Chapter 2 – I Don't Look Fourteen!

Regulus woke around five o'clock the next morning to find it still dark outside. He sighed and lay back down, looking up at a crack in the ceiling. He was still tired but couldn't go back to sleep because it was almost noon in England. Bloody jet-lag… He finally got up and went the kitchen for some water. He found Remus sitting at the kitchen table, working on some school papers. "Oh, it's you," he said. "Why are you up already?"

"Can't sleep," said Remus and looked up from his papers. "And I got a lot of work that needs to be done by Monday, so I figured I might as well make the best of the time. You can't sleep either? Jetlag?"

"Yes," sighed Regulus and dropped down on a chair. "And this bloody heat."

"Didn't the fan help?" asked Remus and got up to get Regulus a glass of ice water. "I promise we'll get the air conditioner fixed soon."

"It helps a little but it's so noisy," mumbled Regulus and took a sip of the water offered by Remus. "Why did Sirius have to move so far south? Why not New York or something? They have a more normal climate, at least."

"Because this is where James and his family lives," said Remus, although Regulus, of course, already knew that. He poured himself another cup of coffee. "Just give it a few weeks and you'll get used to the heat. You might even come to like it. Sirius did. You could go swimming one of these days if you'd like."

"Swimming?" asked Regulus. "Is there a pool around? I hear everybody has pools over here. Even the middle class."

"Not everybody, but I bet more than in England since it's so much hotter here. There's a public pool not far from here. There's also one in our apartment complex but it's pretty small and I don't know when they last cleaned it, so I'd go for the public pool if I were you. And we usually drive to the beach a few times a month in the summertime. It's real nice."

"We'll see..." said Regulus. "Well, I should probably try to get some more sleep. Otherwise I will never adapt to this time zone."

"Probably a good idea. I hope you get some sleep," smiled Remus and rested his head on his hand, studying the British boy. Even now, tired and disheveled, he looked gorgeous. "Did Sirius tell you where everything is? Just so you can find your way around in case there's no one here when you get up."

"I think so..." said Regulus and headed back to his room.

o0o0o

Sirius came back from classes at two o'clock to find his brother lounging on the couch reading a book. "So…" he said as he put his bag down. "How was your first day? Did you go out or do anything special?"

"No. I thought I would let you show me around. I don't really know anything about this place."

"Yeah, I can do that," smiled Sirius. "I don't have work today."

They walked down the street, crossed the railroad tracks, and Sirius pointed out a large store on the left. "Food Lion. That's the closest grocery store. We do most of our shopping there." A little farther down the street he pointed at another shop. "That book store over there – Ollivander's – that's where Remus works. We drop in on him from time to time just to hang out because he's the one of us who works the most. Well, he does a lot of work from home too, proofreading for students."

"Oh. Why do you all work? I mean, shouldn't you concentrate on your studying?" asked Regulus, a little puzzled.

"Well, we have to pay for food and the flat, don't we? And tuition isn't free, I can tell you that!" said Sirius.

"I get that you need to work because you've been disowned," said Regulus, "but the others must have parents paying for them, no?"

"James and Peter's parents pay for them, but they still work a bit. James doesn't have to, because his family is loaded, but he does some tutoring anyway, although that's mostly for credit and the experience. James' parents actually pay half of my tuition as well. They wanted to pay all of it because they see me as their adopted son, but I didn't think that was fair, so we compromised on half. It helps a lot, but I still have to work to make ends meet. Remus works really hard because his parents are quite poor, so they can't help him economically at all. James has offered paying his share of the flat, but he's too proud to take it."

They stopped at an ice cream shop where Sirius bought two ice cream cones, and they went to sit down on a bench. "Remus doesn't sleep well lately because of stress and that's why I got so mad at you for demanding that the air-conditioner get fixed immediately. Remus is a people pleaser so things like that upset him."

"Well, I am your guest," Regulus mumbled and took a lick at his ice cream.

"This area is called Five Points, by the way," said Sirius. "Because –"

"Because five streets meet here," Regulus finished the sentence.

