Chapter Text
Bonus Scene: Dagger’s Reactions
The Hard Deck was alive with noise—glasses clinking, classic rock humming through the speakers, and the warm buzz of disbelief rippling through the Dagger Squad. They were crammed around two pushed-together tables, drinks in hand, still digesting the day's biggest shock: Jake “Hangman” Seresin wasn’t just married—he had four kids. And one more on the way.
“Five kids,” Fanboy repeated, shaking his head. “How’s that even real?”
Payback was the first to say it out loud. “I can’t believe he never said anything. Not one word.”
“Right?” Harvard said, eyes wide. “I mean, we’ve been flying together for months and the man’s out there living a whole secret life. Twins, a teenager, and a toddler? That’s like a minivan fleet.”
Phoenix chuckled, swirling her drink. “Abby’s a damn saint.” "She is defiantly that," Melissa agreed with a grin, "although he treats her and the kids like gold."
Rooster, arms crossed and leaning away from the group, didn’t laugh. “Yeah, funny. Guy who’s known for leaving his wingman is suddenly Mr. Family Man. He ditches his wingman, every time,” Rooster continued. “He’s got a reputation for it. You think diapers and play-dates suddenly fixed that?”
The table quieted a little. Bob glanced at Phoenix, but didn’t say anything. Rooster wasn’t done.
“He hangs everyone out to dry. Every time. Briefings, flights, missions—he’s always gone the second it matters. But now he’s just... Dad of the Year? Sure.”
“People can be different than what we think,” Bob offered carefully.
Rooster scoffed. “Not that different, you can’t change that much. You don’t go from bailing out on your squad to raising toddlers. How long before he leaves them hanging, too?”
The table stilled. Phoenix’s voice cut through the tension like a blade. “Watch it, Bradshaw.”
Bob glanced at him, then exchanged a look with Coyote before speaking.
“Rooster,” Bob said gently, “maybe he didn’t change. Maybe this is who he’s always been.”
Rooster frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“He never really let us see that side of him,” Bob continued, voice calm. “Doesn’t mean it wasn’t there.”
Coyote nodded. “Yeah. I’ve known Jake longer than all of you. He’s cocky, sure—but he’s always been loyal. You just had to look past the show.”
“Loyal?” Rooster scoffed. “He left me exposed in training, he left his wingman to die on a mission.”
“And I’ve seen him go last in real combat so no one else had to,” Coyote said. “There’s the version of Jake you see in the sky when he’s turning on the bravado—and then there’s the guy who FaceTimes his kids at 2 in the morning after just flying a mission to read stories and who fly's across the country, just to be there for a football game knowing he has to jump back on a plane the second it's over.”
Fanboy raised an eyebrow. “He does that?”
Coyote nodded. “Always has.”
Rooster looked unconvinced, but something in his expression wavered, “I’m just being honest with what I think.”
“No, you’re being an ass,” Melissa snapped. “Remember what Charlotte said?”
He blinked. “Who?”
“His five-year-old,” she said. “Blonde. Attitude. She said if you’re not nice to her daddy, she’s gonna get your hair wet.”
Fanboy laughed. “She had a water gun in her Hello Kitty backpack, man. She meant it.”
Coyote gave a small smirk. "You’re one insult away from a glitter ambush and she gets good range with glitter, I know!”
Rooster tried not to smile, but a small one broke through, while the team laughed. “Okay, that kid’s terrifying.”
“She’s awesome,” Phoenix said, smirking. “Maybe don’t pick a fight with someone who shares her DNA.”
Rooster sighed, some of his edge cracking.
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Outside, Penny and Maverick stood on the deck, watching the sun sink into the water. Inside, the squad was still buzzing, but the tension from earlier lingered like smoke.
“Rooster still fuming?” Penny asked, sipping from her beer.
Maverick nodded. “Yeah. He’s got this version of Jake in his head and can’t see past it. Can’t figure out how the guy who ditched him in the air is also pushing a stroller and making preschool snack bags.”
Penny raised an eyebrow. “Or maybe he just doesn’t want to admit Jake grew up before he did.”
Maverick glanced at her. “You always know how to cut through the noise.”
“Comes with bartending and raising a teenager,” she said with a shrug.
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Back in a quieter corner of the bar, Maverick slipped into a seat where Cyclone sat with Warlock, his drink half-full, watching Rooster from a distance.
“Bradshaw’s still chewing on it,” Warlock said.
Maverick nodded. “He needs time. But he’s also wrong about Jake.”
Warlock glanced at him. “You really think Hangman’s wrong?”
“He has to be,” Maverick said. “He’s arrogant and he has left his wingman in training but I’ve never seen him do it in a mission. He saved my life and Bradley’s, that’s enough to give him the benefit of the doubt.”
