Noctis was sinking. No, Noctis was drowning. "Ah! I can't do this anymore!" He slammed on the keys, the dissonant noise startling Prompto. The blond glared at the pianist and jumped down from his perch on a nearby desk.
"Oh c'mon, buddy. You've only been at this for...twenty minutes? It'll work out," Prompto said. He sauntered over, taking a seat next to Noctis. "I'm sure you'll find inspiration from something."
Noctis flushed at Prompto's words. He already had inspiration; Prompto alone made his heart flutter. But it was more of a matter of wanting to pick the right piece to convey his feelings. "Are you sure about that? The regional is in two weeks."
"Oh c'mon. When I asked you to be my accompanist you had less than a week. What's so different about this?" Prompto asked.
It's because I want to prove that I'm worthy of you, Noctis thought. Sure, he knew logically that it was no different from the last competition, but this felt different. His rivals would be there, along with Prompto and his friends. His pride was on the line. He'd hate to admit it, but he liked the way people looked at him when he put on a show. He drank in their reverence.
Recently, Noctis had begun to dream about Prompto looking at him with the same reverence in his eyes. His violet eyes hungry with desire as he wet his lips and -
"-Noctis? You alright, buddy?" The sound of Prompto's voice pulled him away from his fantasy.
"Hmmm? Oh, yeah..." Noctis trailed off. "How about we get out of here. I can't think."
"Aw, Noct! I thought you'd at least be a gentleman and take me to dinner before-" Prompto teased.
"Oh, shut up," Noctis interrupted, failing to hide how embarrassed he was about Prompto's comment.
The walk to Noctis' house was practically silent, not that Noctis minded. They walked side by side, hands grazing every so often. Noctis stifled his grin the first time it happened. The second time it happened, he glanced at Prompto only to be met with a mischievous glint in his friend's eyes. The third time it happened, Noctis allowed his fingers to linger longer than necessary. Prompto's blush was all the confirmation he needed.
Eventually, the two fell into light banter. It felt comfortable, for a lack of better words. Reminiscent of hot chocolate on a cold day, gentle rain in the evening, the purring of an old cat; the small things of happiness in the world.
However, a flash of light caught his eye. Prompto's necklace. Noctis felt a lump form in his throat and he tried to swallow his guilt. Prompto wasn't a bauble to be fought over, he deserved to be wooed like one of the characters in Gladio's romance novels.
"Oh! You have a lovely house!" Prompto said through a grin. It was true, his house was the pinnacle of suburbia. Still, the lovely facade gave way to a lonely place. The dark interior indicated that no one was home.
"Yeah. Gets pretty lonely though…" Noctis trailed off, unlocking the front door. "After you."
Prompto's smile turned into a slight frown. "I see what you mean… about it being lonely." The blond gave a heavy sigh. "I guess your life wasn't idyllic either."
"You could say that," Noctis replied. "Do you want anything to eat or drink?" He asked, wanting to shift the topic.
"Yeah! A cup of coffee sounds great right about now. I haven't slept much in the past week," Prompto stated, taking off his uniform coat.
"How come?" Noctis asked, pulling two cups out of a cabinet.
"No specific reason. I've always had trouble sleeping, but my sleep schedule gets seriously messed up when I'm stressed," Prompto said as he looked at the pictures scattered throughout the living room. Remnants of a happier time.
"What are you stressed about?" Noctis started the coffee machine. He rarely drank coffee, seeing as he loved to sleep, but he would indulge now and then.
"That's for me to know and for you to wonder about. Now, we came here to play music. So are we going to or what?" The blond asked.
"Yeah, yeah. You can head upstairs and look through all of the music I have. Maybe you'll find something. I'll just wait here until the coffee is done. Shouldn't take much longer."
True to his word, Noctis came bearing coffee. However, he didn't imagine spilling it all over his friend. Prompto, thankfully, had the good humor to laugh about it, but Noctis continued to apologize profusely.
"I'm so sorry! Here, let me help clean it up."
"It's no problem, really. I spill things all the time when I help out my dad at the cafe."
"I still feel bad…"
"It's not that big of a deal-"
"But you're dripping coffee onto the floor!"
Sure enough, Noctis was right. Little caramel colored droplets splattered onto the hardwood floor as Prompto tried to shrug off Noctis' apologies. "Just go take a shower. I'll get you some of my clothes so you don't have to wear...that."
Prompto huffed, but it was in good nature. "Okay, dad. But only because you're being so bossy."
Noctis directed Prompto in the direction of his bathroom. As soon as the blond left, he put his hands in his head. He hadn't meant to make a mess of himself, but Prompto just had that effect on him.
He messed around on the piano as he waited for Prompto to finish showering. A gentle canon here, a melancholic piece there. A soft smile graced Noctis' lips. While the piano still brought harsh memories, he was making new ones. Happier ones. Ever since Prompto entered his life, he found it easier to be happy. WIth the black and ivory keys beneath his fingers, he continued to play for a nonexistent audience.
"You know, you should really clean up this room. Why don't we open up the curtains and a window? Breathe some life into here, don't you think?" Prompto asked from behind Noctis.
The pianist was about to reply when Prompto sashayed from the doorway to the other side of the room, and he felt his breath hitch. Noctis' shirt was too big for the blond, seeing as it hung loosely around the shoulders and exposed his collarbones. Noctis' shorts were too big on Prompto as well. They hung dangerously low, allowing the pianist to catch a glimpse of the blond's hip bones. Noctis felt a furious blush creep up on his face.
"No, I like it-" Noctis protested.
"Too late!" Prompto interrupted. He flung open the curtains to reveal a curious sight. The window allowed the blond to peer into someone else's bedroom. That other person was Ignis. Sea green eyes met violet ones, and time stood still for a second.
"Oh hey, Ignis! I didn't know you and Noctis were neighbors!" Prompto exclaimed excitedly as he opened the window to talk to the older boy.
"Evidently, Noctis has failed to tell the both of us certain information…" Ignis trailed off, a scowl apparent on his face.
Noctis grimaced. That was exactly the reason why he didn't want Prompto to open the stupid curtains. Thankfully, Prompto was blissfully unaware of the look Ignis was giving Noctis.
The pianist knew what it looked like. And it didn't look good for him. From Ignis' perspective, it would appear that Noctis had invited Prompto over for some time away from Gladio. Which wasn't his intention, but Prompto wearing his clothes didn't help his case either.
"Well, nice seeing you, Prompto. However, I must go back to studying and I assume that you must be busy with Noctis," Ignis said, venom seeping from his words. He brusquely closed the window and drew his curtains.
Prompto turned to Noctis. "Well, since we said 'hi' to Ignis, we better get working on that music of yours."
