Like Real People Do
Mattheo Riddle x fem!reader
Summary: You and Mattheo have been best friends for as long as you can remember, and these feelings may no longer be platonic. But when someone else also realizes this, he will make decisions in a jealous rage that will forever change the dynamics you’ve known for ages.
- Ok so Ik I should be writing Theo’s portion of Promises Are Meant to be Broken but I’ve been randomly consumed with a Mattheo obsession and I NEED to write this, so please enjoy :)
~~~
“Hey Matty, can you pass the pumpkin juice please?” You asked the boy who was sitting across from you at the breakfast table, using the nickname he reserved solely for you.
“Of course, princess.” He responded, grabbing the bottle and serving it in your cup for you. You smiled at each other as he did so, appreciating how caring he always was of you.
“Does anybody know Snape’s middle name?” Enzo asked, piquing your interest.
“Um, why?” Theo responded, looking up from his plate for the first time since he sat down. He had attempted to make conversation with you, but you had been enthralled in a story Mattheo was telling and hadn’t noticed.
“No reason, just need it for something.” Enzo said, extremely suspiciously, causing the group to laugh.
“Ugh, I have to go. Flitwick needs me in class early today.” You said, looking down at your watch and remembering what the teacher had told you the day before.
“I still have no idea why you’re taking that class.” Pansy said, referring to the 7th year Charms class you were taking, regardless of being a 5th year.
“Because I’m advanced.” You said, smugly, causing her to stick her to tongue out at you.
“I’ll walk you!” Theo said, practically jumping from his seat before trying to recover and feign indifference.
“Thanks, Theo.” You said with a smile, packing up your stuff.
“See you lot later. And you owe me an ice cream!” You said, the last part specifically for Mattheo who had told you he would buy you ice cream if you helped him practice a new trick for Quidditch. He doesn’t know you would have done it even if there was no incentive, and you don’t know he asked you just so he could show off (he had already mastered the skill).
“It’s a date!” He called out as you walked away with Theo, causing you to giggle.
As you walked out of the Great Hall, you and Theo spoke of the Ravenclaw party this weekend, taking the usual path you two took every time you had Advanced Charms, since his class was right next to yours.
“So, how are you liking ghoul studies? Mattheo and I loved it when we took it last year.” You stated, changing the topic.
Theo’s jaw clenched. “It’s good, pretty interesting.” He said, hoping you hadn’t noticed.
“Oh that’s great! I was really hoping you’d say that because I’d have felt to bad if I forced you into a class you didn’t like.” You said sweetly, not picking up on his micro aggression.
“There’s never anything you could pick that I wouldn’t like.” Theo said, smiling down at you.
“That’s cause I’m an Angel.” You joked, as you separated from him to enter your room.
He smiled to himself as he watched you enter the room, meeting with a group of Hufflepuff girls. You were his Angel, despite his Atheistic beliefs.
~~~
As the school day finally came to a close, you were happy to finally be able to go to the common room and settle down with your friends. As you turned the corner, you heard Mattheo’s voice and immediately smiled, you had missed him throughout the day since your schedules barely aligned today. Except, your smile dropped as you heard a girl giggle at his words. You sneakily looked around the corner, and saw him talking to a Ravenclaw girl, looking all too cozy. She was pressed against the wall, and he was standing in front of her, his arm on the wall adjacent to the one she was leaning on. You grimaced, and you felt your stomach drop. How does he even know her? You asked yourself, wondering if he had told her a joke he had once told you to make her laugh. You forced yourself to detach from the wall, and took a different way to reach your common room.
Your feelings for Mattheo had grown even stronger in the past few months, but you were doing everything you could to push them away and pretend like they didn’t exist. Except, it was getting increasingly difficult to forget them since practically every girl at Hogwarts was throwing herself at him.
“Hey, I saved you this sugar quill.” Theo said, as you made you way to the couch your friend group had conquered in the Slytherin common room.
“Thanks, Theo.” You said smiling, taking it out of his hands and then rummaging through the giant candy pile on the coffee table to find a licorice wand.
