A/N: So, here's my entry for the weekly prompt "Summer Break", over at Promptis Fan Week on Tumblr!
I still wasn't feeling too well when I wrote this, so it's not the work I'm happiest about - but I still had fun writing these two's summer shenanigans, so I guess there's that!
If you've read "Bliss", you can imagine this set up in the same universe. If you haven't, just imagine Noctis and Prompto getting together after their first year of highschool ;)
*waves all of the amazing people I've been chatting with lately* :-)
And always thanks to voxiferous for being a wonderful beta!
The sun was barely high enough to be seen through the blinds when Prompto woke up, but it didn't surprise him. Even when he didn't have class, he was always up early - a habit he had picked up many years earlier when he had started running every morning.
Now that he was training with Noctis and the guys more regularly, Prompto was also allowing himself a few lazy mornings here and there, though. Especially when it was this hot outside, and his boyfriend was curled up against him, still fast asleep and pretty much dead to the world.
They didn't get to spend as much time together now they had graduated high school. Prompto had started attending classes at the university, but for Noctis it had only been the beginning of more and more royal duties. They would still see each other on most evenings and weekends, though; and while the change had been radical for two people used to spending so much time together, Prompto would never hold this against Noctis.
Still, it was summer break right now, and while Prompto enjoyed the comfort of Noctis' apartment - which he had practically moved into at this point anyway, as some kind of unofficial roommate - it still wasn't the same when the place was almost always empty.
So, when Noctis had told him he had managed to snatch a few days off this week, Prompto had been overjoyed. And yes, maybe part of him wanted to wake Noctis up right now so that they could make the most of their time together… But the idea of spending a lazy morning in bed with his boyfriend was also very tempting.
Rolling over on his side, Prompto smiled in spite of himself when his eyes met Noctis' sleeping face in the dim light. Even after two years of dating, Prompto could still feel his heart warm up at how peaceful Noctis looked when he was asleep.
Prompto reached out, brushing away some of the hair that had fallen over Noctis' face, and kissed his boyfriend's forehead softly. Noctis barely registered it, his brows twitching ever so slightly, and Prompto had to repress a chuckle at the sight.
Letting out a content sigh, Prompto shifted just a bit closer and slipped an arm around Noctis' waist before closing his eyes again, allowing himself to be lulled back to sleep by the soft sound of Noctis' breathing.
A few hours later, Prompto finally managed to wake Noctis up, kissing his way across his boyfriend's face, neck and collarbone until he felt one of Noctis' hands tug at his hair, pulling his head back up to give him a proper kiss.
Noctis' eyes were still hazy with sleep when the kiss broke for a second, but Prompto definitely saw that dark, familiar glint shining in them before being pulled back in for another kiss. Smiling against Noctis' lips, Prompto knew that they most likely wouldn't get out of bed anytime soon - but that was more than okay.
It was way past noon when they dragged themselves into the kitchen to warm up some leftovers for an improvised breakfast/lunch. They were both sporting their best "just out of bed" look, hair in complete disarray and having just thrown on the first t-shirts and pairs of shorts they could find.
Prompto and Noctis ate in comfortable silence, sharing smiles as their legs would brush under the table. It felt nice, Prompto thought, to just take the time to be together for once. It was just like their summer breaks in high school - granted, Noctis had always had royal stuff to attend to, but it wasn't as time-consuming as it was now.
They eventually finished eating and settled on the couch, Prompto's back against the armrest, and Noctis sitting between his legs, his head resting on Prompto's shoulder.
"What do you want to watch?" Prompto asked, already switching between channels to find something they both liked.
"Don't care," Noctis replied, yawning and shifting a bit to find a more comfortable position.
"Hey, don't you dare fall asleep on me, I've already let you sleep all morning."
"It wasn't just sleep," Noctis said, his complaint very unconvincing as he pressed himself closer against Prompto.
"Not my fault," Prompto chuckled, his free arm closing around Noctis' waist while his other hand was still fumbling with the remote.
"A little your fault," Noctis retorted as he twisted his neck a bit so that he could kiss Prompto's jaw.
