AN: So here's another update. I'm glad there's a few of you who are supportive of me rewriting this story. Keep leaving those reviews. PLZ R&R!
Disclaimer: See first chapter.
Chapter 2
Monica awoke early one morning and was rushing around as Joey sat at the table eating some cereal. It was the first night since Chandler was admitted to the hospital that she had spent in the apartment. Chandler was doing a lot better and with any luck, today Chandler would be able to come home. But that all depended on what all his tests said when they finally came back.
"Joey, did you want to come with me to get Chandler?" Monica looked at him.
"You wouldn't mind?" he looked up at her, hopeful.
"Of course not." she smiled at him as the phone rang and she went to answer it. "Hello? Yes, this is Monica Bing. Is everything all right with Chandler? What kind of problem is there? No. If it's bad news, I'd like to know first so I can prepare my husband. Just tell me. What? A-Are you sure? No, don't tell him. I will tell him when I get there. Just make sure that no one else tells him. I'll be there soon."
"Monica, what is it?" Joey asked her as she slowly hung up the phone, seeing how upset she was. "Does it have anything to do with Chandler's test results?"
"It's bad, Joey." she said softly. "It's really bad."
"What'd they say?"
"Chandler has cancer." she finally looked up at him.
"What?" he went to her and looked her in the eye. "Are they sure?"
"I have to figure out a way to tell him. How do I tell him?"
"It's going to be ok." he held her tightly. "We will all help you guys through this."
"Hey, Mon." the door opened suddenly and Ross came in followed by Phoebe and Rachel, but they all stopped when they saw them. "What's going on? What's wrong?"
"The doctor just called with Chandler's test results." Joey told them. "It's bad news."
"How bad?" Rachel asked.
"Really bad."
"What's wrong with Chandler?" Phoebe asked.
"He has cancer." Monica told them softly. "I have to figure out a way to tell him. How do I tell him this?"
"What kind does he have? How progressed is it?" Ross asked. "What kind of treatment will they do?"
"They're going to run a few more tests to determine how advanced it is."
"So Chandler doesn't know yet?" Phoebe asked.
"I told the doctor I wanted to tell him myself. I just have to figure out how. How do I tell my husband that he may be dying?"
"We'll be there with you." Ross told her. "We can be in the room when you tell him if you want us to."
"I'm going to talk to him privately."
"That's probably a good idea." Rachel told her. "But we'll be there if you need us."
"Thank you." Monica said softly as Joey held her again.
They all made their way to the hospital a little while later as Monica thought of ways how she would break the news to Chandler when she saw him. Monica left everyone else in the waiting room as she walked towards Chandler's room. She slowly walked into his room and smiled as she saw him sitting up in bed and slowly eating off a breakfast tray.
"Hey, honey." she smiled at him. "Is there anything good today?"
"Not really. Nothing compares to your food." he pushed the tray away. "So did you talk to the doctor before you got here?"
"What do you mean?" She started to panic, thinking that one of the nurses let something slip to him.
"When do I get to go home?"
"Tomorrow possibly." she sighed with relief. "They need to run a few more tests on you before you can go."
"More tests?" he sighed.
"A couple of your tests-"
"What's going on?"
"Ok. I need to tell you something." she sat beside him on the bed. "I just want you to know that no matter what happens, I will be here with you every step of the way."
"Ok. You're scaring me." Chandler sat up more on the bed. "Will you please tell me what is going on."
"Ok. I got a call from the doctor this morning. They found something in your tests."
"What did they find?"
"There's just no easy way to say this." Monica sighed as she looked him in the eye and took his hand and squeezed it tightly. "Honey, you have cancer."
"What?"
"It's going to be ok."
"How can you say that?" Chandler's voice started to crack.
"Because I'm going to be there with you through everything. No matter what happens, you won't be able to get rid of me."
"But what's going to happen?"
"The guys are down the hall in the waiting room. I'm going to get them so they can see you, then I'm going to go find the doctor so we can all talk about what our next step is."
"I'm not sure if I'm ready to see anyone yet." Chandler looked at her.
