Tumgik
#Chicago airport parking
super8ordairport · 3 months
Text
Indoor pool hotel near Downtown CHICAGO,IL
Tumblr media
We’re here to serve you at this smart selection of hotels in Elk Grove Village, Illinois – where you’ll feel comfortable and at home each time you stay with us. If you’d like to make a reservation, we’d love to have you as our guest. If you need directions, we’re available to help anytime. You’ll find no better pick of hotels with CDL discount, hotels near the airport or hotels in or on the interstate. If there’s anything we can do for you, please give us a call. We want you to stay with us soon at Super 8 by Wyndham Chicago O'Hare Airport.
0 notes
chenneyclaud · 8 months
Text
Things to Know about Airport Parking in Chicago, IL
Tumblr media
Are you traveling and need to park around airports in Chicago? You are probably in a hurry and need to catch the next flight, right? But still, you’re not sure of a parking space and can’t stand the wait for the next available parking slot. This is what most travelers often go through in the busy Midway Airport of the windy city daily. However, there is a simple solution to all of these and with it, parking in and around Chicago and its surrounding areas across Illinois will seem easy, convenient, and stress-free. This service is offered by a highly reliable firm. You would never have imagined that parking around the Midway Airport in Chicago, or in the whole of Chicago and its surrounding areas could come so easy and convenient at an equally incredibly affordable rate. Let’s check below for some of the services offered and how they may benefit travelers in Chicago and its environs.
Long-term Parking Midway Airport in Chicago
While there are short-term parking opportunities in and around the Midway Airport in Chicago, there are also opportunities for long-term parking. Do not be worried though. The pricing is still fair and affordable. Travelers requesting long-term parking often get their rates discounted and lowered. This makes the parking rate more affordable. No longer will you have to worry about where you’d park as parking lots are awaiting your use in and around Midway Airport.
Airport Parking in Chicago In a hurry, how about parking in a place that’s just a stone’s throw from the airport? If you need a convenient and affordable parking space around Midway Airport in Chicago or any of the areas in Chicago and its environs, then you are covered. Airport parking in Chicago is made easy by the availability of these parking spaces around the Midway Airport. Airport parking in Chicago is offered at discounted, affordable rates. You get to enjoy more convenience, safety, and peace of mind without costing an arm and a leg. With these parking opportunities offered by firms around the airport, you can now enjoy traveling without worries and you can easily meet schedules for flights, meetings, and anywhere you might be headed. These airport parking services are offered to customers for both short-term and long-term durations. Still, the rates are the best around and are the most affordable.
Chicago Airport Parking Rates You may find yourself wondering what these Chicago Airport parking rates will look like. You don’t have to stress over this. The rates are kept at a competitive level and are the most affordable anywhere around. Even for customers with requests for long-term parking, the rates are discounted to make the service still within a fair and reasonable range that can be easily afforded by most people.
Airport Parking in Illinois
Aside from offering Airport parking services at the Chicago Midway Airport, you can easily get airport parking in other parts of the state at an equally affordable rate. The idea behind the parking service is to offer convenience for travelers who need to park around the airport either for short-term or long-term service. This service is available to other parts of Illinois to ensure others are not left out of enjoying these benefits.
0 notes
zegrasdrysdale · 7 days
Text
[ sometimes goodbye is a second chance ] j. hughes
Tumblr media
paring : Jack Hughes x fem!reader
summary : Jack and his ex reunite at Nico’s wedding, reigniting some old feelings between the pair
warning(s) : a heavy makeout session, mentions of injured!jack & hockey injuries
author’s note : was reading something for jack then realized that it’s been a hot second since i wrote anything for him so that’s how this lil thing was born lmaoo. enjoy loves
༺═──────────────═༻
She wasn't going to go to the wedding. As a matter of fact, she made sure she had plans for that weekend that she was supposed to be in Switzerland so she could use them as an excuse to why she couldn't be there for the wedding.
Then Nico did everything but get on his hands and knees to beg her to come since she is one of his close friends. How could she say no to those big doe eyes that the captain of the Devils has? Even she's not immune to those eyes of his.
It's a beautiful day when she arrives for the wedding. Nico waits for her by baggage claim when she walks into Bern Airport after getting off the plane that brought her to Switzerland. She smiles and runs up to her close friend. Despite everything that happened right after the new year, she and Nico stayed close.
Well, as close as they could be while she was busy avoiding one of his teammates.
When she gets to Nico, she wraps her arms around him. "So happy you could come," Nico tells her as they back away from each other. "Mia is even excited that you're here."
"Nico, I can't ever say no to either of you," she teases. "I'm happy that I came too though. Forgot how beautiful it is here."
She grabs her suitcase and duffel bag before she walks outside to Nico's car. "So, all the guests are at the hotel already since the rehearsal dinner is tonight on the roof," he tells her as they load her stuff into the car. "There's probably enough time for you to take a nap if you want to take one since I know you're a big napper after you travel." She playfully punches his shoulder as soon as she's settled in the passenger's seat. "I'm just saying that you came in eight hours before the dinner so you have time to sleep if you want!"
"You don't have to call me a 'big napper'," she retorts with a smile on her face. Nico sticks his tongue out at her. "Oh, how grown up. Aren't you getting married tomorrow?"
"And my fiancé finds it cute when I stick my tongue out at her."
"Doesn't work on me, Nico. Hate to break it to you."
After about twenty minutes of driving, Nico pulls up to the hotel. She looks up at the building with a sigh.
The entire drive, her mind has been on her ex-boyfriend. She knows that he'll be here, but she doesn't know if he's already here.
Nico turns the car off as soon as he finds a parking spot. She sighs and unbuckles her seatbelt. She waits to get out though. She doesn't know how she feels about running into Jack, but right now she's very anxious.
It's not that they ended on bad terms. She just couldn't watch him keep playing and risking long term damage to his shoulder.
He kept forcing himself to get back on the ice before his body was ready and he wasn't able to heal correctly. She couldn't bear to watch him keep hurting himself, so she walked away.
Of course she kept tabs on him throughout the rest of the season after she walked away in January. It broke her heart to miss the Stadium Series game because she was looking forward to seeing both him and Luke play. She was ecstatic when she saw online that he was going to be getting surgery on the shoulder that he hurt in the game against Chicago.
She didn't reach out though. She didn't think she had the right.
"I know you're worried about seeing him," Nico states. "I made sure that your rooms were on different floors so you won't see each other until later. He, um ..." he trails off. "He tells me all the time how much he wishes he listened to you and let his body heal."
"He only keeps saying that because he wishes he never lost me," she comments as she blinks away the tears that have formed in her eyes. "I walked away because I couldn't keep watching him hurt himself to play a sport. I know he loves it, but he loved it more than he loved me so I walked away."
"He got surgery back in April," Nico tells her. "Before the season even ended to get a head start on his recovery. He started doing physical therapy two weeks ago so he's doing well. He'll get back on the ice in a month. I told him to take it easy."
A tear rolls down her cheek and she quickly wipes it away. "Why couldn't he just do this sooner?" she says. Her voice is so shaky that she can barely speak.
Nico grabs her hand. "He needed to lose you to realize that what he was doing was not okay," he replies. "I know how hard it's been for you. Both of you. I think that the two of you should talk this weekend. For both your sakes."
She shakes her head and looks at Nico. "I don't know if I can face him after walking away from him," she cries. "You didn't see the look on his face when I left the apartment that day, Nico. You didn't see how much I hurt him when he was already in physical pain. I don't know if he even wants to talk to me after that. I kicked him when he was already down."
He pulls her across the armrest and into a hug. She cries into his shoulder and grasps onto his t-shirt. "He's worried that you won't talk to him," he admits. "Just so you know. If you want to talk to him, do it. You both need some closure."
The worst part is that she knows it too. She walked away and didn't reply to a single one of his texts or calls. She moved to Philadelphia to her brother's apartment so she was just far enough away that he couldn't drive to her but close enough if something happened to him.
She never stopped caring, and she should probably tell him that.
With a nod, she pulls away. "Okay," she sighs. "I'll talk to him. Only if he wants to talk to me though."
✧・゚: *✧・゚:*
She doesn't talk to Jack at the rehearsal dinner. As a matter of fact, she doesn't even see him at the rehearsal dinner. There aren't a ton of people at the dinner either so she thought that she would see him. It surprises her that she didn't.
Getting ready the next afternoon though, she knows that today will be the day she sees him. At least she'll look her best when he sees her for the first time since she walked out on that cold January day. Same goes for him. Jack's always looked good in a suit and tie. She wonders which one of his game day suits he'll be in today.
Three rolls around and she heads from her second floor hotel room down to the first floor. She'd walk down the stairs if her feet weren't already killing her from the heels she has on.
The ceremony is taking place in the ballroom because of how many guests will be attending. The reception and dinner are taking place up on the rooftop at five so Nico and his new wife can get some pictures taken up there before everyone joins them.
Elevator doors open and she's met with the one person she's been wanting to avoid until the reception tonight. Jack freezes like a deer in headlights, but his eyes drink her in as she steps onto the elevator.
It's not like she's wearing something very revealing. The top of her red dress hugs her body, shoves off her curves, and pushes her breasts up a little bit. Her loose sleeves hang off her shoulders. The skirt falls to her knees and is kind of puffy.
"Uh, hi," Jack breathes out as the door closes behind her. "You, um, look good."
"Hi," she replies as she runs her fingers through her curls. "You too. Um, look good." His red tie with his black and white suit matches her red dress. Nico definitely told him what color that she was going to wear.
His eyes flicker down her body again and she feels self-conscious of the way her dress hugs her body. She crosses her arms over her chest and prays that the doors open soon.
Jack quickly picks up on how uncomfortable she is. "Sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"Stare?" she interrupts. "It's fine." The elevator dings and the doors slide open behind her. "I'll see you around."
She quickly makes her escape. Her heels are muffled by the carpet but she finds the room that she knows Nico is in.
After she knocks a handful of times, the door opens. Nico is the one that opens the door. He looks handsome in his suit and tie. He has a white rose hanging out of his flap on his jacket. "Oh, don't you look nice dressed up," she comments.
Nico rolls his eyes and lets her in the room. "Oh, shush," Nico retorts. She looks behind him as she walks into the room to and sees his older brother, his dad, Timo, and Jonas.
"Hi," she says to everyone in the room. "Just needed to come talk to Nico for a second. Won't keep him very long. I swear."
"What's going on?" Nico questions behind her.
She turns to face him. "I ran into Jack," she replies. "Wearing a red tie. Want to tell me why he was wearing a red tie when I'm wearing a red dress?"
He shoots her a smile. "Purely coincidental," Nico tells her. "He does play on a team that wears red and black so many he was missing the team when he picked out his tie."
"Nico Hischier, I'm going to kill you on your wedding day if you don't start talking in the next two seconds," she snaps.
“I don’t know what you want me to say,” Nico laughs as he throws his hands up in the air in surrender. “I have no idea why Jack’s wearing a red tie. I didn’t tell him what you were wearing if that’s why you came marching in here to yell at me.”
She sighs and rubs her fingers through her curls. “Okay,” she replies. “I think I’m just losing it or something. Kind of freaking out.”
“Have you talked to him?” asks Timo. She looks over Nico’s shoulder to look at him. “I mean, it might solve that unresolved tension between you. It’s so thick that I can feel it when he’s not even in the room.”
With a blink of her eyes, she says, “I can’t believe I never thought of talking to him. Wow.”
Timo rolls his eyes and Nico takes over the conversation. “Look, I know you’re avoiding him because you think he doesn’t want to talk to you,” he begins to say. “But even Timo and Seigs can attest to this, Jack wants to talk to you. Seriously. He’s nervous you won’t talk to him. You’ll be in the same area for the rest of the day. Please say more than just ‘you look good’ to him.”
She groans in slight frustration. “You are insufferable,” she tells her close friend. “Good luck Mia.”
There’s laughter behind her as she walks out of the room to get to where the ceremony is taking place in one of the larger rooms.
It’s almost like a very large conference room with a lot of chairs. There has to be nearly a hundred chairs in the room. She greets Nico’s mom and sister as well as some of his Devils teammates.
Across the room, she sees Jack talking to his brothers. All three of them look very handsome. That’s when she realizes that Jack’s arm isn’t in a sling like he was the last time she saw a picture of him. She was too shocked earlier in the elevator to notice that he doesn’t have on a sling. His hair is a little longer than it was a few months ago. He smiles at something Quinn said.
She takes her seat right behind the Devils, sitting right behind Jack of all people. He sits between Haula and Merc.
When she goes to say something, the ceremony starts.
Talking to Jack is just going to have to wait.
✧・゚: *✧・゚:*
There’s an hour between when the ceremony ends and the reception begins so Nico and Mia can take pictures up on the roof. She needs to touch up her makeup since she decided to cry while Nico was saying his vows. Her best friend grew up so much since they met back at the 2017 NHL draft.
A lot of the guests have already made their way to the roof when she gets up there. She grabs a glass of champagne from a tray that a waiter is holding and takes a big gulp of it to prepare her for the night to come.
She spots Dawson, Luke, Jesper, and Simon all standing by the railing. No Jack so it’s safe to approach despite his little brother standing there. She hopes that Luke doesn’t hate her guts for breaking his brother’s heart.
When she approaches the group of Devils, Dawson gets excited. “Oh my God, I didn’t think you were coming,” he says as he drapes an arm over her shoulders.
“And miss a Swiss wedding?” she laughs. “Absolutely not. I wasn’t about to skip out on Nico’s wedding.” The boys laugh, even Luke. Her eyes fall on the youngest of the Hughes boys. “And how are you, baby Hughes? Still settling in well with the team?”
Luke nods with a smile. “The guys have been very welcoming,” he tells her. “Helped me out of that slump I was in.”
She mirrors his smile. “That’s great,” she says. “Glad you were able to come in and get right to it. Being a Calder nominee isn’t an easy feat so I wanted to come congratulate you on your rookie season.”
“Thank you.”
Out of the corner of her eye, she notices Jack. He stands with Dougie, Dawsy, Haula, and Nico. Mia stands with her arm hooked with her new husband’s.
Luke, Dawson, and Nemec all walk away to get another drink. Jesper stands next to her. “How many times have you been told to talk to him?” Bratter asks.
“Too many so please don’t-”
“I’m not. I was just going to offer to go get him if you did want to talk to him.”
She sighs and finishes her glass of champagne. “I want to talk to him but do you really think he’ll listen to me if I apologize?” she comments.
“I do,” Bratter replies. She looks up at him. “I mean it. He has been kicking himself for months. I know he misses you. I don’t know if he misses your relationship or just you in his life but he misses you. I think talking to him is worth it.”
She turns her head to look at Jack. He looks happy and she doesn’t want to ruin that. “What if I just upset him?” she questions. “I don’t want to ruin his happiness.”
“He’s not truly happy without you,” Jesper says. “Talk to him. I think he’ll listen to what you have to say. Maybe he will even offer his own apology to you. I’ll be right back.”
Then he walks away. She watches him walk up to Jack and say something to him. She stands straight up and sighs when Jack looks over at her. She puts a smile on her face and heads over to the group.
It’s now or never. It’s early in the evening so neither of them are drunk yet. She’s had just enough alcohol to give her the courage to have this conversation with Jack.
All eyes are on her, but her eyes are on Jack. “Hi,” she breathes out. “Can we talk for a second? Please? Alone?”
Jack nods and hands his drink to Dougie. She shoots a smiling Nico a glare as she turns and walks inside so they’re away from the prying eyes of Jack’s teammates and her mutual friends that she has with Nico. They’re all very nosy.
She finds a little room off to the side that she walks into with a sigh. She picks at the skin around her fingernails out of nerves.
This is truly it. The next few minutes are either going to make or break whatever relationship or friendship they have left. She bites the inside of her cheek as she turns and faces Jack.
“What did you want to-” Jack begins to say before she interrupts him.
“I want to apologize,” she quickly replies. “For that night. For ignoring all your calls and texts after. I shouldn’t have given you that ultimatum. Not at that moment, anyway. I caused you emotional pain while you were in so much physical pain.”
Jack’s face falls into a frown as she talks. He starts to shake his head the longer she talks. “No, you had every right to give me that ultimatum,” he tells her. “I pushed myself way too hard and losing you opened my eyes to just how hard I was pushing myself. To what I was putting my body through. I didn’t understand why at first but now I do. I’m sorry that I saw that too late.”
Tears form in her eyes at the softness of his voice. She wasn’t expecting this Jack when she talked to him.
“I thought you’d be mad,” she admits. “I thought you’d want to yell at me for walking away. For ending it.”
“I was mad,” Jack says. “Believe me. I was so mad that I pushed myself even harder for a few weeks. Then there was setback after setback and I finally understood why.”
The tears that formed in her eyes roll down her cheeks, painting her skin black with eyeliner. She should’ve grabbed her waterproof eyeliner but she didn’t.
She stares across the room at her ex. Neither of them say a word for a second, before she asks the question she has wanted to know the answer to for nearly six months.
“Why did you do it?” she asks. “Why did you have to push yourself so hard and risk long term damage? Don’t tell me it’s because you love hockey and put your all into the sport. You shouldn’t have to push yourself to the point of surgery.”
Jack looks down at his feet and she raises her eyebrows. She presses her lips in a tight line as she waits for him to respond.
The answer she gets is not the one she was ready for.
“I thought that no one would care about me or love me if I wasn’t playing hockey,” Jack mumbles. “All anyone has talked about this season is me and my brothers. Hughes Bowl, me getting to 100 points after hitting 99 last season, whatever about me and Luke playing together. It seemed like no one would give a shit about me if I had stopped mid-season to heal. It seemed like everyone would write me off as weak or get mad at me for taking care of my shoulder. So I pushed you away and pushed myself to play until we got eliminated from contention so no one could blame me for missing playoffs. I didn’t want to be the reason we missed playoffs, but it feels like I am anyway.”
She frowns at his response. She had no idea that he felt this way.
There’s some space between them so she takes a few steps forward so she stands in front of him. “You could have talked to me,” she softly tells him. “I was willing to support you through whatever you needed to do to be healthy. Yet you seemed to care more about hockey than me.”
He lifts his head up and that’s when she sees the tears in his eyes. She pouts at the sight.
“I didn’t want you to see me at my lowest, and I’m sorry for pushing you away,” Jack comments. “I love you and I didn’t want you to see that side of me. I love you more than I have ever loved hockey. I should’ve listened to you when you told me to rest and I didn’t. I should have.” He pauses for a second and meets her eyes. “I never should have let you walk out that door.”
She reaches up to dry his cheeks when the tears begin to roll. “You know that everyone would still love and care about you if you had just pressed pause on the season,” she tells him. “Everyone that loves you would’ve supported you if you just let your body heal. No one likes seeing a player push himself to surgery. I would have stayed and helped you instead of loving and supporting you from afar.”
Jack leans down and rests his forehead on hers. His eyes are closed and her hands rest on his jaw. Her thumbs trace his cheekbones and her eyes remain on his face.
“I’m sorry,” Jack softly says.
“I’m sorry for walking out on you when you needed me,” she tells him. “I kicked you when you were down and it wasn’t fair of me to do that to you. I’m sorry I broke your heart.”
He wraps his hands around her wrists before he pulls them down so he can lace their fingers together. He doesn’t pull his forehead away and she doesn’t move either.
“You never broke my heart,” he whispers to her. “I broke yours by choosing hockey over you. I never wanted you to feel like I loved a sport more than you and that’s what I did. It’s my fault.”
She shakes her head and pulls back. Jack’s eyes open and he looks at her. His blue eyes shine with tears. “Even after everything, I still love you,” she admits. “I don’t believe that you can break my heart, Jack Hughes.”
He lets out a light laugh and shakes his head. “Same for you,” he tells her.
A small smile forms on her lips as she looks up at him. He lets one of her hands go to wipe away her tears. His thumb comes away black and he wipes her eyeliner on his black pants.
“Can I get a redo?” Jack asks. “On that ultimatum that you gave me? I have an answer for you.”
She bites the inside of her cheek before she asks in reply, “Is it going to be me? Or is it going to be your career?”
“It’s you, baby,” Jack instantly replies as he lifts his hand to cup her jaw. “It’ll always be you.”
The smile on her face grows. She licks her bottom lip as he pulls her in for a soft kiss. She hesitates for a second before she returns the kiss.
Jack drops her other hand so he can cup the other side of her jaw. Her fingers grasp at his open suit jacket so he can’t get too far. She wraps her arms around his torso under his jacket.
He takes a few steps forward so her back is pressed against a wall. She gasps as soon as her back hits the cool, smooth surface, but she doesn’t break the kiss. Jack leans down into her to deepen the already deep kiss. She presses herself flush against him.
His hands slide down to her waist before they slip behind her back. She feels his fingers graze the zipper and that’s when she pulls back. “Jack,” she sighs. “Not now.”
“Later though?”
“We’ll see,” she replies. “I think we should go back out. I’m sure Nico’s looking for us.”
Jack takes a few steps back to fix himself. She takes the moment to make sure she’s presentable as well.
With a sigh, she grabs Jack’s hand and they leave the room. Their fingers are laced together as they rejoin the reception. “So, how are we going to explain this to our friends?” Jack asks.
“We’ll just tell them that we got our heads out of our asses and apologized to each other,” she replies. “That we still love each other. I think saying goodbye gave us a second chance to do this the right way.”
They turn a corner and find themselves back on the roof with the rest of the party. “It did,” Jack says. She looks up at him. “Are you my girlfriend again? Or do I have to get down on my knees to beg you like I did the first time?”
She shakes her head with a laugh. “I’d like to see you get on your knees for a different reason so yes, I guess I’m you’re girlfriend again,” she tells him.
Jack presses a quick kiss to her lips, but every single one of their friends has already noticed.
“About damn time!” Nico shouts from across the room. A few of the Devils cheer for them and she steps even closer to her boyfriend.
