You and Tom Riddle never really got along. Ever since you arrived at Hogwarts, there was always a tension between you and the mysterious Slytherin. Tom, with his intense eyes and unsettling charm, always seemed to control the room. He made you uncomfortable, a constant reminder of a power you couldn’t quite understand but instinctively feared. It wasn’t just that he was smart and ambitious; it was the darkness behind his charm that made you uneasy.

Recently, though, things had changed. You noticed he seemed different around you. He would look at you longer than necessary when you passed each other in the library, and he seemed almost hesitant when talking to you in Potions class. It was subtle—Tom was excellent at hiding his feelings—but you felt something was different.

He seemed more vulnerable, almost shy. The sharp look in his eyes softened when he looked at you, and his usual cold tone had warmed a bit. You often caught him watching you, his expression unreadable, as if he was trying to figure something out.