TOW A Twist of Fate

Chapter Seven

"So…" Monica began tentatively as they walked – no longer hand in hand – slowly down a path in the park.  She felt Chandler's eyes turn to rest on her face as he waited for her to continue, but courage momentarily failed her.  She slipped back into silence without comment, relieved that Chandler did not press her.  There was so much to say – to ask – but she wasn't yet sure if she wanted to hear the answers.

            She stole a quick look at his face, noting the fact that his brow was furrowed in deep thought.  She wanted to ask him what he was thinking about, but she was afraid that he would return the question…and she couldn't put her thoughts into words.  Her mind was going in a thousand different directions, making it difficult to sort out even one coherent thought.

            She sighed softly, regretting it immediately when Chandler once again turned a concerned face in her direction.  She returned his gaze reluctantly, her eyes begging him to break the silence.  He swallowed hard, then pulled a hand out of his pocket long enough to gesture toward an empty bench a few yards ahead of them. 

            "We could sit down…" he suggested after a slight hesitation, instantly questioning his own wisdom.  It might be harder for them to talk to each other if they were sitting down facing each other.  But he had to say something. 

            "Okay," Monica agreed, her voice echoing his uncertainty.  She hadn't been prepared for this to be so difficult, though she wasn't sure why she had thought it would be easy.  They were still virtually strangers – strangers that had shared a few hours with each other during a storm a few years ago.  Now she was asking herself why she had never anticipated the awkwardness in the hundreds of scenarios she had created for herself over the months.

            She was glad that he ushered her ahead of him as they neared the bench.  It would be up to him to sit down next to her – as close or far away as he deemed appropriate.  Such a trivial thing – but she was glad the decision was up to him. 

            Their knees touched as they both turned slightly to face each other, and after a moment of hesitation, Monica reached out to reclaim his hand.  Chandler immediately squeezed hers in return and smiled as he lifted his eyes to her face.

            "This is going to sound corny, but…well, given our history, I think it's appropriate for me to ask.  Given that you are Ross's sister, can I assume that your last name is Geller?"

            Monica nodded with a chuckle, shaking her head at the absurdity – not of the question but of the situation.  Here was the man she had believed herself to be in love with – had quietly dreamed about for two years – and they still hadn't managed to properly introduce themselves.

            "Yes.  Monica Geller."

            Chandler grinned, and gently pulled his hand away from hers so that he could hold it out.

            "Chandler Bing."

            She laughed again as she shook his hand, holding onto it just tightly enough so that he could let go if he wanted to.  He didn't.

            "Isn't it strange?  That we never met over the four years I lived with your brother?"

            "Yeah, it is.  But I'm kind of glad we didn't."

            "You are?" Chandler asked, feeling slightly hurt as doubts came flooding back.  "But what if – "

            "It doesn't matter, Chandler," Monica interrupted, not wanting to talk about the fact that he probably wouldn't have given "Ross's Fat Sister" a second thought if they had met years ago.  "We're here now, aren't we?"

            "Yeah," Chandler conceded, his voice softening.  "We are."

            "Chandler…can I ask you something?"

            He nodded, his gaze becoming even more intense as he waited for her to pose the question. 

            "Are you…well, I guess I'm just assuming, but…are you, um, seeing anyone?"

            "No," he answered quickly, shaking his head for emphasis.  "Are – are you?"

            "No." 

            Relief that the crucial information had been given and received made them fall silent yet again as they contemplated the implications.

            "I thought about you," Chandler admitted quietly, his eyes focused on their intertwined fingers.  "I wondered where you were, what you were doing…if maybe you were thinking about me, too."

            "I was."

            "Really?" Chandler looked up, surprised by the statement.  "What were you thinking?"

            "Mostly I was wishing I hadn't walked away from you that night.  Thinking that we might have been together if I hadn't been so…crazy.  I'm not sure what made me so sure that we would find each other that night.  I've regretted it every day since then."

