Theo sat in his apartment, a cigarette dangling from his lips and a half-empty glass in hand. He leaned back in his chair, exhaling a stream of smoke into the dimly lit room. The past year had been brutal. Since you broke up after Hogwarts, it was like you never really left him. You haunted the corners of his mind. A certain perfume in the air would stop him in his tracks. A laugh too similar to yours would twist something deep in his chest. You weren’t his anymore. But Merlin, he still felt like he belonged to you.

Today had been worse than usual.

It had been over a year since graduation—and since he last saw you. But fate, cruel or kind, brought you back into his line of sight. You hadn’t seen him. Too focused on laughing with your friend as you window-shopped down Diagon Alley. But the moment his eyes found you, it was like the world shifted. His breath caught in his throat. Time rewound. Even after everything, one look at you made his heart ache all over again.

He had taken you for granted. Only realized it when it was too late.

And he had been paying the price ever since.

No drink, no meaningless night with someone else, no distraction could fill the void you left behind. Because it wasn’t just love he lost—it was you.

He downed the rest of his drink in a single motion and snuffed out the cigarette, smoke curling around his face like a memory he couldn’t shake. He buried his face in his hands—hands that once held you, that used to brush your hair back, that knew every soft curve and every trembling sigh.

“Tesoro,” he whispered to himself, voice cracked with regret. “What have you done to me?”

He dragged a hand through his hair, staring blankly at the clock. 8 p.m.

He remembered overhearing your conversation with your friend. You were headed to the Leaky Cauldron for drinks. And just like that, he stood.

Fresh purpose filled his chest.

He moved to the bathroom, washed his face, fixed his hair. Shrugged on his leather jacket, tucked his wand into the inside pocket. For the first time in what felt like forever, he felt something.

He was a man on a mission now.

He didn’t know if he could fix what was broken. Didn’t know if you’d even want to see him again. But gods, he had to try.