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oliver: “i didn’t realise during the scene that ryan was gonna grab hold of me and lunge at me but during the duration of the show, we’ve kind of built such trust between myself, him and the rest of the cast. um, so you have that kind of sandbox to play in, a high level of trust, so if somebody wants to try something, you feel like you have the space to do that. and i love the way the scene came together.”

ryan: “this scene, it had so many great textures, again, thanks to tim minear. and oliver’s right. so we rehearsed it one time, but i did it super bland and mellow as can be. then the director pulls me off to the side ‘it seems like you wanna hit him right now, do you wanna punch him?’ and i go i don’t know if i wanna punch him, but, you know, let’s play with that. and lo and behold, i started elevating the, uh, the pushing. let’s say that.”

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morning snack :9

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aisha hinds the woman that you are

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hahahha haahahah HAHAHAHA

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do you have any fave long bucktommy oneshots?

thank you for asking, i absolutely do! here are my long bucktommy oneshot fic recs. these fics are 10k-30k words (admittedly there are a few exceptions, but those feel longer than they actually are), and they are posted in one chapter. listed in order of published date. enjoy!

i sing of bitter earth by @middyblue [ao3 profile]

Published: 05-07-2024 | Words: 12,037 | Rated T

In his head, on the job, he can walk away from it. The underworld that lies in wait inside him stays behind and it’s just him and the rope, the hose, the halligan; give him a puzzle to solve and a caller to rescue and it’s like everything is air, rosy and clear and fragrant as an open field.

The Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve floods. Taylor falls; Tommy falls; Buck falls.

this was one of the first 9-1-1 fics to make a serious impression on me. i was, and still am, so taken by the imagery, the action, and the thematic storytelling. it bravely leans into being an emergency-based fic, and it genuinely made me want to tell a story like that, too. the prose and the characterization and the taylor/tommy dynamic are all so brilliant. definitely one of my most formative, influential, and cherished 9-1-1 fics.

an outlier that should not be counted by @dadvans [ao3 profile]

Published: 05-11-2024 | Words: 7,429 | Rated E

Buck knows a lot of random trivia. Tommy falls in love with him one fact at a time.

okay, i know this the shortest thing on this list, but listen. where would we all be without this fic? there is a reason it's sitting pretty at 22k hits. could honestly be the origin of many of the fandom's core bt dynamic headcanons. a delightful, witty read that captures the early excitement of bt like lightning in a bottle.

awful quiet here since love fell asleep by @cecilyv & @liminalmemories21 [ao3 profiles x & x]

Published: 05-14-2024 | Words: 15,632 | Rated M

The Buck/Tommy break up/make up fic that literally no one was asking for but me. Things don’t always work out, the first time around.

"We'll be friends?" Because this is the right move, the smart move.

There's an expression he can't read that crosses Tommy's face, but then he nods, and sticks out his hand for Buck to shake. "Of course."

Buck hates it. But he made the bed, it's his to lie in. They shake on it.

the original break up fic. this is an amazing buck character study that honestly feels a bit prophetic in retrospect. i remember how i felt reading this, so heartbroken but so obsessed with the way buck navigated through understanding his own loneliness. it's absolutely joyful.

something ‘bout a boat by @swiftietartt [ao3 profile]

Published: 05-30-2024 | Words: 9,825 | Rated E

Tommy introduces Evan to his friends.

this is my one of my most cherished fics, i honestly cannot articulate how intensely i feel about it or do its brilliance much justice. begging you to read it if you haven't. to this beautiful author, should you ever write buck and tommy again, please know i will be first in line to read it. this story is charming beyond belief. this version of tommy is not one that you read about often, and i fucking love that. in this story, tommy is aloof but well-loved, has a delightful circle of true friends, and he has a fucking boat. there is not that much buck in this story, though he is omnipresent in a way. it builds and builds up to them finally getting to be alone below deck, and it's all the more delicious because of the wait. fabulously unique, there is really nothing else like it.

a full-body workout by @persiflager [ao3 profile]

Published: 07-02-2024 | Words: 7,901 | Rated E

When Tommy turns back to Eddie he finds Eddie giving him a knowing look. “Laundry and meal prep, huh?”

