James
A few weeks later, James was helping Regulus move into his apartment. It was ironic, how over the last months he had broken all of Regulus’ rules. When James asked Regulus to move in, he expected him to fight. Instead Regulus had just asked ‘why’?
“Because, we knew we were going to eventually, and I want to live with you.”
Regulus turned away from James, hiding his smile.
“Regulus Black, did you just smile at me telling you that I want to live with you?”
“No. Fuck off, James.”
The next week, half of Regulus’s things were in James’s apartment. There were only a few smaller items left on Reg’s list of what to bring, so they made the short walk across town to grab Regulus’ items. They came back to the apartment, hands full with boxes of Regulus’ stuff. They spent the next three days decorating the apartment, until they found the perfect arrangement for everything. They continued on to spend every moment together for the following days, the press following their relationship more than ever. This came with some strain, as they had barely separated from each other for three weeks. It was on a cold Tuesday morning that the first fight they had ever had broke out. Sure, they got into small petty arguments every now and then, but nothing like this. James wasn’t quite sure why they were fighting, but keeping calm seemed to make Regulus even more mad.
“Listen, Regulus, if you won’t tell me what’s wrong, I’m going to go out for a bit until you cool down.”
James turned on his heel, but Regulus grabbed his wrist with a horrifying grip.
“Black. Let me go.”
“Oh, so we’re back to last names now,” Regulus spat.
“It just slipped, I’m sorry. But why are you mad?”
Regulus dug his nails into James, making him wince.
“You want to know why I’m mad? Are you bloody insane? James, you want to know what the goddamn press is saying? ‘After James Potter’s last stunt with Lily Evans, fans are dying to know if this is just another fake relationship, or is it real? And will it end the same as always, with James just being too good of an actor for his lover to see it coming?’ What the hell happened with Lily?”
James gulped.
“Reg, this is just a misunderstanding, I swear. Yes, Lils and I started the same as we did, and I made a horrible mistake about how I broke up with her, but that was years ago! I would never do that to you.” “Really. Then why are we doing the same things you did with her? You know, I’m so fucking stupid. I really thought that you would care. After all that, I was just another role though, huh? Something to perfect? Well, Potter, I saw through your scheme. I’m going to walk into that bedroom and you are going to sleep on this couch until I can find enough money to move away from your wretched plan.”
Without letting James breathe, Regulus shoved past him and entered the bedroom. James buried his head in his hands. Why didn’t Regulus get it? James was in love with him. He went to the couch and slept for hours. When he woke up, Regulus was gone. They did this dance around each other for a month, and James was ready to die. He craved the feeling of Regulus’ delicate touch. His intoxicating voice. James decided that he was going to get very drunk, so he grabbed his phone and went to the bar. He didn’t have any friends there, but upon closer inspection, Barty and Evan were there. He went over and proceeded to drink more than he thought he ever had. At some point, three other men had joined them, and one had taken a special liking to James. He made plenty of excuses to touch James, and each advance was bolder than the last. James was next to him when Barty put his phone on speaker for Evan to hear.
“Reg,you didn’t tell us your boyfriend wasn’t a lightweight! He drank more than me and Evan combined.”
“Who else are you with?”
“Avery, Mulciber, and Sev came an’ joined us, but we didn’t ask them to. Snape’s been weird with James.”
“Call James over and give him the phone. Now.”
Barty grabbed James and handed him his cell.
“Reggie? Is that you? I heard you talking to Barty. Your voice is so pretty, you know that?”
“James. I need you to listen very carefully. Where are you right now?”
“The bar where we always go.”
“Good boy, now, who is with you?”
James smiled a dopey grin. He had a thing for praise, though he never told anyone. It did something to his brain.
“Right, sorry. Barty and Evan, obviously. Then a guy who was mean to me and a guy who hasn’t talked too much. Oh, and the guy who touched me. I told him to stop, but he said it would make him happy, so I let him, because I never want to make anyone sad ever again.”
