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theharddeck · 1 year

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your love is the love I need || chapter 1/4

pairing: javy machado x femme reader (no y/n), callsign Cross

summary: Cross and Javy are very good friends. Javy might've let it slip to his mother that they're more. A little fake dating never hurt anyone, right?

warnings: 18+, minors please DNI – no smut in this chapter (there defs will be in later chapters, and I never want someone to be caught off guard) but there is an attempted roofie-ing in this chapter.

length: 6.2k

A/N: literally the biggest shoutout in the WORLD to @daggerspare-standingbystandingby for talking me off a ledge, and also line editing, and also depth. @bradshawsbitch and @laracrofted thank you for always brainstorming with me 💙

Saturday

“Cross, get in here; I need a stand-in.”

You’d been looking for a glass for your cherry coke in cabinets at the Miramar Family Center, but at Hangman’s call, you grabbed a straw and jogged back over to the pool table. Bob folded a napkin and slid it across the table as you got closer and you smiled at him gratefully before setting the sweating can down on it.

“Tapping out already, Hangman?” Phoenix asked from across the table, where she was wiping chalk over the end of her pool cue.

“You and Avalone wish,” Jake drawled, smiling wanly at the group. “Nah, I’ve got to pick something up; I’ll be right back.”

He tossed his pool cue at you without looking and you considered letting it clatter to the ground, but you grabbed it out of the air, trying not to read into the gesture too much.

You were a recent addition to the squad; when Fanboy had decided he wanted to try piloting again, they’d needed a WSO to fly with Payback. Having only been a teammate for a couple months, you were still finding your footing with the group. Everyone had been welcoming, of course, but there were times that you felt the little idioms and questions were a type of test. Tests that you were determined to pass, not just for the sake of assimilation, but because this was a team you were genuinely proud to be a part of, and you wanted them to know it.

“Am I solid or stripes?” you asked, looking down at the table, confused by the seeming lack of structure on the felt.

“We’re playing cutthroat,” Payback said, looking after Hangman with a grimace, for not giving you any context.

“We’re 11-15,” Coyote said, because of course he and Jake had been a team. He swiped the chalk that Phoenix had been using, and as he dropped it into your palm, his fingertips brushed yours. You tried to ignore it, it was just an accidental brush, but your skin prickled anyway, and you looked away quickly.

“1-5,” Phoenix cut in, pointing between her and Fritz.

“6-10,” Payback finished, lifting a fist in Bob’s direction, as the WSO held up a clenched hand obediently.

“Cool,” you said, deciding if you wanted to take on the pilot who held your life in his hands any time you got in the back of an F/A-18, or Phoenix.

Which, honestly, wasn’t even a question.

You surveyed the felt once more, before seeing a clear shot for the 9 ball, walking around the table to take it, and shooting Bob an apologetic look as the ball clattered into the pocket.

“I knew I liked you,” Natasha cooed.

“Yeah, I don’t know why we bother,” Payback sighed to Bob, who shrugged, both of them good-naturedly.

“Atta girl,” Coyote crowed, and Phoenix nodded approvingly and you grinned at her, rather than risk looking at him. Not with the butterflies that erupted in your stomach at his completely platonic praise. You were on the same team, it was nothing more than that, and now was so not the time for your relentless crush to make an appearance.

Pool wasn’t really your game, and you weren’t at all surprised when you botched the next shot, flustered by the nearly six feet of Abercrombie model at your shoulder. You backed away from the table as Billy stepped up, apparently next in order.

You swiped your soda from the table by Bob, crossing the room to perch on the side of a sofa and wait for your turn again, or Jake’s reappearance, whichever came first.

Your eyes flitted over to Javy, as they always seemed to, when you weren’t actively trying not to. It wasn’t your fault he was magnetic.

All easy smiles and broad shoulders, deep protectiveness and unabashed confidence, just as good as Hangman and Rooster and Phoenix, less likely to call attention to it. The way he’d look deep at whoever was talking to him, nodding along as he gave them his full attention.

At present, that person was Phoenix, and Javy’s shoulders dipped as he hunched his back slightly, to get closer and hear her better. You played with the end of your pool stick, watching as their heads tilted together, quietly commenting on the table as Fritz lined up a shot.

“It’s a statistical impossibility, right?” Halo whispered, appearing next to you on the couch. “For them to be that pretty and that good of pilots?”

You followed her gaze to the trio around the table and shook your head, agreeing.

“The worst part of it,” you mumbled back, “is that they have the audacity to be decent people, so we can’t even do the easy thing and dislike them for being perfect.”

Halo clicked her tongue against her teeth, fiddling with the plastic cap of a water bottle.

“That’s why they need us,” she mused. “You, me, and Bob: subverting expectations as gorgeous backseaters.”

You snorted, before Callie’s words registered, and you looked over at her, your voice teasing when you asked, “Bob, huh?”

She shrugged lightly, even as a pretty flush bloomed on her cheeks.

“Completely impartially, of course,” she said, sheepishly. You smiled reassuringly, bumping her shoulder with yours, and she tilted her head as she looked back at the table.

“How’s that view from your glass house?” she asked, sweetly, making you nearly choke on your soda when you saw she was looking pointedly at Coyote.

“Is it that obvious?” you asked.

“I mean, it was a guess, but that just confirmed it,” Callie smiled broadly, before sighing again. “I think crushes on other pilots is the particular curse of Wizzos—we know better, but we think we’re smart enough to get around it.”

“I’ll drink to that,” you muttered, bumping your soda can into her water bottle, memory taking you back a couple months to a night just like this one.

It was your first day in San Diego; you’d caught an early flight and were able to move into your off-base apartment and walk around North Island for a bit, exploring before you’d meet your detachment the following morning. As the sun sank over the Pacific, you walked along the beach, enjoying the warm sand and cooling air. You could hear a piano in the distance, something you assumed was the effect of a bluetooth speaker until you realized it came from a bar a little farther down the beach, and you redirected your footsteps towards it.

The Hard Deck smelled like sweat and good beer, and you clocked a couple different types of badges as you scanned the room. There was a good chance someone here would recognize you tomorrow, so you asked for a coke from the older man behind the bar, settling on a stool and looking around.

There was a man with a mustache and aviators (Indoors. At night.) at the piano, his head cocked back as he worked through the greatest hits of the 60s. Beside him, a stunning woman in a tight bun stood shoulder-to-shoulder with an impossibly tall man, also with a mustache, both of them singing along enthusiastically. A pool table was nearby, a couple more uniforms draped across it, and two men were playing darts against the wall closest to you.

Well, one of them was playing darts.

The blond man was clearly in his element, sinking bullseye after bullseye, and the man beside him seemed content enough to let him play it out. It wasn’t so much a competition, as it was one man showboating, and his friend humoring him.

The louder of the two was making jokes about his odds, calling shots before he took them, and every now and then his partner would quietly say something that would make his shoulders laugh enough to miss his shot. Their conversation faded into the noise of the bar as you turned on your stool, looking around you. When you came back to the bartop, you noticed a man sidling up to a younger girl a couple stools down from you.

She was rebuffing him as gently as she could, and he seemed to be taking it pretty well—until she turned to chat with someone over her shoulder, and he dropped something in her drink while she was preoccupied.

Your jaw dropped; that’d been clear as day. But the bar was crowded, and she’d been distracted by her friends, and your heart lurched when she reached back for her drink without paying attention.

“Hey, wait!” you called down the bar, and she turned to look at you. Along with the half of the bar, you assumed, but you slid off the seat rather than check and see how much of an audience you had. The girl frowned at you, an unfamiliar face yelling at her, but whatever she saw in your expression held her attention for the moment it took you to get down to her.

“Sorry,” you said, quietly as you could, when you got closer to her. “I didn’t want to make a scene, but he definitely put something in your drink.”

“Oh my gosh,” the girl set the drink down on the bar, glaring at the man. “What the hell, you creep!!”

“I didn’t—,” the man’s face flushed, and he looked angrily at you before at the people around him, placatingly. “Hold on, you can’t just go around accusing—”

“It’s not an accusation if it’s true,” you said, turning to the bartender. “Are you the owner?”

He shook his head, looking over your shoulder at some of the other patrons, then set down the tap he was pouring. “I’ll get Penny.”

“Now, hang on Jimmy,” the creep sputtered. “I-I didn’t do anything, you can’t prove I—”

“Drink it, then.”

Everyone turned at the deep voice, as someone else stepped towards the bar. You recognized one of the men from the dartboard, the quiet one, and he crossed his arms as he came up behind you.

The creep’s expression paled as he took in the tall frame of the pilot behind you. “I mean, it’s her drink, I’m not–”

The girl slid her drink down the bartop, in front of the man. “Go on.”

A door slammed in the back of the bar and a moment later, a slim brunette woman let herself behind the counter. She stalked behind the bar, looking sharply at you.

“You saw it?” she asked.

You nodded, and her jaw ticked. She planted her hands on the bar, looking the creep clearly in the face, like she was memorizing it, before she covered the drink with saran wrap and handed it behind her to Jimmy.

“You’re gonna wait in my office until the police get here,” she told the man, her voice level. “And when you leave with them, you will not set foot in this bar again. Understood?”

“Police?” the man echoed, his eyes going wide. “Hold on, this is all getting blown out of proportion, all I did was—”

Penny jerked her head to the side, and you felt a hand on your shoulder for a moment as the quiet pilot brushed by you to reach for the creep. The blond man was with him, suddenly, and they unceremoniously hauled the creep away from the bar.

Penny pursed her lips together, looking meaningfully over at the piano, and a moment later, some Elvis song was playing through the bar. Penny checked in with the girl, pulled some receipt paper out of the printer and had her write down her contact information, in case the police wanted to follow up with her. She waved you down as well, and you came over.

“Don’t think we’ve met before,” she said brusquely, holding a hand across the bar. “I’m Penny.”

“Nice to meet you,” you said, shaking her extended hand and giving her your name. “You handled that really well.”

Her jaw clenched again, as she shook her head. “Hate that I have to handle it at all. Thanks for saying something; what’re you drinking tonight? It’s on the house.”

“Oh, thanks,” you shook your head, pointing to your abandoned coke, “but I’m not drinking; I have an early day tomorrow.”

Penny hummed, looking you over. You had the uncanny feeling that, even without your uniform, she somehow knew you were Navy, which detachment you were in, and—given another minute or two—she could guess your callsign.

“Better get your information too,” she said, sliding the receipt paper down the bar, “in case they want a statement from you. Include your CO; I can probably put a good word in edgewise.”

You scribbled your information down, wondering what ties she had to the Navy, but not doubting for a moment that they were strong. Her mouth twitched as she read over what you’d written, blooming into a full smile as she looked up at you.

“Well, that’ll be easier than I thought,” she said, almost to herself, before walking over to the tap to pour you another coke. “So, what brings you to North Island?”

You chatted with her until the police came and she excused herself to go deal with them. You were finishing your coke when you realized the two pilots were back by the dartboard, the blond one having sunk three bullseyes and performing what appeared to be a victory shimmy.

He looked like a Ken doll, like someone had manufactured him in a Mattel factory, then turned him to life and told him he could do anything a real boy could do.

You laughed to yourself at his antics, and watched while the quiet one collected the darts and took his stance for his turn. His first dart landed on double 16—solid, except it couldn’t beat 3 bullseyes.

You’d wanted to thank him for helping out before Penny got there, and this was as good a chance as any, so you hopped off the barstool and crossed towards the darts wall.

“Hey,” you said, inelegant but effective, appearing behind the two of them, turning to look at you in surprise. “May I?”

The blond man made a sound in the back of his throat like he was both shocked and thrilled by your presence, and he nodded like of course you could butt in. You looked over at the quieter one, trying to pretend he wasn’t the most beautiful person you’d seen in your life.

They’d both looked great from a distance, but up close, he was somehow even prettier, and as you looked at him, the corners of his mouth turned up in a hint of a smile. It was like he liked the weight of your eyes, which was terribly flattering, and you found yourself wanting to smile back. You looked away quickly, back to Ken Doll, thinking about the accent you’d heard in his bragging earlier.

“Texas?” you asked, to distract yourself.

He raised an eyebrow. “Six generations back.”

You hummed, before holding out a hand to the quiet one.

“The lady will shoot for her own hand,” Ken Doll said, like he was quoting something, a laugh in his voice as you felt two darts drop into your palm.

“Pick that up from Medieval Times?” you asked.

“Brave, actually,” he muttered, before smiling sheepishly, “my sister’s kids love that movie.”

“What do they call you?” you asked, turning the darts over in your hands. It was a guess, but the way his eyebrows raised slightly when he registered the cadence of your question confirmed you were right.

“Hangman,” he said, lifting his chin over your shoulder. “That’s Coyote.”

You looked over at him. “Hey.”

He smiled, slow and easy, and you looked away before you messed up your shot. You focused, let it go, and Coyote whistled.

“Triple 20,” he said.

“Triple 20,” you agreed, looking back at Hangman. “Want to see it again?”

Hangman’s eyes narrowed as he did the quick mental math, and beside you, Coyote crossed his arms across his chest, laughing quietly. It was a warm sound, and tempted though you were to turn and see it, you let go of the last dart and watched as it landed next to your first.

“Look at that; Coyote wins,” you wiped your hands on your jeans, smiling at a shocked Hangman.

“Damn,” he said quietly, then grinned. “I like you; you can stay.”

You snorted as he strolled lazily across to the board to pull out the darts, before you turned to look at Coyote, who was watching you already. He had deep brown eyes, eyes that looked kind, like they laughed easy, like they didn’t miss much.

“Anyways,” you said, apropos of nothing, clearing your throat. “I came over here to say thanks for backing me up at the bar.”

Something like surprise flashed across his face before he could stop it. He shrugged like anyone would’ve done it, like it was nothing special to believe women, to support a stranger the same way he’d supported his friend all evening, and in that moment—before he knew who you were, before you knew his actual name, before you’d spoken more than a dozen words to the man—you fell hard for Javy Machado.

“Bob, you’re killing me,” Payback groaned, and you jerked out of the memory. Apparently, Fritz’s turn was done, Bob biffed it, and Phoenix lifted her hand in an “after you” gesture as Coyote stepped up to the table.

He walked slowly, and you tried to be impartial like Callie’d said, but it was damn hard when his shoulders filled out his khakis like that. He walked a slow circle, frowning at the spread and you shifted the pool cue in your own hands, telling yourself to stop staring and continuing to do just that.

“Duckie,” a soft voice called across the room, “if you don’t take the shot already, we’re going to be here all night.”

Javy dropped the pool cue with a clatter, turning to find the voice. You spotted Jake the same time everybody else did, his chest puffed out proudly as he escorted an older woman on his arm. She wore warm gray senegalese twists, dangling turquoise earrings and a wide smile you’d recognize anywhere.

“Momma?” Javy asked softly, then a grin split his face as he sprinted across the room. His mother opened her arms as Javy rushed into them, carefully bending his tall frame to enfold her, before straightening and spinning her around. Their laughter echoed around the room and a couple claps of applause went up.

Jake slapped a hand on Javy’s back as he stepped around them, walking over to the pool table to give them a minute together. Phoenix smiled lightly at him, a soft thing that you doubted any of you were meant to see, before she cleared her throat, looking back at you.

“See, this is why we put up with him being an asshole as much as he is,” she told you, shaking her head at Jake. “He’ll leave you out as bait if it gets him a shot at a bandit, but he’ll remember your mother’s birthday, burn his visitor passes, and fly her across the country to surprise you.”

“Take it easy, Nat,” Jake said lightly, resting his knuckles on the pool table and surveying the game’s progress since he’d stepped away. “You’ll ruin my reputation.”

Phoenix shook her head before lining up her next shot, and Jake pushed away from the table to come stand next to where you and Halo were seated on the couch.

You bumped his shoulder with yours as you both looked back across the center, where Javy and his mom were walking arm-and-arm towards your group.

“That was awful sweet of you,” you told him quietly, not wanting to “ruin his reputation” as he put it.

“The fact that you don’t sound surprised means Phoenix’s lies are taking root,” Jake muttered, but you heard the pride in his voice; he was pleased with himself for pulling this off.

You looked away from the pair over to Jake, who held out a hand for you to hand him his pool cue. You passed it to him, tipping your head, holding onto the other end of it.

“So there was absolutely no altruism involved in reuniting your best friend with his mom?”

“You wound me, Cross,” Jake said drily, but he lifted his chin at Javy’s mother, who was smiling broadly up at her son, her eyes shining as she patted at his uniform proudly. “Give it a sec; let’s see if it pays off.”

You weren’t sure what that meant, but you felt your expression turn soft at the clear fondness between Javy and his mother; somehow you always knew he’d be a momma’s boy. Her neck was craned at a sharp angle to look up at him, but both of their smiles were wide as they broke into the group.

“Guys,” Javy said, his voice nearly giddy, “this is my mom. Momma, this is the group. We’ve got Payback, Bob, Phoenix, Fritz—I guess you already know Jake—Halo, and Cross.”

You all smiled and waved as Javy pointed you out to his mother, and her kind eyes followed Javy’s hand around the circle. You thought you might’ve imagined they lingered a little longer on you, but then her smile grew wider as she looked back at Javy. She elbowed him, then looked back at you.

“Now, Javy,” she chided gently, “I know that’s not how you introduce me to your girlfriend.”

The group stilled, and Jake pulled in a deep breath through his nose, his own smile turning decidedly smug as he pushed away from you, taking the cue with him.

“And there’s your answer, Cross,” he said out of the side of his mouth, going over to the pool table and lining up a shot.

You wet your lips as your eyes darted from Mrs Machado up to Javy.

His expression was a strange mix of shocked, mortified, and pleading, and you weren’t sure what Jake had done to land the both of you in this predicament, but you knew you weren’t about to spoil this reunion for Javy.

“Mrs. Machado,” you smiled, pushing away from the couch to come and hug her. “I’m so excited to get to meet you.”

Of course, she hugged like an angel.

She was just a little shorter than you, and she held you like you were something precious she was excited to have in her arms. When you pulled back, her hands settled on your elbows and she beamed up at you.

“Oh, aren’t you just the loveliest,” she smiled, and her voice sounded like the happiest thing. “You know, I told him, I did, when he started talking about the newest wiz—oh, what is that abbreviation?”

“WSO,” the group chorused.

“WSO,” Mrs. Machado nodded, grateful for the prompt. “Yes, well, when he started talking about you, I asked him if you were a nice young lady, and he insisted that you were just friends, but I just knew, you kept coming up in conversation and, well, I knew it was something more. And then sweet Jacob…”

She broke off to smile kindly at Hangman, and when you looked over your shoulder, Callie and Natasha had cornered him threateningly, but he looked too smug to be intimidated. Under Mrs. Machado’s eyes, they smiled charmingly, but their stance didn’t change. You appreciated them coming to your defense, but it did make you wonder how many people seemed to know about your crush.

“Yeah, sweet Jacob,” Payback deadpanned from the other side of the table, before assuming his role as Resident Adult of the squad. “Mrs. Machado, can we get you something to drink? I know lines at the base access point can be awful, maybe a glass of water?”

“Oh!” Mrs. Machado looked between Reuben and the kitchen, then at you. You smiled reassuringly, pulling your arms free from her.

“I’ll be here,” you said, then reached over without looking, turning away. “Hey, Jay, can I have a word?”

“Yep, figured,” Javy muttered, as your hand closed on the lapel of his khakis, pulling him after you.

“You both are doing my push ups after the next of Mav’s drills,” Payback hissed under his breath as your paths crossed.

“Done,” you said quickly.

“For sure,” Javy said, stumbling slightly as he tried to follow your shorter stride as you pulled him to a corner of the Family Center. You figured the group would be watching you so you turned your back to them, pulling Javy to stand in front of you.

“Wait, you’re his backseater,” Javy smoothed down his lapel, frowning over your shoulder in Reuben’s direction. “If he’s doing them, you are too, and 400 pushups isn’t—”

“You’ve got, like, 15 seconds to tell me why your mom thinks I’m your girlfriend.”

You probably could’ve handled it with more finesse, or at least not interrupted him.

Javy’s hand came up to rub the back of his neck; if you didn’t know better, you’d say he was nervous, but there’s no way that was real, so you just waited on his explanation.

“Okay, so she means well, my mom, but every time we talked, she’d be asking about if I’d met a nice girl, or telling me how one of her friends had a kid in town, that I should meet up with or—”

“15 seconds,” you reiterated, trusting in Reuben’s vamping ability, but the man was only mortal.

“Right,” Javy swallowed. “Uh, so it’s just…one day she was just going on and on, and I said I’d asked someone out, and she wanted to know who and you were the first person I thought of.”

You blinked.

“Not like that, not like I’d planned on asking you out or something,” Javy rushed to say, which shouldn’t have stung as much as it did, but damn. He must’ve realized how that sounded, too, because he winced. “I mean, not like that, it was just the easiest lie that she’d believe and she was never supposed to be here and meet you and—”

You crossed your arms over your chest, eyes narrowing as you looked up at him. “How do you think this is going?”

“Yeah, not great,” Javy mumbled, his hand falling to his side.

“Awesome,” you muttered. “So now that we’ve established how it’s just a matter of me being the easiest lie, you didn’t want her to meet me, and you wouldn’t actually ask me out—”

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Javy said stubbornly, even though it was what he’d just said. He looked frustrated, and you couldn’t tell if it was towards your reaction or something else but when he opened his mouth, the words got stuck, because he just sighed.

Javy drew in a deep breath, looking over your shoulder. You knew when his eyes landed on his mom, because his whole face softened, and his shoulders drooped slightly.

“Tell me this,” you said, weighing your words carefully, “is this for her or for you?”

“For her,” he said, with conviction, and when he looked back at you, your heart skipped a beat at the look in his eyes. It was honest and deep, something selfless and that scared him too, and you believed him.

“She gets worried about me,” he explained. “What she and my dad have is special…when me or my siblings don’t have that, she gets worried. Like, it’s something she prays for. I know she’s proud of me and my career and all that, but I think a part of her will always think something’s missing, unless I’m with someone.”

You looked over your shoulder to find Mrs. Machado in the kitchen, smiling happily at Rueben as he made her some tea. She had this aura of comfort around her, that of being loved and known, and wanting it for everyone around her. It wasn’t an energy you were super familiar with, but you could understand that it would be heavy for someone like Javy to bear.

And this was a terrible idea—you were gonna embarrass yourself at the least, potentially break your own heart at the worst—but you couldn’t say no.

“Okay,” you sighed. “So, how do we do this?”

Javy’s eyes closed for a moment in relief, and for a second you thought he was going to reach for you, but then he held himself steady, his hands clenching at his sides.

“Thank you,” he said quietly.

You nodded, already regretting this, knowing if you could do it again, you’d choose the same result, every time.

“Yeah,” you said, rubbing at your temples briefly before looking back up at him. “Um, I guess, how much do you want me around? I’m sure you guys want time for just the two of you.”

Javy seemed to think it over. “I’ll probably take her to dinner tonight—she’ll invite you, but I think we can get you out of it. If…do you want to do breakfast tomorrow?”

Somewhere a trickster god was chortling, thrilled by Javy asking a question you’d never expected to hear, and in an entirely different context.

“I can do breakfast,” you said.

“Great,” Javy said, a full smile growing. “God, thank you. Great.”

And somewhere that same trickster god rolled their eyes, because you were a simpleton who’d do any number of ridiculous things to see that smile again.

Javy squeezed your shoulder lightly, moving to go around you before stopping himself and stepping back.

“You’ve never called me ‘Jay’ before,” he said, his expression curious.

And you hadn’t, never aloud. But in your texts to your girlfriends back home, you referred to him by his initial, just in case someone ever stole your phone.

“Yeah, well," you deferred, "Duckie was taken, so…”

Javy’s nose wrinkled as he tried not to laugh, and there it was, that smile again.

“I had a stuffed duck, when I was a kid,” he explained. “Took it everywhere with me, like some kids have their blankets…Momma always told me she loved me like I loved that duck, and it kind of stuck.”

“That’s adorable,” you said, honest.

Javy waved a hand, like it wasn’t anything, and then he looked back at you.

“I like it,” he said, something different in his voice. “Jay.”

You weren’t sure what to say to that, so you pressed your lips together and shrugged. Javy looked at you for a moment, then he tilted his head towards the group. You turned with him, following him back to the group, telling yourself it was going to be fine.

Of course, that was until Mrs. Machado insisted that they drive you home.

Thankfully, you were able to convince her to take the passenger seat, so as Mrs. Machado and Javy talked quietly, the soft music on the speakers kept their conversation from reaching you in the backseat. You leaned your head against the glass of the window, trying to recall the cross streets from memory, rather than think too hard about any part of tonight. The car was in park for a minute before you realized it was idling in front of your apartment.

“Oh, sorry,” you said quickly, sliding off your seatbelt and leaning forward to brush Mrs. Machado’s shoulder lightly, “it was so great to meet you. Thanks for driving me home.”

“Of course,” she beamed over her shoulder at you, reaching back to catch your hand in hers, and squeezing. “I’m so glad we’ll get to visit more tomorrow.”

You smiled back, then let go of her, sliding down to the seat to the door. As you unfolded yourself out of the backseat, Javy’s hand appeared on the car door, holding it open for you as you climbed out. He shut it behind you, walking beside you towards the door of your apartment.

You looked up at him out of the side of your eye.

People shouldn’t be pretty from this angle but he was. The moonlight seemed to highlight his long lashes, and the soft shadow they cast over his face.

“You don’t have to walk me,” you said under your breath, once you were out of hearing range of the car.

“Nah,” Javy said, his voice lower rather than quieter. “Momma knows I’d walk my girl to the door.”

