I have exclusive rights to all of PMQ's music, which, in my head, sounds a little like Green Day,
but that's only because I can't get "Church on Sunday" *out* of my head.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Love, Lust and Glory: The One Where They Make It, Part Seven
~Beth Israel Medical Center, New York City~
Monica and Chandler rushed into the medical center, and found their friends almost immediately.
"Are you guys okay?" Monica asked, hugging Joey.
"Yeah, Mon, we're fine...just a little shaken up," Joey laughed.
"Chandler," Janice said, her voice sickly sweet, "long time no see!"
"Hello, Janice," Chandler said, trying his best to avoid hugging her.
But Janice refused to be denied, and wrapped her skinny arms around him.
"Can I have a thank-you kiss? I did after all, save your friends from certain doom," she said dramatically.
"And I thank you for that, Janice," Chandler said pulling her arms off of him.
"Chaaandler," she whined, "sweetie, you and I were sooo good together!"
Chandler moaned in disgust.
"Look, Janice, I, um, I am just not ready for a relationship right now. I am really busy, and
the last thing I need is a girlfriend to complicate my life. You understand, right?"
"Fine. But you call me the second you change your mind!"
With that, Janice planted a big, sloppy kiss on Chandler's lips, and pranced out of the hospital.
Chandler looked over at Monica, who smiled weakly.
"Can you guys leave yet?" Monica asked.
"They wanna keep Pheebs overnight for observation, but they released me. I think I'm gonna stay
with her, though," Joey explained.
"Wow, so you guys are pretty serious, huh?" Chandler asked, as he and Joey sat down.
"Yeah. We get along so well, ya know? And she treats me like a normal person. It's great."
Chandler nodded. "Well, I think she's great...and I have never seen you so happy!"
Joey chuckled. "Yeah," was all he could say. He was definitely happy.
*****
"Hi, Ross," Rachel said, opening the door.
"Hey," he replied, and pulled her into a hug.
They moved to the sofa, and sat down.
"So, what happened?" Ross asked softly.
"He wanted me to quit my job. He said I was on the road too much," Rachel sobbed.
"I'm so sorry," Ross said.
"It's not your fault," Rachel said, putting her hand on his, "I made the choice."
"Well, I'm sorry that you are hurting, Rach, but I am glad you didn't quit," Ross said sincerely.
"Me too," she whispered, and sunk into the sofa.
They sat in silence for several minutes.
"So, you wanna get drunk?" Ross said, smiling.
"Ross!" Rachel scolded, then saw the look on his face, and had to laugh.
"Hey, I got you smiling!" Ross said happily.
"Thanks, Ross," Rachel said, her face once again turning serious.
"Hey, that's what friends are for, right?"
"Yeah."
*****
~San Francisco, California, one week later~
*4:15 pm, Warfield Theatre, Sound Check*
"Ross, your guitar sounds a little off. Try G again," Chandler stood at the centre of the stage,
his acoustic Gibson hanging loosely around his neck.
"You know, Chandler, your ability to hear that stuff is just eerie," Ross replied, tweaking his guitar.
"I have a good ear. Sue me," Chandler laughed. "Let's try it from the top again."
Monica walked through the venue, listening to the band warm up. She never grew weary of the songs, or of Chandler's voice. She could listen to him sing for hours. The past week had been hectic. Monica and Chandler had decided not to tell anyone about their relationship, and consequently, they rarely had any alone time. They were a week into their "relationship", but had done little more than kiss. Monica sighed. She would have to schedule a break for the band, just so she could see Chandler alone. She walked past the stage, and caught Chandler's eye. He winked at her, never missing a beat. Her heart skipped. She may be dating the most famous singer in the world, but to her, he was much more.
*8:45pm, Warfield Theatre-Showtime*
The band took to the stage, and was greeted with a roaring applause. The band sounded tight, and
the songs flowed smoothly. Chandler caught Ross' eye, and they both smiled. They knew that this show was gonna be one of their best.
Midway through the third song, Chandler felt his pulse quicken. He loved this song, and knew that it was a crowd-pleaser. He sang his way to the bridge, and backed up, letting Ross do his thing.
Chandler reached down for his water bottle, then heard the crackling. As he turned, the crackling escalated into popping. The lights above began to explode, one by one, sending shimmering pieces of glass and orange sparks to the stage. Security immediatly began pushing the screaming crowd back away from the stage, and Monica came flying out, screaming to the band to get off of the stage. Chandler stared at the lights, awestruck by the chaos that lay before him. He was pulled from his revelrie by Monica, who grabbed his arm and yanked his amp plug from his guitar.