            "You believed in fate," Chandler told her, resisting the urge to get up and do a dance in response to her words and her obvious longing.  "And you believed that if we were really meant to be together, then we would find each other."  

            "I quit believing after that night," Monica admitted, her face down.  "You were right.  We control our own destiny."

Chandler used one finger to lift her chin, forcing her to look up at him.  Hit by a sudden surge of courage, he leaned forward to kiss her tenderly, wrapping his arms tightly around her body.  After a moment, he pulled away and leaned his forehead against hers, smiling broadly.

"I was wrong.  Call it what you want, but after tonight, I don't think either one of us can deny that Fate was behind us all along."

Rachel watched as Monica flitted nervously around the kitchen - shifting the dishes on the table and inch or two, then checking on the chicken in the oven, then back to the table to rearrange napkins or cutlery.  Just watching her was making Rachel tense, but she fought the urge to tell her roommate to calm down.  She knew how important the evening was to Monica, and the last thing she wanted to do was give Monica a reason to lose it. 

"Monica, honey," she said sweetly, "is there anything I can do to help you?"

Monica glanced up, looking almost surprised to find Rachel still sitting in the living room.

"Oh…no.  Everything's ready, I guess.  I just wish Chandler would hurry up and get here."

"So do I," Rachel muttered under her breath, making sure Monica wouldn't be able to hear her.  Over the past week, Chandler Bing had proven that he had the ability to keep Monica sane – a trait Rachel admired in any man.   And with the meeting of what Ross had jokingly christened the "in-laws" scheduled to occur in just a few minutes, Monica was in rare form.  Personally, Rachel didn't see the big deal.  Chandler's roommate was joining them for dinner so that the two "sets" of friends could meet each other, and Phoebe would finally have the chance to meet the now-famous Chandler, but it wasn't like the Queen was coming for dinner.  Still, Rachel appreciated that it was a big night for Monica, and she was determined to be supportive. 

A quick knock sounded on the door – a knock both of them had already come to recognize as Chandler's.  Monica's tense face broke into a smile as she rushed to open the door for Chandler and Joey, welcoming both of them in with a calmness the belied her recent anxiety.  Chandler gave her a quick peck on the lips, then they both turned to Joey and Rachel.

"Rachel, this is Joey Tribbiani.  Joey, Monica's roommate Rachel Green."

"Hi," Rachel greeted him with a bright smile, holding out her hand with just a trace of nervousness, the result of Joey's starring role on her favorite soap opera. 

"Hey…" Joey returned, giving her a charming smile.  "How you doin'?"

"Rachel," Chandler stated loudly before Rachel could respond, giving his roommate a warning look, "is Monica's brother's girlfriend." 

"Oh," Joey said sheepishly, giving Rachel an apologetic smile.  "Sorry."

"Umm…it's okay," Rachel replied, confused by the exchange.  "And I'm fine, thank you."

"Where is Ross, by the way?"  Chandler whispered to Monica as he hung up his jacket and turned to pull her close for a hug and another quick kiss.  "I'm assuming you didn't tell him too much about Joey, or he would be here defending his territory."

Monica smiled in the direction of Joey and Rachel, who were already animatedly discussing "Days of Our Lives", and then turned back to Chandler. 

"He called a few minutes ago to say he was on his way.  Carol was running late picking Ben up – traffic delay – so he was running behind.  He and Phoebe should be here any minute."

Right on cue, the door opened and the final two guests made their entrance together – Ross making a beeline for Rachel as soon as he spotted her on the couch with Chandler soap-star friend, and Phoebe standing back to give Chandler the once-over.  She had made no secret of her displeasure over being the last one to meet Monica's new boyfriend, despite countless claims that it hadn't been intentional.  Phoebe's bruised ego made her reaction to Chandler even more unpredictable than usual…and that was Monica's main concern about the evening.

"You must be Monica's Prince Charming," Phoebe greeted Chandler, her voice edged with just a challenge Chandler didn't understand. 

