Yay, I broke 100 reviews! You guys are all so, so awesome! .:Bows:. I am so not worthy!
Oh, and one other thing I keep forgetting to mention. Both PhantomAngel and Wisdom'sPearl have done some amazing illustrations of this fic, posted on deviantArt, so if you want something cool to look at, I suggest you check it out! If you need help on finding out how, let me know!
"Wake up, Alyssa," Erik whispered, performing what had now because his daily routine by placing a hand gently on her shoulder. Her eyes slowly fluttered open, and she sat up with a groan (in cue with her pattern as well).
"What? Erik, it's early." Alyssa tried to lay back down, but Erik wouldn't let her. In contradiction to his usual answer ("Actually, Alyssa, it's rather late."), he was forced to admit with a smile that she was right.
Still grinning brightly, he asked, "Do you know what today is?"
Alyssa glanced with a sleepy eyes at the calendar on the nightstand. "Mm... December... 25?" Her eyes suddenly snapped open wide. "Oh shit, it's December 25. Oh god, it's... I don't believe it."
"Well, I hope you do start believing it. Obviously, I would never celebrate something like this, but since you're here, and told me that you celebrate the holiday... I got you something." Erik said that all very fast, half because he was very uncharacteristically nervous and half because he was very unusually excited.
He gave Alyssa a curious look as she his her face behind a pillow. "...Is something wrong, my dear?"
Nervously Alyssa snuck a glance at him. "I can't accept what you got me, Erik. I have nothing to give in return, and besides, I'd be so embarrassed."
Relieved that that was it, Erik sighed. "You've already given me something that no one else has before. You aren't afraid to be around me, and you... even want to be a friend to me! I could ask for no more than that." ...For I do not dare to ask for your love... "And there's no reason to be embarrassed. I can't imagine why you would be in the first place."
For a few seconds, Alyssa considered it. Erik's assuring stare, which she found she couldn't avoid, was extremely persuasive and convincing. "All right," she agreed at last, laughing shyly and pressing the pillow to her face. Erik beamed and quickly left the room. He was back so soon that Alyssa suspected he had run when out of her sight.
Shifting anxiously on his feet (an act that was exceedingly unlike himself), Erik handed her a small box. Alyssa blushed and opened it, unused to all the attention. She could not hold back a small gasp at the sight that met her.
"Oh, Erik... it's beautiful," she breathed, taking out the small bracelet and admiring it. The several jewels studded into its gold surface sparkled in the candlelight. "How... how did you get it? It looks so expensive. ...These can't be real!"
Erik nodded once. "They are," he mumbled. "Do you like it?"
"I love it!" Alyssa exclaimed, her lips breaking into a huge grin. "Thank you!" She rose to her knees, threw her arms around him, and swiftly kissed his cheek.
Stunned, Erik quickly pulled away. Alyssa looked, at him, surprised, as he touched the spot where her lips had touched him. "You... kissed me. Why?" He knew that people did such things occasionally (such as upon greeting others), but had never experienced anything like it himself. And besides... it's not like I've just greeted her or anything.
"Oh, uh... friends do that sometimes. Kissing on the cheek, I mean. I just thought, to thank you..." Alyssa's voice was shy and quiet, her gaze focused intently on the ground. "I'm sorry if it offended you or anything. I didn't think... I'm sorry." She nervously met his eyes.
To her astonishment, he shook his head. "No, don't be. It was merely unexpected, that's all. You don't have to be sorry. I didn't mind it, I was just... surprised." He offered her a small smile, which she returned happily. When she turned her head for a second, his fingers crept up to his cheek again, feeling the warmth of her lips. Her lips...
"Thank you again, Erik. So, so much." Alyssa gazed at the bracelet, her eyes shining.
"Let me help you put it on," Erik offered. She nodded, and he elegantly took her wrist in his hand. He took his time fastening the jewelry, even though he could have skillfully had it done in seconds, and at last he let her hand go.
Another smile lit up Alyssa's face, causing one to tug at Erik's mouth as well. "Thank you," she whispered once again, a slight blush creeping up into her cheeks that she prayed wasn't enough to stand out.
"Don't mention it, my dear," Erik muttered, staring softly at her. She looked away and pulled a stray lock of hair behind her ear, and he marveled at just how beautiful her dark hair was. He longed to reach out and caress it, he wanted to kiss every strand and bless each one for simply belonging to her, for being a part of her.
Alyssa turned back to him, and he quickly moved his gaze away. She thoughtfully furrowed her brow, pondering over his attitude. He wasn't just staring at me, was he? She shrugged it off, half-hoping that it wasn't true, while at the same time feeling unexplainably jittery. Oh well, it's Christmas. I'll... think about it later.
