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Nicole Trace-Bradshaw was 7 years old the first time she decided what she wanted to do when she grew up. Her parents both had very dangerous jobs with the Navy as Aviators, but it could also be a lot of fun...at least that was what her surrogate grandfather and both of her parents said. To be specific her parents were Top Gun Graduates and the best the Navy had to offer. Nicole learned the call signs of her parents and very large extended family early on as it was easier to say that many of their last names as a young child. Nicole also grew into the habit and sneaking up on anyone and everyone she spoke to and seemed to appear out of nowhere like a ghost would. That was how Nicole gained the nickname Kasper - after the friendly ghost.
Her surrogate grandfather, Pete Mitchell, was a retired Naval Captain who had been one of the top Top Gun pilots. Pete - call sign “Maverick” - would often show Kasper the ins and outs of the different parts of a plane and its engine. He took her in his P-51 Mustang for the first time when she was 7, and Maverick knew he had awoken a beast inside of this little girl. He knew full well she would want to become a pilot just like himself and her parents. Maverick had decided to continue helping Kasper as she grew up to learn the different aspects of different planes.
Kasper never expressed to her parents about her new found dream because she wasn’t sure how they would react because her grandfather had pulled her father’s papers from the Naval Academy. She wanted to be confident that they would not be mad at her and research more things about being a pilot, the Navy, and more just to prove to her parents - when she did tell them - that she was serious about this. One thing she knew she had to do was keep up with her teamwork and her fitness, so she became involved with spots and extracurriculars. These activities also allowed her to stay busy since her parents were gone often with different missions they had to fly.
Now Kasper was 10 years old, and her passion for planes and the Navy showed. She had been so excited when her teacher had announced they would be doing a big project at the end of the year showcasing what they wanted to be when they grew up. Her passion was a little much as she had ended up writing more than the two pages the teacher wanted as well as the fat that she built a very elaborate presentation for the Navy and the Top Gun program. Kasper had been devastated when both of her parents had been called away about a month into her building the project on their own separate missions. They had been away for two months now, but Kasper kept going because she knew they would come back because they promised to.
The day of the presentation came, and Kasper was dropped off by her grandfather at school. She had dressed in the kid version of a flight suit her grandfather had gotten for her that had her nickname on a patch on the front. She had a bomber jacket that had every squadron patch her parents had ever gotten sewn all over. Lastly, she had a helmet that her grandfather had helped her paint a design as well as her nickname on the back just like a pilot helmet would be. She had aviators on top of her head while her hair was in a bun just like her mother’s. If Kasper was older and taller, people would mistake her for her mother; however, the ten year old had her father’s eyes which were brighter than normal as she walked into class.
The entire day dragged on as Kasper listened to the teacher talk about everything they needed to learn for the day, but she was eagerly awaiting her turn to present. Her presentation had video footage and interviews she did from her extended family about their experiences. The young brunette was almost positive that she was going to get extra credit on this assignment because of how much she did. At the sound of her name being called, Kasper flew to the back to get her helmet and put it on the teacher’s desk as the teacher set up her presentation. The entire time Kasper was talking or playing the clips she had or explaining different things, her class was engaged. They were clearly shocked to see just how much she knew, but Kasper knew better. She could see the deep frown on her teacher’s face as well as what the eyes of many of her classmates said to her. They didn’t believe her about her parents or the fact that she could do this.
Once the last video of her presentation finished, Kasper pointed to one of the female classmates she had when the classmate raised her hand with a question. “Why would you wanna do a boys job?” The classmate’s tone was sassy and clearly one that wanted to start trouble.
“Being a pilot for the Navy is not just a male’s job. Men and Women go to the Naval Academy every year to become Aviators. Both of my parents are Top Gun Graduates and are the best the Navy has to offer. I plan to-” A frown crossed Kasper’s lips as the teacher quickly interrupted her.
“That was a great presentation Kasper; however, this was a project about something realistic that you wanted to do when you grew up,” The tone the teacher spoke was clearly one of disbelief in her own student. She obviously thought that Kasper was not going to achieve her dream or that her dream was not something she should even go after. “Why don’t you take a seat, and we’ll talk after class?” she asked gently before turning away from Kasper to call up the next student.
