Atlas: A Top Gun: Maverick Fanfiction

Moments Like These Make Javy Want To Tear His Hair Out

A/N: Enjoy a very fun, very annoying chapter since it's my birthday and there is not a single brain cell present. At any given time. As always, let me know what you think!

New Year's Eve:

Javy Machado was ready to tear his hair out, proverbially speaking. It was moments before midnight and here they all were at the New Year's Eve party, Jake nowhere to be found and Kelsey standing right next to him.

This was supposed to be Jake's moment. And where was the future husband? MIA—hopefully not making out with some Italian girl.

"You ever see the ball drop?" Kelsey questioned, glancing over at Javy.

"Only on TV. You?" He asked, shuffling in his suit slightly.

The woman in the red dress just flashed a rare grin. "I went once, I was 18. It's a bit overrated. But New Year's Eve parties? I enjoy these way better."

"Speak for yourself," Javy replied with a huff. "You've got options, Ceeps."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Kelsey asked with a smug look on her face. She knew exactly what it meant, but she was just here to tug on heartstrings.

"Oh come on," Javy said, rolling his eyes at her. "We're on a rooftop in Italy with a bunch of pilots—most of whom have been drooling over you since you got here."

"I have eyes." Kelsey retorted innocently.

"The hell you do." Javy mumbled.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

Meanwhile, in the bathroom of the building, Jake Seresin was psyching himself out. This was ridiculous—He was a grown man, a fighter pilot, and a damn good one at that. He shouldn't be getting cold feet about kissing a girl—

Well—

The fact of the matter was that Kelsey Ryan completely and totally unnerved Jake Seresin. She had come into his life totally unexpectedly, like a hurricane or a summer wind, and he had been taken by surprise. Knocked off his feet.

And he was just starting to see that this whole fake engagement thing was in fact going to be the death of him.

He stared in the mirror. "What the hell are you doing, Seresin?" He demanded, looking back at himself. "She's out there and you're gonna march up to her and kiss her—wait no, she's—she'll slap me. I'll ask and then if she says yes, then I'll kiss her—"

By the time Jake got out of the bathroom and was completely and totally ready, he found a guilty looking Javy Machado standing next to Kelsey Ryan, who had smudged lipstick.

Jake couldn't help the crestfallen expression that crossed his face. "I missed it?"

"By about a minute," Javy replied in an awkward tone. "I'm just—I'm gonna go find some pizza."

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Kelsey glanced up at the sky, ignoring the rain clouds that were forming and threatening to spill overhead. She had places to be and two friends to see. They were back on track with their whole sightseeing and exploring Italy with her as tour guide troupe, this time with Javy added into the mix.

She hated to admit when she was wrong, but she was so much happier without Paolo in her life. She should've been listening to Jake and Javy from the start. Such was her luck with pilots.

Crossing the street, she shouldered her backpack closer to her. A short train ride and then they would get to go hiking to Mount Vesuvius. Finding the meeting stop near the train station, she waited patiently for a few minutes.