"Highway to the danger zone, take it right into the danger zone."
~ "Danger Zone," Kenny Loggins
In which Owen Strand gets the clearance for a new rig, brings his son along for the ride, and finds out said son adopted two siblings under his nose. A...
You know, I thought writing Sylvie, TK, and Buck was a blast . . . then I started writing Owen and Elliot. Boy, am I so grateful fanfiction exists. I mean . . . look at them! XD
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Owen and Elliot have a lot to catch up on, the Diaz boys and Buck move into their new home, TK celebrates one year of sobriety, Carlos is in trouble, and why does there have to be a call right at the end of shift? Also, fair warning . . . Google-provided Italian ahead. XD
Enjoy the first part of "Bad Call!"
***
No one at the 126 hesitated to say goodbye to Owen when he apologetically bowed out of the impromptu celebration of Tim's life. Not even TK, who had taken one look at the way his dad and other father figure gravitated towards each other, and told Owen to chat with Elliot away from the house. "I'll have my time to catch up later," TK told him. "I missed him for sure, but you need this more than I do right now."
That led to the most . . . Owen didn't even know how to describe the car ride back to his house. Elliot had caught a cab to the 126, and while the silence wasn't awkward, there was a tenseness because neither of them spoke. In a way, Owen was grateful because there was no way he wanted to have any major life discussions in a car on the roads of Austin. That had never been his style, and it sure as hell wasn't Elliot Stabler's.
Buttercup, God bless the dog, scrambled to his paws when Owen unlocked the door and padded to the entrance when the fire captain stepped inside. He paused when he saw the unknown man behind him, and Owen smiled. "In case you weren't aware, the 126 has a dog now."
"Apparently," Elliot chuckled, crouching down and extending a hand, knuckles towards Buttercup. "Handsome fella."
"That he is," Owen agreed. "This is Buttercup. I got him for the house because . . . " He trailed off, then cleared his throat. "Yeah, I need a drink or two before I get into why we're in Austin."
"Hi, Buttercup," Elliot grinned. "You're looking out for the Strands, huh? I already like you." Buttercup sniffed Elliot's knuckles curiously, then let out a soft woof and bumped his head against his hand. Elliot took his cue to scratch Buttercup's head, the man snorting as the dog's tongue lolled out of his mouth. "Oh, yeah. I like him."
"Buttercup has a soft spot for anyone involved with the 126," Owen smiled, taking two tumblers down from the cabinet and finding his good tequila. "Glad to know you're still in the good books."
Elliot sighed, shrugging out of his jacket and hanging it over one of the bar chairs. "Yeah, me, too." He took the tequila Owen slid his way with a murmur of "Grazie."
Owen raised an eyebrow, surprised. "Prego, fratello."
Elliot did a double take, pausing from taking a sip. "Parli italiano adesso?" he asked.
