Chapter 17: Clarity

"It's really nice to meet you, Meg. So, what type of piece are you looking for exactly?"

Meg smacked her elbows onto the counter and plopped her chin into her hands. "I haven't the faintest idea, honestly," Meg sighed heavily.

"Ok, um, then tell me a little about what your performance is." Christine reached into her bag to pull out a notebook, "Is it ok if I take a few notes?" The notebook snagged on one of her sketchbooks which came tumbling out onto the counter. A few pages lifted up, partially revealing a picture.

Meg glanced down curiously, "Uh, not at all…" and she paused. Half the face on the page looked strangely familiar, but Christine quickly grabbed the sketchbook and tucked it back in her bag. "Anyway, so I'm in my Master's program for ballet performance. However, this one requirement is to choreograph a more modern performance piece so I want something non-traditional but with classical elements to it. My friend mentioned Ave Maria, but what I didn't realize is that there's like a million Ave Marias. And of course, he's too busy in New York to get back to me. He's such a turd sometimes." Meg chuckled fondly, dearly missing her friend. But, very soon, in just a few short weeks, he'd finally be coming home for good.

"Well, let's see. It sounds like you're looking for something neo-classical. And there's only one arrangement I could possibly think of that might be what you're looking for." Christine thought harder. "Just curious, did your friend give you a possible composer?"

Meg rolled her eyes and laughed. "Yeah, but I can't remember. I'm terrible at remembering names and of course I forgot to write it down. I want to say some Russian name… Vladimir… Vladimir something."

"Wait, wait," Christine quickly said. "Vavilov?"

"Oh my God that's IT!" Meg shouted and a few students and a few service desk librarians glanced up in annoyance. "But when I searched, I couldn't find anything."

"That's because he technically wrote it anonymously and it was later misattributed to a man named Caccini."

"Wow, ok, you're like a music encyclopedia! Just like my friend! I think he may have met his match. When he gets back from New York this summer, I'm putting you two into a music Jeopardy competition to see who's the biggest nerd." Meg really liked this girl. "Now the question remains: where do I track down the music?"

"The music library in the Swope music building most likely." Christine glanced down at her watch. It was rush hour now and the drive back to the house in the woods would take forever. Might as well wait until later after traffic is lighter. "Do you want to head over there?"

"Are you sure? I don't want to keep you, but I'd appreciate it. I've only been there a few times so I don't know where I'm going."

"Yeah, let's go!"

The ladies departed the library and walked in the warm afternoon sunlight. The two chatted casually during their walk to the music building and within a few minutes arrived at their destination. Christine grew incredibly quiet and still as they stood in front of the main entrance. "Hey," Meg said quietly but Christine couldn't hear her. "Christine? Hey, Christine? Are you ok?"

"I'm sorry, what?" Christine broke from her internal world and looked at Meg. "Um, sorry, yes, I'm fine. Just… a lot of memories in this building. Everything kind of came flooding back all of a sudden."

"Oh, is Western Cypress your alma mater?"

"Yes and no… I was only here for my sophomore year until…" she quickly dropped off. Meg looked concerned and felt a sadness grow. "I was in a bad car accident that took me away from school for a while."

"Christine, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to trigger anything," Meg said and gently laced her around Christine and gave her a side hug. "We don't have to do this if you don't want to."

"Thank you," Christine responded as she hugged Meg in return. It felt nice to have someone to hold on to. There was something about Meg. She was gentle, and kind, and incredibly sincere. Something in Christine told her that Meg was someone she could trust. Meg felt it too. There was a connection between them from the start, and Meg simply knew there was something special about Christine. "Let's go in." And the ladies walked into the building and navigated their way through the hallways towards the music library.

Once inside the library, Christine quickly found the CD and placed it into the CD player in one of the listening rooms. As soon as it started, Meg gasped. "Christine, this is it! This is EXACTLY what I'm looking for! This is stunning! Thank you so much. Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Again Meg wrapped her arms around Christine and Christine genuinely smiled and hugged her back. Suddenly there was a rather audible grumble, and Meg busted out laughing. "Oh my God that's embarrassing. I'm starving!"

Christine glanced at the clock. "Well, it's almost 6:30. I better let you go so you can get home and grab some dinner."

"I'd just be going home to an empty house. My fiance is stuck in Philly tonight with his study group and won't be back until much later." Meg thought for a minute and offered up a thought. "Hey, are you hungry? Do you want to grab a bite to eat?"

"Yeah; yeah, I'd love to! Any place in mind?"

"Iron Hill Brewery by far is my favorite place. Let's go!"

Within an hour these two stuffed their faces with appetizers and split a large pizza and were quickly overcome with impending food comas. "Oh Meg, I'm so stuffed. I think I've gained 70 pounds tonight," Christine laughed and then groaned uncomfortably, her leg was on fire. She had been on her feet too much today and she was starting to ache.

"What's wrong, you ok?" Meg was genuinely concerned.

"Yeah, just old injuries from the car accident. It's been a little over two years since it happened. I was in physical therapy but I just feel like it's not the same."

"Well no offense, Christine, but it probably won't be the same again," Meg confessed. "But, here's an idea. Two friends of mine own a ballet studio about 15 minutes from here, and on the days I have class, we usually meet up around 7PM Tuesdays and Thursdays on campus to stretch and come up with new routines for their students. I usually reserve a practice studio over in the performance hall building. Would you be interested in joining us?"

"Meg, I'm the biggest klutz on the face of the planet. I survived maybe three years of ballet in elementary school before they told my dad to stop bothering."

Meg laughed, "Well, maybe giving it a try again will be helpful. At any rate, it'd give you a chance to do some stretches, work out some of the lingering scar tissue, and maybe help rebalance you, if that makes sense. What do you say?" Christine thought about it as the two split the bill and left their tip at the table. Upon exiting the restaurant, Christine agreed to give it a try. "Oh good! You'll love Sorelli and Jammes. They're drama queens but I love them!" The girls continued the short walk back to campus and stopped when reaching the parking garage, about to part ways.

