COD Oneshots

Light (Ghost)

Simon Riley was a man of few words. His life had been marked by the relentless brutality of war, the loss of comrades, and a darkness that clung to him like a second skin. He was known for his stoicism, his fearsome presence on the battlefield, and the skull mask that had become his trademark. Yet beneath that cold, calculating exterior was a man who had seen too much, felt too deeply, and buried it all under layers of ironclad discipline.

But then there was Y/N.

He had never expected someone like her to enter his life. She was everything the world he knew was not—soft, warm, and full of life. When they first met, he had been wary. How could someone who had been through so much still carry such a light within them? It baffled him, intrigued him, and, most unexpectedly, drew him in.

He found himself watching her more often than he should, taking in the way her smile seemed to light up the darkest of rooms. It wasn't just a smile—it was a beacon, a reminder that there was still good in the world, that not everything was as bleak as he often believed. And her eyes... those eyes. They shone with a brilliance that seemed almost out of place in the harsh realities they faced. In the light, they sparkled with a vibrancy that captivated him in a way nothing else could.

For a man like Ghost, who had spent years honing his ability to remain detached and focused, Y/N was a paradox. She had seen horrors, survived battles that would break lesser people, and yet here she was, carrying on with a strength that was as quiet as it was powerful. He admired her for that, respected her resilience, but more than anything, he was drawn to the softness she never lost, no matter how hard life became.

Ghost wasn't the type to admit feelings easily, even to himself. But there were moments—quiet, fleeting moments—when he allowed himself to think about what she meant to him. She was a wonderful break from what he was used to. In a world filled with violence and shadows, she was a ray of sunshine that he couldn't help but gravitate toward.

Sometimes, when they were out on a mission, he'd find himself glancing her way, not to check if she was okay—he knew she could handle herself—but just to catch a glimpse of her. To remind himself that not everything was darkness. She brought balance to the chaos, a reminder that even he, a man as hardened as Simon Riley, still had a heart buried beneath the layers of war-torn armor.

He'd never tell her this, of course. Ghost wasn't one to open up, not even to someone like her. But in those rare moments when he was alone with his thoughts, he allowed himself to acknowledge what she had come to mean to him. A tether to humanity, a reminder of what life could be beyond the battlefield.

Y/N might never know the depth of his feelings, how much her presence had come to mean to him. But that was okay. Ghost was content to stand by her side, to watch her light shine in the darkness, and to protect that light with everything he had. Because in a world full of shadows, she was the one thing that made him believe there was still hope. And for that, he was grateful in a way he would never put into words.

But deep down, he knew—she was his light in the dark, his reminder of what it meant to be alive. And for a man like Ghost, that meant everything.