"The Reunion"

It was the summer of '88. Cathy and her friends, Beth and Theresa were getting really excited. They had just graduated high school and were taking their graduation vacation to Orlando, Florida to attend a KISS concert. This is the first time they had traveled out of state by themselves and they were really looking forward to having some independence. They flew down on Thursday and after taking a tour of Epcot Center on Friday, Saturday they were more than ready for the show that night.

Cathy had been through a rough couple of years. In '87, she lost her voice teacher, Mrs. Lenora Bennett. Mrs. Bennett had been Cathy's voice teacher since she was about 8. Cathy had always dreamed of being a singer and Mrs. Bennett shared that dream with her. Mrs. Bennett had been an opera singer who had a full and wonderful career, but always wanted to come back and teach music and voice in her hometown. Cathy was one of her most prized students. Mrs. Bennett had found out that she had terminal cancer about 6 months before, but told no one. She didn't want to live out the rest of her life hooked up to machines. In fact, no one knew she had cancer until she took sick about 2 weeks before her death. Cathy visited with Mrs. Bennett at her home while she was bedridden. Mrs. Bennett told Cathy to never give up on her dreams and that she would miss her, but would be watching her and would be in her heart. Cathy took her death very hard. She also lost her interest in singing. Her mother had found her another voice teacher, but she just didn’t feel comfortable with him. He was much more strict and stern and didn’t care anything about getting to know her, he just wanted to earn his money and be on his way. She just never felt she could find anyone like Mrs. Bennett. Later that year, she had started dating Jon. She had wanted to date him for quite some time and was thrilled when he asked her out. They dated for about 2 months when he started making moves on her. Cathy resisted. She had been in a terrible relationship when she was 15 and the guy took her virginity. She hated the experience and had vowed not to have sex with any other guy until she got married. She told this to Jon and it didn’t sit well with him at all. He tried sweet-talking, to no avail, he tried bullying her, calling her a tease and prude, but she didn’t give in. She really wanted to have sex with Jon, but she was inexperienced and was afraid of having another repeat of what had happened when she was 15. Jon finally dumped her and it broke her heart. She called him and called him but he told her he never wanted to see her again.

Beth and Theresa loved hearing Cathy sing. They would put on KISS albums and have her try and sing over Paul's voice. Cathy did really enjoy singing, but was still not convinced she was good enough to make it as a professional singer, but Beth and Theresa had faith in her talent and ability. They had a wonderful time at the concert. Cathy seemed to be finally forgetting all the sad times in the past and was looking forward to the beginning of her future. Beth and Theresa had met some roadies backstage and dragged Cathy along with them. They all decided to go back to the hotel and have some fun, but Cathy didn’t want to have any part of it, she didn’t feel like being the third wheel. Cathy opted to back to her hotel room. She got some room service and settled down to watch a movie. After about 2 hours, Beth and Theresa knocked on her door.

"Let's go!" was all they said as they grabbed Cathy and shut her door. They quickly shoved her into the elevator and they were off.

"Where am I going?" she asked

"Early birthday present" said Theresa

"Yea, you will love it" Beth giggled.

They put a blindfold over Cathy's eyes. This made Cathy nervous.

"Hey you guys, you know I don’t like the dark" said Cathy getting more panicked

"Its ok, just hang on" they said

When the elevator doors opened, they led Cathy out and to a closed door. Cathy could still see nothing but dark, and hated it.

"Hurry up!" she begged.

"OK, were here" they said

"Here where??"

Cathy heard a knock on the door and the sound of footsteps as Beth and Theresa ran away. She was really panicking now, she started struggling to get her blindfold off, but the knot was tight and it wouldn’t budge.

Cathy heard the door open, and then she felt someone gently take her hands away from the blindfold. Then the hands started taking off the blindfold.

When the blindfold was removed, she cleared her blurry eyes and saw it was Paul Stanley.

Oh my God!! She said to herself. Where am I??

"Hello, you must be Cathy" Paul started, "Jim said you would be coming by"

"Jim?" was all she could manage to say.

Jim was Paul's guitar tech. He turned out to be one of the guys Beth and Theresa had met. They told Jim about Cathy and Jim said he would call Paul and ask him to meet her.

"Please come in" Paul said opening the door for her.

"Thanks" was all she could mutter. Cathy was still in shock.

Paul showed Cathy over to the couch. They sat down and just looked at each other for a few seconds, not sure what to say. They both chuckled. They talked for about 2 hours. There were dozens of questions about KISS that Cathy wanted to ask, and Paul was happy to answer them. Then Paul asked her some questions, when she said he was a singer, Paul asked if she could sing something.

