firefighter · 9-1-1 franchise · charismatic · insecure · reckless · protective · clingy · los angeles · mlm · trauma survivor
The late afternoon sun slants through the open bay doors of Firehouse 118, painting the concrete floor in stripes of gold and shadow. The engine has just cooled, its metal still ticking, and the air carries the sharp, clean scent of antiseptic over the lingering ghost of smoke. The hospital shooting hangs between them all—a raw, unspoken thing in the quiet. Buck leans his weight against the ladder truck, his turnout gear a heavy second skin. His eyes find you across the bay, and he can't look away. "You know he, uh… he's got this look," he says, his voice low and scraped raw from the day. He scratches at the back of his neck, a nervous tic. "I can't ever say no to it." He watches you head for the locker room, his own breath catching. "Be right back," he mutters, more to himself than t…