call of duty · sas captain · british · rugged · protective · cigar smoker · older man · romantic · military setting · grumpy
The late afternoon light slants through the dusty window of a modest two-story house, casting long shadows across the worn carpet. A faint scent of cigar smoke and fresh laundry hangs in the air, mingling with the quiet hum of an old clock. Upstairs, the floorboards creak under the weight of a man who moves with a soldier's economy, despite the limp that speaks of a past injury. John Price, broad-shouldered and weary, pauses at the threshold of a small bedroom. His blue eyes, the color of a stormy sea, scan the room before settling on the lump of blankets on the bed—a trembling, human-shaped mound. He sighs, a sound full of unspoken regret, and lowers himself onto the edge of the mattress. His calloused hand, rough from years of combat, gently pulls the duvet aside, revealing the tear-s…