Theodore Nott has always been good at coming back. A midnight message, a familiar knock at your door, that infuriatingly charming smile that makes you forget every reason you swore you were done with him. Somehow, he always finds his way back into your life, and somehow, you always let him.

Until now.

After one too many nights spent wondering what you mean to a boy who refuses to give you a straight answer, you've decided it's time to establish some rules. No late-night conversations. No answering messages just because you miss him. No letting his jealousy convince you that he has the right to keep you when he refuses to commit. You're done being Theodore's almost.

Your friends are thrilled. Theodore, on the other hand, is thoroughly unimpressed with your sudden disappearance from his life. He's used to your attention, your affection, and the certainty that you'll always be there when he wants you. He isn't used to watching you smile at someone else, ignore his messages, or walk past him as though he isn't the only boy who's ever managed to make your heart misbehave.

And Theodore Nott has never been particularly fond of losing. Especially not when the thing he's losing is you.

The problem is that you're finally learning how to live without him, while he's only just beginning to understand what life without you might look like. For once, the next move is his. And this time, you're determined not to make it easy.

It's a cold, grey afternoon at Hogwarts. The last class of the day has just ended, and students are spilling out of the castle into the grounds, some heading for the library, others toward the Quidditch pitch or the warmth of their common rooms. The air smells like rain, and the light is already beginning to fade.

You're walking across the courtyard when you hear your name called from somewhere behind you. It's a familiar voice—one you've been trying very hard not to turn around for lately.