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Just Lovers [Like We Were Supposed to Be]
Regulus closes his eyes and shakes his head again, looking pained, then he opens them and sighs. "And your solution to this is me? Pretending to be my boyfriend?"
"Yeah. It's actually bloody brilliant, if you think about it. Everyone will leave happy. I'm going to fake date my way into falling in love," James announces grandly, sticking his hand out and waving it through the air like he's presenting a banner.
***
Or, the one in which James Potter wants to prove he'd be a good boyfriend to Lily Evans and comes up with the brilliant plan to fake date Regulus Black his way into falling in love. It doesn't quite go as anyone expects.
Task failed...successfully?
"Yeah. It's actually bloody brilliant, if you think about it. Everyone will leave happy. I'm going to fake date my way into falling in love," James announces grandly, sticking his hand out and waving it through the air like he's presenting a banner.
***
Or, the one in which James Potter wants to prove he'd be a good boyfriend to Lily Evans and comes up with the brilliant plan to fake date Regulus Black his way into falling in love. It doesn't quite go as anyone expects.
Task failed...successfully?
991 pages
Published April 13, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 671 reviews
July 5, 2022
I WANT THIS BOOK TATTOOED ON MY FOREHEAD
January 7, 2024
why do I only read marauders fanfics?
well that’s easy cause imm gay and mentally unstable
well that’s easy cause imm gay and mentally unstable
May 4, 2023
— 4 stars ☆
this taught me the true meaning of acceptance and the fact that all of us deserve love and compassion and warmth, no matter what. 💘 and first of all, i just wanted to say that we all deserve to know that we're enough, and i loved this fic for spreading that message, not only through james/regulus but also through all the side ships (yes, they each get a chapter in the last quarter and i was literally crying and laughing i loved it!!).
ahh, watching these two idiots navigate themselves into love was the best thing tbh. and no i will not invite any jegulus slander they are literally perfect and that's why i will never read a jily fic, like, ever. unlike with hermione (i don't really care who she ends up with honestly but preferably draco/tom lol) i will not tolerate reading about either regulus or james with anyone else!! same goes for wolfstar lmao. no matter how much they hurt each other, they just deserve each other and can't be happy with anyone else (no matter how much remus tried to be in atyd 🥺).
their dynamics literally were:
james: regulus you're so beautiful, love, i wanna stare into your eyes forever i wanna kiss you i wanna comfort you if anyone else touches you I FUCKING SWEAR -
regulus: JAMES SHUT UP *pushing james away* *blushing* *staring at james' lips* *mumbling* you can kiss me if you want
or
james: you're so mean to me 🥺
regulus: you love it
james: i really do 🥺
help not regulus using james' soft heart to make him do everything for him, they're so fluffy and emotional. spoilt reg always makes me laugh 🤧 they're so cute okay no arguments. 😭 nothing makes me giggle and kick my legs up like their banter. also not james feeling turned on bc of reg's violent tendencies? did i mention they're adorable??
the way they both reassure each other >>>
here, james & regulus had to *pretend* to date bc james wanted to show that he could be a good bf to lily (which, btw, till this hour i don't get the logic behind but i guess james is james so we can let it go, dissecting the mystery behind everything would take too much time). the ~one-sided~ pining? the banter? them? everything was everything to me lol. i just love them. and i feel like the angst wasn't blown too out of proportion, bc it makes sense that they'd have broken up (obvi i would've preferred for that not to have happened but with fake-dating, undoubtably one of them feels insecurity and once the ~scheme~ is done there's no need for them to date anymore and oh, the angst. 😭). i love them though and i loved how james went after regulus like that!!
i'm sorry but idk why they give me that comfort couple vibe no matter how much angst they have. 🥺 that's why even when they make me sob and cry, i love them bc i know they love each other over everything and that's all that matters to me! i feel like their love is also the most all-consuming out of all the ships i've read so far. the lengths both of them (especially james) would go for each other? they would kill and die for each other no joke and i love them for it.
