Sirius came back to the Gryffindor Common Room late that afternoon. Remus, Peter, and James were already gathered around their usual table in the corner of the room. They had bought their way through Zonko's and Honeydukes, and finished the day with a few butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks. Sirius, on the other hand, had spent the entire Hogsmeade trip in a too-cozy booth at Madam Puddifoot's with some girl that Remus didn't know the name of. He didn't really want to know her name, either. But the way Sirius went through girls, he didn't think it'd be relevant for long.
The way Sirius slumped into the empty armchair only reinforced this assumption. "Don't ever let me spend a whole Hogsmeade weekend in that damn tea shop again."
"Didn't go well, I take it?" James asks, leaning back in his chair with his feet up on the table. The fireplace crackled merrily beside them. Remus watched the sparks flying within its grate, trying not to look as invested in the conversation as he truly was.
"Even if she was able to go five minutes without mentioning her ex, I'm not sure it would've gone well. She's just not my type."
Peter snorted. "I'm starting to think you don't have a type. Or maybe you're your type. You'll end up happily married to a mirror." Peter and James roared with laughter, Sirius and Remus joining in a bit less enthusiastically.
"I'm sure the right person is just waiting for you." Maybe Remus put a bit too much emphasis on the statement. Maybe he's a bit too invested. Or maybe Sirius is just thick.
"Oh, I'm sure," he replies sarcastically. "I'm gonna head up, I think. Still got that Transfiguration essay to finish."
"I'll join you, I've still got to look mine over." With that, Sirius and Remus depart the group and the rambunctious, post-Hogsmeade common room for the quiet of their dormitory.
Sirius got out his book, and the two of them used his bed to finish their essays. Remus leaned back against the headboard, simply reading over his essay, quill between his teeth. He had his knees up, bent, with the parchment resting against his thighs. Sirius sat, his back resting along the side of Remus's leg, feet hanging off the side of the bed and a look of deep concentration on his face as he tried to find the information he needed in his book. They sat like that for a while, until Remus had finished editing his paper and had brought out a book to read. Sirius had written nearly all of his essay, but had given up in frustration, closing the textbook and tossing it on the floor. Out of sight, out of mind, he figured.
"Remus," he whined, falling back onto Remus's chest.
He gave an oof, but didn't move Sirius off. "Hmm?"
"I don't wanna finish this." He looked up at Remus. From this angle, he really did look quite a bit like the puppy he could become. It was cute.
The illusion wore off quickly. James and Peter opened the door with a bang, laughing just as loud at something and settling on their respective beds. "Hey," Remus said, marking his page and setting the novel aside.
James watched them, an eyebrow cocked. "Sirius, mate, I know your date didn't go well, but it's not been an hour yet and you're already with Remus? Ran out of birds already?"
Sirius sat up, looking between James and Peter, who gave him knowing looks, and Remus, who avoided eye contact entirely. "I'm not with Remus. We're mates. I mean, he's practically my brother. Right, Remus?" He was met with silence. Remus was looking down at his hands, pretending not to hear the conversation. Sirius nudged him, startling him a bit.
"Uh… uh, yeah. Sure. 'Course." His voice was distant, and Sirius narrowed his eyes at Remus. The suspicion got the better of him.
He turned to Peter and James. "Can you give us a minute?" They head back down to the common room, and Sirius gives Remus a scrutinizing look the second the door is shut. "Alright, what's going on? Are you mad at me?"
This finally got Remus to look at him. "Of course not."
"Then what is it? Something's wrong, Remus, just tell me what it is. Please?"
Remus sighed. "Nothing's wrong."
"You're lying."
"No, I'm not." He insisted, then added under his breath, "You're just too oblivious to notice."
"I'm too oblivious to notice what?" Sirius asked.
"Apparently not everything. Look, just forget it, alright."
"Remus, why are you like this? Just tell me what it is. You've been acting strange all day." He heaved a sigh, knowing Sirius wouldn't give up until he knew exactly what was going on. It was one of his more annoying traits.
"I was jealous, okay?" he huffed, crossing his arms defensively.
Sirius scoffed. "Jealous? Of what?"