another one that is so carefully written that it feels longer than it is. one of the things i love so much about this story is the trio dynamic. the evolved friendship that eddie has with buck and tommy is, at least for me, best depicted here than anywhere else i've ever seen it. and, on top of that, there is just something so appealing to me about spending an entire day wanting to fuck so bad, but your friend is over so you've gotta practice patience. the anticipation that builds is really nuanced, it's truly a perfectly told slice of life.

the suffering of evan buckley('s sex drive) by @sugarpenchant [ao3 profile]

Published: 07-16-2024 | Words: 10,513 | Rated E

Tommy has been gone fighting fires for a month as vital air support, which would be fine—except for the fact that Buck has finally gotten a taste of sex with Tommy only for it to be cruelly whisked away. Buck finally gets his chance to join the firefighting efforts on the front lines and hopefully, someday before the world ends, ideally, he’ll get to see Tommy again.

There is a chance that Buck is being a little overdramatic about the whole thing, but a month is a really long time to go without the wonder of your brand new boyfriend.

posted for day 2 prompt of five alarm fest: after a dry spell

i need you to understand exactly one thing. this is the hottest fic ever. no like, this is the hottest fic i've read in years. buck, having just gotten dicked down for the first few times loses a summer of lovin' to a wildfire. tommy's on the frontlines, and what does buck do? he joins the ranks just for the possibility to be physically closer to him (and his dick). the world-building is fantastic for its length, particularly with the inclusion of lone star characters. when they finally see each other that first time, goddamn. the way they want each other but can't do a thing is a tease like nothing else. but where there's a will, there's a way. the fuck they manage to fit in between fighting the wildfire is a high that buck is able to ride (pun intended) for a while. i'm literally so addicted to this fic. erotic perfection.

knee deep in the passenger seat by @firstaudrina [ao3 profile]

Published: 08-08-2024 | Words: 9,039 | Rated E

What Buck liked best was that first thrill — a smile returned, a flirtatious joke — and then the heated next-next-next, all the things he still had to learn there.

aka Buck begins (in bed).

this ends with bucktommy, but it's a lot more than that and that isn't the draw of this fic. this is for the evan buckley lovers. this is like going to your favorite porn star's profile and watching a snippet of every single thing they've ever starred in. it's so good, it's so hot, it's so complicated. a great and very unique read.

bop it, twist it, pull it by @al-the-remix [ao3 profile]

Published: 08-14-2024 | Words: 21,642 | Rated E

“Hey!”

He doesn’t mean to yell, but Tommy still jumps a little beneath him. “Jesus, Evan, what–”

“You have a fucking dick piercing,” Buck half proclaims, half accuses. This is what Tommy has been holding out on all this time?

or

Buck discovers more about Tommy (and himself) through Tommy's piercings.

there's something about this fic that fits so perfectly into my fantasy of tommy. there's this punkishness about him in my head, and maybe that is a feeling that carried over from seeing pictures of lfj as a young, bulky, pierced scoundrel, but this story fits that image. super hot, a wealth of edginess.

fever's high with the lights down low by @kirkaut [ao3 profile]

Published: 09-07-2024 | Words: 11,731 | Rated E

No one has ever done this for him before. He didn’t even know how badly he wanted someone to do this - to think of him this way, to not only shoulder some of his weight but to want to - until this moment. Most people he’s dated have tended to give him a wide berth after a long, grueling shift, and he’d always thought that was what he wanted. It had been a little lonely, sure, but there wasn’t much he typically did afterwards that wasn’t refuel and rest.

Maybe he should have known better when it comes to Evan, who had jumped feet first into this relationship and never once looked back. Evan, who has worked these kinds of shifts himself and understands Tommy in a way that none of his exes ever have before.

Evan, who pours the love out of himself like it's as easy as breathing.

i remember reading this story for the first time. i was on vacation in a hotel bed, and i just felt so luxurious and indulgent getting to read this unbelievably hot, heartfelt story in utter comfort. it's the perfect analogy for how this fic makes you feel. it's pwp at its honest best.

engine purr by @epiphainie [ao3 profile]

Published: 09-16-2024 | Words: 15,010 | Rated E

“Oh! Yes. My car, my Jeep, I mean,” Buck said, gaze falling on the hands reaching for a rag. “It just sputtered and died on me right outside of town and there was no reception… I-I didn’t know what to do so I just… walked.” He swallowed and looked up again. “I thought I could call Triple A? Or maybe 9-1-1?”