It wasn’t a long walk up the driveway, but you seemed aware of every step. Or maybe the world just froze when Javy said my girl.

You glanced over at him again, admiring the way he looked perfectly at ease, his hands tucked into his pockets, steps slow to match your pace. You thought about how sweet his mother was, how excited she’d been at the prospect of spending time with you tomorrow. She was probably watching from the car now, and it did somewhat soothe the guilt in your chest, knowing that someone else had set a precedent for her, and she wouldn’t be too disappointed when her son calmly told her you had broken up.

“That’s good that she’s met others,” you said, climbing the first step to your porch, “it’s less intimidating to know I just have to be an average.”

Javy made a soft sound, something between a hum and an exhale, shoulders rising slightly in a shrug. “Actually, you’re the first since the Academy.”

You stopped on the step, turning to find Javy watching you closely. With the added height, the two of you were almost eye level, and your stomach flipped. His brown eyes seemed to glitter, something soft like starlight in them.

“But you said…” you trailed off, realizing Javy had said it was how he would be, not how he’d been. “Literally how is that possible?”

Javy smiled easily, looking back at the car, then back at you as he lifted his chin. “I’m gonna take that as a compliment.”

You smiled back, you couldn’t not, even as you shook your head, despite the heat crawling up your neck because you didn’t realize you’d said that out loud. He was too bright to leave you unaffected, so you stood there on the step, smiling like a fool at a man who somehow had no idea how much of a marvel he was.

Which is when you realized you were staring again.

“Well,” you said, looking away, taking another step up the porch, “thanks again for the ride home. And walking me up here, and I guess…I’m gonna go inside.”

“Oh,” Javy said it quietly, like he hadn’t meant to, like you’d surprised him. He nodded, and you waited for him to say something else, as he looked over his shoulder at the car, but then his easy smile was back again. “Yeah, no worries. Actually, thank you, right?”

You were pretty sure the moonlight was playing tricks on you.

Because there was something in Javy’s expression that you hadn’t seen before, something that looked like uncertainty, something almost like wondering. The extra step put you almost taller than him, your faces closer than you’d expected. Javy blinked slowly, his gaze darting down to your mouth before he stepped back a half pace, like he’d remembered something.

It had to be the moonlight, or you were seeing things.

But you were the first person that’d come to mind when he’d needed a lie, and that had to count for something, right, and he’d looked for a moment like he was trying to think of a reason to keep you on the porch.

You reached for him, your fingers curling around the back of his neck and the slightest pull was enough for him to take back that half step, then more, closer, which was enough for you to know it wasn’t just the moon, and you kissed him.

Or you meant to.

The moment your lips brushed against his, Javy’s hands were on your waist, his long fingers spreading across your lower back, his body heat seemingly burning through the thin fabric of your shirt, like he needed to hold onto you. And then you weren’t kissing him, because he was kissing you, something that you couldn’t quite believe was happening. It was slow and soft and absolutely devastating, as unrealistically perfect as only Javy could be.

And then it was over, just as quickly as it had happened.

Javy’s lips lifted from yours, pressing a soft kiss to the corner of your mouth before he pulled back entirely. Still two steps down, you liked how he looked, looking up at you.

“I’ll wait till you get inside,” Javy asked softly, his voice like velvet, and you nodded, very uncertain if you could find words. You rested a hand on his shoulder to lean down to wave at the car, and Mrs. Machado, who was practically beaming back at you, before letting go and walking up to unlock the door. You let yourself in, turning just inside the frame to find Javy still watching you.

“Night, Jay,” you said.

Javy’s lips parted at the nickname, then he smiled at you, bright as the noonday sun.

“Night, Cross,” he said. His hands were in his pockets and he took a step back from you, waiting for you to shut the door. You did, leaning your back up against it, and waited for the sounds of the car starting and them driving away.

Now, what the hell had that been about? And, more importantly, how were you supposed to survive tomorrow?

next chapter

taglist: @peakyrogers @mxgyver @princessphilly @hangmanbrainrot @wildbornsiren @roosterforme @blowmymbackout @datemephoenix @fuckyeahhangman @lt-bradshaw @double-j @callsignvalley @sebsxphia @javihoney @jadore-andor @rosiahills22 @andrewrussgarfield @teacupsandtopgun i don't have a coyote list yet bc this is my first writing for him, so if any of you folks would like to be not included, please do let me know!

#javy “coyote” machado #javy machado fic #javy coyote macado #javy machado #javy machado x reader #javy coyote machado x reader #javy machado x you #coyote x you #coyote x reader #misskielwrites #god why is hitting publish so nervewracking???#i hope y'all like this chapter #i have a lot i want to do in ch 3 and ch 4 but this is necessary for now #a smidge of pining is good for the soul right #coyote x cross

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call-sign-jinx · 2 months

Text

Endless Love (Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw) - Chapter 6

summary - Y/N Y/L/N and Bradley Bradshaw have had a rivalry ever since they both attended the same academy. Every chance they took, they always tried to one up each other. One day, Bradley takes the rivalry too far and Y/N ends up in the hospital with serious injuries. Will it make Y/N want to get him back twice as worse? Or will it make her realise that this rivalry between them is childish?

warnings - swearing, enemies to lovers, mention of serious injury, traumatic episodes, reader traumatised from what happened, smut, slowburn, seizures, flashbacks

a/n - hey girlies! it's been a loooooong time since i posted the last chapter. i tried to edit this and add to it but i jus couldn't. long story short i went thru a fat breakup and i jus needed to take a break. and deepest apologies cos this one is so short! hope u enjoy regardless! xx

When I woke up, my head was pounding. I rubbed the sleep off of my eyes then looked around the room. This wasn't my room. This was too tidy to be my room. I got up and opened the door to peer out of it. Yeah this definitely was not my house. Maybe I had a one night stand? Or... I don't know I woke up in an alternate universe?

I walked out of the room and began to smell something. It was fucking gorgeous. Haven't smelt something like it since I moved to the US. I followed the smell and there I saw Bradshaw, shirtless cooking what looked to be a Full English. Wait... why the fuck and where did Bradshaw manage to get the stuff you need to make a Full English?

My focus quickly changed to his figure, damn he looked god without a shirt. Yeah, I have seen him before with no shirt but that was when we were always arguing so I never paid it any mind. But dayum, he looked good as hell. I couldn't stop staring in all honesty, his golden skin tone mixed with how well he'd been working out just pulled me into a trance. I shook my head and quickly walked up to the kitchen island.

"Good morning Bradshaw. Please could you tell me how the actual fuck I woke up in your house?" I placed my chin on my hand as I stared up at him. He chuckled and shook his eggs and he flipped over the bacon, I quickly glanced at it and it was British bacon. Wow...

"So you're telling me you remember nothing from last night?" My brows furrowed and my lips pouted.

"I remember going out to the Hard Deck with Phoenix, getting wankered and then fuck knows what else. Why?" I raised a brow in suspicion and confusion.

"Let me give you the run down. You and Phoenix showed up to the bar with pretty skimpy dresses, you had too many double whiskies for anyone's liking, Phoenix went home so you joined the rest of the Dagger Squad. Then an hour later your 'friend,' can't remember his name, said he'd take you home and then basically asked if you wanna help cheat on his girlfriend. You also said that you're moving out and I offered for you to stay here until you find a new place to live. And you said yes." My jaw dropped. Wait... Thomas wanted to cheat on his girlfriend?... With me?!

"I know, wild night you had sweetheart." He chuckled as he finished cooking the breakfast and plated it all up. He passed me one plate as he sat down next to me and began to eat his.

"Wait wait wait, pause for a second there Bradshaw. Thomas wanted to cheat on his girlfriend with me?" I couldn't believe it, we'd stay up all night so he could talk about how in love with her he was. He even talked about fucking proposing to her. Bradshaw nodded in response.

"Nah what the fuck? That can't be true. He literally took me ring shopping for her the other day." Bradshaw didn't reply, all he did was take his phone out. He tapped it a few times and then placed it on the worktop. It was an audio. It had a few voices in it that stuck out to me. But the one that stuck out the most was Thomas'. The things he said my top lip curl up in disgust. I furrowed my brows as I looked at Bradshaw.

"We've been friends since I was 6. Why and how the fuck has he turned into this? He used to be so fucking sweet and caring." Bradshaw gave me a sympathetic look.

"Some people just change. It sucks, doesn't it?" I let out a scoff with a smile.

"It really fucking does." I stare into space for a few seconds until I look back to the Full English that Bradshaw has been cooking. "When and where did you find out how to make a Full English breakfast Bradshaw?" Bradshaw gave me a smirk as he sat down across from me.

"The joys of google." He jabbed the bacon and sausage before shoving it into his mouth.

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Today was a slow day at Top Gun. Nothing was really getting done because Maverick and Cyclone were having a 6 hour long argument somehow. I can't even hold a 10 minute conversation let alone a fucking 6 hour long argument. What are they even arguing about?

Phoenix jabbed me on my shoulder to get my attention.

"You wanna go to the beach after this? Maverick said it's some team building technique. Everyone has to go apparently." I rolled my eyes with a slight smirk.

"How is going to the beach going to help us all get along? Also, could I come to your house before so I can get ready? I'm staying at Bradshaw's for a bit til I can find somewhere to live." Phoenix immediately said yes and told me some other girls from the squad are coming as well.

Thinking about the beach and team building brought an idea into my head. Although me and Bradshaw are civil now, doesn't mean I can't mess with him.

#top gun #top gun fanfic #top gun fanfiction #top gun imagines #top gun maverick #top gun rooster #bradley bradshaw fanfiction #bradley bradshaw #bradley bradshaw fluff #bradley bradshaw x reader

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gemini-sensei · 9 months

Text

Parents Night | Boss!Eli Moskowitz x Nanny!Reader Pt. 3

Chubby!Fem!Reader ○ Parts One and Two

Series Masterlist

Big thank you for @sensei-venus for the idea for this part 💖 small note, but when it comes to naming characters, I just use the first name that comes to mind sometimes, so sorry if you're name is in this.

CW: mentioned parental/spousal death, angst & fluff, nothing much else (half edited).

When the twins came running up to Reader with a flier from their school, their excitement was contagious. Phoenix shoved it as her whilst she was enjoying some down time in the living room, but she was quick to close her book and give them her undevided attention. Their grins were so big and happy as they started talking over each other, practically bouncing in place.

She took the flier and discovered it was for family night at their school, where the children could show them their classroom and where they learned. Reader had small memories of such nights when she was in grade school, how much fun it was to see her little friends and show off all the art projects she'd done.

"Oh, this is exciting," she told them, smiling wide. She flatted the slightly crumpled paper out on the table, imagining one of the twins had shoved it in their backpack and only remembered it now. "We should go give this to your dad, yeah?"

"We want you to come too," Mia giggled, barely able to keep herself on her feet as she hopped with enthusiasm. "We want you to meet Ms. Summer."

"And we want to show you our classroom!" Phoenix boasted proudly.

Reader laughed as she nodded along. "Alright, I'll come too. I think Junie will like it, don't you?"

"Yeah!" They shouted together. Then they started talking over each other again and somehow hatched a plan to go pick out their clothes for the special night - which was at the end of the week.

They ran off in a hurry and Reader softly laughed behind her hand. She stood up to take the flier to Eli's office, knocking on the door gently. When she heard him say "come in," she opened it swiftly and walked in with a smile.

"I hope your schedule isn't too busy Thursday night," she said and slipped him the paper.

He took it and smiled before looking up at her. "Not at all. I can take the kids and you can have the night off."

She grinned, flattered by his offer but ultimately more happy to join. "Actually, I've been invited."

"Phoenix and Mia want you to go?" he asked softly.

She nodded. "They're very excited for it. I think they're proud of learning, which is nice. I never wanted to sit down and do homework, but they're very receptive to it. So I don't mind joining you all if you don't."

He shook his head. "Not at all. I think it's sweet of them to want you to go. Plus, I really don't want to watch all three of them in a crowded school for two hours."

They laughed over the ordeal and set up a little game plan to have the night running smoothly. It was a short conversation, as soon Mia was yelling down for Reader's help and Eli's phone rang. They parted ways with smiles on their faces, thinking nothing more of it.

○●○

Thursday night approached a lot quicker than expected, almost surprising Reader when she realized what day it was early that morning. After the kids were dropped off, she spent the morning going over statements from her boutique when she saw the date. She had to double check everything and then plan out the rest of her day around that. She finished up her work early, saving some stuff for tomorrow, and had a pretty standard time taking care of Junie.

When it came time to go pick up the twins from school, she knew that they weren't going to have a lot of time between then and when they had to go back up to the school. So she went ahead and dressed Junie in her little dress and leggings, had her bag packed, and everything they could need in the car. Then she picked up the twins, brought them home, let them have a snack, then helped them get ready for their special night. It was hassle free, thankfully, and they didn't hit any bumps in the road.

They arrived at the school and Reader made sure to keep the twins close, even though they were practically bouncing off of the walls and trying to tug her down the halls to their classroom.

Her phone buzzed and she checked it, finding a text from Eli. Running late. Start without me. Be there ASAP.

She smiled, knowing that he was trying his best. With that being said, she let the twins walk her to their classroom while she pushed Junie in her stroller.

There was artwork all over the walls, from finger paintings to yarn projects, and more. Mia jumped up when she found hers and pointed it out to Reader, smiling wide as she told her about her finger painting and about what all there was to see on it. Phoenix was less interested in showing off his artwork and wanted her to see his writing handout, which was pinned up along with others that showed off how much they were learning.

"Look, see! See! I can spell smile!" he boasted.

Reader grinned. "That's amazing!"

They finally made it to the classroom, which was full of color and laughter. There were other kids inside, showing their parents and even some grandparents around the room. The teacher was standing near her desk, talking with a couple as she wore a bright smile.

Mia took hold of the front of the stroller and started pulling it with her in the direction of her teacher. "Come on! Come on!"

Phoenix bounded ahead, laughing as he hugged the woman around her leg. "Ms. Summer!"

The adults all laughed with him and the couple excused themselves as their own child came running over to show them something. The teacher greeted Phoenix happily, then looked up as Mia lead Reader and Junie - who was squealing with glee - over.

"Hi," Reader said with a short wave.

"Hello. I'm Summer Jensen, but everyone around here just calls me Ms. Summer," she said in return. She put her hand out and Reader took it to shake. "You must be the twins mother. They talk about you so much."

Reader was taken aback, slightly shocked. She licked her lips, quickly recovering as she held the woman's hand. "No, actually I'm their new nanny, Reader."

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Ms. Summer said softly, though she looked a little confused. However, she covered it up with a smile. "They just speak so highly of the pretty dresses you wear."

Flattered, Reader couldn't help but do a little twirl. She owned a vintage clothing shop after all, so she had to dress the part in her opinion. It was one of her many loves and she wanted to share that with the world as much as possible, that was why she opened her store.

"How sweet," she said. She cut a quick look at the twins to see their reaction, and though Phoenix hadn't seemed too bothered by the comment, Mia looked a little sad. "Well, Mr. Moskowitz is on his way. He's just running a little late from work."

Ms. Summer nodded. "Alright-"

"Phoenix! Mia! Come meet my big brother!" another child shouted from across the room.

Phoenix grabbed Mia by the hand and pulled her over, the two looking in better spirits than a second ago.

With them away, Ms. Summer addressed Reader. "Again, I am so sorry. I was under the impression Mrs. Moskowitz was coming."

"Um, I don't really know how to say this, but the twins' mother passed away," Reader told her, voice gentle and low. She didn't want anyone to overhear who didn't need to, or make anyone upset. Even so, Junie became fussy, as if she knew what they were talking about. "Oh, sweet baby."

Reader bent down to take her from the stroller and console her. Ms. Summer watched with sad, careful eyes.

"I assume this is Junie," she said.

Reader smiled as she bounced the baby, who started to giggle, a crisis averted. "Yeah, she's a doll. The twins love her."

"I can tell. They talk about her quite a bit as well," Ms. Summer said.

They both entertained the baby until Phoenix, loud as ever, called Reader over to the book corner. The women said goodbye and parted ways. Ms. Summer let Reader put the stroller out of the way before she walked over to the little bookcases.

"You can sit on the beanie chair," Mia said, fluffing up the beanbag chair for her.

Reader smiled. "Alright," she said and carefully took a seat with Junie on her lap.

The twins proceeded to show off all the books they liked, mostly from being read to in class. Mia showed off the ones she especially liked to sit down with during their practice reading time. Phoenix showed off the picture books with cars and monster trucks, making sure to show his baby sister all the pictures.

They sat like that for a while before the twins wanted to show Reader another corner of the room. It was a fun time, but made even better when Eli showed up.

"Well well well, having fun without me?" he asked as he walked up.

He was still in his dress pants, but had gone forgone his professional looking jacket and tie. Reader had caught onto the fact that he was a far more casual person than his position let on, though he still took it very seriously. She got the impression, though, that if he could wear a tee shirt and sweats to work, he would, but as the CEO he had to keep some sense of professionalism about him. However, when he was working from home, it was casual all the day long.

"Daddy!" the twins shouted. They ran to him and hugged around the legs, buzzing with excitement.

He crouched down to give them a hug, squeezing them tight as they giggled. Then, once he stood up, it was Junie's turn. He took her into his arms and she held onto his shirt tightly, squealing with joy at seeing him.

"I hope they haven't been too much trouble for ya," he said, looking to Reader.

"No, of course not," she said.

"Come on, daddy," Mia said, taking his free hand. "I wanna show you my sea turtle drawing!"

"Reader!" Phoenix jumped up. "I need to go potty!"

"Oh, okay," she said. She and Eli shared a look before she turned her attention back onto Phoenix. "Do you want me to walk with you to the restroom?"

"Yes, please," he said and put out his hand.

She took it and the little group split up. Reader and Phoenix walked out into the hallway while Mia took Hawk and Junie to a wall full of more artwork. The restroom wasn't a long walk from the classroom and when they got there, Reader waited outside for him.

When he came out, he took her hand again and they started walking back to the classroom. However, he had something on his mind.

"I'm sorry I told Ms. Summer you were our mommy," he said, a little sadly.

Reader stopped and crouched down to his level. "Oh, Phoenix, it's okay. But can I ask why you did that?"

"Everyone else has mommies in my class... They're all real mommies and step mommies and just mommies, but I don't have one... I miss my mommy."

"Aw, honey, I know you do," she told him. She gave him a hug, holding him close as he began to sniffle. Rubbing his back gently, she shushed him. "I may not be your mommy, but I hope I'm someone you can trust, because I'm here for you and your sisters."

He nodded and buried his face in her shirt. When he wouldn't let go, she picked him up and held him on her hip, lightly rocking him as they stood in the lightly crowded hall. She let him cry softly until he was ready to go back to the classroom.

She walked with him in her arms, his face hidden in her neck because he didn't want his friends to see him upset. She didn't mind. However, when Eli saw them, he grew worried.

He walked over, leaving Junie and Mia to play on the rug with some toys and another child. "Hey, is everything okay?"

He layed a hand on his son's back, comforting him. Phoenix was receptive to it, but clung to Reader the entire time.

"Yeah, everything's okay," Reader said softly. "I'll tell you later."

Eli nodded, though still wore a worried expression. However, it melted away when she gave him a reassuring smile, and they continued their little tour of the school.

By the time they all arrived home, the twins were starving. Dinner was ready for them, so it was as simple as sit down and eat, then get the twins cleaned up and ready for bed.

Eli took care of Junie, ensuring she was fed and that she was dressed for bed. She fell asleep quickly and he laid her down in her bed, giving her a final kiss on the forehead and a soft goodnight.

When he walked down the hall, he heard Reader's voice coming from twins' room. It was split in half between Phoenix and Mia's sides, toys strewn about, costumes hanging off of bed posts, and from what Eli could gather, a Barbie was leading a dinosaur army into battle in the corner. It reminded him about how he needed to clean out one of the other rooms to turn into a bedroom, and he mentally put it at the top of his to-do list.

He came to stop at the door and peered in, seeing her reading to them. She was almost done, but that didn't mean anything, for Eli soon became just as spellbound by her storytelling abilities as the kids were. They were hooked to every word she spoke as she gave it bravado and flare, smiling the entire time.

As it came to an end, Phoenix yawned tiredly. Reader closed the book and placed it back on the little bookcase in the room, smiling at the kids softly.

"Goodnight," she said sweetly.

"Can I have a hug?" Phoenix asked abruptly before she could even think about walking to the door.

She smiled. "Of course."

Reader leant over to give him a big hug, then made sure to tuck him in tight. Then she hurried over to Mia's side of the room to do the same, mentioning how they could all have hugs. It made Mia giggle.

Eli came into the room to give each twin a kiss on the head and tell them goodnight, then exited with Reader. He turned out the light, watching the nightlights come to life, then he pulled the door almost shut.

The pair of adults walked down to the kitchen, Reader looking to make herself a cup of tea and Eli hoping to have a word with her. He waited a moment, not wanting to rush into things since it had been an eventful and long evening. He didn't let the silence hang for too long though.

"So, what happened tonight?"

Reader looked up from her cup for a moment, then put her eyes back down. She swallowed hard, an odd lump forming in the back of her throat. As she remembered everything the twins' teacher had said, she became a little embarrassed.

"Oh, well, uh, as it would turn out, Phoenix told his teacher that I was his and Mia's mom," she explained, hoping she'd found the right words. She didn't know how to navigate the situation as well when presenting it to her boss. They were his children after all.

Eli's posture changed. He stood straighter and became a little rigid. The thought of his wife came to mind and saddened him. He'd always miss her since her passing, but it wasn't as depressing as before. The wound was healing. It wasn't hard to talk about her anymore, but it hurt knowing his children missed her so much.

Then there was Reader, who was put into an awkward position because of it. Something completely out of her control. Something she still knew so little about.

"I'm sorry," he said. He bit his lip, trying to figure out where to go from there. All he could think of was apologizing.

She smiled kindly, awkward but understanding. "It's alright. I know and understand why he did it. He really misses her and feels like he's somehow different from his classmates without a mom. I mean, he was telling me how the other kids all have moms whether they're their "real" mom or not, and I think it makes him feel a little... othered in a way."

"Did someone say something to him?" Eli asked, a ting of worry in his voice. He knew from first hand experience that some kids were unusually cruel.

She shook her head. "Not that I know of. He's a smart boy, so I think maybe he's picked up on it over time."

They were silent for a moment, and still Eli could think of nothing but apologizing.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Reader said. She finished making her tea and walked up to him. "There's nothing to be sorry for. He's still coping, and it might be a little confusing to me still, that I'm here. I mean, look at it from his view. I'm a woman that's come to live with you and your family, and I take care of them everyday. They know I'm the nanny, but I don't think they quite understand what that means."

He nodded gently, letting everything sink in. It made sense. She made perfect sense. Who was he to go out and hire someone to come into their home and help take care of his kids? Sure, he made them all a part of the hiring process to ensure compatibility, only for them to find the perfect match off of the street, but that still had to be confusing for a child.

"It's almost no different than if I'd remarried," he said softly. He didn't like it, though. The hurt was still there and such a thought had not crossed his mind once since his wife died.

Reader chuckled, lightening the mood. She smiled. "Almost. You and I are far from romantic love interests, Mr. Moskowitz."

He smiled, glad that she could tease him like a friend. He was glad that the night had not ruined the entire agreement they had. He was glad she was so involved and nurturing and good with the kids. For, if it weren't for Reader, he wouldn't know what he'd be doing now. He supposed life would be that much harder, harder when it was hard enough; when there was still an emotional toll being taken out of him and his kids; when he was a single father at a loss for what more to do, left asking himself if he was doing it all right. He was thankful she was there, beyond thankful actually.

"I can't thank you enough."

"You don't have to thank me at all."

She took her cup of tea and sipped it, then started walking to the kitchen door.

"Goodnight, Eli."

He watched her pass through the door and disappear behind it, smiling. "Goodnight, Reader."

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honey-dew-woo · 2 years

Note

I have another Bradley x reader request. Could you please write something where the reader brings their newborn to see him at work bc they are sick of maternity leave and miss the action (how they got the clearance idk lol) and Bradley just shows the baby off to his team? And then maybe if you aren’t sick of me yet another one where the babe is a little bit older and Bradley shows them the inside of a plane? I’m living for your content.

So its not exactly your request, but it did inspire me a lot, so its very similar to your request, if you want me to make another one that's more to a T your request, lmk! Also, this is going to take place a few years after the mission. Enjoy! <3

Warnings: I haven't editted it yet! LOL

Masterlist

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Maybe Being Suspended Isn't That Bad

The sight of the once black coffee now turning to a lighter brown as the cream mixed with a swirl of the wooden stick I held in the cup on the counter before me could only bring a small, yet content, smile to my face. Even with it being 9:00am, it was a well deserved coffee. I tapped the small wooden stick on the side of my mug before throwing it in the trash, careful not to spill any of the hot liquid onto my flight suit as I took a sip.

"Captain Bradshaw." I heard a voice muse, as I turned to the door, mug in hand. "As I live and breathe." Hangman winked, being pushed into the room from his spot in the door frame, Phoenix following in behind him.

"Captain Seresin." I teased, laughing before taking another sip, moving out of his way and to the break room's couch, allowing for him and Natasha to get their own coffee. "Where's Bob this morning? I thought he was gonna give a seminar to the new WSO's." I asked, as my back met with the cushion of the couch.

Natasha shrugged at me, but Jake actually responded. "He got sick this morning. Threw up right after waking up." He spoke casually, as he mixed sugar and cream into his coffee. This caused both Natasha and I to turn to him, both of our eyes wide as we offered shocked smiles at the blond.

