#I need to write more winter Bradley fics

[sunlightmurdock]

yes, yes bradley bradshaw being all sunburnt sunkissed and half naked and ripped during summer, sweating and blushing red and the sunlight catching on the gold of his necklace

but also, bradley bradshaw during autumn and winter breaking out his big flannels and cable-knits and hoodies, wearing jeans that hug his thighs and big ol boots, and the tip of his nose getting just as red as his cheeks when the cold nips at him

[vivalas-vega]

top gun: maverick masterlist

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each fic will feature a symbol representing what they include, or eventually will include, but individual parts on this list will not -- you are responsible for your own media consumption so please read the warnings on each post.

key: ✩ author’s favorite ♢ angst ♡ fluff ⚤ m/f smut ⚢ f/f smut

JAKE 'HANGMAN' SERESIN

multi-part series:

✩ new perspectives ♢ ♡ ⚤ (ongoing) 

You and Jake Seresin have been inseparable since age ten... somewhere along the way you fell in love and when college and flight school rolls around you have to make the hardest decision of your life.

prologue / one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten / eleven

new perspectives universe one shots + drabbles

match ♡

Jake surprises you at your match day ceremony.

j&j wedding moodboard

easier ♢ ♡ (ongoing)

You secure your first confirmed air-to-air kill on your first mission as team leader... only no one told you how difficult it would be to process and the only person who can understand what you're going through steps in to help.

one / two 

move on ♢ (ongoing)

The love of your life vanishes in the middle of the night leaving you reeling and leaning on the only person you can still trust.

one / two / three

✩ real friends ♢ ♡ (on hiatus)

One day your competitive working relationship with Jake Seresin takes a hit and results in a pact between the two of you that you never saw coming.

one / two / three / four / five / six / seven

shot through the heart ♡ / and you’re to blame ♡ ⚤ / you give love a bad name (mini-series)

Pushed together planning your best friends wedding your forced to notice someone you'd previously overlooked.

one-shots/requests:

✩ flygirl ♡ ⚤ (one-shot)

The Dagger Squad, and more specifically Jake Seresin, decide it's time their favorite bartender experience life in a Super Hornet.

✩ late ♢ ♡

A delayed period forces you to have a conversation you've been putting off with your boyfriend.

mistletoe ♡

Jake comes home to find you amidst a winter wonderland and can't help but fall more in love with you and your spirit.

✩ sunshine ♢ ♡

You and Jake are recalled to Top Gun... only problem? Jake has no idea you're in the Navy.

before he cheats ♡ (request)

While drinking away your breakup at the bar, Jake finds out about your extracurricular activities and steps in.

worry ♢ ♡ (request)

Stressed and overworked, your husband steps in to remind you to take care of yourself before taking care of others.

birdstrike ♢ ♡ (request)

Jake grapples with the thought of losing you after an accident in the air leaves him rattled.

family dinner ♢ ♡ (request)

You and Jake attend dinner with your parents, a diligent homemaker and retired Navy hotshot, and when your parents have their own ideas about your trajectory in life, Jake steps in to stand up for you.

into you ♢ ♡ (request)

Forced to watch the man you want and your best friend getting closer, you push them both away without bothering to clarify the situation.

NATASHA 'PHOENIX' TRACE

boyfriend ⚢ (one-shot)

Phoenix steps in to give you the attention you deserve when your boyfriend spends the night neglecting you.

at your pace ♢ ♡ (request)

Your relationship with Natasha has remained a secret as long as you've been in North Island, until her backseater puts the pieces together and gives her the nudge she needs to come out to her team.

BRADLEY 'ROOSTER' BRADSHAW

firecracker ♢ ♡ (on hiatus)

When you and your childhood best friend are recalled for the same high stakes mission you have to navigate ever-changing relationships along with keeping your familial name a secret.

one / two

✩ longshot ♢ ♡ ⚤

A series of unfortunate events lead you back to your hometown and straight to the professor that's been on your mind ever since you graduated.

one

unexpected ♡ ⚤

An educational trip to the waterfront for Fleet Weeks ends in a handsome naval aviator asking you on a date.

one

DAGGER SQUAD

make the friendship bracelets ♡ (one-shot)

On a whim you decide to surprise the squad with a token of your appreciation.

[goddesspharo]

Winter Olympics au?!?!? Roommates?!?!??!??? Mob?!??!?? I don’t even know where to start!

Can you give us a lil type snippet of whichever one you’re most excited about?

[ask me about my WIPs!]

I talked about the Winter Olympics AU here (I foresee that becoming a behemoth like the Vegas AU if I don't lose the bug for it by the winter) so I'll talk about the mob AU instead. Sometimes you just fuck around in Canva and then make a moodboard and then feel like you have to write a fic to accompany it because now it has consumed you. Unfortunately, I have never needed much coaxing to want something to be a mob AU. An excerpt:

"I called Hondo." His eyes snap open and the single prevailing thought in his head is that if Neil Vikander is dead, Jake will bring him back to life just to kill him again if he has hurt her. His eyes immediately sweep across her body to look for blood, bruises, bullets – even the slightest hint that she's not okay. Natasha rolls her eyes and clarifies, "For you, Rambo." "Doctor-patient confidentiality doesn't apply to my line of work." "We're not going to the hospital. I called in a favor. He's making a house call." They should be leaving this town in the rear view mirror, not returning to where she has roots. They should be cutting ties, not inviting more connections. They should have gone their separate ways, not doing whatever this is. Jake slams his open palm against the wall in frustration. The sound reverberates throughout the office, but Natasha doesn't even flinch as she declares that she'll drive since her car is the one without the bullet holes in it. His only victory is that she did pack while he was gone.

I still have to work out the connections, but the broad strokes idea is that Maverick's a mob boss (figurehead, really - Penny is the real Don a la Animal Kingdom), a conflicted Bradley is being groomed to inherit the throne (alas, at times, he is more Sonny Corleone than Michael), and Jake is a combination of enforcer and consigliere for the family. Nat grew up in this world even if she's not completely in it and left because of a death that I'm going to be super vague about for the sake of not giving too much away. After getting an MBA from Wharton and trying to live a life removed from this violence, she finds that she still can't let go and that the things that pushed her away are the same things that pull her back in. She returns to the fold under the guise of selling the legitimate face of their illegitimate business (so maybe she is Michael Corleone) with Hangman tasked to watch over her, which annoys them both - he's not a babysitter and doesn't trust her motives; she blames him for tipping over the domino that started everything. But, of course, nothing is ever that black and white.

[bratshaws]

through the hourglass 216. brb x oc

a/n: HELLO GUYS im back,these past days i had...the need to write, badly. so i hope you guys like it :) (comments and reblogs are super welcome and encouraged!)

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: none uwu

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/

/164/165/166/167/168/169/170/171/172/173/174/175/176/177/178/179/180/181/182/183/184/185/186/187/188/189/190/191/192/193/194/195/196/197/198/199/200/201/202/203/204/205/206/207/208/209

/210/211/212/213/214/215

(pls let me know if you want to be added to the taglist! )

taglist: @mirandastuckinthe80s @roosterschanelslut @wiipes @lcahwriter @novastories @gretagerwigsmuse @frenchtoastix @lizzie-rdj @fanboyluvr @atarmychick007 @comebacktoearthpls

@peachiicherries @mak-32 @lizziespidiepridie @roosterswifey @ollyoxenfrees @piceous21 @sqrlgrl22 @hofficoffi @lexhalstead3 @lorilane33 @legendarydreamersharkparty @luckyladycreator2

@emilybradshaw @j-6o @louisahale @leobabbyyy @booklover2sblog @winter-run @ktjmac @graciereads @bigpoppajes @taytaylala12

@caitsymichelle13 @becks-things @caatheeriinee07 @fanboyswhore9 @jesfreedark @katiemcrae @lilmonstrjedi @hobiismyhopeu @teacupsandtopgun @insominac23 @gh0stsgoodgirl @mygyn @chavivaelisheva @kmc1989 @enchantingharmonyalpaca

-

Beatrice watched Bradley walk away with her smile widening, waving towards him when he turned his head just enough to look at her and wave back. His own steps were slow and careful, almost as if he didn’t want to leave.

Maverick, who was watching this with his arms crossed and his smirk present, just sighed while shaking his head. He knew that Bradley was crazy, absolutely crazy for Beatrice and it still made him happy with how much his nephew showed love towards Beatrice.

Like Goose did to Carole.

It’s incredible how much these two reminded him of Rooster’s parents.

He pushes himself off the wall and approaches Beatrice, “Bea,” she snaps her head back at him with her smile still in place, ‘Ready to move on?”

“Oh,” she looks back to where Rooster once stood and her smile drops briefly seeing he was no longer there, but now was back to his duties within the base, “Oh,sure. Yes, what else could you show me?”

Maverick could sense the shift in Beatrice's demeanor as she briefly looked back to where Rooster had been standing. He understood that she missed her husband, but he also knew that Rooster had responsibilities to attend to on the base.

Not that his nephew would focus on it while he was working, but he also knew he’d try his best.

With a supportive smile, Maverick said, "Don't worry, Bea. Rooster will be back, and I promise we'll keep this tour interesting. How about we head over to the hangar next? You'll get to see some of our impressive aircraft up close."

Beatrice's smile returned, and her eyes lit up with excitement. "Well,we did go there before Mav.” she whispers, placing a hand next to her mouth, “Back then,when you helped us get in here.”

“Yes,yes, of course, but,” he holds up a finger, “It’s much better when there’s light,I assure you.” he says, patting her shoulder then her head - she wasn’t that much shorter than he was, but she was younger than him, so it only made sense for him to do so. And she didn’t seem to complain.

Some officers looked over at them, some of them looked at Bea specifically.  He doesn’t say anything, but he does arch his brow towards them, they knew that if a woman - a civilian woman - was walking alongside an officer it was pretty obvious she was there because someone in her life was in the base.

Beatrice didn’t seem to notice, she just followed along with Maverick, sometimes standing behind him so she wouldn’t end up bumping other people, “Okay,” he begins, “Now, you ready?” she nods offering him a nervous smile, “Come along then.”

Maverick continued to lead Beatrice through the base, his steps deliberate as he navigated the corridors and hallways. He made sure to explain different aspects of the base's operations along the way, pointing out various facilities and departments the best way that he could.

He was a good guide after all.

Beatrice listened with genuine interest, absorbing the information and occasionally asking questions. It wasn’t every day she could do this, she couldn’t miss the opportunity, “You know,” she begins as they walk, “I always saw this base whenever I went to college.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,Northride is,” she gestures over her shoulder, “Around that way, and I always wondered what it looked like inside.”

“Does it fit your expectations?”

“I mean,” she laughs, it’s huge. I can never handle how big this place is.”

Maverick chuckled at Beatrice's observation. "It is quite massive, isn't it? But that size is necessary for everything that happens here. We have to be prepared for all sorts of scenarios, and that requires space and resources." She seemed genuinely interested in understanding the inner workings of the base, and he found her company to be rather enjoyable.

He knew she was a good kid and he also knew that Rooster’s absolute care for Beatrice had a reason.

As they walked, Maverick noticed more glances from some of the officers they passed. He understood that Beatrice's presence might draw attention, however, Maverick's reputation as a seasoned officer and well-respected figure seemed to ward off any prying eyes…that and he heard one of them saying ‘That’s Bradshaw’s wife!’ before skiddling away. 

As they reached the entrance to the hangar, Maverick held the door open for Beatrice with a grin. "After you, Bea."

She stepped inside with a sense of awe, mouth parting in shock her eyes widening at the sight of the impressive aircraft illuminated by the hangar's lights. "Wow," she breathed, her voice barely above a whisper. “You were right, the light does wonders.”

Maverick stepped in beside her, sliding his hands into his jacket’s pockets. "Aren't they something?" he said, his tone filled with pride. "I do have that reaction often too.”

Beatrice nodded, her eyes dancing over the sleek designs and intricate details. "It's incredible." she notices that Maverick was looking at her and she smiled at him in question, “What?”

“...Bea,I want to talk to you.”

Uh oh.

Mav? Going serious?

She tried to ignore the coldness at the bottom of her stomach, clenching her hands together and then nodding after a few seconds. “...okay…?” he walks to the side, gesturing to

a quieter corner of the hangar. 

Once they were in a more secluded spot, Maverick turned to Beatrice, his expression earnest and his hands clasped together as he looks towards the aircrafts in front of them, “...did Rooster ever tell about his parents?”

“As much as he knows.”

“Did he ever tell you about how they met?” Beatrice parted her lips, then closed them as she tried to remember if he did do that. Once she found nothing in her mind, she shook her head negatively, “I don’t think he knows, not in detail at least.” he smiles, rubbing his own knuckles before sighing, “...you know,we had talks about Rooster before, I told you how much I appreciate what you do to him.”

Normally she’d tell him she ‘didn’t do anything’ but she knew he’s right. Rooster was a lot more open with her and, as much as she hated to admit, maybe her presence helped a bit. “You did.” she whispers, “...what does that have to do with his parents though?”

“Ah,well,” he claps his hands once, “You two remind me of them a lot. Goose and Carole, they…” he arches his brows, “Were disgustingly in love.”

“Oh.”

Maverick does a double take, seeing his niece in law’s face drops for a second, then he holds his hand, “Woah,woah, no, no, it’s not bad. Not at all.” he reassures her, seeing how she wrung her hands together. “...It’s not bad. You two are just young and in love and I approve it one hundred percent…when Goose and Carole met, God, he was head over heels for her.”

“...Roos,well,” she smiles softly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, “He did mention his mom, often, I know Carole was a good person and I know that she…didn’t share much about Goose when Roos was growing up.”

“It was painful.” Maverick adds, “To all of us.” he pauses, then turns to look back at Bea, ‘You know what I see when I look at the two of you?”

“Goose and Carole 2.0?”

“What could’ve been.”

Beatrice almost felt bad for her joke, closing her mouth shamefully while her cheeks turned a bright shade of red, “...and Goose and Carole 2.0, you aren’t wrong.” Maverick chuckles, patting her shoulder, “Relax,you didn’t upset me.” There was a pause and only the sound of the hangar could be heard so Beatrice allowed it to happen, sitting next to Maverick with her hands on her lap.

Maverick sighed softly as he gazed out at the aircraft, memories from the past playing in his mind like an old film reel. "Carole was a remarkable woman," he began, his voice carrying a touch of nostalgia. "She had this light about her, you know? And Goose, he was one of a kind. The way he looked at her, it was like he hung the stars in the sky just for her. They were...soulmates."

Maverick turned to Beatrice, his eyes filled with a mixture of affection and sadness. "When I look at you and Rooster, I see that same spark. I see the way you both care for each other, the way you light up when you're together. It's a rare and precious thing, Bea. You two have something special."

Beatrice blinked in surprise, her voice quivering slightly as she spoke. "Thank you, Mav. That means...a lot to me." She reached out and gently placed her hand on his arm, offering a reassuring squeeze. "I…you did,mention that to me before.”

“I did.”

“...why bring that up again? I-If you don’t mind me asking.”

Maverick gave her a soft, grateful smile and placed his hand on top of hers. "Ah,I’m just an emotional fool sometimes.” he whispers, “...I think it’s because…maybe…that Nikki reminds me of Rooster when he was born. “And I know for a fact Goose and Carole wanted more kids, but…as you know never could achieve that.”

Maverick's eyes glistened with unshed tears as he continued, silently thankful for the sunglasses in front of his eyes. "When Rooster was born, it was one of the happiest moments of their lives, and I remember how much Goose and Carole loved being parents. They had so much love to give, and it showed in every little thing they did for him."

He paused for a moment, his voice catching in his throat. "Nikki…she's a precious reminder of them. I see so much of Carole in her, and sometimes it's like looking back in time." Maverick's voice became more earnest. "I guess what I'm trying to say is, seeing you and Rooster together, it brings back those beautiful memories back…and I’m thankful to be here and see it.”

Tears welled up in Beatrice's eyes as she listened to Maverick's heartfelt words. She let’s go of his hand to wipe her eyes, offering him a supportive smile. "Um,I…wow I… have no words."

Maverick finally broke the silence with a warm smile after both of them were done sniffling and quietly trying to hold back tears. "Now, how about we continue our tour of this magnificent place? There's so much more to see, and I promise to keep the emotional speeches to a minimum."

Beatrice chuckled through her tears, wiping her eyes. "Really? There’s more to see?”

“Legally? Yes.”

"Well, then lead the way, Mav."

-

She got home after that, she couldn’t say goodbye to Rooster but she did send him a message that she and Nikki were home. And honestly…she was pensive, for a little while. She sat on her bed, hands on her cheeks as she looks at her shoes - Nikki was happily asleep in her crib, leaving Beatrice alone to her own mind.

Maverick was always genuine about whatever he had to say, especially when it came to Rooster.

He and I, she thought, we've come so far. Her mind wandered back to the beginning, to the moment when they had first met. She remembered the awkwardness, the uncertainty, and the initial hesitations. She remembers seeing him and…he smiled. 

She should’ve seen the signs, but she couldn’t, not back then.

Beatrice's fingers traced absent patterns on her bedsheet as she thought about how Rooster had always been there for her. Through the ups and downs, the long deployments, and her own issues he had been a constant. His love and unwavering support had given her strength.

