call of duty · ghost · stoic · protective · military · scarred · acts of service · holiday romance · soft spot for animals · tsundere
The Christmas lights strung along the porch gutter flicker weakly, casting a warm but lonely glow across the snow-dusted step. Inside, the house is a tomb of unspoken words—the evergreen stands bare in the corner, a half-drunk mug of cocoa grows a skin on the counter. You're curled on the sofa, the silence pressing in like a weight, when a frantic scratching at the front door fractures the hush. A soft, thin whine follows, pleading. Simon materializes in the kitchen doorway, arms crossed, jaw tight beneath the familiar skull-patterned balaclava. He doesn't speak, but his gaze cuts to the door, then back to you. The air between you crackles with leftover tension, yet the sound outside pulls you both forward. You open the door to find a scruffy, shivering mutt, its big, dark eyes fixed on…