The aviators wake up to a special message from Maverick the next morning. All he tells them is that flight training has been canceled and to meet on the beach in comfortable clothes.

And of course, this meant Cecelia and Crew were having a beach day as well. The four of them get dressed in swimsuits, both women rocking bikinis sure to make even the most secure women jealous.

After grabbing something to eat for breakfast, Cat takes the boys down to the beach in the car she rented, while Cecelia hops in Bradley's truck.

Technically, Bradley didn't have to be there for another hour, but this way he could relax and spend a beach day with his family before whatever Maverick had decided for the day.

Splashing about in the ocean for a while, the group of five was soon joined by the other aviators, all dressed in varying degrees of beach wear. Some, cough Bradley cough, were wearing jorts of all things, something no one was letting him forget.

At some point, before Maverick arrives as he is ironically the late one, Phoenix feels the heat of the day and takes her shirt off, leaving her in her sports bra and shorts.

And without a second to waste, Cecelia and Cat begin to whistle playfully at her. The most ridiculous comments leave their mouths, each funnier than the last.

"Bradley, I'm leaving you for Nat, sorry not sorry," Cecelia shamelessly calls out while making a show of checking her out.

Cat doesn't let her have all the fun, quickly chiming in, "hey now! You are in a happy, committed relationship. I, however, am not." Winking at Natasha, she asks, "so how does tomorrow at 5 sound?"

Natasha can't even respond, laughing too hard she is practically falling over. Bradley just lifts Cecelia over his shoulder, making his way to the water to physically get her away from Natasha. "Oh no you don't. No stealing my fiancé, Phee."

A few more minutes of the shenanigans go on before Maverick finally shows up and the four civilians leave them to their 'training' for the day. A little further down the beach a volleyball net was set up, a few balls not too far away. They quickly made their way over to play. The teams were, of course, boys vs girls. No real score was kept, but it was the most relaxing day any of them had had in a long time.

Meanwhile, the aviators had been playing a very interesting game of football. Dogfight Football to be exact. A game Maverick had developed so both offense and defense played at the same time. His goal was simple. Create an actual team between his students, one that would ensure they all came home safely.

All the men, with the exception of Bob, had their shirts off. And let me tell you, these men are fit. The most Abercrombie and Fitch model types you will possibly ever find. And boy, was it a pretty sight. One that Cecelia got distracted by a number of times. But who can blame her when her fiancé looks that good.

At one point, Maverick and Hangman were the quarterbacks throwing to their respective teammates. Another play has Maverick getting taken out, landing hard on the sand. And in a small moment of reconciliation, Rooster goes over to help him up. No words were exchanged, just glances, but it was a move in the right direction.

After one particular score, Rooster chest bumps Coyote before doing what can only be described as a full body shimmy. One that certainly caught Cecelia's eye. And in doing so, she completely missed the volleyball heading her way until it nailed her right in the head.

"That's what you get for ogling the shirtless men," Kai is quick to say. Cecelia simply sticks her tongue out. "I'm allowed to ogle my own fiancé Kai."

Cecelia also catches the moment Hangman, caught up in the adrenaline of the game, throws the ball back with three others dropping to the ground. Getting Cat's attention, she motions to the scene. "That's Hangman. Real name Jake Seresin."

Cat looks him over, taking in the abs, arms, everything really. "I can see why she would be physically attracted to him. But you said something about his attitude, and that's what I truly need to evaluate."

A few rounds later, Maverick taps out, heading to a chair set up between the game and the Hard Deck. Louds boos can be heard with the occasional "come on" shouted out. No one noticed Cyclone walking up to Maverick, asking what the hell was going on. And no one seems to care, too caught up in bonding and having fun.

Hangman throws the ball and Bob of all people manages to catch it, scoring a touchdown and looking incredibly shocked while doing so.

Rooster doesn't hesitate to lift Bob up onto his shoulders, with assistance from some others. Everyone is shouting Bob's name, grabbing the attention of the civilians just down the beach.

Abandoning their game of volleyball, one that no one was actually keeping score on, they run over to the group and all chant for Bob, despite not knowing what's going on.

The last few plays of Dogfight Football just so happened to have Hondo accidently catch the ball, resulting in a massive dog pile to take him down. Kai and Ronan assisted while the girls were too busy laughing and high-fiving.

They all called it after that, simply collapsing onto the sand from exhaustion. After all, they had been playing for a while, going non stop but none of them would change it.

☽☆☾ ☽☆☾ ☽☆☾

Later in the afternoon, the group of aviators had been getting to know Cecelia's crew more. The night before had such high emotions they couldn't really talk.

Currently, they were all listening to Ronan. "I love my sister, but she tries to adopt at least one person per show." After too many stories of Cecelia taking the younger cast members under her wing or treating them like her siblings, everyone looked over to the woman in question.

"What?" She exclaims. "It never hurts to have someone take you under their wing. I had people do that for me, and not just because of Mom and Dad."

Kai just laughs. "Yeah, but not on every single project. And how many are you still in contact with?"

"Quite a few, thank you for asking. Not counting my dance kids either." Cecelia, as Ronan said, basically adopts multiple kids per project she works on. And it's no different when she's choreographing, always being a resource and contact for the kids.

Show business is all about connection. Talent will get you to a point, but without the right connections, you won't go far. And if Cece could help even one of the kids she's worked with over the years, she would in a heartbeat.

Cat takes the attention off of Cecelia soon after she says that, wanting to know more about the aviators themselves. She, Ronan, and Kai had really only known Bradley and they never really pried about his work.

