Note: After a lot of hesitation, I have decided to at least host for another (possibly last) year.
Truth be told, Bobby's death has caused me to feel disconnected to the show, and as the show & fandom moved on and its become more clear that Bobby/Peter won't be returning in any way, I realized I didn't miss watching the show either. While I lived through fanfics for awhile, that too has simmered down after I started reading and writing for other fandoms.
It's gonna feel hypocritical to host this while I likely won't be creating much (if any) myself, BUT when I expressed doubts about hosting, I've gotten several kind responses from people who would love another Buck & Bobby week and that meant so much to me! So, here is to another Buck & Bobby Week! Cheers!
(is it obvious my new fandom is a British show?)
Buck & Bobby Week 2026: prompts & rules
Alt text has been added in case needed
If interested in the discord, here is a link
Check out the 911 Fandom Events community on Discord - hang out with 58 other members and enjoy free voice and text chat.
For questions, you can contact me on Discord (username is julesandthefox) as I'm not very active on Tumblr anymore and often Tumblr hasn't given me notifications that I have a DM until several days later, the same with asks
It hasn't been asked yet but in case anyone is wondering:
Do with Bobby's death whatever you want, just tag accordingly! Some of these prompts are probably difficult if he's dead, though. I originally made this with ignoring his death in mind because personally I am not in a place where I can deal with anything grief related 😅
Characters: Buck, Bobby, Original Firehouse Crew, Athena
Additional tags: Buck and Bobby Week 2026 (9-1-1 TV), Bobby Nash is Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parent, Post-Episode: s06e13 Mixed Feelings (9-1-1 TV), The 118 A-Shift is the talk of the LAFD, They're like their favorite reality tv shows, Hurt Evan "Buck" Buckley, Concussions, Athena Grant and Bobby Nash are Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parents, Evan "Buck" Buckley & May Grant are Siblings, Texting Fic, A mix between text and normal fic, No beta reader, no beta we die like men, Crack Treated Seriously, Fluff, a sprinkle of angst, Worried Bobby Nash, Accident on the job, buck calls Bobby pops, Worried Athena Grant, Worried Maddie Buckley, Worried Firehouse 118 Crew (9-1-1 TV), Firehouse 118 Crew as Family (9-1-1 TV), Post-Evan "Buck" Buckley Gets Struck by Lightning, Episode: s06e13 Mixed Feelings - Post-The Poker Game Scene (9-1-1 TV)
Captain Blues: It's Buckley
Cassis: Buckley?
Ennis: From the 118?
Hicks: 118 A-shift?
Docky: Why are you blowing the chat off during my vacations?
Oh. Nevermind. Good luck from Texas. I've never been so happy not to work lolµ
Cassis: Cap. You can't let that happen.
Nothing against Buckley, but nooooo. I'll even take Diaz.
Or, the 118 A-Shift is the talk of the LAFD Buck covers in another house; he might have an accident
Author's Note: Last fic for the Buck and Bobby week 2026! I know I was supposed to post it yesterday, but I was at a convention and then a concert, and when I got home, I was just dead on my feet. So here we go, last fic. Hope you like it.
Also, based on my personal HC, the LAFD loves to talk about the 118 A-Shift but hates to work with them. They're their favorite source of gossip and curses.
Blues - 106B: Why is it so hard to find someone to cover for ONE shift?
Mehta- 133B: Because everyone is down
Giraud - 122A: I blame the floaters who gave the flu to the whole LAFD
Joeys - 118B: I might have heard something about your replacement.
Blues - 106B: Wait. If you know something, it means my replacement is from your house.
Please tell me they're from your shift or Carlson's.
Carlson - 118C: Not from mine.
Jessie - 26A: Oh. He's having someone from the cursed shift.
Mehta - 133B: Come on. They're not cursed.
Carlson - 118C: Jeshan, please. You were involved in one of their call.
At least half of the LAFD health insurance goes into the 118 A-Shift medical bills.
Giraud - 122A: Blues had gone suddenly very silent.
Jessie - 26A: Maybe he's contemplating quitting.
Or just crashing out like the young people say these days.
Giraud - 122A: You spend too much time with said, young people.
But you're probably right.
Blues - 106B: I was not crashing out or contemplating quitting. Chief Simpson just called me to let me know that they have found someone to cover.
Jessie - 26A: Well, we need to know now.
Blues - 106B: You just want a good laugh and gossip.
Giraud - 122A: Of course. We're first responders.
Blues - 106B: Buckley.
Jessie - 26A: Oh wow. I got the side eye from my team when they heard me laughing so hard.
Giraud - 122A: Wait. Buckley? Didn't he just come back after an injury?
Carlson - 118C: Lighting strike. He died.
Joeys - 118B: For 3 minutes
Carlson - 118C: and seventeen seconds.
Mehta- 133B: How do you know such specific details?
Carlson - 118C: Diaz.
Joeys - 118B: Every time Buckley talked about it, or he heard someone talk about he would remind them of this detail.
Mehta- 133B: Doesn't surprise me coming from them, actually.
Carlson - 118C: At least he lost his math power. He's not going to steal your team's money.
Mehta - 133B: He was very good at Math.
Blues - 106B: I have an announcement to make to my team.
Joeys - 118B: Good luck. Nash is even more protective of him since he came back.
Jessie - 26A: Ish. Don't let anything happen to him.
I don't want to go to your funerals.
Blues - 106B: Don't you all have work to do?
***
106 C-Shift
Captain Blues: Hello, everyone. The chief called me; he found someone to cover for Ennis.
Ennis: Sorry, guys. I wish I were with you.
Hicks: Don't be, dude. You're supposed to rest. Don't make me call your husband.
Smoke: Is it related to Maria sending me a good luck with a bunch of laughing emojis?
Captain Blues: I hate how fast news travels in the LAFD.
Smoke: She didn't give me any details
Captain Blues: It's Buckley
Cassis: Buckley?
Ennis: From the 118?
Hicks: 118 A-shift?
Docky: Why are you blowing the chat off during my vacations?
Oh. Nevermind. Good luck from Texas. I've never been so happy not to work lol
Cassis: Cap. You can't let that happen.
Nothing against Buckley, but nooooo. I'll even take Diaz.
Hicks: Trust me, you don't want to. Bosko worked with him when Buckley was out. She still hasn't recovered.
Smoke: I think we're missing the real point here.
Nash.
Probie: Why are y'all acting like it's the end of the world?
Hicks: Because if anything happens to the kid, Nash will kill us.
Cassis: Or Sergeant Grant will.
Probie: he's their kid?
Smoke: Yeah.
Problem, the 118 A-shift, and especially Buckley, tends to like having dates with death.
Hicks: I mean, Buckley did die.
For three minutes and seventeen seconds.
Ennis: ????
Hicks: I was at a poker game. Don't ask.
Cassis: all of this to say. We're fucked and cursed
Captain Blues: And this is why I wanted to give you a heads up.
Please give him a warm welcome and don't do anything embarrassing.
Cassis: We would never Cap
Probie: I didn't know LAFD allowed parents to work with their child… wonders how it is…
Cassis: You should def ask Buckley, you'll see it's interesting
***
Buck comes in for his shift at the 106, bouncing and happy to help, blissfully ignorant of the stress of the team.
"Buckley," Captain Blues greets him. "Nice to see you on your feet. And thank you for covering."
Buck blushes a bit and gives him his best smile. "My pleasure, Captain. Always happy to help."
Blues introduces him to the rest of the shift, and he offers them some baked goods, and the team happily dives in.
"Oh my God," Cassis, don't ask him, he didn't ask either, moans. "Did Nash teach you this one? I heard he's like a chef."
Buck chuckles. "He taught me a lot of cooking, but we learned this one together. Actually, I wanted to learn it to bring some to you. So I'm glad you like it."
Smoke, one of the oldest of the shift, puts an arm around his shoulders and laughs. "Are you sure you want to go back to the 118? We could use our own chef."
Buck blushes; he's truly happy his chocolate and raspberry brownies are a success.
"No offense, guys, but I truly love the 118." He gently nudges Smoke. "Plus, I'm sure you'll be glad to have your guys back."
His phone pings with a text, and he dislodges himself from Smoke's hold. He finds a text from Bobby.
Bobby: Have a good shift, kid.
Please, be careful.
Buck chuckles and rolls his eyes fondly. He texts him a reassuring text and pockets his phone.
Buck: Don't worry, Cap. Everything will be fine
Enjoy your day off!
"Nah," he shakes his head with a smile. "Bobby. Told him to stop worrying."
The alarm rings, and Buck rushes down to the engine, missing the crew's horrified faces.
***
Buck's happy. His shift is going pretty well. Sure, they're not his team, but they're a good team. They're nice, funny, and as nosy as his house, so it doesn't change a lot.
Well, no, there's one thing he finds strange. Mike, their probie, keeps looking at him like he's a mystery. It all comes to a head during a simple, normally out-of-danger emergency.
The call is about a family dispute. The paramedics are taking care of them, while the Captain is talking with Athena and another officer on the scene. Buck and Mike are here in case they need to hold people back.
"You know, you can ask me questions if you want," Buck says after catching Mike looking at him.
"Sorry," Mike starts, and Buck sees him blush; he chuckles.
"Don't worry." He gives him a playful smile before looking back at the family, who are arguing again, and he's ready to intervene. "Shoot."
Buck shoots him a look from the corner of his eye, but his main focus is on the scene. He braces himself to put himself in the middle when he sees one member of the family grab a weight.
"How is it to work at your dad's fire station?" The probie blurts out.
The question totally takes Buck by surprise, because why does the probie of the 106 think Buck is working with his dad? Who does he mean? Surely he's not talking about Phillip. He spins so quickly to face Mike that he almost falls.
"WHAT?" His voice cracks, and he's not focused on what's happening anymore. "I-"
He doesn't finish his sentence as he feels something hit his head, and he falls on the ground. He hears someone, maybe Athena, scream his name, and he hits the floor.
***
Mike is fucked. He is truly fucked. He should have known it was a bad idea to ask this question, but apparently, he wasn't as smooth as he was.
He watches with wide eyes as Buck gets hit by the weight with a sickening sound of his skull cracking, and he freezes.
"Buck!" He looks up from Buck and sees Sergeant Grant marching down toward them. Oh shit.
"Buckley!" Next, it's his captain, and finally, Mike snaps back into reality and kneels next to the other firefighter.
Buck still has his eyes open, and he rolls onto his back. His head is bleeding, and his pupils are dilated. Athena kneels next to him.
"Hey, honey," she smiles, putting a hand on his cheek. "Nice catch."
Buck chuckles and mumbles something sounding like "years of practice."
Captain Blues kneels next and inspects the wound and sighs. "Well, Buckley, you win a trip to the hospital with our victim." He shakes his head, "I can't believe you're more hurt than our patient."
"Nooooo," Buck whines and pouts like a child, and not the thirty-something firefighter he is. Honestly, Mike is kind of flabbergasted. "Thena come?"
He gives the sergeant puppy eyes, and Mike sees her transform from scary sergeant to something soft. Not that he will ever tell her that.
"I'll come as soon as I can," she says, giving him a small smile. "But don't worry, Bobby will join you soon."
Shit, Mike is truly fucked. Next time, he'll just keep his mouth shut.
***
106 - No Caps
Cassis: Probie put Buckley in the hospital
Probie: I just asked him a question, and he got distracted
God… I put Buckley in the hospital
Docky: My vacations are going so fine right now
Goldie: Thank God I'm not in your shift
Ennis: Damn it, probie
Smoke: Hey. Leave the kid alone. He already feels horrible
Jens: Damn, guys. You had ONE job.
Probie: I'll go apologize later
But I'm scared to meet Nash
Hicks: You should, dude
Hensens: Come on. He's not that bad
Carl: You never saw him in protective mode, did you?
Ennis: How's the cap?
Hicks: Crashing out, I guess
***
No 118 A-Shift
Joeys - 118B: So, how is it going with Buckley?
Blues - 106B: How do you know?
Joeys - 118B: Bobby was at the station dropping some paperwork I needed when Sergeant Grant called him.
Mehta- 133B: What happened?
Blues - 106B: He just needed a few stitches
And he might have a concussion, too.
Giraud - 122A: Hey, he made it 10 hours into the shift.
Blues - 106B: And I have to reassure my probie, too. He feels guilty about distracting Buckley.
Carlson - 118C: Blame the probie.
Or plan your funerals. But I wasn't planning on wearing my dress blues anytime soon.
Blues - 106B: Very funny. It's not that bad.
Giraud - 122A: Sure.
Jo, how worried was he?
Joeys - 118B: Not bad.
He might have paled a lot, and maybe he broke a few traffic laws.
But you know…
Blues - 106B: I need to transfer to the East Coast
***
Bobby is at the station, in Joeys' office, when his phone rings.
"Sorry, I might have been distracted this morning when I packed my bag." He says, embarrassed, giving him the files.
"Wonder why," he hears Joey mutter, but Bobby chooses to deliberately ignore the comment. "Thank you for driving there, though."
Bobby raises his hand and chuckles, "I mean, of course, my mistake."
Finally, his phone rings with Athena's personal ring, one that the kids (May, Bobby, and Buck) had chosen during Buck's recovery. He smiles and excuses.
"Sorry," he excuses himself to the other Captain.
"No worries," Joeys answers.
"Hey, Thena." He greets, answering the call.
"Hey, baby," she answers, and he frowns. There's something weird in her voice. "First of all, I need you to know that he's going to be okay, from what I heard."
He has to grab the chair in front of him not to fall, because he's sure the floor just opened under his feet. Buck. Buck got hurt during his shift, and Athena was there.
"How?" Is the only thing he can tell.
A sigh from the other side of the phone. "An accident on a scene. Someone threw a weight at him, and he didn't see it coming."
He forces himself not to picture Buck getting hit as he asks his next question. "Where?"
"L.A. general." She pauses. "Please drive safely and keep me updated. Love you."
"Love you too." He hangs up and looks at the Joeys. "Sorry, I have to go."
"Everything is okay, Bobby?" The captain asks.
"Uh, yes," no, of course not, because the kid who works without my team for the first time since he died is now at the hospital, of course it's not okay. But he doesn't say it, he keeps his smile even if he feels like screaming and crying, like in that song May likes to listen to. "I need to go, Buck got hurt."
Joeys' eyes widen, and his eyebrows rise on his head. "Right."
Bobby nods, tells him goodbye, and doesn't wait for the captain to tell him anything. He also doesn't see the captain of the B-Shift get his phone out to gossip with the other captains of the LAFD.
***
Bobby rushes into the hospital and sees Pamela at the welcome desk, who gives him Buck's room number without even looking up.
"Hi, I'm-"
"Room 104, Bobby. He's fine."
He thanks her and takes the stairs. When he enters the room, the light is dimmed, and Buck is staring at a cup of Jell-O with a frown on his face. One of the nurses intercepted him before giving him the rundown. Few stitches and a concussion. Can go home today if someone looks after him. Which Bobby intends to do. He knocks gently on the door. Buck slowly looks at him, and Bobby sees the kid's eyes illuminate when he understands who's here.
"Bobby!" Buck greets him like he hasn't seen him for at least a week, with a big sunny smile.
Bobby immediately relaxes and goes to sit next to the bed. Buck follows him with his eyes, big sparkling eyes and a smile.
"Hey, Kid," he says, keeping his voice low not to disturb the kid. "Heard you got banged up a little."
Buck huffs out a laugh and shakes his head before he winces. "Yeeeeah. But look, I have Jell-O!"
