☑︎ A/n: Holy shit, I had the hardest time writing this. Life has not been kind lately in the school sense and health sense, but I still wanted to give you guys something. I hope that my month long stent has made it so you won't read it. I really appericate the love that you all have been giving me. I can't promise that updates are going to become a regular thing as of yet, but will be trying my hardest. Love you all ♥︎
☑︎Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)
The pitter-patter of feet running down the hallway has you looking up from the fruit bowl you're curating, to glance over your shoulder and catch sight of Laine running toward you as Bradley chases her. Her tiny body clings to your bottom half as she tries to squish in between you and the cabinet.
“Chicken, nooooo!” her small form shakes in laughter as he bends down at your side and pokes at her.
“I was promised a princess.”
Bradley’s voice tries to lower an octave though does the complete opposite and rises to a high squeak that makes you break out in laughter. Your heart swells at the sight, Bradley would make a wonderful uncle. He was already the best brother you could have asked for and since yesterday on base, he had quite literally had Laine on his hip or playing together at every moment.
Gray was never far away, though he tended to stay at neither Bob, Jake, or Javy’s side. You were so used to Gray being attached to you that seeing him interact so much with the squad was startling. You miss your little shadow, though seeing the way that he looked at Jake now was something that you would love to witness daily. Jake had told you that they just talked about planes, but you could see that it meant so much more to both of them.
The munchkin between your legs moves again, darting from Bradley’s outstretched hand as she giggles in excitement.
“I’m Jakey’s princess,” The reply stumps Bradley momentarily, long enough for her little hands to find your own. “Miss CeCe save me!”
Her hands pat at your tummy in a little rhythm as she bounces lightly on her toes. You gently slide the fruit bowl back and lower down to grab the munchkin before Brad can make another grab for her. Her small form bounces in your hold as she wraps her arms around your neck and nuzzles in.
“Run Miss CeCe!” She eyes you in excitement and you drop your gaze back to Bradley, before giving him a smirk. Your hips swivel as you turn and your arms clutch onto a giggling Laine as you run away.
“Get the fruit bowl, Chicken!”
You hear a playful huff at the name, though you’re past the hallway entryway and heading for the back deck before Bradley has a chance to yell back at you. The dimness in the hall is lit by the shining sun outside and you can see the rest of the squad lounging around in chairs while Javy and Jake bicker about grilling.
You hadn’t planned to have a BBQ, though this morning when Bradley and Nat showed up banging on the door with coolers and dessert you didn’t have any other choice.
No, you really had no other choice.
The pair had pushed through the door before you could even question them and told you that they were only here to see the twins. They then followed that up by saying that everyone was coming by, well everyone but Javy, he had spent the night after having a movie fort/sleepover night and had yet to leave. The pair had ushered you that you didn’t need to worry because Bob and Mickey were making sure to grab all the required fixings from the store so you wouldn’t have to worry.
Though you had instantly started making a fruit bowl with the strawberries, grapes, kiwi, and pineapple that you already had. The twins had helped you wash them and then used small star cookie cutters to cut shapes in the pineapple. Though once everyone had finally arrived the pair had automatically gravitated toward the outside. Bradley had also casually thrown in the fact that your dad, Penny, and Amelia were coming over as well. After your dad had met them, he instantly wanted Penny and Amelia to meet the twins.
You brush a small strand of hair from Madelaine’s face, which causes her to give you a sweet smile and then kiss your cheek. That had started last night when you were putting the twins to bed, even though they ended up in yours again during the night. The two of them were in a late-night Disney movie hazy that left them half asleep, which in turn led them to tell both you and Jake that they loved you. It had made your heart stop. You knew that you should be placing boundaries, but so many were already crossed, and Jake and you both loved them so much already.
Your hand comes up to shield your eyes as the sun nearly blinds you. You didn’t know how it was 78 degrees at the beginning of December, but you weren’t complaining one bit. Your hold on Laine loosens as her small form wiggles until she’s free of you to run across the deck.
“Pop Pop! Ms. CeCe fought Chicken off.” She squeals in delight as your father catches her and tosses her small form in the air. That was also new, Jake had called your father Pops last night and Laine ran with it from there. Now both Gray and Laine were calling him Pop Pop, and neither your father nor anyone else had even spoken of the possibility of having them stop and having them call him Mav instead.
Your glance leaves the pair as they sit down next to Penny and Amelia, the mother and daughter duo instantly fell in love with the twins. So much so that your little sister had asked if she could babysit them sometime. She had been so happy and excited that you couldn’t tell her that you didn’t know if they would ever be back to the house.
A sigh leaves your chest as you cast your eyes around the deck to look at the group of important people in your life, though you can’t seem to find one of the most important ones. Gray wasn’t anywhere in your line of sight, and while you knew he was somewhere in the yard, that didn’t stop your breath from hitching. A pinch to your back makes you jump, while Bradley laughs and moves passed you with the fruit salad. You bat your hand at him, playfully glaring at him as he passes.
You’re still looking for Gray when you catch Jake’s eyes, he then gives you a small tip of the head out to the lawn and causes you to venture over to look out at the yard. A smile rests on your face as you lean against the railing of the deck to watch Bob, Mickey, Nat, and Gray as they lay on the lawn watching the sky. Gray’s hand shoots up causing your own eyes to shoot to the sky as a jet passes overhead. You only hear pieces of the conversation, something about cloud coverage, altitude, and flight pattern prediction, but it makes you smile all the same. Gray finally had people that would understand and listen to him, instead of brushing him off and not believing a word he said. Because as Janice had so kindly told you during a conference, “Children aren’t that smart, stop feeding into his fantasy.” The woman had riled you up to the point where you skipped over the last half of the packet, already knowing that she wasn’t listening to a thing you said about Grayson, and practically pushed her out the door.
The hands that wined around your waist and grasped onto the railing in front of you, have you relaxing back into the familiar chest. Jake’s chin settles on your shoulder after giving your cheek a small kiss causing the weight of your body to sink further into the comforting hold. You both sigh, and the mutual feeling of peace and fulfillment passes through the two of you.
“They blend in seamlessly.” Jake’s breath heats your neck, and you can’t help but to smile at the comment because it was true. They fit into your little family perfectly, and you were going to soak up every moment you had this weekend.
“I don’t want it to be over.” Jake’s hands wrap around you as you say it, and squeeze you gently. “I don’t know how I’m just going to let them go back there.” Your voice is heavy with pain that neither one of you acknowledge, instead, hoping to remain in this moment.
The tightness in your chest relieves, as neither of you can comment when you hear a whistle ring out that causes everyone to look over at Javy. He stands by the grill, with Laine on his hip as she silently waits for everyone’s attention. Javy smiles down at the small girl as she watches the group of you bouncing from excitement in his hold. Her eyes move from the group and up to Javy as the group quiets down to listen. He gives her a tiny nod that has a smile breaking out on not only her face but yours as well.
“The food is done.” Laine’s voice rings out through the backyard, but before anyone can make their way to the grill Javy whispers something else in her ear to say. “Ummm... Javy said he cooked everything, and Jakey didn’t help and that he’s the best cook.”
The comment causes everyone but Jake to laugh. A dramatic sigh falls from his lips as he steps out from behind you, only taking one step closer to the pair. You giggle as Jake clutches at his heart, eyes wide and never leaving Laine’s, before slipping to his knees beside you.
“You wound me, little darlin’.” His voice is strained and causes the surrounding group to gently smile at him. It didn’t go unnoticed how much Jake loved the twins already, and while they never mentioned the fact to you or Jake, it didn’t stop the squad from talking amongst themselves.
Jake barely has time to catch Laine as she runs into his arms and clutched onto him. She leans into his ear and whispers words that you can’t make out that have the both of them smiling. They must be good if the mega smile not resting on Jake’s face can tell you anything. Jake slowly rises to stand up while the pair laugh together, both of them looking at Javy in a teasing manner.
“You two keeping secrets now?” Your voice is questioning and has Madelaine leaning into you.
“I didn’t wanna hurt Javy’s feelings, Ms. CeCe. Jakey is still the best.” A giggle bubbles from you as she gives you a toothy grin, before you both then look at Javy and you can’t help but laugh even more at his wondering stare.
A weight settles against your leg and causes you to glance down to find Gray, already looking back up at you. His blonde locks house a few pieces of grass that you pick out, while his finger wraps around your belt loop.
“Hi, Sweetpea.” His blue eyes sparkle in the sunlight as a quiet hi is said back to you. “You ready to eat?”
You get back a small nod as he stays attached to your hip, watching the surrounding crowd from the designated safe zone. While Gray had opened up immensely to the group, he still ended up at your side whenever the group became too much. It wasn’t that he was uncomfortable, but his social anxiety and depleted self-esteem caused him to doubt his worth, especially around people he didn’t know well.
You hadn’t noticed that Jake put down Laine, though as his hands come around Gray to lift him in the same manner, he had with Laine just moments ago your heart swells. The sound of his laugh echoed through the yard as the group milled around getting food and talking, though your eyes could leave to pair.
A perfect father-son duo. You could have told anyone that the twins were your kids, not just from how they were almost identical copies of Jake. But anyone that saw how they interacted, and the amount of love that passed between them from minuscule actions and words alone.
“Come on you two, before Roos eats everything.” Your voice is teasing as you pull the pair along with you to grill to follow Laine, who already had your dad piling a mountain of food on a plate for her. Your eyes don’t miss the two different pieces of cake and brownie that cover most of the surface of the plate. You shake your head at your father, just now realizing how tightly Laine has him wrapped around her finger.
Your comment finally gained a reaction from Bradley, as a small kid playing ball lands against your back and makes you yelp before turning. You give him a smile that only a little sister can give to her older brother, followed by your tongue peeking out in a taunt.
You would give anything to stay in this moment with this group of people, your family, forever.
...
You finish putting the last dish away from the washer and wipe down the counter as the clock strikes 8:00. Signaling that it was in fact the twin’s bedtime, well the one that you had given them. Neither Janice nor Ed said if they had a nighttime routine, though you were sure that it wasn’t that they forgot to mention it. No, from what you knew, the pair of them didn’t care so long as the twins didn’t disturb them and stayed in their room.
Wiping your hand one last time, you slowly make your way down the hall in search of the three individuals that consumed your every waking thought. You glance at the guest room and the perfectly made bed, knowing that the twins wouldn’t be sleeping in there tonight either. Only to venture future down the hall when you hear the near-silent humming coming from your bedroom. The dimming sun no longer lights your house and the warm glow coming from the lamp in your room just barely reaches your outline as you settle against the door frame.
Jake sits in the middle of the bed wearing a pair of sweats and tee-shirt that he had slipped on earlier when you sent him to take a shower while you did a couple pages of homework with the twins. He then had the duty of wrangling the two of them into the bath and making sure that they didn’t flood the bathroom floor like they had on you last night. You had disappeared at their request for bubbles and when you came back, nearly half of the tub water was on the floor. You had tried so hard to appear cross with them, though, at the sight of the sheepish smiles they gave you, your heart had overflown with love. You weren’t going to stop the pair of them from doing something that wasn’t dangerous, because it made a small mess. You knew that the carefree spirit that encased them wasn’t something that they were normally allowed to do.
From the looks of it though, tonight had defiantly gone in Jake’s favor. Not only from his dry pajamas but the fact that both Madelaine and Grayson had both found their places in bed next to him without a second thought. That they both felt a sense of peace and protection from Jake’s presence.
The three of them were a sight that warmed your heart beyond compare and made you curse yourself for leaving your phone on the kitchen table, missing the picture-perfect moment. In the middle of Jake’s lap, Laine sits as he braids her hair into two little French braids that just reach her shoulders. While Gray lays behind them cuddling your pillow, eyes fluttering open and closed as he tries to stay awake.
“Your sisters would be happy to know you can still braid hair.” Your voice floats through the room; Gray just barely looks at you only to give you a tiny smile, as Laine twists the finished braid around her finger trying to hide the yawn that slips passed her lips.
“I would hope that ten years of braiding their hair for volleyball whenever mom was late for a game, would have stuck with me.” His laugh makes you smile as you watch the pair of them momentarily. Jake had fallen into the dad role easily, and while you both were so happy to have the twin, you worried about how they would handle having to go back to Janice and Ed’s house Monday.
Jake's eyes lift to you while his fingers work seamlessly back and forth, he could always tell when something was on your mind. The snap of the final tiny elastic getting wrapped around the end of the braid, has you looking back up at the flawless braid. Jake’s arms softly wrap around Laine to lay gently squeezes at her waist, as her small hands rub tiredly at her eyes. She leans back in his hold, snuggling up to him as her eyes start to droop like Gray’s.
“I think Roos and Nat tuckered them out with that last game of tag.” You laugh lightly thinking about the sight of Bradley holding each of the twins in an arm, and running away from Nat.
“I’m sure that they’re just as tired, Rooster probably fell asleep on his couch and didn’t even make it to his bed.” You laugh at Jake’s comment because you know for a fact that Bradley fell asleep on the couch from the picture Bob sent you an hour ago.
Jake glances down at the weight against his chest, Laine turns slightly as she sighs and fully relaxes to cuddle in closer. She holds onto Jake’s black tee shirt with one hand while to other grasps onto her ocean blanket, falling into sleep like it was a warm hug. Jake slowly lifts her, which causes both of her hands to wrap around his neck and his to rub at her back. He whispers soothing sounds as his hand glides up and down her back, helping her relax again. Jake is quick to move her before she can settle in too much though, not wanting to wake the munchkin up from setting her down. He easily turns around with her in his hold and lays her down against his pillow across from Gray.
Her small body lays encased by the surrounding blankets as she snuggles in closer and sighs as Jake tucks the duvet under her chin and kisses her forehead. Jake moves over to tuck in Gray as well as you gently brush the stray baby hairs from Laine’s face and gently kiss her head. Followed by you then tucking and kissing Gray as well, before you sneak into the bathroom to change into your PJs while Jake heads to the living room.
You find Jake laid out on the sofa, hands behind his head with two steaming cups of tea sitting on the coffee table. He gives you a dopy smile that makes your heart beat just a bit faster, before crawling into his open arms. Your legs rest around his waist and your head settles on his chest to listen to the steady rhythm of his heart.
Neither of you moves as you watch the sunset through the massive living room window that faces the Pacific. Jake’s hand slowly slips into your hair and runs his fingers through it gently without even realizing it. Though the small moan of relief causes him to chuckle in realization, before kissing the top of your head and resuming.
“We could do it you know.” His voice is tired and there’s a deep sound of longing intertwined with the words. You hum in question, happy to listen, but far too comfortable to lift your head from his chest and have a conversation.
“The twins; we could apply for adoption.”
His words hang in the air, sure you both had thought and talked about it over and over. Though there was something in Jake’s tone that was different this time. This wasn’t your Jakey that you could tease and easily rial up. No, this was Jacob. The man that got in a fistfight with one of your mother’s ex-boyfriends after he made a backhanded comment about your lack of pregnancy. The man that would protect the people that he loved, even if it meant putting himself in danger. He was serious, so serious that you half wondered if he had already been looking into the adoption process that the state of California had in place.
“Baby –”
“I’m serious darlin’. They are in every single thought I have about our future; I can’t even fathom a life without them anymore.” Jake’s hand slips from your hair and now both of them wrap around you. He clings to you, and you slowly realize that his tense chest and tight hold on you are in fear of your reaction to him wanting to adopt the twins. Your heart aches, you knew how much both of them meant to you. But hearing Jake tell you out loud that he didn’t see a future that didn’t include the twins, officially confirms just how much you both want the twins.
Knowing that is conversation deserved more than just your muffled words against Jake’s chest you slowly sit up, still on Jake’s lap but now able to see each other’s faces. You both could read each other like an open book and though you were positive that Jake was being sincere, you had to see the look in his eyes. You had to be absolutely sure before you let the idea blossom into a reality.
“Adopting them isn’t going to be easy, Jake. Janice and Ed are going to throw a fit because they want to keep getting their monthly check.” Your voice is gentle but firm, “And I hate to even say it, but we have to think about the fact that there are two of them. We planned for one baby, Jake. Can we financially even take on them and give them the life that they deserve?”
Jake's hand moves from your waist to brush against your cheek and causes you to lean farther into him. He knows that your reluctance is only because you’re afraid that you aren’t good enough to be their mom, a mom in general. You didn’t have the breakdowns a lot, but when you did, they were bad. And no matter how much he assured you, you were terrified that the universe wasn’t giving you a child because you weren’t worthy.
Jake’s other hand finds your cheek as well to tilt your head back up. Your chin and eyes had fallen, but Jake needed you to realize that you deserved a child more than anyone.
“Darlin’ we are more than financially stable to take them on. I’m teaching now and missions are rare. I want them to be ours.” Your head nods in his hold but he can feel the cogs in your head turning.
“Honey, look at me.” Your eyes lift and Jake’s heart cracks to see your waterline filled with tears. “You deserve to be a momma more than anyone I know. Maybe things worked out the way they did because some higher power knew that there would be two twin terrors that would need us just as much as we need them.”
A tear falls from your eyes and Jake is quick to brush it away. “You think?” Your voice is small and broken, though you trust Jake more than anyone else and if he said this was the family that both of you deserved and needed, you would believe him.
“I know, darlin’.”
Your face tucks into Jake’s neck and the tiny laugh of joy you give him, makes his arms tighten around as a smile forms on his lips. Your voice is muffled, but Jake hears you perfectly. “We’re gonna make them ours.”
“They’re already ours, darlin’. We’re just gonna make it official now.”
So because this beautiful person, is feeling down, here’s something I’m making up on the fly that can go with Better Man Universe;
It was a lovely Sunday Morning in sunny San Diego. The lights were streaming in through the curtains. Natasha “Phoenix” Trace was currently curled around her favorite man. She snuggles closer into her husband, Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw. As the light gets stronger, she shifts and wakes up. “Mmm. Bradley. What time is it?” She asked as she shifted awake in his arms. It felt so good to let her hair out for the day.
Bradley let out a deep groan as he stirred to check the clock. “It’s 10:15 AM baby.” His voice was deep and husky of course. He chuckles and kissed her jaw before getting up of course. He wrapped a blanket around his waist and went to pee smiling. He looked at his wife and smiles. “Just as gorgeous as the day we met.” He cooed to her.
~flashback 4 years ago, Hawaii~
Bradley Bradshaw was sitting in a bar off the base in Hawaii. Being set back had taken a tool so he went to go grab a drink. After sitting at the bar he growls at the dark haired woman before he sighs. “I’m sorry for that behavior. I’m Bradley.” He said to her. “Natasha.” She replied and smiles politely at him. “You aren’t used to it yet are you?” She asked him. “Not really no. I got held back. But it’s not ok for me to dump my life story. I at least owe you dinner.”
Natasha rolled her eyes, sick of men hitting on her. But for once, the cheesy 70’s porn mustache and Hawaiian shirt kinda worked. He apologized to her and offered her food. Why not? He was cute. “You are on.” She smirks.
~flashback ends~
Bradley smiles as he looks at Natasha remembering how they met for the first time. He thought she was too hot for him and look what happened. When he saw his wife’s soft gaze, he smiles at her. “God I am so glad I met you when I did. You fixed me Tasha. And I’m thankful everyday.”
Natasha laughs and smiles. “I’m glad I could change your life my darling husband.” She smiles and also laughs as she drinks her coffee. “I’ll never regret ever saying yes to you. I love you Mr. Bradshaw.”
“And I you, Mrs. Bradshaw-Trace.” He smiles and leans forward kissing her. If only they knew that the ghosts of Carole and Nicholas Bradshaw were watching them. They were proud of their son and all he had, friends, family, and a love like theirs. That’s all they wanted. Today was a good day. One of the best Sundays to date.
#natasha trace X bradley bradshaw
My goodness, my sweet! Thank you so much. You've really been there for me these last couple of weeks and I can't thank you enough 🤍. This just adds to the list of sweet things you've done for me and I absolutely love it.
But have I ever mentioned how much I love "Better Man" Nat and Brad Brad. They are just adorable and I know not everyone likes them together, but in this series, they are fucking adorable. And the fact that you've added to their story 😍😙!
...
Okay, but not only is Brad upset by being set back a couple years, but he's at a new base in Hawai'i which should have been heaven. But the poor man was severely jet lagged and hadn't been able to get a good night's sleep during this first week.
His bunkmate snored horribly and that was on a good night, on a bad night the 20-something man talked in his sleep. While it had been funny the first and maybe second night, by the third Brad was over it and truthfully he had made his way to the beachside bar just so he didn't have to see the guy any sooner than absolutely necessary.
Now the fact that the bartender had slipped right on past Brad twice for the pretty little thing down on the far end of the bar, even after Brad vocally asked for another instead of the small tip of an empty beer bottle he usually had to do. Left him pushing off from his current position and heading over to her side of the bar.
The site of Brad's face must be grim as the bartender straightens up from his relaxed posture chatting up the woman. His elbow knocks against the poor girl's arm as he tightly demands the refill. His head dips only popping up at the sight of the woman shifting, gazing at him with a harsh look of distaste.
The sight of her watching him makes his cheeks flair and he can't help but to feel like an absolute dick. How had the first interaction he has with a beautiful woman in Hawai'i been on that he made himself look like a complete ass?
“I’m sorry for that behavior." His hand rakes through the unruly curls, before he gives her a sheepish smile. "I’m Bradley.”
She glance's from his eyes to his open awaiting palm, before sighing with a smile and settling her hand in his. “Natasha.” She replied and smiles politely at him.
She does a quick sweep of his figure taking in the pristine uniform and the tired look in his eyes could only mean one thing. A small laugh slips past her lips as she gives him a cheeky smile. “You aren’t used to it yet are you?”
Her tone is teasing and it takes her eyes flashing down to his wings before Bradley realizes just what she talking about. A small grin that's finally at ease settles on his face as she hides her smile behind the beer she sips on.
“Not really no. I got held back." His tone drops and he coughs lightly in hopes to not lose the flirty banter that had been passing between the pair.
"But it’s not ok for me to dump my life story." She nods in agreement, taking that cue that he was trying to lighten the conversation again.
"You most defiantly shouldn't be doing that," she smiles again at him her tone airy and before slipping the aviator glasses from the breast pocket of his shirt.
The sight of her cheekily grinning at him, has Brad moving that inch closer that causes Nat's head to dip back to follow his eyes. She leans into him slightly, hand settling on his chest as a smile laugh falls from her lips and causes her head to dip back even farther when Brad winks in the most exaggerated way.
His hand finds home against her cheek, and his thumb rubs against her cheek gently. Before popping the glasses off the bridge of her nose and settling them back on his.
"I at least owe you dinner.”
Natasha rolled her eyes, sick of men hitting on her, used to their hump-and-dump tactics. Though some about the one in front of her has her regular decision wavering. The cheeky grin that he gives her seals the deal and for once, the cheesy 70’s porn mustache with the faded Hawaiian shirt worked.
He was cute and he apologized to her. While adding on the offer her food. Why not? Even if he did turn out like the others, at least she was getting dinner out of it. “You are on.”
She smirks, slipping from the bar as she makes her leave. Bradley stumbles over his words momentarily watching as the woman he thought was gonna be it for him, leaves after she had just said yes to a date.
A small laugh falls from her as he gets more flustered, and her dress flares out around her as she turns. Though before she leaves, she gives him a final glance over the shoulder and a wink of her own. "Don't worry flyboy, you'll be seeing me sooner than you think."
...
Thank you so much for this babes! I really needed this and I just, thank you. You have a piece of my heart 🤍 (so do Nat and Brad now too!)
☑︎ A/n: Holy shit, I had the hardest time writing this. Life has not been kind lately in the school sense and health sense, but I still wanted to give you guys something. Anyone thats stayed with me and is still reading (even after this long extent) thank you and I love you!
☑︎Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)
The sudden weight on your chest stirs you from your slumber, and though the room is dark you make out the little figure clinging on to you. The moonlight just barely lights the room enough for you to clearly see Grayson, well as clearly as sleepy you could see. His hands are clutched to your blanket and the small movement of your hand across his back gets his attention.
“Hi, Sweetpea.” Your voice is groggy though it still causes Gray to nuzzle farther into your chest. “What’s wrong, honey?”
“Laine left me, I got cold.” The words take a moment to register, though when they do you sit up faster than you ever have. Gray is still clutched to your chest, though you tighten your hold on him at the possiblity of Laine disapearing. Your eyes adjust and flitter room, Gray shifts in your hold and holds on to you in silence, waiting. Jake still hadn’t woken up, the man could sleep through a tornado, which he had when you visited his parents last year. It wasn’t a fun experience, to say the least. Just as your arm is about to smack him and make him get up with you, you catch sight of a little ball of blonde hair peeking out from under the blanket, laying on his chest.
A sigh leaves your body as the tension in your shoulders drops and you lay back down, contemplating if you wanted to risk Laine waking up when you moved her or if you should just let the both of them sleep in the bed for the night. You pull Gray farther into your chest as he nuzzles at the soft blanket and his small hand holds onto the hand you have wrapped around him.
You realize that neither of them would be going back to the other room tonight and so, you move Gray to get him under the covers with you. He finds the sleeve of your pjs and holds it, thumb rubbing the material as he falls back to sleep. Jake arms move slightly and for a minute you worry that he’s going to squish Laine. But instead, his arms wrap around her, as he rolls onto his side to face you, they’re both still asleep, yet grasp onto each in a near death grip. The small nuzzle she does against Jake chest, just under his chin fills your heart with a kind of love you feared you would never get.
Your eyes trail down to Gray and even after he’s fallen asleep, he holds on to your shirt. You place a kiss to the crown of his head, before checking the clock. 2:30 you still had 4 hours before you had to get up and as you settle back in the bed, you make a mental note to thank Jake for insisting that you needed a King size bed.
...
It’s not a random weight that wakes you up this time, but instead a pair of giggles and Gray quietly telling Laine to stop. Your eyes peel open, Gray is still settled by your side and he gives you a tiny smile before cuddling back into you at the realization that you’re awake. Jake and Laine had shifted again through the night, and she once again rests on his chest. Though as you move, her bright blue eyes flash to you, and give you a small smile, before she goes back to tapping on Jake’s nose.
He'd move every so often and the pair would start laughing. It’s during one of their giggling fits that you see Jake’s eyes open. He gives you a quick wink, before pretending to be asleep again. A smile rests on your face as you glance at the alarm clock, you still had 10 minutes before it would go off. It’s only 6:20 and while you knew the twins were morning birds, you hadn’t realized just how early and yet cheerfully they woke up.
