Warning__This chapter kind of contains graphic content.

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Feeling way after second was the worst feeling in the world, like I was sinking. It hurt being ignored by people I'd once called my best friends. But, what hurt the most was how they made it look so easy. They didn't have to make a big deal about such a small thing; yelling at someone out of the blue wasn't exactly something to hate on me for. I know, it was weird. But they could have had the decency to ask me what was wrong.

I was tired of feeling this way - angry all the time.

At dinner, though, Brianna and Emily hadn't ignored me; I apparently was not invisible when it came to meal times. Throughout the entire thing, all they did was stare at me. It'd given me the creeps; it was like they forgot to blink. Anger was still bubbling inside of me, and I couldn't push it aside. And then a thought popped into my head.

I rummaged through my bag and got out a scrap bit of parchment and a quill, and jotted a small note down, signing my name off at the bottom.

"I'll see you lot later," I said to my housemates, leaving the table.

I walked along, the parchment in a shaky hand, until I secretly flung it over the Slytherin boys plate, and his green eyes sprung up at me in confusion. Glancing around to see if anyone noticed, I gave him a slight nod and then raced up to my dormitory, where I sat on my bed for a moment, pondering.

After a long, thoughtful moment, I skipped out of Ravenclaw before anyone noticed me when returning from dinner. I went on toward the seventh floor, my thoughts jumbled the entire time. I was well aware of mumbling to myself, but I was in utter disbelief! What the bloody hell was I doing?!

"He won't listen," I uttered under my breath, hand slightly covering my mouth as I walked. I stared at nothing. "He won't..."

I came to a stop as soon as I'd reached the seventh floor, the corridor completely deserted. I waited about a minute, just standing there, listening to my heavy breaths, my thoughts yelling unkind things in my head, the anger still bubbling in my veins, the guilt still pressed against my chest. All sorts of things at once.

Simple footsteps grabbed my attention and I spun around, looking straight into a pair of green eyes and tousled, brown hair. He held his hand up, my note pressed against his palm.

'Meet me on the seventh floor

-Abigail'

"What is this nonsense about?" Tom questioned, scrunching the parchment in his fist and shoving it into his pocket.

My heart leapt into my throat, catching me off guard. We stood there in silence for a second, staring at each other curiously, unable to form words. I shifted, lowering my eyes and extending my arm. "Let me show you."

Tom stared at my hand for a second, the confusion in his eyes was clearer than a plain day. Reluctantly, Tom reached out and let me take his hand, creating warmth instantly. I stared at him for a moment, my eyes searching his, wondering whether or not he was OK with this. I started for the end of the corridor, Tom's hand still in mine, and I stared up at the blankness of the brick wall, waiting for the door to appear.

I stole a swift glance at Tom, he, too, was staring up as the door slowly made its existence present.

"Ready?" I asked, seeing Tom look at me out the corner of my eye.

I didn't wait for his response and stepped into the room, pulling him in with me. The room didn't have very much this time - the only thing there was, was light, warmth; a crackling fireplace, a white border framing it. The carpet was red and welcoming. I dropped Tom's hand from mine, and he eyed me curiously, watching me as I threw my robes aside, leaving me in my uniform. His brows furrowed and he looked away uncomfortably.

"What is this? Why are are you so exposed, Benjamin?" he asked gruffly, his eyes burning into mine.

"Don't you know?"

Lips pursed, Tom finally let his eyes scan me, inch by inch. He finally looked up again, his eyes as hard as stone. "There is no need for you to come across so revealing in order to have my full attention or impress me, Benjamin."

My short breaths increased, and I sat down, grabbing Tom's hand and pulling him down, too.

"What are you doing?" he asked quietly, his voice already letting me know he knew all the answers.

I didn't answer him - only reached for the back of his neck and pulled him closer, planting my lips on his. Using my other hand, I reached for his own and put it on me. He didn't even flinch - instead, he used the hand that was on me to push himself back from me, disconnecting our lips. Disappointment flooded my blood, and the anger still bubbled.

Tom's eyes seemed to be searching mine, a sea of green, before he bit his lip and shook his head. "No, Benjamin," he growled, taking my hand off the back of his neck. He looked as though he were going to crawl away but I planted both my hands on his knees to keep him still, my eyes desperately trying to help him find a way to stay.

"You... don't want to?" I asked, embarrassed, leaning forward. I leaned back and sighed. "That's okay..."

I reluctantly looked back up at Tom after feeling his eyes burning into me, and there in them, I could see the answer to my question. He wanted to.

A soft chuckle with an emotion in it I couldn't place left his lips, and his eyes left mine for a moment. His face went blank again.

Tom stared at me for a while, the angry look he'd given me just moments ago vanished. My thoughts were correct, the large sense of reality, and the slow male grunts. Tom was fixed on his back, myself kneeling over him, a knee rested on each side of him, lips connected roughly. They moved at an insane pace. My blonde hair created a curtain over Tom and myself and I angrily shoved it behind my ear. Next thing I knew I was showering Tom's neck with kisses the same time his hand moved softly up my skirt on my inner thigh, so soft it made me shiver.

We somehow managed to get Tom's shirt off, his hand still caressing my inner thigh. His hand was gone in an instant and I was flipped on my back, lips pressed against my neck. Many minutes that seemed like hours passed, and the room was filled with rough male grunts and soft cries, all the stress leaving me at once.

As suppressing as the situation had been, I was clearly much more content than I was before. Hours ticked by as I lie awake, staring at the blankness of the roof. I couldn't think, I couldn't move, I couldn't speak. All I could do was feel - feel all the anger and guilt being overtaken by a new feeling, one I had longed for and long missed. I didn't know what to think of what I'd done, though. It was definitely...different. And if I had just rolled my head to the side an inch or two moreover I'd see Tom beside me, fast asleep. The two of us were lolled across the floor using our robes as blankets, far too tired to just get up and leave for our common rooms - and far too risky, also.

