" FULL MOON (CREEPY AF) "

✦

JOSEPHINE EXHALED as she typed the last few words of her extra credit report before scrolling to the top of the page to proofread. She was sitting in the corner of a random cafe closest to the dispatch center since she had a shift soon but needed to get some studying in before she had to leave for work.

"Dispatch girl, hey."

Rolling her eyes, she looked up from her laptop and stared ahead at the blue-eyed man. "You know my name, Buck."

"I do but dispatch girl sort of just rolls off the tongue, you know?" Buck quipped with a chuckle. "How are you?"

"I'm a lot better than you tracheotomy boy," Josie smirked. "Hen told me you took a trip to the hospital on Valentine's Day. How are you doing?"

She was of course talking about his and Abby's failed date on Valentine's Day. According to Hen, after eating a bread roll, he choked and things spiraled horrifically to the point where Abby had to perform an emergency tracheotomy in the restaurant.

"I'm doing better thanks for asking," Buck took a glance around the nearly-barren cafe, trying to keep his eyes off the woman in front of him. "I, uh, hope your night went a lot smoother than mine."

Josie chewed on the inside of her cheek and shrugged. "Can't say that it did or didn't."

"Well, I, uh, should get going." Buck made a move to leave before he paused in his footsteps. "Oh, and if we're being technical, it's five, by the way."

"What's five?"

"Coffee shop, hospital, the phone call, firehouse, and coffee shop, again," Buck listed with a cheeky grin. "We've had a total of five conversations. Not two."

It took her a moment to realize he was referencing their conversation at the firehouse where she said they had only spoken twice. She wasn't being serious when she said that but she was also wasn't keeping count about the number of conversations they had so far.

Unlike him.

"I didn't realize you were keeping count."

"Someone has to."

"You're cute, Buckley." The moment the words seamlessly slipped past her lips, Josie's eyes widened and she slapped a hand over her mouth. "No! That's not ⎼ I mean, obviously, you're an attractive man, I just meant you're...you're funny."

Buck tilted his coffee in her direction while his cheeks reddened. "You're funny too, Josie. I'll see you around."

He didn't wait for an answer but he did overhear Josephine bang her head against the table out of embarrassment.

⏜●⏝●⏜

"I CALLED HIM CUTE."

Josephine let out a groan as she banged her head against the headrest of her car. On the other end of the phone, she could hear Isabella giggling out of control while she listened to her best friend recount the story.

"What did he say?" Bella giggled.

"Well, I attempted to cover that up and ended up calling him funny. Then he said I was funny too."

Isabella spun around in the swivel chair behind the receptionist's desk at the long-term care facility. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think he was flirting."

"That's what I thought too but then all I could think about was Abby. She's such a nice lady and as cute as Buck is, I don't want to interfere between them."

"Their first date ended in a trip to the hospital. Someone needs to interfere and if it just so happens to be you, oh well!"

"You're a bad influence."

"Blame the full moon. You know what my avó used to say."

"I loved your avó but she was a pothead, Bells. May she rest in peace, though."

"It was medicinal!"

"So she said."

Isabella watched as the landline on the desk began to light up with calls and panic surged through her body. "Yeah, yeah, look, I gotta go. This full moon has the residents on edge."

"I've gotta clock in for work, anyway," Josephine sighed. "Talk to you later."

The dispatcher abruptly ended the call before she could hear Isabella shout something along the lines of 'bang that firefighter.' She grabbed her car keys from the cupholder along with her bag and then headed for the dispatch center so she could start her day.

"9-1-1, what's your emergency?"

"There's a man outside my house. I don't know what he wants."

"What's he doing, ma'am? Is he trying to get in?"

"No. No, he's just standing there. He's looking at me. I can't see his eyes, but I can feel them. Why is he here?"

"It's okay, ma'am."

"What does he want?"

"Can you tell me your name and address, please?"

"Nora Curtis. 3942 Rosewood."

"I'm dispatching police to your location, Nora. Can you describe the man for me?"

"I can't see his face. He doesn't have a face. Why doesn't he have a face?"

"Nora..."

"I can't, I can't breathe. It's so tight. I can't breathe."

"It's okay. Alright, help is on the way, Nora. Just stay on the line with me."

A few minutes passed by and Josephine could the sound of sirens in the distance on the other line. She relaxed her shoulders while the woman, Nora, sent her gratitude to the dispatch.

"The paramedics are here," Nora breathed out in relief. "Thank you, Josie."

"You're welcome, Mrs. Curtis."

"Nora."

"You're welcome, Nora."

She took a few more calls before heading over to the breakroom and grabbing a snack from her lunch bag to indulge in for the next fifteen minutes. She sporadically checked her phone for messages but everyone she knew was busy with work so there wasn't much action popping off on her device.

When she went back to her station, she was bombarded with calls and half of them sounded like they were made up but if you asked anyone else, it was the curse of the full moon.

⏜●⏝●⏜

JOSEPHINE RAN HER EYES over the paper between her fingers and reviewed the report for any mistakes. She told Denny to leave the book report about the Magic Tree House series that he had to read as part of the English curriculum on the dining table since his Moms were occupied with issues of their own.

There was some tension between the couple even if they did try to shield it from their son, it was noticeable. So Josie, at least wanted to lift any unwanted burdens from their shoulders while they dealt with their problems.

