:hey all! Told you more would be coming soon! I appreciate the reviews I got for the last part, that reassured me people had not forgot about this series. I wouldn't mind a few more though! Hint, hint lol Last few parts have been a bit dramatic and angst but it is necessary.
And last night…I got tipsy on ONE Smirnoff Ice! First time I've ever really drank alcohol so I've been getting jokes all day from friends at college today. Something about dumping a load of change on the Air Hockey table in the arcade just to look for a pound coin…then my ID card started hovering around on it.
And woohoo..Matthew Perry on The West Wing soon!
Anyway here is part 12 (wow will this ever end?) I do warn that this part does get a bit harrowing. It'll be the last harrowing, depressing part though!:
TOW The Reunion
PART TWELVE
"We had been to a party," Joey explained to the group, "We'd had a bit to drink…way too much to drink and after, we got into my car…"
"You what?!" Ross freaked, "How could you be so stupid!"
"Don't you think I know that now?" Joey yelled, "Just let me explain…"
~~~~L.A Five weeks ago~~~~
"Kip! Stop the car right now!" Joey yelled. The brakes screeched and the car went into an abrupt halt.
Kip turned to face Joey, anger spread over his usually relaxed face. "What the hell is the matter with you?!" he demanded, "What is there to freak out about?!"
"I'll tell you what there is to freak out about!" Joey fumed, "We're totally out of our heads here! You're driving while drunk out of your mind!"
"Oh please," Kip scoffed, "I do this all the time!"
"You what?" Joey shouted, his eyes widening in disbelief, "You're telling me you make a habit out of driving drunk? Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
Kip shrugged and turned away from Joey, staring out of the window. "It's fun this way," he confessed, "It makes me feel alive man!"
"You won't be alive for much longer if you carry on like this!" Joey shouted, "That's a load of crap Kip. Fun? Yeah…if you have a death wish! Which I do not!" he flung the car door open and got out.
"Where are you going?" Kip demanded, leaning over the passenger seat and sticking his head out of the window.
"I'm not staying in there," Joey told him, "And if you have any sense, you should get out too."
Kip shook his head. "Don't be stupid Joe!" he shouted, "We can't leave a car like this outside at 3am! It'll get stolen."
"What's more important Kip? The car or your life?" Joey looked at Kip squarely in the eyes, waiting for an answer.
"I'm not walking home Joey," Kip answered, causing his friend to groan in dismay, "Come on, we're just 20 minutes away from your house…nothing is going to happen!"
"I'm not getting in there," Joey said angrily, "Stop being stupid and get out of the car."
Kip smiled mischievously and revved up the engine. "Are you going to stop me from driving away?" he challenged.
"I will if I have to!" Joey yelled, "This is my car and if you don't get out right now I'm gonna call the cops!"
"And say what?" Kip demanded, " 'oh hi detective, I've just let my intoxicated friend drive through several neighbourhoods in my car! Arrest me now!'" he laughed and shook his head at his friend, "You'd be an accessory to the crime. Your career will be ruined if that got out."
"How can you be so obtuse?!" Joey shouted in disbelief, "This isn't you. That alcohol is affecting your brain. Please get out of the car." He looked at Kip with pleading eyes.
"Where's your sense of adventure dude?" Kip enquired, "nah, I'm sorry, I'm driving this thing back to your house." He started to drive the car along the road.
Joey ran alongside him, trying to grab at the door to open it. "Kip, what are you trying to do?" he freaked, his feet dragging along as he tried to pull at the handle, "Are you trying to hurt me or something? Why are you doing this?"
"Live a little Joe!" Kip yelled, picking up speed, "Rules are made to be broken! Live in the fast lane!"
"You…don't…know…what…you're…saying." Joey panted, still trying to keep a grip on the car, "For gods sake, slow down!" He climbed up on to the roof of the car.
