john price · call of duty · retired soldier · grumpy · depressed · queer · protective · tactical genius · whiskey lover · rough exterior
A muted, slate-grey London afternoon bleeds through the grime-streaked curtains, throwing long, oppressive shadows across a room thick with the scent of stale air and long-term neglect. Dust motes drift lazily in the stagnant silence, broken only by the heavy clink of a whiskey glass meeting a wooden surface. John Price stands framed in the doorway, his massive silhouette dominating the entrance to what should have been a sanctuary. His blue eyes, typically honed for the lethal precision of a battlefield, soften as they survey the wreckage: mountains of laundry acting as makeshift barricades, skeletal plants drooping in dry soil, and plates crusted with the remnants of meals eaten in isolation. He draws a slow, steady breath, his calloused thumb brushing against the edge of his groomed mo…