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James couldn’t recall how he ended up wandering alone with Regulus, both lost in a city they had never visited before. They had lost Sirius and Remus at some point; James believed it was between their visit to the market and their wander around a small coffee shop about three turns along the narrow streets.
James was not mad about it. He felt very content walking side by side with Regulus, who looked around with a particular glint in his eye that made James’ heart race faster than ever.
“Are you ok?” James asked after a long moment of silence. Regulus’ cheeks were quite red after all their walking. And as much as James loved the way that shade of red looked on Regulus' face, he began to feel worried for the wellbeing of the younger man.
“I’m just so hot,” murmured Regulus, fanning his face with his hand.
Bet, James thought.
James bit his lip to stop the giggle and they both took a turn down a new street, finding themselves in a little plaza with a playground. In the distance, James could see a small bar.
“Hey, look! Let’s go there. We can rest for a bit, grab something to eat, and then continue our search for the main plaza. How about it?” James suggested, seeing Regulus lift his sunglasses to try and focus on the place James was pointing to.
“Yes, please. If I spend another second in the sun, I’ll end up with sunstroke,” Regulus whined, starting to walk straight towards the bar. James followed closely, sighing in relief when he noticed the temperature change inside.
They both greeted the waiters and sat down at a small table for two. The bar was quite empty, only the waiters and two other couples sitting at the bar occupying the place.
Regulus sat right in front of James.
“What would you like to drink, gentlemen?” said a waiter approaching their table with a small notepad in hand. They quickly ordered and smiled at the waiter as he left their table, taking the menus away with him.
“Well…” began James, getting Regulus’ attention as he adjusted himself in his chair. Not knowing what else to say, James just stared.
Regulus grew impatient and raised an eyebrow to prompt James to continue talking.
“Yes, James?”
“Tell me something, won’t you?” said James pathetically, kicking himself for not knowing how to behave in front of Regulus.
But in his defence, with the sunburn, Regulus would get all these little freckles around his nose and cheeks that made him look softer.
How could someone look that good?
“What do you want me to tell you?” asked Regulus, frowning and looking at James curiously, “You tell me something.”
James laughed nervously, running a hand through his hair and looking everywhere but at Regulus. He started thinking of something to say but nothing came to mind, so he just stayed quiet. He heard Regulus sigh.
“Did you read that book I lent you?” Regulus talked again. James nodded vigorously with a big smile.
They both fell into that conversation, and soon everything flowed naturally. Their drinks and food arrived shortly after. James almost cried at how much he loved the chips and talked about it for a whole minute, Regulus just laughing at him while sipping his drink.
James was delighted the whole time, looking at Regulus fondly when he got briefly distracted or started talking about something he read online about his favourite author.
Unintentionally, James had fallen silent, listening to Regulus say they could ask each other a list of silly questions Pandora had sent him a couple of days ago through a text. James agreed and Regulus took his phone to look up the questions, talking about how silly they were and something about a drinking game and…
And James could only focus on how gorgeous Regulus looked.
The blush on his cheeks was slowly turning into a tan that combined with the delicate freckles scattered from his nose to the highest point of his cheekbones. His curls were slightly damp from having splashed some water on himself earlier, trying to cool down his body when they were still walking through the city. The red shirt he was wearing highlighted the colour of his now-tanned skin, and the sunglasses on top of his head held his curls in a way they perfectly suited his whole softer look.
The dim lights of the bar helped the vision in front of James, which combined with the sunlight coming in right behind the bar’s windows, James felt in the presence of an angel.
James felt like he was dying and being in heaven at that very moment, his hands gripping his own phone.
“Can I take a picture of you?” slipped from James' lips without thinking. Regulus looked at him and shrugged, going back to his phone without giving much importance to the request.
James quickly opened his phone’s camera and took at least ten photos of Regulus, smiling broadly when Regulus looked at the camera and gave him a small smile.
James was about to pass out, feeling a shiver run down his spine and an unexpected pressure in his chest.
Oh.
I am in love with Regulus.
Trying to control his breathing, James looked away and placed his phone on the table. He quickly stuffed himself with the last pieces of his food.
He fell into thought. He knew his feelings for Regulus were beyond the friendship, meeting in a particular way when Regulus called him an “idiot” —for the first time—after James tripped and fell to the ground for fooling around, only then offering his hand to get James up from the floor.
In that exact moment, James knew he had a crush on Regulus. And after four years later, that thought hadn’t changed at all.
In fact, James’ crush had only gotten worse. Becoming Regulus’ official friend two years ago had been the last thing needed to solidify his crush completely. Not because he saw him a bit more, but because Regulus was quite affectionate with his friends. Like a little kitten that bit you but sought you out for more cuddles.
James knew he liked Regulus, but he didn’t know he was actually in love.
At least not until now.
“Hey! Sirius sent me his location! Now we can find them,” said Regulus, snapping James out of his trance and showing him the screen of his phone with Sirius’ messages.
James nodded and looked shyly at Regulus.
“Do you want to leave now?”
Regulus shrugged, looking at the time. “We should, we’re supposed to be at the main plaza in half an hour to catch the bus again.”
“Right,” murmured James, turning to try to call a waiter. They both paid the bill and went back out into the street. Regulus whined irritably about the heat that still persisted and set the direction Sirius had sent him on his GPS, following the instructions on his screen and arguing with James when he suggested shortcutting through a street that the GPS didn’t indicate.
When Regulus shot him a glare that would've killed him after the third time James suggested a route change, he stayed quiet and followed Regulus’ pace, spending the rest of their walk in comfortable silence.
James still felt nervous about the new revelation but tried to hide it as best he could while avoiding making contact with Regulus.
“There you are!” Sirius shouted, almost running towards them and hugging James, who picked him up in a tight hug. “I missed you so much, my love, don’t ever leave me again.”
“And he’s supposed to be my boyfriend,” Remus said, laughing. Regulus stood by his side, rolling his eyes.
"Wrong, you're just the boyfriend of James' boyfriend," said Regulus with a sarcastic tone, making Remus laugh.
Sirius clicked his tongue and hugged his little brother too, who pushed him away, shouting at him in French.
"It doesn't matter that it's hot, Regulus, give me a hug!" exclaimed Sirius, starting to chase Regulus who kept shouting at him in French while running away with a grimace on his face.
"You okay?" asked Remus next to James, both watching the scene of the brothers still arguing.
"Can I tell you a secret, Remus?" whispered James, not taking his eyes off the grimace Regulus was making while finally letting his brother hug him.
"Of course, James."
"I'm in love," James confessed, looking at Remus, who was already looking at him. With a small smile on his lips, he simply nodded to the affirmation, running a comforting hand through James’ back.
"I know, James," his friend whispered back. "Come on, let's go. The group is already waiting for us in the plaza." James simply nodded and followed Remus, who called the brothers with a whistle.
Back on the coach, Remus sat next to James, much to the dismay of Sirius, who didn't stop complaining until Mary dragged him a few seats away to listen to some new music from a musician they both liked.
Settling down in his seat, James leaned on Remus' shoulder. None of them talked for the whole trip, only keeping each other company.
James felt like drifting off after half an hour into the drive back to the hotel, soft music playing in one of his headphones, sharing melodies with Remus who was immersed in an online book.
James let himself think about his new situation. Walking himself through his own feelings, letting himself feel it all at once by closing his eyes and reminding himself of the exact moment he knew.
James fell asleep after an hour into the trip, wondering if he could wake up in a world where Regulus felt the same for him.