"What are you doing Joey?!" Kip yelled, taking his eyes off the road for a split second to stick his head out of the window. He looked up and saw Joey trying to keep his balance on the roof. He shook his head and turned his head forward again. He drove faster around the corners.
"I told you I'm not letting you drive this car any further!" Joey told him, "You challenged me to stop you, and that's exactly what I'm trying to do!"
He climbed down the other side of the car, pulled himself through the window and heaved himself into the passenger seat. He lunged for the steering wheel and the car swerved about on the road as the pair struggled for control of the car.
"Get your hands off the wheel man!" Kip exploded, shoving Joey away from him. Joey fell backwards against the windscreen, blocking Kip's view of the road.
"Get out of the way!" Kip screamed, "I can't see!"
Joey moved his head and saw a look of pure terror spreading across Kip's face. He snapped his head forward and followed the direction of Kip's gaze. They were heading for a sharp corner, where a large embankment loomed ahead. Kip violently turned the steering wheel and the car swerved out of control. They screamed as the car rolled over the edge of the road and fell through the air…down…down…then an enormous crash and a deathly silence. Joey, who was half-sprawled along the floor of the car and the passenger seat, lifted his head slightly…and then everything went black.
~~~~~
Joey stirred, and slowly opened his eyelids, his vision clouded. He realised he must have lost consciousness somehow. He blinked rapidly, trying to get his vision working again. The scene began to look clearer and he tried to lift his head, studying his surroundings. A shot of pain went through the back of his head and he cried out. He realised that he was lying in an awkward position; his body was laid out horizontally on his seat, his head leaning against his door and his legs were lying across the driver's side against something…soft. He frowned, trying to lift his head to see what he was leaning against. His eyes widened in horror and he closed his eyes briefly, not believing what he had just seen. Kip was leaning forward in his seat, his face pressed up against the windscreen. Joey's legs were sprawled across Kip's back.
"Kip?" Joey whispered, moving his legs slowly away from his friend. He groaned as his joints ached from the movement. "Kip, talk to me!"
Kip wasn't responding. Joey gasped in horror when he saw the blood streaming down his friend's face. "Oh my god!" he screamed. He moved up into a sitting position, no longer caring about his own pain. He grabbed at Kip and pulled him away from the windscreen, pushing him back against the driver's seat. Kip's eyes were closed, his face distorted from deep cuts. Joey shook him, tears streaming down his face. "Come on dude!" he begged, "Wake up!"
He briefly looked into the rear-view mirror, disgusted at his own face. There wasn't a cut in sight. He had been lucky. He glanced back at Kip and moaned loudly. His fingers trembled as he tried to find a pulse on Kip's neck. There wasn't one.
"No…no!" he shouted. He desperately felt around in his pocket, looking for his phone. He pulled it out and studied it. It was undamaged. He quickly dialled for emergency services, repeatedly trying to feel for Kip's pulse at the same time. When he still couldn't find it, Joey threw the phone to one side and started to do mouth to mouth resuscitation. "Come on Kip!" he yelled, feeling for a pulse again, "Don't give up now." To his relief, he found a very faint pulse. He grabbed his phone again, and discovered someone repeatedly asking for his name.
"Hi, we've been in a car crash. My friend is in a bad way… we're on the embankment of the east side of Beverley Hills! Get here quick!"
Before he could wait for a response, Joey hung up and sobbed aloud at his friend's condition. "I'm so sorry dude," he mumbled through his tears, "I've let you down. I'm sorry I yelled. Just please hang on for the doctors…for me." His eyes widened, "Oh god…the doctors. They'll recognise me."
In the reflection of the window, Joey saw a blue flash of light coming down the road. He couldn't stick around. If the doctor's found alcohol in his blood he would be ruined…arrested.
"I'm sorry Kip, I've got to do this!" he freaked, crawling slowly out of the car. He collapsed on the ground and stood up slowly. Seeing the ambulance getting nearer, he took one last glance at the battered car with Kip inside and ran away from the scene.
