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Chapter Seven: The Angel In Hell
There is a secret that you don't know…
There is a force here I never show…
-Kim, Miss Saigon
Annette's Diary
Dear Diary,
Leonora was acting a little odd today. Then again, she's always been a little bit odd, but in a different way. She used to be a depressed girl with no confidence, always with her arms crossed and looking very lost amidst the company members. But, today she was…happy. Her usually pale skin had more color to it and her eyes sparkled as if she were keeping a secret all to herself. And her dancing was nothing short of perfect, making Mischa fume with jealousy.
We were practicing the scene Miserere from Il Trovatore as usual with our same looks of sadness plastered on our faces…except Leonora. She had a dreamy look about her as she stared at one of the boxes in the house. I tried to catch her attention by coughing but all I got was a few dirty looks from the manager and Leonora's same vague stare. The manager finally saw her and stopped the conductor to address her.
"Leonora!' He shouted. All eyes shifted to her and her head snapped forward, violently.
"What the hell are you looking at?" He went into hysterics as the company members sniggered under their breath. Leonora blushed instead of crossing her arms and bowing her head. She reminded me of a giddy little schoolgirl, blushing and smiling. She had changed…But why? Did someone say something that had encouraged her? Was it just a phase? Or was she in love?...
That night, as I was heading to the dormitory, I was stopped by a few of the ballerinas who had once made Leonora's life terrible with their constant jeering. They, too, had changed…
"What's wrong with the toad?" Mischa asked me as her posse mumbled in agreement.
I just shrugged because, as I have told you, I didn't know. Leonora had stopped telling me her secrets and feelings. I just get that stupid stare of hers and she dances away. I noticed Mischa's usually proud eyes darting back and forth…scared. She was afraid that Leonora might become the great dancer she always wanted to be. That would mean she would have to over rule Mischa.
They clicked their tongues at my disobedience and strode away to their dormitory, heads held high and proud like a façade to their real scared selves. I just sighed and entered my dormitory, preparing for sleep. As I crawled into bed, making sure not to wake Leonora beside me, I told myself that Leonora was just going through a stage and to forget about it…
Dear Diary,
I am writing this entry early in the morning while everyone else is sleeping. What a night! I have finally found out what was wrong with Leonora.
I was awaken by the sound of a floorboard creaking and I, thinking it was a man, shot up in my bed, ready to scream. I swallowed my scream when I saw Leonora with a grimace on her face and her fists clenched tightly, expressing her frustration. She tiptoed over to her bed beside me and sat down with a sigh.
"Where have you been?" I whispered tremulously. She looked at me, opening her mouth as if ready to say something but quickly shutting it, seemingly afraid to say something out loud. But then, she beckoned for me to lean closer and she took my hand.
"You really want to know?" She asked. I nodded violently and she looked around, making sure that the others were asleep, and looked me in the eyes.
"Annette," she said, softly. "Please, if I tell you, do you promise not to tell a soul? I know I can trust you, but…"
I made a face of impatience and nodded again. Leonora sighed and squeezed my hand, hard.
"There is a man," she began, whispering as if there was some unseen presence who was listening in the room. "He lives under the opera house, all alone. I was drawn to his lair a month ago, in the middle of the night. He lives by a lake under the opera." A lake? "He is all alone because nobody understood him…they were afraid because of his face. It's deformed, just like my leg, so he understands …"
Mother told me it wasn't true…she lied to me…
She stood up and walked toward the door, leaning on its frame in a dreamlike stage, gazing up at the ceiling. I leaned over and reached under my bed, feeling for that little item I had stolen from my mother's bureau after she had lectured me for talking back to the manager…
A mask.
"You are in love?" I asked walking towards her with the mask in my hands. She turned to face me and bowed her head, smiling faintly.
"Yes," she replied, softly. I put a hand on her shoulder and held out the mask to her. She gasped and reached out for it slowly, sliding it out of my grasp.
"Then, you will be needing this," I whispered and headed back towards my bed, wrapping myself in the warmth of my blankets. Leonora pressed the mask towards her chest and strode to her bed as I watched her, silently. The last thing I saw was her placing the mask on her pillow and lightly touching it with her lips.
"I won't tell," I said, slipping into unconsciousness. "I promise…"
I meant it. She was in love and no matter how much I didn't understand her reason, I promised that I would never tell her secret of her angel. The angel in hell…
A/N- Please R&R! Something's coming... (Jaws music plays and Authoress looks around, scared) Hello?...