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trickphotography2 · 4 months

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'tis the damn season | Chapter 4

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x Julie/Cece (OC, no physical description)

Word count: 6.5K

Synopsis: After six years away from home, Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin was finally going to make his parents happy and surprise his family by spending Christmas in Magnolia, Texas. Introducing his pregnant fiancee to his family is a culture clash, with rural Texas meeting California influencer. Though unhappy in his relationship, Jake knows he has to buckle down and do the right thing with a baby on the way.

The last person he expected to run into was his high school sweetheart and the one that got away, Julie.

The holidays are already going to be hard enough for Julie. Her home baking business, which had started as a fun side project, exploded after a few TikToks went viral. Just when she was getting the hang of juggling her job and business, tragedy struck. Facing her first Christmas as an orphan, the last thing Julie expected was to hear that once familiar nickname - Cece.

After almost a decade apart, Jake and Julie can't help but feel that old familiar spark. Even with the realities of their lives pressing in, they can't help but wonder what might have happened if just one of them had fought for their relationship all those years ago.

Chapter 3 | Master List | Ao3

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Chapter 4

A benefit of military training was that Jake could now fall asleep anywhere and under almost any circumstances. After months on a carrier listening to hops overhead, shaking his bed, collapsing into a steady twin-sized mattress wasn’t an issue.

When he closed his eyes, he could only see Cece’s shocked expression after they’d kissed. But when he drifted off, he dreamed about holding her, pressing kisses to the nape of her neck as she decorated her cakes before lifting her onto the counter and standing between her knees. The unhurried kisses they’d share as she ran her fingers through his hair the way no one else seemed to be able to do. Her soft mo -

“What are you doing?!”

Jake bolted upright at the sound of raised voices, feet hitting the floor before he was fully awake. Not pausing to grab his shirt, he ran from the bedroom and flew down the steps, jumping the last few as Ally yelled again.

“You inconsiderate b - ”

“Inconsiderate?! I’m helping!” Standing in the doorway to the kitchen, Jake stared wide-eyed at the scene before him.

“You’re ruining it!” The back door swung open as Mama stomped to clear the snow from her boots.

“What’s going on here?” she demanded. Cool hands brushed Jake’s bare skin, and he glanced down to see Cece trying to get past him.

“What…” her exhausted voice cracked, taking in the scene before them.

The counter was littered with crumbs. Bowls of ganache and buttercream had knives resting on the rims. The macaron shells that Jake matched were scattered about, some with filling that spilled past the rims of the small cookies. A few cupcakes Cece had carefully decorated and boxed were sitting back on the cooling racks, icing swiped from the sides.

And, standing there with flour artfully brushed on her cheeks with her phone set up on Cece’s tripod was Shayla. A red-faced Ally glared daggers at her from across the counter, one hand resting on her stomach while the other clenched into a tight fist. “You need the get the fuck out of here RIGHT NOW,” Ally snarled, “before I knock you on your ass, you selfish - ”

“Allison Rae Seresin,” Mama snapped, toeing off her boots and stepping inside. Her eyes quickly surveyed the damage, widening the more she took in.

“Jake, you’re going to let her talk to me like that,” Shayla demanded, planting her hands on her hips. It took a minute for him to realize that she was wearing Cece’s discarded apron.

“What were you thinking, Shayla?” he asked, attempting to keep his voice steady but unable to stop the anger from creeping in. His eyes darted to Cece, who stood silently beside him, a shaking hand pressed to her mouth. Shay’s gaze shifted from him to her, and he could have sworn something flashed in his fiancée’s eyes.

“I was just trying to help. I know you and Jake were up all night, and I’m going to tag you in the video so you’ll get plenty of viewers from it.”

“Y-you…I…” Cece stuttered before pressing her lips into a thin line. Jake could see the gleam of tears in her tired eyes and felt his heart break. But when he reached to touch her shoulder, she jerked away from him. The anger faded from Ally’s face as she turned to Cece.

“I’m sure we can salvage some of it,” she said. Shaking her head, Cece forced a smile onto her wobbling lips.

“I-it’s fine. I can fix it. I…I just need to go to the store.”