Again, Remus couldn't meet his eyes. "Your girlfriend."
Of all the responses Remus expected, laughter wasn't one of them. "Eleanor? She's not my girlfriend, Moony. And you certainly don't need to be jealous of her."
He still wasn't getting it, apparently.
"It's not just her." Remus took a deep breath, preparing himself. "I'm jealous of your Hogsmeade dates with her and you snogging her every chance you get and the fact that you said you thought of me like a brother isn't helping any of this." He spat this all out as quickly as he could, without taking a breath in the hopes that Sirius wouldn't be able to make it out and he wouldn't have to confess everything.
He should've known at this point that his luck wasn't nearly that good.
"Why didn't you say anything?"
"What was I supposed to say? 'Hey, Sirius, pal, can you call off your date this weekend because I'd rather be dating you'? 'It's weird when you call me family after I've spent years dreaming of snogging you'?" Sirius froze. "Shit. I didn't mean—"
"I—I didn't realize…I'm—sorry."
"No, it was me. It's not like I was very vocal about it. I've never really been the type to try and grab the spotlight. But I care about you, Sirius. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt you, so I didn't bring it up. And…" Remus trailed off, cursing himself for his inability to shut up.
"And?"
"And I hoped that if I ignored it long enough it'd stop. That I could fall out of love with you." It might've been a trick of the light, but Remus could've sworn Sirius's expression faded a bit. "But I didn't. I couldn't get you off my mind."
"Really?" His voice was optimistic, and it made a traitorous part of Remus think that maybe he had a shot. "I can't believe I never noticed, I should've known." Remus sat, watching Sirius process all the new information he was receiving. He took the opportunity to scoot just a bit closer to Sirius. "So. What now?"
Remus hummed, considering. "Guess that depends."
"On?"
He blushed, looking down at the sheet on Sirius's bed rather than at him. "On whether you want to try this. Or if you'd rather we pretend this conversation never happened, start fresh…"
"How's this for an answer?" Sirius asked, cupping Remus's face in his hands, turning it gently toward his own. Sirius leaned in, kissing him softly, slowly. Remus jumped a bit in surprise, before easing into the kiss, deepening it.
A wolf-whistle sounded from the doorway. James was leaning against the doorframe, Peter giggling behind him. "We leave the room for five minutes and this is what we come back to? Get a room."
"Oh, shove off, you!" Sirius replied, chucking a pillow in the general direction of the door and cuddling close to Remus.
Sometimes, fate does its job right. Sometimes the right person for you was there all along, and you just don't see it because the wrong one was blocking your sight. But sometimes, it works out, despite the obstacles.
"Oh," Sirius murmured, breaking their kiss for a moment. "And by the way, I believe I was a little bit in love with you, too."
A/N: Written for: World Cup – Quarter Finals – England - Quote: "Sometimes the right person for you was there all along. You just didn't see it because the wrong one was blocking your sight."; Pinata – Easy – Hogwarts (setting); Writing Club - Character Appreciation 10: (trait) oblivious; Disney Challenge S3: Write about someone whistling; Trope of the Month – Didn't know they were dating; 1: (character) Sirius Black; Showtime 28: (emotion) jealousy; Amber's Attic – Slash 1: SiriusRemus; Count Your Buttons – O3: Book; D2: "I should've known"; C5: Remus Lupin; W4: Shot; Lyric Alley 1: I have never been the type to try and grab the spotlight.; Angel's Arcade - Kairi: (plot point) waiting for someone, (trait) caring, (trope) friends to lovers; Lo's Lowdown Q4: "And, by the way, I believe I was a little bit in love with you.";Bex's Biscuit Barrel: Flapjack 1. [word] Suspicion, 3. [Emotion] Insecure, 4. [Dialogue] "Why are you like this?"; Seasonal - Days of the Year - June 28: Write about a couple snuggling.; Summer Prompts: (word) Fresh; Fire Element (object) Fireplace; Shay's Musical Challenge 41: Write about someone being jealous; Gryffindor Themed Prompts – C: Remus Lupin, T: Impulsive; OP: (location) Gryffindor Common Room; Fortnightly – Canadian Craze 3: "Couldn't get you off my mind"