Disclaimer: I do not own PhofOp.
Song From the Soul
"I have a surprise for the two of you." Erik stated as he closed the top of the piano to conclude Miss Daae's lesson.
"Ooh, you're not going to tell us you are actually into something kinky, are you?" Raoul asked, causing Erik to glance at Christine with a raised eyebrow.
She sighed exaggeratedly and shook her head at him. "Ignore him."
"I had wanted to inform you that the song I have been working on is completed, and was interested to know if you would like to listen."
Christine gasped in excitement. "Of course! Are you going to play it?"
Erik shook his head and pulled out his phone to wave it in the air.
"The music has already been created and have kept it as an attachment in my email."
"Play it!" Christine commanded.
Erik nodded and opened up his phone to get to the music. As he did, Raoul stood up from his spot on the stage floor and came to stand next to Christine.
When he got to the attachment, he brought it up to the screen to play, turning his volume on full blast.
"The phone will not be able to give us the full experience of a live orchestra, but it'll have to do." Erik remarked before hitting play and placed the phone on top of the piano.
The music began its soft tempo, the phone loud enough to encircle the three on stage with its song. On cue, Erik opened his mouth and sung.
Nighttime sharpens, heightens each sensation
Darkness stirs and wakes imagination
Silently the senses abandon their defenses
Already, the two before him seemed to be fixed in the spot they were standing in. Eyes appearing glazed over but as he moved, both pairs followed his every move. Slowly he went to Miss Daae first.
Slowly, gently, night unfurls its splendor
Grasp it, sense it, tremulous and tender
Turn your face away from the garish light of day
Turn your thoughts away from cold, unfeeling light
And listen to the music of the night
Christine's mouth was somewhat ajar, as she stared at him as if mesmerized. Her breathing slow and deep. Erik brought his hand up and sang the next part as he gently brought her eyelids down with his fingertips.
Close you eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams
Purge your thoughts of the life you knew before
Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar
And you'll live as you've never lived before
He released her and she opened her eyes slowly. They focused on him again as he made his way to Mr. de Chagny next.
Softly, deftly, music shall caress you
Hear it, feel it, secretly possess you
Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind
In this darkness that you know you cannot fight
The darkness of the music of the night
Erik had his hand close to Raoul's face but not touching him. Raoul for his part had his head slightly cocked towards the hand and his body was swaying back and forth the smallest bit. Erik brought his hand back to take a couple steps back so that he could raise the volume of his voice without sounding too loud for the two in front of him.
Let your mind start a journey through a strange, new world
Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before
Let your soul take you where you long to be
Only then can you belong to me
He came to stand between the two of them, grabbing one of their hands so that they were facing him and guided them forward. They followed him easily, their own grips on his hands loose and relaxed.
Floating, falling, sweet intoxication
Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation
Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in
To the power of the music that I write
The power of the music of the night
It just became the music, Erik had stopped them, noticing that both were breathing a little heavily though not harshly. Even without his singing, neither appeared to be coming out of their state. He let both of their hands go, both of which stayed in the air a few moments after he did before going back to their sides. He brought his own hand to his chest and sang the last verse.
You alone can make my song take flight
Help me make the music of the night
As he let the last note fade, voice ceasing at the exact moment the music did, he watched Miss Daae and Mr. de Chagny come back out of their traces slowly. The both of them were flushed, and blinked furiously for a few moments, Raoul even had to step back to catch himself when he swayed a little too far. Soon both of them were focusing on him.
"Damn…" Raoul choked out in awe.
"What's the story behind this? Is this supposed to be you?" Christine asked, eyes bright.
"I see it as a reflection of my soul, yes," Erik confessed. This song, this music was him. It was his life, his art, his very being. And he had just laid it out bare for his partners to take in.
"If you're saying that this is you as the night and darkness then I never want to see the light again!" Christine gushed, causing Erik's heart to skip a beat. Her hands were now clasped together to her chest. "It's beautiful!"
"Yeah, maybe too beautiful." Raoul groaned, turning his back to back to him and started aggressively brushing himself off.
When Erik shot Christine a puzzled frown, she winked.
"He's turned on. Big time." She answered cheerfully.
"Oh yes…" Erik recalled, understanding washed over him. He had forgotten about Mr. de Chagny's certain…attraction towards his voice. Granted it had been some time since the last time he had done anything other than play the piano during their sessions.
"'Oh yes,' he says." Raoul grumbled seemingly more to himself then them, still turned around. "Man's got the voice of an angel yet can't be bothered to remember that his boyfriend has some obvious fetish with it."
Erik's felt his cheeks warm up under his mask and heard Christine giggle next to him.
"I am sorry that it causes such an effect on you." Erik apologized.
Raoul turned around at that, still appearing slightly flushed but overall normal.
"Don't worry about it. I love your voice too much to actually ask you to stop or anything. This is only a…unexpected result that I'll have to learn to live with." He answered with a small grin. "I say I should get a kiss though, as compensation for when it does happen."
Erik's breath caught in his throat, causing him to cough to get his breath back to normal. He felt two different size hands on him and heard Raoul muttered an apology. Shaking his head as he finally began to catch his breath he noticed that Christine was on one side holding onto his arm and shoulder to keep him upright and Raoul was on the other, one hand patting his back, the other gripping his own hand.
Turning his head, he briefly met Raoul's eyes then leaned forward. Doing what Miss Daae and Mr. de Chagny had often done to him, he pressed his lips to the corner of Raoul's mouth in a soft kiss before leaning back a few seconds later. When he met Raoul's eyes again, they were somewhat widen from surprised. Apparently he had not believed that he was going to be taken seriously.
That was understandable, Erik knew that he had never initiated anything that they had done. But, he felt that now was as good of a time as any. He decided to be with them, and while he still believed that the three of them had a while to go before they figured out how they all fit together, he was at least ready to begin showing some of his affections.
"I believe that is a fair exchange." Erik agreed to Raoul's earlier statement.
"Yo-you." Raoul spluttered, not being able to get out any more words then that.
"Can I get a kiss as well?" Christine asked innocently, her fingers interlacing themselves with his.
He turned to his other side where she was standing and gave her a chuckle. "Of course, Miss Daae."
He used the hand that she was holding and tugged her forward. Leaning down to her height, he did as he had done with Mr. de Chagny, placing a soft kiss on her cheek where her lips were currently tugged upwards with her smile before pulling back.
"Ha! I got the first kiss!" Raoul abruptly shouted triumphantly, startling both Erik and Christine.
Christine sent him a glare pass Erik. "What are you talking about? I was the one who kissed him first when we got together."
While they were distracted, Erik took the opportunity to break away from them, taking a few steps back to not be in range. Luckily, the couple did not seem too noticed. Raoul held up a finger with a gleeful smile.
"You got to kiss him first, BUT that was you kissing him. I got the first kiss he gave."
"It's not a competition!" Christine snapped back.
"It's not." Raoul easily agreed. "But that won't stop me from bragging about it for a while!"
Christine let out a huff but remained silent with her arms crossed, obviously trying to not be baited by Raoul to continue arguing.
Erik felt the need to change the subject to something safer so cleared his throat to get their attention. When he had it he asked, "I was also meaning to ask if you had any plans during spring break?"
"I got a few assignments that I have to do but that'll only take me a couple days." Raoul answered and Christine just shrugged. "Why? You got something you want to do?"
When Erik sent them a mischievous smirk, both of them suddenly took on nervous appearances.
Here you are. I hoped you enjoyed it and will leave a comment! Next chapter is the last one and it's in Christine's POV. The story had originally ended with the date chapter but then this one came to me and the next one as well. I figured it was for the best. That way each of them got their own chapter after they got together.
For those who might be having trouble picking a favorite chapter, which to me is actually flattering, maybe you can think of a specific scene that you liked or even a favorite line that comes to mind when you think of the story itself. I'll be happy to read your thoughts once the story is completed!