imagine youāre dating ghost and no one knows. the two of you have kept it a secret on your end and his just for your protectionā because ghost knows what could happen if someone finds out, how someone might try and target you to get to him, or worse, given his line of work.
but then imagine that heās on a mission, interrogating some piece of filth ready to decorate the fucking wall with his brain matter when the guy says āyou know what, simon, killing me would be the biggest mistake of your life.ā
immediately ghost would pause, eyes narrowed, though his hardened demeanour wouldnāt fade much, heād just blankly stare at the prick like āoh yea? nā why donā you tell mā why.ā
the shit-eating grin that would crawl across that fuckers lips would have ghost ready to kill him right then and there, but then heād say āreach in my pocket. pull out my phone.ā
id like to think ghost would have absolutely none of this assholes bullshit, not at all entertained by his theatrics. iād like to think heād just press the muzzle of his gun to the fuckers temple within an instant, all teeth barred and ready to get it over with when the guy would add,
āyour girlfriend is a fucking beauty, isnāt she?ā
everything would pause. ghost, time, the world, air, the universe itselfāthe life that would drain from ghosts face would almost be enough to make his alias a reality. his heart pounding in his throat, his fingers fucking trembling as he immediately reached into the assholes pocket to find his phoneāa picture of a woman tied up (face not in view however) lighting up on the home screen. thereād be no thinking rationally, no thoughts in ghosts head except for making sure you were fucking okay. heād do whatever heād have to do, kill the guy, leave him strapped there, whateverāheād be out of that room in two seconds flat and personally flying the helicopter back to your house calling you nonstop every fucking second until you answered.
āhello? si?ā
heād wait a second before answering. taking everything in. background noises, the inflection of your voice. it sounds calm, maybe too calm? heās grasping his phone so fucking hard itās a miracle it hasnāt shattered between his fingers.
āprincess,ā he breathes, fighting with everything in him to keep his voice steady. āsee any birds today?ā
though it was a genuine question, it also was an established one. ghost had set up a series of questions for a situation precisely like this. if you said blue jay, it meant you were fine, at home, as usual. if you said crows, it meant you werenāt.
āoh just the usual blue jays, si.ā he could almost hear the smile on your lips. āeverything okay? i miss you.ā
ghost would exhale a shattered breath. āiām coming home.ā
and then heād show up, not all but a few hours later, hands still trembling slightly, heart rate still struggling to regulate. it was too much, reminding him too much of his past traumas, he knew he needed to find better protection for you, but that was a conversation for another time.
heād come in the house, barely even taking the time to shut the door behind him, almost frenzied again, relentless, unable to relax until he could finally lay eyes on you. and then, the second he did, heād just pause and look at you, all messy hair and pyjamas still on, in the kitchen cooking breakfast for you both since you knew he was on his way.
and he wouldnāt say a goddamn word, heād just come up behind you and wrap his arms around your waist, hugging you so tight youād hardly be able to breathe, his face buried in your hair and his heart thumping at your back. youād feel the pain the fear the anxiety radiating off him and you wouldnāt try to say anything because you knew he needed this, you knew he needed to see you, hold you, feel your pulse stable and alive. you knew he just needed a moment to breathe.
and so the two of you would stand there like that for a while, and then heād take a big inhale and spin you around to face him, pulling up his mask to plant soft kisses on your jaw.
what if ghost and you were on the same team. and you know, you guys acted like normal teammates. except that one time soap caught you and ghost leaning into each other after one particularly hard mission. gaz saw you kissing ghost on the cheek one morning when you think no one saw you both. price noticed how you both always managed to find each other in a room full of men.
and then one time when the team were hanging out at a bar. you all were pissed. soap asked if you guys were shagging each other and you answered with,
"oh, we're actually married!" you'd said with a bright smile and flushed cheeks.
and the way the men instantly sobered up after that and stared at you, mouths hanging open. soap managed to spit beer on gaz's face. price's cigar hung loosely from his open mouth. you bursted out laughing at the ridiculous sight.
and simon? well, simon thought it was about bloody time they tell the team. (he was getting tired of soap constantly making up conspiracy theories about you and him.)
You were in the comfort of your home, enjoying each other's company and the cheap alcohol when you realized Simon was staring at you. Turns out he'd been staring at you for quite a while. He was definitely inebriated, but it was like he was aware just the same. You saw it in his dark eyes. You would have reflected some more if you weren't tipsy.
"...Marry me."
That roused you from your drunken stupor. You think. You guess. Wait a damn minute. You began giggling. Or maybe you always were giggling. Fuck, you didn't know, didn't care to know, butā"Yer drunk, Siiiii." And still, you giggled.
Wasn't gonna deter your soldier, though. He took another swig of his drink, let it settle, eyes never leaving yours, and said, " 'm not drunk. 'm in love, sweetheart," Oh! ...Oh. Oh shit. "Marry me, luv. Make an honest man outta me, yeah?" Simon punctuated his proposal with a loud burp. When did he take his shirt off?
You couldn't be bothered to care. When didn't he have his shirt off around you? And fuck, maybe it was the alcohol, maybe it was the way he kept staring at you, drunk in love, or maybeā"SURE!"
Smooth. Real fucking smooth. But it was enough.
Simon leaned in to kiss you. At least, he tried to. That's all you remembered until the next morning when you woke up and there he was, comfortably resting on top of you, him in your arms and you in his.
You would've thought last night was a dream if you hadn't seen the drunken text Simon sent the boys later: