”

              He reached up, slipping off his helmet and setting it aside before pulling off his gloves.  The sound of his helmet hitting the concrete beside Churro’s carrier shook the cat out of his comfort zone and he meowed, the sound deeper and more morose than usual.  You couldn’t help but smile wryly at the noise.

              “And who are these little guys?”  Buck asked, gesturing to the carriers.

              “This is Churro,” you replied, pointing to the carrier on the right before indicating the other one.  “And that’s Kevin.”

              Buck chuckled, leaning in closer to peer at the boys through the mesh on the carriers.  He reached out, carefully picking them up one by one and moving them aside just enough that he could move in closer to you.  As he leaned in, you got your first real, good look at him, his face illuminated by the flashing blue and red emergency lights.  You sat up a little straighter almost unconsciously as you realized that he was really cute.

              “Would it be okay if I checked your pulse?”  He asked.

              You hesitated a moment, but one look into his kind eyes had you quickly relenting, holding out your hand for him.  He smiled warmly as he reached for you, his long fingers easily encircling your wrist, dwarfing your hand in his grasp.  His touch was warm and gentle and it would have been easy for you to relax into it if you couldn’t feel your pulse racing a mile a minute under his fingertips.  His brow furrowed as he concentrated on your heart rate and you averted your gaze a little, feeling your cheeks heat.

              The sound of footsteps approaching distracted you a little bit and you watched Buck’s partner return out of the corner of your eye.  He had a medical bag slung over one shoulder and a small, portable oxygen tank in his free hand and you groaned inwardly.  You would really rather not have made a scene, but you knew it would be impossible to avoid.  You could already feel some of your neighbors staring.

              “Heart rate’s elevated,” Buck announced, releasing your wrist.  

              “Can you get a set of vitals for me?”  Eddie asked.

              Buck nodded and sprang into action, reaching for the kit that Eddie had just set down.  You watched him unzip it and pull out a couple of things while Eddie slipped on a stethoscope and pressed it to your back through your shirt.

              “Deep breath,” Eddie instructed you.

              You did your best to comply but you could feel your lungs protest.  You could hear yourself wheezing quietly when you breathed out.  Eddie moved the stethoscope, asking you to inhale again.  As you breathed in, the air caught in your throat and you started to cough, ducking your head to avoid coughing on either of the men.

              Buck flashed you a sympathetic look from where he was checking your blood pressure.  Eddie reached out, bracing you with a hand on your shoulder, steadying you as you rocked a little from the intensity of the paroxysm.  He gave you a moment to recover before moving back into examining you, finishing up as quickly as he could, taking a moment to listen to your heart before pulling back.  Meanwhile, Buck tore the blood pressure cuff away from your arm, clipping a pulse oximeter to your fingertip instead.

              “Your chest sounds pretty tight,” Eddie commented.  “I want to give you something to open up your lungs a bit.  Have you ever had a nebulizer before?”

              You frowned, nodding, recalling that one time a few years ago when you’d had pneumonia and had ended up getting nebulized medication at the doctor’s office.

              “It’s fine, I can wait a bit until I get back upstairs,” you insisted, not wanting the entire building to watch you while you were being treated.  

              As though understanding your discomfort, Buck reached out, resting a hand on your knee and giving it a reassuring squeeze.  He glanced at the numbers flashing on the pulse oximeter and then up at Eddie for a moment before turning his gaze on you.

              “Sats are 94,” Buck said with a thoughtful tilt of his head.  “I think we could make it upstairs without putting too much of a strain on your breathing if that’s what you’d prefer.”

              You nodded gratefully, glad that he seemed to understand.  Eddie seemed to consider it for a moment before nodding in agreement.  The two of them got to work zipping their kits and you took a slow, steady breath to steel yourself as you moved to stand.  Buck was faster, though, getting to his feet and holding a hand out to help steady you as you got up.

              Once you were stable, you reached out to pick up one of the carriers, but Eddie’s hand on your arm stopped you.  

              “We’ve got them,” he assured you.  “I don’t want you straining yourself.  Don’t worry, we’ll be careful.”

              You smiled tiredly and nodded, stepping back a little and watching as the firefighters carefully picked up the carriers.  Buck nodded his head in the direction of the doors, gesturing for you to go ahead while he and Eddie followed close behind.  You heard Eddie exchange a few words with another firefighter near the door - the captain, it looked like - and the sea of personnel in the lobby parted to let the three of you through to the elevators.  You paused in front of them, hovering nervously, remembering that you weren’t supposed to use an elevator during a fire and wondering whether the same was true for a false alarm.

              “Don’t worry, it’s alright,” Buck said brightly, stepping up beside you and pressing the button.

