Your Voice

Chapter 33

I'm back! Wow, it's been a while since the last chapter!

Christine

I take a sweet from a bag of toffee that a lovely fan gave me at the stage door and pop it into my mouth as I brush powder onto my face. Humming comes from Alex - my new co-star - as he gets into his costume behind me.

"Last show of today!" he announces relieved and I nod; we're all exhausted from the matinee. A new number has been added to the show and it contains a lot more complex ballet and my age has started to affect my performance.

But Alex is a dancer and he gives me tips and tricks, so that helps. As I put rouge on my cheeks, I look at the family portrait stuck onto the mirror and smile. Erik took the kids out for ice cream while I was doing the matinee, so they're coming to watch me at the seven o'clock show.
"Okay, I'm going out for warm up," says Alex as he leaves the room. I nod in acknowledgement. Taking my hair out of their rollers, I sing some scales, getting my vocals going. I then put on my ballet slippers and head out to join the dancers doing their stretches. I take my place at the barre in between Penelope and Velma.
"Hello, girls," I greet them as we do a plié.
"Are your little ones coming tonight?" asks Velma.
"Yes," I answer, lifting my leg behind me.
"Great, because I've got something for them," she says.

The stage manager calls us into place, and I don't enter until fifteen minutes into the show, so I go back to my dressing room and have a quick sip of tea. As I pour some into my cup, I hear a gentle, quiet melody.

Christine, Christine

I nearly drop my mug. I am trembling - I recognize that voice. Scared out of my wits, I run out of the room onto the wings of the stage. Alex is there, waiting for his cue. He sees me pale and wild-eyed and immediately rushes to me.
"Christine, what's happened?"

I try to explain, but nothing will come out, as if something is physically stuck in my throat. The dressers and other crew members surround me, helping my wobbling body keep standing. Gabrielle, my dresser, pulls me back further into the wings and asks, very concerned, "Christine, calm down. Breathe. What happened? What did you see?"

I close my eyes tight, making sure what I saw wasn't a figment of my imagination.
"Meg," I spoke shakily. "I-I heard her."

"But that's- Christine, we have to talk later. It's your scene," Gabrielle whispers and I try to get in character as I walk onstage light-headed and nauseous.

Erik

As the curtain goes down and the applause fades, I get up to go backstage. Something was wrong with Christine; she was trembling, her voice shaky and quiet.
"Gustave, take your sister and wait for me at the stage door. I have to do something." My son nods obediently and I rush out of box 5 to Christine's dressing room. I knock and allow myself in.

"Erik, Erik thank goodness you're here," says Christine, taking off her accessories.
"Christine, what's wrong today? You look as if you've seen a ghost."
"A ghost, you say? A ghost... maybe." She takes a seat at her dressing table and puts her head in her hands. "I heard Meg."
"But- but that's impossible," I shake my head in disbelief. "She's gone."
"I know! That's why I'm terrified! But I'm a hundred percent sure it was her."
"What did she say?"
"She sang my name.
Christine, Christine"
"Odd," I reply, not really knowing what to say.
"I do hope that there isn't a REAL Opera Ghost," Christine murmurs.