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There was a moderate cover of white as far as Noctis could see, a first for the city-born prince. It never snowed in Insomnia. Noctis used to think it was because of his dad’s shield but then he got older and realized it was probably because of all the heat coming off of all the buildings and surroundings. As he looked out the window of the cabin that he and his friends had rented, Noctis felt a little spark of curiosity and excitement.
“Give it an hour, then it should be thicker.” At the sound of Gladio’s rumble, Noctis turned and was momentarily distracted with the hot cocoa that was being presented to him. It wasn’t even that cold yet, but Noctis wondered if Gladio was trying to ‘pull an Ignis’ since the other man wasn’t there yet. With that thought in mind, Noctis accepted the mug, blowing on it gently as he looked around the spacious living room.
“Can you run me through the plan again since they are running late?” Noctis took a sip, feeling the hot sugar sear his tongue. Too hot, way too hot. Now he wouldn’t be able to taste for the day.
“Really Noct?” Gladio huffed and sighed before going over his— their plan to get Ignis and Prompto to have ‘alone time’. It was about three weeks ago that Gladio had approached Noctis with gossip (not uncommon for him) that Prompto had been seen tripping over himself when he was around Ignis (also not uncommon) but also that Ignis had also been seen doting on Prompto when he thought no one was looking (very uncommon).
“Who saw all this?” Noctis had asked with a raised brow, somewhat concerned that some assistant or advisor was running around spreading gossip about his friends to the whole Citadel. Even if it was true, Noctis couldn’t see either of them wanting people to talk about them like that.
“Me, of course. So I have a plan…” Noctis wasn’t the least bit surprised, afterall the man had a habit of getting into his friend’s businesses too often. He always meant well, though, which was the only reason Noctis decided to humor him. First, before anything though, Noctis demanded that Gladio show him some proof so they weren’t meddling to cause any problems over Gladio thinking the two men had more feelings for each other than they did.
The next week was spent doing recon, where over the course of it Noctis saw multiple counts of Prompto blushing and rushing to Ignis’ side to help out but most surprisingly, Noctis saw Ignis go out of his way to do things with Prompto and talk to him. It was odd enough behavior that Noctis had to agree with Gladio that he thought that maybe something was there between the two of them but he wasn’t fully convinced.
“So this plan of yours…” Noctis had started one day during their training session, mulling over his thoughts carefully. “Let’s scale it back a bit, too much too soon will scare them off… but if we start small…” Noctis didn’t finish the thought, thinking to himself that if they are wrong then the smaller their meddling the easier they can pretend that they weren’t trying to play matchmaker.
Gladio agreed and after the two of them wrapped up training for the day, they sat down and hatched a plan that would maybe have Prompto and Ignis starting the New Year with a spark of something more between them. They already had plans to rent a cabin to celebrate the holidays together, but Gladio thought that they could try and push the two of them together during the trip.
“If we get one with just two beds…” Gladio rubbed at his chin as he thought aloud, his calloused fingers and beard making a distinct scritchy scratchy noise. “One for us… one for them…”
“Two beds? What about three?” Noctis had asked, his eyebrow arching. “I get a bed, you get a bed, they get a bed.”
“No, because Prompto will probably ask to crash with you or try to take the couch or something. If there’s only two beds and we share one, then they’ll probably share one too.” Gladio looked smug at the statement and Noctis shook his head.
“I can see fifty different ways that could go wrong, but fine. Anything else I need to be in on for the plan?”
“I’ll think some stuff up, I’m not quick like Iggy.” Gladio laughed, a warm happy laugh that made Noctis crack a smile. He knew he truly cared about Ignis and was warming up to Prompto as short as he’s known him. If there was something that would make Ignis happy, or bring Prompto further into the fold… then Noctis was sure Gladio would try to do it because that would make everyone happy.
“Fine, fine. Just text me then.”
Fast forward to the present and Noctis was watching Gladio flip through a notebook he had apparently been writing down his plans in. The similarity to Ignis made Noctis snort into his cocoa, getting hot liquid all over him. Excusing himself to clean up, Noctis found his way to a bathroom to wash his face off.
It was a good thing Gladio was oblivious to things that involved him, because then maybe he would have seen that Noctis’ didn’t fight too hard about sharing a bed with him. Or that Noctis was enjoying getting to talk to him more because of this silly plan. It felt selfish to enjoy it, afterall it was meant for Prompto and Ignis, but Noctis couldn’t help it.