Sensing her change in mood, Erik thought it best to divert to a different subject. "Anyway, I thought it might be nice to take a walk today, see how Paris looks on a holiday. What do you think?" Alyssa met his eyes, shaking off her concerns.
"Umm... sure," she agreed. "That'd be pretty cool. And it seems so... mood-fitting, doesn't it? Just sort of mellow, you know?" She shrugged as if in response to her own question, and gazed off into space.
Erik nodded slowly. "Yes, I know what you mean." He stood and gave a shallow bow. "So in that case, I shall leave you to get ready, and once you're done, we can set off for a tour of a fairly different Paris."
A grin crossed Alyssa's face. "Sounds good to me."
A few hours later, the pair found themselves slowly strolling along a sidewalk, their breath forming clouds of mist before them. Alyssa reached out and caught a snowflake in her palm, smiling as it melted away with the warmth of her hand.
"It's so beautiful out here," she whispered, shaking her hand to heat it back up. "I know I've said it a million times already, but it's true." Her eyes wandered down the snow covered street and across it to the shops adorned with holly and garlands. "It's kinda like home, but weird because there aren't any Christmas lights."
"Tell me, what does it look like in your time during the holidays?" Erik questioned, staring at the shining snow crystals in her hair and thinking about how amazing they made her look.
For a few seconds, Alyssa pondered over what he'd asked her, searching her memories for the right ones. "Well, for one thing, it never snowed where I lived, so you'd have to imagine it being cold, but not icy. There are multi-colored lights everywhere, the most classic colors being red and green. Other than that, it's pretty much the same as here."
"What was it like inside the houses?" Erik prompted, guiding her to a sheltered table under a cover that overhung a bit of the surrounding area. She sat down in one of the chairs and thought about it.
"Well, last year I spent Christmas at my grandmother's house, so I won't talk about that," Alyssa murmured. Erik nodded, remembering what she'd told him of her strict grandmother. "But the last time I spent Christmas at home was okay. Mom was really into all the traditional Christmas stuff that year, and I remember she baked like a million cookies. My brother and I just sat around and watched TV the entire time, except when she made us decorate the tree and stuff." She smiled as she relived it all in her mind, and Erik grinned as well, trying to imagine what she was telling him. "We both acted like we didn't want to do anything... but I actually enjoyed myself... more than I let on." Her voice suddenly died away, and she frowned as less than savory memories came to her mind.
Erik looked at her, confused with the sudden sadness she was showing. "Are you all right, Alyssa?" he asked, hesitantly taking her hand in his own. Alyssa sighed once, her eyes still downcast.
Reluctantly she raised her head and looked at him sadly. "Erik, I don't really want to talk about this anymore, okay? It's just... weird. Homesickness, I guess. Just... let's keep walking or something, okay? Please?"
Erik hesitantly agreed, though he stood with an easily detectable air of suspicion. He considered offering his arm to Alyssa, but judging by the expression on her face, decided not to. Instead, she stood beside him and followed as he led her farther down the street.
"Did you ever spend Christmas like that, Erik?" Alyssa inquired suddenly, gazing up at him with wondering eyes. He stared back, and though he knew very well that her purpose was more to change the subject than get an answer, he made the decision to go along with her.
"Me? No, I never did. I wasn't exactly what you could call close to my mother, nor she to me. And, of course, no one was very keen to spend any time around the Devil's Child," he muttered, his tone more cheerful than Alyssa would have anticipated. The way he spoke did nothing to lighten her mood, though, and she dropped her gaze to the ground.
"Dammit... I can't believe anyone called you that," she whispered. "Especially when you were just a little kid! That's so fucked up!" Erik gave her a quizzical look, for he had never heard her curse that way, but she ignored him. "You're not a Devil's Child, Erik. I mean, you're a human being, just like the bastards who called you otherwise. Except you're nicer. More... I don't know, caring." Two sparkling tears fell from her eyes, and Erik quickly wiped each one away with the pad of his gloved thumb before they froze.
Gently he tilted her face up, staring softly into her eyes. "Thank you for thinking of me that way, Alyssa. It may or may not be true..." (Of course, in his mind, it wasn't.) "...but thank you." Erik paused and tenderly brushed a few snowflakes out of her hair, and Alyssa offered him a half-smile.
"Can we go home, Erik?" she asked then, with a somewhat tentative air as she shivered and pulled her shawl tighter around herself.
Erik laughed, then started to remove his coat. "Of course we can, my dear. You should have told me you were getting cold." Despite Alyssa's protests, he set the coat about her shoulders. "I don't want you to get sick again," he explained, feeling under Alyssa's suddenly calculating gaze that he almost needed to justify the gesture.
