Chapter Two
The next day, James woke up with a smile on his face. It was Christmas tree decorating day, and that smile immediately dropped when he realised that he had to tell Sirius about being half-in love, arse over tits crushing on Regulus : his younger brother.
James got up and out of bed with a groan, grabbing a towel, some fluffy socks and a few articles of clothing. He made his way to his bathroom and had a nice warm shower.
Afterwards, he wrapped his towel around his waist and reached for his glasses. Quickly, he unfogged them and brushed his teeth with his other hand. He put on his trousers and grabbed his christmas jumper on the way out of his room. He made his way downstairs and into the kitchen slipping on his jumper after he flipped on the kettle, lining up a few cups for the others as well.
James thought he heard some shuffling and looked up to see Regulus staring at him.
James spoke cheerfully, “Oh, hi Regulus. Good Morning.”
“Umm, yeah hi,” Regulus mumbled, staring at his jumper.
“What? Do I have something on my jumper?” James asked, smiling slightly a light chuckle letting itself known as he spoke.
“No, you don't. I was just wondering how your wardrobe must look for you to think that atrocity looks good.” Regulus remarked, an eyebrow raised, while a smile fixtures itself onto his face.
James’s eyes crinkled and his smile only grew three sizes. “Always the charmer, love. And do you really not think this looks good? I think it’s brilliant.” James assured him while pointing to his jumper - that had a stag with glasses pointing at his own christmas jumper.
“Of course you do.” Drawled Regulus, still smiling as if he didn't just insult someone. Even then, James loved it - the thrill of not knowing what he was going to say next, the small trill of lightning that ignites his spine and warms his heart once Regulus says something mean.
James chuckled, shaking his head, grabbing the kettle, as it had finally boiled.
“Hot chocolate or tea?”
“Tea,” he paused, “Thankyou.”
James grabbed two tea bags for them, and put them in the cups with the boiling water. James went to the fridge and pulled out the almond milk.
“How did you know? That I like almond milk more?” Regulus asked thoughtfully, a confused look crossing his face.
“Hm? Oh that. I just noticed, I guess.” James shrugged.
Regulus was about to say something but Barty came bustling into the kitchen.
“A hot-chocolate for me, thanks.” Barty interrupted.
And then the moment was over. James poured and made Barty his hot chocolate while sipping his own tea, all the while Regulus grabbed Frankenstein off the kitchen counter, that he apparently brought when he came down himself, James didn't seem to notice.
Slowly but surely, the others arrived downstairs and got themselves busy some way or another, whether it was having kind conversations, reading, playing chess, or making fun of each-other ,conversations were made.
Shortly after James sat down and finished off his tea, Effie and Fleamont walked into the living room and conjured a christmas tree and a few boxes of decorations.
After deciding on the theme of Christmas, the group began snatching up every decoration they could see. Pandora lit candles that smelt of pine and candy canes, while Mary made some extra hot chocolate for everyone while they were getting a few of the decorations out. Dorcas and Marlene squabbled over the music, but ultimately decided on Remus’s Christmas playlist that Sirius had mostly taken over. Sirius and Regulus were deciding over the colour of the lights and whether or not they were going to be rainbow, white, or an off-white-yellow. James really didn't understand what the whole deal was about the lights but either way he did enjoy the two fighting and arguing like the brothers that they were.
James was just happy everything seemed to be coming together, both with the tree, oh merlin that thing was a mess, especially with Evan and Barty making outfits? Out of the tinsel. But with everything, everyone - it was all perfect… Except for the fact that Sirius still didn't know about his crush on Regulus, and well, James made a deal to himself that he would tell him today and he was severely running out of time. After James knew for sure the disagreement about the colour of the lights was over he slowly approached Sirius.
“Sirius, can I maybe talk to you for a minute?” James croaked, kind of a whole lot nervous about how he was going to react. What if James ruined his entire Christmas?
“Yeah of course mate,” Sirius responded, his eyebrows furrowing slightly. Still his wide smile overshadowed his obvious confusion, but Christmas did that to people : bringing them together with cheer and presents, the time for giving, and spending time with family as well as enjoying company with the people around you and those you hold dear.
“So what is it?” Sirius said, seemingly breaking James out of some sort of trance, because when he looked up they were already in a nearby hallway and sitting on the window sill seat that they put there a few years ago.
“Well I actually don't know how to tell you this, but I know that I should. And I have actually been meaning to for a while but I just don't know how you're going to react.”
“James, you're scaring me,” Sirius interrupted with humour lacing over the nervousness in his tone.
“I think I'm on my way to falling in love with your brother.” James blurted out, shutting his eyes as soon as he said it.
“Oh, wow that. You really got me anxious for a second there. And damn James I knew about your crush on him but love? Merlin.”
“You really aren't upset? Wait- what do you mean you knew?”
“You really didn't think I knew? James, you are not discrete in the slightest. And no, of course I'm not upset. A little hurt that Regulus will be actually in relation to you once you get married? Yes. But I can really not imagine a person more perfect for him than you, I know you will take care of him and respect him. I mean what more can I really ask for than that?” Sirius gushed.
“You definitely aren't wrong about the discrete part… I was actually thinking of confessing to him while he’s over for Christmas.”
“Oh good idea, blind him with the christmas spirit,”
“Exactly. Right so what i was thinking was…”
The tree ended up looking gorgeous, truly looking like the joined souls of everyone who helped, warm and free. Off-white yellow lights that made the room simply glow, silver and red tinsel granting the tree even more colour (it would've been red and gold but they had to compromise), the ornaments, some filled with sentimental value others filled with nothing but sparkles and a certain attractive glow about them, such as the one effie and flea made james when he was only a kid that entailed his name made up of letters from a muggle game called scrabble (James found out that very christmas that he did not like nor was very good at scrabble). Or even the ornament from a few years ago that Pandora made Barty with purple butterflies that almost looked as though they were made out of stained glass. It was the most beautiful tree they had ever seen, and was well worth the amount of time, and hot-chocolate, they went through to make it look the way it did.
It was beginning to get dark and it seemed like they decorated through lunch, so Remus and Marlene went into the next room grab a few pieces of food for tea (Marlene said she just wanted to help out and that she was hungry but James had no doubt that the reason she helped was to get closer to his mum, at first he thought the whole ‘Marlene is in love with James’s mum’ bit was a joke but now he wasn't so sure).
They brought back some buffet snack food : cocktail sausages, sausage rolls, crisps, ect. And surprise, surprise Effie was with them carrying some cheese and crackers in with her as well as a few empty glasses and a large jug of water that refilled itself once empty.
They decided to get situated on the sofas and arm-chairs in the living room, bringing fluffy blankets and such along with them. Remus and Sirius were sharing an armchair, as were Evan and Barty. There was one more armchair and two other four-seater sofas as well as a hanging egg chair nestled in the corner. Pandora liked the way the egg chair was hanging and said that it felt she was floating and one with the wind and air itself. Peter took the last arm-chair and May, Lily, Marlene, and Dorcas took one sofa so that left Regulus and James with the last sofa.
James grabbed at least two fluffy blankets and two cups of tea (one for Regulus and one for himself) and sat himself down on the right side of the sofa, well, not before shakily placing two, very hot, very full cups of tea onto the coffee table in front of him. James looked up and realised that Barty and Sirius had stopped squabbling over the remote and finally decided on the live action grinch with Jim Carrey (apparently him being in it was important for some reason James didn't really understand.) Regulus sat down on his left and thanked him for the tea as well as grabbing a few pieces of the buffet food and placing them on his plate. He had a small smile on his face, James was glad. All he wanted was for all his loved ones to be happy. The Christmas music from earlier had not been turned off yet but just turned down to a lower volume, so that you could still hear it if you really listened out for it.
James made himself comfortable on the large sofa, as did regulus, but he did it slightly differently than James by laying down. James reached to grab his ankles and put them on his lap, but instead of doing it straight away he looked toward Reg for permission. He nodded slightly, so James put his ankles in his lap, he didn't let go of them once he did though. They seemed cold and James was nothing but a portable heater. He took this chance to rub slow, smooth, hopefully relaxing circles into the soft part of regulus’s ankle.
James watched Regulus as he watched the movie. His eyes looked just as hypnotic as they always did, he swears he could just simply drown in the depths of them. They were grey, but not just grey, they were the grey of the ocean during a storm or the calm of the eye of a hurricane. Everything about Regulus could be written into poetry, and if James was a better writer he would make one every single day, and show them to him, show Regulus his love in a way that some dream about. Show Regulus that he didn't just love the way he looked but his personality too, the way he teased and insulted. The way he pretended to hate his friends, when in reality he would do anything for them. The way that Regulus’s mind works and how smart he is, even if he doesn't brag about it, even if James believes he really should.
The more James looked the more he saw, James noticed an eyelash stray on Regulus’s cheek, Merlin even that was beautiful.
“Psst. Darling.” James breathed, attempting not to interrupt the movie.
“Hm?” Regules mumbled groggily, eyes looking slightly heavy and looking like they sting slightly from keeping them open.
“You have an eyelash on your cheek.”
“Oh.” James watched as Regulus lazily swiped at his cheek, somehow missing each time he tried to get it off his cheek.
“No, it's still there, love. Just come here and let me get it off for you?” James felt slightly nervous as he asked this, it's not like he was asking for Regulus’s hand in marriage (though that wasn't a bad idea).
Regulus seemed to contemplate it for a second, before ultimately giving in and scooting over to James and letting him take it off. He slowly shuffled over, bringing his blankets with him and placed himself directly next to James, positioning his face almost right in front of the older boys. The action of James lifting his hand up to Regulus’s cheek felt oddly intimate in a way, especially after James swiped the eyelash off and put his finger in front of Regulus’s mouth.
“Make a wish,” James whispered, his face strangely close to Regulus’s as though it subconsciously moved there.
Almost in slow motion, Regulus’s mouth opened, his tongue swiped across his bottom lip, to wet it, and he blew James's finger until the lash slipped off.
“Thank you, Jamie.” Regulus said, eyes almost forcing themselves shut with how tired he seemed, he must not be getting much sleep. James’s entire chest felt warm at the new nickname, he loved nicknames and to get one from regulus? Merlin, it made his heart set alight and his smile grow ever the larger.
Regulus turned to have his back meet the back of the sofa and leaned slightly into James to get himself comfortable.
As one does when your crush leans into you to get comfortable and lays their head on your shoulder, you immediately look over to said crushes older brother to see their reaction. Sirius looked just as (maybe even more) shocked as James, but immediately put a thumbs up toward him. Remus, who was sitting right next to Sirius on the armchair, was smiling softly at the two with a knowing look.
Instead of looking at the others around him, James instead put all of his attention back onto the most lovely boy in the world who was laying on him. James couldn't help it, when his hand reached up to swipe some of Regulus's hair that had fallen in front of his eyes, out of the way and behind his ears. Regulus’s hair certainly was just as soft and fluffy as it looked, why hadn't they done this sooner? A small smile planted itself on Regulus’s face as he drifted off to sleep. James followed him to sleep soon after with the thought of grey eyes the colour of a storm, and gorgeous blue christmas sweaters drifting through his mind.