I am sooooo sorry for not getting to this sooner. I was being all busy with homework; especially memorizing Julius Caesar (which actually is a good book, when you are able to understand it). So here, and I am super sorry for not helping to fulfill your Phantom fix.
Christine got out of the bath and dried herself off. When her hair was wet, her already long curls stretched out and became even more longer, as Erik admired from a distance. Her hair stretched past her bottom. He felt bad for watching her like this without her knowing, but he knew that this was probably the only way he would be able to get his fill of Christine.
He seemed to be watching her a lot lately-he knew he was still in love with her, but was she in love with him? Probably not.
He had to tear himself away from her, knowing that he had some other business to attend to.
She got dressed into a simple black dress and pulled her black cloak around her. She looked at the snow outside and wrapped a red light shawl around her head as well. It was about time to visit her father.
It was already afternoon, and Christine passed Meg on her way outside. "Christine! There you are! You ran off without even finishing the performance-but that's alright, we didn't finish it anyway. Everyone was too scared and almost all of them left", she sighed. "He's ruining everything, the opera ghost. We doubt we'll get another full house in a while", Meg stared at the floor.
Yes, he was ruining everything, Christine thought. She felt sorry for her dear friend. Meg had lived at the opera house, and she would be devastated if it had to close, especially due to Erik...
"I agree. I'm going to visit my father now", Christine said, interrupting her own thoughts.
"All right, Christine. I'll see you later, then", Meg waved goodbye to Christine and left.
Christine walked outside. "To my father's grave, please", she told the unusually quiet carriage driver. He still didn't speak a word and just nodded his head in reply.
She sat back comfortably in the carriage and watched the snowflakes fall peacefully from the sky, their light touch the complete opposite of what she felt inside. Inside she felt heavy, ashamed, and forlorn. The way Erik had looked at her... no emotion whatsoever.
His cold eyes had pierced her frightened and intimidated ones. They had quickly averted the gaze and had left, leaving her lonely and wondering what he thought of her. He had just saved her from getting raped, and yet still no emotion had shown through. She wondered what he thought of her, and wondered what he had thought seeing her like that: vulnerable, naked, and in the grasp of someone else, that someone not being him.
She started humming Angel of Music, hoping that it would calm her nerves. In front of her, the figure straightened, as if surprised.
Christine felt a blush sweeping across her face and stopped immediately. She had forgotten that she wasn't the only one. She let out a quivering sigh. It included all of the frustration about Erik and Raoul, and the way things turned out. That was the worst thing to think about for her: the way things turned out.
Did she love Raoul? it was a skeptical thought, and she wasn't exactly sure about the answer to that. but Erik-her Erik-had saved her today. When she had seen him without his mask on-it had been an impulse, and nothing more. Especially after he had just murdered an innocent man, she had been terribly frightened even at the thought of him. And to think that she had almost become one with him...Now she just had to find out what had happened to him, why he was here, and everything she possibly could about him. She knew he would never tell her himself, for he was to secretive, but she knew exactly who would tell her.
Christine gave the carriage man her money, and yet he still hid his face from her. Not thinking anything of it at the time, Christine brushed of any suspicious feelings she may have. Lots of people had reasons to hide their faces. Like Erik...
Christine pushed his idea and presence out of her mind. She had come here for only one reason: to pay her respects to her father.
She neared his grave when, suddenly, a glowing orange tinted light appeared from where her father's grave was. At first was surprised, but then the voice started singing, and immediately, she knew who it was. He had followed her here, somehow. But he was here, and she didn't know whether his intentions were friendly or not. Either way, though, Christine turned to run away.
"No, Christine! Please. Don't leave", she heard him say. Ignoring him, she hiked up her skirts and began to run blindly through the snow. She didn't know or care where she went, as long as it was far away from him.
Out of no where, he soon caught up to her and took ahold of her arms. She could see his breath in the cold, winter air.
"What is it now? Why can't you just leave me? Leave me alone!" she panted, and tried to throw his arms off of her.
His grip was too strong, and instead of throwing his arms off, she threw herself to the ground in the snow. He stood over her as she crouched on the floor, scared about what he was about to do to her next.
"Christine, I can't leave you. it would be impossible, because I love you. Leaving you would be as hard as leaving my music, and I can't possibly do that. Please, just let me speak to you as you listen", he begged her, sorrow filling his eyes.
Christine's chest heaved with heavy breaths as she considered his proposition. It sounded reasonable, but right now she wasn't exactly in a reasonable mood. "Why? Why do you need to see me? Why do you torture me like this so?" she asked him.
"Why do you torture me like this Christine? Oh please, just listen to me, just this once", he asked her.
"I listened to you before and it turned out that you were lying to me", she pointed out. "And you should know, I'm engaged to marry Raoul. So please..." she trailed off.
"Christine, that was the only way I could speak to you without frightening you", he reasoned.
"You're speaking to me know and I'm very frightened", she quietly told him.
"But why? Is it because of this?!" he said angrily, pointing to his face.
"No. That's certainly not it. It was when I first saw it, but I have realized now. The real man that scares me is the one that murders and kills without a thought. You murder all that's good. I know I can't refuse to talk to you, and yet I wish I could. Oh God if I agree what horrors wait for me, with you?" she said cruelly.
"Alright, Christine. If you are that terribly frightened to even speak to me, to even look at me-as you have been avoiding my gaze the entire time-I shall leave you, if that's what you want", he said angrily. And with a flourish of his cape, he left her, riding away on a white horse.
Christine half lay on the ground, too numb with fear and sadness that she didn't even want to bother to get up. She realized how cruel she had been. He had certainly murdered, but hadn't he also saved her today from Carlotta? Hadn't he given her the passion of an Angel to sooth her as a little girl? This was how she repaid him?
"Erik, please! Please forgive me, and please come back, I beg of you! Erik..." she whispered his name one last time, but yelled out her apology, hoping he would hear.
But no one heard except the graves around her, and no strong arms came around her to protect her and love her. She was alone, without Erik.