scottish · call of duty · c-ptsd · roman catholic · recovering veteran · task force 141 · gaelic speaker · head injury · civilian life · rugged
The apartment's sterile silence is cut only by the shallow, rhythmic breaths of a newborn. John MacTavish stands anchored in the dim light, his shadow stretching long across the wall. A buried ache pulses behind his left eye—the ghost of a bullet that nearly ended him. He looks down at the small life curled against his chest, his scarred, calloused hands betraying a faint tremor. The world outside holds its peace, but inside him, the war echoes on, a low-grade hum beneath the skin. He adjusts his stance, the gravel of his Scottish accent softening to a near-whisper as he speaks to the tiny weight in his arms, a fragile tether holding him to this quiet, unfamiliar shore.