That Face in The Mask
Chapter Sixteen: One Love, One Lifetime
Meg looked at Cedric, down on one knee, possibly holding the rest of her life in his hands. He was offering her the chance at everything she'd ever dreamed of, ever wanted. A life of comfort and love with her childhood friend, a beautiful romance and family, maybe even children, or grandchildren. She couldn't dream of anything making her happier.
But, was this what she truly wanted? Could she honestly imagine spending the rest of her life married to Cedirc? A few months ago she would have scoffed at the very idea, but now, this could seriously be her future. Cedric would make an ideal husband for any lady. He was so kind and thoughtful, so hard working and dependant, a perfect gentlemen. But was he her ideal husband?
She could feel all her emotions overwhelming her again, and she desperately tried to slow down the rush of hasty, illogical thoughts. This was exactly how she had gotten herself in this awful situation last time, cracking under the pressure of a serious romance. She needed to think more clearly! But he so wanted to marry her, and anyone could plainly see he loved her. But, did she really love him?
In her heart, though she desperately wanted to deny it, she knew the answer. She truly didn't love him, and she never would. As hard as they both may have tried, they could never be anything more than close friends, and marrying each other would only be a cruel joke. She knew she was throwing away his love by doing this, but she knew it was right. This had to end. Now. She couldn't ever force herself to love Cedric and there was no use in trying when she knew that her heart belonged to another man. Looking Cedric straight in the eye she pulled her hand out of his grasp and said
"No"
She saw him staring at her for a moment, trying to decide if what he had just heard was true. He stood up and looked at her, a mixture of sadness and anger on his face
"What did you say?"
"Cedric, I said no"
She wished in that instant she could take her words back as soon as she saw the heart-breaking look spreading across his face, but it was too late. What was done was done, and she knew she had made the right choice, even if it seemed so wrong at the present
"Meg, I thought this was what you wanted! I love you Meg. You have to have some similar feelings towards me, don't you?"
"Cedric, I'm sorry, but my mind is made up. I truly don't love you, and I'm sorry I led you on for so long. I would only cause us both heartache and pain if I said yes when I don't mean it."
"Then why did you ever agree to court me? Do you realize how much the fool you've made me look now? Meg, how could you do this to me?"
In that instant, Meg realized what a fool she had been, convincing herself she'd fallen in love with Cedric. She felt as if the haze lingering over her mind had vanished, and she could now see quite clearly that Cedric, even though he was her dearest friend, was an arrogant, presumptuous, self-absorbed fop. She couldn't believe he wasn't accepting her answer!
"Cedric, I just cannot believe this! I'm sorry, I'm truly sorry for putting you through all this, but it you love me as you say you do, then you'll accept my answer. I don't love you. I never did, and now I don't know why I thought such. I was wrong. Cedric, I'm sorry, but I don't love you, and I can't marry you"
With that, she turned sharply away from him, leaving behind any lingering doubts or passions she may have once felt about him.
As she worked her way back up the rocky shore, she heard him call
"Meg, why!"
She turned around, giving him a clear look ,even from a distance, that was filled with both regret and pity
"Because my heart belongs to another man"
She saw his eyes widen in disbelief and fury as he called out
"Who?"
She looked over her shoulder at him for what she hoped would be the last time as she mysteriously said
"The Phantom of the Opera"
Her words seemed to echo among the rocking waves on the seashore as she gingerly lifted her skirt above the stones and grass, running as fast as she could to the man she knew now she truly loved. The faint image of her sweet beauty and cruel tantalizing words seemed to haunt Cedric mercilessly as he sank to his knees on the rocky shore, pleadingly calling after her
"Meg, why?"
But she was much too far away while running through the city streets of Paris at dusk to hear him calling after her. She knew now that she truly loved Erik, and no one else. She didn't know why she had once believed she loved Cedric. She couldn't possibly hold any affections for him, only their friendship. It was such a freeing revelation to know that she only loved Erik, and that was the man she could easily imagine spending the rest of her life with. What did it matter he stayed hidden away underground never revealing his existence? She shouldn't care about that, only that she loved him, and was now finally going to tell him about Cedric and what a fool she'd been and hope he would forgive her.
Meg didn't bother to open the front doors upon her arrival at the Opera House. She ran to the stables, opening the underground door to reveal the secret passages Erik had once shown her, running through the dark, damp tunnels to find him. She saw him sitting at his organ, scribbling something into his leather bound composition book and drinking when she cried out
"Erik!"
He looked up at her. She was completely out of breath. Her loose hair was plastered to her face and her thin dress layers sticking to her sweaty body. In Erik's opinion she'd never looked more beautiful. Even though she had startled him with her sudden arrival, causing his glass bottle to crash into shards on the hard floor with a sharp crash.
He was instantly up, coming to her side
"Meg! What's wrong? What is it?"
She laughed "Oh, nothing Erik. I'm sorry I startled you so, but oh, I just, I had to tell you something. I can't keep it hidden any longer."
