it's a slow build, baby, until afterburn (64/?)
Story banner by @bettycooper!
Pairing: Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw x Female OC (original character) StorySummary: Some things were inevitable. Living, dying. Flying. Bradley Bradshaw never doubted he'd sit in a cockpit one day. It was inevitable. He hadn't counted on colliding with Maddie Maitland over and over for the better part of a decade until, eventually, he realized the inevitable wasn't the sky; it was her.
Overall story Rating: Mature to explicit. Spicy, vulgar language. Violence. Mature themes (war, sex). Minors do not interact. (18+ ONLY you have been warned. Back out NOW if these make you uncomfortable. You are responsible for your own content consumption.)
Notes: This story is a giant Work In Progress, and absolutely, purely, entirely self-indulgent, full of tropes, full of cheese, and a self-insert OC who I wish I could be as cool. I make no apologies. I also haven't written it in chronological order (haha sob), so hopefully, I can fill in the blanks soon so we get to the good (sexy) stuff.
Warning: VERY SLOW BURN, VERY LONG (so many words!), spoilers for Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick
Previous Chapters: Master List
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Chapter Summary: It's happening! Madusa and Rooster are getting married!
Chapter Rating: Mature for language
Warning: War, combat, PTSD. Men being sexist/misogynist. Parental emotional neglect/abuse.
Chapter Word Count: 20,335
Notes: Wow, hello. It's been a WHILE. Life, unfortunately, happened a lot in the last month. I was laid off from my job and it's been a challenge. I've been stuck between being anxious about money and spending all my time obsessing over LinkedIn job postings. I didn't write a lick for two whole weeks but I'm back on track! I'm very sorry about the wait and I thank you so much for your patience. To make up for how long it's taken to get this chapter up, have a BIG one. It's over 20k words long and is a beefy boi.
I hope you like it!
—Madusa—
She’d set her alarm for that morning, but Madusa hardly ever needed an alarm to wake. She was a natural early riser on good days, eager to hit the gym or get started on her day. She woke early on bad days, too, on days when the dreams kept her mind busy with memories and torment. Today, thankfully, wasn’t a bad day.
In fact, it was the best of days.
The happiest of days.
Today, Madusa was planning on standing up in front of her family and friends to promise herself to the love of her life. Today, Madusa and Rooster were getting married. She barely could believe she was getting married at all, let alone that the day was finally here. She smiled thinking about it.
Stretching in bed under the cozy weight of her warm and fluffy duvet, she reached for her man, frowning when she found the bed empty. His spot was cool, indicating he’d been up for a while, which was surprising; he hardly ever woke before she did. She checked the time; it was 0653 in the morning, a few minutes before her alarm was set to go off.
“Rooster?” she called out.
“Be right there, Darlin’,” he replied. “I’m in the kitchen.” Madusa heard the cling-clang of dishes and cutlery, making her wonder what he was up to.
Sitting up and ready to kick the covers off to investigate, she smiled when Rooster appeared in the doorway carrying a tray full of food. “Don’t you dare get up yet, Marine,” he warned as he set the tray down, and climbed onto the bed with her. “I made us breakfast.”
And quite the breakfast, too. There were scrambled eggs, pancakes, toast, breakfast sausages, bacon, a little fruit salad, some freshly brewed coffee, and orange juice.
Madusa grinned so widely, that she felt a giggle bubble up her chest. She never guessed anyone could be so ridiculously happy. She never thought she could ever be so happy. “Do I have breakfast in bed to look forward to every day from now on or is this one off?” She was teasing, of course. Madusa didn’t really expect this kind of treatment on the daily, though Rooster, in his goofy apron, bringing her breakfast in bed was deliciously enticing.
“If that’s what my lady wants, that’s what my lady will get.”
Chuckling, she reached for him, cupping his nape and pulling him in. Her lips brushed against his gently. “Thank you, Sunshine. You spoil me.”
“You deserve it, Sweetheart.” He brushed knuckles softly against her cheek. “I want to spoil you every single day until our last breath.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” she promised. “You must have been up a while to get all of this ready.”
Rooster nodded and instructed her to dig in. He did too. “I couldn’t sleep and decided I wanted to make sure we started the day off right.”
“Couldn’t sleep? Anxious about today?” she asked between bites of scrambled egg.
“Not anxious. Excited,” he corrected. “I feel like I’ve been waiting for this day my whole life.”
“You haven’t known me your whole life.” She smiled, amused.
“I know. Doesn’t matter. We were made for each other. That means I’ve been waiting for this since I was born whether I realized I was waiting for you or not.”
Her amused smile softened. She never really understood Rooster’s insistence on faith and fate—she didn’t get Gretzky’s belief in superstitions either; Madusa was pragmatic and a realist—but lately and especially when Rooster looked at her like he was sure down to his soul that they were meant to be, that they’d been made for each other, she couldn’t help believing in it too.
“What about you? How did you sleep?” he asked, as he heaped a small mountain of eggs onto a diagonal-cut piece of toast.
“Really well, actually.”
Rooster paused mid-chew, his eyebrows rose all the way up to his hairline, and his eyes widened. She couldn’t blame his surprise; she’d been having a hard time sleeping since she and Gretzky were recalled from her FAC tour. After swallowing, he asked, “Even after what happened with your mom yesterday?”
Madusa nodded as she nibbled on a piece of bacon. “Yeah,” she replied truthfully. “I’d been so anxious about what kind of bomb my mom was going to drop on us that I guess I’m relieved now that the other shoe’s dropped, you know? It’s done. It happened. Now, I can relax because I know she won’t mess up today. She might try, but I know Gretzky’s got that shit on lockdown; he’s not going to let anything ruin today, so I’m not worried anymore.”
“I won’t let anything ruin today, either,” Rooster assured. She knew that too.
Nodding, she agreed with him. “But, it’s good to have Gretzky and the others keep an eye out because I’m pretty sure you and I will be busy exchanging vows at some point,” she teased.
He chuckled. “You’re right; I won’t be paying attention to anything or anyone but you when that time comes.”
It was strange how calm she was. She’d been on edge the last few days because of her mother, and now, nothing. Madusa had also heard a lot of stories from the married ladies in her life and how they were a wrecked ball of nerves on their wedding day. Madusa wasn’t. Maybe the nerves would kick in later. Maybe she was built differently. For now, she simply enjoyed spending this last morning as an unmarried woman with the man she was destined to tie the knot with, especially since it had been a fight and a half for Rooster to have spent last night here in the first place, all because of Gretzky and this damned juju business.
“Absolutely not!” Gretzky had insisted as the group was cleaning up after the barbecue. “Are you trying to piss off the juju?! He’s not allowed to see you until the wedding and that means he can’t sleep here tonight. It’s bad luck!”
Madusa had seen that one coming, though, and was prepared for Gretzky’s juju nonsense. “Actually,” she started with some sass and confidence. “That whole tradition is bullshit. It started because of arranged marriages. Fathers were worried that if the future husband saw the bride before the wedding and he didn’t find her cute, the guy would bolt, so society created this dumb superstition to basically trap the guy. Once he lifted the veil in front of everyone, he couldn’t back out and had to go through with the marriage. Since Rooster’s already seen my face and, I presume, isn’t backing out—“
“I’m not backing out,” her beloved agreed eagerly, complete with his big, soft doe eyes and goofy grin. “I’m in. And, I love your face, by the way.” Madusa couldn’t help the pleased flush that crept up her neck and the small smile that tugged at her lips.
“Great, that’s confirmed. Since Rooster’s not backing out—“
“And, I love your face!”
“—and he loves my face, there’s no need for you to sequester him until tomorrow.” She smirked triumphantly at her best friend, crossing her arms over her chest victoriously. Gretzky hadn’t been entirely sold. His eyes narrowed at her. Before he could protest, she upped the ante. “If you don’t believe me, Google it.”
He did.
Gretzky grumbled the whole time, especially when he realized he lost this fight. “Fine,” the big Marine acquiesced. “He can stay but he won’t see the dress until it’s time for the ceremony.”
“C’mon, man!” Rooster protested.
“I’m putting my foot down!” Gretzky asserted, pointing a sharp finger at Rooster. “I mean it, Bradshaw. You will vacate these premises the second Phoenix and I get here with Madusa’s dress and that’s final. We’re not gonna do anything to tempt fate until the vows are done.” Rooster pouted at Gretzky, but her man discovered that the pout and puppy eyes didn’t have the same effect on all Marines, just on her. “Don’t look at me like that, man. I’m not Madusa. I’m not a sucker for your pretty eyes like she is.”
“Hey!” Both Rooster and Gretzky grinned at her because it was true: she was a sucker for Rooster’s pretty eyes. “Yeah, okay. I’m a sucker for his pretty eyes,” she relented at the time with a sigh.
Madusa had been staring into his pretty eyes then, and she stared into his pretty eyes now while they ate breakfast in bed. He definitely noticed because he smiled which only lit up his face and brightened those eyes she was such a sucker for.
“I like it when you look at me like that,” he admitted.
“I’ve always looked at you like that.” It was her turn for an admission. “I just never let you catch me.”
“I know it took us a real long time to finally admit it, but I meant it when I said I fell in love with you that first day at indoc.” She felt a gentle warmth bloom in the middle of her chest and a smile blossom on her lips. Before she’d admitted to herself how she felt about him, Madusa wouldn’t have believed that he fell in love with her then. Now, after allowing herself to finally open her eyes and her heart, Maddie wondered how she’d been so blind all those years. “What are you thinking about?” he asked gently when she lost herself in thought.
“Wondering how I could’ve ignored my feelings for you all those years. Everyone saw it. Hell, everyone was riding my ass about it! I don’t usually run away from anything, but I ran away from my feelings. I ran away from you.”
“It happened how it needed to happen,” Rooster reassured, cupping her cheek. She covered his hand with hers. “You needed time, and honestly, I needed time, too. We got there in the end.”
Maddie smiled. “Yeah, we got there.” She turned her head to kiss his palm sweetly. She allowed herself to bask in his presence a while longer before announcing, “I better dig into this breakfast! I doubt I’ll have the chance to eat before dinner at the reception.”
Rooster scoffed as if she’d mortally wounded him. “Madusa Maitland! What kind of husband do you take me for?” Confused, Madusa blinked as Rooster’s chest puffed out. “I cannot abide by my lady going hungry,” he explained solemnly. “In the fridge, you’ll find an ‘Emergency—Madusa Hangry’ kit. There are sliced apples with peanut butter, cut-up celery, baby carrots, and hummus.” Rooster began ticking off his fingers one by one. “There’s cheese and crackers. There’s a banana to keep your strength up. There are a few sandwiches for you and the girl squad, and—in case you need a boost of energy—full-sized Snickers. I would’ve included emergency snack tacos, but we’re having those for dinner and I didn’t have time to also make tortillas.”
With each tick of his fingers, Maddie fell in love with him a bit more. By the time he was done listing the contents of his ‘Emergency—Madusa Hangry’ kit, Madusa stared at him with wide eyes, a big smile, and an open heart. “You did all that for me?”
“Yeah.” Rooster smiled at her, looking pleased as punch. “I love taking care of you. You’ve always had to take care of yourself because of your shitty mom. You don’t always have to take care of yourself anymore; you’ve got me to take care of you, too.”
"Thank you for taking care of me.” She kissed him softly, smiling against his lips.
The pair finished off their breakfast, though it took longer than it probably should have. The lovebirds were busy smiling, laughing, and kissing between bites of eggs and sips of coffee. Eventually, the pair found themselves shoulder to shoulder at the kitchen sink, washing off that morning’s breakfast dishes when Gretzky’s truck pulled into his spot next to the house out front. Soon, Gretzky, Phoenix, and Rocksteady spilled out of the truck, each carrying vital wedding accouterments: Rocksteady carried make-up bags and shoes, Phoenix had two garment bags, and Gretzky carried a sea bag and a large garment bag of his own. Madusa was willing to put down Las Vegas money that Gretzky was carrying her wedding dress in that bag, probably to keep Rooster away from it.
As the trio walked toward the back of the house to the back door, they passed by the window above the kitchen sink. Rocksteady was going so fast, it was like she was trying to beat the world’s power walking record. As he walked past the window, Gretzky mouthed to Madusa, “Incoming.” They heard Rocksteady before seeing her.
“YOU’RE GETTING MARRIED!!!!!” A beat later, Rocksteady threw herself at both Rooster and Madusa, throwing her arms around them, hands still full of bags and shoes. The woman practically smothered them with love. “I can’t believe today’s the day!” More squeezes caused both Rooster and Madusa to chuckle at their friend’s enthusiasm. You’d think Rocksteady was the one getting married, not them. “I love you two so much!” Then, Rocksteady planted a big smooch on each of their cheeks. “Oh shit. I got lipstick all over you, boo,” she told Rooster. Rocksteady licked her thumb and tried to wipe the lipstick off Rooster’s cheek. Rocksteady knew better than to try that with Madusa.
Rooster let Rocksteady fix his cheek for about a millisecond before he swatted at her gently to fend her off. “It’s fine. You don’t have to—“ It was a futile attempt at dignity because Rocksteady was in Mama Bear mode and managed to wipe most of the smudge off his cheek.
“That color looks great on you, man,” Gretzky smirked.
