Gladio sat at the round yellow dining room table, dust on the windowsill beside him that overlooked the parking lot and a gas station across the street. The room smelled of old bacon and beer cans, but it was home…for the time being.
His little troop of idiots had all settled in for the night, and the small double queen room was all they could afford. It was better than nothing, although it couldn't beat the desert stars at night.
He settled lower in the seat, crossing his arms and leaning his head back on the chair. It would be a long night, and seeing as the other two had already jumped on the beds, the plastic seat would have to suffice.
A small smirk appeared on his face. He'd had worse.
His eyes perused the room, landing on Prompto. The youth was sleeping soundly, blonde hair mussed out of the usual style. His face, normally goofy and innocent, was more the latter, cheeks smooshed together as he nuzzled farther into the musty pillow.
He then looked at Ignis, and hovered on his sleeping face in particular. Even in sleep the man's visage was haunting, displaying jagged scars that crossed both eyes, worse on the left than on the right. A simmering rage that lay at the bottom of Gladio's gut reacted almost instantly at the sight.
He knew Noctis was the priority – the prince – the heir...a close friend. He knew how important the boy was.
But he could hardly believe all that was worth…this. Ignis was his friend, too, if not his best one. Not for the first time he wondered why they still kept at it, even after that.
He shook his head suddenly, frowning. He knew why they kept at it; why they even started. It was the most important thing…partly.
He would definitely let Noctis hear it when they met again. God knew he wanted to do it now, but the only thing to catch his ire these days were monsters and Prompto snapping his camera one too many times.
His gaze intensified on the sleeping man. His glasses were on the bed-side table. Ignis wasn't used to not having them on his face yet. Gladio made a mental note to remember to buy him sunglasses that hid most of the scarring. Maybe Ignis would feel better that way.
His attention turned back to the man at hand, sleeping restlessly. Night after night Ignis had horrific nightmares. He'd always wake, screaming, realizing his own sightlessness and forgetting he'd forfeited that and so much more to save the prince.
It was cruelty on top of cruelty.
Almost as if a bell had rung Gladio noticed the familiar signs of a night terror – Ignis began flinching and twitching in his sleep, whimpering until it became an actual cry.
Gladio was up in an instant, heavy footfalls sounding as he hurried to his friend.
He took his hand and held it, whispering sweet nothings so as to wake Ignis in the most gentle way possible.
His thrashing continued, his cries becoming more hoarse. His hand gripped onto Gladio's with as much strength as he had, white-knuckled and tense.
As a side-thought, Gladio was glad that prompto had drank the night before. He was out like a light – and wouldn't wake until later that afternoon with a raging hangover. The poor kid.
He continued to hold his friend's hand, his other reaching up to stroke Ignis's hair back, cradling his head so he wouldn't hurt himself.
Slowly Ignis pulled himself from the nightmare, as if extricating oneself from quick sand. His eyes opened, only to see nothing. The milky white of them made Gladius clench his jaw. If he could trade places – he would.
"G-gladio…?"
"Shhh," Gladio murmured, as Ignis clung onto him, sitting up in bed and grasping for him. "I. I can't see – Why can't I see?"
"There was an accident," Gladio began slowly, as he'd done this before. "It's okay…It's over now."
"It hurts," Ignis would say with a shaking breath, rubbing at his eyes where a phantom pain throbbed.
Gladio took his hand away from his scars and held it tight to his chest. He looked at his friend solemnly, although Ignis could not see his expression. "Take deep breaths," He started, and when Ignis did not listen to him, a budding panic attack making his breath shallow, Gladio released his hand and brought it to Ignis' face, stroking his cheek. "Breathe. Please. You can do this."
Ignis inadvertently leaned into the touch, trembling, taking comfort where he could.
Eventually, Gladio was able to make him calm again. The man – broken, winded, with sweat on his brow and a cut on his lip from biting it so hard – finally pulled away from Gladio and attempted to pull together the pieces of him that weren't screaming.
"Thank you," He said in a controlled tone. Gladio knew intimately how much he would be beating himself up for this later. "I am fine now."
"Can I get you anything?" Gladio asked, and didn't wait for an answer when Ignis tried to refuse.
He came back with a glass of water seconds later. "Here," He held it out to Ignis who grasped for it but missed entirely, grabbing at air.
