Chapter 4:

That night in his garret, he paced back and forth, unable to sit still. What had Marie meant by what she had whispered? He couldn't help but feel like something was going to happen that was going to change his life. He kept glancing out the window, waiting for the sun to set.

Finally, the sky turned orange and pink and he stopped pacing. He sat on the edge of his bed watching the doorknob. He was just beginning to think that nothing was even going to happen when he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. They got closer and closer and he stood to open the door, but Marie burst through the door before he could reach it. She carried two large bags.

"Marie," Christian started as she passed him to set the bags down in the middle of the room. "What's going on?" But she didn't answer. She went back into the hallway for two more bags. "Tell me what's going on!" he demanded as he turned to watch her set the bags down. Behind him, Chocolat entered the room quietly. Christian felt someone's presence and turned around.

"Satine!!" He moved so quickly that he nearly tripped.

"Shhh..." Chocolat held her in his arms, asleep.

"She... but... Marie..." He couldn't believe his eyes. Was it really her? Chocolat handed her to Christian gently.

"Take her, Sir," he whispered. Christian's arms flew around her. Marie smiled as Chocolat stepped out of the room.

"Christian, she knows what to do. She has everything she needs," Marie said quietly as she left the room and shut the door slowly.

Christian's eyes had not left her face. He didn't understand how any of this was possible. Just that afternoon he had been crying at her grave, and yet she was here with him. He felt her moving in his arms. Tears that he didn't even know he had been crying had fallen onto her cheeks. Her eyelids fluttered and slowly opened. He sat back on the bed and watched as she realized where she was.

"Christian!" she rasped. His eyes stared deep into hers, as if seeing them for the first time.

"Yes, d-darling." He couldn't get his breath. She smiled and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, bringing their bodies closer together.

"Oh, how I've missed you," she cried. "I don't ever want to leave you again."

"Satine, what happened? How are you here?" He still could not believe that it was real, that she wouldn't just vanish from his embrace when he woke.

"I'm not sick, Christian. I never really was. The doctor was able to help me when Marie first noticed that I was getting weak. It wasn't anything serious, but it gave us the idea."

"What idea?" he asked softly, still not breaking her gaze.

"To pretend. Now the Duke is gone and we can be together. But no one can know..."

"Th-this was... was all a trick?" His mind ran through all the events that had led up to her death and he began to put it together.

"Yes, and I'm so sorry, Christian. I never wanted to hurt you, but I had no other choice. I couldn't go with the Duke, and I couldn't see you injured or possibly killed. Marie helped me keep it a secret from everyone. And the doctor, the doctor was the one who told Harold." She smiled.

"I can't believe it, Satine! You're really here! You're really here!" as he leaned down to kiss her for the first time. Their lips met and immediately they melted onto the bed. His heart raced and she could feel the pounding against her chest. Her body tingled as the kiss continued and she felt butterflies in her stomach, as if it were the first kiss she had ever experienced.

When they finally broke apart, he held her so tightly on top of him that she could almost close her eyes and imagine she was wearing her corset.

For a long time, they were quiet. They looked into each others eyes as the sun set and the room grew dark. Finally, Christian broke the silence.

"Marie said you would know what to do. What does she mean?"

"We have to leave, Christian. I have train tickets. We have been saving for them. Marie got them this afternoon." She smiled and brushed a stray hair out of his face.

"Where are we going?" he asked as he watched her hand travel down his chest to rest over his heart.

"To the country." She paused, watching his chest rise and fall as he breathed.

"What time?"

"Midnight." She lowered her head to his chest and closed her eyes.

"It's getting late. We should get ready." He thought of getting ready to leave with Satine, to leave so that they could be together forever, and it hit him. "Oh, God. It is real. I can't believe it, I just can't believe it!"

She opened her eyes and brought her face close to his. A tear trickled down her face and he caught it with his fingertip.

Eventually Christian knew that they had to get up and get everything ready. He packed very few things, his typewriter, a few clothes, the small amount of money he had left. Satine began gathering the papers from the floor and walls.

"Christian, is this our story?" she asked as she flipped through the pages.

"Could be..." he teased. She smiled and tried to stack the papers neatly so they would not wrinkle.

"Well, you'll have to rewrite the ending." She handed him the stack and he tucked it under his arm. He picked up his bag and two of hers, but as he went for another bag he dropped his. Satine stood in the middle of the room watching with amusement as he tried to pick up his bag, dropping one of hers and the story at the same time. He looked up at her and shook his head.

"Maybe I should carry something?"

"Maybe..." he strained, trying to lift the heaviest bag. "But... I think... I have it."

She laughed and Christian stopped was he was doing to watch her. There she was, standing in the middle of his room in the most gorgeous blue dress, wearing only her stockings on her feet. He dropped everything he was carrying and walked over to her, taking her in his arms and lifting her into the air.

"I will love you, until my dying day," he sang as he swung her around and pulled her close.

"Come what may," she whispered as he leaned in to kiss her.

"Let's go," he panted as they broke the kiss reluctantly. They picked up the bags together and headed for the door.

"Goodbye," Christian said into the room, and they shut the door.

Down on the street sat Harold, watching the front door of the Moulin like a hawk. Something was up, and he was going to find out if it meant breaking down this door himself. Marie watched him from upstairs. Satine had made it, no one had caught her, and now she was going to be safe. But there was a feeling inside of Marie that she could not ignore. What would become of this mess of lies? Because after all, a lie only leads to another lie, and once you have begun, there can be no escaping it.