Serpent's Veil || Draco Malfoy.

You got to be the 'spoiled king,' after all

🎵''Problem'' - Ariana Grande ft Iggy Azalea

EMILY'S POV

As I close the door to my dorm and turn around, Theo is standing right in front of me. 

What the hell is he doing here? 

The sudden closeness catches me off guard, making my heart skip a beat, though not out of any lingering affection, believe me. It's just the shock of finding him so near. I quickly recover, a soft smile playing on my lips, more out of habit than anything else.

"You startled me," I whisper, keeping my voice light.

Theo grins, that familiar smirk curling at the corner of his mouth. 

I know that look—he's enjoying this.

"Couldn't resist the opportunity to scare you a little, could I?" he teases, stepping closer.

I chuckle, rolling my eyes. His playful reply is a small relief, something familiar in the sea of tension that's been between us lately. Leaning back against the door, I meet his gaze.

"You're always so insufferable, you know that?"

But then, his expression shifts. 

The smirk fades, and suddenly, the mood in the room changes. My stomach tightens, sensing that whatever he's about to say isn't just another joke. He steps even closer, his eyes locking onto mine with a seriousness that makes my skin prickle.

"Well, I'm not here just to be insufferable," he says. "I need to speak with you."

"What is it? Shouldn't you be with your date?" I ask, trying to sound casual, though the thought of him with someone else needles at me—because of what it represents, that is. He didn't want to go to the ball with me and I made it evident that that wasn't in my plans and that it bothered me. 

That I didn't like.

"That's exactly what I want to talk to you about."

I stop, listening closely. 

He wants to talk about how his date was so mid that several people had to ask him if he's gone mental?

"I want to break this off between us, for good."

Woah

His words hit harder than I expected, like a punch to the gut. 

Not because I'm in love with him—God knows that's not it—but because it feels like he's pulling the rug out from under our friendship, like it was never real to begin with. 

Why is he making a decision like this? 

I mean, I always thought he was just going to be after me forever, even if I messed things up. Don't get me wrong -I don't want a puppy for a boyfriend- but Theo is different, we've always been close and it's weird that now it looks like he wants to get away from me. 

Who would want that?

I know I'm intense, but, there must be some other reason as to why he is acting so strange.

I struggle to keep my expression neutral, though I can feel it falter.

"Break... this off?" I repeat to buy myself a second to think to get the control of the situation back into my hands.

"Yes, Emily," he says, his voice steady, as if he's been rehearsing this. "I know it looks like it's already been broken—us each going with other people to the ball and all—but I just don't see it working, ever again."