I'm an idiot, Gladio thought as he quickly sat on the edge of the bed, the mattress dipping.
"You don't have to – " Gladio was already putting the cup's edge to Ignis's pink lips, tipping it so that the man could drink.
Ignis sipped it, before nearly chugging it, hands reaching up to grasp around the cup, inadvertently holding his friends hands.
Gladio allowed him to have the cup, sliding his hands away. When ignis finished, he attempted to put the glass on the bedside table – but accidentally spilled some on himself in the process, wetting his already damp nightshirt. The cup fell empty to the floor, having missed the table entirely.
"Drats," he cursed under his breath as Gladio quickly picked up the cup and silently tried to dry his shirt with the bed sheets.
"Just – Stop." Ignis propped himself up, "I need to change clothes anyway."
There were sweat stains from the night terror. Gladio understood, and made a grunt in acquiescence before turning around to give him some privacy, although Ignis likely couldn't tell.
Moments went by, Gladio crossing his arms and staring at the wall patiently. Ignis made a few frustrated sounds, before slumping. "I…" he started, "I can't. Do it, that is."
Gladio turned back around, eyebrows raised, only to see a mess – some shirt buttons were unbuttoned, others weren't – the shirt was rumbled and the collar was lopsided now.
Despite how sad it was – the fact that Ignis was reduced to this, of all things, was purely a tragedy – Gladio couldn't help but to find the usually put-together man...adorable. He could tell that Ignis hated asking for help, especially with something so mundane.
Gladio swallowed his smile and leaned over him, unnaturally close as he unbuttoned the shirt. It almost felt intimate, in a way, how long it took to unbutton each row.
He maneuvered the shirt off of him, leaving Ignis bare-chested and shivering in the night air. Unlike Gladio, who was practically pure muscle, he had what some would call a swimmers build. Sleek, fast, with enough strength to pack a punch, but slender at the same time.
Ignis may have been trembling - …but it wasn't from the cold.
Ignis slowly reached up, placing a hand on Gladio's chest, keeping him from leaving to get another shirt.
"What's wrong?" Gladio asked, arching a quizzical brow.
Ignis lowered his blind eyes, unsure. "I…I can't. Do this. It's not the same. Sometimes I even wonder if I can feel anything again. I miss it. I can't even.."
"What?" Gladio inhaled, staring into his friend's face.
"I can't even see you anymore. I don't feel the urge to cook, nothing excites me anymore. I'm…"
He clenched his jaw. "I need to feel something again. Please."
The way he looked up at Gladio – as if Gladio had the answer, to everything, as if he'd put the stars in the sky and could do it again just to save him some kind of pain – made Gladio freeze entirely.
"Make me feel something," Ignis muttered, his eyes fluttering away, almost ashamed, and it only took that to make Gladio seal their lips together in a bruising kiss.
Ignis fumbled, at first, his hands trembling as they wrapped around Gladio's neck, his unsure movements proving he'd not done this much – if at all.
Gladio pushed him up against the headboard, kissing him as if the air he needed to breath was in his lungs. Ignis returned it in kind, mouth opening to allow Gladio entry, moaning almost wickedly when Gladio nibbled on his bottom lip.
He'd told himself. He'd told himself he would never let this happen…would never let his feelings out like this. It wasn't normal, to hold such feelings for a close friend. He'd seen the man through thick and thin, would give his life for him…but he'd never been able to see them together despite the strength of his affections.
He would have been fine. Content, even. To just be beside him. He had always known Gladio wasn't like that…like him. Gladio had had many girlfriends in the past, bragging about them, how soft and supple they were in bed, how soft their hair was –
Gladio slid his hand from Ignis's side to his waste, rubbing his thumb against the curve of muscle there.
Ignis was all sharp angles and lithe limbs, unlike the numerous women Gladio had taken to bed. He started to rethink this. Even worse than before…he was now blind. Gladios wouldn't – couldn't – want him. If it were even barely possible before, it was incomprehensible now.
How had Gladio even agreed to this? How?
He yelped, cock twitching in his pants as Gladio bit down into his bottom lip teasingly, sliding a tongue over the cut there. The pain, mixed with Gladio's knee pressed up against his erection, was enough to have his skin flushing like a virgin schoolgirl.
