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Buck grinned as the landscape ahead of him began to change, the exposed rocky terrain alerting him that he was nearing the summit. He pulled out his phone to take a video as the scenery opened up, revealing a sweeping view of the San Gabriel Mountains with rugged peaks and deep valleys stretching into the distance. It was a clear day and the view from Mount Baldy was breathtaking.
He was exhausted, but proud of himself. This particular trail was an 11 mile hike that he’d done fairly often when he first moved to LA, but one he’d struggled with since the ladder truck incident. Today was the first time he’d completed it in years without taking the ski-lift to shorten the trek and it felt amazing.
Sighing happily, he dropped down onto a nearby rock and shrugged off his backpack. The summit itself was a rocky, windswept plateau, providing a nice spot to rest and take everything in.
He sat there for a while, massaging his leg in preparation for the return journey. He paused to take more videos any time wild birds came into view and googled each one to learn as much as he could. He was opening up his text messages to send a few pictures to Eddie when his screen suddenly went black as the battery died.
Shit.
He pulled his backpack onto his lap and immediately began digging for a power bank. His search came up empty.
Double shit.
Buck had a bad habit of forgetting to charge his phone. It wasn’t necessarily a huge issue because it usually happened at the 118 or somewhere close to home where he could charge it quickly.
However, he did it frequently enough that Eddie finally approached him about it, pointing out that it could easily compromise his safety if it happened at the wrong time. Buck knew Eddie was right and suggested they add it as a rule to help hold him accountable. Now, if he let it die twice in the same week, or in a situation where it was dangerous to not have a phone, he was in trouble.
Triple shit.
Buck groaned. The descent would take hours and Eddie would definitely try to text or call him long before he finished. And as much as he wanted to rush, he knew he couldn’t. This particular trail was a narrow ridge with exposed, steep drop-offs on either side. He needed to be extremely careful.
So he took his time, his anxiety and guilt increasing with every step. And with his bad leg reaching its limit, the return journey took him even longer than usual.
He arrived at his car 3 hours and 27 minutes later and plugged in his phone the second the engine was running. The minute or so it took to power on was agonizingly long and his heart skipped a beat when he saw how many missed calls, voicemails, and texts were waiting for him from Eddie. Clicking open his messages, he saw a steady progression from inquisitive to vaguely threatening.
4:09 PM: Hey! Any ETA on when you’ll be home yet? Chris and I were gonna go get ice cream, but we’ll wait for you if you’re coming back soon.
4:31 PM: I can’t make Chris wait any longer, but I’ll get a pint of something for you to have later!
5:17 PM: Hey, we just got back. You on your way home yet?
5:23 PM: Babe?
5:24 PM: These are going through as green, not blue. Maybe you’re out of service, but call me?
5:30 PM: Buck. Seriously. Call me.
5:37 PM: Evan Buckley, if you don’t call me in the next 5 minutes
Taking a deep breath, he pressed the call button. Eddie answered before the first ring even finished.
“Buck?” The fear in Eddie’s voice was evident and Buck felt his guilt go up yet another notch.
“I’m okay, I swear,” Buck immediately reassured him. “My phone died and I forgot my power bank. I just got back to my car to plug it in.”
The line went quiet for a moment and Buck winced. He knew it wasn’t a worthy excuse.
“Thank god,” Eddie breathed out in relief. “Buck, I thought you fell or—”
“I know and I’m so sorry, Eddie,” he replied. “I’m okay, I swear. I’m just an idiot.”
Eddie sighed. “You’re not an idiot. I won’t lie, I’m not happy about this, but that doesn’t make you an idiot. We’ll talk more when you get home. Are you okay to drive?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m maybe an hour away if traffic isn’t too bad.”
“Do you want me to stay on the phone with you?” Eddie asked.
Buck melted a little. He could tell how pissed Eddie was, but even with that, he was still putting Buck’s comfort first. Guilt washed over him again as he debated whether he deserved that kindness after scaring him so badly.
