"Clover Diggory, what a tedious name, you could at least fashion yourself a middle name. I thought someone like you would have a more exciting name to be honest."
My eyes flashed open to see a plain stone ceiling above me. It was dark, the sun was slowly rising in the distance, yet a small light beside me kept the room lit.
I turned to my side, realising I was in an extremely uncomfortable bed. Not in my dorm, in some kind of medical facility. Mattheo was sat on a chair beside my bed, his hands on his thighs as he sniggered devilishly.
"I thought I died again." I moaned, still extremely tired. I felt cold, very cold. But I was somehow dressed
"Who said you didn't die?" He muttered, the smirk still on his face. My eyebrows threaded at his comment. I looked at his outfit and then looked down at my clothes. I was dressed in...his clothes.
"Why am I wearing your shirt?!" I questioned, examining the black shirt I was wearing. It was similar to the one he wore earlier, it even smelt like him.
"Aren't you cold?" He wondered, putting his hand on mine and caressing it with his thumb,"My, your hand is freezing! And I used a spell to put that shirt on, don't go flattering yourself."
"Merlin, Mattheo! You don't make sense! One second you're saving me then the next second you're a complete dick. Why are you even here at this hour?" I tried to get up but feel a pound in my head and placed my hands on my hair, the pain unbearable.
"Stay in bed, you're hungover. Morton...uh wanted me to make sure you were okay. He was checking on you in the day, you see."
"Why would he ask you?! I hate to break it to you, Riddle, but he doesn't like you at all."
"Back to Riddle, I really thought we were getting somewhere." He rolled his eyes, taking his hand away from mine. I snatched it back, wanting the warmth it provided back on my skin.
"Getting somewhere? I'm tired and cold, I really can't be bothered to argue with you." I seethed, wrapping the covers around my body, closing my eyes hastily. I let go of his hand and tried to get to sleep.
.
I opened my eyes once again, not being able to sleep and Mattheo was no where to be seen. I wasn't wearing his shirt anymore and was still in only in my tight swimwear from earlier. I breathed out slowly, trying to get the imminent headache banging in my ears to disappear but all I could focus on was Mattheo.
Where did he go?
The chair he was sat on was in the corner, as if he was never there. Maybe it was a dream, but how was it so realistic? And why did I dream about him?
Just as many thoughts occupied my mind, the boy whom I was dreaming about a few seconds ago entered the room. He had the exact same clothes on, he was also holding a black shirt and grey sweatpants. Deja vu?
As he entered the infirmary, he went straight to pick up a chair and placed it by my bed. He dropped the clothes he had brought on the bedside table and sat with a smug look on his face. He turned the lamp beside us on with his wand, his eyes kept on mine.
"What are you doing here?" I wondered, turning on my side to face him. Wrapping myself like a cocoon in the blanket, not wanting him to see my almost naked skin.
"I wanted to talk to you about something, I had a strange dream."
"So did I, what was yours?" I sat up, feeling that pounding in my head once again. A ringing in my ear, making my eyes scrunch close at the sound.
"I think you already know." He mumbled quite quietly, scratching his head then fixing his hair.
"What's that supposed to mean?" I wrapped the covers around me tighter, the coldness of the room getting onto my skin.
"Nothing, I brought you some clothes. It's freezing down here." He picked up the clothes and stood up, "Can I help you? You look extremely ill."
"No, I can get dressed myseflf." I took the clothes from him and tried to stand up, my legs just wouldn't work so I gave up and passed them back to him, "Actually yes. But don't be a dick about it."
He ignored my comment and pulled the blanket off my body, dropping it to the side. He was right, it was extremely cold and I was also glad that there were no other students in this area of the facility. He looked over my body, studying it and I noticed the paleness of it, well...more pale than usual.
"Do you feel okay?" He asked, a pain in his eyes as he looked at me. He placed a hand on my shoulder and stood before me.
"Yeah, just hungover and I also almost died so I'm great!" I stated sarcastically. He put his hands on my sides and turned my body so that I was sat at the side of the bed. He picked up his spare sweatpants and started putting them on my legs. He bent down and looked up at me the whole time with a lustful look in his eyes which angered me.
"Don't look at me like that!" I snapped, trying not to look into his eyes. He pretended I didn't say anything for few moments and his fingers slid past my outer thigh as he dressed me.
"What do you mean?" He asked, as if he didn't know what he was doing. He moved his hand away from me, now that I had his trousers on. They were absolutely huge and I had to hold them in place. He pulled them up a bit to help me then completely pulled away. I was now only in a swim top and his sweatpants which felt extremely weird. I didn't really feel embarrassed, him dressing me and all. But being the dick he is, he did exactly as I told him not took, he tried to make dressing me...intimate.
