Revised version as of March 3, 2019
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Heart thundering in his ears, Noctis closed his apartment door behind him.
For a moment, he just stood in the corridor. He breathed deeply through his nose, eyes closed, and tried not to think of what he had heard today.
It was a losing battle.
Medea's and Shrieky's gossip had been offending and hurtful, but he could live with it. Gossip was gossip. It wasn't the first time and wouldn't be the last, either, that people talked about him like that. Yes, he could live with that.
Once they had left the gardens at last, Noctis immediately hurried over to the training hall. He'd been almost an hour late by then—were their damned lunch breaks always this long?—and in the perfect mood to let off some steam. But then…
"It is nice to be free of my obligations once in a while."
"I'm gonna be rollin' in so much cronas!"
"Gotta babysit His Highness full-time now, so we got to get somethin' in return, right?"
Noctis shook his head, trying to get the words out of his mind. He didn't want to think about this right now.
He slipped out of his sneakers and entered the living area. There he was faced with the sight of the boxes he'd packed only some hours ago. Three cardboard boxes sat in the corner of the room, already filled with books and council reports. Next to them, yet more boxes waited to be folded and filled. He took one, sat himself down on the floor and started folding. He took his time, not feeling the need to hurry.
And well, his hands were kind of trembling. Just slightly.
He folded the box, slowly and meticulously, just how Ignis would instruct him to do it.
Ignis, who, now that he thought about it, had never admitted to enjoying his time off in Noctis's presence before. Today had been the first time ever to hear him say it.
But why was he even surprised? Heck, it was normal. Ignis was human. Everyone needed a vacation, and especially a workaholic like Ignis. And usually, Noctis would be happy to hear it. Should be happy about this. Happy for Ignis that there was something else in his life other than Noctis.
Just… how come Ignis had never mentioned it to Noctis before? Not even once? When he thought about it now, occasions when Ignis talked about himself and his life outside of his duties were rare. Was this something he didn't want to share with Noctis? But wouldn't friends share stuff like this with each other?
"I heard the Scientia boy cooks and cleans for him. He even washes his dirty laundry—like a maid!"
"Who could be friends with someone they have to clean up after?"
Maybe, they weren't wrong about that. Did Ignis really see himself as his frien—
The moment the traitorous thought came, he chased it away. This was ridiculous. He was ridiculous. What was he even doing, doubting his oldest friend?
Yes, Ignis was his friend. Period.
He directed his attention back to the now folded box. What should he pack? His comic books, maybe? Or his games? He had held off with packing his games this morning, not yet sure whether he and Prompto still needed them, as they'd probably get together once or twice before his move-out.
Prompto…
Once again, the doubts came before Noctis could stop himself.
"He's a smart boy. He knows how to get what he wants."
"Right! I'd volunteer myself to be friends with the Prince, too, and secure myself a bright future if I were him."
For a few moments too long, he wondered whether Prompto would ever want to hang out with him again now that Noctis was his job, now that he had a high income and could buy all the games he wanted for himself. He didn't need Noctis anymore. If it wasn't for the job, would he still want to spend time with him?
And then he groaned at the stupidity of his thoughts. Prompto wasn't like that. Prompto was just Prompto. He was stupidly innocent, getting excited about everything that came with having royalty as a friend, whether that was a personal bodyguard, a big apartment or being, well, rich. Of course Prompto would get a bit carried away over so much money. And usually, Noctis would be happy for his friend that he didn't need to worry about anything money-related from now on.
Everything was normal. Everything was fine. He and Prompto would meet up one of these days and his best friend would be sad if all the games were packed away then.
Not the games, then. He should pack the comics first.
He stood, grabbed a stack of comics lying around on his coffee table and put them inside the box. He continued like this, grabbing comics from his bookshelves and from where they were strewn around in his bedroom. He continued until the box was filled to the brim. He closed it, heaved it up to carry it over to the other packed boxes and…
The bottom of the box gave out and all the comics dropped out. The pile hit his feet and if Noctis said it didn't hurt he would be lying. "Damn it," he cursed. Frustration grew in him and he wanted to hit something. Hard.