“No, I’m okay. I’ll see you in a bit.” Buck did his best to keep his voice even, but he knew he failed. He was tired, he was stressed, and he was anxious about the inevitable confrontation to come.
“Hey,” Eddie addressed him. His voice was still gruff, but softer than before. “It’ll be ok. I’m upset, but you’re safe. It’s fixable.”
“Yeah, ok,” Buck breathed.
“I love you. Drive safe.”
“I love you too. I will,” Buck promised.
The drive felt much shorter than the 60 minutes it was, and before Buck knew it, he was climbing out of the jeep and headed for the front door. He was half expecting to see Eddie standing there with his arms crossed the moment he walked inside. Instead, he was greeted by the familiar sound of one of Chris’s video games.
“Hey buddy,” Buck said with a soft smile as he dropped his keys onto the entry table and toed off his shoes.
“Hey Buck,” Chris replied, glancing over his shoulder from where he was seated on the couch. He took off his gaming headset. “Did you have a good hike?”
“Yeah, it was—uh, it was nice,” Buck stumbled over his words as he saw Eddie appear in the doorway out of the corner of his eye.
“Did you see any Steller’s Jays?”
“Sure did. I even saw a red-tail hawk,” Buck told him, doing his best to sound enthusiastic. “I’ll show you some pictures at dinner. I’m gonna go say hey to your dad.”
Chris nodded and put his headset back on to resume his game.
Buck followed Eddie into the kitchen apprehensively. As soon as they were out of earshot of Chris, he opened his mouth to begin another round of apologies. However, he was pulled into a bone-crushing hug before he got the chance.
“Don’t ever scare me like that again,” Eddie ordered, his voice muffled from where he was pressed into Buck’s neck.
“I’m sorry,” Buck croaked.
Eddie pulled away. “What happened?” He asked, voice tight.
“I didn’t charge my phone before I left and I guess I drained my battery more than I realized taking pictures and videos on the way up,” Buck confessed.
Eddie’s jaw ticked, but he kept his composure. “When did it die?”
“The summit,” Buck admitted sheepishly.
Eddie hummed in understanding, eyes remaining on Buck as he processed the information. “You did the descent of one of the most dangerous hikes in LA without a cell phone?”
“Yes, but I swear I was extra careful,” Buck defended. “I know the terrain can be loose, especially on the way down. So I took my time.”
“Are you serious right now?” Eddie pressed, his eyes narrowing in irritation. “You of all people know how important it is for hikers on those trails — especially solo ones — to be able to call for help. We’ve answered enough calls to know what can go wrong.”
Buck swallowed. Stress was rolling off of Eddie in waves and he felt horrible to have been the cause of it. “Yeah, I know.”
“You really scared me today,” Eddie confessed softly. “I spent nearly three hours thinking something had happened to you.”
“I’m sorry I put you through that,” Buck apologized, his voice contrite. “I am okay though. And I swear it won’t happen again. For real this time.”
“Oh, we’re going to make sure of that,” Eddie stated, raising an eyebrow.
Buck’s stomach did a little flip at that, but quickly calmed down again when Eddie reached out and affectionately ran a hand down the back of his head.
“You’re giving me gray hair, Buckley,” he sighed.
Buck laughed softly, relief coursing through him. They would be okay. His ass might not be, but they would.
“Whatever makes you feel better about them, Diaz,” Buck retorted.
Eddie swatted him, albeit with more force than what could be considered strictly playful. “Go take a shower, trouble,” he ordered lightly. “I’ll get dinner ready.”
Later that night, Buck slid into his side of the bed, lingering as close to the edge as he could. Things were somewhat better, but dinner had still been understandably awkward.
Eddie finished getting himself settled and glanced over, brow furrowing when he noticed Buck wasn’t coming any closer. “Do I smell or something?”
