MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! There's only a few hours left till Christmas! I know it's not Christmas anymore for a few of you, so if that applies to you, take this as a late present. I love you guys and happy holidays!
Also, if you're following my multichapter fic, Pretending, I just updated, so check it out :)
Yes, this fic is inspired by the movie Serendipity, obviously.
love,
Sam
December 18
3:00 PM
[Remus] Come on, Lily. What do you want for Christmas?
[Lily] World peace.
Remus leans against one of the millions of shelves in the store, scowling at Lily's text.
He hates Christmas shopping. It's not that he's one of those people who's bitter about holidays or that the seasonal mall crowd is too much to handle. It's just that he's horrible at picking gifts and his friends don't help at all. It's a mystery why he still bothers to save a portion of his salary all year for this. If he cared any less, he'd just bake everyone almost-decent gingerbread cookies for presents.
[Remus] I'll try this again. What do you want for Christmas?
[Lily] A boyfriend.
[Lily] Or a girlfriend.
[Lily] Whichever one you find first.
He groans and the saleslady who's arranging a display of teapots stare at him. At this point, he couldn't care less. Christmas is in a week and he isn't in the mood to act cheery when his best friend is being an uncooperative jerk.
[Remus] Fine. Don't get a gift from me, see if I care.
[Lily] Psh. You're too nice for that, Lupin. Go shop for the others first.
[Remus] I already have! Just bought Frank's gift, actually.
[Lily] His gift? I thought we were getting him and Alice a couple gift?
[Remus] No way. I'm not getting him some crappy His n Hers present after he got me tickets to the concert next month.
[Remus] Besides. We agreed on that BEFORE they broke up. Now. What do you want?
[Lily] A loyal best friend who sticks to plans.
[Remus] Going once.
[Lily] I want Steve Rogers.
Remus rolls his eyes.
[Remus] Don't we all. Going twice.
Walking around the aisles, he pretends to be scanning novelty jars as he waits for Lily's reply. He has been standing in the same spot for the past ten minutes, just texting her. The salespeople are starting to give him the stink eye.
However, by the time he reaches the lava lamps and Lily still hasn't replied, he's about to give up and just get her gift cards from Primark or something.
His phone buzzes.
"Finally," he mutters to himself.
[Lily] Fine.
[Lily] Ooooh! Get me one of those cozy gloves!
[Remus] That's more like it.
[Lily] GET THE CHRISTMAS THEMED ONES. Petunia used to get me those every Christmas.
It's an offhanded comment, but Remus senses a bit of nostalgia in it. She and her sister hate each other, but still. They used to spend Christmas with each other even when their parents were away. Of course, that changed when Lily got a scholarship to Petunia's dream school.
Remus' phone buzzes again.
[Lily] SNOWMAN PLEASE.
[Remus] Gotcha, Lils.
[Lily] NO, WAIT. A REINDEER.
[Remus] No one should be this excited for gloves.
[Lily] Well, since you can't get me someone to date, I'm gonna need alternatives to keep me warm.
[Remus] Point taken.
He pockets his phone, relieved to have some kind of direction now. Walking up to a salesman, he puts on his most polite smile.
"Excuse me, where are the Christmas-themed gloves located?"
The man pointed vaguely towards the right side, murmuring, "Next to the wool socks."
Remus smiles wide at him, even though he's already gone back to folding towels, before turning around and heading for the gloves. Actually getting things done makes Remus happy. Even if he has to stand in line for quite a while. Lily is the only person he hasn't shopped for yet and he's finally making progress.
On the way, he picks up some stuff that will go with the pair of gloves, because he is not entirely contented with giving her just that. He chooses a white beanie that will make her red hair pop more than it already does. Then, before reaching the aisle he's heading for, Remus also grabs a pair of fuzzy socks that will match his when they spend Christmas Eve at their apartment, in their pajamas, watching movies like Love Actually and The Holiday.
Of course, Remus regrets stopping too much on the way to the gloves section. By the time he grabs the last pair of reindeer gloves, another hand clutches them at the same time.
Remus looks at the other customer, and tries not to gape. The boy looks his age, if not a little older, and resembles one of the models posing in the posters that were hung around the store.
