The Nature of the Emergency (Evan 'Buck' Buckley X OC)

A day at the beach

It is the morning after the shift from hell. I lazily reach my hand across the bed to find Buck missing. It is at that moment that I notice the smell of bacon and egg. That can only mean one thing. Buck let me sleep while he cooked breakfast. The thought makes me smile as I drag myself out of bed. A part of me wants to head straight down for breakfast but the thing is I need to get ready for the day. After ten minutes I am finally ready enough for breakfast. Sure I am not completely ready but I know for a fact that we don't have work. Which means we can make the final preparations for the wedding. I will be glad when it is finally over.

"Morning Buck. Breakfast smells delicious," I remark as I join him in the kitchen.

"Morning sleepy head," Buck replies as he distributes the food.

"That's uncalled for. I'm surprised you didn't sleep in," I say as I glance at the clock. It's not too late but still. I was expecting it to be later in the day, not eight in the morning. Well given that our shifts normally start at six eight is a little late.

"I couldn't. Before you can ask I'm fine," Buck responds. At least it sounds like he is telling the truth. With that, we tuck in. I find myself being impressed. Buck really knows how to cook.

"So what are we going to do today?" I ask in between nibbles.

"Good question. It depends on you," Buck responds. Honestly, I don't know what to do. It is my first totally free day in a long time. Something comes to mind but I don't know if it is a good idea given our history.

"I think we should go to the beach," I tentatively suggest. Buck's eyes widened in horror at the suggestion. Yet he seems to consider it. After we finish off our meals I glance at Buck.

"Let's go," Buck announces.

"Well if you'll excuse me. I've got to change into my swimsuit just in case," I say as I head back to the bedroom. I quickly exchanged my casual wear for a bikini and my LAFD-issued T-shirt with some shorts. Before you can ask, the T-shirt and shorts are just to cover myself up just in case we don't get the courage to go into the water. While I wait for Buck I gather a couple of towels and some sunscreen. It doesn't take long for Buck to join me. He also has his LAFD-issued T-shirt on. The only difference is he has swim shorts on.

"Well if you're ready we should go," I say.

"Well let's go then," Buck responds even though he doesn't sound convinced that this is a good idea. I can't blame him. After the longest thirty-minute drive we made it to the beach. I skillfully park the car. As soon as we leave the car I tentatively drag Buck to the beach. Before you can ask we are by the Santa Monica pier. It doesn't take long for us to get settled.

"If it's alright with you Buck I'm going for a swim," I announce. Even if it wasn't I'm going to be ok with Buck I'm going to go. Buck nods. With that, I strip off my LAFD shirt and shorts. It doesn't take long for me to reach the water. I take a deep breath as the cold water nips at my toes. I push through it as I take myself deeper. It doesn't take long for me to get to a depth where I can actually swim. I take a deep breath before plunging into the water. It is at that moment that disaster strikes.

The next thing I know I am fighting to get to the surface. Come on Ella you can make it. I have to. For Buck and Christopher. As soon as I hit the surface I take a gulp of air. After a few seconds, I have my bearings.

"Christopher? Buck?" I yell at the top of my lungs.

After the briefest of moments of panic, I pull myself up to the surface to find that everything is relatively calm. After ten minutes of swimming and body surfing, I pull myself out. I am a little tired. The weird thing is that the tiredness is mental, not physical. I quickly make my way to Buck who looks relieved now that I am back. With a few swift movements, Buck passes me my towel.

"Thank you," I say as I get the tedious process of drying off. As soon as I am finished Buck shuffles over to make some room on his towel. With the newfound room, I sit down. I find myself leaning on Buck while he uses his free arm to give me a one-armed hug. After what feels like an eternity Buck shuffles from underneath me.

"Umm...do you mind if we go into the water together?" Buck asks as he goes for the invisible itch on the back of his neck. I know exactly why he is asking.

"No. I will just have to cover our stuff," I respond as we get up. I catch myself admiring Buck's form as he sheds his T-shirt. As soon as he drops it on the sand I offer my hand with a smile. He reluctantly takes it. With that, I drag him to the water. As soon as his toes touch the water his grip on my hand tightens. I can only imagine what he is thinking about. After a second of hesitation, Buck allows me to pull him to waist-deep water. I notice him flinch as the waves lazily hit his chest.

"Sorry I thought it was going to be easy," Buck apologises for some reason.

"Buck you went through hell that day. I'm not going to hold it against you. All I can do is be with you," I respond. After a second of hesitation on Buck's part I use my free hand to launch some water in his direction. He flashes me a playful death stare in my direction as he returns the favour. I try my best to shield my face with my free arm but it barely works. After an hour of messing about Buck and I are ready to leave however disaster soon strikes.

"SOMEBODY HELP PLEASE," A man screams. It is at that moment I notice a man who is flailing about with one arm. I assume he is trying to get the lifeguard's attention. Before Buck can say anything I take my shorts off. I am not going to bother with my shirt as it will delay me. In the case of drowning every second matters. I make a beeline for the man. As soon as I get deep enough I dive into the water.

"I'm sorry. We...we were on the pier then...and then the tsunami hit. Sorry Eddie I lost him," I collapse at the weight of what I just said. Eddie looks at me. I know the look on his face way too well. He is angry at me.

Come on Ella you have a job to do. I do my best to block out the barrage of flashbacks. Thankfully it didn't take long for me to make it to the man. I can see why he was screaming at the top of his lungs. A young kid similar in age to Christopher is barely alive.

"Sir, let me take the kid," I say.

"Ok. Make sure my son can get to shore," He gives in. I guess the effort would have drained his energy. I quickly took the kid. I lean on my back with the kid on my belly. Now for the hard part. As I get to work on getting the kid back to the shore I am joined by a familiar face. Buck has decided to help. He quickly does the same with the man. After a tense two minutes of paddling Buck and I made it back to the shore. Once we get ourselves clear of the water I get to work on checking on the kid. Luckily for us, the only thing wrong with the man is the fact that he is tired. I quickly place two fingers on the kid's neck while Buck calls 911. There is the faintest of pulses. There is just one problem. It is irregular.

"I'm starting chest compressions," I call out. It is something that I have to do until the paramedics get here.

"I'm sorry Alex. I should have kept a closer eye on you," The man is crying.

"Hey sir, it's going to be alright. Alex is in good hands. Besides, I called 911 and the paramedics will be here in two minutes," Buck gets to work on reassuring the man. After a minute of chest compressions, the kid comes to life as he coughs up a lung full of water.

"Dad?" The kid asks.

"I'm here Alex," The man is overjoyed that his son is going to make it. He soon turns his attention to us.

"How can I ever repay you?"

"You don't have to. We were just doing our job," I retorted. After a minute of waiting the paramedics finally arrive. After a few words with the kid's dad Buck and I leave. Well, what was supposed to be a relaxing day turned into an eventful one. The good thing is we have the rest of the day to relax and that is what I intend to do.