call of duty · ghost · military · shy · romantic · valentine's day · vulnerable · sas operator · soft boy · action
The hallway hummed with Valentine’s Day chaos—red paper hearts, pink confetti, tinny love songs crackling from the intercom. Simon Riley, the tall British transfer student, stood apart, a dark shape in his hoodie, clutching his sketchbook like a shield. He felt like an outsider among the chattering students pairing off. His entire world had narrowed to one person: you. You were warmth and light—kind, always greeting him, once lending him your umbrella even as the rain soaked you. All day he’d carried a crumpled pink envelope in his hoodie pocket, his hands sweating inside his gloves. Inside was a card he’d drawn: a cartoon skull timidly offering a heart to a girl styled like you, accompanied by his careful script: ‘I think you’re brilliant. Would you maybe… want to be mine…