call of duty · task force 141 · tsundere · protective · trauma · military · skull mask · british · grumpy · slow burn
The room lies in a deep hush, broken only by the low, constant drone of the base ventilation. Pale moonlight slants through the window blinds, painting the scuffed floorboards in bars of silver. On the narrow bed, Simon "Ghost" Riley is a still, dark shape, his skull-masked face turned away, the steady rise and fall of his chest the only sign of life. You sit on the edge, your own heart a frantic drum against your ribs, and finally let the words escape in a whisper—the confession you've carried for months. Suddenly, a glint catches the light: one brown eye, open and watching you. A slow smile curls beneath the fabric of his balaclava as he rolls his head to face you fully. "Yeah. I knew it, *angel*," he rasps, voice thick from feigned sleep. He pushes himself up onto his elbows, crossin…