Hey there! This chapter includes a big surprise so get ready for it! Well…there's kinda two surprises so it's pretty exciting! Here it goes!

Is It Time To Let Go Yet?

Erik awoke to the sound of pots and pans banging against each other in the kitchen. He slowly opened his eyes and stretched his arms up. He let out a soft groan and Adrienne heard him. "Oh sorry Erik, did I wake you?" She walked to the couch with water on her hands and she was wearing her nightdress.

He sat up and shook his head, still half asleep. It was not easy for him to wake up in the morning. Adrienne smiled and said, "Well, I'm just setting out some breakfast, do you want some?" He looked over at the kitchen table and saw that fruit and biscuits were laid out on the table. He nodded hungrily and stood up. "Come on, sit down. The fruit is fresh and I just pulled the biscuits out of the oven," Adrienne said piling food on a plate for Erik. He sat down in one of the chairs and Adrienne set the plate in front of him. "There you go, enjoy."

Erik knew why she was acting so lively and happy. She was trying to cover up for the awkwardness that had occurred the night before. She had denied him of a kiss when they both knew they wanted it. He was not embarrassed but he could tell that she was trying very hard to avoid his eyes. She sat down across from him and began eating. He sat there, staring at her. She kept chewing happily and stopped when she realized Erik was not eating. "Is anything wrong Erik? Do you not like the food?" she asked nervously.

"You know that is not it Adrienne," Erik said quietly.

She blushed and looked back down at her plate. "I don't know what you're talking about Erik. Start eating, it's delicious."

"Adrienne," Erik said it so firmly that she was forced to look up. "I do not want our lives to be awkward now. What happened last night was extreme, but I don't want this to ruin our friendship. I'm sorry I tried to kiss you. I know that it was not what you wanted."

Adrienne made a noise, almost like a scoff. Erik looked at her in surprise. She blushed once more and replied, "I never said it wasn't what I wanted Erik. It was just not right. We both know that."

Erik laughed bitterly and said, "Well you could have fooled me with that embrace you gave me right before you went to bed.

"What is that supposed to mean?" asked Adrienne with anger and shock in her tone.

"Nothing. Let's just eat this breakfast and get ready for your lessons." And so they continued the only meal that they had had together that had not been enjoyable.

It was lesson time. They had both changed into their everyday clothing and were downstairs by the piano, warming up. There was still a little bitterness as they sang together because they were not laughing as they usually did. Erik taught her with many thoughts in his head. "How does she know how I'm feeling about Christine? She does not know anything. If she had wanted me to kiss her so badly, then why did she deny me? I give up on figuring out what is going on inside her head."

Adrienne opened her mouth and let the notes fill the room, but just like Erik, many angry thoughts were filling up her mind. "He thinks, just because he is handsome, that I'm going to let him kiss me and let him win. I will not have that as long as he stays in my house. He is such a typical male. The minute I allow him to kiss me, he will get bored with me and go back to Christine. That is why I will not let him have the honor." They finished the scale they were practicing and Erik took out the song that she was to sing.

"I wrote this song many years back. I think it will do fine with your range. Since you have the voice of a soprano, it should sound lovely." Erik said this with as much professionalism as he could.

"Sounds great," said Adrienne bitterly. Erik played the first verse for her first while she listened. It was lovely and sad and it was about love.

"Your turn, repeat the first verse back to me please," Erik said, tapping the beat out for her with his foot as he played the tune.

She took a deep breath and started singing the song. She put all of her emotions of that day into the song. Her voice rang out beautifully and she reached the high notes so wonderfully, that her voice did not quaver once. After she finished the section, Erik turned to her. "That was lovely Adrienne…very lovely."

Adrienne heard the hesitation his voice. "What? Was there something wrong with it?" she asked, almost too bitterly.

Erik turned around, anger on his face. "I am your teacher; I am allowed to tell you if something is wrong with the way you sing or not. And right now, when you were singing the song, your throat was not opened all the way and your voice sounded clenched."

Adrienne scoffed. "I sang that perfectly and you are aware of it. You are just trying to find any excuse for me to sing poorly."

Erik stood up and towered above her. "That is not true! I know what it is that is needed for a perfect singing voice and what you just did was not perfect!"

"I apologize for not being perfect!" Adrienne said sarcastically.

"Don't scoff at me Adrienne. I don't have to give you lessons. I don't have to sit here and listen to you sing as if you belong in the Opera House."

"How dare you! I'm letting you stay here! You can go back out on the street for all I care! I don't have to listen to you commenting me on how I can't sing 'perfectly'."

"Well, you can't! That is why I am here! To help you sing perfectly. You open your mouth expecting angel's voices to come out of it! Well, there are no angels! You're not perfect!"

"Well, I'm sorry I'm not Christine!" This last statement rang through the house and the moment Adrienne had said it, she regretted it. Her eyes filled with tears. "Forget it; I don't want to take these lessons anymore." She turned away quickly and began to run for the front door. Erik immediately walked after her. She reached for the doorknob of the house but Erik caught her arm first.