He pulled a damp piece of hair off of her face "Well, come in. Here, sit down and we can talk"
She pulled up a chair next to his organ, peering at his composition book, expecting to see music notes or some new work, when instead she saw-
"Meg! Don't look at that-damn!" Erik swore, cutting himself on a shard of glass that remained on the organ
"What? Oh, Erik, look what you've done now. Here, let me see" she said, taking his bloodied hand in her own before he pulled it away
"No, Meg just don't-"
"Erik, it can't be all that...bad" she said slowly as she folded back the cover to look. Instead of a new music composition or lyric, she saw an exquisitely detailed charcoal drawing of herself on the pages, but not in the way she expected. Her hair was loose and blowing in the wind while her face mirrored an extremely seductive look she recalled she may have given Erik once or twice and the very little clothing she wore in the drawing clung to her body very tightly. She looked over at Erik, bandaging his cut because he couldn't bring himself to meet her eyes as she flipped through his book, finding similar drawings on almost every page in between music notes.
When she was finally able to speak, she looked over at Erik and said
"Erik, what is all this? Why did you...?"
He looked up, the shame and guilt he felt mirrored in his eyes
"I'm sorry Meg. I just started...imagining. Things. Things I've never felt before, but wanted so badly, I just, I just needed to let it out. So I did, but you were never supposed to see. Or know"
She looked at him, shutting the book
"You've never had that pleasure before, have you?" she asked gently
"No, never, but I've wanted to so badly. It almost hurts when you know you'll never feel the joys of the...flesh. Meg, I'm sorry. That was a horrible thing to imagine about you. I just-"
He stopped, unable to go on, but she finished it for him, blushing
"Erik, I've uh, I've imagined it too sometimes. And, sometimes, I really want it to happen"
She leaned over suddenly and kissed him, seeking all the pleasure and warmth she could find in his firm touch. She ran her fingers through his hair, dragging her hand slowly down his neck and around to his powerful, muscular chest. He let his hands explore a bit, feeling her soft, smooth skin, her gorgeous slim waist, the tantalizing rise and fall of her breasts beneath her sheer dress. He kissed her harder than before, seeking all the love and desire he'd always yearned for. He picked her up and swung her around, seeing her dress fly as she whirled around revealing her gorgeous, slim legs beneath her dress layers and he thin slippers fall from her feet before they both fell onto his bed, panting, their hearts both pounding with anticipation and pleasure. Erik rolled over, putting himself on top of her. She stopped kissing him for a moment, exclaiming breathlessly
"Erik?"
"Hmmm?" he said drowsily
"Erik, I don't want to just imagine it anymore. I want it to happen."
He pushed himself up a bit, looking down at her
"Meg, are you sure? You, you really want-"
"I've never wanted anything more in my life than to be with you every minute, every day, Erik. I want you. I want to be yours"
His heart was ready to burst through his chest with joy and happiness. She wanted him, loved him! He never imagined something like this could ever happen to him, but it was. It really was. She wanted him as much as he wanted her, maybe even more.
He resumed kissing her, passionately and harsh, and she responded with a need that was warm and hungry and blind, only wanting him right now in their rush of pleasure, no matter what the cost.
She slid his silken vest off and began unbuttoning his shirt, throwing it off to the floor when she finished. He followed her lead, ripping her sheer white dress off of her flaming body, leaving her in only her corset and thin petticoats, which he eagerly ripped off her body in a flash of twisting fabric and bunches of lace. He began fumbling with her confining corset laces until he finally freed her of her restraints, and she drew in a deep breath as she watched him toss it onto the floor. He kicked off his boots impatiently and whipped off his belt.
Meg removed his mask in a sharp, quick moment before he could stop her as he felt the rush of cool air on his sweaty face. He opened his mouth to protest, but she silenced him with a kiss, breaking apart to say
"Erik, if you really want this, then let me do what I think is right. That mask belongs to the Phantom. Not Erik. Not my Erik. You're not some mysterious masked man any longer, you're just a man, and I want to see the face in the mask."
"All right Meg. I trust you"
He felt so vulnerable and weak, but he knew she wanted to see this. She didn't want him to mask it any longer.
She kissed him again, more fervently than before and proceeded to drag her lips over his deformity, kissing each little groove and scar gently, feeling the rough, twisted skin beneath her soft mouth. The deformity was part of him. It made him who he was and she had no problem accepting that.
He gently moved his head away from her lips, finishing what she began. He pushed her chemise straps off her shoulders, revealing his first glimpse of her bare flesh as she fumbled with the waistband of his pants eagerly. They were both so hot, so engulfed in a passionate flame in that instant, no even hellfire could ever be hotter.
Eventually, the lights in Erik's lair burned dim into a wavering flame before going completely out, covering the two lovers in total darkness as they concluded their passionate affair. They both knew that night as they surrounded themselves in the eternal heat and pleasure that there was no returning to the way things once had been after this night. They both knew that there was no one on earth they could love more, and no one else in the entire world either of them could ever imagine sharing one love, one lifetime with.
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