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The door clicked as Maverick locked it and drew the chain, feeling a deep feeling of relief pass through his body.
What the hell just happened?
He smiled a little to himself, revelling in the risk of it all. What if somebody saw them? Imagine what Viper would say. Heck, imagine what Goose would say.
Where was Goose, actually?
Maverick turned away from the door, coming face-to-face with the small bungalow that his RIO and he shared. The lights were all off, the only light coming from the headlights outside and the moon in the sky. The blinds were all open, there were glasses and plates on all the tables from that morning, yet Goose was nowhere to be found.
Maverick called out for him. No answer.
He looked in their bedroom. No answer.
He even looked back outside on the front lawn. No answer.
It wasn't until he checked the dimly lit kitchen, back door open and all, that he saw his best friend.
There he was, sitting at their tiny kitchen table, sipping a mug of poorly made tea and staring into space.
In the doorway, Maverick stood there, waiting for something. Goose looked... weird. He didn't look sick, or upset, or even excited. He just looked like nothing. Now, Goose wasn't always the most...emotional person. But seeing him just do nothing was definitely a surprise.
Maverick laughed a little, taking off his tight tie and sitting in front of Goose.
"Hey, buddy. What's up?'
Goose glanced briefly at Maverick, before looking away just as quickly. He seemed hesitant. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know how to. So he just told the truth.
'I saw you.'
'What?'
'I saw you, Mav.'
Maverick's gleeful expression left his face as he questioned what Goose meant.
'Goose, what you talking about? Saw me doing what?'
Goose looked up and didn't avert his gaze. He stratched his head, and Maverick finally understood.
He couldn't have seen him. He wasn't even there. Maverick knew he wasn't there.
Was he there?
'I saw you. With the guy. You know... the guy.'
This couldn't be happening. It isn't supposed to be like this-
Nobody is supposed to know. Not even Goose. This was supposed to be a secret, this was supposed to be a blip. He had to lie. He had to say something. Maybe, 'It was a dare' or, 'It didn't mean anything.'. But as soon as Maverick opened his mouth, his throat closed in on itself. He looked down.
He couldn't lie. Not to Goose. Not to Goose who laughed will him, flew with him, cried with him. Maverick never made promises to himself, especially not ones he could keep. But he would never lie to the people he loved.
'I'm sorry.' After a few moments, that was all he could think of. He was so ashamed, so sorry for what he had done. It hadn't even seemed real, it was like a bad dream. Maybe it was. Maybe he'd wake up soon, and he'd laugh it off and say that it was nothing but a-
' You do realise what this means for you, don't you?'
God. Even after it all, Goose was thinking about Mav and Mav only. Family came first for Goose. Family was always first: it didn't matter what was going on with him, his people were his first priority.
Maverick slowly turned his head to Goose and nodded. Of course he knew what this meant. What queer didn't? This was a death sentence. It was a sentence of hardship and pain and suffering for the rest of his life: just because of who he was inlove with. It wasn't fair. But it was what he had to live with.
'Alright.' Goose sighed. 'Fuck, Mav. What the fuck happened?'
After that, the tears came rolling down and they wouldn't stop. Silently, Maverick sobbed and internally screamed: and it killed Goose.
His friend, his best friend, his own fucking brother was in so much suffering because of something he couldn't control.
In that moment, Goose realised something very important.
He would die for this man.
He offered Maverick his hand and they both stood up. It was as if they could read each other's thoughts: Goose knew, deep inside, that all Maverick needed was a hug. They didn't need words. Just an embrace.
And so they did. They stood there for moments, minutes, hours. Maverick couldn't tell. He didn't want to: he wanted to stay here forever. He wanted to stay at home.
It was then, that Maverick realised, that it wasn't Goose that was giving him the comfort he needed. It was Nick. Nick, who picked him up after he fell off his motorcycle. Nick, who helped him to cheat on a test when they were 17. Nick, who gave him a family, people to love. And Maverick didn't think he was capable of that.
It might not be OK. They both knew that: once people found out, Mav would be at a constant risk of getting beaten up or even possibly being murdered. He might not last a year.
But, they had eachother. And that? They wouldn't give that up for the world.