Thank you guys for all the amazing reviews. You are my motivation. Hey guys, sorry for the late update. I have been going through some writer's block and also my schedule has been super busy. I hope this chapter makes up for the wait. Also, Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate.
It was finally the night of the concert and Christine felt strangely calm standing backstage with the other members of the chorus. The irony of it was that her lack of nerves about the upcoming performance made her unsettled, but it was nothing close to the anxiety she had faced before. She actually had it in her to whisper quietly with her friends before the group was pulled onto the stage and she fell into silence. The spotlights were focused on the stage, blinding her momentarily, but then her eyes adjusted and she could see the crowd before her. It was a sizable crowd to be sure, and instead of provoking anxiety, this filled her with a thrilling sense of joy. All these people were here, and they would hear her sing.
Throughout the beginning of the concert, Christine focused on Meg's face in the sea of people. It was easier this way. She knew Erik was there—he said he would be. He was always there, she noticed. At her concerts. Less noticeable than Meg, and Raoul when they were dating, but in the audience. Usually, in a dark corner, somewhere her eyes wouldn't catch on a casual scan of the crowd. She had to try to find him, but she was always able to. But she didn't right now. She didn't because it was easier to look at Meg and sing these songs than sing them to him on stage. It was too real, and Christine somehow knew that if she allowed her eyes to find his, for even a moment during this concert, she would no longer be able to keep her feelings for him under control.
It wasn't until the end of the concert that Christine's eyes finally found Erik's in the dark corner of the theater. She held out until the second half of the "Close to You," keeping her gaze focused steadily on Meg, but something about the words made her lose her will. She couldn't help but look for him. Her head remained facing forward while her eyes darted around the theater. She found him before the end of "I'm Yours" and sang the words faithfully, letting the truth of the words seep into her voice. Even if Erik didn't know, acknowledging it herself felt… freeing.
The concert ended almost abruptly, or at least it felt that way to Christine. The curtains closed, cutting off her view of the crowd, and when they opened again she was joining hands with her chorus members and bowing to the cheers of the crowd. All she thought of was Erik; in the sea of approval, his was the only that she cared about. Soon the time for bowing and applause was over and Christine was pulled off of the stage by the sea of movement from the bodies around her.
The flurry of activity didn't let up until Christine stepped outside into the warm night air. She left through a side entrance, wanting to avoid pushing through the throng of people who would be leaving the theater. Usually, she and Meg would go out and celebrate after one of her concerts, but Meg was busy tonight and thus unable. She had told this news to Christine with an apology, but Christine had told her not to worry. It was nice just having her at the concert, and they would surely have time to meet up sometime later in the week.
She almost didn't see Erik standing there when she walked outside, but the soft sound of his voice caught her attention immediately.
"You sang brilliantly," he told her, his voice like a melody.
Christine grinned at this, her heart speeding in her chest as she walked closer to him. "Thank you. I never would have done it without you." She felt like a broken record as often as she said some variation of this to him, but it was true. He was the one who pushed her to sing again, and for some amazing reason she had listened to him. And now, here she was.
"You had all the resources to do this without me," he told her, always impressed that an angel like her felt such gratitude to a monster like him.
Christine had so much more she wanted to say to him, but not here in the empty space behind her theater. Not now. "Are you doing anything tonight?" she asked.
Erik smiled wryly at her. "I believe I'm free. Why do you ask?"
"You told me before that you write your own compositions. I've never heard you play them. I'd love to hear something you wrote if you wouldn't mind too much."
"It would be my delight to entertain you," Erik told her. He sensed she had ulterior motives, but he didn't particularly care. If he got to spend time with Christine, her motivations for such a choice mattered not.
They drove separately to Erik's house, and Christine was glad for this. It gave her time to collect her thoughts. She couldn't think straight, not while she was around Erik. Her feelings were simply too overwhelming. The time didn't help. By the time she pulled up in Erik's dark driveway she still didn't have a plan for the evening. It was just as well, she supposed. She had learned long ago that with Erik, you couldn't make a plan for how something should go. When she was with him she lost the control she tried to carefully maintain in her life, and she loved it.
