Hello, everybody! I'm MissCyraf, and, like many people on this site, am crazy-obsessed with "The Phantom of the Opera". I guess I should also say that I have kind of a weird writing style, I hope it doesn't offend any of you English majors out there, haha. This is my first phan-fiction, or any fan fiction for that matter, so please be easy on me. I do not own any of it, except my original characters. All in all, I loved writing it, and would really love any sort of constructive feedback, so I can improve. Thank you to all who read this, and thank you especially to my wondrous beta, MrsTiffanySparrow. I have a Deviant Art account if you would like to check it out, http://misscyraf. and thanks again! Now, on to Chapter One!

MissCyraf

1

"My True Dream Man…"

I glanced at the calendar. The 19th of September. It had been exactly four months from today that I walked in on my fiancé with another woman. For the past week I had been trying to prepare myself for today, trying to construct an emotional buffer to block the shot of pain that I knew would burn itself through my mind and body every time a memory of him would surface. Although I had made myself forget as much as I could about him and us, memories would still come though uninhibited. The date—the 19th—seemed to always be a catalyst, forcing me to remember, and forcing me to sit through shot after shot docilely. I wouldn't let those around me see the burn, I couldn't. That would only make them pity me, which would be worse than the memories if not the actual event. Anyway, it had been four months. Years in my life had seemed shorter, and for probably the millionth time, I wished life had a fast forward button so I could just move on. Or an erase, so I could just forget him entirely. It would be like he never existed. I made the mistake of telling my best friend that once; she had just clucked her tongue, shaking her head. " No, you'll be glad this happened eventually. Look at it like a learning experience. Remember: 'what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger'".

I had hated her for that. A low, boiling loathing that I reserved for few, especially Josh. Unlike my hate for Josh, though, it had all but dissipated, leaving me with that line. "What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger". The line had run through my head at least a dozen times a day; it was practically my new motto.

Inhaling deeply as if the air were strength, I ripped the calendar from its flimsy thumbtack installment in the cork of the bulletin board, tossing it onto a chair across the room. It missed, landing upside down on the floor. Shrugging, I dismissed it, not wanting to touch it, like it carried the plague between its pages. Perhaps emotional plague? Heh. Bad joke. At least my sense of humor isn't completely gone...

Grabbing a file for a gerbil named "Sugar", I strode from the back room into the waiting room, plopping myself down behind the reception desk. I worked at a vet office part time to pay my way through grad school, or at least try to prevent as much debt as possible. The waiting room was completely empty, silent except for the occasional bubbling from the fish tank in the corner. My brief wave of good humor evaporated as I glanced around the room; everyone was avoiding me. I knew why, they knew all week that today was coming; Dr. Murphy suggested I take the day off. Dorothy, a nurse, even joked last week that the "Josh week" was worse than when I was on my period, and that she would probably have to take a vacation when both occurred simultaneously. I was not amused, but shrugged it off. Rapping a pencil against the desk, I flipped through the file. "Sugar" was "acting sluggish" and had an appointment with Dr. Murphy at 3:30. I glanced at the clock—3:22. Usually owners and patients arrived fifteen minutes early, but Mrs. Emerson, a gerbil hypochondriac who visited regularly, was generally five to ten minutes late. Bored by the file, and knowing I had some time to kill before I had to do anything, I flipped out my iPod, stuffing the little earbuds into place. The iPod on shuffle, I was pleased by the first song that came on, "Rockin' Robin"—my favorite "oldie". Heartened by the contagious beat and by the fact that it didn't remind me of love, I allowed myself to dance in the chair, knocking my pencil against the desk to the beat. I'm alone, what the hell…I began to sing along. I couldn't fight the urge that years of choir in school had built.

"Go Rockin' Robin 'cause you're really gonna rock tonight…tweet tweet tweleleet!"

"Um, hello? Gwen? " The nervous voice cut through my melodic warbling. I spun the chair around, seeing that Mrs. Emerson, for once, was on time. 3:30 on the dot. Wanting to smack myself in the face, I resisted the compulsion, and tore the earbuds out of my ears, not even bothering to turn off my iPod.

"Mrs. Emerson! I'm sorry, I must have gotten carried away. How's Sugar?" I stood, leading Mrs. Emerson to the examining room.

"Oh…she's still tucked in her box, she won't even come out for treats...I think she has pneumonia." I nodded helpfully, wondering if gerbils could even get pneumonia.

"Well, here we are. Please have a seat, and Dr. Murphy will be in shortly." I closed the door as she seated herself. My eyes immediately met the clock. The appointment wouldn't last long, and then I could leave. Dropping myself into my wheelie chair again, I replaced my earbuds. The song that it was currently playing instantly made my stomach flip as a recognized it. It was one of Josh's songs, off of a cd that he had made for me for Christmas the first year. I thought I had gotten rid of all this shit! I practically slammed the off button, vowing to remove it ASAP. Now officially in a bad mood, I doodled on a notepad to keep brain from conjuring memories that I did not want conjured. I was right about one thing, Sugar's appointment only lasted about fifteen minutes. Her heels clipping on the linoleum floor, Mrs. Emerson made her way to the desk, taking her checkbook out.

"Everything alright?" I asked as sunnily as my mood would allow. She flashed me a relieved smile, as always.

"Oh yes, everything's fine. Sugar's perfectly fine, just getting a little old…" She turned her attention to the gerbil, making little clicking noises at it. I decided that I'd rather not interrupt her with a response. Her payment made, she clipped out, all the while clicking at Sugar.

"Hey, Gwen, will you get everything all set in here?" Dr. Murphy called from down the hall. I checked the room, swiping off the counter with a disinfecting cleanser. Switching off the lights and locking the room, I called a goodbye to the good doctor and Dorothy. Dr. Murphy peeked from behind a corner to return my call, winking at me in his charming way. I allowed myself a silly smile as I grabbed my iPod and coat. He was the main reason I wanted to work here, he was incredibly cute. Charming, sweet, not at all evil like all other men, I had decided. Too bad he was at least fifteen years my senior and married.

Slipping my iPod into my coat pocket, I gazed at my doodle. I chuckled to myself as I tore the page away, crumpled it, and shoved it into my other pocket. "The Phantom", one of my favorite characters with his psychotic genius mind and terrifying face. . I liked the recent movie, the music the most, but often enjoyed reading Leroux's novel more. I had read the book long before seeing the film, and had always thought of the character as a villain. A crazed genius that lives in a hole with a face so ugly he can't live in the normal world... My true dream man…hah! Gross. My smile caused now by my own ridiculousness, I strode out into the early autumn wind.