Chapter 10

After the show, Rebekah found herself in her dressing room amongst the cinnamon scented candles once again. Ryan was intent on hanging around, but she assured him she was fine. It took about half an hour to do so, but he had finally left her, reluctantly.

So now, staring at herself in the mirror, Rebekah reflected on her flawless performance. Her hands fiddled with the black ribbon on the rose which, as always, was awaiting her return. In the mirror her reflection stared back at her. Instead of imagining what it would be like to be Christine Daae, she kept seeing herself as she had seen Christine on the stage back in Paris. Before she was murdered.

Rebekah shook her head as though doing so would expel the thoughts forever. What if the lady on the answering machine was right, and Julian was just a sicko whose good looks hypnotized young vulnerable girls into believing they were someone they weren't. Clearly, if she had been Christine, she would have never ever even have considered leaving Erik for a fop.

Yet in her heart she knew she probably would have. The shallowness of it felt like lead in her stomach, which made her want to vomit. She would have went with what was safe, just because she was too scared to deal with the consequences of taking a risk.

But she had taken a risk. She went with Julian yesterday, and by doing so, put her complete trust into a complete stranger that could very well be a certifiable lunatic.

With a sigh, Rebekah stood up and went to change. After unhooking the stays on the back of the wedding dress, as she went to take the gown off, she remembered the mirror. She taped a blanket over it and changed. Then she went back to the vanity to put on her shoes.

No sooner thanRebekah had sat down did he speak, causing her to jump. "That was completely unnecessary, you know"

Julian was just as attractive as ever. In the dull candle light his eyes sparkled ferociously. The snowy color of his hair was turned to a golden sheen. He wore all black as, she suspected, was usual.

"What was?" Rebekah asked, too distracted by his sudden (gorgeous) appearance to make sense of what he had just said.

"The blanket." He gestured nonchalantly over his left shoulder at the covered up mirror.

Her cheeks turned pink. "I didn't want you to be standing there watching me change, even though you probably stood there every other time…"

He interrupted her with "But not the last time because you never changed."

Her blush increased. "So you admit it! You stood there and watched!"

Julian laughed. "I am a Shadow Man. We are confined to the shadows. Watching is what we do." He shrugged and gestured to the corner by the wardrobe. "Besides I stood over there the other times anyway, so even if you had covered the mirror the other times, it would have been pointless."

His smile increased as a look of pure, disgusted horror crossed Rebekah's face. "What? Are you ashamed?"

"Are you serious? Am I ashamed? You watched me get dressed! Don't I deserve some privacy?"

"Not when you could be killed at any second." He said, his mood darkening once more.

Rebekah gathered her purse and started to the door. She was only stopped by Julian's light grasp upon her forearm.

Looking down at the hand which seemed to barely touch her, hold her still, and burn into her very being, she trembled.

Julian drew her to him. Her hands rested lightly on his chest and she slowly forced herself to look at him. Those eyes. They seemed so familiar.

"You are remembering me?" Julian asked, his voice sounding almost as breathless as she felt.

"What? Oh…no, I… It's just…. Your eyes, I could swear I have seen them before all of this." She blushed again realizing she probably sounded like a complete idiot.

He smile tugged at his lips but didn't form. "When you were Jenny, my eyes haunted your nightmares. You saw them in the closet of your grandfather's basement when the Elders took him."

Rebekah started to back away, but his arms had found themselves around her and she couldn't move. Julian sighed, "Why are you so intent on fighting me?"

"You come out of no where and start spurting out these stories that sound ridiculous. What did you slip me that made me fucked up enough to believe that I had traveled through time. You should market it, you know? You'd make a fortune."

Julian's eyes darkened. "So. You believe that warning that I am some psychopath out to make you lose your mind?" His grip on her grew fiercer. "I am not going to let you die again."

Struggling to free herself, "I am not going to die." Rebekah proclaimed through clenched teeth.

Instead of arguing with her, he answered her with a kiss. Rebekah felt her legs collapse. If it wasn't for the fact that Julian had her in his arms, she was sure she would have fallen.

A knock at the door tore them apart.

"Rebekah are you still here?" Ryan called from the other side of the door.

Rebekah turned back to look at Julian, but he was gone. The disappearing was annoying her. "Yeah, why did you come back? I told you I was fine."

The door opened and Ryan looked at her skeptically. "You don't need to be walking home alone, I'll drive you."

Rolling her eyes, Rebekah walked through the doorway ahead of him. She barely heard him mutter "What the hell do you do back here anyway?"