Anyone But Him // Jake Seresin

Chapter One

Margot Mitchell
North Island
September

    Arriving in North Island that morning, Margot got settled at her base housing. At age twenty-four, she was starting Top Gun the following morning. It was an exciting day, but she also found herself dreading pieces of it. She knew she'd be facing a ghost from her past. She wasn't exactly sure if this ghost was going to be thrilled to see her either. That was a problem for future Margot though. Present Margot had much more important things to attend to, like the date she had arranged for that evening. She figured while she was in town for the next thirteen weeks, she might as well have a little fun.

    She had only been out of the Naval Academy for a year, but on her own most of her life she since she was fourteen when her mom died. She had gone to live with her dad, but he stayed busy and she mostly stayed with family friends when he was gone. She grew up in North Island mostly from that point. It had been a huge shift in her life, she had only been with her mom up until she died. Her parents had never actually been together, she had been the result of a hookup. Thankfully her parents had remained friendly, but from what she had heard, she always felt like they regretted it. Never regretted her they claimed, but crossing a boundary with a relationship that pre-dated Margot's arrival.

    On the way in, Margot had browsed a dating app and had secured a date for the night. She wasn't looking for anything serious, to be quite honest, she hoped either just for a night out or maybe hooking up. Ideally both, since it had been a little while. She had stayed busy in the Navy the last year, having been stationed at NAS Oceana. She'd only had one relationship she considered to be significant, and it had just ended up fizzling out. It was one of those situations where you were better off as friends, and had been something of mutual convenience. He actually was still her close friend, and had ended up also becoming a pilot.    

    Margot sat at the bar with her drink, waiting on her date. She had no plans of disclosing the fact she was a naval aviator. That didn't always seem to be a selling point with guys. Some, sure, but for the most part, it felt too much for them to deal with. She also typically got the you don't look like a pilot, you should be a model speech which was ridiculous. Physically, Margot probably could have done that. She knew she was attractive, she took after her mom. She had naturally darker blonde hair that she lightened a few shades, blue eyes, and a small waist. Her chest was a generous size that wasn't quite proportional to her small frame so it really stood out, but she had grown to love it over the years. The one thing she disliked about herself was being 5'3, but only because it got frustrating occasionally. Her dad wasn't particularly tall, and her mom had been a little above average for a female.

    Confidence wasn't exactly an issue for her, she felt like in some ways she had become hardened with some of the things she had been through. Margot wished she had the bright, bubbly spirit that her mom had. She could light up an entire room. The people closest to Margot felt they saw that, but she knew it took a while before she let people see it. It was easier to have an icy exterior than open that door. Especially when it felt like people close to her continued to leave. The only person she had really stuck with since her teen years was Ryder Kazansky. Her former boyfriend and best friend. Even after their breakup, he had stayed close with her. They just weren't meant to be together like that.

    "Margot?"

    Margot turned to face who she immediately recognized as her date. And thank God he wasn't a catfish because he looked just as good as he had online. Tall, darker blonde hair, green eyes. He had the face of a model. For a split second, she had almost wished she was interested in something more than what she had come for. They'd both had on their profiles about nothing serious, so that was part of how they had matched.