He spun her around and did not wait for her to speak. He pressed his lips against hers and felt her freeze. After a moment, she fell into the kiss also. There was so much passion as they held each other, letting go of all the emotion into that one kiss. The anger and the jealousy vanished into it and they were both caught up in the heat of the moment. It seemed like the world around them had vanished for the moment and that they were the only two on the face of the planet. They had both wanted this for so long and it was finally happening. For what seemed like five minutes time, they broke apart, both of them breathing heavily. Erik caressed her face with his gentle hands and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. She smiled up at him and kissed him gently on the lips once more. They embraced and Erik kissed the top of her head. "I don't want you to be Christine," he whispered softly.

Adrienne pulled back to look up at him. "You are perfect the way you are Adrienne," Erik said, stroking her cheek. "I did not mean all those things I said. Your voice is lovely."

Adrienne laughed and shrugged. "No one is perfect," she whispered back.

Erik pulled her chin up so that she was staring straight into his eyes. "You are." They both smiled and kissed once more, knowing that it was going to be a lot less awkward living together.

They were through with dinner and were sitting together on the couch. Adrienne was lying in Erik's arms and he was combing her hair with his fingers. They were both silent, but there were no words to be said. The moment was great. The fire was crackling and the sound of the wind outside pounded against the house. Adrienne broke the silence. "Erik?"

"Yes Adrienne?"

He felt her smile against his leg. "Will you show me what is behind your mask?"

He chuckled and answered, "No."

She sat up suddenly to look him in the face. "Why not?" she asked with a puppy dog face.

He smiled at her. "I already told you why. I'm sorry."

She frowned and he smiled once again. He kissed her on the nose which made her laugh quietly. She lay back down on his lap and he continued to play with her hair. They sat a minute longer until Adrienne spoke again. "Christine has seen you without your mask on," she said with slight bitterness.

Erik stopped stroking her hair and spoke back calmly, not wanting to fight. "That was not my choice." He felt her sigh heavily and she relaxed. He continued to stroke her hair, but then he asked, "Do you want anything from town?"

Adrienne sat up and looked at him. "No; why? Are you going?"

He nodded. "I wanted to get some more clothes. I can't wear the same thing everyday."

"Well, why don't you go in the morning? It's late."

"It's fine. It's never crowded at night. Besides, it's only eight' o'clock. The shops will still be open."

"Well, all right then. But hurry back."

"I will." He kissed her on the cheek and she stood up for him to get off the couch. He grabbed his coat off the kitchen table and walked to door. He turned around and said, "I'll be back soon."

Adrienne nodded and sat back down on the couch.

Erik opened the front door and felt the cold wind hit his face. He covered his face with his coat and shut the door. There were not many people walking on the street as he passed by. It was probably because it was a cold, windy night and everyone was indoors, sitting at the fire. As he walked, he was thinking about the kiss with Adrienne. It had been a wonderful kiss of course and he had a great amount of feelings for her, but he could not help thinking of Christine. The kiss with her had been passionate too, even more passionate than the kiss with Adrienne. He cursed himself for thinking that, but it was the truth. "It was right. It was the right thing to do to kiss her. We both wanted it and it was right," he thought to himself.

"Then why do you feel so wrong?" the tiny voice at the back of his head whispered.

Erik arrived at the square and saw the clothing shop lit up on the right side of the street. He hurried towards it and opened the door to feel the warmth that lingered inside. He sighed and folded the collar of his coat down to feel the heat. The owner of the shop smiled at him from behind his desk and went back to helping the person who stood in front of him. The man's eyes had wandered on Erik's mask for a moment, but he was used to it. It was not normal for an everyday man to walk around with a mask on. Erik smiled back and started walking around the shop, looking at the shirts and pants that lay on the tables. He came across a plain white shirt with ruffles on the sleeves and decent neckline. He picked it up examined it.

"Can I help you sir?" asked the owner of the shop, limping over with a cane in his hand.

"Yes. I'm trying to buy more clothes that would last me a while. Do you think this would fit me?" asked Erik.

The old man looked at the fit of the shirt against Erik. "Yes, that would certainly fit you. Were you looking for something else?"

"I think that is all I need for now. If I need more, I'll come back another day." He smiled at the man and they both walked over to the desk where Erik was to pay for the shirt.

The man started figuring the price for the shirt when the door of the shop opened again. Erik quickly glanced over, but did a double take when he realized who it was that had just opened the door. His heart skipped a beat and he dropped the coins in his hands in shock.

There was no mistaking the beautiful, brown, wavy hair or the petite, yet curvy body of the woman Erik had been trying to forget for so long. Christine came running into the shop with tear stains on her cheek. She looked around the shop and then spotted Erik. Her eyes opened with shock, but then tightened as tears began to fall again. She walked over quickly and embraced Erik with all her might, her tears falling on his coat.

Drama! Well, there's chapter five. Again, hope you guys liked it. Next chapter has some more drama and depression in it, so get ready for it!