Today's prompt: ghost/angel/just a man

Here's another musical-based one shot that I had a lot of fun writing with my best friend, nerdywriter36! Enjoy, guys!

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Erik sighed into his folded arms. He was draped over his desk and had been that way for the past half an hour or so. He figured that his lack of sleep was getting to him, for his persistent chills and aches seemed to suggest that something was off.

However, he knew that he had things to do, and he was not going to let a lack of sleep—or what he thought was simply a lack of sleep—affect him. After all, he was the Opera Ghost, the Angel of Music. He was invincible. He could do this. Just...in one more minute. Two at the most, he told himself.

About twenty minutes passed, and he remained in his place. Eventually, though, he lifted his head ever so slightly when he heard someone rowing down the lake.

"Erik, are you home?" he heard his friend, Nadir, call out, which only elicited a groan on his part. He wasn't particularly interested in talking to anyone; he would have much rather been able to simply lay on his desk for another minute or so in peace...well, as much peace as he could possibly be in.

"Erik?" his friend repeated a few moments later, his voice coming from just behind him with a noticeable tone of confusion to it. "What's going on?"

"I'm dying, Daroga," Erik replied with a sigh.

"You know, you've made this claim before and I've never really believed you, but just looking at you, I'm inclined to believe you," Nadir said.

"Thank you," Erik mumbled, burying his face in his arms again. "Now, go away."

He heard Nadir chuckle a bit. "If you're dying, I don't think I should leave."

"I know, but I have things to do," Erik replied, sighing again. "Christine's next lesson is today, and I have to begin my journey to the land of the living in a few minutes."

"Erik, you don't look to be in any shape to go anywhere," Nadir said as he stepped over and set a hand on his friend's shoulder. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, nothing, I'm fine." Erik attempted to suppress an oncoming cough, but only failed miserably and made it sound more as though he were choking. "Really, I'm fine," he said again after the fact.

"Yes, that cough was very convincing," Nadir replied. "Look at me, Erik."

"I don't want to."

"You don't want to do a lot of things, but I want you to look at me this time."

"Okay, fine," Erik said, sighing as he looked up at his friend. "There are two of you now."
Nadir frowned as he looked at his friend. "Erik, you're very pale," he said softly. "More so than usual. And there really shouldn't be two of me."

"Thank you for those observations, Sherlock Holmes," Erik replied, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, shut up," Nadir retorted. "At least one of us is capable of realizing that you're sick."

"I am not sick, I'm fine," Erik said as he slowly stood up, coughing slightly through his words. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get ready."

"Erik, you can't be going anywhere like this," Nadir said with a sigh, reaching out to steady his friend when he stumbled a bit. "You need to go to bed and rest."

"No," Erik replied with a roll of his eyes.

"Yes," Nadir said as he grasped his friend's forearm and tried to tug him forward. "Come on, let's get you to bed."

"I can't, Nadir. What about Christine? I can't just not show up for her lesson."

Nadir shrugged his shoulders. "Can't you just...write a note and I can deliver it for you? You're rather good at doing that."

"But that requires thought, and thinking hurts," Erik said softly, a bit of a whine to his voice as he spoke.

"Alright, stop your whining. We'll figure something out," Nadir sighed, frowning a bit when he noticed his friend shiver. "Do you have a fever?"

"I don't get fevers," Erik replied.

"Everyone gets fevers, you idiot," Nadir said. "And you certainly seem to have one."

Erik looked down at his friend and squinted slightly. "No, I don't."

Nadir rolled his eyes and reached up to try and set his hand on Erik's forehead. "I can prove that rather quickly."

"Good for you," Erik replied, turning his head away. "Get your hands off of my face."

"No, stay still," Nadir sighed, grabbing his friend's chin to hold him still while he touched his forehead.

"Hey!" Erik exclaimed, trying to swat his friend's hand away but having to stop when he only succeeded in causing himself to stumble slightly.

