"what do you mean, you don't have a credit card?"
buck pouts as chim and hen both look at him incredulously. chim is leaning back in his seat with a smirk already painting over his face, all easy teasing. hen has that mix of fond exasperation and worry that she sometimes gets around him, the one that bobby shares, sometimes. it's weird, being worried about. he hasn't really had anyone worry about him this much since maddie, and he hasn't decided if he likes it yet. sometimes, it's nice. other times, it feels like ants crawling under his skin.
right now, he shrugs. "i just never needed one, i guess."
hen tilts her head. "how the hell did you manage to get to LA without a credit card?" she asks.
buck looks at her for a moment, figuring out if she's actually asking. she's not, probably. most people aren't.
"how the hell are you living in LA without a credit card?" chim asks, which is a question that he probably does mean. "you can't get a fuckin' closet around here without having to show your credit score."
buck shrugs again, not really knowing what they're expecting. "derek said it was fine," he says. "like, it's not like i signed anything."
that gets him more incredulous looks. "you didn't sign-" chim's smirk has been replaced by something more concerned, which buck decides he does not like. "buck. where the hell are you even living?"
"derek's couch," the duh is implicit.
"it's fine, it's a pullout."
hen has taken her glasses off, and buck watches her and chim share a Look with something uncomfortable churning in his stomach. they look at him like he's a kid, and he doesn't know how to tell them that it's not like he doesn't know that you're supposed to rent a proper place, with a contract and stuff, in theory. it's just that-- well. he didn't know if he was gonna make it through the academy, and what's the point of signing a lease when you might just blow off into the next state in a few weeks anyways?
he doesn't say that, because that would be a bummer. he used to think that his parents' whole don't complain so much, evan and why do you insist on being so negative stuff was bullshit, but he found out pretty quickly on the road that they were actually right -- nobody likes a bummer.
instead, he just tilts his chair back, bounces his knee a little. "do i need a credit card?" he asks.
chim looks like he's about to make another snarky remark, but hen thinks about it seriously, which is why she's buck's favorite. "i think it's a good idea, buckaroo," she says, earnestly enough that buck takes her seriously. "always a good idea to build up your credit score as early as you can, if you ever want to rent somewhere, or make a big purchase."
"not that you're gonna get an actual landlord not named derek to accept any applications anytime soon," chim adds, all casual teasing again. "you know, with your baby credit score and your probie salary. better hope your boy doesn't kick you off his couch."
buck flutters his eyelashes at him. "are you saying that you wouldn't let me crash on your couch, howard?" he asks, sugar sweet. chimney kicks the legs of his chair, and buck yelps and windmills to grab the edge of the table, kicking at chimney's ankle as he does.
"if either of you hits me, i'm going to tell bobby," hen threatens.
"what did you want to tell me?" bobby asks, coming out of his office. chimney and buck both freeze, tilting their chairs down to sit like adults. bobby looks over the three of them, raises an eyebrow. buck makes his eyes as big as possible.
"nothing, cap," all of them say in unison, chim half-snickering, hen hiding a smile beneath a palm, buck blinking innocently at him.
bobby stares at them for another moment, but before he can say anything, the alarms ring. they blink at him, he blinks back, sighs, then starts towards the rig.
buck follows, reveling in the sound of footsteps around him, all of them in unison. as he pulls on his turnouts and shoves himself into the engine, he turns to chim and hen.
"hey," he says a little hesitantly, as the engine begins to shake and move out of the station. "if i bring my stuff..."
chimney bumps their shoulders together. hen pats his knee.
"sure, probie," chim says, easy as anything, easier than anything buck's asked for, in a while. "we can help you get baby's first credit card."
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