Prompto was pretty sure he had never been more desperate for air conditioning in his entire life. Today had been a grueling in terms of heat. The sun had been unrelentingly bright since it rose that morning. Clouds were scarce and scattered across the sky, none of them being large or full enough to block out the sun's harsh rays. Just one look at the pavement told the blond to stay off if he valued his skin.
As they finally reached Hammerhead,Gladio instructed Ignis to park the Regalia by the gas pumps in the shade, mumbling about how he didn't want his ass to light on fire when they returned to the vehicle. Whether he was meant to hear it or not, Prompto readily agreed to the statement.
Upon getting out of the car, Prompto didn't hesitate to run to the general store nearby, praying that the shop had some at least form of air conditioning. Even a tiny fan would be better that what they had been dealing with.
Much to his relief, a blast of cool air hit him as he swung open the door.
"Ahh… Cool air at long last!" He cried, stretching his arms out, ignoring the stare from the man behind the counter.
It was truly a godsend, it was all he could do to not fall to his knees right then and there, thankful that he didn't have to spend another second melting away in the sun.
He snapped out of his relief-filled daze when he heard the door open again, Gladio, Ignis, and Noctis filed in, each sighing in relief at the new atmosphere.
"Finally…" Noctis breathed out.
They each spread out as too not draw attention to themselves, but Noctis slumped by the wall and took a moment to wipe the sweat from his forehead and neck.
"Man… If I knew today was gonna be this hot… I would've just stayed in Gauldin and went swimming..." The prince sighed to himself.
The rest of them knew he most likely just wanted to have an excuse to go fishing again, but they didn't comment on it. Instead, Prompto playfully slapped his shoulder and laughed.
"Don't be upset, dude! We're finally in a place with Air conditioning! And we'll be able to stay in that cozy camper instead of trying to sleep outside."
"Nothin' wrong with camping." The shield shot back, who looked to be sifting through the shelves nearby.
"There is when it's a billion degrees outside!" Prompto retorted.
"I'm with Prom. At this rate we wouldn't even need a fire." Noctis sighed, wandering over to where Ignis was searching for different ingredients.
"I don't like the idea of paying for something we could do for free."
"Cheapskate." Noctis said under his breath.
"It's not as if renting the camper is expensive." Ignis spoke up for the first time. "We're not by any means short on gil. May I remind you of the hunt we just finished in Gauldin?"
"Welp! If Iggy says so, then I guess camper it is!" Prompto grinned, raising a fist to the air.
Even Noctis managed a smug smile, aimed at Gladio of course, who only returned it with a glare.
"Didn't realize I was on the road with a bunch of pansies." The big man huffed, setting a few items on the counter.
"Nope! Not pansies! Just people who don't enjoy burning alive whilst using rocks as pillows." Prompto replied without skipping a beat.
The blond once again, ignored the way it looked as though Gladiolus was a second away from punching him, and happily went to set a bag of chips down on the counter.
"No." Ignis stated, slipping his hand under the bag of chips before it was set down.
"Iggyyyy!" Prompto whined. "I thought you were on my side!"
He simply pushed up his glasses with a sigh as he returned the chips to its original spot.
"I'm not on anyone's 'side', Prompto. I just state what is to be true." Ignis said, "Such as those chips will do more harm than good to your body."
"Such a mom..." Noctis chuckled, shaking his head. "Are you gonna help him tie his shoes next?"
"If y'all are ready to pay, I…" The cashier interrupted the conversation, a look of amusement and confusion etched in his features.
"My apologies…" Ignis spoke, immediately taking out his wallet.
Realizing everyone else was preoccupied, Prompto stepped back from the counter now that his hopes of buying chips was out the window. He slowly made his way back to the front door and grabbed the handle.
He just couldn't help himself. It was something he was hoping to do since they had arrived in Hammerhead, but getting away from the heat had been their first priority.
After slipping out of the store without being caught, he wandered by the gas pumps until the Hammerhead garage was easier to see. Sadly, Prompto's heart fell for a moment when a certain mechanic was nowhere to be found.
He sighed in disappointment, and made a move to return to the store, when he noticed a familiar red hat and blonde curls pop into his view.
Cindy brushed her gloves onto her shorts, which in turn were now smeared with grease. She seemed be hard at work on a red pickup truck, and by the looks of it, seemed like it wouldn't be done for quite sometime, even if Cindy was especially fast at what she did.
When she fully came around into view, Prompto's face turned a bright shade of red and heat quickly rose to his cheeks at the sight.
Her Jacket was off.
