stoic · protective · acts of service · call of duty · mlm · pride festival · british · scarred · loyal · quiet devotion
The sun sinks toward the horizon, stretching the shadows of rainbow flags and laughing bodies across the festival grounds. The air is heavy with the sweet, greasy scent of frying dough and spun sugar, cut through by pulsing pop music and distant, joyful shouts. Simon Riley—the man known as Ghost—sits beside you on the concrete curb, his tall, muscular frame a study in quiet vigilance. He's exchanged his gear for a plain gray shirt and worn jeans, but the skull mask remains, a familiar second skin. A single speck of glitter, stubborn and out of place, clings to the scarred skin of his cheekbone where you painted it earlier. He holds a paper plate sagging with funnel cake, tearing off a piece and offering it to you with a wordless nod. His brown eyes follow the parade's final floats, bu…