UNLIKELY FRIEND
BY CREASSYA
This takes place after Remember. In this fic you'll see how Chandler and Monica become lifelong friends.
A week after Chandler and Monica met, he finally got up the courage to go back to the playground. As soon as he stepped foot on the playground he spotted someone pushing Monica. Without thinking, he ran over to help her. The boy who was bothering her was taller than both of them and obviously a little older.
Chandler approached the two of them with his fist balled up.
"Leave her alone!"
Monica turned and looked in his direction.
"Who are you?"
Chandler stood next to Monica as if to protect her.
"None of your business. Just leave her alone. She's a girl. Why don't you go pick on someone else?"
"Okay. I'll bother you then."
"Why do you always pick on people?" Monica asked.
"Because, there's nothing else to do."
He stepped closer to Chandler and pushed him hard. He stumbled backwards but didn't fall.
"Stop it," Monica yelled.
He ignored her. Chandler pushed the boy and he fell.
"Oh, you're gonna get it now."
Before he had a chance to get to Chandler, Monica stepped in front of him.
"Get out of the way."
"No."
He got up off the ground looking really angry.
Chandler stepped from in back of Monica so that she'd be out of the way. All of a sudden the boy's fist shot out and Chandler was on the ground holding his mouth. The boy walked off just before Monica knelt down in front of Chandler
"Are you okay?"
Chandler moved his hand away from his mouth expecting to see a trickle of blood on his hands. He slowly sat up with Monica's help.
"I'm sorry Chandler."
"It's okay. I guess I deserved it."
"No you didn't."
"Yes I did. I shouldn't have treated you that way when we first met. You were just being friendly."
"Need me to help you up?"
"I'm okay."
Chandler slowly got up. He brushed himself off and touched his lip.
"It's not bleeding. Does it hurt real bad?"
"I can take the pain."
"Okay."
"Who was that jerk anyway."
"His name's Lester Fontaine."
"How many bullies does this playground have?"
"About four of five."
"I'm gonna get him."
"We should run up on him one day and jump him."
"I wouldn't want you to get hurt."
"I'm pretty tough. For a girl."
"You're not one of those tom-boy types are you?"
"No."
"That's good."
"My mom would have a heart attack if I was."
"Why?"
"She'd probably think I was competing with my brother for attention."
"How old is he?"
"He's a year older than me."
"How old are you?"
"Eight."
"Oh, so your brother's the same age as me then."
"Seems that way."
Chandler tried to smile but winced in pain.
"You should go home and put something on that. It'll swell up."
"I guess you're right."
Without another word, they left the playground. They walked until they reached their neighborhood.
"You live around here?" She asked.
"Yep. Right here."
They stopped in front of this huge beautiful house and Monica's mouth dropped open.
"You're a rich boy."
"Don't tell anybody."
"Why?"
"It's no big deal."
"Are you kidding? I would love to live in a house this big."
"I'll trade you."
Seconds later, Nora came to the door. When she saw his lip, she walked out of the house toward them as they stood near the small circular driveway.
"Your mom's pretty."
"What in the world happened to you?" She said as she neared them.
"It's nothing mom."
"What are you talking about? You lip is huge. Did you get into a fight?"
"Yeah mom."
"That's it. You're not going back to that playground."
"Why not?"
"This is the second time in a week you've come home covered in grass and dirt. Now you have a fat lip."
Monica noticed a man standing in the doorway of the house shaking his head.
"Nora, he's a boy. They get dirty. They get into fights. Stop making such a big fuss."
"Have you seen his lip?"
"I can see it from here."
"Go in the house and put some ice on it."
"I'll see you later Chandler."
"Okay."
Monica walked off and reached her house a minute later. When she walked in, she went straight to her room. She went over to her window and looked out over the neighborhood. There were no kids out, not that it mattered anyway. She had no friends. She came away from the window and walked over to her bed to sit down. She was bored. She wondered if Chandler would be able to come back outside. His mom seemed awfully protective of him. The way Judy was with Ross. It must be nice, she thought.
A few hours later, Chandler noticed Monica sitting on her front porch. She looked bored. So was he for that matter. He walked down the street and crossed over to her house. He noticed that she was happy to that he was there.
