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It's in those dire moments of extreme crises that it becomes especially obvious - Eddie being buried alive and shot. Buck being on the wrong side of a falling fire engine and lightning strike. So on and so forth.
But they all have their own moments as well. Personal moments; subtle moments. Ones which they can pinpoint to the second - the exact moments in which epiphany had struck and would continue to strike.
For Abby, it's at 3:55 AM in Paris as she's reading through the third wall of text her boyfriend's sent her about one, Eddie Diaz.
Carla realizes when Buck comes running to her not three days later to tell her all about, "this super cool guy at work and his super cute kid with CP," whom he desperately wants her to help.
She realizes it when he eagerly introduces her to said Super Cool Guy that weekend. And she realizes it when she feels him positively vibrate with sheer delight when the guy smiles up at him - so beautiful, so very, very sweet - by way of thanks.
Ali realizes it the day she shows up at her boyfriend's loft only to be left standing out in the cold until Eddie, who just so happens to be dropping by as well, opens the door for her with his very own personal key.
Shannon realizes it the day her husband calls Buck instead of her to go pick their son up from school after he gets hurt during recess.
She continues realizing it with every I love you Eddie avoids; with every opportunity to properly reconcile he doesn't take.
She realizes it the night she asks Eddie for a divorce and he doesn't fight back the way he once had.
She even realizes it as she's dying and her husband, though perfectly distraught, isn't as devastated as she'd imagined he'd be.
Taylor realizes it the morning Eddie gets shot and Buck goes so completely and utterly insane with fear he can't string together a single coherent thought, much less a sentence.
She realizes it as she holds his trembling hands - still warm, still slippery with Eddie's blood.
Later on, she realizes it each time Buck cooks for him because Eddie can't cook for shit; each time he diligently boxes up portions of what should've been a romantic meal for date night because, "Eddie lives off frozen meals and bad pasta when I don't."
Ana realizes it the day Eddie wakes up after nearly being shot to death with Buck's name on his lips.
She realizes it as she stands just outside his hospital room the next day, coffee in hand, listening to him say, "you act like you're expendable. But you're not, Buck," with such tenderness; such honesty and sincerity, it can't be anything but the truth. I can't be anything but love.
She realizes it when he begins having panic attacks. And she all but confirms it the night her boyfriend has his worst panic attack and the only person capable of calming him down is Buck, who shows up within minutes of Christopher's call.
Phillip & Margaret realize it the night they fight with their son and he storms out on them, straight to Eddie's.
They realize it when they later show up on Eddie's doorstep to speak with their son and are instead, met with a withering glare from the man himself; the accusation, "haven't you hurt him enough?" On his lips.
Captain Mehta and multiple other firefighters with the 133 realize it the day everything goes to hell in a handbasket at the hands of a sniper; they realize it as they watch Eddie reach weakly for Buck as he lies there, bleeding to death on the pavement.
They realize it witnessing Buck's hysteric desperation in saving him.
They realize it on the engine - as they're tearing through street after street - when Eddie asks if Buck's alright despite going into hemorrhagic shock.
Prisoner Mitchell Trent realizes it while he's holding them hostage at gunpoint in the back of a hijacked ambulance.
He realizes it, watching the blond kid squeeze himself into a corner - all cramped up beside the gurney - evidently trying to stay close to the pretty boy paramedic. Like he thinks he's made of Kevlar. Like he can and will stand up to anything Mitchell throws at that pretty boy. Bullets and all.
Adriana & Sophia Diaz realize it the day they visit their brother and the person greeting them at the door is not, in fact, their brother.
They realize it, listening to their nephew babble about this man who'd saved his life; who took him to zoos and amusement parks; cooked him his favorite dishes and built him special skateboards.
They realize it listening to the way their brother says hi, Buck when he gets back from work.
They realize it when they see him smiling at the man the same way he's always smiled at his son. With love. And adoration.
Tía Pepa realizes it the instant she meets him. She recognizes her nephew's type immediately - gold-locked and blue-eyed; a smile, warm and bright - like the morning sun.
She realizes it when she asks him, "who's this?" - with a knowing look and he tries to play it off by saying he's, "just another one of the firefighters from work."
She realizes it when he runs off to hug his son and that blond-haired, blue-eyed firefighter of his watches with a small smile, words soft as he says, "it must be difficult," - like he wants to help; to fix things - make it so that her nephew is safe - shielded from all the hardships of the world.
She realizes it when she drops by the firehouse later to pick her grandnephew up and she walks in on him nestled between Eddie and Buck - the perfect little family.
Athena suspects it all along. She realizes she's right when Buck is - for whatever godforsaken reason - left unsupervised with a patient who spends an entire call flirting with Eddie and she, presumably after having exchanged words with Buck, emerges from the ambulance at the end of the call, silent.
She realizes she's right when she catches Eddie doing something similar - interfering with Taylor Kelly each time she has a moment alone with Buck - when she comes around, trying to get a scoop on the 118.
Maddie realizes it the instant she meets the pretty brunet her brother recruits to help her move.