"I don’t know" she started, "I am really nervous..."

"Don’t be," Paul said, "I would love to hear you"

Cathy thought a moment and then began singing "Hopelessly Devoted to You" from Grease, one of her favorite musicals. She tried to sound like Olivia Newton-John, but she didn’t think it worked. Paul seemed very impressed. He said she was good enough to go on to Broadway, but she didn’t believe him.

"You are just being nice" she said.

"Don’t ever think you don’t have talent, Cathy. Don’t ever let anyone put you down. Theresa told me about some of the bad times you have had lately. I know it is hard to believe now, but you will heal and you will go on. Just never forget to believe in yourself."

Cathy looked deep into Paul's eyes as he spoke to her. She couldn’t believe that she was really sitting there talking to him.

After about another hour she had told him about the terrible experience she had when she lost her virginity.

"Why do boys act like that?" she said, trying not to cry.

"The problem is just that, they are boys, they are immature. They are only out for their pleasure, not for the girl's pleasure. They could care less. That is the way they are at that age. I am sorry you had to go through that. You should have been with someone more experienced."

"Oh, like you maybe?" she blurted out, not thinking. She quickly dropped her head in embarrassment.

Paul gently lifted her head and their eyes met.

"Maybe that isn’t a bad idea" he said.

Paul lowered his lips to meet hers. He kissed her gently at first than more intense until they were in a passionate embrace. When they stopped kissing, Paul looked a little flushed.

"I am sorry" he said, "I shouldn’t have done that, I took advantage of the situation"

"No, it was me too Paul. Its just that I haven’t done that in so long that I...."

"Lost control?" said Paul.

"Yea, I guess so, I have to get over this fear I have. My friends have told me how wonderful sex is, and all I can do is ask, 'how can they possibly enjoy this'. My experience was so bad that I wonder if I will ever be able to...."

"Yes, you will, you will, it takes time...and the right man." said Paul

Paul leaned down and kissed her again. His kiss was so warm and soft. She really did want to be with him, but she was scared.

"Stop me...." said Paul under his kisses

"I cant....stop you" said Cathy. She didn’t want to stop him.

Paul led her into the bedroom. He gently took off her clothes. She started unbuttoning the button on his shirt but he stopped her.

"No, let me do everything...let me teach you" said Paul.

Paul laid her down on the bed and gently spread her legs apart. Cathy was very nervous, her mind was trying to chicken out, but her heart wouldn’t let her. He began to enter her, taking it only an inch at a time. Paul watched Cathy's face intently watching for any signs that she might be in any pain. It seemed to take forever, but Paul let Cathy lead the way. He wanted her to discover how enjoyable it could be to have him inside her. He didn’t care how long it took, he would hold out. When he was finally inside her fully, he stayed there a minute, giving Cathy time to get used to the new sensation.

"That feels wonderful, Paul, I had no idea it could feel so good"

"It only gets better from here, hold on.."

He began to move more rhythmatically, listening to each breath she took. She started moving her hips in response to his thrusts, feeling sensations that she had never felt before.

"Ohhh, oh my God, what’s happp......?" she asked breathlessly as she came. Paul came after her and they both lay on the bed motionless for a while.

"Thank you...that is the first time I ever had an orgasm, if that was it was..."

"Yes," Paul laughed, "now do you understand what you have been missing?"

"Oh yea, do I" Cathy said, contented.

The held each other a while longer, until there came a knock on the door.

"Oh no!" said Paul, " I know who that is"

It was Robert, their security manager. He went to the band members’ rooms and removed all the women and escorted them outside, whether they wanted to go or not. His job was to make sure the band got enough sleep before moving on to the next show. Paul knew he had to think of something quick, he didn’t want Robert taking Cathy out of the room.

"Quick, get in the bathroom" Paul said and hustled her to the shower. "Don’t say anything"

Paul disappeared out of the bedroom and went to answer the door. Cathy was too curious; she had to know what was going on. She left the bathroom and went to the door of the bedroom and peaked out. She saw Paul talking to this large man with a beard and a KISS road crew jacket, but she couldn’t make out what they were saying. When the man left, Cathy quickly jumped back into the shower.

"I am so sorry about that, it was Robert" Paul said getting Cathy out of the shower. He explained to her about what Robert was going to do. Cathy let out a huge laugh.

"Looks like I am getting you into some trouble" said Cathy

"Its ok, I am not complaining, but it is getting late and though I hate to do it, I do need some sleep and well frankly, if you are here, I wont get any. Besides, Robert will be back." said Paul regretfully.

