A/N: Thank you to BabyNake, peanutpup, Phantomgirl24, and sharp52092 for the feedback on the last chapter!
Erik stirred awake, automatically reaching an arm out next to himself, searching for Christine, only to realize he was alone in the bed. Heart sinking, he buried his face in his pillow as the knowledge that she had stolen away from him in the night washed over him. He should have known that she'd regret what they'd done, but he hadn't guessed that she would come to that realization so quickly.
However, as he considered getting up to find his phone so he could text her an apology, as well as a reassurance that he would never pressure her for a repeat of last night, Erik realized he could hear water running in the sink of his attached bathroom. Flopping onto his back, he covered his eyes with an arm as he processed the relief he was feeling upon learning that Christine was still in his suite, as well as the guilt he also felt over his reaction.
He had been devastated by the thought of Christine leaving him alone without a word, although it had only been a few minutes before he realized that she hadn't left at all. How much worse had it been for her five years ago, waking up alone in his apartment after finding the courage to come to him the night before? Had she thought he was still there at first, or that he would return shortly? Tears leaked from his eyes as he thought of her alone, waiting for him. Erik had a long list of regrets in his life, but leaving Christine - and, unknowingly, his son - the way that he had was certainly the biggest one.
When he heard the water in the sink turn off, Erik quickly wiped the tears from his face before Christine entered the bedroom again, standing in front of him with her arms crossed uncertainly.
For a moment, Erik's only thought was that he wished he had his mask to spare Christine from having to look at his horrible visage in the light of day, but when he saw how beautiful she looked, he found himself forgetting his own insecurities, at least for the moment. Dressed in a plain t-shirt and leggings, with her hair pulled back into a simple braid, she was even more beautiful than she had been last night, as far as he was concerned. However, as his gaze drank her in, he realized that she seemed unsure of herself - something that his intense perusal most likely wasn't helping.
Hoping he wasn't reading the situation incorrectly, Erik slowly lifted his arm, holding the covers up in a silent invitation - one that Christine accepted, to his relief. Slipping into the sheets next to him, she gave him a relieved smile before wrapping an arm around his waist, snuggling up against him to lean her head against his chest before finally speaking.
"Good morning," she said shyly, nestling against him as Erik slowly wrapped an arm around her. It was hard for him to believe that Christine would ever feel insecure around him, but it seemed that she was needing a little reassurance after the previous night, as incredible as that seemed.
Although maybe it wasn't so surprising, considering that he had left her without a word the last time they had had sex, Erik realized suddenly, before deciding to put that line of thinking to the side, at least for now. While he had Christine in his arms, it would be foolish to focus on his past mistakes, after all.
Daring to press a reverent kiss to the top of her head, Erik answered her in a choked voice, "Good morning, Christine," gratified when she hugged him a little tighter at his greeting.
"You were brilliant last night," he continued, only to cringe when he realized how that statement must sound to her. "I mean, at the concert," he added hastily, but she didn't seem to take offense.
"Thanks. And you were brilliant last night, too," she added, a hint of laughter in her tone, sounding so adorable that Erik couldn't help but hold her a little tighter as well.
Just when he was wondering if a repeat of last night might be possible, Christine sighed and moved against him. "I wish we could stay like this all day, but I need to get going. Gustave will be up soon, and I promised him we would spend all day together today, since I start rehearsals for La Traviata tomorrow."
"Oh, of course," Erik agreed, trying to tamp down any disappointment he was feeling at losing her company for the day, but Christine wasn't done speaking yet.
"Would you like to come eat breakfast with us?"
Scarcely able to believe his good fortune at having Christine asking him to eat with her and Gustave with such a hopeful note in her tone, Erik cleared his throat.
"Of course."
"Great! I'll go over now and tell Mamma that you're coming and help her cook. Just come over when you're ready," she said happily, extricating herself from his arms. "Oh, and it's a pajama day, so you should wear pajamas, or Gustave might be upset."
"Oh, okay," he agreed lamely, but Christine didn't seem to notice the lack of enthusiasm in his tone, leaning down to give him a quick kiss before exiting the bedroom, presumably to gather her clothes from last night in the other room before returning to her suite.
Rolling on his back, Erik let his arm drape over his eyes for a moment, trying to draw a few deep breaths. For some reason, the thought of joining Christine and her family for a meal in their lodgings was making him nervous - it just seemed more personal than the outings they had gone on together thus far, although after last night this whole line of thinking seemed vaguely ridiculous, not that that helped calm his nerves.
And he was supposed to wear pajamas? He didn't really have any, but thankfully Rookheeya had given him some soft athletic-style pants the previous Christmas that would probably work, which he donned along with a long-sleeved black t-shirt and his black mask before putting on his shoes and slipping out into the hallway, hoping both that he didn't look too ridiculous and that no one saw him on the short walk to Christine's door.
xxxxx
When a knock sounded on their door, Christine looked up as Gustave came running from the living area, on a mission to let Erik in. "I'll get it!" he exclaimed as she smiled to herself at how excited he already was about their day together. When she told him that she had asked Erik to come over to eat, Gustave's happy reaction had both pleased her but also made her realize that she and Erik were going to have to talk about how they were going to proceed with this entire situation. Not wanting to think about something she didn't feel she had the answer to yet, at least not fully, Christine tried to put it to the back of her mind, wanting to enjoy the day with her son, telling herself there would be plenty of time to think about things later.
