Remus Lupin thinks his life would be easier if James didn’t smile so much. He also thinks his life would be easier if he was taller, more handsome and not a werewolf, but those are irrelevant; James Potter’s smile has been causing the majority of his recent problems.

It all starts in Advanced Potions on a Thursday afternoon. Slughorn has the Seventh Years brewing Everlasting Elixir and Remus is paired with Lily Evans. He’d wanted to work with Maureen MacDougal to see if she was wearing the lavender-scented perfume he bought her at Hogsmeade, but Lily asked him—so James couldn't ask her—and Remus was too nice to refuse.

He's working on cutting up fluxweed leaves while Lily stirs the potion clockwise thirty times, his mind on the study date he has with Maureen later that night. When he finishes chopping the leaves he wipes the thick, peppermint-scented plant juice from his fingers, looking up to see how the rest of the class is progressing.

That’s when he first sees it. Sees James smiling, his head thrown back, laughing at something Sirius had said, eyes crinkling and dimples showing. And sees Lily watching him.

Remus knows she thinks she's being discreet, but he can still see emotion light up her emerald green eyes. It's fondness, he thinks, or affection, or maybe even desire. Whatever it is, it's different from the way she usually looks at James. A smile is tugging at the corner of her lips. He’ll have to remember to tell his friends later. He knows James will want to—BANG!

Remus is covered in a thick, brown liquid as their potion explodes.

“Merlin’s trousers!� Lily exclaims. Her red hair is matted to her scalp with a layer of their half-brewed elixir. Thick gobs of potion drip down her freckled cheeks.

“I’m so sorry, Remus,� she says, Vanishing as much of the mess as she can before Slughorn reaches their work station. “Professor, I’m so sorry,� she says in a rush as he approaches. “I must have lost count while stirring. I don’t think I switched to counter-clockwise at the right time. I’ll clean it up, I promise.� She shoves strands of wet hair out of her eyes. “I’ve never done anything like this before. I have no idea what got into me.�

Remus thinks he does: James Potter.

“It’s quite alright, Miss Evans,� Slughorn says. “It happens to the best of us. But I’m afraid you and Mr Lupin will have to return later to thoroughly clean the room, as Everlasting Elixir tends to have a very potent odour that can be difficult to remove by magic alone.�

Lily nods, sending Remus an apologetic look.

And that’s how Remus ends up scrubbing the floor of the Potion’s classroom by hand when he's supposed to be studying with Maureen.

“I really am sorry, Remus,� Lily says, for what has to be the tenth time that evening.

“I know, you’ve said. It’s fine.�

“I think I was tired. That’s why I lost count,� she adds. “I was up late finishing the Ancient Runes essay.�

Her hair is pulled back in a ponytail. Sweat beads on her forehead as she scrubs the stone floor, cheeks flushed with exertion, tongue caught between her lips in concentration. It's times like these that Remus can’t blame James for his attraction to Lily. She's a pretty girl.

“Mmhmm,� he says noncommittally.

“Hornsby’s assignment was absolutely ridiculous, don’t you think? Eighteen inches on the significance of colour in proper Fwoopter evaluation! I was up ‘til three this morning trying to make the bloody thing long enough, and I’d been researching for weeks.�

“It was a little extreme,� Remus agrees.

They work in silence for a few minutes until it's broken by her quiet chuckle. Remus looks over at Lily questioningly.

“I can only imagine how spectacularly Potter would be failing that class if he had passed his Runes O.W.L.� she says. “He’s always putting things like essays off until the last minute. Never takes assignments seriously, does he?�

“Oh, he takes them seriously enough,� Remus says, “until he realises he would enjoy watching Sirius flirt with unsuspecting Third Years more than working.�

“That’s awful,� Lily says, crinkling her nose.

“But true.�

“I know. I just don’t understand why. You think he’d be more mature than that by now. I can’t puzzle out why he acts the way he does.�

“He’s James,� Remus says, shrugging. “He’s always been that way. Though he has been improving lately.� Lily sighs.

A comfortable silence resumes. Remus’ back and knees are beginning to hurt from kneeling on the cold stone floor. They’ve been there for at least two hours now, and Remus is starting to get restless. He decides to push his luck with Lily on his friend’s behalf.

“So, sounds like you’ve been thinking about him a lot lately?� he asks, playful tone and innocent expression doing nothing to hide the gravity behind the question.

Lily looks up in shock, and Remus notices a blush beginning to stain her cheeks a light pink. “Who, Potter?� Remus nods.

“Well, no more than usual,� she says, trying to regain composure. Her casual tone doesn't deceive Remus. “Let’s see… today there were a few seconds of disdain when I saw him chewing with his mouth open at breakfast, followed by a few minutes of intense dislike when I found out he was the one that charmed genital warts on the entire Slytherin Quidditch team.� She pauses for a minute, thinking. “And that’s about the extent of my Potter-related thoughts, I’d say.�

Remus can tell her nonchalant attitude is a false front. She avoids his knowing gaze by getting up to empty her soapy water bucket in a basin by Slughorn’s desk. On the way she trips on an uneven stone in the floor and curses, splashing dirty water on her white blouse.

Remus smiles. He can’t be fooled that easily.