A/N: For the AO3 Just Married Exchange 2022. Giftee requested Buck/Eddie, Proposal - Informal Co-Parenting Leads to Proposal, Proposal - Proposing After a Near-Death Experience, elopement, bed-sharing
The fact that Eddie's ready to go home so soon after the sniper shot him both terrifies and relieves Buck at the same time. As terrible as it was to see Eddie lying in the street and watching him pass out in the truck on the way to the hospital, he's on the mend after the surgeries. He's grateful that Eddie made it clear to the medical staff that Buck was privy to everything involving his care, even if Buck figures it's just because he's taking care of Christopher.
It wasn't until later that Buck realized he probably should have called Ana. Logically, Eddie's girlfriend should be the first choice to watch Christopher. She's a teacher, with all the training it entails, but he hadn't even considered her having any responsibility for the boy Buck loves more than life itself. Christopher nearly lost his father, again, and the only reason Buck had been safe from that sniper was being in his civilian clothes instead of his uniform that day.
Nothing will ever convince him otherwise that it would have been better for their roles to have been reversed. Buck is expendable, but Eddie is not.
Christopher would mourn Buck, he knows. He'd grieve for another loss in his young life. But losing his fun uncle, his grown up best friend? That's nothing on losing a father who loves Christopher as fiercely as Eddie does.
When he ducks into the room with the news that the discharge paperwork is on its way, he's surprised to see that Eddie is alone. While Ana hasn't been here twenty-four/seven, she's still been here as much as her job allows. Buck is grateful for it, so that Abuela and Pepa don't feel obligated.
Eddie is staring out the window, his face too blank to be seeing the view at all, and sitting so still on the hospital bed that Buck knows instantly that something is wrong.
"Eds?"
When his best friend doesn't react right away, Buck tries again. If there was something wrong, surely the nurse would have told him just now, right? "Eddie? Where's Ana?"
At the mention of his girlfriend, Eddie finally blinks and turns his head to smile sheepishly at Buck. He pats the bed beside him, and Buck doesn't hesitate to sit, angling his body toward Eddie to give him full attention.
"We broke up."
"Ooooh-kay." Buck draws out the word, unsure of why Eddie would pick a hospital room to end his relationship, so he asks. "Why now? I thought you guys were really vibing."
After the initial hiccup with Christopher running away to Buck's apartment, Ana and Eddie dating seemed to be going smoothly as far as Buck knew. Eddie isn't the type to overshare, not like Buck and Chimney have been in the past, but Buck's been called upon to babysit enough to know they go out regularly. He knows Eddie is always home by ten-thirty, but he assumed that was because their work schedule has only allowed for weeknight dates so far, and Ana has a more formal schedule.
"Christopher really likes her," Eddie says, shrugging and wincing when he remembers it's a bad idea with his injured shoulder. "But when I was lying there, thinking about what would happen if I had died, she isn't the person I could see raising Christopher."
The idea of Eddie dying, whether out in the street or anywhere else, horrifies Buck more than anything in this world, aside from how he felt the day of the tsunami when Christopher was missing. He pushes the feeling away, because Eddie doesn't need to deal with his clinginess right now.
"Well, you haven't been dating all that long. I would imagine it takes longer to decide if someone is a good fit for raising your child. Not to mention he has grandparents, aunts, Pepa, and Abuela."
"You, Buck. If anything happens to me, I want you raising Christopher."
"What?" Buck's voice breaks on the word. He knows Eddie trusts him with Christopher. That's been made clear over and over again. But as much as Buck considers both Eddie and Christopher his family, he'd never imagined he'd be Eddie's first choice. It terrifies him at the same time that it thrills him.
"After the well, I went to my lawyer and made you Christopher's legal guardian if anything happens to me."
"Me? Eddie, he has grandparents." Grandparents who adore Christopher, who've helped raise him before, when Eddie was overseas.
"Who have tried to take him from me before. Who look at him and see his CP first and Christopher second. They only see his limitations, Buck, not who he can be." Eddie's gaze is intense, and Buck can't look away. "Ana? She's the same as they are. But you've always found a way to challenge him, to help him do whatever it is he dreams of doing."
"The well was over a year ago. Why tell me now?" Buck frowns, thinking of the legalities. "And don't I have to agree to that?"
Eddie smiles finally, losing all the solemnity. "Like you'd say no."
Clearing his throat, Buck finally looks away, feeling a flush of happy contentment. "I never say no to anything about Christopher."
