Engulfed by Flames

by ametheliawrites

Summary:

When Regulus finally leaves his family home to seek out his brother, everything is good. Though, the apartment is too small and Regulus is soon invited to live with James Potter and his girlfriend, Lily Evans.
How will the three of them go about sharing an apartment, especially with all the feelings and sexual tension surrounding them?

Notes:

Gahhh first time writing Jegulily.
If you're also interested in reading reader-self-insert, check out my tumblr. (https://www.tumblr.com/remuslupinslittleslut)

Hope u enjoy, if not, keep it to urself :)

Chapter 1: London.

Looking out the window of the train, Regulus had to swallow down hard to stop the tears from running down his cheeks. His fingers fidgeted with the ticket in his lap. He hoped the conductor would come by soon, or else they wouldn’t be able to read the ticket at all. The memories of the past few hours played on repeat inside his mind, over and over and over.

Shaking his head, he reached his scrunched up ticket to the conductor, he was young, maybe younger than Regulus himself.

“You alright there, bruv?” The boy asked in a heavy accent.

Regulus looked away, avoiding the boy’s gaze.

“I’m fine, thanks,” he mumbled. It wasn’t that big of a lie. He wasn’t perfectly fine, no , but he had left . Packed a bag, left the key and ran out, hopping on the first train to London. Unfortunately, there had been a wait and he was now thoroughly soaked from the rain, but he couldn't care less. He had left.

Focusing his eyes back out the window, Regulus thought about what he would do when he got to London – he’d only been there a few times and didn’t know the city well enough to find his way around. Sirius lived in London. Grimmauld Place no. 12, to be exact. Regulus had memorised the words, and still, they were scrawled on a piece of paper, shoved in his left back pocket. Regulus didn’t have his brother’s number, didn’t have any way to reach him. Still, he thought, perhaps he should’ve reached out before hopping on a train to go see him.

It was an anxious Regulus Black who alighted the train at Kings Cross Station that Saturday afternoon. An even more anxious Regulus Black who sat down in a cab, and gave the address from the note in his pocket. It was a scared-out-his-mind Regulus Black who stood on the other side of a door from his brother, reaching a hand up, ready to knock.

“James, that you–,” a voice which did not belong to Sirius said from the other side of the door, before it swung open. “Oh.”

Regulus recognised Remus, the tall man with the soft eyes.

“Sirius, uh, come here,” Remus shouted into the apartment, before stepping aside and letting Regulus in.

“What,” Regulus knew the snarky tone of his brother’s voice, he was in a good mood. “ Oh .”

“Uh,” Regulus started, dropping his bag to the floor, “hi?”

He couldn’t even blink before he was engulfed in the most bone-breaking hug of his life.

“Reggie,” hands were placed on either side of his cheeks, “you’re here? You’re really here?”

The smile on Sirius’ face was bigger than Regulus had ever seen, making him instinctively wrap his arms around Sirius’ waist, returning the hug.

“Are you okay?” Sirius had pulled away just enough to face him, searching his eyes. Regulus knew he looked like crap, his eyes were likely sunken and the circles beneath were darker than he took his coffee. But yes, he was okay.

Sirius was nothing like their parents, Regulus knew this. Still, he was a bit surprised at the warmth and love wrapped around him as soon as he stepped foot inside his brother’s home. Sirius and Remus quickly noticed how wet and cold Regulus was, and ushered him into the shower, Remus handing him a clean towel and Sirius laying out clean clothes for him. It was strange, not the kind of treatment Regulus was used to.

Maybe it was the unusualness of the warmth, both the water against his skin and the feeling in his soul, that made him let go. Regulus had to lean against the shower wall to stabilise himself as the tears shook his body, salt mixing with the burning-hot water of the shower.

Regulus refused to leave the shower until his crying had ended, he could usually control his emotions very well but this was all too much for him so he ended up standing beneath the hot water for way too long, probably causing a spike in his brother’s water bill. When his eyes were finally dry of tears, he turned off the water and stepped onto the fluffy rug. He had never liked the look of himself in a mirror before. He was small , Sirius might be a bit short but Regulus was even shorter, and not nearly as broad. It didn’t help that he was also so skinny, barely more than skin and bones – and the scars, of course, which covered his back and sides, from the belt, the whip and sometimes the electrical cord. His neck was bruised, little claw marks from his mother’s hands pressed into his skin. He had done his best to hide them beneath his own shirt, but realised as he pulled Sirius’ shirt over his head that it would be harder to conceal now.

Not wanting to spend any more time in the small bathroom, Regulus dug through their medicine cabinet, finding deodorant and what was clearly his brother’s face cream. Sirius had always been particular about self care. He also found a comb which he dragged through his matted locks. Maybe he’d grow his hair out like Sirius had, cut it into a matching shag. Though Regulus wasn’t sure if he’d fit the look. He took a final look in the mirror before he placed everything back exactly where he’d found it and went to face his hosts.

Outside the bathroom, Regulus noticed, the amount of people had doubled. Remus sat on the couch, talking to a blonde guy with a round, kind face. Sirius stood by the record player, searching through a basket of records. In the kitchen, which could be seen from the living room, was a tall dark man, stirring a big pot.

“Reggie,” Sirius said, as he noticed his younger brother had entered the room. The sentence was supposed to continue, but was stopped, and Regulus knew why. Sirius’ eyes had dropped to his neck, where the blue and red marks were visible.

“‘S okay,” Regulus mumbled, looking down, but not before he got a look from his brother which said we’ll talk more later .

Remus, who had noticed something was up but who was also a good host decided to interrupt the silence.

“Regulus, meet Peter, our friend,” Remus said, standing up and gesturing toward the blonde man. “I’m sorry, we already had plans and we didn’t have time to cancel before they came. Don’t worry though, it’ll be a slow evening.”

Regulus nodded, and reached out a hand to Peter, who took it and said his hello. Peter, Regulus found out, had gotten to know Sirius and Remus at uni, where they had been in the same dorm corridor. He was in the middle of telling Regulus about his job at a big tech company when a head popped out of the kitchen.

Regulus, honestly, should have seen this coming. Though, even if he had, he probably would have felt the same, it was as if the world stopped.

“Reg-” Regulus hadn’t heard James’ voice in so many years, but it sounded exactly the same.

“Right, you two already know each other,” Sirius said, coming to join James in the kitchen, having decided on playing a Bowie record.

Regulus knew he should probably speak but something about seeing James again felt like being put in a time machine, and suddenly he was 12 again, watching his brother and his friends from his bedroom window.

“Yeah,” he finally mustered, “Hi.”

James smiled at him. “Hi, baby Black. ” Regulus rolled his eyes at the old nickname and reminded himself to breathe.

Dinner was nice, James had cooked them a lovely indian dish and they struggled to fit around the little table. Regulus sat mostly quiet, listening to the friends talk. Remus was teaching a course in English Lit at the university, Sirius worked at a tattoo shop. James, to Regulus’ utter disappointment and dismay, had a girlfriend, Lily, who he had moved in with about a year ago. Peter, who they all called Pete, was aromantic and lived alone with his pet turtle.

“So, what do you do?” Peter had asked Regulus.

“I work for my dad,” Regulus stopped, that wasn’t true anymore, was it? “I uh, I worked for my dad.” He corrected. “Now I don’t know what I do.”

“What do you want to do?” Remus asked, passing Sirius the bread.

Regulus thought about it – he didn’t know what he wanted, hadn’t thought about his own wants for a long time.

“I’m not sure yet, but I want to find out.”

Chapter 2: Moving, again.

Regulus was so grateful that he could stay with Sirius and Remus, he really was. But there were some… issues. Sirius and Remus lived in a one bedroom apartment, which was perfect for the two of them, but got very crowded when they had a guest staying for an uncertain amount of time. Regulus slept just fine on the couch but he couldn’t help feeling a little bit in the way. Then there were the days, when both Remus and Sirius would leave Regulus alone in the apartment for hours. It was excruciating being left alone with his own thoughts for so long, and the boredom was sure to kill him if he didn’t do it himself first.

The second issue was quickly fixed. It was Remus who came up with the solution, as he was a teacher at uni, he could admit Regulus to his class, making him eligible for funding from the school and giving him something to do during the days. Regulus, who probably enjoyed reading about as much as Remus, looked forward to attending his classes, and made sure to order all the books, even though Remus offered them to him for free. ( “But I wanna be able to write in them and I don’t wanna ruin your books.” )

The first issue… well it only got worse as the days went by, and already after four days, Regulus felt like an intruder. It was the second time since his arrival that James was at the apartment, cooking his friends dinner, ( “He does that, often, especially when Lil’s away for work.” ) and having to shove his bag, pillow and duvet into the bedroom just so that they could all fit around the coffee-table felt like a very temporary solution.

“You know what,” James said, placing his cup on the table, “you should move in with us.”

Regulus looked up and honest to god gasped . Move in, with his teenage-crush and his girlfriend? That would be crazy. Luckily for him, though, he didn’t have to say it.

“Nonsense, James, he is my baby brother and I will keep him here,” Sirius argued, determined in his voice.

James rolled his eyes. “This,” he gestured around the room, “clearly isn’t working. And we have a spare bedroom, it’s closer to uni and you’d still be able to see each other all the time. And ,” James waited a few moments, building suspense, “he’d get fed every day, not just when I bother to visit you.”

Having his own room, and getting to eat James’ amazing cooking daily almost made Regulus consider the offer.

“Please,” previously, James had argued with Sirius – bringing back memories of the two of them bickering like brothers already at the age of 12 – but now he was speaking directly to Regulus, “at least come have a look. I’m sure you’ll be a lot more comfortable in a real bed, with real food.”

And oh those pleading eyes, perhaps, if Regulus was a stronger man, he’d be able to turn them down.

“Yeah, but only if you’re sure you mean it ?”

James, the sweetest person in Regulus’ whole world jumped up and actually pumped his fist into the air. “Yes!” Then he took Remus with him to pack up Regulus’ stuff – without Regulus.

Sirius, who was still sitting with Regulus looked concerned as he worried his bottom lip between his teeth.

