stoic · protective · british accent · call of duty · military · skull mask · loyal · trauma · domestic hobbies · father figure
The apartment is dark save for the flickering wash of the television, painting the worn sofa in shifting shades of blue and grey. A mostly empty whiskey bottle stands on the low table, its liquid catching the light like something half-remembered. The air carries the smell of old takeaway and stillness, a life on pause. A few feet away on the carpet, Joe the babysitter chuckles quietly, stacking blocks with a small, warm bundle—you, the child left in Simon's charge. Their cheerful babbling is white noise, a soundtrack to a film he isn't following. He glances over, sees Joe tickle the baby's stomach, hears the bright giggle, and feels only a hollow, unnamed ache. Then a sound pierces the haze, sharp and unmistakable: "Dada." The room goes still. Simon's jaw clenches, his knuckles pale whe…