“I know,” Rooster replied without missing a beat. “But the purple is gonna clash with my blue wedding shirt.” He tried to look at his reflection in the microwave window and finished the job with a paper towel. Madusa was smiling the whole time and hugging Phoenix, who’d scooted around everyone to sneak in a quick snug.
Once Rooster fixed his face, he spotted the garment bag Gretzky held. “Is that Madusa’s dress?” he asked hopefully.
“Yes,” Gretzky confirmed before pulling the garment bag to his chest like he was protecting the Hope Diamond. “Before you even try to sneak a peek at it, Phoenix and Rocksteady are both committed to body-checking you into the stove if you so much as twitch in its direction. Move at your own peril, man. Phoenix is vicious.”
Phoenix, for her part, grinned brightly and very proudly. “He’s right; I am. I’m vicious.” Madusa bumped fists with Phoenix, pleased as well.
“What about me?! I can be vicious!” Rocksteady insisted. Then Rooster hit her with puppy eyes and she capitulated. “He’s giving me cow eyes! I can’t do it!”
“Don’t worry; I won’t try to make a play for the dress,” Rooster promised. “I know Phoenix won’t hesitate to take me out.” He smirked at his best friend. “And I wouldn’t put Rocksteady in a position to have to go against the eyes.”
“Thank you,” Rocksteady told him gratefully. “I really can’t resist the cow eyes.”
Madusa watched the whole exchange with amusement for a moment before pushing off the counter. She reached for the garment bag that held her dress. “Here. Give it to me. I’ll secure it until Rooster is off the premises.”
“Good copy,” Gretzky acknowledged, handing her the bag. “When you come back, let’s run through my checklist. I don’t want to forget anything.”
“That’s a good idea. I’ll get my list, too,” she told him.
This time, it was Rooster who was amused. She spotted the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Didn’t we already go over your list?” he asked.
“We did,” she confirmed with a nod. “But, it doesn’t hurt to go over it again.”
As she disappeared into the bedroom to hang the dress up, she heard Rocksteady sass, “You realize this whole checklist business is what you two signed up for, right? Checklists for life.” Madusa guessed she was addressing Rooster and Phoenix. Listen, Madusa wasn’t going to apologize for a good checklist. It was good luck for her that Gretzky was as diligent with lists as she was. It was why they ran the squadron so tightly.
When she returned, Gretzky was grumbling to himself about there being nothing wrong with checklists because that’s how things ran smoothly. Madusa let him rumble a few seconds more before waving her list. “Alright, let’s walk through this—“
“Dress, check,” Gretzky announced before she even finished speaking and checked that item off his list.
Madusa, for her part, wasn’t having it. “Hey! Why do you get to go first?!”
“Because I outrank you.”
“I’m the bride. Shouldn’t I outrank everyone?”
“No,” he stated simply. “My silver oak leaf outranks your gold oak leaf, all day, every day, in all situations.”
“Come on! I never outrank you!” she lamented. Gretzky grinned. Madsua knew that Gretzky was just fucking with her. He liked pulling rank at random, ridiculous times just to annoy her; it was something he’d learned from Moose and those two milked it for all it was worth. “Why does silver outrank gold, anyway? It’s dumb.”
“Dumb or not, it’s the way it is. Now, are we gonna get through these lists or what?”
“Fine. You go, then I go. Dress check.” Rolling her eyes, she checked the dress off her list and proceeded with the next item. “Vendors…Rooster is the vendor point of contact at the Hard Deck since I’ll be here getting ready. You’re designated secondary point of contact,” she informed Gretzky. “Rooster has all of the vendor payments portioned off in individual envelopes. You have them ready?” she asked her beloved.
“Money is ready for deployment and is tucked away safe in my go bag.” He’d prepared a bag with his wedding attire and toiletries. Rooster, Gretzky, and the others were going to meet Maverick at the Hard Deck to get the place decorated and set up; afterward, Rooster and Mav would head back to Penny’s place to get ready, while Gretzky would come back to the house. Gretzky was going to drive Madusa to the Hard Deck in the Bronco while Jackson was tapped as the chauffeur for Phoenix and Rocksteady in Gretzky’s truck. Both Madusa and Gretzky were satisfied with Rooster’s answer and checked the item off each of their lists.
“My turn,” Gretzky announced. “Decorations for the Hard Deck and Rooster’s Bronco: check. We’ve recruited Hangman, Tofu, and some of the others to help set everything up.”
Madusa nodded and crossed that item off her list before moving on to her item. “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue: check.”
“What about the sixpence for your shoe?” Gretzky asked.
The question sounded so damn absurd that Madusa’s brain literally glitched and fritzed trying to parse what the hell he meant. “What are you talking about?”
Gretzky narrowed his eyes at her and pointed. “You promised, Madusa!”
“I promised what?!”
“You promised you’d take care of gathering all the stuff you’ll need to ward off bad luck!”
“I did!”
“You didn’t!”
“I did!” she insisted. “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue!”
“And a sixpence for her shoe,” he articulated slowly. She still didn’t follow.
“You’re saying words, but I don’t understand what they have to do with anything,” she retorted impatiently.
Gretzky threw his hands up, then looked at her like she was dancing on his last nerve. “Woman, you’re killing me here. I know you don’t believe in the juju but you promised me you’d take this seriously!”
“And I have,” Madusa protested. It was her turn to throw her hands up. She did notice that Rooster and the besties were watching and grinning but were decidedly all staying out of it. Madusa ticked off her fingers. “Something old to symbolize the transition from our old life to our new life: I’m pinning both mine and Rooster’s wings to my bouquet. Something new is my dress. Something borrowed from a woman who’s been married a while to sort of transfer that good marriage luck over is the tennis bracelet Alice wore when she and Moose got married. My something blue is my pair of Converse. See?! Done.”
“No, not done,” Gretzky insisted. “You’re still missing a sixpence!”
“What the hell are you talking about?!”
“The whole saying is: ‘Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue, and a Sixpence for her Shoe.”
“I’ve never heard that.”
“Well, it’s the saying,” Gretzky replied firmly, arms crossed over his chest.
“Have you three ever heard of this?”
Before the three even said anything, Gretzky was already on it. He’d pulled up a website on his phone and shoved the screen at her face. “See? It says right there.” And, you know what? It did. Apparently, this sixpence thing was a part of the saying but most people left it off. Madusa should have known better than to trust common knowledge and do her own research, especially since Gretzky took this juju shit to a whole other level of ridiculous.
Madusa sighed, letting her head fall back. She looked up at the ceiling and counted to ten. “Okay, so I fucked up,” she admitted. “I didn’t realize there was another part to the saying. That’s on me. I messed that up.”
“Yes, you did,” Gretzky accused. Then, he shoved a hand in his jeans pocket, and like a fucking magician, he produced some kind of coin, slapping it on the breakfast bar next to her. “But, I knew you’d mess with the juju because that’s who you are, so I had backups ready, just in case. Here’s your sixpence.”
She stared at the coin on the counter for a breath, blinked, and then looked up at her best friend. “Where did you get a sixpence? The bank or something?!”
“No,” he replied simply. “They don’t make sixpences anymore, so I got this one off eBay.”
Carefully, Madusa picked up the coin to inspect it. It had been cast in 1944, so it was World War II era, the golden age of dogfighting, in her opinion. As annoying as Gretzky’s obsession with not angering the juju was, she was touched he’d gone to such great lengths to ensure that her wedding was insulated from the juju’s fickle nature. She didn’t believe in the the whole juju-bad-luck thing, but Gretzky did; he wanted this to go off without a hitch because he was her best friend and that was what best friends did.
“Thank you,” she told him with a small, genuine smile, but because she couldn’t help teasing him a bit, she added, “You do realize that I’m not wearing shoes at the ceremony, right? Barefoot in the sand, baby!”
“What about the pair of blue Converse?” he countered.
“For the reception,” she clarified.
“Then, stick the sixpence in your shoe at the reception! Am I the only one taking the bad luck seriously, here?!”
Rocksteady snorted. Both Phoenix and Rooster smirked.
“I’m taking it seriously,” she assured. “Sixpence for my reception shoe: check.”
“Thank you.”
—Rooster—
Rooster and Gretzky were en route to the Hard Deck in the Bronco so they could decorate it for later. “Hey, man. Thanks for all the wedding logistics help,” he told Madusa’s best friend.
“I’m glad to do it,” Gretzky assured. “Anyway, I kinda owe Madusa a bit since I got married in Vegas without her last time.” The Marine frowned.
“She still hasn’t let that go, huh?”
“No. I mean…she doesn’t ride my ass about it, but I know it hurt her. Would’ve pissed me off if she ran off with you to get married without telling me, so I get it.”
“How did that even happen anyway? The Vegas wedding thing,” he asked. Madusa had always been vague which made sense since she hadn’t been present to witness the event firsthand.
Gretzky blew out a sharp sigh, eyes wide as if he were having a combat flashback. “Man, I don’t know. I was drunk, I was horny, and then when post-nut clarity set in, I dug my heels in because I didn’t want another failed marriage under my belt.”
“So…you were stubborn,” Rooster interjected with a smirk.
Madusa’s best friend nodded. “I was stubborn.”
Rooster snorted softly, shaking his head. “You and Madusa are cut from the same cloth, man.”
Grinning slightly, Gretzky shrugged. “Sort of. She’s a lot better at admitting mistakes than I am, but she definitely digs in when someone tells her not to do something. Are you ready for that? Because that’s what you’ve got to look forward to for the rest of your life.”
Flicking the turn signal, Rooster took a left as his heart tripped over itself with anticipation at the thought of spending the rest of his life with Maddie. Even though they were already together, getting married felt like the beginning of the rest of their lives. At Gretzky’s quirked, expectant eyebrow, Rooster nodded. “Yeah, I’m ready for that,” he confirmed.
“You know marriage is hard as fuck, right? I’ve been in literal combat zones, been shot at and almost blown up, and that still wasn’t as hard as my first marriage,” Gretzky told him. The man didn’t usually open up too much about the past or himself, so Rooster was surprised when he gave Rooster a few peeks behind the curtain that was Gretzky.
“Why’d you divorce your first wife?”
“She decided that being a Marine’s wife was too fuckin’ hard. And it is,” Gretzky emphasized. “It’s really hard being married to a Marine or anyone in the military, for that matter. I was gone a lot, which sucked, but it got unbearable when I lost my wingman—before Madusa’s time,” he explained. “I was grieving and angry and she couldn’t understand why I wouldn’t give up flying. We needed different things.” He shrugged. “It’s how it goes, sometimes, I guess.” Gretzky looked over at Rooster. “It’s good that you and Madusa already know what to expect. You both know it’s hard. You both know it’s dangerous. Neither of you would ask the other to give it up. It’s a good thing,” Gretzky told him with a firm nod, indicating he approved.
“You have that with Phoenix, too,” Rooster pointed out as they crossed Coronado Bridge.
When he glanced quickly at the man to his right, Rooster spotted the deep red flush creeping up Gretzky’s neck, his Ginger complexion and small smile betraying him. “Yeah, I have that with Phoenix, too.”
It didn’t take them long to reach the Hard Deck. There were already vehicles parked out front, suggesting that some of the set-up crew had arrived. Rooster recognized Maverick’s motorcycle parked in its usual spot. Coyote, Hangman, and Tofu greeted Rooster and Gretzky as they stepped inside.
“Here comes the groom,” Hangman announced jovially. He shook Rooster’s hand and slapped him on the back, bro-style.
“Can hardly believe it’s happening,” Rooster replied, smiling. Once upon a time, the two men were rivals who couldn’t stand each other; today, they were friends. Rooster knew that Hangman would never leave him hanging; he’d never leave Jake hanging either.
“I’d say it’s about damn time,” Jake sassed. “How’s your bride this mornin’?”
“She’s good,” Rooster relayed. “Though she did warn me to be on standby for an SOS extraction if Rocksteady tries to glue eyelashes to her eyeballs, so we’re all on Alert-15.” The men chuckled.
“Hey, I got something to show you.” Tofu had stepped away for a brief moment while the others were chatting. When he returned, Tofu produced a newly repaired and intact Mini-Madusa.
“You were able to fix her!”
Tofu grinned, nodding. “It didn’t take me long. The breaks were clean in the seams where I’d glued the parts together to begin with. A little glue, a few touch-ups, and she’s good as new.”
Rooster felt a lump build in his throat. He’d never seen Madusa as crushed as she had been when presenting him with the broken pieces of her mini namesake. That woman survived bombings, enemies trying to turn her into Swiss cheese, had her plane catch on fire, and she kept trucking along without breaking a sweat, but her mother breaking this small, personal representation of who she was almost took Madusa out entirely. Rooster was eternally grateful that Tofu had been able to patch her up. Rooster wanted to be the one to fix everything for her, but he realized that supporting each other wasn’t a one-person job; they needed their friends, too.
“Thank you,” he told Tofu genuinely, and then added with a cheeky grin, “My son.”
“You’re welcome, Dad.” Hangman shook his head, laughing at the two goofballs. “You think she’ll like it?”
“Madusa will love it.” Rooster was confident of that. “You did good.” Tofu’s proud grin could probably power up all of Coronado if they hooked him up to the power grid. Looking around, he noticed that they were sorta missing someone. “Where’s Mav?”