If Gladio were here, he'd admonish him for losing his cool, though. He'd admonish him for not paying attention while packing, for packing too many books. He'd make a joke about princes who didn't know how to do anything by themselves, he would—
Just the thought of Gladio made him wince.
Gladio and his words today were the last things he wanted to remember. What Gladio had said, what he'd said about Noctis…
"He won't get that this is still our duty, our obligation to the Crown. That we sacrifice our time, our safety, our everything for him. He's gotta grow up and—"
No. He wouldn't think about what Gladio had said, and especially not about what he'd said after that. Because no, that wasn't how Gladio had meant it. He hadn't meant it like that. It wasn't even the first time for his Shield to say something insulting when he was annoyed with him. Noctis was used to it and it had never bothered him because that was just how Gladio was like with his friends. He hadn't meant it for real…right?
"And then there's the young Amicitia. I heard he doesn't have much respect for the Crown Prince. But if he makes that much money, I guess it doesn't matter."
"Right. The Amicitias talk about honor and duty all day, but when it comes down to it, they are as much after the money as any other regular Crown Citizen."
His mind was fogging up with ugly doubt.
Maybe, they were right after all. Maybe, Gladio had meant what he said. And maybe, Ignis and Prompto had agreed with him? Noctis hadn't stayed long enough to confirm. Now he started to regret that he'd left the moment Gladio seemed to be done with his damn speech. At that moment, he didn't want to hear any more, but now he wondered how the conversation had continued.
Were they still talking about him, perhaps? Were they complaining about how much of a hassle he was to look after? How he wasn't trying good enough, how he wasn't keeping up with everything? With training, council meetings, his lessons, charity events, press conferences? If they did, he couldn't even fault them. He knew he was far from being a picture-perfect prince.
But Noctis also knew his friends. They didn't think like that about him. It was just how they were. Ever honest Gladio. Ever excited Prompto. Ever modest Ignis. It was understandable, it was normal that Gladio was annoyed with him for being late, that Prompto would get excited about earning so much money, and that Ignis needed time off sometimes but wouldn't admit to it in front of him. On a logical level, he knew that it didn't mean anything. They were his friends. "Yes," he said out loud and nodded fiercely, to somehow convince himself of the truth of it.
But the memories wouldn't leave him alone. The words that Gladio had said, those horrible last words he'd heard, the ones that had made him retreat back down the hall— "He's gotta grow up and—
—and become someone worthy of his title already. Until he gets his act together, this kingdom is better off with anyone else but him as the next in line. That kid's not worth our time and effort."
No, no, nonono. Noctis scrunched his eyes shut. Just remembering Gladio's words made him sick to his stomach, a cold weight dropping in his gut.
But then, that weight transformed into something much more easy to deal with—red, hot anger.
Before he knew it, he kicked the damned torn box that was lying uselessly amongst the comic books to his feet; it was the best and nearest target. And for good measure, he also kicked the pile of comics.
It wasn't enough. He kicked again, hard.
And again. And because it still wasn't enough, he grabbed one of the comics that were strewn across the floor and threw it at the wall.
And another one.
The next one missed his TV by inches.
He was acting like a child and his living room was a mess, but he didn't care. He grabbed for the already packed and stacked boxes with the council reports and books inside and did the same to them as he did to the comics.
"Fuck it," he gasped out as he tore at the damned council reports without even knowing who he was angry with. Was it his friends for having talked behind his back? Was it Shrieky for being obnoxious? Medea for being no different than all the others? Their gossip for having planted these doubts in his head?
No. It was probably himself.
Deep down, he knew what was wrong. It wasn't his friends. It wasn't the Citadel staff. It was him. Because he was their obligation, their job. He didn't want to be the obligation of anyone, he hated that everything involving himself meant work for others. But it lay in the nature of every relationship he ever had in his life. There was a natural distance between him and everyone else because of his standing.
