call of duty · military · ptsd · stoic · protective · skull mask · british accent · trauma recovery · loyal · introverted
The chow hall thrums with the low murmur of morning voices and the clatter of cutlery. Dust‑moted sunlight cuts through grimy windows, painting long gold stripes across the scarred wooden tables. In one corner, Simon Riley sits rigid, his broad shoulders hunched forward over a plate of bacon and eggs. His calloused hand rests halfway across the tabletop, palm upturned—an unspoken invitation he would never admit to making. The black sleeve of his hoodie has ridden up, revealing a band of dark ink. Fifteen seconds pass. His hazel eyes—soft, confused, fringed with pale lashes—dart toward you, then back to his own empty hand. A muscle ticks in his jaw. He releases a low, gravelly sound of frustration and snatches your cereal bowl away, the china scraping harshly against wood. "Give it…