Loving Maverick

He gazed out of the window, the bus riding along the highway as the sun began to make its ascent into the dawn colored sky. It was a breathtaking sight to behold and he would have otherwise enjoyed it…had he not been thinking about the impending doom that was seeing his father face to face. A hardworking and sometimes uptight man, he just wasn’t prepared to meet up with him just yet. He knew that upon coming face to face with him, he’d immediately go into a subject of him taking over Maverick Industries. Just the thought of it spiked his anxiety; so much so, he hadn’t decided to come home right away after being honorably discharged from the Navy. In fact, the two extra weeks that he took to himself, left him a little unkempt; his tapered cut had grown out considerably, the top of his hair falling over his partial heterochromic eyes. And his close mustache had grown into somewhat of a disheveled goatee of sorts. He was quite out of sorts as it were and knew that his father nor his mother would have him looking such a way. “This is going to be stressful.” He exhaled, speaking his father’s native tongue of tamil, ironically enough. He laid back against his seat as he watched the DC bus sign pass him. Steadily, he was getting closer and closer to his destination. “Hey.” He suddenly heard a voice call from behind him. When he turned around, he noticed the girl that was speaking to him, looking at him with a smile across her face. “Hi.” He said disinterestedly. Sure, she was attractive-as most girls were, but there was entirely too much on his mind at the moment to focus on that. “Do I know you?” The girl asked. “Doubt it.” He snubbed in an attempt to make the conversation short. Of course, it didn’t work. “I think I do.” She said, standing from her seat to sit next to him. This, quite frankly, annoyed him but he tried to be polite nonetheless. “I seriously doubt that you know me, ma’am.” “Ma’am?” She incredulously retorted. “I’m probably younger than you.” She grinned. “Why so formal?” She just wouldn’t catch the hint. He looked at her, noticing the entirely too short skirt that she had on; and when she crossed her legs it only made it rise up even shorter. Judging by the look on her face, this is what she seemed to be aiming for. He didn’t even bother staring her in her face as he was ashamed on behalf of the girl as she made herself an easy target. She seemed to sense this and cleared her throat as if she were trying to somehow accrue his attention again. “So, you going to tell me your name or am I just wasting my time here?” She asked. Done with the charade of entertaining her weak passes, he stood from his seat as the bus came to its stop and eased passed her. “Maverick.” He finally answered. “Maverick Singh.” He stepped into the aisle as people started exiting off of the bus. “And no thanks.” Before she could even make a rebuttal, he kept to his stride, not wanting her to even think that there was any further chance at conversation. He wasn’t in the market for a girlfriend at this point in his life; and if he were being honest with himself, he just didn’t think that he had the mentality for one. He looked around for the first bathroom that he could find so that he could tidy up and no sooner he found one he started to make a beeline for it when… “Son?” The sound of the man’s voice stopped him in his tracks. Initially, he thought to keep walking. Not to be rude or mean but just to act like he didn’t hear the man’s voice so he could freshen up and maybe start this conversation fresh. But he just couldn’t do it. He couldn’t ignore his father. “This is your own fault, Mav.” He said to himself. “Should have shaved before you got here.” This was true, so he decided to get it over with and turn around. “Dad!” He said, feigning exclamation-not because he wasn’t excited to see the man, though. Regardless, of their utter lack of properly communicating with one another and their habit to find something to always disagree about, he did so love his father more than his own life. But…one face that he wasn’t expecting to see was the beautiful exotic islander that was standing next to him in all of her beautiful Jamaican glory. “Mom?” No sooner he saw that beautiful beaming smile, he rushed to her and lifted her up off of her feet before planting her down and embracing her strong and hard. When he finally pulled away he noticed her crying. “Are you alright?” Was the first thing that he thought to ask. He hated seeing her cry. In her deep accent, she responded with a chuckle. “I am far better now than I have ever been in fifteen years!” She hugged her son again, her head, stopping a few inches below his neck. Jean was a beautiful and strong woman, and taller than the average at 5’9. She was one of very few words and even fewer in tolerance of other people, but all in all she was a sweetheart to all; and her one weakness was and would always be her first and only son. Maverick chuckled. “But it hasn’t been fourteen years since you’ve last seen me, mom.” “Doesn’t matter.” She said. “Out of the fourteen years of your active deployment you had….maybe three and all of those leaves were countered with a bad situation.” “Well, what can I say, mom? Captain’s duty is a captain’s duty.” He smiled. Jean sighed. “Well, I’m just glad you’re home. And for good this time.”  She smiled. As those words echoed through Maverick’s ears, it suddenly hit him how permanent this whole arrangement was. He hadn’t realized that his smile had disappeared until he heard his mother’s voice again. “Honey? Are-are you alright?” She asked. “Huh? Yeah, I’m-yeah, I’m fine mom.” No sooner he answered her question, he heard his father clear his throat. “Hi dad.” Maverick reluctant replied to his father’s clear attempt to make his presence known. Though, Maverick needed no reminding. Abhimanyu Singh was, after all, a strong presence within himself. He stepped over to his father and embraced him, hesitating on it at first, until his father pulled him into his arms. “Glad you’re home, son.” He said. “Me too, dad.” Maverick said, though he wasn’t sure that he meant it. He knew that being no longer being on active duty with Seal Team 6 would be a reprieve from all of the loss and fear of not knowing what could happen; but another part of him knew that he would miss it. That he would miss not knowing what his day would consist of-or the fact that he may not even make it through the day at all. Not necessarily because he liked the idea of not knowing whether he’d live or die but because it had become his new norm over the past fifteen years. “Looking a little shaggy there, son.” Abhimanyu said in his accented voice. “Yeah, forgot to shave, is all.” “Thought the Navy taught that appearance is everything.” “Well, after fifteen years of living by their rules…feels good not to care about uniform for once.” “Oh, stop it, Abhu,” Jean said, interfering into the conversation. “You must be hungry.” She said to Maverick. “I have prepared a very big meal for you.” She grinned. “My favorite?” Maverick asked. He loved spicy and flavorful foods. You could say that it was in his blood. “You’ll see when you get home.” She chuckled, appreciating the excitement in his voice. “I’ll let it slide this time.” Maverick teased. “But you know…I have to watch my diet now.” He said after being diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. “Oh, trust me, you’re only getting this meal because it is your first day back home. But after…” She gave her son a knowing look. And yes, Maverick already knew what it meant. She was going to become an insufferable yet loveable worry wart here on out. He could do nothing but chuckle as he took her words to heart. “I hear you, mom. “ She wrapped her arms around his and smiled. “I’m so glad that you’re back.” She said. “Maybe now, we can focus on you giving me some grandbabies.” She smiled. Maverick chuckled, realizing that this topic was bound to pop up eventually. He wasn’t necessarily ready, nor did he want to talk about the idea of a woman dealing with him at this point in his life, as he considered himself damaged goods at this point. Still, he was glad that he didn’t have to discuss the alternative; and that was what his father wanted to discuss. So before anymore could be said, Maverick cut in. “Whoa, whoa, now mom, let’s just get through today first.”