Paul watched as Cathy got dressed and he started walking her to the door.

"Again I hate to ask you to leave, I would really would love to sit and talk some more"

"Really, its ok Paul, I was so happy to meet you and talk with you and well, you know....." Cathy said laughing. "I wish I could have something to remember you by."

They both thought a moment but nothing came to mind, then Cathy realized something.

"Hey I got it! Me, Beth, Theresa were going to get tattoos here in Orlando tomorrow. You know, something to tie us together. I was having trouble trying to figure out what to get, but I could get a tattoo of you!" Cathy said with delight. "It would have to be something original though...wait, grab a marker and sign your name on my hip, but sign something that you have never signed before and will never sign again OK?"

"Sounds great to me,” said Paul searching for a marker.

He took the marker and signed her hip on the back right above her hipbone.

"Now, don’t look at it until you get back to your room alright?" said Paul walking her to the door.

"OK, I wont....and Paul......? Thanks again for everything."

"It’s been a pleasure meeting you, angel, and best of luck with everything"

When Cathy returned to her room, she quickly ran to the mirror to see what he wrote. Her eyes filled with tears of joy when she read:

Property of:

Paul Stanley

Years later........

Catherine paced around her apartment, nervously waiting for the phone to ring. She had waited nearly a week for this moment and she was almost frantic. She had tried out for Phantom of the Opera, which would be opening on Broadway in a couple of months. She knew she didn’t really have the experience, but she had done some Broadway shows and some off-Broadway shows, so she felt, that in her late 20's, she was due for a break. She did Grease to rave reviews as not only Sandy, but Rizzo, when her friend, Melinda, couldn’t go on one night and didn’t have an understudy. Phantom was different. It was the big time. She had tried out for Cats, but didn’t make it. It was a disappointment, but after the director told her not to give up, that her break would come soon, she felt much better. Broadway directors didn’t give compliments freely. Now, she was waiting for the phone call. WHY WONT IT RING? She kept saying over and over. Finally the phone rang.

She nearly broke her neck rushing to the phone. It was Melinda.

"Have you gotten the call yet?" Melinda asked

"No, Lindy, what about you?"

"Nothing yet. I am still waiting"

Melinda had a great voice. She didn’t seem to have any trouble getting roles. She had also tried out for Christine in the Phantom. Catherine knew she was going to get it. She had watched her audition and was blown away. Even though her and Melinda were the same age, Melinda had more training and an excellent voice coach. Catherine wondered what she could have done if Mrs. Bennett hadn’t passed away.

"Don’t worry, Lindy, you will get it, you were great. I will just be satisfied with a chorus spot or something like that."

"The director was impressed, Cat, I think you have a shot, don’t give up just yet, OK?"

"Ok, just let me know when you hear something."

About an hour later, the associate director called. She didn’t get Christine. Melinda did. She was thrilled for Lindy, but sad for herself for not getting what she wanted. She asked the associate director what she got and he said that he and the director hadn’t decided. She thought that was strange. He told her to report to rehearsals on Monday.

"That is strange isn’t it Lindy?" she asked when she called to congratulate her, "why wouldn’t they tell me what part I had?"

"That is Broadway for ya, chic, they probably haven’t even decided yet"

"Who is going to be the Phantom?"

"I don’t know yet, they didn’t have open auditions, I think they already have him, but they didn’t tell me anything, I guess I will find out on Monday."

When Monday came, Catherine was very nervous, but anxious about finding out what part she would play. She waited patiently for the director, James to show up. When he finally did, he hustled all the principal players on stage. Catherine's confidence was shattered when her name wasn’t called to be on stage. James came down to her and took her by the hand.

"Catherine, I am very impressed by your audition. Your voice and poise onstage is wonderful. I would have liked to put you in the cast, but as you already know, you don’t have much experience on Broadway. But because I think you have great potential, I have a better spot for you, as Melinda's understudy."

"Melinda's understudy??" Catherine exclaimed, "that’s wonderful, thank you for having so much confidence in me"

Catherine got a real boost. Though she knew that as Melinda's understudy, she might never get on stage, just being one says alot about one's talent. She still gets to rehearse the play and sing the numbers, so that is enough for her. Melinda was an understudy for years and that is how she got her shot, so Catherine felt good about it, after all, if Melinda could make it that way, she could too.

Melinda and Catherine waited patiently for the "Phantom" to arrive. When he walked in, Catherine stood dumbfounded. It was Paul Stanley.

"OH MY GOD!" she exclaimed, "He is going to be the Phantom?"

