A woo hoo! For some reason, ff.net hasn't worked for about a week and a half, and then I got my internet unplugged for 3 and a half days…so if you see this up, YOU'RE LUCKY! *sigh* It seems it's not working for others either. Hmm, seems there's a problem with XP users…*sigh* Anyway, this is a little more of a set up, with a bit more interesting stuff happening :) Enjoy :)
~*~
"Ahhhh!!!" Monica exclaimed, running her hands through her hair and stomping like a two year old in the middle of a tantrum, "I HATE THAT CLASS!!"
"Whoa there Mon, hate's a strong word," said Phoebe, "What can be so bad? Can't be anything talking can't fix."
"Easy for you to say. You STUDY the minds of humans!" Monica paused and waved her hands in every direction. "What can be so bad?!" Monica spat, incredulously. "Those dumb grade 9s know nothing, and I mean NOTHING about cooking whatsoever! I'm trying to start them out on this nutrition unit about all the four food groups and such, and some of them don't even KNOW the four!" Her hands ripped through her hair in show of her frustration. "Oh man…I'm so glad I get the grade 12s next. At least they know how to warm up an oven without having me go over to check." Collapsing on a chair, Monica unwrapped her lunch and took a huge bite out of her sandwich.
"Honey! Calm yourself!" Rachel called out, ironically from the microwave. "Are there any 'bad apples' in your classes?"
"Not many, thank God. But you were right!"
"Right about what?"
"About the staring. I even caught some girls lookin' at me."
"Yeah baby," said Joey, or Mr. T as he liked to be called, as he walked into the staff room.
"Oh shut up."
"Awww, is all this teaching stressing you out?" He asked flirtatiously, walking over to massage her shoulders.
"Whatever Mr. I-just-tell-my-students-to-do-skits-and-sit-back-and-watch."
"Acting's an easy job. The only burns are the ones the kids write in their scripts."
Rachel, Monica and Phoebe shook their heads as they continued to finish off their lunches in silence.
"Hiii," muttered a figure as he sulked in.
"Hey Ross! What's wrong now buddy?"
"I just finished running these quizzes through the scantron, and the class average is 57%." Mr. Geller let himself sink into a couch, "Am I really that bad of a teacher?!"
"No way Ross. They're just bad students!"
"That's what I keep telling myself…" He let out a sigh, "Well, I better get back to my class before they start playing reverse silent ball."
"Reverse?" Rachel questioned.
"Yeah. The kind that's NOT silent, and NOT played with a ball." Ross grimaced as he hurried out the door.
"Gee, I'm glad we teach electives," Rachel observed, "No one HAS to take fashion, or cooking or acting. But you HAVE to take history up to a certain level." A shiver ran up Rachel's spine. "Well, I'm done, I have a few kids coming in to talk to me today about the parent teacher conferences tonight."
"Thank God it's tonight. I don't think I can last until 3 o'clock today." Monica said, as she breathed out a sigh of relief. "I've got to get going as well. I have to have everything set up for today's lesson. See you later Joey."
"Bye girls." He answered, winking at them.
"Is he always like that?"
Rachel laughed, "Yeah, I keep forgetting you're new. He's always hitting on us."
"Well, as long as it's not students…"
"I'm with you there."
~*~
"Hello, could you patch me through to Mr. Bing please? Thank you." Colby drummed his fingers on the table as he listened to Celine Dion being played on the other end of the phone.
"Hello, Chandler speaking."
"Hey dad."
"Hey Colby. What's going on?" Chandler was immediately alert, as his son rarely called him at work.
"Oh, it's nothing serious. I just realized that the parent teacher sheet I was supposed to give you, I already had, but I didn't know that…so, I just told the teachers that you were coming."
"Don't you have to book a time slot and stuff?"
"Well, you've met most of my teachers before, they're all the same. Except for my math and cooking teacher, and they said that you could just go meet them near the end of the evening."
"Alright. When's it over?"
"9 o'clock, I think."
"Okay. Thanks."
"Yeah. Oh! I'm taking Laurie out tonight, so I might not be home when you are alright?"
"Sure thing. See you later."
"Bye."
~*~
"You are so lucky I like you," Colby teased as Laurie hurried out of her house at 5:45.
"What makes you say that?!"
"You're 15 minutes late. I would have long been gone if you weren't you."
Laurie felt blush run over her cheeks as she grinned. She leaned up and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. "Where are we going big guy?"
Colby responded with a kiss of his own, "Sometimes you're just too much." He led her to his car, "It's a secret."
