WARNING: Set in Season 3 range... After being put on blood thinners and the lawsuit... Buck/Eddie pairing... Innuendos at the end... Mild language... Enjoy!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Buck watched as Eddie got changed in a rush into basketball shorts and a t-shirt, and took off with his bag in tow. The man had been avoiding Buck ever since he started the lawsuit nonsense, but he kept coming to work looking exhausted and covered in bruises.

He had no idea if his coworker was in an abusive relationship or what was happening. He definitely did not trust the man's bogus excuses about wrestling with his kid or whatever lame-brain answer he decided to use. Given all that info, he was already changed, so he left, intent on following Eddie around until he knew the man was okay.

Eddie drove around Los Angeles for about an hour before heading to the abandoned warehouse where the illegal fighting would happen that night. He walked inside and got geared up for the fight; Buck was in the gathering crowd unbeknownst to him.

Buck watched in horror as his friend, since he still considered him a friend, took blow after blow. Somehow his opponent was getting the better of the army vet, and it looked like those blows were hurting a lot. He stepped up to the edge of the wall, where the fighters could easily see him.

"Kick his ass, Eddie!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, causing the man to whip around and lock eyes with the man helping make fighting a necessity. He couldn't figure out for the life of him why the other firefighter was there of all places; he had never noticed him in the crowd before.

"Turn around, you weak excuse of a man!" yelled his opponent before his fist hit Eddie in the side of the face hard enough to snap his head around and brought him to his knees, spitting a mouthful of deep red blood onto the ground.

"Get up! You got this!" Buck screamed loud enough to catch the attention of both fighters.

"Aw, is that your girlfriend, Diaz?!" his opponent taunted, sparking a renewed rage in Eddie that had him seeing red.

Eddie jumped up and headbutted the asshole in the face, causing him to drop to the ground unconscious. That final blow earned cheers and a few boos, but he didn't care what any of them thought; all he could do was turn slowly to look at Buck, only to see the younger man was gone.

He got paid and left, hoping Buck would be waiting outside for him so that he could explain himself, but the younger man's Jeep was nowhere in sight. He had no idea what to do, he tried calling Buck multiple times that night, but it kept going straight to voicemail; he just figured he was ignoring him.

Buck watched Eddie's head snap to the side and spat out blood over and over every time he thought about the man, which, truth be told, was all the time. He bolted from the room after being called the girlfriend and ran to his car, too sick to his stomach at the thought that Eddie was being so reckless with his life. He got in the car and drove away with the sound of screeching tires as the only reminder that he had even been there. He drove home as fast as he could, relieved when he arrived and walked inside. He was quick to eat some leftover pizza, even though he was still too worked up to care that eating only made him want to throw up. He threw down the crust in disgust before chugging a glass and a half of water, then headed to bed. He had an early shift in the morning, but he wasn't going to get much rest. He dozed off, only to keep seeing that one moment in time, on repeat, causing him to rouse, screaming Eddie's name over and over again, all night long.

Morning came too early for both men, but Buck's shift was due to start at seven a.m., while Eddie's didn't start until eleven a.m.

Buck was awake well before his alarm went off at five-thirty, but he got out of bed on time, took a quick shower that left his head spinning, and walked down the stairs at a much slower pace than he usually would due to the dizziness lingering. He downed some water and a cup of coffee before groaning aloud when his stomach's nausea amped up as the water and coffee joined the pizza and water that still sat heavily from last night.

After groaning, he decided to head to work early, making a pitstop at the nearest gas station mini-mart to get a bubbly soda to try to relieve some of the nausea made significantly worse by the car's vibration beneath him. He took a few sips once he was back in his car, but the sweet fizzy soda was just adding to the queasiness. He burped loudly as he pulled up to the firehouse and cleared his throat a few times. He squared his shoulders, got out of his car, leaving the soda in the car, and walked straight to the locker room to change. He pulled his uniform on but had to sit down while doing the buttons, as his constant movement was making him dizzier.

"Morning," Chim (Chimney) said, as he walked in a few minutes after Buck had sat down. He looked the younger man up and down, noticing right away that he was pale as all get out, and kept swallowing with difficulty. "Buck? You okay?" he asked when Buck didn't respond to the first comment when normally he would respond right away.

"Mhm... sorry, I didn't mean to not answer, I didn't sleep much last night," Buck admitted, before clearing his throat a couple of times.

"Oh... the tsunami?" Chim asked as he worked on changing into his uniform.

Buck didn't know what to say. He didn't want to gossip about Eddie or share something personal to the man, especially after what happened with the stupid lawyer. So he nodded, not meeting Chimney's gaze, which by itself told the older man that it was something else entirely.