              The doors slid open and you stepped inside, grateful for the relative quietude as the elevator closed up again with the three of you inside, isolating you from the still-ringing alarm outside.  Instead, the elevator was filled with another, far more morose sound as Churro stirred, yowling in distress.  Eddie lifted his carrier a little higher so you could stoop down to peer inside and rest your hand against the mesh to reassure the animal.

              “You’re okay, buddy, we’re almost home.”

              The ride up didn’t take long, and within a minute you were stepping into your apartment with the firefighters in tow.  Your suite was reasonably soundproof, but you could still hear the alarm through the door and Churro was no more happy inside than he had been in the hall.  Kicking off your shoes, you motioned for the two men to follow you as you headed into the apartment and around a corner, guiding them to the bedroom farthest from the hallway.

              “Close the door, it’ll cut down on the noise,” you explained.

              Buck obliged as Eddie set Churro’s carrier on the end of the bed, with Buck putting Kevin’s down right beside it a moment later.  You sat down beside the cats as the firefighters set down their kits and began searching for supplies once more.  Reaching over, you unzipped the carriers in turn and let the boys out, sitting back to give them space.  Kevin hopped out of his carrier easily, unfazed by the noise and the bustling.  Churro, on the other hand, peeked out tentatively, his eyes wide and terrified.  You smiled softly and reached for him, pulling him out and setting him next to you, gently stroking his head as he turned to purring up a storm in anxiety.

              “I’m going to put this on you, okay?”  Buck’s voice called and garnered your attention.  

              You turned to see him holding a nebulizer mask.  You weren’t thrilled about it, but you nodded anyway, grateful for the relief you knew you’d be feeling very soon.  He smiled as he slipped it over your head, adjusting the elastic strap until it was comfortable and secure while Eddie put the pulse oximeter back on you.

              “It’ll take about ten to fifteen minutes to get through the full dose,” Buck explained.  “And it’s going to make you feel worse before you get better.”

              You nodded, familiar with the side effects of your regular rescue inhaler.  You knew to expect the shakiness, the racing heartbeat, the anxiety.  You also knew that you would still feel panicky when it happened, just like you always did.  Accepting your fate, you closed your eyes as you worked to slowly deepen your breathing, allowing the medicine to do its thing.

              The minutes passed by slowly, and as they did you began to feel the knot in your chest easing.  Eventually you found yourself able to take a deep breath and your shoulders sagged in relief, even as the increasingly quick beeping of the pulse oximeter unnerved you a bit.  

              “Let’s get this off you,” Eddie said a minute or two later, catching your attention.

              You opened your eyes once more, watching him as he reached for the mask on your face.  You held still as he slipped it off, feeling grateful to be able to breathe clean air again.  The medication had left a bad taste in your mouth and you were glad the treatment was over.  

              “I’m going to check your vitals one more time, alright?”  Buck asked a moment later.

              You nodded and complied easily as he slipped a blood pressure cuff around your arm.  You wrinkled your nose in discomfort as it tightened around your bicep, but Eddie’s voice caught your attention a second later and you all but forgot about it as he leaned in over you.

              “Let’s have another quick listen to your lungs to make sure you’re in the clear,” he murmured.

              As anxious as you’d been when the two firefighters had first turned their attention on you, their warm dispositions and easy reassurances had calmed you more than you could have imagined they would.  Even with your heart racing wildly in your chest as a side effect of the medication, you felt relaxed as Eddie pressed his stethoscope to your back.  You were glad to find that breathing was easy again when he asked for you to inhale and exhale.  You sat patiently through his exam as he moved the stethoscope to your chest, glancing up at him as he finished up and pulled away.

              “Heart and lungs sound just fine,” he assured you, turning his gaze to the monitor as it captured your vitals.  “Your pulse is a little on the high side, but it should subside in no time.  As it does, you might start feeling pretty tired, but that’s normal after this medication.”

              You nodded knowingly as he explained aftercare for your condition, grateful for his thoroughness even though you already knew it all.  Buck caught your eyes as he reached up to remove all of the monitoring equipment and he flashed you a brilliant smile as Eddie cautioned you to follow up with your doctor if you had any concerns.  You glanced around as they packed their kits away, smiling softly as you spotted the cats.  Churro was curled up, fast asleep and dead to the world in the laundry basket, while Kevin stretched out on the floor, batting at a toy mouse.

              “I don’t think you need to worry about any lasting effects,” Eddie explained, launching into a clearly well-practiced disclaimer.  “But if you start to feel worse again or if you’re worried about anything, give us a call back.”

