Dramatic People
Every morning Regulus followed the same routine.
He woke up at 7 am and it would take him the total of five minutes to get up and go to his bathroom. His shower would end at 7:11 am and after that he would wash his teeth and face. He would tidy his room at 7:21 and at 7:31 he would go down to eat breakfast. Everything that followed taking a shower for him had to be 10 minutes, the only thing that didn’t followed those ten minutes was his brother.
Everything would depend on how many hours Sirius had slept. If he slept to 3-5 hours he would move like a sloth until he finally drank a coffee or took an energy drink. That would mean that they would be 20 minutes late to school. If he slept more than 6 hours, it would probably be because he had slept in, and Regulus had to wake him up. After the shock of being very late Sirius would run to arrange himself…Of course that wouldn’t change the fact that they both had missed their first period. If Sirius hadn’t slept at all they would arrive in time at school, as he had already drunk all the coffee he could and energy drinks he found.
That morning Sirius hadn’t slept at all. Regulus noticed this because ran down the stairs to his chair, radiating energy to the dark dining room, like a puppy who had heard their owner grabbing their favourite bag of food.
“How many?” he asked Sirius when Kreacher came inside the room and putted Sirius food in from of him.
“How many what?” he said ignoring Kreacher and not thanking him. No one on that house ever did. The only one who actually seemed to acknowledge him was Regulus. “Hours? Drinks? Caffeine? To so some I would say none and to the others I would say all. Life must be full of extremes for you to fully live it.”
“Sure.” He responded to his brother senseless speech by just ignoring it and proceeding to read his book.
“Walburga and Orion already left?”
“10 minutes ago.”
“Good.”
“Yup.” Their conversations would always start and end like this. Regulus would try to scold Sirius and it would end with nothing changing. There wasn’t much he could do for his brother, he chose what he wanted to do, but that didn’t stopped Regulus from worrying.
When Sirius finished his meal, they grabbed their stuff and went to school in Sirius motorcycle.
He knew that taking the bus was a better option. However, those moments alone with his brother with only the wind and the road ahead of them, were the only ones where he truly felt safe and comfortable. It wasn’t as if he truly trusted his brother with a motorcycle. It was only because those moments were the only ones where they were alone. Without any of them leaving each other because another person arrived or because they locked each other in their own room, only sharing a polite “Hello”, “Good afternoon”, “Good night” or “It is dinner time.”
When they arrived at school, those moments ended and reality started once again, with Regulus facing the world alone.
“Regulus, wait.” Sirius grabbed his arm when he started to leave.
“What do you want?”
“For you to stay here a couple of a few minutes. Only until the Potters arrive.”
“You want me to do you company so you won’t be alone, and then when you do have company you will leave me alone?
“What?” he looked at Regulus with an incredulous look on in face “Of course not. I want you to wait here with me to pretend we just arrived to school when the Potters arrive.”
“Why?”
“Because James and I have a plan.” Regulus didn’t like the sound of that.
They only had to wait 3 more as the Ben Potter’s red car appeared around the conner and parked in front of the school.
“Come with me” Sirius grabbed Regulus once again by the arm and took him to the Potters car widow.
“Good morning, dear Potter family. You look wonderful today.”
“Good morning, Sirius how are you?” Responded Mrs Potter, delighted by seeing him.
“I knew something was up. James almost never asks us to drive him to school.” Mr Potter just had to look once at Sirius to know something wasn't right.
“But dear uncle I only wanted your and Aunts May company.” James left the car and hugged Sirius. “Good morning Reg.”
“Sirius, can I leave now?” he whispered to his brother while smiling at the Potters.
“Ok, i must admit, something is up dear Uncle Ben.” Sirius said dramatically while putting his arm around his brother. “Regulus and I need the amazing fashion advises of your beautiful wife to go shopping.”
“You two want to have a shopping day?” she smiled at them both with the type of smile that would harm any heart.
“We do?” he gave his brother a pointing stare that said that he would murder him that night.
“Yes we do, and it has to be today.”
“Oh…I think after work I can find some time to go shopping.”
James looked at Sirius and his brother with a big smile on his face, to which Regulus responded with the same pointed look, that now said “you will be next”.
“Great news. Then it is settled. After Mrs. Potter work we will go shopping. I can take us with… wait… oh I forgot” he took his arm off his brother shoulder and putted his hand on his forehand. This was too dramatic to Regulus to put up with.
“What did you forget dear?” Mrs Potter looked worried at him.
“My motorcycle has to go to revision today so I won’t be able to take us shopping.”
“What about the bus? You three could take the bus.” Mr Potter started to panic knowing what that meant.
“There are almost no busses after Aunt’s May work, and those don’t go to my house.”
“Ok.” Mr Potter gave up and slid down his seat. “I will drive you all.”
“Do you want to go too James?” Mrs Potter asked him brightly.
“No need Aunt May I have a lot of homework to do.” Mr Potter joined Regulus with the deadly stare.
“Ok we are leaving before any of you have the great ideia of going to sushi after shopping.” Mr Potter started the car and left the parking lot.
“I hate you two so much.” Regulus let it out when the car was out of their sight.
“And we love you so much brother.”
“Sirius what about what I have to do? You don’t know if I have something in this afternoon.”
“Do you?”
“No but…”
“Then we are going. Love you brother, but now I have to go to class.” He pet him on the head and started to walk away.
“I am sorry Regulus. I didn’t knew he would bring you along.”
“Sure, you didn’t Potter. I am late. Bye.” He wasn’t late he was just angry.
---------------------------------
“Look who woke up on the wrong side of the bed.” Evan Rosier, the schools Rugby leader, proclaimed as he heard Regulus close his locker angrily.
“Not now Rosier.” Rosier was followed by Dorcas Meadow, the schools swim leader.
“Come on Evan. It is Regulus he doesn’t have a good side of his bed.” She opened her closet and took the books out of it.
“Leave the poor boy alone. He has feelings you know.” Barty Crouch Jr. putted his arm around Regulus. “How are you grumpy?”
“Not in the mood guys.” He slipped out of his arms, and someone ran into him grabbing his shoulders.
“Did you do your maths homework?” Pandora Malfoy screamed at his face looking at him like the human life depended on that question.
“Yes I did.”
“Regulus of my heart.” She grabbed his hands dramatically. “My best friend. Please let me copy it.”
“Of course.” He said tired of so many dramatic people in his life.
“THANK YOU. I spent all night working on this new chemistry experiment, which I want you to see.” She went on and on not even stopping to see if he was listening to her.
Regulus wasn’t the most extrovert person. He liked to keep to himself. And that was the plan when he started middle school, but then he had met Pandora. She was as small, as strange, and as lonely as he was. She was the one that approached him, like she had chosen Regulus to be her best friend for life. After a couple of months Barty joined their squad and following him came Evan and Dorcas.
They were all best friends, whoever Regulus was closer to Barty and Pandora, trusting them with everything but also nothing. That was his problem, he never fully trusted in anyone, fearing of their reaction and what they would do if they truly knew what he had to go through every day and how messed up his mind was. They couldn’t do anything so why even bother them? That was at least what he told himself to remind him to keep his feelings away.