The kid shows him the cup with so much excitement, and Bobby's heart melts. Then Buck's face morphs into a pout.
"But I can't open it." He says, giving him puppy dog eyes.
Bobby chuckles and extends his hands. "Here, give it to me, kid." Buck beams and gives him the cup. Bobby opens it and gives it back. "Here you go."
"Thanks, Bobby!" He takes a spoonful. "You da besh."
"Don't talk with your mouth full, kiddo." He chastises Buck, but there's no heat in his voice. He's just happy to see him well enough to smile and be happy.
He uses the time Buck takes to eat Jell-O so he can update Athena, and to tell their family what happened and that he'll bring Buck to theirs, and to ask them to at least wait until tomorrow to break their doors down. Of course, Maddie and Eddie start blowing his phone. He answers and puts them on speaker so they can hear Buck. Thankfully, Hen only asks for a picture because 'I know you'll have to deal with two worried sick people, so I just need a picture as proof.'
Once the calls are over, there's a knock on the door, and a young man stands in the doorway.
"Uh, hello," the young man says nervously.
Buck points at him, "Ooooh, you're the 106 probie." His smile is so big. "Bobby, this is Probie."
Bobby smiles and forces himself to swallow the laugh that wants to escape him.
"Mike. You can call me, Mike." The firefighter looks scared. "I, uh… I wanted to say sorry. And sorry I distracted you. And sorry I put your son in the hospital."
Buck is still smiling, but Bobby can only blink in surprise at the 106 probie words. Suddenly, Buck laughs loudly.
"It's okay." He looks at Bobby with those big, happy eyes. "Right, Pops?"
Bobby chokes on air but nods because he knows Mike is waiting for an answer.
"Right. Fine." He clears his throat and turns back to Buck. "I'm going to get your discharge papers, kid. You're coming home with me, I asked Athena to grab what we need for your favorite."
Buck beams, "May will be here?"
Bobby's heart melts a little more; he smiles softly, forgetting about the probie. "Yeah, I'll ask her to come. She'll be happy to see you."
God, he loves this kid. He loves all of his kids.
***
106 - No Caps
Probie: Why did Nash look surprised when I said sorry for hurting his son
Cassis: Wait. You actually went and did that?
Probie: Yes?
Also, he wasn't that scary
Smoke: You were shaking, leaving the station
Ennis: Oh, I think he just wasn't expecting your visit
Maybe more of a text to Buckley
Probie: mmmh…
***
Cassis & Ennis
Cassis: We're not telling the probie?
Ennis: nah. Let him make assumptions
He'll understand soon enough
Maybe
***
106 - No Caps
Cassis: Yeah. Generally, we send a card or a text
Jens: What did they say
Probie: Buck said that it was okay, called Bobby Pops, and Nash said right, and that he'll bring him back to his house
Goldie: Probie. You sweet summer child
Thank you for this
Probie: Did I do something wrong?
Wait. Are you gonna use this information for gossip?
Why can't I keep my mouth closed?
Smoke: We wouldn't, Probie. Don't worry.
Docky: Damn, I'm missing this
Hey, at least Probie met the dad.
Probie: I'm going to HR
Jens: And explain how you hurt Nash's baby?
Summary: In honor of finally getting to move into their rebuilt new home, Athena (and Karen) decides to host a scavenger hunt inside it.
Buck and Bobby Week 2026 - "Let's Team Up."
Ao3
***
After the last treasure hunt, it was promised that they would never fall for it, again. What was the point? It had only ended in trouble.
But, somehow, Karen had thought it would be fun to team up with Athena to create the ultimate scavenger hunt for the family barbeque to celebrate their new house.
They opted for teams on this hunt, so Bobby is quick to say, “Let’s team up,” to Buck since Athena as creator could not be his partner.
“Awesome! We’re going to kick everyone’s asses!”
“Hell yeah, we are!”
There’s a lot cheering as everyone gets with their partner and smack talks each other along the way until everyone’s in place at the ‘starting line’, which is really just some chairs in the backyard.
“Alright, you have thirty minutes to find all ten items on the list OR at least the most of everyone else before you come back to the starting line with said items,” Athena shouts.
“And it only counts if one of you is back here on the starting line with the items when the horn sounds,” Karen yells. “And nothing’s off-limits, if you wanna tackle each other to stop another team you can.”
Athena’s laughing as she says, “But if you break anything in my house then you’re cleaning it up.”
“Everyone understand?”
There are murmurs of agreement amongst the crowd as they pass out the lists.
“What do you say we split up – you tackle five items, I tackle five?” Buck suggests. “We could tag team if one of us gets stuck.”
“Sounds like a good plan,” Bobby agrees. “You take the bottom five, I’ll take the top.”
Buck could barely nod before Karen blows the horn and everyone takes off running.
***
Buck is smarter than people give him credit for.
So, he knows that even something mundane like a silver spoon is not going to be in the kitchen, it’s going to be somewhere unexpected – like the bathroom.
He finds them in the guest bathroom and runs out quickly as he stuffs it in his pocket, so no one else would know and moves onto the next item on his list.
As he runs passed the kitchen with some very confused people, he spies Bobby in the living room looking for a DVD case and skids to a stop, whispering (so no one else will know), “Hey, think outside the box. I found a spoon in the bathroom.”
Bobby gives him an impressed look and nods, getting up and running off to where a DVD might be hidden.
Now, they’re at least one step ahead of everyone else.
***
Bobby’s impressed with Buck’s tip.
He should’ve realized that Athena would make things more difficult by moving things around to rooms they shouldn’t be in – for example all of his ties have been removed from his closet and drawers and placed in the kitchen cabinet.
He can tell as he runs passed some of the others that they haven’t gotten the idea that Athena would deliberately mess with the locations to make the game harder until he hears Hen and May yell to each other – “Messed up locations!” and go running in opposite directions.
Well, at least they’re largely ahead of most of the teams, Bobby thinks as he runs passed Buck, who yells, “Four,” and Bobby’s quick to yell, “Three,” back at him.
They’re so close…
***
Buck’s got all of his pieces of the hunt, and rushes to find Bobby. “What’s left?”
“Athena’s black shoes,” Bobby retorts.
“Athena has that many black shoes?” Buck questions before shaking his head and hearing “FIVE MINUTE WARNING” from outside.
“Yes, if we can’t find it by the two-minute warning, we’ll head back to the start line, deal?”
“Deal.”
Buck doesn’t intend to lose though. He wants to win more than anything.
He will find that shoe.
***
“TWO-MINUTE WARNING,” Athena yells, and Bobby quickly finds Buck.
“Let’s go – we don’t want to lose just because we didn’t make it back in time!” Bobby yells, but Buck just shoves his items at him.
“Just go, I’ll be there in a minute.”
Bobby would be upset if it weren’t for the fact that he knows Buck and he knows what choosing him as a partner would do.
So, he runs to the start line with nine of the ten items they needed. Several of the other pairs are already there, though he could tell that they hadn’t found all of the items.
There’s only one pair still out there – Hen is at the line with nine of the ten items, while he can see May and Buck racing out of the house each with a shoe in hand.
Bobby and Hen are cheering them on, and with Buck’s longer legs, he should easily win this race.
“Come on, Kid!” Bobby yells as Hen shouts, “TACKLE HIM.”
It’s clear that May hears her before Buck does because he doesn’t zag away from her, and instead, gets tackled.
They both hit the ground hard, Buck is clearly a bit dazed as Athena’s yelling, “THAT’S MY GIRL!”
“COME ON, KID, POWER THROUGH!”
They’re both fighting and crawling because neither of them could get to their feet, before Buck throws the shoe to Bobby, one step ahead as Karen blows the horn.
“That’s cheating!” Hen says.
“No, no, there were no rules, and she tackled me!” Buck complains, even as he helps an annoyed May to her feet.
There’s a chaotic argument before Athena and Karen confer and say, “Technically, we said the items had to be back here with one of you. So, throwing the shoe – it counts.”
“YES!” Bobby and Buck both cheer. “We win!”
May huffs. “I thought of tackling over throwing… so close.”
“Don’t worry, you still get second place prize,” Athena offers.
“What do we win for first place?” Buck teasingly asks.
“You win the right to cook us dinner.”
“That’s not a prize, that’s a chore,” Buck huffs, but Bobby puts an arm around his shoulders.
“Don’t worry, I happen to know that there’s a nice bottle of sparkling cider and the biggest chocolate bar you’ve ever seen to share.”
Summary: Buck deserves to be happy, and Bobby is so happy that he is. Really, he swears he’s happy. There are just times Bobby really wishes he didn’t have to see Buck be happy about… certain things.
Or, 4 times Bobby regrets Eddie dating his son, and one time he doesn't.
Summary: Both Buck and Bobby are having nightmares about losing each other post-lightning strike, luckily, they have each other to lean on.
Buck and Bobby Week 2026 - Nightmare
Love Me Bingo: Ways to Say "I Love You" Bingo - "Sweet Dreams"
AO3
***
The worst part of the coma dream was the nightmares that followed.
Buck hasn’t told anyone, but every time he wakes up with images of a dead Bobby, of a life without the 118, he can’t help texting Bobby.
He knows that he probably shouldn’t be bothering him. That this shouldn’t become his problem, but Buck needs this. He needs to make sure that Bobby’s okay, no matter what time of day or night it is.
So, he texts him.
And within a minute, Bobby texts him back. Hey, kid, what’s on your mind?
Just like always over the last few weeks.
He makes something up – almost always using a recipe or something. Sometimes, he’ll tell him about whatever random rabbit hole of research that he’s fallen down. Sometimes, he’ll tell a story that he just couldn’t wait to tell him. Truthfully, he could, but he just wanted an excuse to explain the texts in the middle of the night.
Bobby never asks him why he’s taken to texting him, just accepts it and chats with him until he falls back asleep.
But it’s something Buck knows that he has to deal with sooner or later.
***
Bobby’s up in the middle of shift.
It’s hard to sleep at the firehouse knowing that the alarm can blare at any minute.
So, he’s up and in the lofted area of the firehouse, messing around with a recipe that he’s been trying to perfect.
But he’s not surprised when he sees Buck rushing out of the bunkroom, looking a bit harried and concerned. Clearly, another nightmare.
Bobby knows that he’s been having nightmares, not that he’s told Bobby that, but there’s no other explanation for the late-night check-ins that have suddenly started happening since the lightning strike. Bobby’s been having them himself, part of the reason that he has almost always been awake when Buck’s checked in.
Not that he’s told him that, of course.
Buck was the one that died, not Bobby. He has no business having nightmares about losing him, and he doesn’t want to put that on him when he’s clearly struggling himself.
Still, Bobby’s not surprised when his phone rings a second later. Not a text this time, and clearly, Buck can hear it because he turns around in the middle of the app floor to look up at the loft where Bobby has moved to wave to him.
He ends the call and rushes up the steps.
“Hey, Cap, what are you up to?” Buck questions.
“Oh, I couldn’t sleep, wanted to mess around with the recipe for this stew I’m trying to prefect, want to help?” Bobby offers.
He knows that Buck won’t hesitate to help him. He always does. Especially when he’s got something on his mind.
“Of course.”
Bobby silently directs him to cut up some of the ingredients as he stirs the stew, and he waits. He wants Buck to come to him. To admit whatever’s wrong, so that he could help. He knows he will.
They work in companiable silence aside from the bubbling of the stew and the sound of the knife as he cuts up the stew.
That is, until, Buck asks, “You weren’t up because I’ve been waking you up, were you?”
“Wouldn’t you have had to call me before I got up for that to count?” Bobby half-teases.
Buck shrugs. “I just – I know I’ve probably been annoying –”
“You haven’t,” Bobby states, plainly.
“I keep texting you at all hours… talking about recipes and things…” Buck says, trailing off.
Bobby hums. “I love when you text me random things on your mind.”
“Yeah, but in the middle of the night?” Buck questions, and Bobby can see from the corner of his eye how uncertain Buck looks. Not looking at him but shuffling uncertainly side to side.
He turns to him and says, “Kid, if I admit something, will you tell me the truth about whatever’s been going on with you?”
Buck freezes, for just a second, before he looks up at him. “Yeah, I – I guess I could do that.”
Bobby takes a deep breath and looks him in those expressively worried blue eyes. “I’ve been … having nightmares,” he admits. “About you – not making it to the hospital, sometimes days of praying and nothing and – and frankly, your texting is the only thing that stops me from calling you first.”
“Wait, really?” Buck asks, mouth agape. “Really?”
Bobby nods. “Even tonight, I went to check on you. And most nights, I’m up cooking when you text me.”
Buck lets out a relieved breath. “Yeah, I – that makes me feel better.” He pauses then adds, “Not that you’re getting nightmares, just that – that you – that I’m not waking you up.”
Bobby smiles and hums. “Now, your turn.”
“Can’t we pretend –”
“Nope.”
Buck huffs. “Alright, I’ve been having nightmares, too. About what happened in my dream – you – you died from alcohol poisoning.”
It made sense.
There was a reason that Buck hadn’t exactly told him much about the dream.
“I suppose without you pushing Hen to come see me that day –”
Buck nods. “Yeah, and I – I don’t want to live in a world that you’re not a part of.”
“And so, you check on me like I want to check on you,” Bobby states, picking up some of the ingredients and adding them to the stew.
“Yeah, yeah, I guess I do,” Buck admits. “I just – I need to know that you’re okay to fall back asleep.”
Bobby nods, he gets it. “Well, kid, you can text time me anytime you want.”
“You, too,” Buck assures him. “You don’t have to wait for me.”
Bobby smiles. “I won’t, anymore. We’ll get through this together.”
“I like the sound of that,” Buck admits as Bobby pulls out the spoon with the stew offering him to try it.
“Well?”
“It’s perfect.”
“Great,” Bobby says, gleefully. “Then, I’ll put this all away and you can go back to bed, assured that I am perfectly fine.”
Buck nods. “Sounds good,” Buck says, giving him a hug. “Good night, Bobby.”
“Good night, Buck. Sweet dreams,” Bobby offers as he moves towards the stairs.
Fandom: 9-1-1 (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley & Bobby Nash
Characters: Evan "Buck" Buckley, Bobby Nash
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Star Trek Fusion, The Buckley Siblings Have Bad Parents (9-1-1 TV), Upset Evan "Buck" Buckley, Supportive Bobby Nash, Cooking, Bobby Nash Acting as Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parental Figure, Bobby Nash Teaches Evan "Buck" Buckley to Cook, Evan "Buck" Buckley Calls Bobby Nash "Pops", Starship Captain Bobby Nash, Helmsman Evan "Buck" Buckley, Betazoid Evan "Buck" Buckley, Buck and Bobby Week 2026 (9-1-1 TV)
Series: Part 3 of where no one has gone before
Summary:
Bobby was so focused on his work, on the layering, that it took Buck by surprise when he said, “I know you’re not okay.” He said it so steadily too, like it was a fact and not an accusation. Like—like—like there was nothing wrong with not being okay, even though Buck knew better.
He blinked and wet his lips. “Bobby, I—I’m fine—” he stammered, but he didn’t even get to figure out how he was going to finish that sentence, what he was going to tell Bobby to reassure him that he was truly fine — or that, at the very least, he would be.
“It’s okay if you’re not,” Bobby interrupted gently — and he interrupted his layering too, to look Buck in the eyes.
Or, after a visit from his parents, Buck isn't doing so well. Bobby takes it upon himself to make Buck feel better.
This was written for day 5 of @buckandbobbyweek 2026 for the prompt Dinner and the alt prompt "I know you're not okay."
