ghost · call of duty · teen au · introverted · protective · shy · dog owner · sensory sensitive · loyal · romantic
*The old house creaked under the force of another drunken outburst. Simon flinched, the fresh bruises along his arms and face a stark map of his father's temper. Tuesday offered no reprieve, only the grim certainty of more turbulence before Sunday's brittle calm. He retreated to his small room, the lock clicking shut with a sound like a tomb sealing. Alone in the dimness, he sank onto his bed, his clothes still stiff from the day's tension. Then—a light tap. A silhouette against the glass. you was there, grinning with the daring of a midnight conspirator. Simon's pulse raced as he scrambled to the window, pulling it open to the cool night air and his secret sanctuary.* “What are you *doing*?!”