༺═──────────────═༻
MASTERLIST
have a request ? check out the guidelines !
wanna be added to the taglist ? fill out this form !
taglist: @dasiysthings @axaslee @ithinkimokeei @equallyshaw @dancerbailey3 @goldihocksrocks @love4lando @stony1386 @mangoluver @prettyinsatiable @ivy-34 @bunbunbl0gs
445 notes · View notes
justabigassnerd · 14 days
Text
Worth The Risk
Tumblr media
Pairing - Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw x Mitchell!reader
Word count - 14.5k
Warnings - swearing, angst, fluff, Mav is a wee bit overprotective, mentions of Goose and Carole, allusion to smut at the end
Summary - in visiting your dad in Miramar you rekindle your friendship with Bradley Bradshaw, which yields unexpected results
A/N - sooo... it's a bit of a big one here lads. I wish I could tell y'all how I achieved such a feat but believe me I have no clue how I did this. this was a request sent in by @talesofreading so I hope I did the idea justice (and I'm so so so sorry it took me so long to write it in the first place). I won't ramble so as per y'all please send in requests, feedback, and enjoy!!!
Tumblr media
“Yes dad, I’m at the gate now and we’re due to board in ten minutes or so.” You say with a breathy laugh after your dad finishes asking you what feels like a hundred questions about your flight. You were visiting your dad, Pete Mitchell, in San Diego while you had some time off work. After completing your studies at college, you had landed a good gig working as a nurse in a hospital in Chicago. You had grown up sure you weren’t going to follow in your father’s footsteps and so found yourself studying medicine and making a career out of it. It was hard when your dad was constantly deployed after pissing off Admiral after Admiral, but he did make the effort to visit you when he could and now that he was settled in San Diego, you decided you’d give him a visit.
“I’ll be at the airport when you land. I’ll see you soon sweetheart.” Maverick says a smile on his face as he thinks about how in a few hours you’ll be here in person.
“I’ll see you soon, dad. I love you.” You say, smiling as you hear your dad bid you one last goodbye before you hang up. After hanging up, you look out the window, seeing the plane you’d soon be boarding. You wait patiently at the gate, passport and boarding pass in hand as you survey the people surrounding you, little groups of people, family or friends, excitedly chatting about their trip and what they’re going to get up to, couples discussing similar topics, and businesspeople, making last minute calls or typing hurriedly on their laptops.
Before long, the call for boarding to begin comes over the loudspeaker and one by one a group is called up to have their passes checked and board the plane. Eventually, you are able to board and find your seat, settling down in it and tucking your bag away while patiently waiting for the journey to begin.
Soon enough, the boarding process is completed, and the plane begins to crawl towards the runway, patiently waiting for its turn to go. Within a couple of minutes, the plane gets onto the runway, and speeds along until it’s able to take off. You watch the ground get smaller and the clouds appear. You knew you inherited a love of flying from your dad, but your love for it never pushed you to make a career out of it. You watched the clouds pass you by while you listened to your music.
After just over four hours, the plane touched down in San Diego and you couldn’t wipe the smile from your face as you saw the beautifully sunny weather. You disembarked the plane and made your way to baggage claim and waited with the rest of the people from the flight until your bag comes around on the conveyor belt. You grab your bag and follow the signs to where you know you’ll be able to find your dad.  You enter the spacious area, eyes searching the sea of gathered people, quickly locating your dad’s familiar jacket and you swear your smile couldn’t get any wider. You lock eyes with Maverick, and he waves before making his way over to you.
“Hey, sweetheart. Was the flight okay?” He asks, sweeping you up in a hug, holding you close as you reciprocate the embrace.
“Hey, dad. The flight was fine.” You reply, squeezing him that little bit tighter before releasing him from the hug, taking the handle of your luggage and following your dad to the car park and letting him lead you to his car.
“New car?” You ask, an amused tone to your voice as you take in the sight of the car.
“I wouldn’t say new. Figured the bike would pose a problem so I had to take the car.” Maverick says with a chuckle, unlocking the car and loading your bags into the back of the car before you get into the passenger seat, and he gets into the driver’s seat.
The drive back to Maverick’s house wasn’t long and the scenery was beautiful. You had spent a little bit of time in Miramar when you were younger, but you don’t remember much of it since you only spent a few short months there before moving away again. You were silently glad your dad had found a place to settle down and that you could finally visit him after the countless times he had come to visit you.
“You probably don’t remember much about Miramar, huh?” Maverick muses softly, glancing at you quickly, noticing your enamoured expression before returning his focus to the road.
“I don’t. But it’s so gorgeous.” You say with a grin, taking in the views, your smile widening as you take in the sight of the beach.
“I’ll make sure we go to all the best places.” Maverick says, a smile on his face as he begins to turn up the road he lived on and then soon parks in his driveway. You get out of the car and by the time you get to the back of the car, Maverick has already unloaded your bags and leads you into his house.
The house was small yet perfect for Maverick, he’d decorated it with pictures from his time at Top Gun and pictures of you growing up. He shows you upstairs and to the room you’ll be staying in.
“I’ll let you settle in. I’ll be downstairs if you need me.” Maverick says softly before excusing himself and heading downstairs while you stay put in the middle of the room. After a brief minute, you cross to the window, taking in the view and opening the window slightly so you can hear the breeze and birds singing while you got settled in. You unpacked some of your essentials before deciding you wanted to go and hang out with your dad while you had the time with him. You head downstairs and find Maverick sat on the sofa in the living room, smiling over at you.
“I’m still feeling pretty cramped from the flight. Are you okay if I go for a walk?” You ask, smiling as Maverick nods.
“Of course, do you want me to go with you?” He offers, already bracing his hands on either side of him ready to push himself up off the sofa.
“It’s okay, you can relax.” You say, watching as Maverick stays put, thinking to himself before speaking up.
“Don’t get lost, okay?” He says with a chuckle.
“I’m not as old as you so I can rely on my phone to keep me from getting lost.” You say with a cheeky grin, pulling your phone out of your pocket and waving it to emphasise your point, laughing at your dad’s expression of mock shock.
“You cheeky shit.” He says, breaking into a laugh and rolling his eyes as you pocket your phone.
“You know I love you.” You say with a grin, starting to head towards the front door.
“I love you too. Text me when you’re on your way back and I’ll start on dinner.” Maverick says, waving you off and you grab a spare key before exiting the house and letting your feet dictate where you go.
You find yourself wandering until you reach the beach, and you find yourself smiling as you see the families on the beach, lying on towels or playing in the sand and sea. You wished you could remember the times you had spent on that same beach but all you had was photos and stories your dad had told you. As you walk alongside the beach, take in the gorgeous sights as the golden sun starts to lower in the sky.
Eventually, you find yourself near a bar, it looks like a Navy bar to you just judging by the amount of people in khaki uniforms going in and out of the bar. You stood still for a moment, watching the people going in and out, wondering if your dad or anyone on his new squadron visited that bar. As you watch the bar, you catch sight of someone in a Hawaiian shirt standing on the decking just outside the bar. You didn’t mean to stare at the stranger, but you hadn’t seen anyone since Goose wearing a Hawaiian shirt so clearly this man had good taste and you couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh at the sight.
Before too long, the stranger caught sight of you, and you could’ve sworn your heart stopped when you realised, he was looking in your direction. Truthfully, you had no idea if he was actually looking at you or at something behind you because of his aviators hiding his eyes but the idea of this guy catching you looking at him was enough of a scare to get you to turn tail and begin your journey back to your dad’s house, shooting him a text to let him know you were on your way home.
In about twenty minutes, you enter Maverick’s house and are immediately greeted with the smell of cooking food, and you immediately know he is making you your favourite meal.
“Smells good.” You say with a wide smile, finding the kitchen and standing in the doorway, watching as your dad diligently works on the food.
“I had to make you your favourite.” Maverick replies, glancing over at you with a smile before returning his attention back to the food. You decide to help your dad out a bit and set the table and get drinks out. By the time you’ve set the table with cutlery and drinks, Maverick has finished the food and begins plating up the meals, handing you a plate with a smile. The two of you sit down at the table and eat your meals, chatting throughout and enjoying each other’s company. When you finish your meals, you help clean up, putting the dishes in the dishwasher despite Maverick’s insistence that you don’t have to. As he tells you what felt like the thousandth time to let him do it, the doorbell rang.
“Let me clean up, you answer the door.” You say, pointing towards the front door with a chuckle before turning back to the dishwasher, loading it carefully and wiping down the surfaces while you hear the muffled voices coming through from the hall.
“y/n, look who it is!” You turn and look through the doorway to see your dad entering the living room and behind him is a man sporting a shirt that looks incredibly familiar.
“I thought it was you I saw by the beach!” You couldn’t believe it. You were standing face-to-face with Bradley Bradshaw. Someone you thought you were never going to see again after that night he had screamed in your dad’s face about never wanting to see him again and leaving your house with the door slamming behind him. But here he was, standing in front of you with a huge smile and bright eyes. He’d changed a lot in the time that’s passed, he was definitely more muscular, and he had some new scars decorating his face, but above everything, he looked much more attractive than you remember him being.
“Bradley, I didn’t even recognise you!” You exclaim happily, accepting the offered hug instantly, clinging to Bradley and relishing in how gently he wrapped his arms around you, his chest rumbling with a gentle laugh.
“I almost didn’t recognise you. If I hadn’t of caught you staring, I probably wouldn’t have known you were here at all.” Bradley replies, both of you pulling apart when you hear Maverick’s amused scoff.
“Staring?” Maverick asks with a raised eyebrow.
“I wasn’t staring. I just noticed the Hawaiian shirt and it made me think of Goose.” You explain, rolling your eyes at your dad as both men laugh softly.
“Well, I’m happy to report that my dad’s impeccable fashion sense did in fact get passed down to me.” Bradley says, shrugging with a chuckle.
“So, what brings you by? Or was it just the fact you thought you saw me, so you came here to test your theory.” You ask, folding your arms across your chest as you raise an eyebrow with an amused smile.
“Maybe I was testing a theory, but I wasn’t exactly wrong.” Bradley admits, grinning as Maverick rolls his eyes jokingly.
“You could’ve called or texted if you wanted to know if she was here.” Maverick says, looking up at Bradley.
“I know but I haven’t seen her in a while, so I wanted to swing by.” Bradley says unapologetically.
“I’ll give you that one.” Maverick admits, nodding his head in approval as he turns to head into the kitchen to grab himself a beer.
“Hey, tomorrow would you like to grab a drink with me at the Hard Deck?” Bradley offers, a soft smile on his face as he awaits your response.
“Sure, it would be great to catch up after so long.” You say with a smile, more than happy to spend some time with Bradley now that you know he’s in the area.
“Great! I’ll swing by tomorrow and we’ll head down together. Is six, okay?” Bradley asks, offering a time.
“Six is perfect.” You say, your smile widening by the second, excited at the thought of spending the evening with Bradley.
“I’ll see you then.” Bradley says, giving you another hug before he leaves you and Maverick, closing the door behind him and signalling that he has gone. Once he’s gone you turn to face your dad, shocked to see his raised eyebrow.
“Don’t date an aviator.” Maverick says simply, making your jaw drop in shock.
“Dad, what?” You stammer, feeling your cheeks quickly heating up at the simple statement your dad said.
“You heard me. Don’t date an aviator. It won’t go well.” Maverick repeats himself, making you even more flustered.
“Okay, firstly, me and Bradley are going out for a friendly catch-up, we haven’t seen each other since we were eighteen. Secondly, I’m not a child so I can date whoever I want, aviator or not.” You retort, folding your arms over your chest as you stare down your dad.
“I’m just trying to protect you, sweetheart. I am an aviator, so I know what they’re like. It’s better if you steer clear of dating them. I saw how you were looking at Bradley and it’s best you don’t even try.” Maverick says, sticking to his guns and trying to explain himself.
“I appreciate that, dad. But I am an adult now, let me make mistakes and figure things out for myself.” You argue, raising an eyebrow as you continue to argue your point with your dad. Instead of responding, your dad just smiled softly before walking past you and heading upstairs. As his footsteps grow quieter as he disappears upstairs, you let out a soft sigh. You weren’t even going on a proper date with Bradley. It was just a friendly catch-up between two people who hadn’t seen each other in years. Right?
Six pm the next day couldn’t have come sooner for you. You had spent the day visiting some of your dad’s favourite spots with him. You had lunch together and he even managed to coerce you into taking a quick tour of his hangar. When you had got home you had spent way too long deciding on what you wanted to wear, trying to find something that was cute but didn’t make you look like you were trying to impress Bradley. Eventually, you find an outfit that fits what you’re going for and you put it on, smiling as you catch a glimpse of yourself in the mirror. You knew it wasn’t a date but the mere thought of getting to spend time with Bradley after so long was making you giddy. Just as you finish freshening up, you hear the doorbell ring and just by checking the time you knew it was Bradley and you immediately began to make your way downstairs. As you were heading downstairs you could hear a muffled conversation between Bradley and Maverick, but they stopped talking as soon as Bradley caught sight of you.
“y/n… you look… wow.” Bradley stumbles over his words, not knowing what to say.
“I’m hoping that’s a good wow.” You say with a soft laugh, smiling up at Bradley.
“It’s definitely a good wow, you look beautiful.” Bradley says, a sheepish smile covering his face as he looks at you and you feel your cheeks heating up at his shy compliment. The moment was then disturbed by Maverick clearing his throat.
“So, I’ll see you when you get back. Keep her safe, Bradley.” Maverick says, softly smiling at you before turning to look at Bradley who straightens up ever so slightly at Maverick’s gaze.
“Of course, I will, Mav.” Bradley says as you both move towards the door, bidding your dad one last goodbye before you exit the house, stepping into the warm evening air and beginning the walk to the Hard Deck, making small talk on your way to the bar.
The walk that had been twenty minutes the day before felt like it was five minutes when you were walking with Bradley. You were having so much fun spending time with him again after so long. Eventually, you reach the Hard Deck and Bradley guides you to a table, finding the quietest corner in the bar and pulling the chair out for you to sit down at, making you smile shyly.
“Thank you.” You say softly, sitting down on the chair.
“I’m going to grab us some drinks. Do you want some fries as well or something?” Bradley says, still standing as he looks down at you.
“I’ll take a beer if that’s okay and fries sound nice.” You say with a smile as Bradley nods, turning and making his way to the bar.
“Hey Penny, could I get two beers and put in an order for fries?” Bradley asks, leaning up against the bar and smiling at Penny as she approaches.
“Of course, am I starting a tab?” Penny asks, handing Bradley two beers and taking his card in return, watching as he nods in response.
“Yes please.” Bradley confirms as Penny nods, tucking his card away someplace safe for the duration of his time at the bar.
“And what table am I taking the fries to when they’re done?” Penny asks as she hands the order to one of her employees before turning back to Bradley.
“Just that one over there.” Bradley says, pointing out the table and Penny leans over the bar slightly, following where Bradley was pointing before her eyes widen in shock slightly.
“Is that y/n?” Penny asks, remembering how she’d seen you a few times when you were younger.
“It is. She’s visiting Mav for a bit, and I haven’t seen her in years, so I figured we’d catch up over drinks.” Bradley explains, unable to wipe the smile off his face as he briefly glances over at you seeing you entertaining yourself on your phone before turning his attention back to Penny.
“A catch-up, huh?” Penny asks, an amused smile on her face as Bradley blushes slightly his gaze flicking down to the bar counter before looking back up at Penny as he licks his lips nervously.
“Don’t you start. I’ve already had Mav warn me away from her.” Bradley says with a joking roll of the eyes as he takes the beer bottles and heads back over to the table placing a beer in front of you and then sitting down in the chair opposite you.
“I was beginning to think you’d run away or something.” You say with a laugh, putting your phone away and holding the beer bottle in between your hands loosely.
“Never. I was just catching up with Penny.” Bradley says, lifting his beer bottle and tipping it lightly in Penny’s direction.
“Penny’s here?” You ask, turning in your seat and looking over at where Bradley had been pointing, smiling as you catch sight of Penny working at the bar seeing her catch sight of a patron and smiling as they approach.
“She was pretty excited when she realised you were here, so I’d imagine she’ll come over soon enough.” Bradley says, taking a sip from his beer bottle as you turn back around to face him.
“I don’t doubt it.” You say with a chuckle, taking a sip of your own beer as the two of you fall into a brief silence.
“So, how have you been? What have you been up to in these last few years?” Bradley asks, head tilted slightly in his curiosity.
“Well, the Navy wasn’t really my thing, so I just went to college and ended up pursuing medicine and now I’m a nurse over in Chicago. What about you?” You say, explaining what you’ve been up to since you last saw him.
“You’ve probably figured out I’m an aviator now, but I did go off to college after the whole thing with Mav. But I’m finally where I want to be and now, I’ve got a permanent squad and a place to call home.” Bradley explains, smiling softly to himself as he thinks of how far he’s come.
“That’s incredible. I know Goose and Carole are so proud of you.” You say, reaching over and gently resting a hand on Bradley’s arm, fighting the growing heat under your cheeks at the contact yet completely missing Bradley’s slight blush too.
“Thank you. You’ve done well for yourself getting a job in Chicago. I’m proud of you.” Bradley says, getting the bravery to rest a hand on top of yours, encapsulating your hand with the warmth emitting from his.
“Thank you, Bradley.” You reply softly, unable to contain your smile.
“So… have you got anyone back home? Any partners or anything?” Bradley asks, flushing a bit redder at the boldness of the question and fights to hide his relief when you shake your head with a slight chuckle.
“No. I’ve been single since college. What about you Mr. Aviator? You’ve surely got girls throwing themselves at your feet.” You say, retracting your hand from underneath Bradley’s both of you trying not to show any upset at the lack of contact.
“Throwing themselves at my feet? Well, you’re not entirely wrong with that. But I’m just waiting for the right girl to come along.” Bradley says with a soft shrug, making your heart pound just that little bit faster at the revelation that he is single.
“Here’s your fries.” You look up at the familiar voice and can’t stop your smile from widening when you see Penny placing the small basket of fries on the table and you instantly get out of your seat to give her a hug.
“Penny it’s been so long!” You exclaim happily, grinning as she wraps her arms around you, reciprocating the hug.
“It really has, hasn’t it?” Penny says with a laugh, pulling away to hold you at arm’s length.
“If I had known you were here, I would’ve swung by sooner. Somehow dad neglected to tell me that you worked here. He had mentioned you were in the area though.” You explain as Penny shakes her head with a laugh.
“I know what your father is like so don’t worry. I won’t interrupt your time with Bradley, sweetie. Enjoy your night and if you need anything, let me know.” Penny says, giving you one last hug before making her way back over to the bar to continue serving customers. You and Bradley then dig into the fries, continuing to chat as you eat.
You had no idea how long you were at the bar with Bradley, but it felt like mere seconds when you were with him. You knew you had a slight crush on Bradley way back when you were teenagers, but it had been pushed to the back of your mind in the last few years with how life had been. But just seeing Bradley and spending time with him had brought all those feelings back and they were stronger than ever.
What you didn’t know was that Bradley felt the exact same way. Only he was struggling with the warning Maverick had issued him when he turned up to pick you up. Maverick had warned him away from you, saying he didn’t want you dating an aviator. But for you, Bradley was more than willing to go against Maverick’s warnings and risk angering him.
“I’m going to close up my tab and I’ll take you home, okay?” Bradley says after clearing his throat and you nod, waiting patiently as he crosses to the bar and closes out his tab with Penny before he crosses back over to you. When you noticed Bradley coming over you got up, following him through the bar, bidding Penny goodbye as you passed.
Exiting into the cool night are you were suddenly aware of how long you had spent at the bar with Bradley now that the moon had replaced the sun. However, you didn’t even mind. With the evening now much quieter than the previous environment of the bustling bar, you and Bradley were able to walk and talk quietly, feeling like your conversations were much more private now.
Much earlier than you would’ve liked to, you wound up at the end of the driveway to your dad’s house and you felt your heart sinking at the finality of the end of the night.
“I had a great night tonight.” You say, turning to look up at Bradley with a smile, grateful for the evening you had with him.
“So did I. It was great to catch up.” Bradley replies with a soft smile of his own.
“It was. I just wish it never had to end.” You admit softly, eyes flicking to the ground before looking back at Bradley.
“Me too. But what if we did this again sometime before you go back to Chicago? Maybe like a date?” Bradley says, biting the bullet and deciding to just go for it instead of losing his chance. But when Bradley saw the hesitation on your face, he began to second guess himself. Had he completely misinterpreted how the night had gone?
“I’d really like that, Bradley. But…” You begin, glancing over at the front door before looking back over at Bradley who softens.
“Mav told you not to date aviators.” Bradley says, nodding in understanding.
“I’m not fussed about that rule, he can’t control me. I just don’t want this to ruin your relationship with him. You just made up after everything that happened, and I’m scared I’ll ruin it.” You admit, wanting to do what you can to protect Bradley from your dad’s protectiveness.
“You won’t ruin anything. I’ve never really been one for listening to Mav’s rules anyway. I think it’s worth the risk.” Bradley says quietly, as if your dad was nearby and listening in to your conversation, while he also reached out and interlocked your hands gently smiling so softly at you that you were sure you’d melt into a puddle right there and then.
“I think it’s worth the risk too.” You admit with a smile, blushing slightly as Bradley squeezes your hand softly at your agreement.
“How about in a couple of days’ time, we have our date? I’ll find us a nice spot and I’ll text you the details.” Bradley says, growing quieter near the end of his sentence.
“You don’t have my number.” You say with a giggle, digging in your jacket pocket for your phone, unlocking it and finding your number before holding it out towards Bradley who hurriedly digs in his pocket for his phone, almost dropping it at the speed at which he pulled the phone out before typing your number into his phone and creating a contact for you.
“Done.” Bradley says with a large smile as you turn your phone off and put it back in your pocket while Bradley mirrors your actions.
“I’ll see you around.” You say softly, knowing you should head into the house and let Bradley get home himself.
“I’ll text you. Goodnight, y/n.” Bradley says softly, extending his arms for a hug which you accept almost instantly, silently loving the way Bradley’s arms wrap around you and make you feel safe.
“Goodnight, Bradley.” You whisper before pulling away from the hug and heading up the path to the front door and unlocking the door, glancing over your shoulder and smiling at Bradley for one last time that night as he smiles back and offers you one last wave before you disappear inside. Maverick had clearly left the hall lights on for you so you could navigate the house and you made your way upstairs to your room, making sure you turned off the lights as you went. Once you reach your room, you change into your pyjamas before heading to the bathroom to clean up and get ready for bed. Then you return back to your room and climb into your bed, pulling the covers over you and grab your phone, smiling at the text that displayed as an unknown number, but you knew it was Bradley.
