𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰!
act two, chapter seventeen
" 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒆𝒔"

𝐍𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟗𝟗𝟕

𝑾𝒀𝑨𝑻𝑻 𝑺𝑻𝑨𝑹𝑬𝑫 𝑨𝑻 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑪𝑶𝑨𝑻. It didn't make sense. How it was draped over the chair in the corner of her dorm room. She could still smell Theodore on its lining, his scent lingering and now rubbing off on her bedroom. How did it get there?

Obviously, Wyatt knew the answer to this question ─ she put it there. How it came to be in her possession in the first place, however, still did not compute in her mind.

Theodore had given her his coat as an act of kindness. Because he could be kind, contrary to how Wyatt would like to see him. And now she still had it. In her bedroom. And she couldn't stop looking at it, as if that might present her with answers. Or maybe, it would disappear.

Rudy was becoming worried. Even when Wyatt stepped away from the chair and the coat to sit on her bed, every now and then, Wyatt's roommate would notice how she kept glancing over at the chair and Theodore's coat like it was going to grow legs and walk out of their room. Either that or it was going to acquire a tongue and start speaking sense as to why Theodore Nott had been so nice to Wyatt and made her question everything she thought she felt for him.

Rudy grew tired of Wyatt's confusion which soon turned to her pacing the room and ordered the latter to take a long soak in the shower. Wyatt didn't object to this suggestion and considered how the warm water might actually help clear her mind.

Five minutes later and Wyatt was hoping the light trickling of the water would wash away any weird feelings she had for Theodore Nott. They had been brewing over the last twelve hours and she was hoping, as she stood under the shower head, that she was watching them swirl down the drain in real time.

Wyatt was so preoccupied with ridding herself with her weird feelings for Theo that she barely heard the rapture of the knocking from inside the shower. The pounding of the water onto the porcelain floor was flooding her ears instead. What she did hear was the muttering of spaced conversation as she rubbed a towel over her head, shook out as much water as she could before combing her fingers through her wet hair as she stood in front of the steamed-up mirror. With nothing but a towel wrapped around her nimble body, Wyatt braced for the cold of her dorm room as she stepped out of the foggy bathroom.

Theodore Nott stood in the threshold of her dorm room, Rudy awkwardly smiling as she held the door open for him.

Theo was smiling when he realised Wyatt would be gracing them with her presence but this glee quickly died down to shock-horror when he realised the girl in question was half-naked. His eyes raked down her body as he took in the awkwardness of the situation, reconsidering his unannounced visit.

Wyatt was traumatised, stuck to the floor as her hair dripped onto the ground. Her lips parted and the blood rushed to her cheeks.

Wyatt's mortification only made Theodore amused and this toyed at his lips. "You're in a towel" was all he said.

"You're in my room," she stated plainly in response.

Theodore didn't quite know how to act. On the one hand, she would probably appreciate it if he didn't make this weird and/or a joke. On the other hand, Theodore was dying inside to laugh. Because her being uncomfortable only made him giggle.

"I came to get my coat." He decided to match her monotone. She noticed the coat in his hands and concluded that Rudy probably gave it to him while she was in the shower. This begged the question as to why he was still in her dorm room if he had been given what he came for.

Wyatt made the effort to triple-check that her towel was tight enough around her collarbone and not about to drop to her feet and expose her in front of Theodore Nott. "You couldn't have waited until I saw you tomorrow at rehearsals?"

"I wanted an excuse to see you." Theodore kept with the flat tone because this would be a weird thing to say with enthusiasm since she was practically naked. It was bad enough that he had chosen this hour to visit her, let alone admit that he intended to quell his bad mood with her presence (just with the intention of her being full-clothed).

And if being in a towel, basically naked in front of Theodore Nott, wasn't enough for her to be devasted, this statement finished Wyatt off.

You see, ever since Rudy's birthday outing when Theodore walked her home, his coat wrapped around her shoulders, Wyatt couldn't stop thinking about the boy. How they had laughed and teased and felt like they had a normal relationship. She was so concerned about the weird feeling she got in her tummy when she thought about it, that Theodore's coat had stayed, folded on her chair on the other side of the room, for the last twelve hours. Even when it made her feel nauseous every time she looked at it, Wyatt was raptured by the object.

It was weirding her out, stressful even, the thought that maybe she didn't hate Theodore as much as she wanted to. And it was getting harder to deny, or even lie about. Even Rudy had asked if she had warmed to Theodore.

And now he was going around saying cutesy things like this ─ in front of her roommate and best friend ─ while in the most awkward of circumstances. Water was beginning to pool at her feet, dripping from her towel, as if any of them needed a reminder she was naked a minute ago. If you asked Wyatt Buckley to draw what she imagined the pits of hell to look like, she'd sketch this. She would become a nun if it meant she could avoid this twisted form of punishment for all eternity.

Noting her silence (she didn't know how to react to a statement that was so adorable, it caught her off guard), Theodore decided to step back in and give her another prompt, with hopes that permitted a verbal response from her instead.

