Paige's POV:
Breakfast that morning was enjoyable, as I was sitting as close to Erik as possible without winding into the same situation as last night.
Erik handed me a cup of tea. "Here, drink this. I put some feverfew in it, which should take effect in a few days."
I cocked my head to the side. "Feverfew?" I asked.
Erik looked at his plate awkwardly. "It prevents… pregnancy."
I blushed, drinking the tea. I could taste the herb in it, and, let me tell you, it didn't taste all that wonderful.
"I'm going to go visit Marisa at Madam Webber and Madam Laufle's estate today," I told him halfway through breakfast.
He smiled. "You should. You're spending far too much time underground."
I laughed. "Oh, I don't mind. There's a certain musical genius that lives down there, and I love him with all my heart," I said teasingly. "His name's Erik. You should meet him sometime, he's a great guy."
Erik hugged me around the waist. "I love you," he murmured.
"You are my life now," I told him. Great, now I'm quoting Edward Cullen. Love does strange things to you.
Erik came with me as far as the stone door in the candle lit corridor. I kissed him lightly on the lips before entering the opera.
"Hurry back," he said.
I smiled. "Always."
~0~0~0~0~0~
After a ten minute drive, the carriage I was riding in pulled into a halt outside what I assumed was my friend's estate. I handed the cabby ten francs, stepping out and walking up the brick path.
I knocked on the door, which was opened by one of the maids.
"I'm here to see Madam Webber and Madam Laufle," I said. The maid showed me into the parlor, where I sat and waited.
"Paige!"
I turned and smiled. Alexis and Kelly were standing in the doorway. I stood, walking up to them and hugging them.
"It's so good to see you guys," I said. "Can you please explain this very expensive estate to me?"
"You first," Alexis demanded. "What's all this about you dating the Opera Ghost?"
"Marisa," I muttered.
"You rang?" my paralyzed friend asked. Marisa was sitting in a wheelchair, pushing it forward to greet me.
"Yes, I did ring. You told them?" I asked.
"Not much. Now tell us about your week with the Phantom!"
I explained the good parts of my stay with Erik to them, minus, of course, last night.
"Love at first sight…" Kelly said dreamily.
"Now I'd like to know what happened here!" I demanded.
"So, first, Kelly and I woke up in the middle of the night, only to find a broken window and you four gone. So we went inside," Alexis began.
Marisa took it from there. "And when they came up to Cadence, Madeline, and I, well, I fell off the stage in surprise, and, well, this happened." She gestured to the wheelchair she sat in.
"And the estate?" I asked.
"Well," Alexis said. "I have some French relatives, ancestors, more like it. So when I stepped through the window, I was suddenly carrying a purse, which happened to contain two hundred thousand francs."
"That's weird," I said. "But awesome."
"Will you stay?" Kelly asked. "Here at the estate, at least overnight?"
I shook my head. "I'm sorry, but I promised him I'd return as soon as possible."
They nodded, understanding.
"So, do anything fun lately?" Kelly asked jokingly. I looked away, blushing.
Apparantly Marisa's a mind reader now, because she took in my current state almost instantly.
"Paige Nicole Mallory!" she exclaimed in shock. "You didn't….!"
I blushed even redder, turning away from them.
"What do you mean… PAIGE!" Kelly exclaimed, understanding as well. Alexis's jaw dropped as she realized what they meant.
"Paige, you're only fifteen! How could you even think about doing something like that?" Alexis asked, thoroughly shocked.
"I didn't," I said. "Honestly. It just sort of… happened. Believe me, he didn't do it on purpose. He was actually trying his hardest not to."
"Too bad they don't have pregnancy preventing medicine in this time period," Alexis muttered.
"No," I agreed. "But they do have herbal remedies."
~0~0~0~0~0~
I was back at Erik's home in less than fifteen minutes. Erik greeted me with open arms.
"How was your visit?" he asked.
"Interesting," I said honestly. "They haven't changed a bit… except for Marisa, of course."
He smiled, kissing me.
"We won't go as far as last night," Erik swore.
"No promises," I disagreed. "But we can try."
"On second thought," he chuckled. "Maybe…"
I silenced him with a kiss, replaying the night before to the best of my ability.
"We're going to need more feverfew," Erik said with a laugh, carrying me to the bedroom.