“How many times did he say it tonight?” Cyclone asked.
Warlock gave a dry smile. “'That Hangman leaves his wingman'? At least six. Maybe more. He’s stuck.”
Cyclone sighed. “We need to know what really happened on that last op. Jake’s not the guy Rooster thinks he is — but we can’t prove it without the full story.”
Warlock nodded. “You want me to start the declassification process?”
“Yeah,” Cyclone said. “Get started. Whatever Jake did, I want it on the table.” He paused, then added, “Also he’s been granted the reassignment. It’s already in the works.”
Maverick nodded. “Are you telling them tonight?”
“That’s the plan, the squad deserves to know.”
____________________
The atmosphere at the Dagger table had shifted. Rooster was quieter now, sipping his beer while the squad listened to Javy and Melissa share stories about Charlotte’s “accidental” glitter bombs or Matty’s obsession with model airplanes.
That’s when Cyclone walked over.
The squad straightened. Even Rooster sat up, sensing the shift.
Cyclone didn’t waste time. “I know today’s been surprising. But I need to make something clear.” He glanced around the group, meeting eyes. “Jake Seresin has submitted a reassignment request.”
A few stunned looks swept across the table. Phoenix’s brows lifted. Bob looked down. Rooster froze.
“It’s already in motion,” Cyclone continued. “He’ll be relocating within the next couple of weeks. His family’s priority now—and we’re honoring that.”
Nobody said a word.
Cyclone’s gaze lingered on Rooster a beat longer. “The Navy owes him. And I'm working on getting the details to the mission that Rooster keeps referencing so we can lay it to rest. Until then, show some respect.” He gave a small nod and stepped away.
Rooster stared into his drink, words caught somewhere between guilt and confusion.
Phoenix leaned over, her voice low. “Still think he’s leaving them hanging?”
Rooster didn’t answer.
Not yet.
Later after Cyclone announced Jake’s reassignment and left, the group went quiet again. Shock, disbelief, maybe even guilt, ran through the room.
“This isn’t him changing,” Coyote said quietly to no one in particular. “It’s just him stepping into the open.” Melissa nodded beside him, "He's always been torn between Navy and the family, maybe this reassignment will be for the better.
Bob nodded beside him. “And letting us finally see who he’s been all along.”
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The crowd inside the Hard Deck had thinned. The jukebox played low, the night winding down, but the weight of the evening still hung heavy over the Dagger Squad. Rooster stepped outside, needing air. Phoenix followed a few beats later, catching him as he leaned against the railing, staring out at the ocean.
“You okay?” she asked.
He didn’t answer at first.
“I just…” He rubbed his hands over his face. “How did none of us know? A wife, four kids—and another one? And he’s already being reassigned? It’s like we never knew the guy.”
Phoenix hesitated. “You didn’t.”
Rooster turned to look at her, eyes narrowing. “What does that mean?”
She crossed her arms. “I’ve met Abby. I’ve known about Matty and the twins for a while.”
His face fell. “What?”
“I didn’t know about Olivia,” she added quickly. “Or the pregnancy. But yeah. I’ve known.”
“You knew and didn’t tell me?” he asked, voice rising with disbelief.
Phoenix didn’t flinch. “I didn’t think you deserved to know.”
“Wow,” he said, stepping back like she’d slapped him. “That’s low.”
“No,” she said, stepping forward, voice calm but firm. “What’s low is the way you talk about him. The way you act like Jake is just this reckless, shallow hotshot who doesn’t give a damn about anyone but himself.”
Rooster opened his mouth, but she cut him off.
“You’ve treated him like garbage since the day you met him. And you think I’m gonna hand you the softest part of his life? The part he protects the most? Hell no.”
He looked away, jaw clenched.
“I didn’t keep it from you to be cruel,” she said more gently. “I kept it because you would’ve used it as ammo. Or doubted it. Or made some crack about him ‘leaving his family like he leaves his wingmen' and Jake would have lost his shit on you.”
Silence stretched between them.
“I didn’t get it at first either,” she admitted. “Not until I saw him with them. Abby looking at him like he’s the center of her universe. Matty asking him for help on math homework. The twins sending him pictures and videos. He’s different with them.”
Rooster swallowed hard, but still didn’t speak.
Phoenix looked at him, voice softening. “He’s not pretending to be better. He’s just never let you see who he really is.”
He shook his head slowly. “I thought I knew him.”
“Yeah, well... maybe it’s time to admit you don’t.”
They stood there for a moment in the hush of the night, the waves crashing softly in the distance.
Phoenix finally turned toward the door. “Don’t be mad at me for protecting something he didn’t trust you with. Be mad at yourself for making him feel like he had to.”
Then she was gone.
And Rooster was alone with the weight of it all.