A/N: Hey guys,
I know this is kinda late again because Valentine's Day was on Thursday, but I had my work schedule and over things (like birthdays and a very belated Christmas meal) pop up between - that and I'm terrible at deadlines, I should really stop doing theme based one shots (again sorry), but I really wanted to get this one done because the idea kept popping up in my head.
I couldn't really think of a decent title or summary and I'm no good at tagging - so I'm sorry they're not very informative. I've rated it teen and up because I used a swear word.
Thank you so much to those of you who left kudos and/ or comments or even just read Lonely This Christmas, I really appreciate your support.
If you guys spot any spelling/ grammar mistakes or any mistakes in general, I would be very grateful if you could just drop me a message or comment to let me know please, I think I've read through this too many times to spot them anymore.
Anyway, I hope you guys had a good Valentine's Day and I hope you enjoy this fic,
thank you again,
-Fox
Summary: Prompto decides to make Valentine's chocolates for his crush, but he can't muster up the courage to give the chocolates to their intended recipient. Rated Teen and Up. Uploaded to AO3 under same pen name.
Valentine's Day always started at least a week early in the crown city of Lucis; even more so for the students of Insomnia High, not because of the fact that shops, online retailers, music stations and television adverts were constantly badgering on about it nor for the fact that many shops, cafes and even the school had been decorated with roses, streamers and hearts in varying shades of pink and red in the run up to Valentine's Day – but because where there was a good looking, teenage prince, there was bound to be hopeful teenage girls following closely in his footsteps.
For most teenage boys, this scenario would be their most ideal dreams – but for Noctis it was just another headache in the long list of annoyances that came with the being the heir to the throne and the large posse of adorning fans weren't the only thing he had to worry about at this time of year either.
"Looks like someone is the flavour of the month again," Gladiolus announced in an amused voice; as he and Ignis let themselves into Noctis's apartment – he threw a glossy magazine down on the coffee table in front of Noctis and Prompto.
Noctis paused the video game that he and Prompto had been playing, dropped his console controller into his lap and turned his attention toward the magazine instead; he picked it up and let his eyes scan over the cover with vague interest.
Prompto peered over Noctis's shoulder; on the front page of the magazine was a large image of Noctis descending the Citadel steps with a brunette haired woman following closely behind him – the woman looked to be in her twenties and wore a black, leather bodysuit that hugged her figure along with black trousers, matching thigh high boots and a red cape; emblazoned on top of the picture were large white words that read "PRINCE HEARTTHROB" along with the subheading "Prince Noctis seen with mysterious woman – has he found love?"
"They kept hold of that photo," Noctis mused more to himself than his friends, "I'm pretty sure this was taken last summer."
"We know that – but as far as the public are aware, this could've been taken this morning," Ignis pointed out, "I'll have the Citadel release a comment to nullify these claims, of course."
"Fine by me," Noctis shrugged indifferently while he flipped the magazine cover over to glance over the contents page, "at least they've stopped running the story about the supposed fling between my dad and that Camelia woman," he added with a shudder.
"Woah, look at these articles," Prompto pointed at a few of the titles listed on the contents page, "top ten best features of Prince Noctis, the boy behind the crown, are you compatible with Prince Noctis? And… Agony Ardyn? What the hell is that?" Prompto slowly took the magazine into his owns hands and rifled through the pages until he found the one that had piqued his interest.
"Isn't this magazine aimed at girls?" Noctis questioned; quirking a quizzical eyebrow at Gladiolus.
"I have a little sister," Gladiolus reminded the prince in a defensive tone as he snatched the magazine back off Prompto and flicked through the pages curiously.
"He probably collects them," Prompto whispered loudly with a mischevious wink at Noctis.
"That's a disturbing thought," Noctis sighed wearily.
"The whole damn thing is about you – I don't even get a mention!" Gladiolus tutted and shook his head in disbelief.
"Why would you?" Noctis scoffed teasingly as he slowly picked up his console controller again. "I'm obviously far more interesting."
Gladiolus opened his mouth – no doubt to argue back – but Ignis tapped the burly brunette on the shoulder and shook his head at Gladiolus with a warning stare.
"So who is your mysterious girlfriend then?" Prompto nudged Noctis playfully.
"I couldn't tell you," Noctis shrugged again, "I know I've seen her before, but I don't really know who she is."
"She's definitely a member of the Kingsglaive," Ignis commented as he took the magazine from Gladiolus and inspected the picture closely, "going by her uniform, I'd say that she is a mage."
"I know her!" Gladiolus told his friends as realisation dawned upon his face. "She's Crowe Altius! I must say, you have good taste, Noct."
"They'll be writing articles about a different girl next week," Noctis waved Gladiolus's comment away.
"- or loop around to their all-time favourite," Ignis added.
"I can see the headlines now, 'star-crossed lovers; torn apart by war,'" Gladiolus teased.
"'Is an arranged marriage on the cards for Prince Noctis and His childhood sweetheart?'" Prompto joined in with a playful nudge. "'A peace treaty between Lucis and Niflheim as our own Prince Noctis and Lady Lunafreya tie the knot' - that had a nice ring to it, you know."
Noctis let out an irritable groan and rolled his eyes.
"Was that a yes?" Prompto pretended to gasp.
"Buzz off," Noctis retorted – shoving Prompto away while the blond began to laugh.
"Speaking of Lady Lunafreya, have you sent the notebook back yet?" Ignis asked curiously.
"No, I'll do it tonight."
"You said that last night," Ignis frowned at the prince, "and the night before… and the night before that if my memory serves me right."
Noctis shifted guiltily in his seat, "I've been busy."
"Busy playing video games?" Ignis retorted sceptically as he eyed the pause menu on the television screen before he readjusted his glasses and let out a resigned sigh. "Make sure you do return the notebook tonight, it wouldn't be very gentlemanly of you to keep a lady waiting."
"Face it, there's nothing gentlemanly about him anyway," Gladiolus quipped in an amused tone.
"According to your magazine, there is," Noctis countered; throwing another sly grin in Gladiolus's direction.
"I hope you've eaten a proper dinner," Ignis commented as his eyes lingered over open packets of biscuits, sweets and crisps along with cans of soda that littered the coffee table, "you'll do your health no favours if you don't eat a well-balanced meal – and at a sensible time," the bespectacled man added as he looked at a watch on his wrist.
"Is that the time already?" Prompto's eyes widened in shock as he pressed the home button on his phone and glanced at his screen to see the numbers '19:37' flash up. "I better get home – take over me, big guy," he added; gently tossing his console controller at Gladiolus as he rose from his seat.
"Stay for a while longer – Ignis can give you a lift home later," Noctis tried to persuade the blond.
"Why?" Gladiolus shot at the prince. "Scared that I'm going to kick your arse?"
"As if," Noctis scoffed at the burly brunette.
"I'd love to, but I've got homework and stuff I really need to get done tonight," Prompto waved away Noctis's offer as he carefully tiptoed around the coffee table and headed towards the apartment's front door, "thanks anyway," Prompto slipped his trainers on at the door, shrugged his hooded jacket over his school uniform and grabbed his bag from beside the front door and gave a cheerful wave while chiming, "see you later, guys," before he disappeared over the threshold and closed the door behind himself.
