Hee hee, i really liked the last line in that chapter too. Anyhoo, here we go with chapter 8, another shortie, but chapter 9 shall be longer, i swear. It might take more than a day to update though, because i'm only halfway through writing it! Hopefully though, if my lunatic brother doesn't interrupt me, i shall complete it by late this evening or tomorrow morning, and post it tomorrow afternoon. Yes, so, and also as a warning, the next chapter (9) will be written in a slightly different style. I just wanted to know what you thought though, before i post it. It will have a few of Erik's thoughts and a small flashback. Please tell me if you think i should go in that direction with the next chapter. R&R pretty please with sugar and a hershey kiss on top.

Rebecca

Chapter 8: Temper, Temper III

Erik was very taken aback at her comment about him being a pedophile. "I am not a pedophile. I didn't fall in love with her until she was of age! And besides, it is not any of your business Rebecca. Perhaps you should leave matters you know nothing of alone."

"No! I will not leave this matter alone," she yelled, "Despite the fact that I find that girl to be naïve and much too sweet, I still think she does not deserve this. No girl deserves this. Just imagine if it was me being sung to by someone I thought was my father's Angel of Music? If you were my father just finding out about this, what would you think?"

"I am your father! Don't speak to me as if I were not. Do you think I have not already thought about all of this? As soon as I found out that you were here I began to look back upon my life and wonder whether if I would be acceptable for you. Of course I realize that falling for someone twenty-two years younger than me is morally wrong, but you can't stop love!"

"Oh come off it! You didn't have to start pretending to be the Angel of Music! You are intelligent, and should have seen what was coming. And don't tell me that you only fell in love with her the moment she turned sixteen, because that, father dear, would be a blatant lie." She was pacing by now and sending him fiery glares.

Erik sat in his chair surprisingly calmly, although giving back glares that were just as fire filled. "I have told you not to speak to me like that! And no, I confess, I did not fall in love with Christine the moment she came of age. However, it was not long before. I am not a bad person!"

"What! What do you mean you're not a bad person! You abandoned me and Penelope, you killed two men, and 'haunted' an innocent girl for nine years! And now, just because she loves another you are going to torment them! And what about all the innocent Opera People? They're all scared stiff of you! They never did anything to hurt you and yet you continue to frighten them, and threaten them." She knocked the empty chair over and headed for the boat.

"And just where do you think you're going?" asked Erik, finally rising from his chair. He followed the angry girl down to the edge of the water.

"I don't know," she replied, climbing in the boat, shakily. "Maybe I'll go back home to my family."

"I am your family. You cannot just leave like this Rebecca."

"Leave like what?" Then, she said sarcastically, "Oh, you mean I can't ABANDON you! Well Erik, too bad, because that is exactly what I am doing. Goodbye!" She grabbed the pole and began to push herself along the dark, cold water. Unfortunately though, she was not very balanced and the boat tipped over, sending her crashing into the water. Her head disappeared beneath the surface, and a few bubbles appeared where she had gone down.

Erik leaned over the edge of the water and sighed. "Rebecca, come out of the water now. It is not that deep." Silence. "Rebecca?" Silence. Without a moment's hesitation, he pulled off his cape and leaped into the water. He thrashed about until he found her limp body. Quickly, he carried her out of the water and up to her bedroom where he laid her on the silk sheets. "What have I done?" he asked himself as he examined her. Other than a small gash on the side of her head, she seemed to have no external injuries. He applied pressure to the wound, and checked her pulse. When he was sure that she was comfortable, he sat down and fell asleep.

Oh! One other thing, what did you think of this ending? i wasn't sure about it...