              You stood, too, and trailed after the two men as they led the way back to your front door.  As the three of you approached it, the alarm out in the hallway fell silent and your shoulders sagged in relief at finally getting a break from the noise even though it had faded to the back of your mind as they had taken care of you.  Buck and Eddie turned to face you with smiles on at the newfound quietude.

              “Looks like you won’t have to worry about that alarm keeping you up all night,” Eddie said with a chuckle.  “Make sure you have some water before bed and get plenty of rest.”

              You nodded.

              “I will.”

              Buck reached for the doorknob, letting in a sliver of light from the hallway beyond as he pulled the door open.  You hung back as they stepped out into the hall, taking over holding the door and watching them turn toward the elevator.

              “Thank you,” you said softly, giving them a grateful smile as they glanced your way.

              “Any time,” Buck said warmly.

There's music filling the air of your home as you stir the sauce pot on the stove, you're humming softly along to the song occasionally checking the pasta that bubbles away next to you, tonight you're cooking dinner tonight for you, your boyfriend, and his son. It's something simple but you figured that it's the least you could do for your two favorite boys, today Christopher started fifth grade at school and Eddie had been a complete nervous wreck, you know that he's just worried about how other kids would treat Chris but at the same time you also know that he needs to trust that his son can handle himself and that if a teacher sees something happening they'd step in immediately. 

Eddie worries a lot about his son and it's quite endearing, it's one of your favorite qualities about him, you love how caring he is- anytime that you're feeling down he offers to cook you one of your favorite meals so you've decided to do the same for him. You're adding in some chopped oregano when you hear the front door open, a smile graces your lips as you figure it to be Chris and Eddie, what surprises you though is when just Eddie appears in the kitchen. "Hey Y/N, how was- wait a second, are you cooking?" He asks as a bright smile appears on his face, setting his bag from work down on the table he then approaches you and kisses the top of your head as he moves to try the sauce that you've been cooking. 

Lightly you smack his hand away with a pointed look and resignedly he puts his hands up leaning against the counter instead, "Sorry mi amor, I just love your cooking." He chuckles lightly, you're genuinely surprised that he's not freaking out about where Christopher is or why he got home first but as if he can read your concerned expression he quickly explains himself, "Chris is having a sleepover tonight, he made a new friend at school." You smile at this pleased with the fact that he's making new friends already, when he gets home tomorrow you'll have to remember to ask all about it. 

"Oh so then it's just us tonight?" You ask not-so-subtly hiding the flirty tone in your voice. 

"That's right, just you and me." Eddie hums happily. 

Feel free to crosspost on AO3 to the @911ReaderInsertWeek Collection

We have two prompt lists for writers to choose from. You can choose to do a selection from either list, or even combine them. Whatever inspires you.

Genre Prompts

Day 1: Fluff

Day 2: Angst or Hurt Comfort

Day 3: Smut

Day 4: Humor or Crack

Day 5: Writer’s Choice

Dialogue Prompts

Day 1: “I’ve never been more in love with you than right now.”

Day 2: Day 2: “Hurts.” “I know it’s going to hurt some more, okay?” “Deep breathes, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”  -- This should read "Hurts."  "I know.  It's going to hurt some more, okay?"  "Deep breaths.  I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

Day 3: “Look at me when you cum.”

Day 4: “I’ve connected the dots.” “You didn’t connect shit.” “I’ve connected them.”

Day 5: Writer’s Choice

For the editing prompt we have one list, in which you can choose to do whatever character inspires you.

Editor/Gif Maker Prompts

Day 1: Your muse + the way they look at you

Day 2: Your muse + children

Day 3: Your muse + date night

Day 4: Your muse + flowers

He’d just let you know he’d be home soon, and despite dating your boyfriend for half a year now, a simple text from him always sent excitement and happiness flowing through you. Having dinner together after both of you’d had a long day at work was something you always looked forward to.

“Shit, I should have grabbed a bigger jacket,” you muttered as you made it out of your apartment complex, the fall air cold against your skin. “Maybe I’ll just take that shortcut through the park.”

You made a turn left down the street, knowing the area by heart as you entered South Central Park, eyeing the beautiful scenery around you. It was one of your favorite places to go when you needed to think, with lots of benches and trees to sit against comfortably. 

It was currently deserted, but as you passed by a pack of trees the sound of a frightened meow caught your ears.

Passing for a moment, you quirked your head to the side, listening intently to the concerning sound. More meows followed, each sounding frantic, and causing you to move closer to the trees, squinting to try to find the source. 

There atop one of the highest branches in the large tree was a small white tabby cat clinging on to the branch for dear life. The poor thing was clearly trapped and couldn’t get down from where it had climbed up to.

