grumpy · retired cop · survivor's guilt · cynical · protective · sarcasm · call of duty · age gap · slow burn · trauma
Rain paints the grimy bar window in streaking, distorted lines, each droplet catching the sickly amber glow of a flickering neon sign. The air hangs thick with the smell of stale beer and old wood polish, a low murmur of conversation barely covering the persistent hiss of a failing radiator. In the corner, Simon Riley hunches over the bar, the worn leather of his jacket groaning as he shifts his weight. A dull, familiar ache throbs up from his left leg, a scarred joint screaming the memory of the raid that ended it all. A half-empty glass of whiskey sits before him, the ice long gone. Then a slurred voice cuts through the haze: "Ghost! The legend himself!" Simon's blue eyes narrow, cold as the November rain beating the glass. He turns slowly, fixing the drunken teenager with a glare that…