A loud squeal from Laine and the small jump Gray does back into your chest, pulls you from your thought. You look over in time to see Jake grabbing Laine and rolling to lay on top of her. He doesn’t put his whole weight on her, though traps her just enough that she’s stuck under him in a fit of giggles. A look of worry and teasing crosses Jake’s face as he looks at you and Grayson.
“Gray have you seen sissy?”
Gray erupts into a fit of giggles while shaking his head, as Laine tries to wiggle out but can’t manage. Jake’s eyes find your own and you’re sure that your smile matches his.
“Darlin’, have you seen Ms. Madelaine?” You laugh at his overexaggerated reaction, as his eye’s pass over her small form more than once. “I just can seem to find my little darlin’ anywhere.”
“Mr. Jake!” She finally gains Jake’s attention, though upon “realization” of where she is, he starts a massive tickle war between the two.
You laugh at the pair, the both of them are identical rays of sunshine in every sense that would cause someone to assume Jake was Laine’s father. You roll to lay on your back, shifting to pull the blanket up closer to your chest, in hopes to enjoy the last few minutes before your alarm goes off. Your eyes close and when the small form climbs up to lay on your chest and relax with you, you instantly wrap your arms around Gray. Your hand lightly combs through his hair and the small sigh he releases brings you a type of comfort you never knew existed. Your body sinks farther into the bed as Gray’s breath evens out, your own breath slipping in time with his.
You don’t notice as Jake slips from the bed to turn off your alarm and holding onto Laine as he makes his way to the kitchen, leaving the pair of you to get a few more minutes of sleep.
...
Jake slowly makes his way down the hallway, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as Madelaine leads the way to the kitchen. Her small blonde curls bounce along the way and the excited squeal she gives when Jake asks if she wants pancakes, has his heart clenching and willing to do anything to hear that kind of joy from her every day.
Jake goes about getting the few ingredients, though the sight of Laine trying to watch but not wanting to get in the way, has him picking her up and sitting her on a part of the counter. Close enough that she could see but was also a safe distance from the stove.
“Alright little lady, Gray and CeCe are resting up, which means we have full control of the kitchen.” The smirk and raised eyebrows that Jake gives Laine, has her give him a look that’s nearly identical.
“Does that mean we can make purple pancakes?” Her eyes are hopeful, though a small flash of doubt crosses her face as if she shouldn’t have asked the question in the first place. Her chin dips slightly, though Jake is quick to tip it back up and give her a smile.
“That is exactly what it means, but we also need to make a special color for Gray.”
“Blue, he loves blue!”
Jake shakes his head with a smile at the small nod of confidence she gives him and gets to work mixing up a batch of pancake mix.
...
Laine had somehow found her way onto Jake’s hip; she was still small enough that Jake could easily hold her with one arm while cooking with the other. She had been whispering small requests to him as her head laid on his shoulder. Together they had made almost every shape, with and without chocolate chips.
The soft tune of country music floats through the kitchen as the pair drift around the room, not quite dancing together but close enough. With every sway, dip, or turn Jake did caused Laine to break out into a fit of giggles, face tucked into Jake’s neck as her small arms wrap around him.
“Jakey?” Her small voice piped up over the music.
“Yeah, Sweetheart.”
Her small face pulls away far enough that it causes Jake to stop cooking and look at her, giving her his full undivided attention. A single curl falls in front of her face, though before she can try and move it, Jake does. It causes a small smile to break out on her face before she then brushes a “fallen” strand of hair off Jake’s face as well.
“Have you ever rode a horse; like the cowboys in the song?”
The question has Jake laughing at the small error in tense, while also not expecting the question but positive that she was going to love his answer.
“I have.” He pauses as Laine bounces in excitement, eyes wide with wonder as she takes in every word he says. “I grew up on a big farm, with lots of horses and chickens and cattle, babies and mommas.”
“I wanna go, can we go?”
Jake catches himself, more than ready to tell her yes. To have his mom and dad meet them both, to see them experience everything he did and more as a child. Though the reality comes crashing in like a bucket of cold water, and he can only whisper a small maybe against the back of her head as he hugs her.
“Sissy?”
The sound of Grayson has Madelaine wiggling and slipping from Jake’s hip to nearly crash into Gray as he rounds the corner. Jake catches the sight of Laine adjusting Gray’s glasses, before muttering a quiet sorry for knocking into him.
Jake’s eye’s float up as he sees you coming to rest against the wall behind the twins, Laine grabs Gray’s hand and pulls him to the table and the pile of purple and blue pancakes.
...
The smile that Jake gives you barely reaches his eyes, as he watches the twins. Your quick to find home behind him and wrap your arms around his waist. You sway gently as your hands hold one another and you place a soft kiss against his shirt between his shoulder blades. The music drifts through the kitchen and has the twins wiggling in their seats as they eat. The morning sun shines through the kitchen window and casts them both is a glowing light that almost feels like a call from the universe.
Jake turns in your hold, ducking down to give you a kiss before you have a chance to ask why it looks like he wants to cry. The round of giggles that break out causes you and Jake to separate, to find both Laine and Gray making kissy faces at you. The pair go back to eating while Jake flips off the stove and leans back on the counter holding you.
“He’s never that expressive,” an overwhelming sigh rolls through your body as you sink farther into Jake’s hold. “not even at the school with just Laine and I.”
Jake hums against the curve of your neck, placing a gentle kiss against it. His voice is barely a whisper against your neck, though you can hear the pain coated words perfectly.
“I forgot for a minute, just before you came in.” It’s your turn to hum, a wordless way of telling him to go on. “Laine asked me if I had ever ridden a horse, and when I told her yes, oh baby, her smile was the sweetest thing I’d even seen.”
“They do have the sweetest smiles.” Your voice holds a lightness that eases the tension in Jake’s shoulders. “I told her about Mom and Dad’s place, and when she said she wanted to go, I damn near promised that we would.”
His voice catches and has you turning your head to look up at him, you place a gentle kiss on his jawline, before whispering a small I know. Neither of you needed to say how much the reality of getting to be with the twins for only the weekend rocked you to your cores. They had only been with you for a night and yet somehow it felt like they had been here forever.
Your hands trace along Jake’s arms, before looking up at the clock. You needed to go to the school prior to heading to base, just to make sure that everyone knew where they were going and to get a head count.
“Alright you two, we need to get dressed so we aren’t late.” You get small nods in reply as they both place their plates in the sink and come to stand in front of you and Jake. Your hand racks through Laine’s hair, the bundle of blonde curls a mess atop her head.
“Come on sweet girl, let’s go fix your hair before we get dressed.” Laine grabs your hand, and you give hers a small squeeze before you head to your bathroom. You glance back as you make your way to the hallway to check on Gray, though Jake’s already got him lifted up as the pair talk.
...
You had done two small buns in Laine’s hair per her request, before doing your own hair and makeup. She was entranced by you as you put on a coat of lipstick, before giving her a smile.
“You’re pretty.”
Your heart swells at her words and the childlike whisper they hold. You gently raise your hand and brush it across her cheek, before delicately booping her nose and earning you a giggle.
“I think you’re pretty.”
Your words have her shyly smiling and cause you to lift her chin, to place a small kiss on the crown of her head. Her hands twist the tulle of her pink skirt; the baby pink is a harsh contrast against the navy-blue shirt she has on. Though she had insisted on wearing it, and you couldn’t say no. Plus you were excited to see Jake’s face when he realized that the shirt, was in fact, the one that he had boughten all those weeks ago. How she had snuck hers and Gray’s shirts into her bag was beyond you, though you didn’t care to question it.
Her legs wiggle on the bathroom counter as you put away the few elastics and hairbrush before you grasp onto her waist and lift her to the ground. Her hand finds yours again, as the pair of you walk out to find Grayson and Jake. You find your way to the smaller second bathroom, where Gray sits on a stool in front of the mirror as Jake combs his hair back.
They don’t notice you for a moment as you stay outside in the hall and quietly listen to Grayson ask questions about Jake’s plane. It's when you hear Jake mention letting Gray sit in the F-18, that Madelaine makes your presence known.
“I wanna sit in it too!”
She gains both of the boy’s attention, while Gray finds you instantly and gives you a small smile. Jake eye's land on Madeline as she does a small spin and the biggest smile breaks across his lips. He helps Gray down from the stool and gives him a small wink that makes Gray giggle as he comes to your side.
Another high-pitched giggle echoes in the small bathroom as Jake lifts Laine and settles her on his hip again. He stares down at her shirt, before placing a kiss on the crown of her head.
“Jakey, you don’t think I look silly? I wanted to dress up,” her hands gently flare out the tule skirt. “but had to wear my plane shirt.”
Jake’s hand comes to brush against the small bows in her hair, causing her to lean farther into him. “You look perfect, my little darlin’.”
He instantly has her perking up, while you feel a small finger poke at the side of your leg and look down to see Gray wiggling his nose before his finger motions for you to come down. You bend down as you give the small boy a smile, as he gets onto his tippy toes to lean closer to your ear.
“Could we maybe ride with Mr. Jake?” He pauses and Jake looks down at you in question, though you patiently wait for Gray to continue.
It’s when you feel his fingers start to twist in your shirt you pull away to look at him. He doesn’t lift his eyes to look at you, but you’re fairly certain you know what’s going on. You twist on the ball of your feet so Gray is standing directly in front of you before you lean in now to whisper to him.
“Are you worried about everyone crowding the planes?”
Your hand had found its way to the side of his face, and the small nod he gives you makes your heart ache. You knew that Gray had severe anxiety and would most likely be attached to you all day. You also knew how excited he was and that he was only trying to find a way that he could see the planes, but not be surrounded with excited children.
“Sweetheart,” Gray stays close to your side as you look up at Jake, who had been listening to Laine talk her little heart out. “Gray would like to know if he and Laine can ride with you to the base?” You would tell Jake about Gray being worried when he wasn’t listening and hope that your eyes are conveying enough information to Jake that he doesn’t question it.
“That what you want, bud?”
Gray looks up when he hears Jake and gives him a small smile with a quiet ‘yes please.’ Laine finally slows her babbling about different sea animals, as she realizes that they would now be riding with Jake while you went and got the other kids sorted. Her smile widens immensely as she looks at Jake and gives him a small smirk, replying to Gray for him.
“That’s a great idea, Gray! That way we can keep track of Jakey and make sure that we get to see all the cool stuff, that nobody else sees.”
You stifle a laugh and look at Jake, who looks slightly stunned at the little firecracker in his arms. Gray bounces on his toes lightly, fully agreeing with his sister and no longer caring if Jake says yes.
Jake clears his throat before setting Laine on the ground, “Right you two, go get your bags.” The pair gives you a small smile before they are heading down the hall, chattering excitedly about everything they are going to see. Jake’s hand wraps around your waist and pulls you in. Your hands rest against his chest as Jake places a small kiss on your neck.
“You know she reminds be a lot of this self-assured, slightly cocky pilot I know.” Jake hums in your neck before nipping you, causing you to laugh.
“Just wait till she gets ahold of Chicken.” He pulls away from your neck looking at you with a teasing smirk. “It’s gonna be like a sneak attack, a miniature Hangman to give him hell.”
You pat his chest shaking your head at his and Bradley's never-ending antics against one another. Just last week Bradley had stolen the lunch you packed. It would have been fine, but it was a Wednesday. Meaning that Bradley had not only stolen the taco soup you made Jake, but stolen the brownies you made for his mid-week treat. Jake had been looking for the perfect way to get back at Bradley since.
“Don’t let her rip into him too much, Gray is there to be the counterweight.” You both laugh at that, they truly did even each other out. Jake leans in to kiss you, before pulling away and heading out the find the twins. The three of them congregate at the front door, as Jake double-checks that each of them has their water bottles and bags. You smile at the sight; he might have been a cocky asshole sometimes. But when he loved, he loved hard, and the sight before you was pure Seresin love and pride.
“Alright, darlin’ we will see you in a bit.”
Each of the twins yell goodbye; Laine blows you a kiss, while Gray waves, before Jake ushers them out and down the drive. They could do the smallest things, and yet still steal your heart.
...
The drive to base had been easy enough, each of the kids had gotten buckled in their booster seats without a fuss and Laine had once again requested for control of the music. Jake was not at all surprised when the same playlist that had been playing in the kitchen this morning echoed through the speakers. Letting the little girl wiggle in her seat, as she hummed along, singing a word every now and then if she knew them.
Jake had kept the music low, so he could still talk to the kids and answer any questions they might have. The Laine had asked a few questions along the way, mostly pertaining to who all would be there and if they were nice. Jake had assured her that the team would love them and that you and Jake had already told them about the twins.
Gray on the other hand had really been the chatterbox surprisingly. He had listed off facts that he knew about planes while asking for confirmation every now and then from Jake. Gray might have been on the shy side, but Jake couldn’t have been more thankful for this alone time with him. When it came to planes and anything related to the squadron, Gray lit up and his small shell became practically non-existent.
Jake slows the truck into a parking spot near the main office, while he would usually park closer to the separate building for Top Gun classes, he knew that you would be coming to the front office first. The dagger squad was supposed to be leading the tour, but you wanted to see your dad, as well as double-check with Cyclone that bringing the kids was okay.
Jake turns around in his seat after he puts the truck in park, looking over his two smiling blonde carbon copies. His sunglasses sit on the bridge of his nose and the khaki uniform would have fooled anyone into thinking that today was a normal day. That Jake Seresin was back on base, that Hangman was in his natural habitat and about to school his students in how they couldn’t fly for shit.
But the smile that rested just below the glasses was not the smirk that usually rested on Hangman’s face. No, Jake Seresin had a full-blown smile on his face and looked beyond the part of an excited father that was getting to share an important part of his life with the munchkins he loved.
“We ready?”
Laine gives Jake a strong nod, followed by an even surer ‘yup.’ While Gray gives a smaller ‘yes.’ Jake helps Laine get out of the truck as her eyes flash around the base taking in everything, quietly assessing the few people she sees walking around while staying safely next to Jake. Before Jake can help Gray down, he stops him, hands sitting on Gray’s small waist trying to gauge how he was feeling. You had texted Jake on the drive and he had quickly read the message just after parking.
His heart ached for the small boy as your words echoed in his mind, “If he needs to, just let him cling onto your leg. He’ll ground himself but just needs support. He hasn’t had a panic attack lately, but he usually can calm down with deep breathing and eye contact. Also, try not to let Laine see if he has one, it sends her into her own spiral of worry.”
“Bud,” His icy blue eyes find Jake’s green ones, timid and worried. “you’ve got nothing to worry about. I’ll be with you the whole time.” Gray’s eyes soften as he stares at Jake, silently assessing if he could actually trust Jake. Jake gives him a small smile, which causes Gray to return one before giving Jake a nod. Jake lifts him from the truck placing Gray at his side, before locking the truck.
Laine grabs one of Jake’s hands, while Grayson takes the other and Jake gives him a small squeeze which earns a smile. Jake’s eyes then find the small spitfire that holds his hand in a death grip, tightening her small hand every time she got excited.
“Darin’ what did we talk about on the way here?” Jake’s tone is teasing and the sneaky smile the Madelaine gives looks like pure trouble.
“That mustache man’s name is Rooster, but I get to call him Chicken.” Jake gives her a look that is silently saying ‘and?’ “and if anyone asks, 'specially Ms. CeeCee, I did not hear it from you.”
A self-assured smirk rests on Jake’s face, and he gives her a quick wink followed by a “that’s my girl.”
Her hand tightens around Jake’s and a smile breaks across her face at the words. She follows his actions with her own, a small wink is aimed back at Jake that fills him with pride, as well as a tiny bit of excitement. He couldn’t help it if the prospect of having a mini hangman around caused him to make sure that trouble ensued.
The three of them cut across the lawn, making their way inside to find the rest of the squadron. Jake knew that you wouldn’t get here until 9:30 or so, depending on how bad the traffic was. Madelaine bounces up the front steps, while Gray remains by Jake’s side and quietly looks at everything. There weren’t main people in the main build, hell the group never usually hung out in the “main” rec room, but instead made the one in the west wing their designated spot.
Jake watches as Laine jitters in excitement, stopping when they walk through the doors and trying to contain her excitement. Jake laughs at the small girl and while he wouldn’t normal do what he was about to, there wasn’t anyone around at for her to upset.
“Darlin’?”
The name instantly has her beaming at Jake, waiting for him to talk.
“You see that glass door all the way at the end of the hall?” She looks to where Jake is pointing, causing Gray to peek around from Jake’s leg to look as well. “Chicken should be down in that room, why don’t you go say hi. Gray and I will be down in just a minute.”
The words leave Jake’s mouth and without a reply she takes off down the hall, making sure not to run, even though she clearly wants to. Jake eyes watch as she gets to the door and goes in, before turning to Gray who is still holding Jake’s hand but has pulled away just a bit to look through the glass cases lining the walls.
Jake slides up behind him, before crouching down to talk to the little blue eyed blonde. Jake doesn’t say anything as he lets Gray look, seeing the way his eyes squint, before leaning up closer to glass. When Gray turns back around to look at Jake, the small boy gives him a smile before adjusting his glasses.
“It’s an F-14.” It’s not a question but a statement and has Jake leaning closer to the case to see the picture that Grayson was in fact talking about. A wide smile and laugh falls from Jake as his arms wrap around Gray to hold close, before picking him up.
“What other one’s can you see?”
A mirroring smile breaks out on Grayson’s face as Jake moves with him to another photo. Each answer has Jake’s heart filling with pride as he looks at the small boy is astonishment and wonder. Slowly they make their way around the case, Gray sits on Jake’s hip with one arm holding onto Jake’s neck. A small smile breaks across his face every time that Jake praises him.
“That’s Ms. CeeCee’s daddy.”
Jake stops to look at the picture Gray is pointing at, to find the one of Maverick and Commander Kazansky. He pulls back even more astonished, “How’d you know that, bud?”
“Ms. CeeCee has that picture on her desk; she told me.”
Before Jake can reply, the sound of a squeal followed by laughter has Jake setting Gray down after he tells him that they could look again later. Gray's hand fits perfectly in Jake's as the small boy gives him a chipper okay before heading to the rec room.
...
It was too early, it might have been 8:30 in the morning, which was not early at all. But for a day that they had off, none of them wanted to get up. They technically didn’t officially have the day off, but they were only supposed to be showing your group of kindergartens around.
Which they were all very excited about, but Rooster had made it known to everyone that you should have planned for later in the morning. The occasional muttered words of you being a little shit and that you purely picked the time because you were a terror of a little sister, had the group laughing. Enjoying the show of his discontent, while his head hung off the side of the couch.
Honestly, Rooster was the only one complaining. The morning was not going in his favor, not at all like the way he had planned when he woke up this morning.
You see, Rooster had a coffee shop that he got coffee from every single morning, like religiously. Not only was the coffee good, but there was a barista that Rooster had a crush on and per Phoenix's advice, Rooster had decided to try and get her number.
After pinning away at the poor girl for 3 months he was finally gonna make a move. Said plan had gone to absolute shit, he had ordered his regular order, and everything was fine. It was a normal morning, his hair looked good and he had a little bit of pep in his step.
The plan to simply ask her out when he was getting his coffee from her was solid. He had planned what he would say, planned how to ask for her number, and even thought of a few dumb jokes that might have gotten her to laugh. Though after she had handed him his coffee he completely froze; his mind had become a vast land of waste.
She had given him the sweetest smile and her voice was so light and sweet, that he had completely frozen. The only words that made it past his lips were, a word that slightly sounded like a slurred ‘you’re’ followed by ‘pretty.’
She gave him a small giggle and smile, as Rooster’s face had gone completely red. He'd gotten her to laugh, just at his own idiotic expense. Before she could say anything, he had hightailed it out of the door.
Leaving him to now, surrounded by the team as each of them poked fun at him. Phoenix had known that today was the day and asked about it first thing when she saw him. The shade of red that once again cover his face, told the squad all that they needed to know. It was out of love, Rooster knew that but how had he gone from a sweet-talking ladies’ man to barely being able to speak. He couldn't believe it and the squad made sure to place they comment of how to fix it, if he ever got the nerve to show his face to her again.
So, when a small little blonde girl with bows in her hair and a bright pink tutu looking skirt, showed up in the room everyone had instantly stopped what they were doing.
Madelaine wasn’t a shy child; no, she was more so the child that everyone knew was coming. She wasn’t a bad child, but she did have a lot of energy and the confidence of a grown man. A bull in a China hut as Jake's mother liked to call it. Explaining to you when you first met them, that when you had children to be prepared for miniature Seresins.
Laine's eyes moved around the room slowly, looking at each of them. Coyote had seen a picture of the twins that you had on your phone and knew who she was, but everyone else didn’t have clue. Sure, you and Jake talked about them, but no one had ever seen them.
No one says anything as she looks around, finding Phoenix, and giving her a massive smile. She then finds Bob, sitting quietly next to Phoenix and the small tilt of Laine’s head while she looks at Bob causes him to worry slightly. Bob’s eyes flash to Phoenix as the small girl starts walking toward him, how had such a small human have the presence of a grown man with a massive ego. Like Hangman size ego.
“My bubba has glasses like you.”
No one had been prepaid for how soft and gentle her voice was, taking that into consideration made her extremely less intimidating.
“Oh yeah?”
She gives Bob a small ‘yep’ before looking around the room. The sight of Rooster laying back on the couch, just barely paying attention to the small girl, has a massive smile breaking across her face. She slowly moves closer to Rooster, acting as if she didn't want to spook him away. Her tiny form comes to stand over the man as he lies on the couch, assessing the way his eyes move to meet her own. Her eyebrow cocks slightly in consideration before she spins around to look back at Bob.
“He the only one with a mustache?”
The question confuses the whole group as they all watch, eyes bouncing off one another in question. Where had she come from, and if she was one of your students, why weren’t you with her. Bob nods in confirmation and the wide smile that breaks across her face has him smiling in return. Phoenix and Bob share a look as Laine looks between the pair, giving them another smile that makes her look as sweet as honey, before turning around to find Rooster.
He had sat up when she had asked Bob the question and now as she stares at him, he’s unsure of what to do. That is until her small hand juts out to Rooster, clearly looking for a handshake. Rooster grasps her small hand skeptically, unsure of what the hell is going on.
“I’m Madelaine, it’s nice to meet you, Chicken.”
The words that leave her lips have his mouth dropping open, while a round of laughter breaks out around him. The reaction has Laine laughing too before she gives Rooster another smile. Slapping on the sweet and innocent act hard now.
“Sweetheart, who are you here with?” Phoenix seems to be the only one that can calm her laughter, the sight of a small girl wandering around the base had her worried and anxious about why such a small child would be alone.
Though before she can answer, Jake and Gray make their way into the room.
“Jakey, I met Chicken.”
The whole room turns to see a beaming Jake Seresin, holding the hand of a little boy. Though he drops his hand for a moment, as Laine runs to him to be picked up. Her arms wrap around his neck before he places a kiss on the crown of her head and takes hold of Gray’s hand that had grasped onto his belt for the moment.
The sight in front of them causes the whole room to pause momentarily, when had Hangman become a father. Because looking at the set of three and how they shared almost every physical feature, other than eye color, it appeared like you and Jake had children that you had been hiding for five years.
The sight doesn’t faze Javy as he’s the first one to make his way over and officially meet the twins. Laine gives Javy a big smile, while Gray remains glued to Jake, only giving Javy a small wave. Jake runs a hand through Grayson’s hair, comforting the small boy, who was clearly overwhelmed given the current circumstances.
“Alright, I guess we better do introductions. I’ve got promises to fulfill before Y/n gets here.”
Gray pops up at the mention of getting to see the planes, while Laine is already buzzing with excitement.
“This is Miss Madelaine," The small girl lifts her head from its resting place in the crook of Jake's neck to smile at the surrounding group. "and this is my new wingman Grayson.” Gray's eyes flitter around the room, not holding contact with anyone before looking back up at Jake.
Jake winks down at Gray who smiles brightly at him, happy to have the show of care and love. Everyone comes forward for introductions, each of them excited to meet the children that had consumed your and Jake’s life.
Phoenix can’t seem to get enough of them, especially Grayson who can’t stop smiling at the pilot as she talks to him. Jake watches as she tells Gray something, before taking him to talk to Bob. Bob's mention of his glasses has Grayson smiling bigger than any of the other pilots had gotten him too.
Laine teases Rooster again as she rests in Jake's hold, though blushes and hides in Jake’s neck when he teases her back. Though Payback and Fanboy gain Laine’s attention at the mention of going to the beach. She is quick to wiggle down from Jake's hold and rush over to the couch with the two pilots. The pair ask her if she likes the ocean and cause her to go on a tangent about the sea.
...
“No, really! Dolphins are the meanies of the ocean, look it up.”
Her hands rest on her hips as she says it, waiting for Fanboy to check and smiling triumphantly when he reads an article about it. Jake shakes his head at the girl, looking at Gray who had found his way back to Jake’s side after talking to Bob.
“You ready to go, Bud?” Jake’s hand brushes a piece of gelled hair back from Gray’s face, and though he doesn’t realize it, the whole room watches in shock at how loving and gentle Jake is with the boy.
“Yes, please. Bob said he’s a weapons system operator, can he come with us? He said he would show me his controls.”
Jake nods as he sends Grayson to go tell Bob to come on. His heart swells as he watches Gray happily run to Bob across the room. This was the most public interaction that he had seen from the small boy and though Jake hadn’t been around them a lot before, you had told him how shy Gray was in public.
“Little darlin’?” Laine spins around happily when Jake calls her, leaving her lesson about the ocean with Fanboy to listen to Jake. “Wanna go see my plane?”
“And sit in it?”
“That’s what I promised, wasn’t it?”
Jake’s tone is teasing and has Laine running from the couch over to Jake after telling Payback and Fanboy that she would tell them more later. Grayson and Bob appear still talking about different planes, though he doesn’t reach out to grab Jake’s hand. Gray checks to make sure that Jake is by him, making eye contact as a silent confirmation that Jake wasn’t leaving him, before focusing back on Bob.
“We got about 45 minutes until y/n gets here and I promised these two that they could see the planes early. So, if you wanna come, lets go.”
Laine is the first one slipping from the rec room, hand attached to Jake’s as she looks around. Bob and Gray had found a safe pace right behind Jake, staying close but also allowing Gray a baby step toward space if he wanted. Jake hadn’t expected each of the pilots to get up and head to the hangar with him, to be honest, though if it was him in their place he would have come too.
