Naminé sat patiently in the driver's seat, going through her text messages as she waited for Jasmine in front of her apartment. The two decided to ride to Sora's Halloween party together, with the blonde offering to drive the two of them. Once she spotted the raven-haired girl approaching her, Naminé unlocked the doors and greeted Jasmine warmly as she slid into the passenger's seat.

"I'm glad you came," Naminé said with a smile. "Tidus just texted me asking if you were coming."

Jasmine managed a small smile, thinking back on her time with Tidus and the others. "It'll be good to see him," she replied, surprised to see only one of the blond twins. "But…where's Roxas?"

Naminé locked the doors and drove off. "He went early with Olette, and Sora asked him to help set up, and Olette tagged along."

Jasmine stared ahead at the road, thinking about the first time she saw Roxas with Olette. "How are they doing?"

"They're great!" Naminé said as the two of them came to a stoplight. "Roxas told me Olette wants to hang out with you."

Jasmine was a bit taken back. "Me? Why?"

Naminé laughed as the light turned green. "Because you're one of our friends. Plus, she's a fan of your music."

Shaking her head and covering her face with her hands, Jasmine sighed. "I still can't believe that was a thing," she lamented.

"I can," Naminé teased. "When you're done with SOLDIER, you should talk to Riku's mom. I'm sure she'd love to have you back."

Jasmine sighed heavily, remembering that she had an unread text message from Angela sitting in her inbox. "I'm sure she would."

"Are you still by yourself at the apartment? Is the prince back yet?" Naminé asked as she drove.

"Still gone," Jasmine replied. "I know he's been away from home for a long time, but I'd feel better with him and the others back on Radiant Garden."

Naminé's ears perked up, and she smiled smugly. "You almost sound like you miss him."

Jasmine rolled her eyes. "I just think it's safer for them to be back here," she retorted.

Once Naminé came to another stoplight, she noticed Jasmine brushing her hair behind her left ear. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of a chain bracelet with two beautiful red jewels on her friend's wrist. While the light was still red, Naminé inquired about the bracelet.

"That's so pretty. Where did you get that from?" Naminé asked.

Jasmine shut her eyes and inhaled sharply. "Noctis gave it to me."

Naminé's eyes widened, and she immediately snatched Jasmine's wrist. "When did this happen?"

"Eyes on the road," Jasmine instructed, pulling her wrist back and pointing to the now-green traffic light.

Huffing, Naminé drove off. However, she wasn't going to let Jasmine off the hook that easy. "Details, Jasmine."

Folding her arms over her chest (and keeping the bracelet out of sight), Jasmine told Naminé about Noctis' surprise for her. "Yesterday he called me and said he had a surprise for me. When I got to the living room, he had this huge bouquet on the piano and two gifts next to it."

Deciding that she couldn't take it anymore, Naminé quickly looked to the right, pulled over, and parked the car once the coast was clear. She turned off the headlights and let the light from the dashboard illuminate the inside. However, even though it was dark, Naminé could make out the confused expression on Jasmine's face.

"Jasmine…" Naminé lowered her voice as if not to startle Jasmine. "Are you and the prince dating?"

Shifting her gaze to her shoes, Jasmine nodded her head. "Sorta. I told him we could go on a date when he gets back."

"And what about that Queen's Candidate stuff you mentioned? Is that happening?"

"It's on the table, but he hasn't officially asked me yet."

Naminé's smile stretched from ear to ear, and she practically jumped in her seat.

"Jasmine! This is insane! How do you feel about it? I figured the prince liked you, but you might be a queen for real!"

The mood in the car seemed to dip when Jasmine fell silent. Much to Naminé's confusion and dismay, Jasmine didn't seem happy with what she'd just revealed. Naminé took note of Jasmine's inward shift and immediately settled down.

"What's wrong, Jasmine?" The blonde reached out and gave her friend's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Isn't this what you want?"

Jasmine straightened up in her seat but faced her window. She said nothing.

"Well, to be fair," Naminé began gently, "you've gone through a lot lately. Is there anything you wanna talk about?"

The raven-haired teen closed her eyes and pictured a familiar spiky-haired blond boy with blue eyes.

"That's part of the problem. A lot of it has to do with SOLDIER. And I can't say much about that."

