Hey! I'm so glad everyone's still interested in this story despite my long
break from updating it. Thanks for the reviews!
Also, I just want to note that when Phoebe and Rachel act all mad in this chapter, their anger is like it is on "Friends" most of the time - funny kind of. It's not like they're in a murderous rage or anything. Lol. Just wanted to clear that up.
Okay, before I start, I'd like to thank some of the artists who have given me inspiration for my fictions so far (though they will probably will never see this because I can't really picture Eric Clapton going onto this site and reading Friends fanfiction . . . oh well lol) : Seal, Eric Clapton, Johnny Hates Jazz, Tonic, Roxette, Eddie Money, Cory Hart, Bob Carlisle, Evanescence, Wham, Heart, The Romantics, The Troggs, The Mamas and the Papas, Darren Hayes, Celine Dion, Crazy Town, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Hootie and the Blowfish, Kenny Loggins, Trapt, Linkin Park . . . lol, as you can see, I get a LOT of inspiration from music.
Anyway, enjoy this chapter!
Someone to Lean On Chapter 4: The Plan
"Mr. Bing, I'm sorry to keep you waiting. We just got the results of the tests back and the pain you've been feeling appears to be only a type of stomach flu. It's abnormal for them to last this long but it's happened before." Doctor Aidalson refolded the file in his hands and looked to Chandler for a reply.
Chandler nodded, feeling relief flood over him. He had definitely been worried about the persistent stomach ache whish had been bothering him for over two weeks now. "So, it's nothing serious?"
"Not at all," the doctor confirmed.
"Okay, great. Thank you so much." Chandler stood from the edge of the bed he had been sitting on, waiting for the results. He prepared to leave. "It will go away soon by itself, right?"
"Yep, it should. You could take some simple pain relievers once in a while, that may help."
"Alright, well, thanks again." Chandler shook the doctor's hand, and after paying what he owed for the visit to the office he headed home. As soon as he entered the cab he began reminiscing in the past weeks.
Monica had been coming over almost every night, her excuse to George being that she had a night shift at a nearby gas station for a little extra money. It was lame, she knew, but the man had been so busy with drinking and getting high off some new drug he'd "discovered" that all he did was humor her. He was all for anything that would lead to buying extra beer.
Monica and Chandler both knew that they were perfect for each other. Even though they regretted having to sneak around all of the time, they enjoyed the definite intimacy they shared. Even though they had had known one another for month or so, Monica fully trusted him. Once, she had lost all hope and faith in men; consequently that was right after she had discovered the 'real' George. She thought she was stuck with him forever. But with Chandler, she had the ability to be free. He didn't order her around - and she had yet to hear him yell.
So far Chandler had managed to keep Monica a secret from all of his friends. For some reason which he couldn't explain he liked it better that way.
When her brother, Ross, had returned from China and surprised Monica, she and Chandler encountered a problem. Ross still believed that she and George were still mentally together, and happy. In the end Chandler and Monica had decided to keep the affair from him, also. As much as she trusted her brother, she knew that with him finding out would come an even bigger chance for her parents to find out, and that was about the last she needed right now.
Chandler desperately wanted her to just get it over with and break up with George. They both knew that would solve all of their problems. However, Monica still didn't want to take the chance of her abusive boyfriend finding out the real reason why she was breaking it off: another man. Besides, that would also mean him moving out of her apartment and she was positive he was too lazy to actually get a job so he could afford his own place.
Chandler's thoughts were interrupted when the taxi cap jerked to a halt in front of Central Perk. Currently, it was three in the afternoon. After telling Monica about his stomach the previous day, she had insisted that he go see a doctor about it immediately. So, he had taken today off work and scheduled an appointment.
He paid and thanked the driver, then entered the coffee house and found Phoebe and Rachel sitting on the couch.
"Hey, you guys are out of work early." Chandler sat in one of the comfortable chairs.
The girls appeared to ignore him, simply glancing in his direction then hastily looking away.
"Um, what's wrong?" he asked.
"Nothing." Rachel looked straight ahead, pretending to be focusing on Gunther who was delivering some coffee, and Phoebe said the word in unison with her.
"Seriously! You can tell me."
"Oh, really?" Phoebe replied sarcastically. "Cause you can't seem to be able to tell us a whole lot."
Chandler, surprised by the tone of her voice, said, "What are you talking about?"
"Oh, you know all too well what she's talking about, Mr. I Can't Tell My Own Friends About My New Great-As-Ever Fling."
'Oh my god . . .' Chandler thought. "How-how did you know?"
"Phoebe and I were headed back from drying laundry and were just about to go around the corner to our hall when we heard you two talking in your doorway. Apparently she had just arrived," Rachel answered.
"What all did you hear?" Chandler's heart was pounding so hard he could feel it in his hands. What if his friends had already told people at their jobs and then those people had told others? What if one of those people knew George in some way or another? He just hoped the chances of that would be slim, seeing how big New York City was.
Phoebe shrugged. "Oh, we heard enough. How could you not tell us, Chandler?"
