swim || remus lupin

everybody talks

I awoke one morning to a soft breeze, brustling through Alice's cracked window and swirling around my face with smells of pollen and grass. I sneezed.

Fucking allergies. I thought, rubbing one eye and reaching over to my bedside table to pop open the bottle of allergy medicine. You'd think these goddamn wizards would have a spell for this.

After downing two of the small white tablets I flopped my head back onto the pillow and felt my hand out in search of Remus's. But it wasn't there. I rolled over to find empty sheets. I exhaled and sat up scanning my dorm room, which was faintly grey with morning light.

All of the beds were empty.

It's six in the morning!

I tossed my blankets aside with slightly more aggression than I intended and slipped on a pair of socks. The cooling air shivered down my uncovered arms, left exposed from Remus's t-shirt. I shoved my hands deep into the pockets of his oversized sweatpants and exited the room in search of my friends.

I found them seated amongst the royal red sofas in the common room. I scratched the side of my head, knowing this meant nothing good, and slipped into the spot beside Remus.

"Hi," he whispered, placing one hand on my knee and smiling before turning back to James, who was reading off of a rollaway chalkboard.

"Hi," I yawned back, resting my head on his shoulder. "Aren't you lot free first block?"

"Yeah," he said. "We 'lot' are."

I rolled my eyes at his mimicking of my English vocabulary before he continued.

"But it's April Fool's today. You didn't think the Marauders would miss out on a day of pranks, did you?"

I snorted a laugh and felt my eyes grow a bit heavy as James droned on about King and King Prewett's Rules of Prank. I slipped my hand under Remus's arm to intertwine our fingers and quickly faded back to sleep.

"Sydneyy," Remus's voice sang me back awake, but I kept my eyes closed.

Remus chuckled slightly and I felt his lips brush against my forehead.

"That doesn't work on me, my love."

A smile spread across my lips and my eyes fluttered open.

The common room was vacant now, aside from Remus and I. His fingers were still laced with mine, the rough skin of his thumb rubbing circles against my hand. I lifted my head and pressed a kiss into his shoulder.

I found myself falling victim to his eyes once again, the harsh morning rays splashing off of the golden pools and radiating through me. His gaze flickered across my face and he smiled. I had to use every ounce of power in me to force my words up my throat.

"Where'd everyone go?" I asked.

"The girls went to breakfast," he replied. "You and Lily have Runes, no?"