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Captain: We are meeting at the beach today. Bring water and wear your civvies. I'll provide snacks.
Chaos: cool
Hangman: Hell yeah
Rooster: 👍🏻
Bob: Ok
Phoenix: Weird, but alright.
Fanboy: Whatever you say, man.
Coyote: you had me at snacks
Payback: Let's goooo
Agent: I'll bring the sunscreen 💕
Hangman: lame 👎🏻
Agent: I will kick your ass, Ken Doll
Captain: I'm surrounded by idiots.
***
The sun is beating down on you when you step around the Hard Deck. The sand is hot to the touch, but the ocean looks cool and inviting. It's a beautiful, sunny day, and it lifts your spirits a little. It had been a rough and stressful few days.
You briefly wonder where Maverick is, looking around the beach to see if you can spot him. You haven't seen him outside of Top Gun since the night he walked away from you. You're just about to start walking further down the beach to see if you can find him when your tattoo constricts tightly around your wrist, alerting you to his presence.
He's standing not even a foot away when you turn around. His aviators are perched on his perfect face, his expression completely unreadable. He's wearing a worn black t-shirt and dark blue jeans rolled up, and he looks good. Really good.
"Hey." He finally offers. It's the most he's said directly to you in the days after you'd first met. The fact that he's been ignoring you for over a week has a hollow feeling growing in your chest, and you merely nod in greeting.
You squeeze your eyes shut for a moment before you huff out an exasperated sound and turn away from him. It's like he's trying to pretend that nothing has ever happened between the two of you, and it hurts. He'd turned his back on your connection, running away from what could be.
"Sweetheart, please." A shiver wracked down your spine at the sound of his voice, pleading with you. You want to turn around, you want to see his eyes, and you want more than anything to love him. But he doesn't want you; he's made that perfectly clear. You weren't good enough.
"Hey, now wait, don't-"
The sound of your friends startles you, but you don't turn around. You just set up your beach chair and wait for them to settle in, too. You can hear Josh all the way in the parking lot bickering with Phoenix over something you don't quite catch.
You'd told Josh about your string appearing a few days ago, right after Maverick had left you standing on the front porch of your little bungalow. He'd fallen silent, completely in shock, but had told you that he'd keep it to himself. You weren't ready for word to get out about your soulmate, especially not wanting to explain that he was completely rejecting the bond.
Hangman reaches you first; his green eyes warm when he smiles down at you. "Hey there, pretty girl. You come here often?"
A strangled sound reaches your ears, and you turn your head to see Maverick gulping down water while Phoenix pats him on the back. He sees you watching him and waves you off. "Went down the wrong pipe; I'm good."
Bob arrives next, surrounded by Payback and Fanboy, with Rooster trailing behind him. You watch as Bob strolls over and bumps Phoenix with his shoulder to alert her to his presence. It was nice to see them getting along; most of you had gotten pretty close in the last few days.
"Alright." Maverick's voice rang out, and everyone turned to face him. "Today, we're gonna play a little game I like to call Dogfight Football. Offense and defense at the same time. Two footballs, two teams, each trying to score as many touchdowns as possible."
The team breaks out into excited chatter, already arguing over who would be on whose team for the game. You briefly wonder why he's got you guys playing games when you only have so much time to train before the mission.
Maverick must've heard your thoughts because you suddenly felt his presence in your head again. He wasn't looking at you, but he was there all the same. It felt like his hands were cupping your face, his thumb smoothing along your cheekbone, just like he had the first night.
"Trust me, you guys need this. It'll be fun, I promise."
His honeyed voice soothes the frayed nerves that have made themselves known over the last few days. You practically purr at the sound of him in your head, but you push that away as quickly as it came on.
"Whatever you say, Captain Mitchell." You respond, and you feel him flinch at the use of his official title. You slam the mental block down quickly, and he flinches again, harder this time. Only you and Hangman seem to notice the captain's strange behavior.