"What?" He asked, raising his eyebrow and looking between the two of us before walking out of the room with his coffee.

"I take it Carole didn't want to go to school today?" Phoenix smiled, taking a sip of her coffee as she sat on the couch before me.

"No, but when does she ever? I left my phone at home too just getting her in the car is a struggle." I laughed, before Phoenix and I were snapped out of our conversation by a Lieutenant bursting through the door. They were out of breath, hunched over as they gathered themselves.

We both stood up, concerned. "What is it?" I asked, placing my coffee mug on the table. "Lieutenant Evers, what is it?" I asked, as the younger male looked up at me.

"Captain Bradshaw," he panted, before continuing, "Admiral Simpson needs you in his office," the lieutenant managed before needing another breath, "With Rooster as well. ASAP." He let out, sitting on the chair that Phoenix pulled out for him, offering him a water bottle.

"What did you sprint here?" Natasha asked Evers, concern lacing her voice before she turned to me. "Bradley's landing now. I'll cover your class. You're going over the Uranium plant mission, right?" She addressed, nodding her head towards the windows, as I saw Rooster's plane landing.

Distracted as I looked out the window I responded to her. "Yeah. I want them to try a similar, modified version of the course." I trailed off as my brows furrowed as another Lieutenant explained to Bradley, who had just hopped out of his plane, that we had been summoned to the Admiral's office.

It couldn't've been but five minutes later that we were both sitting in the Admiral's office. "Captain Bradshaws." Simpson nodded, his hands folded on his desk as Bradley and I looked to each other, soft smiles before returning back to Cyclone with confusion. "Why can't either of you answer your personal cell phones?" He sighed, only adding to Rooster and I's confusion.

"Sorry, Sir. Bradley was flying and I left mine at home." I explained, my brows furrowed as I looked to Cyclone. "Why?" I pondered, still remaining respectful to the Admiral.

"Your daughter's school called. She's been suspended. They want both of you to attend a meeting with the Principal and pick up your kid. They didn't say anything else. You've been approved for leave." The Admiral spoke, placing his glasses on his face before going to read paper. "You're dismissed." He nodded to the both of us.

We could only look at each other out of confusion before heading out to my husband's blue bronco. Neither of us bothered to change out of our flight suits, but we did put our aviator sunglasses on for the drive. "What the hell did she do?" I spoke, crossing my arms as we pulled up to the school.

"I don't know. What do five year olds get suspended for anyway? Stealing a juice box?" Bradley asked, looking at me seriously. I burst out laughing as he whined, lightly hitting me on the shoulder. "I'm being serious!" He insisted as we exited the car.

The metal doors of the school opened with a creak as Bradley and I walked in. The main office was the first on the right, and I followed Bradley in. "Hey kiddo." He smiled, speaking softly at our daughter before going to sit next to her. She looked fine, and I silently thanked the heavens for that. She smiled up at her dad, hugging him as he sat in the chair next to her.

I walked up to the desk lady, who looked at us confused, and I could understand. Two people walking in with flight suits on had to be confusing, especially for someone who probably doesn't even know what a flight suit is. "Hi. We're the parents of Carole Bradshaw. We were called about her suspension?" I asked, before snapping my attention towards the Principal's office door, watching an angry silouette in the door.

"You can't let whatever monster did this to my sweet Billy get away with just a suspension! I demand to meet with their parents!" I heard a woman's voice, and I turned to look at my kid. It wasn't an angry look more of a 'what the hell did you do?' look. She smiled sheepishly up at me, as her dad looked at her with a face of shock and concern, but his was less serious as he towered over the girl, leaning forward to actually be over her before smiling at her and winking.

"Is that them? Are they here-" An angry man's voice this time spoke, bursting out of the Principals door to see me and Bradley, in full flight suits- as Bradley wrapped an arm around Carole protectively.

The man was in a full suit and tie, he looked as if the only thing he was missing was a brief case. His angry eyes glared at Bradley, and Rooster's own gaze harshened, as if he was dealing with Maverick when those two weren't on good terms. Carole looked up at her dad concerned, and then turned to me when her dad didn't look down at her. I smiled as I met her gaze, kneeling down and opening my arms as she ran over to me, leaving her dad's lap.

The room was tense, and I picked up my daughter, holding her on my hip as she rested on my arm and hip. Bradley stood up shortly after Carole left him, holding his head high as he refused to break eye contact with the other man. "Billy wait outside. The adults need to have a discussion." The unknown man spoke, as the principal rushed out. I truly felt bad for him, he was a smaller man, glasses on his face as his age showed through his balding head.

"Let's all just calm down." He spoke, smiling weakly in attempts to defuse the situation as he stood between the two men.

I smiled in pity at the short man, before setting Carole down next to me, holding her hand as he hugged into my leg. "Bradley." I spoke, as my husband whipped his head to look at me, his gaze softening. "Calm down." I smiled, calmly. Rooster nodded at me, taking a breath before turning to the principal, now ignoring the man in the suit.

"Thank you, Mrs. Bradshaw." The man smiled at me, as if I had just paid off his student loans. "Now please, can we all sit down. Children too." He spoke, nodding to Carole and the other little boy, who I suppose was named Billy.

The unknown man huffed before walking back into the office from which he had formerly burst out of, his child following behind him. The principal then offered a soft smile, as if to apologize, to Bradley has he held the door open.

Rooster gave the man a nod, and Carole and I could only follow as the Principal closed the door behind us. There were four chairs in front of the large wooden desk, the man from before and his wife sat in the two farthest from the door, their son standing on the other side of his parents.

The principal brushed past us and sat on his desk, and Bradley motioned for me and Carole to sit, opting to stand. I married an absolute gentleman. The man who I had to sit next to huffed, rolling his eyes as he crossed his arms at Bradley's action.

Rooster payed him no mind, now stand behind me with his hands on the back of my chair, as I wrapped my arm around Carole, who leaned her head against me as we all looked to the man sitting across the table. "I'll start with introductions then." The principal spoke, smiling at us. "As you know, I'm Mr. Clearwater. This is Mr. and Mrs. Morris. Mr. and Mrs. Morris, this is Captain and Captain Bradshaw." The principal nodded, as Bradley and I awkwardly smiled at the prudish couple next to us, who could only meet us with narrowed eyes.

This wasn't awkward. Nope. Not one bit. I turned my head towards Mr. Clearwater, and I brought my left hand up to Bradley's, him grabbing mine with no hesitance. I swept my thumb across his knuckles as the principal flipped a laptop on his desk, showing a video feed of a camera on the playground.

The black and white film showed the little boy, who was now hiding behind his mom, approach Carole. Carole had been playing on the swing set, the camera facing her, so we only saw Billy's back. The video shows him pointing at her, and then she hops off the swing set. I watch my baby approach him, and the boy pushed her shoulders back. She then launched herself at him, and I could feel both mine and Bradley's eyebrows raise. The video stops as teachers rush over and pull her off the poor boy.

"So, Carole is facing a week's suspension." Mr. Clearwater addressed, as Bradley and I now had serious faces on.

"Okay, but what about the little boy?" Bradley asked, eyes focused on the man opposite side of the desk, ignoring the harsh looks of outrage from the Morris couple.

The question shocked the principal, who seemingly had to a double take. I squeezed Bradley's hand, to show him that I full-heartedly was with him on this. "Sorry?" The principal asked.

"What about Billy's punishment?" I asked, pointedly. "I mean it's clear he started the altercation. He shoved our daughter first, are you not going to do anything about that?" I spoke, letting go of my daughter and my husbands hand, crossing my arms. Rooster nodded from behind me in agreement.

Mr. Clearwater opened his mouth to speak before Mrs. Morris cut him off. "Mister Clearwater!" She scolded, her face angrier than I think I've ever seen anyone be angry, "You can't seriously be suspending our son! That little monster," She sneered, pointing at our daughter, at which I leaned forward, pushing Carole slightly behind me as I narrowed my eyes at the foul woman. She turned her head back to the principal before continuing, "attack our pour baby boy." She cried, holding her son, who tried to squirm out of her hold.

"Carole, Why did you attack Billie?" I asked, turning to my daughter. She looked up at me, with sadness in her eyes.

I could only offer a small smile to try to tell her I wasn't mad at her, just curious. "I can't tell you. You said never to say bad words." She responded, looking up at me.

Bradley ran his head down the back of her hair before addressing her, "You can some, just this once. What did he say to you?" He spoke, smiling at Carole with nothing but love in his eyes.

The little girl took a heavy breath, moving her gaze from her father to me. "He said that I was lying when I said you and daddy were pilots for the navy when we were talking about careers. He said that it was-" She paused, taking a breath and breaking eye contact before gazing back at me, "bullshit. And that you were probably just janitors or something." She spoke, as I held her arms, nodding.

I nodded, smiling at her before she opened her mouth again, this time shakier, "H-he also said," she stuttered, looking down as she kept speaking. My heart broke to see my baby girl this sad, "that if you guys were pilots that you were," she breathed, wiping tears from her eyes as I placed my hand on her cheek to console her, "shitty pilots and would probably crash and die." she finished, crying by now as I held her in my arms.

I looked briefly to Bradley, who now held an aura of seriousness about him, as his father had died in a plane crash. I held my baby as I looked angrily to the principal, eyebrows raised. "I think that's all we need then. Billy will retain a week of suspension, and while Carole did not provoke the other student, she still did attack him so she will also be facing a week's suspension." He finish, nodding at us as the Morris family stormed out, the mother practically dragging her son by the hand.

I sighed, picking up my daughter and handing her to Bradley as we made our way to the car. "Carole, you know we're not mad at you right?" I asked, turning around from the passenger seat as I looked at Carole, who sat proudly in the back in her car seat.

She nodded at me, opting to stay quiet as she played with a doll, petting its hair. "I love you, baby." Rooster spoke, turning around from the drivers seat as he winked at Carole.

She smiled up at her dad, softly but still looked at her doll. "I love you too. I'm sorry."

"Don't be, princess." He spoke, his eyes now focused on the road before us. "Do you wanna come to Mommy and Daddy's work? You can see Auntie Nat." He spoke, glancing every so often in the rear view to look at our daughter.

This seemed to do the trick, as Carole immediately brightened up, the earlier events forgotten about. "Yes please!" She cheered, almost jumping in her seat as I turned back to smile at her before facing front again, aviators resting on my face once again as I glanced at the time.

By now it was around 11:00, and I was feeling hungry. "Carole what do you say we go get McDonalds for lunch?" I smiled, facing my daughter who cheered once again. Bradley laughed, shaking his head as he moved to turn into the nearest McDonald's parking lot.

And one big mac, one ten piece nugget, both with fries and Sprite, and one kids meal later we were all at base. Bradley and I walked in, Carole holding Rooster's hand, her other hand holding her Happy Meal box, as she had little shades on her face. They were kid's aviators, that she insisted on having after her father and I wore our own so much.

"Aunt Nattie!" Carole yelled, seeing a group of Lieutenant's all listening to Phoenix, as they stood in front of the runway, seemingly they were about to go suit up. The little girl dropped her father's hand and tenderly placed her Happy Meal box on the pavement beneath her before running up to her honorary aunt.

Natasha spun on her heels, bending down slightly with arms wide open, grabbing the five year old and spinning her in the air, before allowing the child to rest on her hip. "Hello my favorite niece. Would you like to tell your mommy's class what they should always remember before they fly?" She asked the girl in her arms as I handed Carole's happy meal to Bradley, who didn't have a class right now.

Carole perked up, smiling as she moved her head to address the group of Lieutenant's. Half of them looked like they would melt at Carole as they admired my baby. It would be the first time for this class to see them, as they were only three weeks into their course and it was the first time in awhile that Carole would visit Rooster and I's work. "Don't try to dogfight Auntie Phoenix or Momma C/S. They will always win. But, you can always beat Uncle Hangman!" She nodded as she explained to the Lieutenants.

Bradley and I burst out laughing, wondering when the hell Natasha taught her thought. "Yes Ma'am." A few of the Lieutenants sounded, giggling. "Alright. With that message, I'll give you back to your main instructor. Captain Bradshaw." She nodded at me, as I smiled and thanked her as she still held on to Carole, her and Bradley heading toward the break room.

"Right then. Did you guys just finish the simulated mission, or were you about to start?" I asked, as Lieutenant Evers was quick to respond.

"We just finished." He informed, taking his aviators off.

"And?" I asked, expectantly as I raised my eyebrows from behind my own sunglasses.

"No one succeeded." Arrow, a younger female Lieutenant, admitted, as I clapped my hands together.

"Alright then. Let's review." I spoke, opening the door to the base as the Lieutenants followed me, heading to the mission review room.

I was halfway into breaking down Arrow, Jackal, and his WSO Hotdog- Lieutenant Evers-, who had lost one too many eating contests, before being interrupted by a knock at the door. I opened it to find Carole resting in Bradley's arms. I raised my eyebrows in confusion, but a smile put on my face from being greeted with my two favorite people in the world.

"How may I help you?" I asked, quirking my eyebrow at Carole.

"She said she wants to go to Mommy's class. So I figured I'd ask if you have an empty seat for us." Bradley spoke for Carole, who smiled shyly into her fathers chest.

This prompted a chuckle from me, as I opened the door wider. "I think I have a few empty seats in the front just for you, missy." I teased, winking at my daughter as I pinched at her arm. Bradley smiled at her, before turning to me to peck a kiss on my lips before entering the review room. "Thank you Captain Bradshaw." He teased, walking in as the Lieutenants faces brightened up at my daughter.

"Anytime, Captain Bradshaw." I nodded, a goofy smile on my face as I took to the podium once more. "Alright, where were we?" I asked my class, before smiling as I held up my hand, the clicker for the presentation behind me clutched in between my fingers. I narrowed my eyes briefly at the screen, before pausing the video. "Alright. Decision time. Arrow, Jackal. You two were up against Phoenix in my F-35. You hadn't started the mission yet, when Captain Trace entered the scene as a bogie. What was your decision?" I asked, crossing my arms as I turned back to the Lieutenants before me. They didn't answer.

I sighed, placing the clicker on the podium before me. "Who was mission leader?" I asked, my hands now on the podium as I shifted my weight to my arms. Arrow raised her hand. "Alright Lieutenant Brookston, it's on you then. What did you decide to do when Hotdog alerted you of the bogie?" I asked, looking at the female pilot before me.

"He didn't, Captain Bradshaw." She responded, chewing gum as she glanced over at Jackal and Hotdog before returning her gaze to the front. "They abandoned me without giving me a heads up to take Phoenix on a one-on-one. I continued en-route to the mission and hit the target. I then bailed out of the climb when I hit 8G's, ma'am." The Lieutenant explained.

I raised my eyebrows as I looked over at Jackal and his WSO. Expressing nothing but how unimpressed I was on my face, as I nodded at the pair. "What have you been taking notes from a younger version of Captain Seresin? Do you really think it wise to abandon your wingman to take on a superior aircraft on your own?" I scolded, as I crossed my arms.

Evers held his head low, listening to me as his gaze met the floor. Jackal looked up at me with a fire in his eyes. "It's not the plane ma'am. It's the pilot." He spoke, determined as I narrow my eyes at the lieutenant.

Carole raised her hand from where she sat next to her father. I looked away from the Lieutenant to point to my kid. "What's up Carole?" I asked.

"Isn't it always better to fight with your wingman than abandon them and try to prove that you're better than your enemy? You always say that its better to stick with your friends than to try to go out on your own!" She cheered before sipping her McFlurry.

Rooster looked at her shocked, as the rest of the Lieutenants also had looks of shock pass over them. "Jackal can you explain why my five year old knows how to dogfight better than you?" I asked, as the young Lieutenant huffed. Smiling, I glanced at my watch to notice it was time for the cadets to have a break. "You're all dismissed." I smiled, as the Lieutenants left the room in a hurry, many of them high fiving Carol on the way out.

I smiled at Carole as Rooster played with her and an airplane figurine that was lying around. "Carole, which plane is that?" I mused as my baby looked at me, and looked back at the plane. She narrowed her eyes in concentration, making a funny face and pursing her lips.

She looked between me and the plane, as if it was some kind of trick question. "It's an F-18." She determined, nodding as she handed with back to her father, who had the biggest grin on his face as he looked over at me. I smiled, closing my eyes as I nodded to her.

"That it is, sweet girl." I spoke, as Natasha and Jake walked into the room, the four of us- well usually five with Bob, would often use the break time as a lunch and get-together. To talk about cadets, and just generally hangout.

"Uncle Jake!" Carole cheered, making her way out of the blue seat before running up to the blond male.

"There's my favorite girl!" Hangman cheered, picking up the small girl as Bradley stood up. Jake held the small child in his arm, resting her on his hip like how Phoenix and I did previously. "Oooh! A McFlurry." He teased, picking up her drink as she whined and hit him on the shoulder. "Ow. ow! Stop it! Here!" He laughed, handing the drink to Carole as he set the girl down in the blue chair before him. "Now I know how Billy feels." He muttered, causing Bradley to chuckle, as I sighed at the pair.

Carole sat clueless to the joke, sipping her ice cream shake before looking up at Phoenix. "Auntie Nat?" She asks, as Phoenix turned from where she stood.

"What's up, sweetheart?" Natasha asked, running her hand through Carole's hair.

"Why do you and Uncle Jake and daddy fly F-18's and mommy gets an F-35? That seems unfair." She pointed out, placing her drink in the cupholder as she crossed her arms judgmentally. I swear I saw Rooster sneak out his phone to take a photo of her in this position.

Natasha thought for a moment before responding. "Because you can't tell anyone, but your mommy flies better than everyone else here, so they gave her a better plane. But your mommy is super nice and shares with her friends, so sometimes she lets me fly her plane." She explained, squatting before the girl as Carole nodded, as if affirming the knowledge Natasha was telling her.

"But how do you fly without Uncle Bob?" She asked, confused.

"Your mommy's plane is just that good." Natasha spoke, before tickle attacking the small girl.

Carole giggled, and turned towards me after Natasha let up. "Mommy!" She called, as I looked at her.

"Carole!" I responded, as Bradley had moved to the computer that held my presentation, wrapping it up and shutting it down for me.

"Can I see your plane? Like can I sit inside of it?" she asked, stars in her eyes looking up at me. God I was so screwed. That little girl could ask for me to give her the world and I don't think I could say no.

"Of course!" Bradley spoke, before going to grab his daughter, and carried her out of the room, winking at me as he walked out.

"So she's suspended from school." I spoke, as Hangman and Phoenix sat down, both turning to me with looks of shock.

Jake gave me a weird look. "What did she get suspended for? Saying a potty word?" He teased as Natasha jabbed him in the ribs. "Ow." he spoke, looking at the black haired girl, betrayed.

"Nah. She launched herself at this little shithead who talked about me and Bradley not being pilots, or good pilots at least, and saying that we would die in a jet crash. Honestly I don't know how to even punish her for that, because I'm pretty sure Bradley and I would do the same thing if someone said that now." I explained, as I sat down on a chair with wheels in front of the duo.

"Just do the whole 'violence is never the issue' thing." Phoenix suggested, as she took a sip from her water bottle. I nodded, before wheeling across the room to my computer, closing it and sliding it in my bag.

"It'll probably be what I end up doing. I just don't want her to think Bradley and I are mad at her, you know?" I explained, as the two nodded in agreement. "You know she still asks when she can go to Uncle Jake and Uncle Bob's house." I teased, smirking up at Hangman.

Phoenix turned towards the blond, a giddy grin lacing her face as she wiggled her eyebrows at him. "She can sleepover today honestly. Bob said he's feeling better. I can call him right now and ask if you and Rooster want a night off." He suggested, pulling his phone out of his pants pocket.

"Honestly, you can take her for the night if you'd like." I nodded. "She doesn't have school tomorrow, so I need to find someone to watch her. I might pin her on Mav and Penny if they're not too busy." I thought. "Alright, you call Bob. I'm going to go stop my husband and child from stealing my third baby." I joked, referring to my plane as I walked out the door. Phoenix followed me, as Jake gave me a thumbs up from where he was standing on the phone at the back of the room.

The walk to the jet hangar wasn't long, and I soon found my baby sitting in the pilots seat, an oversized helmet barely resting on her head as she put her hands on the controls. "Wooosh." Rooster spoke, grabbing the helmet by one hand on the top, whirling her around as she giggled.

"Why are they so cute?" I complained to Phoenix as we walked up as she giggled. She walked up to the plane as I checked my phone, a text from Hangman confirming that Bob would love to have Carole spend the night.

I smiled as I walked up to the trio, Phoenix now making fake coms with Carole as Bradley greeted me by wrapping an arm around my waist. "How would you feel about her spending the night with Jake and Bob?" I asked as he looked to me, Carole happily distracted with Phoenix as she wore her father's helmet.

Bradley smiled at me, pulling me closer to him as he whispered in my ear, still making eye contact. "I'd love some alone time, Mrs. Bradshaw." He teased, winking before he tickled me.

"Bradley!" I scolded, jumping as I jokingly pushed him away, only for him to pull me closer, kissing me on the temple.

"Yeah. I think a night with Jake and Bob would be good for her." He spoke, smiling as he watched Carole go 'pew pew' with the plane. I swear I could watch his heart melt as I pressed a kiss to his jawline. "I love you." he spoke, looking at Carole before turning his gaze to me.

"I love you too." I smiled up at him, pressing a kiss to his lips before being interrupted by Carole.

"Ewww!" She whined, causing Bradley to rush up and grab the helmet off of her, Rooster peppering her with kisses, despite her best efforts to shoo her father away. I smiled, watching my husband and my baby goof around as I could only gaze at them with love and admiration in my eyes. Maybe being suspended isn't such a bad thing.

#baby bradshaw #carole bradshaw #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw #rooster x reader #rooster bradshaw x reader #bradley #bradshaw #maverick #phoenix #natasha trace #hangman #jake seresin #top gun maverick #top #gun #top gun #tg:m

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winterscaptain · 2 years

Text

come home.

Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw x Fem!Reader a top gun: maverick fic

a/n: i am so excited to share this fic with you all! i started writing it as soon as i came home from my first watch and the final edits came in last night as i reviewed my notes from my third visit to the theater. as always, let me know what you think!

words: 16k content advisories: language, alcohol use, alcohol mention, food consumption, general shenanigans and goofy group chats acknowledgements: thank you to my beta-readers and collaborators, aimz (@ssaic-jareau) and katie (@extrakatie). shout out to red (@hurricanejjareau), my concept co-creator who helped me at every step. couldn’t do this without you!

summary: if home is where the heart is, you hate it when your home has to crash-land on an aircraft carrier. or, what happens when dagger squad comes home.

masterlist | ask

You hear your name over your cube and stand, surprised to see one of the few admirals in the building standing by your desk. They aren’t a rarity in the Pentagon by any stretch, but they don’t usually need to see you.

Your phone sits open, waiting for a text from Bradley. The exchange from last night stands lonely on your screen.

4:56am On the deck! I love you.

4:57am I love you! Fly safe and come home to me in one piece.

4:59am ❤️

“Sir?”

He hands you a piece of paper. It appears to be a boarding pass for a plane headed to San Diego in a couple of hours. Your stomach drops and you have no idea what your face looks like when you meet the admiral’s gaze again.

“Transport is due in tonight.”

You swallow. There’s part of you that always worried about Bradley dying out there in one of his fucking planes…

“Sir, is…” You clear your throat. “Is he…”

The admiral spares you. “He’s alive. And mostly fine.” There’s a funny little smile on his face. “Be sure to thank Lt. Seresin when you arrive.”

“Hangman?” You ask, your brow furrowed. “Respectfully, sir, what the hell happened out there?”

+++

You check in to the naval hospital and practically jog to Bradley’s room. You don’t find him right away, but you do see part of his team - Hangman, Phoenix, Bob, and Payback - sitting in the little plastic chairs in the waiting area.

Without thinking about it too much, you hardly wait for Jake to get to his feet before you’re throwing your arms around his neck, burying your face in his chest or shoulder, or whatever you can reach.

“Thank you.”

You can feel him nod and tighten his grip on you. One arm secures you around the waist, his other hand holding your head to him.

The few details you know are enough to owe him for a lifetime, so you thank him again. You’re not sure what you say in total, but you certainly repeat yourself a few times.

“Of course,” he replies. “It’s my job and I’d do it again.”

You hear a scoff and pull back, wiping your eyes.

You’re met with Phoenix’s grin. “He’s being dramatic,” she says. “It wasn’t that exciting.”

“Excuse me,” Hangman retorts. “Did you dead-eye fire at a fifth-gen fighter yesterday while it was nose to nose with Maverick and Rooster, destroying the incoming missile and the aircraft, surely and heroically saving their lives?”

Phoenix rolls her eyes. You just know this incident will give him enough ego ammunition for the rest of time.

“That’s enough,” you tell him with a smile. “Plus, I’m pretty sure you just breached your clearance.”

Bob pulls a face. “He definitely did.”

You grin, feeling truly relaxed for the first time in seven hours. “Where’s Fanboy?”

Payback looks up. “Cafeteria. He’ll be back soon. Want anything?”

“No, I’m good. I ate at the airport in DC.” You peer down the hallway. “Just eager to see my boy.”

“That was…” Bob says under his breath, checking his watch and looking at Phoenix, “like seven hours ago.”

“Is that who I think it is?” A voice down the hallway has you turning over your shoulder. “Chim!”

“Coyote!”

He grins and scoops you up, turning you around in a circle before setting you back on your feet.

“With the Rooster in the coop, the Chicken couldn’t have been too far behind, right?” Hangman quips, that shit-eating grin back on his face.

