The Phantom's Baby

Chapter 1

My heart was racing as I crept down to the lair. I hadn't seen him since he had went into the terrifying fit of rage. Since the beautiful nights we had spent in the lair together, I had found myself ill. Later, I had discovered I was with child. As a young woman with no family, I had no where else to go so I decided I would try to find the father of the child. 

I tiptoed into the lair where he sat at his organ playing. He turned toward me sharply, "Mon Dieu! Annie!" 

For a brief moment, he looked happy to see me then his face became sad knowing how things had ended. 

"Hi," I whispered. 

He stepped toward me and stopped abruptly, "What are you doing here?" His voice was more harsh than he intended it to be, "I'm sorry." 

"Um," I hesitated, "I need to talk to you."

"I thought you'd never want to see me again after what... Well, anyway you know what happened. Why did you come back?" his voice was filled with both embarrassment for the last time we had been together as well as hope that I had returned to save him from his solitude. 

"There's no easy way to say this, but I'm expecting your baby."

In the moment to follow, the man went into a fit of rage like the one that had caused my fear the first time. He threw a few objects and took a candelabra to one of the mirrors. I began to sob as I watched the anger, fear, and sadness boil over. Finally, he came back over to me. My tears soaked my face. 

"You can't have this child... We can't bring a monster into the world."

"It's our child!" I screamed at the hideous man.

"There cannot be another child brought into the world that looks like me, "It's unacceptable!" He grabbed my wrists, "Annie, we can't!"

"You don't know anything will be wrong with the baby!"

I continued to sob until I crumpled into a pile on the floor. A moment of passion after the Opera Populaire had burned to the ground found me wandering the streets of Paris and stumbling upon a strange masked man had left me with child nearly six months ago. Now, the Phantom wanted me to kill the child growing inside of me. I couldn't do it and I wouldn't. 

The Phantom looked over at me and was surely disgusted by my sobs. He sat down at his organ and began pounding on it angrily, "I've thought of a compromise... You can stay here until you have the baby. If it's hideous, I will  do as I see fit. If it's not, you will be free to leave."

I prayed to God and then nodded my head, "Fine."

"You're probably quite tired from all of the fuss you've made. You may go lay in the bed and sleep."

"I'm fine."

"Go," he snapped.

Not knowing what this man was capable of I listened.  However, I was not going quietly, "It's not like you care anyway," I muttered.

"Not like I care? Madame, you are quite mistaken," he hissed, sending a chill down my spine.

"Well, it sure seems that way," I returned so as not to let him think he was getting the best of me. 

His cape swooshed behind him as his long, thin legs dashed toward me. He grabbed me forcefully by the wrists, "You are to obey me so long as you live in my space. You say you're six months or so which means you have three months, and you are rid of this hideous monster for good." 

He released his grip on my wrists. My eyes were filling with tears and I looked at my wrists where there were now light fingerprints, "You hurt me."

"I... I... I didn't mean to," he said quietly and looking at the red marks forming on my wrists, "Please go lie down."

"I'm not tired," I said again. 

He was trembling, "Please..." 

"I would much rather talk."

"Please," he whispered as his body shook and tears welled in his eyes. 

I wasn't getting anywhere with him, "I couldn't possibly sleep after all of the stress of today. I would much rather talk." 

His whole body was shaking, and he was struggling to hold back his tears, "You try my patience."

"Fine, I'll go to sleep, but you and I are not through with important conversations."