"Axel…" Jasmine's voice was almost gone and her face was as paler than ever.

"To be honest," He leaned forward and rested his chin in his hand, "I haven't always been a fan of your ideas, but this one I'm not entirely mad at."

Knowing right out the gate that it would be useless to try to lie to Axel, who was one of SOLDIER's - and previously SHINRA's - best interrogators, Jasmine gave in and admitted to the affair.

"Should I even ask how you found out?" Jasmine asked sheepishly.

Axel grinned from ear to ear, finding it amusing at how sheepish Jasmine was behaving. "I was at one of my clubs on Twilight Town a few days ago and saw footage of you guys together."

Jasmine's cheeks turned bright red. She thought they had been careful by going out on another island. But it just seemed that they hadn't been careful enough. "What did you see?"

The redhead chuckled. "Calm down; you guys were just hanging out. But judging from how he was looking at you, I'm sure it didn't take long for you both to sneak off."

Jasmine groaned loudly, swearing at herself internally for being so careless.

"Don't worry," he reassured her. "I won't say anything."

Her eyes widened in shock. "You're not?"

"Of course not. I don't know why you think I would." He sighed a bit and twiddled is fingers against the marble countertop. "It was obvious you didn't want to be seen, and to be honest, that's not my business to tell."

Jasmine pulled out a barstool and took a seat, still rattled from having her secret discovered but slightly calmer than before. "Have you told Roxas?"

Axel burst into laughter, his voice filling the entire kitchen. "No…but…you know?" He said between chuckles. "I like you, but you're one of the messiest people I've ever met."

Jasmine rolled her eyes. "Yes, I know how messed up this situation is."

"You had a rocky relationship with Roxas a few years back," Axel's laughter finally subsided long enough to lay out the situation. "And now you're dating Roxas' older, almost-identical cousin Ven. How long have you guys been together?"

"We're not dating," Jasmine explained tiredly.

"Huh?" He asked curiously.

"I said…" Jasmine inhaled sharply. "Ven and I aren't dating. We just sleep together, that's all."

Axel leaned back and stared at Jasmine, giving her a once over before replying. "So, what was all that talk about not sleeping with men you aren't dating?"

She threw her hands up and groaned. "Yes, Axel," she admitted. "I know it's a load of crap. But I didn't exactly plan on sleeping with Ven. It just happened."

"How?"

"Ugh…" Jasmine's face turned a light shade of pink as she recalled the night. "We were in Agrabah, and it just happened. We're just good friends that hook up. There's nothing there between us, and that's the truth, Axel."

Axel stared deep into Jasmine's eyes and knew she was being honest with him. He let out a deep sigh and frowned.

"What's the face for?" Jasmine asked.

"You know…" Axel began slowly, "out of all the people you've been involved with, Ventus is the one who makes the most sense."

Jasmine immediately fell silent and listened.

"I mean, the Roxas situation was a complete train wreck, Vanitas is a situation altogether that doesn't technically count, and I have no idea what the hell is happening with you and that guy with the silver hair," Axel explained.

"His name is Riku."

"Fine, the pretty boy who lost his shit at that party." Axel rolled his eyes to the back of his head. "The point is, I was actually kind of excited for you. You and Ventus are a good match."

Jasmine placed a hand on her hip and looked directly into Axel's vivid green eyes. "Ven and I aren't into each other like that." She lowered her voice, realizing that Tifa might pop up at any moment. Even though she trusted her godmother with all her heart, she still didn't necessarily want Tifa to know about her "affairs" with Ven.

"Are you still in love with Riku?" Axel asked sincerely, hoping to get a straight answer out of Jasmine.

She hesitated and felt a lump in her throat. Of course, she still loved Riku. If she weren't, she wouldn't get butterflies around him or even when his name came up. "Yeah," she whispered weakly. Her gaze shifted to the floor, where she kept her focus for the time being. "But as long as I'm in SOLDIER, I don't think anything can happen with us. We're trying to be friends, but even that's hard."

The redhead folded his arms across his chest and pursed his lips. The pain on Jasmine's face was unmistakable. He'd always known her to be a smart, severe, matter-of-fact type of person – who was prone to scandalous situations like no other. But the version of her that he was looking at seemed to be a far cry from the girl he met years ago. And while the most recent events of her life would be stressful for most, there almost seemed to be a different type of pain when she mentioned Riku.

"So, what does he say about you being in SOLDIER?" Axel asked finally.

"I know he doesn't like it," Jasmine revealed, thinking back on an earlier conversation she had with Riku.

"Well, I hate to be an ass, but he doesn't have a say in the matter. You work for SOLDIER, and this job is helping keep you alive. Do you think he knows about what goes on behind the scenes?"

Jasmine shook her head.

"And I hate to be a realist here," Axel cleared his throat loudly, "but Riku strikes me as the jealous type. I don't think he'd be comfortable with you out here doing some of the things I know you do on missions if you were together."

Even though she didn't want to admit it, Jasmine knew that Axel was right.

"I'm not trying to be hard on you, but you do have to make a decision," Axel pressed. His green eyes narrowed, and he pulled his lips into a tight frown. "Remember what happened with Roxas? I know you guys had feelings for each other, but I think deep down, you knew that it wasn't going to work, and you led him on. Even back then, Riku was the one you wanted."

Jasmine felt her irritation rising steadily. This was almost the exact conversation she had with Axel a year ago at his nightclub.

"As I said, Cat Eyes," Axel's tone lightened, but the sternness of his stare remained the same. "I like you, I do. And my idiot brother Reno adores you. But you're making the same mistakes as you did back then."

Once again, Jasmine was left speechless. No matter what she said, she knew she couldn't argue with Axel on this one.

"I don't care if you're screwing, Ven," he said plainly. "I like the guy, and, to be honest, this is the one dude you've been with where there hasn't been drama 24/7. You two looked happy, and it seemed real. But I want you to be honest with yourself and with the guys in your life – even the prince because I'm pretty sure he has a crush on you too."

Jasmine screamed internally. But she needed to be real – Axel was 100% right. Eventually, she'd have to tackle her relationships head-on.

Axel lowered his voice, "I would be more careful next time," he advised. "I'm harmless."

Jasmine glared at Axel. "Since when have YOU ever been harmless?"

"I think if Riku or Noctis find out you're sleeping with Ven, it's gonna get real awkward, really quick," Axel warned. "Either you're gonna have to cut things off with Ven and choose to work it out with one of those guys, or you're gonna have to end it with them to make room for Ven because you can't have both."

"You guys! I'm back!" Tifa yelled from the entryway.

Jasmine jumped at the sound of Tifa's voice, and Axel chuckled, his attitude shifting back to his typical devil-may-care state.

"I'll be right there," Axel called out. Before he left the kitchen to help Tifa, he glanced at Jasmine quickly. "I'm not trying to be a jerk," he said quietly. "But I am trying to be real with you. Decide what you want to do, and then do it. I know you have more going on than the average person, but you have to be responsible for your actions."

Embarrassed and speechless, Jasmine did nothing but nod before Axel left. Though the redhead had "told" her about herself before, it was never as direct as it was this time. And while Jasmine was less bothered than she thought she'd be by the fact that Axel knew her secret, she was more shaken up by the imparting words he gave her about deciding on how to proceed forward with Riku, Ven, and Noctis.

She immediately whipped around and turned her back to Tifa and Axel, who had returned from her errand and began frantically texting someone on the other end.

'We need to talk.'


"Did you have fun, Noctis?" Prompto asked as he drove himself and the prince back to the latter's apartment.

In a rare moment, Noctis smiled back at his friend from the passenger's seat, albeit there was a sadness to his expression. "I did," he replied. "It was a good birthday."

Prompto slowed the car once they approached a red light and looked over at Noctis, who seemed a little more focused than usual when he was staring at his phone. "Waiting for a text?"

Noctis' smile faded away, and he shoved his phone in his pants pocket. He remained silent and kept his bright blue eyes focused on the road.

"What's wrong?" Prompto asked, concerned by the prince's withdrawn behavior. "I thought you were having a good day."

Noctis pursed his lips and sighed. "I haven't heard from Jasmine all day."

"What?" Prompto feigned surprise. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah," he revealed. "Jasmine left a note saying that she was going to her godmother's house and that was it."

"Hmm, that is weird," Prompto said distantly, hoping to hide his excitement. "Have you reached out to her?"

Noctis shook his head. "No," he said shortly. "I figured that she's busy."

"Does she know that it's your birthday?"

"I think Ignis mentioned it to her a week ago. Maybe she forgot."

Prompto laughed inwardly. What Noctis didn't know was that Jasmine had planned the surprise dinner party for him weeks ago. She invested so much time and effort into everything and even led Noctis to believe that she'd forgotten his special day.

"Maybe she'll take you to a nice dinner," Prompto guessed, driving off once the light had changed color. "I would have a little more faith in Miss Valentine if I were you."

Noctis grumbled and slumped back in the car seat, wondering if it was such a good idea to have four drinks at lunch. "I know I know," he muttered. "It's just…"

"It's just what, Noctis?"

"I just don't get her," Noctis admitted sadly.

Prompto stole a look from the prince as he turned the corner. Just before they reached Noctis and Jasmine's home, the blond pulled over and parked the car, preferring to have this conversation in privacy than in the (unbeknownst to Noctis) bustling busy apartment.

"What do you mean? What's there to get?" Prompto asked curiously.

"Ever since the incident months ago, it just feels like things are different with us. I know Jasmine forgave me, but sometimes I don't think she trusts me like she used to," Noctis stated bluntly, not even thinking as he spoke so candidly about his feelings. "I just can't read her."

Prompto pursed his lips. While he did think that there was a slight shift between Noctis and Jasmine, he hadn't expected it to be like this.

After all, the pair seemed to get along better, they spent more time together, and Noctis had taken great care to surprise her with little things from time to time. If anything, Prompto thought that things were getting better – not worse.

It wasn't that big of a secret that Prompto wanted Noctis and Jasmine to end up together despite their many differences. She was highly intelligent, well-read, strong, kind, and beautiful. Plus, she was one of the most loyal people Prompto had ever met in his life. He knew that even though it had never been stated, Noctis was very fond of Jasmine and would do whatever he could to protect her and vice versa. It just seemed like it could work if both sides could drop their defenses.

And in addition to that, if Jasmine and Noctis did end up together, it would mean that once their time on Radiant Garden came to a close, Jasmine could go with them and support their mission and possibly be a queen's candidate and not have to part ways.

Above all, and even though Noctis never really showed it, he knew that Jasmine made him happy, and Prompto wanted nothing more than for the prince to find love and happiness.

Realizing that his friend needed a bit of encouragement, Prompto started with the wind up to get his plan going.

"So, what I'm getting is that you have a crush on Miss Valentine…am I right in saying that?"

Noctis turned to Prompto, revealing his shock. "What are you talking about?"

Prompto snickered to himself. The prince was not good at hiding his emotions – especially when he was already several drinks into the day. "All signs point to you having feelings for her whether you like it or not."

Noctis stared out the tinted window of the passenger door, watching all the people walk by. "Maybe," he admitted with a rueful smile. "I don't even know."

Prompto smiled from ear to ear. He never thought that in a million years, he could get Noctis to admit that he had feelings for Jasmine. Nor did Prompto believe it would be that easy.

"I don't know, Prompto," Noctis began sluggishly. "I haven't thought about anything like this in a while…"

The blond's ears perked up.

"Not since Luna…"

And just like that, the air in the car became dense and suffocating. Prompto's smile vanished, and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He closed his eyes and pictured her. The beautiful, graceful Lunafreya…

Though that fateful day had long since passed, Prompto, Noctis, and the others could remember it like it was yesterday. And even though Prompto himself didn't see the incident for himself, he knew exactly what happened.

"You know she wouldn't want you to be like this," Prompto offered, hoping his words would snap the prince out of his impending spiral. "She'd want you to find happiness."

Noctis scoffed. "Happiness? We haven't done a damn thing to get back to the kingdom or save it. All we've done was play fighter-for-hire with SOLDIER."

They'd been with the group for about three years, and they hadn't been back to Lucis since they fled the city. While occasionally they did come across someone with ties to their war, it seemed as though the longer they stayed on the islands, the further it took them away from their real goal.

"My father would be disappointed in me," Noctis lamented, closing his eyes and picturing his dad. "We don't even know if he's alive."

"Don't say that!" Prompto yelled, immediately breaking Noctis out of his funk. "The king is alive. We're going to find him! And you know His Highness is proud of you. You've grown so much stronger in the last few years; he wouldn't want you to beat yourself up over something you can't change."

"Face it, Prompto…" Noctis seemed determined to wallow despite Prompto's best efforts to cheer the prince up. "We lost the kingdom, my father, and Luna…we've failed them. I don't deserve to be the next king…"

While Prompto wanted to smack Noctis out of his drunken tirade, he knew he had to let him get it out.

After all, the four of them (himself, Noctis, Gladiolus, and Ignis) had been through hell and back the last three years.

What made matters worse was that the incident in question, the day they left the kingdom, was three years ago today on Noctis' twenty-first birthday.

For the most part, Noctis held it together quite well. The young prince had an entire country and kingdom depending on him, and they hadn't seen their home in years.

Prompto reached over and placed a hand on Noctis' shoulder, giving it a squeeze to both grab his attention and provide him with comfort. Once the prince turned back to his friend, Prompto gave him a rueful yet hopeful smile that seemed to ease the tension in the car.

"You know they'd both want you to be happy, right? I know the situation isn't ideal – trust me, I get why you'd be upset – but things are gonna get better. We just can't beat ourselves up over the past. If not, we'll never move forward," Prompto told him sternly. "And you're not alone here. You have me, Gladiolus, Ignis, and even Miss Valentine. We've got your back."

Despite feeling a sheer heaviness in his heart, Noctis did feel comforted by Prompto's words.

"Thank you, Prompto," Noctis said, still down but trying his best at a smile to put his friend at ease.

"Of course, Your Highness."

Prompto started the car and headed for the guarded entrance to Noctis' apartment building. Upon driving up to the gate and fishing for the key card, Prompto felt his phone vibrate in his pants pocket. Before he swiped the keycard, he placed his foot on the brake pedal and typed away on his phone.

'We're parking right now. I'll let you know when we're in the elevator.'

"Who is that?" Noctis asked curiously, unsuccessfully trying to sneak a glance at Prompto's screen.

Prompto slid his phone back into his pants pocket before punching in the access code for the gate. "It was Ignis," he lied. "He wanted to make sure you got home safe since you had a few drinks at lunch."

Noctis, who seemed satisfied at the answer, slumped back into his seat and let Prompto drive deeper into the parking structure.

Once Prompto spotted Jasmine's car and motorcycle parked in their designated spots, he pulled into the one right beside hers designated for Noctis. "Looks like she's here," the blond mumbled.

Noctis stared at her cars and huffed, almost as if he were anxious.

"Chill out," Prompto parked the car smoothly and shut off the engine. "I don't want you guys fighting. You know how you get when you start drinking if you're in a mood."

Noctis stepped out of the car and frowned. "I'm not in a mood," he argued.

Prompto, once he locked the car behind him, threw the keys to Noctis, which he caught. "You say that now."

Once the two walked up the platform in the parking lot leading to the elevators, Noctis inserted his keycard, and the doors opened. The pair stepped inside and immediately, once the elevator began to rise, Prompto fished out his phone again and began texting away.

"I'm not in a mood," Noctis repeated, this time with a bit less conviction in his voice. "It just sucks thinking that your friend forgot your birthday."

"You mean your girlfriend?" Prompto teased.

"She's not my girlfriend," Noctis snapped. He tried to ignore Prompto's comments by focusing on the tiles of the elevator hanging overhead.

"If you say so," the blond sing-songed. "In any case, if Miss Valentine is hanging out with Ventus or gone, do you wanna grab something to eat? My treat?"

The pair reached the top floor of the penthouse suite, and the elevator doors swung open. Noctis and Prompto waved to the attendant that stood guard at the entrance.

"Sure," Noctis said simply as he greeted the attendant.

"Don't be upset," Prompto instructed as he followed behind Noctis as they entered the dark apartment.

Prompto hung back in the foyer, grateful that the darkness could hide the ear to ear smile on his face.

Noctis felt slightly anxious. He didn't remember the apartment being so dark when he left earlier in the day. Every light was off, even the blinds were shut, and everything was completely silent. Usually, when he or Jasmine left for the day, they would at least leave the foyer light on or the living room light. And as Noctis walked closer to where the living room should have been, he had this sneaky suspicion that something was wrong.