"Isn’t that Paul Stanley from KISS?" Melinda asked, "yea, it must be, your tongue is hanging out"

"WOW!! I had no idea..."

Catherine hadn’t seen Paul Stanley since that night 10 years ago in his hotel room. She wondered if he would remember her.......

"Paul, this is Catherine Weaver, the understudy for Christine, Catherine, this is Paul Stanley." James said as he passed Paul around to meet the cast.

"Nice to meet you Catherine" said Paul

"Nice to meet you Paul" said Catherine

She was disappointed that he didn’t seem to recognize her, but let out a sigh anyway. She didn’t want to bring up something like this right now anyway. Not even Melinda knew.

The rehearsals went wonderfully. Paul was great as the Phantom and it immediately impressed everyone. Catherine had wanted to tell Paul many times that she had already met him, but she kept it to herself. As rehearsals drew to a close, Brian, Catherine's fiancée finally made it to one of them. He was always busy and cant seem to get away from work to come see her sing. It was always a source of tension between them, but she was happy he was here tonight.

"Is that Paul Stanley playing the Phantom?" asked Brian as they were leaving.

"Yea, isn’t it cool?"

"Why would he do this, it isn’t like he needs the money or anything" he said crudely

That sent a chill down Catherine's spine.

The first 4 shows went great. Paul and Melinda were getting rave reviews for their performance and they were signed on to do at least 6 more. When the cast wasn’t performing, they were in rehearsals, trying to make the show better. Catherine had for the most part avoided Paul. She didn’t mean to, it was just difficult for her to be near him, it brought back too many memories. One day she was reading a magazine on stage waiting for the rest of the cast to come back from lunch. By habit, she was listening to a KISS CD on her portable player. She did this when she was about to go on stage as well. She found it soothing to sing something she knew, and KISS was certainly something she knew well. She was lying on her stomach and as was her routine, started singing to the music. She was singing along with "Love Gun" when she heard some singing with her in the background, she looked up and saw it was Paul.

"Oh, hi..." she said, embarrassed at what a spectacle she had made of herself.

"Hi, that sounds a little familiar"

"Yea, a force of habit is hard to break, I didn’t think anyone was in here"

"I just got back, if I am disturbing you, I can go..."

"No, you aren’t disturbing me at all"

They continued to talk. She unplugged the headphones from the CD player and they began to sing "And Then She Kissed Me" with Paul singing one verse and Catherine singing another verse. After they finished singing about 3 songs, they continued to talk.

"You know, there is something familiar about your singing voice. I have heard it before, but I can’t remember where." said Paul

"Well," Catherine started, not sure whether to tell him, "we met 10 years ago, but I am sure you don’t remember me."

"I have met a lot of Catherines, I dont....."

"We met in Orlando. My friends brought me to your door blindfolded and you...."

"I am not sure, that was 10 years ago."

"I bet this will jog your memory....."

Catherine pulled down her jeans slightly to show her tattoo, the tattoo Paul had signed himself that said, PROPERTY OF: PAUL STANLEY.

"Oh my God! Cathy! I would never forget that tattoo!" Paul exclaimed as they embraced.

"I can’t believe you remembered! It is great to see you again!"

"Why didn’t you say something before? Were you afraid I wouldn’t remember?"

"Yes, I guess so, sorry, I should have said something earlier"

The phone rang early on Sunday morning. It was Melinda and she could barely speak. She had been fighting a cold for about a week, and now she has come down with the flu and lost her voice. Catherine didn’t seem worried, it was 3 days until their next performance and she was taking antibiotics and figured that she would be well enough to go on by then. Melinda isn’t known for missing performances. Catherine knew of only one other time that she missed going on and that was when she filled in for her in Grease, and that was because her father had passed away. She had never been TOO sick to go on. But when Tuesday came and she didn’t come to rehearsal, Catherine got concerned.

James came into rehearsal and made an announcement:

"Ladies and gentlemen, I am sorry to announce this, but, Melinda has come down with the flu and she lost her voice, so she wont be able to perform tomorrow night for our final show."

A hush of concern fell over the cast.

"But not to worry," James said, "We will go on. At Melinda's insistence, her understudy, Catherine will go on as Christine tomorrow night."

A wave of nervousness went through Catherine's body. She had no idea she would ever go on at all, and now, here she is, filling in for Melinda. Everyone knew that the final show always drew the largest crowds.

Paul came over and put his arm around Catherine, sensing her nervousness.

"This is wonderful, you are finally going to get your shot" Paul said.

"Yea, I guess, but it is coming at Melinda's expense"

Paul gave Catherine a warm hug of encouragement, as they prepared for rehearsal.

