The figure removed his hand from mouth. "Erik?" she whispered not daring to trust her senses just yet. He wore a cloak which was pulled over his head but she saw enough of his face to see him smile and nod. Before she could throw herself in to his arms he put his finger to his lips to shush her and took up the seat next to her.
He put his hand into hers and she relished the cool touch of his long fingers which wrapped around her hand. She looked over at him with a shocked expression. He glanced back at her quickly and pointed to the stage. "Only Erik," she thought halfway between amused and annoyed. He must have been watching the opera the whole time and now he needed to see it through to the end before explaining how he was there in the first place.
As Rodolfo began to call Mimi's name, she glanced over at Erik. That damn mask was still in the way, but she sensed the affect the music had on him. His gaze was transfixed to the stage and he was squeezing her hand. The opera ended, the applause swelled, and Erik still had not moved, even after the curtain calls, and as people began to shuffle out of the theater.
They were alone now sitting in the balcony, and Amelia turned towards Erik, "I remember the first time I saw La Bohème. It changed my life. I can't imagine what you must be thinking, I can't… believe you're here," she began pausing, knowing he was not ready to discuss his return to her yet.
Erik just sat there, his eyes closed, pensive before he spoke, "Would I have ever heard that opera if I had not come here?"
Amelia wracked her brain for a minute, "I believe so; it premiered in Paris in 1898. I think I would have liked to have heard that performance."
"Me too," he whispered, "The composer is…" he read the playbill, "Puccini. Please tell me he composed more operas."
Amelia smiled, "Only you would be asking these kinds of questions after…" she did not say the word just in case, "your trip."
"It may take a lifetime for me to catch up, you may regret my being here if I am to be constantly at the opera," Erik quipped.
Careful not to reveal too much Amelia suggested, "You may be interested to know about the many options available to you for listening to this music in the comfort of your home."
Erik's eyes seemed to widen, "Maybe we should take this slowly, Amíe… besides I would need to see the staging."
Amelia stood up, "Erik I love you, but we need to hold off on this discussion, I am stunned to see you… how…"
"The same way you did, or at least the way I supposed you to have accomplished this. Lucky for you I'm not a superstitious man and believe that everything can be explained through reason… although much of this still eludes me, I confess," he paused choosing his words carefully, "It took me almost a year to figure it out. At first I didn't believe you, how could anyone sane believe such a story? And then you disappeared… I was impressed at first, it's not often as a magician I am foiled by magic tricks. It was after a few hours that I realized you had vanished, you never came back…"
"I'm so sorry, Erik," Amelia began, but Erik squeezed her hand in response.
"No, ma chere, let me finish. For awhile I thought that perhaps I had imagined you, that you were a figment of my imagination. An angel created by my own mind to comfort me. You must see that this was the most probable solution. But I could not reconcile to madness. I needed to find someone else who knew you, who had seen you."
Amelia felt the knot in her stomach return, "Christine…" she whispered, unsure if she wanted to hear the rest of the story.
"Yes. I needed to know if she had met you, but it was not easy to speak with her after all that had happened. Naturally as you predicted, she did return to me. I was not prepared for that. She told me she loved me and wanted to stay."
Amelia stood up, "You let her stay…"
Erik rubbed his mask, "I thought you were gone, I was not sure if you were real, I was very confused. Just let me finish my story."
"Did. She. Stay?" Amelia spat out, knowing she had no logical reason to be angry at Erik.
"Damn it, Amelia, you left ME!" Erik shouted, standing up and pacing around the aisles of the balcony, "Yes, I let her stay for a few days. She wanted to take care of me and I was not well, Amíe! I wanted to ask her if she knew you."
"Did you? Before or after you slept with her?" Amelia retorted, feeling the envy coursing through her veins.
Erik approached Amelia quickly, grabbing her by the shoulders, "I assume in the time you come from it is appropriate to discuss those matters so casually!"
Amelia shrugged him off, "You're damn right it's appropriate to ask my lover if he has been with other women during our time apart!"
Erik took a deep breath, "Yes. I was. When I thought you were gone, I thought I was find comfort elsewhere. You, who know my past so well, should be able to understand that, no?"
"How do you… know that," Amelia sputtered.
Erik turned towards Amelia mid-pace, "I've been here longer than a day. I could not help but go to the library and see if I was there." He sat down again, "I was not prepared for what I found."