Previously on "You are my soulmate":
Monica and Rachel ended up switching places after they had arrived at Thessaloniki, Greece. Monica was supposed to marry Chandler's brother, Mark, and despite the circumstances, Monica and Chandler fell in love with each other. Some members of Chandler's family were suspicious of them, because of the closeness that Monica and Chandler seemed to have lately and the fact that Monica didn't seem to be the woman Mark had talked to them about. Monica was always happy to see a red rose on her pillow, assuming it was from Chandler. Chandler's mean sister, Laura, organized something that looked like an interrogation for Monica in order to find out if she was lying. Monica had just confessed the truth to Chandler who decided to stick by her side and help her. Afterwards, they shared their first kiss under the moonlight and said they would meet the following night to talk about everything. They didn't know that someone was up almost the entire night, watching their moves. Meanwhile, aunt Amelia had reassured Monica that she could count on her, Grandpa and Vera (Chandler's mom) looked like they were really observant about certain things, George (Chandler's dad) looked innocently curious about everything without realizing there was something wrong and Laura had been in Monica's room secretly when she came face to face with her husband, Panos, who did the same while trying to hide a single red rose from her.
X-X-X
Monica walked towards Chandler's cabin as silently as she could. She hadn't seen him all day and she was anxious about their upcoming meeting. What if he had changed his mind about her? What if he had regretted their kiss? The door opened as soon as she had knocked on it, revealing an impatient Chandler.
"Hey." He greeted her softly. He seemed as nervous as her and that made her feel a little better somehow.
"Hey." She smiled and relaxed when she saw him smile, too.
"Wanna come in?" Chandler said, winking suggestively.
Monica looked around hesitantly. "I'm scared."
Before giving her time to react, Chandler grabbed her by the waist and planted a long kiss on her lips.
"Chandler! Someone might see us!" Her words were muffled against his lips, but she wasn't willing to break their connection. The wonderful sensation of having him so close again was making her forget all about her worries.
"So… You wanna come inside or not?" Chandler asked, moving his mouth to the side of her neck.
"Mmm Chandler… Inside! Now!"
Chandler laughed as Monica pushed his chest and kicked the door shut. He liked that bossy side of her. The next moment their lips were connected again and only the need for air made them stop a few minutes later.
"Hey beautiful" Chandler whispered.
"Hey handsome" Monica said softly, looking into his eyes.
"What do you want to do?" His tone was calm, forgiving. Monica wasn't sure if she deserved it.
"Don't we have to talk?" She said reluctantly.
"If you're up to. I'd like to know everything Monica." He said and her heart swelled with tenderness over the way her name sounded on his lips. "I can't believe I've only known your real name since yesterday. It all seems so surreal now. I mean, you could have stayed here for the whole summer and -"
"Chandler, you're babbling." Monica giggled. "I'd like you to know everything, too."
They sat on Chandler's bed, side by side. Their eyes remained locked and Chandler, seeing the anxious look on her face, placed his hand on hers, trying to reassure her it was going to be okay.
"It's all Rachel's fault, isn't it?"
Monica shook her head. "Not really. We were together on the flight from New York. She came up with this wild scenario of us switching places. She didn't want to come here, she just wanted to have some fun on her own and be free from responsibilities. I didn't want to do it, but she practically made me…"
"Then how can you say it wasn't her fault?"
"I didn't stop her. I tried to talk her out of it, but she left me at the airport carrying luggage with her name on them. When I saw you and your family I just froze."
"When I saw you at the airport I knew there was something more to you than what you showed us. Well, I didn't know, but I felt it. And the way you describe Rachel, she sounds like a bully. Was she your friend?" Chandler kept Monica's hand wrapped in his own and she was touched by how understanding he was being to her.
"She was. She hasn't been my friend for years. I'm not sure whether she has any friends now."
"I figured." He snorted, letting his mind go back to the way she behaved both of the times he had met her.
"I've been insisting we should tell the truth to your family, but she keeps turning me down."
"We'll find a way now, okay?" He smiled at her warmly and Monica suddenly gasped.
"How much did you know before yesterday?" She asked him carefully.
"You and Rachel seemed to be so different. From the first moment I saw her something told me that she was better suited for Mark than you. I was almost sure that it was the way I felt about you talking, so I tried not to think of it too much. Without much success I might add."
"That night at the beach house… You told me things -everyday things- that Mark's future wife would probably already know about him and his family." Monica said. "It's funny, because I hadn't even noticed. It occurred to me yesterday when I needed the answers for your questions."
"I hadn't noticed either. In case you didn't see it, for me there was no one else but you that night." Chandler chuckled when he saw her blush. "I just wanted to get to know you."
"Also, you usually tend to keep talking until somebody stops you, so it's not that strange now that I think about it." Monica grinned at his unbelieving look. "Actually, I'm surprised no one from your family hasn't connected the dots yet." She sighed, sliding her fingers in between his, pulling their joined hands on her lap.
"I wouldn't be surprised if someone does soon though. You saw what happened yesterday. And I have a feeling grandpa already knows."
"You do?" Monica asked, shocked.
"He's always been very insightful."
"So, that's where you got this trait from!" Monica exclaimed. It was Chandler's turn to blush.
"I don't think that's true."
"Well, I think it's been true since we met." She reached his arm with her other hand and gave it a squeeze. "From what we've already talked about, I get that you weren't that surprised when I told you I wasn't Rachel, right?"