Worry instantly filled you at the sight as you knew the cat might not survive a fall from this height, and without thinking about it, you began scrambling up the tree after it.

As a child, you’d loved climbing trees and that love had transferred into rock and mountain climbing, which was something you often did with Buck. Therefore, it wasn’t too difficult for you to make the trek up, adrenaline and urgency speeding you up the entire way.

You were sure to be careful as you stopped in front of the branch the cat was on, reaching one upward to raise your body onto it. The branch wasn’t as thick or stable as you would have liked, but you managed to climb on top of it and get yourself into a slightly uncomfortable seating position.

The cat peered at you wide-eyed as you turned towards it, still looking scared and staying where it clung to.

“Here kitty kitty, c’mon over here, everything is okay now,” you cooed gently, offering your palm out for it.

You noted it wore a pink collar that read ‘Sprinkles’, most likely an outside cat that escaped from the owner’s house.

“It’s okay Sprinkles, you’re going to be just fine,” you assured again, leaning forward a bit as you urged her to sniff your palm. 

She seemed to debate it for a moment, before deciding to slowly claw her way over to you, crawling onto your lap and pawing at your shirt. Chuckling at its cuteness you wrapped your arms around Sprinkles gently, snuggling the small animal against your chest, and letting out a sigh of relief that you had managed to save her.

Only after you’d pet her a few times, did you come to the realization that there was no way for you to get down with the cat in your hands. Shifting uneasily, you stiffened as the branch creaked under your weight.

Fuck. It might be possible that you didn’t think this all the way through.

Inhaling deeply, you stroked the cat’s back once more, only to have it let out a long meow, before jumping out of your arms and onto the tree trunk. Fear gripped your heart at Sprinkle’s actions, only to watch in shock as the animal slowly, but surely made its way down, safe and sound. Without your help.

You watched as Sprinkles sat down pretty in front of the tree, watching you with innocent eyes as she licked at her front paw.

“Why you little…” you started, subconsciously leaning forward, which again caused the branch to shudder.

Shit! 

You knew if you even attempted to move and climb down, it would break before you could get a grip on the tree trunk. What should you do? Call 911 or Buck? Was that technically cheating to call your boyfriend if he was a firefighter? You didn’t know and you didn’t care. 

Carefully slipping your phone out of your front pocket, you called Buck.

He answered on the third ring.

“Hey, sweetheart.”

His smooth voice only brought you comfort, and you found to stay composed as you responded.

“Hey, baby, what are you up to? You busy?”

“I’m about to head out of the station. You cooking dinner?”

“Uh, yeah about that, I dunno if I’ll be able to cook tonight. We’ll probably have to get take out. Maybe that pizza place you like or Italian.” 

“That’s fine baby, I’m good with either, but I thought you wanted to make pasta?”

“Um, I did, but I’m a bit preoccupied currently.”

Buck had been moving around, but you heard him pause at your words, his tone shifting to worried.

“What do you mean? Is everything okay?”

“Oh I’m fine,” you quickly assured, letting out a tense laugh, “it’s just that I headed out to grab some butter from the mini-mart, but on the way there I noticed a cat was stuck in a tree.”

“Oh shit, did you already contact Animal Control?”

Animal Control? Oh yeah, that existed and you should have done that. Hindsight is twenty-twenty or in this case, a buck twenty.

“That probably would have been a good idea… but no, I climbed up the tree after Sprinkles,” You admitted after a moment.

“Aw, that’s a cute name, but next time just call a professional baby, you could’ve gotten hurt.”

“Yeah, funnily enough after I got to her, she kinda easily made her way down.”

“That’s what usually happens, but at least you’re both alright.”

You cringed, not yet wanting to confess that you were still in the tree, but knowing you needed to.

In the background, you heard Hen’s familiar voice ask, “What’s going on?”

The line clicked as Buck placed the phone on speaker.

“___ climbed up a tree trying to save a cat, and then it got down on its own,” Buck explained with a buckle.

“Cats these days,” Hen scoffed in reply.

You decided this might be a good time to clear up the misunderstanding.

“Yeah, the thing is I’m still in the tree… I’m stuck.”

The line went quiet for a good few seconds after that, followed by Buck, Hen, and you think Bobby saying, “What?!”

Buck turned the phone off the speaker at that, saying in disbelief, “You’ve been calmly discussing what we’ll have for dinner whilst you’re stuck in a tree?”

“Well, I’ll be hungry when I get down!”

“Oh my god,” he muttered, “baby, just tell me what park you’re at? And stay as still as you possibly can, branches are not always as sturdy as they look.”

In the background, you could hear the sound of Buck climbing into the rig, along with Bobby shouting orders.