“Is this what you want?” He asked, eyes digging into Regulus’.

Thinking it over once more, Regulus replied, “Yeah, I think so. You’ll get your living room back, and James seemed excited, right?”

“You’ll have to come see us, several times a week,” Sirius said, “and you’re always welcome, if you want to come back, and if you need anything, you just call me, day or night, okay?”

Regulus agreed, and as he stood up, received another bone breaking hug from his brother.

***

It was the first time Regulus had ever been alone with James Potter, and his younger self would be absolutely screaming internally. He had to keep reminding himself about James’ girlfriend.

“So, we already had dinner, but I usually get snacky at night – do you get snacky at night? – And there’s a store just here and I thought – do you like crisps? – That maybe we should do some shopping – also Lily gets home soon so I should probably stock up on her snacks – but I can do that later – anyway, did you say you like srisps?”

James was a rambler, something Regulus had already noticed but it only got worse as they were left alone. James was carrying Regulus’ bag over one shoulder, as though it weighed nothing, after he noticed Regulus struggling with it, and as he was walking, he was talking . It would be annoying, if it were anyone else, but Regulus only found it endearing, even when he could hardly get a word in.

“Uh, yeah, I like crisps, but only salt and vinegar ones, if that’s okay?”

This made James stop dead in his tracks.

“What!?”

Regulus looked around, trying to understand what would cause this reaction. He couldn’t find anything, so he just stared at the man in front of him.

“You only like salt and vinegar? You absolute heathen,” James exclaimed, making Regulus’ mouth fall open, before he fell into giggles.

“Oh, I’m so sorry to offend,” he said, and made a move to start walking again.

James followed, and directed him across the street and toward the Tesco, still muttering about salt and vinegar and heathens. (Though, he still put the little green bag into their cart.)

***

James and Lily’s apartment was very different from the one of Sirius and Remus. Regulus could immediately tell that a woman lived here, it was decorated much more to his own taste, and he was known for being quite feminine in his preferences.

“So,” James said, dropping the grocery bags in the kitchen before moving further into the apartment, “you’ll sleep in here,” he gestured to a room to the left, “and we’ll be in here, and then the bathroom’s down the hall.”

James let Regulus’ bag fall onto the bed, before leaving him alone with the words, “I better go put the ice cream in the freezer, please, make yourself at home.”

The room was nice, it had a window with a few green plants on the sill, and a queen sized bed which was already made. One of the walls had closets built into it, and there was a desk beside the bed. It was nice, and way more convenient than Sirius’ couch. It wasn’t long before James was back, asking if Regulus wanted to watch a movie, he did.

The living room, much like the rest of the apartment was nice, there were plenty of plants, a big wall of books and a teal couch. James had taken one end and Regulus sat down at the other, making himself as small as possible, as James flickered through the channels. There was a question gnawing at Regulus and he knew he wouldn’t be able to hold it in much longer.

“What’s she like?” He asked. “Your girlfriend?”

He silently cursed himself for sounding jealous, he should only be grateful for their hospitality. But James either didn’t notice, or chose to ignore Regulus’ jealousy and answered the question with so much enthusiasm.

“Oh, she’s amazing, she’s so smart, way smarter than me – we actually met through Remus, they became friends early on in uni, and then he introduced us, and I was just in love, you know?” Regulus could tell how enamoured James was with his partner. “And she finally agreed to go on a date with me, and we’ve been together ever since. Right now, though, she’s away for work. She owns this little café with her friend Mary, and they are at some conference up north this week. She'll be home soon though. You’ll love her, she’s the best.”

“She sounds great, I’m really happy for you,” Regulus said, and he felt himself mean it. No matter how big of a crush he’d had on James, he cared about the other man a lot, and wanted him to be happy.

“Thanks, man, I’m happy for me too,” James said, giving Regulus a warm smile. “How do you feel about watching an Indiana Jones?”

Smiling back, Regulus agreed and James played the movie. To his credit, James made it all through half the movie before he got his night-snackies and went up for crisps, returning with two bowls, one of which he handed to Regulus. It was his salt and vinegar crisps.

Chapter 3: Always with me.

The next day, for the first time since coming to London, Regulus woke up from his own alarm. It was his first day of class with Remus, and he refused to be late. Sneaking into the kitchen, Regulus was careful not to make any noise, which turned out to be completely unnecessary as a shirtless James was already sitting at the kitchen table, holding a cup of coffee and scrolling through his phone.
“Good morning,” he smiled, always the chirpy guy.
“Morning,” Regulus replied, never having been one for happiness in the morning.
James, who had lived with Sirius and Remus long enough during their time in uni, knew to let him be until he’d had his coffee. Regulus was very pleased to find out James was quite the master of the coffee maker, and made sure to enjoy every single sip. When Regulus was halfway through his cup, James got up and placed two pieces of toast in the toaster, before buttering them and putting one in his mouth and the other in front of Regulus.
“Oh,” he said, around his mouthful of toast, “Lily texted, she’s coming home late tonight.”
Regulus smiled, but felt he had nothing to say, so he just kept eating his toast and drinking his coffee. He wasn’t sure if he was ready to meet James’ girlfriend yet. It had been so much just to come to London and meet everyone again, and he was just starting to feel good hanging with James. What if meeting Lily would change that? What if Lily would hate him and want him out of their apartment and he’d be homeless? It was just too much for him to deal with, he had class to get to. Thanking James for the breakfast, and avoiding looking at the man’s naked chest, Regulus left the kitchen to get dressed.
***
Regulus was surprised to find himself nervous over his first day of school. He had so much doubt in himself, about his performance in class, about his classmates, about getting lost on campus. He was just in the midst of freaking out when someone bumped into him.
“Hi, are you in professor Lupin’s class?” A dreamy, female voice said.
The voice belonged to a blonde girl, with waist long hair. She was pale, even paler than Regulus, who stood staring at her in chock. What was she wearing? He thought, looking her up and down. She had wide pants on, and a loose shirt, and from her ears dangled… were those radishes?
“Hello?” She asked, waving a hand in front of Regulus’ eyes.
“Hi, uh, yeah, I’m in Lupin’s class, yeah,” he said, still trying to figure out what her earring situation was.
She gave no explanation of her strange choice of clothing, but instead started talking about class. “Are you new here? I haven’t seen you before? Do you want any of my notes?”
She was almost as good as James at rambling. Luckily, she was interrupted by Remus opening the door to the classroom.
“Regulus, hi,” Remus said, with a warm smile, as he held up the door for the students to enter. Regulus stayed behind for a bit, assuring Remus he was settled in at James’ and asking about Sirius.
As Regulus entered the classroom, the blonde girl waved at him, gesturing for him to sit down next to her. Not knowing anyone else, Regulus did just that.
“What’s your name?” The girl asked. “My name is Pandora, Pandora Lovegood.”
She reached out a hand, which Regulus shook. “Regulus, Black,” he said.
At that moment, Remus started his lecture on Frankenstein, and Regulus had to take notes. Well, he didn’t really have to, he usually remembered everything from lectures, but he wanted to show Remus that he was paying attention so he wrote everything down. In the break, he even took Pandora up on her offer, and asked to copy her previous notes from the class.
It was an interesting lecture, and Remus made a lot of good points. Towards the end, he handed out study questions for the book, for the class to go over before the next class, which would be a seminar.
Regulus waited for Remus outside the classroom, and Pandora kept him company. Before leaving, Pandora borrowed Regulus’ phone to add her own contact, and to follow herself on instagram.
“So, I was gonna go meet Sirius for lunch, wanna join?” Remus asked, as he guided Regulus through campus, from the classroom and to his shared office. Remus wasn’t a full time professor, he only taught a few classes on the side of his PhD in Literature, so he didn’t have his own office yet.
***
The studio Sirius worked at was quite far from campus, so Regulus and Remus had to take two different trains in the underground to get there. Regulus felt quite lost in the city, but tried remembering every part of their path, so that maybe he could find his way by himself in the future.
“It’s just up here,” Remus said, gesturing to a sign which read Black Dogs Tattoo.
As it turned out, the studio was owned by Sirius himself along with a woman named Marlene, who was busy with a client when Regulus and Remus walked through the door.
“Oh god, I’ve missed so much,” Regulus sighed.
“Not any more, though,” Sirius said, squeezing his shoulder.
Regulus smiled and looked around. It felt just like Sirius bedroom used to, drawings all over the walls. He could tell which ones were made by his brother, he recognized his distinct style.
“Did you have to study at university to become a tattoo artist?” Regulus asked, eyes fixed on one certain drawing, up on the far wall. It was a constellation – his constellation, the lion.
Coming up to stand next to him, Sirius pushed his arm against Regulus. “No, I went there to study art, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. Then Marlene had this big dream about a studio and she asked if I wanted in. And I did.” He elbowed Regulus in the ribs. “That one I didn’t do myself, I had Marles do it, it’s right here.” Then he lifted his shirt to show his own rib cage, and along the many tattoos covering his body, on his left rib, he did have a leo tattoo, with Regulus, the star, outlined in white. “Always with me.”
That piece of information was way more than Regulus could handle, and he thought if he opened his mouth he’d let out a sob, so he didn’t. Instead he turned back to the wall, looking at the different drawings. They were all pretty. Not pretty like “my brother has a tattoo for me”, but pretty nonetheless.
They ordered food, and as they waited, Remus went behind the back to make them some coffee, and Sirius took up his ipad and started drawing on it. Apparently he had a client early the next day.
“Do you want any?” He asked, looking up at Regulus.
“What?” He asked.
“Tattoos,” Sirius clarified.
“Oh,” Regulus had never really thought about it. His parents were very anti – likely why Sirius chose it as a profession. He thought they looked nice on Sirius, and on James, who he’d seen had a few across his body. But on himself? “I don’t know, I don’t know what I’d get.”
Sirius chuckled. “Yeah, I’ll help you with that. We’ll find something for you.”
After lunch, Regulus and Remus agreed to wait for Sirius to finish work, before they followed Regulus home to James – which Regulus was very grateful for, as he never would’ve made it there himself.
James, who worked as a sports journalist, was already home when they got there. Regulus had listened to him talk about his work the previous night, and apparently he only had to be in his office when he was going to report from live sports, otherwise he worked from home.
“Honey I’m home,” Sirius sinsang as he walked through the door.
“Oh, darling, how I’ve missed you,” James gave Sirius a big smooch.
“Ugh, you dogs,” Remus complained, as he walked past them into the apartment.
“Oh you love us,” Sirius blew several kisses toward his boyfriend before following him inside, plopping down on the couch in the living room.
James hung around in the hallway, waiting for Regulus to untie his shoes and shimmy out of his jacket.
“Hi Baby Black, how was the first day of classes?” He asked.
Hanging his jacket on the hook on the wall, Regulus sighed. “It was good, thank you. How was work?”
“Oh, same old, same old,” James said. “I wrote an article on last night’s game and prepped for the game this weekend.”
Regulus didn’t know what sport was playing a game “this weekend” and just nodded in agreement. He wasn’t one for sports.
James invited his friends for dinner, Regulus offered to help out in the kitchen.
“Here, chop these,” James said, handing Regulus a chopping board with celery and carrots.
They were making chicken soup, and James was head chef, Regulus was the assistant. From the kitchen they could see through the open floor plan into the living room, where the other two were sitting on the couch, watching telly like they owned the place. It was nice, familial. James singing along to the radio, charging Regulus around in the kitchen. When Regulus had chopped all vegetables, he was put on dish-duty, and then told by James to set the table.
“So, Lily’s coming home tonight,” Remus said during dinner. “Are you excited?”
James’ eyes lit up. “Yeah, I can’t wait to introduce her to Reg, I think they’re gonna get along really well!”
Sirius snorted. “You shouldn’t be excited Jams, they’re gonna gang up on you. – Hey did Reg tell you he’s gonna let me tattoo him?”
This made Regulus choke on the spoonful of soup in his mouth.
“What?” He managed to get out, between coughs. “That’s… Not what we agreed on, at all? I said I’ll think about it, maybe.”
The choking and the denying only made Sirius laugh and neither James or Remus could keep it in themselves. James laughed so hard water shot out of his nose, which made all of them laugh even harder, Regulus too.
After dinner, Sirius and Remus went home in a rush after James threatened Sirius that he’d have to do the dishes, “mate, Lil’s coming home tonight, can’t have the kitchen looking a mess.”
Regulus took it upon himself to do them before James could even ask. But not before he got a hard hug from Sirius, who made him promise to call if he needed anything.
“You didn’t have to do that,” James said, leaning against the wall in the kitchen, nodding to the sink at Regulus’ confused look.
“Oh, I don’t mind, it’s the least I could do,” Regulus said, rinsing a clean plate. James reached out a hand, grabbed the plate and used a tea-towel to dry it off.
They stood in silence for a while, only the music on the radio playing. It was comfortable, not awkward or tense, they just worked in tandem, Regulus washing and rinsing, James drying and returning to cabinets. They were disturbed only by the sound of a key rattling in the door.
Lily was home.

