When Toulouse heard the shower stop and footsteps going to Christian's door, he knew he had come back and he wanted details. Toulouse burst through his door, startling Christian quite well while he was finishing getting dressed.
"My god Toulouse! You scared the hell out of me!" Christian exclaimed while buttoning his shirt.
"I want details about you and the Midnight Amethyst."
"Diana."
"What?" Toulouse asked, confused.
"Her name is Diana. Don't call her the Midnight Amethyst."
"Well, what happened?"
"Nothing. I met her and found out that she knew Satine and was her best friend. She told me that her and Satine kept in touch through letters. She offered to let me read them. I started to get upset as I read them. She tried to comfort me but I wanted to be alone. She left then for a few hours. I kept reading for hours until I fell asleep. Diana came back and slept on the couch in her dressing room and that's it."
"I was expecting something completely different."
"Obviously."
"Are you going to see her again?" Toulouse asked in his never-ending quest for information.
"For your information, tonight, and that's all I'm telling you." Christian said shooing Toulouse out the door. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a bit of work to do."
Toulouse reluctantly agreed and thought to himself, "he has returned."
That night, Christian showed up at Diana's door exactly at 8PM, as per her request. Dressed in a tuxedo, he was attempting to make this special. When she opened the door, his jaw dropped. He could not believe that this beauty wanted to be with him. Diana, dressed in an elegant midnight blue gown, stood there for him and only him.
"Surprise me, Christian."
"Your wish is my command." He said kissing her hand.
She took his arm as he escorted her to his "surprise." He took her to the cliffs just outside of the city. With the soft grass and trees and the beautiful view, Christian thought it was one of the most romantic places he knew. Diana looked around in awe, especially of the view of Montmartre at night.
"This is beautiful. Wherever did you find this, Christian?"
"Satine and I came here once while she was supposed to be on a picnic with the Duke." Christian felt the tears welling up in his eyes again and he didn't want to start crying now. "I wanted to show her this view, since she only saw it during the day."
Diana had mixed emotions. She loved this moment with him but she also felt so horrible. "This should have been Satine, not me." She thought.
Christian had laid a blanket down on the ground for them to sit on and he had brought out some wine with two glasses.
"I think I've been going on enough since we met and I've hardly let you get a word in edge wise. Tell me about you." Christian said helping Diana down next to him.
"What do you want to hear about?"
"Tell me about the love you lost."
"Right for the main point." She said taking a sip of wine. "I haven't spoken about him in nearly two years now, so please forgive me if I stumble over the words a bit. David was his name. You remind me so much of him."
"What was he like?"
"Kind, beautiful, caring, gentle, and of course, according to the social standards, 'a fitting choice of husband.'"
"He was wealthy." Christian interjected.
"One of the finest lawyers in New York."
Christian rolled his eyes at the word 'lawyer.' "Like my father."
"No, not like that. He also knew how to have fun. There would be many a night where he would be at the pub until early morning drinking, playing billiards or cards," she paused for a moment and her mood changed, "and boxing. Of course it was this fun that killed him.
"One night, he decided that he needed to let off a little steam so he went down to the pub. He started out the evening with a few drinks and a game or two of pool. Then he decided to go into the ring. He was actually doing pretty well too. Then this behemoth of a man walked in and challenged him. Being a man of honor, he could not in good conscience back down from a challenge. I so wish he had.
"One of the other patrons there recognized this monster. He was a prizefighter from Boston with a lethal reputation. He flew out of there to get me, fearing for David's life. I had never run out of my house so fast before in my life. But when I got there, it was too late. He had been beaten to death and he laid on the floor in a pool of his own blood," she paused again to take another sip of wine. Christian could see that this was hard on her.
"I cradled his dead body in my lap. The dress still bears the stain from his blood. I wanted to kill that animal right there and then. I grabbed the gun that the bartender had on the bar and placed it right at his forehead. I would have pulled the trigger if I didn't have a bigger fear of the gallows. I lost him without even being able to say goodbye."
