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Second Chance

Chapter Eight – Sane Love

September 10th

Chandler woke up with a heavy feeling in his heart. He checked his alarm clock. 10.00a.m… in just four minutes' time, he would only have four weeks on Earth left. He had to face the facts – the Monica situation was making no progress…apart from the small matter of continuously sleeping with her in those crazy moments. He didn't know what to do anymore. There were days he wondered if there was the slightest chance Monica might break it off with Pete, but then that thought would be wiped away, especially after what happened last night.

After the latest – and last - liaison with Monica, Pete arrived to take Monica on a date. To Chandler's great disgust, he watched Monica walk over to her fiancé and give him a kiss. Only minutes before, she and Chandler had been in the middle of zealous love making on the couch. Once again Monica was pretending nothing had happened.

As much as he hated to admit it, Chandler was beginning to feel sorry for Pete. The man had no idea what was going on behind his back.

Chandler needed sane love – what was happening with Monica wasn't sane.

Then there was Cynthia. Either way, he was screwed. If he told Cynthia how he felt, he would still only have a month with her. That thought pained him more than anything else…apart from if Cynthia didn't feel the same way and Monica told him she loved him and then still stayed with Pete. He would be double screwed. He'd be on Earth alone, and at the same time watching the 'happy' couple live their 'happy' life.

****

"Hey Chandler, that Pete is awesome!" Ross told him enthusiastically later that day in the coffee house.

Great, just what he needed. An assessment from his best friend about the man he hated the guts of. "Really?" he asked mildly, "what's so great about him?"

"He visited me at the museum!" Ross exclaimed, "It turns out he was this huge fan of the cretaceous era when he was at school! And he has watched Jurassic Park seventeen times!"

"Well, that's…awesome," Chandler deadpanned, rolling his eyes.

"Hey, Monica, whatever you do don't divorce this guy! He is the one."

"Wow, maybe you should marry him," Rachel said sarcastically while Monica said nothing.

"Mom and Dad love him, seriously…especially Dad, it turns out Pete owns three Jags." Ross continued, ignoring his ex-girlfriend's comment, "He's even offered to trade in Dad's jag for a new one!"

Chandler gave out a loud groan and stood up. He couldn't take another second of Ross' appraisal of Pete. "Well, I'm going to take off," he told the group, "I'll see you later."

"Yeah, I'm coming too; didn't you say you needed help learning the guitar?" Phoebe asked, immediately following him to the door.

"Um…no…"

"Shh! Just get me out of here!" Phoebe hissed.

Chandler gave out a quiet laugh and nodded.

"So, where are you going?" Phoebe asked now as they both walked outside.

"I just need to do something," Chandler mumbled. He realised he owed Cynthia an apology. He had put the poor woman on the spot with his talk about 'soul mates'.

"Ok, have fun at Cynthia's!" Phoebe called as he walked away. He stopped, gave a little grin at her and walked on. Phoebe may be neurotic and weird, but she certainly knew the state of Chandler's mind.

****

"Oh…hello," Cynthia greeted cautiously as she opened the door.

Chandler swallowed hard as he looked at her. "Hey," he whispered.

"Do you want to come in?"

Chandler nodded and walked into the villa. He watched Cynthia shut the door gently and she turned to face him.

"Listen…um…I'm really sorry about what happened before…" Chandler started.

"It's ok," Cynthia interrupted, "I understand. You're just confused right now."

Chandler breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "Thank god, I would hate to lose your friendship."

"You'll never do that," Cynthia said softly.

"Just so you know…it's all finished with Monica." Chandler rushed on, "No more secrets, deception…you know." He shrugged uncomfortably.

"Well, it was never a very healthy relationship…if you could call it that," Cynthia pointed out, smiling wryly.

"Yes, I agree, and I just want to say sorry again for burdening you with all my problems," Chandler said sheepishly.

"You weren't a burden…"

"You still had to listen to me, and you never complained so to make it up to you, I want to take you out for dinner at Pizza's for You tonight." Chandler smiled hopefully at her.

"Well I don't know about that my friend, are you paying?" Cynthia smiled cheekily at him.

