Chapter 2
Buck woke suddenly, his mind taking a moment before registering the warm weight against his shoulder. He glanced over and smiled softly at the sight of Eddie still asleep against him. He shifted slowly, wrapping an arm around Eddie's shoulders to hold the man securely against him as he glanced around, searching for whatever had woken him in the first place.
Satisfied with the quiet of his apartment he let himself relax back into the couch. Leaning his head to rest it gently against the other man's, he closed his eyes, more than happy to deal with the pain in his neck in the morning if it meant keeping Eddie this close.
The second time he woke, it was to the sound of banging. His eyes snapped open, taking in their surroundings as a familiar smell registered. "Eds," he said, shifting to place his hand on the man's shoulder. "Eddie wake up."
Eddie's head shot up, suddenly alert. "What's wrong?"
"Do you smell that?"
Eddie sat quietly for a moment before his eyes widened and he stood grabbing Buck's hand and pulling him up with him. "Grab your shoes," he stated, walking quickly to the door and placing his hand against it. Finding it cold, he tapped the handle quickly before easing the door open.
Smoke immediately rolled in from the hallway and he cursed, slamming the door back shut before pulling out his phone and making his way to the balcony door, dialing 911 as he walked.
Buck met him on the balcony moments later tossing him a towel , eyes widening at the sight below him as he heard Eddie relaying information to dispatch. Eddie's eyes met his for a moment before he finished the call and followed back through the door. "Dispatch says engines are three minutes out."
The doors in the direct vicinity of Buck's apartment all stood ajar, the red emergency lights dimmed by the smoke that filled the hallway. They moved quickly down the hall, turning the corner toward the stairs and Buck paused, Eddie nearly colliding with his back at the sudden stop. "Do you hear that?"
Eddie listened intently, his eyes roaming the hallway. The sound of crying reached his ears and his eyes widened. "Behind." He turned back the way they'd come from and turned to continue heading down the hallway in the opposite direction, Buck following on his heels. He pulled the towel away from his face and yelled, "Call out!"
Several doors down this hallway remained closed, "Is anyone there?" Buck yelled as they paused once more to listen. The sound of a woman's voice rang from a few doors down and they both hurried toward it. Quickly checking the door to make sure it was safe, Buck called out for the woman to stand clear of the door before forcing it open.
The apartment was larger than Buck's being meant for a family and not a single person. A woman ran from under the loft, a baby cradled securely in her arms. "Thank goodness," she breathed as she met them. "My daughter. She's terrified and has wedged herself behind the couch and I can't get her to come out. I can't carry them both and I didn't know what to do."
Without waiting for them to respond, she hurried back to the living area where Buck could see a small set of feet just poking out from behind the couch. "Hey kiddo," he said softly, kneeling beside the couch. "My name's Buck and I know that things are scary right now, but I need you to be brave for me ok? My friend Eddie is going to move the couch and I'm going to carry you. How does that sound?"
The child poked her head out to look between the two of them before nodding. Eddie quickly pulled the couch away from her and Buck picked her up, turning to start toward the door in one fluid movement. He handed her his towel and said, "I need you to hold this over your mouth and nose ok? It won't be perfect but it will help you breathe just a little bit easier. And then, if you don't want to look, you can put your head on my shoulder so that you don't have to see."
He glanced behind him as he walked, seeing Eddie now holding the baby tucked securely to himself as the mother followed along behind, Eddie's towel now placed over her face.
They reached the door to the stairs without incident quickly and Buck held it open for the others as they filed through. There was a flash as flames broke through the wall beside the elevator doors and he pulled the fire door shut.
Eddie held the mother's arm as they made their way down the stairs, Buck easily taking the lead once more. They'd made it down two floors before they heard a woman screaming from behind them. "Someone please. Please help."
A petite woman with dark hair came running down the stairs. "Please you have to help. My son…" she grabbed Eddie's arm, causing him to release the guiding hand he had on the woman they had been helping.
Eddie was already handing the baby back to its mother before Buck had time to react. "Where's your son?" He asked. "What's wrong with him?"
"Our apartment's on the fifth floor. He's got a broken leg and, without the elevator, there's no way I can get him down the stairs on my own. Please, I haven't seen anyone else."
Eddie nodded, glancing toward Buck before turning to follow her back up the steps. "Eds, Buck yelled after him and he paused, reaching out and grabbing Buck by the shoulder. "Get them out of here. I'll be right behind you."
Without waiting for a response, Eddie turned and followed the woman back up the stairs. Buck watched for a moment, the first cold tendrils of fear winding through his gut as the other man disappeared from view. "Let's go."
It didn't take much longer before they hit the ground floor. He pushed open the emergency exit, holding it open for the woman to go before him, coughing harshly as he led them towards the flashing lights at the front of the building.
He set the small girl in the grass before leaning down to her with a smile. "You were so brave for me. Thank you."
The woman wrapped her free arm around him tightly with a smile. "Thank you so much. I didn't know how I was going to get us out of there."