Fortunately, Gustave was usually good for a distraction, and this morning was no exception. "Hi, Erik!" he practically yelled as he threw open the door. "It's almost time to eat."
"Hello, Gustave," Erik replied gravely as Christine watched his gaze linger on their son, who had already turned to run back to the living room, before he looked at her and their gazes locked. After a few moments, Christine smiled. "Hi."
Erik gave a short nod at her greeting, his gaze drifting over to Mamma uncertainly, but the older woman merely gave him a warm smile. "Hello, Erik. It's nice that you could join us," she greeted him, and Christine thought she saw him relax slightly.
"Good morning. I'm glad to be invited," he replied, only to have his attention diverted by Gustave running back up to him.
"Do you want to play a game while we wait?"
After glancing back at Christine momentarily, Erik nodded slowly. "That would be all right," he agreed - and if Christine felt a bit choked up watching the two of them walk into the living room to play together, she told herself it was probably due to a lack of sleep the night before.
xxxxx
Not long after Gustave had thoroughly explained the rules of a game that he called 'hungry hippos' and they had started playing, Christine and Mme Valérius called them over to the table. Following Gustave, Erik sat and took a pancake when Christine offered a plate of them to him, noticing that his son took several, as well as a piece of bacon and some of the cut fruit that was on the table. Glad to see further evidence that the boy hadn't inherited his poor appetite, Erik slowly began eating, pleased when Mme Valérius brought up the topic of Christine's concert from the previous night.
After they had fully discussed Christine's triumph, Gustave spoke up. "Did you know that we're going to spend all day in our pajamas? And we're going to play games and watch movies, and order pizza later."
Belatedly realizing that the boy was addressing him, Erik answered, "Your mother told me you were going to spend the day together. That sounds fun."
Beaming, Gustave replied, "It will be! And you can stay if you want."
As Erik had a flashback to the day that he'd realized Gustave was his child and the memory of the boy innocently inviting him to accompany them on their drive the next day, his gaze shot to Christine, but instead of the shocked look she'd had that day, this time she was looking at him with what he could only describe as a hopeful expression.
Touched beyond measure at this evidence that she wanted him to spend the day with them, Erik nodded. "I would like that."
"Yay!" Gustave said happily, as he dug into a new pancake, thankfully not noticing the fact that his answer brought a brief sheen of tears to their guest's eyes.
xxxxx
As one of Gustave's favorite movies wrapped up, Christine snuck a glance down at him in his curled-up position on the sofa, between herself and Erik. Not surprised to see that he was fully asleep after the day they'd had - and the amount of junk food he'd eaten - she looked at Erik next.
"I think someone's ready for bed," she said, starting to rise so that she could pick Gustave up, but Erik held up a hand before she could.
"I can do it," he said, hastily adding, "If that's all right, of course."
"Oh, sure, that's fine," she replied, watching as Erik rose and picked Gustave up smoothly, somehow not jostling him at all. Reflecting that she sometimes forgot just how physically strong Erik really was, Christine led him to Gustave's room, pulling the blankets back so Erik could lay him in the bed. After leaning down to press a light kiss to her son's forehead, Christine turned back to Erik. Sensing that he was growing emotional, she silently took his hand, giving it a quick squeeze before leading him from the room, wanting to give him a few minutes to process everything.
When they returned to the main living area, they found Mamma putting away the last few things left out in the kitchen. Hearing them, she turned toward them after turning the dishwasher on.
"Well, I think I'll head to bed as well. Good night, you two."
"Good night," Christine responded, seeing Erik give a courteous nod next to her. "I'll see you in the morning."
After the door to her bedroom closed behind the other woman, Christine noticed that Erik had grown awkward again. Realizing that he was probably wondering if he should go too, she nodded her head toward the sofa. "Join me for a minute?"
Seeing his lips curve at her invitation, Christine led Erik to the couch, curling into his side and resting her head against him, content to just be close to him for the moment before tipping her face up to his in an invitation that he accepted, hesitantly at first before growing more confident.
After their embrace gradually became more heated, Christine pulled back, feeling an irresistible smile tugging at her lips. Even though she knew nothing long term had been settled between the two of them, she was finding it harder and harder to find the will to stay away from Erik, and she gave in to what she wanted once more.
"Should we move this to your place?" she asked sweetly, loving the way his eyes looked both shocked and aroused at her words.
"I - yes, if you would like. I wouldn't want to presume," he answered her, thrilling her with the naked longing in his tone.
Again feeling the rush that came from basking in Erik's total desire for her, Christine rose and pulled him up as well. "I would like that. And besides, we have a lot of condoms still to use," she said as she started to lead him to the door, giggling at the sharp exhalation he let out at her words.
A/N: Hopefully everyone enjoyed a little fluffy family bonding - they still have things to deal with, of course, but I think they're headed in the right direction. Thank you for reading, and please feel free to let me know what you thought!