James was walking around campus, having finished his morning classes and having no afternoon classes to attend. He looked around himself, taking in the way spring was slowly approaching again. A few birds could be seen flying from one tree branch to another, chirping, people were sitting on the grass, eating and studying in tiny groups of people.
James had always thought of himself as suffering “seasonal depression”, not in a bad way, just in the sense that when the temperatures got up and the sun accompanied his day until late, he felt as if he was alive once again. However, he also loved the holiday season because of the gathering, the foods, the lights and the way people acted around Christman and New Eve.
He was so absorbed in his thoughts, that he almost didn’t notice the boy that was marching towards him, a backpack on his left shoulder and a determination on his face that made it clear to James that that boy had something in mind, and not wanting to interfere with whatever he had going on, James moved from the pavement, making room for the other guy.
Once the other guy was near enough to him, he smiled at him for the courtesy, but as James walked past him, he felt an audible gasp coming from behind him, and suddenly, there was a hand on his shoulder, urging him to turn around.
Confused, James turned around, and looked quizzically at the guy.
“I found you” said the guy, with a large smile on his face.
James, ever the people pleaser, continued smiling. “I didn’t even know you were looking for me”
His words didn't even falter the smile on the other guy’s face, and instead, it only got bigger. “Reggie told me all about you, it was time we finally met”
Reggie?
“Come with me, I’ll take you to him, he has some explaining to do”
James nodded, still confused, but followed the guy, who still hadn’t presented himself, hoping that it was nothing weird going on.
***
Yes, Regulus had lied, but once again, it was Barty’s fault for putting pressure on him with all the dates and the friends that he kept on presenting to him. It was only natural that Regulus had tried a way out of that situation, and was lying by saying that he already had a boyfriend.
But saying that little lie had only made his life even worse, because Barty had then started to ask him about his boyfriend, how they had met, how he looked, what his name was, and a series of questions that Regulus couldn’t answer, so he had just told him that his boyfriend was a really shy person and that when the two of them - Regulus and his (fake) boyfriends - felt like it, they would meet Regulus’ friends and they would get to know him.
Suddenly that morning Barty had texted him that he had found his boyfriend walking around the campus and that he had invited him to lunch with all the friend group. Which was great, if not for the fact that Regulus hadn’t really a boyfriend and was curious as to who Barty had found.
There was no one with whom Regulus could talk about this decision, for starters, he didn’t have many friends, and those few he had believed that he had a boyfriend, and were excited that Barty not only had found him, but had also invited him for lunch.
Looking in the mirror, Regulus tried to fix his hair, then his shirt, then his hair again, being acutely aware that the problem wasn’t in the way he looked, but in the fact that his friends would soon find out all about his little lie.
He checked the clock, and key and phone in hand, he walked to the restaurant where Barty wanted to eat.
A few times, he thought about coming clean to his friends before they found out, and he even thought about leaving everything behind and building himself a new life in France, where he knew a few of his relatives lived. He didn’t even like most of his relatives, but hard times called for hard measures, and if he was desperate enough to do it.
Before he could really commit to boycotting his own life, he found himself standing in front of the restaurant. He went in and quickly located where Pandora, Dorcas and Evan were sitting. He quickly walked to them and greeted each of them.
Fortunately, they didn’t mention the boyfriend story at all, but started to talk about their classes, what they had done since the last time they had seen each other, and Regulus basked himself in the familiarity of the situation.
Regulus relaxed a little by little, and by the time the server came to ask if they wanted to order or wait a little while more, he had forgotten about the real reason behind their lunch date.
He was quickly reminded when he heard the doorbell chime followed by Barty’s voice talking with someone behind him. His three friends quickly diverted their attention from the conversation to look at Barty and whoever was with him.
Regulus tried to study their faces. Evan was smiling brightly at Barty, like he always did when the two of them were in the same room together, Dorcas was lowkey impressed with whatever she was seeing, and Pandora, moved her eyes from his supposed boyfriend to him, as if she was trying to figure something out.
Regulus didn’t dare to look behind him, in fear that his emotions would show up on his face.
But the moment couldn’t last forever, and so Barty and the other guy arrived at the table.
Regulus felt a hand on his shoulder, and thinking it was Barty, he took the hand and yanked hard, trying to start the plan to take revenge on Barty as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t Barty’s hand on his shoulder, but it was the other guy, who instead of resisting, let himself be pulled down to Regulus’ height. Regulus turned his head and was met with James Potter’s big brown eyes looking back at him, a little surprised and a little intrigued by the situation.
Time stopped, like it always did when James was involved. James was like the sun, and Regulus couldn’t help but gravitate towards him, had always had, and always will, until the world collapsed.
James hadn’t changed since the last time Regulus had seen him, he still wore the same round glasses, his hair still stuck out in all of the directions, he wasn’t tanned, but then, it was still March, but there were a few freckles on his nose.