this quote is iconic and so sirius of him lmaoo. did i say say wolfstar isn't my ship?? none of y'all heard me say that k bye. the way they killed me in this one? even though their portion was only like 1/17th of the entire fic lmaoo i love how cute they are, sirius' jealousy moments, how remus was always, ALWAYS, sirius' rock, the way sirius was such a mess but in the best of ways and remus and him just fit. i love them.
what i do hate about wolfstar though (yes there are gonna be negatives lol) is that i love them for them, don't get me wrong, but mary is an idiot. she realized that sirius was in love with remus wayyy back and still continued being with him, even though she knew exactly how much it was hurting remus? not cool. all the om/ow drama with them makes me nervous and a little weird in my stomach lmao PLS I DON'T NEED THAT. but i still love these two idiots. i'll admit, i've not yet read a single fic that's as bad as atyd with how oblivious sirius is with remus' feelings lmao the guy literally fucked everyone except him okay?? just saying. i mean in the end i did end up rooting for sirius more than remus there though, so my point is i love them.
i didn't exactly appreciate the last conflict james/regulus had though, i thought it was gonna be all sunshine and roses until that happened 😩 i mean, i got why it had to happen and that zar was trying to show that even once you're in a relationship, it's not gonna be all smooth sailing. there are gonna be moments when you falter, when you don't know what you wanna do next. but you just have to keep trying, to be real. i love that message. still hated the conflict though lol bc it was silly and could've been solved with a single conversation and i feel like it just wasn't in their personalities that time, okay?
also on a personal note, i love that it's causing this queer pain in my chest that these fics (and some AMAZING ASTOUNDING BRILLIANT books) do to me lol.
my rankings (so far!) for all the marauders fics i've read:
— choices by messermoon - unbeatable. unrecommendable. but 5++ stars for me, i'll never recommend for the sole fact that if anyone reads it and hates on it I WILL RIOT FR. it's tragically lovely and that's all imma say.
— crimson rivers by zeppazariel - so close to becoming my fave but not quite 🥺 despite the fact that this was so angsty and fucked up and so long (~5000 pages) and such a mess, i adored it. again one fic i'll never recommend lol.
— just lovers by zeppazariel - so cute. adorable. emotional. everyone should read!!
— all the young dudes by mskingbean89 - now, y'all, don't come for me. this is still one of my fav books/fanfics ever. but some things just spoiled my enjoyment (i.e. - the ending was so unsatisfying lmao) but i'd still highly recommend only bc all the nostalgia it gave me, plus the angst in that too was delicious.
“The worst part is, I want to be loved,” Lily chokes out, on the verge of tears now. “I so deperately want to be loved, Mary, but not as they love me. I want - ”
“Respect? Compassion? True understanding of who you are and the things you want?” Mary fills in when Lily falters, not having the words. She pulls her hand back as Lily nods a bit miserably. “You deserve those things. We all do, I believe. It's not too much to ask for; it's the bare fucking minimum, so don't you dare feel guilty for requiring it. Just don't. I mean it.”
this taught me the true meaning of acceptance and the fact that all of us deserve love and compassion and warmth, no matter what. 💘 and first of all, i just wanted to say that we all deserve to know that we're enough, and i loved this fic for spreading that message, not only through james/regulus but also through all the side ships (yes, they each get a chapter in the last quarter and i was literally crying and laughing i loved it!!).
“I just wanted to fight and scream and just - just explode.”
“Because of me?” Regulus whispers.
“Nothing makes me want to burn the world like the thought of losing you,” James says softly.
ahh, watching these two idiots navigate themselves into love was the best thing tbh. and no i will not invite any jegulus slander they are literally perfect and that's why i will never read a jily fic, like, ever. unlike with hermione (i don't really care who she ends up with honestly but preferably draco/tom lol) i will not tolerate reading about either regulus or james with anyone else!! same goes for wolfstar lmao. no matter how much they hurt each other, they just deserve each other and can't be happy with anyone else (no matter how much remus tried to be in atyd 🥺).
their dynamics literally were:
james: regulus you're so beautiful, love, i wanna stare into your eyes forever i wanna kiss you i wanna comfort you if anyone else touches you I FUCKING SWEAR -
regulus: JAMES SHUT UP *pushing james away* *blushing* *staring at james' lips* *mumbling* you can kiss me if you want
or
james: you're so mean to me 🥺
regulus: you love it
james: i really do 🥺
help not regulus using james' soft heart to make him do everything for him, they're so fluffy and emotional. spoilt reg always makes me laugh 🤧 they're so cute okay no arguments. 😭 nothing makes me giggle and kick my legs up like their banter. also not james feeling turned on bc of reg's violent tendencies? did i mention they're adorable??
