Hey everyone, thanks for the awesome reviews. I got some free time on my hands before work so decided to update due to popular demand. Enjoy and R&R…

The next morning, Christine awoke and walked back to her room. She quietly entered and noticed that the room was still in darkness and Erik was sleeping with his mask on. Christine stayed quiet so she wouldn't disturb him and walked into the closet to get changed. Once she was dressed she walked out she approached the bed where he lied and sat at his side. She easily removed the mask from off his sleeping face and stared at the handsome halve of his flesh. She knew that he wished the white mask was permanent to his flesh because he knew more women would like him. "oh Erik." was all she could say. Christine then ran her fingers through his hair and planted a kiss on his distorted flesh. "Oh Erik I can't stay here and put you in danger." Christine took one last look at him, and sat down at the piano to write him a letter.

Christine walked down towards the docks to catch the next ship back to Paris. As the wind blew, it caught her cloak and caused it to blow out onto the icy solid water. Christine walked to the edge of the water and stepped out onto it, trying to reach out for her cloak. The docks were deserted and as soon as she stepped out onto the ice, it broke and caused her to fall threw.

Erik awoke and noticed that his mask was no longer on and there was a note lying in his hand. Erik slipped his mask back on and unfolded the note to read it.

"dearest Erik,

My love for you shall never die and it is

With a heavy heart that I return to Paris

To protect you. I love you with all my heart

And can no longer put you in danger.

I hope that we will see each other again in another life

Love you always and forever

Christine"

Erik couldn't let her leave him, he just couldn't bare the thought of him being alone once more. Erik ran down to the docks as fast as he could and searched for his beloved angel of music. He thought that it was too late once he spotted a ship sailing away but something caught his eye. A red cloak was lying on the ice, but not just any cloak, Christine's cloak. He let it slip past his mind until he spotted an open area on the ice. It was then he realized that she wasn't on the ship after all but under the cold water. Erik immediately took off his cloak and ran out onto the ice, hoping that his angel was still alive. So many times, oh so many times he had warned Christine about walking out onto the ice. Erik then spotted her body lying beneath the ice causing him to immediately jump into the icy water after her. After pulling her lifeless body to the surface Erik covered her up in her cloak and carried her off into the dawning light. When he got back to his room, Erik lied her down on the bed and breathed into her lips. "Oh Christine." was all that he could say. When she began to breath again Erik sighed in relief and began to pull down her soaked dress to prevent hypothermia. As her dress came down past her chest he tried to look away but couldn't help but stare at her beauty. Afterwards, Erik covered her half naked body up in a quilt and walked to his closet to get changed out of his wet clothes. He managed to force the wet shirt from off of his back and fought to get his trousers off. Pulling down his soaked trousers was the most painful part on his fingers. He moaned in agony as he heard them cracking each time he pulled on his trousers. When he was dry, Erik lied down beside Christine's sleeping body and closed his eyes. He easily took off his mask and placed it on the night stand so that his cold flesh could become warm again.

When Christine opened her eyes the first thing she noticed was Erik's unmasked face lying close to hers. She reached out and touched his cold flesh, and brushed away the strands of blonde hair that had fallen out of place and landed up against his distorted skin. At that moment everything had come back to her, the dock, the cloak, the ice, and the water. How stupid could she had been? Erik had warned her time after time to never walk on ice but she did anyway. He must have saved her from the waters and brought her back to the room. Christine could tell that Erik was burning up from a fever, he must have been exposed to the cold for way to long. She covered his shivering body up with a blanket and then ran her fingers through his thin hair.

Erik opened his eyes and looked at his angel of music who was lying next to him. "Erik." was what came from her sweet lips. He loved the sound of his name being said by her, how it made his spirit soar. "sing to me angel." shivered Erik. Christine smiled and began to sing to him.

"wandering child so lost so helpless

Yearning for my affection… angel of music

Friend or Phantom who covers his true

Complexion. Too long alone you have

Wondered far from my caring soul…. My heart beats against you..

you are not alone. Angel of music guide and guardian

Yearning for true beauty. You're not a monster your

Handsome and kind you will always be in my mind.

