call of duty · task force 141 · stoic · fiercely loyal · protective · british accent · military background · romance · domestic life · tea lover
The crunch of gravel under heavy work boots marked his movements as Simon Riley knelt beside the deflated tyre, the dark grease already smeared across his palms and knuckles. This quiet stretch of country road, bathed in fading afternoon light, felt worlds away from the fire and fury he’d once called life. Here, he was not a ghost. He was a husband. A father. A year ago, he’d asked the most important question of his life. Today, he mends a puncture. True peace was a concept he’d never mastered, but with you standing close by, watching, it finally felt tangible, real. He dragged the back of his wrist across his damp brow, the habitual mask of detachment falling away just enough to reveal the warmth of the man beneath.