A/N - Sorry it's taken so long to get this one up, but I've been extremely busy lately, unfortunately. I'd been complaining about not having anything to do, and now that I've got something to do, I have too much to do. Anyway... I have managed to write a little more for this and, unless I change my mind again, there are still going to be several more chapters. Thanks for your reviews on the last chapter, and I hope this one's okay...

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There You Are

Chapter Nine

Chandler returned to his apartment later that evening to find Joey watching television in the living room.

"Hey," he said upon hearing his roommate enter.

"Hey," Chandler replied, still a little upset with his friend's actions.

"Did you, um... Talk to Monica?" Joey asked hesitantly.

"Yeah," he answered simply, not making eye contact.

"Oh... Great," Joey replied. "Um... Are you still mad at me?"

Chandler looked at him and sighed. "What do you think, Joe?"

"Yeah, yeah. I know... If I had known you were dating her, I would have -"

"You would have what?" Chandler asked angrily, then stopped himself. "You know what? I promised Monica that I wouldn't yell at you tonight, and I intend to keep that promise. Good night, Joey," he said before walking toward his bedroom.

"Chandler, wait. I'm sorry. I really am. But you don't understand. It's never happened to you."

Chandler didn't even turn to look at him. "It did happen to me. And I certainly didn't handle it the way you did," he responded before entering his room and slamming the door behind him.

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"How are things with you and Joey?" Monica asked several days later as she and Chandler sat together in her apartment. Emily was out with Rachel, on a shopping trip.

"Not great," Chandler answered honestly. "I haven't really talked to him much since that night."

"Chandler, don't do this. I thought he was your best friend."

"He was," Chandler replied. "But that was before I knew what kind of man he really is."

"Listen to me," Monica said, taking Chandler's hands in hers. "It wasn't entirely his fault. I gave him a choice, Chandler. And Emily and I are better off without him."

"But you don't know how many women he's been with. Who knows how many illegitimate children he's got out there?"

Monica dropped his hands and stood up from the couch, then started to walk toward the kitchen.

"Monica, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. That was insensitive."

"No, it's okay," she said quietly. "I just... I don't like to think about things like that. But you're right. Joey does seem to get around."

"Yeah... I didn't mean anything by that, Mon. I wasn't thinking."

"I know," she smiled slightly. "Just forget about it, okay?"

"Okay," he agreed, then pulled her into his arms as she rejoined him on the couch. "You know, I've been thinking about some things, and I was just wondering... Do you think it would be okay if I started getting to know Emily a little better? I mean, if you still think it's too soon, that's okay, but I'd really like to spend time with her."

"I'd like that, too," Monica said quietly, resting her head on Chandler's chest. "But I need you to do something first."

"Anything you want," he replied.

"Good," she said, then pulled away to look at him. "I want you to make up with Joey."

"What?" he asked, surprised by her request. "Monica, you do know what he did to you, right?"

"Yes, I know," she answered. "But... Emily is his daughter - biologically, at least. And I just don't want you to hate him."

He sighed loudly. "If that's what you want, I'll do it."

"Thank you," she said and hugged him tightly.

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"Hi, Chandler!" Phoebe greeted cheerily when he entered his apartment later that afternoon.

"Hey, Pheebs," Chandler smiled slightly, noticing Joey sitting right beside her.

"You know, we were just talking about you," Phoebe said. Her statement received a nudge from Joey. "Well, we were," she said, glaring at Joey. "And I was telling Joey that you two need to get over it and talk through this." This statement received heavy sighs from both Joey and Chandler. "Oh, come on, guys. Can't we all just get along?" she whined.

"I don't think he wants to talk to me, Pheebs," Joey said.

"You know what? Actually, I do need to talk to you. Monica asked me to," Chandler replied.

"Oh, great!" Phoebe exclaimed. "I'm just gonna get out of here so you two can kiss and make up. Oh, wait," she continued, realizing what she'd just said. "No kissing. Just making up.. Unless there's something you guys haven't told me," she grinned, and received angry looks from both of her friends. "Alrighty then. See you two later," she said before hurrying out the door.

Chandler shuffled his feet and kept his gaze focused on the floor. "I, um... Monica wanted me to talk to you. Try to get over this, you know."

"Yeah. So, um... Where should we start?" Joey asked.

Chandler looked up from the floor and at his roommate. "When you and Monica were dating... Did you love her? Or was it just another one of your meaningless flings?"

Joey looked at him, a little shocked. "You know, I have a feeling that either answer could upset you, so I'm not quite sure which one to give."

"Give me the truth," Chandler said, looking him directly in his eyes.

"Okay... The truth." Joey took a deep breath before answering. "I wasn't in love with her. I mean, she seemed like a great girl and everything, but I think you know that love isn't exactly what I'm looking for, know what I mean?" he smirked. Chandler glared at him, and Joey changed his facial expression quickly. "Sorry. I meant that, um, I just... It wasn't really meaningless, but... It wasn't something I wanted for the long run."

"Okay," Chandler sighed, taking the recliner beside Joey and turning to face him. "What about Emily? Do you want to be her dad?"

"I already talked to Monica about that," Joey answered, looking down at the floor. "I don't want to mess up the kid's life, Chandler. She's never known me. And I don't think Monica really wants me around... Besides, I think she's got another guy in mind for taking over what I gave up... You."

"Me?" Chandler asked.

"Yeah, you. And, truthfully, I think you'd be a much better father for Emily than I could ever be."

"Joey, if you had stuck around, you could have been her dad. That's one of the greatest feelings you could ever know."

"Is this... I mean, what you said the other day... Do you have a kid that I don't know about?"

"Well, I did. Not anymore. She only lived a few minutes, but it felt really wonderful to be somebody's dad for those few minutes. And you've missed that, Joe. For almost four years, you've missed that."

"I had no idea," Joey said, amazed that Chandler had kept that little bit of important information from him for the years they'd known each other and grown to be best friends. "I'm so sorry, man."

"Yeah," Chandler smiled sadly. "Thanks."

"I want you to be the guy in Emily's life, Chandler. I've thought about it a lot, since Monica showed up. You love her. I know that. You've made that pretty obvious. And I get the feeling that she loves you, too."

"Yeah... Yeah, she does," Chandler said quietly.

"Then go for it," Joey said, patting his friend's back. "Don't let me ruin it. You were right. I did mess up Monica's life, and I shouldn't have run away like that. But I don't want to do anymore damage."

"Are you sure you don't want to be in Emily's life?" Chandler asked.

"Well, if you're in it - and I have a feeling that you will be - then I can be Uncle Joey. I don't deserve to be Dad."

"Joey, I -"

"No, it's okay. I've really thought this over, and I don't want to be her dad. Just believe me, okay? I may have made a dumb decision a few years ago, but this is the right one... So... Are we good?"

"I, um... I think so," Chandler replied. "But are you sure you aren't gonna change your mind?"

"I'm positive," Joey assured him. "It's better this way."