Disclaimer: I will never ever own Erik, but I will own the DVD that's coming out soon! Just in time during the AP tests…

A/N: I'm sorry it's been taking me a while on these updates, but I had been getting a lot of homework. So thanks for putting up for these long waits! You guys rock!

Chapter 23- Two Peas In A Pod

Calm down, you can do this. Remember what Erik told you. Okay… now breathe. Stephanie took a few deep breaths and tried to focus on her reflection. In minutes, the practice would start and already she was beginning to have a nervous breakdown. Erik didn't show up yet, but he promised he'll be there for support and that she shouldn't bother to look for him. He will find her.

She didn't stay out there much longer and quickly retreated to look over her attire once more in the poor excuse of a mirror in the bathroom. She relaxed for a moment and noticed how pretty she looked. Her auburn hair had a wave to it and the reddish-brown shined with life. The night before she added curlers to it until Erik told her it would be better if she left those out and just toweled the wet strands with your head upside down and let dry naturally. The next morning they were in the style she been trying to achieve. Erik explained how he watched Christine for a year before he started tutoring her and this was how she kept her tresses curly.

Stephanie took her time to put on some more make-up (a ritual she never bothered with unless it was a special occasion). Her red lips were glossed over by a cherry flavor lip-gloss. She added a light pink blush on her cheeks to add some color to her pallor face and finished it off with a light baby blue powder eye shadow and some mascara. She checked to make sure her contact was in place and grinned.

She stepped back a little and smoothed out her blue Old Navy top and faded jeans. She felt a bit ridiculous wearing such a casual outfit with make-up on her façade, but she would be out of place if she dressed up for the sporty event. She went over her hair once more so all the strands were in place and sighed. Here I go.

The gym was a bit crowded but Stephanie found a couple of empty spots on the bleachers. She hurried over there and sat down, looking around for Erik. If he walked out I'll… She didn't get the chance to finish her thought when the Phantom came strolling over.

Stephanie wouldn't have recognized him if it hadn't been for the gleaming pallid mask covering his right side. Erik wasn't dressed in his usual gloomy drab, instead he wore a "Kiss Me I'm Musical" lime green tee with a pair of tight jeans. She recognized the pants as her father's (he always got them kind of tight), but the shirt must have been a gift he stole for himself. Can't break all bad habits, she thought miserably.

"Hey Erik, are those pants tight? I can't tell," she teased.

He narrowed his eyes and then chuckled softly. "Isn't this how their worn? I've seen some boys with the pants hanging low, but I think it's a bit lazy and piggish. And tight seems to be the best. I've been getting some attention."

Stephanie was trying so hard to hold in the comment, "It's not the jeans they're looking at", but somehow found the resistance. Let him think whatever he wants, she thought.

"So how is this game played?"

She quickly went over the rules and pointed out some of the players to Erik.

"That one there with the red hair? He's Pete Nelson, the best goalie we Big Reds have. And the skinny kid with the blonde hair next to him? Greg Parker, he's on defense and a player with the girls, though I heard Michelle is taming him supposedly. They're all of Dan's close friends and the three of them make a great team," she explained. "Dan was Co-Captain last year and without him we wouldn't have been rank as part of the top 5 soccer teams in the county. This year Coach Downey and the others picked Dan as their new Captain. He's a true leader."

The admiration in her voice reminded Erik of Christine when she talked about her Angel. How he missed those enchanting lips that held her angelic voice and her inquisitive lively chocolate orbs. Now that's not the time to reflect on that, he told himself. I'm here for Miss Larson.

Stephanie set her eyes in the middle of the gym where the Big Reds and the rivalry team of the Cougars were ready to begin. Dan and some tall kid moved forward, waiting for the coin toss to start the kick off. Dan called heads and they got the ball.

Just as Dan was ready to strike it, a loud startling shriek erupted from the stands: "GO DAN!"

The ball flew but it didn't go near his target. Stephanie swore under her breath at whoever messed up the star player. Erik poked her in the ribs and whispered, "I think Carlotta is in the house."

She turned her head to where Erik was directing at and it was Laurie, the blonde from the movies. Her wide mouth was agape; her dull jaded eyes grew wide like saucers as the play went underway.

"What's she doing here?" Stephanie hissed. "I thought you said Dan wanted nothing to do with her!"

"I did," Erik replied. "I guess she couldn't take rejection well."

Sighing, Stephanie returned back to the game just in time as Pete captured the black and white ball. He ran out a few steps and hurdled the ball down the field to where Dan waited. He got it and began running towards the goal. He managed to block the opposing players by switching the ball left to right and faking a pass by turning around in a perfect dance.

Stephanie hollered for joy when he hit his target- 1 to 0 Big Reds.

Erik had to cover his ears to block out the deafening noise from students, parents, and teachers. For such a small event, a lot of people showed up to which Erik couldn't understand. He was use to seeing these kinds of crowds at operas, museums, or any place featuring art. This was sports, a concept Erik didn't quite grasp, which people enjoy the most now.

To him, the thought of a bunch of boys kicking a ball into a net wasn't all that significant, in fact down right boring. But this game had the attention of Stephanie and everyone else so he tried to enjoy himself. To this Phantom, music is the only entertainment and anything else is second best.

"Go go go go! Shoot! Oh man!" cried Stephanie. Mitch Rox, another forward for the Big Reds, missed the net completely. She groaned and continued to scream for another goal.

