"Need a ride home?" Iceman asked as he watched Maverick stand up.

"That would be great."

Viper, Wolfman and Iceman had spent the previous day filling Maverick's brain with the memories he'd lost. The accident had happened right after the Review Board had declared he was not guilty of the incident. Iceman avoided Maverick's eyes sometimes, and Maverick couldn't help but think that he was deliberately leaving something unsaid, something that would explain why he was so concerned about him. But every time, he shook off the thought; maybe Ice just felt guilty about the incident that had killed Goose, and wanted to make up for that.

"I'm getting dressed", Maverick said.

Iceman simply nodded.

"Ice, I'm getting dressed", he repeated with insistence.

"Oh, right", mumbled Ice, turning around to give Maverick some privacy.

Not a word was spoken during the ride home. When they arrived in front of Maverick's house, Iceman got out of the car too and escorted him to his doorstep. "I'm not going to collapse, Ice", Maverick reassured him sarcastically. He felt quite good, really, considering everything he'd had to take in in the last few days. His body was still aching, his head in particular, but he was okay.

But Iceman had something else in mind. "You don't remember anything else, do you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Apart from what we've told you. Are any other memories coming back by themselves?"

Maverick seemed puzzled: "No… why do you ask?"

"Nurse said they could come back after a few days", Iceman shrugged. "So you're gonna be okay, right?"

"Sure. Don't worry."

"Want me to pick you up tomorrow? I know you're not allowed to fly yet, but spending the day at the base is way better than vegetating here."

"Yeah, okay", Maverick nodded.

"Alright then, see you tomorrow."

Once alone and sprawled on his sofa with some bread and butter – he'd found them fresh on the kitchen table, probably left there by Charlie before she left – he began to feel slightly nauseous again. For a moment, all he could think about was Goose. He still couldn't bring himself to believe that he was dead. Gone, and not coming back. It was a peculiar feeling that the 'memories' he had from that were not even his, but others'. He had tried a few times to remember the incident, the flat spin; he tried again, without success. He got lost in his thoughts and in memories that weren't his. He thought about Charlie; Viper, Wolfman and Ice hadn't said anything about her, but they weren't supposed to know anything. Something more than flirting must've happened, judging by the way she'd acted. He hadn't called her like she asked him to. From the flashes of his phone's messages receiver, she'd try to call him a few times. He was starting to feel guilty about it, when he realized that he couldn't be blamed – he was stuck in the flirting part. And she probably had called Viper or someone by now, and knew about him.

It was getting darker and darker outside; a few hours had passed when he found himself completely exhausted from thinking and trying to remember. With great effort, he raised from the sofa, brushed the crumb off his clothes, and headed for the shower and a long, refreshing night.