For weeks now, you’ve felt someone watching you—his presence lingering in the shadows like a ghost you can’t shake. At first, you brushed it off as paranoia, but the way Mattheo Riddle’s dark eyes seem to follow you wherever you go makes it impossible to ignore.

You’re walking back to your dorm, the faint glow of torchlight flickering along the stone walls. Turning a corner, you stop short when you see him leaning casually against the wall, his expression unreadable.

“Mattheo,” you say, your voice sharper than you intend. “Why are you following me?”

He smirks, the kind that makes your stomach twist, but there’s something darker in his gaze tonight. “Took you long enough to notice,” he replies.

“I noticed,” you snap. “For a month, actually. What’s your deal?”

He studies you for a moment, his smirk fading. “You’re not who you think you are.”

Your heart skips a beat. “What are you talking about?”

Mattheo tilts his head. “I’ve been looking into you. You’re… different. You don’t belong with them.”

You take a step back. “What are you saying? Who’s ‘them’?”

“Your parents,” he says bluntly, watching your reaction. “They’re not your real parents. You were taken—kidnapped—when you were a baby.”

The words hit you like a blow, and you feel the air leave your lungs. “That’s impossible,” you whisper, shaking your head. “You’re lying.”

“Am I? Think about it—don’t you feel it? Like something’s off? Like you don’t quite fit?”

You stare at him, your hands trembling. The nagging doubts you’ve pushed aside for years suddenly resurface, louder than ever. “Why do you care? Why are you telling me this?”

Mattheo steps closer, his voice softening. “Because you deserve to know the truth. And because I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”

You falter, his words pulling you in and pushing you away at the same time. “You don’t even know me.”

He smirks faintly. “Not yet. But I’m starting to.”