He had tan skin and dark, gorgeous almond shaped eyes. His hair was pitch black and in a messy bun that he manages to pull off, with stray strands falling against his high cheekbones. With a leather jacket tied around his waist, he's clad with a white shirt and ripped jeans that are tucked into his combat boots.
Remus might just die.
But instead, he snaps out of it. "Uh...yeah, you're gonna have to let go, mate."
The boy just smiles, amused. "Right. I don't think so. I got it first."
Snorting, Remus looks at him with disbelief. "You have got to be kidding me."
Pretty Boy remains calm and unfazed. "Okay, fine," he says, shrugging, "we both got it at the same time. How about we both just let go at the same time and neither of us gets the pair. Sound fair?"
Remus stares, wondering how stupid this bloke thinks Remus is. "Nice try, but no."
Chuckling, Pretty Boy shrugs. "Then we stay here until one of us has something better to do. I warn ya, I never have something better to do.
"I figured," Remus mutters. "Come on, mate, I need this."
Pretty shrugs again. "Well do I"
"Really?" Remus asks. "You need this," he repeats in monotone, his eyes darting back from the dorky Christmas gloves to Sirius' devil-may-care outfit.
"What? You don't think the leather jacket and wool gloves with Christmas patterns don't match?" he asks, with a smug grin on his face.
Remus frowns at him and turns away, hating how his day is going.
"I need this more than you do," Remus insists. "My best friend literally doesn't want anything but these gloves. She's got an obsession with deer."
"Same with my best mate," Sirius argues. "These are the ones he's been looking for. He's obsessed with them too."
"Yeah, right," Remus mutters. "Come on, she'd love these gloves. She loves anything with deer on them. Well, reindeer, now that it's Christmas. I mean, they're different, I guess, but they're-"
"Still part of the Cervidae family along with moose and elk?" he finishes.
Remus laughs. "Well, that's a whole new level of finishing each other's sentences."
"My best friend doesn't stop talking about them," he grumbles, shrugging.
"Okay, fine, so maybe you're not lying."
"Your lack of trust in me stings."
Remus rolls his eyes. "Yeah, because I normally trust strangers in leather jackets who try to steal my gifts for my friends."
"Once again," he says, "you didn't see or take it first."
"Well we're going to have to decide on who gets this," Remus says, in a bored tone that suggests he obviously believes it's him. Pretty Boy can find something else for his friend. He doesn't necessarily look like a person who gets picky with buying gifts. "Which we have no way to decide since I have no bloody idea who you are."
Pretty Boy smiles. "I'm Sirius."
Remus just stares at him, not knowing how to react. He finally clears his throat. "Yeah, okay, I don't get it."
"That's my name. Sirius."
Raising his eyebrows, Remus tries not to laugh. "Well, I can't exactly judge. My name is Remus."
"Better than Sirius," Pretty Boy - Sirius - points out.
"Well, Sirius, can I have my gloves now, please?"
Sirius smirks. "Either we stay like this until one of us gets tired or you convince you need this more than I do. Because I recently just rode my motorcycle into my best friend's house and he isn't too happy with me at the moment."
"Of course you own a motorcycle," Remus mutters, amused.
Sirius makes a face at him. "So, convince me."
Remus groans. "You're joking. I am not gonna stand here, holding a pair of gloves with you, wasting my breath on something that can be settled if you just let me have the damn gloves."
At this point, Remus doesn't really care about the gloves anymore. Lily would love anything else with ugly Christmas patterns on it, especially if reindeer are involved. However, he doesn't want to give in to Sirius. He's not willing to back down from this kid, and he's not entirely sure why. Maybe it's the intimidating facade or Remus' stubbornness.
It's definitely not because Sirius seems to be one of the most interesting (and cute) strangers he has met.
"Fine," Sirius resolves. "There's a coffee shop across the street. You can convince me then."
Remus prays to the gods that he isn't blushing. Is he flirting?
He huffs, and shrugs. "Fine."
Before he can make sense of what he just agreed to, they took the pair to the nearest counter. After splitting the cost of the gloves, they each wear one and head outside.
5:00 PM
"...and that," Remus concludes, "is the story of how I - an honor student who didn't even know where they held detentions - got kicked out of the school dance and suspended for two weeks."
Sirius is laughing, shaking his head and slapping the table with his glove-clad hand. "You have got to be kidding me."