"So this is where you live?"
"Yeah. It's not as fancy as yours."
"I like it."
"I'll trade you."
"Okay."
"You must be crazy or something."
"Why?"
"That house is gorgeous."
"It's nice, but it's no big deal. I liked our other house better."
"Was the other house big too?"
"Bigger."
"It was?"
"Yep."
"What are you guys? Millionaires or something?"
"We do okay."
"What do you do?"
Chandler smiled although it hurt.
"They do all right."
"That guy is your dad?"
"Yeah."
"Are they all over each other all the time like my parents?"
"No. They're always arguing."
"Oh. Sorry."
"I'm used to it."
"Well, when you get sick of them fighting you can come over here.
"Thanks. I could really use a place to escape to."
"So could I," she said, grinning.
"Where's your brother?"
"Probably over at a friend's house."
"You don't have any friends?"
"No."
"What do you do for fun?"
"Go to the playground or play with my dolls."
"That's all?"
"Yeah. Not much else to do around here."
"How long have you lived around here?"
"All my life."
"And you haven't found much to do around here?"
"Nope."
Chandler shook his head and sat down next to her.
"You think I'm pathetic don't you?"
"No. I'm the pathetic one."
"Why do you say that?"
"It's a fact."
"Actually that's an opinion."
"You're a nice person. Why don't you have like a million friends?"
"I get teased a lot."
"Why?"
"I'm fat. Haven't you noticed?"
"But what does that have to do with anything?"
"I don't have friends because I chose not to. It hurts my feelings when they pick at me."
"I get teased too."
"What do you get teased about?"
"Being the rich boy."
"They really tease you about that?"
"Yep."
"They're jealous."
"That's what my mom says."
"She's right. The next time someone teases you about being rich, just tell them that they're jealous. They wish they could live in a house like yours. I do."
"Sometimes, I wish I lived in a house like yours. I'd be normal then. I'd be like everyone else."
"You are normal. And you don't wanna be like everybody else. You should want to be you."
"There's nothing special about me."
"There's something special about everybody. You just have to know what it is."
Sitting there talking to Monica, he realized he liked her more and more with each passing minute. Besides her being a little overweight, he still couldn't understand why kids were mean to her. Chandler thought that she was a really sweet person, the kind of person that would go out of her way to do anything for you. He also realized that she possessed maturity beyond her years and optimism that he couldn't fathom. Anyone would be lucky to have her as a friend.
"Do you know what's special about you?"
She smiled.
"No, I haven't found what's special about me yet. I will one day."
"Well, when you find what's special about you, can you help me?"
"Okay, but I'm sure it won't be too hard."
"I'm glad you think so."
She smiled.
Within weeks, Chandler and Monica were inseparable. After school they rode bikes together, went to the arcade and to the playground. She'd been over at his house, which was located down and across the street from his, where the more expensive and luxurious homes were. He gave her the grand tour of the house and formally introduced her to his parents. Monica even invited him over for dinner. He told her that her mom cooked way better than his. When he stayed for dinner he got a chance to meet Ross. They hit it off right away but Monica made it clear that Chandler was her friend. Ross was surprised by her possessiveness of him and she explained that he was her only friend and that he had lots of friends. It was bad enough that she had to compete with Ross for attention when it came to their parents. She didn't want to have to compete with him for Chandler. Ross thought she was being a little silly. There was no reason why Chandler couldn't be a friend to them both.
Chandler walked over to Monica as she sat away from the pool near the glass sliding doors.
"Why aren't you in the pool with us?"
"I don't feel like swimming."
"But you said you wanted to when I asked you."
"I'll just watch you and Ross swim."
"What fun is that?"
"I'll get in later."
"Can you swim?"
"Yeah."
Chandler looked over at Ross.
"Does she really know how to swim?"
"Yeah. I don't know why she doesn't want to get in."
"The water's not real cold."
Monica got tired of Chandler hounding her, so she stood up
"Okay. I'll get in."
Chandler seemed satisfied. She knew that if she sat and pouted any longer he wouldn't leave her alone. She didn't tell either of them the real reason she was sitting off to the side while they enjoyed the pool. She was angry that Chandler had invited Ross along with her to come over to his house.
