Bobby always had the best advice when it came to grief. Having lived through so much himself, he was someone who truly understood what it was like to lose his loved ones.
But who was Eddie supposed to go to when Bobby was the one he was grieving?
He couldn’t go to Buck, not when he was grieving the father he should have had. The man he never directly told just how much he meant to him.
The rest of the team was grieving just as hard. He didn’t know what to do.
He won’t fall back into fighting, that’s not a thought that’s even crossed his mind. But it was Bobby who had spoken to him back then. Mad him realise the anger he still had towards Shannon for leaving despite her not having a choice.
He’s angry at Bobby now, for leaving like this. He’d already had a close call the last year, it wasn’t fair. It wasn’t something they thought would actually happen.
This wasn’t 14 minutes, this was permanent.
How dare he leave so suddenly. When Eddie’s already struggling with so much change in Texas. How dare he leave them all like this. Suddenly, painfully. How dare he not say goodbye.
He didn’t have time. He didn’t know. But it doesn’t matter. Eddie is angry. Angry at Bobby, angry at the world, angry that all his closest friends, his support are hurt just as badly. He doesn’t know how he’s supposed to deal with this.
He leaves the funeral quickly, sits in his rental car and realises he doesn’t have a place go. He doesn’t have a house here. He could go to a hotel but his mind feels so foggy right now he doesn’t want to have to deal with that.
The door to his car opens and Buck sits in the passenger seat without warning. He doesn’t say anything, just sits there with him.
It’s cloudy but it’s not raining. For some reason that makes Eddie mad too. It’s like the sky is holding itself back, he just wants there to be a release.
Buck starts tapping out a nonsense tune on the dashboard, never quite able to keep his hands still. Eddie finds the noise comforting and familiar and he slumps against his seat, clenching his eyes shut. He rubs at his face, surprised when his hand comes back wet with tears. He’s not sure when he started crying. Maybe he never stopped.
“Y-you wanna sleep—sleep on my couch?” Buck asks suddenly.
Eddie swallows, nodding a few times. “Yeah, okay.”
He’s not sure how they’re supposed to deal with it. Not sure if they can. But he’s not alone. He’s never alone. Not when Buck’s got his back.
