The Altruistic Pilot: A Jake Seresin TopGun fan fiction

Chapter 7

I don't hear anything from Jake for the next few days. I've sent him several texts and attempted to call him a couple of times, but I've heard nothing back. I was getting discouraged to say the least. We say we still have feelings for each other, then he kisses me, and just goes radio silent. How am I supposed to not think about that? I understand he's been busy lately though.
I try and steer my mind out of these thoughts and back to reality. I'm laying on our couch currently fighting Dax for a rope toy. He's got a crazy strong bite on the rope in his mouth and keeps flinging my arm back and forth. Eventually I loose my grip and he takes off running, swinging the rope around in victory.
"Alright you win, no need to gloat," I tell him. He doesn't bother to look my way was he shakes the rope around some more.
A quick check of the time on my phone says it's about an hour before I have to start getting ready for my shift. I'm really in no mood to work today. I've been insanely distracted and hardly able to leave the couch. Thoughts of Jake have been filling my head for hours and I'm finding it impossible to think about anything else. Jake truly was my first love. I can't be expected to go back to functioning normally after finding out he still has feelings for me. This is why I told myself when I saw him for the first time again that I wasn't going to let him back into my life. He didn't deserve it then, maybe he still doesn't.
I let out an audible groan and sink further into the couch. Dax raises his head from the toy to look at me, but quickly goes back to attacking it. I'm about to unpause whatever was playing on the t.v. When my phone starts ringing. For a second my heart leaps, thinking it may be Jake. However it's Rueben's name that lights up on the screen. My heart instantly picks up slightly. They are supposed to be at work, he shouldn't be calling me right now.
"Hey Rueben," I say tentatively into the phone, "what's up?"
"Before you get too worried, I want to just say that everyone is okay."
This has me shooting up off the couch. Now I've got Dax's attention. He drops the toy and comes to my side as I anxiously begin to pace.
"What happened? Who's hurt?"
"I just said everyone is fine," he tried to counter.
"You wouldn't have called if it wasn't a big deal. So tell me who is hurt?"
"It's Phoenix and Bob. They were attempting some maneuvers in air and about to go in for a landing when they hit a flock of birds. It set one of their engines on fire. Phoenix tried her best to save the plane, but she couldn't. They were both forced to eject."
My heart is racing hard now. I frantically start looking for a pair of shoes to put on and my purse.
"But they are both okay?" I ask, my voice starts to shake.
"They are both fine. It was a scary situation, but that's why we are trained for these sorts of things. They are both being taken over to the hospital right now. They'll most likely keep them overnight for observation."
I've finally found a pair of tennis shoes to pull on, "can I come see them?"
"Sure, I can let the hospital know you are on the way. I'm sure Nat was gonna have them call you anyway. Fanboy and I were going to head over. Coyote is being taken in as well for an unrelated issue. So Jake will be there with him."
I feel nothing at the mention of Jake's name. Right now my only focus is making sure Nat and her back seater are okay.
"I'll be there in ten minutes," I tell him.
"Drive careful, they are fine." Reuben orders. He knows I must be freaking out. I force myself to take in a deep breath
"I will, seen you in a few." I tell him.
"See you soon."
I hang up the phone and fly out the door. I send a quick text to Penny to fill her in on the situation as I pull out of the driveway.
The drive to the hospital on base is quick. I've frequently come on to the base so the clearance check doesn't take long.
The base hospital isn't anything fancy. They don't have any extra facilities, just a basic care unit. More severe cases typically get sent off base to the nearby hospital.
When I walk in the front doors, both Mickey and Reuben are there waiting for me. They are both still in their flight suits, looking exhausted. Mickey sees me first and walks over to pull me into a hug.
"They are fine. Doctor checked them over and there's nothing wrong. Other then a bit of residual PTSD and stress from the incident, they should be fine. Maybe a bit sore from whiplash, but that's it, really." Reuben says. I can tell he's doing his best to reassure me. Mickey let's go of me and he gives me a quick hug as well.
"Can I go see them?" I ask.
"Yeah, their rooms are just down here," Mickey says. They head towards the left where the lobby splits off into a series of hallways. The building itself is plain all around. There is nothing but white walls and tan floors followed by the classic Navy pictures everywhere.
We come up to her door fast, it's cracked open, but I still knock before heading in. Nat's sitting on the edge of her bed. She's wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of what looks like hospital issues sweat pants. Her flight suit is draped over the back of a chair behind her. Her hair is in its usual pulled back bun, but a few stands have come loose and hang freely. She looks exhausted as she stares down at her feet. When she sees me though, she puts on a fake smile.
"Figured it wouldn't be long till your worried butt showed up here." She says standing up to hug me. I pull her in tightly.
"Oh shut up. It's not like you would like to hear that my plane nearly blew up in the sky so I was forced to eject from it with a parachute." I tell her sarcastically while I pull away. She gives a poor attempt at a laugh.