"I'll give you another five minutes, then I'm going to send everyone in. They're all really anxious to see you."
"Ok." Chandler nodded as she held him in her arms as they cried together.
Joey, Rachel, and Phoebe glanced towards Chandler's room while Ross talked on the phone with his parents. Rachel and Phoebe were trying to keep themselves occupied by reading through all the magazines spread out on the tables. Joey started pacing the floor all around them until Ross stopped him.
"Dude, you're kind of driving us crazy with that." he told him.
"I just want to see Chandler. I can't stand this."
"We all want to see him, Joe. Monica needs to tell him first. Then she'll come out and get us so that we can see him."
"I know. You're right."Joey sat down beside Phoebe.
"Oh no." Rachel sat up as she saw Monica and Chandler crying and hugging. "I think she told him."
"I can't believe this." Joey sighed. "I can't believe that this is happening to Chandler."
"We have to stay upbeat." Phoebe told them. "We have to keep his spirits up no matter how bad it gets."
"Agreed."
Fifteen minutes later, Monica came out to them wiping her eyes. They all went to her and held her.
"How is he, Mon?" Joey asked her.
"He's ready to see you guys now." she told them.
"How'd he take it?" Rachel asked.
"Not great, but he wants to see all of you."
"I called mom and dad. They're very worried about the both of you. They want to come down." Ross told her. "And I left messages with Chandler's parents, too."
"Let's go see Chandler." Phoebe stood up and they all followed her to his room.
They walked into Chandler's room and saw him with his head laying back against the pillows. They could see the tear stains on his face as he turned his head to look at all of them.
"Hey, buddy." Joey greeted him. "How are you doing?"
"Well, a minute ago, my world came crashing down around me." he mumbled, his voice coming out all raspy.
"Don't talk like that." Rachel went to him and hugged him tightly. "We will not let you give up, ok?"
"Not a chance." Phoebe told him. "We will all help you as much as we can. And the moment we think you're about to give up, we will all be on your case. Forcing you to keep fighting."
"I understand." Chandler forced a smile on his face.
"Ok." Monica came in. "The doctor is finishing up his rounds. The nurse said he'll be here in a little bit to talk to us about our next step."
"I called and left messages with your parents." Ross told Chandler. "I hope they get them soon."
"That's hard to say." Chandler told him.
"Mr. Bing," Dr. Steele came in with another doctor followed by a nurse with a metal tray filled with medical supplies.
"Time for more tests." Chandler sighed.
"I'd like to talk to just Monica and Chandler, please." Dr. Steele told them.
"We'll be right outside." Rachel told them as they all filed out of the room again.
Monica took Chandler's hand as the nurse moved the tray closer to the bed. Chandler tensed up as he spotted all the metal instruments spread out before him.
"Chandler, Monica, I'd like you to meet my Colleague. This is Dr. Brown. He's an oncologist. He'll be taking over your care from this point on."
"So what will you be doing today?" Monica asked.
"We have to run a couple more tests to see how progressed it is and how far it's spread."
"What kind of cancer do I have?" Chandler asked softly as Monica took his hand.
"Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Or ALL for short." Dr. Brown started to explain to them. "It affects the white blood cells. They help your body fight infection."
"So what tests will you do on him today?" Monica asked.
"The first one is a lumbar puncture. Or a spinal tap. We're doing this to see if it's spread to the brain and spinal cord; or the Central Nervous System."
"You're going into my spine?" Chandler asked.
"It'll be ok." Monica assured him as she squeezed his hand. "I'll stay with you the entire time. You won't be alone in this."
"Thank you." Chandler looked at her.
"Why don't we get this started." the doctor had Chandler turn onto his side as Monica took his hand and he clutched it tightly as he felt the needle pierce his skin.
The others were pacing the hall outside Chandler's room when they heard him scream. They all turned around and peered through the window as they saw Chandler on his side facing Monica as she clutched his hand and stroked his hair. The oncologist was standing behind him as the nurse had a needle inserted into his back.
"What are they doing to him?" Joey asked as he was transfixed on the fact that his friend was going through a lot of pain at that moment.
