"Alright spill." Eddie admonished, swiftly pulling the covers off of Buck, effectively startling the man awake.

Buck shot up, schooling his startled expression into that of false confusion. He tilted his head, furrowing his brow as he pawed at the covers, longing for the warmth of the blankets back. His unruly curls sprung up around him in a halo, adding to his façade. He gaped a little, unprepared for the abrupt confrontation.

"What did she say to you? And don't try me with the 'what do you mean' bullshit. I know she said something and you're spiraling because of it. I want to know what's got you so twisted up. What she said to take you away from us." Eddie continued, anger seeping into his tone, and he clenched his fists, blunt nails on the verge of digging into the calloused flesh of his palms.

At Buck's wary expression, Eddie took a deep breath, attempting to control the fury surging through his veins. Getting angry wouldn't help the situation any. Letting the breath out, Eddie gingerly sat next to Buck on the bunk, fisting the blankets to hide his white knuckled grasp on the covers. Eddie was doing his best to not lash out, knowing that the anger was misplaced, and there was no way in hell he was going to mess this up by snapping at Buck, especially since he was in such a fragile state.

"We miss you Buck," he caught the other man's gaze, voice soft, showing the vulnerability Eddie typically keeps under wraps. "Even when you're here, you're not, you know? So please… just tell me what happened."

Buck refused to meet his gaze, and he shifted uncomfortably. He pulled his legs up to his chest, burying his face in his knees.

"I—" He uttered, before cutting himself off with a weary sigh. "I don't know what to tell you."

"The truth, preferably." Eddie snarked, lightheartedly.

"Yeah, no, I got that."

"Well?" Eddie pressed.

"You're going to think it's dumb." He fiddled with the hem of his T-shirt, looking everywhere but at Eddie.

"I don't know what's running through your head right now, but if it's bothering you this much, it can't be something dumb. Nothing that upsets you will be dumb."

"Sure." Buck snorted.

"I know we don't really do the whole 'talk about our thoughts and feelings' thing, but maybe we should start. Now seems like as good a time as any."

"You're just saying that because it's my stupid issues we're talking about."

"It… may have a bit of an influence on this. But next time we can talk about my stupid issues, as you put it. Deal?"

"Deal." Buck says after a beat of silence.

He shifts again, now sitting cross legged, knee brushing against Eddie's thigh. Eddie gently bumps his shoulder against Buck's in a show of support and silent solidarity.

"We… We were talking about Albert and Veronica, and how I didn't want to sit through the evening alone with them, and that was why I invited her over that night. I may not have been as forthcoming as I could've been about my motive when I initially invited her. We argued? I guess? And somewhere in there she said that I was the problem. That I was needy, and scared of people not liking me. Just kinda dragged up a bunch of things that I'm… insecure? About? I don't know. It just got under my skin, and next thing you know it's all I can think about." He chokes out a wry laugh.

"Buck…"

"Maybe it's you that's the problem." He imitates, pitching his voice a little higher. "It haunts me, Eds."

Buck flushes slightly in embarrassment at his admission.

"You are not a problem, Buck." Eddie told him, with conviction.

"Aren't I?" He shot back.

"What do you mean?" He scoffs, crossing his arms and leveling Buck with a glare. There was no real heat behind it though, just disbelief and curiosity.

"I mean… don't I kinda make everything about myself?"

"What are you talking about?" Eddie retorted, in disbelief.

"Do I really need to spell it out for you? The lawsuit? My date? Literally every aspect of any relationship I've ever had?"

"Buck, as angry as we all were to be blindsided by the lawsuit, you weren't wrong to go through with it. Hurtful, but not wrong. Yes, you could've given Taylor a little heads up about Albert and what's her face, but what's done is done. You learn from it and move on. And your relationships? You give everything to your friends, you're always there for us, no matter what. You're not selfish, or making everything about you. You're not a problem, or…" Eddie trailed off, as Buck interrupted him.

"Exhausting?"

"¡Dios mío!" Eddie swore under his breath, "Never, Buck. Never. I shouldn't have said that to you, no matter how upset I was. I lashed out and said whatever I could to hurt you. I'm sorry Buck. Really. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. It's true anyways. I should've just sucked it up and dealt with it on my own, instead of dragging the entire firehouse down with me."

"We should have stood by you, supported you. Not just regarding the lawsuit, but before. We wrote you off, thinking that you knew we would be there for you, but knowing you, we should've known that you wouldn't reach out. We should have made it more clear how much we care about you. Proved that we were there for you. I'm sorry we didn't. Maybe if we'd been there, after your injury, after the tsunami, maybe then things wouldn't have gone so sideways."

"You mean that?" Buck asked, peering at Eddie through his eyelashes. He didn't mean to sound so vulnerable, so insecure, but he couldn't help it.

"Yes Buck. You deserved, and do deserve, better." Eddie confirmed, meeting Buck's gaze, and poured as much conviction into his tone as possible.

They broke eye contact, and Buck fidgeted with his hands, and the blankets, and his shoelaces. The silence held a tension, barely noticeable yet all encompassing. The two men sat side by side, legs occasionally brushing against one another. After a few moments, Eddie once again knocks his shoulder with Buck's.

"What do you say we go spend a little time with the team, huh? Get some food in you, reassure them that you're not becoming a shell of the person you used to be, yenno, the usual?"

Buck startled out a laugh, before nodding his consent. With that, they stood up, and went to the kitchen so Buck could face the music. But he wasn't alone. He had Eddie, and even though he was facing his team, he started to feel like maybe, just maybe, they all still had his back too.