"Chandler, get off the stage," she yelled, pulling him as she ran.
Minutes after the stage was cleared, the overhead light fixture fell from the rafters, and hit the stage with a thundering crash.
**
"Get Mike in here!" Monica screamed at the security guards.
"What the hell just happened?" Joey asked.
"I don't know, but we are gonna find out."
The two security guards re-entered the room, with Mike McAffee, the lighting technician, in tow.
Mike had been working with the band since their first tour. He was 38 years old, and single.
He had a typical roadie look; long stringy hair, black jeans, a black t-shirt from a 1984 Van Halen
concert. He was an easy going, hard working guy, who never had much to say, but was wickedly funny when he did finally speak. The band all liked him, and he enjoyed touring with them.
"Monica, I swear to God, I checked those lights out this afternoon."
"Then how did they nearly kill the band?" Monica fumed.
"I...I don't know. Lemme take a look at them, and see what happened. It coulda been faulty wiring. This is a really old building."
"Faulty wiring?" Monica yelled. But before she could continue, she was cut off by Chandler.
"Mike, no one is blaming you, we just need to know what happened."
"Lemme take a look at it," Mike mumbled, and left the room.
"Mon, I really don't think it was Mike's fault," Chandler said softly.
"YOU don't know that Chandler! You guys were almost killed tonight, and HE is giving me faulty wiring??"
"Monica, calm down, okay? No one was hurt."
"DON'T tell me to calm down, Chandler." Monica's heart was racing. She knew she was over-
reacting, but the words left her mouth before she could control them. Whatever rational
filter she had in her brain was not working at the moment.
"I think this is related to the bomb scare in Salt Lake City," she said.
"Monica, that's ridiculous, okay? We don't know anything yet. For all we know, this was an accident!"
"Shut UP, Chandler, just SHUT UP!"
Chandler closed his mouth and looked at Monica crossly. He decided that there was no use
trying to reason with her when she was in this state. He turned silently, and left the room.
***
Joey's phone was ringing as he keyed into his hotel room.
"Hello?"
"Joey!"
"Hi sweetheart!"
"Are you okay? I just heard on the radio that there was a huge accident on stage." Pheobe was in a panic. She wasn't able to go with the band to San Francisco because she had to work, but school was almost out, and she would have the entire holiday break to tour with the band. When her students found out that she was dating PMQ's drummer, she suddenly became the most popular teacher in school. She never thought she'd have a waiting list for her Russian Lit classes.
"We're fine Pheebs, everyone is fine. How are you? How is your leg?"
"I'm fine. I never realized how many stairs there were at NYU until now," she laughed.
"But the semester is almost over, right?"
"Yeah. I'll meet up with you in Seattle."
"Excellent!!"
"Okay, I have to finish reading these essays. I just needed to know that you were okay."
"I'm fine baby."
"Good."
"Pheebs?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you."
Pheobe was taken aback by Joey's last statement. He loved her? Wow. She sat in a stunned silence.
The silence was agonizing for Joey. He was starting to regret saying anything at all.
"I love you too," Pheobe finally whispered, and hung up the phone.
Joey grinned, and hung up the phone. "Yeah, baby!" he yelled, and layed down on his bed, folding his arms behind his head.
***
Ross sat at the back of the now-emptied theatre, watching as Mike and Monica talked about that night's incident. Monica had finally calmed down, after taking out most of her frusterations on Mike and Chandler. Ross sighed, and leaned his head back against his seat. It seemed to be one thing after the other lately. Ross thought about what Monica had said, about this being connected to Salt Lake. He hoped that she was wrong, but had a weird feeling that she wasn't.
"Penny for your thoughts," Rachel said, startling Ross.
"Ah! Hey Rach. I was just thinking about something Monica said earlier."
"About the bomb threat?"
"Yeah."
"It's looking more plausable, actually," Rachel explained. "Mike says he thinks the wires were cut intentionally."
"Really?"
"Yeah. There are clean cuts. He said that if it was bad wiring, they would have been torn out."
"Wow."
"Monica wants to increase security."
"Great, just what we need...more people."
"Well, it's better that the alternative."
"Yeah. Anyway...how are you feeling?"
"Well, it's good to be back out on the road...I can stay busy."
"Yeah."
