Erik's POV

"Oh, Christine…Don't stop, yes…"

My angel and I spent the remainder of the night making love. It had been such a wonderful day, one filled with happiness and joy. Not only had I made Gustave's one birthday wish come true, but I had also gotten Christine to come to bed with me. The following morning, I woke up tangled within the blankets, and naked beside her own body. I eventually lifted my body from her own, and ran my fingers through my hair. It was time to get up and go to work…Phantasma needed me, and therefore, I decided to head out. After walking downstairs, I entered the bathroom blindly to find Gustave sitting on the toilet.

"Gustave," I held my hand up to my eyes and turned around. "I'm sorry, boy…I…I didn't know you were in here."

"It's all right, Mr. Erik… I'm just peeing."

"Why are you sitting in the dark?"

"I like the dark, Mr. Erik..."

"Well, so do I."

I entered the bathroom again just as he was pulling up his sleep trousers.

"Where are you going, Mr. Erik?"

"To work…I shall return later. You should go back to bed, it's still early."

"Yes, Mr. Erik…"

After brushing my teeth, I headed back upstairs to dress and grab my jacket. As I was standing in front of my wardrobe mirror adjusting my mask, I noticed that Christine was waking.

"Good morning, Christine…"

"Morning, Erik…Where are you running off to?"

"Phantasma… I have some things that need to be taken care of."

"I'd rather you stay here with me, in bed…"

"Well, I would like to do that as well, but work won't get done on its own."

"Hurry home…"

With that, Christine pulled her pillow closer to her. I gave Christine a quick peck on the cheek and headed downstairs. When I arrived at my crowded park, I entered my office and took a seat at my desk, pulling out my stack of paychecks. Once I had them in hand, I set out, stopping by every ride and handing each pay check to every employee.

"Sir…"

When I heard Mr. Squelch calling for me, I spun around and found him heading towards me.

"Yes, Mr. Squelch?"

"The Giry girl wishes to know what songs she will be dancing to tonight."

"I'm headed that way…Here," I handed the man his paycheck and patted him on the back. "Thank you…"

When I arrived at the opera house, I spotted Meg prancing around the stage to the music that was being played on the piano. Oh, I wasn't sure why anyone enjoyed her performances, but they did… She was my second highest act.

"Miss Giry…."

Even though I thought low of the girl, I treated her like a regular employee. The girl stopped dancing and smiled widely.

"Oh, sir…Do you like the new routine?"

"Um…Sure…"

"I was wondering if you have any new music for me tonight? Christine is off from work, and that means that I'm not only opening, but headlining as well."

"Yes, that would be correct. I dropped the music off to the stage manager a few days ago. He'll be by this afternoon with it. You will practice..."

"Sir, could I speak to you?"

"You are speaking to me…"

"I…I do want to sing. Dancing is nice, but singing would be better."

"Christine sings, and you know that. She is the only singer in this opera house, and it will stay that way."

"But…"

"But nothing…I would advise you not to bring this up again."

"I just want to sing…"

"Well, consider this your final warning..."

I pulled out the girl's paycheck and handed it to her.

"You shall continue to dance, dance and nothing more."

When all of my paychecks were delivered, I headed back home and opened the door. Once inside, I hung up my jacket and ran my hand over my sweaty neck. Oh, I was never happier to be in the cool air of my home.

"Christine, I'm home…I thought I would make us some lunch?"

When I didn't get a response, I entered the kitchen to find Christine sitting at the table, her eyes full of tears.

"Christine, what's wrong?"

Christine wiped her eyes and looked up at me…Oh, why was she crying?

"Christine?"

I took a seat beside her and placed my hand into her own.

"Christine, please, tell me what's wrong?"

"I…I took Gustave to the doctors today…Just for his regular check up...I've been feeling ill lately, and so, the doctor offered to look at me."

"And? What did he say?"

"...The reason why I've been feeling ill, is becuase I had been with child...Your child...I...I lost the baby..."

When Christine began sobbing, I pressed her head into my chest and wiped away her tears. Christine had been pregnant with my child...But what if this child had been another man's? The man who raped her? She may not remember that night, but it was just as clear as could be in my head. Oh, I remembered that night all too well. But what if this has been my child? What if it looked like me? No, a child wouldn't have been a good thing.

