Okaaay Ground Support is finally done! And I'm pretty happy with this little story.
I hope you enjoy it too!
And HEY in my timezone there's still two hours until November ends so I'll tag @bt-novempreg hehe ♥
[Ch.1]
[Ch.2]
[Ch. 3]
[Ch. 4]
[Read on AO3]
Clara is born. So is Buck and Tommy's relationship.
or
5,000 words of fluff because the author has no self-control whatsoever
Time has lost all meaning for Buck; he doesn't know if he's spent ten seconds, two hours or ten days like this. His lower body feels on fire, every one of his muscles straining, sweat dripping down his face and pain crashing through him in waves. He's exhausted, dazed, only vaguely aware of Tommy's hand clasped around his.
And yet. It's all worth it the moment he hears that cry.
Clara's first sound out in the world is loud, and piercing, and it fills the room as much as Buck's heart. There are no words to explain the emotion that overtakes his chest when he hears it. Even less words for when he sees his daughter. She's small, and pink, and the most beautiful thing he has ever seen in his life. Buck already knows he'll move heaven and earth for her, forever.
"You have a daughter, Buck", Dr. Sims exclaims, his voice bright with joy.
Buck starts laughing through his tears, overwhelmed, trembling and smiling all at once. Against all odds, and after nine long months,
"You did it, Evan", Tommy whispers beside him, pressing a gentle kiss to Buck's forehead. Buck leans into him, into the grounding strength of that hand still holding him. "Congratulations"
Buck rests his head against Tommy's strong arm, exhaustion crashing over him like the embers settling after a wildfire.
"I did it", he whispers, breath hitching. "I-is she okay, Dr. Sims? Is everything — you know. As it should be? Even though she's a little early?"
Clara wasn't supposed to come until the next week, and now Buck can admit to himself how much he was worrying about her. And how much he was blaming myself for not being able to carry his pregnancy to term.
"She's perfect, Buck. Not a thing to worry about" Dr. Sims says, gentle and reassuring. He holds Clara securely in one hand, the clamps already in place on her cord. In the other, a pair of curved surgical scissors gleam under the lights.
"Mr. Kinard," he says, turning toward Tommy, "would you like to do the honors?"
Tommy blinks like he’s been stunned. His mouth falls open as he looks from the doctor to Buck, eyes wide and glassy.
"M–me?", he asks, voice thick with emotion. Then, he looks at Buck, as if asking for permission. Permission that Buck is more than happy to grant.
"Of course, you", he says, squeezing Tommy's hand. "I want you to, Tommy. I-if that's what you want too"
"Oh, Evan", Tommy says reverently. "Of course I do"
And then — slowly, gently — he leans in and presses a kiss to Buck’s lips. It’s soft, and quick, but somehow enough to make Buck’s overflowing heart spill over just a little more. He leans back against the pillow, and watches with misty eyes as Tommy takes the scissors from Dr. Sims with trembling hands.
"Just here, nice and firm", the doctor instructs, showing Tommy where to make the cut. He nods, and with one clean snip, he does it.
As soon as the cord is cut, the first thing Dr. Sims does is bring Clara over to Buck.
"Open up your gown a bit and hold her against your chest, Buck", he instructs gently. "The skin contact is really important for her in these first moments"
Buck hastily reaches for the knot on his hospital gown to loosen it a bit, but Tommy is already doing it for him. It makes him feel safe, and seen, and ridiculously giddy.
The happiness he feels when Dr. Sims places Clara in his waiting arms is like no other. A rush of love runs through his whole being, powerful and impossible to measure. She's wrapped up in a blue hospital blanket, still a bit slimy from birth, and Buck knows they'll take her for a more thorough cleaning soon, but right now, all he wants is to hold his daughter.
He looks at her with a dopey smile on his face, completely delighted. Clara's little scrunched-up face is absolutely beautiful, from her small mouth still letting out some unhappy cries to her barely open eyes. She feels perfect in his arms, and with Dr. Sims' gentle instruction, Buck shifts her so her chest is pressed against his.
The effect is instant; Clara's upset noises stop, and she settles against him. Buck places his hand on her back—and it strikes him that he can cover all of it with just one hand.
His baby girl is so tiny.
He loves her so much.
"Hi, Clara," Buck whispers reverently, one finger caressing her few strands of hair. "Hello, sweetheart. I'm your Daddy. Welcome to the world, baby girl."
Buck's still looking at her, absolutely enchanted, when he hears a quiet sniffle. He finally pries his gaze away from Clara and turns to Tommy. He is looking at Clara with so much love in his eyes, and they are filled with tears that are running freely down his cheeks.
"Tommy…" Buck says softly, and he startles as if he'd been caught red-handed doing something wrong.
"S-sorry", he says, voice thick, and reaches up to dry his eyes. "She's just so beautiful, Evan. And seeing you with her like this…"
Buck’s heart feels like it might burst. He offers Tommy a watery smile, his own eyes brimming.
"Don't apologize", he says softly. Then, Buck scoots over, as gently as possible so as not to disturb Clara, and pats the bed next to him. "C'mere. Come meet her properly"
Tommy doesn't hesitate. He climbs onto the bed beside Buck, leaning in to press a soft kiss to his forehead before he looks down at Clara.
And the smile that blooms over his face is pure delight.
"Hey, pretty girl", he says, his voice soft, his finger on her cheek even softer. Clara barely stirs, clearly very content to be adored by the two of them. "You are so loved already."
Buck nods, resting his head against Tommy's shoulder, and the two of them quiet. They just look at Clara, both of them entranced.
A few minutes pass; Buck's not sure how many, all he knows is that he doesn't remember the last time he felt so at peace. However, way too soon, a nurse is reaching for Clara with open arms and an apologetic smile.
Buck hesitates, and his grip around his daughter tightens instead of loosens. Logically, Buck knows they have to take Clara for cleaning, checking, testing… but he loathes it. Loathes the idea of separating from her, even for a few minutes. They have been together for nine months, and now all of a sudden he has to let her go, and with complete strangers? The thought makes something ache deep in his chest.
Dr. Sims, experienced as he is, clearly notices Buck's hesitation, and he chuckles fondly, squeezing his shoulder.
"I know it's hard, Buck. But she's doing so beautifully. Strong heartbeat, a clearly strong set of lungs… This part is just protocol. She'll be back with you before you know it, I promise. And then you can feed her for the first time once you both have rested a bit"
Buck nods, his eyes going back down at Clara, who's peacefully resting against his chest, completely unaware of her daddy's agony.
"O… Okay. I- I know this is important. I know. It's just…", he sighs brokenly, for some reason unable to let go of Clara. He knows he's being silly, and irrational, and yet.
"Doctor Sims", Tommy says softly by his side. "Would it be alright if I stayed with Clara while you do the check-up?"
Dr. Sims' expression softens, and he nods immediately. "Of course. It's a very common thing, actually, for the other p… Well. For someone to observe these first procedures."
They all feel what the doctor has left unsaid, but neither of them acknowledge it; not right now. It's not important anyway; Tommy is someone to Buck, someone to Clara. They can discuss names later.
"Evan", Tommy says, and Buck turns at him to see the softest expression on his face. "Do you want me to do that? So she won't be alone?"
"Yes", Buck says with no hesitation, and he takes Tommy's hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I-I mean, I want you by my side. So much. But… But I want you by her side even more"
The smile Tommy gives him is brighter than the Sun. He presses a kiss to Buck's forehead, one more to his cheek, and a final, gentle one against his lips.
"Then I'll go with her", Tommy says, as if it's a given that he'll do what Buck asks, what Clara needs, without a second thought.
"Thank you, Tommy", Buck says, putting as much sincerity and care in his voice as he can. "I mean it"
"I know", Tommy says gently, and squeezes Buck's hand before letting go.
And Buck finally feels safe enough to let go of Clara. The nurse takes her from his chest very gently, but she still fusses a bit. Buck instinctively reaches out, but winces right away because all of his abdomen feels sore. Besides, the nurse has already managed to soothe Clara; Buck realizes that she probably has way more experience with newborns than he does.
Even so, it calms his anxious heart to see Tommy following behind the nurse, who's gently explaining to him what they'll do to her now. Buck rests his head on the pillow, watching two of the most important people in the world to him leave together, and he feels whole. And happy like never before.
The smile that doesn't seem to leave his face is finally interrupted by a yawn so wide it startles him. Dr. Sims chuckles, giving Buck a pat on the back.
