You Can't Ask That of Me.

1.

The atmosphere in the loft was... tenser.... than usual, to say the least. Bobby had taken Buck to the hospital to get checked out after their last call, which left Hen, Chim, and Eddie on their own at the firehouse.

Hen and Chim were acting normal given the situation. Mild worry, because Buck had gotten hurt, and a bit of frustration because of course he'd been doing something self-sacrificial and reckless. Buck was going to be ok though, he'd been fine when he'd left the call with Bobby, hadn't even needed a ride in the ambulance, instead taking the Captain's car with Bobby.

He'd really only had scrapes and bruises, thank god, but because of how bad his fall had looked and because it was, well, Buck, he'd been taken to the hospital to get checked over just in case.

They'd been called out to a scene where a road on a cliff side had started to collapse and taken a car with it. Thankfully, all three passengers and the driver had been alive when they'd been pulled out. However, the road had been more unstable than they'd thought, and the spot where Eddie had been standing had started to cave. Buck had been the one to spot it, and in true Buck fashion, had run and shoved Eddie to safety and taken the fall himself.

He'd been okay though, had only tumbled down about ten feet before he'd stopped an a cliff edge. Thank God. They'd pulled him up and he'd only had scrapes and bruises, not that that stopped anyone from worrying. Buck's reassurances had also not stopped them from making him get checked over at the hospital, because, well, as already said, it was Buck.

So a bit of a jump scare, but it was ok now. Hen and Chim's nerves were settling enough that they were settled down in the lounge, Hen on the couch with a book and Chim in the chair across from her scrolling through his phone.

Eddie on the other hand, was a whole other can of worms. The man was pacing back and forth with a twisted grimace on his face. He was radiating equal parts worry, frustration, and anger.

Hen could understand Eddie being upset about it, of course she could, but Eddie seemed just a bit more frustrated and angry than she felt the situation warranted. As upset as she was with Buck for putting his life on the line for someone else again, she could still understand it. Eddie was his partner, she'd have done the same for Karen or Chim without a second thought.

Realistically she'd have done it for Eddie too if she'd spotted the ground giving way before Buck had. She also knew that Eddie would've done it for Buck had the situation been reversed.

It hadn't been reversed though, and Hen supposed she might be more upset if it'd been her that Buck had almost died for. So she let Eddie continue seething as he wore a hole in the floor.

She tried to go back to her half-hearted attempts at focusing on her book when her phone buzzed. She flipped it over to see a text from Chimney, who was staring at her quite unsubtly from his seat. Not that it mattered, Eddie was too caught up in whatever was going through his head to notice anyways.

Chim: Am I crazy, or is this a more extreme reaction than normal for him?

Hen considered for a moment before replying.

Hen: No, something's definitely up...

Chim: Any idea what? Is this gonna be one of those things™️ I missed while I was gone?

Hen rolled her eyes at the trademark, Chim's texting pattern had changed dramatically since Albert had taken it upon himself to 'educate his old man'.

Hen: I don't think so.

Hen: If it is then it isn't anything I know about.

Chim: it's strange though, right?

Chim: I mean, if anything? I'd figure Eddie would cut Buckaroo a little slack since it was his butt Buck was rescuing this time.