"He's more chipper than usual," Gladiolus blinked in confusion at the place where Prompto had stood mere seconds ago for a moment or two before a thought struck him, "you don't think he's all loved up for Valentine's Day, do you? Because I don't think I could live with myself if the pipsqueak got a date before I did."
"God knows – he's been like that for a few days," Noctis shrugged his shoulders as he unpaused the video game and used the brief moment of distraction to get a few hits on Gladiolus's character, "I'm sure he would've told me by now if he had."
"Hey!" Gladiolus discarded the second controller into Ignis's hands as he lunged forwards at Noctis; trying to prise the prince's controller out of his hands.
Prompto took the elevator down to the basement – where sensor lights flickered into life upon Prompto's arrival to reveal a large garage – he found his bicycle tucked out of the way beside the furthest wall; Ignis had parked his car in front of it in his usual spot to aid in concealing Prompto's bike – not that he needed to, as petty crimes such as thefts and vandalism were rarely seen within neighbourhoods that resided this close to the Citadel.
Prompto walked his bike away from its position against the wall – careful enough not to make contact with Ignis's car – before he balanced his school bag on the handlebars, climbed into the saddle, pushed off on one of the pedals and let his bike lazily glide across the vast underground carpark while he guided it towards the garage doors; where he used a key card – that had been given to him by Noctis when they became close friends – to operate the garage doors in order to open them before he left the garage.
The cold air outside hit his face; making his eyes begin to water and his cheeks sting from the immediate temperature difference.
The lights that lined the streets were already bathing the roads of Insomnia in their fluorescent glow; Prompto didn't need to come into contact with the dreaded daemons to feel comfort in their presence – mere tales and rumours of the of the dastardly beasts were enough to satisfy the blond's curiosity; he'd only be too glad if he never had to cross paths with any sort of daemon in his life.
Prompto placed one of his feet upon the concrete ground to steady himself as he withdrew a pair of earphones from his pocket, inserted the earphone jack into the audio port of his phone and turned shuffle on his playlist before placing the buds into his ears (with the hopes that music might help take his mind off of the freezing temperatures) and pushing off on his pedals again.
He sang the odd verse of lyrics here and there – murmuring and humming in the places where he didn't know the words – or chimed in with the chorus to his heart's content as he travelled through the city towards the outer suburbs; taking every shortcut and backstreet that he knew of while remaining oblivious from the odd stares and snickering he received from some of the people who he passed on his journey home.
When he reached the top of his street, Prompto positioned himself so that he was side saddling his bike and guided it down the road until he reached his house – where he squeezed the brakes until the bike slowed down enough for him to hop off and walk the bicycle the rest of the way to the gate that led to his back garden; he briefly paused to check the mailbox as he passed it – grabbing only a few envelopes that resides inside; of which he stuffed into his jacket pocket for the time being.
Prompto pulled out a small bunch of keys out of the pocket of his trousers and quickly shifted through his limited choices until he found the silver one that unlocked the padlock on the garden gate – he pushed his bike through the gate into his back garden before returning to replace the padlock; clicking the lock into place.
Prompto lent the bike against the wall beside his back door before he then searched through his house keys again until he found the one to the back door.
"I'm home!" Prompto announced to the darkened house out of habit as he crossed the threshold, flipped the switch of the kitchen lights, pulled his earphones from his ears and flexed his fingers to relieve the numbness that had been caused by the cold air outside.
Prompto pulled the earphone jack out of the audio port of his phone; bunching the wires together and stuffing them in his jacket pocket while he pulled the envelopes out of the other pocket instead – he glanced over the recipients' names of each letter; Mrs E Argentum or Mr B Argentum.
With an uninterested shrug, Prompto tossed the letters down on top of the kitchen counter – beside the usual note left to him by his adoptive mother.
'Dinner is in the slow cooker, we'll be home tomorrow evening – call us if you need us.'
Being home alone for nights at a time was nothing new – Prompto had gotten used to his parents' absence years ago. Nowadays the blond teen began to find their presence somewhat awkward; in more recent years it had become more evident to Prompto that Mr and Mrs Argentum knew nothing about him nor did they seem to know how to approach the subject – admittedly, neither did Prompto – but he felt as though he couldn't blame them; he wasn't their real son after all and they had been practically absent throughout the latter half of his childhood and all through his teen years, but it wasn't like they were uncaring towards him.
Prompto pushed the thought of his parents to the back of his mind as he glanced over at the soup that had been kept warm in the slow cooker; with a small frown playing on his lips, Prompto moved closer to the steaming pot and lifted the lid to inspect the contents inside.
"Green soup curry," Prompto noted as he grabbed a wooden spoon from the cutlery drawer and gave the soup a stir, "and plenty of it," he added while his frown deepened; it was one of his favourite meals – he had noted from an early age that if his mother left a big helping of his favourite food, it usually meant that his parents might not be home for a few day; regardless of what her notes said.
Prompto instead shifted his attention towards the fridge; he pulled the door open and searched through the shelves until he found what he was looking for – he had to hide them further back in the fridge so that his parents didn't find them and ask unwanted questions; especially around this time of year.
Prompto took the small, silicone moulding tray from the fridge and placed it on the dining table; he then gave one of the chocolates inside a tentative prod to see whether the chocolate had set. With a satisfied smile, Prompto grabbed a plate from one of the kitchen cupboards, carefully praised the chocolates from the moulding tray and placed them on the plate before he set it down on the table too – he then searched the other cupboards for disposable icing bags, icing sugar, a jug, a mixing bowl and a tablespoon.
The teenager measured out the icing sugar before he dumped it into the mixing bowl and gradually added warm water as he stirred until the icing became thin enough to just coat the back of the spoon. Prompto quickly transferred the icing into the disposable icing bag and poked a small hole into the tip of the icing bag and began to pipe his chosen design onto his homemade chocolates.
Prompto put the icing bag down and stepped back to look at his handiwork with a satisfied smile; each chocolate now had a fish or a fishing rod drawn on it in icing – a couple of pieces of rock candy was used as a lure on each fishing rod.
The teen put the chocolates back in the fridge to let the icing set overnight before he went about tidying away the mess that he had made while he hummed to himself in high spirits as he thought over his plans for the following day.
It wasn't until the following morning that Prompto found an issue with his plans.
He woke up, had a shower, brushed his teeth and dressed in his school uniform as normal.
The blond then trudged downstairs after he had quickly used a hairdryer to blow dry his hair, put a slice of bread in the toaster, took the chocolates out of the fridge and began to box them while he waited for the toaster; he wrapped the box of chocolates in black wrapping paper complete with a matching tag and a golden ribbon – two colours that Prompto thought complimented his intended recipient the most.
After buttering his toast, Prompto put the corner of the slice of toast in his mouth and held the slice in place while he delicately put the box of chocolates in his bag – ensuring that there was no way that the box or the chocolates would get crushed or crumpled during his morning commute to school - before he took a proper bite out of his toast.
Panic coursed through the Prompto's body as the kitchen clock caught his eye – the time was already ten minutes past eight o'clock.
Prompto quickly shoved the rest of his toast in his mouth and grabbed his jacket; throwing the garment on as quickly as he could, before he snatched his school bag from the kitchen table and burst out of the back door – stopping in his tracks only to lock the back door – as he grabbed his bike, unlocked the gate and swiftly clambered onto his bike and pedalled as fast as he could.
