you can have my back any day.

[ lean ] sender rests their head on receiver's shoulder

[ shop ] sender and receiver go to the grocery store together

[ brush ] sender brushes receiver's hair

[ tie ] sender helps receiver with their tie, either by putting it on or adjusting it

[ necklace ] sender helps receiver with the clasp of their necklace from behind

[ zip up ] sender assists receiver with zipping up a piece of clothing

[ unzip ] sender assists receiver with unzipping a piece of clothing

[ shoelaces ] sender bends down to tie receiver's shoelaces

[ swipe ] sender notices a smudge of something on receiver's face and gently wipes it off

[ braid ] sender braids receiver's hair

[ jacket ] sender takes their jacket off and hangs it on receiver's shoulders

[ puddle ] sender hurries to stop receiver from stepping into a puddle

[ drinks ] sender brings receiver a drink from a bar/their kitchen

[ feed ] sender feeds receiver's pet/s for them

[ cook ] sender and receiver cook a meal together

[ feed ] sender allows receiver to try a bite of their dish, holding their fork out for receiver to taste

[ teach ] sender, an expert at something, takes time to teach receiver how it works and how they can get better at it, too

[ readjust ] sender comes up behind receiver and readjusts their stance (maybe holding a gun, holding a golf club, aiming for something, etc.) to help them

[ makeup ] sender fixes receiver's makeup for them

[ bathroom ] sender and receiver go to a public restroom together and have a normal conversation in between the stalls

[ aloud ] sender reads aloud to receiver

[ refill ] sender refills receiver's glass without asking

[ massage ] sender notices receiver looks tense, steps up behind them, and massages their shoulders

[ listen ] sender listens to receiver explain something they're passionate about

[ silence ] sender and receiver comfortably exist in silence together, both of them working or reading or focusing on something different

[ food ] sender brings food over to receiver's house

[ hum ] sender hums along to a song receiver is singing

[ see ] sender sees something that reminds them of receiver and texts them a picture of it

[ admire ] sender stares at receiver across a room, silently admiring and appreciating them from afar

[ win ] sender lets receiver beat them in a game

[ puzzle ] sender helps receiver solve/put together a puzzle

[ carry ] after receiver falls asleep in an inconvenient place, sender carries them to a bed and tucks them in

[ kneel ] sender finds receiver sick in the bathroom ("tossing their cookies"), and kneels beside them, holding their hair back and cleaning their face

[ clean ] sender helps bathe receiver

[ wash ] sender helps receiver wash their hair

all he can do is give a small tender smile , lifting a hand out of the tangle of blankets . he's slow as he moves his hand , fingers brushing against eddie's cheek . " in a moment, " he says gently . he can't hear christopher up so they've got time . time buck wants to spend in the little bubble of them .

the idea of this very situation , it's always managed to make him want to jump out of his skin. the ready made family. but not with buck. if he were being honest , he'd jump at the chance. to have what he only dreamt of with him. but eddie was afraid.

as he lay there , in the quiet of the morning , he feels the need to hold his breath. like if he doesn't , this might all turn out to be just a dream. the quiet air of the morning is . . . well it's perfect. just like buck. it feels like he could get used to this. but all that's missing is the step he's too afraid to take.

the fresh air cooled down his flushed cheeks , the quiet making his racing mind slow down . he'd left his drink inside , but was in no rush to go back inside . his quiet was interrupted by the door opening . buck glanced a look over his shoulder ready to make some excuse before he saw who it was . the tension in his shoulders dropped , a smile on his face before he could stop it .

eddie let buck talk about the need to have a moment , giving a thoughtful look before shaking his head , not yet speaking as he looked off into the dark yard. as if he were looking at something , but really just deep in thought.

"the atmosphere can be a bit . . much sometimes." he finished for buck , speaking for experience before looking to buck. he nodded , grabbing a lawn chair and pulling it closer to him before sitting down. "when i was younger? my tia and abuela would have these . . big parties. ya know , invite the whole block. i liked the time with my family. any time with my abuela was something i cherished." eddied didn't talk about his childhood too much , and it was obvious when he realized what he had been saying , and following that with a smirk.

it was another night of sleepless dreams , buck had used the excuse of them going to the zoo early in the morning as an excuse to sleep over . he knew it was a feeble excuse , but eddie never called him on it . only buck was struggling to sleep on the couch , and christopher had wanted a movie before bed . it had somehow ended with buck falling asleep in eddie's bed , again . not that either of them ever brought it up .

the slip of light from between the curtains was enough to wake buck up , blinking away the sleep as he turned in the bed . he was warm and comfortable , a feeling he didn't want to leave . his eyes slipped closed again , shuffling closer to eddie as he did.

like it or not , eddie cared about buck more than he cared about just about anyone else on the planet. aside from christopher , he was the most important person to eddie. of course he'd known for a while. that he had feelings for buck. then there was him being struck by lightning. dying. it made eddie look at everything differently. no more not being there for buck. whatever he needed eddie to be . . . whatever that was.

so when buck managed to arrange for a sleepover , he wasn't about to complain. not even when his room turned into a movie theater for the three of them. he was actually happy for it. for the first time in a while . . . eddie could say he slept peacefully through the night. it just all felt . . . right.

when he did wake up , the sun shining through the curtain in the window causing him to squint awake , he was greeted with buck . . close. he paused , smiling , reveling in the feeling there for just a second before he took a chance. leaning forward , he placed the softest kiss on his forehead. he pulled away just in time to see buck's blue eyes greeting him now , that whisper pulling a small scoff from his lips.