You said down next to him on the couch, as you unwrapped the red candy. You couldn’t help but acknowledge that Mattheo would have saved you a blue one, knowing it was your favorite flavor.
“Can you help me on this.” Pansy asked, kneeling beside you, her head in her hands as she started down at her Divinations homework.
“Of course, but Draco you have to help me with my potions after.” You said, giving him a pointed look.
“Anything for the Slytherin princess.” He said, referring to you by the nickname the boys had given you due to your popularity among the boys at Hogwarts. You made a face at him because he knew you disliked the nickname (only slightly, but you had to at least pretend to be humble).
After a few hours, the candy on the table was mostly gone, and you were sprawled out on the couch, your head on Pansy’s lap and she braided your hair, engaging in the boys conversation about a fight that had happened recently.
“How rude to not have saved me any good candy.” Mattheo said, walking up to the couch, his satchel hanging loosely from his shoulder.
“Look who finally decided to show up.” You said, looking up at him.
“Happy to see me doll?” He asked, smirking down at you.
“Just surprised is all. You seemed pretty cosy with that Ravenclaw girl earlier.” You said, bitterly.
“You’re spying on me now?” He said, hoping you weren’t truly upset at him.
“Nope, you were just standing in the middle of the hallway.” You said, rolling your eyes.
“Well you looked pretty cosy with Dean Thomas earlier.” He said defensively, the jealousy he had felt earlier rising again.
“We’re partners for a project!” You said, exasperated.
“Oh yeah? What’s the topic? Human Anatomy?” He said, sassily.
“Merlin you’re so immature.” You said, sitting up from your position.
“I’m going to bed.” You stated, before anyone could say anything else, and you quickly collected your belongings.
“Fine.” Mattheo said, looking down at you.
“Fine.” You repeated, looking at him before turning away and heading towards your dorm.
“God, you two are pathetic.” Draco said, once you had walked up the stairs.
“Pathetic? What the fuck are you talking about?” Mattheo said, angry with himself for letting his jealously take over, and for having given you the illusion that he was interested in any other girls.
“Nothing mate, just forget it. You have to see it on your own.” Draco said, looking back down at his essay.
Theo, who had been selfishly smiling due to the argument between you two, looked down at his hands, trying to figure out what Draco meant by his statement. Do they see it too? Is it really possible that you actually liked Mattheo? He thought to himself, brows furrowing in worry, a frown now taking over his smile.
“Whatever, I’m going to bed.” Mattheo said, his worry that he had pushed you away consuming him. He wished for nothing more than to be yours, only yours, but his fear of rejection and pushing you away from him kept him from doing anything about the matter. He sulked up to his room, wondering if he would ever be man enough to at least try.
~~~
As you walked into the Great Hall for breakfast the next morning, you felt a hand on your forearm, and you were pulled away from Pansy. You yelped at the sudden movement, but relaxed when you saw that the hand belonged to Mattheo. You hardened again when you remembered you were mad at him.
“Y/n, please don’t be mad at me. I’m so sorry for getting angry at you yesterday, it was completely undeserved.” Mattheo said, as held you outside of the bustling dining room. His eyes pleading, filled with remorse.
“Do you like her?” Not being able to stop yourself from asking the question that had been eating at you.
“No, no it wasn’t like that I swear!” He stated, hoping to get rid of any uncertainty you may have held. “She was asking me about Enzo. We have a class together and I guess she thought I was the best inside source she could get.” He said, smiling down at you as he realized that you were no longer angry at him due to the way yours eyes lightened and the way your lips were curling up into a small smile.
“Well tell her that she can just as a girl next time.” You said, playfully rolling your eyes.
“Why, are you jealous?” He said, a cocky smirk spreading over his face.
“Absolutely not! Just looking out for her because you would probably enjoy ruining her chances with Enzo.” You said, cheeks turning red at almost being caught. He continued to smile at you, obsessed with the playful look you wore on your face whenever you rambled on about something.
“Skip class with me.” He said suddenly, clearly not much thought being put into the careless action. “Let’s go do something, just us two. No Ravenclaws and certainly no Dean Thomas, because I’ll beat the shit out of him if he ever even looks at you again.”
“You’ve got yourself a deal pretty boy.” You said, laughing and shaking your heads at his last comment. He blushed at the nickname and put his arm around your waist as he led you down the hallway. An entire interaction that didn’t evade Theo’s notice.
~~~
Saturday have finally rolled around after what felt like an eternity. You entered the bustling Ravenclaw common room with Pansy, flashing blue lights and booming music engulfing you. Your short black skirt and corset top hugged your figure perfectly, making you feel confident and bold. You reached the bar alone, Pansy having gone off to find whoever was the “love of her life” at the moment, and you waited for whatever 3rd year they had working to mix your drink.
“There’s my pretty lady.” Mattheo said as he came up to you, hugging you from behind and just barely kissing your temple.
“How’s the party so far?” You asked, craning your neck to look up at him.
“Much better now that your here.” He said, clearly already intoxicated.
“You’re drunk.” You said, playfully rolling your eyes. Your heart felt a little heavier because you wish he could say these words to you while sober.
“Not enough.” He joked, as he reached for the drink the 3rd year was handing some Hufflepuff. He was about to complain, but Mattheo shot him a glare that sent shivers down your own spine, causing the boy to spin around as fast as his heels would let him, leaving without anything to drink.
“Follow me, Angel.” Mattheo said as he grabbed your drink and after your hand to lead you through the crowd.
“Do you even know my name?” You joked due to his excessive use of pet names.
“Uh, Cornelius right?” His response left you giggle behind him as your reached your friends, all standing around near the dance floor.
“There’s my principessa!” Theo said excitedly, hugging you out of Mattheo’s grip.
“You lot are so exclusive! Why don’t you mingle with some other people?” You say to the group, as Theo’s arm find its way around your shoulders. You can almost swear you saw Mattheo’s jaw clench.
“And risk talking to a mud blood? No thank you.” Draco said.
“God you are so annoying.” You said, shaking your head at him. He simply shrugged as he smiled and returned to his conversation with Blaise.
“I’m gonna go find more fire whiskey.” Enzo called over the loud music, detaching himself from the group.
“Come dance with me.” Mattheo said, leaning down to talk in your ear.
“Lead the way.” You replied, smiling as you detached yourself from Theo and took Mattheo’s hand.
“We’ll be right back.” You called out to Theo, who looked at you two with a mix of contempt and sorrow.
As you finally reached the crowded dance floor, Mattheo took your arms and placed them loosely around his shoulders, grabbing your waist and swaying you to the music.
“You look really pretty tonight.” Matt said, smiling down at you.
“As opposed to every other day?” You said, a playful smile on your lips.
“You’re impossible.” He said, lightly laughing.
“Thank you. You look very handsome as well.” You said, your stomach flipping around.
Mattheo and you continued to dance and talk, enjoying each others company. Your emotions were high due to the mix of alcohol, movement, and Mattheo’s arms around your body, putting you into a euphoric state. The blur of the seductive music leaving you yearning for nothing more than his lips. As the music progressed, Mattheo spun you around, your back now to his front, and your arms holding him by his neck, tugging his hair with your fingers. His breath was hot and heavy in your ear, your hips grinding together to the beat of the music causing your own breath to hitch.
As much as you wanted to allow yourself to get lost in the moment, you felt a pair of eyes burning on you, causing an uncomfortable feeling to rise in your stomach.
“You ok?” Mattheo asked, his voice husky and low.
Before you could even respond, you felt a pair of strong hands ripping you from Mattheo, dizzying you and causing you to fall onto the ground. Disoriented, you struggled to realize the sight in front of you.
Theo had punched Mattheo square on the jaw, his head spinning back and losing his balance. Theo was relentless as he took the opportunity to mount his body and throw continuous punches. Mattheo attempted to fight back but the surprise of his best mates attack mixed with his physical and mental impairments caused by the alcohol and weed prevented him from protecting himself as well as he would’ve on a regular day.