Sirius laughed. "Ever the sharp mind, aren't you, little brother? It's a nice area, with little shops and lots of cafes and restaurants. Always busy. Lots of young people too, because campus is right next to here." Sirius leaned back and watched a couple of girls crossing the street. He nodded in their direction, sending his brother a smirk. "Leave one of those behind back home?"

Regulus looked down at his knees. "No," he said quietly.

"Really? With your good looks?" said Sirius and raised his eyebrows. "I find that hard to believe."

"I don't have a problem catching birds, if that's what you mean," said Regulus, a little offended. "But I'm very selective, and no one has caught my interest recently."

"Okay," said Sirius. "Well, we have a good selection over here." He nodded towards the girls. "So... how come Mum and Dad let you travel all the way over here to see me of all people? I know you said they thought it would do you good to travel, but I find it hard to believe they would want you to have anything to do with me."

"They don't, but..." Regulus wrung his hands, considering what to say. "They thought I should go experience the world and learn some independence." He regretted that explanation as soon as he saw his brother's incredulous expression. Independence? If there was anything their parents did not want, was for their sons to be independent and think for themselves. But Regulus couldn't change his explanation now. "And... Well, when I told them I had chosen to visit you, they weren't happy, but... Well, I reminded them that they wanted me to become a bit independent so they should allow me to choose for myself."

"I see…" Sirius mumbled, still looking skeptical. "Well, what do you want to do now? There aren't really many tourist attractions around here. We should go to Charleston one of these days. There's lots to see and do. And Savannah, just across the border to Georgia. You're going to love those towns. Lots of history and beautiful architecture."

Regulus nodded. "I'd like to see some more things here too, though. I haven't been to the States before. It's quite different from Britain, so even mundane things are potentially interesting."

As they walked along the outer side of campus Regulus asked, "What about you? No girlfriend?" The wind blew his hair out of his face to gently caress his shoulder.

"None at the moment," said Sirius and stuck his hands in his pockets. "Not that I don't have plenty of offers."

"Yeah? Not a player anymore? You didn't hesitate taking advantage of your bird-appeal in high school."

Sirius grinned. "I had to grow up at some point, didn't I? No, truth is I'm not ready for a steady relationship. I'd much rather see what's out there, and when a bird eventually manages to nail me down, then I guess she's the lucky one. "

"So you are a player? How often do you hook up?"

"Oh, I don't know…. Two or three times a month, I guess."

"Three times a month?" said Regulus, rather shocked. "You mean three times a month with different birds every time?"

"No, sometimes it's the same bird for a little while. It happens that we have such a good time that I see them again." Sirius swung an arm around his brother's shoulders. "You should let loose and land a few birds as well. Get some experience. It would do you good."

"Well, that's my business," mumbled Regulus. "What about your roommates? Does Remus have a girlfriend?"

"Remus? No, Remus isn't really... how do I put it… Remus isn't really into girls." Sirius scratched his neck, a little uncomfortable by the subject. He didn't know how Regulus felt about homosexuals.

"What do you mean? That he's too busy to chase birds?"

"No, you twat. I mean that he's gay."

Regulus stopped and stared at his brother.

"Is that a problem for you?" asked Sirius, narrowing his eyes. "You better not give Remus a hard time about it!"

"No, it's not a problem. I don't share all Mother and Father's beliefs, you know. I was just surprised."

Sirius heaved a sigh "Good. I'm glad they haven't ruined you completely."

"So..." said Regulus a few minutes later as they passed the University bookstore. "When did he come out?"

"He didn't go public until last year, but he told me and James a few months after we'd all moved in together. He and Peter have known each other since childhood, so Peter already knew, of course. Remus was really nervous about it because he was afraid we didn't want to live with him anymore. But he doesn't have much self-confidence in general."

"How long has he known he's gay?"

Sirius shrugged. "Probably since he was a kid. I guess it's something you always know."

"Not always," said Regulus. "Sometimes you don't truly understand it until you're a teenager."

Sirius looked at his brother, a little surprised. "How would you know? Do you know any gay people?"

"No!" said Regulus, suddenly looking nervous. "It's just something you hear. And I read a lot, you know. So what about James and Peter. Any girlfriends?"

