slytherin boys react

mattheo riddle: facing death with them

he fights to protect you against the death eater with fierce determination. you're slumped against the wall, blood seeping through your fingers as you press against your injured side. the room around you is chaos, flames thick, smoke curling through the air, suffocating.

he blocks another curse from the death eater, his teeth gritted as he deflects it. "get out!" he shouts, panic lacing his voice. his eyes flicker toward the spreading flames, and the urgency in his expression makes your stomach drop.

"go!" he yells, louder now, almost a roar. his gaze snaps back to you, pleading and commanding. "please, just go!"

with trembling limbs, you manage to run into the open air, collapsing to your knees. the relief of fresh air in your lungs is drowned out by the sound of roaring flames behind you. you look back, heart pounding, as you watch the fire swell in a torrent of flames.

and then, against every instinct and every shred of reason, you run back. the flames roar, but through the chaos, you see him. he's standing in the center of it all, chest heaving, the death eater defeated. he's alive, miraculously, but as he turns, his eyes lock onto yours, and his expression shifts.

his heart drops. "no! no, no, no!" his voice cracks as he runs toward you. his movements are frantic, and when he reaches you, his arms wrap around you with a desperate strength, pulling you into his chest.

"stupid!" he breathes, his voice shaking with a mixture of relief and anger. "why the hell would you come back?" his hold on you is almost bruising, but you cling to him just as fiercely, your body trembling against his.

before you can answer, a loud crash erupts from above. reality crashes down on both of you, the fire is closing in, the heat unbearable, flames consuming the room. there's no way out.

he grabs your hand, his grip firm and desperate, and pulls you toward a corner, away from the worst of the flames. he's scanning the room, eyes darting from the collapsed walls to the burning ceiling. there's a wild, hopeless look in his eyes, like he's searching for a way out that doesn't exist.

he turns back to you, his gaze locking onto yours. his voice is barely above a whisper, thick with regret. "i'm sorry," he says, his breath shaky. "i should have protected you better. i was supposed to protect you..."

he pulls you down with him, his arms wrapping tightly around you as he shields you with his body. you curl into him, seeking comfort in the only safe place left, his embrace.

he looks at you, his face inches from yours, and for a moment, everything else fades away. he looks at you like you're the only thing that matters, like you're the only thing keeping him grounded. he swallows hard, "no matter what happens... i love you."

tears blur your vision, your heart squeezing painfully in your chest. "i love you, too," you manage, your voice cracking with emotion.

he presses his forehead to yours, eyes closed, but you can feel the tremble in his body. his tears mix with the sweat on his cheeks, slipping down in silent streams. he doesn't speak again for a moment, just holds you close, as if trying to memorize every inch of you, every heartbeat, every breath.

and then, impossibly gentle, he kisses you. his lips taste of smoke and salt, of desperation. his kiss is filled with love, with pain, with the weight of all that's slipping away from you both.

you're lost in that kiss, your fingers tangling in his clothes as you hold on as tightly as you can. your lungs burn as you cough, tears streaming down your face. you see the anguish in his eyes, the raw pain that's tearing him apart.

his arms tighten around you, his voice choked. "i love you," he whispers, his words almost drowned by the roar of the fire. "i love you, i love you, i love you..."

he presses kisses to your forehead, your cheeks, your eyes, his lips tracing a path down your face as if he's trying to etch every moment into memory. "i'm so sorry," he murmurs again, his voice breaking. "i'm so, so sorry..."

you clutch at him, holding on as long as you can, even as the flames press in. both of you know what's coming. he buries his face in your neck, his body trembling against yours as the fire encircles you.

his lips find yours one last time in a kiss filled with everything, love, regret, and goodbye. "i love you," he whispers his final words, broken and desperate. "please, remember that. i love you. i always will."