He skidded through the school gates on his bike – slamming the front wheel into one of the bicycle racks before he had even jumped off of the saddle.
Prompto swiftly descended from his bike and wrapped his bike lock around the front wheel before he pivoted on the spot and came face to face with a familiar raven haired teen – and this was when he realised his issue.
"Noct!" Prompto yelped as he leapt backwards so as not to accidentally walk into the other teen – he felt the heat rise to his cheeks as he suddenly became aware of the chocolates that now resided within his school bag.
In theory, hand-making chocolates had been a really good idea; but now that he was stood in front of Noctis the reality of his idea seemed to come crashing down on him and the confidence that he had felt throughout the past few days swiftly seeped away – leaving Prompto feeling more vulnerable than ever before.
"Eight twenty-six," Noctis mused aloud as he checked the time on his phone with an amused grin and slowly turned towards the school's main entrance, "I swear you get later and later every day."
"I lost track of time," Prompto chuckled nervously as he ruffled his hair and fell into step beside Noctis, "besides, not everyone gets Ignis to drive them to school every morning."
"Ah, you got me there," Noctis gave a small laugh, "by the way; did you even comb your hair this morning?"
"Why?" Prompto cocked his head at the prince. "Does it look bad?"
"It looks like a chocobo's butt."
"N- no way!" Prompto tried to catch a glimpse of his reflection in one of the windows. "I- I completely forgot!"
Noctis tried to stifle his laughter while he watched his best friend try to flatten his hair.
"Relax – it looks fine," the raven haired teen reassured Prompto, "I think it suits you – maybe you should think about making it a permanent style. Anyway, I'll see you at lunch," Noctis waved at Prompto before he jogged away down the corridor towards his homeroom classroom.
Prompto felt his grip tighten over the handles of his school bag as he watch Noctis's figure become smaller and smaller the further the raven haired teen walked away; until he was completely lost within the throngs of chatting students who slowly made their way to their own homerooms.
"I should've given them to him," the thought ran through Prompto's mind, "I was late because I wrapped them up to give to him today," he pulled his phone out of his pocket to check the time – twenty-nine minutes past eight – but his eyes were drawn towards the date instead; sixth of February, "maybe it's a little too soon to be giving out chocolates," Prompto mutely reasoned with himself as the screen went blank again and his own reflection caught his eye – as did his unruly blond hair.
The Westminster Chimes echoed through the school corridors to signal the start of the school day; pulling Prompto out of his stupor only for him to find that he was quite alone in the school corridor.
"My hair does not look like a chocobo's butt," Prompto pouted sulkily to himself as he quickly shuffled to his designated classroom.
By the morning of Tuesday the eleventh of February, Prompto had still been unable to pluck up the courage to give Noctis the box of chocolates – each time he found a new excuse.
"It still seems too early to give them to him."
"He'll tired from working his weekend job – I don't want to bother him."
"I can't give them to him in the morning; he'll have to carry them around school all day – that's just awkward."
"Dude, guys don't just give their best friends chocolate on Valentine's Day – someone's gonna see it and it's gonna be weird."
"King Regis will kill you if some reporter sees you giving Noct chocolates this close to Valentine's Day and it ends up in the news or something – or at least he will if Ignis doesn't kill you first – and let's face it, there's almost always a reporter nearby!"
"Maybe it'll be quieter if I gave them to him after school – no wait, Gladio or Ignis always meet him after school – maybe tomorrow morning instead."
"Valentine's Day is on the fourteenth – I should wait until then, that'll make it more special."
Were to name a few of the excuses.
To save himself from accidentally squashing the box of chocolate, Prompto had relocated them from his school bag to his locker – just to be on the safe side.
"I'm a coward," Prompto finally inwardly admitted his defeat, "I could've given them to him at any point, but I'm too much of a coward to do it," he was lent against the school wall where he watched as what must've been at least the sixth girl that morning alone bound up to Noctis happily and present a box of chocolates to the prince, "they make it look so easy," he scowled to himself.
Noctis awkwardly accepted the chocolates from the girl and tried his best to smile gratefully as he bowed his head at her and thanked her before he excused himself to join Prompto's side.
"Don't leave me like that again," Noctis hissed under his breath as he reached Prompto; an uncharacteristic blush had crept onto the raven haired teen's features.
"And miss the chance of seeing you all flustered like this?" Prompto pushed his thoughts away again to tease the prince, "not a chance! She's still watching you by the way."
Noctis snuck a glance over his shoulder to see that the girl was indeed watching him expectantly as she too re-joined her friends near the school gates and began to whisper excitedly.
"Did you see that?" The girl's whisper carried through the corridor. "He looked back at me!"
"Who knew that Prince Noctis was so shy and reserved?" One of her friends squealed. "That just makes him cuter!"
"Oh man," Noctis groaned as he quickly cast his eyes towards the ground, made Prompto turn on the spot and walk further away from the group of girls, "do not breathe a word of this to Gladio or Ignis," he shot a warning glare at the blond.
"Would I dare?" Prompto asked playfully with an innocent grin.
"I wouldn't put it past you," Noctis finally shifted his gaze away from the floor after he stowed the chocolates away in his bag, "huh, speak of the devil and he shall arrive," Noctis mused in a weary tone as the familiar brunette appeared in front of the gate with a young girl who was wearing a junior high school uniform jogging in tow behind him – his eyes flitted across each student until he pinpointed Noctis and Prompto; Noctis stopped in his tracks as he drew closer to Gladiolus, "and to what do I owe for this pleasure?"
"Don't flatter yourself, your highness," Gladiolus smirked as he reached into the pocket of his Crownsguard fatigues, "I'm only dropping Iris off for school."
Prompto wrinkled his nose in confusion, "is Iris twelve years old?"
"Yeah, what about it?"
"So she's a junior high school student – this is a high school," Noctis pointed out.
"I know."
"So you're basically just roaming around the wrong school?" Prompto quirked an inquisitive eyebrow at the older man. "That's not weird at all!"
"No, Iris gave me another errand to run," Gladiolus explained, "who am I to say no to my little sister after all."
"Gladdy, not here and not now!" The brunette girl finally caught up to her older brother and murmured timidly as she tried to tug on her brother's jacket.
"What's the other errand?" Noctis asked; his eyes flitting between the Amicitia siblings with a curious expression.
Gladiolus finally withdrew a pink gift wrapped box from his jacket pocket and offered them to Noctis who was rooted to the spot with a dumbfounded expression.
"Wow, even the big guy makes it look easy," Prompto felt his jaw drop, "there's not even a chink in Gladio's armour!"
"They're from Iris," Gladiolus told Noctis while other students around them began to stop, stare at them and whisper behind their hands.
"Gladdy!" Iris protested as she instead curled her hands into fists and began to pound on Gladiolus's back – not that he took any notice – her face had turned beet red with embarrassment. "You weren't supposed to tell him, it was supposed to be anonymous!"
"I… uh…" Noctis ruffled his hair nervously with one hand and he slowly accepted the box with the other – his face quickly matched Iris's, "th- thanks Iris, I really 'prechiate it," he managed to mumble.
"And with that, my work here is done," Gladiolus said with an amused smirk as he admired his handiwork, "I better get Iris to school before she's late - I'll see you at training after school, Noct," he added as he turned on the spot – pausing only to flash another teasing grin at Noctis over his shoulder – and passed back through the school gates once more.
