I think this might be my fastest update, and my longest chapter so far. I am very proud.
FYI this story will soon be progressing to the M rating. Yes peeps, you know what that means *wink wink*.
The next day, Christine rose early in order to get everything ready for their date. Looking out of the window, she saw with relief that it was a beautiful, sunny day. This worked greatly in her favour. She would need to go shopping to buy everything they would need, and then she would spend the rest of the morning making herself as beautiful as possible for her boyfriend. Oh how she loved that she could call him that now. Just saying it in her head made her go all giddy with joy. For the first time in her life she was in a relationship that she felt was truly going somewhere, and whats more, she wanted it to go somewhere. Perhaps before, she had wanted the relationships to fail, all be it subconsciously. She had definitely never felt as strong about any of them as she had with Erik.
After hours of agonising over terrible ideas the night before, she had finally come up with what she deemed the perfect idea. They would go for a picnic in Regents Park. Okay, so it wasn't glamorous or cultural like Erik's date has been, but it could be romantic. If they got there early enough, they could go by one of the large oak trees by the lake, away from everyone else there, and get some privacy.
The trip into town went to plan, and she managed to get everything she wanted. She was playing it simple with smoked salmon sandwiches, salads, and a variety of other cold foods. After the disaster of the night before, she decided that cooking was not a good idea.
The main problem she was facing now was trying to find Erik's house. She had never been to Mayfair before, and was quite excited about it. When Erik told her his address she had been shocked yet again at how wealthy he must be. Mayfair was the most expensive part of London, and she was sure she would be out of place just walking around the neighbourhood. Would she even be allowed into the area without showing some sort if ID proving she owned over a million pounds. She didn't believe this truly, but she still felt apprehensive as she dismounted the bus and made her way into Mayfair later in the morning.
Even though she knew somewhat the kind of grandeur she was entering, she was still surprised at the opulence of the place. Every house she passed seemed bigger, and more extravagant than the last, and many having various expensive cars in the drive, and those that didn't most likely kept them in their extensive garages. She was sure that she must look terribly silly, walking around with her mouth wide open. She couldn't believe that Erik actually lived here! Each house looked big enough to house her entire apartment building, and then some. As for the gardens, they were simply spectacular. When she was a child, and her father had still been alive, they had lived in a typical suburban neighbourhood, and they had had a gardening competition every year, with the winner receiving a prize of some sort. Mrs Appleby, the local busybody had won every single time, due to the fact that she spend practically all year perfecting her patch of land, much to the frustration of the rest of the street. It was all in good faith however, and it brought the street together.
The houses she was passing sported the largest, most well groomed gardens she had ever seen, and would have made Mrs Appleby's garden look like a dung heap. She was sure that none of the occupants went into such work as she had though, and most likely hired gardeners to do all the work. To see a competition in this neighbourhood would definitely be an experience, although judging from the distance each house was from the other, they probably never even spoke to each other in the whole time they lived there.
Erik had given her the directions to his place, telling her that he lived at the far end. Typical, she thought, as she made her way past what looked like the last house. She hoped she wasn't late. The last thing she wanted to do was to have to ring him and ask him to pick her up. Thankfully, as she turned the corner, she saw the hill, which Erik had told her led up to his house. Groaning at the look of the large hill, she began to trudge up, suddenly wishing she had taken Erik up on his offer of a lift in the first place. Of course, she had been her usual stubborn self, and wanted to go and pick him up. What had she been thinking? The picnic basket seemed to be getting even heavier as she walked as well, and the handle was digging into her fingers.