"After the initial slight shock, it all made sense somehow. And it was a relief to know that you weren't engaged to my brother." He untangled their hands and brought his arm around her shoulders to keep her close.
"I know." She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his shoulder. "What are we going to do?"
"I can talk to Laura and try to find out what she knows exactly."
"Thank you." Monica breathed into Chandler's neck, enjoying the feeling of safety their closeness gave her.
"Can I ask you something?" Chandler asked, stroking her back lightly.
"Shoot."
"What about that guy who was with Rachel? Is she cheating on Mark with him?"
Monica thought about it. Chandler's tone showed that he would be angry if someone hurt his brother.
"I honestly don't know. But -" She stopped talking abruptly.
"What?"
"I'm so tired of thinking about her." Monica rubbed he forehead, trying to prevent the headache that was beginning to form. "I had been chatting with that guy on the internet for a while. I would meet him once I arrived here."
"Seriously? She stole your guy?" Chandler asked incredulously, before making a grimace at the thought of Monica being with someone else. "Does he know the truth?"
"I don't think so."
"Do you still want to meet him?"
"I don't know. I know I'm glad I met you."
"Me, too, Mon. Me, too."
They both knew what they had just said that was true.
X-X-X
Monica woke up by the sound of a car engine starting up nearby. She had already gotten used to that place being so quite that any little noise could disturb anyone's sleep. It had been almost a week since she had told Chandler everything, so the weekend had come again. The rest of the week had gone by calmly, without any more interrogation hours. Everyone went to work as usual and whoever stayed at home was back to being polite and friendly to Monica. Everyone except Grandpa. Monica and Chandler were certain he suspected more than they imagined, but let it go. They tried to behave like they didn't like each other; actually, they tried not to talk to each other at all in front of the family. Chandler made several attempts to approach his sister, but most of them had been futile as she was too suspicious to trust him.
Strangely enough, nobody from the family suggested going to the beach or to the city or doing anything with Monica that Saturday, which was okay for her, since the only thing she wanted was to be with Chandler. She knew it wasn't right, but it felt right. They did nothing more than hold each other and talk in between stolen kisses and huge smiles, but those few hours they spent together every night were amazing and refreshing enough not to make them tired in the morning.
Monica went to the kitchen to find Eleni cleaning. After Eleni had informed her that no one except Grandpa and Aunt Amelia were in the house, Monica went out to the garden not finding any of them in her way. She sneaked towards Chandler's cabin, hoping he would be there. They never met during the day, but that Saturday she really wanted to see him. She was walking backwards, not wanting to be followed without noticing. Suddenly she heard a loud noise and realized she had hit something which made her almost loose her balance. There was a bicycle outside Chandler's cabin and it had fallen on the ground. Monica heard voices coming from the inside and instinctively ducked behind the trees. Chandler's head emerged from the door and glanced around.
"There's no one here." He said and a muffled female voice asked him something. He walked towards Monica and picked up the bicycle. He caught her out of the corner of his eye and winked at her. It had all happened so quickly and she was too surprised to react, so she just waited for the door to close behind him to go closer and take a look inside through the window. There was a woman sitting in one of the chairs. Monica couldn't see her face. She decided to ask Chandler about her later.
About half an hour later, the woman with the bicycle left the family house hurriedly. She didn't even notice Monica sitting on the grass close to the gate.
As Monica was about to stand up and head to Chandler's, Panos's voice startled her. "Does he love you?"
She looked at him in confusion until he gestured to her hands and she realized she was holding a half-plucked daisy. She just smiled at him and he sat down next to her.
"Have you ever felt that you're in love with someone without knowing anything about them?" He asked.
"I have." Monica answered, wondering where that was going. "Why are you asking?"
"You know that someone does love you, right?"
"Of course. Mark loves me." She said, cringing inside at her lie.
"No, I don't mean Mark. There's someone else."
Monica's eyes widened and her heart rate increased dangerously. How could he know? "Who do you mean?"
"I think you know. And if you don't, you'll found out soon." He smiled at her and left, touching her shoulder gently in the process.
Monica was left staring at his back in bewilderment. If he knew anything they had to be even more careful, although Panos's behavior suggested joy and proud rather than anger and resentment. Instead of going straight to Chandler she decided it was better to wait a little. She lay on the grass under the shade of the tall trees and made another failed attempt to call Phoebe. They had been missing each other's calls the entire week and Monica had been dying to talk to her. The only communication they had managed to achieve was a couple of messages on the internet where Phoebe said that she had something urgent to tell her.
X-X-X
A few thousand kilometers away, Mark was trying to get used to the idea that he was going to see everyone again. He knew it wasn't going to be easy after all the adventures he had with those insignificant women when he was left alone in New York. He had been planning to go to Greece anyway, but the fact that he was unable to reach Rachel for days made him speed up his departure. His parents had told him that she was okay, so the only explanation was that was avoiding him. He had to admit he was a little worried and wanted to make sure she was okay. His parents were the only people he had informed that he would be in Thessaloniki early in the following morning.
X-X-X
A.N.: Thank you all so much for the wonderful and insightful reviews! One of you has figured out who was hiding in the darkness without Monica realizing it in the previous chapter. But we're going to find that out soon. ;) I know that was much shorter than my usual updates, but I've decided to try updating every week with a chapter of similar length with this one, because I don't want to leave this story unfinished and also, I don't want to keep you waiting anymore! :)
