Diclaimer: don't own any of it.

I redid the first part of the last chapter so you should go read it. I did it because you guys told me it seemed a little weird. Hopefully it will help.

Meg awoke expecting to be on the hard floor where she'd fallen asleep but was instead in her bed. She heard Erik softly playing his music and got up.

As she showered she began to think about Eric. His playing became louder and more dramatic. She wondered why he had lost his love and inspiration for music. Maybe she could help. Except that he was a genius and she didn't see how it was possible that someone like her could possibly have anything to give him or anyway to inspire him. Logically she should be comforted by the idea that Erik only thought of her as "a child" but she wasn't. She was annoyed and hurt by it. She wanted Eric to see her as a woman. She was certainly young in age but not emotionally. She had been through so much in her short life that she sometimes felt as though she were an old woman because of all the things she'd had to deal with. As she stepped out of the shower and got dressed a feeling of complete loneliness settled over her because, as much as she grew to like Erik he would never feel the same way about her. She had to brush a few tears off her cheeks before she could open the door to her room.

Eric sat at his piano. He was absorbed in his playing and Meg took the chance to soak up his image. His hands were moving over the keys quickly. His whole body was moving along with the motion of his frantic playing. The candlelight reflected off his dark hair. His mask covered the half of his face that was so appallingly scarred but Meg thought he was the most gorgeous man she'd ever seen. She wondered how Christine could have ever thought that Raoul was more attractive than the man seated in front of her now. She hesitated, not wanting to break his concentration and attract his attention.

Erik finally finished playing his song. He sat on the bench and leaned over the keys to write on the paper in front of him. He was breathing slightly heavy as if he'd just walked quickly across a park. His playing was so intense it was almost a workout for him. He stopped writing and sat hunched in thought. He wasn't wearing his cape right now. Meg looked at the way his black silk shirt pulled taut over his shoulders and she felt a slight stirring in her stomach. How could a man sitting at a piano manage to make her feel all weak and slightly shaky? She wondered to herself. She sighed softly and immediately regretted it because Erik straightened and turned around to face her.

"Meg." He said in way of greeting.

"Hello Erik." She said still feeling sad. "How was your trip to where ever it was you went off to?"

"Not good." He said tightly. Obviously he didn't want to talk about where he'd been.

"Sorry to hear it. Are you hungry? I could prepare something for us to eat?" Meg offered, hoping that cooking would distract her from her strange feelings.

Erik was surprised that Meg dropped the issue of where he'd gone earlier. She looked as if she'd been crying. Erik fought the urge to ask her why she was sad.

"Yes, food would be a good idea. Are you sure you don't mind cooking?" Erik asked.

"No, it's fine." Meg said and with a weak smile left to cook some food.

REVIEW!(PLEASE)

a/n: I know this is short but I am trying to take all your reviews into consideration and i have to admit that i did do a really crap job on the last chapter. sorry i will devote more time to this story because i love the idea in my head it's just getting out is the hard part. but i am writing the next chappie and it is good. There's a little bit of almost action in it. So see what happens when you review? I actually changed the dialog in the first part of the last chapter and I think it adds something. I'm trying to slow it a little and have them talk a little more. Anyway, REVIEW! And thanks guys for reading and reviewing!