Lips

This summer was miserable. Regulus hated every bit of it. He hated the house with its creaky floors and dark corners, the walls that seemed to close in on him, the constant shouting, and all those faces. Every day, his mother’s voice rang out, yelling at Sirius, but as soon as any guests arrived, she treated Sirius like a prince. The only good part of that summer was Evan. The Rosiers had invited them over for what Sirius mockingly called an "adult talk." Evan later told Regulus that their parents were discussing Sirius marrying Pandora, Evan’s sister. Regulus hated the idea, and none of the kids seemed to like it either. For once, he was thankful he wasn’t the heir and didn’t have to worry about things like that.

He had argued with Sirius a lot this summer, more than ever before. As Sirius became a teenager, his behavior grew more aggressive. He got annoyed at the smallest things and always found ways to irritate Regulus. Those three months made Regulus dislike Sirius even more, thinking he was more immature than ever.

Regulus was relieved to return to Hogwarts, where he could finally escape his family. The castle, with its busy halls and familiar faces, felt like a safe place. He could be with his friends—or at least, the people who might be his friends. Evan and Barty were clearly close, always laughing and sharing secrets, but Regulus didn't talk with them much. He was often just there, on the sidelines, watching and listening. He wasn't sure if they considered him a real friend, but being near them was better than being at home. At Hogwarts, he could lose himself in his studies, Quidditch, and the comfort of routines, pushing thoughts of Sirius and his family far from his mind.

He had found something to distract his mind from everything. Quidditch. He was allowed to join the team this year, Evan was also joining so Regulus wouldn’t be alone. He adored Evan, he was gifted he could see into his heart without a single word being spoken.

Sirius had little patience for Regulus' friends, and Regulus felt the same about his. Sirius and his friends always took center stage, and Regulus resented it. To their classmates, Regulus was simply "Sirius's brother," a label he despised. He didn't want to live in his brother's shadow; he wanted to be recognized as his own person, as Regulus Black. That year, Regulus vowed that one day, everyone would see him for who he truly was, not just as Sirius's little brother.

“You coming lad?” Regulus heard Evan’s voice, it was getting deeper as months passed. Evan hit puberty earlier than Regulus and Barty, which Barty was really annoyed about.

Regulus shook his head as he walked after Evan, aware of the fact that Evan didn’t see him.they were on their way to the Quidditch pitch, for the try outs. Regulus hadn’t really played quidditch before. He knew how to play it, he could fly really good on a broom, he just never tried it. He didn’t want a difficult position, where he had to play towards everybody on the team. As they were walking to the pitch, Regulus decided to try out for seeker. It was the only one who sounded valid.

They were finally at the pitch after what was supposed to be a short walk but ended up taking much longer due to Evan's many friends. Regulus noticed a lot of red and orange jerseys, indicating that Gryffindor also had tryouts today. "Lovely," Regulus thought sarcastically.

“Black! What are you doing here?” At first, Regulus thought the question was directed at his brother, given Sirius's popularity at Hogwarts. When he turned around, he saw a tall blonde girl standing next to a boy with glasses. Regulus recognized them; they were Sirius's friends, or at least the boy was.

As he glanced at them, he wondered why they questioned his presence. Did they think he wasn’t manly enough to play this sport? He resolved to prove those blood traitors wrong.

“To kick your ass, Potter,” he replied with a sarcastic smile. “Why do you think I’m here, Potter? Use that thing in your head, if there’s anything there.” He continued speaking rudely, watching their expressions grow angrier with each word.

Evan grabbed Regulus' arm to defuse the situation. They walked over to the Slytherin captain, Steve Laughalot. There were two candidates for Seeker: Terence Higgs and Regulus. Higgs was older and had been playing since his second year; he was now in his fourth year.

“Good luck, Black!” Higgs said with a smile as he saw Regulus in the Seeker line.

Laughalot always started with the younger ones. Regulus was second to last since Laughalot took Beaters first, Chasers second, Keepers later, and Seekers last. Evan, a Beater, was quickly chosen since he was very good and there were no other contenders. Evan was greeted by Barty's big smile and Regulus' small smile as he landed. Barty immediately hugged Evan; they called it a bro hug. Evan didn't hug Regulus, he knew he didn’t like hugs, so he made a small eye contact.

“Seeker, Regulus Black!” Laughalot shouted. As Regulus took to the skies, he saw Higgs smile at him again. Regulus felt targeted. They weren’t friends. Why was Higgs smiling? Was he mocking him?

---

Regulus was furious. He wanted to take down Higgs. Laughalot had told Regulus he was very good, but being a Seeker was a serious position, and he couldn’t risk losing Higgs. Later, when Regulus and Evan were walking back to the common room, Higgs patted Regulus on the shoulder. It was unexpected, so Regulus looked at him confused, as did his friends. As Higgs walked away, he turned to Regulus and told him he was really good and shouldn’t worry about it.

Now, sitting in his dorm, Regulus thought about Higgs’ actions. Evan had told him he was overthinking it, but Regulus didn’t agree. Why had Higgs looked so intently into his eyes? Why did Regulus remember how Higgs smelled when he patted his shoulder? Regulus hated this. He hated Hogwarts, he hated Quidditch, and he hated Terence Higgs.