"I also wanted to ask if you were going to my game next week," he said. "I know a pretty good spot if you were."

Sixth-year Wyatt would have instantly started gagging at the thought of going to a Quidditch match, full stop, let alone because Theodore Nott invited her and wanted her presence as support. But present Wyatt warmed at the idea that Theo wanted her there. And that just made her feel more sick but the goosebumps were probably because there was just too much exposed skin happening.

Nonetheless, maybe it was time for Theodore to show Wyatt where he thrived.

"Yeah, sure, I'll go," Wyatt said, trying not to seem enthusiastic as she threw a glance over at Rudy before the latter pulled some exasperated face that called Wyatt out for being a changed person on Theodore Nott's account.

"Great," Theo gushed before lifting up the coat in his hands. "I'll swap out the coat for a Slytherin scarf. Make sure you're representing the right side."

"How about I just support the winning side?" Wyatt offered with a smirk.

Theodore revelled in the fact that they fell into a more comfortable routine even when she was half-naked. "That still means you'll be wearing my scarf, Buckley," he replied with a wink before leaving the room, nodding at Rudy to remind everyone he hadn't completely forgotten it wasn't just him and Wyatt.

Rudy waited for his footsteps to subside before closing the door after him and turning to her roommate. The two friends stood in silence for a few ticks before Rudy couldn't hold it in anymore.

"So what the fuck just happened?"

"I could not tell you."

"Maybe we can unpack this once you're dressed?"

Wyatt nodded once. "Good idea."

𝑾𝒀𝑨𝑻𝑻 𝑫𝑰𝑫𝑵'𝑻 𝑲𝑵𝑶𝑾 𝑾𝑯𝑨𝑻 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑷𝑹𝑶𝑻𝑶𝑪𝑶𝑳 𝑾𝑨𝑺 𝑭𝑶𝑹 𝑺𝑬𝑬𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑺𝑶𝑴𝑬𝑶𝑵𝑬 for the first time in twenty-four hours fully clothed. She was terrified that as soon as he saw her, Theodore would only be able to think back to when she was standing in front of him, very vulnerable and very undressed.

But when she walked into rehearsals the next day, Theodore didn't immediately rush to the door she had just entered through as he usually did. For a second, Wyatt just assumed he hadn't arrived yet but upon closer inspection, Theo had in fact arrived for rehearsals but was currently preoccupied. With Yasmine Kennedy. Whom he had never spoken to before. Until now.

Wyatt slowly entered the Charms classroom, sliding her bag off her shoulder and placing it on the floor against the wall by the door where the chairs had been pushed and stacked. She watched Theo and Yasmine like a predator assessing its prey before an attack. And how Wyatt wanted to attack. But, much like with the coat on the chair, Wyatt was confused. Because the pair were laughing.

This was confusing for a number of reasons. Number one, Theo was always going on about how weird he thought everyone in the Drama Club was and how that made Wyatt special. Number two, Yasmine Kennedy is the single most insufferable person in the school, let alone the people in this room to whom Theo has already expressed a distaste towards. And number three, Theo only laughs at his own jokes and when Wyatt tries to insult him.

The more Wyatt stared from across the room (the creepier she looked), the more fascinated she became with what she was looking at. Looking at Yasmine now, Wyatt could accept she was okay looking. Her hair was always well kept and Wyatt had to admit her smile was rather lovely (her teeth were sparkling and she had that kind of contagious laughter that made everyone around her light up). This still didn't explain why Theo was throwing his head back and laughing. He too had a nice smile. Full and charming and─

Oh God. Oh good God almighty. Wyatt was jealous. That's why she was so fascinated. Her stomach was twisting and she couldn't look away and her brows were furrowing. She couldn't look away because she couldn't wait until it was over. Yasmine was able to make Theo Nott laugh ─ an ability only previously held by Wyatt herself. And now Wyatt was jealous that he was enjoying her company. So much so Theo hadn't even noticed Wyatt walking in. He always noticed. Because she was the only person in this production he spoke to.

Wyatt wanted to walk right up to Kennedy and tell her that Theodore gave her his coat. That he visited her dorm room because he wanted to spend time with her, to see her. Not Yasmine. Never Yasmine. He didn't care for Yasmine and it would be better for them all if Yasmine was made aware of that as soon as possible.

But Wyatt knew she couldn't do that. In fact, she regretted even thinking about doing that. Could you imagine the satisfaction she would be granting Theodore? As well as the absolute mortification she would feel for caring who Theodore flirted with. She would never live it down, nor did Wyatt think she would ever mentally recover from such psychosis.

Wyatt quickly turned away and tried to locate someone she could distract herself with. Luna wasn't too far away and Hermione was over by the window and Casey hadn't arrived yet so maybe she could run─

"Wyatt!"

Theo's familiar call found its way to Wyatt's ears and she silently begged that he hadn't noticed her staring intently at his conversation with Yasmine.