Gray hadn’t stopped talking about the different planes and unbeknownst to him, the small boy had now gained the attention of all the pilots. Javy had made it to the front of the group to walk with Jake and Laine. Not expecting the spitfire to grasp onto his hand, but gladly accepts her hold. Though Javy quickly learns that Laine always seems to have ulterior motives, as she bats her eyelashes and sweetly asks if he and Jakey would swing her. A laugh falls from both Jake and Javy as the pair look at each other, before Jake silently shrugs his shoulders. Looking back at the small girl; the smile on her face was one that he couldn’t tell no.
And so, with every couple of steps, Jake and Javy had Madelaine swinging up off the ground. The small squeals of delight gain the attention of the few younger pilots that Jake recognized as students. Though no one in the squad pays them any mind, solely focusing on the two small bundles of joy.
...
Rooster and Phoenix walk slightly slower than the group, still a part of it but back far enough that they could talk just between the pair of them. The sight of Hangman and Coyote swinging Madelaine doesn’t go unnoticed, as well as the small glances back that Hangman makes every so often to check on Gray.
“Are you seeing this?” Roosters tone is skeptical, he surely wouldn’t believe what was occurring right in front of him if he wasn’t witnessing it.
“I know, I can’t believe how much Gray knows about planes.”
Rooster all but stops in his tracks as he deadpans at Phoenix, mouth open and closing slightly, gapping like a fish. Phoenix hadn’t even noticed Rooster's harsh stop, too focused on listening to Gray list off statistics from a P-41, though the over-exaggerated hand movement finally gets her attention.
“No, Nat! I mean Hangman; when has he ever smiled as much as he is?”
“He smiles like that with Y/n.”
A frustrated huff leaves Rooster's chest and he can’t seem to figure out why no one else can see what he sees. That Hangman had turned into a gummy bear and more than he normally was with you. They looked like mini Sereins and Jake treated them like they were his. Hell, Madelaine was a damn copy of the cocky pilot all the way down to her attitude.
Phoenix notices Rooster’s baffled face and slows slightly, causing the group to separate from them further. Her lips form into a harsh line, as she raises her eyebrow slightly at Rooster, though the pilot seems to not have a clue about what he did wrong.
“I know that we give Jake a hard time, we all throw jokes, but don’t question this.” Rooster’s eyes flick toward the group and then back at Phoenix. “We all know how long they’ve been trying Roo; if this is what Y/n and Jake need then we support them. If this somehow turns into something more, we support them.”
The mention of you and Jake struggling with infertility has the smile on Rooster’s face dropping as he gives Phoenix a solum nod in understanding. Rooster had been a major person that you and Jake leaned on throughout it.
It had only happened a couple times with Jake while on base, and Rooster hadn’t heisted in taking over the class and letting Jake have a few moments. For you, Rooster had seen the sobs wreak havoc through your body and felt the hopelessness of only being able to hold you. He was your big brother and seeing you so broken, without a way to help, killed him.
The pair of them catch up to the group easily, as they had stopped to let the twins look at a jet taking off from the runway in the distance. Grayson was mesmerized and hadn’t taken his off of it till he could no longer see the plane. Madelaine had somehow landed back in Jake’s arms, as he pointed out on the horizon.
The sound of a small ‘wow’ gains Jake’s attention and has him looking down at Gray, who is already staring back at him.
“I wanna do that someday.”
Gray grabs back onto Jake’s free hand as he looks back out to see if any other jets were taking off. Though Jake’s eyes can’t seem to leave the small boy. Jake knew that Gray loved planes; but to see him look up at Jake and tell him those exact words that he had muttered to his father at such a young age, caused his eyes to gloss over and promise himself that he would do anything in his power to make sure Gray’s dream came true.
...
“How do I look?” The words are muffled behind the mask as Laine’s head sways slightly under the weight of Jake’s helmet. Her small form looks even smaller sitting in the cockpit of Jake’s plane and Jake can’t but want to talk a picture.
“You look perfect, darlin’. Smile for me, Ms. CeeCee is gonna want to see this.”
A giggle breaks from her chest as the widest smile covers her face. The round of giggle’s that breaks from her chest has Phoenix and Coyote laughing, even more so when she pokes her tongue out at Jake for a “funny pose.”
“Come on sweetpea, it’s time to let Gray have a turn.”
Jake unclips the side of the mask from his helmet, before moving to lift Madelaine out of the seat. One of her arms wrap around Jake’s neck, while the other holds his helmet secure on her head still. Jake sets her down on the steps, watching as Coyote takes her small hand and helps her down. Once safely on the ground Jake’s eyes flash up to look for Gray, though neither him nor Bob are anywhere in sight.
Jake chuckles as he makes his way down the steps, already positive that they’re in the second hangar where Phoenix and Bob’s jet resides. Both Fanboy and Payback had gone missing as well, no doubt with Gray as they couldn’t seem to hear enough about the different facts he knew.
“Gray and the boys went to our hanger.” Jake nods along to Phoenix, looking out to find Laine chasing Rooster.
“I figured,” Jake's helmet sways with every turn Laine makes, though she doesn’t falterer as she tries to ware Rooster down. “Little darlin’, come on we're going to go find bubba.”
Both Rooster and Madelaine stop to listen to Jake, while Rooster seems plenty happy to no longer be running, a small pout forms on Laine’s lips as she looks back up at Rooster.
“Chicken,” The name makes Rooster laugh, before lowering down to the small girl. Her voice lowers, so much so that he can barely hear her. “can I have a piggyback ride?”
Rooster’s smile falters momentarily, not liking how she looks down and the drop of her voice in worry. Rooster is gentle as he tips back Laine’s chin, the small frown residing on her face melts away when Rooster gives her a massive smile.
“Of course, you can.” His hand reaches out and tickles at Laine, causing another round of giggles accompanied by a full smile to break out. “Who am I to deny the princess.”
Jake silently watches as Rooster slowly gets Madelaine to open up, his chest tightening at the pair. She hadn’t told Jake anything when she had climbed into bed with him this morning, her small whimpering form had woken him up as she sat quietly at the side of the bed clutching the blanket you picked out for them.
The tears streaming down her face felt like a punch to the gut and when Jake opened his arms for her, she was instantly up and falling into them. Quiet shush’s and humming had calmed her and had her asleep in no time.
He didn’t know everything that the twins had been through, there was only so much that you could tell him when you weren’t positive of what all the twins had been through yourself. But after last night, Jake knew that letting Janice and Ed take them back at the end of the week was going to be one of the hardest things he would go through.
How could Jake willingly let two children go back into a house that he wasn’t even sure was safe? Not taking into account what the twins had shown or said, Jake wouldn’t have liked or approved of the foster parents anyway. He knew the moment that they came in to sign the paperwork this week, that they weren’t housing the kids out of love.
The small nudge against Jake’s shoulder has him leaving Rooster and Laine, to find a worried Phoenix looking at him. You and Phoenix were close and talked about everything under the sun, though he wasn’t sure what all you had told her. And he, well he only ever told Javy and Rooster sometimes, what was bothering him. More often than not he told Javy or just waited until he could talk to you.
You were Jake’s safe place, you understood and loved him when everyone else only saw him as an asshole. You knew the real Jake, the one that was vulnerable and worried that he wasn’t enough. That somehow, in some way he would disappoint you and his parents.
“You, okay?” the question rings out and causes Jake to question if he wanted to venture down that spiral right now.
“All good Phe, just trying to figure out some stuff.”
She gives him an apprehensive smile, though doesn’t prod, and follows him out to find the boys in the second hanger. Laine bounces with each step Rooster takes on his shoulders with Jake's helmet still sitting upon her head. It doesn’t take long for Laine to reach out for Jake as he gets closer, wanting to be back in his arms. The small girl slips from Rooster’s hold, and down into Jake’s awaiting arms. Jake's hand rubs gently at Laine’s back as she tightens her hold on his neck and nuzzles in deeper.
...
Jake slips his phone from his pocket to see a message from you, stating that you were 15 minutes away and asking how the twins were fairing. He quickly types back a response, before finding Gray up in Phoenix and Bob's plane, the others crowding around the base listening to Gray ask questions about the different parts that Bob knows like the back of his hand.
Laine wiggles in his hold, before quietly whispering in Jake’s ear that she would like to go see where Phoenix flies. Jake sets the small girl down and watches as she makes a beeline for the group. Fanboy helps her up the stairs and the pair giggle together, giving Bob wide smiles as he takes a picture of them.
Jake stays back, quietly watching the squadron accept the twins like they had been born into the group. Jake sees Bob pocket his phone after taking a few more pictures. Jakes calls out to him, telling Bob that he would appreciate it if he would send him the pictures. Jake gets a thumbs up, though isn’t looking at Bob long because the sight of the twins peeking over the side of the cockpit with their tongues out has him smiling.
Rooster comes to stand beside Jake, as Bob helps the twins get out and to the ground. Jake’s eyes leave the pair to look at Rooster, who still hasn’t taken his eyes off the twins.
“So, these two going to be making me an uncle?” Rooster says it with a laugh, making sure that Jake knows that he is open to anything and doesn’t hold any contempt toward this newfound possibility of Jake and your growing family.
“I don’t know, and I can’t get mine or y/n hopes up.” A deep sigh falls from Jake's lips that finally causes Rooster to look at him. “But I know that whatever happens, I won’t be letting go of them unless it’s for a situation that would be better and more loving than what we can give them.”
“I’m guessing you’re referring to their current situation, that Javy mentioned?”
Jake’s jaw clenches at the mention of Janice and Ed. The pain of not knowing what exactly is going on but knowing that it’s enough to cause the twins to show signs of at least emotional abuse, if not more. If he found out that it ever was more, Jake wasn’t sure if there would be anyone that could stop him from settling up on behalf of the twins.
The chatter coming from the runway gains Rooster’s and Jake’s attention to see you with Mav and a group of children and a few parents. The chatter gains the twin's attention and has them setting off for you, in squeals of delight while still wearing Jake and Bob’s helmets.
The sight of you dropping to your knees to hug the pair makes Rooster’s breath catch. He watches you introduce the pair to Mav, who immediately lifts a smiling Madelaine as she talks about her helmet. Gray settles at your side, holding onto your belt loop as you introduce the group of pilots that make their way over.
“Guess that settles it.” Rooster’s voice is warm but holds a harsh tone that gains back Jake’s attention.
“They're a part of our family now.” Rooster’s gaze finally breaks from the group to look at Jake, as Jake watches an emotion cross Rooster’s face that he had only ever witnessed a few times. Those times being, when talking about his parents, after an asshole at the Hard Deck grabbed you, and the day of the Uranium mission after almost losing Mav. “I’ve had my family broken apart once, I won’t let it happen to you and y/n. And I sure as hell won’t let it happen to those two.”
“You corrupted her soul, what else did you expect”
🍒 Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Callsign Cherry Masterlist
🍒 Pairing: Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Y/N 'Cherry' Bishop, Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw x Y/n 'Cherry' Bishop
🍒 Word Count: 7.3k
🍒 Warnings: Parental death, angst, POW and very sensitive topics, Bradley... idk what he's doing today lol, swearing, breach of trust, loss of friendship (and love...), protective Jake, protective Bob, mourning, a lot of crying, drinking, dark headspace
🍒 A/n: I would like to note that I know how sensitive this topic is and I want to caution anyone that is reading this. I could never know or capture all of the feelings that families go through, and if you have been through this situation or lost anyone while they were in the military, I'm sending you my deepest condolences and am sending you all the love.
🍒 A/n pt 2: I just wrote this in the last five hours and cried a lot. It wasn't supposed to be an angsty story, but we've got multi-layered characters here.
🍒 Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)
Your chest heaves as the sweat drips between the swell of your breasts, and the sound of your shoes hitting the packed sand keeps a steady tempo for you to run to. The sound of waves crashing barely reaches your ears, as you push yourself harder. You catch sight of the sun starting to peak up over the horizon, which causes you to check your watch.
4:45
4 miles in 45 minutes wasn’t horrible, but it was nowhere close to your best. You had woken up at 3, drenched in sweat and gasping for air. It was the same reaction every time you came back to San Diego, maybe it was how abruptly your grandparents took you away, maybe it was a visceral reaction that you had no control over, or maybe you were still that broken little girl.
It was most likely the latter, though you don’t allow the thought to float around long in your head. It’s how you had ended up running, any way to get away from the reality of the situation. Quiet literally running away from your problems.
The bay curves around, low tide with an expanse of sand that led right up to the house you rented. Your eyes cast across the bay and find the small white house, placed perfectly on the beach and close to the base, with a small dock off the back that connects directly to the harbor.
You only let yourself look at it momentarily as the sunrise lights up the expanse of sand, before focusing back on the path in front of you. A harsh breath pushes from your chest as you break out into a sprint, a gasp toeing the line of a cry. Your chest burns and you relish in the pain, anything to take away how your heart hurts.
You reach the pavement of the street that’s a straight stretch to the bungalow, 1 more mile. You had been pacing yourself, but as memories flash across your mind you could care less. You needed, to feel something that was physical pain, to prove you were still breathing. A sharp ache settles in your side, but you can see the front porch from a distance and so you push harder.
A grimace crosses your face as a metallic taste settles in the back of your mouth, and your chest aches, but you can’t stop not when you were so close. Another gasp releases from your chest and causes you to push that final step more.
You don’t make it to the door, the moment your feet touch the grass, you collapse. Your chest heaves in pain and have to spit out the mucus coating your throat. Though the tint of red proves that it was more blood than spit. You roll on your back as your gasps, turn into silent sobs.
Your body aches and screams at you for your reckless behavior, though you settle in the pain. Letting it pull you down and consume you completely. Your therapist had once told you that pushing this hard, was a form of self-harm. You stopped seeing her after that appointment, it wasn’t that you couldn’t come to terms with your trauma. It was the fact that it was the only thing, other than flying, that could clear your mind.
Besides, it wasn’t the worst thing that you could do.
No, you’d gone down that road while in high school. Jake was the only one that knew just how far things had gone. As much as you despised him now, for a long time he was your only reason to keep breathing.
...
You wipe the steam from the mirror, before towel drying out your hair. The sound of a door closing is followed by a knock on the door.
“Hold on Bobby. Your coffee is in the kitchen too.”
You hear a small hum in reply, and you laugh lightly. Bob was never a morning person and in the last two weeks, you had made sure that you had his coffee ready before he got out of bed. It’s not that you liked waking up early, but more so that sleep escaped you regularly.
You grab the oversized tee shirt from the counter, before slipping it on your frame. For going shorts, the old Texas longhorn’s shirt covered enough and it wasn’t as if didn’t Bob hadn’t already seen everything. One of the perks of living with each other for 4 years, it had become such a regular occurrence that it no longer phased either of you. You were quite positive that you could walk around naked, and the only thing Bobby would comment on would be the set of tan lines that adorned your skin over the past two weeks.
You slip out of the bathroom and head toward the kitchen, wanting to make sure that he had indeed found his coffee, but also that he didn’t steal yours. You almost laugh at the sight of his half-naked form leaning over the kitchen table, while keeping his coffee tucked in close.
Though the cup of coffee sitting opposite of him, has you smiling as you slip into the seat across from him. You slip your cup silently waiting for Bobby to at least get half the cup in his system before you try and hold a conversation. You glance at the oven, it was only 6:30 and you didn’t have to be on base until 8 and the drive was only 15 minutes. Your eyes fall back to Bob as an empty cup now sits between the two of you. You snicker as he rakes a hand threw his hair, it causes his baby blues to settle on you.
“It’s Saturday tomorrow, Bobby. Two whole days for you to sleep in.”
“Yeah, as long as you don’t wake me up.” His tone is teasing though your smile falls into a frown.
“I didn’t mean to wake you; it’s just being back here.”
Your words have his sleep-deprived brain clearing and the apology is already sitting at the tip of his tongue. Though you stop him before he has the chance, by giving his hand a small squeeze. His hand settles in yours and gives you a squeeze in return. You had lost so many people throughout your life and couldn’t have been more thankful that you had him.
The pair of you sit in silence, enjoying the quiet morning before the chaos of your everyday life commences. The past two weeks had been relatively calm, other than the sublet jabs that Rooster and Hangman like to throw at you. It was funny, and it only got worse as you stayed slightly ahead of them in all of the exercises. It had gotten to the point that you were just taunting them; dogfights were your favorite. Maverick had switched to having someone from the class be the enemy target and somehow.... by some luck unbeknownst to you, the three of you always ended up in the air together.
The three of you had kept the jabs surface level, nothing digging too deep that would actually cause damage. You weren’t willing to risk losing your place on the detachment or let some feud put anyone else in the squadron at risk.
Your eyes shift back to Bobby as he rises from his chair and takes both of your cups to the sink. His hands settle on your shoulders as he stands behind you and places a kiss on the top of your head.
“You don’t have to go through it alone, Cher.”
Your hand reaches up to clasp one of his hands, giving it a squeeze and a small kiss. While Bobby knew everything, it didn’t make actually talking about it any easier.
“Thanks, B.”
The nickname slips from your lips and causes Bob's hands to tighten, as a full laugh falls from his lips. You rarely called him B, and when you did it was used to break the tension in the air. That first night that the pair of you tried to see if you could be anything more, you had made a point that you wouldn’t be moaning Robert or Bob. So, B became the given name, and well... it only landed you two in a fit of laughter. It was your own personal inside joke.
...
Your eyes scan the hanger as you and Bob make your way to your seats, though as your eyes settle on a familiar face a massive grin appears on your lips. Bob had already made it to your seats, and you give his shoulder a gentle squeeze to get his attention from Phoenix.
You nod to the front of the hanger, toward the group of older gentlemen talking before the day starts. His eyes find the dark head of hair that had been missing for the last two weeks and gives you an understanding smile, before pushing your hip forward lightly.
Your boots echo through the hanger, and you can feel the different sets of eyes find your passing figure, though you pay them no mind. You come to a stop just behind the three men, waiting for Maverick to finish his sentence. You see Warlock’s shift to see you and give you a small smile, which makes your own smile grow as their conversation ends.
“Admiral.” Your tone is steady as you say it, and you quickly wipe the smile from your face as he turns.
“Lieutenant.”
His face remains serious as the pair of you stare at one another. You can hear the rest of the pilots behind you quietly talking about the pair of you, though you pay them no mind. Slowly the stern look turns into a full smile, though yours stays in place waiting.
“Hey, kid.”
The nickname makes a full smile break across your lips and for a moment you’re a little girl again. His arms reach out to hug you, though you’re already throwing yourself into his arms and grasping on like you were worried he might slip away.
“Hi, Uncle Beau.”
Your throat catches as you say it and cause Cyclone’s arms to tighten around you before letting go. The both of you pull back and give each other one last smile, before falling back into line. You nod at the other two men who hadn’t moved, each of them giving you a small smile. You give the three of them one last smile, your heart already finding some form of peace over the fact of having your godfather close.
Your smile falls as you turn and make direct eye contact with Hangman and Rooster, before brushing passed them to go sit with Bobby.
“Lieutenant Bishop,” Cyclone's voice echoes through the hanger and causes you to turn back around. “Come see me later, we’ve got a few things to talk about. One of them being Lieutenant Commander Adams.”
Your eyes widen slightly, the man might have only been your godfather, but he sure took the job of vexing any of your “friends” seriously. You can hear Bob laugh to the side of you and your arm punches out to hit him on the shoulder.
“Of course, Admiral.”
You sink down into the seat next to Bob who is still snickering beside you, “You think it’s about you and Adams in that f-18? What were you doing again?” Your face blanches slightly, though your eyes remain trained on the whiteboard. “Going over how well you could grip the yoke?”
You slowly turn to Bob, who has a cheeky smile taunting you. Your eyes find Payback, Fanboy, and Phoenix who are practically leaning over the back of your and Bob's chairs to hear. Each of them looks at you while trying not to smile, which they are failing phenomenally at.
“Fuck you, Robert.”
Your tone is anything but harsh, and a small chuckle breaks from your chest as you rest back in your chair.
...
Once again you had been chosen to be the enemy target for the dynamic idiot duo, by now you were sure that Maverick was doing it as a way of “therapy” for the three of you. The two of them stop at their own F-18s as you head farther down the tarmac, though Rooster’s voice yelling at you has you turning around to see what it was now that he was bitching at now.
“What do I have to do to get on the Cherry Popping List, Cherry?”
You almost let the words go over your head, though the small snicker at the in pulls you back. The comment and action not only affect you though, as you watch Jake tense up and glare at his wingman. If looks could kill, Rooster would be six feet under.
“Sorry, I’m not one to lower my standards.” A smile crosses your lips that has Rooster standing straighter. “Especially for pilots that can’t get into the Academy on the first go.”
You don’t wait to see his reaction, already knowing that Maverick holding his papers was a sore subject. You’d heard the rumor when the three of you were in the Academy, though hadn’t realized it was true until you heard Maverick and Rooster arguing last week.
It doesn’t take long for the three of you to get in the air, as you hear the pair chattering across the coms. You stay low level, just above the hard deck, waiting for them to get restless.
Rooster's voice cuts across the frequency again, “So Hangman, tell me, was she any good? Figure asking from someone with first-hand experience is better than nothing.”
Rooster's laugh echoes across the radio, and for the minute you give them, before you're officially pissed, Jake doesn’t say anything. You glance up and see their pair of F-18s right above you before you pop up. They’re separated just enough, and they have no clue that you’re just under them, soon to be on top.
“You should worry about your own sex life Rooster; I’ve heard quite a few underwhelming reviews.”
The sentence slips off your lips, though before either of them can reply you shoot up through the pair. Sending each of them off to the side in a barrel roll and now it’s your laugh that echoes across the coms.
“What the fuck was that.” Jake’s voice rings out and breaks up the laughing fit you were having due to them both gasping.
“It’s called, I’m about to kick your ass and win 50 bucks from Coyote.” They both go silent trying to figure out what you mean. You knew that the rest of the squad would be listening to the coms, specifically Javy. “Ain’t that right Javy? This will make ten-”
You're cut off before you can finish, “We’ve gotten tone on you six times.”
You roll your eyes at Rooster, as you bring the nose around and find the two of them.
“No, you’re right Rooster. You’ve done such a good job of coming in second, too bad there’s only one winner.”
You go silent after that, paying neither of them any mind. You need to focus and not worry about the birdbrains; you also knew that your silence unnerved them. Just another perk. It doesn’t take long for you to get behind the pair, though it’s Rooster who you have your eyes on.
He had constantly been trying to piss you off. While Jake made comments, dumb snappy comments, Rooster was like a lover scorned and picked at every little thing he could.
He’d almost brought up your dad the other day, after seeing a picture of your father and Cyclone standing side by side on a carrier. Both of them had been deployed and it was one that you personally had tucked away at home.
Though just as the words “Your father” slipped passed Rooster's lips, Hangman had thrown him a glare that silenced the man. For a minute you saw Jake, not Hangman, though the flash of his green eyes to you was quickly covered up and Jake was gone again.
You didn’t know if you could ever forgive either of them, you had never really thought about it until now, with every look that Jake gave you, you questioned yourself. Could you ever risk opening up like that again, giving someone that much power over you.
Sure, Bobby knew everything, though the “power” he had over you was different than Jake did. Jake held a power over you that terrified you, your bond ran deep and though it was broken, you had never been able you get rid of it wholly.
The pair of them split and you immediately follow Rooster, he’s just in front of you and with every second you’re gaining on him. You’d need to get tone soon; Hangman would be circling back around any moment and on your ass.
“Hey, Chicken” Your words cut through the radio before tone rings out alerting everyone. “Your dead.”
You hear Rooster swearing over the coms, though you're too focused on finding Hangman.
“Where’d you go Hangy.” Your voice is condensing and as it slips over your lips, you level out to find him directly in front of you. The pair of you heading directly for the other.
“Hey, Cher” His laugh has you gritting your teeth, though neither of you hit the button to get tone, even though you’re directly in line.
“You really wanna do this?”
“I missed our games, sweetheart.”
Every second brings you closer, and you can hear chatter echoing through the radio from the rest of the dagger squad.
“You should know better than to play this game, Jake.” The name slips out, though you don’t even realize you’ve said it.
“Just break off Cher, easy as that.”
“Then you do it.”
“Y/n Marie Bishop,” Bob's voice cuts through and gains your attention. “break off. Cher, you don’t need to do this.”
You don’t reply and Jake’s right in front of you now. He doesn’t say anything either and you silently wonder if still remembers how the pair of you played it in the Academy before he ruined everything. You’d gotten caught a couple times and had your fair share of ass chewings. Though if there was anything Jake was good at, was sweet talk his way out of anything. Even when a higher-up was threatening to ground you.
There’s a round of voices echoing through the coms, even Rooster freaking out slightly. Though they fall silent to your ears as one voice echoes out.
“Y/n” Your name falls from his lips so gently that it makes your heart ache. The last syllable of your name passes Jake’s lips and you both break hard right, just barely slipping passed the other.
You’re not sure how to feel knowing that Jake had remembered; did it mean anything or was it just a random fact he hadn’t forgotten?
...
Before you know it you're back on the tarmac, slipping your helmet off and tying your flight suit around your waist. The afternoon heat had become unbearable, and your sweat had made your damn shirt cling to you like a second skin.
You see Hangman and Rooster both climbing from their jets, chatting back and forth, though you can’t hear what they’re saying. Hangman catches your eye, though doesn’t say anything. Maybe he would have if the rest of the squadron wasn’t making their way across the tarmac, Bobby leading them as his lethal gaze settles on you, not wavering in the slightest.
You step toward Bobby, as his eyes asses your sweating form. His hands settle on your shoulders, and you give him a tiny smile, knowing that you were about to get your ass chewed.
“You’re, okay?” The question doesn’t surprise you; Bob had always made your health and safety his first priority when it came to ripping you a new one.
“Yes, Bobby. In one piece, and ready for the Floyd ‘I’m disappointed in you’ speech.”
The answer causes him to laugh, before pulling you in for a hug. A quiet whisper of comfort is muttered against your shoulder and has you tightening your hold before pulling away.
By now the rest of the group, as well as Rooster and Hangman had formed around the pair of you. Your eyes move around the group and each of them looks at you in stunned but apprehensive silence.
