Chapter Text
Maverick was never able to figure out why he and Iceman just became "best buddies" almost immediately after that unexpected graduation day mission.
Sure it was a big thing, probably one of the most important events of his entire life, and people do tend to become friends after going through a life-or-death situation together.
But to be fair they hated each other before that. Or at least supposedly. He didn't know much about Ice, except for all the things Goose had told him. And He was pretty sure Ice didn't have any interest in his life, either.
Yet when they both decided to stay and teach at TOPGUN for a while, they just naturally became brothers-in-arms. In less than one week.
Morning, they would chat a bit over a cup of coffee before starting their work, before everyone else was there. Lunch time, they would always eat together, sometimes with other officers or students around, sometimes just the two of them. And most of the nights, they would meet at the O Club, drinking while laughing.
Charlie sometimes would make fun of him. "I can't believe not long ago you hated him so much and now if I can't find my boyfriend, I just need to ask everyone where Iceman is."
Maverick didn't even know what was so special about Iceman, he just couldn't tear himself away from him.
And it was not long before he realized Ice had no interest in women. At first whenever he found a pretty girl in the O Club, he would poke Ice and say something like "too bad I already have Charlie, bet you can take her home in 10 though". And Ice would just ignore him.
Sometimes, which was almost every night, when those pretty ladies took the move, Ice would either play dumb or find an excuse to get away.
Maverick was so baffled that one night after Ice refused three girls in a row he just bluntly asked him: "Are you kidding me, that girl was hot as hell! What is your problem?"
Maverick immediately regret saying that when he saw that signature Ice smile disappeared from his face.
Just when he was thinking what to say next, Ice walked away into the crowd, started to talk to a stranger.
A man.
And two minutes later even from where Maverick was standing, even in the dark, he could tell Ice was flirting with him. It was so subtle Maverick wondered anyone else would even notice.
But he knew Ice too well. For someone who had officially befriended the Iceman just one month ago, he was utterly confident that no one knew Ice better he did. He knew every small habits of his, he knew every hidden emotion under his smiles, he knew what he would and wouldn't do to a stranger or a friend.
Maverick finally understood it was Ice saying " THIS is my problem".
He was not exactly shocked, instead his brain stopped functioning for a minute. For the whole night if he was being honest. He couldn't really sleep that night, not knowing why.
Maverick knew it was not uncommon in the Navy. It was a taboo with no doubt, while at the same time all the healthy and horny young men would joke about it every chance they had. But it wouldn't really come to your attention if you were not one of them. Naturally Maverick never gave it a serious thought.
Until then.
He went to his office uncharacteristically early the next morning, figured if he couldn't sleep then why not try to finish all the reports he had been ignoring for quite a while.
Needless to say he couldn't finish even one page. But on the bright side, paperwork always did wonders for his sleeping.
He dozed off in less than five minutes, and was woken up by a slap at his head.
"Why are you so early?"
It was Ice.
For a minute Maverick just stared at his face, sleepy-eyed, expressionless, unable to tell reality from dream.
And Ice quietly smiled, like first blooming flowers after a long and cold winter. His voice low and soft. "You look like shit."
Maverick still couldn't move or speak, his brain too busy processing what he'd just seen in his morning dream--Ice's long, naked limbs tangling with another man's body, eyes unfocused, lips parted, breath rough and sweet.
Only when Maverick saw Ice's smile disappeared and walked away from him, once again, just like last night, did he realize his silence must have sent a wrong message.
He jumped up, followed Ice to the coffee machine, and without a thinking he headlocked Ice from behind like Slider always did.
"Hey! Why are you running from me? Did you take that man home last night?"
He made sure his voice was just 10% more cheerful than usual, and when Ice looked back at him he didn't forget to give him a wink and a big smirk.
He asked again softly: "Come on, I won't tell."
It was Maverick's way of reassuring Ice that it changed nothing.
And it worked.
Maverick secretly swallowed a sigh of relief when he saw that little scrunch re-appeared on Ice's nose.
Nothing had really changed between them. Or at least it seemed to be so.
Except that Maverick stopped trying to hook Ice up with random girls. And now that he started to pay attention, he did notice once in a while, not every day for apparent reasons, some guys would try to hit on Ice.
He would remain as quiet and invisible as possible, but Ice never let the conversations go too far.
So after maybe two more weeks, Maverick couldn't help but bring it up again when they were watching a movie together at a Friday night--the first time Maverick had invited Ice to his place.
"Is it because of me?"
"What?" Ice was genuinely at a loss.
"It's been two months since we came here and I've never seen you go out with anyone." Maverick passed a beer to Ice. "I mean, I've seen people......men, interested in you."
Ice took a sip of the beer before answering: "What do you mean it's because of you?"
"Look, if it's because I was always there and you feel bad to leave me alone..."
"Wait, you think I don't get laid because of my courtesy for you?" Ice laughed from his nose.
"Then why?"
"Why would you care?" This time Ice didn't laugh, and his voice was strangely cold.
Maverick secretly had a tiny panic attack. He had no experiences talking with gay people before, not knowingly. He wondered whether he had crossed some lines he didn't even know existed. And the last thing he wanted to see, as he recently came to aware, was that scrunch disappearing from Ice's nose.
"I......I just want you to be happy." Shit, that was such a stupid line that not even a decent Hollywood movie would use nowadays.
Ice stared at him for a few more seconds. "Thank you, Mitchell. I'm happy where I am now."
Maverick didn't really understand, but he sure learned his lesson never to poke around the Iceman's love life ever again.
That night they both got really drunk, Ice ended up passing out on the couch. Maverick only went to his own bed after waking up in the midnight and realizing he had been sleeping while sitting up against the couch.
And that night was the second time Maverick had dreamt of Ice, who was again shamelessly moaning while tangling with a faceless man.