Chapter 21: The Argument and A Little Gratitude

Erik's POV

As the grandfather clock chimed five, I knew that in thirty minutes, Evangeline would come home. I also knew that what I did this morning would not be forgotten (nor ignored) by my student, so there was no doubt in my mind that she would be talking my ear off about it all evening, if not for an entire week.  As I watched the clock turn 5:30, I immediately heard the sound of her footsteps as it echoed around the lair followed by the sound of moving water as she had, undoubtedly, gotten into the gondola and was starting to row to shore.

I turned to my music room, mentally preparing myself for the chaos that might ensue and making myself as inconspicuous as possible. But as she approached, I was not prepared for the unexpected blow upon my head.

"OUCH! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!" I bellowed as I got up to face her, my 6'7" frame towering over her 5'6" one.

"Oh no, you don't get to ask questions, Mr. I-like-to-drop-backdrops-on-children!" Evangeline yelled back as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"What are you talking about, woman?!" I asked in confusion, "I didn't drop a backdrop on a child!"

"Really?" she asked in a sarcastic tone. "Then why did I have to save a five-year-old girl from getting hurt by the same backdrop that you made fall?!"

I fell silent as I rubbed the back of my head. The shock and anger that I felt after she had struck me had temporarily blocked the slight sting that was now climbing across my scalp as I considered what she just said.

I didn't know that the ballet rat was near the back of the stage where I had released the backdrop from its place. After all, although I was in Box Five, my attention was focused on Evangeline and, through some mechanical work that I had hidden in this particular box, I only had waved my hand and the backdrop fell at my bidding.

"Well, I didn't notice that the ballet rat would be stupid enough to be in the way," I replied after there was silence for a few minutes.

And that was when all hell broke loose.

"BOY! First of all, her name is Jeannette, not 'ballet rat'. Second, you probably didn't notice because you didn't consider the fact that she's FIVE YEARS OLD, you knucklehead! Back at home, kids her age would be fresh out of preschool, so of course she wouldn't think that some random guy would be dropping something on her head!"

"And should that matter? I learned how to be aware of my surroundings when I was her age. She has no excuse!"

If she was not aggravated by now, then she was fuming as I watched her chocolate-brown eyes darken.

"Well, we ain't all child prodigies like you, Erik. Most of us were still learning how to speak in complete sentences!"

I couldn't help but give a small smirk as I started to reminisce on the history of my pitiful existence. One of the very few things that I took pride in was my superior intellect. Ever since I was unfortunate enough to be born, it seemed that the entire world was against me, but somehow I was given the mind of a genius and because of this, I had found multiple ways to survive in this cruel, wicked world all by myself.

I taught myself how to read and write at the age of three when my own mother was too afraid to come upstairs to the attic, I learned to master the art of ventriloquism and had discovered how to take things apart and fix them back up again by the time I was four-years-old, I was composing and playing complex musical pieces by the time I was five and when I escaped my master at the age of nine, I had become knowledgeable in the art of thievery and self-defence as I wandered the earth for four more years until I found sanctuary in the home of a kind stonemason.

"Oh, so you think this is funny now?" I snapped back into reality as I noticed that Evangeline was still frowning at me, her hands transferring from being folded across her chest to being placed on her hips as she glared at me.

"No, I'm just so curious as to why you are defending a small child that you just met today, that's all."

"Erik, it's not just about the kid! You caused a lot of chaos and today was the first day of rehearsals. It should've been an easy day today, but instead, because of that stunt you pulled, you caused almost every member of the cast and crew to have a panic attack. Jeannette could have gotten seriously hurt or, God forbid, she could have died and you would be the primary suspect! It would cause another raid down here and if you got caught, they wouldn't even give you a fair trial, if they even decide to just arrest you. They would most likely just shoot you as soon as you were in their line of vision and they will aim to kill!"

I heard her give a great sigh as she continued.

"I don't want you to get hurt. I don't want to have to come down here and find you dead on the floor with bullet holes all over your body. I don't want to have to place my friend in a six-foot hole in the ground at a funeral that shouldn't have been scheduled because he was killed after taking this haunting thing too far."