“That’s a stupid-ass nickname and you know it,” you tell him.

He shrugs. “It’s your call sign, now. Better get used to it.”

“Wait,” Phoenix says. “Chicken, I get, but Chims? I’m lost.”

“It’s just a stupid thing that evolved,” Coyote says, shrugging. “Stupid way to say chicken turned into chimken, then Chicken became Chim…” He waves her off. “I mean, how do you get Bag Man from Hangman?”

Hangman rolls his eyes, ready to come back at her but something stops him. He looks past you and smiles. “Hey, Mav! How’s he doin’?”

“Good,” a voice replies. “He’ll be ready for visitors in about fifteen minutes. They’re running a couple of cognitive tests and then they want to keep him overnight, just in case. He smacked his head pretty good on ejection and again on landing, so even with the helmet…” The voice trails off and you turn. “Who’s this?”

Maverick Mitchell’s face is a familiar one from photos and the old home videos Carole showed you before she died, not to mention the brief glimpses you got at the funeral.

He’s got a place of honor on Rooster’s desk at home, but you’ve always known the focal point of that picture to be Goose in the RIO seat. Maverick is, of course, a recognizable figure, but not one that inspires any degree of fondness.

He offers a hand to you and you take it somewhat coldly, keeping a neutral expression on your face. Before you can remind him who you are, Jake gives your name and adds, “We call her Chicken though.”

“Chicken, huh? When did that start?” Mav asks with a smile.

You shrug, your mouth pinched. “When Bradley was in OCS, I guess.”

“I’m sure I’ll hear the story later,” he says. His smile softens. “It’s good to see you again.”

Sure.

You give him a tight pull of your mouth that could be a smile if you tried a little harder. “Yeah.”

You feel a little bad - you know Maverick had a good hand in saving Bradley’s life as well, but the hours you’ve spent drying tears over this motherfucker in the last thirteen years makes that easy to overlook.

Turning, you check in with Bob and Phoenix, “I’m gonna head down to mess and pick something up. Need anything?”

“I thought you -”

Phoenix elbows Bob and answers for both of them. “We’re good. We’ll be here.”

+++

Maverick isn’t fazed by your chilly reception. He knows who you are.

“What was that about?” Coyote asks, finding a seat.

Maverick shrugs. “As you might recall, Rooster and I weren’t on the best terms when we all arrived. Recent developments aside, I get it. I’m sure it’ll be alright.” He offers a firm pat on Coyote’s shoulder before sitting down himself.

“Why’d they let you loose?” Phoenix asks. “Didn’t you also go down in enemy territory?”

“Ah, they don’t care much about me. Rooster still has many distinguished years to offer the Navy.”

Phoenix snorts. “C’mon.”

“Alright,” Mav relents. “I had them check me out on the carrier and I was fine. I insisted they send Rooster for a full work-up, just in case.”

Phoenix hums, leaving it alone for now.

“How long’s it been since they’ve seen each other?” Hangman asks.

“The poultry?”

Hangman snorts and nods.

Phoenix shrugs. “Unless he stopped off in Virginia on his way here, it’s been five or six months. He’d been overseas for a minute and he wasn’t due back for shore duty until the middle of spring.” She sighs. “Maybe he’ll actually pull his head out of his ass and marry her this time.”

+++

You check in with the front desk again to confirm Bradley can take visitors again before you go upstairs. You don’t want to spend any more time than is necessary with Maverick.

It is strange though, you figure. The only reason you know Bradley at all is because Mav pulled his papers. It makes you smile, remembering back to undergrad at UVA, more than a decade ago.

“Excuse me!”

You turn and smile, finding a tall and sort-of cute (mostly tall) guy jogging up to you.

“Do you know where I can find…um…” He checks his phone. “Professor Taylor? I have office hours and I’m late.”

You nod. “I just came from her office.” You turn and point at the building a little ways down the path. “Head over there and she’s on the third floor. The elevator’s broken, though, so you’ll have to go up the stairs on the outside of the building.”

He heaves a breath. “Thank you. You don’t happen to be in 312 with her, do you?”

“Yeah,” you tell him. “I sit behind you.”

He (you suppose unconsciously) brings his hand to the back of his head. “Really?”

“Yeah, really.” You put an earbud back in. “I’ll be there Thursday. Don’t be later than you already are!”

“Oh, shit.” He takes off at a run and hops backward for a moment, facing you. “Thanks!”

You step out of the elevator and make your way down the hall, bypassing the team in a hurry. A couple of them stand to greet you, but you can see Bradley through the window and that’s your sole focus.

He’s in pajamas - well, a UVA shirt and pair of joggers - rather than a gown. That alone is enough to keep your blood pressure down. He looks fine from here…

“Christ, baby! What are you doing he-”

Your lips on his are enough to shut him up. He lets out a little breath, melting into you. His arms slide around you, stealing your breath as your hands knead into the hair at the base of his neck. He flinches a little and you pull back immediately, letting go.

“Sorry.”

He shakes his head, his mega-watt grin blinding you. “You’re fine. You’re perfect. Hi.” His hand pulls from your waist, coming up to rest against your cheek. “When did you get in?”

“About an hour ago.” You slide a hand down the outside of his arm, holding his hand to your cheek. You kiss his palm. “I missed you.”

“Missed you, too,” he says, nearly at a whisper.

You shuffle so you can wrap your arms around him and burrow deep, holding him as tight as you can. “You’re not allowed to crash planes anymore, okay?”

He chuckles. “No promises, sweetheart.”

You stand there for a moment, swaying a little. The nurses are kind enough to leave you alone for a second. He smells the same - something warm and sunshiny, with a touch of jet fuel, canvas, and something clean and cozy.

“You scared the fuck outta me.”

“I’m sorry,” he says. He means it. “I’ve got some stuff I want to talk to you about, too.”

Your stomach drops and you lean back to look at him.

“Ah, shit. Sorry. That’s - that’s not how I wanted to phrase that.” He smiles at you and your heart unclenches. “I just wanted to fill you in on a couple of things. But I want to hear about what you’re working on, first.”

He lets you guide him to the bed, where he settles in among the pillows and pulls you with him.

You curl into his side and start telling him about the project you’re working on at the Pentagon - at least the basic details he’s allowed to know - for a few seconds before he interrupts you.

“Wait, how did you get here?”

You twist around to look at him. “Do I need to send you back for more concussion screening?”

He rolls his eyes. “No, I mean -”

“I got here in a commercial airliner. They’re significantly bigger than the planes you fly, but I think you’ve seen them before? Maybe a Boeing 777?”

“Shut up. You know what I mean.”

You smile and relent. “Yeah, alright. My boss said, verbatim, ‘given your highly-decorated boyfriend got blown up in enemy airspace and crash-landed an F-14 on a carrier less than twelve hours ago, you can take a couple of days off.’”

“He sounds cool.”

“He’s reasonable.”

There’s quiet for a moment. You breathe deeply, letting out a long, relieved sigh. Bradley’s fingers trace patterns on your shoulder somewhat absently.

“Hey,” he says.

You look up.

“Does it bug you that we’ve been together so long and I’ve never asked you to marry me?”

You swallow to cover the bolt of adrenaline shot into your system. “You’ve asked me to marry you plenty of times.”

A cup of coffee lands in his hands after a bad night of sleep. You sit beside him, pressing a kiss to his shoulder.

“Marry me,” he says, smiling.

You laugh. “No.”

He mimes stabbing himself in the gut, twisting and pulling the invisible blade. “You wound me, my lady.”

“Call me when you’ve got a ring, honey.”

And it’s true. Except on paper and in the eyes of the Navy, for all intents and purposes, you’re married.

“Yeah, but seriously,” he says. He almost sounds concerned.

You sit up a little, bracing yourself on your arm so you can look at him. “What’s on your mind?”

“Well…” He looks anywhere but you, surprisingly bashful. “I just…I don’t want you to feel that I take you for granted.”

“I don’t feel that way,” you tell him, quickly. “Not at all.”

“I know. But you deserve better than just a long-time boyfriend who’s too busy to get his shit together and lock you down already.”

You huff a laugh. “Last I checked, I’m not dating Jake.”

Bradley rolls his eyes. “You know what I mean. It’s been a long time.”

“Yeah, I do, and it has.” Your free hand shakes as you run it over his collar and down his chest. “But I’m fine, baby. You know that. I’m in no rush.”

“You’ve thought about it, right? Making it official?” He asks.

The genuine insecurity in his voice makes you smile. “Don’t be stupid. Of course I’ve thought about it. I’ve thought about it since our fourth date.”

“Fourth?” Now he just sounds offended.

You push at his shoulder. “Fourth. You know what you did on the third.”

He tips his head. You’re right.

There’s quiet for another moment.

“Bradley Bradshaw,” you start. He really does have a goofy, delightful name, doesn’t he? “When we’ve got time, we’ll make it happen. I don’t need time or a ring or a wedding when I’ve got you coming home with me after the Navy’s had her way with you.”

“You make us sound like swingers.”

You laugh. “Well, the Navy isn’t your mistress and neither am I, so I’ll leave you to do the math on that one.”

“Fair enough,” he says. He pulls you down beside him and kisses your forehead, tipping your chin up for something a little more proper. It’s easy to melt into him.

“But seriously,” he continues. “I want to marry the hell out of you and I love you. Is that okay?”

“Yeah,” you tell him. “That’s definitely okay.” You pause for a second. “But when you’re actually ready to ask, you better do it for real so I know you’re not joking this time.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

+++

You run into a three-star admiral at the coffee bar later in the evening. He taps your shoulder and says your name. You throw your headphones off your ears and around your neck, looking over at him.

“Sir?”

“They call you Chicken, don’t they?”

You can’t help but smile a little. “Should my ears be burning, sir?”

“Only a little,” he says. He offers a hand. “Admiral Simpson.”

You take it. “I’ve heard lots about you, Admiral. My supervisor at the Pentagon was class of ‘93 at Top Gun.”

“Ah. Thunder is a friend. I’m glad to hear he’s still working his magic over there.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Shall we?” He gestures down the hall and you nod, walking a little ahead of him through the door.

You walk with him in silence for a little while. At this point, you’ve grown immune to the intimidation factor of high-ranking Navy officers (especially pilots). You know they’re all, at least on the inside, little kids who love planes. Plus, anyone who willingly gets into a two-billion-dollar bomb for a day job has to be a little crazy.

“I was talking to Thunder this morning, actually.”

Your step only falters a little bit, but you wait for him to say more.

“I hear the work you’re doing at the Pentagon is important.”

“Yes, sir. I think so.” You offer him a small smile and he returns it.

He stops a little ways outside Bradley’s door. You join him, keeping your eyes affixed to the nurse schedule on the whiteboard across the way. “I also hear that you request a transfer every time Rooster is stationed somewhere new.”

You shrug. “I make an effort. Since he’s been overseas so much the last year or so, I’ve settled in at the Pentagon a little bit more.”

“We spoke a bit this morning about transferring your contract to NIWC Pacific. There are a couple of projects relevant to your current work that we’d like to have you lead down here, if you’re interested.”

You blink a couple of times. “When would that transfer go into effect?”

“Not this Monday, but the Monday after. You’d theoretically have the rest of this week off and next week would be spent facilitating the first part of the responsibility transfer among your Pentagon team. Of course, the Navy would be happy to assist with relocation, as your permanent address is also Rooster’s.” He sighs, almost sounding regretful.

“Sir?”

“Of course, this would be easier if you were married, but that’s neither here nor there.” He smiles at you and starts to walk away. “Just think about the transfer. Thunder will reach out soon for your official word.”

+++

“So,” Bradley says without preamble, “about Maverick.”

You look over at him, a question in your eyes.

Bradley seems to struggle with his words for a second. “We both saved each others’ asses out there. I’d be dead without him.”

There’s silence for a second. You know he’ll get there eventually.

“He’s the closest thing to a father I remember and it was… weird being around him again.”

He reaches out and you take his hand. His thumb passes back and forth over your knuckles, treating them almost like a worry stone.

Bradley flies down the hill on his bike, going way too fast, but he can’t feel fear over the rush of the wind on his face. He pedals faster… faster… faster.

Before he can blink, he’s upside down, tumbling over the handlebars and onto the asphalt. He lands on his arm and something doesn’t feel right. He licks his lips and wipes his nose of what he’s sure is sweat. It comes off his chin red, dripping onto the pavement.

He’s stunned, frankly. There’s something in his nine-year-old brain that can’t grasp the concept of his own lack of invincibility.

All at once, the pain starts and he begins to wail in earnest, yelling for his mom, or Mav, or whoever might be around.

Maverick hears him first. He’s sitting at the Bradshaws’ kitchen table, nursing a beer in the sunshine from the window. Faster than the jet he flies daily, he rockets out of his seat, throwing the door open and hopping the porch fencing, bracing his fall with his hands before finding his feet again. He can see Bradley down the hill on the street, small and blond and covered in dirt and blood.

“Mav!”

“I’m coming, buddy! Hold on.”

Pete isn’t even breathless when he gets to Bradley, scooping him onto his hip with one arm and rescuing his bike with the other.

He can’t bring himself to care that his white v-neck is soaking up the blood from Bradley’s bloody forehead. He holds him tightly, tighter when Bradley burrows further into him.

“It’s okay, bud. We’ll sort you out.”

Mav opens the door and calls out for Carole, his voice loud but calm. He kisses Bradley’s head and sets him down on the counter next to the sink. “Alright, buddy. Let’s see what we’re working with.”

Bradley’s sobs have calmed to hiccups and he refuses to let go of his arm, hugging it to his body. Mav figures ten minutes won’t matter much for that.

Carole is admirably calm as she joins them, washing the garden off her hands before retrieving the first aid kit in the bathroom.

With gentle hands, Mav cleans the dirt out of the cut on Bradley’s forehead and the scrapes on his chin and nose. Carole gives them space after a moment, watching Maverick talk quietly to Bradley, narrating his movement and giving him a hard time about “using the afterburner on the descent.”

It makes her smile.

“I’m ready for him to be back in my life again, I think. Losing Ice has been…” He pauses. “It’s been hard and weird and I need what’s left of my family, I think.” He looks at you. “What do you think?”

“I think if you’re ready to move on, that’s a good thing.” You think for a moment and add, “I’m glad you and Mav had some time together. It’s been a long time.”

You sit with Ice in the waiting room. He has a hand on your shoulder, warm and solid. The two of you get to your feet when Bradley returns, looking like he’s aged a decade in the past twenty-four hours.

“How is she?” You ask.

He shakes his head. “Fading fast.”

Ice’s hand slides off your shoulder as you leave him, crossing the room to take Bradley in your arms. He holds you tightly, burrowing into you, his eyes squeezing shut.

His breath catches and you adjust your grip, holding even tighter. Tears land on your shoulder.

“I’m so sorry, baby.”

He takes a shuddering breath. “She wants to see you if you’re up to it.” He looks over your shoulder. “You too, Uncle Ice.”

You lead the way down the hall, Ice following behind you. He’s like a looming shadow: lean, strong, and intimidating.

Carole looks awfully small, but they’ve removed all the tubes and wires. She smiles at you, soft, before her gaze shifts to Ice.

“Come here, you two.”

You take a seat to her left, by her head. Ice takes the one next to you. Carole holds his hand.

“I’ve asked Bradley to consider forgiving Pete, but I know he won’t for a long time.” She pauses. “You two are the only family he has left, in his mind. I know you’ll take care of him, but you need to take care of each other, too.”

“You got it, Carole,” Ice says, the side of his mouth lifting in a handsome, crooked smile. “Mav’s at our wing, too. Flying low-vis.”

She smiles at you, sharing a moment only the Navy-adjacent can truly appreciate. Her gaze grows serious and she looks at Ice. “Get Bradley back home and call Maverick, please. He’s the only one allowed to be here when I die.”

You’ll never forget the look of hollow grief on Maverick’s face when you saw him for the first time the next morning. You were left alone as Bradley brushed past him without a word and stepped into the room to see his mother’s body, to say goodbye.

Maverick doesn’t speak and neither do you. When Bradley returns, Maverick reaches out.

Bradley pulls away with a roll of his shoulder, taking your hand. “C’mon,” he says to you. “There’s a lot of stuff to do.”

You don’t see Maverick, watching you go, feeling more alone than he has in his entire life.

“Yeah. It’s nice to understand him a little bit better as an adult.” He shrugs. “I really hated him for pulling my papers but I know he was just…” He heaves a sigh. “He’s just trying to do right by me, I think. I didn’t get that before.”

“That’s understandable.” You trace little patterns on his shirt. “He hurt you, held you back. You’d be insane not to be at least a little mad.”

He hums again. “I guess. I did meet you, though, so it’s not all bad.”

“No?” You ask, smiling. “Not all bad?”

“No,” he replies. He presses a kiss to your forehead. “And I was thinking about how shitty I’ve been about that - I can’t imagine how me griping about my wasted time at UVA made you feel. I’m really sorry.”

You shake your head. “I understood the implicit exception.”

“It was still insensitive. Mav said something about that today and it kind of clicked. So…” He sighs. “I’m sorry if I ever made you feel like it was a mistake or a fluke that I met you.”

“You’re the dumbest man alive, you know that?” You pat his chest. “And don’t you think I would have told you if that hurt my feelings?”

He snorts. “Now, yeah. Ten years ago? No.”

“Fair enough,” you reply, squeezing his hand.

He smiles. “I guess what I’m really saying is, be nice to him. I’m sure he’ll want to get to know you.”

“Alright. I’ll do my best.” You return his smile and kiss the back of his hand. “I love you, you know.”

“I do know that, yes,” he replies with a smile. “And I love you.”

+++

Bradley reaches for his phone and you hand it to him without looking up from your tablet.

“I can get it, you know. I’m not actually injured.”

You smile sweetly at him and he rolls his eyes. He fires off a text to Hangman.

9:03pm I need a favor.

Jake replies immediately. 9:03pm I just saved your life and you need another favor?

9:03pm It’s easy I promise.

Jake doesn’t reply, so Bradley sends his request anyway.

9:04pm Can you or Mav grab Chims and take her to the hotel? She needs to sleep and I need to make a phone call before it gets too late.

The response is instant. 9:04pm Wait are you finally pulling the trigger???

Bradley stuffs his grin. 9:05pm If you say anything, I’ll ironically kill you.

9:05pm I always wanted an unironic and heroic death. Just for that, you get Mav.

9:05pm Thanks. Seriously dont say anything i swear

He sends another text to a friend, Lt. Gavin “Stub” Alonso in Virginia - one who has keys to your shared apartment.

9:05pm Are you still up/can you help me with something?

Stub replies promptly, thankfully. 9:05pm I’m up. All good in SD?

9:06pm All good. Need a favor. Can you drive to the apt and call me? 9:06pm I need something shipped ASAP.

9:07pm Easy. I’ll be there in 20 mins.

He gets a final text from Hangman. 9:07pm I wont!! Who do you think I am? 9:07pm Don’t answer that.

Bradley puts his phone down and leans back against the pillows. “Hey, when’s the last time you slept?”

“What?” You look over at him again looking admittedly a little dazed.

“I asked when’s the last time you slept.”

“I slept last night. Why?”

“I just know you’re still on East Coast time, so I wanted to make sure that you’re able to get back to the hotel tonight.”

You clamber out of the chair, setting your tablet aside, and sit next to him on the bed. “I’m fine.” You offer a pinkie to him. “I promise.”

He smiles and links his pinkie with yours, twisting your linked fingers to kiss the back of your hand. “I believe you, but you need to get some sleep.”

“Alright, fine. I’ll walk off base and call an Uber or something.” You hop off the side of the bed and start gathering your things.

Bradley chases after you, grabbing you around the waist and kissing your neck. “I called in a favor. Stay put.”

“Bradley,” you ask, “who are you inconveniencing this evening?”

He shrugs, playfully pulling you closer. “Nobody important.”

The two of you mess around, quipping back and forth a little longer than you realized.

“I can come back,” comes a playful chirp from the door.

The two of you freeze and look toward the door - Bradley’s holding your phone in the air with one hand while you attempt to climb him like a tree. You’ve got an elbow digging into his shoulder while your legs wrap around his waist.

Maverick’s in the doorway, leaning with his arms crossed and a smile on his face.

You slide down and get your feet under you while Bradley wordlessly hands your phone over.

“Hey, Mav,” Bradley says with a rueful grin, his hand rising to needlessly run over the back of his neck. “Thanks for the ride.”

Maverick snorts. “Ride’s not for you, kiddo. You’re stuck here until morning.”

“What?” Bradley says, a smile on his face. “I can’t be polite?”

You look between them, feeling more than a little out of the loop. Strangely, you’re also looking forward to getting to know Maverick a little better now.

Grabbing your bag, you give Bradley a quick kiss before shuttling him back into bed with a few gentle shoves. He pulls you back before you can get too far, running the back of his fingers over your cheek and pulling you in for another kiss.

“Goodnight. I love you.”

You smile, winking at him. “I love you too. Get some sleep.”

+++

Tonight won’t be the night you get to know Maverick, apparently. He takes your bag as soon as you’re outside, strapping it to the back of his bike and replacing the helmet that used to sit there. He hands the helmet to you and helps you get it on, tightening the strap under your chin.

You raise the visor. “Where’s yours?”

He smiles. “Don’t have one. This,” he says, tapping the side of your head, “is for my protection as much as yours. I just got Bradley back and I’m not about to screw it up now.”

You smile, letting him help you onto the back of the bike.

He mounts up and starts the engine, zipping up his bomber jacket. You study the patches for a second before tentatively placing your hands around Maverick’s waist, leaning into him as he settles the bike, kicking up the kickstand.

“Ready?” He asks.

You nod, but quickly realize he can’t see you. “Yep! All good.”

He covers one of your hands with his, pulling it into his shearling-lined pocket. There’s a lump of bunched fabric where you guess 30 years of passengers have held on for dear life. You take the lining in a tight fist, matching the hold with your other hand. Maverick pats your hand, satisfied. “Hang on tight.”

+++

Stubs calls Bradley about two minutes after you leave.

“Hey man, perfect timing,” Bradley says with a smile. “Thanks for helping me out.”

“Hey, look. As long as you’re getting what I think you’re getting, we’re all good. I still owe you from Oahu.” Stubs doesn’t even sound tired, which isn’t a surprise. He’s always been a night owl.

Bradley tips his head. “I think we’re on the same page. So, head up to our room and into the closet. I have a chest of drawers on the left side.”

There’s quiet while Stubs climbs the stairs. He can hear the closet slide open and the light turn on. “Damn, is she always this tidy?”

Bradley snorts. “No.”

“Just checking.” There’s a brief pause. “Okay, I’m here.”

“Alright check the bottom drawer first.” Bradley sits up, resting his elbow on his knee and his forehead settled on his hand.

“Are you telling me you don’t know where it is?”

Bradley rolls his eyes. “I literally put it there over a year ago and I ran two three-month assignments overseas and a special detachment recall since then. Gimme a break.”

“Fine. Okay. Bottom drawer.” There’s silence while he looks. “Do you guys seriously have two vibrat- never mind.”

“Sorry.”

“Nothing in here that looks like…a velvet box? Right? That’s what I’m looking for?”

“Yeah. Try the next drawer. Shouldn’t be anything questionable in there.”

Another pause. “Holy shit. Is this all your dad and Maverick’s stuff?”

Bradley nods, closing his eyes and trying to picture the box, where he’d last seen it to hide it from you. “Yeah. It should be with the patches back there, I think”

“Sweet. Let me put you down a second.”

There’s a bit of shuffling and then a little triumphant sound. Another shuffle. “I got it.”

“Please make sure the ring is in there.”

Stubs laughs. “It’s here. Damn, man. This looks great. She’s gonna love it.”

“Thanks.” Bradley smiles to himself. “Can you get it same-day or overnight? I’ll give you the address. It’ll be out in the Mohave so I can avoid base mixups.”

“Consider it done.”

+++

Maverick pulls the bike up in front of the hotel and you remove your helmet, shaking your head. You take Mav’s offered hand and dismount, unclipping your bag from the storage in back.

“Thanks, Mav.”

He steps off the bike and relieves you of your helmet. “Of course. Can I come get you tomorrow? I’ll have one of the boys bring Rooster’s car to the hospital before he’s due to get out.”

“Sure. Thanks.” You hike the strap of your bag a little higher on your shoulder. “Hey, um.”

He looks at you, his eyebrows high.

“I’m sorry I was rude earlier. Bradley told me that you guys have kind of… figured your stuff out.”

Maverick smiles, crooked and handsome. “I’d like to think so.” He takes a breath. “I’m glad he met you at UVA. Makes me feel better.”

“Me too.” You offer him a smile and to your own surprise, reach out for a hug. He returns it, warm and kind. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight. Shoot me a text in the morning.”

“I’m not sure I -”

“Bradley put it in while you were in the bathroom.”

You smile again, wide and bright. “Of course he did.”

+++

You wake up earlier than expected, no doubt still stuck on Eastern time, and fire off a text to the “Dagger Squad + Chim - Mav” group chat. The name, obviously, wasn’t your idea.

On a whim, you change it when you send your message.

6:34am Breakfast? You changed the name of the group to “Dagger Squad Jr.”

Jake Seresin changed the name of the group to “Dagger Squad but on Land”

Bob Floyd changed the name of the group to “Why are we changing it???”

You sit and watch the small notifications come in.

Tasha Trace changed the name of the group to “Dagger Squadron OSS”

You ask a question. 6:37am OSS?

Jake Seresin 6:37am Operational Support Staff

Coyote Machado 6:38am ^^^^

Reuben Fitch 6:38am When’s breakfast?

Fanboy Garcia 6:39am Where’s breakfast?

