: Embarrassment of the week: On Tuesday night two friends of mine met my parents for the first time. One of my friends is my 'crush'. Don't you just hate it when your mum starts talking about you to your friends when you're still in the room? It wasn't too bad but I just wish mum hadn't told the two boys that she had to 'force' me to wear makeup on my 18th birthday night out a couple of weeks ago. Don't get me all wrong, I dress up when I have to but most of the time I just go around in a t-shirt and pair of shorts/jeans. Anyway, before that, we had met up with a few other friends – two other girls and another boy – to go to see American Pie(oh my god, lmao)and then we went to a bar. My crush asked me in the bar if I had my 'eye on anyone'…oh how I turned red. I think he knows. It didn't help that when I said "no" one of my other friends asked, "are you sure about that Lindsey?" oh I could've killed him. You see, my whole group of friends know about this crush and they're keeping dropping hints about it… I think he must definitely know now. Oh well. Anyway, enough about my complicated friend-zone crush…thanks for the reviews to the first chapter of this fanfic, I am overwhelmed. Here is a second chapter, keep them coming! Remember the date and time at the top!:
Second Chance
Chapter Two – The Master
June 10th 10.04am
Just as Bob said, as soon as Chandler fell asleep he found himself waking up again almost instantly. He could hear familiar voices in the background, but as he was still only semi-conscious he couldn't quite register them.
"Oh my god he's opening his eyes!" a voice murmured on his left hand side.
"I know," An emotional sounding female said on his right, "I had almost given up hope."
Chandler blinked several times before he realised where he was. He was lying on a hospital bed with different tubes and a drip attached to his body. It appeared to him that about a dozen faces were looking down on him, all smiling broadly.
"Hey," Chandler smiled weakly. He frowned a little. He felt weak. In fact, he felt like what a recovering car crash victim should feel like. In a nutshell, he felt like crap. Bob had never warned him about this.
"Dude, you're awake!" Joey exclaimed. Chandler turned his head slightly and smiled at his friend.
"My god, you were so lucky man," Ross called from where he was standing.
"Yeah," Chandler replied, grinning. By rights, he should've been dead. In some way, technically he was dead.
"When you arrived at the hospital a week ago we thought we'd lost you!" Rachel sobbed, burying her head into Ross' shoulder.
Chandler widened his eyes. "A week?!" he yelped, "I've been unconscious for a week?!"
"Yes, sweetie," a soft voice said gently, the source of it taking his hand. Chandler turned his head to his right and saw Monica smiling tearfully at him. "You were in a serious car crash and took a bad bash to the head."
"You mean I've lost a week of my life?!" Chandler freaked, lifting his head and trying to sit up.
Ross looked at him worriedly, "hey man, don't move yet. Not until the doctor comes anyway."
Chandler couldn't believe that Bob had left him in a coma for a week. Had the spirit forgot he only had six months left?
"Well, as soon as the doctor arrives I'm outta here," Chandler said decisively.
"You will not!" Phoebe cried out in horror, "you've only just woke up! You'll be in here for at least another week, maybe longer."
"But I can't stay here for that long!" Chandler shouted, "I've got plans!"
"Plans?" Joey echoed, "You never have plans."
"I do now!"
"I think he's been affected by the head injuries," he heard Rachel whisper to Ross.
"No, I haven't been 'affected'," Chandler mimicked, "apart from a few bruises, I'm ok!"
"Ok, I think there are a few too many people in here," a voice said at the door, "my patient is getting stressed. Maybe you could all just step outside for a moment?"
"Yes, Doctor," everyone murmured.
Monica gave Chandler a reassuring smile before following the rest of the group outside.
"So, when can I leave?" Chandler asked the doctor.
The doctor looked up from his clipboard and frowned. "You don't waste much time, do you?" he commented without answering the question. He started to examine Chandler and the results made the doctor's eyes widen in disbelief. "Incredible…" he murmured.
"What is?" Chandler asked, confused.
"Well, you seem to be pretty much unaffected by the coma and head injuries you received a week ago," the doctor explained, "Do you feel woozy at all? Confused as to your whereabouts?"
"No," Chandler replied, "My ribs feel a little sore but apart from that…" he stopped and shrugged.
"Bruising of the ribs and other parts of your body can be expected," the doctor told him, "I'm just amazed at your fast recovery…someone up there must like you." He smiled.
"You have no idea how true that is," Chandler said under his breath.
"Sorry, what was that?" the doctor asked.
"Oh…um…nothing!" Chandler said brightly, "So, when can I go home?"