It hadn't been easy, not always, especially when he was gone. The constant fear that something might happen to him, the loneliness of those nights when she slept alone, and the longing for his presence had tested her resolve so often she lost count.

Beatrice's gaze shifted to the framed photograph on her bedside table. It was a picture of her and Rooster, arms wrapped around each other, smiling under the bright sun on a beautiful day. It was funny, they didn’t take pictures often, there were only a few in the house.

She picks it up to have a closer look, smiling sweetly as she recalls the scene. That morning at her uncle Roberto’s yacht, their final day of honeymoon and they just looked so happy. They were happy.

She was happy.

She knew Rooster still had things he had to deal with and she wondered if he somehow felt the same as Mav. If they,somehow, resembled his parents so much. She sighed, falling back on the mattress with the picture on her chest, arms wide open and eyes on the ceiling.

“He’s going to be here in fifteen minutes.” she tells herself, recalling the time, “I should prepare something special…maybe.” she could, she could do something. Yeah! She could! Beatrice sits up on the bed with a smile on her face, kissing her husband’s cheek on the picture before sliding on her shark slippers.

However, she heard the doorbell ring, followed by Eleanor’s barking. And this one wasn’t her usual, ‘who’s there’ barking, it was the ‘I don’t like whoever is outside and i want to kill them’ barking. She frowns, checking on the doorbell camera app to see who it was and–

Miranda.

Not her.

She glanced at the clock, realizing that Rooster would be arriving soon. The timing couldn't have been worse. Beatrice knew that she needed to handle this situation delicately, especially with Nikki asleep in the next room. She quickly got to her feet, slipping the framed photograph back onto the bedside table, and made her way to the front door.

Mentally preparing herself.

“Ellie,” she gently pushes the dog away with her leg, then shushes her to the side. She looks up and almost has a heart attack when Miranda’s face is almost pressed to the glass details on the door. “No wonder Ellie was so furious.”

As she opened the door, Eleanor's agitated barking filled the air,even from afar. Beatrice tried to keep a calm demeanor, though her mind was racing with thoughts of what Miranda might want. "Miranda," she said, her voice polite but guarded. "What brings you here?"

Miranda, standing on the doorstep, smiled brilliantly, “Hello,Beatrice.” she says, even that sounded conscedending, “Is this a bad time?’

“Well-”

“No matter.” And Miranda almost made a move to step inside the house, but Beatrice remained still. The other woman blinked, then tilted her head at Bea,”You busy?”

“I’m…currently taking care of my family,yes.”

“Hmmm…I see.” she fumbles with her purse, “Well,I had to come over and see how things were, Navy wives,right?’ and she winks…and Beatrice feels sick, this is like being attracted into the alligator’s mouth almost.

Why did she get the weird people? Why? “Ha…haha,yeah,N-Navy…wives…can I help you in um,” she crosses her arms, shielding herself, “Any…thing you might need?”

“Well-”

“Gorgeous.” 

Both women looked over at Rooster, who closed the door - a bit too strongly, she had to add- with his eyes hidden by his Caravans and his lips curled downwards just a bit, just enough for her to notice he was upset. He keeps his head on Beatrice as he gets closer, ignoring Miranda until he was right by his wife’s side, “Sorry,baby.” he coos, ‘Got caught up at work,everything…good?”

It was hilarious and worrisome how Rooster couldn’t hide his distaste.

“We were just chatting,Roos.”

“About?”

…well,nothing.

Her silence was enough for the pilot who just turned to Miranda, “Listen,Miranda,right? My wife is a bit tired, she just gave birth a few days ago so she needs to rest.” his tone was a bit harder than he intended, but he didn’t care, “So, if you could come back some other day, that’d be much better.”

Miranda's smile, which had been radiant a moment ago, faltered for just a fraction of a second. She adjusted her posture, attempting to regain her composure. "Oh, I had no idea, congratulations on the baby," she said, her tone attempting to sound genuinely congratulatory but coming off as slightly insincere.

Rooster's response was cool and measured, his protective instincts clearly kicking in. "Thank you, but as I said, it's not a good time right now. We'll be happy to chat with you another day." His words carried a firmness that left little room for argument,gently pushing Beatrice back inside the house.

Miranda's annoyance was thinly veiled behind another polite smile "Of course." she replied, her tone now laced with subtle irritation. "I understand. I'll leave you to your family time."

With that, she turned and walked away, her heels clicking on the pavement. Beatrice watched her retreat, her relief palpable. Once Miranda was out of earshot, Rooster exhaled, his shoulders relaxing slightly.

"Sorry about that, baby," he said, turning to Beatrice with a softer expression. "What did she want?”

Beatrice reached out and gently touched his arm, “I…don’t know, she just showed up here. But…thank you,for that. Really.”

He smiled, the tension of the moment melting away. "Anytime, gorgeous. Come on, let’s get back inside before she somehow changes her mind and wanders back.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.”

Once they were inside, Rooster hums, “Also, remind me to tell you something,” he coos, closing the door while rubbing her hand, “Something I thought about.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” he smirks, “I think you’ll like it.”

[hangmanbradshaw]

Hey I'm sure what ever you write for Hangster this holiday will be wonderful. Oh a Taylor Swift inspired Hangster fic sounds great. ❤️ Will you expand more on the Jake Bradley Sydney story or wrote a Hallmark inspired Hangster AU fic again too? Would you also write an Anyone One But You AU with Bradley asks Ben and Jake as Bea or 10 Things I Hate About You with Bradley as Patrick and Jake as Kat?

I appreciate the belief 🫡 a vision is taking shape in my mind courtesy of Christmas tree farm again so we’ll see. I need to finish this other WIP first but then……let’s see what the winter holiday spirit sparks. (I’m really liking the idea of gay hallmark vibes flannel handyman Bradley and a farm and…..🙈)

Oooh! I’m not sure if I’ll ever add onto that, it was a hastily inspired and written thing in a few hours! But I’m glad you liked it. I actually started an ABY variation, but I’m not sure I’ll ever finish it. Maybe I’ll use a general piece of it at some point! Then again, who knows. The inspo demon guides me, not me it 😂

[bearsinpotatosacks]

I feel like writing is taking me ages recently (with good reason, I'm working my first full time job, can't drive, am autistic, it's winter in the UK and I'm trying to get everything I need done to look after myself) but also want to tell people about my ideas (for Top Gun at least) so while I write them, here they are.

Foster Parent AU - Goose's family fostered, Goose lives but leaves the Navy and he and Carole become foster parents. This fic follows them taking care of each of the Daggersquad. Currently writing

Mermaid AU - Goose and Mav join a crew against their will (either this or they never sail again) that are Mermaid hunters. While scouring an island, they meet Carole, a mermaid who lures sailors to their deaths. Goose is enamoured with her and returns again only to get spotted by Tom Kazansky. He pressures Goose and Mav to take Carole hostage, they refuse and go on the run.

Various Goose Lives AUs - One where he has seizures and Carole hides her being pregnant again due to Goose’s accident. One where Rooster's still estranged but is brought back to his parents after Goose has a stroke in the early 2010s. One where Goose overworks himself as an Admiral and neglects his marriage, leaving Carole falling into depression. And a 5+1 of kids they could've had and 1 they did

Various resurrection AUs - Goose travels to the future and hears Carole calling him from beyond the veil. Goose and Carole coming back to life and Bradley realising he has mummy and daddy issues.

Some time travel AUs - The Daggersquad + Mav see Goose and Carole's memories because Rooster wishes on a star that he knew his parents better (just an excuse to write all my backstory for top gun while also having Bradley react to them). Also the Daggersquad travelling back to 1986 and shenanigans ensue

Goose ends up giving sex advice to the top gun guys who don't know how to treat a woman

The obligatory Star Trek AU - Thinking more AOS (reboots for those unfamiliar) where Mav is part-human part-romulan. His parents stopped some universal crisis but it happened in the neutral zone so is too secret, Mav was partially raised on Romulus before his mum died and he was sent to Earth. Iceman is Andorian, his name literally coming from him being from an ice planet. Goose is a simple ol' human, Carole's part betazoid. Just need to think of what Slider could be, please give your suggestions

Macheresin - Mav comforts Hangman after Coyote's g-lock thing. The all important "He's the only family I have" line is used

Slooserole- Bradley asks about their relationship. Icemav find out. Carole gets sick and Goose neglects his health but only Slider knows. A different timeline where Goose gets with Slider in Top Gun (with Carole's permission) but Carole falls for him too upon seeing him. Also a high school AU where Goose and Slider compete for Carole, Goose and Slider get into an argument and after Goose is away all summer with his grandad, comes back to see Carole and Slider are together

Slarole- A general get together fic. A later fic in the same timeline as previous where Carole gets pregnant and is unsure whether to keep it due to thinking she didn't want kids with Slider. A set up fic where Icemav set up Slarole with a massage. And a monster fic where Slider is assigned to be Bradley's monster (ala Monster's Inc) but finds out that the Bradshaws have way more hurt than normal humans (due to this being after Goose's death) and falls for Carole

I want to write most of these so no pressure to me 😅

[captainsophiestarkreading]

August Fic Recs!

With Peggysous Week going strong, I’m going to try to keep the momentum up and do a lot more fic reading for at least this month! We’ll see if it keeps up once school starts again lol.

Technically I read the first Peggysous fic in July but it was the very last day so we’re counting it as August

None of these fics are mine! They’re recommendations of other people’s work I’ve read throughout the month. Recs are below the cut

Top Gun

Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw:

Just a Chance by @callsignhoney

Really sweet, heartfelt, angsty and fluffy and funny fic with Rooster. He’s written so well and so sweet in this, it was VERY fun to read

What It’s Like Dating Him by @youlightmeupfinn

Literally PERFECT headcanons for dating Rooster. They are so cute and wonderful and the characterization is dead on

Marvel

Peggysous:

10:01 is Too Late by @tiredmoonlight

Daniel Sousa is Popular With Old Ladies and he uses it to help Peggy get out of trouble. 10/10 adorable shenanigans.

Tokens of a Life by @tiredmoonlight

Tori literally had me sobbing, and you probs will be too, but in a good way. Modern times after a storied life for Peggy, very good fic

Just Across the Hall by @tiredmoonlight

Legit one of my favorite fics I’ve read this year. College AU Peggysous (immaculate) told in 100-word blurbs throughout the course of their freshman year. Incredibly well written, especially while sticking to the 100 word limit for each blurb

Secret’s Out by @tiredmoonlight

Some Jack and Daniel shenanigans as Jack tries to figure out what the hell Peggy and Daniel are to each other. Very fun read

House Sitters by @tiredmoonlight

An adorable, peaceful moment shared between Peggy and Daniel. *Literally* had me melting

Jack’s Rejected Wedding Toast by @tiredmoonlight

Y’ALL I cannot express to you how adorable this fic is. The interactions between all the characters and so sweet and funny, it’s SO good

Best Not Friends by @everyhazyday

This focuses as much on Jack and Daniel’s friendship as the Peggysous stuff, and it is literally SO. SWEET. Top tier fic with excellent characterizations and a really fun exploration of those relationships

April Fool’s Revenge by @tiredmoonlight

Building off a fic from last year, this is a HILARIOUS fic of Peggysous absolutely dunking on Jack Thompson for April Fool’s Day. If you haven’t already read the first one, you should check it out too! You don’t technically need it for context but it’s also very good and funny

Star Wars

Poe Dameron:

Time to Improvise by @ghostofskywalker

A really sweet fic with Poe and reader being undercover together. One of my absolute favorite tropes written SO well and truly adorable!

Untitled by @disabledameron

A really sweet, short fic with Poe and reader having a moment in between the chaos of the Resistance

Anakin Skywalker:

Underestimated by @ghostofskywalker

A great fic with Anakin and reader showing off their lightsaber skills. Extra bonus points for some cute, pushing Younglings in the mix

Better Together by @ghostofskywalker

501st prank war! What more is there to say?? This fic is adorable and funny and SUCH a good vibe

Padmé Amidala:

Winter Wonderland by @ghostofskywalker

Literally SUCH an adorable fluffy fic with Padme’s first time seeing snow! My heart was melting as I was reading this

Obi-Wan Kenobi:

For The Sake Of The Mission by @ghostofskywalker

Y’all this fic is so good! Tori does a fantastic job of writing Obi-Wan and the relationship is written so well. She’s got all kinds of Star Wars stuff but this is one of my favorites!

Grease

Kenickie Murdoch:

One Locker Down by @jusvibbbin

Legit forgot I had a crush on Kenickie until I randomly rewatched Grease, and then all I wanted to do was read fic for him. This one is EXCELLENT, and actually really sweet. Definitely read it and the part two linked at the bottom of this first part

Bridgerton

Benedict Bridgerton:

Thin Ice by @starryeyedstories

A tense, stressful rescue situation bookended by absolutely ADORABLE fluff and interactions with the Bridgerton siblings. Set at Christmas time and now all I want to do is curl up with a cup of hot coco (even in August) and reread this fic

[luninosity]

Okay, so, some Falcon and the Winter Soldier thoughts (will have some spoilers) for episodes two and three. General non-spoilery comment first: I feel like these were both *okay* episodes - neither as good as the first, but I didn’t dislike them, either. I’m still really curious to see how we’re going to wrap this all up in three more episodes; it doesn’t feel like we’re halfway done yet!

Okay, more spoiler-y notes below the Read More, not in any real order, just as I think and type. I’ll probably forget some things, but for now, here’re some thoughts...

--I like ep 3 slightly more than ep 2, mostly because of Zemo!

--I actually really love Zemo here (I liked him in Civil War, too): complex, sardonic, enjoying poking at people, a villain we do feel sympathy for even as he’s still sharp enough to remind us that he is a villain. Daniel Bruhl has always done a fantastic job flipping between calculated cruelty, wry humor - the whole “I am a Baron” moment was great - and pain that for him is still raw, about the loss of his family. (Some things’re awfully cliche - look, the supervillain’s playing chess and reading Machiavelli in his cell? really? - but, y’know...sure. Why not. We expect some cliches in the superhero genre, and this is an inoffensive one.)

--also Zemo dancing. That’s it. That’s everything.

--moving on from that: I’m also really liking how they’re writing John Walker. He does have charm, and there’s a certain amount of sympathy - especially as we see him worrying about filling the Captain America shoes, in ep 2 - but we’re also getting this really subtle sense of wrongness about him. He’s clearly vindictive and angry when things (and people) don’t act according to his mental script for them, and he’s willing to use his name and power to do things like get Bucky released...which in context and given our sympathies for Bucky is a good thing, but...it’s also an indicator of his willingness to do what he wants, because he can. (To be fair, Steve Rogers also often did that! - but Steve earned our trust, both in narrative and character. From his first introduction to WWII leadership experience to all the Avengers stuff, Steve consistently acts to protect people, and he’ll also listen if someone else has a good idea or if someone needs to talk, like with Wanda.) So I’m really liking this slow-fuse character development.

--mixed feelings about Sharon. I love that the show’s acknowledging how much she sacrificed for our main heroes, with no reward. On the other hand, she also clearly knew the consequences that could happen; she said as much at the time. The level of bitterness seems like a lot. But I’m also interested in everything we still don’t know about her - if she’s not the Power Broker herself, she’s obviously Up To Something. So that should be fun.

--hey, look at that X-Men location, with Majipoor! Also a nod to Wolverine’s favorite bar there, I think?

--I love heist and disguise plots!

--I also really like Bucky’s having to revert to the Winter Soldier - Sebastian Stan does it so brilliantly, with so many layers of emotion: not wanting to, loathing it, recognizing the necessity, shutting off all emotion and just coldly doing it, hurting but covering it up...just fantastic, and you know I love some hurt/comfort, and this seems like such a great set-up for emotional hurt

--but! this also seems like...a weird plot hole, kind of? Bucky’s pretty famous at this point, right? I imagine the criminal underworld knows he’s been pardoned and deprogrammed, right? or do they assume Zemo, with his knowledge of Hydra, still has some special control over him?

--along the same “this seems like someone didn’t think this through” path, Sam, you’re a professional, turn off your phone on a mission. Oh my god. Face-palmingly stupid - and I think somewhat lazy writing, as the writers plainly needed a giveaway, and went for the first idea they had. Even if it made a main character look incompetent.

--the Flag Smashers and Karli are...fine. They feel very Generic Marvel Villain - not the big space alien type, but the other type, the “I have a personal loss and motivating pain so I’m a little sympathetic but also Clearly Evil, watch me kill civilians so the audience won’t ever find me TOO sympathetic” type. Meh. Fine. Zemo’s more interesting, but...fine.

--Anthony Mackie is such a fantastic actor - every bit of his reaction to the Isaiah Bradley reveal is so good. The anger, pain, frustration, ferocity...heartbreaking. Actually that whole scene is so good - his emotions at discovering this secret history are palpable, and it’s so painful, because we also understand why Bucky would keep the secret - as someone who knows about pain and trauma and being experimented on, and knowing Isaiah wants to be left alone - we feel really deeply for both characters here, and it’s great.

--I actually liked the abrupt swing from the Isaiah Bradley encounter to the casual everyday racism of the cops on the street - is it subtle, no. But it’s not meant to be: it’s meant to be standing up and shouting about how not that much has really changed, and about how pervasive racism is. I know some reviews were all, “this was just too much!” or “too forced!” but...look, it needs to be shouted sometimes for people to hear.