My heart cries for you body and soul …I shall always be here

Wanting it more than you know. Together we walk each night

And day please forgive me, please let me stay…."

Erik looked at her, and said "why did you leave me? Raoul isn't a reason to leave me Christine. If I had waited to come look for you any longer than what I did you could have been dead." "I promise to never leave you ever again Erik, please forgive me." said Christine. "I could never stay mad at you." said Erik. "what about last night? I'm truly sorry about asking you about that Erik." said Christine. "I shouldn't have gotten so mad at you." said Erik. "no I shouldn't have asked you about what you do to yourself. I should have figured that a man of your age who is still pure would do such a thing to his body." said Christine. "I was so mad at you last night that I didn't even tell you how amazing it felt." said Erik. "that was my first time." said Christine. "what about Raoul?" asked Erik nervously. "never." said Christine. Erik laughed in his soul as he learned that she had never touched Raoul. She had touched him first, touched his body first and not Raoul's. "you have a big performance tonight my dear, Are you excited about it?" asked Erik. "yes if you will come and watch." said Christine. "of course, I wouldn't miss it for the world." said Erik.

The ship had anchored in New York, and Raoul got off along with twenty five of his men. "ok men, we have to search for Christine. She is sure to be around here some where probably in an opera house." said Raoul. "there is one performance happening tonight down at the opera house on fifth street. We should go and see who shows up, maybe Christine will show." suggested a man. "great idea." said Raoul. "what are we going to do when we find the creature?" asked another man. Raoul smiled, and began to sing to his men.

"we'll take a lasso, tie it tight and choke out his last breath with

All our might. The creature might fight back but we shall have him

Dead at last. Once he is gone Christine shall be mine we'll have our

Wedding and live life fine. The creature holds a mighty fight and wont feel sorry

If you die so remember keep your hands at the level of your eyes.

This creature shall be dead at last and us free of this Phantom this

Complete mockery of an ass. Once the lasso is around his neck pull it tight, pull

It with all your might. A dead creature is what we want so let us start our search our

Glorious hunt."

Christine stood on the stage singing her opera as Erik stood in one of the box seats watching his angel of music. She was beautiful and after the show he was going to

Finally propose to her in hopes of finally making love to her. It was time that he forced himself into a woman instead of into his hands. Hell he waited over eighteen years holding himself back from Christine and he was sick of holding himself back any longer. At that moment he saw Christine's smile turn into a look of shock. Something was wrong and he wanted to know what was making her so nervous. Then at that moment he couldn't breath, someone had slipped a lasso around his neck.

As Christine sang, she looked up at her angel of music who was standing in one of the boxes watching her. Just then she saw a familiar face standing in the back of the theater. Raoul, it was Raoul standing in the back giving her the most devilish look. Her smile turned to a look of frustration as she began to worry. Just then she looked up to where Erik was standing and no longer saw him, causing a bomb to drop in the pit of her stomach.

Erik was forced to the floor of the box as the strange man tightened the lasso around his neck. Erik couldn't move the lasso off from around his neck because of his broken fingers. "you forgot to keep your hands at the level of your eyes creature." said the man as he tied the end of the rope to the ledge of the box. The man then took the end of the rope and pulled him up in the air as the lasso tightened around Erik's neck. Just then Raoul stood there next to Erik pushing his body playfully back and fourth as Erik tried to catch his breath. "keep your hands at the level of your eyes." teased Raoul as he pulled the mask from off of Erik's face. "so you really are as hideous as they say you are." he replied. "I…can't breath." moaned Erik as he felt the rope around his neck. "listen to Christine singing because it is the last time you shall ever hear it again." said Raoul as he pulled the rope tighter.