"Meg, thank you so much for a great evening. It was really great to meet you and hang out. I had a lot of fun."

"Me too! Wait, I need your cell number! Can't keep in touch if I don't get your number!" Meg whipped out her cell phone as did Christine.

"Ok, Meg… wait, how do you spell your last name?" Meg spelled it out and provided her number. "Great, you're in. My turn."

"Christine… last name?"

"Daae."

Meg's fingers froze and she swallowed hard. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Daae. D-A-A-E. It's a weird last name, I know."

"It's not weird, it's just…" Meg stopped herself. It couldn't be. There's no way in hell it could possibly be…

"Well I better get going. Thanks again, Meg, for a great afternoon. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Um, what? I mean, yeah, yes, yes of course. I'll text you tomorrow. It was amazing meeting you, Christine. Like, seriously, I'm so glad we've finally met. Have a good night." And Meg whipped her arms tight around Christine and held her close. Meg gave her a very sincere smile, and headed towards her car to head home, leaving Christine feeling like something was amiss. What did she mean by finally meeting? We didn't know each other before today…

# # #

It was a little after midnight when Raoul finally got home and he was exhausted. He came in quietly through the kitchen door expecting the house to be dark and Meg already asleep. Instead he came in to find Meg sitting in the living room with a half empty bottle of newly opened wine. "Oh, hey babe, I didn't expect to you still be awake." No reply. "Babe?" Meg took a long sip. "Meg? Meg, what's wrong? Are you ok?"

Meg looked up into Raoul's eyes and he noticed she had been crying. "Meg, sweetie, oh my God, are you ok? What happened?" Panic setting in.

"Raoul," Meg swallowed the knot in her throat, "Erik… I met… today, Christine."

Raoul froze. "Meg, what? What about Erik? Christine who? What are you talking about?"

"Christine. Erik's Christine. The girl from the accident two years ago. Christine Daae. I saw her. I met her today."

"Oh my God," Raoul quietly breathed out. "When… where… h-how?" Meg quietly walked Raoul through all the details of the afternoon. "Wait, did you mention Erik at all by name?"

"No, not once. Oh God, Raoul, what are we going to do? How are we going to tell him?"

Raoul sat down next to Meg and took a long sip of her wine. The two sat quietly next to each other, hands entwined, holding tight. After a few minutes, Raoul finally said, "We're not going to tell him anything."

"What? You can't be serious. We can't hide this from him. And we have to say something to Christine. She has to know about that night; that it was us! That it was Erik!"

"No. Don't say a word to either of them. Continue on as if we know nothing. We don't know what she's been through after the accident and the extent of her injuries and what she does and does not remember."

"I don't like this, Raoul," Meg said sadly and fell silent. "What a night," she said feeling suddenly exhausted. "I can't believe two years later after the longest night of our lives, she's here. She's actually here."

"There's nothing we can do now. Let's go to bed." Meg and Raoul headed to bed. Within minutes, Meg was sound asleep but Raoul lay there staring at the ceiling. His mind going a million miles a minute. I can fix this. I can work with this. This just might work. It'll be putting our friendship with Erik on the line, but I'm willing to weigh the cost if it means getting him and Christine together. It's a risk we have to take. And in his resolve, Raoul drifted into a restless sleep.

# # #

The next morning found Christine sitting in horrific traffic, and glancing at the clock on the dashboard, she was going to be at least an hour late to work. This was getting ridiculous. How had traffic gotten this much worse? It was never like this before. She quickly gave a call to the library and promised to stay late to make up the hours. While sitting in unmoving traffic, Christine called Nadir at his office. "Well, I think it's time to get an apartment closer to campus. I left home an hour ago and I'm still an hour away from the university."

"Oh kid, I'm sorry. I'd offer for you to stay with me but getting from Philly to Western Cypress isn't much better than what you're dealing with now. What are you going to do?"

With an exasperated sigh, Christine responded, "I'll have to look online today. Maybe I'll ask Meg if she knows of any places."

"Wait, who? Meg? Who's Meg?"

"Oh I forgot to tell you. The most hilariously sweet girl came into the library two nights ago completely lost needing a very unique piece of music for her dance recital, so I helped her out. We hung out for a while, and she invited me to dinner. We had a really good time. I really liked hanging out with her."

"That's great to hear. I'm glad you're making friends. Look kiddo, I gotta run. My 9AM is here."

"Ok, love you, Uncle Nadir. I'll keep you posted on what I find out today." And she hung up the phone. She decided to text Meg. Hi Meg, it's Christine. I have a huge favor to ask. What's your schedule like today?

Christine finally arrived to campus, but Meg still hadn't responded. Probably in class. Christine's time at the library went by quickly and uneventfully. It wasn't until close to dinner time when the senior librarian approached her. "I have a proposition for you, Christine. You know that Mrs. Keller is retiring at the end of the term, and we're looking for someone who would be interested in dividing their time between here and the music library. I know you were a music minor, so you have experience in that world. Would you be willing to tack on an extra four or five hours per week to sit over there?"

"Really?! I'd LOVE to! When can I start?"

"For the rest of the semester, why don't you stay at the music library and get caught up with Mrs. Keller. I've already told her you'd be taking on some of the responsibilities there."

"This is amazing. Thank you so much for the opportunity!"

About an hour later, Christine's phone chimed. It was Meg. Uh, so I'm at the library looking for you and you're not here. Where are you?

I'm at the library in Swope. I'm here for a while longer if you want to drop by.

I'll see you soon!

Meg found Christine huddled in front of a computer. "Hi Christine, how are you? What's up?"

