Transfer to Help Himself

Chapter 17- Buck the Loveable

It had been two days since the trial and Maddie's outburst. The 126 were on their way back to Austin, with Buck promising to video call Eddie when he was back. Carlos had left after dropping TK and Buck off at Eddie's as he had a shift the next day, but TK videoed Chris hugging Buck and dragging him to make a fort. Then showed how Chris made Eddie and TK stand outside the fort as guards while he and Buck watched movies. The night had passed with Eddie taking the couch, allowing Buck and TK to sleep in his bed. Chris was happy to meet Buck's partners and asked if they would be a part of their video calls. Carlos couldn't promise anything as his shifts were inconsistent with Buck and TK's but TK was overjoyed that Chris had wanted him to join in.

Buck was ready to go back home. Nothing good was left for him in L.A. except for his friends. There were almost no good memories. Whenever they were in public, people stared at Buck. It got to the point where his team had surrounded him anytime they went out, as to keep attention off of him. Judd was always the one who was in front of Buck, his size itself able to place fear into those who tried to ask Buck questions. The only reporter that had gotten through and did nothing but hug Buck was an ex-fling, Taylor Kelly. Buck knew of her past and found himself being able to confide in her when everything was going down. She was the only person who listened. She expressed that she had tried to get her station to let it go, but they wouldn't listen and had told her that it was the biggest story they would ever get. Buck understood and told her it was ok. She watched him get back into the truck with TK behind him, the rest following.

The ride back to Austin had been laced with laughter after Mateo had snuck a piece of cake into the cab and had sent the cake flying when they went over a bump a little too fast. The cake had landed on Judd, who wiped some of it on Paul. Marjan had recorded the whole incident from the moment Mateo pulled the slice out and had posted it. Owen was laughing at his family and told them they would have to clean the truck when they got back. Buck had rested his head on TK's shoulder and was listening to a true crime podcast. True crime had quickly interested Buck and he found a podcast called Morbid, which went over unsolved crimes and other true crime instances. TK was on the phone with Carlos just chatting about random things. It didn't take long for them to fall silent as it was late at night, and they were tired. Buck and TK had fallen asleep first with Carlos still on the video call. Marjan took a picture of them and found a blanket that TK had kept in there and covered them up. Mateo, who was calming down, had put his trash in the bag he kept on him and fell asleep against the window. The rest followed, having been tired out from the interactions they had during the day.

They finally arrived back in Austin and pulled into the station. Everyone was happy to get out after that long drive. Buck had a little bit of difficulty getting out as his leg had decided to cramp up from being in one spot for too long, so TK helped him down. It felt nice to be back in Austin. It felt nice to be back home. They had one more day before their shift, so everyone went home to rest. Buck's jeep was still at the station, so TK took his keys, arguing that Buck needed to rest his leg instead of driving, and drove them home. Owen had gone to the store because they were out of a few things, so TK and Buck had the house to themselves. The first thing either of them did was to take Buttercup out. Owen had left enough food and water for him, and he had a doggy door, so while the team was in L.A, Buttercup was taken care of. Tommy also had promised to visit the dog until they got back. Buttercup was ecstatic to see the two. Buck couldn't help himself from smiling when Buttercup jumped on him for love.

TK dragged Buck to the latter's room and told him to shower and change while TK did the same. Once that was done, TK laid on the bed and waited for Buck to come back. He was happy to video call Chris. It wasn't even a few minutes later that Buck came back. TK handed him the phone, "Call Eddie now. I want to see Chris." Buck laughed, "I think you're more excited than I am, and I don't even know how that's possible". Buck dialed Eddie's number and Eddie picked up.

"Home safe?"

"Yeah, TK forced me to take a quick shower so he could see Chris". Eddie laughed and called for Chris.

"Bucky! I knew you would call. I got up extra early so I wouldn't miss it!"

"That's true, He even had me waking up early."