James was also observing him, and Regulus felt his gaze move from his face to the place where their hands were still connected.
“Hey there little Salem”
Even though his attention was still on James, Regulus knew that looks were being exchanged between his friends, and he couldn’t care less, because all he could think about was that James was here.
“You let him call you Salem, and I can’t call you Reginald?” asked Barty petulantly.
“I don’t let him call me Salem, I say I hate it and he keeps on doing it”
James just smiled, pleased, like he always was when Regulus talked with him. Regulus had never understood how James could just let things slip, how he didn't care if Regulus was being mean to him, he was always so happy and it irritated Regulus.
“Why do you call him Salem?” asked Pandora, curious.
“Because he’s like a little black cat, always trying to hurt you with his claws if you get too close” said James, matter of factly.
Regulus glared at him, finally letting go of his hand. “I’m not a child anymore, Potter, you can stop calling me that”
“Only if you start calling me James again” said James, while also getting closer to him.
***
If there was one thing James loved, it was riling Regulus up, because his cheeks would puff up and then his fingers would start to flex, like he wanted to do something with them, but never actually did, and maybe James was weird because he found it cute.
Barty, that’s the name of the guy he had encountered earlier, had almost talked his ear off all the way to the restaurant, repeating how he was so excited to finally met him, which was nice, and that he wanted to see someone’s reaction - never mentioning them by name - so that James didn’t really know what he was getting into.
He had been surprised when, upon entering the restaurant, he had immediately recognized Regulus, sitting there with people he had never met, and talking with them.
He had placed his hand on Regulus' shoulder, out of habit since they were young, but he hadn’t imagined that Regulus would try to detach his arm from his body. Trying not to get hurt, James had followed the movement, and had found himself face to face with Regulus.
Regulus was always beautiful, and James didn’t even try to deny it anymore.
Seeing him had brought back some memories of their youth, and the nickname had escaped James’ lips before his brain could really think it through.
And really, James was doomed from the start, ever since the day he had visited his best friend’s house one afternoon and had found more than what he had anticipated.
“Why don’t you sit, James, and we can talk about your situation better” said one of the girls, the one with blonde hair and a nice smile.
“Good idea” said James, sitting on Regulus’ left side “All the way here Barty talked a lot, but he didn’t really tell me why he wanted me here”
“Let’s start with the presentations, I’m Pandora, and this is Dorcas” said the blonde girl while indicating the other girl sitting with them, which waved at him “this is Evan” and indicated the blonde boy “and you’ve already met Barty”
“I’m James”
“Oh, but we know, Regulus told us so much about you” said Dorcas with a sly smile.
“He did?” said James.
“I did?” said Regulus, almost whispering.
“Yes, he did. But he didn’t tell us you were so hot” said Evan, which earned him a smack on the head from Barty.
“What else did he tell you?” asked James.
“Yeah, what else did I tell you?” said Regulus, all happiness vanishing from his face.
“For starters, he didn’t even tell us your name, but he told us that you’re a very athletic guy, that you love and value your family so much, that you’re a little older than us, and that you’re very fun to be with”
“Am I fun to be with?” asked James at Regulus.
“Can’t you see that I’m crackling?” deadpanned Regulus, who had started to play with his rings.
James was about to replay, but his phone chimed in. It was a message from Sirius.
Padfoot
Do you want to have lunch with me and Moony?
Prongs
No, I’m at lunch with your brother and his friends.
Padfoot
WHY
Also, say hello to everyone, and a special hello to Evan.
That’ll make Barty livid and I love to make him pissed
Prongs
Alright, I’ll do
See you later
“Sirius sends his hello to everyone” said James, and then he added “And a special hello to you, Evan”.
As the words left his mouth, both Evan and Barty got red, Evan because he was a little shy about having received a special hello from Sirius, Barty because he was a little mad and jealous. If it hadn’t been evident before, it was in that moment that James realised once and for all that Evan and Barty were a couple.
“Oh yeah, why don’t you tell him he can go-” Barty’s words were cut off by Dorcas’ hand on his mouth, but James was sure that the words weren’t pleasant to hear.
“Wait, so you know Regulus’ brother?” asked Pandora.
“Yeah, he’s been my best friend since we were eleven” , replayed nonchalantly James.
“Your brother’s best friend Regulus, you really are something” said Evan with a smirk, and James was slightly worried for the man, more so because in the meantime Regulus had grabbed a knife and was keeping it in his fist like a weapon.
The server came to save the day, taking all of their orders and making a calm conversation spark between the table’s occupants again.
***
Regulus wanted to die.
Maybe not really die, he just wanted not to exist anymore, because if he didn’t exist anymore, then he would have to face this day.