She watched Ross and Chandler jump in the pool at the same time before she did the same. It only took her a couple minutes to forget about being mad. At first, she thought about declining the invitation after he invited Ross to come along, but it was too nice a day out. The temperature had reached eighty –two degrees. She wanted to enjoy it. It was the beginning of May and the weather had been unseasonably hot the last couple dayss of April. She was dying to go swimming. While Monica was busy swimming, Ross and Chandler were either chasing each other around the pool or diving in. Boys.
The next week, Monica sat at her window for hours. Chandler and Ross had gone to play football and she clearly wasn't invited. She knew that football was for boys, but she was hurt when he didn't even invite her along to watch. She saw them walk toward the house and thought about going out to greet Chandler. Before she rose from her seat, Chandler walked off. She thought he would at least come in to see her. Maybe he didn't care to see her. Ross was his friend now. He didn't need her.
She got up out of her seat and walked over to her bed and decided to take a nap. As soon as she got comfortable, she heard the door open. She didn't bother to turn over to see who it was. She had a feeling it was Ross, so she pretended that she was already asleep. She felt him just standing in the doorway. He only stood there for a few seconds before he left her room. When she heard the door close behind him, she sighed in relief. Suddenly, she didn't feel like being bothered.
As soon as Chandler walked into the house after school, he heard yelling coming from the kitchen. He recognized the voices of course. His parents were arguing again. Without going in to announce that he was home, he went straight to his room and slammed the door. He wondered what his parents were fighting about this time. He couldn't understand why they were even married. It didn't seem like they loved each other.
When he went over to Monica and Ross's house, he felt really at home. They were a real family. Their parents hugged and kissed one another. Their mother cooked. She was home most of the time. Ross and Monica's parents probably never argued or called each other names in front of their kids. Suddenly he had the urge to go over to see Monica. He hadn't seen much of her in over a week. Whenever he went to see her she'd be gone somewhere or asleep. As he walked out of his room and down the hall, he hoped she'd be home. Being around her usually made him feel better. When he arrived at her house, she was just coming outside with a jump rope in her hand.
"Hi Monica."
"Hey."
Right away he could tell that something was bothering her. He put aside what he was feeling to find out what was wrong with her.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered with a frown on her face.
"You seem mad. Are you?"
"And you seem nosy."
"It was just a question."
"Well, I'm fine. I'm about to leave."
"Oh. Where are you going?"
"To play jump rope with a friend."
"You have a friend?"
"I can't have friends?"
"I didn't say that."
"Then why'd you ask?"
"You told me that you didn't have any friends. You said you didn't like the kids around here."
"So, I'm bored. I don't have anything else to do."
"I'm here."
"Well, Ross isn't. But I guess you could wait for him."
"I came here to see you."
"That's a switch."
"Huh?"
"You've been spending so much time with Ross, I didn't think you remembered me."
"Why would you think that?"
"I have to go now. I'll see you later."
"Oh, okay."
He turned around and walked off. His feelings were hurt and he didn't want her to see that. As he walked back down the street, he wished that there was somewhere he could go until his parents stopped arguing. The only friends he had in the neighborhood were Monica and Ross. Ross wasn't home and Monica wasn't acting like a friend at all. She seemed angry with him for some reason. When he reluctantly approached his house, his father came out. He tried to hide that he was upset, but Chandler knew better.
"I'll see you later son."
He ruffled his hair and walked off. Chandler pushed open the door and walked into the house. Nora stopped him as soon as he put a foot on the step to go upstairs.
"Weren't you going to come say hello?"
"No."
"What's wrong honey?"
"Nothing."
"Well, how come you look so sad?"
"I'll be all right."
"Was someone bothering you at school?"
"No."
She sighed.
"Can I go to my room now?"
"Go ahead."
After dinner Monica walked out of the house and sat on the porch. She thought about how she treated Chandler. She felt bad when he turned away from her and walked home. She watched him walk down the street and cross over to his house. She didn't mean to treat him like that, but she was angry with him. She got up and walked across the street. She felt that she should apologize for her behavior and to tell him why she snapped at him. She needed to explain things to him. She certainly didn't want to lose the only friend she had. When she reached his house, it took her a few seconds before she rang the doorbell. She stood at the door for a few seconds before Chandler's mother opened it.
"Hello Monica."
"Hi Mrs. Bing."
"Come on in sweetie."
She walked in and stood by the door after Nora closed it.
"Where's Chandler?"
"He's up in his room moping about something. You can go on up."
"Okay."
As Monica climbed the stairs and walked down the hall to Chandler's room, she looked around her in admiration. She loved the way the house was made. When she got to his room, she knocked on the door.
"Come in."
Monica slowly opened the door and walked in. She closed the door behind her and walked over to him. He looked at her without a word.
"Chandler, I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
"You didn't hurt my feelings," he said angrily.
"Oh. Well, I'm sorry I made you mad."
When he didn't respond, she sat on the bed next to him.
"Are you mad at me?"
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry."
"I thought you were my friend."
"I am your friend."
"Then why don't you act like it?"
"Because, I was jealous. You and Ross are always hanging out. You forgot about me."
"I didn't forget about you."
"It sure seemed that way."
"Monica, I like having you as a friend. And I like having Ross as a friend. I don't see why I have to chose."
"You don't. I was being silly."
"Why?"
"Because, everybody likes Ross. He has a lot of friends. I thought that once you two became friends, you would decide that you liked him better than me. I thought I was losing my friend."
"That's silly."
"Not many people like me," she said sadly.
"Well I do."
"You do? Even after the way I treated you?"
"You said that you were sorry."
She smiled.
"Thanks for not hating me."
Chandler shrugged.
"No problem."
"I didn't have anyone to play with earlier. I lied."
"That was mean."
"I know. I won't do it again."
"Promise?"
"Yeah, I promise."
"If you don't want me to be friends with Ross, I won't."
"You can. I won't make you choose. That's not fair."
"Good, cause I lied," he said, smiling.
She laughed and playfully pushed him. Chandler found himself feeling a little better. It felt nice that someone cared about him besides his parents.
Next…Chandler and Monica's bond strengthens in…ONE TO COUNT ON
BY CREASSYA
This takes place after Remember. In this fic you'll see how Chandler and Monica become lifelong friends.
A week after Chandler and Monica met, he finally got up the courage to go back to the playground. As soon as he stepped foot on the playground he spotted someone pushing Monica. Without thinking, he ran over to help her. The boy who was bothering her was taller than both of them and obviously a little older.
Chandler approached the two of them with his fist balled up.
"Leave her alone!"
Monica turned and looked in his direction.
"Who are you?"
Chandler stood next to Monica as if to protect her.
"None of your business. Just leave her alone. She's a girl. Why don't you go pick on someone else?"
"Okay. I'll bother you then."
"Why do you always pick on people?" Monica asked.
"Because, there's nothing else to do."
He stepped closer to Chandler and pushed him hard. He stumbled backwards but didn't fall.
"Stop it," Monica yelled.
He ignored her. Chandler pushed the boy and he fell.
"Oh, you're gonna get it now."
Before he had a chance to get to Chandler, Monica stepped in front of him.
"Get out of the way."
"No."
He got up off the ground looking really angry.
Chandler stepped from in back of Monica so that she'd be out of the way. All of a sudden the boy's fist shot out and Chandler was on the ground holding his mouth. The boy walked off just before Monica knelt down in front of Chandler
"Are you okay?"
Chandler moved his hand away from his mouth expecting to see a trickle of blood on his hands. He slowly sat up with Monica's help.
"I'm sorry Chandler."
"It's okay. I guess I deserved it."
"No you didn't."
"Yes I did. I shouldn't have treated you that way when we first met. You were just being friendly."
"Need me to help you up?"
"I'm okay."
Chandler slowly got up. He brushed himself off and touched his lip.
"It's not bleeding. Does it hurt real bad?"
"I can take the pain."
"Okay."
"Who was that jerk anyway."
"His name's Lester Fontaine."
"How many bullies does this playground have?"
"About four of five."
"I'm gonna get him."
"We should run up on him one day and jump him."
"I wouldn't want you to get hurt."
"I'm pretty tough. For a girl."
"You're not one of those tom-boy types are you?"
"No."
"That's good."
"My mom would have a heart attack if I was."
"Why?"
"She'd probably think I was competing with my brother for attention."
"How old is he?"
"He's a year older than me."
"How old are you?"
"Eight."
"Oh, so your brother's the same age as me then."
"Seems that way."
Chandler tried to smile but winced in pain.
"You should go home and put something on that. It'll swell up."
"I guess you're right."
Without another word, they left the playground. They walked until they reached their neighborhood.
"You live around here?" She asked.
"Yep. Right here."
They stopped in front of this huge beautiful house and Monica's mouth dropped open.
"You're a rich boy."
"Don't tell anybody."
"Why?"
"It's no big deal."
"Are you kidding? I would love to live in a house this big."
"I'll trade you."
Seconds later, Nora came to the door. When she saw his lip, she walked out of the house toward them as they stood near the small circular driveway.
"Your mom's pretty."
"What in the world happened to you?" She said as she neared them.
"It's nothing mom."
"What are you talking about? You lip is huge. Did you get into a fight?"
"Yeah mom."
"That's it. You're not going back to that playground."
"Why not?"
"This is the second time in a week you've come home covered in grass and dirt. Now you have a fat lip."
Monica noticed a man standing in the doorway of the house shaking his head.
"Nora, he's a boy. They get dirty. They get into fights. Stop making such a big fuss."
"Have you seen his lip?"
"I can see it from here."
"Go in the house and put some ice on it."
"I'll see you later Chandler."
"Okay."
Monica walked off and reached her house a minute later. When she walked in, she went straight to her room. She went over to her window and looked out over the neighborhood. There were no kids out, not that it mattered anyway. She had no friends. She came away from the window and walked over to her bed to sit down. She was bored. She wondered if Chandler would be able to come back outside. His mom seemed awfully protective of him. The way Judy was with Ross. It must be nice, she thought.
A few hours later, Chandler noticed Monica sitting on her front porch. She looked bored. So was he for that matter. He walked down the street and crossed over to her house. He noticed that she was happy to that he was there.
"So this is where you live?"
"Yeah. It's not as fancy as yours."
"I like it."
"I'll trade you."
"Okay."
"You must be crazy or something."
"Why?"
"That house is gorgeous."
"It's nice, but it's no big deal. I liked our other house better."
"Was the other house big too?"
"Bigger."
"It was?"
"Yep."
"What are you guys? Millionaires or something?"
"We do okay."
"What do you do?"
Chandler smiled although it hurt.
"They do all right."
"That guy is your dad?"
"Yeah."
"Are they all over each other all the time like my parents?"
"No. They're always arguing."
"Oh. Sorry."
"I'm used to it."
"Well, when you get sick of them fighting you can come over here.
"Thanks. I could really use a place to escape to."
"So could I," she said, grinning.
"Where's your brother?"
"Probably over at a friend's house."
"You don't have any friends?"
"No."
"What do you do for fun?"
"Go to the playground or play with my dolls."
"That's all?"
"Yeah. Not much else to do around here."
"How long have you lived around here?"
"All my life."
"And you haven't found much to do around here?"
"Nope."
Chandler shook his head and sat down next to her.
"You think I'm pathetic don't you?"
"No. I'm the pathetic one."
"Why do you say that?"
"It's a fact."
"Actually that's an opinion."
"You're a nice person. Why don't you have like a million friends?"
"I get teased a lot."
"Why?"
"I'm fat. Haven't you noticed?"
"But what does that have to do with anything?"
"I don't have friends because I chose not to. It hurts my feelings when they pick at me."
"I get teased too."
"What do you get teased about?"
"Being the rich boy."
"They really tease you about that?"
"Yep."
"They're jealous."
"That's what my mom says."
"She's right. The next time someone teases you about being rich, just tell them that they're jealous. They wish they could live in a house like yours. I do."
"Sometimes, I wish I lived in a house like yours. I'd be normal then. I'd be like everyone else."
"You are normal. And you don't wanna be like everybody else. You should want to be you."
"There's nothing special about me."
"There's something special about everybody. You just have to know what it is."
