Chapter 2
Today was not going as planned for James.
He had wanted to rush over to the coffee shop as soon as possible, grab a drink and maybe pretend to chill before walking over to the man, Regulus, and asking for his number. He had already thought up a million date ideas (if he said yes, which Sirius was convinced he would because ‘who could turn a face like this down other than an idiot?’)
But, before he could even get his shirt on, he was being bombarded by his boss about how they needed him down in the studio.
When he arrived, because he was bad at telling people no, Lucius was waiting with a smug expression on his face.
“Yes? Can I help?” James had asked, trying not to let the annoyance leak into his tone.
“Yes, you can,” he replied back, and then handed James a stack of paper. James glanced down, and then back up, wide eyed.
“What the hell is this?”
“You’re on a contract, Potter, remember that. I need you to get your next song out recorded, and now. These are the lyrics. Everyones here already, so hurry up.” With that, he had walked off, leaving James fuming.
It wasn’t fair.
This isn’t what he wanted, not what he signed up for. All he wanted was to sing and have fun with his friends, to make music and publish and get fans. It was too late to turn back, though, because he was on a contract, and he had people who were expecting him, fans who were waiting.
He trudges down the hall, heading to the recording room.
When he first started this, writing his own lyrics with the help of Sirius, he didn’t think about the fact that they had to approve their music. Half of their songs got turned down immediately.
After that, they started giving them lyrics to sing, and even if they didn’t like it, what could they do? So they sang songs that weren’t theirs and performed them in front of crowds.
After the first year it only got worse. They started needing more media attention, so what did that mean? It suddenly meant James was getting ‘girlfriends,’ dating them and then dropping them right after. He never wanted to, everything was planned out for the fame, for the clout.
So that meant he couldn’t sing what he wanted to, couldn’t date who he wanted to.
At this point, James no longer had a free will.
Was that going to stop him from asking Regulus out? No. He had it planned out.
What he was worried about was the fact that if Regulus really didn’t know he was famous, how does one go about dropping that bomb on someone?
‘Hey, by the way, I’m actually in a band that has millions of fans, and I’m really widely known around the world.’
Actually, that could work, he supposed.
He makes it to the rec studio, pushing the door open, and like Lucius said, everyone was already waiting.
Lily gives him a sympathetic look as soon as he steps in, pausing from tuning her guitar.
“Hey, babes, sorry you couldn’t go to see him again.” She says, and he mutters under his breath, before shrugging.
“It’s whatever, I’ll see him after we work. We’ll get this done and head off, yeah?” He says finally, and Marlene grins, leaning around Lily.
“That’s the spirit, Potter!” She hoots.
“Yeah, I’m sure this mysterious man, who somehow doesn’t know you, will be plenty happy to see you tonight,” Sirius grins, and James nods along, smiling after a moment.
They get stuck there until eight, and by the time they’re leaving, it’s eight thirty.
James grimaces when he checks the clock, pulling on his jacket. They had sung some basic, generic song Lucius probably pulled out his ass, and he wondered when it would be released. If it was anything like how Lucius usually tried to do it, he would release it in less than a month, make them tour it, come back here, and expect them to write another album.
He sighs, and then about jumps out of his skin when someone comes nudging up behind him.
“James, were you still planning to visit that boy at the coffee shop?” Lily asks, and he clears his throat, nodding.
“Yeah, I’ll ask for his number and plan a date and everything is going to go smoothly and amazing because I’m manifesting it like you taught me, or whatever,” Lily smiles, before glancing at the watch on her wrist.
“Should you be hurrying?”
“Nah, it closes at twelve, it’s only eight thirty right now,” he replies back. He didn’t plan to get there right at closing like last time, but he didn’t want to rush either. When he got there, he would be cool and collected, and his plan would play out perfectly.
“Erm, it closes at twelve, yes, but only on sundays. Every other day of the week it closes at nine.” James freezes, and then slowly turns towards her, mouth opening and closing before his eyes widen.
“Seriously? For real?! Holy shit, I have to go, it’s like, 8:40 right now! It’s a ten minute drive! Holy shit!”
