The One With The Bathroom Door
By: Jana~
Chapter Two
*****~*****
--Joey walked in the door, dragging the bathroom stall door that Chandler had dumped outside… "Dude! Why are you throwing this away?"
Chandler looked at his friend and roommate like he was insane… "The question is, why did you bring it back?!"
"Cause! We can maybe use it for something!"
"Like…?" Chandler challenged him…
"I don’t know! Maybe we can use it as a bathroom door!" Joey offered, as if the suggestion were super obvious and Chandler was an idiot for missing it…
Chandler scowled in disbelief… "Because the bathroom door with the lock on it, that's attached by the hinges to the door jamb isn't barrier enough while you're peeing?"
Joey rolled his eyes… "Fine then. Maybe we could use it like a sled. It's big enough! We could both sit on it together!"
"And I can just see the obituary now… 'Two idiots die while trying to ride a bathroom door down a snow-slicked hill'." He shook his head and stood, heading for his room… "Night Joe…"
"Is something wrong?" Joey asked, stopping Chandler from reaching his bedroom…
"It's kinda been a bad night…"
"Yeah, but hey… she was a nut job, alright? And at least you had Ross' underwear on…"
Chandler's gaze remained on the carpet as he leaned against his bedroom door, listening to Joey rationalize why his night wasn’t 'all that bad'.
"…and now we have this cool bathroom door!"
"That's great Joey, but Suzy wasn’t what I was talking about."
"Oh?"
"Something else happened… when I got home…"
He chuckled… "Did Monica razz you or something?"
Chandler winced… "Worse…"
"Worse?" Joey asked, confused…
Chandler knew he would never guess on his own… if he wanted to talk about it, and get it off his chest, he would have to just come out with it… "We… kissed."
"Whoa! What?!"
"Her date sucked too, and we got to talkin', and, well, I kissed her."
"Oh my God, Chandler! This is huge!"
"I know…"
"Then what happened?"
"Nothing much. I groped her a bit…"
"You dog!" Joey grinned widely as he gave Chandler a congratulatory slap on the back… quickly though, he realized Chandler didn’t seem happy… "What's wrong? Isn't this a good thing? Isn't this, like, your dream?"
Joey knew about Chandler's feelings for Monica. Originally, Chandler had vowed never to tell another living soul, but he saw a spark between Joey and Monica when Joey first moved in, and he got drunk out of frustration and let it slip.
"The dream was that she would stay."
Comprehension washed over Joey's face… "Oh, wow. Sorry…"
"Yeah."
"So, what happens now?"
"Well, hopefully, we go on being friends…"
"You think it'll ruin your friendship with her?"
"God, I hope not."
"Well, what did she say when she left?"
"That she didn’t think it was a good idea to cross out of the friend zone."
"Well, so, it sounds like everything will be alright…"
Chandler didn’t respond…
"You don’t think it will be?"
He shrugged… "I don’t know… but I know how I felt when she was in my arms." He sighed… "That’s what I want."
*****
--Rachel walked into the livingroom from her bedroom… "Hey Mon…"
"Hey Rach…" Monica's attention was obviously diverted…
"What's up with you? You're not still mad at me for turning your purse into 'handbag marinara', are you?"
Monica looked at her abruptly… "No, why?"
"You seem upset…"
"No… not exactly…"
Rachel waited, but when Monica didn’t elaborate, she sighed… "Ok, are you gonna tell me what's wrong? Or am I gonna have to pour salsa in your next purse? 'Handbag mexicana'!" she joked, smirking…
Monica smiled weakly, then sighed… "Something happened…"
Rachel's expression grew serious and she joined Monica on the couch… "What? What happened?"
"Chandler and I…" she hesitated before stating it aloud, knowing once she did, it would change everything… "We kissed."
Rachel shot up off the couch… "What?! What do you--? What does this mean?"
"We were bummed about our dates, and leaning on each other for support. Like we do a lot!" she added… "But, then, I don’t know… we just ended up… kissing."
"Oh my God, Monica, this is huge!"
"I know! And now I don’t know what to do!"
"Well, what do you want to do?"
"I don’t know that either."
"Was he good at it?" Rachel asked as she rejoined her friend on the couch…
"Oh yeah. Very good."
"Well, do you want to… maybe--"
"I don’t know!" Monica replied sharply, anxiously, not giving her a chance to finish the question…
"Calm down a sec, Mon. Ok? Let's just think a minute."
"I've been thinking non-stop about nothing else since it happened!"
"Ok, ok. Calm, remember? Breathe." She shook her head, then patted her on the shoulder… "You liked the kiss?"
"Yes."
"And, you like Chandler…"
"Of course! But--"
"And neither of you are involved with anyone?"
"I know, but, he's my friend! What if it didn’t work out? I could lose him as a friend! I can't chance that…"
"Ok, but, you could gain so much more! He'd be more than a friend! He'd be a boyfriend. A lover. Maybe a husband…"
Monica seemed to consider Rachel's words for a moment, then shook her head… "But, this is Chandler we're talking about! Commitment-phobic Chandler! I'm sure he's not interested in that with me. He was just… sad. Lonely. It woulda just been sex…"
"You're sure?"
She hesitated… "Pretty sure."
"Then, maybe it's best to just remain friends."
"Right."
Rachel stood… "Then, there's your answer. Feel better?"
Monica was still in her own world, but snapped out of it as Rachel's question found her attention… "Yeah. Sure."
"Good. I'm going to bed now…"
"Weren't you in bed earlier?"
