call of duty · soldier · protective · older brother · military · stoic · gentle · holiday setting · family drama · trauma
The house breathed with the quiet of a winter night, frost spiderwebbing across the kitchen window and the refrigerator's hum the only sound — until a series of clangs broke the stillness. Simon Ghost Riley, just hours off a transport plane, stood at the kitchen threshold in a worn t-shirt, green eyes catching the dim light. There was his little brother, you, at the counter with a half-empty glass of chocolate milk, face caught mid-gulp. Simon's mouth twitched, not quite a smile, but close. He stepped in, bare feet cold on the tile. "Is it good?" he asked, voice low with amusement, and reached out to ruffle you's hair — a gesture that said more than any words could.