Broken Printer | Simon "Ghost" Riley x Fem!Reader
Authors note: Horrendously, Atrociously love sick, down bad, head over heals in love Simon will always be my favourite idc.
Synopsis: Ghosts head over heels in love with Kate Laswells new assistant. Like the love sick dork he is, all of a sudden paperwork and printing random stuff on the office printer even though he has is own becomes his favourite pass time. After finally getting some alone time with you, Neil, a arrogant navy seal, steals your attention. in a frantic attempt to make you his, Simon pours his heart out in hopes you will understand how in love with you he is.
Trigger Warnings: alcohol, cigarettes, mention of panic attack, love confession
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Word count: 6.5k
Genre: Fluffy love confession
Laswells assistant was gorgeous. There was no other way to describe it.
You were elegant and intelligent. Confident and friendly as well as being the hands down sweetest person to ever walk the planet probably.
That’s what Ghost thought at least.
He met a lot of people while working in the military. People could be friendly and nice, but to meet someone that had a heart made of pure gold? He hadn’t met a soul until you came along.
You were good friends with 141. Kate worked extensively with Price meaning you always tagged along with the team to help give briefings, wave them goodbye on the tarmac and most importantly waving them hello when they got back, waving Ghost hello.
Ghost lived for coming home. He never thought he would say that. Getting off the plane and seeing Shepherd, Kate and you all standing there, awaiting there arrival, with a smile on your face and the cute little wave you gave them while they were walking towards everyone made his stomach do summersaults.
Everyone had the hots for you. You worked across the board with pretty much every Taskforce regarding mission prep and general paperwork, everyone knew who you were and nobody had a bad word to say about you. You were just lovely.
You were nice to everyone, an absolute angel, but the relationship you had with Ghost was special. The both of you would brush it off and say its friendly. It was. Nothing more, nothing less.
Soap, the little bastard, would say the complete opposite. He would pick on Ghost all the time for his “friendship” with you. Referring to you as “his lass” whenever it was just the two of them and throwing eyebrow raises and side eyes whenever you were in the same room. It drove Simon crazy.
Simon may or may not have a school boy crush on you. It just took him a really, really long time to figure it out.
When the realisation hit him he was so unbelievably embarrassed. Not of you, of himself.
It became a lot harder for him to treat you the same now he knew he had growing feelings for you. Every look, every smile hit him so much deeper. He wanted to kiss you and hold you, he wanted you to lay your head on his chest while he combed through your hair and told you about his day. He wanted to make love to you and only you. Nobody else could hold his attention anymore, not the drunk girls at the bar or the young lady at reception. It was you. It had always been you.
He tried to play it cool and act like nothing had changed. He was still trying to figure out how to navigate his feelings. He didn't want things to change, but with each passing day it only became more complex.
There wasn’t a lot of time were it was just the two of you. It wasn’t uncommon you got time alone, but it was nowhere never enough for his liking. So like the very smart man he is, he created a plan.
His office. He spent hours there sifting through reports and paperwork. He hated it but he could use it to his advantage.
You held everyones mission files, it was their responsibility to report to your office and retrieve their paperwork, as well as being filled in on any extra documents they needed to sign.
So instead of trudging down to your office area you shared with your other colleagues, he laid back in his office chair with a cigarette and glass of bourbon, blankly staring at the four walls covered in medals and achievements waiting for your arrival.
Just as he suspected, exactly seven minutes after the last Lieutenant would have picked up their paperwork and been given the normal spiel from you, came a light knocking at his door.
He knew it was you. Not a soul would dare to disrupt him when he was in this office with his door closed. So with a smile under his balaclava he did his best impression of a stern “Yes”
His plan had worked. The door slightly cracked open and you apprehensively stepped inside with his file clenched to your chest. With a quiet click you closed the door behind you.
“Hey Si” you whispered trying not to disturb the calm atmosphere he seemed to have created for himself. You looked so guilty, it made his heart drop.
One thing he noticed after coming to terms with his feelings for you was his determination to make you as happy as possible. He wanted to give you the world. Anything you asked for, he would give it to you on a silver platter, seeing you scared and guilty for “disrupting” him made an uncomfortability swirl inside of him, he never wanted to be the reason for you to feel that way.
“Sweetheart, there you are! Where have you been all day, aye?” Your face softened with his words and it made that new, yet addictive feeling of compassion roll over him.
“Just busy with some stuff for Graves Shadows. They had a few casualties” Your still quiet but not in a timid way, more of a thoughtful, understanding way. You moved closer to Ghost until you were standing in front of him on the opposite side of his desk.
“I’m sorry love, tough work that” He hated Graves, he could even say he was happy his team had taken a blow, but you having to deal with the paperwork and families? That was tough. Writing out KIA reports for soldiers that were sometimes younger then you were wasn’t a nice feeling.