"Rest, Buck", he recommends gently. "You did something amazing today. Now rest"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(continue reading under the cut or on AO3)
"Howie, you sound like a six year old"
"All I'm saying is that he could give someone else a turn, you know, it's not like —"
"Shhhh, you're gonna wake him up, you idiots!"
When Buck wakes up, it's to a room filled with the people he loves: Tommy in a chair right by his left side; Hen and Chimney sharing a small couch facing his bed; and, in a chair by his right side, his dad, holding Clara in his arms in the practiced way only parents can.
"It's alright, Hen, I'm already up", he says, and they all turn to him.
"Evan!", Tommy exclaims, a smile taking over his face. "How are you feeling?"
"Sore", Buck answers honestly, and Tommy helps him sit up, slow and steady. "But really happy. How's Clara?"
"Perfect", Bobby is the one who answers, looking up from his granddaughter with tear-filled eyes.
He's right, she's perfect. Buck had thought so even when she was covered in amniotic fluid, face still scrunched tight from the shock of being born. But now she’s clean and dressed, and somehow she looks even more perfect.
There's a hospital issued pink woolen hat in her head, and she's swaddled in a striped blanket that Buck assumes also belongs to the hospital; her own, the star patterned one he bought months ago, is probably still in the bag. Underneath it, he can see she's wearing the pale pink onesie he had chosen as her first outfit; she looks like the most adorable strawberry pudding ever.
And Bobby? The only word for him is smitten. He's looking at her like she's the prettiest thing he's ever seen in his life.
Buck chuckles, patting his shoulder. "Awww, look at you all proud, grandpa"
"And a selfish grandpa too", Chim says with a smirk. "He won't let anyone else have a hold of your daughter, Buck"
"I let you guys hold her", Bobby says distractedly, too busy making silly faces at the baby in his arms who's staring at him with big blue eyes.
"Yeah, for two seconds", Hen chuckles, crossing her arms. "And then she fussed and you said 'she wants grandpa again' and haven't let go since"
"What can I do, she's a grandpa's girl. Aren't you, sweetpea?", he says, caressing her cheek ever so gently.
Buck’s heart feels full in a way he can’t quite explain — but it’s becoming the norm today.
Then Bobby glances up, warm brown eyes soft with emotion. "Your mom would’ve loved her," he whispers, like it’s a secret.
Buck nods, throat tight, the memory of Marceline Nash so vivid in his mind and heart. He remembers her warmth, her patience, the way she loved a scared ten-year-old boy from day one. He's absolutely sure she would have loved Clara. It hurts that she's not there to meet her, but he's found a way to keep her close.
"I haven't told you her full name yet, have I?" Buck asks, and his dad shakes his head, a small frown between his brows.
Buck takes a break and then smiles, gentle and sure. "It's Clara Marceline Nash"
His dad looks at him in astonishment, and tears pool in his eyes.
"Oh, Evan", he says reverently, and then looks down at the baby in his arms, eyes shimmering. "Clara Marceline Nash. N-no Buckley?"
Buck shrugs, gaze also falling on his daughter. "I only kept Buckley because by the time you and mom adopted me, Buck was already my nickname.", he says.
He looks towards Tommy, Hen and Chim, who had been respectfully silent during this exchange, but he wants them to understand as well. "There were three other Evans at the foster home."
They nod in understanding, and Buck turns to Bobby, putting a hand on his shoulder. "But... But I don't want her to be a Buckley. That name means nothing to me. Nash... Nash means everything, Dad. It's who I am"
Bobby nods vehemently, then presses a kiss to Buck's forehead, while expertly keeping Clara steady.
"Yes, it is. You're a Nash, kid", he says, and then presses a kiss to Clara's forehead. "And so are you, Clara"
There's a moment of silence, only cut by Bobby and Buck's quiet sniffles, but then Chimney cuts through it with a clap. Thankfully, it doesn't startle Clara; Buck would kill him if it had (Bobby too, probably).
"Alright, so when do I get the owner of holding Miss Clara Marceline Nash? C'mon, Bobby, don't be a baby hoarder, nobody likes those"
Bobby doesn't even glance up from Clara, just shaking his head and smiling at her like a besotted fool.
"I did let you hold her. Didn't I, Clara? Didn't I give everyone a turn?", he coos at her. "Not my fault you fussed in everyone's arms but mine"
"Maybe she’ll like me better this time!" Chim argues, already doing the little grabby hands. "C’mon, Bobby. She misses me, look at her!"
"Face it, Chim, you're not holding her today", Hen says, giving her friend an empathetic pat in the back.
"Yeah", Bobby agrees, bopping Clara's nose. She frowns adorably and Buck wonders how could he make someone so cute. "I won't let her go so easily"
"Don't I get a turn now? On account of being. You know. Her father?", Buck asks, crossing his arms in mock offense.
"No", Bobby says simply, now bouncing Clara in his arms.
Buck chuckles indignantly, but the truth is, he’s thrilled to see his dad so gone for his daughter. The deepest fear he’s ever carried is disappointing Bobby—and knowing his dad sees neither him nor Clara as a disappointment? It’s healing.
Before Buck can get lost in this train of thought, Tommy snorts behind him.
"Sweetheart, technically you were the only one who had a turn for the last nine months",
The 'sweetheart' doesn't go unnoticed; Chim raises an eyebrow and exchange a look with Hen, and Bobby smirks knowingly while still cooing at Clara, who's fast asleep by now. Buck blushes a little, but the smile never leaves his face. It feels good, being called someone's sweetheart. Being called Tommy's sweetheart.
"Well, I'd have happily shared that turn - especially when I started having to pee every ten minutes", he grumbles, and Tommy chuckles, pressing a kiss to his forehead.
"You'll get to hold her soon, Evan. Maybe. If your dad allows it", he jokes, and Buck playfully hits his shoulder.
There's a lull in the conversation, in which Hen checks her watch and nudges Chim gently. "Well, this has been amazing, but we have a shift in about an hour and I want to at least take a shower before that"
"Amen", Chim agrees. "And a nap, if I can squeeze it in"
They both approach the bed and give Buck a hug. Chim ruffles his hair, while Hen presses a kiss to his cheek.
"Congrats, Buckaroo. Your little one is amazing", she says, and Buck beams, squeezing her hand.
"Yeah, kid. Can hardly believe something so cute came out of you", Chim teases, and Buck flips him the bird. "Careful with that, you're a father now"
And Buck can't even offer a sarcastic answer, because it hits him like the most wonderful sack of bricks; yeah. He's a father now.
"Thanks for coming, you two", he says softly, looking earnestly at them both. "It means a lot"
They smile at him, and then they both coo a bit at Clara, who's very contently asleep in her grandpa's arms. Buck knows that she'll spend most of her time sleeping for now, but he doesn't think he'll ever get sick of watching it.
"Bye, miss Clara", Chim whispers, doing a feather-light carress at her cheek. "Don't forget I'm your favorite uncle"
"He's also a liar, Clara. I'm your favorite auntie", Hen replies, caressing Clara's other cheek, and then smiling at Bobby. "See you at the station, cap?"
"Yeah, I'll see you soon", Bobby tells her, and Hen nods.
She and Chim say their goodbyes to Tommy, and then they're gone. Bobby also gets up, Clara firm against his chest, and Buck frowns at him.
“D-do you have a shift too, Dad?” Buck asks, and he knows he probably sounds childish and clingy, but he can’t bring himself to care.
His dad has been one of his only constants these last few months—him and Tommy. Of course he doesn’t want him to leave. He still can’t believe his luck that Bobby wasn’t on shift when his water broke. But Bobby, patient as always, gives him that soft, anchoring smile and shakes his head.
“I don’t, kiddo,” he reassures. Buck exhales in relief. “I’m just running home for a quick shower. Then I need to stop by the station to give Fisher from the 133 a few instructions. He’ll cover for me for the next few days.”
“Won’t you get in trouble with the department for that?” Buck frowns, and Bobby shakes his head again.
“I’d already requested next week off, but this little star decided to make her debut early,” he says, cooing down at Clara. “So I asked the Chief to swap the leave. I’ll be right here by your side, kiddo.”
“Thanks, Dad.” Buck smiles, small and earnest. “It… it means a lot.”
“That’s what I’m here for, Buck.” Bobby’s voice is simple, steady. Then he looks down at Clara again, that dopey, besotted smile taking over his whole face. “Grandpa’s gonna go, sweetheart, but he’ll be back. You hear me?”
He presses a gentle kiss to her forehead before leaning in toward Buck.