Sitting there talking to Monica, he realized he liked her more and more with each passing minute. Besides her being a little overweight, he still couldn't understand why kids were mean to her. Chandler thought that she was a really sweet person, the kind of person that would go out of her way to do anything for you. He also realized that she possessed maturity beyond her years and optimism that he couldn't fathom. Anyone would be lucky to have her as a friend.
"Do you know what's special about you?"
She smiled.
"No, I haven't found what's special about me yet. I will one day."
"Well, when you find what's special about you, can you help me?"
"Okay, but I'm sure it won't be too hard."
"I'm glad you think so."
She smiled.
Within weeks, Chandler and Monica were inseparable. After school they rode bikes together, went to the arcade and to the playground. She'd been over at his house, which was located down and across the street from his, where the more expensive and luxurious homes were. He gave her the grand tour of the house and formally introduced her to his parents. Monica even invited him over for dinner. He told her that her mom cooked way better than his. When he stayed for dinner he got a chance to meet Ross. They hit it off right away but Monica made it clear that Chandler was her friend. Ross was surprised by her possessiveness of him and she explained that he was her only friend and that he had lots of friends. It was bad enough that she had to compete with Ross for attention when it came to their parents. She didn't want to have to compete with him for Chandler. Ross thought she was being a little silly. There was no reason why Chandler couldn't be a friend to them both.
Chandler walked over to Monica as she sat away from the pool near the glass sliding doors.
"Why aren't you in the pool with us?"
"I don't feel like swimming."
"But you said you wanted to when I asked you."
"I'll just watch you and Ross swim."
"What fun is that?"
"I'll get in later."
"Can you swim?"
"Yeah."
Chandler looked over at Ross.
"Does she really know how to swim?"
"Yeah. I don't know why she doesn't want to get in."
"The water's not real cold."
Monica got tired of Chandler hounding her, so she stood up
"Okay. I'll get in."
Chandler seemed satisfied. She knew that if she sat and pouted any longer he wouldn't leave her alone. She didn't tell either of them the real reason she was sitting off to the side while they enjoyed the pool. She was angry that Chandler had invited Ross along with her to come over to his house.
She watched Ross and Chandler jump in the pool at the same time before she did the same. It only took her a couple minutes to forget about being mad. At first, she thought about declining the invitation after he invited Ross to come along, but it was too nice a day out. The temperature had reached eighty –two degrees. She wanted to enjoy it. It was the beginning of May and the weather had been unseasonably hot the last couple dayss of April. She was dying to go swimming. While Monica was busy swimming, Ross and Chandler were either chasing each other around the pool or diving in. Boys.
The next week, Monica sat at her window for hours. Chandler and Ross had gone to play football and she clearly wasn't invited. She knew that football was for boys, but she was hurt when he didn't even invite her along to watch. She saw them walk toward the house and thought about going out to greet Chandler. Before she rose from her seat, Chandler walked off. She thought he would at least come in to see her. Maybe he didn't care to see her. Ross was his friend now. He didn't need her.
She got up out of her seat and walked over to her bed and decided to take a nap. As soon as she got comfortable, she heard the door open. She didn't bother to turn over to see who it was. She had a feeling it was Ross, so she pretended that she was already asleep. She felt him just standing in the doorway. He only stood there for a few seconds before he left her room. When she heard the door close behind him, she sighed in relief. Suddenly, she didn't feel like being bothered.
As soon as Chandler walked into the house after school, he heard yelling coming from the kitchen. He recognized the voices of course. His parents were arguing again. Without going in to announce that he was home, he went straight to his room and slammed the door. He wondered what his parents were fighting about this time. He couldn't understand why they were even married. It didn't seem like they loved each other.
When he went over to Monica and Ross's house, he felt really at home. They were a real family. Their parents hugged and kissed one another. Their mother cooked. She was home most of the time. Ross and Monica's parents probably never argued or called each other names in front of their kids. Suddenly he had the urge to go over to see Monica. He hadn't seen much of her in over a week. Whenever he went to see her she'd be gone somewhere or asleep. As he walked out of his room and down the hall, he hoped she'd be home. Being around her usually made him feel better. When he arrived at her house, she was just coming outside with a jump rope in her hand.
"Hi Monica."
"Hey."
Right away he could tell that something was bothering her. He put aside what he was feeling to find out what was wrong with her.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered with a frown on her face.
"You seem mad. Are you?"
"And you seem nosy."
"It was just a question."
"Well, I'm fine. I'm about to leave."
"Oh. Where are you going?"
"To play jump rope with a friend."
"You have a friend?"
"I can't have friends?"
"I didn't say that."
"Then why'd you ask?"
"You told me that you didn't have any friends. You said you didn't like the kids around here."
"So, I'm bored. I don't have anything else to do."
"I'm here."
"Well, Ross isn't. But I guess you could wait for him."
"I came here to see you."
"That's a switch."
"Huh?"
"You've been spending so much time with Ross, I didn't think you remembered me."
"Why would you think that?"
"I have to go now. I'll see you later."
"Oh, okay."
He turned around and walked off. His feelings were hurt and he didn't want her to see that. As he walked back down the street, he wished that there was somewhere he could go until his parents stopped arguing. The only friends he had in the neighborhood were Monica and Ross. Ross wasn't home and Monica wasn't acting like a friend at all. She seemed angry with him for some reason. When he reluctantly approached his house, his father came out. He tried to hide that he was upset, but Chandler knew better.
"I'll see you later son."
He ruffled his hair and walked off. Chandler pushed open the door and walked into the house. Nora stopped him as soon as he put a foot on the step to go upstairs.
"Weren't you going to come say hello?"
"No."
"What's wrong honey?"
"Nothing."
"Well, how come you look so sad?"
"I'll be all right."
"Was someone bothering you at school?"
"No."
She sighed.
"Can I go to my room now?"
"Go ahead."
After dinner Monica walked out of the house and sat on the porch. She thought about how she treated Chandler. She felt bad when he turned away from her and walked home. She watched him walk down the street and cross over to his house. She didn't mean to treat him like that, but she was angry with him. She got up and walked across the street. She felt that she should apologize for her behavior and to tell him why she snapped at him. She needed to explain things to him. She certainly didn't want to lose the only friend she had. When she reached his house, it took her a few seconds before she rang the doorbell. She stood at the door for a few seconds before Chandler's mother opened it.
"Hello Monica."
"Hi Mrs. Bing."
"Come on in sweetie."
She walked in and stood by the door after Nora closed it.
"Where's Chandler?"
"He's up in his room moping about something. You can go on up."
"Okay."
As Monica climbed the stairs and walked down the hall to Chandler's room, she looked around her in admiration. She loved the way the house was made. When she got to his room, she knocked on the door.
"Come in."
Monica slowly opened the door and walked in. She closed the door behind her and walked over to him. He looked at her without a word.
"Chandler, I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
"You didn't hurt my feelings," he said angrily.
"Oh. Well, I'm sorry I made you mad."
When he didn't respond, she sat on the bed next to him.
"Are you mad at me?"
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry."
"I thought you were my friend."
"I am your friend."
"Then why don't you act like it?"
"Because, I was jealous. You and Ross are always hanging out. You forgot about me."
"I didn't forget about you."
"It sure seemed that way."
"Monica, I like having you as a friend. And I like having Ross as a friend. I don't see why I have to chose."
"You don't. I was being silly."
"Why?"
"Because, everybody likes Ross. He has a lot of friends. I thought that once you two became friends, you would decide that you liked him better than me. I thought I was losing my friend."
"That's silly."
"Not many people like me," she said sadly.
"Well I do."
"You do? Even after the way I treated you?"
"You said that you were sorry."
She smiled.
"Thanks for not hating me."
Chandler shrugged.
"No problem."
"I didn't have anyone to play with earlier. I lied."
"That was mean."
"I know. I won't do it again."
"Promise?"
"Yeah, I promise."
"If you don't want me to be friends with Ross, I won't."
"You can. I won't make you choose. That's not fair."
"Good, cause I lied," he said, smiling.
She laughed and playfully pushed him. Chandler found himself feeling a little better. It felt nice that someone cared about him besides his parents.
Next…Chandler and Monica's bond strengthens in…ONE TO COUNT ON