"It's all right, Christine…We'll get through this... I'm here…We'll work through this together."

When Christine stopped sobbing, I managed to get up and head to Gustave's room. He was lying in bed, and it was obvious that he had been listening.

"How are you doing, boy?"

"Mama is really sad..."

"She will be all right in a few days..."

"I really wanted a little brother or sister..."

"Gustave, enough...Just promise me that we will not bring this up around your mother, all right?"

"All right, Mr. Erik..."

That evening, I stayed up in my office, pounding away at the piano. There weren't many nights when I had time to write music, but tonight was an exception. My song was long and filled with aggravation. I had been so into my music, that I didn't even hear my bedroom door opening. When my song finally ended, I sighed and stretched my aching hands…I was no longer a young man. No, I was getting up in the years, and I knew sooner or later, my poor hands would be too sore and achy to play the piano. Though, I knew I still had a few good years left of playing.

"Your song seems so angry, Erik."

"Maybe that's because I feel that way."

Christine sat down beside me and placed her hands upon the keys.

"Well, I'm not angry, I'm sad."

"Christine, you shouldn't be sad...It wasn't the right time, I guess, though, anything from me wouldn't be worth living. You have a child...You have Gustave."

Christine placed her head upon my shoulder and sighed.

"And why do you always do this to yourself? Do you believe that I couldn't have loved a child that came from you? That I would care what it looks like..."

"Christine, enough!"

"What about Gustave? Doesn't he deserve a sibling?"

"Not from me, he doesn't..."

"I love you, Erik…"

"I…I…L…" I paused, thinking about whether to say this or not…Did I love this woman? She had hurt me in the past, but the past was the past.

"I love the time we spend together." I said. "It means a lot to me."

"I'm glad it does, Erik. It means a lot to me too...But what about a baby? Why did ours have to die?"

"I have something that will help us keep our minds on music."

"I don't want to think about music..." Christine shot to her feet. "That's all you think about!"

I forced Christine's hands upon the piano and placed my hands beside her own.

"Gustave told me that you know how to play the piano…"

"I…I don't know how to do it well. I just know a song or two...Please, Erik, could we just talk about the baby for a moment?"

"How, Christine? How did you learn how to play the piano?" I asked, changing the subject.

"From watching you back in Paris. I…I used to watch you a lot back then… I used to watch your hands, I used to watch your movements. I practiced on my own while I was living at Raoul's estate. I only learned a few lullabies, but that was enough."

"Well, Christine, I'd love to hear these lullabies."

"I've never played it in front of anyone before...Erik, please, the baby..."

"Well, I would enjoy it if you sang it to me." Keeping the conversation off the baby she had lost was hard, but it was working.

Christine swallowed hard and began to play the tune upon the piano. I watched her hands for a while, and then, I joined in.

"It's a beautiful tune, Christine…"

"My papa used to sing it to me all the time…"

"Well, now that we have the tune playing, I'd like you to sing it to me."

I took over with playing the tune on the piano, while Christine sang to me.

"Sov gott, vackra delfin
Sov gott, jag vita varg
Vi har kärlek för varandra
För varandra
För alltid
Sov gott, vackra delfin
Sov gott, jag vita varg
Morgonen vaknar
Då kysser vi
Kysser vi för alltid
Sov gott, för alltid"

"That was beautiful, Christine."

"Thank you, Erik…I…I miss him so much. I used to sing this for Gustave all the time when he was a baby."

"I'm sorry, Christine, but I don't speak Swedish. The music is beautiful in your language, but I would love to hear it in English."

Christine smiled. "Of course."

I started playing the song once more, only to have Christine sing the song to me in English.

"Sleep well, beautiful dolphin,
Sleep well, I white wolf
We have love for each other
for each other forever
Sleep well, beautiful Dolphin,
Sleep well, I white wolf
the morning awakens
then we kiss
we kiss forever
sleep well, forever"

"Thank you, Christine, that was beautiful…"

When I ended the music, I turned to face her, my mind already filled with a wonderful idea.