"What happened afterwards? How did you handle it?" Christian asked, wondering if she ended up like he was after Satine.
"After the funeral, I became a hollow shell, emotionless. I was dead inside. I was like this for weeks. The only contact I had with the outside world was my letters to Satine. So many times did I consider ending my life. I didn't want to live like that. But one letter from Satine changed that. She told me to change my fate."
"And that's when the Midnight Amethyst was born." Christian chimed in. Diana nodded silently. "What would David have thought of it?"
Diana laughed. "He would have loved it. He always said, 'One day I'll give up this infernal practice and we'll live by our talents. I'll play pool and prizefight while you write and act,' He's probably looking on me now and wondering what the hell took so long."
Christian laughed at this.
"I was actually planning to come to the Moulin Rouge when Satine died. Then I couldn't face it. I couldn't face you."
Christian was puzzled at this. "Why not?"
"I knew you would be heartbroken and I was in no shape to help."
Christian didn't know what to say. He had no idea on how to react. Here was someone who lost her best friend and she was more concerned about how she could help the man her friend loved.
"Just you being here now helps."
Diana smiled slightly as Christian stood up. He then offered his hand to help her so the could start walking back. All the while as they were walking back to Christian's apartment, they continued talking about everything, getting to know each other more and more.
When they got back to his room, Christian was surprised, he wasn't nervous around her. He was actually comfortable. He sat down on the bed and motioned for Diana to be next to him.
"Stay with me tonight." Christian asked quietly.
"Christian, I…I..." Diana stammered.
"I don't want to be alone anymore." He replied with his eyes filling up with tears. "I have felt so alone since she died. I cry myself to sleep almost every night and on the nights I don't, I wake up with such horrible nightmares. The people who I thought were my friends seem to be just standing by idly when I need them the most. I know because I hear them walking around above me." Christian was now sobbing heavily.
"I can't take Satine's place, Christian. But I only want you to be happy." As she said this, she was realizing that her love for him was growing.
"You make me happy." Christian said through his tears.
Diana couldn't take it anymore. She just couldn't sit there and let him cry. She pulled him close to her in a warm embrace. One simple gesture meant so much to Christian. One hug let him know that someone still cared for him. He in turn wrapped his arms around her as he cried on her shoulder. The more he sobbed, the tighter Diana held him.
"It's okay Christian. I will never leave you. I won't let you be alone. I love you." She whispered to him, trying to soothe him.
When he heard those three words, he looked up. With tears still staining his face, he gazed at her and told her "I love you too." He moved closer to her and kissed her. They felt so much passion and love in this one kiss, that they truly realized their true feeling for each other.
Christian's tears subsided in her arms. Diana softly wiped the tears from his face with her handkerchief. Christian felt peace for the first time since Satine died. He was getting so tired though. He so longed for one night's sleep that isn't interrupted by his dreams. Diana saw this in him but she also knew if she left him, he would fall to pieces.
"Christian, I have to return to my dressing room for one thing but I will be back, I promise."
"Don't leave me."
"I'm not leaving you. I will be back shortly, I swear. I am a woman of honor. My word is my bond."
Christian nodded silently. He was too tired to argue. He kissed her softly on the cheek as she was walking out and told her that he'd wait for her.
Diana returned quietly to her dressing room to grab her nightgown and a few things for the next day. She wondered if she should grab more but deduced she could always come back.
While she was gone, Christian prepared for bed. He stripped down to his underwear and crawled under the blankets. He tried to stay awake to wait for Diana but his efforts were to no avail. He was asleep in almost no time.
Diana snuck back into Christian's room when she returned. The room was dark and she saw his sleeping form on the bed. She changed into her nightgown and quietly crawled into bed next to him. Diana fell asleep knowing that she'd be at peace for at least a little while.