Christine stood and gave Meg a quick hug. "Oh, just looking for an apartment. I'm afraid my commute this morning was the final nail in the coffin. Once classes start in August, I won't have time to be sitting in traffic. I found one on North Barnard Street."

"Ohh, I like that! And it's only $600 a month? It looks small. Have you looked at it yet or signed a lease?"

"I'm going over there tomorrow morning to look at it. I might just sign a lease right then and there. It's about a 10 minute walk to campus, which is good. I don't know how much longer I can keep the truck alive." Christine chuckled a little. That truck was honestly the last thing owned by Gustav. He loved that truck. It was an old 1995 Ford pickup and it was the truck Gustav taught Christine to drive shift in. She held onto it mostly for sentimentality rather than practicality. "But I can't let go of the truck; not yet at least." Their conversation was cut short with Meg's cell phone ringing rather loudly.

"Sorry, I have to take this. Let's meet for lunch tomorrow; I want to hear more about the apartment. I'll text you tomorrow." Meg hugged Christine and said a quick goodbye. As Meg was already out of the library, Christine heard her voice echoed in the hallway, "It's so good to hear your voice! How are you, Erik?"

Christine swallowed hard. There's no way. No, merely coincidence. Erik is a very common name. But oh how her mind worked furiously trying to piece this together. All she could hear was Meg's statement upon their first chance meeting: "you're like a music encyclopedia! Just like my friend!" And there was something else Meg said at dinner the night they met: "My friend moved to New York City right at graduation in 2004. He's getting his PhD in composition and violin. He's such a gifted musician; and his voice, oh goodness, what a gift from God it is. You'd love him! You two have a lot in common."

In the emptiness of the library, Christine reached into her bag and pulled out a sketchbook. Thumbing through it, she stopped on a page with Erik's portrait upon the ivory page. "What if?"

"Erik, a word if you will," chimed Maestro Yanich from his office as Erik walked by to head home for the evening.

"Yes, sir?"

"Sit down, please," Maestro motioned to the adjacent chair. "Erik, you have made tremendous efforts in the past few months since we've arrived back in New York following our year-long tour. I'm incredibly impressed, and will have nothing but extremely positive things to report back to Dr. Piagni regarding your progress and the progression of your symphony."

"Thank you, Maestro."

"When you head back to Western Cypress?"

"I'm planning on taking the train back the Wednesday before the Memorial Day holiday, so in about two more weeks. I must procure housing that weekend."

# # #

"It's so good to hear your voice! How are you, Erik?" Meg said over the phone, her overly excited shriek was proof.

"Where are you? There's an echo."

"Oh, I in Swope Hall right now leaving the library and headed to class. What's up?"

"You're actually in Swope? Does that mean you found the piece I told you about?"

"No thanks to you, but yes, I found it with help from Chr-..." Meg quickly dropped the name before she let it slip and fell silent. Don't blow it, Meg.

"Meg. Meg? Hello?" Erik knew Meg was acting weird. For one thing, she'd never go into Swope alone because she never knew where to go. And second, she only went in to listen to Erik practice.

"Sorry, Erik, I'm just distracted." Well that was just a small fib. "This contemporary performance piece is kicking my butt. But Sorelli and Jammes are helping me as much as they can. Plus, I've been helping Chris-" Damn it, Meg, just shut your mouth! "Uh, I mean, I've been helping someone with stretching and strengthening after a car accident she was in…" Meg, SHUT UP! "Nevermind… I have verbal diarrhea. How are you? When are you coming home?"

Erik's gut told him something was up. "Meg, what on earth are you talking about? You're all over the place!" He could hear her preoccupied sighs and but she wouldn't say a word. He was growing annoyed and impatient. "Alright whatever. I'm doing just fine, but I'm ready to come home. I'll be taking a quick overnight trip this weekend to sign a lease. I found an apartment on North Barnard Street, a few places down from Dr Reyer's house. Apparently the owner took the townhouse and reconstructed it and made the downstairs a full apartment and did the same to the second floor. Apparently someone has expressed interest in the first floor, so I'll be taking a look at the second."

Meg let out an audible groan of misery and heartbreak. "North Barnard Street?" Another sigh. "You gotta be kidding me."

"Meg, what on earth is wrong with you tonight? You're not acting like yourself. What's wrong?"

"Umm, uhh, nothing, it's nothing. I'm uh at my car and I have a flat tire." God this was heartbreaking. How much longer did she have to pretend this wasn't happening? "Do you want to stay with us when you get here? Can we pick you up from the train station?"

"Thank you, dear distracted Meg. I'll text you when I'm about 20 minutes from the regional rail station in Western Cypress."

"Yeah, ok, that works." A heavy silence. "So, when do you officially come home?"

"The Wednesday before Memorial Day weekend. I won't be able to officially move in until Memorial Day, so if it's ok for me to still keep minimal furniture in your garage and crash with you guys until then, I'd appreciate it."

Just keep pretending; keep the facade, Meg. "Of course it's ok! Can we do a welcome home party for you on that Saturday? We could invite Drs. Marrenesco and Reyer, of course my parents and Raoul's parents." Meg paused. "Do I need to extend the invitation to Dr. Piangi and La Carlotta?" She cringed at the names. After everything Erik had told her and Raoul of this interesting duo, she wasn't looking forward to formally welcoming them to their home.

Erik sighed heavily. "If you insist on a party, I guess it's fine. And I suppose we should invite Senor Piangi and that horrendous wife of his. He's making this whole PhD program misery for me. I grow increasingly tired of their supposed expertise." Erik sarcastically drew out the word, dripping with absolute disdain.

"I'm sorry, Erik, I have to go. Call us when you're close to the train station and we'll come pick you up. Love you!" With a rather quickened goodbye, Meg stopped with absolute dread. She pulled out her phone and called Raoul, "Babe, I'm on my way home. We have a situation."

