November One-Shots

Lost in Communication

Prompt: "Lost/Forgotten"

Fandom: Top Gun: Maverick

Original Character: Riley "Supergirl" Kazansky. Daughter of Tom "Iceman" Kazansky and a woman named Sarah Conners. Mother died when Riley was one, raised by the Top Gun class of '86 (Iceman never remarried). Same age as Bradley, they have been best friends since they were five. After Maverick pulled Bradley's papers he abandoned her and everyone else. After an accident took two years off Riley's career as well, they reunite at the naval Academy.

Word Count: 1761

Warnings: None

Synopsis: While on a training exercise Riley and Bradley get lost in the woods and end up discussing all the things they have lost in order to get where they are now. Old wounds are reopened as they try and find a way back to the friendship they lost.
---------------------------------------------

Lost In Communication

"Face it Riles we're lost," Bradley huffed somewhere behind me as I stared at the small compass in my hand.

I took a deep breath and gritted my teeth in an attempt not to snap.

"That is the point of the exercise Rooster. If we get shot down, we have to be able to traverse the ground around us to make it back home. It's called survival training for a reason."

"I know why we're doing it, I just meant I don't think this is the right way."

I could hear the annoyance in his voice and stopped moving, squeezing the compass until the edges dug into my palm to keep myself from screaming. I spun back around and faced him.

"Okay then which way do you think we should go?"

"I don't know you're the one with the compass but none of these landmarks look familiar from when we were flying in," he said gesturing to the large rock formations they should have been able to see form the air.

"Well I am sure it's this way but if you want to lead us for a while and I'll hold the map be my guest," I snapped holding out the compass for him to take.

"What I would like, is for us to talk about whatever is bothering you so bad."

I stared at him in astonishment. Did he really not know? Crossing my arms over my chest I pulled myself up a little higher.

"I wasn't aware we were the talking kind of people."

Bradley's mouth opened and his brow furrowed together in confusion.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You know exactly what it means."

"No. I don't."

I just stared at him then let out a humorless laugh and rolled my eyes when I realized he really wasn't getting it.

"Of course, you don't know. Only the great Bradley Bradshaw would assume he could disappear in the middle of the night without so much as a note, only to show up two years later and act like we're still supposed to be friends," I spat out angerly.

"That's not fair," he snapped back taking a few steps forward. "I've been trying to talk to you ever since we got to the academy. You're the one whose been brushing me off and ignoring me. I tried to explain--"

I cut him off sharply, "I don't need you to explain why you left. You were right to be angry. I would have been angry, hell I was angry. But that does not mean you should have walked out the door on all of us."