MOON MAN. remus lupin ✓

ix. giving in

A week passed.

     He and Liam fell into an easy routine. Remus would wake up, get ready and be out of his flat by quarter to eight. Liam would already be at the bookshop. They'd put things out on display, saying their usual 'good morning's and speaking quietly as they readied everything. Remus was surprised to learn that Liam put stock into dreams, and he'd often discuss them when Remus arrived in the morning. It was one of the highlights of his day. When the shop was ready for opening, Liam would position himself at the register as Remus flipped over the closed sign.

     They took turns with their breaks. This meant that they could never talk during the day, but every evening after closing Liam brought up the dinner again. Remus always refused, using the excuse that he needed to feed his cat, Felix, which he didn't own. He wanted to punch himself when he said it, but he knew he couldn't allow himself to get closer to Liam. He might have destroyed whatever semblance of normalcy he'd attained.

     Still, Liam asked, and Remus denied. It went on like that until one uncommonly sunny Friday, where Liam closed the shop early. It threw Remus off, because Liam was very particular about when they closed the shop—seven o'clock, without fail—and he voiced his confusion.

     Beaming so much that he put the sun to shame, Liam answered.

     "We're going out to lunch!" He exclaimed. "I realised that you must always be very tired after work, and I know you worry about Felix, so I figured that lunch would solve everything." He raised his hand as Remus opened his mouth to argue. "You can't say no. It's tradition! And I've let you evade your fate long enough."

     He didn't know what it was—maybe it was the glimmer of hope in Liam's eyes, or the grumbling of his stomach, or the fact that he didn't want to leave his job and go back to an empty flat—but he nodded his head.

     Liam's shout was well worth it.

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