Tom Riddle - Downfall

Chapter 12: The infirmary

We walk to the infirmary together, and I take a few things to bandage his hand. "Can I?"
I nod at his hand because I want to desinfect and bandage it.
Tom smiles softly as I offer to help him, and he nods to indicate that he's willing to allow me to take care of his wound. He holds his hand out towards me. I then proceed to disinfect and bandage up his hand, which isn't bleeding all that badly, but does require a clean bandage and disinfectant to prevent infection. Tom watches me as I tend to his wound with a soft expression, and he seems genuinely happy that I'm taking care of him.
I have his hand in mine and slowly take care of it. Tom notices that I'm quite good at taking care of wounds. My soft touches give him shivers, though. "Does it hurt?"
Tom's face flushes softly as my sensitive touch makes him shiver, and my care for him is making him more relaxed and grateful. The soft touches make him feel good, and he smiles shyly from my gentle touch. He feels a tingle as I work through his hand, and he tries to keep himself from expressing pain as I care for him. When I inquire about the pain level of his hand, he seems a bit embarrassed.
"A bit..." He admits quietly. As much as he'd like to appear tough, he's definitely feeling the pain.
"I'm sorry. I do my best. " I do the last steps and finish taking care of his hand."It's not that bad, though. Give it a few days, and it should be better. "
Once I've finished taking care of his hand, he looks down at his wound and then back up at me. He's noticeably pleased by my treatment, and he smiles softly as I tell him that his hand doesn't look that bad. He feels the pressure of my hands on his injured hand, and it sends chills down his spine. These are the most intimate touches that I felt since we met, and he feels completely comfortable and taken care of in this situation.
"Thanks, Lucia..."
I'm a bit proud of myself, I did a good job. I want to be a healer one day, even if I never told anyone. But then I look at him with a serious look. "Tom, you have to promise me that you won't do that again,"
Tom looks at me seriously, and he's clearly taken aback by my request. He stares me straight in the eyes for a moment before speaking in a soft but serious way.
"Lucia... I can't make that promise. If I see another guy touch you without your consent, then I can't just stand by and let that happen..."
He lowers his eyebrows slightly, looking at me earnestly, to emphasize his point. He's clearly very serious about this.
"Don't you understand? I just don't want anyone to get hurt because of me! That's not worth it. " I look to the bottom and walk slowly out of the infirmary.

Tom is shocked by my statement. He's baffled that I actually believe that it's not worth defending me if another guy tries to touch me, and he follows me out of the infirmary with a surprised expression on his face. He tries to convince me that he's just being protective of me, and he's starting to become frustrated that I don't understand his point of view.
"Lucia, I promise you it IS worth it to defend you! If other guys don't want to get hurt, then they just shouldn't be touching you..."
"And what about you? Your hand..you hurt yourself too?!"
Tom flinches at my comments, realizing the truth of my statement. He slightly glances at his injured hand and then looks at me directly, feeling a bit ashamed of himself now. He's beginning to regret punching Orion in the nose, given the pain that it has now caused him. He's starting to realize that he may have overreacted a bit last night.
"Well.." He sighs softly and looks away from me once more. He seems hesitant to talk about the injuries on his hand...

I nod. "I'm going. I'm sure we will see each other around." I turn around and then stop for another moment "Oh Tom.. the coffee and the croissant in the library..was that you?" Tom seems surprised and slightly amused. He blushes softly, a bit embarrassed to admit this.
"Ah... yes. That was me who did that."
He looks down at the ground for a moment with a soft expression on his face, and he then looks back up at me, feeling a bit shy about having been caught doing something for me once again. I nod and leave towards my dorm. Gladly, Tom allows me to walk away, as he seems to realize that he's not going to be able to convince me to change my mind. He's reluctant to let me go, though, and his eyes stay fixed on me form as I walk away down the hallway. Once I turn the corner and disappear out of his view, he lets out a long, deep sigh before returning his eyes back down to the floor and walking in the opposite direction.