"Maybe you should talk to Frank... He might be able to help you process that." Chim suggested, not wanting to push the man that looked sick by all normal accounts.

Buck shrugged, as the bell rang announcing a four-alarm fire at a home deep inland. He got up too fast, causing him to sway unsteadily on his feet before he righted himself and took off running. It wasn't until he met Bobby's gaze when climbing into the fire truck that he realized that he didn't have time to worry about feeling like complete and utter crap.

—-------------------------------------------------time skip—----------------------------------------------------------

It took hours to put out the fire, making it so that by the time they all got back to the station, Eddie was already there and working out in the gym area. He looked up in relief, hoping that Buck was with them, but didn't see or hear him at all, which sent a ripple of panic through him.

He walked around the truck to see where Buck had disappeared to and was surprised to see the younger man sound asleep against the door and window.

"Was it that bad a call?" he teased, when Bobby walked around the truck to rouse the youngest of their team.

"Four-alarm fire; Buck worked hard, probably too hard considering the fact that he is sick," Bobby said, looking a little worse for wear himself.

"Want me to wake him so you can shower and relax a bit?" Eddie asked, his voice softening with concern at hearing Buck had worked himself sick... again. He really needed to start looking out for this younger man more, otherwise, he'd get hurt or worse... again.

Bobby nodded, looking relieved and more than ready to hit the showers. "Thanks, Eddie, go easy on him. He busted his ass and did a great job even while he was miserable and bleeding everywhere," he added, wondering why Eddie's face paled at the mention of bleeding.

"Ohmygosh! Is he okay?" Eddie choked out, looking at Buck's sleeping form as if he was searching for signs of any bleeding.

"Yep, we took care of all the bleeding spots, and he's doing okay. Just completely worn out." Bobby said quickly, as he realized that Eddie cared for Buck... Question was, how much did those two boys care about each other? And was this caring going to cause a problem for the 118?

Eddie sighed in relief, before walking around to the other side of the truck to attempt to move the younger man, instead of risking him falling from the truck when he opened the door. "Oh hey, Bobby, what is he sick with?" He asked, right as the older man reached the stairs.

Bobby turned around and looked at Eddie with a look of understanding. "He wouldn't tell us, just said he needed to sleep it off." He said, before turning and walking up the stairs to where the captain's office and the private shower. He stopped right in front of the door and walked back to the railing. "Eddie, go ahead and take him home and stay with him until he gets better." He said with a smile. He disappeared into his office before the army vet could argue.

Eddie shook his head, of course, the kid would be so sick he couldn't complete his shift. All thoughts stopped when he heard, whining and whimpering coming from the fire truck. He frowned, opened the backseat door, and climbed inside to see that all that frantic noise was coming from Buck.

"Hey, Buck, you're okay. Come on, bud, wake up for me." He urged, shaking Buck's shoulder lightly, but evidently not light enough because Buck shot forward, eyes wide, sweat beading on his brow, and what little color that had been in his cheeks was gone that fast.

He pulled the younger man into a hug, surprised when he felt wetness on his neck and cheek. He pulled back to assess the man before him, only to find that tears were streaming down his face.

"Hey, come on, bud, what's with the waterworks?" He asked with a gentle smile, as he reached out and used his thumb to wipe the tears away.

Buck sniffled a couple of times. "I need to lay down..." he admitted in a softer voice than he meant. He was swaying even while sitting down, which worried Eddie.

Eddie shook his head, putting a firm hand on the man's shoulder to steady him. "Come on, let's get you out of your gear and I can take you home." He said, pulling Buck towards the open door at a snail's pace.

Buck nodded, still sniffling as he allowed the older man to help him out of the truck which was almost a disaster because of the dizziness that overwhelmed him the moment he started moving. He trudged over to the area he would take off his outer uniform, and with Eddie's help got him stripped down to his normal uniform. "C...c...col...d," he stammered through chattering teeth, as soon as his skin was no longer covered.

Eddie helped him change into sweats and a t-shirt, before helping the sick man into one of his own sweatshirts, knowing it would probably be comfier if it didn't smell strongly of cologne. "I've got your bag and you, did we forget anything?" He asked, leading the poor guy out to his pickup truck.

"My soda... in my car," Buck mumbled, sounding half-asleep while still on his feet.

Eddie nodded, snagging Buck's keys from his duffel bag and walked over to the Jeep, unlocked it, and opened the door to see said soda was a fizzy lemon-lime. He frowned, looking over in Buck's direction to see that he was leaning against his truck with his eyes closed and covered with his hood. "Of course..." he muttered to himself, grabbing the soda, shut and locked the Jeep up, and made his way to Buck. "Here you go," he said handing the soda to the man in front of him, before guiding him to the passenger-side front door.

