CONEY ISLAND

SEE, HE'S NOT HEARTLESS

When the rest of the dancers, Madame Giry and Gustave made a circle around Christine, asking if she was okay, if this has happened more times and similar questions, Meg has noticed the two gentlemen leaving the room.

She fought her way to her best friend, screaming "Let me through!" at the other dancers.

"I don't want to be rude or interrupt something, but Mister Y and, erm, your husband, are having a private reunion," she said, trying to not use the most obvious words in front of Gustave. Christine gasped.

"Gustave stay with Madame Giry and Meg, momma will be right back," she told him, running out of the room and into the labyrinth of halls. Meg quickly ran behind her.

"I think I know where they are," she said. Christine followed her to an abandoned room and they heard familiar voices, yet couldn't understand the words.

Christine opened the door and ran in. Both men turned to her. They were both already beaten up, their shirts torn apart.

"Stop!" she cried. "Stop this nonsense! Please!"

"You," said Raoul, raising his hand threateningly. "You knew it was him and yet you still agreed! How dare you betray me like this?!" His hand twitched a bit, causing Erik to run to them.

"Don't touch her," he said with his scary deep voice. Christine felt a strange pain in her chest.

Oh, how have things turned out, she thought. Erik protecting me from Raoul.

"You will not tell me what to do with my wife," Raoul spat at him. "FIGHT ME!" he said and made a boxing gesture. He was clearly drunk or just mentally sick. He started swaying until he fell down, and suddenly fell asleep. Christine sat down and out his head on her lap, stroking his hair.

Erik's heart ached at this image. He was about to hit her, yet she still loved him. She, her soul and her heart were as pure as if she was an angel.

Meg walked over to Erik, grabbing his hand. "Are you alright?" she asked. He wasn't. He wasn't alright. He pulled his hand out of her hold, not releasing Christine out of sight.

"What happened?" he asked her. Meg opened her mouth, but he gestured her to shut up, so she left the room. "What were you doing down there? Why did he...?"

Christine finally looked up. She started speaking, her voice was shaking and her eyes were full of tears. God knows why she was crying. "We came to tell you that I'll be performing. Then he asked me if I met you and I said yes. And I guess he must've figured out who you were because in that moment he slapped me. And then this," she said gesturing to poor sleeping Raoul, "happened."

"You... You'll be performing?" he asked, surprised. Sure it may seemed as if he knew she what she was going to choose yesterday, but he still found it surprising that she actually did.

"I was supposed to, before he found out about you," she said, looking down at her husband.

"It's not his choice, Christine," said Erik. She slowly stood up. "He doesn't choose what you do with your life! You can do whatever you want. So tell me, Christine. Do you want to sing or not?"

"See," she said, her voice as cold as ice. "Here's where you're wrong. It's not his choice, but it's not mine either. It's ours. Because we're a family."

"Family doesn't hit each other," said Erik, taking hrr hand and shoeing her the red rings on her wrist.

"How would you know that?!" she exploded. "You never had one, remember?"

At the moment she said it, she realized what a mistake she'd made.

She felt a tear escape her eye, ashamed of what she said, scared of him hitting her. "Oh, Erik," she cried. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to, I really didn't --"

"He shouldn't have hit you," was all he said. His body was frozen, his hand let go of hers and fell against his body. "You deserve better."

With that he turned around, leaving the room.

Gustave is spelled Gustave right?