Ok so this is my first fanfic. So you can guess that there might be some mistakes. I hope not too many though.

Second, that this story will be AU. Eli will be two years older than Clare. I think I know where I'm going with this story, but that all depends if it's good or not. I hope that it's original enough, but so far I don't think I have read any other stories here that are similar my idea. But I'm scared that I could be wrong. Anyways, it's loosely based off of the phantom of the opera, but references won't show up til' later.

A couple of years ago, there was a family. The family consisted of a loving couple by the name of Bullfrog and Cece, and their son, Elijah. They were a colorful bunch of people, always warm hearted. Live for the moment was their motto. Bullfrog had always loved music, he was a retired shock jock, very well known. Using his savings and the support of his family, he had invested his money on a small quaint theater. It was a huge success. Every weekend, the theater held the most amazing shows in Toronto. Business was always thriving as people came routinely. With the crazy performances that the owners had lined up, it was always the place to be on Friday nights.

Bullfrog and Cece loved their little investment with all their hearts. What they loved even more, was the idea of their son one day being able to take over. The Goldsworthy theater would run in the family forever, they would say. It would pass on to their son, and (hopefully) to his kids, and so on. Because of that dream, Elijah's parents were always seen looking for a cute little girl in the audience to set him up with. It was embarrassing. How could it not? He was only nine at the time.

Any parent would have loved to have their daughter marry him. Not because he's a wonderful young man or anything. Oh no that was not the case. The boy hardly spoke to anyone, and if he did, he would only talk about music and dark literature. He was a strange little thing. Then again, what do you expect with the spawn of Bullfrog and Cece? Still the strange boy was handsome enough, and the real reason why any parent would love him as an in-law? The fact that he will eventually own the grand theater.

The theater was the gem of the town. Everyone came, and loved the entertainment. And it was all thanks to that wonderful family.

So one can imagine what would happen if said family were to vanish one day…

There was an accident. A fire to be specific. No one knew how the fire started, but it happened. As their house burned up in flames, people watched and cried as they waited for the firemen to save them. After what seemed like forever, the house came down, and a shadow walked out of the smoke. It was one of the firemen, and he was carrying the little Goldsworthy child. He was only ten years old when that happened.

The whole town wept for the loss, and for the unfortunate boy. From that day on, it felt as if the city was clouded with sadness. A little bit of their happiness left.

The town made a proper funeral weeks later. The son didn't attend the funeral, no one could blame him. It was too much to handle for a kid.

No one dared take over the theater after that day. It wouldn't seem right. Besides, they thought that no one could ever fill the spot that the Goldsworthy family had left. The town agreed to not tear it down, and leave it as a memorial to the deceased family.

The boy was placed in an orphanage after the tragedy. It wasn't so bad. Kids there were pretty nice and so were the workers. It was nothing like Oliver Twist's pictured it. The only depressing note he saw was that everyone around him kept being adopted. He was happy for his friends, but saddened to see more faces, more people he loved, leave.

It didn't last long though, the next month a family took him in. It was a family outside of town, they were also nice, and had a daughter around his age. Within that month, he packed up his suit cases and the last bit of memory of the Goldsworthy family was gone. He ,like the other adopted children, promised to write to the orphanage. He kept that promise for two years. Then the letters just stopped. No one but the owners of the orphanage knew about the letters, until a nosy reporter appeared and investigated for his story "The Last Goldsworthy: Where is he today?".

The letters at first were just about how the family was great. As the letters continue on, his friendship between his 'sister', Julia, deepened. It was noticeable, by the way he wrote, that he held a small crush on the girl. Later the small crush turned into an obsession, at least that is how the reporter stated it. The last letter harshly mentioned how his new family started to hate him because he was 'too close' to his non-biological sister. They could tell he was mad, the pen was pressed so hard against the paper that it made several holes.

Months later, the orphanage got a call from the police saying that Elijah Goldsworthy was missing. They emphasized that they needed him for questioning and to call them back if they hear anything about him. They never called back after that. So no one knew if he was still being searched for.