“If I needed perfection to fall in love, I would be alone my whole life. No one is, not even you, and I don't require you to be. I don't need you to be anything other than who you are, James, the worst and best of you, and my feelings won't change. Don't try to be enough for me; you're enough when you breathe.”
the way they both reassure each other >>>
“I didn't believe in love before you.”
here, james & regulus had to *pretend* to date bc james wanted to show that he could be a good bf to lily (which, btw, till this hour i don't get the logic behind but i guess james is james so we can let it go, dissecting the mystery behind everything would take too much time). the ~one-sided~ pining? the banter? them? everything was everything to me lol. i just love them. and i feel like the angst wasn't blown too out of proportion, bc it makes sense that they'd have broken up (obvi i would've preferred for that not to have happened but with fake-dating, undoubtably one of them feels insecurity and once the ~scheme~ is done there's no need for them to date anymore and oh, the angst. 😭). i love them though and i loved how james went after regulus like that!!
Looking at Regulus, James thinks he gets that. What it is to look at another person and think, oh, I could look at you forever. For him, it's stargazing. It's precious to him.
i'm sorry but idk why they give me that comfort couple vibe no matter how much angst they have. 🥺 that's why even when they make me sob and cry, i love them bc i know they love each other over everything and that's all that matters to me! i feel like their love is also the most all-consuming out of all the ships i've read so far. the lengths both of them (especially james) would go for each other? they would kill and die for each other no joke and i love them for it.
“I'm sorry, I'm an idiot, I'm rotten and I know it, but I'm quite pathetically in love with you, please don't leave me ever.”
this quote is iconic and so sirius of him lmaoo. did i say say wolfstar isn't my ship?? none of y'all heard me say that k bye. the way they killed me in this one? even though their portion was only like 1/17th of the entire fic lmaoo i love how cute they are, sirius' jealousy moments, how remus was always, ALWAYS, sirius' rock, the way sirius was such a mess but in the best of ways and remus and him just fit. i love them.
what i do hate about wolfstar though (yes there are gonna be negatives lol) is that i love them for them, don't get me wrong, but mary is an idiot. she realized that sirius was in love with remus wayyy back and still continued being with him, even though she knew exactly how much it was hurting remus? not cool. all the om/ow drama with them makes me nervous and a little weird in my stomach lmao PLS I DON'T NEED THAT. but i still love these two idiots. i'll admit, i've not yet read a single fic that's as bad as atyd with how oblivious sirius is with remus' feelings lmao the guy literally fucked everyone except him okay?? just saying. i mean in the end i did end up rooting for sirius more than remus there though, so my point is i love them.
“This isn't the ending. It's just a new chapter. Think of it like a book. You love your books, yeah? Shouldn't you be excited to see what comes next?”
“Not if there's less of you on the page,” Regulus replies.
“Am I your favorite story, then?”
“You're my favorite everything.”
i didn't exactly appreciate the last conflict james/regulus had though, i thought it was gonna be all sunshine and roses until that happened 😩 i mean, i got why it had to happen and that zar was trying to show that even once you're in a relationship, it's not gonna be all smooth sailing. there are gonna be moments when you falter, when you don't know what you wanna do next. but you just have to keep trying, to be real. i love that message. still hated the conflict though lol bc it was silly and could've been solved with a single conversation and i feel like it just wasn't in their personalities that time, okay?
also on a personal note, i love that it's causing this queer pain in my chest that these fics (and some AMAZING ASTOUNDING BRILLIANT books) do to me lol.
my rankings (so far!) for all the marauders fics i've read:
— choices by messermoon - unbeatable. unrecommendable. but 5++ stars for me, i'll never recommend for the sole fact that if anyone reads it and hates on it I WILL RIOT FR. it's tragically lovely and that's all imma say.