"But sometimes..." Rachel shook her head.
"What?"
"Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision. If I end up alone and lonely, it will be my own fault."
"You aren't going to end up alone Rach," Ross said. "You are a gorgeous, intellegent woman, and you will be just fine."
Rachel smiled. "Thanks. Hey, I'm gorgeous?"
"Duh," Ross said, wrapping his arms around her.
Rachel smiled and put her head on Ross' chest. He was so much sweeter when he was sober. She closed her eyes, and sighed heavily. Maybe she had made the right decision after all.
****
Monica arrived at the hotel at 1:30 in the morning, exhausted and scared. Mike was sure that it was not an accident, so they had called the San Francisco Police, who, in turn, called the FBI. A full blown investigation was under way, and Monica had to decide whether they should continue to tour. And, she needed to apologize to Chandler. He had taken off after her outbust, and had not answered his phone all night. She knocked on the door to his room. She waited, and knocked again. When it became clear that he was not there, or not going to answer, she retreated to her room, and went to sleep.
~The Manderine Orient Hotel, Downtown San Francisco, the next day~
Monica made her way down the hallway of the 15th floor, ensuring that everyone there was packed and ready to check out. She had reserved a small conference room, to meet with the band and the crew before boarding the bus and heading to Sacramento. She turned the corner, and ran into right into Chandler.
"Chandler," was all she could say.
"Morning Monica," Chandler mumbled, and continued down the hall.
Monica sighed, and concentrated on getting everything together. It was going to be a very long day.
Two hours later, Monica had explained the new security issues to the band and crew, and had managed to get everyone out of the hotel, and on the tour buses. Once on the bus, Ross and Joey went to the back to try and get some sleep, while Rachel sat at the table, aimlessly stitching one of Joey's shirts, her mind a million miles away. Monica was in the front, talking to Frank Martinez, the driver, about where to park once they reached Sacramento. When Chandler emerged from the bathroom, she cut off her conversation with Frank, and sat down next to Chandler on the sofa.
"Chandler, I need to apologize to you. I should have never screamed at you like that."
"No, you shouldn't have," Chandler said flatly.
"I'm sorry. I...I was scared. That thing almost killed you. I freaked out, and I am sorry."
"It's okay Mon. I am scared too."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I mean, when you made the connection to Salt Lake, I guess I got to thinking, and I freaked out a little too. I didn't want to believe that you might be right. That someone is out to get us."
"Well, I am going to make sure that that does not happen."
Chandler smiled. "Oh, you are sexy when you are angry!"
"Really?"
"Yeah," Chandler said, and leaned in to kiss her.
"Wait," Monica said, putting her hand on his chest. "We...can't do...that here."
"Right," Chandler mumbled, and sat up straight.
"Maybe I'll stop by your room after the show tonight," Monica whispered.
Chandler smiled. "Kay."
****
~Sacramento, CA. Arco Arena, 8:30 pm~
"Mon, do we have any Throat Coat tea left?" Chandler said, pulling his guitar over his head.
"Yeah, right here," Monica said, tossing a box to him.
"Yeah, baybee, this crowd is on FIRE!" Joey yelled.
Monica laughed. "Wow, someone is psyched!"
"Yeah BAYBEE!"
Chandler and Monica laughed, as Joey ran up the ramp towards the stage.
"Have a great show," Monica said, as Chandler began to follow Joey.
"Thanks," Chandler winked and ran up to greet a packed house.
*
Chandler found that he could not drink enough water. His throat would dry up after each song, and he had gotten to the point where he was drinking a full Solo cup of liquid during every break in every song.
It wasn't until the first encore that he started to feel it.
The room was spinning, and he broke out into a cold sweat. His lips felt like they had swollen to the size of melons, and his eyes were burning. He shook his head, trying to shake off the eerie feeling, but it got increasingly worse. Finally, he stopped singing all together. Ross looked over at Chandler, who had turned a ghostly white. He called his name, but Chandler was frozen in place. Seconds later, Chandler collapsed, and the crowd collectively gasped.
Ross threw his guitar off and ran to Chandler's side. He was soon joined by Joey and Monica, who instructed a crew member to call an ambulance.
**
An hour later, a skinny, balding doctor came into the hospital waiting room.
"What happened?" Monica asked, her voice hoarse from crying, "Is he okay?"
"We won't know anything definite until tomorrow. He is very sick. But it appears..." The doctor looked at Monica intently.
