Chapter 16

Regulus

James tugs me right as Sirius and Remus continue straight, and I stumble a little in confusion. "James...what are we doing?"

"I'm taking you on a date," James says as he pulls me across the street.

I hobble awkwardly on my one crutch but manage to make it without eating it. "But -"

"We'll meet up with them for dinner."

I frown at him. "Did you and Remus plan this?"

"Maybe." He smirks and stops just out of the flow of people on the sidewalk. "Remus wanted to show Sirius around Chicago and take him on their first official date, so I figured I'd follow his lead. So, what do you say? Go on a date with me?"

He's acting nonchalant, shoulders relaxed and tone forcibly casual. But there are nerves dancing in his eyes, a tense set to his jaw. Like I would say no.

"I already agreed to go out with you, James," I remind him, watching the tension, thankfully, leave his frame. "Next time I'd like a heads up so I can dress appropriately." I gesture down at my less than impressive outfit - a t-shirt, a pair of Sirius' cargo shorts that are a size too big on me, and beat up sneakers that I threw on because I knew we'd be walking a lot. I've picked up clothes over the last few months, so I'm not solely relying on Sirius' wardrobe, thank God. But it's not the best collection. And I definitely would've went with something a bit more sophisticated for a date.

James scoffs. "You look fine, Reg. I'm not -"

"Fine?" I squawk, fighting a smile. "Fine! I cannot look fine for a date."

James grabs me around the waist before I stalk - or hobble - off and mutters in my ear, "That's not what I meant, and you know it. You always look amazing. Why do you think it's so hard for me to keep my eyes off you?"

Goosebumps trail down my neck across my shoulders. It's not that James hasn't flirted since that night in the bus. But it has only been a couple of days, and most of those days were spent with Hope before we left. There hasn't been much time for...well, anything.

"Yeah?" I breathe, immediately internally facepalming at my lame response.

James doesn't seem to mind. "Yeah. Now, are you going to bail on our date because of your outfit or..."

I let out a long, overly dramatic sigh. "No, I guess not." I squirm out of his arm so I can turn to face him. "As long as you have a good plan."

He quirks an eyebrow at me. "Oh, I have a good plan."

And of course, he does. Because apparently, he knows me way better than I realized. I shouldn't be surprised after the library visit in Seattle, but I still get a little winded when James sweeps me away to a little bookshop downtown and lets me peruse for what feels like hours. He looks around for a bit, too, but then follows me around like a puppy, sometimes asking me about the books I'm looking at and sometimes just watching me.

It's...weird. Not bad. Just odd. It's the feeling I've had since James blurted out that he liked me - awe, a bit of wariness. It just doesn't feel real. James isn't the type to pull a prank like this. But...does he mean it? Does he actually like me, or is it more like pity? If I think about it too hard, it's ridiculous. James confessed first. And he's so genuine and earnest that I'm sure I could tell if he was stretching the truth or pitying me.

But it's just a little unbelievable. Maybe I'm projecting. Maybe I'm still surprised by my own feelings, the intensity of them. I try to sink into it, to revel in James' attention and commentary on the city as we grab street food and eat on a park bench to rest my feet. Because James is so...James. He smiles at everyone, he gets excited by every dog that passes, and he never, ever drops my hand.

We take an Uber to the lake, and I'm a bit wary when James stops us at a dock. There's a line of people in front of us, filing onto a decently sized boat, and James pulls out his phone.

"James?" I ask, trying not to let my hesitance show.

I must not do a very good job, because he looks at me with such concern on his face I nearly stop breathing. "What? You ok?"

"I'm fine. Just..." I gesture at the boat with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, sorry. It's a...an architectural tour. They take us down the river and point out historical buildings and stuff." He clears his throat. "Do you...Is that ok? Are you ok with boats? I should've asked. I'm sorry."

"It's ok," I chuckle, squeezing his hand. "I'm...boats aren't my favorite, but...I'm sure you won't let me fall overboard."

His eyes go wide. "Absolutely not."

"Alright then."

We follow the line down onto the boat, and James, thankfully, pulls us toward the center of the upper level. He immediately loops his arm around my shoulders, blocking out some of the wind threatening to blow my hair right off my head. People crowd in around us, pressing us closer. James doesn't crowd me, though, respectfully leaving his hand on my shoulder and brushing his thumb back and forth.

The second time I'm jabbed in the ribs by the woman next to me, I scoot as close as physically possible to James and mold myself into his side. I'm so close I can feel his sharp intake of breath and long, contented sigh. He settles his arm more snuggly around me and uses my crutch as a barrier between us and the woman's wayward elbow.

The tour guide starts before we even leave the dock, cracking jokes and giving us a run down of what we can expect. I'm sucked in immediately, soaking up the tiniest of details and eventually digging my phone out of my pocket to take a few pictures. By the time we pull up at the dock, over an hour has passed, and I feel like I'm coming out of a daze.

James helps me maneuver off the boat again, and I can't help the gush that comes out of my mouth. "That was amazing. I mean...I know about Willis Tower, and that's it. And even then, I only know the look of it. The history?" James sits me on a bench near the dock. "And everything else! I..."

