Chandler awoke early the next morning with Monica still asleep in his arms. He breathed in the smell of her hair and kissed her lightly on the shoulder so that he wouldn't wake her up. "How did I get so lucky?" he wondered as he watched her sleeping peacefully. He laid back down and waited for her to wake up, content to stay right where he was. Twenty minutes later he felt Mon stir and turn to face him. As she opened her eyes, she grinned at him.
"Hey, you."
"Hey yourself." She scooted close to him and smiled as he gently brushed his fingertips up and down her arm. She stared at him, causing him to become curious after a few minutes. "Everything okay?"
"Yep. Why?"
"You were just... looking at me funny... just checking," he said grinning.
"Yeah... I just wanted to say... thank you." Chandler frowned, confused.
"Thank you?"
"Yeah, for last night." He tried to hide the grin that crept over his face, but it was of no use.
"Oh, believe me, you don't have to thank me... I didn't mind in the least! In fact, I might even do it again if you ever want me to..." Mon giggled and swatted him playfully.
"No, I mean... well, basically... I just... thank you for making it so... special... and for being... y'know... gentle..." she trailed off, trying to see his reaction. He was smiling faintly and opened his mouth to speak but closed it again. After a few minutes of thought, he finally found what he thought were the right words.
"Well, Mon, I kinda want to thank you, too."
"Me? For what?"
"Well, you know that I'd had sex before, but last night... well... uhhh... last night was the first time I ever... uhh... made love." He blushed and couldn't look her in the eye until she placed her fingers under his chin and lifted his face toward hers. He noted that there were tears in her eyes and she kissed him.
"I love you so much," she whispered.
"I love you too," he whispered back, feeling happier than he ever had in his life.

"Oh my God, I'm so nervous... what if I trip and make a fool of myself in front of all these people? What if I fall down the stairs?"
"Mon, sweetheart, calm down. You're going to be fine." Monica looked nervously back at Chandler and tried to regain her composure. It was finally here: her high school graduation. The day she had been awaiting for as long as she could remember. She was finally going to college, and she was going to be at the same college as the man she loved. Added to which, her best friend was going to be her roommate. Her life finally seemed to be in order. She felt Chandler's hand tighten around hers. "I'm so proud of you," he whispered. She grinned up at him and was just about to kiss him when Ross approached them.
"Okay, okay, would you knock it off already?" They stepped back and Ross smiled. "Congratulations, sis. Knock 'em dead." Monica smiled and gave him a hug. Although he had initially been shocked and somewhat perturbed about Chandler and Monica's relationship, he had soon seen how good they were together and how happy they both seemed. His only warning had been his threat to Chandler: "Hurt her and I'll kill you, dude."
A few moments later, all of the graduation candidates were ushered to their seats and the guests were told to sit as well.

"Monica Elizabeth Geller," the announcer read. Mon took a deep breath and walked carefully toward the school principal who had her diploma extended toward her. As he shook her hand, she sneaked a glance toward the audience, where she immediately found her family and Chandler sitting not ten rows from the front. Ross was hooting and hollering and Mr. and Mrs. Geller were beaming and clapping. Chandler was clapping as well, and when he caught her eye, he grinned and winked. She smiled, took her diploma, and made her way back to her seat. After the ceremony was over, she scanned the sea of faces, looking for her family. She spotted Rachel and made a beeline for her. When Rach turned and saw her, she squealed and made a dash for her best friend. They reached each other and hugged, jumping up and down and laughing. They were finally out of the hellhole known as high school, and were about to be "college girls."

Summer came and went in a whirlwind of plans. Chandler and Monica became even more inseparable than before, and everyone became accustomed to seeing them together -- it was far more strange to see them apart. Throughout the summer, Monica would sometimes tell her parents that she was spending the night at Rachel's and would instead stay at Chandler's when his mother was out of town, which was quite often. As the summer drew to a close, Monica grew excited about the prospect of starting her first semester at NYU. She looked forward to both the freedom and the fact that she would be with Chandler. Ross, afraid of having his suspicions of his best friend sleeping with his little sister confirmed, had applied for a roommate switch for the upcoming year, and Chandler had decided to pay the extra money for a "single." The day came when the dorms were opened, and there was a flurry of activity. Chandler rented a U-Haul so that he could take his, Ross's, Rachel's, and Monica's stuff to the campus in one haul. They spent an entire weekend moving things around and getting situated, and the following Monday the semester began.