She must've discarded it once the temperature rose to an unbearable amount. The jacket hadn't covered much to begin with, being unzipped a fair amount, but with it off, only a pink bra remained to cover her chest.
Prompto looked away for a moment once he realized he had been staring at exposed skin for far too long. He didn't want to act like a creep. It took all the strength he had to finally tear his head away and turn back to the store.
It only took one step in that direction for him to run into something tall. Prompto let out a grunt as he slammed into Gladiolus's large and exposed chest. The big man held on tightly to the bags in his arms, seemingly unaffected by the hit. Prompto however, flailed his arms and he took a quick step back against the Regalia to compose himself.
"Hey, watch where you're going." Gladio told him, though he seemed more exhausted than angry. Most likely due to the fact that they were returning to the searing heat.
"R-Right… Sorry…" Prompto trailed off, unable to keep himself from catching another glance at Cindy. He prayed she didn't just witness his embarrassing stumble.
Ignis and Noct exited the store after, loading the back of the Regalia with bags.
Prompto's mind started to drift off, only being brought back to reality when Noctis snapped his fingers in front of his face.
"Huh? What?" Prompto asked, still staring off.
"Been saying your name for like a minute." Noctis informed him, crossing his arms. "What're you lookin' at?" The prince asked when he realized the blond still wasn't focused. He followed his dreamy gaze directly over to Hammerhead, immediately noticing the mechanic was sporting even less clothes than usual.
"If you like her that much, just ask for her picture." Noctis instructed, returning his eyes to Prompto, who finally snapped out of it at those words.
"Ask her for what?" Prompto repeated in disbelief.
"Ask who?" Gladio interrupted.
"Cindy, I imagine." Ignis answered from his spot near the Regalia.
A smile replaced Gladio's tired features as he laid eyes on her, and he draped an arm around Prompto's shoulder.
"Ah… I gotcha... She sure is sight for sore eyes, huh?" The shield asked.
"Dude!" Prompto yelled, slipping Gladio's arms off his shoulder. "You can't stare at her! That's creepy!"
"Like you staring at her wasn't creepy?" Noctis chimed in.
"I wasn't staring!"
"You don't gotta be all embarrassed about it. After all, how could you not stare?" Gladio asked in admiration towards the mechanic.
"Stoppp…" Prompto pleaded, now paranoid that Cindy would find out their conversation somehow.
As if on que, Cindy stood up again from her kneeling position near the truck. She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, and her eyes drifted over to the gas pump. None of them missed the way her face lit up when realisation hit her.
"Heya, Prince!" She called out, waving her hand that held onto a small wrench.
She jogged over to the Regalia with a bounce in her step, and smiled.
"Hey Cindy." Noctis grinned, glancing over at their flustered gunman, who backed up at least a foot when she ran over.
"Nice of y'all to stop by!" She chirped, her hands on her hips. "How's the ol' girl been holdin' up?"
She took off her glove and glided her hand across the Regalia's exterior, seemingly pleased with no signs of cracks or damages.
"Everything is in perfect working order." Ignis informed.
"Trust us when we say that if it wasn't, you'd be the first to know." Gladio grinned, making her do the same.
"That's good to hear!" She laughed.
Prompto bit back a sigh, envious that the rest of them were able to speak to her without a problem, even with her jacket off. It was so distracting, but none of them seemed to be struggling as he was.
They continued an easy going conversation, but an odd feeling crept inside Prompto's chest. Maybe he was imagining it, but she seemed off, every now and then she'd struggle to meet their eyes, and some of her laughs seemed slightly forced.
He shook his head to clear his thoughts. The heat around them was enough to ruin anyone's mood. There was no need to jump to conclusions.
Prompto blinked a few times and focused on the conversation again, just as Cindy began to fan herself with her glove.
"This weather has been torture!" She groaned, a bead of sweat rolled down her cheek, "It's too much for Paw-Paw to handle, even if he won't admit it… So I have him working inside with paperwork instead. It's better that way. I don't need to have him to worry about while I'm workin'..."
"What about you?" Prompto piped up without thinking, gaining everyone's attention. He lowered his voice out of slight embarrassment. "Isn't it too hot to work outside…?"
" 'Preciate the concern, but I'll be fine!" She said, winking at the blond.
Before he could give a flustered response, Gladio interrupted.
"Say, why don't you take a break from work to join us at the diner?" He proposed, motioning towards Takka's restaurant. "It'll be on us, promise."
Suddenly Cindy's face fell, not bothering to hide her odd mood. She shook her head and looked back towards the garage.
