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lovelytsunoda · 8 months

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take my breath away // tom 'iceman' kazansky

a traffic jam on the interstate and a diamond ring in a glovebox compartment

temporarily stationed in nevada, tom and heather decide to take a weekend in las vegas to see their favourite new wave band. all the while, all tom can think about when to ask heather to be his wife.

part of the heather and tommy universe started in 'tell me something girl'

pairing: tom kazansky x female oc (named heather)

warnings: fluff overload, marriage proposals, traffic jams.

author's note: guys i know that 'kick' didn't come out until 1987, but bear with me on this one, i was trying to make all of the dates work without the wedding feeling rushed (you'll know what i mean if you check the date headings on 'tell me something girl')

October 25th, 1986. Just outside Las Vegas, Nevada.

the weak air conditioning system in her boyfriend's hummer did nothing to block out the nevada heat as they sat idle, listening to the sounds of engines humming and horns honking. heather schneider held a small camcorder in her hands, the viewfinder trained on her boyfriend's face as he raked his hands through is hair, aviator glasses hiding his eyes. duran duran played on the radio, a tree shaped air freshener dangling in front of the windshield.

"babe, i’m so sorry. i had no idea traffic would be this bad." tom sighed, pushing up his glasses so he could run his hands over his face.

the move to nevada had been sudden. back home in virginia after graduating top gun, tom wasn't expecting to get marching orders so fast after coming back from a mission. the two harrowing weeks in the ocean after the academy had rattled him a little, and he was looking forward to finally spending time with heather again. now, he was scared about what nevada would to do his relationship with heather, until heather dropped a bombshell of her own.

she was quitting her job.

working in a law firm that did work closely with the us military did things to a person. and one day, heather just snapped. she came home in tears and told him that she couldn't do it any more.

and then she quit.

and now she was in nevada with no idea what she was going to do with her life. tom was stationed at the nellis air force base, which was very near to the las vegas motor speedway, a place they spent many a weekend watching stock car racing. tom was easing into his role at nellis quickly, seamlessly and with his trusty backseater ron kerner at his side.

heather was still lost. deployment was only for five months, part of a training program for a plane that most people in the military weren't even aware of yet. and after that five months? would they go back to virginia? stay in nevada? where would she work?

"kaz, stop worrying. the concert isn't until tomorrow night anyways." she soothed, running her thumb over his knuckles. the hummer eased forward, but traffic was still at a crawl.

"nellis is eight fucking miles outside of vegas, why can't we get into the city on a friday?"

"because everybody else is also trying to get into the city on a friday."

in the three months they had already lived in nevada, despite only living eight miles outside sin city, heather had still never been to vegas. never walked down the strip, never seen a show.

until tom surprised her with tickets to watch australian new wave band INXS play at ceasers palace. the band meant so much to heather, and she had been waiting for this weekend for the last six weeks.

tom, on the other hand, knowing the significance of the weekend had something bigger planned. the ring was burning a hole in his glove box, right next to his service weapon.

all that time away had taught him one big thing: he wanted heather in his life, by his side, for the rest of his life.

"hey, heath, do you remember that blue bungalow in miramar? the one that was on the water, with the backyard that walked out onto that small square of beach?"

"yeah, why?" heather hummed, panning the camera over at the traffic in front of her. the pair never went anywhere without their cameras, digital or video. there were envelopes full of negatives in their apartment, shoeboxes bursting at the seams with pictures they'd taken since they started dating in the spring of 1985.

tom tapped his slender fingers against the steering wheel, easing the hummer forward another few feet as traffic picked up, and then promptly slowed. he moved to roll down a window due to the heat, but then reversed his decision after smelling the latent gasoline exhaust in the air and hearing the noise of the jam.

"it's for sale. has been for a while, miramar isn't a hot area for us young people." he stopped to take a breath, looking over at heather. her eyes sparkled as she turned to look at him, popping a small pretzel into her mouth. her large, round prescription sunglasses made her look like an owl.

he adored every part of her.

"i want to put a deposit down. with your permission, of course. i know your life is in virginia, and we can go back if that's what you want. but i see a life for us in that house. kids, a dog. at some point, i want to teach at top gun. that's where maverick is, where slider is going to go. but none of that means anything if you aren't with me, heath."

heather closed the camcorder, dropping it into her lap as she reached for tom's hand, clasping it between both of hers. "tom, i'd love to. let's do it. let's move to california."

tom's heart swelled with love as he brought heather's knuckles up to give her a gentle kiss. everything was finally coming together. they were ready to start their life together.

and he knew he needed to ask. he had planned to wait until they were in the city, planned to get down on one knee underneath the false eiffel tower and present heather with his grandmother's ring.

but, as impulsive as it may be, he knew he needed to ask her. in the middle of stalled traffic on a nevada freeway. his hair had grown out since he'd come home from top gun, bangs curling into his eyes and sticking up in all ways after he pushes his glasses up.

"babe, pass me the camcorder and take a look in the glove box." tom said, putting the hummer in park. he would have turned the engine off to save gas, but who knew if traffic would pick up again and he'd have to drive off the freeway?

after heather passed him the small metal camera, he popped it open, discreetly recording as she opened the glove box. her sunglasses held her long, brunette hair back like a headband as she rooted around the compartment.