The topic quickly landed on call signs and their meanings. Hangman's was pretty easy to explain, although it was done without the usual amount of anger. Rooster's was easy as well, although most didn't know the full significance until recently. (Thanks again Hangman.)

Payback got his after he owed Penny a large tab after getting the bell rung in the bar. No one knows how he did it, but he paid her everything the next day and has stayed clear of the bell ever since.

Fanboy is just that. A major nerd, his fellow classmates called him a fanboy early on in classes and it stuck. Coyote was named because he was a bit of a loner at the academy, and could stay up at all hours of the night but have no problem flying for hours the next day.

Phoenix was easy, as most had been there to witness the day she got her call sign. A few to many drinks earned her a nasty hangover the next morning. But she took it like a champ and still managed to come out on top that day in training, much to Hangman's displeasure at the time. Natasha was just shaking her head, trying to to shudder in remembrance of that night.

Looking over at Cecelia once she stops, Natasha notices she is pouting. "What's with the face, Lia?"

"I want a call sign now," Cecelia says. "Like a symbolic one, since I don't know the first thing about flying. Tragic, I know."

They all begin to think about it, but no one can think of a solid name at the moment. Deciding they could figure it out at a later time, another round of drinks is ordered. A new game of pool is started, with a few heading over to the dart board.

Natasha is quick to grab Cecelia and Cat, dragging them off to a more secluded corner. "I'm thinking of telling the guys tonight."

A little shocked, as neither had expected this they just stare at her for a few seconds before the realization kicks in. "Are you sure? We only really talked about it yesterday and I don't want you rushing or feeling pressured to tell if you're not ready." Cecelia is the first to speak. Of course, she would support Natasha no matter her decision, she just wanted her to be sure about this.

"I'm positive. Talking with both of you yesterday gave me a lot to reflect on. And after going over mission stuff with Bob, I realized I wanted to tell everyone. No matter what happens with this mission, I don't want to have regrets." She says all of this with a steady breath, having had all night to think it through. And she meant it. What they had been doing so far made this mission seem impossible.

Cat grasped her hands and gave her a look. "Whatever you want to do, we will be behind you 100%. Anything you need, just let me know." Smiling full of appreciation, Nat pulls them both in for a small group hug. "I don't care if all of them have arms larger than my head, if they say anything, I will kick their asses."

Laughing, the three head back over to the group. Cecelia quickly falls into Bradley's arms, leaning into his chest. He pecks her temple before leaning down to whisper in her ear. "Everything okay?"

She just nods, turning her head to kiss his cheek. "Everything is great."

A few hours later, and everything is wrapping up for the evening. Penny had already left the bar with Maverick, something the others were quick to notice. Bets had started, wondering what the story between the two was. A few other workers were holding down the fort, beginning the wind down before closing for the night.

Phoenix got everyone's attention, without making a large scene. Yes she was coming out to her team, but she didn't want to announce it to the entire bar just yet.

"I have something to tell you all. And before you can interrupt, it's important so just let me get it out before you say anything." She pointedly looks at a few members before taking a big breath. Looking at Cecelia and Cat, they both nod, having her back no matter what.

"About two years ago I realized I wasn't just attracted to men. I was also attracted to women. And not many people know, but after some thinking, I felt you all should." She smiles slightly, still not sure what their reactions will be. "After all, we are a team, and teams need to trust each other."

No one says anything for a few moments, making Phoenix's anxiety skyrocket. But before she can work herself into a tizzy, payback steps forward and pulls her into a hug. Fanboy joins in, followed by Rooster. Soon enough it's just a giant group hug with Phoenix at the center.

Coyote, someone who has known her for years is the first to speak. "I'm glad you trust us enough to tell us. I'm sure it wasn't easy for you." Sharing a smile, Phoenix nods her head in thanks to him.

"Yeah," Fanboy jumps in next. "And if anyone has something to say about it, they've got to go through us first."

"We got your back, team or not." Bob is the one to say this and that is something Phoenix really needed to hear. Not just that they've all got her, but that her back-seater, someone who has to put their full trust in her and she had to trust to give her information, has her back even outside the plane.

Looking like the weight of the world has been lifted from her shoulders, Phoenix makes eye contact with Hangman. She holds her breath slightly, not noticeably but enough. He hadn't said anything, but she can see it in his eyes. Anyone who tries to mess with her will have to go through him first. And that is something she hadn't even known she truly needed until now.

Cecelia notices the looks between the two and lightly nudges Cat. She gestures with her eyes and they share a secret smile. Catching Natasha's gaze, they smile teasingly but genuinely at her.

And as this night comes to a close, a closeness surrounds the group. One that hadn't been there that morning but one that will last for years to come. An unbreakable bond, forged from a football game and a trust that knows no limits.

Tonight, a team was born.

✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈

Word count: 2,290

THE ICONIC DOGFIGHT FOOTBALL SCENE HAS ARRIVED!

I hope I did it justice. I know there wasn't a lot of dialogue in the first part of the chapter, but that scene was such chaos its hard to know what's going on, much less being said.

So I used the stories of how the cast chose their call signs as the stories for their characters. Coyote's I made up because I don't think he ever told us, but I based it off of actual Coyote behavior.

Peep the intro to Cece's call sign. It won't be officially revealed until much later, but give me your ideas. It's already decided, but I'm curious as to what you all think it should/would be.

As I've said before, I'm straight. And the coming outs I've witnessed have all been subtle or just flat out told to me. I hope I was able to portray at least a somewhat okay coming out for Natasha. No matter their personality, I can't see any of the boys being anything less than accepting of her, especially with how long they've all known each other.

So until next time, bye!