Chapter Text
Only when the last customer finally finished their drink and shuffled out of the small café (with Regulus’ not at all threatening encouragement), did he start packing up.
Most of Regulus’ coworkers are reluctant to take the last shift only because it means that they are the one that has to close up, but Regulus usually volunteers, enjoying the blissful silence after years of living in the same building as one Barty Crouch Jr.
But really, the only reason he’s here is because he had to get a source of income when his mother disowned him five years ago after he came out as trans and gay. Only one of his friends know about his family, that he’s trans or even that he was disowned, and that’s Pandora. He always acted indifferent, but having someone to share his burden with actually helped a lot.
Regulus took a bit longer than he needed to close up, basking in the wonderful silence and calm of the night, enjoying the soft rays of moonlight casting irregular beams through the closed blinds.
Just as he was about to finish up, Regulus heard a chime, indicating that someone had opened the door and entered the café. Regulus let out a breath that sounded a lot more like a growl than a sigh. He shouldn’t have let himself enjoy the peace; he would have been gone by now if he hadn’t.
“One iced coffee please!” called a voice far too enthusiastic for this hour of the night.
Face twisting into a scowl, Regulus turned around to see the person who kept him away from going home and getting the sleep he deserves.
And his face immediately fell; the boy was the most beautiful human being he had ever laid eyes on.
The first thing Regulus noticed was the state the boy’s hair was in. It looked like he had repeatedly electrocuted himself in his childhood, dark brown - almost black - hair sticking out at so many angles that it looked physically impossible. Although his bronze skin and deep brown eyes were alluring, it was his smile that drew Regulus’ attention next. It was lopsided, haphazard almost, and showed all his straight, white teeth. But the reason it drew Regulus’ attention was how bright it shone. Really, it could rival the sun. It was so contagious that even Regulus – Regulus! - could feel the corners of his mouth tilting upwards. He seemed oddly familiar, though Regulus couldn’t place why.
“I hope you’re not clos- Oh woahh, you’re pretty,” the man blurted, like he couldn’t help himself. Regulus is not pleased to report that he had to tilt his head slightly, so the boy didn’t see the rosy red brightly coloring his pale skin like spilt paint across an empty canvas. The boy, seeming to realize what he had just said, blushed and shook his head vigorously, like he could erase that memory from his head if he shook it hard enough. “Let’s try this again. I’m James. James Potter.”
His eyes narrowed slightly. “Regulus,” he replies, careful to keep his expression neutral. He couldn’t go around smiling at strangers, even if they look like that.
“Um…”
Regulus glared at the pretty stranger – what had he said his name was? James? Stupid name, why does he need a plural? There's only one of him! “It’s my name?”
“Oh! Of course! Two of my best friends have weird names too. Not that your name is weird! Just unusual maybe. Did I just insult you? You look insulted. But you also kind of looked like that before I said- Oh shit, that was definitely insulting-” James abruptly cut off his… rant? Speech? Something like that.
James looked over at where Regulus was fiddling with the coffee machine. “What are you doing?”
“Making poison,” Regulus says flatly.
James’ brown eyes bulged as he sputtered, “What? Why?”
Regulus’ hands paused for a second, his lips parting. This idiot actually thought he was being serious? Regulus had the sudden impulse to laugh, something that only his close friends had ever been able to achieve. And your brother, a voice in the back of his head that he had worked hard to bury whispered.
Regulus pushed down the laugh bubbling up in his throat and glared at James. “No, you idiot. I’m making your coffee, remember? The one that you ordered?”
James’ cheeks turned bright red; a color Regulus begrudgingly admitted complemented his skin tone. “Oh, yeah. Fuck, I’m dumb.”
They spent the time Regulus was preparing the coffee in silence, but not the kind of silence that Regulus enjoys. It’s the kind of silence that is thick with tension and unsaid words.
Regulus eventually ends the silence by handing James his iced coffee, blandly speaking the overused, “Thank you for coming to our café. I hope to see you next time.”
James smiles, and since Regulus has to quite literally fight his mouth to not do the same, he misses James’ response.
James turned around - rather awkwardly, Regulus would like to add - and started walking out of the café.
“James?”
James shivered despite the heater keeping the store warm. “Yeah?”
“You forgot to pay,” Regulus let his amusement slip into his voice for the first time.
“Oh, shit!” James exclaimed, whirling around.
° ༶• ⋆. ° ┈✧ ༺ ☽☆☾ ༻ ✧┈°. ⋆ • ༶ °
“I’m telling you Moons, he was the prettiest boy I’ve ever seen!”
“Yes, you’ve been telling me it for an hour now. How pretty could one boy be?” Remus asked, exasperated and grumpy. Really, it was his own fault that he didn’t see it coming though.
Realization dawned in Remus’ eyes, and he whirled around, chocolate brown eyes wide. “No no no no no no. No please don’t. I take it back, I take it back!” he begged.
But James answered his question anyway. “He was stunning! Like a Greek God come down to Earth to grace us mere mortals. Like a rose in a field of sunflowers,” James finished softly, starry eyed.
“Resulting to poetic language already? It took at least a month with Lily. This is bad, a code red!” Peter exclaimed sarcastically, shaking his head so his pale blonde hair bounced.
“Oh, shut it,” James admonished, but with little heat. His eyes were still unfocused, staring off into the distance.
James suddenly gasped, “Do you think he’ll like it if I bring him flowers?”
“Oh god, it’s another Lily,” Sirius remarked sourly, his hand getting stuck where he was raking it through his hair. He yanked at the knot harshly, scowling. It would be an understatement to say that he was not happy to be woken up so early, and James likely wasn’t making it any better. His face was almost permanently in an exhausted scowl that only softened when he looked at Remus, the lovesick fool.
God, why can’t they snog already?
“No, it isn’t!” James protested. “Cheer up Pads, you look like a grouchy dog.”
Sirius growled at him, which just proved his point further.
After going over a few of their new songs, Remus volunteered to get breakfast. Which apparently gave Sirius the invitation to tease James harder about his new (to quote Sirius) ‘obsession’.
“How are you this obsessed already? You’ve met the guy once! I don’t want to go through another decade of you pining over someone who will never like you back,” Sirius whined, falling rather dramatically on top of James, his long hair splayed over the white couch like an ink splat on a piece of paper.
“Oh, don’t be a hypocrite. Like I haven’t had to listen to you pine over someone who will never-” James cut himself off abruptly, realizing what he was about to say (which is the opposite of the truth). “No, I didn’t mean it like that-”
But Sirius had already pushed himself off of James to stare at him, shock and pain evident on his face. “So you do think he’ll never like me back,” Sirius stated, his voice monotone. He was trying to cover up his pain and betrayal and replace it with indifference, but James knows him too well.
“I never said that!”
Sirius scoffed. “You didn’t need to.”
In that moment the door opened, and Sirius’ mood changed so fast that James thought it must be a new world record. If James didn’t feel so guilty he would probably tease Sirius.
“Moony! You’re back!”
Once Sirius rushed over to Remus and started yammering on about some new song, James, left to his own devices, started to daydream about a certain black-haired boy with unfairly mesmerizing grey eyes, like clouds before a thunderstorm, and how his soft, pink lips would feel against his own.
Okay, James has to admit that Sirius might be right about the obsession thing.