The Haunted Manor

Chandler looked up as the girls entered the apartment, a scowl marking his face. Up against his ear was none other than the cordless phone, a loud, breathy voice carrying across the room as he listened to her, blue eyes wary, face bitter. Monica approached her fiancé with a concerned expression, lips sealed shut as he finally opened his mouth to speak.

"Really, mom, I just don't think this is a very good idea... plus, I don't have the money... I've got a weeding in six months, remember?"

Monica strained to hear Nora Bing's voice over the phone, her blue eyes meeting with Chandler's. Monica knew all too well, that the last thing Chandler wanted to do, was spend more time with his mom. She wished he had had a better childhood, but... with the parents he was blessed with, it wasn't much of a surprise that he didn't. "Chandler, I'm begging you. You're the last person I know that hasn't booked the long weekend... and plus, I'm your mother. Don't I deserve a break now and then?"

Chandler rolled his eyes, voice just as bitter as his face looked. "Mom, you just bought a mansion across the Atlantic Ocean. I don't think you need a break from the exhausting life you're living."

"Well, you know what," she added brightly, her voice still trying to persuade him, "you could always bring your friends... how many are there, five, six of you? And money's not a problem, Chandler... you're my son, and if you'd be so kind to help me with this, paying for your way could be my perfect way of saying thanks. Come on, kid... you're really saying no to a long weekend in Wales?"

"Wales? Like, in England?" Phoebe screeched from across the apartment, her own hazel eyes sparkling. "Ooh, Chandler, let's go, let's go! What are you waiting for?" Chandler winced, then slid his hand over the mouthpiece of the phone in order to address his excited friend.

He rolled his eyes, muttering, "Yeah. My mom bought some ancient manor over in England, last week. She says she's only got this weekend to move in all her shit, but, she's been planning on going on a book signing instead. I guess, her son is the last resort to have help her." He sounded so bitter, and Monica leaned forward to brush her fingers against his cheek, offering him a quick kiss before he turned his attention back to Phoebe.

"Well I would love to go," Phoebe admitted, her hopeful smile never fading. 'I never got to go to London, remember?"

Just then, the door to apartment twenty opened, and in strolled Joey Tribianni and Ross Geller. Joey's ears perked up at the sound of Phoebe's voice, his own dark eyes glittering as he glanced around the room in excitement. 'You'd love to go where? Are we taking another trip?"

Phoebe grinned back at him, jumping up as he approached her. "Yeah! Wales, in England! Chandler's mom bought a fancy house there, she wants us to help move in."

Joey gasped in excitement, brown eyes landing upon Chandler. "Can we go? Dude I am so down, I wanna..."

"Chandler! Chandler!" Any excited chitchat fell back to silence as Nora Bing screeched over the phone, weakly attempting to gain her son's attention. As soon as the room lay stalk still she continued, her voice dripping with happiness. "Seems like your friends are all for it, Chandler... so what do you say? Will you help me move in?"

All eyes were on Chandler Bing for just a few moments, before he heaved a sigh and nodded his head. "Yeah, fine, we'll go. Let me know when you've got our flight tickets down." The small living room erupted in cheers as all six friends glowed at one another. Their trip might've been on the spot, and hardly planned at all, but all were still excited to escape the bustling city of New York. As much as they loved it, they also loved spending time together... even if it were away from the beloved city.

Chandler couldn't help but smile as he watched all five of his friends break apart, scattering about in order to bag up all their things. At first he'd been reluctant to accept his mother's request... of course, he did love staying home in New York, and it was true, with his pending wedding with Monica, he didn't have about any extra money left to spend... but if his mother really needed his help this weekend, and was willing to go to these extremes for him to get there, the least he figured he could do, was accept. After all, he would have his friends there, they would undoubtedly have a good time.

"Hey, sweetie. Wake up, babe." Chandler forced his eyes to crack open, the dim of evening meeting his wary eyes. After hours of flying he was now experiencing severe jet lag, and for the last hour and a half, he'd been sleeping in the car right up against Monica, forehead pressed against the window. Now he lay in her arms, her own blue eyes gazing back into his. "Morning handsome," she whispered softly, pressing soft kisses against his lips, "we're here."

Nora Bing had surprisingly met the six friends at the English airport, her entire attire screaming that was, in fact, an erotic novelist. While the others did their best to keep polite even with the promiscuous woman, they all knew that deep down, she had really scarred Chandler with her overpowering sexual nature... Monica felt the worst for her husband, and hated seeing that look in his eyes, when he had to force himself to look away from her. Chandler wished he could respect his mother, but Monica knew he just couldn't.

