Every Breath You Take (I'll be watching you…)
Summary: Buddie fic. Mysterious gifts start appearing at the firehouse for Buck from a secret admirer, but as the gifts get progressively more sinister and the 118 grow increasingly worried, they must uncover the mystery before someone close to them gets seriously hurt, or worse. Protective!Eddie. Established Buddie relationship. Follows on from Turning Point but can be read as a standalone.
Disclaimer: I do not own 9-1-1 or anything associated with the show.
TRIGGER WARNING: NEEDLES/DRUGS
Author Notes: Thank you for reading! I love writing these characters so much.
Set after season 6.
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Chapter 10
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Safe. Safe and loved.
That was all David wanted for the man in front of him, for the hero who continually risked his own life to save the lives of others. Evan Buckley, with the bright blue eyes that were so expressive David found himself being dragged down into the emotions with him. He tried to ignore the fact that those eyes were currently filled with fear, tried to remind himself that Buck just needed to be shown how things could be and he would eventually understand. He would eventually see that David deserved his love in return.
His skin was warm against David's palm, the light prickle of his stubble scratching at the pad of David's thumb. For a moment, David almost forgot why he had come back down to the basement, but the dried blood staining Buck's temple caught his eye and he forced himself to let go. He dampened the cloth he had brought down with the water in the bowl before placing his fingers below Buck's chin to guide his head into a better position.
The large pupils that glared back at him told David that the drugs were still well in effect, and despite the defiance that settled in Buck's tightened jaw, he didn't have it in him to fight back. But oh damn, the sight of it had David's heart beating wildly in his chest. The wince of pain when the cloth touched the open wound, the sharp intake of breath… David's grip tightened on the cloth, his eyes flickering across Buck and drinking him in.
"You are a masterpiece," David whispered, dabbing at the wound and cleaning away the blood. "Has anyone ever told you that?"
Buck remained silent, his gaze moving away from David, staring determinedly elsewhere. It caused the corner of David's mouth to tick upwards in a small smile and he tugged at Buck's chin until he was in Buck's line of sight once more.
"None of them could ever compare to you."
"None of who?" Buck asked, his voice raw and broken, sending a tingle up David's spine.
"The others," David answered, nonchalant.
He had tried to distract himself with them, tried to find someone that could consume his mind as Buck did, but the closest he had ever come was with Devon. Devon who had walked out on him, abandoned him, and all but mocked him by showing up at his club. But, David thought to himself, it was meant to be. By leaving, Devon had done David one last favour. He had brought Buck back into his life.
"But they don't matter," David continued, pulling away the cloth and searching Buck's eyes. "Not now."
Buck shrank back, his brow creasing in questioning as a frown tugged at his lips, and David wondered if Buck would be jealous if he knew the details. He wondered if Buck would feel the same dark frustration grip a hold of his heart that David felt whenever he had to watch Buck with that other firefighter. Just the thought of him, of Eddie Diaz, had David's anger rising, had David wishing to claim Buck as his and his alone.
But the thought was pushed away momentarily, the sound of glass breaking somewhere above them distracting him and pulling his attention upward. He strained his ears a moment before abandoning the bowl and cloth in his hands and pushing up from the bed, stalking toward the basement exit and pulling the door closed after him. It was halfway up the stairs that he reached around his back for the gun he had hidden in the waistband on his jeans.
He hated the damn thing, but he knew the situation may eventually call for something a little more definite than the drugs he had been using. Sometimes you had to give in to the dirty methods.
There were cheers from outside, and he pulled the keys from his pocket to unlock the front door, slow and cautious. Opening it, he glanced down at the glass by his feet, taking in the rock that sat amongst it. The sound of more glass breaking further down the road, followed by a deep cheer and raucous laughter, drew his attention to masked hooligans passing through the abandoned neighbourhood, no doubt celebrating Mischief Night a little too early. They didn't even see him, let alone acknowledge his existence, which was fine by him.
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Buck's skin crawled. David had a way of making him feel unsettled and uncomfortable at being seen, making him want to step outside of his own body just to escape the way those darkened eyes rolled over him. But even with David's presence momentarily gone, Buck couldn't shake the feeling of dirt upon his skin, couldn't shake the lingering sensation of the unwanted touches. He swallowed hard at the lump in his throat and stared at the doorway.
"What are you waiting for?" not-Bobby asked, and he moved back into Buck's vision, coming to a stop somewhere between Buck and the door. The door that, Buck was finally noticing, wasn't fully closed. "An invitation?"
When he had heard the sound from above, he had quickly quelled any spark of hope, extinguishing it to keep from disappointment. But now, it flickered into life once more, and Buck eyed the gap with caution as he pushed forward, forcing himself to his feet. Slow and guarded, he moved forward, listening intently out for any telltale signs of David coming back. When he reached the doorway, he could just to say make out the distant sounds from outside and he opened the door further to stare at the steps that would lead him up there.
His head span, vision wavering, making the staircase in front of him seem to stretch on for yards upon yards. Grip tightening on the door to steady himself, he took a breath and was just readying to take his first step when he heard the telltale sign of a door clicking closed.
"Well?" non-Bobby questioned from beside him, urging Buck to move, but Buck shook his head.
"I won't make it." And he hated knowing that.
"Since when does Evan 'Buck' Buckley give up?"
"I'm not giving up."
"Then move, Buckley."