“Yeah, I  figured that out,” you sighed, “I’m at South Central Park… Please come quickly, baby.”

“Okay, we’re going to be there in about ten minutes. Sit tight, sweetheart. By the way, I’m in the mood for pizza.”

“Good choice, me too. Black olive pizza sounds amazing right now.”

“Not this again, ___. How many times do I have to tell you we’re a pineapple on pizza household?!”

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However, it was clear to him from the moment you showed up and sauntered over to the table where everyone was hanging out, that something was up.

First, you greeted everybody else before him before finally sitting down next to him and saying absolutely nothing. Then, after a good few minutes you graced him with a short, “Hello Evan,” and immediately started up a conversation with Maddie.

After, you wouldn't make eye contact with him or say another word.

You were perfectly fine talking and laughing with everyone else, giggling at every joke Eddie told and listening intently to Hen's stories about how cute Nia was, yet the attitude remained with him.

It was clear to him you were playing a little game, so he let it go and played it cool. But now, after ignoring him for the past two hours, you've gone and moved to the bar to sit by yourself, as if to make it abundantly clear you're determined to keep being a brat.

"Fucking hell," he muttered under his breath as he kept his eyes glued on where you sat, back facing him at the bar.

You were driving him crazy. It didn't help that you dressed so enticingly tonight, wearing that tight little black dress that you knew he loved seeing you in. It hugged your body in all the right places, enunciating your curves and showing off your smooth legs. Not to mention how fucking good your ass looked in it.

He'd already spotted at least five guys checking you out as they walked by. His jaw flexed in annoyance at the mere sight of them looking at you. It wasn't their fault you looked so good and appeared to be at the bar all alone, just waiting for some company.

Nevertheless, the urge to walk over to you and who fuckers who you belonged to was strong. Show them that you were his and only his.

Nothing too much. Just curl his arm around your waist, maybe even squeeze your ass whilst he whispered something naughty in your ear. Kiss on your long neck a little bit.

All the while knowing those idiots would watch, withering in envy.

He didn't even realize how tightly he was squeezing his glass at the thought, until Eddie startled him by saying, "Uh, everything okay there Bucko?"

He blinked, his gaze shifting from you to his best friend who stared at him with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah, of course, everything is fine," Buck answered quickly, loosening his grip and bringing the glass up to his lips, and taking a hearty swig.

He needed to chill out.

"Really? Because pretty sure I see a vein bulging in your forehead," Eddie joked, taking a sip from his own glass.

Buck rolled his eyes, somewhat thankful for the teasing.

"I'm just confused. ___ has been avoiding me all night."

"Yeah, I noticed that,” Eddie said, shaking his head. “She's pissed off for sure.”

“Clearly, but I have no idea why.”

“If you don't know then you're in even more trouble than I thought my friend,” Eddie laughed.

Buck rolled his eyes at that.

“I’ll just wait till we leave and figure it out when we get home.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine. I’m gonna go ahead and get outta here anyway. Don’t wanna keep Abuela up too long with Chris. Lemme know how it goes.”

“Yeah, thanks man. I’ll see you,” Buck nodded.

Eddie stood up, grabbing his jacket off the back of the chair before making his way out of the club.

“I hope so,” Buck sighed to himself, eyes flickering back to you.

He frowned at the new sight in front of him.

Two guys were now sitting on either side of you, both leaning in close and talking to you. The one to the left was blonde and tall, whilst the other was brunette and shorter.

They wore cocky smiles, clearly thinking they were getting somewhere with you, but Buck knew you like the back of his hand and could tell just from the way you hunched your shoulders, you were uncomfortable.

Anger and adrenaline flared through him at the innate need to protect you.

“Oh fuck no,” he swore, standing up as one of them attempted to wrap an arm around your shoulder.

Your immediate response was to lean away and attempt to stand up to get away, only for the other one to do the same. They were trying to cage you in and Buck was having none of it.

“Leave me alone,” you shouted, trying to move past them.

Buck strode over there in what seemed like a flash, moving behind you and shoving the blonde off you and then the brunette.

“Back the fuck off,” he hissed sharply, shooting them both a look that said ‘don’t even fucking try it’.

They both put their hands immediately, slowly moving away without a fight at the threatening look in Buck’s eyes. He waited until they were completely out of sight before turning his attention back to you.

Somewhere in the midst of that, you’d moved closer to him, having reached out a hand to hold onto his shirt tightly. The frightened expression you wore told him everything you needed to know, and he rushed to assure you, whispering, “c’mon baby.”

He grabbed onto your hand, tugging you with him through the crowd of people to the bathroom.

You followed without question, letting Buck lead you through the door and into the small room empty room which he locked after the two of you.