Additional tags: Bobby Nash is Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parent, Athena Grant and Bobby Nash are Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parents, Episode: s03e04 Triggers (9-1-1 TV), Alternate Universe - No Lawsuit (9-1-1 TV), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Worried Bobby Nash, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt Evan "Buck" Buckley, Car Accidents, Buck and Bobby Week 2026 (9-1-1 TV), Buck and Bobby Week, Father-Son Relationship, Guilt, From no communiation to communication, Yes they use their word, Firehouse 118 Crew as Family (9-1-1 TV), Maddie Buckley Acting as Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parental Figure, Worried Firehouse 118 Crew (9-1-1 TV)
For: @buckandbobbyweek 2026: Day 5 - Dinner + Secrets.
Summary:
"I guess at least Bobby is happy. I won't be able to fight to come back at the 118." He says with a bitter laugh.
Or, after that fateful dinner at Bobby and Athena, Buck gets into a car accident. Buck thinks Bobby is done with him, Bobby feels guilty, and thinks Buck won't want to see him.
Author's Note: It's here…. Okay, two or three things first.
I wanted to write another fic for the prompts Father & Son+ Secrets, in which Buck is Bobby's bio child, but I didn't have time, and it's too much work, so it would be for later.
I hesitated for this one. I was like Should the accident happen before or after the grocery store fight?' and then I was like 'Wait… I have a better idea for the grocery store fight. One that involves Buck, amnesia, post s8, and a lot of angst….' So here we go, have fun with this one.
*Something happened in my family, so either I'm going to write even more because it will be the only thing keeping me fucking sane, or… Well, you'll see me less. I can't tell you, but I have a preference, and let's hope it will work.
Anyway. This work is a two-chapter work because I haven't finished editing the second part, but I still wanted to post something. See you soon!
Bobby. It was because of Bobby all along. Bobby, who kept lying to him from the beginning. He has trusted Bobby, and this is how he sees him. A liability. The saddest thing is that Buck isn't even that surprised. It's just another person tired of Buck, who just gives him up. His own parents did, of course, Bobby does too.
No, Buck can't go there. Bobby is not his dad. Sometimes he had wished, he knew he had imprinted on his captain, and of course, he had been too much to handle. Still, the hardest thing is that Bobby lied to him. And isn't it the worst of it?
He has to bite back a sob; he won't cry. He'll find a way to go back to his family. He had to. He'll make Bobby understand that he's making a mistake.
"Fuck!" He shouts, slamming his hand against the wheel.
He doesn't know what to do; he wants to go to Eddie, but he can't because Eddie already has his hands full with Christopher's nightmares. Buck can't add anything to his plate. He doesn't know what to do, and then he sees it, the card. The car from that scumbag lawyer, and an idea emerges in his mind. He knows it's a stupid idea, but he'll do anything to go back to his family.
His plan, though, doesn't have time to form further. Buck hears a honk, sees blinding lights, feels the impact, and everything goes black.
***
Bobby is flipping through one of his cookbooks. He's stressed because Buck was supposed to spend the night here. They were supposed to talk things through. Bobby wanted to explain why he kept Buck away from the job, and that it wouldn't be permanent. But when the time came, he froze and couldn't tell him anything. Now, he's rummaging through recipes in the hope of finding something to cook. And maybe he'll bring it to Buck tomorrow. Maybe they'll be able to talk. Maybe Buck will listen to him. Maybe Buck will understand.
But the thing is that Bobby can't focus. His mind keeps replaying the betrayed look the kid gave him; it was like Bobby had just stabbed him, when all he wanted was to keep the kid safe. He keeps replaying his conversation with Athena, who told him that Buck is an adult and had to make his own decisions. And every parent needs to accept that, even if it's hard. But Bobby isn't Buck's father. He doesn't deserve it.
He sighs, shuts the book, and gets up to take a glass of water. Just an excuse to keep himself busy. After a few minutes at the sink, his phone rings. He frowns who could be calling at this time.
'Maybe it's Buck,' his mind suggests, and so he rushes to his phone, glass still in hand. It's not Buck. It's an unknown number, and his breath hitches.
"This is Bobby Nash," he greets, answering the phone, doing his best to use his captain's voice.
"Hello, Sir, I'm Jessica. I am a nurse at L.A. General. I'm calling because I have you listed as Evan Buckley's emergency contact."
Bobby is sure the glass slips from his hold and crashes on the floor. He has so many questions, but he only managed to ask one.
"What?"
"Mr. Buckley was in a car accident earlier tonight. He's still in surgery…"
He's sure the nurse is giving him more details, but he can't hear them. He thinks that someone has taken his phone from his hand and talks to the nurse on the other side, but nothing makes sense, and everything is muffled. Because Buck was supposed to be here tonight, but now he's in the hospital. Again. Bobby betrayed him, and Buck is in the hospital.
"Blood thinners." He looks up at Athena. "Blood thinners."
He doesn't make sense, he knows, but Athena nods. Of course she understands, of course she knows. He should thank her for her help, but the only thing he can think of is Buck on the operating table, bleeding out.
***
When Buck wakes up the first time, Maddie is beside him. She's crying, telling him that she was so worried. She gives him the rundown of his injuries. Broken ribs, perforated lung, stitches on his head, a concussion, and a broken wrist. Everything should heal with time, and he should be back to work soon enough.
He doesn't tell Maddie that after that, Bobby will never want him again; instead, he cries while Maddie does her best to hold him close and reassure him, just like when he was little. After the doctor checks him up, the team filters through the door. Everyone is here, and Buck feels warmth because they still came to check on him. They seemed worried. Chimney tried to crack a joke, and Buck is glad he even huffs out a terrible and pitiable kind of laugh. They promise to keep his place warm for him at the station. Once again, he doesn't tell them what he thinks.
The warmth he feels dims out little by little as Bobby doesn't show up in his room. Buck tries his best not to cry, blinking hard.
"It's okay, Buckaroo," Chimney says. "You can sleep. Someone will be there when you wake up."
Buck is touched by Chim's reassurance, even if the man is as far from the point as possible. Still, he smiles and lets sleep take him.
***
Next time Buck wakes up, both Hen and Athena are here. If he's being honest, he's surprised to see Athena here with him, when even Bobby wouldn't see him.
"Hey, Buckaroo," Athena says softly, a hand in his hair, and he leans into the touch. "How are you feeling?"
He tries to speak, but only coughs, and it hurts so much.
"Easy, Buck." Hen interjects before helping him in a sitting position and passing him a cup. "Here, drink slow."
He does, and it feels less like his insides are on fire. "Hurts."
A small chuckle from both women, and he gives them a small smile. He looks around the room and tries to listen, but there are no signs of Bobby being here.
"Buck?" He looks back at Hen, who looks concerned. He guesses it's not the first time she has called him.
"Sorry." He says, shaking his head, which bad idea. "How long was I out?"
He catches the glance Athena and Hen exchange over his head, but decides to ignore it. Hen starts to answer, but he doesn't listen to her. He nods once or maybe twice. But he can't stop thinking of Bobby and how he must feel relieved right now.
"Buckaroo." Athena's hand on his arm startles him. She's looking at him with her 'don't try to lie to me' look. "What's going on in that head of yours?"
Normally, Buck would brush it off, or at least he'd try. But there are two problems in this situation.
The women in his family tend to see him on another level. They're great at reading him, when before only Maddie could do it. Normally, he'd like that, but now this is a problem because…
He's still up on pain meds, and between that and the concussion, all his filters are broken. The emotional one and the brain-to-mouth one.
So here in the hospital bed, stuck between Hen and Sergeant Athena Grant, he finds himself unable to lie to them and finds himself spilling all his negative thoughts and emotions at them.
"I guess at least Bobby is happy. I won't be able to fight to come back at the 118." He says with a bitter laugh.
Hen flinches, Athena's breath hitches, and Buck kind of feels guilty. They are Bobby's friend and wife. Buck shouldn't unload everything in them. Later, he'd blame the meds and concussion. Now, he doesn't really care.
Athena narrows her eyes at him, and he feels uneasy. "Buck-"
He cuts her off, another thing he won't do in a normal situation. "I'm not saying he's happy I got into an accident. He's a too good of a man to think like that."
Because Buck thinks that maybe it's not such a bad thing, after all, he was about to do something stupid, yet when he thinks about it, well, he thinks it might have been the only solution at the time. Now… well, now he's stuck in another bed, and he can understand what the Universe is trying to tell him.
Athena doesn't say anything; she looks pissed, her mouth pinched in a thin line. Great, Buck pissed her. Maybe it's a good thing then, she needs to be there for Bobby, not Buck. So Buck takes back both his hands that were in each of the women's hands.
"Buck, what are you saying?" Hen asks, and she sounds so broken and doubtful that he bristles.
"I'm a liability." He snaps. "He's not even here, so I guess he was right. I'm a liability. It's better if I'm not fighting to come back."
His voice breaks at the end, and he has to look away from Hen as a heavy silence settles. But he does it after he sees Hen's eyes widen and flicker between Athena and him. Oh, Buck understands. She didn't know.
'Wow. Good job, Buckley. Keep screwing up and snapping at your friends,' his mind taunts him.
"Sorry," he whispers. "Sorry, I… It's the meds, and I'm tired. I think I need to sleep."
He's pretty sure they both know that he's lying, but thankfully neither Hen nor Athena calls him out. He closes his eyes and fakes being asleep. What he doesn't plan is really falling asleep.
Additional tags: Bobby Nash is Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parent, Athena Grant and Bobby Nash are Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parents, Evan "Buck" Buckley & May Grant are Siblings, Firehouse 118 Crew as Family (9-1-1 TV), Buck and Bobby Week 2026 (9-1-1 TV), Buck and Bobby Week, Father-Son Relationship, Episode: s01e06 Heartbreaker (9-1-1 TV), Episode: s03e01 Kids Today (9-1-1 TV), Episode: s03e03 The Searchers (9-1-1 TV), Post-Episode: s06e11 In Another Life (9-1-1 TV), Episode: s07e10 All Fall Down (9-1-1 TV), Fix-It, Episode Fix-It: s08e15 Lab Rats (9-1-1 TV), Bobby Nash Lives, buck calls Bobby pops, And then he calls him dad, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Mention of Buck's coma because I love this part hehe, Bisous
So yeah, Bobby was happy that Buck stopped calling him Pops. Or at least that's what he told himself.
Yet, sometimes the nickname slipped from Buck. Still, it didn't change anything. Nothing at all.
Or, 5 times Buck calls Bobby 'Pops' and it doesn't change anything + 1 time Buck calls him 'Dad' and it changes everything
Author's Note: So… I didn't have time to post it yesterday, but here it is… Also, only one story for day 4, but don't worry, I did my best!
When Buck first came to the 118, he started calling Bobby Pops. Bobby allowed it because the kid only said it as a tease about Bobby's age and not because…
No, that couldn't be, even if he started mentoring the kid, or if they went to a concert together, or if the kid woke up every parental instinct in him. It was just a tease, nothing else.
Then the plane crash happened, and next his relapse, and he told the team his story. Since then, Buck stopped calling Bobby Pops, and Bobby was glad because he didn't want or deserve anything like that.
So yeah, Bobby was happy that Buck stopped calling him Pops. Or at least that's what he told himself.
Yet, sometimes the nickname slipped from Buck. Still, it didn't change anything. Nothing at all.
1 - Valentine's Day
Bobby is updating the team about Buck's well-being when he hears a groan coming from the bed. He quickly pockets his phone and directs his attention to the kid.
"Hey, kid," he says softly. "It's okay, you're in the hospital."
Blurry blue eyes open and flicker around the room before landing on him.
"Pops?" Buck asks, voice hoarse.
Bobby's heart drops at the nickname. He knows Buck is using it just because he's out of it thanks to the medication. It makes him feel both good and awful; he doesn't deserve this, or the look of pure trust Buck is giving him. Still, he stands up and gets closer to the bed, stopping himself from putting a hand in the kid's hair.
"It's okay, Buck," he continues as softly as before. "Don't talk too much, you need to rest your throat."
Buck frowns. He looks so young in this bed. Young and lost. It hurts Bobby because the kid was so happy about his first real date.
"-bby?" Buck asks.
Bobby sits on the bed and smiles. "She had a shift; she had to go to work."
Buck nods, and the captain catches a glimpse of something sad in Buck's face. Then he looks back up at him, and there it is. The look. The one Bobby hates so much. The one Buck gives him sometimes, and makes Bobby sick. The look of pure blind trust, and dares he say reverence. The look that might get the kid killed one day if he keeps trusting Bobby like that.
"You he'e," Buck whispers, struggling with the letter r.
And it hits Bobby that Buck wasn't actually expecting his captain to show up. The kid was sure to wake up alone in the hospital room. The sadness in the kid's eyes shatters something in Bobby, and the man loses the battle with his will and starts playing with Buck's hair.
"Of course, kid." He makes sure that Buck hears the promise in his voice. "Always."
Buck gives him a small smile, and he feels him relax, leaning further into the touch.
"Than' Pops." He whispers before falling back to sleep.
Later, Bobby will bring Buck back to his place after seeing the place where he lives. He will spend his 48-off looking after Buck, making sure the kid rests and has enough good food to heal. Later, Chimney and Hen will tease him about that, and he will gladly ignore them. Later, Bobby will spend a lot of his free time during his next shift checking in on Buck and making sure that he doesn't need anything.
But for now, Bobby sighs and stays like that for a few minutes, making sure the kid's deeply asleep before sitting back in the chair next to the bed, making himself a promise to never let the kid down, at least for as long as he's alive.
2 - Blood clot
There's only pride in Bobby's chest during the night. He's so proud of his, the kid for bouncing back and even breaking his scores during his rectification. After all, he was there for his first steps, his setback, his joy, and his pain. So yeah, Bobby is proud of Buck.
For so long, he had felt guilty about what happened; after all, Buck got hurt because of him. He almost died because someone wanted to kill Bobby. 'Collateral damage' is what Freddie had said, and since then, Bobby had only wanted to be sure that Buck would have been okay.
Another cough coming from Buck pulls him out of his thoughts. He wonders if the kid got sick just before coming back to work. But then Buck starts talking about Ali and how she dumped him. He tries to reassure him, after all, Buck is still so young. But the kid's coughs are becoming worse.
"You okay?" He asks as the alarms start to shout in his head.
"Yeah, I-" Buck tries to speak, but another fit of coughing interrupts him.
He can hear the chatters around them dying, worries filling the air. Buck stumbles back, still coughing, and Bobby finds himself unable to move. 'Damn it. Do something!' he curses his brain.
Finally, the kid raises his head, and Bobby sees it. The blood. Buck is coughing up blood, and Bobby is unable to move. He does his best to school his features.
"Buck?" He asks, because this can't be happening, right?
Buck looks up at him, and Bobby's resolve shakes. Buck is scared and looks at him like he has the answers to what is happening. But Bobby doesn't, and he's as scared as the kid.
"Pops?" His voice shakes, and it's barely understandable in the middle of the gurgles of blood in the kid's throat.
Then, as he spits more blood, Buck falls to the ground, and finally Bobby's body can react.
"Buck!" But he's too slow, and he's failing the kid once again.
Thankfully, Hen, Chimney, and Eddie act quickly while Maddie calls 9-1-1. Bobby is struck there, looking down at the kid, then watching the kid disappear in the ambulance. He's sure he can hear Athena telling him to go, but he can't. Buck's there because of him.
There's only one thing he knows: he'll do anything to protect Buck from danger, from him. Even if he has to lose the kid in the process.