Alyssa nodded and gave him a small smile, her suspicions pushed to the corners of her mind. As he began to walk back toward the opera house, she felt a minor urge take hold of her, and bit her lip tightly. Her eyes surveyed Erik's stride and posture hungrily as he strode ahead of her, and she mentally cursed herself. ...Dammit, control yourself, Alyssa! She walked a little faster until she had caught up with him, then, disregarding her inner instincts, reached out and grasped his hand. It was all she could do if she wanted to attempt to dispel her desires, yet she instantly came to regret it.
Caught by surprise, Erik suddenly stopped right where he was, and turned to her. There was little gentleness in his gaze as he looked from her eyes to her hand in his own and back again, seeming both confused and, in Alyssa's opinion, a bit angered. She quickly pulled her hand away, holding it guardedly at her side with wide, slightly fearful eyes. Shit! God dammit, Alyssa, why the hell did you do that? Why, why, why?
"I... I'm sorry," she apologized, her voice so quiet that Erik barely heard her. He felt a sudden guilt take hold of him for how he'd responded to the situation, and his lips parted minimally in shock. God... decidedly not one of my better reactions...
They both stood motionless for a few seconds, then Erik shook his head. "It's okay. You simply... startled me... is all."He extended his hand, waiting patiently for her to take it. Alyssa looked from his gloved palm to him, and for a moment he was scared that she wouldn't grasp it. A second before he was about to sigh and lower it, she took his hand in hers and smiled at him, a sheepish, embarrassed, and vaguely forced grin. He returned the gesture with a little less enthusiasm, but nevertheless turned and led her down the street toward the Opera Populaire.
"...By the way, I don't think I ever got a proper answer, Alyssa," Erik muttered, "to what I asked you a long time ago."He pushed aside the false wall, and Alyssa followed him into his labyrinth."What do you think of my home?I mean,how do you feel down here, honestly? And don't feel the need to lie if it's truly not to your taste."
Alyssa pretended to think about it for a moment, though she already knew the answer. "Well, you already know that these tunnels kinda creep me out a little bit, but they're actually not so bad. I guess they're kinda cool... in their own... creepy little way." She laughed quietly, and Erik smirked to himself in the darkness. "Your actual home, though, is... beautiful. Not the largest of living places, but if you were to compare it to a New York apartment, it's so much better. So... yeah. That's what I think about it. And, I mean, large homes were never really my style -another reason why I hated my grandmother's place so much, but that's not the point- so, really... yeah... I sorta, kinda, love it. Dammit, I love it down here."
She hung her head then, shoulders shaking with what Erik took to be sheepish, nearly inaudible giggling. He stopped walking and faced her, though he could see only her shadowy outline, and he placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm overjoyed to hear that, Alyssa. Thank you." She shook her head, and he turned to keep walking.
As Alyssa tread behind him, she wiped angrily at the tears running down her face. Thank god Erik thought I was only laughing, she thought, unbelievably relieved. If he would have made me say more... damn, who knows what would've come out?
At last they emerged from the mirror frame into the main room. Alyssa promptly removed Erik's coat and handed it to him, now truly smiling as she thanked him for the use of it. When she turned her back to him, Erik's swiftly brought the material to his face and inhaled deeply, adoring the scent of her flesh.
After shaking out her hair to get the last of the ice crystals from it, Alyssa faced him again. She hesitated uncertainly for a moment, weighing the possible consequences of what she wanted to do, then she strode forward until she was mere inches from him, her eyes downcast until she stood still.
Tenderly, gingerly, she reached up and touched his mask. Erik was instantly about to shy away upon reflex, but she gave him such a firm look that he forced himself to stay where he was.
"Let me take it off, Erik." Her voice was so soft, her tone so self-assured. Erik could tell that she knew exactly what she was asking of him.
However, he was caught for a second between two powerful emotions. One, of course, was his instinct to strangle anyone who even gave his mask a second glance. The other was his desire to do anything Alyssa asked, anything to make her happy. For an instant, his first emotion won.
"I don't really think..." His voice faltered and died as he looked down into Alyssa's eyes.
She breathed only one word. "Please." He shut his eyes tightly, biting his lower lip in his internal conflict. She'd seen him before, but what if now she came to her senses? What if she thought differently of him now?
Please, please don't hate me. "...Fine." Slowly she took the pale mask off, and he heard a muffled clatter as it hit the ground. Alyssa stepped back to look at him, and when he felt her move away, he was sure he'd lost her. No, please. Not after everything. Alyssa, don't do this to me. You can't do this to me, dammit! Erik's eyes shot open in despair and anger, but what he saw quickly made him change his mind.