Notes:

OK now I've got to calm down for a bit, no more spamming chapters.
xx

Chapter 4: Terrible MD.

Notes:

GAH Lily's home :)

Also I read your comments and CRIED you're all so sweet I love you Hugs and, also, many Kisses

Lily was home.

Regulus had never seen James so happy, his reaction was that of someone who’s partner came home from war – even though Regulus knew Lily had been away less than a week. They were stuck in an embrace longer than any hug Regulus had ever received. It felt awkward and weird, standing on the sideline and watching two people hold each other like that. Regulus shifted nervously.

Lily was beautiful, he already knew from seeing pictures of her, but standing in front of him, she was even more enticing. Her red hair was like fire, her curved body filled the clothes she was wearing beautifully and the way she held onto James… Regulus could safely say that he was being eaten alive from the jealousy surging through his body.

“You must be Regulus,” Lily said. Regulus was ready to give his right hand for her to shake but before he could, she had wrapped her arms around him and held him almost as close as she had James. “It’s so nice to meet you. I’m really glad you’re here.”

Regulus didn’t quite know what to do with that so he excused himself back into the kitchen to finish up the dishes.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that right now,” Lily said, reaching out a hand to touch his arm. The touch burned his skin.

“No, ‘s okay, there's not much left,” Regulus said, turning his back to the happy couple.

She was so nice, truly everything James had described and more. Regulus despised her already. Dipping his hands into the soapy water, he realised there actually weren’t any dishes left to do, so he just wiped down the area and fought with having to go back out there.

“Is it okay if I use the shower?” Regulus asked, walking into the living room where James and Lily were sprawled out on the couch, legs entangled, with her head on his chest.

“Yeah, of course,” Lily smiled up at him.

“We were gonna ask if you wanted to watch a movie or something?” James added, looking at him expectantly.

This made the knot in Regulus’ stomach grow even tighter, though he couldn’t tell you why.

“No, that’s uh, okay, I’m sure you wanna catch up,” he dragged a tired hand over his face, “I’m just gonna shower and go to bed.”

Standing beneath the burning hot water, Regulus tried his very hardest to ignore his feelings. So much had happened since he hopped on that train to London, and now he was stuck in an apartment with the two nicest people in the world and he just felt… upset? Angry? Disappointed? Sad? Depressed? He didn’t even know himself.

The self-hatred and gnawing feeling in his stomach hadn’t left him when he got back into the guest-room he stayed in – but his mind was soon moved somewhere else entirely.

If Victor Frankenstein was just a college student – WHY do we call him Dr!? Did he get a doctorate in stupid????

It was a text from Pandora, the girl from Regulus’ class. It made Regulus snort.

Yeah, I know right. What a terrible MD he’d have been.

He pressed send and waited. Soon the three dots appeared, indication he was about to get a reply.

Hey, do you wanna meet up on campus tomorrow? Share notes?

It made Regulus smile. He replied that he did want to see her to share notes but only if they also got coffee – she agreed.

The text-interaction made Regulus feel a little bit lighter as he fell asleep, listening to the sound of James and Lily watching the telly.

***

Luckily, Regulus had paid enough attention to be able to go to campus all on his own, without getting lost even once.

“Hi, Regulus,” Pandora was waving, not that she would ever be hard to miss. Today she was wearing an all orange outfit, which, to be fair, did look good on her.

“Hey,” Regulus smiled, sitting down opposite her.

Pandora was very nice, and surprisingly smart – her thoughts on the book were sometimes not the same as Regulus’, though he felt he could always get her point of view.

“Oh, you better get yourself that coffee right now, because the next section of study questions is gonna be way harder,” she said.

Groaning, Regulus agreed. “Do you want anything from the cart?”

Pandora didn’t drink coffee but agreed to a cup of green tea, promising that she would get it the next time. Regulus told her not to worry about it.

“So, do you know Professor Lupin?” Pandora asked when Regulus got back with the two cups.

“Uh, yeah, actually, he’s living with my brother,” Regulus said.

“So that’s how you got in late?” Pandora asked, not waiting for a reply before adding, “where were you before?”

“Yes, Remus– Professor Lupin, helped me get in,” Regulus said, not knowing how to continue, “and before… I worked.” He settled. He wanted to pick up his notes and continue their studying, but it felt rude not to ask her something about herself after she asked about him. “What about you?”

Pandora laughed, it was airy and beautiful. “No, Professor Lupin did not help me get in,” she said, smiling. Regulus rolled his eyes. “I am working on a bachelors in peace and conflict resolution, this is just an elective semester.”

Regulus was very impressed, and urged her to tell him more about that.

Pandora was nice, easy, funny, Regulus thought as he left to go home after a few hours. They even made plans to go out for lunch the following day, after Remus’ seminar. It felt a bit awkward for Regulus to call him Professor Lupin, but he thought it best to get the habit in lest he embarrass himself in class.

***

Since Lily had been away, it was apparently her turn to choose dinner. The general rule, Regulus could understand, but the choice? It was outrageous.
“I want breakfast for dinner,” Lily had stated. “Scrambled eggs, pancakes, toast, beans. All of it.”

This didn’t seem to surprise James in the slightest and Regulus just stared at the both of them in concern. His parents would never have allowed this.

“Will you help me?” James asked as he was walking to the kitchen. As Regulus was already done with his homework for the following day, he said yes.

“Yes,” said another voice. Of course. James hadn’t asked Regulus to join him in the kitchen, he’d asked Lily.

James just looked between the both of them, face splitting into a wide grin.

“Amazing! Lily, you’re on egg duty, Reg, pancakes.” James was never as bossy as in the kitchen, where he acted like the captain of a highly successful sports team, a born leader. “Let’s go, people!”

They didn’t have a preferred recipe for pancakes, so Regulus found one on his phone and tried following it to the best of his abilities. Before Lily came home, Regulus might have believed that having a third person there would change things, make the dynamic different – to his surprise though, it didn’t, not really. The radio was still on, James still sang along to it as he spun around in the kitchen guiding both Regulus and Lily in their work. They still talked, softly, cracking jokes every now and then. It was nice.

“So, Regulus, how was studying today?” Lily asked him, as he stood, flipping pancakes.

“It was good, I think I have a new friend,” he said, smiling at her, “oh, by the way, do you know any good lunch spots near campus?”

Before Lily could answer his question, though, James cut in. “Oh! Yes! You’ve got to come by the Knead and Read! I’m gonna be there all day, and it’s really nice and you haven’t been yet!”

“The… need and bead?” Regulus looked between the two of them, questioning look in his eye. They both giggled.

“The Knead and Read, it’s my café – well mine and Mary’s, like kneading bread and reading books,” Lily said, smiling at him before turning back to her scrambled eggs.

That’s right, Regulus did know she owned a café.

“It’s great, Reg, you’re gonna love it,” James said, excitement shining through, “it’s got the best vibes, and it’s close to campus, and it’s the best place to work and study – aaand if you live with the owner, you get free coffee.”

