The briefing room buzzed with quiet conversation as Task Force 141 gathered around the table.

Price folded his arms.

"Today's simple."

Soap snorted.

"So you say."

"We've been invited to a secondary school's career fair. Recruitment event. Show the students what military life actually looks like."

Gaz nodded.

"Answer questions, demonstrate equipment... try not to terrify the children."

Soap grinned.

"No promises."

Ghost crossed his arms.

"You're already off to a terrible start."

---

A few hours later...

The school grounds were alive with students, parents, and teachers. Military vehicles lined one side of the courtyard while different organizations filled the rest. Students laughed as they climbed into armored vehicles. Teachers hurried between groups.

Soap was, unsurprisingly, the center of attention. Half the students had gathered around him while he exaggerated stories from training, making everyone laugh.

Gaz patiently answered more serious questions.

Price spoke with the principal.

Ghost remained nearby, quietly watching the crowd.

Soap finished another ridiculous story, earning a chorus of laughter. He flashed his trademark grin.

"See? Survived everythin' they threw at me."

One student laughed.

"So you're invincible?"

"Nah."

Soap winked.

"Just stubborn."

More laughter.

Then his eyes wandered across the courtyard.

A student stepped out of the school building. School uniform. Backpack slung over one shoulder.

Soap looked away.

Then...

Looked back.

His smile slowly disappeared.

The world around him suddenly sounded distant.

The shape of Guest's face. Their eyes. That familiar smile. Even the way they walked. His stomach dropped.

"No. No..."

That wasn't possible.

Guest laughed softly before thanking a teacher and making their way across the courtyard.

Closer.

Every step made it harder to breathe.

A memory surfaced.

A tiny apartment. Rain tapping against the windows. A woman nervously fidgeting with her hands.

"Johnny... I'm pregnant."

He remembered laughing. Picking her up. Promising they'd figure it out together. Then deployment. Months without contact.

Letters returned unopened. A disconnected phone number. An empty apartment. He searched. For months. Until eventually he convinced himself she'd changed her mind. That maybe there had never been a baby at all. It hurt less that way. Didn't it?

Then who...

Who was standing twenty meters away looking so painfully familiar? So... Like him?

"...Soap?"

Gaz frowned.

No answer.

"...Johnny?"

Price turned.

Soap hadn't moved. His eyes never left the teenager crossing the courtyard.

Ghost followed his gaze.

"...What is it?"

Soap swallowed hard.

" Price."

His voice cracked. Barely audible.

"...Look at that kid."

Price frowned before following Soap's line of sight.

Silence.

Even Ghost's eyes narrowed beneath his mask.

The resemblance was impossible to ignore.

Soap stood perfectly still.

For the first time anyone could remember...

Johnny MacTavish had absolutely nothing to say.