Chandler sighed. If they already knew this much, he might as well make them feel better by letting them know what was really going on. As soon as they realized the severity of this, then he could trust them to keep it. "First of all, it's more than a fling. I'm in love with her."
"Well, that's even more of a reason to tell us!" Rachel shouted, clearly upset.
"Yeah," Phoebe said, "we would have been happy for you."
"I know you would have, but it's so much more confusing than love, okay? Listen, it's a long story. Do you want me to explain or not?"
Phoebe and Rachel looked at each other, silently agreeing that it wasn't worth it to be mad at him anymore. Finally Rachel turned back to him excitedly. "Hell yeah!"
So, Chandler took the women up to his apartment for privacy and explained the whole situation to them. He was surprised at how good it felt to get it off his chest. When he was finished, they were all silent, contemplating what he had just said.
Eventually Phoebe spoke up. "You're right, it is really complex."
Chandler nodded. "Yeah, and the reason why I haven't told you two or Joey about it is because I'm so paranoid about this whole thing getting back to George."
Rachel nodded also. "I can understand why Monica's scared, but why can't she just break up with the guy? There's nothing wrong with that. And then if he comes after her after that she could just file charges."
"We've gone over that, but she just doesn't want to take the chance of something too bad happening before she would even have the opportunity to file charges. I guess George is that kind of guy." Chandler shrugged.
Deep in thought, Phoebe said, "There's got to be some way out of this for you guys."
"I know," Chandler leaned against the counter. He thought for a minute. The only visible way out of this would be to get Monica out of that apartment, and protect her until George lost interest. It would be risky - almost too risky - but it was possible, and as long as nothing bad happened to Monica, that was all that mattered. He thought on it some more for quite a while, then turned to his friends, "Okay guys, I have an idea, and I'm gonna run it by you. Now tell me if this sounds do-able, alright?"
~*~*~*~*~*~
When Monica Geller got home from work at the restaurant, she said a brief 'hi' to George, who was sitting in the living room with a beer can in hand, then quickly readied herself for her 'night job.'
After she changed from her work clothes, she checked the small refrigerator in the kitchen to make sure that George had a reasonable supply of alcoholic beverages to last him until morning, so he at least couldn't yell at her for that reason.
When Monica finally arrived at Chandler's apartment, she knocked five times softly on the door and waited impatiently for him to answer.
He tugged open the door, greeting her with a smile, and after she entered and the two had said their 'hello's', they began kissing passionately. Usually when she came they just sat and talked about their days, told each other how much they had missed the other person. But once in while when they both had had bad days, no words could even begin to explain how much they longed to be together. This was ones of those days.
Chandler wrapped his arms around her gently, and as soon as he got the chance, he mumbled the only words he really needed to say at the moment. "Live with me."
Monica immediately pulled away and looked at him warily. "What?"
"Live with me. Why not? We'd be together, and it would get you away from you-know-who." He had expected some argument from her, but he just kept wishing and hoping that, sooner or later, she would realize that this was about the only way they had a chance to be together, and her only chance to get away from George.
"But . . . what if he comes after both of us? I don't want you to get hurt."
"And I don't want you to get hurt either, that's part of the reason why I'm asking you this. Besides, if he did find out where you'd gone, I promise I'd do everything in my power to keep us both safe." Chandler had planned out a longer speech earlier, but as soon as Monica had begun to panic, he forgot it. At least he got the point through.
She studied his eyes for a long moment, they finally said, "What would I tell him?"
"To tell the truth I have absolutely no clue," he smiled slightly. "But we'll think of something. I know I'm going with you though."
"No, Chandler, don't. He's only going to get angrier." Monica didn't like to think about exactly how mad George would get.
"He's going to get angry anyway, so unless you really don't want me there, I want to be there to back you up."
She finally smiled, then hugged him tightly. "Thank you Chandler. You're so sweet. You're right, this is really gonna work, isn't it?"
He smiled too, breathing in the fresh strawberry scent of her hair, still lingering from this morning's shower. Of course he had doubts as to whether it really was going to work, and he wasn't positive that he could defend himself, let alone Monica too if George got too mad. Those things were the reasons why he was surprised when his voice sounded sure and steady. "Yeah, it is."
After a moment's silence, Monica pulled away again, this time slowly, and ran a finger along his cheek. "How did your appointment go today?"
"Good," he said softly. "Apparently it's just a stomach flu. I guess they've been known to last this long before."
She nodded and kissed his lips, then pulled herself up into a sitting position on the counter. Grinning, she said, "Man, my night job at the gas station is tough."
He laughed, "Really now?"
"Yeah, but I'm telling you, it's all worth it."
"I'm glad to hear that."
~*~*~*~*~*~
At about seven in the morning the next day, a Saturday, Monica woke and looked over at Chandler's sleeping form. She was content until she remembered what the two had decided to get done today. Only a couple hours from now they would be headed across the street, hoping for the best reaction from George.
As if he sensed that Monica was awake, Chandler opened his eyes and smiled at her. "Hey babe."
She smiled back, leaning over to give him a good morning kiss.
He glanced at the clock. "Do you still want to do this?"
