Christine woke up to hear a lyre being played. This was not unusual as Erik was also a talented musician.
She wondered if there was anything he might not be talented at. She knew he was not yet skilled with garden work, but that was most likely due to being inexperienced. She had never seen a man so accomplished in her life, nor heard of one in legend. She supposed he must be some sort of demigod for his skills.
As she exited her room, Christine noticed a bit more light coming through the windows. It was not the usual, dim light that seemed to emanate from everywhere, yet illuminate nowhere in this dark place. It was bright and golden, like the sun.
Erik put down his lyre at her approach and stood to greet her.
"Good morning Christine. Did you sleep well?" he asked as usual.
Christine was a bit distracted. She gave him quiet confirmation as she walked towards the window.
Beside her, Erik was smiling. She did not notice in her trance, but he was glad she had noticed so soon.
"Christine, would you like me to show you?" he asked.
Christine turned to him in surprise.
"You know where it is coming from?" she asked. Her eyes were wide with wonder.
Erik's smile was soft. He loved the way she never looked at him differently from anyone else. As if he was just a man.
"Of course. I put it here for you," he said. He offered her his arm and she took it.
Erik led her out to her garden area, asking her to close her eyes. She did so and he only let her open them when they were directly beside the newly turned earth.
Christine's gasp of delight was worth all the work Erik had done. He cherished her joy more than his own and would do anything for moments such as these.
"A chandelier!" Christine squealed.
"Yes," Erik confirmed, "And a very special one too. This chandelier will be lit as long as the sun above, and will go dark each night, only to light the next day. Any garden deserves a proper sun."
Christine clapped her hands before doing something truly shocking for Erik.
She jumped and wrapped her arms around his bony shoulders. She was hugging him tightly and Erik was unsure of what was happening. No human had ever shown affection to him.
He slowly returned the hug, wrapping his long, thin arms around her waist.
"Thank you so much," she whispered in his ear.