"Hmm, if you're mad, I'll use your phone's alarm next time," Prompto said, tilting his head to allow Noctis better access while his hand slipped under his boyfriend's t-shirt, fingertips ghosting over the skin there.
Prompto smiled as Noctis' breath hitched, and suddenly Noctis was on his knees, bracing himself on Prompto's chest as his mouth was busy attacking Prompto's neck.
"Don't you dare," Noctis whispered teasingly between kisses.
Prompto just laughed, his breath catching in his throat as his body reacted to Noctis' ministrations. The remote fell to the ground as Prompto's hands traveled all over Noctis' back, and the sound had Prompto glance over at the TV, where some commercial about Galdin Quay was on.
"Aw, I wish we could go to the beach just once," Prompto said without really thinking.
Noctis stopped whatever he was doing, and raised his head to blink at Prompto in disbelief. "What?"
"I just mean, Galdin Quay looks so nice, don't you ever wish you could go?"
"Are we seriously talking about this now?"
"Just think, spending the whole day there, eating local seafood, going for a swim, getting a nice tan…"
"Right, because you're capable of getting tanned," Noctis muttered, sitting back on his ankles.
"Guess I'll just need someone to apply sunscreen all over me," Prompto said teasingly, grabbing Noctis' hands to pull him closer again and brush their noses together.
"Oh, now you want me to kiss you?" Noctis asked, pulling back a little to raise an eyebrow at Prompto.
Prompto looked back at Noctis with a sheepish smile. "What, is my prince mad?"
"That I was cockblocked by a commercial? You bet!" Noctis said, laughing.
"I'll need to make it up to you then," Prompto said, smirking as he leaned forward to kiss Noctis properly.
"You know," Noctis whispered against Prompto's lips, "if you want to swim so badly, there's a swimming pool on the roof of the building."
"Dude, a beach trip isn't just about swimming," Prompto replied between more kisses, until what Noctis had said suddenly hit him and he pulled back to stare at his boyfriend. "What? There's what?"
"There's a swimming pool on the roof," Noctis repeated, unfazed.
"Noct, seriously, I've known you for more than three years and you never mentioned you had a swimming pool?" Prompto asked, his voice having taken a higher pitch than usual.
"Well, technically it isn't mine, and also you never talked about swimming, or the beach, or whatever," Noctis replied, shrugging.
"Okay, let's go," Prompto said, wiggling out of Noctis' embrace and jumping off the couch.
Noctis found himself sitting alone on the couch, dumbfoundedly staring at his boyfriend. "What- now?"
"Punishment for not telling me earlier," Prompto said, winking at Noctis before stepping into the bedroom to gather his stuff.
It was way too hot outside so early in the afternoon, so Noctis and Prompto found themselves alone on the roof. Prompto immediately ran towards the edge, taking in the view of Insomnia.
"Noct this is amazing up here! I can't believe you've never even told me we could go on the roof, I could take so many pictures from here!"
"Yeah, well, feel free to come back anytime," Noctis grumbled as he settled his towel on a beach chair.
Prompto hopped back towards his boyfriend and casually threw an arm over his shoulder. "Oh come on, don't be that way! I'll make it up to you with a nice sunscreen massage. Although if you don't want my skin to look like a baked tomato I should probably go first," he said, winking.
What Prompto didn't expect, though, was Noctis to tense up and put a bit more distance between them. "Wait," Noctis said. "Cameras."
"Oh," Prompto simply said, dropping his arm and moving towards another chair.
"Sorry," Noctis said softly.
"Hey, it's okay," Prompto said with a sincere smile. "We both agreed to keep this away from the public until, well, you know," he continued, gesturing vaguely between them.
It wasn't really that their relationship was a secret. Ignis and Gladio knew, as well as Iris, and a few other people close to the royal family. They had in fact told Noctis' father after they had been together for a few months, Prompto a fumbling mess over the idea of meeting the actual King of Lucis. But things had gone really well; Regis had been warm and welcoming, successfully making Prompto feel at ease. It was different with Prompto's parents, because he was barely seeing them as it was; so he figured he would just tell them beforehand once they decided to go public.
