Erik sat at his desk in the study, staring down at his lap. Under the desk, in his hand, was the ring he had designed for Christine three years ago.
The jewels glimmered in the candlelight, reminding Erik of the glimmer in Christine's eyes. He twirled the ring around between his fingers, examining it. It was still in amazing condition, looking as though he had just purchased it yesterday!
Erik badly wanted to give her the ring, to ask her to be his wife, but he was so nervous. What if she said no? What would he do?
Of course, if Christine said 'no' to his proposal, Erik would be devastated. Would he be able to get over it? Would he maybe be able to ask her again someday?
He began to wonder what the chances of Christine refusing his proposal were. She seemed very affectionate towards him lately, and, of course, she had always seemed very open to his love in the past. Had things changed so much that she would say 'no'?
His thoughts were quickly interrupted as the door to the study opened. Erik quickly opened his desk drawer and set the ring inside, slamming it closed.
Thankfully, it was only Nadir entering.
"My word, what have you got hidden in there?" Nadir asked, laughing a little as he watched the panic on his friend's face. "Is it something good? Let's see!"
Erik rubbed the unmasked side of his face, resting his elbow on the desk. "Nadir, there is nothing to hide…" he muttered, closing his eyes in frustration.
The Persian made his way to Erik's desk. "Ah, come on now, I know you've got something in there. Let's have a look."
The masked man sighed and opened the desk draw, pulling out the ring and placing it in Nadir's hand.
Nadir's eyes widened as he held the ring in his hand. "Oh my… this is exquisite, Erik. I assume this is for Christine?" he said, studying the design of the jewelry.
Erik nodded, leaning back in his chair and watching as Nadir eyed the ring. "Do you think she'll like it? It's the same one I purchased three years ago before I left Amiens. I was thinking of possibly giving it to her sometime soon…"
"Oh, you must! I knew there was something going on between you two lately! Congratulations, my friend!" Nadir cheered, clapping Erik on the shoulder. "Who knew you'd be married before me?"
Erik took the ring back from Nadir. "I'm not married yet, Daroga. I haven't even asked her what she thinks of marriage. I have no idea if she'll even agree to marry me…"
Nadir tilted his head back, letting out a loud laugh. "Oh Erik, you cannot be serious! How could she reject you? Are you blind? Do you not see the way that girl looks at you? You must be insane to think she would ever say 'no' to your proposal!"
"You never know, Nadir! She could be just pitying me! She might still be mad at me for leaving her! I don't know what's going through that head of hers!"
The Persian shook his head. "You are indeed mad, my friend. We both know that she will not reject you. You'll be married in a matter of months, I know it!"
Erik thought about that for a moment. Nadir wasn't wrong… in a couple of months, Christine could become his wife. Oh, just imagine that, Christine as his wife! It was something he once could only dream of, and now his dreams were becoming reality!
Erik had a new sense of confidence as he placed the ring back in its box. "Alright, you've won me over. I'll ask her. When I'll ask her, I'm not sure, but I'll do it."
Nadir clapped his hands together, smiling brightly at his friend. "Ah, fantastic! Come now, I'll help you plan everything out!"
The two men went to work with their planning, wanting to make sure the planned the moment to be absolutely perfect for Christine.
Christine, Meg, and Leila exited a carriage later that afternoon, heading for the best dress shop in Vienna. Earlier that morning, Nadir and Erik had both talked to Leila and Meg, telling them to make sure Christine got a beautiful gown for opening night of Faust.
The two girls knew the boys were planning something, but they didn't ask. They talked Christine into going ball gown shopping with them, telling her that they all needed new gowns for the after party. Christine had been reluctant at first, but eventually agreed.
Leila and Meg pulled Christine into the shop, letting her gaze at all the beautiful gowns. "Feast your eyes, Christine. One of these is going to be yours!" Meg giggled, tugging on her friend's arm.
The three girls flocked to the gowns, looking at all different colors, fabrics, and styles. Christine wandered towards the back of the shop, leaving Meg and Leila to whisper amongst themselves.
"So, any idea what Erik and Nadir are planning?" Meg asked quietly, keeping an eye on Christine.
