Mattheo Riddle - Imagines/OneShot

The Games We Play

Requested by: riddle_x_nott

Word Count: 1112

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It was supposed to be just another afternoon in the library, quiet and peaceful, the faint scratch of quills and rustle of parchment filling the room. I'd picked up my usual spot—a corner table tucked near the back, away from nosy peers and the prying eyes of professors. Here, I could focus. Or at least I should be able to focus.

Unfortunately for me, the universe— or rather, Mattheo Riddle—had other plans.

It started with the laughter. Low, flirtatious, and irritatingly close. My quill paused mid-word, and my eyes lifted, searching for the source of the disruption. That's when I saw them—saw him.

Mattheo sat two tables down, his usual disheveled hair falling into his dark eyes as he leaned just a little two close to some blonde girl in Ravenclaw. She twirled a strand of hair around her finger, her smile too wide, too eager as she giggled at something he said. I rolled my eyes so hard it almost hurt.

Typical.

Mattheo had a reputation, after all. A Slytherin troublemaker, a sharp-tongued, confident to a fault, and impossibly good-looking. It didn't help that he knew it, either. He was always smirking, always testing limits, and worst of all, always finding ways to get under my skin.

I told myself it didn't matter. I didn't care. Why should I? It wasn't like we were anything to each other. Sure, we talked—more that I'd like to admit. We bickered constantly, exchanged sarcastic remarks like it was our own secret language. And fine, sometimes he looked at me with those eyes, and I felt something. Something dangerous, something I refused to name or even think about.

But this? Watching him flirt with someone else? It shouldn't bother me.

And yet, as her hand "accidentally" grazed his arm and he didn't pull away, I gripped my quill a little too tightly. My parchment crinkled beneath my hand.

"Is something the matter?" came a voice to my left.

I glanced up sharply to find my friend eyeing me with a knowing smirk. "Nothing's the matter," I said tersely, turning back to my parchment and trying to focus.

Except now I couldn't hear anything but her stupid laugh.

"...You're so funny, Mattheo," she said, her voice sugary sweet.

Funny? Mattheo? Please.

"Oh, you think so?" Mattheo replied smoothly, his voice carrying just enough for me to hear. "You've got good taste."

I snorted before I could stop myself. Both Mattheo and the blonde turned their heads to look in my direction. He smirked.