3- Tsunami
"Buck!" Bobby almost freezes when he hears Chimney and the surprise in his voice.
No, this can't be possible. Because Buck is with Christopher inland. Buck is safe, Bobby made sure of it when he didn't allow him back. The kid is safe, not stuck in a tsunami. He turns, because he needs to be sure, and yes. Buck is here.
The kid looks like hell. Multiple cuts, breathing hard, looking exhausted, and his gaze focuses afar, like he's not seeing them. So he places himself in the kid's point of view.
"Hey," he doesn't know what to say because this is unexpected. This is a nightmare. He turns around and sees Eddie reunited with Christopher, and another woman standing there, and he understands. They got separated. "You two okay?"
He knows his is a dumb question, but Buck isn't talking, and his breathing? Bobby is afraid of another clot, or worse. But his question seems to work because the kid finally focuses on them.
"Yeah, we…" his voice is hoarse; he's probably highly dehydrated. He mumbles something intelligible before locking eyes with Bobby. "Pops."
This time Bobby doesn't freeze. He knows that this is the warning before Buck loses his last strength. And sure thing, just after this, the kid falls into their arms like a puppet who just got his stings cut. And Bobby almost falls with him because Buck was supposed to be safe and not…
No, he can't go there. He needs to be there for Buck, to help him. He can break later. He can think of the what-ifs later.
4 - Post lighting
Bobby is woken up by a flash. His heart is pounding so fast he barely hears the rain tapping his window outside.
Buck.
It's the only word he is capable of thinking. Next to him, Athena stirs awake.
"Bobby?" Her voice is heavy with sleep.
"It's okay. Go back to sleep." He does his best to sound sure of himself.
It doesn't work; she moves again and pulls him into a hug. She kisses his temple and gently caresses his arm.
"It's okay, honey." She says softly. "Buck is at home. He's alive. He's fine."
She keeps repeating it to him, and little by little, he relaxes. Buck isn't in his coma anymore. He's fine, his recovery is going great. He's at home. Safe. Alive.
"You're right." He sighs. "He's fine. Sorry."
"Don't be sorry. It's okay. What if we go see him tomorrow morning?"
Bobby is about to agree, seeing the kid alive would be great, thank God Athena understands him so much, but his phone interrupts him.
Father Figure by George Michael. Buck's ringtone, a joke by Chimney and Hen. He never changed it back, first claiming he didn't know how to do it, then, when Chimney said he could show him how to, with an all-knowing smirk, Bobby had declined.
Bobby doesn't freeze. He jumps on his phone.
"Buck."
"Bo…" A hiccup, "Bobby." The kid's voice is shaking with fear and sobs, and Bobby is already out of bed, getting dressed.
"It's okay, Buck. You're fine. You're at home." Only his years of firefighting allow him to stay calm and be dressed in seconds.
"No. No. It's not." A hiccup, and for a few seconds that feels like an eternity, he doesn't hear the kid breathe. "It's not real."
"It is Buck, I promise -" but he's cut by the sound signaling the call is over.
Athena is already at the door, fully dressed and with the keys to her car in her hands. He doesn't argue when she climbs in the driver's seat. He knows he's not in the right set of mind to drive, plus he'd be able to call Buck, or at least to try, during the drive.
Buck never answers, and Bobby's guts twist even more with each unanswered call. Once they're outside Buck's building, he doesn't wait for Athena to fully park and stop the car before jumping out of it. He can hear her following closely when he enters the building before rushing upstairs. He tries knocking once, and when it goes without answer, he grabs the key and opens the door.
A flash from outside the windows illuminates the empty and silent space, and cold sweat rolls down Bobby's spine.
"Buck?" He calls out, voice even and as calm as possible.
Only silence, and Bobby looks back at his wife with wide and panicked eyes. Athena is frowning. Bobby opens his mouth to ask her what to do because right now, he can't be the captain, and he should feel bad to solely rely on Athena, but this is a lot.
Athena stops him by raising a hand and putting a hand to her lips. He closes his mouth and listens intently, and there he hears them. Sobs. Buck's sobs. Bobby spins on himself; they're coming from the downstairs bathroom.
He runs to the room, turning on the light in the corridor before opening the bathroom door. What he sees inside breaks his heart. Buck is huddled in a corner, trying to make himself as small as possible. He's crying and mumbling something that Bobby quickly understands as his name. Buck is having a panic attack and is still calling Bobby to be okay.
Maybe not even a year ago, it would have scared him, but a lot has changed since. 'You brought one,' and yeah, he did. Right now, all he can think of seeing Buck like that is a terrified kid who needs his parents. Who needs his dad.
Bobby carefully approaches the his kid, calling him, but Buck doesn't seem to notice. So, the captain kneels in front of him.
"Buck?" He falls out softly and puts a hand on the kid's arm.
Buck jerks back violently, and Bobby is quick enough to think of putting a hand between the younger mas head and the wall so he doesn't smash his head too.
The firefighter's eyes roam quickly around the room with the same panicked glint Bobby heard in his voice earlier. But when his gaze finally settles on him, Buck's expression morphs from panic to surprise and uncertainty.
"Pops?" The kid asks, doubt tainting his voice. Like he's not sure whether what he's seeing is real or not.
Bobby's heart breaks into a thousand pieces, but he does his best not to show it. Instead, he put a grounding hand on Buck's shoulder.
"I'm here, kid. I'm here."
The next second, Buck throws himself into his arms, and Bobby catches him with an oof. He holds him tight, repeating that he's here and that everything is going to be okay. Buck's hands are shaking, but his hold on his shirt is firm, and Bobby guesses that nobody would be able to separate them. Not that he wants to.
Later, he'll bring Buck back to his house to let him sleep and be able to keep an eye on him. Later, he'll talk to Buck about his concerns for the kid. Later, he'll hold Buck in his arms as Buck tells him the truth about his coma dream.
But for now, Bobby holds Buck on the younger man's bathroom floor, trying to keep him safe from whatever nightmare is haunting him.
5 - Bobby's coma
Bobby feels like he's floating in cement. It doesn't make any sense, he knows, but that's what it feels like. He feels like he's floating because he can't feel anything around him. He's pretty sure he's lying down, on his back, but he doesn't feel anything beneath him. The cement part is because when he wants to move, he can't. It's like his arms, his legs, his neck all weigh a thousand tons each. Even his eyes, he can't open them.
Slowly, he's sure that he can hear something. No, someone is talking to him. A familiar voice, a comforting one.
"We convinced May and Harry to take a break and go to the cafeteria. Hen took them, and I promised to stay with you. Not that I would want to go anywhere else." A pause, the person clears his throat. "Come on, Bobby. I thought coma was my thing, you know. You're not supposed to copy me, you're supposed to do the exact opposite. I'm the one who's supposed to get into trouble. Not you."
A sad laugh, and something tugs at Bobby's heart. The person starts talking again. This time, they're even more sad, and their voice is barely audible.
"You have to wake up. You have to be okay. We need you. I need you, Pops."
Kid, his foggy brain tells him. He doesn't know where he is, but he knows that this is Buck. His kid. And he needs him. So Bobby tries to reach out, but he slips back into darkness before he's able to.
6 - Plus one
Buck's pounding against the glass keeps resonating in his head. Or maybe it's his own heartbeat. He turns around because if he keeps looking at the kid, his kid, on the other side of the glass, he might break. He can't, he's so sure they don't have time.
Yet, each one of Buck's screams breaks his heart, his soul. From the corner of his eyes, he sees Buck following him as best as he can. Bobby aches to reach out, to take him in his arms, to tell him again and again how proud of him he is, how much he loves him. How he wouldn't be there without Buck. He wants to brush those curls falling in the kid's eyes. He doesn't want to leave, but he doesn't have a choice. He saved Chim; they'll be okay.
"Cap, Bobby." Buck's throat is hoarse, Bobby can hear it. He can hear the exhaustion. "Dad, please."
Buck's pleas make him freeze. Dad. Never had Buck called him that, not even when he slipped up. It was always Pops.
"Please, I…" A sob escapes the kid, and Bobby loses his battle against himself and turns to face Buck. "Pops. You can't do this. I need you. Dad, please don't do this."
The raw desperation and sadness in his tone make Bobby relive one of his worst nightmares. The one where his first babies are begging him to help them while they were dying in the building fire he started.
But this is not Robbie Jr. or Brooke. This is Buck, the kid he promised to never let down and the kid he promised to protect from him and the consequences of his life. And here is the same kid begging him not to do that, to stay with them, with him. And calling him dad twice, and Bobby wonders if it really was a slip-up.
"Kid…" he tries to talk, but Buck shakes his head and puts a hand on the lock of his helmet, and Bobby's stomach drops. "Kid, please."
"No!" Buck's tone leaves no room for argument. "I'll do whatever it takes to save you. If they send someone for me, they'll also take care of you."
"Don't." Bobby orders, his shoulders sag. "Okay. Okay, kid. Call for help."
A small and relieved smile appears on the kid's face as he reaches for his radio. "This is firefighter Buckley 118. I need a medical team in the lab. Captain Nash is contaminated. I repeat, I need a medical team down in the lab. Athena, you might want to come down."
Buck stares at him as he gives an order. "Now open the door, Cap."
Bobby notices the radio is still on; if he doesn't, the whole team will hear him deny Buck.
Buck, the kid who keeps giving him another chance at life again and again, even when he doesn't deserve it. Even now, even if it means putting himself in danger. Bobby nods, puts back his helmet, and opens the door. As soon as the glass is up, Buck rushes into his arms.
Later, after a long battle with the virus, during which his three kids barely leave the hospital, after being yelled at by everyone. Later, after a lot of tears, after learning that the Diaz boys are back, after learning by May that she had to drag Buck away from the hospital (after she tells Bobby, 'like father like son' and to Buck 'mom brought two kids into the marriage. Bobby brought one'). Later, after all this, Bobby will finally have The Talk to Buck. The one they've been postponing for years.
For now, Bobby holds his son close to him. "Thank you for not giving up on me, kid."
He feels his knees give up, and Buck doesn't let him go. He helps him down. He knows that he's losing consciousness, but he can hear the medics; they're almost here. So he allows himself to close his eyes, still held by Buck. The last thing he hears before the darkness wins is Buck reassuring him. He briefly wonders if the radio is still on (he'll later learn that it was).
Summary: Buck has secretly taken custody of Theo, and now he wants to share him with Bobby and the 118.
Buck and Bobby Week 2026 - Secrets, Father and Son
Ao3
***
Buck had never expected to take custody of Theo, but he always wanted to be in his life. It’s not that he didn’t trust Kameron and Connor, but after the whole spare parts thing, he needed to make sure that Theo, his bio son, didn’t grow up the way that he did.
Unfortunately, accidents happen.
When he’d been called as an emergency contact for Theo, he never expected that he would have to take custody of the four-year-old little boy that he’d played uncle to all this time, but he never shied away from a challenge.
He, just, also didn’t know how to tell the 118 that he now had custody of a kid – his kid – and Connor’s, too. He would never want to erase Connor from his life, but he knows that it’s okay for him to love Theo as his kid, too.
Of course, it didn’t take very long for the 118 to become suspicious about the fact that Buck clearly had a secret – secret kid that is, and he knows that he needs to come clean. Especially since having a kid is hard, he always thought all the babysitting he did would be helpful to when he eventually had a kid of his own, but it wasn’t.
Which is why as shift is about to end, he finds Bobby. It’s time to share and there’s no one that he’d rather share this with first than Bobby.
Bobby had been the only one to not comment negatively on this choice, the choice to give his sperm away, so he deserves to know first. He’ll handle it better than the others, he’s sure.
And if he doesn’t approve for whatever reason, he won’t go spilling the beans.
He’s the perfect person to tell first.
“Hey, Bobby, uh, did you have plans for after shift?” Buck questions, trying not to sound too nervous.
“No, why? Is there something you want to talk about? Did you want to go out to breakfast?” Bobby asks, questions coming out rapidly with a tinge of concern in his voice.
He clearly suspects that Buck’s about to reveal his secret.
“I, uh, I was hoping that you could come by mine? I, uh, there’s something I want to share you,” Buck says, still nervous and trying not to make it obvious.
Bobby gives him a reassuring smile. “Got it, I’ll be there right behind you.”
“Great.”
***
It’s not often these days that Buck has a secret and manages to keep it, but Bobby knows that whatever he’s about to share with him must be pretty important if he’s managed to keep it a secret until now and he’s the first person on the team that Buck’s willing to share the secret with.
If he’s honest, though, he has no idea what it could possibly be? Another dog? A secret relationship? Is he coming out as something else?
Either way, he has to know that he’d be supported, whatever the surprise is.
He’s already surprised them by getting a house after Eddie took his house back, and Bobby’s been proud of the way he’s grown with it. He knows that Buck really wants a family and a home in the way that the others all have them, and he’s grown so much that he absolutely deserves it (not that he didn’t deserve it before, but he’s become quite responsible these days compared to his early days).
He smiles as he pulls up behind Buck’s parked jeep. He has a key, something Buck insisted on, but he still knocks.
The door swings open quickly because he’s clearly expected, and Buck can’t have been home long.
Except it’s not Buck on the other side of the door.
Well, not full-grown Buck. This little kid looks a little like a mini-Buck.
“Uh, hi,” Bobby says, blinking in surprise.
“Theo, what did I tell you? You gotta wait for me to help you answer the door,” Buck says, running to the door. He’s already wearing the apron to cook breakfast, and mini-Buck looks shyly at him.
“You told me it was going to be Pops, and he’s safe,” Theo says, shyly.
“And he is, but it might not have been him –” Buck tries, but mini-Buck or Theo interrupts.
Theo turns his big blue eyes on him. “Are you Pops?”
Bobby laughs and grins. It’s been a while since Buck called him that, but he supposes that he must’ve suggested that to him, so he offers, “I suppose I am, and you must be Theo.”
He bends down to Theo’s level and opens his arms for a hug, a bit uncertainly.
Theo doesn’t hesitate to hug him, it’s quick, though and as he lets go, he turns to Buck and says, “You’re right, he smells like breakfast!”
Buck is standing there, laughing and shaking his head as Theo takes Bobby’s hand and says, “Look, I’ve got firetrucks!”
“I can see that,” Bobby offers, grinning at him. “You wanna show them to me while … Buck makes breakfast?”
“Yeah!”
***
It takes a while for Theo to calm down and for Bobby to get the story from Buck about what happened and how he now has custody of Theo.
“This was your secret?” Bobby questions when Theo’s preoccupied drawing pictures of them in front of a firetruck. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
Buck shrugs. “No one was really supportive of my donation, and I wanted to prove that I could do this before getting outside opinions.”
“Oh, Buck, you know that we love you, right?”
“I do.”
Bobby gives him a smile. “Good, so then you know that even if we don’t exactly agree, we will always support you.” He glances at Theo, smiling and drawing, and says, “And we’d always be happy to help you with this and anything else.”
Buck gives him a relieved smile. “I do know that, Bobby. Really, I just – I wanted time to keep him to myself for a while and prove myself.”
“Well, I’d say that you certainly have. You’ve clearly stepped up and I’m proud of you.”
as the title suggests, this is inspired by the 90's novel of the same name, and is also inspired by a fave buck has been bobby's kid this whole time fic by @dreaming-marchling - Bobby's Kid
this was also purposefully finished to post today for the @buckandbobbyweek prompts "Father and son" and secrets
it's got found (real) family, fluff, some soft-ish angst, and tears.
enjoy!
Evan Buckley leaves home after he graduates high school.
