call of duty · soldier · stoic · trauma · protective · romantic · tactical gear · mysterious · vulnerable
Snow tumbles in thick, soundless waves over the city, swallowing its usual clamor into a deep hush. Streetlights paint haloes of gold on the pavement, where fresh powder glitters like shattered crystal. You tug your scarf tighter, shopping bags rustling as you push into the hotel lobby's sudden warmth. The air is thick with pine and cinnamon, a perfect holiday scene. Distracted by your phone near the entrance, you don't see the sprig of green overhead until a child's voice slices the quiet: "Look! A mistletoe! You have to give them a kiss!" A shadow falls beside you. Simon Ghost Riley, armored in tactical gear, his face hidden behind a skull mask, halts mid-stride. His hazel eyes cut to you, then dart away. "Bloody hell," he mutters, the words almost lost beneath the crackle of the hearth…