“It’s okay, it’s all done now.” You were fiddling with his file and swaying back and forth. You were adorable. Never in Simons life had he thought he could care about someone with his whole heart, yet here he was.
“Why don’t you come around here and show me what you got baby?” Simons not a gentle man but when it came to you, he could be the most gentle creature on the planet.
With a swift motion, You move around his desk and stand right next to his office chair. Quickly picking you up he places you on his lap. His large frame completely towering over yours.
Placing his file on the desk in front of the both of you, he rests his head on your shoulder while wrapping his arms around your torso, it felt domestic, almost as if this was his home office in a house the both of you shared.
“You didn’t pick up your file” you say tilting your head so you could look into his eyes. Simons mask is pulled over his lips, he takes the last draw of his cigarette and puts it out in the glass ashtray.
“Must of forgotten” He placed a kiss on your neck. “I’m sorry” he mumbles into your skin.
“It’s okay, I don’t mind bringing it up to you” Your words come out strained. You and Simon didn't have a sexual relationship. It was purely “platonic”. You hadn’t kissed properly yet, only small kisses to the cheek and on rare occasions, he would kiss you on the neck. It was normal for the two of you. completely friendly.
“Good. Why don’t you show me what you got?” He says laying his chin on your shoulder.
“Nothing interesting. Just a mission report and a couple injury documents you have to sign”
He kept you there way longer then he should have. Making you giggle and squirm at his ridiculous jokes and stories.
It wasn’t until Kate buzzed your phone asking where you were did you jump off his lap and head off to whatever meeting you needed to attend.
Once you closed his door he let out a large sigh. He needed more time with you. A couple hours here and there simply wasn’t enough.
Lighting another cigarette and letting smoke fill the room, he thought long and hard about how he could get you in the same room as him with no one around.
Could he just ask you out on a date? Maybe. But there was still a slim chance in his mind that you didn’t feel the same. Maybe it was just his own anxieties and insecurities playing up but to him, there was just not enough evidence that showed you were that into him. He needed more clarity.
He sighed, he didn’t have anything. Not even an inkling of an idea.
Out the corner of his eye there was an annoying, infuriating flashing that would not stop. With each flash the more anger rose in his chest.
Finally having enough, Simon stubbed out his cigarette, stood up and walked to the source of blood boiling angry.
It was his printer. His stupid printer was out of ink again. With a huff, he marched over to his door. Annoyance building up slowly.
Just before he could reach for the handle. It hit him.
There was a community printer in the joint staff room near your office. Every night after everyone went home you used the printer to photocopy files that needed to be duplicated. You did this to insure you got the printer to yourself. SO, if he just happened to be in the staff room a couple minutes before you actually arrived then he would get to be alone with you once again.
He even had a backstory, if you asked him why he was there, he could complain that his printer wasn’t working and that he needed to photocopy papers as well.
Running back to his desk, he opened the bottom draw grabbing a pile of old files that he could “photocopy” to solidify his story.
Smiling at himself, Simon sat back down at his desk making sure to check the clock every so often so he could time his arrival perfectly.
It was 5:51pm. Simon grabbed his papers, brushed off his tight black t-shirt of any cigarette ash and sprayed some old cologne Price gifted him years ago that he kept in a draw on his neck. If he left now it would take seven minutes to get to the office printer giving him one minute to act busy until you came along.
Walking down the hall there was a nervousness sitting in his stomach. Not the same type of nervousness that he got before missions, more of a giddy kind. A nervousness that made him smile to himself. It was something he had never felt before.
He made it to the office faster then anticipated. He hadn’t been in here for years. It was still outdated, the walls still coloured a faded mustard yellow with dusty lime green skirting boards.
Ghost walked over to the printer, punching in his ID and placing his papers one by one in the photocopier. Simons senses were all elevated, any sound of passing people had him looking over his shoulder to the entrance.
It felt like he was acting in a film, trying to play it as cool as possible, but his paranoia was getting the best of him. What if you could tell he had planned this? Was he being to stiff? Maybe it would be better if he made it look like he was leaving and then bumped into you rather then acting like he just got here.
While he was caught up in his head thinking about the worst case scenarios, he didn’t notice that he had typed 50 copies into the printer instead of 5. Before he knew it, he was in the process of copping 50 pages of his payslip from 2015.
“Shit” he mumbled as he tried to undo the mess he was making, but before he could figure it out your sweet voice interrupted him.
“Simon!” You sounded absolutely thrilled to see him, Ghost turned around and locked eyes with you. God, he loved seeing you like this, hair a little messy from the long day, handbag over your shoulder, blouse not tucked in all the way. It was heaven. He liked to imagine that’s what you looked like coming home from work and him being there to greet you with a kiss and a tight hug.
