The Phantom's Melody (The Phantom of the Opera)

23. All Good Things End

The masquerade was tomorrow. I was honestly a little excited to relax and have some fun. The past year had been more than a bit stressful to say the least. Between constant rehearsals and my lessons with the Phantom, I hadn't had much time to myself. I was hoping that this would be a nice refresher from the daily drama of the Opera Populaire. However, I couldn't help thinking about the Phantom. I bit my lip as I recalled the foggy memory from our fight just a few weeks ago.

"What's your name?"

He froze, his hand holding onto the tassel that let the curtain down around the bed. I wasn't even expecting him to say anything, so I was a little shocked when I heard him say very quietly, "Erik."

I shook my head at the fuzzy memory. I had to be remembering something wrong. The Phantom would never tell me of all people something so personal to him. Would he? I almost laughed at myself. No, he definitely wouldn't. But I kept repeating the memory over and over again in my mind.

I watched him carefully as he sorted through the sheet music on his piano, biting my lip as I scrunched up the folds of my dress in my hands. "So..." I stepped towards him. "Remember our little squabble a few weeks ago? I just had a question about something that happened later that night--"

He cut me off, "Actually, I'm glad you mentioned that." He turned on his bench to face me. "I think we should cease your lessons." He said, his face not betraying a hint of emotion.

I blinked, a little taken back. "What?" I shook my head. "What are you talking about? I thought things were good between us now."

He cocked his head at me. "This has nothing to do with your outburst." I scowled, but he continued, "I don't think there's anything left for me to teach you." He said simply.

I just stared at him. "Nothing left to teach me? That's not what you said last month!" I didn't understand. Why was he now trying to get rid of me?

He sighed, standing up and walking over to his work desk. "You've improved since then." He shrugged. "I've taught you everything you need to know." He met my gaze as he turned towards me. "What you do next is entirely up to you."

I felt my heart sink in my chest. "I don't understand...did I do something wrong?" The question was hardly a whisper on my lips.

Something flashed in his eyes before he averted his gaze and grabbed a stack of paper off his desk. "No. As I said, there's nothing more for me to teach you." He breezed past me and returned to his piano.

I clenched my fists. "Are you serious?" One look at his face and I realized that yes, he was very serious. I pressed my lips together before laughing a dry and humorless laugh. "Right. Of course." I glared at the ground. "I guess this is over then." I folded my arms. "How do you know I won't tell anyone where to find you?" I suddenly asked.

He didn't even look at me. "You won't."

Why that arrogant--I clamped my jaw shut before I could say anything. Damn him for being right! I looked away and grabbed my shaw from off the edge of the piano. "Thank you for everything, Monsieur." I turned my back to him and walked to the exit, ready to leave without another word, but I stopped. I cursed under my breath and looked back at him. "Will I see you again?" I asked quietly.

He looked down. "Yes," he responded just as quietly, "I'm sure you will."

I bit my lip and looked away. I hesitated for just a moment longer before disappearing through the alove into the hidden passageway that would take me back up to the opera house. I refused to let any tears fall from my glossy eyes, putting on a brave face until I returned to the dormitories and slipped into bed under my sheets, crying into my pillowcase as I fell asleep.