HEARTFIRST (Jake "Hangman" Seresin x Reader)

2.

*Italics indicate a flashback*

The morning passed by slowly after Natasha left, leaving you unsure of yourself and your place on base. You'd long finished your book and needed something to clear your head. Thankfully, the sun emerged from behind the clouds by early afternoon, granting you access to the beach.

The salty ocean air filters through your lungs as you pant, your feet pounding against the sand as you run. Waves swell and crash loudly over your shoulder, the sounds of seagulls crooning and kids playing in the sand at your feet numbing your busy mind. Looking down at your watch, you slow yourself down, stopping just short of a pier looming ahead. Your hands travel mindlessly to the crown of your head as you breathe, desperate to fill your tired lungs.

Once you've calmed your erratic heartbeat, you kick off your shoes and settle down in the sand, leaning back on your forearms. You tilt your head back to the sun, letting your eyes fall shut. The sun warms your skin as a cool breeze blows over you, sending your hair dancing across your cheeks and nose. You breathe in the scent of the water, a memory washing over you.

"Come in, the water's fine!" Bradley shouts, waving at you as he sinks lower into the waves, letting the current carry him for a moment.

You lift your hand to block out the sun, watching him, shaking your head. "I think I'll stay right here."

He pouts, splashing you from afar even though it couldn't reach you safely on the shore. Shrugging, he stands, making his way back towards the sand. Water drips from his light brown hair, running down his sunburnt cheeks and chapped lips, continuing to flow down his chest and abdomen, bringing your attention to the way his boardshorts hang low on his hips, showing just a strip of pale skin that has yet to be tanned.

"Guess I'll have to bring you over here myself," he mumbles, picking up his speed, jogging towards you.

"Not a chance in hell, Bradshaw!" you shout back, pushing yourself up off your towel and jumping to your feet. He laughs loudly, the sound of his footsteps growing closer behind you as you run. You glance back at him and your feet betray you, falling into a hole in the sand and sending you tumbling forward.

A pair of strong arms wrap instinctively against your middle, the feeling of warm, wet skin saving you from certain doom.

"Gotcha," Bradley whispers, his lips by your ear when he swipes you up, lifting you from the ground. You look up at him, his dark brown eyes wild with adrenaline, his mouth hanging open happily, his laughter mixing with yours. His skin is slick against yours as he carries you, running back to the water.

"No, no!" you scream, nuzzling farther into him as he crashes into the waves, the water soaking you both. He sinks lower into the water, letting the waves take the two of you out farther, his grip on you loosening. You cling to him, glaring. "You are such an ass, Bradshaw."

"But you love me anyway," he mumbles, pressing his lips to yours. He tastes like salt and sunscreen, the bristle of his mustache tickling your upper lip as you deepen the kiss, wanting more of him.

Shaking your head, you clear the memory from your mind, forcing your eyes open again. You always wanted more of him; that was the problem. You wanted more and he couldn't give you that. You'd been something to distract him when his Naval Academy application was first denied, a pretty girl to get his mind off of losing the one thing he wanted. But he never stopped thinking about it, never stopped training and preparing even when you were together. It consumed him, the idea of following in his father's footsteps, becoming half the man he was. When he finally got accepted, he told you that he had to refocus, put all of himself into the academy, and ultimately leave you behind. You hadn't seen him since then. Well, you saw him through Natasha's posts – you hadn't realized just how small the world was until they entered the academy together, both trained for and assigned to Top Gun.