“He’s in the back moving things around for Penny,” Coyote supplied.
“Let’s go help them,” Rooster said, eager to get this place set up and decorated. Hangman, Coyote, and Tofu all shook their heads. “Why are we not helping them?”
“Penny told us to cool our heels; apparently, Maverick put his phone on the bar, and…you know how that goes,” Hangman replied, chuckling.
Gretzky barked a laugh. Rooster shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. When was Maverick gonna learn? The men heard a commotion coming from the back; it was Maverick, carrying a giant stack of folding chairs while Penny gave him marching orders.
“You put your phone on the bar again?!” Rooster asked incredulously.
“It was an accident,” Maverick assured.
“An accident that happens a lot,” Rooster pointed out.
“What can I say: I gaze into my woman’s eyes and I forget everything else. Including the rules.”
Penny seemed quite amused. “Sure, Pete. It’s all because I smiled at you.”
“It’s true!” That was Mav’s story, and he was sticking to it. “One smile, that’s all it takes.”
“Really? Maybe we should test your theory.” With a little shit-eating, crooked grin aimed right at Maverick, she asked, “What’s the start-up procedure of a Tomcat?”
“That’s not fair,” Mav retorted.
“Why not?”
“I can do that in my sleep! It’s muscle memory. The phone on the bar isn’t muscle memory,” Maverick reasoned.
“Make it muscle memory,” Penny retorted then smacked Mav on the ass. “Now, get back to work, Sailor.”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
Now that Penny had made her point about the rules, the rest of the gathered-up aviators helped Maverick with the rest of the chairs. They were going to hold the ceremony out on the beach outside the Hard Deck and move inside for the reception. They arranged the folding chairs in two columns, with an aisle in between, all facing the ocean. At the front, the men set up a wooden arch that Madusa had ordered for the wedding. Once the florist arrived with the flowers, they’d attach the floral decorations to it.
As they worked, Maverick kept glancing at Rooster and smiling. Ordinarily, it would likely drive Rooster crazy, because it was obvious Maverick wanted to say something, but today, it didn’t. It was nice having Maverick here to share this day. For the longest time, Rooster had kept Maverick at arm’s length; he’d made peace with not having him around for the major milestones of his adult life. Now that Mav was here, though, today, on Rooster’s wedding day, he was so damn glad they’d patched things up. He couldn’t imagine today without Mav. It was hard enough without his parents and Ice.
“I’m really glad you’re here,” Rooster said, voicing his thoughts out loud. He felt like Maverick deserved to hear them.
“I’m really glad you want me here.” They fell into a comfortable silence as they worked until Maverick asked, “So? Are you nervous?”
“About what?”
“Getting married.”
“Nope.”
“Really?”
“Yep.”
“Not even a little nervous?”
“Not even a little.”
“Most people are nervous before getting married,” Maverick said as if he were pointing out some obscure fact Rooster didn’t know.
“Yeah,” he agreed since it was something he’d heard and been told. “But I’m not nervous.” When Maverick quirked a brow and narrowed his eyes, studying Rooster intently, Rooster rolled his eyes and threw his hands up. “Man, I sat in the backseat of a stolen Tomcat with you while enemy fighters were actively trying to shoot us down. Compared to that, getting married is a piece of cake. I’m not nervous.”
“Huh.”
“What is it?” Rooster pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Nothing.”
“You just said, ‘Huh’ like it was something.”
“I mean…I’m a little surprised, that’s all.”
“Why? I love Madusa. She’s the love of my life. We’re getting married.”
“Sure.” Maverick nodded, but Rooster could tell he wasn’t satisfied with that answer; he could practically see the hamsters going Mach 10 on Maverick’s internal hamster wheel of a brain.
“What is it, now?” he asked with a sigh. He pinched the bridge of his nose. “If you say nothing…”
“It’s just that I remember your dad telling me how nervous he was when he married your mom and she was the love of his life too.”
Rooster straightened, smiling a bit. “Really?” He loved hearing stories about his dad and ones from Maverick were rare gems that Rooster was always eager to gobble up since, through the years, Maverick had a hard time talking about his best friend. He did, of course, when Rooster asked, but Rooster had learned young that asking definitely caused pain so he stopped after a while unless it was something that his curiosity couldn’t let go. Lately, Maverick talked about Rooster’s dad a lot more, and without prompting. There wasn’t as much sadness and guilt anymore when he did.
Grinning, Maverick nodded. He looked up and far away; Rooster recognized it as Maverick scanning his memory banks for the scene in question. “Yeah, he said he was so damn nervous that he threw up about six times on his way to the courthouse,” he recounted, laughing. “He had to make an emergency pit stop to shine his shoes so he wouldn’t stand there with his breakfast on his laces while he and your mom said their vows.” Rooster laughed, too.
“Why was he so nervous? Was he having second thoughts or something?” He didn’t think his dad would’ve had second thoughts, not about Rooster’s mom, but it seemed to be the most rational explanation.
“Nah, he wasn’t having second thoughts but he was worried your mom would come to her senses and pull a runaway bride thing. I kept thinking how dumb that was because Carole was crazy about him—and even told him so!—but he kept insisting that until the rings were on and the vows were spoken, anything could happen and that’s why he was worried.”
“Huh.” That was exactly what Maddie said when she was worried about her mother trying to blow up the wedding. Maverick quirked a brow, a silent inquiry into Rooster’s own ‘Huh.’ Rooster waved him off. “Madusa said something similar when she was worried about her mom messing things up.”
Maverick’s head tilted as he considered. “Sounds like a reasonable sentiment considering her mother’s behavior,” he reasoned.
Nodding, Rooster agreed, though added, “I just find it weird that it was almost word for word what my dad said.”
“I’m sure it’s a coincidence.”
“Maybe.” Rooster didn’t really believe in coincidences. He learned under the tutelage of Carole Bradshaw, a firm believer in fate, destiny, and all things being meant to be. He was sure if he mentioned it to Madusa, she’d firmly stand in the camp of coincidences, but to Rooster, it felt like it was something that connected his parents to him and Madusa. It was something that, to him, meant his Dad and Mom were watching over her somehow. If anyone needed loving parents to watch over her, it was Madusa.
Mav definitely spotted the way Rooster was hedging his bets. “If it’s not a coincidence,” he started tentatively, “then it’s a good sign because according to Goose, Carole showed up on time looking radiant, they got married, and his shoes were the only casualty.” Rooster snorted.
They’d just finished putting together the final joint on the arch when someone called out to them.
“Hey, hey, chucklefucks!” the tall, older man greeted. Immediately, Maverick groaned while Rooster grinned wide. The man walked over with arms wide open wearing a pair of khaki Bermuda shorts, a brightly patterned Hawaiian shirt (as per the wedding dress code), and a pair of aviators. In the man’s youth, he’d had a shock of healthy hair. Nowadays, his hair was white at the temples and darker salt and pepper up top. He still had the cocky smirk though.
“Slider!” Rooster greeted. He slapped a palm in Slider’s hand, shaking it once before Slider pulled him in for a big hug. “I wasn’t sure you were gonna make it, man, since you missed the barbecue yesterday.”
Slider ruffled Rooster’s hair a bit before shoving his head playfully. “I just got in. Had enough time to check in to my hotel, take a shower, and get dressed. Told those Washington politician fucks to shove it up their asses because my nephew was getting married.” Rooster’s heart swelled with warmth. Nephew.
Vice Admiral Ron ‘Slider’ Kerner held no love for politicians, despite the fact he had to handle them daily as the Commander, Naval Air Systems Command. NAVAIR, as it was known, handled support of aircraft and airborne weapons systems for the Navy. They dealt with procurement, testing, maintenance, and lifecycles of aircraft and weapons hardware, as well as training and maintenance facilities. Pretty much, he kept the Navy’s aircraft airborne by ensuring logistics support, and usually, that meant getting politicians to loosen the purse strings. Slider always described it as an unwinnable battle with red tape, and that, if he ever had the chance to fly again, he’d snap up the opportunity in a second. Being an Admiral, apparently, wasn’t all fun and games.
Eventually, Slider crossed his arms over his chest and stared Maverick down with a quirked brow. Rooster had seen this stand-off numerous times over the years. They both glared and grumped and postured, but deep down, Rooster knew they respected the hell of each other. Rooster remembered watching their showdowns with Ice growing up. Bradley had been upset that his uncles were being mean to each other; Iceman just slung an arm around Bradley’s shoulders and pointed out how it was a show of affection in a way.
“See the way Slider’s eyes are crinkled like he’s laughing even though he looks like he’s frowning? And how Maverick’s mouth is fighting a smile? They’re just pretending to be mean to each other, buddy.”
“But, if they like each other, why are they saying mean things? Why do they have to pretend?”
“Some people find it hard to tell people that they care about them, so they find other ways to show it.” When Ice smiled at him then, it was kind and warm. “You’re really good at telling and showing people you care about them; don’t ever lose that, Bradley.”
“I won’t,” young Bradley had promised his uncle Ice.
When he was little, Rooster hadn’t really understood all that well the reason Mav and Slider shit-talked all the time, but as he grew up, and as he rose through military ranks, he got it. It wasn’t always the healthiest way to work through feelings and affection, but sometimes, when you saw and experienced the unthinkable with someone, you developed a dark sense of love and belonging, the toughest of unbreakable bonds. He saw it constantly in the way Madusa and Gretzky gave each other shit but would quite literally die for each other.
So, even though Slider and Maverick postured and pretended to dislike each other’s presence, Rooster knew better. They were ride or die, especially now that both had lost their best friend.
“You sure you took a shower because—“ Maverick leaned in, and made an exaggerated show of sniffing.
Slider shoved Maverick’s shoulder hard. “Keep it up, shit-for-brains, and I’ll bust you down to Commander.”
“Don’t threaten me with a good time; that just means they won’t try to promote me to Admiral and I get to fly longer.”
“You’re an asshole,” Slider accused.
“Birds of a feather, yadda, yadda, yadda.” Maverick rolled his hand to indicate the ‘yadda’ could go on forever. Eventually, both men broke from the folly, grinned at each other, and hugged tightly. “It’s good to see you.”
“You too, man. Better occasion than the last time we had a family reunion.” The last time the three were together had been Iceman’s funeral. Slider managed to catch all the red-eye flights to arrive just in time, able to honor his friend by smashing his own set of wings on Ice’s casket. Slider looked Rooster over up and down. When he seemed satisfied, he nodded. “Figures you’d ditch the uniform and go with the Hawaiian shirt look for this shindig.”
Rooster beamed brightly. “It was my lady’s idea, actually.”
Slider’s eyebrow rose up. “Really? From what I saw in her service record, I thought she’d be the straight-laced, uniform type.”
“You’ve read her service record?!”
“Yeah,” Slider replied as if his pulling Madusa’s service record was the most obvious thing in the world. “I’ve been keeping an eye on what she’s been up to since you first mentioned her way back when you were at Indoc. Honestly, I didn’t think you’d ever get your hand off your stick long enough to get with her, but you proved me wrong, kid.”
He had no idea that Slider had been monitoring Madusa’s career. He kinda figured that he, Ice, and Maverick had been monitoring Rooster’s, for obvious reasons, but he wasn’t sure Madusa would love the news that one of Rooster’s uncles went poking around her files.
“Isn’t that, I don’t know, an abuse of power or something?!”
“Probably,” Slider replied easily. He didn’t even seem sorry for it. “So, when do I get to finally meet this lady of yours, huh? Mav, here, says I better gird my loins before I do because she’s feisty.”
“Don’t call her feisty,” Maverick warned, with a slight shake of his head before Rooster could do the same.
“Why not?! That’s what you called her!” Slider pointed a finger at Maverick.
“Yeah, but I don’t call her that to her face because she warned me not to. She vetoed spunky and sassy, too, and honestly, I’m a little scared of her, so I fall in line.”
Slider snorted. “Scared of her?! What’s she gonna do, kick my ass? I’m an Admiral! I outrank her.” Oh boy. Slider was gonna have a hard time with Madusa if he didn’t curb that attitude.
Maverick shook his head again. “Yeah…she won’t care that you’re an Admiral. She smacked down Cyclone in a ready room filled with two full squadrons, Warlock, and a Marine Corps General. Your two stars won’t stop her. In fact, I think your stars would probably encourage her to smack you down harder.” That got Slider’s attention because Cyclone was no pushover. Well, with most people, he wasn’t a pushover. For some reason, Admiral Simpson couldn’t control Maverick, and, well, no one could push Madusa around.
Rooster grinned with unashamed pride. “My lady kicks ass,” he announced, pleased.
Slider’s eyebrows were all the way up to where his hairline used to be. “Yeah, you’re definitely Goose’s kid.” Rooster shrugged because there was no use in denying it. “I look forward to meeting her. She sounds like like an impressive woman,” Slider finally said with a kind smile.
“She is,” Rooster replied, smiling softly. The trio went back inside where Gretzky intercepted them. “Hey! The place looks great!” They’d moved around tables and hung up some balloons and decorations, though they didn’t need to do that much to begin with; they all loved the aviation theme Penny had going here.
Gretzky grinned. “Yeah, the boys did good. Bronco’s all dolled up, too.”
“Nice. Hey, this is Vice Admiral Kerner. He was Admiral Kazansky’s RIO when they flew with my dad and Maverick.”
