Chapter 6
This is the point in the story where Ayesha comes in. Raoul had been sleeping peacefully in his hammock when he started to sneeze violently. He opened his eyes and was face to face with a very strange, yet beautiful, creature he assumed to be a cat. It was staring at him. He went into another sneezing fit and Erik ran into the room.
"Oh, it's just you," Erik said, disappointed. "I thought it might be the alarm. That means that I have an unwanted visitor. It rang when you came too only--, why are you sneezing?"
"I'm allergic to cats! I assume that this thing is a cat."
"Not thing! Ayesha," he said calmly as he scooped up the cat in his arms, caressing its back.
"Well Ayesha is making me sneeze!"
"Well since you're the only one in this house who minds her, accept for sometimes Christine, you can just leave."
"Erik, you are the only one in this house accept for sometimes Christine," Raoul pointed out.
"Yes, you are correct on that monsieur, but Christine isn't allergic to her, she's only jealous."
"I am not jealous!" Christine shouted from the doorway of her room, her eyelashes still bearing the tape.
"Yes you are darling. Don't deny it, you know you are." Erik called, looking at Raoul who was putting on chapstick.
"I'm telling you, I am not!"
"Whatever you say dearest." Erik called, in an overly happy voice.
"I'm hungry." Raoul piped in.
Both Erik and Christine turned to look at him.
"Sir, I've been down here for three days or so, I think, and have not eaten a thing! Lip balm?"
"What?" Erik asked.
"I told you! I'm hungry." he said.
"Oh very well. Christine, darling, be a doll and go find what's in the kitchen. I think there are some blood oranges in the fridge."
"Alright Erik," she said.
"Blood?" Raoul asked.
"Yes. What of it?" Erik asked.
"Nothing, nothing. You have a fridge?" Raoul asked.
"Monsieur, I may not be the biggest eater, but I supply my kitchen with all necessary things. Plus you'd be surprised at how much Christine will eat sometimes," Erik said.
"No I wouldn't," Raoul said under his breath.
Christine came back in with the sliced oranges in hand. A thick, red liquid was running down her hand.
"Christine you're bleeding!" Raoul exclaimed, alarmed.
"It's the oranges." Erik and Christine said in unison.
"Oh! They're blood oranges! Right, gotcha." Raoul said, embarrassed.
"Thank you dear." Raoul sneezed again.
"We are going to have to do something about that aren't we," Erik said.
"Yes. He's scaring the poor cat, and making my headache worse." Christine had woken up with a splitting headache from Raoul dropping her so many times.
"You have a headache?" Erik glared at Raoul.
"Yes. I just woke up with it," she whined.
"Well I'll just make you something to make it better then," Erik said. The whole time Erik was talking, Raoul was sneezing like crazy.
"Um, Erik? Could you make me something that would help my allergies?" Raoul asked.
"I'll see what I can do," Erik said coldly. He swore to him self that Raoul would be sorry for hurting his precious Christine.
