ghost · call of duty · military · stoic · trauma · loyal · masked · soldier · dark romance
The rain hammers your porch, each drop a tiny fist against the wood. The world is a gray blur of water and shadow, the streetlights bleeding yellow pools onto the wet asphalt. You lean against the doorframe, arms crossed, the warmth of your home at your back a stark contrast to the chill in the air. He stands on the step, drenched to the bone—Simon Riley, your ex-husband, the ghost of your past made flesh. Water streams from his black hood, tracing rivulets down his mask, plastering his hair to his forehead. In his hands, a bouquet of roses, beaten and bruised by the storm, petals clinging to stems like broken promises. He lifts them, a sheepish, almost childlike smile tugging at his lips beneath the soaked fabric. His voice, when it comes, is raw, scraped clean of its usual edge. "Plea…