“I’m so sorry creeps approached you, baby,” Buck said with a sigh as he pulled you into a tight hug.

“They were disgusting, but thank you for getting rid of them,” you replied, voice low as you hugged him back.

Buck pulled away, his eyes searching your face, “Of course, you know I would do anything to protect you, angel. Now tell me, why have you been so upset all night?”

You frowned at that and averted your eyes from his.

“You invited me out here with your friends.”

Buck’s eyebrows furrowed at that, “Right, I thought you’d like that. You mentioned just the other day how you miss everyone.”

“I did, but Buck… today is our five-month anniversary. I do miss them, but I didn’t want to spend it with them,” you explained, lips turning downward into a frown.

Your boyfriend froze at that, his mind going frantic as he processed what you’d just said.

“N-No, our anniversary is this Thursday. Remember we already talked about going out to dinner and everything?”

“Baby, it’s today, the twenty-fifth.” You said with a sigh, “you really thought it was Thursday?”

“Of course I did. I swear baby, I’m so sorry. I understand why you’ve been so upset tonight, you’ve must’ve been so confused when I texted you to come out.”

“I really was, I’d been waiting for you to get off all night. But it’s alright baby, I should’ve just explained instead of pouting. I’m sorry too.”

“Don’t apologize, I’m the fool here,” Buck sighed.

“We’re both fools,” you shrugged, before leaning forward and capturing his lips in a sweet kiss.

Buck returned it fully, his hands holding onto your waist and slowly moving up and down. Up until this moment, he’d almost forgotten the reason he loved this dress on you. It allowed him easy access to your silky skin, and he couldn’t resist indulging himself, letting himself feel all of you.

Subconsciously, his lips traveled down to your cheek, planting butterfly kisses all the way to your tender neck, where he sucked and nipped.

“Buck,” you moaned out lowly, hands moving to grip his strong shoulders as your eyes fluttered closed at his actions, head already getting hazy.

Your boyfriend paused his actions as his hand moved down to cup your firm ass, a growl in his voice as he murmured, “Why don’t you let me make it up to you baby? Show you right here, right now how much I want you.”

“I-In here? Someone could walk in at any moment,” you tried to reason, eyes flickering towards the black door.

Both of you could hear the weak resolve in your voice though, as honestly the fact that someone could catch the two of you at any time was only turning you on.

“I know,” Buck chuckled devilishly before letting a hand slip under your dress to thumb the hem of your thong, “which is why we’ll be quick and quiet, angel. Think you can handle being quiet while I fuck you against the wall?”

His dirty words send a rush of desire through your core and caused a needy whine to escape your lips. You gripped him tight, pushing yourself up against the wall behind you and pressing a passionate kiss to his lips.

“I doubt I’ll be quiet, but please god just fuck me.”

“Oh I will,” Buck hummed, slipping a hand and your panties and teasing your glistening folds, “all night baby.”

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But you figured baking a simple strawberry cake couldn’t be that hard, especially when you just wanted to do something nice and more personal for you and Buck’s two-month anniversary. 

Yet somehow, it seemed an impossible task. The instructions might as well be gibberish, the oven seemed determined not to cook it properly, and with Buck getting home in three hours, you were screwed.

Fuck, just what am I supposed to do now? Maybe I’ll just pick up a nice cake from that bakery downtown. Not as special, but at least it’ll be something...

Shoulders slumping, you started clearing away the many dirty dishes and utensils you dirtied in your failed tries. No sense in leaving Buck’s kitchen a mess too. 

You placed the biggest silver mixing bowl in the sink under a stream of hot running water, watching it fill up until there was a small knock at the front door. 

Frowning, you stole a glance at the clock on the wall, knowing it was much too early for Buck to be off his Saturday shift.

Maybe Albert, his old roommate, was stopping by? He’d stopped living here awhile ago, but Buck seemed to always be finding stuff he’d forgotten. 

You hoped it was him because you’d yet to meet any of Buck’s other friends or family at this stage in your relationship, but he always discussed them very fondly.

“I’m coming, just a sec!” You called out, quickly rinsing your hands before you headed out the kitchen and over to the door.

Apprehension fluttered in your stomach as you pulled it open, peering out to see the bright, smiling of your boyfriend’s older sister, Maddie Buckley.

Surprise overtook you, blinking once as you took in the beautiful mahogany-haired and chocolate-eyed woman in front of you.

She was even prettier than you’ve seen in pictures around Buck’s apartment and exuded a vibe of kindness and sincerity. She stood a few inches shorter than you, wearing an orange floral dress with white sandals. 

Buck had spoken to you in great detail about how much he loved his sister and their close relationship, and so you’d already imagined how your first time meeting her would go.

