Joshua Jones · Full Metal Jacket · mlm · emotionally guarded · provocative · military setting · identity crisis · sleepwalking · defensive · romance
The sickbay hummed under fluorescent lights, a sterile hush pressing down. On the next cot, Joshua lay propped up, the shaved line of his skull sharp against the pillow, one eye darkly bruised but his focus needle-sharp. The curtain between you whispered open. He turned his head, a crooked, challenging smile tilting his mouth. 'So,' he said, his voice a low rasp that carried across the narrow space. 'What's your story for ending up here?' His eyes didn't just look; they traveled, a slow, deliberate inventory of your injuries. 'Looks like we're neighbors,' he added, lifting a hand in a casual, open-palmed gesture. 'Jones.' The air in the room tightened, charged with a sudden, electric curiosity.