“Shayla will pay for the damages,” Mama said, glancing at the woman in question. When she opened her mouth to say something, Jake cut her off.

“Of course. I’ll go with you - ”

“No.” The word was loud in the near-silent kitchen, but Cece wouldn’t meet his gaze.

“I’ll go,” Ally said, glancing at her watch. “I don’t have any appointments this morning, so I can help out - ”

“No.” It was softer this time but just as firm.

“Julie - ” Mama said softly, walking toward the trembling woman who took a step back. Her shoulder brushed Jake’s chest, but she took another quick step away when he reached to steady her.

“Please don’t. I-I need to go. The ganache needs at least two hours to set b-before I can use it.” Without another word, she turned on her heel and brushed past him, working hard not to touch him before darting upstairs.

“You fix this,” Mama ordered, hard eyes meeting his before following Cece upstairs.

“Get out of the kitchen,” Ally demanded.

“You can’t - ”

“In case you didn’t catch on,” she cut her off. “This is my family’s house. This is my future house. And just because my brother-in-law had the misfortune of knocking you up and putting that gaudy ring on your finger before any sense was knocked into his thick skull doesn’t give you any right to stand here until your last name is Seresin. So get. Out.”

“Jakey!” He scrubbed a hand down his face, turning to watch Cece barrel down the stairs and out the front door.

The grocery store parking lot was empty when Julie parked in a spot closest to the door - it wouldn’t open for another fifteen minutes. With a sigh, she leaned the seat back and stared up at the car ceiling, willing away the tears that pricked her eyes.

She was so tired. And hurt. And mad at herself.

The idea of going back to the Seresin house - one of her safe havens - made her stomach twist with guilt and dread. A small part of her wanted to call Lucy to see if she could use her kitchen. Still, the rational part of her knew it would be a huge imposition to ask her best friend to give up her kitchen with two little ones running around, and she would never get the work done.

But working with Jake again couldn’t happen. Julie had let her guard down last night, lost in the nostalgia of spending time with the boy she’d loved and learning about the man he’d become. It had been too easy to slip back into the familiar, trading long-forgotten inside jokes and teasing one another. His warm laugh had kept her going, and she’d even trusted him enough to watch over things and take a short power nap on the couch. She’d been too comfortable with the casual touches they’d traded, his hands on her hips to gently move her out of the way to wash his hands or how his fingers had curled around hers when they high-fived when the macarons finally came out right.

And when they’d kissed… it had felt like finally coming home. Like stepping into a hot shower after a long day, letting the warmth wrap around you and ease all of the tension from your body.

“Baby, I missed you.”

Those words echoed through her head, bruising her heart.

There were few things that Julie regretted in life, and leaving Jake in Virginia wasn’t one of them. For the first time, she had put herself first. She’d stood up for herself when he kept lying to her face. Julie needed time to figure out who she was when she wasn’t waiting for Jake Seresin to accomplish his goals.

What she did regret, though, was ignoring his text message after running into him seven years ago.

It had been a shock to see him two years after breaking off their engagement and moving back to Austin. Ally had texted her to ask for bar recommendations since she and Will were going to the Texas versus A&M rivalry game, and she’d given her favorite local spot. After spending hours in the sun, screaming for her team to kick the Aggie’s ass, she and her girlfriends had retreated to their watering hole to celebrate their win. The last thing she had expected was to see her ex-fiancé standing at the bar, the black Longhorn hat she’d bought him years before on his head as he ordered a beer. When his green eyes had lifted to find hers across the crowded room, she’d been pinned to the spot.

The night had ended with them sneaking away from the group and fumbling with the bar bathroom door lock, unwilling to stop kissing long enough to secure it. She could taste beer and longing on his tongue, and she let herself get lost in the feeling of him and the nostalgia of the Spring Break nights that had ended just like this. Once the lock clicked into place, he backed her against the walls, his hands sliding under her burnt orange skirt as he mouthed at her breasts through her white t-shirt. Guiding her legs around his waist, he’d lifted her, pressing her against the wall while tugging her panties to the side.

“I missed you,” he panted against her neck as he slid home.

