Christine's POV

Erik's new safe house was nearly on the other end of Coney Island. Nadir pulled me along, past the dark, deserted streets of Coney Island, until we arrived at an old apartment building. He showed me to the top floor, into a room nearly the size of my closet. There was an old bed, and a desk, but nothing more.

"It's not much," Nadir began, lighting a small candle to illuminate the room. "But it shall have to do until everything gets back to normal."

I took a seat on top of the piles of blankets covering the bed, and looked out the window.

"Thank you, Nadir." I said. "For everything."

He smiled, and approached the door.

"Sleep well, Christine. In the morning, your new life shall begin."

And then I was left to wait. I sat there as still as could be, looking out the window, wondering when Erik would join me. It was so painful having to sit there without him. I had nearly lost him, but now that I knew he was still alive, I wanted nothing more than to spend the entire night wrapped within his arms. Hanging on the wall, there was a small clock, and at each hour it would send out a small, melodic chime. I had sat through three sessions by the time the door opened again. It was midnight now, and when I turned, Erik was walking through the door, still wearing his blood covered clothing. It was as if he had died, and I was seeing a ghost walking through the door.

"Erik…" I cried his name as I instantly rose from the bed and flew into his arms. It was as if I needed to do this, as if I needed to feel his body around my own, just to make sure that he really was here and I wasn't dreaming. No, he was here. I felt his heart beating through his shirt, smelled the wonderful musk of his cologne, and at last, sensed his arms wrapping themselves around my body. Erik was here, he was here and not gone, not bleeding and here-with me!

"I am all right, love." he assured, hugging me close. "I promise you that I meant no harm by faking my death."

"I'm not mad, Erik." I cooed. "Just relieved."

"Nobody saw me leave the infirmary. It's over now, love. The coffin was set ablaze and the Phantom is forever gone."

I lifted my head, and placed my hand gently over his chest.

"No he's not, Erik. The Phantom will always be here,inside your heart. He's the one I first fell in love with."

"I'm a complete mess, Christine. Let me freshen up and I promise you that I'm yours." Erik rose from the bed. "If you will still have me, that is?"

"I've wanted you since the moment I said "I love you."

And then I kissed him gently on the lips. Erik broke away, and headed to the other side of the room to clean up. While he was preoccupied with that, I made myself comfortable on the bed, laying there watching Erik as he began undressing. He was standing there in the light of the candle, his shadow casting itself against the wall. Every movement he made sent shivers down my spine. His scars that were plastered over the flesh of his back glowed as he stood there wiping them with a moist cloth. How badly I wanted to approach him and run my fingers over each one, just to tease him. My eyes had only been concentrating on them, until I noticed his trousers coming loose. No, he couldn't take them off, not now,not yet.

"Erik?" I called his name, waiting for him to answer me, but instead, he turned around. Oh, just the sight he had given me caused a groan to escape my throat. His chest was glowing in the candle light, pale and wet from the wash cloth. His scars were begging to be touched, even the ones that stretched from his collarbone, down his body and disappeared beneath his trousers. But when my eyes made it to his trousers, he was standing there before me, his trousers open and hanging loosely around his waist. I never had a man stand before me in such a way, and it was extremely breathtaking.

"Yes?" he finally asked me, our eyes looking into one another's, as our bodies slowly came together like a magnetic force. As I laid there against the pillows, Erik slowly leaned down like a snake wrapping its coils around its prey. His arms supported himself on the mattress behind my head, as his legs wrapped against my own. Never had we ever moved like this. It was like watching Don Juan and Aminta dance, only this wasn't Don Juan, this was Erik and I. How we had danced that night on stage was exactly how our bodies were coming together now in bed. I was left completely breathless just by his seductive movements, even the look in his eye was leaving me wanting to pounce on him.