You reply. 6:40am Who’s breakfast?

Jake Seresin 6:40am Why’s breakfast?

Your heart leaps a little bit when Bradley replies.

Bradley Love ❤️ 6:41am Some of us are trying to sleep in. Bradley Love ❤️ changed the name of the group to “Dagger Fuckheads”

Jake Seresin 6:41am Too fuckin bad. 6:41am I like that one. Keep it.

Tasha Trace sent a gif.

Bob Floyd 6:42am Who’s that?

Coyote Machado 6:42am Kim Kardashian hitting her sister with her purse.

Jake Seresin 6:42am You’re lucky I’m feeling nice this morning and will choose to forget that you know that.

You fire off another reply. 6:43am Jake……….You also know who that is.

Jake Seresin 6:43am No comment.

Bradley Love ❤️ 6:44am I’m muting you guys. Text me if you actually need something.

You smile. 6:44am Look what you guys did omg

Tasha Trace 6:45am I’m game for breakfast.

Reuben Fitch 6:45am Chims - have you been to the Henry?

You shake your head, alone in your room. 6:45am Nope. A favorite?

Tasha Trace 6:46am Oooooooh good call. 6:46am Definitely a favorite. And it’s right next to base.

Fanboy Garcia 6:47am Are we inviting Mav?

You reply. 6:47am He’s supposed to give me a lift to the hospital later. Who’s dropping Rooster’s car?

Tasha Trace 6:48am Me. @Jake Seresin can you come get me from the hospital at 0750?

Jake Seresin 6:48am Yeah I can get you. Probably still beat everyone to the Henry too lmao

Bob Floyd 6:49am Better you than me, Phoenix. Hangman’s driving scares the fuck out of me.

Jake Seresin 6:49am Everything scares the fuck out of you.

Tasha Trace 6:50am Fuck you be nice

Jake Seresin 6:50am No ❤️

You roll your eyes and reply again. 6:51am So who’s coming to get me

Reuben Fitch 6:52am I’ll come get you. Are you at the lodge?

You reply promptly. 6:52am Yeah. 6:53am Okay y’all. Meet @ 0800 at The Henry.

Finally rolling out of bed, you give Maverick a call.

“Good morning!” he says, answering on the third ring. “You’re up early.”

“So are you,” you point out. “Any interest in breakfast at 0800 at The Henry?”

He makes a noise. “I’m out already. I’ll be back on land around ten. Want to head to the hospital then?”

“Sounds good to me. Thanks, Mav.”

“Of course.”

+++

Maverick is still out on the boat with Penny and Amelia when he gets a call from Bradley.

“Hey, you okay?” He has to shout over the noise of the water.

“All good. Are you going out to the desert in the next couple of days?”

Mav checks in with Penny, who smiles at him and takes the wheel. Ducking into the cabin, he closes the little door behind him and falls onto the couch. “I’m headed out there this weekend. Why?”

“I’m getting something sent over there and I was wondering if you’d be okay going to pick it up or…?”

“Bradley Bradshaw…” Maverick starts, a smile on his face. “Now, what on earth could you be shipping to my place in the desert?”

Bradley laughs. “It could be something that looks like jewelry…but I already threatened to kill Jake if he said anything.”

“I won’t say anything. I was planning on inviting Dagger over to the hangar this weekend for some fun, anyway. I can give it to you then and get some of your dad’s stuff to camouflage it.”

Mav still has a bunch of Goose’s stuff from Annapolis. Carole never wanted any of it back in the interest of keeping some storage space free in the house and Bradley inherited everything she had.

“Sounds perfect. Thanks again, Mav.”

“Anytime, kiddo. I’ll see you later when I bring your lady over.”

+++

“That is absolutely not what happened,” Coyote says, setting down his coffee. “I’m the only one who got the climb-out on the first try!”

Jake snorts. “Yeah…and you went into G-lock and almost burned in doing it.”

“That was so fuckin’ scary, dude,” Fanboy says. “We really thought you were a goner.”

You lean forward, feeling strangely settled amongst the Dagger team (a moniker they’ve taken beyond the special detachment and will probably keep for the rest of their careers - you’ve even heard mutterings about making patches for their jackets) even without Bradley by your side. “So, what did happen?”

“I finished the course and made it into exfil but I just couldn’t swing the Gs the first time, you know?” Coyote replies. “The thing is though, my little victory was totally overshadowed by the bird strike that put Phoenix and Bob in the hospital.”

You blink a couple of times. You must have missed that in Bradley’s daily updates. “You’re kidding.”

“Nah,” Phoenix says. “We got ambushed by some birds, both engines went out, and we had to bail. Mav saved our ass, I swear. He was babysitting everyone in the air that day.”

Coyote shakes his head. “It was so smart, though. He told you guys to bail at just the right time and he pulled tone on me to try and get me unlocked. I dunno how he thinks of this stuff.”

“At least you guys will know what to do next time, though, yeah?” You ask.

“Definitely,” Payback says. “Throwing tone on someone in G-lock went straight into my toolbox, I dunno about you guys.”

“Same,” Jake says, his mouth full of french toast.

Bob nods. “I’ll always recommend that if I’m in that situation again, yeah.”

More talk about training floats around the table for a while before Jake sits back, throwing his napkin on his plate. “So Miss Not-Bradshaw, what have you been up to in the last few weeks?”

Phoenix snorts into her glass of orange juice.

“First of all,” you reply, “take that up with Bradley, not me.”

That gets a laugh out of the table.

“Secondly, I’ve been working on some highly-classified white pages for SecDef and SecNav, so they’ve been keeping me busy.”

“That sounds interesting,” Bob says, his eyes kind and intrigued behind his glasses.

You smile. “I actually provided the one-pager for your mission. It was one of my colleagues at the NSA that found the uranium enrichment plant and figured the timeline.”

“No way!” Payback reaches over Phoenix and gives your shoulder a shake. “That’s amazing! So did you know what Rooster was going to be doing or?”

You shake your head. “No. That part was outside of the scope of my work, but I knew he was headed back to North Island a couple days after I submitted my analysis. I took a few guesses from there.”

“It’s cool that you can have at least some perspective,” Payback says. “I know my girl’s been in the dark from the jump.”

You hum once. “I can’t imagine. I mean…” You think for a second. “I know enough to be very concerned, but not enough to ease it, you know? I’d almost rather not know anything at all.”

“I can see that,” Fanboy says. “Kind of a no-news-is-good-news-thing, yeah?”

“Exactly.”

“So what’d they tell you to get you out here?” Jake asks.

You grin at him. “My boss handed me a boarding pass, said Bradley wasn’t dead, and told me to thank you upon arrival.”

“Oh my god,” Phoenix says with a laugh. “I would have flipped out.”

“I did! I didn’t even pack - I just grabbed my overnight bag for late nights at the office and hauled my ass to Dulles.”

Jake grins. “Well, we’re sure glad you’re here.”

You throw a potato wedge at him.

+++

The boys whoop and holler when Maverick pulls up to The Henry with his bike and tosses you the helmet. You hop on, holding tight to Mav’s jacket. You can see his smile from over his shoulder as he waves to his students, his colleagues, his team.

You can absolutely see yourself, once again, as a member of Bradley’s extended family.

It feels good.

+++

“What’s the prognosis?” You ask, sitting on the edge of the bed. Bradley sits beside you, tying his boots.

The doctor smiles. “Nothing but probably terminal foolishness.” She checks his charts again before confirming. “No serious head trauma, just two small burns under his ear and on his forearm. Keep an eye on those for infection.” She flips some pages again. “If anything doesn’t feel quite right, Lt. Bradshaw, please give us a call.”

“Thank you, Captain.” Bradley stands. He offers his hand and she shakes it. “I appreciate your work and your thoroughness to keep me in good shape, ma’am.”

“Of course, Lieutenant.” She hands him a folder. “There are your discharge papers. You are good to go.” She looks at you. “Take some time to review that with Lt. Bradshaw as well, if he’s comfortable with that.”

“Absolutely, ma’am.” You look at Bradley, briefly, with a smile. “I’ll keep an eye on him”

+++

“Do you mind if we stop somewhere before going back to the hotel? It’s kind of a pain in the ass because it’s off the island, but…” You trail off.

Bradley shakes his head, his eyes on the road behind his sunglasses. “Not at all. Where to, m’lady?”

You almost feel back for bringing down the room. “Can we visit Ice? I haven’t gotten a chance to pay my respects yet.”

As expected, Bradley’s expression sobers. He kisses the back of your hand, bringing it up from where he holds it over the console. “Of course.”

He makes a couple of turns, hopping onto the bridge, then the highway before getting off to wind through the curving roads of Point Loma.

“Want to visit the lighthouse while we’re here? It’s a nice day. We could walk it.”

You nod. “That sounds nice.”

Bradley checks into base and parks, walking around the car to open your door and hold your hand as you get out. You don’t let go as you step onto the grass, letting him lead you to the gravesite of a man who was effectively another father and uncle to him.

From what he’s told you, both Iceman and Maverick stepped up after his father died, tag-teaming where they could. Maverick was around a little more, but Ice was there, unfailing, for every baseball game, piano recital, and ceremony. From what you saw, Bradley deeply admired and respected his father’s classmate, called him and his wife “Uncle Ice” and “Aunt Sarah,” and never went a week without a phone call.

Unlike Maverick, Ice was also there through college, OCS, and flight training. While you’re privately certain that Mav, Ice, and Carole collaborated on his Naval Academy sabotage back in 2004, Bradley’s always been firmly of the mind that it was all Maverick’s doing. It wasn’t your job to manage his anger or resentment, but it might be time for another conversation about that.

You reach the stone, easily recognizable by the new, bright, white finish. Bradley releases your hand, standing at attention when he reaches the stone, offering a crisp salute. He takes one deep breath before his hand drops from his forehead, slow and controlled.

THOMAS KAZANSKY “ICEMAN” ADMIRAL UNITED STATES NAVY

COMMANDER OF U.S. PACIFIC FLEET FLYING CROSS BRONZE STAR NOVEMBER 13TH, 1959 - DECEMBER 9TH, 2018

The two of you stand in silence for a little while. You’d known Ice well, spending holidays with his formidably-sized family once you and Bradley were established and attending various keynote speakers in your career contracted with the Navy. Before just now, you didn’t think you knew him well enough to deeply miss him, but your chest hurts.

“One thing about Ice,” Bradley told you, walking up the path to the big house on the hill, “is that he’s loyal. He’ll rain hell on anyone that threatens his family and always goes back for his wingman.”

“Did the cancer come back?”

Bradley shakes his head. “I didn’t ask. I figured though. Mav went to see him a couple of days before he died.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss, baby.”

“Me too.” He takes you under his arm. “He loved you, you know. He always gave me shit for keeping you on the hook without a ring.”

“I cannot believe you have not asked that young lady to marry you, yet,” Ice says, sitting down behind his desk and steepling his fingers.

Bradley sighs, running a hand through his hair. “I just haven’t found the right moment.”

“I know.” Ice smiles at him. “If you keep with that attitude, you’ll never find the right one. What’s it been, now? Six, seven years?” He tips his head. “You better hope she doesn’t wise up to your bullshit.”

“I know.” Bradley sits down on the couch under the bay window. “I just want to do it right.”

Ice stands, crossing the room to join Bradley with a pat on the knee. “I tried to make it perfect for Sarah, but at the end of the day, it’s just for you two. It doesn’t have to be right, it doesn't have to be exactly as you or she pictured it.”

Bradley watches him remember, the softness of his face, the fondness in his eyes. It makes him smile.

“All that ring does,” Ice continues, “is show her you love her and want to be stuck with her until you die.”

“It sounds so romantic when you say it like that,” Bradley laughs.

Ice shrugs good-naturedly. “Word on the street is your dad hopped out of a plane on his first training mission, dropped to his knee, and proposed to your mother on the spot.”

He’s right. Carole told Bradley about it.

“Thanks, Ice.”

“Of course, son. I’ll always be here for you. You know that.”

You laugh, smiling at the stone. “And here you are, flaunting him even in death.”

Bradley kisses your temple.

+++

On your way to the lighthouse, the wind picks up, buffeting into you. Bradley releases your hand, pulling you close with an arm around your shoulders.

There aren’t many people out, so the walk is relatively quiet.

“Y’know, honey, I was thinking,” you start, staring at the path under your feet as you continue along. You hesitate. “I’m not sure how to say this diplomatically.”

You can almost hear Bradley raise his eyebrows. “I thought we were past diplomacy.”

“I know, it’s just…It’s about your mom.”

Bradley steers you off the path and to a bench conveniently placed on the grass, facing the ocean. He sits down, angling his body toward you and his arm extended, fingers brushing against your shoulder. “What’s on your mind?”

“I was thinking about what you said - about Maverick pulling your papers. And I know I don’t know him like you do, but -” You cut yourself off. “He doesn’t strike me as the kind of person to…take initiative like that.”

Bradley’s eyes wander to the grass, then out to sea. He’s obviously considering what you said, but you’re not sure if he’s going where you’re leading him.

“I just -” You take another breath. “I don’t think I would want my kid in an F-35 if I lost my husband in an F-14, you know?”

Bradley’s brow furrows.

“I think you should at least ask him about it. He doesn’t strike me as the type to overstep in that direction on his own, he does seem like the type who would protect your relationship with your remaining parent, especially if he still feels responsible for your dad.”

You reach for him and he comes back to you, holding you close as you scoot over and rest your head on his chest, listening to his heart.

“Yeah,” he says, finally. “I’ll ask him about it.”

+++

Dagger Fuckheads Jake Seresin 2:41pm Dinner tonight? Mav’s buying.

You and Bradley look at each other, reaching for your phones.

“Want to go?” He asks.

You nod. “I could go. I don’t have anything better to do.”

Bradley replies. 2:43pm Chims and I are in! Where and when?

Jake Seresin 2:43pm Mav says dinner at his place at 1800 and then drinks at Penny’s when we’re done.

“Sounds good to me. What about you?” Bradley asks.

You nod and reply to confirm. 2:44pm We’re there!

+++

“So, Mav,” Phoenix says, putting down her fork. “When do we get to go out to the desert and see your P-51?”

Maverick smiles. “You’re all welcome anytime. I’m headed out there this weekend.”

“No way!” Fanboy says. “You have a mustang out there?”

“Hell yeah,” Maverick says. “You can fly it if you promise to take care of her.”

All the lieutenants share a glance. Hangman finally confirms, “We’re in.”

+++

You sense, rather than hear, Maverick come up behind you as you stare at the photos above the sink. There’s one of Penny, tucked behind a photo of Carole and Goose. She couldn’t be more than twenty-five, smiling at you from out of the Polaroid. There’s another Polaroid of her nearby, a much-younger Maverick kissing her cheek outside one of the buildings at Miramar.

You reach out to another photo, gently brushing over the image of Iceman grinning at the camera in his dress whites and sunglasses. Maverick stands beside him, an equally bright smile on his face.

“That was Ice’s wedding,” Mav says.

You hum. “I’ve seen this picture before. It’s on - or…” You pause. “At least, uh, it was on his desk at home.”

Maverick steps up beside you, pointing out photos of Bradley and Ice you’d missed before. Your favorite, by far, is one of Ice hitting a baseball and Bradley ducking on the pitcher’s mound to avoid impact.

“After Bradley and I were firmly an item, we spent every Christmas with Ice and Sarah,” you tell him, unprompted.

“I know,” Mav says simply. “He loved having you both there.”

You smile. “He spoke so highly of you, Mav. He would always tell stories that ended with one of you heroically saving the day.”

Maverick has to smile at that. His eyes wander to a photo taken after one of their many missions together, Ice’s hair wild from his helmet.

“I know that he tried to honor and respect Bradley’s anger, of course, but I know cutting you off hurt him, too.” You smile a little. “I think he knew that hearing his stories about you made it a little harder to dislike you. I think he figured I needed something else to round out what Bradley told me.”

“There was one time,” Ice recalls, “when Bradley was little, that I thought Maverick had truly gone insane.”

“Oh?” You ask. It’s not rare to hear stories with and about Maverick, but they’re usually of the heroic-endeavors variety, rather than stories of Bradley’s childhood.

The two of you sit out on the porch, watching the sunset. Bradley, of course, is in assisting Sarah with dinner. You offered your help, as did Ice, but Sarah practically kicked you out, claiming, “While you’re both nice to look at, you’re in the way.”

“Mav volunteered to be the coach of Bradley’s little league team.” Ice shakes his head. “I’d never seen him throw himself into something like that. Carole had to tell him to tone it down.” Ice pauses. “Bradley was a helluva ballplayer though. He’s always been patient, attentive. Good qualities for everything, but especially baseball and flying.”

Ice looks over his shoulder, satisfied that you’re alone. “The two of them are more alike than they’d like to admit.” He looks at you. “I was about to say, I wish you could know him. However, knowing me and knowing Bradley tells you more about him than he’d ever like anyone to know, for better or worse.”

Maverick looks at you for a second. “Can I show you something?”

You nod, dragging your eyes from the photo. Mav takes you to the corner, where a cup full of challenge coins sits on the counter. He pulls a frame from the shelf, bringing a photo down from its place.

To your shock, it’s a photo of you and Bradley graduating from UVA. Your matching orange stoles stand out brightly against your black gowns and the green grass behind you.

Bradley holds you close to his side, kissing your temple as you look at the camera with a smile.

“Sarah took this one, didn’t she?” You ask, looking over at Maverick. You remember the moment well, but it’s only now you realize you’ve never seen the picture before. Your eyes fall on pictures of Bradley through the years - his high school baseball photos, his NROTC and college graduation portraits, Bradley and Ice standing together at Bradley’s OCS commencement…

He always looked out for him. All these years.

Maverick replies, pulling you from your thoughts. “She sent me a copy. I have a couple more from Christmases, too. You landed in the New Years’ newsletter more than once.”

“Wait a second.”

You turn around, finding Jake squinting at another photo on the shelf.

He points to one “Is this you?”

You walk over, brow furrowed. Lo and behold, it’s a Kazansky Christmas card, dated 2010. You sit on the arm of the sofa next to Bradley, mirrored by Ice’s daughter on the other side. The two Kazansky boys take the other two seats on the couch, their now-wives seated on the ground in front of them, forming a cozy picture with Ice and Sarah behind you all.

“Yep, that’s me,” you tell him. “That was when I was in my masters and Bradley was in OCS.”

It’s like you aren’t even there as Hangman calls over his shoulder. “Rooster!”

“Yeah?” Bradley trots over, meeting your eyes with a questioning glance. You shrug. Maverick joins you, standing at your side with his arms crossed and a funny little look on his face.

“How long have you guys been together, exactly?” Hangman asks, a grin blossoming on his face.

Bradley knows he’s already in trouble. “Well,” he answers diplomatically. “If you ask me, we started dating in February of 2005. If you ask her,” he points at you, “we started dating in August of 2005.”

“Correct me if I’m wrong-“

He’s not going to be wrong, is he?

“- but that’s thirteen years.”

Bradley’s hand rises to his neck. “Yeah.”

Hangman turns to you. “Jesus Christ you’re either a saint or an idiot and I can’t decide which.”

“We’ve been busy!” Your voice sounds shrill and defense even to your ears.

“For thirteen years straight?” Hangman doesn’t wait for an answer before moving on. “Hey, Siri!” There’s a series of beeps from his phone, connected to Mav’s speaker. “Play Slow Ride by Foghat.”

You bite back your laugh as Jake turns around again with a wicked grin.

“God, I love this song.”

+++

“Ready, baby?” Rooster’s voice rumbles in your ears through the headphones.

You turn on your mic. “Let’s go!”

“Alright. Hang on tight.”

The P-51 accelerates down the runway and Bradley hauls it into the air, the Gs pressing you into the seat.

“How many Gs can this thing pull?”

You can almost see his smile from behind as he answers you with a laugh, adjusting one of the countless switches and knobs in front of him. “Not enough.”

“That doesn't answer my question!” It takes a little more effort to get the words out with the pressure on your chest, but you know it’s nothing compared to the F-18.

As expected, Bradley’s voice is still even and cool through the mic. “It tops out around six or seven. We’re only pulling three and a half right now, but it’ll ease up in a second. Take a deep breath.”

You follow instructions, letting your head and body press into the seat as you close your eyes. You remember how he taught you to breathe years ago when you felt like you were suffocating in broad daylight in a Cessna.

The plane levels out and you already feel better, taking one more deep breath before opening your eyes.

“Oh my god.”

You’re thousands of feet in the air, looking down on Death Valley and the surrounding desert.

“Beautiful, right?” Bradley asks. “Ready?”

“For what?”

You don’t get a response, but let out a yelp as you go inverted, flying upside down a mile over the brown hills and bright orange California poppies.

“Relax,” he says with a laugh. “Enjoy the view.”

It’s a strange feeling, to be looking up and down at the same time. It is, however, easy to see how this feeling can be addictive. Even at relatively low speeds, you feel alive with the plane’s frame around, Bradley’s gentle hands holding you all aloft.

Bradley glides into a loop, correcting the inversion with ease. You let yourself relax again, looking out the canopy to find where the mountains meet the sky. The plane arcs in a wide circle, headed back to the hangar.

“I can see why you love this so much,” you tell him.

He reaches back with one hand and you take it. He squeezes once before letting you go. “Happy you’re here with me, baby.”

When you get back to Maverick’s place, you notice Bradley looking down at the runway. You follow suit, finding Dagger Squad standing just outside the hangar. You can’t quite see details from up here, but it looks like they’re watching you.

“Hey, babe?” You ask.

Bradley’s head tilts a bit. “Yeah?”

“I think you should remind them why you’re Dagger Two.”

You can see him, but you’re sure he’s grinning. You can hear it. “Alright. Hang tight, honey.”

Bradley’s hand flies forward on the throttle and you’re pressed back into your seat with a laugh. He swoops down over the hills, taking a hard bank before climbing high and barrel-rolling twice.

You can’t stop laughing, only losing your breath once or maybe three times. He pulls a few more maneuvers that have your stomach twisting and dropping. The sound of his trained, measured breath in your ears keeps you glued to time and space.

He gets back to wings-level and checks in with you. “You still with me back there?”

You swallow, laughing a little again. “I’m good.”

“I owe Mav some fuel, but that was fun.” He banks again, gentler this time, and starts the descent down to the runway. The landing is smooth, hardly jostling you as you settle back on the ground. When the canopy opens, Bradley stands and gets out, holding his hand out to lend you an assist.

You feel a little wobbly when you get your feet on the asphalt again, but Bradley grabs you around the waist, pulling you close. He’s somehow already removed his helmet and lends a hand with yours.

Dagger Squad rushes the two of you and Jake claps you on the shoulder. “I thought for sure you were gonna puke.”

“Thanks for your overwhelming vote of confidence.”

Bradley’s still grinning from ear to ear. Mav saunters out of the hangar with a smile on his face and hands in his pockets. “Not too bad for a rookie,” he says.

“Pretty sure they’ll revoke that thing once you get your AARP card. Flying’s dangerous, you know.”

Maverick frowns and checks over his shoulder, looking left, then right.

“What’re you lookin’ at, Mav?” Bob asks.

Mav looks at Bradley. “I’m trying to find who the hell Rooster thinks he’s talking to.”

Bradley grins and throws his helmet at Mav, who catches it easily. “It is a sweet ride, though.”

+++

“Hey Bradley, let me get your help with this,” Maverick calls from across the hangar.

Bradley stands, setting his beer down on the little coffee table. “‘Scuse me, folks. I’ve been summoned.”

“Hey, excuse me, sir, there’s a tax for that,” you remind him, looking up from your seat in the armchair.

With a smile, he gives you a quick kiss and jets off to find Mav in the back.

Jake scoffs.

You look at him. “Can I help you?”

“Y’all are gross.”

With a sigh, you shift in your seat, leaning forward to condescendingly place a hand on his knee. “One day, Jake, you will love someone who misses you when you’re gone and you, too, will be gross.”

Bradley looks over his shoulder before he reaches the archway to Mav’s back “office.” The image of you sitting with his team, chatting like you’ve known each other all your lives, warms his heart.

“Bradley?” Mav calls quieter than before.

Bradley finally rounds the corner, grabbing the arch and swinging wide through the turn. “Yessir.”

Mav holds up a first-class box and grins. “I think it’s here.”

The two of them open the box, trying to keep the noise of the bubble wrap to a dull roar. Inside, the small, navy-blue velvet box smiles up at them, nestled deep in the packaging.

“Can I see?” Mav asks.

Bradley nods.

With similar care to a father holding his newborn for the first time, Maverick takes the box into his hand and opens it with the smallest of worn pops.

There’s silence for a moment, followed by a swell of laughter from the hangar.

“It’s beautiful, Brad. She’s going to love it.”

Bradley tips his head. “I hope so.” He pauses. “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.” Maverick meets his eyes, open and receptive.

“Was it your idea to pull my papers?”

Maverick sighs, looking down for a second before returning Bradley’s steady gaze. That’s pretty much all the answer Bradley needs, but still Maverick says, “Yes. It was my idea.”

He’s always been a shit liar.

“My mom asked you to do it, didn’t she?”

Mav’s jaw flexes.

“Pete,” Carole says, looking at him from the couch. She leans forward and Maverick mirrors her, the use of his first name somewhat unsettling. He glances at the clock. Bradley’s at baseball practice for another hour or so, at least.

“Yeah?”

“I got some bad news today.”

Maverick’s heart drops to his stomach and he immediately stands to cross the room, sitting next to her on the couch.

She continues, taking his hand. “I’m sick. They’re sure it’s some kind of cancer but they’re doing some more tests. I have to go back tomorrow for a PET scan. They do know it’s serious.”