Buck laughed at the kid. TK came into view and waved at Chris. "Sup know-it-all. Are you keeping your dad in check?" TK received a smack by Buck, a laugh from Chris, and a 'hey!' from Eddie.

"Yep! He was sad when Buck left because Bucky wasn't happy about what happened, but I reassured him that my Buck had you and Mr. Carlos".

"He sure does. Me and 'Los won't let anything happen. He's too loveable and adorable for that" TK pressed a kiss to Buck's cheek. The three of them had promised to take it slow, so they hadn't kissed Buck yet, only kissing his face and hands as an act of love and kindness. Buck pulled TK closer to him and hugged him. That was how Buck showed affection. He hugged people and never let go until the other was ready. If it was up to Buck, he would never let go.

"Ewwwww, grown up stuff. Dad, I think I'm ready"

Buck and Tk laughed at Chris' response and said their goodbyes. They just laid there, TK's head on Buck's chest and Buck holding him. It was like that for a good few minutes before they heard the door opening. Buck could tell by the sound of the footsteps that it was Carlos, but he didn't tell TK. Carlos knocked on Buck's door in a pattern that they came up with. It was different for each of them, Buck had thought that having different patterns would help in case someone knew and tried to come in. Carlos came in a few seconds later and took off his shoes before making Buck and TK scoot over. He laid down next to Buck, so they were in the exact same order as the first time they shared a bed. They had only been together for about 8 days, but with the level of comfiness they had in their friendship, it felt like forever.

TK finally noticed Carlos when he joined them. "Oh, hey 'Los. I thought you were on shift." Carlos kissed Buck's cheek and reached over and petted TK's head. "It was a night shift. I got off an hour ago, went home to change and then came here. I knew y'all would be in Buck's bedroom".

"My room is the homiest. TK's is too cluttered. It just feels nicer, and my bed's bigger." Buck replied before shutting his eyes. He was exhausted. Not just physically, but mentally. The trial and Maddie had drained him. Buck started to think about what Maddie said about Daniel. Was he really only there because he was supposed to be the saviour child? Why did his parents keep him if he failed? He was just a constant reminder of the child they lost, wasn't he? Carlos saw Buck's face shift from neutral to sad. Carlos knew what Buck was thinking about. The way Maddie had just dumped the information about their brother who Buck didn't even know about, would have made Carlos feel the same if he were in Buck's shoes. "What's going on in that pretty little head of yours, Buck?" he asked.

TK looked up at Buck and saw what Carlos meant. He had been worried about Buck ever since the Maddie incident, he was surprised Buck held it in for so long. "Just...why did they keep me around if I failed at the one thing I was brought into this world to do? Wouldn't I have just been a constant reminder of the child they lost? Why didn't they ever tell me?"

"B, I can't answer those questions but I can tell you this, even though you couldn't save your brother, you have saved millions of others. I don't agree with what Maddie said. You are not defective. You are not a disappointment. And we will drill it in your head if we need to." TK spoke up. He had propped himself up on his arms during Buck's monologue. "Ty's right, Buck. You are here and because of that, you have saved others. You saved those people during the tsunami. You saved Cassidy, the girl with CF during your first call. You saved those kids after the tornado..." TK interrupted Carlos, "...you saved me too... If it wasn't for you being here after I saw Mitchell, B, I'd probably have relapsed and maybe OD'ed. You kept me alive. You kept me safe, so now it's mine and 'Los' turn to help you." Buck was crying at this point. He still wasn't used to the compliments. "I know we said we would take it slow, but I think I'm ready for actual kisses... If the last 8 days has shown me anything, it's that you two will always be here for me and I'll always be here for you." Buck said through his tears.

TK was the first one to kiss Buck, seeing as how he was closer. It felt nice. It was slow and everything Buck had imagined. Carlos was next and he was gentle. Carlos had always been the gentle one, not a mean bone in his body until you threatened his family or his partners, and the gentleness shown through the kiss. Buck was happy, he was content. He finally found people who would love and accept him for who he was and would help him carry his baggage. He wished this day would never end.