Naminé removed her hand from Jasmine's and fell silent.

Here it was again...the divide between the two of them. Naminé knew that there was a lot about Jasmine's life that she wasn't allowed to talk about. And since she wasn't in SOLDIER, Naminé couldn't ask too many questions (not that Jasmine would answer them anyway).

But, Naminé immediately thought of the one person Jasmine could talk to.

"Have you told Ven about what's been going on?" Naminé asked carefully. "He's in SOLDIER. And you guys have always been close. Why not reach out to Ven?"

The mere mention of Ven's name sent Jasmine's heart tanking.

"Oh, wait…" Naminé recalled Jasmine's reveal the first time they had girl's night. "What happened with that? How does Ven feel?"

Jasmine remembered the last memory she shared with Ventus, how they were both trapped together on Traverse Town with Xigbar and the others closing in on them. "I broke it off with him," she announced. "We had a fight, made up, and agreed just to be friends."

Though Naminé would never admit this out loud, there was a part of her that didn't believe Jasmine when she said that she and Ventus were "just friends." Their chemistry together was undeniable, and whenever Naminé saw them, it always seemed like something was there. But she didn't want to challenge Jasmine on this, especially with her not knowing the entire story behind their "break up".

"So…if you guys are fine…why not talk to him? Ven works for SOLDIER too," she reminded Jasmine. "If there's anyone who could understand work problems, it would be him."

It pained Jasmine deep down to keep the secret from Naminé about Ventus' disappearance. While what she and SOLDIER said to Roxas and Naminé's families wasn't precisely a lie, it just wasn't the whole story. And what was worse is that Jasmine had to keep up a front when deep inside, the truth was threatening to split her into two.

"He's on an assignment," she answered stiffly. "I can't talk to him until he comes back."

Naminé sighed. She could tell that now was the time to drop the Ventus talk.

For now, anyway.

"How's it going with Noctis anyway? Is he treating you well?" Naminé stole another glance at the bracelet. "It must be good if he got you that bracelet."

Jasmine's lips pulled into a tight frown, and she covered her face with a hand.

"Wait…" Naminé became concerned when she saw Jasmine's face. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Jasmine answered. "Which is also weird. Yesterday I told him about Ven."

Naminé gasped, shocked at the reveal. "You did? What happened?"

Jasmine shrugged and turned to face Naminé. "He was chill about it…which was weird. Noctis had always been suspicious of Ven and me."

"He had a crush on you. I'd be suspicious too if I were him."

Jasmine crossed one leg over the other. "Either way, I came clean. I thought he was going to be mad at me."

Naminé's face scrunched up. "Why? You two weren't dating. And it's not like you were dating Ven either, and he'd have no right to be mad."

Jasmine nodded her head in agreement. "I know, but still. Even without me, Noctis and Ventus were always competitive in SOLDIER. They were never aggressive per se, but they had a rivalry going on."

"So…what did he say?" Naminé was practically on the edge of her seat.

Jasmine huffed. There was no way out of this.

Prompto gripped Noctis' shoulders and stared at the prince in wide-eyed disbelief.

"Please tell me this is a joke," Prompto pleaded.

Noctis gently removed Prompto's hands and plopped down on the large sofa in his study.

"It's not a joke," Noctis stated with a hint of annoyance in his voice. "Jasmine slept with Ven, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell Ignis or Gladiolus."

Prompto rushed over and took a seat on the sofa opposite of Noctis'. Looking over his shoulder and listening for any nearby footsteps, Prompto decided it was okay to speak.

"Of course, Your Highness. Your secret is safe with me."

Noctis sighed heavily. "Good - you're the only one who knows."

"I can't say I'm too surprised," Prompto began as he played over the events of Traverse Town in his head. "After all, Ventus did flat out say that he liked Miss Valentine. And I can't exactly blame him."

Noctis shot Prompto a deadly glare, making the blonde's hair stand up.

"Umm, what I meant to say," Prompto cleared his throat, "is that I can see it from his end, though I'm a bit surprised at Miss Valentine. I can't believe they were sneaking around for months, and no one knew anything."

"Same here," Noctis admitted. "Axel was the one who broke the news to me, and he's the one who caught them."

Prompto's face turned a light shade of pink. "Y-You mean," he stuttered. "He caught them in bed?"

"No, not in bed," The prince quickly clarified. "He just caught them hanging out and asked about it."

Prompto exhaled a sigh of relief. "I guess that's better. But why did Axel say anything to you at all?"

The prince looked over his shoulder and spotted the castle garden several stories below. Despite his long conversation with Axel about the issue, Noctis had difficulty understanding some of this.

"He was afraid I was gonna freak out on Jasmine." Noctis sighed. "It's not like we were together back then, and there's not much I could've said."

Prompto leaned forward, anxious to hear all the details. "And? What did you say to her exactly when she told you?"

Flashback

Jasmine was silent after she revealed the truth about her rendezvous with Ventus.

It was evident to Noctis that she was uncomfortable with sharing this information with him.

"I just wanted to be honest," Jasmine finally said after what felt like an eternity. "I know I'd been making it seem like nothing was going on, and that wasn't exactly true. I'm sorry."

Keeping his resurfaced irritation (with Ven) under control, Noctis recalled Axel's instructions and did exactly as he was told.

"Jasmine," Noctis said as he paced around his bedroom. "You can relax. It's not that big of a deal."

Jasmine paused. "It's not?"

Noctis pulled the phone away from his face as he took a deep breath. "It's not," he reassured her gently. "It's not like we were seeing each other at the time. Yeah, I had a sense something happened, but I can't be mad about that. I just appreciate you being honest with me."

"Oh…" Jasmine seemed like she didn't know what to say.

"What?" Noctis questioned. "Did you think I was gonna get mad?"

"…I didn't know what to expect."

"I mean, what guy wants to hear that the girl he likes slept with someone else? Yeah, it's annoying, but you and I weren't together. And if you tell me you and Ven are in the past – "

"Which we are," Jasmine said quickly.

"Then that's the end of it," Noctis finished. "I don't think this would've happened if we were together, so what's the point in me getting upset? If you didn't have feelings for him, I have nothing to worry about."

"It never went past that," Jasmine reassured him with a sigh. "We were friends with benefits."

Noctis tried to play it cool and remember what Axel told him. "I know what that is," he said with a chuckle. "Just because I've never had one of those, it doesn't mean I don't know what that looks like. You're fine, Jasmine. We're fine."

End of Flashback

Prompto smiled, and he clapped slowly at the end of the story. "Well done, Your Highness! I have to say, you handled that well…even though I know it bothers you."

"I could still kill Ven," Noctis said quickly, his irritation returning. "Deep down, he knew I liked her, and he was always on top of her when I was around."

"Poor choice of words, Your Highness," Prompto called out.

Noctis rolled his eyes, refusing to get that image in his head. "I think that's the part that got on my nerves the most."

"Good thing Miss Valentine was the one who broke it off. At least you don't have to worry about him in that way anymore. Did you send her the gifts?"

Noctis nodded. "She got them yesterday."

"I bet she felt guilty," Prompto laughed in amusement. "But it's all in the past now! Miss Valentine said she wants to make it work with you. Not that I don't enjoy Ven as a friend, but I'm always going to be on your side. I think things will be better once you two are back in each other's company. I can't believe Axel thought you'd be mad at her."

"I'm not exactly happy about it," Noctis admitted bitterly.

"That's because you wish it had been you instead of Ven," Prompto said mischievously. "It's okay to be a little jealous. Miss Valentine is a pretty girl. And you guys live with each other. I know the thought has crossed your mind a few times."

Despite his best efforts, Noctis' cheeks turned a light shade of pink out of embarrassment.

Prompto burst into a fit of laughter that filled the entire room.

"It's fine, Your Highness," the blonde said as he tried to catch his breath. "You don't have to hide your feelings anymore."

"I'm not hiding anything," Noctis protested indignantly. "I'm just trying to see if she even wants to be with me."

Once he caught his breath, Prompto offered the prince words of encouragement. "You're already doing all the right things. I know you want to lock her in as a Queen's Candidate, but that time will come." He rose to his feet and headed for the door. "Before you know it, she'll be here in the castle, you guys will be married, and she'll be popping out royal heirs left and right."

And just like that, Noctis' face went from a light pink to a fierce shade of red.

"You can go now," Noctis muttered.

Unaffected by the prince's annoyance, Prompto cheerfully smiled and headed for the study door. "Not a problem. I have to go meet with Ignis and Gladiolus." Just before Prompto reached for the door, he looked back over his shoulder. "I'll leave so you can think of good baby names."

Just as Noctis rose to his feet, Prompto quickly made his way out the door and shut it tightly behind him, his laughter echoing down the halls as he left.

Sora grinned from ear to ear as everyone gathered at the gate leading to the haunted house. The spiky-haired boy fished an envelope out of his hoodie pocket and cleared his throat loudly, hoping to gain the attention of his friends. Once the group settled down, he stood in the middle of them and went over the plan.

"Here are you guys' tickets," he announced as he passed out orange-colored, rectangular tickets to the group. "So here's how it's gonna go down: we all go in as a group, and at the end of the haunted house, there's a carnival waiting for us on the other side. But no one goes into the carnival until all of us get out. That sounds good?"

Riku, who was standing right next to Jasmine, laughed. "Sure. As long as you don't go running out," he teased.

Sora rolled his eyes as he handed Riku his ticket. "You're never gonna let that go, are you?"

"Nope, not at all," Riku said with a chuckle.

Naminé, standing right next to Jasmine, linked arms with her friend. "What happened? I don't remember this."

Riku leaned over and explained the story. "It was before we met you and Roxas, and Sora chickened out on a haunted house when we were younger. He made it ten feet into the first room, a guy with a chainsaw jumped out in front of him, and he went running for the exit and was banging on the door."

Upon hearing the laughter from the group while also reliving the event over again, Sora's cheeks flushed a bright shade of pink.

"For the record, I was eight," Sora told Naminé. "And Riku was freaking me out the entire time while we were waiting in line."

"It's okay, Sora," Kairi said with a smile. "We were kids, and Riku was being mean."

Tidus took his ticket from Sora and then walked over to Jasmine and wedged himself and Riku. "Don't worry, Sora," the blond chirped as he wrapped an arm around Jasmine's shoulder. "We've got an actual SOLDIER member here. I'm sure Jaz is way scarier than anything you'll see in there."

Jasmine managed a small smile and shifted her gaze to the concrete beneath her feet. It had been some time since she'd been out with her friends like this. Even though a lot had changed, at the same time, it felt as though she and the others hadn't missed a beat. Even at the dinner before this (which was the first time in a long time that she'd seen Tidus and Wakka), it was as if it was just like the old times, something that Jasmine was secretly grateful for.

Kairi grabbed Sora's hand and nodded her head in the direction of the walkway leading up to the haunted house. "The line's getting long," she pointed out. "We'd better get going."

"Good idea, Kai," Riku agreed.

Making their way up as a group, everyone chatted excitedly as they headed up the steps towards the haunted house. This one on Radiant Garden was popular, especially given the added attraction of a carnival waiting for the guests at the very end. They'd heard that it was scary, which was right up the group's alley.

When Selphie ran up to Kairi, Sora took the opportunity to fall back with Riku, anxious to see how his friend was feeling.

"Soooo," Sora trailed off, keeping his voice low, "I see you and Jasmine are getting along."

Riku stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Yeah," he said with a small smile, "things are good. We talk a lot more now. It's almost like high school."

With stealth, Sora looked back to make sure that Jasmine wasn't listening in. Luckily for him, she was busy talking with Roxas, Naminé, and Olette and was too absorbed in the conversation to notice them. So, he diverted his attention back to Riku.

"I heard that you may or may not have linked up with another girl," Sora whispered to his friend.

Riku's smile faltered.

"So, it's true?" Sora asked curiously.

"Yeah," Riku said quietly. "That was another one-time thing."

Sora inhaled and gave a heavy sigh. Kairi told him about Selphie's story a few days ago. And while it was true that Riku was single, his actions seemed to contradict his words.

"Have you actually asked her out yet?"

"No. I'm gonna ask her tomorrow before Roxas and Naminé's birthday party," Riku revealed.

Sora cut his eyes at Riku. "You sure are cutting it close."

Riku sighed. On the one hand, he understood where Sora was coming from. There'd been such a build-up to his and Jasmine's situation and it seemed like they were finally in an okay place. But the two of them weren't together yet. And while he could agree that he was definitely more…active than usual, he didn't think that Jasmine would lose her mind over it.

