Chapter 4

"Erik I have missed you! You wouldn't believe---" Raoul cut her off.

"Yes, yes. I'm sure your glad to see Erik but may I speak with you Christine? Privately?"

"I guess but what are you doing-" Raoul cut her off again and led her to the other side of the room, away from Erik.

"Christine, dearest, you coming here has put me in a very difficult position! How did you ever get out of your room?"

Erik was trying to pick up some sign of hostility between Christine and Raoul just so he could hope that maybe she'd stay for good.

"Raoul, you did that? You were the one who locked me in there? I can't believe you!" Christine smacked Raoul in the arm. Erik saw this and smiled. Maybe she hated him and would soon come running to him.

"I got out by banging my head against the door until someone heard me!" Christine said to Raoul. "I really can not believe you did that. Wicked man!"

"I was only protecting you! Besides, Erik will kill me if he found out I lied to him! You don't want a murder on your hands, do you?"

"What did you tell him?" she asked. Briefly Raoul filled her in on the past few days but stopped short at the sight of her amazed yet amused expression.

"What is it?"

"You sang together? Together? The two of you?" she asked laughingly.

"What? You don't believe me? Do you want us to show you the duet we've been working on?"

"I would be delighted to hear what you two have been working on. Though I really can't imagine what it will be like," she said with mock eagerness.

"Fine. ERIK! Could we show this childish young lady our duet?"

Erik blushed. "It really isn't anything Christine. A joke really, meant to amuse two drunken men, wait make that one man and one sissy, who live too far away from the sun."

"Well I guess if you sing it so badly then I shouldn't hear it." she said, challenging Erik.

"You think I won't sing it because it's bad?" Erik asked, his temper rising.

"No, no. I only think you think it isn't any good."

"Well, I think you think that I think it's bad which you think is true.Well, if that's the way you feel we'll just have to show you that I'm not the one who can't sing, but it is your lover, the great human cow! Have you heard or seen him when he sleeps?"

"Monsieur, I resent that!" Raoul said, his eyebrows raised and his eyes squinted.

"Come we must sing!" Erik shouted and headed toward the karaoke machine and put in a disk. Old-timish, Western, piano-in-bar music started playing and the two started to sing together.

"My little buttercup has the sweetest smile. Dear little buttercup, won't you stay a while? Dear little buttercup, with your eyes so blue. My little buttercup, you're a dream come true!" Christine flinched at the high note that Raoul sang. "You and I will settle down in a cottage built for two! Dear little buttercup, sweet little buttercup, I love yooooouuuuu!" They finished and looked at Christine triumphantly, an I- Told- You- We'd- Do- Good look on Raoul's face. She sat there staring in utter amusement and than burst out laughing.

"That was the duet? Hee, Hee, Hee! How can you sing that and be so serious? Ha, Ha, HA! My little buttercup indeed!" she said, laughing. The two men before her stared and then Erik said, "Would a muffin shut you up?"

"No I don't believe it would," Raoul said, staring icily at Christine.

"Christine for goodness sake will you be quiet!" Erik shouted.

"Hee hee ha ha ha! Oh my goodness that was hilarious!" Christine hooted.

"Monsieur, quiet the woman. If you'll excuse me I have to send off some muffins to an old friend," Erik said, peeved.