"Come in!" Monica looked up from her mid-term study guide and grinned when she saw Chandler standing in the doorway.
"Hey, beautiful," he greeted, smiling back. "Whatcha doing?" Monica grimaced as she gestured toward the stack of papers that cluttered her desk.
"Studying," she replied with a scowl. "Stupid biology mid-term." Chandler smiled.
"Well, how about we go and grab a bite to eat in the dining hall and then have a little biological fun of our own?" Monica laughed and rolled her eyes.
"Okay... I guess I could take a break for some food. If I don't know this stuff by now, I probably never will." Chandler nodded in agreement.
"So we're on for dinner... and where are we on the action?" Monica stuck her tongue out as he laughed and helped her slip into her coat. As she buttoned it up, he kissed her lightly on the forehead. "You wanna stay at my place tonight?" Mon looked up to see if he was teasing her again, but his expression was nothing more than a small smile.
She grinned teasingly and replied, "We'll see, Mr. Bing... depends on how good you are at dinner." He smiled back and held the door open for her.
"With an implication like that, you can believe I'll be on my best behavior!" Monica laughed again and walked out of the dorm.

After they had eaten, as they headed back across the campus toward Monica's dorm with their fingers intertwined, Chandler sighed and tightened his grip on her hand. Wondering what was on his mind, Monica broke the silence that had been between them since they left the dining hall. "Penny for your thoughts," she said, smiling slightly when he turned to face her. He grinned back as he noticed how pretty she looked with her eyes shining and her cheeks rosy from the cold.
"I was just wondering," he replied as he turned away from her piercing eyes, "if it gets any better than this." Saying nothing, Monica waited to see if he would continue. "I mean, I finally have the perfect girlfriend, I'm away from my severely deranged family, and I'm actually happy. I just... I can't imagine anything better." Monica smiled warmly and brought his hand to her mouth and gently kissed it.
"I can't imagine it either," she whispered. After a few moments, she added, "Well, that was pretty smooth, Bing... a good way to get me to stay over." Chandler grinned as he draped his arm across her shoulder.
"Ah, my intention all along... good to know that it paid off." Monica laughed and walked into her dorm building to grab a change of clothes and a toothbrush and to leave a note for Rachel.

"C'mon, Monica, answer the phone." Chandler tapped his foot impatiently as he listened to the phone ring on the other end. He had just finished his last final and he and Monica were going to drive home together, since she had finished the day before. He sighed as the answering machine picked up: "Hi, you've reached Monica and Rachel's. We're probably in, but avoiding a call from someone we don't want to talk to. Leave a message, and if we don't call you back, it's you." After he had waited for the beep, he spoke: "Mon, it's me. I'm on my way over, I guess you're in the shower or something. Anyway, I'll see you in a few." As he hung up the phone, he wondered for the thousandth time what was going on with Monica. For the past month she had been distant and irritable and had seemed extremely stressed out -- nothing like her normal self. Chalking it up to final-exam stress, Chandler had tried to ignore it, but he was becoming increasingly concerned. What if she had met someone else? What if she didn't want to be with him anymore? He couldn't imagine that being the case, but he had managed to make himself really paranoid over the past few weeks. He grabbed his keycard and left his room, moving his boxes away from the door so that he could open it. As he made his way across campus, he was careful not to rush in case she WAS in the shower. His mind wandered yet again, and he could feel himself getting worked up once more. The last time she had stayed overnight in his room, she had been really emotional but wouldn't tell him why. They hadn't even gotten around to making love, and instead he had just held her close throughout the night while she slept in his arms. Being that he hadn't seen her for a day and a half, he hoped that the end of the term had brought with it the end of Monica's tension. As he approached Mon's building, he saw Rachel ahead of him. "Rach?" he called after her, and broke into a jog when she turned.
"Oh, hey Chandler," she replied. "Looking for Mon?" She smiled thankfully as he grabbed a few of the books she was struggling with.
"Yeah, we're driving home this afternoon. Just finished my last final."
"Oh, man, I'm jealous. I have to stick around for another two days," she replied, groaning.
"Yeah, well, think of it this way," he replied. "After those two days, you'll never have to be a freshman again." Rachel smiled in return.
"What was the final in?"
"Physics," he replied. "I gotta say, if I never hear the terms 'Law of Gravitation' again, I won't mind." Rachel smiled as she opened the door to their building. After a few moments, he turned to her with a serious expression. "Rach, have you noticed anything strange about Monica lately? I mean, has she been acting different around you or anything?" After a momentary pause, Rachel stopped.
"Actually, yeah, now that you mention it. We've barely had time to really sit and talk for weeks now, what with finals and everything. She's seemed kind of upset, now that I think about it." She began walking again. "Is everything okay with you guys?"
"Yeah, we're great. Well, at least, I think we're great. I mean, I still love her and we're still fine... I was just worried about her, that's all."
"Aw, Chandler, I wouldn't worry about it. It's probably just stress, y'know? Freshman year is always a pain in the ass." Chandler nodded.
"Yeah, I seem to remember that being true." Rach smiled.
"Don't worry. I'm sure once you guys get out of here, things will go back to normal." Chandler tried to smile, hoping that she was right. As they reached the door, Chandler took the rest of Rachel's books as she fished through her bag for her keycard. She knocked on the door before she opened it in case Monica wasn't dressed. As she opened the door, a startling sight met their eyes: whereas Rachel's side was cluttered with her usual mess, Monica's side was bare. All of her boxes of belongings were gone, leaving only the furniture that belonged to the school.
"What the hell?" Chandler's voice trailed off as he scanned the room, confused. "Did she leave already or something?"
"I have no clue," Rachel replied, frowning. "I haven't seen her all day... maybe she got Ross to help her carry her stuff to the van or something." Chandler nodded, trying to shake the uneasy feeling that had settled over him.
"Yeah, you're probably right. I guess I'll head over to Ross's building to find her. Thanks, Rach." He handed her books back and left the dorm. He jogged away from Monica's dorm building, wondering what in the world was going on.