As Tom slept through the early hours of the morning, I left my spot on the floor and redressed myself as quietly as I could; that was part of the reason I hadn't been able to fall asleep; it was too uncomfortable sleeping naked on the floor. I risked a glance at Tom's way. Propping his head over his arms as pillows, he slept as though he could do it through anything. Half his mouth agape, his eyes shut lightly, and his hair as perfect as ever. How did he do it? How did he manage to look like a god no matter what he'd done?

By the time my eyes began to feel droopy, the sun had already started to awaken with the rest of the school and I bit my tongue regrettably; not once did I get a wink of sleep. I heard Tom stretch from beside me, but I was far too tired to look, but I sensed he had awoken and was staring at me. He mumbled a few words to me but I didn't quite catch them.

"Do you trust me?" left my lips within a hurry before Tom could repeat himself.

"Can you be a little more specific?" Tom said from beside me, his morning voice proving that he must have been a god.

I dropped my head to the side to see Tom looking at me, confused. The way Tom felt toward me was clearer than ever but now it was time for him to trust me.

"Every word I've said to you, everything I have seen, do you trust me?"

Tom still looked at me with dull eyes, not a speck of understanding forming in the green eyes, but, still, he nodded anyway.

I continued.

"So then you'll stop all this Horcrux nonsense?"

"What do the Horcruxes have to do with anything, Abigail?" he suddenly snapped, his eyes wider than ever and his lips pursed. This was the reaction I had expected. "It is none of your concern, so just nose out of it, will you?"

I ripped my robes off me and sat up, no longer feeling sloppy and droopy.

"Of course it is my concern!" I cried, shaking my head in disbelief. Tom stayed lying on the floor; there was no way he was going to sit up, butt naked, although I had already seen him just hours ago. "I care about you and I have seen what fate has in store for you! Just - leave it at me and the diary. Is it not enough? You already have all you need."

Tom didn't respond but I heard the sharp gulp. He suddenly waved his wand and he was fully dressed again, sitting up and pulling his robes over himself.

He definitely has to teach me that one, I thought to myself.

"Caring about people only gets you killed. It's a weakness, do you not understand that?" He hissed, gripping his wand in his shaky hand. "Do us both a favour, Abigail, and don't get yourself killed."

"How can you say that?!"

"Easy - by saying it."

"What about me, then? Do you not care about me? Or are you really sticking by your word and only care for yourself?"

"You're different," he simply replied, standing off the floor and brushing himself off. I stood, too. "You're my Horcrux."

I couldn't believe the words I was hearing. Not much longer prior to this argument had Tom confessed as much as he possibly could have, considering he was Tom Riddle, and now he was twisting his words around and telling me that the only reason he could have possibly felt that way, was because he had mistakenly placed part of his soul in me.

"So, that's it then?" I scoffed. "That is all I am to you, just some Horcrux?"

Tom stared sternly back at me as I challenged him to speak his mind. Angrily, he shoved his wand in his robe pocket, not once removing his eyes from mine. "For now."

"Why do you keep on lying to me, for?"

"I'm not lying to you, Abigail, not once have I - for heaven's sake, do you not -"

"You keep saying things and then you twist them around, why!?" I exclaimed. Everything that seemed to have come out of Tom's mouth only pestered me more and more. "Didn't any of what we did mean anything to you?"

Tom shook his head. "Should it have? If the real statement behind your question is if I love you, I do no-"

"But that is what we made just a few hours ago."

"That wasn't love, Benjamin," Tom rolled his eyes, shifting from foot to foot. "That was relieving your stress and anger, and relieving me of my... racing thoughts."

"Well... I love you," I blurted out, immediately biting my tongue. It was like my tongue was forming words before I'd even had the chance to think of what to have said. Why did I say that? I scolded myself. Why? Tom stared back at me, dumbfounded, as though the impossible had become possible. And then, as I thought about it, all the pieces that connected to the words I'd revealed, it all clicked and made sense almost immediately. "I think..."

Tom shook his head, staring at me hard in the eye. "You do not love me, Benjamin. Do you not remember your words? I'm a monster. Do not think, Benjamin, that you have the audacity to confess a love for one you do not actually love. Love is not real, therefore you are a liar."

I smiled, shaking my head. "But, I do..." I truthfully spoke, surprised at my own courage of saying it; I never thought I would have.

Tom scoffed, chuckling under his breath. He looked at me with amusement, a small smirk on his face. "And what exactly makes you think you love me?" The word 'love' rolled off Tom's tongue in disgust.

"You've made me feel small and your words have stung but anything you have ever really done hasn't harmed me. You've harmed so many people for the most pathetic reasons yet you've never touched me and I've done worse, according to you. You protected me - for example those mad people that came out of nowhere and surrounded us in the courtyard a few months ago. Or that time when Malfoy went to hurt me but you made him back off. You danced with me when I was alone. You've tried to keep me from being a monster. You annoy me at times. I love how you have had your concerns, for instance the situation with the dead fawn and the situation with Olly when you went to handle things. I love how stubborn you are -- now that could be directed towards positive things, just saying. I love how you think you are right about everything. I love how in comparison to myself and everyone else you are more gentle towards me. And most of all, I love the way you look at me and I love the way it makes me feel. And all of this sums down to just three little words that make a much bigger difference. Tom, you can't believe that love is not real because it is. But I understand if you do not love me, as well. I think the hard part will just be accepting it."