Immediately, Gretzky snapped a quick salute because even though they weren’t in uniform, you saluted higher-ranking officers unless you knew them personally. Slider saluted in return and then the men shook hands.
“Admiral,” Gretzky greeted.
“Slider’s fine.” Gretzky nodded in acknowledgment.
“Lieutenant Colonel Camden,” he said, introducing himself. “But, you can call me Gretzky.”
“Good to meet you.”
“You too. Listen, I look forward to talking to you later to find out all the crazy shit this guy’s done—“ He pointed at Maverick who blinked. Rooster suspected that, despite the evidence to the contrary, Maverick did not consider anything he did to be ‘crazy.’ Rooster didn’t even try to hide his amusement. “—but I need to talk to this one for a minute.” He motioned toward Rooster.
“What’s up, man?”
“Caterer and florist have just arrived so you need to sync with them for payment. Penny’s already got the caterer going in the kitchens and the boys are helping the florist unload. We’ll get the arch decorated while you and Maverick fuck off to shower and get ready. Then, you need to come back here to start receiving guests so I can head to Madusa’s, take my own shower, and drive your bride back.”
“You know the bride?” Slider asked since he hadn’t been read in on who, exactly, Gretzky was.
Gretzky smirked, nodding. “Yeah. Madusa’s been my wingman for, like, seven years and she’s my XO.”
“Ah, so she’s your best friend.” Slider nodded knowingly. As an aviator, you spent the most time with your wingman or backseater, and often, that meant friendships forged through hell that only an act of God could split apart.
“Yeah, she’s my best friend,” Gretzky agreed with a fond smile. “She’s a pain in the ass, but my best friend.”
“I think ‘pain in the ass’ is a requirement for best friends,” Slider pointed out. Gretzky barked a laugh. Maverick snorted. Rooster smiled because Phoenix could definitely be a pain in his ass sometimes, and Rooster suspected vice versa.
Once Rooster got sorted with the caterer and the florist, he headed to Penny’s with Slider riding with him in the decorated Bronco; they followed Mav’s motorcycle. Slider complained the whole five-minute drive about sitting in a decorated wedding car. “It’s giving me PTSD flashbacks to all of my weddings,” he complained.
“Man, it’s your own fault for getting married four times.”
“What can I say? I’m a lover, not a fighter.”
“Yeah, keep telling yourself that. Maybe next time, just date instead of heading to the altar.”
Rooster sent Maverick to shower and get ready first while he caught up with Slider. “So, come on. What happened with Cheryl?” Cheryl was the fourth ex-Mrs. Kerner. They hadn’t really talked about it the last time they saw each other because they had other things on their minds at Ice’s funeral; Rooster could tell Slider didn’t want to talk about it much today, either. He kicked Slider’s chair to nudge him into sharing; they were sitting at the kitchen table while waiting for Mav.
“You don’t want to talk about my fourth failed marriage on your wedding day, kid,” Slider finally said.
“I do, so tell me.”
“What’s there to say? I was an asshole. I worked too much, I didn’t spend enough time with her, and I took her for granted. She deserves better and told me so. End of story.”
Sighing, Rooster shook his head. “You know, you self-sabotage almost as much as Maverick does.”
“Yeah,” Slider agreed with a nod. “But, it looks like he’s finally got his head on straight with Penny. Let’s hope it sticks.”
“You don’t think it will?”
“I think that when you get to be mine and Maverick’s age, you’re set in your ways and it’s real hard to steer that boat in a different direction.” Rooster frowned. “Look, I’m not saying it’s impossible, but I am saying that men like us? We can’t stop moving. We can’t stop looking for the next adventure because if we do, we die.” It was Slider’s turn to frown. He fell into a heavy silence before finally saying, “They’re forcing me to retire next year.”
Rooster’s eyes widened, though he shouldn’t be surprised. Three-star Admirals were very rare for a reason. The military only had a certain number of three-star ranks available throughout the entire forces and those available slots were mandated by law. To encourage the upward mobility of younger officers, they usually enforced mandatory retirements of older ones, especially at the higher, more coveted ranks. “How do you feel about that?”
“I feel like when they take my uniform, I’m gonna fuckin’ die.”
“You won’t,” Rooster assured.
“It feels like I will. The Navy’s been my whole life. I don’t know who I am without it. I kinda get why Maverick’s been such a pain in the ass all these years. If you don’t move up, you still get to fly. If you don’t move up, they won’t force you out until you hit sixty-two, maybe sixty-four if they allow deferral. He’s still got a good five to seven years to go, and I’m washed up.”
“You’re not washed up,” Rooster insisted. “With your credentials, you can get any private sector job you want.”
Slider made a face like he just ate shit. “Private sector. I’d have to report to some snot-nosed Millenial.”
“I’m a snot-nosed Millenial!”
“Yeah, rest my case,” Slider said seriously before smirking at Rooster, an indication he was yanking his chain, at least about the Millenial part. Then, something behind Rooster caught Slider’s attention and had him laughing out loud so hard that he almost slid onto the floor. Rooster twisted in his chair to see what took Slider out.
Oh my god.
“Maverick. What. The. Fuck.”
Freshly showered and shaved, Maverick had rejoined them in the kitchen. Rooster had thought the man would’ve been dressed in a Hawaiian shirt, as per the wedding dress code; he wasn’t. Rooster should have anticipated Maverick’s bullshit, but somehow, had not.
Maverick was dressed in black shoes, black slacks, and a black, short-sleeved clergy shirt, complete with a white collar, looking like a priest and grinning from ear to ear. Slider was practically shrieking.
“Call me Reverend Maverick!”
“No,” was all Rooster said.
“But, I’m a Reverend now!“
“I said no!”
“The Internet said I was a Reverend. I think you should respect the Internet here.”
“Maverick, I swear to GOD—“
“You asked me to officiate,” Maverick accused, pointing at Rooster.
“Yeah! Wearing a Hawaiian shirt, like the rest of us!”
“You didn’t say that about the shirt.”
“I didn’t think I had to!”
“Well, now you know what happens when you assume. It makes an ass out of—“
“Out of you. You’re the only ass here.” Slider had not stopped laughing. His face was so red at this point, Rooster was worried they may actually need to call paramedics. “Will you just get changed, please?!”
“But, I bought all this specifically for the wedding—“
“You know what? I’m gonna call Madusa—“
“Don’t do that. Don’t call Madusa.”
Rooster had his phone out, threatening Maverick’s life with a finger ready to tap on Madusa’s contact. “Are you gonna change?”
“I’m changing! I’m changing!” Maverick assured quickly, holding his hands up in surrender because no one wanted to be in Madusa’s line of fire, especially not on her wedding day.
“That’s what I thought.”
“Reverend Maverick,” Slider gasped between fits of laughter. “Classic.”
Rooster pinched the bridge of his nose for even having to deal with Maverick and Slider’s shenanigans. Despite all of it, he wouldn’t trade these two assholes for anything.
—Madusa—
The photographer had been here for a while, snapping behind-the-scenes pictures of the ladies getting ready. Madusa liked the photog, a friend of Alice’s who’d been nice enough to accept the gig on short notice. Of course, it helped they were getting married on a Sunday, not a Saturday like most people, which meant Kristy had been free for this assignment. Kristy was pleasant, super smart, and took Madusa’s comfort levels into consideration which meant no pictures of Madusa moisturizing or anything like that.
Rocksteady had been tapped for make-up duty while Phoenix’s job was to be Madusa’s moral support when dodging Rocksteady’s stash of glitter. “No glitter!” Madusa asserted.
“But, it’ll look so cute! You’ll be shimmering under the sun like a living, breathing diamond!”
“I’ll also end up finding glitter in everything until I die. Glitter never goes away. You think you’ve found all of it, but you never do. It lingers and hides until it reappears suddenly on your uniform, and then it’ll migrate to your face, all while you’re in a briefing with high-ranking officers!”
“That feels very specific,” Rocksteady pointed out. “Like you did not pluck that story out of thin air.”
“Because that’s exactly what happened last time you threw glitter on me!”
“Last time I threw glitter on you was during a Fleet Week years ago!”
“Correct! And then, three months later, I’m in a room with Moose and Gretzky and a damn General and I was sparkling.” Madusa made a diagonal chopping motion in the air. “No glitter!”
Rocksteady pouted. “You’re no fun, you know that?”
“I’m aware.”
“You know what? It’s fine. I can make you shine without glitter. Now, sit your ass down so I can work on the masterpiece that is your face!”
At some point, Tommy, his wife Melissa, and the girls arrived so Payton could get ready with the rest of the grown-up ladies. Ariel was already all dressed up as the most perfect (and rambunctious) Fairy Unicorn Princess. She wore a pink and purple tulle dress with a unicorn face appliqué sewn on the bodice. Ariel had been the one to pick out the dress herself from the department store website. It was a little over the top and did not fit at all with the floral and tropical theme she and Rooster had chosen but Madusa didn’t care. Ariel squealed when she saw the dress so that was the dress Madusa got her because, ultimately, she wanted Ariel to have fun. Her niece paired the dress with a set of sheer, pink fairy wings, light-up sneakers, and, as the pièce de resistance, a sparkly headband with a bedazzled unicorn horn glued right onto it.
She was the very epitome of a Fairy Unicorn Princess.
When she got there, Payton, however, was dressed in sporty shorts and a t-shirt, opting to wait until everyone changed into their wedding clothes to slip into hers. The wedding dress code was casual with Hawaiian shirts or floral dresses and prints. Maddie had promised Payton she didn’t have to wear a dress if she didn’t want to, and Payton took her up on it. Instead of selecting a sundress, Payton had opted for a cute, breezy romper with a shirred bodice, short sleeves, and flowing shorts that came down to above her knee. The floral pattern she’d chosen was a bit retro, with pink and orange flowers and turquoise accents. It really fit her style, but most importantly, it fit into Payton’s personal comfort levels. When it came down to make-up, she asked Rocksteady to keep it simple.
“The natural look,” Rocksteady agreed with a nod. “I got you, babygirl.” Tommy was also grateful for less make-up; Madusa suspected he wasn’t ready for his little girl to grow up yet. He better get with the program soon because Payton was growing up fast.
At one point, Madusa was becoming aggravated with this one wisp of hair that kept falling into her eyes no matter the amount of hairspray Rocksteady hit it with. Phoenix shoved some cheese under her nose and that did the trick; Madusa always became annoyed with everything and everyone when she was hangry. Gretzky arrived with the bouquets and flower crown not long after she finished munching on the emergency hangry snacks Rooster had prepared for her.
“Hey shithead, how you holding up?”
“Phoenix just fed me so the Madusa nuclear reactor has been shut down and I’m now operating within normal parameters.”
“Nice. Food always does the trick.”
“It does. We should all thank my future husband for his foresight. How’s he doing, by the way?” she asked her best friend.
“Hasn’t stopped grinning like a loon or bouncing off the walls with excitement. The man’s real eager to lock you down.”
Madusa felt a girly little giggle bubble up which was so unlike her. The thought of Rooster being excited and happy about marrying her just made her so damn happy that she could barely control the giggles.
Gretzky spotted her euphoria and smiled fondly. He let her bask in it for a beat before telling her, “Lemme know when you’re dressed and I’ll bring in the flowers for your hair.”
“Thanks, asswipe.”
“Don’t mention it, dipshit.”
Madusa, the besties, and Payton all finished up with their hair and make-up. Payton hadn’t been sure how she wanted to style her hair.
“Are you putting yours up or down?” she asked Maddie tentatively.
“I’m leaving mine down in waves.”
“I’ll do that too,” Payton announced shyly.
When Rocksteady was styling Payton’s hair in soft, long waves, Phoenix commented on how Payton looked up to Madusa. “She wants to be just like you. It’s really cute,” Phoenix said quietly as they chatted while Rocksteady entertained Payton in the stylist chair.
Madusa’s chest bloomed with such love and warmth. “I love that kid so much.” Phoenix nodded with a soft, kind smile.
The two women chatted quietly until it was their turn in the stylist's chair before dressing. Rocksteady was an absolute knockout in a breezy mint green chiffon dress with a deep plunging neckline and long flowing sleeves which was a bit of a departure from her usual preference for skin-tight and sparkling. Her dress’s skirt was pleated and hypnotizing when she twirled. The bodice wowed with pretty pressed appliqués of pink wildflowers. Her long, braided hair had been twisted in a loose bun on top of her head and fastened with sparkling beaded clips. Rocksteady planned on adding real flowers to her hair to compliment the bling. Her make-up was flawless and shimmered with a pretty, deep pink lip.
For her dress, Phoenix had chosen a form-fitting bright, almost neon pink floral with green leaf accents; it was an asymmetrical number with one shoulder strap and a low back. The chiffon fabric was draped diagonally to give the illusion of gathering up top at her shoulder while accentuating her figure and curves. Instead of a long floor-length skirt like Rocksteady, Phoenix’s dress was cocktail length, which showed off her incredible calves. Since she was still sporting a bob after cutting her hair on deployment, she had Rocksteady slick it back in a sleek and sophisticated look with striking bright pink lips to up the wow factor. She was breathtaking.
Madusa’s ladies looked fucking phenomenal and Gretzky voiced it as soon as Phoenix opened the door to call him in for the hair flowers.