"It's a lumbar puncture. To see if the cancer has spread to his brain." Ross explained to them. "It's a painful experience."
"He does look like he's in pain." Rachel agreed.
"The procedure is not a walk in the park." Ross added.
Chandler relaxed as the needle was withdrawn from his back and the doctor helped him roll back over so that he was laying flat on his back.
"It's over now, honey." Monica told him.
"That was horrible." he mumbled.
"We'll give you fifteen minutes to recover from that, then we're going to take you down to radiology to get a bone marrow biopsy." Dr. Brown told him as he made some notes in Chandler's chart.
"How bad will this one hurt?" Chandler mumbled as the others came back into them.
"You're going to be put to sleep for this one."
"How are you doing, Chandler?" Phoebe asked as she approached the bed first.
"You couldn't hear me?" he turned his head to look at them.
"Yeah. Just trying to make conversation."
More than twenty minutes later, Dr. Brown started to push Chandler out of his room. Monica followed close behind with the others not that far behind. They reached radiology and Dr. Brown pushed Chandler into one of the rooms. Monica followed them inside the room as the others waited outside and watched.
A couple orderlies helped Chandler onto the exam table and covered his bottom half with a blanket. Dr. Brown instructed Chandler to roll onto his side again and the nurse put an oxygen mask over his mouth.
"I'll see you when you wake up." Monica told him.
"I love you." he mouthed to her.
"I love you, too." his eyes slowly closed and his breathing got deeper.
Monica watched as the nurse lifted the back of Chandler's gown and swabbed an area with an alcohol wipe. They inserted a hollow needle into his hipbone and Monica started to tear up. His hip popped as they withdrew fluid from it and Monica slowly stroked the side of his face.
They finished the procedure and started to push Chandler out of the room. Monica immediately went to Phoebe and Rachel and they hugged her. Ross and Joey watched from a distance as the orderlies started to push Chandler down the hall.
"He's already suffering." Monica whispered as they all started to follow the orderlies down the hall. "And he hasn't even started treatment yet."
"It'll be ok." Rachel assured her. "You'll both get through this. You just have to be strong for Chandler."
"I know. Thank you." They reached Chandler's room and Monica waited off to the side as they finished getting him situated on the bed again.
Monica sat beside the bed and took Chandler's hand in hers. She pushed his stray bangs out of his face as he continued to sleep off the medication they had given him. The others watched from out in the hall as Monica had a one-sided conversation. They all exchanged looks as they realized this was just the beginning of a very long road for both Monica as well as Chandler.
The next morning, Chandler awoke to find Monica fast asleep next to him on the small hospital bed. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he felt movement next to him. He smiled as Monica slowly opened her eyes and looked over at him.
"Morning." he greeted her.
"Hey." she stretched. "How'd you sleep?"
"All right, I think." he slowly sat up and lay his head back as she got off the bed and sat in a nearby chair. "Did you really stay here with me all night?"
"Of course." she smiled. "I didn't want you to be alone in case they needed to do more tests on you."
"Have they scheduled anymore?"
"Not that I'm aware of." she sighed. "But the doctor was talking about putting in a port-a-cath before they release you."
"What's that?"
"It's a central line that goes under the skin near your collar bone. It will make it easier for them to administer your treatments so they don't have to keep sticking you with needles."
"So that means surgery to put it in?"
"It wouldn't be long at all. Maybe fifteen minutes at the most."
"Ok." he sighed as there was a knock on the door and Ross and Rachel came in.
"Hey, guys." Monica smiled at them.
"Morning," Rachel smiled back. "How are you feeling today, Chandler?"
"I'm ok for now." he told them.
"Mon, I brought you some clothes." Rachel told her. "The nurses said you could use the family bathrooms down the hall if you want."
"Translation: They think you smell and need a shower." Chandler smirked.
"I'll be right back, ok?" Monica smiled at him as she took the bag from Rachel.
"Take your time. I'll be here."
Monica spent a little longer in the bathroom than she planned, but it felt good to get cleaned up and refreshed. She gathered her things and walked out into the hall as she saw Rachel rushing down the hall towards her.