She realizes it that afternoon when she says, "he is so cute," and he automatically assumes she's talking about Eddie and not Chim, because he thinks Eddie's cute.
She realizes it while he racks his brains and picks at hers, trying to come up with ways he can get Eddie the help he needs with Christopher at home.
She realizes it when he quietly asks her about local jewelers so he can get Eddie's broken St. Christopher necklace repaired.
She realizes it each and every time she looks at his phone and sees that background of his little found family - Eddie, Chris, and himself.
Chim realizes it that first week in the firehouse gym when Thing 1 and Thing 2 keep trying to one-up one another for no other reason than to be in each other's faces.
He realizes it each time they reflexively flinch toward one another during their riskier calls - like they want to protect each other.
He realizes it looking into the sheer devastation on Buck's face each time Eddie has yet another brush with death.
Hen realizes it at the same time after she's spent three entire shifts watching Buck trail after Eddie like some lovelorn puppy.
She realizes it after particularly rough calls when they find solace in one another, sitting so close on the couches, their legs and shoulders squeeze together.
She realizes it the day a fire engine falls on Buck and Eddie looks at the kid responsible like he's going to tear him limb from limb.
Bobby realizes it that very first day when Buck, after having known Eddie for all of three minutes, resorts to the time-honored teenage tradition of harassing a new crush for no good reason.
He realizes it when Buck asks him for advice on cooking chiles en nogada and a tres leches cake because they're Eddie's favorite dishes.
He realizes it when Buck comes to him one morning to get, no— demand permission for Eddie to bring Christopher to the firehouse when he has nowhere else to take him.
He realizes it later that afternoon when they smile at one another over Chris' little, golden head as he comes sliding down the fire pole into both their waiting arms.
Christopher realizes it after a 7.1-Richter earthquake, when the man who'd driven his father into the school lot, watches them from his car with an adoring smile. He realizes it when they get home and his father thanks the man - Buck - with a smile of his own, just as adoring.
He realizes it after the tsunami, overhearing his father tell Buck there was no one else in the world with whom he'd trust more with his son.
He realizes it when he tells his mother all about Buck after she returns, and she - hard as she may try to hide it - gets upset. He realizes it that evening over dinner when she asks about 'this guy, Buck,' and his father refuses to look her in the eye while saying, "he's just another colleague."
He realizes it one night when, after a particularly bad shift , his father tells him to find Buck if anything were to ever go wrong. "Not Abuela. Not Abuelito. Not even Tía Pepa. Buck." He says as he's tucking him in. "Entíendes?" Chris looks up. "You go straight to Buck."
He realizes it when he acts up and Buck pulls him aside to give him a gentle, yet firm, scolding: "your dad's had a hard day, let's not make it any harder on him, alright?"
He realizes it the day Buck crumples in his lap, sobbing as he tries to explain just how badly his father had been hurt in the line of duty.
He realizes it the night his father breaks, and he does exactly what he's been told to do: call Buck.
And he realizes it minutes later, peeking around a toppled nightstand, to find Buck wiping the tears from his father's cheeks; smiling when he catches him looking and saying, "I've got this, Chris. Don't worry. I'll take care of him."
Eddie realizes it the day of the earthquake when, after over 24 hours of battling the elements, Buck chooses not to go home, but to take him to Chris' school. He realizes it on the ride back, listening to them get along like a house on fire, pun unintended.
He realizes it when, after his Abuela breaks her hip and he no longer has anyone to watch over Chris, Buck makes sure he's watched over at the firehouse; makes sure he'll always have a place to call home.
He realizes it during the lawsuit fiasco when he finds himself the most hurt by it; the most angry about it. He realizes it when they all run into each other at the grocery store and everyone just stands back to watch them fight like they're a good telenovela. He realizes it when the fiasco's come to a close and Buck offers everyone quick, cursory, by-the-book apologies, but specifically comes to him begging for his forgiveness. Multiple times.
He realizes it the night he's buried alive and Buck goes so mad with grief they have him sedated once and then again in the hospital when he quite literally starts throwing hands at anyone who tries telling him visiting hours are up.
He realizes it three days later when his attorney gives him a look for crossing out his parents' names to scribble Evan Buckley instead under Chris' guardianship section in his will.
He realizes it when warmth and wetness bloom in his shoulder and he's suddenly staring blearily at the blank look of stunned horror on Buck's bloodied face.
He realizes it when his world shrinks to pain ; blinding pain; pain like he's never felt before and he reaches for his last tether to reality; the only thing - the only person - he can see anymore.
He realizes it when they're held hostage in their own ambulance and Buck goes feral trying to rip out their holders' throats at the first mention of his son.
He realizes it each time Buck calls to tell him Chris had run straight to him because he'd gotten fed up with Eddie's helicopter parent tendencies.
He realizes it when lightning strikes and stops both their hearts.
Over and over, every day, for years on end, he realizes he's hopelessly in love with his best friend.
Buck realizes it within 7 seconds of seeing Eddie changing in the locker room because, well … how could he not? It's love at first sight.