Once Buck was in the truck, which took a few tries, buckled up and ready to go, he got into his own seat. Only to turn and look at Buck in dismay when the younger man opened the soda and chugged the whole bottle in a matter of moments.

"Your place or mine?" He asked, as Buck burped out of nowhere and started swallowing hard, as his throat hurt.

"Mine... do you need to pick up Christopher?" Buck asked, sounding beyond exhausted, even though his head was once again pressed up against the cold window.

"Nope, his Abuela is watching him overnight. So?" Eddie reiterated, waiting for directions.

Buck thought for a moment, almost falling asleep, then snapped awake again and cleared his throat. "Mine," he said before allowing himself to drift off, even if that meant seeing horrible images on repeat.

Eddie drove in silence, thinking about the night before when he heard a low groan from his passenger. He raised his eyebrows but didn't bother to wake the sleeping man, as he wasn't showing any other signs of distress. Boy, was he wrong.

Buck, who had fallen into a fever-induced nightmare about the tsunami, felt like he was drowning as he tried to swallow past the unsettling feeling of intense nausea. Out of nowhere, he lurched forward and woke up enough to whimper and splay his legs open, as he gagged hard.

"Whoa! Easy easy, you're okay. Can you smell the roses, and blow out the candles for me?" Eddie, to his credit, was calm as he tried to get Buck to relax even if it meant throwing up in the truck...

"N...n...o.... Feel sick..." Buck stammered, blushing as he realized they were still in a moving vehicle.

"I can see that, bud. Go ahead, puke if you need to." Eddie said, looking for a safe area to pull over even though they were only a few blocks from Buck's place.

Buck sighed, looking resigned, and clamped a hand over his mouth. "Not gonna puke," he mumbled from behind his hand. Sour stomach acid came up his throat unbidden, but he forced it back down with a few quick swallows, only to start choking on his own breath.

Eddie reached over and patted Buck's quivering back, deciding that he was just going to get them home, instead of continuing to try to pull over. "I understand if you do end up puking," he said trying to be supportive.

Buck shook his head, being as adamant as possible, without it making him throw up. "Just stop, okay?" he countered, earning a confused look from Eddie.

"Did I do something wrong?" Eddie asked in a quiet voice, wondering what was going on.

Buck groaned, before moving his hand, swallowed convulsively, and stared out the passenger window. "Just stop... it's not like you actually care," he said, his voice sounding heavier than normal.

Eddie recoiled, his hand dropping to his side, as Buck's harsh words stunned and hurt him. He pulled into the parking spot for Buck's place and stayed silent as the younger man jumped out of his truck heavily, and took off like a bat outta hell for the front door. "Is that really what you think?" he asked the emptiness, feeling like someone had cut off his air supply.

He got out of his truck, grabbed his and Buck's bags, then walked inside the apartment with one task in mind: take care of the man he cared too much about, and hopefully show the lovable idiot that he is wrong.

Once inside he put the bags down, looking around for the man in question, but not seeing or hearing him anywhere.

"Buck?" he called into the deafening silence, as he walked into the living room area to see said man sitting on the couch, with a bucket between his legs and his head in his hands. "Hey, did you puke?" he asked, as he sat down on the couch beside him.

Buck shook his head, feeling worse and worse by the minute. He wanted more than anything to snuggle up with Eddie, but he felt like the man hated him, which made him all the more confused with the older man trying to help him. "Why are you still here?" he asked, his voice shaking with nauseous anxiety. He wasn't going to ask or force someone that hated him to help him.

Eddie sighed, scrubbing his hands over his face. "Bobby said you were sick, I..." he started to explain, watching Buck carefully as he tried to get some semblance of understanding.

"You can tell Bobby I am fine. And I don't need anyone's help." Buck snapped, as goosebumps popped all over his skin and made him start shivering.

Eddie frowned, not quite getting why the man beside him was acting this way, and almost threw in the tower until he saw Buck's eyes widen as he lurched over the bucket with an unproductive retch. He placed his hand on the younger man's back, only to be shrugged off.

"Bobby didn't tell me to help you," he said in a calm voice, even if his heart was breaking for the younger man and his harsh words weren't helping at all.

"Then why..." Buck started to ask, only for Eddie to interrupt him in exasperation.

"Because I love you! I am HERE because I love you!" Eddie yelled, giving up keeping it a secret any longer. "I realized it when the fire truck crushed your leg..." he added in a more quiet and broken voice.

Buck looked like he had just caught Maddy and Chimney having sex, or something equally shocking. "But you hate me..." he muttered before a round of unproductive retches wracked his frame.

