Baby Mav

Welcome Home

Maddlyn was choking back her tears as she saw Maverick and Rooster jumping out of their borrowed plane and being swarmed by other crew members. It got harder to hold back her tears as Rooster walked back over to Maverick.

"Captain Mitchell!" They stared at each other as Rooster struggled to find his words. "Sir."

Before he could say anything else, Maverick pulled him in for a hug. He pulled out of the hug but kept his hands on Rooster's shoulders.

"Thank you for saving my life," he said above the crowd.

"It's what my dad would've done."

Maverick pulled him back in for another hug. As they hugged, he looked over and saw Maddlyn on her own, watching the two.

"Rooster," he said, not pulling out of their hug. "Go check on our girl"

Maddlyn reached up and placed her hand delicately over her heart. She closed her eyes and tried to get her breathing back under control. When she opened her eyes, they instantly landed on Hangman.

He nervously wiped his hands on his flight suit as he debated whether or not to walk over to her. He wanted to say something to her, but he wasn't sure if he had the strength to. He also wasn't sure if she wanted to deal with him after listening to her dad sacrifice himself for her best friend and then her best friend sacrificing himself for her father.

Chickening out, Hangman looked away and started to walk by her. He cleared his throat as he passed her.

"Thank you," Maddlyn said softly causing Hangman to instantly freeze.

"Of course."

Maddlyn grabbed his hand as he started to walk away from her. "I mean it, Hangman. Thank you."

"You've lost enough," he said, glancing down at her legs. He cleared his throat before looking back up at her soft eyes. "It didn't seem fair that you'd lose them too."

He squeezed her hand before letting her go. He debated saying something else. Before he could talk himself out of it, he leaned down and gently kissed her cheek.

"I truly am sorry for what I did to you," he whispered. "I wish nothing more than to take it back."

He stood back up, instantly fixing his flight suit. He was about to walk away but she had one more thing to say to him.

"I forgive you."

Hangman looked over to see Maddlyn smiling at him. "Thank you," he whispered. "That means a lot, Maddlyn."

They shared an understanding smile before Hangman walked inside. Maddlyn turned around, her heart jumping into her throat when she noticed Rooster looking at her. She could see his nervous eyes from across the boat. To reassure him, she sent him a small smile and a shrug.

Without excusing himself, Rooster ran over to her. Maddlyn opened her mouth to say something, but he knelt in front of her and pressed his lips to hers. She smiled as she reached up and grabbed his face. She broke the kiss and leaned her forehead against his.

"I'm really mad at you," she whispered, her voice getting caught in her throat. "You had orders to return to base and you ignored them."

"I would say I'm sorry, but I'm not," he said, leaning back and reaching up to catch a tear rolling down her cheek with his thumb. "If I hadn't gone back, we would've lost Mav. And I couldn't return knowing I could've saved your dad."

"But I almost lost you," she said, her voice breaking. She looked over her shoulder, her stare hardening. "I'm mad at you too."

Rooster turned around and chuckled when Maverick put his hands up in defense.

"I just walked over here," he laughed.

"I don't care," Maddlyn said. "What you both did was incredibly stupid and immature and dumb and idiotic and. . . And. . . And there aren't enough adjectives to describe how dumb you two were."

She grabbed her father's hand, pulling both of them into her chest. The men laughed as they wrapped her in a hug.

"But I'm really happy you're home," Maddlyn whispered.

"We're sorry we scared you," Maverick said gently. "We just wanted to make sure we both made it home to you."

"But in the process, I almost lost both of you," she whispered. "I need you to promise me something."

"Anything," Rooster said instantly as they pulled out of the hug.

"Promise me you won't do something that stupid again. I don't care if it's to protect me or each other. I don't want to risk losing either one of you. I couldn't handle it. I barely handled it today. But if I almost lost either one of you again. . . I wouldn't be okay."

"We promise," they said in sync.

Both men stared at Maddlyn with nothing but love in their eyes. Maverick leaned in and kissed her forehead.

"I love you, pumpkin."

"I love you too, Dad."

"I love you, Mads," Rooster added. Maddlyn and Maverick both laughed as she grabbed his hand and intertwined their fingers.

"I love you too, Rooster."

"Good, we all love each other," Maverick laughed. "Let's go home."

* * * * *

Six Months Later

Exhaustion hit Maddlyn hard as she rolled into the garage her dad usually used to fix up his planes. The last few months of physical therapy have been both mentally and physically draining. But it was paying off.

Maddlyn smiled when she saw Rooster helping Maverick with his latest project. Her hands suddenly got nervous. She took a shaky breath before deciding to go for it.

"Rooster, you big stud!" Maddlyn yelled from the doorway.

"That's me, honey," Rooster chuckled without turning around.

"Take me to bed or lose me forever."

"Show me the way home. . ."

Maddlyn smiled when Rooster turned around and instantly froze. He slowly looked his fiancé up and down and she slowly stood up. She didn't break eye contact as she took a couple of shaky steps toward him. He finally snapped out of it and ran towards her. He picked her up and spun her around the second he got to her. He gently put her back on her feet and brought his lips onto hers.

"I'm kinda confused," Rooster admitted with a small chuckle. "I thought your doctor wasn't sure you'd be able to walk by the wedding."

"Well, he's sure now," she chuckled. "I can only take a few steps at a time right now, but he thinks that within the next few weeks, I'll be strong enough to walk down the aisle."

"Really?" He asked, his voice softening.

"Really."

Rooster grabbed her face and pressed his lips to hers. Maddlyn smiled as she kissed him back. He broke the kiss and stared deeply into her eyes.

"I hope you know," he whispered, "it doesn't matter to me whether you walk down the aisle or you're pushed. I love you and I will be at the end of the aisle either way."

"I've loved you my entire life," Maddlyn said, her voice breaking. "It nearly killed me when we fell apart. But having you back in my life has been the best few months. I know this isn't how we envisioned our lives together, but there is no one I'd rather go through it with than you."

Maverick's eyes filled with tears as he watched his daughter laughing happily with her soon-to-be husband. This is what Maverick wanted; to see his daughter completely, unbelievably happy.

The End