Tears, unbidden, jump into Maverick’s eyes. He can’t speak.

“Oh, Mav.” Carole cups his face with her ever-gentle hands. “Mav, it’ll be okay.”

He clears his throat. “Do they have any ideas about… treatments, or…?”

She shrugs, looking off somewhere across the room. “They’ll know more after this week. The doctor told me it could be months, maybe years, but he determined that it is terminal.”

A set of tears fall down Maverick’s cheeks, dripping gracelessly off his chin.

With a sigh, she adds, “I would really like to see Bradley graduate from college, but... Speaking of…” She trails off.

The muscle in Mav’s jaw jumps several times before he speaks again. “What can I do?”

“Bradley applied to the Naval Academy,” she replies, shaking her head. “I can’t - I can’t have him in a jet, Maverick. I won’t do it.”

“Carole, he’s an -”

“Don’t tell me he’s an adult, Pete. Look at him.” She throws a hand to the most recent school portrait on the mantle. “He’s not ready and I’ll never be ready.”

Again, Mav asks, “What can I do.”

She’s quiet for a moment. “Can you talk to admissions?”

“Carole, I -”

“Promise me, Mav. I know Ice can do it if you can’t, and I’ll ask him next.”

Something cold settles into Maverick’s veins. He’s fairly certain it’s fear. “Fine. I’ll see what I can do.”

Carole surprises him, throwing her arms around his shoulders. “I might be dying, but he - I won’t let him kill himself.”

“Do you think I’m killing myself?” Mav asks, only half-joking. He holds her tight as if she’ll break apart if he lets go. Maybe it’s him who needs to be held together.

She takes him seriously. “Every goddamn day. And I hate you for it.” She leans back. “But as much as I love you, he’s my son. I need you to take care of him when I’m gone.”

Maverick realizes he’s been quiet for too long. He thinks of Penny, what she would do if Amelia asked him a question like this.

She’d tell the truth.

“Carole, she…” Mav sighs, looking over his shoulder at a photo of the three of them at some function or another. “She made me promise. The same time she told me she was sick.”

Bradley takes a deep breath before asking, “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t - I couldn’t have you hate her, too.”

Strangely, that pulls a smile from him. You were right.

“What?” Mav asks.

Bradley shakes his head. He looks over his shoulder for a second, finding only a wall but knowing you’re beyond it. “Someone who’s only known you a sum total of ten hours knows you better than I do, apparently.”

Maverick smiles, clapping Bradley on the shoulder. “They’re all smarter than us, you know. Sooner you figure that out, the easier it’ll be.”

+++

Penny sits at the bar, working through the inventory and accounting for the week by hand. It’s easier this way, she tends to rationalize, but really it’s just a good excuse to get her away from her laptop.

Checking over her shoulder, she finds the ocean rough, white caps popping on the top of the waves. The sky is thick with clouds, giving the entire world a greyish-blue cast. As much as she loves the sunshine, a winter Southern California storm feels good to the bones.

Before she can get up to either close the back door or find a jacket, there’s a hand on her waist.

“Chilly?”

She turns, finding Maverick behind her. He drapes his soft, warm bomber jacket around her shoulders, kissing the side of her head.

“I’ll be in the back. Just wanted to check on you.”

She hums, leaning into him. “I’ll be here.”

He gives her one final kiss before he disappears again, probably fixing a leak or patching a hole she failed to notice.

He sees everything .

It’s alarming, sometimes.

She checks her watch but it’s pointless. She’s not sure when you and Bradley are due in from your afternoon out in La Jolla, but she’s sure she’ll get an ETA when you’re good and ready to share.

The front door opens and closes. Penny doesn’t bother to look up - there are only five people who walk in casually like that and two of them work here.

“Penny?”

That’s not one of the four .

She looks up, finding the eyes of her ex-husband. “What are you doing here?” She pulls the jacket closer to her, almost like armor.

“Can’t I just stop by and say hello?” He asks.

“...It’s a five-hour flight from Hawaii,” she says. “And dropping in unexpectedly kind of defeats the purpose of a divorce, if I’m remembering correctly. Where’s your wife?”

“I like what you’ve done with the place,” he says as if she didn’t say a word. That was half of the problem when they were married. Penny’s not sure why she thought it would change now.

“Penny, sweetheart?”

Mav’s voice almost startles her, but a wave of relief follows close behind the bolt of adrenaline.

“Bradley’s due in anytime now. They just called from the -” Mav finally steps out of the back room and spots the visitor in the bar. “Hi.”

Penny hastily stands and introduces them to each other.

“Wait,” the unwelcome guest says, “you’re Pete Mitchell? Maverick Mitchell?”

Mav smiles, but only friends would know it's not a real one. This is the one he wears for show. “That’s me.”

“Huh. I’ve heard a lot about you.” The way he says it doesn’t sound like a compliment. “I thought you’d be taller.” He shakes off another thought and asks, “Where’s Amelia?”

Your daughter, the afterthought , Penny thinks sourly. “She’s -”

“Anybody home?” Bradley crows, interrupting from the doorway, a grin on his face. You’re right behind him, trying to get in as he purposefully blocks the door.

Through your laughter, you cry, “Penny, help! I’ve been taken hostage.”

Despite the stress of the moment, that gets a smile out of her. “Let her in Rooster.”

The two of you shove your way through the door, landing with your arm around Bradley’s neck as he half-carries, half-drags you across the plank flooring. The smile falls from Bradley’s face when he sees the unfamiliar person in the room, putting you down behind him. “Who’s this?”

“Sam Longbourn,” comes the introduction. Sam extends a hand

“Rooster,” Bradley replies. You shoot him a look. He hardly ever introduces himself with his callsign alone.

Men.

You shake Sam’s hand as well, but he doesn’t ask your name. You don’t offer it.

Bradley’s chin lifts a touch. “Longbourn? Isn’t that -”

“Amelia’s last name?” Penny finishes. “Yes.”

Bradley hums once, staccato. “Imagine that.” He slips past Maverick, placing a hand over the big patch between Penny’s shoulder, pressing a quick, chaste kiss to her cheek by way of greeting. “Want me to take a look at those books?”

“Sure,” she says, trying to be casual.

You just think it’s funny that all three men in the room have immediately started preening upon recognition. Only two are succeeding.

There’s an awkward pause. You offer a tight, polite smile and join Bradley at the bar, leaning on him.

“And Bradley is…?” Sam asks.

Mav answers promptly. “My son. He’s a naval aviator as well. One of the best we’ve got.”

The pencil in Bradley’s hand stops moving for the briefest of seconds. You glance at his profile without moving your head too much to see him blinking a few times in quick succession.

You lean into him a little more purposefully and he leans back. Taking a quick look over at the uncomfortable little triad, you catch Penny’s eyes.

Was that okay? She seems to ask.

You take a deep breath. I dunno.

Amelia’s father ends up taking a seat at the bar, absolutely overstaying his welcome. You stand, grabbing a rag from behind the bar and attempting to make yourself useful.

“Can I get you anything?” You ask.

He raises his eyebrows. “You work here?”

“Nope. Just like to help Penny when I can. And she’s busy, so…” You shrug.

He takes a second. “I’ll do a Miller Lite, if she’s got it.”

Bradley covers his snort with a cough into his elbow. You can’t help but agree.

Fly five hours from Hawaii only to come to a bar and order a Miller Lite. Shameful.

You find one under the bar and open it, setting the bottle down in front of him. Penny comes back, squeezing your upper arms fondly as she slides in behind you. She approaches her ex, leaning against the bar on the heels of her hands.

“Look, we’re about to open up and it’s gonna get crowded. You better say what you want to say.”

You sneak back around to Bradley, helping him organize the binder the way Penny likes it, packing up and getting ready for opening. You’re all gonna have backup here in a moment - Dagger’s due in anytime now. In the weeks they’ve been here, they’ve all grown particularly fond of Penny and Amelia. Jake, especially with his two-year shore duty at North Island after Annapolis, is more at home here than anywhere else. You can’t imagine them taking too kindly to an interloper.

You and Bradley head to the back while Penny and Sam talk. Mav’s there, already straightening up from his project along the south wall.

“I’m so sorry, Bradley. I didn’t mean to overst-”

Bradley waves him off and pulls him in for a hug. “All good. I get it.” He says something else, but you can’t quite catch it.

Doesn’t matter, anyway. You heard enough to know that Carole was right.

“They’ll figure it out,” she used to say. “Bradshaws and Mitchells always find a way, especially together.”

“Ladies and gentlemen,” comes a booming voice from the great room, “the party has arrived.”

With a roll of your eyes, you jump out of the back room with a grin. “Damn, they let just about anyone in here, huh?”

“Well, yeah,” Jake says. “You’re here, aren’t you?”

“Uh uh. No,” Penny scolds, pointing at Jake. “Behave.”

Jake grins at her, wide and toothy. With a roll of her eyes, she throws a bottle opener on the bar, followed by a bottle of his usual brew. “Thank you, Miss Penny m’dear.”

“Yeah,” she says. “Keep that up and I’ll ring the bell on you.”

He chuffs. “You love me.”

“I don’t,” she insists, laughter in her eyes.

Bradley and Maverick join you, headed to the pool table to rack up. You find a seat at one of the tables, ready to watch whatever masculine posturing bullshit the boys have up their sleeve.

Jake, as if noticing the unfamiliar face for the first time, looks over and raises his eyebrows. It’s all for show - you know he clocked Sam the second he saw him. He doesn’t break eye contact when he asks, “Who’s this?”

Penny gestures between them. “Sam Longbourn, Hangman. Hangman, Sam.”

Jake squints. “Hm. I’d say it's nice to meet you, Sam, but I’m not sure it is.” He grins, softening the blow, before turning to Penny. “Wait, lemme see that patch.”

Penny turns, pulling the jacket so Jake can see the patch that’s always been there.

“Mav,” Jake asks, raising his voice. “Is this a new patch?”

Smooth .

“Nope. It’s been there for a minute. I’m having a patch made for Dagger, though. Should be in before they scatter us again.”

“Sweet. Guess I never noticed it before.” Jake’s smile grows sly. “I guess it just looks better on Penny than it does on you.”

Maverick snorts and says something that has Bradley laughing out loud.

Sam, for the first time, looks a little self-conscious. Jake doesn’t seem to notice, pointing out the rest of the team, hovering around the pool table. “That’s Phoenix, Bob, and Payback. Mav’s a legend of course, and Rooster’s just been named Wingman of the Year.”

“Yeah, and you’re what, our Lord and Savior?” Bradley says.

“You said it, not me,” Jake says, that grin back on his face.

Poor Sam has turned into a ghost at this point, looking between everyone present with increasing confusion and awe.

Rooster rolls his eyes, leaning over the pool table, his break shot sinking two. He beckons you over. “C’mon baby, we’ve got stripes.”

Mav straightens and looks across the bar, watching Penny idly organize glasses. She turns, meets Maverick’s eyes, and leaves the bar with a shake of her head. “Shall we show them how it’s done, Mav?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

+++

“Hey, Mav!” Bradley calls, later that night. “C’mere.”

Mav obliges, making his way around to Bradley’s side and leaning against the piano. Penny’s ex seems to have disappeared as quickly as he arrived. You didn’t even see him leave, but between Jake and Mav, you’re sure he had enough.

Good riddance.

“Take a look over there.” Bradley points with the neck of his bottle to you and Penny, sitting on a pair of barstools, chatting amongst the evening rush. “What do you see?”

Mav thinks for a second. “...People we care about?”

“Yeah. See anything wrong with them?”

There’s a creeping sense of deja-vu, but Maverick can’t quite place it. He looks again. You have Bradley’s sunglasses stuck into the front of your shirt and you’re babysitting a small pile of coats in your lap - Payback, Fanboy, and Hangman’s, to be specific - but nothing looks out of the ordinary. Penny looks great, of course, Maverick’s leather jacket still slung casually over her shoulders.

Bradley’s definitely up to something. Mav, after his assessment, says, “...I’m not seeing anything.”

“I think…I think they’ve lost that loving feeling, Mav.”

Mav laughs, his chin falling to his chest. “I’m too old for this shit, Rooster.”

“What are you too old for?” Jake asks, arriving seemingly out of nowhere.

“Hangman, I think the girls have lost that lovin’ feeling.”

Jake shakes his head, a confused little smile on his face. “What?”

“C’mon, Mav. Back me up here. They definitely have lost that loving feeling.”

Mav sighs. “I hate it when they do that.” He pushes off the piano and throws two quarters in the jukebox. “You’re gonna have to help them find it after this song, you know. Patience is a virtue.”

As promised, as soon as the song comes on over the bar, Penny’s head shoots up, her eyes wide. If you had to name it, you would call the look repeat trauma .

“What?” You ask, but you already hear it.

“You never close your eyes anymore when I kiss your lips…”

Her only reply? An exhausted, “Oh, God.”

“And there’s no tenderness like before in your fingertips.”

The crowd parts and your jaw drops. Bradley is serenading you at the top of his lungs, his hand extended dramatically toward you.

“ You’re trying hard not to show it, but baby, baby I know it,” He sings. “ You’ve lost that lovin’ feeling. Whoa, that lovin’ feeling.”

You cover your face with your hands as he continues, the rest of the crowd joining in. Penny’s laughing in earnest, happy for once she’s not the victim of this stupid charade.

The chorus ends and you look at Bradley, gesturing to the empty seat beside you. “Sit down, you idiot.”

The entire bar cheers.

Penny looks up, finding Mav still at his place near the piano. He meets her eyes and smiles.

+++

“Is that mine?”

You’ve just stepped out of the bathroom when Bradley looks over at you skeptically, his eyes running across your shoulders and down to your waist.

You are, in fact, wearing one of his Hawaiian shirts. However, in your defense, he has way too many (you’d approximate three dozen) and he’s never bothered to ask about any that have gone mysteriously missing (of which there are about eight).

You hesitate just a second too long. “…No.” It sounds an awful lot like a question.

“I think it is,” he says, leaving his bag and sauntering over to you from across the room.

You shake your head. “Nope. I got this one in Hawaii while I was visiting you a few years back, remember?” You double down, knowing your efforts are futile.

“I think,” he says, finally reaching you and dipping down to kiss your neck, “this is my shirt. I also think,” he adds, his lips trailing to your collarbone and his hands wandering over your back pockets, “that you stole it from me in Hawaii while you were visiting a few years back.”

“That’s ridiculous.” Your assertion is breathless at best.

He shakes his head. “You’re a thief.”

“Am not.”

“Are too,” he whispers, kissing you under your ear. “And before you can continue to argue with me, I have a question for you.”

“Oh?” you ask with a laugh. “Is it shirt-related?”

“No.”

He kisses your cheek and gracefully slides to a knee at your feet. He pulls the small box out of his back pocket and you’re pretty sure you can’t breathe.

“It’s past time, beautiful, and there’s a lot I could say but…” He opens it and the image of the ring nestled in navy blue velvet steals your breath. “Will you marry me?”

You definitely can’t breathe, so you settle for a nod, finally able to pull a breath after a second. “Yes. Absolutely, yes.”

He stands and wraps you in his arms, the box still in his hands.

+++

The wood plank flooring feels cool under your feet, despite the San Diego summer waiting for you just outside the door. Penny picks up the hem of your dress, letting it flutter loosely to the floor so you don’t trip.

“You’re still good barefoot? I’ve got your sandals here if you need them.”

You nod. “It shouldn’t be too hot.”

“Okay,” she says. “I’ll have Mav take them out when he goes back.”

There’s an awful lot of movement for the final moments before a wedding. The boys are goofing around outside in their summer whites while Penny and Maverick fuss between you, Bradley, and the bar.

Penny picks up the sandals in question, snagging Mav by the sleeve as he passes her. “Take these out and put them under your seat.”

He looks confused and almost makes the mistake of asking a question but shakes his head, taking the sandals and kissing Penny’s cheek without another word. He hops out the back door and down the steps, hastily making his way to his seat to drop off the shoes.

The little lattice arch sits on the sand about thirty feet from the back patio of The Hard Deck. You peer out the window from where you stand by the piano, seeing Bradley approach Mav with a concerned little pinch in his eyebrows. You know you’re running late, but after all this time he knows better than to really worry.

Mav clasps his shoulder briefly with a wide smile before dusting imaginary debris from his uniform. Bradley returns the favor, straightening the ribbons on his chest. You step back as Mav looks through the back door, staying out of sight.

With a deep breath, you nod at Penny. She hands you the bouquet and heads outside, calling in your wedding party from their shenanigans and giving the rest of the assembled company the cue to take their seats.

Phoenix reaches you first, giving you a hug. “You excited?”

You nod. “Very.”

“It’s gonna be so fun.”

Jake winks at you as he offers Phoenix his arm, taking his cover under his other elbow. “He’s freaking out.”

“No, he isn’t. He’s ecstatic,” Payback says, smiling at Amelia in her blue bridesmaid dress. “May I, miss?”

You’re sure she’s blushing when she nods and tucks her hand into his elbow. Penny smiles, kissing your cheek before giving the same treatment to Amelia’s head. She gives Payback a quick pat on the shoulder for good measure and then she’s gone - jogging barefoot to her seat.

Everyone else gets settled and you’re ready.

+++

You look up from the sand, finally, to see Rooster standing before the water in his summer dress whites. His uniform and his smile are equally blinding. You almost have to squint to look at him directly. The smile on your face, though, could give him a run for his money.

The wind off the water whips around your face and pulls at the skirt of your dress. You let your eyes wander down the short line of crisply-dressed aviators that just left you in the bar. Hangman, Bob, Coyote, and Payback grin back at you behind their sunglasses when you smile at all of them in turn.

Maverick and Penny, of course, stand in the front row beside the empty seats reserved for Bradley’s parents and Iceman. Sarah and Ice’s oldest son stand on the far side. Your closest friends and family fill the remaining seats. There’s not a person out of place and everything is just as you pictured it when you sketched out the quick plans in Maverick’s desert hanger five months ago.

After what feels like an hour, you finally reach Bradley at the end of the aisle. He take your hand and you walk the final few steps to the officiant together, passing your bouquet to Phoenix.

“You look beautiful,” he says.

“You don’t look so bad yourself, Lieutenant.”

He squeezes your hand.

+++

You practically wilt into the bar when the jukebox falls silent. With a laugh, you look up and see Penny’s rueful smile. The inside of the place has gone wild, most of the respectable family out on the patio enjoying some degree of peace and quiet while the “kids” have fun inside.

“They’re predictable, aren’t they?” Penny asks.

You nod. “Terminally, I’m afraid.”

She grins at you. “Go play. I’ve got your drink.”

A path opens for you as you make your way to the piano. Bradley’s warming up with a few riffs, but you know what he’s going to play before he even starts.

“ You shake my nerves and you rattle my brain…”

The entire bar eggs him on, some starting to sing along already. You let out a loud laugh, almost warning him you’re there before he can look.

“… You broke my will, oh what a thrill. Goodness, gracious, great balls of fire!”

He opens an arm so you can settle into his lap without a break in the music. You lean into him, giving him more room to play. You catch Mav’s eye as he settles next to Penny at the bar, a pint in his hand.

“ Goodness gracious, great balls of fire!”

You know exactly what he sees - how strange and difficult it must be. You smile at him before turning, sliding an arm around Bradley’s shoulder.

“ Kiss me baby -”

On cue, you wrap your other arm around Bradley's neck and plant a downright filthy kiss that has the entire crowd whooping and hollering.

“ Woo, that feels good, baby. Hold me, baby… ”

You stay tucked up against him, singing along, crowing the lyrics to the ceiling, and losing your breath to laughter.

At the bar, Maverick is indeed seeing double. He sees what’s in front of him - his nephew playing an old song on the piano with the love of his life in his lap - and what’s behind him - Carole and Goose, laughing through their own wedding reception over 35 years ago.

“You okay there, Captain?”

Mav looks over at Penny with raised eyebrows as she leaves her place behind the bar. “Hm?”

She reaches him, raking her fingers through the graying hair at his temples. “Just asking if you’re alright.”

Pete catches her hand and kisses the back of it. “Fine. Just, ah…”

“Remembering?” She offers.

He hums. “That, and I’m… getting old, I guess.” His eyes wander back to you and Rooster at the piano.

Penny nods, checking on Amelia over her shoulder. She and Phoenix are at the pool table, actively hustling Coyote out of a hundred bucks. “We all are, Pete. You’re not special.” There’s no heat in her teasing - only affection.

“You know I love it when you tell me I’m just like everyone else,” Mav replies playfully.

Penny hums facetiously. “You are in fact, the most average man I’ve ever met.”

“Hmm…” Maverick wets his lips and studies her from top to toe. “That’s definitely not what you said last ni-”

“Mom?”

Penny smacks her hand over Maverick’s mouth and leans over his shoulder. “Yes?”

“Coyote says there’s house rules to pool.”

With an affectionate brush of her thumb over his lips, Penny releases Maverick. “Oh, no. Absolutely not. Not in this house.” She raises her voice over the crowd noise. “We play by the book here, Machado.”

“Yes ma’am!” Comes the reply.

“Is that really true, though?” Mav asks.

Penny scoffs. “If it were, would you listen?”

He just grins at her. It’s all the answer she needs.

+++

Something slow and sweet plays on the speakers. Your head rests heavily on Bradley, whose hand covers yours on his chest. Your eyes are closed, swaying to the barest suggestion of the actual beat.

“When will you be back?”

Bradley sighs into the phone. “I don’t know. Sweetheart, this…This might be one of those missions where someone isn’t coming home.”

You sink to the floor, legs crossed. “Bradley, I -” You swallow heavily. “You better come home.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“You always do,” you tell him. “I need you to do better.”

There’s silence.

Eventually, Bradley says, “I love you.”

“I love you, too. So much.” It doesn’t, surprisingly, sound like goodbye.

“I’ll text you when I’m on deck and I’ll see you when I get home, okay?”

Your voice is a whisper when it leaves you. “Okay. Fly safe.”

Having him back never loses its novelty.

Mav and Penny look much the same on the other side of the floor, speaking quietly and giggling like a pair of teenagers.

Amelia is fast asleep on one of the chairs, Maverick’s leather jacket serving dutifully as her blanket. She crashed against Reuben about an hour ago and he found a place for her to rest somewhat peacefully after a little while. She is, after all, no stranger to falling asleep at The Hard Deck; it’s become her second home.

The remaining members of Dagger Squad - Jake, Natasha, Reuben, and Bob - sit sprawled out in chairs, watching the two couples left standing on the dance floor.

“Figure we should tell ‘em the party’s over?” Payback says.

Tasha shakes her head. “Leave them alone. Look at them.”

Their eyes bounce from you and Bradley to Penny and Maverick, varying degrees of small smiles on their faces.

“Hey, Phoenix, you think -” Jake doesn’t get to finish.

“I’m gonna stop you there,” Tasha says.

He scoffs. “You didn’t even know what I was going to say.”

“I do, in fact.”

“Alright, enlighten me.”

Reuben and Bob roll their eyes, both suddenly and violently reminded that this bullshit will make up at least a quarter of their careers, at this rate.

“You were either going to make a joke about dancing with me or reference someone’s sex life. Neither one of those options are ones I’m interested in.”

“You flatter yourself.”

“Am I wrong?” She raises her eyebrows.

Jake rolls his eyes and takes a sip of his beer, muttering into it, “No.”

+++

“Can you see him?” Amelia asks, standing on her toes to see around the people in front of her.

Penny snorts. “They’re all in their whites. You won’t be able to tell who’s who until they’re off the carrier, love.”

She humphs. Mav places a hand on Amelia’s shoulder.

“It won’t be long now,” he says. “

You take a deep breath, enjoying the sunshine on your face and the breeze of the water. Thousands of families surround you, including the Fitches, Traces, and Seresins. Jake’s mom, you’ve recently learned, is a total sweetheart.

“Your son,” you told her upon meeting, “is a huge pain in my ass and I love him so much.”

She’d only laughed. “Tell me about it.”

Now, you’re all standing together waiting for the carrier to finally dock. It’s been six months, all of them long. You can’t wait to have Bradley back.

Turning, you ask Mav, “When are Fanboy and Bob due back?”

“They’re due into Ft. Lauderdale in a couple of months. I think they got stuck in the Med again.”

You pull a face. “That sucks.”

He shrugs. “It is what it is.”

That should be the tagline for all US Armed Forces.

The final minutes seem to last forever before a bunch of sailors seems to tumble out of the carrier, walking briskly to the assembled families. Like a dam breaking, they start to run as people rush forward into the arms of their loved ones.

You use Mav’s shoulder for leverage, trying to see. Your eyes land on a small group and four smiles greet you.

“I’ve got them!” You call. “They’re on their way.”

It takes everything you have to stay still, knowing you’ll likely lose them if you try to seek them out. After a minute or so, you can’t help it. You break from the line, artfully dodging families and sailors and everyone in between.

You crash into Bradley at full speed, wrapping around him like a koala. He hikes you higher, finding a place for your legs around his waist and holding you tight.

“Damn, Rooster!” Comes a familiar voice. “Save some for the rest of us!”

You get your feet under you again, pressing a hard kiss to Bradley’s mouth. Immediately upon letting him go, you turn and hug the life out of Jake.

“Aw,” he says. “I knew you missed me.”

“Don’t ruin it,” you tell him. The laughter in your voice and the tears in your eyes cut the harshness of your tone. You pull back just far enough to grin at him, moving on to Reuben, then Natasha in turn. You point out their families to them, but Reuben’s wife has her own ideas and they’re embracing before you can blink.