"I'll bash your head in when I get the chance," Noctis murmured as he managed a weak smile while he waved the older man away.
Iris had remained rooted to the spot where she tried to hide her face behind her hands – Prompto had been sure that the poor girl might burst into tears at any moment.
"You okay, Iris?" Prompto tapped the girl on the shoulder with a concerned expression.
"Yep," Iris perked up immediately and gave a laugh – all signs of her embarrassment had flooded away and were replaced with her usual cheerful demeanour, "it was nice seeing you guys!" The younger girl quickly pivoted and ran to catch up with her older brother – Prompto was pretty sure he heard her threaten the older Amicitia as she caught up with him again.
"How could he do that to poor Iris?" Prompto frowned at the siblings' retreating backs. "Talk about cold hearted."
"I'm sure she's fine about it," Noctis replied as he and Prompto began to walk towards the school's main entrance again, "I'm certain he only did it like that to wind me up more than anything – that and Iris probably wouldn't have given them to me herself," Noctis pointed out with a small shrug, "maybe it was his way of telling her to be more confident in herself – it's not the first time he's done something like this – but man this is going to take a while to live down," he added; casting fugitive glances at his fellow students – who seemed to have returned to their previous tasks; but Prompto caught a few comments here and there as he and Noctis passed by.
"So not in front of a big crowd," Prompto mentally noted with an inward sigh of relief, "good."
The pair changed out of their street shoes and into a pair of indoor shoes instead before they then walked through the corridors until they found a vast row of lockers; Prompto quickly located his own locker, turned the combination on the dial and opened his locker to grab the textbooks he'd need for his morning classes while Noctis did the same.
Prompto's eyes lingered over the black gift wrapped box and he moved his hands further inside his locker to grab it, but quickly took his science text book instead with a defeated sigh as his courage failed him once more.
"Are they chocolates?" Noctis enquired as he moved to Prompto's side once more and peeked inside the blond's locker. "I thought you had been more cheerful than usual – so who are they from?" He asked with a playful nudge.
Prompto gave a startled jump as he quickly grabbed the box of chocolates and stuffed them in his blazer pocket to stop Noctis from looking at them.
"They're not from anyone!" Prompto blurted out before he could stop himself while his face turned redder and redder.
"So…" Noctis adopted a thoughtful expression, "you made them for someone?"
"I… uh… well…"
"Wow, you must have it bad for them," Noctis chuckled, "tell me, who's the lucky lady?"
"I… it's… it's none of your business!" Prompto snapped – making Noctis stare at him taken aback. Prompto felt his eyes widen as he realised what he had done. "L- look, I'm sorry – I better get to class." He said hurriedly in a feeble voice as he closed his locker with more force than he had intended and set off down the corridor - leaving Noctis to stare after him with a bewildered expression.
After spending that night berating himself for snapping at Noctis and letting himself get frustrated over such a trivial matter, Prompto was more than relieved when Noctis greeted him at the school gates as normal the following morning – it seemed as though Noctis was willing to pretended that the events of the previous day hadn't happened; but Prompto couldn't quite look Noctis in the eye and soon found himself reaching for the sweatband that was wrapped around his right wrist whenever he tried to meet Noctis's gaze – he would let his gaze wander slightly towards his friend's ear instead while the troubled thoughts that had scolded him throughout the previous night began to stir in his mind again.
When the school bells chimes to signal the beginning of their lunch break, Prompto quickly gathered his belongs into his bag and made his way to Noctis's class; when he arrived, he turned the seat in front of Noctis's desk around so that he could face his friend and settled himself down comfortably as he always did – Prompto knew that the true owner of the seat usually set off with his friends during break times.
"Hey," Noctis greeted the blond automatically without looking up from his textbook.
"You're still studying through your lunch break?" Prompto gave his friend an incredulous stare.
"It's only homework," Noctis told Prompto as he slowly marked his page, closed the textbook and slipped it into his school bag, "I'll finish it off when I get home – the weather is finally warming up, you wanna sit outside today?" He added as he nodded towards the window.
"Sure," Prompto stood up and tucked the chair he had borrowed under its original desk while Noctis stowed the rest of his belongs either in his school bag or blazer pockets.
The two boys then left the classroom, passed through the corridors until they left the school building and headed towards their usual spot beneath a large cherry blossom tree on the school fields while they talked about Noctis's dealings with Gladiolus after his public humiliation the day before and the latest video games that were set to hit the shelves in the coming weeks.
"They're saying that Justice Monsters four is coming out on console soon," Prompto told Noctis.
"They're bringing a pinball game out on console?" Although the prince's expression remained mostly stoic, Prompto could see a gleam of interest in the other boy's eyes.
"They're rereleasing loads of the old games like Starshell, CrystalDream and God of Illusion," Prompto listed a few video games off on his fingers, "there's also talk of releasing King's Knight on console – apparently if you pre-order Dragons Tale Six next month, you can play as Ray Jack, Kaliva, Barusa and Toby in a pre-order DLC side quest," Prompto added enthusiastically.
"You do realise that's only an advertising scheme so people are more likely to buy their games, right?" Noctis asked as he and Prompto set their school bags down together at the base of the tree before they settled themselves down in the grass – Noctis stretched his legs out as he lent against the tree while Prompto took his blazer off (he gently laid the garment on the grass beside himself) and sat cross legged in a slouching position. "There's no way they could possibly merge the world of King's Knight and the world of Dragon Tale together without making the storylines too cliché or leaving serious plot holes."
"Yeah, but it's a limited time offer and if it means I get to play as my favourite characters, I really don't mind," Prompto said, "and I don't mind the extra content. We should play online together when it's released – just make sure you choose a better username this time."
"What's wrong with my username?"
"Prince," Prompto pointed out with a deadpanned expression, "what are you? Twelve?"
"I'll remember that next time you want to party up for a boss fight, Lokton," Noctis smirked – putting emphasis on Prompto's gaming username.
"Lokton is the camera brand I use."
Noctis gave a small laugh.
"What's so funny?" Prompto raised an inquisitive eyebrow at the prince.
"You're such a nerd," Noctis laughed more openly while Prompto shared a grin with his best friend; the raven haired teen's expression quickly turned to a grimace and a hiss of pain as he tried to bend and stretch his left knee.
"You okay there, buddy?" Prompto asked; his own smile faltering as he grew more concerned for his friend.
"Yeah," Noctis winced as he repeated the movements, "I could feel it locking up again in class earlier, it's not very comfortable – this always happens when I've been sitting in the same position for too long, I guess the walk out here didn't loosen it up enough."
"So that's why you wanted to sit outside today?"
"I guess it was," Noctis shrugged his shoulders and gave a weak smile through his pain as he tried massaging his knee instead of stretching it, "this is no good, I'm gonna have to walk about a bit more – I'm gonna go and grab a drink from the vending machine," Noctis told Prompto as he got to his feet and brushed himself down, "do you want anything?"
"Nah, I'm cool but thanks anyway," Prompto waved away Noctis's offer.
"Suit yourself," Noctis shrugged, "watch my bag for me," he added as he pivoted on the spot and began to walk back towards the school building – albeit with a slight limp; making Prompto begin to wonder whether he should've at least offered to accompany Noctis.
