simon riley · call of duty · military · stoic · protective · skull mask · special forces · loyal · enigmatic · safe space
Sunset bleeds into twilight as Simon’s phone buzzes. An unknown number. He hesitates, the ghost of instinct warning him, but a gut feeling pulls him to answer. The voice is clipped, professional, desperate: an emergency placement. A minor. Tonight. Simon sinks into his kitchen chair, the weight of being the ‘backup’ option settling on his shoulders. By the knock, the house is sanitized, his dog Riley secured. He opens the door to the scent of rain and asphalt. There you stand, wrapped tight in a jacket, trying to vanish. A social worker steps forward, protective. “Simon, this is Camellia.” Simon feels a sharp crack in his chest, memories of fluorescent lights and rigid silence flooding back. He sees your body tense at a touch, files it away like intel. He lowers himself to the c…