By Winnie
Characters-Chris Larabee and Buck Wilmington
Rating-----PG---some language and violence.
Disclaimer---I don’t own these characters but I hope to keep them alive in my fics. No money was made or profit gained in the writing of this fic.
Comments----This is dedicated to all the friends I’ve made since finding the joys of the seven. The support you all give so easily deserves to be recognized and I appreciate everything you do. This story popped into my head this morning while listening to Garth Brooks’ song A Friend in Me and I could so see it applied to Buck and Chris’ roller coaster friendship. Thanks Angela for pointing out the typos and such. I hope you all enjoy it...feedback is welcomed.
Well you and I
We're buddies
And we've been since we first met
Me and you
Well we've sure been through
Our share of laughter and regret
Chris opened his eyes and stared at the man lying in the bed. They’d been enjoying an afternoon sitting in front of Buck’s Bar and Grill when death came calling, but Chris wouldn’t let that happen. Not this time. Never again would he lose someone he cared about, not if he could help it. He winced as he shifted in the chair, holding his right side and praying the man in the bed would hear his silent prayers and not give in to the call of the grim reaper. Buck’s handsome features were a pasty gray and his breathing seemed almost nonexistent, but Chris knew he was still with him. All he had to do was keep him anchored to life, the same way Wilmington had done for him, without question, without regret. This man was a true friend, one he would not give up so easily. New words came to mind and he wasn’t sure where he’d heard them, but right now they seemed to fit and he said them aloud as he placed a hand on the other man’s chest.
“Lord knows we've had our bad days
And more than once we've disagreed
But you've always been a friend to me”
Tears filled his eyes as he realized how true those words were. In the years since he’d first met this gentle man he’d caused his own share of grief, but never once did he turn away, no matter how hard he shoved. His mind wandered to the day earlier in the week, when another solid blow landed on his heart.
“What time are Vin and JD coming?” Wilmington asked as he took a seat at one of the patio tables.
“Vin said they’d be here around five.” Larabee watched as the rogue’s eyes lit up and knew Inez must be close.
“What’s your pleasure, boys?”
“Well now, Inez, that’s a loaded question if I ever heard one!” the ladies man said, smiling as the dark haired beauty wiped down the table.
“Si, Senor, but you don’t have a chance in hell of getting the answer you wish,” Inez answered. She loved the verbal sparring she had with this man and one day she would let him know just how much she looked forward to his visits.
“Ah, hell, Inez, you’re breaking my heart!” Buck said, placing his hand on his chest.
“Give it up, Buck. I’ll have a Corona Extra, Inez,” Larabee said.
“I’ll have,” the roguish grin was back in place as the moustached face looked up. “...sex on the beach.”
Inez leaned down and whispered in the scoundrel’s ear. “Only when hell freezes over.”
“Well, I’ll just have to pray for a deep...Chris, what’s wrong?” Wilmington asked, noting the way Larabee was staring past him.
“Not sure, Buck. See those two men standing by the green Thunderbird?”
Wilmington turned to look at the car in question. The duo wore long jackets that seemed out of place in the hot afternoon sun. He frowned as the men in question moved to the back of the car. “Think they’re up to something?”
“Don’t know, but something doesn’t feel right. Inez, why don’t you go inside...oh shit!”
“I saw that. Inez...go inside and call 911!” The rogue ordered and was glad the woman didn’t question him.
“Have you got your gun on you, Buck?”
“No...didn’t think I’d need it,” the rogue answered as they watched the guns being hidden inside the long jackets. “You?”
“No...it’s locked in the truck.”
“Maybe we can get to it?”
“Alright, you go on inside and I’ll go to the truck. Make Inez lock the doors!”
“No way...we both go. I know you Chris and if you get close enough you’ll try to take them out!”
“Shit, alright, we do it together! Just be careful!”
“I will...oh hell, too late, Chris!” Wilmington said as the two armed men entered the gate.
Chris sat back down and watched as the two young men made their way to a table near the door.
“What the hell are you lookin’ at, Mister!” the red headed youth spat, before turning back to his friend.