An hour later, again the consensus was to say and do absolutely nothing as if nothing was happening. "You know, Raoul, I love you dearly, but I don't think this is a good idea. This might blow up in our faces. I don't agree with this. I feel like you can't get out of attorney mode and you're treating Erik and Christine as hostile witnesses or something, acting as judge and jury. It's not right, Raoul; and I think you know that."

Raoul stiffened a little bit at her words. "I don't like this either Meg, but I don't see another way around this. It's not on us to fix this. It's a really crappy situation and it's not like we PLANNED this. We're doing the best we can with what we got right now."

Meg sighed heavily with regret and sadness. "Raoul I really like Christine. She's so sweet and sincere. I feel like I've known her my whole life. There's just something about her… I really see us becoming best friends. There's something deeper than what I have with Sorelli and Jammes."

"Or someone?" Raoul hinted. "And that someone is a mutual; that someone is Erik." The pair grew quiet.

"I still don't like this. I don't want to lose either of them." Meg settled into Raoul's embrace on the couch on their screened in porch.

"I don't either."

# # #

The next morning, Christine was signing her name to a lease for the first floor apartment at 186 North Barnard Street. It was the perfect place for her. It was small, comfortable, and the floor to ceiling windows in the living room offered a unique way out onto the front small porch. Christine was thrilled. She was to move this Sunday. "I'm more than happy to help, kid. I'll get a few guys from the office to help out. Do you want me to get U-Haul?"

"That'd be great. Thank you so much, Uncle Nadir. You're gonna love this place. It's so perfect."

An hour later, Christine found herself heading to the Swope music library. But there was a lot of commotion coming from a very familiar, rundown corridor. Her feet forced her to move towards the commotion. A few people were in HER practice room! And a few others were in HIS. What were they doing with the pianos? Christine quickened her steps and found an older man, with pepper-colored hair and bottle-glass lenses. "Excuse me, sir, what's going on?"

"Oh, the university will start renovating this old corridor over the summer. We're donating these old pianos to a guy who repairs them and then gives them to the public schools." The older man turned and smiled at Christine. He had a very warm, sincere glow about him. Judging by the calluses of his fingers, Christine guessed either viola or cello. "I'm Dr. Nikolai Marrenesco."

"Christine Daae. It's a pleasure to meet you, sir." Christine furrowed her brow. "Can I ask if I can buy two of these pianos?"

Nikolai looked at her quizzically at the odd request. "Uh, I don't see why not but why on earth would you want to buy these? They're in a sad state of disrepair."

"Sentimental reasons," she whispered. "I want those two." And she pointed to the pianos that used to occupy her favorite practice room as well as the practice room belonging to Erik.

"I'd have to see, Ms. Daae, but…" Nikolai couldn't continue as a boisterous tenor voice of Dean Ubaldo Piangi echoing down the hallways. "Brace yourself, Ms. Daae… we have company," he said quietly with a jestering wink.

"Nikolai! Progress, progress, progress! Making way for new! Out with the old!"

Dr. Marrenesco leaned down and whispered to Christine with a chuckle, "He's not the best with American nuances, Ms. Daae." Christine barely stifled a giggle. "Dean Piangi, this young lady would like to purchase these two pianos. Is that a possibility?" Christine looked at Dr. Marrenesco with sincerity.

"More money, of course!"

"I'm prepared to offer $300 total for both. I can haul them away myself on Sunday, sir. I would be forever grateful, Dean Piangi, if the music department would be willing to accept my offer." With his heavy Italian accent, Dean Piangi happily agreed and would happily accept payment on Sunday via check. And he walked away. "Dr. Marrenesco, thank you so much. I sincerely appreciate it."

"It's my pleasure, young lady. I hope you're able to find some help on Sunday to haul this old things off."

"Oh, yes sir, I'm moving into an apartment on North Barnard Street on Sunday, so it'll work out perfectly! Thank you again!"

"North Barnard Street, huh? A student of mine is moving into an apartment there most likely in a few weeks! The previous Dean of Music, Monty Reyer, lives on that street as well. A street of musicians!"

Christine laughed, shook Nikolai's hand, and the two parted ways. What a nice man.

# # #

About 30 minutes away. See you soon. Raoul's phone chimed with a text from Erik. "It's been way too long; I'm ready for him to come home." Him and Meg got in the car and started their quick drive to the train station. Shortly after, there was Erik, the tall, lanky friend with an actual smile on his face. Erik rarely smiled in full. Usually it was a smirk or a quirk of muscle at the side of his mouth. It was under unusual conditions in which Erik flashed a full smile. And when he did, it was dashing and glowing. "Oh friends, four months it has been. Thank you for coming to pick me up!" Erik wrapped his arms around Meg and briefly embraced Raoul.

The trio navigated their way through the Western Cypress. Reaching North Barnard Street, Raoul pulled over and saw the landlord waiting on the sidewalk. Within about 20 minutes, Erik found himself signing a lease for 186 North Barnard Street, apartment two.

# # #

The weekend went too fast, there just wasn't enough time to catch up on everything. And before they could think too much about anything, Sunday morning had arrived and Erik was due back in New York. After a few cups of coffee, the trio began their drive to the local train station where they would once again say one last goodbye before Erik would be back for good.

The early Sunday morning sunlight cast a beautiful hue within the hazy late spring air. The morning dew glistened like crystals in the sunlight. The birds chirped happily and the crisp air held a promise that in just three short weeks, the town of Western Cypress would fall into a quiet summer.

Christine and Nadir arrived around 8AM to the Barnard Street apartment. Nadir followed in the U-Haul truck with Christine and Darius leading the way. Unloading everything went smoothly. Christine opted to bring a minimal amount of furniture from the house in the woods to the new apartment, so it really wasn't that much to unload. The biggest thing was to meet Dr. Marrenesco at Swope music hall to pick up the two pianos she purchased. "I don't understand why you need two pianos, Christine. This place is really small," Nadir mentioned. But when Christine shot him the look of "you will understand in time", Nadir quickly dropped it.