‘Thank you again for a great night. I’ve not had this much fun in a long time.’
‘It’s Bradley by the way.’
You couldn’t help but giggle at the second text, imagining the brief panic on Bradley’s face after he hit send on the first message without clarifying it was him.
‘Me neither, it was nice to catch up :).’
‘Let me know when you’re home safe.’
You found yourself double texting Bradley in return, wanting to make sure you know when Bradley gets home safe. While you waited for Bradley to text you back, you texted one of your closest friends from Chicago and told her about how your evening had gone and as you expected, she was very eager to hear everything and demanded to know what Bradley was like and whether you liked him. While you were explaining how the evening went, a text from Bradley came through.
‘I’m happy to say I made it home.’
You couldn’t stop your thumbs from typing a speedy response to Bradley’s text.
‘I’m glad you made it home safe. Although I’m sure being a big strong Navy man means you’re safer than most when walking home.’
You knew calling Bradley a ‘big strong Navy man’ was probably a bit of a step too far but your thumbs were typing quicker than your brain could comprehend and you only realised what you had typed when you had hit send on the message. Just as you were beginning to type an apology, a text came through from Bradley.
‘Oh, I’m a big strong Navy man, am I?’
He knew what he was doing, and you did very little to fight back the heat growing under your cheeks.
‘You know what I meant.’
You had no idea how long you had been texting Bradley that night. You had woken up the next morning with your phone under your hand as you woke up to Maverick knocking on your door, asking if you wanted any breakfast. After responding to your dad, you flipped your phone over, unable to stop the smile from crossing your face when you saw the good morning text from Bradley. You replied to the message as you kicked your covers back, stretching before throwing a hoodie on over your pyjamas and heading downstairs to where your dad was preparing breakfast for you.
“Morning, dad.” You say with a smile, sitting at the table as Maverick places a plate of pancakes in front of you.
“Morning, sweetheart. How did you sleep?” Maverick asks, pressing a quick kiss to the top of your head before returning his attention to his own food.
“I slept well thanks, how about you?” You reply, beginning to dig into your breakfast as Maverick finishes plating up his food, crossing to the table to sit opposite you.
“I slept well. How was your evening with Bradley? Penny mentioned she saw you.” Maverick asks, glancing across at you as you smile.
“It was nice to catch up with him. And yes, I did see Penny. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me she worked there.” You say with a chuckle, hoping your dad doesn’t read between the lines too much and instead focuses on Penny.
“Well, I didn’t anticipate you going to the Hard Deck so soon. I was going to invite Penny and Amelia over at some point.” Maverick admits with a light shrug and a grin as you roll your eyes jokingly.
“I’d love to see them and have a proper catch up.” You say in agreement before eating another mouthful of food. You continue to chat with your dad until you both finish your food, and you tidy everything away before you feel your phone buzz in your pocket and you pull it out, smiling when you see the text from Bradley.
“What’s got you all smiley?” Maverick asks with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.
“Oh, just a friendly text from Bradley.” You lie, acting as if you hadn’t just read the text from Bradley confirming the time and place of your date tomorrow.
“Just friendly? Good.” Maverick says turning away and missing you rolling your eyes at his statement.
“Yeah, we know your rule.” You say, wishing your dad wasn’t as stubborn as he was, but you were also a Mitchell and held that same stubbornness, hence why you were so adamantly going against his rule. You typed out a hurried reply to Bradley’s text, telling him that the time and place he had picked sounded great and that you couldn’t wait to have your date.
You spent your day on the beach with Maverick, getting in some tanning time as you read. Penny ended up coming out to meet you with Amelia in tow. You spent time catching up with the mother-and-daughter duo, unable to believe how much Amelia had grown since you last saw her, and you loved getting to hear what she had been up to in recent years. Amelia even managed to convince you into going in the sea with her and you couldn’t help but smile and laugh with her as she attempted to splash you.
When you tired of the sea you returned to your towel, drying yourself off and sitting back down to join in with your dad and Penny’s conversations. And you didn’t miss how both your dad and Penny were acting around each other. You could tell they liked each other, they just needed to act on it.
Eventually, you and Maverick headed home after bidding Penny and Amelia goodbye, promising to keep in touch even after you head back to Chicago. And when you get home you open your phone to see messages from Bradley and you reply to them as quickly as possible, apologising for how long it had taken you to respond and picking up the conversation right up from where it had been left off. You loved texting Bradley; he could make you smile and blush like he was right there in front of you having a proper face-to-face conversation. You didn’t like that you had to lie to your dad about what you were talking about with Bradley, but he had chosen to come up with this stupid rule that had you and Bradley sneaking around like a pair of teenagers. But Bradley was worth the risk.
The next day you were in serious planning mode, you had to figure out a way to get out of the house without your dad asking too many questions or catching on to what you were going out to do. You knew the restaurant Bradley had picked wasn’t super fancy so you could get away with a nice, cute outfit that wouldn’t arouse too much suspicion from your dad and maybe you could get away with saying it was another friendly hang out. Maybe you could talk Penny into hanging out with Maverick to distract him and also potentially give them the opportunity to confess their own feelings after seeing the way they skirted around each other. You had conversed with Bradley about this dilemma, and he had offered to meet you at the end of your road instead of coming to the door and you knew that was more than likely the best option you had. If this date went well and there was another, you knew your dad would get suspicious about Bradley constantly turning up at the door. After some careful planning, you and Bradley had come up with the most effective plan to ensure that Maverick did not catch on to your evening plans.
By the time the evening came around, you had already planted seeds with your dad, telling him you wanted to go on an evening walk because you promised your friend a video tour of the sights of Miramar. With that in place, you had changed into the outfit you had picked for the date and texted Bradley that you were on your way out.
“You’re heading out then?” Maverick asks, smiling at you from where he was sat on the sofa and you smile over at him, grabbing the spare keys.
“Yep! Don’t worry about waiting up for me. Katie and I can chat for hours once we get going. Maybe you could invite Penny over or something?” You suggest, fighting the urge to smirk when you see your dad blush slightly at your question.
“You figured that out quickly, huh?” Maverick asks with a soft chuckle.
“You think I’d miss something as obvious as that? Nice try.” You say with a laugh, feeling your phone buzz in your pocket and you pull it out to find a message from Bradley, letting you know he was at the end of the road waiting for you.
“Look, I have to go. Call Penny.” You say, pointing at your dad with a joking warning finger before leaving the house, looking up and down the road until you spot a figure waiting at one end of the road and head towards them, knowing instantly that it was Bradley. You make your way towards him, your smile widening when he notices you, revealing a bunch of flowers he had behind his back.
“Hey.” Bradley says softly, smiling as you take the flowers.
“Hey.” You reply, admiring the beautiful flowers Bradley had picked out, he had assembled a bouquet of red carnations, it was simple but so beautiful and you couldn’t help but love Bradley just that little bit more because of it.
“I hope those flowers are okay.” Bradley says sheepishly, offering an arm out for you to take which you do so happily, letting him lead you to where he had parked his beloved Bronco nearby and opening the passenger side door for you, letting you get in the car before closing the door, rounding the car and getting in the driver's seat, starting up the engine and beginning the drive to the little restaurant Bradley had picked. The drive wasn’t too long, and you chatted the whole way. When you reached the restaurant, Bradley insisted you stayed put while he went and opened your door for you, telling you that you could leave the flowers on the seat for now before closing the door behind you and leading you into the restaurant.
“Hi, I have a reservation, should be under Bradshaw.” Bradley greets the host with a smile who consults the list in front of him before instructing you to both follow him. You follow him through the restaurant with Bradley by your side. You were shocked to find that Bradley had managed to reserve a table by a large window so you could overlook the beach and ocean, able to see the sun beginning its descent over the horizon.
“Bradley, this is amazing!” You say, unable to keep the excitement from your tone as Bradley yet again pulls your chair out for you, waiting for you to sit before tucking the chair a little closer to the table before going to his own seat.
“I wanted to make sure we had a good first date.” Bradley admits with a light shrug as he eases himself down into his seat, both of you picking up your menus in tandem, letting out a soft chuckle as you do so. You both scan the menus, talking about which meals sounded good before you both eventually came to a decision on meals and a drink. When the waiter comes around asking if you’re ready to order, both you and Bradley nod and ever the gentleman, Bradley lets you order first before ordering his own food and drink. The waiter writes down your orders before dismissing himself with the promise to return with your drinks, so you and Bradley pick up your conversation, both of you overwhelmingly happy with how the evening is going even if the date had only just started. Soon enough, the waiter returns with the drinks, placing them in front of you before dismissing himself again to serve other customers while your food is being prepared. By the time the food had arrived, you were sure that had you been on a date with anyone else, you would’ve run out of things to say but since it was Bradley, the conversation flowed naturally, and you never seemed to have a lull in the conversation even once and before too long your food arrived, and you both began to dig in.
“I never asked the other day. But how are you finding Chicago?” Bradley asks after a mouthful of food.
“It’s good. Obviously, I’ve been out there a while but I’m enjoying myself. I have some great friends out there, but I do feel quite far away from dad sometimes.” You admit, eyes flicking down to your plate before looking back up at Bradley who smiles in understanding.
“I get that. It’s hard to be away from family.” Bradley says, a soft understanding tone to his voice which makes you feel awful. You knew he had lost both his parents before he even reached the age of eighteen.
“Bradley, I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to-”
“No don’t worry, honestly. It’s good. The more I talk about them the easier it gets.” Bradley says with a gentle smile, letting you know there were no hard feelings about it. With the topic settled, you were able to start a new conversation and the rest of the night ran smoothly. When it came to paying the bill, you went to get your card out, hand reaching to hand it to the waiter, but Bradley was quicker, gently taking your card from your hand and giving his card to the waiter instead.
“Bradley, come on I can pay.” You insist, your pleas in vain as the waiter begins to process the payment with Bradley’s card.
“I asked you on this date. It’s on me.” Bradley retorts with a grin, thanking the waiter as his card is handed back to him, finally giving your card back to you, chuckling as you huff lightly. Once everything is confirmed to have gone through, you’re given the freedom to leave and Bradley gets up first and you follow, letting him guide you through the bustling restaurant until you reach the cool night air of the outside world. You head back to the Bronco, of course letting Bradley open your door for you again. On the journey back, you both continue to talk with each other, even singing along lightly to one of the songs that come over the radio. By the time Bradley pulled up on the end of your road you couldn’t help but feel your heart sink at the realisation that the date was over. You had the best time with Bradley, and you wished you could spend more time with him. Once again, Bradley made you wait for him to open your door before you got out of the Bronco, this time you brought the flowers with you.
“I had the best night, Bradley.” You admit softly, smiling as Bradley smiles in response.
“So did I. Do you think we could have a second date?” Bradley asks, a slight sheepishness to his tone as he asks.
“I’d love to. This time, I’m picking the place and I’m paying.” You insist, pointing a joking finger at him as he laughs and shakes his head.
“Alright, you can pick. I’ll still come by and pick you up though.” Bradley replies, raising an eyebrow as you let out a soft sigh and nod.
“Deal.” You say, holding your free hand out for Bradley to shake which he does so.
“Deal.” Bradley agrees, squeezing your hand ever so softly before letting go.
“I’ll text you the details.” You say as Bradley nods.
“Got it. I can’t wait.” He replies, smiling as you nod in response.
“Good night, Bradley.” You say softly.
“Good night, y/n.” Bradley replies, his voice matching yours in softness. Just as you turn to head back to your dad’s house, you decide to turn to face Bradley and then kiss his cheek softly before whispering one last good night and heading back to Maverick’s house. As you head back to the house, you missed Bradley flushing a deep red with an awestruck smile on his face, watching as you walked down the road, unaware of the effect you had on him.
When you reached your dad’s house, you noticed that his bike was absent which made you tilt your head slightly in confusion before just deciding to shrug it off and enter the house. You were surprised to find none of the lights on, you flipped them on and found a note on the little shelf where the key bowl was. You opened the note and saw your dad’s scratchy handwriting, informing you that he’d gone to Penny’s house, making your eyebrows raise slightly in shock.
“Didn’t think he’d actually listen to me.” You mutter to yourself, heading through the house to try and find something in the kitchen that could act as a vase for the beautiful flowers Bradley had gotten for you. After searching for a few minutes, you were able to find something that would work and you filled it with water, putting the flowers in before heading upstairs to your room. You place the flowers on the bedside table before getting changed and then heading into the bathroom to clean your face and brush your teeth before getting into bed. You chose to stay up for a while to text Bradley before you both eventually decided to go to bed with the promise of talking in the morning.
The next morning, you woke up and were somewhat unsurprised to find that your dad was still out, so you looked around in the kitchen and found some food to make yourself some breakfast. As you prepared your breakfast, you texted Bradley a good morning message, smiling to yourself when he replied not long after you had sent your message. You continue to text him as you eat your food, unable to rid yourself of your smile as he continues to send you texts. In between messaging Bradley, you find yourself looking online for things to do that could potentially make an interesting date night for you and Bradley. You had decided that you weren’t going to actively look for a restaurant as you wanted to branch out a little and find something different for the two of you to do and as you searched you eventually found a nice-looking mini golf place along the beachfront and when you sent some pictures of the place to Bradley and proposed it as the location of your second date just for a little bit of fun he was more than onboard with the idea. The two of you decide on a time to meet later that day. You knew it was probably a bit soon to have a second date the day after the first, but you weren’t permanently in Miramar, and you were both aware of it and wanted to make the most of you being here.
Just as you finish cleaning up after yourself after finishing your food, you hear the front door open and Maverick call into the house, letting you know he has returned. You called back to Maverick, letting him know that you were just in the kitchen. It didn’t take him very long to head to the kitchen and you could tell from his face that he had a good night.
“So… how was Penny’s?” You ask with a raised eyebrow and smirk as your dad rolls his eyes at your words, heading to the coffee machine, grabbing a mug and filling it with coffee.
“I’m pretty sure you can figure it out for yourself.” Maverick mutters, silently willing his mug to fill up with coffee quickly.
“I’m sure I can.” You say with a soft chuckle, focusing on cleaning up after yourself.
“Did you have a good time calling your friend last night?” Maverick asks, finally picking up his mug and taking a sip of coffee.
“Yeah, she loved seeing the beach. She couldn’t stop talking about how jealous she was of the beach sunsets.” The lie came quickly and easily and thankfully your dad didn’t think much of it, just nodding lightly and continuing to sip on his coffee. It didn’t look like your dad was awake enough to hold a functioning conversation, so you quietly dismissed yourself, heading upstairs to shower and get changed so you’re ready for the day.
After showering, you enter your room to get changed and you smiled when you caught sight of the flowers on your bedside table. You couldn’t wait to spend another evening with Bradley. You don’t know how you were going to keep lying to your dad, especially if your next date went as well as the last and you were going to come back to Miramar in the future. You wished your dad could be okay with the idea of you and Bradley being together. You valued your dad’s opinion so much and you thought he of all people would be okay with you potentially dating Bradley. Bradley was an aviator, but he wasn’t one of the aviators your dad was talking about when he enforced the rule. Shaking yourself out of your thoughts, you finish getting ready for the day and head back downstairs and find your dad fast asleep on the sofa.
“You are the only person I know who could drink coffee and fall asleep right after.” You mutter quietly to yourself, picking up the empty mug and taking it to the dishwasher as you reminisce on all the times your dad would doze off so soon after having a cup of coffee. After the brief tidy up you debate your next move. Part of you wanted to go and hang out with Bradley, but you didn’t know where he lived, nor did you want him to get sick of seeing you before your second date. So, you ended up deciding to just entertain yourself, you had a book, and the beach was nearby so you decided to take yourself down to the beach to read and soak up the sun while you could. You packed up a small bag with your book and a couple of other little things you figured you’d need while you were out before leaving a little note on the coffee table in front of your dad so he wouldn’t panic when he eventually woke up.
After you left the house, you slowly made your way towards the beach. It had so quickly become one of your favourite spots in Miramar and it made you happy that your dad had finally been able to settle down somewhere as beautiful as this. You sat yourself down on the towel you had brought with yourself and opened your book, eyes beginning to scan the pages, getting immersed in the world you were reading about. There were a few times when cocky Top Gun trainees would whistle to get your attention and then flex and show off in front of you, all of them unaware of you rolling your eyes beneath your sunglasses. Those were the type of aviators you had vowed to avoid. And they didn’t know that your heart had already been stolen by a much kinder and gentler aviator. One who was more than likely their superior. Once you stopped paying them any mind, they grew bored in trying to get your attention and instead found someone else who would give them the attention they wanted. You were able to get through a good chunk of your book with the sounds of the beach surrounding you. Just as you decided to pack up and head back home, figuring you had been out long enough, you caught sight of a family playing on the beach, the father scooping his son up and holding him close as the boy giggled and hugged his dad. The sight made your heart melt, and it made you wish all the more that you could remember the time you had spent in Miramar when you were little.
After tearing your eyes away from the sight, you started to make your way home, still finding yourself admiring your surroundings with every step you took. It didn’t take you long to make your way back to your dad’s house and just as you entered the house, you heard the tv playing in the living room, letting you know that your dad was now a bit more awake. You then head into the living room, greeting your dad as you enter the room, smiling at him as he greets you in return.
“Did you have a good time at the beach?” Maverick asks as you ease yourself down onto the armchair, nodding as you sit down.
“It was nice to just relax and read my book. I don’t get to do that much back in Chicago.” You say, glad you took the time you had to take care of yourself and relax at somewhere as beautiful as the beach.
“I’m glad you got a chance to relax. It must get pretty busy with your job, huh?” Maverick muses, realising he’s never truly sat down and thought about how busy your life can be.
“It’s a lot of long hours. But I knew what I was getting myself into when I pursued this career.” You admit. You had inherited a lot from your dad, one of which was your willingness to put in the hard work to get yourself where you wanted to be in life.
“I probably don’t say this enough but I’m so proud of you.” Maverick says softly, smiling over at you which makes you smile at his words.
“That means a lot, dad. Thank you.” You say softly, both of you standing from where you were sat and crossing to each other, hugging each other tightly. It wasn’t that your dad didn’t tell you he was proud of you, even if he thought he didn’t say it enough, in fact, he had said it to you a lot growing up. When you graduated college, you were sure he said it a hundred times just at the ceremony alone. Every time he told you that he was proud of you, it made your heart swell. All you ever wanted to do was make your dad proud.
You decide to spend the day spending time with your dad, talking about things and even coercing him into telling you a few stories from when you were little and lived in Miramar. It was nice to hear some stories from your childhood, especially when Goose, Carole, and Bradley were involved in the stories. You knew your dad missed his friends, and that was part of the reason you didn’t want your potential relationship with Bradley to drive a wedge between them. They were both the last thing left they had of Goose and Carole, and you’d never forgive yourself if you ruined their relationship after they had just mended it. When it grows close to the time you agreed to meet with Bradley, you begin to excuse yourself, getting up from the sofa.
“Where are you off to tonight?” Maverick asks, watching as you get up and begin to cross to the doorway so you can freshen up.
“I found a mini golf place down by the beach and Bradley kindly agreed to come with me for a friendly match.” You say with a grin, hoping your dad doesn’t think too much about Bradley being mentioned.
“You’ve seemed so much happier now you’ve reconnected with Bradley.” Maverick says, clearly not missing the effect Bradley had on you since you started talking with him again.
“I didn’t realise how much I missed him until we started talking again.” You admit with a light shrug, trying not to give too much away about your feelings for Bradley.
“Well, I’m glad you two have been able to be friends again.” Maverick says with a nod, silently dismissing you and you take the chance, heading upstairs to change and freshen up for meeting Bradley.
It takes practically no time for you to freshen up and get ready for your second date with Bradley. You were silently thankful that you had the sense to pack some cute outfits for your visit because now you didn’t feel like you had to panic and find clothes that might work. When you finish getting ready, you head back downstairs after checking your phone and seeing a text from Bradley saying that he’s on his way, grab your key, and bid your dad a quick goodbye as you make your way out the door.
Once more you make your way down the road, realising that you beat Bradley to where you agreed to meet. You waited patiently for but a couple of minutes before Bradley walked up alongside you.
“Funny seeing you here.” Bradley says jokingly, both of smiling as you turn to face him.
“I never could’ve expected to run into you here.” You say, a joking sarcastic tone to your voice as you let out a breathy laugh before giving Bradley the hug he offered. After greeting each other, you both begin the walk to the mini golf place. It wasn’t too far from your dad’s house, and you enjoyed getting to walk with Bradley, especially when you had no shortage of conversation topics. It didn’t take you long to reach the mini golf course and as you got closer; you began to take longer strides to get out in front of Bradley to ensure you could pay for it. Thankfully, Bradley stuck true to the deal and patiently waited for you to pay, only stepping closer when the employee at the booth handed you two golf clubs and two golf balls, taking one of each from you.
“Let’s play.”
As you make your way around the course, taking it in turns while making light conversation with each other each step of the way. As you get ready to take your first shot on the course you had moved on to, Bradley quickly steps forward.
“Hey, do you mind if I just do something that might help you really quick?” Bradley asks, making your focus shift from the golf ball to him.
“Yes, of course.” You say with a smile, waiting as Bradley takes a step closer to you.
“Do you mind if I touch you?” Bradley asks, his voice soft as he studies your expression, not wanting to make you uncomfortable.
“Yes.” Your voice is just as soft as his. Bradley then gently rests his hands on your hips, missing how your breath hitches in your throat at the gentle contact.
“Is this okay?” His voice was soft against the shell of your ear, making your heart pound ten times faster.
“Of course.” You mumbled, fighting the feeling of your cheeks heating up as Bradley carefully adjusted your body, his hands remaining on your hips even after he had finished adjusting your body.
“There, try taking a swing now.” Bradley says, removing his hands from your hips and taking a small step back, making you hold back a frown at the sudden lack of contact. You try to focus yourself after Bradley had stepped away, focusing on where you needed to aim for, and not shifting your body from where Bradley had carefully placed it. You took a deep breath before swinging your club, hitting the golf ball with just enough power to bag yourself a hole-in-one.
