(Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for 9-1-1 Season 8, Episode 8 “Wannabes. “)

Wait, is 118 about to say goodbye to one of its own?!

9-1-1 finishes its fall finale – with return not until March! – with Eddie (Ryan Guzman) revealing to Buck (Oliver Stark) his plan to move to Texas to be with his son. Christopher (Gavin McHugh) now lives with his grandparents after surprising his father with his dead mother’s lookalike. We’ll have to wait and see if Eddie actually moves to Texas (for now, he’s only looking at houses), and when TV Insider turned to the showrunner Tim Minear To get answers on this, he didn’t want to say – March can’t come soon enough to get answers! – but he teased what lies ahead.

Eddie could possibly return to Texas – when did you realize this arc for him was leading up to that?

Tim Minear: I’ve known it since the start of the season.

Why did you want to take him down this path?

I think what he sees is Christopher thriving in Texas and even when you see that Zoom call in this episode, he seems so much older. It just seems like, wow, he’s really becoming a person. And I think Eddie reacts to that and sees the gap growing between them. Just like Brad (Callum Blue) warns him later in the episode, don’t let this gap widen and he sees his child flourishing. So I feel like Eddie has to be the one to make a move. Eddie has to be the one to let go of something, to walk away from something in order to really focus on repairing this relationship with Chris.

Disney / Ray Mickshaw

Buck was outwardly supportive, but it’s clear he’s not 100% on board with Eddie’s move. How does he really feel about this and what could he do with his best friend considering moving to Texas?

I think Buck feels completely torn. He wants to support Eddie. He understands how important this relationship with Christopher is. I mean, his relationship with Christopher is important too, so he wants to be as supportive as possible and it will drive him absolutely crazy.

Will everyone receive pastries?

He’s not going to open a Mrs. Fields or something, but I think he might find something else to try and keep it from getting completely out of hand. He will devote all his abandonment issues and anxiety to something else.

This also comes as Buck is still dealing with the breakup, so how will he cope in the future?

Well, I think it’s going to overshadow it in some ways, but it’s all part of the whole, right? Poor Buck has had his abandonment issues for a very long time, and I think by the end of episode 9 those abandonment issues are going to get even worse.

You have begun to explore Athena’s future (Angela Bassett) regarding her work and has now decided to train officers. Why is now the right time for this? And will we hear the word retirement for her again? I think it’s too early.

It’s way too early. I mean, I think it’s too early. No, I just think Athena is open to sharing her wisdom with the next generations and so we might see someone else in her cruiser with her at some point. It’s not guaranteed, but it could happen.

Disney / Christopher Willard

Bobby (Peter Krause) and Athena really need a new home. Why is it taking so long?

(Laughter) Well, they decided to build it.

Will we see this new house when the series returns?

You will see it very soon.

Talk about ending the episode with that? Favorites scene with 118.

I love finishing there. I like to go out on a good note, just go out for a moment of peace so everyone can be together and laugh and have fun. We come out of the first eight with this chapter of Favorites side of the season with punctuation closing the book on this point and Mara is back home and Buck is a little pissed and Eddie’s future is uncertain, but for now anyway, everyone is in sort of back to where it’s supposed to be for the most part. And it reminds me a little bit of how we ended season 2, with that finale where everyone had their little happy ending and there was always the question of whether Buck would be able to come back. That’s kind of where we want to go here, but I wanted everyone to be together again at least for a while until we come back and then I could just throw a giant hand grenade at everything.

Will we see Brad again?

We could. This is not on my agenda from the start.

How much time jump will there be when the series resumes? Do you work almost in real time?

No, actually, when we come back, it’ll be like the next episode, as opposed to… yeah, I’m not doing a three-month time skip. I’m not saying there won’t be a time jump in the last 10 episodes, but there won’t be when we return.

Speaking of which, could we see Maddie (Jennifer Love Hewitt) and chimneys (Kenneth Choi) baby was born this season?

Oh, I think there’s a very good possibility of that happening.

What happens next as they go through this pregnancy because of what they talked about with the last one?

That conversation they had at the end of episode 6, we’ll revisit some of those themes when we come back in episode 9.

Is there joy ahead for Hen (Aisha Hinds) and Karen (Tracie Thoms) after what you have already put them through this season?

I feel like there must be some.

What can you tease and why did you want to have them experience this back to back with their children?

To be honest, it ended up happening. I think it’s not what you would expect. It’s like, okay, Hen has to go through her trauma, now it’s on to the next person. But yeah, that’s how it ended up shaking. I really love that moment at the end of Halloween where Karen says, Thank God you were at work. This just brings it all back to the mission statement of the show’s first responders.

What else can you preview about March’s return?

I’m really excited about a few stories that we’ll come back to. One of them is Buck. And then I think there’s kind of a thriller that’s going to start in episode 9 and episode 10 that I’m really excited about because it’s just a thriller in its own right.

In what way? What can you tease about it?

Nothing. (Laughter)

Does Ravi (Anirudh Pisharody) am I coming back?

Perhaps we will see Ravi again this season. In fact, I would love to see him again this season.

What’s next for Bobby and Athena as a couple?

Well, their house is certainly not a small thing and I think it’s time for them to have a little joy too, don’t you agree?

Yes, definitely. What will Buck’s love life look like in the future? Is this going to take a backseat with everything else going on in his life?

This will be the case at first, yeah.

Could we have double dates? Triple dates? Maddie and Chimney, Bobby and Athena, Hen and Karen…

I hadn’t thought about it, but now I know you mentioned it…

Can you tell us anything about the season finale disaster?

Not yet. Not yet. I’m still working on it.

Do you know if you’re watching something in multiple episodes or just one episode?

I’ll probably do several episodes, you know me.

9-1-1Returns, Thursday March 6, 8/7c, ABC