~*~
"7:50, 7:50…" Chandler's mind was a flurry of action as he raced to get out of his office, "7:51…why can't a minute have a hundred seconds?!" He raced out of his office building and realized the one thing he forgot was the one thing he'd need most. "Keys." After racing inside and back out, he was out of breath and sweating as he dumped his jacket and briefcase in the back seat. "7:57, nooo, 7:58. Come on…let's go!!" He revved his engine, pressed on the gas, only to find himself shooting forward. "DAMNIT!" He cursed, and pushed his car into reverse.
"Okay, one more block to go." He whispered to himself, "Only 8:21…No one has to know that I sped my way here…"
The light turned green and he drove ahead.
~*~
Please excuse my dad, as he was too busy to sign the form for me to bring it in, so he has to come in late.
Colby.
Monica shook her head. 8:35. No one was scheduled to come after 7:50, but Mr. Bing hadn't showed up yet so she decided to wait. She puttered around her classroom and cleaned the already dust-free cabinets. She found herself unable to sit still, so she went to get her photocopying done for the next lessons. She gathered her papers and exited her room.
On her way out, she almost bumped into someone who looked as if he had just run a marathon. She looked up and found herself staring at a completely flustered man. Flustered, but the most adorable confused eyes I've ever seen in my life.
"Hello sir. Are you looking for something?"
Chandler just stared in amazement at the woman he almost bashed into. He shook the bewildered look off his face, and he felt the need to fix himself up. If I were a kid in trouble, I'd never be able to keep anything from her…he thought as his eyes swept past hers. He suddenly felt unsteady on his feet and found himself wavering on solid ground.
"Are you okay?" Monica asked, genuinely concerned for this incredibly handsome man who was almost at her feet.
Chandler cleared his throat and smoothed his hair back, "I'm looking for a Ms. Geller?"
"Well, you found her." Monica smiled. "You must be Mr. Bing."
It took Chandler a few seconds to recover from her brilliant smile. "Yes, yes I am. Nice to meet you …"
"Monica. Monica Geller." Her right arm was outstretched in a friendly greeting.
"Chandler." He shook her hand and almost melted at the feel of her skin. Looking up, he saw the look of amusement on her face. "I know, Chandler, weird name."
Monica found herself grinning at his cute little puppy eyes and his seemingly flustered appearance. Laughing, her eyes met his and each set of blue eyes held the other's gaze for a few seconds.
Unwillingly, Monica let go of his hand, "Well, come on in!"
"Sorry I'm late," he paused, "Monica. Is it alright for me to call you that?"
"Oh, no problem." She turned and flashed him her pearly whites once more.
There they are… "I got kind of caught up with my son's math teacher."
"It's alright, really." She gestured for him to sit in a chair set across from her desk. "Let me ask you something." Monica pulled out the note Colby had handed her earlier in the day. "Is this true?"
Chandler let his eyes quickly scan over his son's scrawled note. A laugh escaped him as he recalled his phone call a few hours prior. "This isn't true. Not one bit. Well, except for the 'he has to come late' part. Otherwise, it's all bullshit." His eyes widened as he realized what he just said, "I'm sorry about that! I have a sort of trashy mouth."
Monica giggled at this. "It's okay. So do I if you consider 'bullshit' a swear word. So what actually happened?"
"Well, he told me on Monday that there was a parent teacher conference and that he'd give me the sign up sheet once he got it. But lo and behold, he calls me at work this afternoon and tells me that he already had the sheet, and forgot to give it to me." Chandler threw his hands in the air to show his confusion. "So, I end up coming late, and now, I'm talking to you." Chandler felt a smile creep over his face.
"That you are…" Her voice trailed off, as she, once again, found herself lost in his physical features. Neither moved and it was so quiet that it was the moving of the second hand on the clock that whipped them back to life.
"So, do you have any complaints about my son?"
"Well," Monica answered, opening up her binder. "He's gotten just about perfect on every assignment and dish we've made so far, so…not really!"
"Oh, that's great!"
"Yeah, he's a pleasure to have in class. Sure, sometimes he talks too much, but that's normal of any teenager. Tell me, where did he get his cooking skills?"
"Well, it's certainly not from me! I'm not so sure about his mom…" His eyes glazed over as he strained to remember Sara's hobbies, "I'm not so sure."
"Um, where is his mother…if you don't mind my asking that is."
