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six. top gun, fightertown, usa.
The Officers Club was packed this weekend, full of aviators with their families who had come to visit on their designated weekend. Tara Anderson sat snuggly next to Ron Kerner, her Slider, with their families, who were meeting for the first time. Cassie sat at the bar, once again left in the dust. Her family had opted not to visit—it hadn't been too surprising, really. They weren't all too fond of their daughter in the Navy—having been especially horrified to hear her ambitions lay in the air.
Cassie's older sister, Mandy, was a successful politician back home. Her brother, Emmett, was working to be a college professor. And Cassie, the youngest, was just some pilot to them. As she faced the crowd of the bar, finding families snuggling with their aviators, a pit settled in her stomach. She had begun to wonder why she had even tagged along with Tara in the first place. There had been no room in the booth, so with a forced smile, Cassie said she'd be at the bar. That had been an hour ago, and not one of them have come to check on her.
Surprisingly enough, Maverick had strolled past a handful of times, striking small talk. However, when he had made his most recent round, he found himself on the stool next to her, nursing a beer. "Your family didn't come?" he asks, motioning for the bartender to give her another drink. "One for the solemn-looking pilot here."
Cassie chuckled, taking a sip as she turned to him. "They're not what I would call supportive," she said.
Maverick cocked his head and frowned momentarily. "Oh, I'm sorry."
Cassie shrugs. "What about yours, Mav?"
He takes a swig of his beer. "I don't have anyone left, just Goose." he looks to Goose and Carole, their son Bradley at home with a babysitter. Maverick's eyes soften at the sight of them. "He's all I have."
Cassie smiles sadly. "He's a good man," Cassie states.
Maverick is quick to agree with a nod. "The best," he says, turning back to her. He smiles. "Ice is over there alone, maybe you should go say something."