“Get off of him!” You yelled as you finally realized the situation, a ring already forming around the boys.
“Stop, stop!” Enzo said to you as he grabbed you as you attempted to run towards the boys, holding you back.
“He’s killing him! Get the fuck off of him!” You yelled, attempting to break free from Enzo’s strong arms, which proved to be impossible after only a few seconds.
“Mate get off him!” Blaise yelled over the music, as he and Draco attempted to pull Theo off of Mattheo.
Mattheo had managed to throw some good punches despite his condition, Theo’s bloody nose dripping down his neck, his now black eye quickly swelling shut.
“What the fuck is your problem?!” Draco asked astonished, grabbing onto Theo with the help of a few other guys.
It took half of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team + Blaise and Draco to finally rip Theo from Mattheo’s bloody body, grabbing him and throwing him onto a nearby couch.
You ran to Mattheo’s body as soon as Enzo loosened his grip, blood masking his precious features.
“Matty, can you hear me?” You asked, tears welling in your eyes at the sight, your hand lightly running through his hair.
No response.
“Mattheo?!” You asked louder this time, shaking him.
No response.
“Enzo help me! He’s not answering!” You said frantically, he rushed to your side and shook Mattheo, attempting to get his attention.
“Help me lift him.” He said to you, before looking over at you and seeing your tragic state.
“Draco, get over here!” He yelled, never taking his eyes off of you. Did you actually love him? He thought to himself, always just thinking your flirty nature was a joke.
“Grab his arm.” Draco said as he made it over, pulling Enzo out of his thoughts.
The boys grunted as they lifted Mattheo’s body, blood pouring down his face as they straightened him up.
“We have to get him to the Hospital wing.” You said hysterically, your heart pumping to loudly you could no longer hear the boisterous music.
Everyone around staring in disbelief, whispers and gasps filling the room.
Blaise rushed over once he was done with Theo, grabbing Mattheo’s legs and helping the boys carry him out of the party, rushing to the hospital wing.
“He’s alive right?” You asked, worry consuming your entire body.
“This is Mattheo we’re talking about, it’s gonna take a lot more than a few punches to get him.” Enzo said, reassuring you.
After a few minutes of rushing around the castle, you finally reached the Hospital Wing, pushing the big doors open and calling for Madame Pomphrey.
She came around the corner upon hearing your voice, rushing towards the group at the sight of Mattheo’s body.
“Is he conscious?” She asked immediately, leading the boys to a bed.
“No.” Enzo responded as they laid Mattheo down onto the bed Madame Pomphrey had assigned.
“Alright, thank you for bringing me the boy, but I need you out. I’ll send for you when he’s awake.” She said, immediately pouring some liquid onto a rag and dabbing it on Mattheo’s broken face.
You began to protest, but Enzo dragged you away, leaving the room and shutting the door.
“He’ll be fine. We need to let her do her job.” Draco said as he noticed you about to complain again.
You whimpered at the thought, burying your face in Enzo’s chest, who held you tightly.
“He’s going to be fine, I promise.” He said, rubbing your hair.
Suddenly, you heard someone clear their throat, causing you to break free from Enzo’s chest to see who the noise belonged to.
Theodore.
“You! You foul coward! What the fuck is your problem attacking him like that?! You almost killed your best friend!” You yelled, tears spilling from your eyes as you lunged towards Theo.
“Y/n please, just hear me out.” He said desperately.
“What is there to hear? I can barley even look at you right now I’m so disgusted!” You yelled, fighting every urge to slap him across the face.
“Y/n please, I’m sorry! I just-“
“You just what? You just fucking what?” You yelled again, the boys behind you watching the scene unfold with awe.
“I never meant to hurt him, I just couldn’t stop.” His voice was seeping with desperation, his eyes filled with anguish.
“I actually can’t even look at you.” You said at his stupid claim.
“Y/n you wouldn’t understand but I had to! I couldn’t watch any longer I was just consumed with rage, I barely even realized what I was doing!” He rushed out, attempting to explain a hopeless claim.