He couldn't change that, but he wanted it to be different with his friends at least. But even Ignis and Gladio were his retainers before they were his friends. It was only through their duty that they became friends with him in the first place. That was how it was with everyone.
Except with Prompto. Prompto had been different. They were friends by choice without any royal obligations involved. But he had destroyed that by making him his Crownsguard, and now he was Prompto's duty as much as he was Ignis's and Gladio's.
Duty, job, obligation. He hated those words.
And even more than that, he hated that he couldn't help doubting their friendship now after all these years. Only because of some stupid conversations he involuntarily eavesdropped on.
He slumped against the floor, not minding the comics beneath him digging into his back, and just lay there for a moment.
"Ten thousand cronas, huh. Congrats, guys," he called out into the room. A strangled laugh left him. He'd totally lost it, hadn't he? But he wouldn't cry, like some kid. Not that there was any reason to, anyway. He wasn't sad or disappointed or whatever—
The shrill noise of the doorbell jerked Noctis out of his way too depressing train of thoughts. Who the hell would come now of all times?
"Hey, buddy?!" came Prompto's voice from outside the front door.
Shit. He froze.
"Noooct? You in there?"
What now? He couldn't just ignore him.
"C'mooon, we know you're there!"
We? Just great.
He slowly dragged himself to the door and opened it to the barest minimum, not wanting them to see the pathetic state of his living room. Nor his own state.
The moment he answered the door, the sight of his friends greeted him with Prompto in the front and one of his pitiable chocobo chick looks plastered on his face.
"What is it?" he asked cautiously.
"What kinda question is that?" said Gladio, as he shoved himself in front of Prompto, the annoyance in his voice unmistakable. "You didn't come. You didn't answer your phone. So your Crownsguard had to come looking for ya."
"Is something wrong, Noct?" came Ignis's voice from behind Gladio. Gladio pretty much covered the other two now. "Why not let us in and—"
But Noctis didn't feel like dealing with this now, dealing with them now. "Sorry, but I'm tired. Can we talk later?"
"Sorry, but I don't think so," was Gladio's answer. "You gotta give us an explanation first."
"Look, I'm sorry, okay? Just…didn't feel like it today. So, I stayed home. That's it." Of course, he was lying. But it wasn't as if anyone had seen him today and could call him out on his lie. He'd been pretty much invisible to the people around him, hearing in on their conversations while no one knew he was there.
"What? But weren't you at the Citadel earlier? A Crownsguard saw you, buddy!"
Wait, what? Someone saw him? Crap. "Uh—right? I…forgot something important and headed back, actually."
Gladio looked like he didn't believe any of it. "What the hell's wrong? Spit it out already. You lying to get out of training or what?"
"Has something happened? You can tell us, Noct." Ignis squeezed himself next to Gladio.
"Yeah, what he said," Prompto added from somewhere behind them.
"No, nothing. I told you. I forgot something. And was tired anyway. So, I returned home." Why couldn't they just leave?
"You fucking serious?" said Gladio. "Can't you send us a message at least when you're too lazy for training? We could've made better use of our time, too."
"Gladio, mind your mouth," Ignis warned before he directed his focus back to Noctis. "But he is right in a way. You could've notified us so that we'd be in the know about what kept you away."
"Yeah, we were worried, man!"
Noctis felt horrible. They were right, he should've texted at least and not inconvenienced them even more. "Sorry, I guess," was all he got out, unable to make eye contact.
"That's all?" asked Gladio, voice underlined with his anger.
What else was he supposed to tell them? The truth? I heard you earlier. All of it. What do you say now? No way was he going to say that, though, because he knew how that would end. Making them feel guilty over a minor thing like this wasn't worth it. If they'd even feel guilty, his inner voice told him.
So, he went with the easier and brattier way to handle the situation. "I said sorry, didn't I? What more do you want? Can you—can't you just leave now? Or should I make it an order?" It came out harsher than he intended, but he didn't have the energy to care.
