Chapter 4

James

I watch Sirius watch Regulus tiptoe back to his bed, noting the slight tilting down of his lips and the way his hands squeeze in his lap. "Everything ok, Pads?"

"Hm?" he hums, doing a double take at me. "Oh. Yeah. All good."

"Sirius."

He sighs. "Just...worried about him, I guess."

I step across to sit next to him and throw an arm around his shoulders, careful not spill my milkshake. "What happened?"

"Nothing really." He slides down to lay his head on my shoulder. "He was just quiet. And tired."

"And?" I take a sip of my shake and set it on the counter.

"He's just...It's been so long." He cranes his neck back and stares up at me. "I haven't seen him in...what? Four years? And I haven't had a conversation with him in even longer. He's had this whole...life since then. He was in Denver last summer."

My eyebrows jump up. "Really? Wait. When?"

"The whole summer apparently. So, we could've..."

"We could've seen him," I whisper.

Sirius nods, eyebrows pressing together, and my heart aches for him. At least when we were still in high school, we saw Regulus occasionally, and Sirius felt like he could watch out for him at least a little. But after we graduated, it hit him hard that he didn't know how Regulus was doing. He's attempted to reach out to Regulus a handful of times since, but nothing's come of it. Sirius was convinced that Regulus blocked his number.

And to think that we were in the same city for two weeks last year... It's not like we haven't been home to Boston since graduating. We've been in the same city, of course, but this feels different somehow. Like we could've run into him far away from the all seeing eyes of the Blacks. Like Sirius could've talked to him without worrying that Regulus would get in trouble for it.

"It's just weird," Sirius murmurs. "I feel like I don't even know him. I mean, in my mind, he's still the scrawny little fifteen year old I...left."

"You didn't leave him, Sirius. He didn't want to go with you." We've had this conversation a million times, but I don't think that Sirius will ever truly accept that.

"I know."

We sit in silence for a while as I finish my shake. It's almost gone when I realize that I have no idea what the flavor is. "What, uh...is this vanilla?"

Sirius snorts. "Nope. It's all three. Did you know that they do a Neapolitan shake?"

I frown. "No, but it's amazing."

"Reggie told me about it." He smiles against my shoulder. "It was the most he smiled all day."

There's a knock on the door, and I get up just long enough to let Remus in. He's been out surfing with the girls all day, too, and he's red from head to toe. For once, he's not wearing a shirt or rash guard, and his shoulders are covered in freckles.

"Hey, Moons," Sirius says as Remus takes the couch across from us. I pull Sirius into my side again, and Remus frowns.

"Everything ok?" he asks.

I smirk. "What do you mean? We cuddle all the time."

Remus rolls his eyes and stretches out on the couch, propping his feet on the driver's seat since it's not even close to long enough for him. "Yes, but Sirius is not usually this...serious." Sirius snorts, and Remus points at him. "Shut up."

"Fine," Sirius mumbles. He sits up a bit. "I'm fine. Just talking about Regulus."

Remus nods slowly. "Right. Where is he?"

"Sleeping," Sirius sighs. He recaps the day, still eerily solemn. "It's...weird. I was just telling James. He's so old now. I don't know him at all. But he's also just the same little kid I tried to take care of when I was younger. I mean, you should've seen the way he broke down at the airport. I..." Sirius makes a vague, helpless gesture with his hands.

I watch Remus watch Sirius and wonder how Sirius hasn't figured out that Remus is head over heels for him. The adoration and concern on his face is unmistakable.

"Well, you have time now to get to know him again, right?" Remus says softly. "He can fill you in on everything he's been doing, and you can tell him all of your wild stories."

"Maybe he doesn't want to tell me. Maybe he doesn't want to know."

Remus sits up and holds Sirius' gaze so gently and so intensely I feel like I should give them some privacy. "Sirius. He's here, right? He called you. And he flew across the country to spend time with you. He's tired. And overwhelmed. But he's here. That's what's important."

Sirius stares back at him for a moment before nodding and giving him a small smile. "You're right. It's only the first day. We have time."

"Exactly."

Sirius seems to get a bit of energy back after that, sitting up and grilling us for all the details of our day surfing with the girls. I pull out my phone to show Sirius videos I got of Remus, who flushes brilliantly at Sirius' compliments. It goes both ways, of course. I don't know how Remus can't see the attraction and affection written all over Sirius' face as he watches.

Remus pays me back by showing him the videos he took of me, and then we pull up the group chat we have with the girls to show him the shots that Marlene and Dorcas got. And these are just from their phones. They had their fancy cameras out today and promised to send some edited ones to us tonight to post on our Instagram.

There's one picture of Remus that even I start to drool over a little. It's an action shot of him crouched on the surfboard at the top of a wave. It shows the muscles in his back and calves, and Dorcas caught his concentration face, one I've seen on him a million times and always think makes him look like he belongs on the cover of a magazine. I catch Sirius lingering on that one, too, even after our conversation moves on to our plans for tomorrow.

I'm in the middle of begging Remus to stay for dinner when Regulus reemerges, blinking sleepily and looking incredibly adorable. It's not the first time I've found Regulus attractive. It's hard not to. The Black genes are strong, and he has the same sharp features, striking grey eyes, and curly black hair that Sirius does. But I push that thought away to think harder about later. Or never. Instead, I switch couches so Regulus can sit next to Sirius.

"Morning, sleepyhead," Sirius teases as Regulus sinks onto the couch next to him.

"Sorry. I haven't slept well the last few days," Regulus says softly, shooting a wary smile at Remus.

Sirius' smile deflates the tiniest bit. "No. No, worries. I'm glad you got to sleep." He turns to Remus. "Remus, this is my brother, Regulus. Regulus, Remus."

Remus gives one of his softest smiles, the ones he reserves for kids and close friends. "It's nice to meet you, Regulus. Hopefully, you're less of a disaster than your brother."

Sirius gasps. "Hey! Rude."

Regulus gives Remus a more genuine smile. "Everyone is less of a disaster than my brother."

"Betrayal!" Sirius exclaims. "James, my love. You don't think I'm a disaster, do you?"

I shake my head at him. "Sorry, Pads. I have to go with Remus and Regulus on this one."

Sirius flops back on the couch with a long sigh. "I cannot believe it. I have been stabbed in the back by my most trusted friends. This must have been how Caesar felt."

"I'm surprised you know who Julius Caeser is," Regulus mutters. The look on his face is one I feel in my bones - a cross of amusement and utter confusion I often experience around Sirius' dramatics.

"Excuse you." Sirius head pops up. "I took Shakespeare with Mr. Davis just like you did."

"And you were too distracted by Frank Longbottom to pay attention half the time," I remind him. "How did you put it? 'He shot up like a weed - a sexy one.'"

"I stand by that."

"He was quite attractive," Regulus says, tucking his feet under him. "I probably would've gotten distracted from Shakespeare by him, too."

Remus shakes his head. "You all are insane."

Sirius sits up fully again. "Oh, come on, Moony. You can't convince me that you've never been distracted from schoolwork by a beautiful boy before." He smirks at Remus' blush. "I thought so."

"Moony?" Regulus asks, scoffing. "You gave poor Remus one of your awful nicknames?"

"They're not awful!"

Regulus gives me a look. "I know for a fact that yours and Sirius' both reference something dirty. I'd bet a lot of money that Moony is referencing some incident involving someone's rearend. Was Remus the victim or the perpetrator?" I smirk at Remus, who blushes deeper. Regulus' jaw drops. "Remus!"

"Let's just say that drunk Remus is the disaster Remus," Sirius giggles. "It doesn't happen often, and it's hilarious."

"Oh, I had so much hope that you would be the sane one in this trio," Regulus groans, pressing a hand over his eyes. "Now, I see why you get along with these idiots."

Sirius and I protest loudly, but Regulus won't hear it. Eventually, Remus raises his hands. "Alright. Alright. Calm down. Regulus, I deeply apologize for what you have stumbled into. But it does mean that every day is quite a party. That you can count on."

Regulus gives him another smile. "I look forward to it."

I clap my hands together once and stand up. "Alright. Well, I'm going to start dinner. Regulus, do you have any allergies or anything you absolutely despise?"

Regulus shakes his head, but Sirius jumps in. "He hates peas."

"Whatever you make is fine, James."

"No peas. Good thing I'm making tacos. Tacos for four."

"James -"

I cut Remus off. "You can't bail on Regulus' first night. You're staying for dinner."

Remus sighs. "Fine. But at least let me contribute something. Anything you don't have?"

"Mm." I scan our food cupboard. "If you have any taco toppings. We have the normal ones, but I know you like black olives for some reason."

"I will grab a can of black olives then." He disappears.

"Does he eat with you a lot?" Regulus asks, flipping his phone around in his hands.

I shrug and dig out a frying pan. "Most nights. He's stubborn. Doesn't let us buy things for him or feed him very often even though we can definitely afford it. But we can convince him into staying for dinner if he brings something."

Regulus hums, and he looks like he wants to ask more questions but refrains. Remus reappears as I'm transferring ground beef to the pan and starts washing vegetables and opening cans before I can stop him. I half listen to Sirius and Regulus' conversation as the meat cooks and I warm tortillas in another pan.

"Who are you texting?"

"Barty and Evan."

"Oh God. You're still friends with those psychopaths?"

"Look who's talking. And yes, I am."

"Are they still dating?"

"Yes. Pisses their parents off, which I think is like twenty percent of why they're still together."

"What do they think of you leaving Mom and Dad's?"

"They, uh, they don't know yet."

"You haven't told your best friends?" I peek at Regulus out of the corner of my eye long enough to see him shake his head. "Have you told anyone?"

"My other good friend, Pandora. I met her my first year at Harvard."

"And what does she think?"

"She's happy for me. She wanted me to leave a long time ago, at least to move onto campus or share an apartment with her." Regulus pauses. "She wants me to move in with her. When I get back to Boston."

"When do you think you'll go back?" There's something in Sirius' tone that breaks my heart. If he got his way, Regulus would never leave.

"I don't know. I'm supposed to be back at school in September." There's a long moment of silence, and Remus and I exchange a look.

"Well, you're welcome to stay with James and I as long as you want. Right James?"

I nod immediately. "Of course. It's close quarters. And you'll have to sleep on the couch, but it's comfortable. Right, Remus?"

"Yeah. And you're not a giant like me, so you'll actually fit on it."

Regulus lets out a breath of a laugh. "Alright then."

Sirius' smile is so brilliant I almost have to look away.