Her head shot up at the sound of loud knocks beating against the front door. Besides Hen, who was still out on shift, the rest of the household was sound asleep so there was no reason for anyone to be outside.

And after a string of calls reporting break-ins, she couldn't help but be a bit on edge that night. Josie walked over to the knife block on the countertop and grabbed the sharpest knife she could find before creeping over to the front door and swinging it open.

"Jesus Christ, Josie!"

"Buck?!" Josephine gasped and placed the knife down to her side. "You can't just randomly appear at someone's house like this!"

"I didn't think you'd be wielding a knife."

"You're lucky that's all I had." Josie turned to the side and placed the knife on the entryway table before turning back to the man. "Are you looking for Hen?"

"U-Uh, no. I, uh, wanted to see you."

"How did you know I live here?"

"Well, I overheard Hen say that you were the world's best roommate because of the free childcare or something along those lines," Buck nervously rambled. "And you know, she and Chimney are super close so I kind of shook him down for the address."

She narrowed her eyes. "Not sure if I should be flattered or worried." Guilt bubbled up in the depths of Josie's stomach and she shook her head. "Look, you're cute, charming, and you've got the whole firefighter thing going for you. But I don't really know what you expect from me. We barely know each other."

"I know." He pulled a hand from behind his back and held up a bag. "Maybe we can get to know each other over some wine? The guy at the store said this was the best."

"I'm a college student, I don't really do wine."

"Yeah, neither do I, honestly. We don't have to drink it."

"Maybe it's the full moon getting to me," Josephine mockingly rolled her eyes as she moved aside. "But I could use the company."

⏜●⏝●⏜

"YOU WERE A bartender in Peru?" Josephine choked back a giggle as she listened to the man across from her entail stories from his past. He told her tales from his past about his time as a bartender, a ranchhand, a construction worker, and even his short stint as a navy seal.

"Spent a summer out there and pretty much everywhere else," Buck retorted. "I was trying to find myself."

"Did you?"

"That's a great question, I'll get back to you when I find out," he chuckled. "Can I assume you'll be having one of those summers where you go off and find yourself? You know, once you graduate?"

"No, LA's home. I don't see myself running away from here anytime soon."

"Okay..." Buck switched from laying on his stomach to sitting on his bottom so he could get a better look at Josie. "So, tell me, what are your parents like?"

She didn't want them to stay downstairs in fear of anyone walking in and interrupting so she suggested her bedroom. The only problem was that she didn't want him to actually sit on her bed because it felt a bit too intimate which he respected so instead, she tossed her duvet on the floor and they decided to set up camp there.

"My Mom was...a great woman. But our time together was too short."

"Oh, God, Josie, I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay."

"How, uh, how did she pass? If you don't mind me asking."

"She killed herself."

"I'm sorry."

"Not your fault," she shrugged.

"What about your Dad?"

Josephine sighed and rested her weight on her right hand. "I was 13 when I got curious about him. I remember my Aunt and Uncle sat me down and had to break the news that I was the result of a one-night stand."

"Man, I'm just...killing it here, aren't I?" Buck pursed his lips at the sudden information. He knew there was a reason she was so close to Karen, he just wasn't expecting it to be so traumatic.

"It's fine. What about yours?" She dipped her hand in the bowl of chips and took a bite out of the snack. "Hmm. I'm gonna guess that your parents were super supportive and loving. Your Mom was probably the PTA president and your Dad was your soccer coach. Am I right?"

Leaning back on his hands, Buck bit the inside of his cheek and shrugged. "Not really, no."

"No?"

"They were decent people. Definitely not PTA president or soccer coach material. I've got an older sister, though, her name's Maddie, and she's great."

"Hmm, siblings seem nice to have."

"Only child?"

"Yeah. I mean, when my aunt and uncle took me in I was sort of thrust into the world of chaotic siblings. Karen's got a bunch of brothers but everyone was so much older that we didn't have much time to form a bond."

"Except for Karen, right?" He raised his brow. "You two seem close."

"My Mom and my Aunt Mallorie are two of five Davis children. Out of the five, three are boys. Those boys had a bunch of boys, my aunt had boys then Karen appeared, and then my Mom had me. When Karen found out my Mom was having a girl, I guess she vowed to be my favorite cousin, and, um, I'll deny it in front of everyone but she is."

"I think it's nice you have someone to lean on. You have a nephew, too, right?"

"Yeah, Denny. He's a great kid. Super smart for his age."

A faint smile washed over his face and as his eyes scanned Josie's bedroom, he couldn't help but notice the sun slowly poking its way out behind the moon. "It's late. Or early, I don't know. I, um, should probably get going."

"Can't blame this on the full moon if it's not there anymore," Josie raised her brow. "I'll see you around."

"I'll call you, Josie."

"I might answer."

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-Buck can't seem to get Josie out of his head despite the Abby of it all👀 there's obviously an attraction between the two and the more they continue to get to know each other, the more it'll grow

-also threw in a bit of insight into Josie's family life, notice how she didn't freak out at the mention of her mom when talking to Buck(👀🫣)

-side note... rewatching season one is such an interesting experience especially since it's been a while since my last watch😅 like why did the writers try to blame the whole hen/eva cheating arc on the full moon????