“You’re fucking crazy.” You spit at him, the image of Mattheo’s body getting bloodier and bloodier cycling around in your head.
“Y/n I’m in love with you! And seeing him hold you like that, I don’t know what took over me but I just couldn’t contain it!” He exclaimed, his hands in his hair.
Suddenly everything stopped, your head spun so fast you were sure it was going to fall off your neck. The boys behind you had their jaws on the floor and Theo held his breath. After what felt like centuries, you let out a breath.
“I need you to get the fuck out of my sight right now.” Was all you said as your rage began to eat at you.
“Y/n please don’t, just talk to me!” He begged.
After you didn’t respond he pleaded again.
“Mate, I think it’s best you leave.” Enzo said, as he made his way over to Theo.
“No I’m not fucking leaving! We’re in the middle of a conversation!”
“She’s made it painfully clear that she wants nothing to do with you.” Enzo said, grabbing Theo’s arm and pulling him away, disappearing down the hall.
Draco and Blaise squeezed your shoulder reassuringly before following in Enzo and Theo’s path.
You suddenly felt so dizzy and walked over to the infirmary’s door, letting your body slide down until your knees were to your chin.
You held your shins as you sobbed, your brain struggling to find solace.
Mattheo was in the hospital wing and you had no idea if he would recover or not, and you couldn’t even recognize Theo anymore. What the fuck was happening?
—-
After what was probably hours, the doors opened, Madame Pomphrey kindly informing you that Mattheo was now awake.
You took a deep breath, afraid of what you might see, and followed her inside. After she reminded you of the bed where he lay, she walked towards the back, giving you two privacy.
You slowly walked up the bed, hesitantly opening the curtain to see the boy.
“Hey princess.” Mattheo said groggily, his face covered in bandages and bruises
“Oh my god.” You said, your hands flinging to cover your mouth as tears sprung back into your eyes.
“Hey, hey it’s ok. You should see the other guy.” He said reassuring you, smiling lightly at his joke.
You laughed through your tears, sitting down at the little stool next to his bed.
“Does it hurt?” You asked, holding onto his hand.
“Not one bit.” You knew he was lying because of the way he grimaced every time he even slightly moved, but you appreciated the sentiment.
“Merlin I can’t believe this is happening. I’m so sorry.” You said, your heart cracking at the sight of him.
“It’s not your fault y/n. And I’m gonna be just fine, Nurse said so herself.” He said, his own heart breaking seeing you so upset.
“I just wish there was something I could do to help.”
“You could kiss me better.” His signature smirk plastered on his face.
“Oh yeah? Where does it hurt?” You asked, smiling at his antics.
“Right here.” He said, pointing just above his right eyebrow with his left hand.
You leaned down and lightly kissed his cut, a sound of pleasure releasing for Mattheo at the touch.
“Here.” He said, now pointing to his nose.
You leaned down and kissed him again, lightly at risk that you might hurt him.
“Here.” He said, now pointing to his cheekbone. You repeated your earlier steps.
“And here.” He said, his finger now coming up to his lips.
Your eyes widened once you realized what he meant, your heart growing in size at his miniature confession.
You slowly leaned down, until your lips were hovering just above his.
“Are you sure it hurts here?” You joked.
“More than anything else.” He responded, before leaning up and finally meeting his lips with yours.
The kiss was romantic and sweet, yet a deep hunger was slowly taking control.
His hands reached up to your hair, yours going to cup his cheeks.
His tongue tickled your bottom lip, slowly entering as he explored your mouth. You moaned at the sensation, your hands running through his hair.
“Please don’t make that noise or I won’t be able to control myself.” He said, as he slowly pulled away, a lovesick expression painted all over his face.
“Maybe that’s been my plan all along.” You joked, kissing his temple.
“Remind me to never let you plan anything again, it took too long for my liking.” He smiled, looking up at your big (color) eyes.
“Noted.” You said, before you kissed him again, all your worries disappearing as you lost yourself in his being.