It did sound amazing, and Regulus agreed to go, and promised he’d introduce them to his new friend.

“So, did you want to see the second Indiana Jones tonight?” James asked during dinner, this time looking directly at Regulus, meaning there’d be no misinterpretation of to whom he was speaking.

Regulus had enjoyed watching the first one – not necessarily because he loved the movies, more because it was in good company. But now? Third-wheeling a practically married couple?

“Oh, uh, that’s okay, I was gonna just finish up my reading for tomorrow,” Regulus excused.

The two other people at the table shared a pointed look.

“Reg,” James started.

“If you’re gonna live here, which personally, I think you should, you have to feel like it’s your place, too,” Lily said, matter of factly. “You shouldn’t feel like you can’t have the TV, or that you have to ask to use the shower. It’s all yours too, now.”

While this was, indeed, very kind, it did kind of annoy Regulus. Nothing here was his. “I don’t want to intrude,” he started. “It’s just, I don’t even pay rent, and I don’t know how long I’ll stay and–”

He was interrupted.

“But you live here now, and since you’re in uni, we’re not charging you rent. James’ parents own the apartment, and they didn’t charge us during uni. If you want to help out, you can join in on our food-budget. And keep making dinner, these pancakes are amazing.”

“But I…” Regulus started. He didn’t really have any good arguments to rebut with.

“You’re staying here forever if you so please, and we don’t mind it one bit and we want you to feel comfortable,” James said. “Is there anything we could do to make you feel more at home?”

Regulus didn’t quite know what was wrong with him. What messed up part of his being couldn’t accept being accepted. What event in his childhood would cause him to ever react like this. He was so incredibly broken and unkind to himself – he couldn’t stop the sound being ripped from his chest, or the tears running down his cheeks. God he was pathetic. Air wasn’t reaching his lungs at the speed it should and soon Regulus was hyperventilating, hands covering his face as the tears just kept on coming.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he registered the voices of James and Lily but they sounded like they were underwater and Regulus could not hear what they were saying. Shame, anger and frustration was rising inside of him until it felt like he would explode, his body didn’t explode, but something inside him did as a roar of pain was torn from his chest. Regulus didn’t know for how long he’d sat like that, unable to move, when warm, strong hands wrapped around his body and he was lifted from his chair.

At first he didn’t know where he was taken, but he soon recognised the walls of the room he was staying in. James’ arms were still around him as he layed in the other man’s lap, eyes burning from all the tears.

“Shh, little baby, you’re okay now, I’ve got you, you’re gonna be okay,” James’ voice was soothing, as were his hands, rubbing up and down Regulus’ back. Regulus didn’t want him there, he wanted to be alone as he deserved but James’ wouldn’t budge, even when Regulus tried pushing him away. He tried even harder, kicking his legs and pushing against his confines – but it only made James hold him harder, his mouth pressing into the top of Regulus’ head, where his head was getting moist from sweat. “You’re okay, I’ve got you, I’m not going anywhere.”

It was so frustrating, Regulus didn’t want him here, but he had no better way to express it and after a long while, his body fell limp in James’ arms.

***

When Regulus woke up, he was still laying in James’ lap, arms wrapped around him, Regulus’ head against James’ chest. Oh god this was just too embarrassing, how was he ever gonna make this up? Ashamed and embarrassed, Regulus creeped his way out of James’ arms and snuck into the bathroom. He had class. Soon. He’d better get himself ready and out the door in no time, or he’d have to talk to Lily and James and apologise and oh it would be terrible.

He was trying to tie his shoes in the most quiet way possible when he felt the presence of another being in the room with him.

“Hey,” James said, leaning against the doorframe. “You sure you’re good to go to class? I’m sure Remus would understand.”

Regulus looked up at him from beneath his fringe. He did not want to be having this conversation right now. “I’m fine.”

James’ face didn’t betray him. He didn’t look upset, angry or annoyed. He kept his expression completely neutral, which was very hard for Regulus to read.

“You’re not fine,” he said. “And that’s okay. Do you want me to walk you to class?”

Regulus huffed. “No, it’s okay.”

See, Regulus could say he was okay until he was blue in the face but that wouldn’t make him okay. And he knew that, and James knew that. And still, Regulus walked out the door with a mumbled goodbye and set off for class.
‘
Regulus was actually looking forward to discussing Frankenstein, he felt properly prepared and even though his mind was stuck on the previous night, he hoped he would be able to focus enough in class to make Remus happy with his work.

Remus really was a good teacher, Regulus thought as he sat next to Pandora, listening to Professor Lupin talk about the book. He was so engaged and interested, and really loved hearing his students’ opinions – as it was a seminar, Remus kept it more like an open conversation than a lecture, and his interest in their ideas really shone through. Regulus, who still had a bad feeling in his stomach, even managed to get a few sentences in, and he could tell Remus was enjoying it. Yeah, he was a good teacher.

While class was fun and could take away some of Regulus’ anxieties, when they were halfway through the second part of the seminar, he realised he was supposed to go for lunch with Pandora – at Lily’s cafe. It did not feel like a very good plan, and it soon made the clump in his throat grow again, making him wish he could be eaten by the ground. How was he going to find a way out of this? He’d first have to cancel on Pandora, and then he’d have to face Lily tonight, who would obviously know he hadn’t come by the cafe. And where was he going to go instead? He didn’t want to go home, as James would likely be there. He supposed he could stay at campus?

Luckily, by the time his seminar was over, Regulus didn’t have to make any choices, as Sirius stood outside the classroom, clearly waiting for him.

“Hey, Pandora, I’m really sorry, I’m gonna have to cancel,” Regulus mumbled before waving lazily at her, eyes trying to avoid his brother. Pandora, the eternally understanding person, told him not to worry about it and said they’d talk on the phone to make new plans. Regulus was grateful for it.

“Hey, Reg,” Sirius said, as soon as Regulus got close enough for conversation.

“Did James tell you to come?” Regulus asked, eyes rolling back.

Sirius looked down at him, worried look on his face. He did not have the poker face of James. “Yeah, he did.” He grabbed Regulus’ school bag, carrying it for him. “Would you please come with us, we’ll talk. It’s okay, we won’t judge.”

Regulus couldn’t believe it, his eyes darted up at Sirius, staring at him in disbelief. “He’s here?” Regulus hissed. Could this get any worse?

Sirius placed a hand on his arm, which was probably supposed to be comforting, but it did little to calm Regulus’ mind. “Yes, he’s here. Look, when I left, I went straight to James, and he helped me through it. I think he knows how you’re feeling even better than I do. Please, just come on.”

Regulus could tell Sirius’ patience was running low, so he agreed, not wanting to cause any more trouble to the people around him.

They ended up still going to Knead and Read, because “it was more neutral”, which Regulus did not agree with one bit, but he went with them anyway. When they entered, Sirius brought Regulus to a table in a rather secluded corner, while James went to order coffee and sandwiches. Lily stood behind the counter along with a black woman with braids, and they both said hello when the group came in. Lily had a smile on, and as far as Regulus could see it wasn’t faked, which made him feel just a tiny bit better. Maybe she didn’t hate him for having a breakdown during dinner and then sharing a bed with her boyfriend.

At the table, Regulus sat down on the bench in the corner, and Sirius sat on a chair opposite him. Trying to avoid eye contact, Regulus looked around the café. It was cosy, one wall had exposed brick and the other had a muted green colour. On most walls there were big bookshelves and the light was muted, but Regulus noted there were smaller lamps which could be turned on if one wanted to read. There were a few tables for companies up to four, a few big tables for big companies and several chairs for just one to two people. The glass counter showed off several baked pastries and on the wall behind were loaves of freshly baked bread. It really did fit its name – Knead and Read.

“So,” James said as he sat down, handing out their cups. “I know it feels hard, and you probably don’t want to talk about it, but we both care about you, and it is important to talk about, so we’re gonna do it, even if it sucks, and even if it takes all day. And we want you to remember that we’re not going anywhere, you can’t scare us away.”

Regulus huffed, looking away. He wished he could be anywhere else.

“Look, I don’t know what it was like back there after I left, and I’m so sorry for leaving you all alone there,” Sirius said, wringing his hands in his lap, clearly looking upset. “But you’re here now, and you’re talking to the two people in the world most prepared for what you’re feeling right now.”

Regulus looked away again, out the window this time. But it didn’t make Sirius shut up.

“You know, when I left, I went straight to James’, and whatever you do or feel right now, I can tell you, I was a lot worse.”

This made Regulus roll his eyes again. Sirius didn’t know that. His reaction made James chuckle, which infuriated Regulus even more.

“Hah, he was so much worse, biggest arse hole of all time. A true pain to be around.” Out of the corner of his eye, Regulus saw James place his arm around Sirius’ shoulder. “But we never gave up on him. And it has always been worth it.”

Taking a sip of his coffee, Regulus pretended to think about what they’d said. He was thinking about it, but he pretended to pretend.

“You’re gonna have to deal with this some way,” Sirius said, reaching his hands out to clasp Regulus’ in his. “You can either talk to us, or just me or just James, or try a therapist, or something. You have to deal with it, or it’s gonna eat you up. You can ask for things, you know, ask for what you need from us.”

Regulus looked down at his hands, wrapped up in Sirius’. This was so wrong. He did not deserve this. But he couldn’t say that, because if he did they would tell him he was wrong but that’s what you had to say, right? He pulled his hands away, put them in his lap and ignored the sad look on his brother’s face.

“I just,” he didn’t really have anything to say, he just wanted them to be quiet for a bit. “I don’t know. Everything just kind of sucks.”

This made James laugh again.

“Yeah, of course, but that’s why we’re here.”

Notes:

Reg being carried bridal style mid breakdown? My dream.

Chapter 5: Free drinks.

Notes:

I am really terrible at warnings BUT in this chapter there is drinking (which, in on itself, likely won't be a warning in following chapters), and while drinking there are mentions of taking advantage sexually, and it kind of almost happens, though nothing explicitly sexual. There is also some heavier talk about self-hate and using sex as a form of self-harm, kind of. So if that makes you feel bad, don't read it AND I can not promise that I will remember to warn in all following chapters so mayhaps this fic is not for you <3

It had been all of two days since they had sat in the café, talking. Regulus still felt very uncomfortable, but he had noticed a shift in how James and Lily treated him. James sat next to him on the couch writing for work while Regulus read his course material. Lily joined him every morning for coffee, and wouldn’t let him drink it alone. James made him help cook dinner and then they’d all clean up together. It drove Regulus insane. He barely could use the loo alone.

“Did you have any plans for tonight?” James asked him, placing his laptop on the coffee table.

Regulus looked up from the book Remus had assigned.

“No? Why?”

James smiled.

“Well, you remember Marlene, who works with Sirius?” Regulus nodded. “Her and Dorcas, that’s her girlfriend, wanted to go out, hit the town, and it’s been a while since the whole gang got together, so we thought, who would just love being around a bunch of drunk people? Reggie of course!”

Regulus cringed. He definitely did not enjoy being around a bunch of drunk people, but he felt there would be a catch. “Do I have a choice?” He asked.

“Honest answer?” James grinned, poking Regulus with his foot. “No, not really. You’re coming.”

Regulus groaned, the blouse he’d borrowed from Lily sat quite loose on him, and from the unbuttoned first few buttons, he could just barely see his scars, it looked terrible on him. And to make it even worse, Lily had curled his hair a bit at the edges and even smudged some black eyeliner around his eye. It was horrible, and he wanted to cry just from looking at himself in the mirror. Lily always fit her clothes perfectly, filled them out in a gorgeous way, but Regulus could barely hold it up, and with the makeup and hair? Oh no, he just hated it.

“Reggie-love, we’ve gotta go, Remus does not appreciate late guests,” Lily called through the bathroom door.

Bracing himself for being absolutely laughed at by everyone there, Regulus stepped out into Lily and James’ hallway.

“Looking amazing,” Lily smiled, handing him his coat.

James was already dressed, standing in front of the door, holding on to Lily’s purse as she got her heels on. God, does he have to be so handsome? Regulus thought, eyeing the man. James wore a pair of suit pants along with a t-shirt and a sweater west on top, putting his muscular arms on display. His hair was perfectly messy, and his dark eyes were framed by his round glasses.

Behind the glass, Regulus couldn’t see, James’ eyes were completely glassed over. Regulus also didn’t notice the part of his lips and the way he stared. Regulus did, however, hear Lily mutter “close your mouth, you’re drooling, Potter”.

Lily, herself, wore a green corduroy shirt-dress which hugged her curves almost as perfectly as James’ t-shirt hugged his biceps. The emerald green of the dress complimented her fiery red hair and brought out her green eyes. Regulus hated his boring grey ones.

Lily had said Remus hated people being late, which Regulus had to assume was very true because when the trio arrived (quite early, mind you), the small apartment was already full.

Remus came to greet them, taking their coates and being the perfect host. Regulus recognised Mary, the girl from Lily’s café with the braids, and Peter, the man from his first night and figured the lesbian couple would have to be Marlene and Dorcas.

“Hey, Reg,” Sirius shouted across the room, “Guys you have to meet by brother Regulus.” He reached out a hand to Regulus, but still faced the lesbian couple. “Reg, this is Marlene,” Sirius gestured to a blonde girl with a wolf cut and many tattoos across her pale skin. “She’s the one I work with. And this is her girlfriend, Dorcas.” He now gestured to the black girl with a bobbing afro, whose lap was full of Marlenes’ legs. “And obviously, guys, this is Regulus, my little baby brother, but you already knew that because he looks just like me.” Sirius looked down at him with a big, proud smile.

“Hi,” Regulus said, forcing a smile and giving a little wave. He was lucky to be interrupted by James.

“Hello ladies, looking fine,” James smiled and handed Regulus a drink, “do you mind if I borrow this one for a bit?”

Regulus downed the whole glass before following James into Remus and Sirius’ bedroom.

“Did you just?” James looked at the empty glass in Regulus’ hand. “Anyway, even though I think it’s good to expand your world and meet people sometimes,” he placed a hand on Regulus’ waist, as if he was holding him still, making sure he didn’t run away. “I totally get if tonight gets a bit much, because these people can be a bit intense, so if you want to go home, you just let me know, okay? We’ll take you home. You don’t have to stay in an uncomfortable situation if you don’t want to.”

Regulus shuddered. It likely had more to do with the fact that he could feel the heat of James’ hand on his waist and the cold of his breath on his face than anything else. “Okay,” he said, breathily, looking up at James through black eyelashes.

Regulus felt he might have crossed some boundary, because James threw his head back, groaned, squeezed the hand on his hip and then let go, leading Regulus back out to the pregame.

Not wanting to feel more embarrassed over his reaction to James in the bedroom, Regulus inserted himself into Remus' conversation with Mary. It was on the subject of Remus’ class, so Regulus actually had something to add to the conversation. Out the corner of his eye, though, he could see James leaning in to whisper something in Sirius’

Ignoring it, Regulus downed his third drink of the night and kept on listening to the conversation before him. He continued doing that exact thing, listening in on conversations and downing drinks. Before it was time to leave, Regulus had listened to Mary talk about her dogs, Marlene discuss the rules of beer pong with Peter and Sirius tell his very filthiest jokes to Lily (in an effort to upset her, no doubt). And when it was time for them all to walk out the door, Regulus was deliciously buzzed.

They were going to a pub only a few blocks away, so they walked in a wobbly line. Regulus walked next to Sirius who did his brotherly duty of asking about school and what Regulus might want to sign up for for the next semester. Regulus did not know, and was more interested in listening to Sirius talk about his work, which enabled Regulus to be quiet.

Regulus was good at this, he knew. Silently getting drunk and listening to people talk. They were all very nice, asked him questions which he politely answered before asking them about just the right thing that made them talk for a long time without stopping. Yeah, this was his party trick. It allowed him to get properly drunk without anyone really noticing. Not until they were at their third pub did Regulus really notice himself. As he was going to have a piss, he noticed how hard it was for his hands to take his pants off, and the way it made him giggle like a crazy person told him that yup, he was drunk.

When he had washed his hands and gotten back out to the pub, he had to search a bit for his friends, his vision was by now rather hazy. As started making his way over, he bumped into a man, causing him to spill his drink.

“Oh shit, I’m so sorry,” Regulus started, but the man stopped him.

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” the man said, placing a hand on Regulus’ hip (right where James’ hand had been, but Regulus wouldn’t think about that). “Actually, how ‘bout I buy you one?”

Regulus smiled, looked down, and then back up, smirking. This was his second party trick.

The man, who had black, kind of slicked back hair and a polo on was so far from Regulus type – but free drinks and attention? That was something he could appreciate. The man did buy him a drink, a fruity little thing that Regulus knew contained more alcohol than he could taste. This was something that happened a lot, Regulus couldn’t tell if it was because he was small and looked kind of innocent, or if he just had the kind of vibe, but men, often older, always wanted to buy him drinks – but they always came with a price, and often, Regulus would pay.

“You’re such a sweet little thing, how old are ya?” The man asked, having pulled Regulus into his body where he sat on the barstool, Regulus practically sitting in the man’s lap.

Smiling with the straw between his teeth, Regulus looked up at him. “19.”

 

The man squeezed him closer. “19 huh?” He looked to the side and ordered Regulus another drink. “Do you always go for older guys? I’m like, twice your age.”

Regulus giggled. It was just too funny. This man who Regulus was only using for the drinks and attention wanted his affirmations. It was nothing new, but it always made him laugh.

“Nope,” he said, popping the P. “But I guess you’re the exception.” He had absolutely no problem at all flirting with people he didn’t like. Even made sure to let his tongue play with the straw. He soon felt the growing bulge in the man’s pants, and gave himself a mental pat on the back. Mission succeeded. He was just about to let the man take him outside for a breath of fresh air when he was forcefully pulled into a warm chest.

“Regulus. What. The. Fuck. Do. You. Think. You’re. Doing.” James said, holding him close. “Get the fuck away from here, you creep,” he snapped at the man, still holding Regulus up.

It felt nice to be held by James, comfortable. Regulus allowed his head to fall back, like he didn’t have to control his body anymore.

“Reg, what happened?” James sounded… worried? Annoyed? Regulus couldn’t quite place it. “What did he do to you? Are you okay? Can you stand?”

There were so many questions, but Regulus didn’t want to talk, he just wanted James to keep holding him.

Suddenly they were outside, standing on the pavement but Regulus could still hear the music from the pub so he knew they had to be close, still. Somewhere above his head, James was on the phone, talking to someone, ordering them to get a cab.

“Do you know how dangerous that was?” James asked, now facing Regulus again.

Regulus huffed. “What, I always do that,” he said, smiling at James, “Free drinks.” He winked, or, at least he attempted to wink.

James looked shocked. “You… always do that? Let random men take advantage of you?”

This made Regulus giggle. “See,” he tried to sound as sober as possible. “They want me, they can have me. It’s usually not that bad. Plus, you know, free drinks.” He was still smiling. “You’re pretty, did you know?”

“No, Regulus,” James said, holding onto his face. “You’re pretty. Probably the prettiest man in the city. Everyone wants you, you shouldn’t let them have you. You should only have the people you want.”

James’ eyes were boring through Regulus’ skin, it burned. “But James, they don’t actually want me, it’s just sex, no one wants me like that.” And then he took a step back, leaned his head forward and barfed all over both of their shoes.

***

The next morning, Regulus woke up with a pounding head. Knowing that the sunlight would probably be shining through the window, he refused to open his eyes. Squeezed them shut, even, which only made his head hurt even more. He was just about to try to fall asleep again when he noticed the soft snoring. Opening his eyes, he had a minor heart attack.

He wasn’t in the guestroom. He also wasn’t on the couch. No, he was laying in the middle of James’ and Lily’s bed, in between the both of them. James’ body was pressed against his back, a brown-skinned arm wrapped around his waist and the other beneath his head, James’ soft breath against his hair. On the other side was Lily, her head kind of half over Regulus’ shoulder, half on a pillow, one arm on his chest and one leg splayed out over his hips.

