Thank you so much to those who have reviewed and followed the story again. It genuinely means a lot to know that people are still enjoying this story. And on that note...hope you enjoy this one! :)

Erik's Guest: Yes this is very true. Hahaha I literally laughed out loud when I read your review this morning. My flatmates must have thought I was mad, sat there laughing to myself. :) But yes, I definitely think this chapter is a little bit of an improvement but because I love a bit of good old angst, prepare for more of that too haha. ;) But thanks for the lovely review again and I hope you enjoy this chapter. :)

New Surprises Come Your Way…

I had no time now to meddle through my thoughts as I headed down the grand staircase. Marcel Bonneville was stood directly at the bottom. He was wearing a black waistcoat underneath his suit jacket, matching with the tie he was wearing. His hair was brushed backwards from his face again, showing off more of his striking features. He was holding a small selection of red roses within his hands.

He turned as he noticed my approach, his eyes roaming over my dress and I quickly looked to the floor, feeling my cheeks redden due to his gaze.

"You look beautiful." He said as soon as I had reached his side.

"Thank you."

He held out the roses in his hand. "Err…these are for you."

"Oh thank you…you didn't have to." I said. I accepted the roses with a bittersweet feeling twisting in my gut. They were beautiful but if anything, they made me feel unworthy given the conversation I had just had with the Vicomte.

We headed round to a beautiful restaurant near the Eiffel Tower. Marcel seemed quite intelligent, talking about many of the books he had read recently and his own writing that he was working on. He talked a lot during our meal and I was glad because although I was enjoying his company, I found my thoughts wondering back to the Vicomte. Whether he was right or not with the accusations he had accused me of, I didn't see it made much difference. He obviously wasn't going to finish his engagement to Christine anytime soon. That compliment was still irritating me too. He sometimes complimented Meg out of politeness but he had never properly complimented me and the way he was looking at me…

Why was I even thinking about this when I should have been enjoying myself? I felt like such a terrible human being because a small part of me knew exactly why that was.

"Are you alright?"

I glanced upwards to find Marcel staring at me in concern, a frown pulling downwards at his lips.

I sighed guiltily, quickly placing a smile back on my face. "Yes, I am quite well, thank you. I just feel a little weary, I think. Rehearsals have been stressful as of late." I said.

It wasn't a lie, not really anyway. Rehearsals truly had been stressful the last few days, especially given how tedious they had been for me given how little I had to do.

"Oh of course," Marcel sighed sympathetically, instantly making me feel a hundred times worse than before. "Well after this, you have my word to escort you straight back to the opera house safely."

"Thank you." I offered a weak smile.

Marcel kept his word as we walked side by side walking back. It was a lovely night. A slight breeze brushed softly against my curls now and again as we talked, mainly about the majority of books we had read and music that we enjoyed.

Marcel truly had been lovely company and I wished I would be able to return his feelings but the more I doubted it, the more I wondered if I would be able to.

Once we had stopped outside, I turned to Marcel. "Well, thank you for a lovely night." I meant it too; it truly had been a lovely night. "Oh it was a pleasure, Mademoiselle Higgins." He teased with a smirk.

I laughed, though that laughter quickly died on my tongue as he raised one of my hands, which was covered with my black glove, watching me intently as he raised it to his lips to kiss the back of it.

"I bid you farewell for now." He smiled.

I smiled, wondering upstairs by the grand staircase.

I had enjoyed his company tonight, despite how the evening had begun. Maybe that would be enough. Because it was obvious from my earlier argument with the Vicomte that whatever I felt for him would only end in disaster. It wasn't worth hurting anyone else over.

I headed into the dormitories, feeling weary now. My head poked round the door as I was greeted by the sound of crying.

Christine was sat on her bed, her face buried in her hands. Meg was besides her, an arm around her as she hushed her softly. She spotted me in the doorway and turned to glare at me. My eyes widened, panic rising within me as I wondered what had happened to make Christine so upset.

"W-what's going on?"

Christine raised her head to glance at me. Her eyes were puffy, fresh tears trailing down her cheeks as she attempted to speak. She shook her head instead, dropping her gaze as she continued to cry.

Oh god, I felt like the worst human being in the world.

"The Vicomte has abruptly chosen to halt the engagement. I wonder what the reasons were for his impulsive decision." Meg answered for her.

My skin flushed under her accusing gaze and I offered a weak shrug in response instead. "Well…I-I don't know. Did he not offer any explanation?"

"W-we had an argument about how busy I had been l-lately," Christine stammered through her tears, lifting her head as resolutely as she could. "And then h-he came back to a-apologize to me but…"

Her face grew redder as she chewed on her bottom lip, her tears continuing to fall. "But he caught me leaving the d-dormitories. I was on my way to s-see the Phantom. He's been t-teaching me again. But then…"

Her tears gave way again, her head dropping and her hands moving back to her face.

"The Vicomte became furious." Meg explained for her. "I heard him shouting from outside the dormitories so I went to go and see what was wrong. He said that Christine's meetings with the Phantom were the deciding factor. However when she tried to stop him from leaving, he also admitted in his temper that he no longer loved her anymore."

I swallowed, avoiding her gaze which was still trained on me. "Well it will be because of what you said. It was probably just in the heat of the moment. I'm sure that he will get back in contact with you again, soon enough."

I hoped he would anyway. I didn't want to see her being this upset and I hated the possibility of this being my fault. I hadn't wanted this to happen.

"Yes, well let's hope so."

I glanced up to see that Meg was still staring at me speculatively and I could tell she realized that something had obviously happened for the Vicomte to have finished the engagement so suddenly. But perhaps, I was right; maybe he just needed some time away from her. I really hoped that was it, for Christine's sake.