i spent my whole commute thinking about the way that as soon as eddie recovers from his initial surprise that buck came running into the hospital, buck wants to see the damage, and eddie switches directly into his Nobly Suffering schtick. evading eye contact. his little mm yeah as he acknowledges, yes. it’s going to be quite the shiner, that’s correct buck. he covers his black eye back up and is suddenly subtly playing up how injured he is now that buck here in a way he was NOT doing at all with athena and alex before he arrived??? eyes closed, faint grimace, he’s so tortured for a solid 2 second beat. eddie 100% wanted buck to fuss over him you can’t convince me otherwise. which makes it even funnier that, instead of any of that, buck’s like. good news. this is totally marketable. sex sells eddie! :) and eddie who literally wanted to play a lead role in your local hurt/comfort tag on ao3 is like. wait no. betrayed. :(
Eddie doesn't turn around when Buck bursts through the front door. He hardly makes any indication at all that he noticed Buck is home. He just hums a weak acknowledgement of Buck's existence that barely carries over from the kitchen and continues reading the newspaper. The physical actual newspaper that he gets delivered to the house. Buck wants to roll his eyes, but it's no fun if Eddie doesn't see.
"I'm back." Buck says, bouncing on the balls of his feet. The leftover adrenaline from his run pumping his blood fast and hard. Eddie sits frustratingly still at the kitchen table. His feet are kicked up on the chair across from him. Buck has the urge to kick it out from under him. Send him reeling a little bit, put that angry indignant look he saves just for Buck on his face.
Eddie continues to ignore him entirely as Buck slips out of his shoes and makes his way up behind his back. He merely flicks to the next page of the paper and sips at his coffee. Buck briefly reconsiders his plan of attack. Eddie looks so peaceful, so relaxed in the late morning light spilling in from the window over the sink. But he also hasn't so much as glanced in Buck's direction and there's a piece of Buck that is rattling around in his ribcage begging for Eddie for to put it back into place.
He decides he will start slow, offer Eddie an easy way out. He tells himself he will settle for a good morning or a kiss on the cheek or a firm hand wrapped around the back of his neck. And then he can let Eddie go back to whatever is so enrapturing about the sports section.
Buck leans over and drops his arms over Eddie's shoulders and locks them together around his chest. He buries his nose in the sensitive crook of Eddie's neck, just beneath his jaw. "Hi," Buck breathes.
Eddie's shoulders tense under Buck's weight. He tilts his head away from where Buck is now grazing his teeth along the muscle of his neck.
"Mm," Eddie hums. Noncommittal, not pushing him away, but not enough to satisfy.
"Whatcha doin?" Buck draws out the words. His lips brushing against the stubble of Eddie's jaw as they move.
"Well." Eddie says, annoyed. Buck smiles. "I was trying to read."
"You're not anymore?" Buck takes Eddie's earlobe between his teeth and Eddie pulls away. Buck likes that almost as much as when he leans in. Eddie plants his feet on the ground and drops the paper onto the table. He's still facing the other way, but Buck has his full attention now. It washes over him, warm and thrilling.
"You smell gross." Eddie complains.
"You like it."
The tips of his ears are turning red. That's almost as good as being able to see the look that Buck knows must be on his face. Eyebrows turned down, mouth set firm, but with a dark blush on his cheeks that would give him away.
"You should go shower." Eddie squirms under Buck's hold and Buck loosens his grip. Relieving the pressure for a moment only to double down again. Eddie makes a strangled noise of complaint as Buck licks a stripe up the side of his neck. He really does pull away this time, staggering up out of his chair to face Buck.
He looks every bit as flushed and exasperated as Buck could have hoped. His arms are held out waiting to grab Buck if he makes a move for him. Buck can feel the grin that's splitting his face grow wider, taunting.
"Buck." It's a warning. And Buck knows with a certainty that he is going to do whatever it takes to get Eddie to say it again.
He lunges at Eddie, and Eddie dodges him easily, jumping around the corner of the table out of his reach.
"Knock it off." Eddie says as if Buck can't see the smile he's got tucked in the corner of his mouth.
"Make me." Buck locks their eyes together, drinking in the way Eddie looks back.
Buck moves again, but Eddie pounces as soon as he does and now Buck is on the defense. He's stumbling backwards into the living room and tripping over the edge of the rug. Eddie launches himself forward to grab Buck. He holds him by the arms and steadies him so he doesn't fall before bullying him back a few steps and shoving him backwards. His knees buckle over the arm of the couch and suddenly he's on his back, pinned into the couch cushions by Eddie's solid weight.
Eddie holds him there as they both breath into one another. The physical pressure of his body and the weight of his gaze, his undivided attention, settle Buck back into place inside himself. Like Eddie is thunking his heart back into the right rhythm. Buck exhales and it comes out different than before. Slower, easier.
"Better?" Eddie asks. His breathing is slowed to, matching Buck's pace.
"Almost." Buck strains upward, lifting his head as much as he can towards Eddie's. Eddie meets him in the middle and presses a kiss to his lips. Soft at first, but he guides Buck's head back down with an insistent push of his lips.
"Mmm," Buck mumbles, not even sure what he's trying to say.
Eddie keeps him there a moment. He kisses in an unhurried, but very persistent way that has Buck chasing every movement. But too soon, he's pulling away again.
"Go shower." Eddie kisses him again, lighter this time. Once, twice, and then he's gone. Buck lays there for a while with a dopey grin on his face. "Come find me after." Eddie calls from where he's settled back at the kitchen table.
snowghoul
2087
vaporwave