That was it. The reporter only submitted that, and left the rest to the imagination of the readers. Although it wasn't investigated well, it was still a page turner for people.

Rumors had circled among the community, that the boy ran away, with or without his sister, from his adopted family. That he became crazy with his memories and had to be put in a mental institute. That he died and now haunts the theater he and his parents loved so much. In the end, every rumor left a bad taste in people's memories. The Elijah kid was now the number one topic to avoid. They did not want any bad tones to taint the fond memories of the theater.

After another year, people had already moved on. Children forgot all about the whimsical plays performed in the theater and replaced it with television. The theater was filled with cob webs and dust. And lastly, Elijah Goldsworthy had disappeared off the face of the earth.

Clare

Clare Edwards stood outside of her house with nothing but fifty dollars in her pocket. She knew it wasn't even close to the amount she needed to live on her own, but she didn't care. All that mattered was running as far away as she possibly could.

The Edwards family had to deal with reality as they found out that their eldest Edward's daughter had been raped. On top of that harsh memory, she became unstable, accusing teachers of sexual harassment, running off with random boys, and attempting suicide. It was an emotional time, watching Darcy through the glass windows of the hospital, seeing her so unhappy. Eventually, her life started to turn back around. She got a good supporting boyfriend, all her friends loved her once again, and she felt reborn. Her family was so proud. The Edwards parents began to trust her more and their family relationship was slowly repairing itself.

Thankful for her change, Darcy felt that she had to give back to the world. A year later, Darcy, left for Africa. At first, with the absence of Darcy, the family felt empty. It was as if a big part of them left, and now they only had each other. Without the distraction of their daughter, the two began to grow an inner hatred to each other. Within a month, the parents have discovered their different interests. Another month passed, and they started sleeping in different rooms. Another month, they began to argue about the most tedious things. Another month boundaries were made. A week from then, fights became more heated. It seemed like the Edwards house was always in a chaotic state. It was as if Darcy was their whole world, and as soon as she left, nothing was there.

Nothing.

That's why she was running. Perhaps if her family had even considered her, remembered to pick her up from school, actually spoke to her…No, either way she was tired of the emotional rollercoaster's in her life. Because of them, she was embarrassed to show her face at church, they all whispered about them. They all wonder when Clare herself would finally crack. Clare knows they mean no harm about it, because they are right. Eventually, being with her family will drive her down a horrible road. She had to leave before it's too late.

The idea came to her when she was reading her letters from Darcy. Darcy sympathized with her on the current situation with her parents, she always did. Clare knew it was just pity though, she couldn't understand how it felt. Darcy never saw the pain, because she was the distraction for the anger. If she had stayed (and stayed sane), she would felt depression like Clare. But no, instead she did the luckiest thing in the world: Left. And you know what? She was happy.

Clare wanted that happiness. She craved it. A life away from stress…

She remembered a time where her family was happy. At a younger age, her family was perfect. A loving mother and father who instilled the love of theater to their children at a young age, by taking them to the local plays. A family that never missed a church event. A perfect little unit that would go to the park every Saturday and play on the swings with her, no matter how ridiculous. A time before her sister went crazy, before the theater was abandoned, before her parents started to hate each other, before the park turned into a cemetery. A time where she mattered.

Her feet continued to run across the neighborhood, leaving her parents home fighting. It was dark, and street lights illuminated the side walk. The sun had already set, two hours ago, but she kept on going. Her feet had lead her to the city, shops were about to close, and here she was alone and scared. Where was she to go?

Walking around, she noticed a boarded up theater. Memories filled her head. Her family had always gone to the theater when she was little. Every Friday night. She was around eight when her parents took Darcy and her to watch the plays. Those were the days, her parents loved each other and the whole family looked forward to the shows. They all bonded. After the show, they would always socialize with the crowd, everyone loved the Edwards family back then. So lively and sweet they were.

Clare can't remember exactly why the theater house ran out of business, she was too young to understand. All she knew about the place when it closed up was that it became 'haunted', her parents began to bicker with each other, and Darcy became unstable.