"Oh, c'mon, Noct, you think that makes us leave?" came Prompto's reaction to Noctis's sad attempt at sounding authoritative.
Gladio, though, glowered at him and said, "Have it your way, Highness." He turned his back to Noctis and left, choosing the stairs over the elevator.
That left him alone with Ignis and Prompto. Ignis looked at him as if he was trying to read his thoughts. Prompto looked torn as if he didn't know whether to say any more or not. Just seeing them like this made him feel bad for making life hard for his friends. Still, he only managed to stand there, unable to make things better.
"Uh, well—" Prompto started. "How 'bout you catch some Z's today so that you'll be ready to kick ass at tomorrow's training?" His best friend obviously tried to lift the mood.
"Yeah, sure," was his meager reply. He was the worst. Prompto looked like he wanted to disappear.
Ignis made his own attempt at cheering Noctis up. "These past couple weeks of preparation for Altissia have indeed been quite strenuous. A good night's rest will do wonders."
"Yeah, sorry, guys. I'm, uh…" He didn't know what else to say anymore. If only he could be better…
"Don't worry about it. If you do want to talk you know how to reach me—us. Rest well, Noct." Ignis offered him a kind smile and prepared for his leave, summoning the elevator.
"Yeah, man. Sleep well I guess?" Prompto said, waving at him before he followed behind Ignis.
Noctis shut the door before they even reached the elevator. All by himself again, he stood with his back to the door. This couldn't have gone any worse.
Trying not to dwell on it any longer, he headed to the bedroom. He plopped down on the bed, pulled the comforter over his head and squeezed his eyes shut.
Later. I'll deal with this later. Tomorrow. Tomorrow, everything would be back to normal again. He'd forget about what happened today, join the training as usual, and they'd be just fine.
Because they were friends.
Prompto licked his fingers clean, one after another, the lingering flavor of the Royal Crown Chips as addictive as ever. Every good thing comes to an end, he thought forlornly as he assessed the pathetic amount of chips left in the bag.
His inner glutton told him to empty the rest of the bag all on his own, but his conscience made him eye his best friend sitting on the other end of the couch.
In the end, friendship won over appetite. "You want some more?" he asked. "Last chance, bud!"
Noct didn't even look up from his phone. "No, 's fine," he answered, voice dull and dismissive. And that seemed to be all he had to say.
"Okay…" Prompto cringed inwardly. This was how all their interactions had been going for the last couple of days and he hated it.
Something was wrong with Noct. He was quiet, more so than usual, and when he talked it seemed forced and half-hearted. It wasn't that his friend was particularly mean or nasty to him—no way, this was still Noct—but he went out of his way to shut everyone out and while it had Prompto worried, the concern also had started to morph into something close to frustration. Because how was he supposed to treat him without knowing just what the hell was wrong?
Of course, he could pinpoint the cause of this change in behavior to a very specific moment: the training session three days ago when Noct didn't appear and they came looking for him at his apartment. Since then, things between them had been awkward. Noct came to training, they even hung out like they did right now, playing King's Knight and waiting for Gladio and Ignis to join them later. But throughout all this, his best friend was tense and cold, especially towards him.
He wondered whether Noct was starting to regret having him come along to Altissia. Did he finally realize that Prompto was good for nothing? That he'd only drag them down? Or was that just his imagination running wild?
Letting out a weary sigh, he took another glimpse at his best friend who performed his new habit of ignoring Prompto's presence. He didn't get it. Why did Noct even agree to hang out when he'd avoid any form of interaction like the scourge?
"You want me to leave?" he blurted out before he could regret it.
Noct's head whipped around as fast as Prompto imagined a cactuar to move from one point to another. Under different circumstances, he would've found it comical. "What?" Noct said, his face showing more emotion than it had in the last few days, eyes glimmering with something, though Prompto had trouble depicting what that something was. Shock? Rage? Disgust?
