A/N - Well, first of all, thanks for all of your reviews. I broke a hundred on this one, and that's kind of exciting... Anyway, I'm sorry that this chapter has taken so long. I was going to post it a few days ago, but I just couldn't do it. I'm still not sure about how it turned out, but I think I've waited long enough to post it. I don't think I'm going to be able to fix it anymore than I already have. So, I hope you like this one, and as far as the next chapter goes... Well, it might be awhile. Of course, I say that now, but since I said it, I'll probably finish it and be ready to post it within the hour... Okay, maybe not, but you know what I mean. Actually, you probably don't, because I'm making absolutely no sense and now I'm just rambling... Sorry. But I hope you like the chapter, and please let me know what you think...

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There You Are

Chapter Thirteen

"Chandler, can you be my daddy?" Emily asked innocently.

Chandler laughed nervously and looked to Monica for help.

"Emily, it doesn't work that easily," Monica answered for him.

"Why, Mommy?"

"Because, honey, it's a very important job to be a daddy, and there are a lot of things that have to happen before somebody can be your daddy."

"Like what, Mommy?"

Monica sighed and smiled at her daughter. "Come here, sweetie," she said and watched as Emily crawled out of Chandler's lap and walked over to her. "You love Chandler, don't you?"

"Uh huh. He's my best friend, Mommy."

Monica smiled over at Chandler and glanced briefly at Joey then looked back at the little girl on her lap. "And you know that Chandler loves you, don't you?"

"Uh huh. He tells me all the time," she giggled.

"That's all that matters right now, Em. Maybe someday you'll have a daddy, but before that can happen, Mommy has some things that she has to do, okay?"

"Okay," she answered quietly. "Are you a daddy, Joey?" she asked curiously.

"Well, I, um... I don't, um..." Joey stopped, looking to Monica for an answer to Emily's question. She simply shrugged, allowing him to answer for himself but hoping he would stick to their agreement about not revealing that he was Emily's father. "I kind of am," he finally answered.

"Do you have a girl like me or a stinky boy?" she asked, wrinkling up her nose.

"I have a beautiful little girl," he smiled slightly, then glanced up at Monica. "But I don't see her very often. She lives with her mommy."

"Like me?"

"Yeah, like you."

"Why don't you go and see her?"

"Well, at first I was afraid to be somebody's dad, and by the time I realized what I was missing, she'd already found somebody to be a wonderful daddy for her… I still love her very much, but she's got someone else who should be her daddy. He loves her very much, too, and she loves him. And I think she'd be better off with him," he continued, looking up at Chandler.


"Are you sure about that?" Chandler asked, surprised by Joey's comments.

"I'm very sure," he smiled sadly. "Can I talk to you for a minute, Emily?" he asked, holding out his arms for the little girl.

She nodded and walked over to him. He picked her up and placed her on his lap. "Can I ask you something?"

"Okay, but I don't know much," she answered simply.

He laughed lightly. "Well, just do your best. You said that you want Chandler to be your daddy, right?"

"Uh huh."

"If he was your daddy, do you think he'd be a good one?"

"Oh yes," she said enthusiastically. "He plays with me, and takes me places, and sometimes he tells me stories with funny voices."

"And you love him, right?"

"Yep," she nodded.

"I'm glad," he smiled. "Can I give you a kiss?" he asked.

She looked at Monica for reassurance. When her mother nodded, she did the same. Joey kissed her forehead, then handed her to Chandler. "I'm gonna head on home. Maybe I'll see you again sometime," he offered, smiling at Emily.

"Bye, Joey," she said, waving as he walked toward the door.

"Bye, Joey," Monica called after him and watched him walk out the door.

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"Hey," Chandler said when he entered his apartment later that night to find Joey making a sandwich in the kitchen.

"Hey," he replied. "Want a sandwich?"

"No, I'm good," Chandler answered. "Um, Joe?"

"Yeah?"

"What happened at Monica's?" Chandler asked simply.

"I came to my senses," Joey smiled sadly. "Monica was right. I'm not her dad. You are."

"But Joey -"

"No, Chandler, you are. I guess I had to see it to believe it… I'll still be around. I just won't be her dad."

"What if you change your mind again?"

"I won't, I promise," he said quietly. "She wants you to be her dad, and kids know what they want. The only thing that matters is that she's loved and taken care of, and I know that with you around, she will be. And someday, when she's old enough to understand, I can tell her that I'm her father."

"Joey, I have to tell you that this sounds a little too good to be true – for me, at least."

"Yeah, I know. After changing my mind the first time, I can understand why you'd think that. But it won't happen again."

"Joe, I think you should know that Monica and I are getting pretty serious. I want to marry her."

"Really?" Joey asked, shocked.

"Yeah, really. So I'm only going to be spending more time with Monica and Emily. It might get a little weird."

"It'll be fine. Things will work out somehow… All I know is that when I saw you and Emily together, it looked right. You've loved her from the beginning. I didn't even want her the first time I found out about her. I mean, don't get me wrong, Chandler. I love that little girl. She's my daughter, and I'll always love her. But I'm not going to mess up what you have with her."

Chandler sighed loudly before he spoke to Joey again. "All right, Joe. I want you to really think about this because, as far as I'm concerned, this is your last chance. You've put Monica through enough already with all this changing your mind business."

"I know that. But it's over. This is it. I'm stepping aside, okay?"

"I want to believe you, Joey. I really do."

"Well, believe it. Actually… I'm leaving for Los Angeles on Friday."

"Los Angeles? Why?"

"I got a part in a movie. It's a small part, but it's something."

"When did you find out about this?"

"This afternoon, when I came here from Monica's. I think somebody up there's trying to tell me to back off."

"Well, um… Congratulations, I think," Chandler said after a moment of contemplating the situation.

"Yeah, congratulations to you, too. You've just won yourself an instant family."

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"Mommy?" Emily yawned as Monica helped her into bed.

"Yeah, sweetie?"

"Why did Chandler's friend come here today?"

"Joey just wanted to meet you, honey."

"Why?"

Monica sighed quietly. "I guess he's heard so much about you from Chandler that he just had to see you."

"I love Chandler, Mommy," the little girl yawned, her eyes closed and her arms wrapped around a doll that Chandler had given her.

"I love Chandler, too, Em," Monica said quietly.

"Mommy?"

"What, sweetie?"

"Will you please make Chandler my daddy?"

Monica smiled at her daughter's question and leaned over to kiss her forehead. "We'll see, baby. We'll see…"