fluff, pining, hidden feelings, angry love confession
ââââââââ đđđ ââââââââ
Theodore Nott had been your best friend since, well, forever.
Youâd known himâand the rest of your small circleâsince you were old enough to walk across polished floors and mumble polite greetings to people your parents wanted to impress. It came with the territory of being born into a pureblood family, something your parents valued far more than they ever valued you. To them, you werenât a person so much as proof that the family line continued.
At least you hadnât been alone in it. Theo and the others had grown up the same way, taught to sit straight, speak evenly, and never, ever show weakness. Youâd all endured the same lectures, the same expectations, and the same cold kind of love that made you question what warmth was supposed to feel like.Â
But out of that shared misery came something realâhim. Theodore Nott. Your quiet salvation in a world that demanded perfection.
Maybe that was why the sharp ache in your chest, the one that had been festering for days, burned hotter now as you watched him turn away from you, again.
A week. It had been a week of this. Dodged glances, clipped replies, and the kind of silence that felt deliberate. The easy rhythm you once shared had vanished, replaced by distance that felt crueler than any insult. His smiles had gone tight around the edges, his words polite but cold. And every time he slipped away without a word, it was as if the air left the room with him.
You swallowed hard, tightening your grip on your bag as you walked in step with Pansy down the corridor. The echo of your footsteps filled the quiet between you, bouncing off the stone walls.
âPans?â you asked, your voice coming out softer than you meant it to.
She hummed absentmindedly, her hand buried in her bag as she muttered something about a quillâor maybe a notebook.
âHas Teddy said anything about me?â
That got her attention. Pansy glanced up, meeting your eyes just as you both stopped in front of the Slytherin common room entrance. The corridor around you was empty, the torches flickering low, throwing shadows that seemed to stretch with the silence. You crossed your arms over your chest, trying not to look as small as you felt.
âNo,â she said finally, her brow creasing. âWhy?â
You gave a weak shrug. âHe hasnât spoken to me in a week. Itâs not exactly hard to notice that.â
Pansy snorted, shifting her bag higher on her shoulder. âItâs Theo. He gets moody sometimes.â
âNot with me." The words came out before you could stop them, sharper than you intended.
Pansy paused at that, lips pressing together as she studied you. âMaybe heâs mad about Evan.â
âEvan?â Your eyebrows knitted together.
Evan Hawthorn. Ravenclaw Keeper. Same year as you all. The boy youâd been seeing regularly for the last month and a half. It wasnât anything seriousânot reallyâbut it was nice. Easy. Simple.
âWhy would Theo be mad about Evan?â you asked. âThey get along.â
âDo they?â Pansy tilted her head slightly, a knowing smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. Her eyes flicked over you like she was two steps ahead in a game you hadnât realized you were playing.
âYes, they do,â you repeated, firmer this time.
Pansy exhaled then, the tension in her shoulders softening as she looked at you. It was that rare, gentle look she only ever gave in moments like thisâwhen she dropped the sharp comments and actually seemed to care.
âI know the two of you are best friends,â she said carefully, her tone slower now, âbut have you ever, you know⊠thought that it could be more?â
âMore?â you repeated, as if saying the word might somehow make it make sense.
âMore,â she echoed simply, watching you too closely.
You blinkedâonce, twiceâtrying to think of what to say.
Of course youâd thought about it. Not often, and never on purpose, but sometimes the idea slipped through the cracks when you werenât paying attention. It crept in quietly, curling around the edges of your heart when Theo laughed a certain way, or when his shoulder brushed yours and neither of you moved away. It sat in your throat on long nights when it was just the two of you and the rest of the world felt far away.
But you always pushed it down. Because Theodore Nott was your best friend. Nothing more. He couldnât be. If you let it be moreâif you let yourself want moreâyou could lose the only person who had ever felt like home.
You swallowed hard, forcing your voice steady. âTeddy doesnât see me like that, Pansy.â
She huffed, rolling her eyes but not unkindly. âThink what you want,â she said, shifting her bag higher on her shoulder, âbut donât complain when he starts ignoring you. You canât have it both ways.â
Before you could respond, she turned and stepped into the common room, the tall stone door swinging shut behind her with a deep, echoing thud.
ââââââââ đđđ ââââââââ
Not a particularly good oneâor even a fully thought-out oneâbut a plan nonetheless.
Slytherin had Quidditch practice tonight, and you knew it ended at eight. Theo, being captain, always stayed behind after everyone else had gone. Heâd double-check the equipment, tidy up the lockers, sometimes just sit on the benches long after the lights dimmed.
You blew a strand of hair out of your face and marched toward the Quidditch pitch, the chill of the evening air nipping at your cheeks. The sound of your shoes against the gravel path echoed softly, your heart thudding a little faster with each step.
He canât ignore you when heâs cornered, you told yourself.
By the time you reached the locker rooms, most of the lights were already off. The faint scent of wet grass and broom polish hung in the air. Just as you were a few steps away, the final light flicked outâand the door opened.
Theo stepped into view, looking startled to find you there. His hair was damp with sweat, a few strands sticking to his forehead. His uniform was untucked and smeared with dirt, his knees stained from the field.
âWhat are you doing here?â he asked, his voice rough, guarded.
âWe need to talk,â you said firmly, planting your feet. There was no room for argument in your tone.
He blinked, glancing back toward the pitch as if hoping someone would rescue him. âLook, I really donât have timeââ
âThen make time, Teddy!â The words came out louder than you meant, sharp with frustration. âYouâve been ignoring me for days now!â
He scoffed, tossing his towel into his bag. âJust because Iâve been busy doesnât mean you can act like a child.â
That stung. More than you wanted it to.
His eyebrows were drawn together, a crease cutting across his forehead, but the way his nose scrunched gave him away. Youâd known him long enough to recognize when he was lying.
âYou havenât been busy,â you said quietly.
âNo, you havenât!â you interrupted, stepping closer. âTheodore, you have not been busy. Youâve been avoiding me. You barely look at me anymore, and when you do, itâs like youâd rather be anywhere else. I thought I was your best friend. Best friends donât ignore each other and pretend like itâs fine!â
Your voice cracked at the end, the sound echoing faintly in the empty field.
For a moment, neither of you spoke. The air between you felt heavyâfilled with all the words youâd both been avoiding. Theoâs jaw tightened, his hands flexing at his sides, and you could see the conflict flicker across his face.
He wanted to say something. You just didnât know if you were ready to hear it.
Finally, he sighed, running a hand through his already-messy hair. âYou donât get it,â he muttered.
âThen explain it to me,â you shot back. âBecause Iâm trying, Theo. Iâm really trying, but youâre not making it easy.â
Lightning cracked across the skyâloud, angry, splitting the clouds open with a jagged flash.
You felt the first drops of rain hit your cheeks, cold against the heat rising in your face, but you didnât care. Not anymore.
Theo stayed silent. His jaw was tight, eyes fixed anywhere but on you. The sound of rain began to build, tapping harder against the ground, soaking through your robes.
You laughed then, a sharp, bitter sound that didnât feel like you at all. âFine, Theodore. Donât tell me. Donât talk to me. Act like you donât even know me for all I care.â You threw your hands up, the motion half-angry, half-exhausted. âIâm done.â
You turned, determined to walk away, ignoring the chill that ran down your spine as the rain began to pour in earnest. The sky roared overhead, and for a moment, all you could hear was the storm.
âYou think this is easy for me?â
His voice cut through the rain like thunder, raw and loud enough to make you stop.
You turned back slowly, water dripping from your hair, eyes wide. âWhat?â
Theo stepped toward you, his boots splashing through the puddles. His hair clung to his forehead, raindrops catching on his lashes as his chest rose and fell fast. There was a tremor in his voice now, part anger, part desperation.
âYou think I can justâjust sit here and watch you be with him,â he said, his words tripping over each other, âwhile Iâm fucking in love with you?â
The world seemed to stop. The storm, the rain, the trembling in your handsâeverything froze around that one sentence.
You stood there, staring at him, your chest constricting so tightly you could barely breathe. âTeddyâŠâ you managed, voice barely above a whisper.
But he shook his head, water flying from the ends of his hair. âYou think itâs easy?â he demanded, his tone cracking under the weight of it. âWatching you laugh with him, hold his hand, pretend like he gets you? He doesnât. He canât. He doesnât know you the way I do.â
His voice broke on the last word.
âIâve been here,â he said quietly, eyes finally meeting yours, glassy with something more than rain. âFor years. Justâhere. And Iâm so bloody tired of pretending it doesnât hurt.â
The thunder rolled again, softer this time, like the world itself was holding its breath for what came next.
Theo took another step closer, his shoulders tense, rainwater running down the side of his face.
âI tried to stop it,â he went on, voice rough. âMerlin knows I did. You were my best friend. The one person I didnât want to mess things up with. But then youâd smile, or laugh at something stupid, and it was over. Every time, it was over. I kept thinking I could hide it, that it would fade, but it never did. It just got worse.â
You swallowed hard, but he didnât stop.
âI thought if I stayed away, it would help. That maybe Iâd get over it, or at least stop thinking about you all the damn time. But then Iâd see youââ his voice broke again, hands curling at his sides, ââand all I could think about was how it wasnât me making you smile like that.â
âTheoââ you started, but he shook his head, cutting you off.
âI know you donât feel the same. I know that. And I swear, I wasnât going to say anything, I justââ His words were tumbling out now, fast and uneven. âI couldnât keep watching you with him, like Iâm invisible, like none of it matteredâlike we donât matterââ
You didnât let him finish.
Before he could say another word, you stepped forward, closing the space between you and pressed your lips to his.
For a second, everything stilled. The rain, the thunder, the chaos in your chestâall of it fell away.
Theo froze, eyes wide, a small sound caught in his throat. Then he exhaled shakily against your mouth, his hands hovering before finally settling at your waist, as if he was afraid you might disappear if he held too tightly.
When you finally pulled back, both of you were breathing hard, rainwater dripping down your faces.
âThatâs not what you think,â you whispered, voice trembling. âItâs never been easy for me either.â
Theo blinked, staring at you like he wasnât sure if heâd imagined it. His lips parted, but no words came outâjust another breath that sounded half like a laugh, half like disbelief.
He looked at you for a long moment, rain dripping from his lashes. Then he stepped closer, slow and hesitant this time. His hand lifted, fingertips brushing against your jaw, barely thereâlike he still wasnât sure he was allowed.
âTell me to stop,â he said quietly. âAnd I will.â
Instead, you leaned into his touch, eyes closing as the storm around you faded into something softerâsomething almost peaceful.
For the first time in weeks, maybe years, the silence between you didnât feel heavy. It felt like relief.