An utter mess covered in flour was not how you pictured it. God, what she must think of you right now.

“Hello, you must be ___, I’m Maddie, Buck’s older sister. It’s very nice to meet you.” She said kindly, her eyes flickering over you once. 

Ignoring the mortification over your appearance, you quickly replied, “Oh yes, Buck talks about you all the time, it’s lovely to meet you too.”

“Believe me he does the same for you,” she smiled, adding after a moment of pause, “I’m so sorry to drop by unexpectedly, but I left my daughter's diaper bag over here last night.”

“Ah right,” you said, slowly understanding, “I remember seeing it on the couch actually.”

You stepped to the side, opening the door wider to allow her to step inside. She did so, moving towards it with ease, but slowly stopping and tilting her head questioningly to the kitchen.

“Have you been baking pastries? I smell strawberries.”

You cringed internally, remembering how Buck had gushed over Maddie’s talented cooking. She was a great chef, and you were not so much. You doubted she was the type to judge, but still not a great first impression. 

“Kinda,” you admitted sheepishly, “I was trying to bake a cake for our anniversary, but it hasn’t been going so well.”

She turned towards you at that, a bubbling determination that surprised you growing in her chocolate eyes. “Do you need some help? I love to bake and it’s no trouble at all.”

“Oh no, that’s very kind,” you said, shaking your head, “but I couldn’t ask that of you.”

“You could, and you should.” She insisted, “Seriously, I don’t mind. My husband is at work and my daughter’s visiting her grandma so I’ve got time.”

The look on her face reminded you of Buck, the way she wasn’t taking no for an answer, and you could tell she just genuinely wanted to help you out.

You bit your lower lip, mulling it over and knowing she was really your only hope here if you didn’t want to have buy a cake elsewhere. Besides, it was really sweet of her to offer, and the chance to talk to someone so close to your boyfriend was too good to pass up.

“Well, if you’re sure… Forewarning though, it’s a pretty big disaster.”

“I’m sure it’s not that bad,” she assured, heading over to the kitchen with you following behind her.

“You’ll see,” you mumbled.

Sure enough, as she approached the kitchen island where your sad attempt at a cake laid, you could see the confusion take over her features. You were sure she hadn’t thought it would actually be this bad.

“Yeah, and believe it or not, that’s the best one yet. There isn’t too much flour left either, and only half a carton left of strawberries. Buck’ll be home in about three hours, so it’s a race against the clock really.”

The dejection in your tone was evident, and you figured she would also throw in the towel at that news. She didn’t say anything though, instead inspecting it for a moment, and then looking at you with an excited grin.

“Don’t worry, we can totally fix this.”

With that she started moving about the kitchen, organizing the chaos as she pulled things out of shelves and cabinets. It was clear she’d cooked in Buck’s kitchen many times.

“Really?” You said skeptically, watching her in surprise. “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. We may not be able to make the exact recipe you had in mind, nor as much, but we’ll get it done. Trust me.” She said confidently, tossing you a wink.

Her demeanor had determination flowing through you, and tossing off your resignation, you nodded enthusiastically, “Alright, just tell me what to do!”

“Will you bring me those strawberries, please? Oh, and do y’all have any whip cream?”

“Yes, and yes.”

“Perfect.”

Two hours later, you and Maddie sat at the kitchen table together looking proudly at the amazing strawberry shortcake the two of you - mostly Maddie - had whipped up. 

She’d been amazing, giving you easy-to-follow instructions and baking up something wonderful that she assured you Buck would love.

He’d never mentioned it to you, but apparently, it was a childhood favorite, and thus you were even more excited for him to see it. You’d watched Maddie’s actions carefully as well, and with some practice, you were sure you could recreate it.

Not only did you have fun baking for the first time in your life, Maddie was an utter joy to be around. She told you more about herself and her husband Chimney, shared some photos of their daughter, and just all around made you feel welcome.

You grew up with all brothers, so you couldn’t say for sure, but Maddie made you feel as comfortable as you imagined an actual sister would.

“Thank you so much, Maddie. You’re truly a lifesaver,” you breathed out, leaning back in the chair. “I don’t know how I could ever thank you.”

She gave a short laugh, brushing the hair out of her face as she replied, “No need to thank me, really. I mean you’re the one whose been making my only brother so happy these past few months… I should be thanking you for that.”

Heat flared under your cheeks at that, eyes widening slightly at her words. It wasn’t like Buck hadn’t told you plenty of times how happy he was to be dating you, but to hear it from his sister was another thing altogether.

“How can you be so sure of that?” You protested lightly, “I mean you’ve only just met me.”

