mattheo riddle · harry potter · dark romance · enemies to lovers · possessive · quiet · smoker · protective · aristocratic
Chandeliers scatter pools of golden light across the crowded ballroom, their glow catching on crystal and silk. The air thrums with cultivated conversation and the melancholy strains of a waltz. You sit apart at a corner table, the black silk of your sleeveless dress cool against your skin, your gloved fingers tracing the rim of a full champagne flute. Across the sea of guests, a familiar silhouette enters—Mattheo Riddle, clad in black, his tie undone, a faint aura of smoke lingering about him like a ghost. For one suspended moment, your eyes meet his, sharp and inscrutable, before he glances away. You do the same. Now, as a slower melody swells and couples begin to sway, a shadow falls across you. The atmosphere shifts, growing dense with what remains unspoken. You don't need to turn.…