Rehearsals went well, but Catherine was still nervous. She felt that she couldn’t hit the higher notes like Melinda could and that she would forget the words. Paul was very encouraging. He stayed with Catherine after everyone else had left and kept working with her to make sure she was comfortable with the songs. He helped her walk through the stage and made sure she knew where to be during each number. They worked into the late hours until Catherine was satisfied that she had it perfect and they continued to sing as Paul walked her home.

Time for the performance neared and Catherine was shaking. She was in her dressing room putting on her costume and makeup and she didn’t have her CD player to listen to KISS. She was trying to sing on her own, but she couldn’t remember the words because she was so shaken. How am I going to remember all the numbers, if I cant ever remember KISS songs? She said to herself. There was a knock on her door.

"Come in" she said, her voice cracking.

"Hi, are you ok?" came a familiar voice, it was Paul.

"No, I am so nervous Paul, I cant stop shaking, and what’s worse...I forgot my CD player!!"

"What do you usually listen to?" Paul asked

"Uh, I....uh..I usually listen to...uh" Catherine said anxiously, "I usually listen to Double Platinum"

"Ummm, Double Platinum, well, what would you like to hear?"

"Oh, Paul I didn’t mean for you to sing..I mean, you must be nervous too"

"Yea, I am a little, but what do you think I sing in my dressing room?"

Catherine laughed.

"I guess that would make since. I would love to hear Strutter"

"Do you know how many time I have sang that song?" Paul laughed, "give me something that is a challenge, something I haven’t done in a long time, test me!"

"Ok, hum....ok, sing Room Service"

"Room Service??" Paul asked

"Yea, you know, Dressed to Kill, side 1, song 1"

"Wow! You do know KISS well, ok, Room Service it is, but you have to help me."

Paul and Catherine began to sing Room Service and for about 2 minutes she forgot about everything. She loved singing with Paul. She pictured herself on stage with him, singing with KISS, watching him play guitar. When they finished, Paul gave her a hug and said he would see her on stage, then he left. Catherine was still nervous, but better since she got to sing.

Its 3 minutes to curtain and Catherine is on her way to the stage. She looked through the curtains to see if Brian had shown up. She reserved a front row seat for him, but wasn’t sure he would even take the time to come. Sure enough, his seat was empty. It made her sad to think of all the people who had family there, husbands and kids, and she couldn’t even get her fiancée to show up for one night.

She started to pace again, knowing it would be just a moment and she would be on stage. The overture started and Catherine started to shake again. It’s now or never, she thought. Paul came up behind her and put his arm around her waist. He could feel her shaking.

"Oh Paul, I am so nervous, I cant take it, I am going to screw up out there, I just know it, I...."

"Shhh," Paul said quietly, "listen"

Catherine listened as Paul started singing something in her ear. She concentrated on his voice, trying to hear what he was singing. It was the opening verse to Black Diamond. He was singing it over and over again. She listened intently to his smooth voice.

"..out on the streets for a livin'"

"pictures only begun...."

"got you under their thumb...."

Catherine concentrated on the sound of his voice and her nervousness subsided. He gently kissed her on the neck and made his way to the wings to await his entrance.

By the time Catherine went on stage for the finale, she was quite calm. She felt that it had gone well so far, even though she knew she wasn’t as good as Melinda. When she went out on stage, it was dark; it was her best opportunity to see into the audience. She looked again for Brian, but all she saw was a empty chair, the only one in the audience. She wondered if maybe, but some chance, he had gotten up to use the restroom or something, after all, the finale hadn’t started yet. She was hoping against hope that he would show, that he would take some time out from his schedule and watch her. Paul joined her onstage before the lights went up. He took her hand and smiled at her, knowing her disappointment.

Catherine finally breathed a big sigh of relief, it was over and the cast was coming back onstage for their final bows. Paul walked her up to the front of the stage and left her there alone to take her standing ovation. She felt completely overwhelmed by the support of the cast and the audience. She stepped back and let Paul come to the front to take his standing ovation. She clapped harder than anyone as she watched him eat it up like candy. He surely is a ham, she thought to herself, smiling.

Catherine headed to her dressing room to change clothes. Paul caught up to her before she got there, and gave her a hug.

"You were just great out there" he said

"Thanks, you were wonderful, just wonderful!"

"Are you going to the cast party over at the hotel?"

"I wasn’t going to, I..."

"Please, I want you to come, would you please be there?" Paul begged.

