Two steaming mugs stood unnoticed on the little table in the kitchens. A house elf pattered around, cleaning up all evidence of the boiling and brewing of the beverages. It politely ignored the two teenagers who sat in armchairs opposite one another, who were in the middle of an intense staring contest.
"Sirius, stop pulling stupid faces!"
"Moony, seriously, stop looking at me like that."
"Was that a blink? Did you just blink?"
"Shut up, no I didn't!"
"Pretty sure you did. See? You did it again. I win."
"No touching!"
"OW," Remus finally blinked rapidly, his hand covering his left eye. "You didn't have to resort to that!"
Sirius grinned wolfishly, not looking the slightest bit apologetic. Wildly tousled hair brushed his shoulders; his jawline accentuated by the dim lighting throwing shadows. He had only bothered to pull a hoodie on to make a late-night trip to the kitchens with Remus; his penguin-covered boxers made Remus snort every time he saw them.
Remus, on the other hand, was a complete pyjama person. Sirius was sure he had at least ten different sets. At the present moment, he was wearing traditional blue-and-white striped jammies, with wolf slippers on his feet, bought for him by James as a joke. His hair was messy from tossing and turning in his bed; his stress about the impending NEWT mock exams was keeping sleep far away.
Sirius had heard him, and dragged him out of bed for a hot drink to distract him. He hadn't been sure what was bothering Remus, but didn't want to ask. Bro Code part 4 subsection 6: the conversation must never turn mushy. The Bro Code didn't stop his brain from turning mushy, though: why couldn't his mind move on from his worry about Moony? Also, very unhelpfully, he found himself unable to stop staring at the slight stubble that was scattered over Moony's jaw, and at his faintly pursed lips, which were oh-so-tantalising to the unfortunately smitten Sirius.
As his eyes roved over the werewolf's scarred features, he noticed a single eyebrow raise. Sirius's eyes snapped downwards to meet a questioning pair of brown ones. A smirk flashed across his face; Moony looked away hurriedly, a light blush in his cheeks. At least, Sirius thought he saw the blush. He was probably imagining things; it wouldn't be the first time.
Besides, Bro Code part 7 subsections 1-10: DO NOT FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR BEST FRIEND. Maybe that one was invented by Sirius, due to his unfortunate situation, but it applied nonetheless.
Looking away, he averted his gaze towards the untouched mugs on the table. Arching his eyebrows, he turned back to the lycanthrope.
"I don't understand what is so wonderful about tea, to be perfectly honest. Why the bloody hell do you like it so much?"
Remus looked affronted. Being an avid coffee lover, Sirius was indeed very curious about the appeal of tea; Remus was the embodiment of all tea drinkers.
"It's such a peaceful drink, as opposed to coffee: I don't understand your obsession with coffee. All it does is give you false energy in the form of caffeine, and then drops you down into a slump afterwards." Remus replied heatedly. Offended, Sirius began to defend his beloved coffee.
"Excuse me, but have you ever seen a cup of tea being made? It looks disgusting! I cannot, cannot trust any food or drink that comes from a bag. Especially that icky powdery stuff inside teabags! Ew!" Sirius eloquently began blowing raspberries and contorting his (rather handsome) face into grossed-out expressions. He was so engrossed in this, that he didn't notice that Remus was staring at him incredulously.
It took three minutes of constant, vicious poking to stop his grimaces. Remus waited patiently for Sirius to justify his behaviour.
"Uhh…Tea sucks?" he attempted. Remus shook his head exasperatedly.
"Coffee, for one thing, is horribly bitter until you drown it with milk and sugar; I may as well just drink tea! For another thing, drinking coffee whilst reading is awful, I lose concentration because my mind is buzzing due to the caffeine."
"Oh, boo hoo, you couldn't read your book? If I didn't drink coffee, I wouldn't be able to wake up in a morning! And we all know that no one would survive without me there!" Sirius puffed out his chest, his ego swelling until it filled the room.
"You are so narcissistic."
"I've told you before, I am not Narcissa! I am Sirius!"
