Eddie wrapped his arm around Buck and helped him to the couch, he grabbed his wheelchair and closed the door.
"what are you doing here? Are you ok? Do you need help?" Eddie said
"Eddie... Eddie I'm fine okay I just need to come and see you"
Eddie sat next to him, "you shouldn't be up and about yet. How did you get here?"
"I took an Uber"
"an Uber really" he laughed, "why are you alone? Where's Abby?"
"so you're just gonna ask all the questions huh?"
"what's that supposed to mean?"
"you just left the hospital and ignored my calls,
"you ignored my calls for 8 weeks"
"Eddie I'm sorry ok, I had to get better and control my feelings. I'm so sorry I left you but I had to get better"
"you could of at least called to tell me what you were going to do"
"I'm sorry eddie"
buck squeezed his hand, eddie fidgeted around, "so what happened to bring you here... Abby?"
"how did you know?"
"I know you buck"
"she didn't plan on ever staying with me. She was just doing it to not make me feel crazy or upset me"
"buck... did she tell you this?"
"we were talking about things and she said about how she may have to go home because of her landlord and I said about selling and she said no and couldn't give me a reason and I realised it's because she didn't want to stay"
"she's hurt you before buck. I know you think you love her but I don't trust her. Shes obviously had a lot of things happened to her in the past but she thinks she can fix things and people and then just leave and she can't do that"
"I told her she should just go now instead of my coming back one day and finding out she's just left"
"buck you deserve better, you have plenty of people here who love you"
"I'm sorry I left Eddie. I'm so sorry. I was horrible to you and you didn't deserve that. The team, Maddie, you, Chris... you are my family and I know that now"
"just don't pick up and disappear one day ok"
"I've been taking my meds and I've felt better but I still feel like I've got this wet blanket over me, just holding me down and sometimes I feel so alone. I get this pain in my chest and it feels like I'm suffocating and I thought she would help"
"you don't need her buck. There is plenty of people around here who will help you, I will help you. I will look after you. You're not going to be alone do you understand me?"
"... yeah.. Thankyou"
"I mean it buck. Don't disappear on me again"
"I promise..."
Eddie leant forward and kissed buck. Buck pulled away and looked at him,
"I'm.. sorry" Eddie said turning away
"don't be stupid" buck pulled Eddie back and kissed him while holding on to his shirt. They stopped and looked at each other
"Eddie, how long have you felt.. like this?"
"since I knew we weren't gonna blow up in that damn ambulance but I was too scared to say anything"
"Eddie... you could have told me. I have always struggled with my identity but since I met you, things started to make more sense to me"
"after shannon... you, me and Chris, we were like this unbreakable family and then this... he did this to you and I felt like everything changed"
"when I left Eddie, I felt broken and scared so I ran but I don't want to run anymore.."
"so don't run"
Eddie kissed buck and they both smiled at each other.
"move in with us buck, me and Chris can help you get better and look after you"
"I can't ask you to do that Eddie. Not with all my issues going on. You already look after Chris you don't need me too"
"Chris is so independent now buck. You helped him with that. And if you didn't notice... your bed is in your living room"
"okay.."
"ok!"
Eddie smiled, "Eddie, if this is me from now, I never get the feeling back in my leg, my life is going to be so different but I need to know-"
"buck, this does not matter to me. You could have anything wrong with you and you would still be buck..."
Buck held Eddie's hand and hugged him,
"Thankyou Eddie" he said crying
"I've got you now buck"
Eddie stroked bucks head as he cried. He held him and comforted him and it's what Buck had needed all these months.
After a little while, The door opened from behind them, "dad... dad"
"hey Chris.. how was school?"
"it was great"
Karla smiled, "I'll see you tomorrow Christopher" she said waving over at buck as she left
"look who's here..." Eddie pointed to buck and Chris looked at him
Chris laughed and smiled, "buck!... buck!" Chris got up on the couch next to buck and hugged him,
"I missed you buck"
"I missed you too Chris.."
Eddie got down on one knee and looked at Chris,
"Chris.. how would you feel if buck moved in here with us?"
"yes!"
"well there's your answer buck"
"Thankyou"
"I'm gonna go get some of your clothes and stuff for now and then we'll sort the rest out during the next few days. Are you ok with Chris?"
"yeah we'll be fine dad" Chris said
"okay buck, your wheelchair is here and you've got your crutches but call me if you need anything"
"I will Thankyou"
Eddie took one last look at buck as he closed the door behind him. He drove to bucks apartment and parked out the front. He walked up and unlocked the door with his key. He closed the door behind him and Abby walked around the corner,
"buck?" She said, "oh.. hello. Eddie isn't it? Is Buck ok?"
"yeah I've just come to get some of his clothes for a few nights"
"well is he coming home?"
"he is home. He's living with me now"
"but.."
"no disrespect Abby, you're probably an alright person but you should go back home and carry on with your life"
"what are you talking about?"
"buck is moving on. He's getting better and he doesn't need you to make him worse again by leaving him. He's gonna be happy again, I will make him happy"
"we are together Eddie"
"not anymore. You need to leave Abby. Go back home"
"I want to say goodbye"
"he doesn't need you to say goodbye. He came to you because he was broken and scared and couldn't be his true self. He was worried about what he was going to tell his friends and family. You may have helped him for a few weeks but there isn't a hells chance I'm going to let you push him back down by one day telling him you are leaving him again. I love him and I will take care of him and he doesn't need to see you. If you know that you can be around here forever and you can't support him and look after him then you would do is all a favour and leave tonight."
