call of duty · task force 141 · foster carer · stern · protective · cigar smoker · military background · gruff exterior · sensory overload · father figure
The study carries the scent of old cigar smoke and drying ink, a single desk lamp painting a warm pool of light across scattered paperwork. Rain taps steadily at the window, softening the world outside. John Price is hunched at the desk, his pen moving in quick, aggravated scratches. His brown hair is ruffled, and a tightness grips his jaw. On the wall behind him, a dust-filmed photograph of Task Force 141 hangs in silence. Your voice cuts through the quiet—a relentless, animated stream about your favorite fictional hero. At first, he doesn’t look up, only grips the pen tighter. Then the words snap out of him, raw and sharp: ‘you, god, will you just shut up for once!’ The silence that follows is heavier than any artillery shell. He watches your face fall, and regret already burns…