Please Don't Leave Me

Chapter Fifty Two

Remus didn't interact with Janus for the rest of the week. He had meant it when he said he was done with the situation. Despite his facade, however, Remus couldn't help but feel a pang in his chest every time he saw Janus and Virgil together. It hurt a lot, but he pushed those feelings down. He couldn't let himself care.

The following Monday, Remus was walking to lunch when he heard a noise come from inside the boy's bathroom. Normally, he would've ignored it and kept walking. But the noise sounded distressed, and something told him that he needed to check it out. As he made his way into the bathroom, the sound of voices became clearer. "Ugly snake face. Absolutely disgusting." Remus' heart dropped as he processed what was happening. As he finally entered the room, he saw Janus pinned up against the wall by another boy. Specifically the boy who had beat up Remus and shoved him into a locker. Despite Remus' growing anxiety, he decided to intervene. "Get off of him," he growled. Janus looked at him with a mixture of shock, confusion, and gratefulness. The other boy chuckled slightly, pushing Janus back as he let go of him. "Do we have a problem here?" the boy asked as he turned to Remus. "Leave him alone," Remus said, sounding much more confident than he felt. "What are you going to do about it?" the other boy countered. Remus laughed under his breath, although his expression showed that he was anything but amused. "Man, I feel really sorry for you. You have so much hate in your heart. You bring others down to make yourself feel better, and it's really sad. I hope you find some happiness, and I mean that genuinely."

The boy stared at Remus in shock. Eventually, he just mumbled, "Whatever," and left the bathroom, leaving the other two behind. "Are you okay?" Remus asked immediately, although he kept the distance between them. Janus nodded wordlessly, still in shock. "I'm sorry he was bothering you. It's messed up," Remus continued. Janus stared at him for a moment longer before finding his voice. "Why did you help me?" he asked softly. Remus stayed silent for a moment, contemplating why he had helped the guy who broke his heart. Finally, he responded. "Even though you were awful to me, you helped me a lot while we were together. It's only fair that I help you in return." Janus' expression saddened. Despite how awful Janus had treated him, Remus still managed to treat him with kindness. Janus couldn't describe how terrible he felt. "Listen, Remus, I'm really sorry. For everything," Janus said. "Thank you for apologizing," Remus responded softly. He couldn't bring himself to say that it was okay, because it wasn't. But he still appreciated the sentiment, even if it didn't change anything.

Janus stared at Remus carefully, not used to being in his presence again. Remus looked back for a moment before moving to leave, stopping when he heard Janus' voice. "Just for the record, I never stopped lov-" Janus started, immediately being interrupted by Remus' soft yet strong voice. "Don't do that." Janus swallowed harshly before nodding. "I'm sorry." Remus looked down at his sneakers. "Okay," he responded before walking out of the bathroom. He didn't stop walking until he was standing in front of Logan's classroom. He knocked on the door softly, letting out a breath when the door opened.

"Remus? Is everything alright?" Logan asked in concern. "Kind of? I don't know. Can I stay in here for the rest of lunch?" Remus asked. Logan nodded sympathetically. "Yes, of course," he said as he lead his son to sit by his desk. The pair sat in silence for a moment before Logan's parental instincts got the best of him. "Do you want to talk about what happened?" Logan asked softly. Remus hesitated. "Not all of it. Something happened with Janus, though," he responded. Logan listened intently, pushing Remus to continue. "It was just weird, and it made me feel really sad about how everything is between us," Remus admitted. "I understand. It can be difficult to interact with someone who hurt you," Logan consoled softly. "Yeah," Remus mumbled. Another moment of silence filled the room before Remus smirked softly. "On the bright side, I did something that I didn't think I could do." Logan raised an eyebrow with an amused smirk. "Oh really? And what would that be?"

"I stood up to the guy that threw me in the locker."

Logan looked at him with wide eyes. "What? What do you mean? Was he bothering you?" Remus chuckled. "I mean, he tried to. But I kind of went off. I told him that I felt sorry for him. You should have seen the look on his face!" Remus exclaimed, earning a snort from Logan. "I know you must have really put him in his place. Well done," Logan praised with a grin. After a moment, Logan continued. "I'm really proud of you, though. I know that mustn't have been easy, but I'm thrilled to hear that you stood up for yourself. Goodness, you are just so strong." Remus smiled softly at the man's words. "Thanks, Papa. To be honest, I'm proud of myself. I didn't know if I had it in me, but I feel so much better now that I finally did it," Remus admitted. Logan reached over and brushed his son's bangs back softly. "I'm glad to hear that darling."

Logan pulled his hand back, moving to dig through the lunch that he brought with him. He pulled out a sandwich, handing half of it to Remus. "Thanks," Remus said as he took a bite of the sandwich. "Of course," Logan responded, leaning back in his chair and folding his hands on his desk before continuing.

"Now, tell me everything you said to that boy. I want to hear every single detail. If you leave anything out, I will sue."