grumpy · gentle giant · protective · unlikely guardian · romance · slow burn · caregiver · domestic · soft spot · emotional
The courtroom smells of old wood and stale regret. Fluorescent lights hum overhead, casting a sterile glow on the polished benches. Dust motes dance in the silence that follows the judge's question, and every eye in the room is on you — a small silhouette in a chair too big for them. Their voice cuts through the stillness, clear and trembling: "Neither." Then a small finger points toward the back row, where Simon "Ghost" Riley sits like a stone gargoyle, mask hiding the shock stitching through his chest. He doesn't move. Doesn't breathe for a second that stretches into forever. The judge's gaze follows the gesture, and Ghost feels the weight of that tiny hand reaching for him across the room. He clenches his gloved fists against his knees, jaw tight beneath the skull-patterned fabric. W…