No Choice But You // Ominis Gaunt x Reader

Chapter 6

A cold shower sometimes did the trick when more minor episodes happened. 

It was early in the morning on a Saturday--the day of our first quidditch match, which would be against Hufflepuff. Imelda was already up and out of bed by the time I'd woken. My body was tingling with a bunch of odd sensations when I rose that morning, and I quickly threw myself into the shower with the water as cold as it could go to put a stop to the attack on my body before it began. 

I sat down in the claw-footed tub with my head between my legs. I needed something to take my mind off of the shooting pains in my arms and legs, so I began to count. I got to five hundred and thirty-seven before the door to the bathroom opened, and someone stepped inside. 

It was Anne, and she hummed as she padded across the stone floor over to the sink. I didn't move or make a sound as she quickly got ready for the day, though she knew I was in there. I waited until she left and closed the door behind her before turning the water off and rising to my feet. My skin pebbled in the cold as I stepped onto the lush bathmat in front of the tub. I wrapped myself in a green towel and went over to the mirror. 

The dark circles under my eyes were hard to ignore, and so was the way my cheekbones jutted out in contrast to my hollowed face. I was a ghost of my former self. I'd had problems eating and sleeping, and being in constant pain wore me down--not that there was anything I could do about any of it. 

After I was dressed, I left the bathroom and grabbed my quidditch sweater from the end of my bed, and threw it on before heading down to the Great Hall for breakfast. I would at least try to eat something before the match today. I'd need all the strength I could get. 

As soon as I entered the Great Hall, Anne swept in and grabbed my elbow. "You're sitting with us, this morning," she told me. She then dragged me over to the table before I could protest. Anne took me to where Sebastian and Ominis were already seated and plopped me down on the bench between her and Ominis, and across from Sebastian. Ominis shifted uncomfortably, and I tried to minimize the physical contact between the two of us. I knew he had to be just about as uncomfortable as I was at that moment. 

"Good morning," Sebastian said. "Ready for today?"

"Ready as I can be," I responded. I put a piece of plain toast on my plate but didn't touch it. I could already feel my gut churning just by looking at it. 

"You seem nervous," he mused. "You shouldn't be. You're the best of us. If you're nervous, then we should all be terrified."

Anne reached across the table and smacked him in the shoulder. "Don't say that," she retorted. "We'll be just fine!" 

Sebastian rubbed his shoulder and I couldn't help the small grin that found its way onto my face. 

"It is only Hufflepuff, after all," Sebastian said, reaching for the juice pitcher. He poured himself a goblet of the juice and chugged it down with fervor. A small dribble of juice slid down his chin, and he slammed the goblet back down on the table and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. 

"Pig," Anne stabbed with a playful glint in her eye. 

Ominis shifted on the bench beside me, no doubt trying to slide further away from me. but he was boxed in by another random Slytherin student who sat on the other side of him. I felt oddly aware of his movements, which I apparently couldn't help. Every shift or brush against my side sent shivers across my body in an odd way. I ignored it and looked back down at the toast on my plate. 

I picked it up and nibbled at the corner of the toasted wheat bread, trying to ignore my stomach's protests. I needed to eat. I needed the energy. I made myself down a few bites before I had to stop. I washed it down with a goblet of water and I rubbed my stomach with my hand, trying to calm the queasiness I felt building up inside me. 

The toast didn't last long inside me. 

After leaving the Great Hall, I beelined for the nearest bathroom and emptied the contents of my stomach into the toilet. My gags and heaves echoed through the bathroom, and I could only pray that I was alone and no one could hear me. Though I guess I could lie and just say I was nervous for today's game. 

I wasn't nervous at all, really. I was confident in my quidditch skills. The only reason I'd have to be nervous was if my stupid chronic pain decided to flare up. I really hoped it wouldn't. 

Imelda was already pacing the locker room beneath the quidditch pitch when the team arrived. I stood in the back of the herd as she gave us her version of an uplifting speech, that ended in her asking us not to disappoint her. 

"Everyone's replaceable," she'd said. "Don't give me a reason to kick you off the team today." 

We headed out onto the pitch after that. I clutched my broom in my right hand with white knuckles. The crowd cheered as we mounted our brooms and circled the pitch. We poised ourselves opposite the Hufflepuff team and readied ourselves. I took in a deep breath and gripped my broom tightly, ready for the tip-off.