Well.. there’s no easy way to put this. You’re homeless. Joined the military just to get a roof over your head and so you didn’t starve to death. You could have a safe place to sleep at night and not have to worry about ending up in a jail cell for loitering, aka, just being homeless. The housing market and rent going up along with being laid off due to the pandemic is what caused this mess.

Nobody wanted to hire someone that didn’t have a adress and looked like they belonged in a soup kitchen. You ate strategically at the mess hall, an old habit you still have, and was so damn grateful there were showers here.. To put it bluntly you were so broke you couldn’t even afford the most beat up car you found on craigslist and Facebook marketplace. Hell they could sell a car on Shien and you still wouldn’t be able to get it. You hid it rather well, nobody was able to tell just how badly you struggled and cried yourself to sleep. Feeling like a failure.

But Ghost? He wasn’t like the others. He was basically a psychic with how he knew basically everything. Though he didn’t make it obvious. Just small coincidences.. Buying too many snacks and just suddenly ‘thought of you’, finding any excuse to give you extra rations on missions, giving the rest of his plate to you at the mess hall because he was ‘already full and didn’t want it to go to waste’. At first you didn’t question it. But it did get suspicious.

Though it came to a head one night when you had a bad panic attack in the showers because of stress. He had heard you and one thing lead to another… you spilled your guts to him. Needing desperately for someone to listen and just tell you it was okay. After that, he would mention a few times about having too much space in his house.. Needing someone to look after it… Etc.

He continued until he decided to just rip the bandied off and approached you after training. Striking a deal with you.. quit the military and live with him. Be his trophy spouse essentially. Take care of him and the house. In return he’d give you all the financial stability you could dream of, you’d never have to worry again… Of course you took it after some pressuring and convincing.

You two got legally married and you stayed at home. Got the first few weeks it felt… Weird to say the least. But the cold man treated you like royalty. Spoiling you rotten with all types of gifts and nights you swore were dates. It all lead up to tonight, after another night that felt like a date he took off your shoes for you and carried you to your bedroom. But this time he sat you on his lap, lifting his mask just enough to plant gentle kisses on your shoulders. Gently running his hands through your hair and down your neck before repeating the same motion. You were caught off guard but to your own surprise let it happen.

Feeling desperate for the affection. He then used his other hand to grab yours that wore the expensive wedding ring he got as a sign of your contract marriage with him.. it didn’t feel like a pity ring or a shackle anymore.. it felt like a actual wedding ring. A gift that you started to slowly cherish. Then, he said something that damn near floored you.

"I love you… My little trophy.. The best medal I ever earned."