[CHAPTER 16]

───🦋･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.🦋───

───🦋･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.🦋───

TITLE  : TREADING CAREFULLY

ELLIE DIDN'T SLEEP WELL that night.

Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Mattheo.

Saw the look in his eyes, the way he had stepped back like he needed to put space between them. Like standing too close to her was dangerous.

It left her with a pit in her stomach, a feeling she didn't want to name.

But it wasn't just the tension in the locker room that haunted her.

It was the way she wanted to close that space.

And that—that—was a problem.

Because this was still fake.

Wasn't it?

—

The next morning, Ellie made a decision.

She was going to act normal.

Like nothing had happened.

Like Mattheo wasn't avoiding her, like she wasn't constantly aware of his presence, like her heart didn't speed up whenever he was near.

It was just a weird phase. It would pass.

Right?

—

Breakfast in the Great Hall was the first test.

She arrived late, spotting Mattheo at the Gryffindor table, sitting across from Lorenzo  and the rest of the team.

He looked... normal.

Tired, maybe. A little sore.

But normal.

Ellie inhaled and walked over, sliding onto the bench beside Lorenzo  with an easy smile.

"Morning," she said, reaching for some toast.

"Morning," Lorenzo  replied, grinning. "You missed the part where Riddle nearly fell asleep in his eggs."

Ellie's lips twitched, eyes flicking to Mattheo automatically.

He was watching her.

Not in an obvious way—he still had that same guarded expression, the kind he wore when he was thinking too much—but his eyes lingered just a second too long before he returned his focus to his food.

Ellie pretended not to notice.

"Well, considering he took a Bludger to the ribs and then refused medical attention, I'm not shocked," she said, reaching for the pumpkin juice.

Mattheo's jaw tightened slightly.

Lorenzo  snorted. "That's Riddle for you. Absolute maniac."

"I can hear you, you know," Mattheo muttered.

Ellie raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You can hear us, but you can't hear people telling you to take care of yourself?"

His grip on his fork twitched.

Lorenzo  grinned. "Ooooh, she's got you there, mate."

Ellie smirked.

Mattheo just sighed, shaking his head. "You lot are insufferable."

But there was a flicker of something in his eyes. Something almost... amused.

Ellie relaxed a little. Maybe things weren't completely broken.

Maybe this was fixable.

—

But as the day went on, she realized something else.

Mattheo was trying to act normal, too.

And he was failing.

Not in obvious ways, not in anything someone else might notice—

But she noticed.

She noticed the way he kept fidgeting when they were in the same space.

The way his hand twitched like he wanted to reach for her before stopping himself.

The way he would start to say something and then change his mind.

It was subtle.

But it was there.

And it made Ellie feel... off-balance.

Because Mattheo never hesitated.

Not on the pitch, not in life.

So why was he hesitating now?

—

By the time Quidditch practice rolled around, Ellie had almost convinced herself she was overthinking.

Almost.

But then she watched Mattheo out on the pitch, and everything felt different again.

His movements were sharp, controlled—but there was tension in his shoulders, frustration in the way he barked out orders.

He was distracted.

And Ellie knew why.

Because every time he flew past her, every time their eyes met—

Something shifted.

She wasn't sure who was running from it more.

—

After practice, Mattheo dismissed the team, rubbing his face like he had a headache.

Ellie stayed behind.

She hadn't planned to.

But her feet moved before her brain could stop them.

"Hey," she said, stepping closer.

Mattheo stiffened slightly. "Hey."

A beat of silence.

She studied him, crossing her arms. "Rough practice."

His lips pressed together. "Yeah."

Another beat.

Ellie exhaled. "You're avoiding me."

Mattheo flinched—actually flinched—before shaking his head. "I'm not."

She gave him a look. "Mattheo."

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Ellie watched him carefully. "Look... if this is about the thing, we can just—"

"It's not about that," he said quickly.

Too quickly.

Ellie narrowed her eyes. "Then what?"

Mattheo hesitated.

And that—more than anything—made her stomach twist.

She waited, watching him wrestle with something she couldn't quite see.

Finally, he exhaled, shaking his head.

"...I don't know," he admitted quietly.

Ellie blinked.

That was not what she expected.

She expected some excuse, some brush-off, some deflection.

But this—

This felt real.

And that scared her more than anything.

Because if Mattheo Riddle  didn't know what he was feeling—

Then how was she supposed to figure out what she was feeling?

—

For the first time since this whole thing started, Ellie didn't have an answer.

____

Ellie wasn't sure when things had gotten this complicated.

At first, it was simple—just a fake relationship to make Lorenzo  jealous. No strings, no feelings, just a convenient arrangement.

But now?

Now, everything was a mess.

She and Mattheo weren't fighting. Not exactly. But something had shifted, and neither of them knew how to handle it.

The worst part?

Ellie didn't even want to go back to how things were.

That was the scariest realization of all.

—

The Slytherin common room  was buzzing with energy that evening, but Ellie barely heard any of it. She sat curled up in one of the armchairs, staring into the fire, trying to make sense of everything.

She could feel Mattheo across the room, even without looking.

She hated that she was so aware of him now.

He was sitting with some of the other Quidditch players, listening to them talk, but he wasn't really paying attention. His eyes kept flickering over to her, just like hers kept flickering over to him.

This wasn't normal.

They weren't normal.

And pretending otherwise wasn't working anymore.

—

Later, when the common room had emptied out and the fire was burning low, Ellie finally stood, stretching. She wasn't really tired, but she needed space.

She started toward the girls' dormitory, but a voice stopped her.

"Ellie."

She froze.

Slowly, she turned.

Mattheo was standing by the stairs to the boys' dorm, hands in his pockets, looking at her like he wasn't sure if he should have said her name in the first place.

Ellie exhaled. "Yeah?"

Mattheo hesitated for a second, then walked closer, stopping just a few steps away.

"I—" He ran a hand through his hair, looking frustrated. "I don't know what's happening."

Ellie swallowed. "What do you mean?"

He gave her a look. "You know what I mean."

Her heart was pounding now. "Then say it."

Mattheo clenched his jaw, glancing away before looking back at her. "This... thing between us. It's not the same anymore."

She knew that.

She had known for a while.

But hearing him say it out loud made it real.

Ellie inhaled sharply. "Do you want to stop?"

Mattheo didn't answer right away.

His silence stretched between them, thick and heavy.

And then—so quietly she almost didn't hear—he said,

"...No."

Her breath caught.

Neither of them moved.

The fire crackled softly in the background, casting shadows across Mattheo's face, making his expression impossible to read.

Ellie didn't know what to say.

Because she didn't want to stop either.

But she didn't know what that meant.

Finally, she found her voice. "Then what do we do?"

Mattheo exhaled, his gaze flickering over her face.

And then, softer than before—almost hesitant—he said,

"We stop pretending."

Ellie's stomach flipped.

Because deep down, she knew he was right.

She just wasn't sure if she was ready for what came next.

───🦋･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.🦋───