The thing was, the press was always thirsty for any kind of gossip regarding the royal family. While Noctis was used to this, Prompto was not, and Noctis had been a bit worried about how the pressure of being subjected to this much attention would affect him. Regis had also pointed out that any talk about the Prince of Lucis dating someone would inevitably cause engagement and wedding related gossip, even though they were barely even 17 then. After choking on their food at the word "wedding", both boys had agreed that, yeah, maybe it was better to avoid the public eye for now.
Pretending to be "just friends" in public wasn't too hard anyway; they really were best friends, after all. Playful shoves, arms casually thrown around shoulders, sleepovers - all of this stuff was considered normal between friends, so they allowed themselves that much. It had pretty much become a habit by now. Still, sometimes it wasn't easy to hold back when you were a hormonal teenager discovering the many possibilities of physical contact.
And there was also this nagging feeling at the back of Prompto's mind; that they were holding off until… Until when exactly? Until they were sure enough that their feelings could withstand the pressure? Until they were capable of talking about the future, and things like marriage? Prompto knew that both of them were avoiding talking about it, and just kept the "secrecy" act going because it was easier… But Prompto knew he loved Noctis, and if he could be lucky enough to spend his life by his side, well… He'd do anything.
He was just scared that maybe Noctis wasn't there yet. That he'd eventually get tired of silly old Prompto, especially if the press kept pointing out reasons why they shouldn't be together. Which was probably a ridiculous thought, considering Noctis knew his darkest secret and accepted him regardless… Still, he couldn't help but feel insecure at times.
Noctis, though, was looking at him with a gentle expression on his face. "So, sunscreen? I mean, we just need to keep it… innocent," he said, smirking a bit at the last word.
Prompto smiled and relaxed a little. This was just so much like Noctis to make this a game between them. And, okay, maybe he liked it a little. Maybe he liked it a lot.
"Alright," Prompto said, grinning. "Only our backs, then, I guess."
"Yeah. I'm not sure it would be considered just friendly of me to rub your thighs."
"You realize I'm wearing swim shorts, right? My thighs are sort of covered already."
"We can never be too careful," Noctis retorted, his smirk widening.
"Well, while I'd love to put on a show for you, I can almost feel myself burning, so I'm going to put this on quickly," Prompto said, uncapping the tube of sunscreen and wasting no time smearing it all over his body. He still noticed how Noctis was staring at him intently, and didn't waste the opportunity to look back at him over his sunglasses and wink a few times in his direction.
When he was done, Noctis snatched the tube from Prompto's hand and moved behind him.
"Sit," Noctis said, putting one hand on Prompto's shoulder to push him down.
Prompto just laughed. "Impatient to touch, your Highness?"
"Just- shut up, okay? It's all your fault," Noctis grumbled.
"How is it my f- hmm," Prompto's protest was cut short when Noctis' hands closed around his shoulders, with just the right amount of pressure. Prompto closed his eyes - dammit, Noctis really had magical hands.
They both knew they couldn't linger or it would start looking suspicious; but still, Prompto had to bite his lip when Noctis' thumbs trailed down his spine, hands flat on his back so that Noctis' fingertips could gently brush his sides at the same time.
Noctis' hands traveled back up once, and then back down, and then dipped ever so slightly under the waistband of Prompto's shorts.
Prompto almost jumped. "Noct," he squeaked, turning around to glare at his boyfriend - albeit not very effectively - damned sunglasses.
Noctis was looking back at him innocently. "Like I said, can't be too careful," he said, shrugging lightly.
"You're the worst," Prompto retorted, staring as Noctis started applying sunscreen on himself, a little slower than really necessary.
Noctis didn't answer, he simply let out a content moan as he made a show of spreading the lotion slowly across his chest and abs. Prompto rolled his eyes, but still had to swallow hard. It just wasn't fair, how Noctis could still look incredibly hot while acting completely ridiculous.
