From Intern to Family | 9-1-1 Fanfic

Chapter 28

"Coop, come grab some lunch." Bobby called out. I turned away from my paperwork and gave him an awkward smile.

"I'm okay thanks- still full from breakfast." I admitted. They turned to me with surprised faces and I openly rolled my eyes. Since living with Buck and Eddie, they had both been adamant about getting me to eat breakfast.

Apparently having three meals a day was important. Who knew?

Eddie walked behind the sofa and drifted a hand over my curls as he went, making something warm shift in my chest. "Maybe just a small portion, yeah?" He offered.

The pair had been a lot more affectionate than before as if something in our dynamic had changed. I wasn't exactly sure how I felt about it yet, but I hadn't told them to stop. It wasn't so bad, I guess.

As Eddie requested, mainly because he was a mother hen when he wanted to be, I grabbed a small portion of pasta and joined the others at the table.

"How's it been?" Hen asked kindly, directing her question to me. I gave her a small smile, ignoring the guys grinning at me.

"I guess they're okay." I teased, laughing when Buck flicked a bit of pasta in my direction. Bobby quickly scolded him, insisting that he was a grown man who shouldn't play with his food.

The atmosphere continued to grow livelier and I took great fun in messing around with Chim beside me. "Don't forget Carla's picking you up soon with Chris. She's got to go grab some things before she'll drop you both home." Buck explained and I huffed.

"She doesn't have to. I told you guys I'm perfectly fine by myself." I argued. They didn't like the idea of me walking back to the house alone because my shift ended before theirs. What they couldn't understand is that I'd done it a million times before.

Unfortunately, it was two against one. They were lucky I liked Carla.

The siren went off halfway through the meal and I refrained from laughing when they complained. I finished up my food, realising that I was hungrier than I thought, and started clearing up some of the dishes.

Some of the paperwork I had been working on was harder than I thought, which made me a lot happier than I thought it would. It meant that Bobby was giving me tricker stuff to do. Which meant he trusted me and that was something I never imaged happening.

"Cooper!" A familiar voice called.

Quickly, I scooped up the paperwork and dumped it into my backpack. "Hey guys." I greeted, jogging down the stairs. They greeted me with wide smiles and Chris leaned forward to give me a hug.

Since living with him, Chris and I had gotten to know each other a lot more. He was a great kid and his bubbly personality was hard to dislike, and we seemed to click really well. It felt like I was getting the little brother I always wanted. Not that I'd tell anyone that, though.

We got into Carla's car and I listened to Chris talk about his day. I chimed in a couple times when he asked me a question about the firehouse, but I was pretty happy to let him talk.

"Are you boys still okay if I grab something before I get you home?" Carla checked and we both voiced our agreement.

I noticed her smiling in her mirror, watching us with a fond look. Chris seemed oblivious, so I did my best to avert my eyes.

A car honked nearby and I peered out the window, assuming it was typical city drivers. Then, a few more horns sounded and my brow furrowed in confusion.

We were on the middle of the bridge, but the cars seemed to be stuck in a standstill. I glanced down, noting the quiet motorway below. It wasn't often that the motorway was quiet, but I guess it wasn't rush hour just yet.