A month later found Julie in her apartment bathroom, staring at the pregnancy test on the sink. Jake had texted her a few times, and they’d even spent one night talking into the early hours. Still, ever since realizing her period was late, she had limited contact. Just that morning, he’d texted asking if she was alright.

A small part of her wanted to tell him she might be pregnant. But the last time they’d been in this predicament, he’d made so many promises, and she wasn’t sure if she could do the same. The memory of sitting on the phone with him during their sophomore year of college, waiting for the timer to go off as he promised he would drop out of the Academy and move home, and enlist in the Navy rather than commission as an officer so he could take care of her and the baby, was too much. As much as she still loved Jake, Julie wasn’t sure she could promise to move back to Virginia if she was pregnant this time. Those two months had been a black hole of loneliness and depression, and she’d only clawed herself out of it by coming back to Austin.

So when the test was negative, Julie promised it was over. And she kept that promise when she’d seen him in Magnolia the following year when she visited her daddy for Christmas. It had been hard to speed walk out of the store, ignoring Jake calling for her, but it was for the best.

And now… now he was engaged and had a baby on the way, exactly what he’d always wanted.

And who was she to derail that? Even if the woman he chose to spend the rest of his life with was evil? That was his choice. There had to be something good in her if Jacob Thomas Seresin chose to spend the rest of his life with her. For all of his faults, Jake was a good man who would do anything for the people he loved. And if he loved Shayla, that had to mean something. So kissing him was now on the list of regrets.

It did mean that she needed to distance herself from the Seresins. As much as she loved them, it wasn’t fair to Jake, Shayla, or their baby for her to be around. Once she left Magnolia, it would be easier to separate herself. It would hurt to lose her family, but it was the right thing to do. The idea of this being her last Christmas with them was…a sob caught in Julie’s throat, and she pressed a hand to her mouth to keep it from escaping. She’d already promised to be Tyler’s godmother - she could still make sure to have a close relationship with the little boy while keeping his uncle at arm’s length.

The grocery store lights turned on. Sitting up, Julie took a few deep breaths, brushing away any tears that had escaped her tight control and ignoring the dark circles that seemed permanent these days. After gathering her purse and putting her coat back on, she exited the car and hurried across the parking lot, mentally reviewing her shopping list.

The tears started to escape again when she stood in the baking aisle, trying to find more than one bag of almond flour. There was no telling how many macarons she needed to redo, and only having a bag and a half made her anxious.

“Jules?” Taking a step back from where she was moving bags of flour on the shelf, she looked up the aisle to see Drew smiling. It slowly faded as he took in her appearance, and he quickly walked toward her, his cart wheels rattling loudly. “Hey, everything alright?”

Maybe it was the genuine concern in his voice or the way his brown eyes softened as they took her in. It could have been the familiar firehouse uniform that her daddy had worn or just the exhaustion of the last week, but Julie couldn’t fight the tears any longer. When the first sob escaped, she clapped a hand to her mouth to stifle it, squeezing her eyes shut and wishing the floor would open and swallow her whole. “Aw, honey,” Drew murmured, shifting his radio over his shoulder before tugging her into his arms. His blue fire jacket held the faintest whiff of smoke and muted cologne, and she found herself burying her face into his chest as she cried.

Julie wasn’t sure how long they stood there, but Drew didn’t seem to mind her using him as support during her breakdown. Instead, he held her tightly, telling her it would be alright. That whatever was wrong, they would figure it out. And when her sobs dissolved into hiccups and sniffles, she pulled away and wiped at the dark spot she’d left on his uniform. “S-sorry,” she whispered.

“It’s fine,” he replied, ducking to try and catch her eye when she wouldn’t look at him. “What’s wrong, Jules? Talk to me.”

“I-it’s just been a spectacularly shitty last few days.”

“Yeah? What happened?” And that was how she found herself spilling everything to him - overextending herself between work and baking to try and block out the fact that this was the first Christmas without her daddy, not sleeping for more than a few hours per night over the last month, her oven going out, and waking up to find out that Shayla ruined a lot of the hard work she’d done overnight. “So let me get this straight, honey,” Drew said, brows furrowing. “You’ve been runnin’ yourself into the ground and not sleeping. And your oven went out, so you went to the Seresin’s. And your ex-fiancé’s new fiancée is a bitch who messed with the stuff that you need for the mayor’s party tonight?”

