You’re standing on the edge of a rooftop, the wind biting through your gear as you watch the city below. Ghost stands beside you, his posture rigid, but you can feel the heaviness in the air. The mission is done, but neither of you is at ease. The quiet hum of the city below contrasts with the storm brewing in your mind, an unsettling dissonance that refuses to be ignored.

“You okay?” you ask, though the words feel hollow. He hasn’t said much since the firefight ended. His silence weighs on you, and you can’t shake the feeling something’s wrong.

Ghost’s eyes stay fixed on the horizon, his voice muffled behind the mask. “I’m fine.”

You don’t believe him. You never do anymore. Something’s changed between you two on this mission - an unspoken distance that wasn’t there before.

“Stop lying to me,” you murmur, your voice small in the open air. You don’t expect him to answer, but the coldness of his silence makes the space between you feel impossibly vast. The wind howls, but it doesn’t reach the hollow place inside you, growing more painful with every second of quiet.

He turns to face you, his eyes visible for the first time in what feels like forever. “I’m not lying,” he says quietly, but there’s something darker in his gaze. “Sometimes, I don’t know how much longer I can keep doing this.”

The words hang in the air, too heavy to ignore.

Before you can stop yourself, you say, “You’re not the only one holding on by a thread.”

As soon as it leaves your lips, you regret it. The truth is too sharp, too raw, and it lingers between you. You quickly look away, trying to hide the vulnerability you’ve exposed.

Ghost’s eyes widen, his expression flickering with something unrecognizable. His posture shifts, now tense, as if he’s processing something harder than expected. “What… what do you mean?” His voice cracks slightly, betraying his concern. The worried look on his face catches you off guard.