After what felt like forever, she finally reached the top, and breathed a sigh of relief, whilst clutching the stitch at her side. Glancing through the trees, she caught her first glimpse of Erik's house, and she almost stumbled on a rock on the ground. Thankfully, she managed to steady herself, and after a quick glance around realised that no one had seen her almost trip. If she had thought the houses below where grand, they were nothing when compared to Erik's house. It stood four stories high, towering above what now looked time tiny shacks below. Unlike the other houses though, it didn't look like a show home, or sand blasted to within an inch of its life, as many of the other's were. It was made of a dark gray stone, and the roof was dotted with the odd turret, making it almost like a castle. It was also considerably older than the rest of the houses, a fact which she liked a lot. The place carried a story, and had character. She had never seen such a beautiful building, and it screamed Erik with every brick and turret. She bet anything that the inside was just as beautiful as well, and she couldn't wait to see inside.
She approached the huge wrought iron gate, and peered through the bars, trying to see the house from a better angle. This was hard, due to the many trees which grew all the way around the property, blocking out her view. She was a little worried as to how she was going to get in. The security looked very well placed, and Erik hadn't told her about any codes to get in. She wasn't left to ponder for long however, as just then the gate separated, and swung open slowly with a loud creak. She glanced around, to see if someone had opened it for her, but there was no one about. Come to think of it, it was a typical Erik act to make. He made everything seem like a magic trick. Hitching the picnic basket onto her hip, she set off up the long driveway towards the house.
Christine approached the large white front door, and not seeing anything else, she banged on the door using the large bronze door knocker. She only hoped it was loud enough.
A few minutes later, the door swung open, and she was greeted not by Erik, but by a tall, robust woman, with dyed red hair, and wearing a white apron over her black uniform.
Oh My God, she thought. Erik has a maid!
"Hi." She smiled brightly at the woman. "I'm Christine. I'm here to see Erik."
"Come right in." The woman moved aside, letting Christine into the house. "I am Mrs Reynolds. It is a pleasure to meet you." She extended her hand, and Christine shook it.
As Christine walked into the entrance, she had to restrain herself from actually gasping. She had never been anywhere as beautiful as this house, and she was still in the entrance hall! The floor was a light gray marble, and opened out to form a large entrance way, and a huge winding staircase, going up towards the next floor. A huge chandelier hung above her, with what looked like thousands of real crystals dangling off it. Christine was so engrossed at the sight of it that she didn't see Erik, who was stood at the far end of the hall, watching her.
Erik stood in the doorway, staring at Christine, who seemed to be fascinated by his chandelier. Every time he saw her, he swore she got more beautiful. Today, she was wearing a simple yellow sun dress, and had a pair of sunglasses perched on the top of her free flowing hair. She looked like a ray of sunshine who had somehow managed to break through the darkness, and light up his world.
"Christine." He approached her, and she turned around, her lips turning up into one of her stunning smiles, which never failed to make him feel weak at the knees. "You look beautiful."
"Thank you. You have a lovely home, Erik." Christine forgot about the glittering chandelier. Erik was much more beautiful. As usual he was dressed in black, his hair slightly wet, indicating he had recently showered. It was beginning to curl slightly at the ends, where it brushed against his neck. He was simply delicious, and he was all hers!
"Thank you. I will give you a tour at some point."
As he reached her, she pulled him forward for a deep kiss, which left them both reeling. "I needed that."
"So did I." Erik whispered. "What's this?" He indicated towards the basket, which Christine had placed on the flood.
"It's a picnic basket. We're going to the park."
"The park?" Erik felt himself begin to panic. He could not think of anywhere worse. The park was full of people, and on a sunny day like today, the place would be packed. Crowds were the things he hated above all things. All those people staring at him in horrified fascination was not his idea of fun. He knew he should be used to it after 35 years, but the truth was he wasn't.
Christine looked disappointed. "You don't like the park?"
"No! That's not it. I am sure it will be lovely. I just have a few problems with crowds. I am sure you can understand why." He muttered.
"Do you get claustrophobic? I get a bit sometimes. It's nothing to be ashamed of." She squeezed his hand, reassuringly. "I know a great spot by the lake in Regent's Park. It's very out of the way and far away from the main tourist spots. It's very romantic." She added, smiling up at him encouragingly.