I don't know what made me do so, but I couldn't hold back from not touching him any longer and found myself lifting both hands and placing them on his moist stomach. He seductively shuddered against my touch, as my fingers began to trace each scar up his chest. His eyes closed in pure ecstasy, as I teased a scar that was wrapped around his right nipple, tracing my finger around it numerous amounts of time. When I noticed how much he seemed to be enjoying it, I took him by surprise and placed my mouth over the exact same scar, tasting its moist surface and soapy flavor. His breath instantly became lodged within his throat, and I felt his hand slowly pry my mouth away from his chest. When I did so, his malformed lips flew to my own, kissing me with a fierce need. I groaned, causing a wonderful vibration in both of our mouths as my warm tongue danced with his deathly cold one. I tasted everything, I tasted his cold saliva, and his chilled breath forcing itself into the back of my throat. When I couldn't take another moment, I sucked on his bottom lip, a gesture that sent his soul instantly flying.

"Oh, Christine…"

My fingers gently traced his scars again, this time starting at his shoulders, and running all the way down his chest, over his stomach, and continuing to follow them beneath his trousers. Even though the fabric was loose around his waist, once my hands were inside of them, Erik's entire body tensed. My fingers were tracing the scars that were wrapped around the tops of each thigh, tracing their course and coming back out of his trousers again to trace upward.

"Oh, angel, that feels so good." he sighed into my shoulder.

I continued doing this, Erik beginning to kiss the side of my neck. A new sensation tore through my body as the feeling of his lips kissing the flesh below my ear began. I cried out and began running my hands quicker over his body.

"Oh….does my Christine enjoy that?" he breathlessly gasped in between kisses.

But I couldn't answer him, for I was laying there at a loss for words.

"Erik! Yes, please don't stop."

"Erik doesn't plan to." he softly cried, lightly brushing my hair with his fingers.

As his lips continued to seduce me, I felt his hands snake themselves around my back and begin unbuttoning my dress. As his musical fingers maneuvered each one, he would curse under his breath in between kisses. To make things easier for him, I rolled Erik over, and placed myself on his chest so that I was laying on him. As his hands continued to work on my dress, I placed my lips to his ear and began gently kissing it.

"Oh, mon ange….yes…"

Just the sound of his groans heightened my pleasure, and I continued, feeling the last button of my dress finally coming undone. When his cold hands found their way to the flawless flesh of my back, I deeply sighed to this new sensation.

"You are so beautiful, Christine."

I pressed a kiss to his lips, and smiled.

"You haven't seen any part of me yet."

Yes, when I had given myself to Erik nearly a year ago, we were naked, but close to being in complete darkness. Then again, when I had tried to show him my body a few months ago, he nearly had an attack before any of my clothes could come off.

"Don't you wonder what I look like, Erik?" I seductively asked.

"Yes, mon ange." he cooed. "But Erik does not deserve to feast his eyes on something so beautiful."

Erik propped himself up on his elbows and for the first time, I lowered my dress, letting it pool at my waist. I'll never forget the look in his eyes the moment they lowered to my bare chest. He seemed nervous at first, but his expression quickly slipped away, leaving him with tears welling up into his eyes. I wasn't sure why he was crying, but watched him as he plopped back against his pillow, tears pouring down his face and a joyful smile tugging at the side of his mouth.

"Erik? Erik, what's wrong?"

"Oh, Christine…" he sobbed. "Y-You are so beautiful…So, so beautiful. Erik has never seen a woman's bare chest before his own very eyes. Books, yes-but…"

"Erik, please don't cry." I said. "Please don't act as if I'm giving this to you as a gift."

Erik instantly sat up, and placed my hands into his own.

"Yes," he assured. "A gift. And what a beautiful gift it is, Christine."

I looked down at his scarred hands, my finger spinning around his wedding band that he still had on his ring finger.

"I love you, Erik." I looked into his blue, teary eyes. "And tonight will not be a gift. I'm doing this because I wish to."

Erik lifted my hands to his lips, and pressed tiny kissed to them.

"Erik will try to satisfy Christine. He will do his best."

I smiled, and laid back against the mattress. Erik's body was trembling now, as he too, leaned over me, supporting most of his weight on his elbows. He was staring down at my chest as if staring down at a new instrument. I knew Erik was inexperienced with the woman body, but I already knew he was wondering about it, wondering about how to play it, how to make music erupt from its very core. But I didn't want to tell him what to do, didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable. No, instead, I reached out for one of his trembling hands and placed it over my left breast. We both gasped in ecstasy as his hand made contact with it. My world began to spin around me, as his fingers explored each crevice of my chest. Laying down was something nearly impossible once his fingers began playing me like one of his instruments. I was sucking at his neck, and wrapping my legs around his waist as our love continued to grow. My body was warm inside, and screaming to be touched by him. I gasped loudly and threw my head back as his lips replaced his hands that were touching my breasts.

