Chapter Three

Chandler and Monica landed in a few hours. They quickly left the plane and headed for their luggage. They talked about nothing and anything while looking for their bags. Of course they were traveling light, so it didn't take long for them to find all of their baggage.

"So are you feeling lucky?" Monica asked. Chandler took a while to answer.

"I'm not sure if I'm going to find her here. I'm not sure if I'm ever going to find her."

"Come on, Chandler. Do you honestly think that you'll find her with that kind of attitude? Be aggressive! Sure of yourself! Content!"

Chandler smiled. "I know. You're right. You always are."

Monica shook her head. "Nah… I'm not right about a lot of things."

"Oh? Name one time you were wrong." When he saw Monica thinking hard for a while, Chandler grinned. "Harder than it seems, isn't it?"

"Shut up, Chandler!" Monica said, nudging his shoulder. He laughed and ran away from her. Monica chased him, but soon ran into somebody. "I'm sorry," she quickly apologized.

"It's okay." It was a woman. All of a sudden, Chandler spoke up.

"Hi, my name is Chandler Bing. Don't mind the strange name, by the way," he greeted while extending his hand out to her. The woman smiled.

"Rachel Green," she said, shaking Chandler's hand. Chandler quietly whispered something in Monica's ear.

"That's her, Mon. That's my soulmate!"

And Monica could feel her heart being ripped apart, piece by piece. "Are you sure?" she asked him quietly. Chandler nodded.

"Absolutely." He went over to Rachel and took her bag. "May I?" Rachel nodded, and Chandler took her bag, leaving his own behind. Monica quickly took all of the luggage and tried to catch up with Chandler. By the time they reached the front desk, Monica was dragging the bags on the floor. Rachel looked at her.

"Are you following us?" she asked. Monica shook her head.

"Oh no. No, I'm not following you. I'm with him," she told Rachel while pointing to Chandler. Right after she said that a man came up to Rachel and wrapped his arms around her.

"Hey babe," he approached. Chandler looked heartbroken.

"And you are?" Chandler asked with clear bitterness in his voice.

"Oh, right… Chandler, this is Ted. Ted, this is Chandler. I just met him a few minutes ago, but he's very sweet." Monica could see Chandler blush. Monica saw Ted looking at her, so she spoke up.

"I'm with Chandler."

"So you two are dating?" Ted asked.

"No."

"Yes." They both spoke at the same time. Monica looked at Chandler curiously. Suddenly she knew what he was doing.

"I – I mean… we are. I – thought you asked if we weren't dating," she tried to cover up. Rachel and Ted seemed to believe her.

"So… I mean, we just met – but do you think we could double date sometime? You guys seem nice," Chandler asked. They both nodded.

"Here's my cell," Rachel said and handed him a piece of paper. When they left, Monica turned her head towards Chandler.

"What the hell was that, Chandler?" she asked. Chandler looked down to the floor.

"I – I just thought that I could make her jealous. Please, please, please, Mon. Please go along with this. You want me to be happy, right?"

"Of course I do."

"Then please go along with this."

"Fine. But I'm only doing this for you." Chandler smiled and hugged Monica.

"Thanks, Mon. I knew I could count on you."

"Sure. You – you can always count on me."

When they entered their rooms, Monica immediately felt her heart tighten. There was only one bed again. Monica sighed and threw her bag on the floor next to the bed.

"Today was a long day," she uttered. Chandler agreed.

"But a good one at that."

Yeah, for him it was. For her it was the worst day of her life. She was going to have to play girlfriend for Chandler until Rachel grew jealous and ran into Chandler's arms. Why did this all have to be so perplexing? All Monica ever wanted was Chandler. But she'd never have Chandler. Even if Chandler didn't find his soulmate… he'd never look at her as more than a friend. A best friend. She looked at Chandler and frowned. The one thing she'd always wanted and would never have.

Chandler couldn't believe it. This was the best day in his life! He'd finally found his soulmate – his destiny. He smiled and imagined himself kissing her. The image was perfect. Everything was going perfectly – except the face that she had a boyfriend. But that could be fixed. Chandler looked at Monica. She was still distant towards him – as distant as ever. When would he get his best friend back?