"What?" Ross asked anxiously.
"He was poisoned."
but that's only because I can't get "Church on Sunday" *out* of my head.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Love, Lust and Glory: The One Where They Make It, Part Seven
~Beth Israel Medical Center, New York City~
Monica and Chandler rushed into the medical center, and found their friends almost immediately.
"Are you guys okay?" Monica asked, hugging Joey.
"Yeah, Mon, we're fine...just a little shaken up," Joey laughed.
"Chandler," Janice said, her voice sickly sweet, "long time no see!"
"Hello, Janice," Chandler said, trying his best to avoid hugging her.
But Janice refused to be denied, and wrapped her skinny arms around him.
"Can I have a thank-you kiss? I did after all, save your friends from certain doom," she said dramatically.
"And I thank you for that, Janice," Chandler said pulling her arms off of him.
"Chaaandler," she whined, "sweetie, you and I were sooo good together!"
Chandler moaned in disgust.
"Look, Janice, I, um, I am just not ready for a relationship right now. I am really busy, and
the last thing I need is a girlfriend to complicate my life. You understand, right?"
"Fine. But you call me the second you change your mind!"
With that, Janice planted a big, sloppy kiss on Chandler's lips, and pranced out of the hospital.
Chandler looked over at Monica, who smiled weakly.
"Can you guys leave yet?" Monica asked.
"They wanna keep Pheebs overnight for observation, but they released me. I think I'm gonna stay
with her, though," Joey explained.
"Wow, so you guys are pretty serious, huh?" Chandler asked, as he and Joey sat down.
"Yeah. We get along so well, ya know? And she treats me like a normal person. It's great."
Chandler nodded. "Well, I think she's great...and I have never seen you so happy!"
Joey chuckled. "Yeah," was all he could say. He was definitely happy.
*****
"Hi, Ross," Rachel said, opening the door.
"Hey," he replied, and pulled her into a hug.
They moved to the sofa, and sat down.
"So, what happened?" Ross asked softly.
"He wanted me to quit my job. He said I was on the road too much," Rachel sobbed.
"I'm so sorry," Ross said.
"It's not your fault," Rachel said, putting her hand on his, "I made the choice."
"Well, I'm sorry that you are hurting, Rach, but I am glad you didn't quit," Ross said sincerely.
"Me too," she whispered, and sunk into the sofa.
They sat in silence for several minutes.
"So, you wanna get drunk?" Ross said, smiling.
"Ross!" Rachel scolded, then saw the look on his face, and had to laugh.
"Hey, I got you smiling!" Ross said happily.
"Thanks, Ross," Rachel said, her face once again turning serious.
"Hey, that's what friends are for, right?"
"Yeah."
*****
~San Francisco, California, one week later~
*4:15 pm, Warfield Theatre, Sound Check*
"Ross, your guitar sounds a little off. Try G again," Chandler stood at the centre of the stage,
his acoustic Gibson hanging loosely around his neck.
"You know, Chandler, your ability to hear that stuff is just eerie," Ross replied, tweaking his guitar.
"I have a good ear. Sue me," Chandler laughed. "Let's try it from the top again."
Monica walked through the venue, listening to the band warm up. She never grew weary of the songs, or of Chandler's voice. She could listen to him sing for hours. The past week had been hectic. Monica and Chandler had decided not to tell anyone about their relationship, and consequently, they rarely had any alone time. They were a week into their "relationship", but had done little more than kiss. Monica sighed. She would have to schedule a break for the band, just so she could see Chandler alone. She walked past the stage, and caught Chandler's eye. He winked at her, never missing a beat. Her heart skipped. She may be dating the most famous singer in the world, but to her, he was much more.
*8:45pm, Warfield Theatre-Showtime*
The band took to the stage, and was greeted with a roaring applause. The band sounded tight, and
the songs flowed smoothly. Chandler caught Ross' eye, and they both smiled. They knew that this show was gonna be one of their best.
Midway through the third song, Chandler felt his pulse quicken. He loved this song, and knew that it was a crowd-pleaser. He sang his way to the bridge, and backed up, letting Ross do his thing.
Chandler reached down for his water bottle, then heard the crackling. As he turned, the crackling escalated into popping. The lights above began to explode, one by one, sending shimmering pieces of glass and orange sparks to the stage. Security immediatly began pushing the screaming crowd back away from the stage, and Monica came flying out, screaming to the band to get off of the stage. Chandler stared at the lights, awestruck by the chaos that lay before him. He was pulled from his revelrie by Monica, who grabbed his arm and yanked his amp plug from his guitar.