The question of when he had gotten a crush on Gladio was one that Noctis wasn’t sure he could ever answer. It had likely happened so gradually that he couldn’t pinpoint it until one night the realization had hit him like a ton of bricks when he had been laying in bed watching videos on his phone. It was just something that he was aware of and was doing his best to not think of— as he does with most things that would overflow the mental capacity he had for such things at any given moment.
The trip was an indulgence for him. His allowance to acknowledge and enjoy his feelings. Then he would shove them down and go about his life just as he had planned to, with hopefully no one the wiser. Ignis might be a concern, Noctis mused as he wiped his face off with a towel, but he would just be careful.
“Hey Noct, c’mere!” Noctis tore his unfocused gaze from the mirror, tossing the towel aside before making the trek back to the living space. One glance out the window told him it didn’t take the full hour for the snow to get much much thicker before his gaze slid over to Gladio hunched over his phone.
“What’s up?” Noctis crossed his arms glancing back towards the window, wondering where the other two were. They had decided to take separate cars with the excuse that Noctis and Gladio were going to ’inspect’ the cabin ahead of time while Prompto and Ignis brought the groceries and any other essentials for a cabin out in the woods. Noctis thought it was strange they weren’t there yet.
“Just got a text from Iggy, he says the roads are blocked and they can’t get through.” Noctis watched as Gladio ran a hand through his hair, clearly frustrated.
“At all?” Moving to sit beside him, Noctis leaned over to peek at his phone, able to read the message when Gladio angled it towards him. “Ah, until tomorrow. So wait—” Noctis looked up at Gladio, concern pulling his brows together as he mentally worked over what that meant.
“We’re stuck here too, but it’s just for a night so don’t worry, ‘kay?” Gladio’s hand came down on Noctis’ shoulder and he couldn’t help the slight laugh at Gladio’s attempt at comforting.
“I’m not.” Noctis let the hand linger on his shoulder for just a moment before shrugging it off. “I’m just thinking about how we get to decorate the yard with snowmen before they come.”
“Good thinking!” Gladio’s laugh warmed Noctis and he couldn’t hide his eagerness and excitement as the two of them jumped up to go play in the snow.
Surprisingly, Gladio got tired of it before Noctis did. There was something about the stark and still whiteness surrounding them that Noctis really enjoyed. The cold was ass, but thankfully the two of them had thought, or rather had been reminded by Ignis, to bring plenty of warm clothes and accessories. So Noctis was having fun bundled up with a scarf wrapped up to his nose and at least five mittens on while he and Gladio made their best snowpeople.
Eventually it got too dark to continue and the two made their way inside. There wasn’t a whole lot of food in the cabin, only a few non-perishable snacks and drinks the cabin had stocked or what they had brought with them for the trip, so the two had a quiet dinner of chips and ramen before spending the evening doing their own thing.
It was quiet and Noctis had to admit that it was pretty nice. Every now and then he looked up from his phone to glance at Gladio reading, the sight of him immersed in a book being something that Noctis found incredibly funny due to juxtaposition but also incredibly attractive. Maybe it was his hands, Noctis really did like looking at Gladio’s hands… and his arms, and well, if he was being honest with himself, he just liked looking at him.
Until the power went out and he couldn’t do too much looking in the darkness, especially after getting blinded by his phone’s screen.
“Shit.” Somewhere Gladio was fumbling and Noctis was quick to turn on his phone’s flashlight on for him.
“I wondered if that was going to happen,” It was a low murmur, but the cabin was so silent Noctis could easily pick it up. The two of them began the hunt for anything that could help them, all while Gladio cursed leaving the car with all their camping supplies with Ignis since it had more space for everything. Luckily, there were some candles and a small battery powered lantern tucked away in one of the cupboards.
“It’ll work for tonight.” Gladio sighed again and Noctis nudged his arm with his shoulder.
“I’m not complaining. I was feeling pretty sleepy anyways.” Tucking his phone away, all while ignoring the low percentage of battery it had, Noctis grabbed the lantern to make his way to one of the rooms. What he hadn’t factored on was Gladio following him and falling onto the bed before him.
“Uh…” Noctis shifted from foot to foot, glancing towards the door. Should he go to the other room? What was Gladio doing? Noctis stood there, his questions running through his mind as Gladio made himself comfortable.
“C’mon. It’s gonna be cold as hell tonight.” Gladio yanked his boots off and Noctis heard them hit the floor with a loud thud. He assumed his belt followed and Noctis realized that he actually hadn’t thought what it would mean to share a bed with Gladio, not until he was actually faced with it.
