A Month Later

Christine smiled as Meg ran circles around her, checking that Christine's dress was perfect. It truly was a masterpiece. Christine had received it in the mail a week ago, along with a matching mask. There had been no note or card, except for a golden rose that matched the dress. It was a real rose, someone had obviously placed it in golden water, and it had changed colour.

The dress though, masterpiece was the only way to describe it. It had a white corset style top that was delicately decorated with intricate golden embroidery that turned into a flower in between the breasts. The sleeves, made of a golden latticework fabric giving the impression of being see-through without actually being so, started midway down the arms, leaving the shoulders bare. The bottom of the dress was made from the same fabric as the sleeves, and was shorter at the front – reaching to the middle of Christine's thighs. After an appreciative sigh, Meg ran off to look for a matching pair of shoes. Christine turned to admire herself in the mirror. The dress made her look almost ethereal especially with the amazingly delicate wings on the back. She couldn't tell what fabric they were made with, but they sparkled in the light, and matched the dress perfectly. She'd finished putting on her make up, and started applying her mask. It was more like a sticker this mask, in that it stuck to her face. It was lovely; it twisted and curled like vines around her ears, making the otherwise unnoticeable violet tinge stand out. Her hair Meg's mother had done. It was twisted onto the top of her head, with lots of bobby pins holding it in place. The bobby pins had the added effect of putting delicate pearl like beads in her hair. There was only one little section of her hair that still fell normally, but that was intended. Meg returned with a pair of golden pumps that complimented the dress perfectly.

Christine was delighted. She normally never felt pretty, but tonight, she felt like an angel.

"Thank you so much for all your help Meg," She clasped her friends' hands. Meg smiled.

"You're most welcome Christine, you know I'm happy to help. Now, don't crush your wings while I go get dressed." Meg finished sternly then ran off to don her outfit. Meg was going to Phantasma tonight as a woodland elf for it's yearly Halloween party. She had a costume from a play she'd been in a while ago that she would wear. It was quite short, but Meg was fairly relaxed about such things. Christine was a little uncomfortable with the length of the front of her dress, but there was nothing to be done. She would just have to push through her discomfort. Moments later, Meg emerged wearing her costume. She looked very lovely, Christine thought, but then – Meg had been looking lovely ever since she had started going out with her secret boyfriend. Christine was very curious who it was but every time she asked about it, Meg dodged the questions leaving Christine even more curious than before.

"Hurry up girls," Megs' mum yelled from downstairs. "I have to leave soon, if you still want me to drop you there, you're going to have to get a wriggle on."

The two girls grabbed their clutches; Christine also collecting her elbow length gloves and then they dashed down the staircase, giggling all the way, as quick as they could.

Madam Giry, as she preferred to be called by anyone other than her daughter, dropped the two girls at the club before driving to her own engagement for the evening. They had to wait in the line this time around; it had been surprisingly luckily that they didn't have to wait last month when they came. Despite Christine promising herself at the time that she would go back soon, to see if she could meet the ambiguous Erik again, she had become busy with university and this was her first opportunity since. This time, she wasn't just going with Meg. The two girls were meeting some other friends at the club, and as luck would have it – they ran into them in the line. With much joy and excitement, they greeted one another and exclaimed how they all looked lovely. They waited outside for about twenty minutes, there was a hold up for a while when an under-ager tried to get in but eventually the group of girls was let inside the club. The beginning of the night passed in a very similar way to last time Christine had been there with some drinks and a lot of dancing. This time she was a bit more careful, and didn't drink nearly as much and drank water in between.

Somehow, Christine wasn't surprised that Raoul was there again, what she was surprised about though was how cozy Meg seemed to be with him. She was fawning all over him, and even though Christine had thought herself free of Raoul, she couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Christine tried to distract herself by chatting to her other friends who were with her, which worked for a little while. She could still see Raoul and Meg dancing together though, and the more they drank, the more handsy they became. Just when Christine decided that she was going to leave, having had enough of feeling awful, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She spun around, and to her enormous surprise found Erik standing in front of her. She recognized him instantly; he was wearing the same mask as the last time she had been here. This time however, he was wearing a suit, which reminded Christine just how handsome she thought he was. She had forgotten over the course of the month, and her drunk state at their first meeting didn't help with memory. He tried to say something, but she couldn't hear him over the hubbub that the music and the shouting created. He was pointing at the dance floor questioning, and then it clicked – he was asking her to dance. Too surprised to do anything other than say yes, Christine agreed. However, just when they stepped onto the dance floor the song ended. The DJ suddenly stood up and spoke into the microphone.

