cod x reader oneshots

hummingbird - ghost

angst 

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Cold, guarded, standoffish. There were many words to describe Ghost. He was unapproachable, grumpy, mean, and aloof.

Terrifying.

He hated that word. It took a long time to figure it out. Almost a year to realize he didn't entirely hate me. It was the small things. The subtlety and minuscule tell that he had worked so hard on hiding from the world.

Because Ghost wasn't a person, it was a front. Deep down, Simon still existed, still cared.

I had taken notice of the slight change in his eyes when someone would call him scary and he overheard. I felt guilty that I had once found him intimidating and terrifying upon first meeting.

"Stop staring at me." Ghost grunted as he looked through different files.

"Sorry." My head turned to look at my files. I don't know how I had done it, but I managed to convince him to sit with me while we reviewed information about our next mission. I liked to sit at a specific desk on base that was right in front of a window. It allowed me to watch things that were happening outside when I got bored.

On many occasions, I confronted Ghost about his staring problem, asking why does he get to observe everyone but they couldn't look at him. He hated when people looked at him for too long. He also hated when people touched him.

I tried to abide by his boundaries. A respectful endearment. The need for people's approval ran deep through my veins and if that meant I just had to sit silently next to him to earn that, then I would. I yearned for his approval the most.

Despite his hard exterior, and the initial intimidation, I had developed feelings for him. I could see the passion he held for protecting those close to him. He didn't trust easy so when he did, it meant that you were special. His watch meant you could relax for a moment, he would always have your back. He was a good listener too. Early on I was scared that I was annoying him with stupid jokes and facts, but he wasn't being quiet because he was annoyed, he was quiet because he was committing every word you said to memory.

I couldn't help myself but fall in love.

However, there were a few times when my excitement would overtake me and for a moment I'd forget.

"Focus." Ghost grumbled again.

"Huh?" I questioned, my head turned to look at him.

He pointed to my leg which was bouncing. "Focus on your work. Stop staring out the window."

"Oh. Right." I looked back down at the files and started to commit the information to memory. It wasn't long before my mind started to wander and I was looking out the window once more.

"Lucky, focus." Ghost warned. "I can't keep stopping to remind you-"

"Ghost look!" I said excitedly.

"Lucky-"

"Simon, please look!" I grabbed his arm, not realizing I had used his real name. He had told me once when I had gotten a little too drunk one night with Soap and Gaz and he had to take care of me. I had probably been more annoying than I had ever been and kept pestering him to tell me one thing about himself. I didn't even realize I had remembered it, most of that night being a blur.

He looked at me before looking out the window where I was pointing.

"A hummingbird!" I smiled. My eyes never left the little bird that was flying around the small bush of flowers. "I haven't seen one in ages."

Ghost hummed. "It's a bird."

"No, it's not just a bird. When I was younger, my grandad got sick before he died. There was nothing we could do so he just sat and looked out the window most days. I would sit with him and he would tell me all about the birds that flew by. Our favorites were the hummingbirds. He knew so much about them and would always have a new fact to tell me when I came over to watch them with him." I told him. In my peripheral, I could see he turned to look at me.