"Oh, why I couldn't possibly." She replied, her voice carrying sadness. "I should really be gettin' back to work now anyhoo… The owners of the truck I'm fixin' are in quite the hurry to get it back. Even paid me double the price to get up and runnin' again. I can't afford the break..."
"Don't get too tired out Cindy. We'd be lost without our mechanic." Noctis grinned.
Even Cindy blushed at the words, and her face was quick to light up again.
" 'Course you would be!" She answered as she walked back towards the garage.
"Take care y'all!"
And with a wave of her hand, she was back to her previous position under the truck's dented body.
They watched for a moment before Ignis walked off towards the diner. His movements quickly gaining the attention of the three others.
"Where are you going, Specs?" Noctis called out, walking closer to his side.
"To the diner. I assume once the three of you get your hormones in check, you will join me as well."
Hearing this brought Prompto and Gladio back to reality, and they quickly joined their sides.
"Uh, you mean, 'two of you'." Noctis corrected. "I wasn't staring at her."
Ignis only looked at him with an eyebrow raised, obviously not buying it.
"I wasn't! I was only trying to make Prompto embarrassed."
"You what?" came the gunman's voice.
After getting settled into a booth by one of the windows, they ordered their meals and began to eat, but Prompto's mind was elsewhere. He just wasn't able to shake the thought of Cindy's odd behavior. He was almost certain the others had heard it too, but they hadn't look into it as much.
He couldn't help but wonder if there was something bothering her. He had to take a moment to remind himself that he didn't know her very well, but he knew her enough to acknowledge that she takes pride in her work, and is joyful whilst doing it. It didn't make all too much sense as to why she seemed so sad to work.
Again, he wanted to chalk it up to the heat, and how uncomfortable it must be to work in the sun all day, but something was telling him it was more than that.
By now, the sun was just barely giving off its last rays of light, but it was still enough to keep the heat in the air. Albeit the temperature was much cooler than earlier in the day.
He was broken from his thought process once the three others noticed he had barely touched his dish.
"You're not daydreaming about Cindy, again, are you?" Gladiolus teased, nudging him in the arm from across the table.
"Huh?" Prompto slurred out, lifting his chin from the palm of his hand.
"And there's your answer." Ignis nodded.
"I wasn't!" The blond lied, but after seeing the other's faces, he sunk back down in his seat. "Or… Maybe I was… A little bit…"
Noctis started laughing quietly until Ignis smacked his shoulder.
"I'm sure it wouldn't be too much to ask for you to eat whilst you daydream?" Ignis asked before he took another bite at his salmon.
Prompto blinked a bit before staring down at his meal, the whole thing seeming unappetizing to him now. But if it would get Ignis off his back, he decide to cave in to take a few bites.
The three others started up another quiet conversation, but his eyes drifted out towards the window again, settling on the garage just as two trucks pulled into the Hammerhead parking lot. It was hard to tell from the distance and the lack of light that had disappeared a bit ago, but the trucks looked rundown and rusty; it was obvious the owners didn't care too much about appearances. His unease grew even further as men hopped out of their trucks rather quickly. Fainting hollering could be heard even from the diner.
Prompto stood up abruptly, almost knocking his glass of water over. The small chuckle that was passing Noctis's lips died immediately as the booth grew
silent, all attention drawing to the disturbance.
"I'm gonna go shopping again!" Prompto blurted out, landing on the first excuse he came to.
"You've barely touched your meal!" Ignis scolded.
His voice landed on deaf ears, the blond never bothered to turn back as he ran out the diner.
"Should I go after him?" Noctis asked, standing up in his seat.
"Leave him." Gladio instructed. "We're not at Hammerhead too often, let the kid admire his crush."
Noctis sighed, sitting back down in his seat. He could see Prompto from the window, and surprisingly, the gunslinger looked to be going towards the store instead of the garage. The raven shrugged and returned to his meal too take his mind off of things, leaving Prompto to his own free will.
He knew it wouldn't be long before the other men started asking questions or called him back, so whatever it was he was doing, it had to be quick. Prompto jogged up to the store front, but instead of going inside, he stood by the door, keeping a close eye on the unexpected company near the garage.
There looked to be four men in total, each of them bearing clothes that matched the look of their trucks; dirty and unkempt. As the hollering from the men died down some, Prompto managed to spot Cindy, who quickly rolled out from under the truck she continued to work at.
Her appearance made the four men louder than before, a few even whistled at her, and Prompto did all he could to stay hidden, despite his sudden urge to jump out and punch one of them.
She didn't hesitate to snatch her jacket off from the ground, zipping it up higher than usual once it was on.