Maybe it was destiny that her body lead her to the one place in her life were she was truly happy. It was like a sign, through those doors, she could relive that happiness and no one would bother her. With out hesitation, the young girl made a grab for the double door handles and pulled. The rusty doors were difficult to open, she wasn't going to give up though.

"Open!" Her voice was desperate. "…please, open…"

Her head rested on the door. She couldn't get in. She sighed.

Who were you kidding, Clare. Running away. I should just turn around and go back home before anything bad happens…maybe my parents stopped fighting by now and started to worry about me…

Anger swelled up in herself. She knew that wasn't the case. They go on for days, even to the point that they both leave the house angry leaving Clare unattended.

"OPEN!"

With that last thrust, the doors had made a loud creaking sound and the windows began to shutter from the new breeze.

She found a new home.

Eli

A sixteen year old boy was laying down in the middle of the stage, listening to someone trying to break open his doors.

It was normal to hear the rustling sounds of his theaters door. Lots of teenagers, stupid ones especially, like to dare each other to go inside the infamous theater. Heck, sometimes people just came in for a quick make out session. Using the equipment left over from the previous plays, Eli would frighten away intruders. It was fun at first, but he got bored of the process. That is why two weeks ago (in the middle of the night) he decided to board up the whole place.

People truly believed that there really was a ghost haunting the very halls. Some say it's the souls of the previous owners, others say it's the boy's soul. Only a few logical people in the town believe there is nothing inside, just folk tales that are meant to scare children.

No one ever thought that it was a living teenage boy inside.

The pounding of the door echoed throughout the theater. Whoever it was, they were sure to give up eventually. They usually did.

Ever since the young boy locked the theater from intruders, the place had never been disturbed. Cob webs were set everywhere. Empty popcorn bags left untouched in each row. His parent's favorite balcony seats collected dust. The props from previous acts consumed the control room, or what he called "his room". He loved it all. Even the pale colored gum that was stuck under each seat. It was his memories of a happier time. And no one should ever take that away from him.

The boy was content in living in his dusty past.

His concentration was broken when he heard something. Something very unfamiliar.

Someone opened the door!

The boy scrambled to get up, his eyes wide in shock. After a second, the sixteen year old ran towards his bedroom which was located in a control room above the stage. There, he locked himself inside and turned on all the cameras and sound system. He noticed the time flashing on one of the screens.

Who the hell comes to an abandoned theater at eleven…

His eyes adjusted to each screen to find the culprit. It was a girl.

A cute girl…

She stood outside of the entrance and tried her hardest to close the doors. They were too rusty to close so easily. Once she accomplished the task she pressed her petite body against the doors and slid to the floor. Exhausted, she just held herself at that point.

Eli had no idea why he was watching her for so long. Usually, before he had closed up the theater, when people busted in, he would work his magic on the sound system and scare them away within five seconds. Maybe he was rusty?

Or maybe the way she looked caught his interest. The usual idiots who came into his home all dressed alike. Guys would have on baggy jeans and stupid sideways hats with price stickers still on. The average girl had too much make up, wore ditsy tight skirts, and torn up shirts. This intruder was different, no make up, no tight skirts. She wore clothing that fit her, and covered all the appropriate places. Simple blue jeans, simple floral button shirt, a simple blue cardigan, and a simple little cross on her neck…

His train of thought was broken for the second time by another noise. Is she crying!

Her cries were soft, but loud enough for the theater to catch the sound.

A sigh escaped his throat. He hated seeing this girl cry. Maybe it was how she was dressed, so innocent, or that he was tired and wanted to sleep, but it was depressing and/or annoying hearing her cries. Conflicted, he ended up deciding to spare the girl a heart attack and send her on her way.

He switch on the microphone and moved the tab labeled "harmony" and "dual" slightly up. The microphone was placed right in front of his mouth. I sure am turning into a pushover…

"Hey."

The sobbing young girl's head shot up. "Who's there?" She whimpered out.

