And here we have the next installment of this series! Yay! And only a little behind schedule, and this time I swear I have a legitimate reason. My family and I went away on vacation, and there was no wifi, so I wasn't able to upload the chapter. But anyway, happy reading!
"Erik, no, really, I can't dance. I'm truly awful," Christine whined uselessly from her position on the couch, a book in her lap. Erik was standing above her, dressed impeccably as usual. His hand was extended toward her expectantly, and his gaze was fixed on her stubbornly.
"Christine, you are the prima donna of this opera house. It is expected. You can't not dance at the masquerade," Erik said, stooping down to take both of her hands in his own. He gently lifted her up from her spot on the sofa, which Ayesha promptly took, and lead her to the center of the room. "Dancing isn't as hard as it may seem."
"Augh, Erik, really! I've tried to learn how to dance before. My partner didn't escape unscathed," she said with embarrassment, letting her hands slip from his cool ones to clasp themselves behind her back bashfully.
"Ah, but Christine," Erik said, striding over to a small music box and winding it up deftly, "I was not your teacher." If the truth be told, Erik was pleasantly surprised to find the Christine didn't know how to dance. He would seize any opportunity to merely be close to her, let alone hold her in his arms.
"I suppose you're right, as usual," Christine said with a small smile. He walked over to her as the music box began to play a delicate waltz.
"Now, place one hand on my shoulder- yes, just like that, and I will put my own hand on your waist, and our free hands hold each other, extended from our bodies. Now, I know that you are already familiar with the waltz's 3/4 time signature, and all you must do is follow my steps. Avoid looking at your feet if possible, Christine," Erik said, removing his hand from her waist briefly to tilt her head so it was looking at him. Replacing his hand, Erik began to move around the room.
This wasn't exactly the most romantic of settings, with the majority of the den's furniture shoved unceremoniously against the walls, but Erik noticed with no small amount of pleasure that Christine didn't seem to notice nor care. Her tongue was protruding slightly in concentration as she tried her best not to look at her feet, though that was where her gaze was most of the time. Erik didn't really mind, though, as it gave him a chance to study her without hindrance.
"Christine," Erik said, and her head came up quickly to look at him for approval. He smiled at her gently. "I-" He stopped himself midsentence, as the music box was coming to a close. "One moment."
Erik reluctantly stepped away from her to wind up the music box one last time before turning to find Christine smiling stupidly at him.
"Is something terribly funny?" Erik asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It's nothing," she assured him hurriedly, snapping out of some sort of reverie before coming up and gingerly placing her hand back on his shoulder. "Shall we try again?"
"I think that would be prudent," Erik agreed, placing his hand on her waist before leading her around the room once more.
Several days later...
"1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3... Excellent, Christine," Erik praised, leading her around the once-more disheveled den in his home beneath the opera house. The furniture had been shoved back against the walls again, and at Christine's request, no less. She had insisted that she wanted to practice more, as she found that she rather enjoyed dancing with him.
She had improved greatly, and despite the occasional misstep, she was a graceful dancer. She was a fast learner, too, and for that Erik was grateful. He could not imagine having to teach someone with great potential that wasn't subject to the fast spurts of understanding and inspiration that he was, himself. He thought, briefly, that perhaps that made him a rather inadequate teacher.
"Thank you, Erik," Christine said with a small smile. "Do you think I'm nearly ready for the ball?" she asked almost timidly, afraid she had not met his standards.
"I believe you to be quite ready, my dear Christine," Erik said with a small smile. "Quite ready."
So, we have a tad bit of phluph here, so yay! Erm, just a fair warning to all my loyal readers that I'll be ending this series with Christine and Erik's first kiss (and I'm not talking cheek, forhead, or what have you), so keep your eyes peeled for that!