Even with the distance from the garage, Prompto was able to pick up on what was being said with ease, due to the men being rowdy and louder than necessary.
"Can I help y'all?" Cindy asked, clearly unamused, but still willing to talk to them.
"Yeah…" The grungiest looking of the four huffed out. "Can start by removin' that jacket."
The comment caused the rest of the men to burst out into laughter yet again.
Prompto's hands balled into fists in agitation, but he remained there, tuned into every detail of the situation that unfolded.
"If there ain't any more car troubles, then I'll be back to work now, if y'all don't mind." Cindy replied easily, shocking the rest of the men at the way she had disregarded his crude statement.
The leader, Prompto assumed, didn't take kindly to being ignored. His face scrunched up and he spit off to the side, then inched a bit closer despite Cindy's attempts at getting back to work.
"You know what we're here for, missy." He ground out, then took a step back to look at the truck in her care.
"Funny, ain't it? I figured you'd be a lil' more motivated... af'er all, we're payin' double a what we should be."
Prompto's frowned deepened, realization dawning on him as it was all apparent as to why Cindy had been acting so differently earlier. She knew this was coming.
As much as he despised it, he knew he only had a few options. He could let it all play out and hope they would leave, or he could rush in to protect her, but what after that? It would be four against one, and it wasn't as if he could shoot them like the other enemies they come across.
For not the first, or the last time in his life, Prompto envied Gladio's strength and stature. If the shield were to walk into this situation now, there was no doubt in his mind that the four men would go scrambling off like the vermin they were.
The gunman took one glance at his reflection in the shop's window to acknowledge that his appearance wouldn't have the same effect.
"I've already said… I'm workin' day n' night on her, but there ain't nothin' much I can do to speed up the process." Cindy spoke up, folding her arms over her chest in a protective stance. "If y'all want it fixed right that is."
"Ya see, I've never been one fer' waitin'." The man smiled, his crooked and missing teeth showing through. The three others behind him sniggered once he started inching his way closer to Cindy. "I need that truck fixed, ya hear? N' if I don't get what I want by tomorrow…."
Suddenly a dirty, grimy hand slipped up and roughly grabbed her chin, forcing her to make eye contact.
"...You and…" The man paused, licking his lips, "Paw-Paw… will both be sorry."
That was all Prompto needed to hear to cause his feet acted on their own, his mind dropping every previous worry and argument he had made earlier. He was focused on one thing, and one thing only.
Before he knew it, his fist made contact with a jaw, a satisfying cracking sound could be heard and the vile man slammed into the truck from the shear force of it all. Cindy jumped back with a surprised gasp, sharing expressions with the three other men. Prompto inched back, standing between himself and the now confused and frightened mechanic.
The man pulled himself up from the side truck, spitting something from his mouth again, but this time it was a dark shade of red. His eyes snapped to the blond's, full of indescribable fury. He brought his left hand to rub the side of his face, his hand gliding over patchy facial hair.
"N' who the hell do you think you are boy?" He seethed, venom lacing each and every word.
It was in that moment that Prompto realized just how large the man was. He knew he wasn't all that tall himself, but this man could've been at least a head and a half taller. Not to mention, he looked twice more intimidating in the dark lighting, his eyes were dark enough to be pure black.
Despite his now growing fears he stood tall and took a step back, getting closer to Cindy. He felt his heart jump when she placed a hand on his back, but his gaze was focused on the brute in front.
His bloody grin grew into laughter once he fully took in the small size of the one who had punched him.
"Cindy, I'd advise ya to get a taller bodyguard… Maybe one with some meat on their bones!" He laughed, nearly spitting out more men behind him joined in on the laughter. Prompto began assume he only only kept them around for that one reason. Suddenly the man's laughter caught in his throat and he coughed, then spit again. This time, something else hit the ground besides blood, and it took a second for Prompto to realize it was a molar.
Prompto cleared his throat before talking, pushing down the fear of his voice cracking on him.
"My bad sir, if you'd like to lose anymore teeth, just let me know. I'd be happy to oblige." He didn't bother fighting back the grin that worked it's way to his face.
The man's face contorted into rage within a split second, and without warning, his fist whipped through the air.
Prompto grabbed onto Cindy's sleeve from behind as he jumped back from the swing, forcing her to move with him. With the first swing dodged, he knew move would be on the way. Wasting no time, he turned his head slightly.
"Cindy, you gotta run-!"
His words were cut off with a searing pain erupted from his left cheek, sending him stumbling back to the pavement. He didn't have time to deal with the pain, get back up, or even see if Cindy listened to his request. A harsh and quick kick to his stomach pushed the air straight from his lungs, making him let out a gasp.
"Had enough yet, ya runt!?" He shouted, leaning down into his ear.
Prompto cringed at the piercing voice, yet made no move to stop it. Every movement to him gave him a painful reminder that he was quickly losing this battle.
Suddenly a hand was in his hair, harshly yanking his head backwards to the point where it forced him to get up to his knees. The blond's eyes locked onto the only thing he could focus on, which where the man's legs.
Reacting almost out of instinct, he swung his leg up and gave a harsh kick towards his kneecaps.
Or at least he should've, but his leg was caught mid-kick. He was pushed backwards, sending him to the pavement once more.
"Yer a feisty one, I'll give ya that!" He loomed over the gunman, who's hand twitched now, he was seconds away from calling his pistol to his grip, if not just for intimidation purposes only.
The man reared up, his foot in the air, preparing to crush down on his target.
Prompto closed his eyes and made a move to roll out of the way, but froze when the impact never came. Instead, he cracked his eyes open to see the man had been rammed into the truck, his body denting the vehicle even further.
The hit seemed to be enough to knock him unconscious, and he slumped to the ground, his limp body hit the asphalt with a thud.
Prompto opened his eyes fully and rose his head, now staring at the back of Gladio, who stood with his back facing the blond. He glanced over near the gas pumps, now seeing Ignis protectively standing in front of Cindy a bit farther from the fight.
Pearing around the shield, he saw the three other men who had stuck around earlier, cowering in fear at the prince who now took threatening steps towards them.
"I'm gonna give the three of you five seconds to run..." Noct growled.
The men stood there, all taking a hurried look at their leader, when Noctis took another step.
"FIVE!" He shouted, and just like that, the men scrambled to get away, not being nearly as vocal as they were before, they took off running down the street, completely ignoring their trucks.
When they were no longer in sight, Gladio turned around, sticking out a hand to help the gunslinger to his feet.
"You alright?" He asked, forcing himself to take on a softer tone, despite the anger he felt.
"Mhm…" The blond mumbled, rubbing the side of his face. He could tell a bruise was forming already, just by the way it stung to touch.
Sighing and looking down, he couldn't bring himself to look at Cindy after his attempt to save her went so bad. It embarrassed him to think even about the fact that someone had to end up saving him instead.
Noctis walked over, sporting a pissed off expression.
"Who the hell were those guys!?"
"I'm so sorry about this…" Came Cindy's voice. She wore a shameful expression, not meeting any of their eyes. "They said they were customers… But they were nothin' more than disgustin' thugs."
"None of this is your fault, Cindy." Ignis stepped in, a potion in hand. He grabbed Prompto's hand and forced him to take hold of the object.
"Use it." He said sternly, but his voice was laced with concern.
Prompto nodded solemnly and crushed the vile, a fuzzy feeling enveloped him, and the pain in his face died down to a dull ache. It cured his physical pain, but he remained with his eyes fixed to the ground, ignoring their stares.
Finally, Cindy looked up at Prompto, stepping closer until she was right in front of him.
"I can't thank you enough for steppin' in like that… I have no idea what I would've done…"
"I- it was nothi-ng…" Prompto stuttered out, and his eyes locked onto her's for a moment, shocked she was so close. "I can't s-say I helped… too much..."
She shook her head gently, blonde curls bounced around. Her hand lifted up to his shoulder and she leaned up, pressing her lips to his cheek. When she ended the gesture she stepped back, her hand still on his shoulder.
"Thank you." She smiled softly.
Then just as quickly as she was there, she walked past him towards the garage.
"I should go tell Paw-Paw now… He has the right to know what went on."
The others gave her a nod, and she disappeared into the garage.
Gladio was the first to laugh, even the event had taken him off-guard just as much as it had to everyone else. Noctis joined in after, then even Ignis wasn't able to stifle the chuckles that escaped him.
Prompto stood frozen in his spot with an expression mixed with both confusion and shock, his face a bright shade of red that even reached up to his ears.
Gladio continued his laughter as he lifted an arm around the lovestruck man.
"Guess being the hero ain't so bad after all huh?" He chuckled.
The four of them left the sight, all but dragging the dazed blond with them towards the camper.
It was awhile before the laughing died down, but Prompto finally blinked and lifted his head.
"Hey guys?" He said quietly, the heat from earlier feeling like nothing compared to the state of his face.
"Yeah?" Noctis asked, whipping his head around.
"I gotta get beat up more often."