He smirked to himself. "Sorry, but are you knew in town? How can you not know?"

The blue eyed girl gained some confidence as she responded to the ceiling , "I don't believe in ghosts."

Her voice surprised him, she had some anger in her. It was strange, he felt it was sort of adorable. "Don't believe in ghost, huh?"

She crossed her arms and held a sad attempt of an intimidating face. He studied her. She seemed a little familiar.

"Fine, I guess you caught me," He smiled to himself ",I'm not a ghost." Her arms started to loosen her grip. ",I'm really a 30 year old psycho who has a thing for blue eyes."

Her face paled close to death and stumbled to get up. His laughter filled the room. He noticed her whole body was pressed against the wall trying to feel for something, most likely the door knobs. She sure is paranoid. "I'm only kidding, geez…you sure can't take a joke." Her eyes narrowed.

Clare

"I'm sorry I don't have a twisted sense of humor." She spit back.

The voice laughed again. Goosebumps ran throughout her body. Ghost or not, the voice coming from no where can leave anyone freaked out.

"Listen lady, as much as I enjoy this conversation with you, I think it's best you go back to your parents."

Her face fell.

She finally grasped the handles of the door and attempted to pulled them open. She regretted coming in, her conscious was right. What was I thinking. That I could find happiness in here… only a crazy person can believe that…

Her spirits were crushed at this point. Here she was being kicked out of the only place she held precious memories, by a 'ghost'. I'm doomed to dwell with the sorrows of my family… Tears started to form around her eyes again. Rain drops were heard as she started to step into the cold world outside.

Eli

The monitors showed the feminine figure turn away from him. Sitting back at his seat, he felt relieved. It was for the best that she left. If she stayed, someone would eventually find him. And he couldn't have that know could he?

His eyes wondered to another screen, the picture showed a few raindrops cover the lenses. He also noticed a couple of thugs right across the streets. There were three, and around the age of eighteen, probably high school drop outs. They were always standing around the corner and up to no good. They enjoyed stealing from the weak, selling some drugs, and taking young girls to the alley way to…Fuck my life.

"Hey!"

She was on the first step of the stairs and paused.

"I changed my mind." He mentioned quickly, " you can stay if you want" What the hell am I saying…

The red head scoffed, " Why, so you can torment me more?" she continued to walk. "No thanks."

The young boy spoke with a hint of annoyance, "Fine, if you want to go, leave, but I have to warn you, while you still might think I'm crazy, I know for a fact that there are some idiots out there that love to hurt innocent girls!"

She was frozen in place as her eyes went straight across the street and saw the men standing outside.. Damn it. If she doesn't close those doors they'll see her!

"What do you expect me to do?" She whispered. On the monitor, Eli saw some head turn toward the direction of the theater. Most likely towards the young girl. They slowly made their way forward.

"Close the doors!"

Clare ran back inside and held the door. With all her strength she swung the double set doors shut, and backed up. Voices from the outsider were heard.

"Hey girlie, why don't you open up the door? Haven't you heard it's haunted?"

"Yeah, you don't want a ghost to take advantage of you…"

"I don't know about you guys, but I wouldn't want to see that cute face suffering. Let's help her out."

They attempted to barge into the facility as Clare backed up into a wall, frightened. The teenage boy hated these guys. They always popped up drunk into his beloved theater trying to trash it. Eli knew what to do, he has dealt with them before. He always managed to scare them out.

"Go upstairs and turn to the left door and lock yourself in," She stood paralyzed, "Now!"

With that the young girl did what she was told, and just in time, as the door were busted open.

Not only did these guys break into his home, but now they have him playing hero. This day sucks. She was so close to leaving! These guys just HAD to be there at this time…

"Hey little girl, we rescued you, where's our reward?" One of the men said with a sick smile.

Looking at the cameras, he noticed the small girl obeyed him and held herself. And with a heavy sigh he readied his control room.

Time to start.

Is it obvious that this is my first fan fiction?

I hope that I caught some interest with the first chapter, even though it was really hard for me to start.

Reviews would be appreciated.