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When Ice had heard Mav telling Goose how he wanted to spend the weekend exploring around San Diego, he’d imagined Mav, alone, tearing around on his motorcycle. He’d heard Goose say how he would normally have gone with him, but as his wife and child were visiting he wouldn’t be able to. It had been Slider who had joked about Ice, born and bred Californian boy, could show Mav what he wanted to see. At first, he’d scoffed and waved Slider aside.
Yet somehow he’d still ended up on the outskirts of the city, just him and Maverick. Why Mav had wanted Ice to come too was still a mystery to him. It had only been a few days since the altercation in the locker room, where they’d gotten in each other’s faces and Ice had accused Maverick of being dangerous. He’d panicked and said the first thing that came to mind. Ice had been unable to do anything else with the other pilot so close to him. Especially when Mav seemed to be just as riled up as Ice was.
So why did Maverick want to spend time with him? Especially as it was now, just the two of them, on the top of a cliff with the Pacific ocean beneath them.
Ice had assumed Mav wanted to see the city, maybe even go to the fucking zoo. But instead he’d wanted to get away from it all. So now they were out of the city and on the coast, and Ice couldn’t help but be a little bit pleased that they were.
Even though it was a weekend and a fine summer day, there was nobody else in sight. They hadn’t passed anyone on the walk up either. Ice liked having Maverick all to himself, although it did make it harder for him to ignore the growing weight in his gut. Every moment spent with Mav just added more to the bundle of emotion Ice had been desperately trying to shove down and ignore.
The grass was scattered with daisies. In fact, Ice reckoned there were more of the white and yellow flowers than blades of grass. There were other flowers dotted around though. Puffy dandelions were peppered throughout the field, some of the seeds blowing loose and flying away. It was a pretty sight, especially when the breeze picked up and the flower heads waved in unison.
Maverick was walking a few paces in front of him, his hands loosely trailing through the petals in his wake. Ice couldn’t help but smile affectionately, thankful Mav was facing the other way so he wouldn’t be caught. He’d never seen Mav in such a soft setting. The sharp and assiduous atmosphere of the Top Gun base had such a contrast to where they were currently. Ice could even feel himself begin to breathe easier. Here it was just him and Maverick - no points, no leaderboard, no rivalry.
Ice watched as Maverick circled around himself, almost like a cat before they decide to lie down, and then he lazily dropped onto the grass with his legs out in front of him. Mav covered his eyes from the sun as he looked up at Ice, beckoning him to join.
From his seat on the grass, Ice could now smell the fragrant scent of the daisies. That was something else that was a striking contrast to the base, there was no smell of jet fuel. Well, not unless Mav sat too close. He always seemed to smell of jet fuel, it clung to the jacket he was wearing now. Ice had never had the chance to ask, they’d always been too busy sniping at each other for that, but he had wondered if the bomber jacket once belonged to Maverick’s father. Judging from the patches he assumed so, and from the way Mav always wore it when they weren’t in uniform.
“You know what would look good on that massive head of yours?” Mav’s question pulled Ice from his thoughts.
Ice narrowed his eyes and bit back a retort. “ What ?”
“A flower crown.”
Now Ice let out a bark of laughter at Mav’s insane statement.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“I would never joke about flower crowns, Kazansky.” Mav said in mock seriousness, plucking a daisy from the ground. “You’re going to be the prettiest princess ever.”
Ice narrowed his eyes again and tried to suppress a grin. He knew Pete Mitchell was ridiculous, but he didn’t realise he was ridiculous in this way. There was a telling blush creeping over Ice’s cheeks. He hoped it wasn’t noticeable.
Mav began to collect more daisies and Ice watched in silence. He watched as Mav was careful when he broke the stems, how he used his thumbnail to pierce a hole, and then delicately threaded another flower’s stem to create the chain.
“How do you know this?” Ice heard himself asking before he could even think. Thankfully, Mav didn’t seem phased by it, and if he was he didn’t show it.
“You learn a lot when you’re in and out of foster homes.” Mav said plainly, punctuating the sentence with an easy smile aimed at Ice. “There was a girl who taught me how to do this. You don’t really have much, so you have to keep yourself entertained without toys.”
“Somehow I imagined you terrorising the neighbourhood instead of making daisy chains.” Ice joked, raising an eyebrow.
“Oh, I did that as well.” There was a mischievous glint in Mav’s bright blue eyes that Ice sometimes saw during training, usually before Mav did or said something that would have him cautioned later.
Ice felt his chest tighten. It was exciting. Ice found Maverick exciting.
He’d never met anyone like him before. Someone so loyal and hardworking, yet chaotic and daring. It was a dangerous mix, and Ice found himself wondering if that was the reason he called Maverick ‘dangerous’. Not only for his flying style, but because of how this cocktail of personality traits made Pete Mitchell more and more enticing.