The blond teen waited until Noctis was out of sight before he grabbed his blazer off of the grass and took the gift wrapped box out of one of the pockets – he turned the box over in his hands for a few moments with a thoughtful expression.
"Okay, today's the day," Prompto told himself as he took a deep breath in an attempt to recompose himself, "all I have to do it give him this box and then it's all over," Prompto reasoned with himself.
But a niggling thought resurfaced from the back of his mind, "what if he's weirded out?"
"He won't be – he's my friend," Prompto argued with himself aloud.
"He's the prince!" Prompto's mind put emphasis on the word prince. "Whereas you're just another nobody – there's plenty of people just like you who're probably lining up to take your place as Noct's best friend."
"This is Noct we're talking about; he's not like that – and they're only chocolates. What's the harm in giving my best friend chocolates?"
"How many people make their best friends chocolate for Valentine's Day?" The blond's thoughts countered easily. "He'll know exactly what your intentions are – your feelings won't be reciprocated and he'll run away like a deer in headlights."
Prompto continued the exchanges back and forth in his mind – arguing with his own subconscious while he simultaneously tried to dispute his own feelings and true intentions – until he was stirred from his inner turmoil by the sound of Noctis's voice.
"Hey Prom!" The raven haired teen called out – making Prompto glance up from the box in his hands towards Noctis; even though he had only been gone for a short while there was already an improvement in Noctis's walking. "I got you a drink anyway; do you prefer chocolate or banana?"
In a panicked frenzy, Prompto quickly shoved the box of chocolates into the closest of the school bags that were sat beside him – he was glad that Noctis had been too busy comparing the two drinks in his hands to take any notice of the blond – Prompto quickly straightened himself up and tried to look as innocent as he possibly could while Noctis drew closer and closer.
"Hey," Noctis pulled his eyes away from the milk cartons to look at Prompto, "were you listening?"
"Huh?" Prompto gave a small, startled jump. "Ye- yeah, of course I was."
"So…?" Noctis stared at the other teen expectantly.
"So… what?"
Noctis heaved a sigh as he showed Prompto the two cartons in his hands, "do you want chocolate or banana?"
"Um… banana," Prompto replied; reaching for the yellow carton, "I'll let you have the chocolate one," he added with a chuckle.
"Really?" Prompto's thoughts pushed through again. "You're giving him the chocolate one?"
Prompto froze in his movements as his eyes widened in horror, "ac- actually I've changed my mind," he said hurriedly.
"So now you want Noct to give you the chocolate one," his mind teased him.
"I can't win." Prompto groaned inwardly.
Prompto let his arm drop into his own lap and hung his head to hide the flustered blush that crept across his face, "I mean… I don't mind, you choose."
"Are you feeling okay?" Noctis asked with a frown as he sat down beside the blond once more and offered Prompto the banana flavoured milk.
"Uh huh," Prompto nodded without lifting his head to look at Noctis as he took the carton, "I'm just peachy," Prompto stole a sideways glance at Noctis and watched as the raven haired teen poked a straw through the foil seal of his carton and took his first mouthful of the chocolate milk – Prompto couldn't help but smile to himself with an amused chuckle.
Noctis met Prompto's gaze as the sound of the blond's laugh reached his ears.
"What?" Noctis asked innocently.
"Nothing," Prompto let himself laugh a bit more as he quickly shifted his gaze towards the green and pink canopy of the cherry blossom tree, "I was just thinking – you must be sick of chocolate by now."
Noctis shared a small grin with Prompto before he withdrew his mobile phone from his blazer pocket and selected the app titled King's Knight, "definitely – if I never see another piece of chocolate again in my life, it'll still be too soon – to be honest, I'm not really keen on chocolate."
Prompto felt his smile falter again as dread welled up inside his chest, "you're not?"
Noctis gave a small shrug, "I don't mind it, but it's not my favourite sweet," Noctis flashed his phone screen in Prompto's direction, "the Zell Tree is ready for farming."
Prompto had gone home with mixed feelings that day.
On one hand, he felt the now familiar sensation of dread settle over him;
"How could I have been so stupid in not realising he doesn't like chocolate that much?" He asked himself through gritted teeth; banging his headed against his bedroom door out of frustration.
On the other hand, he had managed to get himself pumped up with a new course of action in mind;
"I'll just re-wrap them in a different coloured paper, get someone else to write the tag so he doesn't recognise my handwriting and then I'll ask a different person to give it to him," Prompto mused aloud as he clapped his clenched fist against the palm of his own hand with a determined nod, "that way he'll never know they're from me," he continued to explain his plan out loud to himself, "all I need to do now is find two people I can trust. One to write the tag and the other to deliver the chocolate – I wonder if Gladio will do it for me," Prompto thought back to the way the burly brunette had given Noctis the chocolate's from Iris the day before, "maybe not – Ignis it is! I'll give them to Ignis after school before Noct leaves class and tell him that they're from a girl in my class."
With his new plans decided, Prompto grabbed his school bag – which he had thrown onto his bed the second he got home from school – unzipped it and searched for the box of chocolates.
"That's weird," Prompto muttered to himself as he began to pull all of his textbooks and stationary out of the bag until it was empty, "it should be right here - unless…" the blond discarded the bag and swiftly crossed the room to the wardrobe – ignoring the fact that his school supplies were now scattered about his bedroom floor – where he grabbed his school blazer from the hanger and searched through the pockets instead.
After failing to find the box of chocolates in his uniform pockets, the blond teen began to broaden his search – his panic rising with every second that he didn't find them – until he had look throughout the whole house and found himself pacing around in his bedroom while he tried to retrace his steps.
"They were in my hands –" Prompto told himself as he walked the length of his room again and held his hands out in front of him as though he were holding the small box, "I was thinking about given them to him… but then I didn't… and when he came back I put them… I put them in my bag… which is now empty," he finished his train of thought by pivoting on the spot and glaring at the empty bag accusingly before realisation slowly dawned upon the young blond, "but next to my bag was… oh fuck."
Ignis quickly undid the laces of his highly polished, black shoes before he slid them off of his feet and tucked them neatly beside the front door as he entered the apartment; he paused in his movements for a moment to regard the pair of trainers that had been left strewn about on the floor – Ignis had no doubt that they had been carelessly kicked off after their owner after he had toed his heels out of the trainers; Ignis's theory had been made more evident by the fact that the laces of the trainers were still tightly knotted.
With a resigned sigh, Ignis gathered the two trainers together – sparing a moment to undo the laces to save Noctis the hassle of doing so next time he wanted to wear them – and placed them beside his own shoes.
"If I've told him once, I've told him a thousand times," Ignis muttered to himself under his breath as he moved further into Noctis's apartment.
He was immediately met with Noctis's figure slumped over the dining table with his head resting on his crossed arms and an open textbook beneath his arms – Ignis watched Noctis's upper body move in time to his slow, rhythmic breathing and came to a final conclusion that the raven haired teen had merely fallen asleep while completing his homework; given the state of the rumpled pages beneath Noctis's arms, Ignis assumed that the prince had been asleep for a fair while.
Ignis couldn't say that he was surprised; Noctis's routine had become somewhat jarred over the past few months.
Throughout November, the prince had complained that he had little free time due to his part-time job, training with Gladiolus, excessive studying for his exams and the task of reviewing that month's political report – supplied to him by Ignis as preparation for taking over the task for himself when his high school career came to an end; it would do no good for Noctis to be unprepared, after all – and none of these had excused the young prince from his usual royal duties either; which only seemed to be expanding – especially around the Christmas and New Year period.