Feeling so vulnerable, feeling as if he was already dead or dying, and then being taken care of by Gladio like he had been so far…it was what had pushed him over the edge in the first place.
Gladio's caring hands, caressing him out of nightmares, leading the way, protecting him from a monster who's blow he hadn't seen, handing him ingredients for a meal…unbuckling his pants…
With sudden abandon Gladio palmed his length, feeling Ignis twitch against his deft fingers. Ignis was beautiful like this, sprawled out on the bed, lips bitten and red, bottom lip swollen and looking almost obscene, his pale skin glowing in the dim lamplight – his pink nipples hardening in the cold air…
Gladio leaned down and took a nub into his mouth, rolling it around his tongue and groaning out loud when Ignis's back arched almost perfectly, mouth open in a silent 'oh'. His elegant hands came to knot themselves in Gladio's hair, holding him there as his tongue did absolutely devilish things to his body.
Involuntarily, Ignis began to grind against Gladio's thigh, cock twitching – wanting, needing friction. He inhaled sharply when Gladio pressed it against him firmly, knowing well what he wanted. When he took it away, however, Ignis whimpered – a sound that made Gladio growl with need.
The bigger man finally wrapped his fingers around Ignis's length, giving a few slow, experimental pumps to his prick that had precum quickly leaking out of the slit, feeling it throb.
"G-gladio," Ignis moaned, lost in the sensation of having a calloused hand around his cock. He thrust up into his hand, gasping delicately before biting into his wrist to stifle his moans.
Gladio brushed his arm aside, kissing him once before murmuring, "Let me hear you. I want to know what you sound like when you cum."
Ignis nearly choked at the sudden pace that Gladio put to pumping his weeping length, brushing a thumb over and over against the slit, twisting and applying pressure in just the right places.
Ignis gasped and undulated against him, hips moving with each pump, head tossing back and forth. He was almost there – Every moan and every whimper had Gladio's cock becoming impeccably hard.
A knot was slowly coming undone, a tightness in Ignis's abdomen that came apart with a snap. "Gladios!" Ignis moaned, loudly, as he thrust one last time and stilled in his hand. Creamy white streams of cum spurted out and ran down his glistening length as Gladios pumped his trembling cock even after completion – making sure every drop was out.
"Oh, gods," Ignis murmured, breathing heavily. It was only then that he realized Gladio was hard as well, feeling him pressed up against his thigh.
With a suddenness that startled him, his pants were practically ripped off and his legs spread.
"Gladio - ?" He choked out.
A finger entered him, warm and covered in lubricant. He yelped at the foreign feeling, clenching down on it only to feel the cock pressed against his leg throb at the constriction.
"Fuck," Gladio muttered, his deep voice a few octaves lower. He was painfully hard, hearing Ignis moan and call his name like that nearly had him cum untouched. It'd taken all of his willpower not to blow his load right then and there, but now…now he couldn't wait any longer.
He put another finger in, hearing Ignis curse under his breath and writhe against his knuckle.
"I'm sorry," He breathed out hurriedly, "I can't stop. I need to be inside you…now."
Ignis froze. Gladio…was going to put it in?
His cock twitched back to life at the thought. Gods, Ignis thought to himself, and feeling suddenly coy, he spread his legs further and despite the pain moaned and bit his lip against the third finger to be entered. It felt odd, being stretched like this, as he'd never done anything of the sort before. Despite this…if he were to go through with it, he was glad Gladio was the one to do it.
Gladio hurriedly stretched him. He was doing a botch job of it – but feeling Ignis's tight ring of muscles clench and throb against his fingers, feeling how warm and slick he was inside, seeing him moan and cum and call out his name…it all excited him – more than anyone or anything had before.
"Fuck," He cursed, slicking up his own rigid cock before positioning himself between Ignis's legs, pressing his length against Ignis's winking hole. Ignis immediately tensed, yelping against how big it felt.
That? Was going to fit?
He highly doubted it, but his struggling was halted by Gladio who gathered up his shaking hands and pinned them above his head, so that he was unable to struggle.
"You're beautiful," Gladio muttered, and Ignis stilled completely at this, sightlessly staring up at him. His lips almost trembled as Gladio, with the utmost care, connected their mouths and playfully flicked his tongue across his own, before thrusting entirely into him.