The guy looked at Buck. There was a slight furrow to his brows, a tinge of bemusement in his eyes. The lines of his face were sharp and straight everywhere, but well-worn too, making Buck realize he was older than him by at least a decade and some change, if not more.

“That’s not for 9-1-1. And Triple A costs an arm and a leg if you don’t have a membership,” he said in a languid voice. “Lucky for you, though, you walked into this town’s one-and-only repair shop.”

buck takes a road trip before his new job, the jeep breaks down in the middle of nowhere, a small-town mechanic helps him out

my friend is a genius. okay full disclosure, au is not always my thing, and never my preference. i know that is a very unpopular opinion, but i think i am just very picky about it - but when it's done well, it can't be beat. this fic is fucking amazing and the age difference is a thing to behold. i always find myself so immersed in mimi's stories, particularly the dialogue. as i was reading this fic, i would find myself deep in one of buck and tommy's conversations and be so struck by how tangible and accurately articulated the characters are. in my own writing, i drag my feet over dialogue, never really knowing if something is too long-winded, or far too short. that happens to be mimi's strength, especially here - their conversations are perfectly paced, chatty, and true. beyond that, i could probably gush just as much over how hot the tension, build-up, and well-earned sex is in this fic. my fiancé called it the hottest bt she's ever read. by the way, even as i write this little blurb, my mind is saturated with images of tommy's apartment over his shop, and that is a true testament to the visceral and descriptive writing that is achieved here. i will wrap this up by saying i truly cannot wait until the next part in this story is posted! god, i love good writing.

in a yellow wood by @cecilyv & @liminalmemories21 [ao3 profiles x & x]

Published: 11-10-2024 | Words: 9,847 | Rated E

It’s been three years since the break-up when Tommy saves a family and it upends his life.

He’s paying more attention to explaining what the various levers and controls do than he is to what’s going on in the hangar and his head whips around when he hears a familiar voice saying. “Kam, the whole point of leaving my kid with you was to not take him to work.”

this is one of two break up/make up fics that i hold very dear. there are things that ring very true about it, and things that are legitimately haunting. they're apart for years - right from the jump, that is a sobering revelation. buck has a baby. buck doesn't look like he used to - his hair is shorter, he has a slighter frame. his life, his body, his world has changed. but he wears the maturity well, and he wears fatherhood well, and tommy wants in and he fucking earns a seat at the table. he earns love, he earns a family. it's a fucking beautiful rosy picture of what a future could be. it's so special, and so healing.

closet conversations by @eyesonstars-feetonground [ao3 profile]

Published: 11-12-2024 | Words: 10,599 | Rated M

Six months is a long time to stick around if he thought you’d dump him.

OR

After his boyfriend dumps him, Evan Buckley goes on a date, makes a new friend, has some conversations, and realizes he's queer. Tommy haunts him every step of the way.

this break up/make up is a triumph. very, very special to me. my favorite thing about this story is that it is a love letter to queer media and culture. this fic grabs one of the loosest threads of buck and tommy's canon relationship and pulls and pulls at it, taking a closer look at what it means for buck to date and fuck a guy for six months but not be able to correct some girl that he was on a date (for his six month anniversary, no less), or correct maddie that he isn't gay. it's one of so many things that deserves closer analyzation, and it's done so brilliantly here. buck and queerness go so, so well together - i am desperate for more carefully constructed analyses and stories like this one.

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Art prompt: We were 1000% robbed of any sleepy Buck and Tommy waking up together. We never got any of that closed door intimacy with them. 🥺 I’m thinking wearing a sheet and nothing else. Don’t care what they’re doing otherwise.

As always: only if you have the energy and if the muse is being kind. 💜 I’ve been there where I get a prompt and it just doesn’t spark anything.

+

@30somethingautisticteacher asked: Art prompt? Buck and Tommy shirtless snuggling in bed , Buck's head on Tommy's chest while Tommy runs his fingers through Buck's hair 🙏❤️

all that empty space and yet 🙂

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'cause our people are what make life worth living.

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Margarita Karapanou, Rien ne va plus

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buck whenever he gets the itch to call tommy

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(thinking about this post a bit)

“You weren’t asking me to move in with you,” Tommy said with a terrible, sad smile. “You were asking your boyfriend.”

Buck squinted, confused. “You… are my boyfriend?” That strained smile somehow became more terrible, and Buck realized he’d slipped up.  “Were. Were my boyfriend.”

