a winter's tale (chapter 1)
Remus goes to a winter break party... so does his love-stricken brother, his meddling roommate, his nosy-ass friends, and, oh yeah, his totally-not-a-crush. What could go wrong?
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âYou need to tell him.â
âIâm not gonna tell him. You need to tell him.â
âWell, Iâm not gonna tell him!â
âChildren, please,â Janus said tiredly. âDaddyâs trying to read.â
Roman glowered at his roommate from across the kitchen table. âPlease donât ever refer to yourself as âdaddyâ in my presence.â
âOh, can I call you daddy?â Remus asked, chipper and bright even in the midst of yet another spat with his brother over the breakfast table. He flopped over the back of Janusâ shoulders, wrapping his arms around his chest and making obnoxious kissing noises against the back of his head. Janus patted his arm.
âA tempting offer, but no thank you,â he replied. âIâd rather not become yet another excuse why you refuse to confess your hopeless crush on Logan.â
Remus gagged, moving to step away, but Janus suddenly grabbed his forearms and kept him from leaving the conversation.
âTruly, itâd be such a shame for yet another year of your friendship to come and go without you finding the balls to inform him of your growing romantic feelings for him,â Janus continued.
Remus hissed and struggled against the hold Janus had on him.
âAh, yes, a perfectly mature response. Iâm shaking in my slippers.â
âAnd itâs not like heâd get mad about it!â Roman added. âEven if Lo doesnât feel the same way, he has the right to know how badly you want him!â
âAnd you have the right to ask for what you want from him.â
âMaybe heâll say he likes you too!â
âOr maybe heâll reject you, and you can focus your attention on rebuilding your shattered pride and redirecting your emotions toward self love instead.â
Remus stopped struggling. âOh, I love myself plenty, thank you very much.â
âYes, I know, we share a wall,â Janus replied. Roman gagged.
âNo sex talk at the table, please?â
Remus quirked his head. âIs masturbation sex?â
âYou know who would love to have that fascinating debate with you?â Janus interrupted suddenly. He twisted around to catch Remusâ eye without letting him out of his grasp. âLogan.â
Remus groaned. He dropped his head against Janusâ shoulder, banging it softly. âWhy are we even talking about me? Romanâs the one who almost sucked face with Virgil last night.â
âWe had a moment,â Roman corrected primly. âAnd⌠yes, perhaps said moment wouldâve been nicely bookmarked with a proclamation of my long-term romantic interest in him, but a bitch is anxious, okay?â
âAnd if you hadnât been so distracted eating all of the cookies I literally just baked yesterday,â Janus said to Remus, âthen you wouldâve heard that Roman actually does intend to profess his love tonight.â
âBullshit! Thatâs what heâs said before every winter break party weâve been to for the last two years!â
âI have a plan!â Roman insisted. âVirgil always leaves parties early, and I know he walks home because he doesnât want to ask anyone to leave the party to drive himâ Iâll find him before he leaves, ask to accompany him home, weâll have a wonderfully romantic midnight stroll, Iâll time my confession so that I finish just as weâre arriving to his houseââ
âDo not make a joke about finishing,â Janus muttered just as Remus opened his mouth.
âWherein he will have the immediate escape option of going inside if he needs time to process my declaration!â Roman finished triumphantly.
âIs that honestly your plan?â Remus asked.
âIt is exactly my plan, brother dear.â
Janus hummed. âAnd how many times have you attempted to initiate this plan by offering to walk Virgil home, only to chicken out halfway back to his house?â
Roman stuck his tongue out in lieu of answering. And people say Remus is the immature one.
âWell, you have fun with that!â Remus announced, finally pulling himself away from Janusâ grasp. âWhile youâre pussy-footing around with Virgil, Jan and Iâll be starting our bi-annual semester-ender bender.â
âUnlessâŚâ Janus started, before trailing off. Remus froze and looked at him.
âUnless?â
Janus cocked his head and gave Remus an appraising look. âUnless you⌠follow Romanâs footstepsâŚâ
Remusâ jaw dropped. âOh, fuck off.â
Janus scoffed, slapping down his newspaper. âWell, at least Roman is trying to pursue his romantic endeavors. You, on the other hand, youâd ratherâ what? Dance around the subject until you and Logan both finish grad school and your opportunity will be lost to the sands of time?â
âTonightâs the perfect opportunity!â Roman added. âHeâll be so relieved the semesterâs over, heâll probably start making out with you on the dance floor right then and there. Isnât that what you want?â
A spark of something hot and sharp burst in Remusâ chest. âYou donât know what the fuck I want.â
He knew of all people, his brother and his roommate were the least likely to be shocked by his outbursts, but even they stopped the ribbing to look at him cautiously. Which Remus hated, because cautious borders on concern which borders on pity, even though he knew that they were just trying to be respectful of his feelings. Bastards.
Because, in reality⌠Roman really didnât know what Remus wanted. Remus really didnât know what Remus wanted. He didnât know if he wanted to kiss Logan or to hold hands with him, if his fantasies of them two of them together ending with fucking or cuddling, if he even wanted Logan to do anything other than look at him and listen to him and talk with him. Thatâs all he could think to ask of Logan: he just wanted to hang around him all the time.
Not like he was actually going to ask Logan anything.
âYou donât have to do anything you donât want to do,â Roman said softly, pulling Remus out of his stupor. He rolled his eyes, half on instinct and half to diffuse the tension in the room.
âOh, donât get soft on me, Pissy. We all know I do what I want, when I wantâ and what I want is to get fucking smashed at this party tonight. Not dragged down by a bunch of sappy confession shit.â
Roman snorted, raising his hands in surrender. âMessage received, Gross-feratu. All I ask is that you consider your optionsâ can you think of any better time to have an emotional conversation with Logan than immediately after his final exams are over, when his endorphins levels are at their peak?â
âAnd at the risk of sounding⌠altruistic,â Janus added, nose wrinkling with distaste, âI believe you owe it to him to tell him how you feel.â
Remus stuck his tongue out. âSince when do you prioritize other peopleâs feelings over your own self interest?â
âSince the two of you brought Patton home like a stray,â Janus replied drily. âBesides, the only thing I like more than deception is blackmail. Tell Logan you want to pursue a romantic relationship with him, or I will.â
âMe too!â Roman chimed in. Remus fixed him with a glare.
âWant me to snitch to Emo Nightmare about your little crush, Princeypie?â
âItâll be mutually assured destruction, dear brother.â
âYeah? Then I guess you wonât mind if I tell Virgil about all the poetry youâve written for him.â
âWell, then Iâll tell Logan about the drawings youâve done of him.â
Remus flushed. âThatâsâ thatâs different, you piece of shitââ
âAw, whatâs wrong? You thought we didnât notice all the times you pulled up his Instagram just to stare at his pretty face?â
âDonât call him pretty, zit head!â Remus snapped, bounding around the table and reaching for Roman. Roman squawked and jumped out of his chair just in time for the two of them to begin racing in circles around the dining room table like a couple of cartoon characters.
Janus sighed, flipping to the next page of his newspaper. âOne day. One day theyâll kill each other and then Iâll be free.â























