automatic stop, bradley bradshaw

fifty-four.

THE DAY OF THE DREADED MISSION WAS FINALLY UPON SKYE, WHO NOW HAD NO IDEA WHAT TO DO. the night prior had been nothing less of a doozy, as she'd described it to katia, and skye was now left with the advice that both her father and hangman had given her. the two men had both suggested that skye tell rooster how she felt, just, you know, in case one of them died. no biggie.

skye didn't like to get worried about missions. in her opinion, the worrying was what made something go wrong. and in her line of work, there was absolutely no room for anything to go wrong. with how nervous skye was, she knew that she would have to work twice as hard to keep her mind focused on the mission. she just needed to see bradley. she needed to talk to him.

when the sun finally rose, signifying the end of a nearly restless night, skye and katia were both asleep on the floor next to each other. their blankets had all been thrown around in between them tossing and turning, leaving the living room looking like a cursed sleepover. 

"today's the day." katia was the first to speak, looking up at the ceiling.

skye rolled over onto her back, joining the blonde in studying the ceiling fan above them. "don't quote nemo right now, please." 

"can't help it." katia replied. she got up on her elbows with a tired groan, pressing a hand to her forehead. "shouldn't have had anything to drink last night."

"hangover?" the brunette inquired, standing up and heading to the kitchen to make herself a coffee. 

katia shook her head. "no. it just feels morally incorrect."

"fair enough." skye took her sunliners mug down from the kitchen cabinet, filling it with her warm, homemade dunkin brew. "i just can't believe it's today. i feel like i keep saying that, or thinking it. but it's true.. it doesn't feel real."

katia joined skye in the kitchen, thanking her when she had already brought down a mug for her. "no, i agree. doesn't feel real." they were in a comfortable silence for a couple minutes before katia cleared her throat. "you know what else doesn't feel real?"

"hm?" skye raised a brow, taking a sip of her coffee.

"that you and bradshaw have been here for weeks and still haven't managed to make out with each other." 

skye nearly choked on her coffee and she set the cup down. "i hate you." she grumbled, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. the two then started a small banter, though they were both smiling. "god," skye sighed, "i hope today goes well."

katia noticed that her tone had become more solemn, more serious, and she replicated it. "it will. it has to."

the two women got dressed in the next ten or fifteen minutes, plaiting their hair and pinning it up into military grade braided buns. skye fiddled with the sleeves of her flight suit, which had never felt too tight until that exact moment. 

she looked in the mirror at the patches she proudly wore on her suit. she was a sunliner, she was a tophatter, and she was a black ace. she'd graduated top of her class at the elite navy fighter weapons school. she was the best of the best. she was one of the greatest fighter pilots in the world. and she was terrified of death. 

death was something that skye knew to be inevitable. after all, she'd lost her mother. she'd watched bradley lose his, and she'd now watched as katia lost her father. death could peak out of any corner, could grab anyone at any time and take a claim on them. but skye hated that. the unpredictability. and she wasn't ready to come to terms with it.

truthfully, skye was terrified that no one would be there to mourn her. would anyone care when she was gone? if this mission was the one to take her out, who would it hurt? katia, of course. her father. phoenix, bob, fanboy, hangman. what would rooster do?