"You good?" Jake's voice breaks through the noise as he sidles up beside you. He throws an arm around your shoulders as he smirks. "You're looking a little jumpy there. Afraid we're gonna run you into the ground, old man?"
You can't hear him, but you can feel him. Maverick is seething, his jaw tight, while he stares at Jake through his aviators. If looks could truly kill, Hangman would've been gone and buried by now. You can't tell if you're more worried about Jake or aroused by the sight of Maverick; he's really hot when he's angry. You're not sure what he's more pissed about—the way Jake is talking to you or the way he's got an arm wrapped around you.
"We'll see." Maverick finally speaks, with a sharp bite to his voice when he answers. He's calmer now, at least, and you push your presence into his mind. Experimentally, you whisper in his head, your voice soothing.
"Relax. This is supposed to be fun, remember? Don't let him get to you."
He visibly relaxes and shoots you a grateful, beautifully crooked smile.
You were prepared for the game, but you really weren't prepared for a very sweaty, very shirtless Pete Mitchell. He'd shed his shirt halfway through the game, leaving his tanned skin glistening in the sun. Your breath had left your lungs immediately, and you were so focused on how gorgeous he was that you didn't see Fanboy running full speed in your direction.
Hangman sees it all go down and swoops in as quickly as he can. He's fast on his feet and has you up in his arms just a split second before Fanboy was about to crash into you. You're breathless, looking up into those impossibly green eyes with a dazed look on your face.
"Hey, pretty girl." He greets you, a smile flashing over his lips as he adjusts you in his arms. Yours are slung around his neck, your legs wrapped around his waist, and you wonder what it would be like to just lean in and kiss Jake Seresin. At least he acted like he wanted you, even if he was a little bit of a player. (Or, so the rumors said.)
"Hey." You answer, one hand gliding gently through the soft, golden hair at the nape of his neck. "Thanks for saving me back there; I thought for sure I was gonna be a goner. Fanboy is heavier than he looks."
That draws a laugh out of him, and you're a little too into the way the sunlight gleams off of his golden hair and tanned skin. "You got it, doll." And then he's setting you down gently on the sand, but he doesn't move away.
"Seriously?"
You jolt, and Hangman looks at you with disappointment in his eyes when he sees the flash of your soulmate string against your skin. "Ah, shit. Did I overstep?"
"Tell him to let go of you. Please."
His voice is a low growl in your head. You're not sure where Maverick even is, but you're sure he's somewhere behind you. You can feel his eyes boring into your skin as you look up at Jake, your face burning with embarrassment. "I'm not sure why he's even mad; he's made it clear he doesn't want to be with me."
"Chaos."
"It's Maverick, isn't it?" He murmurs, still looking down at you with a look of disappointment. "He's giving me a look that's actually a little terrifying right now." He admits, and his hands slip off of your skin and into the pockets of his swim shorts.
You sigh. "Yeah, it is. Just don't tell anyone, okay? He already made it perfectly clear that I'm not what he wants, so it doesn't matter, anyway." You can hear the sadness in your own voice, and Jake just sighs.
"I'll keep your secret. Scout's honor. And he'll come around, pretty girl." He sets a hand on your shoulder, yanking you into him so he can give you a hug. "But if he doesn't, you're totally welcome to give me a call anytime."
You hear Maverick's frustrated growl in your head again, but this time you just shut him out.
***
By the next day, you're still angry with Maverick. This game of hot and cold with him is getting old, quickly. You couldn't even hang out with Jake without your soulmate (the one who was constantly saying he didn't want a relationship with you!) getting jealous and getting all growl-y in your head.
Things are tense; no one has yet to complete the mission. Either Rooster was going too slow and holding you up, or Hangman was going too fast and fucking up the rest of his teammates. You were ready to strangle both of them, even if you loved them both.
"Agent, do you have a lock on the target?"
"Negative, this laser is bugging the fuck out. I've got dead-eye."
You curse out loud, and then your soulmate, the one who has done nothing but piss you off for two days, 'shoots' you down. The fucker even tells you across the radio that you're dead.
