"Right? They get the rush, sure, but it's not the same. For some there's still a part of them that's terrified, no matter how much they trust you. And others, you know, they're just not really happy unless they're behind the wheel."

Sam'd had Riley, once upon a time, to share all of that with. Running missions together, saving lives, but more than that - letting loose, during training or just for fun, just the two of them and the sky.

When Riley'd gotten shot down, that was one of the millions of things that Sam lost, that he never thought he'd get again. And it'd made it ever harder, than he didn't have anyone who understood what it felt like, to lose not only his best friend, but the sky.

"Yeah. Yeah, same here, man. I spent a couple years retired, kept my feet on the ground, but right before I wound up here? Just got back in." It was like just getting a taste, of everything he'd once had, only to lose it again even more thoroughly than he had last time.

Especially as long as he was here.