Sure enough, Prompto found himself feeling better in the next couple of days. His fever was gone, and he felt like his strength was returning to him. After that, it didn't take long before he could leave his room and finally see Scarlet again.

"Dada!" Scarlet shouted happily as she ran into his arms.

"Hey little strawberry, how're you?" he asked as he held onto her tightly.

Scarlet laughed happily and started to place her hands on Prompto's face. "Dada!"

"Yeah, I'm back. And we're going to go back to having fun."

Scarlet squealed with delight, and Prompto's heart swelled greatly. He had missed that sound , even if it had only been a few days. But, now his baby girl was back in his arms and he was ready to resume the path of parenthood.

Before long, the days started to pass by quickly again. Prompto spent his days raising Scarlet, watching as she started to walk and soon she was running around every inch of their home. Sometimes, Prompto would take her to one of the long Citadel hallways and let her run down them, chasing her as she excitedly squealed trying to not get caught by him.

While he would have wanted to stay around Scarlet for as long as he could, he still had to start his college classes. He had put it off for over a year in order to raise Scarlet through her youngest months, but he couldn't avoid it forever.

He still needed to get his degree, as even with becoming a parent that goal hadn't gone away. He wasn't sure about afterwards however, but he knew he could think about that at a later time.

"Okay Scarlet, dada has to go to class, but I'll be back later, okay?"

"Byeeee dada," Scarlet said, giving a happy smile.

"Uncle Iggy will be watching you, so be good for him."

"Una Iggy," Scarlet chimed happily.

"Yeah, that's right!" Prompto said before giving Scarlet one last hug goodbye.

Turning around he faced Ignis who gave a slight nod of his head. "I promise I will do well to watch over Scarlet. I have our entire day planned out, which even includes a lunchtime visit to King Regis."

"Aw, you're great, Iggy. But you know I'm not going to be gone all day, right? I only have two classes today."

"Yes, but we must factor in travel time to and from your campus, and of course if you have any homework that you must start on right away. I am prepared for anything if you happen to be busy throughout the entire day."

Prompto chuckled. "Iggy, you always think of everything."

Ignis smiled back at him. "I try my best too."

"Well, at least I know Scarlet is in good hands! I gotta go now but see you two later!"

As he headed out of the door he watched Scarlet waving to him. He waved back before shutting the door, finally giving himself a chance to break away. If he stayed any longer he knew that he'd never end up going to school. He needed to go, however, he had to work towards his degree to get a job.

As much as he enjoyed the luxury life of living in the Citadel, he knew he couldn't stay there forever. He couldn't take King Regis's kindness for granted and be a freeloader.

He had to prove that he could handle things on his own, and that he could be seen as a responsible adult. He had to prove that he knew what he was doing, even when deep down he still feared making a mistake at every turn.

Unfortunately, his fears slowly creeped in more and more as the day proceeded. Throughout the first half of his class he could feel the anxiety in his stomach twisting and flipping. Every second he could, he would glance at the clock and then to his phone, wondering if there would be a message from Iggy.

It was becoming a struggle to focus, and by the time the class took their break, Prompto felt like he was going to burst.

Without waiting too long, he apologized to his professor, explaining that he wasn't feeling good and had to leave.

Prompto rushed home as fast as he could, not even thinking to text Ignis or anyone else on the way there. All he could think about was getting home, back to a place where he didn't have to worry about everything that was going on without him.

When he rushed into the Citadel, he checked his phone to see the time.

It was around lunchtime. Scarlet was probably with Regis for the lunch date Ignis had talked about. He hurried towards the elevator as quick as he could, but it felt like the hallway was beginning to twist on him. He stumbled over himself, nearly falling to the ground several times as he kept moving forward.

But, before he could reach the elevator, Noctis came down an adjacent hallway.

"Prompto? What are you doing back? Didn't you have classes today?"

"I… I had to leave. Was feeling… I have to go find Scarlet and…"

He almost collapsed to the floor, but Nocris was able to catch him in time. "Whoa, hey wait a minute, are you okay?"

