Chapter 13
Regulus ~
It’s been an hour since the drink table with James, Regulus has just been walking around outside trying to get his wits about him. It was driving him nuts. How could James say that? How could he call Regulus his? How could he say it with that much emotion? Why does he insist on giving Regulus reasons to fault his own better judgement? Regulus couldn’t think straight, he needed to get out of this stupid party. So, he went to find Barty to convince him to take him back to the Potter’s. He’s been searching the party for 10 minutes, walking in and out of horrible displays of far too much affection.
Eventually, after multiple scares, he hears Barty’s voice coming from a room. Naturally, he follows it. Godrick, why did he have to follow it? The scene he walked in on is definitely one he can never scrape from his memory. A drunk Barty and a drunk muggle boy stripping off their clothes “whispering” rather traumatising things to each other. Barty was about to take the boys top off before Regulus butts in.
“Barty! Oi, we gotta go, mate.” Regulus put on a thicker accent to make himself blend in more.
“Reg? I’m busy ‘ere.” Barty slurred.
“Too bad, let’s go.” Regulus demanded, dropping the accent.
“Whyyy?” Barty whined. Regulus wanted to scream at him, he was so stupid. It’s like, the second he gets any bit of alcohol in his system, his common sense takes a vacation. He didn’t even realise what a stupid mistake he and this boy were making.
“Because I said so, let’s go.” Regulus raised his voice.
“Oh my GOD! Can you leave? We’re busy.” The boy rolled his eyes, immediately smashing his lips back into Barty’s.
“Evan’s in trouble!” Regulus screamed as a last resort.
Barty’s eyes widen, pushing the boy off him a little. He stared at him for a few long seconds - his eyes saddened, “Amos will help him.” He pulled the boy back into him. Regulus felt like dragging him by his ear to the Potter’s, at this point.
So, as his actual last resort, Regulus decided to demolish his mental stability for life. “OH MY FUCKING GODS! CAN YOU JUST GET OFF OF MY BOYFRIEND?!” Regulus screamed.
The boy recoiled, springing off of Barty, looking at him as if he disgusted him, “Boyfriend? He’s your boyfriend?! You were going to sleep with me in front of your boyfriend?! What kind of sick twisted kink is that?!” The muggle screamed, storming out of the room while Barty scrambled for excuses.
“Boyfriend? Boyfriend?!” Barty screamed, turning his fiery gaze to Regulus.
“You weren’t listening.” Regulus stated.
“So you make me seem like a cheating asshole?!”
“In my defence, I tried other methods. You just refused to listen.” Regulus reasoned.
“What the fuck, Reg?!” Barty yelled, slipping his shirt back on to follow after the boy.
“You were making a mistake.” Regulus grabbed onto Barty’s arm.
“Really? A mistake? And what exactly was that mistake?” Barty’s eyes shone with anger.
“You don’t even know him.”
“Good! I don’t want to fucking know him!” Barty yelled.
“Stop being stupid.”
“THEN STOP SITTING HERE ON YOUR HIGH HORSE AS IF YOU WOULDN’T DO THE SAME!”
“I wouldn’t do the same.” Regulus concluded.
“Yes! Yes you would!” Barty threw his arms up angrily.
“Not if I had Evan waiting on me.”
“Ev- What does Evan have to do with this?” Barty questioned, accusation in his tone.
“He has everything to do with this.”
“He has nothing to do with this! Believe it or not, when I’m fucking other people Evan Rosier doesn’t cross my mind!” Barty yelled.
“Why are you yelling, then?” Regulus asked.
“What?”
“Why are you so mad about this? Why are you yelling? Why are you fighting so hard to be with that guy?” Regulus pressed.
“I- He- You don’t get it!” Barty deflected.
“What’s his name, Barty? Do you even know?”
“It doesn’t matter.” Barty rolled his eyes.
“Really? It doesn’t matter at all?”
“Not at all.” Barty stated.
“So, no name is needed?”
“Why are you interrogating me?”
“Oh no, I’m just fact checking.” Regulus defended.
“Fact checking, what?”
“Oh, it;s just I saw this guy with Evan a few rooms down… yeah I’m pretty sure he was calling him like- Liam or something.” Regulus waved him off.
“What? And Evan’s just letting him? What the fuck, Reg? Why wouldn’t you fucking tell me that?! Let’s go, I’m not letting that continue.” Barty sputtered, drunken rage rising to his cheeks.
“But it’s fine. You’re not meant to know each other's names, right?” Regulus smirked.
“It’s different.”
“It’s not.”
“You don’t get it, Reg.”
“No, I get it perfectly. Evan’s having a good time, the guy doesn’t have to respect him.” Regulus shrugged.
“Stop it!” Barty screamed.
“Stop, what? What am I doing? Why are you mad? Do you even know?” Regulus scoffed.
“Just stop.”
“Why?”
“Just fucking stop!” Barty pushed past him, “I’m going to go find that guy, so clear out.”
“Why do you even fucking want this so badly?!” Regulus snapped.
“Because- because it’s not fucking fair! I’m so fucking angry! And I don’t know how to fucking handle it! Stupid fucking Amos! He fucking ruined everything! You know he ruined everything!” Barty carped.
“What does Amos have to do with this?”
“Everything.”
“Okay, well then, tell me what that everything is because it’s lost on me.” Regulus lied.
“It’s just everything!”
“And what’s everything?”
“Everything! Do you not understand what I’m saying?! He took everything!”
“And what’s everything?” Regulus grabbed onto Barty’s arm, pulling him back into attention, “Who’s everything?” Barty sucked in a jagged breath.
“Reg, please.” Barty begged. Barty’s eyes filled with tears, threatening to tip over. Regulus couldn’t help but think, ‘Yes, that. That’s exactly what I want.’ So he pushed again.
“Maybe I should go see if Evan’s done.” Regulus said unsuspiciously. Barty immediately opened the floodgates, welling up in tears, choking out drunken sobs. Regulus closed the gap between them, pulling Barty down into his embrace. “Why are you crying, Barty?”
“You know why.” Barty sobbed.
“I don’t because you’re not sharing.”
“Reggie, please… please, everytime you speak it- it makes me think of hi- what he’s doing and I can’t- please…” Barty choked.
“And why does that bother you?” Regulus felt like grabbing him and shaking him like, ‘Yes! It’s right there, just stop hiding it!’
“I don’t know, Regulus!” Barty yelled.
“Yes, you do.”
“Don’t you think if I knew, I’d fix it?!” Barty claimed.
“No, you wouldn’t fix it. You’d just sit here - like you are - ignoring the issue.” Regulus rolled his eyes.
“There is no issue.”
“Evan and-”
“If you mention him and his fucking guys one more time, Reg, I swear to fucking Merlin-” Barty cut himself off.
“No! Don’t stop there! Barty, please, for crying out loud! It’s literally right in front of your face!” Regulus snapped.
“I know!” Barty yelled back.
“Then fucking say it?!”
“I can’t…” Barty crumbled, slouching down onto the nearest seat. “Please don’t make me say it… I can’t say it, it’ll hurt.” Barty rubbed at his eyes harshly.
“Or, it won’t.” Regulus sat down on the seat next to him.
“I love him… and he- he doesn’t even fucking care…” Barty pulled in a sharp breath. Immediately breaking down.
“He does care.”
“No he doesn’t, he’s with Amos.” Barty’s voice broke at the name.
“How do you know he doesn’t?”
“Because he’s with someone else!” Barty cried.
“Because he doesn’t even know you’re an option.” Regulus stated.
Barty stopped, cries breaking immediately, “He… he doesn’t even know I’m an option.” Regulus could almost hug him for not being as stupid as he’s capable of. “If- if he knew I was an option he wouldn’t be with Amos… Why would he be with Amos when he could have me? Why would he let Amos have him when I could be so much better? BUT HE DOESN’T KNOW THAT!” BArty screamed as if he’d just struck gold. “I NEED TO LET HIM NO THAT!” Barty stood up, racing to the door.
“Whoa! Wait! No, no, no, no. You’re not telling him.” Regulus stopped him.
“What? I thought you wanted me to tell him? Isn’t that what all this was about?”
“Yes, yes that’s exactly it but… Barty, I can’t let you tell him when you’re like this.” Regulus admitted.
“Like what?” Barty questioned.
“Drunk off your ass. It’d just hurt him.”
“It wouldn’t hurt him. I wouldn’t hurt him!” Barty screamed defensively. Merlin, Regulus hated drunk people.
“I know, I know you wouldn’t… not on purpose. This would hurt him by accident though.”
“I don’t want to hurt him by accident…”
“So, can you at least wait till tomorrow.” Regulus pleaded.
“Tomorrow morning. No longer than that. Non posso più aspettare. Non posso continuare a non averlo. Non posso lasciare che sia di qualcun altro. Ho bisogno che sia di nuovo mio, Reg.” Barty rambled drunkenly in Italian,
“Okay, you’re going to wait for tomorrow?” Regulus clarified.
“Tomorrow morning, no later.” Barty shook his head enthusiastically, then springing himself onto Regulus, repeating the words ‘Thank you.’ and ‘I still hate you a little.’
“Okay, okay, enough. I’m going to go find everyone, we’re going home.” Regulus rolled his eyes, storming out to find the rest of his idiot friends. Merlin, he hates drunks.