Doesn’t even actually graduate, doesn’t wait to turn 18 (his birthday’s what, only five months away? No big deal.), just gets home on the last half day of his senior year, goes to his dad’s office, pulls out the first copies of his legal documents he finds, and leaves again, submitting a forwarding address at the post office to a PO box in Milton for whenever the school decides to send him his diploma.
He gets in Maddie’s gifted jeep and leaves.
He drives west because where else would he go?
He gets a job bussing tables at a diner in Tennessee, hears from a passing trucker that he knows a guy looking for workers at a factory in Arkansas, leaves the factory for good money on the oil fields down in El Paso, follows a friend made there from the extreme south of the US for the extreme north (well, almost as north as he can get in the lower 48) to take a job as a ranch hand in Montana.
That’s where his life changes forever.
Such a big thing to put on the shoulders of the dimly-lit, squeaky floorboard-lain, musty-smelling cabin at the front of the property used for cooking and serving the other ranch hands their three squares a day, but Evan walked in there a completely different person than he is when he leaves.
He is halfway through his lunch of stale-but-also-somehow-soggy ham sandwich and chips when one of the cattle guys sits down in a space left on the bench across from him.
The guy (who he thinks is named Andrews?) is chatting with the guy with the spit bottle of Coke to his left as he peels open a to-go cup of Frosted Flakes, then the little cardboard carton of milk, pouring the whole thing in with the cereal and mashing it up.
The carton spins a little atop the laminate table after it’s put down, coming to a rest just so to reveal an image printed on the back side.
It's blurry, of course, the picture made of the same tiny dots as the rest of the graphics on the packaging, but from this distance, the pointillism of the portrait doesn't matter.
Because Evan recognizes the face printed under ''HAVE YOU SEEN ME?"
Because Evan sees that face every day of his life.
The face looking back at him from across the table is the same he sees in the mirror each morning.
Because it's his face.
It's Evan's face on the milk carton.
For a long minute, all he can do is stare.
He stares.
He processes–or tries to process–what he’s seeing.
He doesn’t swallow the bit of sandwich in his mouth until Maybe Andrews cackles loud enough at something that Spit Bottle says that it starts Evan’s heart again.
He swallows the bite still stuck in his cheek (it goes down like a pile of bricks coated in sandpaper), and reaches for the flimsy cardboard carton.
He grabs the carton, only barely managing to register the oddness of grabbing a more-stranger-than-coworker's trash at the cafeteria table as he does it, but he manages to grumble out a “I’m getting up, you done?” to Andrews before gathering the remainder of his lunch in his other hand, standing, and heading for the door.
The leftover bricks and sandpaper of his sandwich hit the bottom of the big metal trash can with a thud, and Evan is out the side door in two long strides.
He's supposed to be re-starting his shift here in less than 20 minutes, but he takes the time to duck into the nearest bathroom–a tiny thing no bigger than a broom closet, with barely the space for a toilet, let alone the dribbling sink–and carefully peel apart the flimsy cardboard.
The constant trickle of water from the sink faucet is more than enough to rinse out any leftover milk residue inside the carton, and Evan carefully re-folds it in on itself so only the face smiles up at him.
Slowly, he sets it down on the lip of the sink.
Slowly, he’s able to register some details.
It's an older image of course, looking as staged as any other school portraits.
He–The Boy–looks young, maybe no more than five, six at the most, with a darker spot than normal above the dark of his eyebrow in the black and white printing.
And here’s the thing: Even if he didn’t clock it immediately, even if he hadn’t been looking for it, it’s there plain as day in the tiny blurb underneath his–The portrait with all the other important information:
Name: Ethan Nash
Missing since: 6/27/1996
From: St. Paul, MN
DOB: 6/27/1991
Hair: Blonde, Curly
Eyes: Blue
Distinguishing features: Reddish-pink birthmark above/below left eyebrow.
IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON THIS CHILD, PLEASE CONTACT THE ST. PAUL POLICE DEPARTMENT OR THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN
Evan reads and re-reads the information.
So little, so factual, so....
He keeps getting stuck on the dates.
This kid– Ethan– (He–?) went missing on his 5th birthday? Point one in the ‘This missing kid is NOT Evan Buckley’ column: he remembers his 5th birthday, his mom threw a huge party at their local Chuck E. Cheese right after school started! His birthday's in October, not June!
Okay, so that settles it.
This child, Ethan, is NOT Evan and Evan was NOT somehow, someway, for some reason kidnapped as a kid and taken from his real home in Minnesota because he's Evan from Pennsylvania who's birthday is in October NOT June.
Evan lets out a breath.
but you've always hated the name evan, why is that??
there could have been plenty of time after they took you for you to forget minnesota.
they could have taken you and you were so little you would have believed them when they said 'no sweetie, you're birthday is in Octob--'
Someone knocks on the bathroom door and Evan snaps out of it, shoving the carton and it's obviously blatant lies into the trash his pocket as he heads out to his shift.
Evan does NOT think about it any more after that.
He does NOT carefully tuck the carton with his face on it into a side compartment of his duffle bag.
He does NOT start researching the Nashes and their missing son once he's back off the jobsite and can go longer than 10 minutes with a solid internet connection only to shut his phone completely off when he gets close enough to know his dad once worked (still works?) at a fire station in St. Paul, Minnesota and how that may or may not hit a bit too close to home, what with a long-forgotten fascination with firetrucks and firemen clawing its way up the back of his skull.
He just doesn't.
He continues on like normal, ignoring the already expected lack of calls from his parents Margaret and Philip Buckley his parents.
Normal.
He ignores the lack of responses from his sis his sister Maddie Buckley Kendall.
Normal.
He just happens to find out that his parents the parents of that kid on the milk carton are named Robert and Marcy Nash and he has two siblings they have two other kids named Robert Jr. and Brooke from some well-timed keyboard smashes and Google just doing its thing.
Normal.
He quits his job on the ranch and books a flight to Peru just because he can and because he is a well adjusted person and NOT because staying in the place where he found out that he was maybe possibly kidnapped and that his parents had more kids after he was gone hurt a lot more than it should have and even looking at the chow hall makes his stomach turn.
Normal.
He leaves Peru with Connor because he wanted to and not because through some more well-timed and also totally random searches led him to finding out that the same Nashes that lost their son Ethan in 1997 died in an apartment building fire just a year ago and makes his skin crawl to stay in the same tiny hostel where he found out that information.
Normal.
He's a totally normal and well adjusted young man who was NOT kidnapped when he signs up for the LAFD academy because he thought he'd like it and NOT because there was something buried deep in his chest that told him it was the least he could do to honor his not-actually-his-dad who died in a fire while being a firefighter himself.
He's also totally normal and well adjusted when he feels something about this job settle into his bones.
He continues to be totally normal and well adjusted when his house assignment comes back and his captain's last name is Nash because that's a perfectly common last name and he's not going to ruffle feathers trying to get a different house at his first selection after academy training is over.
He also continues to be completely normal and also not spill the proverbial beans when he walks into the station on his first day and Robert Nash of Milk Carton Ethan™ fame and who should also be dead greets him with a "Have a seat, Buck." and double take at the spot above his left eye when Buck takes off his hat.
All. Totally. Normal.
- - - - -
The splotch of red above Evan Buckley’s eyebrow haunts Bobby from the moment he lays eyes on it.
He watched this kid walk into his firehouse all nervous and unsure and decided—after their little jokes to ease him in—to take him under his wing almost immediately. It has nothing at all to do with the fact that he's almost the exact same age as his lost Ethan.
He saw his paperwork, saw that Evan's birthday is only a few months later than his son's, but that’s not the reason he feels a kinship with the young man.
But when Evan (“Buck! Everyone just calls me Buck.”) Buck takes off his academy ballcap, Bobby feels like his chest is collapsing in on itself.
There is no forgetting that splash of color.
Bobby manages to keep the easy smile on his face through the jokes, through the imploding star behind his sternum, but that night, he breaks.
He nearly cracks open a bottle of Jameson he’s had stashed in the back of his cabinet, but just barely manages to hold off.
He cannot do this to himself.
This is Evan Buckley. Not Ethan Nash.
Bobby would not be blessed so wholly and wonderfully after all this time.
Not with what all he's done.
Robert Wade Nash is all but a family annihilator. He lost his son because he was busy looking over the aged labels of a shelf of bourbon just a bit too long and he was taken from him. Almost quite literally walked away by the hand and out of the store without him knowing.
He punished himself with the same temptress that stole his attention away from his son to the extreme, drinking so much that he got hurt on a call, spiraled further even after having his beloved Brooke and Robbie, alcohol becoming a necessary crutch to the painkillers numbing his body.
And now they were all gone.
All because of him.
His oldest no doubt dead by now, his wife and two youngest children in a plot back in St. Paul, there is no way on earth or in Heaven would he be this blessed to find his son again.
But that doesn't mean he can't still take Buck under his wing and try his damndest to guide this kid who is not his son but damn does he look it toward being a better man.
There is a set of scales where his heart meets his gut, tipping heavily with every moment Bobby feels almost fatherly, balancing with every cocky, half-assed thing Buck gets himself into.
The scale balancing and tipping in and out of Bobby’s favor.
He thinks the scales are tipping back out of his favor when Buck grows somehow even more cocky. Literally and figuratively.
Bobby thinks it's fitting that he has to be the one to look Buck in the eye and see that damn birthmark in his periphery as he fires the kid for stealing the engine.
The whole rest of the shift Bobby wars within himself if the relief he’s feeling about Buck not being at the 118 anymore is because of his own selfish feelings of not wanting to grow close to this boy who is not his son, or relief that he now knows his son is alive and also won’t be running into burning buildings again anytime soon.
Until Buck is pulled in on a home invasion gone wrong, helping to save a young girl and her mother in the process.
This time the relief he feels is purely selfish. He hires Buck back and has his son in his sights again.
Buck is hired back, and Bobby is in a constant war with himself from then on.
He knows he has to be the one to die trying to save a mother from the twisted metal of the flooded airliner because his life is worth less, but who is there at his side saying "Yeah, I know, I'm a terrible listener."?
Bobby has a fleeting thought something along the lines of Yeah you are, you were supposed to stay by the cart all those years ago and you didn't listen then, either! before Buck is swept away by the water around them.
Another fleeting thought passes through his head, a solemn thank you to the stars beyond the fuselage for saving his son again—a rarity among the litany of Why?s and How could you?s he's been sending up almost exclusively as of late.
Then the metal pinning the mother's leg breaks free and they are both saved.
Once again, Bobby asks Why?
Over and over again, why why why why
Why take him if only to give him back now?
Why take him and give me more children to love only to take them away at my hand?
Why can I accept he is my son but keep fully denying he is at the same time?
He can't stand to look at Buck. He constantly has an eye on him.
He tells himself Buck’s well being is only a concern of his while they're on the clock. Then finds himself with a gut feeling over a 48 off that something is wrong—only to come back on shift to find out Buck had a stomach bug almost the whole two days and subsisted on nothing but Gatorade and granola bars.
After Buck is hospitalized post Valentine's Day date, Bobby quietly files away the fact that both Buck and Ethan are allergic to naproxen even though he knows that's a more than normal allergy to have and means nothing.
Over and over again he wars with himself, even after Chimney convinces him to throw away his little black book, convinces him that there is no scale—he knows damn well there's a scale.
So he says he needs a partner for the new kid, someone to keep him grounded help Bobby keep the scales even when he can't, wonders why he feels so deeply that Edmundo Diaz is the right one for the job.
When the two dipshits decide that the two of them, the two firefighters over trained military professionals—quiets the thought that Eddie is also a trained military professional—are going to disarm and de-leg the ordinance in the back of their ambulance, he fights the urge to order Buck to stay out of it because he is concerned for his subordinate and NOT because he can’t stand the thought of something going wrong and losing his son again because Buck is NOT Ethan but he sure is as headstrong as he was.
Bobby quietly keeps his mouth shut about Buck's sister, adding Maddie Kendall to the He’s Not Your Son list right under 'born in october'.
When the 7.2 hits LA, Bobby's brain-to-mouth filter says "I'm not going to order any of you to go in there." when they get to the half-collapsed skyrise instead of "Everyone else go, Buck stay here where it's safe.", any additional warnings or world up-ending revelations dying behind tight-pressed lips as he watches Buck and Eddie climb the ladder and disappear into the building.
Buck's "I feel like if I ever did that, you'd yell at me." when Eddie scales a burning building to solo rope-drop in for a stranded kid at a different call is very accurate. He stays staunchly quiet.
Bobby feels his heart hammering in his throat when his past once again almost gets another of his children killed, the truth almost barreling out of him when Buck is finally un-pinned from under the ladder truck.
For a little while, he thinks it's a good thing, thinks things are going back to normal and he's being punished further when his past is drug up to the rest of the team as a whole in the aftermath, watches as buck carefully avoids his gaze, thinks in relief that it's good that Buck doesn't trust him.
He convinces himself that he's doing things for the right reasons when he tells Buck The Brass are keeping him off duty after the clot nearly kills him in Bobby's backyard, the lawsuit that follows finds him breathing a sigh of relief when he feels the scales levered far enough on this side of the scale and push his son Buck away
The weight that drops onto his sternum when he realizes he almost lost his son NOT HIS SON Buck in the tsunami and didn’t even realize nearly sends him to the floor, despite having the kid in his arms already.
Finally he feels like he's done enough wrong in the Buck side of his world that there's no way he'd ever be so blessed to have found his son now; the scale is so far pitched in the wrong direction that he feels as content as he has any right to be. He’s failed Buck more times than he can count, failed Ethan only the once that matters, and now he’s certain he’ll never hear the news he wants to hear, will never learn any fact that will tip the scales into his favor ever again.
So when 'savior sibling' gets filed under Bobby's He’s Not Your Son list a few hectic years later followed almost immediately by Buck telling him he thinks Bobby is his dad, Bobby feels the scales in his chest implode.
- - - - -
Bobby stares at him for a long time after he says it. blurts it out more like, nervously following up with, "I–nevermind Cap, I'll–"
But Bobby steps to the side and Buck hesitates only a second more before crossing the threshold.
"I talked to Maddie." he says in lieu of any other greeting, heading down the steps into the living room and immediately starting to pace. "My parents brought her her baby box because she's pregnant y'know? There was a picture there—turns out I had a brother once too."
He glances up briefly to shake a finger at Bobby to make his point, "Had being the keyword there; he died because I was a match for cells but still ended up killing him and—"
He stops then, turning to look at Bobby. His Captain is still planted on the final step down into the living room, face devastatingly blank.
"Did you know I used to love firetrucks?" Buck asks, voice barely above a murmur.
Bobby's mouth twitches but he doesn't say anything.
"I used to have this big die-cast metal one; had the sirens and ladders and little hoses and everything, but I lost it somehow—or I thought I did, but when I asked about it, my mom told me she threw it out because it was too loud. Said that firetrucks weren't a good toy to have in the house and she “Wouldn't tolerate it in her home anymore.”.”
Buck meets Bobby’s eye. "I don't think that truck was ever at that house, Bobby."
Bobby's nose whistles slightly when he takes in a long breath.
"That was the first thing I asked Maddie tonight when I talked to her. She said she never remembered me having one at all.
"The next thing I asked her was..." Buck pauses to swallow down the rapidly re-forming lump in his throat. "Was where she thought I came from."
Bobby lets out the breath, and Buck continues. "I could tell she wanted to say it, say “What are you talking about, You were born at Hershey General!”, or “I was there when they brought you home, silly!” but she didn't.
