Boundless | Mattheo Riddle

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 (𝟏𝟔)

Mattheo Riddle

"She said what?"

Daphne crossed her arms, standing in the archway of the common room like she'd just delivered a prophecy — one she was not impressed with. Her brows were drawn in that way that always meant she was done holding her tongue.

"I said," she repeated slowly, "Sebastian told Ollie to stay away from you. I overheard it at Puddifoot's when I was out with Enzo. She didn't even fight him on it, Mattheo."

My jaw clenched. "When?"

"Today." She studied me. "You didn't know?"

No, I didn't. But I sure as hell felt it now — like a slow poison working its way into my ribs.

I didn't say anything else. Just turned, shoved my hands into my coat, and left the common room before I punched a wall or hexed the next fourth year who looked at me wrong.

I knew where she'd be. She always went when she didn't want to be found, but still wanted someone to find her.

The Black Lake.

—

She was sitting on the rock — our rock — where the trees thinned and the wind didn't bite as hard. The water was still, reflecting the muted winter sun. She had her knees drawn to her chest, arms wrapped tightly around them like she was holding herself together.

I approached slowly. I didn't want her to run. Not from me. Not again.

"Daphne told me," I said, voice low, breaking the silence between us. "What Sebastian said."

She didn't look at me.

I moved closer, but didn't sit. Not yet.

"Is it true?" I asked.

Ollie's gaze stayed locked on the lake. "He didn't yell. He didn't even get angry. He just... asked me not to see you."

"And you agreed."

Silence.

I dragged a hand down my face, letting out a breath that burned. "Ollie, you know what we have. You know I—"

"I'm scared, Mattheo," she said suddenly. Her voice cracked like glass. "You're you. You disappear. You shut down. You carry storms inside you and expect me to stand in the rain without an umbrella."

That hit harder than I expected.

She stood now, arms still crossed, like she was shielding her heart.

"Sebastian's always been there," she said. "Every term. Every birthday. Every time I was too tired to walk back from the library, he waited for me. Do you know how rare that is? To be sure of someone?"

Her voice wavered.

"And — you left, Mattheo. No letter. No answers. Just gone. And now you're here again, and you're making it impossible not to fall back into it. Into you."

I didn't have the words to undo the past. But I had this. This moment. This choice.

So I stepped in, closing the space between us. Gently, I reached out and took her chin, tipping her face up toward mine.

"I'm not going anywhere, Ollie," I said. "Not this time. If I have to fight every bloody day to prove it, I will."

She didn't pull away. But her eyes were glassy with everything she couldn't say.

"I know I broke the part of you that trusted me," I said. "But if there's still even one piece left — even a sliver — I'm asking for it."

And before she could answer, I kissed her.

Not rushed. Not hungry. Just real.

A slow, soft kiss — like a promise sealed between our mouths. She melted into me like she always had, fingers gripping the front of my coat, her tears slipping onto my skin, but her lips never leaving mine.

It wasn't perfect.

But it was honest.

When we pulled apart, she didn't say anything.

She just stayed there, forehead against mine, eyes closed, breathing like she was trying to remember how.

And in that quiet, I knew I had her again.

Maybe not fully.

Maybe not yet.

But enough to start.