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Sirius, to his credit, did not panic. He just said the first name that came to mind.
“Remus,” he smiles, watching as his parents did their best to act shocked. Effie and Monty were sweet to pretend, at least. “It’s all so new, I didn’t want to tell you guys yet.”
“Well,” Effie says, holding her arms out for a hug. Sirius gratefully accepts. “Thank you for trusting us enough to tell the truth.”
“Good thing we don’t have to give him an intimidating speech now, do we? I’m sure James already took care of that,” Monty chuckles.
“Oh, we, uh,” Sirius moves out of his mother’s arms, rubbing the back of his neck. “We… haven't told Prongs yet.”
Effie fixes him with a stare that could put Medusa to shame, but she sighs anyway. “We won’t tell him, but you have to before you bring Remus for dinner, alright?”
Sirius nods, “Of course, yes. I’ll go do that. Now.” and run up the stairs to James’ room, he does.
James’ room, still covered ceiling to floor in football posters from his youth, is gratefully not empty when Sirius storms in.
“Oh, hello Sirius,” Lily says from her perch on the bed. Well. Not empty enough, Sirius supposes. James swivels around in his desk chair, smiling bright.
“Padfoot!” He jumps up to hug him, like a friend he hasn't seen in ages, despite living with the man for the past five years.
James senses the tension in Sirius’ body, so he lets go with a quizzical expression. “What’s wrong, mate?”
Sirius (affectionately, of course) shoves Lily to the side as he takes a seat on the bed. “I may have just lied to Mum and Dad.”
“What about?” asks Lily, her green eyes gleaming with what could only be described as uncontained glee at the situation Sirius has gotten himself into.
For a moment, the only sounds in the room were the whirring of James’ laptop and Lily’s occasional crunching of popcorn. (Where she got it, Sirius doesn’t know. She always finds the best places to stash snacks). It takes an intense (see: ten second) staring contest for Sirius to crack.
“ImayhavetoldthemIhaveaboyfriendtobringtodinneronSaturdaynight,” he rushes out, all in one breath. He squeezes his eyes shut, bracing himself for the onslaught of jokes James is sure to make. When nothing is said, he slowly peels his eyes open, watching as James stares at him with wide eyes.
“Who did you say it was?” James asks after a moment.
“Uh… Moony,” Sirius says, awestruck. He looks at the two of them, slightly frantic. “Is there a reason neither of you are making fun of me? Are you imposters? What have you done with my friends?”
James and Lily share a look that Sirius is too preoccupied to decipher, when Lily speaks up. “Have you told him?”
“Pardon me?”
“Have you told your boyfriend that you’re dating? And that he’s meeting your parents on Saturday?”
Sirius is quiet for a moment. “But…” he begins. “But Moony’s already met them.”
“Then what do you have to worry about?” James asks, voice innocent, eyes mischievous. It was the same look he gave Minnie when she caught them pulling a prank at school. Sirius knew that meant trouble.
“I…” Sirius stares between the two of them for a few moments. Despite James’ evil smirk, there truly doesn’t seem to be an issue. Remus will agree to this if Sirius offers him enough coffee and chocolate, and he can tell eventually his parents they decided they were better off as friends.
Padfoot: hey remu
Moony: yes
Padfoot: dinner with the potters saturday night?
Moony: of course, you know i love effie and monty more than either of you
Padfoot: wonderful
Padfoot: see u then
Padfoot: (alsoitoldthemyouremyboyfriendsoweregonnahavetopretendtodateokbyeeee)
It isn't until Sirius is safely in his room and away from prying ears that he answers Remus’ call, despite this being the fourth call of his in a row.
“Remus!” Sirius cheers as he presses ‘answer’.
“I’m going to kill you,” Remus’ tinny voice comes through his shitty iphone speaker. He should really upgrade it.
“Wait,” Sirius starts. “Before you yell at me, will you come to the mall with me tomorrow to get a new phone? I’ll let you pick out the case.”
Remus is silent for a moment. “Sure.” He says eventually, because really, who could ever deny Sirius anything he wants?
“Great! Now you can yell. Quietly though, so my parents don’t hear.”
With his permission, (though he really doesn’t need it - Sirius deserves to be scolded when he’s being a dumbass, permission or not), Remus takes a deep breath and says, “Start from the beginning.”
“They want me to bring a date to their anniversary dinner on Saturday. I love them, I really do, but they've been hounding me to find someone, and setting me up on some truly awful dates the past year.” Sirius was pacing around his bedroom now, phone laying abandoned on his bed with Remus’ voice coming through it to occasionally give hums or side comments. “Ever since I broke up with Nate--”
“--And thank god for that--”
“--They think I’m lonely, and need a new man. They won't take no for an answer--”
“--Sounds like someone else I know--”
“--So when they asked if I was bringing anyone to dinner I said yes! Yours was the first name that came to mind because I know I can trust you--”
“--And because I’m incredibly sexy--”
“-- And because I know you would loathe to disappoint my parents, wouldn’t you, Moony?” Sirius has a shit-eating grin plastered on his face, one that he knows Remus can’t see, but knows that he can hear through the impish lilt to his voice. Remus is once again silent for a moment. So silent, in fact, Sirius thinks he might’ve hung up on him.