Within a few minutes Mav had finished the chain. He looped the ends together so it resembled a crown. He held it out in front of himself for Ice to see.
“Cm’here.” Mav shuffled closer and delicately arranged the crown on Ice’s head. Ice didn't really have a chance to protest, because he was soon sitting there with a flower crown on the top of his frosted tips.
“It suits you.”
“Fuck you, Maverick.”
The insult was lost as Mav just chuckled. He was sitting back on his hands, admiring his creation. Ice felt hot under Mav’s gaze, it didn’t matter that the Californian sun was high in the sky, that wasn’t bothering him. It was the intense gaze from the man next to him that made his lower gut feel like it was on fire.
“You are the prettiest princess.” Mav chirped, looking rather smug.
When Ice laughed the crown fell forwards off his hair and in front of his eyes. He instinctively went to push it back, but Mav had beaten him to it. Neither of them spoke as Mav carefully handled the flowers, placing it back onto Ice’s blonde hair. This meant he had leant forwards into Ice’s space.
“See I told you. Princess Iceman.”
Once again Ice was unable to breathe. He fought to think of any words he could say to that, but none came. He was paralysed as Mav finished touching his hair and then he casually sat back again.
Mav was the first to break the prolonged eye contact. He’d become focused on a particularly large dandelion puff to his right before he plucked it from the ground.
“I remember doing this when I was younger as well.” Mav finished his sentence by gently blowing on the puff, letting the seeds swirl between them before disappearing with the wind.
Ice realised he had been watching Mav questioningly, and it seemed Mav had noticed too.
"You've seriously never made a wish with a dandelion before either?"
As Mav spoke Ice was expecting him to laugh, but he didn't. Instead Maverick's eyes were wide and imploring, almost sympathetic towards Ice. He'd never wished for anything as a child. Never on birthdays when blowing out candles, or on a delicate little flower. Tom Kazansky had always known how lucky he was, and now with Mav sitting in front of him that was rooted even more into his mind. Both his parents were alive, his father a well respected US Navy Admiral, the Kazanskys were wealthy and influential. What would have younger Tom wanted more? More time with his father? Whenever they did speak fewer strict rules and imposing questions about how Tom was performing at school, in his academics and sports? No. He didn't used to think about things that could have made his life just that more perfect, so Ice wasn't going to start now. He hadn't even tried to wish his Navy career into existence. His love for planes and flying drove his hard work, and all of it had paid off. Especially because it had allowed him to meet Maverick.
The other man was still watching Ice carefully. A small furrow had developed in the middle of his dark eyebrows, an uncommon look for him. All Ice wanted to do was to reach over and smooth his thumb over the wrinkle, to give Maverick a reason to smile in that bright, vivacious way of his that made Ice's body burn with an intense longing. How long had he waited for someone like this? Or more specifically, how long had he waited for Maverick . Ever since that first night at the O-Club, Ice knew he had fallen hard and fast. There was no going back. All his life he'd assumed people were joking when they said 'once you meet the right person, you'll know' . Ice had cynically passed the statement off as a bit of whimsical dream. But here Pete Mitchell was, and for the first time in his life, Tom Kazansky knew what to wish for.
"No, I haven't." Ice finally answered, giving Mav a soft smile in the hopes of lessening Mav's concern. Instead, all it had done had made the furrow deepen, presumably as Mav worried more about Ice.
"Oh…" It seemed like Mav wanted to say more but he'd decided against it. He was now picking at blades of grass nervously.
"But I take it you have," Ice started, before he could even stop himself. "So what sorts of things did you wish for as a child?"
Something crossed Mav's face as he looked back up at Ice. It seemed to say, you actually want to know?
Yes, Ice did want to know. He wanted to know everything about Maverick. From the brand of shampoo he used, to what he likes to eat for breakfast in the morning, to- Ice's train of thought stopped as he realised how domestically inclined those things were. It was just a further example of how hard Ice had fallen. He'd never felt or thought that way about anyone before.
"Well I, uh," Mav faltered for a second but Ice held his gaze in silent encouragement. "I used to wish for foster parents. Nice foster parents. Ones that wouldn’t mind if I came home a bit bruised, ones that…” He paused again. “ understood me.”
Ice hoped his face didn’t show how shocked he was at Mav’s confession. No-one had ever said anything that raw to him. His heart immediately went out to Mav. What would it have been like if they’d met then? Would they have been friends? Would younger Tom have been able to give younger Pete the love he deserved? He’d known about Mav’s childhood from the odd conversations between other pilots. Duke Mitchell was also infamous in the Navy. The Mitchell name came with its own burdens, and unfortunately the loss of a father was a burden Pete had been given.