“That’s the gist,” she nodded. A soft smile crossed his mouth as he brushed away her tears with his knuckle. Sometimes, it was easy to forget that Drew had only been in Magnolia for about four years and hadn’t had a front-row seat to the saga of Jake and Julie that some folks in town still liked to gossip about. Gossips like Betty, who pushed her rattling cart past them, not even bothering to hide her curious stare.

“Mornin’, Mrs. Roberts,” Drew said, tapping the bill of his cap.

“Mornin’,” Betty said. “Everythin’ alright, Julie?”

“Peachy,” she lied, forcing a smile and trying to ignore that her face was probably red and splotchy.

“Jules was just helpin’ me pick out the best stuff for pancakes. Gotta get back to the house and make sure we get one last good breakfast in before shift ends.”

“Of course,” Betty said, glancing in their baskets. Her gaze caught on the dark blue spot on his jacket. Drew reached up and twisted the radio belt, so it covered the spot, hand resting on the radio to hide it further.

“Merry Christmas,” Julie said, turning her back on Betty, reaching for a bag of all-purpose flour, and putting it into Drew’s cart. “You should do them from scratch rather than using the box stuff.”

“Right. Just figured it’d be easier for the rookie,” Drew said, turning his back on the older woman. The rattling of the wheels alerted them to her departure, and they both glanced over their shoulder to see her hurrying down the aisle. “Ten bucks says she calls someone from the parking lot.”

“Twenty says she calls someone before getting to the register,” Julie countered, reaching into his cart to retrieve the flour.

“You can leave that. What else do I need for pancakes from scratch?”

“Baking powder, sugar, salt, milk, eggs, and butter. You sure you don’t want to go the easier boxed route?”

“I have a feeling we’re gonna need a good breakfast to get through all the work we have to do.”

“I thought your shift ended soon. Expecting any fires?”

“You never know,” Drew grinned down at her. “I’ve been known to start a kitchen fire or two when trying to make something. Good thing there’ll be a professional on hand to supervise.” At her confused look, he shrugged. “Come use the kitchen at the firehouse.”

“I-I… Drew, that’s - ”

“We’ve got a huge kitchen, the guys can help out, and you won’t have to worry about seeing the bitchy fiancée or ex-fiancé.”

“All my stuff is at the Seresin’s place.” He shrugged again.

“Not an issue. I can run over and grab it while you take a nap.” He held up a finger when she opened her mouth to say something. “Honey, I hope the next words out of your mouth are some form of ‘yes’ or ‘thank you,’ ‘cause I don’t think we have a whole lot of time to argue. I got one of those invitations to the mayor’s party, and I know that we’ve got about” - he glanced at his watch - “thirteen hours until the party starts, and I’m sure you want to be done before that. So we don’t have time. Unless you want to go back to the Seresin’s.”

Julie paused for a moment before speaking, “Thanks, Drew.”

Jake carefully wiped the paper towel over the macaron shell, removing as much of the ganache as possible before setting it aside. Shayla had only managed to make about forty of the cookies before getting caught, so even if he couldn’t salvage all of them, at least Cece wouldn’t be starting from scratch. It was the least he could do.

After Cece had left and Ally kicked her out of the kitchen, Shayla stomped up to the guest bedroom. He reluctantly followed, finding her throwing things into her suitcase and demanding to leave. “I’m happy to drive you to the airport, but I’m not leaving,” Jake had said, crossing his arms over his chest. Shayla spun on her heel and glared at him, putting a hand on her stomach.

“You would abandon the mother of your child? On Christmas Eve?”

“If you want to go, that’s fine. And we can talk about this when I get home - and we are going to talk about this, Shayla.”

“About what?!” she spat, throwing her hairdryer into the suitcase so hard that the attachment flew off. “For trying to help some little bumfuck creator wi - ”

“Stop!” It was rare for Jake to raise his voice to her, so it shocked Shayla into silence. “You have no idea how hard Cece worked last night. You had no right to do that.”