Erik could deny her nothing when she smiled up at him like that, so he found himself agreeing. "Well, we had better set off then." He reached down, and picked up the picnic box. "Christ, what have you got in here? A load of bricks?" He laughed, as he hauled the box under his arm.
"Don't be silly, Mr Muscles. It isn't that heavy. I carried that all the way here from home."
Erik looked sheepishly at her. "Did you? I was joking. It's as light as a feather." He made his point by throwing the basket up in the air, and catching it with his other hand.
"Erik!" Christine glared at him. "If you drop that you are in big trouble." Her tone was chastising, but she couldn't stop the laughter from showing in her voice. She was loving this new, playful side of Erik. He was becoming a lot more comfortable around her, and it showed.
Christine followed Erik back out the front door, still smiling.
"What are you doing?" Christine asked.
Erik had begun to open the door of the Lamborghini, which was parked in the drive, but turned around to face her, when she spoke. "Opening the car."
"You certainly are lazy, to say nothing of what your carbon footprint must be like." Christine chastised. "It is a beautiful day, we should walk, don't you think?"
Erik blanched. Whenever he did venture out of his mansion, it was always in one of his cars. The blacked out windows meant no one could see him, and he wouldn't be stared at. People would often stare at the car, but not him. That he didn't mind in the slightest. "Really?" He wrinkled his nose, causing Christine to laugh. "And I suppose you expect me to carry this as well?" He indicated towards the picnic basket he had been about to place inside the car's small boot.
"But of course." Christine grinned. "And I thought you said it wasn't heavy." She said, raising her eyebrows at him. "Come on, we're walking."
Christine strode ahead of him down the drive, with Erik following quickly behind.
........
The short walk to the park was very pleasant, and they had only had one brief disagreement over who should carry the basket. Despite his earlier grumblings, Erik insisted he carry it. She let him, knowing that men needed to exert their masculinity by doing such things.
Thankfully, it being still early, the park wasn't that busy, and they were able to secure the spot under the large oak tree by the lake.
Christine took the basket out of Erik's arms, put it down, beneath the tree, and took out the large blanket to spread on the floor. She then indicated for Erik to sit down on the grass and proceeded to pull out the contents of the basket.
"This looks lovely." Erik said as he helped her set the food on the blanket next to them. "You didn't cook any of it did you?"
"Hey!" Christine protested. "Are you saying I am a bad cook? I am hurt, Erik!" She clasped her chest, pouting. "Deeply hurt!"
"I'm sorry." He pulled her closer to him, and kissed her lips, softly. "I love your cooking."
"Well, you haven't actually eaten any of it yet. Last night's disaster prevented that."
Erik laughed. "I suppose so. I still love it." he would love anything that she did. "So have you cooked any of this then?" He pointed towards the Tupperware containers, which held, as of yet mysterious dishes, looking worried.
"Don't worry. It's all from Mark's and Spencer's. I wanted this to be perfect, so I didn't cook a thing."
For the rest of the morning they talked, and ate, stopping to kiss every once in a while. It seemed that Erik had gotten over his nerves when it came to kissing, and she was infinitely glad of it. He was a superb kisser, and she couldn't get enough of him. She would have dragged him closer to her, and had her wicked way with him, but they were in a public place. Not that that didn't have a certain appeal, she thought with a grin. If she didn't get Erik into bed soon she would go crazy. Her thoughts shocked her almost as much as much as they excited her. She had never been a particularly sexual person. She had even been called frigid a few times by some of her worst boyfriends. When with Erik however, she could think of little else but tearing his clothes off, and have him make love to her. Oh boy was she in trouble!
Erik was having a surprisingly good time. He had been dreading coming somewhere so public, but the spot Christine had found was very well secluded. Had she chosen such a spot because she knew he would prefer it, or because she was wary over being seen with him? Usually he would have assumed it was the second, but now he wasn't so sure. So far in this relationship, she hadn't seemed to be ashamed of being seen with him at all.
