wildest dreams | j. seresin (ON HOLD)

like riding a bike

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ

°•. ┊ Wildest Dreams ┊.•°
✧ ˚ ━ burning red, act one

CHAPTER FOUR — like riding a bike

✧

A loud banging wakes me from my slumber and I sit up, finding myself on the couch, alone. I look around, rubbing the sleep from my eyes, and squinting at the throbbing pain in my head. Rising to my feet, I rack my brain and decide that I vividly remember locking the door, so it's not an intruder. At least not a very good one. I follow the noise and locate Bradley in my kitchen, listening to some quiet music and making eggs and waffles. "It's too early for this shit, B." I groan, causing the man to face me.

"Good morning, Sully." He smiles. "I figured that I'd make a proper breakfast."

"Yeah, I haven't used that waffle iron since I first opened it." I respond, pouring myself a cup of coffee and standing against the counter. "Hey, happy pills, where's my kid?" He tells me that she's upstairs getting dressed, as he pulls out a waffle and fills the iron with more batter. "Okay, are you going to tell me what happened last night?"

"I drove her home. Put her to bed and that was it." He says simply, causing me to give him a 'really?' look, which always makes him crack. "Alright, while we were in the car she did what drunk Lilith always does which is go on a long, sad rant about how she doesn't blame me. She said that she blamed herself. Anyways, it was a necessary talk, but it hurt. It hurt to know that she felt that way. That I made her feel like that. And to top it all off, she told me that she still loves me..." I nearly choke at his finishing statement and a smile finds it way onto my face; now, it's a damn good morning. I place my mug on the counter and jump at him like a crazy person.

"Holy shit!" A scream omits from my body, as I bring my fists to punch his shoulder in excitement. A gesture he's all too familiar with. "This is good. This is amazing. We have so much work to do, but this is a great start."

"Hey, hey!" Bradley grabs my attention. "Slow down. You can't jump right into matchmaker mode."

"On the contrary, I have never left matchmaker mode." I argue, pointing my finger at him. "And my conversation with Lils only catapulted me into the deep end of my insanity. And now it's going to become everyone's problem. Ah, and I get to be on base with you guys from now until that stupid mission."

"I thought that they didn't call you in?"

"Well, we never got a chance to talk about my meeting yesterday because everything went to shit. So, I didn't get to tell you that they didn't call on me because they wanted me to work with Maverick to train you guys." I inform him, taking a few steps back. "Yep, that's right. You are gonna be taking orders from me." I smile up at him, proudly, and the conversation comes to a pause. The patter of footsteps can be heard and pretty soon, Maya rounds the corner. She starts going on and on about last night; how the nice guy she met has the same name as her and about Lilypop. That last comment causes Brad and I to share a look of amused confusion. So, Lilith and Maya met...got it. Although, I know that the Hugo girl isn't going to remember it at all. The three of us sit down and eat; discussing various topics. I leave the pair downstairs to get ready once more. Opening my closet, and shoving my clothes to the side, I locate a familiar suit; allowing my hands to brush across the fabric and take in all the memories that it holds. Bradley and I find our ways to base and I drop Maya at school first.

I'm standing with Mav at the back of the meeting area, out of sight of those around, while we wait to be introduced. Neither of us are speaking to one another. I adjust my suit; something I haven't worn in years, although familiar, it's a strange feeling. "I'm Admiral Bates NAWDC commander. You're all TOP GUN graduates. The elite. The best of the best." Warlock starts and I can picture Jake's smug smirk form back here. "That was yesterday. The enemy's new fifth-generation fighter has leveled the playing field. Details are few, but you can be sure we no longer possess the technological advantage. Success, now more than ever, comes down to the man or the woman in the box." As he pauses, my gaze travels across the group, catching the bird that Natasha threw Jake's way. "Half of you will make the cut. One of you will be named mission leader. The other half will remain in reserve. Your instructor is a TOP GUN graduate with real world experience in every mission aspect you will be expected to master. His exploits are legendary. And he is considered to be one of the finest pilots this program has ever produced, only being beaten out by three people, two of which are here as well. What he has to teach you may very well be the difference between life and death. I give you Captain Pete Mitchell and his overseer in these sessions; Sawyer Rivera. Call signs; Maverick and Nova."

Warlock finishes his opening statement and steps aside, as the two of us walk to the front of the group. I watch Jake turn to see who we are and from my peripheral watch as his face falls and he turns back around. Maverick takes his place behind the podium and I stand off to the side; avoiding Jake's gaze. Which also means not being able to bask in the comfort that my best friend's face offers due to her close proximity to the man. I ignore almost all of Mav's speech, getting brought back to reality when he turns to me. "Next to me is Sawyer Rivera. You may call her Nova." I give a faux smile to the group in front of us. "Anything you would like to add?" I stare at the man with wide eyes; yes, I speak to groups of teenagers every day, but I still despise public speaking. And teenagers are different. I shake my head slightly, which signals him into moving forward. "The F-18 NATOPS." Mav holds up the manual we've all read and memorized. "It contains everything they want you to know about your aircraft. I'm assuming you know the book inside and out." Pete drops the book into the trash can beside him. I bite back a smile at the action and Cyclone's reaction to it. "So does your enemy. But what the enemy doesn't know is your limits. I intend to find them, test them, and push beyond. Today we'll start with what you only think you know. You show me what you're made of." The group breaks and everyone heads to the tarmac to get their F-18's ready. I'm walking on the concrete and suddenly become extremely aware of every little thing around me. Lils and I have been assigned as 'enemies' and tasked with shooting down our fellow pilots. I take into account an interaction between Bradley and Pete; ignoring it because it's only the first of many uncomfortable conversations the pair is going to have. And if it's not hostile, it's not my problem.

"Just like riding a bike." I mutter to myself, twisting the ring on my finger again. I continue to repeat the phrase to myself and Lilith approaches me. She takes my hand in hers, halting my actions.

"Hey, I'll be right there with you, Sawyer." I match her gaze. "Just like old times." Her thumb runs across my knuckles and I give her a small smile. It's now or nothing.

[word count: 1318]

lexi's letters; short chapter lol but i am struggling with writing the flight scene.