"You know what you're doing. I know what you're like, you're going to try to get me to like you then you'll kickstart the whole game again. You didn't finish, remember."
"You're not the only girl I 'look at like that'." He smirked, picking up the black shirt, I chuckled quietly, the way he said it was weirdly funny to me.
"I've never seen you with other girls, other than Pansy. So...that's hard to believe." I muttered, as he signalled for me to put my arms up. I did as he said, putting my arms up in the cold air.
"You don't know what I do behind closed doors." He said softly, his breath just by my ear. He started to slide the shirt down my arms.
"Maybe I don't." I replied, not really sure what else to say. I was slightly disgusted with his reply and felt...jealous for some reason, "You know what, I really want to know where your annoying genes from. Was your father a handsome, clever, malevolent dick?"
"Hmm are you saying I'm handsome and clever, how sweet." He spoke, his fingers lightly brushing against my sides.
I rolled my eyes and brought my hands backs down to my hips, "Well you can speak properly which is rare at this school, I can tell that you know you're handsome and you completely ignored the fact that I said you're a malevolent dick."
"I enjoy being a malevolent dick and this is the the first time you've complimented me so I'm rubbing it in your face." He finished putting on the shirt and looked at me somewhat proudly. I looked up at him, his tall figure towered over my small body.
"You ignored my question, did you get your looks and personality from your father?"
"I suppose so." He sat back down at his chair. I sat back on the bed too, still wondering why he was here? He can't just be here because he wanted to give me clothes, he's Mattheo Riddle. There has to be more to this, and why is he being so nice?
"Isn't your swim top uncomfortable?" He said, pointing to be breast area. I rolled my eyes, and felt a bit of a blush on my face, I was extremely confused as to why he pointed that out.
"How would you know about that?! I've never met a boy who knows anything about girl problems."
"Pansy is open about her girl problems, so I have learnt a lot. Every month she tells Draco every single detail about her period pains and I always seem to be there when she is speaking about it." He seemed kind of uncomfortable talking about it, scratching his leg awkwardly.
"You know what, that's probably why I was finding it hard to sleep earlier. You're a genius." I remarked, trying to pull off the bikini top which was stuck to my skin. He moved his chair a bit closer staring at me as I tried to pull down the top. I finally got it past the large sweatpants and dropped it to the floor, leaving it there.
Mattheo looked down at my bikini which was now on the floor then back at me. His eyes scanning my body with that irritating look again.
"Fuck!" He exclaimed, in a strange voice I hadn't heard him use before. He had his hands infront of his crotch area and an angered look was on his face.
"What?" I questioned.
"I need to go to the bathroom." He said. He strolled away, walking as if he had a limp. He went straight out the infirmary and down a corridor.
Is he? Oh god.
I shook my head and pretended nothing happened, I couldn't be bothered to go deep in thought with what he was doing.
I crawled back into the bed and wrapped the covers around me. I still felt cold, the clothes didn't really help but the scent of them, the scent of Mattheo's cologne, made me feel a sense of security.
A few minutes passed and Mattheo entered again, brushing his fingers through his curly hair. He walked straight to the seat again and sat down.
"Are you okay?" I asked noticing his dry expression. He scrunched his eyebrows them nodded lowly, lolling his tongue around his cheek.
"You should get to sleep, it's 2 am." He reminded me, his face still emotionless.
"I'm cold." I said, trying to warm up in the covers but it was no use. A small smile curled up on his lips and he moved the duvet slightly. He stood up from the chair and took off his shoes, leaving them to the side. I shot him a confused look and he smirked, getting into the bed next to me.
"Come here." He signalled, patting his chest possibly for me to lie with him. I scoffed and rolled my eyes, ignoring his favour.
"Don't think that after everything that's happened I'm going to sleep with you." I hissed. He laughed quietly then said, "Suit yourself, it's nice and warm over here."
"Shut up." I turned so I wasn't looking at him and stole all the blanket.
"Don't talk to me like that." He said sternly and before I could say another word, I felt large arms on my lower waist. He picked me up and dropped me just on his chest.
"You fucking arsehole." I squealed as he wrapped his arms around me then put the blanket on us. I already felt much warmer feeling his body heat radiating off him but I didn't want to let myself give in.
"Let me go." I tried to pull off his arms but his grip was too tight.
"Stop complaining, go to sleep." I turned over to look at him and his lips were in a thin line. His brown eyes slightly soft as he circled his hands over the small of my back.
"How many times do I have to tell you? Go. To. Sleep." He enunciated each word and I ended up giving in, the tiredness hitting me like a train. I finally fell asleep, curled up in his arms, his scent and warmth guiding to me to what I hoped would be a positive dream.