“You want me to leave her with you two, kid? Or put her back in the bassinet?”
Buck’s arms ache to hold her, and he knows Tommy feels the same. But she’s so peaceful—rosy cheeks, slack little mouth, fist curled by her eyes—that he can’t bring himself to disturb her. And there’s that irrational fear whispering that he’ll hold her wrong, wake her up, ruin the moment. There’ll be time. So much time.
“The bassinet, for now. She’s so comfy… let her sleep a little more,” he decides.
Bobby nods, then with the ease of someone who has done this more times than he can count, he settles Clara into the hospital bassinet. She fusses for a second, but he rubs her tummy and shushes softly, and she melts right back into sleep.
When she’s quiet again, Bobby turns toward the boys.
He hugs Tommy first, a solid, warm squeeze with a paternal pat to the back. Tommy looks momentarily startled, then returns the hug without hesitation.
“Take care of them for me?” Bobby murmurs, low and earnest.
“With my life,” Tommy answers immediately.
And Buck gasps, because the words hit him right in the chest—heavy, warm, overwhelming in the best way.
Bobby seems to sense his emotion, because he smiles and presses a long kiss to his forehead. "Goodbye, kiddo. Congratulations. I'm so proud of you"
Hearing those words never fail to make Buck emotional. He rests his head against Bobby's shoulder and closes his eyes in delight.
"Bye, Dad. I love you", he murmurs.
Bobby gives Clara one last kiss on her tiny forehead, and then he slips out of the room.
The door closes with a soft click.
As soon as he’s gone, Buck looks toward Tommy — who’s already watching him with that small, crooked smile that never fails to make Buck feel seen.
"Looks like it's just the two of us", he shrugs, suddenly a bit shy — he hasn't been along with Tommy since that night in his apartment. He takes Tommy's hand in his, lacing their fingers together.
"Lucky me", Tommy says, and presses a gentle kiss to Buck's cheek. "How are you feeling, Ev? What do you need?"
Buck's first instinct is to say he's fine; but he trusts Tommy. He doesn't want to pretend right now.
"Honestly? I'm feeling all… sweaty, and leaky, and I haven't seen a mirror in hours, but I can only imagine how awful I look"
“You look amazing,” Tommy says without hesitation.
Buck blushes. This stupid man and his stupid, perfect compliments.
“But,” Tommy adds with gentle practicality, “I bet a shower would do you wonders. Want me to help you take one?”
Buck can't help but raise an eyebrow, a smirk automatically forming in his lips. Flirting has always been second nature to him.
"Wow, Kinard. Buy a guy dinner first, won't you?"
Tommy blushes like Buck has never seen before, eyes widened and cheeks pink. Once he's done spluttering, he rolls his eyes and playfully shoves his shoulder.
"Behave. I'm trying to help you, not seduce you", he scolds, but then smirks. "For now"
Buck chuckles, warm and light. But then he looks at his Clara, fast asleep in her bassinet, and frowns a bit.
"I… I'd love a shower", he confesses. "But will she be okay while we're gone?"
To Buck's credit, he knows he's being a bit overprotective. But Tommy doesn't scoff, or roll his eyes, or treats it as a silly concern. He softens, caressing Buck's cheek.
"We won't be really gone, sweetheart, the bathroom is here in the room", he reassures him. "We'll leave the door open, and if she so much as squeaks, I'll rush to her side. Okay?"
With a proposition like this, Buck can't really say no. He nods, and Tommy helps him get out of bed, fussing a bit when he notices Buck wincing.
"It's okay", Buck tells him. "I'm just sore"
"I know, but let's not overdo it", Tommy recommends. "Lean on me, it's what I'm here for"
Something warm sets in Buck's stomach, and he lets more of his weight rest against Tommy. The other man doesn't struggle even a bit — perks of dating a firefighter — and gently helps Buck walk to the bathroom.
Once they're inside, he lets go of Buck (only after making sure he's well) so he can fetch a towel and other things they'll need. Buck takes the chance to start undoing the knot on his hospital gown, but the position is awkward, and it pulls on his sore chest.
When Tommy realizes he's struggling, he quickly puts down the stuff he's holding and comes closer, putting his hands over Buck's.
"Let me", he asks, impossibly gentle, and Buck nods, letting go.
Tommy starts undoing the knot, and Buck's torso is slowly revealed. He pouts a bit, crossing his arms once they're free of the sleeves.
"Not quite how I imagined you seeing me naked for the first time", he grumbles, and Tommy looks up at him in surprise, gaze softening.
"Evan", he presses a peck to Buck's lips. "there will be plenty of opportunities for me to see you naked in the future, I hope"
"So do I", Buck flirts back, and Tommy chuckles.
"But if you'll feel more comfortable, I'll close my eyes. Or turn around. Whatever you need"
There's something in the earnest, sweet way in which he says it that makes Buck's heart skip a beat. He shakes his head, trying to fight away the stubborn tears insisting on filling his eyes.
"N-no, it's okay", he whispers hoarsely, then kisses Tommy, slow but certain. "It means the world that you offered, though."
"Of course", Tommy smiles.
They stay silent for a bit as Tommy helps Buck step out of his gown. Before he helps Buck into the shower, though, he takes his hand, looking deeply into his eyes. Then he sighs, as if he's bracing himself to say something particularly difficult.
“I know I was a coward before,” Tommy murmurs, voice rough. “But I’m here now, Evan. For you. For Clara. For… all of it. And I—” He swallows. “I love you.”
Buck hasn't realized how much he needed to hear those words until Tommy said them. His mouth opens into a delighted smile, and he throws his arms around Tommy, hugging him tight even though he's completely naked. Tommy doesn't seem to mind, and hugs him back just as fiercely, his hand running up and down Buck's back.
Then, Buck breaks the hug apart so he can cradle Tommy's face into his hand and kiss him fiercely. His mouth desperately seeks Tommy's, tongues and lips meeting each other as if they were always meant to.
"I love you too", he says, resting his forehead against Tommy's. "In case that wasn't clear"
Tommy chuckles wetly, and kisses him again — even though it's an awkward kiss because they're both smiling and crying through it. And yet, somehow, it's perfect.
"Alright", Tommy murmurs, brushing a thumb over Buck's damp cheek. "Now let's get you into the shower, so you're ready to feed your sweetpea when she wakes up",
Buck nods, stepping into the shower. When the water hits his skin, he sighs — a long, low sound of relief. It feels absurdly good to wash away the sweat and the… everything that’s clung to him since giving birth. For the first time in hours, he feels like himself again.
Tommy helps him when needed, touch gentle and sure and Buck realizes it’s the first time in his life he’s ever been touched while naked for comfort. For tenderness. For care. Not lust. And while he loves lust — God, he loves lust — this touches something deeper. It makes him love Tommy in a completely new way.
They're almost done when a small sound reaches them from the hospital room. The tiniest grunt, a little louder than a breath, but soon followed by another, and then blossoming into full-on crying.
Buck and Tommy look up, and then at each other, eyes wide; Buck's still half soapy, frozen under the shower spray.
"Go", he urges Tommy, nodding towards the door. "I'll be fine. Check on her"
"Are you sure?", Tommy asks, already grabbing a towel to dry his hand.
Buck nods again, firmer this time. "I'm sure."
Tommy leans in and presses a small peck to his lips, almost on instinct, and rushes out of the bathroom. Through the open door and the cries, Buck hears him trying to soothe Clara, voice soft as silk.
"Hey, hey… It's alright, Clara baby… I'm here, shh…"
Clara whimpers a bit more, but within seconds she seems to settle. Her noises fade into tiny hiccupy breaths that sound a bit like she's letting them know her outrage at waking up in a bassinet instead of someone's arms.
The room goes quiet except for Tommy's gentle babbling. Buck can't quite make out the words, just the tone of awe and love that brings a smile to his lips.
As much as Buck wishes to hurry back to them, he can't quite manage quick movements right now. So he takes his time with rinsing under the warm water and then drying himself before reaching for the pajamas Tommy left for him. Getting dressed is a bit of a chore — everything aches — but he manages with minimum wincing.
When he’s done, he turns toward the hospital room, ready to ask Tommy for help settling back into bed so he can try feeding Clara. But the sight that greets him when he reaches the bathroom door makes him stop in his tracks and gasp, one hand flying to his heart.
Tommy has Clara in his arms, still wrapped in that striped blanket. Her head is nestled into the crook of his elbow, and he's pacing slowly across the room, one strong hand patting her back so gently. He's humming a lullaby under his breath, his gaze never leaving her face.
