Watch exclusive “9-1-1 ”preview of Buck's awkward first date with Tommy: 'Just 2 guys having dinner'

Oliver Stark and Lou Ferrigno Jr.'s characters sparked a romantic connection at the end of last week's episode of the ABC first responder drama.

"Nobody's looking at us Evan, we're just two guys having dinner." That's how Tommy (Lou Ferrigno Jr.) apparently attempts to calm Buck (Oliver Stark) on their first date.

But this isn't just any first date. On last week's episode of 9-1-1, the two first responders shared a kiss, kicking off Buck's realization that he may have romantic feelings for his new friend — a first for the firefighter introduced to viewers as a sex addict and womanizer.

"You're a little tense, but I get it," Tommy goes on to explain in a preview clip exclusive to Entertainment Weekly (below). You know, we're in a pretty macho line of work. But you'd be surprised how accepting most people are."

Buck asks if Tommy was always out at work, to which the LAFD Air Operations pilot — who worked at the 118 firehouse before Buck joined — replies: "No, no. The 118 was a pretty regressive place under Capt. Gerrard and I was still figuring myself out. It was only after I transferred to Harbor that I stopped lying about who I was."

"Yeah, I'm not lying about who I am," Buck responds. "I didn't say you are," Tommy explains. "I was talking about me."

Then Buck starts to word vomit: "Okay, listen, this is my first date with a dude. But I'm not weirded out! You know, I'm an ally. Every Pride month I put a rainbow on my Instagram..."

Yikes. To Tommy's credit, he replies with grace...and a little flirting: "Oh, that's good. Then I guess it's just me that makes you nervous."

But viewers who caught the preview for season 7, episode 5 — titled "You Don't Know Me" — at the end of last week's episode know that this intimate date will get interrupted by Eddie (Ryan Guzman) and Marisol (Edy Ganem).

His best friend finding him on his first date with a "dude" may leave Buck feeling awkward, but in real life Stark isn't worried about what others think about his character's new romantic interest.

“Humbled and overwhelmed by the positive reaction to Buck’s storyline. I’ve read so many of your messages and I couldn’t be prouder,” the actor wrote in an Instagram Stories post after the episode aired. “If you are one of the smaller group of people commenting on my posts about how this has ruined the show, I would like you to know that I truly don’t care. This is a show about love and inclusion. It’s featured queer relationships from the very beginning including a beautiful Black lesbian marriage played out by two of the best actresses I’ve ever watched. If one other character finding a new facet to his sexuality and realizing his bisexuality is your deal breaker — I fear you’ve missed the entire point of the show."

Stark also spoke to EW last week and teased what's to come as his character continues to process his new feelings: “Certainly for somebody finding this in their 30s, they'd be questioning, right? ‘What does this mean?’ ‘Who am I?’ ‘What about all these things that I thought to be true of myself?’" he said. "And so there's some reckoning to deal with in the next episode, and then leaning on the people that are closest to him, and finding the right moments to open up and how much to share. And then in typical 9-1-1 fashion, having his family support him and make him feel the best version of himself.”

9-1-1 airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

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Related content:

• 9-1-1 boss on that Buck kiss: What it means, how it almost didn't happen, and what's next

• Why 9-1-1 boss 'wasn't really interested' in Buck dating death doula Natalia — and what's to come in season 7

• 9-1-1's Oliver Stark and Ryan Guzman on Buck and Eddie's 'open, sensitive, and vulnerable' season 7 dynamic

• Inside the epic 9-1-1 season 7 premiere: The shipwreck, the romances, the drama

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.