"behind the service weapon, sweetheart. it's a small pink box."

"found it." she hummed, her manicured fingers clutching the small cardboard box. (tom had been insistent that she go get her nails done with slider's girlfriend maria before they left nellis, but she had no idea why).

she pulled the lid off the box, a gasp getting caught in her throat when she saw the stunning sterling silver ring, and the large blue stone in the middle, framed by diamonds.

"this is your grandmother's ring."

tom's parents were polish immigrants. when his parents left poland with nothing, they brought his father's mother with them (his mother's parents would follow later). angela kazanzky was classically trained ballerina with the warsaw ballet corps, but had left poland with almost nothing after her husband was killed. all she brought with her was a suitcase of clothes, and that sapphire engagement ring.

"heather, the time i spent at top gun taught me a lot of things. how to be a better man, a better soldier and a better pilot. but it also taught me that i hate being away from you. i hate waking up at the crack of dawn and you aren't there next to me." tom began, reaching for heather's hand. she turned to look at him, eyes wide and hands shaky as the gravity what this was set in. "i hate coming home at the end of the day to an empty dorm without you there. yeah, i love the guys, and i love this job. but none of that holds a candle to the way that i love you, heather anne schneider. i was going to wait until we actually got to vegas to do this, but now's as good a time as any."

he smiled nervously, a shock of giddy, pure love shooting through her veins when she looked at him, an equally wide smile breaking out across her face.

"heather, will you marry me?"

"yes! yes, tom, of course i'm gonna marry you. is this what that house talk was all about? yes, of course i'll do it!"

"thank you." tom exhaled, speaking so softly that she almost didn't hear it. he extended his open palm, waiting for her to press the ring into his palm. she was a giggling mess, trying to hold her hand steady while tom slid the cold metal band onto her ring finger. "i'm so in love with you, and i hope we stay this happy forever."

god, she loved that man.

"i love you more, lieutenant."

stretching as far as her seatbelt would allow, heather leaned over the hummer's center console, kissing her fiancé with an intensity that was out of place on the freeway. she couldn't stop staring at the rock on her finger, and thinking about the promise that it represented.

they were forehead to forehead, full of giddy smiles, the camcorder resting on tom's lap still recording as the pickup truck behind them began to honk.

traffic was flowing normally, and they hadn't even noticed.

they broke apart, laughing as they stowed away the camcorder and the now-empty ring box. tom put the car in drive, throwing his middle finger up at the driver behind them.

they were both still smiling, daydreaming about what their new life together would bring them. heather reached for the radio, turning up the volume as they began to play INXS' 'never tear us apart'.

tom smiled fondly, looking over at her as she began to sing.

"this is going to be our wedding song." she smiled to herself.

the following year, they would get married in monterrey, and they would have their first dance to that same song, heather in a simple white dress, and tom in his navy dress whites. and two years after that, they would welcome their first of three children.

and when mitchell kazansky got married? he used that same sapphire ring to propose to his now-wife amelia.

TAGS:

@magnummagnussen @libraryofloveletters @sidcrosbyspuck @diorleclerc @lorarri @cartierre @userlando @thatsdemko

#tom kazansky x reader #top gun imagine #top gun 1986 #top gun x reader #tom kazansky #iceman x reader #tom iceman kazansky x reader #top gun fanfic #Spotify #fools in love! event

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dystini · 1 year

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Indycar Driver Lore

Indycar Driver Lore Masterlist

James Douglas Meredith Hinchcliffe

aka: Hinch

Birthdate: December 5, 1986 Hometown: North York, Ontario, Canada (raised in Oakville) Residence: Indianapolis/Bahamas Height/Weight: 5’8”/156 lbs

Rookie Year: 2011

Team: NBC Broadcast

Follow him on: Instagram Twitter

Career Stats 2011: Newman/Hass Racing - 12th Overall (missed the first race, last race, Las Vegas, was abandoned after Dan Wheldon's death) 2012: Andretti Autosport - 8th Overall 2013: Andretti Autosport - 8th Overall 2014: Andretti Autosport - 12th Overall 2015: Schmidt Peterson Motorsports - 23rd Overall (5 races completed before being injured) 2016: Schmidt Peterson Motorsports - 13th Overall 2017: Schmidt Peterson Motorsports - 13th Overall 2018: Schmidt Peterson Motorsports - 10th Overall 2019: Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports - 12th Overall 2020: 6 races w/ Andretti Autosport - 23rd Overall 2021: Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport - 20th Overall

Podcast: Off Track with Hinch and Rossi Ask Off Track Twitter Off Track with Hinch and Rossi on YouTube

IMSA 2014 SpeedSource Starworks Motorsport 2015 SpeedSource 2017 Mazda Motorsports 2024 Pfaff Motorsports