She looks so tiny against his chest.
It's the most beautiful thing Buck has ever seen.
The man he loves, holding his baby girl like she's the most precious thing he's ever touched. Looking at her with as much love as if she were his own. Buck's heart feels like it could burst.
A realization hits him, warm and certain: it's his family he's looking at.
Not the family that abandoned him when he was still too young to remember it.
Not even the family he loved, but lost to a tragic fire that left only him and Bobby behind.
But the family he built. The one that is his. The one that means he won't ever be alone again.
Soon, he’ll have to break the spell — call the nurse, learn how to feed Clara, take his first trembling steps into fatherhood.
Soon, they'll go home, and he'll have to learn how to care for his baby girl while navigating a new relationship with the man who has been his ground support from day one.
Final Chapter! Here we are! For the @bt-novempreg bingo!
Full Chapter on Ao3 | Snippet Below:
Despite each baby being born at only three pounds each, within a couple weeks they had quickly caught up to the average weight of newborns.
By the time they reached four months of age, all three were at the 99 percentile for height and weight.
By the time they reached their six months of age, all three triplets were bigger than their cousin Robbie, who was over a year older than them.
“Bah,” Luke said as he pushed and swatted a ball, rolling it across the room.
Robbie stood, three feet away from the baby, looking between him and the ball, appalled that Luke had rolled it in the opposite direction away from him. “No!” He yelled out.
His exclamation drew the attention of all of the adults on the other side of the room.
“Has he learned any words besides no?” Buck asked.
Maddie shook her head. “Does he know them? Yes. Will he use them? No.”
A couple days ago, little Robbie learned what the word ‘no’ meant and how he should use it. Ever since then, whenever something happened that he didn’t like or he was asked a question, he would say ‘no’ very vocally. He even said ‘no’ to questions he meant to say ‘yes’ to, such as when Maddie asked him if he wanted an extra cookie at lunch.
Buck and Tommy found the development hilarious. Maddie and Chimney, not so much.
“They’re getting really big though,” Maddie said as they watched Robbie toddle across the room to grab the ball, keeping it for himself. “Soon we might need to ask you for some hand-me-downs,” she joked.
It made Buck laugh as well, one because it was funny, and two because it was most certainly true. The triplets had been growing so fast that they’re almost too big for all of the five bags of baby clothes Maddie had given Buck back when he was pregnant. Right now the babies all weighed between sixteen and twenty pounds, a far cry from when they were born at three pounds. And compared to Rbbie’s weight of twenty five pounds at eighteen months of age, they were quickly catching up.
“They’re almost grown through all of the ones you’ve given us so far,” Buck said.
And that was a realization last week when he and Tommy were sorting through everything.
“Have they already outgrown all of these?” Tommy had asked as he patted a pile of baby clothes sitting on the bed.
“Yeah,” Buck nodded. “We never even got to put them in half of them.”
Maddie and Chimney had given them a lot of baby clothes, enough that it had taken them almost a week to sort through them all. But just like Maddie and Chimney had some they never got around to putting the kids in due to how fast they grew, the same could be said for the triplets.
Despite them all being born at only three pounds, small enough to (literally) fit in one hand, they had all gained weight and grew exceptionally fast. Before they were a month old they had outgrown the newborn sizes, which both Buck and Tommy had expected them to be in for a while.
By two months, all three of them were wearing clothes for six month old babies. And as the last six months went on, their rate of growth had lessened somewhat, but they were still the largest kids in their daycare in the infant room.
“I never expected them to grow so fast,” Buck said as he watched the babies all taking naps in the corner of the room.
“You say that every week,” Tommy said.
“Because it’s true!” Buck exclaimed. “You heard what that one teacher at the daycare said the other day.”
Tommy nodded, the memory was a funny one, but also put into perspective just how fast their kids were growing.
It was one of the preschool teachers who had filled in for a couple of days in the infant room. She usually worked with the three and four year olds, not the less than twelve month year olds. Either way, the teacher had somehow been under the impression the triplets were nearing twelve months of age, when little kids would usually start standing up and walking around.
The triplets had only just been starting to begin to crawl.
As Novempreg nears it’s end, I just want to sincerely thank everyone who participated in any way, you’re so appreciated and have made this month so much fun! 💛
If you haven’t check it out yet, there are several great fics in the AO3 collection, and in the Novempreg tag here on Tumblr!
If I have time I’ll try to put together a roundup post of everything, maybe on Monday when the month is officially over.
The prompt is Baby Names & Big Chunky Baby from the @bt-novempreg bingo card above!
Last chapter people! This was so fun, I just want to that @bt-novempreg for making such an adorable fandom event to take part in, I had a great time!
--<3--
The Best Parts Of Us
Read here or over on AO3 here!
Chapter 6: Baby Names & Big Chunky Baby
Tommy was hunched under the open hood of the car he was working on, Skylar sat on the stool next to him swinging her legs back and forth, it was his day off. There was an open tool kit on a small fold up table with tools he labelled with numbers and a few colours, it made the whole experience easier with Sky. He’d call out a number between one and ten or a colour of the rainbow and she would pass him that tool, it wasn’t just an easier way to do things for Tommy but a learning opportunity for his little girl too.
“Can I have blue, please?” Tommy asked, he held his hand out with his head still under the hood.
Skylar hummed, looking over the tools until her face lit up when she found the blue sticker on a wrench, “This one, papa!”
“Thank you, sweetpea.” Tommy glanced at her quickly, smiling and taking the tool from her.
For the next twenty minutes it was more of the same, calling out colours and numbers until Sky got distracted by a new presence in the room. “Daddy!” She shrieked and waved him over, her curls bouncing.
Buck had been at home all day too, complaining of back pain, he’d been resting in bed watching whatever documentary he was interested in that week on the tv in their room. He was due any day.
He stood next to the car, his hands against his lower back with a pained look on his face. He rarely came into the garage that pregnant so Tommy stopped what he was doing right away and straightened up, grabbing the rag in his pocket to clean his hands.
“I think I’m in labour.” He sounded out of breath, one hand moved to run along the underside of his dropped belly.
Tommy shut the hood quickly, careful not to trap any fingers in it, “Are you sure?”
Buck scrunched up his nose and groaned, “Yeah, that was definitely a contraction.”
Tommy scooped Sky off the stool and gestured for Buck to turn around, placing a hand on his back to guide him back up the couple of steps into the house. As Tommy hiked Sky up from slipping on his hip slightly and closed the door behind him, Buck pressed his hand against the wall, putting his weight on it as he groaned again. Then there was a sudden dripping sound.
“Water broke.” He mumbled, still recollecting himself.
“What?” Tommy walked around him, not fully hearing what he said.
“My water broke.” Buck casually said while he started some breathing exercises. He’d been through this once, he could do it again, so he remained calm. Tommy on the other hand, mister chill himself, was not so mister chill in that very moment.
“Oh my, okay, um,” he started to panic a little, floundering around as he looked at the growing wet patch on his husband’s sweatpants, “I’ll call Maddie, we can drop Sky off with her on the way to the hospital.” He ran to grab his keys and ran back, Skylar blissfully ignorant to the situation, laughing at her papa running around and, in her eyes, being silly.
Buck just slowly made his way to the front door and slid on his crocs, leaning against the wall again, waiting for Tommy.
He reappeared with their to-go bags, one for Buck and baby and one for Sky. “Is that everything? Do I have everything?” He looked around frantically, “Are you hungry? Do you need food before we get there or a drink? Or a change of clothes?” He was almost out of breath from running around the house with a heavy three year old clinging to him in his arms.
“Tommy, for the love of everything that is holy, you need to chill,” Buck reached out and grabbed either side of the pilots face, “I’m chill, it’s not like we haven’t done this before, just- oh wait a minute,” and just then a contraction hit, he squished Tommy’s cheeks making his lips purse and groaned low, closing his eyes tight in pain, “okay, wow, that was a big one.”
Tommy watched with big, concerned eyes, “Okay, chill, I can do that, we’ve done this before,” he jostled Skylar, her giggles not subsiding any time soon, “haven’t we, sweetpea?”
“Yeah!” Skylar threw her arms up, having no clue what she was replying to, she just loved to feel included.
“Time to go, babe.” Buck had stated and opened the door.
“So no change of clothes?” Tommy hadn’t moved from his spot in the hallway.
Buck huffed, “No, I don’t think anyone will judge the heavily pregnant man in labour, we really need to go!”