"Dude, what's wrong?" Chandler asked, concerned when he saw Ross's face on the other side of the door. Ross grabbed him by the sleeve of his jacket and dragged him into his room.
"What the hell happened with you two?" he demanded. Chandler stared at him blankly, trying to understand what he was talking about. "What did you do to her?" Sensing something had happened with Monica, he was instantly struck with fear.
"Ross, what the hell are you talking about? What's going on?" Ross's eyes narrowed as he snatched a piece of paper off of his desk and thrust it at his former roommate.
"What happened?" he repeated as Chandler began to read the note.

"Ross,
I am sorry that this is coming in a note, but I knew that if I tried to explain this to your face, I would fail miserably. I'm leaving NYU -- and New York, for that matter, but I wanted to let you know that I'm going to be fine. And before you fly off the handle, don't go blaming Chandler for my leaving. There are just some things that I have to figure out at the moment. You're the greatest brother in the world, and I'm going to miss you like crazy. But you have to understand that ever since we were kids, I've lived in your shadow. Perhaps going to the same college was a mistake, but either way the time has come for me to figure out who I am. Don't think that this is your fault, because it's not... this is about me. I need to find out who I am and where I'm going, and I know that I can't do that in New York. Tell Mom and Dad that I'm fine... lie if you have to, just don't let them freak out. Tell Chandler that I'm sorry and that I love him, and tell him to check his mailbox before he leaves to go home if you see him. Take it easy, bro... good luck with Carol.
Love,
Mon"

Chandler read the note over again, not believing what he was seeing. There was no way that she had just left... this had to be some sort of prank someone was playing. She wouldn't just leave him like that, surely? He looked up and into Ross's face, which was twisted with a look of combined anger, worry, and confusion. Not knowing what to say and certain that his own face was just as distorted, he simply stared back. After a few moments, he left the dorm, running toward the mail center to check his mailbox. When he reached the mail room, he quickly spun the combination on his door and opened the latch to see a single envelope inside. Grabbing it hastily, he tore it open and began to read:

"Chandler,
If you're reading this, knowing how rarely you check your mailbox, I'm guessing that you've seen Ross. I know that you probably don't understand any of this, and I'm sorry that I can't explain it. I just have to go... I'm going to find a different school and start a new path. Please don't take this to mean that I don't love you, because I do... I love you with all my heart, and I always will. I'm sorry if this seems selfish and senseless, but I have to do this. Please try to understand, and not to hate me. Thank you for loving me and for teaching me so much about life and love. You will be in my heart always... perhaps someday we will meet again.
All my love, now and always,
Monica"

Dumbfounded, he sank to the floor, his eyes stinging with tears. The feelings of disbelief had given way to a severe pain, a pain that erupted in anger as he balled up the paper and threw it across the room, then buried his face in his hands.