Regulus didn’t really keep up with the conversation, afraid that it would somehow lead to his friends finding out about his lie. They had asked James a million questions, which he already anticipated, but unbeknownst to him, the question moved to tattoos, and that sparked Regulus’ interest.
He knew for certain that James hadn’t any tattoo, and he knew because Sirius had complained more than once about the fact that James didn’t want to get a matching tattoo with him, and just to shut him up, Regulus had agreed to get himself a matching tattoo with his brother.
Except that when Barty asked if James had any tattoos, James had said yes. Regulus had quickly reacted to the information, turning his whole body towards James, trying to guess what and where the tattoo was.
“I didn’t know you had a tattoo” said Regulus, almost whispering, trying not to be heard by the others, keeping the illusion that he knew everything about James.
“I got some antlers a few months ago” said James, also whispering to him, like it was their little secret.
“Where?” asked Regulus eagerly, but he had forgotten to lower his voice, so Barty heard him and repeated his question, out loud.
“Uhm, I don’t know if I can show you,” said James, a little shyly.
Regulus could feel his friends’ gazes on him, and he didn’t understand why. “Why are you all looking at me?”
“Because you know where the tattoo is and you can be the judge” replayed Dorcas, like she was explaining something simple, which would have been true, if James had actually been his boyfriend.
“Only if you’re not jealous, Reggie, we know how you can get” said Evan with sarcasm laced in his voice.
Regulus looked at his friend and thought about how he was going to make him pay later, in fact, he still had those texts from when Barty and Evan still weren’t a couple.
“You can show them,” said Regulus, even though the only reason he had said it was because he wanted to see.
James got up from his seat, looked around to make sure no one was looking at him, and then took the edge of his sweater - which was actually Regulus’, and he had only realised now - and started to lift it. There, on James’ stomach, stood two antlers, the base of which was covered by the waistband of James’ underwear.
Regulus wouldn’t speak, couldn’t think, couldn’t function with the knowledge that James had a tattoo, and not only that, but the fact that the tattoo made James even more hot in Regulus’ eyes, as if it was humanly possible.
His mouth was dry, and his ears had started ringing, and Regulus felt like a castaway who finally, after days at sea, finally found an island.
Quickly, he came to the realisation that James was looking at him, and that his reaction to the tattoo was clearly amusing to the older boy, who was grinning from ear to ear, aware of the effect he had on Regulus.
“Regulus…” said Pandora quietly.
“Yes?” Regulus replied, only half a mind to other people.
“You can ogle him at home, dear, right now we’re in the middle of a restaurant, and he can’t stay with his shirt off”
Regulus thought about it, and instead of a perfectly reasonable answer, what came out of him was “He can’t, can he?”
That made everyone laugh, and Regulus snapped out of his haze the moment James’ hands dropped the jumper and he got seated again.
On the bright side, his friends now thought that he was at least attracted to James, on the dark side, his friends thought that he was attracted to James.
Regulus got quiet again while the conversation started again, and at some point, the food arrived too. He quickly noticed that the server hadn’t brought any sauces for James’ fries, so before she could go back to the kitchen, he called her and said it to her.
When he turned to face the table again, he felt watched. His friends were trying to make conversation, but they were clearly interested in whatever was going on in James’ mind, who was watching him.
Annoyed, Regulus said “What is it James?”
“You remembered it?”
“I’ve known you for almost ten years, and from the day we met to today, I’ve never seen you eat fries without your weird sauce on them”
“What weird sauce?” asked Barty.
James was about to answer, but Regulus beat him to it. “He makes this sauce mixing ketchup and mayo, but it always has to be more mayo than ketchup. Once, his mother had forgotten to buy mayo and he had - swear to God - cried so much to her about it that his dad went out to buy it for him. It was 10 o’clock, you spoiled brat” said Regulus, while spitting the last words into James’ face, who was enthusiastic about the whole ordeal.
“Oh, and by the way, why are you wearing my jumper?” asked Regulus.
James looked down at what he was wearing. “Don’t know, wore the first thing I found on my bed”
“And why was my favourite jumper on your bed, James?” asked Regulus again.
James was about to answer, but a cough from Dorcas caught his attention.
“I don’t think that you two want to have this conversation here” said Dorcas, with a meaningful glance, and as soon as Regulus understood exactly what she had meant by that, his cheeks got darker.
***
Padfoot
Where are you eating?
I need to say something to Regulus.
Also, do they sell cheesecakes there?
I want a cheesecake
Prongs
Bistrot 110
I guess they have cheesecakes
Btw, I think that if you come right now Barty could still murder you from your “greeting” earlier
Padfoot
Let Crouch fight, I’m not afraid of him
I can’t help it
A star gotta shine
Prongs
Be careful, or the moon is gonna outshine you
Padfoot
He would never
Prongs
Whatever you say Sirius, whatever you say
***
Even if the hours had passed pleasantly, Regulus still feared the moment in which all of his lies would be uncovered. That moment came carrying Sirius’ cologne.
