I wrote this because I felt that Chandler's character was basically lost in the beginning of season nine between Monica, and his job, and the Ross/Rachel/Emma extravaganza.

Also, Monica and Chandler are together in this story, but they are not married or engaged.

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"If I'm smart then I'll run away
But I'm not so I guess I'll stay
Heaven forbid
I take my chance on a beautiful stranger"

"So where is it you're going?" Joey asked me again.

"Joe, I didn't know five minutes ago, I sure as hell don't know now," I replied as I packed my suitcase.

"You're just gonna go to the airport and pick a city?" I shrugged.

"Something like that. Do you think I'll need this?" I asked, holding up my swimsuit.

"I don't know. I don't know where you're going," he said, sounding frustrated. I considered it a moment, then shoved it into my suitcase. "I don't understand why you don't just stay at home for the weekend," Joey pressed.

"What's at home?"

"Your girlfriend for one," he stated.

"I already talked to Monica. She completely understands. Plus she thinks I'm at work all weekend."

"Chandler!"

"Don't worry about it. Besides, she'll be out next week to visit me in Tulsa."

At least that much was true.

"But I still don't understand why you just want to go off to someplace where you don't know a single person when you get so little time off," Joey said.

I shut my suitcase and looked at him, "On my days off, who does my time essentially belong to then?"

"Monica."

"Exactly. Now, where in that equation does my time really belong to me?" I asked.

"I see what you're getting at, but what is it you want to do with 'your' time?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't know, I can't remember the last time I had any, that's what this weekend is about. Joey, haven't you ever wanted to be someone else? Have no one to please but yourself?" I asked, peering at him.

Joey shrugged. "I guess, I don't know." I shook my head and picked up my bags. Joey was one of my best friends, definitely my best friend in the group, and a good guy, but we just weren't on the same page sometimes.

"Chandler, are you sure about this?" he asked, following me out of the door.

"The only thing I'm not sure of is why I decided to tell you," I muttered. Joey's face fell a little, and I felt bad being impatient with him. Joey was perfectly content at where he was in his life. He had stuck it through and pursued a career he loved and was finally getting somewhere with it, of course he wouldn't understand this.

"I'm sorry, Joe. Just do me a favor and keep this to yourself, okay?" Joey nodded halfheartedly, and I knew I could trust him.

"What if something happens, an emergency?" he asked quietly.

"My cell phone is packed; I'll keep it on." I walked out of the apartment, just as Ross came up the steps

"You leaving, Chandler?" he called.

"Yeah, going back to Tulsa." He looked confused.

"But it's Friday, you have the weekends off, and you just got back late last night. Why would you come back home for about 12 hours?"

"Uh..eh," I said. I'm usually good with the lying, but I wasn't expecting his sudden appearance.

"Didn't Monica tell you? It was last minute, he didn't get the call to go back until a few hours ago," said Joey who was usually a horrible liar, but managed to come up with something clever in this situation. I smiled at him, he looked distraught. Ross said goodbye as I waited for him to walk past us and into the apartment before I said anything else.

"Relax," I said, patting his back. He nodded again. I stepped into the elevator. "See ya, Joe."

"Have fun," he offered as the doors closed. I grinned. "Don't worry, I will."

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As I sat in the taxi on the way to the airport, I considered what I was about to do. I wasn't running away, I just needed a break, a real break. From everything. Life traveling back and forth between Tulsa and New York City was getting really routine and tiring, and nothing I had tried helped, no night out or anything. It was winter, and I was barely aware of who I was anymore, let alone where. For months on my weekends I'd been flying back to New York to visit Monica and when she allowed, my other friends, and even that was routine now. I needed to do something drastic. Refresh myself. The solution came unexpectedly a few weeks ago when I was talking to a colleague who experienced the same problem.

"Know what I do?" he asked.
"What?"
" I just take off. Don't say where I'm going, just go."
"But you tell people where you're going?" I asked.
He laughed. "No.. the point is that you're alone and the key is to get out of your element."
I shook my head. "I don't follow."
"Think of it this way, who'd expect you in, oh, say, Pennsylvania Dutch country?"
I laughed. "Ah, I gotcha."
"Milk the opportunity, Chandler, be whoever you want. Be who you can't normally be."

I'd given a lot of thought to his suggestion and decided it was worth a shot. I hadn't told Monica, I knew she'd take it personally, and think it was a stupid idea. She'd probably tell me I couldn't go. I hadn't said anything to the rest of the guys either, they just assumed I was going back to Tulsa along with Monica. I had only mentioned it to Joey so that if something happened at least one person would have a clue as to what was going on. At the airport I approached the nearest ticket counter. The young woman behind it smiled at me. "Can I help you?" she asked.

"I bet you can. I need to book a flight."

"All right, where is it you're flying to?" I leaned forward and smiled at her.

"Where do YOU think I should go?" I asked her.

She cocked her head, looking a bit confused. "I'm not sure I understand," she admitted.

"I want you to recommend someplace to go," I told her, still smiling. She glanced at her computer screen.

"Well, ah, when would you like to leave? And do you want an international flight, or would you like to stay in the country."

I had my Passport in case I wanted to get out of the country, but I decided a weekend was too short to go anywhere too far. "As soon as possible would be perfect, and I'd prefer a domestic flight."

She looked at me, then at the screen again. "OK, well, we have a flight to Seattle leaving in two hours," she suggested.

Too far, too rainy. "No, I don't think Seattle is what I'm looking for," I said. "All right...we have a flight to Miami in an hour and a half."

Too hot, too many bugs. I shook my head.

"How about St. Louis?"

"Mmm, no..."

"Phoenix?"

"No..."

"Los Angeles?"

"No.."

She looked a little irritated. "How about Burlington, Vermont? That's leaving in an hour," she tried.

I thought about it. It was a good distance from home, about a six hour drive. Not much to do in Vermont but ski. I had gone skiing a few times and I was ok. It wasn't that much out of my element, but for some reason Vermont seemed like the place to go. "That sounds great. Is the flight booked?"

She checked her computer again. "No, as a matter of fact there are seats available in first class and coach," she informed me. I fished out my Visa and handed it to her.

"I'll take a seat in first class, please." I figured that since I'm doing all this other stuff that wasn't really me, I might as well sit where I don't usually sit. Although I do get to sit business class when I go to Tulsa. Oh well.

A few minutes later I stood in line to board with a feeling of excitement I hadn't known in months. "You wanted spontaneity, Bing, this is about as spontaneous as it gets," I said softly.

"Excuse me?" the flight attendant checking tickets asked. I laughed.

"Oh, nothing. Just talking to myself," I told her. "I do it all the time."

She smiled. "Me, too," she replied in a confident tone. "Enjoy your flight and your stay in Vermont." I winked at her.

"Don't have to tell me twice."