slytherin boys react - II

mattheo riddle: hiding with them after running away together

it was so still tonight. everything outside was wrapped in darkness, the woods silent except for the occasional rustle of leaves. inside, the small crackling fire sent moving shadows across the walls, faintly illuminating the mismatched furniture you and him had scavenged over months.

you were curled up together on the worn sofa, his arm draped over your shoulders as your head rested against his chest. his other hand held a book, his thumb absently tracing patterns against your upper arm while he lazily read aloud. his voice was soft, husky from a day spent quiet.

"'and even-'" he paused, looking at you with that boyish grin, "'if they had been such fools, they lived happily ever after.'" he scoffed and closed the book, tossing it onto the low table.

"that's not where it ended, you didn't finish it." you protested, lifting your head to glare at him.

"well," he said, his lips twitching with mischief as his fingers brushed back a strand of your hair, "that's where it should end. who cares what the author wanted?"

"you're impossible," you muttered with a smile, settling back into his chest.

he kissed the top of your head. "and yet, here you are, stuck with me."

there was nothing but warmth between the two of you, a quiet kind of peace you had come to cherish more than anything. for a moment, it was easy to forget what you had left behind. voldemort. the death eaters. the blood that would never stop following you.

"do you think we'll stay here?" you whispered.

his chest rose slowly beneath your cheek, his hand pausing in its soft strokes. "maybe," he murmured, his voice deep and laced with thought. "maybe somewhere else. a bigger house. a garden." he tilted his head to look down at you, his dark eyes glimmering in the firelight. "i could see you tending flowers."

"and you?" you asked, teasing. "what will you do, other than critique my garden?"

"protect it," he said instantly, his smirk faltering into something softer, something almost vulnerable. "keep it safe. keep you safe."

his words lingered in the air between you, and you didn't realize how heavy they'd been until later.

because somehow, minutes or hours later, you weren't sure, it all broke apart.

how has it come to this?

you are kneeling on the ground now, cradling him against your chest, your hands pressed desperately to the gaping wound in his side. blood pours from him, slipping through your fingers no matter how hard you press, painting your shirt, your hands, the floor beneath you.

a death eater found your whereabouts. you defeated the death eater, killed them, even, but not before a curse struck. a fatal blow, sharp and precise, meant to destroy.

"y/n," he rasps, his voice barely above a whisper. his dark eyes find yours, and they are filled with something you can't bear to see, acceptance. "don't cry, love. it's okay."

"mattheo, stay with me," you plead, tears streaming down your face. your voice cracks as your hands shake against him.

"i am," he whispers, his lips curving weakly. his dark hair is matted to his forehead, his skin pale and sheened with cold sweat. he winces, trying to shift closer to you, as if burrowing into your warmth could save him. "y/n, you're overreacting."

"i'm not, mattheo, you're dying!" you sob, the words wrenching out of your chest like they physically hurt.

"i'm not," he says as calmly as he can manage through a shallow breath. he cups your face with a bloodstained hand, his smile impossibly soft. "we'll get up tomorrow, and you'll finish reading me that awful book you keep insisting i'll like."

his words break something inside you. "mattheo..."

"and next week," he continues, as though he doesn't hear you, "i'm going to fix that cabinet in the kitchen that keeps sticking. you'll see." his hand drops back to your lap, the strength fading from his grip.

"stop," you whisper, shaking your head, your tears falling faster. "don't do this. let me call for help."

"no," he rasps, his voice still too soft. "you know what'll happen if you do. you'll risk everything. you'll risk yourself."

"but you're going to-" you were about to speak, but he cuts you off.

"i'm not," he says firmly, his eyes shining as they lock on yours. "just- please." his voice cracks on the word. "just hold me, y/n. hold me and don't let go."

you sob as you press your forehead to his. "i love you," you choke out, your hand still desperately trying to keep the life inside him. "i love you, and you can't leave me."

"i love you too," he whispers, his eyes glistening. "and you're going to be okay. you hear me? you're strong... stronger than me."

"stop it." you bite back a sob, shaking your head.

"we'll fix up this place," he whispers again, his voice weaker now, faraway. "make it something beautiful. i'll- we'll do it together."

"i can't do it without you!" you cry, your lips pressing to his temple, your tears falling hot and fast.

"you can," he breathes, his voice barely audible now. his lips tremble as he tries to smile one last time. "you always... could."

you cry, your hands trembling as you press them against his wound, trying desperately to stop the bleeding. "you're hurt- mattheo, you're hurt so bad. i'll call for help."

"no," he gasps, his hand grabbing weakly at yours. "no, y/n. you can't. they'll find you. they'll find us."

"i don't care!" you sob, your tears falling freely now. "i can't lose you, mattheo. please, let me call someone-"

"y/n," he interrupts, his voice breaking. his hand cups your face again, blood smearing your cheek as he tries to smile. "you're my home. you always were. always will be."

"then stay," you beg, your voice trembling. "stay with me, mattheo. don't leave me. please, we can find a home- better, bigger, safer. anywhere you want. just stay."

he smiles faintly, his head lolling against your shoulder as his strength begins to fade. "where do you want to go after this, hm?" he murmurs, his words slurring. "the sea? mountains? we can... we can..."

"stop it," you choke out, clutching him tighter. "don't talk like that. you'll be fine. you'll-"

"hold me," he whispers, his voice barely audible. "please, y/n... make it stop. it hurts."

you pull him closer, burying your face in his hair as your tears soak into him. "i know," you whisper, your voice shaking. "i know, mattheo. i'm here. i've got you."

he shudders in your arms, his breathing growing fainter with every passing second. "i knew from the moment i met you," he says weakly. "you'd... be the one to save me."

he gasps then, his hand slipping lifelessly from yours. the silence hits like a physical weight, and you feel it in every shattered piece of your soul.

but still, you hold him, rocking his lifeless body gently, whispering his name as if it might somehow bring him back.