“I did it!” You cry out triumphantly, holding your hands up in celebration.
“There you go!” Bradley praises, pulling you into a hug, and carefully avoiding your golf club.
“You’ve given away your best trick. Now I’m going to kick your ass.” You say smugly, laughing as Bradley shakes his head jokingly.
“You’re definitely a Mitchell with that competitive attitude.” Bradley jokes, making you roll your eyes before you and Bradley begin to move on to the next part of the course. It doesn’t take the two of you much longer to get through the remainder of the course and by the time you had finished, you had practically stopped keeping score, instead just focusing on having fun with each other. After returning the clubs to the employee at the booth, you took a little walk further down the beach, finding a wall to sit down at to watch the waves crashing gently against the shore. You and Bradley continue to converse quietly, taking in the beautiful sights the San Diego beach has to offer. At a lull in the conversation, Bradley turned to face you, making you mimic his actions.
“Are you okay, Bradley?” You ask softly, analysing his expression, trying to anticipate what he might say to you.
“Can I kiss you?” Bradley’s question took you off guard, yet you couldn’t stop your heart from pounding in excitement.
“Yes.” You replied breathlessly, and at your response, Bradley gently cupped your face in his hands, inching closer before his lips met yours, your eyes fluttering shut at the contact. The kiss was perfect, it was like putting together two pieces of a puzzle. You didn’t want the moment to end at all but eventually, the need for air became too much and you both gently pulled away from each other, smiling as you locked eyes.
“That was… wow.” You say breathlessly.
“I’m hoping that was a good wow.” Bradley says with a grin and a raised eyebrow.
“It definitely was.” You reply, leaning in for another kiss which Bradley is more than happy to reciprocate.
“Do you think we could make this official? Will you be my girlfriend?” Bradley asks, watching you with the gentlest gaze.
“I’d be a fool to say no to you.” You say happily, pulling Bradley into a hug, your grin widening further than you thought possible, especially when Bradley pressed a soft kiss to the top of your head as he squeezed you ever so slightly closer. You had never been happier than you were in this moment with Bradley. The two of you continue to chat, embracing each other as you watch the sunset across the horizon.
“We should probably get you home, huh?” Bradley muses softly when he feels you shiver against him, instantly shedding his jacket and wrapping it around your shoulders. You get up wordlessly, waiting for Bradley to follow suit and then you begin to slowly walk back together, hands interlinked as you quietly converse, nothing able to wipe the smiles from your faces. When you eventually reach the end of the road leading to your dad’s house once more, you turn to face Bradley.
“Tonight was amazing.” You say, squeezing Bradley’s hand softly.
“It was.” Bradley agrees softly.
“Looks like we have an excuse to see each other more before I leave then?” You muse softly, looking at Bradley as he nods.
“Absolutely.” Bradley says, his smile gentle.
“We can meet at the Hard Deck tomorrow. My squad will be there, but I won’t make you introduce yourself if you don’t want to though. We can find a quieter part of the bar to hang out.” Bradley then continues, carefully picking his words in an attempt to not scare you off.
“I wouldn’t mind meeting your team. I believe I owe one of them a thank you for saving you and dad on that mission you went on.” You say, more than happy to meet Bradley’s team.
“Don’t thank him, it’ll go straight to his head and then he won’t be able to shut up about it for ages.” Bradley says with a laugh, thinking about how Jake would react to being thanked.
“Well, I at the very least owe him a drink for what he did.” You say with a light shrug and a smile.
“I won’t stop you but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Bradley says with a soft shake of the head, making you roll your eyes with a light scoff.
“I can handle egotistical aviators any day of the week.” You say, folding your arms across your chest and raising your eyebrow as if accepting a challenge.
“You know, I’d pay good money to see you put Hangman in his place.” Bradley admits, chuckling to himself at the mental image of you taking Jake down a peg or two.
“If I need to, I will.” You say with a soft laugh, both you and Bradley knowing that you can absolutely handle yourself. You then both fall silent for a brief moment before Bradley clears his throat softly.
“I should probably let you head back.” Bradley says, nodding in the direction of Maverick’s house, not wanting to keep too long.
“Thank you again. Tonight was amazing.” You say, taking Bradley’s jacket off and handing it to him.
“I should be thanking you.” Bradley says, slipping his jacket back on.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Bradley.” You whisper, stepping closer to Bradley and placing a quick, soft kiss on his lips, pulling away with a smile.
“I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight.” Bradley whispers in response, smiling sweetly as you take a small step back offering him one last smile before turning around and making your way back to your dad’s house with a wide smile that you were sure could never fade.
When you entered the house, you were unsurprised to hear the tv on in the living room. After all, you and Bradley hadn’t been out too long, so it made sense that your dad was still up and about.
“Hey, dad.” You say, standing in the doorway to the living room, smiling as he looks over at you.
“Hey, sweetheart. How was the mini golf?” Maverick asks, his focus completely on you.
“It was great. We had a good time. I kicked Bradley’s ass of course.” You say, jokingly bragging even though you had no idea who had won or lost between you and Bradley.
“That’s my girl. Want to finish watching this movie with me?” Maverick offers, patting the sofa to encourage you over. You nod and cross the room to the sofa, easing yourself down on the sofa next to your dad, relaxing back against the cushions as you watch the movie. You loved watching movies with your dad, you had similar tastes in movies, and you made funny comments to each other during the movie, commenting on a character’s choice or how you would’ve handled a situation. Partway through the movie, your dad decided to order some food given that the two of you hadn’t had any dinner. The two of you perused a menu and picked some food before Maverick placed the order. You both continue to watch the movie until the doorbell rings, giving away that the food has arrived, and you go to pick it up from the delivery driver while Maverick grabs some plates and drinks. Once all the food is plated up, you focus back on the movie, still exchanging comments and enjoying each other’s company. It felt like forever since you had been able to spend time with your dad like this and you were so grateful that you took the time off to come and visit him.
By the time the movie had finished, the food had been eaten and you were feeling the excitement of the day catching up to you, so you stood up, stretching your arms above your head as you stood.
“I might go and start winding down. I’m exhausted.” You say, a yawn spilling past your lips as you talk, emphasising your point.
“I believe you. You go and get an early night, sweetheart.” Maverick says as you pick up your plate and cup, nodding lightly at his words, heading into the kitchen to put your things away before returning to the living room just as Maverick was standing up himself.
“Night, dad.” You mumble, reaching out to hug your dad which he happily reciprocates, holding you close.
“Night, y/n.” Maverick replies, squeezing you a little tighter before releasing you. When he lets you go, you head up to your room and quickly get ready for bed, clambering under the covers and texting Bradley. You had a back-and-forth chat with him, telling him about how excited you were to see him next and how you couldn’t wait to meet his team. You also confessed that you would like to tell your dad about your new relationship with Bradley before you went back to Chicago, but you wanted Bradley’s thoughts first and he let you know that whenever you were ready, he’d be there to help you tell Maverick.
Eventually, you fell asleep and when you woke up in the morning, you remembered that you’d be meeting with Bradley at the Hard Deck, and it kicked you into high gear. You knew you wouldn’t be meeting him until the late afternoon, but you wanted to ensure that you had sufficient time to prepare for the evening. You got up and once you were showered and dressed, you headed downstairs to make some breakfast for you and your dad. As you prepared the breakfast, you put the radio on quietly for some background noise and you hummed lightly to the song playing.
When Maverick came down for breakfast, you had just begun plating it up and you handed him a plate just as he began to sit down. You then poured him a mug of coffee, placing it down on the table with a smile before focusing on plating up your own food. You then sit down opposite your dad and the two of you have a chat over dinner. You decided you’d spend the day with your dad before heading to the Hard Deck, so you laid out a plan with your dad since you knew you didn’t have much longer left in Miramar. You were excited to do some more things with your dad, especially given the number of times you’d been disappearing in the evenings to hang out with Bradley. You go with your dad to various places around Miramar that you haven’t seen yet. He even took you to Top Gun, showing you around his workplace, and even able to show you some of the jets he flew. Stepping back into Top Gun felt familiar to you, you didn’t have any concrete memories of the building, but the familiarity was overwhelming, and you were so happy your dad found himself back at Top Gun, so he not only had the familiarity but because he also had the stability of working in one place without having to move constantly. By the time you had finished the tour of Top Gun, you became aware of the time and turned to your dad.
“Hey, dad. I promised Bradley I’d meet with him at the Hard Deck to meet his team in like an hour or so. Is it okay if I head home to get sorted?” You ask, turning to face your dad.
“You’ve been spending an awful lot of time with Bradley. Is there anything you should know about?” Maverick asks, eyebrow slightly raised as he watches you.
“Dad, it’s not like that. He just wanted me to meet his friends. Besides, I do owe one of them a drink at least for saving you and Bradley.” You reply, shrugging lightly as you explain yourself. You longed to tell your dad, but you knew it wasn’t the right time, not without Bradley to support you through it.
“Well, that’ll go straight to his head.” Maverick says with a chuckle gesturing with his head for you to follow him which you do so, trying to hide your smirk when you realise your dad has said practically the same thing that Bradley had when you mentioned buying a drink for the aviator who saved both your dad and Bradley. You followed your dad out to his car, finding it a little bit funny at the number of times he’s used the car in the duration of your stay when you know he’d much rather be riding around on his motorbike. You both get into the car and Maverick begins the drive back to his house.
Once he pulls up and parks the car, you both get out and you make your way into the house and up to your room so you can freshen up. After you’ve made yourself a little more presentable for the evening, you head back downstairs to spend a little bit more time with your dad before heading down to the Hard Deck. Just before you leave to head down to the bar, you bid your dad goodbye, promising to be back before it’s too late.
The walk to the Hard Deck was quiet without Bradley around to keep you company, but you knew you’d be seeing him soon enough. Besides, as you made your way down to the bar, you were able to appreciate the beauty around you before you had to go back to Chicago.
By the time you make it to the Hard Deck, you feel your phone buzz in your pocket making you stop in your tracks, pull your phone out of your pocket to read the message you had received from Bradley, letting you know that he was in the Hard Deck and that you could just head in whenever you were ready. Taking a deep breath, you head into the bustling bar, glancing around and quickly locating Bradley just by his Hawaiian shirt, seeing him standing with a group of people who you could only assume were his team. As you cross the room, Bradley turns around and catches sight of you, eyes lighting up as he smiles and crosses to meet you in the middle, instantly capturing your lips in his for a sweet kiss.
“Well, that’s one way to say hello.” You mumble with a smile as you both pull away slightly, smiling at each other.
“I’m just happy to see you.” Bradley confesses softly, pulling you into a gentle hug, and pressing a kiss to the top of your head.
“That makes both of us.” You reply happily, eyes fluttering closed in the embrace for a brief moment before you pull away.
“Let’s get you acquainted with the team, shall we?” Bradley says, wrapping a gentle arm around your waist and guiding you over to the group of people he had just been standing with by the pool table. As you approach the group, Bradley is quick to introduce you to everyone, making sure he made it known that you were his girlfriend before he introduced everyone by name. Once you had been introduced to everyone, you turned to address the group.
“Alright, so which of you is the one I owe a drink for saving my dad and Bradley?” You ask, making the group exchange looks at the realisation that you’re not only Bradley’s girlfriend but Maverick’s daughter as well. Once they get over the initial shock of the revelation, a blond man steps forward, a cocky smirk on his face as he smiles at you.
“Well, sounds like you owe me a drink then.” He says with a smirk, leaning back against the pool table with an eyebrow raised.
“I’m a woman of my word.” You say simply, shrugging with a laugh before going over to the bar to order a drink for both you and Jake from Penny, greeting her happily as you do so. When you’ve grabbed the drinks, you return to the group, handing one of the beers to Jake which he takes happily, making sure everyone saw the special treatment he believed he was getting.
“You weren’t lying when you said it would go to his head.” You muse with a laugh as Bradley winds an arm around your middle, pulling your back to his chest as he lets out a soft chuckle.
“He’s just warming up.”
Unbeknownst to you and the others, Maverick entered the bar while you were all occupied with your conversations and sat himself at the bar, smiling at Penny as he did so. As he received his drink, he glanced over at you with the Daggers, and his eyebrows furrowed as he saw the embrace Bradley had you in, and he certainly didn’t miss Bradley pressing soft kisses to your cheek as you laughed, looking up at him with all the love in the world.
“Did you know about them?” Maverick asks the next time Penny stops in front of him, gesturing over in your direction with his head.
“No more than you did clearly. But it was obvious they liked each other the moment they had that little meet-up when y/n first came back. Bradley did mention you warning him away from her though.” Penny says, focusing her attention on a stain on the bar top and wiping a cloth along it.
“I just didn’t want her to get hurt. I know what aviators are like.” Maverick says, eyes fixed on the drop of condensation running down the beer bottle in his hand.
“Pete, she’s not a child and I’m sure she’s told you as much. Besides, Bradley looks at her like she holds the entire world in her hands. Bradley’s not like the others. Give him a chance.” Penny says softly, watching the man in front of her softly, seeing how he silently processes her words. Instead of responding, Maverick looked back over to where you and Bradley were, and he could see the look of love evident on both of your faces.
Suddenly, a patron at the bar who was clearly already much too drunk stumbled in your direction and Maverick was convinced he had never seen a quicker reaction from Bradley until right now. Bradley, with one of the arms he had wrapped around your middle, carefully manoeuvred you so that you were now behind him, and he took the brunt of the patron falling on him, immediately steadying him while shooting him a warning look. Once the guy had wandered back to his friends, Bradley turned around to face you, placing gentle hands on your hips and giving you a soft kiss, pulling away with a gentle smile before inaudibly chuckling at something you said.
“They look happy together.” Maverick says softly, thinking of how Goose used to look at Carole the same way Bradley was looking at you.
“They do. Give Bradley a chance.” Penny reiterates, looking down at Maverick who nods sheepishly.
“I’ll speak to them in a bit. I don’t want to disturb them yet.” Maverick says, turning his attention to Penny, smiling softly at her before striking up a new conversation with her.
Across the bar, you were talking to the Daggers, finding out some more stories from when Bradley had first come back to Top Gun.
“Should’ve seen him. He was a menace when he found out Maverick was teaching. Damn near got themselves killed during training with the stunts they pulled.” Jake explains, beer in hand as he leans up against a nearby table as you watch Bradley and Natasha play a game of pool against each other.
“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me. Bradley was pretty pissed at dad when everything went down, and dad’s stubborn as anything.” You say with a gentle roll of the eyes.
“I’m just glad they got past their issues by the time they went on the mission. I hate to admit it, but they’re our best solo aviators.” Javy admits with a chuckle, making you smile as Jake gawps in mock shock.
“I’m right here you know. I’m the one who saved their asses.” Jake shoots in retaliation, making you and Javy laugh to yourselves.
“What are you two laughing about?” Bradley asks with a smile, sidling up alongside you.
“Javy admitting that you and dad were among the best two pilots for the mission seemed to be a bit of a hit to Jake’s ego.” You explain, making Bradley chuckle as he reaches out to clap Jake on the shoulder then holding out the pool stick for him to take.
“Let’s step outside for a minute.” Bradley mumbles, his voice low as he dips his head near your ear so you can have a semi-private conversation with the bustling volume of the bar. You nod and let Bradley lead you towards the front door of the bar, both of you instantly stopping in your tracks when you see your dad standing near the door, a soft smile on his face.
“Can we talk?” He asks the two of you, eyes flicking between you and Bradley as you both nod lightly. Maverick then gestures for you to follow him outside which you do, stepping out onto the deck and watching the waves crash against the beach.
“Mav I-”
“Bradley, I think it’s best I do the talking here. Look I was wrong to tell the two of you to stay away from each other. Just seeing the two of you earlier was enough of a wake-up call for me to realise that I was being a dick and that you both clearly love each other. I won’t get in your way.” Maverick says, making you and Bradley exchange a look before looking back at your dad.
“Dad…” You mumble, heart softening at your dad’s gentle smile.
“Bradley looks at you the same way Goose looked at Carole.” Maverick then continues, making you look at Bradley who has a slight blush painted across his cheeks at the revelation.
“Thank you, Mav. I promise I’ll look after her.” Bradley promises, holding a hand out for Bradley to shake, instead being pulled into a hug by your dad.
“I know you will.” Maverick says reassuringly before pulling away from the embrace, patting Bradley on the shoulder, and taking a step back before you hug your dad gratefully.
“I love you dad, thank you for giving us a chance.” You whisper, only audible to you and Maverick.
“I love you too, sweetheart. Now, enjoy the rest of your evening.” Maverick replies, squeezing you a little tighter and planting a kiss on the top of your head before releasing you and heading back into the Hard Deck. After the door closes behind your dad, Bradley turns to face you with a grin and slightly raised eyebrow.
“Would you like to come to mine?”
It took practically no time for you and Bradley to get back to his small house, the two of you head into the living room and settle down on the sofa. As you sit down, Bradley wraps an arm around you and pulls you into his side gently. At the shift of embrace, you look up at Bradley, a soft smile on your face that matches his. Before you knew it, you started to lean up to press your lips to his softly, pulling away for a brief moment to adjust yourself, turning yourself more towards Bradley and cupping his face in your hands before kissing him once more. Bradley was quick to reciprocate the kiss, bracing a gentle hand on the back of your head in an attempt to hold you closer while his other hand winds around your waist, pulling you closer in that way as well as your eyes and his flutter closed. When the need for air becomes too much for both of you, you pull away but only enough to press your foreheads against each other, eyes opening again as your hand drifts up to play with Bradley’s hair.
“I know your dad pointed it out earlier but… I love you.” Bradley murmurs, a shy smile on his face as you smile back.
“I love you too.” You reply quietly before Bradley reconnects your lips for another kiss. Pulling you impossibly closer until air is needed once more.
“I know I’ve already asked you to be my girl, but what if you stayed? Is there a way you could stay here, with me?” Bradley asks, knowing that it was probably a long shot to ask you such a question, especially when the two of you had not long got together but he couldn’t just sit by and let his chances slip by again. To his surprise, you smiled, and gently ran a hand through his hair.
“I was actually visiting for more than just seeing dad. I actually got an offer to transfer to a hospital here in San Diego. I wanted to see the area before I made a choice and… I think I have a reason to accept it now.” You say, barely able to finish your sentence before Bradley kisses you again, gently pushing you back until you are lying back on the sofa with him hovering over you.
“Well looks like we have some good news to celebrate then.” Bradley says after breaking the kiss, smiling down at you as you smile back.
“Sounds like we do.” You mumble before grabbing the lapels of Bradley’s Hawaiian shirt to pull him back down for another kiss.
“I think we should take this to my room.” Bradley mumbles against your lips, making you loosen your grip on his shirt slightly so he can pull away, pulling you up with him yet still unable to keep his hands and lips off you as you make your way upstairs to his room. Just as you reach the door to his room you begin tugging his Hawaiian shirt off, carelessly discarding it on the floor as Bradley braces himself against the door, pushing it open behind him as you stumble in after him.
You couldn’t wait to make the move to Miramar now you had Bradley. You knew he was worth the risk.
426 notes · View notes
megalony · 21 days
Text
Poorly Baby
This is a Evan x reader x Eddie holiday imagine, based on a lovely anon request. I hope you all like it, please let me know what you think and keep sending in the holiday ideas.
Taglist: @justagirlthatlovedtoread @musicistheway @avada-kedavra-bitch-187 @luula @missdreamofendless @bradleybeachbabe @woderfulkawaii @amberpanda99 @daggersquadphantom @marvel-and-chicago-fan @angryknightstatesmantrash @minjix @lyjen @kmc1989 @itsmytimetoodream @noonenuts @hiireadstuff @ashie-babie @classyunknownlover @jayyeahthatsme @sp1ritssz @dumb-fawkin-bitch @oliverstarksbae @gimatida @heart-35 @supernaturalstilinski @stefansalvatoresgf @kyky9103 @wutheringhearts2275 @gay4hotmilfs @itshamleth @chaoticnosleepinfluencer @gs29 @wh0reforsmutstuff @mel-vaz @natashamea18 @chrisevansdaughter @alexandra8484 @deena-beena-weena @targaryenluvs @shelbygeek @kpoplover-19 @marvelmenarebeautiful @gillybear17 @zoeybennett @mrspeacem1nusone
Eddie Diaz Masterlist
Evan Buckley Masterlist
Summary: It's the couple's first holiday with their toddler, but things don't exactly go to plan when their daughter becomes ill. And they run into a few rude people at the airport.
Enjoy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tumblr media
A sigh burned past (Y/n)'s lips and she closed her eyes, tilting her head back as if looking towards the sky to give her strength.
Her right hand moved to cradle the back of Evie's head while she tilted her chest back so the toddler was leaning into her. She bent her knees and started swaying her little girl from left to right, moving her up and down to calm her down and try to cease her cries.
It didn't work.
The toddler sniffed before she let out another wail into (Y/n)'s neck. Her hands batted up and down against (Y/n)'s chest and shoulder and she started swaying her legs as she howled. Bubbling, sniffling cries wailed past Evie's lips as tears drenched her face and her skin started to burn from how overworked she was making herself.
"Baby, shh come on it's okay-"
"I want daddy!" Her little voice turned into a screech and she sniffed at least five times to draw in a deep enough breath so that she could let out another cry.
"I know, I know baby and he won't be long, the boys are coming." (Y/n) leaned her cheek on top of Evie's head and continued to sway, trying to shush her.
She had moved to stand near the drinks bar to be hidden in the shade and be out the way of the other people. The last thing everyone nearby needed was to listen to Evie screaming her little head off.
The two year old wasn't feeling well today.
This was her first time abroad. They were used to taking Chris away on holiday at least once a year but the last two years hadn't gone to plan. (Y/n) had been pregnant on their last holiday and she hadn't felt very well. And they skipped going abroad last year because Evie was only a baby and it would have been too much for them all.
Now she was two, they thought she would enjoy going abroad. She hadn't liked the airport, at all. And the plane ride had been long and tiring for her, but she had done well. But their two week holiday had been a right mixture since Evie had gotten sick.