Already regretting his words because he didn't know how to follow up, Prompto stuttered out the first smart thing he could come up with. Which wasn't very smart. "Uh, I just thought—sorry, dunno what I was thinkin'…"
Again, he couldn't make out what the expression on Noct's face said, only that he didn't like it. "It's fine. I get it," Noct said before facing away again.
'I get it?' What was that supposed to mean now? All kinds of responses were swirling in Prompto's head, waiting to be said out loud. Before he could say anything, though, Noct stood.
"Oh, right—we're out of chips, huh. Gonna go to the grocery store real quick and bring some beer, too," he said. It sounded feigned and like the easiest excuse to get away from Prompto, especially because Noct hadn't shown any interest in the chips before and knew very well that Gladio planned to bring a six-pack.
"I'll tag along—"
"Ignis and Gladio should be here any moment. Stay and wait for them, 'kay?"
"Fine…" Prompto felt like the biggest failure for not calling his friend out on his excuse and just letting him go.
Noct left, the front door closing behind him much louder than was comfortable to Prompto's ears.
Nearly empty chip bag in his hands and thoughts running through his head, he waited for what couldn't have been more than two minutes before he heard the sound of the front door opening.
At first, Prompto thought Noct had changed his mind and came back to talk. He quickly made his way to the entrance area. What greeted him, though, were Gladio and Ignis. Right. Ignis had a key card to Noct's place.
"Good evening, Prompto," greeted Ignis.
"Heya."
"Hey. Where's Noct?" Gladio asked, looking around.
"Uh, he went down to the grocery store to pick up some stuff, y'know."
Both Gladio and Ignis gave him an incredulous look. Good to know he wasn't the only one who thought it was veeery untypical of Noct to go grocery shopping on a whim.
"Still avoidin' us instead of just sayin' what's his damn problem, huh?" said Gladio.
"Gladiolus, would you stop that," came Ignis's stern warning.
Prompto sighed. This had been their routine for the past several days. Noct acting apathetic or making himself scarce altogether, Gladio using every opportunity to show his dissatisfaction at Noct's admittedly weird behavior, and Ignis reprimanding Gladio. And Prompto…he just wanted everything to be normal again.
"What? I don't know what's his problem, but he's gotta pull his head outta his ass and get over it," said Gladio, as he strode in and deposited the promised six-pack of beer on the kitchen counter before thinking better of it and putting two handfuls of cans in the fridge. He looked around again, his gaze landing on the corner of the living area. "And look at that. He hasn't even started packing, huh?" he added.
A set of unfolded cardboard boxes was innocently leaning against the wall, looking as if they hadn't been touched even once.
"Cut him some slack, big guy. There's still time until the move-out." Prompto felt as if it was his responsibility to defend Noct when he wasn't here to do so himself. That's what best friends were there for, right?
"Right, three days," Gladio deadpanned.
"Right. Three days," Prompto quipped. Three full days should be plenty…right?
Ignis clearing his throat interrupted their little battle of wills. "How about a change of subject?" the Chamberlain asked. "Wasn't there something you wanted to pick up for Iris, Gladio?"
"Oh, right. Forgot all 'bout it."
"Huh?" Prompto felt left out.
"Noct promised to lend Iris that Morub the Malboro comic edition featuring Moguli the Moogle the other day," Gladio explained, then asked, "Where does he keep his comics?"
"Uuuh—" Prompto looked around. It was only then that he noticed that the living room was devoid of comics. Usually, they'd be scattered around on the coffee table and the couch, and some were kept in the bookshelves. Now that Prompto looked, the shelves were close to empty. Had Noct taken all of them to his room? "If they aren't in here, I guess they're in his room!"
"Perhaps we should wait until his return. He'll know where to look, and," Ignis said, and paused to give Gladio an admonishing look, "not to mention it's not proper to go through other people's private belongings."
"Nah, I'll look by myself. Will be quicker this way," said Gladio, already barging into Noct's bedroom.
