Chapter 6: The Morning

This is late and probably awful.

Remus woke up before Sirius, and he was confused. Last night had been a mess of emotions. He tried to sit up, but an arm was holding him down. What had happened? Did someone...? Did he? He was relieved to see that he was still dressed in his sweatshirt and sweatpants, and the person curled up beside him had shorts and a T-shirt on. When he woke up more, he remembered meeting Sirius, James, and Lily. He remembered kissing Sirius and asking him to stay after telling him that he wanted to sleep alone. He remembered being confused. He had hoped before he fell asleep that everything would be more clear in the morning, but it was only worse. He was more confused now that he had a full stomach and a full night's sleep. It had been awhile since he slept a full night without nightmares. Did Sirius chase them away? Remus thought about it. He did feel safe with Sirius instinctively. He wanted to trust Sirius, but his experiences always went the other direction. Alphas were not be trusted and Omegas may seem nice, but they will rat you out if it serves them.

Remus decided since his Alpha was asleep and would not see him do it that he would inspect him more closely. Sirius's hair was a bit of mess since it was long and curly. But the ebony strands still seemed perfect to Remus. They fell chaotically over the pillow and Sirius's face. Sirius's eyes were closed, but his eyelashes rested gently over his high cheekbones. Sirius's lips were parted slightly as he breathed. (He naturally breathed through his mouth, Remus guessed.) His lips weren't full, but they weren't thin either. They were nicely in between.

"Like what you see?" Sirius teased, as he slowly opened his eyes. He smiled at Remus sleepily, and he tried to pull Remus closer to catch a few more minutes of sleep. "It's early. What are you doing up? The sun isn't even up yet."

Remus tensed. How could he be so dumb? Of course, this was just a test, and he broke a rule. He started shaking. It was only the second day, and he was going to be punished. His eyes welled up with tears at the thought of disappointing his Alpha.

"Hey, what's wrong?" asked Sirius as soon as he noticed the tense posture and tears. He sat up immediately, and he tried to pull Remus towards him. However, Remus's shaking increased when he tried to bring him closer, and Sirius froze. "Remus," Sirius whispered, "I will never hurt you. I promise."

"I'm not sure I can believe you," Remus said, and he looked at his hands. He didn't notice the heartbreak on his Alpha's face.