“No, it’s not you,” Buck replied, turning to look at him. “I just…I know you’re still mad at me. You have a right to be.”
“I’m not thrilled with your choices,” Eddie agreed. “But tonight, all I want to do is cuddle the absolute shit out of you.”
Buck looked up, unsure whether he heard him correctly. “What?”
“Would you just get over here already?” Eddie requested, nodding his head toward the open space next to him. “Please?”
Buck scooted closer to him before gently looping an arm over Eddie’s shoulders and pulling him to lay against his chest. He dropped a kiss to the crown of his head, physically feeling the tension drain from him as they settled in.
“I thought you might want space,” Buck divulged. “I’m sorry.”
“You’re a hard person to want space from, Buck,” Eddie commented, leaning further into his hold. “Even when I’m upset.”
Buck let that sink in for a moment, running a hand lazily up and down Eddie’s arm. “I’m really sorry,” he spoke over the lump in his throat.
Eddie sighed. “I know you are, mi sol.” He took Buck’s free hand and placed a kiss on his knuckles. “Upset isn’t forever. We’ll deal with it tomorrow, ok?”
“Okay,” Buck agreed. He hesitated for a moment. “How much trouble am I in?”
Eddie tilted his head back so he could look at him. “A lot,” he said plainly. “Buck, it’s not like you let your phone die while you went to the post office or something. This was careless. You put yourself in danger. Our biggest rule.”
Buck nodded. He’d expected as much, and truthfully, he was grateful to hear Eddie confirm it. The guilt would eat him alive if not.
“Define ‘a lot’ of trouble,” he pressed.
“I don’t think that’s a conversation for right now, sweetheart. We both need sleep.”
Buck nodded in defeat and rolled over to turn off the light before settling on his side. Eddie immediately cuddled up behind him and draped an arm across his torso. Buck fought the urge to ask more questions for as long as he could, but eventually his racing thoughts won.
“Are you going to use the spoon?” He inquired.
“Not the spoon…” Eddie confirmed, allowing his voice to trail off.
“Oh, I do not like the way you said that,” Buck groaned.
"Pick one,” Eddie ordered, gesturing to the display wall.
Buck gaped at Eddie, too shocked to conjure up any words of protest as he glanced between his boyfriend and the selection of hairbrushes before them.
He had slept surprisingly well, given the circumstances, and the morning had gone by quickly. It was Friday and Chris was going home with a friend after school for a sleepover, so there was no time restriction on when they needed to handle Buck’s punishment.
That said, Buck wasn’t thrilled when Eddie told him that they were going to run some errands before they got down to business. The guilt he felt for scaring Eddie so badly was weighing on him, even if deep down he knew he’d already been forgiven. He was craving the absolution that came from being punished and did not want to delay things by grocery shopping.
Eddie had other plans though.
So here they were, standing in the middle of the hair care aisle at Target as Eddie ordered Buck to select the very tool that would be used to light his ass up.
“Go ahead, pick one,” Eddie repeated.
Buck swallowed and turned back to the shelves. Each hairbrush looked menacing. He stood frozen, reluctant to touch any.
Noticing his distress, Eddie moved closer. “Color?” He spoke softly from behind him.
Buck blinked a few times before shaking his head. He really wished they had a color for “No, I don’t need to safeword, but have you ever considered being less obnoxious?”
“Green,” he mumbled, albeit unenthusiastically.
Eddie eyed him for a moment, making sure he was sincere, before continuing. “Okay,” he said firmly. “Then you need to pick one. Sometime today, please.”
Buck remained unmoving. Eddie waited a minute before leaning over his shoulder to speak softly again. “Let’s go, Buck. Unless you want me to test out a few. Help you narrow down your choices.”
Nope. Buck didn’t want that. He immediately grabbed the first one that appeared to meet Eddie’s requirements and handed it to him. It was a rectangular, wooden hairbrush with a flat base. He hated it already.