By the time everything was unloaded and the bulkiest of furniture assigned its appropriate spot in the apartment, it was time to pick up the pianos. The loading dock area in the rear of Swope Hall served wheeling the pianos into the back of the U-Haul with much ease. Around noon, Christine, Nadir, Darius and another volunteer began unloading the pianos but soon these individuals found themselves physically spent and craving sustenance. Christine quickly got in her truck and drove away to procure multiple pies of pizza and cold sodas. "Let's just get this done," Darius said. "At least this way, the pianos will be inside and we can finally sit and eat." Nadir agreed and three men pushed, pulled, and maneuvered the beat up pianos out of the truck and onto the sidewalk. The early afternoon sun was beating furiously down, and again another short break was needed.

A few minutes later, Nadir looked up casually to see a car slowly coming down the street. The U-Haul was partially blocking the street, so Nadir signaled that he'd move to let the car through. He quickly jumped into the driver's seat, the window down as he hung out to watch Darius guiding the truck backwards and closer to the sidewalk. Soon the truck was out of the way, and Nadir flagged the car through with a polite nod and an "I'm sorry for the inconvenience" nod. The pair in the front smiled graciously and waved. In an almost slow motion realization, Nadir shifted and caught a glimpse of someone in the backseat, a young man with a familiar build looked out the window with a gaping expression, a hard burn of the most crystal blue eyes Nadir had ever seen, and a distinctly familiar white mask. And, oh my God! It's him, it's Erik!

The car drove past as Erik's heart felt like it would jump out of his chest and continue pumping its way down the street and into the drainage ditch. The utter look of shock and astoundment was immediately noticed by Raoul as he glanced in the rear-view mirror. "Erik? Are you ok? You look like you've just seen a ghost." Meg immediately turned around and looked at Erik. All color drained from his face as Erik's body went completely rigid. "I'm fine," he whispered. "Something's not agreeing with me." My God, it's Mr. Khan. What on earth is happening? Erik's mind was going a mile a minute. There was no way this was happenstance. And immediately, all Erik could think about, and remember, and recall was one name. One name. One woman. One angel. Christine.

In the blink of an eye, the spring semester of 2006 was over and summer was officially to kick off in just a few short days with Memorial Day. Christine had settled into a calm routine of working in the Swope Hall music library Monday through Thursday. One lazy evening, Christine sat outside on the porch of her apartment, her guitar nestled in her lap, a notebook and pen laying on a side table, and an iced tea, which she nursed as the sunset gleamed brilliant golds and oranges through the giant oak trees leaves along the street, shadows of light purple hues hugging the facades of the townhomes. "It doesn't get any better than this," she contently sighed to herself. Then she had an idea.

Hi Meg, would you like to come over for dinner? I'm finally settled in the apartment and would love to cook for you. You're welcome to bring Raoul, whom I still haven't met oddly enough.

Oh, YES! We'd love to! Raoul's on a short break before his summer courses start. What time and what can we bring?

How about 5:30PM? Just bring yourselves!

Awesome - can't wait! See you tomorrow!

# # #

"So what's the plan, Raoul? Are we going to tell her tonight?" Meg asked as she pulled her bouncy blonde curls into a ponytail.

"I don't know; I don't know what to do. Erik's party is Saturday. We can't NOT invite her."

"Babe, I still don't like keeping this secret. It's not fair to either of them. And something was seriously off with Erik last week when we dropped him off at the train station. Did you see how rigid he went when we passed by his apartment? It's not like he knows Christine lives there. Maybe he saw something? Did we miss something?"

"The whole situation is not good, but somehow, I just know it's going to work out. I have faith in Erik… and although I haven't met her yet, I have faith in Christine. They have been through so much together without even actually BEING together. From the moment he came to the apartment the first time he heard her, neither of us had ever seen him so… genuinely happy. And I want nothing more than to see him that full of life again. I saw a glimmer of that while we were in Paris at Christmas. I'm only hoping he's been able to hold on to it."

"Even if it means possibly losing him as our friend and brother by holding knowledge of Christine from him?"

Raoul paused. "Yes, Meg, even if it means losing him as my brother as long as he has Christine by his side for the rest of his life." Raoul leaned over and kissed Meg with a devastating thoroughness; a warmth bubbling between them, a love ever-growing. "Mmm, we better go before I take advantage of you, Meg Giry."

Meg laughed and teasing pushed Raoul towards the door. "Well, there's always later tonight."

# # #

Raoul and Meg pulled up in front of the townhouse, and Raoul drew a deep breath. This would be the first time meeting Christine. The first time speaking to her. The first time meeting the woman who forever changed Erik's life. The young woman responsible for being the inspiration for Erik and his music.

"Christine, this is Raoul de Chagny," Meg said with an introduction. And Raoul smiled and extended a hand.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Christine. Meg talks about you all the time."

Christine furrowed her brow slightly. There was something strangely familiar about this young man. And seeing him next to Meg had her racking her brain. I've seen him before. I've seen THEM together before, but where… where? "The pleasure is mine, Raoul. Please come in guys. Can I get you anything to drink?"

The trio settled into a comfortable dinner, with lots of conversation and even more laughs. Christine couldn't remember the last time she felt this comfortable with someone before. Raoul and Meg were real, they were so warm and genuine. And most of all, they didn't gape openly at her scars. With summer quickly approaching and the weather already changing, skirts, shorts, t-shirts, and tank tops were now required, which meant her scars becoming more exposed.

"Do you play the piano, Christine?" Raoul chimed up. Of course she sings, moron. And Raoul's face flushed and received a quick warning nudge from Meg telling him, "Don't you dare blow this now."