“Wow,” Gretzky gasped.
“Do you like it?” Phoenix asked as she smoothed out the front of her dress. Madusa couldn’t see Phoenix’s smile, but she recognized it from her tone, both pleased and giddy she got such a reaction from her man.
“Yeah,” Gretzky breathed, still sounding stunned.
“Are you going to bring the flowers in?” she asked him, sounding amused.
“What?” Gretzky’s brain was obviously glitching, eyes glued to Phoenix.
“The flowers? We need the flowers for Maddie’s hair,” Phoenix clarified slowly.
When Gretzky was still struck unmoving, she laughed, reached for him, kissed his cheek, and whispered something in his ear. He cleared his throat sharply; Madusa caught a glimpse of Gretzky’s beet-red face over Phoenix’s shoulder. “Good copy,” was all he replied.
“Did you break Gretzky?” Madusa accused with a laugh when Phoenix left the door and rejoined them. “What did you say to him?”
“Not for young ears,” she replied with a pleased, sassy smirk, eyes darting toward Payton to indicate whatever she told Gretzky had not been PG-13.
“Come on! I never get to hear the good stuff,” Payton pouted, crossing her arms over her chest. As much as Payton kept insisting she wasn’t a kid anymore, the whole pout and stance only made her seem so young still. Maddie sympathized, having been a curious thirteen-year-old girl herself once, but ultimately, she didn’t want her brother to kill her for exposing his kid to R-rated content.
It didn’t take too long for Gretzky to come back with a box that held Madusa’s pretty flower crown, everyone’s bouquets, and some extra flowers for the ladies’ hair if they wanted some splashes of color. When it came to the flowers, Madusa hadn’t been picky at all. She told the florist to put together rustic-looking bouquets with whatever flowers were in season, no specific color scheme since they were going with Hawaiian shirts and florals anyway. The florist had delivered nicely with pretty wildflower bouquets of all colors and a delicate and pretty crown made of Baby’s Breath and other white flowers, accented with green leaves.
As soon as Gretzky walked in with the box, he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Madusa all made up in her dress. His eyes widened and he smiled the biggest smile she’d ever seen Gretzky smile in the seven years she’d known him. Then, he blinked real quick, looked away, and coughed in a way that Madusa could only surmise was a distraction, which surprised her.
“Are you crying?” she asked him, suddenly feeling a lump in her throat herself. Gretzky didn’t cry. Gretzky was stoic and stone-faced. And yet, there he was, blinking away emotion right in front of her.
“No.” He swiped at his eyes, stood up tall, and tried to glare at her, but she was onto him.
“You are! You’re crying!” Madusa accused, pointing at him sharply, and now she felt her eyes prickle, just a little.
“Shut up!” Gretzky warned her.
She approached her best friend, caught between wanting to tease him and hug him. The hug won out. “Give me this box,” she told him and set it aside. “Come here.” Madusa pulled her big brick wall of a Marine best friend into a hug. He hugged her right back. “Why are you crying?” she asked kindly.
He smooshed his face against her shoulder. “Because you’re getting married,” he admitted, though it sounded a bit muffled. “You’re finally letting yourself be happy.”
Madusa nodded. “Yeah,” she agreed softly, smiling. “I am.” Gretzky squeezed her tighter. She wasn’t sure how long they hugged, but it was as long as they needed. When she pulled back, she looked up at her best friend. “Thank you,” she told him.
“For what? Crying like a baby all over your dress?”
He wasn’t really making eye contact so she ducked down to look him in the eyes. “For being my wingman all these years. For having my back without question. For wanting me to be happy.”
Gretzky shrugged a little. It was an absolute trip to see how shy such a usually confident dude could be. “You’re my best friend,” he replied simply because that alone explained everything.
Smiling, Madusa nodded. “You’re mine,” she told him softly. “I want you to be happy too. Don’t take Phoenix for granted and don’t let her go.” She’d whispered her request for his ears only.
“I won’t,” he agreed with a small smile and a nod. “Promise.”
“Good. I’ll hold you to it.” Then, because she had to, Madusa added, “Shithead.”
He grinned. “Dipshit.”
“Maddie, we’re running late,” Phoenix told her after giving her and Gretzky a few minutes to talk best friend to best friend. They weren’t really running late under normal time standards, but under Madusa Standard time, they were five minutes behind schedule. Madusa nodded, to indicate good copy. It didn’t take them too long to affix the delicate crown of flowers atop her head. She pinned her and Rooster’s first pair of wings to the ribbon holding her bouquet together, the very wings they’d pinned on each other years ago, and was ready to hit the road.
Madusa and Rooster were getting married.
At last.
—Rooster—
It was almost time.
Rooster, Mav, and Slider had returned to the Hard Deck with both Rooster and Maverick freshly showered. Maverick had, thankfully, changed out of the clergy get-up and into a fun, sky-blue Hawaiian shirt with a cloud and fighter jet print which only confirmed to Rooster that Maverick had planned on the Hawaiian shirt all along but could not resist the dumb Reverend joke. Rooster didn’t mind, not really. In the grand scheme, he found it funny; he’d only been insistent on Maverick changing because Rooster wanted today to be perfect for Madusa. She deserved her perfect wedding day.
Once they arrived back at the Hard Deck, Rooster took over for Gretzky, who needed to bring the flowers over to Madusa’s, take a shower, and get changed himself before driving Madusa back to the ceremony in Rooster’s Bronco.
Rooster handed over the keys. “Please take care of my Baby.”
Amused, Gretzky asked, “Your Baby? The Bronco or Madusa?”
“The Bronco,” Rooster confirmed. “Madusa’s my Lady and my Lady can absolutely handle herself, but the Bronco needs a lot of TLC. Plus, the Bronco was my dad’s, and…” He let the thought trail and simply repeated it. “It was my dad’s.” That was all that needed to be said. Gretzky nodded solemnly, took the keys, and promised to bring both the Bronco and Rooster’s Lady back in one piece.
“I think Madusa would kill me before you could even get your hands on me if I dinged the Bronco. I’ll take care of it.” Madusa loved the Bronco almost as much as Rooster did.
With Gretzky gone, there was a changing of the guard to allow Hangman, Tofu, and Coyote to freshen up before the ceremony. Ghost, Bob, Fanboy, and Omaha arrived, taking up sentry at the door to prevent Madusa’s mom from any incursion, and to greet the arriving wedding guests. Rooster had taken up his own welcoming party position near the bar with Maverick and Slider. Their little receiving line grew when Moose arrived with his family and grew again when Warlock and Cyclone arrived. There were a whole lot of brass stars congregating together suddenly, and for a moment, Rooster was struck awed that he and Madusa were so well-respected that their small, informal ceremony included three Admirals and a General. It would’ve been four Admirals if Ice were still with them.
As the Admiralty Board and the General were chatting away, Maverick stood solidly at Rooster’s side the whole time.
“She’s not late,” Maverick pointed out when Rooster checked his watch for the millionth time.
“I know.”
“Then, stop checking your watch.”
“I can’t. It’s like time is ticking so slowly right now. Sometimes, I blink and I can’t believe years have gone by, but today, one minute feels like a century.”
Maverick tried not to smile but failed. “You’ve always been impatient when you’re excited.”
“I can’t help it,” Rooster protested, then checked his watch again.
“It hasn’t even been thirty seconds since you checked it last time!”
“It doesn’t matter! I’m gonna check it every thirty seconds until she gets here!”
“Okay, give me the watch.” Maverick held out his hand. Rooster looked at it like it was gonna bite. “Give me the watch, Rooster.”
“No.”
“You’re not going to relax and enjoy yourself if you’re obsessing over the time so…give it.”
“No, I’m not giving you the watch.” He checked it again.
“Why not?”
“Because.” When Maverick quirked a brow at him, making it clear that ‘because’ wasn’t an appropriate answer, Rooster sighed. “Because I feel naked without my watch.”
“You’re not naked,” Maverick pointed out astutely since Rooster was, in fact, fully clothed.
“I know I’m not naked. I said I feel naked.”
“Naked?! Who’s naked?” Slider asked, butting into their conversation. Rooster groaned because now the other Admirals and Moose were listening in.
“No one’s naked,” Rooster said in such a way to indicate the conversation was over.
The conversation was not over. “I told Rooster to give me his watch so he’d stop obsessing over the time but he said he feels naked without it,” Maverick supplied like a snitch.
Slider smirked. “Checking the watch, huh? Is our boy getting cold feet?” Slider slung an arm around Rooster and smacked him on the chest in good nature.
“No,” Rooster replied vehemently. “I’m not getting cold feet.”
“Why are you obsessed with the watch, then?” Slider asked, pressing Rooster’s button.
“I’m checking the time, as one does, when one owns a watch,” Rooster sassed. Slider snorted.
“’As one does?’ Why are you talking like that?”
“I’m making a point.”
“Which is?”
Maverick interpreted for him. “He’s going to keep checking the time until Madusa gets here,” he said simply to the congregated group of senior officers.
“You’re worried she’ll pull a runner on you,” Slider accused entirely incorrectly.
“No. I’m not worried about that either!”
“Then, give Mav the watch,” Slider practically dared.
“I don’t wanna give Maverick the watch!”
Slider considered him for a beat, appraising Rooster up and down. “You know what you need?” he asked even though Rooster hadn’t asked for his opinion. Slider didn’t wait for an answer. “You need a drink.”
“I don’t need a drink,” Rooster insisted. He wanted to check his watch real bad, but refrained because so many superior officers’ (amused) eyes were on him.
“You need to relax,” Slider countered. “I’m not saying you should get sloshed but a drink might calm you down.”
“I am calm.”
“Kid, you’re wound up tighter than DC red tape.” Slider reached over the bar, grabbed a bottle of amber liquid, and poured it into an empty glass. He slid it over to Rooster. “Drink up; it’ll calm the nerves.”
“I’m not nervous, either,” Rooster told his uncle. When Slider wasn’t convinced, Rooster threw his hands up. “Man, what do you want from me? I’m not worried, I’m not nervous, and I’m not getting cold feet. It’s the anticipation that’s driving me crazy. I’m the kid who started a Christmas countdown as soon as Halloween rolled by because I couldn’t wait to open gifts. Drove my mom nuts trying to hide presents because I’d ferret them out every time. That’s all this is.”
There was a slight pause as Slider marinated in Rooster’s declaration. He seemed to accept it because he shrugged his shoulders, and said, “Okay.” Then, he downed the drink he’d poured Rooster. “Couldn’t let a good drink go to waste.”
Even though he hadn’t given Maverick his watch, having Maverick and Slider irritate him seemed to have done the trick because he hadn’t obsessed over the time in a good fifteen minutes. Rooster knew it was almost show time when Madusa’s brothers showed up, and it threw his heart rate into afterburn. Roger arrived with Tommy, Melissa, and Ariel, who looked like living, breathing glitter bomb.
“UNCLE ROOSTER!” she screamed when she saw him.
“Brace for impact,” Rooster mumbled to Maverick and Slider as Ariel launched herself at him. Rooster caught her and only stumbled backward one step. Maverick educated Slider on the cast of characters since he hadn’t met Madusa’s family yet.
“Uncle Rooster,” Ariel greeted brightly. “Look! I’m a unicorn!” In Rooster’s arms, she looked down to smooth over the unicorn appliqué sewn on the front of her dress. As she did, Ariel almost blinded Rooster for life with the bedazzled unicorn horn.
“Oh god, almost took an eye out there, Miss Unicorn!” he teased, carefully pushing the sparkly unicorn horn away from his precious eyeballs. He had to lean back in self-defense while still holding on to the little squirming fairy in his arms which wasn’t an easy task considering the fairy wings he also had to contend with.
“Sorry!” she said, as she readjusted her horn. “Do you like my dress, Uncle Rooster?”
“I do! It’s got a whole unicorn face on it!”
“Yeah! I picked it myself. And! I picked the wings myself. And! I picked the shoes myself—they light up!”
“As they should,” he replied with a solemn nod.
“And! I got flowers in my hair.” She showed him the flowers as he dodged the bedazzled unicorn horn again. The men around him chuckled at his predicament. “And! I got flowers in my basket.” She showed everyone the basket. There were, in fact, flowers in there. “And! I got my fairy wand!” Maverick had to duck to avoid the wand, earning a snort from Slider. Ariel blew out the longest, most tired, most long-suffering sigh because—whew!—she had a lot.
“Sounds like you are ready for this Fairy Unicorn Princess Flower Girl gig!”
“I am,” she agreed.
“You remember what you’re supposed to do?” Ariel nodded vigorously which caused her unicorn horn to shift askew. Rooster righted it. “Okay, let’s do a run-through. When it’s time, there will be music, and then you…?”
“Then, I walk down the beach where the people are sitting and throw the flowers on the ground.” That sounded a little more aggressive than gently tossing flower petals around but considering this was a Maitland kid that probably had not fallen far from the Maitland apple tree, it tracked.
“You got it,” he praised.
Ariel beamed for a beat before someone diverted her attention. “Grandpa!” Ariel squealed as Master Gunny approached. She reached out to her grandfather, indicating she was ready to abandon the Uncle Rooster ship for the USS Grandpa. Master Gunny smiled and accepted the Fairy Unicorn Princess transfer. “I’m a unicorn!”
