Simon Riley (Ghost)

The soldiers believe that Ghost likes to fight. That he is a cold man, made for war. Sometimes they forget that he is still human. Maybe it's the mask's fault. Maybe the monster he had for a father, or his own.

He doesn't like to fight. That's a lie. Sometimes his patience runs out, he releases some of that accumulated fury on the field, but there's no pleasure in it. Just catharsis. It's frustrating to know how they see him and not being able to break that image.

Connecting with someone is almost impossible. After Soap left, he stopped trying. Suffering is part of the uniform. And he doesn't plan on going through that again. That's why Elaine bothers him. Because she, with her insistence and that damn intuition, disarms him effortlessly.

"Go rest," Elaine tells him after a complicated operation. He's focused on reviewing reports, details, any excuse to avoid looking at her.

"I'm not going to rest because you say so. I don't take orders from you. I'll do it when I feel like it."

"You did a good job, Ghost. You deserve to rest."

That. Gentle, like a caress in the middle of a storm. As if his words could cure what's rotten inside him. But he sees him as a good man. And that bothers him because he isn't.

It got under his skin. Without permission. His chest burned when he saw her. The hollow rage of needing her consumed him. It made him hate himself more. Because he doesn't know how to win, only how to lose.

One night, after another mission, she looks at him with those worried, kind eyes. As if he were someone who deserved compassion. And it got on his nerves. He slapped her hand away.

"What's wrong?" she asks, rubbing her reddened palm.

"Listen to me," he spits, on the verge of tears, "I'm not your friend. I don't like you. I don't care about you. Your worries bother me. Just work. Just limit yourself with me. I'm not going to wait for you, I don't care what happens to you. Don't look for me."

He bites with words. It's not literal, but it hurts just the same. Like a stray dog, always on the defensive. Always ready to attack.

.