Leaning against the large printer, he tried not to be concerned about the mass amount of paper he was wasting.
“Lovie! What are you doin here? Shouldn’t you be getting home at this time of night?” You looked at him with the sweetest eyes and a soft hum that made his body relax. Sometimes, this is what Simon thought being a man really was. Not fighting in wars and shooting guns, it was caring and protecting a women through and through with everything you had. Watching as your tired body swayed across the room closer to him solidify that. Your presence made him more worthy then any of his work did.
“Not yet, just have to photocopy some documents so they can be sent out” Simon instinctively held his hands out guiding you towards him.
“That’s no good sweetheart” he whispered into your hair as he held you. “I’ll be done in a jiffy, yeah? Then the printers all yours”
Looking up from his chest you giggled at him
“What are you printing? I thought you had your own printer?”
Simon new this was coming but his voice still came out frantic “Oh nothing, just some boring stuff you know? My printer is giving me the shits, wouldn’t stop blinking and what not” Looking at him funny, you slowly move away from him, collecting the small piles of papers that were slowly starting to stack themselves.
Taking a glance at Simon, you could tell something was off. Slowly sifting through each page, a smile spreads across your face.
“Why are you printing coppices amounts of copies of your payslip from 2015?” Even with his balaclava you could see his face turn a deep shade of red and his body go stiff
“Tax return. They’re for my, um…. accountant.” Simon new he’d been caught red handed. Realistically, there weren’t many people who knew you stayed after-hours to get some extra work done. Laswell and himself, that probably concluded the list. The more he thought about it. You probably new the second you saw him in here.
Gently handing the pages to Simon you giggle to yourself
“I was thinking of grabbing a drink before I headed home for the week, wouldn’t mind some company if your not already busy?” Simon felt like his body was on fire. He was tingling from the bottom of his toes all the way to the top of his head. You could read him without him having to say a word. You were the first person to actually see him. He was transparent when you came around.
The years of building up walls and carefully building a dark, unsettling persona to keep everyone out simply wasn’t there with you. He wasn’t “Ghost” in this moment, he wasn’t even a “lieutenant”, he was Simon Riley. A simple man born and raised in Manchester that loved watching the footy and collecting weird intricate animal skulls. Simon Riley that longed for a wife, children, a family dog and a picket fence houses. He was a human.
“Yeah sugar, I would like that”
The walk to the bar together was pleasant. The sky was really putting on a show as the clouds swirled around each other and the stars littered the sky like freckles.
This wasn’t an offical date by any means, but it was the first time the two of you hung out outside of a professional setting. It made Simon happy knowing that nobody could interrupt your time together and he truly had you all to himself.
The bar was unusually quite for a Friday night, or maybe you had gotten there just before the night time rush. Whatever the reason, it didn’t matter.
Entering the dive bar, like the gentlemen he was, Simon held the door for you and led you to an open booth, his hand on your lower back the entire time.
Conversation flowed as smooth as ever, not being in a work environment made the both of you more open, the more the each of you drank, the more the conversation grew deeper and more intermit.
Maybe it was the alcohol in his system but in this exact second. He realised he was in love with you.
Simon new he had feelings for you, new that he definitely had a growing care for you, but he never quite pinpointed it as love. He had a love for you, but he didn’t think he was in love.
He would never of guessed love felt this good, this warm, this natural. It felt like his whole reason for existing was to love and provide for you. From this moment forward he swore on his mothers grave that he would be a better man for you, a kinder man, a more compassionate man, a softer man. Whatever you needed him to be, he would find a way to be it.
A couple days before Tommy’s wedding, the brothers were sitting around a makeshift fire pit having a drink and just enjoying each others company when Tommy turned to him and said
“You know Simon, it will be you’re turn someday” his statement puzzled him profusely. His turn for what?
“What do ya mean by that?” Tommy softened his gaze turning back to the fire
“Your turn to fall in love. Get married, have kids, raise a family, all that stuff.” Simon chuckled to himself digging his shoe deeper into the muddy trampled grass underneath him.
“Not me mate” he didn’t know what to say to Tom in that moment, it was probably because to him, at that point in his life, he didn’t feel worthy of such thing.
“Trust me, you will. She’ll be kind and beautiful, make all that dark stuff you got going on in your head go away. Make time for you, make you a better man then dad ever was. You will, you just got to wait it out yeah?”
“I’ll keep it in mind Tom” he rasped as he gave his little brother a teasing shove almost making him fall off his fold out chair.
It wasn’t till now did his brothers words finally click. He was right. The stupid bastard was right all these years later.
Just as Simon was about to open his mouth a shadow appeared out the corner of his eye, looking over he saw a skinny man in a navy seal uniform approach the booth.
