[CHAPTER 25]

───🦋･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.🦋───

───🦋･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.🦋───

TITLE   : BREAKING POINT

THE AIR WAS CRISP as Mattheo stepped onto the Quidditch pitch. It was empty, just the way it always was in the late hours of the evening.

The sky was a murky blue, the sun having dipped behind the trees, leaving only a faint golden glow across the horizon.

And there she was.

Ellie.

She wasn't flying. She wasn't practicing. She was just walking, arms crossed over her chest, her posture stiff.

Mattheo hesitated. His stomach was twisting uncomfortably, his hands clammy despite the cold.

This was it.

This was his chance to make things right.

Taking a deep breath, he forced his legs to move forward, closing the distance between them.

"Ellie," he called.

She didn't stop. Didn't even glance at him.

Mattheo swallowed and tried again. "Ellie, please."

Still, nothing.

His chest tightened. He had expected this. He deserved this. But it still stung like hell.

"I'm sorry."

That made her stop.

It was just for a fraction of a second, but he saw it. The way her shoulders tensed, the way her head tilted ever so slightly as if she was registering his words.

And then she scoffed.

Not just a quiet, disbelieving scoff—but one laced with anger, frustration, and pain.

She shook her head and started walking again.

Mattheo exhaled sharply.

No. He couldn't let her just walk away.

Not this time.

In a few quick strides, he reached her and grabbed her wrist, stopping her in her tracks.

"Ellie, please," he said firmly. "Just—just hear me out."

Her body went rigid under his touch.

"Let go," she said, her voice dangerously low.

"Not until you listen to me."

She tried to yank her arm free, but he didn't budge.

"Mattheo," she warned, her voice trembling slightly, "I'm not in the mood for this."

"I know," he said. "And I don't blame you. But I need you to listen."

She struggled again, trying to wriggle out of his grasp.

He still didn't let go.

And then, she did.

She raised her free hand and slapped him.

Hard.

The sharp sound echoed through the empty pitch, and Mattheo stumbled back a step, his cheek stinging from the impact.

His grip on her loosened instantly.

Ellie took a shaky breath, her chest rising and falling unevenly, and then—her dam broke.

Not into tears.

Not into sobs.

But into pure, unfiltered frustration.

"You don't get to do this, Mattheo!" she snapped, her voice raw with emotion. "You don't get to waltz in and act like you suddenly care!"

Mattheo didn't say anything. He just stood there, his face burning—not just from the slap, but from the weight of her words.

"I spent weeks—weeks wondering what the hell I did wrong!" Ellie continued, her hands clenched into fists. "I thought I messed up! I thought I had ruined everything! And you just—you just ignored me!"

Mattheo swallowed, his jaw tightening. "I thought—"

"You thought what?" she cut him off, her voice rising. "That if you ignored me long enough, I'd just disappear? That everything would go back to normal?"

He clenched his fists at his sides. "Yes!" he admitted, his voice just as loud as hers. "Because I didn't know what else to do!"

Ellie let out a bitter laugh. "So instead of talking to me, you just shut me out? You made me feel like I meant nothing to you? That's how you handle things?"

Mattheo inhaled sharply, but before he could answer, she continued.

"I trusted you, Mattheo!" she said, her voice shaking now. "I trusted you more than anyone! I told you things I've never told anyone! And you—" Her voice cracked. "You threw it all away like it didn't even matter."

"That's not true," he said immediately.

Ellie scoffed. "Isn't it?"

Mattheo shook his head. "No. I never wanted to hurt you. I swear, Ellie, I never wanted that."

"Well, you did," she shot back. "You did hurt me, Mattheo. You tore me apart, and the worst part is—I let you, you treated me like a piece of shit, you acted like you hated me, Merlin knows how many nights I cried myself to sleep. You ignored me for days, weeks, months, I kept thinking what did I do wrong, I blamed myself for everything.."

He exhaled, raking a hand through his hair. "Ellie—"

"No," she cut him off, her voice suddenly quieter but no less intense. "You don't get to apologize and expect everything to be okay. Because it's not okay, Mattheo. And I don't know if it ever will be."

Her words hit him harder than the slap.

His chest felt like it was caving in, like something was squeezing the air out of him.

Because this wasn't just anger.

This was hurt.

And it was all because of him.

Ellie let out a shaky breath, her eyes locked onto his.

"I don't even know who you are anymore," she whispered.

And with that, she turned around and walked away, leaving Mattheo standing there, feeling like the biggest idiot on the planet.

And for the first time, he wasn't sure if he could fix this.

───🦋･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.🦋───

Mattheo stood there long after Ellie had disappeared from sight.

The cold evening air did nothing to cool the fire burning in his chest. His cheek still stung from her slap, but nothing compared to the ache in his heart.

Her words echoed in his head.

"I don't even know who you are anymore."

Merlin, had he really ruined everything?

For weeks, he had convinced himself that avoiding her was the right thing to do. That pretending nothing had happened was the only way to keep himself from falling any deeper.

But now?

Now, he saw the wreckage he had left behind.

Ellie wasn't just angry. She was hurt. So badly hurt.And it was because of him.

He ran a hand over his face, exhaling shakily. He didn't even know where to begin fixing this.

Would she even let him?

He wasn't sure.

But for the first time since this entire mess started, he knew one thing for certain—he couldn't ignore it anymore.

───🦋･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.🦋───

Ellie barely made it through breakfast.

She was exhausted. Her confrontation with Mattheo had drained every ounce of energy she had left.

She had tossed and turned all night, replaying the scene over and over in her head. The way he had grabbed her wrist, the way he had refused to let her walk away, the way his stupid, regretful eyes had looked at her like she was slipping through his fingers.

She hated it.

She hated that she still cared.

But that didn't mean she was ready to forgive him.

So, she did what she knew best. She avoided him.

She left the Great Hall before he could arrive, walking swiftly past her friends as they called after her.

She skipped her usual seat in the common room, opting for an empty corner in the library instead.

If Mattheo wanted to talk again, he would have to find her.

And she wasn't going to make it easy.

───🦋･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.🦋───