"Chandler, get off the stage," she yelled, pulling him as she ran.
Minutes after the stage was cleared, the overhead light fixture fell from the rafters, and hit the stage with a thundering crash.
**
"Get Mike in here!" Monica screamed at the security guards.
"What the hell just happened?" Joey asked.
"I don't know, but we are gonna find out."
The two security guards re-entered the room, with Mike McAffee, the lighting technician, in tow.
Mike had been working with the band since their first tour. He was 38 years old, and single.
He had a typical roadie look; long stringy hair, black jeans, a black t-shirt from a 1984 Van Halen
concert. He was an easy going, hard working guy, who never had much to say, but was wickedly funny when he did finally speak. The band all liked him, and he enjoyed touring with them.
"Monica, I swear to God, I checked those lights out this afternoon."
"Then how did they nearly kill the band?" Monica fumed.
"I...I don't know. Lemme take a look at them, and see what happened. It coulda been faulty wiring. This is a really old building."
"Faulty wiring?" Monica yelled. But before she could continue, she was cut off by Chandler.
"Mike, no one is blaming you, we just need to know what happened."
"Lemme take a look at it," Mike mumbled, and left the room.
"Mon, I really don't think it was Mike's fault," Chandler said softly.
"YOU don't know that Chandler! You guys were almost killed tonight, and HE is giving me faulty wiring??"
"Monica, calm down, okay? No one was hurt."
"DON'T tell me to calm down, Chandler." Monica's heart was racing. She knew she was over-
reacting, but the words left her mouth before she could control them. Whatever rational
filter she had in her brain was not working at the moment.
"I think this is related to the bomb scare in Salt Lake City," she said.
"Monica, that's ridiculous, okay? We don't know anything yet. For all we know, this was an accident!"
"Shut UP, Chandler, just SHUT UP!"
Chandler closed his mouth and looked at Monica crossly. He decided that there was no use
trying to reason with her when she was in this state. He turned silently, and left the room.
***
Joey's phone was ringing as he keyed into his hotel room.
"Hello?"
"Joey!"
"Hi sweetheart!"
"Are you okay? I just heard on the radio that there was a huge accident on stage." Pheobe was in a panic. She wasn't able to go with the band to San Francisco because she had to work, but school was almost out, and she would have the entire holiday break to tour with the band. When her students found out that she was dating PMQ's drummer, she suddenly became the most popular teacher in school. She never thought she'd have a waiting list for her Russian Lit classes.
"We're fine Pheebs, everyone is fine. How are you? How is your leg?"
"I'm fine. I never realized how many stairs there were at NYU until now," she laughed.
"But the semester is almost over, right?"
"Yeah. I'll meet up with you in Seattle."
"Excellent!!"
"Okay, I have to finish reading these essays. I just needed to know that you were okay."
"I'm fine baby."
"Good."
"Pheebs?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you."
Pheobe was taken aback by Joey's last statement. He loved her? Wow. She sat in a stunned silence.
The silence was agonizing for Joey. He was starting to regret saying anything at all.
"I love you too," Pheobe finally whispered, and hung up the phone.
Joey grinned, and hung up the phone. "Yeah, baby!" he yelled, and layed down on his bed, folding his arms behind his head.
***
Ross sat at the back of the now-emptied theatre, watching as Mike and Monica talked about that night's incident. Monica had finally calmed down, after taking out most of her frusterations on Mike and Chandler. Ross sighed, and leaned his head back against his seat. It seemed to be one thing after the other lately. Ross thought about what Monica had said, about this being connected to Salt Lake. He hoped that she was wrong, but had a weird feeling that she wasn't.
"Penny for your thoughts," Rachel said, startling Ross.
"Ah! Hey Rach. I was just thinking about something Monica said earlier."
"About the bomb threat?"
"Yeah."
"It's looking more plausable, actually," Rachel explained. "Mike says he thinks the wires were cut intentionally."
"Really?"
"Yeah. There are clean cuts. He said that if it was bad wiring, they would have been torn out."
"Wow."
"Monica wants to increase security."
"Great, just what we need...more people."
"Well, it's better that the alternative."
"Yeah. Anyway...how are you feeling?"
"Well, it's good to be back out on the road...I can stay busy."
"Yeah."
"But sometimes..." Rachel shook her head.
