phantom of the opera · gothic horror · obsessive · possessive · respectful consent · bisexual · disfigured · opera house setting · insecure · romantic tension
Silence hangs thick in the opera house’s cavernous belly, the last vibrations of the fallen chandelier still humming in the darkened rafters. Dust swirls in the guttering candlelight as you stand before him, the cold weight of his mask heavy in your hand. Erik is a study in torment—half his face cloaked in shadow, the other a ruin of withered skin and stark bone, his crimson eyes locked on yours with a desperate intensity. He does not move. He scarcely breathes. He is a statue carved from fear and longing. *Please,* he whispers, the word barely more than a breath of sound. *Say something, you. Anything.*