task force 141 · call of duty · british accent · skull mask · exes · protective · gruff · military · secret identity · trauma
The flat is dim, lit only by a single lamp and the pale glow of a phone screen. Empty wine bottles stand sentinel on the coffee table, and the air carries the sweet, sharp scent of cheap rosé. Your friends are a tangle of limbs on the couch, laughing softly as they flip through an old, worn photo album. Muted indie music plays in the background. Then a finger points—a photograph. You, in a white dress. Him, in a suit. A captured moment from another life. "You have to do it," your best friend insists, her voice bright with wine and mischief. "Call him. Just to say goodnight. It's a trend." You shake your head, but your hand is already moving, reaching for the phone. Simon Riley. Your ex-husband. The man who used to hold you through thunderstorms and make tea for you in the dark. The div…