“I see that. Careful, Pumpkin. You’ll take someone out with that unicorn horn.” It was Master Gunny’s turn to evade maiming by bedazzled horn.
“We’ve narrowly averted a few casualties already,” Rooster told his future father-in-law. Master Gunny smirked. Trying not to sound like a love-sick puppy (and failing), Rooster asked, “Is Maddie here?”
“Almost. Jackson called and said they left about ten minutes after Tommy so they should be here soon.” Rooster checked his watch as Master Gunny quirked a brow at him. “Nervous?”
Not this again. “No.” Rooster’s watch reported only fifteen seconds had passed since he last checked it. Again.
“You sure? Because you’ve checked your watch twice in the minute I’ve been here.”
“He’s not nervous. He’s excited,” Maverick explained. “Like a kid at Christmas.”
“Well,” the Marine started. “I’m glad to hear you’re excited to be marrying my daughter. It’d be real awkward otherwise.”
“And you’d have to kick my ass?”
“Nah.” When Rooster quirked a surprised brow in question, Master Gunny explained, “That’d be Maddie’s job.”
“Fair enough.” Maverick clocked Rooster checking his watch again so Rooster shoved his hand in his pocket to curb the urge to obsess. Along with his dad’s Hawaiian shirt, Rooster sported a pair of pressed, loose-fitting khaki cargo shorts. They were on the beach and pants seemed like overkill so Rooster had opted for shorts with his Lady’s approval. Instead of checking his watch (again), Rooster spent some time introducing Slider and Master Gunny.
Master Gunnery Sergeant Maitland snapped a smart salute. “Sir.”
Slider saluted in return and then waved him off. “We’re gonna be family. Slider’s fine.”
Madusa’s father nodded, and while Rooster hadn’t known the man for very long, he knew him well enough to recognize he was only agreeing because Slider was an Admiral and it was his daughter’s wedding. Master Gunny still had a ways to go in terms of feeling comfortable around all these officers but he was getting there. “Sam,” he replied to Slider, informally introducing himself.
“So, they’re all Marines?” Slider asked after Master Gunny excused himself with Ariel when Tommy called them over.
“Who?” Rooster asked.
“Your bride’s family.”
“Yeah. They’re all Marines.”
Slider nodded, falling silent for only a minute before asking, “You got a death wish or somethin’, kid?”
“No.”
“Because Mav’s been filling me in. She’s got four brothers and a dad and they’re all Marines,” he pointed out unnecessarily. Rooster was fully aware.
“Yeah.”
Slider fell silent for a breath as he considered this before asking, “You’re not worried about getting your ass kicked?”
“No.” Rooster spotted Maverick’s amused smile.
“Really?” Slider asked incredulously.
“I’m not worried.” When Slider didn’t seem to buy it, Rooster clarified, “Madusa wouldn’t allow it.”
“You’re gonna hide behind your woman?”
“Yes,” Rooster replied easily, not even ashamed. “You haven’t met her yet, but when you do, you’ll understand. No one messes with Madusa.”
“You know, the way you describe her, I’m almost expecting The Incredible Hulk.”
“She’s more like Wonder Woman: invincible and flies a cool jet.”
“What about that lasso?” Slider then mimed twirling a lasso around and releasing it. He smirked.
“She’s got that too.” When Slider’s eyes went wide, it was Rooster’s turn to smirk because Slider wasn’t speechless often.
“Baby Goose!”
“Oh, fuck me. Who invited him?!” Slider groaned when Sokol descended upon them. Rooster tried to avoid the incoming crushing Russian hug, but Sokol had him missile-locked.
“Who invited me?! Baby Goose invited me!” Sokol announced incredulously. “Who invited you? Huh? Mr. Admiral Sliding.”
“Slider.”
“That’s what I said.” Slider looked like he wanted to strangle the Russian. Somehow, it didn’t surprise Rooster to find out that Slider and Sokol seemed to both know each other and irritate each other. Maverick watched the exchange with a shit-eating grin that suggested he probably enjoyed them butting heads a little too much. After greeting Maverick with his own Russian bear hug, Sokol asked Rooster, “So, where’s your Madusa, the Warrior Queen on this beautiful day?”
Before Rooster could answer, Slider interjected. “Madusa, Warrior Queen?!” He sounded incredulous.
“Yes,” Sokol replied, as if Slider were the dumbest man alive. “Have you not met her? Beautiful, smart, talented. Can fly any plane, don’t need no run down. She is magnificent. I told Baby Goose here to wife her immediately!”
Rooster pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn’t want to have to kick an old man’s ass on his wedding day but he’d do it if he had to. He didn’t think Sokol would ever try to steal Madusa from him (or would be successful if he tried), but Sokol’s admiration for Rooster’s Lady was over the top.
“Wait, you’ve met her?” Slider accused.
“I have,” Sokol confirmed with a nod. “She’s been to my place. I let her fly my planes. Showed her my MiGs. We’re close like this.” Sokol stuck two fingers together to indicate just how tight he and Madusa were. Rooster only knew he was bullshitting about how close Sokol and Madusa were because he’d been present for their entire interaction. If Rooster had any doubts whatsoever that Sokol had a tendency to embellish, this squashed them.
Slider rounded on Rooster. “How come this clown’s met her but I haven’t?!” He sounded a little wounded, and yeah, Rooster felt a little bad about it, but honestly, it was just timing and how their schedules played out.
“I’m sorry! We were deployed and then you were in Maryland. You know how it is,” he pleaded. “C’mon, man. You were barely able to escape the politicians for the wedding.” Slider grumbled. “We’ll make up for lost time, I promise.” Rooster was a man of his word.
“Yeah, yeah. Alright.”
Before Slider and Sokol could start sniping at each other again, Maverick flagged Hangman down and asked him to show Sokol to his seat. By now, most of the guests had arrived, greeted Rooster, and had been escorted out to the beach for the ceremony. Every time the Hard Deck’s door opened, Rooster held his breath, hoping it was his bride. So far, it hadn’t been.
He was busy staring at his watch again when Maverick elbowed him in the ribs. “I think she’s here,” Mav said, nodding toward the door as Phoenix, Rocksteady, Payton, and Jackson strolled in. Rooster’s heart rate kicked up about a thousand notches.
Payton spotted him and waved shyly. He waved back. Phoenix and Rocksteady approached, looking like a million bucks. “Looking good, ladies!” Rooster greeted them with quick hugs and a cheek kiss.
“Yes, we do look good,” Rocksteady affirmed. “We are killing these florals!”
“Wait until you see Maddie,” Phoenix promised with a sly smile. Rooster swallowed hard.
“Is she here?”
“They were right behind us.” Rooster checked his watch again; Phoenix placed a hand on his arm and reassured, “She was right behind us.”
Nodding, he locked in missiles hot on the door. Nothing could make him look away from the door because Rooster didn’t want to miss Madusa’s arrival. He didn’t.
Finally, the door opened and there she was.
Madeleine.
She had her head down as she and Gretzky scooped up her train so it wouldn’t get caught in the doorway, but as soon as she crossed the threshold, looked up, and saw him, she smiled so damn brightly, Bradley almost fell to his knees in prayer.
He hadn’t been exactly sure what her dress would look like, but Rooster sort of had an idea about the typical look for wedding dresses, so that was kinda what he was expecting. He shouldn’t have been surprised that Madusa hadn’t gone fully traditional with her dress because she wasn’t exactly a traditional woman. The dress looked to be a two-piece number with a top and a skirt. The intricate lace top was white and sleeveless, with a halter neck, and sparkling beading that cropped just above her navel, showing off an enticing sliver of toned belly. The skirt flowed in layers and layers of glacier-blue chiffon that billowed, making it look like ocean waves rolling behind her as she walked.
Maddie was perfect.
As she approached, Rooster took her in, etching the memory of her onto his soul, and sucked in a sharp breath before wiping away a stray tear or five. “Oh,” he breathed softly, covering his mouth with his hand to stop his heart from escaping.
“Hi,” Maddie greeted softly, smiling up at him. She reached up and gently wiped away another stray tear of his.
“Hi,” Bradley replied in awe. “You look so beautiful.” He loved her sweet smile and the slight pink flush that crept up her cheeks.
“Thank you. So, you like my dress?” Maddie spun a little to show him the back. The top had a racer-style, mostly open back made out of lace and four silk straps that attached up to the neck leaving her lower back bare which allowed her to show off the tattoo inked on her spine. He loved that tattoo. He was intimately acquainted with that tattoo.
“Yeah,” he breathed which was wild because he didn’t think he’d breathed one breath since she walked in. “Though, I’d like to point out it’s not actually a dress. It’s a top and a skirt!” Maddie laughed. He loved her laugh like this: deep, throaty, and genuine.
“It is,” she agreed, still laughing. “It was easier to refer to the whole ensemble as a dress.”
“I think you were trying to fake me out,” he teased.
“Maybe a little.” She reached up and caressed the shell of his ear. Bradley almost melted into a whole puddle when she did, leaning right into the tender touch. “I’m glad you like it.” Vaguely, he registered clicks and flashes in the background, as if someone were taking pictures, but his focus was on Maddie.
Bradley nodded, humming contently. “I like the blue. We match,” he told her with a smile that she returned.
“Blue’s my favorite.” Bradley definitely knew that. “I figured that when you’re happy, why not show it with a little color?”
He blinked because he recognized that saying; next to him, Maverick said, “Huh.”
Madusa looked over at his godfather with a quirked brow but Rooster was the one to explain. “My mom used to say something like that all the time.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Hm. Well, she sounds like a smart lady.”
“She was,” Bradley agreed, his heart growing with every single good memory and feeling in the world. “Can I kiss you?”
“Yes,” she told him with a smile.
Unfortunately, Gretzky had been in the general vicinity and had overheard the request. As Rooster leaned in to kiss his bride, Gretzky cock-blocked them with a damn clipboard, shoving it between their faces as a barrier. Rooster’s lips connected with papers and pressboard and not with his Lady’s lips. Slider, Maverick, and the others watching all snorted and laughed.
“Dude.” Rooster stared at Gretzky incredulously. “What the fuck.”
“No kissing until the ceremony!” Gretzky admonished with a wag of his finger. Rooster threw his hands up but Gretzky wasn’t having it. “Do not jinx this thing!”
Madusa stepped in before Rooster could protest too much. “Maybe it’s time to get this show on the road?”
“Yes! I don’t think I can take much more of this waiting. Please!” Rooster wasn’t above begging. He took his Lady’s hand as people began to take their places. Before pointing his uncle toward his seat, Rooster did manage to introduce Slider to Madusa quickly.
“I’ve heard a lot about you,” he told her slyly. “I can’t wait to get to know you better.”
He disappeared onto the beach a few seconds later. Then, Master Gunny approached. Rooster had never seen the man looking so sentimental; he was swallowing hard and swiping at his eyes. “Master Gunny, are you crying?” Madusa asked softly.
“Nah. I just got something in my eye,” he responded, deflecting. Listen, Rooster couldn’t blame the man for it. He was barely keeping it together and had shed a tear or ten already himself.
Maddie saw the deflection for what it was and let go of Rooster’s hand briefly to pull her dad in for a hug. “Thanks for being here, Pops.”
“Thanks for having me here, Hot Shot.”
When she pulled back, Madusa looked up at her dad. “You okay with not walking me down the aisle? I know we’ve talked about it already, but…”
“I’m okay with it,” he reassured. “This is your wedding; we do it your way. I still get a father-daughter dance later?”
“Yeah, you still get a father-daughter dance later,” she confirmed.
Master Gunny nodded, then hugged Maddie again, before shaking Rooster’s hand. “See you on the flip side, son.”
Son.
“Thanks, Master Gunny.”
Outside, everyone was seated, Maverick stood under the arch he and Rooster had built earlier and announced that Madusa and Rooster would walk down the aisle together before Maverick invited everyone to stand.
Together, they watched as the wedding party made their way up the beach aisle. It began with Ariel, who earned oohs and ahhs (and some giggles) due to her Fairy Unicorn Princess get-up. Some kids might’ve been shy about all the attention, but not this kid; she soaked it all up. With her flower basket in one hand and her fairy wand in the other, she tried to toss some flower petals as she walked, but the wand kept getting in the way, so about halfway down the aisle, she got frustrated with it. Ariel stopped in her tracks and looked at her basket and her wand as if trying to decide what to keep or what to ditch. Instead, she nodded to herself, and then tipped her basket upside down, unloading it of petals entirely. The assembled wedding guests laughed.
Both Rooster and Madusa almost lost it at the sight; he could feel her trying not to laugh out loud with bouncing shoulders and choked snortles. They saw Tommy about to run up the aisle to scold Ariel, but her brother looked up and saw Madusa waving him off with a smile. She wasn’t worried about it so he sat back down. Ariel totally missed the interaction because she was busy trying to spread the petals around with her light-up sneakers.
Satisfied with her work, Ariel grinned because now that the flowers were out of the way, she could tap people on the hand with her wand and declare, “You get a wish! And you get a wish!”
Once Ariel was down the aisle, their ‘son’ took up Ring Bearer duties. Tofu was wearing a colorful Hawaiian shirt printed with Dungeons & Dragons dice and sported a pair of aviators. What made the whole look was the black and silver locked case he carried that had ‘Ring Security’ printed on the front. He managed to look both dorky and cool all at once. The security case had been Rooster’s idea.