Erik could just stare at her. Where did all of this energy come from? He wondered. He never seen her this hype up except when he told her about Dan. This girl never ceased to intrigue him.

Defense for the Cougars was beginning to break down after they got a few goals and Dan was able to score another goal with the assistance of Bobby Jones. Then another player managed a couple more goals making it 4 to 3. Then all of a sudden the ball flew towards Pete and went over his head. The score tied now with two minutes left to play.

Stephanie grew anxious and watched her crush mumbling something. She wanted him to win. He just had to.

After a little pep talk, they broke up and the game became aggressive. One by one the players tripped or slammed into the other, stealing the ball for a goal. A couple was out for intentional fouls, which was not smart moves.

"At least one is a Cougar," she said with relief. "But it doesn't make it right. Now both could be out for the rest of the season and it hasn't started yet."

One more minute.

Greg was switched to forward and ran down with Dan by his side. Dan stole the ball and passed it over to Greg was passed it back. The net was approaching and Stephanie held her breath. This was it!

Ten… nine… eight…

The seconds started ticking down and Dan had the ball. Defense was running at him and he quickly passed it to Greg who had empty space. He hit it as hard as he could.

The buzzard rang and the goalie caught it mid-air. The game was over. It was tied 4 to 4.

Stephanie groaned but it didn't matter. It was a good game and Dan was simply fantastic as always.

"That's it," she told Erik, as the guys started their laps. "Now we go home."

"Aren't you going to talk to Dan?"

She looked over to him leading the team. "I dunno. He's doing laps and I'm not sure…"

"Just go!" Erik gently pushed her. "I'll be close by."

"Okay." She began trembling with fright. It was now or never, she supposed. Taking a deep breath, she walked over as the red-faced, sweat-dripping teens hustled by.

Dan stopped and smiled when he saw her. He waved and shyly Stephanie returned it back. He came over, wiping the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand, and said, "Hi. Stephanie right?"

"Y-yes," she replied, a delighted thrill fluttered in her stomach. He knew her name! She thought he didn't know it.

"Did you see the game?" he asked.

Was there hope in his voice? She thought so! "It was intense. For a practice game, I mean."

His grin widened. "It's what Coach and our fans like to see. So did you have fun?"

"Absolutely!"

"So, um, Stephanie I was wondering…"

"Yeah?" Her hopes were soaring. He's going to ask me out!

"What I'm trying to say is, would you-"

"D-AAN!"

Both turned to see Laurie charging over. "My God Dan you were amazing!"

"Laurie what are you doing?" he asked with annoyance.

"A hello! Congratulating you. Is that a crime now?" The blonde glanced over to Stephanie and rolled her eyes. "And Dan didn't I tell you before not to talk to her? She's going to make you look bad."

"Laurie!" he moaned. "So what? I can talk to Stephanie if I want. I don't care about my image."

She snorted. "Yeah right but not her kind anyways."

"Laurie-" Dan said, a dangerous hint in his tone.

"Come on back with me. There are other better people to talk to than this pathetic eye-freaking loser."

She grabbed his arm and once again dragged him away. His gray eyes held an apology that his mouth couldn't provide and all Stephanie could do was stare in shock. She remained emotionless until familiar moisture began to cover her cheeks. What happened? Her mind asked. She didn't know. What on Earth happened?

Everything was going fine…

She felt a pair of strong arms encircle her waist and pulled her away from Dan. Stephanie couldn't tear her gaze away from him and she wanted to fight Erik off with all her might but lacked the strength to. Blindly, she let him take her out. The last thing on her mind was I lost.

Erik didn't say anything; there was no need to. It was plainly written across her face and his blood boiled over with anger at the weak-minded Dan Shaw and the idiotic Laurie who once more brought pain to Stephanie. He understood what she was going through and felt ashamed at himself for inviting such dreams and hopes just to have them crush in a single second. She didn't deserve that.

Her make-up was running down her nose, but Stephanie paid it little heed as she drove. Perhaps it wasn't in the cards for her and Dan to be together. She was so sure that he was going to ask her out if it hadn't been for Laurie. Stephanie saw it in his eyes and she could have sworn there was love reflecting in those orbs. But it didn't last long unfortunately.

At least he somewhat stood up for me, she thought grimly. But there was also something that kept bugging her and it was not the obvious sympathetic look, but his confusion at Laurie's remark. He doesn't know, but it's too late. Laurie probably told him and he'll never speak to me again.

"I don't think you should give up on him," Erik said suddenly. He was doing some similar thinking and realized there had to be a reason why Dan allowed himself to be taken away. "I heard everything and I know he didn't stay put like he should have, but I saw something and I think you know what I'm talking about. So put those negative thoughts aside."

She let out a nervous chuckle. "It's strange how well you know me."

"Only because you know me so well," he replied. "We're two peas in a pod, you know? I felt your pain when he left. I've experienced it on many occasions and I'm sorry you went through that. It reminded me of seeing the Vicomte with my Christine together and once again I had to witness it."

She didn't make any reply so Erik went on. "What I'm trying to say is Dan is your Christine and Laurie the Vicomte. Okay, I know bad choice of words but work with me. I know that their union won't continue and you still have a chance. But me. I'm not sure… but I can only hope that I would be lucky and win what I've always craved for."

Stephanie digested his meaning, and awkwardly enough, she saw some truth in them. She forced a small smile on her tear-stained countenance as she faced him. "You're right Erik," she spoke softly. "You're right."

TBC…