Remus shrugs. "Wish I was," he mumbles before sipping his hot chocolate.
It's been over an hour and they're still wearing one glove each. Remus wants to claim that he has no idea why he's still sitting across this boy because they are far beyond talking about the stupid gloves, but then he would be lying to himself.
Sirius is quite a character. He may pull off this whole devil-may-care attitude - with the black nail polish and the single earring and the motorcycle parked across the street and is that a tattoo peeking out of his sleeve - but this guy is actually a huge nerd.
Even with just the limited time they've been together, Remus has learned a lot. He knows that Sirius can't drink his coffee unless he adds in exactly two and a half packets of sugar in it. Remus knows that Sirius tears up when he gets paper cuts (from struggling to open the packets, no less). He knows that, yes, Sirius is a pro when it comes to his motorcycle, but he has never ridden a bike. He knows that Sirius wipes his teaspoon after stirring his coffee. He knows - after Sirius laughed at his reference - that he likes Star Wars. He knows that Sirius subconsciously unties and ties his hair every few minutes when he's talking.
He knows that it might be a little unhealthy to have a crush on stranger.
"Amazing," Sirius mutters. "This school of yours, this where you met your best friend?"
"Nah, we met way before that. We were three and our mums brought us to the same daycare. Inseparable ever since," Remus says proudly. "Although, she can be quite a pain sometimes. You know, one time, she forced me to wear make up to school just to test out how her new blush, lip gloss, and eyeliner, would look like in our classroom's lighting."
He raises his eyebrows. "Well, that's rather unfair."
Remus snorts. "Tell me about it."
"No," Sirius says. "I mean, that's pretty unfair because I'm pretty sure you look gorgeous in any lighting."
With a blush creeping up his cheeks, Remus tries to ignore the slow flip in his stomach and the way Sirius' silver eyes are shining. Remus tries to remind himself that it doesn't mean anything. That this wanker probably just has fun messing with people in the most unexpected ways .
Remus tries to act nonchalant, laughing sarcastically. "Very funny."
He narrows his eyes at me. "What's funny?"
Before he can answer, Remus' phone blares.
"Speak of the devil," Remus murmurs as he fishes his phone out of his pocket.
"Your ringtone is The Killers?" Sirius says incredulously, staring at Remus' phone with an impressed look.
Remus decides he likes him.
As soon as he presses answer, he hears Lily's voice.
"Remus, where are you? You said you'd be here by now!"
"Oh, um," Remus stutters, trying not to look at a smirking Sirius. "Yeah, I'll be there soon. I just...I got held up...by something."
"We still have to buy Frank a gift, you tosser. Don't abandon me now, Lupin."
"You have to buy him a gift. I told you, I already got him one," Remus says, smugly.
"I got him and Alice a couple gift, okay? How was I supposed to know they were gonna break up? Christ, they're just going to get back together in a month anyway," she says, exasperated.
"Yeah, yeah," he murmurs in reply, only half-listening, because Sirius is licking foam off his lips in the most indecent way possible and Remus is resisting the urge to throw something at him. "Be there in twenty, okay?"
Lily grumbles, "Fine then." Then, before giving Remus a chance to speak, the line goes dead.
Sighing, Remus puts his phone down on the table. "Well, you heard her."
Ignoring Remus, Sirius just beams. "So, The Killers, huh?"
Remus chuckles. "Yeah. Only thing I listen to on most days. If not AC/DC or Queen, I mean...Oh, and Coldplay too," Remus adds as an afterthought. He looks back at Sirius, who's practically staring at this point. "What?"
"I'm a hundred percent sure I'm in love with you," he says, matter-of-factly.
Laughing nervously, Remus shakes his head. "Sure you are. Well, the love of your life has to get going now. You heard the boss," he says, gesturing to his phone before pocketing it again.
"Oh." The disappointment in Sirius' tone is hard to ignore. "Yeah, yeah, of course."
Remus smiles sadly at him as he gets up, shopping bag in one hand and his unfinished hot chocolate in the other. "Well...It was nice talking to you."
Sirius grins and nods. "Likewise, Remus..."
"Lupin," Remus finishes. He puts down his drink and extends his hand. "Remus Lupin."
Sirius shakes his hand. "Sirius Black," he says with an air of confidence. Then he looks down at their clasped hands, wearing the gloves they were fighting over. "The gloves, though," he starts, "you should-"
"Nah, it's fine, I can get her something else-"
"No. She sounds way more deserving that my git of a friend," Sirius insists. He stands up, takes his glove off and hands it to Remus. "Take it. Seriously."
Remus raises his eyebrows and takes the glove. "So you do have a heart beneath that Might Be A Murderer look you've got going on."
Sirius laughs. "Don't get used to it."
Do I have an opportunity to get used to it, at least?
Remus takes off his glove and folds it together with the other one before dropping it into the shopping bag. "Thank you. So much. Seriously."
He beams at Remus, and it's the kind of smile that makes him consider ditching Lily for a few more hours with this Greek god in combat boots.
"Look," Remus suddenly says, reaching into his back pocket. He pulls out his wallet and says, "I should give you something to make up for it. These gloves really do mean a lot to her, you see."
Sirius tries to wave it off. "No, you don't have to pay your half of it, really. It's fine, you-"
"I'm not, Sirius," Remus says, opening his wallet. "Are you free on the 5th of January? 6:30 ish?"
"Definitely," he assures. "Why, you asking me out?" he jokes.
Remus laughs. I wish.
"No, it's just that...I have these tickets and..." he trails off as he takes out two Coldplay tickets.
The amusement on Sirius' face makes way for utter shock. His eyes go wide and his jaw drops. He clutches his own chest and starts shaking his head frantically. "If you're messing with me, I swear-"
"I'm not," Remus insists. "Here, I'll write down the tour's website so you can check out the details," he adds, turning over one of the tickets after he takes out a pencil and jotting down the site. Then, he thrusts the tickets into Sirius' trembling hand.
"No. You're...This is too much...You don't even...You barely know me! I'm a horrible person, trust me, I don't...deserve...They're just...Just gloves!" Sirius babbles unintelligibly, looking down at the tickets in his hands.
Remus shrugs. "Then give them to your best mate - James, right? You still don't have a gift for him," he reminds. "Besides, my friend, Frank?Well, his mom is the production manager for the tour. I can get these tickets anytime. Not a big deal."
The look of awe and gratitude on Sirius' face hardly makes Remus feel the loss of his front row tickets. "You're amazing."
Remus smiles. "See you around?"
Sirius nods. "See you around."
"Merry Christmas, Sirius Black."
"Merry Christmas, Remus Lupin."
December 25
12:01 AM
"Merry Christmas, sweetie," Lily coos, embracing Remus.
Remus hugs back, holding her tight. "Merry Christmas, you nerd."
Every Christmas Eve is like this, just the two of them. Love Actually is on pause on the telly, and there's a fireplace right by the pile of beanbag chairs they're huddled up in. They're surrounded by empty tubs of ice cream, wine bottles, and cigarette packs, both of them underneath an old quilt they bought together back when they were in uni. This was his heaven.
Lily pulls away, grinning like mad. She reaches behind the mini-mountain of beanbag chairs and grabs a neatly wrapped parcel, presenting it to Remus. "I know that you already have like twenty copies of these and I don't understand why you collect all these editions...But I know it's important to you and that you don't have this edition yet."
Remus chuckles fondly. "You're the best, Lils," he mumbles, tearing away the wrapper.
In his hands, is the 1959 paperback edition of Lord of the Flies.
"Shit," he mutters under his breath. "I've been looking for this one for like a year."
"Exactly," she says proudly.
"I love you so much," he says, in awe, as he leans in to hug her again and kiss her forehead.
"I know," she answers smugly. "Now give me those gloves I asked for."
Remus rolls his eyes and gives her the gift bag next to him.
She shrieks with excitement - not sounding unlike a little girl who just got a limited edition Barbie doll for Christmas - as she opens the bag, taking out the festive gloves.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she exclaims as she sees the additional beanie and socks. She puts them on and shakes her feet next to Remus', admiring their matching socks. When she pulls out the gloves, the gleam in her eyes gets amplified "These are exactly like the ones I used to get when I was little," she tells him, as she starts to tug them on.
Remus smiles, seeing her so hyper ecstatic. "Yeah, I know. That's why I had to fight for them, remember?"
