I apologise. Making any of you wait this long is of course unfair to you. It's been partly because I am madly busy with school, and also because I've procrastinated writing this story. I'm having another major exam which will decide what university or scholarship I can get and I really can't afford to screw up, so I also can't promise you when the next chapter will be. It's too time consuming to keep writing new chapters and I really need to study. Still, thank you so much to those who continued to read this fanfiction even though it has been so long.

*Also, I highly recommend you to play this video for music as you read the chapter. It really gives you the feels.

Type (youtube) and /watch?v=baEmXog3T-M

It seems like this site doesn't allow me to add links here. You can also go to Youtube and type "Johnathan Roxmouth Music of the night". You really need the music (his lovely voice) as you read the first part of this chapter. Highly recommended.


Amidst the darkness, a gentle, deep voice emerged. His voice was so soft, it came like a whisper that it tickled my ear, then it slowly dissipated away before the smooth, mellifluous sound of strings took over. The music was melancholic, almost wistful like it yearned so much for something it would never have, and yet it was ethereally beautiful in its own way. Like twilight in the darkness, the voice was utterly captivating and alluring, but yet the soul of it was so tortured and intensely in anguish. The song was absolutely heart rending, I could feel his pain and his torment and it pierced my heart so deeply. Why was there so much pain? So much sadness? Why was it so hurt and broken? Then the elegant, graceful strings of the violin took over, serenading me with its sweet, pleasant music. Before I knew it, my tears began to fall. I loved it. I loved the very soul of this music. I awoke, clumsily fumbling with my bedsheets as I stared off in a daze. The room was almost pitch-black with only the soft, pale glow of moonlight lucent in the dark night. I could barely see anything, and there was an uncomfortable burning sensation coming from my forehead, along with the dull throbbing from my arm. But at that moment, nothing else seemed to matter. It was only that seductive voice that was enticing me, beckoning me towards it. In a blur, I got up and sauntered off, following wherever the music was coming from. Across the dark, dimly lit hallway, I unwittingly dragged my clumpy, messy rolls of bandages across the floor, but none of it seemed to matter to me. I walked slowly into one of the rooms and huddled in a small corner. With my eyes closed, the tender, deep voice seemed to enclose and wrap all around me, and I sighed softly as I felt myself drifting away with his music. Everything right now seemed to be a blur. My eyelids were as heavy as lead and I felt this immense exhaustion simply overwhelming me completely. The feverish burning sensation on my forehead was beginning to grow, and my limbs were starting to feel heavy. The dull ache from my arm began to throb more painfully, but I just didn't seem to have any energy. Instead of leaning my back against the wall, I slowly let my body gradually lie on the floor as a deep slumber began to overtake me. Suddenly, the music stopped. The melody that my sweet violin strings were weaving simply vanished, and I was slightly startled and taken aback that my eyes fluttered open. In the darkness, there was barely anything that could be seen. There were only streaks of pale moonlight and silhouettes of darkness shifting in the night. My vision was beginning to unfocus and blur, but suddenly two hands grabbed me by my shoulders and I stared upwards blankly. I could barely make out the person there, I was feeling delirious and all I saw were shadows. "Your music," I whispered as I grasped his hands. "It's so beautiful. It reminds me of my father's violin. Are you my angel of music?" I smiled weakly and laughed. The exhaustion was beginning to overtake me, and I staggered for a moment. The two strong hands held me and supported me before I fell. My forehead began to burn intensely, and I could feel the stinging cold sweat down my back. It was quickly becoming prickly and uncomfortable, and so I reached out to cup his face, as my fingers softly touched his skin. "Angel, why are you so sad? If you want to cry, I'm here." Those two arms embraced me tightly and I could feel his warm, strong heartbeat.

"Christine, do you…" his voice seemed to drift away as I fell into a deep, deep slumber.

~. ~

As soon as I woke up, daylight flooded my eyes. I blinked rapidly in the light and jerked myself out of bed. The smell of medicine wafted faintly in the air, and bottles of pharmaceutical drugs were sprawled all over the table. Thick bandages were firmly wrapped around my arm, and I slowly removed them to reveal my pale, white skin. To my surprise, my arm no longer throbbed in pain and the unhealthy, alarming mass of purplish red rashes from before had already largely disappeared. There was of course, a dull ache but it was nothing much compared to the painful swelling from before. My forehead was no longer feverishly warm and my body felt a lot lighter than it was before.

