Anne's ears rang and her limbs went numb as Maverick told her the bad news. Uncle Tom had passed away. She didn't really know what to do after hearing the news, what could she do? One of her role models, mentors, family members had just died. After saying goodnight to her dad, her body went on autopilot. She walked back to the barracks and walked straight to the bathroom.
Everything seemed confusing, she couldn't comprehend what was going on around her. She didn't feel like crying she felt like... sitting. Sitting and not talking for a while.
Anne took out her bun and changed out of her aviation suit then went and sat on her bed, putting her things away.
"Anne!" Bradley said as he placed a hand on her shoulder. She stood up and turned around to look at him. "Are you okay? I said your name like five times." She looked at him, confused.
"Uncle Tom died." That was all she could say at the moment nothing more.
"Admiral Kazansky?" Bradley asked. Anne nodded her head and sat down on her bed. Bradley sat next to her. "Oh my god. Anne I'm so sorry." Anne leaned her shoulder into Bradley's chest.
"Maverick said we aren't going to have training for the next two days. We have the funeral and we all will be in attendance. It's in Arlington so we all have to fly to D.C. and back. We are all gonna take a plane out of here. He'll send boarding times out tonight."
"Okay," they sat in silence for a moment. Bradley wrapped his arm around Anne and rubbed her arm.
"If I'm not awake in time, can you wake me up two hours before we have to leave to board?"
"Yea, of course." He turned and hugged her. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her head into his shoulder. "You know I'm always here, right?"
"Yeah. Thank you." They stayed like that for a little while longer before pulling back. Anne gave Bradley a sad smile before he walked back over to his bed. Anne couldn't fully process the news that she had just received. I'll sleep on it. Maybe that will make it better. Anne pulled the sheets on her bed back and crawled under them. It didn't take long for her to fall asleep, which she was grateful for. The quicker she could stop thinking the better.
Bradley woke her at 8 the next morning. They were going to start boarding at about 10 and leave at 10:30 for the five and a half hour flight to D.C.. Anne put on a sweatshirt and sweatpants then threw some pajamas, an extra outfit and her toiletries into a travel bag. Her funeral uniform would be waiting for her in D.C..
Natasha and Bob were cleared in time to come back to the barracks and pack. After they were ready to go, the group walked down to the boarding area. There was a heavy silence that hung over them, as Bradley had told them all what was going on.
When they reached the area, Anne was confused to see her mom standing with Pete. Pete was wearing sunglasses for some odd reason.
"Mom?" Anne called. Penny turned her head to look in Anne's direction. When Penny spotted her, her face softened. Anne rushed over.
"What are you doing here? Is everything okay?" Anne turned to her dad mid sentence.
"Everything is fine," Penny stepped forward and rubbed Anne's arms. "I'm coming with your Dad to the funeral." Anne's face went from confusion and concern to a soft smile.
"Oh... hm. Okay." Anne turned to her dad and stepped a bit closer. "Are you okay?"
He took a shaky breath then whispered, "I'm good, honey." She understood why her dad was wearing the sunglasses now. She guessed that under the aviators, his eyes were red and teary, something that he couldn't have his students seeing. She nodded with a small smile then went back to her friends.
They started boarding at exactly 10. They would be taking a small commercial plane with just over enough room to seat all of them. Anne and Bradley were some of the last few to get on, with Mickey, Ruben and Anne's parents behind them.
"Window seat?" Bradley asked.
"You know me too well," Anne responded. They got on the plane and waited for take off. Strangely enough, Anne hated flying commercially. She hated not being the one flying the plane. If something went wrong, her life would be in the hands of a pilot she had never met. As they started down the runway, Anne grabbed Bradley's hand for reassurance. He squeezed her hand, making sure she knew he had her.
Once they were safely in the air and the seat-belt light turned off, Anne relaxed. It didn't take long for Anne to fall asleep again, slumping onto Bradley's shoulder. She slept basically the entire way. Bradley read for an hour or two before he fell asleep too, slumping so his head was on top on Anne's. They were woken up by the pilot asking everyone to put their seatbelts on again for landing.
When Natasha saw that they were awake she said, "Good morning sunshines," as she held up her phone with a smirk.
"You did not!" Anne said with a chuckle.
"Check your phone, I sent it to you." Anne pulled her phone out of her bag and saw the text from Natasha. It was a picture of the two of them completely knocked out, mouths open and everything.
"Oh my god that is foul. How did you even send it to me?"
"I have my ways," Natasha smiled as she turned back around. Anne fastened her seatbelt then showed the picture to Bradley.
"Oh wow we were gone." Bradley laughed at the photo. Anne chuckled as she felt the plane tilt towards the ground. She grabbed Bradley hand again, exclaiming quietly, then sat all the way back in her seat. They landed safely, now at a base in D.C.. They were going to have the same living arrangements as before. No one trusted Hangman to not start shit again.
They arrived in their barracks and got fully settled by about 5 pm. The group went out for dinner together. It was something fun to get Anne's mind off of things. It was a little diner on base just down the road from their barracks; it was perfect. The group talked and laughed. No drinks, no partying. Just pizza and soda. They took their time eating, savouring the time together. Eventually they left and made their way back to the barracks where they all almost immediately went to bed.