"Like what you see?" Noctis asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Keep telling yourself that your scrawny body impresses anyone," Prompto replied nonchalantly, crossing his arms behind his head as he lay back in his chair.
"Right, you know it's hard to take you seriously when your face is that red?" Noctis laughed, finishing putting sunscreen on his own face.
"I wonder if you'd still act this cocky if I pushed you in the pool?"
"Sunscreen first," Noctis said, pushing the tube into Prompto's hand.
Prompto took the tube, but then stood up, wiping sweat off his forehead. "Okay, you know what? Let's just go sit by the water."
"Do you think I'm that stupid?"
"I'm not gonna push you, promise. I just want to at least put my feet in there, I'm melting here."
Noctis watched suspiciously as Prompto moved to sit on the edge of the pool, letting his legs dangle in the water.
"Hmm, feels good," Prompto sighed happily. "Come on, Noct, your turn!" he said, patting down the ground next to him.
Noctis rolled his eyes but then moved to sit next to Prompto, turning slightly to give him more access to his back.
"Hey, Prom," Noctis said hesitantly, as Prompto was about to start applying the sunscreen.
The serious tone made Prompto freeze for a second. Noctis was never one to talk much, so Prompto figured he should probably hold off on the teasing until he knew what his boyfriend wanted to say. "Yeah, Noct?" Prompto said softly, gently spreading the lotion across Noctis' shoulderblades.
"I've been thinking… About the whole public thing."
"Oh," Prompto simply said, feeling his heartbeat increase slightly as his hands moved to the center of Noctis' back.
"Yeah. And, like, I don't think I'm ready enough to think about… you know, marriage and stuff, but… I kinda don't want to hide anymore?"
Prompto's hands stopped on the small of Noctis' back. "So, what does that mean?" he asked, his voice wavering a little, because somehow he did really want to be able to tell everyone that they were together - and yet he was still scared about how this might affect them.
Noctis turned around, and Prompto's hands moved to his thighs, gripping the fabric of his swim shorts a little.
"I mean, we could talk to Ignis first, and my dad… But mostly I want to make sure you'll be fine," Noctis said, worry showing in his eyes. "There will be good press, definitely. But there's bound to be bad press too."
"Yeah, like, I guess I'm gonna get called a gold-digger or something?" Prompto said, nervously scratching the back of his head. He sort of wished they weren't having this conversation here, because just holding Noctis' hand would really help him relax right now.
"You know that no one who knows you thinks that, right? But yeah, that kind of stuff…" Noctis sighed. "We'll always deny false allegations, but we can't control what people talk about on social media. I don't care what they say about me, I'm used to this kind of thing but… I care what they say about you, especially if it hurts you. I need you to know that I'll always be on your side, okay?"
Prompto smiled fondly at Noctis. "Dude… seriously, you had to do this here?"
Noctis looked dumbfounded. "What?"
"Just… saying all that when I can't even kiss you, that's low," Prompto replied, his smile widening.
"Is that a yes?" Noctis asked, his features relaxing.
Prompto swallowed and took a second to gather his thoughts. He was scared, that much was true; and yes, maybe he often felt inadequate next to Noctis. But if he was sure of one thing, it was of his feelings for Noctis. No amount of bad press would be able to change that. Now, he just had to trust that it would be the same for his boyfriend. And really, it would be nice, being able to hold hands, sit a little closer… just be together without really thinking about it.
"I mean…" Prompto started, his eyes fixed on the water, "I'll have my prince to defend my honor if things go wrong."
Noctis laughed and flicked the back of his head. "You're such a dork."
"Aw, but I'm your dork, right?" Prompto retorted, sticking out his lower lip in a fake pout.
Noctis stared at him for a few seconds, his face blank; then suddenly he wasn't sitting next to Prompto anymore and had disappeared into the water.
"Noct?" Prompto asked, looking down at Noctis' silhouette in the pool.
Prompto barely had the time to register that Noctis had emerged in front of him when he was pulled underwater, arms flailing around.
Water bubbled all around him, and as Prompto tried vainly to recover his balance he suddenly felt lips covering his own, and had to remind himself not to gasp.
