Our Past ; Mattheo Riddle

reunion

Mattheo's eyes slowly open as he takes in his dorm light, sunlight creeping through his closed curtains. He shifts slightly to check the time; it was only 8:00, so there would be hours before his friends and Val were awake. He smiles as he feels Valeria's soft breathing and calm heartbeat as she lays on his chest, having been comfortably asleep all night. Even though he always slept well when he was with her, he would typically wake up earlier than usual, especially if he was worried about her. He knew that her time in her family home had messed her up and he always noticed if her eating habits changed or if she had been drinking. In the three weeks since he had asked her to be his girlfriend after her fight with Scarlett, he had noticed her getting better and better, skipping less meals and drinking less. It eased his mind knowing that she was on a path towards getting better. Although he loved her no matter what, it always brought a smile to his face just talking to her when he knows that it's genuinely her that he's speaking to, not somebody under the influence. As he wraps his arms around her and brings her closer towards his face, he hears her softly yawn as she starts to wake up. She lifts her head to look up, smiling when she realizes neither of the two had moved all night. Even though she had just woken up, she looked absolutely beautiful. Her soft curls framed her face perfectly, and he had to resist from melting when she gazed at him with her light green eyes. "Good morning Matt" She says softly, still sounding sleepy from moments before. "Good morning Val" He replies, softly kissing her as they shift slightly so she can reach his lips. "Do we have plans today?" She questions. "Not that I know of..." He responds, knowing what she's about to suggest. "Are you down for a-" "Yes, I'd love to race." She grins, immediately getting up to change and get ready. "Doll, it's so early. Come back to bed with me for a while." He groans, still laying down. "But I want to get there before everyone else does. If we go now it'll be just the two of us." She pleads. "God, I can't say no to you." He sighs while getting out of bed and throwing on an outfit good enough to go down to the tracks.

With both of them now dressed, they head out of Mattheo's dorm and start towards the garage. It's silent in the common room and the hallways, as almost nobody was awake at 8:00 on a Saturday. They go down the stairs to the garage and are suprised to see a large group of people. "Oh shit, I forgot that there was a race today." Mattheo frowns at his realization. "Morning Val" Theo says, greeting her and giving Mattheo a suggestive look. "What was that for?" Mattheo glares. "Are you ready to lose?" Theo taunts. "What are you talking about?" Mattheo asks. "I signed you and Val up for the race. It's 20 people, all the best in school. Are you ready?" Theo asks, knowing that Valeria never likes to miss a race. "Thank you thank you thank you. Mattheo, get ready to lose." Valeria smirks, leaving the two to go find her helmet and start her car. "Mattheo, you really did it. I'm proud of you." Theo smiles, sounding sincere, which is unusual compared to his typically unserious manner. "What do you mean?" Mattheo asks, confused. "She's back to herself again. She's eating more, and she's not taking shit all the time. I don't know what you're doing, but it's clearly making her happy." Theo acknowledges. "You think so?" Mattheo doubts. "I know so. Go get your helmet on before you're late and Val holds it against you." Theo grins, shoving him towards his car. 

"Are you ready?" Pansy turns to her best friend, getting in the passenger seat of Val's car while Val gets behind the wheel. "I'm always ready to race." She responds, swirling her keys around her pointer finger and thumb. "Where's your helmet?" Pansy asks, suddenly noticing that she wasn't fully ready. "Oh, shit. You're right." Val says, putting her keys down and stepping out of her car. "Racers, head to the starting line." She hears Draco's voice echo from the loudspeaker over the track. Ever since they were old enough to go to the track, Draco took on the role of announcing the bigger races. "I'm sure it's fine. I don't want to be disqualified. Let's just go." Val says, stepping on the gas and catching up to the other cars. Pansy is about to question it, but knowing Val's skills, she decides to let it go. "Now, if you have a passenger in your car, have them leave and go stand in the garage. Val, I'm looking at you. I know damn well you are not about to crash with my girl sitting next to you." Draco announces over the speakers. Pansy blushes as Valeria smirks at her. "You heard the man." She knew that flustered Pansy, as her and Draco had only been public for a couple of weeks. She watched her best friend step out of the car and make her way to the stands to watch. As Val takes in the track, she can't help but smile. This was the first big race she had been involved in since she had been back, and there was nothing she loved more. She rev'd her engine as she waited for Draco to count down. "All racers ready?" Draco recites the line used for decades on the track. "All clear." The drivers shout. "3, 2, 1... Race." He counts down, and Valeria steps on the gas.

Val quickly maneuvers her way to the front of the line of cars, smirking at Mattheo as she pushed him down to second and herself to first place. She quickly speeds up, hoping to gain speed and distance herself from the other racers. She was on her second lap, and three more were needed for her to win. She had obviously raced plenty of times since returning to Hogwarts, but this win would make it clear to everybody that she was back and even better than she was before. After all, half the school was watching from the stands. She grins as she speeds around the track, heading towards her fourth lap around. As she passes the starting line to begin her fourth lap, she hears people screaming, but not in a good way. As she looks foward to regain her focus, she sees Theo's car gaining speed, but not in a good way. As he starts going around the curve, his car is blasted back as he misses and starts spinning. Valeria panics, trying to quickly turn and avoid him. As she begins to move, she hears a scream. "VALERIA-" She screams as Theo's car goes straight towards hers. 

Everything goes black.