"Hey, Mon?"

"Yeah?"

"I – I … umm… I saw a beach not far from here. You want to come?"

The cool, wet sand was a relief from the burning, scolding sand they just stepped off of. It was a beautiful day – crystal blue sky, cloudless, and breezy. Perfect. The day was perfect. Monica dug her feet into the sand. "Nice day," Chandler said, trying to start a conversation. "Sure is.""You want to go for a swim?""Don't have my bathing suit.""That's fine… clothes dry, don't they?" Monica smiled. "I guess they do." "Come on, Mon… you've been so distant lately. You're not being your usual self.""You're right, Chandler. I'm sorry." "No, I am." Monica looked at Chandler strangely. "For what?"Chandler's grin deepened. "For this." Chandler quickly held Monica up and threw her in the water.

Chandler looked around and smiled. It was nice finally being able to talk to her again. He hadn't been able to for so long. He looked at the spot he threw her in. It must have been a minute later. Where was she? Chandler panicked and swam towards her. Monica quickly swam to the surface, making Chandler jump.

"Did you know I could hold my breath for a minute?" she asked him when she reached Chandler. Chandler glared at her.

"What the hell were you thinking? I thought you drowned!" he cried out. Monica smiled.

"I'm sorry. But that's for throwing me in the first place."

Monica swam away, and Chandler followed her. When they reached the shallow end, Chandler started to run after Monica. When he finally caught up to her he grabbed onto her ankles, making her fall. Chandler pinned her to the ground and smiled.

"And that's for scaring me half to death." Chandler looked into Monica's clear, sparkling eyes.

"Were you really scared?" she asked him. Chandler nodded.

"More than I'd ever been. I thought you'd drowned, Mon, and I thought that I was going to be the person that killed you. I can't live without you."

Monica looked back into his eyes. "Really?" she asked, her voice soft.

"I wouldn't lie about that," Chandler whispered.

"You mean the world to me, Chandler."

"I do?"

Monica nodded her head.

"Mon, I couldn't ask for a better friend."

Monica's smile suddenly faded. "Thanks. Neither could I."

"Chandler?" It was a woman's voice. Chandler looked up at smiled. He let go of Monica and kissed her cheek.

"Hey, Rachel. What are you doing here?" He got up and held his hand out to Monica. Monica took it and he helped her up.

"Just thought I'd go for a swim."

"Where's Ted?"

"He had to work."

"Oh… so you live in LA?"

Rachel nodded. "Yeah. I just moved here about two years ago. I love it here… I can't imagine living anywhere else."

"Not even in… New York?"

"Nope. Although I've heard it's wonderful there."

"Oh, it is! It is…"

"You live there?" Rachel asked.

"No, we live right here," he said and put his arms around Monica's waist. Rachel looked at Monica for the first time and smiled.

"You two live together?"

"Sure do." Chandler gently gave Monica butterfly kisses on her neck. Monica closed her eyes. This was killing her.

"So when do you two want to have a double date?" Rachel asked.

"Tonight is good for us. How about you?"

"Yeah, that's fine for us. Where do you want to go?"

"Somewhere casual. Maybe… for pizza?"

Rachel nodded. "Sounds like a plan. Is 6:30 at the pizza place right by the beach good?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, I'll see you two tonight," she said and left. Chandler stopped kissing Monica's neck and smiled. "Yes!" he said and held out his hand to Monica. Monica slapped it and forced a smile.

"Yay for you," she said, pretending enthusiasm. "Maybe – maybe you two are soulmates."

"I know we are. Why else would you have bumped into her?"

"Maybe you are." Outside she smiled, but inside her heart was being stepped on.

"Mon, what should I wear!?" Chandler asked, running from the bathroom to his bag. Monica sighed.

"Chandler, wear whatever you want. Anything is fine," she tried to tell him. But he wasn't listening.

"What do you think I look best in?" he asked, showing her all of his clothes he laid out on the bed.

"You look incredible in everything and anything, Chandler," Monica whispered. Chandler smiled.

"Really?"

"Yes. But… if you're going to be pacing for another hour, that blue shirt over there makes your eyes stand out."