"Relax, goodness," Nadir replied as he tried his hand. "You definitely have a fever, Erik, you're practically burning up. You need to go to bed."

"And what do you expect me to do about Christine?"

"I said we will figure that out, now would you just get into bed? I'll go put some tea on, you just need to sleep."

"Fine, but only because you're annoying me and won't let this go," Erik retorted, shaking his head.

Nadir simply rolled his eyes as he led his friend to his bedroom, pulling his jacket off and throwing it onto a nearby chair. "Into bed, come on," he said.

"Alright, alright." Erik sighed quietly as he got into bed, but he immediately pulled the sheets up to his chin and buried his face in his pillow. "My throat hurts."

"I'm sure it does, given how deep and raspy your voice sounds," Nadir replied, giving his friend a small smile. "The tea will help a bit with that."

"Alright," Erik said softly. "I just have to figure out how I'm going to give Christine her lesson. I can't sing, that's for certain."

"No, even I know that you can't do that," Nadir said as he stepped away to look for an extra blanket after noticing his friend shivering again. "There has to be something you can do, at least to tell her that you have to cancel."

"And give her what excuse? I'm the Angel of Music, Nadir. I may not know too much about the Bible, but I do seem to recall that angels don't get colds."

Nadir shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know what arrangement you two have, you'll have to find something," he said, only to pause for a moment as an idea dawned on him. "Or I could step in for you. Like a substitute."

"Haha, very funny," Erik replied, rolling his eyes.

"I don't think it's that ridiculous," Nadir said as he draped the extra blanket over his friend. "I could manage it."

Erik shook his head, lifting a hand to cover his eyes. "I don't think that's such a good idea, Nadir. You look nothing like me, for one."

"I think I could pull it off," Nadir said with a shrug.

"Do you not realize the difference in our looks? I'm not going to send in someone older, shorter, darker, and with facial hair. She's not blind, she'll recognize the difference."

"Hey, I am not short."

"But you do admit to being old."

"I admit to none of that, I just chose to focus on the comment about my height," Nadir replied. "But don't you do the lessons from behind the mirror sometimes? I can just do that."

"I do. However, your voice doesn't sound the same and you have a Persian accent. How do you intend to explain that?" Erik asked with a frown.

Nadir shrugged. "Angels can take many forms?" he suggested.

"And I just decided to change mine? How does that make sense? You can't even sing! Why would I choose a voice that couldn't sing?"

"Alright, stop yelling, you'll hurt your throat even more," Nadir said with a sigh. "Look, I don't know, I haven't figured out the logistics of it yet, but would you prefer for this to be a little messy or to completely disappoint her, making her think her angel had forgotten and abandoned her?"

Erik thought on this for a moment to consider his options, but eventually, he sighed and closed his eyes. "Fine. I'm going to regret this, but fine."

"Yes, you probably will regret it, as will I, but at least it'll be done and over with and you can clarify things at your next lesson. Somehow," Nadir replied. "Now, I'll just put on some tea for you, then I'll take your cloak and hat and hurry upstairs, alright?"

"Wonderful," Erik replied, rolling his eyes.

"Good," Nadir said, touching his friend's forehead again. "Now, be a good little patient and stay in bed until I get back."

Looking up at his friend, Erik sent him a glare. "Don't call me that."

"Well, that's what I expect you to be since I'm playing your nurse," Nadir replied. "I need to take care of you and I can't do that if you're moving about, tiring yourself out even more and risking falling over and smacking your head on something and dying while I'm not here to at least watch."

"Thank you so much for caring about me enough to watch me die," Erik sighed. "Go on, get out of here. I'll change my mind if you don't leave right now."

"Alright, I'm going," Nadir said, smiling as he got to his feet and grabbed Erik's cloak off of the back of a chair. "I'll be back as soon as our lesson is over."

Erik groaned quietly in reply as he watched his friend leave. Shaking his head, he rolled onto his back to stare up at the ceiling. "What have I agreed to?"