“Fine,” Remus says, finally. “Fine, whatever, I’ll do it. One night, you say we broke up a week later, and you owe me big time for making your parents think I broke their poor little boy’s heart. Got it?”
Sirius can’t help the smile on his face. “Got it, babe.”
+
Remus, to his credit, did not panic. Sure, the boy he’d been in love with since he was 15 decided that he was to be his fake date to appease his parents, but he was not panicking.
“Sirius Orion Black!”
Okay, now he was panicking just a little. Their trip to the mall had been uneventful so far - Sirius got a new phone, and, true to his word, he let Remus pick out the new case. (He picked a black and white case with skeletons and roses - if there was anything Remus knew, it was how to pick a damn good gift.)
Marlene Mckinnion is walking - no, storming towards the two, a fierce look on her face that could only mean one thing from her: she wasn’t the first to know new gossip. Remus likes Marlene, he really does, she's sweet and funny and really smart, but this look only means trouble, and he wants as far away from that as possible.
Unfortunately, before he can make an expert escape, which was him just walking away, pretending nothing was happening, Sirius got his arm and shot him a sharp glace. If I’m going down, you're coming with me, it said.
“Marls,” Sirius grins. “It’s so wonderful to see you.”
“Cut the crap, Black,” Marlene laughs, a beautiful sound. In another world, Remus is sure he would've had a crush on her in school. “Would you like to tell me why I’m the last person to find out about you and Mr. Lupin here?”
“Oh--” Remus starts, but is cut off by Sirius rather quickly.
“You think I would tell you first, instead of James? My brother? My partner in crime? My confidant? My--”
“Okay, Star Boy, I get it, shut up,” she rolls her eyes, a smile playing on her lips. Her friendship with Sirius had always been a bit strange, mostly bickering and teasing, but Remus has definitely found them confiding in each other in the early hours of the morning during their school years, so he won’t judge too harshly.
As Sirius laughs, Marlene turns to Remus, “and it’s great to see you, dear, we have to get a coffee soon, alright?” She hands her phone to Remus, and he gets the hint, imputing his phone number into her contacts. It's not that he meant to lose touch, really, he’s just been busy with his last year of uni, and if he’s being honest, it’s still difficult for him to wrap his head around his wonderful friend group.
“Honestly, Sirius, I would’ve thought you’d be more excited to tell me,” Marlene says, grabbing her phone from Remus and sending him a text so he has her number as well. “Especially how much we talked about it in school--”
“Well, it was fantastic to see you, Marlene,” Sirius interrupts loudly. He begins pulling on Remus’ arm that he never let go of. “We have to get going now though, bye! Text me, and say hi to Dorcas for us.”
“What was that all about?” Remus asks once they're far away enough. “Afraid she would embarrass you in front of your boyfriend?”
Sirius flushes, and Remus pretends not to notice. “Yes, actually. We talked a lot about boys in school, and the desire for a relationship. You know how teenagers are.”
“Ah, yes, how I miss passing by the hallway of PDA with fifteen year old girls and their eighteen year old boyfriends.” Remus wipes a fake tear. “It really makes me believe in love again.”
“Shut up Moony,” Sirius laughs, playfully shoving him. He has a dopey looking grin on his face when he says, “Come on, let's get you something appropriate to meet my parents in, darling.”
Remus grins back and plants a kiss on his cheek. “Of course, sugarplum.”
+
Okay, yeah, Sirius is panicking just a smidge. It’s not everyday his super hot best friend shows up at his front door in a charcoal gray button down, holding a bouquet of roses. (Excellent gift giver, that Lupin). It’s rare that Sirius feels inadequate, but looking down at his maroon dress shirt in comparison to Remus has him questioning his entire self worth.
“These are for you,” Remus says, holding the flowers out. Sirius stares at him for a few moments, and Remus chuckles. “Are you going to let me in?”
“No,” Sirius says, returning from his out of body experience. He moves out of the way anyway, closing the door behind his date. “Nice flowers.”
“Yeah, they match the case I chose for you,” Remus shrugs, holding the bouquet out once more. Sirius grabs them, hoping Remus doesn’t notice the blush that’s turning him the same shade as his shirt.
Before he loses the nerve, Sirius grabs Remus’ hand and leads him to the kitchen, where Effie and Monty are cooking and singing along to the music they have playing. At the sound of footsteps, Effie turns, smiling wide.
“Remus!” She sings. She pulls him into a hug, then holds him at arm's length. “You look lovely, dear.”
