7. Divided

"So how's work?"

Bradly heaved a sigh. "Not so good."

"What happened?" she pressed, though she already knew, thanks to Pete.

"Hangman was being a dickhead, as usual, and started talking about dad's death."

This struck her. "Oh Brad, I'm sorry-" She was going to give Bagman a piece of her mind.

"Yeah, it escalated pretty quick, and we got into a fight in front of everyone."

"Was anyone hurt?" Though again, she already knew the answer.

"No, he wasn't even that upset. Smug bastard."

"But you were hurt."

"Yeah it really stung."

"I can imagine. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, thanks, it sucks."

"Yeah, it does, but don't let him get to you. He was obviously just trying to cause problems."

"Yeah, as usual." He sighed. "Anyways, enough of that. How's tutoring with Amelia going?"

"Good, really good. We fit really well together as tutor and tutee. And she's auditioning for the school play so I've been helping her with her monologue."

"That's awesome. Penny seems really pleased with how it's all going."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I visited and she was talking about you and Amelia." He paused. "Do you think she and Maverick have a chance of getting back together?"

"Oh?" She was thrown by the sudden shift in the conversation, and by the sudden talk of a man Bradley always seemed more than happy to avoid.

"Yeah, she started talking about him too and how strange but also nice it is to see him again. I don't know, it sounded like he really broke her heart in the past. I remember my mom saying that about him, the heartbreaker. "

She didn't like his way of talking about Pete, and felt herself growing defensive. Whoa, calm down, she told herself. This is Bradley, your friend, who has a tough past with Pete. Chill, Fin.

"So how are things going with you and Pete?"

"Pete?" he repeated, utterly confused.

Oh - she'd gone and used his name, his name! "Yeah, Maverick."

"Why 'Pete'?"

"Well, it is his name," she sputtered. "And that's how Penny introduced me to him."

Bradley was clearly very weirded out by this, but to her, it just made sense. It felt right. And so she left it at that.

The next day, she was at tutoring when Pete walked into the bar.

"There he is, the mechanic extraordinaire," Penny announced.

"I just helped where I could," he insisted.

"Hmm. You know Pete, you're getting more humble in your old age."

"Thanks, Penny."

Watching and listening, Finley thought back to Brad's words: "Do you think she and Maverick have a chance of getting back together?" Maybe there was something flirty going on here. Penny had said they were done, but maybe something was blooming again. That would be nice.

Penny came over to the studiers. "Okay, study break, we're all going sailing. We're going to see if all that work on the boat paid off - Mom's orders."

Amelia didn't seem so sure but Finely agreed. "What do I tell you: taking breaks is almost as important as the studying itself."

"Taking breaks was my favourite part of studying," put in Pete.

Finley laughed. "That doesn't surprise me."

Amelia reluctantly agreed and the four headed out to the docks and set sail on the Benjamins' boat.

"Whoa!" Finley stumbled and hastily gripped onto the rail for support. "I don't have very good sea legs!"

"You'll get 'em!" Amelia assured her, shouting over the wind and crashing sea.

"Whoa!" she stumbled again, this time missing the rail but crashing into Pete who held onto her to break her fall. "Sorry!"

"All good," he called. He looked rather sweet with the wind whipping his hair, like when he rode his bike. "You okay?"

"Yup! Thanks for the support!"

"Anytime!"

"Congratulations, Finley," Penny called from her position at the wheel. "Now you're in the navy too!"

Finley gave a salute in response.

It was an exciting adventure, but she was glad to be back on solid ground once it was over.

Penny patted Pete's shoulder. "Once you retire from the navy you can open a garage and operate on boats and bikes."

"I guess I don't need to worry about retirement," he said. "You've got it all planned out, huh Penny?"

"Well they don't call me 'Penny the Planner' for nothing."

"Right."

There it was again, definitely something. Finley couldn't help but smile - was she watching the rekindling of a romance long gone but not forgotten?

"Dismissed."

The pilots got to their feet and prepared to leave the hall.

Phoenix appeared before Pete at the front of the room. "Lieutenant Trace."

"Captain. We're all heading to the Hard Deck, and I wanted to extend the invitation to you."

"Thank you, Lieutenant."

She nodded and turned to rejoin the others. "Bradshaw! Text Finely and invite her too."

"Already on it."

This perked Pete up. If Finely was going, he might go for a while. He liked her company, found her easy to talk to. Felt calmer and more relaxed around her. Yeah, he would go, even just for a little while.

He recognized some of the team's cars in the Hard Deck parking lot when he arrived. He also recognized Finley's sharp-looking bike. In fact, he parked in the stall next to it.

The bar was hopping when he entered. He caught Penny's eye behind the bar and waved. She was busy tending to customers but waved back.

It was easy to spot his team, the group surrounding the pool table decked out in their green suits. Finley stood out from the crowd due to her lack of suit. He wanted to go over and greet her, but she was talking with Bradley and so he figured he would wait until their conversation was over.

But the moment never came. As much as he appreciated Trace's invitation, he felt strage breaking into the group of youngsters, the next generation of fighter pilots. Admiral Cain's words filled his head: "This is the future of the navy Captain, and you're not in it." Damn - he hadn't felt his age much until now.

So he took his drink and sat out on the patio, overlooking the beach, alone.

Though not for long.

"Hey."

"Oh hey." He smiled when Finley appeared at his side.

"Natasha said she invited you. I was hoping you'd come."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I like it when teachers get involved in outside-school activities with their students. Good bonding exercise. Of course," she added. "I've never seen a teacher go to a bar with their students, but there's a first time for everything."

He chuckled. "Yeah, I didn't want to shove in on anyone's conversation so I came out here."

"No need to worry about 'shoving in'," she told him. "How was work today?"

"Still tense. Everyone's under so much pressure."

"Yourself included."

"Yeah."

"Yeah, I can imagine."

"We're supposed to be a team, but it doesn't feel like that. It feels like we're all at each other's throats all the time. Do you feel that way sometimes in your classes?"

"Hmmm." She hummed thoughtfully. "I try to make sure my classes are as open and group-like as possible. Classes tend to be divided, so I like to make sure we feel like a unit. But there will always be some resistance to that. Sometimes you just click, and other times it takes more work."

"Any ideas?"

Again, she hummed, deep in thought. "Something fun, but challenging. Something that pushes comfort zones - a little, not too much. Again, a challenge. Something that brings everyone together and is fun, so that they work together and build that connection. Something they can get lost in..."

She trailed off, realizing she was rambling, but he was nodding.

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."

"Happy to help." She held up her beer bottle. "Cheers."

He tapped his bottle against hers. "Cheers."

Thank you so much for reading, as always! Hope you enjoyed! :)