"Thanks, Mon." He quickly kissed her cheek and grabbed the shirt. "What about pants?"

"The jeans match." Chandler quickly grabbed his clothes and ran to the bathroom. Monica sighed and collapsed onto the bed. This was going to be a long night.

They walked to Jiff's Biff Pizza hand in hand. When they entered, Rachel and Tony were already there. Chandler smiled and walked over to them.

"Nice to see you again," he greeted, shaking Rachel's and Tony's hands. After all of them exchanged greetings they all sat down. Chandler put his arm around Monica.

"So what do you two do for fun?" Tony asked. Chandler looked down at Monica.

"Go to the beach, down to the bowling alley, you know… the usual. How about you?"

"Same here. There's so much to do down here. Where did you two say you live?" Rachel asked.

"Well, we didn't say – but we… we live… just a – a block up from here," Chandler answered. He silently leaned down and kissed Monica's neck.

"How long have you been dating?" Tony asked.

"One year."

"Six months." They both spoke up at the same time. Monica smiled. "One year and six months."

"Oh, that's pretty long. We've only been dating for a month."

Chandler looked up. "Oh? That's not that long."

"No. How did you meet?"

"Well, we were friends first. But we met when my brother brought him to my house for Thanksgiving. I fell in love right away. Chandler didn't even know I loved him until - five years of being friends. We were best friends. I tried telling him – many times – about how I felt about him. But things got in the way. And I just didn't want to leave him with such a problem. He found out when one of my friends accidentally told him. And we've been together ever since," Monica told them. At least part of it was true. "How did you meet?"

Rachel laughed. "Well we don't have nearly as much of a history. We just met each other at a coffeehouse."

While the rest of them continued the conversation, Monica kept quiet. She finally decided on something she hoped was the right decision. She was never going to tell Chandler how much she loved him. She couldn't do that to him.

The night passed by very slowly. They ate pizza, went bowling, and walked on the beach. The entire time Monica stayed silent unless something was addressed to her. Finally the night was over and Monica found herself walking to the hotel with Chandler.

"Tonight went perfectly," Chandler said when they finally reached the hotel room. "I think she's really starting to like me. She asked me if I wanted to have coffee tomorrow!"

"Great," Monica told him, trying to prevent her tears. "Things are going as planned."

"I know!"

Soon, Chandler would be all Rachel's.

Rachel and Chandler grew closer than ever. Every day they would either go out for coffee, go bowling, go to the beach, or just hang out. Chandler barely talked to Monica since he was out with Rachel so much. And Monica felt Chandler slipping away from her. Maybe they were soulmates. They were growing so close in so little time – they must have known each other a week and already they were inseparable. Things didn't usually happen so fast. It was all so rushed. Her life, Chandler's relationship with Rachel – everything.

The next day when Chandler was out with Rachel, Monica decided to call the gang at New York. She took her cell phone and silently dialed the numbers.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Ross. It's me, Monica."

"Oh, hey Mon! How's it going?"

"He found her."

"What? So soon?"

"I know… I didn't think it was possible, either. Maybe – maybe they really are soulmates," Monica replied, her voice low.

"Probably. I really did think Chandler would never find her. But now that he thinks he did…"

"What mistakes could I tell him not to make, Ross? You're a guy… you'd be able to help him more."

"That he shouldn't be afraid of love or telling him he loves her. Mon… sometimes you lose in love, but you always lose when you give up."

Monica felt a tear fall down. "I'll remember that."

"Do you want to talk to anyone else?"

"No – no, I have to go. But – I'll call soon. Bye." Monica briskly hung up the phone.

Monica ran to the beach. Maybe she could tell him. Maybe he'd realize they were supposed to be together. She wasn't going to lose so easily. It was a cool night with no more than a breeze. She ran passed houses, pushed passed people, and finally reached the beach. She wasn't going to give up. And she was right, they were there.

But what Monica saw shattered her life. Her heart.

Tears fell down her face yet again, as she watched the man she loved and his soulmate kiss for the first time.

To be continued…

I know this chapter probably wasn't that good, but the next one will be better. And not as rushed. But please review to tell me if I should continue or not. I won't continue until I get some reviews.