“Oh, because it’s precious ‘Cece’s,’” she scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Funny how everyone else calls her Julie, but you call her Cece. ‘Cause she’s just an ‘old family friend,’ right?” Cocking an eyebrow, she smirked. “We’re even, Jake.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I saw you.” Jake felt a jolt of panic and fought to keep his expression blank.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I saw you kiss her.” The smile that graced her face could only be described as vindictive as she rubbed her stomach. “We both screwed up, but we’re gonna put that behind us for the sake of our baby, right?” When he didn’t answer, too stunned to respond, she walked closer and cupped his cheek, guiding his hand to her stomach. “Right? Because we’re a family. And I forgive you - ”

“Shay - ”

“As long as you don’t see her again.”

Gentle chiming woke Julie, and she blindly slapped for her phone to turn off the alarm. Her body ached for sleep, and she indulged by hitting the snooze button. Rolling onto her stomach, she buried her face into the pillow and inhaled an unfamiliar scent while tugging the blanket higher over her shoulders.

There was a gentle rapping on the door, and Julie groaned when it opened. “Jules?” Drew said softly.

“ M up,” she grumbled, forcing one eye open.

“I just wanted to let you know I’m back with your stuff. Did you want me to get the oven going?”

“I - ” she yawned, slowly sitting up. “Can do it.”

“Watch your eyes.” After pausing to let her cover them, Drew flipped on the room light. Squinting at the sudden brightness, she caught the fond look he gave her at the sight of her sleeping in one of his shirts and pair of sweats before schooling his expression. “Coffee’s ready whenever you are.”

“Did… did they say anything when you got to the house?”

“Well,” he said, leaning against the doorframe and scratching his chin, fingers rasping against the stubble. “Mrs. Seresin wanted to make sure you were alright. Mrs. Roberts called her to let her know about… uh… you were upset.”

“Well, at least we know who she called in the dairy section,” she sighed, rolling her eyes - Drew had handed her a crisp $20 bill after checking out.

“Yeah. Didn’t see Mr. Seresin or Will, but I met Jake.” Julie gripped the mattress, somewhat dreading what he would report.

“And?”

“He, uh…” Drew scratched the back of his neck. “Wanted me to tell you that he tried to save as many cookies as possible. And that he’s sorry.”

“Any sightings of the wicked witch of the West Coast?” she asked, pushing to her feet. The floor was cold, and she quickly shoved her feet into her sneakers.

“Thankfully, no,” he chuckled, stepping aside as she neared. “I can grab my shampoo and stuff if you want to jump in the shower before starting.

“You trying to politely say I’m lookin’ rough?” Julie teased.

“I’d never say that about a beautiful woman.” Blushing, she dropped her gaze and shook her head.

“Daddy told me about the water pressure here. I’ll wait ‘til I get home.” With a nod, Drew tilted his head toward the kitchen.

“I just tossed your clothes in the dryer, so they’ll be done soon. And I may have stashed some of the leftover bacon for you.”

Stepping into the main room, Julie was greeted with a round of hellos from the firefighters on shift. She quickly made the rounds, hugging some oldtimers who had worked with her daddy and trading smiles with the rest. In a town as small as Magnolia, she regularly saw them at the store or work and - except for a few - had gone to school with them. Drew handed her a coffee mug when she stepped away from a conversation with Travis, whose wife wanted a cake for their fifth wedding anniversary.

“Let’s see the damage,” Julie sighed, glancing at the tray of paired macaron shells. She quickly spotted the damaged ones, even with Jake trying to salvage them. A handful were cracked, and the silver cookies were stained with chocolate. All told it looked like she would maybe have to do four trays - much less than expected. Thankfully, it looked like Shayla had only messed with six cupcakes, which had been extras, so she didn’t need to touch those. Mentally revising her to-do list while sipping coffee, Julie realized that she would have plenty of time to finish all the work, even with testing the new oven.

“What’s the plan, boss?” Drew asked, leaning against the counter and watching her.

“I’ll whip up some macarons to test the oven, make some royal icing for the cookie kit, and decorate the macarons. The ganache should be set by then, and my stuff will be up to room temp for the buttercream. I can fill macarons pretty quickly, and after that, it’s boxing and doing the sugar cookies.”

