#post tpg and pre tpg maverick

[pollyna]

Maverick blasting I'm Good (Blue) at 7 am in every speaker present in the building to announce he has arrived in the premises give Cyclone a constant headache and makes Warlock steal a pair of headphones by some technician who works in the lab because they both are this close to kick Maverick put of the Navy. But oops, you can't because you made me Admiral! he announces a Wednesday morning so I'm good, yeah, I'm feelin' alright. I'ma have the best fuckin' day of my life!

[pollyna]

arc: the first diagnosis of cancer.

The number is still the same but the last time Pete used it Bradley was barley eighteen and he still called them uncles. He doesn't know if his hands are shaking because of what the doctor has just said or for the fear no one is going to answer this particular call. Tom is sleeping next to him, the hospital bed big enough to fit one of them comfortably left alone both of them, and he prays for this to not be the end. He doesn't even like to pray but this time Goose can't be their saving graces.

The phones rings seven times before a preregistrated voice announces This is Bradley, leave a message, I will call you back eventually. Pete has to count back from ten before saying something impulsive that's going to make the situation only worst. Bradley it's uncle Pete, I'm calling to let you know that uncle Tom is in the hospital because- he has cancer. It would mean the world to him, us, if you could come and visit. I hope you're doing well. I love you. He barley stopped talking when the service cuts the registration. Tom moves a little, snuggling in his chest, Baby Goose? ha asked and his voice is heavy with sleep and all the meds they gave him in the past three days. He's coming babe, he's coming he answers kissing his husband's forehead before closing his eyes, hoping that, when he'll wake up, Bradley will be there or at least gave them an answer.

[pollyna]

Carole says it takes a village to raise a kid when Pete confesses he's not sure he's the best guardian for Bradley. Tom says we're your village Pete, presenting every single person who was at Top Gun with them.

(Bradley is going to be eighteen the day he arrives to Annapolis, no card box between his hands because his entire village is taking them up in his new room. While his roomate, Natasha but you can call me Tasha, has half of an heart attack because she knows every single person that's coming in their room.)

[pollyna]

Oh, Jake almost forgot about this. About basking in Bradley's presence, in Bradley's home, looking at the other man over the rim of his glass and the ever present wind making the little twinkle Carole made sing like the smallest of birds. He remembers now, twenty years later, being fifteen and living two streets from the Mitchell-Kazansky household and how his mom used to leave him there for hours at time when his dad was deployed somewhere. He remembers how much he loved being around them, with uncle Pete and his weirdo pizza and uncle Tom who always knew when they didn't eat veggies even when he was stationed on the other side of the country or on a boat in the middle of the Indian Ocean. He remembers too how good uncle Tom used to look in tanktops and how his cheeks were always a little red around him but they used to get even redder when Bradley smiled or touched him. He used to steal every moment around the other boy and his home, basking in their smiles and the easy going relationship they all had, without feeling guilty or afraid of saying something wrong. It was like recharging his batteries before going back home, the lingering feeling of euphoria and happiness that could last for days if everything was calm around his house. He remembers the pictures too, all the one uncle Tom took before his last visit and the one that uncle Pete sent to his mom after they changed house again. And he will always remember, even after seeing him again at the Academy and starting their fifteen years long dance around each other, the hoodie Bradley gave him on the porch of his house the very last time the saw each other. His uncles where in the kitchen talking about something and Bradley was shyly smiling at him, handing him is soft blue hoodie with the Naval academy logo on the front. Their hands touching over the soft material and they were kissing before realising it. The first kiss of his life and Bradley was smiling softly at him, cheeks a little red and shiny eyes.

He remembers being fifteen and all the good feelings he is feeling even now, while he watches the people he used to think as family, and he hopes is going to call family again, making the table for their dinner.