#i'm also fairly sure james has cried during at least one hallmark movie

[ultravioletbrit]

“taste” - Jegulus microfic - @into-the-jeggyverse - 688 words

“holiday movies” - 25 Days of Jegumas - Day 9 - @noblehouseofgay

“I’m not saying they’re cinematic master pieces, I’m saying they can be annoyingly captivating.” James flops down on the couch.

“I think what you’re saying is that you have terrible taste in holiday movies.” Regulus sits down beside him.  

“It’s not like I purposefully watch them.” Regulus gives James a skeptical look. “Oh, come on. You’ve never been flicking through channels and stayed on one of those movies just a little too long?” James holds his hand up indicating ‘a little’ with his thumb and forefinger.   

“No…” Regulus bats his hand away but he’s also avoiding eye contact.

“See!” James calls him out. “There’s something about them that draws you in, just for a minute.”

“Maybe I stay on the channel just to see how ridiculous it is?” Regulus poorly defends himself.

“Sure…”  

“They’re always so over-the-top predictable.” Regulus rolls his eyes. “The jaded guy that hates Christmas happens to be the only one that can ‘save Christmas’. Spoiler alert, he saves Christmas.” Regulus mocks.    

James chuckles. “Or the over-worked city girl who comes back to her hometown and remembers the ‘true meaning of Christmas.’”

Regulus is quiet for a moment, then in a much softer voice he says, “Or the childhood best friends who realize they actually have feelings for each other.”  

James turns to look at Regulus and he’s looking down at his lap, fidgeting with his fingers. “Yeah, that one’s the worst.” He whispers and turns to fully face Regulus. “It’s so unrealistic. How could they not know?”

Regulus hums and he’s so quiet that James wouldn’t hear him if they weren’t sitting so close. “How could they know each other for so long and never see what’s right in front of them?” Regulus keeps looking down for a moment before his lifts his head and makes eye contact with James.  

James smiles softly and holds eye contact for a minute. “And there’s always that moment where they make eye contact, and everything clicks.” James slightly leans towards Regulus.  

Regulus nervously bites his bottom lip for an excruciatingly long moment but never breaks eye contact. “And they think… maybe this is what they’ve been missing all along.” He whispers weakly, hesitantly.   

James’ smile grows just a little but he’s also cautious as he lifts his hand. “Then one of them does something that might be a little too affectionate.” He tucks a curl behind Regulus’s ear and his hand lingers on his cheek. “Just to test the waters, nervous the other character might not feel the same way.” He lets his fingers settle on Regulus’ neck as he brushes his thumb over his cheekbone.  

Regulus leans into his hand and James can see so many different emotions flash in his eyes. He closes them and takes a deep breath and when he opens his eyes, they’re fierce and vulnerable at the same time. “And the moment gets really intense, because you know they feel the same, but they’re also sort of terrified. Because if they cross that line, everything could change.”   

James nods in understanding, but his smile is still growing, and he moves even closer to Regulus. “But what if they realize everything’s supposed to change.” He whispers and it’s barely a breath, a secret just for them. “What if everything starts to make sense and they realize… they realize they’ve actually been in love this whole time… or at least one of them has.”

Regulus’ finally lets his smile grow as he leans closer to James when he whispers. “I think they probably both have.”

James beams and Regulus bites his bottom lip trying to hide his own growing smile. They gaze into each other’s eyes for several moments, letting years of emotions pass between them.  

Eventually, James breathes the smallest chuckle. “Then they stare at each other for a really long time, and you want scream, ‘just kiss already’, because you know it’s going to happen.”  

“But it’s just so cliché.” Regulus rolls his eyes fondly as he leans in.

“Yeah, things like that never happen in real life.” James' lips brush against Regulus’

“Never.” Regulus closes the last sliver of space and finally presses his lips to James’.