To ease a few of Noctis's burdens, Ignis had agreed to see to the political reports throughout the remainder of November and December while Gladiolus suggested that they allow Noctis to take a break from his training until the exams were over – a decision that had regrettably extended throughout January and the first week of February.
Ignis berated himself for allowing such things slip from his mind, but he was more annoyed that both Noctis and Gladiolus had not spoken up about the matter sooner.
So after a lax January, Noctis's body and mind had settled into a more relaxed routine – making the reinstated training sessions and monthly reports take a heavier toll on him than they usually would.
Ignis approached the teen – pausing in his tracks only to stoop down and pick up a pen that had rolled off of the table during Noctis's sleep – and shook the boy awake.
"Not yet," Noctis murmured as he tried to nestle his head further into his own arms.
"Noct," Ignis gave Noctis a harder shove and waited until the prince sat up to give him a groggy stare, "you really ought to go to bed when you're tired, sleeping at the table won't help your posture – if anything it'll cause back problems."
"It's not like I fell asleep here on purpose," Noctis argued with a yawn as he stretched his arms above his head.
Noctis pushed himself up from his chair, staggered into his bedroom and threw himself down on top of his bed while Ignis slowly followed him to the bedroom doorway.
"Aren't you going to get changed?" Ignis asked; eying the teen's jogging bottoms and black t-shirt.
"No," came Noctis's muffled response.
Ignis heaved a weary sigh as he closed Noctis's bedroom door and turned his attention towards the dining table instead; the bespectacled man tried to flatten the creases out of the pages of the textbook before he closed it and picked up Noctis's school bag – that had been put on the dining chair beside the one that Noctis had occupied.
Ignis frowned as he opened the bag, inside was Noctis's usual school supplies and textbooks but a black gift wrapped box with golden ribbon caught the advisor's eye; he lifted the box out of the bag and turned it over in his hands. Ignis had no doubt about the fact that they were chocolates - he had been taking boxes of chocolates out of Noctis's bag all week – but what struck him as odd was the fact that this box was not the usual pink, red or lavender that the prince usually received nor was it decorated with frilly patterns or hearts.
Ignis quickly located a gift tag that had been tucked under the ribbon and turned it over to read it.
"Well, that explains everything," Ignis mused to himself as a knowing smile played on his lips.
Ignis put the box down and continued about his tasks as he usually would; he made sure that Noctis had a clean uniform ready for the morning and used his own laminated copy of Noctis's school timetable to make sure the raven haired teen had all the textbooks he would need for the following day in his school bag before he then prepared and stored a pack lunch in the fridge.
Ignis made sure everything had been tidied away adequately and that Noctis's uniform was folded neatly on the dining table; before he left the apartment; the sandy haired man carefully placed the black gift wrapped box on top of the school uniform.
The following morning, Noctis awoke to something cold and wet pressed against his forehead – he shook his head and tried to waved whatever it was away from his face without opening his eyes before he buried his head into his pillows and went back to sleep.
He was woken up again seconds later to a low whine and a scratching sound as the cold, wet sensation pressed against his neck instead – making Noctis drag his duvet over his head instead.
A loud bark reached Noctis's ears through the duvet – making the teen sit up in his bed to give a black and white dog a reproachful glare as he reached for his phone.
"It's only ten to six," Noctis warned the dog in a low voice, "I have twenty five minutes until my alarm goes off and I intend to have those twenty five minutes," he told the dog as he let himself drop back onto his pillows and closed his eyes again.
The black and white dog barked one more as soon as Noctis's head hit the pillows
"Fine!" Noctis flung the duvet back and swung his legs over the edge of the bed as he sat up. "I'm up!" He snapped at the dog as he pushed himself off of his bed and grabbed his phone – carelessly pulling the lead out of the charging port – while the dog bounded happily in front of him. "What are you so excited about anyway?" Noctis frowned as he followed the dog out of his bedroom and into his living room.
The dog ran towards the coffee table that was sat in front of the sofa – where he sat and stared at Noctis expectantly while the yawning teen slowly followed in his footsteps.
Noctis's gaze fell upon a white cardboard box with blue ribbon fastenings that had been placed on the coffee table – beside which was a red, leather bound journal and a single blue flower had been delicately placed on top of the box.
Any irritation that Noctis had felt before that moment seemed to drain away as he curiously knelt down beside the coffee table and picked up the blue flower.
"Sylleblossom," he mused to himself while he slowly turned the flower in his hand; inspecting it closely before he placed it carefully beside the journal and turned his attention towards the cardboard box instead.
Noctis carefully pulled the ribbon apart, opened the box and peered at the contents inside; he found a slice of cheesecake that had been topped with red berries and golden flakes.
A small smile spread across Noctis's features as he closed the box again and picked up the familiar notebook instead – he flipped through the pages notebook's pages until he found the most recent entry.
A vast yellow rose had been pressed into the page – beside which was a small message that had been inscribed in Lunafreya's neat handwriting.
'Happy Valentine's Day, my dearest friend.'
The raven haired teen returned to his full height as he slowly closed the notebook – making a mental note to buy a special sticker and thank Lunafreya for her gift later.
"Good boy, Umbra," Noctis scratched behind the dog's ear before he moved the cardboard box containing the cheesecake from the coffee table into the fridge.
Noctis then watched as Umbra made himself comfortable on the living room rug before he turned his attention towards getting ready for school instead; he grabbed the school uniform that had been prepared and neatly folded by Ignis from the dining table before he pivoted on the spot and headed towards the bathroom.
The raven haired teen froze in his footsteps as something slipped from the pile of clothes in his arms and fell to the floor with a dull thud; he curiously eyed the small, black box on the floor before he stooped down to pick it up.
The prince carefully set his clothes down upon the dining table once more before he fumbled for his phone instead, unlocked it and typed out a text message to Ignis.
'Chocolates for breakfast? Has the chocolate situation really become that dire?'
He gave a small smirk before he hit the send button, placed the phone and the box on the table, gathered his clothes up again and shuffled off to the bathroom to get washed and dressed into his school; only to check his phone for new messages as soon as he got out of the bathroom.
He wasn't surprised to see that – according to the text time stamp – Ignis had replied almost instantaneously.
He unlocked the device again to view the message from his bespectacled advisor.
'It's nice to see that you're awake so early without my prompting – please don't eat chocolate for breakfast, it's not a healthy way to start the day.'
Noctis was quick to send his reply.
'I'm not awake by choice,' Noctis threw a sideways glance at Umbra as he typed, 'besides you're the one left them out, so you only have yourself to blame.'
The raven haired teen had barely put his phone down again when he heard it vibrate against the wooden dining table as another text came through.
'Impulse control was never your strongest suit - I've already sorted a healthier alternative for your breakfast and I will be round shortly. I left them out because I thought you'd be interested to see who they're from.'
"Who they're from?" He muttered under his breath as he slowly locked his phone screen again and slid his phone into the pocket of his trousers as he moved his attention towards the gift wrapped box.
The teen curiously picked the box up and curiously turned it over in his hands to inspect it closely – he had to admit to himself, that he vaguely recognised it but couldn't quite remember where he had seen it before. He turned the tag over to find the words, 'to Noct,' written in a familiar, untidy scrawl – causing his curious expression to be quickly replaced with a bemused frown.