“Chris, we need to do something before anyone else shows up.”
“I know, Buck. Look, why don’t we...”
“Where the hell is the waitress?” the second dark haired youth shouted.
“Why don’t you two just calm down and show a little respect?” Wilmington asked, knowing he had to try and keep them from going inside.
“Who died and put you in charge, old man?” this from the red head, standing and making a move towards the door.
“Ain’t so old I couldn’t tan your hide, Kid!” He knew they had to stop the two from entering the bar, but without weapons there wasn’t much they could do. They had to stall and give the police time to get there.
“Kid sit down! The waitress is getting our orders and when she brings them she’ll take yours,” Larabee told him, an edge of anger in his voice.
“Well, maybe we don’t want to wait!” from the dark haired youth.
“What the hell’s that!” the red haired youth asked as a new sound intruded on their conversation.
“That’s a police siren! Shit! Who called the cops?”
“Doesn’t matter, Kid, might as well give up whatever you had planned and take a seat!” larabee told them
“No way in hell I’m goin’ to jail!” The red head spat, pulling a sawed off shotgun from under his coat at the same time his friend pulled a small caliber weapon from the pocket of his jacket. He reached for the door of the bar, anger and fear clouding his face as he found the entrance locked.
“You two get over here and make them open the fuckin’ door or I’ll blow your heads off!”
“Put the gun down, Kid!” Wilmington ordered, knowing the two youths were a real danger as their hands twitched nervously.
“No...get your ass over here now or I’ll shoot your friend!” the red head warned.
Buck heard the police cars coming closer and knew it was only a matter of time before help arrived, but until then he had to keep this man from shooting anyone.
“Stay put, Buck!” Larabee warned just before he heard the shotgun go off and watched Buck’s body as it flew across the table he’d been standing in front of.
“Chris!” Wilmington screamed as everything went to hell in a hurry. The door to the bar was shoved open sending the dark haired youth flying as the gun in his hand went off. The youth lost his balance and was sent sprawling amongst the tables as the gun clattered across the patio stones.
Larabee kept his hand against the throbbing wound in his right side as he struggled to get to his feet. Pain blurred his sense as he tried to focus on the scene in front of him. It all happened so fast that he wasn’t sure if it was real or an instant replay of some horror movie.
“Buck!” he cried as he made it to his feet and watched Wilmington’s head snap back. Blood sprayed from the ladies’ man’s skull as his body dropped in slow motion to the ground.
“NO!” Larabee cried as the youth’s gun came to rest inches from where he stood. He sank to his knees, blood seeping through his fingers, sirens screaming in his ears, and fear tugging at his heart. He had no idea where he found the strength, but the gun was in his hand even as he heard the shotgun being readied to fire. Through vision blurred by pain and sorrow he fired the weapon at the red haired gunman. He saw the look of disbelief that clouded the youth’s features and knew he was dead as he sank to the ground. He turned to see the other gunman trying to get up, but his efforts were stopped as Inez picked up a solid ashtray and connected solidly with the man’s head. With his own blood seeping through his fingers, Chris Larabee crawled towards his best friend, sure that the friendship they’d shared had ended with the bullet that struck the rogue’s gentle face. Ignoring the blood seeping through his fingers, Chris Larabee pulled the all too still form into his arms as three lines from a song entered his mind.
“Lord knows we've had our bad days
And more than once we've disagreed
But you've always been a friend to me”
“Don’t you fuckin’ quit on me, Buck!” he whispered as consciousness left him.
You can be so stubborn
There's times I think you just like to fight
And I hope and pray
I live to see a day
When you say I might be right
Chris shook himself as his thoughts returned to the present and his best friend. Over the years Buck had stood by him through it all...through the dark times after Sarah and Adam died, Buck Wilmington made sure he was never alone. Vin may have been the one to bring him out of his dark past, but it was Buck who kept him alive while Tanner was away. Without Buck, there wouldn’t have been anything left to save, and that was something Chris often took for granted.
