Hogwarts: a school of Witchcraft and Love (Tom Marvolo Riddle x F!reader)

Chapter 3-07

Your Nimbus 2000 was really proving its worth, humming between your legs, shooting you higher and higher and leaving the rest of the players far behind. It was like riding a lightning bolt, the ground below you shrinking away to nothing in no time whatsoever.

Training under a new team captain took getting used to, but hey, you managed.
You had the skills, and now, the broom power to back it up. Money couldn't buy happiness, but it sure could buy you speed. You were the fastest person on the team now-it wasn't even close.

After completing the drill, you panned your head, noticing Will by the bleachers with his hands jammed in his pockets. Ah, Will, your partner in crime. It had been a while. You hadn't really spoken since he went to Hogsmeade with the other third years. You frowned slightly as you recalled how it had felt like being left out due to your lack of parental permission. That was also the evening where he actively avoided being with you.

You didn't want to jump to conclusions, but there were the nagging worries at the back of your mind. What if it had something to do with Tom? What if your friendship was at stake? You wanted a resolution. To talk things out without feeling like you needed to apologize for something.

Bathing in the afterglow of a successful Quidditch practice, your well-deserved bath would have to wait.

"Hold up." Will intercepted you with an outstretched arm.

You sideglanced him and the few feet that separated you, creating a mini wall of awkwardness. The words of getting a talk going were locked inside of him, not knowing of how to find their way out. You decided to take the lead by asking how it was.

"How was Hogsmeade?" You gave him a curious and open look, hoping to coax him out of his shell.

"It was... Okay." He mumbled vaguely, a lot more subdued than you. Worry creased his brow—not that you could see it with his light brown hair covering them. He stared at you for a few more seconds before looking at the main gates. "I'm sorry for lunch. I just didn't want to be with... Him."

You pulled your lips into a half-smile at his honesty, liking the genuine glimpse into his thoughts. Somewhere you still hoped that his distant behavior didn't have anything to do with your other friend, but you guessed you were wrong. It hurt to see them at odds with each other, and it hurt even more to hear him directly admit that he intentionally evaded you. "I understand you don't wanna come near him, but... He's my friend too."

Crush. Let's call it what it really was—a massive crush.

Will studied you. "I know... And I don't wanna come between you two, but I don't wanna see you get hurt."

"Hurt?" Your face scrunched up as you tried to understand what he meant. "Why do you think he'd hurt me?" Tom would never do that.

"Remember what we talked about on the first day of school? What if he had something to do with it?" Will's accusation made your heart plummet, sinking into the depths of uncertainty. His argument made sense but you didn't want to believe that Tom would hurt you. On the flip side, Avery and Lestrade were not people who would blindly follow just about anyone. They had strong personalities of their own.

"We don't even know what they were after," you reminded him, pushing those thoughts away. You couldn't see Tom in that light. "Can we talk about something else?"

Will sighed, as if giving up. He had more to say, about what happened when he had five sentence chat with Riddle, but you didn't want to talk and he respected that. Then, as if a forgotten thought came back to him, his face lit up. "Halloween!"

The name of the upcoming holiday wiped away the soberness instantly. Halloween at Hogwarts was always a blast! The magical ambiance and the spooky surprises always made it a night to remember.