Five Years - 2012 Remaster
I think I saw you in an ice cream parlor
Drinking milk shakes, cold and long
Smiling and waving and looking so fine
Don't think you knew you were you were in this song
- Five Years by David Bowie
I still remember the first time those darks curls caught my eye, back then I only thought of myself as a single entity. Whole on my own and that was how it would always be, little did I know there would come a day when I couldn’t think of myself without you. I would have never imagined that the playboy would fall so far and that I’d be so happy to catch him in my arms.
The January air was crisp and each breath cut like little swords in your lungs, but Remus had a mission and he wouldn’t stop now, not because of the cold or the ache in his knee. The exam results had been posted earlier in the day but Remus had not been able to sleep the night prior due to nerves and so the night had come and gone and only at the sight of morning had he finally dozed off. Now it seemed stupid to be stressed, its not as if he would be surprised by his marks. Remus wasn’t a genius, far from it really, and he didn’t care much for school but at the moment it was all he had to pass the time and so he had ended up working really hard this term. His quiet Christmas alone had left him with plenty of time to study aimlessly, and the work kept him busy.
As he approached the boards, he heard some whispers that caught his attention.
“Who’s this Remus Lupin guy?”
“Dunno, must be some new guy, never heard-a-him before?”
This happened all the time, even the teachers seemed to forget he existed. Even though he had been going to this stupid school for the past three years he was yet to meet anyone who had remembered his name. One would think that with a name like Remus Lupin people might remember it.
The bulletin board in front of him was for the science courses. Chemistry he had placed 11th overall, not great but he was happy enough. Next was physics, which he had placed 17th, again not great but he expected as much. He pushed through the crowd towards the other board, then he saw it:
English 11
1st – Remus Lupin
2nd – Sirius Black
3rd – Marlene MacKinnon ...
Senior Philosophy
1st – Remus Lupin
2nd – Sirius Black
3rd – Lily Evans ...
Mathematics
1st – Remus Lupin
2nd – Sirius Black
3rd – James Potter ...
This couldn’t be right; this must have been some sort of joke. He had come top of three classes, and one of then was maths? He stood dumbfounded for a few seconds before remembering that he was not alone. He quickly slipped out of the crowed area before making a be-line for anywhere he could be alone. If Remus had taken time to look around that day, he may have seen those green eyes bearing into the back of his head as he scurried away.
All Remus had ever wanted was to not be seen, to just drift through life without troubling anyone. He had gotten so used to being alone by now he was surprised to hear someone call out to him.
“Hey!” he heard someone call, and he sped up “hey, you! Your Remus, right?” the girl had caught up with him. He glanced around looking for someone else named Remus she must have been calling to, but unfortunately, he was the only Remus he had ever met and so he looked at her.
“Um… ya? Who’s asking?” he hadn’t meant to be rude, but well he also didn’t much feel like talking to her. The girl just smiled and tucked a loose strand of scarlet hair behind her ear.
“I’m Lily Evens” she said extending a hand and showing a big grin, “I was in your philosophy class actually, but I don’t think we’ve ever been introduced”
Remus looked down at her expecting outstretched hand, he decided maybe was the day his world would fall apart, and maybe this fiery girl in-front of him would make it worth it. He shook her hand; she had a strong grip and there was a twinkle in her eye as their hands met. It had only then occurred to him that he had beat Lily Evans in philosophy and that this may not have been an introduction out of pure friendliness. “Nice to met you Evens” he said curtly
“I always love meeting the new student and then finding out that they are amazingly smart.” lily said with a big laugh. And there it was, she thought he was a new student, someone new to compete with. He drew back his hand quickly and stuffed it in his pocket.
“I’m not a new student” he said in a hushed voice.
“Really?” lily inquired eagerly, clearly missing the venom in Remus’ tone.
“Ya,” Remus said trying to not let his annoyance seep into his words “really, I’ve been here since grade 9” he looked back up at her and she looked perplexed “I was actually in your biology class last year, and I think I may have been in history with you the year before that” Remus liked to be alone but that didn’t mean he didn’t remember people, and Lily Evans was a hard person to forget, she emanated confidence and positivity. At this Lily smile seemed to drop a bit, hardly noticeable, but Remus had gotten very good at watching people over the years.
“No, that couldn’t be…” lily huffed to herself “I’m sorry Remus I can’t believe I didn’t remember you” she now looked very agitated, Lily seemed like the sort of person who prided themselves of being nice and knowing everyone.
“s’all right” he shrugged, it honestly didn’t bother him that much, it wasn’t as if he expected her to magically remember him.
“No.” she objected “it is not ok, I promise I will never forget your face again.” the smile returned to her freckled face and it seemed as through she was now studying his features as if to commit them to memory permanently, which Remus thought to be quite useless. His face was unmemorable, and so was he, just a bland guy with nothing to him. “Tell you what Remus, how about you tell me the secrets to your academic success this term, and in exchange I will be your friend” she gave him a small wink and then began to giggle “I’m just messing with ya, you don’t have to give me anything, buuuut if you ever do want to share your secrets I’m all ears” she wanted to hear his secrets but Remus didn’t have anything to share, not the kind of secrets she was hoping for.
And that was how Lily Evans became Remus’ first friend in years. Remus really did like Lily, she was easy to talk to, or really she was easy to not talk to because she was always talking and so things never were boring and she never really expected Remus to answer. That day Lily ended up taking Remus out for lunch in celebration of their new friendship as well as the exams, it turned out that Lily had placed 1st in physics and 2nd in biology. Remus also quickly learned that she did not like to lose, she promised she did not hold it against Remus for placing 1st in philosophy and that she only blamed the guy in 2nd for bumping her down the ranks.
The first day of the new semester didn’t feel any different to Remus. He walked the few blocks to school from his small apartment. He walked to his first class, which was creative writing, he had already done an English course that year but he chose to take a second one instead of taking another science class. As he walked into the familiar class of Mr. Brown, he was happy to see his seat untaken at the back corner. He walked forward smiling a little when he heard his name called out by an unfamiliar voice.