Maddie hummed at that, her eyes thoughtful as she picked her next words carefully.

“To be frank, he really does talk about you all the time. Buck is just so incredibly happy to be with you, and I’ve never really seen him in a relationship like that. When he speaks about you, I can see how comfortable you make him and how connected the two of you are. I hope I’m not being too forward, but I see the two of you going the mile.”

“Oh Maddie, I can’t tell you how happy I am to hear you say that, thank you.” You whispered, heart warmed at everything she’d said.

“Of course sweetie. Now, I should probably get out of here before Buck gets back.” She hummed, standing up and heading over to the couch to grab the diaper bag she’d initially came for.

“Right, I’ve got to clean the place up too,” you replied, following her over, “you know it’s been very nice hanging out together, I hope we can see each other again.”

“You too, ___. I’ll mention to Buck that he should invite you over for dinner soon, that way you can meet Chimney and Jee-Yun.” She said, smiling as she pulled you in for a quick half hug before the both of you moved over to the door.

You brightened at that as you pulled it open for her, “I’d love to. Buck says Chimney is one of his closest friends, though I’m curious... Why do y’all call him Chimney?”

Maddie snickered at that as she threw the diaper bag over her shoulder before heading out the door, “Now, that’s a story for another time.”

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It was an accident. 

You keep telling yourself that, you have to keep telling yourself that- it had been an accident. There had been an accident. You were in a car accident. It had all happened so fast that you could barely react or remember. You were going home after getting off of work earlier than expected and the light was green, you knew the light was green because the car on your right had started to go to. The light was green and it was your turn to go so you had started driving and then something hit you. What had hit you? As you try to turn your head and scope out the chaotic scene you are met with an agonizing pain that shoots up your spine, immediately tears begin to sting your vision as you desperately bite back a scream. 

It hurts, oh god everything hurts. 

Pain wracks your body as you force yourself to move- or at least you try to move, there's something keeping you in place and it refuses to move in the slightest bit. Sudden panic begins to surge through you, if you were stuck in your car how would you get out and get to help? Was your car even near the accident? Had you been the only vehicle hit? Was anyone else injured? Would the first responders even be able to find you? Oh god. The first responders- your best friends are first responder and were more than likely on their way to this exact accident. They were going to flip when he saw you. You had been going to surprise them at work- maybe their shifts had ended already. You knew though that you wouldn't be so lucky, especially because it was beginning to get hard to breathe. 

Whatever had you pinned inside of your car was also causing severe pain in your lungs now. Distantly you begin to hear sirens approach, a bystander- or maybe another victim of the accident has made their way to you and is speaking to you. Everything is hurting too much. You still don't know what hit you but now as you hear more and more sirens you're beginning to become worried. The man standing next to your door kneels down to your window- wait, is the car upside down? Since when had you flipped?- and asks your name. You're barely able to slur your own name out and he repeats it into the phone, there's a pause on his end as what you can only assume to be the 911 dispatcher- silently you pray to god it isn't Maddie because if it is Maddie then the guilt that already threatens to swallow you will become unbearable. The man asks you your name again as though he's trying to confirm who you are or maybe he's just trying to keep you awake but it feeds into the fear that your friend is on the other side of that phone taking the call where you are laying in your car potentially bleeding to death because something-everything hurts and you know that you are in fact bleeding because a small trail is finding its way up your body and is slowly dripping on to the roof of your car. 

Tears sting and it hurts to breathe but you get a sob out, you're scared you're going to die, you don't want to die alone- sure there's a stranger here but it won't be the same. God how shitty was that to think? A stranger is trying to get you help survive and yet you can't help but wish that you were with your friends. 

Suddenly the man is ushered away and in his place you can just barely see the face of Buck, "Oh my god, Y/N. Can you hear me?" He asks in concern, you're barely able to register his hands- they're shaking as he checks your pulse and any injuries that he can currently see. 

"Yeah. I can hear you." You state forcing yourself to stay awake even as your body begs you to let go, begs for the sweet relief that unconsciousness will bring, "Hurts." You manage to force out as his hands gently press against your abdomen checking for broken ribs. 

"I know. It's going to hurt some more, okay?" Buck says trying to be as calm as possible given your situation, when he presses against a particularly tender spot you can't help but cry out in pain. "Deep breathes, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." He whispers softly and you know that he's trying to be strong but you also know that your injuries are incredibly bad. The rest of the crew is already rushing over but the need to close your eyes is beginning to win, you try to tell Buck that you're sorry. That you can't do it anymore. That you can't keep your eyes open. That it'll be okay. He notices your drooping eyelids and panics, he begins to beg you to stay awake but you can't anymore.