Based on Leroux. Characters do not belong to me. Very short one-shot, but I hope you enjoy the flash of fluff. Please R&R!
He was a light sleeper.
Years of living on the edge of society made Erik jumpy by instinct. Even in his sleep. Even when he lay safely below the treacherous streets of Paris. Even when Christine was next to him.
Her leg had moved. That's what woke him up.
Her leg.
He'd started - how ridiculous! He'd practically jumped and it was her leg.
All she wore was a chemise. The candle that burned next to the bed made her skin and golden hair glow. She was so peaceful. So good. His savior. His home. He would die if it made her happy.
He would die if it made her merely content.
She was Heaven. An angel. God had to be real. Where else would she have come from?
Christine hummed in her sleep and shifted, moving closer against him. She was lying on his arm. On his arm. On his arm. What had he done to be so lucky? It was the rule of chance, he supposed. After years of dealing the wrong hand, eventually he had to hit a fortune. It was chance. It had to be.
She'd let him kiss her just hours before.
Kiss her.
And she didn't die. He kissed her lips, face, forehead, hair, arms, hands, legs. Where else? Oh yes. Her neck. That had particularly pleased her. He liked kissing her neck. It made her happy.
And she'd kissed him too. Her lips touched his skin. And he had died. He knew he had. He was in Paradise with an Angel. He couldn't possibly still be alive.
Christine had asked him just once if she could kiss him. And he'd said yes! Of course! Christine, I love you! You're my angel! Erik's angel! Your lips can touch Erik as much as they wish and they will bless him every time! But he'd asked her permission before each touch. She had said yes.
Every time.
Perhaps he could kiss her once without permission. If she was angry, he could apologize. He could never do it again if it made her angry.
But he wanted to kiss her so much.
He closed his eyes and pressed his lips to her forehead, lingering, savoring each moment that passed.
Her whole body stirred, and he came away immediately. She opened her eyes and her spheres of sky found him. She smiled. His breath disappeared from his body.
"You kissed me..." Her voice was so gentle.
"Yes."
"And you didn't ask."
His stomach dropped. "Erik is sorry. I will never do it again."
"Shh..." Her eyes closed. "Never ask to kiss me. I grant you permission now and always to kiss me."
He closed his eyes too.
Bliss.
Eternal bliss, it seemed.
She snuggled close. She kissed his neck.
He understood why she liked it so much.
He wasn't dead.
He was alive. Alive and in Heaven.