He’s out the door before Lily can say anything else, but he can hear her laughter following him as he starts his car and speeds off.
Okay not quite speeding. What could he say? He was a good citizen.
“I told you he wouldn’t come back,” Regulus mutters, and Remus gives his friend a small smile, patting his shoulder lightly. Everyone else had already left, once again, but Remus had stuck it out for his friend. He had convinced Regulus to take the last shift, again, and then took it with him, repeating something about how the man would be back.
“Sorry, Reg,” He replies, and Regulus shrugs, trying to hide his disappointment as they head into the back, preparing to close up.
“It doesn’t matter.” It didn’t, that’s what he told himself. Sure, he was hot, but he had just met the man- had just met James. It had been one day, and being this hung up over someone that quickly was embarrassing, and he was not genuinely an embarrassing person.
Regulus was the type of person to always be collected- at least on the outside. He was always on time, always prepared. He never tripped, never stuttered, never even walked crookedly. He was just like how he was raised, just like how his parents wanted him; perfect.
That’s what he tried to be, at least, because old traditions die hard. It was hard adjusting to the fact that, now that he was out of that house, he no longer had to be the perfect heir for his parents. He could be and act however he wanted.
Still, he had trouble reminding himself of that daily. That he didn’t have to be perfect.
That’s why he was glad he had Remus, he supposed. So whenever he couldn’t remind himself and began to fall into a slump, Remus could remind him instead.
The bell to the front door jingles, and Regulus outwardly groans. He glances towards Remus pleadingly, but he only shrugs.
“You’re meaner than I am, you’ll be able to shoo them away quicker,” he replies, voice amused, and Regulus groans again.
“I need better friends,” he huffs, and then continues as he walks to the door, “Pandora would’ve done it for me!”
He shoves the door open, retying his apron as he gets ready to make a snarky comment about the time.
He stops short though, pausing with his mouth poised to speak as he takes him in.
James.
Well, Remus was right, he really did come back.
“Hi, hello, hi,” James says, tripping over his feet and moving closer to the counter. Regulus holds back an amused smile, looking him up and down and taking in his messy appearance. He looked like he had rushed out of somewhere, and Regulus can’t help the ghost of a smile that appears as he thinks about this strange man rushing to get here before the shop closed.
“Hello,” he muses back, and James smiles crookedly, “you have a thing showing up right before closing time, don’t you?”
James laughs, throwing his head back slightly. “Yeah, sorry, you guys- you guys closed earlier today, I rushed to get here,” he flushes as soon as he says it, and Regulus smiles, walking closer.
“Oh? Did you?” He asks, and James blushes, flustered as he adjusts his glasses and chews on his lip. “Must’ve really liked the coffee. Caramel twist with extra caramel?”
Smiling in almost a shy manor, James glances at the counter, clearing his throat.
“Actually, I quite liked the people here, as well.”
“Didn’t know that was on the menu,” James grins, tilting his head up as he leans onto the counter.
“Well, I was hoping-”
A head peeks out from the back door, and a man with dirty blonde hair grins at James. “Ooh, is this him? The infamous-” Regulus grabs a paper cup, throwing it at the man, but the door shuts before it can hit him, and Regulus turns back, turning red as he faces James once more.
“Ignore him, coworker,” he coughs out, rubbing the back of his neck, and James grins now, suddenly feeling much braver.
“Oh? Am I infamous among all your coworkers, or only that one?” He smirks, and Regulus huffs, rolling his eyes.
“I was just telling them about this annoying customer who came in right before closing time,” he snips back, and James laughs, shoulders shaking.
When he quiets down, he stares at Regulus for a long moment, and Regulus looks everywhere but into his eyes, never being one for eye contact.
“Can I get your number, Regulus?” James asks finally, voice low, and Regulus flushes just up his neck, glancing down at the counter as he holds back a smile.
“You barely know me.”
“But isn’t that what numbers are for? Getting to know one another?”
“Is that so? Do you plan to serenade me? Maybe take me on an amazing date that has me sweeped off my feet?”
“Actually, that was exactly my plan,” James leans in slightly closer, and Regulus could smell the scent of what he thought was fresh pine trees off him.
