Christine woke up at the wee hours of morning and found herself somehow back in her bedroom. The drive seemed to be a beautiful dream that she woke up from: perfect, gentle, and idealistic. Now she fancied herself to be left alone yet again to sleep off the dream. But the room wasn't vacated of guests; Christine's low position in laying on the bed prevented her from seeing Erik sitting off to the side of the room. A low light illuminated the bedroom dimly enough for Erik to notice her eyes opening amidst his reading.
"Ahh, an early good morning to you Miss Daae." He chuckled.
Upon hearing his voice, she jolted in surprise and brief fear then relaxed after recognizing that the stranger was really the familiar masked man.
"Oh my goodness, Erik, you frightened me." Christine sighed and sat up in her bed.
"You finally see me as the monster I am?"
"How dare you make that assumption! I couldn't possibly understand how people view you so cruelly."
"Ah, pardon me. Both for the assumption and for frightening you."
"Why are you in here at this ungodly hour?"
Erik shifted his position and uncrossed his legs, taking a few steps towards the bed to sit down at the edge. At least there Christine wouldn't have to strain her eyes to see him.
"Well, the last few times I've left you alone after something...momentous...it didn't result in a very nice outcome. This time, I decided to stay at your bedside."
"Aren't you sleepy at all? I don't believe that chair is too comfortable for you."
"It is of no matter. I hope you enjoyed the nighttime ride and that you didn't fall asleep of boredom?"
"Of course not! It was marvelous." Christine assured him, leaning towards him and gratefully kissing his bare cheek.
Her delicate hands remained on the sides of his face, gently hinting that she wished to remove the cold mask. Erik hesitated at first but slowly eased to her desire and grimaced as Christine pulled it off carefully. She smiled reassuringly as the mask was placed on the nearby nightstand. Furthermore, the brunette kissed his now-unmasked cheek to make things even. The skin was still, of course, rough and visibly warped but no monstrosity worth mistreating a person for. It was like those new art pieces the modern artists came up with: unique and requiring further thought to appreciate.
That part of his hairline receded further back on his head, as though it'd been brutally burned off, and Christine placed a soft kiss upon that side of his forehead as though it would heal his pains. Physically, Erik remained the same. Internally, however, he was healing step-by-step with his dear actress' adoration. His heart seemed to care less for the odd looks of passersby and strange whispers of those who worked for him. As long as the darling girl found him appealing, no others mattered.
Christine must have either been born with a natural kindness or greatly taught compassion and empathy throughout her childhood. There would be no other possible explanation for how she could have been willingly in such a position with Erik, who'd only been called monstrous or dreadful. What a shock it would be to those judgmental people to see him now! For as Christine removed his mask and kissed his marred cheek, she continued on to press gentle kisses all over the rest of his face.
A mere moment passed when Christine felt wet teardrops descending from his cheeks.
"Erik, what's wrong?" She frowned, immediately assuming the fault was hers.
"The stark difference of how I've been treated in the past and how you're currently treating me." He admitted quietly.
"Oh, then don't bother with being upset. That was in the past and this could be the remainder if you wish for it."
Christine wiped the tears off his face and smiled sweetly at him, keeping her hands on his cheeks. She gazed into his golden eyes, trying to decipher what he was thinking.
Erik collected himself momentarily to respond: "Was that a form of proposal?"
The brunette blushed, "I suppose so."
"Are you certain? I don't believe you're very well acquainted with the worst aspects of my character, and it would be utterly terrible for you to constantly be exposed to m-"
Christine interrupted his rambling, "You silly man! That gives me an excuse to spend more time with you and I don't believe anything will change my opinion."
"Perhaps you'll regret your hasty offer when you aren't so sleepy later today. I'll leave you for now to rest and return in the early afternoon." Erik stated, kissing Christine's forehead and leaving her alone without giving her a chance to say anything more.
With her mind realizing her fatigue, the girl lied back down onto the pillow and felt comforted by the thought of being around Erik. He was such a gentleman without expecting anything in return like most of the men in the industry. The knowledge he possessed was also indescribably impressive, especially with art or music. It would be impossible to grow bored of someone so brilliant and dynamic. Her comforting thoughts were the only thing in her mind as she fell asleep.
Erik returned as promised in the morning. Christine was glowing with contentment as she recollected old memories of adventures with her father to Erik. He looked happy, unmasked, at the girl's openness to him and the love she possessed for her father. Christine hadn't mentioned anything about the late-night (or rather early-morning) proposal and Erik didn't plan on reminding her. But if she did, there would be no hesitation in happily accepting her choice from the musician's side.
What a dream that would be, remaining eternally with the kind actress. They could travel to anyplace she desired, live in a regal home with magnificent gardens, work together on creating music, own multiple adoring pets for Christine's sake, and give her the opportunity to never have to work again. Dare he even imagine, starting a family with her? Perhaps that would be too much of a request with his monstrous appearance potentially being passed onto children. He couldn't live with himself if that happened. He only hoped Christine would remember and still feel the same as she did hours before.