Chapter Four: Who am I?

- I paused before the door and let it swing open; not a bit of light flooding in or out.

Just utter darkness.

The small man grasped my hand and gently pulled me into the dark abyss that lay before me. "Whoa, whoa! How can you tell where you're going?" I asked as the large, African American man shut the door behind us, and locked it.

"Ah, Christie, I've been down this way thousands of times, ya know, giving you your groceries and all." He replied, pulling me through the darkness; I still didn't understand how he saw through the darkness, it was thicker than tomato soup! I couldn't even see the small man two feet before me! "Alright, now, when we reach the first set of stairs I'll give you the lantern and you can finish the way down the cellars." The small man said.

"Cellars?" I asked questioningly; the small man groaned.

"Yes, Christie; cellars. You live in the fifth cellar, upon a lake, with your husband and cat." The small man explained; I nodded unsurely and hesitantly followed the small man, attempting to search my surrounding area with squinted eyes, but, I found nothing, only large, black masses. All of a sudden the small man paused and I almost ran into him!

"Wha, what?" I asked and the small man let go of my hand; moments later a glow was struck up before me and a black lantern was lit; the small man handed this to me and stepped out of the way, motioning to go down the stairs.

"Go on, now, Christie, he's waiting for you" the small man said; I sighed and took up the lantern, clutching my purse tightly and slowly working my way down the stairs; even with the lantern it was almost impossible to see! I nearly fell on the third set of stairs! For a moment, I couldn't feel a stair beneath my foot and I gasped and reached out for a banister, but there wasn't one. I cried out and fell forwards, but, before I could hit the ground someone wrapped their arms underneath my own and my cheek laid upon their chest. It was warm and smelt like cinnamon.

I could hear their heart beating, quite rapidly too.

In my plight I had accidently let go of the lantern and it lay shattered beside us, upon the concrete pad. I looked up to find that it was the man from the park! He was smiling softly down to me and I couldn't move, he pushed me back up and guided a few rogue hairs out of my face before cupping my cheek in his hand. "Beautiful" he whispered, taking up my hand and smiling; beside him he picked up a perfectly fine lantern, I glanced around to find that the shattered lantern was gone!

We moved slowly down the stairs and he glanced back, every few seconds to see if I still followed behind him. His hand was warm and his skin felt of the velvet throws mother kept on our couch in the living area back at home. His black cloak swirled around him and revealed a bright crimson underneath; flying back and enveloping me too. For lack of better words, I followed him like I was a marionette and he was pulling the strings; I was, in all honesty, a meat puppet. I was entranced, star struck even, at him; there was just something about him that I fancied, that I found myself incapable of staying away from him for too long.

Finally, we paused and, I wasn't fully aware of it, but the room around us was lit now and the lantern was gone from his hands! He let go of my hand now and backed away a few paces; my legs seemed to have a mind of their own as I continued forwards, following after him. His hand extended once more and his index finger pulled towards himself twice, a motion to tell me to come forwards. And so, I did. I walked forwards and he paused, so, I walked straight into his arms and the man lifted me off of the ground!

My trance was broken and I frantically glanced around to see that he was walking me towards a lake, and, upon the lake, floating contently, was a small boat called a 'gondola'. The gondola was a dark brown wood with two lanterns attached to the front and two to the back; however, they weren't needed, on the walls and floating upon the water were candelabras! They were floating upon the water! The man set me down gingerly into the gondola and climbed in after me, taking up ore and pushing us off of the shore; gently paddling us towards well, wherever we were going!

The strange thing was that this man, nor this situation, raised any alerts for me. I never felt out of comfort or uneasy; not even when the small man lead me through the darkened opera house!

Within moments I spotted a shore, it was covered in sand and small waves lapped against it; and, a few yards away from the shoreline, there was a house! A house with a door and a black mat to wipe your feet off on! However, there were no windows. The man climbed out of the gondola and docked us, and, for some reason, I stayed stationary and the man stood beside the gondola and took me back up in his arms; smiling to me and turning me towards the house. "We're home, my bride" said he so softly and peacefully that I smiled and, unknowingly at the moment, I nodded!

He carried me so tenderly into the house that I relaxed in his arms as the door swung open by itself and swung closed behind us! The man took me into the first room, which was a small parlor-like area with red furniture which composed of: a fainting couch, a regular couch, and two wingback chairs. There also was a dark, wooden table in the midst of all this and a dark, wooden armoire sat on the left side of the room whilst a black, marble fireplace sat on the right, blackened even more from years of usage. He laid me down upon the fainting couch and hurried to the table before me, sitting down upon it and sighing in satisfaction. "I dare not tell you how distraught I was, my love, when you didn't return from the market; oh, Ayesha cried for hours upon end!"

He cried with a chuckle, he sighed and jumped up. "Ayesha! She must see you again! Oh, she'll be so happy you're back!" He yelled in excitement, smiling and shuffling out of the room into a different room, only to return seconds later holding a small cat in his arms.

Ayesha was a cat!

I thought she was a child!

I smiled and the man took this smile for remembrance; he handed me the cat and grinned as she purred happily in my lap, knocking her hand into my hand and rubbing against me. Ayesha was a Persian cat with blue eyes and she wore a golden collar complete with inlayed diamonds and rubies! Gosh, the collar alone must be worth two billion pounds, not to mention such an expensive cat!

This man had a taste for the lavish.

He stood before the fainting couch and watched as the cat licked my face and settled down upon my lap; laying her head down upon her paw and closing her eyes. She was going to sleep on me! I had never met this cat before, h-how did it get to like me so fast? The man knelt down to me and took up my hand kissing it multiple times and pressing it against his cheek; closing his eyes and relaxing his body.

As I stared at him the urge to kiss him became more and more overpowering until, I finally did! It was a kiss to his forehead, and it was a quick one at that. The man looked up to me and smiled both with his lips and his eyes; snuggling up against my hand once more. I smiled, and glanced down to the sleeping cat upon my lap, she would let out a purr every so often, my smile widened, I liked it here. It was quiet and peaceful, but, the busy world of Paris was just up above if I needed a break from it all; it wouldn't be a bad set up...

Oh, my.

I should've listened to mother!

I was getting attached to this man, this life, I needed to tell him who I really was and maybe the real Christine would come back and retain her life.

When thinking this thought I turned and stared through a door that the man had disappeared through to get Ayesha, when I saw a portrait of me! But, it was me in a dress I had never seen before, and, I was singing! And, it was me, unmistakably me! I had a birthmark on my neck, and, sure enough, I could clearly spot it!

My god.

...Who am I?