"You can have anything on the menu," Chandler promised, "I'll even see if there's coca-cola ice-cream on the desserts section!"

"How can I resist that offer?" Cynthia asked, laughing.

****

"So, are you actually saying you prefer the Jurassic period to the cretaceous period?" Pete asked Joey in amazement.

Joey shrugged, "I know how to say Jurassic."

"Yes but Joey, the Cretaceous period was so much more interesting." Ross smiled smugly at him.

"Hello, Dr Geller? I know squat about dinosaurs! For all I know, the stegosaurus could fly."

"Fly?" Ross squeaked, eyes widening.

"Ok, guys, time out!" Monica interrupted, walking from the kitchen to the living room. "This is my apartment and you're turning it into a lecture room for the geeks of the universe. Either shut out or leave."

"Hey, I'm no geek of the universe!" Joey protested, "I'm starring in an antiseptic cream commercial!"

"Fine, so go take your star status somewhere else," Monica said firmly, "just give me a bit of peace…please."

"Let's go to the coffee house," Pete suggested, standing up. Ross followed him to the door and they left. Joey stayed where he was on the couch.

"Joey," Monica said warningly.

"Oh come on Mon! I don't wanna hang out with the geeks of the universe!" Joey wailed, looking like a kid who had just been sent to bed early.

"Out!" Monica pointed to the door.

Joey sighed and left. As soon as the door shut, it opened again and Cynthia's head peeked around the corner. "Hi," she said timidly. "I'm looking for Chandler; I can't get any answer across the hall…"

"He's not here," Monica said shortly, "try somewhere else."

"Oh I see…sorry to trouble you," Cynthia said quietly, ducking her head back out into the hallway.

"Wait!" Monica called, rushing over to the door. She opened it and saw Cynthia standing outside looking at her in confusion. "Why do you want Chandler?"

"We were supposed to be meeting up at his place to go out for dinner," Cynthia explained, checking her watch, "he must be running late." She smiled.

"Dinner?" Monica asked faintly. She frowned a little. "Well…you must be mistaken. Chandler can't take you out for dinner tonight."

Cynthia frowned, increasing confusion spreading across her face. "It's all arranged…"

"Chandler's with me tonight," Monica interrupted, smiling sweetly.

"With…you?" Cynthia's face turned pale, "when you say, with you…"

"I mean with me," Monica said bluntly, "didn't he tell you we're an item?"

"but…but he told me you were getting married," Cynthia said, beginning to sound distressed, then angry.

"I'm breaking it off with my fiancé any time now," Monica explained, "I'm really surprised Chandler didn't tell you that."

"Yes…um…maybe he did tell me that," Cynthia mumbled, "Maybe I'm mistaken…obviously I got the night of our dinner wrong." She stared at Monica, the hurt filling her eyes. "I'm…leaving now."

"Shall I tell Chandler you dropped by?" Monica asked innocently.

"Um, yeah, tell him I don't want to see him!" Cynthia told her firmly, and she walked quickly down the hallway, leaving Monica smiling serenely outside her apartment door.

****

Chandler walked quickly up to his apartment, checking his watch. He knew he was late, but Phoebe had held him up at the coffee house with her talk about her new song. He just hoped Cynthia was still hanging around.

When he arrived, he opened the door quickly, expecting to see Cynthia waiting inside with Joey. It was empty. Obviously, Joey had not been in to let her in. He groaned loudly. He had told Joey to stick around…he swore that man's memory was getting worse.

He picked up the phone and dialled Cynthia's number. One ring…two rings…three rings until finally the answering machine kicked in. "*hello it's Cynthia Stevenson here! If you're a salesman, hang up. If you're my mom, the villa is fine, stop worrying! If you're Rita, I'm not coming into work this week; it's my holiday as you very well know! Anyone else, just leave a message after the beep!*"

Chandler smiled; it was a typical answering machine greeting from Cynthia. "Hi, Cynthia? It's Chandler…please call me back as soon as you can." He hung up and chewed his fingernails. Where could she be?

The apartment door opened and in walked Monica. "Hey Chandler, what's up?" she asked.

