"so," you started, stabbing at your eggs. "ghost keeps asking if there's something going on between us, captain."

soap choked on his coffee, and you savored the rare sight of the legendary captain completely caught off guard. from across the room, you noticed ghost's head snap up, his posture suddenly rigid.

"bloody hell," soap coughed, wiping his mouth. "that sneaky bastard."

"what do you tell him?" you mimicked ghost's tone from last night, fighting to keep your face neutral.

soap's eyes narrowed, a dangerous grin spreading across his face as he caught on. "that it's complicated, of course."

"funny," you mused, loud enough to carry. "that's exactly what i told you about ghost."

the sound of a chair scraping against the floor drew your attention. ghost was standing now, his coffee forgotten, body language radiating what you'd learned to read as barely contained jealousy.

"though," soap added, matching your volume with obvious glee, "i suppose it doesn't have to be complicated at all."

you watched ghost's hands clench at his sides. "no," you agreed, "it really doesn't."

ghost crossed the mess hall in long strides, stopping at your table. even with the mask, you could feel the intensity of his glare.

"captain," he said, voice clipped. "need to discuss something with you."

"do you now?" soap was enjoying this far too much. "about what's going on between us?"

you bit your lip to hold back a laugh as ghost's entire body tensed.

"actually," you stood, patting ghost's chest as you passed, "i'll leave you two to figure out if it's complicated or not."

you made it three steps before ghost's hand caught your wrist. "you," he growled, tugging you back. "are bloody impossible."

"learned from the best, didn't i?"

behind you, soap's laughter echoed through the mess hall. "christ, riley, your face when she—"

"shut it, mactavish," ghost snapped, but his grip on your wrist gentled, thumb brushing over your pulse point.

"make me, mate." soap winked at you both. "though i think you've got more pressing matters to settle with our clever friend here."

ghost's other hand came up to pull his mask down fully – but not before you caught the smile tugging at his scarred lips. "aye, that i do." he turned to you, voice dropping low. "your quarters or mine?"

"thought you had something to discuss with the captain?"

"only thing i need to discuss," he pulled you closer, "is how long you've been planning this little stunt."

"since last night's watch duty." you grinned. "when things got less complicated."

"soap keeps asking if there's something going on between us," you mentioned during your shared watch duty.

ghost shifted beside you, his shoulder pressing against yours in the narrow observation post. "what do you tell him?"

"that... it's complicated."

his laugh was soft and surprisingly genuine. "it doesn't have to be, love."

you found ghost on the rooftop after a particularly brutal mission, his mask in his hands instead of on his face. the scars he usually kept hidden caught the moonlight.

"i didn't mean to fall for you," he admitted, words barely audible over the night wind. "especially not after... everything."

you knew something was different from the very moment he started kissing you that night. it didn't feel like the usual ghost you'd known since you moved in.

the kisses were passionate but slow, dirty and needy but filled with emotion. when pounding you, it didn't feel like he was letting the tension and brutality of the missions out on your body. you didn't want to overthink it, didn't want to break your own heart. but this changed everything.

you stepped closer, understanding the weight of trust he was showing. "neither did i. guess that's what happens when you let your guard down."

"so... what now?" there was a vulnerability in his voice you'd never heard before.

you reached for his hand, feeling the calluses that matched your own. "now we stop pretending we're just neighbors, simon."

his fingers intertwined with yours, and for once, the legendary ghost seemed at peace with being simply simon riley.

the knock on your door came at exactly three in the morning. you weren't surprised to see ghost standing there, still in his tactical gear minus the skull mask. another rough mission, then.

"power's out in my quarters," he said gruffly, though you both knew it was a lie. the task force quarters never lost power.

"come in, riley. i'll make tea."

he followed you inside, his presence filling your small living space like it belonged there. neither of you mentioned the nightmares that really brought him here, or how this had become your unspoken routine after difficult operations. or the way both of you used each other's bodies to release the tension, the caged emotions.