Disclaimer: I do not own PhofOp.

It Doesn't End with the Rescue

Raoul and Christine had a lot of explaining to do to the police after they were able to get Erik into the hospital. All Raoul wanted to do was sit and wait by Erik's bedside for him to wake up but instead, he was stuck at the police station being questioned repeatedly. Luckily, the four of them had thought of their story beforehand, Mr. Khan telling them about all the tactics the police would use to shake their story.

The story was simple enough. Erik had been kidnapped by the murderer of the woman in the news and Raoul and Christine had gone to save him. It ended in the death of the murderer and her accomplices but there was no evidence to be had because an explosion got rid of it.

It had been fun and extremely satisfying blowing the warehouse up.

The police were all over the site and when Raoul had found out about the cage that showed signs of being lived in, Raoul wished that Carlotta was alive again only for him to rip her apart himself. The police questioned why they didn't go to them when Erik had gone missing, but they explained that they were scared for Erik's life if the killer found out that they had gone. It was a normal enough excuse and the police eventually believed them. The case was closed and they were set free.

The press went a little crazy about finding out there was a murder survivor and 'heroes' that saved him. Mr. Khan was helpful in that regard, getting rid of them expertly as a veteran dealer of the press.

Erik remained at the hospital in a coma while this happened. Mme. Giry had cried in relief when Raoul and Christine had come back and told them that Erik was alive. Injured, but alive. Mr. Khan had slumped forward, almost falling over when he heard the news. The first thing they did was go visit Erik.

Erik had suffered from massive dehydration and hunger. He also had a concussion that put him in a coma, and serval broken bones that included a few ribs and his ankle. Then there was the blood loss. Doctors had been shocked that Erik had even been alive when he came in because of it.

That had been because of Raoul and Christine's bite, not that they told them that.

As Erik laid in the hospital bed, resting and healing, at least one of them was always there. Even Meg would drop by a couple times but Mme. Giry made sure that didn't happen too often. The staff got used to their presence and Raoul knew several of them by name. Each time it was Raoul's turn, the first thing he would ask would be if there was any change. The nurse at the time would give him a sympathetic grin and tell him no.

Raoul yearned for the day they would say yes.

At least no change wasn't a bad thing. Erik wasn't in danger anymore and the time was allowing his body to heal itself without interference. Still, Raoul wished he would open his eyes already.

A month and a half went by. At this point, Erik's ribs and ankle were healed. They would be sore for a while yet and his ankle would need support while it rebuild its muscle, but no longer injured. The doctors weren't concerned about his health, he only needed to wake up.

Raoul was working when he got a call from Mme. Giry. Worried that something had happened, he pulled over to the side of the road and answered.

"Madam Giry? What's wrong?" he asked immediately.

"It's Erik!" Mme. Giry breathed out. "He's awake!"

The phone fell out of Raoul's hand.

"Can you follow my finger?" the doctor asked as Raoul rushed into the hospital room.

"I thought you knew that I was blind." Erik replied in amusement, a smirk pulling at his lips. He was sitting up in his bed, leaning back against the pillows with the doctor standing next to him on the side away from the door.

The doctor gave a fond sigh. "Yes, but it's not recorded how much you are. Some people are legally blind but can still see shadows and shapes to an extent."

"Ah, that is sadly not the case for me." Erik remarked, before turning his head towards the doorway where Raoul was standing. He grinned. "I take it that's Raoul."

Startled by the use of his first name, Raoul blinked in answer.

"I think he's in shock that you're awake." Mme. Giry chuckled from her spot at the end of Erik's bed. Her eyes were misty but she had a bright smile that took the years off her face.

"You may not have your sight but you sure have excellent hearing." The doctor stated with a grin. She reached forward and placed her hand on top of Erik's. "I'm all done for now. I'll leave you to your visit."

"Thank you." Mme. Giry thanked and walked the doctor to the door.

Raoul got out of their way, not taking his eyes off of Erik as he did, the door clicked closed behind him and he became aware that it was only the two of them. Now that Erik was awake, he had no idea what to say to the man. It was his and Christine's fault that Erik ended up in the hospital in the first place and had to go through whatever Carlotta had put him through.

"The madam told me that Nadir and Christine are on their way." Erik remarked causally, his golden eyes staring at Raoul even though there was no focus. "I must admit that I'm not looking forward to Nadir showing up. He's going to give me quite the scolding."