Ignis sighed, probably on Noct's behalf. Not even Ignis entered Noct's bedroom these days, as the prince was able to pick up after himself much better now compared to some years ago.
"Guys, you gotta see this," came Gladio's voice from the bedroom.
What now? Somehow already dreading what was expecting him there, Prompto joined Gladio. "What the," was all that managed to escape his mouth once he saw the state of the room.
"What's with all those—" asked Gladio, dumbfounded. There, beside the prince's bed, was an enormous, messy pile of comics, books, and folders. And among them were… "Are these the cardboard boxes?" Gladio echoed Prompto's thoughts.
Ignis kept silent as if deep in thought.
Even for Noct's standards of tidiness, this was too much. And now that Prompto had overcome the first shock, he saw that the boxes and some comics and folders were torn at places. Remnants of a fit of rage, that's what it was.
They stood there, taken aback by what they saw.
Ignis's voice disturbed the silence. "This might be a good moment to address a topic I thought was best to be left alone at first, but…"
"What is it, Iggy?" asked Gladio.
"Well," said Ignis, still a hint of hesitation in his voice, "I fear that Noct might have overheard our conversation three days ago in the training hall."
"What?" burst out Prompto. Wait, no, that couldn't be, no way was that possible. Or was it—
Shit. It was.
Prompto finally got it. These past days, Noct hadn't merely been grumpy for no reason whatsoever. Noct had heard them. All the ramblings about money and obligation and royal brats. He'd heard them, three days ago, in the training room. Of course. A mixture of horror and embarrassment climbed up his spine. Now he recalled how he'd heard something strange at the door at that time. It had been Noct.
And he probably took it all the wrong way, Prompto thought, the horror and embarrassment now settling like a stone in his stomach. But for some reason, Noct hadn't confronted them about it. Why?
Ignis's next words pulled him out of his thoughts. "It was a mere suspicion. I noticed a sound at the entrance of the training hall not long before the cadets came in. It must've been Noct. It would make sense, considering the cadets saw him close by."
"Wait, you heard that, too?" Prompto asked. "I never made the connection 'til now." He felt so stupid.
"It would certainly explain Noct's behavior the last couple of days."
"Damn." Gladio groaned, giving the books and comics to his feet a good kick, adding little to their already pitiful state. "Why was I the only one who didn't hear that?"
"'Cause you were busy talking shit about Noct." Prompto had wanted to say it for days. Now he finally had the opportunity.
A hollow laugh left Gladio's lips. "Can't fault you for sayin' that." He went quiet, and as if an epiphany hit him he quickly looked up again, "Damn, guys, you think he heard that stuff?"
"Which one? You said a lot." If he sounded accusing he didn't care.
"You know which one. Do I have to repeat it?"
The thing was, Prompto hadn't heard it at that time. He had been too distracted listening for that noise he heard at the door—the noise that had been Noct. But judging from Iggy's reaction then and the look of terror in Gladio's eyes now, it must've been bad. Real bad.
He wanted to ask what it was he said, but it felt like rubbing salt into the wound when it was obvious how Gladio regretted it. Or did he?
"No, Gladio, it's fine," Ignis said. "As long as you know. And it's not us you need to explain yourself to. It's Noct you, no, we have to ask for forgiveness."
"Right. Damn," the Shield said, as he stomped out towards the kitchenette. Ignis followed behind, and so did Prompto. Gladio took one of the beer cans out of the fridge and popped it open.
Prompto watched him drinking for a moment, then, fumbling with his shirt, said hesitantly, "What you—we—said, I think it hurt him for real, big guy..."
"But look, that's the problem," replied Gladio. "I don't regret anythin' I said except that one thing where I went too far. That one was too much. But," he paused for a second, taking a few gulps of beer. "I can't and won't apologize for the other stuff 'cause I was statin' the damn truth."
At that moment, Prompto wanted to strangle Gladio, but he knew that wouldn't go over well.