He smiled weakly at her before pulling open the car door, Nora climbing out from the driver's seat. She turned around to face her son, but suddenly stopped in her tracks - Monica, who Nora found to be absolutely stunning, by the way, was pressing her son gently up against the car door, fingers raking through his sandy hair with love burning her blue eyes. When she leaned forward to gently graze his lips with her own, and when she watched Chandler pull away with a sincere smile, she felt a sudden burst of happiness swell her heart. She knew very well, that she wasn't the world's best mother... she knew that she would never come close to anything of the sorts. But at least seeing some woman make her son happy... just seeing him have a smile on his face, and love in his eyes, let Nora know that his life had no been completely lost, in retrospect to her own actions.

Chandler pulled away from Monica, his eyes still speaking of love, and devotion, before he finally turned to face his mother. The seven were standing outside of a pair of enormous, ancient gates, the iron creaking in the soft breeze. Rain clouds gathered above, tiny droplets beginning to fall from the sky as they all stood together, all too speechless, to speak. The manor behind these gates, wasn't just a house... no, this place was built as a mansion. A huge wooden porch wrapped around the entire base, old patio furniture littered about the front. The door was huge itself, a brass lion knocker nailed to the front, instead of a modern doorbell. A brick chimney sprouted from the tin roof, and Chandler felt his breath being taken away, as he gazed up at it. The house itself must've been at least five stories high, though Nora had mentioned it only had two floors, and a cellar.

Nora smiled at him, her eyes still resting on Monica, before she slowly handed over the keys to unlock the gates, swaying in the blowing wind. She glanced up at the darkening sky, storm clouds rolling in faster than she'd ever expected them to. "It's storm season, by the looks of it. Make sure all the windows are bolted shut, same with the doors. Stay inside the house," she told him sternly, and he rose an eyebrow in response. "Just listen to me, Chandler," she muttered before he could crack a joke, her face fallen serious. "Now, the furniture is already pretty much set up, all you really have to do is unpack the boxes. Thanks again, sweetheart, I'll call your cell, as soon as I get to Chicago."

Chandler nodded vacantly, closing his fingers around a small ring of keys, some looking absolutely ancient, others looking new, even shiny. "Yeah, no problem, mom. I'll talk to you later." Nora nodded her head one last time with a forced smile, before she slipped back inside her Porsche, and turned the ignition to drive away. The friends waved their goodbyes as the blue paint disappeared over the empty pastures surrounding them, the English countryside vacant as ever. Chandler turned back to the house, gates still creaking along with the wind.

"Well, we should take a look at this place, shouldn't we?" Ross suggested from behind Chandler, brown eyes scanning along the cobblestone pathway leading up to the front door. Chandler threw him a look over his shoulder, but inserted the rusted key in the padlock chaining down the gates. After a few moments of scarping metal against metal the gates finally fell open, the wind blowing furiously as rain began to fall in sheets from the gloomy sky. Rachel shrieked as her curled locks were instantly drenched with rainwater, mascara running as she bolted to the door. The other five followed melodramatically, each soaked with English rain before they could even turn the second lock, to get inside.

Despite the fact that he hardly wanted to be there in the first place, Chandler couldn't help but admit, as soon as he stepped inside his mother's new home, he knew exactly why she'd bought it. All six of the friends now stood in the grand hall, the floors a polished stone, an enormous white gold chandelier swaying back and forth, twenty feet above. Rubies glittered all about the room, the glass of the windows stained with colour. Huge, full length portraits of dozens of different people, all appearing to be extremely wealthy, were pinned to the gigantic walls. Candles were strewn about the entrance, all burning, all lit... and the fireplace was too, the flickering flames barely seen in the next room.

The six friends explored the main floor of the mansion first. Phoebe had been way too excited to slip back out to dance in the rain, her bare feet squishing in the rich dirt of the enormous courtyard. Magnificent arches were designed as each doorway, and Monica couldn't get enough of the sparkling silver doorknobs, all made of pure metal, pure stone. After roaming about the enormous hallways, they checked out the amazing library, the living room, and even the kitchen... the entire place was so spacious, Monica and Rachel could literally envision themselves living there.