“Ergonomic handle,” Eddie commented as he inspected it. “Nice.”
“Okay, Eddie. You’ve made your point,” Buck groaned.
“Not yet,” he replied, lifting his eyes to meet Buck’s. “This little errand is the prerequisite to me making my point.”
Quadruple shit.
Once they got home, they put away the groceries together in silence, Buck’s eyes occasionally drifting to where the newly purchased hairbrush sat on the counter. Eddie noticed his growing anxiety and decided to finally take pity on him.
“Okay,” he said, taking the can Buck was holding and kissing him on the cheek. “Go ahead to the bedroom and find a corner. I’ll finish up and be there in a minute.”
“Yes sir,” Buck replied quickly, relieved to finally get things over with. He headed down the hallway to their bedroom and glanced at the far right corner, which had been very intentionally cleared of any furniture. Sighing, he walked over to it and faced the wall.
Eddie didn’t keep him waiting long, equally ready to get things started. He finished putting away the rest of the groceries, grabbed a few items for aftercare, and headed toward the bedroom.
Buck heard Eddie come in, but knew better than to turn around before he was told. He shifted from foot to foot nervously as he waited.
“Alright, come here.”
Buck turned around, pausing briefly as he took in the sight of Eddie sitting on the edge of the bed with that cursed hairbrush next to his thigh. It wasn’t fair for him to still look so attractive during a moment like this. Letting out a breath, Buck slowly made his way over to stand in front of him.
Eddie reached out and grabbed his hips to pull him a bit closer. They stared at each other wordlessly for a moment, eyes locked. Given what they were about to do, it felt particularly intimate; a silent conversation passing between them.
“I love you,” Eddie said, still holding onto him.
“I love you too.”
“You okay?” Eddie asked, noticing he was fidgeting more than normal.
“A little nervous,” Buck admitted. “But I know I need this.”
“Thank you for being honest. Do you want to talk about it?”
Buck gave a soft smile, appreciating how safe Eddie always managed to make him feel. “No, I’m okay,” he replied with a small shake of his head. “I know I’ll feel better after. It’s just still hard to submit to it sometimes.”
“I know it is,” Eddie validated, letting go of his hips and grabbing his hands instead. “But I also know you can do it and that I can trust you to stop things if you ever can’t or don’t want to.”
“You can,” Buck vowed.
“My good boy,” Eddie praised, squeezing one of his hands. “You ready?”
“Yes sir.”
With that, Eddie moved his hands to the button of Buck’s jeans, quickly undoing them and pulling them down to his knees. Buck fought the urge to interfere, keeping his hands at his sides as his boxers came down next and Eddie tugged him over his lap.
Eddie adjusted Buck’s position to his liking before handing him a pillow from the top of the bed and giving him a few moments to get comfortable. “Why are we here?” He asked once Buck had settled.
“I didn’t charge my phone or bring a power bank with me on my hike, and I asked you to help hold me accountable for being better about those things,” Buck answered.
“Yes, we did make monitoring your phone battery a rule,” Eddie confirmed, moving his hand to rest on Buck’s ass. “But why did we make it a rule? What are you really being punished for here?”
“Letting my phone die during the hike was dangerous and it could have been prevented,” Buck mumbled.
“There it is,” Eddie said softly. “I love that you have adventurous hobbies and I know that neither of us can ever be safe 100% of the time, but let’s take precautions where we can. Yeah?”
“Yeah,” Buck agreed. “I’m sorry.”
“I know you are,” Eddie acknowledged gently. “We’re going to take care of it and then it’s over, alright? Clean slate like always.”
Buck nodded compliantly, ready to get things started. The sooner it was over, the sooner his guilt would be gone and he could bask in the cuddly, floaty aftermath.
“I’m going to start with my hand, but I will be finishing with the brush,” Eddie informed him. “You ready?”
Buck wrapped his arms around the pillow a bit tighter. “Yeah,” he muttered.