*"Coyote, we're out. Maverick got us." You tell him, not even trying to hide how utterly annoyed you are at the captain. Sure, he's just training you to make sure you cover all possibilities, but still.
*"That's a fail, Coyote. Return to base." Maverick repeats, but Coyote's plane is rising even further into the sky. He's not saying anything in the comms and you're getting a little worried now.
*"Coyote? Level wings." Maverick orders over the comms, a panicked edge creeping into his voice. You're watching with bated breath as Coyote's plane starts to nose dive, and then he's free falling through the air.
"Mav, he's in G-Lock. You gotta get tone on him!" Your heartbeat is slamming against your chest, watching your friend's plane start to plummet straight toward the Earth. You knew if he didn't wake up, he was going to die as you watched, helpless.
Maverick's plane goes screaming towards him and you can hear him yelling Coyote's call sign over the comms. After what seems like a lifetime, at the last possible second, Coyote's plane levels out and he starts climbing back into the sky. You can't help but laugh, relieved to see that your friend was alright.
"I'm alright, I'm good." You can hear Coyote now, and you breathe out a long sigh of relief. That had been way too close for comfort, and your heart was still hammering in your chest.
"Good job, Mav." Your plane levels out next to his, giving him a thumbs up so he can see it.
"You did good, Chaos. The tone idea was brilliant."
There's maybe a moment more of calm before the next round of chaos begins.
"Bird strike!"
*"Shit, Chaos. Climb!" The left engine is out, and you pull hard on your stick to climb higher into the sky. Agent's voice is panicked when he follows up with, "Left engine is on fire!"
*"Throttling back. Shutting off fuel. Extinguishing fire." You rattle off what you're doing, flipping switches and pushing buttons on autopilot. This is what you've trained for, you tell yourself. Stay calm, and everything will be fine.
*"We’re losing the right engine." Agent's sounding a little more panicked, and you take a deep breath.
*"It’s still spinning. I’m gonna try to restart it." You flip the APU switch and push the right throttle forward. "APU on. Throttle up. Shit, nothing's happening." Okay, now you're starting to panic. It would really fucking suck if you had to bail out.
*"The right engine is out!" Agent says, and yeah, he's full on panicking now. "Chaos, I think this is it; I've got every warning light lit up back here."
*"We lost hydraulics; I can't control it!" The stick is useless in your hands, and you're starting to lose complete control. You're spinning out, and yeah, this is really not good.
*"Eject! Eject!" Maverick is practically screaming over the radio, "Chaos, Agent, eject now!"
You grab the handle and pull, and you watch as the canopy flies off your plane backwards. You're launched into the air, and there's only a split second before you see Agent do the same.
It's almost peaceful, floating down with a parachute. But then the plane crashes into the mountainside and something metallic shoots toward you, and the last thing you remember is thinking, "Ow, that hurt."
***
The next time you wake up, you know you're in a hospital. The room is stark white; there's a heart monitor next to you and an IV attached to your arm. By the look of the clock on the wall, you know it's well past midnight. You wonder if Agent is here too, and if he managed to land okay.
The next thing you notice is the feeling of someone holding your hand. You turn your head, and you are absolutely flabbergasted to find Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, asleep in a chair that's been pulled up to your bedside, holding your hand.
You shift slightly, moving towards him, and you notice that his normally tan face looks pale. He looks like he hasn't slept in days, and his face looks swollen, like he's been crying. "Maverick?"
He twitches, but his eyes stay closed and his hand stays wrapped around yours. One more urgent whisper of his name, and those intense blue eyes of his slam open, and he looks at you like he's seen a ghost. "Oh, thank God." He leans forward, pressing his cheek against your joined hands, and breathes out a sigh of relief.
"What's going on?" Not that you mind that he's touching you or even that he's here, but you're beyond confused.
"Bird strike, you had to eject." He looks back at you, his other hand coming out to cup your hand in both of his. "Shrapnel came flying from your plane and hit you as you were coming down. Smacked you right in the chest. You were bleeding out pretty badly when they found you; you had landed hard and hit your head, too."