“Bob might not be ripping into you, but I sure as hell don’t wanna be there for when Cyclone gets ahold of you.” Fanboy’s comment has a smile breaking across your lips, as you pluck your sunglasses from Bob’s shirt pocket. Bobby clicks his teeth before a small chuckle pushes pasted his lips as he shakes his head at you. Your eyes leave Bob and you give the rest of the squad an award-winning smile.
“You would be surprised just how good I can sweet talk someone,” You move towards Fanboy, and pat his chest gently as you pass. “Especially when it comes to my godfather.” The words are thrown over your shoulder, though you keep walking as a round of questions breaks out.
“Seresin, let’s move it.”
Your tone is harsh, though has both you and Hangman questioning when he became Seresin to you again.
...
“What in the hell were the two of you dumbasses pulling out there?”
Cyclone paces behind the desk that both you and Jake stand at attention in front of. Though before you can answer, Jake speaks up.
“It was my idea, sir.” Both yours and Cyclone’s head whip to look at Jake in bewilderment. “I wanted to make a point that this mission was serious, that it is life or death.”
Cyclone hums though his eyes don’t leave your own, “and you thought playing chicken, with government property, was the proper motivation.”
A sharp nod comes from Jake while his eyes remain dialed in on the bookshelf behind Cyclone.
“First of all, even without hearing the audio from the coms, I would always know this was something Lieutenant Bishop orchestrated.” Cyclone’s eye glances at you, though you’re quick to move your center focal point to something behind him. “Secondly, don’t think that I forgot about the shit you both pulled in the Academy.”
Your eyes follow Cyclone’s gaze to Jake as he mutters that last word. By the way, Jake’s eyes widen slightly and the harsh tone of your godfather, you know that your flight habits are no longer the topic at hand. The silent stare-down between them would be unsettling, if you didn’t know how big of softies, they both were. The clearing of your throat has them snapping out of the daze.
“I’m not grounding you, not when the mission is so close.” A sigh you didn’t realize you were holding leaves your body, you had yet to be grounded in your career, and the thought honestly scared you. The closest you fell to your parents was in the sky. “But I promise you, if either of you pulls that shit again, I’ll ground you the second the mission is finished.”
While you knew that Cyclone was being a hard ass, was because it was his job. On base, he would always be Admiral before Uncle, though the flash of worry in his eyes tells you that it wasn’t his only reason.
“Lieutenant Seresin, you’re dismissed.” Jake glances at you as he leaves though your focus remains forward, silently trying to figure out just how much Cyclone knew about yours and Lieutenant Commander Adams’ agreement. The clicks behind you and the sight of your uncle sighing so heavily does nothing to ease your worrying mind. A nod of the head to the chair directly across from his own causes you to sit.
“What did Adams tell you about the mission?” Your head cocks slightly, this was defiantly not the direction you thought and prepared yourself for.
“Only that Jake and Bradshaw were going to be here.” There you go again, how had he in such a short amount of time, have you back to using his first and last name. You had stopped using them after everything and started only calling him Hangman. He hated when you called him by his callsign, always said it was too impersonal.
Your uncle’s silence paired with the tick in his jaw, causes your chest to tighten. He was never this serious when it was just the two of you, that wasn’t the type of relationship you had. The last time you remember seeing him like this was the day your grandparents took you back to Texas, while you bawled and clutched onto him and your Aunt Julie begging them to change your grandparents’ mind.
“Y/n, Sweetheart, we need to have a talk.” You quietly suck your teeth, and your eyes instantly land on the file Beau sides across his desk. The bright red letters spelling out classified aren’t what catches your attention, it’s the black letter under it, in such blocky letters ‘BISHOP’ glares back at you.
“Honey,” your eyes leave the smile, and the small tremble in your bottom lip, confirms to Cyclone that you have an idea where the conversation is happening. “you were so young when everything happened. I didn’t have the clearance to tell you, even if I wanted to.”
You force a harsh breath through your nose, silently begging for whoever controlled the universe to not break you absolutely with whatever lies with those pages.
“But with you getting placed on this mission, Commander Kazansky, and I both agreed that you should know. That you had a right to know.”
The words catch in your uncle’s throat and have your eyes flashing to him. You wish that you’d have stayed focused on the file because seeing the eyes of one of the strongest men you know lined with tears makes it all worse. Makes whatever you’re about to read more real.
“What part of the story wasn’t true? What’s it have to do with this mission?” you’re surprised that he can even hear you, with how quietly the words slipped passed your lips.
“We’ve been watching the location, where the Uranium plant is for a long time, honey. It wasn’t a plant back then, it was supposed to be some ragtag militia group that broke off Russia’s military.”
Your hands twist in your lap as you boot intently taps on the floor. You can’t bring yourself to grab the folder, too consumed with the voices bouncing around in your mind. They hadn’t told you much back then, just that it was supposed to be an in-and-out mission. Things went wrong, and they lost him. They’d given you minimal details, you were only seven and you’d never questioned what happened.
Because you knew what happened.
Didn’t you?
“We didn’t have the right intel and it wasn’t until we were right over them, that artillery that rivaled ours at the time, started going off.”
A harsh breath leaves your uncle as he turns and pulls a 5th of whiskey from a bottom drawer. The seal is still intact and the snap of it echoes threw your ears, as your eyes slightly blur in and out of focus. A glass is sat in front of you, though you can’t seem to make a move for it.
“Your dad’s plane went down in a clearing; it was the perfect spot. The safest crash site we could have asked for.”
The shake of your uncle’s hand as he downs the rest of his glass has your gaze, you’d never seen him so unkept. Beau Simpson was the top of the top, the United States Navy’s poster child for god’s sake.
“He was gonna be fine, we’d already called in e-vac.”
The shake of his voice as your eyes refocusing and the red-rimmed eye’s staring back at you aren’t one’s you’d ever seen before. Not in this capacity at least.
“They appeared out of nowhere,” your jaw clenches and it’s surprised your teeth haven’t cracked. “they had him out of his plane, before any of us to circle around and get a shot.”
Your body lurches forward slightly and it feels like all the air had been ripped from your chest and the ringing in your ear only gets louder as your uncle talks.
“We were able to bring him home, the week before your mom passed.”
You hadn’t had a panic attack since you were a teenager, though the way you gasp for breath as the words break from you. “That was three years later.”
How you ended up pacing is beyond you,
“don’–” your hands brace against the back of your chair as you rock back on your heels. “Don’t tell me that they had him for three years.”
“That they held him captive for three years before you could get him.”
Your legs fall out from under you and cause you to harshly crash to the floor. Your breath shutters, as you wrap your arms around your knees. Your eyes fall in and out of a hazy as flashbacks of his funeral filter through your mind.
“He was alive for three more years, and you swept it under the rug. They had a funeral...”
Your eyes meet Cyclone’s as he watches you, and it breaks you even more. He was fully prepared for you to hate him. You can hold his gaze, instead, you find the folder that lies on the desk still. Without a second thought, you scramble up for it, you knew that whatever it was going to break you. But you had to know.
Cyclone's hand lands on it at the same time yours does, holding it firmly on the desk.
“Sweetheart, you know now. You don’t need to see; I shouldn’t have even gotten the folder out.”
“I need to. I need to see just exactly what I’m going up against, the reason that I’m going to fly this mission and kill every last one of them.”
Your throat is raw with pain, though the drip of hate that seeps from it echoes even after the words died out.
The folder slides from your uncle’s hold and you grasp it cowering back to the corner of the room settling against the wall. The file just sits in your lap, and your hands shake while they ghost over the top though you make no move to open it. Cyclone doesn’t move from his chair and by the time your fingers pry the file open, you don’t know how long you’ve been sitting in silence.
The top page is just logistics and a few photos of the landscape you’ve studied endlessly over the last two weeks. Even after 23 years much hadn’t changed, sure they had a runway and a couple more buildings now, but you and your father had studied the same location.
Your tears had stopped falling by now, the realization that your mother had only lived long enough to get buried with your dad settles in. She had been so numb and broken, but still holding it together for you. Nights that you cried yourself to sleep, yelling at the universe for taking him from you. And yet she knew.
She knew that he was somewhere, possibly dead, possibly captive...
Death would have been easier, clean-cut. Without the constant wondering.
Without the small piece of hope that you’re, she held until the very end.
The next page has your stomach turning, and your hands shaking as they ghost across the page. Tracing the fuzzy images, and even though your heart aches, you could feel that blank numb feeling settling in with each page you flip. It’s the last page that kills something within you, your body acting on its own accord as it starts to shake.
It was your father
the lacerations lining his back and chest
the caved in eye socket and broken jaw
the burns and carvings spread across every inch of skin
it was your dad
but the once bright blue eyes were dimmed
dead
he was dead
three years of mutilation
23 years later and now you finally know
but even still it didn’t change that he was gone.
And somehow it felt like a piece of you was too.
Your feet push up from the floor, though the shaking in your hands remains. Your foot sets are slow and careful as you place the folder back on your uncle’s desk. Though the last page remains in your hands, slightly crumped from the grip you have on it.
Those first years in Texas were hard, you missed your parents, but you knew they were together at peace. Now, there still together and at peace... but the truth tares into you in a way that their death hadn’t even been able to.
“Y/n, sweetheart?”
You can barely find the strength to lift your eyes, and the sight of heartbreak looking back at you is only worse. Your head shakes, though the words can’t seem to form. You knew that he would want you to talk about it, but you couldn’t. Not with so much more on the line with this mission. You could finish what your father started; you could do one last thing for him. You would let the pain consume you for the next two days, but when Monday came, you’d shut it down.
Your nose sniffles and your eyes ache. You were tired, so emotionally and physically tired. A knock at the door pulls Cyclone’s attention though your eyes stay settled on the folder. You hear the voice and while you would usually have some snip to say to him, you had nothing. The whiskey bottle sets on the edge of the desk and the hand gripping the god-forsaken page reaches out and grasps it. Your hand drifts off the side of the table, you can’t seem to find the strength to carry it and so it just hangs at your side.
You turn to find a silent Rooster staring at you, they had been talking but stopped at some point now both of them quietly watching you. Your eyes glance back to Cyclone and you can see that he wants to talk, to protest your leaving.
“Not today. Not tell I finish this fucking mission.” Your empty hand points at Cyclone, though your voice lacks your usual conviction.
You can hear him start to say your name, though before he can you sidestep passed Rooster and leave. Your shoulders brush and cause the pilot to turn and watch your disappearing figure. Rooster glances back to Cyclone, though he doesn’t meet Rooster's gaze. His eyes stay settled on the folder on the desk and just barely Rooster can make out your last name.
...
The sound of the Hard Deck door has Bob’s head snapping up in hopes to see you. Jake had shown up two hours ago and said that Cyclone kept you to talk. It didn’t seem like anything out of the normal, plus Cyclone had made the comment about Adams, Bob was sure that you both were just having a good catch-up and laugh.
Though the uneasy face of Rooster coming through the door gains his and everyone else’s attention. It’s a little busier tonight, but Rooster makes it through the crowd in record time and aims straight for Bob.
“Something happened.” The comment is aimed at Bob, though it gains the attention of the whole group and causes them to surround the pair.
“What are you talking about?” Bob was usually meek and mild around the group, though with you missing and Rooster now, his voice comes out hard and demanding.
“Cherry, Y/n.” The use of your name doesn’t go unnoticed and the sight of Rooster now racking a hand through his hair and pacing causes an uneasy feeling to settle over the group. Before Bob can reply, Hangman’s voice cuts in and if you’d have heard it, you would have known that it was Jake. At that moment he was your Jake again.
“Bradshaw, stop fucking pacing and talk.”
“I don’t know what happened. I had to talk to Cyclone about some paperwork, but when I got to his office Y/n was there. Just standing in the middle of the room, gripping onto some paper and not saying anything.” His pacing starts up again, though he keeps talking. “I was just going to ignore it; tell Cyclone I’d talk to him Monday. But the look in his eyes as he watched her, he was barely holding it together. Before I could leave Y/n grabbed the 5th of whiskey and went to leave, she was a shell, guys. Cyclone tried to stop her, and I don’t know what she meant, but I’d never heard her sound like that. Broken, completely vacant.”
“What the fuck did she say Rooster?” The curse word falls from Bob’s lip so naturally, it would call for some attention, though with the problem at hand, no one seemed to notice.
“She said ‘Not today. Not till I finish this fucking mission.’ The words were barely a whisper and then she was just gone. I caught sight of a file on Cyclone’s desk, was classified but it had Bishop blocked out across it.”
You and Bob had this location rule, that you would always keep it on for each in case something happened, and he had never been so thankful. He hears Hangman release a round of curse words as the group talk trying to figure out what to do.
The small dot that lights up Bob’s phone has him releasing a breath, though the location was on the edge of the water, and he didn’t have any idea where you would be around there.
“I’ve got her location, but I don’t ha–”
The phone is ripped from his hand by Jake and before Bob can say anything Jake shoves the phone back into Bob’s hand and turns to leave.
“You’re not going to see her, Hangman.” The comment halts Jake and causes him to slowly turn around and assess Bob. “You’ll just make it worse; you need to say here.”
Jake’s shoulders tense up and the five steps to Bob only take him two. The pair of them stand eye to eye and causes Javy to try and slip in between them.
“Floyd, don’t fucking test me right now.” Bob doesn’t falter at the words and instead steps that inch closer. “You might know a lot, but this, you don’t know fucking shit.”
Jake’s voice cracks slightly and Bob’s stance softens slightly.
“I know exactly where she’s at and I’ve got a pretty good idea of what it’s about. So, I’m gonna go and if you try and stop me, I’ll put you on your ass so fucking quick.”
“Thought she didn’t mean anything to you anymore?”
“She has and always will mean everything to me, Floyd. And right now, she isn’t Cherry. She’s the little ten-year-old that I hugged and held every day that first summer. That little girl needs me and I’ve fucked up a lot, but this. You would have to kill me, to stop me from helping Her.”
...
How you ended up back here, you’re not sure. Call it survival mode that took you back to your safe place. You hadn’t been here since you were fifteen, when you and Jake had flown in for your mother’s, and you guess your father’s, five years.
You’d stripped out of your flight suit after you finished 1/4th of the bottle, finding a pair of shorts in the back of your jeep. Then found your way out to the little cove, it was just off the trail you ran this morning and from it, you could watch the one place that should have been your forever home. But lost the glimmer and shine after they died.
You lift the bottle and the lightness of it has you looking at it in wonder of how you had already put over half the bottle away. Your toe’s dig deeper into the sand as you take another drink. The tears flow from your eyes freely and the burning sensation that should be in the back of your throat is missing.
The sound of feet walking across the slippery rock path, that’s slowly disappearing as the tide rises, gets your attention and you find the one face that you're surprised to see and yet not at all surprised. Jake was the only one you’d ever brought here, he was the only one you trusted enough once upon a time.
“Are you Hangman or Jake today?” Your eyes cloud over and cause you to look back out at the water as he stops just to the side of you. “Cause there’s only one of them that I’m gonna talk to.” You try to sound strong and sure of yourself, though the end breaks through with a small laughing cry.
“Hey, Darlin’.”
The name causes a sob to release from your chest and finally breaking down around the only person you’d ever let fully in. For this moment none of the bullshit matters, you’d need him. You needed your Jake, and he’d come.
His arms wrap around you as your chest heaves, and you can’t seem to catch your breath. Though the hand against the back of your head and the chest you rest against feels like home. He rocks you gently, whispering soothing words against the crown of your head, separated by a kiss every now and then.
Time seems to escape you, though you know it’s been a bit because the tide has risen, and yet Jake hasn’t let go of you once. Your breathing has finally slowed and matches his, grasping onto the one thing that has always grounded you. Even through the bullshit, the thought of Jake, not Hangman, but Jake always settled you.
“What happened, honey?”
Neither of you had talked, other than Jake’s quiet muttering, you had disconnected. You pull back from the warmth of his chest before your eyes then fall to the crinkled piece of paper sitting under the whisky bottle. You don’t make a move for it, you couldn’t look at it again. One of his arms slips from around you to grab the paper, and the small whimper that leaves your chest has Jake’s other hand tightening around you.
“I got you.” You cling to his shirt as another kiss is placed on the top of your head. The sudden tension that rips through Jake’s chest confirms that he’s finally looked and knows exactly who he’s looking at. Anyone could see the resemblance between you and your father, but Jake had come to know him on a deeper level. Through each picture, letter, and tearful night Jake knew him through your eyes. He knew what he meant to you.
Another shaky breath falls from your chest, at the thought of the image and Jake is quick to discard it. He leans back from you, to look at you, needing to see what was racing through your head. He lays a hand across your cheek and gently wipes the falling tears away.
“That was three years after his funeral.” He’d never seen you so broken, not even during the first years you lived in Texas. His brow creases in question and the words fall from your lips so vacantly. “They had him for three years, Jake. They... they... they”
The sentence doesn’t make it passed your lips, as another sob breaks from your chest. You fall back into his chest and the arms wrapped around you hold on to you a little tighter. You miss the shutter breath that matches your own, the harsh breath that shakes through his chest. The words try to break from your lips, but only quiet mutters bounce off of his chest.
“I know, darlin’.” You miss the tear that falls from him. “I’ve got you; I’m not going anywhere.”
You stay like that, curled up in Jake Serein’s lap. The home that you lost. And somehow found again.
I just really love the idea of the dagger squad having one girl that is the group’s favorite thing in the world. Kinda like a pick me girl, but instead of her pushing her way in the group, they won’t leave her alone.
- Like say they’re out for the night, some guy is just not leaving her alone. The whole group is going to protect her.
- It’s her birthday and they decide to surprise her. Roosters film in the whole thing, hangman’s the one that brought her in, Phoenix has been on cake duty to make sure the boys get in it. coyote meets her at the front door because he’s just, THE BEST FRIEND. They sing happy birthday, and each of them has a different nickname for her. (I just feel like fanboy would call her mommas)
- Maybe she’s moved to get away from a really horrible hometown. And though she doesn’t actively post about the squad, because she’s better than that and it doesn’t feel the need to update everybody on what’s going on in her life. But I guarantee the squad will be posting pictures galore and tagging her in it so everyone that was an asshole in the past saw just how good she was doing
- But then I also think like if they’re out, and if someone’s being rude to the squad or getting really handsy with one of them. She is coming in and she is going to be the best acting of her life to get rid of said annoying person or she’s gonna kick someone’s ass.
-  This private joke, where they flirted with each other consistently. But the guys could never figure out if there was something between them.
- guaranteed every single one of them flirts with her. But it’s not in a romantic way, it’s more in a way that they like to see her blush and they tease her about it.
- No I do think that one of them would end up falling for her, but she would be too innocent understand that. And whenever they’re extra sweet with her, she just chalk it up to them be really close best friends. And the whole squad is watching this happen and most definitely placing bets.
- I feel like she probably has an article of clothing from each of them. I’m going with hoodies because I used to seal hoodies from my guy friends. But it’s in the most platonic way, and it gets to the point where they’re offering their hoodies. No questions asked.
- I also think, though that she kind of moms them, and makes sure that they’re eating well and taking care of themselves. She most likely has a day of the week that everyone comes over and has dinner. It’s really like a little family.
- She’s definitely keeping all of their favorite snacks stock for her house. This is what I mean by mom, she has everything a child’s friends could ever want or need when they come over, but it’s just grown adults not children.
- Another total mom thing, would be if she was at one of their houses, and she saw that they were missing some type of essential, she would go out and buy it for them just because she knows how busy their schedules are
- I also think that she’s the only one that can reel them in when they get too crazy. Say everybody’s drunk and and they do something stupid that could really hurt themselves. She is guilt tripping them and they are stumbling over there words begging for forgiveness and hatting if they disappointed her.
✦Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Better Man Universe
✦Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x Single!Mother, Jake "Hangman" Seresin!father x son relationship
✦Word Count: 3.1K
✦Warnings: So much fluff, sick day, dad!Jake, sick reader and child, protective!Jake,
✦A/n: I just wrote this today, I had no plans and it just happened. My Maty is sick and we spent most of the day cuddling, this is what it produced.
✦Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)
The chatter around the locker room revolving around the Friday night plan at the Hard Deck falls to silent ears, as Jake checks his phone for what felt like the millionth time. You hadn’t messaged him all day and his worries were eating away at him. It wasn’t that he needed you to text him all the time, though last night you had mentioned Maty not feeling the best and now without a word from you his mind seems to be spiraling.
Rooster shrugs the worn Hawaiian shirt over his shoulder, though Jake’s worried expression catches Rooster’s attention immediately. A nudge to the shoulder pulls Jake’s attention from his phone, long enough for Rooster to ask what gives.
“Just worried about Y/n, gonna go over to the office and check on her.” The words are muttered as Jake’s eyes focus back on his phone.
“Was over there this morning, Cyclone said she called in sick.” Rooster's tone is light, though Jake can’t help but worry. You and Jake had been officially together since November and Jake couldn’t be happier with the fact that you and Mathew were permanent fixtures in his life.
While you still had a hard time letting Jake help you; you were still worried that at any moment Jake may decide that you weren’t the hassle. Which led to you avoiding him when the smallest inconvenience uprooted your life.
Said inconvenience now manifesting through Maty, and possibly you, being sick. With a nod of thanks to Rooster, Jake slips his jacket on before leaving the locker room while dialing his mother’s number.
Jake pulls up to your small house and it almost looks like no one is home, though the single flicking light of the living room tv gives you away. It took Jake longer than he intended, but with his mother's advice, Jake made it to the nearest pharmacy and collected every children’s cough, cold, and fever medicine a four-year-old could have. As well as, a few different cold medicines for adults and at his mother’s behest a new fuzzy blanket for you, and the new toy story movie for Maty. Jake grabs the shopping bag from the backseat, before trudging up the steps and gently knocking on your door. It takes a moment, but eventually, he can hear you moving around behind the door.
...
You hadn’t planned for anyone to come over tonight, Penny had brought over a soup your mother made during lunch, and more than anything you wanted to crawl into bed for the night. Though a restful night’s sleep was far beyond what you would be getting tonight, and possibly the next couple nights. Mathew had a horrible time with his lungs when he got sick, after getting croup when he was only one, it became a regular occurrence in your life. Though this time felt like it was even worse, the nebulizer was barely helping and every time you got his fever down, a new coughing fit would ensue.
Not only had Maty been sick, but in the past few hours you could slowly start to feel your body drain. It had started out as a slightly sore throat you noticed last night while doing steam rounds in the shower with Maty. Now along with the sore throat, came a chest-wrenching cough and a terrible migraine.
You slowly shuffle to the door, feet clad in a pair of fuzzy socks that Jake had gotten you for Christmas, as well as one of Jake’s hoodies that dwarfed your frame. Your porch light is blinding when you open the door and the sudden rays of light have you wincing.
“Oh, Sweetheart.”
Your eyes find Jake’s and you try your best to give him a smile, though it's near impossible. A small whine from the couch has you turning away from Jake and leaving the door open in a silent request to come inside.
Mathew moves on the couch, as he wraps the blanket tighter around himself, and looks around the room for you. You hated seeing him like this, your baby was usually so independent and happy. But when he was sick, it was like he was a whole different child. His eyes find yours, before flittering behind you to Jake causing the tiniest small to cross his lips.
“Jakey.”
“Hey, Bubba.”
Jake’s voice is quiet and the only other noise in the room comes from the forgotten tv. You turn back around as Jake slips off his shoes, and you hear the sound of a few bags being sat on the floor. You blame the slight delirium of not seeing them on the pounding in your head, but at the sight of them now your heart aches.
“Baby, what are you doing here?” You try to sound happy, though your voice sounds overly tired and the small yawn that falls from your lips makes it even more apparent.
“I hadn’t heard from you today and when Rooster told me you called in sick, I got worried.”
A smile crosses your face and the small thank you that falls from your lips has Jake reaching out and wrapping his arms around you.
“I’m gonna get you sick, Jake.” You shuffle in his arms trying to pull away, though his hold on you tightens as he places a kiss on the crown of your head.
“I don’t care, nothing was going to keep me away from my two favorite people.” You pull back from his hold, and you see nothing but unfiltered love.
The sound of Mathew having a coughing fit pulls your attention from Jake, who is already moving to wrap his arms around your miniature self. Mathew welcomes Jake’s hold and is more than happy to bury his face in Jake’s neck. Jake doesn’t falter while his hand rubs Mathew's back, as Maty cough’s harshly into his shoulder.
The sight of them tugs on your heart and you can’t help the way you snuggle up to Jake causing him to wrap his free arm around you. The three of you stay in the position as Mathew’s cough finally settles and you tug the sleeves of Jake’s hoodie to cover your hands.
“My chest hurts, momma.”
Your eyes open as you pull back from being buried in Jake’s side to find your overly tired and sore four-year-old. Jake’s hand rakes through Mathew’s hair, as his green eyes flutter between you and Jake. Your hand rises to check Mathew's forehead and the small increase in temperature has you looking at the clock to see if you can give him another dose of medicine.
“Baby, momma’s going to get some medicine for your head and then I think we need to do another round in the shower.” The tiniest whine confirms that he heard you and Jake places another kiss on the crown of your head before settling on the couch, rocking Mathew gently from side to side.
The quiet whisper of your voice letting out a small shit, has Jake looking toward the kitchen where you disappeared. Your figure reappears and you can’t stop the tears from forming in your eyes. You were overly tired and didn’t feel good, and now the realization that you had run out of children’s Tylenol has them falling from your waterline.
“Sweets, what’s wrong baby?”
The gentle tone of Jake’s voice causes a shuttered breath as another sob falls from you. He didn’t need to be here, you weren’t his problem, you were a grown woman and yet a small bottle of liquid Tylenol had you in tears.
“I’m out of Tylenol and have to get some, but you shouldn’t be here taking care of us on a Friday night.” Another sob falls from your lips and has Jake rising again after he sits Mathew down on the couch, his blanket draped over his small frame.
Jake’s arms wrap around you and tuck you in, just like he had done to Mathew moments ago.
“Sweets, with you is the only place I ever want to be. You became my number one priority the moment you told me off in Cyclone’s office, while you drowned in paperwork.”
A smile tugs at your lips and you place a small kiss against Jake’s chest.
“Plus, I already went to the store and picked up everything we could need.”
His cocky tone has you pulling away in question, and the smile on his lips makes your stomach flip. Your eyebrow raises in question, though before you can even question him, he answers. “I wasn’t exactly sure what you would need,” his free hand scratches at the back of his neck, and before your eyes, you see a rare sight. Jacob Grant Seresin is blushing in embarrassment. “Well, I called my mom. I didn’t know what to get and figured that she was the best person to ask, plus I didn’t want to get the wrong stuff. She walked me through everything, and I made sure to check the age requirements for Maty. He is safe to take everything I g–”
“Thank you.” Your words cut off his rambling and cause him to lean into the hand you place against his cheek.
...
You sort through the bag of medication and the number of different kinds has a smile crossing your lips. After Jake had given you the bag to sort through, Maty was more than ready to be wrapped back up in his arms and instantly wrapped his arms around Jake’s neck when he picked the small boy up.
You stop in the hallway as you come back from the kitchen and though you’ve seen the pair be loving in main ways, the two of them wrapped in a blanket as Jake whispers in Mathew’s ear may be your favorite sight.
“Hey, sweetpea,” Your voice and hand against Mathew’s back has him stirring, pulling away from Jake’s neck as his eyes droop low. “You gotta take this, my love. Then we can get in the shower, and clear up your chest a little more.”
A small nod is the only reaction you get, before placing the small cup on Mathew’s lips and tipping it back. Your reach out to take him from Jake, though he is quick to grasp onto Jake, intertwining his fingers as he huddles farther into Jake’s chest.
“Baby, we need to get you in the shower.”
His small voice is muffled against Jake’s neck, though you can make out the quiet plea to stay with Jake. Your hand rubs up and down Mathew’s back, as you look back at Jake’s face unsure of what to do. Mathew needed to get in the shower, but you also knew that if he cried, his cough and chest would worsen more than it already was.
“What if we get in the shower together bub, while momma rests for a minute?” Mathew gives a small nod, while still remaining tucked away. Jake sees the questioning look on your face and smiles slightly.
“You’ve still got a pair of my swim trunks tucked away. Right, Sweets?”
It’s like a light bulb goes off in your head, “Yes, from Labor Day weekend!” and has you heading down to your bedroom in search of them. They’re stacked under the pair of sweatpants and tee shirt that Jake left here for when he stayed over.
You turn to head back out to the living room, though instead find Jake and Mathew in his room picking out a pair of swim trunks as well. Mathew is still latched onto Jake’s neck, while he riffles through the blue and white dresser. You don’t hear the conversation the pair is having, though the sight of Maty whispering in Jake’s ear pulls on your heart.
“I found them.”
Your voice causes them to turn, and Jake holds up a pair of swim shorts in a different shade of blue. Jake gives you a smile, before sitting Mathew on his bed and turning to you.
“Bubba, you let momma help you get ready and I’m going to change in her room, but I’ll be right back. Okay?”
A small hum leaves Mathew’s lips and gives Jake enough confidence that the four-year-old isn’t going to have a breakdown from him disappearing. You give Jake a small smile as you trade shorts, though he stops you in the doorway. Your tired eyes lift to meet Jake’s stare as one of his hands settles on your waist and the other comes to rest on your cheek.
“You’re doing an amazing job momma.” The comment has you sighing and your head falling forward to rest on Jake’s chest. You knew that you were a good mom, Mathew was your whole world, but hearing it from someone else filled a gaping hole in your chest. Especially given the fact that it felt like your whole world was crumbling around you. You hated seeing Mathew sick, but the fact that you were sick as well and that you weren’t working at 100% to take care of him, ate away at you.
“I love you.” You whisper the words, before placing a kiss on Jake’s chest.
The hand resting on the back of your head comes around to grasp your face once again, tilting you to look up at him.
“I love you.” Before you can even protest that you’re sick and shouldn’t be kissing, Jake’s mouth descends upon yours. His lips feel like home, and you take the moment to savor the kiss. It wasn’t as if 10 seconds longer would change the fact that Jake was now most likely going to get sick. You pull away from the kiss, though the warning look Jake gives you, has the reprimanding words slipping from your mind, and instead wrap your arms around his waist once again.
“I love you both, so much Sweets.” A second kiss is placed at the crown of your head before Jake slips from your hold to go change.
Mathew gives you a small smile from his bed that has you going over and giving him a hug and kiss. Maty was usually so independent that you rarely got the chance to baby him anymore, though now you miss the spunky boy. You slowly help him remove his jammies, before slipping into his swim trunks and picking him up to go find Jake.
Mathew tucks his face into your neck as you leave his room, and you automatically place a gentle kiss on his head.
“Love you, momma.”
“I love you too, my sweet boy.”
You find Jake leaving your room at the same time you leave Mathew’s, and he is quick to take Maty from your hold. Reminding you that you are in fact sick as well, and don’t need to add to the strain your body is already under from the virus.
With a flick of your wrist, the shower starts, and the small room instantly starts to fill with steam. You flick a few drops of peppermint oil into the shower to help open up Mathew's chest. Turning around you find Jake, with Mathew on the counter, while gently rubbing his back. Mathew’s eyes remain closed as he leans against Jake, only opening slightly when Jake bends down to ask him if he was ready to get in.
They slide the glass door open and step through to sit on the bench seat, though before you can close the door Jake catches your arm and gives it a gentle tug to get your attention.
“I’ve got him now, Sweets. I want you to go lay down, you don’t have to sleep, but your body needs the rest.”
“M’kay.” The word is slightly slurred and, at the moment realize just how tired your body was. You give him a small nod and tell both of them you love them, before sliding the glass door shut and go to leave the bathroom.
You pause at the door and listen to the pair. The water had woken Mathew up and given him a small bout of energy.
“How much do we love momma?”
You can’t see Mathew's reaction though you’re sure it’s one with his arms spread wide open. Jake’s teasing tone, “Hole bunch?!” followed by a tiny giggle confirms it. You go to leave though; the sound of Mathew’s small voice causes you to halt again.
“You love momma, Jakey.” You can tell it’s not a question. “Do you love me too?”
His voice is so raw from coughing, though you can hear a definite tone of unsureness. The room is quiet for a moment, the only sound being the water hitting off the white tile.
“I love you so much, Bubba.”
You hear the crack in Jake’s voice, and you know that he is tearing up silently. Jake wasn’t someone that showed people his emotions, though with you and Mathew, inside these four walls Jake never held anything back. He didn’t need to, not when he knew that you loved him just as much as he loved Mathew and you.
“You will always have me, Maty. No matter what happens, I will always love and protect you.”
You have to step out of the bathroom, before Jake finishes, not wanting to worry either of them by hearing you cry. You didn’t know how you had gotten so lucky with Jake, how he had decided that you were worthy of a love that ran so deep, that it felt like you had known each other for your whole lives. The type of love that proved time and time again, that Jake would always love and protect your baby like he was his own.
The tears gathering on your waterline fall as you lay down on your bed. As you let your body sink father into the comfortable mattress, and sheets that still smelled like Jake.
...
You shift of the bed, has your eyes opening abruptly, and moving to get up. Though Jake’s hand on you causes you to lay back down and shift around to face him. Mathew's small body lies between the two of you, as small snores emit from him, and he curls farther into Jake’s chest.
“I didn’t mean to fall asleep. Thank you for taking care of him.”
Your words are weighted and tired as your eyes flutter to stay open. Jake slides closer to you, settling Mathew farther on his bare chest as the small boy rolls farther into him while grasping his blanket. Jake pulls you toward him as well and you settle on the arm that Mathew lays halfway on. Jake’s other hand comes around to settle on your waist, incasing the both of you in his hold.
“Sweets, don’t you ever thank me for taking care of him.”
You cuddle farther into Jake and slowly fall farther back into the restful slumber. Jake silently lies listening to your even breathing, which evens out to match Maty’s. He shifts gently, pulling the pair of you closer before placing a kiss on the top of each of your heads.
“Always gonna take care of you, Sweets. My baby boy and his perfect momma.”
Let me just process and post my emotions in peace. I'm emotionally distressed and broken. You left me worrying, waiting, and still contemplating.
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Turning pain into melodies to heal the soul.
𝓡𝓲𝓮𝓷 𝓷’𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓮́𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓷𝓮𝓵
______________| Main Blog | Library |_______________
Poetry | Love | Heartbreak | Healing
I made a poetry/aesthetic/emotion blog so I don't annoy you all with my depression posts. I would love to see some familiar faces over there. All my love 🤍 - G
☑︎ A/n: Never believe that I'm actually on hiatus, I finished this two days ago. Suprise
☑︎ Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)
A giggle leaves your lips as a pair of arms wrap around your waist and pull you away from the pile of dishes soaking in the water. The record player quietly plays in the background, and the lack of noise from the living room is a clear indication that Javy either went home without saying goodbye or he’s fallen asleep on the couch. The latter most likely, given how he never leaves without a hug and goodbye.
“Javy fall asleep?”
You get a hum in response, though it’s muffled against your neck as Jake gently kisses along the curve of it. With a shrug of your shoulder, Jake lifts his face and allows you to turn around and face him. You lean against the countertop, while your hands wrap around Jake’s neck and run through the hair at the base.
“Remember when you told me that for share time, Gray couldn’t stop talking about a model airplane he had?”
Your head gently nods as you enjoy the close moment with your husband. Mrs. Adam had gone out and bought little model planes for both twins when she saw the shirts that Jake had picked out. It was the sweetest thing, and you were so thankful that she not only cared but supported you and Jake every time you showed up with something for the twins.
“Well, I talked to your dad last week and asked about the possibility of the class coming to the base for a field trip.” Your hands stop and a smile graces your face, eyebrow popping up in the way of saying ‘oh really.’ “I didn’t want to tell you until I got a yes, but Mav told me tonight that Cyclone gave him the go-ahead.”
“Really?!” Your smile slowly grows, and your mind is already spinning up a plan of how to make everything happen. “The kids would love that, all of them. Of course, I’ll need to send out permission slips and a Friday would probably work be–”
“Sweet Girl, slow down.” The words cut off your ramble. While Jake rubs at your arms in a comforting fashion. “We have time baby; we will work it all out.”
You nod, but your smile remains the same. Since you started teaching you had always thought that it would be fun to take the kids on a field trip to Top Gun. Though the opportunity had never arisen, especially during the first couple of years. You were a new teacher and still wary of your abilities in handling 20 5-year-olds off school grounds. Now, you were more than confident that you could handle it, especially with the parents you knew would be volunteering. Your excitement may have also stemmed from how much you knew that the twins would enjoy themselves.
...
“Eyes on me and clap three times, my little darlings!” Your voice echoes over the busy classroom, though at the request 20 little faces turn to you and clap or snap like you requested. “Very good! Now before you go home today, please give me your permission slips for our field trip this Friday. If you do not have them, come and talk to me.”
Your eyes scan through the classroom, each of your kids happily smiling while they take their permission slips from their go-home folder. Though your eyes eventually settle on Grayson and Madelaine. The pair of them sit quietly together, neither of them moving to take out a permission slip.
They had been oddly quiet all day, Gray was normally quiet though he always talked with you and Laine. While Laine was your little chatterbox in class who talked to everyone, though today neither of them said more than they were requested to. It had been eating away at you since you noticed it this morning and you had hoped that by this afternoon it would be better. Though as you look at them now, it only appears to have gotten worse.
The ringing of the bell pulls your attention back and has you focusing on the whole class again. A small line forms in front of you and your teaching aid Melissa, each of the kids waiting to hand you their signed slip. You give each of them a smile as they walk past and hand you their slip while following Melissa out to the pickup area. You count as they go past and as the last child in line goes out the door, your head pops up after only counting 18 heads.
Your eyes immediately find the twins, who are slowly putting their books away and looking as if going home was the last thing that they wanted to do.
You glance out to the hallway, checking to see if Melissa was going to come to tell you that Janice had actually shown up. Though the hallway is empty, clearly meaning she hadn’t arrived yet. Not worrying about the incompetent woman, you head over to the twins hoping to find out what has been eating away at them all day.
“Hello, my little munchkins.” Your voice gets their attention and Gray gives you a small smile, while Laine looks at you in defeat. You crouch down beside the desks, leaning over to fix the new glasses on Gray’s nose. “What’s going on? Why are my two favorite people so blue?”
You wait for the sassy comeback, though you don’t get one and a frown settles on your face. You rise from them and head back over to your desk, while they both silently watch you.
“I was saving this for a special day, and I think that today is that day.”
You rummage around the desk drawer until you find it. Usually, you would have Mrs. Adams give the children things that you had found for them, but last month you had found an antique children’s book that was in near-perfect condition and knew you had to buy it. The pair excelled in reading, and you knew that they would love to have a book of their own, instead of checking them out from the library.
You turn back around with the leather-bound book, only to find both Gray and Laine leaning over their desk trying to get a closer look. You give them both a smile, before placing the book down on Gray’s desk.
“I found this and knew how much you both enjoyed reading. I thought that it might be special for you, to have your own book that can take you on adventures and to different worlds anytime you want.”
The both of them smile happily, though as Madelaine opens it a small frown settles on her face. She looked toward Grayson who had yet to touch the book and now sported a small glare. Her eyes look towards you and your heartaches at the pain swimming in the baby blue.
“Can you keep it safe for us Ms. Cece?”
Your brow furrows in question, though before you can comment Gray speaks up.
“I got in trouble after my glasses got broken, I didn’t mean to run into things, but it just happened.” His voice is small, and you can barely hear him over the pounding in your head. You were positive that they were talking about Janice and her husband, but your mind was still reeling over the revelation.
“That’s why we don’t get to go see Mr. Jake and his plane.” Laine huffs as she says it and the way she crosses her arms would have made you giggle in any different situation. “They took everything as punishment, even our little model planes.”
It was like everything around you had turned off, and all you could think or see was the twins crying. The pair of them getting in trouble for things that aren’t their fault and how Janice and her husband shouldn’t have foster children at all. It didn’t matter whether they had the twins or any other children, you would be just as mad. They had no right to treat innocent children so harshly. It wasn’t just what you had found out today, it was the buildup of information you had learned over the last 4 months, and you had finally reached your breaking point.
Madelaine’s small sniffle pulls you from your thoughts and the sight before you almost break you completely. You were used to Laine comforting Gray; being the protector out of the two of them. Though now it’s Gray that holds onto Laine’s hands while resting their heads against one another. He doesn’t say anything, but just holds her and provides the safe space they’ve always had. The proximity of one another, their other half that made them whole.
Before you can think better of it, you lean forward to hold the pair. The sniffles subside momentarily as they both look up at you, before crawling into your lap. They both cling onto a shoulder as you whisper sweet nothings and rock them side to side.
“I’m going to fix it, okay?” Gray nods, while Laine clutches on tighter to you. “It’s gonna be okay.” You mutter the words and this time you’re not sure if you’re saying them for the twins or for yourself. The silver lining of your eyes breaks and a few stray tears fall, though you’re quick to wipe them away. You didn’t want either of them to see you cry, the both of them needed a solid, strong pillar to clutch onto in their storm-filled lives.
...
Jake hadn’t made it home yet, and you couldn’t seem to relax. You had been on the move since you had gotten home, tidying up the house, cooking dinner, and starting a batch of laundry, all to avoid the pending conversation that would no doubt be confrontational.
Janice had arrived just as you were taking the twins out, the three of you had stopped crying and knew that someone would be arriving soon. You had asked Janice if you could give her a call tonight, not wanting to have the conversation in front of the twins, and she bitterly told you that you could. Yet here you were, avoiding it. The last conversation you had with the woman ended with you in tears and you could only imagine how this one would go.
You glance at the clock and find that it’s just after 5, Jake would be home around 5:30 and you wanted to be off the phone by the time he arrived. Jake had been more than vocal about the langue lashing he wanted to give them, and you knew if he had the chance, he would jump on it faster than you could blink.
You settle against the kitchen counter, forgoing the idea of sitting, you were high-strung, and staying in one place wasn’t going to happen. You finger ghosts along your contact list until you find Janice’s name, and the small note of foster mom makes you sneer. The line rings quietly, but also as if it was a blaring alarm until there’s a click in the line, followed by a loud what.
“Hello Mrs. Williams, this is Y/n Seresin, the twin’s teacher.”
Your fingers drum against the counter as you wait for a reply, though the only thing she gives you is a hum. Your hand rakes through your hair as you push off the counter and start pacing.
“I was hoping to talk with you about the twins if that’s okay?” The words are barely passed your lips, before Janice cuts in.
“What did they do now?”
Her voice holds such disgust and animosity that it stuns you for a moment and causes you to take a few deep breaths.
“Nothing, they are wonderful in class. I was actually calling about our school field trip this coming Friday.”
“Oh, so they came to you whining about not going, is that it?”
Her voice echoes through that phone and stuns you momentarily. Though when you hear her yelling the twin’s names, you’re quick to cut in.
“No, they didn’t say anything.” Your tone comes out harsher than you intended, though it does get Janice to stop yelling at or for the twins. “I noticed that they lacked a permission slip and wanted to reach out.”
You fear that the line has gone dead momentarily because the only sound you can hear is your own breathing. You pull the phone from your face and glance at it, to see that it is still on the call.
“Well, this Friday we are going out of town and even if we were in town, I’m not going to come chaperone. Not to mention, you are asking for 15 dollars for shirts. What do they need shirts for?”
You hear the door close and you glace to your side to find a smiling Jake. Though his face falls as he takes in your flustered appearance. You hold a finger up to your lips to stop him from talking, you couldn’t multitask right now.
“I really do think that this would be a great learning opportunity for Madelaine and Grayson.” Jake settles against the counter next to you, as he listens understanding who is on the other line without you having to say. “I don’t think that they should miss out on the experience, ma’am.”
“Listen here, unless you’re going to fork up the 30 dollars and be legally liable for them, not only Friday but the whole weekend, you need to shut up and mind your own business.”
You’re startled at her harsh words and your hate for the twins living situation only grows the more you talk to the woman. Though before you can reply, the phone is taken from your hand by a very mad Jake. Your eyes widen in worry, though he gives you a small smile that is in no way reassuring.
“Hello, ma’am. This is Lieutenant Commander Jake Seresin, I’ve heard that you have a few issues with the field trip my wife has planned.” You can’t hear exactly what Janice replies, though you know that it’s not what Jake deems acceptable to hear. You silently watch Jake, though his eyes don’t move toward you once. They remain in a harsh glare, facing the back wall of the kitchen. “Ma’am, I understand that you don’t want to pay the fe–”
Your eyes widen when you hear Janice’s voice echo through the phone. There weren’t main people that cut off Jake and the ridged body language, followed by the small click of his tongue is a clear sign of how little it happened. You would have laughed at how much she screwed up, but you can’t stop the way you grab onto Jake’s hand. Your fingers intertwine to get his attention, and your gaze silently pleads him not to go off on her. You didn’t know what the woman was capable of, and you were already afraid that this conversation would lead her to punish the twins.
“Ma’am, if you would’ve been so kind to not interrupt me, you would have known that I will pay for Grayson and Madelaine. I just need you to sign the paper so that they can go.”
Her voice lowers through the phone, and you catch a word every now and again, as you watch Jake toed boot tap away on your hardwood floors.
“They’re going to be in the safest setting that they have, probably ever been in. Not only will my wife and the other parents be watching them, but I will personally be watching them. So don’t tell me that your reluctance is because you are worried about them. I know what type of living situation you’re providing for them, and it sure as hell isn’t safe in any way, shape, or form.”
...
Jake couldn’t even lie and say that he hadn’t meant for his tone to come off harsh. No, he wanted Janice to realize just how pissed off he was. Pushing off the counter, he couldn’t help but pace, it had always helped him calm down growing up. The feeling of your hand loosening in his hold pulls his attention back to you. Taking a step closer to you, he barely listens to the squawking echoing in his ear and tightens his hold on you before lifting the back of your hand to place a gentle kiss on it. Your eyes watch him wearily before they soften, and your own lips meet the back of his hand.
“Look I don’t care what you think about my parenting.” The words pull Jake’s attention back to the conversation at hand. “I don’t care if the little shits go or not, even if it’s going to be a ‘great experience’. If you want to take them so damn bad, then do it. But I’m not paying for them, and you’ll have to figure out what to do with them for the weekend because we won’t be home.”
The harsh sigh that leaves Jake’s lips isn’t other than that; a smack in the face that the kid's wellbeing meant nothing to their foster parents, and that Jake didn’t know if he could fix it.
“Just sign the permission slip.”
He doesn’t know what else to say and doesn’t leave room for Janice to reply before he hangs up.
...
Jake settles the phone on the kitchen counter, before looking back up at you. Your hands are still intertwined while you cradle them in your lap. A sigh leaves the both of your lips, and a deep ache settles in your chest as Jake pulls you to him. Folding your form into his chest as he places a gentle kiss upon the crown of your head. How were you supposed to take the class on a field trip without the twins, it wasn’t fair.
“You think Mrs. Adams could keep a secret?” The words are whispered into your hair and cause you to pull back from Jake in question. “I mean we need to have a reliable witness for when we sign an agreement to take care of the kids for the weekend. I don’t know if it’s internally legal, but neither is Janice leaving the kids at the house alone.”
“Jacob Seresin, what in the world are you talking about?”
The cocky smirk you fell in love with settles on his lips and has you smiling in reaction, the ache in your chest easing slightly at the idea Jake is suggesting.
“The twins are going on the field trip and then staying with us.” A harsh sigh leaves his lips, and his smirk settles into a harsh line. “I won’t let her ruin this for them.”
Your heart blooms in love, once again left to wonder how you got such a loving and loyal man. Your hand slips from his and rises up to cup his cheek, as your thumb works across the frown.
“I love you.” Jake’s eyes fall on you at the comment, though no smiles are passed between the two of you. Your eyes say enough, together you would jump headfirst into the unknown. “I love you so damn much.”
...
“Javy, honey I love you.” Your eyes look to the pilot, who stands behind your husband while occasionally making flirty eyes with Ms. Reynolds. “But why are you here?”
Janice was supposed you come in today and sign the form stating that you and Jake would be legally in charge of the twins for the weekends, as well as be liable if something happened to them. Mrs. Adams had been easy to convince, going as far as to draft up the paperwork herself. It might not have been “law binding” but it sure did look like something a lawyer would draft up.
“Well Jake told me that he needed back up,” Your husband's eyes flash back over his shoulder and look at Javy in bewilderment. “this Janice lady scares him.”
The words cause you and Mrs. Adams to giggle, but it's Jake muttering that Javy only wanted to see Ms. Reynolds that has the pair of you cackling. The harsh knock against the door has all of your eyes fleeting to Mrs. Adams' office entry, the laughter in you quickly dies down as Janice and Ed Williams glare at the five of you. They each carry a small pack that resembles the totes you had bought the twins at the beginning of fall, though the dirt on them makes you question if they're the same ones.
“Well, aren't you all just peppy.” The pair of them drop the bags harshly, and the sneer that Janice gives you makes you shrink back slightly into Jake. You weren’t normally scared so easily, but the pair of them made you uneasy. Their eyes hadn’t left you, even when they addressed Mrs. Adams. Though as an arm wraps around your waist, your shoulders drop and relax further into Jake.
“Right, shall we get this finished up? Lunch will be over soon, and Melissa can only fill in so long.”
Mrs. Adams gives you a small smile that has you giggling. You loved Melissa dearly and she was one of the sweet people you had ever met, though the kids also knew how much of a pushover she was and often conned her into playing Heads Up, Seven Up.
“Yeah, we need to get on the road,” Ed answers Mrs. Adams gruffly as he steps forward to snatch the pen off the desk and sign without any other conversation. The topic of them getting on the road doesn’t go unnoticed, but you keep your questions to yourself for the time being.
Janice grabs the pen from Ed, and the smack of her gum has you glaring slightly. Her signature is messy and hardly legible.
“Which of you five are signing?” Janice flicks the pen out, scanning the room with it before flicking it into your open palm. You give her a small smile and thank you, though she only sneers in reply.
Your eyes flitter from Janice and Ed and back to Jake, who gives you a reassuring smile and a gentle squeeze. You move to sign the document, as Jake steps out from around you and you can hear him introduce himself. From the corner of your eye, you can see Jake’s hand clasping Ed’s in a handshake and the tight grasp Jake has on Ed is anything up-friendly.
Jake lets go only to slide in behind you and gently takes the pen, as a gentle hand settles on your back before signing. The both of you finish and the weight in your chest seems to lift as Mrs. Adams then signs as a witness and gives you a small wink and smile that makes your own grow.
It felt different, the document signed was so much more than just the twins getting to go to Top Gun. It felt as though something deeper had solidified and now you only had to wait for it to become reality.
Your attention is pulled back to the Williams as they move to leave without saying anything else, though you are quick to ask what time you could pick them up in the morning. Both stop in their tracks and a full laugh is released from each of them.
“I wouldn’t know Ms. CeCe.” Janice all but spits the name out as it were venom. “We’re leaving now, not our problem according to that little paper. Have fun with the little devils.”
You had heard the twins mention more than enough times that their foster parents weren't fond of them, though hearing them talk about the children with such hatred shocked you and angered you went in a way that was indescribable. You're stunned in silence momentarily and by the time you realize that you don't have booster seats for either of the kids, the Williams are long gone from the school.
The defeated side falls from your lips, as you're trying to figure out how you can get two booster seats before the end of the school day while still teaching. Jake's hand rests against the small of your back and the slight movement of it reels your mind back in.
“They didn't give us booster seats. I haven't even gotten anything set up yet for them to sleep on, I was going to do it tonight.” You don't direct the statement towards anyone in particular, but you know Jake will be the first one working to find a solution.
“Don't worry sweetheart, Javy and I will take care of it. We've still got a couple hours before we have to be back. We'll go get everything and drop off the booster seats, before heading back to base.”
The words are muttered against your temple before a gentle kiss is placed. You're quick to bring Jake’s hand resting on your waist up to your mouth, to place a gentle kiss of thanks on it. You glance at Mrs. Adams who gives you a smile before she announces to everyone that Melissa is undoubtedly being manipulated by the children. A round of laughs echoed through the room before you leaned up to give Jake a kiss, placing all the love and thank you that you couldn't say into it.
He gives you a small smile before clasping your cheeks and kissing you on the forehead, turning to drag an unhappy Javy away from a smiling Ms. Reynolds. Before they can get far Javy calls out to have you give Ms. Reynolds his phone number. Jake’s laugh echoes off the hallways before he calls out as well, telling you that he may be a little late getting home tonight.
...
You wave to Mrs. Paulson as she guides Allison across the street. Mrs. Paulson had been the one parent that you could always count on, and once again she came to your aid when she decided to help supervise the field trip. You had met her husband at a parent-teacher conference and had instantly fallen in love with the family. Not only was Allison a wonderful student, but her parents were always open to trying new ideas. She just gotten diagnosed with ADHD this last summer and the Paulson, Mrs. Adams, and you were working up the best plan to help Allison.
You glance across the street once more making sure that everyone has been picked, before turning around to find Gray and Laine lying in the front grass watching the sky. Today was warmer than usual and the 70-degree December weather was quite enjoyable. You see Gray point to the sky, causing you to look up to see what the pair have been intensely watching.
A smile forms on your lips as you see a jet fly overhead, one of the perks of being just off base. You had love planes growing up and were always on base when your father was home, seeing the pair of them just as in love with planes only warms your heart more. Your movement toward the twins has them looking at you as you settle on your back beside Grayson, so he now rests between you and Madelaine.
“I think they're doing drills,” You hum in reply to Gray, waiting for him to continue. “They’ve been running the same pattern since we laid down.”
“See, watch how the two side planes break off and the middle one breaks toward either one.” You glance at Madelaine, silently wondering when she had become interested in planes. “Maybe it’s Mr. Jake. He’s a good flyer, right Gray.”
“Right.”
They both sound so sure of themselves and you giggle at how serious they are. Jake was going to eat this up when you told him, just one more thing to add to the ever-growing ego. You lay with them for a bit, enjoying how they talk about each plane so animatedly. You glance at your watch and find that it's nearing 4:30; the three of you needed to get home to ready where the twins are sleeping.
Home.
The word jars you for a minute and you have to silently remind yourself that it wasn’t the twin’s home. The arrangement was only for the weekend, and they weren’t your children, no matter how much you wished that they were.
“Alright you two, we need to get going.” You rise onto your elbows and find the pair of them grinning at you. You had talked to them the morning after you called Janice and asked if they would be okay staying with you. You would never want to make either of them uncomfortable, and luckily they were more than excited at the idea of staying with you. More so when they realized it meant they would get to go on the field trip.
...
The car ride home was easy thanks to the pre-installed car seats, which you would have to thank Jake and Javy for. You had given Madelaine your phone when she had asked to pick the songs and unsurprisingly the five-year-old had put on one of your Spotify playlists that she continually requested during art time in class. Both you and Gray were happily surprised at her choice of 80’s hits.
The pair of them had sung the whole way home, putting on quite the show from what you could see in the review mirror. Their little voices filled that small car, flipping between words they knew, to just humming along to the tune.
You pull up to the house, the vacant parking space and dark house confirm that Jake was indeed going to be late tonight. Both of the kids are out of the car before you can even try to unbuckle them. Their eyes sparkle are they look at the white bungalow, bouncing on their toes at the sight of a front lawn and you can hear Gray whisper to Laine, asking if they were actually allowed to play on it.
The question hurts, such a simple request that had no doubt been denied before. Though before you can fall further down the rabbit hole, you grab the twin totes from the passenger seat. You were going to enjoy this weekend, make it the best experience for them both, and not think about everything else.
“Come on my darlings,” You glance at your watch and find that it's almost five. “We’ve got to cook dinner and get your beds situated for tonight, we’ve got a big day tomorrow.”
Both of them give you a massive smile and Gray is quick to latch onto your hand, while Laine walks up the red stone walkway. You knew that Gray got anxious when it came to new ideas and had expected him to be attached to you for most of the night.
Laine, on the other hand, would know the house like the back of her hand by the end of the weekend and most likely have Jake wrapped around her finger. More so than he already is.
To your complete surprise, upon entry into the guest bedroom, you found the white daybed completely set up with the bedding set you had picked up the other day. You and Jake had decided that for this weekend the twins could stay in one room together, you didn’t want to separate them and cause any unneeded stress. While you had thought you would be setting up the room tonight, Jake and Javy must have come by and done it after finding out that the twins would be staying tonight.
“Alright you two, what do you think?” You hadn’t realized just how worried you were about the twins liking what you had picked out for them. You had found a set of light and dark blue bed sheets that you thought would be appropriate. Then found each of them their own special blanket, Gray’s consisted of planes and the Navy emblem, while Lainie’s had turtles and other tropical fish.
You watch the both of them carefully as they walk into the room, taking in the plain white walls and the small book nook where you enjoyed reading. They move slowly through the room, fingers running over the dresser and then stopping at the bed. The totes fall from their hands, and they slowly pick up the blankets, examining the cotton as if they had never had a blanket to call their own.
You don’t move and the breath in your chest catches at the reality that is unfolding before you. How long had they gone unloved? How many nights did they cry wrapped in each other’s arms, the only form of protection they knew? Your eyes are misty, and you wipe at the awaiting tear before it can fall.
“Ms. CeCe, who are these for?” Laine asks with only the tiniest echo behind the words.
“They’re yours,” Your voice catches and causes both the twins to turn around. “I picked them out for you. Do you like them?”
A small hum comes from the pair as they clutch onto the blankets and watch you carefully. You give them a weak smile, though before you can let your emotions overwhelm all three of you the sound of the front door opening, and closing has you looking back out into the hall.
“Darlin’?”
The voice has Laine letting out a small squeal before she races past you, blanket in tow, and makes for the front door.
“Mr. Jake!”
Gray settles at your side, holding onto your hand as the both of you make your way out to the front hall. The sight of Madelaine clutching onto Jake as he holds her stops you in your track, and for a moment you forget that they aren’t yours and Jake’s children. How had they looked so much like Jake, with the perfect dirty blonde hair and the small award-winning smile.
Jake glances up at you and gives both you and Gray a smile before he runs a hand down the back of Laine’s hair. A quiet hello, little darlin’ just barely reaches your ears, though as Laine tightens her hold on Jake, you know you heard right.
“We saw you flying today, Mr. Jake.”
The small voice gains the attention of all three of you, and as you look down Gray only smiles back at you in hopes that you’ll confirm what he’s said. Though before you can say anything, Jake adjusts Laine onto his hip, and he walks to bend down in front of Grayson.
“Is that right, buddy?” A smile forms on Gray’s lip before he gives Jake a firm nod. “And how was I doing? Did I meet your standards?”
Gray nods once again, before Laine looks at him in question then turns back to Jake. “Gray says you’re the best.”
“That so?”
Gray’s hand tightens around yours before a hum and smile break across his face. “The best fighter pilot ever seen.”
You hear Jake’s breath catch before his free arm reaches out to grab Gray. A laugh breaks from Gray and any worry you had of him being uncomfortable around Jake, falls to silent ears. With one on each hip, Jake rises and looks at you, the both of you share knowing looks while the twins laugh.
Life had never felt this perfect. You and Jake had always felt whole like you weren’t missing a part of the puzzle, though an add-on would have been welcomed. But now, you both knew that the four of you were the complete puzzle. That without both Gray and Laine in your lives, a part of your puzzle would be incomplete for the first time.
“You corrupted her soul, what else did you expect”
🍒 Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Callsign Cherry Masterlist
🍒 Pairing: Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Y/N 'Cherry' Bishop, Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw x Y/n 'Cherry' Bishop
🍒 Word Count: 4.3 k
🍒 Warnings: Parental death, sexism, asshole Jake and Bradley, jokes about them being together, swearing, breach of trust, talk of virginity loss, loss of friendship (and love...), angst, AS (asshole pilot), protective Bob, mourning
🍒 A/n: Here we go, let me know what you guys think. Bobby has made become an unexpected important appearance and he's staying.
🍒 Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)
Your nails drum against the steering wheel as you drive, and the saltwater breeze fills the air surrounding you. You had just recently taken the top off your jeep and the warm summer weather did wonders for your skin. The sunglasses that rest on the bridge of your nose dim the blinding light of the sunset, though as you pull into the Hard Deck you lower them to take in the beachside bar.
Receiving the call back to Top Gun came as somewhat of a surprise, though you had heard through the chain line that there was a new mission brewing. It was the luck that came with having good connections in the Navy, not just because of your late father, but because you had also made quite a name for yourself in the past ten years.
You slip from the cherry red jeep that matches your nails and the short red and white polka-dotted dress swings against your thighs, barely covering your backside. You reach up to run your hands through your hair, effectively releasing the knots from the drive. Your keys swing on your finger as you make your way into the bar, and your eyes catch sight of an all too familiar bronco sitting in the lot.
You slip through the doors and the momentary blast of cool air is quickly ridden from you and exchanged for the overly stuffy heat in the overpacked bar. You catch a few eyes, service men that think you’re going to be their willing prey for the night. A small teasing smile rests on your lips and you may or may not innocently bat your eyes at them. Though you don’t stay in one place long enough for them to make a move towards you.
The simple, yet intimidating stride you take toward the bar has patrons moving out of your way and the click of your heels seems to gain the attention of the entire bar. You can feel the different sets of eyes watching you and though you used to mind all of the attention and shy away from it. Now you reveled in it, it came with the persona and built a sturdy barrier that no one was able to cross.
Your eye’s find Penny as she gives you a small smile, while you lean up against the bar top and give her a genuine smile. Penny had been in your life long before Top Gun when your parents were still alive, and she had essentially become the aunt you never had.
“God, Italy did you good.” Her eyes move up and down your form before she motions you to do a small turn, with her finger.
“Could have been the weather, culture, maybe the food.” Your hands rest on the bar, and you lean into her. “But it’s probably because of the men.”
She gives you a full laugh, with her head thrown back, before giving your hand a gentle squeeze.
“We missed you.” The words are muttered quietly and you give her a squeeze back in answer before she is pulling away and getting you a drink. The words make your gut twist and causes your heel to tap away. It wasn’t that you didn’t miss Penny and Amelia, it was just too hard being back. Driving down the street you once walked and seeing things that reminded you of everything you lost.
You can feel the stare as it burns a hole in the back of your head, and while you had only seen Rooster’s bronco, you were sure Hangman had gotten the call back as well. Your focus is taken from Penny as a figure slides up to the bar top next to you, their hand just barely ghosting against your waist, but enough to get you to turn around in question.
“You’re even prettier up close.”
Your eyes nearly see the back of your head as they roll, but you notice the khaki uniform and decide to play. Your hand falls to his that’s resting on the bar and a small giggle emits from your chest, as you give him a teasing smile.
He tells you his callsign and then explains that he’s a pilot, all while you maintain innocence and act completely oblivious to the military world. A glass slides into your hand, the amber liquid sloshing and you give Penny a quiet thank you, before winking.
“Put it on my tab, honey.”
Penny looks between the two of you, before giving the guy a smirk and a nod. You hid behind your glass, eyes peeking over the rim as you smile, then take a small sip of the whiskey. You would laugh at the poor guy and how he was completely oblivious to who you were, but the free drink was incentive enough to not spoil his night quite yet.
“So, you’re a fighter pilot,” Your voice is breathy, and the smile he gives you doesn’t hide the thoughts that are already racing through his mind. “Have you ever had to shoot anyone down?”
The question seems innocent enough and the gentle tilt of your head in wonder has the guy’s hand coming to rest at your hip.
“I’ve had many close calls, honey.” His hand slightly grabs at the material of your dress. “But there are only two active pilots with air-to-air kills.”
You hum in acknowledgment, which has him continuing as you take another drink. You tune out for a moment when you catch movement to the right of you, but you don’t risk the turn around to see who is making their way toward you. The use of your callsign has your attention on the pilot, and the look you give him has him repeating for you.
“Hangman and Cherry, only pilots that have air-to-air kills. Hangman’s got one under his belt, he’s actually a good friend of mine.” You almost laugh at the desperation seeping off him, you know damn well that he doesn’t know Jake and it’s only a last-stitched effort to get in your pants. “What about, Cherry?”
“She’s got two, lucky kills though.” The words make you glare slightly at the man, but he’s too consumed in himself to even notice. “She’s also the resident bitch of the Navy.”
You knew what people that didn’t know you, said about you. The name was no surprise, but that didn’t make you any less pissy at the term. Though before you can say something, the movement from your right comes into view and the smell of sandalwood consumes your senses.
A hand slips around your waist and effectively pushes the pilot’s hand from your hip. You breathe in the scent and your beating heart calms at the new presence. The familiarity has you leaning farther into the body, now encasing you to the bar. Your eye’s leave the pilot's face, who is already glaring to the side of you, and find a pair of deep blue eyes watching you.
“Hi, Bobby.”
You give him a delicate smile, one that very few people ever saw, before lifting your hand to adjust the frames that rest on the bridge of his nose. A gentle kiss is placed on your temple before Bob pulls away and looks at the pilot then back to you.
“What are you doing, Cher?”
“Just playing.”
The words are easy as they slip off your lips and have Bob laughing, while the other pilot stares at you in silence. He had witnessed you “play” with cocky pilots on more than one occasion and while it was all a game to you, he didn’t trust any pilot whose ego you bruised.
You grasp the glass of whiskey from the counter, noticing that Penny topped you off, before shooting it like a shot. Your eyes remain on the pilot, as a small dribble of the liquor falls from your lips. Bob moves without thinking, as his thumb swipes across your bottom lip to catch it. Though before he can pull away, your lips wrap around his thumb and suck the amber liquid right off.
The action makes Bob roll his eyes, over the seven-year friendship he had become used to your antics and knew you better than almost everyone. When you first meet the pair of you had become instant friends, about 4 months into the friendship on a drunken night, the pair of you had decided to see just how compatible you were. Neither of you could keep a straight face and the night of “debauchery,” turned into a night of horror moves cuddling after the ultimate failure of making out.
The pilot watches you in silent shock, as you pat his shoulder once and give him a smirk. Your form pushes off the bar, clutching Bobby’s hand and tugging him with you. Though before you can get far you turn back around, looking past Bobby’s smirking face to see the man not only stunned but mad. Just like those old cartoons, waiting for the steam to release from his ears.
“Oh, by the way, I’m Cherry. The resident bitch of the United States Navy.”
...
Bob pulls you forward and tugs you toward the bathroom hallway, before stopping in a corner. Your body settles against the wall, though Bob’s arms are quick to wrap around you and pull you into a tight hug. You clutch onto the back of his shirt and relax knowing that you wouldn’t be facing anything alone. Not tonight or during the next 6 weeks.
“When did you get back?”
The words are muffled against your neck, but you hear them clear as day.
“About 40 hours ago.” Your voice is teasing, though the small hitch at the end tells Bob just how tired you are.
“If you would have told me you were coming, we could have driven down together Cher.”
“I know.” You nod gently before your head falls back to rest against the wall. “I just needed the time. They say it gets easier with time, but every time I come back it feels like I’m still that little girl. Losing the only life I knew and getting shipped off to Texas. It wasn’t just my parents who died, the person I was, my life, died too.” A shuttered breath courses through your body, and your hand tightens around Bob's. The tightening in your throat only grows and has you pushing out a forced laugh, anything to change the current topic of interest. “Plus, Adams told me a little bit about the detachment and said that they might be here, which was correct according to the bronco sitting in the lot.”
“Yeah, I just had the pleasure of meeting them. Rooster doesn’t seem horrible and well Hangman, he’s just like you described.” Your eyes roll and any form of smile falls from your face. “Come on, Cher. It’s been ten years.”
Your hand reaches up to spin the pendant on your necklace, a nervous habit that you had picked up. Though your fingers are stilled, as Bob reaches up and grasps onto your hand bring it down to relax by your side.
“Ten years, that I’ve spent making sure that I am better than them in every way, Bobby.”
Your eyes move from Bob and settle on the wall opposite of you, at the flash of disappointment in his eyes. A deep sigh emits from his chest, and your head tips back to lean against the wall behind you, staring that the wood-beamed ceiling.
You hate disappointing Bob, he was like your big brother, but he also knew the full story and couldn’t blame you for the hate you still carried for the pair. The story of your callsign followed you around, it wasn’t like it died after leaving the academy. No, everywhere you went at least one guy brought your virginity.
“I’ll play nice, but the minute either of them say something,” a heavy sigh leaves your lips, and Bob's hand gently squeezes your hand in reassurance. Your head dips back down and your eyes sweep to his, to find only love and support. You give him a small squeeze back and a tiny smile, that was only for his comfort. Before vacantly muttering the words, “I will burn them to the fucking ground, Robert.”
A deep sigh leaves his chest, though before he can say anything you’re turning. You had enough of him playing the disappointed older brother and just wanted to have fun. You hadn’t seen him for 8 months and knew that the both of you had lots to catch up on.
A squeeze and a smirk are all you give him before you’re heading back down the hall and out into the bar. You can feel him trailing behind you, though you don’t slow. Your back straightens and the pace in your step quickens slightly, as you round the corner and catch sight of the all too familiar dirty blonde hair.
You make a bee-line for the pool tables, knowing that ripping off the band-aid would be far easier. Then standing around anxiously all night, waiting for one of them to show up. You side-stepping the guy from the bar, who had somehow magically found a home for the night at a table opposite of the pool tables. His hand reaches out again trying to grab at your sundress, and the small tug on it has you halting.
You pause momentarily still looking towards the pool tables and before you can turn around, your eyes find a pair of green ones. You both hold each other’s gaze and for a moment you think that you see a flash of pain and longing, but as quick as it appeared it disappears. You break the stare before anyone can notice and turn to be met with the smiling fool.
“Now sweetheart, it wasn’t very nice of you to run off like you did. Especially, since I bought you that drink.”
You glance down and find his hand at the hem of your dress, just barely grazing your thighs.
“Get your hands off of me, before I make you.”
The threat may appear minuscule, given the fact that you are all dolled up and in heels. Though the tone of your voice is anything but, and before Bob can move to remove the hand for you, you hold up one finger stopping him. The asshole only laughs at you, before standing and taking a step closer to you.
“Your callsign’s Cherry, right?”
A silent hum emits from your chest, and any patience you had are wearing extremely thin. Before you know it, a harsh hand smacks your ass. The sound echoes through the bar and you’re sure that you could have heard a dime drop. There’s movement behind you but you don’t pay them or Bob any mind, as said hand grasps onto your backside under your dress.
“Why don’t you refresh my memory of how you got your callsign.”
The words are barely past his lips before you lean back to throw a fist. It lands smack dab, in the middle of the asshole's face and the loud crack can only be presumed as his nose breaking. Bob is quick to step up between the group of friends as they make a move toward you, and distantly you can hear the ringing of a bell. Though your only focus is the asshole in front of you, who is now bent over clutching his nose as blood drips onto the hardwood floors.
Your dress sways as you move and you're positive that whoever is behind could easily see the thong under your dress if they really wanted. Your hair falls around your face as you lean into the man, getting as close as you can without actually touching him.
“You touch me again, and you’ll learn exactly how I got those two kills.”
You right your form and brush your dress down the side, before smiling back at Bob and holding out a single hand for him to grab.
“Come on Bobby, I feel like kicking your ass at pool tonight.”
A single shake of the head, followed by a deep sigh has Bob grabbing your hand as you pull him around the bloody mess. You easily spin around, to be met with a wall of khaki uniforms. You recognize three of the six faces, though the only ones you give a smile are the three unknown pilots and Javy. You can feel the way that their eyes burn into the side of your head, but you simply ignore them. Bobby asked you to play nice and you would until you couldn’t that is.
Your gaze settles on Javy, the only known pilot you were willing to make eye contact with. He gives you a small smile, which you return before you make your way to him.
“Coyote”
“Cherry”
Short, to the point, exactly what you needed right now. Your free hand raises to gently pat at his chest before you nod behind him. He side-steps for you, neither of you needing to tell the other where you wanted.
Pool was one of the many things that you and Jake shared a love for. Most of your childhood and teen years were spent in the Serein house playing pool and like Jake, Javy knew that pool was your go-to stress relief. It also helped that you were excellent at it and didn’t mind showing off.
The way he steps, if you could even call it a step, makes it so you have to squeeze past Jake and the cheeky grin that Coyote gives you tells you that he knows exactly what he’s doing.
You look back behind you to see Bob talking with the three other pilots you didn’t know, two guys and one girl. The three seemed decent enough, like people that you might eventually trust. You gently tug the hand resting in yours to gain his attention, and you give the three pilots another smile before you move for the pool tables.
The hole between Javy and Jake seems to have grown smaller in the last minute, and you catch slightly as you go to push passed them. Your eyes rest towards the floor and all you can see are a pair of fucking boots with a pool stick settled in between them. Your jaw clicks and you realize just how much Jake wants to push you. Your eyes slowly rise, moving passed the well-fitted uniform and ignoring just how much he hadn’t changed. Including that arrogant smirk, that your eyes stop on momentarily before finding his.
You can’t bring yourself to break eye contact, sure you had seen Jake from a distance in the last ten years. But now, seeing him up close, seeing the emerald eye’s that once held your heart, a deep thrumming ache settles in your chest. Either of you makes an effort to move your line of sight and you wonder, for a moment, if Jake was feeling the same feelings you were. If he missed his best friend, or if you truly were nothing more than something to play with when he was bored.
Bob’s hand gives yours a small squeeze and has you looking back at him breaking you from the trance between the pair of you. Jake hasn’t moved an inch, though neither has Javy.
A sigh falls from you, and you know that neither of them plan to move. Javy might have been your friend, but he was Jake’s best friend, and he would always choose Jake. Without a second thought, you slip between the pair of them, sliding sideway between the space and causing your chest to barely brush against Jake’s. Neither of your eyes leaves the other as you stare up at him, and the casual stance he takes makes your blood boil. He sinks back into his heels and watches you before his eyes trace up and down your form.
The low whistle he lets out fills you with disgust and your glare hardens in defense. His smirk widens slightly, one you knew wasn’t real or at least wasn’t real for your Jake, but your Jake had died in the locker room, and in his place stood, an empty, arrogant, jackass pilot.
The pool stick rests between the two of you, and Jake’s hand resting on it isn’t really holding on to it. Your own hand finds it as you move through the gap and rip it from Jake’s easily, a taunting smirk now making its way onto your lips.
Other than that, you don’t acknowledge him. Not a single word was muttered or an ounce of emotion shown. You knew that it would piss him off, you knew every single button to push to make Jacob Seresin mad. Just like he knew every one of your buttons, unfortunately.
...
You can hear Bob muttering curses at you as you bend over the pool table. The only thing standing between you and winning was the 8 ball and you were lined up perfectly. You call top left corner, lifting your eyes to watch Bob as you make the shot. The crack of the ball sinking in the pocket has you laughing and holding your hand out for the 20 he owned you.
“You know, you don’t have to be such a showoff all the time.” The comment is teasing as he slaps a 20 into your open palm and has you laughing.
“I seem to remember teaching you that little move, Cherry baby. As well as a few other things.”
The voice rings out and has you laugh halting, before turning around to glare at the blonde. Your eyes glance back at Bob and find him quietly standing by, just waiting. Neither of them had said anything to you all night. Not when you were officially introduced to the squad. Not as you, Phoenix, and Halo talked about being the only women called back. Not when you were left alone at the bar to get the next round of drinks.
It had been radio silence the whole time, each of them too busy in their own conversations. Though it seemed like your luck had officially run out. Your eyes shift from Bob to look at Hangman and the wink he gives you only furthers your annoyance. Your hip rests on the pool table and while the group had been preoccupied, the comment followed by Rooster laughing gained their attention.
The pair of them move closer to you, pushing you back till your nearly sitting on the pool table. Your unassumed gaze doesn’t change though and as you shove the 20 into your bra, you make a move to leave the pair. Though your actions are futile as Rooster catches your arm and pulls you back.
The action has Phoenix and Coyote moving for you, though it’s Bob that holds up a hand. Quietly telling them that the sooner this happened the better, the three of you were the only ones that could fix the current predicament. It wasn’t like Bob was leaving you to the wolves though. No, Bob knew just how much you could take and if you really needed the help, he would be the first one stepping in.
“Vague innuendos, how original of you Bagman.” Your eyes pass between the pair, before settling on Rooster. “I’m assuming you’re the bottom in the relationship, Chicken? Given the fact that you’ve only been able to glare at me and grab me.” Your hand rises to pry fingers from your forearm and a small chuckle leaves your chest. “Little weak there, honey. Might wanna start doing something to fix that or are you too busy being his bitch.”
Your head tilts in question as a mocking look of wonder graces your face. The glare Rooster gives you has you laughing lightly, overjoyed at how easily you can rile him up.
“I forgot how much of an annoying bitch you were, y/n.” The words drip with acid and at one point in time would have hurt you. The girl they knew, would have been devastated, but that wasn’t you anymore. Jake wasn’t the only one that died in that locker room ten years ago.
“Oh, thank you.” A small smile rises on your lips before your hand gently reaches out to rest on Rooster’s chest. You push up from your position on the pool table and step even closer to the pair. “I hope you sincerely mean that because then I know I’m successfully making your life a living hell.”
You go to push through the pair again, hoping to see if Bob wants to go home. You had more than enough socializing and needed to be ready for tomorrow. From tomorrow on, the mission would hold the most importance in your life. You would be flying this mission, you had to.
You don’t get far from the pair, just barely passed them when Jake’s voice rings out. “You need to get over it, Cherry. One of us is going to be mission leader,” his hand gestures between Rooster and himself. “and you’ll fall in line willingly or well...” a shrug of his shoulder says it all and you can’t stop yourself.
Your feet are moving you back to the pair before you can think it through and you see Bob move for you, but you're already right back where the pair want you. You shouldn’t let them rile you up, that was your game, but the sublet threat didn’t sit well with you.
“Understand this,” Your voice had yet to be harsh, till now. “If anyone is going to be mission leader, it’s me. You’re both welcome to challenge me, but you will lose and I will fucking enjoy watching you burn in.”
You leave before anyone can say anything, no longer caring if Bob was coming with you or not. You needed to get out of the damn bar and as far away from them as possible. Tears threaten to break as you get outside and only when you are safely in your jeep do you allow your tears to fall.
“You corrupted her soul, what else did you expect”
🍒 Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Callsign Cherry Masterlist
🍒 Pairing: Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Y/N 'Cherry' Bishop, Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw x Y/n 'Cherry' Bishop
🍒 Word Count: 4.3 k
🍒 Warnings: Parental death, sexism, asshole Jake and Bradley, jokes about them being together, swearing, breach of trust, talk of virginity loss, loss of friendship (and love...), angst, AS (asshole pilot), protective Bob, mourning
🍒 A/n: Here we go, let me know what you guys think. Bobby has made become an unexpected important appearance and he's staying.
🍒 Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)
Your nails drum against the steering wheel as you drive, and the saltwater breeze fills the air surrounding you. You had just recently taken the top off your jeep and the warm summer weather did wonders for your skin. The sunglasses that rest on the bridge of your nose dim the blinding light of the sunset, though as you pull into the Hard Deck you lower them to take in the beachside bar.
