The Phantom of The Phantom of the Opera

Chapter 18: It's Been Too Long

"Mari," Matt mumbled through tears of his own, "Mari, I don't know what to say."

"I missed you so much," Mariah sniffled.

Matt hugged her tightly, feeling for a moment he had made a grave mistake. As he looked at Mari, a wave of sickness came over him, a migraine pressing against his skull. "I need to sit down," Matt said hoarsely, breathing weakly.

"Are you alright?" Mari asked worriedly.

"I don't know," Matt mumbled, holding a hand to his head as a wave of nausea overcame him. "My head's killing me," he moaned with a nervous little laugh that was equal amounts terror and confusion.

Mari put a hand to Matt's burned cheek and smiled gently. "It's been too long."

"It has," he said with a small smile. "I never left you, though, Mari. None of you. I've been watching every second since the accident."

"Cath's told me all about your life here. I'm really glad you found her. She needs someone like you. She's very damaged, as you can probably tell," Mari confided. "She really loves you."

"She's fixed me in so many ways already," Matt sighed shakily. He attempted to steady his hands, but found that they shook violently no matter how much pressure he applied. Why was seeing Mari upsetting him so much? Who was this name that kept resurfacing in his mind? "Mari, this relationship...it isn't going to be easy."

"I know," she sighed.

"Listen, I know I have no right to ask you...We were never close. I was never close with anyone back then, that I can recall...But she's the one, Mariah, I can tell," Matt pleaded earnestly. "I need someone to look into buying a birth certificate. The kind people use for aliases, for stillborns, dead children, etc. I won't have a fake marriage license. I won't make her hide in the dark here."

"Birth certificate? Matt, what are you saying?" Mari questioned.

Matt bit his lip nervously. "I don't want to live down here anymore, Mari."

"So, are you going to propose to Cath or something?" Mari asked with confusion.

"No," Matt said after a moment's hesitation. "Nothing like that yet. It's much too early. Just, she's shown me there's more to do than sit here moping."

"I understand...Just, when the time comes, be delicate. She feels that everybody she gets close to leaves her," Mari confided. "Her sister, her mother, her father..."

"Trust me," Matt sighed, "I know the feeling."

"Just be gentle with her, okay? She's my best friend. If you break her heart, I'll break your legs," Mariah threatened with a laugh.

"Woah, easy," Matt laughed. "We just had dinner. Besides, you know me. I'm fortunate if I don't pass out."

Mariah laughed. "True...Well, I should go. Catherine will be waiting for you." She wrote something down on a piece of paper and handed it to Matt. "That's my number. Text me if you need anything else. I'll look into the birth certificate."

"I'll only make her smile, I swear," Matt promised solemnly.

"I'm sure," Mariah nodded. "I'll see you soon, Matt."

"Bye Mari," Matt sighed, falling backward into the pillows on the couch.

—————

Catherine sighed and sat down at the piano bench as she waited for Matt. "What's taking him so long?" She thought impatiently, pressing a few keys on the piano. A few keys turned into a few chord progressions, which turned into the melody of one of her favorite songs. She began to sing the chorus as she played, "Without you, I feel broke like I'm half of a whole. Without you, I've got no hand to hold..."

—————

Matt groaned as he turned over, listening attentively to the music that echoed through the halls. He gave a broken laugh and a small smile. "Just a sad song, Catherine Daei?" He forced himself sit up, still feeling like he could fall over at any second. Quietly, he entered the room and watched Cath play.

After Catherine concluded, she asked, "How did your little reunion with Mariah go? And did I hear her say 'birth certificate'?"

"It went well. I can trust her now," Matt sighed.

"Did I hear Mariah say 'birth certificate'?" Catherine repeated.

"I was thinking about playing a bit of opera ghost with the managers today," Matt said with a smirk.

"Never mind," Cath sighed. "Guess the rest of my afternoon's free then. I'll call Mari and see if she wants to come over."

"Just take it easy," Matt reminded. "You've got a show later."

"But where's the fun in taking it easy?" Catherine pouted.

"Cath, if you don't want to be having a melt down over your voice being gone later, I'd suggest you sass me a bit less," Matt stated with a sigh.

"Yes, teacher," Catherine teased. "I'm going to leave so that I can escape further lecturing. Bye."

Matt gave a small laugh and chucked a guitar pick at her as she exited.

"She gone?!" Josh shouted from the other room.

"Yeah, she's gone," Matt laughed.

"Devil woman," Josh sputtered angrily, busting out of his room and heading to the fridge. "Did you hear what they called me?!"

"No. What did they call you?" Matt asked, playing dumb.

"I'm not even gonna repeat it!" Josh pouted.

"No, really. I'd like to hear this."

Josh's face fell pale and he slammed the door closed. "Were you never gonna give me another word, Matt? After all we've been through? Not a single word to let a buddy know you're alive?"

"What do you mean, Josh? You're my best friend," Matt reminded. "Me being with Cath doesn't change that."

"Nope," Josh said, popping the P. "I've seen this happen to hundreds of guys. First, it's staying at her apartment, then it's shopping with her, then you get married, she brainwashes you, you go on a no carb diet, and God knows I won't stand for that, Matt."

"Please. Like Catherine would marry me," Matt scoffed. "Have you seen me?"

"Yes, an apparently burned, PTSD victims gets all the girls, while Gamer Boy is left to court Princess Peach!" Josh moaned, slamming his head against the table.

"We've gotta get you a girlfriend," Matt sighed.

"I have a girlfriend," Josh stammered. "And she's the best I'll ever get! She told me so herself."

Matt rolled his eyes. "Caroline isn't your girlfriend, she's our meal ticket. You need a real girlfriend. Josh, all you are to her is a servant."

"If I was her servant," Josh said haughtily, "then why would she let me kiss her on the cheek once a month?"

"Dude, your relationship is toxic. The sooner you realize that, the happier you'll be. Please, just trust me on this," Matt said, putting a hand on Josh's shoulder.

"Matt," Josh sighed, "she might be the best a guy like me is gonna get, slave or not. I'm not exactly Don Juan here."

"I don't know. Mari seems to like you."

"Yeah, right," Josh spat. "The whole loathing me thing seems to be going pretty well for her."

"You really have no idea how girls work, do you?"

"A little blob-ish, hungry alien sits inside their brain with a remote control and makes my life miserable," Josh sighed. "Other than that, it's one of life's greatest mysteries."

"Okay, you need coffee," Matthew decided. "You've lost it."

"Coffee," Josh murmured, sounding a bit delusional. "Sounds heavenly."

"Yeah...you need a real girlfriend."