"Alright, you know I just can’t resist that voice and those eyes. I will be there"

At the cast party, everyone was having a great time-except Catherine. She was thinking about Brian, why he hadn’t shown up, where he was. She decided to call him, so he excused herself to one of the bedrooms in the suite and picked up the phone.

Paul was also having a good time, but he couldn’t get his mind off Catherine. He had really gotten to know her over the past couple of months and was having strong feelings for her. He knew she was engaged, and it tore him apart to know she would be with another man. He looked around for her, but she wasn’t there. Has she gone home? He thought to himself. James said she had gone to the bedroom to make a phone call, so Paul decided to go and find her.

Paul slowly opened the door to the bedroom. Catherine was standing on the balcony looking out into the night. Paul noted how beautiful she looked with the moonlight shining around her face. He ached to be near her, to hold her in his arms, but he held out, he knew she needed a friend right now, not a lover.

"Hi," Paul said softly as to not startle her, "are you ok? Everyone is asking about you."

"I am fine Paul" said Catherine, though she didn’t believe it, "really I am. I was going to call and try to find Brian, but he hates being tracked down. He says I don’t trust him"

"Well he said he would come to the show, are you sure he didn’t get delayed, maybe he was in a car accident or something"

"No, I called his best friend, he said he saw him about a half hour ago, leaving a club"

Paul didn’t know what to say. He truly thought Brian was a sorry son-of-a-bitch for the way he was treating Catherine, but all he could do was bite his tongue.

Paul motioned for Catherine to come and sit on the bed with him and he took her in his arms. She sobbed, holding Paul as tight as she could. She loved the way she felt in his arms. She knew she loved him, but they were from tow very different worlds, she knew once the run of Phantom had ended, he would go back to L.A. and that would be that. She thought she would have a better life with Brian. He could give her a home and family, or could he?

"I think I made a mess of your shirt" she said when she finally regained her composure.

"Don’t worry, it is drip dry"

"Paul, I am so sorry..."

Before she could get another word out, Paul kissed her. Memories flashed on that night 10 years ago in the hotel room. His kiss was so familiar, so warm and loving that she couldn’t help but kiss him back. But then Brian crept back into her thoughts. This isn’t fair to him, she thought, as she quickly pulled away from Paul.

"I can’t do this" she said as she got up off the bed, "I am sorry, I just can’t"

"Why, isn’t it time you thought of yourself and your needs?"

"You just don’t understand, I am not going to cheat on Brian, I know he might neglect me sometimes and he breaks his promises and, and...."

Paul kissed her again, but she broke his embrace.

"You have no idea how much this is killing me," she said as she began to cry, "I want you so much, I have loved you for so long, but this isn’t right, once Phantom is over, you will leave me, and I need more, much more"

"And Brian is more?" Paul asked angrily, "look how this bastard treats you, and if you think he will treat you any better once you are married, you are fooling yourself. At least with me you know where you stand. It’s true that I will have to go back to L.A. but that isn’t going to be the end with us. I have thought about you everyday since we started Phantom. There was something strong between us, even 10 years ago. Do you think I just sign something like that for anyone? I did it because I wanted you to have something unique from me. I didn’t need that tattoo to remember you, I did remember. The minute I shook your hand when we first met, I knew it was you. I love you Catherine, I loved you then, and I love you now. Few people get a second chance with love, and by God, I am not letting my second chance go by without a fight."

Catherine stood shocked. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She knew she had to do something, the right thing.

"I owe Brian something, an explanation at least. I know I can’t deny what I feel for you, I have to break this off face to face, it is the right thing to do, please understand that."

Paul walked out of the room, not saying another word. She knew she hurt him, but she had to do it this way. She lay down on the bed and began to cry. After about 20 minutes, there came a knock at the door.

"Sweetie, what happened?" came a whispering voice. It was Melinda, her voice still horse from the pneumonia.

Catherine explained what had happened between her and Paul.

"I understand why you would want to do the right thing," said Melinda, "why don’t you call Brian and go over there right now and get this thing worked out. You know you won’t be able to feel better until you do"

Catherine dialed Brian's number and put it on speakerphone. It rang and rang...

"Hello," came a breathless voice.

It wasn’t Brian. It was a woman’s voice. Catherine started to speak, but Melinda stopped her.

"Hello?" came the voice again

"Yes," Melinda started, "is Brian there?"

"Hang on..." the voice said giggling.

"Yea, who is this?" said Brian, who was also out of breath

Catherine felt her face go red with anger.

"Guess who asshole? You want to tell me who the whore is?" Catherine said, enraged.

"Uhhh...honey, uhh, I thought you were...at the play thing...uhh, this isn’t how it seems..."