They all clambered into the car and Tommy tried his best not to speed. Dropping their daughter off as her aunt and uncles, they left them with a few wishes of good luck and promises to see them tomorrow as they made their way to the hospital.
After getting checked in and given a room to get comfortable in, Buck donned a hospital gown and fuzzy socks while he walked circles around the room. He seemed to be stuck at eight centimetres dilated, so he chose to walk around to further the process while Tommy sat scrolling on his phone reading out baby names from the list they created, ones they narrowed down to.
“Ethan?”
“No, I don’t like that one anymore.” Buck grumbled and scrunched his nose.
“Okay,” Tommy put a line through it on his notes app, “James?”
“No.” Buck shook his head, stopping for a second and grabbing his husband’s waiting hand to get through a contraction before continuing his lap around the chair he was sitting in.
“Kaden?” He liked that one, but Buck didn’t anymore.
They went on like that for the next hour, halfway Buck got dizzy and decided he’d done enough walking, choosing to lay back down instead. Tommy rattled off baby name after baby name until they were left with just two.
Before they could decide, a nurse came in to check dilation and confirmed it was go time. Buck was sweating big time, he knew he looked gross, but with Tommy unphased and ready to hold his hand through it all no matter what, Buck didn’t really care what he looked like.
He thought since he’d been through childbirth before this time would be easy, however, their son was bigger than Sky, much bigger. Each push felt like a battle against his body, tearing him in half. He gripped Tommy’s hand with all his strength, uncaring if he was hurting him, Tommy would brush it off anyway. He bore down and pushed with everything he had in him. With gritted teeth, he was determined to make sure his son made it into this world.
It felt like hours had passed, sweat dripped down the side of his face and his whole body trembled and then he heard those magical words, “Just one more big push and baby boy will be in your arms.” The midwife said.
And she was right, just one more push and he heard the best sound he’d heard all day. That cry. That first cry. It was beautiful.
He was lifted to his chest after Tommy had graciously cut the cord, their baby boy lay wiggling, covered in birth gunk but still beautiful. He was certainly big, probably one of the biggest, chuckiest looking newborns they had ever seen. He had the cutest, squishiest looking cheeks that any grandma would love to pinch. Weighing in at ten point eight pounds, Buck had thought eight pounds was heavy when he had Sky, but it also was no surprise the two men would make big babies.
“Daniel.” Buck whispered.
Tommy hummed and looked up from where his eyes were trained on their son, his hand on top of Buck’s own on the little boy’s back.
Daniel wasn’t on the list.
Buck was too scared to suggest it, he felt like it was wrong, he felt like it was disrespectful. But laying there with his baby breathing against his own breaths, his heart beating against his own heart, all the guilt and worry melted away. He gave life to this little boy.
“Daniel Thomas Buckley-Kinard,” he looked away from him and gazed tearfully at Tommy, “that’s his name.” He choked on the last few words, kissing his son’s head. Tommy wrapped his arm around his shoulder, sitting on the edge of the bed the best he could and leant in close, kissing Buck’s damp curls with tears in his own eyes.
Buck melted into his embrace, “It’s perfect.” Tommy couldn’t agree more, he felt honoured to share his name with his son, he wasn’t gloating but he also didn’t want to ask Buck if he was sure, he knew it meant a lot to Buck. And he knew his first name meant even more to him.
Tommy kissed him again, he had the most considerate, caring husband and he gifted him with the two greatest treasures to look after for the rest of his life. He never saw himself having this with anyone else, the first time he even thought about it was when he admitted he had fallen in love with the man. And now here he was. Married, in love, a father of two, happy.
Life after didn’t change much for them, Daniel fit into it all like a missing puzzle piece. He was such a happy baby, everyone was smitten with him, especially his big sister. Skylar loved him, maybe the most.
His chunkiness only grew, and to the two dads it was the most adorable thing in the world. They had a happy healthy baby, what more could they want.
“He’ll lose some of this fat when he learns to run, same thing happened to me.” Tommy said, squishing Dan’s sleepy face gently between his thumb and pointer, he couldn’t help it.
“Is it bad that I want him to stay like this?” Buck giggled watching the pilot’s actions.
Tommy huffed a laugh, “I think almost every parent thinks like that, Evan.”
“I remember thinking something similar with Sky, I liked when I could strap her in the carrier against my chest and just carry her around everywhere, she was so little.” Bucked hummed in nostalgia, propping his chin on Tommy’s shoulder.
The domesticity had somehow grown tenfold in their house. They created a home that was safe, full of love and care, a home they had both yearned for growing up. They created a home they’ve always wanted. Their kids would never feel the chill of loneliness, the neglect, the lack of love, that they both experienced growing up. And they were proud of that. Proud to be the parents they never had.
“We’ve done good.” Buck murmured into the fabric of Tommy’s shirt.
“Yeah, we’ve done good.” Tommy agreed his voice low as Daniel dozed off in his arms, he twisted his head and softly smiled at Buck.
The November is basically over for me and I couldn't have ended BIG CHUNKY BABYon time so I post all I have. I hope to end and clean it soon and poast on ao3
@bt-novempreg
"And he's here. Your boy is here Mr. Buckley-Kinard," Dr. Ross announces and right after this the loud, piecing cry of someone, who definitely was comfortable inside his body - warm, in silence and darkness - and is not happy with being take out to loud word full of florescent light before he was ready.
"Are you ready to cut the cord Mr. Buckley-Kinard," the nurse asks Tommy, and Buck nods to him to go to their boy.
The world is hazy, but Buck feels how doctors stich his stomach, yet he gets distracted when already cleaned, but not yet swaddled baby is placed on him.
The good, palpable weight of his beautiful son.
His cheeks are like the most red and tasty apples. With long eyelashes bring the cute shadows on them.
The hand that grabbed Buck's pec is fatty and full of the most precious lines on his skin showing how big his angels is.
But most cute thing about him are his lips — so full and fat, pouting already.
"Gosh, I'll be such a pushover for both of your pouts," Tommy laughs with tears on his eyes. "Gonna love every second."
"As you should," Buck smiles at his husband, with his eyes sending him the message to kiss him.
Tommy does.
—
It feels like he just blinks and three of them are alone in his room, for family bonding.
Buck rest in his bedroom, ogling possibly the most cutest and hottest view in entire world - his husband half naked with tears falling down to the lines of smile, while Florian in only the diaper sleeps on his chest, with blanket that Tommy holds over him, protecting him from any possible coldness.
"Evan, how he can be so small, but big and round and precious and just perfect?"
Buck smiles, shrugging, "he's ours. That's it."
"Yeah, ours," Tommy whispers like it's the prayer. "Our big boy," he feather like touches the round cheek. "Evan," Tommy's voice breaks, "I love him so much."
Buck only shakes his head, thinking it's not the last time Tommy will cry about it.
His perfect a little bit pathetic husband.
"I love him too," he nods, "and you."
Tommy somehow cries harder, "I love you too."
—
"How?" Maddie bewildered asks, holding the baby Florian in her hands with huge eyes.
"Have you seen your brother and brother-in-law, Maddie," Bobby chuckles, giving Buck another eclair, and raising his judging eyebrow till Buck starts chewing.
"Y-yeah, Mads," Buck horses after all the screaming and pain of the day, "is someone would have record baby it's me and Tommy. Two 6'2 more than 200lbs firefighters."
"It's all the baking," Ravi adds, "the baby decided to win the bread basket competition by being the biggest, cutest looking bread basket.
"Are you calling our child fat, Ravi?" Tommy crosses his hands over his chest.
Ravi raises his hands in surrender.
"Only cutest biggest bun from Buck's oven."
That makes everyone laugh.
"Let's stop with b-baking metaphor to my baby, thank you very much," Buck says, "gimme my baby back, please. I want my cuddles again."
Maddie obliges, carefully placing the big bundle of joy into her brother's hands, fighting the tears.
Her first baby - the one she had to raise and chose to do it - is all big and is having the baby of his own.
Huge cutest little angel.
"Good thing, Evan said to me we should wait till doctor will tell us which size of the baby to expect. I don't know what we will do with the baby clothes to average size newborns."
"Donation," Buck coos to the prettiest roundest cheeks in the whole world, barely containing the need to bite. Kisses, a lot of then will suffice. "O-or we would go for another one, but smaller this time."
He smirks at Tommy with the wink. His husband merely licks his lips, sitting near him, whispering in his ear, "what happened to 'no more, Kinard! I make you do the vasectomy'?"