“Thank you, Effie,” He smiles softly. “And thank you for having me. It smells wonderful in here.”
In the dim kitchen light, Sirius can't help but stare. Remus’ soft halo of brown curls frame his face, the freckles and scars catching the window light at just the right angle, giving him an angelic glow. If Sirius wasn’t already head over heels for this boy, he’s sure this picture would do the trick.
Remus catches Sirius’ eye and opens his mouth to say something, but is interrupted by James and Lily barrelling down the stairs and into the kitchen.
“You two are children, I swear,” Remus laughs. He gives them both a hug, making sure to complement the emerald green of Lily’s dress and the cream coloured shirt that expertly stands out on James’ brown skin.
The four of them were made to set the table while dinner finished cooking, and soon the group of six were gathered together, chatting and laughing and eating. Monty puts down his fork for a moment and looks across the table at Remus. “So, how long have you and Sirius been dating?” he asks, smiling the same smile Remus saw on James all throughout their schooling.
“Oh.” Remus puts his utensils down as well, swallowing hard. “It’s been about a month, I’d say, right, love?”
Sirius chokes on his wine, but does his best to play it off well (it doesn’t succeed, but no one has the heart to tell him). “Yes, it was a month on the seventeenth, how dare you forget? You wound me, Lupin, wound me.”
“You’re too dramatic for your own good, Black.”
“Yes, well, I’m just glad you two finally got your act together,” Effie chimes in. “Especially considering how many times we had to listen to Sirius whine about his crush on you.”
Sirius feels the colour drain from his face, and tries to laugh it off with the other four. He tries not to catch Remus’ eye, but he can still tell the other is staring. “That was a long time ago, Mum,” he says. “And it wasn’t whining, it was being expressive.”
Remus’ words catch in his throat, so he laughs along during the rest of dinner, then has half a mind to thank the Potters for a lovely meal, and congratulate them on their anniversary. In fact, he’s in the middle of a conversation with Effie about the possibilities of Remus getting the recipe for dinner, when he’s pulled away by Sirius’ hand.
“We’ll just be a moment,” Sirius announces, and tugs Remus up the stairs and into his bedroom.
“Okay,” Sirius says softly as he closes the door. “I know it probably sounded bad down there, but--”
“I’m in love with you.”
Sirius stares at Remus, a blank look on his face. He basically whispers, “What was that?”
“I’m in love with you,” Remus says, slowly walking towards Sirius. He’s almost crowding him against the door, but he pauses, waiting for Sirius to say something, anything.
“What?” Sirius says again, quieter than Remus has ever heard him. He begins to say why , begins to say I don't understand, begins to say how could you love me, when Remus cuts him off with a kiss.
Their lips meet, and Remus tastes like wine and cinnamon and mint gum, and it’s intoxicating, and Sirius can’t get enough. Remus’ lips are soft, softer than Sirius could’ve ever imagined, and he’s kissing them, and his hands are on Remus’ cheeks and there are fingers in his hair and it’s the most bliss Sirius has ever felt and it’s gone too soon as Remus pulls away, a look of shock on his face that Sirius is sure is mirrored on his own features.
“I--” Remus starts, but it's Sirius’ turn to cut him off now.
“I’ve been in love with you since we were 17. I didn’t know it was possible to love someone as much as I love you. I love your smile, and the way your nose scrunches when you’re too focused on something. I love your wit, and they way you’re not afraid to stand up for what's right, even if it means getting yourself into trouble. I love your hair that looks as soft as it feels, and I love your scars because dammit, Remus, they’re beautiful and so are you. I love you .” Sirius is crying now, staring up at Remus with more love in his eyes than Remus thought possible.
“I love you,” Remus repeats, whispering it like a mantra. “I love you, I love you, I love you.”
Sirius initiates the kiss this time around, laughing into it as he pulls Remus as close as humanly possible. It takes them quite a while to make their way back downstairs.
When they do finally make a reappearance, all eyes turn to the happy couple. They both smile awkwardly, and Lily turns to James. “You owe me twenty bucks,” she says, holding out her palm.
James grumbles and pulls out his wallet, handing Lily a bill with a frown on his face. Sirius and Remus watch intently, and look over to see the same exchange with Effie and Monty.
“You guys couldn’t have waited a week? It had to be tonight?” James whines, pouting until Lily gives him a kiss on the cheek.
“What were you two betting on?” Sirius asks his parents.
Monty sighs, “Same thing as those two. Ladies all win, I suppose.”
“But--”
“Sirius, dear, did you really think you could lie to us so easily?” Effie tuts, the classic Potter smile on her face. “I’d welcome you to the family, Remus, but you’ve been part of it far too long to just be welcomed now.”
Remus looks around the room, at the Potters, at James and Lily, and at Sirius, who is currently wrapped around his torso, his big blue eyes staring up at him like he hung the stars in the sky. Of all the things he is currently feeling, welcomed is definitely one of them.