A/N: Sorry about the slow update! I was playing tourist with a friend from out of town, so I couldn't get away to write. Thank you again to all the people who have read and reviewed my story! Shout out to Starrylibra for her continuing support! Now on with the show!

P.S. I added a few paragraphs at the bottom because I felt like the chapter wasn't complete as it was.

Chapter Five: Tongue-tied

This haunted face holds no horror for me now.

It's in your soul that the true distortion lies.

Erik looked in horror at his beloved's face coming back to haunt him. She had returned to him. He reached up his hand to touch her face…

Rosalyn noticed Erik's eyes take a glazed-over look and quickly snapped her fingers in front of his face. "You okay?" she asked worriedly.

Just as Erik was about to caress Christine's face, she snapped her fingers in front of his eyes, shaking him out of his trance. That action distracted him enough to move his eyes away to the hand and when he looked back, expecting to see Christine's face, he only saw Rosalyn's.

"I…uh…" Erik stumbled, angry with himself that he had allowed hope to crawl back into his heart. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, suddenly realizing how tired he was. Since he had left his lair beneath the opera house, he had scarcely had any sleep and just as he was about to rest, a storm had rocked the boat and made him fall into the ocean, where he awoke to this…mess. As his thoughts drifted to the scene on the opera stage when Christine had unmasked him, he shivered.

When Rosalyn saw him shiver, she realized that his clothes were still wet and the covers and blanket over him were damp. "Crap!" she cursed under her breath. "I am so sorry. I should've taken your clothes off!"

At that comment, Erik's eyes flew open again.

"Wait! That sounded so wrong!" Rosalyn turned a very crimson color and she hit her forehead with the palm of her hand. "I mean…" Breathe, Rosalyn! Breathe! "You could've gotten hypothermia with your wet clothes! I mean…well…okay…maybe not 'cos it's summertime in San Diego and it's actually quite nice weather. But anyone who's been in the ocean in the middle of the night could catch pneumonia…"

Right when she thought she could just about die of embarrassment, her phone rang and she thanked God for the distraction. Without saying another word to Erik, she ran out of the room to answer the phone.

Erik was definitely amused by this strange woman, and he couldn't help smiling at her bumbling manner. He could have been angry with himself and her, for who would want to undress a monster such as himself? However, her reaction was not one of horror but of genuine embarrassment. Would she have reacted in the same manner to any other man? A normal man? Yes, he decided, and because of that and for her hospitality, he decided he would trust her with his story, even if she didn't believe him. He could only pray that she would believe him, rather than cast him out into a world he knew nothing about.

Meanwhile, Rosalyn had grabbed the wireless phone from the kitchen counter and clicked it on. "Hello?" she asked, slightly out of breath.

"Hey, kiddo! How's the patient?"

"Hi, Jacob!" Rosalyn answered. "He's awake now and it looks like his fever's gone."

"I'm on way over now. Christian was kind enough to take the rest of my patients today. Have you gotten a chance to talk to him? To ask him what he was doing in the water?" Since he had left Rosalyn's that morning, he had not been able to stop worrying about her. He knew perfectly well that she could take care of herself, but he also knew how naïve she could be about people.

"No, I haven't had a chance to ask him. Too bad you didn't bring Christian over! When you gonna hook a sista up?"

"That's not even funny, Rosalyn! Not only do I work with him, but he's at least ten years older than you!" he argued, slightly annoyed and feeling very protective of his little sister.

"Maybe I like older guys!" She stuck her tongue out, but more out of reflex, since he obviously could not see her.

"Okay…" he said, wanting to change the subject. "Anyway, I talked to a friend at the police station. According to him, nobody has reported anyone missing that fits his description, nor are there any reports of anyone falling off a boat. I guess you'll just have to interrogate him," he joked.

Then, remembering her embarrassing slip up in the guest room, she asked, "You know how we left him in his wet clothes? Was that wise? Could he have caught pneumonia or something?"

"Hmmm… I didn't even think about that. I told you, I'm a plastic surgeon, not an ER doctor! If he's okay now, I wouldn't worry too much. Maybe you should run him a bath and let him warm up. I'll bring over a bag of old clothes that should fit him, as well as some crutches for his knee. I should be there around 6pm, so in about 3 hours. I need to run some errands before I head over."

"Thanks for all your help. I know you're probably thinking I'm so stupid for bringing some complete stranger into my house and…"

"Think nothing of it," he interrupted. "If more people were as giving as you, this world would be a hell of a better place!"

"Awww, aren't you just a sweet pea?" she laughed. "See you later. Bring food!"

"You got it. One more thing, give the guy some Tylenol. That should help with the pain. Ciao, kid."

Rosalyn put the phone back down on the charger and went to the cupboard to grab the bottle of Tylenol along with a bottle of water. Slowly walking back toward the guestroom, she took a few deep breaths to clear her mind before she entered. I'll just act like I never said anything about undressing him. Yes, that's the plan.

"I just talked to my brother," she said meekly, leaning against the doorframe and slowly turning to face him. "He said you should get out of those wet clothes, otherwise you might get sick. I'll run you a bath and make some coffee. Then, you can tell me your story."

Erik observed her from the bed, a slight smile forming on his lips. "Thank you, Rosalyn. I don't know how else to thank you for all your help."

"It's cool. Don't worry about it. Here, take this," she offered as she made her way next to the bed, palm open with two tablets.

"What is it?" he questioned, eyeing her hand with suspicion before picking up and examining a pill. "Ty-le-nol?"

"It's for the pain. Here's some water. Don't worry, I didn't save you from drowning only to poison you later!" she smirked.

"You're probably correct," he responded, finally swallowing the two pills and washing them down with water.