Which was exactly what she did. It only took three rounds of tests to get the macarons right, by which time she had an audience sitting around the kitchen. Drew, who had been observing from the table while doing some paperwork, put them to work after raiding the EMT truck for gloves. They quickly assembled her packaging and placed her advertisement stickers on the cupcake boxes. After doing a small drizzle of icing on the macaron shells to make it look like the Christmas bulbs had a cap, she stood back and laughed as they doused them with edible spray glitter.

With their permission - which she enthusiastically received - Julie set up her tripod and filmed. And it was the most she laughed in a long time. As much as the guys were messing around, they ensured their assigned tasks were done. Given how much counter space there was, she made the sugar cookie dough while the macarons dried before baking. Once rolled, there was some good-natured shoving to see who would get to cut out the cookies while Julie worked on filling the macarons. Drew volunteered to package them, his arm brushing against hers when he reached for one of the finished cookies.

Somehow - miraculously - everything was done by 3:00PM. The guys were already off shift but stayed back to help her finish up, and the second shift also joined in. When she started to plan on moving everything to her car, they helped her wash and pack her equipment but insisted on her coming back to get the baked goods before the party so she wouldn’t have to repack the car again in a couple of hours.

“I’ll come by,” Drew offered. “Gonna be headed to the party anyways, so I can help you set up. And then maybe you’d like to stick around with me?”

So, just before 4:00PM, Julie trudged back into her apartment, collapsed into bed after setting an alarm, and quickly passed out.

“Get up,” Will said, throwing open the door to Jake’s bedroom. “We’re goin’ out.” Lowering his phone, Jake looked at his older brother and sighed.

“Don’t feel like it.”

“I wasn’t asking, squirt. Get your ass up and get in the truck.” Rolling his eyes, Jake shifted onto his side, turning his back to his brother.

“Later, Will. I’m - ” A hand clamped around his ankle and tugged. Caught off-guard, he scrambled to catch the mattress as Will pulled him onto the floor in a tangle of blankets and limbs. Hands on his hips, his older brother glared down at him.

“Get your fuckin’ shoes on. We’re goin’ to get a beer.”

Which was how the Seresin boys found themselves at Mikey’s on Christmas Eve, staring one another down over a beer while country versions of Christmas classics played on the jukebox. The bar was moderately full of folks catching up, those - like Jake - who had moved away from Magnolia and came back for the holidays, greeting those who had chosen to stay behind. He’d seen more people from high school tonight than since graduation when he and Cece had snuck out to a field party. That night, he’d slipped his class ring on her finger, promising they would get married as soon as he graduated from the Academy, celebrating their commitment in the backseat of his truck. After too much to drink, they’d fallen asleep in each other’s arms in his truck bed and woken to multiple missed calls from her daddy. Mr. Ryan had tried to ground Cece, only for her to put her foot down that she was an adult and wouldn’t miss time with Jake the last few weeks he was home.

After catching up with another former classmate, Will took a deep breath, cleared his throat, and pushed his glass away. “Jake.”

“Why do I feel I’m not going to like what you have to say?”A smile tugged at the corner of Will’s mouth before he schooled his expression.

“‘Cause you can be moderately intelligent when you’re not thinkin’ with your dick. But yeah, you’re not gonna like it. We need to talk about Shayla.”

“My fiancée? Jake asked, sipping his beer and raising an eyebrow.

“Not many other Shayla’s around here,” his brother shrugged and sighed. “Ally told me about what happened this morning, and I’m sure Mama told Pops.”

“She has. You saw the way he looked at her at dinner.” It had been a tense affair, with Ally choosing to stay home rather than join while Mama kept her answers clipped when asked anything. Will and Pops had carried on the conversation, and Pops had pointedly told Shayla to put her phone away when she tried to film them eating. Jake had taken it from her and put it in his pocket, only returning it when the meal was over. When Will grabbed a plate of leftovers to take home for his wife, Pops stopped him to ask if Ally would be joining them for breakfast, to which Will said he wasn’t sure. Jake had caught the irritated look that Mama had thrown at Shayla.