"Oh." You frown, reaching up with your free hand to touch the edges of the bandages on your chest. Now that he mentions it, it's throbbing uncomfortably. "What about Josh? Is he okay? How long was I out?"
"Agent is fine; he was treated for some light scrapes and bruising and released the next day. You've been asleep for three days. I've, uh, been here every night with you." He admits, and his eyes are still trained on your face. It's almost like he can't believe that you're awake and that you're okay.
"Shit, I've missed that much?" You struggle to sit up, but Maverick stands and gently pushes you back down onto the hospital bed. "Mav, c'mon, I gotta get out of here."
"No, you don't. Simpson has already released you from the mission." He tells you quietly, and your throat constricts. A chance of a lifetime mission, and you were completely out of commission. "I'm sorry, sweetheart, but you were hurt. You need to rest and heal."
You let out a wounded sound, angry at yourself for being in this position. Your plane was gone; you'd put Agent in danger, and now you were going to miss out on this special assignment. Things couldn't possibly get any worse than they are right now.
"Why are you even here?" That's the question that's nagging at you the most, and in your still-exhausted mind, you deserve an answer. "I didn't know you cared that much."
He looks taken aback, but his hands refuse to let go of yours. His eyes are trained on your face, and to your amazement, they're slowly filling up with tears. His lower lip was swollen from being constantly worried between his teeth, and in this moment, he looks almost delicate. Like he's about to break.
"I almost lost you," he whispers, and he sounds devastated. "I haven't even given us a fighting chance, and I almost lost you."
You turn as much as you can, staring at his face with wide eyes. The strongest man you'd ever met was breaking apart before your eyes, and you almost couldn't believe it. Did he really care that much?
"Of course I do." He swipes a hand at his eyes, catching the tears that had started to slip down his face. "I've never not cared. I'm just... Sweetheart, I'm no good at this. I've never been able to keep down a relationship; I have no kids of my own, and my only godson hates me."
You shift in your bed, moving as much to the side as you can before you pat the space beside you. "Lie down, Mav. You're exhausted; how long has it been since you slept?"
He looks like he's not going to do it for a split second, and then he seems to change his mind. He kicks off his boots and carefully climbs in, sliding his arm under you so you can lie on his chest. You're careful not to jostle yourself as you settle down.
"I care about you too, Mav." You tell him, your hand gently drawing patterns over his chest. "I knew the moment I first saw you that you would be everything to me, you know? And you denying us just... well, it hurt. I guess that's why I was letting Jake hit on me at the beach."
He makes a sound in his chest, and you can't help the exhausted giggle that slips out. "Easy, Pete. He's a great friend, and it won't happen again. Not unless you let me go for good."
"I won't." He answers without hesitation, and you tip your head back so you can see his face better. "I think this week has taught me that I care more about you than I thought. When I'm not training everyone, I'm here. I caused quite a stir the other night when they tried to get me to leave. Iceman had to call and make sure I got special clearance to stay with you at night."
Your heart thumps in your chest. "Hey, Pete?"
"Yeah?" He peeks down at you, his dark eyes studying you with that same intensity that always took your breath away.
"I really like you. And when I can get up and brush my teeth, I'm going to kiss you." Maybe it's the exhaustion you're feeling that's making you so bold, or maybe you're just drunk on the overwhelming affection you feel for him. "Because I really, really want to kiss you."
He stares at you for a solid moment, and then he carefully shuffles you so that he can lean down and press a sweet kiss to your forehead. And then he leaves one on your nose, and both of your cheeks. His lips graze yours, so softly that you can barely feel it. Regardless, your body lights up for him, and you meet his kiss with sweet affection.
"Get some sleep, sweetheart." He murmurs, brushing one last kiss against your lips. "I'll probably be gone when you wake up, but I'll be back before nightfall. I promise."
When you wake up the next morning, your bed is still warm from his body heat, and he's left a flower and a note for you where he'd been sleeping.
I'll be back soon. Don't miss me too much.
Love,
Mav.