Chapter 15 Sing for Me

Christine winced as she carefully applied cover-up to hide the discoloration on her face. It seemed to have gotten darker since the night before and the florescent lighting over the bathroom mirror was not helping. Sighing, she closed her cosmetic bag and left the bathroom. Her audition was in two hours and she could already feel the familiar sensation of butterflies in her stomach. She had yet to eat anything that morning for fear of being ill; however, she found a breakfast tray waiting on her desk when she stepped back into the room. She looked around and saw that the room was empty. She thought she heard a faint rustle of fabric coming from the far side of her room, but common sense told her it was just the curtains catching a draft.

Smiling, she turned her attention back to the tray before her. Christine picked up the familiar cream, black-lined stationary and carefully slid her finger under the red wax seal to open it.

My dearest Christine,

I hope you enjoyed your time spent with me. Your singing has improved exponentially over the past week and I have total faith in your abilities, as should you.

I apologize if I frightened you that night and I just need you to realize that I would rather die than to see any harm come to you, especially by my own hand. While I seek it, I do not deserve your forgiveness for striking you.

You must be nervous for your audition this morning, but it is important for you to eat something...

She smiled and picked up the warm bagel. Taking a bite, she continued to read.

If you feel nervous, just sing for me. Though you will not see me, I swear to you that I will be there for you today. Sing for me, my angel, and let your spirit soar toward the heavens through your voice.

Your Angel of Music,

Erik

Christine finished the food and sipped the mug soothing tea before adding the familiar thorn-less, ribbon-tied red rose to the vase on her desk. She was surprised at how even the older roses were still healthy and in bloom.

"Thank you, Erik, for all you have done," she whispered to the empty room, confident that he could hear her. "I hope I make you proud."

Erik waited until Christine left for the bathroom before carefully sliding the mirror glass aside and placing a breakfast tray on her desk. He pulled an envelope and red rose from his trench coat pocket and placed them on the tray. He knew Christine would be a nervous wreck for her audition and would not eat. The last thing that poor girl needed was to faint on stage due to low blood sugar. He had made a special lemon chamomile tea to help sooth her throat and calm her mind.

Lost in his thoughts, Erik startled when her heard Christine walking down the hallway. She walked so lightly that her footsteps hardly made a sound, but his fine-tuned hearing picked up on it just in time. He bolted across the room and slid the mirror back into place as Christine entered the room. She casually glanced in the direction of her mirror, but the tray captured her attention.

Erik watched the girl through the glass as she read the note he had left. An innocent smile crossed her features as she read. A sense of peace washed over him as he watched her, and stopped breathing for a minute to hear her sweet whisper.

"I hope I make you proud."

He waited until she departed before he sighed and whispered his reply, "You always will."

An hour and a half later, Christine stood alone in one of the empty practice rooms in Farber Auditorium and focused on her breathing and position.

That's it, my angel. Just breathe deep and relax, she could hear her masked tutor's voice in her head. She looked around to make sure he was not actually there, but quickly realized it was just her imagination repeating instructions she had heard him utter many times over the past week. She had already warmed up and had gone over her scales. All that was left to do was to go over her piece once and try to stay calm until it was time for her audition. Christine opened her mouth to begin when a loud clattering erupted. She turned to see Carlotta storming into the practice room followed by her usual entourage. Fury shone in the eyes of the obnoxious girl as she looked at Christine with disdain.

"You must leave me to rehearse in peace. Oot vith you." Christine stared at her with disbelief. Did Carlotta just tell her to leave the practice room?

"I beg your pardon! I do believe I was here first and seeing as my audition time is before yours, you have time to find a vacant practice room," she glared back. Carlotta laughed smugly.

"And you belief dat you will get the lead role in zees production? You silly silly girl. Of course it is I who will receive zee leading part. Do not be a fool Miss...ah..."

"Daaé, my name is Christine Daaé, you self-centered bitch and if you think for one minute you can..."

"Do not be a fool Miss Daaé. You do not possess zee skills or talent needed to truly be a prima donna," she interrupted arrogantly. "Now be gone vith you!"

Christine once again began to protest, but heard her name being called. It was her time to audition and she hadn't had a chance to go over her piece. Muttering curses under her breath, she offered Carlotta one last glare and left the room. As soon as the door closed, her confidence fled and she began to shake. The last thing she had needed was to get upset before such an important event and she felt Carlotta's words sink to her core.

Do not be a fool Miss Daaé. You do not possess the skills or talent needed to truly be a prima donna... Christine shook her head to get the words out of her mind, but already she could feel self-doubt creeping in. She walked onto the brightly lit stage and had to squint to see the judges.

"Name?" she heard from the darkness.

"C-Christine Daaé, m-ma'am," she stuttered. The opening chords for her song hit her ears as she tried to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat. She inhaled and opened her mouth to sing, but no sound came out. Her creamy skin paled and her eyes were wide with fear. The accompanist stopped abruptly and Christine could hear one of the male judges, Mr. Andre, clear his throat.

"Miss Daaé, is there something wrong?"

"I'm-I'm sorry, s-sir. May I t-take a moment?" she croaked.

"Just a moment. We have a tight schedule," came the brusque reply.

"T-thank you," she turned to walk off stage when she was suddenly consumed in darkness. There were surprised outbursts from throughout the building as people tried to figure out what had happened.

"Relax, Christine," a familiar male voice whispered in her ear.

