The One With The Indecent Proposal

By: Jana~

Chapter Thirteen

*************

--"I think I know of a way to get out of this," Monica told them, embarrassed. "But I don't come off looking too good."

"What do you mean?" Chandler asked.

"Ok," she began as three sets of eyes stared back at her intently. "I had just seen the dungeon, and I was a little bit freaked out, so, when I got on the phone with my friend, Rachel-"

Joey suddenly gasped, pointing as he exclaimed, "You told her to come here looking for you if you didn't show up in twenty-four hours!"

Monica's eyes narrowed on the man she barely knew, and asked, "How exactly did you know that?"

With a remorseful shrug, he admitted, "I was eavesdropping."

"Joseph Francis Tribbiani!" Phoebe scolded him. "That isn't nice!"

"I wasn't doing it on purpose! I was bringing her back a glass of water, and I overheard her talking. I don't know why I just stood there, listening, but I did. She was talking about being freaked out, and about Chandler," he added in his defense. "I was just curious."

"I don't even care," Monica said, dismissing the intrusion on her privacy. "We have bigger problems. I gave her the address, and the description of the dungeon, but I didn't tell her it was located down a secret passageway." With a heavy sigh, she added, "It's going to take them some time to realize where we are."

"Realistically," she continued, "We could be looking at as much as 2 to 3 days, being locked in here with no food, no water, and no way to go to the bathroom."

Joey plopped down on the floor, defeated, and Phoebe joined him, reacting to the cold floor now that she was in nothing more than a robe.

"Here," Joey said, then flattened his legs and touched her arm. "Sit on my lap."

"Are you sure?" she asked, and he nodded in response. "You're a good man, Joey."

Monica watched as she climbed into the man's lap, then leaned back against him as he leaned back against the cage's stone wall. She realized, as she watched the interaction, that Phoebe wasn't in love with Chandler. If she was, she loved Joey, as well. She just obviously had a deep bond with the two men, and them with her.

Chandler touched her shoulder, and she looked over at him. "I am so sorry," he whispered, and she nodded.

"I know," she whispered back. "I don't blame this on you, or your friends." She shifted her weight from one leg to the other several times, but the action provided little relief. Sure, she stood a lot longer when she was working as a chef, but she hadn't done that in a while. Her feet weren't used to standing for such a long period of time.

"Here," he said softly, gesturing to the ground. "Sit on my lap, so you don't freeze from the cold ground."

"I- I don't know-"

He smiled, knowing what her nervous stammering fell short of saying. "I'll be a perfect gentleman," he assured her. "Scouts honor."

"Were you ever even a scout?" she asked, and he shook his head.

"Ok," he revamped his promise. "How about, lottery winner's honor?"

She couldn't help but grin, though it left her face quickly, the situation not understanding of the expression. "If you're sure you don't mind," she said softly, watching as, a moment later, he was down on the ground, his legs flattened so she could sit atop them.

"I wouldn't have offered if I did," he told her, and patted his legs in gesture for her to join him.

As if easing into a hot bath, she slowly lowered herself onto his lap, uncomfortable about how comfortable she felt in the position.

At least several minutes ticked by before Phoebe muttered, "With all that's been going on, and with the adrenalin rush and all, I forgot how tired I was."

Joey mumbled something in agreement, his eyes heavy.

"Do you think she's gone for good?" Monica asked, sounding sleepy.

"Probably," Chandler answered, a yawn following. He could see Monica nodding, struggling to stay upright as she fought sleep. "Lay back," he whispered, his hand on her shoulder, gently bringing her to him. "Try to get some sleep," he instructed; she didn't resist.

***

--"She was insistent, Ross," Rachel told him, sounding annoyed. "She said that everything was fine. She just gave me the address, just in case."

"People don't have dungeons if they don't have a use for them!" Ross exclaimed. "My little sister could be locked in a cage, right now!"

"I really think you're overreacting," she muttered. "But, if you must do this, here's the address." She stopped short of handing the paper to him, gaining his full attention. "Just don't make an ass of yourself, ok?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked sharply.

"It means, that you have a tendency to freak first and think later. If you get there, and she says that all is fine, then, leave. Ok? Don't stick around and judge and pester."

He scoffed. "I just want to be sure she's ok. If she tells me to leave, of course I will."

"You say that like it's a given," she said with a roll of her eyes, grabbing her coat off the hook. "I better come with."

"Why?" he asked, irritated by her assumptions of how he would react.

"To keep you in line," she returned firmly. "Now, let's go!" she ordered, pointing at the door. "The sooner we get there, the sooner we can get back and get some sleep."

*

--"Pete? Hi, it's Ross," he said into the cell phone, unable to immediately explain the reason for calling due to Pete's reaction to the hour of the call. "Yes," Ross returned with a roll of his eyes, "I'm aware of the time. Look, the guy Monica went home with, what do you know about him?"

"Not much," Pete muttered around a yawn. "His name is Chandler Bing, and he's a lottery winner. Don't know much more than that."

"It's important, Pete," Ross insisted, trying to convey the seriousness. "I need to know everything, regardless to how insignificant you think it is."

"Well," Pete said as he sat upright and turned his bedside light on. "He seemed to be smitten with Monica, at the party, but I didn't really realize it till after she broke it off with me. He offered me a million dollars, if I would consent to her spending twenty-four hours with him."

"Good, Lord!" Ross exclaimed, and Rachel glanced at him several times as she kept one eye on the road.

"What?" she asked. "What's he saying?"

"The guy offered to give Pete one million dollars, if he could spend twenty-four hours with Monica!"

"Oh my God! That's just, creepy!"

"Pete," Ross urged, "You have connections, right? I need this Chandler guy's phone number. And as many police officers as possible at his house, ASAP."

"Why? What's going on?" Pete asked, sitting upright and grabbing his dayplanner.

"Rachel got a call earlier, from Monica," Ross began to explain. "Monica called to give Rachel the address of where she was. Said she was freaked out, cause the guy has some sort of dungeon in his house! We're worried that this guy is out to harm her," he added, trying to be calm when he saw Rachel tense and drive faster.

"Ok, his number is…" As Pete rattled off the number, Ross repeated it so that Rachel could help remember it. "I'll call you back as soon as I get the police called."

Ross rattled off his own cell number, then thanked him profusely before hanging up and dialing the number for Chandler's.

"No answer," he said after allowing the phone to ring a few dozen times. "I have a very bad feeling about this."

TO BE CONTINUED…

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"How are things going with 'crazy'? Has she cooked your rabbit yet?"

MTLBYAKY