𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐌𝐄 ☆ 𝑺𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒖𝒔 𝑩𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌 ✔️

o n e

As I burst into the 6th-year female dormitory, I gasp, "I just kissed Regulus Black!" slamming the heavy oak door behind me. The sound echoes through the room, and I feel two pairs of eyes looking at me immediately.

"You did what?" Marlene's voice is sharp, slicing through the air like a knife.

As I recount the tale to my two closest friends, Marlene's typically calm and light-spirited demeanour transforms into something fiery and fierce. She sits on the edge of her bed, staring at me with wide eyes, her hands clenched into fists and the corners of her lip downturned.

She is clearly not as excited as I am. Regulus is by far one of the most attractive boys at Hogwarts. Me kissing him is quite a big deal — at least to me.

From her spot on the bed adjacent to Marlene's, Lily gives me a worried look, her green eyes glimmering with concern. She closes her book with a gentle thud, setting it aside on her bedside table as she turns her attention fully to me. Her long red hair cascades over her shoulders in waves, framing her delicate features with a soft glow.

“Marlene, calm down,” she tries, but Marlene ignores her.

"Please, tell me it's a joke," Marlene implores, her nose wrinkling in disbelief.

"What?" I stammer, taken aback by the intensity of her reaction.

I don't understand why she's looking at me as though I just made out with the devil.

"Are you that naive, or would you shag anyone with a pulse?" Marlene continues harshly.

"We didn't shag — also, please don't call it that," I state firmly, feeling the heat creep up my neck while furrowing my brows. "And why does it matter to you?"

"You know what he believes in!" Marlene begins with her arms crossed. "Not to mention, he's the brother of one of your closest friends."

I let out a wry laugh.

"Please," I retort, crossing my arms in front of me. "If anything, Sirius is your friend, not mine."

"You're in the same year and house — and Lily is dating his friend," she argues.

"That hardly makes us friends," I snap back.

"You are always spending time together!"

I raise a finger, pausing for dramatic effect. "No," I emphasize. "You spend time together. I'm just there, and he never says a word to me. None of them do."

‘Them’ being the four Gryffindor boys, who've been following us around since first year. Increasingly so since James and Lily started dating at the beginning of the school year. It's not that I've anything against them. We just have nothing in common. And I think Sirius has said maybe five words to me this school year.

Marlene chuckles, but before she can respond, Lily interjects.

"Enough!" Lily's voice holds a note of authority as she turns to face me. "You should know that brothers are off-limits..."

But Sirius and I are not friends, I remind myself.

"...and nobody is compelling you to spend time with them."

I want to argue that if I want to spend time with Marlene and her these days, I'm forced to share them with the boys, since at the very least Lily is spending most of her time within a short distance of James. But I know better than to argue with Lily. She's the sweetest person but will tear your argument apart in seconds, and I barely have an argument to start with. Besides, I don't want Lily to feel like she has to choose between her boyfriend and her friend, who doesn't like sharing. I'm positive I would lose that battle.

“It was just a kiss,” I remind them.

It wasn't even a spur of the moment kiss — not entirely. For weeks, there had been secret glances and flirty encounters in the hallways between Regulus and I. But Marlene and Lily don't know about that.

The story I just told them was that I came across the raven-haired Slytherin on my way back from detention with Professor Slughorn. A detention I received after I called him an elitist and accused him of favouritism during class, which earned me a night of cleaning cauldrons. In my defence, I only said it to Lily, but he overheard.

I had met Regulus by a window on the first floor, looking lost in thought with a cigarette balancing between his fingers.

Regulus Black, though just as handsome as his older brother, has a slightly haughty look and stands a bit shorter and leaner. And unlike Sirius's wild, untamed locks, Regulus's hair is neatly combed, only a few pieces framing his sharp features with calculated precision.

When he sensed my presence, he turned, offering an unusually warm smile along with the cigarette.

"Smoking kills, you know," I had remarked, prompting an even broader smile from him.

"I don't reckon it'll be these that do me in," he replied, lifting the cigarette to his lips.

The ensuing moments are a blur to me. We talked for a while. He removed a stray piece of hair from my face. We locked eyes.

One thing led to another, and before I knew it, I had grabbed hold of his shirt in a bold move, pulling him towards me. Without hesitation, he cupped my face and crashed his lips onto mine.

Only when Mrs Norris, Filch's cat, disrupted us did we pull away, wordlessly darting in opposite directions to evade the caretaker and, in my case, the prospect of another detention.

I sprinted straight to the Gryffindor tower, breathless and filled with the need to share what had happened with my best friends.

"Regulus is off-limits," Marlene repeats, her voice tinged with frustration, and her blue eyes narrow.

“Once again for the people in the back,” I begin, frustrated that they are reading too much into it. “It.was.just.a.kiss.”

Marlene draws in a heavy breath, while Lily just stares at me without even blinking.

"Fine," I sigh, knowing when I've lost the battle. “I'm going to bed.”

I draw the curtains around my bed, blocking out my friends' attempts to coax me out. I can hear Marlene's muffled voice beyond the thick fabric, her frustration palpable even from a distance. But soon, her voice fades as she gives up on persuading me to come out.

Alone in the darkness, I lie back against the soft pillows and press my fingers to my lips, the sensation of his kiss still lingering.

There's no denying that Regulus is an exceptional kisser. Even now, I can detect the faint hint of cigarette smoke on my tongue.

But it felt wrong.

For so many reasons.