Curtain call
Title : Curtain Call
Author : Jainaxf
Summary : What if Satine has waiting until the curtain call to fall ? Well, her destiny and Christian's would have been transformed …
Disclaimer : No, I don't own any of the Moulin Rouge characters, I'm just playing with them
Note : I hope this fanfic will seem relatively realistic and interesting. I know it's always delicate to change the end, but it was so sad that I could not help it. I hope you will enkoy it !
Chapter IJean Becquerel waited for the last act of "Spectacular, Spectacular" to begin. Although he had been very sceptic at the beginning, he did not regret to have accepted the invitation of his best friend, Sarah Brunel, a journalist who had obtained tickets for the play. When he had heard it was played at the former Moulin Rouge, he feared that the play would only be a vulgar show, but he had to admit that the plot was good and the cast played well. As the curtain opened, though, he saw someone entirely new hovering the lead actress, with his hands full of money. Jean got a strange impression that the whole last act was somehow more real than the rest of the play, and that the cast was more intensively involved into it. Finally, after a spectacular ultimate twist, the play came to an end. As he applauded, he could not wait for the curtain call.
Behind the curtains, Christian has never felt so ecstatic. She loved him, it had not been an act. Satine looked like she was in Heaven, too. He kissed her shortly before hearing the stage manager talking of the curtain call. He began to pull Satine in order to take their position. Satine, however seemed to want to say something :
" – Christian, I'm so sorry to have lied to you. But the Duke wanted to kill you and …"
He placed his finger on her lips and smiled :
"Shhh. It doesn't matter now. We overcame it and we can overcome anything. She smiled a little but tried to go on :
There is something else Christian …
Don't worry about it now."
They could hear the stage manager asking if everyone was in position. And as they were waiting for the curtain call, he pulled her into a proper kiss and for a moment, the world around them dissolved. Then, suddenly, they began to hear chuckles.
Jean waited impatiently for the curtain call as he had really been more emotionally drawn into this play than ever before in a theatre. After a minute or so, the curtains finally opened, only to reveal the new "sitar player" and the "Hindu courtesan" locked in a passionate kiss. The entire audience gasped and began rapidly to chuckle as the "evil maharajah" commented half ironically, half affectionately :
"The love between the sitar player and the courtesan is so strong that they can't even wait to be far from me !"
The couple broke apart reluctantly. They both looked a little embarrassed but they turned to the audience smiling and prepared to salute, when suddenly, the woman began to cough violently.
Christian turned back to Satine immediately and caught her as her legs stumbled.
"Satine ! What's wrong !"
The rest of the cast seemed very worried. Suddenly, Christian saw blood dripping from her mouth :
"God… Oh my God… Somebody get some help! A doctor ! Then, he leaned to hear what Satine tried to say :
I'm sorry, Christian…I…I'm…I'm…I'm dying…
No, you'll be all right. You'll be all right. You'll be all right."
Satine was struggling to talk :
"Cold…I'm cold…cold… Hold me. Hold me. "
Christian hold her closer, feeling dread rising in him. He tried to smile to reassure her :
"You've got to go on, Christian.
Can't go on without you, though.
You've got so much to give…"
Jean arrived just in time to hear these words whispered. He had got up as soon as he heard the desperate plea from the young actor. As he arrived on the scene, he asked :
"I'm a doctor, does anyone know what she is suffering from ?"
Ziedler cast his eyes down as he answered :
"It's consumption."
This appeared to shake the young man out of his trance :
"What ? You knew she was sick ! For how long ? How could you hide that from me ! Did Satine knew …"
Jean interrupted him :
"Now is not the time. I need a knife.
A knife ? Why !
In order to remove blood from her trachea. It is almost certain that there is a clot of blood preventing her from breathing.
And then, she will be ok, right ?"
Refusing to answer, he turned instead to the dwarf-clown who was giving him a knife already. The actress looked sad and very weak :
-" Don't worry, it is not too painful", he said to reassure her. She only gave him a little nod and squeezed Chrisitian's hand, before she passed away.
Smoothly, he performed the necessary moves. All the cast and the audience was watching him anxiously as Satine was now totally motionless.
He sighed :
- "Now, all we can do is take her to an hospital and wait to see if she wakes up."