"Are you guys having a good time?" He yelled into the microphone. The room screamed their approval. "I said – Are you kids having a good time!" The DJ yelled again. The room screamed again – louder this time.

Christine glanced at Erik and was surprised to find him smiling down at her. She hadn't noticed last time she was here, but he was quite tall. He was almost half a head taller than her, even when she was wearing high heels. The DJ was yelling at the crowd through his microphone, and Erik took that moment to talk into Christine's ear.

"I didn't think I would see you again,"

Even though the room was full of sound, Christine heard his words perfectly. They sent a tingling shiver down her spine.

"You look like an angel," he finished and then straightened. Christine blushed profusely, and was glad the darkness and her mask helped disguise her cheeks.

"I've been told to tell you all that drinks for the next hour are half price!" The DJ cried. The cry of delight from the partygoers could have brought the roof down if the club was less architecturally sound. A large group of people left the dance floor to go and buy some more drinks as the music returned to it's deafening volume. Erik leaned down and spoke into Christine's ear again.

"Would you like to go somewhere we can talk?" he asked. Christine nodded and smiled. She wanted to get away from Raoul and Meg – for she could still see them across the room. There was no space between them anymore; they were probably one drink away from having sex on the floor in the club.

Christine mentally kicked herself for thinking that. She shouldn't be that rude. She was distracted from her thoughts when Erik took her hand and led her to the stairs. They were probably going to the balcony again, Christine thought. She could feel the warm of his hand wrapped around hers, and it sent tingles – much like ones she'd had earlier when he'd spoken into her ear – all the way into her stomach.

To Christine's surprise however, they didn't go to the balcony. Erik led her to another set of stairs.

"Where are we going?" Christine asked over the sound of the music.

"You'll see," Erik replied, not giving any detail. It occurred to Christine briefly that she didn't know this man very well at all and here she was letting him lead her away from the party and her friends to somewhere she didn't know. He could be an axe-murder and be leading her to her death.

She shook her head. No way, he'd seemed so nice last time. They walked up another two flights of stairs, and came to a door that led out onto the roof. Christine gasped in surprise. There were Chinese lanterns strung across the roof and in the middle of the space sat a table and chairs, with an unlit candle in the middle.

"Gosh…" Christine trailed off, uncertain of how to react. Had he done this for her? He'd only met her once, and he couldn't have known she was going to be here tonight.

Erik noticed Christine withdraw a little, and realized that she might find this setup a little strange.

"We had the staff Halloween Party up here before we opened today," he explained. Christine's face lit with understanding.

"I decided to leave a table up here so I could enjoy the evening. I like being part of the festivities, but I also like having a space to retreat to. It can get very loud down there," Erik explained. He offered one of the chairs to her, and Christine gratefully sat down. As nice as heels made a dress look, they made one's feet ache after a while.

"Oh, it's nice to sit down," Christine sighed appreciatively. Erik smiled, he was glad she was happy.

"I hope you're enjoying the party," he sat on the opposite side of the table. "You seem a little more…" he paused, not wanting to offend Christine, "sober, than when I saw you last time," internally he winced, but relaxed when he saw her roll her eyes with a half smile on her face.

He'd missed her the last month. He couldn't believe how much he'd missed her. Normally he only came to the club itself once a week, but since meeting her he'd gone every night – just in case she came again. He hadn't been ready to give up on possibly seeing her again. Just this morning he'd decided that if she didn't show up that night he would return to his old ways – and low and behold there she was.

She looked indescribable tonight. He had known when he first laid eyes on her that she was perfect, and in her absence he had thought about her so often that he worried she might not be quite as he remembered her. Here she was though – even more perfect than he remembered. He remembered her kiss on the cheek and couldn't stop himself staring at her lips. As he stared though, he realized he was missing what she was saying.

"…Unfortunately my family was prone to headaches, seems I've inherited that trait," Christine was saying. Erik tried to pay more attention to her words than to her body, but it was incredibly distracting. The corset she was wearing, along with the lack of anything on her shoulders was unbelievably alluring, she could almost be naked if he didn't look too low. He resorted to the tactic he used last time, and looked away – out over the city.

"But… if I'm being honest," Christine sighed and fiddled with her clutch, unaware of Erik's appreciative stare, "I wasn't enjoying the party very much." Erik blinked in surprise, hearing the dejected tone in her voice, and turned to face her again.

"Why is that?" he tried looking only at her nose, so that his gaze wouldn't wander and cause him unnecessary stress.

