I feel myself crumble to the ground with the weight of everything that I have experienced in my life crashes down on me. I sit with my back to the cold stone while the rain soaks my clothes. I do not care for I do not want to move, I just want to stay here forever. I lift my hand to my mask and rip it off, touching my exposed face. I cry harder and scratch at it in anger and desperation. I sit there scratching at my face as the rain falls roughly. Why did this have to happen to me? Out of everyone in the world why did I have to have everything that has happened to me happen? Why did I have to be abandoned? Why did I have to steal from people to live and then run from them? Why did I have to have the twins hunting me since I was a young child? Why did I have to be thrown out by the Opera House? Why did I have to suffer through the pain the twins caused me after? Why did they have to hurt me? Why did I have to have this blasted face? I let out another sob and dig my fingernails into my cheek.
When I remove my hand from my face there is blood on my hands and dripping down my face. I shake my head and look down at my lap and let my head hit the stone behind me. I sing to myself once again trying to calm myself down-
Look with your heart and not with your eyes.
The heart understands the heart never lies.
I was mid song when I hear a door open to the roof. I snatch my mask up and place it on my face ignoring the pain and scramble behind the gargoyle silently and not being seen. I feel blood still running down my face and ignore the fact that it will be on the inside of my mask, if not also showing what can be seen. What catches my eye is that there is a faint pink color near where I sat, the blood from my face must have dripped on the ground. I widen my eyes when I realize that if whoever is on the roof sees it they would know I was here too. I slide off the statue and blend into the shadows as I slide behind another statue.
I peak around the corner of it trying to catch whoever was on the roof with me. A dark cape flashes in the corner of my vision. I walk to the other side of the statue to get a better view of the figure. It quickly turns toward me and I blend back into the shadows. A familiar white mask faces me. Erik walks toward me and I back more back into the shadows. He glides and strides in my direction. I change my direction and side step his hand that tries to grasp at me. He turns around his back facing me and I back away from him. He notices quickly I did not go that way and turns towards me.
We go into a dance of him trying to grab me and me backing away. He does not know it is me, instead he thinks it is someone from the Opera Populaire. Our dance goes on for a while and I can tell he is getting irritated when he grunts. The Phantom is very smart and positioned himself that would make me step out of the shadows. I do not notice this until I am out of the shadows and he can see me. His face is shocked at first then he goes to grab my hand. I back away and turn and run but slip after a few steps on the wet ground and tumble down my body hitting the rough ground. I go to push myself back up and see a hand reaching down towards me. I take his hand and get up but quickly turn away from him.
"I was looking for you, I was worried when you did not come back," Erik say behind me. I nod slightly and begin to walk away. He senses that something is wrong and quickly grab my hand when I am off guard and turns me around.
His face drops and says quietly, "Hailey... what happened?"
I stay silent and drop my head towards the ground looking at my black shoes.
His voice raises in a defensive way, "Hailey, what happened? Tell me, who did this to you?"
I shake my head and answer his question quietly, "You are looking at her..."
He frowns more and puts his hands on my shoulders, "Why? Why did you do this?"
I shrug out of his grasp but he quickly turns me towards him again. I let out a breath of air and look into his eyes trying to search for words, "I-I..."
His eyes narrow and he looks at me with more kindness then I thought anyone can display, "You can tell me anything."
My face looks at him in confusion, "Why do you trust me? You don't know my past. The part you do know is that I am a thief and a murderer, yet you trust me."
The Phantom says, "It is the same thing with me, you know I have done horrible things, yet you trust me. I trust you Hailey. I know there is more to you than that."
I shake my head, "Why did you come searching for me?"
He answers simply before walking back to the door to one of the tunnels motioning me to follow and I do, "I was worried."
We arrive in the lair quickly, quicker than usual. He walks over near a candle and pulls me with him. He turns and looks at me, more like looking around my mask which is bright red with blood. His hand reaches up and strokes the side of my face. I close my eyes but open them when his hand gets close to my mask.
"I am not going to remove it. Unless you want me to. Will you at least let me clean up what is exposed," he says dropping his hand.
"Um... okay. Just don't take it off please," I say weakly.
"I won't take it off unless I have permission," he nods and sits me in a chair before disappearing behind a curtain.
He returns with his cape and vest off holding a small box. He walks over to me, he was wearing just his mask, trousers, and a white shirt. He sits down next to me and opens up the box. In it is basic first aid stuff. He takes out a cloth and looks me in the eyes before wiping what is exposed on my face. He wipes around my mask when he removes the cloth I see it red with blood.
"How did this happen," he asks wetting a different cloth and wiping my mask slowly then around it again,
I close my eyes biting my lip then reply, "I-uh."
He removes the cloth and looks at me in the eyes seriously, "Please tell me."
"I...," I say looking down at my hands.
He looks down at my hands realizing the blood. He nods to himself before lifting my chin so I am looking back into his blue eyes. He whispers to me, "Please... don't do this."
I let out a huff of air, "Why would you care Erik..."
"I do, Hailey," he says looking at me.
"O-ok," I whisper and he continues to clean my face. When he is done he stands up and helps me up. He walks with me over to the organ and sits down next to me as I start to play a turn from a few days ago, and he starts to sing the lyrics to it.
His voice sours throughout the lair. I close my eyes continuing to play and sway to his voice.
"Look with your heart
And not with your eyes
A heart understands
A heart never lies"
I join in with him, singing the next verse. I smile continuing to sway at the sound of the music. I feel his eyes on my but I sing like he isn't watching and play like there is no tomorrow.
"Believe what it feels
And trust what it shows
Look with your heart
The heart always knows"
His voice sings the next verse by himself, again his voice sours around the lair. His voice sounds like angels.
"Love is not always beautiful
Not at the start
So open your arms
And close your eyes tight
Look with your heart
And when it finds love
Your heart will be right"
I smile and turn and look him in the eyes when I feel his eyes still on me.
"Learn from someone who knows
Make sure you don't forget
Love you misunderstand
Is love that you'll regret"
I stop singing and let him sing the chorus. My hands know where to play and how to play the notes without me even thinking about it.
"Look with your heart
And not with your eyes
The heart can't be fooled"
We start to switch off every line towards the end.
"The heart is too wise"
"Forget what you think"
"Ignore what you hear"
"Look with your heart
It always sees clear"
"Love is not always beautiful
Not at the start"
Our voices join together at the end and our voices echo off of the walls.
"But open your arms
And close your eyes tight
Look with your heart
And when it finds love
Your heart will be right"
I open my eyes that I find were closed and face Erik who is staring at me. When he sees I am looking at him he awkwardly stands up nodding at me and says, "You must be tired."
I nod getting up as well, "Yes I guess I am. Good night Erik."
"Good night Hailey," he says as I turn and walk towards my bed disappointed. Our conversation ended like that, we didn't talk after. Erik probably just wanted me to go so he can visit Christine. I flop down on the bed, I couldn't sleep but frowned when I hear the sound of a paddle hitting water. I was right, he was going to see Christine...
Arrêter de me demander de vous faire confiance alors que je suis encore crachats de l'eau depuis la dernière fois que tu me laisses se noient.