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“I remember that story,” Mav smiled, a little mournfully, “Didn’t know that was you.”
“Yeah,” Ice smelled to himself, “Mother Goose and I actually spent three Christmases together while we were at USNA, cause Sli went back home to see his aunt every December and it was just the two of us left.”
“But you don’t even celebrate Christmas, do you?” Mav’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Not anymore,” Ice shook his head, “But back then, I did.”
“Why?” Mav asked.
“My father didn’t like me taking after my mother in any way,” Ice sighed, “Judaism was one of those ways, I didn’t really lean back into my faith until I graduated at the Academy.”
“So you celebrate Hanukkah now, right?” Mav questioned.
“Channukah,” Ice corrected, “But yes, though it’s nowhere near as significant of a holiday for us as Christmas is to Christians.”
“The more you know,” Mav tipped his head in acknowledgment, “Do you go home for the holidays now?”
“I go see my sister some years,” Ice squinted against the sunlight, his breath coming out in a soft fog in the cold air, “But she’s got a family of her own and deployments don’t always allow it, so not every year, no.”
“I’m gonna try to make it back to spend Christmas with Carole and Bradley,” Mav sighed into the cold air, watching his words turn to smoke, “God knows they don’t need to be alone this year.”
“She’s not gonna go home to her family?” Ice questioned curiously.
“They’re not real close,” Mav shook his head, “They never have been, same as Goose,” he sighed sadly, “There’s a reason the three of us banded together so close, an orphan, a disowned daughter, and an estranged son, three peas in a pod.”
“I’ve found that the family you choose tends to be better than the one you were born with,” Ice said, “I love my sister, don’t get me wrong, but my brothers, my father, they aren’t good people,” he turned to face Mav, “The flyboys, Viper,” his eyes traced over Mav’s face and it felt like a gentle caress, “You, on the other hand…that’s my family.”
Mav smiled, endearment flooding his chest, “Yeah,” he said quietly, nodding, “Yeah.”
“Maverick,” Ice said his full callsign, with that same sharp twist at the end like he always used back during TOPGUN, pivoting fully to face him and stopping their walk in its tracks, “I can’t—“ he cut himself off with a sigh, “There’s something I’ve gotta tell you,” he gazed at Maverick, his blue eyes alight with something Mav couldn’t read.
“What?” Mav asked, glancing at Ice’s mouth. Ice followed his gaze and then took a steadying breath.
“Just—I—…” he froze, holding Mav’s eyes, his mouth held open around words he couldn’t find. He sighed, finally, breaking his trance and shaking his head in exasperation with himself, “Just…forgive me if I’m reading this wrong.”
He placed his hands on either side of Mav’s face, bracketing his jaw with a gentle firmness that Mav barely had time to appreciate before Ice’s lips were on his. Mav made a surprised noise but closed his eyes, leaning into the press of Ice’s mouth upon his own with a contented hum.
They stayed that way, pressed together with a genteel ache in their hearts, right up until that emotional ache turned into a physical burn due to the lack of oxygen flowing into their lungs. They pulled away, panting for air, their breath condensing in the cold winter air around them, caressing one another’s skin like another soft, wet kiss.
“Well,” Mav whispered, wonder in his eyes as he stared up at Ice’s hopeful expression, “You certainly weren’t reading it wrong.”
“Good,” Ice breathed out in relief and pulled Mav into another tender kiss.