"Noct?" He murmured to himself. "Only my close friends call me Noct – Gladio already gave me chocolates from Iris," Noctis scowled as he remembered the embarrassing display that Gladiolus had given a few days ago, "and I can't remember the last time Ignis gave me chocolates – then that just leaves…"
Prompto gingerly glanced about himself as he passed through the school gates – for the first time in years, Prompto truly dreaded coming to school; let alone facing Noctis.
The blond had spent a sleepless night trying to convince himself that he had not fastened his school bag properly the day before and that he had merely dropped the box of chocolates that he had intended to give Noctis while he was at school or during his commute home – but his memory betrayed him; he knew for a fact that he had fastened the bag after he had hurriedly stuffed the box inside and he couldn't recall seeing the box in his bag during his fifth or sixth periods. Prompto had then tried to find comfort in the fact that he hadn't signed his name on the tag that was attached to the box; but it still hadn't been enough to quell the anxious thoughts that kept him awake throughout the night.
"Hey!"
Prompto gave a startled jump as the greeting was shouted across the school yard and whipped his head from side to side frantically in search of the voice's owner – he heaved a sigh of relief as he saw two boys waving to each other as they closed the distance between them and began to talk animatedly to each other.
"Of course he's not here," Prompto told himself inwardly as he withdrew his phone from his pocket to see the numbers 07:46 flash up on the screen, "it's too early – he won't be here for at least another fifteen minutes," the blond teen slid the phone back into his blazer pocket as he wheeled his bike towards the empty bicycle racks – he felt a pang of guilt tighten up in his chest like a knot as he locked his bike securely to one of the designated racks, "I shouldn't be going to these lengths to avoid my best friend," the knot in his chest seemed to tighten a notch, "I might be blowing this all way out of proportion – Noct probably hasn't even seen the chocolates anyway, I'm just getting worked up over nothing again," Prompto shifted his glance towards the school gates and bit his lip thoughtfully.
"But what if he has seen them?" A taunting voice in his head countered. "What if he wants to confront you about it?"
"Urgh!" Prompto groaned aloud and clutches at his hair in frustration before he turned towards the school and began to walk while scowling to himself – earning himself bemused states from the two boys he had spotted earlier.
Prompto against the wall near the entrance of the school building – his eyes frequently flitted towards the school gates every time he saw someone pass through them until he found himself watching continuously as streams of students walked onto the school grounds in large groups; each one talking excitedly or smiling and joking with their friends.
Prompto felt his interest pique as a familiar black vehicle pulled up outside the school gates and he watched as Noctis stepped out of the car from the front passenger seat while having – what Prompto assumed from Noctis's expression – an exasperated conversation with Ignis as he got out of the car.
"I should at least say good morning to him, it would be rude not to," Prompto pushed himself off of the wall and began to dodge his way through the throngs of other students but he soon found that with each step he took, his courage began to falter until he was automatically moving towards the row of elm trees and waist-high hedges that lined the path between the gates and the school entrance – where he merely stood and watched Noctis from afar.
Noctis loitered near the school gates – Prompto had no doubt that Noctis was waiting for his arrival. The raven haired teen checked his phone periodically - the frequency of him doing so increased as the time drew closer to half past eight – until he was finally forced to give up as the chimes of the school bells echoed across the grounds.
Prompto instinctively hid himself behind the hedges as Noctis pivoted on the spot and began to walk in Prompto's direction.
The blond pulled on a loose thread that was attached to his sweatband while he sat on the grass and waited with bated breath until he was certain that there was enough distance between the prince's footsteps and his own before his stood up from his hiding spot, brushing himself down to make sure he wasn't covered in dirt and hurried into the building behind the last few students.
Prompto let out a disgruntled groan as he dragged his feet towards his locker.
The guilt that had started to weigh him down before school had done nothing but intensify and play on his mind over the course of the morning; causing Prompto to lose his focus in his classes as his thoughts turned only to Noctis – topped with the fact that the sleepless night he had had the night before was beginning to creep up on him too, Prompto could feel both his mental and physical energy draining rapidly.
Prompto opened his locker and grabbed his lunch box; pausing briefly to glance over the photographs that he had decorated the inside door with – the majority of the photos were of Prompto's favourite selfies (all of which he had taken with Noctis) while the only different photo was that of a white dog that he had named 'Chibi' and briefly taken care of back when he was in elementary school.
He slowly closed his locker – let his eyes flit back towards the photos on the inside of his locker door as he did so – to find the raven haired teen waiting for him.
"N- Noct!" Prompto gave a startled jump.
"I thought I'd find you here," Noctis grinned at Prompto as he lent against the locker beside Prompto's, "I didn't see you this morning, is everything okay?"
"I was just running late," Prompto automatically began to fiddle with the white and green sweatband on his right wrist again as he tried to return Noctis's smile, "I woke up late."
Prompto was sure that he had seen a flicker of relief flash across Noctis's face as he spoke; but it was soon replaced with his usual stoic expression as he gave the blond a surveying stare.
"I'm glad I found you actually," Noctis spoke in a serious tone that only seemed to make Prompto's stomach flip uncomfortably while the colour drained from his face and his weak smile faltered, "I wanted to ask you about –"
"I'm really sorry, Noct," Prompto cut across the prince with a feeble, apologetic grin, "I missed some of first period this morning so I really need to catch up on the work if I don't want to fall behind."
"I'll come too if you want."
"Thanks, but I really need to concentrate," Prompto waved away Noctis's offer as he spun on the spot and headed back through the corridor, "I'll catch up with you later!" Prompto called over his shoulder with a cheerful grin.
"He knows about the chocolates – I know he does. I'll just have to wait until this whole thing blows over after Valentine's Day," Prompto mentally told himself as he weaved his way past the groups of chatting students – he could feel dread rising in his chest again, "he'll probably forget about all of this come Monday morning, so I just have to avoid it until then."
After bidding goodbye to Ignis as he got out of the car on the morning of the fourteenth of February, Noctis waited until the black vehicle turned a corner out of sight before he took his usual position lent against the school wall – not wanting the typical lecture about royal mannerisms and back posture from his bespectacled advisor.
Noctis continuously glanced up and down the street in search of his best friend – only glancing away from the street to see if Prompto had slipped his notice and was near the bicycle racks instead or to look at his phone.
He heaved a sigh and frowned as he checked the time on his phone for the umpteenth time and debated whether he should call Prompto or send a text; it wasn't like Prompto to skip school after all, perhaps he was ill or just running late again.
Noctis cast his mind back to the previous day, he had found Prompto at his locker during their lunch break but their encounter had been brief and awkward - the moment Noctis had told Prompto that he had been wanting to talk to him all morning, Prompto suddenly became more reserved and excused himself before Noctis had had the chance to say another word.
Noctis had tried to find Prompto again after their afternoon classes with hopes that Prompto would accompany him to the shops to find a sticker to send to Lunafreya – Prompto always had a knack of finding the best ones, after all – but Noctis soon found that his friend had already left the classroom and was nowhere near his locker when classes were dismissed and cleaning chores were completed. Noctis had even tried to call Prompto and text Prompto over the course of the evening, but he didn't receive any response.