"...I'll go home tonight... but Eddie, I did love him I promise"
"just not enough" Eddie said
Abby grabbed her suitcase from behind her and her coat and she left bucks apartment closing the door behind her. Eddie ran upstairs and grabbed bucks suitcase and emptied his closet into it. He zipped it up and carried it down the stairs. There was a photo in bucks apartment with the whole team with him and he grabbed that as he was leaving.
Eddie arrived home and looked through the window and saw buck sat with Chris and they were reading. He opened the door,
"hey guys..."
"hellooo" Chris said
Bucked turned around on the couch, "hey, thanks for getting my stuff.. did you see.. Abby"
"yeah... she's gone buck"
Buck turned back around and turned on the tv.
"so I was thinking getting pizza for dinner?"
"sounds good" Chris said
"I'm actually really tired, I might just go to bed" buck tried to push himself up off the couch. Eddie watched as he struggled, Eddie walked over and put his arm under bucks. Buck tried to pull away,
"come on buck"
Eddie pulled buck up and and he gave him his crutches. Buck took a slow walk to the spare bedroom. Eddie followed him in,
"buck you don't have to stay in here"
"I don't want to confuse Chris maybe not just yet"
"okay I understand"
Eddie kissed buck and closed the door behind him leaving buck to himself. Buck pulled his pants down half way and sat on the edge of the bed to pull them off. He laid back on the bed and closed his eyes. He laid there awake for what felt like hours but he couldn't sleep. He grabbed his pills off the side and took two. Eventually he felt himself become more tired and he drifted off to sleep.
Eddie woke up and saw the sun shining through his window. He got up and knocked on Chris's door.
"morning big man. Let's get up and dressed"
"ok dad"
Eddie walked past bucks room but couldn't hear anything so he left him alone. He made coffee and some breakfast for Chris. Chris walked over and sat on the chair and started to eat his cereal. The door opened and in walked Karla,
"morning boys.."
"morning Karla" they both said
"where's buck?" She said
"he's still sleeping" Eddie said
"this is good what you're doing for him. He needs this.. you need this"
"Thankyou"
Karla left with Chris for school after he got a hug from Eddie. He poured some coffee into a mug and walked down to bucks room. He knocked on the door and walked in, he was asleep in the bed. Eddie put the coffee down on the side table and turned around. He went to walk out as he felt a hand wrapped around his. He turned around and buck was awake,
"morning" Eddie said
"hey.. what time is it?"
"a little after eight, how you feeling?"
"I'm a little sore this morning but I have an appointment today about possibly getting a leg brace to help me when I'm using my crutches"
"I can come with you"
"don't you have work?"
"I have a couple of days off so we can get things sorted out"
"okay yeah"
"do you need any help?"
"could you pass me my bag so I can get dressed"
"sure.." Eddie passed him his bag and he pulled a shirt out on some pants. He pulled the shirt over his head. He put his pants on his good leg,
" could you maybe.." buck said
"of course."
Eddie helped him put on his pants and he pulled Buck up. Buck pulled them up and Eddie helped him walk to his wheelchair. Buck wheeled himself out to the kitchen. They made their way to the hospital, they sat and waited and eventually got called into the doctors room.
They sat together and listened to the doctor,
"so Evan...still no feeling?"
"erm.. no nothing."
"..ok..-"
"is that normal?" Eddie asked
"we told Evan that it could come back over time but it could never due to the damage. Now it hasn't been that long since your surgery but there's still time.."
"when I called I wanted to talk to you about getting a brace?"
"are you on your feet a lot?"
"I'm trying to use my crutches more to keep my upper body strength but it's like I've got this dead weight on my body and I have no control of it"
"okay.. yes I can give you a brace which will keep your whole leg aligned but this isn't for 24 hours use Evan. If you're in your wheelchair, take it off and when you sleep. You need to take it steady. You will keep your upper body strength even just using the wheelchair" the doctor explained
"Thankyou Doc"
"I'll go grab that brace"
The doctor left and closed the door behind him,
"hey.. Thankyou for coming with me today"
"no problem buck. I wanted to be here"
"I'm gonna spend every step of this journey with you buck. You're not going to be alone"
"thanks..."
the doctor came in and showed buck his brace for his leg and he was happy that this would start getting him out of his wheelchair more easily now. Eddie and buck left the hospital together and went home. Buck got home and tried his leg brace for the first time, he pulled it tight and went to pull himself up on the counter but as he did he slipped and fell on the floor,
"are you ok!" Eddie said
"damn thing. So stupid"
"listen to me buck... listen... you are not stupid. You are this amazing, strong person and you're gonna have a few slips and falls here and there but you will come out the other side of this. You're a fighter"
"I just want you to know that if this is going to be too hard on you.. I'll understand. I don't want to be a burden"
"a burden... buck.. you are nothing like a burden. You're the opposite. I would rather have you here falling on your ass than falling alone in your apartment where you'll sit until help arrives"
"it's just this could be my life forever"
"... I love you buck.."
"you do?"
"there's two people I truly love in this world buck and they're Chris and you"
"I love you too"
buck pulled Eddie forward and kissed him. Eddie stood up and helped buck stand up and gave him his crutches. Buck walked to the couch and sat down with Eddie as they hugged each other and spoke about their lives now and how it was going to change.