Tommy sighed. “Quick pop quiz for you, then. Name three of your former boyfriend’s hobbies.”

Bucks brow furrowed deeper, but for the moment he decided to play along. “Uh, movies? Basketball. MMA, Muay Thai, stuff like that.”

Tommy nodded. “Full points. Now, basketball is not something I play at home, so that’s not relevant, and I can see exactly where my DVD collection would fit, no problem.  Muay Thai, though… where does my equipment go, here?  My mat and bag? And, hey, here’s a hobby you didn’t mention: tinkering with classic cars.  Where does my car lift go, Buck?  Because it sure can’t go in that parking space out front.”

Buck felt his face starting to go red, and dropped his eyes.  “You’ve made your point,” he mumbled.

“Have I?  And what is that, then?”

“That I wasn’t thinking about you, when I asked you to move in.”

“No, you weren’t,” Tommy agreed.  “The same way you weren’t thinking about me when you talked about this cool, confident, comfortable gay guy you admire.  I didn’t come out until after gay marriage was legalized, Buck.  There’s nothing impressive about how many people I hurt—myself included—by being unable to live with my truth.  And I don’t—I don’t have gay friends, you know?  I’m not in the community that way. I’m not an activist; I don’t even go to Pride.  That guy you were talking about—he does sound admirable.  He sounds great.” Tommy’s voice cracked.  “But he doesn’t sound like me.”

Unable to bear the silence, Buck fidgeted with his shirtsleeve and asked, “So… that’s why you broke up with me?  Because I didn’t know you well enough?”

Tommy looked away. “I broke up with you because that conversation made it very clear to me that you were falling for some better version of Tommy Kinard that you’d made up in your head.  And maybe I contributed to that. We never really discussed heavy topics much, not even our dating histories.” Buck chuckled a little at the reference, and for a split second Tommy smiled for real. It hurt to see, and hurt more to see it so briefly. “But I knew. Even if I pointed out that my things wouldn’t fit in your loft, and we had a little laugh about it and decided to look for a new place to move into together… living together would force you to see who I really am.  And you weren’t going to love that guy.”

Buck blinked back tears. “Y-you don’t know that.  I don’t know that.”

“I do, though.”  Tommy smiled thinly, his eyes wet.  “No one’s ever loved that guy.”

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Buck goes to Hen and Karen’s house.

He doesn’t know why he didn’t come here before. It’s been a week and a half since the breakup and it only occurred to him after his talk with Maddie and Chim that maybe he should get a queer perspective on his situation. That, and Hen doesn’t coddle him. She’ll tell him where he fucked up.

He shows up on their doorstep with five loaves—one for each Wilson and an extra because he needs to make all the room in his fridge he possibly can for the next time he’s sobbing into his Kitchenaid at 3am.

“I just don’t know what to do now,” he says over a steaming mug of tea at their dining room table. “I don’t know what- what pond to jump into now.”

He’s met with equally confused faces from both Hen and Karen.

“What do you mean ‘what pond’?” Hen asks.

“You know, like, dating. Maddie and Chim said I need to jump back into the pond, but I don’t know which one I’m supposed to jump into now. Before Tommy, obviously, there was no question. But now, I don’t- I don’t know who I’m supposed to date. Which- which gender.”

Hen and Karen exchange a quick, confused, are you hearing what I’m hearing glance.

“I’m sorry,” Hen says. “I guess we’ve never really discussed it, but I had assumed you were bi.”

“Are you… not sure if you like women?” Karen asks. “Now that you’ve been with a man.”

“What?” Buck asks. “No, I- I like women. I’ve always liked women. I definitely still like women.”

It sounds more defensive than he feels. He remembers the woman who walked up to him at Miceli’s, how his breath caught for a moment when she smiled at him and how he thought her friends were beautiful. Even if he wasn’t interested interested in anyone but Tommy, he still couldn’t help but look so obviously that Tommy called him out on it.

“Then… you’re not sure if you like men?” Hen pushes.

Tommy, hot and sweaty and big and masculine on top of him, deep inside of him, under his desperate roaming hands, voice pitched low and stubble scratching against Buck’s own as he whispered filthy things into his ear.

And more than that—a shirtless jogger, a hot guy they rescued on a call last month, rewatching Thor with Chris over Skype. All these background attractions that had never registered as more than a foggy itch before Tommy, suddenly cast into searing clarity.