The kiss was over as quickly as it had started, and when Prompto tried to kick down, he realized that the water wasn't even that deep and he could stand easily with his head above the surface. Coughing and sputtering as he tried to catch his breath, Prompto saw Noctis laughing in front of him.
"Dude, what the hell?"
"You said you wanted to kiss me," Noctis replied innocently.
"You're… Wait, where are my sunglasses?" Prompto said, his hand coming up to the side of his face.
"Probably somewhere in the pool? You should just do like I do and not wear them."
"First of all, I don't know how your eyes haven't burned by now. Also, these are prescription, I'd like not to lose them if possible?"
Noctis sighed and looked around. "Alright, I think I see them, just wait," he said, before disappearing into the water again. Noctis emerged a few seconds later, holding the glasses in his hand like a trophy. "Found' em!"
"Thanks Noct," Prompto said, grabbing his glasses before pulling himself out of the pool to put them safely on one of the chairs. He wouldn't be able to see that well, but it would do.
Prompto jumped back in the water, purposefully splashing Noctis a great deal. "Hey-" Noctis started, too busy wiping his face to realize that Prompto was pouncing on him and pushing him into the water.
Blindly, Prompto managed to find Noctis' lips and kissed him once more, lingering just a few seconds until Noctis pulled away to get some air.
"That was fun," Prompto said, grinning at Noctis as he was catching his breath.
"Maybe it could be even more fun if we're both able to take a breath first?" Noctis asked with a smirk.
"Just have to make it look like we're wrestling I guess," Prompto replied, copying Noctis as he took a deep breath and dove underwater again.
Prompto tentatively opened his eyes and saw Noctis swimming towards him - and dammit, he just looked so good in the blue light of the water, his dark hair floating around his face and the sun reflecting in his eyes.
Swiftly, their lips met again, and Prompto felt Noctis' hands close around his waist to pull him closer. Prompto had one arm slipped around Noctis' shoulder, and his other hand was getting lost in his boyfriend's hair. Their legs tangled together as they let themselves be carried around by the water until they both needed to get back up for air.
They kissed like that again once, twice, and more, emerging only a second each time to take a new breath before crashing back together underwater. Kisses grew deeper and more desperate as their bodies were pressing always closer, touching more and more intimately; until Prompto vaguely thought that maybe this was getting a bit too obvious, even under the blurred surface of the water.
"Noct, wait," Prompto breathed out reluctantly when they surfaced again.
Noctis wasn't standing too far so he could still see his boyfriend's features. There was something almost feral in the way Noctis was staring back at him, breathless and panting, as if he was going to pounce on Prompto again before he could even get a chance to talk.
Prompto swallowed hard, resisting the urge to give in to that look, and cleared his throat. "Okay, man, just- I know we talked about going public, but I'd like to avoid the headline 'Prince of Lucis and mystery boyfriend caught doing it in a not-so-private pool', if you don't mind?"
Noctis chuckled, but the way he looked at Prompto didn't change. "That's not even a good headline," he said, moving a bit closer and forcing Prompto to take a few steps back.
"Noct, you know what I mean," Prompto pleaded when his back hit the edge of the pool.
The fire in Noctis' eyes was suddenly replaced by genuine fondness, and he reached out with one hand to ruffle Prompto's wet hair. "You're cute," Noctis simply said.
"Hey!" Prompto protested, sending a splash of water in Noctis' direction.
"Hey- and here I was, trying to be nice," Noctis retorted, wiping water out of his eyes.
"Don't call me cute," Prompto said with a fake pout.
"You are cute, though," Noctis countered, smirking.
"No way. From now on, you may only call me extremely handsome," Prompto said, his lips curling up as he winked at Noctis.
Noctis stared at him with a bored expression for a second, then suddenly hooked one arm around Prompto's neck and dragged him beneath the surface of the water once more. Okay, maybe he had this one coming, Prompto thought fleetingly as he felt Noctis bite down on his collarbone.
