James was not the type of guy girls wanted to bring home to meet their parents. No. That was his brother Albus. Albus in his golden, all American boy next door glory. He groaned as his alarm blared Defying Gravity by some muggle artist. He yawned, running a hand through his messy jet-black hair. The following night he went to an awards dinner that his manager forced him to attend. After that, his teammates talked him into a night of drinking but it didn't take much convincing. He'd never say no to a drink.
At the mere age of 20, James was the first-string seeker for Puddlemere United and Witch Weekly's most eligible bachelor. The paparazzi were like ants, swarming him wherever he went, trying to get a quote or autograph. It's not like this was a new experience for James. Ever since he could remember, journalists had been hiding in bushes, around alleys, trying to get pictures of the Potter family every time they went outside. Specifically, they had one target in mind- the famous Harry Potter. But no matter how much they asked, begged, pleaded, James' dad never signed any autographs-except for one person. It was quite a sad story actually. When Colin Creevy died fighting in the Battle of Hogwarts, the boy who lived had taken one of Colin's many pictures of himself, signed it, and put it in Colin's coffin. The Battle of Hogwarts took many lives and was not a discussion brought up during family dinners. To this day, the mood would dampen slightly and the adults would get this sad smile on their face-remembering Fred Weasley- the uncle him and his cousins had never met.
Getting out of bed, James looked around to make sure all the curtains were drawn, because the paparazzi would be having a field day from this footage, James was dressed in a white dress shirt with the top few buttons loose, white socks, and, emerald green boxers with pink pygmy puffs. He'd been so exhausted from the night before-he'd only partially stripped. Luckily for him, while Albus had gotten the personality and Lily had gotten the brains, James had gotten a great alcohol tolerance so he wasn't hungover. However, his mum would definitely kill him if she could see him now. When he was six, she signed him up for etiquette classes. James snorted to himself. A fat lot of good that did. A familiar piano riff threw him out of his thoughts.
Ohhh. He had to dance.
James snatched a pair of sunglasses off the bedside table and plunged them unceremoniously onto his face. Music this cool required shades.
As the sound of the second riff of the piano filled the small flat, James ran across the room and skidded into the hallway.
Just take those old records off the shelf
He held his wand up to his mouth, pretending it was a microphone. He was loving every minute of this.
I'll sit and listen to 'em by myself
Today's music ain't got the same soul
I got that old time rock n' roll
James spun around, still swaying to the music as he prepared breakfast.
Dancing around the house lip-syncing brought back fond memories. When the Potter brothers weren't teasing each other or playing Quidditch they often danced, sang and man could Albus hold a tune. His voice held so much emotion and depth. While James could sing, he was definitely the better dancer of the two. The singing and dancing, it was their thing. In fact, all the cousins loved musicals and they often found themselves singing and dancing along to them during Sunday Brunch- even Lucy who had her head in a book 24/7. As they got older their love for musicals remained, but they never watched them as much. After Lily and Hugo (the youngest of the Wotter family) came to Hogwarts, they became non-existent in the Burrow.
Don't try to take me to a disco
You'll never get me out on the floor
James flicked his wand, levitation pots and pans to the stove, charming them to start cooking.
In ten minutes I'll be late for the door
He grabbed the floating pan, flipping the pancake into the air
I like that old time rock 'n' roll
He let go of the pan, spinning around to press the start button on the coffee machine. He quickly turned around, grabbing the pan, catching the pancake just in time.
Still like that old time rock 'n' roll
That kind of music just soothes the soul
I reminisce about the days of old
With that old time rock 'n' roll
He was so engrossed in his routine, that he didn't hear his phone ring the first time. Or the second time. Or the third, fourth or fifth time. When the song finally ended and James had finished cooking breakfast, he picked up is phone to scroll through Instagram as he ate. He frowned as he noticed the missed calls from Rose.
Just as he was about to call back, his phone rang once again. He swiped to answer. "Hello?"
"I'm sorry." The voice was so raw and broken that James did a double take.
"W-what happened?" James asked, the smile dropping from his face.
"James..." The voice on the other end cracked "It's Al..."