It Ends With Us

14.

Buck

"Eddie Diaz murdered his wife."

Eddie Diaz murdered his wife.

Eddie Diaz murdered his wife.

Those were the only words that my brain knew at that moment. Those words. The lies. This Sergeant was a liar. She had to be.

"No," I whispered. "No, you're lying."

She nodded her head towards the file on the table. I reached for it cautiously, then jerked my hand back. "No. No! I don't need to read some stupid file to know the truth! He didn't kill Shannon, he loved her!" Tears were streaming down my face again. "He loved her," I whispered again.

"I know this is hard for you, but think about everything that's happened since you met him."

I did. And now I was even more scared. But I wasn't scared of him, I was scared for him.

I was snapped out of my thoughts by the Sergeant and her officer. "Get a unit down there and cuff him to the bed." The officer nodded and left the room.

"Wait, you're arresting him?!"

"Mr. Diaz murdered someone. I don't really have a choice."

"But he's sick. Maddie said so herself, and she's a nurse, she knows this stuff!" She sighed, looking at me sympathetically. "Please," I begged her. "Please, there has to be something you can do to help him. To help us. He has a son. We have a son. Please."

She thought for a minute before speaking again. "I will see what I can do, but I can't make you any promises."

I sighed in relief. "Thank you," I whispered. "Thank you."

**********

Eddie

Lights.

All I could see was bright, white lights. The smell of antiseptic cleaners filled my nostrils. I opened my eyes and shut them repeatedly, trying to adjust to the environment I was in. I looked to my right – plain white walls – then my left – a monitor. I was in the hospital. A burning sensation shot through my left arm. I looked down to see an IV running through it. I tried to bring both of my arms up so I could readjust in the hospital bed, get more comfortable, but I couldn't. Something was holding me back, or rather holding my arm down. I looked down again, past the IV this time.

Handcuffs. I was handcuffed to the railing of the bed.

Looks like your secret's out.

Leave him alone. Don't you think he's been through enough?

I closed my eyes, tears streaming down my face. "Please stop. Please just stop," I whispered, my voice quivering.

"Eddie."

My eyes snapped open. I turned towards the door. "Evan," I cried. I was sobbing now. "Evan, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Shh," he rushed over to me. He began to wipe my tears away and I leaned into his touch. "It's okay," he whispered. "You're okay."

"Baby –"

"Eddie," he interrupted. "We don't have to talk about anything right now, okay? You just need to rest." He walked around to the other side of the bed and climbed in with me. I lay my head on his shoulder and he pulled me closer. And for once, it really felt like everything was going to be okay.

**********

*Epilogue*

Buck

The next few weeks passed by in a blur. Eddie admitted to killing Shannon and hurting Maddie and was, temporarily, arrested while he was in the hospital. Because of his prior history with mental illness, the doctors, after a series of questions and a thorough examination, confirmed Maddie's theory. Eddie was, properly, diagnosed with Schizophrenia and Multiple Personality Disorder.

I pleaded with the Sergeant, her Captain, and anyone else who would listen, to let him go. That nothing he did was his fault. By the time Eddie was released from the hospital, The District Attorney of LA County had gotten involved and had taken on Eddie's case. The justice system agreed to let Eddie go, on the condition that he was checked into a mental facility, until the doctors and nurses there deemed him stable enough to return home and take care of Christopher.

Although unorthodox, for the time being, Tia Pepa and I were going to be taking care of Christopher and staying at Eddie's place, so we wouldn't be interrupting Chris's routine. We explained to him what was going to happen for the next few months, maybe longer, and promised to visit his dad everyday no matter what.

As for my relationship with Eddie, considering all that's happened, of course I'd be open to giving things another go, but my main focus was his recovery and mental health. If improving his mental health meant that we needed to pump the brakes on us for a bit, then that's what we were going to have to do. Because I loved this man more than anything and I wasn't going to throw that away over something that he had absolutely no control over.

**********

A Few Weeks Later...

"Happy Birthday!" Christopher and I shouted. I was holding a tray with three vanilla cupcakes with whipped buttercream icing, rainbow sprinkles, and a single birthday candle in the center of each.

Eddie looked up at us from the journal he was writing in and smiled at us. "Aww thanks guys." We walked further into the room. Christopher sat at the foot of his bed and I sat next to Eddie.

"You have to make a wish!" Chris exclaimed.

Eddie looked between the two of us, smiling from ear to ear. "I wish...you would give me one of those cupcakes."

"Dad," Chris groaned, rolling his eyes while Eddie and I laughed at him. "You have to make a real wish."

Eddie looked between the two of us again. "I don't need to wish for anything. I have everything I need right here," he responded, ruffling Chris's hair.

I looked between him and Chris and back again, before giving Eddie a sweet, lingering kiss on his lips. I leaned my forehead against his, smiling. "Me too."

:)THE END(:

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it! I admit my eyes got a little misty and my throat got a little tight writing these last couple of chapters lol.

Please let me know your thoughts on the chapters, ending, the story overall, and what you'd like to see next from me!

'Kay byeeeee(:

-A💘