"I know you French probably abhor American filter coffee. But, you're in luck! Fate has decided to smile upon you, my friend. I happen to have an espresso machine in my kitchen! Would you like a cappuccino, or maybe a latte?" she beamed, clearly proud of her expensive toy. Someone once told her that if you ever feel embarrassed, just make some jokes to take the attention away from whatever caused the initial embarrassment. At that moment, Rosalyn was trying her best to employ that piece of advice.

Unsure of how well it would actually work, she crossed the guest room swiftly to run the bath before Erik had a chance to answer. Rosalyn was fortunate, in that the condo had been recently renovated before she made it her permanent home. The bathroom joined the two bedrooms so that there were entrances from both rooms and even before the renovations, the bathroom was so large that it was almost the size of a bedroom.

Inside the bathroom was a large Jacuzzi-style tub, big enough to fit two people—though Rosalyn had yet to test that aspect out—and deep enough that the water could go up to her shoulders. The floor, double sink, and tub were made of a soft gray marble while the furnishings were a shiny silver.

The shower was just as extravagant, having two shower heads from the top to give the person the impression of rain and enough flexibility that one could control the water pressure. Forest green and royal blue bathmats covered the marble floor in front of the two sinks, adding color to the bathroom. Having nearly bought out Bath and Body Works, Rosalyn made sure she had a diverse selection of fragrances to choose from, even having a bath pillow to make baths even more luxurious.

"I'm not really sure what a manly scent would be!" she called from the bathroom, though Erik could barely hear her. When she didn't hear a response, she went back into the guestroom. "Is coconut okay with you? Or maybe raspberry. You seem more like a coconut kind of guy. Do guys even take bubble baths?"

"Umm…" thought Erik. Does the Phantom of the Opera take bubble baths! "I think I can do without the bubbles."

"Right. Okay. I'll just leave a bunch of soap out and you can choose what you want. It'll just take a second to fill. Listen, I'm really embarrassed about that other comment about taking your clothes off…" she attempted to apologize.

"I've already forgotten it," he lied. Gently, he pulled the covers off his body, noticing that if he moved slowly, the pain was less sharp.

Rosalyn quickly helped him sit up and turn so that his legs were dangling off the bed. "Okay, put your weight on me and not on your left leg."

"I beg your pardon," he stopped. "But you probably weigh as much as my left leg, so if I were to put my entire weight on you, I am sure we would topple over."

Rosalyn crinkled her nose and shot him a look, which caused Erik to smile for the second time that day. She motioned for him to stand up slowly and winced under the added weight. "One foot at a time. Left…right…left…right…" They moved in sync until they reached the tub and she turned him to seat him on the side of the tub. Luckily that area was flat and, after having shoved aside a few bottles of body wash and shampoo, had enough room to fit Erik's backside.

Pleased that she had managed to help him over, Rosalyn walked out of the bathroom to get a towel from the linen closet, bringing back two thick blue towels and her robe. After checking the temperature of the bathwater with her fingers, she turned the faucet off and placed the towels on an empty rack.

"I don't have any clothes that will fit you…" she started slowly. "But my brother is bringing some with him. All I have is this robe. Enjoy your bath and I'll be in the kitchen if you need anything."

"Thank you again," was all Erik could muster as she walked away from him.

Erik sighed, unbuttoning his shirt as soon as he heard the door close behind him. After he finished undressing, he looked at the glistening water and heeded its beckoning call to find comfort. The medicine had begun taking effect, as he found that moving into the bathtub was a lot less painful than attempting to sit up and flee. The hot water enveloped him and made him relax instantly, especially with the bath pillow cushioning his neck.

To his right, in a row along the wall, were bottles of Bath and Body Works products in every scent imaginable. He uncapped and sniffed all of them until he found one that wasn't too feminine: green tea and ginger. Honestly now! Could the Phantom of the Opera ever smell like sun ripened raspberries or mango mandarin?

His thoughts drifted to this strange woman named Rosalyn and weighed the pros and cons of telling her the truth of his situation.

Pro: He wanted to be completely honest with her since she had been kind enough to bring him into her home and look after him.

Con: She may not believe him and, thinking him crazy, may send him away to be locked up in some God-forsaken mental institution.

Pro: If he told her, she could be of great use to him, teaching him about this new time period and how to survive in it.

Con: If she did believe him, she might fear him and have him arrested.

Then again, there was no evidence of wrong-doing since everything that happened in Paris occurred over one hundred years ago.

Pro: She had seen his face and still helped him, plus she showed no sign of horror when she looked at him.

Con: All she feels toward him is pity, and once he is well again, would probably send him off on his merry way into an unknown world.

Pro: Twice in one day she had made him smile, a genuine smile and not a mischievous smile.

Pro: She was beautiful in such an unconventional way that he never knew existed; he had to get to know her!

Pro: Fate had saved his life the day of the opera fire and perhaps he was given a second chance to make up for his past crimes, or perhaps God finally took pity on him and gave him a new opportunity for happiness.

Silently berating himself for raising his own hopes, he let himself sink underwater to wash away the shampoo in his hair. He had given up the one thing in his life he ever wanted with his whole being, and now he was here, in a completely different time, in a completely different place. He rubbed at his arms, chest and face, trying to literally wash away his sins. When he finally pulled himself out of the water, he decided that he would be a new man. No longer was Christine an obsession but just a fleeting thought of the past. Persia, the shah, Buquet, Piangi existed no longer and he pushed them to the back of his psyche.

First and foremost, if he is to become a new man, he must come clean with the truth to Rosalyn. For all her help and kindness, she at least deserved the truth. How she would react to it, only fate knows.