How was he supposed to get himself out of this mess? Taking a deep breath, he carefully slipped out of Lily’s grasp, then James’. Neither woke up. Holding his breath, Regulus crawled out of the bed and snuck out of the bedroom. His phone was left out in the living room, and someone had put it on charge. Pulling some fresh clothes over his body, he sent away a text before walking out and locking the door behind him.

About thirty minutes later, he sat in his brother’s kitchen, with a big cup of coffee in front of him. Remus had let him in, guided him to the kitchen, placed the cup in front of him and informed him that Sirius would be joining him as soon as he got out of the shower.

“Hey,” Sirius said, sitting down across from Regulus. His black curls were wet, water droplets collecting on his shirt. “Are you okay?”

And for the first time, maybe in his life, Regulus answered the question honestly.

“No.”

Notes:

PHEW. Reg's really making progress.

Chapter 6: The Doctor.

Regulus was sitting in a waiting room of some very expensive therapist Sirius had helped him find online. It had been a big step just to make the appointment, but Regulus agreed it was best to just try something, even if he felt silly doing it.

“Regulus Black,” the woman at the front desk read from her stack of papers. “The doctor will see you now.” She gestured to a closed door to the left.

Doctor Hayes’ office was… well it wasn’t what Regulus had expected. The doctor had an office chair, and opposite it were two big armchairs. One of the walls had a big bookshelf with psychology books and on the other walls there were these big, abstract paintings.

“So,” the Doctor said, crossing his knees and folding his hands across them. “What brings you here?”

 

Regulus studied one of the paintings, not knowing how to answer.

“Okay, well, why don’t you start off by telling me about yourself – what do you do during the day?”

Regulus groaned, this time internally. How was that supposed to help him?

“I, uh, go to uni. I’m taking a class in English Literature,” he said.

“Okay, so do you live here in London?”

“Yeah, I, actually, I live with my brother’s best friend and his girlfriend.”

“He’s not your friend?”

Regulus sighed. “Yes, he’s my friend too, I guess.”

The doctor hummed, writing something down in a journal. “How did you end up at your brother’s friend’s apartment?”

Leaning back in the chair, Regulus started wringing his hands in his lap. “I, uh, I left… my parents’ house, recently.”

“Your brother had already moved out?”

“Yes, he left when he was seventeen.”

“And how old were you then?”

Regulus thought about it. “I was thirteen.”

“Why’d he leave?”

Regulus sighed. How could this help?

“Well our parents are…” Yes, Regulus? What are they? “They’re not… Uh… They’re just not the most patient of parents, I guess. And Sirius– my brother, he wasn’t really… ready to conform to their standards, I guess.”

“And you were?”

“Yes,” it came out as a whisper. “Yeah, I was. I did.”

“Hmm,” Doctor Hayes wrote in his book for a few more seconds. “And then… what? You didn’t anymore?”

“Look, I’m not crazy, I’m not a lunatic, I don’t even need to be here.”

 

Doctor Hayes looked at Regulus from above his glasses. “So, that’s it then? What changed?”

Regulus’ eyes were fixated on the little pride flag sitting in the window.

“They caught me… uh, they caught me kissing another guy. And they went… yeah, it wasn’t pretty.”

 

“How did that make you feel?”

Regulus threw his body back into the chair in frustration.

“Well, not good,” he said, fidgeting with his hands in his lap.

“So, now you feel like… what? Kissing guys is wrong? Like you don’t deserve to be happy?”

Ouch. “Yeah, something like that,” Regulus said, not looking at the doctor.

“Well, it’s not. And you do.”

Regulus let out a laugh, though there wasn’t really anything funny about it. “And what? That’s supposed to fix me?”

Doctor Hayes looked at him, caught his eye and kept it. “Not just like that,” he snapped his fingers. “But it’s the core of what’s going to help you find your self worth.”

***

There was a lot going on inside Regulus’ head as he made his way back home to James and Lily’s apartment. One thing was for sure, though. He had a lot of work to do. Literally, Doctor Hayes had assigned him homework for the following week and Regulus did not want to disappoint. When he was almost home, he realised what he had to do first of all, and he turned into the grocery store which he and James had visited on his first night.

Eggs, milk and fresh fruit, and some other things as well. Regulus felt happy with his shopping as he climbed the stairs up to the apartment. He knew he was going to be alone for at least two more hours, James had a game to report from and Lily was working until six, so Regulus would have the kitchen to himself as he got to work. First was the dough for the french bread he knew how to make (the only bread he knew how to make), then were the muffins and the pancakes. He’d fix the eggs closer to serving time.

By a quarter to six, the kitchen was finally starting to look usable again, as Regulus had already set the table and started working on cleaning up. He was interrupted from doing the dishes when he heard a key turn in the door. From the voices in the hallway, he realised both James and Lily had gotten home at the same time – perfect.

“Welcome home,” he greeted them in the entryway. “How was work?”

Looking at each other and then back at him, they both smiled. “It was fine,” James said. “Yeah, great,” Lily continued.

“Would you like to join me in the kitchen for dinner?” Regulus asked, putting on his best posh accent.

“Oh my god, Regulus,” Lily said, throwing her hands over her face. “Breakfast for dinner?”

Regulus nodded, smiling, and pulled her chair out for her. “Yeah, I felt like I should make up for the last one…”

“You know you didn’t have to do that.”

 

“I know, but I wanted to.”

“Did you make this bread?” James held up the loaf, looking impressed.

“I went to see a therapist today,” Regulus said, putting a stack of pancakes on his plate. “I… I know I’m… I don’t know, a bit broken (?) right now? But I am working on it, as of today, and I am very grateful for your patience with me.” Oh god, this was hard, he had practised this already with Doctor Hayes, but it still felt weird saying it. “And one of the things my therapist said to do was to ask for things, so I was wondering if I could do some changes to my room? Nothing big, just maybe add some more of my things. And I was wondering if I could have my own coffee mug.”

Realistically, he knew they’d be nice about it, they had been about everything else. But he was not prepared for Lily to raise her hand and high five James.

“That’s great, Regulus,” Lily smiled.

James pulled Regulus up and tucked him in for a tight hug.

“I’m really proud of you, kid,” he said. “This is a cause for celebration!”

Notes:

Good boys go to therapy <3

Chapter 7: Dinner.

Notes:

SORRY for not posting much, MY BAD BABES <3

It was right in the middle of Regulus’ most stressed period that it started.
He was sitting in his bedroom late at night, books open on his desk, classical music playing softly from his phone. He had a lot of respect for Remus, but while studying for his exams, it was hard to remember how much he actually liked his professor.
Starting to zone out, Regulus found himself just staring at the words on the pages before him. Then, he heard it. At first, it was only a sound of soft giggles, which turned into moans and grunts – and soon, Regulus could hear the constant clapping of skin against skin. James and Lily were fucking. Regulus froze – he was for sure not supposed to be listening to this, but he just couldn’t stop, couldn’t find it within himself to put his headphones in and lock the noise out – he sat still, tuning his ears to hear every little sound coming from the other bedroom. In his pants, his cock was growing hard.
Somewhere, deep in his mind, he knew it probably wasn’t right – it wasn’t morally okay to jerk off, listening to your friends having sex. But what was he to do? Pushing one hand into his pants, he slowly wrapped the fingers around himself and tried moving at the same pace as he imagined James’ hips did in the other room. It was with a lot of shame and only a little bit of regret that Regulus pulled his sticky hand from his pants.

***

In the morning, Regulus had a hard time looking James and Lily in the eye, refusing breakfast, he rushed out the door with a forced “I’m meeting Panda”.
It hadn’t been his plan to see Pandora that day, but he figured it best not to lie too much. Luckily, Pandora wasn’t busy – except for exam studying, so she could meet Regulus if he promised they’d study too.
Focusing on school had never been this hard for Regulus. Between sips of coffee he’d read his notes, chat with Pandora and sometimes take a bite of the stale cookie he’d gotten – but his mind was somewhere else.
He was laying in the middle of James’ and Lily’s bed, in between the both of them. James’ body was pressed against his back, a brown-skinned arm wrapped around his waist and the other beneath his head, James’ soft breath against his hair. On the other side was Lily, her head kind of half over Regulus’ shoulder, half on a pillow, one arm on his chest and one leg splayed out over his hips. Oh fuck, he didn’t want to think about this.
James and Lily were fucking. Pushing one hand into his pants, he slowly wrapped the fingers around himself and – No! His cheeks turned pink and he was lucky Pandora was sitting with her head bent over a book. He could not be thinking about this right now.
“So, what did you think about Wise Children?” Asked Pandora, pulling Regulus from out of his thoughts. “I didn’t read the novel, only watched the play, and it was really camp and awesome-,” she chewed on the back of her pencil, not quite looking at Regulus. “- but I’m not sure how to connect it to Hamlet?”
This was good. Regulus did know how to connect Wise Children to Hamlet and explaining it to Pandora would surely take his mind off James and Lily, right?
For the following few hours, Regulus did manage to push his roommates to the back of his mind, focusing only on Pandora and English literature. His thoughts only interrupted by the beep of a text in his back pocket.
Dinner tonight? Rem tells me you’ve got a lot in school before exams, why don’t you let us cook for you?
Regulus smiled. Sirius had never been this… Nice? Affectionate? Regulus made a mental note to thank Remus for that at a later time. Swiping his fingers across the screen, he suddenly got another idea.
“Hey, do you wanna come to my brother’s for dinner tonight?”
Pandora looked at him, wide-eyed.
“Your brother, the one who’s living with Professor Lupin?” She asked.
Regulus chuckled, “Yup, that’s the one.”
“Will Professor Lupin be there?”
“Yeah, I think so,” Regulus said, “but he’s very chill outside of class,” that was… an exaggeration… “it won’t be weird, promise!”
He watched in wander as she took a deep breath, hands coming up to follow the motion of her lungs filling with air.
“Yes, okay, if you’re sure it’s okay?”
“Yes, of course it’s okay, I just invited you,” Regulus rolled his eyes, playfully.
Can I bring a friend? He asked, just to be sure.
Of course :-)
Ugh. Regulus hated those nose-smiles. He’d have to let Sirius know, at dinner.

***

At just before seven o’clock, Regulus and Pandora stood outside the door of Sirius’ and Remus’ apartment. Pandora was clearly nervous, which made Regulus nervous for her.
“It’s gonna be okay,” he murmured as he brought his hand up to knock at the door.
It wasn’t Sirius who opened the door, nor was it Remus, no, on the other side of the door stood Peter, adorning a big smile.
“Hi, Regulus, it’s so nice to see you again,” he said, pulling Regulus in for a big hug. “And you must be Regulus’ friend, I’m Peter, pleased to meet you!”
Pandora reached her hand out, and Regulus was grateful that his brother had chosen such pleasant friends. It was hard to feel uncomfortable around Peter, he just gave off such friendly energy, as Pandora would put it.
It turned out that both Sirius and Remus were in the kitchen – which looked like a mess.
“Hi Reg,” Sirius said, leaning in for a half-hug, his hands dirty from cooking. “See, this is why James always cooks,” he said, apologetically gesturing to the mess.
“Hey Regulus, hey Pandora,” Remus said from the stove, where he stood stirring in a pot, it didn’t smell too bad, Regulus thought.
“Hi Professor Lupin,” Pandora said, and – to Regulus’ utter horror – did a curtsy.
Fortunately, Remus Lupin was a cool person, and also very kind, so he did not even laugh, which couldn’t be said about Regulus who had to fight really hard not to burst out, trying to keep his giggles in behind his hand.
“Pandora, no need for that, I’m just Remus here,” Remus smiled, kindly. God, he was so good, Regulus thought, as he tried covering up his laugh with a cough.
Dinner was nice – oh, no, the food was horrible, they’d tried some new recipe which had royally failed and pizzas were ordered, but the conversation was nice. Pandora got over her awkwardness, it was hard to keep it with Sirius around, Remus did a cheeky little thing and gave them one hint about one of the exam questions, and Peter told them all about Suzanne – his turtle – and the new plants he’d gotten for her little home.
Regulus was so happy, so full of content when he got home; he’d made plans with Pandora to study again the following day, had followed Peter’s instagram account for Suzanne, and promised to walk by Sirius’ parlor later in the week – it had been one truly wonderful evening, successful in keeping Regulus’ mind away from James and Lily. He carefully shoved his key into the door, aware of the fact that it was quite late and he wasn’t sure if they’d be up still. The lights were all off so Regulus walked quietly through the apartment, thinking they were asleep.
But then – oh but then – the door to the bathroom was locked, steam pouring out from around the door, along with the soft sounds of moans and kisses against skin and some kind of slapping sound.
They were at it again. Regulus froze, though internally, many things were happening at once. Most evident, his cock hardening – and his stomach churning. He really shouldn’t be enjoying this. It was an invasion of privacy for sure. Yet, he couldn’t keep his hand away.
Softly leaning his upper body against the door, careful not to make any sound, Regulus reached a hand between his legs, cupping the growing bulge.
He didn’t even have to touch himself, didn’t have to wrap his fingers around his cock – no, rubbing the palm of his hand against his trousers was enough for him to cum, spilling in his pants, causing a very uncomfortable feeling.
His cheeks were flushed, breathing heavy, he didn’t even hear the sound of the shower stopping, too busy shaming himself. He barely had time to run into his bedroom and close the door before they stepped out of the bathroom, giggling and still kissing.
Oh god, Regulus thought, don’t let this happen again.

Chapter 8: Celebration.

Notes:

Fuckin finally updated this work, love everyone who's left a comment, Sorry to those I've missed replying to, I love you all

Gripping the sides of the desk, Regulus tried to regulate his breathing before he passed out. He had never felt stress quite like this. Sitting in a big hall, at a lonesome desk with a hundred other students beside him, he thought this might truly be hell.
It was time for the written exam in Remus’ class and Regulus was quite prepared – or he would be if his mind hadn’t been entirely preoccupied with the sounds of his roommates constantly fucking in the other room. They had been going at it every night for the past few weeks, and sometimes even in the morning. James and Lily were both attractive people, so it made sense to Regulus that they would have an active sex-life, he just didn’t expect them to be so loud. It was interrupting his sleep and making it very hard to look them in the eye – especially since it made him very hard and more often than not, their sex made him have a wank, coming to the sounds of Lily’s loud moans.
The papers were placed on their desks, and they’d all be allowed to turn them and start the exam at the sound of the signal. Remus had helped Regulus study and he knew he should be prepared – if he could just get the memories of Lily and James’ morning sex out of his head. They’d been in the kitchen, Regulus had even managed a peak through the crack of his door. James had Lily bent over the counter, one leg up and her hair in his hand as his hips thrust in and out of her. In and out.
Beep came the loud signal, telling Regulus he could start his exam. It was split into two essay questions, which he would write by hand. He had four hours to write, and he immediately started, actively having to shove the thoughts of his roomies out of his brain.
From his seat, he could see Pandora, she was bent over her paper, pen writing so fast that Regulus was scared it might burn a whole through her desk. Thinking back to the words of doctor Hayes, Regulus bent his head and clicked his pen; He was good, he was smart, he was capable. He could do this.

***

Regulus did finish his exam and even felt quite confident about it. Pandora, to no one’s surprise was freaked out and certain she had failed (Regulus knew she’d have done well). They walked shoulder to shoulder through the corridors, slowly making their way to Remus’ office.
“Do you think Professor Lupin will like the flowers?” Pandora asked, nervously.
Regulus thought about it. Usually, Pandora wasn’t the type of person to care what other people think, but she seemed genuinely concerned about Remus’ thoughts of her.
“He’s gay, Pandy,” Regulus deadpanned. “He’ll love them.”
Glaring up at him, Pandora sped up her walking and hurried to Remus’ office.
Remus did end up very pleased with the flowers, and he listened as both of them complained about the exam.
“It sounds to me like you both did very well,” he said, pouring them each a cup of tea. “I’m not at all worried about your marks.”
Regulus saw the weight leave Pandora’s shoulders at Remus’ words, and in a moment of loving them exclaimed.
“We need to celebrate!”
Pandora’s eyes lit up, and Remus allowed a small smile from behind his cup.
“Yes!” Pandora agreed, before looking tentatively at Remus. “Will you come too? And Sirius, of course.”
“Yes.”
“Yes,” Regulus and Remus agreed at the same time.
“I’m sure James and Lils’ are also on,” Remus added, sipping his tea. “They’ll be very proud of you.”
If his words made Regulus blush, he’d argue it was from the heat of his tea. Avoiding the subject of his roommates, he instead turned to Pandora.
“Would you like to invite anyone else?”

***

Only hours later, they were all squeezed into seats around a outdoor seating table of dome pub, enjoying the early evening sun.
“I’m real proud of you, kiddo,” Sirius said, squeezing an arm around Regulus’ shoulder. “Not just for finishing your classes – though that’s impressive too because I know how boring they are.” This earned him a smack across the back of his head from Remus, but Sirius only caught his hand and kissed it. “Just kidding my moonbeam, my honeypie.”
The interaction made Regulus’ stomach lurch, he wasn’t sure why, but it felt somewhere close to jealousy and he zoned out as Sirius switched his attention to spewing sweet words to his boyfriend.
Next to Remus sat Lily, looking lovely as always in blue jeans and a green top. To her right was James, handsome in a white shirt and cheeks rosy from the drinks. Then was Pandora, sat between James and her twin brother, Evan, who had brought his friend, Barty – they were holding hands beneath the table and Regulus had seen them kiss, but they seemed adamant to not be boyfriends. On Barty’s other side was Regulus himself, though he had moved closer to his brother when Evan’s hands started wandering along Barty’s thigh. Peter had been unable to make it, but Regulus felt like this was already too many people to celebrate him taking an exam, he’d meant for him and Pandora to maybe splurge at some high quality cafe, not an entire party.
Sipping on his drink, Regulus thought about how his life had changed in just a few months, just from getting on that one train to London. He had the looming sense that it couldn’t have been that easy to escape, that his past would catch up to him and nip him in the butt if he got too comfortable. The thought made him shift uncomfortably in his seat, and he threw back his drink in an effort to rid his mind of anything House of Black-related.
His mind was, however, soon brought back to his corporal reality as the man beside him leaned in to talk close to his ear.
“I’m going to the bar, can I get you another drink?” Asked Barty, a pierced eyebrow quirked.
Regulus flushed, eyes widened, only a bit uncomfortable at the other man’s closeness. “Yeah, sure,” he murmured.
Barty flashed him a smile, and a wink, before leaving the table and walking towards the bar.
It was only as his eyes met James’ – who was already watching him, looking suddenly very sober – that Regulus realized he was the only one who had been asked for another drink. Shrugging, Regulus felt a chill pass down his spine, why was he feeling guilty? He tried to wipe the thoughts of the last time a strange man had bought him drinks out of his mind, this was not the same thing as then.
Regulus drank the drink Barty bought him, and then a few more, and soon they moved to a table inside the bar, escaping the hungry bites of mosquitoes and the chilling night air. Feeling properly buzzed, Regulus sat squeezed between James and Remus as they watched Lily, Pandora and Sirius dancing in the small area without tables. Evan and Barty had stepped outside for a smoke, but hadn’t returned in the past 35 minutes and Regulus didn’t want to know what they were up to.
A smile spread on his face as he caught Sirius’ eyes, his body still moving to the beat of the song. He tried reeling them in, getting them to dance with him. Laughing, James shook his head, dragging a hand through his sweaty hair – he’d just sat down from previously dancing with Sirius, and Regulus himself politely declined, but Remus rolled his eyes, took a swig of his beer and left the table with a low duty calls.
Pandora was doing some eery dance which involved a lot of hands and arms, beside the trio of Remus, Lily and Sirius, where Remus was twirling his two dance partners in each hand.
“Isn’t she just so pretty?” James asked.
Once again, when meeting his gaze, Regulus had the feeling James had already been watching him.
“Come on, James, you’re a taken man, can’t talk about Pandy like that,” Regulus said, avoiding the question, feeling pride well up as James’ body shook with laughter.
“Too right, Reggie dear,” he said, reaching his arm behind Regulus along the booth’s seats. “But I wasn’t talking about her,” he leaned in closer. “I was talking about our lovely little Lily Pad. Isn’t she just the most beautiful girl you’ve ever seen?”
Dropping his gaze, Regulus’ cheeks burned red. He fidgeted with his glass, trying to come up with a way to answer the question.
“Don’t you just want to put your hands all over her?” James continued, not waiting for Regulus’ response. “She feels amazing, tastes it too. Do you wanna taste her, Reg?”
Regulus’ breath hitched as he finally looked up at James.
“Reggie, come home with us, please?”

