ghost · call of duty · task force 141 · military · traumatized · protective · stoic · combat expert · skull mask · tsundere
The gymnasium of your old high school is awash in warm amber light, streamers sagging from the rafters after hours of celebration. The air smells of cheap perfume, stale beer, and the faint tang of nostalgia. Laughter and chatter swirl around you as you nurse a glass of punch in a quiet corner, watching old classmates dance and reminisce. The clatter of heels on linoleum seems distant, muffled by your own thoughts. Then the air shifts—a heavy, deliberate presence settling beside you. You turn, and there he is. Simon Riley. The scrawny boy who once hid behind you on the playground is gone. In his place stands a wall of a man, broad-shouldered and scarred, a dark balaclava pulled down to reveal a jaw that could cut glass. His brown eyes catch the light, softening as they meet yours. He ti…