Of Masks And Roses

Sickness

I jerked awake at the sound of someone slamming my door open. I sat up and looked over at the door as Madame Giry angrily strolled in with a tray of soup and bread on a tray in her arms.

"Stupid girl," she muddled as she set the tray on my dresser, and returned to the door to close it.

"Excuse me?" I asked and sat up straighter, my damp hair falling down my shoulders in waves. My arms shivered at the cold around me but I chose to ignore it.

Madame Giry sighed and turned to face me, "I warned you, didn't I? I told you that if you didn't stay away from him that you would get hurt, didn't I? And when he came to me and told me that you were ill, I-" she took a shaking breath and placed a hand on her chest, "I mean, look at you! You're as sick as a dog!"

I blinked, scoffing slightly at her tone, "Madame Giry, I swear to you, he didn't hurt me in any way. It was my fault. I-" before I could get in another word I began to cough heavily. Madame Giry rushed over to me and handed me a glass of water from the tray. I drank it down heavily as if it was the last glass of water on Earth. I handed the cup back to her and took deep breaths as I leaned against the headboard of my bed.

Madame Giry sighed and sat down at the end of my bed, "My dear, whether the fact be if he hurt you or not doesn't matter. You were still hurt in his presence, and whether you like it or not, it means that he had something to do with it. Am I wrong?"

I looked away from her and over to the wall where the secret door was and stared at it, not wanting to meet Madame Giry's gaze. No matter how much I thought about it, she was right. If he never would have stolen my MP3 player, I never would have fallen into the lake in the first place. But on the other hand, it's not like he pushed me in. I was the one who tripped and fell.

"Why were you there in the first place?" asked Giry as she tried to meet my gaze.

I looked back at her, "I'm afraid that's between Erik and I, Madame."

Madame Giry looked away and hummed in disappointment, then quickly stood up and walked over to the tray. Grabbing it, she walked it over to me and shoved it into my arms.

"Until you get better, I do not want you to leave this room. And when you do get better, I want you to work on your duties as a stagehand, and I better not hear nor see you having any more affiliations with Erik, or I will be forced to have you leave this opera house. I'll see you in the morning." Before I could make a retort, Madame Giry left the room, slamming the door in her wake.

I looked down at the tray in my hands and tears welled in my eyes. I took in a deep breath, but ended up coughing instead. After I was able to regain my breathing, I closed my eyes and took deep breaths, trying my best to calm myself. I gripped onto the metal tray fiercely, my knuckles turning white.

Suddenly the tray was pulled out of my hands. My eyes snapped open and I looked up at Erik as he placed the tray on my nightstand and then sat next to me on my bed.

My mouth opened and closed in shock of his sudden presence, "E-Erik. You can't be here. Madame Giry, she said-" but I was cut off as I went into another coughing fit. Erik silently stood up and poured me a glass of water and handed it to me, my throat and lungs burning as I tried to regain myself.

"I know. I heard the whole thing." he whispered as I drank the water, and once I was finished I handed it back to him, whispering my thanks as he placed it on my nightstand. He sat back down next to me as I wheezed and closed my eyes, trying to regain my breathing once more.

"Are you alright?" he asked calmly.

I opened my eyes and smiled at him, "I feel like a ray of sunshine, monsieur." I croaked. Erik smiled.

"Well that's good." he joked and I rolled my eyes at him, "I wanted to ask you something, Scarlet." he continued.

"Yes?" I inquired, leaning forwards a little in curiosity.

"I was wondering if you could... if you.." he sighed and looked over at the door, then back at me, "In my opera that I am currently working on, I was thinking about putting in a piano piece, and having you play it. That is, of course, if you agree. You play so beautifully, and you would be an amazing part of the production."

I nodded and grinned, throwing my arms around him in a hug, "Thank you, Erik. Of course I will!" Erik stiffened under my touch, but quickly relaxed and returned the gesture. But the moment ended too soon and I found myself pulling away and resting against the headboard as exhaustion once again took me over.

"Here," said Erik as he grabbed the bowl of soup and raised the spoon up to my mouth, "You must eat. You need to regain your strength."

I reached up to take the spoon from him, but he pulled it from my reach. I sighed in frustration, "I thought you wanted me to eat, Erik." I said, trying to grab it from him again.

He pulled it away and shook his head, "Let me help you."

"I can feed myself, Erik."

"No you can't. Not in this state. I can see it in your eyes. You can barely stay awake. Let me." he dipped the spoon back into the soup and then lifting it up he held it in front of my face. I looked down at the spoon and back up at him. He didn't even blink. He wasn't going to back down. I sighed, but nodded and opened my mouth.

XxX

Five minutes passed before Scarlet stopped him and pushed the spoon away, "I feel like I child," she muttered sleepily.

Erik chuckled and set the bowl back on the tray and handed her the glass of water. She drank it down heavily and soon her eyes began to droop as she handed it back to him. Erik turned back to her to say something, but stopped when he saw that she was fast asleep. He smiled and sighed at her, and leaned down to place the covers around her. He found his hand drifting up into her hair as he softly brushed a strand out of her face and tucked it behind her ear.

When Erik realized what he was doing he pulled his hand away from her and stood up. Taking in a deep breath to steady himself, he turned away and walked over to the secret door and left without a second thought, willing himself to think not of Scarlet, but of Christine. 'Everything, from now on, needs to be about her,' he told himself as he walked the dusty halls of the catacombs, 'I can't lose track of what's important.'

Scarlet slowly opened her eyes and gazed at the wall where Erik just left, deep down secretly longing for the feeling of his hands in her hair once more.