He said nothing. It has only been seconds, but it felt like at eternity waiting for Brahms, giving him a last chance to speak up. But he could not. He's still staring at me with the same sad, lost eyes.

I shake my head in disbelief, slowly walking backwards, and finally pushing myself to run out of the house and into the front yard, not even caring about the storm I am in.

It's raining harder than I thought, and I feel my dress become drenched in only a matter of seconds. My frustrations have defeated me. I'm crying in the rain, but I don't even feel my tears, I'm running away from the house for the first time, and I ask myself loud inside my head why I'm just doing this now.

A big flash of lightning startles me and stops me from running, I quickly stop and stare at my surroundings,

I look down, observing myself,

I can't leave. I can't leave him. I was the only one there for him. If I leave him...who will take care of him now?

I bury my face in my hands and shout as loud as I can in the rain but I'm defeated once again by the loud roaring thunder. I pause for a while and clear my head, making a quick decision.

Is it freedom I want? Is it sanity?

The rain gradually lightens, and I run back to the house.

I slam the door open and notice the lights are off. I slam the door to a close and quickly scan the living room. The lightning is the only source of light I have, giving me a hint as I glance upstairs when I saw a figure. Brahms is upstairs. I ascend the stairs as fast as I could,

As soon as I step on the second floor, I see him about to disappear into the walls, but I shout his name and he quickly turns around.

I feel the tension 10 feet away from Brahms, it's stronger than ever. I feel nervous standing here, but I also feel the need to be closer.

I briskly walk to him and stop a few inches away, "Take your mask off." I command him,

He's staring with wide, confused eyes,

"Take your mask off." I repeated with a stern tone of voice, "Now."

Brahms slowly reached for his mask, then gently removed it from his face. I kept my eyes on him, not wasting every second, embedding every moment in my memory. He slowly, finally, pulls his mask off, revealing the real face of Brahms.

His face is deformed, burned possibly, from the fire, I thought. I remember specifically from the journal and the articles from the old newspapers.

I take a step closer, observing the marks and scars on his face. "Can I touch?" I ask with a low voice, making sure it's not against him,

He looks at me-God it feels different seeing his full face looking down at me-and he nods at me, "I'll be gentle," I assure him and slowly reach for his face with one hand, and brush my thumb against the scar on his cheek.

I feel a thousand feelings, and I notice myself tearing up. I couldn't say anything, "Brahms..." was all I could speak out, my hands still on his face, I look into his eyes and I see him staring back into me...his deep eyes staring feel so different,

I watch the scar on his lip move as he suddenly speaks, "Are you scared?"

I grimace and shake my head 'no,' as I run my thumb on his lower lip. I look back at his eyes, then at his lips, and back again into his eyes. I pull myself closer and close my eyes, planting my lips on his.

His lips felt warm and soft despite the cold temperature of the room. I felt Brahms' lips move as he gives me a light kiss. I peek and see that his eyes are closed as well, and it makes me pull him closer into me. I wrap my arms around his neck as I start kissing him with full mouth, and he does not pull away.

I hear a thud under us and I notice he's dropped the mask to wrap his around around my waist tightly,

Brahms pulls away from the kiss, "Don't leave, Julie," he says suddenly in his normal voice,

"I won't leave you," I whisper, "I promise. Whatever happens, I won't leave."

Brahms leans in and kisses me again.