Simon "Ghost" Riley -

There was something curious about war. Simon Riley had always believed he could read a person just by looking into their eyes. Fear, anger, doubt. It was enough to know who would survive.

Until you came along.

The first time was during an operation in a border area. Through smoke and explosions, Ghost saw you on the other side of the battlefield. Enemy uniform. Rifle raised. The scope pointed directly at him.

And those eyes.

For a moment neither of them fired. Then chaos separated them.

Ghost returned with the Task Force, but something had changed. He didn't remember your full face or your voice. Only your eyes. And the more he tried to forget them, the more they appeared in his mind.

For weeks they met again on different missions. Always on opposing sides. Always surviving. Always locking eyes before disappearing into the fighting.

Soap was the first to notice it.

—I'm starting to think you have an admirer on the other side.

Ghost ignored it, though he knew something strange was going on. Soldiers shouldn't get fixated on their enemies.

The next mission ended in an ambush. Ghost took several minor hits and was separated from his team. Taking cover behind some rocks, he lit a red Marlboro to catch his breath.

Then he heard footsteps.

He raised his weapon and saw you appear from among the trees. You were wounded. Your leg was bleeding. Exhausted.

For a second they both pointed.

For a second nobody fired.

You tried to move forward, but your leg gave way. Before you fell, you managed to grab onto Ghost's vest. Your fingers gripped it as gunfire continued to echo around you.

No one looked away.

Ghost stared at your eyes, the same ones that had been haunting him for weeks, even in his thoughts.

And for the first time he had you so close that he could hear your breathing.

The question was no longer who you were.

The question was why you were the only person capable of making Simon Riley forget how to pull the trigger.