2019 Supercars Bathurst 1000 18th

-Likes a protein shake in the morning before the gym -Does not drink coffee -Likes Diet Coke and Peanut M&Ms -Doesn't like to ride a bike -Scars: Back of right thigh just below his butt (entry), Above left hip (exit), several on stomach. -Years ago, Conor broke Hinch's hottub at his house. Hinch complains about this at least once a year but NO ONE will give details as to how. -season 23 of Dancing with the Stars, partnered with professional dancer Sharna Burgess, finished in second place -Currently an Indycar broadcaster with NBC -Self-proclaimed mayor of fictional Internet city “Hinchtown.” -Has microbrew beer named for him: Hinchtown Hammer Down brewed by Flat12 Bierwerks in Indianapolis. The golden ale is now available seasonally across Indiana, Kentucky and Hinchcliffe’s native Ontario. -Collects guitars and antique lighters, counts Eric Clapton, Joe Walsh, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Buddy Guy among his favorite guitarists. A fan of contemporary artists, too, he listens to Twenty One Pilots, The Chainsmokers, Drake, Justin Timberlake, The Weeknd, Skrillex and Diplo. -Ambassador for New Era; Certified SCUBA diver.

Iconic/memorable moments

Dale Jr. Download: James Hinchcliffe "I Was Quite Literally Shish-Kebabed" (viewer discretion advised) Meet The Stars: James Hinchcliffe - Dancing With the Stars James Hinchcliffe - All Dancing With The Stars Performances James Hinchcliffe from Race of Champions 2017 in Miami – Part.1 James Hinchcliffe from Race of Champions 2017 in Miami – Part.2 James Hinchcliffe from Race of Champions 2017 in Miami – Part.3 2016 Indy 500 Qualifying James Hinchcliffe Pole Run Inside IndyCar with James Hinchcliffe James Hinchcliffe Discusses Getting Bumped from 102nd Indianapolis 500 James Hinchcliffe's Trophy Handling 101 IndyCar Series 2017. Texas Motor Speedway. Big One/Red Flag (All Angles & All Interview) James Hinchcliffe's 'Wet' NBCSN Interview During Red Flag at Barber Motorsports Park Andretti IndyCar Drivers Test Their Pit Stop Skills | #AllAndretti | Indy 500 The INDYCAR Off-Season with Marco Andretti, James Hinchcliffe, Josef Newgarden and Conor Daly HONDA PACE CAR // JAMES HINCHCLIFFE AND BECKY DALTON IndyCar Chronicles: James Hinchcliffe The Return of James Hinchcliffe James Hinchcliffe's NBC Sports Network Feature: Phoenix 2016 Screaming Meals - Dancing with James Hinchcliffe Alex's Aliens Butt Chugging Sunlight Mind of a Motorhead: IndyCar's James Hinchcliffe goes under the microscope | Motorsports on NBC James Hinchcliffe Accepts the Ice Bucket Challenge 2 Josef Newgarden and James Hinchcliffe Visit Space Camp INDYCAR Test Drive Episode 3: James Hinchcliffe Behind the CSN Scenes with James HinchCliffe • Full Video James Hinchcliffe in the Body Issue: Behind the scenes | Body Issue 2019 INDYCAR FANswers: James Hinchcliffe RACER: Who Gave James Hinchcliffe the Microphone? Driver James Hinchcliffe Red Carpet Interview from the INDYCAR Championship Celebration Meet the Mayor, James Hinchcliffe The Mayor On Air With James Hinchcliffe & Special Guests James Hinchcliffe's Indy 500 Race Bathroom Tip for Drivers James explaining Hinchtown James Hinchcliffe and Alexander Rossi: sharing a car at Daytona 24 Off Track with Hinch and Rossi – The Papaya One

While technically no longer a driver, James Hinchcliffe, known as Hinch, is still an integral part of the field. He remains friends with most of the drivers and serves as an informal liaison between them and the series, emailing drivers after each race asking for their concerns and forwarding them on to those in charge. Now in a broadcast role at NBC for Indycar and select IMSA races, Hinch does not rule out racing again, should the right opportunity arise. As of 2023, he has become a 'big F1 guy' commentating on select F1 races for F1TV

2019 ESPN Body Issue Controversy? Rumor has it that Arrow disapproved of James baring it all and this contributed to him being 'relieved of his duties.' James remained under contract for 2020, under which he was required to be with the team on race weekends and make sponsor appearances, but was free to pursue other opportunities. In 2020, Hinchcliffe joined NBC Sports as analyst for IndyCar races and select IMSA races when he did not enter as a driver. Read the ESPN article and view the pictures.

Hinch often referred to himself as the class clown of Indycar while he was a driver, bringing his slightly irreverent sense of humor out as often as he could. He’s a natural in front of a camera, entertaining fans throughout his whole career. He’s very intelligent and capable of explaining complex concepts in an easy to understand way. He’s got a sunny personality, is very personable and is almost always full of good humor and enthusiasm.

Fanfic Lore

Good friends with Conor Daly, Alexander Rossi and Marco Andretti. The four could be considered a 'band of brothers'

Often paired with one of the others of the band.

Alex Rossi’s emotional support Canadian

#indycar rpf #indycar #fanfic #driver lore #james hinchcliffe

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