Christine glanced at the piano. "I do. Guitar also, but not that well." She paused. "I sing a little, too."

"Feel like playing anything for us?" Oh Raoul was treading on thin ice, but something in him wanted to hear it for himself what drew Erik to her. What was it about this woman's voice that birthed Erik's enlightenment?

"Um, sure, I guess. I've been working on writing something if you're interested?" Christine grabbed her a notebook from under a pile of sketchbooks, which tumbled onto the floor beside the piano. One of the sketchbooks fell open to a page she had drawn on during her and Nadir's first trip to Arizona in 2003 during Christmas break. The sketch was of a young couple in a hot tub at the hotel she and Nadir stayed at, and then it hit her. That couple… that couple on the white page of her sketchbook… that couple has come to life… that couple was in her apartment! Here. Now. Christine swallowed hard and quickly closed the sketchbook as she heard Meg approach from behind to help pick up the other items. "It's incomplete right now, but I'll get through what I have," Christine whispered. Raoul and Meg must have felt a shift within Christine. Something wasn't right, but they didn't dare say anything. Christine began a soft repetition of chords and quietly sang:

I hear your heart
As it beats beneath
The sound of crashing cars.
As the sirens pour
Into every street
Surrounding us,
Our world caves in on us
And makes us new.

All our love came out of the woodwork.
All our strength came out of the woodwork.

Her fingers stumbled and her voice cut off abruptly. Her fingers went cold, shivers running upon her skin. The sound of sirens echoed from the downtown area. "I'm sorry, that's all I have." Suddenly a stabbing pain from the base of her skull came shooting up, infiltrating and spreading like a vice-grip of agony.

"Christine? Are you alright? What… what's going on?" Meg was on her feet as she watched Christine furiously rubbing her neck and temples. "What can I do? What do you need?"

"I'm sorry, migraine. I'm sorry, I don't feel well," Christine staggered to the kitchen to grab her migraine medication. Of all the times for this to happen, it happens now. This was the first time Meg has witnessed a migraine overtake Christine, and it all it made her feel was helpless. Raoul sat still, eyes pleading with sympathy and questions.

"Christine, please, let me help you," Meg pleaded, and then took charge. She handed Christine a glass of water, then guided her to her bedroom and helped her into bed. Raoul stood in the threshold. "Call me if you need me, ok? Do you need anything else?" Meg asked as she took a cold, wet washcloth and placed it on Christine's forehead.

"I'm so sorry. You didn't need to see this. I'll be ok. I'm so sorry," Christine whispered.

"It's ok, Chrissie. Get some rest."

Raoul and Meg were great - they scoured pans and rinsed all the dishes and loaded up the dishwasher. After turning on the dishwasher, they turned off the lights and locked the door behind them. The car ride home was in complete silence until Raoul asked, "What did we just see happen back there?"

"I haven't the faintest idea; but I'm really worried about her. She was fine until we asked her to play something. I don't understand."

Raoul sighed with a sudden realization. "Post-traumatic stress disorder… PTSD, Meg. She has PTSD, and I think music might be her trigger."

She wasn't sure why, but Meg started crying. "Raoul, I want to tell her. My heart breaks for her like nothing else." All Raoul could do was sigh, realizing she was right, but now they had dug themselves into a hole with no way out. Perhaps the best thing to do was to let things play out naturally. And should this all be part of God's plan, to take terrible life circumstances and turn them into a beautifully hopeful ending, then let it be. Raoul and Meg finally pulled into their driveway and walked inside. Raoul grabbed Meg's hand and led her to the living room. "What are you doing?" she asked quietly.

"I feel God tugging at me, Meg. We need to pray, because I'm concerned about Christine; I'm scared for Erik; and I'm so sick to my stomach that we're going to lose him. And I'm so sad by what we witnessed tonight. Meg, she's in so much pain. The best we can do is give this to God tonight and pray." They sank to their knees in penance and in the darkness of their home, hand in hand, prayed harder than they've ever prayed before.

# # #

The next morning was greeted by torrential rain and dark skies. It was fitting for the mood Christine found herself in when she woke up, still dressed in her clothes from the day before. She walked out to the kitchen expecting to see dirty dishes either still littering the countertops or soaking in the sink. She found neither. Instead, she found the green light on the dishwasher notifying her that indeed the dishes were clean and ready to be put away. Christine sighed in appreciation and then glanced to see a sweet note written by Meg, saying she'd stop by later to check on her.

About an hour later, Christine was showered and snuggling on the couch in sweatpants and a tank top while nursing a hot mug of tea when she saw Meg jogging up the front steps to the door. She waved at Meg through the living room window, motioning the door was unlocked. "Oh my gosh, what a miserable day! It was so nice and warm yesterday; now it's just cold and poopy," Meg said as she toed off her sneaks before coming into the living room. "How are you feeling? We were really worried about you last night."

"I'm ok; but I wanted to thank both you and Raoul for cleaning up the kitchen last night. You really didn't have to do that. And I'm really sorry you guys had to see what happens when a migraine takes over. They come on so suddenly and without much warning. And honestly, it's exhausting." Christine started tearing up a little bit, and Meg leaned in for a hug.

"Stop apologizing, you can't control it. And no need to thank us for cleaning up. You cooked, we clean," Meg chuckled. "I do have a proposition for you, Chrissie."

Christine chuckled. "I thought I heard you call me Chrissie last night. Not many people call me that… only my dad and my uncle did… or do. You know what I mean." Meg nodded in understanding. "And you worry me with 'proposition'. Are you planning on robbing a bank and using my rather unreliable truck for your getaway car?"

"HA! Ok, maybe more of an invitation than a proposition," Meg laughed.

"Hmm, you didn't necessarily convince me this wasn't a proposed bank robbery."

