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dearestdaffodils · 2 years

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Father’s Day - A Career Day installment

Rooster is not good at talking about his feelings and the reader doesn’t realize what day it is until it is possibly too late

Warnings: swearing, mentions of death, angst, Bradley does not manage his grief well

“How was work today, big guy?” I hum, looking up from the assignments I’m grading to watch Rooster as he makes his way into the bedroom.

Rooster only offers a grunt, dropping his bag in the corner before making his way to the bathroom.

“That bad, huh?” I set aside my papers, hopping up from the bed to follow him. “I was going to make dinner after I finished grading these assignments but we can order take out and watch a movie instead.”

“Just want to shower and go to bed.” Rooster mutters, effectively shutting the bathroom door in my face.

I sigh, resting my forehead against the wood. “You need to eat before you go to bed, big guy… I know you didn’t eat lunch cause you left it sitting on the counter, which means you haven’t eaten since breakfast. Please just let me make you something small.”

“I said I just want to shower and go to bed, Y/N!” Rooster’s voice booms through the door and I can hear him slam his hands on the counter.

“I’m just trying to understand how to help you feel better,” I whisper. “I know you’ve had a hard week at work and I just want to-”

“Goddamnit, can you just leave me alone for at least a second?!?” Rooster roars, practically ripping the door off its hinges as he shoves past me, scooping his things up from the corner. “I’m going to stay with Hangman for a bit.”

I look at him in confusion, tears building in my eyes. “You’d rather stay with Hangman than let me help you?” My voice is small as I lean against the wall, watching Rooster gather his clothes. “I’ve barely seen you all week, Bradley.”

“At least Hangman will give me my space.” Rooster huffs, grabbing his keys as he makes his way down the stairs. “You’re always all over me.”

“You’ve never said that like it's a bad thing before.” I follow after him, hurrying down the stairs. “Just talk to me, Bradley. Please.”

He sighs, his hand resting on the door handle. “I’ll come to get the rest of my stuff in the morning.”

“So now you’re moving out?” I frown, the tears in my eyes starting to slip down my cheeks.

“I don’t think I can do this right now.” Rooster sighs, opening the door and disappearing into the night.

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“You’re a fucking idiot, you know that?” Hangman chuckles, shaking his head as he lets Rooster into his house.

Rooster furrows his brow, shoving past the blond aviator. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Seriously? You’re moving in with me instead of talking to your girl and you don’t know what I’m talking about?” Hangman scoffs, closing the door. “You’re stupider than I thought, Bradshaw.”

Rooster drops his bag, rounding on Hangman. “First Y/N, now you… why is everyone all over me today?”

“I know what day it is, Bradshaw.” Hangman’s voice is quiet but steady. “And maybe Y/N hasn’t realized it yet but that doesn’t give you the right to up and leave the poor girl with no explanation.”

Rooster swallows, staring at Hangman. “That’s not what this is about.”

“You sure? Cause you only get like this around this time of year.” Hangman sighs. “Either way, Y/N is my friend too so I’m not cutting you too much slack for just leaving her like that. You get the couch.”

-------------------------------------------

I sit on the stairs, crying silently and staring at the door as if willing Rooster to walk through it again. My phone chimes with a text, a muted noise barely rising above the ringing in my ears. I pick it up, staring at the three words from Hangman.

“It’s Father’s Day.” The text reads.

I stare at it for a second, the tears starting to fall harder. “Fuck… I’m the worst.” I whisper, quickly getting up from the stairs while firing off another text to Hangman. “Is he safe?”

The response comes quickly, consisting of a thumbs up and a single word; “asleep”.

I rub a hand over my face, hurrying around the house.

---------------------------------------------

“You sure she’s not here?” Rooster glances at Hangman, standing on the front porch of the house.

Hangman nods, glancing at his phone. “She said she went into school to get some work done but she left you something on the kitchen counter.”

Rooster sighs, making his way inside the house. He immediately makes his way upstairs to the bedroom, starting to pack his stuff.

“You might want to look at these before you do any more packing.” Hangman murmurs from the doorway, holding a thick stack of envelopes.

Rooster runs a hand through his hair, sticking his hand out for the envelopes.

“I’ll be downstairs when you’re done.” Hangman promptly turns on his heel, leaving Rooster alone.

Rooster settles down on the floor, his back resting up against the bed as he opens the first letter.