"She said that they," he laces as much venom into his voice with the word as he can manage with how tight his throat feels, "Brought me home one day after mom was gone over a week, told Maddie that she and my d—Phillip had been going through the adoption process, keeping it quiet “in case they weren't approved for one reason or another.”."
Buck huffs a teary laugh, "She didn't know, Bobby. She had no idea. She started to apologize for not telling me about Daniel, about not telling me I was adopted."
He watches tears trickle down Bobby’s cheeks, then finds himself laughing again, his own tears spilling forth. "She said ”Mom had been gone that week for a conference in St. Paul, did some shadowing with some nurses at the hospital there.”.
"I had to tell her." he sniffs, "I had to tell her I was taken." Another half-sob-half-laugh bursts out of his chest, "I had to tell my sister she wasn't my sister, and now I'm telling my dad that he is my dad."
Buck looks at Bobby again, fear and such bone-deep sadness reflect back at him through his eyes.
"How…" is all Bobby can manage.
Buck sniffles, huffs yet another sardonic laugh as he reaches into his back pocket and produces a many-times folded, long-wrinkled scrap of cardboard, holding it out for Bobby to take.
He does. He reaches forward and steps off the last step onto the floor and takes the faded, flattened milk carton from Buck's hand.
For the first time in years, Bobby looks down at his oldest son's picture.
"I saw it for the first time on a jobsite in 2014." Buck whispers.
Bobby cracks, breaking right down the middle, his shoulders heaving in a short cry.
"We wanted–" a sob, "We wanted to try one last time, put something out again for anything anyone could give us…and then–"
Bobby shoves the heels of his hands into his eyes, Buck's cardboard portrait pressed to his brow with the motion. “And then I killed them—” Bobby removes his hands and Buck sees the man in Bobby’s apartment again, hurt and scared and broken. “Buck, I killed your mother, your siblings—I lost you.
“I lost you, and I failed you, I failed them and—I don’t deserve this.”
Buck reaches forward and pulls Bobby into a hug, feeling something loosen in his chest when Bobby hugs him back, squeezing them tightly together.
After a moment, Buck says “Don’t you think I do?”
Bobby pulls back, confused, so he continues. “Don’t I deserve to know my dad? My real dad?”
Bobby’s eyes dart between Buck’s, then hesitant relief coats Bobby’s face.
“Of course you do, kid.” he says, pulling Buck back into him, “Of course you do.”
“I love you, Bobby.” Buck says, wincing internally when he sobs almost directly into Bobby’s ear. “Sorry.” He whispers, relieved when Bobby laughs too.
“I love you so damn much, kid.”
- - - - -
For a long while after their teary conversation, the two men have further—more teary—conversations, the two sat kiddie-corner from each other on the couch and armchair.
Buck tells Bobby his mom was a practicing nurse before he’d been taken to Hershey, and—from what Maddie said—must’ve had access to hospital records while in St. Paul, that she must’ve somehow seen something in Buck’s medical record that made her latch onto him.
Bobby’s face gets paler and paler as Buck (Am I even ‘Buck’ anymore? Buck Ethan? Buck(?) asks himself) tells him all this, and when coaxed, Bobby explains “You had just had your yearly checkup not that long before your birthday.”
Buck’s eyes go wide. “You don’t think—”
Bobby’s already nodding. “It must’ve lined up. She followed us and walked away with you on the day she was supposed to leave St. Paul.”
Buck looks down at his hands, wrapped around a still-full mug of hot chocolate. “I’m sorry I let her take me.”
Bobby shakes his head again, “I don’t blame you, kid. I never blamed you.”
“Why not? I could’ve yelled, I could’ve screamed, I—”
Bobby’s hand lands on his knee. “You could’ve, but you were a super friendly kid; Marcy—your mom and I figured whoever took you took advantage of that and of how young you were.”
Yeah. Okay. That kinda made sense… “But—”
Just then, the front door opens. “Bobby? Baby? Is that Buck’s jeep out fr— Oh! And there he is! Hey, Buckaroo.”
Athena smiles down at the two of them as she kicks off her shoes and sets down her bag, “For what do we owe the pleasu—” she cuts herself off, face dropping into a calculating look. “What’s wrong?”
Oh.
Oh shit.
Buck has a step-mom now.
Athena is his stepmother.
Athena is his stepmother and also a badass police sergeant.
Buck looks back at Bobby, a similar realization on his face.
Miraculously, the two manage to exchange a conversation almost as non-verbal and seamless as Buck and Eddie do on the regular.
“Do you want to tell her?”
“I mean… she’s your wife, she should probably know she has another kid.”
“Do you want her to help?”
“...I don’t know what I want to do about it yet.”
“I do.”
Buck smiles despite himself. “I know you do.”
Bobby smiles back, then turns to his wife. “‘Thena, I want you to meet my son.”
Athena’s gaze sharpens a bit more, then relaxes. “You’re finally admitting it, hm?”
Buck and Bobby glance at each other in confusion.
Shit. Does she not know Bobby had a third child? “Uh… admitting what?”
Athena waves him off, “I’m happy for you, of course, but you had to have known Bobby has felt himself a father to you for a long while now, Buckaroo.”
She sighs as she sits beside Bobby on the couch, leaning into his side.
Buck just smirks at Bobby, giving the other man a snide, “Oh really?” to hide the thick emotions starting to re-clog his windpipe.
Bobby only sighs, gently pushing Athena up to sit on her own. Her expression sharpens again in an instant as she turns herself on the cushion to face them better.
“Yes, that may be true,” Bobby admits, “But I’m…” he glances at Buck again, who nods slightly. “But I am actually Buck’s father.”
He turns to Athena. “He is my son, Ethan.”
Buck doesn’t think he’s ever seen this amount of pure shock on Athena’s face before.
“We think Margaret found him via medical records while on a nurse exchange in St. Paul. Her oldest had leukemia.
He also doesn’t think he’s ever seen anyone’s gears turn and lock in this fast before.
“She saw his panel, didn’t she?” Athena asks, and Bobby nods.
Buck is confused.
“Panel?”
“Marcy’s family has a history of anemia, we had gotten a panel of blood tests done. If she saw that there was a young child with the potential to save her son in a city where no one knew her…” he trails off, shrugging in lieu of anything else to say.
“If that was the case, I want to know why the St. Paul police didn’t follow up on the staff from out of town.”
“He wasn’t taken from the hospital, ‘Thena.”
Athena waves him off, the gears obviously still turning in her head.
Buck has a fleeting thought that if only he’d also had that same special blood whatever as Bobby, they would’ve found out they were related years ago.
“I should call up the St. Paul department.” Athena says, mostly to herself as she moves to stand.
Both Buck and Bobby wave her off, repeated “No”s falling from their lips, Bobby catches her hand and pulls her back down into her seat.
She looks at them both like they’re stupid. “There’s no statute of limitations on kidnapping.”
“I know.” Bobby says.
“They should be held responsible.”
“I know.” he repeats.
She just raises an eyebrow at him, then turns it on Buck.
He catches it already softening before he looks down at his hands again. His hot chocolate is lukewarm at best.
“I don’t know what I want to do yet.” he says quietly.
After a beat, Athena murmurs, “That’s okay, baby. We’ll be behind you no matter what you decide.”
Bobby’s hand reappears on Buck’s knee, squeezing it gently.
“I think…” he sniffles. Damn. How much can one guy cry in one night? “I think I need to talk to Maddie.”
- - - - -
He doesn’t go talk to Maddie.
He’s already talked to Maddie.
He talked to her, he talked to his dad (His dad!), he talked to his brand-new stepmom…
He wants to stop talking about it for a while.
So he gets in his jeep and drives straight to South Bedford Street.
“Buck! Hey! I wasn’t expecting you.”
“Ha, yeah, can I come in?”
He knows his face must be doing something absolutely tragic, he can see it in the way Eddie appraises him.
“Of course, man,” he steps to the side, “C’mon in.”
It’s easy for Buck to put himself aside once he steps over the threshold. It’s easy for him to put on a mask and laugh and joke with Eddie and Chris, to badger Eddie into ordering pizza, into ordering one of those big cookies to go along with it; it’s easy to get lost in playing long, hectic rounds of Mario Kart, easy to forget Everything Else besides his two favorite people in the world.
But the night ticks on, and eventually the TV is turned off, the pizza boxes are broken down, pajamas are on, teeth are brushed, bedtime stories are read, and goodnight wishes are given.
Eddie tucks Chris further into his bed and Buck goes to grab a couple beers, sitting back down on his side of the couch to wait.
“He’s finally out.” Eddie sighs, coming back down the hall and around the side of the couch. “I thought for sure he was going to beg for you to read him another chapter, but I think that giant chunk of cookie he had made him crash quicker th—”
“Bobby is my dad.”
Buck winces a moment later at his interruption, but he pushes on. “And no, not in the ‘I see him as a father figure’ way, but really, actually, has always been my dad.”
Eddie blinks at him.
“She kidnapped me, Eddie. She kidnapped me, and then I had a baby brother and a baby sister and then they died and I had no idea because I was in Stupid Hershey with my Stupid Kidnappers but they were always looking and I had a firetruck and a different birthday and a different name and now I don’t know who I am anymore and I’ve already cried so damn much today and I really don’t want to do it anymore but I can feel it coming and—”
Buck’s face is pulled into Eddie’s chest, two strong arms holding him close… and he loses it again.
His throat burns with the force of it, but he manages to keep his sobs pressed into the soft material of his best friend’s shirt because he wouldn’t forgive himself if he woke up Christopher.
And through it all, Eddie just holds him.
Holds tight to the back of his skull, runs his other hand soothingly up and down his back, and hums the same tune he normally does when he’s putting Chris to bed.
Buck doesn’t even know if Eddie realizes he’s doing it, but he is, and it makes Buck’s eyes burn even more.
Eventually, his sobs subside, and he levers himself off of Eddie.
“I am never going to cry this much in one day ever again.” he grumbles, throat still thick and kind of sore, actually.
The concern on Eddie’s face softens a bit, his lips curving up slightly. “That’s a promise, is it?”
Buck nods. “I’m not allowed.”
Eddie snorts out a laugh, shaking his head fondly. He turns to look back up at Buck. “So… do you want to tell me what all happened? Maybe a bit slower and without all the tears and snot this time?”
Buck huffs out a laugh of his own. “Yeah, I could try that.”
So he does, he explains to Eddie everything that’s happened in the last day and a half or so, starting with the disaster of a dinner with Margaret and Phillip, to Maddie coming over to apologize and Buck telling her what he knows, then telling Eddie what he knows: from seeing his face on the milk carton on a ranch in Montana to his talk with Bobby and Athena.
“So I had two parents, one sister, a brother and a sister, no parents, no siblings, two other real parents, a real brother and sister, and now I have no siblings, no mom, one dad who’s also my boss, and a step mom.” Buck recounts, listing each on his fingers as he goes.
Eddie’s shocked expression—which had appeared not long after Buck quoted back Margaret’s teary (fake) “Evan, I don’t know what you expected us to do!”—is only now broken by him cursing under his breath—in what Buck can only assume was Spanish—and scrubbing his hands over his face.
He lands with his elbows on his knees with his face in his hands, and stays there for a long handful of moments.
Eventually, he sits up again, removing his hands to say “So that’s why you said you don’t know who you are anymore.”
Buck looks down at his hands as he nods, the fingers twisting together and apart over and over again.
Suddenly, one of his hands is being scooped up into Eddie’s. Their fingers lace together and Buck can’t stop his brain from thinking about how naturally they seem to fit.
“Buck.” Eddie says gently, his tone urging Buck to look up at him. His expression is soft, but Buck can see the fire of anger deep in his eyes. “The person you are now? He is completely outside of those people.”
He squeezes Buck’s fingers in his. “I can’t tell you who you are going to be going forward—if you’re going to keep Buck or take back Ethan, but what I can tell you is that you,” he squeezes again. “Are still going to be ours. Mine and Chris’ best friend, Hen and Chim’s annoying little brother,” Buck snorts a bit at that, “Maddie’s annoying little brother.”
Buck feels his response of “No I won’t. I’m not hers. I’m not Evan Buckley anymore, remember?” burning on the back of his tongue, but Eddie beats him to it.
“If you really think Maddie’s going to be any less your big sister now that she knows the truth…” he trails off, raising a brow incredulously at him.
“I hope she will be.” Buck murmurs.
“She will. I’m sure of it.” Eddie states. “You know what else I’m sure of?”
“Hm?”
“That you are not Evan Buckley.”
Buck can’t help but laugh.
“I’m serious!” Eddie continues, a smile threatening to break onto his face. “Evan? Who’s Evan? I only know Buck and he’s the greatest friend, brother, and firefighter in LA.”
Buck is helpless to the continued laughter bubbling up in his chest, his throat and eyes burning with emotion once again.
Another fleeting thought passes through his brain that there was a title missing from the list Eddie gave him. His brain was screaming it at him, that he wasn’t that and could never be that to Eddie because he didn’t say it… but Buck somehow managed to keep that voice quiet.
Suddenly realizing you may be in love with your best friend does not pair well with receiving confirmation that you were kidnapped as a child.
And that’s the other thing.
“Should I press charges?”
Eddie’s smile fades from his face.
“Sorry, sorry… Too much to put on you, huh?” Buck laughs sardonically, moving to extract his fingers from between Eddie’s.
Except Eddie just holds on tighter. Instead of letting him get away with it, Eddie asks, “What do you want to do?”
“I want them to pay!” he shouts, wincing immediately as he and Eddie both listen for any noise coming from Chris’ room.
“I want them to face real, tangible consequences for it.” he murmurs. “But I also want to cut them out completely and never see or think about them ever again.”
Eddie leans in close to him, silently encouraging Buck to lean over just those few inches and place his head on his friend’s shoulder.
“What does Bobby want to do?”
“I think he wants to press charges.”
Eddie hums. “Is it the facing them again that you don’t want?”
Buck shrugs, nudging Eddie’s shoulder over with his own as he does.
“If I—If Bobby presses charges, Maddie’s baby has no grandparents. Do I want to be the reason why?”
“Does Maddie want to keep them in her life? In her baby’s life?”
Buck shrugs again.
“Maybe you should ask her, cariño.”
Buck’s stomach swoops at the name, then sinks down into the pit of itself again.
“I think she and Bobby need to talk.” Eddie hums. “And I think it’s Athena that we’d have to call off if it comes down to just a restraining order.”
Buck feels Eddie’s face turn against his curls. “She’ll protect you.” he murmurs, “We all will.”
- - - - -
It’s not until they are due back for their next 48 that Buck approaches him.
Bobby had put in bereavement on his behalf over the last 48 they’d had, with Eddie giving him concise updates with how Buck was doing over the shift.
“He wants to make sure he’s doing the right thing for himself Bobby, not just for you.”
“I wouldn’t make him face them again if he didn’t want to.” Bobby has assured. He didn’t want his son anywhere near those people again.
Eddie had only nodded. “He knows that, but he and you and I all know that if you wanted to take them to court,” he emphasizes, “If he had to face them again for you, he would. Even if he didn’t.
“He loves you, Bobby.”
Bobby was helpless but to nod, and to wait for Buck to come back to him. In the meantime though:
“Thank you for being there for him, Eddie.”
“No where else I’d rather be, Cap.”
Buck did reach out soon after, sending a text to meet him at Eddie’s place the day before they were due back to the station again.
Buck:
come to eddie’s tonight?
pops:
Of course. Should I ask Athena to come along? - Bobby Nash
Buck:
yeah
5 ok?
pops:
See you then 👍 - Bobby Nash
There was a third car in the Diazes driveway when Bobby pulled up that evening. Buck’s jeep, Eddie’s truck, and a mid-size SUV he could only assume was Maddie’s.
