We're getting towards the end of this fic now. Only a few chapters left. I LOVED ALL OF YOUR REVIEWS, MY GOODNESS :') You're all so awesome XD Here's the next chapter!

Flirting

Remus didn't manage to get much sleep. Every time he managed to nod off, the door would open and either James, Peter or Sirius would enter the room or leave the room. Finally, Remus decided it was no use trying to get to sleep. He stood up and yawned.

"Can't get my cloak back," James said, looking annoyed. "You couldn't get it for me, could you?"

"Huh?"

"Evans," James said. "She has my cloak and she won't give it back. She likes you the best."

"Oh," Remus said. "Yeah, sure."

"Did you hear about Sirius?" James asked, dropping down on the bed opposite Remus.

"No," Remus said, desperately hoping James wouldn't say anything about a girlfriend.

"Got himself a girl," James said. "McKinnon."

"Oh," Remus replied, trying to smile. "That's great. I'm happy for him."

James stared at Remus for a second and then laughed. "You don't look happy. What's up with you anyway? Why've you been sleeping all day?"

"Don't worry about it," Remus said, sighing.

"Nope, I will worry about it," James said, folding his arms. "You're one of my best mates. You have to tell me."

"I don't know how to tell you," Remus said, feeling sick. "And you probably wouldn't understand."

"Oh no," James said, looking sympathetic. "I know what it is."

"What?" Remus asked in alarm. "What is it then?"

"You like McKinnon too," James said, putting a comforting hand on Remus's shoulder.

"What? No!" Remus said quickly, laughing. "No way. I don't like her in that way."

James looked slightly confused. "Then what is it?"

"If I tell you, you must promise not to tell anyone," Remus said quietly.

James nodded quickly and leaned in eagerly. "What is it, then?"

"Well... you see... I think I'm, uh, gay," Remus said, looking nervously down at his hands as he spoke. "Well, I thought I was... but now I just think I'm in love with one person, who just so happens to be a guy."

"Thank Merlin!" James said, looking strangely cheerful. Remus stared at him in confusion.

"Why?"

"Don't take this the wrong way but I was kind of... er... jealous of you. I thought you might have a crush on Lily or something and that you'd steal her from me. Because, let's face it, she likes you a lot more than she likes me."

"She'll come around," Remus said, feeling relieved that James didn't think he was disgusting.

James nodded, and then cleared his throat. "So..."

"So?"

"So who's the guy?" James asked, expectantly.

"Oh, um," Remus could feel the heat rising to his cheeks. "It's Sirius."

James's expression changed and he was quiet for a moment before tilting his head to the side and speaking. "Does Sirius know about this?"

"Yes."

"So that's why he's been acting so weird around you," James said. "I was wondering – he's been flirting with you a lot."

"I know," Remus mumbled, looking down.

"Why aren't you happy about it? I mean, if Lily started flirting with me I'd be over the moon!"

"He doesn't mean any of it, though," Remus said. "He has a girlfriend now anyway."

"So you got your hopes up because of his flirting?" James asked.

"Unfortunately, yes," Remus said, sighing. "I don't know why. It's not like he'd ever want to be with me. He's straight, and I'm a werewolf."

James rolled his eyes. "You being a werewolf wouldn't matter to him. You know that, right? And just for the record, I think that Sirius might not be as straight as you think."

"What do you mean?"

"He'd kill me if I told you," James said, looking around cautiously. "You can't tell him I told you..."

"I promise I won't," Remus said.

"Okay," James said. "It was just over a year ago, during the summer. Sirius was staying over at my house, and we were really bored so Sirius came up with this 'ingenious' plan to get us fake so we could get into a Muggle nightclub. Anyway, we managed to get some and we snuck out of my house one night and got into a club. Have you ever been in one before, Remus? They're crazy! Anyways, I was in there drinking this gross drink called 'Vodka' or something strange like that, and all of a sudden I spot Sirius out of the corner of my eye snogging some bloke in an alcove in the corner of the club!"

Remus wasn't sure how to react to that. Sirius had kissed a guy before?