"Well as you amazingly seem to be more or less in a clean bill of health…there's no reason why you shouldn't go home tomorrow morning." The doctor replied, scratching his head.
"Cool," Chandler commented, smiling at the thought of going back to his apartment.
****
The next morning…
Chandler walked into his and Joey's apartment and sighed with relief. "Never thought I would be back here," he murmured to himself as he dumped his bags on one of the barker lounger's.
"Me neither," Monica said behind him.
Chandler spun around and smiled enthusiastically at her. He felt a pull in his stomach as he remembered the deal he had made with Bob. "So…you thought I was going to die huh?" he asked gently.
"Yes," Monica whispered, "When the ambulance got you to the hospital your heart stopped. We…thought you'd…" she stopped and tears sprang from her eyes.
"Hey, hey don't cry!" Chandler exclaimed, rushing over to wrap his arms around her. "You don't get rid of me that easily." He joked.
"I'm so glad," Monica mumbled in his shoulders.
Chandler's eyebrows shot up as he listened to this. Maybe Monica did have feelings for him after all.
"I mean, you're my best friend!" Monica continued, looking up at him. "You're everybody's best friend…we would have been devastated to lose you."
Chandler's hopes faded in an instant. It looked like this was going to take some work.
"You haven't lost me," Chandler assured her, giving another hug. "You all have me forever."
…Or at least for another six months anyway.
****
"I can't believe the hospital have let you come home so early!" Joey said as he and Chandler entered the coffee house.
"Yeah well, as I've said, I've got plans." Chandler told him, settling himself down on the couch.
"Yeah…what are these plans?" Joey asked suspiciously.
"Ok…um…there's this girl I like," Chandler tried to explain without revealing too much, "And my plan is to ask her out."
"Is that it?" Joey chuckled, "Dude, for me it's like a ritual to ask girls out. Need any advice?"
"No no, I'm ok thanks," Chandler said hurriedly, "Your way with girls is a lot different to mine."
"At least my way works," Joey pointed out. He sat down next to Chandler. "Your way on the other hand…"
"I get your point," Chandler conceded, "but there is no way in hell I'm letting you ruin this for me."
"Ok, Mr Casanova, what's your plan?" Joey mocked, looking at him sceptically.
"I thought I might take her out on a date…maybe to a restaurant," Chandler shrugged, "Then I'll just see what happens."
Joey snorted with laughter, "Is that it? That's your plan?" he asked. "Chandler, the way to pull a girl goes a lot further than just taking her out for dinner."
Chandler cocked his eyebrow. He wasn't sure if he should be taking the advice from a guy whose past relationships don't get much further than a shower the next morning. However, he knew telling Monica how he felt was going to be difficult…maybe he needed all the help he could get.
"Ok, fire away Joe," Chandler sighed and started to listen.
"Ok, first piece of advice. A woman loves a man who listens to what she is saying." Joey grinned and patted Chandler on the shoulder, "In fact, they love you even more when you agree with what they are saying."
"Ok, I can do that," Chandler nodded.
"Second piece of advice…be supportive. If the woman is upset, try to 'comfort' her." Joey winked, "Get what I'm saying?"
"Totally on the same page man," Chandler confirmed, smiling. "Is there anything else?"
"Take an interest in everything she likes to do…pretend you like her hobbies." Joey shrugged and grinned, "If the woman thinks she can connect with you, you're in there!"
Chandler swallowed hard. Monica's idea of hobbies was cleaning her apartment or attending endless culinary fairs where she can meet chefs from all over the world. "Do I really have to take an interest in everything she does?" he asked doubtfully.
"Chandler, do you want to date this woman or not?" Joey demanded.
"Sure, if I want to live," Chandler muttered to himself. He nodded at his friend.
"Right, well if you're serious about this then you need to take all of my advice," Joey said firmly. "I am the master."
As he listened to Joey talk about the last date he had, Chandler wondered if staying in heaven might have been the best option. As soon as the thought entered his head though, he chastised himself for it. He had been given a second chance to find true love and he was going to take it. He just wished he had a better advisor than Joey.
****
"So, how are you feeling?" Monica asked Chandler that evening. They were standing in the kitchen clearing up after dinner. Ross and Joey were sitting on the couch, arguing over a football game on the TV. Phoebe was standing out on the balcony after vague comments about watching out for a scary pigeon on the roof and Rachel was reading a magazine while shooting Ross angry looks.
"I'm ok," Chandler said cheerfully, putting away several washed plates. He nodded his head in the direction of Rachel, Ross and Joey. "Any change between the 'happy' couple?" he asked.
