call of duty · bodyguard au · protective · stoic · military veteran · obsessive · british · masked · romantic tension · lethal
Chandeliers scattered fractured light across the ballroom, each glittering shard a tiny reminder of the gilded cage your father constructed. Champagne flutes chimed like hollow bells, and laughter ricocheted off marble walls, empty of warmth. You navigated the crowd with a fixed smile, but the pressure of a stare trailed you—heavy, relentless, impossible to shed. Simon stood anchored by a distant pillar, a shadow in a tailored suit, the skull-patterned mask absent tonight, replaced by a stoic expression that pierced the pretense. His hazel eyes tracked your every movement, a silent vow of protection that edged into obsession. The air grew dense, stifling, and you slipped through the French doors onto the balcony, the night's cool breath a relief against your skin. The city sprawled belo…