TOW The Awkward Morning

Author Note: The framework came from David Crane and Marta Kauffman. Despite the title, it isn't who you think that has the odd morning.

It had been another oddly comforting evening with Pete, but Monica still couldn't help feel guilty. But she put on a pleasant face for him - she was so confused lately.

"Oh, this is so great." she said, smiling despite a hollowness in her eyes.
"Yeah, it was." Pete replied. A slight tension hung in the air, palpable though it was.
"All right then." Monica responded. He leaned in to kiss her goodnight, but she quickly kissed him on the cheek and patted his shoulder. She went into her apartment and sees Chandler, Phoebe, and Ross sitting there. Pete was still awkwardly hovering by the door-frame, observing the three already in the apartment.

"Hello, people who do not live here." the slim brunette said in a snide tone. The others chorused back with a 'hello!' "I gave you a key for emergencies!"

"We were out of Doritos." Phoebe responded drily, biting back laughter.

"Qualifies as an emergency to me!" Chandler heartily agreed. Monica giggled, and of course Phoebe did not miss the light that popped into Monica's eyes upon hearing Chandler's witty remark along with the feminine giggle. Pete decided to intervene.

"OK, um... bye Mon." he said, giving her an extra hug and smelling her hair. Monica closed the door, facing away from the others as she wiped a maddening tear from her face. Damn Pete and his endearing demeanour! She loved Chandler!
"Hey, how'd the date go with Mr. Millionaire?" Ross pondered as Monica turned.

"Mr. Millionaire, new from Snooty Playthings! Third wife sold separately." Chandler said jovially. Phoebe looked at him quizzically, but then again, this was his defence.

"He's great! I mean we have such a good time together! He's so funny, and so sweet, and I'm not attracted to him at all!" Monica moaned, her throat tensing up.

"Still?!" Ross asked, truly flummoxed by his sister's behaviour.
"No! It's driving me crazy. I mean every other way he's like the perfect guy, he has everything. Plus, he actually has everything." the slender dark-haired woman said. Phoebe made eye-contact with Monica. 'Everything except one thing, Mon?' she mouthed. Monica regrettably nodded, motioning her head towards her bedroom. The two girls walked in there, Monica flopping down her bed and Phoebe at the foot of it.

"Still feeling guilty for stringing Pete along?" the taller woman said. Monica nodded silently. "Still in love with Chandler?" Phoebe asked tenderly. Monica let out a sob. "Oh honey, I wish there was something I could do." Phoebe said, hugging her. Chandler's decision to wait until Pete was out of the picture was a sensible one, even if it hurt both him and Monica. And Phoebe had still kept her promise of being quiet. Monica's gently muffled sobs brought the blonde back to reality - cold, harsh reality.

"Pheebs, I just can't go through this! Either I give up on Chandler, or ignore my heart and force myself to love Pete. And I can't do either." Monica whispered. A knock sounded on the door, and Monica wiped her tears away. "Come in." she said. Rachel walked in with a smile, not immediately noticing the atmosphere in the room.

"What's up with my girls?" she beamed. Phoebe looked at Monica, who blinked. "Okay guys, what's really going on? I got the weird feeling the other day I was missing out on something. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." Rachel said, showing something bordering on insight. Another look, and Phoebe parted her lips.

"Do we tell her?" she murmured. Rachel raised her eyebrows. Monica nodded, knowing that Rachel could be trusted with this situation, delicate that it was.

"Mon's in love with Chandler." Phoebe said, hugging her lovelorn friend. Rachel's jaw dropped. She was about to tell them her Mark-related news, but it took a backseat.

"Chandler? Our Chandler? I just... he's great, Mon, but it comes as a surprise."

"It feels like I'm robbing Pete of a chance that could be great." Monica moaned.

"Forget Pete for two seconds!" Phoebe snapped uncharacteristically. Rachel jumped.

"Phoebe!" she inhaled. Phoebe looked stuck for a second. Monica let out another flood of silent tears. "This isn't the Monica Geller we know." the auburn-haired woman said. Monica's eyes swam as she looked at Rachel, her thoughts too.

"This Monica Geller is hung up on her best friend and doesn't know what the hell to do." she whispered, her voice dwindling. Rachel had never seen her BFF like this, and her dilemma with Ross and Julie the year before seemed to pale in comparison.

"OK... don't forget Pete. In fact, if he does ask you in a good way, go on one date." Phoebe smiled loosely. "If after that, you feel nothing, you can wash away the guilt."

"That's quite smart, Pheebs." Monica gulped, seeing the logic there. Rachel smiled too. Now she realised what the brunette wanted - for Chandler to whisk her away romantically. Who knew that another one of the group wanted their adult fairy-tale? The next morning, in apartment 19, Chandler got up groggily, having spent the night alternating between worrying about Monica and fantasising about her. By the pinkish light of sunrise, he was met with an unpredictable sight. He couldn't quite believe his eyes when he saw her walking across the floor, leaving perfume in her wake.

"Cam?" he whispered, voice croaky from lack of water in the night. Cam jumped.

"Chandler?" she gasped. "What are you doing here?" she asked in a dumb tone.

"Haha, I'm Joey's room-mate. In fact it was my apartment first. Looks like you took my advice." he said sardonically. "Are your brains in your breasts?" he spat out.

Cam turned a rather ugly shade of red, trying for a witty response and failing.

"Look, I apologise, but you just give off that vibe." she mumbled.

"I'm completely straight." Chandler fired back. "And I know Joey - a threesome with Mary?" he asked, laughing. Cam shook her head. Chandler raised his eyebrows.

"Honestly, he just picked me up." she said truthfully. After a good few seconds of icy tension, they parted silently and went back to bed. A couple of hours later, apartment 20 was full of laughter. Chandler opened the door at seven, a grin on his face. Monica grinned at him, and although it was very hard, he refrained from kissing her good morning. Phoebe noticed this, and kept quiet. The sound of heels hitting wood sounded, and the gang realised it might be another one of Joey's hook-ups.

"Hey everyone, this is Cam!" Joey grinned, holding the tall blonde like a trophy wife. Phoebe's jaw dropped. Chandler shook his head comically, not meeting her eye. But Joey was still bathing in pheromones. "Phoebe-"

"We've met." Phoebe said tersely, fixing Cam with another deadly glare. Everybody in the room knew that Phoebe would tell the story later.

AN: Surprise! Well, Kate Miller has that haughty aura all over the place at this point, doesn't she? But seeing as I don't like Kate, I'd decided to bring Cam back as a sort-of replacement for what happens in Joey's life at this time. I know I'm going slow and steady with the story pace, but it WILL pan out.