Buck shrugs, kissing his cheek and then baby's again, "I start to think I love to have kids with you."
He looks and blinks at Tommy, still with his lips on Florian's cheek.
"Yeah, we do have a beautiful gene game," Tommy smiles, putting his hand over Buck's on the baby's back.
"We'll leave you three to bond and rest, " Bobby says and all just nod, passing their good wishes once again.
—
The next morning meets Buckley-Kinards at home with baby waking up through the night several times to being fed and being back to sleep like all the newborns tend to do.
Tommy is just on like thousand cry session while he whispers how much he loves him to sleeping Florian, watching over him, when Buck hears the doorbell — that they made significantly less loud three weeks before his C.
Behind the door he unsurprising find out sunkissed and tanned from their Italian trip all the Deluca clan.
Sofia and Bella excitedly hug him.
"Uncle Evan! We missed you? Where's the baby? Can we hold him?"
Buck chuckles, "hi, girls missed you too!" he kisses their cheeks, "the baby in the nursery with your godfather. You can hold him," he holds his finger up," only after his feeding. He should be up for it soon, alright?"
They nod quickly.
"Can we go to see him with uncle Tommy?"
"Of course," before he even ends the girls are long gone and Gina's all over him with hugs.
Sal slaps his back, putting the present bag on the floor near the door.
"Congrats, man. You did amazing. Tommy being killing my phone with messages about you and the baby. I think I have like 2000 photos of Florian just sleeping."
"Do you want me ask him to stop?"
"Don't! You! Dare! I want all the baby photos," Sal smirks at him and Buck chuckles.
"Baby fever much?"
"Him? Yes" Gina nods, "me? not really. Florian is the sweetest boy, but boy I'm not gonna go through it all third time. I can only help to knock him up."
"I mean I do have unknown career status," Sal says right when his hidden by the wall on the way to the nursery.
"Do you think he actually?"
"Want me to knock him up? Yeah."
"You should!"
"Oh, I will."
They giggle together just when the baby screams reverberate through the house.
"Hungry screams no question."
Buck looks up the time on his phone.
"Four hours after last feeding like a clock."
"That's a Kinard baby through and through."
Baby screams gets closer when they come to the hall and soon fussy baby in Tommy's arms is being brought to the view with girls and Sal slowly moving behind them.
"He's clean and carefully touching his belly didn't help, so I guess he wants you," his husband smiles at him, carefully passing the baby to him, who for a second stops crying, being so shocked with movements, but just a moment later he continues the assault on their ears.
"You're right," Buck nods, getting baby back to the room. "We have the tea, coffee and cupcakes in the kitchen ready," he tells everyone, preparing himself for the feeding, smiling at Tommy who fusses over his back pillow.
"I'll be a good host and pamper all of them. Just come to us as quick as you both can, all right?"
"You know it," Buck smiles.
It takes Florian around ten minutes to seem to feel comfortably full before he starts just touching his nipple in manner of kissing it.
"Are you saying thank you, my sweet angel?" chuckling he zips his hoodie back, and puts the towel on his shoulder, carefully patting the cute still little for him - even if doctors call it bigger than average - diaper clad butt.
Sal is the first to meet them.
"Finally! Uncle Sal has been waiting for cuddles for ages," Sal makes grabby hands. "Pass me the baby, Buckley! Now!"
"He hasn't burped yet."
"Just gimme the damn towel too and look at my I don't g… care face when I cuddle mu godson."
With eye roll Buck does exactly it.
"Hey, sweety, hey angel," Sal coos to the baby, who already seems to barely fighting his sleep. "Gina," he sits near his wife, starting whispering, "go start the car. We'll make the run now."
"Steal my child and you won't hold him till he's walking." Tommy says over the girls, who sit from both his sides painting his nails ocean blue and neon green.
"Tell, Buck, where have you had enough place for him in that pretty belly of yours? How you looked not huge with him?" Gina asks, slowly playing with fatty and round hand, "not that you're not the prettiest and roundest cake I've seen," she coos to the baby too.
"Height, and Florian was sitting a little bit closer to my back."
"Were you hiding from us, sweety?" kisses the round cheek carefully, "I want to bite and kiss and kiss and bite your cheeks for hours."
"Get in line," Tommy says, checking his nails and nodding to girls, "Go steal Florian from your dad, girls."
"It would be more comfortable on the couch fro them," Buck adds and girls already run away to the living room.
"See, they want a baby sibling too," Sal says.
"I'm not stopping you from birthing one," Gina says, taking a sip of her coffee.
"I'll rock pregnancy," Sal moves to the living room too.
Gina looks at Buck and Tommy with a smile.
"I bet he'd bitch the very first second the morning sickness comes."
"No question," Tommy nods, helping Buck to get up. "Let's go watch the cutest picture of girls and Florian together."
—
“You’re big and strong like daddy,” Tommy says, blowing raspberries into Florian’s belly. The baby shrieks loudly, laughing harder when Tommy blows more and more kisses.
“I wanna bite you,” fake on nom nom sounds, while playing to eat his hand only support Florian’s enthusiasm. His loud giggles reverberate through the entire house. “Such a sweet little cake daddy made for papa.”
“As far as I remember papa helped with ingredients mixing,” Evan enters the room with a smirk.
“Evan, little ears,” Tommy scoffs.
“Tommy, he’s two month. It’d be a while he will be able to repeat anything. And his memory won’t keep this one. A-and remind me again, who was kissing my neck with dirty words, while I was breastfeeding him yesterday?”
Tommy just kisses the most round and perfect little belly, not dignifying it with the answer.
That is the moment when fatty cute fingers find his curls and tug.
“Ow, o wow, big guy. What a strength you’ve got,” trying softly to safe himself Tommy coos to his baby.
“Let me,” Evan says, taking the rattle from the couch and showing it to Florian, who happily grabs it.
“I don’t know if to be offended or happy that he left me for a toy,” Tommy says, getting up from the bending position he had, hating his close to 50 back for crying from pain.
“You make less funny noise. That’s all, babe,” Evan kisses his cheek.
Buck/Tommy // 300 words, mature
I thought I'd spend the final Sunday of @bt-novempreg finishing one of my WIPs before the event ends. Naturally I ended up starting something entirely new. It was just a triple drabble though so I managed to finish it 😅
Buck obviously loves their baby already, but since Tommy got really big he no longer has easy access to Tommy's bulge. Tommy's bump now rests right where Buck's head usually would.
He has spent countless lazy afternoons and evenings with his face planted in Tommy's "lap"—it's one of his favorite places to be.
He loved how deeply he could breathe in Tommy's musk when he was down there. He loved the feeling of Tommy getting hard against his mouth, his cheek, his ear. He loved to nuzzle against it when Tommy was still mostly soft. He loved mouthing at its outline over Tommy's clothes, getting them just a little damp with some of his spit and—most of the time—Tommy's precum.
He loved how Tommy stroked his hair—softly and steadily—as if he was unaffected by Buck's fingers mimicking his, as if he couldn't feel Buck's hot breath on him.
Buck loved how it so easily became habit and how it didn't always have to lead to something more. Half the time it did, but this little ritual wasn't foreplay for them. It was intimacy. That's what Buck loved the most. He loved how Tommy just let him—let him touch, let him smell, let him play, let him rest.
Tommy let Buck put a baby in him, the greatest act of intimacy between them yet. They'll have less time and opportunity for the smaller intimacies now, but Buck loves their baby already so these days he spends his lazy afternoons and evenings settling into what space there is left in Tommy's lap. He presses his cheek and ear to the curve of Tommy's swollen belly, then presses soft kisses against the places where their baby has tried to kick and punch him in the head.
Hi. Turns out I just needed a few days to get some schoolwork done. I've only got a week left and I'm still slammed. But I really wanted to get this sequel to level of perfection done before novempreg ends. So this is for @bt-novempreg and gets me a bingo with 'small family' yay! Hope you guys like it.
bucktommy - words: 2.4k - rating: teen - complete
Buck isn't quite sure what he expected when he fell in love with Tommy Kinard 8 years ago, married him, then had a child with him, but the fact that he's currently watching his husband and son dance a little in the snow makes him think he must have done several things right somehow.
"'S crunchy!" Nicky says excitedly. Tommy's got a tight hold on his little hand as they walk to their destination, but the little boy is managing to skip as they walk anyway, their little bundle of energy. Sometimes Buck wishes he had the energy their three-year-old has in abundance.
