Dialogue Prompt: "Stop crying, we both know it's fake."
this is a direct attack but man did inspiration strike :p
read on ao3
“I always thought I’d die alone. I’ve been nothing but undeserving of this life, Minerva, but you… You made me feel like I deserved something. So, if this is the end and I get to spend it with you, I don’t have any regrets.”
Each word from the television is like a knife to Eddie’s heart, and he pulls Buck closer to him with each passing declaration. 9-9-9 was the show that brought him and Buck together. Minerva and Billy were the couple that reminded Eddie that he isn’t broken, that he doesn’t need to do anything more than be himself to deserve someone like Buck.
And now, after eight seasons of more ups and downs than most couples could find their way through, Minerva’s tears soak her face as her fiancé, Billy, says his final goodbyes.
“It’s just not fair!” Eddie mutters. He wipes at his face, trying his best to hide it from Buck, but the hiccup in his voice gives everything away. Buck chuckles and turns to face Eddie, rubbing his fingers over the runaway tears on Eddie’s neck.
“It’s not funny, Buck!” Eddie pushes at his boyfriend’s shoulder, only earning another small laugh.
“Billy’s not dead, Eddie. There’s no way they would be that stupid. Plus, we’ve seen his actor on set since then, and there’s a leaked script and everything!” Buck holds up his phone and swipes through his camera roll. There’s behind the scenes photos, blurry stills of videos, and screenshots of articles that at a glance seem like interviews with the cast and crew following the episode. Eddie feels his heart burst at the effort Buck has obviously put into gathering each careful piece of evidence that his favorite character is alive.
“Are you telling me that we’re potentially grieving this fictional character all because the writer wanted to,” Eddie squints as he reads the article, “do something the audience has never seen before?”
Buck nods. “Yupp. It’s like this guy thinks he’s some God among men.” He rolls his eyes and absentmindedly swipes his hand over Eddie’s cheek to catch any remaining tears. “There’s no way they’re going to let Billy leave like that, not after everything he and Minerva have been through. It’s just not good writing. Plus, they have to get married so that we can steal their vows for our own. It’d only make sense.”
Eddie almost misses it in the casual way Buck says the words. Buck’s thinking about marrying him, about using their favorite show in their vows, about having a future with him… And yeah, Eddie knows that and feels the exact same, but to hear it like this, while he’s already a bundle of emotions over a character he relates to so viscerally. It causes even more tears to stream down his face.
“Stop crying, we both know it’s fake!” Buck admonishes, and his tone forces a wet chuckle from Eddie’s throat.
“I’m not crying over Billy, Evan, I’m crying over you,” Eddie admits. After a few seconds of confusion made obvious by the way Buck’s eyebrows pull together, Eddie adds, “You spoiled yourself so that I would feel better about this episode.”
“Yeah, so?” Buck asks, confusion still evident, like it’s just another Friday in their house. “I know how much he means to you and obviously to everyone who watches 9-9-9. He’s… what makes the show what it is. He’s the reason that I fell in love with the show, fell in love with– you…” Buck blushes like he didn’t mean to make that admission, but Eddie can’t hold back a grin.
“You really think he’s alive?” Eddie asks, curling into Buck’s side as their next show begins.
“If he isn’t, I’ll write you his resurrection myself.”
“I’ll hold you to that.”