"Erik…."

"Yes, say it again, mon ange…" he begged in between kisses. "Call out Erik's name again."

Erik plopped me back against the mattress again, and began running his hands up and down my bare thighs. His touch was like an electric shock to my body, and I wanted more! more! more! My fingers began tracing his scars again, up and down his chest and back into his trousers. But once I was there, I left the usual scars behind, and began tracing one that I knew all too intimately. There was one scar I had seen the night I had pleasured Erik a few months ago. It started at his inner thigh, and wrapped around it entirely before stretching all the way to his manhood and ending midway down his shaft. My finger traced it slowly, causing him to only groan even louder.

"You're driving your Erik mad." he cooed into my curls. "Mad, love! Completely mad."

But I didn't stop. Soon, my finger left his scar completely alone, and replaced it with my entire hand. The moment I began stroking him, he weakened at the knees, supporting his weight with his arms. His body shuddered as my strokes got harder and longer.

"Yes, love…" he moaned. "Just like that."

As I laid there pleasing him, I soon felt his hands trying to do the same to me. I tensed as I felt my undergarments being pulled down my legs, and once he was touching me, my sex drive only heightened.

"Yes…Oh, Erik…"

My strokes became harder on him, only increasing his orgasms.

We were at the brink of exploding, at the brink of breaking. I wanted to make love to him so badly, and I wanted to do it right.

"I need you, Erik…" I groaned, kissing him fiercely again. "I need this, now…"

"Me too, love…yes, me too."

I began to maneuver myself, but Erik caught my body in his arms and looked me in the eyes, nearly breathless.

"You're sure, Christine?" he asked.

"Yes, I want to make love to you, Erik. If you want to, that is?"

Erik laid me back against the pillows, caressing my cheek with his hand.

"Oh, Christine, I've wanted to do this since the moment I met you."

When I felt him shifting between my legs, I stopped him, gently stroking his cheek with my hand.

"No, Erik, not this way."

His face sunk.

"….A-Am I doing something wrong?"

"No. I wanted to make love to you, Erik."

"Me?" he questioned. "H-How…"

But before I could answer him, I pressed him against the mattress, and crawled into his lap, letting his desire sink deep into my body. The moment I did so, he gasped loudly, letting his body arch off the mattress.

"C-Christine…."

I had never done this before. No, when I had sex with Erik a year ago, he had been on top of me. I had let him do everything, but now….now it was my turn. Erik was nervous at first, only watching my face as I writhed on top of him, his eyes pressing shut and opening as his pleasure came in slow waves. He watched my every facial expression, making sure that I too was getting pleasure from this. Soon, we were both comfortable, and his hands placed themselves on the tops of my thighs, pressing me down even deeper on him. I cried out in pleasure, riding him as he moved with my movements, thrust his body up into my own, pleasing me with every ounce he could.

"Christine!..Yes! Oh, harder...Yes, just like that."

I rode him as if riding one of the Phantasma horses, never wanting this to end. I never expected him to do so, but at one point, Erik flipped me over and took control, thrusting deep into my body, only causing me to call out his name. I couldn't get enough of him, I wrapped my legs around his waist, arching my body off the mattress as high as I could, wanting him to get as deep as he could within me.

"I love you, Christine…" he orgasmically grunted into my ear. "Oh, yes, I love you, I love you….Sing for me…"

"I..I love you, Erik."

I was so close to finishing, so close and I knew Erik was nearly there as well. Our bodies were covered in sweat as our love only deepened for one another. I kissed every crevice of his deformity as our orgasms continued. And then, in Erik's final thrust, something happened, something that had happened the night he and I had sex on-we both finished together. This was how someone made love. This was what making love felt like…Erik and I didn't just make love, we created it…we had moved our bodies together as if dancing to one of his arias. We had created something beautifully, and there was no doubt that we would find the urge to create this beautiful love again soon.