Ignis butted in, "You don't understand, Gladio. This isn't only about what is true or not. We should've been upfront with Noct about these matters instead of talking about them behind his back. We've deliberately avoided any talk about our salaries for years, and you know it." He gave Gladio a meaningful look. "And now I fear he might've misunderstood our intentions." Then he turned towards Prompto. "Prompto, you are not at fault. We asked you to keep quiet, so please don't take it to heart."
"Guess we'll have to agree to disagree here, Iggy," said Gladio. "This is a two-way street. He could've mentioned it, too, but he never did."
A long sigh left Ignis's lips. "I'm aware of that, but you know how he is."
"I tell ya, you're too soft on the brat."
"Maybe, yet I disagree," said Ignis, not backing down. "Hear me out, Gladio. I may be soft, but only because I can see how hard he's been working on himself. You should know, as well. You've been putting all your energy into training him for years, and you full well know of his prowess on the battlefield." Ignis took only a second to breathe before he continued, "And that's not all. He's been seeing to all his other obligations without fault and always on his best behavior. But he cannot attend every meeting, he cannot have perfect knowledge of everything. And that's where we come in, to fill in the gaps."
Wow. Prompto was in awe at Ignis's words. He put so well into words what Prompto hadn't been able to get out.
Gladio, for once, was quiet, a thoughtful frown on his face.
For a minute, silence reigned.
There was one thing Prompto was still hung up on, though...
"So, you really think he heard everything?" he blurted out. He just felt so ashamed. Back then in the training hall, the excitement of so much money landing in his bank account had gotten the better of him. He must've sounded like the biggest money-grubbing jerk alive.
"There's no way of knowing for certain until we ask Noct himself," said Ignis.
"Ask me what?" came—shit—no one's but Noct's voice from the hallway, accompanied by the sound of the door opening to his key card.
The stone of horror and embarrassment that had settled deep into Prompto's stomach jumped up into his throat.
Noct looked at them, expression closed off and waiting for someone to answer his question. Prompto didn't want to be the one. He knew he'd screw up and only make things worse.
If anyone else noticed, no one mentioned that Noct's hands were empty, no bags of chips or bottles of beer anywhere to see.
"Fuck, Noct," Gladio was the first to speak. "You were there and heard that shit, right?"
Noct said nothing. It was all the confirmation they needed.
"Oh Noct. Why haven't you said something?" Ignis asked, voice thick with emotion. Prompto wanted to ask the same thing.
Noct kept silent. His shoulders looked stiff, his lips pressed tight together and he was avoiding eye contact with them. Was he angry? What they found in his room definitely suggested that he was damn pissed with them.
"Why," Noct finally said, "didn't you guys say anything?"
"What?" asked Gladio.
"About your pay raise? Or anything, really?"
No, his buddy wasn't angry, Prompto could see it now. Noct's eyes were red-rimmed, and his voice had raised an octave higher, stressed at the edges. This wasn't anger. This was… Prompto choked on his breath. He felt horrible.
"We know now that it was a mistake to never breach the topic before. I… we didn't want to bring money talk into our friendship, but it backfired. My deepest apologies," Ignis said.
Prompto was about to give Noct an apology of his own, but Gladio beat him to it. "Listen, Noct. The shit I said—especially that thing—fuck, that went too far. Sorry about that."
"It was what you really think though, wasn't it?" Noct asked, meeting Gladio's gaze head-on.
"Don't get me wrong. I still think you gotta grow up and take things more seriously. I won't coddle you 'cause that won't help ya," Gladio said, no hesitation in his voice, then added, "And you damn well have to accept that there's no changin' that we got to do a job here."
The prince visibly flinched at the last bit, tearing his gaze away. It seemed that one had hit a sore spot.
Everything started to come together now. Was this why Noct was so upset about all this? The job part?
"I get it. I get it, okay? I'm your job. And a fucking disappointment. I should be trying harder." Noct looked deflated, shoulders slumped and eyebrows drawing together. Prompto felt another surge of guilt wash over him the moment he saw that expression.
Noct continued, still facing Gladio, "I know you're disappointed, okay? You guys probably, too." He looked up at Ignis and Prompto. It seemed like he wanted to say more, but nothing else came.
No. This wasn't how Prompto wanted this to go. Why was Noct saying things like that? Why the hell should Prompto be disappointed in him? Prompto knew that if he didn't act now he'd regret it later, but he felt like there were no words to express what he wanted to say.
Noct himself must've noticed how his emotional state became obvious to them. He was blinking hard, suppressing his tears. "Dammit." He turned around.
"Oh Noct…" Ignis reached out, but Noct drew away from the contact.
Prompto wanted to reach out too, but would he be treated differently than Ignis? Most likely not. Why was it so hard to comfort people? It was probably no different for Ignis and Gladio; showing affection just wasn't what they—being dudes and all—usually did. Prompto hated himself.
The following seconds of silence crept by agonizingly slow. Until… "Do you still… even want to be my Crownsguard? And come with me to Altissia? If you don't, I won't force you. I'll talk with Dad."
Shit.
"C'mon, dude, what kinda question is that?" Prompto finally managed to say, voice wavering, horrified by Noct's question. No fucking way would he let his best friend believe he didn't want to join him.
"Gods, Noct, no…" Ignis added, speechless for once. He looked shell-shocked.
Gladio stepped forward, closer to Noct. "Hey, the little guy here said it. We'll come with ya. Period." Then he added, "And damn if you're no more of a disappointment than this loser of a Shield here." It was so obvious how he was trying to find the right words, but just making it sound awkward. "Look, Noct," he continued, "I was angry, but… I wasn't fair. These two here," he said, as he pointed at Prompto and Ignis, "made sure I got that."
Noct finally turned back to them, looking at them with wide eyes.
Ignis added, composed again, "Yes, we've all been doing a disastrous job of communicating like adults." He sighed. "That being said, it is difficult sometimes, separating duty from friendship. Still, it's much simpler to me than you think it is. Even when I act out of duty it doesn't mean I'm any less of your friend at that moment." There was a slight pause. "You are and always will be a dear friend to me."
"Couldn't have phrased it any better," Gladio said, in a way that made Prompto believe him. "You get it now, kid?"
Noct nodded, though hesitantly. Prompto still just wanted to hug him.
Before he did that, though… "And don'tcha dare ask me about duty and all that nonsense, bud. I don't even feel like a full Crownsguard, so don't expect me to be anythin' but a friend to you!"
With an unsteady hand, he reached out, giving Noct the overdue hug. This time, his friend didn't withdraw. He returned the hug immediately as if he'd been hoping for it after all. He sagged against Prompto, the tension finally leaving his body. Prompto gave him a heartfelt squeeze. Who cared if they were dudes?
"I'm sorry," Noct said. "I'm sorry for bein' an ass, guys, I'm—"
"Stop it," Prompto said.
Noct stopped.
"Why are you sorry? We—I'm sorry!"
"Indeed. Please let us make it up to you," said Ignis.
There was a moment of quiet before Gladio grunted and stepped forward. "C'mere," he said, collecting Noct and Prompto in a big bear hug.
"We're here for you, Noct." Ignis was the last to join them, enveloping them from behind.
Voice still croaky, Noct said, "Thanks, guys. Me…too. I'm here."
They stayed like this, just relishing the peaceful moment. Prompto was well aware that this was the closest the four of them had ever been. They were friends and Prompto would make sure to remind Noct of it at every possible occasion from now on.
Then, without preamble, the prince laughed and said, "Ten thousand bucks, huh. Never thought it was this much."
"'s because you're worth so much," Prompto said. Even more. Much, much more, he added in his mind.
"Worth a fortune," said Ignis.
"Definitely worth our time an' effort," added Gladio.
.
.
.
A/N: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed! This was once the end of this fic, but next up is a little bonus epilogue. :)
Shout out to Kitsune_138 for beta reading, and fayth and QuoteMyFoot for helping me with the revision and epilogue!