Unexpected Love

Chapter 1:

Potions class was especially boring today. Even the Slytherins seemed to sulk in the door and slump down on their seats. No pranks, no explosions in the cauldrons, no silly spells. It was... quiet. Then he walked in. He strolls gleefully in with a huge smirk. He slides in the seat next to me and looks intently at Professor Snape's cauldron. I look at him and see the anticipation. I stare at Snape's desk, bracing myself for what's about to happen. Snape puts a splash of leech juice into the cast iron pot. The mixture sends a bright purple smoke into the air and foams over the edges of the cauldron. Just as an absolutely furious expression moves across Snape's face, purple liquid blows into his face and all over the wall behind him. Shrieks from Gryffindors echo through the stone walls and out into the hallway. Mattheo Riddle hides his face in his elbow, obviously hiding his unbearable laugh. Snape dismisses the class, but not without swearing to find the culprit of the cauldron firework. 

I get back to the Gryffindor common room and throw my books down on the table next to Hermione and Ron. 

"How was Potions?" Hermione asks, not lifting her head from the large book in her lap.

"It was dismissed early," I respond.

"Again?" Ron says, moving the live chess pieces on the Wizard's Chess board. 

"Riddle made Snape's cauldron explode," I explain. 

"Slytherin's always have the best pranks," George Weasley chimes in. Him and Fred look intently at a flimsy piece of paper that looks as if it's been folded 100 times. My phone dings and I realize Mattheo Riddle is blowing up my phone, asking if I'd help him with Potions work. If he actually paid attention, he might learn a thing or two to pass the class. I accept his offer to tutor him and gather my books up off the table. I make my way to the dark corridor the Slytherin common room door lies in. Mattheo meets me outside to let me in. A stone snake moves along the wall and reveals the door. I step inside and Mattheo takes me to his dorm. We study for about an hour and a half, until Mattheo finally speaks. 

"I'm going to Hogsmeade later," He mutters.

"That's great," I say, sarcastically.

"You're coming, right?" He says. My head shoots right up at him.

"Uh, no," I say, immediately. My phone buzzes on the table.

"It'll be fun," He says, smirking at me. Another buzz.

"I said no," I respond firmly. A third buzz vibrates the desk under my books. Mattheo takes another 15 minutes trying to persuade me to go to town with him.

"I'll buy you candy from Honeydukes," He offers, waving an imaginary candy bar in the air.

"Fine," I say, "If I say yes, will you shut up?" I slam my book closed, and my phone vibrates once more. I grab my phone and realize Harry has been trying to reach me. "I have to go," I say, quickly packing up my books. Mattheo watches me, still smirked, with a toothpick sticking out the side of his mouth. He doesn't say a word before the door closes loudly behind me. I scurry out of the common room before my brother has the chance to come in and embarrass me. He stands in the hallway, hands crossed, and tapping his foot on the stone floor, as if he was in a cartoon. He gestures for me to the stairs and follows silently behind me. We get to the common room and I immediately go to my dorm to get ready. I obviously didn't tell Harry where I would be going later, and especially didn't tell him with whom. 

Mattheo meets me outside the castle- to ensure nobody sees us leaving together. He has a giddy expression on his stupid face. 

"I didn't think you'd come," he says.

"Trust me, I'm only going for the chocolate frogs," I respond. We get to Hogsmeade and enter the bookstore. Mattheo explains he needs some books for Potions. "Which ones do you need?" I ask, running my hand along the alchemy section.

"All of them," He mutters. I give him a sharp, shocked look, as if he just told me my dog died. I ask him if he's kidding and he assures me he's not. The books Sharp selects for 7th year Potions is basically the entire advanced alchemy section of this small bookstore. I stack books onto Mattheo's arms until I can no longer see the top of his head. It's better that way. He pays for his books and we make our way to Honeydukes. We step into the colorful, chocolate-scented shop and I look to Mattheo. He makes a gagging noise and points his finger in his mouth. I roll my eyes and leave him at the door. I pick out a few different candies and Mattheo pays for them at the register. I stuff my face with chocolate frogs as we make our way back to the castle. Mattheo cast a spell on his books to make them float behind him. 

"So, you can do levitation-follow spells, but you're failing your classes," I say. Mattheo looks at me and shrugs. "Why?" I ask.

"There's many more interesting things to do than learn potions I already know how to make," He says.

"If you already know them, it shouldn't be so hard to just do it," I say. 

"What's the point?" He responds.

"To graduate from Hogwarts?" I say. He shakes his head, then takes a cigarette out to light it. The smoke goes right behind him, and dissipates before it hits the floating book stack. 

"I don't care for Hogwarts," He begins, "Or becoming a member of the ministry, or an auror, or anything," He flicks the cigarette ash onto the dirt path. 

"Then what do you want?" I ask.

"I want to see the muggle-world," He says. I look at him, his stupid face no longer looks so- stupid. 

"That's all?" I say. I grew up in the muggle-world. It's much less astonishing than Hogwarts is. "That's easy," I say.

"I've never been," He  begins, "My father always said muggles were never to be trusted, and there's no point in even partaking in their ordinary lifestyle,"

"Although Hogwarts is beautiful and fascinating, the muggle-world has much to offer," I respond. "You'd benefit from visiting," We get back to the castle and split ways before entering the large doors. Harry waits for me in the common room, infuriated that I've been gone so long. He demands to know where I've been. I ignore him and go straight to my dorm.

That night, I lie awake in my bed, thinking about Mattheo. The silver moonlight shines in through my large windows. You'd never think a Riddle boy would want to see something as average as the muggle-world. Could Mattheo have a deeper side that nobody else can see?