Love You, Chapter Six
Disclaimer: I own none of these characters. Pity.
Because Monica was on maternity leave, she had plenty of time to plan what she was going to say to Ross. A few weeks after her decision, she and Chandler went to see him. A few seconds after knocking, the door opened.
"What do you want?" asked Ross, crossly, not really looking at either of them.
"Can we come in?" Monica queried, ignoring her brother's obvious anger. She didn't wait for a reply, and pushed past him, Chandler following. Ross' jaw dropped when he saw Monica's stomach.
"You're pregnant?" he exclaimed.
"No, she just likes the look," Chandler quipped, earning himself dirty looks from both siblings.
"Shut up, honey," Monica told him sweetly. She turned to her brother. "Ross, please, just listen to what I'm going to say, please?" Ross nodded, curtly. "I know you don't want me to get hurt, but –"
"That wasn't what I was angry about," Ross said, still looking unhappy. "I was angry because it was my wedding night, and you were trying to take the attention away from me. And Chandler was taking advantage of my baby sister, and my baby sister was behaving like a little slut, getting drunk and sleeping with the first guy she saw. And I'm not done being angry. I don't want to see you, or Chandler, or that baby."
There was a short silence. Monica had honestly believed that Ross would be thrilled to hear about the baby and his new brother-in-law. When a few minutes had passed, and it seemed obvious that Ross wasn't going to come round, she sighed, and spoke again. "Well, I'm sorry, Ross. I just thought you'd want to know that we got married, and we're having a baby – I thought that you'd be pleased." Her voice shook with anger and hurt. "I wish that you were happy for us. We miss you being our friend, but if you don't want to know us…" She left the sentence hanging, an empty threat.
Chandler took her arm. "Let's go, Monica," he sighed. "I knew this was a bad idea. Come see us when you want to be civil, Ross." And together, the couple walked out of Ross' apartment, and out of his life.
* * *
When Monica and Chandler told the gang about their talk with Ross, they received mixed reactions. Joey was angry, and wanted to 'go kick some Gellar butt', whereas Rachel was shocked, as was Phoebe.
"I can't believe you went to see that monster!" cried Phoebe.
"He's not a monster," Monica told her. "He's my brother, but he doesn't seem to want to be," she added, sighing. Rachel hugged her, and Joey gave a little smirk.
"Hey, hey, Monica and Rachel," he giggled, like a dirty schoolboy.
"That's my wife, man," Chandler said, in mild indignation.
"I hope Ross does comes back soon," Rachel murmured. Gunther heard this and scowled. "I can't believe he doesn't even want to know his niece or nephew." Gunther looked happier. "What are you going to call the baby?" Rachel asked for the thousandth time. She knew there was no answer; she just liked discussing baby names.
"No idea," Chandler told her. "I like Bethany Monica for a girl or Robert James for a boy."
"Oh, no!" Phoebe announced. "Phoebe is the best name. I named one of the triplets after you, didn't I?"
"How about Joseph?" Joey asked.
"What if it's a girl?" Monica countered.
"Josephine," Joey said, after thinking wildly for a moment.
"You should call it, uh, Raquel," Rachel said, happy that she'd thought of a name that wasn't Rachel, but sounded a lot like it.
"No," Chandler decided. "We can decide on a name for our baby by ourselves." Monica nodded. "And it will not be named after any one of you." The three looked disappointed.
"But you'd better decide pretty quickly," Rachel told them. "Isn't the baby due in a week?"
"Nine days," Monica corrected her. "I can't wait to be a mom!"
* * *
Two days later, Monica was cooking dinner for the gang when she felt a pain in her stomach. She gasped as something wet touched her legs. "C-Chandler?" she asked, tentatively.
"What, honey?" Chandler picked up on the nerves in his wife's voice, and was by her side in a second.
"My – my water broke," Monica whispered, the pain searing through her stomach again. "I – it hurts."
"Guys, quiet! We're trying to watch Days of our Lives!" Rachel, the resident soap queen, ordered.
Chandler gritted his teeth. "Rachel, Monica has just gone into labour, and you're worried about watching a soap?"
"Ohmigod!" Rachel gasped. "Labour?"
Another moan from Monica answered her question. The pain Monica was feeling was unbearable.
"It hurts like mad," she moaned.
"You think it hurts now?" Phoebe exclaimed. "It will get much worse, believe me. You won't be able to handle it."
"Thanks, Pheebs," Chandler said, sarcastically. Monica began to cry softly at Phoebe's words.
Joey jumped up. "I'll call a cab," he told the others. Chandler nodded his thanks, and began to settle Monica on the couch.
"My – my couch!" Monica gasped. "I can't mess it up with – watery stuff."
"Rachel, get some towels," Chandler ordered. Rachel ran into the bathroom, and came out, laden with towels. She spread them on the couch, and Monica then felt it safe to lie down.
After a few more minutes of pain and mess, Joey arrived to say that the cab was here. He offered to stay behind and ring the Gellars and Nora Bing, to tell them what was happening. Phoebe offered to stay also. There wasn't enough room in the cab for four people. So Monica, Chandler and Rachel left for the hospital.
* * *
Seven painful hours later, Monica was rewarded. The doctor handed her a small bundle. "Congratulations, Mrs Bing, you have a daughter."
Monica felt as though she would burst with happiness. Judging by the happiness on Chandler's face, he felt the same. "We've got a baby girl?" he gasped.
All of the pain was worth it, just for that moment. Monica held her newborn daughter and marvelled at how much she looked like Chandler. "Tell the others," she whispered. "But – don't bring them in, not yet." Chandler nodded, and left. Monica was alone with her daughter. She'd wanted this day since she was five. And now it was here, it felt better than she could ever have imagined.
Chandler arrived back. "What are we going to call her?" he asked.
Monica leaned closer, and whispered a name to him. A smile grew on his face. "Perfect," he said.
* * *
As Rachel, Joey and Phoebe were ushered in, Monica smiled at them. "Guys, meet Grace Kathryn Bing," she announced, smiling. As the gang all cooed over the new arrival, Monica looked up at Chandler. "Love you," she whispered to him, softly.
"Love you, too," Chandler replied, and kissed her gently.
A/N: That's the last part. I might do an epilogue if you ask nicely, but it's come the full circle now. Please R+R