Or: Buck and Tommy take three-year-old Nicky to Bobby's grave in Minnesota just before Christmas.
my blackout @bt-novempreg fic finally here, except it's only the first chapter, and i probably won't get the other chapters posted in november... the bingo card for this chapter is below the cut
Tommy links his hands together behind Buck’s head and rests their foreheads against each other. “I want to do this with you. Can you imagine a little baby that we created together, that looks like us? They’re going to be the cutest little thing ever, Evan.”
His voice is so filled with wonder, with excitement, that Buck is absolutely overcome with emotions, feels tears gather in his eyes. “Yeah, we’re doing this.”
Or, Buck and Tommy decide to have a baby together
ch 1/4, mature, 4k words
read on ao3
It all starts, perhaps contradictory, with a pregnancy scare. They’ve only been back together six weeks when Tommy starts feeling strange. He’s more tired than usual, even if he tells Buck it’s no big deal, and he spends several mornings hunched over the toilet just to be mostly fine the rest of the day.
When Buck gets back to Tommy’s place after work, Tommy’s sitting on the couch holding a small cardboard box. He lifts it up for Buck to see when he gets closer, eyebrows raised in suggestion.
“It- it could be,” Tommy says, shaking the box of pregnancy tests a little.
All Buck can think about for several moments is that they’ve been always using condoms because Tommy is a carrier. They’ve even used them when Tommy fucks Buck, just to stay in the habit of it and never forget.
“Um,” Buck says, eventually, when all other words escape him.
“It’s better to know for sure, right?” Tommy says, voice a little shaky, Buck’s just realising.
It's Just Temporary - and other lies they tell you during pregnancy
Realized it's November 29th and I did not write half the ficlets I had planned for @bt-novempreg , so I'm counting this one for Pregnancy Dreams and Multiples.
Pregnancy Dreams
Tommy wakes up to see Buck sitting on the side of the bed, drinking water, the small cup of trail mix sitting on the side table.
It's not an unusual site to see Buck snacking and up in the middle of the night, but the frantic look in his eyes is new.
Tommy is immediately awake, scooting across the mountain of pillows on the bed to wrap an arm around Buck's shoulders. "Baby? Is everything alright?"
Buck turns his wide eyes to Tommy. "I'm not nursing our baby if it has teeth!"
"Evan, honey. Weren't you just telling me most babies don't start getting teeth until 6 months. You'll have the chest feeding down pat by then."
"But they can be born with teeth, and I don't want the baby chewing up my nipples!" Evan is nearly hysterical at this point, and Tommy wraps him in his strong arms, drawing Evan’s head to his chest."
"Sweatheart, what's bringing this on?" Tommy says gently, petting Evan’s curly hair, longer and fuller than ever. "You've been so excited about the chestfeeding journey."
Evan mumbles something into his chest, breath warm against bare skin.
"I didn’t quiete catch that," Tommy says, thinking he's definitely misheard the word wizard.
"I was dreaming we were expecting twins," Buck starts, and it isn't the weirdest dream Buck has told him about. "And we were so excited to be having two kids, and completing our family in one go. Except that when they were born they were lizards! And they had mouths full of teeth! And I couldnt not nurse them, because they don't make formula for lizards!"
At this point Tommy has a good picture of what is going on, and it's taking everything in his power to suppress the laughter bubbling in his stomach, because that is not what Evan needs right now.
"Oh, sweetheart, it was just a dream. But it is very you to insist on caring for our lizards babies, teeth or no."
"Shut up," Evan mumbles into his chest again. "Like you wouldn't be showing pictures of our adorable lizard babies to everyone at Harbour."
Evan "Buck" Buckley/Tommy Kinard
3,692 words | rated E | written for @bt-novempreg
Porn Without Plot | Married Evan "Buck" Buckley/Tommy Kinard | Mpreg | Pregnant Evan "Buck" Buckley | Pregnant Sex | Pregnancy Kink | Temperature Play | Blow Jobs | Masturbation | Come Marking
Evan whines and throws his head back against the armchair which gives Tommy a chance to put his plan into action. Stroking Evan's cock all the while, keeping him distracted, he manages with his other hand to pop an ice cube from the tray and into his mouth, letting it melt on his tongue.
He admires the view while he waits, gaze flitting from Evan's mouth, hanging open with pleasure, to his flushed, sweaty chest and the swell of his belly, each second of looking making his own cock throb in his sweats.
God, this was going to be fun.
This month has been a bear and I've had zero time for writing, which sucks, because I had a whole plan for Novempreg. But with less than two days to go, I know I'm not gonna get to any of it. I'm sorry, @unfuckablebogtroll! I let you down.
BUT here's what would've happened (I'm stealing the five facts au meme format that's going around because I dig it):
1. Sometime after 9a, Buck runs into Tommy at another bar and oops! They fuck nasty in a bathroom stall. It's messy and desperate and Buck clings to Tommy like he's dangling over a ravine. Tommy fucks him like the world's falling down around them, blisteringly hot and bare inside Buck's body, and he swears he can feel every pulse of the vein in Tommy's dick rubbing up against the bruises blooming inside him. They never stop kissing, not even for a second, not even to take a full breath, and Buck's dizzy and thrilled and out of his mind with sheer relief. After everything—losing Bobby, the fracturing of the 118, the pain of loneliness—things are going to be different. Everything's going to change. They're going to make it.
But someone starts pounding on the door outside and they hastily clean up, trading kisses that barely connect because they're giggling too hard, positively giddy like they're dumb kids who just put thumbtacks on their teacher's chair, and Buck's heart feels like it's going to break his chest because Tommy looks so light and just genuinely happy. He throws his arms around Tommy's neck and kisses him deeply, then whispers "I'll leave first. Wait a couple of minutes and then meet me by the door." Tommy steals another kiss and Buck flashes him a smile as he slips out the door.
2. The person who'd been knocking on the door is a handsome guy in a sort of nerdy way—he's wearing a button down shirt and thick but stylish glasses—and before Buck can apologize for hogging the bathroom the guy's like, "Jesus, finally, is Tommy in there? I thought I saw him go in." Buck pauses and squints a little at him, because he swears he's seen this guy before, maybe on a call, and then his brain catches up to the guy's words and something in his belly tightens. He asks how he knows Tommy and the guy's like "oh, I'm Nick, he took me out for drinks, we're celebrating something special" and Buck's head fills with static because this guy is obviously Tommy's date. Buck's mouth is full of Tommy's spit and he's been clenching down to prevent Tommy's come from leaking out of his before he can put a towel down in his truck, and the whole time Tommy had been fucking Buck's brains out, his date had been sitting out here none the wiser.
The euphoria from a minute ago drops as quickly as a winter sunset and, sick to his stomach, Buck mumbles an apology and stumbles out of the bar. About two minutes later, his phone buzzes with an incoming call from Tommy, but Buck sends it to voicemail. He sends all of them to voicemail and every text goes unread. He leaks tears the entire way back to his place. He's such an idiot. This was never going to end any other way, because nothing ever changes. It was always too good to be true.
3. About five and a half weeks later, Tommy's in his garage and deep in the guts of the undercarriage of a Mercedes Classic 450 SL when a sneaker taps the sole of his foot. He looks and sees familiar orange Nikes and waits for the song that's playing on his phone to finish before he slides out from under the car—he's listening to Twilight Zone by Golden Earring. Some might say he's a petty bitch for making Evan stand there for almost eight minutes, which is exactly what he's going for, so he's obviously nailing it. He'd spent twenty minutes searching the premises for Evan that night, and the realization that Evan had fucked him and then bailed had been a hard truth to swallow.
When he does slide out and stand up, he's concentrates on wiping his hands of dirt and oil on a rag while he says, polite and venomous, "Use me once, shame on you. Use me twice, shame on me. I'm not stupid enough to let you do it a third time."
Evan says nothing, but he does place something on Tommy's work bench, and Tommy squints at what looks like the world's most useless thermometer; he has no idea what the two lines are supposed to signify, but—then it hits him. He stares at it for a long second, then looks at Evan, who's leaning against the car with his arms tightly crossed, like they might double as armor.
Tommy bites out, "You know, when you said we didn't need a condom, I figured that meant we didn't need a condom!" and Evan snarls back, "I didn't know we needed one! My parents never tested me! I-I just assumed..."
They stand there in awkward silence for a long moment—the only sound is Robert Plant announcing to the room from Tommy's phone that he was in the mood for a melody—and Tommy stares at Evan's belly, which apparently is incubating a thing that will someday be a human being. A human being that's half Tommy. He sits down on his work bench with a hard thud.
