the cadence of part time poets

Chapter 19: She Doesn't Love You

I need you more than anyone, baby,
You know that I have from the start;
So build me up (build me up),
Buttercup, don't break my heart...

- "Build Me Up Buttercup" The Foundations, 1967

Sneaking back into his dorm late Saturday morning might have proved easier had he not looked like he'd been put through a dryer along with several tubes of lipstick. Mary's idea of a penalty had included receiving a smooch from each girl wherever they pleased (Mary had gotten dangerously close to his actual mouth) and then they'd refused to let him remove the makeup for the rest of the night. At that point all five of them had been properly knackered anyway, and Remus eventually fell asleep on the rug beside Lottie's bed, still covered in red smudges.

It had been slightly more mortifying to be woken up by Marlene, the only one of them not still sleeping or else moaning over a hangover. One of the girls had at least been kind enough to tuck a pillow under his head after he'd passed out but he still had to pop each stiff joint back into place. Marlene offered him a cup of tea, but it was already nearly midday and he knew that if he didn't make it back to his own dorm to throw up he'd never be able to look the girls in the eye again.

Practically crawling to the window, Remus left the same way he'd come in, jumping out onto the lawn to make the horrible trek back to his dorm without even tying up his boots.

"I have to give you detention," Benjy said, when he'd headed him off on the second floor staircase. Remus only nodded and Benjy handed him a pink slip before letting him slink back to his room. The older boy had mercifully said nothing about the lipstick. His roommates were not so kind.

"Where the hell were you?" James demanded, the moment Remus walked through the door. The boys must have taken their breakfast in the dorm that morning, as there were meal trays piled up by the door. Another untouched tray sat on Remus' side table, but the thought of eating made him instantly sick, and he pushed past James and ran straight for the toilet. After he'd finished hacking his guts he came out, wiping a warm cloth across his cheek to get the rest of the lipstick off. A shower would have to wait until he could stand without the room spinning.

Collapsing down on his bed, Remus draped an arm over his eyes, but when he finally withdrew it he found all three of them standing there while looming over him with eager or worried expressions.

"Fuck! What are you doing?"

"You dog, Lupin," Sirius leered, leaning down and jabbing his fingers into Remus' armpits.

"Get off me, you nob!"

"You gotta tell us where you were, Remus," Peter said eagerly.

"Nowhere!"

"Like bloody hell you were," Sirius cackled. "Just fess up, Lupin. Who's lips were all over you last night?"

"No one's!"

"Why didn't you come back last night then?" James asked, looking exceedingly less amused than the other two. It made Remus wonder if they'd been taking bets on where he'd been.

"I just fell asleep," he snapped. "Now if you don't mind..." Remus tried to turn over in his bed to ignore them but Sirius grabbed his shoulder and hauled him back. It was just like him to feed off of every juicy bit he could sink his teeth into.

"You fell asleep?" Peter said, grabbing Remus' legs to hold him. "Where?"

"Let go of me, wankers!"

"I think I know where he was," Sirius said, low and wicked. "It was Evans' birthday yesterday, wasn't it?"

Remus froze, and so did James. The brief pause in thrashing was all Sirius needed to know he was right.