--Bucky’s notebook being Steve’s, oh, ouch, my feelings. If I had the time and energy to write fic...

--(also, if I had the time and energy to write dark!fic: where’re my fics in which Zemo’s implication about the Winter Soldier “doing anything you want” gets played with? what or who does Bucky have to do to keep the undercover charade going? so many Bad Wrong Kinky power dynamics and explorations of consent and what this would do to Bucky’s head, here, and honestly I’d totally read them all, just saying.)

--Sam and Bucky together...I don’t know. This is one of the elements that I’m not actually a huge fan of, but I think it’s partly a personal genre / sense of humor thing that’s not clicking for me, personally, again. Like...

--I don’t find people shouting aggrievedly at each other to be funny? I’m not sure why it is.

--I mean, I get that they’re doing, like, eighties buddy cop movies, but...it got old really fast then, and it’s not something we needed to bring back. It’s not clever, and it’s...well, shouty and annoying.

--(I say this as someone who genuinely likes the first two Lethal Weapon movies...but the significant difference is, I think, we’re also shown in both those movies that Riggs and Murtaugh care about each other. They don’t want to be partners initially, and they don’t get along initially, and they do argue over tactics**...but they immediately feel responsible for each other and act to protect each other even as they argue, because it’s the right thing to do and we’re shown moments of them awkwardly trying to connect, because they both have that deep sense of...protectiveness...that makes them Good People - like, if they learn something that the other person needs to know, they tell each other. They protect each other’s families / love interests. So by the end of the second movie, with that fabulous character death fake-out, Murtaugh’s initial shock and grief is real and powerful and painful, and so is his genuine relief when the worst isn’t true - and it’s all earned.) (**however, they tend to argue tactics *before* jumping in - “is it 1, 2, 3, go on 3? or 3, then go?” And then once that’s established, they go ahead. That makes a difference as far as...well...competence and teamwork!)

--(Sam and Bucky, as far as I can tell, don’t do the above, and just...maybe shouldn’t be working together?)

--I also don’t find grown men acting like my youngest nephew, when he’s having a temper tantrum, to be funny. Staring contests? Random insults? Sulking in silence? Oh, grow up.

--(Also, yes, writers, we see you with the “couples therapy” and “get closer and make your legs touch” and “landing on top of each other as they hit the ground” moments. I, at least, personally, am very tired of...I don’t know that I’d call it queerbaiting exactly, but this idea that we’re supposed to find these moments funny...because why? Because, ooh, they’re two men getting close to each other, physically or emotionally? Why is this a thing we need to draw attention to? Do you think you’re doing some sort of fan service? Please either make Sam/Bucky happen or stop doing this.)

--both Sam and Bucky are highly competent and professional agents, or they should be. They should know how to work in the field - even with people they may not like - and adapt to shifting strategy, make best use of available assets, include people in the plan, etc. I can’t help but compare this to something like, say, Leverage, which also has a team who mocks each other and makes jokes but clearly absolutely respects each other’s capabilities, has a plan going in and tells everyone what the plan is, and adapts (and trusts each other to adapt) on the fly as necessary, and does it all without random insults about someone’s (PTSD-related) staring and “robot brain”.

--one of the very specific moments that bothers me a lot is the ending of the therapy scene (yay for showing heroes in therapy! but also I’m pretty sure she’s...not a great therapist?). Bucky finally opens up and says something real, about his own self-doubt and wondering whether Steve was wrong about him....and Sam just...brushes it off and goes, “we’re done here,” basically. Not only does that feel wildly out of character for former counselor Sam, it feels cruel. I really deeply dislike that moment the more I think about it. Makes me want to scream.

--Sam insults Bucky way more than the other way around. It’s starting to feel very one-sided (it’d be better if more clearly reciprocal, though it’s still not a dynamic that’s my favorite), and again, feels out of character - maybe this is Anthony Mackie’s sense of humor, but Sam isn’t Mackie, and Bucky isn’t Seb, and it reads as...a weird unbalanced power-trip thing to me. And also out of character for Sam, who can be sarcastic (”If you guys eat that sort of thing,” about breakfast, when Steve and Nat have randomly shown up at his door) but that’s not the same as just throwing unprovoked insults at a person who’s trying to recover from trauma, and a lot of those insults seem to center on things that were done to Bucky, that he had no choice in (the staring, the arm, etc), and that feels....it just feels mean, to me. Make fun of things he’s had a choice in / can do something about, if you have to - hair, clothes, liking “old people’s games” like gin rummy or pinochle, not knowing who Beyonce is, I don’t know, there are so many options that aren’t cruel! Do that instead. Let Bucky have a good comeback for once, too!

--the action scenes are action scenes. Also fine.

--Sam might be right about destroying the shield, and the show may even be (unintentionally?) setting that up as the best outcome, but that’s a problem for the future, Sam; get it back first. Also it’s a problem you caused by giving the shield up - did you really trust the government to leave it unused in a museum? You’re not that naive.

--overall, it’s...a perfectly fine show, so far, I think? Solid, and interesting, but not great. I think some of what doesn’t work for me is because it doesn’t work for me personally, as far as the shouty insult-heavy action “comedy” bits that I’m not enjoying, but I think they’re doing what they aimed for with it, so in that sense, I guess it’s working? There’s a lot of really cool stuff around the edges - John Walker, Isaiah Bradley, that Dora Milaje stinger, the bigger world of a history interwoven with racism and superpowers, the chillingly effective use of Bucky’s past - but I wish I liked the central Sam-Bucky relationship more. Individually they’re wonderful - they’ve both had such powerful scenes dealing with family, trauma, and consequences - but I feel like, in the effort to do the buddy comedy dynamic, the writing has just made me really sure that they actually genuinely don’t like each other? To such an extent that if they show any affection / caring / interest in each other in the last three episodes, it won’t be believable. (I mean Sam and Bucky, not Mackie and Seb. Mackie and Seb’re adorable.)

--I just want to think about Zemo dancing some more.

[bratshaws]

through the hourglass 159. brb x oc

a/n:HELLO IM BACK......AND I DON'T KNOW HOW TO WRITE MISSION SCENES TOO GOOD BUT BY GOD I'LL TRY FOR THE SAKE OF A N G S T (reblogs and comments are super encouraged <3)

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: fluff cause Rooster is the best husband ever.

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/

116/117/118/119/120/121/122/123/124/125/126/127/128/129/130/131/132/133/134/135/136/137/138/139/140/141/142/143/144/145/146/147

/148/149/150/151/152/153/154/155/156/157/158

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-

It was a nightmare. It had to be. She couldn’t wake up from it for some reason but it was a nightmare. As much as Beatrice wanted to stay at the hospital with her siblings, Bradley knew she had to rest because, well, she was pregnant.

Beatrice felt weak when she got home, she felt weak under the shower, weak while hiding herself under the covers and curling into a ball, wishing this was not happening. Maybe it was childish to do so, maybe she should’ve mentally prepared for something like this to happen one day but not now. Not now.

She just hugged herself tighter under the covers, her eyes hurt from crying, her body hurt from everything and all she wanted was to wake up and this to be over with.

You are so childish. You are thirty-one years old. And this is what you do? Pathetic.

“Leave me alone.” she begs the voice in her head, placing a pillow over her temple, “Please leave me alone.”

Your husband’s job is dangerous, and you don’t see him panicking. And yet here you are, crying, wanting to disappear…you are ridiculous. You are terrible, you are just a child still. No matter what, you are just a little incompetent child.

Beatrice whimpered, clenching her fists on the pillow cover, hearing the fabric creak under her iron grasp as she repeated over and over ‘it’s all in my head, it’s all in my head, it’s all in my head’ while rocking herself a bit. 

Rooster walked into the bedroom a few minutes after Beatrice was done, his own body tired by what happened. He checked on Nicole, thankfully their daughter was young enough to not appear too scared - unlike Bianca and Éwoyn, God, Bianca was so scared. He felt terrible for Leo and Cynthia- and was peacefully asleep in her crib. In reality he was worried about Bea, he knew she needed some time to cope and understand what was happening.

Hell, he knew what she was feeling. All too well.

He stops by the doorframe, one hand holding onto it as he looks over to the bed, the Beatrice lump was moving back and forth under the covers, a worried Jolene was staring at her then turned her head to Rooster, her big eyes wide and sad, not knowing how to help the brunette. Her tail wags because she knows he’s there to help Beatrice, she even walks closer to him, nosing his leg and then his hand, whining quietly, “I know,Jojo.” he whispers, “I know.”

He’s standing right by the edge of the bed, looking down at the lump that was Beatrice. His hand gently touches her shoulder which makes her flinch and scrunch up even more, “Baby?” no response but he can hear her sniffling, “Gorgeous.”

“W-What?”

“Is there space for another one under there?”

It takes a few seconds to get a reaction, but she eventually lifts the covers so he could slides under them. Rooster moves closer to her once the blanket falls back on top of their heads, Beatrice looked much smaller and weaker than she was, she looked back at him with those huge green eyes wide in horror. He knew that look all too well.

One of his hands came up to tuck a few strands behind her ear, they stuck to her cheek because of the tears and he frowned, “Gorgeous…I talked to Michael.”

“Hm.”

“He said your dad is looking better, he’s awake now.”

“That’s good.” but he’s still in the hospital, is what she doesn’t say. While he knows she’s happy, she has those thoughts in her mind.

What if he goes back to what he was?

What if he doesn’t leave the hospital?

What if I lose him?

“Do they think he’ll stay there long?”

Rooster’s hand drops from her face to her shoulder, then down to the flare of her right hip, “They don’t know, they’ll check on him.” he whispers, rubbing the patch of skin her shirt didn’t cover with the side of his thumb, feeling just the beginning of the bump reach his touch, “I asked Michael and Leo to keep up updated.”

“...that’s good.”

“How are you feeling?”

She snorts dryly, her eyes feeling sticky from crying so much, “How am I feeling.” she repeats not even as a question, but as a statement, “I feel fucking lost,Roos.’ was her response but she doesn’t look into his eyes when she says that, she’s staring at the white pillow cover and the tear stains on it, deciding it was better than meeting her husband’s soft eyes, “I am scared…I am so scared.”

“I know.”

“And it hurts.”

“It always does.” He repeats what he said to her earlier, because it was just like that. It was this pain that hit you in every part of your body. Every time he went to the hospital with his mother, he always felt it’d be the last and when he thought she was much better…well, then it happened and he doesn’t know what’s worse, “But crying helps.”

“I’ve been crying nonstop for thirty minutes.” she mumbles, ‘My eyes hurt,my head hurts…everything fucking hurts,Brad.”

Rooster's heart ached as he listened to Beatrice's words, her pain and fear palpable in her voice. 

He pulled Beatrice closer to him, wrapping his arms around her gently but firmly, offering her the warmth and comfort she desperately needed. The covers enveloped them, creating a cocoon of solace amidst the chaos.

"I know, gorgeous," he whispered against her hair, his voice filled with empathy. "Sometimes crying is the only release we have when the pain becomes too much to bear. It's okay to let it all out, to grieve, to feel scared. You're not alone in this."

Beatrice's body trembled against his, her tears dampening his shirt as she clung to him. He honestly didn’t care, he only cared for her wellbeing right now.Rooster held her tighter, his touch a steady presence, a reminder that he was there for her no matter what.

"He’s strong, Bea," he murmured, his voice steady and unwavering. "Stronger than we both give him credit for. Rafael is going to be alright.”

She sniffled and buried her face deeper into his chest, “I-I know but…I just…I don’t wanna repeat myself,Roos. I don’t wanna voice my fears.”

Rooster held her even tighter, "You don't have to voice your fears if you don't want to, Bea. But remember, I'm here for you, always. I'll hold your fears with you, I'll carry them so you don't have to bear them alone." he could feel her small smile against his chest, her cheek flexing in thanks.He pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head, his lips lingering there for a moment before he continued, "We'll face whatever comes our way together, one step at a time. And we'll keep hoping, keep believing in the strength of your dad and the love of our family."

Beatrice nodded against his chest, her grip on him never loosening. The weight of her emotions was still heavy, but she found solace in the knowledge that Rooster was there with her, still and always being her rock when she needed it.

"I love you, Roos," she whispered, her voice muffled against his shirt. "Thank you for being here for me."

Rooster's heart swelled with love for her, his voice filled with tenderness as he responded, "I love you too, gorgeous. You know I got you,honey.."

She laughs softly, the first time that night that she actually did so, wiping her face with one of her hands as she met his eyes, furrowing her brows a bit, “My eyes are really hurting.” he tsks, rubbing his thumbs over the swollen lids, “That was a bad idea.”

“You are sad.” he answers with a shrug, ‘You can’t blame yourself for it,baby.”

“I know…God…did I have dinner?”

“You did, you don’t remember?’ she shakes her head and honestly he doesn’t worry too much about it. He knows that certain traumatic events like these could affect her in such a way she wouldn’t remember the most obvious moments. He went through that too. Too often, “Are you hungry?”

“No,I guess I was just trying to…remember things that happened after we left the hospital.” she whispered, nuzzling the pillow with her arms crossed over her bust, “I should message Shells. She asked me to keep her updated.”

“It’s midnight now.” he adds, “She’s probably awake, I know how she can get whenever stuff like that happens to you.” 

Beatrice smiles sweetly because Rooster was now so used to her friendship circle that he knew what her friends would be doing and wouldn’t care about it. She snuggles closer to him, propping her chin on his pectorals so her head is angled upwards, “You are just so sweet.” he smirks, kissing her forehead, “...you really are. I’m a lucky girl.”

“I’m the luckiest guy here.” he coos, rubbing her chin, “Cause I’m married to you.” and her cheeks heat up,appearing even redder from the shadows coming from the blanket, “Do you want some hot cocoa?”

“...you know, I think I do.” and the blanket is pulled off their heads by an impatient Jolene, who is tugging the covers off with a gentle ‘boof!’ escaping her maw. Beatrice laughs as she sits up, immediately cooing and babying the pitbull, reassuring her that she was okay, then kissing the top of her huge head. As Jolene trots away from the room,Beatrice sits on the edge of the bed with her hands between her thighs, shoulders slumped and eyes closing as she allows the silence to envelop her.

Rooster’s warmth appeared next to her side and Beatrice smiles with her eyes closed, feeling his hand slide towards hers, interlacing their fingers together, “...I don’t wanna cry again.”

“I know.”

She inhales deeply, blinking her eyes open so she could meet his, “He’ll be okay, he’s strong. He will be back on his feet in no time.”

“Yep.” he smiles, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, “He sure will…now, hot chocolate?”

‘Yes,please.”

-

He did sleep partially well, he was still…digesting everything that happened with Rafael and how Beatrice was dealing with it. He only passed out when Beatrice did close her eyes, he’s a bit sleep deprived but nothing he couldn’t handle. As he makes his way to Cyclone’s office, he drops his eyes to his phone to check on Beatrice.

The text messages from Beatrice brought a small sense of relief. She had visited her father that morning, accompanied by Nicole. It was a comforting thought to know that Beatrice wasn’t alone, he knew that Michael picked her up early that morning and that made him feel at ease.

He inhaled quietly, blowing air through his mouth as he placed his phone into his pocket as soon as he reached Cyclone’s door, knocking it twice “Come in.” he hears. He steps inside the office, salutes his superior and his eyes immediately drop to a mug that Cyclone is bringing to his lips

1# Best Grandpa in big bold white letters. Cyclone still has the mug tilted to his mouth, blue eyes staring Bradley down and one brow going up. The two men share a quiet conversation with their eyes before the Vice-Admiral clears his throat, “It was uh…Evelyn’s gift.” he says quietly, “One of the firsts since she announced her pregnancy.”

“Oh.” Rooster smiles shortly, ‘It’s pretty nice sir.”

“Yes,I um,ahem.” he sets the mug down “It is-now, Bradshaw, I’ll let you know that you’ll be deployed in three days.” he says as he flips through his files, pulling a beige colored folder and handing it over to him, “You’ll be the leader of this mission.”

Rooster’s short exhale was missed by his superior because of course he’d be deployed in three days after his father in law was admitted to the hospital. Life sure is funny sometimes, “Yes sir.”

“I want you to know this will be hard.” Cyclone says while nodding to the file.

Rooster took the folder from Cyclone's outstretched hand and opened it, scanning the contents within as quickly as he could. His expression remained composed, though his mind raced with a mixture of emotions. It was challenging to process the timing of the deployment, but Cyclone didn’t need to know that.

"I understand, sir," Rooster replied, his voice steady. "I'm prepared to take on the mission and lead the team."

Cyclone leaned back in his chair, studying Rooster intently. "Good. I wouldn’t have asked you if I didn’t think you could take it, Bradshaw. “

“Thank you sir.”

“You are welcome,now.” Cyclone adds, “I'll leave you to review the details. If you have any questions or concerns, don't hesitate to reach out."

"Understood, sir. Thank you."

With a final nod, Rooster turned and left Cyclone's office, clutching the folder tightly in his hand.He let out a heavy sigh once he was out of earshot from the Vice-Admiral, closing the door behind him with his eyes closing with the weight of everything. He tried to keep his head high as he walked away, nodding to everyone that passed by until he saw Maverick in the distance, “Thank God.” he speeds his step, he needed someone else's voice in his mind besides his own.

His uncle looks up when he hears footsteps approaching, he knows to look anywhere, “I heard about what happened to Rafael, how’s he?”

“He’s stable.” Rooster whispered, tucking the file under his arm, “Bea’s siblings are keeping us updated.”

“How’s Bea?”

Rooster sucks air through his teeth, then purses his lips, “Not…great but she’s managing it.”

Maverick's face softened as he observed the weariness in Rooster's expression. He reached out and placed a comforting hand on his nephew's shoulder.

"I know this must be tough for both of you," Maverick said, his voice filled with empathy. "But you're strong, Rooster. And you've always been there for Bea and Nikki…and the twins.. She'll  be fine."

Rooster nodded, giving his uncle a small appreciative smile. "I'm doing my best, Mav. I just wish I could do more, you know? And I’ll be deployed in three days…so.”

Maverick's grip tightened on Rooster's shoulder, his eyes reflecting a mix of concern and understanding. “I know it's not easy, especially with the deployment looming ahead," Maverick replied,. "But remember, Rooster, you're not alone in this. We're family, and we'll support each other through thick and thin. You've always been a rock for Bea and Nikki, and even when you're away, your love and support will still be with them."

Rooster's gaze dropped to the folder in his hand, his thoughts swirling with the weight of his responsibilities. He took a deep breath, trying to steady his emotions.

"I know, Mav," he admitted, his voice tinged with frustration. "I just…it happened so much, so fast. A few hours ago I was spending time with Nikki, preparing dinner with her and Bea was excitedly telling Penny about the pregnancy and then."

Maverick squeezed Rooster's shoulder reassuringly. "I know Rooster. But…that’s how life is.” his done turns somber and he looks away, “Sometimes stuff happens and you can’t expect it, even if you think about it.” he doesn’t elaborate but Rooster knows.

He just knows.

“Anyway,” says Mav after clearing his throat, “That the mission file?’ his nephew nods, “Can I read it?”

“You didn’t get one?”

“Not yet.” he grabs the folder from Rooster’s hand, scanning every line with his brows slowly furrowing more and more as he kept on, “...interesting.”

“What?”

“I knew something was fishy.” he laughs humorlessly, “Yeah, this is going to be…complicated.” if Maverick, a pilot with years of service ahead of Rooster says that with such a forlorn expression, the younger pilot doesn’t know how to feel about it. He read it, it looked hard but now he was having second thoughts, “But it’s doable. It always is.” he hands the file back to his godson, then pats his shoulder, “Come on, join me for a quick coffee?”

“You don’t usually drink coffee this early.” he comments, but does follow him down the corridor. Maverick turns his head towards him, his light eyes appearing weary.

"I guess today is an exception," Maverick replies with a sigh. "Sometimes, you just need a little extra boost to get through the day. So, you wanna go?” 

“...yeah.” Rooster smiles softly, “I’ll go.”

[bratshaws]

through the hourglass 122. brb x oc

a/n: I love writing the dagger squad as a menace, i really do. reblogs and comments are super encouraged <3333

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: none.

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/

/70/71/72/73/74/75/76/77/78/79/80/81/82/83/84/85/86/87/88

/89/90/91/92/93/94/95/96/97/98/99/100/101/102/103/104/105

/106/107/108/109/110/111/112/113/114/115/116/117/118/119/120/121

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-

He could hide the fact that Beatrice was pregnant, again, from his friends. They were busy with work, busy with their own lives and more specifically they were busy with Jake and Evelyn. It sounded a bit mean but he was glad that their attention was somewhere else other than him and Beatrice.

He told her he could do it and he was doing it. Even though he was really happy and almost whistling a tune as he went to work, he couldn’t share the news with anyone yet.

Beatrice was right, the first trimester was the most fragile one and they still needed to know how far along she was considering that her period wasn’t always on time and when it comes to stress it was obvious that it made her period stop. And he had to think that now there wasn’t just him Bea and Nikki…now there was another little baby.

“Sir!”

Bradley stops walking to look back at Faraday, the young officer saluting him. Usually Rooster would hate whenever the recruit did that, but he was having a good morning, so he saluted back,”At ease,Faraday.” the young man’s eyes widened but he nodded with a grin, “What do you need?”

‘Nothing much,sir.But me and the boys are wondering how the miss and little miss are.”

“They are very good,thank you for asking.”

“And if we could give the baby another gift.”

His brain short circuited for a second, it must’ve shown in his face because Faraday whispered a ‘sir?’ that made him snap back into consciousness. He was talking about Nicole of course, “Ah, there’s no need.” he says as soon as he recognizes where he was, “She has enough toys and Christmas is next week,so.”

“Ah…” 

They stay quiet for a second, making Rooster sigh, “You guys already bought it,didn’t you?”

“Yes,sir!”

“Okay, listen,” Rooster places a hand on the recruit’s shoulder, “We appreciate what you guys do for Nikki, it’s really sweet…but you can’t keep giving us things, especially since there are other people with kids-”

“We gave Hangman a gift too!”

“...that’s…nice,but still…people will question why you guys keep giving us stuff, it’s really nice and we really like it, but I’m your superior and that can appear as if you are ass kissing.” he arches his brows at the send of his sentence, “You get that,right?”

Faraday blinks at him, then looks to the side in thought, ‘...well,sir, you and the Daggers are the nicest officers here.” he explains, “As in the veterans.”

Ouch.

Faraday didn’t seem to get that his comment made the other pilot wince visibly, being called old wasn’t fun for anyone, but especially not Rooster. “Thank you,Faraday. That’s…really nice.”

The other officer smiles, saluting him one more time, “Don’t mention it,sir! We mean it!”

“Yes,I’m sure you do.” Bradley clears his throat before looking at his watch, “I have to go now, Faraday.” his reply of ‘okay sir!’ almost sounded too loud but he couldn’t blame a young recruit for being so enthusiastic. He wasn’t that enthusiastic, was he?

No he was probably too brooding in the first year, only loosening up as time went by.

Bradley turns on his heel to march to his office, pulling out his phone to check if Beatrice sent him anything, but alas there was nothing in there. He keeps his eyes on the screen, smiling at their wedding picture and then unlocking just to see Nicole’s cute chubby face staring back at him.

He inhales quietly, then licks his lips, “Okay, so far so good.” he tells himself, “Just have to keep this up until I can leave. I can do this.” he looks around for a second, “It’s for safety,anyway.” Bradley wanted nothing more than to shout to the world that he was going to have a second child but he couldn’t, not yet.

As he enters his office he stops, one of his hands still in the door handle as he recalls a forgotten memory. He remembers, when he was much much younger, that his mother commented about how she and his father wished to give him a little sibling…they never did for obvious reasons and he knew how much that conversation hurt her.

But she shared it with him anyway.

He stood there, on the kitchen table, his pencil tight on his grasp as his mother sat next to him with a mug of tea, smiling sadly, looking out the window. Homework was no longer in his brain, all he could think about was how she spoke those words.

“I hope you have a good life,Brad.”  she tells him softly, “When you grow older. Just do your best to remain safe…and if you give me grandchildren,I’ll be more than happy too.”

She wasn’t sick then, she was still the picture of healthy but her words sounded so…final. Like she knew she wouldn’t be able to see him meet Bea, get married and have his kids. It was a painful thing to think about, conflicting with his own thoughts that exuded nothing but appreciation and happiness. Bradley’s eyebrows furrow, he remembers how she was so quiet too in the final years.

Between hospital visits and school then college, Bradley never thought he’d achieve her gentle request. And when he got to the Navy, well, let’s say that was the last thing in his mind.

As he let his shoulders relax, he closes his eyes as well, “Hope you are lookin’ ma.” he murmurs, “I know you’d love to meet them…you and dad…well, you will meet them in a way when we go to Virginia.” he talked to Bea about it and she was very supportive of visiting the cemetery, she thought it’d be more than important for Nikki to know more about her grandparents as well.

Bradley sits on his chair with his hands folded in front of his lips, thumb rubbing over the wedding band repeatedly, following the way his finger rubbed against the gold surface, seeing smudges of his fingerprint on top before looking back to his desk, “Yeah, we’ll be okay.” he answered himself, his own doubts somehow making it’s way over.

He knew what he had to do, he knew how he had to act to always come back home and he honestly thought that Beatrice’s little scent pouch was her own way of a lucky charm. Ever since she gave it to him he had to admit he was able to sleep better and felt so much more…relaxed whenever he had to go.

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his door, he lifts his head, “Come in.” he says, then stands up when he notices it’s Cyclone, “Cyclone,sir,” a quick salute that the vice-admiral reciprocates, “Good morning,sir.”

“Bradshaw.” Cyclone’s stature and serious façade was enough to make anyone quiver in their boots, “I’m glad to see you are keeping yourself busy.” he drops his eyes to the pile of papers on the young officer’s desk, thankfully most of them were reports he already finished, “I hope,however,I’m not interrupting.”

“Uh, no sir. Not at all…can I help with something?”

Cyclone inhaled, squaring his shoulders with his hands behind his back as he walked to the desk, picking up a little toy from his desk. It was a tiny silicon unicorn with glitter and iridescent wings. His superior looked up at him with his brow up, “From your little one,I presume.”

“Yes,sir.” he nods, “I brought it with me.”

“I see…well, and how is she?”

“She’s….fine.” he couldn’t help but be confused by his superior’s questions, “She’s growing more and more every day.”

Cyclone nodded, pursing his lips and looking around a bit, “Of course, as babies do.” he says, “I have a request, Bradshaw,I know your wife is friends with my daughter.”

“Yes?”

His superior seemed almost uncomfortable, “I want to know…if she said anything about what she’d like for my future grandchild.” he says, “She hasn’t told me much.”

Oh.

That’s a bit sad.

Bradley tries to not show his grimace, scratching his neck, “Well,sir,I uh…there’s nothing that I heard about from Bea…I thought you could ask her? Can’t you?”

“My daughter has been….very protective about the little one, so she’s not sharing much unless it’s with her mother and my wife is also refusing to tell me things.” he explains, propping his hands on his hips, “I don’t even know the gender.”

“Well sir,I apologize…I…we heard nothing.” Bradley offers his boss a confused shrug, did he really come to his office to have that type of chat? Odd, he thought he’d at least call him to his own office and have this conversation…unless it was bothering him so much he couldn’t really wait that long.

“...I see.” Cyclone inhales and clears his throat, turning on his heel to leave the office, but he stills and slowly turns his torso towards Bradley, “This conversation never happened. Have a good day,Bradshaw.”

“Y-You too,sir.” he waits until Cyclone is out of his office to let out a heavy breath he didn’t know he was holding and falls back down on his chair, “Shit…that was…something…I better message Bea when I’m able to.”

At least no one suspected anything so that was really good.

All he had to do was get through lunchtime.

-

Bradley sometimes wondered if his friends just could sniff the secret out of him because Nat was hounding up like a huntsman dog, like she knew something was off. But he promised himself he wouldn’t say anything, even if they suspected he would keep his mouth shut, for safety especially.

Phoenix stood next to him, chewing her own sandwich with her eyes narrowed. Rooster tried to focus on his own food but the way she was looking at him was nearing annoyance. He sighs and drops his fork with a frown, “What?”

“What,what?”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

Nat takes a bite of her sandwich,blinking innocently, “Looking like what?”

“Like you are trying to get something out of me.”

Natasha slows her chewing then shrugs at him, “I dunno, you appear different today.” she says, “A pep in your step if I could say so myself.” Rooster didn’t like how that sounded and he immediately worried that he gave something away, “What did Cyclone want with you?”

“How do you-”

“Word gets around, people saw him in your office.”

Bradley purses his lips “Just wanted some of my reports.” he lies because he remembers what his superior asked him, “That’s all.”

“Hmmmm…okay;” a pause, “Anyway,how’s the baby?”

Bradley stops, much like when Faraday mentioned something about it, trying to wrack his brain that the baby was only Nicole for right now. He tries to now give out too much of his reaction by drinking his soda, “She’s fine.” he says, “She’s really fine.”

“And Bea? Not getting too tired,I hope?”

No because it was early in the pr- oh, “Oh uh, no, no she’s not.” he sips even more of his soda feeling his throat as dry as sandpaper. Nat just looks at him, narrowing her eyes with her tongue rolling inside her mouth as she cleans her teeth. She folds her arms over the table, leaning closer to her taller friend with a suspicious look on her face. “...what?”

“You look different,Bradshaw.” she comments, pointing a finger at him, “You look different,can’t pinpoint what.”

“I’m normal.” he says, “There’s nothing different.”

Nat stares at him for a few more seconds, then shrugs, “Eh,okay…anyway, did you hear?’

“Elaborate.”

“About the thing they want us to do after the Holidays?” he chews his pizza with a frown, clearly he hadn’t heard anything, “They want to do some tests…with the recruits and the veterans…because of the drones and everything.”

Bradley frowned, “Almost dying three years ago wasn’t enough,huh?”

“Guess not.”

“I heard nothing about it. What do you know?”

“Just that they are building a team.” she says quietly, looking around to check if anyone was close by, “But Mav is involved.” the mention of his uncle made him look over at Nat, “I think he was the loudest voice against it and now they want him to…you know, prove it again.’

“Mav doesn’t have to prove anything to anyone.” he adds quickly, feeling a sudden protectiveness towards his uncle because no matter what, it was like people couldn’t leave him alone. Maybe he just wanted Mav to one day be able to retire without anyone pointing a finger at him and saying he’s good but there was just something missing. “You know that, we all do.”

“We do.” Nat adds, “But you know how the high brass is when it comes to Mav. And now that,well, he’s back on duty, people just want his head on a plate.”

Rooster huffed, crossing his arms with a frown, “Do you think we’ll be called?”

‘Not sure,Rooster.” she whispers, “There’s a chance.”

The thought about doing such a dangerous mission while Beatrice is pregnant again was always in his mind but he didn’t think it’d be so soon. He holds his chin on his hand, huffing quietly because that was a worry that always remained in his brain, there wasn’t much that he could do because well, it was his career, if he was called he’d have to go, “Any idea where this would be?”

“Nope, they won’t tell you until it’s time, you know that.”

“Yeah…I do know that.”

Nat frowns, crossing her arms, “You look way more worried than normal, I mean I know there’s Nikki and Bea, but something is off with you today,Rooster. I don’t know what it is.”

“I mean, I have a kid.” he shrugs, “And a wife and that weighs in my mind often you know.”

“Uh-huh.”

“What??”

“I don’t know what’s in that bird brain of yours,Rooster but-” she points at him, “I see that little smile on your face,” he quickly rolls his lips into his mouth and looks away, “Aha! So there is something. Come on,tell me.”

“There’s nothing.”

“Come oooonnnnn,” she pokes his shoulder hard, “Come on!!”

“You are worse than a child- stop it!” he swats her hand away and Nat just laughs because she did get a reaction out of him, it wasn’t what she expected but it was enough. “There’s nothing going on, can’t I just be happy?”

“I mean, you always look dopey ever since you and Bea got together,” she smiles, holding her head up with a hand. “You are just too easy to read.”

“No I’m not.” he mentally panicked thinking that Nat could get the secret out of him so he had to figure out an escape route, and he tried to get up with the excuse to go to the bathroom but then the whole squad showed up.

After that he just had to keep to himself, thinking about anything, about what Nat said, about the reports he still had to finish, about Cyclone’s weird visit and about how they should focus on Jake and Evelyn for a little bit. Payback asked him about Nicole, then Coyote and Fanboy, followed by Bob and Halo, they all wanted to give their honorary niece gifts.

And he appreciated it, but much like Faraday he said that Nicole already had so much and she was going to get a lot more next week and maybe they could give it to her around her birthday…which if he wasn’t wrong, Beatrice would be around eight month- he immediately cut the thought short as soon as it showed up.

He sent Beatrice a text since she hadn’t talked to him the whole morning, which was odd but he remembered that she was going to the clinic so she was probably busy. When he was done with his lunch he was glad and he quickly got up to walk away.

Bradley inhaled shakily, then rolled his shoulders, “Okay…day one is done.” he mutters, looking back to check if anyone was following him and immediately frowning when he saw Nat’s knowing smirk, “...fuck.” he looks away, “I just need to survive a few more months, that’s all.”

[bratshaws]

through the hourglass 112. brb x oc

a/n: hey yo. I'm not the greatest still but I couldn't help myself...idk what it says about me when I feel like I write better when im sad. l ol

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: none. ROOSTER IS THE BEST HUSBAND

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/

50/51/52/53/54/55/56/57/58/59/60/61/62/63/64/65/66/67/68/69/70/71/72/73/74/75/76/77/78/79/80/81/82/83/84/85/86/87/88

/89/90/91/92/93/94/95/96/97/98/99/100/101/102/103/104/105

/106/107/108/109/110/111

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-

She turned in front of the mirror so many times it gave her whiplash. Since tonight she came home early from the bar, it gave her enough time to get ready and dress up in a way it’d be…good for the event.

Nicole was with her parents already, their little girl was so used to this that she just hugged her mother and waved at them. Meanwhile Beatrice had to be dragged by Rooster back into the car, feeling like she was ready to cry because she’d never see her daughter.

Again, overreacting.

Now she was kneeling in front of their sink, her makeup all thrown over the marble and the dress she wore pulled up to her upper thighs. Her head was being held by her hands and she didn’t know what she could do, because she feared this wasn’t good enough. The dress, obviously was, but the makeup? It wasn’t that fancy, the dress was a light pink peasant sleeve dress with details in gold in the seams.