4. "I-I thought you should know. I'm... I'm keeping it," Evan says, tilting his chin up, defiant, like he thinks Tommy's going to start accusing him of keeping secrets. Which is generous, because Tommy's brain is working overtime just to keep his autonomic nervous system from shutting down. "And I hope this doesn't throw a wrench into things with... with your... with Nick," Evan grits out.
Tommy's confused as hell, because, "Wait, what does my cousin have to do with this?" and Evan's mouth drops open and then he's shouting, "W-What do you mean, your cousin?! That guy wasn't your—he was wearing date night clothes! He said you were celebrating something special!" and Tommy throws his hands up and shouts back, "Yeah: the end of tax season!"
Evan looks completely thrown by that and they fall into another uncomfortable silence—this time broken by Rindy Ross's saxophone—and, for lack of a better idea, Tommy tiredly pats the space next to him on the bench. Evan slumps down and they sit with their arms pressed together and say nothing, until Tommy can't stand it anymore and says, because he never fucking learns, "I'm... here for you, Evan. In whatever capacity you want." And Evan looks at him with wide, glossy eyes and opens his mouth, then closes it, then opens it again, and Tommy hopes that maybe they can salvage something from this, that the thing they made together could bridge the distance they're too afraid to cross themselves.
But then Evan smiles and dashes those hopes against the concrete floor when he says, "I hear amicable co-parenting is all the rage these days." Tommy closes his eyes and Rindy Ross vows to harden her heart and swallow her tears, and he thinks those are pretty good words to live by. Then he dredges up a smile from somewhere and says, crumbling to pieces inside, "Well, you know me: always up on the hottest trends."
5. The next seven months are beautiful and hilarious and a learning experience and absolute fucking torture, because they've never been so close yet so far from each other. Now that Evan's pregnant, suddenly everyone's falling over themselves to be there for him, which is great, and Evan's obviously soaking it in like a sponge, but not a day goes by that Tommy doesn't wish that he, the other father, got to have first dibs once in a while. Tommy knows where he falls in the pecking order. It goes: Maddie, the 118, Athena's kids, Athena herself, the barista at Evan's favorite coffee shop, and then Tommy. The day he goes over to Evan's to find Eddie there painting the room that will become the nursery is a tough one. Tommy endures Evan profusely thanking Eddie for buying Infantino! musical pull-down monkey—the same one Tommy had brought over a week ago—for about two minutes before he drives to one of the highest scenic lookouts he can find and screams himself hoarse.
The second trimester is both a dream and a nightmare, because Evan's hornier than Tommy's ever seen him, and at this point withholding sex because it doesn't mean anything is just cruel, so they fuck and fuck and Tommy gets to feel his kid kicking inside Evan's belly and sleep pressed to Evan's back like it's real, and then the third trimester hits and it's over. Evan doesn't want to be touched. So Tommy goes back to his house and sleeps alone and dutifully takes Evan to every appointment and birthing class and reads every article Evan sends him and the 118 throw Evan a shower that they forget to invite Tommy to and he builds a beautiful crib with his bare hands and he cries sometimes because he's so alone in this and has only himself to blame.
If he hadn't blown everything up a year ago, if he'd stayed and just talked to Evan instead of walking out, he wouldn't be relegated to the periphery. He'd be there for every milestone, every moment. He'd be stuffed full instead of trying to make a feast of crumbs. He'd be a dad, not a father. He's such an idiot. This was never going to end any other way, because nothing ever changes.
6. Bonus! Noelle Wade Buckley-Kinard cries exactly once upon entering the world at 4:29pm on November 4th, then immediately grows bored with existence and falls asleep. Buck cries enough for the both of them, holding her close and prepared to cut anyone who tries to take her from him. He does let Tommy hold her, though, and his heart expands to ten times its size when he sees the tears soaking into Tommy's face mask as he whispers softly to her. The last seven months were a rollercoaster ride and a half but they were all worth it to be able to hold their little girl like this.
Eventually the nurses kick Tommy out so they can sew Buck back up and take him to recovery, and eventually the drugs wear off and he's sore and exhausted and knocks out for a good six hours.
When he wakes up, it's to the sound of a low, gentle voice murmuring by the big bay window. It takes a moment for him to place who it is and what's being said, and he holds his breath, listening to Tommy says quietly, roughly, "... don't love you. Never, ever think that, okay? Because I do. I-I didn't think it was possible to love someone so much. I thought what I feel for your dad would've prepared me for this, but I had... I had no idea. And I wish I could be there with you every minute of every day, but... ah, sweetheart, sometimes things don't work out the way you want 'em to. But I get to be your papa and that's—I'm the luckiest guy in the world. And I may not be there all the time, but I want you to know that I always want to be. Always. So, anytime you need me? I'll be there in a flash. I will drop everything—I'll drop out of the sky for you, day or night, because I love you more than I can possibly say. Y'know, they teach us in the EMT course that the heart can't live outside the body, but you and your dad are proof that's wrong, because here you are and there he is: outside of me. It's not his fault that he doesn't... it's fine. It changes nothing. We'll make it work, my girl. We will make this work."
And Buck is lying there, sore as hell and just as upset, hand over his mouth to prevent his sobs from being heard, because seven fucking months and he had no idea that Tommy felt like this. He had no idea this was on the table the entire time. Although the fact that Tommy went to KFC to get Buck mashed potatoes at 1am so many times without a single complaint should've tipped him off.
Tommy turns around and sees that Buck's awake and his expression crumbles a little before he turns his back and uses his shoulders to wipe his face. When he turns back around, his expression is so smooth that it looks like he used a bench scraper on it. He walks over and gently deposits Noelle into Buck's arms, then steps back. There's a polite distance between him and the bed.
"Sorry," Tommy says, voice thick. "Didn't mean to hog her."
"S-She's yours too," Buck says, and sobs a little, tucking Noelle against his shoulder with one hand and reaching out for Tommy with the other. Tommy meets him halfway, sliding their fingers together just a little bit, and Buck holds on tight, bringing their joined hands to his chest. "Tommy, she's—god, you're so fucking stupid, don't you know? We're both yours."
Tommy's eyes go bright and wet with something that looks like gratitude, and Buck thinks of every time Tommy went home alone, or stood against the wall at family parties, or the Tommy-shaped hole next to him at the shower (Buck had torn them all several new ones when he discovered that Tommy didn't have a shift that day but simply hadn't been told about the shower), and sucks in a horrified breath and uses their joined hands to tug him down until their foreheads are pressed together and Noelle breathes in their shared breath.
"You and her... you're both outside of me too. And we will make this work. We're gonna make it."
When Tommy starts crying, it sets Buck off, and then Noelle decides it's the perfect time to wake up and join in on the fun. One of his nurses walks in, takes one look at them, and does an about-face.
Eighteen years, three dogs, two cats, one marriage, and another kid later, Buck surveys their backyard, which is crammed full of people for Noelle's graduation party, with great pride. This is the kingdom they built together.
He sidles up to Nick and says, "You know, I don't think I've ever told you how grateful I am that you weren't dating your cousin the night he knocked me up."
But before Buck can actually get the thank-you out, Nick starts choking on a slider. Thankfully, half of the people in attendance are first responders, and he sips a beer and watches Hen and Chim clear Nick's airway, feeling a bit like a visitor at the zoo.
Tommy comes over, surveys the scene, and sighs.
"Why do I feel like the Ankle Kicker 4000 just staged a comeback?"
"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," Buck says brightly.
As Novempreg nears it’s end, I just want to sincerely thank everyone who participated in any way, you’re so appreciated and have made this month so much fun! 💛
If you haven’t check it out yet, there are several great fics in the AO3 collection, and in the Novempreg tag here on Tumblr!
If I have time I’ll try to put together a roundup post of everything, maybe on Monday when the month is officially over.
As Novempreg nears it’s end, I just want to sincerely thank everyone who participated in any way, you’re so appreciated and have made this month so much fun! 💛
If you haven’t check it out yet, there are several great fics in the AO3 collection, and in the Novempreg tag here on Tumblr!
If I have time I’ll try to put together a roundup post of everything, maybe on Monday when the month is officially over.
Seems like shifts being really hard to clinging Tommy that has the urge to check on his pack every hour.😊
November is coming to an end and with it the last preg doodle for the @bt-novempreg event. I really enjoyed preg pookies so so much❤️ i want to doodle them forever😭😭