"I thought I was seeing things at first. I turned to get a proper look and it was definitely Sirius. I think I was kind of drunk, actually. I marched straight up to him and pulled the two of them apart and started demanding what he was doing. He looked really scared, and he said he wasn't sure why he was kissing the dude. We talked about it the next day and I promised him I would never bring it up with him again, and that I wouldn't tell anybody. Well, I suppose I just broke my promise."

"So he kissed a guy?"

"Yeah."

"Do you think he's gay, then?" Remus asked.

"He might be," James said. "But then again, he has a girlfriend."

"The other night when he was drunk, he tried to kiss me," Remus said, unable to help himself. "And then earlier, he tried it again."

"Really?"

"Yeah, and then he got all weird about it and said that he doesn't know why he was asking to kiss me and that he really needs a girlfriend."

"Okay, so I think he is gay," James said, nodding. "He's just in denial. Just like the time in the club. He's trying to push it all to one side and he doesn't want to admit it."

"So you think I might have a chance with him?" Remus asked hopefully.

"Don't get your hopes up, just in case," James said. "But yes, I do."

Remus couldn't help grinning at that. The very thought that he may be able to kiss Sirius one day, and be with him, was the most amazing thought ever.

"You need to make him realise," James said. "Do what he was doing to you. Flirt with him."

"I don't know," Remus mumbled. "Do I look like the type of person who would flirt?"

"Sure you do!" James said. "Bend down in front of him, or... hmm... try to make him jealous."

"How can I make him jealous?"

"Tell him that you're over him and that you're into somebody else now," James said. "Say that he blew his chances or something."

Remus decided that James was liking this 'match-making' business too much as he watched James's eyes shine with excitement as he came up with ideas.

"Either make him jealous, or be so irresistible that he can't stand it any longer," James said with a grin. "You should wear your tie open and undo the top button on your shirt. Your hair should be messier than that," James said, ruffling Remus's hair to make it messier. "Ah, there. Perfect. Now go downstairs and find Sirius."

"What if he doesn't do anything about it?" Remus said, feeling strange with messy hair and an untidy uniform.

"He will," James said. "Just talk to him. Say you missed him, and that he looks too sexy to be real or something like that. Don't worry, you'll be fine."

Remus sighed and stood up. "Okay," he said. "I'm ready. Should I go downstairs now?"

"Yes," James replied, grinning. "Good luck, and make sure you get my cloak from Evans."

Remus nodded and headed towards the dormitory door. He felt more and more nervous with every step he took down to the common room. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he scanned the room for Sirius.

There, he thought, as he saw his friend sitting next to Peter playing exploding snap. He strode over to where they were and dropped down onto the floor next to them, flashing a grin at Sirius.

"Hey, sexy," Remus whispered to Sirius, trying not to blush at how incredibly stupid and embarrassed he felt saying those words. He watched as Sirius looked at him, first at his messy hair, then at his smile, and then at his uniform. Sirius seemed to be staring for a very long time, looking a mixture of shocked and excited.

Finally, he cleared his throat. "Hey yourself, sexy," he said with a wink. Remus felt as though his heart would melt at that wink. It was incredible how one person could make him feel so happy with so few words.

"It's hot in here, isn't it?" Remus said, undoing another button on his shirt, revealing a bit more of his chest. He tried not to smile when he saw Sirius's eyes land on his chest. "See something you like, Sirius?"

Sirius coughed, looking bewildered. "Is that a new tie?"

Remus pursed his lips and leaned forwards so that his face was right next to Sirius's. "I think the question you wanted to ask was 'shall we go upstairs to the bedroom?'"

"I... uh... need to... er... wow... I feel faint, maybe I should lie down for a bit," Sirius said, looking flustered.

Peter, who had been watching them in confusion, looked quite disturbed as he stood up and left the common room in silence.

"Lie down?" Remus questioned. "Are you sure that's what you need to do?"

"Well, what else would I mean?"

"I think someone needs to cool off a bit," Remus winked.

Sirius didn't have time to reply before he bolted upstairs, leaving Remus feeling unbelievably happy. He'd managed to flirt successfully, and not only did he know that Sirius was into him, but that Sirius was upstairs thinking about him while he 'cooled off'.

Nothing could be better.

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