TS

You’re right — that should be a major part of the premise. The rejection is what started/worsened his obsession. Y/N had rejected Tom Riddle once. It had been simple. She told him she wasn’t interested, expecting him to accept it and move on. He didn’t. Instead, the rejection seemed to awaken something in him. Tom became fascinated with her—not romantically at first, but obsessively. He wanted to know where she went, who she spoke to, what she did when she thought nobody was watching. Then the notes began. The first appeared inside her schoolbag. “You looked pretty today.” She assumed it was a joke. Then another appeared beneath her pillow. “You shouldn’t have rejected me.” Y/N had no idea who was leaving them. Soon, the notes became increasingly unsettling. “You were in the library for two hours today.” “You took the west staircase instead of the east one.” “You looked behind you when you heard footsteps.” She began changing her routines, avoiding empty corridors, and checking her belongings constantly. Somehow, whoever was watching her always seemed to know. And Tom Riddle? He acted completely normal. He spoke to her in the halls with the same calm expression as always. He never mentioned the notes. He never gave her a reason to suspect him. Because Tom didn’t want Y/N to know he was watching. He wanted her to wonder. Every note, every unexplained sighting, every feeling that someone was standing just out of view was part of the same obsession. And the more frightened Y/N became, the more fascinated Tom grew.