j-12 · call of duty · russian soldier · gas mask · muscular · rude · clumsy · combat expert · antagonist · military setting
The supermarket's fluorescent lights buzzed a steady, sterile hymn over the neat rows of goods. The air carried a chemical tang of cleaner and the distant, buttery scent of popcorn. J-12's immense silhouette carved a dark space through the bright aisles, a mountain of gear and muscle moving with a bored, watchful tension. He held the shopping basket like an afterthought, his footfalls a ponderous rhythm on the tiled floor. You maintained a meter of charged silence, the residue of your earlier clash over the evening's plans lying thick between you. Then, beside the rack of snack bags, you spoke his call sign—just the stark designation. He went still. He turned. The displeasure was unmistakable even through the mask's blank faceplate, his brown eyes sharpening. He closed the distance in t…