𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝘼𝙧𝙚 𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝘼𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙚 | 𝙋𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙤𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙊𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙖

xx. Show You All the Sights

"Good morning," Charlotte said softly, putting a hand to her husband's cheek.

"Hello," Erik replied, wrapping his arm around his wife and pulling her close to his chest. "Did you sleep well?"

"Very," Charlotte smiled as she rested her head on his shoulder. "And you?"

"Yes, I got a good rest once I finally got to sleep. With your help, of course."

Charlotte chuckled, kissing his cheek. "You're welcome."

Erik smiled, pulling her into a proper kiss before he tilted his head back to look at her. "I suppose we can't stay in bed all day, can we?" he asked quietly.

"No, unfortunately. Let's go downstairs and I'll make breakfast."

"Alright. I need to get dressed first, but I'll be down soon enough. Even though I would much prefer to stay here with you."

"I'd prefer to stay here too," Charlotte sighed, kissing his cheek. "But I'm pretty sure Gustave and Papa will want breakfast."

"Nadir can make breakfast, can't he?" Erik asked as he leaned over and pressed a kiss to Charlotte's cheek, resting his head on her shoulder.

"It's not kind to force our guest to make his own food," Charlotte chuckled.

"He'll survive," Erik groaned.

"Erik, we have to eat too," Charlotte giggled. "Baby's hungry."

"That's true. You do have to feed the little one." Erik gave her a quick kiss, his hand resting on her stomach. "So I guess we'll get up."

"Thank you," Charlotte smiled. "How about we stay in our night clothes?"

"Oh, yes. I wasn't planning on changing just yet."

"Good," Charlotte chuckled, sitting up. "Because I don't feel like struggling with my corset quite yet."

"You're still going to wear your corset?" Erik asked. "Even though you're pregnant?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Charlotte laughed, slipping on her white lace robe.

"Well, I don't know. Wouldn't you think the tightness of it wouldn't be healthy for the baby?" Erik suggested as he got out of bed and grabbed his own dressing gown. "That's...that's what I figured, at least."

"The doctor said it's perfectly fine," Charlotte shrugged, opening the door. "I trust his opinion."

"I know you do, as do I. I'm just afraid, you know that."

"I won't wear it if it'll make you feel better," Charlotte said softly. "Alright?"

"If you could, that would put my mind at ease, yes," Erik replied, taking her hand in his as they walked downstairs.

"Alright, I won't wear it at home. I will when I go out, though," Charlotte nodded. "Does that sound reasonable?"

"A good compromise."

"Wonderful," Charlotte smiled as they entered the kitchen. "Good morning, Papa. Good morning, Gustave. Who wants breakfast?"

"Both of us! Nadir was going to start cooking if you two hadn't gotten up," Gustave said.

"Yes, well, we can't have that, now can we? Papa is our guest, and guests don't cook."

Erik sighed. "He would have done it and we could have stayed in bed," he mumbled as he sat at the table. "Great."