Noctis was enjoying the comfortable silence between them as the car surfed serenely down the wide streets, but he was considering turning on some music, when Prompto started humming to himself happily.
"If I didn't know better, I'd say you were enjoying my misery," the Prince teased him.
The blond glanced over at his friend with a raised eyebrow. "Hey man, would I be that mean?"
"Yes, yes you would," snickered Noctis as he reached out and purposely messed up his best friend's hair. "This little trip better be worth it. You totally held out on that candy for me. Don't think I forgot about that," Noctis murmured warningly.
Prompto had hoped his friend hadn't remembered that little fact. But seeing that Noctis had taken out his camera and was fiddling with the settings, Prompto decided to change the subject and asked "So hey, what did you wanna take pictures of?"
"...Just...I wanted to see what all the fuss was about," he mumbled vaguely. "...You know...give us something to...talk about," he shrugged, his face obscured by heavy, dark hair as he focussed intently on the camera's screen, his voice very quiet by the time he had finished his sentence.
It was hard for the blond to hide his smile. Prince Noctis, looking for something to talk to him about? Prompto figured getting dumped really must have messed with his best friend's head. But still, the comment was endearing, and the blond suddenly felt really excited to let Noctis in on his own little piece of paradise.
Noctis didn't look up, instead swearing in quiet surprise when he pressed something that made the flash suddenly go off in his lap."...You're gonna have to help me with this," he smirked.
"Don't worry, this technophile has you covered," the blond grinned, pointing to himself.
"I think you mean 'nerd,'" the Prince jibed fondly.
"Yeah, maybe that too..." Prompto admitted. The two rode again in comfortable silence as the evening sun flickered golden rays between the buildings as they passed.
"...Haven't changed your mind about prom?" Noctis asked distantly, resting his chin on his palm as he closed his eyes, enjoying the cooling breeze that was making him shiver occasionally, picking up his dark hair and leaving it in careless tufts all over his head.
"Why? You asking me to be your date?" Prompto questioned playfully at the nonchalant invitation.
"Well, considering you and Luna are basically the only people I know at school, I'm kinda running out of options," Noctis joked. "But you know what…I think I'm outta your league," he challenged, turning his head and winking at the blond.
"Sheesh, way to make a guy feel special," replied Prompto behind a goofy grin that was intended to mask the truth in Noctis' last statement. He knew Noctis had intended it to be a joke, but the simple fact of the matter was that the Prince was way too far up the food chain to be seen at prom with a useless plebe like himself.
"Hey look! We're here!" announced the blond as he took extra care to pull the Regalia into a curb-side parking spot.
"And where would here be, exactly?" asked Noctis, looking around and wondering why they had stopped.
Prompto turned toward his best friend with a look of confidence. "Just trust me, dude. Grab the camera and let's go."
With the fragrance of greenery and spring blossoms welcoming them as they rolled out of the Regalia, the two began the slow and leisurely stroll down the gravel pathway towards Prompto's favourite inner-city park.
The blond laughed as he listened to Noctis take a large, lung-busting breath, letting it out in a happy sigh.
"Cool," the Prince stated laconically. "And look," he offered, pointing to a verdant clearing to their left, where a peripatetic ice cream stall had set itself up, the young man on the stall serving cones and ice lollies to a growing crowd of small children and their parents.
"Stop trying to make me fat again, dude," Prompto whined with playful drama. "I don't wanna be part of your weird Garula fantasies."
"Heh. You should be so lucky," Noctis joked, giving his friend a spirited shove on the shoulder that sent Prompto clumsily bouncing a few steps forward over the loose gravel path.
"Hey, man! Play nice, and maybe I'll consider getting us some ice cream," propositioned the blond.
"Duscaen orange," ordered Noctis with a cool smirk as he took a seat on one of the park benches and stretched both arms casually across the back of the wrought iron frame.
"Got it. One duscaen orange and one ulwaat berry ice cream. Be right back, your highness!" Prompto gave an exaggerated bow before the Prince, and sprightly walked over to procure the icy treats.
Prompto was just paying for the cooling sweets, glancing back at Noctis and tutting when he saw him reclining with his eyes closed, hoping that he wasn't falling asleep…the man could probably nap quite comfortably on a lava flow, for goodness' sakes. The young man with interesting lip piercings was taking his change and handing him the ice creams when he nodded in the dozing Prince's direction.
