DAMIANA SCHNEIDER was headstrong and one of the smartest people Iceman had ever met. Teaching her everything she knew was an immense honor and privilege that he would carry until her death. However, with intelligence and experience, it is difficult not to become arrogant.

That was the case with the pilot. Usually, she tried to control herself, but at certain times she let her spirit respond immediately, which led to acidic responses and extremely loaded with sarcasm and arrogance.

There, standing at the entrance to the bar, not really knowing what to do, Damiana found herself in one of those episodes where she couldn't react, paralyzed by the aura of the environment. It was too stuffy, too crowded—she liked the open space and the cold, not that kind of enveloping atmosphere.

Not even her clothes matched the place, leaving her out of the simplicity of the house. She was a contrast to the ice, sharp as a dagger. Maybe it had been a bad time to arrive, but she didn't feel comfortable going to the new quarters, and it wasn't like there was much to do in Fightertown.

She couldn't tell if it was luck or bad luck, but memories hit her like a missile when she saw the embroidery on a jacket she could never forget. Damiana let out the breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding, walking over to the counter and sitting down beside the man. He noticed her approach, turning to see who had taken the seat, but he nearly jumped off the bench as he recognized her.

"Little Dami?" he exclaimed, cracking a smile. "Gee, you've grown up, girl."

"Maverick," she greeted him back, trying to give him a small smile to be polite. "It's been years since you've seen me. Since my father's funeral, to be precise."

Maverick swallowed hard, the words getting stuck in the back of his throat. He knew that this one was Damiana, but she looked nothing like the little girl he remembered. He would admit it was his fault for avoiding her since Smoke's funeral. He couldn't face the poor kid without picturing Goose's accident.

Noticing the heavy atmosphere that had formed, Penny arrived at a great time. She noticed Pete's grimace of unease as he hurried over to the two of them. At first, she didn't say anything, just exchanged glances with him, as if asking if everything was okay—answer: it wasn't.

"Can I buy you a beer?" he asked, trying to sound relaxed.

Damiana stared at him, as if she were judging him, causing Maverick to freeze.

"Are you hitting on me?"

"Of course not!" he practically screamed, scared. "You are like a niece to me. I never—"

"He put his cell phone on my counter, which broke my rule, and he's buying everyone a round," Penny said, butting in before Maverick made matters worse.

Maverick breathed a sigh of relief, seeing Damiana's hard features slowly relax. She looked uncomfortable sitting on that stool, her posture too rigid, which made Maverick slightly uncomfortable.

Penny placed a mug of beer in front of the girl, offering her a small friendly smile. She glared at Pete again, silently ordering them to be introduced.

"Penny, this is Dami," he introduced, then corrected himself: "Damiana Schneider, the girl Ice took under his wing after—her father and I used to fly together."

"Oh, are you a pilot too?" Penny asked, trying to get to know her better.

"I was," she replied simply, leaving a strange atmosphere.

Penny, realizing that she and Pete apparently needed to talk alone, excused herself, walking over to a group of people waiting to get another round while they didn't have to pay. She knew the stories, knew everything that had happened in the past, but she didn't feel entitled to stay to hear what they had to deal with.

Without a word to say, Dami sipped her beer, putting the glass back on the counter. Maverick took the opportunity to notice how much she had changed—how sharp and defined her features were, her eyes cold and distant, her skin pale... She didn't look sick; that was herself, but Maverick didn't understand how she looked so tired and depressed.

"Ice wants you to fly again," Maverick commented after a few moments. "I didn't know you had stopped in the first place."

"I stopped when he was diagnosed," she said, softer now. "Sarah had no one to leave the children with, so I accompanied him to all his appointments, including radio and chemotherapy sessions."

"Is that why you stopped?" he insisted. "It doesn't seem like something you would do."

"Maverick, I've already lost a father," she hissed coldly. "I stopped being close to him, because I'm not ready to lose another one."

Damiana's words hit him hard. His heart clenched with pain. Dami didn't hold a grudge or grudge against Maverick like Bradley did. She didn't blame him, but she had a tremendous rage inside her, a rage against the universe and medicine that didn't seem to be able to cure Ice once and for all.

"He only wants the best for you, Dami," he said. "Give it to him. I put you in an aircraft and you fly again."

"Did you know I was afraid of heights when I was little?" she asked without answering him. "But I was never afraid to fly high because I knew I was in control of the aircraft."

