The Man Clad in Black (Phantom of the Opera)

Music Can Bring Tears - Chapter 9

You carefully pushed the seat out of your way to stand in front of the organ. Leather and water did not mix well. As you gingerly placed your fingers on the keys, the familiar feeling sending a shock of nostalgia through your entire body, you carefully positioned yourself to create the first chord that came to your mind.

As the notes, rich and harmonious, echoed throughout the lair, you couldn't help but yelp and flinch at how loud it was. The sound was enough to make you jump and nearly trip over yourself, and you somehow managed to catch your balance before you fell. Once you glanced around to see if the man - er, Erik - was there to reprimand you for making such a ruckus, you made your way back to the organ.

You drew in a deep breath before you replicated the chord all over again, and this time, you were a lot less alarmed than you had been before and prepared to play.

And you did.

As your fingers flew across the keys, they seemed to have a mind of their own, and you found yourself feeling completely and utterly lost in its beauty. You hardly even remembered that it was you playing... All you knew was that you were pouring your heart and soul into this impromptu song, and this was the only thing that could describe your emotions when words couldn't.

Your song was gorgeous. While it was completely improvised, it was a task that many other people would back down from... and yet, you felt as if you could go on forever - and you absolutely would have.

You stopped only when you felt something wrap around you.

You let out a gasp and nearly screamed.

"Holy hell!" you shrieked, ready to throw a fist at whoever had interrupted you. You thought you were being choked, attacked, or something of the like...  However, once you caught sight of a white mask, you let out a long sigh of relief before nearly slapping the man.

"It isn't ladylike to curse," he said. Of course you knew that he was joking, but from the unreadable expression on his face, you were a little concerned.

"My apologies," you muttered, looking back at the organ. You soon realized that, yet again, Erik had given you his cloak, and you couldn't help but smile ever so slightly. You pressed your lips into a line as you thought, and you eventually found yourself looking back up to the man. "Both for... erhm, cursing and staring earlier. I honestly didn't know that -"

"It's alright, [Y/N]," he said firmly. That shut you up. You could tell that, although his apology may have sounded insincere, he no longer wanted to speak about this topic, and you could easily respect that. He kept his arm around you to keep you warm. While he kept his cloak around you, he dragged the seat back into place and sat you down on it, and he soon sat down next to you. "I never knew you could play."

You shrugged nonchalantly.

"You never asked."

"Well... that's no matter, now, is it?" he muttered.

He placed a hand on yours while his keeping his arm around you, and gently - with a touch saturated with much care than it had been the night before - he placed your hand upon the keys. He gingerly grabbed your other hand to do the same, and his eyes were locked on you the entire time. He appeared to be so intrigued by the fact you could play.

"Play something."

You were a little taken back.

"Erik, I - "

"I heard you play," he interrupted. You blinked a couple of times, looking the man in the eyes as he stared at you longingly. He wanted more than anything to listen to you play. "You're a natural... that song - the one you were playing - I haven't got a clue what it was - but it was so... interesting. I could almost hear what you were thinking."

Interesting?

Your song?

"Monsieur, I was just messing around with the -"

"No," he said firmly. He didn't want excuses - he wanted music. "Just play for me."

He didn't have to tell you again. The way he spoke to you made it sound like your music would save his life, and just from how important it seemed to be, you began to play.

It wasn't nearly as passionate at first. You flubbed up a couple of times, and it was clear that you didn't put nearly as much effort into it as you had before you were interrupted...

However, one glance at the masked man sitting next to you, and your song immediately began to piece together.

He was the sole reason.

You thought of all of the pain that he must gone through - he had been nothing but kind... soaking dress or not, you cold never imagine why someone could be cruel to such a man. Most importantly, however, you thought of how this man made you feel.

He made your heart stop. He was mischievous, yes - but there was also something you couldn't quite pinpoint upon him... even though you'd barely known him for a day, he held your full trust - perhaps a piece of your heart along with it.

This was clear in your song.

You could have played forever... but you also didn't want to keep Erik listening for too long.

You delicately finished off the song with a final few notes. The ending echoed throughout the lair and was followed by silence, and carefully, you pulled your hands away from the keys.

"Was that alright, Erik?" you asked softly.

Yet again, you were greeted by silence...

But it wasn't until you saw his face that you realized that he had been crying.

That made your stomach sink. Did he not like it? Was that why he was crying? The irrationality of that thought flew right over your head, and you immediately became worried about what Erik thought of your work. You had just given everything to your song... did that mean nothing?

"Monsieur...?"

He did nothing. You were almost certain that he would simply walk away again...

You were wrong.

Before you could think anything else, however, he wrapped you into an enormous hug.

You were quick let out a surprised gasp.

He held onto you as if you were the only thing keeping him alive, and what he gave you - it wasn't just any hug... It was an embrace so tight, yet so tender at the same - it was so perfect...

And yet, it was almost as if he had never given - or received - a hug before.

You found yourself hugging him back with all your might. You no longer cared whether your dress was soaked, or if you were absolutely freezing - you just felt that he deserved to feel loved.

You no longer needed words to describe how you felt...

He already seemed to know.

A/N: What did you think? Things will begin to pick up a lot next chapter - there's a lot in store with you, Erik, and someone else very important... Also, I would like to give a shoutout to peppermint-twist for voting on all of my chapters, and simply being a sweetheart overall!