It was simple but it was obviously Marcus’ style. Beatrice inhales, fixing her low braid every now and again, only to flap her hands because she couldn’t tug on it any longer, “Damn it, okay,okay.” she breathes out, standing to her feet and patting her knees, only to pace around in the bathroom, “I’m okay, everything is okay. I’m okay!”

“Bea?”

“I’m okay!”

The sudden yelp leaves her husband silent for a few seconds, possibly because of shock, but she hears his voice again after a few seconds, “Baby…I just wanted to check on you…are you sure you are okay?”

“I…yes.--no.I’m so nervous.”

“Are you dressed?”

“Just need to put on my shoes…Rooster.I-I’m scared.”

She hears him shuffling outside, getting closer to the door and gently parting it just enough for his voice to come clearer, “Can I come in?” she hums positively, stepping back to give him enough room once he got inside. Bradley opened the door fully, his eyes immediately dragging down her body, appreciating how that fabric hugged her curves and stopped a few inches above her knees.

He licks his lips, still holding onto the door handle, mainly to keep himself upright, “...damn.”

“Roos.”

“I’m sorry gorgeous,I’m…” he drops his gaze again, “Admiring…fuck you look so good.”

“I do?”

He just gives her a confused look, snorting a laugh, ‘Hell yeah, you do.” he gets closer after shutting the door, still dragging his eyes up and down her body, “Give me a full view.” and he spins his index finger, the request is enough to make her laugh a bit, complying after a few seconds. She’s…very nervous, and clutching her hands together, she looks absolutely stunning but clearly felt out of her own space.

Beatrice chews her lower lip, gesturing to her face, “And my makeup?”

‘It’s perfect.”

‘Is it too much?”

“No, course not.” he smiles,gently brushing his thumb over the light blush on her cheeks. This one was artificial but it worked just as well as her actual one, “You look beautiful. You always look beautiful.”

Beatrice’s eyebrows lowered and her smile widened, the little spark of courage shining in her eyes after he said that was enough to make him lean down and kiss her forehead, “You look like a fairy.” she laughs softly, the sound light and almost relieved, “Listen…I know neither of us are part of shit like this, we aren’t high society…but you worked with Marcus, he invited us. He wants us there.”

“I know…”

Rooster takes hold of her small hands and brings them to his lips, kissing her knuckles, “Gorgeous, come on.” he shakes her hands a bit to get a response out of her, ‘You know you can do this.” she drops her gaze to the ground, chewing the inside of her lip, “You did it before, you had your face on a billboard. In the middle of the street…for four months.”

She gives him a small side smile, “I appreciate your support,Roos…it really…I…I just get so nervous with social stuff like this. I’m used to the bar, hell even the reunion was bad but I managed it…but this? I’ll see famous brand designers from all around the world and what am I going to do?”

“You’ll be there,” he drops her hands only to place his on the flare of her hips, ‘With me,” he brings her closer, “Looking absolutely beautiful, making everyone wonder how the hell is someone like you real…and I’ll be there holding your hand, your waist or your ass if you need any more support.” that sneaks a chortle out of her, one she tries to hide by pressing her face to his chest, “You’ll do so great,gorgeous.”

Beatrice peeks at him through her lashes, chewing the side of her mouth for a few seconds before inhaling shakily, for courage, “Yeah, you are right…it’ll be great.”

“It will.”

“...just…if I feel too overwhelmed-”

“We’ll get out of there before anyone notices us.”

Beatrice’s smile softened over his response, standing on her tiptoes to kiss his lips, ‘Thank you.” she says, running her hands down the fabric of his shirt - he looked so good in dark blue it should be illegal. Marcus knew that too, or else why would he send Rooster this outfit? -  “I’m going to put my shoes on and then we can go.”

He stays there for a few more minutes, then kisses the top of her head, “Okay.” he whispers, “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Beatrice slowly breaks free of the hold he had on her hand, dropping her own to her side when Rooster leaves the bathroom. She stood there, one hand on top of her heart and a thankful smile on her face…sometimes she wondered if he ever imagined he’d join a fashion launch when he was younger.

Or even when he was older.

His line of work was so specific after all.

But Beatrice didn’t have time to think about that now, she was already anxious, the last thing she needed was worry even more, adding his own thoughts to the mix. She quickly slip on the beige high heel sandals she had, wincing when the strap slapped against the back of her ankle in her hurry.

She walks out to see him sitting on the bed, hands clasped between his legs and his smile widening when he saw her, “Ready?” she only nodded in silence, grabbing her clutch and shuffling over to him, immediately grabbing his hand, “You’ll be okay.”

“Hrrm!” was her disgruntled response, “I don’t feel like throwing up yet, so that’s good. The nerves could be calming down.”

“It’ll be fine…do you know where this will be?”

“At Marcus’ house, it’s…on the hills.” she mutters, “You know, the place where neither of us would ever dream of stepping on.”

“Until now.”

He was doing a great job in pushing her pessimistic thoughts aside, Bea could even think clearer with him speaking to her. She hoped it’d stay during the night, “Yeah…until now.” she lets him lead her down the stairs, the dogs circling them as they walked to the front door, Beatrice could just barely pet them before they left, her hand felt…sweaty and gross, almost felt wrong to give their dogs parting caresses.

She flexes her fingers with a grunt,”I’m sweating like a sinner in church.”

Rooster looks down at her hand, seeing that she pulled out some hand wipes from inside her clutch to rub them almost obsessively. The sound of the moist tissue rubbing against her skin was a repetitive squeak that she didn’t seem to notice.

Rooster just watched, his hands on his hips and head partially tilted, hoping that she’d notice his eyes on her and finally remember that everything was going to be okay. Beatrice does so, slowly, her hand wet because of the lavender scented wipes, eyes wide and worried much like before, “Sorry.” she says sheepishly, quickly tossing the used wipes in their trash can, “I’m okay.”

“You sure?”

“Mhm…I better get in the car before I chicken out,Roos.”

He opens the passenger door for her, smiling sweetly because even when she’s nervous she’s the cutest being on this planet, almost sinking into the seat and keeping her knees up to her chest, sandals abandoned on the floor as she hugs her legs. 

As soon as he enters himself, he gives her one last look as he turns the car on. She’s still hugging her legs, still looking worried and she has a little pout that only appears cuter because of the red lip tint on her lips, “Baby.” he calls once, gently plucking one of her hands from her legs, “You’ll do great. You’ll be great.” she barely nods at him and he knows she’s mentally preparing herself for whatever it was that the night was going to bring.

He wasn’t upset by her silence, because he did see the smallest lift of her lips when she heard his voice, so he just kissed the back of her knuckles and kept her free hand interlaced with his, driving one handed to the address that Marcus gave them.

He had to admit it was quite a distance from their house, in fact from…a lot of places they knew. They neared a part of San Diego that smelled rich, it looked rich and well, it was pretty rich.

“This is the place where the Oda clientele live.” Beatrice tries to joke as soon as they are allowed to enter the gated community after the guy in front let them pass. Rooster chuckled softly, agreeing with her and both tried to contain their surprised stares when they rolled inside…because those houses were huge.

Beatrice leans closer to his shoulder when they drive past another one, “I think Meryl Streep owns this house.”

“Wouldn’t she live in LA?”

“I mean,I heard she had several properties…even in New York.” she muttered, propping her chin on his shoulder, “Do you think any of the Kardashians will be at this launch?”

“Maybe.” he says, “Does Marcus even like them?”

“...I don’t know,maybe.”

Rooster smiles back at her, gently rubbing the pad of his thumb on her jawline, “You’ll be okay.”

Beatrice makes a little noise on his shoulder, but her smile widens and he feels her thumb gently brushing against his knuckles. She nods, but then slowly lifts her head when she sees the immense line of cars leading up to a dark colored house with thick coconut trees surrounding it. She could see Hangman’s car, so that meant Evelyn was there too…and she also felt a shiver dart up her spine.

“Oh God…this is happening.” she whispers, “This is really happening,Roos.”

“It is gorgeous.”

"There 's no…turning back.”

Rooster feels her body straight as a rod against her seat, her eyes wide and brows furrowed as she quickly slips the sandals back on, “Baby.” she isn’t listening to him, she’s back in her focused state and he could only chuckle quietly as he rolls to a park, not so far from the entrance. He waits a bit with his hands on his thighs for Beatrice to say something, his wife instead lifts her hands in front of her body and he could see the slight tremble.

“...I’m shaking.’ she says, clenching her hands into fists, curling into herself on the seat, her forehead touching her knees and hair covering her face, “I feel like I’m going to throw up.” his large warm hand touches the bare part of her back, rubbing it in soothing circles and dragging his fingers up and down her spine, “Rooster….Is there anyone outside?”

Rooster tilts his head to the entrance, “A few, mainly security.” he mutters, “No one famous that I know of.”

‘Do you think we can get out?”

“I think so…do you feel ready to?”

She lifts her torso to give him a worried look, “I don’t think I have a choice anymore.” and she laughs nervously, her smile immediately disappearing into a blank look, “What am I doing?” she groans, sinking even more, almost hiding herself into the seat, her hands on her temples, “Jesus Christ,Rooster. What am I doing? I-I…this…I don’t–”

“Baby, baby listen.” he holds her hands,kissing her knuckles, “You are about to hyperventilate. It’s okay,I’m with you. We’ll go in there, keep to ourselves and leave if you feel too overwhelmed.” her lower lip wobbles a bit, “Hey, baby, pretty girl. Look at me.” he has to cup her chin to physically turn her head towards his, “You’ll be okay.”

“This isn’t my world, Roos.” she whispers, “I don’t know if I should be here.”

Her self doubt was screaming and he could see it. He was sure that she’s been triggered ever since early morning but now it was getting too hard to handle, “Baby, you deserve to be here…hell, you worked with Marcus, he likes you and is so thankful for you.” he sees her eyes flick to a group of skinny women walking past the car, their dresses beautiful and flowing with the wind, “...you are gorgeous, you are beautiful and you are deserving to be here.”

Beatrice looked so scared she couldn’t even reply, she just held her hands tight, knuckles going white with how strong her grip was, “I…” she looked back at the people, then towards Rooster, “I…okay…”

“Okay?” she nods quietly, not humming nor saying anything, mostly because she felt ready to cry at any second. He kisses her hand, then her forehead, keeping his lips there for a few seconds just so she could relax before he walks out of the car to open the door for her. He waits for Beatrice to take his hand, she hesitates, looking from him to the house then back at him, “You can do it.” he whispers, spreading his fingers as his hand got closer to her face, “You can do it, gorgeous. You did it this far.”

Beatrice chews her lower lip, eventually dropping her shaking hand to his and letting him pull her up. She tries to not bury herself into his chest when he does so, choosing to stay partially behind him with her eyes squinting because of the wind as he locks the door.

My my my, what are you doing here?

Oh no.

Wrong party, wrong place, wrong time. What do you think? That you are special?

She tries to ignore the goblin voice by rubbing her arms, creating an invisible shield around herself only to see more skinny models making their way to the house.

If you hurry, you can run off. No one will miss you, maybe not even Rooster.

She clenches her eyes, bouncing on the spot for a few seconds with her heels clicking on the ground. She then leans forward a bit, holding herself up by placing her hands on her thighs, smell the flower, blow the candle. Rooster stays in front of her, looking around like the watchful husband he was, glaring at anyone who seemed to stare at his wife for too long. His hand returns to her upper back, gently rubbing the skin “Come on,gorgeous.” he whispers, the cold of his wedding ring soothing her nervous and hot skin, “You can do it, just for a little while.”

“J-Just for a little while.”

He hated seeing her like this, but he was serious. They’d stay a little while, hell,even less if she got worse, “Yeah,gorgeous. Just for a little while. Can you do that?” Beatrice nods, slowly standing straight and sniffling a bit. She teared up just enough to form tiny splotches of eyeliner on the corner of her eyes, he wasted no time in gently wiping it away, “There you go, fucking beautiful.” she gave him a weak smile, “Okay…hold onto me.” she already clasped his hand, “Give me the invitations, you won’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”

He knew she was too anxious to talk to anyone now, so she just opened her clutch to pull the light green papers out, “Thank you.”

“Anything for you,gorgeous.” she laughs softly when he says that, waiting for him to close the door and dropping the hand from hers towards her waist, bringing her closer to his side as they walk up to the entrance of that enormous house. It was beautiful, with several plants around the front, four large security guards that just looked around ominously to everyone that walked in, a teal colored light illuminated the inside.

Amazingly neither of them could hear anything from the inside, no music, no voices, just a subtle vibration of what could only be assumed was a beat. Beatrice looked at the ‘WELCOME’ mat below her feet as Rooster talked to the security guards outside, choosing to focus on how the letters curved up instead of anything else.

As the doors opened however, they were faced with a long illuminated hallway and the vibration only getting louder, with the distant echo of a song being played. Beatrice looked around the hallway, following the trail of lights that disappeared behind dark doors, doors that had doorhandles with golden ‘MB’ engraved into it.

Before either of them could open it however, they parted automatically and they were hit the music. It wasn’t that loud that’d break their eardrums but it was enough to vibrate on the floor. Beatrice however, stood still once she noticed the amount of people in there, her fingers digging in her clutch so hard she could hear the fake leather creaking, “Hrn..” was her disgruntled noise, shuffling almost behind Rooster, “T-There’s a lot of people.”

There wasn’t, but in her mind, it was enough.

“A few.” Rooster said, hugging her close to his side, his eyes moving around a bit until he noticed two people in the crowd, “I see Evelyn and Jake.”

She perked up, “Really?”

‘Yeah…think you can go there?” 

Beatrice looked over to where he gestured and nodded silently, “Yes,I think so.” she whispers, “I don’t see Marcus anywhere.”

“He’s probably mingling, it is his launch party after all.” Rooster comments, slowly walking forward with Beatrice glued to him.

Run, you should run. Before the doors close. Can you run that fast? Of course not, you’ll mess up Beatrice. You know you will.

She hated that this stupid voice returned now, right now when she was trying her best to get better. All it needed was a bigger social gathering than her reunion to make itself known again.

Run,run,run, that’s all you can do…that is, if you could do it.

“Shut up.”

“Huh?”

Beatrice’s head snap up towards Rooster, her husband giving her a worried look, ‘Oh,um…nothing just–”she gestures to her head with an awkward laugh, “It’s um…um…kinda messing with me.” and of course Rooster’s brows lowered because he knew how hard she’s being with herself.

She was going to have a good time, he was sure of it. And he was going to help.

“It’s okay, gorgeous. Is it quiet now?” he asks as he leads them through the sea of people to where their friends were.

“Kind of.”

“Just let me know if it gets worse.” he murmurs, kissing the top of her head and then her forehead, “I’ll snatch you away in a second.” and her little smile was enough for him to smile back, gently brushing his thumb over her lower lip. 

Evelyn was the first one who noticed them, slowly standing to her feet - Jake’s hands hovering by her sides and back - with a small grin, “You two got here fashionably late.” she said, her eyes immediately dropping to Beatrice’s deer in the headlights expression, it was obvious her anxiety acted up by the way she was looking around. She greets Bradley first, then immediately turns to Beatrice once he talks to Jake, “Are you okay?”

She gets a weak and shaky thumbs up from her friend.

“Are you sure?”

“Y-Yeah.I…I am just,” she turns her head when she sees someone walking by,”Is that Gigi Hadid?”

Evelyn looks up, “No she’s not here yet.”

“Yet??” Beatrice looks ready to pass out, her smile going from kind to nervous, “Oh…ahaha, she-she’s coming then.” she feels like her legs are wobbling so she holds onto Rooster to remain standing, “Oh that’s…that’s nice.”

Rooster stops the conversation to look at her, “You okay?”

“Gigi Hadid is coming.” she says, “To the party.”

“Really?” Beatrice holds onto his arm for dear life, “...you’ll be okay,gorgeous. You won’t be alone.”

Beatrice’s little laugh is the only thing he gets, followed by a squeeze to his arm. “Maybe I should get drunk- no that’s a bad idea.” she mutters, both Evelyn and Jake looking over at her, “It’s a bad idea. No I’m just…going to stay in this very spot. With you, not moving until the party is over.”

“I mean,” Evelyn comments, “We’ll still have to watch the launch,so…”

Beatrice’s face got even more desperate and she only clung to her husband tighter, “You know what, maybe I should get drunk.”

[bratshaws]

through the hourglass 105. brb x oc

a/n: I pulled stuff out of my ass to write this but......i liked it.

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: none.

brad: :(

bea: * exists *

brad: :)

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/

50/51/52/53/54/55/56/57/58/59/60/61/62/63/64/65/66/67/68/69/70/71/72/73/74/75/76/77/78/79/80/81/82/83/84/85/86/87/88

/89/90/91/92/93/94/95/96/97/98/99/100/101/102/103/104

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-

She’s still petting him once they are both lying on the bed, his head on her chest and his arms around her waist as the silence takes over. She dared a look towards him and frowns at how red and splotchy his face is, rubbing the pad of her thumb against his cheekbone comfortingly.

His breathing still hiccuped from time to time, but he was quieter now, just keeping his eyes closed and breathing in her scent, still partially clad with his uniform. Thankfully Nicole didn’t hear them, because if she did Beatrice was sure she’d end up crying herself, a quick look to the monitor showed that she was still asleep.

