Okay, this is the next chapter. I'm going to work really hard to get my computer at home to work so that I can get the next part up, but only if you review! Thanks!
Disclaimer: Right, so not mine.
It was a quiet ride home. Hannah was fast asleep in the backseat. Monica turned around briefly and smiled at the sight of her slumbering daughter (AN: Okay, you all definitely saw that one coming. Of course he's in love with Monica. It is me we're talking about here). She parked the car in the driveway and climbed out, and opened the backseat door and gathered Hannah in her arms. Shifting Hannah to one side, she managed to get out her key and stepped inside the quiet house.
He had gone home. To his wife.
She hated that he had married her. She wasn't supposed to be his wife; she was only supposed to be the rebound girl.
Mona.
She had even introduced the two. Mona worked in her restaurant, and Monica had originally intended for Mona to date Ross, but that relationship failed and after Monica and Chandler broke up, Mona set her sights on Chandler and won him.
It was getting harder and harder for Monica to remember why they had broken up. She loved him, he was a great father, and he understood her better than anyone else. So what then had caused them to break up?
It wasn't working. This was pretty much the typical bullshit answer that you give when you aren't really sure why you're breaking up, but just know that you have to do it to still save some of your sanity. But the thing that no one ever told them was that it was even worse to be apart. The only thing that had gotten Monica through was Hannah. She had to be strong for Hannah. She couldn't fall apart, because Hannah needed her. It was her reasoning for doing everything.
Flipping on the lights with her free hand, she carried Hannah up the stairs and laid her down in her bed. A huge four poster bed that Chandler had gotten her to make her feel like a princess. He always had that talent; he could make Monica feel like a princess too. Or at least, he had been able to. Now, she supposed, he made Mona feel that way.
Did he love her?
Did he whisper the things to Mona that he used to whisper to Monica?
No, she couldn't think like that, thinking like that only got her in trouble. Leaning down, she placed a gentle kiss on Hannah's cheek and praised herself for having the foresight to have Hannah change into pajamas before they left Ross and Rachel's. She shut the door to Hannah's room and went back downstairs and poured herself a glass of wine. Grabbing a book from the bookshelves, she curled up on the chair and relaxed. No thinking of Chandler, or what might have been. There was no use in thinking like that. None at all. It would do her no good.
What was done was done.
And that was all that there was to it.
So I'll watch the snow come falling
And I'll celebrate the spring
I'll feel the falls keep falling
And when the summers come
I will pretend that I don't notice
That this is when I notice most of all
"Mommy, watch this! Watch what I can do!" Hannah tugged on Monica's sleeve, and Monica turned away from the cookies that she had been making to watch Hannah.
"That's great, baby," she said smiling. "But you need to go to bed soon, so why don't you go upstairs and get your pj's on for me?" Hannah was on an independent kick, and Monica tried to pick easy tasks for her to complete. Seeing as she had already laid out Hannah's pajama's, Hannah could easily get dressed by herself.
"Okay," Hannah smiled and ran out of the room and Monica heard her bounding up the stairs. Returning to the cookies, she was interrupted by a knock at the door.
She wiped her hands on her apron and walked down the front hall. Pulling it open, she was shocked to see Chandler on the other side.
"Chandler?"
"Mon? Can we talk? I really need to talk to you. Is it possible for us to sit down and talk?" He was rambling. He always rambled when he was nervous.
"Sure, I guess," she held the door open wider for him and he came inside. It smelled like her. God, he loved that smell. She looked beautiful standing there in front of him, he just wanted to take her in his arms and tell her that he was sorry. He never meant to her hurt her, and he should have never, ever, let her go.
Where did he start?
Oh, by the way, I left my wife the other day. Christmas Eve. Moved back in with Joey. Wanted to see if there was a chance that you and I could be a you and I again? Right. That would work.
"Daddy!" Hannah catapulted down the stairs and into Chandler's arms.