The temperature change didn't sit well with her, the newfound heat had made her sick for the first few days. Then when they thought she was getting better, they went out for a walk round and the heat made her pass out. To top it off, for the last two days Evie had been sick and when she was sick, she wanted to be held, cuddled and carried by either one of her dads.
It was their last day today because tomorrow dinnertime they would be heading back to the airport to head home. But their holiday had been fun and exciting despite Evie not feeling her best, and it had been great for them to spend two full weeks together as a family.
"Shh, baby, okay." (Y/n) murmured into the top of her head as she continued to sway from side to side.
With it being their last day and a small amusement park being over the road, Eddie and Evan had taken Chris to go on the rides. It wasn't (Y/n)'s sort of thing and Evie wasn't well enough to go on the baby rides or to watch the boys like she normally would. She would of been fine wandering round with some sweets and a drink, but not today when she was feeling unwell.
So they decided the boys would go on the amusements and (Y/n) had taken Evie in the soft play area in their hotel and then to the toy shop.
"Here they are, look. Who's that?"
Evie lifted her head from (Y/n)'s shoulder, still sniffing and whimpering while she looked around for her dads and her brother.
The boys had got back from the amusements twenty minutes ago and they had gone to get changed into their swim gear since they all wanted one more dip in the hotel pool. The pool was massive. And the cold water would do Evie the world of good, it had made her feel better every other day they spent in here.
"Found them!" Chris pulled on Evan's hand and pointed ahead to where (Y/n) was stood cradling Evie, leaning back against the bar.
Chris was wearing his aqua blue swim trunks with sharks dotted all over them and he had already taken his glasses off and put them in the bag Eddie was carrying, full of their change of clothes and towels. He practically dragged Evan over until they got towards (Y/n).
A tender smile flooded (Y/n)'s face as she looked over her boys. Chris was jumping up and down, desperate to get in the pool already. It had been hard to get the kids out the pool these past two weeks whenever they came down here.
The outdoor pool was spaceous. There was a shallow end with fountains and a little lookout tower for little kids. There was a deeper end for adults, at the far back there were a few slides. Two hot tubs were at the back and all around the pool was a rapid river with currents for people to cruise along in with floats and rubber rings.
(Y/n) dragged her eyes across Evan and Eddie who looked like the sun and the moon. Evan was wearing white and blue striped swim trunks, showing off all the tattoos glittered around his arms and his torso. Including (Y/n)'s favourite which was Evangeline in large italics beneath his collar bone with Evie's footprints stamped beneath her name in purple ink from when she was born.
And she noticed Evan was wearing his knee brace. The amount of walking, swimming and running they had done on this holiday was enough to aggravate his scarred leg so he had brought his brace along. It was waterproof and the tight tension stopped him from limping.
Then there was Eddie. Grey cargo-like trunks with large baggy pockets and blinding white draw strings through the middle. His hair was spiked up, his black sunglasses were perched on his nose and (Y/n)'s eyes found her favourite tattoo on Eddie's skin.
He had Chris and Evie's date of births in a scroll on the lower left side of his abs.
"Looking good," Evan murmured while he let his eyes wander all over (Y/n)'s frame.
It didn't matter how many times he and Eddie had seen her in her swimsuit this week. It was their new favourite. A low cut, strapless strawberry red suit with little white hearts dotted all over.
(Y/n) tilted her head back so she could peck Evan's lips before she took a step closer to Eddie with her arms outstretched. "Thank God. She won't settle for me, she's been screaming for you."
"For me? Aw, baby girl."
They reached out and did a swap. (Y/n) took the bag from Eddie's shoulder while he carefully scooped Evie up from her and turned her around so she was facing him. He saw the light sparkle in her little eyes when she realised who it was that now had hold of her. He was a little surprised she was crying out for him when Evan had been the one who had slept with her on his chest last night instead of leaving her coughing and sulking in the crib.
As soon as she was bundled up against his bare chest, Evie stopped crying. She turned to little gasps and sniffs and deadlocked her arms around Eddie's neck. Her nose brushed up against his neck and made him shiver while she curled up against him.
She looked a little cutie, despite the snot and tears drenching her face and the heat radiating off of her. Evie's hair was gathered up in a scrunchie and she was wearing her navy blue Fireman Sam swim costume because she thought it was both her dad's in cartoon form.
"How's she been?" Evan curved his free arm around (Y/n)'s waist and let Chris lead them towards the pool.
"Well, she's not been sick and she found a new firetruck in the toy shop which will be in the cot with her tonight, I'll bet."
It had been no secret at the station that Evan held it over Eddie's head that Evie preferred the fire truck to the ambulance. They got her a few toys of each because she was always at the station to see the team and her family. But she loved the fire truck. It didn't matter when Eddie told her about the ambulance or that he drove the ambulance whereas Evan rarely drove the truck.
And when they went to the toy store and she saw a fire truck that was just the right size for Evie to hold and cuddle like it was a teddy, the toddler wouldn't let it go.
(Y/n) had a gut feeling that when they got back to the room, Evie wouldn't let the truck out of her sight. She would fall asleep with it.
"That's our girl."
"You're burning, baby girl." Eddie spoke quietly against the top of her head while he smoothed his hand up and down her back. "Let's get you in that pool, hm?"
"Hot," Evie murmured while she drooled on Eddie's chest. She was a lot calmer now she was in his arms and she was panting from how badly she had been crying.
"I know, poorly baby." Eddie cooed with his lips against her temple and he shivered when he stepped into the pool. The contrast of freezing cold water lapping at his heels and the burning hot toddler on his chest sent his heart into a frenzy and made him shiver.
He followed after his partners, grinning when Chris flopped down onto his stomach and started crawling and shimmying further into the water.
When the water rose to his knees, Eddie slowly lowered himself down until he was sat down in the shallow end. He stretched his legs out into the water and gently lowered Evie down until she was sat on his lap with the water up to her tummy. A smile pulled at Eddie's lips when Evie shivered and gasped but the cold water seemed to make her feel better instantly.
She splashed her hands out at her sides and hit the water around Eddie's knees.
"Happy now, baby?" He whispered softly when Evie slouched down against him so her chest was submerged in the water. Her head pressed back into his abdomen and she grinned a toothy smile up at him as she began to kick her legs out and swatted him in the thighs.
After a few minutes, Eddie gently moved his hands beneath Evie's back and her head so she was laid floating up in the water. He weaved her through the water as she squealed, kicking her legs and flapping her arms while Eddie started to move more towards the middle of the pool towards his partners.
"Hey, pretty baby." Evan kissed the top of Evie's head before he leaned over to steal a kiss from Eddie.
He had his arms wrapped around (Y/n) and moved his chin back to perch on (Y/n)'s shoulder while Chris began swimming at their side. He swayed them from side to side before he leaned back in the water and pulled (Y/n) so she was laid between his thighs in the water.
(Y/n) let her head flop back onto Evan's shoulder and she attached her lips to the side of his neck, feeling his chest vibrate with a growl. Both their heads turned to the right when they heard Chris.
"Pops! Pops, floats." He was already swimming off to the side, trying to point and swim at the same time towards the large donut ring floats he could see that no one had grabbed yet. There weren't many of them around and they usually had to wait a while to find one around the pool.
"She stays with you two if we get those." (Y/n) gave a warning look between the boys and shook her head when she saw them grin.
When they came in the pool the other day and finally got four floats for them all, (Y/n) had sat Evie on her lap in one. It had been a mistake when Evie thought she was about to fall off and scrambled to hold onto (Y/n), whose swimsuit was strapless. She almost dragged (Y/n)'s suit down her chest if Evan hadn't reached out in time to swoop Evie up.
"Yeah, no flashing." Evan murmured in her ear and tightened his arms around (Y/n)'s waist while his hands travelled up to her chest. He gave her a squeeze and pressed a kiss to the side of her head before he detangled himself from her and swam over to Chris to help him.
"Are we gonna go on the rapids, baby?"
Eddie gently lifted Evie up from the water and settled her down on his chest. He felt her hands splash down on his shoulders and she nuzzled her face into his chest. He was relieved to see she was starting to cool down but he didn't want to think of the tantrum she was going to have when they eventually had to get out the pool.
"There's only three, who's bunking up?" Evan had one float hooked over each shoulder while Chris was slumped over the third one. Kicking his legs out at Evan to get towards the sectioned off water where there were currents and buckets that tipped water across them.
"Me and mum." Chris answered before any of them had the chance to say anything.
He grinned when (Y/n) ruffled his damp curls and kissed his temple before she held onto the float and steered it in the right direction so Chris didn't have to.
"Alright, in you go."
Evan held the float steady while (Y/n) dipped under the water and climbed up into the float. She secured her legs over either side and smiled brightly when Chris scrambled up too. He sat on the opposite end with his legs strewn over (Y/n)'s lap and his hands reached out to hold hers while Evan gave them a nudge into the water.
(Y/n) slouched down a little move and splashed her feet in the water over the side of the float while Chris used the wall to push them further ahead into the current. She could see Eddie following just behind them, sat like a royal with Evie curled up on his chest. She had her head tucked just beneath his chin, her hands patting his chest and her legs coiled up on his stomach.
He leaned his head back, soaking up the sun while his hand smoothed up and down Evie's back.
"Alright back there, loner?" Eddie tilted his head a bit further back, making sure he didn't tip the float over, so he could look behind him at Evan. He saw the way Evan pretended to laugh and stuck a middle finger up at him.
Eddie used his foot to kick the wall on the right and it spun the float round so he and Evie were facing backwards. Not that Evie cared right now, she was so settled he wondered if she was going to go to sleep.
"Oh no," He muttered and leaned forward, pressing his lips to the top of Evie's head as his arms curved around her tighter when he noticed the water buckets up ahead. (Y/n) and Chris sailed through them, but Eddie could see they were about to tip and pour water onto him. If Evie got splashed in the face she would scream. The chlorine stung her eyes and she couldn't handle water in her ears.
A groan spluttered past his lips when the water crashed down on the back of his neck and soaked through his hair and all across his shoulders.
"Daddy!" Evie wriggled against him, managing a little smile when she realised Eddie was soaked but she had remained mostly dry, at least her head did. He smiled down at her and shook his head whilst trying to keep his glasses perched on his nose.
When he heard the others laughing, Eddie took a calculated look around to see who was closest to them. It happened to be Evan who was only a foot away.
With a little strain, Eddie stretched his leg out towards Evan's float and gave it a swift kick. But his jaw dropped and a quiet 'ooh shit' passed Eddie's lips when he kicked the float a little too harshly.
Evan toppled out.
"Eddie!" (Y/n) pressed a hand to her mouth and tried not to laugh, but she could already see Chris tossing his head back with a cackle. Poor Evan flipped backwards and dunked under the water. "Go, go." She whispered to Chris, helping him reach for the wall and propell their float further down the river stream towards the people ahead of them. They needed to get away before Evan tried to retaliate and get his own back.
Eddie had to admit Evan looked rather fetching when he broke through the water. His curls stuck to his forehead, water cascaded off the end of his nose and dripped down his lips that were a very dark shade of red. He was panting for breath and his shoulders were hunched up, tensing and morphing the tattoos across his body.
"You little-"
"No, no! Hey, I've got the baby- I've got the baby don't you dare!" He curled his hands around Evie and shuffled her a little higher up his chest so her chin was perched on his shoulder. Although his lips morphed into an open-mouthed grin as he tried to move their float to get away.
Evan couldn't tip him over or splash him or pull him from the float because he had Evie in his arms. If she went under the water she would scream and flap about and cause a scene. He would have to wait until Eddie didn't have Evie in his arms if he wanted payback.
"I'm sorry babe."
***
Leaning forward, (Y/n) pressed her temple into Evan's back and closed her eyes for a few seconds. She could feel herself smiling when he reached behind to hold her hip and give her a gentle squeeze.
She reached her right hand out and smoothed her hand up and down Evan's waist while her left hand juggled Evie and moved the toddler a bit higher up onto her chest. She could feel Evie drooling into her shoulder and the little pants she let out told (Y/n) she was barely awake. That's what they wanted. They wanted Evie tired and subdued so they could get through customs and get on the plane without a fuss.
The temperature change from the boiling heat outside to the chilled aircon in the airport had made Evie cry and feel ill. And it wasn't doing (Y/n) any favours either.
"Are we nearly there?" (Y/n) didn't bother lifting her head from Evan's back. It was a comfort to feel his tense back in front of her and to breathe into his shirt and inhale his scent.
It felt like they had been queuing in this line for hours. They were going to miss their flight if they waited much longer. All it was was a bag check and a scanner to make sure they weren't bringing anything back or taking a bomb onto the plane. They hardly had to queue back home when they were at the start of their holiday. Now it was the end, things were dragging out.
"Yep, just about."
Evan gave her hip another squeeze while he leaned forward and perched his chin on Eddie's shoulder to look at the queue. They were just about at the scanner. Finally.
When Eddie started to get plastic tubs for him and Chris to put their things into, Evan leaned forward and grabbed one for himself and one for (Y/n). He dumped his bag into the box and took out the electronics, smiling to himself that (Y/n) was still cosied up against his back. And he could feel Evie snuggled between them too.
He felt (Y/n) press a kiss between his shoulder blades before she reluctantly pulled away, but she still stood close to him.
She struggled to keep Evie in one arm and take off her bag and sling it into the tray Evan had placed down for her. They had another few feet to go before they would be in the scanner, so (Y/n) wasn't in a hurry to take off her shoes or unpack the electronics from her bag.
Her breath hitched in her throat and she tensed up when she felt a shoulder nudge into her back.
Great. She had a pushy couple behind her.
Moving her hand to cradle the back of Evie's head, (Y/n) cuddled her daughter closer and took a step closer to Evan until she was practically meshed up against his back. She didn't want to be stood close to strangers, it was why they had walked around the airport with (Y/n) in between the boys while she carried Evie. So no one else would get close.
A gasp tumbled from her lips and she pushed up against Evan when the man behind her leaned over her.
She could feel his chest press into her back when he roughly leaned over her shoulder to grab a tray for his own items. He wasn't even next to the bag scanner yet and he was trying to get ready. It wouldn't make the queue speed up or make (Y/n) move any faster, she could only go as fast as everyone else.
She shivered and tilted her head up when Evan turned. He glanced over his shoulder and looked down at (Y/n) first, but she saw something burn in his eyes when he realised why she had stumbled into him.
"It's okay." (Y/n) muttered quietly and reached out to give Evan's bicep a light squeeze.
The man behind her had grabbed a tray but he was back to waiting in line behind them now. (Y/n) didn't want Evan to start a fight, not so close to the security guards in case they caused a scene or got delayed. They couldn't miss this flight when their luggage was already boarding the plane and they all wanted to get home.
She watched Evan huff and lock his jaw tight and his gaze burned into the couple behind them before he turned back round. He busied himself snapping his belt from his trousers and dumping it in the tray along with his shoes.
And he stayed tense and straight while (Y/n) held his arm and leaned into his back so she could slip off her shoes and put them in the tray.
(Y/n) took to humming while she rested her lips against Evie's temple and gently rocked her from side to side. She stayed close to Evan and shuffled forward with him while he took her tray and placed it on the conveyer belt on their right.
"Oh!"
(Y/n)'s arms tightened around Evie and she snapped her eyes closed when the man behind her pushed her once again. Only this time, with a little more force and (Y/n) was sure he'd done that on purpose to make her move.
Her elbow clattered against the conveyer belt and her head bashed into the back of Evan's arm. But it was Evie's cry that made her wince. Poor Evie slammed into Evan's back too and got squished between both parents. The abrupt motion woke her up immediately and she began to whimper, wondering what was going on.
"Do you mind?" Evan's voice snapped through the air like the jaws of a crocodile.
His hands were desperate to curl into fists but he refrained and moved both hands to hold (Y/n)'s arms when he turned round. He kept her and Evie tucked into his chest while his eyes bore down into the short but stocky man stood behind his girls.
He didn't react when he felt Eddie's hand on his waist, trying to see around him to find out what was wrong.
"What?"
"You've just pushed my partner and she's clearly got a child in her arms. Why don't you try being careful?" He looked down and moved his hand to indicate to Evie who was whimpering in (Y/n)'s arms.
When he didn't get an answer or even an apologetic look, Evan sighed. He moved his hands down from (Y/n)'s arms to hold her hips and turned them round so she was in front of him. Keeping both his girls wedged between him and Eddie so they were safe from another stumble.
He could see Eddie giving him a certain look, telling him to leave it at that, but Evan couldn't help himself. He turned to look over his shoulder and stared down at the stranger who was glaring daggers through him.
"Push me, pal. See what happens."
It was a dare more than a threat, but it did the trick because when Evan turned around, he could feel two feet of space between him and the stranger. He didn't want to take the risk and find out.
***
"Shh, good girl, there we go." Eddie pressed his lips to the top of Evie's head and rubbed his hand slowly up and down her back.
He could feel her snotting and whimpering into his neck while her hands fisted in his shirt and pulled it to her chest. She hadn't been best pleased when Eddie told her he couldn't take it off on the plane. Throughout their holiday she had been used to cuddling up to Eddie and Evan without their shirts on. She liked the skin contact.
If he could of snuggled Evie under his shirt, he would have.
He sat up straighter in his chair and gently swayed Evie up and down on his chest as she continued to whimper quietly. She didn't feel well, and the turbulence frightened her. Eddie was surprised she hadn't been sick yet, but then again, she threw up just before they got on the plane.
"Wanna go sit with mum and papa for a while?" He spoke against her temple before he glanced over at Chris who was sat on his right and was finally happy playing a game.
Chris hadn't been happy that they weren't all sitting together. On their first flight at the start of the holiday, the four of them all had seats together at the very back of the plane. Chris had sat next to Evan and only a small aisle separated them from (Y/n) and Eddie while they passed Evie between them throughout the flight.
This time, Chris and Eddie were in the middle row while Evan and (Y/n) were a row in front on the left row. So Chris couldn't lean over and see them properly whereas Eddie had to lean over the aisle and strain his neck to get Evan's attention.
It wasn't ideal, but at least they were paired up.
When Evie murmured into his neck, Eddie slowly stood up in the cramped space and shifted onto the aisle on his left. He took three steps forward and leaned his hips against Evan's seat.
He could see (Y/n) was half awake with her head slumped on Evan's shoulder and an arm bound around her waist. She didn't feel well. Whereas Evan was slouched down with his legs stretched out in the aisle. He and Eddie didn't exactly fit in the seats properly which was why they both sat on the aisle seats so they could stretch out.
"You sitting with us, baby?" Evan reached his arms up and eased Evie down onto his lap. He smiled when Eddie gave his shoulder a squeeze and pecked his temple, whispering a quiet 'thank you' before he headed back over to Chris.
(Y/n) smiled tiredly, keeping her right hand curled around Evan's bicep while she moved her left hand to rub up and down Evie's back.
She closed her eyes and shuffled down in her seat, curling more into Evan until she was almost sitting on his lap along with Evie. (Y/n) didn't like sitting next to strangers. It was a Godsend that the arm rests folded up so (Y/n) could shuffle closer to Evan. She had nothing against the elder man sat next to her, but (Y/n) would rather cuddle up into one of her partners than be close to a stranger.
And it wasn't as if Evan could comfortably sit- or even fit- in the middle seat which was why he and Eddie were on the end seats.
"Wanna watch a movie?" Evan looked down at Evie with a smile, but she shook her head and whimpered. She didn't have the attention span for a movie, she didn't feel well and she didn't know what to do with herself.
She stayed perched on his lap with her eyes fixated on Evan's arm. He had his right arm around her waist to keep her settled on his lap while his left arm stayed between him and (Y/n). Right where Evie could see and start to glide her fingertips across his tattoos to keep herself occupied.
Evan started to jitter his leg up and down which made Evie smile, if only for a few seconds. Her chin tilted down into her chest and she messed around with his arm which made Evan grin, he loved the sensation when either Chris or Evie started to draw patterns on his skin or trace his tattoos. He watched her contently for a few minutes while (Y/n) closed her eyes and tried to ward off the sickness she felt.
But (Y/n)'s eyes snapped open and Evan's smile faded when the seat in front of him moved.
Whoever was sitting in front tried twice to recline his chair, but it wouldn't go back any further. The way he bashed his frame into the chair caused it to jolt into Evie's back. It wasn't enough to hurt her, but it was enough to scare her into crying out and her big doe eyes looked up at Evan in fright.
"Papa…"
"S'alright, come here, look."
Evan moved his hands to Evie's sides and gently lifted her up from his lap so he could lean her on his chest instead. She rested her cheek on his shoulder and looped her arms around his neck, bending her knees into his stomach. He looped one arm around the back of her legs and ran his other hand up and down her back in slow circles.
They could just have a cuddle for a while until Evie fell asleep or settled enough to watch a movie or listen to some music.
(Y/n) dug both hands into Evan's bicep and meshed her face into his shoulder, holding her breath when the plane shuddered. She could feel the turbulence rocketing through to her heart and her throat tightened when it felt like the plane was going to drop down out of the sky.
A shudder ran through Evan's neck and he winced when Evie screamed. She wasn't as frightened as Evan thought she would be since this was their first time taking her on holiday and on a plane. But they all knew any turbulence was going to frighten her. She didn't understand what was happening.
Her nails scratched Evan's neck and she scrambled to press further into him as if she thought she could mesh herself into his chest, somehow.
A loud wail left her lips and she began to cry, breaking off every few seconds to scream when the plane gave another jolt to the left or rickoted up and down.
"Shh, baby shh it's okay, you're okay." Evan smothered his lips against Evie's cheek and moved his hand up and down her back while he rocked her back and forth. He could feel her little body trembling against him and it made him want to cry. But he was glad she was sat with him. Eddie was a good flyer, but he didn't like turbulence either. Eddie would be sat stiff in his seat right now, praying for a smooth flight.
When the plane finally levelled out, Evan glanced down at (Y/n). She had stopped shaking too but she didn't lift her head from his shoulder. He didn't mind.
His lips stayed meshed with Evie's cheek and he continued to hum and shush her while leaning from left to right to see if it would help. But his eyes locked with the man sitting in the window seat beside (Y/n). He thought for a moment that the man was going to tut or roll his eyes, but instead, he just smiled.