It felt as if the wind had been knocked out of him – felt as if he'd positively been impaled. Despite being prepared beforehand, the feeling of having something forced into him, spreading him around it, stretching him, made tears gather at the corner of his eyes.
Gladio trembled above him, cock twitching inside his slick hole, feeling his muscles clench down and around him. It took everything in him, once again, to not move.
After a moment of adjustment, Ignis began to relax – only slightly. The pain was beginning to flee, being replaced with contentment and burning fulfillment that had him wanting more.
In a surprising move Ignis fully wrapped his legs around Gladio's waste, bringing him closer and farther inside him.
Gladio choked out at the contact, groaning deeply at how the friction felt against his throbbing length. What was left of his control snapped like a dry twig. He couldn't stop himself – not now. Not after that.
He pulled back, all the way to the head, before thrusting the entire length back in, hitting something deep inside Ignis that absolutely made him feel stars.
Ignis gasped and felt as if the wind had been kicked out of him, only finding his voice after to find himself repeating, "Oh…oh! Gl-" Another thrust, ramming right into that same bundle of nerves inside him, twisting up in his abdomen to make the knot even tighter.
Gladio began a break-neck pace, slamming into Ignis over and over again. "Iggy…Fuck. M'gonna come soon." The bed post creaked as it slammed into the wall over and over again.
Ignis couldn't even speak – each thrust hit his sweet spot and made him see stars. His cock was now back to full hardness and weeping, dripping precum in rivulets down his throbbing length. He was already close, moments after cumming for the first time – he could barely believe Gladio was inside him, thrusting into him, fucking him –
Gladio's pace became quicker, slapping against him as Ignis's ass all but engulfed his cock, sucking it back in when he pulled out, quivering and undulating around him.
"I – " Ignis found his voice, "I love you." He thrust once, twice more. "Gladios! I love you!" Ignis screamed out, their chests touching as Gladio seized up, tensing as his cock throbbed.
A warmness filled Ignis as Gladio came inside him, a few more thrusts embedding his seed deep inside, his throbbing head hitting his prostate over and over until he too was spilling over the edge, gasping as he came, spurting untouched against both of their chests.
They panted hard together, Gladio looking at him with wide eyes. He – Ignis…loved him?
He pulled out, flaccid cock sliding out with a wet squelch, white liquid following. Ignis's hole throbbed, bereft at the loss.
Ignis turned his head and closed his legs, still breathing hard. Fuck – he'd said it…He hadn't meant to say it. Drats.
Gladio collapsed beside him on the bed, sweat glistening on his chiseled chest and abdomen, the room cold against his hot skin.
He stared up at the ceiling, wondering. "How long?"
Ignis flinched, before deciding he'd already said it. It was out. It was too late for take-backsies.
"A long time now," He surmised, putting an arm over his eyes, still panting. "Since we were children, probably…didn't wholly realize it until we were teens."
"Jesus," Gladios murmured, wondering how he'd let that get past him, realizing Ignis had seen him kiss women and even at times walked in on him fucking them. He'd messed up...bad.
And to think. He could've been fucking him years ago instead of hiding his affection with random women.
Ignis continued, "I know you don't feel the same…and I know this was just to help me. I…appreciate it. We don't have to talk about this ever again. I'm sorry for using you – "
Gladio's sudden movement startled him, and suddenly he was being kissed; the taste of Gladio against his tongue, soft lips moving in tune with his.
Gladios pulled away. "I love you," He replied – finally – and it made Ignis stop breathing entirely, eyes wide and lips trembling. "I have since a few years back. I…I thought maybe it was just strong affection. Until it wasn't."
Ignis stayed like that, wide-eyed with tears at the corner of his eyes, before a grin lit up his features and he laughed. It was the most happy, broken sound Gladio had ever heard.
"You bumbling fool," He grinned, before reaching out a hand to touch Gladio's face. It rest perfectly against his cheek, and Ignis used this to guide him to his mouth, kissing him like he never had.
Years later, in that same blasted car on those same desert roads…the top down and the wind blowing in Gladio's hair.
Ignis leans over, resting his head on his shoulder, mumbling something unintelligible before falling back asleep.
Gladio smiles a small, gentle smile.
Noctis watches them from the rear view mirror and shakes his head, before looking away, a smirk on his face. He fucking knew it.