As she finished her lecture, I stared at her in awe as she left the music room, leaving me all alone. Guilt and admiration suddenly flooded my soul. She cared for me. No one has ever really cared for me before. Granted, Daroga would say that he did, but that always seemed forced to me. Evangeline, on the other hand, was genuinely concerned about my wellbeing.

I ran after her as I saw that she had retreated to the library and was gathering up new books to read. When she came down, she picked up one of the books that she placed on the table as she sat down on one of the easy chairs and began to read.

"Look, I'm sorry, alright?" I apologized in defeat as I slumped back into the other one that was right across from her, " It wasn't my intention to cause anyone harm. Especially not to the ballet- I mean, Jeannette. I will try to never do that again."

Evangeline placed her book down and took my big, ugly, cold hand into her small, pretty, warm one.

"I forgive you, but I'm not exactly the person that you need to say sorry to."

With that, she diverted her attention back to the book that she was reading and I decided to head for the writing desk that sat in the corner of my room as I had work to do.

A Few Hours Later

I placed my signature on the last note as I wrote a name on each envelope that I placed a copy in. I had spent a few hours writing a note of apology to certain members of the Opera Garnier as well as sending them a little trinket or two that I had at my disposal. I had already made dinner and Evangeline had decided to go to bed early and sleep in her dressing room, so that meant no watching the sunset from the rooftop tonight.

The rest of the Opera House's occupants were retiring for the night as well. After the managers left the building and locked the main entrance, everyone else had returned to their dormitories, leaving the entire Opera House in a state of calm silence.

With all of the notes and trinkets safely in a bag that I carried, I put on my black fedora and matching cape as I snuck through the mirror in  Evangeline's dressing room, quietly passing my sleeping friend.

Or at least, I thought she was asleep.

As soon as I had stepped through the mirror, Evangeline sat up, rubbed her eyes, and looked straight at me.

"Erik, I know you don't really sleep at night, but why are you up at two in the morning?" She asked, her voice raspy.

"How did you know it was me?" I whispered, surprised and slightly unsettled at the fact that she knew I was in the same room as her.

"I asked you a question first."

"I asked you a question second."

"You know what, I'm just gonna go back to sleep 'cause I know that this would go on for the rest of the night and I'm too tired for this foolishness." She replied as she laid back down and turned away from me.

I gave a soft chuckle as I heard her give a small snore. As I watched her sleep, I noticed that her blanket was slipping off of her bed. I grabbed it before it hit the floor as I gently draped it over her body.

"Bonne nuit, ma aime." I said softly as I left the dressing room.

I wandered the now dark hallways as I quietly entered one of the three dormitories where the ballet rats and chorus girls were stationed. I quickly moved in between beds to place a note and/or trinket next to each girl. By the time it was 2:30 in the morning, I had covered the first two dormitories, leaving me with one more room.

As before, I was swift in dropping off apology notes and presents when I came upon the last bed in the dormitory. In the little bed laid the sleeping form of a little girl with red hair, freckles, and appeared to be five years of age.

This must be the girl that Evangeline saved. I thought to myself as I placed the note and trinket next to her. But before I made my leave, I was startled to see the little girl open her hazel eyes and sit up. Immediately, I hid in one of the shadowy corners of the room as her curious eyes scanned her surroundings and landed on the note and gift I laid next to her.

I watched as she broke the wax seal and take out the note, reading the short, easy words that I had written. She then caught sight of the gift that I had given her and her eyes widen with surprise. But her surprise was nothing compared to mine when I had turned to leave the lair as I heard her say,

"Thank you, Monsuier Phantom."

I froze as I turned around to see that she had nodded off into slumber. Without much thought, I rushed back to the lair, all the while a small smile forming on my face.

A/N: Hello my fellow Phantom Phans!

First off, I want to say thank you all SO much for the 18.2k views and for the 1.38k votes! You guys are some of the most beautiful people in the entire world! 💝💝💝💝

Second, I have an announcement to make:

Six days ago, I had signed up to be a writer on Radish.

Well, today I have received an email stating that my application has been accepted.

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

I am so excited! If you're frequent on Radish, then don't hesitate to add The Phantom's African Rose to your library!

So, did Evangeline finally knock some sense into him?

Will Erik continue to be nice with the rest of the Opera House's occupants?

Vote, Comment, and Share and I'll see y'all next time.

M'kay, bye!😘