#sam drayton

Ok, so, this one has been fighting with me for some unknown reason. It's basically just a blurb I already posted, fleshed out and grown into a fully grown fic...or at least that's the goal. I don't think Buck is coming off as I intended in this part...but here is a little snippet nonetheless.

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Buck is well aware of the fact that he's being ridiculous. Acutely, even. What right does he have to be jealous over someone he's no longer with? Someone who he hasn't spoken to in over a year?

All those facts aside, his blood still runs cold and his heart still clenches in his chest at the sight of Tommy talking to someone else.

Talking to Sam.

The setting sun is painting a backdrop across the sky. Calm streaks of blue, red, and pink are a stark contrast to the chaos of the scene they just witnessed. All in all, for as frantic as it was, everyone walked away, and for that he was truly thankful.

It happens four months after Ma-- Sam's transfer from the 118. But they don't meet on the field, but rather in a "first responder/firefighter" pub after a shift where everything went very well. Hen, Chimney, and Eddie are entering first, and Buck is right behind them, when they see Sam getting up and grabbing his coat; he's apparently leaving, but Buck doesn't think he's seen them yet.

Chimney is the one who waves, and they go to talk to Sam on the way to the bar. Ravi and May still not there, and Hen looks at her watch because she doesn't want to leave too late. They're almost saying goodbye to Sam and getting out of the way when Buck decides to say:

"See, we met again, but not on the field. A good sign."

Buck smiles, and he hopes that this time he said the right thing, for the right reasons, without the awkwardness that the fear of being replaced causes him, even though he still sees Sam as his replacement. To emphasize, Buck lightly punches Sam on the shoulder.

Sam smiles a little awkwardly and rubs his shoulder where Buck punched him. Perhaps it was a bit too much, Buck thinks.

"Right. It was good seeing you guys, but I better go. I told my boyfriend I'd meet him in the parking lot, but he probably thinks I got lost on the way."

For some inexplicable reason, Buck's response is to raise an eyebrow and say,

"You have a boyfriend?"

"Yeah?" Sam kind of laughs and shrugs. "It's kind of new."

"I had a boyfriend too." Buck lets out.

"Cool?" Sam says. “I guess.”

And what follows are seconds of silence because Buck doesn't know why his or Sam's romantic life should be a topic of conversation. Why did he start with it at all?

Eddie clears his throat.

"Well, I guess we should go to our table."

Sam turns to Eddie, but as soon as he does, his face lights up and he waves to someone behind Eddie.

"I think he got tired of waiting for me outside," Sam says.

When Buck turns to check who Sam is talking about, probably his boyfriend, his eyes widen and Buck freezes.

"...He's a firefighter pilot, actually I think you guys already know each other," Sam was saying something now. "It's hard to get our shifts to align. He must be tired."

It's as if everything goes silent, and when Buck notices, Tommy (his Tommy) Kinard, is approaching. Tommy only blinked twice quickly, as if checking that he was indeed awake, and now he has a slight smile, walking towards them as if nothing had happened.

"Hi." Tommy says casually, but he is fidgeting with his hands.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. I ran into some friends. I think you already know them." Sam is still smiling at Tommy while pointing to the rest of the group.

"Of course,” Tommy says as if he were remembering something, as if the 118 were this imaginary place from the past, “you spent some time with the 118." 

Tommy looks at Buck, sizing him up as if checking that he is still in one piece. 

"Howie. Diaz. Wilson... Buck. How are things going? I heard you became Captain Han.”

"Things are going well," Chimney replies, as if it weren't the first time in months that they'd seen Tommy in person. “We are all adapting.”

"Good to know," Tommy says politely, yet he seems genuine. "Sorry, but we're a little late."

"Sure," Hen nods to Tommy. "We don't want to hold you two up."

"Well, good to see you again," Sam says, and Buck almost jumps out of his body because for a moment he forgot Sam was part of that equation. "Not on the field."

And Sam points at Buck, as if they had this little inside joke.

Buck thinks he mumbled a "bye" before just standing there, watching Tommy walk away as Sam gets closer and puts his arm around his waist, while Tommy reciprocates with an arm around his shoulders.

Tommy doesn't look back, and Buck doesn't know why he'd want it to be different.

A ship that came to me in a dream....

okay actually that would be kind of funny. they did start laying some groundwork for a change this episode by bringing up a lot of the stuff that’s gone wrong lately. i wouldn’t expect anything permanent, but i could see them doing a storyline where something threatens the integrity of the 118 family and then gets resolved a few episodes later.

but the way they introduced sam, he plays right into buck’s fear of being replaced. i could absolutely see them swapping them again at some point, maybe even moving buck out for a bit, because the show really does love playing with that fear. honestly i’d like to see more of sam, and more sam-buck interactions.