My Angel of Music

Surgery

"Christine.". I heard Erik whisper my name in his sleep. I stroked his hair back from his pale, clammy forehead. Suddenly his eyes opened wide and he looked around, looking for me. "I'm here, Angel."

He found my face and tried to smile. I did so for him and rested my hand on his hot cheek. "Doctor, I think he has a fever." I said, feeling his hot skin. The doctor nodded and walked over to him.

"We'll be needing to start soon." he whispered. Erik whimpered and clasped my hand in his. "I'll be right here." I whispered.  HIs shirt was open, revealing the large bloody wound in his abdomen.  It still bled and puss began to ooze out of it.  

I grabbed the bottle of whiskey of the night stand and brought it to his lips.  He chugged it, quickly and shakily.  When he stopped, I put it away and began stroking his cheek.  "Just think of you and me in forty years, in rocking chairs on the front porch, drinking lemonade, with our grandchildren playing in the yard.  After this, we can have that.  We will have it, I promise."  I soothed.  He nodded, and brought my hand to his lips.  "Listen, Christine..."  His voice was weak and shaky.  "If I don't make it through this-"  I began to cut him off but he looked at me and stopped me with his dagger-like eyes.  "If I don't make it through this....Promise me that you will not harm yourself in any way.  You have to continue your life, raise our children, and do things that I would want to do with you.  Travel, go to America, or Persia.  Just don't stop living.  And one more thing."  He asked.  I nodded with tears in my eyes.  "Keep making music."  He whispered.

At those words a cry erupted from my chest and tears dropped onto Erik's chest.  I could never sing a note if he were not here beside me.  I wouldn't even be able to listen to a song without thinking of him!  But I nodded to make him happy.  "I love you."  I whispered, as if for the last time.  It could be the last time, I realized.  He smiled softly and brought my head down to his and kissed my forehead gently.  I kissed his cheek and pulled back.  

We were interrupted by the doctor clearing hhis throat noisly.  He walked up to the shaking form of Erik and bent down beside him.  "Monsiuer, I am going to do all i can to make sure that you get to rock in that rocking chair with your wife."  He said, determined.  Erik nodded and closed his eyes for a moment.  "I'm ready."  He said bravely.  Our hands held eachother for dear life as the doctor approached with a scapel in hand.  "Promise me something?"  I choked out.  His eyes focused on my face and he nodded.  "Promise me you'll stay with me.  Just stay alive."  I whispered.  He gave me an encouraging smile.  "I promise."  

"Alright, Madame Destler, I'm going to need you to either leave or keep very quiet and very still. It is very important that you do not move."  The doctor instructed.  I nodded and settled into an upright position.  The doctor looked at Erik for permission then took a deep breath.  "On three."  He said softly.  I looked at Erik and smiled softly.  He looked utterly terrified, no matter how much he tried to disguise it.  HIs face was pallid, and his brow was wet with sweat.  His hand gripped mine, cutting off my circulation and his eyes were wild with fear as he focused on my face.  

"One......Two....Three"

A terrible howl came from my husband's lungs, making me want to flinch in fear.  HIs agony was very obvious in his cries and it pained me to hear them.  I whimpered as he squeezed my hand, making nail marks in my skin.  I watched the doctor cut a small incision below his wound and begin fishing for the splinters with a pair of tweezers.  Erik screamed each time he plunged the tweezers into his wound.  It looked extremley painful and it made my eyes water from the sheer horror of it.  

"Angel, look at me."  I whispered.  He didn't hear me, instead he closed his eyes and kept grunting in pain.  "Angel!"  I growled.  He finally looked at me, his eyes wet with tears.  "Erik, look at me.  Think about the first night I saw you.  Remember what I was wearing?  Can you tell me?" I tried to distract him with memories of the past.  "Uh.....Ahhh!....Uh, a white robe over a....Ahhhh......Hannibal costume."  He grumbled.  I smiled and nodded.  "Yes.  That's right.  Do you remember our wedding day?  Do you know what shoes I was wearing that day?"  I asked calmly.  He screamed once then began to think between grunts and yells.  "They were pink,,,,,Pink shoes....Ahh....they were the only ones you had."  He gasped.  "Yes!  Now think about in a few months when the children.  Maybe they'll have brown, curly hair.  And maybe they'll have blue eyes, like you.  What do you think?"  I asked.

Erik didn't respond for a moment, he went paler and sqeezed my hand.  "Christine."  His lips barely formed my name, but I could hear the small mumble coming from him.  He then closed his eyes and I felt his hand loosen it's hold.  "Erik?"  I cried.  When he didn't respond, I looked up at the doctor.  He was staring at Erik with frantic eyes.  "Monsieur Destler, can you hear me?"  He asked loudly.  There was no response.  I sat up, to the doctors protest and began shaking Erik's shoulder gently.  "Angel?  Angel, look at me!"  I ordered, tears forming in my eyes.  My heart stopped, and I began to gasp for breath.  "Erik!  Angel, wake up!"  I was frantic now, my face got red, and my hands shook.  Erik's eyes opened, to my relief, and I let a sob escape my mouth.  But my happiness turned, once again, into terror when his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he began to shake uncontrollably.  "He's seizing!"  The doctor yelled.  He placed a pillow between his legs and held his wound with a cloth to control the bleeding.

"Angel!  Stay with me.  You can't leave me,now!"  I yelled at him as I flinched away from his foaming mouth.  "Get her out of here!"  The doctor ordered the servant that stood by.  I felt myself being pulled away from my dying husband.  I struggled, I kicked and hit, but it was no use.  I screamed and threw one heck of a fit, but to no avail.  "No!  No!  My husband is dying!  He is going to die without me!  He's all alone."  I sobbed as the male servant dragged me into the hall and as gently as possible layed me on the ground. "He's leaving me."  I whispered to myself.  And he was.  In every way possible.  He was going to die, and I had promised to live.  But what kind of living would it really be, without him?

I remeber laying on the floor and sobbing into the cold ground.  My dress laid in heaps around my body and my hair was a bloody mess.  I couldn't stop muttering "Angel"  over and over again.  

After what seemed like hours, I heard quick footsteps run up the steps and to my side.  "Christine?  Christine!"  Meg's frightened voice rang in my ears.  I moaned as she collapsed next to me.  "Oh my God, what happened?"  She asked frantically.  I sighed and without rolling over explained.  "Erik is dying in there."  I whisperd.  She gasped and put a hand on my shoulder.  I jerked it off as if it was covered in acid.  "Christine, what happened?"  She wanted more detail but I could barely giver her any.  "He pushed me out of the way of an arrow and took it instead of me.  I should be the one in there, not him."  Was all I could muster.  

I heard Meg let out a cry and stand up.  "I'm going in there to see what is going on."  She announced.  I didn't try to stop her, while she stepped over me and opened the door quickly.  I heard muffled yells and arguements, but I didn't care enough to listen.  Meg sighed and came out of the room, an annoyed look on her face.  "He's alive for now."  Was all she said before laying on the floor next to me.

And that is how we stayed for the whole night.