Chapter 1
Regulus Black woke up with a start. He looked around frantically until he realized that he was safe and in his own apartment. It's ok, just a dream. He reassured himself as he stood up and ran a hand through his messy black hair to try and calm down.
He'd just had a nightmare from his childhood, of his mother...
“Kneel! You worthless and incompetent excuse of an heir!” Walburga Black yelled.
“Please, I'm sorry! No-” 14 year old Regulus pleaded as his mother pushed him down to his knees onto the hard wood floor of their living room and...
Regulus cut the thoughts. He couldn't think of that if he wanted to stay sane.
He pet his cat as he walked to the kitchen to make himself breakfast. He made a sandwich and cereal, eating in silence and listening to his cat sprint around the room. He smiled faintly as the Orange gremlin jumped on the couch and hissed at something invisible. He thought about a video he had seen about animals being able to see ghosts and that's why they would avoid certain things or stare at empty corners and bark or meow for no reason. Regulus didn't believe in those things but he thought that a house ghost wouldn't be too bad. Maybe it would end his miserable ass life, who knows?
He finished eating and put away the plates. He had skating practice that day so he decided to take a shower before he would go meet his friends and head to the rink.
He met his friends at the sports Centre. Barty, Evan, Dorcas and Pandora were all talking and laughing while Regulus stayed mostly quiet and expressionless. This was nothing new to anyone since Reggie was not the most chatty or expressive person on the planet.
“Reggie, back me up here!” Barty pleaded. “Evan says I shouldn't get a belly button piercing but I wanna!” He whined and Regulus rolled his eyes.
“Barty, Evan's right. A belly button piercing hurts like hell. I got mine a few months ago and I will not ever redo it if it closes.” Regulus stated. “Not a smart choice.” He added.
“But I wanna.” Drawled and pouted.
“Barty, you'd get your balls pierced if it was possible.” Dorcas snorted and everyone laughed while Barty looked offended. Even Regulus huffed with amusement. It was the closest thing to a laugh he could muster up.
They reached the ice rink and went through the locker rooms and then to the ice. Regulus immediately felt better. The ice seemed to always cheer him up somehow. He did a spin and jump and glided backwards on one foot.
“Showoff!” Evan accused and Regulus flipped him off, making the other laugh.
They practiced for about two hours before the hockey players started showing up. Regulus was skating with Dorcas as the hockey coach blew the whistle. “Alright, Figureskaters, your turn is over! Off the ice, please.”
Regulus skated off with Dorcas and Barty, Evan and Pandora followed. That's when he saw one of the hockey players staring at him and by the gods he was hot. Short and messy brown hair, tan skin even in the winter and warm Hazel eyes. He caught himself staring and looked away before he embarrassed himself.
JAMES' POV
James Potter was sitting by the ice and talking to his friends, watching the figureskaters practice. He noticed one of them in particular and looked more intently.
The guy was actually beautiful. That was the only word to describe him. Cold and steel grey eyes, long lashes... Gorgeous. His face was pale, just warm enough to look natural and his cheek bones were sharp and high. He had a slender build and he was on the shorter side.
He was snapped out of his trance when their coach blew the whistle for their practice to start.
He made eye contact with the grey eyed boy and he seemed to be checking James out until he looked away and walked into the locker rooms with his friends.
James tried his best to focus on hockey but he couldn't get his mind off of that beautiful guy. He briefly glanced at the stands and saw the figure skating team watching the hockey players practice. James felt his heart skip a beat as he saw the grey eyed boy sitting there. He was mostly expressionless, only the occasional frown or glare directed at his friends. This somehow made him even hotter. Mysterious, Rude, beautiful, yes please. James thought as he smirked slightly.
After practice, the team went to the cafe at the sports centre and saw the figure skating team sitting at a table near the window. They were all laughing at something except the pretty boy who was only smirking faintly. At the moment James could not think of anything more beautiful than that ghost of a smile playing on the boy's lips.
The hockey team sat down at a table, though some of them had to leave for some other businesses. They got themselves something to eat and while James was listening and laughing with his friends, he couldn't stop his eyes from wandering over to the figureskater.
“Is that drool I see?” His teammate Remus Lupin asked him with an amused smile.
“What? Oh, ha ha, very funny.” He responded sarcastically and gave his friend a half assed glare. He was a little antsy that Remus had caught him staring.
“Dude, you look lovestruck. Who is it?” Remus questioned with a smirk.
“The black haired figureskater.” James said and nodded his head toward the window table. “Fucking beautiful.
“Regulus Black?” Remus asked incredulously.
“You know him?” James inquired, surprised.
“No but I'm shagging his older brother.” Remus replied with a proud smirk.
“Oh yeah, you did mention a boyfriend...” James muttered, his thoughts on Regulus. “Do you know more about him?”
Remus looked thoughtful. “Not much, I've never actually met him. Sirius has told me some stuff, mostly shit talk though. They're not exactly friends. Regardless, he has mentioned bad family history, rich, 'emotionless git',” He was likely quoting Sirius. “And that he's into men. You definitely have a shot, I saw him looking at you.” Remus stated casually and James hummed in approval.
REGULUS' POV
Regulus could feel the hockey player's eyes on him as he sat there with his friends. Why would the guy be looking at HIM of all people? Regulus was half convinced that the guy was straight. He looked just like the type of jock who had a new girl hanging from his arm every month but a little eye candy never hurts anyone, right?
“Earth to Regulus Black?” Evan snapped his fingers in front of his face.
“What?” Regulus asked with a slight glare.
“You ok? I just said your name like seven times.” The blonde replied with a scowl of his own.
“Uh... Yeah.” Regulus brushed some hair from his face and looked at Evan.
“Liar. Anyway, you see that brunette hockey player who looks like the male protagonist of a really cheesy high school drama?” Evan asked, gesturing to the table across the room.
Regulus rolled his eyes at the comparison and raised an eyebrow.
“He's staring at you. Like... Heart eyes sort of staring.” Evan smirked and lightly smacked his shoulder.
“Oh fuck you, no he's not.” Regulus said and crossed his arms.
“That's Barty's job and yes he is. I can tell he's got the hots for you and I gotta say, he's a catch. A really hot catch.” Evan said and earned a sharp glare from Barty who he winked at. Barty huffed and flipped him off. Evan blew his boyfriend a kiss and Regulus made a gagging noise.
It had been a few days since Regulus had seen the hot hockey player for the first time and since then the dude had lived rent free in the back of his mind.
His friends had blackmailed him into letting them drag Regulus into a club with the excuse of, 'you need to get out of the house more often' and 'we'll sell your cat on the darkweb if you don't come with us', the latter had been Barty's form of persuasion but terrifying nonetheless.
They arrived at the club and showed their ID's. The guard at the door had eyed Regulus a little suspiciously but let him in without saying anything. The room was full of people dancing, the music boomed just a little too loudly from the speakers and it smelled like alcohol and seventy different perfumes mixed together into one abomination of a scent. It made Regulus a little nauseous but he ignored the feeling.
Dorcas dragged him to the bar and ordered him a neat whiskey and a Martini for herself. Barty and Evan had already vanished into the crowd to make out of dance. Or both. Knowing them, they might as well fuck in the bathroom, who knows? Regulus didn't want any mental images so he decided to sip his drink and watch the people dance shamelessly in skimpy clothes and drink themselves sick. This was not Regulus' favorite form of entertainment but he was there for his friends and to hopefully get drunk enough to forget about his PTSD and depression.
“This can't be that bad.” Dorcas snorted with a twinkle of amusement in her eyes. Regulus had apparently been scowling and wrinkling his nose.
“Never say that I do not love you stupid heathens.” Regulus stated and sipped his drink, his scowl deepening.