"You've been asleep for three days now." he uttered from across the room. In shock, I whipped my head around and when I saw the man with his mask, I took a step back. My heart began to beat rapidly, and I could feel the fear and the adrenaline rushing through me. There he was- my captor Erik, who kidnapped me to his private island. At present, I understood how my very life was in his hands, and if he wanted to kill me out of anger, my kidnapper could very much do so- I was in his own little private island. No one would dare stop him.

My fingers began to shake uncontrollably, and I held my breath in this long, deafening silence. Only the loud thumping of my heart could be heard as I locked eyes with him. His amber eyes seemed to pierce right through me, and I was afraid, so afraid of that intimidating, angry gaze he would give me when he was furious the last time. "What is it?" As much as I tried to sound brave, or at least in a normal, audible voice, it came out timid and shaky. It was so soft it was barely even a whisper, and I started fiddling with my clothes nervously with my fingers. The heavy silence was starting to become too much for me to bear. I shrank back away from him, quickly averting my gaze. Suddenly, he walk forward briskly, and lifted my chin so I could see his amber eyes. Terror filled my soul. It was as if his eyes could peer right into the depths of me, and it frightened me immensely. The tears that welled up in my eyes began to stream down my face.

"Please," I swallowed a cry. "Please don't hurt me."

It seemed like he wanted to say something, and he stiffened when he heard me. He hesitated for a moment, seemingly having a deep thought in his mind.

Then, he cupped my face, wiping away a lone tear from my eye. "I will never hurt you," he said softly. "I only want you by my side." To my immense surprise, his voice was gentle and tender, and his eyes did not blaze with rage or fury. Instead, he looked truly genuine and sincere to me, and even for a moment, he seemed surprised when he saw me cry. My thoughts were quickly becoming disoriented, as I stared at him blankly, simply confused. I didn't dare to even breathe. He shifted his gaze downwards for a moment, then he looked back up, staring at me. "I apologise for everything that's happened. It's no wonder that you'd act this way," I was instantly bewildered, and I held my breath. His eyes were downcast again, his hands clenched tightly. "I never wanted you to be afraid of me."

It seemed as if he was truly sorry. I was at a loss of words for a moment, and looked at him in a daze.

"Why did you kidnap me?" My voice sounded naked and bare in this deafening silence. I held my breath, for it felt like this delicate, fragile ambience would shatter the moment I said anymore.

"I've known you for so long, but it seems you have forgotten," he began. "I only wanted to come into your life, that's why I took you. But it's not to see you scared of me, or to see you hurt because of me. I'm sorry."

I could only hear his breathing in the room, and nothing else. Father, what do I do? I don't know what to say, I thought.

"But you know kidnapping is wrong. So why don't you-"

"I know!" he yelled. "But I can't. I've tried everything and I still can't forget you. Every night in my sleep I can hear your voice and I can see you. In my dreams, you tempt me, you call out to me. Even if I want to, I can't let go," his finger touches my face gently. "I just want you to stay."

Perhaps it was his deep voice, or the way our eyes locked that felt like I was put under his spell. I couldn't brush his words off, nor did I know how to answer. It was just our gazes fixated on one another and more ensuing silence.

"But you can't take away my freedom either." I said.

"I don't mean to," he said. "I will let you be in this house when you've promised me you wouldn't try to escape."

"You really won't... kill me?" I uttered.

"Never," he swore. "Not even a single hair on your head will come to harm. Like I said, I never wanted to hurt you."

He held out his hand, his fingers a little curled, gesturing me to hold his. "Do you want to start our meeting all over again?"

I hesitated, feeling apprehensive, and partly confused with his words. It was as if… as if he loved me. His words were genuine, and they felt truly sincere. But I was still scared and afraid because he was, after all the one who kidnapped me here.

Perhaps it was his tone, and the way he spoke that gave me the feeling he wasn't lying. Even so, I was still afraid and hesitant, and very much confused. It felt like this decision would take me down to a path in which there was no return from. Amidst all of these jumbled up thoughts, it felt like I could… somehow try.

With trembling fingers, my hands clasped his.


Please write a review so I'll know if it's fine to continue the story in this direction, or whether I should stop it altogether. I mean, I'm writing it for my readers, not really myself and I don't really have a lot of free time either. If it's not that good, well..