"James has a girlfriend – Lily. Great girl. Took him two years to land her but now they're really hitting it off. And Peter? He hasn't had anyone serious for a while. He isn't exactly bird-bait, if you know what I mean."

"Certainly. He has bad manners too. I like Remus the best so far." Regulus stopped outside a small store. "I could really use a drink. It's so bloody hot here!"

Sirius went inside to get them two sodas. "Yeah, Remus is great. You'll come to love him, I'm sure."

"Yuk," said Regulus, pulling a face after having taken a swig of his soda. He eyed the label. Welch's grape. "Is this supposed to be a fizzy drink? It tastes like... I don't know what - but not a fizzy drink!"

"It's not that bad. You should try new stuff when you're abroad," commented Sirius.

"It tastes like soap!" complained Regulus and poured it onto the ground. "It looks poisonous too," he said, eying the stark purple liquid on the ground.

"That was a perfectly good soda you just threw out!" said Sirius and took a large gulp of his own to prove a point. "Go buy something else if this isn't good enough for you."

Regulus came back out with a Diet Coke a little later. "At least I know what this is," he said, popping open the can. "They have weird things over here."

"Well, Americans think we have really weird things too," said Sirius, rolling his eyes as they continued down the street. He pointed out a restaurant and smiled. "I work over there. How about a late lunch?"

Regulus looked at him. "I suppose I could eat a bit. I only had a sandwich around noon. And I'd like to see where you work."

o0o0o

They were greeted by a pretty African American girl at the counter. "Oh, Sirius," she smiled. "I didn't know you were working today."

"Hello, Marlene," Sirius greeted her. "Well, I'm not. I'm just showing my brother around and we decided to get lunch here."

"That's awesome!" She eyed Regulus with a curious gaze. "Well, welcome to America," she beamed at him.

"Hello," said Regulus and shook her hand. "I'm Regulus."

"Love the name. Oh, and how cute are you!" She showed them to a table and gave Regulus a menu. "You just see what you like and I'll be right back to take your order in a minute, sugar," she smiled.

"You slept with her, didn't you?" asked Regulus when she had left.

Sirius looked surprised. "What? Why would you think that?"

"Because she's very pretty and you can charm the knickers off anyone," said Regulus, studying the menu.

"Hey – I don't go around seducing every bird I find attractive!"

Regulus raised an eyebrow at his brother. "Tell me you didn't sleep with her, then."

Sirius' insulted expression cracked into a grin. "All right, once. But she was the one scoring me. I was drunk and she took advantage of me."

Regulus snorted. "You poor thing."

Sirius leaned back in his chair. "I'm having the cheese burger with mushrooms and bacon. It's bloody good. What would you like?"

Regulus skimmed the menu. "It looks so fattening all of it. Even the salads."

"This is a nice place. I can guarantee that the food is good quality and not all of it is fattening," Sirius said and stuck out his chin. Clearly it was almost impossible to impress his brother.

Regulus ended up ordering a club sandwich and a cup of tea.

"Always remember to specify that you want hot tea," said Sirius. "Down here 'tea' means sweet iced tea."

Regulus looked at him and then shook his head. "Bloody weird, these people."

Sirius smiled when Regulus got his steaming cup. "I forgot that's what we used to drink all the time."

"What?" said Regulus, his eyebrows raised. "You don't drink tea anymore? How can you not drink tea anymore? You're British, you know that, yes? You can't just throw you whole legacy away."

"I still drink tea but not as often as I used to. Mostly in the winter when it isn't so hot here."

"I couldn't survive without it. Then rather starve. Hey, where's the milk?" Regulus asked, looking into his tea and then around at the table.

"Americans don't usually take milk in their tea."

"Nutters..." Regulus spotted a middle-aged plump waitress walking by and he waved her over. "I would like some milk for my tea, please."

The woman looked at each brother in turn, clearly putting two and two together. "Sure, darlin'. I'll go get you some right away." She turned to Sirius and grinned. "And I thought you had a British accent! Your brother's a real sweetheart. I just feel like pinching his cheek."

"You better not, Molly," said Sirius, practically seeing the steam rise out of Regulus' ears.