He started twisting the rings he wore around his fingers and playing with his tongue piercing. Both were nervous habits he had that he might start doing without even noticing it.
A guy sat down next to Dorcas and gave her a drunken smirk that was probably supposed to be seductive.
“Hey, babygirl... Wanna dance?” He slurred and Regulus gave him a withering glare which was frankly terrifying due to his pale skin and dark hair. The guy scurried off pretty quickly at the sight of it.
Dorcas smirked at him. “I could've done that myself y'know.” She said with a smile. Dorcas was a lesbian and frankly absolutely gorgeous. She had to turn down a lot of men trying to flirt with her and Regulus liked scaring them off with his death stares.
“Couldn't resist the temptation.” Regulus said sarcastically and finished his drink. Dorcas ordered him another.
Suddenly, Dorcas' mouth fell open. “Who is that?” She questioned quietly. Regulus looked into the direction she was staring in and saw a punky looking blonde girl dancing alone. Dorcas looked from her to him with a contemplative look and Regulus read from her expression that she didn't know if she should leave Regulus by himself.
“Go, you don't have to be my babysitter. I'll be fine by myself.” He said and nodded toward the girl in the distance. “Go bag her.” He said with a small smirk and Dorcas smiled gratefully.
Regulus leaned back and watched Dorcas tap the girl on the shoulder. His smile faded into a slight scowl since he was now alone in a club full of half naked people and way too loud music. He drank the contents of his drink quickly and ordered a vodka shot. He drank it fast and felt his mind turn hazy as the alcohol took effect. He was now drunk and the depression didn't go away which made him antsy.
Someone sat down next to him. He glanced at them and saw the hot hockey player. He seemed just as drunk, if not more than Regulus and he smirked at him.
“Hi beautiful, having a good night?” The hockey player asked in a flirty tone. It wasn't the slurry, drunk kind of flirty the guy hitting on Dorcas had had, instead it was a shamelessly seductive and slightly dark type that made Regulus almost shiver. Regulus gave him a drunk smile and laughed at nothing in particular.
“This place is absolutely fucked up.” He laughed again. Regulus laughing either meant that he had finally snapped or that he was shitfaced.
The hockey player snorted. “Agreed. I'm James, by the way. And you're Regulus, my friend told me.” He reached out and brushed some hair out of Reggie's face, a bold move but Regulus accepted it. He hated being touched, even when drunk but for some reason this didn't bother him.
“James, huh. Fits you.” Regulus complimented him. James' fingers lingered on his face and Regulus leaned his head into the touch. James cupped his face and ran his thumb over Regulus' cheek bone slowly. It felt strangely good and the usual resentment that overwhelmed him didn't show up, he let his head rest on James' hand.
“Isn't Regulus a star?” James asked, his eyes on Regulus' lips.
“The heart of the Leo constellation...” Regulus replied in a quiet voice. James looked really good and his skin felt warm against Regulus' pale cheek.
“Stars are beautiful. Just like you they shine in the dark sky, pale and beautiful. No wonder you were named after one.” James' voice sounded sincere as he spoke in a soft tone that bordered on loving. Regulus loved compliments and praise and he felt a faint pink dust his cheeks.
“That's oddly poetic for someone who's drunk.” Regulus said and watched James' eyes flicker to his lips before going back to his eyes.
“I'm not drunk, darling.” James smiled widely as Regulus' face twisted in surprise. Then Regulus pulled away from him.
“That means you were dared to talk to me.” Regulus sipped his drink and glared at the wall. Before James could say anything, he continued.
“The friend. Who told you my name? They fucking dared you. Like... I'm shitfaced and sad. No one would talk to me unless they're dared to or if their so drunk they can't think straight.” He laughed and ran his hand down his face with a ingenious smile.
James frowned and reached out to grab his wrist and move Regulus' hand away form his face. “No one dared me to do anything, I'm not like that. It's kinda shitty of you to assume.” He turned Regulus' head back to face him and looked into his eyes as he said, “I think you're beautiful, I couldn't get my eyes off of you when I first saw you skate with your friends. Remus didn't dare me to do anything and you really need to work on your self esteem because you are fucking gorgeous.” He spoke sternly and sincerely, making Regulus want to believe him.
“But I-” Regulus started but James cut him off.
“No. If you're not interested, I'm fine with it. I'll move on but I don't want you to think I'm insincere or something.” He stated calmly. He was stern but kind at the same time all the while being hot and easygoing.
“I am interested I just don't want to get played. I have really fucked up experiences with hot guys, holy shit.” He laughed again, thinking about the guys who had played him and cheated on him and left him with a broken heart.
“Those guys are idiots and I'm not a player. I don't go for people I'm not interested in.” James reassured him and Regulus decided to go for it. It's not like he hadn't suffered in relationships before. He smiled and shrugged.
“In that case, why the fuck not?” He let James' hand run down his jaw to his neck and over his shoulder. He let him self be pulled slightly closer. James smirked.
“C'mon. Let's go dance.” He said and Regulus' eyes widened. James let go of him and he strangely found himself missing the contact.
“Oh no, I can't dance and don't want to.” He stated firmly.
“Don't be a bitch. I'll show you.” He pulled Regulus up and held him to a slightly emptier corner of the club. He started dancing, pulling Regulus with him. In any other situation, Regulus would have pulled away and left but now, for some reason, he found himself genuinely enjoying the moment. If it was only the fact that James' hands were on him, then it would be so but Regulus didn't want to stop. No one was looking at them, it was just him, James and the weird feeling in his chest that just might not be alcohol induced.
ROSEKILLER'S POV
Evan and Barty were drinking and dancing in the crowd. Both were, somehow, still relatively sober so they hadn't done anything outrageous yet. Barty put a hand on the back of his neck and an arm around his waist, pulling Evan into himself. Evan looked up at him and tangled his fingers into Barty's hair. He stared at his boyfriend's lips for a moment before looking in his eyes. The question was silent but they didn't need words to communicate.
Barty pulled Evan's head closer and pressed their lips together. The kiss was slow for about five seconds before it got heated and messy. Barty bit and pulled at Evan's lower lip and they could taste the metallic tang of blood. Both of them smiled and to an outsider it probably looked like they were trying to eat each other, which in some amounts might be true.
They broke apart and laughed.
“Let's go get more drinks?” Evan suggested, sucking his bleeding lip.
Barty shamelessly stared at him doing so and his eyes darkened slightly. “Sure, Rosie.” He agreed and looped an arm around him. They made their way to the bar and sat down. Barty ordered them coke and rum and Evan rested his head on his fist and played with Barty's earrings with his other hand.
“Rosie?” Barty questioned.
“Yeah~” Evan tugged on his earring.
“What are you doing?” Evan smirked at the question but didn't reply.
“What. Are. You. Doing.” Barty asked again more firmly. He grabbed Evan's wrist and turned to stare into his eyes. Evan had beautiful eyes, they were the first thing he'd fallen for when they'd met for the very first time. It was a really funny story actually, Evan had been working at some shit grocery store and Barty had marched up to him to complain about the lack of his favorite energy drink. He didn't know if Evan just had hated his job so much he had to the balls to talk to him the way he had or if he was just about to quit that day or something but they had ended up making out behind the store in a shitty alleyway. Finally someone who could match his freak. Someone who would say; 'Well what if I fucking don't? What're you going to do about it, Mr. Tattoos and piercings?' In his face. As a retail worker. Especially because Barty was a generally really scary looking person, a metal detectors nightmare and a tattoo artist's best friend. Barty had essentially found that really hot.
“I'm bothering you..” Evan trailed off and pulled his hand away from Barty to play with his lip piercings. Evan knew it flustered Barty so of course he was going to do it.
Barty growled and glared at Evan who ignored it, though his cheeks dusted a faint pink. Barty's arm shot out to wrap around Evan's waist and yank him so close their breaths mixed between them.
“Are you enjoying yourself?” Barty asked, still glaring at Evan who looked a little flustered. He liked when Barty manhandled him.
“I certainly am now.” Evan purred and his eyes flickered from Barty's eyes to his lips and back. He leaned closer and left feather light kisses along his boyfriend's sharp jawline and whispered into his ear;
“And I think you are too.” Evan felt infinitely proud of himself when he felt Barty shiver. He left a few more kisses on his neck and jaw before pulling back and kissing his lips, touch so light and teasing it made Barty almost angry.
“Properly please? Teasing me isn't a good idea and I think both of us know why.” Barty sounded dangerous as he said it like that and Evan liked it.
“You want properly, you'll have to work for it.” Evan murmured and kissed the corners of his mouth. Both could feel the tension between them growing by the second, yet neither made a move. Evan was smug and Barty was getting angry, much to Evan's delight.
Evan moved his hands to the back of his head and tangled them into his hair. He tugged on it lightly and Barty had to fight himself to not crash his lips on Evan's and kiss the lights out of him.
“Patience is a virtue, darling. Try to have some.” Evan purred softly. Barty snarled in a way that almost made Evan snap. Barty noticed his eyes darkening just a little and how he gripped his hair just a tiny bit tighter. He smirked at Evan.
“Hypocrite.” Barty said and moved his arms from his face to under his thighs and lifted Evan up to sit on the counter. “And patience isn't a word in my vocabulary.” His voice turned cold and Evan shuddered.
“Not here, Bat...” He whispered.
“Why? You scared?” Barty mocked
“No,” Evan ran his fingers down Barty's chest. “We'll just get to be louder if we get a room.” Barty raised an eyebrow and looked him up and down.
“Dirty thoughts, my Rose.” He pulled Evan down from the counter and looped an arm around him and dipped his hand into Evan's pocket.
“You're far worse than me.” Evan snickered. He traced Barty's hip lightly with his hand, barely there but he knew that Barty noticed. He also knew that he would definitely pay for it once they got to his house and he almost couldn't wait.
They closed the door to his apartment. They didn't even care about traumatizing his neighbors anymore, they had already heard a lot and both of them were tipsy and shameless. Evan didn't let Barty touch him as he took off his shoes and jacket and stalked down into his living room. He sat down on the couch and gave Barty a cheeky smile. Another thing he would pay for.
His boyfriend walked into the space after him and took off his jacket. He put it on the back of a chair and stretched his back and to Evan's delight and misfortune, he was wearing a crop top. It rode up his sides and showed off his waist. That was doing things to Evan. Good, but dangerous things.
Only when Barty cleared his throat did Evan realize he'd been staring.
Barty sat down next to him and put an arm around him in an almost platonic way. Evan's self control snapped.
He straddled Barty in one quick movement but...
“Oh no baby, you're not topping tonight.” Barty chuckled and flipped them around. Evan's back hit the couch unnecessarily hard and he let out a quiet 'oomph'. He stared up at Barty with slightly wide eyes, parted lips and blush on his cheeks.
Barty grabbed his hair and pulled it back so his head was craned up and neck was exposed. He lifted his hand to pull up the hem of Barty's shirt but his motion was cut short by Barty forcing his hand down to the cushions.
“No, not yet. Didn't you talk about patience earlier?” Barty leaned down and licked a trail up the column of Evan's neck. Oh he was definitely going to regret teasing Barty. Evan shivered at the feeling of Barty's multiple tongue piercings on his neck but he didn't have time to process the feeling before Barty was already biting and sucking on his jaw, down to the base of his neck and collarbone. He clenched the cushions and bit back a whine, though Barty far too gently pried his fist open and interwined their fingers together.