Lily shakes her head. "I still think you should have asked that bloke out. He sounds perfect to me."
"Come on, Lils," Remus chides. "We barely knew each other. Besides, it's not like that. I'm just really bummed because we'd just make potentially great friends."
Lily scoffs. "Since when do you go on coffee dates and give front row tickets to 'just potentially great friends' you had just met? Anyway, you could have at least given him your number."
"Well, actually-"
"Remus."
"-before I gave him the tickets-"
"REMUS."
"WHAT?" Remus yells, matching her tone.
She pulls out the paper from one of the gloves and holds it up. It's flyer that advertised the Christmas specials of the coffee shop they went to, but there's something scribbled at the back.
Remus practically freezes. "Is that a..."
Lily jumps on him, laughing in delight. "PHONE NUMBER! YES! CALL HIM ALREADY, FOR FUCK'S SAKE!" she shouts into his face, slapping his shoulder.
"Okay, okay! Get off me and I will!"
Lily rolls her eyes and gets up, pulling him up as well. "Go get 'im, lover boy."
Remus shakes his head. "You're unbelievable," he mumbles as he walks into his bedroom.
Before he shuts the door, he hears Lily yell, "Make it quick! We still have to watch Thomas Brodie-Sangter chase the love of his life in the airport scene!"
Remus takes out his phone, and his heart thuds like crazy as he stares at the number in his hand. The memory of Sirius' motorcycle and ripped jeans and No Haircut rule makes his immaculately neat, cursive handwriting below the phone number.
I don't trust my luck enough to believe we're ever going to run into each other again so I'm writing this - while you order at the counter - to tell you that it is of great importance that you call me. It's not everyday that I meet a cute guy - Glove Stealer
Remus bites back a smile, trying to contain himself as he punches in Sirius' number. He figures it's safer for his ego to text first.
[Remus] Are you awake? I just found your number.
[Sirius] I am now. Who the fuck are you to think you can interrupt my beauty sleep?
Remus snickers, knowing it's definitely Sirius.
[Remus] Glove stealers don't deserve any beauty sleep.
[Sirius] ...Oh my god.
[Sirius] Best Christmas gift ever.
[Sirius] JAMES IF THIS IS YOU SCREWING WITH ME I AM GOING TO CRY
[Remus] Wow. You're very threatening.
[Remus] It's really Remus, though.
[Sirius] Prove it.
[Remus] My ring tone is Human by The Killers
[Sirius] I told James that.
[Remus] I ordered hot chocolate instead of coffee.
[Remus] ...I wore a beanie?
[Sirius] Told James that.
[Remus] Do you tell him everything or...
[Sirius] No. I had to mention the beanie. You looked gorgeous.
[Remus] Yeah but I look gorgeous in any lighting, right?
[Sirius] Oh my god
[Sirius Calling...]
Remus practically chokes when he sees it. His breathing speeds up and hands start to shake again. Now or never, Lupin.
[Answered]
[Ongoing Call...]
"It is you," Sirius says. His voice is trembling a little. "Thought you'd never contact me."
Remus laughs. "It's only been a week," he states, as if he hasn't been waiting for Sirius' call every second since he left the coffeshop. "Besides, if you were expecting me to make the first move, you shouldn't have put it in something that couldn't be opened until Christmas."
"Yeah," Sirius replies sheepishly. "I only realized that when I got home...And what do you mean if I were expecting you to make the first move? I didn't have a choice, you never gave me your number."
"You never checked the website I wrote down, huh?"
"What do you - Oh shit."
Remus chuckles nervously. "You're a nerd."
Before handing Sirius the Coldplay tickets, he did write down the tour website for details. But below that, he had written down his own number next to his name, hoping Sirius would find it and all him. The past week has been especially nerve-wracking since he had no idea if Sirius saw it or not.
"I'm an idiot."
"Yeah,"Remus agrees. "That too."
"Christ..." Sirius mutters. "Okay, before I mess anything up again, I just want to inform you that I really like you. And it's weird because I've just met you and I don't know much about you except for the things I learned within the almost-two hours we spent together. But I know you wear dorky beanies and that you have the best music taste. I know that you're a wonderful best friend and that you have twenty copies of Lord of the Flies. I know-"
"Twenty-one."
"...What?"
