Unrequited love leads to obsession, obsession to desperation, and desperation to madness…
"From the moment that I first heard you sing, I always knew that you were an angel," Erik spoke lightly, caressing Christine's trembling cheek. She responded with a fearful gaze.
He had brought her to his underground lair…his haven of darkness and obsession. As she first stepped out of the boat onto dry land, her eyes widened at the sights before her. "Welcome to my sanctuary," Erik said, spreading his arms before him. He extended his hand to Christine, and she took it lightly, entranced by this new, mysterious world. "I have much to show you, angel," he said, a faint smile resting on his lips. Christine's eyes could not believe what they were seeing. The walls were covered with her face: paintings, charcoal portraits, collages…anything the mind could imagine, and they were all of her. He led her along the wall, allowing her to take it all in. "Look here, my love," he said, averting her attention to a life-sized mannequin of her wearing a custom-fit wedding dress and veil. Everything was exact…every detail, every single hair placed perfectly to match hers. Erik turned to face his love…his obsession. "So what do you think, angel?" She was stunned into silence.
Erik reached out and lightly touched either side of her face with his fingertips. "When I first saw you, angels came to light your path." He spoke softly, passionately.
"Angels," Christine repeated softly. She turned her gaze away from him. "I heard you keep their wings pressed under glass."
He gave her a knowing smile. "I like to preserve all that's beautiful," he spoke matter-of-factly. "They serve me better under my longing gaze than running free out in the world." She gave him a shocked look, laced with what could only be described as disgust. "I must say, I am truly ecstatic to have you here, my beauty. These two-dimensional things do you no justice."
"Am I now to be enthralled by your lust and longing for beauty? So enthralled that I might die?"
"No, no, my dear. You are no good to me dead. If I wanted to see death, I would simply buy a mirror." He laughed madly at his own self-mockery. His speech became hurried and frantic, his madness clearly taking over. "You see, my dear, I cannot ever possess beauty of my own, so I must surround myself with beautiful things. I must. Do you see, Christine? Do you see why I need you?" He spoke wildly, borderline madness showing in his eyes. Without warning, his eyes grew somber. "I always longed for beauty, but this wretched face could never be beautiful. Erik could never be beautiful…Never…" He turned back to her jubilantly. "But now I have you! You can be my beauty! Do you see? Please tell me you understand, Christine."
Her eyes raised to meet his. "So you intend to keep me here," she asked sternly, "pinned down like the rest of your angels?"
"Not pinned down, per se, but you shall be kept here. Erik must have your beauty…he must. Do you see Christine? He must have you…"
Christine gave him a mockingly sweet smile. "Do try," she said, her words laced with venom.
Erik smiled wildly, now completely devoid of all sanity and inhibition. "You need me too, Christine. Don't pretend that you don't need Erik. When I came to you, I saw you so bereft, so pale, and so weak. You were so weak…" Erik's affect changed completely, and he looked down with a broken-hearted look in his eyes, and his speech slowed down significantly. "You were so broken, Christine. Beautiful things should never be broken. You were crying, Christine," he said, his voice breaking. He kneeled down and took one of her hands between his. "You were crying, and it shattered my already broken heart. I couldn't bear it." He lowered his gaze to the floor, unable to look at her without remembering her as he had seen her that night. "But," he looked up more hopefully, "when I looked through my side of the mirror and made my presence known to you, you took my hand and came with me. Broken-hearted, you and I declined to speak. But still, you continued to follow me into the darkness."
Christine pulled her hand away and slowly distanced herself from him. "I…I can't stay here," she stuttered. "I must leave." She slowly inched to the door.
"No, Christine, you must stay!" Erik said, his voice filled with utter desperation. "You are Erik's life! You cannot leave him!" He reached out his hand longingly to her, open-palm, as far as he could. "I love you Christine," he nearly yelled. "Erik loves you," he said in a whisper this time. Her eyes, still filled with fear, gazed at this pathetic man, this creature of obsession still kneeling on the floor. "Can't you see, Christine? I need you with me. I need you in my life. I need your beauty, your passion, your pain, your love…Oh, Christine…I need all of you." He reached his hand out further, causing him to lose his balance and crash face first onto the floor. "Please tell that you can see…please."
She shook her head somberly. "Erik…I can't…I can't see through your darkness."
"Then let me see through your light," he said desperately. One arm still outreached towards her, he used the other to drag his body across the floor. "I'd do anything! I'd tear out my eyes for you, my dear, to see everything that you do. I want to see through your eyes…I want to know you…" He managed to get up on his knees to crawl toward her. She slowly backed further away from him until she felt the wall behind her. Her eyes filled with disgust at his apparent obsession. Again, he reached out his hand to her, losing his balance and crashing to the floor beneath him once more. In his lying position, he lifted his head to look at her, trying to show her his soul through his eyes. "Can you see my soul, Christine? Can you feel it? Can you see my pain? It's like yours!" The madness was returning to his voice again. "I've seen your pain, Christine. I've seen it, you know I have. I've seen it, and I want to feel it. Did you hear me? I want to know your pain, Christine. I'd tear out my soul for you, my dear. Oh, my dear…" A violent sob escaped from his lips, and his frail body shuddered against the floor. "I'd tear out my soul to feel everything as you do."
Any trace of compassion that may have once been in Christine's eyes had left. "Get up you sick, perverse beast! Get up and act like a man, not this pathetic monster." Her voice was scathing.
All traces of humanity drained from Erik's eyes, and he rose to his feet. "Leave me!" he growled, throwing his arm for emphasis. He stormed over to her, and aggressively punched the wall inches from her head. "Leave me!" he snarled venomously at her, inches from her terrified face. He stormed away from her, knocking over candle holders in his way. He stopped for a second, and turned wildly back toward her, his animalistic tendencies completely taking over. "You need me, Christine!" he clamored as he walked gracefully back over to her. She was frozen in place by fear. "You know you need me," he said, reaching out and grabbing her by the shoulders. "Admit it," he commanded almost tenderly. "Admit it, damn you!" He shook her roughly, trying to get through to her. She gently reached up and removed his hands from her. Completely shocked by her touch, Erik complied.
She walked a few steps away, and Erik dropped to his knees. He lowered his head, knowing that he had lost his angel. "Leave me," he commanded again, his voice breaking. "Leave me to grieve."
"Leave me to grieve," she repeated in a biting tone. "Leave me to grieve that nothing's lost." The mockery in her voice cut Erik to the core. "Know that nothing is lost…you are nothing to me, monster. Nothing!"
Christine walked away, leaving Erik a sobbing mess on the floor, each tear holding a piece of his broken heart. His one obsession retreated back to the light above, leaving this angel of hell to wallow alone in his hatred and repulsion once again.
Coming next: "Beautiful Thieves" - This one will be dramatically different from "Torch Song," so I hope you're ready. Also, as a teaser, it will be a R/C, so be prepared!
