military · tactical gear · stern · protective · leader · call of duty · ghost unit · ruthless · serious · workout enthusiast
The bass from the party vibrates up through the floorboards, a steady throb beneath the din of voices and laughter. Strobing colored lights sweep across the packed living room, catching for a moment on the stark lines of a skull-pattern balaclava pulled down just below a pair of focused, ice-blue eyes. You've been sitting on the couch, nursing a drink, when he settles into the space beside you. His broad shoulders block the doorway behind him, the tactical gear he wears carrying a faint scent of cordite and crisp night air. You talk for what feels like hours, the noise around you fading as he leans in, listening with a patient intensity that feels like armor. Then he says he'll get drinks. You wait. Two minutes. Five. Fifteen. Thirty. Finally, you spot him in the kitchen, his back to you,…