******present****
The group sat in stunned silence as Joey finished his story. Monica cried hard in Chandler's arms, who looked like he was beyond crying; Rachel just stared at Joey with shock and Ross looked like he was about to explode.
"You…you left him there?" Ross whispered eventually, "You…you left him there?!" he repeated, his voice raising higher.
Joey lowered his head from Ross' angry gaze, and nodded miserably.
"How could you do that!" Ross yelled, starting forward towards him.
Chandler swiftly moved in front of Ross, blocking him from Joey. "Don't." he said quietly.
Ross glanced at Chandler in disbelief, "This guy should be with the cops right now!" he shouted, "He left Kip to die."
Joey's head snapped up. "I did not leave Kip to die!" he protested angrily, "The ambulance was there at the scene. There was nothing I could do!"
"You still should've stuck around and faced the consequences." Chandler told him, still speaking calmly and quietly. His eyes flashed at Joey with a mixture of sorrow and anger. "Why did you leave him? He was your friend."
"If I had been there I would've had a awful lot of explaining to do!" Joey explained, his jaw set tight with tension, "It was my car and Kip had been driving drunk in it…and…and I let him." he shuddered involuntarily and started to sob in his hands.
"You did the best you could." Rachel said in the silence that followed. Joey's head snapped up in shock and his eyes widened.
"What do you mean…did the best he could?!" Ross exploded, "He god damn killed our friend by letting him drive that thing! He ran away from the scene. The best he could?!"
Rachel turned angrily on Ross, "Grow up!" she snapped, "Joey didn't let him! Didn't you hear the story? He physically leapt on that car as it was moving and tried to get Kip to stop! No…I'm sorry Ross, even though Joey should not have left like he did, he still did his best to stop Kip. It was a tragic accident that never should've happened, but it did. We can't go around blaming one person."
"Rachel's right," Chandler said, stopping Ross from retorting, "Getting angry isn't going to bring Kip back." He paused and turned to Joey, who was wiping his eyes. "I don't blame you," he added. "But I still can't believe your selfishness by not facing up to the consequences after the crash happened."
"I know," Joey mumbled, "The police are looking for me as I speak."
"What?" the group asked together, shocked.
"As I said, it was my car Kip drove," Joey reminded them all, "The police want to know how my car ended up in a embankment at 3am. Then there is the call to the ambulance…my number will be traced. They will know someone else was at the scene."
"God." Monica moaned, "I can't believe this is happening."
"So, what did the police think when they found Kip?" Ross demanded. He glanced at Chandler, "You were the first of us to find out about Kip's death. You wrote to all of us. How did you know he was dead?"
"Kip's mom contacted me back in LA," Chandler explained, "She said that Kip had been killed in a car crash. In a car that he…he stole." He glanced at Joey in realisation. "You let them think Kip stole that car!" he exclaimed in disbelief, "God all of this makes sense now. At the time, I couldn't believe Kip would do such a thing. Now we know the truth."
Joey nodded silently.
"You've made everyone believe that Kip died as a petty thief," Monica whispered. She scowled, "I'm not letting you do that." She added.
Joey looked at her nervously. "What do you mean?" he whispered to her.
"She means that if you don't go to the cops right now to clear up this mess, we'll take you there ourselves." Ross said darkly.
Joey widened his eyes in panic. "No!" he shouted, "I could go to jail! Leaving the scene of an accident that I was involved in is a serious offence!"
"You may not go to jail if you tell the cops what you just told us," Chandler told him quietly, "Anyway, either way, you've got to tell them. It may take away that guilty conscience of yours." He looked worriedly at Joey's tired face. "I know you're hurting," he continued gently, "You look like you haven't slept in weeks. Maybe confessing will help you get over this."
"I can't believe you're pitying him!" Ross told Chandler in disgust, "They should never have got in the car in the first place. A young life has been taken away because of a pair of idiots who should've known better." He turned away from everybody and shook his head.