Bradley pulls you back, his arms around your waist, to press kiss upon kiss upon kiss to your temple. You turn, taking his face in your hands.

“I missed you,” you tell him, both belated and redundant.

He grins. “I missed you too.” He kisses you once, twice. “I love you. I think I love you more than when I left.”

You grin at him.

The two of you separate enough to walk, Bradley’s arm around your shoulders and yours around his waist. Your family greets you with kisses, and smiles, and hugs. Mav looks between you.

“Let’s go home.”

#bradley bradshaw x fem!reader #rooster x fem!reader #rooster x reader #top gun maverick #tali writes fanfiction #top gun maverick fic #bradley bradshaw x reader

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benasabrina · 23 days

Note

A prompt for you: Phoenix and Maya attend Trucy and Pearl's high school graduation together.

Ooh, fascinating idea, anon! Let's see what I can do with this~

slight edit: Link to the fic on ao3!

-----

The alarm blared right in his ear. It is Friday and there are no cases to investigate for, no trials to be had. So, why did he have an alarm on for six in the morning? Phoenix would have pressed snooze to sleep in longer but that was not going to happen.

As soon as his finger pressed the snooze button, two figures entered his and Maya's room and immediately jumped on top of his side of the bed, and even him.

"Oof!" Phoenix gruffed out and groaned groggily. "G'mornin'," he mumbled and blearily opened an eye to see Trucy and Pearl staring at him.

"Daddy! It's time to get up! It's graduation day!" Trucy grinned as she silently yelled at her father, not wanting to disturb Maya who was still sleeping. "Mama needs to get up soon too..." she mumbled and rested her chin on Phoenix's raised leg. Pearl giggled softly and peered over Phoenix to see Maya on her side, snoring softly. "The pregnancy must be taking a toll on her if she's still sleeping through this," she whispered and glanced over to Phoenix.

Phoenix couldn't help but feel some pang of guilt... despite knowing that they both wanted this. He just didn't expect her to fall pregnant with twins right off the bat. With a sigh, he motioned the girls to move off of him and he sat up. "You both finish getting ready. I'll get ready then get Maya up when I'm done."

The girls nodded then dashed out of the room.

xXx

Maya ended up waking up as soon as Phoenix was in the shower and opted to join him to freshen up (and to wake up as well). She played nice and decided to not rile him up since they're technically on a time crunch for both Trucy and Pearl's high school graduation.

After the shower, they both finished getting dressed, Phoenix decided to wear just a plain light powder blue dress-shirt with this sleeves rolled up and a pair of dark blue jeans. Maya on the other hand wore a white t-shirt with a light purple maternity over-all sun dress. She looked over herself in the mirror and sighed softly.

Phoenix took note of this. "Everything okay, Maya?"

She grumbled and tried to suck in her belly a bit, but to no avail. "I'm fine, just feeling a bit fat right now." Maya rubbed at her large belly and sighed again. "Can't they just come out now? I'm tired of being pregnant."

He couldn't help but chuckle gently. "You say that now, but you know for a fact that once they're out, you're going to miss them being in there."

Maya's eyes narrowed. "Fair point. This is all your fault, you know."

"My dear, it takes two to tango," was all Phoenix said in reply. "Now come on, we can't let those two be late for their graduation."

"Yeah, yeah."

xXx

The graduation is a bit of a strange one this year. While Trucy attended the local high school, Pearl did not. Pearl actually attended the continuation school near the office so she too can get an education. Thankfully, she was homeschooled, but that can only get her so far. Kurain was not exactly suited for "higher" education as some of the elders put it. So with Phoenix's help, Pearl was enrolled and sped through the courses since she was such a fast learner. Both schools decided to merge their graduations so families can see their teens graduate together rather than picking and choosing.

Once they arrived at LA High, the girls went off to find their classes while Phoenix and Maya went to where the families were made to sit. They arrived at a decent time and found open toward the middle aisle where they both knew the girls would walk down to get their diplomas (and also in case Maya had to get up to use the restroom at any point during the ceremony).

Phoenix breathed out gently and tried to keep his emotions in check about the two girls. No use getting worked up since he knew Maya would also be an emotional mess. But... It felt like only yesterday he met Pearl and also took in Trucy. He glanced over to Maya as she adjusted her sunglasses to just above her bangs. Her gaze caught him staring at her.

"What?" she asked innocently.

He shook his head and smiled gently back at her. "Nothing. Just thinking about the girls and how different our life would be without them. Well... at least without Trucy." His glossy eyes almost gave him away.

She noticed his glossy eyes, but didn't say anything about it. "Our life is going to be even more different once these two are out," Maya replied with a grin. "For better or worst, I think we'll be okay, no matter what."

Phoenix took her left hand and marveled at the wedding ring on her ring finger. He placed a soft kiss there. "For better or worst," he replied and waited for the graduation ceremony to begin.

xXx

The ceremony was beautiful and went by rather quick. Both graduating classes were somewhat small. Once it was all said and done, Phoenix and Maya held hand as they got up and went to find their graduated girls and give their congratulations. They did not have to search long because as soon as they rounded a corner, Phoenix was tackled and hugged by Trucy and Pearl.

"Daddy! Mama! We did it! I can't believe it's finally over!"

"Mr. Nick!! Mystic Maya! Thank you for helping me!"

Phoenix and Maya both laughed. Maya joined in on the hug as best as she can, maneuvering her belly so she can hug them tightly. "You girls did this all on your own! We're so proud of you both!" Maya grinned and kissed the top of their heads.

Seeing his little family brought a tear to his eye. Phoenix wiped at his eyes quickly and coughed into his fist. "I think it's time to celebrate! Where do you girls want to go? We can go anywhere you want to!"

Trucy and Pearl looked to each other and grinned. "Korean Barbecue!" they both said in unison.

Maya cheered alongside them and tugged at her husband's shirt. "Let's go, Nick!"

He chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, let's go!"

#ace attorney #phoenix wright #maya fey #trucy wright #pearl fey #narumayo #sabrina replies #this was fun!#i wasn't sure where to end it... but i'm glad i actually wrote after the graduation ceremony

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weewoobrainrot · 2 years

Text

okay so i wanted to talk about the scene where rooster and mav do their nose dive spiral thing again because i still have thoughts dkskxnd

okay so the way it starts off with hangman asking rooster "so what's the story with you and maverick, he's seems to have you a little rattled" and rooster is immediately defensive, responding with "that's none of your business" but immediately after, mav intentionally pisses rooster off because he knows rooster needs to get it out of his system. (edit: rooster shows more about how he feels here then he ever could with words)

but mav is totally calm. you can see the anger in rooster's eyes alone, but mav is just calm. the entire time they're spinning, mav is talking to him and every time rooster responds with some kind of quip or insult (he does this during the first training too), which builds on the fact rooster doesn't even want to talk to maverick. during the first scene with maverick, rooster is glaring and then not making eye contact. the second time we see this is when mav is asking "let's not do it like this". and rooster just dismisses him. it leads up to rooster's outburst and then later when rooster tries to talk, he gets interrupted. the one time he actually wants to talk to mav, he's out of time. he's waited too long (but mav tells him they'll talk when they get back)

but in this scene rooster is blinded by his pure hatred of mav, he's the last to pull up after the dive too, because rooster wasn't going to let mav beat him, wasn't gonna let mav take something else from him (in his eyes). he had a choice this time.

then, being reckless and stupid finally put him in position to beat mav, but he didn't. he started to think and then overthink. it allowed maverick to get behind him and "kill" him (also, as i've pointed out before, this is the same move he'd later use to save rooster's life).

hangman's observing this the whole time too. he's watching carefully, letting them know when they're running out of room because he knows there's not exactly anything he can actually do to stop them. he doesn't know what the hell is going on. all he knows is the guy who is "snug on his perch, waiting for the right moment, that just never comes" is currently nose diving head to head with their instructor, that he has some sort of history with, which is also completely out of rooster's character (not ooc like bad writing, it's ooc like the squad don't know this side of rooster??? if that makes sense). hangman, and the squad who know him, have never seen rooster like this. phoenix looks worried everytime we see her, because they know how stubborn rooster can be, and that he won't back down from this. which is going to get him killed.

#oh wow this ended up being so much longer than i'd meant it to #it's just #this scene>>>>#it has so much lead up to it #but builds on other scenes #it's so perfect and well shot #here's another analysis no one asked for #analysing with mars :')#top gun #top gun maverick #bradley rooster bradshaw #jake hangman seresin #pete maverick mitchell

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autumntouched · 1 year

Text

Day 12 of Ode to Phoenix

This is the first NSFW, 18+ ode to Phoenix so for anyone who wants or needs to (ahem minors,) please exit stage left or right at this time.

Prompt: When Hangman compliments her lingerie, Phoenix realizes it's his favorite and uses it to seduce him. Part of the Hannix Football Rivalry AU...don't ask me how the Super Bowl ended up in this one. It did.

Requested by: @melodiousoblivionao3

Warnings: Not really a plot, just Hannix smut. m masturbation, m/f blow job, m/f vaginal fingering, mention of m/f intercourse

A/N: Once again, from my brain to the page with few edits. Sorry for any mistakes. xx

Team Colors

They’re not practical. The silky ribbons that hold the dark green satin and lace thong together come undone too easily or show through anything that hugs her hips. A friend gave them to her as a joke several years ago, and she almost never wears them. But she and Jake are behind on laundry, and it’s the only option left in her drawer if she wants to be ready to go in time.

“Phoenix, are you–,” Jake trails off as he comes through the bedroom door. She pauses her search for a t-shirt and looks over to find her boyfriend staring like his brain is buffering. “Is that new?” he stammers.

She knows what he’s talking about, but she never misses a chance to mess with him. “Is what new, dickhead?” Natasha asks innocently, looking around.

He swallows and reaches up to rub the back of his neck. His gaze jumps up and down between the matching lace bra, which he’s seen plenty of. His eyes darken to the color of the lingerie she’s wearing. “That thong,” he chokes out.

Natasha turns to face him and pops her hip. He fidgets, subtly widening his stance. “Not exactly new. Like it?”

Jake struggles to get ahold of himself because they don’t have a spare moment before they have to head out. “Looks good on you.” He slides his hands into his pockets and turns to leave.

“Weren’t you going to ask me something?” she prompts, not trying to hide her amusement.

It takes him a moment to remember. “I was going to ask if you’re almost ready, but uh, no rush.”

All day she catches him watching her, gaze lingering on her lower back and hips, what’s underneath her jeans no doubt preoccupying his mind. But before they get home, he gets called in early the next morning to cover for one of the instructors and the thong ends up in the hamper before he has time to appreciate it.

---

Natasha smooths the freshly made bed and wonders where Jake is with the rest of the laundry. “Bagman!” she calls.

No answer. He doesn’t respond to "Jake" either.

She exhales sharply through her nose, annoyed. He probably got distracted on his phone. She heads down to the laundry room to check on him. The door is ajar, and it’s not the sound of the washer or dryer coming from the room.

Jake breathes heavily over the muffled slick friction of his hand on himself. A high whine punches out of his chest on what sounds like a particularly firm stroke. Natasha bites back a smile and creeps forward on tiptoe to peek into the room.

He leans against the wall, head thrown back and hand in his gym shorts. His throat muscles strain with his mounting arousal. Clutched to his chest is her green thong. “Fuck, Nat,” he exhales.

“Did you summon me?” she asks softly, pushing the door open all the way.

Jake’s eyes fly open and whatever part of his skin isn’t already flushed goes bright red. “No!” he shouts, throwing away the panties like that will save him now.

“Didn’t realize how much you liked those on me,” she teases, stooping to pick up the abandoned evidence. His chest heaves as he waits for her reaction. She makes a mental note to pack a little surprise for him the next time he goes on a trip or deployment. But for now, she sways her hips on her way to him and presses the thong to his stomach.

“How about you hold onto these while I finish where you left off?” Jake’s pupils blow wide open at that.

“Huh?” he asks stupidly.

She doesn’t give him a chance to put his brain back together. Natasha drops to her knees, one hand still holding the thong to his abdomen while the other tugs off his shorts and works his boxer briefs down his shapely thighs. He’s still holding his full, hard length, his head glistening with his precum. The musk of his aroused sweat and sight of his well-endowed dick stretched to its zenith goes straight to her core. She wraps her hand around his and lowers him to her mouth, darting out her tongue to swirl his tip. There’s a sweet edge to the saltiness of his leaking precum from the peaches he ate earlier.

He grunts and lets out a litany of “Fucks!” when she wraps her lips around him and sucks lightly. She loves the taste of him, the way he fills her mouth as he releases his hold to her. The hand over his stomach slides down to brace herself against his base, her thumb stroking through his pubes as she takes him in her mouth. Broken, ragged sighs and moans burst out of him as she sucks him down.

“I love how good you are,” she breathes across his tip before lifting him so she can lick a slow path from his balls to his head. The contrast of his hard erection with the petal soft skin of his dick is making her own brain intoxicatingly fuzzy.

“Oh god!” he shouts. Then pleadingly, “Nat.” The fist clutching her panties goes to his face. She presses her advantage and licks the same path again, sending his hips back into the wall as his precum spills over her lips and chin. He watches, eyes hooded and lips gnawed swollen, as she drags his fluid up to her mouth then licks it off her finger. She swallows, and his dick jumps hard. A molten swell of satisfaction pools between Natasha’s legs and floods her already soaked underwear.

Jake surges down and captures her mouth with his, his lips and tongue dragging the breath right out of her lungs. Natasha has to let go of him to wrap an arm around his neck and hang on lest she pass out from the sheer assault of him on her senses.

“Let me fuck your mouth,” he begs when he breaks away.

Her voice is wrecked, her vision a little hazy as she stares up at him. “Give me your shirt and promise to cum all over my tongue,” she rasps, “and my mouth is all yours.”

“Good lord, are you trying to kill me?” he moans. Jake rips off his shirt and hands it to her. She uses it and his discarded shorts to pad her aching knees. He settles back against the wall and in the laundry room light, he glows like her own glorious Eros. She wants to lick every bead of sweat that glistens between the carved ridges of his abdomen and chest. Gently, he strokes her hair before lacing his fingers through it. “Let me know if I hurt you or you want me to stop?”

She nods and parts her lips for him. It’s too much for Jake to watch himself stroke in and out of her mouth, but Natasha treasures every trembling clench of his muscles, the roped veins in his arms as he holds off his release, the alluring column of his throat, and the perfect arch of his jaw. She opens the back of her throat and hums her pleasure, ignoring the dribble of drool forced out by his girth. His panting accelerates with his pace.

“How is your mouth this perfect?” he groans. Jake chances a glance down in time to see her smirk and throws his head back again. “Fuck!”

The little room fills with his increasingly loud, desperate gasps and keens over the wet lap of his dick in her mouth. Natasha presses forward so that his thighs meet her breasts and her hands can knead the muscled curves of his ass. There’s something about being on her knees for Jake that makes her high on her love for him, the feeling that there is nothing she wouldn’t be willing to do for him. She tilts her head to give him a new angle, and to breathe a little easier, and his fingers curl in her hair. “Yeah there, Nat. That’s so good.”

His hips start to move more urgently. “So close. I can’t–I’m going to come.”

“Mhmm,” she encourages, relaxing her own muscles and closing her eyes because now he’s thrusting against the back of her throat. She can always tell from the pitch and cadence of Jake’s gasps how close he is to finishing, but what she loves most about taking him in her mouth is that she can also follow the subtle shifts in his body on its way to finding his release in her.

When she hears him on the brink, she sucks a little harder on his next thrust.

“Nat,” he chokes and gives way to his climax with a long, stuttering groan. His balls and dick constrict in rapid succession before the swell of his cum rushes through his length and bursts in hot spurts down her throat. She moans around the feel of him pumping out his release as she swallows everything she can. Jake’s legs tremble under her hands as he shudders through his orgasm. .

Carefully, she slides her mouth off of him and scoots out of his way. He tosses her thong onto the wash machine and sinks to the floor. Natasha curls up between his legs, leaning into his heat, as he continues to come down. A little clumsily, he uses her t-shirt to dab his cum off her face then drapes his arms around her. He looks down at her completely love drunk, eyes slightly out of focus and mouth slack with a dopey smile. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t stop thinking about how hot those panties looked on you, babe.”

She reaches up and strokes the damp strands of hair behind his ear. “I guess I’m going to have to wear them a little more often then.”

He nuzzles her neck with a breathless laugh. “Like every day, please.”

---

As soon as he knows the Chiefs are going to the Super Bowl, Jake calls dibs on them, leaving her the Eagles by default. “Mahomes is from East Texas!” he defends himself adamantly. “I root for anyone from East Texas.”

She rolls her eyes and gives him the finger.

They opt to stay home and watch the Super Bowl together, a decision that draws enough raised eyebrows that they end up making up a party that they’re going to just to avoid the knowing looks.

Natasha isn’t sure whether Jake has a Chiefs t-shirt or buys one for the occasion, but on game day he puts it on before going to pick up their order of wings and fries while she picks out something green. At a sudden burst of inspiration, she closes the kitchen and living room blinds before changing into her Eagles Super Bowl outfit.

Jake nearly drops the bag of food when he notices her watching the pre-game coverage on the sofa.

“Phoenix, what the fuck are you wearing!” he yelps.

She grins evilly and folds her arms on the cushions. “Green. For the Eagles. Like we agreed.” What she’s really wearing is a sheer green bra and his new favorite pair of underwear.

“For fucks sake, Nat! How am I supposed to watch the game with you in that?” he complains.

Natasha smirks. “Sounds like a problem for you, not for me.”

But it’s most definitely her problem by the time the Chiefs win the coin toss because even propping his legs up on the coffee table and holding his beer in his lap, Jake can’t hide that at least her outfit, if not her team, has his full support.

When the Eagles score right out of the gate, Natasha’s touchdown dance to “We Will Rock You” ends any pretense that they’re going to make it through this game. He slams his beer on the coaster and launches himself to his feet. Bodily, he lifts her over his shoulder and lightly smacks her ass.

Laughing, Natasha doesn’t have time to get her bearings before he dumps her on the sofa and pins her in place with a kiss that makes her forget where she was going with this other than where she’s landed. He tastes of beer, wings, football, and a day he promised to spend alone with her. And the way Jake's kissing her, tongue stroking hers, hips swaying his erection over her core, hand kneading her breast, she wouldn't mind if he never stopped.

She runs her leg along the line of his, and Jake growls. He kisses and nips his way to her chest, his tongue teasing her nipple through the barely there lace. "Fuck, Jake!" she hisses when he slides open her bra with one hand. The release of her chest feels so good and the way he's staring down at her peaked and hardened nipples like his birthday has come early quickens the pulse in her core.

If she doesn't stop him now, she's not going to be able to put the breaks on this much longer. Natasha presses a hand to his chest. “Hold up, Texas Hold ‘Em! No cum on the couch.”

Jake grins slyly and tugs out the bow on one side of her underwear. She looks down at his hands as he switches sides and pulls apart the other bow. Their foreheads are practically touching, their breaths racing against one another's as they watch him lift the top of the thong off her like he’s just unwrapped a present.

His breath hitches when he sees how wet his own anticipation made her. So much for no cum on the couch. Making a split second decision, Jake tugs off his shirt and spreads it under her hips. He traces her soaking slit, and she’s already wet enough for him to slip two of his large fingers into her.

Natasha arches her back off the pillow and lifts her hips onto his hand. He watches her biting her lip and leans in to kiss her again. His weight settles over her, pressing her into the sturdy softness of the sofa’s cushions. At some point, the Chiefs score and then the Eagles again but the only end zone Natasha and Jake still care about is the one his fingers and mouth are driving her toward.

They're already cuddled naked in a large throw blanket, exhausted and spent, when the Chiefs win the game. But Jake musters his stamina to drive home one last orgasm and his victory, his fingers laced through hers as she cries out his name.

–

On the third day of deployment in the Indian Ocean, Jake pulls out a black undershirt for the day and something tumbles out into his seabag. He runs his hand over the top of his things and freezes.

He lifts out a green lace and satin thong and a folded piece of paper.

In case you want to remember how hot I look in these while you’re gone. Love, Natasha

Something about his shirt catches his attention. It smells like…he holds her lingerie to his nose. He’s fucked and never leaving his bunk. She sprayed it with her perfume.

Ode to Phoenix Masterlist

#hannix football rivalry #hannix fics #hannix smut #natasha trace x jake seresin #jake seresin x natasha trace #phoenix x hangman #hangman x phoenix #natasha phoenix trace #jake hangman seresin #hannix fic #tgm fics #tgm fic #top gun fanfic #top gun fanfiction #natasha trace fic #phoenix fic

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astolary · 2 years

Note

idk if this has been done yet but can we get a scenario where chamber's s/o accidentally hurts themselves in the dumbest possible way and he's just laughing his ass off while helping? (also im sorry if this is too specific)

𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐒𝐀𝐖 𝐀𝐁𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐔𝐓𝐄𝐋𝐘 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 .

( Synopsis ) You were just building confidence, he’ll forget it the next day. He’ll never forget it.

( Pairing ) Chamber x GN! Reader

( Content Warnings ) Cursing. Explosions.

( Word Count ) 0.9k+ words // NOT EDITED!

He snorted. Chamber brought out a handkerchief from his vest, barely hiding the smirk crawling its way through his features.

"Don't. Say. Anything." You murmured, tears almost forming in your eyes at the dumbest situation you just put yourself in. Was it out of sadness? Disbelief? Pain and anger? Frustration? Or all?

"I love the color. The variety, yeah!" Jett tried comforting you, ignoring the paint staining her favorite shoes. She kicked the broken robot parts scattered on the floor, sheepishly mumbling condolences to the bots that saved her a good amount of times.

You stood in shock, your brain malfunctioning and failing to process everything. Chamber took the liberty of removing his gloves, damping the cloth wet in his hand a bit. He wiped the paint off your face, laughing now and then.

"By the way, there's something on your lips." Chamber spoke, bringing his phone to your face.

Your lip was busted.

"I hate everything."

[ flashback . ]

On the top of your head, there were countless times when your friends asked for assistance when the equipment they used was required to be transferred. Killjoy, with crates of swarm grenades behind her. Viper, hissing whenever Phoenix handled her chemical bites carelessly. Skye, carrying the kilograms of wood she used while carving like it weighed nothing. ( Heavy lifter Skye mmm— )

It was Chamber's first time going to the storage room in headquarters. Raze was already in the practice room, the team triple-checking if all gear was in tip-top shape. She then screamed in a godly pitch about forgetting her precious, innocent, boom bot. Stuck in the confinements of the abyssal dusty storage room. So here the both of you were, playing scavenger hunt.

"I found it!" You yelled. You pushed with all your strength, feet, and legs diagonally behind you threatening to slip at any given moment. Chamber scurried to your side. The both of you dragged it to the center of the room, you, slightly drenched in sweat. Chamber? Fresh out of the salon.

"We need to bring five of them only, right? But if I do recall, Raze only brings one with her to the battlefield."

"The other 4 are usually backups. One boom bot helps her sleep while she's bored, and the other two explode when she likes to prank others if there are still no enemies on site. Which leaves her with only one."

"I see," Chamber inspected the face on the boom bot's screen.

:D. >:D. :3. :P.

"You found it fairly quickly." Chamber commended. It's been just a few minutes, and here you were at the other side of the room screaming about your success. "Do you do this often?"

You grinned smugly, nodding in approval. "Yeah! Did you know that Raze taught me how to repair her boom bot?"

"Did she now?" He leaned back against the wall, crossing his arms in expectation. He raised an eyebrow, almost charmingly if you may add. "Why don't you demonstrate for me?"

"Ok, so basically, you put this here and here..."

Confidence got the best of you. Impressing Chamber? Ohohoh wait 'till you show him your knowledge about Raze's utility. Each agent in the protocol had such unique equipment, it's what made them stand out from the crowd. And with Raze entrusting you with some knowledge, just let him see this—

Well, whatever you placed there and there, is wrong. Incorrect. Erase everything.

You didn't know how to fix Raze's boom bot. You just assumed you were doing everything right based on your memory. You saw her doing it a thousand times, so you could do it too. Right? Right?

You knew something was wrong when the face on the screen changed.

:<.

Uh oh. You were about to make a run for it, the uneasiness making you shiver. But when you turned around,

You activated a freaking army of boom bots to chase you. It was war all over again. They were all ready to explode.

BOOM!

Paint coated you head to toe. It wasn't even the best part.

"Help. Oh my gosh nonononono CHAMBER HELP??? HELP ME IM GOING TO DIE!"

He didn't help you. He stood on top of the chair beside him, laughing. You know, the laugh that gives off the 'this-is-actually-funny-someone-send-help' vibes and not the 'im-not-laughing-to-save-your-ass-and-your-dignity' vibes. (You weren't even trying to be funny. It was a 911 what's your emergency.)

Your ears would be burning from his deep laugh by now, but with the situation you were stuck in, maybe another day.

"Brimstone is mad at me mode: Activated. Sending reinforcements."

"Reinforcements?!"

The door opened, and there in all its magnificent glory, the epitome of destiny; Killjoy's turret.

Chamber wheezed at your misfortune, "Brimstone, I apologize for my companion's behavior. Can you please forgive us?"

"I'M NOT BRIMSTONE WHAT THE FUCKKKK GET ME OUT OF HERE!" You ran out of the storage room, the boom bots of Raze and the turret of Killjoy hunting you down as if it's the last thing they would do. You got the chance to play scavenger hunt, now it's their turn to play.

"You want to play? Let's play."

"CHAMBER SHUT UP PLEASSSEEE!"

You didn't make it out alive and unscathed fyi.