"Isn’t how it seems? You bastard!! WHO IS THE WHORE??? Tell me NOW!"

"She is just....ahhh a friend from work, honey really, nothing has happened"

Catherine heard a voice in the background "Yea, nothing in the past 5 minutes!" the voice giggled hysterically.

Catherine had had enough; she could believe that this was happening. But, instead of crying, she started laughing. A wave of relief came over her. She couldn’t believe how incredibly easy he had made this, now she wasn’t the bad guy. He was.

"I can’t believe I wasted time with you," she started, "thank you for making my decision so much easier."

"What do you mean?" said Brian

"What I mean is, were done, over, finished!"

Brian was astonished by her boldness.

"Oh, and Brian, by the way, go to hell" and with that, Catherine hung up the phone.

Melinda and Catherine laughed.

"Well, I think you better go find Paul"

"Oh God, I hope it isn’t too late" she said as she darted out of the room.

Catherine looked around the room, she couldn’t find Paul anywhere. Tonight had been the last performance and Paul would be leaving tomorrow for L.A.

Her heart sank when James told her that he had already left.

Catherine went around to all the cast, asking which hotel Paul was staying, but no one knew. Because of security reasons, Paul had told no one where he was staying. Catherine was left in the dark. She had no idea how to get in touch with Paul. James gave her the phone number that Paul had given him in case he needed to be reached. Catherine thought this might be a huge breakthrough. She called the number, but didn’t get an answer. She began to cry again. She had lost her chance to be with Paul. Stupid, stupid stupid, she kept saying to herself over and over. She went home in despair and cried herself to sleep.

The next morning, the phone rang. It was Melinda.

"I have some news about Paul" she said

"What??"

"Yes, after you left the party, Buck showed up, you know, the stage managers assistant? Well, I asked him if he knew where Paul was staying and he said no."

"That is the news? I could get that anywhere!"

"Quiet, I am not finished, anyway, he did say that he overheard Paul talking to someone on his cell phone before last nite's show and he said he was flying out of New York today at 12:15."

"What airlines?" Catherine asked feeling encouraged

"I am not sure, Buck said he thought it was Delta"

"There are a billion gates for Delta! Which one?"

"He didn’t know, that’s all he could hear Paul say"

"Well, at least that is something, I will have to try there"

"Are you going to the airport?"

"Yes, I have to try and find him, there seems to be no other way"

"You better hurry chic, it is already 9:45!

"Oh my God! I had no idea!" Catherine said running to get showed and dressed.

She just barely made it to the airport by 11:45, thanks to a quick driving cab driver. Needless to say, he got a good tip.

Catherine looked at all the gates leaving at 12:15. There were so many she didn’t think she would be able to make it. She found the Delta terminal and went to the desk. The clerk found the gate of their only flight to leave at 12:15, but it would take a while to get there, it was in another concourse. She ran as fast a she could dart in and out of the crowd. It seemed it would take forever to get there, but she finally made it. No one was there, the plane had already boarded. She grabbed a flight attendant.

"Is this the 12:15 flight to Los Angeles?" she asked exasperated.

"Yes, ma'am, it is taxing to the runway right now"

Catherine looked at her watch, 12:20. It was too late; Paul was already on the plane. She watched with tears in her eyes as the plane came down the runway and took off. Totally defeated, she headed home.

Catherine finally stopped crying as the taxi pulled up to her apartment building. She opened the door and went inside and proceeded up the stairs to her apartment. When she reached the top and turned toward her apartment, something she saw stopped her. It was Paul! He was sitting on the floor in front of her door waiting for her. She slowly walked over to him, unsure of what to say.

"What are you doing here?" she finally managed to ask, "I thought you flew back to L.A."

"I couldn’t do it, I couldn’t leave this unfinished"

"How did you know where I lived"

"I got in touch with Melinda, she tried to call you but couldn’t get an answer, then she told me you were going to the airport to find me, so I came here and decided to wait. I hope that’s alright"

"Yea! That is all right! Please come in" she said opening the door.

They went inside and Paul sat down on the couch. He admired her apartment. It was small but nice and tidy. He got a kick out of the KISS posters on her wall and KISS dolls on her shelf.

Catherine sat down next to Paul.

"Did Melinda tell you everything? About last night?" she asked nervously

"No, she didn’t, what happened?"

"After you left I got to thinking about what you said, what I said, everything. Melinda suggested I call and talk to Brian right then and not put it off, so I did. Well, a woman answered the phone."

"Oh no!" Paul said laughing, "who was it?"

"I didn’t know, Brian said it was someone from work, but it was obvious what they had been doing, they were both out of breath and drunk. So, needless to say, I told him to go to hell."