She rose from her chair, her beer barely touched. Maverick made no move to hold her in place, letting her walk away on her own free will. If he thought dealing with Rooster would be difficult, he couldn't even imagine how dealing with that girl would be.

"Damiana," he called, before she had completely pulled away.

Hearing her name, she turned around, but still took small steps back to the exit. Maverick was staring at her, a giant question mark plastered across his face.

"Why do they call you Supernova?" he asked, a doubt that had haunted him since the meeting room with Cyclone and Warlock.

"Ask Ice."

That wasn't even remotely the answer he wanted, but Dami didn't bother to answer him correctly. She pulled out a bill, tossing it on the counter to pay for the under-consumed beer. Maverick behind her tried to tell her he would be paying, but she decided to ignore him.

The first impression she got of the place wasn't a very good one. That one day could have been her home, but it had been years since it had been. Damiana knew she should go see Ice before it was too late, but she couldn't think of how to do that without breaking down into a deep, agonizing cry.

Just thinking about it brought tears to her clear, cold eyes. She took a deep breath, trying to control herself, to ignore the tightness in her chest, but she was having a hard time. Heck, seeing someone she loves dying and being helpless made her think how useless she was. Damiana knew she should go to him soon, maybe leave the dorm and head back to her house, but could she look him in the eyes?

Dammit, the tears were blurring her vision. She ran a hand over her eyes, trying not to ruin the light makeup she wore, but she doubted she could, and by the time she got to the car, her eyes would already be smudged.

She knew the way to the door, but she didn't see who had just walked through it. The bar was already getting pretty full, all the more reason for Dami to want to leave soon. Whoever she collided with, it was with a lot of force due to her strong steps and determination to get out of there soon. The stranger caught her before she fell. His hands landed on her waist tightly, squeezing her tightly.

"Do you always throw yourself at people like that?" he asked, but that tone of voice—

Damiana stared at him, analyzing the features of whoever had taken her. She already disliked him for the sarcastic and extremely arrogant tone he used. She said he was apparently young, but he had a strange sort of mustache that sent shivers through her body. He wore jeans and a white tank top with a Hawaiian print shirt on top, and aviator sunglasses clipped to the collar. She suppressed the urge to scream, to curse Ice for forcing her to go back to that horrible place with people she couldn't even name.

"Hands off me," she ordered coldly.

"A 'thank you' was enough," he muttered. "It's pretty obvious you're not from here."

He released her, steadying her on the ground and running his eyes up and down her. The clothes she wore didn't match anything here; they were too dark, too thin, probably some fancy expensive brand. Who was that girl?

"Want me to thank you for almost knocking me down?" she exclaimed, annoyed.

"You who came at me!" he snapped back. "Don't you look where you're going?"

Damiana crossed her arms, breathing heavily, failing miserably to calm down. Her fists were clenched. It was a bad time to piss her off—maybe a bad century, a bad year, a bad life.

"Hey, hey!" hissed a female voice coming towards them. "What's up?"

"That crazy girl threw herself at me," he replied, rolling his eyes. "Typical of people like her."

"People like me?" She repeated it indignantly. "You stand there in front of the door like you're the center of the universe, blocking the way!"

"I'm sorry about that," she asked Dami, then turning to face the man and slapping his arm: "You're another one who never behaves!"

Then, she felt herself being watched from afar. She followed her instinct, finding a group of people watching them, all dressed in the same uniform she knew so well. She stared at the woman who'd walked up to them, at her posture, at the guy she'd run into—it was like a light went on over her head.

"Navy," she muttered, huffing. "That's so typical of you."

"What is it?" he growled.

But Damiana didn't address the matter, pushing past him with some force, opening the door and storming out to where her car was parked. That was her first day back in that city. It should have been something peaceful, but no, nothing in her life was peaceful.

All the way to the base quarters, she can't stop thinking about everything that would happen in the next few days—Iceman wanting her back in the air, Maverick having to maybe force her into an F-18, and possibly face her. She had her Top Gun teammates, another hell since everyone who graduated from it was arrogant and thought they were the best because they were the best.

Damiana could only say that she wasn't home. That hadn't been her home for a long time.

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7.30.2022

N O T E S

The first encounter with Dami and her conversation with Rooster. How did our Supernova strike your fancy?

Just the chapters will need to be written when we finish outlining the complete story. It really helps us to stay organized to plan chapters in advance!

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