The firelight from camp flickers in the distance, but out here, everything feels quieter. Still. You sit with your arms wrapped around your knees, the chill of the night brushing against your skin, though it isn’t the cold that’s making your chest feel so tight.

You’ve tried to ignore it — the glances, the whispers, the way people speak of Lunafreya as though she already wears a crown. They call her his equal. His destiny. And deep down, you wonder if maybe they’re right.

Footsteps approach, slow and hesitant. You don’t need to look up to know it’s him.

“You keep disappearing,” Noctis says gently, settling beside you in the grass. “Figured I’d come check if the stars were better from over here.”

You force a small smile. “They’re the same stars.”

He shrugs, resting his arms on his knees. “Maybe. But you’re not.”

That catches you off guard. You glance at him, but his gaze is fixed on the sky.

“You’ve been… somewhere else lately,” he continues. “With your head, I mean. I notice when someone’s drifting.”

“I’m not drifting,” you murmur, though even you don’t sound convinced.

Noctis finally looks at you, expression unreadable, but there's a softness in his eyes that makes it hard to hold his gaze. “Then what are you doing?”

You hesitate. This is it — the feeling you’ve been swallowing for weeks — certainly months. The gnawing doubt. The ache of being near him but never sure you have the right to be.

You let out a shaky breath. “Just thinking about where I fit in all of this. About her. About you.”

Noctis is silent for a long moment.

“Luna and I…” he starts, then trails off. “She’ll always be part of my past. Of what was expected of me. But you…”

He turns to face you now, fully — his voice low, sure, but vulnerable in a way he rarely allows.

“You’re the one I choose.”

Your breath catches. The world seems to slow.

“And I don’t care what anyone else sees or says. I know how I feel when I’m with you. And I don’t want to keep pretending I don’t.” He leans just a little closer, eyes searching yours. “So tell me… what do you feel?”