After touring around the first floor, Joey suggested they all explore the second... the floor that most likely, housed most of the bedrooms, if not, them all. "So, how many rooms does this place have?" Rachel asked as they stepped inside the first, a bedroom right beside the bathroom. "Did your mom mention it?"

Chandler shrugged, his blue eyes bored. "I don't know, I wasn't really listening to her. She said something about nine, but I'm pretty sure there's a few bedrooms down in the cellar, except... I don't think we'll be going down there."

"Why?"

He shrugged again, hands shoved deep into his pockets. "Mom said there's a bit of flood damage. If you're gunna go down there, I'd just be careful."

Phoebe shied away from him, her cheeks burning. "No, uhm... no, I think I'll stay up here. Thinking about spending the weekend in a thousand year old mansion is one thing... I don't want to think about all the ghosts, and haunted stories there are about this place."

Chandler laughed, but noticed the uneasy expressions the six all shared as they continued to explore their way through the second floor. "Pheebs, I'm sure there's no ghosts around here... You've got nothing to worry about."

"That's not what the gods are telling me," she muttered to herself, but grinned upon reaching for a pure white doorknob, the stone glittering like diamond. She ran her fine fingers over the painted white French doors, her hazel eyes gleaming. "Ooh, I bet this is the master bedroom! Let's take a look, I wonder how big it is!"

Chandler dropped the uneasy expression adorning his face. Phoebe had changed subjects so quickly, it made his heart slow. The blonde paused for a dramatic moment, before taking a deep breath, and flinging both doors open. She squealed with delight upon seeing it - the master bedroom really was grand, it was beyond beautiful. Enormous scarlet drapes shaded the entire room, matching velvet pillows sitting at the head of the bed. Monica had never laid eyes on such a gigantic bed... it must've been bigger than a king sized, back in New York. An actual red canopy blanketed the top of the bed, silk sheets, and polyester blankets covered the soft mattress. All Joey knew, was that he wanted that bed.

"I call this one!" He cried loudly, diving for the very middle of the bed. He rolled over with a grin caking his face, body already wrapped up in half the blankets covering the entire thing.

"Hey, that's not fair," Rachel whined, putting on her typical pouting face. "I want that bed, too. It's gorgeous!"

Joey shrugged, then grinned. "You should've called it." His expression suddenly changed from triumphant to seductive, dark eyes gleaming with suggestion. "Hey, you can always crash with me, Rache."

She scoffed, rolling both eyes with a growing smile. "I'm not playing by the naked rule, Joey. Sorry sweetie."

Phoebe paused for a moment, before a loud rumble of thunder shook the entire room, a flash of lightning illuminating the room for a few moments. Each of the friends jumped at the surprise, and caught their breaths even, as the lights flickered off. The girls all squealed and gathered up onto the bed, as Ross stepped over to the light switch, fingers degenerately trying to switch on the power.

"Uhh, guys? The light won't turn on... I think we lost the power." He stared through the darkness until his eyes adjusted to the lack of light. Even more lightning flickered across the room shrouded in shadows, and within a few more moments of rumbling thunder, all six friends were snuggled up onto the master bed, both fear and exhilaration shooting through their veins.

"I have a great idea," Phoebe suggested with a grin, wrapping herself up in the many blankets, alongside Joey. "Let's all just crash here, together! Not like we never do it anyways, and plus... I'm not so fond of roaming through this huge house at night, with no power. We can start unpacking in the morning."

The others agreed enthusiastically. They all simply sat around, staring at each other for the next few moments. Ross glanced down at the digital watch wrapped around his wrist, wincing as he took in the bright red numbers of time. "Man, what are we gunna do all night? It's only ten."

They all glanced between one another for a few moments, until Rachel finally came up with an idea, eyes gleaming in the darkness. She snapped her fingers together as the thought came to her mind, a slow smile creeping across her face as she leaned toward her group of close friends. "I have an idea... truth or dare! Let's play truth or dare."

The guys shared uneasy glances around the room, while all three girls grinned maliciously. "In the dark? I don't know if I trust this game." Joey confessed hesitantly, glancing over at Chandler. All Chandler could do was laugh, and wrap his arms tighter around Monica. She leaned back against his chest, fingers laced with his, both sitting comfortably against one another.

"Come on," Rachel whined, gazing at Joey with her best puppy dog eyes. "Please, Joey? We're in England, let loose a little!"

Joey recoiled, face hurt. "Hey! I let loose! Especially in England! Just ask Chandler about that bridesmaid back in London," he winked through the darkness, over at his best friend. "Whole bucket of strawberries, gone in a flash!"