The woman laughed and went to get the milk for Regulus.

"How rude," said Regulus, looking affronted. "Talking to me as if I were a child."

"She's just being friendly," explained Sirius and took a bite of his burger. "Better get used to it. That's how women are here. Call you honey and sugar all the time. They mean well."

"Did you see Sirius got a visit from his little brother?" Marlene asked Emmeline, one of the other waitresses. "Look," she said, pointing at the brothers in the booth by the window.

"Yeah, I saw," Emmeline said and leaned over the counter to get a better look. "He's crazy cute. Must run in the family. How old do you think he is?"

"I don't know. Fifteen, maybe? We have to ask Sirius when he gets in next time."

"He's so pretty," sighed Emmeline. "I'd have a go at him if he was a bit older."

"He's a bit feminine for my taste," said Marlene, "but maybe he'll get more masculine, like Sirius. If he's only fifteen, then he still got some growing to do."

Sirius was telling Regulus about all the activities on campus. "James plays football a lot. You know - American football. Not real football. They call that soccer."

Regulus scoffed. "They take quite a few liberties, those Americans. Why do they call it football, anyway? They barely kick the ball. They hold or throw it. It's more like rugby for sissies, with all that protective gear."

Sirius laughed. "Yeah, but don't tell James that. He thinks he's bloody tough." Sirius pushed his plate away and leaned back, looking full and satisfied.

"So they have many sports teams?"

"Loads. Unis over here are big on sports. They even have some equestrian thing. Something for you, right?"

Regulus shook his head. He had been riding since he was nine, being rather successful in showjumping. "No... I had to put Polaris down last year, and I sort of lost interest after that. He was very special and I wasn't really up for trying to find a horse that could take his place."

"What? Why?" asked Sirius, looking stunned. He knew how serious Regulus had been about riding and how much he had loved his horse.

"Bad colic," mumbled Regulus. "Nothing to do..."

Sirius ran a hand through his hair, looking at his brother. "Blimey, I'm sorry, Reggie. I know how much that horse meant to you. But don't you think it would be good for you to get back in the saddle?"

"No. Riding is expensive – I mean time consuming," he quickly added. "And it's just not the same with another horse."

"I just don't want you to get bored while you're here. I work four days a week on top of studies. And exams are coming up. Of course you're welcome to come down here and sit and talk to me whenever it's not busy but I don't know how appealing that is to you. Remus is home often but he has a lot of proofreading work, so he isn't much company either."

"I'll figure something out. I can read a lot of books. I'm sure there's a big library here. And I run quite a lot to keep fit now that I don't ride any longer." Regulus looked out the window. He didn't want to talk more about horses. Selling Polaris a few weeks ago was the hardest thing he had ever had to do, but there was nothing for it. He couldn't just leave him in England and he needed as much money he could get. Polaris had earned him 8,000 pounds and they had gone into his savings account along with the money he had made from selling the other valuable possessions he had. He hoped they would last a good while. He would have to be careful with the money because he didn't know what to do when they were all spent.

o0o0o

They left the restaurant and headed home. It was Sirius' turn to cook and he had some homework he had to get done as well. "Maybe you could fix dinner tonight?" he said, making puppy dog eyes at his brother. "Then I can get my homework done quicker and have time for you. Please?"

"You know I can't cook. Mother would never let me, even if I wanted to. Things like that are for servants."

"Well, you have to learn how to cook," said Sirius. "I didn't know either and if you ask the others, I still don't." He laughed. "Well, there's always pasta. Any idiot can boil some of that."

"I don't know how to make pasta either," Regulus mumbled, feeling incredibly useless. "Can't we just order take-out?"

Sirius looked at him and then nodded. "All right, I guess we could order a pizza today. Peter will love you for it. He hates my cooking."

Regulus rolled his eyes. "Oh, I would be thrilled to make him happy. Can't we get some healthy take-away? Sushi or something?"

"Oh, come on, Reggie - one pizza won't turn you into a pig, and American pizzas are ace."

Regulus sighed and agreed to the pizzas.

"Cheer up – Remus is a good cook, so you'll get good food every time it's his turn. You liked his lasagna fine, didn't you?"