Every so often his mind would drift over to what had happened the previous day, and he would feel dread sweep over him. He had to tell her about what he said to her landlord, but he was having such a good time with her that he couldn't. Every time he opened his mouth to do so, he would lose the courage, and say something else instead. Perhaps if he showed her around his house later, she would be more open to the idea, once she knew what he could offer her. Deciding that this was the best way to do things, he tried to forget about the situation for the time being. For now, he would simply enjoy being with the woman he loved.
"I forgot to mention. I spoke to Kamir yesterday, and got you a full time job at the Piano Room." Erik told Christine, once they had finished eating.
Christine sat up, and grinned at him. "You did! He didn't mind did he?" She squealed at Erik when he shook his head. "That's fantastic. Thank you so much. I lov..."
Christine was prevented from finishing her sentence due to something flying into her head. It took her a few seconds to realise it was a football.
"Aw!" She turned around and glared at the group of small boys, who had kicked the ball. Even though it had hurt, she was slightly relieved. She had been about to say that she loved Erik! That would have been a huge mistake, she was sure. What a perfect way to scare him away that would have been. That being said, she still felt like giving the boys a piece of her mind, for interrupting them.
"Whoa!" The boy who had kicked the ball smiled broadly at them, obviously not sorry in the least. "Jack, these two are having sex!"
Christine almost choked, as she half laughed, half gasped in shock. These boys must know very little about the subject if they thought that they were having sex!
She was about to say something back to them, when Erik stood up.
He spoke quietly, but she sensed the fury under his words. "If I were you, I would leave right now, if you value your life at all."
Christine was slightly worried. Erik clearly didn't know anything about children in today's world. Chances of them doing anything they were told was very slim. The two boys however, suddenly stopped grinning, and stared at Erik in horror.
"Ahhh!" The boy named Jack practically screamed. "I am so sorry!" He turned tail and ran away, his friend quickly following, tripping over the tree roots in his haste to get away, and leaving their football behind.
Christine began laughing at the absurdity of the encounter.
"You are amazing! You actually managed to get rid of them. How on earth did you..." Turning to Erik, she saw he was not laughing, and if anything looked completely dejected. Her smile died. "Are you alright?"
"Ignore me Christine. You would think I should be used to it by now, but it still bothers me." He looked dejected.
"Used to what?"
Erik turned to face her, his eyes flashing dangerously. "I'm not stupid, Christine. I know what I am. I have accepted it long ago. It's others that don't seem to be able to."
"Erik, I don't know what you are talking about. You have accepted that you are what?" Christine began to feel a little nervous again. He was acting as he had during their first date at the opera, and it made her feel awkward.
"Please Christine, just don't. You know exactly what I mean." Erik growled. "I know I am hideous, and there is no denying it."
"Hi...what! Erik, are you insane!" Christine stared at him, incredulous. "You are gorgeous!"
"Please don't lie to me. I know very well what I look like, and gorgeous is the last word anyone would use to describe me. I have accepted what I am Christine." Erik refused to look at her as he spoke. He feared breaking down if he did.
"Erik, you're scaring me. Please don't be mad. I am not lying to you. Merely telling you what I think."
After a brief silence, Erik finally spoke. "I am sorry, Christine." Erik muttered, still looking dejected. "Surely you understand how I feel." He glanced up at her, as he finally made eye contact with her.
Christine could not believe what she was hearing. Erik truly thought that he wasn't beautiful. She could not understand how he could not see how gorgeous he was. Of course she would not like it if he was arrogant, but he seemed to think he was hideous. What could possibly have happened to him to make him believe such a thing? From what he had said about his childhood, she knew he had never had it easy. Her heart ached when she thought about how alone, and unloved he must have felt, and she couldn't even begin to imagine how hard life must have been for him. Yet he had managed to come out winning, due to his success in the world, but obviously so psychologically scarred. Christine knew she already loved him, and so she would do everything in her power to make him realise how truly beautiful he was.
