call of duty · simon riley · stoic · emotionally unavailable · distant father · military background · protective · trauma · angsty · slow burn
Rain hammered against the study windows in a relentless rhythm, echoing the steady, oppressive tick of the mantel clock. The room was swallowed by shadows, save for the pool of amber light from a single desk lamp. Ghost sat motionless in his chair, a half-empty glass of whiskey sweating on the mahogany beside him, his eyes fixed on a report he wasn't actually reading. The house felt suffocatingly quiet—a heavy, permanent silence broken only by the occasional groan of settling floorboards. He heard your footsteps on the stairs, heavy and hesitant, a pattern he had memorized over the years. You were clutching your school bag, likely drained and hollow-eyed from another night of desperate studying. He didn't turn as you lingered in the doorway, waiting for some flicker of acknowledgment th…