"My friend Meg – the one you helped me get into the car, was…" Christine paused; she didn't really want to talk about it but she felt like Erik would be kind to her. "Well… she was basically kissing with my ex-boyfriend Raoul,"

Erik's gut churned in anger. Raoul was causing trouble for Christine last time she was here.

"If you like, I could ban him from the club," Erik said seriously. Christine laughed, missing the seriousness of his comment. Though Erik was angry at Raoul, he still was pleased when Christine laughed.

"No, no, it's alright, its nothing I shouldn't be used too," Christine shrugged, and noticed with surprise that Erik's face darkened at her comment.

"You shouldn't have to be used to dealing with the actions of a bad man, or a bad friend," Erik growled. Christine was a little touched that he was grumpy on her account but she waved it away.

"I'm not mad at Meg, she's my friend and I wouldn't wish her any unhappiness. I just wish that Raoul didn't do these things to upset me," Christine said, and for a moment Erik was silent. It was then that Christine realized that she could barely hear the music from the club.

"Wow, you must have some great sound proofing here," Christine commented. Erik chuckled, distracted from his darker train of thought.

"I spared no expense. When I bought this building, I turned the bottom two floors into the club and the top floor into my own space. It's my music studio; where I compose and practice. Sometimes I sleep there, and it needs to be fairly sound proof what with all the noise the club makes," Erik explained. Christine stared at him in surprise.

"You compose music?" She asked in surprise. Erik nodded, and turned his gaze back out to the city.

"I wouldn't call them masterpieces, but there earn my a bit of extra money, which helps with the cost of running this place – though this place does well without the extra cash. Usually it just gets spent on Christmas bonuses for the boys," Erik explained. He didn't tell many people about his music, but Christine was unlikely to laugh at him. She stared at him in delight.

"Anything that I would know?" she asked. Erik shook his head.

"Unlikely, its mostly symphonies, or music for musicals," he explained and Christine nodded understandingly.

"I study music you know," Christine told Erik, happy that they had something in common, "Specifically singing,"

Erik's face lit with delight, and Christine wondered curiously what he would look like without his mask on. What she could see was so handsome – his short brown hair, strong cheekbones, and particularly his smoldering brown eyes made her want to be a little more reckless than she should be.

"Would you mind waiting her for a moment?" Erik stood up, looked like he was about to dash away, but paused to hear her answer.

"Of course," Christine said politely, wondering where he could be going.

"I promise I'll return quickly," Erik dashed over to the stairs and vanished from sight, leaving Christine alone on the rooftop.

Christine opened her clutch and checked the time on her phone; 1am – it read. She would probably have to leave in an hour. She was surprised to find that she had a text message waiting from Meg as well.

"Hi Chrissy," it began, "I'm going home early with this guy, don't wait up. I'll c u 2morrow. Don't tell Mum,"

Christine wanted to burst into tears. She knew exactly whom Meg was talking about. She couldn't believe them. She wanted to go home now, curl up in bed and not have to deal with either of them again but home was even more depressing. Going home to an empty house was lonely, and would do nothing for her mood. At least she could stay here longer then if Meg had ditched her, Christine thought sadly. It was probably more distracting to be here than at home, and she couldn't go back to Meg's house without her. She pulled out the handkerchief she kept in her clutch – the one that Erik had given her, and pressed it against her lips, trying to control her emotions.

Erik dashed back up the stairs quickly his violin in hand, not wanting to give Christine any time to decide to leave. At the door, he paused to catch his breath – not wanting to seem like he was rushing. He came out onto the roof after a moment, and was distressed to see that Christine looked sad. He rushed to her side and touched her hand, a bad move as it made his entire arm burn with increased sensitivity so he quickly removed it and he didn't know if she'd appreciate him touching her.

"Are you alright Christine?" her name rolled off his tongue, and he took a moment to delight in being able to say it. "You look distressed,"

She shook her head quickly. "I'll be alright," she murmured. He noticed that she had his handkerchief in her hand, and smiled a little. It was good to know that she kept it.

"You went to get a violin?" she asked, noticing the object in Erik's hand.

"I thought I could play a song, and if you wouldn't mind, you could grace me with your accompaniment," He explained.

Christine smiled at him, and agreed.

"It'll help distract me," she explained, "Did you have a song in mind?"

Erik shook his head,

"You may pick,"

"Do you know Andrew Lloyd Webber's song 'Think of me'?" Christine asked and a smile crossed Erik's face. He was an avid lover of that man's work.

He struck a cord and began the opening as his answer.

