A groan disturbed the two relaxed females sprawled out on Dakota's couch. Phoenix lifted her head from the girl's chest, "What is it?" her tired voice asked.

Golden hues from the sunset radiated throughout her house. The two female's tanned skin soaked up the honey light, creating an almost euphoric glow around them. A lavender scent wafted through the air, calming their brains after a so called "painful" training day at the base.

"Mav just texted me," the freckled girl stated, her face contorting into something Phoenix could only name as annoyance. "He accepted the job at Top Gun." "I thought Cyclone wasn't even close to considering him?" A sign escaped Dakota's lips as she leaned her elbows on her knees, "He wasn't, but I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that Ice persuaded him."

Phoenix stood up, making her way toward the kitchen, "Well if he's bringing our class back, 'the best of the best of the best' as I like to call it," an airy chuckle escaped from the Dakota as she leaned back, "Then he must be hella good." She came back into the living room, handing her a water bottle she grabbed from the refrigerator as she sat down next to her best friend. "No shit he is," Dakota turned her body to face her, "Have you seen him fly?" Smiles came across both of their faces at her enthusiasm.

"So," Phoenix started, gathering the other's attention from the television that was in front of them, "Who all do you think Cyclone is gonna call for this mission?" "Hmm," she pretended to think hard, "As tough as that decision is I'm thinking he chose us, obviously, Hangman, Coyote, Payback, Fanboy, and possibly Bob."  the shorted of the two smirked. "Phoenix I swear to God if you mention him at all I won't be afraid to throw you out right now."

A small chuckle came from her, "Hey I didn't even say anything-" "Yeah but I could sense you were thinking about it," She resumed her place to laying her head on her friend's chest, "Which speaking of," Phoenix moved the throw blanket to cover both of them,  "What happened between you and Bradshaw anyway?" A sharp inhale from curly haired female, "Like, I'm fully aware that you two fucked your way through Top Gun but," Dakota closed her eyes, "how did it end?"

Her lips made a thin line at the mention of him "Terribly," Phoenix shifted her head to look up at her friend, "The night after graduation he came over, and we started making out, you know nothing out of the ordinary," Her face grew hot of anger at the memory, "And then Cyclone called me, saying I was called for a mission on the East Coast, and for some reason he got mad at me," A slight pause, "And all I just remember was him yelling his ass off and storming out." Phoenix gave her a sympathetic look, "Nat, stop giving me that look; It's not like we were any thing but stress relievers to each other, frankly I was happy when it ended, it meant that I didn't have to see his stupid ass moustache anymore."

Quiet laughter erupted from the two, "Well if he is called with us just promise not to fight or fuck. No 'f's' are allowed this time." Phoenix joked, "Hmm, no promises, man has a fucking huge d-" "Dakota shut the fuck up right now."

-

The sweet, warm wind blew through her unruly hair creating a comforting feeling as she road along side the tarmac. A slight sheen layer of sweat across her nose in the San Diego heat, causing her aviators to slip down her bridge. She smiled, a nostalgic feeling washed over her, goosebumps threatening to rise. The soaring above overhead was deafening, yes but brought a comforting filter to her chest.

She pulled up in the building where Maverick was, shutting off the engine to her bike. She nonchalantly walked up behind him where he was fixing God knows what on a plane he's been working on for about a year now. "Hey Mav," he turned around, "Hey Mustang!" a smile immediately covering both of their faces. He dropped the wrench he had in his hands and made his way over to the tall girl. They enveloped each other into a hug, Dakota sighing at the impact, closing her eyes.

"God, I've missed you kid," They parted from each other, she took off her jacket and placed it on the back of a near by chair, getting ready to help him out. An inhale, "I've missed you too Mav, even though it's been a week," A scoff came from the older man, "Yeah well when you practically live with airplanes you know it tends to get a bit lonely," A small chuckle came from the other side of the plane as she was unscrewing the cover to some wires.

Dakota cleared her throat, "So I heard that you're coming back to Top Gun, something about teaching for a mission?" She threw tendrils of hair into a lazy bun, "Well according to Cyclone, I'm not there to teach I'm gonna be there to lead," A hum came from her. "Have you gave Penny a visit yet?" a smirk spread across her features. Maverick gave her an almost shocked look, quickly followed by a playful smile, "That is none of your business." "Ah yes so you haven't," she teased, "I will, eventually, sometime in the coming week,"

Dakota inhaled deeply, the smell of motor oil, the reverb of an 80's song playing in the background, all of it comforting her, reminding her of her childhood, for a few hours, her mind reminiscing.

"Yo Mustang!" The unmistakable voice of Phoenix disrupted her. She lifted the end of her shirt to wipe her sweat, "Yeah dumbass?" a smirk graced her lips. A smile spread across her friend's face, she was wearing her uniform, her hair slicked back in a professional bun, "Top Gun class is meeting up at the Hard Deck, figured you'd wanna go given you were called as well,"

Dakota met her at the entrance of the building, "Nat, I one hundred percent would but I don't wanna have to deal with Hangman's arrogant ass more than I have to this month-" "Rooster's gonna be there," Phoenix stated in a teasing tone, "God Natasha we stated to never speak his name," an airy laugh, "So where's Maverick, unless you're here alone then that's just plain sad." Dakota gave her a toothy smile while walking to her bike, straddling it, "As a matter of fact he went to the Hard Deck, something about needing to enjoy freedom or some shit,"

Phoenix followed her as she put on her jacket, "Promise me you'll at least make an appearance? You know I can't handle those jackasses without you," she pleaded. The booming noise of the engine kicking on echoed, "I might contemplate saving your ass, Phoenix," she stated with a sarcastic tone.

Natasha playfully shoved her as she walked back towards her car, "God bless you Mustang."

PAIGE SPEAKS!
CHAPTER ONE DONE! HELLO? it's a little shorter than what i was hoping for but i'm pretty proud of her🥹 i hope you guys grow to love dakota as much as i already have🤭

and yes, dakota and phoenix are bisexual in this book, who would i be if i didn't make phoenix a wlw?