Chapter 7

"Daniel, Rachel. There is something I need to confess and I pray you will not hate me for it: my name is not Matthew but actually Erik. I stayed with Meg Giry for a month after she saved me from sure self-destruction. You may also know me -though I'm not sure you heard the stories- as the Phantom of the Opera. I have been in denial of my love for her for almost a month now, and now that she was only a touch away it has finally boiled over. And I now fear I have lost her forever."

"Oh thank God." Rachel said under her breath, meeting the curious gaze of Erik. "I told her that if God wanted you in her life that He would put you back. You need to find her!"

"She does not even know my name! I was hurt before Meg found me, I was in love, and she chose another right in front of me. I could not bring myself to even trust Meg, who had risked her life to save me, with my name."

"Well, good heavens, child, I'm sure she'll forgive you for that." She all but pushed Erik into his bedroom and told him to rest up. He told her he must see her mother first, in Paris, before he did anything too drastic.

The very next morning, Erik awoke with a purpose for the first time since he could remember. He set out early to find Madame Giry, and to see if she would approve. To tell the truth, he did not know what to expect. Sometimes Madame Giry was as unpredictable as he was.

He ran his fingers anxiously through his hair as the carriage slowly made its way through Paris. He was terrified that someone was going to recognize him. He slowly crept his way around the Opera House and observed the progress they've made. In the two months since the night he set it on fire, they had already recovered the interior of the theater and were now restoring the plaster to form the rooms. Nothing had changed, all of the layouts were the same. It just looked odd with it being so empty.

He stayed in the shadows while Monsieur Reyer passed by and asked:

"Excuse me, Monsieur, is Madame Giry here?"

"I apologize, Monsieur, she's out at the moment due to return in half an hour, if you'd like to wait." Erik said he would and waited for the conductor to pass by before exiting the building. It would cost a lot to fix this place, and Erik burnt it down. He ventured out to the bank and withdrew one million of the three million francs to help with the construction.

By the time he arrived back to the Opera House, Madame Giry was there and he approached her slowly.

"Erik! What are you doing here?! Where is Meg?"

"Antoinette, there was a misunderstanding and she is now in Meaux. I came to tell you that I'm in love with your daughter and would humbly ask for your approval for anything that may transpire in the future."

"I knew you two would come to a middle ground. And I also know you will not make the same mistake you have before. Treat my daughter right, love her the way she has deserved to be loved all her life."

"I wouldn't dream of anything else, Madame. Here: one million francs to go toward the reconstruction of your home. Take of it what you want and use it, I owe you as much. Tell them it's from Monsieur Destler." he bowed, and quickly left.

With a large smile plastered on his face he exited the Opera House and walked toward the carriage house to make his way to Meaux. Things were finally working out. His future was just a day's ride away, and he was about to start the journey.

There was a chorus of "Hey that's him!" rang out and Erik watched as a mob of people rushed toward him, he could defend himself but there was no way he would be able to against all these angry people. They closed in on him and everything from there was a blur. The last thing he remembered thinking was 'Why God, why?'

Meg has wondered why Madame Clause sounded so familiar; she was Isaac's mother. It had been a week since she traveled to Meaux and she banished all thoughts of The Phantom. Isaac had called on her a few times since she had met with Madame Clause the day after she arrived. He already expressed his deep interest in her, and she had just blushed and looked away.

She knew she should either tell him she did not return his affections or went along until he proposed marriage. She had burned the note with The Phantom's account number the moment she got out of church. She knew she could not live off of him for the rest of her life.

"Meg, Isaac's here." Claire said gently from the doorway. Meg flattened the skirt of her dress one last time and turned around heading out the door. The carriage ride to restaurant was quiet, Meg was too wrapped up in her thoughts. She had had a dream the other might that The Phantom was in danger and that he was hurt. She woke up in tears but she couldn't out of the blue go back to Paris for a man she didn't know was even there anymore.

"Meg, I wanted to ask you something. We've spent a lot of time together and I think I'm falling in love with you. I would be honored if you would share your future with me." Here was the moment Meg had been dreading for a while now, staring her in the face.

"I would be honored to be your wife." Meg answered with a fake smile. No, she did not love Isaac but, maybe in time she could learn to love him as many arranged marriages had worked out. His smile only brightened and she was suddenly hit with a wave of sorrow. If she didn't come to love him, she wa stuck with him for the rest of her life, pretending to love him. But she couldn't sit alone anymore.

When Erik awoke, he was blinded by a white light and surrounded by strangers in face masks covering their mouths. To say he was disoriented was an understatement. When he asked how long he had been there, they responded with a week. He had vaguely remembered waking up a few times in a similar room but never fully awake. Like a dream.