"It was okay… Still doesn't beat Kreacher's cooking, though."

"Well, Kreacher learned from the stone age ape-men so naturally he knows how to use the right herbs and such," said Sirius. "I'm surprised that old git is still alive. "

"Don't call him a git!" snapped Regulus. "He practically raised you. And yes, he's still alive. Refuses to retire, too. Says the job is his whole life and we're his family."

"Raised me?" Sirius snorted. "He hated every second of it. He always slapped my hand with a spoon when I tried to take something. He always liked you better."

"Because I was nice to him. You were always rude and naughty."

"I was a special child. I didn't like being ordered around by that old git. He thought he could tell me what to do. When to take a bath, when to go to sleep, when to take a poop. You just obeyed like a good little boy. No wonder Mum and Dad always liked you better."

Regulus frowned. "I behaved like children are supposed to. Obey and honor their parents." Regulus had always craved his parents' praise and respect. That only made what had happened recently that much more painful.

"Yeah, yeah. I hope you'll let a little loose while you're here, though. No mum and dad to keep an eye on you. Besides, you're eighteen now, so you don't have to do anything they say anymore." They walked up the stairs to the apartment and Sirius stopped for a second with his hand on the door knob. "Just think about it. You're free to do whatever you want. Live a little."

"Yeah... Yeah, that's brilliant," said Regulus quietly.

o0o0o

Peter and James were sitting on the couch watching TV. James had a Dr. Pepper in his hand and greeted the two as they entered the room.

A red-haired girl emerged from the kitchen. "Hey," she smiled when she spotted Regulus. "You must be Regulus! Oh, how cute you are!"

Regulus raised his eyebrows. Why did everybody say he was cute? And this girl - it sounded like she thought he was cute the way a child was. "I'm eighteen," he said stupidly, shaking her hand.

"Oh…" she said, looking surprised for a second. "James told me you were fourteen, but of course you're not. I can see that. He likes to joke." She shot her boyfriend a reproachful look. "I'm Lily."

"I don't look fourteen!" said Regulus. "I just have a young face. I shaved this morning."

James snickered cheekily and Regulus spun around to send him a glare.

"I only meant it as a compliment when I said you were cute," Lily said. "I meant that you're handsome. I just think James is jealous," she winked.

The door opened and Remus stepped inside, looking tired but smiling. "Hey, y'all," he said and put down his bag.

"I don't look fourteen," repeated Regulus, not ready to let it go. "Do I look fourteen?" his eyes fell on Remus, demanding an answer.

Remus was taken a little aback by the question and not sure what to answer. Regulus did look very young (although fourteen was a stretch) but it was clear that it bothered him, so he said, "Of course not. You look like someone in their late teens."

Sirius raised an eyebrow at his friend and grinned. It was pretty clear that all Remus wanted was for Regulus' feelings not to get hurt.

"Thank you," said Regulus stiffly. He most definitely liked Remus the best of Sirius' friends.

"We're ordering pizza today," said Sirius. "It's my turn to cook so I say we order out."

Remus, who had been gazing at Regulus since he had come in, snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Sirius. "I don't have much money left for this month..." He looked slightly embarrassed, biting his lower lip. He knew the others could easily afford take-out but he only had twenty-five dollars left until his next paycheck, so he had to be careful with his money.

"Don't worry, Remus," said James. "Sirius' rich little brother just shipped in, so he can pay for all of us."

"W-what?" said Regulus.

"James!" scolded Lily.

"Easy, there. I was only pickin' with him," grinned James.

"Don't worry, we wouldn't expect you to pay for us," said Remus quickly, putting a hand on Regulus' shoulder.

"I'll pay for you," said Sirius. "It's my cooking day, so it's only fair I pay for being lazy."

"I just hate taking charity," Remus mumbled.

Regulus paid his share for the pizza and asked what his share of the rent would be.

"You're our guest," said Remus. "Surely you shouldn't pay rent."

"You can help pay the electric bill and water and gas since you use it as well," said Sirius.

Remus looked at him. "But he's our guest," he insisted.

