Baby Mav

Where Not Thinking Gets Us

Maverick woke up to a pounding headache, a sore body, and a cold face. He thought he heard something but ignored it.

Until it got closer.

He sat up quickly when he recognized that sound. He tried to get up and run, but he was still attached to his parachute. He disconnected it and ran as he heard the helicopter warming up its guns. He dove behind a fallen tree right as they started firing.

Suddenly, the firing stopped. He let out a sigh of relief as he sat up. That sigh was interrupted when the helicopter flew around and got him in their sight. Maverick watched as the guns moved so they were pointed at him.

There was an explosion but not the one he thought. Instead of him, the helicopter was the one that exploded. Maverick watched as a certain F-18 flew by.

"Oh, no, no." He mumbled. Rooster flew by, briefly forgetting about the SAMs. Maverick jumped when Rooster's plane was hit.

~ • ~

"Dagger Two is hit," the comms officer said slowly.

That did it.

Maddlyn couldn't hold back her sob anymore. Hondo jumped up and wrapped his arms around her as she sobbed.

"Dagger Two is hit."

"Dagger Two, come in. Dagger Two, do you copy?"

Maddlyn grabbed Hondo's radio before anyone could stop her. "Rooster? Rooster, answer me. Please. Bradley?"

Maddlyn's sob came back the longer it took for Rooster to answer her. With the radio still in her hand, the trainees could hear her break.

"I lost them," she whispered. "I lost both of them."

Hangman couldn't listen to this.

~ • ~

Maverick instantly started running towards the crash site when he saw the parachute. He ran through the woods, focusing on where Rooster landed.

"You all right?" He asked as he ran to him.

"Yeah, I'm good. You all right?"

The second he got to him, Maverick allowed his anger to push him down.

"What the hell?" Rooster yelled as he threw off his helmet and jumped up.

"What are you doing here?" Maverick shot back as he threw his own helmet down.

"What am I doing here?" Rooster repeated.

"You think I took that missile so you could be down here with me?" Maverick scoffed. "You should be back on the carrier by now!"

"I saved your life!"

"I saved your life. That's the whole point," he said, calming down. "What the hell were you even thinking?"

"You told me not to think!"

Maverick studied Rooster as he threw his hands up in defense. They both breathed heavily as they tried to catch their breaths.

"Well," Maverick sighed, "now we need to think."

"About how to. . ." Rooster started to agree but Maverick cut him off.

"Maddy."

"Shit," Rooster mumbled as he ran his fingers through his hair. "She thinks. . ."

"We both went down," Maverick finished for him. "Now, we need to do everything we can to get back to her."