Raoul couldn't help the snort that escaped. He pushed away from the wall and headed towards the bed. "I think he's just going to be glad you're okay."

Erik gave him a deadpanned look. "You obviously do not know him that well. I don't care how close you've gotten the past month."

Raoul cringed, sitting down in the chair next to the bed. "So they told you how long you were asleep?"

"Yes. It's strange finding out that so much time has passed." Erik admitted, his index finger tapping the sheets on the bed.

Raoul noticed the movement and reached forward to take his hand. He brought his hand up and covered half his face with it. "You okay?" he whispered.

Erik sighed heavily through his nose, letting his fingers trace over Raoul's face, taking in his features and seeing what he can. "I think it's you who I should be asking that question. You and Christine."

"You really shouldn't." Raoul frowned. "It's our fault that you're here in the first place. You almost died Erik."

"I know." Erik replied simply and waited expectantly.

Raoul sighed and opened his mouth but then the door cracked.

"Erik!" Mr. Khan entered the room, followed shortly by Christine.

Raoul stood up, carefully placing Erik's hand back on the bed, and went to Christine while Mr. Khan went to Erik's bedside, taking hold of Erik's arms and pulling him into a hug.

"My friend, you're going to extend my stay in the hospital at this rate!" Erik laughed breathlessly.

Mr. Khan pulled back with a scowl. "Don't even joke about that, you had Antoinette and I worried sick! Meg had come back from college to visit."

"Meg came?" Erik blinked in surprised, his hand using the cop's arm to find his face.

Mr. Khan huffed and clasped his hand to Erik's neck. "Yes. She'll be relieved to hear you're awake."

Erik took on a hesitate look. "Can we wait a bit on that? She's going to give me a more stern scolding than you will. I'm not prepared for that yet."

Mr. Khan smirked. "Antoinette is calling her as we speak. I'm sure she'll be here within a couple days."

Erik groaned and used his hand to push Mr. Khan away. "Go away, you brought the end of me."

"Stop being dramatic." Mr. Khan huffed with a grin, the relief sparking in his eyes.

Erik pouted and Raoul grinned. The pout shouldn't be as adorable as it was but Raoul was grateful that Erik seemed to be himself this soon after waking up.

Mr. Khan placed his hand on Erik's shoulder and gave it a squeeze and nodded towards Raoul and Christine. "I'll leave the three of you to talk."

Erik reached up and grabbed Mr. Khan's wrist letting his hand slide down as he walked away. Mr. Khan gave them a nod as he passed and left the room, the door clicking behind him. It was quiet for a moment, but Christine took a hesitate step forward.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Surprisingly fine. Sore and a little weak but that's a lot better than I had expected to waking up to when I was last conscious." Erik replied calmly. "But it has been awhile since I was last awake."

Christine and Raoul remember the last time he was conscious, it was all those weeks ago when Erik had gotten rescued.

"How much do you remember?" Raoul asked, curious that maybe the reason Erik was relaxed was because he didn't remember.

"Oh, I remember everything. It was not the most pleasant experience to have as your most recent memories." Erik answered. "I take it that those people are taken care of?"

"Yes, you don't have to worry about them again." Christine assured, going to Erik's bedside and taking the chair.

"Antoinette told me about why I was taken in the first place. Quite the past you have Christine."

Christine startled at the sound of her first name then she frowned in confusion. "Why did you call me Christine?"

"I believe at this point we are pass last name basis." Erik shrugged. "You two did save my life. I will go back to calling you Miss Daae if you wish."

"No no, its fine, just took my off guard." Christine bite her lip. "I wouldn't say we saved your life considering we were the ones that put it in danger in the first place."

"Yes, Raoul has said something similar already. However, while the circumstances might be your fault, you were also successful in getting me back, I'm grateful for that." Erik answered simply.

Raoul let out a groan and placed his hand to his head. "You're too good to us."

Erik blinked and frowned in confusion. "What did you expect me to say?"

"We were thinking more among the lines of you never wanting anything to do with us again." Christine answered sheepishly. "After what happened, we wouldn't have blamed you."

"I do not think I can, knowing what it would do to you." Erik admitted. "Besides, I may have been…out of it, but I wasn't unaware what was happening."