“Mr. and Mrs. Bradshaw,” The letter starts, making Rooster’s hands tremble as he frantically reads the rest of the letter. “You never got to meet me but I’m Y/N. I’ve been Bradley’s best friend for as long as either of us can remember and I’ve been lucky enough to be the woman he calls his girlfriend for a month now.” Rooster lets out a shaky breath, tears gathering in his eyes. “I know you’re never going to get to read these letters that I write but it makes me feel better. You would be so proud of Bradley, I know I am. I promise I’ll take care of him, just like he takes care of me.”

Rooster lets out a small sob, frantically opening the next letter. “Mr. and Mrs. Bradshaw, Bradley and I just celebrated his 21st birthday. We shared and drink for you and everything. He got his callsign last week, Rooster. Carrying on the family tradition, I suppose. He showed me more pictures of the two of you and I have to say, he looks just like you, Mr. Bradshaw. From his mustache to his Hawaiian shirts.”

Rooster reads through the rest of the letters in my handwriting, moving to a smaller envelope. “Bradley,” He immediately recognizes Maverick’s handwriting. “Hopefully Y/N didn’t open this letter before you got to it otherwise the surprise would be ruined. I just got back from visiting your parents’ graves. I miss them too, kid. But I know that they’re just as proud of you as Y/N and I are. I also know that it's been hard without your dad around. I tried my best to be a stand-in for him, even if I wasn’t very good at it. If you look inside the envelope, you’ll see your mom’s ring. She gave it to me just before she passed, wanted you to have it. She never got to meet Y/N but I think we both know that she’s watching over you and shouting at you to put a ring on that girl’s finger.” Rooster reaches into the envelope, pulling out the ring. He turns it in his fingers, observing it for a moment before tucking it into his pocket and opening the next envelope.

“Mr. Rooster,” He lets out a choked laugh, recognizing the handwriting of one of my students. “Ms. Y/N told us we should write this because you needed something to make you happy. She said that sometimes you get sad because your dad isn’t around anymore. My dad isn’t around either and it makes me sad sometimes too. Ms. Y/N is kinda like our mom at school so I guess that kinda makes you like our dad and I think that’s pretty cool. I wanna be just like you when I grow up.” Rooster wipes his eyes, reaching for the bright orange sticky note from its spot on the back of the letter.

“I’m sorry I didn’t realize what day it was, big guy. I should’ve been there for you and I wasn’t. Please forgive me?” The sticky note is signed with a heart and my name.

Rooster quickly gets up, sprinting down the stairs. “Hangman, we need to go find Y/N. I don’t think she’s actually at school.”

---------------------------------------------------

I sigh, looking at the headstones emblazoned with “Nick and Carole Bradshaw”. Sitting down, I place the flowers in my hands across both. “Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Bradshaw. It’s Y/N again…” I wipe my eyes, sniffling. “Bradley’s really mad at me right now… this might be one of the last times you hear from me. For what it's worth, I really love your son. And I know I’ll always love him, no matter what.” I sob, fresh tears running down my cheeks. “I tried my best to keep him happy. I really did. And I… I don’t know what our future is going to look like but-”

“Y/N?” Rooster’s voice rings through the graveyard. “Y/N!”

I lift my head, watching him rush towards me.

“Oh thank god, I knew you’d be here.” He breathes out a sigh of relief, dropping to his knees in front of me. “I got all the letters, little lady. I read all of them and I-” Rooster cups my face in his hands, wiping my tears. “I shouldn’t have snapped or left you like that.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t realize what day it was.” I sniffle, gently holding his wrists. “We’ve both been so caught up with work, I didn’t even know what day it was.”

Rooster shushes me gently, holding me close. “That doesn’t matter now, little lady. We both know I’m not good with my emotions, especially around this time of year.” He sighs softly, pulling back to reach into his pocket. “Maverick gave me something from my mom in his letter and I think this is the perfect place to share it with you.” He smiles, pulling out the ring. “Will you marry me, little lady?”

I gasp, looking between Rooster and the ring. “Are you being serious right now, big guy?”

Rooster nods, laughing softly. “As a heart attack. Now, my parents are waiting on your answer.” He glances at the graves. “Don’t leave us hanging.”

“Of course, I’ll marry you, big guy.” I smile, leaning forward to kiss him.

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#aidia.fic #career day #career day universe #rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw

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