A few seconds after finishing, Erik didn't pull away from me. No, he leaned over me, gazing down at my body, gasping for air and smiling in satisfaction.

"That was absolutely breathtaking, Christine."

I pressed a kiss to his heart, and smiled.

"Yes, it was." I placed my hand over his heart. "Your heart even cooperated."

Erik smiled, and leaned his body over my own again.

"Curse my heart. Oh, Christine, every attack was worth it if to only feel that bond with you once more."

He pressed a kiss to my neck, and a few moments later, I felt hot tears burning my flesh.

"Erik?"

"Oh, Christine…No one has ever…" he paused, lifting his tear soaked face from my curls. "Not even a whore-"

"Shhh…Erik, please, it's all right."

I wiped his tears away, and held him to my body once again.

"Oh, Christine. No woman has ever allowed me to do such a thing with them. And yet, tonight, you accepted me, with open legs, as if I were no different than any other man."

"You're not. You and I made love, Erik." I kissed him lovingly. "You're a wonderful lover…"

"Re-really?"

"Yes." I assured. "The best. I don't care what anyone else ever did, or didn't do with you. Tonight, I made love to you, Erik… We both made love to each other and that's all that matters. We belong to one another now. Forever more. If anything, any woman who would ever turn you away is the one missing out."

This instantly boosted Erik's self esteem, for he laughed as he began crying again, and passionately kissed me. We made love two more times that night, falling asleep halfway through the third time, only stopping because his heart began bothering him. I was not angry, for it had stayed all right through the first two times, allowing us to completely finish. I wasn't sure how long I had stayed asleep, but woke only when I heard a small mumbling from beside me. It was still dark outside, and when I rolled over, Erik's entire body was jerking and sweating.

"No…" he cried out. "Please, stop!"

My poor angel. He was having a nightmare. There were a few times before that I would roll over during the night and hear him mumbling things in his sleep, but never had his body ever jerked like this. To calm him down, I placed my hand on his shoulder, only causing him to fly awake into an upright position, his arms feeling around his chest and stomach.

"Erik…"

He was gasping for breath and checking over his body, still mumbling small things as he did so.

"The whip…" his hands fingered over his ribs. "Yes, one, master, two, master…"

He buried his face into his hands, and continued counting.

"…Four, master, five, master!"

"Erik…"

I wrapped my arms around his body, and pressed his head to my bare chest.

"I'm here, Erik."

"C-Christine?"

"Yes, shhh….it's all right."

"My master-"

"Is not here." I assured. "It was just a dream, darling."

"It was so horrible, Christine. Oh, so horrible…. Master was angry with Erik, so angry. Erik had refused to show his face so master punished him. Erik was pushed to his knees and stripped of his clothing."

Tears rushed to my eyes as Erik continued. How could anyone treat my angel like that? Erik was so special, and such a wonderful person. How could someone want to hurt him?

"Erik, tell me what happened. Was it a dream? Or were you dreaming about something that really happened?"

We both laid back down, and I held him to my body within the darkness of our room.

"Everything that Erik dreams about are memories from his childhood. Everything that ever happens is real, and it happened."

This got me thinking about the scar Erik had on his manhood. Yes, I had seen it, yes, I had touched it, but where did it come from? I knew where some of the scars came from on Erik's body, but this one I was curious about. Surely it was something horrible, and I usually tried refraining myself from asking him about such things. But we were on the subject now, and it wouldn't hurt to ask…right?

"Erik? Could I ask you something? And just know that if you don't feel comfortable about answering it, you don't have to."

Erik looked down at me, his hand running itself over my bare thigh that was beneath the blankets.

"Christine has laid here with her Erik all night long. She has comforted him through his nightmares. Surely answering a simple question would be the least he could do for her."

"It's not a simple question, Erik. It's about your scars, and I know how talking about them brings back horrible memories."

