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The time had come. The four of them stood yet again outside of the throne room. It was time, none of them were ready, but there was nothing else to do, there were no other options, this was the only way for the world to restore itself. Noctis had to make the sacrifice, but before he did, he turned to Prompto. His precious Prompto. his dear friend he had known since high school, well technically middle school, but they didn’t count that short period of time. They had been through a lot together, a whole more lot than normal friends had, and sure he was friends with Ignis and Gladio too, but it wasn’t the same. They had always treated him as the Crown Prince, or King, first and foremost, whilst Prompto never in his life had uttered something like a ‘your highness.’ It was one of the many things he loved about Prompto, how he never treated him as anything more than a regular human being, he was Noctis’s escape from his princely duties and Noctis would never want to change that.
“Can I see your photos?” Noctis asked him. Prompto looked confused but with a hesitant ‘sure’ pulled out a folder from his waistcoat containing all of the photos he had taken during their road trip.
“I just want to take something with me when I’m in there…” Noctis trailed off, he didn’t want to say the words, didn’t even want to think about it.
“Of course, here you go!” Prompto handed him the photos and Noctis was met by hundreds of different photos of himself and his friends, the photos of Prompto and himself stuck especially in his mind. Looking through the photos he decided between 5 photos. The first one was a selfie with him and Prompto, taken pretty early on their road trip. The two of them standing next to each other and smiling widely at the camera, but they weren’t close enough, Noctis would have preferred for them to be closer, they looked too friendly, platonically friendly. The second one was a photo that looked much similar, but they were even further apart. The third picture is the one that would have made the most sense to take with him.
“Oh yes, a picture with all of us is the one,” Gladio commented, and Noctis agreed. the picture they were looking at was a picture with the four of them, but also with Iris, Talcott, Cor, Cid, and many more. It looked like a family photo and it would make the most sense since all of Noctis’s favorite people were in that picture, his family if you would, but there were still more pictures to choose from.
The one after that was just silly. It was a picture they took on Cid’s boat where the four of them struck a silly pose. They all stood aligned with their right hand on their hip and their left arm stretched out pointing toward the sky. Prompto was in the front looking very goofy and proud.
“Haha, I remember that one!” Prompto chuckled with excitement evident in his voice. That was a good time, a time before chaos and heartbreak. It was probably a day or two before Luna’s death. If they only had known what was going to happen next.
The last picture was the one that stuck with him. It was, maybe according to others, just another stupid selfie with him and Prompto, and they weren’t wrong, but there was still just something about this particular one that Noctis couldn't stop staring at it. The photo was taken a couple of days before the whole ‘Prompto got kidnapped by Ardyn’ fiasco. This time Prompto had his arm around him and a huge bright smile was plastered on his face, so big that he had his eyes closed, and because they were closed, he hadn’t seen that he was covering Noctis’s face when he snapped the picture.
“Aww man,” he had uttered after looking at the picture, but Noctis had shrugged it off, saying that it might’ve been funny to remember it later, and Prompto had decided to agree and then saved the picture. Noctis had no idea that said picture would come back to haunt him ten years later. He had been staring at the picture for too long since Prompto started shuffling beside him.
“Uh, buddy? Are you sure you want a picture with only me in it? I mean, that’s sweet and all, but a little bit creepy…” Noctis felt something break inside of him, he never in his life wanted to hear his dearest Prompto call him creepy. He understood where it came from, he didn’t know what he expected, Prompto’s reaction was justified. He didn’t know about Noctis’s feelings for him so of course, he would find it a little bit weird and creepy. If he knew the reason, he would probably be even more creeped out, but Noctis wasn’t going to exist in a couple of minutes from now, so he had nothing left to lose.
“It’s not creepy, if I’m in love with you,” Noctis said before he had time to think. He carefully looked to his right where Prompto was standing next to him, his mouth wide in shock, he glanced towards the other two men, who looked just as shocked, Gladio more than Ignis.
“You’re- what?” Prompto opened his mouth and closed it again, he really couldn’t fathom what Noctis just had said.
“I have been in love with you since our high school years, I mean how could I not be? You’re amazing Prom…” He trailed off, noticing the wide look on the other boy’s face. Prompto finally shook himself out of it.
“But- but Luna? You were engaged to her at that time too?” Noctis had honestly never seen Lunafreya Nox Fleuret as anything more than an older sister. He knew before even meeting her that she was his future wife, so he had tried to fall in love with her, he tried to convince himself for years, pretending to be excited when Umbra would come running with the notebook attached to his collar, but he honestly only felt dread and anxiety every time he would arrive. It was impossible to be in love with someone he hadn’t met since they were kids and more possible to fall in love with someone he saw, met, and talked to every day, and he told them such.
“Do you see now? I loved Luna, but she wasn’t you, and she would never be you!” Prompto gave him a sad look. He looked down at his shoes, studying them closely, before shooting his gaze up in rage.
“Why would you tell me this now Noct!? Now when in just minutes you’re supposed to go into that room and not come back ever! How do you think this makes me feel huh? Not so fucking great!” His body shook and his breath heaved. Ignis stepped forward to put a hand on his shoulder, Prompto shrugged it off. Gladio opened his mouth to probably tell Prompto off, but Noctis interrupted him.
“Because it wouldn’t have mattered! You don’t love me back, and I figured if I’m gonna be gone, I would at least have no regrets-!”
“Really, no regrets? Well, let me change that for you!” Noctis had no idea what Prompto meant and was not eager to hear the end. “I’m in love with you too, so there!” That was probably the last thing Noctis expected Prompto to say. He was in love with him too? How? There was no way! He was always running after every girl he set his eyes on, like Cindy for example.
“I had to do something to distract myself from my feelings for you, right?” Prompto answered his thoughts, or maybe he had been thinking out loud?
“Then, why didn’t you just tell me?” Noctis asked, Prompto only scoffed, “do you really think I could tell ‘The Crown Prince of Lucis, who is to be married to Lady Lunafreya, The Oracle, that I a Nifleheim MT is in love with him and he should choose me instead of her .” Well, when he said it like that, Noctis could see his reasoning.
“You know what, fine, if you want to get all our secrets out there, let me tell you how disgusted I was with myself after Luna’s death as I let myself feel relieved-” He looked around to see the shocked and confused looks on his friends' faces. “-Yes, you heard me right, relieved! I felt relief since I thought that she was now out of the picture and now I have a chance with Noctis, but of course, I’m not a psychopath, so I only let myself think that for a second before I wanted to throw up. I walked around with that guilt for years, I guess I still do but now it's all out there. I would never want for anything bad to happen to Luna, and when it did I was as devastated as you guys, but then that disgusting evil part of me just surfaced, and I felt so horrible afterward.”
After listening to all of that, Noctis wanted to put his arms around the blonde boy, but it didn’t feel very appropriate in the context. He again saw where Prompto was coming from and understood his feelings. He also knew that he wasn’t evil as he said he was, and he knew that Luna would never think so either. Noctis told Prompto such, but he didn’t seem to believe him.
“Noct is right Prompto, you’re not a bad person, you’re only human,” Ignis stepped forward and said. Gladio only gave him an encouraging smile and pat on the back, then he decided to open his mouth.
“Yeah not to be that guy, but we’re happy you two finally got your shit together, yeah it sucks that it’s a little too late, but Iggy and I kinda had a bet going on how long it would take for you two-” He was interrupted by Ignis smacking his side. Noctis couldn’t believe his friends, but he was also not surprised, they had better instincts than probably both Noctis and Prompto combined.
“Shit, all this time we’ve missed out on… All this time being pining dumbasses, we- we could’ve…” Noctis felt frustrated, confused, and just completely miserable. If he had known that there was even a smidge of a chance that Prompto could like him back, he would have confessed sooner, but as Prompto threw himself at Cindy and various other girls, he never noticed the side glances he would get.
“Noct, it’s okay-” Prompto tried, but Noctis wouldn’t have it, “it’s not okay! All this time I could’ve had you, could’ve been with you, and now-! Now it’s too late…” A single tear fought to trail down his cheek, but Noctis quickly wiped it away. Prompto stepped closer and put his hands on his shoulders and shook him gently.
“Hey, we’re both idiots, okay? So, if you’re going to blame yourself, blame me too!” Noctis chuckled at that, he could never blame Prompto for anything, but he humored him.
“And hey, it’s not too late for a taste test right?” A taste test, what did he mean? He looked at his two other friends for help, but they only shifted around uncomfortably, well Gladio did, whilst Ignis only had a small, maybe teasing, smile on his face.
“Yeah, like literally!” Prompto continued with a smirk on his face. A taste test literally? Did he mean? Oh. So that was what he meant, he wanted to taste Noctis… He felt his cheeks heat up at the realization.
Prompto then let go of him and turned around. Noctis felt himself mourning the loss. “Could you guys, give us some privacy?” He asked Gladio and Ignis who were staring right at them. Gladio then rolled his eyes and turned Ignis and himself around. Prompto then turned back around to look at Noctis who was looking very red. Which made Prompto look nervous.
“I mean, we don’t have to if you don’t-” Noctis stopped him in his tracks.
“No! I- I do want to, I just haven’t- …Ever you know…” Prompto gaped at him, “really!?” he exclaimed at the same time Gladio let out a taunting scoff, and soon after he got another smack from Ignis. The other two boys decided to ignore them.
“How!? You’re the Crown Prince, I mean you were and now you’re the King of Kings!”
Noctis chuckled, “you’re not wrong but I was too busy with my duties as Prince, and I know you have not forgotten about my being engaged since I was practically born and then the only other person I met that wasn’t Ignis, Gladio or my dad was, well, you. ” The way Noctis had said ‘you’ with such a fond loving tone made Prompto blush, his cheeks turned so red you could almost not see his freckles anymore, Noctis found it absolutely adorable. He caressed his cheek gently, “I’m guessing you have some experience though?”
“I uh- I mean, not much but, uh, you know…” He sputtered. Noctis had on multiple occasions caught his best friend lip-locked with different girls. It only stopped once their road trip started, but Noctis imagined that was because of Cindy, and not himself.
“So uhm, you ready?”Prompto asked. Noctis nodded and put his hands on Prompto’s cheeks, he caressed them again and Promtpo gave him a fond smile in return. He then felt as Prompto tentatively put his arms around Noctis’s waist. Not wanting to wait for even a second longer, Noctis leaned in and put his lips to Prompto’s. He was unresponsive at first at the lack of warning, but then he quickly melted into the kiss and kissed him back. It was perfect. Noctis never believed in the magical first kisses, or how it would be even better to kiss someone that you’re in love with, but if it felt even close to how it felt like to kiss Prompto, he would start to believe it.
It felt like it was over much too quickly as Prompto pulled away. Noctis felt himself being pulled in again but was only met by air. He opened his eyes to find Prompto looking sheepishly at him with a shy smile on his face. He smiled back but quickly stopped as tears started flowing from Prompto’s eyes. Both of them looked just as shocked. Prompto frantically began swiping them away, but there was no use since they just kept coming. At the same time as Noctis tried to ask what was wrong, but Prompto had trouble even getting a single word out. Gladio and Ignis had turned back around at the commotion.
“Fuck, I kinda wish that we never did that now, because now I know what I will miss out on…” Prompto finally said with a sad smile. Noctis tsked and threw his arms around him, tears also started flowing from his own eyes. He agreed, they probably shouldn’t have kissed, they shouldn’t even have confessed to each other. It felt right in the moment, but he knew that it would hurt Prompto later in his life, to know what he had missed out on. On the other hand, he didn’t like the thought of Prompto thinking that Noctis never loved him. He wouldn’t have liked that either, there really wasn’t anything good to do in their situation. It was going to end in heartbreak and heartache in the end anyway.
“I’m gonna miss you so much,” me too, Noctis thought. He didn’t know what was going to happen to him once he sat on his throne, if he was going to remember his life or if he would cease to exist, only be remembered by his friends, the only thing he knew was that he was going to try his hardest to keep thinking of Prompto the whole time.
“Don’t forget me, okay?” Noctis didn’t think that Prompto would, but he still needed to say it just in case.
“As if I ever could dumbass!” Prompto sniffled into his shoulder. Suddenly two more pairs of arms joined their hug, and Noctis didn’t mind, he was planning to hug them too before he left anyway.
They broke the hug as they saw two giant daemons emerge from the ground and hoards of others on their way toward them, and it was finally time. Time for Noctis to go. To leave his friends, to leave his Prompto, and save the world so humanity could flourish again. He gave his friends one last look before they turned around to hold the daemons off him whilst he walked to reclaim the throne, his throne. After so long, over ten years to be exact, after everything he had been through he was finally home.