Chasing You

Chapter 1

Buck stands nervously in front of Maddie's door. He doesn't know if she's home. This might not even be the correct address. He only knows the address from a Christmas card she sent last December, but she could've moved in between then and now even though it's only been a month.

After a few minutes of anxious thinking, Buck finally knocks on the door. Instead of Maddie opening the door, he is met by a shorter Asian man.

"You're not Maddie" Buck awkwardly says to man.

"And you're not the pizza delivery man" the man says back.

"I'm-" Buck says before getting cut off by a familiar voice.

"Evan!" Maddie exclaims while walking towards her little brother. Buck winces at the name, bad memories associated with someone else yelling his name pops up in his brain but he quickly pushes the thoughts down.

She practically pushes the man, who's he's guessing is her boyfriend out of the way before pulling Buck into a tight hug. Buck drops his bag on the floor and sighs as he lets his head lie atop his sisters. He hasn't seen nor talked to her in such a long time and he regrets not reaching out sooner.

Once they pull away she grabs his hand and guides him into the apartment while asking a million questions. Well not really a million, but she was talking so fast that Buck could barely understand her.

"Woah, Maddie. Slow down" he says with a small chuckle.

"I'm sorry. I just, I haven't seen you in so long. How have you been?" She asks as her boyfriend sits down next to her at the kitchen table.

"I've been good" Buck says with a small smile. It's not a complete lie. The past week since he left Pennsylvania has been good. He read a book that he's been wanting to read and got to listen to a bunch of music on the way to California. He even looked for new apartments that were in L.A. Anything before this, well that was only for him to know.

"Oh my god, i'm being so rude. Buck this is my boyfriend Howie but everyone calls him Chimney. Chim this is my brother Evan" Maddie explains.

"Nice to meet you Evan. Maddie has told me a lot about you" Chimney says while shaking Buck's hand.

"Nice meeting you too. Friends call me Buck though" he says. He can't believe he didn't know that Maddie has a boyfriend and that she lives with him. His smile falters when he realizes how much he's missed out on in his sisters life.

They all hear the knock on the door and Chimney says "That must be the pizza." He stands up and walks to the door.

"Please stay for dinner" Maddie says to Buck.

"As long as it's no trouble" he says back.

"Of course it's no trouble. We have more than enough food" Chimney says as he walks back with a pizza box in his hands.

While eating the the three exchange small talk.

"How long did it take to get from Pennsylvania to here?" Chimney asks before taking another bite of food.

"I spent a few nights in motels, so about a week. Most of the time I was on a bus though" Buck says.

"Are you still teaching?" Maddie asks.

"Yes, but I...I quit. I still plan on being a teacher, just not in Pennsylvania. I think I want to move out here" Buck mentions.

Maddie squeals and hugs Buck from her chair. "That would be amazing Buck! You're going to love it here. We'll be able to see each other more and you can meet all of our great friends" she says excitedly.

"That sounds nice" Buck says with a smile.

After helping clean the dishes, Chimney shares a kiss with Maddie and pats Buck on the shoulder before leaving the apartment for his shift.

"Now tell me the real reason you're here Evan" Maddie says with a serious face as soon as the door is shut.

"I wanted a change of scenery. I've lived in Pennsylvania my whole life so I thought it would be nice to get out" Buck replies casually as he fidgets with the hem of his shirt.

"You say it like you're on vacation for the weekend. You want to move here.  You wouldn't just quit your job and leave your husband for no reason" she states and Buck finally looks up.

Maddie's worry grows when her little brother stayed silent. "Did something happen with you and Luke?" She looks at him wearily and finally focuses on the faded bruise on his eye. At first she thought maybe it was an accident, but now with Buck's silence, she doesn't know what to think. "Did he hurt you?" She asks and Buck quickly shakes his head.

"No, of course not. We just grew apart. It's as simple as that" He could tell her the truth, but he doesn't want her to worry.

"Good, I never liked him anyway" She doesn't exactly believe him but she can tell he doesn't want to talk about it so she doesn't push.

"You sound just like Mom and Dad"

She groans and says "don't compare me to them. They didn't like him because they're homophobic. I didn't like him because he seemed off"

"What do you mean?" Buck asks.

"I don't know. He just seemed a bit aggressive. I've only met him a handful of times but he always seemed like he was angry about something" she says and Buck shrugs.

"Do you need a place to stay?" Maddie asks after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence.

"I've been looking at apartments and I think I found one I like. I'm going to go look at it tomorrow and until I get it or another place, i'll just stay in a hotel"

"Absolutely not. We have a guest room that you're welcome to stay in" She cuts in.

"Are you sure? I don't want to be a burden. What if Chimn-" Buck was saying before Maddie interrupts him.

"Yes, you can stay here and of course you're not a burden. And if you're asking if Chimney is okay with it, his brother Albert lived with us half a year ago so I'm sure he'll be fine with it and if he isn't, you and I can find a place on our own" she smiles at him.

"Thank you Maddie. This means a lot. It will only be for a week" He says pulling her into another hug.

"It's really no problem. You're my brother. I'm always going to help you no matter what so stay as long as you need to" she says as she pulls away.

Buck hesitates for a second before saying ,"I'm really sorry Maddie. I shouldn't have ignored you for years. That wasn't fair to you" He says while looking at the floor.

"It's fine Buck, really. I know there was other things going on that you don't want to talk about right now and that's okay. I'm always going to be here for you. You could've shown up on my doorstep ten years from now without talking to me and I still would've taken you in." she checks the clock and says "I'm sure you're tired from traveling, how about I show you the spare bedroom and you can take a nap or even sleep for the rest of the night"

"Okay" He picks up his bag and follows Maddie down the hall to the room.

"I have to be at the dispatch center early so I might not be here when you wake up. Here's a key so you can come and go as you please. Goodnight, get some rest" She places the key on the dresser next to the door and turns off the light.

"Goodnight" he says back with a small smile. This is the first night in a long time where he feels safe.