pink! - remus lupin

10 - could've caught you

REMUS LUPIN DID NOT SIGN UP FOR ANY OF THIS. Obviously, the days leading up to the full moon were hard already. But upon seeing the girl he loved carried into the hospital wing, unconscious, it suddenly became worse.

He had just been eating his lunch when from the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of pink hair. He turned to look, and sure enough, it was Stella, carried in by James Potter himself. She looked pale, limp, lifeless, lying in his arms. Sure, he had endured plenty of pain in his life, but nothing could've prepared him for the worry that sparked in him when that was the image before him.

Remus' jaw dropped slightly, and he froze his movements. "J-James, what happened to her? Merlin's beard, Pomfrey is she going to be okay?" he stuttered out, causing James to smirk slightly from Stella's bedside. He walked over to stand by James, earning a dirty look from Madam Pomfrey. She didn't like him to move too much, knowing just how much it hurt him.

"Oh, of course, she is, Mr. Lupin. It's not too major of an injury, no internal bleeding or bruising of the brain, she'll be good to go in about an hour. She'll have to take it easy, but nothing to fret too much about," the matron confirmed, examining Stella's body for any other injuries. James returned to class, waving Remus goodbye and asking for him to update them later.

Remus took a seat by her bed once Madam Pomfrey had used whatever magic was needed to ensure a speedy recovery. He took out his homework and finished it there, looking up at her occasionally. It wasn't the most comfortable position to be in, but even if he hadn't admitted it, he really would do anything for Stella.

~

Another hour passed before she finally opened her eyes, the bright lights of the hospital wing stinging her eyes slightly. Once she adjusted to the light, she quickly recognized the room as the hospital wing. Stella looked around, attempting to sit up against the pillows. "Rem?" she asked groggily.

"Hi," he smiled, relieved she had woken up.

"Hi."

"So um, what happened?" he asked, looking down to fiddle with his fingers.

"Oh, you know, just got pushed down the stairs on my way to Transfiguration. The crowd's pretty big and I'm pretty small, it's not a big deal. How about you? You look pretty sick and I haven't seen you in a few days," she reassured, furrowing her brows at his sickly appearance.

"Don't worry about me, Stella. I just, it wouldn't have happened if I were there for you," he looked up at her again, his breathing getting a bit shaky.

"Come on, Rem. I don't think you could've stopped someone from pushing me down the stairs," she giggled.

"Yeah, but I could've caught you."

"Have you looked at yourself today? You're so fucking frail!" she said, her giggles turning into wheezing.

"Hey! I'm stronger than I look!"

"Are you?"

"Yeah!" he was now laughing with her, looking into her soft blue eyes. The pair calmed down, leading them to an awkward silence in their eye contact.

"I know it probably seems like I've been avoiding you after um-" he cleared his throat, "the kiss. But I promise you I'm not! Well, not on purpose, anyway," he broke eye contact with her at the mention of the kiss.

"No I get it, it doesn't have to mean anything, right? Just friends being... friends," she replied, a bit too quickly for it to be the truth.

"We literally confessed our feelings for each other, Stella."

"... Right."

"If you're uncomfortable we can drop it and get you out of here, we can forget any of it happened-"

"No! No, it's okay. I just, I don't know what to do? Or to say? I like you a lot Remus, so, so much, I just don't wanna mess it up for us," Stella admitted, looking up at him then back down.

"Stella, you couldn't mess it up. You're perfect, literally perfect," he spoke softly, gently grabbing her chin to look into her eyes.

"I'm not perfect, Remus. I can't love you like you think I can, I can't love anyone. And I'm impulsive, and I talk too much at the wrong times and not enough at the right ones and I can't commit to something, and I know that if I let you in, I'm gonna want you to stay. But you're going to leave, everyone does, Remus," she said sadly, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"You can love, I know you can, Stella. I see it when you look at Soleil, or when you dance around your dorm watering the plants. You have so much love, Stella McLeod, why can't you just let yourself be happy?" he asked, moving closer to her as he spoke.

"I don't know why. I just don't want to be like Dad, I love him but I can't love you just to lose you, Remus."

"You won't lose me, Stella. I'm here, I promise I'm here and I don't want to leave you. Please just let me have you, let me show you love, Stella. You're not a chore, please let me help you be happy."

"Okay."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," she smiled.

"So, Stella Violet McLeod, will you be my girlfriend?"

"Yes, Remus John Lupin, I will happily be your girlfriend."

~

SO ANYWAY I LIED THIS ONE WON'T BE HOLIDAY THEMED LMAO. Sue me, I guess. I'm just trying to vibe and watch TikTok and maybe get some writing done but my brain said no rights. Here we are though! Also, it happened? Love that for them. Tbh Stemus is my heart and soul and so much more so ykw ✌👹. I love you so so so so so much and please stay safe my darlings!

Love, A

originally published May 14, 2020