"I know," Riku agreed. "Tomorrow for sure."

While the conversation between Sora and Riku shifted to one of normalcy, Roxas asked Jasmine about her plans for the party while Naminé chatted up Olette about last-minute things they needed.

"Did you decide on what you're gonna wear?" Roxas asked Jasmine casually.

"I have a few options," she told the blond. "I'm not sure which one though. What are you and Naminé doing?"

"Just creepy gothic twins. Nothing over the top," he laughed. "Are you still at your place by yourself?"

Jasmine sighed. "Yeah. My partner was supposed to be gone for about a week – now it's been almost three."

Roxas' eyes widened. "So you've been by yourself all this time?"

"Tifa stayed with me the first two weeks," Jasmine explained as they entered the gates. "But she came by twice this week and Axel has been dropping in on me a lot."

"That's good." Roxas breathed a sigh of relief. "You just got out of the hospital. You shouldn't be in that apartment all by yourself. I'm sure it gets lonely."

Jasmine recalled earlier this morning as she tried to get back into her normal routine. With Tifa gone, she noticed just how empty the apartment was. She was by herself in the gym, when she made breakfast, and even when she attempted to watch a movie. But Jasmine had long said that the place was way too big for one person. And with everything going on, she couldn't wait for Noctis and the others to get back.

"Before I moved in, Noctis lived there by himself. But his friends were always over so it didn't seem so empty. Even so, I can't imagine how he could've done it alone."

"When does he get back?" Roxas asked.

Jasmine shrugged her shoulders. "I honestly don't know. He keeps extending his stay, but we've got to get back to work soon. I try not to worry about it."

"Isn't he just home? I'm sure there's nothing for you to worry about. They'll be back soon."

Just then, right as Jasmine looked up and met Roxas' gaze, her stomach dropped as she immediately saw Ventus in Roxas' place. Remembering the incident like it were yesterday, Jasmine turned away and attempted to keep the memory at bay. "Yeah…you're right."

Roxas noticed the discomfort in Jasmine's body language and became concerned. "What's wrong, Jasmine?"

Jasmine folded her arms over her chest and, instead of looking at Roxas (who looked almost exactly identical to Ven), she focused her gaze on the throngs of people waiting in line for the haunted house.

"I just get…nervous. That's all. I just want them all to be safe. My last mission didn't go so well and I worry." She sighed and gathered her thoughts, deciding now might be the best time to speak freely. "People think my job is exciting and, at times, it is. But it's really hard work and there's always a 50/50 chance that something could go wrong."

When the line moved up and Roxas knew that no one was listening in, he stood closer to her. "I know," he said finally. "Ven's told me stuff over the years and, while I get his reasoning for joining, it's not as fun as it seems."

"No, especially when people get hurt," Jasmine said distantly.

Roxas smiled ruefully and stared down at Jasmine. Almost as if she sensed his eyes on her, Jasmine looked up and met his gaze. The blond placed his hand on her shoulder and then gently pushed her forward to keep up the pace with the line.

"I know you get it all the time from Nam, so I won't keep bugging you," he began quietly. "But we can't wait for you to be out of there. We're tired of seeing you hurt, Jaz."

Roxas mentioning Jasmine's potential departure from SOLDIER reminded the girl of something else another familiar blond said to her once.

"I know. But there's gonna be life after SOLDIER, at least this part of it. You're good at what you do, and I know they'd love to keep you around. But even if you chose to leave, there are other options for you besides SOLDIER."

Trying to bury the memory, Jasmine shifted her gaze to the full moon hanging in the sky overhead.

"Me too," she said quietly as she shoved her hands in her pocket. "Maybe one day…"

Author's Note: Happy Holidays guys! Sorry, this one took so long. Just...life at this point lol. But the good news is the other chapter is already 75% done and partially edited so it should be out before Christmas. I do hope you've all been well.

rawrrbreee: Still, as heartbreaking as it was, I do hope you enjoyed it! Let me know how you like this chapter!

As usual guys, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this one. Leave a comment, PM me, review, whatever you like. In the meantime, I'm gonna get back to work on the next chapter and see you guys soon. Take care!