It was Eddie's turn to be shocked... again, he didn't hate Buck. He could never hate Buck, even when he was doing the stupid lawsuit, he missed him so much and worried about him every day. "What makes you think I hate you?" he asked, wanting to see from the sick man's perspective what he had seen and felt to cause this assumption.

"The lawsuit... you wouldn't even look at me... I didn't mean to betray you... I didn't mean to hurt you... I didn't try to do any of that... I didn't know my actions would drive you to fight like that..." Buck said brokenly, as tears were pouring down his flushed cheeks.

Eddie had heard enough, this poor man beside him was taking all the guilt on himself, on top of being so sick he couldn't even breathe properly around the tears. "Alright alright, I see why you would think that. I could never hate you, you hurt me with the lawsuit, but you could never make me hate you," he said, as he got up and sat on the coffee table in front of Buck so he could hold the sick man's attention and hands.

Buck blinked in surprise, looking down at his hands in Eddie's, before looking back up at Eddie, before whimpering as the nauseous swirling in his stomach kicked it up another notch.

"We can talk more in a minute, look at me," Eddie said in a soothing voice. He put Buck's hands together in his own hand while using his other hand to cup the man's chin and lift it, so that their eyes would meet. "If you need to puke, stop fighting your body and let it happen. I am not going anywhere... until you tell me to," he said, kissing his forehead and realizing that Buck had a fever from heck.

Buck pulled his face away from Eddie, and gave in to the retching, within moments he was vomiting up the sicky sweet soda, bitter coffee, lots of water, and his pizza from the night before.

Eddie tried to ignore the contents going into the bucket, but he almost had a heart attack when he saw the coffee-looking liquid coming up. "Is that...?" he started to ask, too terrified to finish his question.

Buck shook his head, once the heaving stopped. "Not blood, coffee," he admitted, looking very sheepish.

Eddie raised his eyebrows, as he thought about what he had seen come up. "What all have you eaten in the last twenty-four hours?" he asked, wondering if he'd be the one puking next.

"Soda, coffee, water, and leftover pizza." Buck panted out, as the room started spinning out of control. "M dizzy," he slurred, fighting not to go limp and pass out.

Eddie thought fast, grabbing the bucket from between their legs, and pushed Buck's head down between his knees. "Slow breaths, in and out," he said, keeping his hand on the younger man's neck, to make sure he would know what was going on even if Buck couldn't tell him.

Buck nodded, breathing in and out, slow and steady, paying more attention to the older man's hand on his neck, than on anything else. "M good," he said, finally after a few minutes of just focusing on breathing and Eddie's hand on him. "Thank you," he said after Eddie went to let go, but he stopped him.

Eddie pulled him into a hug, his arms tightening with all the emotions coursing through his system. "You're welcome, I love you," he said, feeling Buck start trembling. "Hey, you okay?" he asked, ready to move into action at a moment's notice.

Buck nodded against Eddie's shoulder. "I love you too," he said, his voice a little raspy from the vomiting. "You and Chris mean everything to me," he added, sounding completely wiped.

"Come on, let's get you some rest, you deserve it. And no, I am not leaving." Eddie said, standing up and moving towards the cabinet where Buck kept extra pillows and blankets. He grabbed a pillow and a blanket for Buck and started setting up the couch as the younger man was barely awake. "Alright, lay down," he instructed, raising his eyebrows when Buck shook his head no.

"I want you with me," Buck said shyly, as he patted the couch beside him.

Eddie couldn't say no, as he sat down, his back on the pillow and armrest, and put his leg behind Buck leaving the other off the couch.

Buck curled up against Eddie's chest with a soft sigh, dozing off almost immediately, as soon as he heard the heartbeat of the man he loved beneath his ear.

Eddie smiled, pulling out his phone and taking a picture of the sleeping young man on him. He text the picture to Bobby knowing he'd show Athena and she'd so Michael and the kids, Hen knowing she'd show Karen, and Chim knowing he'd show Maddy. His phone buzzed with multiple texts from their family all congratulating him and saying the sick man was adorable.

"Did they like it?" Buck mumbled in a sleepy voice, having been roused by the repeating texts.

Eddie laughed out loud, before wrapping the blanket around the man he loved and had loved for a very long time. "They did. Go to sleep, so when you feel better, I can show you how much I love you," he said, a smile dancing across his lips.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Proving his love would have to wait for another day because no sooner was Buck feeling better Eddie and Chris caught the bug. But they were both happy as clams, knowing that the love they shared would last for a long time and that someone more than family always had their backs. 

I hope you enjoyed this sickfic! I have more planned and on their way to being done, as well as a couple of Supernatural sickfics. 

As always: vote, comment, and request away. Love you all! <3