When she turned back around to face him, Wyatt plastered on a smile that was far too big for who she was talking to but it was too late to think about her gameplan for this interaction because he was already jogging right up to her.

"Theodore! What are you doing here?" Wyatt was so focused on trying to act natural that she did the exact opposite. She never smiled at him, she never chuckled so loudly in his presence, and she also never uttered such stupidity.

Theo's smirk hovered unconvincingly on his face as he cocked his head slightly, his forehead crinkling. "I'm in the play?" He said, more like a question as he tried to ascertain whether she was being serious or not. "I'm literally a titular character?"

Wyatt still couldn't control her facial muscles and so she beamed up at him, teeth and all, like her peers she so often observed trying to win over the famed Theodore Nott. She slapped him on the arm and he stared at where she had made contact like she was confessing her undying love for Professor Snape to him.

"A fact I'm still trying to grasp!" She laughed again but this time it was more on the nervous side.

Theo chewed slowly on the gum in his mouth as he assessed her for a moment. Eventually, he just shook his head to clear his thoughts, concluding she was just in a weird mood since the . . . incident yesterday. "Right, yeah, I see. Anyway, I wanted to give you this, remember?" Theo said, retrieving a green and silver Slytherin scarf from his bag and handing it to her. "I will be writing a strongly-worded letter if I don't see you in it."

Wyatt glanced down at his outstretched hand and the scarf attached to it. Her smile faded. Despite liking the thought of supporting him during his match, something else was nagging in her mind and for some reason, Wyatt couldn't let it go. Nor could she let it go ignored.

"Don't you want to give it to Yasmine?" She asked, ignoring the offer.

Theodore's arm sagged at the joint and his shoulder drooped in disappointment. This was not the response he was expecting or wanting.

"Why would I want to . . .," Theo trailed off. Suddenly a different expression took up his face. Theo knew that look in her eyes. He had seen it in countless girls he may or may not have pursued and consequently ignored. Her irises had gone dark, and an emotion he had never seen on her before darkened her expression.

Theo couldn't help but smile smugly. This was all just too amusing, not to mention satisfying. "Oh my God are you jealous?"

Wyatt's cheeks instantly reddened. "Jealous?" She repeated incredulously. Not because he was saying something so baffling but because she had been caught. "Of who? Yasmine? Please, she makes my skin crawl."

Wyatt wasn't sure if what she was saying was believable. But what terrified her the most wasn't the thought of being caught being jealous by Theo but that she felt envious in the first place. Being jealous of Yasmine Kennedy is one thing but because she was making Theo laugh? That was horrendous to imagine. And yet Wyatt couldn't shake the bitterness on her tongue at the thought that Yasmine and Theodore might spend more time together in the future.

Theodore, on the other hand, was indeed not convinced. But he also wasn't about to press the issue. It was clear she was uncomfortable ─ having been caught ─ and Theo thought it best to let his accusation simmer. Her jealousy was no doubt going to rear its head once more, he just had to entrap her.

"Okay, Buckley, whatever you say," Theodore drawled before unfolding his scarf and draping it over her neck. "Anyway, no, I want you to wear my scarf. That way everyone knows you like me." Once he was done placing the scarf with one strand falling over her chest and the other slung over her back, Theo squeezed her cheek teasingly.

As an act of protest to his last gesture, Wyatt undid the scarf and scrunched it up in her hands. "Like you?" She scoffed. "Theo, I don't think that's humanly possible, let alone plausible."

While Wyatt had expected the boy to pout or express how miserable this statement had made him, Theodore simply sighed, like all of this was just far too easy.

He then came right up to her ear and whispered, "Then stop calling me Theo." His breath brushed against her exposed neck and when he pulled away, Theodore flashed his teeth before he sauntered off. The knowing smirk he gave her almost sent her stomach fluttering. Almost being the key word. But that still felt like a possibility.

This wasn't fair. She was tormenting herself and for what? Because maybe Theodore Nott wasn't who she once thought he was? Who fucking cares? Wyatt had finally gotten the lead in a play and it was a seriously fucking good lead. Juliet Capulet was an icon for girls in love everywhere and she wanted to take this opportunity by the balls. Theodore being there was not only bad for the whole cast and crew but for her specifically. He was getting in her head, messing with her feelings, and constantly on her mind like an infestation.

She wasn't even convinced they weren't friends anymore. What should she class them as now? Frenemies? Romeo and Juliet were not frenemies.

Wyatt needed Theodore off of this cast ASAP. In rehearsals, they had already made it onto act two, the clock was ticking. And his departure was what was best.

Wyatt stared down at the scarf in her hands. This probably smelled like him too. And she'd stare at this in her room much like his coat, not quite understanding the dynamic she had developed with Theodore. It felt soft under her touch, worn with the many years it had been in his possession.

Hoping he wasn't looking, Wyatt stormed over to her bag and shoved the stupid scarf inside. She could not go on feeling like this. It was about time she started what she had planned to do all along: sabotage him and get him kicked off the cast.

¨. ༢ ͎۪۫ ༊*·˚

short but sweet?