"You might say no to this." When Buck looks back up, Eddie is gazing at him with all the intent focus Buck's grown used to from him. "Guardianship can be challenged, Buck. Adoption can't."
Just when Buck thinks Eddie can't shock him anymore, he finds a way. "Eddie? Of course, I'd never say no to adopt my favorite kid in the whole world."
Jee-Yun will forgive Buck, he thinks. He's just getting to know his baby niece, whereas Christopher's owned Buck's heart for years now. There's a problem lingering in the back of his mind, though, overshadowing the pure joy he feels like his body can barely contain.
"Uh, Eds? I'm pretty sure there's a whole lot of red tape involved in adoption that I might not pass. You never met Buck 1.0."
Shame settles over his shoulders as he realizes what the in-depth background checks they do for non-family adoptions would bring up. He's pretty sure the firetruck incident alone would send any social worker running for the hills. That's without any investigation into Buck's family, which wouldn't help either. Not to mention, he has the same type of high-risk career that Eddie does.
"I know. I was paying attention when Hen and Karen became foster parents, you know. Takes about a year, too. I would like something faster." Eddie looks away, finally, staring out the window again. "Thing is, stepparent adoption is pretty much a piece of cake, or so my lawyer tells me. Granted, he was talking about Ana, but the whole time he was on the phone today, there was a voice in the back of my mind screaming how wrong it was."
Buck is confused at first, unsure of what Eddie is trying to say, but as soon as Eddie turns his head, the penny drops. The pleading look reminds Buck of every time Eddie's felt overwhelmed as a father, how inadequate Eddie still feels sometimes because he missed Christopher's early years. He thinks of how many times Eddie's allowed Buck to imagine what life would be like if he was Christopher's father instead of the fun uncle and best friend.
No one has ever made Buck feel more at home than Eddie has. Everyone leaves him, but even when Buck wasn't there for Eddie after Shannon died and Christopher had nightmares from the tsunami, Eddie welcomed him back. It doesn't matter that his best friend is straight. Buck is more than willing to be celibate for the rest of his life to become a Diaz in truth, to belong to a family that actually wants him there.
Swallowing hard, he takes a deep breath. "Pretty sure there's supposed to be a proposal if you want me to marry you, Diaz."
"So it's gonna be like that, Buckley?" The relieved grin Eddie flashes his way tells Buck he's made the right decision. "I'm not going down on one knee for you. Bum shoulder, you know." Buck just arches a brow, returning the grin, and Eddie sighs. "Fine. Buck? Will you marry me and adopt Christopher?"
"Hell, yeah," Buck replies, and if Eddie were better healed, he'd give him the biggest bear hug on the planet. Instead, he settles for reaching out to squeeze Eddie's free hand. Eddie hangs onto it for a few minutes, still looking relieved, until the nurse brings the discharge paperwork into the room.
They're halfway to Eddie's house when he clears his throat at a red light. "So, I may have assumed you'd accept."
"Yeah?"
"Apparently, in LA, you can get anything delivered right to your house, including a marriage license and an officiant. I texted the agency when you were going over the discharge papers with the nurse one last time."
Having his mouth hanging open probably isn't the best look for Buck, so he snaps his jaw shut just as a honk behind him alerts him that the light has changed. Resuming the drive, he sneaks a glance at Eddie, who is looking a little self-conscious.
"When are we eloping then?" Buck laughs, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. "Is it still eloping if you do it at home?"
"They said they'd be there by six. Even waived the extra fees for coming to us and for after hours. Saw both of us on the news."
"Hero's discount. Works for me. Do we need anything special? I don't exactly carry all my paperwork around with me."
"Just our driver's licenses. It's been two years since Shannon died, but I've got the paperwork if they need to verify that."
Damn. Buck knew getting married was easy after Bobby and Athena snuck off to get hitched without anyone knowing, but he didn't realize it was that easy.
The rest of the ride to Eddie's house is comfortably quiet, like it always is between them, and that settles any nerves Buck might have had that accepting Eddie's proposal would change things too much between them. Eddie seems to doze a bit before they arrive, although his shoulder keeps him from relaxing the way he normally would when Buck is driving them at night. Christopher is overjoyed to have Eddie home, and Carla departs after hugs from everyone and a promise to see them in two days when Buck's next shift prevents him from taking Christopher to school.
"You aren't going home just because Dad's home, are you, Buck?"
