Thanks for the great comments. I should probably be studying my AP cause the test its really soon... but your comments just keep me going! But that's a good thing, and thank you so much for your support! :) I promise, much more chapter uploads after next Thursday (the 16th) which is my Final Exam. Thanks for being patient :D.

She had awaken silently... But where was she? Oh my God, it couldn't be...

The swan bed cradled her perfectly and the smell of him lingered on it. Him. Erik.

Instinct told her to scream, but something else told her differently. He walked through the opening right then and she quickly closed her eyes. She didn't want to see him or speak to him. She would put that off for as much as possible.

To her horror, he knelt down beside her bed. What was he going to do to her?

He just looked her and hummed a lullaby. It was her favorite song of his-he had written it just for her. The Music of the Night.

If Christine was trying not to let him on that she was awake, she would have been sobbing very hard. He was her Angel, and he never meant her any harm. Why couldn't she have seen that? But Raoul... she realized that this whole time, it had actually been Raoul trying to brainwash her.

Then he reached up and stroked her face, whisking the curls that had fallen into her eye area. This was her chance. She quietly lifted her hand up and brought it on top of his own hand, and pressed it to his cheek. She opened her eyes, and he quickly drew his own hand away and cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry, Christine. you were just lying there on the street. I thought you were dead..." he whispered the latter, and Christine felt her heart soar.

"Don't be, Erik. Please don't me sorry. You saved me. And your singing was beautiful", she reassured him, reaching for his hand yet again, and yet again he drew it away.

"You heard that?" his face turned four shades darker with embarrassment.

"Yes. I thought I would never hear it again..." she trailed off, thinking about a life without her Angel. She shuddered at the thought.

"God, Christine! Why do you do this to me?! You plan on apologizing to me, saying you were wrong and that you'll stay with me forever and ever. But I know that's wrong! The only reason you keep coming back is because you feel sorry for me, and you feel pity. Pity, Christine! Damn you, why do you do this to me?!" he stood up violently and yelled at her. He had had enough, and he wasn't going to let Christine play with his emotions like that ever again.

"But Erik..." she started, but he cut her off.

"No Christine. Just forget it, because I know you're going to betray me and hurt me again. I'm going to bring you back, but don't come back. Please. I'm even begging you. I don't need more torture than I've already had!" he said, putting his cape back on.

The last sentence strangled Christine with the knowledge of his past. He was right, though. How could she blame him? She had been terrible to him, and after all the things she did to him, this was how she repaid him.

"I'm so sorry Erik. I really am. But I see how you feel, and I know that I was wrong in doing those things. So if you want me to leave and never come down here again, then I will do as you asked", Christine said haltingly, her crying so hard that it was hard to get the words out.

A part of him inside wilted as he listened to her speak and saw how sad he was. But he couldn't back down now. He couldn't be that weak.

"Alright, Christine. Come with me, and I'll bring you back to the opera house", he said, his voice hard and gruff as it covered the real emotion he felt inside.

He didn't even take her hand. All he did was help her into and out of the boat like any gentleman would. He didn't hold her longer than necessary; didn't speak or touch her in any way except for that.

Christine sadly walked away, not even waving or saying goodbye, because she knew that if she did, he wouldn't do anything back.

Part of him wanted her to say something or wave back or even embrace him. He almost did, then realized that he would seem too forgiving, and she probably wouldn't see it and just keep walking.

They didn't do or say anything as they departed.

Christine wanted to just collapse on her bed. She didn't even care anymore. It was all over, and there was nothing she could do about it. Everything: his teaching, his singing and composing for her, and even their love-making had all been for nothing. This was how it was going to end.

Before she opened the door to her very small room (Carlotta had moved back into her old room-the Prima Donna's room) Madame Giry interrupted her.

"Christine we are going to begin rehearsal of his play tomorrow. His instructions say that that you are to play Aminta", Madame Giry looked closely at Christine, and by the look on her face she new that the child was crying, but didn't say a word. She had her ideas of what might have happened.

Christine thought that he wouldn't want her to play the part anymore. That was when they still were in...

But she had an idea. Surely because of today, he would be upset if she were to play the part, because from her understanding, there were some very passionate parts. But she wanted to fell him, to feel his touch and hear him sing to her one last time, and surely this would be the only way. "Of course, Madame Giry. And I would love to have the part. Thank you for letting me know", she heard herself say. It wasn't the usual Christine-this voice was much more distant and stiff; unknowing.

Madame Giry simply nodded and left Christine, knowing that she wanted to be alone. But she also needed to talk to someone. Someone that she hadn't spoken to in a very long time.

"No, Christine, I told you to leave me!" his voice rang out and his piano playing abruptly stopped.

"It's me", Madame Giry said in her heavy accent, her voice quite timid compared to his'.

He turned around in wonderment, not knowing who else would visit him (and actually be able to find his lair in the first place) besides his still beloved Christine. "Oh. It's you", he said, disappointment creeping into his voice. But you told her to leave, so don't be disappointed! he thought to himself, scolding himself for not controlling his emotions.

"Why have you come here?" he asked her, succeeding in having a impassive tone.

"I come here to speak to you about Miss Daae", she replied.

He closed his eyes. He didn't want to hear even himself think about her. Why would this old woman dare to speak to him about her? But thoughts of long ago made their way into his mind...

"Beware, the Devil's Child!" a gruff voice said mysteriously. He shut his eyes tightly, and waited for the bag to be released off of his head. Finally the sweeping paw came, dragging the bag with it. There came a burst of laughter, and he opened his eyes, wondering who had decided to mock him today. There was a girl, though. Her eyes were sad and looking at him, and he saw something he had never seen before in his seven years of life. It was pity.

Later the same girl came, just as he had gotten the nerve to straggle his master. The police soon came, but before that she took him somewhere; she later explained that it was the opera house. He lived there, passing the days by inventing, finding comfort from music that wafted down from above, and decided to finally try to mimic those sounds.

She had saved him. He should and would never forget that. she deserved the right to speak to him about Christine if she really wanted to.

"Alright, but make it brief", he said, and sighed.

"What has happened between the two of you? I didn't want to inquire before, but, Erik, she was crying today. She's cried before too, I know. But today was different. She seemed to frail and distant", Madame Giry said.

"Madame Giry, you really have no right to know about what has happened between the two of us. But I know that you are like a mother to her, so I shall tell you. She just can't make up her mind. So I decided for her. She is to forget about me, forget about everything she's seen", he said simply. Or, rather on the outside he said it simply, but on the inside he felt pain rippled through every part of his body. Pain and aching for her.

Madam Giry paused for a little before she spoke again. It was only some of the truth, she knew. "I see. Well, that's all, I guess. I had better be on my way", she said.

He nodded and turned back to his music, but she spoke again just as she was about to walk out the door. "She was crying very hard, Monsieur. Are you sure you made the right choice for her?" she asked him, and, not waiting for an answer, she left.