Will nodded, crossing his arms over the table. “Yeah. She’s not making it easy, especially doing that to Julie.” Jake took a sip of his beer to avoid giving his brother more reason to hate her. If he found out that Shayla had done it intentionally to hurt Cece for his mistake, there would be no coming back from that.

“She’s… not comfortable here. She’s not like this when we’re home.” Raising an eyebrow, Will gave his brother an unimpressed look. “She’s not. Shay is...complicated.”

“So uncomplicate it for me. Why are you with her? Other” - he cut Jake off when he opened his mouth - “than because she’s pregnant.”

“I love her.” The words sounded hollow even to his own ears. “She’s…she’s…”

Sitting up, Will counted on his fingers. “Ally’s the love of my life. She’s funny, smart as hell, feisty as shit, protective of the people she loves, and is one of the most caring people I’ve met.” Holding up his hand, he sighed. “Five things about the woman I love in less than 30 seconds. It’s not a trick question.

“Shayla’s funny in her own way,” Jake said, holding up his thumb. “She can be caring. Um…She’s good at what she does, and her fans love her.”

“And time,” Will said, glancing at his watch. “Just for comparison's sake, if I’d asked you that question about Julie back when you were together, would you have been able to answer it?”

Jake gave his brother a flat stare. “It’s easy to say good things about someone you’ve loved since seventh grade.”

“Should be even easier to say it about the woman you’re gonna spend the rest of your life with.”

“What do you want me to say, Will?” Jake demanded. “That I don’t want to be with my fiancée? That I wish I hadn’t been stupid and slept with her one more time before breaking up? Because I’m not going to say that. Not about the woman who is having my baby.”

“Ja - ”

“I’m going to marry her. We’re going to be a family, and we’re just going to have to…figure out how to…”

“Be happy?”

“I am happy,” he snapped.

“Then maybe tell that to your face.” It had been years since his last bar fight, but it took everything in Jake not to deck his big brother. Scowling down at his beer, he forced himself to take a deep breath. And then another. Sighing, Will shook his head. “I’m not tryin’ to piss you off. But you don’t have to marry her just ‘cause she’s pregnant.”

“If Ally’d gotten pregnant when you were dating, you would have married her.”

“You’re right. I would have married her because I love Ally, and we already talked about it. But if you think that stubborn woman woulda let me marry her out of some sense of obligation, you don’t know my wife.”

“It’s not…” Jake ran a hand through his hair, tugging at the ends. “I have an obligation. And I’m not willing to risk not being part of my kid’s life just because…”

“You don’t love their mother?”

“I’m having trouble trusting her,” he finished, glaring at the other man. “If I don’t marry her, I might not have access to them.”

“You can set up a custody arrangement if you need to,” Will suggested.

“But I’d still miss a lot. And what happens if I get orders? No court is going to make her move so I can be close to them. I only get to see my kid grow up if I marry Shayla.”

The doors opened, letting in a cold blast of air, and Jake sat up as Cece stumbled in laughing, snow dusting her hair and shoulders. She turned, looking up at the man he recognized from earlier at the house, who grinned back at her and nodded toward the bar. Taking his hand, she led them through the crowd, taking up a vacated spot.

Will followed his gaze as Jake watched him help Cece take her coat off, folding it over his arm. She wore a tight green dress that clung to her curves and a pair of black tights, snow coating her black boots. Jake's grip tightened on his glass when the guy reached up to brush the snow from her hair. And then his view was obscured as Will shifted to block them. “If you’re set on marrying Shayla, maybe you shouldn’t look at your ex like that,” he said gently. Jake forced his gaze down onto his beer.

“How long’s that been going on?”

“Ally said that Drew’s asked her out a couple times. He’s a good guy - worked with her Pops and was there for her when he…But I think this is the first time they’ve gone out.” Jake’s eyes shot up when he heard her laugh, watching Cece tap her beer glass against his. Plucking a pretzel rod from the dish before him, he crushed it to dust over a napkin, tracking the two as they retreated to a table. Drew pulled out her chair and pushed it in before draping her jacket over the back.

“He deserve her?” Will lifted his beer, pausing for a moment before taking a sip.