Receiving the call back to Top Gun came as somewhat of a surprise, though you had heard through the chain line that there was a new mission brewing. It was the luck that came with having good connections in the Navy, not just because of your late father, but because you had also made quite a name for yourself in the past ten years.
You slip from the cherry red jeep that matches your nails and the short red and white polka-dotted dress swings against your thighs, barely covering your backside. You reach up to run your hands through your hair, effectively releasing the knots from the drive. Your keys swing on your finger as you make your way into the bar, and your eyes catch sight of an all too familiar bronco sitting in the lot.
You slip through the doors and the momentary blast of cool air is quickly ridden from you and exchanged for the overly stuffy heat in the overpacked bar. You catch a few eyes, service men that think you’re going to be their willing prey for the night. A small teasing smile rests on your lips and you may or may not innocently bat your eyes at them. Though you don’t stay in one place long enough for them to make a move towards you.
The simple, yet intimidating stride you take toward the bar has patrons moving out of your way and the click of your heels seems to gain the attention of the entire bar. You can feel the different sets of eyes watching you and though you used to mind all of the attention and shy away from it. Now you reveled in it, it came with the persona and built a sturdy barrier that no one was able to cross.
Your eye’s find Penny as she gives you a small smile, while you lean up against the bar top and give her a genuine smile. Penny had been in your life long before Top Gun when your parents were still alive, and she had essentially become the aunt you never had.
“God, Italy did you good.” Her eyes move up and down your form before she motions you to do a small turn, with her finger.
“Could have been the weather, culture, maybe the food.” Your hands rest on the bar, and you lean into her. “But it’s probably because of the men.”
She gives you a full laugh, with her head thrown back, before giving your hand a gentle squeeze.
“We missed you.” The words are muttered quietly and you give her a squeeze back in answer before she is pulling away and getting you a drink. The words make your gut twist and causes your heel to tap away. It wasn’t that you didn’t miss Penny and Amelia, it was just too hard being back. Driving down the street you once walked and seeing things that reminded you of everything you lost.
You can feel the stare as it burns a hole in the back of your head, and while you had only seen Rooster’s bronco, you were sure Hangman had gotten the call back as well. Your focus is taken from Penny as a figure slides up to the bar top next to you, their hand just barely ghosting against your waist, but enough to get you to turn around in question.
“You’re even prettier up close.”
Your eyes nearly see the back of your head as they roll, but you notice the khaki uniform and decide to play. Your hand falls to his that’s resting on the bar and a small giggle emits from your chest, as you give him a teasing smile.
He tells you his callsign and then explains that he’s a pilot, all while you maintain innocence and act completely oblivious to the military world. A glass slides into your hand, the amber liquid sloshing and you give Penny a quiet thank you, before winking.
“Put it on my tab, honey.”
Penny looks between the two of you, before giving the guy a smirk and a nod. You hid behind your glass, eyes peeking over the rim as you smile, then take a small sip of the whiskey. You would laugh at the poor guy and how he was completely oblivious to who you were, but the free drink was incentive enough to not spoil his night quite yet.
“So, you’re a fighter pilot,” Your voice is breathy, and the smile he gives you doesn’t hide the thoughts that are already racing through his mind. “Have you ever had to shoot anyone down?”
The question seems innocent enough and the gentle tilt of your head in wonder has the guy’s hand coming to rest at your hip.
“I’ve had many close calls, honey.” His hand slightly grabs at the material of your dress. “But there are only two active pilots with air-to-air kills.”
You hum in acknowledgment, which has him continuing as you take another drink. You tune out for a moment when you catch movement to the right of you, but you don’t risk the turn around to see who is making their way toward you. The use of your callsign has your attention on the pilot, and the look you give him has him repeating for you.
“Hangman and Cherry, only pilots that have air-to-air kills. Hangman’s got one under his belt, he’s actually a good friend of mine.” You almost laugh at the desperation seeping off him, you know damn well that he doesn’t know Jake and it’s only a last-stitched effort to get in your pants. “What about, Cherry?”
“She’s got two, lucky kills though.” The words make you glare slightly at the man, but he’s too consumed in himself to even notice. “She’s also the resident bitch of the Navy.”
You knew what people that didn’t know you, said about you. The name was no surprise, but that didn’t make you any less pissy at the term. Though before you can say something, the movement from your right comes into view and the smell of sandalwood consumes your senses.
A hand slips around your waist and effectively pushes the pilot’s hand from your hip. You breathe in the scent and your beating heart calms at the new presence. The familiarity has you leaning farther into the body, now encasing you to the bar. Your eye’s leave the pilot's face, who is already glaring to the side of you, and find a pair of deep blue eyes watching you.
“Hi, Bobby.”
You give him a delicate smile, one that very few people ever saw, before lifting your hand to adjust the frames that rest on the bridge of his nose. A gentle kiss is placed on your temple before Bob pulls away and looks at the pilot then back to you.
“What are you doing, Cher?”
“Just playing.”
The words are easy as they slip off your lips and have Bob laughing, while the other pilot stares at you in silence. He had witnessed you “play” with cocky pilots on more than one occasion and while it was all a game to you, he didn’t trust any pilot whose ego you bruised.
You grasp the glass of whiskey from the counter, noticing that Penny topped you off, before shooting it like a shot. Your eyes remain on the pilot, as a small dribble of the liquor falls from your lips. Bob moves without thinking, as his thumb swipes across your bottom lip to catch it. Though before he can pull away, your lips wrap around his thumb and suck the amber liquid right off.
The action makes Bob roll his eyes, over the seven-year friendship he had become used to your antics and knew you better than almost everyone. When you first meet the pair of you had become instant friends, about 4 months into the friendship on a drunken night, the pair of you had decided to see just how compatible you were. Neither of you could keep a straight face and the night of “debauchery,” turned into a night of horror moves cuddling after the ultimate failure of making out.
The pilot watches you in silent shock, as you pat his shoulder once and give him a smirk. Your form pushes off the bar, clutching Bobby’s hand and tugging him with you. Though before you can get far you turn back around, looking past Bobby’s smirking face to see the man not only stunned but mad. Just like those old cartoons, waiting for the steam to release from his ears.
“Oh, by the way, I’m Cherry. The resident bitch of the United States Navy.”
...
Bob pulls you forward and tugs you toward the bathroom hallway, before stopping in a corner. Your body settles against the wall, though Bob’s arms are quick to wrap around you and pull you into a tight hug. You clutch onto the back of his shirt and relax knowing that you wouldn’t be facing anything alone. Not tonight or during the next 6 weeks.
“When did you get back?”
The words are muffled against your neck, but you hear them clear as day.
“About 40 hours ago.” Your voice is teasing, though the small hitch at the end tells Bob just how tired you are.
“If you would have told me you were coming, we could have driven down together Cher.”
“I know.” You nod gently before your head falls back to rest against the wall. “I just needed the time. They say it gets easier with time, but every time I come back it feels like I’m still that little girl. Losing the only life I knew and getting shipped off to Texas. It wasn’t just my parents who died, the person I was, my life, died too.” A shuttered breath courses through your body, and your hand tightens around Bob's. The tightening in your throat only grows and has you pushing out a forced laugh, anything to change the current topic of interest. “Plus, Adams told me a little bit about the detachment and said that they might be here, which was correct according to the bronco sitting in the lot.”
“Yeah, I just had the pleasure of meeting them. Rooster doesn’t seem horrible and well Hangman, he’s just like you described.” Your eyes roll and any form of smile falls from your face. “Come on, Cher. It’s been ten years.”
Your hand reaches up to spin the pendant on your necklace, a nervous habit that you had picked up. Though your fingers are stilled, as Bob reaches up and grasps onto your hand bring it down to relax by your side.
“Ten years, that I’ve spent making sure that I am better than them in every way, Bobby.”
Your eyes move from Bob and settle on the wall opposite of you, at the flash of disappointment in his eyes. A deep sigh emits from his chest, and your head tips back to lean against the wall behind you, staring that the wood-beamed ceiling.
You hate disappointing Bob, he was like your big brother, but he also knew the full story and couldn’t blame you for the hate you still carried for the pair. The story of your callsign followed you around, it wasn’t like it died after leaving the academy. No, everywhere you went at least one guy brought your virginity.
“I’ll play nice, but the minute either of them say something,” a heavy sigh leaves your lips, and Bob's hand gently squeezes your hand in reassurance. Your head dips back down and your eyes sweep to his, to find only love and support. You give him a small squeeze back and a tiny smile, that was only for his comfort. Before vacantly muttering the words, “I will burn them to the fucking ground, Robert.”
A deep sigh leaves his chest, though before he can say anything you’re turning. You had enough of him playing the disappointed older brother and just wanted to have fun. You hadn’t seen him for 8 months and knew that the both of you had lots to catch up on.
A squeeze and a smirk are all you give him before you’re heading back down the hall and out into the bar. You can feel him trailing behind you, though you don’t slow. Your back straightens and the pace in your step quickens slightly, as you round the corner and catch sight of the all too familiar dirty blonde hair.
You make a bee-line for the pool tables, knowing that ripping off the band-aid would be far easier. Then standing around anxiously all night, waiting for one of them to show up. You side-stepping the guy from the bar, who had somehow magically found a home for the night at a table opposite of the pool tables. His hand reaches out again trying to grab at your sundress, and the small tug on it has you halting.
You pause momentarily still looking towards the pool tables and before you can turn around, your eyes find a pair of green ones. You both hold each other’s gaze and for a moment you think that you see a flash of pain and longing, but as quick as it appeared it disappears. You break the stare before anyone can notice and turn to be met with the smiling fool.
“Now sweetheart, it wasn’t very nice of you to run off like you did. Especially, since I bought you that drink.”
You glance down and find his hand at the hem of your dress, just barely grazing your thighs.
“Get your hands off of me, before I make you.”
The threat may appear minuscule, given the fact that you are all dolled up and in heels. Though the tone of your voice is anything but, and before Bob can move to remove the hand for you, you hold up one finger stopping him. The asshole only laughs at you, before standing and taking a step closer to you.
“Your callsign’s Cherry, right?”
A silent hum emits from your chest, and any patience you had are wearing extremely thin. Before you know it, a harsh hand smacks your ass. The sound echoes through the bar and you’re sure that you could have heard a dime drop. There’s movement behind you but you don’t pay them or Bob any mind, as said hand grasps onto your backside under your dress.
“Why don’t you refresh my memory of how you got your callsign.”
The words are barely past his lips before you lean back to throw a fist. It lands smack dab, in the middle of the asshole's face and the loud crack can only be presumed as his nose breaking. Bob is quick to step up between the group of friends as they make a move toward you, and distantly you can hear the ringing of a bell. Though your only focus is the asshole in front of you, who is now bent over clutching his nose as blood drips onto the hardwood floors.
Your dress sways as you move and you're positive that whoever is behind could easily see the thong under your dress if they really wanted. Your hair falls around your face as you lean into the man, getting as close as you can without actually touching him.
“You touch me again, and you’ll learn exactly how I got those two kills.”
You right your form and brush your dress down the side, before smiling back at Bob and holding out a single hand for him to grab.
“Come on Bobby, I feel like kicking your ass at pool tonight.”
A single shake of the head, followed by a deep sigh has Bob grabbing your hand as you pull him around the bloody mess. You easily spin around, to be met with a wall of khaki uniforms. You recognize three of the six faces, though the only ones you give a smile are the three unknown pilots and Javy. You can feel the way that their eyes burn into the side of your head, but you simply ignore them. Bobby asked you to play nice and you would until you couldn’t that is.
Your gaze settles on Javy, the only known pilot you were willing to make eye contact with. He gives you a small smile, which you return before you make your way to him.
“Coyote”
“Cherry”
Short, to the point, exactly what you needed right now. Your free hand raises to gently pat at his chest before you nod behind him. He side-steps for you, neither of you needing to tell the other where you wanted.
Pool was one of the many things that you and Jake shared a love for. Most of your childhood and teen years were spent in the Serein house playing pool and like Jake, Javy knew that pool was your go-to stress relief. It also helped that you were excellent at it and didn’t mind showing off.
The way he steps, if you could even call it a step, makes it so you have to squeeze past Jake and the cheeky grin that Coyote gives you tells you that he knows exactly what he’s doing.
You look back behind you to see Bob talking with the three other pilots you didn’t know, two guys and one girl. The three seemed decent enough, like people that you might eventually trust. You gently tug the hand resting in yours to gain his attention, and you give the three pilots another smile before you move for the pool tables.
The hole between Javy and Jake seems to have grown smaller in the last minute, and you catch slightly as you go to push passed them. Your eyes rest towards the floor and all you can see are a pair of fucking boots with a pool stick settled in between them. Your jaw clicks and you realize just how much Jake wants to push you. Your eyes slowly rise, moving passed the well-fitted uniform and ignoring just how much he hadn’t changed. Including that arrogant smirk, that your eyes stop on momentarily before finding his.
You can’t bring yourself to break eye contact, sure you had seen Jake from a distance in the last ten years. But now, seeing him up close, seeing the emerald eye’s that once held your heart, a deep thrumming ache settles in your chest. Either of you makes an effort to move your line of sight and you wonder, for a moment, if Jake was feeling the same feelings you were. If he missed his best friend, or if you truly were nothing more than something to play with when he was bored.
Bob’s hand gives yours a small squeeze and has you looking back at him breaking you from the trance between the pair of you. Jake hasn’t moved an inch, though neither has Javy.
A sigh falls from you, and you know that neither of them plan to move. Javy might have been your friend, but he was Jake’s best friend, and he would always choose Jake. Without a second thought, you slip between the pair of them, sliding sideway between the space and causing your chest to barely brush against Jake’s. Neither of your eyes leaves the other as you stare up at him, and the casual stance he takes makes your blood boil. He sinks back into his heels and watches you before his eyes trace up and down your form.
The low whistle he lets out fills you with disgust and your glare hardens in defense. His smirk widens slightly, one you knew wasn’t real or at least wasn’t real for your Jake, but your Jake had died in the locker room, and in his place stood, an empty, arrogant, jackass pilot.
The pool stick rests between the two of you, and Jake’s hand resting on it isn’t really holding on to it. Your own hand finds it as you move through the gap and rip it from Jake’s easily, a taunting smirk now making its way onto your lips.
Other than that, you don’t acknowledge him. Not a single word was muttered or an ounce of emotion shown. You knew that it would piss him off, you knew every single button to push to make Jacob Seresin mad. Just like he knew every one of your buttons, unfortunately.
...
You can hear Bob muttering curses at you as you bend over the pool table. The only thing standing between you and winning was the 8 ball and you were lined up perfectly. You call top left corner, lifting your eyes to watch Bob as you make the shot. The crack of the ball sinking in the pocket has you laughing and holding your hand out for the 20 he owned you.
“You know, you don’t have to be such a showoff all the time.” The comment is teasing as he slaps a 20 into your open palm and has you laughing.
“I seem to remember teaching you that little move, Cherry baby. As well as a few other things.”
The voice rings out and has you laugh halting, before turning around to glare at the blonde. Your eyes glance back at Bob and find him quietly standing by, just waiting. Neither of them had said anything to you all night. Not when you were officially introduced to the squad. Not as you, Phoenix, and Halo talked about being the only women called back. Not when you were left alone at the bar to get the next round of drinks.
It had been radio silence the whole time, each of them too busy in their own conversations. Though it seemed like your luck had officially run out. Your eyes shift from Bob to look at Hangman and the wink he gives you only furthers your annoyance. Your hip rests on the pool table and while the group had been preoccupied, the comment followed by Rooster laughing gained their attention.
The pair of them move closer to you, pushing you back till your nearly sitting on the pool table. Your unassumed gaze doesn’t change though and as you shove the 20 into your bra, you make a move to leave the pair. Though your actions are futile as Rooster catches your arm and pulls you back.
The action has Phoenix and Coyote moving for you, though it’s Bob that holds up a hand. Quietly telling them that the sooner this happened the better, the three of you were the only ones that could fix the current predicament. It wasn’t like Bob was leaving you to the wolves though. No, Bob knew just how much you could take and if you really needed the help, he would be the first one stepping in.
“Vague innuendos, how original of you Bagman.” Your eyes pass between the pair, before settling on Rooster. “I’m assuming you’re the bottom in the relationship, Chicken? Given the fact that you’ve only been able to glare at me and grab me.” Your hand rises to pry fingers from your forearm and a small chuckle leaves your chest. “Little weak there, honey. Might wanna start doing something to fix that or are you too busy being his bitch.”
Your head tilts in question as a mocking look of wonder graces your face. The glare Rooster gives you has you laughing lightly, overjoyed at how easily you can rile him up.
“I forgot how much of an annoying bitch you were, y/n.” The words drip with acid and at one point in time would have hurt you. The girl they knew, would have been devastated, but that wasn’t you anymore. Jake wasn’t the only one that died in that locker room ten years ago.
“Oh, thank you.” A small smile rises on your lips before your hand gently reaches out to rest on Rooster’s chest. You push up from your position on the pool table and step even closer to the pair. “I hope you sincerely mean that because then I know I’m successfully making your life a living hell.”
You go to push through the pair again, hoping to see if Bob wants to go home. You had more than enough socializing and needed to be ready for tomorrow. From tomorrow on, the mission would hold the most importance in your life. You would be flying this mission, you had to.
You don’t get far from the pair, just barely passed them when Jake’s voice rings out. “You need to get over it, Cherry. One of us is going to be mission leader,” his hand gestures between Rooster and himself. “and you’ll fall in line willingly or well...” a shrug of his shoulder says it all and you can’t stop yourself.
Your feet are moving you back to the pair before you can think it through and you see Bob move for you, but you're already right back where the pair want you. You shouldn’t let them rile you up, that was your game, but the sublet threat didn’t sit well with you.
“Understand this,” Your voice had yet to be harsh, till now. “If anyone is going to be mission leader, it’s me. You’re both welcome to challenge me, but you will lose and I will fucking enjoy watching you burn in.”
You leave before anyone can say anything, no longer caring if Bob was coming with you or not. You needed to get out of the damn bar and as far away from them as possible. Tears threaten to break as you get outside and only when you are safely in your jeep do you allow your tears to fall.
🍒 Pairing: Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Y/N 'Cherry' Bishop, Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw x Y/n 'Cherry' Bishop
★ Fluff ❊ Angst ✓ Smut
🍒 A/n: I'm excited about this one! It's a lot different from my normal work, but I hope you guys love it just the same. (repost) The chapter list/layout is subject to change.
N/A: I'm really excited to share this with you guys and updates should start soon. Follow my library for notifications and updates. (I no longer have a taglist.)
☑︎ Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Sweet Nothings Masterlist
☑︎ Pairing: Jake Seresin x Y/n Seresin (Mitchell)
☑︎ Word Count: 4.6 k
☑︎ Warnings: Infertility, IVF, Adoption, Dad!Jake, Teacher/Mom!Reader, Kindergarteners, Y/n mom is a bitch, playground bully, Mav is Amelia's dad too
☑︎ A/n: I know I said I was on hiatus, but I finished this two days ago and I love it. Lets try this again, tags please work
☑︎ Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)
You loved date night; it was every Saturday of the week and the pair of you rarely missed it. Of course, deployments were a different story, but anytime that Jake was stationed at home date night was Saturday. It didn’t matter if you stayed in and watch movies or went out to eat, Jake always managed to make it feel special.
One of your favorite things you loved about Jake was how special he made you feel. It didn’t matter that you had been together 8 years and married 5, Jacob Seresin knew how to make your stomach fill with butterflies. Just as they were now.
Jake had only texted you a couple hours ago, Bradley and he were getting together a new teaching plan this afternoon, but he told you to dress up and be ready to go by 5:30. A simple black silk dress covered your form, while your feet were clad in black heels and a leather jacket laid across your shoulders.
You hear a knock at the front door as you slip into your right heel, and a small smile crosses your face. Jake was never one to shy away from theatrics and date night was always one, he made a habit of picking you up as if the house wasn’t his own and as if it was your first date. Your heels clatter against the tile of the kitchen and down the hall, as you fasten your earring.
You tug on the door and come face to face with your handsome husband. A bright smile rests on his lips and butterflies spin in your stomach knowing that no one else ever got that look.
“You look beautiful, darlin’.”
You blush at the compliment and the way Jake’s eyes trace up and down your form. A small thank you falls from your lips, and his smile only grows as he pulls a bouquet of roses from behind his back.
Jake knew how much you loved roses; they reminded you of your late grandmother. You would stay with her whenever your father was deployed growing up and the small beach cottage had rows of rose bushes lining the front lawn. They were her pride and joy, winning multiple best garden awards through the years.
You take the roses from Jake, though before you can pull away to find a vase, a kiss is stolen. It only lasts for a moment and as Jake pulls away you can’t help but chase his lips, you had missed him all day and the taste of peppermint gum on his lips feels like home.
A small huff falls from your lips as Jake pulls away from you completely, and a cheeky smirk finds home on his lips.
“I’m going to find a vase, then I’ll be ready, baby.”
You turn before he can answer, but the smack against your rear, has you jumping and releasing a squeal. His laugh echoes through the house and even though you think you love Jake more than you ever could, he proves you wrong yet again.
You arrange the flowers in a glass vase on the dining room table and you quickly shut off the surrounding lights before meeting Jake back at the door. After locking the door, you turn to find Jake down on the sidewalk and a sigh leaves your lips.
“Honey, I’m in a dress.”
“That’s never stopped you before.”
The line is followed by a wink, and though you try and look peeved, the smile that tugs on your lips give you away. You had always loved to ride on Jake’s bike, it was what he picked you up with for your “first” official date and it had become a staple in your relationship. The 1950 BMW R25 was Jake’s baby, his father had bought it for him in high school and together they fully restored the bike to its original glory.
“You would have me throw my leg over and ride, with my dress bunched around my waist?” You finish the last words, and your eyes fall shut in the realization of what you just said. A gentle hand settles on your cheek and when you open your eyes, Jake looks more than pleased with your word choice.
“It’s not much different, then what you do every night darlin’.”
Your lips twist as you try to hide your smile and the wink he gives you has your thighs clenching together in need. Jake releases a sharp chuckle, before situating your helmet easily over your head. He’s cautious of your hair and your earrings then fixes the strap, before giving your nose a small kiss.
...
There’s a small skip in your step as your hand rests in Jake’s and the pair of you leave the restaurant. The two-and-a-half glasses of white wine, make you feel light and release all of the stress from the work week. You glance back at Jake and the heart-stopping smile he gives you makes your stomach roll.
“Every time you give me that smile, it’s like I’m falling in love all over again.”
Your voice is weightless and airy, though the words hold the weight of the world, and you hope your eyes convey words that can’t be said. Sometimes there just weren’t enough words or good enough words to convey how hopelessly in love you were with Jake Seresin.
The small tug at your hand has you stumbling back into Jake’s chest with a giggle, as both of his hands wrap around you, to encase you in your own little world with just the two of you.
“How did I ever get so lucky?” The barely there brush of his lips against your own has your toes curling. “I love you darlin’. My best girl.”
The words are muttered against your lips, and you silently know in that moment, that if it was only ever just you and Jake, it would be okay. Together you would always be enough, more than enough. Together you were infinite.
Your nose gently nudges against his and with a small look into his emerald eyes you’re sure that you fall all over again. Though before your emotions can go any farther into the depths of your heart, your soul that only Jake has seen, you pull away and tug him along the sidewalk with you.
“Come on lover boy, we’ve got one last stop before going home.”
...
Your heel click against the linoleum and your hand's grasp at Jake’s while your other wraps around his bicep. You hide your laughter in the side of his neck and Jake can barely stop his own laughter, as the Target employees look at the pair of you in bewilderment.
Not only was the store closing in the next 15 minutes, but your date attire was far from casual. Your eyes flitter around the front of the store to give the watching associates an easy smile, though the sight of one elderly man glaring at the pair of you has your laughter breaking from your chest once again. Your hand clutches tighter around Jake’s, pulling him to follow you away from the watching eyes.
“Come on, I just need to get a few things.”
You quickly led Jake to the children’s section, having mapped out the whole section in Target before, on one of your previous excursions for items for the twins. Your eyes filter through the racks in search of the light, but still warm enough, coats that you had seen the last time you were shopping. You pause at the boy's clothing as your heel taps impatiently, at the lack of coats and you silently curse yourself for not buying them when they were first released.
“Darlin’ what are we looking for? Two sets of eyes are better than one.”
You hum as your eyes trace through the boy’s section once again, before telling Jake about the jackets that you had seen in store just last week.
“They both need one, Gray was shivering to death the other day.” Your eyes leave Jake, and a slight huff leaves your body. “I should have got them when I first saw them, they’re probably all sold out now.”
The tug at your hand has you looking back to Jake, who gives you an easy smile before glancing at his watch. “We’ve got ten minutes before they kick us out, you look here for Gray, and I will go find one for little miss.”
A soft sigh leaves you before Jake is pulling you in for a kiss and then heading to the little girl’s section. A smile graces your lips as you watch Jake make his way to the rows of pink and frill. Though you want to silently watch the 6-foot-something man hold up different shirts and rainbow-colored clothing, you can’t. Your eyes reluctantly leave your husband's form and fall back on the mass of little boy clothing.
...
A resounding victory “aha” falls from your lips, as you find the last jacket tucked under an unrelated set of clothing on the bottom shelf. Your knees ache as they rest against the cold floor, you had leaned down in a last stitched effort to find a jacket in Gray’s size. The light grey jacket is the last of its kind as you flip the tag over, just to double-check that it would indeed fit the munchkin.
You do a small victory dance in relief, only looking up for Jake as his shoes come into view right in front of you. Your eyes follow up the dark denim of his jeans only to be met with an array of different little girl clothing in his hands. Before you can even question him, Jake is triumphantly showing you the light pink jacket that matches the one in your hands.
A massive smile graces your husband’s lips as he reaches out to help you up before he smooths out the side of your dress that had ridden up during the impromptu scavenger hunt.
“So, I found a jacket, but then I saw these, and I couldn’t leave without them.”
Jake holds up to matching shirts, and the outline of an old p-40 sits in the middle with the words, “Loved on the land, sea, and in the skies” written below the plane. A smile graces your lips before it quickly falls. You couldn’t get the twins these, they weren’t your kids, and stating words like loved felt like the makings of a nasty heartbreak.
“Baby, they’re not ours.” Your eyes can’t meet Jake’s, “We can’t make statements like that.”
You get a scoff in reply from Jake before he takes the jacket from your hands and throws all four clothing items into the basket he carries.
“Those kids deserve and need to hear that someone loves them. It doesn’t matter if they know who got them the shirts, they are going to know that someone loves them.” The words aren’t harsh, but the serious tone that incases them isn’t lost upon you and you can only nod in reply. Your heart aches in admiration of the man in front of you and as he tugs your hand gently toward the checkout, you lift your joined hands to place a firm kiss on the back of Jakes.
The overhead speakers echo that the store is now closed and that any shoppers need to immediately make their way to the checkouts to finalize their purchases. Though the words fall to deaf ears, as your mind swirls in false realities. One where the twins heard that they were loved daily and that the quote on the shirts couldn’t have been truer. That no matter if the four of you were home together or separated when Jake was at sea and in the sky, they were always loved. A type of love that lasted for the ages and couldn’t be stopped, even with a couple thousand miles separating you.
...
You run the damp towel once more through your hair, before hanging it to dry. You catch sight of Jake already laying in bed under the covers; a book rests in his hands and his glasses slightly slide down the bridge of his nose.
You slip into the ragged oversized shirt, the shirt one that your father had gotten you in high school. The navy logo is fading against the grey material and the seems are slightly frayed, but you couldn’t give it up. You catch sight of Jake rubbing his temples as you brush your teeth and reach into the cabinet for his migraine medication.
You had known at the first sight of Jake in glasses that he had an impending migraine. He only ever wore them when his head got bad, but you also knew that he was horrible at taking medication, even when he was in pain.
Your feet gently pad across the carpeted floor of your bedroom, before you end up at the side of your husband and rack a hand softly through the dirty blonde locks. A small hum echoes through the bedroom before his eyes fall on your form.
“How bad is it?” Your fingers continue running across his scalp and he nuzzles even farther into your open palm.
“Not the best, not the worst.” His own hand reaches out to take the small white pill from you, before grasping the water on the bedside table. “You’re the best, you know that?”
A hum in agreement now falls from your lips, as Jake grasps onto your hips and pulls you across his lap. The book is long forgotten on your side of the bed. Your hand slips from Jake’s hair to take the strewn glasses from his face and set them on the bedside table for safekeeping.
Jake’s hands remain at your hips and grip onto the flesh under your shirt, before pulling you forward for his head to rest against your chest. His shoulders are tense as you rub at the back of his neck, though they fall as a deep sigh leaves his chest.
“Mav texted me while you were in the shower,” He pauses, though you only hum in acknowledgment for him to continue. “Your mother decided to give Penny a call since we all have been avoiding her.”
This time it’s your turn for your shoulders to tense up and your breath to hitch in anxiety. You knew that she was calling about other options with your IVF after your father, thankfully, broke the results of the last round to her a month ago. You and Jake hadn’t really talked about the next step though, the both of you needed time to process and heal after another failure.
“Amelia answered the phone though, and I’m not sure what the whole conversation in tailed. Other than the fact that she told your mother to stop being a bitch, and Penny ripping the phone from her hands. Your mother must have been being smart though because Penny then hung up on her and Milli didn’t get grounded.”
A small laugh falls from your aching chest, “She’s always been a smartass like dad. You know, she was the best gift I could have asked for when they told me they were pregnant. 14 years old and I couldn’t wait to be a big sister.”
A small kiss is laid in the center of your chest and causes you to clutch even tighter on to Jake. The looming weight in your stomach makes you feel like you’re going to puke, but the tightness in your throat holds onto the choked sob that wants to break free.
“I–” The sob releases with the word and you have to take a few breaths to regain your bearings. “I can’t go through another treatment, Jake. I can’t... It hurts too much. I’m tired, my body is tired. I’m sorry.” The final words are spoken as barely a whisper, but you know Jake hears them as his hands move from your hips and wrap around you entirely. A soft nod is all you get and for a moment you worry that it’s finally been enough for Jake. That the final straw has been broken and this is the end. Silent tears stream down your face, though the shudders that rack through your body are enough for Jake to pull back. His emerald eyes quietly watch you as he wipes the tears from your face. You remain silent as you watch him, waiting to see emotions of disgust or hate, though all you find is love and a pain that matches your own.
“I’m kinda glad you said it.” A laugh falls from his lips and your eyebrow raises in question. “I couldn’t put you through that again, seeing you cry every night and slowly lose the light within you. I can’t do that again, but I also didn’t feel like I had any right to ask you to stop.”
A shutter of a breath leaves your body, before you fall into Jake’s chest. A gentle kiss is placed on the crown of your head, then multiple one’s trail in a line down your face until he meets your lips.
“I don’t need a child; not like I need you darlin’. You are all I have ever wanted and the only thing that keeps me going. We will always be our own family, with or without children.” His left-hand traces across your face then cups your cheek and the cool metal of his wedding ring brings you all the more comfort. “Do not, ever, doubt how much I need and love you. My best girl.”
Your lips find each other, and you quietly wonder how you could have ever doubted Jake’s love for you. Your lips melt together with ease. Neither of you are in a rush, this kiss was about the deep love you shared for each other, and that fact alone.
“I love you.” You mutter the words against Jake’s lips, yours brushing up against his with every breath you take. No words are uttered in reply, the bruising kiss that follows is reply enough.
...
A small smile covers your face as you glance at the stack of multicolored drawings that your students had made for their art project yesterday. It was lunch recess and given that you forgot your lunch at home, you had more than enough time to go through and write various feedback. Ranging from excellent work to awesome job and taping a small piece of candy for when they got home.
The knock at your door has you glancing up and your eyes meet Jake, who stands at your classroom door, hand out wiggling your lunch bag. His eyes dance with mischief and the grin he gives you has a giggle bubbling from you.
“This wouldn’t be yours, would it?” His tone is teasing as he makes his way to your desk. The green flight suit has your eyes tracing up and down his form and enjoying the way that it clings to him.
“Thank you, baby.” Your stomach grumbles in its own answer and has the both of you laughing. “You’ve just saved 20 five-year-olds from having to deal with that monster.”
“Well, I had some extra time and went home to eat, only to find this still in the fridge.”
Your hands reach out to take the bag from Jake, as his hip finds home on the side of your desk beside you. Though the bag is quickly switched from the hand closest to you and raised above Jake’s head.
“Not so fast darlin’. I’m gonna need some form of payment, it was hard work carrying this heavy bag around.”
The smirk that rests on his face is teasing and the not-so-subtle wink he gives you, has you getting up and wrapping your arms around his neck. Your lips brush against Jake’s just slightly, as you watch each other waiting for someone to make the first move.
“How can I ever repay you?” The words slip from your lips, barely auditable against his own.
“I can think of a few ways, sweetheart.”
The name just barely makes it past Jake’s lips, before he leans in and connects your lips. The hand holding your bag is forgotten, as both of his hands find home on your waist. The kiss is deep and full of love, though you pull away in worry that someone might catch the two of you. Jake’s hands stay at your waist, while you trace small circles on the back of his neck. The pair of you relax in each other’s arms, just watching each other and enjoying the shared presence. You only pull away when a knock at your door has the both of you separating. The sight of Ms. Reynolds has you smiling, though it quickly falls when you catch sight of a pouting Madelaine and a crying Grayson tucked behind her. Jake's hands quickly fall from your side and you both make your way over to the pair.
“What happened?” The words just barely make it past your lips, as Gray pushes forward and wraps his arms around your leg. Your hand runs through his hair trying to soothe the crying five-year-old. You look to Laine knowing that you aren’t going to get an answer from Gray. The small girl looks back at Ms. Reynolds, who gives her a nod and tells you that she would be in the office if needed.
You thought that the pair would have instantly noticed Jake, though the both of them seem to be in another world. You catch sight of Laine’s trembling lip before she pushes to your desk and sits in your chair. You hadn’t noticed the object in her hand, though the two pieces of Grayson glasses stand out now against the desk as she rests back against your chair.
“They made fun of Gray, then pushes him and broke his glasses.”
Her voice sounds so small, unlike her usual happy self. Your eyes glance back down at Gray, who still remains clasped at your hip, then to Jake, to find an unreadable but hard expression on his face.
“I was only protecting Gray, they wanted to hurt him.”
Her eyes lift from her hands that twist in her lap, and the tears that line her eyes break your heart. You want nothing more than to go and hold her, though you can’t with Gray wrapped around you.
“What happened darlin’?”
For a moment you forgot that Jake was here at all, though as he slowly walks closer to Laine and crouches down beside her, you're thankful for his presence. Her eyes instantly find home when looking at Jake and the ease that comes over her body has the tension in your body releasing.
“They weren’t big this time, Mr. Jake. I could actually protect him.” The tremble in her lips only increases as she talks to Jake. “I didn’t mean to make him bleed; I just wanted him to leave Gray alone. It was only a little push, I promise.” Her eyes flash between the both of you, begging you to believe what she is saying. “He fell.”
The words are cut off by a sob, and before you know it both of the twins are sobbing. Gray cries echo through the room full of physical pain, while Laine looks terrified of whatever consequences await her.
...
Jake isn’t sure what possesses him, hearing Laine cry while explaining what happened not only makes his heartache but sets a fire deep within that is continuously fueled as the words she said repeatedly flash through his mind.
They weren’t big this time, Mr. Jake. I could actually protect him.
The words made his skin crawl, but he couldn’t focus on that right now. Not when Madelaine’s body shook with every gasp of breath she took. He acts before he can even think, his only goal is to protect and comfort her small frame.
Jake’s hands reach out, not wanting to force Laine into a place she doesn’t feel comfortable, but before anyone can say a thing her small form pushes towards Jake and grasps onto his neck. Her hold tightens as Jake stands, both legs lock around his waist, and he looks back to see you in the same position with Gray.
A hand rubs at her back and small shushing sounds emit from his chest, in hopes of soothing and comforting her as her face stays hidden in the side of Jake’s neck.
“You’re not in trouble, Sweetheart. Nobody is mad at you for protecting Gray.” Her crying eases slightly at the words, though her hold remains clasped around Jake’s neck. “Where’s my little darlin’? I can’t have her crying, need to see that pretty smile.”
A small giggle breaks from you, but Jake’s gaze and focus remain on Laine. His hand traces up and down her back, stopping as she pulls away from his neck and looks at him. Jake’s hand lifts to push back the stray hair from her face and wipe the tears from her cheeks. He gives her that same smile that is usually reserved for you and gets a cheeky one in return.
It may only be small, but the smile eases a bit of the pain that had formed in Jake’s chest. Jake looks back at you and finds that Gray has also stopped crying and now the pair of you sit watching. He slightly adjusts his hold on Laine but then moves to stand beside you.
...
Your heart melts at the sight of them together, and your attention is brought back to Gray as he finally pulls away from your neck and looks at Jake and Laine as well. Your hand brushes through his hair, gently making sure that he didn’t get hurt or cut. The small glasses lay on your desk, split down the middle and the lens cracked.
His head lays back against your shoulder, and the small yawn that he admits from him tugs at your heart. The pair of them had spent the better half of the 45-minute-long recess crying, there were only 10 minutes before any of the other children came in and you wanted to make sure both of them were okay.
“Gray don’t worry about your glasses; I’ll get a new set ordered tonight and they will be here by the end of the week.”
A small nod is all you get in answer before Jake is moving toward the two of you. Gray’s head rises as he sees the small smile on Madelaine’s face, and he give’s her one of his own that matches. You look over at Jake as he moves a few pieces of hair from Laine’s face, and the smile he gives both the twins is one you’ve only seen given to you.
“We aren’t mad at you, either of you, okay?” Jake looks between the twins and gets a small nod from each of them. “But from now on, if someone tries to hurt you, I want you to tell an adult.”
“Like you and Ms. Cece?”
You look down at Gray and find him patiently waiting for a reply.
“Exactly, buddy.” Your hand brushes the hair from his face as he leans back on your shoulder. You look over to Jake who is swaying side to side, with a half-asleep Madelaine in his arms. A small smile crosses your lips and though you shouldn’t be this emotionally close with the twins, you couldn’t be more thankful for this moment. For both of them to have someone to hold onto them and sway, letting them know that there are people that care. People that love them, even if you can’t outrightly say it.
you know the drill: create a new post with the names of all the files in your WIP file folder regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet of it or tell them something about it.
thanks for the tag: @topguncortez
Jake 'Hangman' Seresin
Mrs. Seresin (Sweet Nothings)
Mr. Lieutenant Sir (Sweet Nothings)
What If (Sweet Nothings)
The Monster You Created (Cherry)
I'm in The Mood For Chaos (Cherry)
Game Night (Better Man)
The Proposal (Better Man)
You're Pregnant (Better Man)
Say My Name (Better Man)
Girls Night (Better Man)
Bigger Than The Whole Sky (Better Man/ Midnight x G)
Vigilante Shit Pt. 2
American Dynasty
Robbert 'Bob' Floyd
Maroon (Midnights x G)
Question...? (Midnights x G)
Makeup Sex
Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw
The Monster You Created (Cherry)
I'm in The Mood For Chaos (Cherry)
The Night We Met
The 1
The Great War
Midnight Rain (Midnights x G)
Rhett Abbott
Family Feud (Blue Jeans)
You're On Your Own, Kid (Blue Jeans)
Blue Jean Pt. 3
Troubadour
It Was a Hell of a Ride
No Pressure Tags: @bradleybeachbabe @nobody7102 @rhettabbotts Anyone else that wants to play!
Synopsis: In a desperate attempt to pay for your mom's cancer treatment you take a job as a dancer at one of NYC's prestigious strip clubs where you meet Jake Seresin who just happens to need a wife.
Warnings: Allusions to cancer and cancer treatment, nothing real bad in this chapter tbh
Word count: 2.8k
A/N: This took longer than I planned but you can thank the holiday for that one loves.
I do not consent to having any of my work shared on any other platform. If you see any rendition of my works on another site know that it has been posted without my permission.
Prologue | Masterlist | Next Chapter
“Sapphire! You’re up next! And then I want you out on the floor.” Mickey poked his head into the dressing room, his eyes locked on you.
It had been one month since you landed the job. You’d been doing some form of dance your entire life, and when things were easier you’d done some pole dancing classes. Still, you weren’t even sure you were going to land the job, despite Natasha telling you that you would. As always the woman had been right and much to your surprise you were hired on the spot. Which was actually a huge relief. Without this job you knew there would be no way you’d be able to even come close to affording your mom’s chemo treatments.
Birdie had high profile patrons. Everyone knew it was a strip club, or well a gentleman’s club, but it catered to New York’s finest, old money and new money alike. In less than a week you’d manage to earn nearly all of the money needed for one round of treatment. You’d nearly cried out of joy as you paid.
Ellen asked you how you managed it, but you just told her you’d been pulling tons of hours at your waitressing job. Both of you knew she didn’t believe you, but Ellen seemed content not asking any questions. She trusted that you weren’t doing anything illegal to get the money and that if you needed to tell her you would. All that mattered was she was getting the treatment she needed.
It was busier tonight than normal. Several unfamiliar faces in the place. Then again, you were still so new that unless they were some sort of celebrity they were all unfamiliar. And even still there had been a few celebrities that you didn’t recognize until Nix had pointed it out to you.
You caught your reflection in the mirror as you adjusted your wig. It was your own way of securing your identity from these people. To make you feel like you were still somewhat in control of your life. Natasha had been trying to get you to work with her ever since she started at the club. She’d even tried to get you to audition with her, but you didn’t want to. It wasn’t that you looked down on the career, it had done wonders for Nat, but it had never been for you. For the most part you were a little on the shy side. Going on stage practically naked to dance for strangers was definitely out of your comfort zone.
It had been Nat who suggested the wig, and while it didn’t hide your face it definitely helped you feel a little more concealed. Speaking of, Nat, or Phoenix as close friends and the club patrons called her, walked over with a soft smile. Her forehead beaded with sweat from the performance she just gave.
Both of you nodded and you pushed out the door to the stage entrance. Your stage name was called as the opening notes to Daisy began. It was getting easier and easier to go through the motions of your routines, to block out any insecurities that might crop up mid performance.
It felt like the best performance you’d given so far. The stage was littered with money and you knew tonight was going to be a big earner just from stage routine alone.
Your song was coming to a close when you just happened to look out into the crowd and spot a pair of green eyes zeroed in on you. So much so it was a little unnerving, mostly because you couldn’t read him. You couldn’t figure out what the look in his eyes meant. It was different from the way the other patrons looked at you.
The song ended and you collected what money had landed on stage, spotting several large bills among it all.
“Hey Sapphire, eighty-six the floor work. You’ve been booked in a private room the remainder of the night.” Your eyes went wide as you looked at Mickey. You’d never been booked for a room all night. Maybe just for an hour or two tops, but all night? Not only was that uncommon, but it was pricey. Depending on the room it was a minimum of five hundred an hour, and that wasn’t including the minimum tip for the dancer.
You looked around, trying to find Natasha but she must have already been out on the floor. Your hands suddenly felt clammy. This was up close and personal, this was just you in a private room surrounded by patrons with a lot of money. It had to be a group of men, you couldn’t imagine one of the patrons with that much money would book you out of all the dancers here.
Mickey told you which room to go to and he made it out that it was imperative you got in there as quickly as you could. The room was on the upper level of the club and it was the most expensive one the patrons could get. It was the one that guaranteed the most privacy.
On the walk up you’d prepared yourself for a group of men, but when you stepped inside you were greeted with the same green eyes you’d seen on stage.
Jake wasn’t a stranger to clubs, or to Birdie really. He’d been here plenty of times, booked a private room once or twice, but never for the reason he had tonight.
Ever since that initial meeting where the apparent need for him to find a wife was brought up it seemed Cain had been out to make Jake’s life a living hell. Apparently Cain and Simpson had both gotten to his father. George Seresin seemed to agree that it was time for his son to settle down. After all, his daughters had all been married off, or were close to it. Jake was the only one his parents hadn’t managed to successfully set up.
Not that they hadn’t tried over the years. His mother had thrown woman after woman in his lap. Sometimes Jake gave them the time, mostly winding up in his bed for a night, but never anything with feeling.
He was afraid if he didn’t find someone soon that Cain and SImpson would get the company. That they would successfully convince his father that Jake’s escapades were ruining the company image.
It had been a particularly long week and while Jake hadn’t intended on spending his night at Birdie that was exactly where he’d ended up. The dancer’s weren’t helping him feel better in the way they usually did. He’d just been about to leave when you stepped on stage. For whatever reason he was drawn to you. An idea started forming in his head.
Jake didn’t bat an eye at the money he was spending when he booked you for the rest of the night. He was rehearsing what he was going to say to you when you walked in. He could tell you were nervous. You were new, he could tell from the look on Mickey’s face when he asked for you.
Jake couldn’t understand why. You were beautiful and you knew what you were doing on stage, new or not. Sensing your nervousness now he could tell your confidence on stage wasn’t something that transferred to other aspects of your life.
In an attempt to hopefully soothe you he poured two glasses of champagne, handing one to you.
Drinking at work wasn’t something you normally did. The other girls you’d seen doing it, but you never really did. But you were booked for the full night, which meant you wouldn’t be going back on stage. From your few other times in a private room and the stories from the other girls dancing wasn’t always what took place in these rooms. That more often than not the men who paid for these rooms would use their time with the dancers as some sort of tell all therapy session after a few too many.
Against your better judgment you took a sip of the champagne, your eyes staying on the man before you.
He was beautiful and you were certain you’d seen his face somewhere before. You just couldn’t place it. Not that it really mattered, you would only know him within the confines of this club.
The only sound in the room was the music playing through the speakers. No words had been exchanged between the two of you and that was fine. Two of his fingers curled, calling you over and you obeyed, stepping towards him.
He didn’t need to tell you, you knew what he wanted. Your legs straddled him and you started the dance. It didn’t take long for his hands to find purchase on your hips, leaving a burning sensation that didn’t hurt but felt…good. Unnervingly good.
More drinks were consumed as you danced on him, a word yet to be spoken. You didn’t know how many songs had passed when you finally heard his voice. Smooth and enticing.
“What’s your name?”
“Sapph-” he cut you off, shaking his head.
“No, your real name.” You paused your movements, looking down into his eyes from your spot on his lap. It wasn’t the first time a patron had asked what your real name was. It was however the first time you’d told one your real name. He hummed in what seemed like appreciation. “That suits you much better.” A heat crept up into your cheeks at his comment.
Here this beautiful man was, holding you in his lap after paying for your time and giving you compliments you weren’t used to hearing in a strip club. His hand reached up, lightly tugging on your wig and asking to take it off. You weren’t sure what had you reaching up and pulling out the bobby pins that had it in place, but something did. The man pulled it from your head, tossing it to the side and then starting to undo the braids your real hair was in.
“It’s only fair that I know your name.” You countered, feeling a little more bold in your words. Something you were chalking up to the amount of alcohol you’d consumed.
His movements paused and his brows furrowed in confusion. Like he didn’t know why you were asking what his name was. “Jake. Jake Seresin.” He murmured. His hands went back to undoing the braids, brushing through your hair softly.
Your stomach flipped upside down and you felt immediately nauseous at the realization of who’s lap you were sitting in. Keeping up with pop culture or the tech world wasn’t high on your list of priorities, but you knew that name. Everyone knew that name. And here you were, sitting in his lap while his hands ran through your hair.
There must have been a look on your face because he started to chuckle softly. “Doing alright there sweetheart?” It was clear he enjoyed pulling that kind of reaction out of you.
“Jake Seresin paid for me all night?” You phrased it as a question, but you were really just asking yourself out loud as you still tried to process it all. It made him chuckle again.
He shrugged, his hands dropping back to your hips. “I was about to leave when I saw you on stage, something about you called to me.” He said it so easily, like smooth talking women was something he was used to. From the few tabloid exposes about him you knew he’d had his fair share of women.
Other women you were sure would feel confident in knowing that, but for it only made you feel more insecure. You could never measure up to the caliber of women he was used to having. Yet here you were.
“You don’t look like the type to do this job.” He mused, brushing a lock of wavy hair out of your eyes. “Don’t get me wrong, you’re beautiful and talented, but I can tell this isn’t what you wanted for yourself.” It unnerved you how he managed to come to that conclusion about you so easily. You didn’t think you were that easy to read, but maybe you were. “So tell me why you’re here.”
This was heading in the direction of a therapy session and you weren’t sure you wanted to dive into deep detail about what drove you into this job. Especially not with Jake Seresin. He was probably just asking to be nice. Then again he didn’t have to ask at all. He paid for you to dance for him, there was no reason for him to ask about your personal life other than the fact he wanted to know.
You hadn’t even realized you decided to tell him until you started talking. “Just a long series of bad luck.” You attempted to keep it vague, not wanting to reveal too much. “Forced my hand to work here.” Jake’s eyes stared back at you, like he was seeing into the depths of your soul trying to figure you out.
Finally he let out a sigh and shook his head.
“What if we made it equal? For everything you share, I’ll share?” Jake knew he hadn’t to be smooth about this whole thing. Why he felt you were the one to offer this to – he wasn’t sure. There were plenty of women that he knew already he could ask this of. Ones that would easily accept, but when he saw you he just knew it had to be you.
Several thoughts swarmed in your head as you contemplated what he said and finally you nodded. That seemed fair, especially given that any dancing was long forgotten. You’d long since settled in his lap. You didn’t even mind the way his fingertips massaged your hips. And Jake was enamored with how soft your skin felt.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-eight. You?”
“Thirty-three. How long have you been a stripper?” The questions continued on, basic like this, but slowly they got deeper. Both of you revealing more and more about what in your life brought you two to this exact moment.
There was a look in his eyes as you recounted the series of sad events that forced your hand. “I couldn’t just give up on saving my mom, so I called Phoenix, she got me an audition and here I am.” It was a wild notion, you sitting here spilling your sob story to this man. You didn’t even know why he wanted to know all the things that made his hired stripper tick. “And what brought the world’s most eligible bachelor to Birdie tonight?” By this point the two of you were stretched out on the leather couch, Jake cradling you in his arms as if you two were long time lovers.
“The bachelor part,” he sighed a little frustratedly. “Apparently it’s bad for the company’s image. They want to force me to get married.” Jake was startled momentarily by the belly laugh you let out.
It took you a moment, but eventually calmed down enough to speak. “I-I’m sorry it’s just so funny,” another round of giggles stopped your words. “They’re mad at you for being a bachelor so you came to the most bachelor-esque place. Little ironic, no?” This time it was Jake’s turn to laugh and you joined him shortly.
“Marry me?”
The words sobered you up immediately. You pulled away from him, eyes narrowed and brows furrowed. He wasn’t serious, right? It was the alcohol talking, it was a joke. It had to be. Jake Seresin wasn’t asking you, a stripper, to marry him.
“Jake…I-what?”
“Hear me out, it won’t be a real marriage. I mean legality wise it’ll be real…emotionally? Nothing.” You were still confused and he could read it on your face. “You help me by giving me a wife to convince the company’s board and I’ll help you pay for your mother’s treatment. Then once everything is in the clear we can have an amicable divorce.” It sounded fucking crazy and Jake knew that. Because it was a crazy offer. In his head it didn’t sound as bad, but speaking it out loud and watching your reaction made him realize just how bad it sounded.
You didn’t know how to respond. It would certainly keep you from having to work here and that alone was enticing. Were you really ready to play the role of wife to a man of his status?
“Just think about it, that’s all I’m asking. I’ll leave you with my contact information and you can let me know tomorrow your decision?” It was now that you realized your time was coming to an end. The club was open twenty-four seven, but your shift was ending.
Jake pulled a business card out of his wallet and a pin out of his suit pocket. He scribbled his number down on the back of it, one that must have been his personal cell number. “Our time is up, but I look forward to hearing from you.” He pressed a kiss to your forehead and then he was gone. Leaving you in your pleaser heels and skimpy outfit complete with a dumbfounded look on your face.
summary - Jake broke your heart when he left you behind. All that remained of him were the memories of when you were in love — and the phone number he never picks up. Now he’s back to claim his title. And you think that that’s all he wants, that he’s completely forgotten about everything you were together, until he tries to fight for you too. But, this time, will you finally be worth more to him than the glory?
warnings - DARK THEMES, boxer au, violence, language, mentions of blood, mentions of drinking, my limited knowledge of boxing, no use of y/n
izzy806
discoholicmusic
gummygunk
kianamaiart
jbbartram-illu
jacobvanloon
theartofmadeline
yousharknotpass