As Christine began to sing, he felt himself melt. If he could had admired this beauty any more, this song would have done it, but his already cared for her so much that it hardly surprised him that her command over music was as perfect as herself. She was an angel of music, his angel of music at this moment. He never wanted the song to end, but end it did. As she trailed away, hanging onto the last notes, she opened her eyes and looked at him. He had been watching her every moment throughout the performance, trying to sear it into his mind. She had her eyes closed as she sang.

He delicately placed his violin onto the table, and returned to his seat.

"Thank you," they said at the same moment, causing Christine to laugh.

"Thank you for cheering me up," she smiled at Erik, singing always made her feel better and even though whenever she sang that song it made her think about Raoul it did not make her sad this time. Erik bowed his head.

"Thank you for gracing me with your voice," he smiled, "You sounded like an angel," Christine blushed at his praise.

"You asked me before why I was sad," Christine decided to tell Erik. She barely knew him and she was telling him all her secrets. Erik nodded, listening intently.

"I checked my phone while you were gone, and I received a text from Meg saying that she was going home with Raoul,"

Erik gazed at her sad face, and wished he could do something to take her mind off her sadness.

"If I were worthy, I would kiss away your troubles, but I'm afraid that I cannot offer you that comfort," Erik blurted out. He wanted her to know that she wasn't alone, but how could he when he could barely touch her hand without feeling like he was on fire and fire scared him. As much as he wanted to touch her, fire and heat still terrified him and what if she wanted him to remove his mask? He would never do that in front of her. He could not bare the look of disgust that would appear on her face.

Christine looked up from her lap and straight into his eyes in shock. Did Erik just say what she thought he said? A strange calmness overcame Christine then.

"Why not?" She asked boldly.

Erik smiled bitterly before answering her question, "Because you would want me to remove my mask – which is something that I could and will never do for you,"

Christine was a little shocked at the answer. It was not what she was expecting.

"Why not?" Christine asked a second time, but Erik only shook his head and looked away. He would not tell her anything.

They sat silently, awkwardly, for a little while until Christine stood and said,

"I suppose I should be going home now,"

Erik gazed at her mournfully. He didn't want her to leave, not again. He jumped up from his seat as well.

"Will you return?" he asked, desperately. He didn't want to seem desperate, but he was. This woman was a glimmer of the beauty in the world, a glimmer he normally only ever found in music or Nadir. Nadir was his only friend but Erik was not Nadir's and often he would go days or weeks without real conversation.

Christine gazed at Erik's face. She was surprised he wanted her to return. Clearly he did not want her around as much as he implied, if he would tell her nothing of himself. Christine admonished herself, that wasn't fair. They barely knew each other. He was right to want to keep his own secrets.

Christine paused before nodding. As much as she felt that his secrets were getting in the way of…whatever it was that they shared, she still wanted his company. It was certainly better than Raoul and Meg kissing when they thought she wasn't looking.

"I was wondering… if you might delay your departure for a little longer?" Erik asked politely "I promise it won't take long at all."

Christine nodded, and watched as Erik gathered his violin and the handkerchief she had left on the table. Uncertainly, as though he wasn't sure if she would accept it, he offered it to her again.

"Thank you," Christine took it from him with a smile. "It did come in handy you know."

"I'm glad," Erik said, then led the way back to the stairs.

One the way down the first flight, Christine realized that she didn't even know how old Erik was.

"Erik…" Christine asked hesitantly. He turned and gave her his immediate attention.

"Yes?"

"How old are you?"

"28 – and you?"

"21," Christine replied. She could easily believe this man was seven years older. He had an intense maturity about himself. The way whenever she spoke to him, even if he didn't look it, she had his full attention was not something she was used to in men her age. She realized then it was that very reason that drew her to this masked man. She liked knowing that she was being listened too. Raoul had never given her that.

They reached the bottom of that flight of stairs and Erik pulled out a key for a door that they had passed earlier on their way up. Christine hadn't thought much of it then but realized now that it must be his workshop.

"Come in," Erik held the door open for her, and Christine decided against her better judgment and entered…

Dear readers, this was originally intended to be a one shot, however I decided that I wanted to make it a little bit longer. In light of that – I wrote another chapter. However, as I am planning to participate in the NaNoWriMo this year (2013) this current chapter will be the last for a little while. I'm hoping that once I finish the November writing challenge, and if I'm not too burned out, I'll then return to this story and write some more. I'm a little surprised how much I'm enjoying writing it. I confess, I don't normally write fanfiction; this is my first. Usually I create my own stories/characters but I am loving playing around with other peoples' characters so I promise to return and write a little more in a month. In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed these two chapters. Please leave a review if you spot any mistakes or have any suggestions/ comments as I do so love reviews.

Cheers,

LT

Oh and PS - It will get steamy later on. ;)