Boundless

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟐

"Was it a good night?" Pansy asked, sitting opposite me in the common room as we worked on our homework. "I don't remember getting back, so it must've been," I shrugged with a small smile, content that I got to enjoy another one of my old wild nights.

I remember only blurs from that night, fragments I could piece together if I really wanted to, but I preferred to keep it as a simple memory. I didn't want to know the truth.

An hour later, the guys walked into the common room after Quidditch practice, looking exhausted from Draco's intense training this year, sweat dripping off them.

"Don't tell me we've got homework too," Theo groaned, eyeing the scattered parchments between Pansy and me.

I handed him the work with a sympathetic smile. "I paper-clipped my assignment for you to follow," I said, knowing the guys had been busy with more than just school.

Theo took the assignment from my hand and leaned down to hug me. I put my hand between us and chuckled, "I'll take the hug after you shower."

"Yeah, good idea," Theo nodded, running a hand through his hair before pulling up a seat at our table. Soon enough, Draco and Mattheo joined to work on a shared assignment.

I continued writing down on my parchment, occasionally glancing around the group.

We all looked so normal; it was exactly what I wanted. In that moment, all our minds were on school and a few assignments.

No looming tasks, no pressure from our families hovering over us as we tried to choose between right and wrong.

I briefly smiled and let my pen flip between my fingers, savoring this rare feeling of normality. Mattheo caught my eye, looking almost surprised to see me smiling. That's when I let out a little laugh, "What?"

He shrugged with a smirk. "Nothing, just haven't seen you smile yet." I hadn't realized that in the seven weeks I've known Mattheo, all I'd done was yell, glare, or tease him. There was never a genuine smile between us, but I guess I owed him one for keeping my secret.

"Things are looking up," I replied, earning a small side hug from Pansy, who was excited to see me getting out of my shell again. "I never thought studying would be the thing to cheer you up, S," Draco laughed, and the others joined in.

I shrugged and spent my time looking at each of their faces. "I guess I'm just glad to be around you guys," I said sentimentally, which I knew I'd be mocked for soon enough.

"Even Riddle?" Theo piped up, kicking Mattheo's shin under the table. My gaze shifted from Theo's movement to Mattheo's eyes, which were already set on mine. "Yeah, even Riddle," I said gently.

"Oh come on, don't get soft on me now, Black. I was only getting started with our little bickering," Mattheo teased. I shook my head and laughed, just as surprised as him to be having a non-argumentative moment with him.

"Guess my old age is wearing me down," I joked, catching Pansy's attention. "Merlin's! Your birthday's this weekend," she smiled, nudging my arm repeatedly out of excitement.

"Your birthday's on Halloween?" Mattheo asked curiously. "Suits her personality, if you ask me," Theo smirked, but he wasn't wrong. I love Halloween-the dressing up, the childish joy everyone shares in scary stories and decorations-so having it fall on my birthday always brings me real joy.

"What costume are you wearing this year?" Pansy asked eagerly. "You ask every year, and I always have to remind you that it's a surprise," I laughed, and she gave a fake pout in an attempt to convince me to tell her.

"Because I can never guess it right, and I always end up looking completely out of the loop," Pansy explained, but I didn't see her point. My costumes never had much backstory, and they never followed whatever the group was doing. The guys looked just as out of place as Pansy had.

"You dressing up?" Theo asked Mattheo in a way that insinuated that he had never dressed up. Pansy and I stared at him like eager school kids outside a candy store.

He readjusted himself in his seat and tilted his head at our stares. "No, it's childish," Mattheo scoffed and folded his arms. "That's kind of the point, Riddle," I told him as if it were obvious.

"I'm not a kid," he shrugged and looked between us all, staring disappointedly at him. "Don't tell me you dress up too?" Mattheo mocked Draco, who nodded with confidence. "A chance to wear a scratched-out top with fake blood while a girl dressed like an Angel grinds on me only happens once a year," Draco bragged.

I cleared my throat and Draco turned to me with wide eyes, "oh yeah, and it's Stella's birthday."

"Real smooth, Dray," I taunted him before closing my assignments and putting them in my bag.

Everyone followed suit as the guys wanted to shower and rest after training and studying, while Pansy had plans with her fling of the week.

"Black, a word?" Mattheo's voice came from behind me. I turned and nodded, feeling anxious about him wanting to talk to me.

I followed Mattheo to a more secluded part of the common room and joined him on the bay window. "Everything ok?" I spoke first, wanting to cut the tension.

"Yeah, everything's fine. I just wanted to talk about your birthday," he confessed. I stared at Mattheo blankly, wondering why my birthday would bother him.

"You're not a birthday planner, are you?" I mocked him with a small laugh, which he reciprocated. "No, no. Couldn't even tie a balloon without my wand," he joked.

"I have this sort of proposition for you," he told me, his gaze not leaving mine. "For my birthday?" I questioned. "For your gift," he clarified.

Mattheo getting me a gift? Was this some sort of prank?

"Go on," I urged him to share his thoughts. He rubbed both his knees with his hands before letting them rest. "I want to help you get off drugs," he said seriously.

My mouth fell open, and I felt every organ in my body momentarily pause in shock. Was he being serious?

"What are you on about?" I frowned and lowered my voice so no one nearby could hear. "You've got a problem, and I know you think you can work through it, but it's a lot harder than that," he explained, and I decided to hear him out.

"Just let me help you out, and if it doesn't work, then I'll let it go, but I don't want to be involved if you ever go too far. I don't want one more thing over my head," Mattheo admitted, and I couldn't comprehend why he put this much thought into it.

"So it's not to help me? It's just to help your guilty conscience?" I said, which did sound more like the Mattheo I knew. He shrugged and exhaled, "take it how you want, but just give me a chance to try."

I knew I'd have to think thoroughly about his offer. I'd be putting a lot on the line by asking for his help, but a part of me did want to be off the drugs, and he seemed to know how.

"Give me till my birthday," I told him, and he nodded in agreement. I sighed with relief, feeling less anxious now that it was out in the open.

Mattheo stood up and grabbed his duffle bag. "I'll see you on Saturday then," he spoke. My voice failed me, so I nodded and stayed seated on the bay window, watching Mattheo head up to his dorm.

The only thought on my mind was: What were this guy's intentions?