From what Noctis could remember, Prompto had looked paler the day before too – so perhaps it wasn't too farfetched to believe that he had decided to call in sick, but this only made Noctis worry for his friend more.
Noctis had to admit to himself that he was beginning to feel forlorn and lonely without the without the chipper boy at his side too.
The chimes of the Westminster bells rang throughout the school, pulling Noctis from his musings.
He pivoted on the spot and let his feet automatically carry him towards the front doors of the school but cast frequent glances over his shoulder in case Prompto skidded through the gates at the last minute before he passed through the doors.
The raven haired teen pulled his phone out of his pocket again, unlocked it and found Prompto's phone number in his contacts before he pushed the call button and pressed his phone to his ear.
Noctis froze in his footsteps as the unmistakeable jingle from Wiz's Chocobo Post television advert reached his ears from somewhere nearby; he spun around on the spot – expecting to see the familiar blond standing behind him – but found no one else nearby. Within mere seconds of the first note of the song, the sound was silenced and Noctis's phone call was cut off.
"Prompto?" He called out in an uncertain voice as he surveyed his surroundings more attentively – he began to take a few steps towards one of the oak trees that lined the path. "Is that you, Prom-?"
"Your highness," Noctis gave a small, startled jump and turned on the spot to face the school doors - where one of the teachers were stood watching him with a disapproving frown, "if you don't hurry, you'll be late for class."
"I'm coming," Noctis replied as he slowly started walking again – pausing only to cast one last quizzical look at the tree that he had approached, "maybe I was just hearing things," Noctis added in a confused undertone; his frown deepened.
Prompto waited another five minutes before he straightened himself up from his hiding spot from behind the tree - dusting off his uniform as he did so – and heaved a sigh of relief as he locked his phone screen and quickly made his way to his homeroom.
Prompto heaved a resigned sigh as he slumped back in his seat, closed his eyes and waited until he heard the classroom door slide shut after the last student – the week was finally over and so was Valentine's Day too, Prompto was relieved that by the following morning anything Valentine's related would be swept under the metaphorical carpet until the following year.
"Well… I made it," Prompto muttered to himself in a glum voice – the knot that had been tightening in his chest over the past two days didn't seem to loosen at all, "I made it through Valentine's Day without embarrassing myself and I've haven't seen Noct either," he gave a short, bitter laugh.
"That's an achievement for you, you're usually stuck to my side like glue," came an amused voice.
Prompto's eyes flew open and he sat bolt up-right in his seat until his eyes fell upon his raven haired friend.
"Noct?" Prompto stared at the other boy in disbelief. "What are you doing here? You never come to my classroom."
"I was looking for you," Noctis chuckled as he took the chair from the desk in front of Prompto's and turned it towards Prompto's desk before he perched himself on it, "so why are you avoiding me?"
Prompto felt the heat rise to his face as a blush crept across his cheek and he ran a hand through his blond locks.
"I was-"
"And don't say you wasn't," Noctis warned the blond with a playful smirk, "I just heard you say it."
Prompto closed his mouth again and shift his gaze towards the window, he tried to keep his eyes fixated on the school grounds while pathetic excuses trailed around his mind – he could see the cherry blossom that he and Noctis usually sat beneath during their breaks and soon found himself wishing he could be sitting there now laughing about video games again.
If only he hadn't made those chocolates. If only he could be more open with his feelings. If only he was anywhere else but in this awkward predicament with Noctis.
"Anyway," Noctis's voice brought Prompto back to his surroundings, "I just wanted to say thanks for the chocolates."
Prompto's eyes finally met Noctis's; there was something about Noctis's knowing smile that seemed to keep Prompto calm and ease his mind.
"How did you know they were from me?"
"Easy; not many people call me Noct, you've been acting kinda weird, then you started avoiding me altogether – and not many people would draw icing fish on chocolates," Noctis pointed out with another chuckle while Prompto turned a darker shade of red, "I liked the lures though."
Prompto hung his head to hide his face, "I'm sorry," he barely managed to mumble.
Noctis gave the blond a bemused stare, "sorry for what?"
"I… I was too embarrassed to give you the chocolate," Prompto admitted; now that he was able to talk about his feelings more freely, he feel the knot in his chest begin to loosen, "I accidentally put them in your bag instead of mine and then I avoided you because I was scared that you'd confront me about it. I was hoping that you'd –"
"That I'd just forget about it after Valentine's Day?" Noctis finished for the other boy as he folded his arms and gave Prompto a surveying stare.
"Yeah… something like that."
"Why was you embarrassed?" Noctis asked; cocking his head to one side in confusion.
"I just… it's because…" Prompto shifted his gaze to anywhere but Noctis as he struggled to find the words to convey his feelings without hurting Noctis's feelings, "people… might think I'm weird," he finished lamely; hanging his head to stare at the table again, "and I didn't want you to feel weird about it either."
Noctis stared at Prompto with a taken aback expression.
"Why would it be weird for me to receive chocolates from the guy I like on Valentine's Day?" Noctis asked.
"The guy you like?" Prompto reiterated the words in a slow voice as he slowly lifted his head to meet Noctis's eyes with his own.
Panic flashed in Noctis's eyes as a red blush began to creep across his cheeks this time; he unknotted his arms – moving one of his hands up to his head to ruffle his hair nervously.
"Wait – you like me?" Prompto pressed the raven hair teen.
"Well… ye- yeah," Noctis's usual stoic exterior seemed to slip away rapidly, "anyway, I… uh… I made these for you," Noctis withdrew a box from his own school bag and offered it to Prompto.
Prompto carefully took the box into his own hands; he noted the bright yellow wrapping paper and the gift tag that was shaped like a cartoon chocobo's head.
"I'm not as artistic as you, but I would've drawn chocobo's on them if I could've," Noctis told the blond sheepishly as he ruffled his hair.
"I don't understand," Prompto frowned quizzically at Noctis.
"This is what people do on Valentine's Day, right? They give the person they like chocolates."
"Yeah, but –" Prompto's sentence trailed off while he tried to find the right words to convey his feelings.
Noctis slowly leaned across Prompto's desk – taking the blond's hands into his own – and planted a gentle kiss on Prompto's cheek; Prompto let his eyes flutter shut as he turned turned his face towards Noctis's to let his lips meet with Noctis's.
In the instant that their lips met, Prompto's heart felt lighter than it had been for the past week – any worries that had plagued his mind seemed to melt away at Noctis's reassuring touch. Prompto felt Noctis give a small smile against his lips as they bumped noses, but Prompto didn't care how clumsy they were, he just didn't want this moment to end yet.
Noctis gave Prompto's hands a slightly squeeze before he relinquished his grip and pulled away from Prompto to stare into his eyes before he sat back in his chair again.
"So… I know a place to hang out if you want to go," Noctis spoke in a slow and hesitant voice while he tried to read Prompto's expression, "it's only an arcade but I've been told they serve some pretty good food too."
"What about your training and royal meetings?" Prompto cocked his head to one side curiously – he couldn't keep the excitement out of his voice though.
"I'm taking a day off," Noctis told the blond as he rose from his seat and tucked it under its original desk, "it's Valentine's Day."
Prompto gave a small chuckle as he rose from his seat and moved to Noctis's side – a large, genuine smile spread across Prompto's face for the first time in days as he felt Noctis's fingers interlace with his own, "it's a date then."