"Oh come on Ross!" Rachel protested, "Haven't you ever got so drunk that you don't know who you are anymore? When your brain is intoxicated, you don't know where you are and what you're doing. It can happen to anyone."
"Kip was only 26!" Ross yelled, "That shouldn't happen to people that age! He had his whole life ahead of him and all for just one wild night he throws it away?"
Chandler's lip trembled as he listened to Ross' anger. "I think we need to calm down a little," he said to everybody, "It's been a long day." He glanced at Monica who was sitting on the couch sobbing into her hands. "Besides, I don't think Monica can take much more of this. Neither can I actually."
Rachel sighed. "Yeah, I think I'm going to take off." She said quietly, "I'm going to check into a hotel." She studied Joey and sighed again, "I don't think you should be on your own. How about you come with me?"
Joey nodded silently and followed her to the apartment door. He turned around to face the others, avoiding Ross' angry stare. "I'm really sorry about this." He muttered.
"Sorry." Ross snorted underneath his breath, getting an angry poke in the ribs by Chandler.
Rachel and Joey left, leaving the others reeling from the revelations. Chandler rang his hand nervously through his hair and turned to Ross, "Do you want to sleep on the couch tonight?" he offered.
Ross shook his head and glanced worriedly at his sister. "Mon? You ok?" he asked softly.
Monica nodded silently, staring into space.
"I'll keep an eye on her," Chandler promised, "You go back to your hotel if you want. Julie might be back. I guess Phoebe will be here any minute now…"
The apartment door opened and, true to Chandler's words, Phoebe walked in singing happily to herself. "I visited a really great aromatherapy store earlier!" she exclaimed, "I think I might have found my new focus to life…" she paused, staring at Ross, Chandler and Monica's dull faces. "Wow…you three look like you've been to hell and back!" she commented, "Of course, my mom used to say that if you go to hell you die all over again from the shock of seeing it." She walked into Monica's room, which was still hers temporarily.
Ross arched his eyebrow, "Where are you sleeping Mon?" he asked, confused.
Monica snapped her head up and glanced nervously at Chandler. "Um…on the couch." She lied.
"Is Phoebe still ill then?" Ross scratched his head. "She seemed fine just now."
"Ok, look, I don't really want to talk about something as trivial as sleeping arrangements right now." Chandler interrupted, trying to stop Ross' questioning. "Phoebe is sleeping in Monica's room temporarily until she finds a place of her own."
"You know what? You're right. I don't care." Ross said irritably, "I'm off to see Julie." He stormed out of the apartment and slammed the door behind him.
Chandler rolled his eyes and sat next to Monica on the couch. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Are you ok?" he whispered.
"Yeah…just shocked I guess." Monica mumbled, smiling weakly.
Phoebe walked out of her room and stared at the couple. "What's been going on?" she asked. She widened her eyes. "Oh no! You're not breaking up are you?!"
Chandler laughed softly and shook his head. "No, Mon and I are fine." He reassured Phoebe, "We've just had a bit of a long day. We'll explain in the morning."
Phoebe looked doubtfully at him and nodded. She walked back into her bedroom and shut the door.
Monica smiled softly at Chandler and kissed him on the lips. "Have I told you how much I love you right now?" she asked him.
"No, but please do." Chandler answered, smiling.
"You took control of what could have been a nasty fight between Joey and Ross. I'm proud of you."
Chandler took Monica's hand and they stood up. "I know the moment we had earlier this evening got ruined but…" he lifted Monica into his arms and looked her in the eyes.
"But?" Monica encouraged.
"But if there is a night I really need you now then it's this night," Chandler said to her, "I think we both need a little comfort tonight."
"I agree," Monica said, leaning in to kiss him passionately.
Chandler carried her into the bedroom, and they all of a sudden forgot for a while what had gone that evening.
END OF PART TWELVE:less drama and more fun coming soon I think! This isn't over yet!: