She knew she shouldn't have, but with all the noise happening around her she just couldn't help it; just wanting to place her mind in some sort of bliss away from all the chaos. Her fingers were shaking, her mouth dry, throat scratchy, the dim stinging of tears appeared behind her eyes as her jaw went slack. Breathing became almost impossible.

It was as if nature itself just chosen for her to never be happy. First her mother dying while she was at the academy, only for her to find out through a phone call; her father not having a place in her life whatsoever; always providing an endless list of promises that were always broken. Bradley being the first person she ever truly loved. And now him, someone who had completed her life so effortlessly since he'd enter it. When he came over to her house to celebrate with her and her mom when she got into Top Gun.

Dakota felt frozen in place; even though she was traveling at a mere 670 knots, her mind was stuck on one thought.

"Mav!" The hoarseness of her voice broke her throat, the orange and yellow flames falling below her, black smoke bellowing out around.

Her eyes couldn't break from his furry jet as he stormed towards the ground once she opened them. "Dagger one is hit! I repeat, Dagger one is hit!" She heard Phoenix say, yet she didn't register it through her brain; it being too foggy with everything that just happened. "Maverick is down!"

"Dagger one status." Nothing. Only silence was met with those words. "Anyone see him?" Payback questioned, as he flew beside Dakota, "Does anyone see him?" "Dagger one come in!" Rooster spoke sternly. She broke out of her frozen mind, seemingly coming back to life as she was fighting back tears behind her eyes, swallowing harshly before she adjusted in her seat, the heat of canopy making sweat roll down the side of her face. "No," she cursed herself mentally for how weak she sounded, "I didn't see a parachute."

"We have to circle back." Dakota couldn't lose him. "Comanche, bandits inbound, single group hot, recommend Dagger five defend, Dagger flow south." The female voice made her heart leap in her chest even more.

Over the years, she's learned to expertly throw her personal feelings towards something or someone to the side as she was deployed. It was something her mom always told her; especially when Dakota was in high school, and starting to figure out what she wanted to do in her life. No matter what, she was always determined to finish the task at hand first, then break down if needed; preferably when no one was around.

And yet, here she was, barely holding together within her jet as she process her commands. She couldn't just leave Maverick, whether he was dead or alive she just couldn't. But she had an order to tend to, what her job was on this mission.

With a heavy sigh escaping through her lips, the feeling of her lungs seemingly stretching due to the deep breath she just inhaled. "Copy, Dagger five defending."

Her eyes glanced down to the coordinated that Comanche had sent her, and headed towards the two bandits, tracking them on her radar, making sure that she was behind them, and never in front. She pulled the stick toward her as she gained altitude, already having a strike planned out.

The clouds opened up as she flew through them, a yellow tint painted on the puffs as the golden sun shined through them. Pressure built on her chest as she went higher, the altitude changing on her head as she breathed heavily, the sounds of her teammates flying back, their voices just muttering soft "He's gone, Rooster." Which yes, made her heart clench at the fact that her father figure was gone, but it was also the fact that she knew he was hurting.

So, to focus her mind more, she turned off her com system, quickly programming it so that she could only receive from Comanche and the ship.

She tightened her fingers around her stick, a soft gasp escaping her lips as her eyes landed on the brief view she had of the two bandits below her, completely oblivious to her placement above them. "Comanche Dagger five, moving into weapons envelope above. Picture clear?" She spoke smoothly, calming the wanting shakiness in her voice; if only she was aware at what the man she loved was doing right now.

"Comanche, Dagger five, picture clean. Recommend Dagger hit."

Her forefinger hovered over the trigger, making sure the bullets of her guns would hit both of the bandit's engines. She knew she was a good pilots, she knew she was a good shot, and yet somehow, nervousness still spilled over her stomach.

Dakota inhaled deeply as she continued flying over the two bandits, above the cloud break, occasionally catching glimpses of the fifth generation jets. Her finger tightened on the trigger once she heard tone, furrowing her eyebrows in concentration, as the bullets continued to break apart the metal that surrounded their engines.

She watched as smoke bellowed out from both of their right engines, flames engulfing the two planes. The pilots of the jets ejecting, two white parachutes in deep contrast with the black smoke around them. "Dagger five, Comanche, Bandits are down, I repeat bandits are down." A ghost of a smile tugged on the corner of her lips, a slight celebratory evident in her tone. The thought of turning back on her receiving com to open, leaving as she undid her mask, pounding her fist against the canopy as she increased her speed.

The bright blue of the ocean, hints of turquoise green shining as she flew over it, lowering her altitude so the bottom of her jet grazed the surface. She hummed to herself as soft mist landed on her canopy; she felt the apples of her cheeks glint with a soft pink.

"Dagger five, carrier in sight. Clear to land?" "Comanche, Dagger five, clear to land, over."

Her body jolted forwards as her wheels hit the cement of the taxi way of the carrier, the fogginess of smoke being bare at the friction of the rubber. Her canopy opened up, as she threw her head back, relishing in the freshness of the air that surrounded her. She unclipped her helmet and wrapped her fingers around it, the tightness of her bun loosening as she pulled at it slightly.

"Mustang!"

She closed one eye as she turned her head towards the glare of the sun, the soft shadows of four bodies running towards her in sight. Dakota leaned against the open canopy, swinging her legs over the side of the jet as people hustled around her as she jumped down. Her pupils yet acclimated to the sun's harsh light on the carrier, she was surprised at the feeling of arms wrapping around her neck, making her weight unbalanced.

"Phoenix." She hummed into her shoulder, she knew it was her just based on the feeling of her arms. The two embraced, comfort overcoming the nervousness that was piled in her stomach. "Thank god you're okay." Natasha's voice spoke softly, in heavy contrast to the loud atmosphere around them. They pulled away, but not before Phoenix could place her lips on Dakota's forehead, her soft palms cradling her cheeks delicately. "I promised you I'd come back didn't I?" She chuckled.

Her eyes were now adjusted to the burning light that was shining on them. "Okay, okay it's my turn now." The smiling figure of Payback pushed Phoenix back by her shoulders, pretending to be mad at the woman. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her into him, making her chuckle into his shoulder. "Nice to see you too Reuben." Her arms were wrapped around his neck, as she stood on her toes, a grin on her lips.

Payback laughed slightly, she could hear his heartbeat in his chest. "Yo Payback," she pulled back from him, crossing her arms across her chest. "Why is your heart going crazy?" His small smile faltered just a tad, as he shared a look with Phoenix. "We didn't know if you were gonna come back, Mustang." Dakota quirked her head. "What do you mean?" "Well, when you turned off your com, it was just silence. We didn't know if you got to the bandits before they got to the others," she watched as his Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed harshly, still keeping the corners of his lips quirked up. "Or you."

"Ah, okay I see." She said calmly, as she walked towards Bob and Fanboy, brining both of them into a hug. "You guys underestimated me." Dakota smirked, after she placed quick kisses on the two men's heads. She heard Phoenix gasp dramatically, a hand shooting to her chest as her jaw dropped. "We would never!"

A loud laugh sounded over the noise around them, "Yeah okay."

Dakota unzipped her jumpsuit, bunching the top portion of it around her hips, her torso clad in a black undershirt. Phoenix walked up to her, pulling lightly on her elbow as they looked over the railing, away from the guys. "So what's with Rooster calling you baby?" She questioned after seconds of silence, the two of them just listening to the roaring waved below them.

Frankly, she blew over the fact that he had called her that, in front of everyone; too high on adrenaline and focused on the mission.

She shrugged, trailing her gaze down to her hands as she picked at her nails. "I dunno, he maybe sorta said he loved me before the mission." Her voice spoke lowly. Dakota looked up to see Natasha's jaw dropped, her eyes wide. "Wha-" "Which by the way," She suddenly felt her heartrate pick up, her eyebrows furrowing. "Where is he?"

Phoenix's mouth closes, her jaw clenching as her eyes turned sorrowful, knowing just how much her friend cared for the man. Her tongue darted out, wetting her lips. "Nat, where is Rooster?" Dakota spoke sternly, the silence she was being met with not helping her quickly growing nerves.

"He," she let out a shaky breath, her fingers wrapping around the rusted metal railing of the carrier, as she looked out at the bright blue ocean, breaking her gaze from hers. "He went after Mav," a beat. "He got shot down and we haven't heard from him since. That was about fifteen, twenty minuets ago." 

Dakota felt everything in her mind escape. Every rational thought, every sense, everything, everyone. Everyone but him. He could be dead. He was dead. Her knees weakened, her breathing erratic, her eyes glazing over with the tears that stung behind her eyes oh so badly. Her knuckles were white from just how tightly her fingers gripped the railing.

An agonizing pain painted over her. "I didn't even get to say I love you." She muttered lowly, not intending on Phoenix for hearing, but not caring that she did. "I didn't tell him I loved him, Nat." Her voice broke, as she felt a tear slide down her cheek, turning her head to face the woman next to her. "He's dead."

Phoenix felt her heart break at her words, pressing her lips into a thin line as she hugged her, muttering soft, comforting sayings into her ear as she wept into her shoulder, not knowing what else to do.

-

She was panicked. That part was set and stone.

For what felt like hours, her body didn't know how to react; Mav and Rooster being dead? She was a mess; constantly excusing herself to go to the bathroom to bawl her eyes out, asking Cyclone and Warlock if they've heard anything, the answer always being 'No'.

That is until Rooster's tracking was seen on the radar, making her ears perk up like a dog when she heard his name. He's alive? Her eyes watched the green dot that indicated him, he's supersonic. But how? With her eyes now dried out from the many tears she had let fallen, and a mind that was in shambles, she put two and two together; Maverick. They're alive.

She rushed out of the room, running up countless stairs until her thighs ached and her lungs burned. People were rushing around her, hurrying to put up the emergency ropes that they had to use for their plane, (an F-14, which Dakota just knows she'll be asking questions about later), given the fact that they had no front landing gear.

A small cloud of white smoke flew out in the air around her, as she stood on the outskirts of the crowd that surrounded the plane, shouts and cheers being muffled to her as she was focused on just one thing; Bradley. She watched as two figures jumped from the opened canopy of the jet, their shadows against the harsh sun.

Dakota pushed her way through the crowd, muttering soft 'sorry' 's every now and then, but frankly, not caring about who she pushed out of the way.

And just finally, her eyes landed on the smiling face of Bradley Bradshaw. His sun kissed curls sticking to his forehead with sweat, the corners of his hazel eyes crinkling due to how hard he was smiling, his tanned skin glimmering in the daylight, he looked perfect.

She softly tapped the should of Hangman who stood in front of her, his large body being the only one that separated her from the man she loved. "Hey Hangman," she spoke above the chaos that was happening around them. His sharp features glowed in the golden light, his eyebrow quirked as he looked down at her. Dakota moved her gaze from between his to Rooster's, catching his gaze, making butterflies erupt in her stomach. And to her surprise, he moved out of the way, extending his arm out beside him, "Madam."

Her breathing picked up from just the sight of him, her eyes stinging with tears once more- happy ones this time, at the fact that he was standing in front of her, alive. His gaze was already on her, his smile widening, blood rushing to his cheeks.

Bradley extended his arms as she ran up to him, throwing her arms around his neck as he picked her up, his hands caressing her back as he held her. Her brain couldn't come up with words to say, her emotions running too wild as he was finally in her arms once more. And so, she pulled her head up from his shoulder, and started placing kisses up the side of his neck and to his jawline. Soft pecks from her lips that made his heart soar.

He placed her feet back on the cement of the taxiway, his hand trailing up her side and up to her cheek. She leaned into the warmth of his palm against her face, his thumb tracing the dried up tears that stained her cheeks. Her fingers placed with the hair on the nape of his neck, as she just looked at him. Her breath seemingly being taken away from the sight of him.

She bit her lip, "You're alive." Her voice broke, as her eyes roamed his face. She felt his grip tighten on her hip at the sound of her words, making her smile widen. "I'm alive." And she swore she melted, adoration laced in his tone. "You kept your promise." Dakota tangled her fingers in his hair, pulling their bodies flush against each others. "And so did you." He laughed slightly, making her heart swell.

Her eyes trailed down to his mouth, where soft puffs of air escaped. Her hand moved to his cheek, her thumb resting on his bottom lip, feeling the cool air from his breathing against the pad of it. Her chest felt tight, her nerves calming, her something. She pulled her gaze from his mouth back to his eyes, "I love you Bradley Bradshaw." Holy shit.

Dakota could've sworn she felt his breath hitch as her words. His grip tightened, his thumb brushing over her cheekbone. His eyes filled with nothing but love.

She tilted her head up, grazing her lips against his before connecting them. A single tear fell down her cheek as his mouth moved with hers. All the years of doubts, nerves, and nothings, she poured into that kiss; now replacing it with reassurance, calms, and somethings. He was finally her something. After all that time she spent with her mind filled with love. His bottom lip caught between hers as she brushed her tongue over it, wanting nothing more than to live in his touch.

They pulled away, the loudness around them fading out as they leaned their foreheads against one another's, their breath intermingling. His hands cradled her face like she was a delicate vice, and ancient artifact, something valuable. His gaze filled with love, heat, "And I love you, Dakota Jones. With all my heart."

Love on the brain was a constant thought when she was with Bradley, no matter what.

PAIGE SPEAKS

i apologize that this took so long to get out! been hella busy, but you guys knew that since you guys read my last announcement; which btw THANK YOU for being so patient 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩

ONE MORE CHAP IN ACT ONE

also i saw this and automatically thought abt my version of rooster:

he may or may not be worse in the next act🤭