Suddenly

🌸 Masks 🌸

I pulled the sheets back and swung my legs over the bed. I surprisingly felt pretty good other than how disgusting I felt on the outside. I left my hair pinned up and changed into my ballet tutu. I grabbed the perfume off of my vanity and sprayed some to hopefully cover up the smell of the musty water. I tied my pointe shoes and ran out the door, I wasn't that late because Madame Giry wasn't there yet but I was the last person to arrive. It wasn't normal for me to be late to things like this. I walked over to Meg and joined her in stretching. It felt good to be back to "normal" or whatever normal was now. Madame Giry came in not long after and just had us do stretches and recap our performance, what we did good on and what we could improve. We were still waiting for a new composition of music so we didn't have much more to do. Madame Giry let us out early and Meg followed me back to help me change. I was starting to get the hang of it and I would be able to do it myself if I stayed here any longer. We said our goodbyes and parted ways. I decided to leave the opera house for the first time in forever and walk around the city. I grabbed my leather satchel and headed out the door, I pushed open  the heavy doors of the opera house. The doorman rushed over to help me open it apologizing as he did it. I thanked him and rushed down the stairs, there wasn't much near the opera house, mostly warehouses and apartments. The shopping districts weren't far but were a hassle to get to and much easier to get to by carriage but the carriage workers didn't come in until around noon when early guests would arrive. So unless I had pre scheduled a carriage I was on foot for the day. I walked down the busy streets many of the people were laughing and talking, cafe seats were full, little boutiques were packed. Little girls in frilly lace dresses held tight to their mother's hands and men in tall top hats smoked cigars at the shoe shiner. I walked into a little old bookstore, I'd been in this building before. It was a library now. Many of the books that were old and falling apart in the library were brand new leather bound in the bookstore. A bright red leather book stood out to me, "The Masque of the Red Death?" I said turning the book around in my hands and flipping through pages. It seemed interesting so I paid for it at the counter and headed back to the opera house. I slid the book into my bag and noticed it was lighter than normal. I paused outside the steps of the opera house and searched the bag. "That damn mask." I said turning my bag inside out not finding a single thing. I ran up the stairs while the doorman opened the door for me. I dashed to my dressing room and searched everywhere. There was no sign of it, "no no no all this work for nothing!" I said dropping to my knees and searching under wardrobes and dressers. "God where are you." I said looking under the bed. I sat up defeated, the room was spotless there wasn't a chance it could be lost in here. "Ugh!" I yelled, dropping my head in despair. I looked at the mirror, "no way I'm making that mistake again." I said shaking my head and standing up. "Where did it go...how could it just disappear." I said walking over to the mirror. "I swear I had it." I remarked placing my hands on the gold embellishments of the mirror. I pushed myself away from the mirror and sat in the bed sulking. "There goes the rest of my day's plan." I said plopping into my vanity chair and rubbing my forehead. The red leather book poked out of my satchel that was dropped lazily on the floor. I bent over to pick it up l, it wasn't very big, roughly 20 pages or something close to that. I remember my sister reading it in highschool, I never had to. I transferred to a ballet school. "Suzette loved this story...I never understood why." I said turning the book around, in my hand. I opened it to the first page and began reading it. I had nothing better to do so I settled in and started on the first line. I wasn't a big reader but I used to love it, I'd read for hours on end even days. Once I started I couldn't put it down, it took me maybe an hour to finish but it was an hour well spent, it was fascinating. I was never a fan of the macabre and gore but it was an eventful book. I read page after page until finally I came to the last page and it was over. I set the book down, it had been a while and it had grown dark outside. It wasn't night yet but the candles had been lit and the gas street lamps were glowing. I walked out to the foyer and just watched the people pass through the windows, they all seemed so happy. I remember when I would be out late at night with friends, walking happily through the streets, or coming home from a night at a club. I could feel myself growing homesick, everyday I was here I felt the urge to go home more. The tears collected in my eyes as I watched happy couples holding hands and young girls and boys skipping merrily down the street. I sulked back to my dressing room and sat down on the bed. "God how will I explain this to Suzette and my parents, Bernadette, Mrs. James...they'll think me mad." I remarked, wiping my eyes with a mild sniffle. "I'm never getting home." I cried my voice cracking. The opera house had grown quiet now and all I could hear was the echoing of my silent cries. I just needed to clear my mind, I decided to just roam around the opera house. It was dark and I had a small candle with me, the quiet of the opera house and the clicking of my heels was soothing but the clicking was soon joined by a heavier flat noise. It was like a heavy boot, a set of them following me. I saw a dark hallway and turned down the steps following, before I hit the end of the hallway I twirled around the candle light illuminating the white mask that showed through the darkness of his figure. "Why hello." I said looking up at him the candle barely illuminating the other side of his face. "You caught me." He said looking down at the candle and back up at me. "What are you doing?" He asked. "I'm just walking. I needed to clear my mind." I said, shrugging, "I didn't know I was disturbing you. I apologize." I said looking down. "You're not disturbing me." He said in a monotone voice. I looked up at him again, the warmth of the candle light that was so close to me was inviting but the coldness and sternness he radiated concerned me. He seemed to be examining me, like I was some type of test subject and he was the mad scientist. "Why were you crying earlier." He asked, I went to answer but then it hit me. "Were you watching me?" I said concerned and confused, He continued to be silent. "I can't believe this, don't you understand boundaries?" I questioned him, his facial expression not changing. "Boundaries?" He questioned, looking deeply into my eyes but still somewhat confused. "Yes boundaries...what you can and can't do around someone." I said frustrated. He didn't seem to move. "Forget it, the moments gone. Have you seen the mask anywhere I swear I took it with me." I said looking back down at the withering wax candle it wasn't going to last much longer. "Yes...I might have seen it." He said, still watching me closely. "Where is it? I need it badly." I said getting desperate. His face seemed to soften as if he finally let his wall back down. "On my organ, I'll bring it to you." He said looking at me. "Did I not take it with me?" I questioned the light from the candle dying so that it barely showed his eyes. "You did, I brought it back...I wanted to know why you wanted it so bad." He said quietly. I looked at him dumbfounded. "So...your telling me you came into my room and took it from my satchel." My voice cracking from frustration. He didn't respond. "I can't believe you." I stormed back down the stairs and into my dressing room, I blew out the candle and angrily set it on the vanity. I untied and pulled off my clothing dropping into the bed, I turned to face the mirror. "No no no no no, I'm not doing this anymore." I said angrily, throwing off the blankets and walking over to it. I found a black sheet hanging in the closet and covered the mirror. I turned to see the dresser next to me, I grabbed one side and tried to pull it but I wasn't able to move it. I walked to the other side of it and pushed it as hard as I could, it slid heavily across the carpet covering the mirror and settling in its new place. "Thank god." I said plopping down into the bed. "Good night and good riddance." I said hiding my face in the pillow and closing my eyes.