Leila watched as Christine picked up a red gown. "I heard that Erik go her a ring," she whispered back, a smile painting her lips.
Meg gasped, turning to the Persian girl. "No way!" she said quietly yet excitedly. "He did? Are you sure?"
Leila giggled. "Oh, I'm sure. According to Nadir, it is quite the ring, too!"
Both girls giggled, drawing Christine's attention to them. "What's so funny?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. She put the gown she was looking at back and began to make her way over to her two friends. The girls quickly stopped their giggling, looking towards each other for an explanation.
"Um… oh, it's nothing, Christine," Meg said, stepping towards her friend. "Come on, let's see if there's a pretty gown for you here!"
The girls spent nearly an hour in the shop, trying to find a gorgeous gown for Christine. Of course, there were many beautiful gowns in the shop, but none that were different than anything else. Both Meg and Leila knew their job was to make sure Christine stood out, and they were determined to do just that.
Finally, after being in the shop for so long, the owner let Meg go into the back room. In the back were dozens of unfinished gowns and a few finished ones that hadn't been displayed yet. Meg gasped as she noticed a gorgeous gown in the back corner, quickly going to it.
"Oh, this one is perfect!" She cheered. "Leila, Christine!"
Soon, all three girls were in the back room, gasping at the beauty that was this gown. It was a pinkish-cream color, covered in black beading and jewels, reminding Christine a little of her dress from Don Juan Triumphant. She slowly reached out to touchy the soft fabric, knowing that this was definitely the gown she wanted.
"The dress is all yours, but you must let me alter it for you," the shop owner said, pulling the dress off of the mannequin.
Meg and Leila quickly left the room so Christine could change into the gown. The girls began picking their own dresses, cheering giddily as the left the back room.
"He is going to love that on her!" Leila grinned, pulling out a dark blue gown to look at.
Meg giggled. "He's going to love taking it off of her more!" she said, winking playfully.
Leila gasped at Meg's comment. "Meg Giry! You little vixen!" she teased, covering her mouth to muffle her giggles.
Before Meg could respond, the door to the back room opened, revealing Christine in the gown. Leila and Meg both gasped, quickly going to Christine and gushing over how lovely she looked.
The two girls knew this would be perfect. After picking out gowns of their own and purchasing them, they returned home to report back to Erik and Nadir.
Supper that night was odd for Christine. Everyone at the table kept glancing at each other, exchanging smirks or winks during small talk. Everyone seemed to be looking at each other, but no one was looking at her.
"What's going on?" Christine asked, furrowing her brows.
Everyone's attention quickly went to Christine. "Nothing, Christine. Why do you ask?" Antoinette Giry said, taking a sip of wine.
Christine glanced at everyone at the table. "You all seem so suspicious. Is there something you all know that I don't know?"
There was a long pause before Erik finally spoke up. "Yes, Christine. The thing we all know that you don't is that we know nothing," he said, smirking as he teased her.
A frown appeared on her face. "That's no fair, I know you all know something," she protested.
Erik slowly took her hand, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. "You and I can speak later," he said in a hushed voice as everyone else at the table continued other conversations. His eyes stared into hers, communicating silently.
Finally, Christine nodded and sighed. "I just don't like to be left out on information, Erik, you know that," she said softly, pursing her lips.
The masked man gave her hand a light squeeze. "Oh, I know, but trust me on this. I'll tell you, don't worry. Just be patient, my love," he said. Erik leaned over and planted a light kiss to her cheek.
Christine gave in. "Alright, alright. But you owe me a better kiss than that later," she whispered, a small smile painting her lips.
"Will do," Erik promised, giving her a smirk in return.
Tomorrow would be the day. Faust was to open tomorrow and it would be the perfect time to ask her, that is, if all goes well. Erik could only pray that everything went right. Everything had to be perfect, for that was exactly what his Christine deserved.
Throughout the rest of their supper, all Erik could think about was the day ahead of them. He was so determined to make it a great day for Christine, and he would stop at nothing to make sure of it.
Author's Note: Short and sweet little chapter for you all! As you can tell, big things are coming up as the story comes to an end, so stay tuned! (: