Well here is chapter 26...is anyone even reading this anymore?? What ever I shall keep posting more chapters up until this story is over which it surly isn't. Enjoy and please R&R…
Once Madam Giry left Erik alone with his blue prints he yawned and took out his pocket watch to see what time it was and noticed that it was eight thirty. He looked outside and took notice to the pouring rain that was hitting the window causing loud clicking sounds. Once Erik could no longer concentrate on his drawings because of the annoying racket he rolled up his work and blew out the candles that were giving him light. As he walked through the dark hallways to get to his room he hoped that Christine was out with Meg instead of being in his room but knew with the condition of the weather she wasn't. Once Erik made it to his room he opened the door and stepped into the dark room. He quickly lit a candle and set it on the desk along with his blue prints. Once Erik turned around he heard a gasp of fright and quickly shun the candle on who turned out to be Christine standing behind him.
Without saying a word to her he put the candle back down and stormed away from her in anger. He hated when he couldn't wear his mask and then hear people gasping when they saw him. Erik began to pour warm water into the tub that was across the room so that he could get washed up for the night. When he saw Christine behind him he braced his hands to the sides of the tub in anger and said "did you wish to come to me to apologize for gasping in fear?" "Erik, I'm…" "No Christine just leave this hideous man be." he replied as he looked at his hideous reflection that was in the water. "I do that to you all the time Erik and it's not because your face frightens me it's because I come into the room and get taken by surprise." said Christine. "I'm getting a bath now so please just leave me be." said Erik. Christine sighed "you're going to need someone to gently clean your skin and put the medication on it." "just go away." said Erik as he touched the water with one of his hands.
Once Christine had walked away Erik undressed himself and climbed into the bathtub and sat himself down beneath the soap. Just then Christine approached the tub that Erik was lying in. "you don't look so well Erik." said Christine as she dabbed a wet cloth gently over his distorted flesh. "I'm not well at all Christine, I am in dire agony." said Erik as he sunk deeper into the water. "the pain is that bad?" asked Christine. "if only you knew." said Erik. "look Erik I'm sorry that I gasped in fear earlier. I know that I do it often but it's not for the same reason." said Christine. "I just wish I were handsome." said Erik. "you are to me and that's all that matters." said Christine as she cleaned his face. "I see that your starting to show." said Erik as he looked at Christine's stomach. "yes I know." said Christine. "I'm sorry Christine, I'm just not able to be a father I shall be in this child's life but only in friendship and nothing more. It's just that I still have a grudge against you sleeping with Raoul and knowing that this child might not be mine hurts me." said Erik. "I understand Erik." said Christine as she put down the cloth. "you are welcomed to stay with me for as long as you need." said Erik as he stood up and grabbed a towel from off the side of the tub. "I want to name my child after you Erik." said Christine as she followed him into the bedroom. Erik turned to face her and said "don't you ever do such a thing." "why not?" asked Christine. "like I said before I shall be there for you as a friend and nothing more. If people find out about this child ever being associated with me I might be put in danger." said Erik. Christine placed some medication on Erik's distorted flesh and said "what if this child comes out looking like you? Then will you take responsibility for it?" "Christine dear like I said before I cannot conceive and sometimes it's better that way." said Erik as he slipped his night shirt over his head. "Erik don't ever say that." said Christine. Erik lied down on the bed in the room, and said "I am a man of my word Christine, I shall always be around you no matter what forever and always."
As the months passed Erik and Andre had begun the long process of rebuilding the opera house. Once the frame was all together Erik was able to begin to rebuild his home that would be down in the dark catacombs of the opera house. Usually the long days work along with telling the workers what to do would keep him from working on his beloved home causing him to work alone into the wee hours of the night. One night after Erik had finally gotten done re flooding the catacombs to his lair he decided to take the thousand candles that he had bought from a wax shop down town and set them up through out his new home. He had already gotten the floor polished and his organ set up along with finding time to rebuild his gondola leaving just the redecorating and rebuilding his chambers to be completed. Many a nights he would leave Christine at the Giry's so that he could come to the opera house and get work done that he couldn't do during the day.
Months ago he spent weeks in his room waiting until his flesh was completely healed so that he could wear his mask once more and go back to work with Andre. He was glad that he had Christine with him to take care of his pains. Earlier that morning Erik had breakfast with her before going off to work and kissed her goodbye. He was relieved that they hadn't been arguing in the past few months and were living like an actual couple. Christine was at the point where she couldn't really get out of bed and needed someone with her at all times, that someone usually being him. After setting up about three hundred of the candles, Erik took out his pocket watch and looked at the time and noticed at how late it was. After placing it back into his pocket, he took his gondola towards the exit to make his way back to Meg's house. It wouldn't be long until he would be able to move back into his lair once more which was great in his eyes.
When Erik got back to his room at Meg's house, he quietly walked over to the bed and dressed himself in his night clothes. He then saw Christine stir in her sleep, and mew "Erik, is that you?" Erik finished buttoning his shirt and said "yes Angel, go on back to sleep." "I was worried about you, it's very late." said Christine. Erik sat down beside her, and placed a small kiss on her forehead. "I'm fine, I just had to get some work done to my new lair." "I missed you." said Christine as she pulled Erik down beside her. Erik lied his head down on the pillow beside her letting only the handsome side of his face show. Christine gently touched it, and said "you're handsome Erik." Erik closed his eyes in sorrow and pulled the black wig from off his head to reveal the blonde strands of hair that he had left on his skull. "if only it were true my angel." he replied as he lied his face back down onto the pillow. Christine took his hand, and placed it on her stomach and said "do you feel that?" Erik felt kicking up against her stomach and said "what is that?" "it's the baby moving around." said Christine. "what do you think it is?" asked Erik. "I don't know Erik sometimes it feels like a girl and other times like a boy." said Christine. "you will be a great mother." said Erik. "I wish I could say the same about you." said Christine. "please Christine, let's not talk about that." said Erik as he moved his arm away from her and closed his eyes. The next morning, Erik awoke and got dressed for work. Once he kissed Christine's sleeping body goodbye he was off to the opera house to finish more construction on the inside.
Later on that afternoon, as Erik was helping some of the workers carve an angel out of a tall slab of lime he noticed Andre and Alex approaching him. "Erik, that looks fantastic." said Andre with a smile. "a thank you is not needed." said Erik. "Erik I was in the area and decided to let you know that Nadir has gone over to Meg's house. Christine has gone into labor a few hours ago." said Alex. "is she alright?" asked Erik. "she's in a lot of pain." said Alex as he looked down at the floor. "very well." said Erik with a sigh. He handed Andre the carving knife that he was using to carve and said "may I be excused?" "yes Erik of course." said Andre.
Erik walked down the streets until he got to Meg's house and went in. He walked up the stairs and then climbed into the rafters so that he wouldn't be seen. As he got closer to his room, he heard Christine's cries of pain which frightened him. Once he was in the rafters that were above everything in his and Christine's room he saw Meg, and Madam Giry standing around the bed that had Marco and Nadir working on Christine who was lying in pain. Erik wanted to curse everything that was bringing his angel pain but couldn't help but stay quiet. There was so much blood all over everything that it was hard to tell what color the sheets once were. "it's almost here Christine." was what Erik heard him telling his angel over and over again.
Erik often wondered what it looked like to see a child being born and was now getting his chance to see it for himself. He looked at how much pain his angel was in and wanted to go to her aid so badly but couldn't. Just then he saw something small and bloody emerge from Christine and a few seconds later begin to cry. When he saw Madam Giry take away the child Erik knew that there was something wrong especially when he saw Nadir hover over Christine. Quickly Erik fled the scene to follow Madam Giry who had Christine's child in her arms. In another room she wrapped the child up in a small blanket and then turned around to see Erik standing there wearing his mask and suit. "What are you doing here?" asked Madam Giry. "Alex came to the construction site and told me what was going on. Is there something wrong with her child?" asked Erik with concern. "you didn't want anything to do with this child Erik so what changes your mind now?" asked Madam Giry. "I just asked if the child was alright." said Erik. Madam Giry looked down at Christine's baby and said "it is so funny how God lets us know who are parents are." Madam Giry then walked over to Erik and said "hold out your arms." Erik did and she gently placed the child into them. She then watched as Erik looked down into the face of Christine's child who looked nothing like her at all. The child was given a familiar nose, familiar lips and a familiar scar. The child had a scar on it's right cheek just like he had. The child wasn't as deformed as Erik was but the small scar on the baby's cheek was enough to tell who's child it was. Erik handed the child back to Madam Giry, and said "this is God's way of mocking me." "how can you say that Erik? God has given you and Christine a beautiful child." she replied. "No god has given you another hideous monster to look after and protect from the world and it's cruelties." said Erik. "Erik don't talk like that." said Madam Giry. "if Christine asks, I wasn't here at all." said Erik as he walked away.
Once Nadir and Marco had left the room, Madam Giry walked in once more and handed her the child. Christine looked down at her new baby and noticed the small scar on it's right cheek. "Oh Erik." cried Christine as she held her child. "Christine your child is healthy and that's all that matters." said Madam Giry. "she's beautiful." cried Christine as she looked down at her daughter. "can I tell you a secret?" asked Madam Giry. "yes anything." said Christine. "you were not the first one to hold your daughter Erik was here when you gave birth. He held her and knew right away that he was the father." said Madam Giry. "he was here?" asked Christine with surprise. Madam Giry nodded, and walked away leaving Christine alone with her sleeping daughter. Later on that night as Christine lied awake looking at her daughter Erik walked into the room and gently closed the door behind him. He approached the bed and looked down at his angel Christine. "Madam Giry told me about what you did today." she replied. "I got scared Christine." said Erik as he put his head down. "Nine months Erik, nine months you denied this child of being yours and now tonight that theory has become nothing more than a made up story. When you look at my daughter you can no longer deny that your not the father because this child looks exactly like you." said Christine. "hideous right? Is that what you mean? well sorry that I ever made love to you Christine." said Erik sarcastically. "no Erik our daughter is beautiful look at her." said Christine showing her off to Erik. "she is going to grow up just like I did, being hated by the world." said Erik looking away from her. "what do you want me to do Erik? Hate our child? Throw a mask on her face? No I'm not going to do that. She's not distorted like you, she's beautiful with only a small scar on her cheek and nothing more." said Christine. "I can't be in this child's life Christine because if I am then I won't be living. What will happen if someone who's after me finds out that I created a daughter? Your daughter will be hunted down like an animal because her father is an animal. I don't want that for her and I would rather have her know me for a man and nothing more." said Erik. "what do you suppose we do about this?" asked Christine. "on the birth certificate write down that……that….Raoul De Changy is the father." said Erik. "What? No I can't do that because you're the father." said Christine. "do you want me to be in this child's life or not? Look, I know that she is my daughter and that's good enough. You shall never ever tell her that I am her father because her father is dead." said Erik.
"what about the scar on her cheek?" asked Christine. "people haven't seen my face enough to remember what is on it. You are the only one who knows what I look like besides Madam Giry. I shall never reveal my face to the child and thus she shall never have to know the truth about you and I." said Erik. "fine, if you want me to take away your pride in having your own name written down on the birth certificate then I want you to name her." said Christine. "no you name her." said Erik. "she is yours too Erik and taking away your ability to have your name written down on a piece of paper as her father is far too much to ask for. I want you to name our child so stop arguing and name her." said Christine. "you know if something were to happen to you I would not be able to claim her as my own because Raoul's name would be down as the father. She would belong to the De Changy family and not me." said Erik. "I'm not going any where Erik, not on your life now just name her." said Christine. Erik looked down at his sleeping daughter and said "Clorinda Alexis Daae." "that's a beautiful name Erik." said Christine. "it means beauty." said Erik. "do you want to hold her?" asked Christine. "me? Now?" asked Erik. "yes." said Christine. Erik nodded, and sat down next to Christine and held his new daughter Clorinda. "she's beautiful Christine." said Erik as he looked down at his daughter not knowing what adventures lied ahead of him……..
More to come soon….please R&R I would like to keep it going…