Matilda Matlock

With Him

DISCLAIMER: mature content

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At dinner that evening, Matilda seemed to be having trouble keeping her eyes on her plate.

She sat directly across from Harry, absent-mindedly poking the chicken on her plate with a fork while half-listening to Fred and George telling a story about a kid who threw a tantrum in their joke shop weeks earlier.

She couldn't keep her eyes off of him.

After what happened on that hilltop, after hearing what he said about her, after listening to him say how he was madly in love with her and after kissing him for what she wished was forever, it was like he was sitting before her in a whole new light.

She loved the way his deep brown hair was just a bit shaggy, draping over his forehead. She loved how his smile lit up the room when laughing at someone's joke at the table. She loved how he pushed his glasses up higher on the bridge of his nose and she loved how he was trying to not make eye contact with her across from him, instead, adorably poking the diced potatoes on his plate around while his lips strained against an addictive smile.

He couldn't seem to stop smiling. And neither could she.

"So, Matilda," George suddenly said. "How's Quidditch going for you?"

Matilda perked her head up at the sound of her name, clearing her throat awkwardly and nodding while replying with, "oh, it's... it's really good. I love it."

"I still can't believe we both got on our house teams last year," Ginny piped up, smiling. "What luck."

"Yeah, especially with Umbridge around," Ron added.

"We do not speak of that wretched toad's name," Fred said.

They all shared a laugh, Matilda grinning as she popped a piece of chicken in her mouth.

"Well, you were guaranteed to get in this year again," George said. "Playing last term and all..."

"Hey, we're good, too!" Ginny said. "We crushed tryouts, didn't we, Tillie?"

"I suppose..." Matilda said, smiling at her plate while recalling the Hufflepuff tryouts.

"Totally crushed them," Harry said.

"We're in different houses!" Matilda laughed at him.

"I know," he said. "But I know you did anyways."

She watched the boy smiling brightly at her, making her unable to hide a small grin as well. Her cheeks were a bit pink as they shared a look, but they quickly looked down after a moment as Ginny began talking about the next match between Slytherin and Ravenclaw in February.

Matilda couldn't focus on the discussion though when all she could think about was kissing the boy who was sitting across from her again.

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That night, Matilda was the last one getting ready for bed, almost everyone else sleeping at that point. She had been reading a book to get her mind off of things, the privilege of sleeping in Bill Weasley's old bedroom making her quite happy to still be awake in the privacy of her own room.

She was in her flannel pajama pants already and a loose, baggy tee shirt when she was brushing her teeth quietly by the sink in the bathroom. The house was silent around her, the only sounds being the distant snores of various Weasley family members, making for a peaceful setting during the late night.