After Tofu, the wedding party walked the aisle paired up. Payton walked with Mojo, Rooster’s usual wingman and good friend. Jackson walked with Rocksteady and took his spot on Madusa’s side while Rocksteady stood with Rooster. Then, Gretzky and Phoenix walked together as Best Man and Woman with Gretzky standing on Madusa’s side and Phoenix standing on Rooster’s.
Finally, it was Madusa and Rooster’s turn to walk down the aisle.
Over speakers, a recognizable old R&B ballad with violins, bass, and piano began playing. Madusa had chosen it as the song for them to walk down the aisle to because it was the song that was playing when they first slow danced together during their platonic drinks date.
‘At last…my love have come along…’
Madusa took Rooster’s hand.
He looked at this woman who he loved more than anything or anyone in this world and could not believe how lucky he was. “What are you thinking?” she asked him quietly.
“That I love you. That I’m so damn lucky that you love me too.”
“Funny, I was thinking the same thing.”
Rooster squeezed her hand before bringing it up to his lips for a kiss. He didn’t think the juju would begrudge him that, at least.
‘At last…the skies above are blue. My heart was wrapped up in clover, the night I looked at you…’
Together, they walked out onto the beach, under the blue California sky, with their friends and families standing to welcome and celebrate with them. As soon as they saw Maddie, there were gasps and smiles and a few people saying, “Aw!” The crystals sewn into Maddie’s top sparkled under the sun, making her shine like the most precious of jewels. Her blue, chiffon skirt flowed in the wind, and under the sun, the blue, breezy fabric shimmered like the blue sky above. Rooster grinned from ear to ear, standing up straight, proud to be at this amazing woman’s side.
Madusa’s squadron and friends sat on the right of the aisle. Her family was seated up front with Moose and his family right behind them. Doc was nearby. There were faces he didn’t know personally but recognized from pictures Madusa had sent him over the years of old squadron mates. On the left of the aisle sat the Dagger squadron, the Admirals, and a few other friends he and Madusa had, like Poptop, one of their TOPGUN instructors. In the front row on Rooster’s side, he held three seats in reserve, each of them with pictures of people he loved but were only with them in spirit. There was one seat reserved for his mother, held with a big picture of her beautiful, smiling face. There was one seat for his father, held with a picture of him in a flightsuit, aviators, and carrying his helmet. The third seat was reserved for his Uncle Iceman, smiling confidently, also wearing aviators and a flightsuit. Slider and Penny sat with them in the first row.
Rooster and Madusa arrived at the end of the aisle in front of Maverick, under the arch, with all of the most important people in their lives present.
‘And here we are in Heaven, for you are mine at last…’
Holding hands, Madeleine and Bradley faced each other, both grinning from ear to ear. His heart thumped so loud in his chest and ears that he almost didn’t hear Maverick ask them if they were ready.
“Yeah, I’m ready,” Rooster whispered with a nod.
“I’m ready,” Madusa agreed. She was smiling up at him.
“Great,” Maverick said, his smile a million watts. “Let’s turn and burn.”
—Madusa—
Maddie hadn’t always been fearless. When she was small, she’d been afraid. Then one day, her brothers shoved her in a closet, and Maddie cracked the code. From that point on, Maddie’s fearlessness had become legendary. She would throw herself into dangerous situations because she knew how to push through the fear. She’d jumped off a roof when she was eight. She’d climbed up the tallest tree on a dare at eleven. She snuck out of the house to end up in the backseat of a Toyota with her much older, high school senior boyfriend at fourteen. When she was fifteen, she took her dad’s Ford out for a joyride with only a learner’s permit and the confidence of youth. In her later teen years, she went to LA with only pocket money from her part-time job and without her parents' permission. In college, she knocked heads at roller derby and knocked boots with frat boys. In her early twenties, she joined the Marine Corps and trained to become a fighter pilot.
Since then, she’d been shot at, bombed, mortared, shelled, missile-locked, and almost blown up by her own plane.
It wasn’t that Madusa didn’t feel fear. It was that Madusa didn’t let fear stop her. She didn’t let fear control her. Madusa controlled her fear and never let her fear win.
She almost let her fear win, yesterday, when she was worried about her mother ruining the wedding. As she and Rooster waited to walk down the aisle together, she realized that the anxiety she’d felt about her mother ruining the wedding hadn’t been for herself; it was because she wanted the wedding to go perfectly for Rooster. Madusa would never forget the look on his face when he saw her in her dress for the first time. It felt like the universe clicking into place. It felt like the perfect alignment of a nosewheel to the catapult and the subsequent jolt of being secured and ready before launch.
It felt like home.
Madusa loved him so damn much. She’d loved him for far longer than she admitted to herself. She loved him to hell and back. And, she was so damn lucky he loved her, too. She’d been basking, spending this quiet time until their grand entrance studying his handsome face when he looked at her, smiling like she’d caught him with a secret.
“What are you thinking?” she asked him quietly. Maddie stroked her thumb over his as they held hands.
“That I love you. That I’m so damn lucky that you love me too.”
“Funny, I was thinking the same thing.”
Bradley’s smile lit up the whole sky like the sunshine he was.
She barely registered the walk down the aisle, too wrapped up in looking up at Rooster who practically strutted his way up to the arch, smiling proudly and pointing at her like she was the star of the show. Maybe she was, but to her, he was the star of her show, not the other way around.
Once they made it up to the arch, she turned toward her Sunshine, like a sunflower seeking its warm rays. The world around her disappeared, narrowing down to just her and him as Maverick began the ceremony.
“Good afternoon, aviators. This is your Reverend speaking.” Madusa laughed with the crowd as Rooster facepalmed. She knew him well enough to know that he didn’t mind Maverick’s teasing all that much, that he enjoyed having a father to embarrass him like this even if it did make him groan from time to time.
“As most of you may know, I’m Captain Pete Mitchell, and I’ve been authorized by the Internet to officiate this celebration. On behalf of Rooster and Madusa, I’d like to welcome and thank all of you that are present here for the happiest of days. What better place to celebrate the union of two of the finest aviators I’ve ever met than here, under a clear blue sky, outside the Hard Deck, in Fightertown, USA? I can’t think of any.” Rooster chuckled along with the guests. She loved the way his eyes glinted when he laughed.
“The first time Rooster mentioned Madusa to me, we were out at my hangar in the Mojave, working on my P-51 Mustang, and Rooster said, ‘Man. Madusa would love this plane.’ I didn’t know who Madusa was but she must have been important for Rooster to be thinking of her while he was elbow-deep in engine grease.”
Madusa smiled, imagining Rooster in a dirty Hawaiian shirt with grease all over his hands and maybe even a swipe of grime over his cheek or nose from wiping away sweat. One day, they’ll work on her GTO or an old warbird of their own, and she’ll get to see him like that firsthand.
“So, I asked him: ‘Who’s Madusa?’ That was a loaded question because Rooster spent the next three hours telling me everything there was to know about this woman.”
Madusa laughed along with the assembled guests, though she also felt a girlish little giggle bubble in the back of her throat, almost as if she couldn’t believe he liked her so much back then even though he’d plainly already told her he was all in. She liked knowing that he was thinking about her because she knew for a fact that she’d been thinking about him, too.
“I learned that she was a Marine.”
“Hoorah,” Madusa interjected with a grin. Soon, all the assembled Marines followed suit. Rooster grinned.
Maverick was smiling, too, allowing the chorus of Marines to die down before proceeding. “He told me how smart she was, how talented she was. How beautiful she was. How tough and strong she was. How brave she was.” Rooster nodded at her, corroborating Maverick’s words.
Rooster was so special. He was always proud of her accomplishments, never threatened by them. He always lifted her up and never tore her down to make himself feel superior. How was it possible that she found a man who sang her praises and celebrated her accolades with sincerity? Until Rooster, she didn’t think that kind of man existed.
“After hearing all these great things, I couldn’t wait to meet this Madusa. So, I asked him, ‘When can I meet your girlfriend?’ Rooster looked at me in the eyes and said, ‘She’s not my girlfriend.’”
Everyone laughed because it was absurd. Most everyone here had been some kind of witness to Rooster and Madusa dancing around each other. Everyone knew Madusa and Rooster loved each other before Madusa and Rooster even knew they loved each other.
“Now, I was confused,” Maverick proceeded. “Because he’d just spent the last three hours waxing poetically and practically declaring his undying love for this woman. I said to him, ‘She’s not your girlfriend? Why not?!’” Maverick paused a tick so Madusa knew a punchline was incoming. “He said, ‘She doesn’t date pilots.’”
Her Sunshine beamed at her when she laughed out loud. The guests laughed along with her because her stance had obviously changed. Madusa shrugged lightly, still smiling, though she felt a blush bloom over her cheeks. She didn’t like being wrong and wasn’t wrong often, but when she was, Madusa admitted it.
“I told him, ‘Of course, she dates pilots. Just has to be the right one.’” Madusa grinned, nodding because yep. It was true. It could have only been Rooster. “I was batting a thousand on my godfather's advice there because here we are today!” Rooster winked at her and Madusa’s knees went weak. “Then, a few weeks later, the US Navy and the United States Marine Corps, in their infinite wisdom, assigned us all together. Soon, we were all deployed together on this special assignment and I finally got to meet Madusa in person.” Madusa felt Maverick’s smile. She glanced at him quickly, smiling fondly, before looking up at Rooster once more, still holding his hand.
“Because she was so important to Rooster, it was important that I make a great first impression,” Maverick started. “So, that’s when I called her ‘spunky’.” Everyone laughed so loud. Gretzky snorted. Moose barked a laugh. Admiral Simpson shook his head while Warlock chuckled at Maverick’s stupidity. Both Madusa and Rooster were laughing too. She’d remember this: how they laughed when they got married. “I swear, my life flashed in front of my eyes,” Maverick continued with wide eyes. “She threatened to pick me up and throw me off the boat!” Slider, Cyclone, and Warlock were laughing openly.
“It’s true. I did threaten to throw him off the boat,” Madusa told everyone.
Rooster beamed at the crowd. “That’s my Lady!”
Once the laughs had quieted a bit, Maverick added, “Thankfully, I apologized and she was kind enough to stand down from the threat alert.” She snorted softly. “After that, I had the privilege and opportunity to get to know Madusa a little better, and she was everything Rooster had said and more. I also had the privilege of observing Rooster and Madusa in love which was real high in my top godfather moments. I couldn’t say ‘watch their relationship grow’ because it was damn clear to everyone with eyes that these two were already head over heels; their relationship had already grown. But it was still so much fun to watch them together because I learned that Madusa also has a great humor and can give as good as she gets. I think my favorite Madusa and Rooster moment was when Rooster crowed his catchphrase at her—Cock-a-doodle-doo, baby!—and Madusa egged him in retaliation.”
That set everyone off, Gretzky especially since the whole thing had been his orchestration. She looked behind her, smiling and shaking her head at her best friend, who was tomato-red laughing. Even the Admirals were in on the laughter.
“I’m sure many of us here have favorite Madusa and Rooster memories.”
“Truth or Dare!” Rocksteady interjected quickly, grinning at Madusa, making her laugh.
“Platonic drinks on the beach,” Phoenix added with her own grin. That one earned a slight blush.
“Eggplant Status,” she heard from behind her. She turned around, quirking a brow at her brother who shrugged and laughed. She laughed too, though she was sure her face was red.
“MCMAP,” Mojo called out. Rooster looked back at his wingman and nodded vigorously. Seemed that was a favorite of Rooster’s, too.
“War zone serenades.” That was Gretzky. When she looked back at him, he was smiling fondly.
“See what I mean?” Maverick asked, re-taking the reins and steering them back on course. “They say that you can’t choose your family but you can choose your friends. I don’t agree with that. I think we can choose our family and the proof is right here. Every one of us is present because Rooster and Madusa chose us as their family, and as their family, it is a joy to celebrate with them as they choose to become each other’s family here today.” Maverick addressed the assembled guests. “Now, I don’t think this will be a problem, but I have to ask: if anyone knows of any legal reasons or has any objections for why these two lovebirds may not be married today, speak now.”
Both Madusa and Rooster scanned the crowd. If anything were to happen, this was it. If her mother wanted to ruin everything, this was the time.
No one spoke and nothing happened.
Madusa breathed a sigh of relief. She felt Rooster squeeze her hand in reassurance; she suspected he’d been thinking the same thing.
With a smile, Maverick wiped his forehead, and exclaimed, “Whew!” He earned a few relieved laughs, especially after Judith Maitland’s display yesterday. He fished a small, folded-up paper from the front pocket of his Hawaiian shirt to consult it. “According to the Internet and the very tight itinerary Madusa gave me—“ Chuckles all around. “—it’s now time for the couple to declare their intent to marry. I’d ask Madusa and Rooster to take each other’s hands. Gretzky, might want to snag her bouquet for this part,” Maverick suggested.
“On it.”
Madusa handed her bouquet over to her Best Man. When she faced Rooster once more, he took both of her hands in his. She loved how big and comforting his hands were, especially when he ran his thumb over her knuckles tenderly as he was doing then. She was sure that, right then, her eyes were a deep shade of brown.