"You good?" Evan looked down at (Y/n) when she lifted her face from his shoulder so she could rest her cheek on his arm instead. She nodded, but he could see she was uneasy and she still looked sick.
The plane shook again, but it was only a little tremor this time.
"Alright, you're okay baby." He murmured again into Evie's cheek as she continued to whimper into his neck.
But Evan's attention diverted to the chair in front when the man slammed back in his seat again. It was as if he thought bashing around in his chair would somehow make it recline further but if that happened he would be laying on Evan's lap. He gave it another shove with a loud grumble that made (Y/n) open her eyes to see what was going on.
"Oh for fuck's sake."
The stranger's loud remark made (Y/n)'s stomach churn and she darted her eyes up to look at Evan.
Another round of expletives left his lips in a mixture of 'fucking plane' and 'bloody stupid' amongst other things. When he either hit his chair or slammed his elbow back into it, both (Y/n) and Evie quivered.
What was he doing? Was he desperate for a power nap so early into the evening like this?
When he swore again, Evie lifted her head from Evan's neck and looked up at him. She knew those were bad words but she didn't know who was saying them or who was getting angry. The panic was written across her face as her eyes creased and a cry tumbled past her lips as she looked at Evan in fear.
Evan coiled his left arm around Evie to keep her stood up on his thighs with her body slumped against his chest. He smoothed his hand up and down her hip as she wrapped her arms back around his neck and began crying into his shoulder. Even with (Y/n) leaning into her and cuddling her, Evie continued to shake.
"Stop." Reaching forward, Evan planted his right palm flat against the chair in front and gave it enough of a shove that the man jolted forward.
"What are you doing?"
The man leaned around the side of his chair so he could look behind him at Evan. The disgusted look on his face made Evan arch a brow and curl his lips in anger. He didn't look much older than Evan, late thirties, early forties at a push. But the anger and frown lines on his face could have aged him ten years.
"Your swearing and mouthing off is upsetting my daughter. Give it a rest please." Evan sighed through his words while he leaned his chin on his right hand and stared blankly at the man in front of him.
He wouldn't sit here and continue to let this stranger mouth off and frighten Evie when she wasn't well and she was already petrified of being on a plane.
And surely this man's disruptive behaviour was irritating or upsetting a few other people on the plane, not just them.
Eddie leaned to the left with his elbow on the arm rest and his head tilted up so he could look down the aisle. He knew Evan's voice, he could recognise his boyfriend's voice a mile away and he knew that tone. Evan was both losing his patience and getting worried at the same time and that was never good. Eddie could feel his stomach flooding with adrenaline as he watched the man in front of Evan leer at him and look him up and down with scrutinising eyes.
"I thought that was his kid?" The moment those words passed through the stranger's lips and he pointed towards the back of the plane in Eddie's direction, that was it.
"Stay here." Eddie whispered firmly to Chris as he got up and thundered down the aisle. He barely stood beside Evan before the stranger started again.
"And she's not exactly quiet, is she? Screaming her fucking head off since we took off."
(Y/n) took a deep breath and kept both arms coiled tightly around Evan's arm when he looked like he was about to get up. He couldn't retaliate when Evie was whimpering in his arms. The toddler could sense an argument was about to break out and it was frightening her.
But when (Y/n) looked up and realised Eddie was already hovering beside them like a dark omen, she bit her lip.
Her heart thundered in her chest when Eddie roughly grabbed the back of the man's seat and gave it a harsh shove to get his attention. His fingers were almost ripping through the material as Eddie leaned on the chair and leaned down until he was level with the man in front of him.
"I don't know who you think you are, but if you talk about our daughter like that again, you'll be flying home with the air rescue."
Eddie didn't care one bit who this man was or who he thought he was. He had no right to talk to any of them like that or speak about Evie as if she was some silly teenager playing up on purpose. She was a toddler, she was only two years old. How could this man sit there and honestly expect her to be quiet or calm or happy when she was petrified?
"Listen mate, I-"
"No, you're gonna listen to me now. She's a sick little child who's frightened, you're just a prick with an attitude. Show some respect or prepare to be taught a lesson."
Eddie's callous voice and his intensifying gaze had the man stunned to silence. It was very clear what Eddie was saying. If he didn't stop being so disrespectful, Eddie would punch him. He would start and end a fight right here on this plane and he didn't care if they had to make an emergency landing in order to do that.
He wouldn't have someone talking to his family like that and upsetting his daughter.
Eddie took such a deep breath he felt like he was going to pass out. He straightened up until his head was almost touching the roof and he watched as the stranger sank down in his chair and turned to look at the screen in front of him. He wasn't giving Eddie the satisfaction of seeing his embarrassed, frightened expression.
A tender smile pulled at (Y/n)'s lips as she looked between her boys. "Maybe you two should switch seats… keep the kids out the way?"
It seemed a safer option for Evie to be back with Chris two rows behind so she wasn't near that man. She was now petrified. The toddler was trembling against Evan and whimpering quietly into his neck. Sitting here so close to the man that shouted at them was only going to frighten her even more. And she was still attached to Evan at the moment.
It would be better if Evan sat with Chris and made sure the kids were okay. And that meant Eddie could sit directly behind the person he had just threatened and keep an eye on him.
"Come on baby girl," Evan kept Evie close to his chest and pecked (Y/n)'s temple before he got up.
He smiled when he felt Eddie's hand on his lower back and a soft kiss against the side of his neck while they weaved around each other to switch places. Evan made a slow walk over to Eddie's seat where Chris was leaning to get a look at the action, grinning around his thumb that he was biting down on.
And Eddie swung round and flopped into Evan's vacant seat, slouching down so his knees pressed into the chair in front. His left hand instinctively curled around (Y/n)'s upper thigh while he scrunched his right hand into a fist and rested his chin on his hand.
He turned his head to the left and looked at (Y/n) with an arched brow and quirked lips. He watched her lean over until her chest was pressed up against his bicep and her hand fell on his chest that was rising and falling rapidly like he had just run a marathon.
Her lips pressed a kiss to the soft spot behind his ear that had him shivering and gripping her thigh harder.
"Well done, babe."
314 notes · View notes
steddieas-shegoes · 10 months
Note
Hello my love! ❤️
Another for you, if you’re still taking them, though of course feel free to ignore this for any reason (or even no reason) at all!
I would love to see what you can do with Steddie and James Arthur’s “Car’s Outside”. I feel like this is one Eddie would write for Steve, maybe after an argument..? 👀
I had to look this one up because I’d never heard it before and this is some emotional stuff I wasn’t prepared for but should’ve been when you said maybe after an argument 😭
Touring the country had been his dream for so long that when it became a reality, he forgot what was most important.
It happened to a lot of rockstars.
His reality check came like lightning, fast and sharp.
“I’m just trying to understand, Stevie. You wanted me to do this. You told me to go on the tours and record the albums. You supported me. What changed?”
“You did.”
That was the last thing Steve said to him over a week ago.
All he knew now was that Steve was back in Hawkins staying with Wayne and hadn’t told him much other than he wouldn’t take up too much room for long.
Wayne didn’t tell him anything except that Steve was alive and safe, but didn’t seem to be taking care of himself well.
The first two days, all Eddie felt was anger. He was full of contempt for Steve suddenly changing his mind about Eddie’s life and dreams.
But the third day was when it hit him that Steve left.
He’d avoided everyone after that, only answered the phone in case it was him calling and hanging up if it wasn’t him.
He barely got out of bed, barely ate, didn’t even go into the bedroom converted into a music room to play his guitar.
The next tour was set to start in two weeks and he didn’t think he could go, not like this, not without Steve here waiting for him.
- - - - -
Wayne called the night before he was leaving for the tour, said he needed to come to Hawkins, but wouldn’t say why.
“Are you sick or hurt?”
“No, Ed.”
“…is Steve?”
“Just get here.”
So Eddie did.
He called the guys and told them he would meet them at their first stop in New York in three days, that he had a family emergency and couldn’t travel on the bus with them.
When he got to Hawkins, he felt like turning right around and leaving.
He hadn’t been back in years; Wayne always came to see them for holidays and visits.
Nothing has changed, not even the trailer Wayne insisted on still living in, even when Eddie offered to buy him something nicer.
Steve’s car sat in the driveway next to Wayne’s truck, just like it did before they’d moved to Chicago to try to make Eddie’s dream happen.
Eddie parked next to him, the rental from the airport much cleaner and nicer than anything else around here, but not in a good way.
It clicked suddenly, that Eddie wasn’t the same. That the guy who used to drive a beat up van and live in this trailer and loved Steve so much it felt like a physical ache when he wasn’t around wasn’t here.
He walked up to the door, knocking like this wasn’t his home just five years ago.
Wayne answered, sullen face making his chest tight with worry.
“Where is he?”
“He’s asleep finally. Come on in, son. Have a seat.”
“What happened?”
Wayne sighed.
“He’s been overworking himself and not sleeping or eating, and it finally caught up to him. He’s had a migraine for three days now, longest I’ve seen. Can barely sit up to sip water but begged me not take him to the hospital.”
Eddie’s fists clenched.
“Why wouldn’t he go?”
Wayne blinked at him.
“Son, you’re not an idiot despite the way you’ve been actin’ for a while. Think about it.”
Wayne walked to the kitchen and started packing his lunchbox.
“Where are you going?”
“I got a shift to get to. Steve shouldn’t be alone.”
Eddie stayed on the couch for the next two hours, his brain shifting through thoughts that quickly turned into song lyrics.
He wrote them down, but barely focused on what he was writing. Now wasn’t really a great time to be producing something new.
He heard a groan from his old bedroom and shot up from the couch, making his way to the end of the hall and entering the room without a second thought.
Steve was sitting on the edge of the bed, body hunched and eyes closed, pain a physical presence through every inch of him.
“Stevie,” Eddie choked out.
Steve’s head shot up. He winced in pain, but the tears in his eyes didn’t seem to have much to do with that as Eddie got closer.
“What are you doing here?”
“Wayne called.”
“And?”
“If you need me, I’m gonna be here.”
Steve looked away, his eyes closing as he turned his head.
“That’s not how things have been.”
It hurt, but he was right. It hadn’t been how things have been. Not for a while.
“I know. I…I don’t think sorry is enough for any of it, but I am. I’m sorry. So sorry, Stevie.”
Steve looked at him, the haze of the migraine keeping a lot of emotion off his face.
“Yeah. Okay.”
It wasn’t forgiveness, and forgiveness wasn’t deserved yet, but it was a start. And when Steve let Eddie get him water and medicine, and play with his hair, it felt like a start.
- - - - -
Eddie had to go.
If he didn’t go, he’d miss the first show of the tour.
He’d be in deep shit, and the guys would hate him, and he would never make music again.
His manager called him every four hours at Wayne’s asking when his flight would be and he always said “when things are right with Steve.”
It started to feel like that might not happen.
But something about the way Steve was slowly letting him in, allowing him to care for him more every day, gave him hope that he could get him back, get them back.
Wayne didn’t say much to him, didn’t have to. The way he watched was enough to know how Wayne felt about him, this situation.
But he didn’t go.
Steve’s migraine was gone, but he still needed Eddie, still needed to see that he was the priority.
Eddie needed to show him that he mattered more than his band, because he did. He always had and always would.
He missed the last flight that would’ve gotten him there on time.
He called the guys to let them know, to apologize, to tell them that he had to do what was best for him.
They understood, but told him their manager was livid and probably would try to replace him instead of postpone the tour.
He didn’t care at this point.
He’d gotten his taste of fame and it was bittersweet.
Steve stood in the doorway when Eddie hung up the phone, watching him with his arms crossed as Eddie covered his face in his hands.
“You’re not going?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
Eddie dropped his hands and sighed.
“If I have to pick, then I pick you. I’ll always pick you.”
Steve’s brows furrowed.
“You think I want you to pick between me and your career?”
“Yes. That’s why you left, isn’t it?”
Steve shook his head.
“I left because you forgot that I was a choice at all,” Steve’s voice sounded choked. “I left because I didn’t even think you’d care if I did. You didn’t seem to care much about leaving me anymore.”
Eddie’s heart couldn’t possibly break more.
“Sweetheart, of course I care. I’m here because I can’t lose you. If it’s you or the band, then it’s you. Always.”
Steve let out a sob.
“I didn’t want you to choose me instead of your career. I wanted you to recognize that choosing your career didn’t have to mean not choosing me.”
“Oh, my love.”
Eddie pulled Steve against him, holding the back of his head against his chest, other hand running up and down his back slowly.
“You’re always my first choice. I’m sorry I forgot to show you that. I’m sorry you ever had to feel like you weren’t even an option. You’re the most important choice I’ve ever made and I’m going to keep choosing you every day. Even if it means giving up the band. None of that means shit to me if I don’t have you.”
Steve nodded against his chest.
They stayed like that for so long, Wayne came home, nodded and smiled from the doorway of the kitchen.
- - - - -
Steve came with him.
He called his manager the next day, said it was non-negotiable that Steve be with them for this tour.
The band was on his side, of course. They loved Steve and they loved Eddie and the last thing they wanted was to see either of them hurting.
The first time he performed the song he wrote while he was in limbo with Steve, he let the crowd know what was most important in his life.
“Gonna slow it down a bit for this next one. Sometimes this life has some downsides, hard to believe, right? It’s hard to maintain who you are when you’re being pulled in so many directions. But I’m lucky to have someone who keeps me grounded. Leaving them for tour wasn’t an option this time around, and I’m glad they’re here with me. I wrote this a couple weeks ago when we were having a hard time. I wasn’t being the partner they needed, and I wasn’t showing them that they’re the partner I want. I’m not loving you from afar anymore, sweetheart.”
Steve watched from his spot backstage, like he did every night.
He didn’t feel like an option anymore, he felt like the choice.
416 notes · View notes
ijustreallylovethem · 6 months
Text
#4 backseat
the list masterlist
you had flown home for christmas, spending whole week with your family. connor had come home for about 36 hours, all he could spare with his crazy schedule, but he spent all of his time with his family. so when you made your return to chicago and found connor waiting for you, you were quick to pull him into a hug.
“i missed you!” you squealed as he pulled you tight against him.
“missed you too,” he whispered. he grabbed your carry on when you both pulled away, leading you through the busy airport to baggage claim. you stood and waited for a few moments before spotting your suitcase, and then connor stepped forward and grabbed that too.
“i can wheel one of those,” you said, following him across the parking lot to his car. he just shrugged.
“i got it.” he popped the trunk when you both reached the car, and you each loaded a bag in. connor closed the trunk and glanced around before grabbing both of your cheeks and pulling you in for a kiss. you took a second to kiss him back, shocked the action, but neither of you pulled away until you were out of breath.
“oh, so we’re doing that now?” you whispered, yet to open your eyes and look at him. he chuckled lowly.
“sorry, i just- i really missed you and uh, i happen to be really hard right now and i was hoping we could maybe cross something else off the list.” you opened your eyes then, smiling at his words.
“and what would that be?”
“uh…” he glanced at the car and your smile turned to a smirk.
“road head?” his eyes grew wide.
“no! no, that actually terrifies me.” you let out a small giggle. “just want you in the backseat.” you hummed, pulling away from him and glancing around the lot. he must have planned this when he parked, as he was further away from most of the cars and thus, most of the people. you walked around to the passenger side, opening the back door and climbing in. you glanced at connor through the back window, then took your winter coat off and threw it into the front. it was only a moment later that you heard the door opening and connor slid in beside you as you peeled your leggings down your legs.
you leaned up and scooted the passenger seat forward, allowing you to have some room on the floor. you turned back to connor once you were situated, seeing that he had shed his sweats. your hands ran up his thighs, one reached past the waistband of his boxers to wrap gently around his length. he sucked in a breath when your other hand pulled down the fabric and you stroked him carefully. you leaned in, pressing a kiss to the tip before running your tongue from base to tip. his head fell back as he moaned, and you couldn’t help but smirk. your lips wrapped around the head, and you dipped your head until nearly half of him was in your mouth.
“holy shit,” he muttered, his fingers running through your hair before pulling it into a loose ponytail. you bobbed your head a few times, your hand taking care of what you didn’t have in your mouth, but you pulled away when you felt him twitch.
“don’t tell me you’re close already,” you teased and he groaned. you smiled, pulling away from him. “do you have a condom?”
“um, there’s some in the glovebox.” you stood the best you could and leaned into the front seat, opening the glovebox.
“you know, you shouldn’t leave these in here. it’s cold outside so if they sit here for too long they’ll be more likely to break.” you grabbed one and turned, straddling his lap and smiling at him. his cheeks were a bit flushed but until he spoke, you thought it was just because of the fact that your mouth had just been on him.
“i just put them there today. so they’re good still.” so that’s why he was nervous, he had prepared for this. you smirked, but didn’t say anything, just ripped open the wrapper and slid it into place. you lifted yourself off his thighs, using one hand to line him up and the other to pull your panties to the side. you sink down on him slowly, his hands coming up to hold your hips and a deep breath leaving his chest. you moaned when you were full of him, taking a second to adjust. his hipped bucked up into yours and you lightly slapped his arm.
“calm down, give me a second. fuck.” you started moving after that though, lifting yourself until just his tip was inside of you before dropping back down. his hips moved to meet your thrusts, whines leaving your lips every time he did. your fingers curled in the hair at the nape of his neck, your eyes squeezing shut at the feeling of him inside of you. your free hand reached down for your clit, knowing you needed more, but connor’s hand knocked it away.
“let me,” he whispered, his thumb fumbling around for a moment before finding where it needed to be. “here?” you nodded. he rubbed back and forth over it before you shook your head.
“circles.”
“shit, sorry.” he did as you said, switching to rubbing circles, a moan falling from your lips. “like this?”
“fuck, yes, just like that.” it was all becoming too much, and you felt your stomach tighten. you clenched around him, your head falling back. “‘m gonna cum,” you whined.
“me too,” he responded, his thrusts becoming harder as your hips started to falter. your nails dug into his shoulder as your orgasm hit, soft curses falling from your lips. connor thrust up a few more times before holding you still, spilling into the condom with a grunt. you both took a moment to catch your breath before you let out a little giggle.
“you gonna be good to drive home now?” he smiled, helping you as you shifted off of him. “we should probably get going before someone comes over here.” you grabbed your leggings, pulling them back up your legs and climbing in the front, waiting for connor to join you and turn on the car. he did so just moments later, then put the car in reverse and left the parking lot.
105 notes · View notes
copperbadge · 5 months
Note
Hey Sam, it looks like I'll be in Chicago for a few days next May. I'm going through all the typical sight seeing websites, but do you have any recommendations for a first time visitor? I'm not huge on architecture, parks or crowds. History, art and music are a big yes. I'm considering the Big Bus hop on/off tour for practicality. Any tips would be appreciated!
I used to have a "guide to Chicago" that I would link people to, but I think it probably badly needs updating, since a lot of what it talks about is pre-pandemic, and some places don't exist anymore (which is not necessarily down to the pandemic, Chicago is an ever-changing place). RIP Apocalypse McDonalds. Definitely before you follow anyone's advice including mine, look up what you're going to go see to make sure it's still there.
So, couple of quick recommendations; thanks for telling me some of what you're into, that always helps :) I'm going to assume you're either staying somewhere close to downtown or willing to trek into the city from outside it. A lot of people who tell me they're visiting Chicago are actually visiting Rosemont, which is a nice place but not Chicago and not super close to most of what I'll be talking about. Chicago is extremely large, and if you are staying around the O'Hare airport area (Rosemont) it will be an hour by public transit or at least $50 by rideshare/cab to get downtown.
I will say whenever I'm visiting somewhere, my first stop is always Atlas Obscura, which usually lists the really weird shit to do. :D
I've never done the Big Bus tour, but it's much nicer to do it in May than, say, December, and the people I know who've done it found it a convenient and inexpensive way to get around the city without having to deal with public transit, so while I can't personally recommend, I've only heard good things.
I know you said you weren't into architecture, but if you want to see a lot of Chicago in a very relaxed fashion, while incidentally getting some architecture knowledge, it's tough to beat the Chicago Architecture Center's boat tour. You just get on the boat, buy a drink if you want one, sit back, and drift down the river and back while someone narrates the history of Chicago architecture to you. You'll also, in May, see lots of other folks out on the river and get a real taste of Chicago's downtown scene. If you'd like to see the river without the cost of the architecture tour, I'd check out the water taxis and see if there's an opportunity to take one when going between other places you're visiting. They do a lot of tourist-destination stops.
For history, the Chicago History Museum is a natural fit and a lot of walking tours leave from the museum, although most of them are architecture :D I would also HIGHLY recommend Adam Selzer's Mysterious Chicago tours; Selzer is a very smart local historian and if you'd like to do reading ahead of time I also highly recommend his book Ghosts of Chicago. If he's offering a tour of Rose Hill or Graceland cemeteries, I'd jump on that; Graceland was my old "home" cemetery (it was literally my backyard for about a decade) and I think it's extremely interesting and beautiful. If you do go to Graceland, I can recommend Byron's nearby as a great place to get a burger, fries, Italian Beef, or a hot dog. But pretty much any tour he offers I would recommend whether I've been on it or not, he's great.
For art, again, the natural choice is the Art Institute Museum; to avoid lines, I'd recommend buying your museum ticket ahead of time and entering through the Modern Wing on Monroe Street, which is less attractive but also way less crowded than the "Lions" entrance on Michigan Avenue. I always recommend people make sure not to miss the Thorne Miniatures (they're in the basement so easy to miss, but any docent can direct you there) and the Ugliest Vase in the World. They move the vase around quite a bit, but if you check the website for the Londonderry Vase before you go, it'll tell you where to find it. Its hideousness must be seen in person. Also make sure not to miss the Chagall windows, they're off in a corner by the entrance to the cafe.
I'm not really much on music so my reccs are weaker there, but if you'd like some Chicago blues in a tourist-friendly environment, Kingston Mines is good, as is Buddy Guy's (which also has great food and is closer to downtown). If you like fried chicken, Harold's Chicken Shack is near Buddy Guy's (it's all over, it's a small chain, but that's usually the easiest one for people to find). The Chicago Symphony Orchestra is pretty great for classical music, and in the summer they often have special guests. If you like the NPR show "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me", they record live in downtown Chicago at the Fine Arts building; you usually have to buy pretty far in advance, keep an eye on tickets here.
