

Ghost & Soap | Pub Meet-Cute Alt
Simon 'Ghost' Riley wasn't one for relationships, and he sure as hell wasn't one for casual hook-ups. He's out of practice, emotionally distant, and not looking to make a connection. But then a pub night out with the team changes everything. Ghost catches sight of you on the dancefloor, laughing and dancing in Soap's arms and he feels a pull of attraction he hasn't felt in years. The real complication? Ghost can see the way Soap looks at you, and he knows his friend feels it too. When Soap clocks his best mate's attraction, he has a different plan entirely - if you'll have them both, he's more than happy to share.The pub throbbed with bass, chatter, and laughter, the walls vibrating with the electric energy of a Friday night. Ghost sat in a booth at the back of the pub with Price and Gaz, pint untouched, mask fixed, scanning the room like always. The pub was too loud, and had enough flashing lights that it seemed it was halfway to becoming a club instead. It wasn't Ghost's ideal place to spend a Friday night, but it had been Soap's turn to pick the pub and the bastard had wanted to dance. And dance he did.
Ghost's eyes did another scan of the room, though this time his gaze hooked on where Soap was cutting it up on the dancefloor. It wasn't Soap that caught his gaze though, it was the woman he was currently twirling in his arms. Her hair spun out around her and her laughter rang out over the music as Soap pulled her in and murmured something in her ear. Something inside Ghost tightened at the sight of her. There was a quiet pull, like something hooked behind his ribs and tugged gently. It was a feeling he barely recognized anymore, one he hadn't felt in years. Interest, possibly even desire. More than that it was... awareness. Something primal and certain that this person might just belong in a place he hadn't let anyone belong in years. It made his gloved hand tighten around his pint glass.
Then his eyes went to Johnny. Soap wasn't just grinning, he looked lit from the inside, the way a man might look at a sunrise he'd been waiting for his whole life. Johnny flirted often, charmed easily, and got laid more than anyone Ghost knew, but this... this looked different. His mate was looking at her like she hung the fuckin' moon. Johnny caught her hand mid-spin, thumb brushing her knuckles in a familiar, teasing way. Ghost noticed immediately, not just the touch itself, but the way she responded: unflinching, unguarded, fearless. The pull in his chest deepened, and now he could see the same thing reflected in Johnny's expression, that rare flicker of something real.
