I Feel It In My Bones (Simon "Ghost" Riley x Reader)

Déjà Vu: Part One

Two days before the New Year, you weren't expecting to be in a Humvee, crammed in amongst the Shadows and your team.

You weren't expecting to be en route to a run-down building outside of a Russian suburb.

You weren't expecting to be kitted from head to toe in white and grey camouflage, carrying not only your usual gear, but equipment to bring back samples as well.

The Humvee rumbled down the uneven, dirt-covered road, bouncing and jolting all those inside. Gaz was sat beside you, his expression one of concentration and thoughtfulness. Graves was sat up front, his grey eyes stern and observant, Sandman close by him, the white and red cross of a medic visible even from where you sat. Soap and Ghost were sat further down in the same row of seats as you.

Simon had spent the past two nights in your room. The two of you had eased into a rhythm - you would bicker and tease each other every evening, and when you finally admitted that you wanted him to stay with you, he would bring a tea and a coffee to your room. You would talk and drink, before settling into bed. While you never kissed, never crossed that line, he would always find some way to touch you, whether that be with his hand on your waist, his legs wrapped with yours, or your body pressed against his.

And you hadn't had a nightmare since he had begun sleeping in the same bed as you.

As you thought back to the morning, the feel of Simon's rough hand against the soft skin of your back still when you awoke still fresh, the mission briefing echoed in your mind from that morning.

You had been informed of the meeting the night before - and early in the morning, too fucking early, you and your Lieutenant had rolled out of bed, and made your separate ways to the briefing.

Intelligence had identified the activity of known associates Makarov with a previously unknown man near the outskirts of a small Russian suburb, close to the Finnish border - a Doctor Dimitri Ivanov, a former professor with specialisations in microbiology and biotechnology. Over the course of a week, he had been seen routinely entering and exiting a simple, concrete building a mile or so away from the nearest town - from satellite imaging, it appeared to be an old factory, consisting of a wide ground floor and a smaller first floor above. Within those walls, it was believed Ivanov's laboratory would be found. Footage had captured the delivery of laboratory equipment to the building twice within the same week. There was great reason to believe that Ivanov was working within that structure, aiding Makarov in what sinister creation he was the mastermind of.

The aim of the mission was to capture the Doctor and obtain as many samples as you could in order to find out more about the bioweapon.

As the soldiers around you murmured amongst themselves, you chewed on the bottom of your lip absentmindedly, the movement disguised by your black balaclava. Your role for this mission wasn't as a medic - it was as an expert on bioweapons. You and Sandman were in the Bravo team, amongst the second wave of soldiers to storm the building. You would enter after the Alpha team, including Gaz and Soap, had cleared the ground floor, in order to locate and infiltrate the laboratory.

As you approached your destination, the snow-covered trees and mountains making way for a distant settlement, Graves' voice was calm and authoritative as he addressed the Humvee. 'Listen up, everyone. We've got a job to do in there. Stay focused and stick to your objectives. We want Ivanov alive. Clear the building otherwise, and let's get Bones in to collect the samples.' His cat-like smile turned in your direction. 'Doctor, do you want to share anything?'

You weren't an officer, weren't ever supposed to be in any leadership position - you were an academic by nature, a healer by trade. But somehow, through a series of events you had never seen coming, you now held a voice of authority over the soldiers in front of you. In this game of chess, you were no longer an expendable pawn. You were vital for the success of this mission, and that knowledge weighed heavy on your shoulders.