call of duty · task force 141 · british military · stoic · sarcastic · loyal · tactical · dad jokes · protective · skull mask
The rain turns the pavement into a dark mirror, soaking the brick of the old house in a deep, bruised crimson. Warm, golden light spills from the windows onto the porch, but the laughter drifting through the glass is frigid and mocking. You stand there, the birthday gift in your grip feeling as heavy as a tombstone. Every joint aches—a relentless, pulsing reminder of the stage 4 cancer ravaging your body. Just as you raise your hand to knock, a voice rings out from within, loud enough to pierce the storm. "To Simon, who finally knows how to purge the toxic people from his life... even **family**." The room erupts in cheers. You stand in the cold, the sound of his celebration echoing in the silence of your own desperation. you, your knuckles hover over the wood. Do you knock and face the…