“I’m sorry, Mav.” Ice said earnestly. The urge to take Mav’s hand and never let go nearly overpowered Ice. The younger man looked so innocent, sitting there in the long grass. His dark eyelashes were just as gorgeously long, fluttering over stunningly pretty blue eyes. Ice felt like he was struggling to breathe. This was a fellow pilot who’d nearly bested him in the air. Pete Mitchell showed incredible skill in the cockpit of a fighter jet, any clever pilot would dread flying against him. But the man behind the skill was scarred, fractured, staring at Ice with such vehemence that this Maverick seemed far from the Maverick that Ice had flown with.
That only lasted for a moment longer, however, because Mav broke off his intense gaze to look around them. The delicate flower puffs were swaying softly in the breeze, the odd fluffy, white dandelion seed breaking free and flying away in the wind. Ice couldn’t keep track of them. As soon as a puff would swirl past his vision, he’d lose it in the midst of the others.
Mav had found what he was looking for. He was now holding up the most perfect looking dandelion puff between their faces. It was perfectly spherical, all of the fluffy seeds in a perfect order. For a random flower found in a random patch of grass, it was strangely perfect. Just like the man holding it.
“Go on.” Mav said softly.
“‘Go on’, what?”
“Make a wish.”
Ice couldn’t help but laugh, a bright chuckle that made Mav smile with him.
He knew what to wish for. He’d known as soon as he’d met Pete Mitchell. This is the man he didn’t even know he’d been waiting for.
Mav held the dandelion out for him. After one last heart-stopping look into the other man’s stunning blue eyes, Ice blew on the flower. The two of them watched in silence as the puffs scattered and flew away in the breeze. Soon none of them could be seen, they’d disappeared into the sky like Mav’s had done, taking Ice’s wish along with them.
Mav was smiling softly, Ice couldn’t help but notice. It was as the whole of Mav’s face lit up when he smiled. Ice didn't realise how he was still leaning forwards. The space between them was minimal, making it the closest they had ever been. Even closer than that first night in the O-Club, where Ice had got so into the smaller man’s space that he was sure the whole class had assumed they’d gone home together.
"What did you wish for?"
"Now I don't know much about this, Mitchell, but I do know that if you tell, then it won't come true." Ice teased, raising his eyebrows. In truth, he'd only heard that in passing once. He held his breath as he hoped it was true and could serve as a reason for it not to be voiced out loud. It seemed to be as Mav pouted, making Ice suppress a grin at how ridiculously cute he looked.
“Well, whatever it is,” Mav paused for a moment. “I hope it comes true.”
“So do I. ” Ice found himself saying, quietly as if it was another second wish.
“Ice…”
In that moment it occurred to him that if Ice wanted anything to happen, he would have to be brave. Whether making a wish with a flower held any sway of the universe or not, it had given Ice the courage to go for it. And if his instincts were correct, Maverick seemed to want it as well.
When their lips touched, Ice wouldn’t have been able to say which one of them had moved first. They seemed to move together, drawn to each other. Mav’s hands were all over him, unable to decide where to rest. Ice felt them on his chest, his waist, his hips… everywhere. It was intoxicating, feeling Maverick’s body finally against his. Ice had instinctively held Maverick’s face in his hands when he’d first kissed him, but now he’d wrapped his arms around the smaller man's waist, loving the way he could feel Mav’s muscles tense and relax.
When they broke away from each other Ice couldn’t help but press a gentle kiss to Mav’s forehead. Mav was still settled half on Ice’s lap so he shuffled to get more comfortable. Ice let him sink further into his embrace.
“Was that what you wished for?” Maverick’s voice was soft and tender. Another flurry of fondness blossomed in Ice’s chest.
“Yes.” Ice couldn’t hold back the truth. Over the past few weeks he’d fallen so hard for Pete Mitchell, harder than he ever thought anyone could in such a short space of time. And the way Mav was looking at him, eyes wide and bright with hope and affection, made everything seem perfect.
Who knew a daisy flower crown and wishing on a dandelion could bring this much joy…
6 years later…
"What do you say, Tom? Shall we give her a home?" Mav asked, radiating pure happiness as he held the little girl in his arms. Her beautiful blue eyes were open, staring up at Ice with inquisitive wonder.
Ice put out his hand and instinctively a little hand grabbed his finger and squeezed tightly. His heart swelled. They’d waited so long for this. After six years of being together, they had a little family together looking after Bradley Bradshaw, but it still felt like something was missing. This baby girl was the last piece of their perfect puzzle.
"I think Bradley deserves a little sister don't you think."
The woman arranging the adoption smiled at them both warmly. "She doesn't have a name. You can name her for the adoption certificate."
Mav was grinning at Ice, his face tilted up to meet the other man's gaze. If Ice wasn't mistaken, it almost seemed as if Mav was shaking with excitement.
"What do you think, sweetheart?" Ice asked his husband. Mav answered without hesitation.
"Daisy." Maverick's bright smile was unwavering. "Daisy Kazansky-Mitchell."