From Her Reflection {tom riddle}

part xiv - laying in grave

Tom burst through her bedroom door, gasping for air after practically sprinting up the many set of stairs. Y/n stared at him in bewilderment, her eyes widening at the sight of the disheveled boy.

"I thought you wanted me to leave you alone- look who came crawling back," Y/n smirked as she slowly placed Nagini back in her cage. Tom didn't seem to take her comment kindly; a slightly displeased expression grew on his face before he eventually shook it off.

Tom stood in the doorframe in silence, his hand still tightly gripped around the doorknob. He examined the girl's bedroom since it was his first time seeing it: the room wasn't anything grand or luxurious, which seemed out of place in a manor as extravagant as the Gryffindor's.

Then Tom's thoughts returned to why he was here in the first place. This really was a good question, because Tom didn't know why.

"So," Y/n finally spoke up. "Did you need something? Or do you just enjoy invading my privacy?"

Tom's upper lip curled in annoyance before he cleared his throat and finally composed himself.

"I just wanted to...thank you."

"Thank me?"

"Yes, er, more like... thank your family. For your hospitality."

"You're being nice? Who are you and what have you done to Tom Riddle?" Y/n nearly laughed but had to contain it upon seeing the serious look on his face. Her expression faded away the longer she stared into his eyes; there was no hiding the sincerity behind them. "Oh, I-I'm sorry I guess I was just thrown off by your-"

"Manners? You think so little of me."

"...So you're being serious?"

"Deadly, love." Tom's stern look didn't falter as Y/n tried to force herself not to grin at that last part: love. How ironic considering their dislike for each other was very clear.

Tom fumbled with his fingers, his mind clearly muddled. Although Tom had been nervous around Y/n earlier tonight, this was the first time she had actually noticed it. To her, it seemed almost sweet to see him like this, and it almost wiped away any previous thought she had of him- it made Tom seem nearly human.

But any feeling of pity left her after she remembered the tantrum he had thrown earlier. Before Tom could force himself out of the room, Y/n cleared her throat and raised her eyebrows.

"Well, is there anything else you want to say to me?"

"What?"

"Like apologize?"

Toms scoffed as if she just asked him the stupidest thing in the world.

"Don't push it, Gryffindor." He said one last time before finally leaving the bedroom.

--

As Tom shut the door, rage erupted within him. It consumed him so much that he nearly took a chair and threw it out the top floor window.

He had once again let his emotions take over him, and this time Y/n was there to witness it.

It's not my fault, He tried to reassure himself. It's that stupid girl. She's-she must have put a charm on me that has made me act so irrationally.

The magnetic urge to act impulsively continued to grow stronger each day Tom spent with Y/n, and he knew it. He was growing weaker by the second. It was this instinct that had been keeping him stationary and keeping him beside her.

If Tom could leave he would have a long time ago, but it was simply impossible to resist his subconscious desires. Even when he tried it felt like a stab in the heart, like every piece of his soul had been sucked out of his body and scattered across the floor. His mind was imprisoned in his heart, and Tom had no choice but to stay beside her.