"True, but I'm fine. This is all just standard precaution." She tells me while gesturing to the room. She may be right about that, doesn't mean it still doesn't freak me out.
"You talked with Bob? Is he okay?" I ask. She frowns slightly at the mention of his name.
"I'm pretty sure he's in the room next door. I think he's okay." She won't make eye contact with me now for whatever reason. We've been friends for a long time so at this point I'm able to read her like a book. She clearly isn't as okay as she is trying to prove.
     "Are you okay?" I ask, concern for my best friend taking over the concern I have for Bob.
      "I said I'm fine." She says, sitting back down on her bed. "They've ruled out any possible injury. My back is just a bit sore from the ejection, but it'll go away in a few days."
     She still refuses to look me in the eye. Something isn't right.
      "Nat," I say gently, "what's really wrong?" I don't want to push her too much when she is clearly upset, but she's not telling us something. If she's in more pain then she's letting on then she needs to let someone know. I about to push again when she starts talking.
      "Can you just go check on Bob?" She asks quickly.
      It all clicks at once for me. She's worried Bob is mad at her, or is going to be scared to fly with her again. Bob is the first back seater Nat has really clicked with. I can't blame her for being worried. Plus with the intensity of this mission amping up, I can only imagine the pressure they must be feeling as a duo to preform. They have only been flying together for a little while. That's a short time that they have had to learn to trust one another. Now Nat is worried she's broken it.
"Of course, just give me a few minutes." I stand up from where I was sitting next to her on the bed. I give her a quick kiss on the head and pull her in for another tight hug. She reciprocates it equally as strongly. I turn to the boys, about to tell them to stay with her, only to see they've already made themselves comfortable on a set of chairs. I realize as I'm about to leave the room that I have no idea where Bob's room is at. Mickey luckily seems to sense this and mouths "next door". I give him a grateful smile and head out.
      I walk out and head to the room beside Nat's. This door is cracked open as well, yet I still knock. I wait this time before hearing Bob's voice say to come in.
He's dressed in a similar get up to Nat, but his flight suit has been nearly folding on a chair. He's laying back on the hospital bed typing away at his phone. When he sees me, he drops the phone to his lap instantly and sits up.
"Hey, I heard what happened and just wanted to come and make sure you guys were okay." I tell him. He gives a genuine smile.
"We're okay, Nat made sure of that." His face turns a hint of red. Is it only obvious to me that these two have a crush on each other?
"That's good, although I'm worried she doesn't feel the same." I walk further into the room and take a seat on the chair beside Bob's bed.
Bob and I haven't really had the chance to get to know each other well. Things still feel slightly awkward between us, but I think the mutual connection we both have to Nat, is what makes the conversation easy for now. Or maybe Bob is just an easy person to talk to in general. Regardless, I spare no time getting to the point. These two have a lot on their plate already, and they don't need to spend their unfortunate night in the hospital following a freak incident dwelling on this. It'll be better for them and everyone else around them if they can prove they are both alright to each other.
"Why?" He asks clearly concerned for her.
"I only saw her for a few seconds just now because she wanted me to check on you, but I'm pretty sure she is feeling really guilty about this whole thing."
Bobs face looks shocked, "what would she be feeling guilty for? She saved our asses up there. I have no control besides telling her what's wrong. She's the one in charge of the plane and she made all the right calls. The Admirals and Captain came by earlier and even told her that." He seems annoyed now. As if her feeling guilty is a ridiculous thought. I agree with him though, it probably is. The only problem is is it won't be easy to convince Nat of that.
     "I know, trust me, but Nat will beat herself up over stuff like this sometimes. Especially when it has to do with someone she cares about."
     "So she's worried I'm not going to want to fly with her again? Is that it?"
     I shrug. Truthfully I hadn't really asked her what was wrong, but I know Nat well enough to figure it out. Considering the boys were also in the room as well and didn't contradict anything I said, I'm guessing they know too.
     "I think so."
     Bob stands up now, he runs his fingers through his hair and pushes his glasses up his nose.
     "I'm going to go talk to her," he says. I stand now too.
     "Good idea. I'll tell the boys to give y'all some space."
     We walk out of the room together and over to Nat's. Rueben and Mickey are both standing near by the bed talking with her now. They all hear us come in and look up. When the boys see me standing with Bob they instantly get the memo and walk out the door with me. Nat and Bob need to talk right now, and that isn't a conversation we need to be present for. So we head out of the small hospital room and make our way back to the lobby.
     We take a seat at a row of navy blue chairs towards the corner of the room. None of us really say anything for a while. I'm the first to break the silence.
     "Are you two okay?" I ask. We are sitting up against the wall, with me alone on one side of a small table and then on the other. They both turn to look at me.
     "We're fine. We weren't even in the air, they were up with Coyote. We just heard it all go down on the radio." Rueben tells me.
