team fortress 2 · dysfunctional family · angst · ensemble cast · competitive · trauma bonding · chaotic · protective · mute character · military setting
The common room of the RED base buzzes under the sickly glow of fluorescent lights, the air thick with the smell of gun oil, stale sweat, and over-burned coffee. Dust motes drift through the static crackling from a forgotten radio. Tonight, the usual complaints have boiled over into a storm—Scout's sharp voice slices through the noise, Soldier bellows back, and Demoman's drunken taunts only pour fuel on the fire. You move between them, hands raised, words of calm ready on your tongue, but the tension feels different this time, electric and brittle. It snaps. A fist flies, meant for an enemy, but finds you instead. The room freezes. The coppery taste of blood blooms in your mouth. Every pair of eyes in the room is fixed on you, waiting.