Disclaimer: I do not own PhofOp.

The Pull

Christine let out an exasperated breath as she, once again, got a text from Raoul saying that he was with Erik. This had been the fourth time this week Raoul had told her that he was spending the day at the blind man's shop.

Christine had been relieved that first day when Raoul had come back home to tell her that the compel she had placed on the roommate would not be broken. Why? Because the man they had known was in the apartment was blind, therefore hadn't been able to see the blood if he had been in the same room. They didn't have to worry about being exposed anymore, the blood was long gone, the man was under a compel and the only person that could have broken it wasn't able to.

Christine was more than happy to go back to their quiet life in their new home, but Raoul had thought differently. For some reason, he kept going back to see the blind man, who Raoul had told her was named Erik. He had said this with a goofy grin that made Christine suspicious. She was not worried about him cheating on her, oh no, the two of them were mates and as a result couldn't cheat on each other, it went against their entire being. However, she did worry that Raoul might do something that would cause them to move prematurely.

She had brought up her concerns with Raoul, but he brushed them off. He reassured her that he wouldn't harm the man, he liked him too much for that, and he only wished to get to know him better. He was fascinating, Raoul had told her.

That had made Christine uneasy since Raoul didn't usually get interested in people easily, but after his third day with the other man with no bloody end, Christine began to feel more comfortable with Raoul hanging out with him.

Recently, it's been getting a little annoying. Raoul always found a way to bring Erik into the conversation. From what Raoul has told her about him, she was pretty sure that this Erik more or less only tolerated Raoul's presence, but she didn't have the heart to tell him that.

It was exasperating with all the talk about the man, but Raoul was happy, and Christine wouldn't do anything that would cause that to go away.

If Christine didn't know any better, she would say that Raoul had a crush on the man, but that was impossible and confusing. The two of them were mates, meaning that neither of them needed another person in their lives, yet here Raoul was, acting like Christine did when she had first met him and she had discovered that he was her mate…

Christine straightened up at the thought, glancing back at her phone that was on the counter in front of her where it sat there innocently.

When Christine had first met Raoul, it was to drink from him. A gentleman that would stop to assist any lady he believed to be in trouble. An easy target in those days. When she had gotten close enough to drink from him she had discovered that she couldn't do it. His scent had been pulling at her yet she couldn't do the deed. She had let him go free.

She had searched through her father's journal about their kind to find out anyway as to why she had been unable to bite him and had found out that it was because he was her mate. The scent of a mate was intoxicating and attracted yet they could not be bitten without the mate's consent.

Christine had been dumbfounded that she had found her mate and entered his life in a more casual way a few weeks later. Within three months, he had begun to court her and the year after that she had told him her status. He hadn't cared that she was a creature of the night, instead he asked her to marry him which she happily accepted. Two years later, Christine offered to share her life with him her way and he had accepted. She turned him and they haven't parted.

Because they were mates, Christine had never bothered to tell Raoul how she had known and he had never asked. They had found each other and that was that.

However, Raoul was showing unusual interest in another and it gave Christine a pause.

From what she knew about mates, never has the mate of one found a mate in another. That would be too cruel for even lady fate. Plus Raoul has not mentioned anything weird about his interactions with Erik, not anything about the scent and/or need to bite him but not being able to.

Christine didn't know what was going on with Raoul and while she was happy that he was happy, she wanted to get to the bottom of the question that was poking her mind.

When Raoul returned home that evening, Christine was waiting for him in the living room.

"I want to meet him." Christine announced simply.

Raoul paused inside the doorway with a frown, cocking his head to the side in question but then his entire face lit up as he understood what she meant. "Really?"

Christine shrugged and stood up from the couch. "I want to know him in person. If you can be friends with him, I don't see why I shouldn't."

Raoul's smile widened and he went over to her. He took her hands in his and kissed her cheek.

"Thank you, love." Raoul whispered against her cheek before pulling back.

Two days later, Christine was waiting with Raoul for Erik in front of his apartment. Apparently, Raoul had taken to walking with him to the shop. Christine wasn't sure if Raoul had asked permission from Erik to start doing that, but Raoul was the type to do what he wants anyway. The door opened and Erik's roommate, Mr. Khan, walked through with a scowl coming onto his face as he spotted them. Christine could smell him from there, a strong coffee scent that was mixed with gun powder. Raoul had told her that Mr. Khan was a detective, which matched the dark man perfectly.

Raoul ignored the look and cheerfully waved at him.

Mr. Khan shook his head and went towards his car. After he drove off, they had to wait a few minutes for Erik to step out.

The first thing Christine noticed was that he dressed as well as Raoul said he did, the next thing was the white cane grasped in his left hand. Then was his face that was as disfigured as Raoul had described it. It wasn't like anything Christine had seen before and she has seen a lot over her many years.

Suddenly, a breeze blew towards them and she gained the first sniff of Erik's scent.

Instantly, Christine placed her hand over her mouth and nose, hunching forward slightly as a strong scent of apple and parchment filled her nose causing her mouth to water and fangs descend against her will.

Raoul didn't notice her movement because he had started towards Erik as soon as he stepped out. Christine heard him call his name and Erik respond but couldn't focus on anything else.

Impossible, she thought as the nagging feeling to go to Erik pulled at her gut. This shouldn't be possible!