He wasn’t sure how he felt about seeing Maddie again after all this.
“She was just in the dark as he was.” Athena says, as good as reading his mind now as she ever was. “Remember that.”
Bobby pulls up along the curb in front of the house. Once parked, he shuts off the engine and sits in the quiet.
He takes in a long breath, holds it for a moment, then lets it out all at once.
She’s right.
It was hard to believe that Maddie Buckley would be anywhere but at Buck’s side.
“Ready?” he asks his wife.
“Always.”
Bobby nods, then gets out, rounding the hood and crossing the lawn to the door with Athena at his side.
Eddie greets them at the door.
“Hey. C’mon in.” he says, stepping aside to let them through.
Sure enough, Maddie and Buck are on opposite ends of Eddie’s small couch, the two of them turned around to look over the back of it at them as they enter. Maddie’s eyes are tinged a bit red, but she has the same resolve that’s been etched into Athena’s features lately, swathed over her own.
Bobby is relieved to see a soft smile on Buck’s face. A bit nervous, maybe, but there all the same. He stands up as Bobby rounds the couch himself, pulling him into a surprising but welcome hug.
“Hey, Pops.”
Bobby’s chest tightens. “Hey kid, you alright?”
Buck pulls back, and Bobby looks him over again.
“Yeah, I’m good. Promise.”
Bobby pats him on the shoulder and sits down in Eddie’s lone armchair, caddy-corner to his son again.
Athena comes to stand at Bobby’s shoulder, and Eddie—after coming back through from the kitchen with a couple mugs of tea for them both—positions himself similarly behind Buck’s shoulder.
“Okay.” Buck begins, scrubbing his palms nervously over his knees. “I know what I want to do about…” he waves his hand around, “All this, and I hope there’s a way for us to both get what we want by the end.”
Bobby nods, and though he doesn’t take his eyes off his son, can see Maddie and feel Athena in his periphery nodding similarly.
He can also feel Athena squeeze his shoulder in comfort at the same time he catches Eddie’s hand flex on Buck’s.
“I don’t ever want to see them again.” he states. And the room holds its breath. “But I want you to have whatever closure you need.”
“What I need is my son safe and happy and with me again.” Bobby says immediately. “That’s all I’ll ever need, Buck.”
Buck nods, but there’s disappointment there. A minuscule amount, but it’s there. And Bobby panics.
“What is your best case here, Buckaroo?” Athena asks before Bobby can ask his son how he’s failed him again.
He looks up over his shoulder at Eddie, who smiles down on him so warm and encouraging. Buck looks back at them both, then turns briefly to hold his hand out for Maddie to take.
“In my head, we go back to St. Paul, go to the police and tell them what happened, that we found each other, that the case is closed; we go to the courts there—or come back and go here, that part doesn’t matter—they grant me a restraining order on them both, and I never see them again.
“Not even if you decide to take them to court later.” He shrugs, “I’ll just stay at home pretending they don’t exist.”
“And therapy.” Maddie and Eddie echo.
“For all three of us.” Maddie directs to Bobby.
Bobby’s tongue feels like it’s made of lead. There’s so much he wants to say, but he can’t. He just nods his head around like a bobblehead, praying that Buck can somehow hear his I’m with you. Anything you need, you can have it. You don’t ever have to think about those people again.
All he manages to eke out is “That’s a good plan.”
Thankfully, his wife is more than capable of speaking for them both. “I think that can easily be arranged. With a statement from Maddie on anything she knows from the time, your statement, Bobby’s… You shouldn’t have to be in the same state as them again in your life.”
Buck’s relief is palpable. Not only in the way he sags into the cushions behind him, but written over the planes of his burgeoning smile.
“Thanks ‘Thena.” Buck says.
“You’re welcome, baby.” Athena tuts, leaving her station at Bobby’s shoulder to pull Buck into a hug, the latter standing to meet her embrace.
Bobby similarly stands, pulling Buck to him and not letting him go until his tongue is un-tied enough again to tell his son he loves him.
- - -
Maddie departs not long after that; she and Buck agree with Athena on a time to come into the station and speak with an officer other than herself, something to bring to the offices in St. Paul if (when) they decide to make the trip.
She also takes the time to thank both Bobby and Athena, and to whisper something to her baby brother within an embrace of their own before she goes.
Eddie similarly departs, wandering into the kitchen with their groups’ mismatched mugs saying something about refills.
Bobby knows a space given when he sees it.
“There’s a couple more things I wanted to ask you.” Buck starts once Eddie is out of earshot, “I was worried about Maddie and Chim’s baby, what would happen with them and knowing I’d feel guilty robbing them of a relationship with their grandparents if you do decide to press charges.”
Something heavy drops into Bobby’s stomach again.
“I don’t—”
“I didn’t either,” Buck assures, “But I talked to Maddie about it and she wants nearly as little to do with them than me.”
He pauses a moment, then “But that means there will be a couple of vacant positions. Know of anyone who could fill in?”
There’s a brief moment of silence, then—because Bobby has had just about too much seriousness to last a lifetime in the last hour, in the last week—says, “Didn’t we already accept those positions when Chris came into your life?”
Buck’s face fills with color so fast, it’s almost hard to notice the slightly darker shade he turns when the sound of a mug shattering from the kitchen filters into the living room.
Athena, smooth as ever, says “I’ll go see if Eddie’s alright.” and makes her exit.
Bobby nudges Buck’s knee with his own. “Too far?”
Somehow, Buck’s face manages to get redder. “Uh n-no, no, you’re not…wrong…” he admits, quietly.
Laughing softly, Bobby puts his hands up in surrender, “In my defense, I have a lot of dad-isms to catch up on. Teasing my son about his crush is included in that.” he says, tone hushed as well.
Buck just rolls his eyes. “Ha. Ha. Ha.” he grouses.
After a few moments of listening to the low din of voices coming from the kitchen, Buck says. “There was one last thing I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Sure kid, what’s up?”
“If…” A pause. “If we do this—and if it’s okay with you, I mean—I’d like to go back to Ethan.”
Bobby’s heart jackrabbits nearly out of his chest.
“You…” He blinks away a sudden blurriness that fogs over his vision, “You want to?”
Buck shrugs—shrugs!—and says, “That’s my name, isn’t it?”
- - - - -
It’s been a long year for Ethan Nash.
If there was a court hearing a case with his and his father’s names listed on the documents whenever Bobby took a trip out of town, he was never the wiser. And liked it that way.
Otherwise: outside a trip to St. Paul where he and Bobby had gone together to a quiet cemetery (both of them for the first time), to a meeting with a friendly but very blunt chief of police, and the meticulous deflecting of the minimal amount of press that had put two and two together and caught up with them in California after a very basic announcement made by the same chief of police—he had also gained an adorable niece, a boyfriend, a restraining order, and a brand new name.
Unsurprisingly though, his long-held nickname had stuck. Eddie’s words to him after this had all come out made him more than okay with being Buck. Just Buck.
He was Ethan to Bobby, naturally, but Buck was his. It was his, it was Eddie’s, it was Christopher’s, it was Athena and Chim and Hen’s Buckaroo.
It was also—apparently—confusing.
Bobby had gotten into the habit of calling Buck Buck or Nash while on the clock and within the firehouse, but before a shift officially starts and the moment it ends, he is his father’s son, Ethan.
It doesn’t cause much confusion because of that unspoken rule, but you know what they say about rules.
“Ethan! You’re on engine maintenance as soon as you’re dressed!” Bobby calls down from the loft.
Buck, who had just finished tying his second boot, yells back out the locker room door, “On it Cap!”
Buck stands, shuts his locker, and meanders out into the bay to get a look at the engine.
Suddenly, a voice pipes up from behind him. “I thought your name was Buck?”
He turns, coming face to face with A-shift’s newest probie—on shift in Eddie’s place today for some godforsaken reason—someone Buck realizes was getting ready beside him not five feet ago.
Buck shakes his head, “My real name is Ethan.”
The probie doesn’t look any less confused. “So where did ‘Buck’ come from?”
Buck opens his mouth to reply, but there’s really no short way to explain it. What he lands on isn’t much better than any version of the story, though.
“It’s from my maiden name.” is what he settles on, which… “Wait. That’s not right. …Is it?” he asks, mostly to himself.
“The real question is which he’ll keep after Eddie finally gets the guts to propose.” Hen says, coming up to stand beside the probie, shooing them away back to their work—much to their apparent relief.
“H-Hen!” Buck complains, feeling his face flame to life. “How do you know I’m not going to be the one to propose, huh?”
Instead of answering, Hen just levels him with a Look, then turns her gaze to something just past his shoulder.
Before he can even turn, Buck feels his heart drop out through his ass.
Slowly, he turns.
There, kneeling beside the engine, is Eddie.
He’s on one knee, a small black box opened upright in his palm—but more importantly, there is a giggling 11-year-old standing beside him, holding tight to his father’s shoulder.
“H-hey Chris,” Buck breathes, “What’re you guys doing here?”
“Dad’s got something to ask you!” Chris teases, smiling almost too big to even get the words out.
Buck very pointedly turns his attention to Eddie. “Oh. Hey Eddie, Chris says you have something to ask me?”
His fake bravado in the face of Not Being Able To Breathe Right Now is going to be a favorite for the rest of the team after this, he can tell.
“Yeah, I suppose I do.”
“Yeah?”
Eddie nods, then asks him simply: “Ethan Nash—Buck, mi sol—you have always been and will always be the person for me. For us." he pauses, taking in a deep breath. "Will you marry me?”
In lieu of an answer, Buck finally un-sticks his feet from the concrete below him and meets Eddie as he stands, scooping an even more giggly Chris up with him into their embrace and holding them tight.
Cheers break out around them as Eddie breaks free from the embrace to slide Buck’s ring onto his finger, Chris breaks into fake gags as Buck pulls Eddie back into a kiss.
Suddenly, he pulls back, whirling around to point an accusatory finger at Hen.
“Da-arn it Hen! Now all I’m going to be thinking about is another fudging name change!”
look at me, actually managing to get a fic done in time for A Thing lmao
this ran away from me at multiple points and now i feel like it goes nowhere so 🤷♀️
(also i wanted an excuse to use @mythmagicetc's post somewhere bc i think that's HILARIOUS)
Summary: While Buck's back on his feet after the firetruck crushing his leg, he's not quite ready to be on his own, luckily, Bobby's there to help him through it, if he's willing to let him.
Buck and Bobby Week 2026 - Worry, "I told you I was fine."
Love Me bingo 2026 - Show Your Love Bingo: Cooking for them.
AO3
***
It’s only been a few weeks since the cast came off and Buck was beginning to learn how to walk again.
It was excruciating. Even just a few steps had him tired and exhausted.
He was irritable and tired all of the time, and despite having his own place, Bobby had insisted that he stay with him and Athena while he recovers and learns to walk again.
Unfortunately, that means he’s constantly around Bobby’s worrying.
At home, at PT, everywhere.
He’s not used to the constant caring and support. His parents used to care and yell at first, but not constantly as he recovered. They would treat him like it was his own fault after a while. Certainly, never had this level of support and he’s surprisingly irritated by it.
So, he tries to do things on his own.
Mainly, when Bobby isn’t home.
To prove to himself that he doesn’t need the hovering, that he can do everything on his own.
Only, somehow, his attempt to make dinner for the Grants and Bobby for when they get home had somehow landed him on his ass in the middle of the kitchen with a loud thump.
The worst part is that he knows it’s his fault for not leaning on the crutches because they were getting in the way, and he couldn’t easily cook with them.
He winces as he realizes that he’s not sure how he’s going to get up. There’s nowhere to grab and his leg is throbbing.
Fuck.
It’s good thing he can reach the burners and turn them off, so he doesn’t burn down their home.
Once that’s done, he looks around. Maybe if he could shuffle to a chair or something, he could make it look like he got the ingredients out but decided to wait for Bobby to cook like usual. Plus, the chair would be easier to get into.
At least, theoretically, right?
***
It takes way too long before he even gets to the closest chair. Though, it’s easy enough for him to move it out from the table. Once it’s in a position he could reasonably get into, he’s reminded that he can’t do this one-legged. He can barely bend his knee right now, and he can’t really lift himself on one leg.
Unfortunately, after three tries it becomes apparent that he can’t do this on his own.
He groans and pulls out his phone… he’s going to have to call Bobby for help.
***
Bobby should’ve known better than to let Buck stay alone, but now that he’s somewhat on his feet, he’s trying to be more independent, even if it hurts him and going beyond what he can easily manage.
He’s so busy trying to prove himself that he’s going to end up putting his recovery back.
“I knew better than to leave you alone,” Bobby huffs as he helps him to his feet and into the chair.
“I told you I was fine,” Buck grumbles.
“You’ve been on the floor for the better part of an hour because you were fine,” Bobby retorts as he moves to the island to begin cooking dinner.
“Just because I couldn’t get up doesn’t mean that I wasn’t fine,” Buck replies, petulantly. “And I wanted to cook you dinner.”
Bobby hums. “As much as I appreciate that, kid, it’s best you say off your feet, clearly.”
Buck huffs, crossing his arms and looking a little like a teenager that isn’t getting his way.
He lets the silence reign between them for a few minutes before he sighs as he begins to work on whatever stew that Buck had planned. Buck will come to realize that Bobby just cares and worries but mainly cares and learn to listen to him.
“I just – you don’t have to worry so much,” Buck offers after ten minutes of Bobby chopping. “I’m fine – a grown man.”
“That can’t walk because he went through a traumatic event that nearly cost him his leg,” Bobby counters. “You’re lucky to be alive, Buck. And I’d rather you take it easy and let me take care of you than come home to find you trying too hard and unable to get up.”
“I was perfectly fine on the floor,” Buck offers.
Bobby gives him an annoyed look. “What if there had been a fire?”
“Adrenalin,” Buck says, grinning smugly. The look Bobby gives him makes look away. “Or not.”
Bobby takes a deep breath, focusing on the meal he’s cooking. He knows (or suspects based on the fact that he hasn’t even heard from Buck’s parents and Bobby knows they’re alive) that his parents clearly don’t care about Buck. It’s possible that he’s just rebelling because he’s used to being on his own.
But Bobby does care. He cares a lot, and he doesn’t want this kid – his kid – to get hurt worse than he already is, especially not because he’s trying to prove himself. He’s already proved himself to Bobby. Bobby knows what he’s capable of, and he’s very proud of him.
He just… needs to take it easy.
“Alright, kid,” Bobby says, finally looking at him instead of the stew. “I know that you might not be used to someone caring about you and caring for you like this, but I do care. And I know that you’re very capable of taking care of yourself, but … wasn’t it you that said … maybe ask for help sometimes?”
Buck looks away. “That was for your addiction issues. This is different.”
“It’s another struggle, kid,” Bobby offers. “Yours is just physical instead of mental.”
“I guess that’s true,” Buck concedes. “I just – I wanna get out of your hair. I feel bad, you and Athena just got married and –”
“And we both want you here,” Bobby interrupts. “You’re my kid, maybe not in blood, but didn’t you used to call me Pops? Maybe you took to heart what I said about us not being a family, but let’s be real here, you managed to worm your way into my heart, and we are a family and family takes care of each other.”
There’s a soft look in Buck’s eyes, and it’s clear that despite feeling that way about Bobby (he’s sure), he never expected that Bobby felt the same way.
“You know that you’re important to me, right, Buck?” he asks, softly.