"To tell you the truth, I have no idea. She could be dead for all I care." Seeing the shock in Monica's eyes, he continued to reason out his outburst. "I was seventeen, young, vulnerable and fresh out of an all boys school." Monica nodded. "Sara, his mother, was a daughter of one of my mom's friends. My mother was having a party to celebrate the millionth copy of her billionth novel or something when I met her. And one thing led to another, and soon, I find myself pinned underneath Sara wearing nothing but blindfolds." He caught Monica's eye and read her expression, "Horrid, I know. But I was a teenager, and you know how high your hormones run. Next thing I know, I'm at the hospital with Sara yelling at me in one ear, and her parents in the other.
Before I know it, I found myself in sole custody of my son, and his mother no where to be found." Chandler shrugged, "I'm used to it now. I think he is too."
"Do you ever think of finding a mother for him?" Monica asked, no longer keeping her professional position.
Chandler saw this, and felt himself get swept in, "I do, all the time." They both leaned towards each other until there were only inches left between them. A knock on the door caused Monica's elbow to slip and it sent a pile of papers cascading to the floor.
"Excuse me, Ms. Geller?"
"Yes?"
"You have about 5 minutes until the janitor comes around."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." The two of the gazed as the teacher turned and left them alone once more.
"Oh! Your papers!" Chandler exclaimed. He hurried to the other side of the desk to help her pick them up.
"Oh, thank you," Monica breathed as she stooped down to his level to help organize the mess. Shuffling her papers around, she found herself breathing in an unfamiliar but pleasant scent.
"What - Ow! Shit!" Monica cursed, as she sucked on her newly opened paper cut.
"Hey, you do have a potty mouth," Chandler teased. A frown passed over his face as he saw her face scrunch up in pain. "Are there any Band-Aids in here?"
Monica's thumbed jutted out behind her, indicating the drawers in her desk and he hurried around her to get her one. "Here you go," he said, as he carefully applied the Band-Aid to the still fresh wound. He couldn't resist as he took her hand in his and kissed the part of the finger where the gash was. "All better." He let his thumb run over the palm of her hand a few times.
Monica heard the familiar buzz of the floor cleaner come around the corner. "Oh crap. The janitor's here. We'd better clear."
"I'll walk you to your car." Chandler offered spontaneously. He gathered the rest of her papers and stored them in her file folder.
"Thank you," gratitude filled Monica's voice. They packed everything in her briefcase shaped bag and headed out the door just as the janitor finished in the next room. The two pairs of feet wandered through the empty hallways and then stepped out onto the hard cement.
"What were you going to ask me?"
"Huh?"
"Before you cut yourself. You were going to ask me something."
"Oh! I was wondering what kind of shampoo you used. It smelt good." Monica felt crimson color her cheeks as those three words left her mouth.
Chandler couldn't help but notice just how adorable she was when she blushed. "I use Fructis shampoo and conditioner."
"Mmm, no wonder." The pair walked in silence until they came up to her car, "Well, this is my ride."
"Well," Chandler started, then remembered why he was there in the first place. "Thanks for meeting me. I'm glad my son isn't a hassle in class."
"Oh, far from." Desperate for some sort of contact before he left, she extended her hand again.
She must have read my mind, Chandler thought. He could have sworn sparks flew as his hand met hers. "Goodnight. Sweet dreams."
"Thank you. You too." She watched as he brought her hand up to his lips once more and let them graze her fingers. To her surprise, a tingle ran straight from her fingers to her stomach, and found its way down between her legs. Thank God I'm not a guy.
Giving in to the temptation, Chandler pulled her in for a hug. Monica felt as if she should be surprised, but shivered as nothing but warmth spread through her.
"You've got my number." Chandler whispered, and she grinned at the swapped positions.
"And now you've got mine." Monica responded just as softly as she slid a mock business card in his back pocket.
Breathing deeply, Chandler filled his nostrils with the scent of her hair. "What shampoo do you use?"
"Loreal." Monica flashed him her perfect smile once more before ducking into her car. "Bye. Nice meeting you."
"You too." Chandler felt himself rooted to the place in the pavement as he watched her drive off. He stood, in pure amazement.
At that exact moment, only three letters ran through both their minds:
Wow
A.N. Well, there it is. That was long! And I wrote it all in one night :) I've also found I can't write romantic stuff…:S…Can you see where this is going huh?! Huh?! I bet none of you can guess what happens later though! *shushes the people who already know* Leave me a review! That would be greatly appreciated. *goes off to dream about Mondler* (It's 2:00am people)