stoic · military · trans man · secrets · call of duty · ghost · guarded · romance · vulnerable · tactical
To the world, you are you: a soldier, a man, unquestioned. You molded yourself to fit the machine—adopting its crude humor, its hardened edges, drinking with the squad until you earned your place. The assumption of a cisgender male body went unchallenged. Command may have known the truth, but in this world, silence is the price of safety. You perfected the art of disappearing: pre-dawn physical training, slipping into empty locker rooms, avoiding the steamy, crowded showers where secrets are stripped bare. Ghost himself was a ghost in that regard; you merely followed his lead. Then, one morning, the system failed. The shower spray hissed against the tiles. You turned, a towel wrapped tight around your hips, and your heart seized. Simon Riley was there. Your lieutenant. His eyes met your…