     I had completely forgotten that Coyote was involved in the accident.
      "What happened to Coyote? Y'all said he's here too?"
      "Yeah he's here too. I don't think he'll be kept overnight though." Reuben says again. "I can't really give too much detail, but he basically passed out after pulling too many G's. He nearly burnt in, woke up at the last second."
     I don't understand a lot of what he says, but it's not difficult to get what happened.
     "He's okay though right?"
     "Yeah he's fine, just shaken like the rest of us." Mickey tells me.
      I feel horrible for the pilots right now. They have all been under so much pressure to preform and now have to deal with the reality of what this mission is. Before it was just training exercises, but now it's a real scenario with real consequences. It's understandable why they are all down today. I can't even begin to imagine how they must be feeling.
      I'm at a loss for what to say to them. I want to offer any comfort or reassurances that I can, but I know there is no point. I have no clue what they are training for or what they are going through. All I know is that it's hell having to watch the people I'm closest too go through this. They all seem so discouraged. The fun from their beach day must feel like weeks ago now. I want more the anything to bring back that bit of joy for all of them.
     Several minutes have passed since any of us have spoken. They both just sit there looking around or at the ground. I decide to stay quiet. There's nothing I can say to them right now anyway.
     I start to look around the small waiting room. There is pictures hung up all over of flight crews and groups of people in various uniforms. There is also several large photos hung of different planes and ships. I can't tell what a single one of them is, but my gaze doesn't linger on them long. Instead it's pulled in Jake's direction as he heads for the lobby from the opposite hallway we had gone down.
      He's in his flight suit like the rest of them, but his hair looks disheveled. As if he's repeatedly run his fingers through it. He doesn't seem to notice me at first as he walks right pass the group of chairs and out the door.
      "I'll be right back," I tell the boys. They say nothing as I leave to follow Jake.
      When I'm out the doors of the hospital it takes me a minute to find him. He leaned against the wall of the building, his fingers locked tightly in his hair.
     "Jake," I say tentatively. He drops his hands instantly to look at me. "Reuben called and told me what was going on. I was worried so I came as quickly as I could. How's Coyote?"
      It takes a minute for him to respond. He swallows hard before saying, "he's fine. They are letting him go now. I'm going to take him back to our dorm."
      I sigh in relief, "that's really good to hear."
     He nods, then looks down to kick his boot at some imaginary dirt on the grown.
     "How's Phoenix and Bob?" He asks.
     "They're alright. Just shaken up like the rest of you I think." He just nods again, his eyes still looking at his boots. I can't stand seeing them all like this. "Jake-"
     "Don't," he cuts me off. "I'm sorry, but I've got a lot of problems to deal with right now and just need to focus." He pauses for a minute before repeating, "I'm sorry." Then pushes off the wall and back into the hospital. I'm left standing there alone.
     I have no idea what his words mean. Right now I can't find it in my mind to focus on them. I don't care though, if he doesn't want to talk about it with me then that's okay. I have other people I need to be worried about right now. I shake off my shock at his dismissal and walk back into the lobby. Reuben and Mickey are still where I left them. I sit back down in my same seat, not even bothering to look if Jake is in the lobby or not.
     "Everything okay?" Mickey asks.
      I put on a fake smile and nod, "everything is fine. Why don't we go see how Nat and Bob are?"
     They nod and we all head back towards their rooms.

_________

     It took a lot of convincing, but eventually Nat managed to get me to head back home. After all she was physically okay. Mentally though, I think she needed the night to recover.
     When he had walked back in the room, her and Bob were sitting on the bed hugging each other. Whatever Bob said to make her feel better must have worked, because she seemed much lighter then before.
     In the morning when they are allowed to be discharged, they are headed right back to training. Reuben and Mickey also headed home for the night. Despite the horrible events of the day for the pilots, they all seemed more determined then before to get back to work. I had to commend their bravery. If it were me in their position, I'd be too terrified to even look at a plane again, let alone be eager to fly one. I guess that is why they do what they do though. Someone has to be crazy enough to do it.
     I crawl into bed beside Dax who is already asleep. I felt awful leaving in such a panicked rush; I hadn't even considered how Dax would be feeling. When I walked through the front door, he had been laying there waiting the whole time. It took a few minutes of cuddles and consoling him before the sensitive dog could settle down. Now he's been passed out in my bed since.
      I debate texting Jake again, but if he hasn't answered me yet then he isn't going too now. I'm incredibly hurt by his lack of communication after everything, but considering the events of today, I give him a pass for now. There's nothing I can say or do to get through to him right now. I'm hoping that the lack of communication is due to the stress they are under and not because he doesn't want to talk to me anymore. Whatever is going on in his head, I just hope he isn't pulling another stunt like he did last time. It seems unfair of me to think that right now though. I force myself to close my eyes, and eventually drift off into yet another restless sleep.