.
"I'm better at magic than you, stupid." My brother shouted and I stuck my tongue out at him, knowing that what he said was obviously wrong.
"Prove it then." I taunted, stepping up from the bench I was sat at. He smiled and ran over to me.
"Why don't we settle this with an old fashioned duel?" He smirked, getting his wand out from his pocket. His brown eyes shining in the sunlight in the distance, the sun falling down over the large beach. His pale skin glimmered perfectly in the soft light, as I looked at him I realised how similar we were, our eyes, our hair, our skin. So many familiar features contained in him.
"Fine." I picked up my wand from the bench and walked up to him. We both bowed and got our wands ready to fight. I came up with a spell mother had taught me a few days ago. I found it simple, to my brother it confused him very much so this would be the perfect time to use it.
"Stupefy!" I shouted and he went flying, his body in a funny position, I couldn't help but laugh at my expertise. I would always be a better witch than him.
"Hmm, good start." He got off the ground and held his wand above his head, "Expelliarmus." I blocked it easily.
"Boring." I teased, playing around with my wand. I put it back in my pocket, thinking that the duel was over.
"Sectumsempra." He caught me off guard at this spell I had never heard before. I crashed onto the ground, feeling knifes being stabbed all over my body, holes being carved into my thick skin.
I couldn't move at all, I felt numb, my body wouldn't budge. A sudden rush of blood spurred out of the holes in my body. I could taste the tang of the blood in my mouth, the metallic flavour creating tears in my eyes. My body became wet with that red terrifying substance. The pain was unreal and I screamed and screamed, pleading for someone to help me.
My brother had disappeared and I was alone. Bleeding, screaming, alone.
.
Someone began to shake me and my eyes shot open. Mattheo was shaking me, waking me up from that foul nightmare I had experienced.
"Clover!" Mattheo exclaimed, my breathing hitched and I felt his arms around my body. Calming me, protecting me. Just him being with me made me feel a sense of tranquility. Every part of the dream began to fade away as I looked into his eyes.
He looked guilty as he looked at me, like he had done something extremely bad.
"It's okay, it was just a dream." He muttered into my hair, wiping the tears from my cheeks. My heartbeat was pounding out of my chest, goosebumps covering my cold skin.
I cried and cried into his chest, every touch from his fingers guiding back to reality. "I'm here." He spoke pulling me up to look down at him. He cupped my cheeks in his hands wiping away the tears that were left. He planted a soft kiss on my forehead, my breathing had almost gone back to normal now. He kissed me again, this time on the nose and this kiss was different. Gentler, kinder.
"Breathe, my love, breathe." He whispered softly, brushing his fingers through my hair. I did as he said, taking breaths until I felt better.
"Would you like to tell me what happened in the dream, or do you want to go back to sleep?" He questioned, laying me back on his chest again.
"It was so strange." I said between the tears that were left, "I was duelling with my brother and he casted the sectumsempra spell. I don't think he understood what it did. But I could actually feel the pain." I could still somehow feel the wetness off the blood on my clothes.
"Well you're okay now, hmm?" I nodded at his words and he grazed his fingers over my clothed stomach. His fingers softly rubbing over my skin. I was caught unawares by his other hand on my jaw, he trailed his finger across my jawline, his eyes extremely focused on where he was touching me.
"You're not alone, you know?" He said, turning my head to face him, his hand still on my jaw. He shook his head lightly, as if he had said something wrong.
"Hmm?" I leaned into his touch, his index finger still swiping over my jaw.
"I- We're- Nothing, it's nothing." He stuttered, it was as if he really wanted to say something but it just wouldn't come out.
"You sure? Is there anything you have to tell me?" I turned my body around so I was on top off him and put my legs on either side of his body, straddling him.
"No, I'll tell you another time. Are you feeling better? You don't look as ill as before." He placed a hand on my waist, the other still on my jaw.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for being here, I probably would have been awake all night if it wasn't for you." He smiled a little bit, I could see a tiny bit of warmth coming onto his face. He brought my face closer to his with his hand. The warmth of his breath fanned my face, the scent of mint guiding me to his lips.
"Kiss me." He pressed my body to his, leisurely pulling my face to his. I tilted my head slightly to have an easy way to his lips and just as our lips were about to attach I pulled away.
"Mattheo, I can't" His eyebrows threaded at my words, the warmth leaving his face.
"Why not?" He asked.
"I just- after everything- I don't even know why I let you sleep with me." I began to realise how stupid I'm being.
"Why does the past matter, don't you enjoy my company?"