— crimson rivers by zeppazariel - so close to becoming my fave but not quite 🥺 despite the fact that this was so angsty and fucked up and so long (~5000 pages) and such a mess, i adored it. again one fic i'll never recommend lol.
— just lovers by zeppazariel - so cute. adorable. emotional. everyone should read!!
— all the young dudes by mskingbean89 - now, y'all, don't come for me. this is still one of my fav books/fanfics ever. but some things just spoiled my enjoyment (i.e. - the ending was so unsatisfying lmao) but i'd still highly recommend only bc all the nostalgia it gave me, plus the angst in that too was delicious.
January 18, 2024
ADORABLE!!!! Look, I don’t like Harry Potter, I’ve read the first book and resisted through the first 2 or 3 movies for the sake of my daughters because fantasy and mages are really not my thing. It’s not surprising that while reading this fanfic, sometimes I had to google certain characters and details. The blurb was what attracted me to this one : HP’s father is in love with HP’s mother but while trying to woo her ends up in love with his BFF’s grumpy, mysterious brother. Loved this type of premise so I went in. And it’s long, too long imo but OH MY GOD , James and Regulus are AMAZING!!
I’ll never understand ppl who write this well and work so much at a fanfic and then they don’t even get paid. To me is heartbreaking. Because this was good. Really really good. And remember, I don’t like fantasy, I don’t like HP and I don’t like kids (YA) and this one had them all. The dialogues were witty, funny, endearing, entertaining and all the characters were absolutely awesome. It’s romantic, it’s sexy and it’s such a beautiful read gah.
Now, you probably think that I finished it but the truth is that I didn’t. As soon as they got together I lost interest because you know..kids , high school , and I’m too old to care for their lovey dovey interactions. I liked the tension, the pining the angst but at 65% they become a couple and I couldn’t muster any will to go on. Maybe because I was exhausted, the book is too long as I mentioned and after all that looong tension ..😮💨
Excellent read!😍
I’ll never understand ppl who write this well and work so much at a fanfic and then they don’t even get paid. To me is heartbreaking. Because this was good. Really really good. And remember, I don’t like fantasy, I don’t like HP and I don’t like kids (YA) and this one had them all. The dialogues were witty, funny, endearing, entertaining and all the characters were absolutely awesome. It’s romantic, it’s sexy and it’s such a beautiful read gah.
Now, you probably think that I finished it but the truth is that I didn’t. As soon as they got together I lost interest because you know..kids , high school , and I’m too old to care for their lovey dovey interactions. I liked the tension, the pining the angst but at 65% they become a couple and I couldn’t muster any will to go on. Maybe because I was exhausted, the book is too long as I mentioned and after all that looong tension ..😮💨
Excellent read!😍
June 8, 2022
THEY ARE SO IN LOVE YOU WILL BE THROWING UP
HEART SHAPED THINGS AND GLITTER‼️
HEART SHAPED THINGS AND GLITTER‼️
January 5, 2024
another fic another slay by zeppazariel. absolutely loved it and it has all of my favourite ships. zar slayed as usual. chef's kiss this one
March 6, 2023
The amount of giggling and kicking my feet, while sobbing over this fanfiction is not even okay.
![Profile Image for andy [FREE PALESTINE].](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/users/1716868324i/130691865._UX200_CR0,0,200,200_.jpg)
May 13, 2024
⋆｡𖦹°‧★finished :.. 11/5/24
✦ ⠂⠂୨୧ -> 4 stars
so i started this a long while ago and basically we forgot that we were buddy reading this 😭
it was a very wild ride, this book. characters were written very nicely and they were sooo funny.
(i was mad bc there was no rosekiller and marylily doesn't work for me 😭)
take a chance and read it!!
-> pre read ★
br with my heart ren 💋💋
i have seen SO MUCH marauders videos all over my fyp and maia confessed this was harry potter related (im not permitted to read hp(i fear witches))
im so excited to read this, it seems super interesting from the jump!