Prompto shook his head. His head pounded and his heart still raced against him. "No… I'm not. I feel… I feel like I-I-I'm… that I…"

"Hey hold on," Noctis said before he helped Prompto to his feet. "You're breathing like crazy. I, uh, I think you're having a panic attack."

"P-panic attack? I… I haven't had one since… s-since…"

"Shh, easy," Noctis whispered. "Let's try to take some deep breaths. We'll head to my room, okay?"

"B-but I should-"

"You need to take a deep breath," Noctis replied gently. "Come on, it'll be okay. I'll take you to my room. You can sit down there."

Prompto couldn't find the energy to argue with Noctis, so let him lead him all the way up to his room. The entire time Noctis counted for him, signaling him to try and take deep breaths with the numbers.

Without even realizing it, they were in Noctis's room sitting on his bed. Noctis's hand was on Prompto's back, rubbing it gently as he still guided him to take slow, deep breaths. It was starting to help the more he did it, finally feeling the unease leave his stomach, giving him a moment of repose.

"Take a few more, okay? 1… 2… 3…" Noctis instructed.

Prompto nodded, taking in a few more breaths until he finally felt calm enough to look at his friend. When he saw the look of worry on Noctis's face, he was hit by a wave of shame.

"S-sorry."

"Don't be. You were having a panic attack. I couldn't leave you like that."

Prompto ran a hand through his hair, trying to wrap his head around what had happened to lead him to the moment. "I don't know what came over me. I was in class, but I just had this feeling that was driving me crazy. I felt like I had to get home… like something was going to happen if I wasn't there."

"So you left before your classes were done?"

"I let my one professor know. He said he'd tell me another one too for today. But I just… I don't know what's wrong with me."

Noctis gave a side hug, pulling Prompto in closer. "Nothing's wrong with you."

"Then why did I flip out? I was so ready and excited for these classes! And I know this isn't some first day of school jitters."

"Maybe it's because you're a dad now?" Noctis offered. "I've heard kids can get separation anxiety… Maybe parents can too?"

"Separation anxiety in parents? I guess that could happen. I don't think I've really been away from Scarlet since I found her."

"And now you're going to college for multiple days a week. You were probably just worried about leaving her, even though she would be with Iggy."

Prompto nodded, knowing that what Noctis was saying sounded pretty solid. Even if he didn't want to admit it, he did have some secret fears about leaving Scarlet all day. It was a silly thing to be afraid of, but if he really was having some anxiety being separated then there wasn't a lot he could do about it.

"What am I going to do?"

"Maybe it's not the right time to go to college?" Noctis asked.

"So I just do nothing? I don't want to sit around and do nothing!" Prompto sighed angrily.

Noctis shook his head. "No, you wouldn't do nothing, but there could be something."

Prompto raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"

"You could join my Crownsgaurd."

The Crownsguard. The special force of people that each royal Lucis Caelum had to protect them. Not only were they the protectors, but they were also granted magic from the royal family.

It had been a thought in the back of Prompto's head. Nothing was his best friend, and he knew he would do anything to stay by his side. The Crownsguard would be the perfect opportunity to prove himself and learn the right kind of combat skills to defend if he ever needed to.

But there was still another thing to consider.

"If I do that, then I couldn't really be separated from Scarlet. I'd still be in the Citadel just elsewhere. If I want to get over this anxiety, I still need to go to class."

Noctis nodded, giving a short hum of agreement. "You're right. But I'll still offer the position to you whenever you want. Maybe, if your classes aren't too hard to balance, you can try to squeeze a little training in?"

Prompto smiled, feeling a warm comforting feeling fill his chest. "Yeah, I think I might have to take you up on that offer."

Before Noctis replied, Prompto gave him a proper hug. "Thanks, Noct. Wouldn't know what to do without you."

"Anytime."

Noctis hugged him back and together they sat there, letting each other relax in the other's arms. Prompto knew he wasn't going to go back to school today, but it was only the first day. He would just have to try again tomorrow. Until then he was going to just take the time to relax, still ever thankful for his friend standing by his side.