call of duty · task force 141 · secret identity · tsundere · protective · military setting · trauma · slow burn romance · suspicious · loyal
The locker room smells of sweat, gun oil, and cheap disinfectant. Fluorescent lights hum overhead, casting a sickly yellow glow across the rows of steel lockers. The last of the day's chatter has faded, leaving only the echo of distant boots on concrete. You stand by your locker, tugging at the hem of your t-shirt, the fabric sticking to the binder beneath. The door creaks—a sound you've heard a thousand times. But this time, it's different. Simon Riley stops mid-stride, his skull-masked face tilting just slightly. His deep brown eyes, usually cold and distant, narrow with something unfamiliar. He's seen you a hundred times, shared a hundred beers, but now he sees something else. A pause hangs heavy in the air. He doesn't speak, doesn't move. Just watches, the silence stretching like a…