killshot (bradley bradshaw)

XX

5 DAYS UNTIL THE MISSION

Jenna stood shoulder to shoulder with her fellow pilots, making up a sea of black in their service dress uniforms. She looked solemnly at the scene before her. The dark mahogany casket sat in the middle of the large group of people, with the flag of the United States laid carefully overtop. Admiral Kazansky's portrait was placed near the head of the casket. As the priest finished speaking and stepped away, six members of the Navy stepped forward and surrounded the casket. They picked up the flag and began folding it, preparing it for presentation to the admiral's family. As Jenna watched the meticulous process, her thoughts began to wander to the past few days. 

After Maverick had hung up the phone, Jenna had returned to the radio room and broke the news to Rooster. The two pilots had sat on the couch in silence, trying to wrap their head around the news. After a while, they both left, with few words shared between them. Before driving home, Jenna had texted Penny to see how her dad was faring, as she assumed Maverick would have gone to see her. She had spent the rest of the night trying to come to terms with the loss of Iceman.

The pilots had all reported to the hangar the next morning as per Maverick's instructions. By then, the news about Admiral Kazansky's death had spread. They all wondered how his death was going to affect their training and the mission in front of them. Maverick had walked into the briefing room with bloodshot eyes, but did not mention Iceman until instruction was finished for the day.

"I'm sure you have all heard the news by now," he had started. "The family was prepared for this, so Admiral Kazansky's funeral will be tomorrow. You're dismissed." 

There was never a question about whether or not the pilots would attend the funeral. Iceman had meant something to each of them; they would all honor him by being there for his family.

The sound of the first round of the three rifle volley pulled Jenna from her thoughts. She watched as the flag was handed over to Cyclone, who in turn walked over to the admiral's family.  As he handed the flag to Sarah, Iceman's wife, the second round of the volley was fired, so Jenna couldn't hear the sentiments Cyclone offered. When Cyclone walked away, Jenna's attention was pulled back to the casket as her father stepped up to it.

Jenna could not see Maverick's face underneath his hat, but she watched as he pulled the gold naval aviator pin from the left side of his uniform with shaking hands. He reverently placed the pin on top of the wood. As the final round of the volley was shot, Maverick pounded the pin into the casket. He raised his head towards the picture of Iceman, and Jenna could see the tears pooling in her father's eyes, threatening to spill over. She looked on sadly as Maverick said his final goodbye to his superior, his wingman and his dearest friend.

Jenna heard the sound of aircrafts approaching and she looked up at the sky. Four planes were approaching the cemetery from the horizon, flying in the V shape of the Missing Man formation. As the planes came overhead, the team leader pulled his aircraft away from the rest. A few of the pilots turned around to watch the planes fly behind them, but Jenna kept staring straight ahead. She could feel the tears forming in her eyes and tried her best to keep them at bay. But one look over at her father standing there as they lowered Iceman into the ground sent her tears silently trickling down her cheeks. She silently cried for Admiral Kazansky and his family, but also for her father, who she knew was heartbroken by the loss of his former wingman.

A whisper of pressure against the back of her left hand prompted her to glance down. Rooster was gently rubbing his pinky against her hand in an effort to soothe her. Jenna shifted her hand slightly, careful not to catch anyone's attention, and entwined Rooster's pinky with her own. She let out a shaky breath and tried to calm her tears. She looked up at Rooster but found him staring off in the distance with his jaw clenched. Jenna noticed a single tear sliding slowly down his cheek and tightened her grip on his finger. 

Low voices drifted over from her left and Jenna saw Admiral Kazansky's family making their way down the line of pilots. When Sarah stopped in front of Rooster, he released Jenna's pinky to shake their hands and offer his condolences. The moment the family moved on to talk to Jenna, Rooster reached for her pinky again.

"I am so sorry for your loss," Jenna said. "Admiral Kazansky meant the world to all of us."

"Thank you, sweetheart," Sarah replied, then looked back towards Maverick. "You know, you look just like your father. Keep an eye on him for me, will you?"

Jenna's heart both swelled and splintered at Sarah's comment. The pilot nodded once and the family continued to move down the group.

Phoenix appeared behind Jenna. "You guys ready to go?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah," Jenna replied and Rooster nodded in agreement. The three pilots turned away and walked to the exit. Jenna glanced back, looking for her father. When she didn't see Maverick still standing near Iceman's grave, she stopped as her friends kept walking and swiveled her head around, scanning the crowd for him. She spotted him moving away from the gravesite, but not in the direction of the exit. Instead, Maverick was walking deeper into the cemetery. Jenna watched as Maverick got further and further away until he finally stopped at another headstone.

"Hey, you okay?" Phoenix asked as she and Rooster walked back to Jenna. When Jenna didn't reply, they followed her line of sight. 

"You guys keep going," Rooster said quietly. He walked back into the cemetery and made his way through the group of people. He continued past Admiral Kazansky's burial site and moved slowly along the white headstones. As he approached, Maverick turned his head to see who was behind him. Jenna watched as her father moved over to his left to make room for Rooster. Neither appeared to speak to the other as the two men stood together, heads bowed towards the grave in front of them. 

-------------

AN: Not gonna lie, writing this chapter made me cry. thanks for reading. leave a vote/comment to let me know what you think <3