Eddie gave him a few warning pats and then got to work. Rather than starting slow and deliberate like he usually did, he went fast right away, quickly covering Buck’s bottom and thighs in a layer of firm swats.
Buck didn’t give much of a reaction for the first minute or so, focusing on breathing steadily as Eddie made the first few circuits, each slap leaving behind a prickling, but manageable sting. Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for the heat to build and soon he was having to fight to stay still.
Eddie wanted this lesson to stick and knew Buck did too. So he didn’t hold back, landing sharp smacks one after the other and alternating cheeks as he worked his way from the crest of Buck’s ass, down to mid-thigh, and back up again. Buck hissed and crossed his ankles to refrain from kicking as he wiggled around in discomfort.
“I hope you’re doing some thinking, Buck,” Eddie spoke up, pulling him closer to control the squirming.
“I am,” Buck promised through gritted teeth. “I’m going to watch my phone battery like a hawk from now on, I promise.”
“That’s what I like to hear,” Eddie praised, his hand continuing to fall. “And you know what you can expect from me if you don’t, right?”
“Yes,” Buck groaned. He had no doubt this would be a lesson that stuck with him for a while. Which was good, because he had zero desire to repeat this. His ass was already on fire and the hairbrush hadn’t even been touched yet.
Eddie kept going at the same pace, not pausing until Buck’s bottom and thighs were a uniform vibrant pink. He ran his hand along the heated skin, enjoying the slight tingle in his palm as he allowed Buck a few moments to catch his breath.
“You’re taking your punishment so well,” Eddie praised as he turned to grab the hairbrush. “So good for me, Buck.”
Buck tensed up as he felt the cool wood rest against his ass, but immediately relaxed under the praise. He always wanted to be good for Eddie.
Eddie brought the hairbrush down on Buck’s right cheek. The pain barely had time to register before another swat fell, and then another after that.
Under more playful circumstances, he might have actually liked the hairbrush; it wasn’t as sharp and biting as the spoon. However, the mindset of being in trouble combined with the very intentional way Eddie was layering swats was making it decidedly not playful.
Eddie kept a steady pace, watching closely as Buck’s skin edged toward dark pink. He fully planned to turn it red before they finished today.
“Ow, Eddie!” Buck gasped, shifting his hips reflexively as his resolve finally broke. The initial fire set by Eddie’s hand paled in comparison to the flames being left behind now with each pop of the hairbrush.
“I know.” Eddie tightened the grip he had around Buck’s waist. “But I need you to try and stay still.”
“I can’t,” Buck whined, twisting his torso. “That thing is lethal.”
Eddie slowed his swats, but didn’t stop. “This is a punishment, my love. We decided together that punishments wouldn’t be enjoyable,” he stated, voice firm but kind. “You have a word you can use at any point to make me stop, but otherwise, we go until I say we’re done.”
Buck mumbled something indecipherable into the pillow and Eddie paused immediately. It hadn’t sounded like his safeword or a color, but he didn’t take chances.
“What did you say, babe?” He asked gently, running his hand along Buck’s lower back.
Buck lifted his head. “Uh, it was something that is probably not in my best interest to repeat.”
Eddie couldn’t hold back his laugh. “You’re a brat,” he commented, affection dripping from the statement. “Color?”
Buck dropped his forehead back onto the pillow dramatically and groaned into it, lifting his face again once he was finished. “Green.”
“Good boy. We’re almost done,” Eddie promised, tapping the brush a few times before starting up again.
Buck didn’t even bother attempting to refrain from kicking and squirming this time. He just let his body react and trusted that Eddie could hold onto him like he always did.
Eddie threw one of his legs over Buck’s to control the kicking and picked up the pace, landing sharp cracks on the sensitive skin of his sit spots and thighs. It didn’t take long for sniffles and soft crying to start, but Eddie steeled himself and kept going, knowing Buck needed the full release with this one. He landed a few more rounds of firm swats, ensuring that every inch of his backside and upper thighs were painted red, and at last, Buck collapsed over his lap in sobs.