[ extra . ]

"(Name)! Did you find i...t?" The Brazilian trailed off, seeing all the agents gathered in the common room.

"Oh my," Reyna mused beside her.

There you were, splattered in paint, feet glued to the ground.

Oh. Oh.

Lesson learned: no more Brimstone is mad at me mode.

astolary 2022 — do not edit, repost, or translate.

#（ ❁ଓ.° ） astro! valorant #valorant #valorant headcanons #valorant protocol #valorant x reader #valorant chamber x reader #chamber x reader #chamber headcanons

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magicalhideoutengineer · 8 months

Text

HULLFISH: I loved the erumpant scene (one of the fantastic beasts) in the zoo. Tell me about building the suspense of that scene.

DAY: I really like that scene too. It has very good visual effects and the erumpant is a very lovable, flirtatious and fantastic creature which alongside Eddie Redmayne who plays Newt and Dan Fogler who plays Jacob makes for a sumptuous feast because it starts off slowly as Newt tries to seduce the erumpant back into his case with his slightly surreal dance, and then Jacob, with the aid of an escaped seal, spills the erumpant musk onto his protective armour (don’t ask, just watch the film!) and that’s when she smells him and the chase begins. This then builds and builds gradually into an almost musical crescendo which culminates on the Central Park ice rink as the erumpant gets closer and closer to Jacob with Newt in pursuance before she is recaptured into the case having narrowly missed out licking Jacob’s face.

Now that sequence obviously took quite a while to get right and I did numerous versions myself using part live action and part pre-viz to get the rhythm of the scene working and as you know, you try things out a number of different ways. Then David and I worked together on it over the months with gradually more and more sophisticated post-viz animation being supplied by the visual fx department and eventually it found its natural length and rhythm and played very well.

It was quite a bit longer originally because there was a lot more that happened within the scene. But it felt a little too long in the context of the whole film and so we also referred to our ‘filmed audience recruit screenings’ which Warner Bros provided us with in the cutting room (because we were unable to go to some of the test screenings due to the schedule, which is a shame as you cannot beat ‘feeling’ the vibe in the room with a live audience) and whenever we were unsure as to whether it was the right thing to do we would check out the audience to see if they were enjoying it or shifting in their seats and that was an incredibly useful tool to have as there was one beat in the original version in which the audience seemed to shuffle about a bit, so we pared it down until it felt like the right length.

HULLFISH: Let’s talk about temp music. I specifically noted a track in the score after the strudel scene where Newt and Kowalksi are having dinner in the girls’ apartment.

DAY: Yes, that’s right. When they first meet Queenie in the Goldstein apartment.

The source track ‘You’re the cream in my coffee’ was being played on a gramophone. In fact Alison Sudol who played the character Queenie (and it was her first day of filming) had that playing on set to get into the character and because it worked so well and we could clear it for usage I laid it on the scene when I was editing because I loved it so much and David agreed. It worked really well with her character. From there James Newton Howard segued into his lovely score as the apple strudel was being magically constructed!”

HULLFISH: This is a strange question, but where did the edit start? There were so many motion graphics and logos and stuff before we saw film….or did you have to cut all that together with pre-vis and post-vis?

DAY: You’re referring to the newspaper montage at the beginning. That all evolved during post production actually. Originally it was used later on in the film as scripted, however one of the producers had the good idea that we could use it at the beginning of the film, not only to familiarize people once again with the Harry Potter world but also it is a useful way of getting across a lot of expositional information in an interesting way which is what we needed to do. For example, it showed us the name Grindelwald (the protagonist in the film) a number of times which subconsciously lodges in people’s minds and gives the film a slightly darker tone, whereas in the original script the film started with Newt arriving by boat in New York and it was all quite jolly. Now we introduce it with this sinister character killing a number of aurors and we catch a distinctive glimpse of the back of his head (this turns out to be Grindelwald who will be played by Johnny Depp in the next film and we see him transform from the character Graves played by Colin Farrell near the end) which then segues into the newspaper montage ending up on an image of the Statue of Liberty, so instead of just this slightly eccentric British man with a suitcase arriving on a boat we have introduced a number of themes that will resonate throughout the film.

HULLFISH: Tell me about the fight with the obscurus at the end. The final battle had a beautiful, musical rhythm to it. I really love the rhythm of that scene.

DAY: Thank you, Steve, I’m really pleased about that. These things take time to get right and I did countless versions until we found the right rhythm. Having said that I do have pre-viz to work with whilst I’m editing and I intercut that with the live action footage of the main characters which gradually builds up the scene and then when we are happy with it, we turn that over to the VFX department who in turn work on the edit and they were giving us back quite sophisticated post-viz. Then eventually when we ‘semi-lock’ the scene that goes out to the vendor who work on the individual shots that we then start to receive over the ensuing months and in time they become these very impressive shots which are ‘finalled’ after many viewings and comments and incorporated into the main edit so it’s a very time-consuming process that evolves over the months that we work on the film. We also had the advantage of having the Credence character played by Ezra Miller who gave us some fantastic motion capture footage of him emoting and screaming which was incorporated into the obscurus visual fx and this gave it a unique, interesting and beautiful look.

HULLFISH: There was quite a bit of interactive lighting in the movie, was it difficult to maintain continuity with that?

DAY: That can cause problems sometimes obviously. For example, there was a scene in the Pentagram office when Tina (Katherine Waterston) shows up with the suitcase and interrupts the meeting. Philippe Rousselot (the D.O.P.) had used interactive lighting above the crowd that was following the dead body of senator Shaw (who had recently been killed by the obscurus) Now you know how scenes change during the edit and lines are excised or the scene is restructured in some way or another so there was no continuity to the lighting at all and we had to cheat it in the grade with the help of Peter Doyle our colourist and also visual fx helped out with some of it.

#fantastic beasts #fantastic beasts and where to find them #fbawtftinterview #mark day #newt scamander #jacob kowalski #gellert grindelwald #tina goldstein #queenie goldstein #credence barebone

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silkiemae · 1 year

Text

The Sun and its Shade by Piper CJ

Edit 3/6/2023: That’s right, folks. I came back and forced myself to finish this stupid book because I have absolutely no self-control. If you were wondering if it gets any better after the 40% mark, it doesn’t. Strap in because the kid gloves are coming off.

thank you to NetGalley for the ARC copy

THERE ARE SPOILERS FOR THE END OF THIS BOOK IN THIS REVIEW

the writing I know this is an ARC, so hopefully, these errors will be fixed by the time it's published, but there were a lot of punctuation marks and typos that needed to be corrected. Multiple instances of missing quotation marks when the chapter is starting with dialogue. The prose is just as overwritten as usual. Piper uses 97 words when she could use 5. It comes off just as pretentious and melodramatic as it did in the last book. Everything is so over the top that I constantly rolled my eyes. She misuses words all the time and has ridiculous metaphors that you have to reread 2 or 3 times just to make sense of. Basically, everything is as convoluted as it possible could be. Maybe some of ya’ll like this, but objectively this is not good writing. Sorry, not sorry.

plot/characters So at the end of book one, Amaris and Gadriel escape from a battle arena on the back of a dragon, HP style and then jump off its back and conveniently land right next to this magic academy. The book ends, and one would assume that the sequel will lead to Amaris going to the academy and learning to hone her magic. If you thought that, then you would be WRONG.

So we start exactly where we left off with little to no recapping of what happened in the last book. You're expected to remember, but it's hard considering how many unnecessary words are jammed between what little plot is actually in these books. They get taken to the magic school, and everyone thinks Gadriel is a demon, and they want to cage and study him. In some supremely dramatic and ridiculous monologuing, Amaris convinces the masters of the school that he's harmless. Amaris convinces herself Gadriel(now Gad) is her new best friend, but when Gadriel says, 'we fought together in Aubade' in response to being asked ', what does this woman mean to you?' she loses her MIND. She gets so assblasted mad because she thought they were friends, but APPARENTLY NOT. It's pathetic and ridiculous, and like Amaris is so naive and has no idea how the real world works at all. She cannot conceive why Gadriel won't share secrets he was sworn to keep with her even after he explains it could mean his life. Like how is Amaris supposed to be likeable lol?? Because Gadriel said they weren’t friends, and Amaris took that shit personally. Then he blames her for his shredded wings, and as usual, Amaris can’t take responsibility, much like her author counterpart. And this becomes a recurring thing in the book. Amaris stays butthurt nearly 500 pages in all because Gadriel said that she was ‘someone he fought together with’. Literally the entire book is them hot and cold with one another and it's exhausting. Neither of them are likable at all.

They look at some books at the academy for two seconds, find zero answers and guess that this tower of magic has everything they need. And conveniently, it does. They climb 10,000 steps and find the hall of prophecies from the order of the phoenix (you know, the room full of shelves with glowing blue orbs well, this room also has shelves with glowing blue orbs, but the shelves are spiral-shaped, so it’s not plagiarism, guys.) otherwise known as the hall of orbs, and Amaris realizes the floor is invisible and there's an illusion cast over it. Gadriel goes to step over it, and instead of warning him like a normal person, Amaris screams wordlessly. That's it. Then she starts berating him for not paying attention to his surroundings, even though she should know by now that she can see illusions, but Amaris is too stupid to figure this out. After all, she's been aware of her powers for three years and only just started questioning their limitations and capabilities. She is literally an idiot. Gadriel asks Amaris if he can make the jump. She reads WAY too much into this question and thinks, "oh my god, Gadriel is putting his LIFE in my HANDS. He TRUSTS me." And I'm like...bitch; you're the only one who can see the distance. Are you for real rn? Anyway, he makes the jump, and Amaris cries in relief. Literally cries. Imagine if Indiana Jones cried in relief every time he solved a booby trap puzzle while searching tombs. He would look like an idiot. Amaris has a full-blown panic attack, considers leaving and becoming a seamstress and then jumps, doesn't make it, and almost dies, and then Gadriel saves her. They touch some magical glowing blue balls, get sucked into a pensieve(I mean orb), and see some curses/blessings where faeries explode into golden dust. They meet the oldest man ever, who happens to show them the exact thing they needed to see, then get tossed from the Tardis Tower. (it’s bigger on the inside)

Gadriel gets some conveniently 'manufactured' wings and can now fly again(literally has no lasting ill effects of having his wings literally shredded), and then they realize they've learned everything they needed to know and leave. (WHAT? YOU HAVE LEARNED LITERALLY NOTHING) They try to convince Amaris to stay, and she pretends like she's going to and then leaves at night, but it's the most dramatic thing ever. She tries to write it like it's something worthy of ballads, but there is no good reason why it would be. They didn't even do anything there. And that's it. That's all that happens with Amaris' magical boarding school plot, and that's when I realized how much of a waste of time this bullshit book is. You had a whole ass magical boarding school, and you didn't use it at all?? You could've had Amaris attend school, actually learn some things since she is the biggest idiot ever and then solve a whole mystery of how the school is corrupt and experimenting on people with unique magic while also searching for the answers to the curse. But no, Amaris learns about her powers in a different way, and WE WILL TALK ABOUT THAT IN A MOMENT.

There’s a line I want to point out that I found hilariously ironic, and Piper(and Amaris) should take her own fucking advice. ” Ignorance is no one’s fault, but once you’re made aware of your lack, the choice to remain oblivious is when you become culpable.” So, if this is true, then why didn’t Amaris take advantage of the magic school so that she could not be ignorant about her abilities? Why does she continue to be ignorant of how she speaks with Gadriel by calling him terms she knows are offensive and racist? If this is true, why wouldn’t Piper fix what people have pointed in her book out as being racist, ableist and plagiarized. Why wouldn’t she do the work so she can not be an ignoramus? Hmmmm...

Now, the way that Amaris chooses to learn to wield her power is she ‘verbally consents’ to allow Gadriel to help train her. This book has a warning for consensual breathplay, but once again, Piper is full of shit and a liar. Saying, “yes, I would like you to train me to use my magic”, does not equate to “I consent to you strangling me in my sleep.” Yep, you read that right. Gadriel waits until Amaris is deep asleep, stands over her in a position that will ensure she can’t fight him off and strangles her until she explodes with sonic power(much like Ciri's power from the show....god, the plagiarism just will not stop.) And when she gets upset, he berates her for not using their safe word (snowbird). Tell me, how the fuck was she going to use a safe bird when you are cutting off her airway? How is she going to speak, let alone breathe? He says that he’s doing what any general would do for his troops, but in what fucking universe does a general strangle their troops in their sleep? This is not consensual breathplay, Piper, and if you think it is, then you need to reevaluate yourself and look up the definition of the word consent.

Now on to Nox. Nox has been honestly just as irrelevant in this book as she was in the last book. She’s hanging out with Malik and Ash and has become a sudden Yes Man, and after literally a week hanging out with them, she decides she loves Malik. Are you fucking kidding me? This honestly makes me mad because Nox was coded as a lesbian. I don’t give a fuck if Piper says she’s bisexual. She wrote about her being repulsed by men, preferring women’s company. She literally says she doesn’t like men and prefers women, but because Piper really wanted to write some hetero smut, she forced her to be bisexual? Stupid af. Not to mention her obsession with Amaris. Has she suddenly forgotten about that all because one guy was nice to her? That’s pathetic. Stand your fuckin ground, Nox. Having her fall for Malik in this is a bad call because it nullifies the fact that she fought her way free from having to fuck men against her will just to get to the woman she loves, only to immediately fall for a guy for literally no reason. Malik doesn’t do anything to deserve being called ‘pure’ because he is literally no better than a sexy lamp at this point. If she had taken the time to actually cultivate a relationship here where Nox slowly learns to trust Malik, that would be a completely different story. But Piper was too eager to jump in and write smut.

I also think it’s a strange choice to make your ‘dark fae’(which, according to Gadriel, is a racist term that has been used very freely throughout the entire book) have their powers associated with ‘nightlife’ and then make them all dubious POC. She even made their country's flag ‘bronze for the skin of its people’. That is a supremely weird thing to do. Nox literally says she is good at being sneaky because of her dark fae blood, which is also what makes her ‘bronze’. Gadriel, who is also dubiously brown, is good at picking locks. Like…Piper….what the fuck are you doing???? Stop being RACIST!!!???

Everything that happens in this book is pure convenience. Nox and Amaris constantly stumble upon the answers. There is no motivation; there is no urgency. Nox dallies most of the time at the Duke of Henares' house, eating a malum malus she got from the tree of life(which is called Yggdrasil because Piper can't make up original concepts, apparently, and has to steal from everything else). She sees the tree’s memories and watches this princess pray to the All-Mother for protection for her son. Then we find out that the priestess, who is only ever referred to as the Tarkhany woman with ‘onyx skin’, was blessed by the All Mother with immaculate conception and guess who the baby was? You guessed it. Amaris. The super white snowflake was immaculately conceived by a woman with very dark skin(because Piper has a really weird obsession with the contrast of dark and light skin, I guess). This is what they say to the nameless priestess(who actually dies earlier in this book in a very throwaway scene) when she asks if she gets to raise the child she just birthed. ”The child belongs to everyone and no one, beloved….This babe is the manifestation o the prayers of the faithful.” So not only is Amaris literally the purest PERFECT SNOWFLAKE ON EARTH BECAUSE SHE IS A MANIFESTATION OF A PRAYER(in other words, Jesus), but a nameless black woman was used and killed off for no other purpose than to be her vessel.

We later discover that Nox's pen pal from the Chamber of Secrets, aka Tom Riddle, was actually the Gray Matron all along! She gets Nox to travel all the way back to the orphanage and tells her the truth(even though she had a literal magic quill she could've used to save everyone some time). Ya'll are gonna love this. Turns out that Princess Daphne, Queen Moirai's daughter, had a child with King Ceres from Raascot(the dark fae king dude). Daphne was apparently already married, and so to hide her child from this nameless husband, she goes to this CHILD MILL, leaves her daughter there and asks for a baby(specifically a boy) with similar coloring to her baby's. Then she leaves Nox there with the Grey Matron and brings the boy back with her and the boy immediately gets murdered because the nameless husband knows it's not his. This has left me with so many questions.

a) how did the orphanage/child mill have a baby of Nox's exact coloring when in TNAIM, we're told that Nox is a novelty and people of her complexion are never sold at the orphanage? She is literally put on display as a trophy becauseof her skin tone. So how did they manage to have a baby to exchange conveniently? (also, wow, way to callously kill some nameless child, Piper.) b) how did no one realize Daphne had a baby girl? were there no midwives when she gave birth? this is medieval times; I highly doubt she gave birth alone because there's a huge chance of her dying. So how is it not a single soul outside of the nameless priestess and Agnes knew that Daphne actually had a girl? When Daphne went to the temple to pray for help, she asks for help specifically for her son. Why would she ask for help for a son she does not have? I know Piper was trying to trick us or whatever, but...that's just bad writing? Do you think the All-Mother is gonna realize you're actually talking about your hidden daughter, Daphne? c)why, if Agnes never intended for Nox to be sold, did she allow Millicent to take her to the brothel? She says she didn't know how to deny her without spilling the beans, so she just....lets Nox be taken? In what world does that make sense? If she's supposed to protect Nox why did she let Nox think it was Amaris who needed to be protected? Why would she allow Nox to put herself in harm's way to protect Amaris? Why would she allow Nox to be whipped? Why would they constantly talk about Amaris being perfect and unmarred if it was truly Nox who was the important one and they knew it all along? None of this makes sense.

Nox was named Nox, so she wouldn't forget the north. Fucking kill me. Well, she clearly knew nothing about it, so.

Amaris tells Gadriel that she got turned on when he choked her nonconsensually, so then he chokes her consensually(even though she freaked out when he choked her and this could easily trigger her into another panic attack, but okay.). She blows him, and he finger bangs her while choking her but won't take her virginity because it should be gentler the first time. First of all, you cannot tell me that Amaris still has her 'maidenhood' when she's been riding horses all this time. Piper doesn't know shit about horseback riding, though, and that's obvious. Second of all, I am convinced Piper has a secret incest kink. Why do you ask?

Well, Nox and Amaris were written as sisters, but now they're apparently star-crossed lovers? (yet they're boning random men along their journey to find one another. Makes sense.) Nox and Amaris are actually 100% based on Yennefer and Ciri from the Witcher, which is a mother/daughter relationship(Piper can say this book has nothing to do with the Witcher all she likes, she literally dedicated to this book to Henry Cavill as Geralt. We're not idiots.). Amaris calls her fellow reevers her 'brothers' and then tries to fuck one of them. And now she has a daddy kink with Gadriel(proven by the fact that Piper continuously calls him Dadriel.)

Don’t give your money to Piper CJ.

currently reading

This is what happens when you write a book in 9 days and don’t accept constructive criticism. You get sentences like this.

“She knew she was about to watch the head of a man as it was gnawed from where it connected to his shoulders.”

The whole book is like this. How did this pass the beta reading process?? This is not ready for publication.

pre-review

ya'll remember that time that Piper said that TNAIM wasn't even inspired by the witcher and then she went ahead and dedicated this book to Henry Cavill as Geralt? Yeah, me too.

thank you to NetGalley for the ARC copy

THERE ARE SPOILERS FOR THE END OF THIS BOOK IN THIS REVIEW

BIG WOOF, YA'LL. I gave up at 40% because I couldn't take it anymore. If you follow my reviews, you know how much it pains me to DNF books, but I'm trying this thing in the new year where I don't torture myself as much with bad books. If it's like dragging my body through shards of glass just to read one chapter, I won't do it. The fact that I made it to 40% is a miracle. Nothing of importance even happened in those over 200 pages.

the writing I know this is an ARC, so hopefully, these errors will be fixed by the time it's published, but there were a lot of punctuation marks and typos that needed to be corrected. Page one is missing a quotation mark in the very first sentence. The prose is just as overwritten as usual. Piper uses 97 words when she could use 5. It comes off just as pretentious and melodramatic as it did in the last book. Everything is so over the top that I constantly rolled my eyes. She misuses words all the time, has ridiculous metaphors that you have to reread 2 or 3 times just to make sense of. For example; the deer within Amaris tensed to run for the opposing tree line. So there's a deer within Amaris now? How about; It blocked their ascension with the stoic ferocity of an impenetrable sentinel. That was so many words for no reason.

plot/characters Alright, like I said, I read a little less than half of this book, but I'm going to tell you about what I read, and I'm also going to tell you some things that I've been told by others who have read and finished this book. First, I was expecting this book to be about Amaris going to a medieval magic boarding school and Nox maybe becoming a monster hunter with the help of Malik and Ash. If you were expecting that, too, you would be sorely disappointed. We get some monster hunting from Nox, but Amaris is entirely useless.

So we start exactly where we left off with little to no recapping of what happened in the last book. You're expected to remember, but it's hard considering how many unnecessary words are jammed between what little plot is actually in these books. Starting with HP rip-off number one, Amaris and Gadriel are dropped from the back of a dragon into/near a lake surrounded by a forest conveniently near this magical academy that happens to have the answers they're searching for. What are the chances?? They get taken to the magic school, and everyone thinks Gadriel is a demon and they want to study him. In some supremely dramatic and ridiculous monologuing, Amaris convinces the masters of the school that he's harmless. Amaris convinces herself Gadriel(now Gad) is her new best friend, but when Gadriel says, 'we fought together in Aubade' in response to being asked ', what does this woman mean to you?' she loses her MIND. She gets so assblasted mad because she thought they were friends, but APPARENTLY NOT. It's pathetic and ridiculous, and like Amaris is so naive and has no idea how the real world works at all. She cannot conceive why Gadriel won't share secrets he was sworn to keep with her even after he explains it could mean his life. Like how is Amaris supposed to be likeable lol?? Because Gadriel said they weren’t friends, and Amaris took that shit personally. Then he blames her for his shredded wings and as usual, Amaris can’t take responsibility much like her author counterpart.

They look at some books for two seconds, find zero answers and guess that this tower of magic has everything they need. They climb 10,000 steps and find the hall of prophecies from the order of the phoenix, otherwise known as the hall of orbs, and Amaris realizes the floor is invisible and there's an illusion cast over it. Gadriel goes to step over it, and instead of warning him, Amaris screams. That's it. Then she starts berating him for not paying attention to his surroundings, even though she should know by now that she can see illusions, but Amaris is too stupid to have this figured out. After all, she's been aware of her powers for three years, and only just started questioning their limitations and capabilities. She is literally an idiot. Gadriel asks Amaris if he can make the jump. She reads WAY too much into this question and is like, "oh my god, Gadriel is putting his LIFE in my HANDS. He TRUSTS me." And I'm like...bitch, you're the only one who can see the distance. Are you for real rn? Anyway, he makes the jump, and Amaris cries in relief. Literally cries. Imagine if Indiana Jones cried in relief every time he solved a booby trap puzzle while searching tombs. He would look like an idiot. Amaris has a full-blown panic attack, considers leaving and becoming a seamstress and then jumps, doesn't make it, and almost dies, and then Gadriel saves her. They touch some magical glowing blue balls, get sucked into a pensieve and see some curses/blessings where faeries explode into golden dust. They meet the oldest man ever who happens to show them the exact thing they needed to see then get tossed from the Tardis Tower.

Gadriel gets some conveniently 'manufactured' wings and can now fly again and then they realize they've learned everything they needed to know and leave. (WHAT? YOU HAVE LEARNED LITERALLY NOTHING) They try to convince Amaris to stay, and she pretends like she's going to and then leaves at night, but it's the most dramatic thing ever. Like they made it into something that apparently is worthy of ballads, but there is no good reason why it would be worthy of ballads. They didn't even do anything there. And that's it. That's all that happens with Amaris' magical boarding school plot, and that's when I realized how much of a waste of time this bullshit book is. You had a whole ass magical boarding school, and you didn't use it at all?? You could've had Amaris attend school, actually learn some things since she is the biggest idiot ever and then solve a whole mystery of how the school is corrupt and experimenting on people with unique magic while also searching for the answers to the curse.

On the other hand, Nox is now a Yes Man and likes Malik and Ash and is probably gonna fuck Malik, which I think is bullshit considering she was coded as a lesbian. Call her bisexual all you want, and I won't believe you. She was repulsed by the touch of men, only sought comfort from other women and was OBSESSED with her 'precious little snowflake'. Having her bone a dude in this is a bad call because it nullifies the fact that she fought her way free from having to fuck men just to get to the woman she loves.

I think it's weird that the northern fae is all known to have 'bronze skin'; their powers are associated with 'night life', and their colors are 'black and copper', and they are considered the 'dark fae' aka the 'evil demons'. Like....girl... do you not see how deeply fucked up that is? Like, what are you doing? lmao.

Now, some things I was told. Amaris was immaculately conceived by a black woman. I repeat. The perfect white, special snowflake was immaculately conceived by a black woman. The precious perfect too pure for this world white woman who had her 'bronze-skinned succubus friend' whipped on her behalf. Oh, and Nox is the princess of both countries; the grey matron who made Nox her serving girl was aware of this and allowed Nox to be whipped and sold to a brothel. Also, Nox was named Nox so that she wouldn't forget she was a 'dark fae'.....What the fuck??

Also, the 'consensual breath play' is not consensual, jsyk. You can't consent when you're asleep, and someone starts choking you. You're fucking asleep. Good god.

currently reading

This is what happens when you write a book in 9 days and don’t accept constructive criticism. You get sentences like this.

“She knew she was about to watch the head of a man as it was gnawed from where it connected to his shoulders.”

The whole book is like this. How did this pass the beta reading process?? This is not ready for publication.

pre-review

ya'll remember that time that Piper said that TNAIM wasn't even inspired by the witcher and then she went ahead and dedicated this book to Henry Cavill as Geralt? Yeah, me too.

#the sun and its shade #the night and its moon #piper cj #book review

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