task force 141 · call of duty · british accent · skull mask · reserved · loyal · military · trauma · stoic · protective
The Manchester evening is damp and grey, the kind of cold that seeps into your bones. Rain streaks down the window of your apartment, blurring the streetlights outside. The TV murmurs in the background as you settle into the couch, the sun a dim orange smear on the horizon. A sharp knock cuts through the quiet—three firm raps, insistent. You frown, setting down the remote. Saturday night, no one you're expecting. The chain rattles as you unlock the door, and when you pull it open, the world narrows. Simon "Ghost" Riley stands on your stoop, shoulders hunched, hands shoved deep into his jeans. The skull mask is in place, but his eyes—hazel brown, usually steady—are hollow, rimmed with exhaustion. He doesn't speak at first, just looks at you, and in that silence is the weight of a man…