“That’s it, let it out. I’ve got you,” Eddie soothed as he watched the tension drain from Buck’s body. He landed a few final smacks to the center of his bottom and then tossed the brush off to the side. He slid his hand under Buck’s t-shirt and immediately started to rub his back gently, holding him as he rode the wave of emotion.
“It’s over, sweetheart. You’re forgiven,” Eddie said quietly. “You took that so well. I’m so proud of you.”
Eddie continued to rub his back, waiting for the crying to subside a little before reaching down to shove Buck’s jeans the rest of the way off and pull his boxers back into place. Buck let out a small whimper as the fabric slid over his heated skin, but didn’t protest as he was coaxed to get up so they could lay on the bed. He curled into Eddie’s side and allowed the last of his tears to fall as Eddie whispered words of comfort.
“Do you know how much I love you?” Eddie murmured, kissing the crown of his head.
“Yeah,” Buck sniffed. He glanced up at Eddie. “I love you the same.”
Eddie smiled and reached out to swipe away the residual tears on Buck’s face. “How do you feel?” He asked.
“A lot better,” Buck admitted. “But sore as hell. That really hurt. Like more than usual.”
Eddie laughed fondly and leaned over to kiss his forehead. “Good,” he commented as he pulled away. “Incentive for you to make better choices.”
Buck scowled playfully, but he really couldn’t argue the validity of that statement. He watched as Eddie turned to grab a bottle of water and their bag of skittles from the night stand. Taking advantage of the brief moment of distraction, he reached back to attempt to rub his backside.
Eddie dropped the water and skittles between them and caught his hand before he could start. “Absolutely not,” he scolded, although there was no heat to it.
“You’re so mean to me,” Buck whined half-heartedly.
“You poor thing,” Eddie sassed, ruffling Buck’s hair before unscrewing the cap on one of the water bottles and passing it to him. “Drink half of this and I’ll put some lotion on for you.”
Eddie stroked the inside of Buck’s forearm as he drank, watching his body continue to relax. The tension they both carried from earlier was long gone and the renewed closeness between them was filling the room with a warm, calm energy.
As promised, Eddie gently rubbed some lotion into Buck’s sore skin once he’d finished half of his water. Afterward, they sat in silence for a bit, Buck lounging against Eddie and popping the occasional skittle as Eddie typed on his phone with one hand and ran his fingers through Buck’s hair with the other.
“There,” Eddie said a few minutes later, passing his phone to Buck. “It will be here tomorrow.”
Buck glanced at the screen, his heart threatening to combust once he processed what he was seeing. “You ordered me a new power bank?”
“It’s a fancy one too,” Eddie shared, sounding pleased with himself. “Look, it has solar attachments so you can still use it on your hikes even if it runs out of juice.”
Buck looked up at him, feeling oddly emotional at the gesture. “Thank you, babe. It’s perfect.”
“I’m proud of you for doing that hike, Buck. I know how hard you worked for it,” Eddie said. “I’m still going to hold you accountable for being better about your phone, but I want to do what I can to make it easier for you too.”
“I love you,” Buck said, leaning over and planting a sloppy kiss on his cheek. “Even though you have a really hard hand and wield a hairbrush like a mad man.”
“Yeah, love you too,” Eddie laughed. “Even though you have the attention span of a goldfish and scare the shit out of me on a regular basis.”
Buck rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry. I have a fancy new power bank now, and I will remember to bring it with me.”
“Oh, I know you will,” Eddie chuckled, giving a very meaningful pat to his behind.
“Menace.”
“Brat.”
Eddie pulled Buck closer, mindful of his sore backside, and leaned in for a kiss. Buck happily accepted, smiling into it as their lips touched. He loved this man. He was loved by this man. At times it still didn’t feel real.
It was.