James heard shuffling on the other side of the phone.
“What is his name?”
“Severus. I don’t like him, Reggie. I wish you were here. That way you could walk me home and he would never know where I went.”
“Oh, Jamie. Amor, I'm coming as fast as I can.”
“Oh, good. Does that mean you don’t hate me anymore?”
“James I- we’ll talk about this later.”
“Okay Regulus. I’ll see you soon.”
James gave the phone back to Barty, and Severus grabbed his arm and dragged him to a corner.
“What are you doing?”
Snape smashed his lips against him, holding his squirming body still. His knee slotted between James’s legs, creating friction that James did not want. He tried pushing against Severus, but it did nothing. He turned his head to the side, Snape still biting his face.
“Mmph! No, stop. I-I don’t like this. Please, cut it out!”
Tears swelled in his eyes as Snape moved his hands over him, ignoring James’ cries. He still attempted to push him away, but he failed. James thought all was lost until a familiar hand punched Severus in the stomach. He doubled over, and James rubbed his wrists. James pushed back from the wall, rubbing his eyes. Snape grabbed his leg, and pulled him to the ground. His long nails dug into James’ face as he used his other hand to draw near to James’ pants. James tried to scream, but his mouth was being covered. Regulus’s presence was made known again when a shoe came down and stepped on Severus’s face. James heard a sharp crack, and he used his hands to slide back away from him. Regulus’s eyes were covered in a haze of fury, but he still looked so beautiful.
“Reggie,” James whimpered.
Regulus snapped his head up, abandoning Severus and going to sit next to James. James took his hand and started playing with his rings.
“Amor, look at me. Are you okay?”
James nodded, just happy that Regulus was even acknowledging his presence. Regulus got to his feet, and helped James up. They quickly left, not bothering to talk to Barty or Evan. James stumbled a bit as he walked, bumping into Regulus. He thought about the younger boy. Was he still mad? How could James fix it? He didn’t think he did anything wrong. He just missed his lover.
“Regulus.”
James grabbed Regulus’ arm, stopping his walking.
“What is it?”
“I’m so lonely. You told me it's okay if I want touch, but you have been avoiding me. I know it seems like I just copied what I did with Lily, but I promise it's different. You’re different. I just miss you so much. So so much. I keep trying to catch you, but you keep running. Why do you keep running, love? I just want you. Only you. Why don't you see that? How can’t you see it?”
They had sat down now, on the steps of the apartment.
“We need to go inside. Now.”
James stood up, his eyes coming close to tears. Was Reggie still this mad at him? James wished he could fix it all, but he didn’t want to push Regulus, so he just followed him. His pace was faster than before, and he struggled to open the door. When James walked through, though, something had clearly gotten through to Regulus. James was against the wall, his head rolling back as Regulus kissed down his neck, biting some spots that would definitely leave a bruise by the morning. Between breaths, James heard stuttered versions of what Regulus was saying. It consisted of ‘missed you so much’ and ‘god you’re so perfect’. James wasn’t content with his position, so he flipped the pair, now pressing Regulus against the door.
He made a small noise in the back of his throat, which made James practically feral. He kissed Regulus until he felt as though he couldn’t breathe.
‘Whatever,’ he thought. ‘Breathing is overrated anyway.’
He dug his fingers into Regulus’ hair, pulling as he kissed, making Regulus whine. He pulled away for a moment to see the beautiful man under him. His eyes were sparkling, and his pupils were dilated. His mouth was bright red, wet with saliva. He had a bite mark on his neck, and James smirked. He took Regulus to the bedroom, picking him up, not breaking a kiss. He threw him on the bed, before Regulus grunted and rolled away.
“Mmph! No, not tonight.”
“What? Why? What did I do? Reggie please!”
James pleaded with all of his will. He knew he was being annoying, unfair even. He didn’t care, however. He had just gotten Regulus back, and it wasn’t fair.
“No, Amor, you did nothing wrong. You’ve just had too much to drink, and I am not going to while you’re drunk. Don’t pout.”
“I’m not pouting, and I’m not drunk.”
James was lying about both.
“Come on, Jamie. You know I’m a weak man, but thats not going to work. I’m too worried about you. The most you’ll get is sleeping in the same bed.”
“I’ll take that. I’ve missed you so much you know. I wanted to come in here every night and hold you. I couldn’t bear it. Being away from you.”
“You could have came. I would never be able to say no,” Regulus whispered.
“I wanted to wait for you. To see when you were ready. I was never going to leave you, Reg. I waited. I will always wait for you.”
Regulus licked his lips.
“Why?”
“Because I-. I love you,” James whispered.
Regulus’s eyes went wide. James felt his heartbeat jump.
“You do?”
“Of course I do. I've loved you from the beginning. You don’t have to say it back-”
Regulus cut him off with a deep kiss that left them both breathless.
“James Fleamont Potter, I love your hair. It's always a dark mess of curls, but it's so pretty. It suits you and for as long as I live, please never change it. I love your eyes. They’re brown in the dark, a void of nothingness that I want nothing more than to explore, but in the sun, they turn the most gorgeous color shade of green. It makes the prettiest flowers jealous, because they know that that color is yours, and nothing else could have that. Your eyelashes flutter when you get excited, and you raise your eyebrows when you’re about to make a joke. I love your freckles. They are like constellations that I can trace along your skin. I want to kiss every one of them, so I can know what it feels like to kiss the stars. I love the way you blush when I whisper something in your ear, or I brush against you. Your cheeks light up with color, and it spreads along your nose and ears. I love your mouth. It was made for me, shaped just so our lips could find each other. I love your body. You are so beautiful and effortlessly fit, and you don’t even realize it half the time. I love your unending kindness, even though it leads you to sometimes dangerous situations, you are never afraid to share your kindness with anyone who needs it. I love that you love the color red and the smell of lavender. I love that you are so good with kids and you adore the band queen. I love that your love language is touch and you are comfortable with it at any time. I love that you wear my clothes and that you hate black coffee. I love that you secretly watch kids shows like gravity falls and the owl house. I love that you ask before touching me and that you sleep with stuffed animals. I love that you aren’t afraid to cry and that when you love people, you love them with your whole heart. But you know what I love about you the most? I love that you’re mine. I love you so much, James. I have loved you since the day I met you. You are the sun, and I bask in your warmth. I will orbit around you for as long as I live. You are my heart and my soul. When the universe was made, the creator set us aside to hold each other for eternity. I love you until the end of time in this life and every other life I have ever lived. You are my other half. You are- You are the sun, and I am a star.”
James thought his brain was just short circuited.
“Oh Regulus,” he said, his eyes watering.
He kissed him with a passion that he had never felt before.
“You are so perfect. I- oh, Reg. How did you even say all of that?”
“I have always wanted to say it. I could just never find the words.”
James pulled him into a kiss, holding him tightly.
They fell asleep together like this, two souls intertwined from the very beginning of time. Two souls that would never break apart.
EPILOGUE
“James! Come down here!”
“I’m coming, love! I just need to get Harry up so he can play with Luna!”
James bounded down the stairs, Harry in his hands. He practically lept out when he saw his best friend on the floor, and James had to set Harry down before he got hurt.
“This is a wonderful party,” Pandora commented.
“It is, isn’t it,” Dorcas murmured.
James grinned, happy that he was surrounded by his favorite people. The music was low, and the chatter of familiar people filled the room. A knock sounded from the door, and James went to go check it. When he opened the door, however, no one was there. When he got back, Regulus was confused.
“Who was it?”
“Nobody was there. Probably just a bad prank.”
Regulus nodded against James, twisting his rings. James smiled once he saw which ring he was fiddling with. Their wedding band. James glanced down at Regulus’s face, and his eyes filled with love. He smiled wider than ever.
“What?” Regulus laughed
“Nothing, darling. I just love you.”