Alyssa was beaming at him, smiling as though absolutely nothing was wrong. "You need never wear it in my presence if you don't want to." Erik felt an extraordinary relief flood throughout him for the second time, and when it was combined by a wave of his second emotion, he lowered his head.
What have I ever done to be worthy of this? he asked himelf. What have I ever done that brought this angel to me? God, Alyssa, I love you. He was mildly surprised when he felt two fingers touch his chin and raise his bowed head. He smiled at Alyssa, then suddenly reached forward, clutched her upper arms, and pulled her close to him.
"Thank you," he breathed into her ear, biting back tears that threatened to fall. She held him as tightly as she could.
"What happened that made you so fearful of people seeing your face?" she questioned, her eyes flitting between his for an answer. He shook his head softly, pulling her close again.
As much as he wanted to tell her what she wanted to know, Erik knew that he wasn't ready to. "One day, my dear. One day, I'll tell you. But I can't yet." He felt a solitary tear fall from his right eye. "Thank you so much, Alyssa. Thank you for not being like them. For accepting me. I could never, ever tell you how much..." His voice trailed off, but he didn't need to say any more.
Alyssa smiled, glad that something she was doing made Erik that happy. True, it was a little weird, but she let it go without a second thought. "No, Erik. Thank you. You've been so good to me; I guess it's safe to say that you saved my life. So... thanks." She leaned up, paused for a moment, then lightly placed a kiss on his ravaged cheek. He trembled ever so slightly, but she let him go and took a step back.
The weariness was hardly noticeable in Alyssa's eyes, but Erik saw it within an instant. He debated on whether or not he should send her to bed, for he didn't want her to have a relapse of her fever, yet he had no desire to be away from her. At last, he decided that her health was more important than his selfish yearnings, especially when they most likely meant little to her.
"Are you tired, Alyssa?" he asked. She gave him a half-smile, then nodded. Disappointed though he was, Erik showed no emotion. "It's likely that you would be, I suppose. You only recently got over your illness. You should go to sleep if you don't want to get sick again." Alyssa knew that he spoke the truth.
Before she left to go to the room, she turned to him. "Umm... Erik, if it wouldn't be too much trouble... I mean, I was wondering if maybe-"
"I'll be there after you're ready," Erik offered, knowing very well what she wanted. For some reason, the knowledge that she wanted to fall asleep with his voice in her ears made him want to cry out in tenderness.
With a grin, Alyssa retreated into his room. He stared after her even when she had passed out of sight.
She may be finally beginning to trust me, Erik thought to himself, barely daring to believe it. It was a fantastic notion, that she could trust him, yet he had to admit that it was also fantastic that she accepted him, wasn't afraid to be around him...
Erik heard Alyssa call his name, and a small smile crossed his face as he sprinted up the steps to his room. He stopped when he stood at the bedside, where Alyssa was sitting, lazily brushing her hair. She glanced at him, the way she looked up out of the corner of her eye reminding him vaguely of a cat, and he sat opposite her in a plush maroon armchair.
For a minute he did nothing but sit there, taking her in with his eyes, following the way she leisurely brought the brush to her scalp and then slowly trailed it down through her hair. It seemed as though she had all the time in the world, as if the whole of her mind was utterly focused on each stroke of the brush. Alyssa sat in silence, but after a minute glanced at Erik again, knowing very well that he'd been staring at her.
When their eyes met, Erik started singing. It was a silly, rather meaningless French tune, but she smiled as the worlds slid off his tongue, smooth and flowing as silk. He extended his hand for the silver brush, and set it carefully upon the nightstand when she gave it to him. Alyssa gradually eased herself underneath the blankets, laying her head against the pillow and grinning at him.
There are times when she's like a child, Erik mused, surveying her thoughtfully. And times when she's like a fiery, independent woman. So dynamic, my love...
How Erik managed to hold back the impulse to lean down and touch those soft lips with his own, he did not know. For what seemed like hours (though it was truly only minutes), he did naught but stare at the figure of his sleeping love. His mind was there, and yet somewhere else entirely as he daydreamed and fantasized. At last his own exhaustion pulled him away from her side.
He removed his shoes and laid down with a small grimace on the uncomfortabe chaise lounge. After adjusting his position more than once, he was able to find a place suitable enough to allow him to sleep. With visions of Alyssa occupying his mind, he closed his eyes and fell blissfully asleep, a small grin gracing his features.
Remember, if you want those Gerry pics, they're still available! And if you also want to see PhantomAngel's artwork, let me know! It's really, really good!