"What?"
"Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision. If I end up alone and lonely, it will be my own fault."
"You aren't going to end up alone Rach," Ross said. "You are a gorgeous, intellegent woman, and you will be just fine."
Rachel smiled. "Thanks. Hey, I'm gorgeous?"
"Duh," Ross said, wrapping his arms around her.
Rachel smiled and put her head on Ross' chest. He was so much sweeter when he was sober. She closed her eyes, and sighed heavily. Maybe she had made the right decision after all.
****
Monica arrived at the hotel at 1:30 in the morning, exhausted and scared. Mike was sure that it was not an accident, so they had called the San Francisco Police, who, in turn, called the FBI. A full blown investigation was under way, and Monica had to decide whether they should continue to tour. And, she needed to apologize to Chandler. He had taken off after her outbust, and had not answered his phone all night. She knocked on the door to his room. She waited, and knocked again. When it became clear that he was not there, or not going to answer, she retreated to her room, and went to sleep.
~The Manderine Orient Hotel, Downtown San Francisco, the next day~
Monica made her way down the hallway of the 15th floor, ensuring that everyone there was packed and ready to check out. She had reserved a small conference room, to meet with the band and the crew before boarding the bus and heading to Sacramento. She turned the corner, and ran into right into Chandler.
"Chandler," was all she could say.
"Morning Monica," Chandler mumbled, and continued down the hall.
Monica sighed, and concentrated on getting everything together. It was going to be a very long day.
Two hours later, Monica had explained the new security issues to the band and crew, and had managed to get everyone out of the hotel, and on the tour buses. Once on the bus, Ross and Joey went to the back to try and get some sleep, while Rachel sat at the table, aimlessly stitching one of Joey's shirts, her mind a million miles away. Monica was in the front, talking to Frank Martinez, the driver, about where to park once they reached Sacramento. When Chandler emerged from the bathroom, she cut off her conversation with Frank, and sat down next to Chandler on the sofa.
"Chandler, I need to apologize to you. I should have never screamed at you like that."
"No, you shouldn't have," Chandler said flatly.
"I'm sorry. I...I was scared. That thing almost killed you. I freaked out, and I am sorry."
"It's okay Mon. I am scared too."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I mean, when you made the connection to Salt Lake, I guess I got to thinking, and I freaked out a little too. I didn't want to believe that you might be right. That someone is out to get us."
"Well, I am going to make sure that that does not happen."
Chandler smiled. "Oh, you are sexy when you are angry!"
"Really?"
"Yeah," Chandler said, and leaned in to kiss her.
"Wait," Monica said, putting her hand on his chest. "We...can't do...that here."
"Right," Chandler mumbled, and sat up straight.
"Maybe I'll stop by your room after the show tonight," Monica whispered.
Chandler smiled. "Kay."
****
~Sacramento, CA. Arco Arena, 8:30 pm~
"Mon, do we have any Throat Coat tea left?" Chandler said, pulling his guitar over his head.
"Yeah, right here," Monica said, tossing a box to him.
"Yeah, baybee, this crowd is on FIRE!" Joey yelled.
Monica laughed. "Wow, someone is psyched!"
"Yeah BAYBEE!"
Chandler and Monica laughed, as Joey ran up the ramp towards the stage.
"Have a great show," Monica said, as Chandler began to follow Joey.
"Thanks," Chandler winked and ran up to greet a packed house.
*
Chandler found that he could not drink enough water. His throat would dry up after each song, and he had gotten to the point where he was drinking a full Solo cup of liquid during every break in every song.
It wasn't until the first encore that he started to feel it.
The room was spinning, and he broke out into a cold sweat. His lips felt like they had swollen to the size of melons, and his eyes were burning. He shook his head, trying to shake off the eerie feeling, but it got increasingly worse. Finally, he stopped singing all together. Ross looked over at Chandler, who had turned a ghostly white. He called his name, but Chandler was frozen in place. Seconds later, Chandler collapsed, and the crowd collectively gasped.
Ross threw his guitar off and ran to Chandler's side. He was soon joined by Joey and Monica, who instructed a crew member to call an ambulance.
**
An hour later, a skinny, balding doctor came into the hospital waiting room.
"What happened?" Monica asked, her voice hoarse from crying, "Is he okay?"
"We won't know anything definite until tomorrow. He is very sick. But it appears..." The doctor looked at Monica intently.
"What?" Ross asked anxiously.
"He was poisoned."