Buck raises his eyebrows suggestively. “No, I definitely like men too.”

Hen nods slowly. “So… what’s the question here?”

“I don’t know how to choose.”

“Why would you need to choose?” Karen asks.

“Why… wouldn’t I?” Buck asks slowly. “If I’m choosing who to date next, why wouldn’t I have to… choose?”

Hen gives him a look somewhere between pitying and exasperated. It’s a look he’s very used to from her.

“Buck, why can’t you date both? You know now that you have the whole gender spectrum open to you. Why are you trying to limit yourself to just one again?”

“Because-“ Buck starts, but he stops himself.

That’s a good question. That’s a question he’s never asked himself before. Why is he limiting himself?

“Where is this coming from?” Karen asks gently.

Buck has to think about it for a moment. He’s been so far down a spiral for the last week and a half that he has trouble pulling himself back out to see what set him down this path in the first place, but he finds it.

“When I was dating Tommy, I was in a gay relationship. When I’ve dated women, those have been straight relationships. I guess- I guess I feel like, now that I’ve been in a gay relationship, isn’t it- isn’t it a little weird to go back into a straight one? Like, I had this period of self-discovery and then I just pretend like nothing happened? Doesn’t that make it less- less meaningful? Less real?”

Hen’s face slides into sympathetic. “Buck, you’re queer no matter what kind of relationship you’re in. No matter who you’re with, you’re still- are you using the word bisexual?”

Buck shrugs. “I haven’t really thought about it.”

He hasn’t really thought about much regarding his sexuality besides the Tommy of it all for the last six months. He hasn’t reflected on his label, his past, or even his future. It’s just all been Tommy: his big muscles and piercing eyes and low growly voice teasing him so nicely. Hard and rough and gentle and soft and attentive—solid and vulnerable. Fun. New, exciting, easy. The sex was so good that Buck had trouble thinking of anything else for the first three months. It’s all been Tommy, how Tommy makes him feel; not how Buck feels.

“You should think about it,” Karen says. “You don’t have to use a label, but if you want to there are so many to choose from. Looking into that might help you understand yourself.”

Buck nods. He’s quiet for a moment, looking down at his hands. The other half of the spiral.

“What if I date another man and it’s good, and we fall in love, and- and Tommy was right, that what we had was only special because it was new for me? And- and what we had wasn’t forever, it wasn’t him. It was just the excitement of dating a man.”

Hen takes Buck’s hand in his. “Would that be the worst thing? To fall in love?”

“I’m in love now,” Buck finally admits, even if he’s saying it to the wrong person. “But he doesn’t believe me.”

Hen squeezes his hand. “Maybe. But maybe falling in love again anyway is still worth it.”

“Have you talked to him?” Karen asks. Hen shoots her a warning look. “What? We’re queer. We don’t break up like straight people do. I think our son is evidence of that.”

Hen tilts her head in acknowledgement.

“No, no I uh- I’ve been baking every time I get the urge to call him.”

“So five times, then?”

“Oh,” Buck laughs. “No, this, uh- this is maybe a fifth of what I have in my fridge. And I’ve sent a lot home with Maddie and Eddie, so…”

“So stop wasting sugar and flour and call him,” Karen says. “Maybe you’ll stay broken up but you can at least get some closure.”

Buck shakes his head. “He- when he was leaving, he called me Buck. Not Evan. That’s- that’s a closed door.” Even the thought of it still stings.

“That’s not closure,” Hen says. “That’s him putting distance between you. He’s always been good at that, but it’s a defense. Talk to him, keep that door open, but Buck,” she looks at him seriously. “He’s not wrong that you need to figure yourself out. Have you done any research into queer identities?”

Buck shakes his head. “No, not until- uh, Tommy said he’s a Kinsey six? So I looked that up after he told me, but uh, no.”

“No? No famous Buck research spirals?” Karen asks with a light smile.

“No, uh- I’ve- I’ve been-“ Buck stops, unsure how to convey the rising panic he feels in his chest whenever he thinks about it, about himself, about what this means for him. It feels disrespectful to tell two lesbians who have been out for decades that he’s still a little terrified of the idea of being queer in his own right—not just as an extension of what it means to be with Tommy.

“You’ve been scared?” Hen guesses.