Like a lighthouse, Sirius attracted everyone’s attention to him, more for the fact that his boyfriend wasn’t with him, and hopeful people thought they had a chance with him.
He walked to their table like he owned the place, and quickly pulled a chair from an empty table he positioned himself in between his best friend and his brother, unaware of what was going on.
Sitting down, he winked up at Evan, and for good measure, at Barty too.
“It’s lovely to see each and every of you, but tell me, what occasion has brought you here today?”
Evan was quickly to answer, while Barty whispered something under his breath. “We’re here to meet James”
Sirius nodded, like it was extremely clear to him how meeting James was an occasion important enough to gather all of Regulus' friends in one place. “If you wanted to meet him, you could just have asked me, I’m his best friend, after all”
Sirius and James exchange smiles, like they always did, and lost in their little world, they almost didn’t hear Barty’s reply.
“But you aren’t James' boyfriend, right Sirius?”
“Well, since I’m pretty sure that my boyfriend’s name is Remus, I’d say no, Barty, I’m not James’ boyfriend”
“So you understand how your presence isn’t really, how can I see… necessary? Wanted?...”
“No need to add synonyms Crouch. But why do you bring up James’ boyfriend?”
“Because we wanted to meet Regulus’ boyfriend”
“I don’t understand,” said Sirius, and very quietly, Regulus tried to move his chair as far back as possible, ready to bolt as soon as Barty started to explain things to his boyfriend.
“James is Regulus’ boyfriend, Sirius, don’t act like a fool” said Barty, but when he saw the look of surprise on Sirius' face, he added. “Oh, you didn't know? Your best friend and your brother got together and didn’t tell you?”
Barty was clearly trying to be provocative, but he failed, since Sirius only started to laugh and hug James, who was sitting there in shock since he had heard that he was Regulus’ boyfriend.
“Oh my god, I’m so happy. My brother and my best friend, two of the people I love the most, are together. See James? I always told you to talk to Reggie and say how you felt and that it would get you to this point”
Sirius’s joy was so contagious that not even Barty could stay mad at him.
The only two people that weren’t touched by that joy were Regulus and James.
“You know Regulus how many nights he came to me, crying about how much he loved you, smelling like a whole bar? He always stole the jumpers you left in my room because he said they smelled like you, what a little psycho he is, isn’t he? But I love him, and you love him too”
Yeah, it was official, Regulus wasn’t going to change country, he was going to move to a different galaxy.
James was still quiet, not uttering a word, nor to confirm or deny the relationship between the two of them. But he was looking at Regulus, questions in his eyes. Regulus wanted nothing more than to give him an explanation, but with the way Sirius was going on and on about James’ secret crush on Regulus, he didn’t know what to do anymore. It was one thing to lie and say he had a boyfriend and let people think that James was said boyfriend, but it was another thing to know that James had actual feelings for him.
“Can I talk with Regulus for a moment, alone?” asked James.
“Yes, yes, you can do whatever, but hand on yourself Prongs, we’re still talking about my brother” replied Sirius, still enthusiastic about the situation.
Both James and Regulus got up from their chairs, and walked to the entrance of the restaurant, not daring to glance at one another whilst doing so.
Once outside, Regulus took a great interest in his shoes, until he felt fingers on his chin.
“Little Salem, look at me, I’m not angry at you”
“You’re not?” asked Regulus with disbelief in his voice.
James shook his head. “I just want the truth, can you give me that?”
Regulus nodded, and then said “My friends all have a partner, and they felt sorry for me, so Barty started to get me on blind dates, making me met knew people almost everyday, and you know how I am, and instead of telling Barty to fuck off, I just started to lie saying how I had met a guy and he had become my boyfriend. When they asked me about him, I started to say random things, but when they repeated them to you, I realised how much of you I had put into the fake boyfriend.”
“But how did they end up thinking I was your boyfriend?”
“You’re wearing my jumper, Potter, a jumper that no one has apart from me because Sirius custom-made it for me”
“Well then, we have only two ways to settle this” said James, moving his hand from Regulus’ chin to his neck.
“Either you agree right now to be my actual boyfriend and we go back there like nothing happened…” said James.
“Or?” asked Regulus, afraid of the answer he was about to get.
“Or I’ll court so fucking good that you’ll become my boyfriend in around a few weeks from now”
Regulus couldn’t bear the grin that was on James’ face, so he did the best he could with the resources he had, meaning that he placed a little chaste kiss on that grin.
“You’re so sure that I like you and that you’ll be able to make me fall in love with you?” asked Regulus, also grinning.
“Oh we both know the answer to that” replied James.