Remus isn't exactly sure when the world ended, because it started in increments. He remembers seeing signs back in 2012 and 2016 written in some dark color possibly with shit or blood that said "STAY INSIDE, THE WORLD ENDS TODAY!” and then on the back some poor sob story about a dog that they’d use the next day. Not that he'd believed the signs but it was nice to have some warning. Because the day Remus John Lupins' world ended started off as any other.
"Where are my keys? Wormtail, did you move them?" A frantic Sirius asked as he rushed around the house.
"No, for the hundredth time," Peter grumbled, mouth full of dry cereal "I haven't moved them!"
"Are you sure Wormy?" James, their fourth roommate asked.
"Yes, I'm sure!" Peter exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air and knocking over their bowl of fruit.
"Oh there they are." Sirius said, grabbing his fruit stained keys "Peter, I asked if you had them.
"I didn’t!"
"Sure you didn't Wormy." James said, causing Wormtail to groan.
"Enough, you three, we're going to be late" Remus interrupted, gesturing to the clock.
As if on cue the three rushed to the door, fighting tooth and nail to get to the car as if Sirius would let anyone ride shotgun other than Remus.
___
By the time they arrived at school Remus was starting to feel nauseous but he chalked it up to his lack of breakfast that morning and having to watch Padfoot and Prongs have sex with their eyes in the rearview mirror.
Sirius was of course the first to get out of the car, James following shortly after.
"Race you to the door!" Sirius said, James rushing past him before he could even get the words out of his mouth.
Remus hoists himself out of the car using the handle afraid that he wouldn’t be able to stand up without it. Getting out of the car takes most of his strength leaving him feeling weak once he finally makes it to his feet. Well weaker.
“Feeling alright Moony?” Peter asks.
Remus nods, the movement making him feel worse. He weakly waves him off and mumbles out something he hopes is at least slightly coherent. Whatever he says must have worked, because when he opens his eyes Peter is gone. Remus slams the door closed and leans against it, willing the dizziness to pass. He’s used to feeling carsick, the nausea that fills his stomach and the slight vertigo and this isn’t different if anything, just more intense. Probably due to the fact that he skipped breakfast this morning and dinner last night.
Remus pulls out his phone, the clock reading 8:39. He’s officially late, which means his first period teacher Professor McGonagall is going to kill him. Ignoring his nausea and dizziness Remus rushes into school, quickly grabbing a tardy pass and sparing no apology for the security guard out front. He was a dick anyway. By the third flight of stairs he’s starting to feel worse, his heart seeming to beat out of his chest. He presses his hand into the center of his chest, feeling his heart vibrate with energy he doesn’t have.
The late bell rings spurring Remus into action. He hoists his backpack onto his shoulder, unsure when he grabbed it and rushes up the rest of the stairs and into class. When he looks up he’s greeted with a face he doesn’t recognize. He looks toward his friends in confusion and James mouths the word ‘substitute’. Remus nods and slides into a seat near the front, not planning on staying long.
The teacher explains the curriculum of the day probably for the second time, but Remus isn’t listening. Instead he reads what Professor McGonagall wrote on the board and gets started. The worksheet is easy, yet he can’t seem to concentrate the numbers, letters, words and room spinning. He closes his eyes and the nausea grows worse. Despite the unspoken rule: wait ten minutes before you ditch Remus finds himself rising from his chair before he can even process. Without waiting permission he grabs the pass and rushes out the door. He can hear the commotion from inside the classroom but he ignore it, focused on getting to the bathroom in case he throws up.
Each step he takes feels like a thousand as if the bathroom has suddenly teleported to the other side of campus. The stairs are worse. His eyes are mostly closed as he takes the first step and his word spins. Heat consumes him, but it’s not enough to get rid of the chills that run down his spine. He reaches for the hand railing holding on for dear life. For a horrible second he fears he might be dying. He takes another step, mentally preparing for the wave of nausea that follows. It goes like this for too long and finally he finds himself at the water fountain at least. When he leans down the world disappears, the only thing left is him and the inevitable feeling of death. Remus gasps and pulls himself back up, using the handle bars that surround the fountain. No water then.
He doesn’t need to check his phone to know he’s been gone for too long. Not that he’d brought it in his panic. He claws at the wall, using it to push himself onto the stairs. He takes a step, then another…
When he wakes up, he’s surprisingly not alone. There are two girls standing there. He barely recognizes them.
“What the hell happened?” Marlene screams.
“I don’t know, one second he was on the stairs and then he just fell.” Lili says her voice rushed.
The next few minutes are a blur. One of them gets him to his feat and the pair wrap his arms around their shoulders dragging him down the hallway. It’s like something out of a movie, only Remus isn’t bleeding. They get him into the office, where Lily sets him down. Unlike Marlene she stays, rubbing soothing circles on his hands as she re-explains what happened, but to someone else this time.
“What’s your name?” the woman, Madame Pomfrey asks.
“Remus,” he says, but his tongue feels like cotton making the vowels sound funny.
“Who can we call?”
The next thirty or so minutes go this way. He dials Effie with his phone, apparently it was in his pocket. He tried to explain that he hadn’t been the one to put it there but they just looked at him like he was crazy so he shut up. His hands are shaking as he presses each key and when he looks down he finds that it’s not just his hands but his entire body.
By the time the paramedics arrive, the shaking has stopped, and seemingly so has his heart. It's still beating according to all the tests they run but he can’t feel it anymore. He wonders if he really is dying. If this is the end. But it’s not. It never is.
Effie will show up a few minutes later, with Fleamont by her side and they’ll take him to the ER. He’ll stay there for hours and they’ll diagnose him with a singular episode of syncope, from his lack of breakfast. Remus will nod and agree because what else can a gay teen of color do, surrounded by a plethora of white doctors. He’ll be back in less than a week, but that’s nobody’s business.