"Nothing…nothing," Chandler mumbled, before suddenly widening his eyes. "Hey, you haven't seen Cynthia at all this evening?"

"No…"

"Ok, no problem, I'll just see if she's still at her villa. Maybe she's running late too." Chandler picked up his jacket and walked out.

A while later, Cynthia answered the door to Chandler's repeated knockings. To his shock, she was in her dressing gown, her eyes puffy and red like she had been crying. "What do you want?" she asked shakily, anger filling her red eyes at the sight of him.

"Cynthia, I just wanted to say…"

"Sorry?" Cynthia finished for him, glaring at him. "For what exactly? For standing me up? Or for the fact that you lied to me about Monica?"

"Huh?" Chandler asked, confused at her behaviour.

"Don't play dumb with me," Cynthia said tearfully, "Chandler, there are two types of friends in this world, ones that lie and ones that don't. Guess which type of friend I prefer?"

"Cynth, I don't understand what you're talking about!" Chandler exclaimed, "I'm sorry I was late for our dinner, but I've got a really good reason…"

"You were probably in Monica's bed at the time," Cynthia interrupted, laughing, "No wonder Monica wanted me to leave quickly!"

"Monica? What's Monica got to do with me being late tonight?" Chandler asked wildly, "I just asked her if she had seen you and she said no! That's about the most I've seen her all day!"

"But…but I was speaking to her outside your apartment!" Cynthia stuttered, "she…she said you couldn't go out for dinner tonight because you were with her…"

"She said what?!" Chandler exploded, "Cynthia, I told you, it's over with Monica."

"But…but why would she say that if it wasn't true?" Cynthia asked, frowning. "I don't stay friends with people who lie to me Chandler." She started to shut the door in Chandler's face before he stopped her, wedging his foot in the gap.

"Cynthia, I really don't know what's going on here!" Chandler persuaded, "You've got to believe me! I don't know what kind of game Monica is playing!"

Cynthia opened the door wider again and studied his face. "You really don't know do you?" she whispered.

"No, I don't," Chandler said grimly, "but I'm going to find out!"

****

Chandler arrived outside Monica and Rachel's apartment angrier than he had ever felt in a long time. After hearing the whole story from Cynthia, he was determined to find out what Monica was playing at. He opened the door, slamming it behind him. Monica was in the kitchen, chopping onions. Rachel was sitting on the couch reading a magazine.

"You…you…how dare you!" Chandler whispered, staring at Monica.

"Excuse me?" Monica asked; eyes wide.

"How dare you lie to Cynthia that we're still…still," Chandler paused and glanced at Rachel who was staring at the pair with a look of curiosity. "Rachel, can you leave us alone a second?"

"Um…sure Chandler!" Rachel said hurriedly, picking up her bag, "I'll see where Phoebe and Joey have got to."

"Thanks," Chandler said gratefully as she left. He turned back to Monica and glared angrily at her. "What the hell were you trying to do?!" he yelled.

"Chandler, I…"

"I mean, what kind of sick game is this?" Chandler continued in disbelief, "What was the point in trying to hurt a bright, funny woman who happens to be my friend?"

"I…I thought you were going out on a date," Monica said quietly.

"So what if we were Monica?" Chandler demanded, "I don't see how my going out on dates has got anything to do with you! Not anymore! Not when you're engaged!"

"Oh please Chandler, it's so obvious I'm going to be mad that you're dating other people!" Monica exclaimed. She smirked, "you don't waste much time, do you?"

"Hey, you're the one who's marrying some other guy and only wants a 'fling'! You're the one who pretended nothing ever happened! Well, Monica Becker, I don't want that!"

"Don't call me Becker," Monica said bitterly, "I'm not married yet."

"Oh, getting cold feet again are we?!" Chandler asked mock sympathetically, "want me to come over and make you feel all better? I know that's all you want from me! But you don't want me any other time do you? And, after what's just happened tonight, it seems like you don't want anyone else to have me either!" Chandler walked out of the apartment and slammed the door. He leaned against it outside and rubbed his temples. He and Monica never fought. Shaking his head, Chandler walked over to his apartment and turned the handle.

"Go and get her Chandler," Monica's voice said softly behind him.