But she couldn't deny the tug she was experiencing. It was the same one she had felt after she had met Raoul.

"Christine?"

Christine glanced up to see Raoul staring at her with concerned eyes. Was he worried for her or did he think that she was going to attack Erik?

Either way, she needed to get her act together.

Trying to ignore the scent, she forced herself to straighten. Her fangs withdrew into her gums and swallowed down the saliva that had built up. She couldn't do anything to stop that part, but at least she won't have trouble talking. She made her way over and stopped within a few feet. Erik cocked his head towards her, though his gold eyes weren't on her, but next to her.

"Erik, this is Christine Daae." Raoul introduced her, his eyes still watching her wary.

"Hello, Miss Daae." Erik greeted, he held out his hand in front of him. His deep voice sent a shiver down Christine's spine.

This is not good, she thought as she took his hand in hers and shook it.

"It's nice to meet you. Raoul has told me a lot about you." Christine stated with a light tone.

"He has a fondness of speaking about you as well." Erik replied letting go of her hand.

"Good things I hope?" She asked, taking a glance at Raoul who held an innocent expression.

Erik grinned softly. "Only the best, I assure you."

"Hmmm, somehow I don't completely believe that." Christine answered. "I'll be sure to share embarrassing stories about him later."

Erik chuckled and Raoul immediately got in between the two of them, facing Christine.

"Okay! That's enough of that now!" Raoul hurried to say. "Christine, you got to go to work and Erik needs to head to his shop."

Christine raised her eyebrow at him but didn't argue because it was true.

"See you around Erik." Christine stated.

"Good day, Miss Daae." Erik replied with a nod.

Her shift at the hospital went by extremely slowly. There were no emergencies all day and with the nagging pull tugging at her gut and the need to talk the Raoul it was agonizing to deal with.

Finally, it was time to clock out and she was the first one to do so. She got a couple looks at that, but she ignored all of them to get back as quickly as possible. When she got in her car, she sent a quick text to Raoul to tell him that they needed to talk. She got a thumbs up in reply and made her way home.

Raoul was inside their apartment when she entered and stood up from the couch. Christine shook her head and gestured for him to sit back down, which he did.

"Is everything alright?" Raoul asked as she paced the floor in front of him. "Does this have to do with what happened this morning?"

"Yes." Christine answered simply, trying to think of a way to tell Raoul what she knew.

Raoul's eyebrows furrowed down. "What's wrong?"

"I wouldn't say there's something wrong, just complicated. Very complicated." Christine answered.

Raoul now raised one eyebrow. "Are you going to tell me or not?"

Christine sighed and stopped her pacing. She stood in front of Raoul and crossed her arms across her chest. "When you're with Erik do you…feel something?"

Raoul frowned. "What do you mean?"

She stinks at explaining. "I mean, is there a part of you that constantly tugs at you to be closer to him? It calms down when you're together but every second apart drives you up the wall."

Raoul's eyes took on a sheen of understanding so Christine pressed forward. She uncrossed her arms and dropped to her knees in front of him. She took his hands in hers and gave them a squeeze.

"Do you find his scent the most delicious thing you have ever smelled and wish to bite?"

Raoul took on a guiltily expression. "I, ah, tried to bite him the first day."

Christine squeezed his hands again reassuringly. "And what happened?"

"I…I couldn't do it. It felt wrong trying." Raoul confessed in a whisper.

"There's a reason for that." Christine started. Raoul stared at her expectantly, but she hesitated. She didn't want to admit that she thought that Erik was their mate, Raoul would find that hard to believe, but maybe if he came to the thought on his own…

"You know how I told you that you were mine and that I've known it since we first met?" Christine asked.

Raoul nodded warily, his eyes squinting at her.

"The reason I knew was because I wanted to bite you but I couldn't." Christine told him.

She watched Raoul think about that, she could particularly see the wheels turn the information over. She knew the exact moment Raoul understood what she was implying because his hands jerked out of hers and he leaned back with wide eyes.

"Mate." Raoul breathed out, swallowing largely as his eyes dilated at the term.

Christine nodded and moved so that she was sitting on the couch next to him. He turned his head towards her.

"How is that possible? We've already found each other." He protested.

Christine shrugged. "I haven't had the time to look through my father's journal again, but from what I remember, it's extremely rare but not unheard of."

"And you're feeling the same?" Raoul pressed. "You're feeling the pull?"

"With the exact intensity as when I met you." Christine offered.

Raoul dropped his head on the back of the couch, staring up at the ceiling. "This is crazy. What are we going to do?"

"I don't know." Christine admitted. "It was easy for the two of us. We were a man and a woman, we did what was expected and fell in love."

Raoul snorted. "Won't argue with you there."

"Maybe." Christine began to suggest. "We can start by staying by his side. He won't feel a pull like we do, but it'll be enough that he'll let us be near him. It's already working towards you."

"Hey, I'll have you know that my charming personality helped me, not the pull." Raoul scowled her.

Christine rolled her eyes. "Yes, yes, of course. Either way, we'll make do as we go along."

Raoul grinned. "I can work with that."

There we go! Another chapter up! Hope you enjoyed it, if you did be sure to leave a review! So yeah, now they know Erik is actually their mate and that's why Raoul couldn't bite Erik. ;) Things shall move forward! Next chapter will be in Antoinette's POV! See ya next time!