There was a few more underwater kisses and pressing touches, until they both exchanged a meaningful look and made a mad dash for their stuff and Noctis' apartment.
"So, when do you want to do it?" Noctis asked, his hand absently playing with soft, blonde hair as Prompto's head was resting on his chest.
"I thought we just did?" Prompto said innocently, lifting his head to grin at Noctis.
Noctis snorted and flicked the top of Prompto's head. "Idiot."
"Love you too," Prompto countered happily, pushing himself up a little to plant a soft kiss on the corner of Noctis' lips.
They shifted a bit so that they were lying on their sides, face-to-face, their hands finding each other's instinctively.
"So?" Noctis asked, softly.
"So," Prompto breathed out, then paused for a second. "Think we could talk to Iggy and your dad tomorrow? We could go on proper dates for the rest of your days off then."
"Not wasting any time, huh?" Noctis asked with a small smile.
"Well… I guess, now that we talked about it, might as well dive in."
"Right, sure, I mean… There's no pressure, ok?"
Prompto smiled fondly at Noctis. "Honestly? I've been wanting to do this for a while."
"Really?"
"Yeah, I… I was scared I guess," Prompto started, trying to avoid Noctis' gaze. "About what people would say. Like, what if you weren't that sure about me, and it'd just make you realize that I wasn't right for you?"
"That's the stupidest thing you ever said. And that includes all of your ridiculous puns," Noctis said, rolling his eyes.
"Oh thanks!" Prompto retorted, pretending to be offended. "Seriously though," he continued, his voice softer. "The fact that you mentioned it today, it meant a lot to me."
"I guess, with all the royal stuff I'm doing lately, I've sort of been thinking about the future a bit," Noctis said, and now it was him who was avoiding Prompto's gaze. "I mean, when we talked to my dad back then, we had just started dating, all of this was kind of scary… But really, if I imagine myself as the future king, I… You're the only person who sees me for who I am, so, I kinda want you by my side. I mean, if you want to."
Noctis' eyes met Prompto again, and Prompto could feel himself melt, because his boyfriend rarely allowed such vulnerability to show. Prompto treasured each of these moments, when raw honestly showed in Noctis' eyes, and a shy blush colored his cheeks. He moved one hand up to cup Noctis' face, and brushed his thumb softly along that pink blush.
"You know I love you, right?" Prompto said softly. "I mean, you know everything about me, and you're still here, it's already more than I could ask for," he continued, and Noctis made a point of gently turning his head to kiss Prompto's wrist - the gesture always triggering butterflies in Prompto's stomach.
"So, together then?" Noctis asked with a fond smile.
"Ever at your side," Prompto replied with the same expression.
Their lips met in a loving kiss, until Prompto pulled back just a little bit. "Dude, if I didn't know any better I'd say we just got engaged."
Noctis laughed. "Come on, give me more credit than that. Proposing in bed is way too tacky, even for me."
"I don't know man, you're the Prince of Dorks, after all," Prompto retorted, his nose brushing Noctis'.
"Oh yeah? We'll see if you still call me that when I do it."
"When?" Prompto asked teasingly, trying to ignore how his heart had skipped a beat right then.
"Shut up, I said I'm too young for this," Noctis muttered, kissing Prompto to silence him.
Prompto pulled back slightly again. "Maybe I'll do it first, ruin your plans."
"No way, I'm the Prince. It's protocol."
"Like you care about protocol," Prompto chuckled, his breath teasing Noctis' lips.
"I do. Very much."
"Should we call Ignis right now and ask him?"
"Oh Gods, just shut up," Noctis muttered against Prompto's lips.
"Make me."
A/N: That's all for now, I hope you liked this :)
(I know I didn't elaborate on the fact that Noctis knew about Prompto's secret, I might write about this if I get the right inspiration one day though. Still, I thought that it was important that Noctis knew at this point, so I wanted to mention it at least.)
Also "Ever at your side" ruined me so, sorry not sorry for using it, and it's probably not the last time.
Come scream with me on Tumblr yuneyn or Twitter Yuneyn_ about how these boys have ruined all our lives ;)