"What's the matter?" she asked her. "Is Chandler ok?"
"He's fine." Rachel rushed to assure her. "He just has some visitors, and he seems to be getting a little agitated."
"Who's in his room with him?"
"Your parents. They showed up a little bit ago."
"Where's Ross?" Monica asked, knowing that her brother would be the buffer between her and her parents.
"He's on the phone with Carol. He forgot that he was supposed to get Ben today, so he's explaining to Carol what's been going on."
"All right. I'm going to go save Chandler." Monica walked down the hall and into Chandler's room.
She walked in and spotted her parents sitting near the bed as Chandler lay back on the bed with Joey on the opposite side of the bed.
"Mom, dad, you came." Monica greeted cheerfully and she saw complete relief wash over Chandler's face. "I wasn't expecting you so soon."
"We wanted to make sure that you guys were all right after everything that's gone on the last few days." Jack got up to give his daughter a hug.
"We're ok." Monica smiled at her father. "It's still a little hard to cope with right now, but we're trying to adjust."
"Dr. Brown's going to be coming back in a little while." Joey told her. "To discuss doing that procedure later today."
"Are you ok, honey?" Monica leaned down to adjust Chandler's pillows.
"Your parents are here." he stated. "And they're annoying me."
"If I could live through it my entire life, you can get through a half hour." she whispered.
"I know." he mumbled.
"We were just telling Chandler that we're more than happy to help you both out." Judy spoke up. "Whether it's financially or emotionally."
"Thank you, mom. We appreciate it." Monica told her parents. "But we'll be fine. We have a support system in place. But if we need some back up, we'll let you know."
"Good morning," the door opened and Dr. Brown came into them. "I'd like to talk to Chandler and Monica privately if I may."
"We'll be right down the hall." Joey told them. "Come on, Gellars."
Monica sat beside Chandler on the bed as the three of them left and Dr. Brown came closer to the bed as he looked through Chandler's chart.
"How are you feeling today, Chandler?"
"It still feels a little unreal." Chandler admitted
"Has Monica explained to you what we planned on for today?"
"Yeah. The port-a-cath."
"We want to plan on doing it mid-afternoon. It's a very simple procedure. It'll last approximately twenty minutes, then you'll be back in here."
"So when will I start my treatments?"
"We want to give you a chance to recover from the pneumonia. Given no complications, we'll start you on a regimen in a few days."
"Ok."
"Right now, I want you to try to eat something. And I'll see you in a few hours."
"Thank you." Monica told him as he left the room again.
A few hours later, Dr. Brown came in with one of the nurses to get Chandler ready to go down for the procedure. Everyone was gathered around the bed as the nurse started to release the brakes on the bed.
"I'll see you in about a half hour, ok honey?" Monica told him.
"I know." Chandler whispered.
"You'll be fine." Chandler nodded as he was rolled out of the room and down the hall.
Monica was sitting in the waiting room surrounded by her friends and her parents as she slowly sipped a can of Diet Coke. The doors opened and they all looked up as someone rushed into them.
"Monica," she was enveloped in a tight hug.
"Carol?" she returned the embrace. "What are you doing here?"
"When Ross told me what was going on, I had to get down here as soon as I could." she explained to her. "How are you guys doing?"
"We're adjusting."
"So what's going on now?"
"He's getting a procedure performed to get a central line inserted." Monica glanced at her watch. "He should be out soon."
"I hope it's all right if I go in and see him."
"Of course. I know you guys were very close friends in college."
"We were lab partners in Chem." she smiled. "He was the reason why Ross and I got together. If it wasn't for him, there would be no Ben."
"Mrs. Bing?" they all looked up and saw Dr. Brown.
"How's Chandler doing?" Monica jumped up.
"He just got out of Post-Op. He's back in his room."
"But he's ok?"
"He's coming out of the anesthesia. He's asking for you."
Monica walked down the hall towards Chandler's room and walked in to see him laying motionless on the bed as a nurse checked his monitors. She spotted Monica there and motioned for her to come closer. Monica took his hand and he started to moan.
