Three days of being in a coma, the doctors finally though Buck was ready to be taken off the ventilator to see if he could breathe on his own.
While his immediate family were allowed in the room with him and the doctor—Maddie, Margret, and Phillip—everyone else was in the waiting room.
Chimney and Albert had brought Mr. and Mrs. Han. Because he was so worried about the outcome of the day, Chimney had asked his dad to hold Jee Yun for him while he held his half-brother's hand tight. Hen and Karen were there too. Eddie had pulled Christopher out of school early to be there with him and Carla. Bobby, Athena, and May were sitting together, holding hands in prayer. Ravi had also come.
They all wanted to be right there for whatever happened next.
Any second, the doctor was taking Buck off the ventilator and waiting to see if he could take a breath. If he did, then he was going to be fine. If he didn't…they'd have to intubate him again. Which wouldn't be a sign of him getting better.
Bobby had his rosery beads on one hand as he held his wife's hand with the other. Athena held May's in her opposite. Hen and Karen joined them, as well as Carla and Ravi. Eddie wasn't the praying type. So he just focused on holding Christopher close and thinking positive thoughts; things Christ wanted to do when Buck got better, the sight of Buck opening his eyes, Buck smiling at them before they leaned over and gave him hugs.
All while forcing his brain to not think about Shannon and how her death hurt him and Christopher so bad.
If Buck died…he wasn't sure he could take that too.
Bobby was also doing his best to think positive, and praying helped a great deal.
May had been right. The fire captain might have lost two kids years ago, but he still brought one into his and Athena's marriage.
Even if they weren't blood at all and Buck's biological father was in the ICU with him while he was out there, Bobby saw Buck as his son. Through frustrating, sad, serious, and joyous times, they had seen each other and come out even closer than before.
He'd just lost his sponsor and good friend Wendall—which he suspected to be murder. What happened to Buck was an accident. Still, a bolt of lightning was considered an act of God. If Buck died, could he say that God had murdered Buck? Could he be angry at God for doing such a thing? Was it to punish Bobby or Buck? What had Buck done to deserve such a fate?
He couldn't lose Buck. Not another kid. And his wife and step-daughter both agreed.
Despite his rocky start with the Police Sargent years before, Athena cared for Buck and loved him dearly, much like a son as well. If Buck left them, she would be sad on her own, but most of her grief would be for her husband.
Bobby wouldn't be able to handle this too. Not on his own at least. She feared for him the most.
Chimney and Hen both loved Buck like a little brother—or a puppy. A golden retriever puppy. He was a knucklehead and sort of a pain, but they would both die for him. To Chimney, Buck was more than just his girlfriend's brother. He was the guy who had saved his life more than a few times and loved his daughter. To Hen, Buck was better than a golden retriever. Buck was crazier, more stubborn, and more loyal. She said she was sad to see him go that day so long ago when Cap fired him—then rehired him later that same day. But if they lost him today, she'd be devastated.
Albert saw Buck as a brother too. They were roommates together and then they became uncles to the same beautiful little girl. When Jee Yun was born, he was held up in the hospital from his car accident injuries. He hadn't been able to be there for her when she was born, but Buck was. For those first few weeks, Buck was Jee Yun's sole uncle. So he prayed that he would not become Jee Yun's permanent sole uncle anytime soon.
Ravi, while he had been terrified of Buck a bit when he first started at the 118, saw him as a good friend and mentor. Much like Cap. Buck had once said that he could be his replacement. He was honored to be an added member of the team, but no one could ever replace Buck.
The 118 wouldn't be complete without Buck. The team or the family.
All they could do was pray, think positive, hope, and breathe.
Just keep breathing.
.
.
Still breathing.
.
.
.
While no one was paying attention, Maddie came running into the waiting room with tears streaming down her cheeks and a big smile on her face.
All heads snapped up to her.
"He's breathing! Buck's breathing on his own," she said through her happy sobs.
Sighs of relief mixed with cheers and more happy sobs.
Hen hugged her wife, Bobby did the same and then with his step-daughter, Eddie held Christopher as they both cried with smiles on their faces. Carla joined in for the next one. After hugging Maddie, Chimney hugged Albert and then insisted on taking his daughter back from his dad. Ravi leaned over in relief and took a huge breath, followed quickly by a hug from Bobby.
When Chimney was holding Jee Yun again, he brought her over to Maddie so the three of them could hug.
"So, what else did the doctor say?" the paramedic/firefighter asked.
"Yeah, are they taking Buck out of the ICU?" Hen asked.
"Well, they'll keep him in the ICU for a little longer just to be safe but if he continues to breath on his own, he could be moved out and into a recovery room as early as tomorrow morning," Maddie told them.
Everyone cheered again at the good news.
"So, he's breathing on his own but he didn't wake up?" Eddie asked Maddie.
"Afraid not. But the doctors are sure that he might in another day or two," she answered. She was just as optimistic.
"Can we visit him in his new room tomorrow?" Christopher asked. The ICU didn't allow children, or large parties all in at once. But if he was in a recovery room, he and Jee Yun could be in there, as well as the rest of their friends all together.
Maddie looked down at her brother's godson and smiled. "Of course, Christopher," she said. If Buck was in a recovery room—which she was certain he would be—they should all be there. "Maybe feeling everyone's presence in the room with him will help him wake up."
This made Christopher smile. Even if Buck would still be unconscious, it'll be nice seeing him without that tube down his throat, breathing without a machine.