"Well..." said Regulus. "I want to pay my share of rent and everything. It's only fair, especially if I'm staying for a while, which I might. Perhaps I will enroll in a few courses. If you don't mind me living here, that is..."

"Yeah? You might?" Sirius beamed.

Remus smiled as well. "That sounds like a wonderful idea. You really should."

"You can stay here as long as you like. Right lads?" Sirius said and looked around.

James shook his head but Lily pinched his thigh so he quickly started nodding instead.

"Wait –" said Sirius, looking confusedly at his brother as something dawned on him. "You can't have graduated yet – it's only April! Why aren't you home studying for your exams?" He couldn't believe he hadn't thought about this before.

"I…" said Regulus. "I graduated last year."

"What? No, you didn't! You're too young for that."

"I was moved up a year because I was acing all the tests and my teachers thought I needed more challenges."

Sirius eyed him incredulously. "Are you taking the piss?"

"Is that so hard to believe?" said Regulus indignantly (even though he was actually lying). "Do you think I'm too stupid for that?"

"Of course not. I know you're an intelligent swot, but I never heard of anyone being moved up a grade while I was at Eton."

"Well, just because you didn't hear of it doesn't mean they don't do it, does it? Besides, Mother and Father really had to push it to get the board to agree."

"Really?" said Sirius, still looking incredulous. "Well, what did you do the past ten months, then?"

"I've been taking a sabbatical year to consider what I want to study and to see a bit of the world."

"So where did you go before coming here?" asked Lily, looking very interested.

"Oh, mostly Europe. I've spent some months in Florence, Paris, and Stockholm respectively." Regulus felt confident about choosing these cities because he had actually spent quite some time there at some point in his life, so he would be able to lie convincingly in case they wanted details about the places.

To his relief the conversation was cut short by the delivery guy ringing the doorbell. James flew to the door to take the two large pizzas. "Keep the change, dude," he said before closing the door.

Regulus stared at the large piece Sirius slapped onto his plate. "Bloody hell! How much cheese is this? From a whole byre? There's got to be a whole day's worth of calories on this!"

"Do you ever stop complaining?" asked Peter.

"Do you want me to cook you something else?" Remus offered, seeing how disgusted Regulus looked by the pizza.

"Don't be such a gentleman, Remus," said Sirius and pushed the plate into Regulus' hands. "He can eat this. It tastes great, Reggie, and you don't exactly look like you need to watch your weight."

"So many calories," mumbled Regulus. "No wonder Americans are so fat."

"Go for a run afterwards if you're so scared of gaining a few ounces," grumbled Sirius and bit into his slice.

"We ain't fat and we eat this pretty damn often because of your brother's cooking abilities," said James and opened a Coke for himself.

Regulus went into the kitchen to get some cutlery. He couldn't believe all the others were just eating that greasy pizza out of the box with their hands. He came back and started eating his piece neatly with his knife and fork.

The others stopped chewing and stared at him. "What's wrong with your brother?" James asked Sirius. "It's just pizza, dude, not a fancy dinner at the White House."

"I eat like a civilized person because that's what I am," said Regulus, unfolding a napkin in his lap.

Sirius closed his eyes and counted to ten. "Reggie - try for once to act like a normal teenager. You're not in a posh household anymore. You're in a flat with four collage blokes who are eating pizza with their hands and not folding bloody napkins in their laps!"

"Well, excuse me if I don't want to act like a pig and get my hands and nice clothes greasy."

"Learning a few dining manners wouldn't hurt you guys, actually," laughed Lily.

Regulus nodded, appreciating the support, and refrained from pointing out that she too was eating with her hands. Evidently it was normal behavior over here.

"So, Regulus," smiled Lily. "How do you like Columbia so far?"

Regulus shrugged. "I haven't seen much yet. Campus looks nice, though."

"It's very nice, yeah. I can show you around one of these days if you'd like," she offered.

"Perhaps," said Regulus. "Well - I'm going to turn in now. It's awfully late."

"It's just eight o'clock, dude," said Peter.

"Yeah, you really should stay up a few more hours," said Lily. "Otherwise it'll take you forever to get on Carolina time."

"Well, I'm exhausted, so I'm going to bed now."