“Come on, Buck, it’s time to wake up!” Larabee whispered tiredly, again his eyes closed and he prayed his long time friend would find the strength to come home. He remembered how often he’d tried to push the other man away and wondered why Wilmington had proved to be so stubborn. He opened his eyes and looked at the bandage covering the wound on the right side of Wilmington’s head.
And there's times I'd rather kill you
Than listen to your honesty
But you've always been a friend to me
“God, Buck, you’re right...I wanted to kill you so many times after Sarah and Adam died, but you kept coming back. Kept showing me what true friendship is about. The docs say you’ve been unconscious longer than they’d like, and they’re afraid that it’s a bad sign. Stacey Midland knows us, Buck, but you’ve got her running scared too. She told me the specialists are afraid of brain damage...or that you could wake up without being able to move, but that’s not gonna happen. Is it Buck? God, I can’t do this. I can’t keep watching you on that bed and not moving, but I won’t leave you, Buck. As often as you’ve told me I’m stuck with you as a friend well now it’s my turn. You’ve got a friend in me, Buck, and I won’t leave you. I’ll be here no matter what happens. I’ll be your eyes if you can’t see. I’ll be your legs if you can’t walk. I’ll be your ears if you can’t hear. You got that, Pard? What I’m saying is ‘You’ve got a friend in me!’”
Chris pressed against the wound in his side and knew he’d overdone things again, but he was where he wanted to be and no one could move him until Buck Wilmington opened his eyes. He heard the nurse enter the room and felt her doing something with his IV. He knew she was probably adding the antibiotics Parker had ordered, but he didn’t acknowledge her, because he knew she’d try to convince him to go back to his own bed. He was not ready for that...not because he wasn’t exhausted, because he was and his mind and body kept reminding him of that, but he couldn’t move, couldn’t sleep until he knew Buck’s fate. Sighing heavily he reached over the bedrail and grabbed Wilmington’s right hand in his own.
You've always been
Time and again
The one to take my hand
And show me it's okay to be
Just the way I am
With no apology
“God, Buck, please don’t leave!” the blond thought, leaning heavily in the chair and closing his eyes in silent prayer.
Buck opened his eyes and looked around the room. Seemingly unconnected scenes flashed through his memory and he gasped as he saw his best friend’s body cartwheeling backwards over the table. The smell and sounds told him he was in the hospital and it took several minutes for him to find the one man he was looking for. He felt Larabee’s fingers holding his own hand and tried to squeeze them, smiling as the green eyes opened and a look of relief spread across the pale features. He saw the evidence of tears and knew Larabee had been crying, yet instincts told him the tears were for him and he tried to speak.
“...Chris...” the rogue coughed and tried to grab for his head, sure it was splitting down the middle even as Larabee reached for him.
“Easy, Buck, just lie still.”
“...shot..”
“I know, but you’re awake now and I just buzzed for the doctor.”
“Not me...y...you s...shot...how bad?”
“I’m fine, Buck...”
“...look l...like cr...crap...Pard...”
“You wouldn’t win any beauty contests yourself, Stud,” Larabee said, relieved when the other man laughed softly. His eyes grew wide as he realized what he’d almost lost and he swayed unsteadily. “Thought I’d lost you.”
“I told you be...fore, Chris, ya can’t g...get rid o...of me that easily. You’ve got a friend in me!”
Larabee nearly choked at the other man’s softly spoken words and knew in his heart their bond was still there. He turned to the door in time to see Stacey Midland enter the room. “Hey, Doc, he’s awake.”
“...hi, Doc.”
“Hello, Buck, how do you feel?”
“...feel like hell...”
“I bet. Now I’m going to check you...”
Chris smiled as he listened to the doctor and his long time friend talking. He moved to the other bed and lay back against the pillows as relief washed over him and moisture flooded his eyes. Buck was alive and he was going to be just fine, he didn’t need anyone to tell him that, it was just something he knew in his heart. God had seen fit to bestow another miracle on Chris Larabee. As he drifted towards sleep he heard the strains of music and several more lines of a song ran through his mind.
Oh you've always been
And you will 'til God knows when
Yes you've always been a friend to me
 |
 |
 |