✦ ⠂⠂୨୧ -> 4 stars
so i started this a long while ago and basically we forgot that we were buddy reading this 😭
it was a very wild ride, this book. characters were written very nicely and they were sooo funny.
(i was mad bc there was no rosekiller and marylily doesn't work for me 😭)
take a chance and read it!!
-> pre read ★
br with my heart ren 💋💋
i have seen SO MUCH marauders videos all over my fyp and maia confessed this was harry potter related (im not permitted to read hp(i fear witches))
im so excited to read this, it seems super interesting from the jump!
February 28, 2023
I finished it in 3 days ??? Sometimes I'm scared of myself.
February 12, 2024
“nothing makes me want to burn the world like the thought of losing you”
i enjoyed this so much. james is so “mirrorball” by taylor swift :( they make me so sad. i went into this with zero spoilers so that was great.
james was such an idiot the entire time but i love him for it. and peter was so funny, i loved him in this.
i enjoyed this so much. james is so “mirrorball” by taylor swift :( they make me so sad. i went into this with zero spoilers so that was great.
james was such an idiot the entire time but i love him for it. and peter was so funny, i loved him in this.
August 3, 2022
☆: 5+++/5
someone needs to tell me how the fuck did I just red a fic of 320k words, about 1000 pages, in one day.
someone needs to tell me how the fuck did I just red a fic of 320k words, about 1000 pages, in one day.
June 9, 2022
this 1000 pages fanfic singlehandedly cured me from covid. no lies, only facts.
July 28, 2023
fuck i didn't know this was on goodreads. lord bless marauders fics on ao3
August 7, 2022
‘perhaps it was the echo of a knock from another life’ that was MEAN
April 8, 2023
newest comfort fic
June 20, 2022
regulus ily <3
jegulus has my whole heart
there were so many ship in it we were ✨spoiled✨
some scenes live rent free in my mind like fr sometimes i just stop listening to what my family is saying because something reminded me of them, the worst was during classes…
jegulus has my whole heart
there were so many ship in it we were ✨spoiled✨
some scenes live rent free in my mind like fr sometimes i just stop listening to what my family is saying because something reminded me of them, the worst was during classes…
May 9, 2022
like kill me. literally kill me.
the first jegulus fic i’ve read and my GOD i picked a good one. currently listening to my taylor swift inspired playlist i made because of this fic. it was (and still is cuz it’s not finished) one of the best things i’ve ever read.
a non war au but they’re still at hogwarts and james fake dates regulus to make lily jelous, but ultimately catches feelings because of course he does. he’s james potter for fuck sake.
the way regulus is described in this actually makes me want to rip out my heart. he’s so beautiful. and james is just so perfect i actually can’t. when regulus almost died, the way james acted made me want to rip out my eye balls. i felt every emotion, went through everything they did and my heart broke. and now i have to wait till tuesday for an update after that last chapter (4.2) are you JOKING.
obsessed and i’m agony knowing i will never be loved the way regulus is loved by james. the way regulus pines after james and can’t fathom loving anybody else shattered my heart because same buddy same.
perfection in 14 chapters.
the first jegulus fic i’ve read and my GOD i picked a good one. currently listening to my taylor swift inspired playlist i made because of this fic. it was (and still is cuz it’s not finished) one of the best things i’ve ever read.
a non war au but they’re still at hogwarts and james fake dates regulus to make lily jelous, but ultimately catches feelings because of course he does. he’s james potter for fuck sake.
the way regulus is described in this actually makes me want to rip out my heart. he’s so beautiful. and james is just so perfect i actually can’t. when regulus almost died, the way james acted made me want to rip out my eye balls. i felt every emotion, went through everything they did and my heart broke. and now i have to wait till tuesday for an update after that last chapter (4.2) are you JOKING.
obsessed and i’m agony knowing i will never be loved the way regulus is loved by james. the way regulus pines after james and can’t fathom loving anybody else shattered my heart because same buddy same.
perfection in 14 chapters.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 24, 2023
Words can't describe how much I loved this. I was giggling, crying, getting mad, being hysterical, losing my mind, sobbing, kicking me feet. Every single emotion was felt reading this and I couldn't have asked for more.