Raoul frowned, moving his hand down from his face and crossed his arms. "What does that mean?"

"It means that I heard everything that was said that night." Erik replied. "You might not remember because it's been awhile for you but it's fresh for me. You made quite the declaration."

Raoul scrunched his eyebrows, not knowing what Erik was talking about. After a moment, he saw Christine straighten up as if poked in her back. Her face might not be able to blush, but Raoul knew that she had figured something out and it was embarrassing. Christine turned to look up at him with a nervous look.

"We, or you, said that we, um…love him." Christine announced.

Raoul knew why Christine had the look on her face, if he was human, he would certainly be an unhealthy shade of red. He shifted awkwardly from foot to foot, no longer being able to look at Erik.

"Yes that." Erik continued with an air of calmness. "Not the most pleasant way of hearing a confession but I take it that you were truthful in that."

Raoul's head jerked up and he stared at Erik in shock. "Of course I meant it! I wouldn't say something like that without meaning it!"

"Well, you can understand why I would not want to send you away." Erik replied. "I believe at this point that would be cruel of me, given the situation."

"Too good for us." Raoul exhaled. He went to the other side of the bed and sat down on it, making sure not to touch anything that was hooked up to the bed or Erik. "You're something else, you know that?"

"Obviously, I'm two vampire's mate after all." Erik teased softly, then he frowned. "I must ask this, the doctor told me that I should have been dead when I arrived. Can you explain how I wasn't?"

"It was the bites we gave you." Christine answered, leaning forward and taking Erik's hand in hers and turning it over so that his wrist was facing up. She gently touched the spot where Raoul had bitten him, there was no mark that appeared on his skin. "As our mate, our saliva can heal you to a certain extent. It's to help protect mates while they are human as they are much more fragile. However, we can only transmit it directly to the bloodstream."

"Therefore the bites." Erik finished with a thoughtful look. "Interesting."

"They don't leave marks, our saliva gets rid of them. You don't have to worry about having a bite scar on your neck or anything." Raoul added, reaching forward to touch Erik's neck, where Firman and Christine had bitten him.

However, just as he touched the skin, Erik slapped his hand away, his golden eyes suddenly wide and his breathing heavier. Shocked by the motion, Erik had been able to move Raoul's hand away, and he was staring at Erik in disbelief and worry.

"Erik?" Christine jumped from her chair, staring at the monitor that kept track of Erik's heartbeat, it was currently going crazy with the speed of his heartbeat.

A nurse rushed in and Christine and Raoul immediately backed away, watching in confusion and fear as Erik tried to be talked down from his obvious terror. Mme. Giry and Mr. Khan came in and quickly went to Erik's side, calling his name gently. Mr. Khan turned his head towards them and scowled.

"Leave!" he commanded.

Raoul instantly followed the demand, almost forgetting to use a human speed. He knew Christine followed him and the door to the room closed behind them. Outside the room, Raoul could hear Mme. Giry and Mr. Khan mumbling reassurances, while the nurse moved around the room and messed with the equipment.

"He was scared." Christine whispered in horror, causing Raoul to turn to her. She had her arms wrapped around herself tightly as if trying to hold herself together. "He's scared of us!"

"No!" Raoul protested weakly, going to her and taking her arms in his hands. "He was just startled."

"He's having a panic attack in there!" Christine countered, looking up at Raoul with pained eyes. "We did that to him!"

"It was Carlotta and her gang!" Raoul opposed. "I should have known better to go near his neck, knowing that he was being drained by them. I thought he was okay because he was acting it, but I shouldn't have touch him there."

"Raoul, he might never want to be turned! Not after this! We're going to lose him anyway!" Christine cried.

Raoul brought her closer to him, enough that she was pressed against his chest, his face buried in her curls. He didn't want to imagine Erik saying no to being turned when they eventually asked him. They had not planned on doing it anytime soon, but with this latest event, Raoul was no longer sure Erik would accept the offer at all.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there." Raoul whispered into Christine's hair. "Right now, we'll do everything we can to help him, that's all we can do."

And there we go! Another chapter has been updated! I hope you enjoyed the read and be sure to leave a review if you did! You didn't think it was going to be that easy, did you? Next chapter is going to be in Erik's POV and there will also be a special guest appearance so be sure to look out for them! See ya next time!