"Are you stupid? Narcissistic, egotistical, conceited. Not Narcissa Black!" Remus sniped, half-laughingly, but half-irritably. The spark of annoyance in his chocolatey eyes did funny things to Sirius' stomach. Like a thousand miniature chocolate frogs leaping around in there. Since when did he have amber flecks mixed in with the gorgeous brown? Like sparks darting this way and that when you strike a match.
Sirius, lost in his sappy imagination, didn't notice Remus clearing his throat loudly. A hand waved in front of his unfocused eyes, and Sirius blinked several times, before coming back to earth with a bump. Oops.
An idea flashed in his mind, and he lunged forwards and grabbed Remus' mug from the table. "Fine. I will try this monstrosity you call a beverage." Sirius stared miserably into the murky brown liquid, wishing that his brain had produced a more pleasant distraction. He closed his eyes for a moment, and resigned himself.
Remus watched him, amused, as the daft dog clumsily disguised his momentary lapse of concentration. The lack of sleep seemed to be making Sirius even less sane than he normally was. A faint smile pulled at the corners of his lips as Sirius raised the mug in a mock toast, and brought it to his lips.
A slow grimace twisted his face, as he carefully placed the drink back on the table, and slid it closer to Remus. Equally as slowly, he picked up his own mug, and took a long sip, rolling the bitter flavour around his mouth. "Ew." He remarked quietly, breaking the silence that had fallen.
A snort completely shattered the quiet spell, and Remus finally lost it. He threw his head back, and let out a deep belly laugh, clutching his stomach, eyes squeezed shut. "Y-you should have seen your fa-" was all he could get out around the laughter bubbling up from his lungs. The peals of mirth were infectious, transforming Sirius' pouting face into a wide grin.
After several minutes, however, his smile slid off his face, replaced by the sulky expression. "It wasn't that funny." He muttered crossly, glaring through narrowed eyes at the incredibly attractive annoying wolf. Remus was inhaling great gulps of air to try and regain control, but he kept catching sight of Sirius' sullen face and chuckling uncontrollably.
"I disagree," he snickered, and took a sip of his tea to calm himself.
"Wait! I have an idea!" Sirius smirked evilly, sliding his coffee mug across the table towards Remus, whose eyes widened.
"Sirius, no, Padfoot I don't want to drink it-" Remus shoved his armchair backwards away from the table and curled in a ball, protecting himself from the dreaded caffeinated beverage. The maniacally laughing Sirius approached him, hefting the coffee above his head. He leaned over Remus, and attempted to pry his hands away from his face. Laughing, Remus squirmed in an attempt to escape, but Sirius climbed on top of him and sat his full body weight on the werewolf's lap. Two pairs of hands wrapped around the mug, pushing in opposite directions.
Suddenly, Sirius realised where he was. His mind froze up a little. He was straddling Remus' lap, their faces were mere inches apart, hands (almost) intertwined (albeit around a coffee mug) and they weren't kissing yet. He must be losing his touch.
Screw the Bro Code, he wasn't passing up this chance.
Sirius closed the gap between their faces, brushing his lips against Remus'.
Remus' eyes widened in shock, before they fluttered shut with a sigh. Sirius felt him respond to the kiss, their lips moving gently together. Remus' hands tentatively moved to tangle in his hair, pulling the other boy closer. Sirius gently tugged on Remus' lower lip with his teeth, eliciting a gasp, which allowed him to deepen the kiss. He was lost in the feeling of chapped lips and lightly tugged hair, arms twining around Remus' neck.
The forgotten coffee mug tipped as it rested on Remus' leg, but before it could spill it vanished with a loud crack, unnoticed by either boy.
After several minutes, Sirius pulled away, gasping for breath. A wolfish grin spread across his face as he stared at the breathless boy underneath him. Their eyes locked, and Remus smiled.
"Coffee isn't that bad, after all." He admitted, biting his lower lip thoughtfully. Sirius laughed, and rested his forehead against Remus'.
"I think it's an acquired taste, anyway,"
Remus rolled his eyes, but pulled Sirius back down to his lips.
Dotty the house elf set the cooling coffee mug on the table, and apparated away, giving the boys their privacy.