Beatrice sighed, still caressing his head, scratching an area in the shaved part that makes him relax even more. She didn’t want to speak yet, she wanted to give him enough time to break down everything that happened that day.

She knew he was nervous but she couldn’t understand what exactly happened.

It’s not until he moves a bit, pushing himself higher against her chest that she waits for him to speak, but his quiet groan only makes her frown more, “Do…” she hesitates, licking her lips, “Do you want me to get you some water,Roos?” a negative shake against her chest, “Do you need anything?”

“...you.”

“Huh?”

“I need you.” he whispers, his deep voice sounding frail and broken from crying so much, “I need you with me…please don’t leave.”

Beatrice’s body jolts in actual pain over those words, clenching her eyes to hold back the tears as she hugs him closer to her chest, kissing his head, “I’m not going anywhere, I’m with you,Roos…all the way.” he just relaxes in her hold, breathing evenly but not sleeping, undoubtedly he was trying to calm himself down the best he could. “Look at me?”

He takes a while to comply, but once he does his eyes are puffy and red, still glazed over with unshed tears and his nose is as bright crimson as paint. Beatrice smiles sweetly, brushing her thumb over his eyes, leaning close to kiss them - his lashes tickle her lips when she does so - before pulling back, “I look like shit, don’t I?”

She smiles fondly, still caressing him, “I just see my handsome husband, I don’t see anything bad with him.”

“Bea.”

“Crying is normal Brad.” she whispers, knowing exactly where he was going with this conversation, “Especially when you are so sad…and it hurts me to see you like this, but I know you needed to. You were holding so much in,baby…” another brush against his eyes, “So much…you can tell me when you feel comfortable,okay?”

He wasn’t going to wait long, he tells her that, he just needs a few seconds to recompose himself and then he could blurt everything out. Bradley just holds onto her, like a lifeline,like she’s the one thing bringing him close to the surface in the vast ocean that was his thoughts.

And she just didn’t move, she let him use her as his personal pillow, like she was the softest thing he had ever touched and didn’t want to let go. She waited more, she wanted him to open up when he felt ready, kissing the top of his head and keeping her lips there.

His next sigh was lighter, but still pained, “I’m okay.”

“You sure?”

“No.” he chuckled dryly, “But I can’t keep this shit in much longer,I’m going to explode.”

Beatrice frowned, adjusting herself on the bed a bit so she could look at him better, his head still on her chest, his arms still locked around her waist and she knew he didn’t want to meet her eyes when he began, “Okay…whenever you are ready,Roos.”

Another dry laugh, more like a ‘hmpf’ through his nose but he squared his shoulders and licked his lips, “Alright…so.” he keeps his mouth open without speaking for a bit, as if preparing himself because he couldn’t figure what was going on “...okay, so…” he stalls again, his jaw tight, “I…I don’t know if I can–”

“You don’t have to tell me now,Roos.”

“I want to.” he says, firm,”I need to.I..need to.”

“Okay…”

And he inhales again, deeper this time, his chest expanding and pressing against her side even more, “Mav told me…things, things about me.” she blinked at him, still caressing his hair, “I asked him how long he and my mother planned on doing that, on pulling my papers. He told me to sit down after closing the door and I knew I knew I was going to hate whatever it was he was going to say.”

His shoulders bunched up with nerves so Beatrice gently caressed the one closest to her while kissing his head, “He told me it was always talked about, that my mom always asked him if there was anything he could do to prevent me from…getting it.” he groans, “And Mav…he said he always voiced how that wouldn’t be fair for me, because I had the right to choose whatever I wanted to do in life. But he also felt…bad because of my dad, he– he blamed himself a lot because of it, for years.”

Rooster’s brows knitted in the center of his forehead, “I asked him how it was possible for me to just…not join when my father was KIA and he was a Naval pilot as well. And Mav said…there were just things he couldn’t elaborate really, because it involved something more. And I asked what it was and he still refused to tell me.”

“Do you have any idea why?”

“It might involve some higher up or power pulling and maybe he was nervous about telling me when we were so close to others.” he mumbles, “But I just…I couldn’t–why? Just why? I had my arguments with my mom,I did have them and I understood why she was scared but–”

But it wasn’t fair. That’s what he wanted to say.

He was conflicted and confused, it was something he never thought about until now, and now he just wanted this to stop. He was angry and he was hurt and he was just…standing on the precipice, barely clinging to the edge.

"Why did they do this to me?" he sounds so angry and upset that Beatrice just allows him to grit out the words, heavy like concrete. "The only thing, the one thing I could have control over was taken from me...and I am hurt. I'm so fuckin' hurt."

“I know…”

“And why? For what? My mom knew I wanted this, but I–” another groan, heavier, filled with confusion and angst that Beatrice could barely hold back her own tears once she heard him speak. Rooster was a strong man, mentally and physically, most of the time he could handle things thrown at him, he could, he would, he should.

But now he felt so small and frail,like he was a little boy again. 

“I know Roos…” she hushes him, kissing the top of his head as he drops to her chest one more time, “You aren’t wrong for feeling this way, you know that.”

“I know–I achieved so much Bea…why am I hurting? I managed to do everything I’ve wanted professionally, I–”

Beatrice cups his cheeks, stopping the rambling and she sits up a bit to meet his eyes, “Baby…” she smiles sweetly, gently brushing his face, “You are a good man, you have a good heart and yeah, you achieved so much even with everything thrown your way…but you are human and you have the right to be hurt.”

“I don’t want to hate her,Bea.” he tears up again, his lower lip trembling with the weight of his confession, “I don’t want to hate my mom.”

“Roos…your mother loved you. So much, she did. And she thought that what she and Mav did was the best option for you, but it wasn’t. It…wasn’t right, at all. Things like that,I told you this before, she couldn’t have control over your choices after a while…what happened is terrible and you…can admit that your mother messed up. That Pete messed up, even if he partially didn’t want to hurt you like that.”

Rooster sighed painfully, dropping his head to her neck and she feels the hot tears sliding down her collarbones, “You don’t hate your mother.” she whispers, kissing his temple, “You hate what she did. You hate that she took over something like that, even if to her it made total sense.”

He inhales shakily,so she continues, “You are such a lovely person,Rooster. You grew up with a loving mother who, like all moms, messed up. She did mess up and it’s okay to admit that. Does that mean she’s evil? No.” she says softly once his eyes turn to hers, “It means she was…mistaken, maybe consumed with grief…the fact she didn’t show you how much she was hurting, didn’t mean she wasn’t.”

He frowns, sniffling a bit, keeping his cheek on her chest, closing his eyes when her hands brush through the sandy colored strands, “She thought it was the best for you. But it wasn’t, she probably thought she was doing the right thing, but it wasn’t…she made a mistake and it’s hurting you. She’d never want to hurt you like that. She loved you so much.”

“I loved her too.”

“And now, well, now you are a Lieutenant. You rose up the ranks smoothly, even with that huge obstacle in your life.” she says softly, kissing his scalp, “You can feel hurt, you can feel betrayed Roos. It’s okay, God, it’s so okay. We all get upset with our parents…we always do. Just because you aren’t a child doesn’t mean it’s wrong.”

Rooster’s breathing relaxes a bit as she talks, his eyes closing, he could only hear her soft voice calming him down. Only Beatrice could translate feelings into words so easily, she was so open and so genuine with everything she did that he could only listen to her, like she was the soft wind hitting his ear, calming him down.

“...how are you feeling now?”

“Like trash.” he mutters, “Like I want to sleep for twelve hours and call in sick for work.”

“...can you do that?”

“No.”

The silence lasts a few seconds, before the weakest chuckle comes out of him, with Beatrice joining in a few seconds later, still holding him against her chest. She inhales his shampoo with a small smile, “At least you are laughing.”

“I think I cried all my tears.” he mutters, ‘My eyes…hurt so much.”

“It’s been a long time since you cried like that,huh?”

“...yeah.” he says with his eyes directed to the wall, “A long time…felt…felt good though.”

Beatrice smiles more, kissing his temple then his forehead, “You are going to be okay. You know that,right?” he hums, hugging her tighter to himself, “Are you hungry? I can make something for you if you don’t feel like getting up. Or we can have dinner on the couch,watch some tv…what do you think?”

Rooster pauses for a second, then slowly lifts his head to meet her eyes, “What are we watching?”

He looked like a little boy with his eyes shining like that, even if the puffiness made it obvious his humor was less than happy,”Peaky Blinders?”

“Second season?” she nods, “Baby you know me too well.”

“I do.” she kisses his head again, “Take a shower, as long as you need,I’ll be waiting for you.”

He slowly sits up to let her go, leaning into her touch when she cups his cheek and smiles,kissing his lips once. He gently holds her hand for a few seconds, it slip out of his hand and his own palm landed on his leg, he offered Beatrice a kind smile when she walked out of the room, “...I know you will.”

-

Rooster walks downstairs after a long, long shower, turning his phone off because he didn’t want to talk to anyone. He felt better, he felt a lot better actually and his anger was…minimal now, he still needed time to talk to Mav and…deal with this.

He stops by the middle of the stairs when he sees Nicole’s little head poking from the edge of the couch, his daughter’s gummy smile immediately lifting his humor, “Oh is that Birdie?” she gurgles, making another head appear next to her - Jolene’s who was there just to protect her so she wouldn’t fall. “Is that my baby girl?”

‘Dada!”

“Oh god,I’ll never tire from hearing that.” he speeds his step to grab Nicole under the armpits, kissing her cheeks over and over before hugging her close to his chest. His eyebrows furrowed as he kept her there, inhaling the cotton flower soap that clung to her small clothes and hair, letting that little presence warm him up from the inside.

His daughter vocalized something, more ‘dada’s’ and then lifted her head to look at his face, gently brushing her hands on his cheeks and furrowing her brows, “What?” he smiles, “What’s it? Why are you staring at me?” Nicole blew a raspberry, giggling at the face Rooster made and squealing when he just lifted her above his head to walk to the couch, “Okay, that’s it missy, spitting? That’s illegal.”

She laughed more, kicking her legs as Jolene leaped out of the couch to trot into the kitchen where Beatrice was, “Illegal!” he playfully spins Nicole in the air and gently sets her on a pillow. Her laughter was so loud and full of joy that everything that happened earlier that day seemed irrelevant, “Again?” he asks while grinning, her little face was so red but he repeats the movement just as carefully as before.

More laughter and he couldn’t help but join in.

“Oh,my God!You are so cute!’ he groans, kissing her face all over, “You are so cute! That’s not fair!”

“Dada!!”

Rooster kisses Nikki’s head as he sits down on the couch, keeping the little girl on top of his stomach as he hears Beatrice’s foot coming from the kitchen, holding two bowls in her hands, “There we go.” she smiles, placing them in the coffee table and gently shooing Jack when he tried to sniff it, “I reheated some of the chilli, I knew you’d like it.”

“Thank you,gorgeous.” he smiles, watching as she walked away before he turned his eyes to the tv, the pale face of Tommy Shelby looked back at him from the screen, “You know, maybe you should sleep when we watch it.” he mutters to Nikki who was too busy ‘kissing’ his sleeve, “Babe! Did Nikki eat yet?”

“She did!Why?”

“She’s nomming on me.”

“Ah, she’s just kissing you. Probably felt that her daddy was upset.”

If she did, he wasn't complaining, grinning down at the little girl and kissing her head, “You are too cute, just like your mama.” he boops her button nose when she looks at him, grinning more when she tried to grab his index finger, “We might need your paci though, so you can enjoy time with us.”

“You know, we can leave it on mute and read the subtitles.” Bea suggests, smiling at the scene of her husband and daughter, “Watch Peaky Blinders after Nicole falls asleep.”

“Hmmm…true.” he smiles, “Maybe we can just watch something lighter, I think I’m feeling like it…maybe All Stars?”

Beatrice grins, sitting down next to the two, “Which one?”

“Trixie Mattel’s one, it’s one of my favorites.” he says, kissing Nicole’s head as she snuggles up to him, seeing his wife quickly choose Rupaul’s Drag Race, the colorful image immediately catching Nicole’s attention and she turns her head to watch what was going on.

Meanwhile,Rooster was watching Bea.

His wife, his best friend, his person. What would he do without her? Probably suffer in self desolation and depression, maybe eat a cheap sandwich while sitting in the dark, maybe pop open an old lemon soda that he forgot he even bought…but no, she was…so magical. He rarely felt safe sharing his past, sharing his problems, yet with Bea he was comfortable, he was so comfortable because she offered actual input and wanted to help him out however she could.

Beatrice must’ve felt his eyes on her, because she turned to face him after setting the remote down, “Hey,” her smile was so sweet, “You feeling better? Really?”

“Really.” he replies, “Thank you,gorgeous.”

“You don’t have to thank me.” Beatrice scoots closer to her favorite people, propping her chin on his shoulder, “I’m glad you are feeling better. At least you’ll have a nice night of sleep,hm?”

“I think so.” his smile falters diminutively, “...I’m still…digesting everything but,I think I’ll be able to talk to Mav again about it, just…not now. Not when I just found out about it.”

“Of course.”

“I don’t want to lose him again.” he whispers, “He’s the only family I have left.”

Beatrice smiles sweetly, grabbing the hand that wasn’t holding Nicole up to interlace their fingers together, “I know. I’m sure he feels the same about you…you guys will be okay. You two will be alright.”

“Yeah…true.”

“Will you…be okay for Marcus’ party next week? We can say no,I can tell him something came up, he’ll understand.”

Of course she would ask that, he thinks with a smile, “Nah,I’ll be okay. I’ll be okay enough,I promise…now, we should show Nicole how cool Drag Race is, don’t you think?”  seeing him smile like that was enough to make Beatrice’s heart flip with joy. She nodded, grinning back at him before pressing play on the episode.

[bratshaws]

through the hourglass 160. brb x oc

a/n: this chapter was so fun to write???... i think im back to my old self again :) (reblogs and comments are super encouraged <3)

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: none, just fluff.

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/

116/117/118/119/120/121/122/123/124/125/126/127/128/129/130/131/132/133/134/135/136/137/138/139/140/141/142/143/144/145/146/147

/148/149/150/151/152/153/154/155/156/157/158/159

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-

Rooster’s eyes drop to where Maverick is currently pouring just enough sugar to make his eyebrow twitch in confusion, “...that’s a lot of sugar.”

Maverick just shakes the tiny packet and then adds another one, “I am learning to like it.” he says, stirring the mountain of granulated sugar in the bottom of his cup. Rooster stayed with his usual black coffee, giving his uncle a weird look yet again, “What?” Maverick shrugs, ‘I like sugar.”

“I’ve never seen you add so much in your coffee before.”

“I think I’ve mellowed with age. Having a great-niece does that to you.” he chuckles, but he sighs once he’s done speaking, leaning back on his chair with the cup up to his lips, “How are you feeling? Really feeling.”

Rooster licks his lips before chuckling dryly, clicking his tongue against his teeth as his arms cross over his broad chest, “...worried.” he says softly, ‘Scared about leaving Bea and Nikki alone right now, scared…of how things will go. Scared I won’t be there for her when she needs me.” he taps his finger against the table once his arms uncross, he doesn’t know what to do with his hands,”She has the baby blues after Nikki was born and I don’t know how she’ll be with the twins.”

Maverick sips his coffee slowly, trying to hide the obvious regret on his face because of the amount of sugar inside the cup, choosing to clear his throat instead, “We’ll be gone for six months.” his nephew deflates because he knows, his eyes turning sadder, “But that doesn’t mean you can’t help Bea.”

“It’s not that,Mav. I know I can but I also…can’t, you know? I know it’s not my job to be like that,I know Beatrice doesn’t like it when I worry about her so much, but…I can’t help it. I love her and I want her to be okay…and I also,” he rubs his forehead with a frown on his face, “Also there’s Nikki, she’s going to be so big when I come back. Six months is a long fucking time,Mav…what if she doesn’t remember me?”

His uncle stares at him for a few seconds, then chuckles with his brows up in disbelief, “You serious?”

“It could happen. She’s still learning her surroundings.”

“I highly doubt it.” he says, “You didn’t forget your dad every time he left.”

Bradley groaned, rubbing his eyes and placing his elbows on the table to breathe into his palms, “I know, but what if?” Maverick tilts his head and narrows his eyes comically, clearly not believing something like that could happen, “I mean,I’d still message them but-”

“Then there you have it, you’d still talk to them. There’s no way Nikki is going to forget you. Or anyone for that matter.” Maverick adds while rubbing his chin, ‘Anything else in your mind?”

“..what if something happens to Rafael while I’m gone?” he whispers his response, because saying it outloud was scary, very scary.

Maverick's expression turns solemn as he listens to Rooster's concerns, the hand still holding his chin as he takes everything in. He takes a deep breath before responding, dropping his hands from his chin to his jacket’s pockets, looking to the side while chewing his lower lip.

"I know Rooster. I know that way too well. Life is unpredictable, and we can't control every outcome. What we can control is how we prepare ourselves and the support we provide for our loved ones."

Rooster huffed in annoyance, rubbing his brow bone with his thumb, them crossing his arm, “I’m gettin’ kinda tired of unpredictability Mav.” he whispers, “I’ve had enough of it in my life,I don’t want to Beatrice to go through the same.”

“Then you should’ve chosen something more predictable, like an IT Job, because you know that what we do is basically blind until we can find our feet.” and his uncle was right, he just didn’t want to admit it. “...you are scared for Beatrice.”

“Of course I am.”

But neither of them could elaborate on why he was scared…because both of them knew why. There were a lot of uncertainties…and there were things that Rooster did not want to connect.

Maverick leans forward, his voice quiet, no one else needed to hear this conversation. "Rooster, it's natural to be scared, especially when it comes to the people we love. But we can't let fear consume us. We have to find strength in the uncertainty and trust that everything will work out."

“Is that what you did?” Rooster asked quietly, “When you–” lost pretty much everyone he ever cared for was what he wanted to say, but he just inhaled shakily instead of continuing.

Maverick hums, smiling sadly as he folds his arms over the table, “...sometimes.” he replies. They never really…went deep on how his father’s passing hurt him, how his mother’s passing hurt him…or even Maverick’s dad for that matter, “It hurts when it hurts. You can’t stop the hurting, you try but,” he spins his cup on the table, the paper makes a constant ‘rr’ noise against the surface, something that almost was making Maverick’s pause forcefully, “You can work on how you handle it.”

“...how did you?”

“I didn’t.” Maverick laughs quietly, clicking his tongue, “I…tried my best. It’s easy to slap on a nice mask, it’s easy to tell people I’m okay when I’m clearly not.” but he shrugs with a smile on his face, “I’d rather keep those inside of me.”

Rooster knew his uncle suffered, he knew it, but hearing from Mav himself that he was suffering for so long and yet always tried his best to be strong…only made him feel guilty, more than normal, when he started accusing him and finally stopped talking to him altogether. “..shit,Mav,I-”

“You apologized.” Maverick smiles, “Years ago, remember?”

“I know,but…still I-”

“Brad.” he looks at Rooster like he’s a little boy again, lowering his form and appearing comfortable, his smile reaching his eyes, “I’m okay now. I am happy…I want you to be okay too. And that means not hiding whatever is-” he knocks his temple, “In there. Aren’t you going to start therapy?”

Rooster nods slowly, his eyes dropping to the table as he traces his fingers along the edge. "Yeah, I was. But things got moving and I kept putting it off. Maybe it's time I actually follow through with it."

Maverick's expression softens, his voice filled with understanding. "Therapy can be a powerful tool, Rooster. I've seen it help many people, including myself."

Rooster raises his gaze to meet Maverick's eyes, furrowing his brows with his eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You went to therapy?”

“Yep.”

“When?”

“Uhh…a few years ago, probably after we started talking again.” he shrugs, “Figured it was better to work on my own issues so we could have a talk like this, you know?”

Rooster blinks at Maverick with his finger paused over one stain on the table, digesting the information and then sighing, leaning back on his chair, running his fingers through the sandy brown locks,”I promised it to Bea- but, she’d hate if I said that. She’d tell me to do it for myself, because working on myself is what is right…” his smile turns soft as he could see the exact image of Beatrice just giving him a gentle scolding with those big green eyes staring up at him, “I’ll miss her a lot…I think this deployment might be the hardest one yet.”

“Probably.” Maverick says, sipping his coffee to wet his throat, “Be there for her before you go. She’s going to need that for a little while.”

Rooster's expression softens as he thinks about Beatrice and Nikki. "I will, Mav. I want to make the most of the time we have together. They mean everything to me."

Maverick smiles warmly, a glimmer of pride in his eyes. "I know they do, kid. And remember, even when you're physically apart, you can still be there for them. Stay in touch, send messages, video calls, and let them know you're thinking of them. It'll make a difference."

Rooster nods, his lips parting in a grin, “And I always do that.”

“You do.” his uncle agrees with a tilt of his head, “Some people call it uh…cringe? But I think it’s sweet.”

“...how is it cringe to call my wife and daughter?”

“Rooster, some people we end up working with are assholes.” his uncle says, “Ignore them.”

Bradley furrowed his brows but nodded, sipping his black coffee silently as the two remained seated. He checked his phone for another message from Bea, but there was nothing there yet, maybe she was just busying herself because she would. If there was one thing that Beatrice could do when her mind wasn’t being a pain in the ass for her was busy herself.

But that didn’t mean he didn’t want to hear from her…

As Rooster checked his phone, hoping for a message from Beatrice, Maverick noticed the slight change in his nephew's expression. Flicking his gaze from Rooster’s hand then to the obvious ‘puppy dog’ look on his eyes, he just smirked.

"She'll reach out, Brad. She's probably just caught up with taking care of things.," Maverick said, gesturing to the phone with his index finger. "She’s in the hospital,isn’t she?”

Rooster nodded, though the worry was still evident in his eyes “She is. Michael took her there earlier, I think she wants to…stay as long as she can.” He took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing thoughts. "I jknow she’ll be okay. I know she’s strong enough…I should put the phone away.”

“True.”

Rooster narrowed his eyes while looking at his uncle, pocketing his phone, “You are making fun of me.”

“I am.”

“...should I make fun of you and Penny then?” Rooster counters, arching his brow, “I mean…”

Maverick chuckles and raises an eyebrow in response. "I think Penny and I are pretty immune to your teasing at this point. You know Shells still fake vomits when she sees us.”

“Of course she does.”Rooster smirks, shaking his head. "Fair enough. I'll save my energy then."

They both share a moment of lighthearted laughter, temporarily easing the weight of the conversation. But soon, the seriousness returns to their faces as the reality of Rooster's upcoming deployment settles in.

"Listen, Rooster," Maverick begins, his voice gentle but firm. "I know it's tough, and there will be challenges ahead. But you've got a strong support system. Beatrice, Nikki, your friends, and family. Lean on them when you need to. And don't forget, I'm just a phone call away if you ever need someone to talk to…or just a few feet away, considering we’ll be in the same place."

Rooster nods,laughing with his eyes shining with gratitude. "Thanks, Mav. I appreciate that."

Maverick reaches across the table and places a hand on Rooster's arm, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "You're family, Brad. We've been through a lot together, and we'll continue to support each other." then he playfully punches his shoulder, making his nephew wince and recoil, ‘Now come on, we gotta get back to work.”

-

Beatrice looks at her father’s sleeping form, leaning forward every few seconds, holding herself up by the banister as her father’s chest moves up and down. Nicole was out with Michael, who came back just in time to see Beatrice peeking over their dozed off father, looking like a kid who was just trying to see if Santa was coming down the chimney or not.

Michael blinks at the scene, then lifts his sunglasses to his hair before propping his free hand on his hip. Nicole’s gurgle is the sound that breaks Beatrice’s focus, the brunette slowly turning her head to the door where her brother was, currently holding her smiling daughter, ‘Oh…hi Mike.”

“Hi. What were you doing?”

“Checking on dad.”

“You are in the same position since I left you here.” he says, watching his sister embarrassedly let go of the railing and wipe her hands down her pants, “Come on, Mari is going to hop in while we eat.” 

Beatrice hesitated, wringing her hands together as she looked over at Rafael, whose vitals are still going. A bit weak but still there, ‘...but…”

Michael walks closer to Beatrice, his voice gentle as he speaks. "Bea, I understand that you're worried about Dad. But you also need to take care of yourself and Nikki. Dad is stable right now, and the doctors are keeping a close eye on him. You can trust that they're doing everything they can."

Beatrice chews her lower lip softly as she looks back at Rafael. She takes a deep breath, trying to steady her emotions. "I know, Mike. I just... I can't help but feel guilty if I'm not here with him every second. What if something happens and I'm not there?"

Michael places a comforting hand on Beatrice's shoulder. "Hey, that’s not going to happen.” he says, hugging his sister to his side, “Dad would force you to back away, you know he would…and even force you to eat as well. "

Nicole starts squirming in Michael's arms, reaching out towards Beatrice. "Mama!" she coos, a big smile on her face.

Beatrice's eyes soften as she looks at her daughter. She takes a deep breath, allowing herself to be present in the moment. "You're right, Mike. Sorry about that…is mom okay?”

Claudia went back home after Guillermo practically carried her away, deciding that he was going to keep their mother under watch while he was still in California, “Gui said she’s fine, that she’s still sleeping…she’s in his old room though. I don’t think she can handle lying on that huge bed by herself.” he explains as he walks out of the room with Beatrice right behind him. 

Mari shows up not even a few seconds after, they share greetings and updates on Rafael before the third middle child goes inside, leaving Michael and Beatrice alone with Nicole in the corridor, ‘I can’t even imagine.” she whispers as she adjusts Nicole on her hold, her little girl happily playing with her necklace, “They’ve never got separated more than a few hours.”

“Yeah, I think the only time this happened was when nonna got really sick and dad had to stay at the hospital with her.” Michael lowered his voice when he mentioned that, because he knew that…well,Beatrice was young but he was ‘shielded’ from the worst that happened. He never agreed to it, neither did Leo, they both thought that she should be aware of things going on so it wouldn’t hurt her more in the future.

“It sucks that both things involve a hospital.” she whispers as she brings Nicole close to her chest, “...but he’ll be fine, right? The doctors said so.”

“They did.” Michael adds, rubbing his beard and scratching his chin, “I uh, called Hannah too, she said she can check with some of her doctor contacts. Get us a nice doctor to stay with that once he leaves, ‘cause he never had heart issues before.” he frowns, “I mean, nonno had but, you know what I mean.”

“I do.” 

Beatrice leans her head against her brother's shoulder, finding solace in his presence and sighing in relief. "Thank you, Mike. That means a lot. Never thought having someone like Hannah helping us would give me such peace of mind."

Michael gives her a reassuring squeeze, his voice soft. "We're all here for Dad and for each other, Bea. We'll get through this together. It’ll be okay…how’s Brad though?”

They go to the hospital cafeteria and Michael chooses a table for them to sit down, “He’s okay, he’s worried too but,” a shrug, “He’s managing it.” she thanks her brother when he pulls the chair for her and Nicole, her little girl happily sitting on her lap and slapping her tiny hands on the white table. “And he’s been helping me a lot.”

“I know he is, do you want anything? Coffee?” he gestures to the machines close by, “I can get you something.”

“Oh,no,no,I’m not drinking coffee.” she widens her eyes once she remembers she did not tell Michael - nor anyone yet- that she was pregnant again, “For…a reason.”

Michael raises an eyebrow at Beatrice's response, sensing that there's something more to it. "Okay, sounds ominous but no coffee then… is there a reason why you suddenly decided to stop drinking it?"

Beatrice looks down at Nikki with a little smile, feeling a mix of excitement and apprehension about revealing her pregnancy at such times. She takes a deep breath and decides to share the news with her brother. "Actually, Mike, there's something I need to tell you. Brad and I... we're expecting another baby."

Michael's eyes widen in surprise, and a wide smile spreads across his face. "Shut the fuck up.” he laughs dryly, “Shut up, no way.” but Beatrice just shrugs at him and Nicole gurgles happily because her uncle was so funny! Michael’s smile drops and he quickly sits down next to her, “You serious? Are you for real?”

“Y-Yeah…it’s um,t-two.”

“Two-twins?”

“Yeah…”

“Holy shit! That's amazing, Bea! Congratulations!" He leans forward and hugs his sister tightly, careful not to jostle Nicole too much but the little baby just giggles. "I'm so happy for you and Brad. When did this happen? Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Beatrice returns the hug, feeling herself disappear into his embrace, her mind a bit more at ease. "It's still early, and with everything going on with Dad, Brad and I wanted to wait until things settled down a bit before sharing the news. But we're really excited. It happened a few weeks ago, and we've been keeping it quiet until now. And we are slowly sharing it with people."

Michael pulls back from the hug, a grin still on his face. "Wow, this is incredible. Dad is going to be over the moon when he finds out. And you know Mom will be thrilled too." He glances down at Nicole, who seems oblivious to the conversation, playing with her mother’s hands "Looks like little Nicole is going to be a big sister."

“Yeah, just a few months apart too…”she sighs, hugging Nicole close, “It’s…it’s a bit scary but we are getting the hang of it.”

Michael smiles, “You know this is probably the best news I got in a long while.” Beatrice grins back at him and he leans close to kiss her forehead, “Anyway, let’s get us our food because I’m starving…and you are eating for three now…do you have Nikki’s things?”

“Yeah,” she gestures to her bag, “I have it,don’t worry.”

“Alright, be right back.”

Beatrice watches her brother walk away from their table and allows her smile to drop. She sinks a bit on the seat with Nicole clinging to her neck, watching as her mother’s eyes close and her brows furrow, “Aa?” she questions, gently slapping Beatrice’s face, much like she does to Rooster.

“Ow. Nikki.”

“Mama!”

“Mama is okay, see?” she pointed to the smile on her own face, but her daughter just appeared confused, “...mama is tired…mama misses dada.” she says sweetly, tucking a strand of the golden brown hair behind Nicole’s tiny ear, “And mama wishes he was here so we could talk more…although I could message him…but he’s busy right now- you know what,” she places the phone screen down on the table, “Maybe later, hm?”

“Aaa!”

“Yes, I agree.” she pressed her lips to Nicole’s head, smelling that cotton flower shampoo that clung to the bronze colored tresses. More and more her hair color was getting close to Brad’s. That beautiful shade of caramel with hints of gold that she adored so much, “Maybe when daddy comes home we can have a moment together, mama isn’t working tonight after all.” god bless for Penny who immediately told Bea she didn’t have to come to the bar later, meaning she not only had time to spend with Rooster but also with her father.

Honestly, she was going through it. At least she wasn’t alone.

[bratshaws]

goodness gracious 87. brb x oc

a/n: any of yall have that weird relative that seems to be a cryptic who knows way too much about everything? No? Just me and Bea? Okay.

check out the fic's playlist made by the sweet @wiipes !!

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: FLUFF, MAV IS GOING TO HAVE A HEART ATTACK, Bea's aunt is indeed a witch

chapters:

1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/21/22/23/24/25/26/27/28/29/30/31/32/33/34/35/36/37/38/39/40/41/42/43/44

45/46/47/48/49/50/51/52/53/54/55/56/57/58/59/60/61/62/63/64

65/66/67/68/69/70/71/72/73/74/75/76/77/78/79/80/81/82/83/84

85/86

(pls let me know if you want to be added to the taglist!!)

taglist: @mirandastuckinthe80s @roosterschanelslut @wiipes @lcahwriter @shrimping-for-all @gretagerwigsmuse @frenchtoastix

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@emilybradshaw @j-6o @louisahale @leobabbyyy @kulicny @winter-run @ktjmac @graciereads @bigpoppajes

-

“Rooster, don’t joke with me.”

“I am not joking with you.”

Maverick places a hand over his heart, then starts to walk around his nephew, stopping to support his weight on his knees, “Oh dear God, okay,” he breathes in and out rapidly, “Okay, you–” Maverick ends up laughing and running to his godson, wrapping his arms around Bradley’s middle and, surprising, lifting him up just for a little bit with how happy he was.

Rooster makes a sound of surprise, immediately trying to go back down - being this tall and strong makes it very hard for someone to pick him up and yet Pete did it without issues, amazingly considering he was the size of a toddler- “Woah!Mav!” his uncle puts him down, then playfully punches his shoulders repeatedly. He knew he’d be excited, the way Pete would subtly drop hints about how he wanted the two to finally tie the knot was reason enough to believe.

Pete calms down, but his smile remains. They are both at a quiet corner of the base they were all staying at, somewhere where Rooster knew they’d won't be bothered too much, the last thing he needed was Nat freaking out or Jake giving him a knowing smirk, or any of the Dagger squad really. This was a secret mission within a mission and no one besides him and his uncle should know, “Rooster I–” Maverick just shakes his head with a huge grin, propping his hands on his hips, “When did you decide it?”

“A few months ago.” he says, crossing his arm and moving his weight to the opposite leg with a cock of his hip, “I know it sounds crazy but I can’t see myself without Bea. I love her Mav.” and Pete knew it, he knew it way too well, “I never ever thought about marriage before, i honestly didn’t think I’d want to get married.” 

It was more of he didn’t want to because of fear and anger and all those messy feelings he couldn’t elaborate too much. But now he was sure about it, he was sure, he was certain and he wanted Mav’s help to do it in some way. “What are you planning, then?” his godfather asked, mirroring the younger pilot’s crossed arms position. Rooster’s jaw moved back and forth, looking back over his shoulder to see if there was any of the Dagger squad getting close.

“I’m still working on it.” he replies once he’s sure the coast is clear, “But I’d need your help.” Pete’s smile gets even wider, chuckling like a proud father, “And I know how much you’ve been bugging me about it.”

“But I was right in the end.”

Well…he was. 

“Yes, yes you were. I’m just writing some stuff down on my phone and I’ll show you later, I really want this thing to work.” Bradley sighs, running a hand through his sandy brown strands, “She deserves something good, you saw how happy she was at her birthday.”

“Before or after she punched her ex?”

Bradley couldn’t help the soft laugh that breaks through, scratching his temple as he remembered that scene, watching Eric fall to the ground like a sack of spuds with his nose bleeding was the most entertaining thing he had seen in a long long while. It helped that it was Beatrice who made that possible. He knew she was capable of, she’s capable of so many things and she’s so unaware of them sometimes.

But he knew it was a process he’d like to be part of. She grew so much ever since they started dating, he knew even if they weren’t she’d still be able to do it. Beatrice is capable, she’s good, she’s just incredible.

And he wanted to ask her to be his wife.