August 22, 2022
"James loves him. Oh, he loves him, and Regulus loves him back. "
April 18, 2023
mary reject me so that i can move on
August 13, 2023
this was very adorable, silly and goofy but THAT last paragraph fucked me up so bad. oh god😭
July 18, 2023
i will never let a man hurt me like regulus black hurts me and that is because he’s my personal babygirl, my baby pookie if you will, my pretty fairy if we must, and so he gets special privileges. current status: constantly sobbing and crying and weeping over dead gay wizards while reading AUs where these morons get their happy ending. no one fucking touch me.
April 6, 2024
4,5*
ao3 fanfiki pobiłyby nawet mickiewicza
reread: tylko mój głęboko zakorzeniony snobizm powstrzymuje mnie przed daniem pięciu gwiazdek
reread again: kocham
ao3 fanfiki pobiłyby nawet mickiewicza
reread: tylko mój głęboko zakorzeniony snobizm powstrzymuje mnie przed daniem pięciu gwiazdek
reread again: kocham
April 12, 2023
I want this fanfic buried with me when I die
May 17, 2022
ja moge umrzec dla tego ff
December 14, 2023
THIS.
this has to be my favourite representation of them that i’ve ever read. everything about them makes me want to smile and sob at the same time
this has to be my favourite representation of them that i’ve ever read. everything about them makes me want to smile and sob at the same time
September 17, 2022
El único canon que existe desde ahora!!! 😭😭🫶
January 6, 2023
Happy jegulus... you dont see that enough.
Read
August 21, 2023broo it was so cute, for me too cute 🥹 i need more pain (i don't know what that says about me)🙂
i start reading in may, read 900 pages and leave this for 3 months. why? i dont now 🙂
and i prefer jily 💘- some of yall bout to be real mad at me but it must to be said (i like jegulus,but jily have my heart)
zostawiam bez oceny,bo nawet nie pamiętam co się działo na początku 😭 specjalnie dla Pauliny i Eweliny po angielsku,bo czekam aż będą ogarniać angielski na tyle żeby przeczytać all the young dudes;))
i start reading in may, read 900 pages and leave this for 3 months. why? i dont now 🙂
and i prefer jily 💘- some of yall bout to be real mad at me but it must to be said (i like jegulus,but jily have my heart)
zostawiam bez oceny,bo nawet nie pamiętam co się działo na początku 😭 specjalnie dla Pauliny i Eweliny po angielsku,bo czekam aż będą ogarniać angielski na tyle żeby przeczytać all the young dudes;))
November 20, 2022
“Perhaps it was the echo of a knock from another life, but in this one, James shrugs, shuts the door, and goes back to the love that's waiting on him inside.”
“Stop trying so bloody hard to be perfect. No one can be, and you don't have to be. I can't believe I'm the one telling you this, but just be yourself. Believe it or not, that's all the people who really matter want from you anyway.”
MY HEART IS BURSTING.
This is my fave Zar fic so far, it was so adorable and perfect. There’s no Voldemort in this so you’d presume less angst right? WRONG. I cried so hard when James was having his bad week he deserves the world. I literally love the whole group it’s so found family.
Jegulus owns me. And the Wolfstar in this was so cute afnfjss. Don’t get me started on the dorclene and marylily.
This fic is so perfect.
“Stop trying so bloody hard to be perfect. No one can be, and you don't have to be. I can't believe I'm the one telling you this, but just be yourself. Believe it or not, that's all the people who really matter want from you anyway.”
MY HEART IS BURSTING.
This is my fave Zar fic so far, it was so adorable and perfect. There’s no Voldemort in this so you’d presume less angst right? WRONG. I cried so hard when James was having his bad week he deserves the world. I literally love the whole group it’s so found family.
Jegulus owns me. And the Wolfstar in this was so cute afnfjss. Don’t get me started on the dorclene and marylily.
This fic is so perfect.
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