"I'd like you to sing this at one of the shows, Christine."

"I…I don't know, Erik. I don't know if I'd be willing to share this with the world. I would rather keep it private."

"I think the world would love to hear your beautiful and brillant accent, Christine…It makes my blood boil."

Christine seductively crawled into my lap and pressed her lips against my neck.

"Jag älskar dig."

"Oh, Christine, I don't even know what that means, and yet, it turns me on."

"It means I love you…"

"Jag älskar dig…"

"Your Swedish is weak, mon ange…You sound funny when you repeat what I say."

"How do you say "You're beautiful?..."

"Du är vacker."

"Du är Vk..?"

"No, no…" she giggled, placing another kiss against my neck. "du är vacker."

Once more, Christine began to kiss my neck, causing me to groan. I lifted the woman up into my arms and carried her to my bed. From there, I placed her down upon her back and began to ravish her neck with kisses. She continued speaking to me in that wonderful language. Oh, I had no clue on what she was saying, but every word turned me on and made me want to make love to her. Her hands fumbled to my trousers and began to touch me intimately. Heaven, pure heaven…

"Jag vill du, Erik…Jag vill du, Erik…"

"Oh, Christine…"

A few moments later, Christine was on top of me, her body making love to every inch of me…

"Harder, Christine…Yes…"

I thrust into her body with every ounce of energy and passion I had within me. I would never tire of doing this to her, for she was my world.

"Erik…Erik, wake up…"

After Christine and I had made love, she and I fell asleep beside one another. Having her here beside me was something strange, but at the same time it was also wonderful. Nothing more of the child we had lost was spoken about that evening...No, Christine placed that horrible tragedy at the back of her mind...And truthfully, so did I. After hearing her beautiful voice, I opened my eyes and sat up, the rain pouring down outside my window so hard, that I couldn't even see the dark sky. What time was it anyway?

"Erik?"

"Christine?" I maneuvered my body around to find Christine standing over me, her body wrapped in my robe. Just the sight of seeing her standing there in my clothes turned me on.

"Yes, Christine?"

"There's an officer downstairs who wants to speak with you."

"An officer?"

"He woke me up…He needs to speak to you, Erik."

I reached out for my sleep trousers and pulled them up over my waist before throwing on a clean shirt.

"Ange…" I was heading towards the stairs, when I heard Christine's voice calling for me once again.

"Yes, Christine?"

"Your mask and wig…"

"Thank you…"

After placing both garments over my head, I continued downstairs, finding that there was indeed and officer waiting to speak with me.

"I'm sorry, sir, you have to excuse me… I've had a few busy days and I'm exhausted."

"Mister E…I came to talk to you. Last night, after your park closed, there was an accident."

"Accident?"

The officer nodded. "Yes, sir…One of your fun houses caught on fire. Your employees attempted to put out the flames, but eight of them got trapped inside…"

My heart stopped within my chest. A fire? Oh, why hadn't I known about this?

"Are they alright?"

The officer paused before looking down at his feet.

"Sir, your employees all died…All of them but one. He's severely injured and at the hospital."

"Who?"

"I'm not sure who he is…He's at the hospital…A large man with a muscular build."

"Mr. Squelch…"

"And that's not all…"

"What do you mean?"

"There was a child found in his arms…"

"A child?"

The officer nodded. "A boy…"

"Erik!"

I was interrupted when I heard Christine calling for me. She had tears in her eyes, her face seeming as though something bad had just happened.

"Gustave isn't in his room…"

And it was at that moment, that my heart stopped within my chest. No…This couldn't be happening…The boy couldn't be Gustave. It wasn't him…It just couldn't be.

Ok, I know a alot of crap happened in this chapter, between Christine's miscarriage, and Gustave's dissapearance...But I promise that fluffy chapters are ahead. I thought it would have been more tortorous to have Erik find out Christine was pregnant and then for ten chapters worry about whether it was his or her rapist's...(Which, Christine doesn't even remember being raped yet) That is coming up shortly...I believe it is going to bite Erik in the ass.. Some major plot twists are ahead...Anyway, stay tuned and please review!