"Ofcourse I do, but- Don't you remember how you treated me a few weeks ago?! How toxic you were to me?! Just because you're being nicer to me, which is very weird, doesn't mean I'm going to pretend all that shit didn't happen." I moved away from him, back to the other side of the bed, I felt annoyed that I let him in so easily but proud that I stopped him before anything happened. Maybe he changed? He couldn't have. No one could ever change that quickly, especially him.
"I saved you from death yesterday and saved you from a nightmare today, what more could you want? Well I need to go speak to my friend, Bob, anyway. I'll see you later." He got off the bed and put his shoes back on, not looking back at me.
"Mattheo, I'm sorry! But, Bob? Who's Bob?" He completely ignored me and left the room not even turning to look back. I started to have a conflict in my head. Am I being stupid, telling him to go when this is the one time he's being nice to me? Or am I finally being smart? After everything I've been through I've learnt to keep away from him.
There's just something about him that always draws me back to him. I'm like a puppet and he's the puppeteer. I always seem to be manipulated by him, made to think he likes me when he would never. He's shown his hate towards me and all because I'm a muggle? I've had my memories and I've figured I'm not, I'm not going to tell him though because I don't want him changing his mind about me because I have wizard blood. That's pathetic, I deserve someone better than him, someone kind and someone who doesn't value status. Like Timothy.
However, Timothy doesn't make me feel the way Mattheo does. Yes, he's an amazing person but there's just something about Mattheo. He obviously makes me feel a certain way that I've never felt before. But theres also something about him that I can't explain, something hidden that I want to uncover. Everyone has their secrets, but I feel as if his are darker, hidden deep in the depths of only his mind.
If I get that Diary, when I get that Diary. I will be the first to travel through this torturous abyss of his mind, I will uncover every hidden secret there is to know about Mattheo Riddle. I could even get revenge for Bella, the muggle-born whom they tortured before me. I could blackmail him, get him to stop with the game. Teaching him that he doesn't rule the whole school and that him and his friends aren't better than everyone else.
I just need a way to get it, hmm. There's so many ideas coming to mind but which could work? I could get him to trust me, manipulate him into telling me the truth or giving it to me, then and only then I can get back at him. Or, I could use his fake love tactic, I could use his own game against him. He didn't really go through with the whole stage but I'll go through with it for him, I'll finish the stage but then my trophy will be his pain.
He thinks he can play with me, can torment me. But in the end he will be in the most pain, more pain than I have ever endured at this school.
Nevertheless, after planning for a couple of minutes, I got back into bed. I missed the warmth he provided but the burning plan in my mind was enough to bring me to a sleeping state.
.
I didn't have a dream after Mattheo left, nothing at all. Or maybe I did but I just can't remember it. When I have dreams I always remember them so maybe not.
Mondays, how I hate mondays, my least favourite day of the week. I didn't feel ill anymore so I wouldn't be able to skip class because of my illness. Why did I have to experience almost death and faint on a perfectly beautiful day?
I plopped out of the bed, still in Mattheo's comfortable clothes. I walked straight to the Slytherin dorms, nervous that Cathy would question what I was wearing and about how I smelt like him. She won't realise, right?
Just as I whispered the password 'bloodpure', I know a stupid password, the door vanished and I entered the common room. Mattheo was sat down reading a book in the corner of the room, alone. It was very early so it made sense. I tried to manoeuvre the common room so that I wouldn't be seen by him. So went another way around the sofas.
"Diggory, what are you doing sneaking about at this hour?" I cursed quietly to myself, and turned around to see the boy, the boy who I was planning to take down. Whom I didn't want to see at the moment, but always seemed to find me. He was holding the book he was reading in his hands, little women, not something I'd ever suspect he would read. But he's full of surprises I suppose.
"I came to prepare for school, I actually got to sleep just fine without you."
"I didn't ask about your sleep, but that's nice to know. It was probably because of the whole swimtop thing. Remember, you called me a genius." He kept trying to rub everything in my face. He placed the book on the side of the sofa and leaned against it.
"I'll be leaving, now." I exclaimed, beginning to walk away. I felt a hand on my wrist, just what I assumed would happen.
"We have an hour till school, are you really just going to go to your dorm to have a control freak Montgomery screaming at you to get your books ready and shit." He bit his lip, leaning further onto the sofa.
"Catherine is not a control freak!"
"You're lying to yourself, be honest."
"Goodbye, Riddle!" I shouted, walking away quicker than before, not wanting to be caught by his arm again. Just as I was about to go up the stairs I saw him opening that diary, that fucking diary. I need to get my hands on it somehow, there has to be so much information in there because he writes in it every second of everyday. I wish it were as simple as borrowing it off him, but it won't be, not with him. This whole plan could take weeks, even months to work, but I'll do it. I'll do it as if my life depends on it.