You Promised Me→♡•°Tom Riddle°•♡

Chapter 11

Faith spent the rest of the day sitting by the lake, alone. She didn't know what else to do really. Her best friends, the people who she truly cared for and felt comfortable around, wanted nothing to do with her anymore. Faith felt as though somebody was pressing on her chest, the guilt and overwhelming loneliness was suffocating her.

The sun was setting, the sky turned a purple-blue which reflected in the shimmering waters. Faith knew she would have to go back to the Castle soon; frost began to settle on the grass around her and she was starving after having missed dinner. But she simply couldn't bring herself to. She knew moping around wouldn't help, but the people, the only people in the whole world, who made her feel loved, and so separate from her wretched family despised her. How was she supposed to be ok with that?

Though she was shaking from the cold, Faith had tired to read her favourite Astrology book to try and get her mind off things.
She desperately tried to memorise her favourite constellations, wiping tears from her face.
Lyra, the northern constellation, 'the lyre'-

"Why is it every time I see you, you're crying?" Tom Riddle stood infront of her, his brows furrowed.

"Maybe you just emit sadness," she joked.

"I wouldn't doubt it," he smiled, sitting next to her, "I must say I had a rather interesting conversation with Miss Bright earlier. Care to explain?"

Faith sighed deeply ,"They all hate me," she laughed, a sad, tired laugh. "I shouldn't have ditched Andrew right after rejecting him, I suppose. "

"Please," Tom scoffed, "It's hardly your fault the boy has such a fragile ego,"

Faith simply shook her head. It was kind of Tom to comfort her, but he was the reason she was in this mess in the first place.

"Are you not freezing here?" Tom asked.

"You get you used to it after a while," I laughed. It was true though, she was very cold.

Tom sighed, taking off his jacket and passing it to her, "You obviously need it more than me. How long have you been here?" His expression wasn't particularly genuine, more humorous.

Faith took the jacket cautiously, with a thankful smile. It was much warmer. "For about 4 hours," she chuckled sadly, "Tom, why are you here?"

"Just checking up on you I-"

"Oh come on Tom, I already told you I see through this gentleman persona," Faith laughed, rolling her eyes. "What's in it for you?"

Tom hesitated for a second, looking unsure. "I wanted to ask you for a favour."

Faith's face lit up, "Tom Riddle, asking me for help? I never thought I'd see the day," She giggled. He looked highly unamused.

"Go on then, what is it?" Faith asked, smiling at him softly.

"Well, I was thinking," he was looking directly into her eyes, his gaze confident, "after you found the room of requirement, I wondered if the myths I had read about the secrets in this castle were true,"

"So...you want to find secret passages? Up to no good, Tom?" Faith laughed. It was a genuine laugh, something about him made this day feel slightly less awful.

Tom sighed once again, looking at her exasperated, "I more wondered if you would help me find out more about the other secret rooms around the castle. Purley something I'm rather interested in at the moment, and seeing as you are persistent to irritate me, I thought you could come in handy."

"It would be an honour to help you Tom Riddle," Faith mocked friendlily, "Yes, I would love to. I suppose I'll have much more free time now my friends are all done with me." She sighed, her smile fading.

Faith stared out into the picturesque glistening purple waters, the mountains in the background creating such a magnificent scene Faith could feel herself melting into the earth with a wistfully sad sigh.

"They'll come running back to you, Silvers. I'm sure of it."

Not if they see me with you, Faith thought. This whole interaction had convinced her that Tom surely was not like the others. He simply couldn't be.

"Tom, do you like those boys you sit with?" Faith asked, she had always been rather direct with people.

"They have their qualities. But, as a whole they are quite idiotic," Tom grinned.

"Why do you sit with them?" Faith asked. She wasn't sure if Tom was being honest, but he seemed pretty genuine to her.

"They're all I have." Tom put simply.

"I just don't like them," Faith sighed, "nobody does. But you're different, aren't you?"

Tom looked at her perplexed. "Different how so?"

Faith disappointedly shook her head. "Nevermind," she muttered, "we should head back to the Castle."

They stood up, and walked up to the Castle together. Faith was feeling conflicted; Tom Riddle was not a good person. She didn't need her friends to tell her that. So why did she enjoy the time spent with him?

As they walked through the corridors, Tom observed Faith: the way her moonlight hair fell over her face, the way her gaze fixated on inanimate objects as if lost in thought, the way her mouth curled when she smiled at him. The way way her laugh made him feel- no. No distractions.

"I think I'll go grab some food from the kitchens, I missed dinner," Faith smiled, handing Tom his cosy jacket back.

"I'll walk you there," Tom nodded, taking the jacket back.

Tom continued to glance at Faith as they wandered down the darkening, candle lit corridors: the way her hands fiddled with the silver rings on her delicate fingers, the way she trod so carefully yet so clumsily. He wanted to know her. Know everything about her. Faith was his very own jigsaw puzzle.