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So much had happened in such a small amount of time. First he gets called back to Top Gun, with Maverick as his teacher of all people, and all the shit with Hangman, and now the bird strike. Rooster sat in the lounge, knees spread and head so low it was almost hanging between his knees. He took deep, measured breaths as he waited for any kind of update on Phoenix and Bob (hopefully a time he could visit them).
The sound of footsteps echoed throughout the empty room before they stopped a couple feet away from Rooster. He didn't even need to look up to know who had came to him.
“They're going to keep Phoenix and Bob in the hospital overnight, but they're gonna be okay,” Maverick's voice was just above a whisper when he spoke.
Rooster let out a breath when Maverick spoke. That's good, great actually. He doesn't know what he would've done if the news was anything other than them being okay. “That's good,” he paused to take a deep breath, looking up at the wall across from him, not able to bring himself to look at Maverick. “I've never lost a wingman before,”
“You're lucky,” Rooster almost laughed at Maverick's words. Lucky. Sure didn't feel that way. “Fly long enough it'll happen. There will be others,” Maverick spoke softly before turning to leave.
Even at a time like this all Rooster could really feel was anger at Maverick. “Easy for you to say. No wife, no kids, nobody to mourn you when you burn in,” He was looking at Maverick when he said it, and could see how stricken he looked when he heard Rooster's words.
“Go home. Just get some sleep,” Maverick turned back to leave, but the screeching of a chair being pushed back caused him to pause, still facing towards the door.
“Why did you pull my papers for the Academy? Why did you stand in my way!?” The soft, calm voice from earlier was gone now, replaced with anger as Rooster yelled his questions.
“You weren't ready,” Maverick tried to answer the way he had when he was confronted the last time, knowing it'd have the same reaction as last time. Rooster would look heart broken, yell a couple insults, and storm out. But that's not what happened.
“Bullshit! You told me that last time and even then I knew you were lying to me!”
Maverick turned back around to face his godson. “It's the truth Rooster. You weren't ready to forget the book, trust your instincts. Don't think just do!” Maverick wasn't quite yelling but he had raised his voice.
Rooster's face was becoming more and more red as he listened to Maverick talk. “No, no that's not it. I know that's not it! There's something you're not telling me and I want to fucking know what it is!” he practically screamed.
“There is nothing else to it, Rooster. You just weren't ready,”
“Stop fucking lying to me!”
“I'm not!”
“You are! And I don't know why!”
“I'm telling the truth Rooster! Whether or not you accept that's what it is is up to you!” Maverick was yelling now too.
“I'm not accepting another fucking lie Maverick! Why did you pull my papers?!” Rooster, who had been steadily walking towards Maverick during their argument, was now almost toe to toe with the man before Maverick stumbled back and practically screamed his answer.
“We were scared!” Maverick seemed to freeze when he realized what he had said.
Rooster froze as well when he heard it. His mind was stuck on one word. We. Who was “we”. “We?” he mumbled, keeping his eyes on Maverick's face.
“Bradley, no, it's nothing, just a slip of the tongue. I didn't mean ‘we’,” Maverick scrambled to fix his mistake.
Rooster watched as Maverick's expression grew panicked, his eyes almost taking on a manic gleam as he frantically tried to explain his words away. Rooster slowly shook his head. “No. You meant to say that. Maverick who's ‘we’?” Rooster demanded. As Maverick tried to explain there was no “we”, Rooster's mind was connecting a couple of the dots.
Maverick was supportive of his dream up until the day he pulled Rooster's papers. It didn't make sense. It made no sense at the time but the feeling of wrongness was overshadowed by the sheer betrayal Rooster had just been confronted with. With the confirmation of there being a “we” it seemed so obvious now. It wasn't Maverick that pulled his papers. Or, well, he's still the one that did it, but someone else wanted him to. Someone that didn't want him to fly. But everyone else in his life supported his dream didn't they? Who would-. His eyes went wide. Someone that wasn't completely supportive of his dream. He thought it was normal. The way his mom would ask if his mind had changed, if he wanted to try and go pro in baseball, if he was looking at colleges. All things he had assumed were normal things to ask were suddenly thrown into a different light as he realized none of his uncles ever did that. All of them were supportive and convinced that he was going to fly. Everyone but his Mom.
“It was my mom. Wasn't it?” Rooster's voice was barely above a whisper but it was clear Maverick still heard him with the way his eyes grew wide with terror.
“No, no Baby Goo-, Bra-, Rooster. Rooster it was me. I'm the one that pulled them okay?”
Rooster stared at Maverick in slowly growing horror as he watched Maverick try to take all the blame again. “She said something to you didn't she? Mentioned she didn't like it or made you promise something?”
“Rooster-”
Rooster cut Maverick off. “No! Stop taking the blame! Just answer the question Mav, please,”
“It,” Maverick swallowed. “Rooster you have to understand. Your dad's death changed us, and not all of it for the better. Your mom-” Maverick ran a hand through his hair, causing it to stick up. “She was scared. Hell I was too okay? But she, she didn't want you to end up like Go-, like your dad. She had me promise to keep you alive and safe, and that was the only way I knew how to keep it,” Maverick's voice got smaller as he continued to speak.
Rooster stared at Maverick in both shock and horror as he listened to Maverick's reluctant explanation. “I hated you,” he whispered.
Maverick's face crumpled even more when he heard Rooster speak. “Rooster I-”
“I thought you didn't believe in me. I was so confused. You were so supportive of me wanting to fly for my whole life that when you-” Rooster closed his eyes in anguish before opening them and looking at Maverick. “-when you pulled my papers, I was hurt, confused, I thought you didn't want me anymore,” he admitted in a soft whisper.
“No Bradley. Of course I wanted you. God I'm so sorry,” Maverick ran his hand through his hair, his eyes beginning to tear up.
Rooster was beginning to tear up as well. “I didn't mean it,” when Maverick looked up in confusion, Rooster continued. “What I said before I left, I didn't mean it. I don't, I don't wish it was you that died instead. I love Goose, I always will, he's my dad. But you, you were my dad too,” the tears in Rooster's eyes began to overflow.
Maverick slowly raised his arms up, and when Rooster didn't recoil, Maverick tugged him into a hug. Rooster nuzzled into Maverick's neck, tears falling freely down his cheeks, breaths hitching with quiet sobs.
“I'm sorry,” Rooster sobbed out.
“It's okay, Baby Goose,” Maverick choked out as he gripped Rooster even tighter.
“I love you dad,” Rooster mumbled into Maverick's neck.
Maverick stiffened, his breath hitching, but before Rooster could leave the hug, Maverick adjusted his grip. One hand gripped the back of Rooster's head, the other was splayed on his upper back. “I love you too Bradley,” at those words, Rooster fully relaxed into the hug, Maverick had to adjust his stance to make sure his legs didn't buckle under Rooster's weight.
Rooster's sobs grew in volume and intensity as he gripped onto the man he knew as his other dad.