"Please. Just go get her." he mumbled.
"Get who?" she started to stroke his cheek as his eyes opened.
"You." he smiled at her.
"How are you feeling?"
"Woozy." he mumbled. "You look a little blurry."
"Why don't you get some more sleep? I'll be here when you wake up."
"Promise?"
"I promise. I won't leave you." she assured him as his eyes closed again and he fell back into his deep sleep.
A couple days later, they were all anxious for Chandler to finally come home from the hospital. Rachel, Phoebe, and Ross were in Monica and Chandler's apartment waiting for them along with Jack and Judy Gellar as well as Carol and Susan with Ben. The Gellars spent the entire time at the hospital with Monica and Chandler; they both got a little frustrated with them, but truthfully Monica liked having her parents there to help her through it. Carol visited with Chandler a few times when he was more alert and promised him to bring his godson by the apartment as soon as he was released. Joey went to the hospital early that morning to help Monica get Chandler back home all right.
"Shouldn't they be here by now?" Rachel checked her watch again.
"They most likely had to run some tests on him before they would let him leave." Jack told them.
"Or they probably got stuck in traffic." Ross added.
"I want to see Uncle Chandler." Ben stated as he looked up from playing with his toys with Emma.
"I'm sure they'll be here soon." Susan told him.
"We're home." they heard the door open and turned around to see Monica coming in followed closely behind by Chandler and Joey.
"How are you feeling today?" Phoebe went to Chandler.
"Tired." he mumbled. "Didn't sleep well last night. I was so nauseous from all those tests they continuously performed on me."
"Go ahead and lay down on the couch, honey." Monica told him. "I'll make you some soup if you're up to it."
"That'd be great." he slowly went to the couch and lay back as Ben climbed up beside him and Emma pulled herself up by the couch as Chandler smiled at them and lifted Emma up onto his lap.
The others followed Monica into the kitchen as she got a can of soup out of the cupboard and started to heat it up over the stove.
"So what's going on?" Ross asked her. "Did you get any of the test results back yet?"
"His spinal tap came back negative." Monica sighed as she stirred the soup. "The cancer hasn't spread to his brain, so we found it early. Dr. Brown said that if he hadn't been sick, we wouldn't have found it until it was much more advanced."
"That's good news." Rachel assured her.
"They want him to start chemo tomorrow." Monica revealed to them.
"So soon?" Phoebe asked.
"He said that the sooner we start, the better the chance we have of beating this." Monica started to fill a bowl with Chandler's soup as the phone rang.
"Hello?" Monica picked it up. "Who is this? Oh. Hi. How are you? Yes. He just got home. He's had a long night. I'll see if he's up to talking to anyone right now."
Monica walked to the couch and saw Chandler wide awake as he tried to make small talk with Jack and Judy as Ben tried to engage into the conversation as well.
"Honey, someone's on the phone for you." she held the phone out to him. "Are you up to talking to anyone?"
"Sure." he sat up. "Who is it?"
"Just talk." she handed him the phone.
"Hello?" Chandler listened for a moment. "Dad?"
"His dad?" Ross looked at Monica. "I guess he got my messages."
"Dad, I'm fine." Chandler spoke into the phone. "Just a little tired. I promise. I'm supposed to start the chemo treatments tomorrow. Yeah. I'd really like that. If I'm up to it then. Ok. I'll talk to you later. Bye."
"Did I hear you say that he's coming out to see you?" Monica asked him.
"He's going to try to next week sometime."
"I'm glad. You should hang out with him." she smiled at him. "The soup just finished, so are you still hungry?"
"Yeah." he sat up a little more as Rachel came to pick Emma up off his lap and Monica brought a tray over to him with the bowl of soup, some crackers, and a glass of ginger ale and placed it over his lap.
Chandler started to slowly eat the soup as Ben talked his ear off about his favorite comic books and what happened at school. The others joined them in the living room and listened in while Jack and Judy offered to help them out as much as they could.
AN: So what'd you all think? Better than the original? PLZ R&R!
