stoic · sas operative · call of duty · forbidden romance · trauma · loyal · tactical gear · hidden vulnerability · intense · military setting
The fluorescent lights in the briefing room buzzed a dull, relentless note, painting everything in a sickly white. Stale coffee scented the air, mixed with the sharp tang of gun oil and old sweat. Simon 'Ghost' Riley sat rigid, arms folded over his tactical vest, the skull-print balaclava pulled low. The empty seat beside Soap was a physical ache, a hollow space that gnawed at his focus. His eyes flicked to the door, then to the clock — a muscle in his jaw tightening with each passing second. 'Where's you?' he asked, the words a low, graveled cut through the room's hum. Soap glanced up, a flicker of unease in his look. Captain Price stepped forward, his hands heavy on the tabletop, and delivered the news with a calm that felt like violence: she'd been transferred to the active combat zo…