“I… don’t think hell is cold.” It sounded dumb to him, but at Gladio’s snort Noctis relaxed a bit and took his shoes and belt off before climbing under the covers with Gladio. The bed was small, but somehow Gladio had wedged himself onto one side so there was enough room between them that they didn’t touch— which Noctis was somewhat thankful for because he didn’t think his heart could handle it.
All they said was a quick goodnight, afterall they were just friends sharing a bed for the night. Noctis was sure Gladio fell asleep before him, his racing mind keeping him up as he thought about things he never dared to think about unless he was alone in his own bed. Yet, the surprising amount of warmth coming off of Gladio was enough to lull him to sleep quickly.
When he woke up, the bed next to him was empty but he was swaddled by all of the blankets that had been covering them the night previously. Maybe he was a little disappointed, but he supposed he wouldn’t know what he would do if he had woken up beside Gladio. He could hear Gladio talking somewhere in the distance and Noctis idly thought he should get up. It took him about a half hour to make that thought a reality, making sure to keep himself wrapped up as he made his way through the notably cooler cabin.
“Uh huh. Yeah, about… four feet?” Gladio’s back was to him, his attention out the window that Noctis had been glued to the day previous. Noctis allowed himself a moment to admire his figure before going to scrounge up some food. He caught snippets of the conversation Gladio was having with Ignis, understanding that there had been way more snow dumped on them than originally planned. Noctis found a still warm kettle and made himself up another cup of ramen, his attention wandering as he tried to wake up.
“Okay, yeah, we’ll see you soon then Iggy. Let the King know Noct is fine and tell Prompto—”
Noctis’s attention was caught by the mention of his dad, but as he leaned out of the kitchen to be nosy, he saw a smug grin on Gladio’s face.
“Yeah, okay, tell him hi. We’ll see you both soon then.” Gladio's eyes met Noctis’ as he hung up, his grin still in place as he pocketed his phone.
“Good news or bad news first?”
“Bad, get it out of the way.” Slurping up his noodles, Noctis listened as Gladio informed them that they were stranded due to a storm coming in the night before and burying them in snow. The power was probably going to be out unless Gladio could find a generator.
It wasn’t ideal, but Noctis made no remark. His phone was going to die, probably, but he trusted that Gladio could get them through this. That… and he supposed he didn’t mind getting some more alone time with Gladio. Selfish, certainly, but Noctis had to wonder if maybe someone had made their own plan to let them be alone together.
“We’re probably going to be stuck here until tomorrow, Ignis is trying to arrange for some kind of vehicle, but there were some issues with some coeurls who decided they wanted to play in the snow too.” Noctis tried to picture that, letting out a little snort as he slurped up the rest of the broth. Gladio let out a little laugh, likely picturing similar before continuing as he fiddled with something on his phone.
“So we’re gonna be stuck here another night, probably. They gotta clear a path and yadda yadda. Good news though? Ignis and Prompto have been together since yesterday.”
“Yeah?” Noctis grinned, amused at the way Gladio was wriggling his eyebrows. He could picture Prompto crashing on Ignis’ couch, enjoying a quick breakfast with him, before tagging along to the Citadel to try and get them out of the snow. Would Prompto also be secretly happy like Noctis was? Noctis hoped so, if Prompto really was into Iggy, then he hoped he was enjoying it— and not worrying about them too much. Maybe he’d try and ask him about it after.
“That is good news,” Noctis stated, tossing his cup before going to plop down on the couch. He tugged the blankets around him tighter, relaxing. “Sucks we’re gonna miss celebrating the new year with them, but I guess it worked out anyways. Too bad we didn’t get to use your plan, though, Gladio.”
“Eh, like you said, it worked out. If they aren’t together soon, we can always try it again.” The couch dipped under Gladio’s weight as he sat down by Noctis, nearly tipping him over onto him. The two of them sat there and chatted about various plans to try and get the two together, ranging from simple to absolutely outrageous. As they laughed and joked around, Noctis couldn’t help but feel there really wasn’t any bad news at all, in fact he was looking forward to being stuck with Gladio all to himself.
The next day passed with them doing much of the same as the day before. The hunt for a generator was a bust so they decided they would just need to layer up and find other ways to keep themselves entertained. They spent some time outside, this time having a snowball fight and making something of an igloo. There was a point where Noctis got way too cold and they retreated inside, where Noctis was treated with Gladio using his hands to try and warm him up.
Gladio then taught Noctis how to light the gas stove with a match so the two of them could enjoy a warm mug of hot cocoa curled up on the couch. Noctis’ phone was dead at that point, so Gladio kept him entertained by reading aloud the cheesy romance novel he had brought with him. Noctis couldn’t help but tease him for that which resulted in a mock wrestling match where Gladio ended up half on top of Noctis to pin him down as he kept reading cheesy scene after scene. Noctis had absolutely no complaints about the situation he had found himself in.
The day shifted into evening and before Noctis knew it the two of them were just passing the time with a deck of cards as the clock in the living area ticked away towards midnight.
“I win again.” Gladio proclaimed, tossing his cards down on the table in triumph. Noctis shook his head, adding another snack to the growing pile that Gladio had in front of him.
“I think you’re cheating.”
“I think you’re just a sore loser.” Noctis stuck his tongue out at Gladio and warmed as the other laughed. Busying himself with re-shuffling the cards for the umpteenth time, Noctis marveled over how readily the two of them seemed to get comfortable with each other. He could feel Gladio’s legs against his and there were multiple times Gladio had touched him for what Noctis thought was no real good reason. Maybe Gladio was more touchy feely than he had thought, which he definitely didn’t mind.
The time passed all too quickly, maybe it was how much fun Noctis was having just being around Gladio. The rare moments that Noctis got glimpses of before this trip were on full display and Noctis got a better appreciation for just how funny the man was. Ignis level jokes and puns were readily dropped and Noctis found himself laughing and competing to see how much he could make Gladio laugh (which to his absolute pleasure was just as much as he was making him laugh).
It was a few minutes to midnight when they realized that they nearly missed ushering in the new year so the two of them hopped up, grabbed a few bottles of water, and began to prepare a toast in an attempt to keep the tradition up to the best they could, to both of their amusement.
It wasn’t the New Years’ celebration he had imagined, but having just spent the last few days holed up in the cabin in a comfortable companionship with Gladio was more than he could have asked for. It made him realize that he couldn’t just whisk away the feelings he had for the other man as easily as he thought, so Noctis resolved himself to do the opposite.
When the clock’s second hand tipped all the others to midnight, Noctis decided on a whim to get on his tippy toes and press his lips to Gladio’s. It was quick and chaste, only lasting a second as Noctis pulled back and gave Gladio a shaky smile.
“Uh… Happy New Year?” Noctis heard the question in his own voice and mentally kicked himself. It sounded so stupid and the unreadable expression on Gladio’s face wasn’t helping the growing pit in his stomach.
“Happy New Year.” Gladio’s voice was low and Noctis felt his stomach do flip flops for a completely different reason. Gladio’s arm moved to wrap around and suddenly the two of them were kissing again. Over and over. Gladio’s hand was in his hair and Noctis was gripping his shirt as his brain was only focused on Gladio and kissing him even more.
At some point the two of them ended up back in the room, taking to the bed to comfortably explore one another. Noctis wasn’t ready for more, grateful when Gladio paused and pulled back before things got too hot and heavy. There was hopefully time for that later, but they both agreed they wanted to enjoy what they had now— and that they did with roving hands and lips.
When Noctis woke up the next morning, Gladio’s arm was over him and he had been tucked up against him (like a teddy bear, he couldn’t help but note). Gladio was awake, tracing patterns on Noctis’ arm only to grab him up and pull him closer when he realized he was awake.
“So…” Noctis started after a few moments, trying to catch his breath after a particularly long good morning kiss. The fact that even in the light of day they were still kissing and touching was almost miraculous to Noctis and there was some small part of him that said when they returned to the city that it may change. Needing confirmation, Noctis cleared his throat before continuing.
“When were you going to tell me I could kiss you?” It wasn’t exactly how he wanted it to come out, but Noctis knew Gladio would get it. Or, he hoped.
“Probably someday, if planets aligned and all that. It’s not exactly the easiest to tell the to-be King you got a thing for him.” Noctis had to give him that one, shifting so that he and Gladio’s legs were intertwined.
“Well, now I know. Now you know. I think we’re squared.” The feeling of Gladio’s laugh shook him from how close he was pressed to his body, a feeling that Noctis would try to hold onto in his memory for future appraisal. “Funny how we were so focused on Ignis and Prompto, huh?”
“Oh, I’m still focused. I’m even more focused now knowing that you feel the way you do, those two are going to kiss.” There was such certainty in Gladio’s voice that Noctis almost felt a little bad for Prompto and Ignis. Almost. It was only outweighed by the happiness he knew he was feeling having Gladio say he shared his feelings and the thought of them getting to share that same happiness.
“They better watch out with us two gunning for them, then.” Laughter shook Noctis again, this time his own joining in. It didn’t last long, because he couldn’t help but roll over and kiss Gladio again. After all, Ignis and Prompto would be there to rescue them soon— he needed to take advantage of being snowed in for all he could.