She shivered from its close proximity and could feel him step closer to her. Although she could not see Erik in the pitch-black auditorium, his presence alone gave her strength to push her apprehensions aside. His hands gently roamed over her upper body to place her in correct position.

"Sing for me."

Christine took a few deep breaths before the nervous chatter of the room was silenced by an angelic voice emanating through the darkness.

Mary did you know

That your baby boy...

With each passing note, Christine could feel her confidence grow and was taking full command of center-stage when the lights came back on. The accompanist attempted to play along for a measure, but was waved off by Madame Giry. The judges appeared to be entranced by Christine's acapella performance. The floodlights illuminated the girl's delicate features and wide white smile.

Mary did you know?


She held the last note and let it smoothly fade off into silence. For a moment, not a sound was heard. Suddenly, loud cheering and clapping came from the rear. Christine shielded her yes from the glare, and saw her blonde friend dragging Raoul down the aisle. She giggled at the amount of shrieking Meg was doing, and embraced her as the two ran up on stage.

"Excuse me, miss. We are holding auditions. You're not to be here, " Mr. Andre said sternly.

"I'm sorry, sir," Meg replied. "But you don't need anymore. You have your star right here!" She grabbed Christine's shoulders.

"MEG!" Christine hissed, flush-faced with embarrassment.

"Come on, Meg, " Raoul tried to subdue his friend. "We need to leave before we all get thrown out."

"You did great, " he said softly to Christine and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek before guiding Meg off stage. The brunette turned her attention back to the judges.

"I'm sorry about the disruption," she apologized.

"Thank you, Miss Daaé. The cast list will be posted at three o'clock tomorrow afternoon."

"Thank you!" she said excitedly before running to join her friends backstage to celebrate her audition. Before she left the stage wing, a hand grasped her arm and spun her harshly. Christine's eyes went wide when she found herself staring at the face of Carlotta.

"So, yous all smiles after zee little performance. Dat vas children's play. Vatch a REAL star perform," she hissed and proceeded onto the stage. Rubbing her sore arm, Christine turned on her heel and marched backstage, determined not to let her good mood be fouled by and egotistical snob.

Meg and Raoul were waiting next to her backpack in the now-empty practice room.

"You were great! Absolutely fantastic!" Raoul picked up Christine and spun her around before setting her gently back down and gently kissing her forehead. She giggle and smiled at her two friends.

"Thanks, guys! I thought I was a goner for a little while there, but I was saved by a miracle."

"Miracle?" Meg quirked an eyebrow. "The lights cutting out isn't a miracle. It was a distraction. Although, it did add a dramatic effect."

"Sure did!" Raoul turned to his Little Lotte. "Are you doing anything tonight?"

Christine hesitated a moment. She had thought about meeting with Erik again. She had only been away from his secret house for less than a day, but she felt a strange longing to return. It was as if the time and the world had ceased to exist in his realm. Finally, she shook her head.

"Good, I am going to take you out for a celebration dinner."

"Ah, isn't it a little early to be celebrating? I won't know if I got the part until late tomorrow afternoon."

"I'm being optimistic. Besides, I don't know how anyone could have done better than you."

Christine agreed to have Raoul pick her up at six.

"Hey, Meg. Are you coming too?" she asked the blonde who had preoccupied herself in the corner. Christine did not want to leave her best friend out of the festivities. Meg looked up, startled, at the mention of her name. She recovered quickly and hid the objects she had been examining, out of view.

"No, thanks. You two go out and have a great time. I need to study for my Theories exam anyway."

Christine shugged and picked up her backpack. Taking Raoul's offered arm, the couple exited the practice room. Only when she was sure that they had left, did Meg pull her hand out from behind her back. There was a red rose with a black ribbon and a note written in fancy handwriting congratulating Christine on her performance. Judging from the rose, Meg had deduced that it was Christine's secret guy, Erik (as the note was signed), who had left it on her backpack.

More and more, Meg had been trying to figure out who this person was. She knew she had to find out soon because it looked as if Raoul and Christine were getting very close. If someone was trying to interfere with their happiness, Meg was determined to put a stop to it.

"She is his, you bastard. Stay the hell away from her!" she said to the empty room. If this Erik guy was listening, she wanted him to hear her thoughts on the matter. She tore up the note and ripped the petals from the stem before breaking it in half and throwing them in the trashcan.

"Do not meddle in affairs of which you know nothing about, Little Giry. I would hate for an unfortunate circumstance to befall you."

Wide-eyed, Meg turned and searched the room for the owner of the voice. Seeing nothing but the empty practice room, she glared.

"Do not threaten me and stay hiding. Too much of a coward to face me, hmmm?"

Getting no reply, the blonde girl huffed, "That's what I thought!" before stormed out of the room.

As soon as Meg had left, Erik deemed it safe to slip out of the shadows. Holding a simmering anger inside, he made is way over to the trashcan and glanced at the destroyed token of his affection. He could feel his muscles tightening and his fists clenched at his sides.

Calm yourself, Erik, he thought to himself. Giving in to his anger over this little incident would simply not do. Slowly, his body relaxed and his mind cleared.

I will forgive you for this little misstep, Little Giry, on account of your ignorance; however, I will not tolerate arrogant people poking their noses where they don't belong. You're on the radar now, sweetheart, so watch yourself.

As is the usual, I thrive on reviews (the fact that they've been dwindling on the past few chapters hasn't helped to urge me on with this story :-P ) Thanks to those who have taken the time. I promise to respond to each one with at least a thanks.