"Your boyfriend's gonna get mugged if he's not careful," he chuckled.
For a moment, Prompto contemplated correcting the man, but he rather liked how it sounded. "Thanks", the blond replied with an awkward smile as he grabbed the two ice cream cones and shuffled past the others in the line to return to the Prince.
Sure enough, Noctis was napping quietly on the park bench when Prompto arrived with both hands occupied. The blond plunked himself down and shimmied his way into the space next to Noctis, gently nudging the Prince with his shoulder. "Hey. Wake up, dude. Ice cream's here," Prompto said quietly as dark eyelashes flickered open.
"I'm completely awake. Just…move that in the direction of my mouth," Noctis yawned, grinning as his eyes closed once more.
Raising his eyebrow at the lazy request, Prompto decided to take Noctis at his word, and promptly pushed the freezing tip of the orange ice cream against the tip of the Prince's nose. "Whoops," he shrugged innocently.
Noctis jolted upright and brought the back of his gloved hand to his nose. "Hey, I wanna eat it, not wear it," he scoffed, while grabbing the cone from his friend and diving into the cold treat. "Mmm, not bad," the Prince critiqued, shooting a half-impressed glance into expectant sapphire eyes.
"You still have… a little," Prompto mumbled, leaning in and using his thumb to softly wipe away the rest of the sticky residue from the edge of Noctis' nose, then absentmindedly licking the digit clean.
The Prince stared at his friend's action with curious intensity, and then abruptly looked away, looking half baffled, and half concerned.
Before Prompto could question his friend's expression (or his own action), Noctis was looking back at him directly, and speaking again.
"Lemme try some of yours."
The blond nodded and held out his cone. His eyes narrowed when Noctis snickered, and proceeded to bump Prompto's hand in order to smash the berry ice cream into his nose, earning him a sweet yelp. Wasting no time, the Prince swiped one finger through the pink cream on Prompto's freckled skin, and sucked it into his own mouth around a fiendish grin.
"Not bad."
Prompto's smile broadened. "So mean!" he light-heartedly griped, sinking back against the seat and cleaning his face with his forearm. He hoped the warm flush spreading across his cheeks from the sight of the solitary digit gliding past the Prince's lips would go unnoticed.
"Hey," said Noct, making Prompto glance back in his direction.
Click.
"Heh, can't miss a shot like that." Noctis lowered the camera, his gaze settling smugly upon his friend who was pink with embarrassment.
They finished the rest of their ice cream while the park patrons thinned, the vendor packing up his signage and closing up shop for the evening. The sun slowly dipped below the treetops, illuminating brilliant beams of light over the clearing. Prompto grabbed the camera, flicked a few of the settings, and handed it back to Noctis. "If you wanna take some real photos, follow me."
Taking Noctis by the wrist and pulling the lazy Prince from the bench, Prompto led them across the clearing to a narrow winding path through the forest. The leaves danced shadows over the pair while they passed through stands of large birch trees, eventually arriving at a trickling creek lined with mossy boulders.
"You're not gonna murder me here, are you?" Noctis joked, as he surveyed the beautiful albeit isolated spot. "I'm disappointed, dude. I thought we were buddies."
"Why would I ever want to rid myself of the only real friend I've ever had?" The blond leaned against a boulder and wove his fingers together behind his neck in contemplation. "You know, I seriously don't think I could have made it through high school without you, dude. So, like, I guess what I'm trying to say is thanks… or whatever," the teen mumbled awkwardly.
"Pretty hard to believe we only have three weeks left, huh?" the Prince reflected.
"Y...yeah," Prompto murmured. In actuality, he had been trying (far too successfully, if his current cold tingles of terror at the idea were anything to go by) to ignore that particular fact. He truly had no idea what he was going to do with himself. And the knowledge that, in all likelihood, he and Noctis would permanently go their separate ways, made his stomach churn, his head swim and his heart sick.
Trying his best to swallow back the panic, Prompto tried changing the subject. "So, um, you wanna take some pictures?" he asked with a weak smile while gesturing at the camera in Noct's hand. "You gotta admit, this right now is what every photographer's dreams are made of," added the blond, diverting his gaze toward the creeks' mirrored, bubbling pools.
"I wouldn't know. But this is what I wanna learn," Noctis chuckled, lifting the heavy, well-loved camera to his face. "There are so many buttons," he observed, pouting slightly. "Show me."
Prompto scooted over to the boulder where Noctis was leaning, and arm to arm with the Prince started to point out the various camera settings. "This one right here is for single shot autofocus mode, and this one is the focus lock, which basically means you can position the subject anywhere in the frame of the picture and as long as you remain the same distance away, it will always stay sharp." Prompto enthusiastically babbled on about exposure compensation, shutter priority, white balance, and ISO settings until he noticed Noctis had grown quiet. Finally stopping for air, the blond glanced up at the Prince, afraid his companion may have dozed off during the tutorial.
Noctis was staring at his friend, a bemused expression on his pale features.
"Uh…yeah. You kinda lost me there. How about you just point at the button that makes it take a picture."
Grinning, Prompto obliged, poking at a medium sized grey button on top of the camera.
"See, that wasn't so hard," Noctis teased. "Right, now…uh, go stand by that little pool," he gestured, "and do your thing."
Prompto trotted to stand by the crisp, cold brook that had trickled from small beginnings and into a deep-looking, lily-strewn oasis. "My 'thing?' And what would that be?" the blond enquired, amused and curious.
"Uh, you know…" Noctis mumbled, his head down, and once again using his long, black hair as a shield. "Look all sunny and cute," he said, voice cracked and quiet enough to be almost silent.
The words, albeit barely audible, made Prompto's heart jump against his chest. "Like this?" the blond asked with a widened smile, his forearms crossed in front of him with two fingers extended on each hand.
Click.
"That's good, keep going," commanded the Prince, transfixed on the camera's viewfinder.
Next, Prompto pretended to flex his muscles, Gladio-style. "How's this, Prince Charmless?" he asked in a deep, raspy voice. The blond's impersonation of the body guard roused a chuckle from Noctis.
Click.
The blond threw up a pair of hook horns, licking out his tongue, when suddenly to his horror, one of the rocks beneath him gave way, causing him to lose his balance. "Woah!" Prompto cried, plummeting backwards, arms flailing as he fell into the knee-deep pool of water with a splash.
Click.
"Hey, no fair!" squeaked the blond, pulling a lily pad from his flattened, dripping hair. "Now that is the money shot," laughed the Prince loudly, as Prompto shot him dirty looks. Still laughing, Noctis carefully set the camera down on one of the boulders and went to help Prompto, extending a hand toward the soggy teen. But instead of pulling himself up, the blond grabbed a hold of the Prince's hand and gave it a quick yank, sending Noctis flying face-first into pool beside him.
"Ugh!" Noctis exclaimed gruffly, after coughing out a mouthful of cold, vaguely vegetative-tasting water and hauling himself to a standing position, his clothes saturated and suddenly about fifteen times as heavy. "Now thatis not fair! I would've offered you my jacket and everything," he sulked.
Prompto, amused by his accomplishment, climbed to his feet beside the Prince, using Noctis' arm to regain his balance. "You deserved it," he said brazenly, appraising Noctis who looked something akin to a drowned rat.
"I think I got some good photos anyway," Noct shrugged, shivering reactively. "You know I can't go home like this. Iggy will flip his lid," he complained, as he began to wade unsteadily towards the rocky edge of the brook, looking up as he did and squinting at the rapidly darkening sky.
Wringing out the bottom of his shirt as best he could, the blond clumsily waded out of the pool. Throwing an arm around the shivering Prince, he smiled and quipped, "Don't be mad, buddy. I'll find a way to make it up to you."
"Then, how about you go to prom? With me." Noctis added, shifting his gaze away uncomfortably.
"Y..." Prompto started, teeth already threatening to chatter as previously unnoticed evening breezes clung to their wet clothes and chilled their damp scalps. "Out of all the things you could ask for, you want that?" he laughed.
"I just… you know," Noctis uttered, "want graduation to be special, I guess."
Prompto, feeling the familiar skip in his chest, didn't quite know what to say. Apparently this prom thing was a bigger deal for Noct than he had thought. "Man, it's f-f-freezing," Prompto stuttered, rubbing his friend's shoulder vigorously to generate body heat. "What do you say we get into some dry clothes at my place?" the blond asked as the pair began their walk back to the Regalia.
Deciding not to push his luck with the subject that Prompto was clearly reluctant to broach, Noctis nodded, sweeping his wet, overlong hair out of his eyes. "Thanks for the camera lesson. You'll have to let me know how they come out."
The best friends marched quietly through the park as the night air gnawed mercilessly at their damp skin. Finally making it back to the car, the two hurriedly climbed inside. The engine came to life and Prompto, whose lips were looking a little blue, cranked the heat on high.
"Uh Gods, that feels good," Noctis grinned at the simple thrill of heat on cold skin. He removed his glove, and then held both hands in front of the vent, groaning with pleasure as he stretched and fisted his tingling fingers.
Prompto flicked on the radio to block out the Prince's groans, which were inadvertently sending blood rushing to all the wrong places. "Let's get outta here, shall we your highness?"
Noctis snuggled his arms against himself, and nodded, flashing Prompto a wry grin as the blond put the car in gear and started to pull away. "Make it snappy."
Unlocking the door to his apartment, Prompto shuffled inside and turned on the lights. "Nobody home, as usual," the blond remarked with a deflated sigh.
"Hope you did some laundry," Noctis snickered, kicking off his boots and tossing them aside.
"You got a choice of that top with studs that you say makes me look like a little punk, or my chocobo sweater," Prompto replied, deadpan, and Noctis paused to try and consider whether he was joking, or actually being serious.
Seeing that Prompto's expression remained unchanged, Noctis realized his friend was serious. "Ok then, guess I'll take the sweater."
The two climbed the stairs to Prompto's bedroom, where the blond pulled the offending yellow garment from his almost-empty closet and handed it to the Prince. Noctis eyed the sweater apprehensively before accepting it.
Prompto was about to fetch them some towels, when Noctis laughed softly behind him. "...What would your folks think about you bringing boys home and giving them your clothes?"
The blond grinned, looking over his shoulder at Noct. "Good thing they're not around to know. Be right back," he added, heading to the linen closet.
Noct could have kicked himself, immediately beginning to worry about causing his friend angst by reminding him of his less-than-accessible parents. By the time Prompto returned with two towels, he had formulated a hasty apology.
"Sorry, I...didn't think."
"It's fine, dude. I'm used to it by now." Prompto forced a smile. "It has its upside anyway, right? No curfews, and no hassles," he added, towel-drying his wet hair.
Not really knowing what he could do to expand on his apology, and despite all his front, actually being pretty bad with words, Noctis shrugged and took the towel from Prompto's hands. It earned him a bemused look. The blond's goggle-eyed expression only became more comical as the Prince took over, mussing the towel over his head and rather haphazardly drying his hair for him.
"T-thanks." Prompto's lower lip quivered slightly as he peered out from underneath the towel and found himself staring into dark blue pools. Momentarily mesmerized, the blond stood there, frozen, breathing in the subtle but mouth-watering scent that belonged only to Noctis.
A minute later, Prompto had just about found his voice and his senses and was about to try and lighten what felt, to him, like a dizzyingly intense moment. But Noctis abruptly pulled the towel away, the blond's lank hair still damp but much drier. Seeing that Prompto seemed a little lost for words, the Prince shrugged.
"Not gonna return the favour? I'm a guest in your house, dude," he teased. "Gotta pamper me."
Steadying his shaky hands, Prompto tossed the other towel over Noctis' head and gently drew the terrycloth fabric through the Prince's dark locks. "You better get out of those wet clothes. Ignis will never forgive me if you catch a cold on my watch," Prompto warned with a smile as bright as the morning sun.
"Yeah, you're right," the Prince obliged, peeling off his damp shirt, revealing smooth, toned muscles. "But if giving me pneumonia is your idea of stopping me from going to prom, forget it. I'm gonna drag myself there if I have to. Well...I'll get Gladio to drag me, anyway," Noct added, smirking. He draped his towel across his shoulders before looking down and picking open his belt.
Averting his gaze, his hormones unable to handle any more nudity, Prompto turned around. He peeled off his own top and ran the towel across his chest briefly before grabbing a t-shirt from the cast-off clothing strewn about his bed. Pulling the shirt over his head as hastily as possible, to hide his freckled body from the Prince, he realized he had missed a few spots and the new fabric was sticking in places against his still-damp skin.
"Got any pants?" Noctis asked shamelessly as the blond turned back to see his friend standing in nothing but his underwear.
"Uh, no..." Prompto muttered, staring for a brief second before averting his eyes, turning away and fiddling with his own fly. "I mean, yes! Yeah, in there," he offered, fluttering one hand vaguely in the direction of the top of his small wardrobe.
The Prince shuffled over and started rooting through Prompto's dresser, in search of something he would actually wear. Bypassing the leopard-print pants, he suddenly paused.