"Hey, Han, how are you tonight?"
"Good, I put on my pajama's all by myself," she grinned proudly and neither Chandler nor Monica had the heart to point out to her that they were on inside out.
"Good for you princess," Chandler told her.
"Daddy, will you tuck me in tonight?" She asked looking at her mother to see if this was okay. Monica smiled at Hannah.
"I would love to," he assured her. "Come on, honey, give Mommy a kiss goodnight." Hannah leaned out of Chandler's arms and planted a wet kiss on Monica.
"Goodnight Mommy."
"Goodnight sweet girl." She ran a hand through Hannah's hair.
"And then you and I can talk?" Chandler asked. Monica nodded and he smiled a little and carried Hannah up the stairs.
When he came back down, she was standing exactly where he had left her, hugging her sweater to herself. Motioning for him to follow her, they walked back into the living room and sat on the couch.
"What is that we need to talk about?" Monica asked.
"I'm in love with you." Whoa. That was not what she was expecting. She wasn't sure what exactly she had been expecting, but it certainly wasn't that.
"What?"
"I'm in love with you," he stated again. He decided that it was like ripping off a bandaid, it was better to just get it out there. And not worry about the consequences.
So let it roll into me
Let it roll into you
Let it roll into me
Let it roll back into when I had you
Clearly by the look on her face, she was worried about the consequences.
"You what?"
"I love you."
"And that's supposed to make me go what? Oh, great, he loves me. That's wonderful. It doesn't work that way Chandler. You're married." Damn. There was that again. She had to keep repeating it to both herself and Chandler. He was married. He had a wife. Mona was his wife.
"Monica, I love you."
"Shouldn't you be home with your wife?" Monica asked backing away from him. It felt so right, sounded so right, and it took everything she had to pull away from it. "Go home to your wife, Chandler."
"I
left her."
"For me?"
This was certainly something that she hadn't seen coming. He left Mona. She
felt….elated. And confused. He left Mona. Why? Why had
he left Mona? Was it because suddenly after three years he remembered that he
loved her? Or had loved her once?
"It's always for you. And Hannah."
"Chandler."
"Monica, don't say anything like we didn't work before, or we tried this before…we didn't try, or at least we didn't try it hard enough. I love you. I've loved you forever. And I want you. I want you as my wife, forever. I never asked you to marry me, and it was because I was terrified. But I'm not terrified anymore. I love you. I want you to marry me. I want to live here with you and Hannah." His eyes implored her to answer in the positive and she bit her lip, a sure sign that she was thinking hard about this.
"I'm not sure…."
"What?"
"How to answer that?"
"Say yes." It seemed very simple to him.
"I need to think it over." Of course she did, he was asking for way too much for her to give him an answer right then.
"You're right. You need to think it over. Take your time. Take all the time that you need." He stood up and pulled on his coat. "I'll be at Joey's." Leaning in, he gave her a kiss on her cheek. Turning around to leave he got halfway to the front door, when he turned around and saw her behind him.
"Just don't take too long, okay?" She smiled and nodded. He opened the door and went to step out into the snow, when he heard his name being called.
"Chandler?"
"Yeah?"
"Turns out that I don't have to think about it. Turns out that I love you." Not being to help the grin that spread across his face, he turned back around. She ran down the front steps and into his arms. Kissing him, she smiled up at him.
"You love me?"
"Of course I do. I never stopped." He grinned and held her tightly.
"Will you marry me?" That was when her grin faltered and she shook her head slightly.
"I can't."
And all you ever wanted for me
Was the time to understand
And all I ever wanted for you
Was to see me shining for you
And I wish that I could be back in the day that I could say
Let it roll
Let it roll into me
Let it roll
Let it roll into you
Let it roll back into when I had you
Who didn't know that Monica was going to be the wife? Haha, of course it was. But oh no, she turned down his marriage proposal? Review please! Like I said, I'm going to get the next part up as soon as I can.