Anywhere You Go

Chapter Two

~Erik~

A year had passed. A year had passed since I had seen my dearest Christine. The love of my life. The only person who had ever loved me. And yet, she betrayed me anyway.

I was in so much pain.

Never-ending pain.

One day I just couldn't take it anymore. I came out of hiding and found my way back to the place where I had been for so long. I found a once-beloved knife, a knife that had many memories attached to it. Instantly, my brain flashed back to those days.

"You're such a disappointment! Nobody will ever love you with a face like that!"

"Kill him and we won't kill you. Become my special assassin!"

"You are my secret weapon now!"

"God give me courage to show you
You are not alone!"

Tears began to stream down my face as I remembered their faces. My mother. The Shah of Persia. Nadir Khan. Christine. All of them. All of them had made me feel horrible in one way or another. Tonight I would end that. I would end my life and end my earthly suffering.

Just as I was about to thrust the knife deep into my chest, I heard someone scream. I stopped and slowly turned my head. I chuckled softly to myself upon seeing her. I must be dreaming. I said some words, words which I no longer remember. She also said words, words which I also don't remember. I truly thought I was dreaming. With a newfound resolve, I decided just to do it then and there. I turned to my knife, retracted it, and planned to plunge it deep into my chest. But that didn't happen.

She saved me.

She put her body between me and the knife, and at that moment I began to feel alive again. Her warm, beautiful body pressed against mine preventing me from killing myself made my heart beat faster than it had in a long time. She was really here.

"If you want to kill yourself, you must kill me first," she said softly. My hand shook.

"Christine?" I eventually cried. She turned toward me, her face very close to mine.

"It's really me, Angel. I'm here now," she said softly, her small hands resting on my chest. I dropped the knife and embraced her tightly, tears falling freely down my face.

"Oh, Christine!" I exclaimed into her voluminous hair. I couldn't bring herself to let her go again. I held her tightly, and she held me equally as tightly.

"I love you," I heard her murmur. I pulled away and looked at her perfect face in shock.

"You love me?" I asked. My hands were on her shoulder firmly, yet not to the point where it would hurt her. She looked me in the face and smiled warmly.

"Yes, I love you, and I'm sorry it took me this long to figure it out. Please forgive me," she said.

"Of course I forgive you, Angel," I murmured.

Then, I surprised myself by fearlessly pressing my lips against hers, softly at first. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me closer and kissed me back. If it was possible, this kiss was even better than the one I received a year ago. I could easily remember that occurrence, but I had apparently forgotten how amazing it felt to have her lips pressed against mine. I couldn't get enough of that feeling. I was the happiest I had been in a very long time. I hadn't felt this alive in such a long time.

~Christine~

I was definitely in shock, that I knew, but I also knew how insanely relieved and ecstatic I felt in that moment. And then, without warning, he kissed me. I was not expecting it, but I was also not sorry. It was soft and gentle at first. I couldn't believe how lucky I was. And then it was more urgent and passionate. I kissed him like it was the last time I would ever kiss him. I wanted to show him that he had a beautiful soul and that it was possible to love him. I wanted to give him beautiful memories and the happiest life possible. When we finally parted, I gazed lovingly into his eyes and smiled.

"I promise from this moment on I will never leave you. I will always be by your side. Even if I'm not always physically with you (because that would be unrealistic), I will always be here for you. This is my promise to you, Erik. It's not going to be easy, but it's going to be amazing. I love you so much!" I told him. His and my eyes were filled with tears, yet wide smiles were fixed on our faces.

"So, would this be us starting over?" Erik asked sheepishly. I smiled at that and stepped back from him. He gave me a quizzical look.

"Hi, my name is Christine Daaé," I said, extending my hand for him to shake. With realization, he smiled warmly and shook my hand.

"My name is Erik Destler, it's a pleasure to meet you Mademoiselle Daaé," he replied and then lifted my hand (which was already in his) to brush my fingertips against his lips. He never broke eye contact. Smiling, I blushed furiously. I hadn't felt like this in a long, long time. Erik was the only person who could make me feel this loved.

"So, what now? I am not leaving your side!" I asked him.

"Well, if you want to stay here, you could just stay in the room that I made yours that one week so long ago. If you prefer not to live underground, we can find a flat somewhere or a house or anything. It doesn't matter to me as long as I'm with you," he replied. I pulled back a chair from the table and sat down to think. Erik sat across from me and watched as I was transported deep inside my brain.

"I'm not sure what we should do presently. I have a strong belief that two people who are courting should not live in the same house unless they were married—which is a topic I won't bring up now since I don't want to freak you out. However, I don't want to go back to my flat since it is technically owned by the de Chagny family and we aren't on good terms right now, since I threw my ring at Raoul and stormed out on that drunkard. So, I suppose, for now, could I just stay with you?" I rambled, thinking slowly as I was speaking. Erik just smiled.

"Of course. We'll figure out the details later. I'm just happy you're with me. I never thought I'd see you again, and now, you're with me. Christine, you saved me. You're the true angel here," he replied, pulling me close.

And in that moment, everything was perfect.

But perfect doesn't last forever.