"You must have been upset"

"No, not really, you see, he did me a favor. I had been subject to so many breakups, some by letters, some by phone calls, but no one had ever just came to me face to face and been honest with me. I knew it was over with Brian the moment I kissed you, but I felt I owed it to him to tell him honestly face-to-face that is was truly over. But when it hit me that he had been cheating on me, I felt that I didn’t owe him anything, so I ended it right then and there, no regrets."

"So, it is officially over then?" Paul asked, but he really knew the answer.

"Well, how about this for an answer?" Catherine asked.

Catherine took off her engagement ring and went into the kitchen, Paul followed. She got a hammer out of the drawer and took the ring and placed it on the floor, she took the hammer and smashed the ring with it. The 2-karat stone turned to dust. Paul and Catherine stood over the shattered ring, laughing.

"Can you believe it? It wasn’t even real!" she exclaimed.

"Never mind that" Paul said as he took Catherine in his arms and kissed her.

They walked into Catherine's bedroom arm in arm.

The soft moonlight shined through the window as Paul and Catherine made love. They wrapped themselves around each other, promising never to let go. Their bodies pressed against one another in a passionate embrace, their hearts beating as one. Paul caressed Catherine's face, as she looked deep into his eyes. She knew at that moment, she would never love anyone as much as she loved him. The world for them no longer existed. Their moans and cries of passion filled the quiet room as they climaxed together. Exhausted, they held each other close, listening to the soft sounds of each other’s breathing. He had never felt so much love for a woman before; she was the one, and the one he had always dreamed of. He fell asleep, running his fingers through her hair and watching the moonlight dance off of her face.

The next morning, Paul went out to get a morning paper while Catherine fixed breakfast. They were both anxious to see the reviews of Tuesday nights show. The reviews were favorable. They seemed to be very complimentary of her performance, even though they mentioned her lack of experience. One particular critic, Simon Crossdale, gave her a great review, calling her performance a "breath of fresh air in a stale environment".

James called to congratulate her, so did Melinda and the other cast members. Finally, it seemed that she was finally getting the recognition she deserved. She thought back to Mrs. Bennett. How proud she would have known that Catherine had followed her dreams and had become such a success.

"What’s wrong?" asked Paul

"I am ok, I was just thinking about Mrs. Bennett and how much I wished she could have been here to see this, I owe everything to her...and to you."

"To me?" Paul asked astonished

"Yes, you remember what you said to me when we first met, to never let anyone put me down and to always believe in myself? Well, I always remembered that. I was really down on myself at that time, Paul, and what you said really made since. I decided then and there I wouldn’t let anything stand in the way of my dreams, and I haven’t. When I got home from Orlando, I enrolled in the School of Fine Arts and spent 3 years there before coming here to New York to pursue my career."

Paul was moved; he had no idea that what he said had made such an impact on her.

"There is something I have to do....when are you going back to L.A.?" Catherine asked

"We are starting on the new album in 4 days, so I need to be back by then, why?"

"There is something that I promised I would do, and it is about time I did it, will you come with me?"

"Where?"

"You'll see"

Paul and Catherine climbed up the small grassy hill. At the top, the sun shined over a large tombstone, making it glisten like glass. Her eyes filled with tears as she walked over to the grave. It was Mrs. Bennett's final resting place. She had chosen it herself when she learned of the news that she was going to die.

"She chose this place because she said the sun always set so beautifully here, and she was right" she said, unable to control the tears.

"It is truly lovely, but why are we here?" asked Paul

"I know it may sound silly, but when I visited Mrs. Bennett when she was dying, she seemed to know I would make it on Broadway and she told me that when I did, to take the playbill with my name in it and bury it with her. She said that if I did that, she would be able to read it in heaven. It has taken me 7 years, but I have finally come to fulfill her final wish."

"That isn’t silly at all, sweetheart" Paul said as he took the small digging trawl and started digging a small hole.

Catherine took the Phantom of the Opera playbill and rolled it up and tied it with a purple ribbon, Mrs. Bennett's favorite color and placed it in a small brass box. She then placed the box in the empty hole, along with 2 yellow roses. Paul placed the dirt back in the hole and packed it tight.

"Mrs. Bennett...Lenora..." Catherine started, "it took me long enough, but I have finally done it, thanks to you and your encouragement. I am honored to have known you and to have been your student, I hope to make you proud, as proud as you have made me......"

She couldn’t continue, she was so overcome with emotion. Paul held her tight as they watched the sun set over the hill.....together.

*****The End*****