"Tempting, but no. Remember my friend I told you about when we first met who is currently in New York? Well, he's coming back to Western Cypress for good on Wednesday and we're planning a welcome home party for him on Saturday. Would you like to come over?"

Christine thought about this for a little bit. Would she really want to spend an afternoon and evening with a bunch of strangers? Would Meg really want her attached her hip during the whole thing? "I don't know, Meg. I appreciate the invitation, but I won't know anyone there. Large social gatherings aren't really my thing."

"You should come over, Chrissie. There won't be that many people at our house, it's too small. It'll be me and Raoul obviously. I've invited a few professors from the music department, and sadly needed to include the current Dean and his wife. My parents, Raoul's parents. The guest of honor. And including you, no more than 15 people total. What do you say?"

Christine sat and chewed on this for a few minutes while Meg helped herself to a mug of hot tea in the kitchen. "Yeah, I'll come. What time?"

"YAY!" Meg clapped her hands and did a ridiculous version of a happy dance in a seated position. "And seriously, don't be nervous, you and I will pal around most of the time anyway. OH! And bring an overnight bag so we can have a sleep over because apparently I'm still ten years old." Meg giggled giddily. "Bring your swimsuit too!" Megs' eyes shot down immediately in embarrassment. "Ack, I'm sorry. I didn't think, forgive me."

"Nothing to forgive, Meg,it's fine. If it was just you and Raoul, I would consider bringing it, but I just can't stand the stares and the 'Oh, what's with the scars?' gawking. It's hard enough having to cover up when it's hot out, let alone dealing with prying eyes." The accident from years ago not only left its marks on Christine's body but also on her emotions and her memories; Meg knew this, she knew it all. It would be something she'd never forget.

"Well, I better get going. I have a lot to get ready for this party." And with that Meg got up and Christine walked outside with Meg to say goodbye. Then it dawned on Christine and she shouted to Meg before she got in the car, "Meg! You realize you never told me the name of your friend? I can't just call him "Meg and Raoul's friend who used to live in New York"! What's his name?"

Meg paled. Damn it… "It's Erik," she said and quickly got in her car and gunned it before she could let Christine stop her.

Christine froze. No, it couldn't possibly be… but what if? Christine pulled out her phone and texted only one person who held more information than he was willing to share with her. I need to talk to you. Are you at your office or at home?

"To what do I owe this special visit?" Nadir jested with Christine, but from the look on her face she was in no mood for humor.

"In private," she said as she closed the door to Nadir's office. His desk and office were disaster zones; paper, notepads, pens, books all lay in heaping piles with not one shred of organization. "You need a secretary, Nadir… this place is atrocious!"

"Hey now, there's a pattern in this chaos. I know where everything is," Nadir feigned insult. That was the opening she needed.

"Then you can tell me where to find the police report from the accident."

Nadir froze and stared hard at Christine. "Why on earth do you need that? And why on earth open those wounds?"

"You mentioned so many times the three good Samaritans who helped me the night of the accident. During Kevin's trial, everyone kept referencing these people. Why hasn't anyone ever told me their names?"

Nadir felt sick. "Chrissie, I thought we would be able to put that night behind us. Why can't we just thank God you lived and move on?"

"OK, seriously? That's what you're going to say to me? Two years, Uncle Nadir, it's been two years. I want to know. I need to know who they were." A sad and heavy silence fell between them. Christine wanted to be furious and angry; but another part of her simply knew this is what Nadir had to do to hold up his promise to Gustav. He said the day she came home from the hospital after the accident. How Nadir broke down in sobs begging for Christine and Gustav to forgive him for failing them both. "Uncle Nadir, please. I need to know." Nadir couldn't move, he felt the weight of the world on his shoulders. "Please. I wanted to come back here so I could start healing emotionally and mentally, to finally be able to move on and close this chapter. Whatever it is, I can handle it. Nadir, I'm almost 25 years old. It's time for me to grow up, to become my own… and I can't do that if I can't let go of what happened. Please, Uncle Nadir… please."

Nadir released a heavy sigh, contemplating everything Christine had unloaded. And he had to admit: Christine was right. She wasn't a teenager or a little girl anymore. She was a strong, brilliant, and beautiful young woman craving independence and a chance to come into her own, to create a life that was uniquely hers while keeping the very small group of family and friends forever close to help mold this new chapter. And if that meant opening old wounds in order to heal them and make her stronger, then it was a risk he had to let her make this decision. And now it was time to accept her decision. He moved towards one of his massive bookshelves and squatted to the storage unit under the bookshelf and slid open the door. And there it was: the box. Nadir placed the box on an empty chair and had to ask the question, "Do you want to go through it together or do you want to do this alone?"

Christine hesitantly ran her fingers over the edges of the box's lid. "I think alone. Can I take this home?" Nadir simply nodded and wrapped his aging arms hard around her, whispering reassuring affirmations and placed a kiss on her forehead. "You're a good man, Uncle Nadir, and I love you so much. Thank you for everything."

It was getting later and later on this Wednesday night. The rain pelted harder than earlier that morning. The wind howled through the trees and forced Christine to close the living room windows and drew closed the curtains. She sat on the couch simply staring at the unopened box, almost like she was waiting for a monster to jump out and take hold of her. With another long sip of hot tea, her shaking hands removed the lid. So much stuff was in there. Newspaper clippings, photos from the scene of the accident… and there at the bottom of the box, was a copy of the police file with a large, red-stamped letters on the front reading "CLOSED." And a little while later, Christine sat on the living room floor, letting her sobs echoing off the high ceilings, the open file revealing the names of her good Samaritans:

Meg Giry, Western Cypress University, Junior;
Raoul de Chagny, Western Cypress University, grad student (graduating); and then, THE NAME,
Erik Destler, Western Cypress University, grad student (graduating), PhD doctoral student

"Why didn't they tell me?!" Christine's agonizing screams as reality came crashing down on her. "Oh God, why are you doing this?!"