Anne woke up at 7 to get ready for the funeral. She had to be there at 9 and wanted to look as best as she could. She slicked her hair back as much as possible, making sure there wasn't a hair out of place and her hat would sit perfectly on her head. When she put on her uniform she took time to straighten every pin, badge and ribbon on her uniform. By the time she was ready there wasn't a single thread out of place.
Iceman's death still hadn't fully hit her. The confused feeling had melted into a dull sadness. She couldn't cry, she wouldn't. Not where everyone could see. She was ready before everyone else and sat on her bed while she waited, just staring still trying to navigate her feelings. Finally Natasha put a hand on her shoulder and nodded to the door. Free-bird understood and looked in the mirror one last time, straightening any wrinkles.
Anne was zoned out for most of the funeral service, her eyes staying on the picture of Iceman that was displayed behind his coffin. She didn't feel like crying, not even a little bit, until her dad came into her line of view. Seeing the tears streaming down his cheeks made everything very real. It took a lot to make her dad cry. Seeing him breaking down made her eyes well with tears and her lip tremble. She was trying so hard to stand as tall as she could with her chin high.
She watched as her dad approached Uncle Tom's casket, took off his wings, and placed them on the end. Just as a gunshot was heard, Pete slammed his fist down on his wings, and embedded them into Uncle Tom's casket. A sob left her. She quickly recomposed herself, it was unprofessional to break like that. Tears streamed down her cheeks but she didn't make a single sound for the rest of the ceremony.
When the funeral ended and they were dismissed, Anne immediately walked over to her dad. He saw her coming and started to say something but she cut him off by almost knocking him over with a hug. He hugged her back once he realized what was going on. They held each other, grieving together. They had both just lost someone who they cared deeply about and who taught them countless lessons. They made sure the other knew that it was going to be okay.
When they pulled back, Pete said, "I know it's hard, but... but we have to focus on this mission. It's what he wanted us to do."
"I know. It just hit me that I won-" Anne took a shaky breath, "I won't ever see him again," Anne was using all of her energy to not sob at this point.
"I know, honey," Pete pulled her back in for another hug before they parted ways. By the time Anne and her team mates got back to their barracks, it was about 12:30. They were going to start boarding the plane to go back to Top Gun at 2:00. Anne quickly changed and repacked everything she brought with her. After Anne had calmed down, she still had a numb sadness pulling at her heart. She let herself feel the pain because she knew that after today, it was back to training to fly the hardest mission of her life.
The rest of the day flew by. They boarded and sat in the same seats as before. Anne didn't wait for the plane to take off before falling asleep this time. Her head hurt from crying and it felt as if there was an empty hole in her chest. She leaned on Bradley again, this time falling asleep with her hand in his.
She was woken up by Bradley softly saying her name and tucking a peice of hair that had fallen into her face behind her ear, his other hand was still holding hers. She buried her head farther into his shoulder before realizing that they had landed and she had to get up.
"You okay?" he whispered. Anne nodded as she stretched then reached down to pick up her bag. When she turned, Bradley reached his hand out to help her stand up. Anne and Bradley immediately went back to the barracks, not bothering to stop for food. Anne wasn't hungry and Bradley was too worried about Anne to leave her side.
She had taken Iceman's death a lot harder than he thought she would. He knew they were close but he had never seen Anne like this. She wasn't her normal outgoing and upbeat self. He knew that she was already having a hard time with this mission because of Maverick and this definitely didn't help.
When they got back to the barracks, the two separated to set their things down. Bradley started taking things out of his bag and when he turned around Anne was standing right in front of him.
"Oh! H-hey what's wrong?" He asked, slightly started but mostly concerned.
"I just... I just want a hug," Anne said. Bradley's heart hurt for Anne. He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her. The one person who he cared for most was falling apart and he didn't know how to help. He couldn't fix the problem so he just had to sit and watch as it tore at her. He felt helpless.
When they pulled back neither really knew what to say so they just looked at each other. They searched each others faces, taking in all of the details. Finally Anne broke the silence.
"Thank you, Bradley. I don't know if I would still be one piece without you," Bradley brought Anne so much comfort without even saying a word. The fact that he would just hold her hand or let her lay her head on his shoulder, meant so much.
"Like I said, I'm always here," Anne smiled and hesitated before opening her mouth to say something else but she was cut off by the door opening. Bob and Natasha walked through the door holding two styrofoam containers.
"We brought food for you guys!" Bob said, holding the container in the air. Both Anne and Bradley smiled as they walked over to their friends. They gladly accepted the food. The four sat on two beds that were right next to each other and made small talk. A little later, Mickey and Reuben entered the room too. They all continued to talk until they decided it was time to turn in for the night. They had training again tomorrow and needed to be prepared.
"Bradley wait," Anne said, grabbing his hand to pull him back to her. She kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks again." Bradley's face flushed a little and he stuttered out a response. Anne giggled a little before turning around and crawling into her bed. Anne was ready to put the past two days behind her and focus on her mission.
~
AN: NOOO ICEMAN. Sad chapter I know. I don't think there is anymore sad stuff... probably.
Also, Arlington funerals are so beautiful and it felt so fitting for Iceman.