"I don't know what she did to you Erik, but you need to get past it."
"What who did to me?"
"The woman who hurt you. She screwed you up pretty badly."
"How do you know it was a woman?" Erik asked hesitantly.
"Well, it could be a man I suppose, but then I would highly doubt you would be here with me right now." Christine giggled.
Erik's eyes widened in shock, before he burst out laughing. "Don't worry my dear, it was a woman"
"Well thank God for that! If it wasn't I would have been totally wasting my time." Christine laughed, gleaming, and she leaned forward to kiss him to prove her point that she hoped she wasn't wasting her time.
"How do you always manage to make me laugh when I am at my most gloomy?" Erik kissed her back.
"I don't know. It' a gift I suppose."
For the next few minutes they simply lay on the grass together, enjoying the sun, and each other's company. Christine was still a little concerned about Erik, and was curious about what had happened to him to make him so self hating. She wanted to ask him, but he didn't seem to want to talk about it, and she knew better than to pry. For the moment, she was happy to lie with him in the sun watching clouds. Erik seemed to have gone quiet yet again, so she used her "gift" yet again, to cheer him up.
"Look at that cloud. It looks like a giant...."
"Christine!" Erik doubled over laughing, before she could finish. He knew full well what she saw in the cloud.
"Don't you see it?" she asked, seriously.
Erik simply carried on laughing at her. His sides were actually aching, which was a very new experience for him. He could get used to this laughing thing. It was rather fun.
"What!" She protested, indignantly. "It does!"
"I think Freud would say you have problems." Erik hugged her around the waste, and brought her closer to him. "It's constantly on your brain." He tapped her forehead.
"Only when you are around." She whispered, staring at him, her eyes smouldering, as she kissed him briefly, but passionately.
Erik struggled to form a coherent sentence once she said that, but merely babbled a few monosyllabic sounds, before she claimed his lips yet again.
"And anyway." she said, leaning back, leaving Erik still trying to make his brain work from after the kiss. "Freud was the one with the problems. According to him all everyone can think of is sex and aggression. More like it was all he thought about."
I have certainly been thinking both a lot at the moment. Erik groaned to himself.
They carried on spotting shapes in the clouds, trying not to let Freudian influence intrude on their game too much, although after a while the game was forgotten, and they resumed kissing.
Erik had never felt so at ease with another human before. He was able to talk to her about almost anything, and rarely felt embarrassed, or nervous anymore. This of course excusing any discussions about certain cloud shapes. When with Christine he almost forgot about his face, and he felt frighteningly normal for the first time in his life. However, even through the joy of being with Christine, their relaxed chatter, and passionate kisses, there was still the underlying terror, which was always present in his mind that he would lose her. He was falling hopelessly in love with her, and he knew not how to stop. No matter how wonderful things seemed at the moment, it was always there, and something still felt wrong. It was almost as if he were waiting for something to come along, and ruin what they had, and take her away from him. He knew he didn't deserve someone like Christine, and it went against all the laws of nature that someone so beautiful would choose to be with him. It made no sense whatsoever, but he didn't want to question it quite yet. For now, he would try to accept things as they were, and be happy. This of course did not stop the nagging doubt at the back of his mind that things were not as they seemed, and that it was only a matter of time before everything was ruined.
Christine lay on the grass, gazing around her. They had been in the park all day, and the sun light was fading, causing the trees, and grounds to be coated in soft orangey red light. The lake looked exceptionally beautiful, the clear water now glittering eerily in the light of the setting sun. Christine sighed contentedly, and turned to gaze at the man beside her. She smiled to herself when she noticed that he had fallen asleep.