“There she is! My favourite paper girl! What are you doing in a place like this honey?” He had a thick American accent that drove him up the wall and a stupid thick moustache on the top of his lip. His appearance annoyed him enough, but the way his perverted eyes roamed over your body like you were a piece of meat almost had him out of his seat and his hands around his neck.
“Neil, hey. Just unwinding after a long week” Simon could tell that you were embarrassed, your once relaxed posture was now stiff and awkward. Your radiant smile had subsided and became an awkward thin line.
This “Neil” guy had the nerve to walk up and ruin what was a perfect moment.
“And who’s the big guy over here? Would hate for you to be running around with other men behind my back” so much about the sentence made Simons blood boil. The way Neil’s crooked teeth smiled in an obvious attempt to flirt with you, his back faced towards him trying to get in your line of view.
What made Ghost even more uncomfortable was the idea that you had some sort of relationship with the man. What did he mean running around with other men? Were you with him? Had you been on a date with him? Did you treat the smug bastard the same way you treated him?
It wasn’t till Neils next sentence did he feel himself go cold again.
“When’s that next date you promised me?” That was all Simon had to hear before he got up and quickly disappeared from the bar.
It was pouring rain now, not wanting to get wet, he stood under the wooded covering of the bars entrance and lent against the cold brick wall. There was nobody around, he felt like sinking in on himself, curl up into a little ball and disappearing forever. His balaclava felt stuffy and for the first time in years, his eyes started to sting.
In a fit of frustration, he pulled off the covering and stuffed it in his pocket, reaching for a cigarette to calm himself.
Looking up at the sky, he let out a long sigh and closed his eyes. He wanted to tell you. He wanted to pour his heart out in waves and completely drown you in love but it felt so stupid now.
He would give up the world for you, he would die for just one more tender moment and he would kill just to see you smile. He would do all those things, but he couldn’t give you his heart.
“Just like dad” was the only thing occupying his mind. “look at you, you’re just like your farther” he felt his chest tighten and breath quicken slowly losing himself to a panic attack until a soft voice filled the once empty space.
“Simon?” He new that voice like that back of his hand. He lived for that voice. It was you.
He didn’t have his balaclava on but something in him completely took over. The conversation with Tommy echoed through his head a hundred miles per hour. Every tender moment with you flashed before his eyes. Before he could stop himself, he finally turned around so you were no longer looking at his back.
He was as vulnerable as ever. He couldn’t hide anymore.
You completely melted when you finally saw him. Your Simon. He was more beautiful then you ever imagined. Every part of him was perfect. The scars denting his face and messy hair. Crooked nose and thin lips.
You didn’t move until his face relaxed. You’re facial expression must of said everything you were thinking. You could feel the stars in your eyes. Slowly starting to walk towards him you could see the cocktail of emotions he was circling through.
“Are you okay?” He didn’t respond, standing still watching you approach him. You finally stopped when the tip of your shoes were touching his.
Simon averted his gaze from yours, mumbling something under his breath. You couldn’t hear him. His deep voice shielding his words
“I’m in love with you” It was louder then he originally planned, echoing off the bricks.
you stood with a face of shock, your whole body freezing up and hands clammy
Simons mouth moved faster then his mind spilling words like a waterfall
“I’ve been in love with you since the day I saw you, I’ve waited my whole life to meet someone that makes me feel the way you do and now your here standing in front of me, I can’t find the right words to say so i’m just going to say everything and hope you understand”
Tears started to form in your eyes as his frantic words finally set in.
“Nothing prepared me for this, I can’t explain the way I feel but I know I want to feel it for the rest of my life and I want it to be you. You make me feel alive, you make me want to be a better person, a better man, whenever I see you its like I finally understand what my purpose is, I understand why I’m alive and I know that its to love and protect you till the day I die and I promise I will to my last breath. I thought being a man meant to be cold and strong but I completely surrender that part of myself for you. I’m in love with you. I’m so in love with you words aren’t enough.”
Tears streamed down your face in waves. They wet your cheeks giving them a beautiful light red blush. Even like this, Simon could only see your beauty.
“Its okay if you don’t feel the same” taking his large callused hands he brought it to your cheek gently wiping your tears, a sad smile on his face and glossy eyes “I just wanted you to know”
Without a second thought, both your hands grabbed his face roughly pulling him down to your hight and laying a heavy, deep kiss on his lips.
With no hesitation, Simon kissed you back, pulling your body against his, pouring years of longing into your lips.
He could see it. Images flashed across his closed eyelids of your wedding day, starting a family the perfect house and the picket fence. His cold heart, after what felt like a lifetime, started beating again.
He could feel your smile and he was sure you could feel his.
Hands on your cheeks, Simon finally removed his lips from yours, resting his forehead on your own”
“Can I tell you something Simon?”