The motion of car lights bounced off the walls followed by a quick slam of a car door. Feet running up the brick steps to the front entrance. The foyer door opened and the stomping of feet shook off the sopping wetness of the hard rain but the feet fell immediately quiet. Erik stood completely still, awkwardly listening to the muffled sobs and cries coming from the apartment. He felt like he was intruding on an intimate, grief-filled moment. He quickly shot of the stairs, dropped off a few items, and quickly left and made the drive to Meg and Raoul's home.

Meg hadn't heard from Christine all week, but honestly both Meg and Raoul had been unbelievably busy getting the house ready for not just the party but getting one of the guest rooms ready for Erik's short stay with them until he was able to move into his apartment on Memorial Day. But finally by Friday, everything was ready. The welcome home party was expected to start around 3PM, with food, spirits, and laughs with everyone welcoming Erik home for good. And it wasn't until Friday night that Meg finally heard from Christine.

Hey Chrissie, where have you been? Are you ok? Are you still coming tomorrow?

I've been sick but feeling better. Yes, I will be there.

Aww, I'm sorry, do you need me to come over? Do you need anything? Are you feeling better?

No, I'm fine. I'm doing ok. Thanks for asking. I'll see you tomorrow.

And again, Christine fell back into silence. Meg felt something else was going on. Something wasn't right, but she didn't have much time to dwell on it as Erik came down the stairs rather agitated. "Unbelievable, I don't understand," he mumbled to himself.

"Erik, what's wrong?" Meg asked.

"Nikolai just told me they're starting renovations of one of the practice room corridors and they're getting rid of the older pianos. I have to go there tomorrow to try to save two of them. I need them."

Meg and Raoul looked at each other. "No offense, but are you going to expect me to move two pianos up a flight of stairs to your apartment?" Raoul asked with a laugh. "Because that's… not going to happen."

"Lazy bum," Erik chided.

"Just don't be late for your own party, Erik. You're the guest of honor. It'll be poor form," Meg warned.

"Do you know who you are talking to?" Erik snickered.

"Exactly what I'm afraid of, turd," Meg laughed.

Saturday arrived with a cloudless summer sky and a cool breeze offering respite from blazing sunshine. Christine sat rather agitated on the piano bench, her fingers refusing to move on the keys. Her mind worked furiously as what she was going to do. She wanted to be angry, and what concerned her more was if she wasn't sure if she wanted to go up to Meg and slap her and yell, or if she wanted to run into Meg's arm and hug her and thank her and cry on her. She wanted to hug Raoul and shower him with thank yous.

Then there was Erik. During her restless sleep, her rather dormant dream came slamming back into existence last night. It always began and ended the same. It began with Erik, seductively exploring her body, craving every inch of her skin. And it always ended with Kevin, digging his fingers into her flesh, strangling her, his hard fingers wrapping around her throat, screaming at her that no one would ever love like him. This afternoon she'd be face to face with practically three strangers, three people who saved her life. Saved her from the hands of abuse belonging to Kevin. There was the Erik she thought she knew - the angel of music who brought music back to life in her after it died with Gustav. How on earth was she going to get through the afternoon. What was she going to do? What was she going to say?

"Erik! Oh my gosh, you are fashionably LATE to your own welcome home party! What the heck did I warn you about yesterday?! You never listen to me. Didn't they teach you punctuality, or because you're a professional doctorate student, time means nothing!" Meg ran into Erik's lanky arms with a delighted laugh. His mask shifted from the welcomed assault of hugs.

"Erik, you should really know better by now than to piss her off," Raoul took Erik's hand and roughly pulled him into a bear hug. Erik felt his mask beginning to shift around his face, causing uncomfortable friction upon his skin. They're just glad to see you… forget the mask. You're home.

"Any luck with the pianos?" Meg asked.

"Sadly no. Senor Piangi explained someone bought them… both of them! For $300! I swear that man puts a price tag on music. I'm surprised he doesn't a creativity fee on doctoral students. The man is insufferable!"

"Erik, my boy! It's good to see you!" Dr. Marrenesco barreled over to Erik and embraced him. "My prize student! Welcome home, Erik!"

"Thank you, sir, it's really good to be back."

Everyone settled into a comfortable fellowship, with stories and laughter and love. Erik felt at peace, and for the first time in a really long time, he felt happy.

Christine pulled into the long driveway and parked. She sat there for a while looking at the multitude of vehicles parked in front of her. She heard the laughter. She heard voices exchanging stories. She heard Meg's laugh. Christine opened the door, hesitated, then slammed it shut and hit the steering wheel hard with the palms of her hands. She was scared to death, she was anxious as hell, nerves coursing through her veins like a lead weight. She could just leave. She could turn around and leave, just say she wasn't feeling well and not go. No, she couldn't avoid this. She had to confront this for good. No more running.

Christine grabbed her overnight bag and walked slowly up the driveway to the small stairs leading to the backyard of Meg and Raoul's home. The voices and laughter getting louder and more clear. She could hear a voice, a very familiar voice she hadn't heard in two years. His voice. He was talking, but it might as well have been him singing. Oh how his voice was low and dulcet, like melted dark chocolate effortlessly poured in silky ribbons.

"So that's when Meg and Raoul told me they were engaged, and want-..." Erik's voice dropped into complete silence. His eyes locked upon the petite figure of what looked like an angel bathed in heavenly sunshine. Christine's long, brown curls cascaded down the right side of her face, sunlight catching glimmers of pure white streaks of hair, enveloping her in a halo of innocence. Erik felt a knot form in his gut and throat as this known angel breathlessly walked towards him, his hands falling lifelessly to his sides. My God, it can't be; it simply cannot be her… here, now, after all this time.

"Welcome home, Erik. We finally meet."