All Buck can do is nod. He won’t meet her eye but he squeezes her hand. “I’m sorry. I know it’s- I know we live in a post-Glee world and all that but-“

Hen and Karen both snort-laugh at that and it makes him look up with a tentative smile.

“Glee?” Karen asks.

“Y-yeah. Josh said-“

Hen groans. “Josh. Don’t go to Josh for advice anymore, okay? He’s a good enough guy, but his experience being queer is never going to be close to yours. He’s not going to be helpful.”

Buck thinks that’s half of where he went wrong. He doesn’t blame Josh, but he knows Josh got in his head about the future and honoring those who came before him. No wonder Tommy got scared.

“Yeah, uh, I- I get that now.”

“Glee also had terrible bisexual representation,” Karen adds. “They framed it like it was a stepping stone to admitting you’re gay.”

“And it’s… not, right?” Buck asks. Clarifying, scared. Disappointed in himself for being scared.

The pitying-exasperated look is back on Hen’s face. “No, Buck. For- for some people, maybe, but there are plenty of people who are actually attracted to all genders. You’re on your own journey, so don’t take anything we say as gospel if it doesn’t feel right to you, but I was there for your Buck 1.0 days. I don’t think you’re gay.”

Buck smiles and nods, already feeling lighter than he did when he came in. He should’ve had this conversation months ago. He should’ve had this conversation with Tommy. Why was he so scared? Why couldn’t he bring himself to do the research on his own? It doesn’t matter. He’s here now. He’s not wallowing in the past: he’s moving into the future.

“So, instead of choosing a pond, I can just… have one foot in both?”

Karen makes an encouraging face like he almost gets it. “It’s not two ponds. It’s an ocean. There’s more kinds of life in there than you could ever imagine, and there’s nothing stopping you from exploring anything that catches your eye and consents.”

Buck hesitates. “And if there’s only one fish I want?”

“Then you take a week, channel this energy,” Hen gestures at the five loaves, “into researching queer identities, and then you call him.”

“What if he doesn’t want me back?” Buck asks quietly.

“Then you’ll find someone else who’ll love you, and you’ll know yourself better because of him. He did that for you, if nothing else.”

He did a lot more than that. Tommy was the first person to show Buck how he wanted to be loved: tenderly, gently, but without being coddled. Honest and up-front and still half-adoring. He knows now that he won’t settle for anything less. Tommy made him feel special and whole and real for the first time in his life.

It was so close to how Abby loved him, in that short time between when her mom died and when she’d left (and he wonders now if that wasn’t a coincidence), but it wasn’t so much that she’d actually treated him that way than it was that she showed him that someone might want to treat him like that someday.

And Tommy did. When Buck was covered in boils, Tommy told him he was being ridiculous and he took care of him anyway. Even when Tommy broke up with him, it wasn’t because he didn’t care—it was because he did. It was because he was falling in love and terrified that Buck didn’t know this part of himself well enough not to hurt him later on.

If Buck has learned anything tonight, it’s that maybe Tommy was right. Maybe he has no idea what being queer means for him; what his label is and what his Kinsey number is and what he’s allowed to feel for who. But maybe if Buck can figure out who he is as a queer man outside the intoxicating orbit of Tommy Tommy Tommy, maybe he can show Tommy that their relationship wasn’t just a first for Buck: it’s also a last.

This breakup could be a blip—a momentary pause in the best relationship Buck has ever had—or it could be the start of a new path for Buck, a deeper and richer understanding of himself leading to a more honest relationship down the road. He’s still a little too heartbroken to really take the latter as a genuine possibility, but it’s a comforting backup.

He leaves Hen and Karen’s with a promise not to ask straight people for relationship advice anymore, a small library of new tabs open, a few book and movie recommendations, and a clear way forward. He holds his head up high and points himself in the direction of the rest of his life.