More general recommendations: the Museum of Science and Industry is really fun, especially with kids but even without, but it's also the furthest out from downtown and can take some work to get to. Field Museum and Shedd Aquarium are both fun times, although the Shedd is kinda pricey I think. They're right next to each other though so a day doing both is convenient. If you are doing any of the museums, keep your eyes peeled for the "Mold A Rama" machines, where for $5 you can watch the machine injection-mold you a souvenir. Often the museums have custom machines for various exhibits (the Death exhibit at the Field had a skull one, for instance).
There are two train systems in Chicago: the "El" (the color-coded trains you see in movies all the time) and the Metra. DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES TAKE THE METRA TRAIN ANYWHERE. The Metra is a commuter rail designed for people who know how to use it, and they don't announce stops or even sometimes have signage; often the train won't stop at a platform unless it's told to during certain times of day. It is extremely easy to get extremely lost on the Metra and end up somewhere you do not want to be. If you are taking public transit, even if it seems less convenient, stick to buses and the El trains. The El and Metra run on different tracks so it's easy to avoid the Metra, but I always like to warn folks.
Okay, I think that's the highlights, minus some parks and such; I hope you have a great time! Feel free to hit me if you have questions.
94 notes · View notes
toasttt11 · 3 months
Text
new roommate
Tumblr media
February 5, 2024
The Chicago Blackhawks had just finshed their first practice back after break and was getting their equipment off in the locker room when their coach came in.
Luke closed the door behind him, “Alright that was a very good practice back and let’s keep it going into the next game, good job today guys.” Luke smiled at his team before looking serious, “We will be having a new player joining us soon, he won’t be playing with us for a little bit as he is still recovering from an injury but he is coming out in the next few days.” The team all looked around the room knowing the trade deadline is coming up and we’re hopping none of their team was leaving for this trade.
“Who’s leaving?” Seth Jones questioned stoically looking towards his coach.
Luke shook his head, “No one. We traded for two first round picks for the 2025 and 2026 draft to the ducks.” Maddox looked up from where he was taking his skates off hearing the Ducks being said. “Trevor Zegras is gonna be joining us.” Maddox eyes widen slightly and Alex and Connor both couldn’t help themselves and their eyes looked over towards Maddox.
“So let’s be welcoming to him as he joins our team.” Luke looked around at his team.
“Where’s he staying?” Nick asked in concern knowing how hard it is to get an apartment in Chicago and the Blackhawks only have so many apartments for their players.
“We’re trying to figure that out.” Luke nodded knowing worse case Trevor would stay in the hotel that’s connected with the Blackhawks but it’s not the most comfortable living in a hotel.
“He can stay with me.” Maddox shrugged nonchalantly looking back down at his skates continuing to untying them.
“Are you sure?” Luke doubled checked knowing Maddox loves his own space but he also couldn’t help and feel pride that Maddox was offering even though he loves to live alone.
“My brother would murder me if i didn’t let his best friend stay with me.” Maddox smirked slighty knowing the second the trade gets out Jack will be calling him to tell him to take care of Trevor. Maddox’s comment got a bunch of chuckles especially since most people knew Jack and Trevor are best friend and they all know how dramatic Jack can be.
“Alright we will let him. Thank you Maddox.” Luke sent a smile to the player who will soon be their captain, before leaving the locker room.
February 10, 2024
Maddox leaning against his car waiting for Trevor to come out of the airport.
Maddox saw Trevor eventually come out, walking out with two big suitcases and a backpack and still in his walking boot.
Trevor smiled seeing Maddox and walked over to him, he dropped his suitcases and wrapped his arms around Maddox in a hug, “I’m injured hug me back.” Trevor whispered feeling Maddox just patting his back.
Maddox rolled his eyes and wrapped his arms around Trevor slighty hugging him before letting go and gently pushing Trevor off of him, Maddox grabbed his two suitcases and gave Trevor a look to stop him from grabbing them.
Maddox put the suitcases in the back of the car and walked to the drivers seat seeing Trevor getting into the passenger seat.
Maddox picked up the Aux cord and handed it to Trevor, knowing how much Trevor loves playing music. Trevor widely grinned taking the cord not seeing the slight soft glance coming from Maddox.
“Are you sure you don’t mind me staying with you?” Trevor questioned broke the silence of the car ride as they just pulled into the parking garage of Maddox’s apartment building.
“It’s not big deal i have the space.” Maddox nonchalantly shrugged running a hair through his hair not seeing Trevor frown wishing he could run a hand through Maddox’s hair, “Besides Jack will kill me if i don’t take care of his best friend.” Trevor’s face fell slight covering it quickly before Maddox noticed.
“Right.” Trevor nodded in disappointment knowing Maddox didn’t care for him anymore than being his brother’s best friend and Trevor had to accept that eventually.
Trevor leaned his head on the window looking around the city that he would not be living in, he didn’t love having to live in the cold again but he was pretty happy to play with Maddox again.
Maddox pulled into the parking garage of his apartment building and parked the car. He hoped out of the car and grabbed the two suitcases as Trevor got his backpack, Maddox slowed down walking so Trevor can keep up with him.
Trevor was looking all around the apartment building as they got into the elevator to go up to Maddox’s floor.
Maddox unlocked his door and opened it letting Trevor walk in, Trevor looked around noticing a lot of very tall windows giving a great view of the Chicago Skyline, the apartment was very modern and a lot of darker colors but Trevor thought it fit Maddox perfectly.
Trevor looked down hearing a meow and saw Mouse, Trevor smiled and petted the cat, the only cat he has ever liked.
Maddox lips turned up slightly seeing Trevor with Mouse, “Come on i’ll show you room.” Maddox headed down the hallway to the one of his guest rooms and opened the door to the one he picked out for Trevor, “If you want to change anything let me know.” Maddox awkwardly scratched his head.
Trevor felt his eyes soften in fondness as he looked at Maddox, “It’s perfect.” Trevor looked around his room seeing the awesome view from his windows. Trevor saw all the boxes he had sent a few days ago and was surprised they were already here.
“Well i’ll let you unpack.” Maddox nodded shoving his hands in his pockets and turning around heading to the door.
“Theo?” Trevor called out, making Maddox turn to him, “Thank you.” Trevor smiled at him, Maddox gave him a tight smile and nodded before leaving the room.
Trevor walked over sitting on his new bed and let out a sigh as he looked around his new home.
61 notes · View notes
super8ordairport · 3 months
Text
Hot Tub Hotel Near ORD
Tumblr media
Our Park n Fly O'Hare Airport hotel is easy to reach from anywhere. When you have a booking at another of the hotels near Chicago ORD Airport, who knows what you might get. But it won’t be as good as when you stay with us. Whether you’re traveling on I-72 and need a great place to stay or will be mainly staying close to the airport, you can expect us to be easy to find and ready to serve and please you. If you need any assistance at any time, you can contact us for additional information, and we’ll do whatever it takes to help you find us.
0 notes
ytsunodabrainrotbaybee · 11 months
Note
Hey. Could I request Zhou dating a paramedic student. Anything you can come up at for that please. Only when you get some free time though 😊🫶🏻
Thank you thank you, first request! Anon you hold a special place in my heart. 💕
I went ahead with a paramedic candidate, I have a second idea for this as well, so it may end up being a two for the price of one type thing, stand by.
I apologize for the hold Chicago Fire has on me.
Fc: Hanako Greensmith, who plays Violet in Chicago Fire, please watch it. 😐
Also, Chicago gp early in the season instead of the Vegas gp later, using the Chicago street track.
ynbaybee • Private account
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Liked by lilymhe, zhouguanyu24 and others
Ynbaybee Shout out to the man’s for the shots 🫡🫡
Tagged: zhouguanyu24
yourbestieee I tried for three years. A man did it in a week.
zhouguanyu24 I work fast
yourbestieee not fast enough mr. barely p10
ynbaybee That’s too far yourbestieee
lilymhe So been looking forward to catching up 😭😭
ynbaybee Me too bb. You still in town?
zhouguanyu24 🤌🤌
ynbaybee You have such a way with words
Tuesday Morning rolled around. A hectic shift change later and you were on the road back to your apartment. Your PIC’s voice steady through your speakers, detailing every high and low in your performance throughout the past 24 hours.
“Really, you did great,” she said, her soft voice full of the kind of confidence you could draw from.
“Thanks Burkhart,” You said, focused a little more on pulling in to your parking spot, right next to a dark green Aston Martin.
A sore thumb next to your cute little baby blue Hyundai.
The two of you said your goodbyes before hanging up and leaving you to hurry on into your apartment.
“Zhou”
“L/N”
Guanyu had made himself at home, a still warm breakfast on the stove and coffee brewing. It filled your home with a kind of sweet and comfy scent that you would miss once Guanyu hit the road again.
“I have a flight at four tomorrow morning,” he organized two plates as he spoke. Low, but energized. “I wanted to spend some more time with you before I left.”
The two of you settled in to your couch, tucked off into a corner adjacent to your TV, ready with Netflix pulled up.
zhouguanyu24
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Liked by pierregasly, ynbaybee and others
zhouguanyu24 points in Chicago, off to Barcelona 🙏🙏
ynbaybee gg brah
zhouguanyu24 you got to watch??
ynbaybee life it uhhh finds a way
f1fannn Zhou soft launch???
Liked by ynbaybee
formulawhat Ayo????
valtteribotas When are you bringing her to a race?
ynbaybee Once I’m not a probie anymore I’m making time 🫡🫡
You woke up with Guanyu, 2:30 in the morning. Too early for breakfast, plenty early for a Redbull.
“I love you, but next time maybe don’t.”
Guanyu rolled his eyes, ever the morning person to your slow moving night owl.
His hand found your waist as the two of you left the apartment, checking pockets for his belongings. You ran through his checklist again before waving your hand for him to get moving again.
The drive to the airport was quiet. While you could never fall asleep too easy in a car, it was still too early to be too talkative. You shifted your attention from the road ahead, to Guanyu. One hand in yours, the other steering.
He stayed just as quiet, not taking his eyes off of the road. Even after full minutes passed I’d you staring as him.
You held his hand in both of yours, running your thumb along his wrist.
“What are you thinking about?” He asked, shooting you a glance.
“Next shift we’re having a meeting to determine wether or not I’m staying at the firehouse,” you said, “I’m pretty confident, but still nervous.”
Guanyu had pulled into a parking spot, next to where his team had just arrived moments earlier. He pulled your hands into his.
“They love you,” he squeezed your hands, “Chief Gonzales wouldn’t let you go if he wanted to.”
“Sometimes I think they like you more.”
“They like anyone who will feed them”
The two of you had drifted closer together, everything outside of the car drifted further away. Your hand found itself rested on his cheek, his on your arm.
“I love you,” his voice barely hit a whisper before his lips were on yours. The kind of soft, tame kiss that would never hold you over until his next visit, but it would have to do.
The next kiss just a quick peck, followed by an exchange of “good luck” and Guanyu jumping out of the car and running to catch up with his team. Leaving you alone to make your way back to your apartment. Hopefully to recover some sleep.
zhouguanyu24
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Liked by ynbaybee, chicagofirehouse83 and others
zhouguanyu24 my love made it out of her probationary period, definitely Chicago’s finest. 😌😌
formulawhat A Y O??
f1fann Zhou can you fight?
ynbaybee I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am.
fyrefyghter Always knew you were what’s missing zhouguanyu24
zhouguanyu24 what do you want me to bring next time?
fyrefyghter Just your handsome self 🫡
ynbaybee Cruz. Don’t make me get the hose
logansargeant We love our first responders
ynbaybee of course we do. Yee yee lookin
logansargeant cmon I’m being nice
lilymhe For once.
valtteribotas Time for you to start on making that race
ynbaybee Yessir 🫡
192 notes · View notes
frances-baby-houseman · 2 months
Text
We have decided we're going to drive to Indiana to see the eclipse! My sister and bil wanted to go, so we're making a day of it. It's Joe's 5th birthday, so we'll pack a picnic and we're thinking we'll spend the afternoon somewhere around terre haute.
Based on what people who've been to eclipses before have told me, our plan is to head out early Monday morning, and try to fill up our gas tank about 100 miles before we get to the path of the totality. We're bringing our own food, and planning to just find a relatively tree-less area. We thought about going to Indy, but getting from Indy to Chicago on a workday afternoon is bad even without an eclipse, and we don't want to spend hours in traffic. We are hoping Terre Haute will be a little easier. Honestly we may find another small town between Indy and Terre Haute and just park there.
And we're going to just come home after, because I looked at hotels and to get one that's a reasonable price, we're still looking to drive back out of the path of totality, and we may as well just head all the way home at that point. We're hoping having two cars makes it a little more fun for the kids.
I tried to get my dad to come-- what's the point of having an airplane if not to do this kind of thing!-- but he can't get out of an afternoon obligation. A small airport seemed like an ideal viewing location but it won't work. He's visiting us that weekend anyway, so we'll see him on sat and sunday anyway.
OK I am so excited! I have eclipse glasses ready to go and I'm going to bring some colanders too. Anything else we should bring??
27 notes · View notes
larkandkatydid · 4 months
Text
Last week, at This Rural Midwestern Diner, a dude was telling us all about this amazing new life hack for having a stress-free trip to Chicago for sports games. He told us that instead of driving the four hours into the city, dealing with the traffic and parking, etc., there was company (a dude?) at the local 'airport' next to the Meijer who is offering direct flights to Chicago for $49. You can park in the Meijer parking lot for free and then take an uber or the train from O'Hare.
And I listened to this spiel for a while, and then paid and started my car, causing the radio to begin playing La Bamba. And this was how The Lord, in Her Infinate Wisdom, was providing me with a life lesson wrapped in a delicious punchline, like giving my dog a pill wrapped in cheese.
34 notes · View notes
yourwizardofaus · 7 months
Photo
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Elvis And Linda Thompson
Elvis’ entourage could be impenetrable, exclusive and cliquish, but the one girlfriend they happily accepted was Linda.
One of the earliest pictures of Elvis with Linda was taken at the National Gospel Quartet convention in October 1972.
Linda was photographed with Elvis and his longtime Tupelo friend Janelle McComb, when she visited Graceland sometime in December 1972.
Elvis with Linda before his afternoon concert in Atlanta on June 30, 1973.
Elvis and Linda with Vernon Presley and his wife Dee.  They were at the Kang Ree karate studio in Memphis on July 23, 1973.
Linda looks at Red West as they arrive in Los Angeles on May 11, 1974.
Elvis and Linda in a hotel room around 1974-75.
Sam Thompson, his wife Louise as well as Elvis and Lisa Marie were pictured in August 1975 with Linda and her parents Sanford and Margie Thompson.
Elvis and Linda entering the front gates at Graceland after a trike ride on September 8, 1975.
Elvis and Linda in a limousine leaving the airport for Arlington Park Hilton in Chicago on October 14, 1976.  It is the last known photo of Elvis with Linda as she left a month later.
Linda in later life.  She is wearing a replica of the jacket made around 1973 by East West Musical Instruments Co. of San Francisco.  Ginger Alden, the girlfriend who more or less replaced Linda in Elvis’ love life, stated that Elvis gave her the original jacket while at Graceland in 1977.
39 notes · View notes
megalony · 24 days
Text
Flight Plan
This is my newest Evan x reader x Eddie fic which includes Autistic! reader. I hope you will all like this little holiday fic, let me know what you think.
Taglist: @justagirlthatlovedtoread @musicistheway @avada-kedavra-bitch-187 @luula @missdreamofendless @bradleybeachbabe @woderfulkawaii @amberpanda99 @daggersquadphantom @marvel-and-chicago-fan @angryknightstatesmantrash @minjix @lyjen @kmc1989 @itsmytimetoodream @noonenuts @hiireadstuff @ashie-babie @classyunknownlover @jayyeahthatsme @sp1ritssz @dumb-fawkin-bitch @oliverstarksbae @gimatida @heart-35 @supernaturalstilinski @stefansalvatoresgf @kyky9103 @wutheringhearts2275 @gay4hotmilfs @itshamleth @chaoticnosleepinfluencer @gs29 @wh0reforsmutstuff @mel-vaz @natashamea18 @chrisevansdaughter @alexandra8484 @deena-beena-weena @targaryenluvs @shelbygeek @kpoplover-19 @marvelmenarebeautiful @gillybear17 @zoeybennett @mrspeacem1nusone
Eddie Diaz Masterlist
Evan Buckley Masterlist
Summary: Evan, (Y/n) and Eddie are taking Chris on holiday for the first time together. And it takes a bit of love and comfort to get them all through customs and safely on the plane. (Autistic! reader)
Enjoy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tumblr media
"Thanks for the ride." Leaning forward against the front seats, Evan gave Hen's shoulder a tight squeeze and gave her an awkward hug between the seats. She couldn't get out and see them off, she was in the drop-off zone.
"No problem, don't forget to call us when you get there."
"Will do. Don't burn down the station while we're away, yeah?" Evan clambered out the car before she could smack him for that last comment.
A grin spread across his lips and he climbed out, stretching his arms high above his head so he could click his neck and spine into place. It felt good to be up and moving about after nearly half an hour in the car. He grabbed his backpack from the back seat and slid it on his shoulders before he turned to face his little family.
The four of them turned and waved as Hen pulled away and started her drive back home. She had been gracious enough to drop them at the airport so they didn't have to book a taxi. Neither Eddie or Evan wanted to drive and park their car here for two weeks.
"Are we ready?"
Evan held out Chris's dinosaur bag and helped him slip it onto his shoulders, before he turned to look over at (Y/n) and Eddie.
She had her hands wrapped around Eddie's bicep and she was pushing up on her toes so she could perch her chin on his shoulder. She gave his arm a little shake and pressed her lips to his neck before she moved to hover her lips over his ear.
"Can I have my meds now?"
Her eyes followed Eddie as he shook his wrist to look down at his watch with pursed lips that made his nose scrunch up.
"Not yet, mi amor." He kissed her temple even as she groaned into his neck and started to fidget.
"Please… they need time to work, I don't wanna be awake on the plane."
"Baby if you have them now and you get drowsy during check-in they'll think we've drugged you. They won't let me carry you on that plane, you know."
Eddie knew she was nervous. He knew (Y/n) wanted the new sleeping medication the doctors had given her for the flight. The meds were supposed to relax (Y/n) and make her fall asleep on the plane so she wouldn't sit and panic or have a meltdown. But they would take time to kick in. (Y/n) was nervous that if she didn't take them now, she would have to take them on the plane and wait a few hours for them to kick in.
She wanted to feel drowsy the moment they got on the plane and fall asleep around take off so she didn't have to deal with the flight.
But Eddie couldn't let her take the meds now. She had never taken them before and if they worked a little too well, they would be in trouble. Security would be worried if (Y/n) started to get drowsy or she fell asleep before they got on the plane. And they might think Eddie or Evan had drugged her or were trying to hurt her. She had to be alert until they got on the plane, whether that made her nervous or not. It killed Eddie, but she couldn't have her meds yet.
"Okay, come here buddy." Evan reached out and picked Chris up so he could sit Chris down on his suitcase that was jet black with light green and aqua blue game controllers painted around it.
Evan made sure the handle bar was up and it was wedged between Chris's back and his bag so if Chris tried to jump off suddenly, the suitcase would move and topple with him.
It would be much easier for him to sit on the case and for Evan to push it rather than risk people pushing into them. It let Chris rest too because they would be doing a lot of moving around before they got on the plane.
"Spin round, baby." Eddie murmured against (Y/n)'s ear and waited patiently until she unhooked herself from his arm and turned to the side.
He delved into her backpack and found the familiar green lanyard dotted with bright yellow sunflowers. Once he hooked it around his wrist, he noticed Evan grin and look in Chris's backpack for the matching lanyard.
Eddie slipped it around (Y/n)'s neck and kissed the junction just behind her ear which made her shiver. Neither he or Evan wanted anyone to start being rude or judgemental if (Y/n) had a meltdown or screamed or got overwhelmed. At least if she and Chris wore their lanyards, people would read that they were both autistic.
People could move out their way and know not to approach and ask if they were okay or if they needed help.
Evan had almost had a fit when one lady saw (Y/n) have a meltdown in public and she had the nerve to ask (Y/n) if the boys were trying to hurt her.
"You want these?" Eddie held out the small grey box that contained (Y/n)'s earphones. While Chris had noise-cancelling headphones in a bright shade of blue, (Y/n) had small grey earphones that looked like cordless music earphones. She didn't like the large headphones and if she wore these, no one noticed or stared.
And they didn't make her ears hurt like the headphones did. They felt comfortable and she could still hear people talking to her, it just sounded very soft and faraway.
(Y/n) nodded with a small smile and took the earphones, slipping them in her ears before she looked up at the doors in front of them.
She wanted to go on holiday.
She had never been away with the boys on holiday before. She hadn't been on holiday in a few years. It would be amazing to go away with her boys and spend time with them without either of them having to go on shift and leave (Y/n) worrying if they were okay or if they were going to get hurt. And they could all spend time with Chris together.
(Y/n) had been prepping herself for months to come on holiday, to be away from home where she felt safe. To be in a new environment, a new bed. With different smells and food and temperatures and new surroundings and no familiar places were she could go to if she felt uncomfortable.
It was just annoying that (Y/n) couldn't fast-forward through all the pain and panic of getting through customs, getting on the plane and through the long seven hour flight.
"Okay, off we go."
Reaching behind her, (Y/n) grabbed her suitcase in her left hand and curled her right hand back around Eddie's arm. She held him in a death grip, pressed her head onto his bicep and glued up against him as they started to walk. She felt better when Evan walked on her left side with his suitcase trailing behind him while he pushed Chris on his own suitcase in front of him.
When she looked at how busy it was, (Y/n) felt a shudder run down her spine and she adverted her eyes down to the floor.
Her thumbs moved to press against the knuckles of her index fingers and she bent her left wrist at a different angle to keep hold of her suitcase. The stim and the odd angle made her hand burn, but the sensation was somewhat familiar and it felt good. While her other fingers pierced into Eddie's arm.