Maverick turned to her first. “Madeleine Elizabeth Maitland, do you take Bradley Pete Bradshaw to be your lawfully wedded husband? Do you promise to love and to cherish him, to comfort, honor, and keep him for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?”
Madeleine felt her smile all the way down in her chest where it took root warmly and deeply. “I do,” she spoke clearly for all, and especially Bradley, to hear. Rooster’s smile would fuel her soul until forever.
“We’ve got one out of two!” Maverick declared brightly before turning to Rooster. “Bradley Pete Bradshaw, do you take Madeleine Elizabeth Maitland to be your lawfully wedded wife? Do you promise to love and to cherish her, to comfort, honor, and keep her for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall—”
“I do!”
“—live?” Bradley had cut Maverick off before he could even finish the question. Rooster’s eagerness earned some soft laughs. “Alright, we’re two for two!” Maverick seemed absolutely thrilled with this turn of events. “It’s now time for the happy couple to exchange the vows they have written for each other. Now,” Maverick started. “Traditionally, the Groom usually speaks first but we all know that Madusa likes to challenge tradition so… we’re gonna flip a coin and let fate decide. Call—“
“Heads!” Madusa called out quickly because she might be getting married, but Madusa was still competitive. Gretzky, Moose, and all of the others snorted; they knew her competitive streak.
“Tails,” Rooster finally called, shoulders bouncing with silent laughter. He knew how competitive she was, too, and funny enough, it didn’t seem to deter him one bit.
Maverick flipped the coin. “It’s tails,” he announced, showing both the results. “Sorry, Madusa. The coin has spoken.”
“I think the coin is rigged,” she sassed.
“I guess we’ll never know!” Maverick sassed right back, as he slipped the coin into his pocket. “Rooster, take it away.”
Madusa was fearless. Madusa always held her head up high. Madusa faced danger head-on with confidence. But suddenly, her heart thumped in her chest at Mach 10, her hands felt sweaty, and a deep flush crept up her neck. She wasn’t scared that Rooster would walk away or change his mind. She knew however that, in this moment, her life was about to change. She was attached to life’s catapult now, with the Shooter about to give the signal for launch into the beautiful, blue sky. She took a deep breath, she exhaled slowly, and she readied herself to take to the air and soar.
“Maddie,” Rooster started. His voice was rough, and Maddie knew he was choking back emotion. To give him a moment to gather himself, she brought their joined hands up to her lips and kissed his knuckles softly. He smiled at her gratefully. She smiled right back, nodding.
‘I got you,’ she told him silently.
‘I know.’
He took his own deep breath before speaking. “Maddie. Madeleine. Madusa,” he then added very deliberately. Maddie knew how special Madusa was to Rooster; he gave her that callsign, after all. She remembered how upset she’d been at first, to be called Madusa. Now, she’d never give it up, not ever. Madusa was a gift to her from her Sunshine and she cherished that gift with all her heart.
Rooster squeezed her hands gently and spoke. “I wouldn’t be here, today, if it weren’t for you, and I don’t mean getting married—though that’s true, too—but I mean here, living and breathing, in the life I have now. I wouldn’t have this life without you. I like to tease about falling in love with you on our first day at indoc. And it’s true; I did absolutely fall in love with you that day. What I didn’t realize at the time was how meeting you would so completely shape the trajectory of my life.”
Madusa was transfixed. She had eyes locked, unable to look away if she wanted, not that she did; she wanted to remember the flecks of amber that shone in his eyes in the sunlight and how the gentle ocean breeze ruffled his fluffy, curly hair.
“I wouldn’t be a pilot if it weren’t for you,” he told her, and everyone present, very seriously. “I would’ve washed out during ejection training. I was scared and anxious and was tying myself up in knots about it. We were still practically strangers to each other, then, but you still took the time to sit with me, to talk with me, and to pull me out of my head. You said to me, ‘If you don’t trust yourself, trust me.’ And I did. You were there, solid and confident. You smiled at me and gave me a thumbs up.” He let go of her hand briefly to thumbs up himself for emphasis before taking her hands in his again. “I knew then that I’d be okay. And, I was. I made it through ejection training. I didn’t wash out. I owe my entire career to you.”
Madusa remembered that day. He’d been vulnerable with her and, inexplicably at the time, she allowed herself to become vulnerable with him. Maybe she knew subconsciously that he was her one person even all the way back then. She felt her eyes sting a little and her throat tighten, a ball of emotion caught in her throat making it difficult to swallow. Maddie blinked quickly a few times, and sniffed, but kept it together. Rooster smiled kindly. He understood.
“I also wouldn’t be Rooster if it weren’t for you,” he told her. “If you hadn’t suggested Rooster, I probably would’ve been saddled for life with a dumb callsign like Brad Brad!” Everyone cackled, Rocksteady the loudest. He addressed the guests. “Brad Brad was my dad’s sense of humor,” he said by way of explanation, earning a few more chuckles, before returning his attention to her.
“You have consistently pushed me beyond what I ever felt capable of achieving. Competing with you was grueling, it was demanding, but most of all, it was fun. You make life fun and colorful. When you challenge me, you make me a better pilot. When you challenge me, you make me a better man.” Madeleine inhaled a sharp, shaky breath. “With you, my life has laughter. With you, my life has purpose. With you, my life is meaningful. With you, my life is bright.” She felt a tear slide down her cheek but she didn’t wipe it away; Madusa didn’t want to let go of his hands because she was holding on for dear life right and she didn’t know what would happen if she let go.
Rooster took a steadying breath of his own. “When we first got engaged, I made a social media post about it with the hashtag ‘wingmen for life.’” She remembered; at the time, she called him a dork while giggling. “While I was writing these vows, I realized that ‘wingman’ didn’t really fit. Don’t get me wrong: your wingman is essential. But a wingman is over there,” he said. Rooster let go of her hand briefly to emphasize his point as he motioned vaguely away from them. “A wingman is in their own plane, on their own path. Sometimes, that path is in formation with yours, and sometimes, it isn’t. What we are, instead, are co-pilots. We’re embarking on this flight together, in the same airplane, on the same path, in the same sky. We take off together. We fly at cruising altitude together. We descend together, and we land together. And, if the worst were ever to happen, we go down together. Because if you go, I go.”
‘If you go, I go,’ she mouthed to him, nodding sharply. When she was dangling off the ass end of a carrier above the propeller blades with Rooster holding her life in his hands, he said that to her, and she knew that he meant it. It made all the sense in the world for Rooster to promise those words to her in his vows.
“So…as your co-pilot—and as a competent and safe aviator,” he added with a cheeky grin. “I feel it’s only appropriate that we proceed with a pre-flight marriage checklist of everything I promise to you.”
Madusa laughed out loud. “You made a checklist?”
“I did!”
“I love checklists,” she told him unnecessarily.
“I know this,” he replied brightly, delighted.
“Well, let’s hear it, then!”
“What my Lady wants, my Lady gets,” he teased before kissing her knuckles once more. Then, with a little smile, he announced, “Lieutenant Commander Rooster Bradshaw commencing pre-flight marriage checklist. Mutual Respect—check. Communication—check. Friendship—check. Support and encouragement—check. Forgiveness—check. Trust—check. Competition—check. Tacos—“ Everyone laughed at that one, especially Madusa. Rooster’s smile widened to a grin. “We’re having those for dinner, so…check.” Still laughing, he continued with his list. “Fun—check. Laughter—check.” His wide, amused smile softened to something tender and gentle. “Love? Double check.”
Madusa felt another big swell of emotion in her chest and knew her eyes were glassy with tears. She nodded with him because they had love for each other in spades.
“Checklist complete,” he told her. “We have clear skies and are cleared for takeoff. How copy, Madusa?”
With a wet, happy smile, she replied clearly and easily, “Madusa is good copy, Rooster. We are cleared for take off.”
There wasn’t a dry eye in the house. Rocksteady was fanning herself, trying to dry the tears away. Phoenix dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. Maverick swiped at his eyes and needed a moment to clear his throat before instructing Madusa that it was her turn.
“How am I supposed to top a checklist?” she asked Rooster, teasing gently, still trying to fend off her own tears.
“I don’t think you can,” he replied proudly, grinning at her, and making her giggle. She probably wouldn’t be able to top his vows so all she could do was speak from the heart.
She looked down a moment at their joined hands before taking a fortifying breath. Madusa wasn’t exactly a shy person, but sharing her feelings and being vulnerable in front of so many people was difficult for her, but for Rooster, she would do it.
“Growing up as a girl and living life as a woman,” she started. “I got this often: ‘When are you getting married?’ ‘When are you going to find a husband?’ ‘When are you going to settle down?’ My answer was always, ‘Never!’” There were a few chuckles and soft laughs. “When I was thirteen, I was asked to describe my ideal husband and I said, ‘Non-existent!’” She chuckled along with Rooster, who nodded. He’d watched the video of her last teen pageant with her.
“I guess that wasn’t an acceptable answer because they pressed for a different one so I just blurted out random traits that I didn’t think could ever exist together in one person. I said he’d have to be tall, and kind, and smart, and funny. I said he’d have to be okay with me having my own job, making my own money, and owning my own house. I said he’d have to cook because I sure as hell wouldn’t do it!” Everyone laughed real loud at that one. Her barbecue fireball was practically legend at this point.
“I told them if I ever found someone who encompassed all of those traits that—maybe—I’d consider marrying him in twenty years. Well, baby! Here we are, almost exactly twenty years later, getting married,” she said, awed.
“I’ve never really believed in fate, not really, but—” She paused slightly. “I don’t have an explanation for how thirteen-year-old me could have…willed...our future together into observable, tangible existence. It’s almost as if every single thing that happened in our lives brought us together to this point. If that’s not destiny, or fate, or a grand cosmic design, then I don’t know what is.”
Rooster nodded. ‘It is,’ he mouthed silently. ‘It’s destiny.’ She nodded with him.
“We are made for each other,” she declared confidently. “I have no doubt about that. You and I have been on a fantastic, incredible, phenomenal collision course all of our lives, and once we collided, gravity bound us to each other, and kept us orbiting one another until we were ready to resume our trajectory together.” She inhaled deeply before breathing out slowly to steady her heart rate. Rooster let go of her hand briefly to wipe at his eyes. She waited until he took her hand again before speaking.
“You show me every single day what it means to love and to be loved. So, as we stand here, together, where we had our ‘platonic’ romantic walk on the beach and you told me that you were all in with me, I want you to know that I love you. I love you more than flying. I love you more than anything,” she told him seriously. She reached up and cupped his cheek. “I love you,” she told him again, though more softly this time.
“I love you,” he whispered. Her soul powered up.
She ran her fingers in his hair lightly before Rooster reclaimed her hand, eagerly. Looking up at him, she smiled. “Rooster. Bradley. My love. My Sunshine. You make me smile. You make me laugh. You make life fun. As your wife, I promise to love you. I promise to support you. I promise to be loyal and to be true. I promise to laugh with you and to make life fun with you. I promise you my life and to be all in.” Rooster swiped at his eyes again, sniffling. “And now that I’ve declared my love and my promises to you, I think there’s only one thing left to say,” she said before grinning crookedly.
“What’s that?”
“Cock-a-doodle-doo, baby!” As soon as she said it, the squadrons held their phones up to play tracks of roosters crowing, just like that time in the ready room.
Rooster’s tender smile widened to a goofy, delighted grin. “My catchphrase!”
“All for you!”
“You’re perfect,” Rooster told her, awed, as people cheered and applauded.
“So are you.”
Maverick allowed the catchphrase to crow for a little bit before he put his own phone away, tucking it into one of his back pockets, and called everyone to attention once again. “At this time, I’d ask for our Ring Security Officer, Tofu, to come forward for the exchange of the rings.”
Tofu approached with the unlocked security case, holding it flat in his hands. He flipped open the top to reveal two simple, gold bands, each in their own foam slot for protection and safekeeping. Madusa picked up Rooster’s ring, its size almost twice hers. She took Rooster’s hand, positioning the ring on his ring finger. She repeated after Maverick.
“Bradley, please accept this ring as a symbol of my love, devotion, and respect.” Maddie slid the ring onto his finger.
It fit perfectly.
Rooster picked up her ring, holding her hand much in the same way she had it a moment earlier. He cleared his throat of emotion again before speaking, repeating after Mav. “Madeleine, please accept this ring as a symbol of my love, devotion, and respect.”
Her ring fit perfectly, too.
Smiling fondly, Maverick rubbed Rooster’s back proudly for a beat, before addressing everyone present. “By the power vested in me by the state of California and the Internet—“ Maddie giggled. That would never not be funny to her. “—I now pronounce you both husband and wife.” Grinning, Maverick turned to his godson. “Rooster, you may kiss—oh he’s going for it!!!”
Rooster had been vibrating with such excitement that he didn’t even wait for Maverick to finish. He’d already cupped Madusa’s face and pulled her in for a big, deep kiss. She laughed against his lips, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, and held him tightly, as the guests cheered with gusto. Rooster dipped her backward to catcalls and whistles as he kissed her, his smile against hers.
When they righted and parted, Rooster held both their hands up in victory as they both turned toward their guests. Grinning wider than she’d ever seen, Rooster pointed at her and bellowed the gleeful declaration, “That’s my WIFE!”
Madusa laughed, delighted because that was her husband.
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