"And you must be Phoebe," Chandler replied, with what he hoped was a charming smile.  Monica had warned him that Phoebe was a little…different…but he wasn't prepared for the look she was giving him at the moment.

"Well, that would make sense, wouldn't it, since I'm the only one in the room you haven't met yet."

Lost, Chandler glanced at Monica, who was busy glaring at Phoebe.  Catching the death look from Monica, Phoebe rolled her eyes and held out a hand to Chandler.

"Okay, I won't give Monica a heart attack.  Rachel told me Mon was afraid I would make a scene, so I thought I'd scare her a little bit.  It is nice to finally meet you, Chandler," Phoebe finished with a smile, smirking in Monica's direction. 

"You too, Phoebe," Chandler replied with a smile, shaking her hand warmly.  "Monica has told me so much about you.  I was really looking forward to finally meeting you in person."

Monica gave him a grateful look, while Phoebe beamed over his words.  Chandler gave Monica a quick wink, then guided Phoebe in the direction of the living room, where Rachel had already introduced Ross and Joey.

"Phoebe, I'd like you to meet my best friend, Joey Tribbiani."

Joey stood up, a smile already on his face, and winked at Phoebe.

"Hey, how you doin'?" he greeted her, and Chandler had to laugh at the puzzled look that crossed Rachel's face.  No doubt they would all grow accustomed to Joey's signature greeting in a very short time.

"Just great," Phoebe answered with a flirty giggle, dipping her head shyly.  Chandler shook his head and left them to each other, deciding that they didn't need him to chaperone.  He headed back into the kitchen, where Monica was putting the final touches on dinner, and put his arms around her, careful not to startle her and make her burn herself – or worse, send a knife flying through the air. 

"Smells great, babe.  Did I tell you how happy Joey is that I'm dating a chef?"

Monica smiled in response, putting the last couple of rolls into the basket before she turned to face him.

"I'm pretty happy that you're dating a chef, too," she teased, leaning forward to kiss him lightly.  "Everything okay in there?" she asked, nodding toward the living room, where her friends were actively entertaining Joey.  Everyone was smiling, she noticed with relief. 

"Uh huh," Chandler replied, dropping a kiss on her nose.   "I think they hit it off."

"Yeah," Monica agreed, smiling as she surveyed the scene.  "I think they did."

"Mon, there's something I want to talk to you about.  Do we have a few minutes before dinner?"

"Yeah…" Monica answered, giving him a suspicious look.  "What is it?"

"Come with me," he told her, grabbing her hand and leading her out into the hallway.  He closed the door behind them and turned her to face the door across the hall. 

"Joey and I talked to your landlord today.  Your neighbors are moving out, and I thought…well, if you wanted us to, Joey and I were thinking about moving in."

"Moving in here?" Monica questioned, her eyes bright.  "Right across the hall?"

"Mmm hmm," Chandler clarified, studying her face.  "What do you think?"

Monica leaned wordlessly into his arms, reaching up to kiss him tenderly before she responded. 

"I think this is right where you should be.  Here with me."

Chandler smiled down at her, tightening the circle of his arms around her. 

"So do I.  And so does Joey.  He's already planning to let you cook him breakfast every morning."

Monica laughed, then gave him another lingering kiss before they turned to go back into her apartment.  She smiled at the sight of their friends together in the living room, thinking that they looked like one big happy family.  She squeezed Chandler's hand, and looked up at him in contentment. 

"Yeah…I think this is going to work out just fine."

That's it – the end!  A little corny perhaps, but oh well…it's done.  Sighs in relief.  Now I have to come up with some ideas for "Not A Day Goes By"…hmmm. 

Hope everything had a lovely Thanksgiving!  Of course, I spent the whole weekend with a sore throat – which I still have – and I'm completely miserable.  So if you thought this chapter was bad, just chalk it up to that.  ;-)