Determination spread through Buck, and he would have done as not-Bobby told him, if his fingers hadn't caught on the lock on the outside of the basement door. He had assumed it needed a key from the outside, just like the inside, but instead it was a twist lock. Even if David had the key, Buck knew it could give him just enough time to get a head start.
So, he didn't run. He pulled the door open further instead and stepped behind it and waited.
It wasn't long before he heard the first few steps of David coming down the stairs, slow and steady at first, then quickened as he no doubt noticed the open door.
"Buck!" he growled as he reached the bottom step and pushed into the room, stalking further in to stare at the empty bed. "Buck!"
And Buck was already moving before David turned around to look back to the door. He was already on the other side and closing the door before David's eyes met his with a warning written there. Buck slammed it shut just as David darted forward, and clicked the lock into place, taking an unsteady step back as David banged against the door.
"Open the door, Buck!" he shouted. "Open the door and I won't be angry… Buck… Open the door!"
Buck couldn't help but stare at the door for a moment longer, the pure rage in David's voice causing him to flinch, each bang of the fist echoing in the stairway. His hand found the rail leading upwards and he paused, taking one last look at the door and not-Bobby that stood there, uttering a 'Go!', and that was all it took for Buck to be moving.
He dragged himself up the stairs and out of the stairway into a house that looked like it hadn't been lived in for years. It was dark and dingy and void of any real furniture, aside from a few broken pieces here and there, but once Buck had some form of bearing, he pushed on and toward where he imagined the front door should be.
Locked. Of course. He shouldn't have expected anything different.
But whilst he had the burst of adrenaline rushing through him, he refused to slow down or back down, and was moving again. A quick glance in the rooms nearby told him the windows were boarded up and he cursed before finding himself at another staircase, forcing himself up it as he heard David's voice echoing louder through the empty house, indicating he had gotten out of the basement.
The windows in the rooms upstairs weren't boarded up as thoroughly as the ones downstairs and Buck gently closed the door behind him in what appeared to have once been a large bedroom. He moved as quietly as he could to the windows and tugged at the boards. There was some movement, but not enough to pull them free. His gaze fell down, searching the ground nearby for anything that would help him gain just enough leverage to-
BANG!
A gunshot rang out loud from behind him, deafening him momentarily and stilling him immediately. He knew without even turning around that David was there. He could feel his eyes on him, could feel the pressure of his presence.
"Why, Buck?" David questioned, voice strained. "Why are you making me do this?"
But before Buck could answer, there was a large clatter and bang from downstairs, very much different to the noise from before. No, this noise was much more deliberate, much more desperate, and it was shortly followed by an equally desperate cry from a voice that had Buck wanting to crumble where he stood.
"Buck!"
Eddie… Buck felt his chest tighten and he swallowed the name before it could escape his lips, swallowed the urge to call out, knowing that doing so would lead Eddie to them. To the gun in David's grip.
David's reaction to Buck simply saying Eddie's name earlier was nothing compared to the way his eyes lit up now as Buck finally turned to face him. There was a chaotic rage written there, unhinged and dangerous, making Buck truly fear whatever was going through David's mind.
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As soon as Eddie reached the neighbourhood, he knew it was the place. He knew this was where the creep was keeping Buck. Aside from a small group of youths with Halloween masks covering their faces creating some trouble, the place was abandoned. No cars, no lights on in the houses, except for one… The one with the same address Ravi had supplied him and Chimney with.
Did Eddie feel bad for leaving Chimney behind? Maybe a little, but he knew he couldn't risk it. Chimney was there, supporting him and helping him each step of the way, but as soon as he had laid eyes on the picture of this place, Eddie knew Carter and Buck would be there. And he knew Chimney knew too. The problem was, Chimney was smart and, for the most part, sensible. There was no way he would let Eddie take the risk. He would have insisted they wait for Athena, but Eddie was through waiting.
He pulled his truck to a stop just down from the house with the dim lights and was at the door in no time. His boots crunched on the glass from the small broken window of the door and he looked down for a moment before trying the handle. It came as no surprise to him to find it locked and he was about to head back to his truck for some tools when he heard a loud gunshot ring out from inside the house.
A brief panic flitted throughout him, but then his body was moving of it's own accord, breaking down the door as Buck's name tore it's way out of his throat and into the empty but unsettled air inside the house. Heart thudding wildly in his chest, he listened carefully for any response, moving further into the house with tentative steps. Then he heard it, the light creak of a floorboard from upstairs.
He tried to keep as silent as he could as he pushed on, tried his best to at least think before he acted. But as he reached the top step and he saw them through the open doorway ahead, thinking went out the window. The fact that David had a gun meant nothing to him, even as he swung to face Eddie. It did nothing to stop Eddie from launching himself at the man. It did nothing to stop him from wrestling the man for control of the gun.
He barely even had chance to look Buck's way as he fought for the upper hand, both he and David falling backwards onto the landing outside the room. The gun skittered away across the wooden floorboards and David kicked at Eddie to free himself. But Eddie did not plan on making it easy for him, he did not plan on letting David get to the gun or to freedom.
As David got his feet under him, Eddie pushed up also and was on David just as he picked up the gun. Eddie wrapped one hand around David's, trying to force the gun away, as he used his spare arm to slam into David's torso, forcing him up against a nearby wall, pinning him. David's dark eyes glared back into his, his features twisted up as he tried to fight back, both desperate to be in control, and for a second, Eddie thought he had it.
Then the second gunshot rang out, and Eddie found himself dropping to the ground with such a suddenness, it was almost as if the floor beneath them had fallen away.
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A/N: More soon...