Pat stared at the problem Remus had scrawled quickly in his Maths book. It was a simple problem, something he'd definitely learnt before. He could do this. The calculations were easy, he'd already half worked it out in his head.

He just couldn't bring himself to focus on it. His mind was wandering. To where, he wasn't sure.

Pat sighed and gave up. He chucked his pencil down on the floor with a clatter and rolled onto his back, tracing the patterns on the ceiling. His mind wandered again. Back to dancing and footwork and arms around his waist and-

Pat shot up like someone had called his name, blushing red. He took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes, running his hands up into his hair and grabbing at fistfuls of curls. He let out an annoyed growl.

It had been three days. Three days since he'd last seen Lo- the prince. And now he couldn't stop think about him or even say his name.

What was happening to him?

Remus glanced up at a thud on the stairs. "Hey, Pat." He said, then frowned. "You haven't finished your Maths already, have you?"

Pat shook his head and threw himself down by the coat stand, rooting around his shoes.

"Where're you going?"

"Either for a run or to throw myself in the river." Pat said decidedly. "Whichever opportunity presents first."

"Woah, woah, woah!" Remus exclaimed. "Stop!" Pat glanced up at him but stopped pulling his shoes on. "Why?"

Pat shrugged. "Cos life's got confusing." He muttered. Remus tried not to make his annoyed sigh too obvious.

"Pat, that's what life is!" He said. "It's confusing and complicated and stupid and messy and it's still worth living. Because without all that messy, weird rubbish in the middle of life, what is it worth living for?"

"But it's especially confusing." Pat said. "And I don't like it!"

"Come on," Remus gestured to the table, "talk about it." He swung himself up onto the counter, his legs dangling. "Always good to talk about problems."

Pat let out a particularly over-exagerated sigh. "It's my friend." He said.

"You mean the stranger you met in the woods?"

"He's not a stranger!" Pat protested. "He's a gentleman."

"Gentlemen can still be strangers but anyway," Remus didn't want this to turn to a fight, "what about him?"

"I keep thinking about him!" Pat declared dramatically. "I can't think for the thought of him. He's everywhere! When I look up at the rafters, I can see his face in the grain patterns! When I listen to a bird sing, I can hear his voice telling me some uselessly stupid fact about the bird. I can hear how excited he gets! When I don't get something, I imagine it in his voice - explaining it to me patiently - and then I get it! I..." Pat sighed. "I don't know what's wrong with me."

"Pat..." Remus said quietly. "Is it possible you could like this boy?"

"Course I like him!" Pat said. "He's my friend."

"No, I mean..." Remus really hoped this wasn't true, "like him."

Pat's face slowly fell in horror. "You mean like how Dada likes Papa?"

"Maybe not to that extent," Elven mischief, please not to that extent, "but along the same lines, yeah."

Pat's eyes widened, displaying even more horror. He shook his head quickly, thought whether that was at himself or Remus, Remus wasn't sure.

"No. No, no, no, no, no, no. No, that's not right." He said. "That can't be right. That's gross! Love's really gross! No, that's not- I can't- I couldn't..." Pat trailed off, freezing completely still.

Then, he flung his shoes off and lept up, sprinting back up the stairs with a gabbled excuse of Maths problems. And then he was gone.

Remus let out a breath. This was bad. This was bad, this was really, really bad.

"Ro and Virgil are gonna kill me."

WHO'S READY FOR ONE-SIDED PINING?!
Bye,
Blaize