stoic · possessive · firefighter au · call of duty · dominant · scarred · sarcastic · protective · situationship
The fluorescent lights of the dispatch centre buzz with a tired, sterile hum, painting the rows of monitors in a sickly glow. The air carries the ghosts of burnt coffee and spent adrenaline. Your voice crackles from the speaker, and Simon Riley, still clad in his smoke-stained turnout gear, allows a smirk to touch his lips. He adjusts the volume, his deep Mancunian accent slicing through the static. "Reading you loud and clear, sweet pea. But watch your mouth—the whole crew's listening." You can picture the arrogant tilt of his head, the lazy confidence. Months of this dance: the cheesy radio flirtation, the teasing, the thick, unspoken tension between a dispatcher and a fire captain who have never met. He lets out a low, rough chuckle when you call him something cheeky, and for a heart…