Sitting up, she turned to her stomach and lay back down, resting her chin in her hands to look down at him. She had rarely had the chance to just look at him for a long period, as he always seemed so self conscious whenever anyone was looking at him. She honestly could not tell why. If anything, he looked even more handsome when he was asleep, with his tousled dark hair falling across his forehead, and into his eyes, which were closed, his long eyelashes resting on his cheeks like little black half moons. He looked so much younger when he was sleeping, and her heart ached with love for him. She didn't know how it could have happened, but it had. She had known him just over a week, but already she couldn't possibly imagine life without him. Before Erik, she had been merely existing, and life had been a mundane chore she had to get through. She had barely even noticed that she was unhappy or lonely, but when Erik came along, she knew that that was indeed what she had been. She had never been truly happy before he came into her life. Except perhaps before her father had died. This wonderful man had changed all that however, and brought meaning, and joy to her life. Erik literally meant the world to her now, and she would do anything in her power to make sure he stayed in her life.
Christine reached her hand forward and brushed the hair out of his eyes, and ran it along his cheek, marvelling at how soft it was, before she moved it lower to feel the rough texture of his stubble.
Suddenly, Erik's hand shot out, and he grabbed hold of her wrist, hard, causing her to topple over and he was towering above her, his eyes glowing with rage.
"Aww!" Christine yelped. "Erik, you're hurting me." He was now restraining her wrist by her side, so tightly, she couldn't move.
It took Erik all of around five seconds to realise what he was doing, and he let go of her hand instantly, and lurched back, burying his head in his hands. "Oh, Christine." He wailed. "I am so sorry."
Christine clutched her hand to her chest, rubbing it with the other hand, her eyes wide in shock. What had just happened?
"Erik." He murmured, wanting to go nearer to him, but refraining. "Erik, it's alright. You didn't hurt me. I'm fine."
Erik looked at her, and she noticed there were tears glistening in his beautiful eyes. "That's not the point, Christine. I tried to, and that makes me a monster." Erik shook his head in despair, not daring to look at her. He could not believe what he had done. He had scared her, and no doubt bruised her wrist. She had delicate skin, and monster that he was, he had hurt her. There was no way in hell he deserved such an angel now.
"Erik, I woke you up, and you acted on instinct. It's totally understandable." Christine tried to reach for him, but he backed away from her. She had to convince him that she was fine, and he over reacted. Her wrist didn't hurt at all anymore, and she was over the shock. "Please come here." She opened her arms, wanting to hold him. He was obviously a great deal more upset by the situation than she was.
Erik stared at her open arms. He wanted nothing more than to go to her, and hold her, but he didn't dare. If he did he would never be able to let her go, and he did not deserve her comforting. He should walk away right now, and leave her. It would be the best for her, although he knew it would kill him.
"Erik, please." Christine could now feel tears begin to form in her own eyes. "I need you."
He finally relented, and flung himself into her arms, holding her tightly. "Please forgive me Christine. I hate people touching my face, and I reacted on instinct."
"I know." She stroked his head, soothingly. "Please don't worry about it. I am fine. I am sorry too. If I had known, I wouldn't have done it."
Christine held him for a few minutes, his head resting on her shoulder. Her own head was in turmoil with what had just happened. He had barely hurt her, but she had been shocked at his reaction to her merely touching his face. He was a lot more self conscious than she had originally thought, and she felt the anger rise up inside her over what must have caused his to react to such a thing. Whatever had happened to him must have been terrible, and she wanted to kill anyone who had ever caused him pain.
"How about we go back to yours and you give me that tour you said you would give me?"
Erik agreed, and they packed up the picnic, and set off walking. They were lucky they set off when they did, as it began to rain just as they began packing away, and they had to dash for cover under a much larger tree. Christine laughed, and hugged on to Erik, as they crouched beneath its branches, which provided very little shelter from the sudden downpour. In the end, they gave up waiting, and ran out into the rain, hand in hand across the park.