He groaned and threw off the covers, feeling restless. The throbbing that he was met with was unexpected, and he groaned rather loudly. An attendant came in and insisted that he lay back down. He had to stay in the hospital for another week at least, how could his luck get any worse? He was being taken to the police commissionary after he was released on charges of starting a fight in Paris and for setting the opera house on fire. Meg would definitely never take him now.

All he could think or dream about since he last saw Meg was how she looked when she looked at him. She was so beautiful, and it's almost like his love for her hit him like a ton of bricks. It was so abrupt, he never thought he'd recover from Christine. But now he didn't feel that tightening in his gut when he thought of her, he only felt it when he thought of Meg in another man's embrace. He had ruined his chances with the only person that had loved him back and he was going to regret it for the rest of his life. How could he have been so stupid as to let his defenses fall again?

That night he sobbed as he had when Christine left him.

It had been nearly a month since Isaac proposed to Meg and she was busy planning the wedding that she didn't want to have. She doesn't know why she accepted anymore. She wrote to Rachel, hoping maybe she could help but had not received a reply until this most recent morning but it had not been Rachel's handwriting.

'Dearest Meg,

You've probably already forgotten about me and have moved onto someone else who deserves you more than I. But just keep this in mind, I will see you again.

Forever yours,

Erik Destler'

Who was Erik and how had she seen him before? The handwriting was vaguely familiar and she was desperate to seek out where the letter came from. It had come from the address Rachel provided her with, but why would Rachel sign her letter 'Erik'?

Every day it seemed Isaac fell more in love with Meg and every day it seemed Meg stayed in the same place. She had even come to think of him as family, not as a husband and it was breaking her heart. She shied away from his affections, playing bashful but she knew she could not avoid them for long. She wished it were the Phantom in Isaac's place. If only secretly in her mind.

Erik sat anxiously at the jail waiting for his imminent release. He had sent Rachel a letter to send to Meg and had no idea if it delivered or not. He had sat in this jail for three whole weeks on false charges until someone had finally paid his bail. Someone anonymous so he had no one to thank, little did he know it had been Madame Giry with some of the money he had given her.

A guard finally approached him and unlocked his cell, leading him out into the harsh sunlight that he still had not grown accustomed to. The mask had been lost in the fight and he felt rather naked without it. He felt as though everyone was staring, and judging. He quickly made his way back again to the carriage house and ordered a carriage to Meaux as quickly as possible.

Half an hour later he was on his way to see Meg and he had never felt more anxious in his life. The feeling was right down in the pit of his stomach and he felt as though he was going to be sick.

He pulled the hood up on his cloak some hours later when they approached the mid-sized city of Meaux. The sun was setting and the only thing he could think about was the ballerina. It was an unusually cold night that late spring night and he felt chilled even under his cloak.

It had taken all but an hour to find out where Meg Giry was staying but eventually found his way to the House de Meaux. He entered and asked the woman who approached him if he may see Meg.

"I'm so sorry Monsieur, she is out with her fiancé." The woman with the thick French accent declared. Erik's eyes couldn't help but widen.

He had come all this way, wasted so many days thinking about her, thinking about their future to find out she was engaged to be married. It felt like Christine all over again, and the tightening in his chest returned. He exited the house, unable to stand there any longer and sought out somewhere he could be left in peace. Until he was stopped by a carriage an the pale beauty he had so wish to see came out with a fake smile plastered upon her face.

Meg came home from another outing with Isaac, feeling more and more like they should not be together. She had too much thinking to do. Was Erik the Phantom? Was he finally trusting her with his name, though she would probably never seen him again?

As she thought this she thanked Isaac for the evening and exited the carriage. She had forgotten her cloak and it was colder than it should have been for being the beginning of May. She saw a tall dark figure standing outside the carriage, frozen to the spot. She thought she had been imagining things.

"Erik?" Her small voice called out into the night. The figure turned, he eyes were red and he had no mask. It was The Phantom! "Erik!" She ran to him, embracing him as tightly as she dared.

"Meg, oh Meg, don't ever leave me again." He sobbed. She sobbed for him. How long had he been waiting for her?

"Meg, who is this man?" Isaac asked, Meg turned around to face him, her eyes wide. For once, the one who always had something to say, was speechless.

A/n: I'm soooooooooo sorry I forgot about you guys for so long! Ever since I got my job they started working me like crazy and then I haven't been on my computer almost ever.

So, Here's my next installment...I know it's a cliffhanger and I apologize but I'll try to update again hopefully Sunday.

Anonymous reviews:

newbornphanatic: I know, I wouldn't either, but, story progression, thou art a heartless b!tch.

Thanks for reading!

Good? Bad? Let me know!