“I suppose I could allow you to do that,” he does smile this time, directly at James, and it takes his breath away slightly as he fumbles for his phone.
“Okay, okay great, awesome. What’s your- what’s your number?” For some reason, actually getting his number made James more nervous. He didn’t think about what would happen once he got this far.
Laughing lightly, Regulus reaches over, grabbing the phone from James’ hands and tapping it quickly. He hands it back, a slight smile.
“There. This date better be awesome,” He muses, and James nods his head, grinning.
“Don’t you worry, it will be. When are you free?”
Regulus chews on his lip, and then glances down at the floor. “I could be free tomorrow, I suppose. I’m sure my friend listening at the door would be happy to take my shift.”
“I’ll think about it,” comes a muffled voice from the door, and James grins.
“He seems nice.”
“He’s annoying. But I tolerate him.” Regulus replies, and for a moment they stand there awkwardly, before James clears his throat and smiles.
“I’ll see you tomorrow then?”
“Yea, tomorrow.”
James heads out, the bell jingling behind him, and immediately panic dials Sirius.
“Calm down, Prongs, it’ll go smoothly!”
“I can’t calm down, pads, I have a super hot date tomorrow and I don’t even know what we’re going to do! He’s expecting some big amazing date, and I have nothing! Nada!” He cries, and Sirius pinches the bridge of his nose, rolling his eyes.
“Okay, so do you know what he likes? Anything he enjoys?”
James thinks for a moment, before rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “He works at a coffee shop,” he states, and Sirius stares at him for a long moment, before slowly sighing.
“So… you know completely nothing about this man? Do you know how old he is?”
“Uh- I’m guessing around my age? Twenty two maybe?”
“Oh my God, Prongs. Do you even know his name?” He says, exasperated, and James nods eagerly, grinning.
“Yeah! It’s Regulus,” Sirius all but flinches, before slowly shaking his head out.
“So… when you asked for his number… all you got was his name? No age? No nothing?”
Looking offended, James huffs. “When you hook up with people you can’t even tell me a name, I’m already one step ahead of you. “
“Yeah, but I know you James, this isn’t just a hookup. When you find someone you’re attracted to, you don’t just hook up, you give your whole heart and soul. What about Lily? You remember the two of you?”
Of course he remembers him and Lily, how he pined after her for years. How they finally started dating and he gave it his all and yet it was never really enough; not that it was Lily's fault at all, she tried as well, she really did. It just wasn’t meant to be.
“Yeah it’s just- something about him Pads, it’s so intriguing, you know? I can’t help but be pulled to him in a way. I want to get to know him, I do.” There's finality in his words, and Sirius drags a hand down his face, making a noise in the back of his throat.
“Okay, calm down, we’ll figure this out. We’ll plan a perfect date for you and Mr. mystery.”
James was ready for today. He and Sirius had spent a good hour planning the perfect date, gathering food and supplies.
He hoped he didn’t come off too strongly- that he didn’t mess everything up.
But then again, coming off a bit too strongly was maybe James’ whole personality, he didn’t really know how to not come off strong. When he did things, he did them with his whole heart, and sometimes, admittedly, that wasn’t always the best idea. Not everyone could exactly deal with him.
He hoped it wouldn’t be like that with Regulus.
“Potter!” he twirls around, stuffing his phone back in his pocket. Him and Regulus had been messaging off and on all day. Regulus was twenty three, a year younger than James, and his favorite color was green. His favorite animal was a cat (James said he had called it) and he was more of a savory than sweet person (James had called that Blasphemy.) He had admitted to enjoying working at the Coffee shop, but he would never visit a coffee shop on his own free will again. As he had stated ‘I get enough of it while working, why would I visit one while I wasn’t?’ At least James knew now to never take him to a coffee shop.
“Earth to Potter,” Lucius snaps, and he blinks, nodding his head.
“How can I help, Malfoy?” He tried to keep his voice light. He was having a good day today- he got off work early, he’d pick up Regulus at six, and they’d go on their date. It was an amazing plan, and it was going to be awesome.
“I need you to stay later today.”
His good mood immediately plummets.
“How late?” His voice is pleading, and Lucius narrows his eyes.
