Chapter Text
"Hey, Rooster? You're close to Mav, why does he have that ring around his neck?" Rooster hit the pool ball and frowned in Hangman's direction. "No idea man. He's had it around his neck for the last year. Maybe a parent?"
Truth be told, Rooster knew exactly why. But that wasn't for him to say.
"Come on, you must know. He tells you everything," Pheonix chimed in. Rooster made a face at the betrayal. "Honestly, I don't know. He doesn't tell me anything personal, so I can only assume." He shrugged. Phoenix narrowed her eyes at him, obviously not believing him. Thankfully, she decided not to pursue it anymore.
They continued playing pool until the bar shut.
~
The next morning, Phoenix shoved her phone in his face. "What the hell?" He asked, shoving it back. "Here, read it. I've found what it might mean," He rolled his eyes, but read the article.
Local Navy Aviator, Amelia Kazansky, announced MIA after being deployed over a year ago. Amelia Kazansky, an aviator for the US navy since graduating from Top Gun in 1996, was deployed to Europe under the Nato agreement. Kazansky was deployed in October 2018 and was due back at some point the following year. She has yet to be found or contacted. As of December 2019, the navy has announced her Missing In Action, MIA for short.
No further details are available at this point (Jan 04, 2020)
Rooster shrugged his shoulders. "Ok, and? Soldiers go missing every month on deployments. Why is this special?" Phoenix rolled her eyes. "Read the bottom,"
Update: if Kazansky isn't located by March 2020, the navy are expected to announce her death as death in service. Kazansky was rumoured to have relations with fellow Top Gun graduate, Pete Mitchell, despite no comments or confirmation. See pictured.
Rooster was quiet. "See? Maybe the ring is something to do with her!" Phoenix hissed. Rooster was about to respond with: It's not our business, leave it alone... but a sudden person leaning over his shoulder startled him.
"Why're you looking at that article?" Maverick asked. Rooster winced. "Just curious, sir. Do you know an Amelia Kazansky?" Rooster barely heard the sharp intake of breath. "Used to." He answered. "She was Ice's sister... Why?" Rooster looked away, suddenly feeling ashamed.
"Well... initially I was doing some research on the navy and their public relations, but-" Rooster zoned out Phoenix's rambling, a cute habit she had when she was caught doing something she didn't think she was allowed to do. "Well... let me tell you this," Mav began, heading up to the class. "What happened to Amelia was tragic, and awful. She was a friend of mine and Admiral Kazansky's sister. But there is nothing else to it. She's MIA, somewhere in Europe."
Rooster sighed softly. "Are we done looking up missing soldiers now?" He asked from the front. Rooster, along with the rest of the class, didn't miss how he fingered the ring around his neck.
Rooster was relaxing on the beach when the sunlight was blocked. He lifted his sunglasses with a groan. "For god's sake, I've told you I don't know!" He hissed. Phoenix, Bob and Hangman raised their eyebrows. "Yeah, I don't believe that. Spill or we ask him ourselves,"
Scanning them over and sitting up with a resigned sigh, Rooster knuckled his eyes. "Jesus, you're all annoying," He put his glasses back on and blew out a puff of air.
"Amelia and Mav were engaged. That's what the ring is. They met through Admiral Kazansky, even though she went through Top Gun 10 years after they did. She was deployed to Europe under Nato back in October 2018 to help assist in tensions and be ready for war. She was due back in the January but it was pushed to the May. Mav and I fell out around that time, so I only really know what happened from his letters to my mom. She wrote him a single letter, sent from an RAF base in the UK saying how it wasn't going well, and not to expect her back anytime soon."
Rooster took a breath, his throat feeling clogged up. "Then in March this year, her engagement ring came back with a single note saying she would love him in all types of life, past, present, future and after." He sighed softly. "Then my mom died, and I saw the ring around Mav's neck. I asked if she was ok... his eyes were teary, but I assumed it was because of my mom's funeral."
He shut his eyes as Pheonix inhaled sharply. "I dropped some stuff off at his house that my mom left him. Some of my dad's stuff as well, photos of them and shit. I found him passed out with fuck knows how many beer bottles and Amelia's last letter."
"Holy shit," Hangman mumbled, looking to the sky. "He never gave away her stuff." Rooster continued. "Her clothes, her makeup, her shoes, they're all still in his house... even her wedding dress..." He pulled up a picture on his phone. It was a top-half clinging dress, splaying out at the waist, like a ballgown. It was a smooth bright white with a diamond neckline. "He was going to surprise her with it. Had it custom-made to her dream and everything... but she never came back,"
He sighed loudly. He only met Amelia a handful of times in his life, but she was one of the nicest people he'd encountered. "So that's why it's round his neck..." Bob said. Phoenix nodded slowly. "He keeps it on him 24/7... I suppose it's how he feels close to her," Rooster nodded. "Damn..."
Little did they know, Maverick was sitting on one of the benches nearby and heard everything. He blinked away the tears that burned in his eyes and clutched the engagement ring tightly. "I miss you, Lia... so much,"
Part 2 coming soon.