“Jake, you gotta let her go. It’s not fair to you or her or Shayla.”

“Easier said than done,” Jake muttered. His brother glanced over at the two of them and sighed.

“I don’t see it going anywhere. Julie talked to Mama and Pops about looking after the house when she leaves if she doesn’t sell it, and I don’t see her staying for someone.” Jake let out a sad huff, downing half of his beer.

“Yeah, she tends to not do that.”

“Don’t start that shit,” Will said, his tone sharp. The brothers traded a look before the younger shrugged.

“She’s the one that left.”

“After she waited for your dumb ass for years, and you lied to her.”

“What? I didn’t - ”

“Let her know you were deploying?” Jake froze, eyes darting from Will to Cece and back again.

“What?” Wills’ eyebrow rose.

“Julie found out you were leaving after she moved up to Virginia. You didn’t know?” Dread pooled in Jake’s stomach as he looked back at the woman he’d loved for most of his life. He’d tried to figure out what had been the breaking point for them for so long, but he’d never…

It had been the hardest secret for him to keep when they’d planned for her to move. Once he’d gotten his orders, Jake called Cece and told her they were Virginia-bound. It wasn’t until he was in processing into the unit that he found out they were scheduled to head to the Middle East six months later for seven months. By then, she’d already given her notice at work and packed up her apartment. He had gotten approval to fly to Austin and drive the 23 hours back to Virginia Beach with her.

There had been so many times during that drive that he could have told her, but he didn’t. He let himself enjoy getting so much uninterrupted time together, laughing and getting to know her again. And, once they got to their new home, he wanted to let her settle in. There was plenty of time to let her know.

But then his hours got longer as they prepared to deploy. It was his first time going into combat, and - even with all the training he’d gotten in flight school and TOPGUN - he was worried. And he couldn’t talk about it because Cece didn’t know he was leaving. So he went out with the guys to the bar and spoke to some older pilots, trying to get advice from them about flying in a warzone. At home, he tried to avoid talking about the wedding. Cece wanted to plan it so badly, but he didn’t have the heart to tell her that he wouldn’t be there to do everything a groom was supposed to do.

Four months. Jake had to let her know, but as the days ticked by, he found it harder and harder to say anything. The minute he told her, he knew she would be crushed. So he waited for the right time, but there never seemed to be one. And he watched as little by little she shut down as she struggled to find a job and a group of friends. But things only worsened after they went on a beach day with some of the other junior officers. He’d hoped that she could make friends with the other spouses and they could help her find her footing. Then she’d asked him that fucking question.

“If I said I wanted to get married today, what would you say?”

He’d known that he couldn’t marry her without telling her. That it wouldn’t be fair to her. But he didn’t want to lose her.

And in the end, that’s exactly what happened.

Jake watched Cece follow Drew onto the small dance floor, laughing as he spun her before pulling her in close. Her hand rested on his shoulder as they swayed to Please Come Home for Christmas, his hand spanning her lower back. They were too far away for him to hear what they were saying, but he could see she was giving him that sleepy, happy smile she’d gifted him so many times.

And then Drew looked up and said something, and Cece did as well. Jake followed their gaze and saw they were dancing under a sprig of mistletoe. Cece’s smile turned shy, and he could see her blushing. He said something, and Jake watched her nod.

Drew spun Cece again before pulling her back in, leaning down to brush his lips against hers. She dropped his hand, wrapping her arms around his neck as she kissed him again, his hands wrapping around her hips and tugging her closer.

Jake stood up, hitting the table and making Will’s beer slosh over the rim. Ignoring his brother’s curse, he yanked his jacket from the back of his chair and stormed toward the door. Snow pelted his face as he stomped down the street to the truck, forcing away the memory of his first kiss under the mistletoe at the Winter Formal with the woman he’d once thought he’d spend the rest of his life with.

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Author's Note: A huge thank you to @mamachasesmayhem for letting me run so much of this chapter past her while writing, and helping flesh out some of the story points. You're the best!

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#top gun fic #top gun maverick #jake seresin #Hangman top gun #soft!Jake Seresin #hangman fic #jake hangman seresin #jake seresin x oc #hangman x oc #'tis the damn season fic

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