"Really?" Noctis asked with an ear-to-ear grin, holding up a pair of chocobo boxer briefs.
Mortified, the blond howled, "Not that drawer, the one underneath!"
Tossing the bright yellow undies back from whence they came with a laugh, Noctis opened the second drawer and pulled out a pair of loose-fitting, grey gym pants. "Guess these will do."
"Goes well with that sweater," Prompto laughed tightly, briefly turning back to nod at the soft yellow top that he had lent Noctis, emblazoned with stylised black chocobo outlines.
Noctis stepped into the pants and tied the drawstring tight around his midriff. They were a little baggy, but not a bad fit. Hauling the sweater over his head, he held out both arms and sized himself up in the mirror that hung on the back of Prompto's bedroom door. "At least they're dry..."
The Prince caught sight of a slim slip of card taped to the corner of the mirror, and grinned genuinely. "I remember that. That seems like ages ago," he mused, tapping the series of four photos of himself and Prompto, print-outs of them pulling ridiculous faces in a photo booth near the arcade.
"Oh, yeah. That was a fun day," Prompto reminisced quietly, his voice carrying the slightest hint of sadness. "I don't know why I kept that. Guess I'm a bit of a pack-rat," he added, shrugging it off. Grabbing a baseball hat, his favourite black one with the brown suede trim, the blond shoved it down over the brunette's damp hair. "Gotta complete the look, man," he smiled at Noct in the reflection.
"I have never looked hotter," Noctis grinned. "Gonna have to get Iggy to go clothes shopping." He turned and wandered over to the bed, slumping onto it comfortably and quite casually just watching Prompto procrastinate at his zipper. He rested his chin in his palm, having nothing else to occupy him.
"Could you like, turn around or something?" Prompto asked, embarrassed to slip out of his pants while Noctis was so intently staring at him.
"Hm? Oh, right," the Prince muttered, shifting around slightly and deciding to rummage around on Prompto's bedside table instead, eager for something to entertain him.
While Noctis preoccupied himself with the latest copy of The Quay, Galdin Quay Resort's magazine which featured a questionable number of bulging male models in light swimwear, Prompto slipped into his plaid, flannel pyjama pants.
"Ever been here?" Noctis asked, flipping through the pages, which practically dripped with sunshine. His eye was caught by an article on the fish that inhabited the seaside resort.
"Not yet. Maybe someday though," Prompto said as he knelt down on the floor beside his bed. "Thought you might like to go fishing there, so I was scoping it out. There are so many different species of fish you can catch right from the shoreline!" he added excitedly.
"How about we go after school's over? I'm sure I could wrangle us a couple of days away," Noctis shrugged, in as indifferent a tone as he could manage.
"Yes, let's do it!" the blond exclaimed with delight. The concept of having plans that included Noctis after graduation made him slightly giddy, so much so that he thoughtlessly jumped from the floor and pounced on Noctis, throwing his arms around the Prince.
"...Well...I guess I'll figure it out when I get back. I'll, uh, text Iggy to let him know I'm on the way. Thanks for the clothes," Noctis smiled.
The blond quickly jumped back, scratching the back of his head nervously as he mentally kicked himself for the momentary lack of restraint. "Sure dude, no problem," Prompto replied, throwing an apprehensive punch at his friend's shoulder.
Noctis extended a pale hand a roughed up Prompto's already messy, damp hair fondly, before pulling out his phone from his discarded trousers, praying that it was still functional after its brief swim earlier. To his relief, it seemed to work perfectly, and he quickly thumbed a quick message to Ignis.
"Say, before I go..." Noctis stated, eyes on his phone as he murmured distractedly.
Prompto waited with baited breath for the Prince to finish his sentence.
"...Got any snacks?"
The blond grinned. Although he was making an effort to eat well, he always kept a secret stash of junk food on hand in case of real emergencies. He figured a hungry Prince could certainly be considered so. After pushing a huge bag of potato chips at Noctis, it didn't take long for the Prince to start stuffing his face. Between handfuls, Noct grabbed his keys and bid his friend a good night.
"See ya," the Prince mumbled through a crumbly spray of broken chips as he disappeared through the doorway. After latching the lock, Prompto leaned his back against the door and smiled.
"Guess I'm going to prom after all..." The blonde looked for his phone and texted Ignis.
P: Hey Iggy, I need a favour.