I chatter through nearly every building we saw, trying to express every emotion I felt and draw James' opinions out as well. He mostly just watches me, though, arm around my shoulders again and eyes alight behind his glasses. It's only once I realize how much I'm talking that I pause and take a breath. "Sorry, I - Sorry. I just talked a lot, didn't I?"

James shakes his head. "No. I mean, yes. But I liked it, I promise. It's...I wanted you to do that. I like hearing you talk about things you love."

I feel a blush rise up my neck and to my cheeks. Something snarky is on the tip of my tongue, but it dies at the soft smile on James' face. And I can't quite stop myself from leaning forward and kissing it off. He doesn't even hesitate, pressing into me with fervor. Of course, I'm very aware that we're in public, so I try to keep it PG for the kids wandering by with their parents. But it's still glorious.

James tastes like the gyro we picked up for lunch earlier, and his hand on my cheek is warm and soft. He sucks just lightly on my top lip, and I melt against him. There's something tickling the back of my mind, a long forgotten daydream of kissing James I had when I was fourteen. The real thing is so much better.

After a few long moments, he pulls back, a big dopey grin stretching his mouth. "Wow."

"That's what you said last time," I breathe.

"Yeah, well, you don't get any less...wow."

I snort. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

I let my eyes trace the lines of his face. "You know, when we were in school, I...I thought about kissing you once."

James blinks at me, the sun shining off of his unfairly long eyelashes. "Did you?"

"Yeah. You were so...nice. I didn't really know what to do with it. But I liked it. I liked you."

He smiles wider. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." I smile, too. "I didn't do anything, of course. And I thought it was just...well, it was just a crush. I was young. Just realizing I was gay. And...But then I came out here. And you were...you're still so nice. So...you. How could I resist?"

His hand is still on my face, and he raises it to brush my hair back from my forehead. "I thought you were cute the first time Sirius introduced us. He talked about you so much, and I was so excited to finally meet you. And you were just..." He growls and pinches my cheek. "So cute."

"Ok!" I nudge his hand away and rub at my cheek. "I don't need to feel like a ten year old, thank you."

"I'm sorry. Of course. You're what? Handsome? Stunning? Hot?"

"James -"

"I'm not kidding, Reg." His hand rests on my neck. "You're amazing. Not just attractive. You're sweet. And funny. And dramatic. Definitely a Black family trait."

"You have no idea," I sigh.

"I have some idea." His smile softens. "I'm excited to date you, Reg."

"I'm excited to date you, too."

***

We meet up with Sirius and Remus at a diner, and my feet are aching and my ankle is throbbing as I settle at the booth Remus and Sirius grabbed for us.

Remus frowns at me. "You good, Reg?"

"Yeah," I say, tucking my crutch against the window. "Just...a full day of walking probably wasn't the best idea in the world." I put a finger in James' face just as he opens his mouth. "Do not apologize. Don't. It was perfect. And I'm fine. Just sore."

Sirius snorts. "God, you know him too well already."

James gives him a flat look. "Shut up. I'm going to see if I can get a bag of ice."

"No, James -" But he's out of the booth before I can stop him. "No use."

"No use at all, Reggie. I'm going to use the bathroom. Don't miss me too much." He smacks a kiss to Remus' cheek, and Remus positively melts.

"You two are disgusting," I inform him, but I can't keep the smile off my face.

"You're one to talk," he grumbles.

I sigh and rest my head against my hand. "We're just idiots who fell for two idiots, aren't we?"

Remus sighs, too. "Yeah. We are."

When Sirius comes back from the bathroom, he joins James where he's chatting with the waitress at the counter, and I watch the two of them laugh and tease each other.

"They haven't really changed since school," I tell Remus. "I mean, they have. They've grown up. But their friendship hasn't. They're still as close and crazy as ever."

Remus hums. "They're really something, aren't they?" He sighs again. "We're pretty lucky. Even if they are idiots."

James and Sirius come back with a bag of ice and menus. Remus props my foot up on his knee under the table and holds the ice on my ankle the whole time we're waiting for our food. And when we leave the restaurant, Remus insists that he carry me on his back to the train and then from the train to the bus. Sirius swoons at Remus' chivalry the whole way, and James checks in with me when he's not challenging Sirius to sword fights with my crutch.

Sirius drags James into Walmart when we get back to the bus, and Remus deposits me on the couch inside. I stop him before he leaves. "Hey." He turns to me expectantly. "Thank you for making Sirius so happy."

He smiles, but his forehead creases a little. "You're welcome?"

"He just...He's so happy around you. He deserves to be happy."

"You make him happy, too, you know. You coming to stay with us was...he was so happy. Worried about you. But so happy that you called him." He fiddles with his hands. "I know you guys have talked a little. But I know Sirius wants to talk more. About...everything."

I shuffle. "I know. I do, too. Just don't really know how."

"Just try. If you mess up, you start over." He shrugs.

"You make it sound so easy."

"It is." He chuckles. "And it's not. But you'll figure it out."

I nod. "Thanks, Remus."

"Anytime, Reg."