Angrily, Snape flung the vial toward the wall before him and watched as it smashed to pieces. The contents left a slight stain, but he was beyond caring.

How could I have been so darn stupid? How could I have mistaken Veritaserum for lemon juice? The difference between them was obvious for Heaven's sake!

Snape slowly took a seat on his couch, letting the realization of what he'd done sink in.

He had no idea that he'd whipped up a courage-stimulating potion when all he wanted was something to get rid of his headache. No wonder he still felt as if someone were pounding on his head with stones!

He now felt a mixture of emotions – all of them negative; rage, frustration, shame and hatred. He was disgusted with himself for having made such an awful mistake. Hell, even Longbottom wouldn't dream of what Snape and done and the boy was terrible at Potions.

As the effects for the potion began to wear off, the memories of what had happened with Hermione washed over him. He tried not to remember, but in vain. He knew he'd made a shameful mistake by telling her that he was in love with her. He'd ruined his reputation and embarrassed himself in every possible way. If this incident reached Dumbledore's ears, he might as well kiss his job goodbye.

If Potter and Weasely found out about this, he was done for.

He had a sudden, over-whelming urge to go and throw himself out of the Astronomy Tower, though he doubted that it would be very helpful to him or Hermione.

Her insults had wounded him most of all. It pained him to finally learn what she really thought of him. No teacher or student had ever spoken to him like that before. What she'd said outraged him as well, but then again, wasn't her audacity one of the important things he loved about her?

How could he have dared to hope that she would ever love him? To her, he was a miserable 'greasy-haired slimeball.' He was very hurt to discover that the woman he loved found him appalling, so appalling that she would not go out with him even if he were the last man on earth, as she'd put it. How could he ever face her after this?

The pain of her rejection was almost unbearable – he wanted to die. If anyone else had thought about him like that, he wouldn't have given a damn. But Hermione…

Snape sighed sadly and buried his face in his hands, on the verge of tears.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and he looked up in surprise. It was about ten p.m. Who would be calling on him now?

He was annoyed. He was in no mood to receive visitors, not tonight.

He was about to tell the person to go away, when the door opened and Remus Lupin stepped inside.

Lupin stood, looking at Snape, who looked back at him; both were unsure of what to do. Then the former quietly approached the latter and sat beside him. They were silent for an awkward moment. Then Lupin spoke:

"That was quite a declaration of love."

Snape looked at him, startled. "You heard?"

Lupin nodded. "Yes, as a matter of fact I did; I heard it all…I was actually helping Madame Pomfrey move some medical supplies. Then she went out and I was about to call her when I saw you talking to Hermione Granger." He paused. "I never imagined in my wildest dreams that you were in love with her, Severus."

Snape sighed and leaned back, too tired to argue. He was silent for a while. Then he spoke:

"I've loved her since that Krum character jilted her. I kept trying to deny it, but the more I tried, the more my love for her grew. I knew she would never be interested in me, and teacher-student relationships are forbidden, but…what can I say? Deep down inside, I suppose I was hoping that…you know…things would work out and she'd love me back."

"So you decided to tell her?"

"Well…no. You see, I was trying to get rid of a bad headache and lemon juice is an ingredient in that solution. However, I used Veritaserum by mistake instead. And when you do that, you create a sort of courage-stimulating potion that induces you to do something that you normally wouldn't do. So that's what happened, Lupin. Are you happy now?"

Lupin appeared to be deep in thought. "So what are you going to do now?"

Snape took a deep breath. "I honestly have no idea how I'll ever face her again. Perhaps I ought to quit. That would probably better for us both, especially her since she hates me so much." He couldn't help sounding so bitter.

Lupin patted Snape's shoulder sympathetically. "Cheer up, Severus," he said. "Maybe you can obliviate her and that way she won't remember."

"That wouldn't be fair to her. Besides, you're supposed to be helping me," growled the Potions Master.

"Oh, it's help that you want, eh? Okay, I realize that you're not going to turn into Mr. Nice Guy just to win her heart. But then again, it would probably be best if you just let her alone. She has her whole life ahead of her and it is wise not to pursue this any further."

"Yes, you're right." But Snape couldn't help wishing that things had turned out different.

"It's getting late," said Lupin. "Sirius is waiting for me." He glanced at Snape. "Take care, Severus." He was about to leave when Snape said:

"Remus?"

Lupin turned around, surprised. Snape had never called him by his first name before.

"I'd appreciate it if you kept this a secret," Snape went on.

Lupin couldn't suppress an amused smile. "My lips are sealed."