"No, Christine." he pressed a kiss to my shoulder. "Answering a question about that would be of no harm. I am reminded about them every day. I am reminded about them when I dress, when I undress, when I bathe myself. They are always there, and when my fingers brush over them in the midst of bathing or dressing, those memories flash through my mind. Each one holds a different story, and when my fingers brush over each one, those stories turn into memories, memories that begin playing in my mind the instant of any contact. I hear the screams, I hear the crowds laughing, I hear my master shouting at me. Then I see. I see myself being hurt, I see the crowds, I see my master-No, answering a question will do no harm."

"I wish I could make those memories disappear from your mind, Erik."

"No, Christine, that's not possible. I myself have tried everything in my power to do just that. No, some things never go away. The past never dies."

"How did you get the scar?"

"Which scar?" Erik motioned to his naked, scarred body. "As you can see, I have many."

I ran my hand down beneath the blankets, over the top of his thigh, and began tracing the scar that stretched down to his manhood.

"Ah, my Christine is interested in that one. How did I not guess?"

His tears were instantly gone, and I saw him slightly smile.

"I first saw it the night I pleasured you a few months ago. But, I didn't want to ask you about it."

"That was a painful one." he replied, brushing his fingers through my curls. "I was eight years old."

"Eight?" I gasped. "Who would have don-"

"My master." Erik interrupted. "You see, in the camp I was condemned to, the gypsies had yearly rituals. One ritual they had was a yearly courting celebration. It was during my first spring with them, and when I heard about it, I wanted to watch. My master being the horrid monster that he was, locked me in my cage when I begged him to let me watch the celebration. So, I disobeyed him."

"What did you do?"

"I picked the lock on my cage and got out. It was such a beautiful celebration, Christine. All the gypsies were gathered around a roaring fire, there was music, and young gypsies dancing. Young adult boys and girls would dance around the fire, never staying with one dance partner. As I watched from a distance, I soon learned that the game of it all was to keep one another guessing. I was entranced by such a beautiful thing. By the end of the music, each of the boys were matched with one of the girls by the way they danced with one another. In their country, it was said that a beautiful match can only be made through the music their bodies make during a dance. So after they were matched, each couple wandered off towards a tent. Well, I was curious, curious to know what happened next. So instead of going back to my cage like I should have done, I walked the same path the couples did. When I was outside of the first tent, I heard noises, and only wished to peek inside. When I did, I saw a boy and a girl on top of one another without any clothes on."

"Erik, I'm so sorry…."

"Don't be, I was stupid and curious. An eight year old doesn't know anything about that. So I stood there watching for a few moments. But the girl seen me, and screamed. She screamed so loud that it hurt my ears. This had the whole camp in an uproar, and they came to her defense. But this was the least of my worries, for when my master grabbed hold of me, I soon learned that the girl I had spied on was his niece."

I gasped. "Oh, no…."

"Oh, yes. My master was furious and wouldn't listen to me when I tried to get my innocent story out. I didn't know….I swore this to him, but he had it within his mind that I knew what sex was, and that I was purposely after her. So that night, he grabbed his bullwhip and dragged me deep into the woods. He tied both of my hands behind my back, and forced me to my knees. Over and over again he cracked the whip against my back and chest. But then, when he was satisfied with the blood he had spilt, he tore away my trousers."

"I'll make sure you never get it up!" Erik mimicked his master the best he could. "You will never get the chance to rape innocent gypsies!"

"What made it so sad was that I didn't know what he was talking about. Up? Rape? But that night, I came to know everything about it, and what I had seen his niece doing. My master cracked the whip against my thigh, the end of it wrapping around my leg tightly, before coming undone again. Then it came down over my manhood. I cried, oh, how I cried at the pain. I was bleeding and screaming…But the horror was far from over. That night, my master made me his, he raped me….."

"Erik, stop." I pleaded, pressing his head to my chest. "Just stop….."

My voice became soft, and I was rocking him in my arms.

"I love you…I'm sorry, I'm sorry for asking."

"Don't be. You had a right to know."

And without another word, we both fell back into a dreamless slumber, caressing one another's bodies once again, for in a few hours, our new life would begin. But making love to him again was something I anticipated on doing more than anything else, and then laying within his arms again for a lifetime…

See, clean and fluffy-(I Hope) Plus, you got to find out a small bit about Erik's past. Some of you have asked when this story takes place, it takes place right after POTO probably round the early early 1900s. Please, please, please review!