“Eight, nine, maybe later. Why?”
“I can’t today,” James grits out, trying to keep his voice level, “I’m busy,”
Lucius laughs, cold and sharp. “With what? A date?” There’s venom coating his voice, and James bites his tongue as he continues cruelty “remember Potter, you have no life now, it belongs to me. Everything you do has to go through me. Girlfriends? Big no. Maybe I’ll take pity on you another time, but tonight you’re busy, and you’ll be here until eight, understood?”
James clenched his hands, and then nods his head. He watched Lucius leave, and then dejected, he turns to Sirius and Lily, who had been walking down the hall when Lucius stopped him.
Without saying anything he pulls out his phone and sends a quick text to Regulus.
Hey, really sorry, something came up at work, I have to cancel, can we reschedule?
He waits a beat, and then two, before he gets a reply.
Okay.
That’s all. Okay.
He definitely hates him.
James groans, burying his face into his hands.
“Hey, prongs, don’t worry okay? I’m sure it’ll all be good. You can reschedule, right?”
“I can, but what kind of guy would it make me to cancel the first date? He hates me, pads. He’ll never wanna see me again,” he cries, and he slides down the floor.
“I’m sure that’s not true James,” Lily slides down next to him, wrapping an arm around him, “anyone would be lucky to have you. You’re sweet and giving- and a good kisser. I would know from experience,” her tone is light and joking, but he only shakes his head.
“Which he’ll never know if we don’t ever get to hang out!”
Sirius sits down too with dramatic flourish, wrapping an arm around his knee. “I’m sure he’ll understand, with your job and everything.”
James freezes slightly, the hands that had been worrying at his collar coming to a pause, and Sirius mouth drops open as Lily sighs.
“James! You never told him?”
“It never came up!” He defends, but his tone makes it obvious of the truth.
“Are you scared he won’t like you anymore? Most people would love to date a famous singer, you know.”
“Well, Regulus isn’t most people, Sirius!. At least, I don’t think. I would know if we ever got to hang out,” he huffs, fiddling with his rings.
Lily drops the subject, shaking her head and raising her voice. “Lucius is just a arse. He singles you out because he’s jealous that he wanted to be famous and turned into an old, ugly skin bag.”
“Skin bag?” Sirius snorts, and Lily shrugs. He glances at James, who still looked dejected, before sighing.
“Don’t worry, James, I’ll handle it.” Sirius states, standing up. James gives him a look, and Sirius winks, grinning. “I always do, don’t I?”
“No, no you don’t,” Lily interjects, but he waves her off.
“Welp, I will this time. I’m going to visit this mysterious Regulus.”
“I just don’t know what I did, Rem,” Comes the dejected voice of Regulus through the phone. Remus holds it to his ear with his shoulder, lighting a fag and taking a drag.
“You didn’t do anything, Reg. He’s probably just an ass.”
“We’ve been talking all day! I don’t understand why he’d just cancel. Did I say something? I’ve never been good with social situations. You know this.” He lets out a sigh, and Remus shakes his head sympathetically, though Regulus can’t see, and blows a cloud of smoke out. He’s on his break right now, Regulus had called and ranted about what happened, and he had left through the back door for a smoke.
Before Remus can reply back, Regulus lets out another sigh. “It doesn’t matter anymore. I’ll be back later to pick my shift back up.”
“Why don’t you take the rest of the day off, Reg? Relax maybe?”
“No,” He doesn’t say much more than that, other than telling him a bye and saying he’ll see him later.
Remus sighs, taking one last drag from his cigarette and crushing it on the wall before throwing it in the bin meant for cigarettes. Sometimes Regulus worked himself too much, never realizing when it would be best for him to take a break or cool off. Even after being ghosted, instead of binging ice cream (who was he kidding, Reg would never) or chilling watching movies.
He walks back inside after a few moments, trying to wave away the smell of smoke. He ties his apron back on and goes back to his position behind the counter. Business was slow today, and so far he hadn’t had many customers. The few orders he took back for the people in the back had come out quick. He didn’t mind much taking over Regulus’ extra shift for the night, but now Regulus was coming back so it didn’t matter anyways. Annoyed, frustrated with the James boy and himself for feeling like he couldn’t help Reg to his best abilities, he glares at the corner, trying to will his migraine away.
“Excuse me?” He snaps his head up, he hadn’t even heard someone approaching, and drops his head from his forehead.
“How can I help?” His voice comes out more grinding than he means, and he tries to relax, focusing on the man in front of him.
He had Black hair tied up in a ponytail, wisps of wavy hair falling in front of his face. He brushes a strand out his eyes, looking at Remus with wide eyes, and he raises an eyebrow.
Something about the man looked strangely familiar.
“What can I get for you?”
He blinks, mouth parted slightly, before clearing his throat and leaning forward. He had a grin on his face, cocky and cricked, and Remus stares at it for a moment, before meeting his eyes.
“I’m looking for a man- uhm, Regulus?”
That’s where he thinks he recognized him. The two of them had an uncanny likeness, from the hair to the skin, even to the eyes, even though the mans in front of him were a little bit lighter and more blue. The two of them could be related- even brothers.
“Why, do you know him?”
“No, not exactly. My friend- James,” Remus narrows his eyes, and the man rushes to continue, “we work together, and our boss, a horrid man let me tell you, made him stay late tonight. He doesn’t have any way around it, he’s on a contract.”
Remus raises his eyebrows, before they knit back together. “Contract, what kind of job do you guys have,” At that, Sirius huffs, leaning off the counter with an annoyed expression. He stares at Remus for a long moment, before his face clears and he chews on the inside of his cheek.
“You really don’t know me?” He asks, and Remus gives him a mystified look.
“Are you and Regulus related or something?”
‘What? No,” Sirius snaps, voice more sharp than he means, and Remus holds up a hand, leaning back off the counter. Sighing, he rubs his eyes. “Sorry- I just,” he pauses, chews on his bottom lip, and then shakes his head, waving a hand, “It’s not important. Listen, I came down here to tell that Regulus dude that James is worth the wait, trust me. He’s nice and nice and he was really put out that he had to cancel today.”
Remus raises an eyebrow again, before shrugging. “I guess I’ll relay the information to him.”
Brightening, Sirius leans forward again with a grin. “Thanks!”
“It’s not up to me whether or not he wants to keep talking to him. I mean this was their first date,” he continues, and the bright smile on Sirius’ face slips slightly.
Making a face, Remus stares at him. He doesn’t like the disappointed look, honestly, it makes him feel kind of bad. He didn’t like feeling bad for people. Rolling his eyes, he huffs out a breath.
“Look, Regulus likes someone who perceives. Though he would never admit it, he’d enjoy someone stubborn,” he glances at the clock on the wall, scratching his jaw, and Sirius’ eyes follow the movement.
“Regulus decided to come back to work- he wants his shift back. Have James come here after he finishes- what time is he getting off?”
“Eight or nine,” at the face Remus makes, he rushes to continue, “we could end a little quicker. Maybe before nine? Definitely before nine!”
Remus nods his head, “Okay, have him come here, take Regulus on a late date. He’ll enjoy it.”
“You’re sure?” He gets a deadpanned look in return, and he nods his head quickly. “Okay! Okay, will do. Will relay all this back, don’t you even worry. James will be here before nine, you’ll see. It was nice talking to you,” his eyes drift to the nametag, and he smiles, “Remus. Any reason theres a moon on the corner of your nametag?”
At that, Remus glances down, rubbing at it lightly. “Our friend, Pandora, likes to draw. She says I’m ‘like the moon,’ whatever that means. Regulus got a lion,” he smiles, and Sirius raises an eyebrow.
“Like the moon? You’re moon-ish?” At the incredulous look he gets, he grins, “No? What about Moony? Like the moon; Moony?” Remus shakes his head, but he’s laughing now as well, and he runs a hand through his hair.
“That was stupid,” he’s still smiling though.
“Mhm, I get that a lot,” he glances down at his watch, and then curses, blinking, “Shit, I gotta run, but hey, it was good meeting you moony,” Remus blinks, nodding his head slightly.
As he turns to leave, he stops at the door and whirls around, giving Remus a grin. “My names Sirius, by the way!” The door slams shut behind him, and Remus is staring wide eyed at where he used to be standing.
Now he knew why he looked familiar, that was Sirius, Regulus’ estranged brother.
James rushes out as soon as the photo shoot ends. He was held back for a photo shoot, can you believe that? He doesn’t bother going up to Lucius to bid goodbye, because he had to get to the coffee shop, it was already 8:50, and Regulus was bound to be leaving soon.
“James!” He stops at the door, shuffling from foot to foot as Lily bounces up to him, handing him a bouquet of flowers. When James gives her a mystified look, she smiles.
“I’m friends with someones he’s good friends with. She says these are his favorite- now go!” She laughs as she all but shoves him out the door, and he’s in his car speeding away not even a moment later.
When he makes it there- finally, it had hit exactly the nine o’clock mark. When Regulus, who was standing in the front sweeping, looks up, he gives a mystified look, before his face gets angry and he whirls to the friend he recognized as before.
He- Remus, James thinks his name was, Shrugs, before brushing past Regulus and out the door. He grins, raising a hand James as he walks by. James grins at him, grabbing the flowers and climbing out the door. He’d have to thank Remus later.
When he makes it to the door, Regulus refuses to look at him, continuing to sweep the floor. His fingers are turning white on the handle, and James is a little bit scared as he enters.
“Hey, Reg,” he says softly, and Regulus huffs, slamming the broom onto the counter as he takes his apron off. He hangs it on a hook and slowly turns to face James, who is giving him a sheepish look.
“We’re closed,” He deadpans, and James clears his throat.
“I was hoping-”
“Customers can’t be in after closing,” He drawls, and James sighs as he lets his hand drop from behind his back. Regulus’ eyes follow the movement, before darting back up to James’ puppy eyes.
“Then can we talk outside?”
He stares at him for a moment, before nodding, and James beams as he walks outside, waiting patiently as Regulus takes his time turning off the lights and locking up. Finally, he’s standing in front of him, and James grins. He gives him another deadpanned look.
“I’m really sorry, Reg. I know you probably think I’m an asshole, but I tried to get here as soon as possible. I swear.” He holds the flowers up, and slowly, Regulus reaches up, grabbing them.
“How’d you know my favorite flowers? Are you a weird stalker or something? I don’t even have any social media,” he huffs, and James grins, shaking his head.
“My friend is friends with yours. I don’t know which one- but mine is named Lily.” Regulus tilts his head slightly.
“Lily? She comes in here often. Says she likes the peacefulness of it or something.” James smiles again, before clearing his throat and glancing at the ground.
“So, is it possibly not too late to take you on that amazing date I promised?”
Regulus pretends to think, glaring at James, but in reality he already knew he’d say it wasn’t. James could take him anywhere at any time, and as long as he flashed his crooked smile he’d be fine with it.
“I suppose it isn’t,” He replies back, feigning annoyance, and James grins again, looping an arm through Regulus. He tries not to stiffen at the touch, but James doesn’t seem to notice.
“We have to drive there, are you okay with that?”
“Yeah, whatever,” is his reply, and James opens the door for him before going to the drivers side. Regulus waits stiffly, nervousness knotting his gut. What if James was a killer or something?
What if the date didn’t go well and James realized Regulus wasn’t a good person?
They talk as James drives, and he grins and laughs at all the right times. James tells Regulus how he once lost his teeth because he jumped from a tree into a flower bed thinking it would be soft. Regulus snorts and tells James he once tried sliding down the banister when he was young because he saw it in a movie and ended up with a broken nose.
When they pull up to what looks like a park, Regulus leans forward in his seat, staring out the window. By now, it was dark, and Regulus gives James a look.
“You’re not going to murder me, right?”
Laughing, James shakes his head. “No, plus my friends always said I would make a horrible killer.”
“You and your friends talk about being killers often?”
“Oh, yeah, all the time,” He grins, and Regulus laughs softly as he climbs out the car. James goes around back, opening the trunk, and Regulus stares hesitantly.
“Will you hold this for a second?” He hands him a soft blanket, before pulling out a picnic basket. Regulus’ eyes widen at it, before he knits his eyebrows together.
“A picnic?”
James gives him a nervous look, nodding his head. “Yep, my friend’s helped me decide. Me and and my best friend were planning it first, but then we called our friend- Peter, and he came up with this. You know, it was supposed to be light out, but it’s not bad at dark either. Plus, it gives me something to surprise you with.” Regulus raises his eyebrows, before smiling slightly, and James gives him a bright grin.
He leads him up a slight hill, before rolling out the blanket and setting everything up. Originally, Regulus had assumed James had wanted to take him to a restaurant when he had been grilling him about his favorite foods, but now he saw he was planning this entire thing.
It was sweet, and probably took some good effort.
Once James lays out the last tupperware, he looks up at Regulus with a small smile. “My mom had to help me make some of this stuff. I started running out of time.”
Regulus takes a seat on the blanket, crossing his legs, and James sits softly beside him. “You cook?”
“Yeah! My mom taught me; she’s an awesome chef. My dad? Not so much,” Regulus smiles at that, before nodding his head.
“You’re parents, they’re nice?”
“Oh yeah, I love them, a lot,” he grins, and Regulus’ smile softens.
After eating- the food was delicious, James had not been exaggerating when he had said he could cook- James packs the food up, before clearing his throat.
“My friend told me you’re named after a star- so is he, he knows a lot about astronomy, and he thought it might be cool to take you stargazing. It was supposed to be a later date, because- well you know it has to be dark to stargaze. But it worked perfectly for tonight,” his voice is nervous and soft, and Regulus blinks, glancing up, and oh.
He felt stupid for not noticing before how bright the stars were up here (in his defense, he was distracted, okay?) and his eyes drift across the sky. James is staring at him, before he turns towards the sky as well.
“That one is-”
“Mine, I know,” his voice is soft, and he glances at James with a smile that makes him flush happily. They sit in silence, but a nice silence, and Regulus starts listing off stars, pointing at each one individually. Eventually, they just tracing stars in the sky, trying to make up the most silly constellations.
Regulus was scared that he was falling too fast- that he was slipping, and he didn’t know if he’d be able to get back up. He wasn’t used to this feeling in his chest, a light fluttery feeling, and when had had first met James, he had expected it to be more of a later hookup, not whatever this was. Obviously, he severely underestimated the power of a pretty face, because he was falling fast and hard for this man.
When it ends, Regulus lets James drop him off at his house. They stand in front of his door to Remus’ and his apartment, and James is giving him those eyes. When he leans in, Regulus feels like his heart is rising up his throat, and at the last minute, he jumps back, clearing his throat. James, looking dejected, leans back, biting his lip, and Regulus sighs as he rubs his hands on his shirt.
“I had a nice night tonight, Regulus,” James says quietly, searching Regulus’ eyes, and Regulus clears his throat again, nodding.
He stares for a moment longer, before rubbing the back of his neck. “It’s alright if you don’t, or if you’re weirded out or whatever, but would you, maybe, want to go out again sometime? You know, whenever you’re free- or whatever,” He coughs, and Regulus glances at the floor.
“I had a really good time too, James,” He finally whispers, and James tilts his head to the side. Regulus’ heart does that thing again, where he feels like he may choke on it, and he has to twist his fingers together in nervousness to calm himself down.
Damnit, he was a 23 year old man, and he couldn’t even kiss his date goodbye. He’d be damned if he chickened out now.
Raising up on his toes, Regulus presses a swift kiss to James cheek, leaning back down, and James mouth is open slightly, before he grins like a madman, face flushing. Regulus wills himself not to blush as well as he gives him a look.
“Text me later tonight, yeah?”
“Will do! Bye, Reggie, I’ll see you later, okay?” Regulus huffs, opening his door and closing it behind him, and Remus is waiting on the couch, sifting through his David Bowie records.
“So? How was it, loverboy?” Huffing, Regulus rolls his eyes.
“Shut up, I hate you,” he mumbles, but he grins not a moment later, flopping onto the couch and relaying the whole night to Remus.
After he finishes, Remus laughs, tilting his head back. “You really are in deep, aren’t you?”