Christine had continued to sing until she looked up in Erik's box and saw him being hung. Christine immediately ran off the stage as she tried to get to her angel hoping that it wouldn't be too late. Christine approached the box and pushed Raoul aside as she tried to get Erik down. Raoul came back at Christine and held her up against the wall. "so this is where you were hiding. New York is a great place to get married Christine but I rather have you go with me to England." "no Raoul, I am not going anywhere with you. I want you to leave me and Erik alone." demanded Christine. "or what?" asked Raoul. "Raoul I don't love you anymore so just leave me be." said Christine. "you can't possibly love this monster Christine. Look at how hideous he is and look at how handsome I am." said Raoul. "you can't make me love you Raoul." said Christine pushing him away. "I may not be able to have children Christine but I have found out that the monster can't bare them either. So why not live life rich and good with me? We can get married and adopt some children." said Raoul. "Raoul nothing you can say or do will make me want to be with you." said Christine. "have it your way." said Raoul. At that moment Raoul pushed Erik's body over the box, causing him to fall into the empty seats below. Christine yelled for him, but as she looked down at the theater his body made no movement. "Erik!" was all that Christine could cry out. Raoul then grabbed her arm, and pulled her away with him as she screamed to be let go of.

Erik opened his eyes and couldn't move his body. His whole body ached as he heard his angel screaming his name. He knew that he had shattered some of his bones and would have saved her if not for the pain holding him back.

Four days later…..

Christine sat in her room locked away with no way to escape. Raoul had drug her back to Paris where he locked her away in a room with no way of getting out. He had told her that she would learn to love him and that she would marry him no matter what it took. She cried, all she could do was cry because her angel of music was dead. The night he was killed on was the night she came to realize that Erik was the man she loved. He was the man she wanted to marry, sleep with and grow old with. She was his angel and he was her one love one life time but not anymore. Even with Erik dead she couldn't turn to love Raoul, not after all that Erik did for her. Raoul then walked into the room and locked the door behind him. "Christine I have picked a day for our wedding. We shall be married tomorrow night." said Raoul. "I will never marry you." cried Christine. "you can and you will. You promised me Christine and you shall be my wife." replied Raoul slipping a ring on her finger.

Erik awoke to an agonizing feeling in his chest. He looked around the room and noticed a strange man standing over his body dabbing a wet cloth on his chest. Then he saw Meg standing over him, which frightened him to no end. "don't be afraid dear Erik." said Meg as she handed him his mask back. Erik slipped it over his distorted face, and said "where am I?" "back in my room, Marco and I found you on the floor of the theater after Christine was kidnapped." said Meg. "where is she? Is she ok?" asked Erik hysterically. "he has taken her back to Pairs." said Marco. "we have to find her before she is forced to marry that maniac." said Erik sitting up. "I have sent a letter to my mother telling her about what happened last night. She is already searching for Christine as we speak and we shall take the next ship to Paris to help." said Meg. "you have a fractured shoulder you shouldn't be moving around." said Marco. "nonsense, this can wait Christine can not." said Erik. "we're coming with you." said Meg. "why? This is something I would prefer to do unaccompanied." said Erik getting to his feet. "my mother loves you and if Christine does as well then I can no longer be on Raoul's side." said Meg. "then you shall be aloud to tag along." said Erik.

Once Erik, Meg and Marco were on the ship and headed back to Paris, Meg noticed how anxious Erik was. "you really love her don't you?" "yes, she is my world." said Erik. "then why did you kill?" asked Meg. "I did it for her." said Erik. "does she really love you?" asked Marco. "she once told me she did, and we did physically connect last night after her show. She made me dinner and made the whole night about me when it should have been about her." said Erik. "Erik, don't worry we'll find Christine before something happens to her." said Meg. "I hope so because if something ever happened to her I would never forgive myself." said Erik. "Everything will be fine." said Marco.

Erik stood there looking out at the ocean and took out the ring that he had been keeping for Christine. He touched his mask, and crushed the ring in the palm of his hand. "rejections, nothing but rejections." cried Erik. "it's probably too late, who am I kidding? Tonight you probably married the Vicount and made love to him for the first time an hour ago." he then put the ring back into his pocket and began to cry harder..

"Christine, Christine don't think that I don't care

Everything is up to you now….who will you

Choose? Who will you love? Everything in my heart

Has been shoved up above….marry me my beauty and forget

About fame. Stay by my side with me forever more….this is my

Love's door, this is my only cure….stay with me forever more..Christine I

Want you and that's for sure."

Erik wiped his eyes, and saw the lights of Paris getting closer….it was time to let the final showdown begin.

More to come

R&R