Noctis carefully walked to the left and ran his hand along the wall, slowing his steps, and tried to find the light-switch. Once successful, he flipped the light on and was immediately met with a roar of cheers.

"SURPRISE! Happy Birthday, Noctis!"

The prince jumped in surprise and covered his hands over his face as a crowd of familiar faces set off confetti poppers and streamers.

He lowered his arms, shocked and surprised to see Ignis, Gladiolus, Axel, Terra, Ventus, Aqua, Tifa, Cloud, Zack, Aerith, Jasmine, Vincent and Yuffie standing in the middle of his living room over a massive table of gifts and a giant three-tiered white, blue and gold birthday cake with birthday candles all over it.

"What the hell - ?" Noctis swore, overwhelmed by the sight before him.

"He fell for it!" Prompto shouted as he draped an arm over the prince's shoulders. "Told ya he would!"

Jasmine broke out of the group and picked up the birthday cake, carefully walking it over to Noctis. "I figured he would," she called out to Prompto above the ruckus of the room. "I'm surprised he didn't sense anything sooner. Good job, guys getting him out of here."

Gladiolus and Ignis stepped forward and smiled.

"It wasn't easy," Ignis stated as he adjusted his glasses.

"Especially when you guys kept texting me," Prompto said as he pulled Noctis closer to the cake and Jasmine. "You need to hurry up and make your birthday wish!"

Jasmine smirked, clearly pleased by the look of disbelief still on Noctis' face. She called the others over, and they huddled around the trio. "I know you're still surprised, but I think you should make that wish now."

"Yeah," Axel chuckled, taking a spot to Jasmine's left. "You have a fire-hazard in here, and while I do love a good bonfire, I think you don't want a burned down apartment for your birthday."

About half a dozen cameras whipped out as the original SOLDIERs and second-generation 1st Class members waited for Noctis to make his birthday wish and blow out the candles.

"Who did all this?" Noctis asked, scanning over everyone in the room.

Almost everyone pointed to Jasmine, who seemed to blush a bit from all the attention.

"Who else?" Ventus asked, laughing as if he'd heard the most ridiculous thing in the world. "Now hurry up and blow out the candles!"

"Yeah," Yuffie jumped out and cheesed. "Jasmine here cooked a four-course meal for everyone. I don't know about you, but I'm starving!"

In a rare moment, Noctis dropped his guard and smiled, all the way from the inside out. He turned his attention back to Jasmine, and the two stared deep into each other's eyes.

Jasmine mouthed "make a wish," steadied the cake on her forearms, and held it out to him.

Noctis leaned forward, closed his eyes, and blew out all twenty-four candles. His heart swelled as he took in the company of his friends, finding that despite the chaos in his life, one of his greatest wishes had already come true.


Author's Note: First things first, how are you all doing? I know, the elephant in the room, a lot of crazy things are going on and it's a little…chaotic out there. So, I hope everyone is staying safe, taking care of themselves and others, and are finding ways to navigate through these times.

I was sitting on this chapter for a while, unsure of where to take it. It took a while, but I finally got it in a good spot where I feel comfortable. What did you guys think? I tried to give a little bit more backstory on Noctis and the others since they've not really gotten a proper backstory. I might end up just creating the side story on how Jasmine and the others met since I am currently off work for the next month and I have the time.

Let me know what you guys think of the chapter and hopefully, I'll get another one up sooner!

Me: Thank you for your support!

Meyoume: I appreciate the review! Don't worry, we'll get to see more of Riku and Jasmine soon.

Rynxenvy: I do too. I think it's a fairly similar relationship she has to Reno (considering they're both brothers) but I do think that Axel is more…real with her in a no-nonsense type of way, but no less loving in his own way.

Hopefuldreamer1991: Oh of course. Guys talk. We'll just have to see how it all plays out.

If you guys want to talk about the story, life, whatever it is, I'm here for you all. Just drop me a PM and I'll be able to reply in 24 hours or less. In times like these, we all need to be here for one another and if you need an ear or just some sort of human connection, I'm not far.

Take care everyone!