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Got inspired by all the memes

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november 7, 2024: "I think the strength of that scene and the strength of their bond is that they don't have to speak," Stark tells EW of the "Buddie" friendship. "They're both going through very different things and they're both dealing with them in very different ways, yet they know they can do that together and that there's a source of strength there that has been built up between them. It's this safe space that they create for each other." "Buck is obviously a real mood killer because Eddie is very much on an upper and then here comes Mr. Doom and Gloom," Stark continues, though his screen partner disagrees: "I don't even know if they kind of pick up on each other's energy," Guzman says. "They just want to be around somebody they know, they trust, they feel comfortable around. That is a true brother moment." And like true brothers, one doesn't even question why the other isn't wearing pants. "He just blows right past me. I'm in my chonies and I'm just like, 'All right, beer? Sure, fine, whatever,'" Guzman says with a laugh. "So yeah, it's a good scene."

rereading some recent interviews now and i feel like this bit is emblematic of a lot of the issues with recent episodes and their promo output. like, why can't the two actors who were in a scene together not even agree on what the vibe of the moment was supposed to be?

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To defend tommy (and perhaps give the writers more credit than they deserve), has buck been able to figure himself out whilst they've been dating? because for all oliver's talk about buck's bi-awakening being about buck, on screen it still doesn't seem like he's grappled with his sexuality outside of his attraction to tommy.

They're six months in and buck can't even clarify his sexuality when his sister makes a (pretty poor taste) joke about him having been "turned gay." He does the same thing he's been doing since 7.04 and talks around it.

Plus, let's be real tommy's not wrong about buck being impulsive, and he specifically has a history of using grand gestures in place of actually working through his issues. So whilst i think buck does know what he wants re: his future with tommy, like i've been saying since april i don't think he's actually thought about what that means for him and his identity. Even with Gerrard, he doesn't seem to put together why he's getting under his skin so much. There's been a very steady (if perhaps accidental) thread through buck's bi-awakening of him pretending to be more okay with it than he actually is. Like, sure could his first queer relationship be his last, yeah, but he probably should be able to say the word bisexual outloud before trying to make that happen.

I'd also argue that buck's put tommy up on a pedestal a bit, despite the fact tommy's been very open about his flaws. Even after the abby reveal, he's willing to brush past it with barely a conversation and asking him to move in. That doesn't scream, "I love you in spite of your flaws and mistakes," it screams "I'm ignoring your flaws because I love you." and that's kind of a recipe for everything to all come crashing down at some point. Which is exactly what tommy's afraid of happening.

In theory I don't even mind them breaking up/going on a break if it forces buck to actually deal with all those things, but that's only really satisfying if there's a full circle moment where he's able to go back to tommy with real clarity about who he is and what he wants.

[badasscoffeemug]

Moving on to Buck and Tommy’s breakup, talk about your approach to it. Why was Tommy sure that Buck would break his heart? Tommy’s older and Buck is very new to this, and whether Tommy was correct or not, I think what he felt like was exactly what he said: I’m not your last, I’m your first, which is a special thing to be, but as Tommy says, it doesn’t usually end up being the same thing. And I think based on what we know of Buck, he’s maybe not wrong. Buck’s a little impulsive when he’s feeling a certain kind of way. He’s like, move on in, bring your couch. So I just think because Tommy’s a little older and wiser or maybe at some level he feels like he doesn’t deserve Buck, I don’t know. But I think he accurately diagnosed Buck. Buck’s still figuring himself out, and boy, that would be quite risky to move in with that guy as much as you would love to.

timothy what do you mean you don't know ??? motherfucker you wrote the damn scene ?! it's your character

[badasscoffeemug]

Stark, for his part, has ideas about what the person would have to exude in order to be the right match.

“I like to think it’s somebody that can challenge him, but I think maybe somebody where it’s not too easy for him,” he told Us. “I look back at all his past relationships, and even though he hasn’t necessarily been the one to end them at the beginning, it’s always kind of been pretty easy and smooth sailing for Buck. He’s kind of had a crush, got the person.”

Stark said he’d enjoy seeing Buck “struggle” and “bumble” for a bit before winning over his next love interest. “Where it doesn’t quite always go to plan and he has to work a little bit harder to earn,” he said with a smirk, before correcting himself. “Maybe ‘earn’ is not the healthiest word to use in that sense, but he has to put some work in.”

Do you mean fighting for a relationship after miscommunication, insecurity, and misunderstanding cause a hurdle in a situation where both people clearly want to be together? Something like that? Where he has to work for the other person to understand that he wants them? Hmm... That would be a good thing to see from Buck!

[badasscoffeemug]

"We don’t want to do it in this traumatic, heavy way where the fact that it’s a queer love story is the issue. It’s gonna have issues, but hopefully not surrounding the queerness."

and then different experiences with queerness are a major factor in the breakup. lol and lmao.