"Not really. I was just reading…"
"Oh. Anything good?"
"One of Nora Bing's books…" she smiled sheepishly… "Night."
Monica smiled in return… "Night. And Rachel?"
"Yeah?"
"Don't tell any of the others about this?"
"Ok."
*****~*****
--Monica busied herself with the chore of cooking for her friends… Rachel already there, and Joey joining them after smelling the food from across the hall…
"Morning…" Joey greeted casually, sitting at the table expectantly…
"Good morning Joey…" Rachel acknowledged him… "Where's Chandler?"
Monica discreetly took interest in the answer to come…
"Shower." Joey replied as he poured himself a glass of orange juice…
"Good morning!" Phoebe chirped as she entered the apartment… "I think today is going to be a great day!"
"Why's that Pheebs?" Rachel asked…
"I found a penny, heads up! And then cute neighbor guy made eyes at me!"
"Hello children…" Chandler walked through the door with confidence and grabbed himself a cup of coffee. He barely heard his friends greet him as he and Monica shared looks…
"Chandler…" Joey snapped his fingers as if a realization just hit him… "While you were in the shower, that Doug guy called."
"My boss?" Chandler clarified with a note of ridicule…
Joey nodded… "Yeah." He immediately lunged for a plate of french toast Monica had placed on the table, forgetting all about the phone message…
Chandler watched him for a moment, sharing looks with all their friends except Monica, who avoided eye contact with Chandler…
"Joe? The message?" Chandler reminded him, his exasperation showing through slightly…
"Oh!" Joey exclaimed after a moment's confusion… "He said the meeting was pushed back till tomorrow."
Chandler sighed and joined his friends at the table… "So, I guess there's no rush on getting to work…" he smiled… "Mon, how about some of your awesome eggs?"
She scowled at him for a moment, then slammed a pan down on the stove… "I'm not your personal chef, Chandler! I'm making french toast! Eat french toast or go to IHOP!"
Everyone, including Chandler just stared at her, confused as to why she had lashed out in that way. It only took a minute for Rachel to catch on… Joey, a moment longer than that. Phoebe had no idea what was going on… Chandler knew, but was as shocked as anyone there, her outburst totally unexpected…
When Ross walked in on complete silence, he immediately knew something was up… "Hey guys, what's going on?"
"Good question…" Phoebe replied, looking at Monica…
Monica turned away and began cooking once again… "Sorry. I'll make you eggs if you want…"
"No, it's ok. French toast is good…" Chandler replied softly, the knowledge that he had ruined everything between him and Monica obvious at that moment…
"Why are you mad at Chandler?" Phoebe asked, not wanting to dismiss the possible issue as quickly…
Monica squirmed… "I'm not."
"Did you use her roasting pan to soak your feet again?" Ross asked with a chuckle…
Chandler forced a slight smile, but it was obvious to everyone that something was wrong between the two friends…
Ross noticed the strain on Chandler's face… "What's going on?"
Chandler glanced at Monica, who briefly looked at him before looking away…
"I have to get ready for work…" Monica blurted out, heading for her room…
"I have to go too…" Chandler stated as he stood and headed for the door, his stance showing his stress…
"Chandler! Wait!" Phoebe called out to him, but he didn't stop… and the door shut firmly as he disappeared out it…
"What was all that about?" Ross asked, and Phoebe just shrugged…
"I might know…" Joey spoke up, and Rachel's eyes grew wide, startled by his admission…
"You know?" Ross asked skeptically…
"You know?" Rachel repeated…
"Yeah." Joey nodded once… "I think Chandler's in love…"
Rachel gasped, and Phoebe and Ross just looked confused…
"With who?" Ross asked…
"Monica." Joey answered quietly… but not quietly enough…
"What?" Monica asked as she walked out of her room…
"Chandler's in love with you?!" Ross announced loudly…
Monica stopped dead in her tracks… "What?! Where'd you get THAT from?!" She immediately looked to Rachel…
"Don’t look at me!" Rachel defended herself…
"You knew too?" Joey asked, shocked…
"You knew?" Monica pointed at Joey… "How did you know?!"
"So it's true?" Phoebe jumped in… "He's in love with you?!"
Monica shook her head… "I didn’t know about 'love'…"
"Then what are you talking about?" Ross asked curiously…
"Last night…" Monica sighed… "We kissed."
"You and Chandler?" Ross asked with a tone of disgust…
"You and Chandler?!" Phoebe repeated the question, but with a much happier tone…
"Yes." Monica admitted, then turned to Joey… "Joey, what did he say to you?"
"He told me what happened…" Joey shared, shifting uncomfortably…
"Then, when did the 'L' word come in?" Rachel asked…
"He's always felt this way." Joey replied… "Since as long as I've known him…"
"Oh my God…" Monica whispered…
Ross exhaled sharply, exasperated… "Chandler kissed my little sister?" he muttered to no one in particular… "I have to go now…" he stated calmly… "I have to go kill Chandler…"
Monica grabbed his arm and forced him down in a chair… "Just cut it out…" She grabbed her purse and jacket… "You're not killing anyone…"
"Where are you going?" Rachel asked as she watched Monica throw her coat on…
"To talk to Chandler…"
"Talk to him?! Or play tonsil tennis with him?!" Ross blurted out…
Monica scowled at him, prepared to take him on in a verbal yelling match, but Rachel waved her away… "We'll talk to him. You go…"
Monica nodded and was out the door before another word could be said by anyone…
TO BE CONTINUED
Thanks for reading!