"I have twenty-one copies now. Lily gave - fuck, sorry, I interrupted. Go on."
Sirius laughs fondly on the other end. "I know that you hate coffee and love chocolate. I know that you finished uni and, recently, law school on a full scholarship, and that you immediately got hired as an intern by a high class firm because you're just that good. I know you have another job too, you work in a bookshop in Watford. I know that you always do your Christmas shopping late. I know that you hate hot drinks and that you only order them to keep your hands warm, then you drink 'em when they've gone cold. I know that...I know that you're really cute, and smart, and funny, and nice. Which is why I'm telling you that...James can't make it to the concert. He isn't free that night."
"...Well that's anticlimactic end to your speech, but okay," Remus teases.
Sirius chuckles. "What I'm trying to say is...Are you free on the 5th of January? Around 6:30 ish?"
"Why, you asking me out?" Remus asks, mimicking Sirius' words from their first meeting as well. Remus is thankful they're doing this over the phone because he can gradually feel blush on his face and his still-trembling fingers.
"Yes."
"Then yes. I'm free."
December 24, 2014
5 PM
Sirius stops in front of apartment number 34, holding Remus' hand. "This is you, Remus."
Remus smiles. "You sure you don't want to join us?"
Sirius shakes his head. "Nah, I get you most nights. This is your tradition with Evans, I don't wanna intrude," he says, as he idly runs his fingers through Remus' hair the moment he takes off his beanie. "Besides," he adds, "James and I have plans."
Remus laughs softly, leaning closer. "Okay, then...But I have your gift here though, I wanna see you open it."
Frowning, Sirius shakes his head. "I thought we agreed that we were opening presents tomorrow morning when I come over?"
Shrugging, Remus reaches into his coat pocket anyway. "This is just part one."
Sirius raises his eyebrows. "Part one?"
Nodding, Remus grins at him as he takes it out of his coat pocket. He holds up a single glove with a bow on it.
As he starts to laugh and feel his chest grow warm and tight, Sirius takes it from Remus and it puts it on. "You're amazing."
Holding up a finger, Remus reaches into his pocket again. He takes out the matching glove and puts it on. He holds up his gloved hand and wiggles his fingers.
Sirius laughs harder, shaking his head, and Remus laughs along.
Sirius looks at Remus, who has an accomplished smile on his face and beaming brightly. Feeling a tug in his chest and the nostalgic feel of the glove's wool, Sirius places a hand against Remus' cheek.
Remus' guffaw dies down to a mild grin as he inches closer to Sirius, seeming to revel at the shorter boy's touch. "What are you looking at?"
"I love you."
Sirius' eyes widen as soon as he register what he just told Remus. Fuck.
It's the first time Sirius has said it, and he tenses up. A million things run through his mind and he feels his heart thudding aggressively in his chest. He looks away, and clears his throat. For the first time since ten months ago, when he asked Remus to be his boyfriend, he can't find the nerve to look at him.
But before he can completely freak out, he feels Remus' fingers curl around his chin, making Sirius face him. Sirius feels a wave of relief when he sees that Remus is far from being scared off. Remus' eyes are wide in pleasant shock. He has a huge grin on his face, making his dimples more prominent. His breathing is speeding up, and his fingers are trembling, the way they always do when he's excited.
"Hey," Remus mumbles, "calm down there. Freaking out isn't very punk of you."
Sirius, although nervous and jittery, manages to laugh. "I hate you."
"Nah," Remus says. "I just heard from a reliable source that you love me," he retorts, pulling Sirius closer to him by his coat - their faces are barely a couple inches apart now. "But then again, I recall you saying you were in love with me the day we met, remember? And I was just talking about bands."
"You're horrible," Sirius whines, but he wraps his arms around Remus' neck.
Remus nods, moving even closer. "But you love me."
Sirius closes his eyes. Their noses are touching now and he can feel Remus' hot breath against his skin. "Yeah, I have horrible taste in blokes."
"So do I."
"Why's that?"
"Because," Remus starts in an almost-whisper, "I love you too."
Sirius' face breaks into a grin and presses his lips against Remus, feeling thankful for the stubborn boy in his arms who wouldn't let go of the damn gloves over a year ago.
"Merry Christmas, Remus."
"Merry Christmas, Sirius."