Phoebe grinned, eyes sparkling. "So you'll play?"

"Yeah I'll play!" He grinned, glancing around the circle. "Is everyone else down?"

The girls all nodded their agreement, while Chandler and Ross both shrugged. Neither could say they really wanted to take part in the childish game, but Phoebe was right... after all, they were spending a weekend in England.

Phoebe started the game off, her expression darkened with shadows as she glanced all about the room. Her hazel eyes finally landed upon Joey, a mischievous grin crossing her face. The dim glow of the moon streamed in through an exposed sliver of bay window. "Joey..." She chuckled to herself, smile eerie. "Truth or dare?"

Joey grinned back. "Dare, baby! C'mon, we're in England! Letting loose, remember?" He winked at his friend, and she blushed, all six friends laughing together before a thoughtful expression crossed the blonde's face. She finally snapped her fingers as a thought finally crossed her mind, whispering her idea to the girls, before grinning even wider and turning to an expectant Joey. "I dare you... to give Ross a hickey. Right on his neck!"

Joey cried out in disgust, Ross' voice following only seconds later. "What the hell, Phoebe!" Joey groaned, eyes filled with bitterness. "I was thinking like, make out with Monica for ten minutes!"

"Dude that's my fiancé," Chandler replied with a growl, arms closing around Monica protectively. She smiled up at him, both sharing a kiss before turning back to Joey. "The only person that's going to be kissing her tonight, or any other night... is me."

"Yeah, and that's my sister," Ross put in, eyes narrowed at his friend. He turned to Phoebe, expression exasperated. "You know, if I do this... I don't have to take a dare later. Deal? This is enough for me."

Phoebe considered it for a moment, before finally nodding her head. "Fine, that sounds fair. Now come on! Get this over with, so we can move on to the next dare!" The entire group laughed as Joey pressed his masculine lips to Ross' neck, both squeezing their eyes shut as tightly as they could. After a few more seconds of lightly sucking on soft skin, Joey pulled away, face twisted with disgust.

"There, there! It's done," he muttered, wiping his mouth with the dark sleeve of his sweater. "Now come on, let's forget about that.." His dark eyes settled upon Monica, a slow smile creeping across his face. "Mon! Truth or dare?"

Monica scoffed, laughing along with her friend. "Considering it's you, Joey? I'll pick truth."

Joey scowled at her decision, eyes narrowed in concentration. After a few moments of deep thought he gave up, an exasperated groan tearing from his throat. "I don't know, man... can someone help me out? I can't think of anything dirty to ask Monica."

"That's a first," Ross muttered to himself, before turning to the girls. "Pheebs? Rache? Can you think of anything?"

Phoebe narrowed her own eyes in thought, her mind racing to come up with something, anything to ask Monica. Finally a triumphant smile adorned her features, and she leaned toward her friend, eyes sparkling. "Kay, I got something! And it's something I actually want to know." She grinned at Monica, then asked, "Tell the truth, remember... What was going through your mind exactly, when Chandler proposed to you?"

Monica couldn't help but smile, her eyes resting on her fingers, the ones that were intertwined with Chandler's. She felt his grip tighten over hers, and she snuggled back against him. Her gaze kept falling upon her engagement ring. The one that represented so much, shared between two best friends.

"I was thinking, I have to be the luckiest woman in the world."

Chandler cracked a smile, but the happiness running through his blood was short lived. Before anyone could say one more thing, a loud crash echoed between the enormous halls, the second floor trembling along with the sound. All six friends' fell silent, frightened gazes meeting each other across their small circle.

"Uhm," Rachel choked out hesitantly, eyes travelling over to the closed bedroom door, "what the hell was that?"

Joey shivered, a cold gust of fresh air chilling him to the bone. "I have no idea... and I don't think I want to." He immediately burrowed himself beneath the many blankets, and in their fright, the other five did as well. As soon as they were all snuggled underneath the blankets, uneasy goodnights were exchanged, eyes full of fear closing for the night.

Someone who couldn't find rest though, was Monica. She lay on the far side of the bed with Chandler, both of his strong arms wrapped around her. Her bare cheek pressed against his clothed chest, but she knew all too well, that she wasn't at home. Chandler opened his eyes, gazing down at her. She looked scared... he never wanted her to feel scared.

"Mon?" He whispered, trying desperately to keep his voice low. "Babe, are you okay?"