Monica grinned, "Well, when we found out you were involved in a car crash, Rachel and Ross kind of turned to each other for comfort, you know? Now that you're back however…"
"Ross, just because you have a PhD in Palaeontology it doesn't mean you have to know everything," Rachel's exasperated voice drifted over from the living room area.
"All I was telling Joey is that if his team want to improve on their results this season they must change their tactics…play more defence and less reckless tackles!" Ross retorted.
"So, back to normal then…and since when is Rachel interested in football?" Chandler whispered to Monica.
"Since she discovered it was the perfect opportunity to have another argument with Ross…and she's hoping to get Joey on her side."
"I don't think Joey wants to take sides," Chandler commented, grinning, "Can you see the uncomfortable expression on his face?"
"We were on a break!" Ross' voice bellowed.
"Oh dear god," Chandler mumbled, rolling his eyes, "doesn't he remember what I told him a few weeks ago? I could seriously break up with him now."
Monica giggled, "Would it help if we left the apartment for a while?" she asked.
Chandler nodded and opened the door, "That'll be good." He said hurriedly.
A few minutes later, they were walking through Central Park.
"Lovely night," Chandler commented. "It's so warm out…great for a water balloon fight."
"God I've missed you!" Monica said, giggling. Her face turned serious. "I can't believe you're still alive."
Chandler stopped walking and turned to face her. "Start believing it," he said softly.
Their eyes met and neither of them said anything for a while. A look of confusion spread over Monica's face and she shook her head around, as if to clear it.
"You know, Chandler…remember when we were at the beach and you asked me out…oh my god," she stopped in mid sentence and her eyes widened.
Chandler's head swivelled around in the direction of Monica's gaze and what he saw made him groan softly.
"Pete Becker!" they both uttered.
Chandler turned back to Monica in a panic and to his dismay saw her looking over at Pete with a look of absolute adoration. "Mon, what were you about to say?" he asked hurriedly, desperately trying to bring the conversation back to where it was.
"Pete!" Monica called, waving her hand, "Over here!"
The tall, muscular form of Pete Becker caught sight of Monica and Chandler and smiled. He walked over and pulled Monica into a hug.
Chandler scowled. Everything had been going perfectly until he had shown up. He was sure Monica had been about to say something important, but Pete had ruined everything.
"How are you?" Monica asked enthusiastically, "It's been a while."
"Yes it has hasn't it?" Pete asked softly.
Chandler saw Monica's eyes meet briefly with Pete's and he scowled again. Perfect, just what he needed to complicate things further.
****
Chandler tossed and turned in bed that night and when he woke up, he found himself sitting in the Assessment Room. Bob was sitting opposite him, shaking his head.
"What am I doing back here?" he asked in amazement.
"It's my job to keep an eye on you Chandler," Bob explained, "and a good thing too."
"Why? What have I done?" Chandler demanded.
"You almost let Monica reveal her feelings first," Bob stated simply.
"So? You were the one who said she must return my love!" Chandler exclaimed.
"Exactly. Return your love I said. You've got to make the first move. If she reveals her feelings first, the deal is off and you're back here."
"You can't be serious!" Chandler shouted. He paused and looked at Bob suspiciously, "You arranged for Pete to show up when he did, didn't you? To stop Monica from telling me how she felt…"
"Well done," Bob said, nodding. "It was the only way to distract her. We noticed Pete would be in the area so we sort of…tampered with his head to make sure he saw you and Monica. It worked very well." He smiled proudly.
"But…but couldn't you have distracted Monica some other way?" Chandler protested, "Like a huge gust of wind? A freak storm? Hurricane? Why did you have to involve Monica's ex?" he scowled, "The rich freak is going to be in my way now."
"Looks like my other reason for including Pete worked too," Bob said, smirking slightly.
"What do you mean?"
"Before Pete came along, you were very reluctant to admit that you had feelings for Monica. Privately, I had my doubts you were ever going to have the guts to reveal them. By bringing back Pete, it has stirred up some emotions on your part making you realise you want Monica to yourself."
"What emotions?" Chandler asked a little scornfully, "I'm not emotional!"
"I think you are," Bob argued, smiling again, "It's called jealousy."
****
"Jealous?" Chandler burst out, waking up in his bed the next morning. "Of him?" He laughed loudly, "Yeah right."
The top half of his broken door burst open and he saw Joey glaring angrily at him through the opening. "Dude, since when do you sleep talk all night?!" he yelled.
End of Chapter 2
:things will pretty much speed along soon, I promise some very chandler-esque chaotic situations soon!: