Chapter 2
For as long as he can remember, James Potter has loved love. He loved the way someone could love a blooming flower or a beautiful sunset. He loved the way his parents loved each other and the way he loved his friends. He loved how people loved other people. The only time when he didn’t love love, was when he was the only one feeling it.
He remembers how he hated love, when his fifteen-year-old heart was shattered by a girl with hair like burning fire. She was the prettiest girl he had ever seen. So when he finally came to terms with the fact that she will never love him as he would have wanted her to, he hated love.
Don’t get him wrong: he loves Lily as much as everyone else. She’s a force of nature and still the prettiest girl he has ever seen. The prettiest girl in the world and his best friend.
He spent a lot of time trying to fall in love with love again, trying to realize and accept the fact that love has a lot of forms and that the first love isn’t always the last. Which is what led him to write a book about it years later. He just...loves love. He simply loves it.
James Potter wrote a book about a boy who spent most of his life pining over a girl who didn’t love him. He called it “The Sun”. However the ending of the book was slightly different from his life: she falls for the boy after all and they end up together. James wrote it as a reminder to himself that it could have been the ending of his and Lily’s story, however it just wasn’t meant to be. It wasn’t his or Lily’s fault and they did nothing wrong. It didn’t happen, because in this lifetime that wasn’t the love that they both needed from each other and that there is something else out there waiting for them both. Someone else out there waiting for James and all the love he can give.
When he found himself walking into that bookshop on a random day it must have been fate. He stepped in the shop he noticed a guy at the end of it. His black hair was curling elegantly around his face. He was beautiful. The guy was rearranging the books on the shelfs when he pulled James’ book out and took it in his hands. That was when James got interested.
“What do you think about it?”
The guy raised his eyebrows and looked almost annoyed by James’ presence.
“Excuse me?”
“What do you think about this book? Have you read it before?” James asked once again, nodding his head towards the book. He tried not to sound too excited, however it probably didn’t work.
“Yeah, I have,” replied the guy, looking away. His voice was soft, but uninterested.
He looked James up and down and paused when he reached his eyes. His eyes were…green. However that is way too little words to describe how they made James feel. They were almost moving. James felt like he was in the middle of the woods during a storm. He could feel the wind in his hair and the rain on his face. They were almost dragging him forwards and James was more than glad to give in.
“and to be honest it was a total waste of time,” the guy continued with a pinch of disgust in his voice.
Well now James just had to get to know this guy. He was the first person to ever sound like love is something he would run away from and at that moment, for some reason, James was willing to chase after him.
“You don’t say,” he replied, raising his eyebrows in question.
“It was a total cliché. Extremely predictable and yet absolutely unrealistic. Long story short - it’s just pretty shit. I mean, the writing isn’t entirely terrible, in some places it’s not even that bad, but it’s just that it’s so banal that it…it feels like you’re reading a script of a soap opera.”
James’ heart fluttered at the “in some places it’s not even that bad” part.
“Well” he stuttered, “maybe some people just like love?” He felt the need to defend his work and his values no matter the weird conditions.
The guy just rolled his beautiful eyes. “Well, if this is their perception of love, I think they should just go back to watching soap operas.”
James couldn’t help but laugh.
“What’s your name?” he asked while looking straight into the guy’s eyes. He felt himself getting dragged in again, but he didn’t look away. If this is what it takes to look at him, then James is going to take that risk just to see his eyes again.
“Regulus,” he answered.
Regulus, Regulus, Regulus…You are the most beautiful boy I have ever seen, do you know that?
“Well, Regulus,” James loved the sound of this name, “your insights are extremely fascinating.”
With that James managed to look away. However, he would lie if he said that he didn’t want to look at him again.
“And you?” Regulus spoke one again. James’ heart must have jumped in his chest. “I mean your name. What’s your name?” he said.
James knew that his answer could complicate things. Regulus might think he just came to make fun of him and simply never look at James again. Hell, he might never even meet him again at all after this. James remembered the storm he saw in his eyes. A total chaos and utter peace all at once. At that moment, James decided to step out into the rain and let himself get wet. If this is what he had to do, to get to know Regulus, then it's a risk he’s willing to take. He’s known for loving love, after all.
“James. James Potter,” he replied, smiling.
Regulus’ eyes immediately left James’. Shit