Don't Let Me Down

Room 211 finally continues after a long hiatus. Part Two.

Thank you.

PROLOGUE

Glowing and bright, the young Christine Daae entered the pristine classroom. This was her first day at her new school. She had transferred from another university. She hated being the new girl, but she has decidedly made it a goal to not let that bother her. She was going to make a lot of goals this year. And Christine knew she was probably going to be the outcast. She was much smarter than most people in high school. And she also didn't feel badly about saying that. Scoring a 5 on her AP Lit exam really did her in, but she didn't mind. Christine wanted to take it easy though. She knew that an easier English course at a new school might be the way to go. But all she could was stare down at the syllabus, wondering why the courses were so easy. Christine also had already read all the material in previous courses, and in her free time. She couldn't imagine this professor though.

'Professor Lantier,' She mumbled underneath her breath, flipping through the syllabus one dreary page at a time. "Sounds awfully boring to me... The French are always boring."

But she was dead wrong.

Professor Lantier sauntered into the classroom. His book bag hanging loosely over his shoulder, and his fingers white from gripping his coffee mug so tightly. He was nervous. He carried his material closely to his chest, his hair slicked back in a nice do. He smelled nice. Christine could smell his aftershave from the second row. He smelled like peppermint. He placed his belongings on the desk, and the room fell silent.

"Hello, everyone" He quietly mumbled. "My name is Erik, and I'll be your professor this semester."

And the rest was simply history.

THE PRESENT

"It's a girl." The nurse stepped forward, the baby wrapped tightly in a pink blanket. "Do we have a name for her yet?"

The curls had set, due to the sweat Christine had accumulated. Many strays were sticking to the sides of her face. She didn't mind though. The scent too, made her nostalgic for a life she once knew. It was the exact smell that loom in the dance studio after a particularly difficult practice. She knew it was worth it. Reaching her arms out in a weak gesture, the nurse placed the newborn baby girl gently into her mother's arms. She had the same eyes that her father did. Does.

"No, not yet. I was thinking of having Charlotte name her. I think that might be fun..." Christine cooed at her baby, the warmth of her newest daughter filling every crevice in her body.

Nothing else mattered.

"Well, why don't we bring little Charlotte in then?" The nurse smiled widely, leaving the room to fetch Charlotte. And moments later, the equally bright eyed little girl flitted into the room.

"Mommy! Mommy, let me see her!" Charlotte happily climbed next to her mom in bed, her curls taking over most of her face.

Christine didn't have enough time to do her hair before she incidentally, went into labor.

"Shh, shhh. She's sleeping," Christine began, moving the blanket slightly from her new daughter's face. "Now, Char, what do you think her name should be?"

"I don't know, mommy. Why don't you ask daddy?" Charlotte responded quickly.

But Christine froze. What was such a happy feeling racing through her blood, suddenly turned cold, making her pause in her breathing.

Truly, Christine hadn't thought about Erik in a long while. At least in the last month. Since Meg had died, Christine really tried to make certain that Charlotte was her main priority. And although Charlotte never spent long periods of time with her Auntie Meg, she still begged the question: Where is Meggie?

It simply broke Christine's heart, if that was even possible.

Erik was probably gallivanting with his other family. Disgusting.

"Mommy?" Charlotte's voice echoed through the hospital room, making Christine come to her senses.

"Oh.. Sorry, my love. Did you think about a name for your baby sister?" Christine chimed in again.

"I like Andie, like from Toy Story!" Charlotte smiled widely. Her eyes were bright, as her hands clapped together in excitement.

"Andie?" Christine's finger caressed the newborn's cheek. Soft.

"Yeah! Andie Lantier." Charlotte continued to 'ooh' and 'aah' at her new sister. And just like The Grinch, Christine's heart grew three more sizes.

"Okay, Andie it is. Andie Margaret"

Three days later, Naomi picked up Christine from the hospital, Andy and Charlotte in tow. Christine was excited to be going home.

"So, Miss Christine, how do you feel? Andie is gorgeous." Naomi placed the baby carrier on the table, unlatching the newborn from it. "Aren't you? Yes, my dear you are."

"I'm okay, sore. But that's to be expected." Christine moved towards the kitchen, her apartment smelling like... peppermint.

Christine halted.

"Did you clean in here before you left to pick me up today?" Christine turned to face Naomi, her eyebrows in a scrunch.

"No, ma'am. Didn't touch a thing." Naomi placed Andie in the bassinet, softly as she slept. "Why?"

Christine formed a deep breath, waiting for the right moment to exhale.

If she was wrong, she could blame it on the fact that she just had a baby - an excuse valid for at least the first six months. But if she was right, that would mean something very terrible. Or amazing depending on how she would spin it. She couldn't decide. In all honesty, she couldn't even think straight. She really hoped she was wrong. And from the shadows, her darkest nightmare, but deepest wish had emerged.

"Hello, Angel."

The former ballet dancer tapped her toe impatiently, as she sat cross armed across from her former teacher. Her body hurt. But Andie was asleep. She was going to take this opportunity to question the man she once would have done absolutely anything for.

"She's beautiful, Christine. She looks just like you." Erik broke the silence, his mask sitting on the kitchen table.

"Yes, well... If we ever did anything right, it was creating two beautiful daughters." Christine huffed. She didn't know what to think.

"Andie is a nice name too, Charlotte did-"

"Oh, cut the shit Erik." Christine interjected, her blood racing through her veins. "You know I'm mad at you, and you're acting like we've not been separated."

"Well, what in God's name am I supposed to do? I had to hunt you down to find you!" Erik's voice boomed through the kitchen. He quickly composed himself.

Christine began praying to like, all the gods to make sure the baby didn't wake. This new daughter of theirs was not as easy of a sleeper as Charlotte was.

"Well, congratulations, you found me. What happened to your other family, huh? You lie and abandon them too? After you finished paying off her student loans or whatever?!" Christine could feel herself start to cry.

"No, of course not. But I took matters where they needed to go. Bailey won't be bothering you anymore." Erik responded, his fists tightly clenched.

"What did you do? Kill her or something?" She couldn't help, but scoff.

"No, I didn't kill her, Christine. I would never do that." Erik retorted.

"Okay, so what did you do? If you're so keen on being back in our lives, which by the way, I didn't ask for you to show up here, all peppermint-y and nice..." Christine stopped. Her eyes widened. Snapping back to reality, she continued though.

"What did you do, Erik?" Christine repeated her question.

"Well, I did what she wanted me to do," Erik began. "Which was..."

"You know, you have tell me this information, because it may be detrimental to your relationship to your newborn daughter." The curly headed mother tilted her head in curiosity. "So?"

"I sent her away. With a large sum of money." Erik nodded in confidence.

"That's not everything is it?" Christine huffed. "Well?"

Erik paused deeply. His own heart racing. He couldn't bare to tell his love what the news was, but he also couldn't bare the thought of being apart from his newborn's life. Erik exhaled, closed his eyes, and began.

"I sent just her away. My son, is still with me. And... if you'll have it, I would like for you, Charlotte, and little Andie to come live with us."

"You... what?"