"I think after serving vodka to middle-aged men all day, I need some vodka myself." Alice informed Remus, not even one foot into their shared flat yet. It was nice having someone who understood the agony of bartending, though hearing a long-winded rant about it the whole car ride wasn't something that tickled Remus's fancy. "Want me to pour you some?"

Alice flickered her car keys towards the coffee table, kicking her shoes off at the door. Remus followed suit behind her, taking off his coat and placing it on the couch. "As appealing as that offer is, I have another shift tomorrow night and the last thing I need is to spend the first part of the day recovering from a hangover."

"Oh, c'mon," She responded, already making her way towards their small kitchen. "I never said you should get blackout drunk, just…" Alice paused, scanning over which brand she wanted, before pulling one out - along with a small glass. "- Just, a little buzz never killed anyone."

A small grin started to tug on Remus's lips, and he waved his hand dismissively, "Alright, alright. Pour me a little." He gave in, lounging back on his sofa carelessly. Instantly, he felt himself being uncomfortably prodded in the arse. Rolling to the side, he moved to grab the guilty party. He found himself staring at the slightly squashed face of a red teddy bear, covered in a tacky heart print.

"Don't kill poor ." Alice tutted, arriving with two glasses in tow. She placed them on the small coffee table, letting out a small sigh as she collapsed next to Remus.

"You named him Mr. Hearts?" Remus arched an amused brow, "Well, if that isn't the most creative name ever." The comment earned him a soft whack to his arm.

Remus Lupin stared down at the teddy bear for a few seconds before moving it to the side. The plush had been a gift from Frank Longbottom, Alice's boyfriend - or, fiance now - when he proposed. He felt a sharp tug in his heart when he thought about the proposal.

For far too many years to count, Alice had always been there for him. They had been neighbors, and through the good and the bad, she had never left him once. Sometimes, that's all he needed. Someone that wasn't going to leave.

When they were both eighteen years old, they had moved out from their respective households and worked together to purchase a flat. It wasn't anything impressive - far from it, actually. However, it was the most they could scrape up between their small checks. Alice's father had given her a decent sum of money, which she used to purchase a car so that neither of them had to use the slummy buses.

Everything was going smoothly - that was, until Alice met Frank at the bar. He was nice enough and something about him had wooed her over. One date turned into two and so on until he proposed almost a year in. Of course, Remus was happy for his best friend - but it didn't stop him from feeling sad about it deep down. It was only a matter of time before she left, too. They would get married, buy a house, and yet again he'd be down one friend.

"You going to drink it, weirdo? Or are you just going to stare longingly at the wall and contemplate how shitty life is?" Alice asked, already finished with the little vodka she had poured in her glass. Remus hadn't even realized he had been staring until she had snapped him out of it.

Bringing the cup to his lips, Remus chuckled, "Bold of you to assume I need to be staring at something to contemplate how shitty life is." He lifted the glass after downing the small shot. "Cheers."

"Cheers, Lupin."


It was not an unfamiliar room. In fact, quite the contrary. Yet, for some reason it always felt so distant and cold. Remus recognized it in a heartbeat. It was the bedroom from his childhood, back in his old house.

He found himself staring aimlessly at the room. He took in every small detail, even though he had became very accustomed to the space in his dreams.

"Little Lupin…"

There it was. The familiar voice that always called out.

Almost instantly, he felt as if his whole body turned into sand. Every small movement required an unreasonably difficult amount of energy. That's why he couldn't move an inch when a shadowy figure appeared behind him. A big hand grasped Remus's shoulder firmly, long nails digging into the sensitive skin. "Let's play a game, shall we?"

Remus wanted to say no. He wanted to run. He wanted to do something - anything. Yet, his body worked against him and just stayed stiff and docile.

"Remus."

"Remus?"


"Remus?"

Remus's eyes flashed open at the call only to find a man leaning over him. Instantly panicked pumped through his veins and without thought he kicked the male back. He shot straight up, scanning his surroundings. He was in his small little flat, he wasn't in his old bedroom anymore. That, at least, was a relief.

"Ouch!"

The sound of a wince caught Remus's attention and he turned to get a better look at the man he had sent to the floor. A young man was grabbing his stomach, curled over in discomfort. Instantly, Remus recognized the other. Frank Longbottom.

"You scared me," Remus rubbed his neck nervously, a faint blush coloring his cheeks. To be fair, it was Frank's fault for coming into his room unwelcomed. "Sorry about that kick."

"Eh, it's fine." Frank removed the arm he previously had supporting his stomach. "Sorry for scaring you. Alice gave me a key to the flat and asked me to come here to retrieve her jacket. I would have just popped in and out in a flash, but I heard some wicked thrashing and whimpering coming from your room."

Instinctively, Remus buried his head into his knees out of embarrassment.

"I would have just left you be. I didn't want to intrude, especially if you were doing something with someone," Frank waggled his brow and Remus wanted to sink into the bed. "But, your door was open and nobody was inside. Thought it'd be a pretty asshole move if I just left you to that nightmare you seemed to be having."

Despite how much he wanted to, Remus couldn't find any fault in the other's logic. He broke the silence with a defeated sigh. "Alright, well, I appreciate your concern. Thanks for waking me up."

"No problem, anything for Alice's best friend." Frank grinned and softly elbowed Remus. It was meant to be a playful, brotherlike exchange, but it felt awkward due to how little they knew about each other. They had hung out once or twice, when Alice tried to introduce them to each other over ice cream at Florean Fortescue's parlor. Originally, Longbottom approached him with hostility, not overly thrilled to discover his girlfriend shared a flat with another man. However, most of the tension defused after Frank discovered Remus was gay, and the only relationship he'd ever want to pursue with Alice was a platonic one. "So what was that nightmare about anyway?"

There was no way Frank could have known how intrusive the question was, as he remained blissfully unaware of the complexity that was Remus Lupin's life. Not feeling like getting into it with a mere acquaintance, Remus just plastered on a fake smile and scrambled around for a quick lie. "You know, the usual. Just some dumb dream about ghosts kidnapping me and whatever." He waved his hand dismissively.

The concern on Frank's face immediately dissolved and a smile appeared. "Yeah, I get that. Screw those ghosts, am I right?" He chuckled and patted the other's knee before standing up. "Look, I better get back to Alice before she wonders where I am."

Remus just nodded and smiled, relieved as Frank made his exit. Once he heard the front door slam shut, he stretched and got up. He was glad to finally have some free time to himself.