Chapter Text
Haley Simpson walked down the metal stairs at a quickened pace. A large smile spread across her face as she grabbed onto the metal rail, using it to propel herself around the corner as she made her way to the common room of the carrier she was currently stationed on.
Stepping through the door to the ready room, she spotted her best friend and pilot, Lieutenant Carlos Mendez, call-sign 'Sweets'. Haley excitedly skipped over to Sweets as he sat forward in one of the gathered chairs staring at the face on his phone.
Leaning down over his shoulder, she threw her arms around his shoulders, resting her head next to his as she beamed a giant smile at the young woman he was face-timing.
"Maria!" Haley greeted. "How is my favorite mama doing?"
"Tired!" Maria laughed in response. "Freddy kept me up all night. He just wants his daddy home." Maria turned her phone to show her and Sweets' one year old son, Freddy, fast asleep on his mama's lap.
"Oh my goodness! Look at those cheeks! I want to squish them!" Haley squealed quietly as she pinched her fingers together at the screen in Sweets' hand.
Haley turned to ask Sweets a question only to find him gone, her arm now by her side as she leaned forward. A frown creased her forehead as she stood up in confusion.
The room around her was suddenly dark, the lights all off, the hum of the carrier no longer humming in her ears.
"Haley?" Sweets' quiet voice came out as a plea from behind her.
Spinning around, Haley felt the blood drain from her face as she took in the now bloodied and bruised Sweets standing in front of her. Her body froze as he reached a broken and bloodied hand out towards her.
"Why?"
It was just one word, spoken with a broken voice, but it caused all the oxygen in her lungs to dissipate. Haley felt tears fill her eyes, her lungs refusing to take in any air.
Suddenly, red emergency lights began to flash around them while alarms blared in a rhythmic pattern.
"Why?"
Even over the noise of the alarms, Sweets' broken question was heard loud and clear, as if he were standing directly next to her.
Haley began to shake her head, hot tears now falling down her face. She tried to move but her feet felt as if they were glued to the floor with cement.
"I tried, Sweets." Her voice caught, the words coming out broken.
"But you didn't."
Haley's eyes shot open as her lungs fought to fill with air. Her head swam with the remnants of her nightmare as the sounds and lights faded away, leaving the all too familiar ringing in her ears. She ran a tired hand over her face, wiping away the sweat that had appeared during the nightmare.
Untangling her body from the sweat soaked sheets, Haley sat on the edge of her bed, her head hung low, arms resting on her knees as she focused on getting her breathing under control.
As the chaos in her head began to settle, Haley's fingers subconsciously traced the small numb ridges of scar tissue that trailed up her thigh.
It had been a little over two years since the incident, but the nightmares still lingered. She'd been through therapy, gone to a support group briefly, done all the things. They helped some, but nothing would ever erase the memory of losing her best friend, her brother.
Haley stretched her sore muscles before pushing herself up off the bed and making her way to the shower. It was still early morning-- the sun hadn't woken yet-- but she knew she'd never be able to fall back asleep. She was up for the day.
After a quick shower to rinse off the remnant memories and sweat, she changed into running shorts and a t-shirt before grabbing a quick snack of fruit and heading out the door for a run down at her favorite beach.
After the incident, Haley had been transferred to North Island base to continue recuperating until the paperwork for her medical discharge was processed. The Naval Doctor at Bethesda had recommended it since she had friends and family that lived in the area. Her mandated therapist agreed, saying she would need the support since her military career was now over. There was no way she'd be able to continue on with the permanent damage to her hip and leg.
It was nothing but a cruel joke to Haley.
Haley--call sign 'Sunshine'-- and Sweets had been weeks away from transferring to North Island to begin training at the famous Top Gun school. Instead, she'd been sent there to live out the final days of her military career with a healing collarbone and a cane to help her walk.
As her feet now dug into the sand at North Island Beach, Haley's chest heaved as she pushed herself harder and faster.
It didn't quite make sense to her. The doctors had told her the injury to her hip and leg were career ending. They'd never function fully again, never run again.
But she'd disproved that time and time again, running on the beach to clear her head now a habit. Her leg and hip had been deemed fully healed and functional by a local off base doctor six months after her discharge.
With paperwork in hand, she'd fought to get back on track, back into the Navy. But she'd been repeatedly turned away, the Naval doctors always citing the original Bethesda doctor's notes and orders.
After months of fighting, Haley had reluctantly accepted her fate and taken family friend, Penny, up on her offer for a job working at the local bar, the Hard Deck.
Now, a year later, nothing had changed. She still worked at the bar, managing it when Penny took time off. She still had nightmares that led to her runs on the beach, and she still watched the Top Gun students come and go.
Taking a deep breath, Haley turned on her toes and made her way back up the beach in the direction of her bare one bedroom apartment a few blocks away.
Maybe one day she'd actually get around to doing something more with it. But since she didn't have any plans of going anywhere, she figured there was no hurry.