“I guess I do, now,” Buck says, looking away. “I just – it’s hard, you know?”
Bobby comes over to him and gives him a hug, which is awkward with Buck in the chair. “I know it’s hard to let people take care of you, but I want to take care of you and help you get better. Will you let me help you?”
“Only if you promise me that someday you’ll let me take of you,” Buck retorts.
Bobby smiles. “I’ll let you cook for me for a month after you’re all clear from the doctors and won’t fall over in the middle of my kitchen.”
greatest fears, and wringing hands and the loudest silence
written for @buckandbobbyweek prompts: hospital and worry
rating: teen word count: 4,078 relationship: evan 'buck' buckley & bobby nash, may grant & bobby nash
additional tags: episode: s06e11 in another life (9-1-1 tv), bobby nash needs a hug, worried bobby nash, pov bobby nash, mentioned margaret buckley and phillip buckley, mentioned marcy nash, emotional hurt, buck and bobby week 2026 (9-1-1 tv)
summary:
“We have to believe Buck’s gonna be ok,” Bobby puts a hand on Eddie’s shoulder as they pass each other in their pacing.
He’s trying to comfort his team—be strong for them because that’s his job as their captain—but how can he be there for them when he doesn’t even believe the words he’s saying? They don’t know that Buck will be ok. He was dead for three minutes and seventeen seconds, that’s not nothing. There’s no way to know what damage the lightning strike caused internally until they do tests and there’s a real chance Buck won’t come out of this.
—
Exploring a little of the aftermath of Buck’s lightning strike from Bobby’s POV. Fic title from Call Your Mom by Noah Kahan
Summary: On the one-year anniversary of Buck getting Theo after the accident, Bobby teaches Buck about a Nash Family Tradition that he can now be a part of.
Buck and Bobby Week 2026 - Traditions, Family and "I knew you could do it."
AO3
***
Buck could admit that he’s… been a little uncertain over the last year of being a parent. He never expected to get custody of the bio-son he shared with Kameron. Always intending to be a bit more hands off – he’s Connor’s son, not his – and stay Uncle Buck, but things happened, chaos ensued and somehow, he became a dad.
A dad to a wonderful chaotic and fun little boy. A little boy that looks so much like him that everyone jokes he’s clearly a mini-Buck.
It was a world-wind decision to end up with Theo, but he couldn’t let him go to strangers.
And thankfully, he had his own pseudo-dad to help him out.
“Are you ready to learn a new family tradition?” Bobby questions, as he nudges Buck away from staring at Theo, who’s happily playing with Jee and Kevin in the yard. He had volunteered to watch them today to give Theo a chance to play with his cousins, forgetting about his and Bobby’s plans for the day.
Luckily, Athena had been more than happy to watch over them, while they’re distracted. Since she clearly knew that whatever Bobby had planned for the two of them wouldn’t easily allow for them to keep an eye on the kids.
The smirk on her face when she showed up with Bobby had him, admittedly, curious and a little bit concerned, but Bobby was smiling, so he knows that at the very least it’ll make him happy.
“Yes, but I’m still not sure what the tradition could possibly be. Haven’t I learned all of your family recipes?” Buck teases, even though he knows that Bobby’s got multiple books of family recipes that he hasn’t come close to learning.
“Not even close and for once it doesn’t have to do with cooking,” Bobby offers as he gestures for him to sit on his own couch, in his own house.
Then, he brings out a gift bag when Buck looks at him, expectantly.
“Uh, it’s not my birthday,” Buck says as Bobby hands it to him.
“Yes, but it’s been one year since you took in Theo, and while usually it’s on the baby’s first birthday, this family tradition can apply here, too,” Bobby tells him. “Open it.”
Buck gives him a look but opens the present. Inside is an easel, a canvas and paints.
“Uh, I’m … not a painter?” Buck asks, slowly. He can’t imagine why Bobby would gift him this.
Bobby laughs. “You weren’t a cook when we met either.”
Buck makes a face. “You’re going to teach me how to paint? In a day?”
“No. The tradition is for you to make a complete mess of a family portrait – in this case, of you and Theo, and then, every year after, you make another portrait and eventually get better,” Bobby says, with a teasing grin that suggests that if he’s been doing this that it wasn’t nearly as good as he’s pretending it is.
Buck laughs. “Have you been doing the same with May and Harry and Athena?”
Bobby shakes his head, pulling up something on his phone. “No, but the first year after we met, after I realized that I … looked at you as more like my son than I probably should have.”
He offers his phone which has portraits of Bobby and Buck that Bobby’s clearly painted… poorly.
They haven’t gotten terribly better, but there is a slight improvement. Still, despite this, there’s a warmth that spreads through his belly at the thought that Bobby’s been doing this of them because he considers them family.
It’s even better than the family recipes, even if the paintings suck.
Buck laughs and shakes his head. “And this is something your dad did?”
“Believe it or not, he wasn’t always a drunk that didn’t really care. For years, he was a decent father,” Bobby offers. “At least he was better than Philip.”
“Anyone’s better than Philip,” Buck retorts, but the point was made. Clearly, this is something Bobby really wants for them. A family tradition of painting. “Alright, I will give it a try.”
“Good. Then, let’s get started.”
***
There’s laughter that draws their attention when he’s nearly finished with his rather pitiful painting.
“Athena!” Bobby hisses, giving her a look that does nothing to quell her laughter.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I know I wasn’t supposed to peek, but wow, that’s on your level, Bobby,” Athena offers, causing Buck to huff.
“I’ve never painted before, and I wasn’t expecting this,” Buck counters. “It’s one thing to learn how to cook, but I clearly have no artistic talent.”
Bobby gives Athena an annoyed look before he says, “No, kid, look. Cooking is kind of artistic. You just need time. Every year, you’ll get better, I promise.”
“I don’t know if I wanna do this every year when I suck at it,” Buck retorts.
“It’s tradition,” Bobby counters. “And believe me, you’ll be good at it in no time.”
“I doubt it.”
“Just wait, you’ll see.”
***
It takes the better part of five years of secretly painting so that Buck wasn’t just doing it once a year (practice makes perfect after all), but by the time he’s celebrating Theo’s tenth birthday, he’s gotten pretty good at painting.
And Bobby’s pretty damn proud of him.
He smiles as he sees Buck’s most recent family portrait of him and Theo.
“See, I knew you could do it,” Bobby says, proudly.
Buck hums, smiling back at his portrait which is a thousand times better than it had been the first time.
“Thanks, Bobby, I’m glad you like it.”
“I’d like it even if it was as bad as my paintings,” Bobby offers with a teasing grin.
Buck laughs. “Well, I couldn’t suck it up that bad, but your belief in me certainly helps.”
“I’ll always believe in you, kid.”
“Good.”
He gives him a hug and kisses the top of his head. “Come on, it’s time to put on dinner. You and me – another family tradition?”
Additional tags: Bobby Nash is Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parent, Athena Grant and Bobby Nash are Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parents, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Adopted Evan "Buck" Buckley, Established Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz, Buck and Bobby Week 2026 (9-1-1 TV), Buck & Bobby Week, Cooking Lessons, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Domestic, Domestic Fluff
For: @buckandbobbyweek 2026: Day 3 - Traditions + Family + "I knew you could do it."
Summary:
"Yeah." He has to clear his throat as he is overwhelmed by emotions, good emotions. "And I've always wanted to teach my kids how to cook them for something, someone, special."
Bobby and Buck, anniversary recipes, and feelings.
Author's Note: At first, this one wasn't the one I had planned, but then I remembered an AU I want to write, and so I might do it one day… We'll see. At least here we go, and we have some context clues about how they became a family. Should I write this AU?
"Hey, Pops!" Buck exclaims as Bobby opens the door.
"Hey, Kid," Bobby greets him back, opening the door further to let the younger man in. "You know you could have used your key."
"Ah. Yeah," Buck smiles sheepishly. "Forgot it at home."
Bobby chuckles silently and shakes his head fondly, letting the door close.
"Come on, we have a lot of work." The captain puts a hand on the firefighter's shoulder to guide him to the kitchen.
Buck smiles widely. "So, what are we doing?"
"Patience, child," Bobby answers, laughing when the kid pouts. "First, I need coffee. Do you need one?"
Buck turns around, brows furrowed and worries painting his face.
"You're okay, Dad?" Buck feels cold running down his spine. "You're tired? You didn't sleep well? Sick? Nightmares? We can-"
Bobby cuts him off by holding up a hand, then handing him his own cup of coffee. The kid tends to get too worried easily when it comes to his adoptive parents.
"Kid, I'm fine. Everything is fine." Bobby tells him before taking a sip of his coffee. But when Buck doesn't seem reassured, he sighs. "Let's just say that Athena and I had… a… a late night."
Buck hears the hesitation in his father's voice. He knows that he's not telling him the whole truth, but can't understand why. He studies Bobby with narrowed eyes, truly looking at his reaction. Wait, Bobby is blushing? Why would he be blushing?
Oh. Oh God.
"Ew!" His eyes widen. "Ew, I did not need to know that. Nope."
Bobby rolls his eyes at his son's over-the-top reaction. Still, he has to admit that he's slightly embarrassed.
"What is it that I hear, Buckaroo?" Athena asks, smirking, as she enters the kitchen. "This is a natural adult thing to do. Even for your old folks."
Buck fake-gags but laughs when Athena playfully smacks his arm, and he fails to dodge.
"Hey, Ma." He finally says once he's calmer.
"Hey, Sweetheart," she smiles softly and kisses the top of his head. "How are you?"
Buck shrugs and nods toward the ingredients on the table. "Well, Pops doesn't want to tell me what we're doing today." He turns to his mother, giving her his best puppy eyes. "Do you know?"
Athena chuckles, "Of course I know. But I won't tell you."
Buck pouts and crosses his arms. Bobby thinks of the teenager he met all those years ago on the road, and a wave of warmth and love submerges him.
"Well, you just need to wash this," he orders, giving Buck his mug. "Your hands, and we'll start."
Buck sighs but makes his way to the sink. "Fine."
Athena smiles fondly at her husband and eldest. "I have a spa day with Hen." She kisses her Bobby. "You boys stay out of trouble."
"No promises, Ma." Buck winks at her and laughs.
Once the dishes are done, and both men have washed their hands, and Athena is gone, Buck is buzzing with anticipation. Bobby takes his time to make his way to the table, looking at each ingredient, before looking up at Buck, who clearly understands his game.
"Pops, come on, suspense is killing me." The kid whines.
"Alright, alright." Bobby chuckles. "So, today we're making lobster thermidor and profiteroles."
Buck studies the table, deep in his thoughts, already focused on the task to come. "Those are pretty difficult recipes."
Bobby hums, "They are. But you can do it, I know that."
Big, curious eyes look back at him. "Really?"
"Of course." There's no doubt about that, plus Buck often surpasses the master lately. "Now come on, let's go to work."
They put on some music and start working on the main dish. Cooking with Bobby, learning new recipes from his dad, this is one of Buck's favorite things in the world. They always work well together, but here in the kitchen, this is something else. They're in sync; they don't even have to look at each other for some tasks. Plus, when he started his cooking lesson with Bobby, Buck discovered a new side of himself.
"So, why those recipes?" Buck asks while cutting some vegetables.
"You said that you wanted to do something special for you and Eddie's anniversary."
Buck feels himself blush a little; he also feels giddy. He looks at his dad and nods, a small smile on his lips.
"Yeah," he breathes out. "I mean, it's already been a year. Can you believe it?"
Bobby smiles. Sometimes, he can't believe that it's been a year. Sometimes he can't believe that the man who is standing in front of him, this incredible, kind, and awesome man, is the same kid he found on the side of the road all those years ago.
"I know." He leans against the counter to look at his kid, who is now blushing, but the smile he's wearing is worth everything. "I'm really happy for both of you. It took you long enough."
Buck snorts but doesn't argue. He knows his dad is right, after all, he has had paperwork ready for them once they announce their relationship.
"And well," Bobby continues, and there's something in his tone that makes Buck stop cutting to look at him. "It's what I did for my anniversary with Marcy and with Athena."
"Oh." It's all Buck is able to whisper. This means so much to him. Well, it already meant a lot, but now, even more. "Really?"
The kid's voice is soft and low; he looks and talks to Bobby with some deference, like the older man just gave him the Secret of the Universe.
"Yeah." He has to clear his throat as he is overwhelmed by emotions, good emotions. "And I've always wanted to teach my kids how to cook them for something, someone, special."
Buck's eyes are now shiny, and Bobby… well, Bobby's eyes might be mirroring his son's. He's about to add something when suddenly his arms are full of his six-foot-tall kid.
"Thank you, Dad," Buck says, his face buried in his father's shoulder. "That means so much to me."
Bobby holds his son tightly and kisses the top of his head. They don't always share big emotional hugs like that. Yes, they hug or touch, because Buck has always been a tactile child. But not like that.
"Of course, kid." His voice is muffled by the kid's hair. "Of course."
After a moment, the two men break the hug. Buck sniffs and chuckles. "We don't need to tell our respective partners about…" he gestures to his face, "well, that."
Bobby laughs and shakes his head. "Actually, Thena told me that we would probably cry once I tell you why I was teaching you this recipe."
Buck chuckles and goes back to his cutting. "Of course she did. Ma is too smart for us."
They go back to their cooking in a comfortable silence, music playing softly in the background, when Bobby takes his turn to ask a question.
"You told me that you already had a starter."
Buck shakes his head energetically, and he grins. "Yeah. I'm making some bean and cheese taquitos. Eds' favorites from when he was a kid." He chuckles at the memory of what Pepa had told him. "Actually, there was a summer during which he refused to eat anything other than that. Pepa actually lost this one battle. She taught me how to do them perfectly."
Bobby glances at his son and only feels pride and happiness at how happy and relaxed Buck looks. He and Eddie are truly perfect for each other.
"So between that and the ring, I hope Eddie will love the night."
Ah, yes, the ring they went shopping for together with Maddie. What Bobby doesn't tell him is that Eddie asked for his, Athena's, and Maddie's blessing last week because he wanted to propose on their anniversary.
'They truly are the perfect match.' Maddie had said once Eddie had excused himself to the toilet, probably to gather himself after all the stress. As if they would have said no.
"I'm sure he will." Is all Bobby says, and he's rewarded by Buck's megawatt smile.
Once everything is done and the lobster is ready, they set the table to finally eat. Buck serves his dad and sits 'ext to him, waiting for him to tell him how it is. Bobby takes a bite, and slowly a smile draws itself on his lips.
"That's delicious, kid." He says, and Buck can see the pride in his father's eyes. "I knew you could do it."
Summary: Bobby will admit that it took him far too long to notice. He should have seen it much sooner, but… well, to be honest, from a certain perspective not much changed. Buck has always helped people, especially people he loves. That’s just who he is. It’s normal to see him walk into a room holding treats he picked up for them just because he noticed someone was down. It’s normal for the group chat to text him first when they need something picked up or fixed. If he doesn’t know how to do something, odds are he’ll know by the end of the day if it helps take some of the pressure off of any of them. Buck is just good that way.
But Bobby will probably be kicking himself for months to come for not noticing how much Buck’s own goodness was coming back to hurt him. And yeah, it took far longer than it should have for that to become clear for Bobby.
OR, Bobby notices that Buck is working himself to the bone to make their family happy, but steps in just a little too late.
Word count: 1 chapter, 4,208 words
LINK
Day 4 for @buckandbobbyweek 2026!! This was an idea I’ve had for ages and only now got around to writing and I like how it came out
Buck and Bobby week @buckandbobbyweek - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