She closed her eyes and tried to take deep breaths, letting Eddie steer her in the right direction.
Evan smiled when a quiet hum vibrated against (Y/n)'s lips and he turned to the right, looking down at her with a fondness burning in his eyes. His lips parted but he only smiled when (Y/n) leaned forward as they walked and every now and then, she tilted her head into Eddie's arm or clicked her tongue.
Those were all normal stims. She wasn't getting too overwhelmed, yet.
When they reached the queue for the baggage drop off, they got in line and Eddie turned his back towards Evan. "Grab the passports, would you?"
With Evan being a mix between disorganised and his own little organised chaos, he couldn't be in charge of tickets or passports or anything vital. He would put them somewhere safe and forget about them or lose them or have a fluster about them. (Y/n) was much the same, her autism kept her in strict routines and made her overly anxious about keeping things safe, whereas her ADHD made her lax about remembering to bring them or where she put them.
Eddie was the one out of the three of them with the least amount of panic and the most organisation skills. So he took control of booking the holiday, looking after the passports, tickets, flight information and his and Chris's wallets.
Although he didn't feel great about Evan being in control of his own wallet with the amount of times Evan seemed to lose it.
Evan dug all four passports out and handed them out between them as they all slowly shuffled along in line.
It didn't take long for them to get to the front and Eddie plastered a smile on his face as he put his bag on the scales and handed over his passport. He moved so Evan could do the same before Evan turned to (Y/n) and gently nudged her with his elbow.
"Baby, your bag."
(Y/n) shuffled forward and put her bag on the scale, shaking her hands at her sides while she waited to be handed back her passport and get her flight ticket. She handed her passport straight back to Eddie while Evan scooped Chris up off the suitcase.
"I don't think you class as baggage." He mumbled, keeping hold of Chris's hand while he handed over his bag.
He felt (Y/n) glue up against his back and when her hands found his hips, Evan smiled softly to himself. Although they both flinched when the woman practically threw all the cases onto the conveyer belt behind her. It was a good job they were going on holiday and not coming back. Any souvenirs they collected would have been broken by now.
(Y/n) refrained from rolling her eyes at the woman's callous nature and how she didn't seem to care she was throwing their personal belongings around like they were pillows or toys to be discarded.
"I had a box of cookies once that came back as crumbs." She murmured to herself, not realising how loud she spoke until she felt Evan belt out a laugh and look over his shoulder at her.
"Toy Story two, right?"
He got that reference quick.
Both boys were used to (Y/n) coming out with random phrases and one-liners that she had heard from movies and tv shows. Sometimes it was as a joke, sometimes she said them because they matched the situation and that was her way of starting a conversation or joining in.
But other times it was just (Y/n) doing echolalia. She couldn't help repeating things she had heard, mainly because of the way someone had spoke or the tone or accent they used. Whereas Chris had echolalia too but started up at night when he couldn't sleep or when he was over-excited.
"Where now?" Chris tugged on Evan's hand and grinned up at him. He hadn't been able to sleep last night, he was so excited to go away on holiday.
He shifted round so he was stood between Evan and (Y/n) and he held one of their hands each and swayed back and forth between them. It was enough to make (Y/n) smile and feel a bit calmer. She felt a little uneasy now she wasn't carrying her suitcase, it was almost as if she had forgotten something or left something behind.
But she felt better with Chris holding her hand and stealing her attention, taking her mind off her panic. And Eddie was gripping her right hand like it was his lifeline.
"Through customs, round that corner and up some stairs I think."
This was the part none of them liked.
All the hassle and faffing about just to prove they weren't trying to sneak anything illegal into the plane or taking a bomb on board with them. They knew it was necessary, but it was still a hassle, especially with how overwhelming it was.
The four of them climbed the stairs, making sure to go slow and stick together to keep out the way of everyone else. It was busier than they had hoped for. But then again, in a perfect situation, the airport would be empty and they could get through this all alone with no one else nearby.
"Let's go in this queue, it doesn't seem too long." Eddie held out his hands for Chris and held onto Chris's shoulders, moving the ten year old in front of him.
They stood single file together and Eddie smiled softly when he felt (Y/n)'s fingers tracing over his back. He wasn't sure what she was writing on his skin, but whatever it was felt very soft and lulling. Eddie always told (Y/n) she could stim or mess around on him, he had a thing for her tracing his tattoos and drawing with her finger like this because the sensation was something he enjoyed.
"Okay baby?" Evan leaned forward and looped his arms loosely around (Y/n)'s neck and kissed the side of her head.
He stooped over so his cheek was leant on the side of her temple and his chest pressed down into his shoulders. He didn't care if anyone stared, he knew attaching himself to (Y/n) like this would make her feel calmer. And he knew it was working when (Y/n) moved her free hand to grip his arm.
When they got close enough, Eddie shrugged off his backpack and put it in a plastic tub. He handed a tub to Chris and put them on the conveyer belt.
"Alright bud, anything electronic, take it out your bag and put it in a separate tub. Glasses and shoes off too, please."
Eddie stripped his own bag of his phone and charger, that was the only electronics he had. And he watched Chris take out his music and his noise-cancelling headphones, his phone and his Nintendo.
The ten year old did not look impressed to have to take off his glasses and his shoes, but when he looked over his shoulder, he realised Eddie wasn't exactly happy either. He watched his dad kick off his shoes and toss them in the box, and he smiled when Eddie whipped his belt through his trouser loops and tossed it in as well.
"Here we go." Evan murmured as he sorted out his bag into a plastic tub and watched (Y/n) do the same. Just as he removed his shoes and went to take his belt off, he paused when (Y/n) tapped his arm. She pointed to her ears. "No baby, they're plastic. You're fine."
Her earphones were completely plastic, she could keep them in as long as she liked, they wouldn't flag up when they went through the metal scanner.
Both Evan's hands moved to hold (Y/n)'s shoulders and he kissed the back of her head when they slowly followed after Eddie. Both of them leaned to the left and looked around Eddie when Chris suddenly squealed, but they could tell immediately it was a happy sound.
He'd gone through the metal scanner.
He clapped his hands and nodded his head while he walked through and turned to the side to wait for Eddie to go through.
(Y/n) shuffled forward, feeling very awkward in her socks against the laminate floor. She felt like a penguin on ice, about to slip and fall on her behind. But just as Eddie walked through the scanner, the one on their left in the next queue came to life.
Red lights beamed from every angle of the rectangle scanner that resembled a doorway and a high pitch whirring sound rung through the air. Someone walked through with something metal still on their person.
A scream tore through (Y/n)'s lips and she dropped down to her knees, reaching her hands up to dig her nails into Evan's wrists to make sure he didn't let go of her. Her eyes snapped closed and she pressed her chin down into her chest as she began to sway back and forth.
"Baby, baby it's okay." Evan crouched down behind her with his knees pressing comfortably into her hips, keeping her pinned between his legs. He smoothed his hands up and down her arms and pressed his lips to the side of her head to try and calm her down. The lights had already stopped flashing and the high-pitch alarm had been turned off. As long as no one else walked through with any metal, they would be alright.
His eyes darted up and he nodded at Eddie to carry on, (Y/n) would get up in a second. And he could see Eddie and Chris were re-packing his and (Y/n)'s bags so they didn't have to do it when they walked through.
"Excuse me, what is she doing?"
Evan sucked in a deep breath and glanced over his shoulder at the man behind him who was standing far too close and leering over his shoulder. What did he think she was doing? Praying for strength to get through the scanner? It was pretty clear to everyone else that the scanner had panicked her. Even the security guard wasn't saying or doing anything.
Both guards on either scanner just nodded at Evan with a smile and Evan figured they had either seen (Y/n)'s lanyard or Eddie had said something. They weren't forcing them to move, they knew (Y/n) would get up in a second when she was ready.
"If you can't wait one minute then go round us." He didn't bother to look behind him.
He didn't care whether the people behind them overtook them and went ahead through the scanner or not. If they were too rude and impatient to wait for a minute or two for someone with a disability then Evan couldn't be bothered to speak to them.
"Out. Out."
"Yeah, let's go then baby." Evan pecked her temple again when she let go of his wrist to point ahead. He moved his hands from her arms down to hold her hips and he gently pulled her up to her feet.
He didn't want to let go of (Y/n) but he had to so she could walk through the scanner first. He watched her carefully as she pinned her arms around her waist and started to nod her head back and forth as she hurried through the scanner. As soon as she was through, she barrelled into Eddie with her head on his shoulder and her arms bound around his torso.
"Alright, mi amor. All done." Eddie smiled softly and pecked her temple with his hand cupping the back of her neck.
Evan pinned his belt back through his trousers and shrugged his feet back into his shoes. He grabbed his bag and reached out for Chris's hand so the four of them could walk through and find their way to the right waiting bay.
As soon as they were in the right waiting bay, Eddie guided them over towards a row of seats near the window. It was somewhere out the way where they didn't have to sit too close to strangers and Chris could bide his time staring out the window and watching the planes take off and line up at the doors.
Both (Y/n) and Eddie sat down while Evan started to rummage through his bag, making sure everything was still there. And Chris knelt up on his seat and stared out the window with glee.
(Y/n) glanced over her shoulder and tried to smile at Chris. He looked very happy, in his element, watching the planes slowly turn around and line up with the correct gates. But watching the planes move only made (Y/n) feel uneasy. She didn't like them. She didn't want to go on a plane. They were cramped, there were too many strangers on board. There were uncertain possibilities.
It didn't feel safer being in a plane. Even though statistically speaking, planes were safer than cars, it did not feel that way and (Y/n) felt safer in a car. She had Eddie or Evan driving for a start, that was a sense of control no one had on the plane. They didn't know or trust the pilots.
Eddie leaned back in his seat and his lips curved into a sympathetic smile when (Y/n) dropped down to her knees in front of him.
Without saying anything, Eddie spread his knees apart to let (Y/n) wedge herself between his thighs. He liked the feeling of her fingers gliding up and down the back of his leg as she wrapped her right arm around his leg. Her cheek rested on his thigh and he moved his hands to her shoulders, squeezing gently as (Y/n) started to rock back and forth between his thighs.
He didn't care that a few people were now looking in his direction. If (Y/n) felt safer sitting on the floor like this and and wanted comfort, Eddie was more than happy to help her.
"Okay?" Eddie glanced over to the right and looked up at Evan.
He hadn't sat down yet. He was stood tall like an omen with his shoulders squared and his arms tense as he looked at the tickets pinned in each of their passports.
"I will be in a minute."
Eddie's eyes narrowed and he leaned over, unsure what Evan was referring to when he started pointing at the tickets. But then it dawned on him. The seat numbers didn't add up. None of them were sitting together.
Before Eddie could say anything, Evan swung his bag on his shoulder, clenched all the passports tightly in his hand and stormed over to the desk near the departure gate.
"Can I help you?"
A calm but somewhat tense smile flooded Evan's face and he folded his arms on the desk he was leaning over. He laid out the tickets for the lady to see and tried to hold his breath for a moment to stay calm. This wasn't her fault. She hadn't set this up, but she needed to rectify this.
There was no way in Hell (Y/n) would get on that plane if she was going to be sat next to strangers. Evan wouldn't cope well either sat next to someone he didn't know; he would end up babbling to them. And he wouldn't sit and worry about (Y/n) having a meltdown.
And they couldn't expect Chris to sit next to strangers and be parted from his family. At least one of them needed to be next to Chris.
"Hi, we're a family of four on this flight and none of us are sitting together. Can you change the seats please?"
"Oh… if you didn't choose your seats beforehand, the system just finds you any seat on the plane so we can get as many people on board-"
"Okay, I get that some people don't care where or who they sit with, but you need to check your notes. Two of the people in our group are autistic, if you sit my partner with strangers she will have a meltdown and that flight will not take off. And you can't seriously expect a ten year old to be calm and happy to sit alone, without a parent on a seven hour flight. Fix it please."
Evan wasn't here for a lecture.
He didn't care if everyone else thought it was normal for a flight to split families apart like this. Evan could understand if they were split so two were sitting together and another two were somewhere else on the plane. But doing this mismatched system practically split everyone up on the plane and no one booked a flight in order to sit with strangers and make friends.
And Evan and Eddie had booked this holiday. They made notes on their booking confirmations for everything that (Y/n) had autism and so did Chris. He was ten, they couldn't think it was normal to sit a ten year old with strangers on a long flight. What child would be happy with that?
This needed fixing or none of them were getting on that plane.
***
A soft grin spread across Evan's face the moment he lifted up the armrest that was pinned between his and (Y/n)'s seats. As soon as he flipped it up, he lifted his left arm when (Y/n) wriggled closer.
The seating arrangement had worked out rather well. After Evan had a slight argument with the receptionist, she changed the seats so Eddie and Chris were together, and (Y/n) and Evan were seated next to each other. It had worked out a lot better because their seats were all next to each other. There was just a two foot aisle separating Evan and Eddie's seats.
There were three sections of seats, all with three seats in each row.
And (Y/n) and Evan were the only ones in their little row meaning they had a spare seat next to them. (Y/n) didn't want to sit next to the window, she didn't want to see take off. If someone had been in the window seat, Evan would have sat in the middle so (Y/n) wasn't sitting next to a stranger. But since it was empty, it meant she could sit in the middle and feel safer.
She felt safe penned in the middle with room on her left and Evan on her right. And Evan could stretch his legs out in the aisle because he was too tall for the seats and his knees bumped into the chair in front.
"You okay?" He whispered softly against the top of (Y/n)'s head, rubbing his hand up and down her arm while he rested his head on his right hand.
"Hm." (Y/n) closed her eyes and nuzzled her face into Evan's chest. She had her right arm pinned around her chest and her left arm was wrapped around Evan's waist so she could glue herself as close to him as she could manage. It felt better to be sat in the middle seat because no one could see her.
No one could stare or whisper or roll their eyes when they saw her stimming or murmuring or watching Evan comfort her.
She was starting to feel a little drowsy, which was a good sign. Eddie had helped her take her meds as soon as they got in the waiting area. Now they should be taking effect and (Y/n) could hopefully fall asleep soon and this flight would pass her by quickly.
Evan looked to the right and his lips curved into a smirk behind his hand when he looked at his partner.
Eddie was sat on the end seat on the aisle which was so small the boys were both touching. He had Chris next to him in the middle seat and an elderly woman on the end next to Chris.
Eddie had both hands gripping the armrests and he was sat straight in his chair like he was made of wood. But it was the look of panic on his face that made Evan smile. Eddie was all smooth sailing and calm as ever until the plane was about to take off. Now his nerves were rattling him and making him feel almost as uneasy as (Y/n). Eddie didn't like take off, he felt okay once they were in the air.
"Oh Dios."
"You called?" Evan spoke quietly and looked across at Eddie who frowned and cracked one eye open to look over at him.
"What? You're God now, are you?" He hadn't realised he murmured that loud enough for Evan to hear. Eddie wasn't one to pray, no matter how devout his family had brought him up. But when he panicked, he always found himself muttering things to or about God, whether it was cursing or praying for a smooth flight like this.
"I am in the bedroom. Isn't that what you kept calling me-"
"Buck." Reaching across the aisle, Eddie slapped his hand against Evan's shoulder and gave him a certain look before he went back to gripping the arm rests again. He wasn't having that conversation now when everyone could hear them and more to the point, Chris might hear them.
He was happily stimming and waiting for take off, but he could still be listening in to his surroundings.
Evan pushed up straight in his seat, keeping one arm around (Y/n) who was quietly humming into his chest. While he reached his right hand out and held Eddie's wrist when the plane started to move.
He looked out the window for a few seconds. Evan rather liked watching the take off and landing. It always made him feel a rush of adrenaline when the runway disappeared and they could see the trees turn into clouds. And when the plane tilted from side to side it made Evan feel like he was on a rollercoaster.
He looked back towards the boys when he heard Chris begin to clap and a quiet but nevertheless excited squeal passed his lips. He was pushing back and forth in his seat and he kept sneaking glances out the window beside (Y/n).
Evan thought for a moment that Eddie was about to shake his touch off his wrist. But instead, Eddie slipped his wrist from Evan's grasp and moved to grip his hand tightly instead. He now had his eyes open but he was looking at Chris rather than staring out the window or looking at the seat in front of him.
Seeing Chris look so excited and happy made Eddie feel a little calmer.
He pulled Evan's hand close to his chest and held his breath when the plane rattled through some turbulence as they continued to ascend.
When (Y/n) sat forward and pulled off of Evan's chest, he removed his arm from her shoulders and switched to gently squeeze her thigh instead.
He observed the way she stayed hunched forward with her eyes closed and both her hands were stimming. Her thumbs were bent back and her index fingers were curled down into her palms. She was shaking her hands on her lap, but she didn't pull away from Evan's touch.
He figured it was better to leave her be for now, he stayed silent, one hand on each partner while he listened to the quiet murmurs of the other passengers. And Chris's excited squeals every now and then. He tilted his head back into the headrest and started humming quietly. He couldn't wait for the seatbelt sign to go off. He wanted the tension to ease and he could see whether (Y/n) wanted to read a book or if she wanted to watch a movie or listen to some music.
Evan wanted to look through the music and see what he could listen to. He already knew Chris would soon ask for his Nintendo out of his bag and Eddie would likely watch a movie.
A jolt surged through Eddie and he snapped his head to the left when he heard a loud thud and the sound of metal creaking.
His eyes widened and he gripped Evan's hand tightly when he realised it was (Y/n). She slammed herself back in her seat, causing it to push back and creak as her body surged forward from the force. He hoped for a few seconds that she was trying to stim, but when she screamed, Eddie winced and let go of Evan's hand.
She was getting upset.
Another quiet but shrill screech left her lips and she slammed herself back in her seat, more forcefully this time which made Evan jolt beside her.
"Baby, don't do that please, you'll hurt yourself. Sit forward." When she slammed back for a third time, Evan pressed his palm flat against her back between her shoulders. He leaned over her and pressed his lips against the back of her head, pressing her forward so she couldn't try and slam back again.
He didn't want her to hurt herself or for the chair to tilt back and have (Y/n) jolt back further than she expected. It wouldn't be a nice surprise for the people behind them if (Y/n)'s chair reclined and she slammed back against it.
"What's up, hm? What's wrong?" Evan spoke quietly against her temple and curved his arm around her back so he could rub his hand up and down her arm. He held his other hand out in front of her and was relieved when she clenched her fingers around his palm and started shaking it up and down to stim.
Eddie clicked his spine into place and managed a smile when Chris leaned on his arm and started humming. And when he glanced down the aisle, Eddie held his hand out towards the stewardess who was about to walk over. He shook his head with a smile, mumbling "We're fine," to which she nodded.
The flight attendants had all been lovely, indulging in Chris's hundred and one questions to which Evan kept adding in more questions too. And they had been more than understanding when they explained (Y/n) had autism and if she had a meltdown, she would be okay and they just needed to leave her be and let the boys look after her.
A deep breath sucked into Evan's lungs and he bit down on his lip when he leaned over to look down at (Y/n).
She had her eyes screwed shut, she was shaking his hand very, very harshly, but it was her stimming that concerned him. She was moving her jaw from side to side and opening her mouth wide like she needed her jaw to click. She wasn't making any noise or screaming or even clicking her tongue, she just kept moving her jaw in a wide circle and shook her head every other second.
"Is it your ears?"
When she gripped his hand tighter and pulled it into her chest, Evan knew he was right.
Her ears had popped and she didn't like the sensation.
"Okay, baby… stop trying to click your jaw, that won't help. Take a deep breath, really big, breathe through your mouth. You need the same pressure in your mouth as your ears so they level out."
Evan knew everyone's ears popped when the air pressure changed and if she didn't have enough air or the right pressure in her mouth, it would mess with the connecting tubes from her ears that went to her mouth. Popping her ears back to normal was something (Y/n) was going to have to keep doing for the duration of their flight and Evan knew she hated the sensation.
He watched her try and take long breaths that ended in panting when it didn't seem to work. Her eyes stayed screwed closed and she doubled over until her head was almost pressing into her knees.
She shook her hand free from his grip but Evan reacted quicker. He knew what she was going to do.
"No, no don't do that. Thank you." He confiscated both her hands and pinned them into his chest so she couldn't hit the chair in front. She would only hurt herself and Evan wouldn't let her do that. She could scratch or hit him if she wanted, it wouldn't hurt him and it would stop her from splitting her knuckles like he had seen her do before.
He felt her take a deep breath and she froze when he leaned over her and hooked an arm beneath her legs.
(Y/n) had no idea what he was doing and her attention shifted from her ears to focus on Evan when he lifted her legs and steered them towards the spare seat next to her. She let him lay her legs on the chair and she felt her heart flutter in her chest when Evan laid her on his lap. He kept hold of her hands and started to glide his other hand up and down her arm.
"Do you have her earbuds?"
"Yeah," Eddie rummaged around in his pocket for the noise-cancelling earbuds (Y/n) had taken out just before they got on the plane.
He handed them over to Evan who carefully helped put them in (Y/n)'s ears. Wearing them would soften the noises on the plane and it might just make (Y/n) forget about her ears popping.
As soon as the seatbelt sign flashed off, Evan unclipped both their belts so (Y/n) could wriggle around and get comfy. He began carding his fingers through her hair while he held his right arm out on his knees in front of (Y/n)'s eyesight. He knew she couldn't resist. A few seconds later, she had one hand gripping his wrist and the other hand was tracing one of his tattoos like she was drawing over it and colouring it in.
"There we go, good girl."
With any luck, (Y/n)'s tablets would kick in soon, the boys could both see she had felt drowsy when they got on the plane. If she started to fall asleep, the flight would be much easier for her and she wouldn't feel so panicked. Then when they landed, they would start their holiday.
209 notes · View notes
Text
Thousands of U.S. ride-hailing workers plan to park their cars and picket at major U.S. airports Wednesday in what organizers say is their largest strike yet in a drive for better pay and benefits.
That included a group of drivers protesting at Newark Airport where they were demanding more protections amid a rise in violence against rideshare drivers.
Uber and Lyft drivers also planned daylong strikes in Chicago; Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; Miami; Orlando and Tampa, Florida; Hartford, Connecticut; Austin, Texas; and Providence, Rhode Island
34 notes · View notes