Kasper halfway stomped to her seat and sat down trying to make herself smaller than she was and stuck her tongue out at the teacher the moment she had a clear second. She would become a Top Gun Pilot. She would prove everyone wrong.
The day continued to drag on for the last few hours of the day. During lunch, Kasper elected to stay by herself and not talk to anyone because Kasper knew if she did speak to anyone, she would lose it. She had a slight scowl on her face that warded off anyone who would try to talk to her as well. Once the bell rang, Kasper ignored her teacher’s instructions and bolted from the room with her things to go to her grandfather’s car and cry. She was deeply hurt that no one would believe her. Kasper was even more hurt at the giggles and whispers and indirect comments from her classmates and even her teacher.
As Kasper slowly made it down the steps, tears began to run down her cheeks from finally letting the hurtful words get to her. The ten year old went wide eyed as she felt someone grab her arm. She turned and frowned seeing her teacher holding her arm. She turned and frowned seeing her teacher holding her arm. The green eyed girl narrowed her eyes slightly at the older woman who was holding her arm in a way she didn’t like.
“Nicole, that was very rude of you to run out like that when I had asked you to stay after class. Now, in regards to your project, I will give you two more days to redo the small paper and another presentation on something a bit more realistic than a pilot,” her teacher said sternly looking down at the child in front of her. “If you choose to not redo your project, I will have no choice but to fail you...especially since this project is the biggest chunk of your grade.”
The young child looked away from her teacher trying to force more tears to not come from her eyes. She would not show anymore tears to this woman because according to her mama...”If anyone makes you cry, don’t let them see your tears.” The ten year old eye’s widened suddenly at the sound of a voice she hadn’t heard in two months.
“Is there a problem here?” a male voice asked. The male as well as the female beside him were both dressed head to toe in khaki colored clothing. Both adults had aviator sunglasses on as the female had a bun while the male had his hair slicked down. The name tag on both of the adults said “Trace-Bradshaw.” Both adults had multiple decorations on the opposite side of their name tag showing just how much field experience they had. The male was Bradley Trace-Bradshaw - Kasper’s father - while the female was Natasha Trace-Bradshaw - Kasper’s mother. Their call signs were Rooster and Phoenix.
The two military members had come home while Kasper was in school and wanted to surprise her by picking her up. They were not expecting to see Kasper look like she was about to cry while the teacher was towering er their daughter and holding her arm.
Kasper’s teacher frowned at the two adults. Clearly she didn’t care enough to know what Kasper’s parents looked like cause she didn’t recognize them. She quickly let Kasper go and gave a tight smile. “There is nothing wrong. I am simply a concerned teacher trying to guide a troubled student. However, visiting hours have just ended for the day-” The teacher’s face became pale as Kasper spoke up quite loudly.
“Mom! Dad!” Kasper yelled as she ran away from her teacher and tackled her parents dropping her backpack and helmet in the process. She quickly hid behind her mother and slowly stuck her head out to look at her teacher who looked disturbed.
Rooster watched his daughter hide behind her mother and turned to the teacher - who was gaping at the trio like a fish not noticing many parents, teachers, and students were staring. His eyes narrowed slightly at the teacher as his anger began to rise. His wife had told him how this teacher of Kasper’s had caused multiple incidents but still blamed Kasper.
“She didn’t believe me for the project we did about what I wanna be when I grow up neither did a lot of my classmates. She told me my dream wasn’t realistic,” Kasper whispered loud enough for only both of her parents to hear her. Her green eyes never leaving the disbelieving teacher.
Bradley’s jaw clenched at the sound of his daughter’s voice. “My daughter can be or do whatever she wants to do whatever she wants to. If she wants to be a Naval Aviator, then so be it. There is nothing unrealistic about that. My father was a Naval Aviator. The man who is like a second father to me was a Naval Aviator. Both my wife and myself are Naval Aviators. I will worry for her safety, but I will not hinder her and prevent her from doing what she wants to do with her life,” Rooster said passionately...and a little loudly making sure the people watching could hear him.
Kasper nuzzled more into her mother and hid a smile as she looked at her teacher in triumph. “Told you so,” she whispered softly making her mother hold back a small laugh. It’s safe to say that Kasper never went back to that teacher after that day.