"I'm happy we were able to help. If you head over to the ambulances there they'll get you guys checked out."
She nodded, placing her hand lightly on his arm as he turned back toward the building. "I hope your friend gets out ok."
Buck barely registered as she took her daughter's hand and the small family headed off. "Come on Eds." His muscled itched with the need to run back toward the burning apartment building. Back toward his partner. He coughed again his eyes locked on the emergency exit door.
"Sir, you shouldn't be back here." He didn't recognize the voice of the officer that walked up to him. "Residents are being sent to triage in the lot across the street." Buck nodded but didn't move. "Sir." He felt the man's hand on his shoulder and shrugged it off.
"I'm fine," he said, though the cough that followed did not help his case and he sighed, turning to look at the officer beside him. "My…," he cleared his throat, roughly balling his hand into fists as he felt them begin to shake. "My partner, he's still inside. He was helping someone. I can't…I can't leave yet."
The man's eyes softened, his hand giving a gentle squeeze. "The firefighters are bringing people directly to the triage tents as they find them. He may have had to use one of the other stairwells on his way down."
"No, he said he'd be right behind me." Buck shrugged the man's hand off his shoulder and took a step back toward the building.
The officer stepped in front of him, blocking his way. "And when he comes out, I'll direct him right to you, I promise." Buck's eyes flitted back and forth from the officer to the door. "Look, you either walk away on your own or I bring more officers over and we walk you away. Either way, you are not going back in that building."
Buck could make it back in. He knew he could. The only thing he wanted to do was find Eddie, have his back like he promised he always would. Thoughts of Christopher held him back. He'd promised that too. With one last glance at the door, he let out a shaky breath and nodded before turning and starting toward the front of the building.
The comforting glow of the firetrucks met him as he walked across his parking lot. He made a b-line directly toward incident command, leaving the officer behind at the corner of the building. He watched for a moment as a small group of people were escorted out of the building and to the paramedics before they disappeared into the crowd on their way to the triage area.
He scanned the crowd. Eddie wasn't there.
"Buckley, glad to see you made it out in one piece."
"Captain Mehta," Buck turns toward the familiar man, a bubble of panic swelling in his chest. "Eddie, have you seen Eddie?"
"Eddie?"
"He went back. A woman she…she said she needed help with her son. He went back and I…I couldn't. I had a little girl. She was so scared and I couldn't take her with me and Eddie said that he'd be right behind me but he wasn't and I haven't seen him." He could feel his hands start shaking again as he spoke, his breath quickening.
"Did she say where they were going?"
"Fifth floor."
"What's the status at floor five?" He asked into the walkie on his shoulder.
"Clear so far with two left to check." Came the response.
"If he's still up there, they'll find him."
"Buck," at the familiar voice he turned and nearly fell into the woman's embrace. Athena held him tightly before leaning back and looking up at him. "Let me get a look at you."
"Athena I can't find Eddie," Eddie's name came out as a sob. Athena immediately pulled him back to her, "Oh honey we'll find him. Bobby's on his way over. Once he gets here I'll go get us some answers."
The sound of shattering glass had him pulling away from her and turning back toward the burning building. The windows of an apartment on the fifth floor had exploded into flames and Buck felt his stomach twist. He surged forward screaming Eddie's name as he ran back toward his apartment. Several sets of hands grabbed him from behind and he fought against them, tears streaming down his face.
"No! Let me go! I have to…"
"Fifth floor is clear," Mehta cut in. "He wasn't there, Buckley."
Bobby appeared before him, strong arms pulling him in as Buck's legs gave out and he fell to the ground. "They're checking the stairwells and the back lot." Bobby's voice was soothing as he spoke in Buck's ear. "We'll find him."
Buck's sobs quickly dissolved into a fit of coughs, his wide eyes still locked on the flames in the window. Bobby pulled away slightly, hands sliding to grip him by the shoulders. "Has anyone looked you over yet?"
Buck shook his head, eyes still focused ahead, "Has Athena heard from anyone?"
Bobby looked over his shoulder, caught his wife's eye and was given merely a solemn shake of the head. "Nothing yet. Why don't we head over to triage and get you checked out. Athena can keep an eye out for Eddie from here."
"No," Buck exclaimed, pulling out of Bobby's grip. "I'm not leaving without him. I can't leave without him." The last part barely came out as a whisper, his eyes drifting back to the flames once more.
"Alright," Bobby replied with a sigh, shifting to stand. "We'll get someone over here to check you out.
Buck's hands darted out, grasping Bobby's forearms tightly. "Don't! Don't leave. Please I…"
Bobby glanced over toward Captain Mehta, standing just far enough away to give them some semblance of privacy. The other man nodded and immediately started talking into his walkie once more. Bobby shifted to kneel next to Buck, wrapping an arm comfortingly around his shoulder. "Alright kid. I'm not going anywhere. We'll wait for Eddie together."
A/N: Any mistakes are my own. I am not a first responder of any kind so I hope I didn't mess any of that portion up too much. Anyway, let me know what you think!
