[The Phantom of the Opera] Boundary Bridge

"Here it is," Eric told her.

The flower beds surrounded by white fences are sandwiched by cobblestone paths, leading directly to the simple and elegant gate.With a slight turn of the brass key in the keyhole, Eric's residence in the world is revealed to us.

In the spacious and bright atrium, sunlight penetrates into the room through elegantly colored curtains.On the wall is a beautifully embroidered tapestry, and on the other side is a bookshelf neatly arranged with books.A clock in the shape of a monkey sits on the quaint mantelpiece.

There are spiral wooden staircases on the left and right sides, and they rotate to meet a bridge-like passage on the second floor.A large chandelier in the shape of a lily flower is hung on the dome, and there are leaf murals that match it.A pure white piano inlaid with gold is located on the right side of the middle hall.Many furniture are covered with embroidered brocade.

The house was very tidy, obviously cleaned regularly, but there was no trace of human habitation.

Because he lives alone underground all year round, Eric is not good at getting along with people-in fact, it is difficult to determine which of these two things is the cause and effect.Besides, he couldn't easily confide the secret of his singing voice to the girl before asking Christine for confirmation, which made it even more difficult for him to explain his sudden fanaticism and unbearable agitation.But to Eric's relief and bewilderment at the same time, Enid accepted his suggestion calmly and considerately without saying a word.

As if she was better at handling such situations, the blond girl said to the host of the house: "I follow your advice--I am happy to rest here for a while before your important business is done." And Eric He even forgot to pour her a cup of tea—he didn't remember it until after he had gone out.

On the way to the opera house, Eric suddenly had an idea: maybe the person to listen to the singing is not God's blessing, but the girl's own secret.But after all, this secret is beyond his reach now, all he can do is to find Christine to verify it as soon as possible.Thinking of Christine, Eric's steps became more and more urgent.

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"Kristen...Kristen..."

The prayer room is located in an inconspicuous corner of the opera house. On the side facing the street is a whole piece of stained glass statue of the Virgin Mary, and the other three sides are gray stone walls.

Sometimes the light will leave a shadow on the ground through the colorful glass, but more often, the lighting here can only be hoped for by the swaying halo of the candlestick in the girl's hand.

When Christine was very young, she liked to come here alone with a candle.The empty prayer room was just enough to put the little girl's inner fear, and the occasional beautiful singing comforted her who was missing her father countless nights.

Christine had naively thought that the music angel would guard her like this forever.

But that's not an angel, it's a devil...or a person?Christine couldn't tell, he was just too scary.The dropped corpse and the echoing laughter had a huge impact on her pure heart, causing her to approach her childhood friend Raul too hastily.Even though they've exchanged vows now, Christine is still worried... that shadow of terror will continue to hang over her head.

She lit a candle in front of her father's picture frame.

"What should I do...Father, please tell me, Father..."

Christine sobbed softly.Even she herself didn't know what she was looking forward to at the moment, was it that ghost pretending to be an angel?Or the mentor who taught her for several years like her father?

Across the wall, hearing the girl's indistinct cry, Eric suddenly felt like a knife was stabbing his heart.

He was the one who frightened Christine and made her hide here and cry like a terrified little girl.But it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter—Eric recalls the discomfort of re-entering the tunnel just now, and he can't help frowning when he is out of the range of sunlight, but a deeper desire in his heart makes him go deeper.

He has been like a mouse all year round, living in the sewers extending in all directions, but now the mouse just walked around the ground, and when he came back, he was not used to it.Not used - good!If he doesn't adapt, he will never come back, and he will never admit that he belongs here.Besides—Eric's hand subconsciously caressed the entire right half of his face, he wouldn't scare her anymore, he wasn't a monster anymore.

He hesitated for a moment, then softly called out the name of his sweetheart.

"Kristen...Kristen..."

"God!" The brown-haired girl who was praying was obviously frightened by the sudden appearance of the voice, and the poor girl became more terrified after hearing that the voice belonged to her former mentor.

She tried to get up and get out of the room but fell to the ground, veiled horror on her face.Eric was stunned.

Immediately, he didn't know whether it was to appease the girl or to release his emotions, he pressed his forehead against the cold stone wall and began to sing softly.

"An Tian, ​​this long night,

Eternal longing followed by exhaustion and endless pain.

Life is so abundant that the flowers wither,

And full of sadness.

Light with its deadly flame..."

Tears welled up in his wide-open eyes.

Christine was not that exception—the brown-haired girl didn't hear the mesmerizing singing, she just sought help from her father's ghost in panic.She spoke softly to the wall, trying to confirm whether the two calls just now were hallucinations, but in the end, fear overwhelmed her.Christine stumbled out of the prayer room.

She ran away from him.

Eric closed his eyes sadly, maybe he shouldn't have expected more.The moment he made the decision, he already knew the price he had to pay, but the appearance of the girl made him have illusions.Not desperate yet, Eric.He said to himself, Christine hasn't seen your face yet, you're restored, brand new.

You have to show her, and she won't be so scared when she sees it.

But how sad he was that the bond they had sung for so many years had been severed!

"There will be no second person who will hear..."

For a moment, the witch's hoarse voice rang in his ears again.Eric clutched at his hair in pain, then opened his eyes wide—couldn't there be another person?second person?second person!

He suddenly turned around and ran out.