The Man Clad in Black (Phantom of the Opera)

Signs of a Broken Heart Part II - Chapter 12

As you navigated the catacombs, having gone through one of the hidden doors that Erik had shown that was in your room, you couldn't help but feel overwhelmingly elated... The night had gone so well for you that you could hardly describe it - from a fattening dinner with your father and the wonderful conversations you had with his waiter friend, you were almost certain that your heart would burst with joy.

And now, you were in much more comfortable clothing. It wasn't that you weren't in love with the dress that Eric had made for you - in fact, that was the reason you changed. You didn't want to ruin it if you fell out of the boat again.

As you walked through the catacombs, you couldn't help but smile to yourself when you heard Erik.

He was singing.

The abnormality of the situation flew right over your head, and you could only swoon at the sound while you sat down at the edge of the lake. You ignored the fact that the boat wasn't there - you just wanted to listen to the man's angelic voice.

You took off your boots and dangled your feet into the water. At the moment, you were wearing what could pass for men's clothing - a blouse and some trousers - although you didn't quite mind. You needed it only to swim across.

As you sat there and allowed yourself to be immersed by the song, you found yourself becoming the slight bit tired... but was it because it was bad? No, far from it... It was just so relaxingly beautiful that it reminded you of a lullaby. Before you could give it much more thought, however, you were deeply saddened as soon as the final note rang in your ears.

You had almost forgotten the reason that you came there.

Once you reflected on the song for a moment, you suddenly remembered that you had come to see Erik, and within a moment's notice, you mustered up the courage as you immediately leapt into the water.

It was freezing.

As soon as you resurfaced with a slight gasp, you could already feel the goosebumps raising on your skin. You thought you felt a fish brush up against your ankle. You could have sworn that there would be ice sheets on all of your clothes right afterward... you being uncomfortable was an understatement.

"It's not that bad," you muttered to yourself softly, trying to mentally prepare yourself to keep moving forward.

As you continued to swim, shivering so much that you nearly choked on water multiple times, you finally managed to drag yourself to the shore.

You ached all over.

Yet again, you found yourself miserable and laying on the floor, sopping wet (and shivering with how cold the water just was). You nearly fell asleep from exhaustion.

Erik was there much quicker than he had been before...

But this time, he held a rapier to your face.

"What are you doing?" you said breathlessly, your chest heaving up and down out of fear. Almost impossibly, you tried to press yourself against he ground to avoid the point of the weapon, and for the first time, you were genuinely afraid of the man whom you called your friend...

Once he saw that it was you, however, he seemed to relax before tensing right up again.

"You shouldn't be here." He sheathed his rapier again before he turned his back to you, beginning to quickly walk away. This time, however, you could feel the anger boiling up inside of you. You've sacrificed a good night's rest for the past however-many nights, and this is the thanks you get? A sword to the face and a cold shoulder?

"What do you mean, 'I shouldn't be here?'" you asked. Before you could stop yourself, your legs carried you up to the man, and you placed a hand on his shoulder before you whipped him around to face you. His face was so full intimidating and full of anger that you almost backed down again.

Almost.

Your own anger drove you past your breaking point. You had cut off a night with a perfectly kind man just to spend time him, and yet, he had the decency to put your life at risk?

"We've done this every night since I've arrived, Erik! It's... common sense should have let you know that I was coming tonight, and yet... you decide that it's a brilliant idea to come at me with a rapier? Of all things on earth, Erik - Why would you ever point that thing at my face? I swear by God that I would be one of the last people who would hurt..." Your eyes brimmed with tears and your voice choked as you finished off, and you didn't care whether or not you had finished your sentence. You could tell that he knew what you meant.

As you stood there gawking at him, the man's expression softened - especially once he saw how upset you were. Some sort of realization had washed over him. And over you, too. You wanted to give him a chance to speak... in fact, you were so close to letting him explain himself until the sight of something - or someone - stopped you.

A woman.

You just about lost it. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw the brunette drowsily stir in the elegant bed, and your heart broke as soon as she buried her head of curly hair in her arms. You stared at her in disbelief...

Were you dreaming? You had gone from one of your most amazing nights yet, but now... this?

This sight hurt you far worse than being stabbed. Your heart was pierced with a horrible ache, and you crumpled to the ground in tears...

You were heartbroken.

Immediately, Erik reached out to grab you once you were on the ground, although you slapped his arm away quickly. A few strands of hair stuck to your face as you covered your eyes. You felt one of his arms wrap around you, although you were quick to flinch away.

He was the last person you wanted to be around.

"Please don't, Erik," you squeaked, your eyes beginning to sting all over again. "Please."

For a moment, Erik only watched you, unsure of what else to do... you didn't look up to see the tremendous amount of guilt pooling in his eyes, and in a way, he wished you had. He felt horrible.

"I'm sorry," he muttered. It was so quiet that he doubted you would hear it, and upon getting no response, he assumed you hadn't...

But you had.

It took all of your willpower to tell yourself that you didn't care.

As soon as the apology escaped his lips, you got to your feet, and tried to wrap your blouse tighter around yourself as you waded back into the water. Your feet ached from standing for the entire evening, and you were almost certain that you had skinned your arm all over again when you crawled ashore... it wasn't hard for you to ignore that pain.

Heartbreak was much worse than that.

"[Y/N]," Erik said again. It was almost as if he was trying to get you to come back to him, but you still gave him the silent treatment.

It was one of the hardest things you've done.

Something stopped Erik from going after you, and in the end, it was one of the things he would regret the most...

You left without another word.

A/N: Thank you to all of my readers who have stayed with me thus far! What did you think of all of this? Don't be a stranger - let me know in the comments. Also, thank you to kawaiinfinity for voting on many of my chapters! It means so much to me! Make sure to keep reading, and continue to enjoy! 💖