Monica looked up at him, and though she said she was, her eyes deceived her. Chandler knew her too well, for her to be lying to him like that. "Monica, I would never let anything happen to you... Nothing will ever hurt you, okay? You can trust me... I'd die first."

"Awww..." Monica's ears perked as she listened to the girls giggle amongst themselves. "We get to see sappy Chandler! Oh, he's sweet, no wonder Monica likes him so much."

Monica couldn't help but laugh, her friends and husband to be almost instantly putting her at ease. "I love you," she told him softly, lips pressing against his. "You're amazing, sweetie."

Chandler smiled back, but Joey rolled over, eyes shining as he glanced at the loving couple. "You guys need to get a room." He commented with a grin, before turning around to fall back asleep. Ross made a sound of disgust, but Chandler just grinned.

"Y'know Joe, we could always start going at it right here, on this bed..."

"Ugh, go to sleep," Ross spat back, rolling both dark eyes. "That's my baby sister, Chandler."

"Yeah, and she's my fiancé," Chandler murmured as he pressed his lips against hers. "I can do anything I want with her, as long as it makes her happy."

Ross made another face, but rolled over and faced away from the happy couple. "You're just bitter, Ross," Phoebe smiled through the flickering flashes of lightning. "Night, guys."

"Night Pheebs," Monica whispered, before turning in Chandler's arms. She gazed up at him, deep into his crystal blue eyes, and all she could think about was how much he loved her. How safe she felt, lying there in his arms.

"I love you, Chandler," she whispered in his ear, a few soft kisses pressing against his skin moments later. He smiled through the darkness, his fear washing away with her beautiful smile.

"I love you too, babe. Go to sleep."

Monica allowed herself to gently fall asleep, Chandler's soft voice washing away any fear that had clouded her mind before. With his arms tightly wrapped around her, Monica found herself fading away to take part in her dreams, ones filled of love and affection, from Chandler...

Monica awoke to soft kisses being pressed against her lips. Blue eyes cracked open, slumber still coursing through her body as she gazed up at him. Chandler looked down at her with a loving smile, blue eyes glittering against the golden sunlight, streaming in through the bay English window. Monica greeted her husband to be with a soft kiss, before she turned her attention to her audience - not only were Phoebe and Rachel watching, but so was her brother.

"Uh, morning," she greeted shyly, laughing when Rachel grinned back at her best friend.

"You two put on quite a show," Phoebe chuckled with a certain gleam in her eyes. She glanced around the room for a moment, before bringing her hand to her forehead. "I'm pretty sure Joey is in the kitchen, making a poptart. You guys planning on have brekky?"

As soon as the other five friends made it down to the grand kitchen, they found Joey seated at the huge dining table, four poptarts sitting upon his china plate. Chandler couldn't help but laugh, popping in two pastries for both him and his girlfriend. The two glanced at one another from across the table, blue eyes smiling, though their lips were not.

"Hey," Ross announced, his eyes snooping over the kitchen windows, "you guys remember that bang last night? The one that scared us all to sleep?" The girls nodded, and Monica smiled sheepishly over at Chandler. He comforted her, after that. He always made her feel safe. "I think I found out what happened. Nora told us to bolt the windows shut, before the storm... but you know, I don't exactly remember us doing that." He elaborated by swinging open one of the small square windows, arching a dark eyebrow with a slight smile. "See? I knew it, that crash could've been explained by pure logic. No ghosts, no nothing."

Phoebe rolled her eyes, knowing fully well that when it came to opening his mind, even just a tiny bit, Ross Geller was much too difficult. She turned her attention back to Monica and Chandler, the happiest couple she'd seen in years.

"You guys were too cute," she whispered to Chandler as she leaned over him to retrieve a spoonful of butter, "the way you comforted her like that, last night."

A ghost of a smile crossed Chandler's face, blue eyes smiling. "I love her. There's nothing else to say, I need to make her feel safe."

Phoebe smiled, lips stretching across her young face. "Nothing lives here but love, huh Chandler? No ghosts, no nothing." She imitated Ross with a roll of her eyes, and Chandler couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah Pheebs," he chuckled, blue gaze landing upon Monica, upon the beginning of his life to be. "Nothing but love."

The end.

AN: this was supposed to be more scary, but I didn't feel like making it a horror story, lol. I think it ended kinda fast, but considering I wrote it under twelve hours, its even longer than I thought it would be... I'd appreciate if you left a review, just started writing again, after taking a few years off. let me know what you think!