He whirled around and saw Monica standing in front of him, her apartment door wide open.

"What?"

"Go and see her if you like her that much!" Monica challenged, her arms folded. "If you're in love with her, do something about it!"

The thought of Bob whirled through his head. He would not be happy…but then, what did he have to lose? If he wasn't going to be with Monica anyway, he should spend his time with the woman he loved most.

****

"Chandler…" Cynthia said softly, when she opened the door. Chandler looked at her with every emotion possible spreading across his face.

"I…I don't know why I'm here," Chandler mumbled, looking down at his feet.

"You talked to Monica huh?"

"Yeah, I talked to her all right," Chandler said angrily, looking up at her.

"Oh god, please don't tell me you two had a fight over me," Cynthia moaned, closing her eyes.

"Cynth…" Chandler took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. She opened her eyes and he smiled at her. "This is not your fault." He added sincerely, "and yes we did fight, but then she told me something that made me decide to come to you."

"I expected you to be with her all night," Cynthia said quietly.

"No, the only person I want to be with right now is…" Chandler paused and met her eyes, "you."

"How…why…"

"Look, it's a really long story and you won't believe all of it, so all I'm going to say is that someone told me a while ago that I was in love with Monica, and because I didn't really know what love was, I believed him…but then I met you." Chandler's cheeks flushed and he smiled tenderly at her.

Cynthia smiled a little, "Chandler, what are you trying to say?"

"The way of subtlety is completely lost on you, isn't it?" Chandler quipped, stepping closer to her. Cynthia blushed and looked down. He put a finger underneath her chin and lifted her head back up.

"Not many systems analysts understand subtlety," Cynthia whispered.

"Then maybe you'll understand this," Chandler murmured, planting a gentle kiss on her lips. Cynthia returned it and they kissed passionately for many minutes on the doorstep. When they broke apart, Chandler rubbed his nose against hers. "This is much better than when we were drunk," he told her.

Cynthia laughed, "Well your breath smells better anyway," she quipped.

"I didn't hear you complaining at the time," Chandler teased, kissing her again.

****

"You really screwed the deal up this time," Ernie, the man who Chandler had met in the 'waiting room' in heaven all those weeks ago, told Bob. "It's worst than the last case from 1945! And I never thought we would get a worst case than that guy!"

Bob sighed, "I know."

"You just immediately assumed Chandler would want to be with Monica, but now look what's happened!"

"I think the pressure of this deadline has been too much for him," Bob admitted, "I did it all wrong."

"This whole case is about making sure that Chandler is happy in his second life," Ernie pointed out, "Instead, you forced him to look at the possibility of a relationship with his best friend. Ok, so he had a crush on her in the past, and their fling meant something to him…but I really don't think he's in love with her anymore."

"Yes it's Cynthia he loves," Bob agreed. He sighed wearily. "It's too late to do anything about that now. I can't change the deal; its changing the route of life…it's against the rules. If Chandler doesn't hear the words 'I love You' from Monica by October 10th 10.04a.m he's back here."

"And remember, Chandler has still got to be in love with her for it to work, otherwise it means nothing."

"Great, just great, that's all I need," a voice said behind them. Bob and Ernie turned to see Chandler standing in the room.

"Chandler, I'm sorry, but if you date Cynthia you'll only have four weeks with her." Bob said helplessly.

"Why?" Chandler demanded, "this is my chance of happiness! I came here tonight hoping for a reprieve! I want the deal changed."

"The deal is for you to fall in love with Monica," Bob told him firmly.

 "It won't happen," Chandler replied, a defiant look crossing his face.

"Then you have to make a decision. You either have to somehow fall back in love with Monica and forget Cynthia or die in four weeks' time," Bob said. He looked at him apologetically

"This isn't fair!" Chandler said emotionally, "why are you trying to ruin my life? Why can't I choose to be with Cynthia for the rest of my days?"

"Its not part of the deal," Bob said, swallowing hard, "I can't change it."

"This deal sucks."

End of Chapter Eight

:it's hard writing a fanfic where C&M don't seem to belong together, because that's what I usually write…but I've took this to new heights, and I'm still not promising how this is going to end!: