Title: Before Dawn Breaks
Chapter 2: Careless Whisper
"Ok then, better drink up," Noctis proclaims, pulling a couple of bottles from the case of beer.
"What about the guys? Are they coming over?" I inquire.
"Nah, they got their own food and retired for the night. Gladio is fussing about making sure we all get up at the crack of dawn, and Ignis has a headache from all the driving today. Says he wants to go to bed early. Guess that's what happens when ya get old," he snickered. "It's gonna be just us tonight. I hope you are hungry cause I think I bought enough food to feed a small army." Noctis rips open the brown bag of food. He pulls out two oversized cardboard boxes, and what could only be described as a vat of gravy.
Sadly, some greasy binge-eating is just what I need right now. I smile as I open the box he hands me to find deep fried chicken and way too many of Kenny's fries for one person. Noctis smirked, obviously noticing the contented look on my face as I eagerly scoop a giant chicken leg from the box and dive my teeth into the crispy meat.
"Mmm, soooo good!" I declare as I stuff the delicious goodness into my mouth as fast as humanly possible, half in an attempt to fill the void inside me. "You're gonna make me fat again, I swear!" I blame him jokingly, through a mouth full of chicken.
Noctis starts to laugh and the sound is like music to my ears, and my heart. I can't help but join him. His laughter is like a drug to me and I just can't get enough. I find my mood starting to turn around. It's a welcomed relief from the thoughts swimming around in my head just moments before. It's easy to just enjoy his company. And damn, the Crow's Nest never disappoints with their chicken!
We make our way through the boxes of food and the first few beers, laughing and reminiscing over today's events - Gladio ripping through a giant pack of wyverns like a boss, my awesome snapshots of the gang in front of the Disc of Cauthess, and Noctis catching his biggest fish ever from the Neeglyss Pond. He is becoming quite the skilled fisherman.
From the way we're acting, it's just like any other night. The conversation flows almost too easily. Time passes and the small table grows cluttered with empty bottles. Upon cracking open the final two beers, Noctis brings up our last match in chocobo racing. "You know, if you keep winning like that, I think Gladio just might throw a Dawnhammer down on your ass." Noctis jokes, but the shield definitely gets pretty beaten up about losing. Especially if it's to this guy, three races in a row.
"What can I say, your Highness? No one can race a chocobo like yours truly!" I declare with a goofy grin, pointing to myself smugly. I start to giggle. I think by now I've had too much to drink. But I'm not the only one. Noctis pushes back his chair and stands from the table, holding his beer high. "And here's to your victory!" he declares.
"I'll drink to that!" I proclaim and reach up to clink our bottles together, almost missing Noctis'. Yep, definitely too much to drink. Still, I take another generous swig of beer.
"But just so ya know, this Prince is gonna mop the floors with all you guys next time. Just you wait and see!" Noctis continues as he waves his bottle around recklessly.
"Jeez dude, how about letting a guy celebrate his successes a little!" I roll my eyes. He takes his seat again, gulps down the entire contents of his bottle without coming up for air, and drops the empty bottle onto the table.
We both start giggling and I throw a leftover fry at Noctis. It bounces off his forehead and for a brief moment, he stops laughing and looks at me, dumbfounded. Suddenly, in retaliation, he grabs a fistful of fries from his box and hurls them at me.
"Hey, hey!" I cry, blocking my face from the greasy assault. "Don't mess with the hair, bro!" Our laughter turns hysterical as the food fight continues until all leftover fries and even the discarded chicken bones are scattered about the table and on the floor around us.
"Who's gonna clean up this mess?" I ask. My cheeks are starting to hurt from laughing.
"Not my prob," Noctis replies, still laughing. He grabs a wad of napkins to clean his hands before balling them up and firing them onto the floor adding to the mess. "Housekeeping?" he suggests. But who are we kidding. We both know a place like this probably doesn't even have housekeeping.
After our laughter dies down, Noctis rests his head in his hand. "You know Prompto, I'm glad to have had a friend like you."
His words are bitter-sweet at best. "Common Noct, don't talk like that." God, it's as if he's already saying goodbye.
"I think it's time to call it a night, shall we?" I ask, pointing to the double beds. "You know Gladio is gonna kill us if we aren't able to haul our butts out of bed when he and Ignis are ready to leave in the morning."
"You're right, Prom," Noctis says with a smile. He gets up from his seat and trips over his feet, stumbling face first toward the floor.
"Noct!" I leap from my chair, sending it flying backwards as I catch him by the waistband of his pants.
"Woah, good save," he says, looking back over his shoulder. From the slight hitch in his voice, I see that he's a little shaken up. He's such a lightweight.