Christopher's pleading tone and look would have ended any intention Buck had, but luckily, Buck was already planning on staying and even swung by his apartment to pick up more clothes on the way to the hospital. He figures Eddie could manage to heat up the meals Abuela and Pepa stocked in the fridge, even without Buck, but he remembers how hard it was to do things for himself after his leg was injured, so he planned on staying.
"I'm staying as long as you and your dad need me, Christopher."
"Forever!" Christopher chants, cackling merrily.
"Well, forever is up to your dad, buddy."
"Forever is good for me, too." Eddie eases himself onto the couch next to Christopher, tugging his son to his uninjured side. "Buck and I are getting married. Is that good with you, mijo?"
Eyes widening, Christopher eases his arms around Eddie for the gentlest hug Buck's ever seen him give someone. "That would be perfect," he declares, but then frowns. "What about Ms. Flores?"
Oh, shit. They missed a key factor with Eddie springing this on Christopher. Buck settles onto the coffee table, facing the two of them, but lets Eddie take the lead.
"I realized for a while now that while Ana is a very nice lady and cares for you very much, she and I were just good friends."
"You and Buck are friends." The wary look Christopher gives his father makes Buck's heart ache. "You aren't going to change your mind about him, are you? Because he's my best friend, even if you do."
Eddie ruffles Christopher's curls. "Buck is my best friend, too, and there's a lot of difference between a friend and a best friend, and even more with someone you want to marry."
"If you get married, that means Buck will move in with us, right? You said forever."
Even though they hadn't discussed it, Buck smiles when Eddie gives him a pleading look. "Of course, I'm moving in here, Superman. Why would I live anywhere else but with my two favorite Diazes?"
They can figure out the logistics of it later, like where Buck will sleep, since there's no way he can take up permanent residence on Eddie's crappy couch. He can always sublet his apartment until the lease runs out. It's a good answer for Christopher, who slips away from Eddie to fling his arms around Buck.
"Having two dads will be awesome. I'll be like Harry."
Even without broaching the subject of the adoption, this kid is melting Buck's heart without even trying.
It seems only fitting that the very amused officiant performs the ceremony while standing facing the three of them on the couch, with Christopher grinning happily between Buck and Eddie. He's the reason they're getting married in the first place. She doesn't opt for any of the "you may kiss the spouse" lines, which makes him wonder if Eddie requested that it be deliberately left out. Christopher remembers it, though, and after they kiss his cheeks in tandem instead of each other, he giggles too hard to remember they skipped the step.
Eddie props the copy of the certificate they're given on the mantel next to the framed family photos after snapping a photo of it and texting it to someone, probably the lawyer, Buck assumes. Their wedding meal ends up being some of Abuela's food reheated, and Buck studies the recipe she'd taped to the top of the tupperware while they eat. It reminds him that while Christopher may be happy about them being married, not everyone else might be.
He waits until Christopher has ambled off to shower before he broaches the subject to Eddie. Getting married so Buck could adopt Christopher seemed like a perfect idea earlier, but they'd discussed almost nothing aside from that. It isn't just him, Eddie, and Christopher that this affects, and while Buck thinks Maddie will forgive him and understand, he isn't sure how Abuela and Pepa will view this. Not to mention the rest of the 118 family.
"Eddie?"
"Yeah?" Eddie is very determinedly easing dishes into the dishwasher one-handed, despite looking as exhausted as if they'd pulled a forty-eight hour shift.
"What are we telling everyone else?" They haven't even broached the adoption issue with Christopher yet.
"The truth?" Eddie settles the last cup into the dishwasher and inserts the detergent pod before closing the door. Then he shakes his head tiredly. "Maybe after the adoption?"
"If your parents don't believe we're in a real relationship, you think they might try to interfere."
"Considering how much they interfered when I was married to Shannon, I think so. But if we take care of it all quietly, it's a lot harder to protest." Eddie sighs, running his hand through his hair. "Everyone ought to understand, and I've got at least twelve weeks before I'm back on the job, and we'd have to report it to Bobby."
"He'll have to separate us, I bet." Buck's shoulders slump, as he hadn't thought of that. He'd have to check the regulations, but he's almost certain that a married couple wouldn't be allowed to be partnered the way they are.
"As much as I hate the idea, honestly, us not being side by side if anything happened is probably a good idea. And if we can't stay on the same shift, then that's better for Christopher. More likely one of us is home."
Buck doesn't like it either, but he reaches into his pocket and pulls up the app he uses for tracking shifts. LAFD uses the Kelly shift schedule, so they're twenty-four hours on, twenty-four hours off, repeat, then four days off. If he or Eddie shifted to B Platoon, they'd still have two days off together each week, unless one of them was called in or took an extra shift for overtime.
The thought of overtime reminds him. "You won't have to work so much overtime now."
Eddie looks so confused that Buck wants to hug him. All this thought about Christopher, and his best friend has not once considered what combining their households means in terms of income.
"If I'm living here, it eliminates all my living expenses, Eds. I'm not going to live here for free, so that'll ease things back a bit for you, because there's no way his tuition is cheap. You can't ask me to adopt Christopher but be a deadbeat about finances."
At first, Buck thinks Eddie is going to argue the point, but then Eddie sighs. "I've got some financial aid, but that might not hold up with your salary added. I'll have to find out, but I know it'll be taken into account because that was part of why I had to get Shannon to go to the school before he was admitted. Tuition is over thirty grand a year without it."
The worry on Eddie's face makes Buck cross the room so he can tug Eddie into a gentle hug. "And here we are, able to afford it. The money I was paying in rent can go towards his tuition. It's not like we'll skip all overtime. You'll just not have to volunteer for every shift that comes up."
"That'll be a shock to the station, maybe even more than us being married." Eddie smiles as he makes the weak joke, and Buck breathes a sigh of relief that his reasoning won't be rejected.
Their wedding night begins somewhat like every other night Buck has spent at Casa Diaz, with Buck on the lumpy couch and Eddie tucked into his bed. The difference is how much time Buck spends in Eddie's room beforehand, making sure he's settled for the night after icing his shoulder and listening to Eddie grumble about having to sleep on the incline pillow for at least a month. Worse, he has to wear the sling to sleep, and damned if he doesn't pout about that as badly as Christopher when he has to eat his broccoli.
Nightmares are no stranger to Buck, neither his nor Eddie's nor Christopher's. What is unique to Buck is that Eddie wakes up just after midnight, sobbing out Buck's name. By the time Buck makes it down the hall, Eddie's rolled onto his good shoulder, doing his best to curl into a fetal position. Dropping to his knees by the bed, Buck reaches out to carefully smooth Eddie's sweaty hair back.
"I'm here, Eds. Right here."
Shuddering, Eddie uncurls enough to blink at Buck. Tears cling to Eddie's lashes as he takes a deep, shuddering breath. "You're here."
"Always," Buck declares, and carefully and gently, he coaxes Eddie to relax and roll back onto his wedge pillow. He fetches water and pain meds, and is surprised when Eddie takes them without any fuss at all. When Eddie reaches up to trace over Buck's birthmark and down the side of his face, Buck isn't sure what's going on. "Eddie?"
"I dreamed it was you that got shot. I keep seeing blood all over your face."
If Buck thinks about it too long, he can still feel the sticky heat of Eddie's blood where it sprayed across his skin and still smell the coppery wrongness of it. Shaking his head to dispel the sensory memory, he gives Eddie a weak smile. "It was yours. I didn't get hurt at all, remember?"
"Okay." The meds are kicking in, and Eddie looks drowsy, but he keeps petting Buck's face. Buck lets him, because, to be perfectly honest, he'd check and recheck Eddie's injuries himself if Eddie would allow it But Eddie starts drifting off, and even though Christopher didn't come down the hall, Buck needs to check on their son.
When Buck tries to leave the room, Eddie catches his hand. "Stay. I'll sleep better if you're right here."
They've shared a bed before, back in quarantine, but Buck's bed in the loft is far larger than Eddie's bed. Then again, the smaller bed is an advantage against nightmares, since there's no way to miss a partner in the bed.
"Let me go see if Christopher woke up or not. I'll be right back."
Eddie nods sleepily, so Buck looks in on Christopher, relieved to find he'd slept through Eddie's nightmare. When he returns, he thinks Eddie is already asleep until Eddie pats the empty side of the bed. Neither of them say anything as Buck lifts the bedding and settles down next to Eddie. Not a heartbeat passes before Eddie slips his hand into Buck's, squeezing it tightly before finally letting sleep claim him.
It takes longer than that for Buck to fall asleep, but he feels so utterly content as he does that he knows the impromptu marriage was the right thing to do. This? Being next to Eddie with Christopher down the hall? This is home, and there's nowhere else Buck would rather belong.