Eric heard a little shuffle from the other room, cracking the door open Eric scanned the room seeing baby Rosa moving rapidly towards their voices on her hands and knees.
"Mama, Dada, up!" She squealed her blue eyes wide awake. Eric pulled the door open more letting the little girl in. "Up mama, up!" she cried pulling herself up on Christine's skirts.
"Mama?" Eric questioned raising an eyebrow.
Christine laughed "Well it's hard to explain to a year old child."
Eric shrugged, 'I guess so, why don't I show you around?" Eric suggested picking up the baby.
Rosa squealed flying her hands around, Eric laughed giving her a playful kiss. Rosa started laughing harder, before Eric could stop her she tore the white mask from his face.
Eric panicked, It had been months since she had seen him without his mask and even that had only been seconds.
Before Eric could burst or Christine could pull the child away from her fathers potential wrath, Rosa placed her tiny hands on his twisted face. She ran her little fingers across his swollen lips taking in each detail, her fingers found the hole where his nose had never formed and the hole under his eye where just the cheek bone showed.
Eric waited for the child to start screaming in terror. But she pressed her little face to his giving him a sloppy kiss, "Daddy!" she giggled. Eric stood there dumbfounded. "she is an extraordinary child." Christine smiled astounded. "She is smart to way beyond her age."
Eric still stood frozen watching the child in his arms.
"Shall we go?" Eric mumbled putting on his mask.
"Daddy." Rosa cried pulling off his mask again, shaking her head 'no' before throwing it on the ground.
Eric gasped he didn't want to wear his mask id Rosa didn't like it, but he couldn't wear it out.
Eric leaned down and picked up the white mask again, "Little Rose," Eric warned hoping he could make the child understand, "daddy has to wear the mask when he goes around people, you can't take it off of him. Ok?" He explained placing it on his face
Rosa pouted when it was put back on reaching for it again. "No." Eric scolded more harshly now.
Rosa pouted but didn't try to remove it again.
"Shall we go?" Eric questioned his voice quivering form emotion.
Christine nodded.
They walked through the store lined streets, Christine looked in a few stores gawping at the items. Eric wished he could buy each one for her she never asked for anything, Eric checked the pricing of each thing growing discouraged at the pricing.
Christine had a full glowing smile the whole time, Rosa babbled in her childish language pointing at buildings and trying to sing and dance along with the street musicians.
"What's that?" Christine asked pointing at a paper posted on a street lamp. Christine walked to the paper to look at it closer. "Oh a circus!" she grinned "Should we go see?"
Eric felt a pit in his stomach and his head go light. Memories flashed back to the ship, the chains, the ice house, and being beaten while on display.
Eric tore the paper from the lamp post, crumbling it up and throwing it into the slushy snow.
"No." he hissed turning pale feeling his hands tremble as he turned around and walked away from her.
"Eric!" Christine cried, "Eric, what did I say?" Eric was walking quickly away. She ran to his side, trying to keep up with his long quick strides. He didn't stop till he reached the apartment building.
"Eric talk to me." Christine insisted starting to cry. "What happened back there?"
"Nothing" Eric grumbled his eyes raging.
Christie crossed her arms standing up straighter to try and reach his towering height. "Don't lie to me Eric Destler!" She shouted.
Eric glared at her, clenching and in clenching his fists. "I have things to do at the theodore." He barked turning around and storming out of the apartment slamming the door behind him.
"Daddy!" Rosa cried moving over to the door. Christine ran to the baby who was now screaming and picked her up. "Daddy will be back," she comforted.
Eric ran up the massive theodore staircase marching into his office pulling the door shut behind him.
He plopped on the desk chair, and with a forceful motion of his arm Eric slung everything off the desk sending it crashing to the ground.
The door creaked open. As a little 14 year old ballerina peaked in. "What's wrong Mr. Destler?" The girl asked.
She was an odd child, always trying to fix everything she sometimes came into Eric's office and just sat talking nonstop.
His frightening mood swings never seemed to send her running like the rest of the opera employees.
"Bad day?" She questioned. Eric groaned getting up and looked out the window knowing he couldn't get rid of girl.
Eric herd her move to the desk sitting down in the chair and picking up the papers that were slung on the floor.
"My mamma says to think of all the things that make you happy when your mad or sad." The girl jabbered. "It helps. Mister you are mad a lot maybe you should try it!"
Eric rolled his eyes and leaned on the window frame.
The little girl sighed, "ok I'll mention some for you." She paused to think, "you like singing and humming to yourself, and you like the piano!" The girl thought a moment more, "you like to talk about the different buildings, and you love criticizing people's works. And you like yelling at people."
Eric chuckled to himself at her summery of him. "What was your name again?" He asked softly.
"Mary" she giggled. Eric let a small smile escape as he turned around facing her "Thank you Mary."
The girl sat sloppily in his chair drowning in the comfort. "Who was that lady you left with?" Mary asked twirling her brown waves.
"Does it concern you?" He replied gruffly. She looked down biting her lower lip, "Ya your my employer, everything you do concerns me!"
Eric cocked an eyebrow as the girl got up and started playing with more of his things. "She is a friend."
Mary turned around suddenly placing her hands on her hips and stood up straighter. "Mr. Destler," she scolded "she is not a friend!"
Eric could feel himself get hot, "and why not?" He hissed trying to control his temper.
He looked at him for a moment like he was an idiot.
"Because you look at her the same way my sister looks at the stage hand!"
Eric rolled his eyes, "and what is that suppose to mean?" He barked.
Mary sighed throwing her hands in the air. "It means you love her!" she giggled.