He knew he still had time until he got back - four months now and counting - but that was enough for him to organize everything. It was going to be special, she deserves it nothing less, “What do you need my help with then?”

“Not only your help, Penny’s too. But let me organize everything like I said,I need to make sure there’ll be nothing in the way.” he says, his lips quirking with a fondness while he rubs his ring finger, “I already have a ring in mind.”

“You do?”

“Bea doesn’t like flashy stuff and I saw her nonna’s old wedding ring and…I’m kind of basing it off of that.” 

Pete looked like he was ready to cry, biting his lip and nodding while sniffling and looking to the side, in a way he thought Rooster wouldn’t see him quickly wiping his eyes. Maverick remained looking away, placing his hands back on his hips as the wind moved between the two, he then nodded once, inhaling deeply and turning his eyes back to Rooster, “Alright.You know you can count on me.”

Bradley smiles back, “I know,Mav.” he says, hugging his uncle tight. Pete clapped his back, clenching his flight suit and not being able to hold back another sniffle, “I wouldn’t want anyone else to help me with this.”

I wouldn’t want anyone to help me with this, Pete. I’m serious about Carole.

Pete sighed softly, the memories intertwining and repeating itself again. Pete was…more than happy, happy wouldn’t be enough to say how he was feeling right now, he was completely elated to be there, to be part of Bradley’s life again and so quickly too. Months before he couldn’t see this happening, he couldn’t even make Brad look at him without anger.

And now his nephew was asking him to help propose to his girlfriend. “Well,I’m glad to be in for the ride.” the older pilot smiles, pulling back and tapping his godson’s cheek like a proud father, “Just let me know when you need me.”

“Of course Mav,and please don’t tell anyone else yet?”

“I won’t.I promise. Are you going to talk to Beatrice later tonight?”

The mention of his girlfriend makes Bradley’s eyes shine and his smile widen, “I am, finally we’ll be able to video chat.” After a long time of messaging back and forth he’d finally see her face. It has been very hectic lately and while he gets it, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t miss her tremendously. Pete just chuckles, patting his shoulder affectionately before the two wander away from their quiet spot to the main areas of the base.

He was good with distracting himself since the mission called for a lot of his attention, time truly goes by fast when you are flying a F-18 and doing a good job at it. By the time it was night, he was already fidgety, going to the little area where everyone would chat with their loved ones and closed the door behind himself for some privacy.

Not that he’d do anything there, because he’s not stupid and he could control himself - most of the time - when dealing with Beatrice. The connection there was a bit slow, so he had to wait a little while for the call to actually load, in the meantime, he just looked down at his ring finger, using the pad of his index to draw an imaginary wedding band around it, trying to see what it’d look like on him just as he imagined on her.

Beatrice’s hands were smaller, softer, delicate but very powerful - as Eric well knows - even for her own self. He had a lot to organize from afar and he couldn’t be too anxious about it because he had a mission to finish and he had a house to go back to. A house that he shared with Beatrice and Jolene, he missed that dog too. He looks back up to check the connection, frowning when it still had the ‘loading’ still there. 

His finger taps on the table anxiously, following the bouncing of his leg. He leans his head back against the chair’s backrest, crossing his arms over his chest and breathing in deeply, just waiting for it to do something. He had a short time to talk to Beatrice and he was excited to do it after so long.

Just messaging on the phone isn’t really…well, it is good but he liked seeing her face too, seeing her expressions and knowing she’s okay, that she’s safe meant a lot to him.

A ping called his attention, making the pilot lift his head from the headrest, seeing the ‘connection established’ shining on the screen, “Finally.” he muttered, pulling the chair closer so he could have a better look at Beatrice. 

It takes a few seconds but eventually he sees…nothing, he sees just the empty kitchen and the top of Jolene’s head as she walks around. Bradley furrows his eyebrows, “Bea?” he calls with his voice as close to the mic as he could, hearing a gasp of surprise and the clanking of something in the sink. 

“Brad!!” she calls, her body taking shape as she steps in front of the laptop on her side, “Sorry!I was getting some water.” she explains, adjusting herself on the chair and pulling herself closer to the screen,”Hi.”

“Hi, gorgeous.” he replies, folding his arms on the desk, “Busy day?”

Beatrice laughs but then nods and he takes her attire of denim overalls, a band shirt - Van Halen apparently - under it, a bandanna holding back the hair that wasn’t pulled back in her ponytail, “Yes,I’ve been doing some more DIY stuff- oh!” she stands up again, grabbing the laptop as she walked to the side of the kitchen where their stove and cabinets were “Look!”

It takes a while for the image to settle, but he follows her pointing finger to where he could see color. She walked closer until he could see the geometric backsplash between the counter and cabinets, it looked so good you’d think it came with the house, “Oh, wow, did you do that gorgeous?”

“I did!” her head pops up on the corner of the screen “I can’t go too far or else I’ll unplug the laptop, but yes I did!” he hears her bare feet tapping back to the table she was seated, “Michael helped me put it on too, but I cut the right measurements!”

She looked and sounded so happy, he couldn’t help but lean his head on a closed fist, “Well it looks amazing.”

“Thank you-oh!Oh! I have to show you something!” she stands up quickly, leaving the screen. He could hear the sound of something plastic being lifted from the ground. Beatrice's head comes back, her smile never faltering “Look!” she holds up a tool box, not any tool box, a purple tool box filled with equally purple power tools.

Bradley chuckles, noticing it was a full set - except in purple - and she added little stickers with names on everything so she wouldn’t forget, “Well, you got yourself some power tools then?”

“Michael suggested it.” she says, gently closing the box and putting it away, “He’s saying since I’m doing so many DIY projects I should have my own tool set.” she smiles, placing her head on her palms, the action making her cheeks squish up and he had to fight the need to scream, she looked like a chipmunk. “I’ve been watching a lot of videos and I’ve been doing some stuff, nothing dangerous! But it’s a lot cheaper than buying at a decor store.”

Rooster smiles right back at her, enjoying her enthusiasm over her new hobby. She was a very creative person so he wasn’t surprised to see she found other outlets for herself, “Like what, besides the backsplash?”

“Well…” she drawls the word, trying to think on it “I’ve added a colored arch behind our couch and my couch in the art room so it ‘pops’ a bit more, I got a cabinet on a thrift store and repainted it black and yellow so it matches the decor and left it on the hallway so we can put a little bit of everything there,I also made a vertical garden wall with some trelices I found! I think it looks good! And I’m making us a rug for our room.”

That made him pause and suddenly sit straighter, “A rug?”

“Yeah! It’s basically threading yarn through a thin but sturdy cloth then cutting it and gluing a non-slip rug pad underneath. It’s a bit big because I want it to like, cover a good chunk of our room but I’m doing it!”

He just looked at her in complete shock and adoration, of course she’d do something like that. There was no way Beatrice could be even more incredible and yet she keeps proving him wrong! 

“I hope you like it.”

“I know I’ll love it baby.” he says sweetly, “You are so talented you just can’t keep your creativity still.”

Beatrice blushes a soft red, one that brings out the faint freckles forming over her nose, something he never noticed before because it probably meant she was spending a lot of time outside. He was glad she was having a good time even with him gone, she deserved to have some fun and if it helped the house in the process even better, “How was your week though? We weren’t able to talk before today.”

“I know.” she mutters, adjusting herself on the chair again and leaning on her clasped hands, “It’s been pretty nice, nothing unusual. Well Penny thinks there are raccoons at the bar,” he arches his eyebrows when she says it, surprised “Yeah, something is ripping the trashbags from the bin but she’s not sure if it’s an animal or a person, so she wants to add some cameras around the bar just to make sure.”

“Sounds reasonable enough.” he comments, “Anything else?”

Beatrice opens her mouth, then closes, then opens again only for not words to make their way out, “Bea?” his girlfriend snaps her eyes back at him almost as if she didn’t hear him the first time, “Something wrong?”

“Huh? Oh no no! I was just remembering that yesterday me and my aunt went shopping.”

“Your aunt? Your aunt Martha?”

“Yeah…”  she drawls off looking to the side “She showed up right outside the door.”

-

Beatrice looks up from the rug she was currently working on when she heard the doorbell chime. She frowns, pulling out her phone to check who it was by the small camera, blinking in surprise when she noticed it was no one else but her aunt Martha in her long flowery Janis Joplin esque dress, “Hey auntie.” she says to the phone, making Martha look down at the small camera and then lean closer, offering her niece a smile.

“Hello preziosa. Would you mind opening the door for me? I see your doggy is very interested in knowing who it is.”

“Oh my God, yeah, sure auntie!” Beatrice pushes everything aside, rushing to stand on her feet, rushing back inside and smiling at Jolene’s wagging tail and head partially hidden by the white curtains that covered the windows on each side of the front door, very similar from back at her old place.

Beatrice snatches the key from the magnetic shelf, unlocking the door and opening it…only to find her aunt wasn’t there. She blinks, leaning her body forward - Jolene doing the same - until she finds her aunt Martha looking at the plants that adorned the front of her house, “Auntie?” Martha gently lifts up her head, still caressing the leaf with one hand and Jolene with the other.

“Your front garden is beautiful, Beatrice.” she says, “Lovely Russian sage, it’s great under the heat and humidity.”

Beatrice follows her aunt’s gaze to the said plant, she had no idea that’s what it was called and maybe she should take some time learning about them, “Oh, ah, thank you auntie I just…water them…” which she does, is all that she does so they don’t die. “Do you want to come inside? It’s quite warm today.”

It was nearing 81°F that day and Beatrice drank at least three bottles of ice water since she woke up, “Oh it is. It’s a lovely weather.” and her aunt didn’t move, she could see the couple from across the street - Ryan and Henry - walking their doberman puppy. They rose their hands as a greeting, then furrowed their eyebrows at the strange lady in front of Beatrice’s door.

Beatrice offered them an awkward smile and a wave back, mouthing the word ‘family’ the best she could and ended with a shrug. The two men didn’t seem too bothered after that, they just laughed and walked into their house. Meanwhile Beatrice’s smile dropped, turning her eyes to her aunt who was now leaning her head back with her eyes closed and a serene smile on her face, “Auntie.” she calls, even Jolene looks up in confusion when she stops being scratched by the older woman.

Martha opens her eyes, long natural lashes fluttering as she does so, “Would you like to go shopping with me?” her niece just blinks in surprise, “I must buy something for Leonardo’s new baby.” 

“Oh! Um…okay?” Beatrice laughs softly, “I’ll just put on a clean shirt, this is old and kinda dirty.” her aunt just nods, waving her hand so delicately Beatrice thought it was flying like a butterfly’s wings. The brunette looks to the side, furrows her brows, then goes back into her house, Jolene remains at her aunt’s side as her owner walks up the stairs to change into something better. 

She puts on a white tank top and ripped jeans, with her faithful black converse on her feet. She makes her way back down, her aunt was now sitting on the front steps of her house with Jolene next to her, offering her pink tummy to be petted. Beatrice smiles, putting on her sunglasses and fixing her bag strap, “I’m back.”

Martha looks over her shoulder with a smile, “Good.” she stands with a grace that resembles a fawn in the forest, her long dress flowing with the wind as she walks down the steps,”Perhaps we can use your car, I came here by bike.”

Again? How’s her aunt doing that so often and still keeping her legs healed is a mystery, “Sure auntie, Jojo, back inside.” the pittie rolls back on her feet, receiving a love pat on her butt from Bea, turning around and kissing the brunette’s cheek before she rushes inside the house. Beatrice sighs, locking the door after putting her aunt’s bicycle inside and walking to her Jeep that was parked outside since she was planning on getting something for Leo either w– did her aunt know? How did her aunt know? She didn’t tell anyone.

Beatrice decided to freak out later and imagine this was just a huge coincidence nothing more. Martha waits patiently, watching Beatrice unlock the car then walk to the passenger side to open the door for her aunt, “You are so kind, dear.” Martha smiles, kissing her niece’s forehead, lifting the end of her dress so she could step inside the Wrangler without issue. Once she’s inside, Beatrice walks around it to the driver’s, giving her aunt a grin once she latches the seatbelt on, “Your car is lovely as is your home.”

“Thank you auntie,” Bea says, looking at the rear view mirror as she reversed the car, “Gabby helped us find it.”

“Well, she did a wonderful job.” Martha looks out of the window when her niece drives up to the road, “I think that store…Littlesnaps has some wonderful options.” 

“Littlesnaps?” Beatrice repeats, turning her street and onto the road, “It’s close to the vet clinic I take Jolene.” she makes the way in her mind, not using the gps since it was a place she knew well from the very few times she took the pittie there, “I’ve seen it by passing, it seems really nice.”

“Yes, little Éowyn needs a good wardrobe.”

“Oh my God he really went through with it.” Beatrice laughs, paying attention to the signs around her, “God bless Cynthia, she loves him so much to endure his silliness.” but she was happy, and she was sure so was Bianca. Having another girl in the house would be good for her…and nerve wracking for Leo who would be extremely outnumbered in that house.  Her aunt just gives her niece a look, followed by a knowing smile before she returns her gaze to the outside, watching the palm trees go by.

They finally reach the store after a few seconds stuck in traffic, Beatrice walking out first and looking at her aunt to make sure she was right behind. Martha’s smile only remained, offering her niece her elbow - which she took it- as the two wandered inside. It was a big store, much like the one at the mall, with two floors and long aisles filled with kids’ clothes separated by ages. Since Éowyn was a little infant, they went to the 0+ area. 

Beatrice stood next to her aunt as she looked through the different options, “Are you excited to be an aunt again, Beatrice?” her aunt asked while trifling through the different colored onesies.

“I am,” she replies, the brunette going to the two piece hanging on top of each other “It’ll be nice to have another baby in the family, it has been a while.”

She didn’t see her aunt’s shifty look her way, nor the way her eyes dropped to her stomach then back up to her niece’s face, “I feel it’ll be a good year for the third generation.” she says cryptically, making Beatrice laugh and turn to face her aunt.

“Oh? More people are having babies,auntie?”

Martha’s eyes shone with something, joy or wonder or magic. Who knew really, “Yes.” is all that she said before she held up the koala themed onesie for her niece to see. Beatrice’s eyebrows furrowed just a bit at her aunt’s words, but she disconsidered, only adding how it was a lovely outfit for the baby.

They spent a few minutes there, and Martha wanted to give the baby options. Options her parents would make her wear but her niece didn’t stop her, Beatrice herself got a few outfits too.Once at the cashier, both women waited for the clothes to be gift wrapped, Martha’s eyes once again moving to Beatrice who, this time, met her aunt’s gaze, “What?” she questions with a smile, “What’s happening auntie?”

Martha’s eyes stayed on her, her smile widening as clasps her hands together “...are you and Bradley thinking about having kids?” Beatrice almost choked on her spit, her face flaming up to the point it resembled lava. 

“Wh-No!” but her traitorous brain whispered ‘but you’d love to’ “No,n-no we are not-not thinking about it.” yet.

“Mm.” Martha says, dropping her eyes back down at her niece’s stomach, “It’ll come in time.” she says softly.

“In time?” Beatrice repeats, still flaming at the face, “Well yes but–”

“October.”

Beatrice immediately shuts up, looking at her aunt with wide eyes, “W-What?”

“October will be a good month for you.” Martha grins, “A lot will happen.” What is that supposed to mean? Beatrice could only look at her aunt with wide eyes, chewing her lower lip and furrowing her brows, “Yes, then…oh how lovely. Same month.”  what the hell, what is up with her family members being cryptic??? “Yes,oh, how fun. How lovely.”

“Auntie…I-I don’t know what you mean.” she whispers when the lady comes back with their wrapped gifts, thanking the two women who walk out of the store with Martha holding Beatrice’s arm around her elbow again.

“You will, in time.” once again, more riddle-esque replies. Beatrice frowns, biting her lower lip even harder and unlocking the car for her aunt to step in first, “It’ll be wonderful for you. I’ll help you if you need to.”

“...thanks? With what exactly?”

Martha just squinted her eyes humorously, “You’ll see.”

–

But Beatrice took a good chunk of that conversation out, just adding some…random stuff she knew her aunt would say to Bradley instead of the actual subject, “But yeah, that was what happened.”

Her boyfriend’s face on the other end went confused, but he smiles “I mean, you always said your aunt was a bit of a witch.”

“Haha, yeah,” god that laugh was so nervous, “But, s-she’s a good witch, you know?”

“I know.” Bradley’s smile drops when he looks at the time on his watch, “Shit,I have to go, gorgeous.” Beatrice tried to not show disappointment, but her sad little smile made his heart clench, “I’ll talk to you soon again, okay?”

“Okay. I’ll have my phone with me whenever you message.” she says sweetly, “I love you!”

Rooster smiles, his eyes shining even in the bad connection, “I love you too, angel.Just a few more months, still counting the days?”

‘Always.”

His smile widened, “Me too.” He looked over his shoulder, someone probably called him and then turned back to the camera “I have to go, baby. I love you, we’ll talk soon okay?” she nodded, waving him goodbye and watching as the connection cut off and the only thing she could see was her own reflection.

Beatrice sat there in silence, inhaling deeply before she dropped her head to the table with a pained groan. First the disembodied children's voices, then her aunt saying…that…she groans louder, hitting her forehead on the wood gently, the sound calling Jolene’s attention who walked into the kitchen with her head tilted, “I think I need a drink Jojo.” she pauses, “Or several.”