Chapter Text
Things have been good for Buck these past few months. He's in a stable relationship, he's been helping his sister plan her wedding, and no catastrophic events have happened since the bridge collapse. It's been smooth sailing for eveyone since then.
He knew this peace was bound to be disturbed. It's just how things work, the ups and downs of life. But even then, even knowing... you're never prepared for what's around the corner.
The call came through when he was getting ready for a night out with Natalia. He came out of the bathroom and went to the kitchen to get his phone, screen lit up with a number he didn't recognize. It could be telemarketing... or it could be important.
"Uh, hello?"
"Good evening, is this Evan Buckley?" The femenine voice on the other end of the line sounded entirely too serious to be telemarketing.
"Yes, it's me. Who's this?"
"I'm Jessica, I'm from Social Services and I've been instructed to contact you in Connor and Kameron Jones' behalf."
"What? Why?" He could feel a knot forming in his stomach.
"Mr. Buckley, Mr. and Mrs. Jones were involved in a traffic accident..." Buck used his free hand to brace himself against the counter. No... Jessica must have heard his distress, because she dropped the professional tone. "It was a head-on collision and... and the front of their car ended up under the truck. They were pronounced dead on the scene. I'm sorry." Buck felt the air leave his lungs with a gasp, and slowly lowered himself to sit on the floor, back against the cupboard.
"Oh my god..." He whispered. "Is... Is the baby-"
"Aiden is okay." Jessica was quick to reassure him. "He was with a babysitter at the time of the accident, since both parents had to go to work." He felt some relief knowing at least Aiden was okay.
"What's, uh... What's gonna happen to him? Connor and Kameron didn't have parents or siblings. Will he go into the system?"
"That's actually the reason for this call. Since, as you said, the Jones didn't have any living relatives, they appointed a legal guardian for Aiden in case of their demise... and that's you, Mr. Buckley."
Buck's head is spinning. He has yet to fully assimilate the fact that his friend, and his friend's wife, who he helped through labor (to give birth to his biological son, mind you) not 6 months ago, are dead. And on top of that, now he's an actual... dad? He doesn't need to think it through, though. His friends are dead, and they trusted him with their kid, and he's going to take care of him. "I... okay, uh... what- what do I need to do?"
"I'll send you an e-mail with the details, I have your address. Please keep an eye on you inbox."
"I will, thank you. Goodbye."
Buck sits there for what must be an hour, staring into space, mind somehow going through a million thoughts and blank at the same time, because the next thing he knows someone is insistently knocking on his door. He looks at his phone, forgotten on the floor next to him, a string of Natalia's missed call notifications on the screen. Well, shit. He gets up and walks to the door, taking a breath before opening it.
Natalia has a questioning look on her face, and at least she doesn't seem to be too pissed at him. Her expression becomes more serious once she sees that Buck's not okay.
"Hi. I'm sorry." Buck says.
"What happened?"
"Come inside." Buck guides her to sit on one of the chairs and he does the same, and this is the same position they were in when Kameron came to his apartment months ago, and he feels like crying a little.
"Okay, a little scared now, what's going on?" She asks.
"I was about to go meet you when I got a call. Connor and Kameron... They're dead."
"Oh my god... How? And the baby?"
"Car crash. Aiden wasn't in it."
"Oh, thank god... I'm sorry, Buck."
"Yeah... They didn't call me just to let me know, though. Since there aren't any relatives to take care of Aiden, he's... he's coming with me."
He's not looking at her, his eyes are fixated somewhere in the space between them. He knows this may be a deal breaker but, honestly, whatever.
"What?" She says, a little too loud, unless he's imagining it.
"I... I guess I have a baby now. Or next week, or next month, I don't really know how long these things take-"
"Buck." She cuts him off. Now she seems pissed. "Don't you think we should talk about this before making any rushed decisions?" Her words are slow and calculated, and Buck knows she's trying not to snap.
He straightens up, looking at her in the eye, determined as he's ever been. "I'm doing this, Natalia. There is no question, and no discussion. These are my friends, who just fucking died, and chose me to take care of their son, who also happens to be my son. I'm doing this." He repeats. He keeps the eye contact, hoping she'll take it for what it means: can you accept it?
The answer comes quickly. "Well, that's that, then. Good luck, Evan." She grabs her purse and storms out, and it's been officially too much for one day, so Buck goes to sleep.
______
The next day, at the firehouse, he decides to tell everyone at the same time, at lunch. Buck's sitting next to Ravi, to Bobby's right, the captain on his spot at the end of the table closest to the kitchen. Hen and Chim are on the other side, and Eddie is on the other end, across from Bobby.
Buck clears his throat loudly to get their attention. "So... remember the whole sperm donor thing?" He says. It's not the best way to start, but he just wants to get this over with.
"Right now, Buck?" Chimney chuckles, his fork with spaghetti halfway between the plate and his mouth. The rest of them nod, and Buck continues.
"I got a call yesterday. Connor and Kameron died in a car accident and chose me to take care of their baby. So I'm gonna do it." He makes sure to get it all out quickly and clearly, he doesn't feel like dragging it out a second longer than necessary.
The clinking of cutlery stops, probably around "died", and now everyone is looking at him with matching frowns and wide eyes and slightly open mouths. It's a little comical.
"Buck, I'm so sorry..." Hen says. "If you need anything, you know i'm right here. I also have a ton of Denny's old baby things." She gives him a tight smile and Buck smiles back.
"What she said." Eddie says. "After all you've helped me with Chris all these years, I'll be happy to do the same for you." Buck wants to say that he loves Chris and he doesn't help with him as a favor to Eddie, but leaves it for a more private conversation.
"We all got your back, Buck. Don't doubt about asking for help, it takes a village." Bobby says.
"Maybe doubt about asking Maddie and me for help because, y'know, we have a toddler, plus wedding planning, so..." Chim half-jokes. Buck knows they are there for him but they're actually really busy so he's gonna avoid bothering them.
"I have no experience with babies and I suck with kids in general, so I won't be volunteering for babysitting duty, but I can buy you things." Ravi's disclaimer gets a laugh out of him. As much as he loves kids, he understand that not everyone does.
"Thank you. All of you." Buck says.
"Have you told Maddie?" Chim asks. "Because she's gonna be mad if she hears it from me."
"Yes, don't worry, I called her early in the morning." Buck answers.
"Have you told Natalia?" Asks Eddie.
All Buck has to do is make eye contact with him for Eddie to know exactly how it went. He tries to keep his disapproval to himself, but Buck can read it all over his face. Buck answers his question out loud anyway, for the others.
"We broke up. I told her that there was no discussing and no decision to make, that I'm doing this, and apparently she strongly disagrees."
There's a few seconds of silence after that. It almost seems longer than the silence after he said Connor and Kameron had died, which is ridiculous. Finally, Bobby puts a hand on his shoulder and tells him it's gonna be okay, and he allows himself to believe it. He's got a village.