Work Text:
Ever since 1986, the tragic year that it was, ’86 Flyboy tradition had been to unite for the New Year all together. It wasn’t always possible or practical for everyone involved, but as many years as they could be, after spending Christmas with their families, the class of TOPGUN 1986 would gather together for a New Year’s party done the old Navy way.
By the year 2022, that hadn’t changed. No, the only minor alteration had been that Mav had extended the invitation to his Dagger aviators.
And oh boy howdy, did bringing those two groups together generate some chaos?
Between the spiked party punch, the champagne, and the beer, they were all tipping towards drunk by 9 PM. Slider and Phoenix were a deadly combination with the same gallows humor and deadpan manner of delivery, whether it be sensitive news, honest opinion, or a joke. Wolfman and Hollywood had practically adopted Fanboy and Payback the moment they passed through the door.
Ice and Bradley were hiding out in the corner together, ever the introverts of the crowd so long as they weren’t posturing for any reason. Sundown, Coyote, and Bob had struck up quite the conversation at some point and were standing by the food, snacking and talking from the moment they’d stepped through the door. Chipper had collected the stragglers and begun a high-stakes game of blackjack at the coffee table, seated before the fireplace.
And of course, Mav and Jake were a duo unto itself, one which couldn’t be defined or explained, only experienced.
So many things happened that night, ranging from the popped bag of chips to the soda spilled on the couch that Mav could see Ice actively attempting not to have an aneurysm over, to the confetti streamers and party horns being tossed around and blown through at random intervals, then came the drunken cheering during the ball drop, and the exchanged kisses throughout the whole room which ranged from sweet and chaste to playful to downright raunchy.
By morning, they all awoke with horrible headaches, but having created a family like no other.
So yeah, it may have been a mess to clean and it might’ve been chaotic to endure, but in Mav’s opinion, it went perfectly. And it would be repeated, over and over again, for many years to come.