***

They stumbled the entire way home, giggling, holding hands and finding every excuse to touch each other; lightning a cig for the other, brushing hair out of eyes, kisses pressed against fingers. It hadn’t taken James much to convince Regulus to join them, and when he finally breathed a heavy yes, please, James had only signaled for Lily to join them before they all rushed out of the pub.
The stairs up to their flat were harder, they stopped on every landing to giggle and press their bodies against one another.
As Lily fumbled with her keys, James pressed his hips against Regulus’ backside, breathing hot against his neck.
“Hey pretty boy, gonna take such good care of you, yeah?”
Arching his back, Regulus whined at James’ words. Finally unlocking the door, Lily ushered them inside, dragging Regulus by his hand into the kitchen. She squeezed his hand, giving him a steady smile, before fetching him a glass of water, filling one for herself and giving him a cheer.
“Before we move on, are you sure you want this?” She asked, looking suddenly very serious.
Regulus stared at her, nodding. She was the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen, and James, leaning against the doorway was the most beautiful boy, and he didn’t want anything more in that moment.
“Words, darling,” James chastised, winking at him.
“Yes,” Regulus said, “Yes I want you.”
At his words of confirmation, Lily moved closer, pressing her lips against his. She was only a bit shorter than Regulus, and she leaned her head back a bit to kiss him. Her lips were soft, and wet from the water she’d just drank, and when Regulus’ hands tangled themselves in her hair, he noticed its softness.
Leaning away just an inch or two, Lily looked at him, searching his face for any doubt. Not finding any, she kissed him again, this time swiping her tongue along his lips, asking for permission to enter. Parting his lips, Regulus allowed her in, teasing her tongue with the tip of his own, drawing a moan from the back of her throat. She leaned away again, but this time Regulus continued kissing her, until she pressed a hand on his shoulder, pushing him off of her.
Reaching a hand out for James, her soft and pink lips spoke told them “I want to see the two of you,” and she pushed Regulus into James’ waiting arms.
James was a lot taller than both Lily and Regulus, and he had to crane his neck down to kiss Regulus, his hands immediately wrapping around Regulus’ waist, pulling him closer. James’ hands were warm against Regulus’ back, as he kissed and licked into the other man’s mouth. The sounds they made were loud and lewd, and Regulus moaned loudly as he felt Lily’s breasts press against his backside, her hands squeezing his hips.
Squeezed between the two most beautiful people in the world, Regulus felt his skin heat as his head was thrown back against Lily. He was burning up; thoroughly and entirely engulfed by flames.
James’ lips fell from his lips, down to his neck and throat, kissing and nipping at the skin, hips flush against Regulus, their hard cocks pressed against each other. “Bedroom,” James growled, rolling his hips against Regulus, who let out a moan at the sensation.
Stumbling through the apartment, they soon made it into Lily and James’ bedroom, where James pulled his own shirt over his head before reaching out to unbutton Regulus’.
“Want to see you pretty boy,” he said.
“Fuck me, so handsome,” Lily said, having fallen to the bed, already in her underwear.
She was a sight to behold, Regulus thought. Only in black bra and panties, her pale skin looked as if it glowed in the moonlight. Her red hair sprawled around her head, tits practically spilling out of the tops of her bra, her hand reached between her legs to rub at her clit through the black lace.
“Told you,” James said, guiding Regulus towards the bed, “she’s the prettiest.”
“Come here,” Lily reached out for Regulus, leaning on one of her arms, the other grabbing a hold of him and pulling him close.
They kissed again, sloppily, before Lily pulled away, looking at James. “Pants off, babe, and get on the bed.” She winked at Regulus, sensing he was about as excited as her for this.
James had the energy of a puppy going to the park as he stepped out of his trousers and pants and flopped down on the bed, his hard and heavy cock bobbing against his stomach. Leaning against the headboard, he rested his head against his arms, his body on full display. His brown skin was taut over defined muscles – everywhere, and his cock was, as the rest of his skin a dark brown colour, with the most delicious looking pink tip, from which precum leaked.
Lily pulled Regulus into another sloppy kiss, moving them simultaneously down toward James, and soon the pair was kissing around James’ cock.
“Fuck,” James groaned, no longer looking as cocky as his stomach tightened. “This is fuckin’ sinful.”
And it was, the way their lips kissed and suckled at James’ cock, tongue coming out to lick around the head, and then to lick around each other’s tongue.
His skin was salty and murky, and Regulus reeled in the taste, whining when James’ hand came down to wrap in his hair.
“Stop, stop, stop, fuck,” James said, pulling at his hair. They looked up at him, and he chuckled breathily, “I’m gonna come right fuckin’ now,” he said, eyes wide and cheeks tinted pink.
“Aw, baby,” Lily faux cooed at him. “We don’t want that now do we?”
Regulus looked between the two of them, appreciating their banter as Lily pulled James into a kiss of their own. Soon, Regulus was pulled into the mixture, as well, being moved between the two as they took turns kissing him, kissing down his neck and shoulders, pulling at his hair and teasingly scratching his skin.
It was Lily’s nimble hand that first reached down between his legs to touch his smaller, but leaking cock from withing the confines of his pants, giving it a few squeezes.
“Oh love, you’re so hard, we should do something about that,” she said, eyes wide and voice in what Regulus knew was faux concern. She reached behind herself to remove her bra, before laying back down on the bed.
“Go ahead, Reg, touch her,” James said, kissing along his shoulder.
Regulus swallowed hard. Her tits looked soft and smooth, nipples perked, but he couldn’t shake the thought that he’d never been with a girl before, didn’t know quite what to do. Lily looked at him expectantly and he felt a surge of guilt, he didn’t want her to think he was uninterested, because he was, in fact, very interested.
“I’ve never…” Regulus said, not sure how to express himself. “Never with a girl.”
He missed the look the couple shared, but did see James’ face soften, as he took Regulus’ hand in his own.
“Here, I’ll show you,” he said, moving their joint hands toward Lily’s chest. “They’re like the best stress balls, you can just squeeze them, feel them in your hands,” his words were amplified by the way he guided Regulus to squeeze at Lily’s tits, her eyes fluttering shut, her lower lip stuck between her teeth. “And then,” James said, guiding Regulus’ hands still, “You can touch her nipples, give them a lil’ squeeze, a tug even.” He did as he said, showing Regulus all the ways to touch his girlfriend’s tits.
“Fuck,” Lily whined, “stop teasing.”
James shot Regulus a wink, but agreed, and moved their hands down to Lily’s hips, tugging at the fabric of her panties, indicating for her to move her hips up. Lily agreed and they pulled her panties down her pale legs. Beneath, Regulus found a tuft of red hair, covering the already damp slit of her cunt.
Swallowing hard, Regulus felt his cheeks flush, he’d never seen a woman’s privates before. James squeezed his hand, bringing it up to his lips to kiss it before bringing in back down to push against Lily’s pussy lips, spreading them open.
“Feel that, she’s so wet for us,” James murmurs. “Another time, I’ll show you how to properly take care of a lady,” James continues, “but right now, I’ll just guide you through fucking her.”
James moved around Regulus to kneel behind him, tugging softly on his cock, bringing it to full hardness, before guiding it into Lily’s tight and dripping hole.
Regulus had never penetrated someone before, never topped, and the feeling was amazing. She was hot and wet, her insides smooth and tight, and she gripped him like a vice. Sheathing himself inside her fully, Regulus had to take a moment to breathe, moaning in tandem with Lily, who seemed to be enjoying herself.
“Good working, Reggie,” James said, from his place behind Regulus.
Moving his hips in an uncertain thrust, Regulus’ groans grew louder as he felt James’ finger rub against his own entrance.
“Is this okay?” James asked, kissing his shoulder, Regulus nodded.
Lily pulled him close, bringing their lips together as Regulus’ cock twitched inside her while James worked him open, fingers scissoring inside his arse.
“So good, Reg,” Lily whispered, looking into his eyes, “you’re so pretty, so good for us.”
He preened at the praise, feeling his body enter a new realm of pleasure as James pushed another finger in, while his own cock was still buried deep inside Lily.
“Fuck, James,” Regulus gritted out, “I’ve been fucked before, just get on with it.”
Despite his cocky words, Regulus was, in fact, not ready for the sensation of having James’ well endeavored girth push into him, forcing him to push even further into Lily in the same thrust.
His head fell to Lily’s shoulder, kissing her there – girls liked being kissed too, right? – and tried not to cum immediately.
“How’s he feeling?” Lily asked, her fingers tangled in Regulus’ hair.
“Fucking amazing,” James answered, voice strained.
Regulus, gaining confidence from hearing the pleasure of his two roommates, started moving his body, from his place in the middle of this human sandwich, moving back, grinding his arse against James’ hips, and moving forward to push into Lily. They were all a pile of sweat and moans, and it didn’t take long for them to come.
James came first, buried inside Regulus on one of his especially hard grinds back into James. Then came Lily, her hand having moved down her body to rub between her legs, right where her red hair ended. Lastly Regulus came, a result of Lily’s tight walls clamping down on him.

Notes:

OMG it finally happened???? I wonder if they'll get to live happily ever after now?