Erik had beat her there and was standing on his front porch, waiting for her. He opened the door for her when she approached. "Please, come in."
Christine accepted his invitation, smiling at his chivalry. Soon they were settled in the music room. Erik sat at the grand piano and Christine sat near him in a chair. They were silent for the most part, a not uncommon occurrence for the pair. Neither of them could think of something to say, and music spoke for them on a level that words couldn't. The silence was broken not by words, but by strands of music emitting from the piano as Erik played.
Erik had played accompaniments to her songs before, but she had never seen him play like this—completely absorbed in the music in an entrancing way. He sits tall and straight, more sure of himself than she had ever seen him. His entire demeanor had changed from a man who seemed to feel that he had to constantly apologize for his existence to one who was sure of himself without thought. Christine loved both of these men, both the one she had just met and the one she had known all this time. And the music he played… Christine had no words to describe it. It floated around the air and wrapped itself around her, ebbing and flowing as it did. It was unlike anything she had heard before, beautiful in a way that Christine never imagined music had the ability to be. He shifted from song to song in the way of a natural-born musician and at some point, she got up from her chair and moved to the bench beside him. She watched his fingers fly across the keys, his focus so complete she didn't think he noticed her sitting next to him. The music overwhelmed her. She wanted him to play forever, but she also wanted him to stop, almost desperately so because it was all too much. The song he was playing came to an end eventually, and a flash of surprise crossed his visible features when he saw her sitting beside him.
"That was the most beautiful music I have ever heard," Christine said horsley, and even as she said it she knew her words fell so short of describing what she just heard. She moved her hand to his shoulder, touching him gently. "Did you truly compose that?"
"I did," Erik told her, not quite knowing where he found his voice. Christine was so close to him, touching him, even. He could smell her perfume lingering in the air between them.
Christine took a deep breath, steadying herself internally for what she was about to say. Erik was looking down at her, his eyes shining with an unknown emotion. One she had seen in his eyes so many times before. His lips carried the same soft expression and all she wanted to do was kiss him. So she did. She moved her hand to his unmarred cheek and lifted her lips until they met his. She kissed him because it was easier than talking and because she had wanted to for a very long time and she was tired of holding back.
When Erik felt Christine's lips on his, his first thought was that she must have made some mistake. He froze, terrified of messing something up. But after a moment she was still kissing him. It was real. So he slowly started to move his lips against hers, not quite believing what was happening. She pulled away too soon.
"Christine…?" he said, his voice filled with love and confusion.
"I—I'm sorry. I just, I know we are friends, but I feel all these feelings for you that go beyond that. I just had to… I couldn't not. I'm sorry if that's not what you want," Christine stuttered out, not knowing how to express what she felt. She was at least sure that he'd kissed her back, and she wanted to see that as a good sign.
Erik shook his head and put his hands on her shoulders. "Don't apologize. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, Christine. I love you so much, and the fact that you could feel anything for me is nothing short of a miracle."
Christine smiled, a happiness unlike any she has ever felt filling her chest. She placed her hands on each side of Erik's face. One hand rested on the flesh of his cheek and the other she placed on his mask. "I think, I'm pretty sure, I love you too," she mumbled out breathlessly.
"Oh, Christine. An angel like yourself ought to love someone so much better than a monster like me." Erik sighed.
"I wouldn't want anyone else," Christine told him sincerely. She slowly removed his mask, glancing at him for permission before she did so. When it was off she kissed him again. "If you will have me?"
When she kissed him with his mask off Erik was sure he was dreaming. When she asked if he wanted her, a shy smile spreading across her face as she did, it was all he could do was say yes. He wanted her. Of course, he did. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, she kissed him again. If this was all a dream, then he didn't want to wake up.
End of chapter. So, what do you guys think? Finally some Christine x Erik. I've been working towards this for a while so I hope you guys like it. Please review! -K
P.S. -My P.M.'s are always open :)