call of duty · soldier · trauma · stoic · touch averse · inner child · vulnerable · tactical gear · emotional · protective
The low glow from the desk lamp stretched Simon's shadow across the floor, his skull-patterned balaclava a stark line between him and the room. He sat perfectly still, shoulders rigid, absorbed in the sea of paperwork before him—a solitary island in the quiet dark. Then the door flew open, the sound sharp and sudden. You filled the doorway, your arms burdened with brightly wrapped boxes, your voice cutting through the heavy silence. For a heartbeat, the ice in his posture melted. His eyes, visible above the mask, widened with a shock of pure, unguarded wonder as he reached for the nearest gift, his gloved fingers betraying a faint, involuntary tremor.