"Jeez, the future King of Lucis needs to get better at handling his liquor," I scold him playfully as I lead him by the arm and assist him as he half falls onto the bed.
"Yeah, whatever," Noctis replies in a snarky tone, rolling over so that he's lying on his back, arms spread and feet dangling over the side of the bed. He hiccups loudly, and then starts to giggle, obviously amused by his state of impairment. And of course, I'm standing here grinning ear to ear. It's been a long time since I've seen my friend so helplessly drunk. I find myself equally amused at the idea of Gladio having his work cut out for him in the morning to get Noctis out of bed. I can only hope Ignis will have some extra Ebony on hand. I guess I could text Ignis to give him a warning… but yeah, forget that. My eyes are too busy taking in the sights.
I realize I'm probably staring, so I divert my gaze and kneel down to help Noctis out of his boots before he passes out. I tug hard to remove the first boot and place it beside the bed. The second puts up a greater resistance, and my initial tug is unsuccessful. How can he wear such uncomfortable footwear?
"Sheesh, I dunno who's gonna take care of your sorry butt once we get to Altissia," I complain sarcastically, but then realize the salt I've just rubbed into my own wounds. Luna. Luna will be the one to take care of him, of course.
I strain hard to finally free him from the second boot, leaning down to place it beside the other. But then suddenly, Noctis grabs my shirt collar and pulls me up.
"Woah!" I struggle clumsily to keep my balance, hands landing on either side of his waist. I'm barely able to stop from toppling down on top of him. His giggling has stopped and he's looking much more intense than he was just moments ago.
"Umm, Noct?" I ask quietly, my face within inches of his. What is he doing? He's so close, I can feel his breath on my skin. So close. So very close. Dangerously close. I find myself suddenly sober, every sense amplified by adrenalin. My nostrils widen in an attempt to breathe in more of his smell. My heart is beating so fast I can feel it in my ears. I'm afraid Noctis must be able to hear it. Noctis' cheeks are flushed and he is staring at me with a look that I've never seen before in all the years I've known him.
"Prompto…" He doesn't finish his sentence, but instead leans forward and places a fragile kiss on my lips. In shock, my entire body freezes while my mind takes off in a thousand different directions all at once. His lips barely touch me, but I can feel they are soft, just like they were that day in the arcade. What is he thinking? Why is he doing this? And whatever the reason, why am I so lucky? It's probably just a simple kiss between friends, I try to rationalize. I'm sure that's all it is. No biggie, right? Noctis is under so much stress, he's just not thinking straight. Plus, he's drunk. Or perhaps this is just a joke. Yes, this has to be a joke - his revenge for me throwing that first fry. What the heck is going on here?
Joke or not, my cheeks are getting so hot I think they might catch fire, and I can't stop the blood from rushing to my groin. I stay motionless, breathless throughout the entirety of the kiss until Noctis gently breaks the connection between us. I'm ashamed of my body's reaction as my pants grow uncomfortably tight. How embarrassing. Please God don't let him look down!
"N-Noct?" I stammer, once my lungs are able to regain their function. It's just one word but it takes so much effort to say without revealing my true feelings.
"Prompto," he replies in nothing more than a whisper. "Touch me." His cheeks turn an even brighter shade of red as he boldly tugs at my shirt.
Oh Gods of Lucis, help me.
"Shhh, you've had too much to drink." I place my finger to his lips to keep him from saying something else he may later regret. How much control can I possibly muster with him saying stuff like this? But the veil has dropped and I now know the look in those blue eyes as he returns my gaze. It tells me this is not an accident. It's not a joke, or a mistake.
Oh man, this is bad… I'm fearful of myself. In all honesty, with him in this condition, practically offering himself up to me freely, I want nothing more than to jump him right here and now. To strip him naked with these depraved, Niflheim hands. To ravage his body.
He places his hands on my forearms and speaks quietly. "It's our last chance." He is right, even more than he knows. The thought makes me ache down to my core.
I swallow hard to try and keep it together. "Don't take advantage of your drunk friend." That's what I repeatedly tell myself as I feel his hands move up my arms. There is something wildly different about the way he is touching me. It's warm. Delicate. Intimate. As his fingers travel across my skin, they ignite every nerve and I can't help but close my eyes to heighten the sensation that's giving me goosebumps.
"Mmmm." If I hadn't heard it, I wouldn't have known that I could make such a sound. My eyes snap open in surprise. My secret has surely been disclosed.
Noctis' hand presses against the back of my neck and forces me to look directly into those beautiful eyes, forehead to forehead.
"Prom," he whispers once more. "Don't make a Prince beg." His voice sends ripples of excitement through me.
"Well, who am I to refuse His Majesty?" I can't help but grin slyly as the last fragments of my restraint and better judgement finally break away.