"See? You have to stay and keep teaching me how perfect you are until I get it right," Remus teased hoarsely before wrapping his arms around Regulus and holding on tightly, afraid to let go in case this sudden embrace ended with another goodbye.
"I know. I should have. I was an idiot and it was a mistake that almost cost me everything." He barely recognised his own voice for how broken and hoarse he sounded, pushing his words past knots of emotion he didn't have the strength to identify. "I'm not leaving you. No, I...I was looking for things to do because I thought you didn't want me around. Gods, Regulus, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. Please, please believe me. I'm not leaving you. I want you and need you and walking away like that was torture because I kept hoping you'd call me back and tell me to stay, tell me you wanted me."
He'd never seen Regulus like this and it broke his heart all over again to know he'd caused this with his own lack of understanding. "I don't want you to change yourself completely for me. That's not love, it's not real. I won't let you be alone." There wasn't anything else Remus could do but hold on, hold on with everything he had and pray for a miracle to let some of his faith and hope transfer itself to Regulus through the contact. He gently brushed tears away with his thumb before kissing away those that followed after with a butterfly brush of lips.
"I don't want to take it away. I don't want anything more than I want to have you right here, to hold you like this and just be with you." His own eyes closed again as he continued to hold on, his words choked and only audible because of the proximity of his mouth to Regulus' ear. "I wanted to come to you so many times...I just didn't think...I didn't think...I didn't think."