"I'm not really looking forward to this part, but if it means being with you I'm all for it. I just hope he's drugged up on something, because then if we tell him he'd just look at us and obey." Monica didn't feel bad at all for wishing someone was so high that they were willing to do anything you asked, because that someone was George.
Chandler nodded, turning over onto his side and putting an arm around her. "Just know I'm gonna be there if you need somebody for reassurance, or even if you need someone to knock some sense into the guy."
Monica grinned. "As fun as that would be to watch, our relationship is confusing enough without harassment charges on top of it."
He laughed. "Darn. You're right though, I'll keep my distance."
Monica laughed also, than they both were silent, thinking and wondering how the day would turn out. Kissing Monica's cheek, Chandler was oblivious to the fact that inside, his body was fighting a battle of its own.
Circling your head, contemplating everything you ever said
Now I see the truth I got a doubt
A different motive in your eyes and now I'm out
See you later
I see your fantasy, you want to make a reality paved in gold
See inside, inside of our heads, yeah
Well now that's over
I see your motives inside, your decision to hide
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, headstrong, we're headstrong
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, and this is not where you belong
I can't give everything away
I won't give everything away
Conclusions manifest, your first impression's got to be your very best
I see you're full of sh** and that's alright
That's how you play, I guess you get through every night
Now that's over
I see your fantasy, you want to make it a reality paved in gold
See inside, inside of our heads, yeah
Well now that's over
I see your motives inside and your decision to hide
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, headstrong, we're headstrong
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, and this is not where you belong
I can't give anything away
I won't give everything away
I know, I know all about
I know, I know all about
I know, I know all about
I know, I know all about your motives inside, your decision to hide
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, headstrong, we're headstrong
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, and this is not where you belong
I can't give anything away
I won't give everything away
This is not where you belong
Okay, that's it for chapter four! I hope you liked it and want to hear more. Please review and let me know! That song at the end is "Headstrong" by Trapt. I know it's a little violent for the fic, but it's not like it's between Monica and Chandler or anything. I guess it's kind of between Monica/Chandler and George. Besides I just like the song and wanted to put it in here. Lol
Also, I just want to note that when Phoebe and Rachel act all mad in this chapter, their anger is like it is on "Friends" most of the time - funny kind of. It's not like they're in a murderous rage or anything. Lol. Just wanted to clear that up.
Okay, before I start, I'd like to thank some of the artists who have given me inspiration for my fictions so far (though they will probably will never see this because I can't really picture Eric Clapton going onto this site and reading Friends fanfiction . . . oh well lol) : Seal, Eric Clapton, Johnny Hates Jazz, Tonic, Roxette, Eddie Money, Cory Hart, Bob Carlisle, Evanescence, Wham, Heart, The Romantics, The Troggs, The Mamas and the Papas, Darren Hayes, Celine Dion, Crazy Town, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Hootie and the Blowfish, Kenny Loggins, Trapt, Linkin Park . . . lol, as you can see, I get a LOT of inspiration from music.
Anyway, enjoy this chapter!
Someone to Lean On Chapter 4: The Plan
"Mr. Bing, I'm sorry to keep you waiting. We just got the results of the tests back and the pain you've been feeling appears to be only a type of stomach flu. It's abnormal for them to last this long but it's happened before." Doctor Aidalson refolded the file in his hands and looked to Chandler for a reply.
Chandler nodded, feeling relief flood over him. He had definitely been worried about the persistent stomach ache whish had been bothering him for over two weeks now. "So, it's nothing serious?"
"Not at all," the doctor confirmed.
"Okay, great. Thank you so much." Chandler stood from the edge of the bed he had been sitting on, waiting for the results. He prepared to leave. "It will go away soon by itself, right?"
"Yep, it should. You could take some simple pain relievers once in a while, that may help."
"Alright, well, thanks again." Chandler shook the doctor's hand, and after paying what he owed for the visit to the office he headed home. As soon as he entered the cab he began reminiscing in the past weeks.
Monica had been coming over almost every night, her excuse to George being that she had a night shift at a nearby gas station for a little extra money. It was lame, she knew, but the man had been so busy with drinking and getting high off some new drug he'd "discovered" that all he did was humor her. He was all for anything that would lead to buying extra beer.
Monica and Chandler both knew that they were perfect for each other. Even though they regretted having to sneak around all of the time, they enjoyed the definite intimacy they shared. Even though they had had known one another for month or so, Monica fully trusted him. Once, she had lost all hope and faith in men; consequently that was right after she had discovered the 'real' George. She thought she was stuck with him forever. But with Chandler, she had the ability to be free. He didn't order her around - and she had yet to hear him yell.
So far Chandler had managed to keep Monica a secret from all of his friends. For some reason which he couldn't explain he liked it better that way.
When her brother, Ross, had returned from China and surprised Monica, she and Chandler encountered a problem. Ross still believed that she and George were still mentally together, and happy. In the end Chandler and Monica had decided to keep the affair from him, also. As much as she trusted her brother, she knew that with him finding out would come an even bigger chance for her parents to find out, and that was about the last she needed right now.
Chandler desperately wanted her to just get it over with and break up with George. They both knew that would solve all of their problems. However, Monica still didn't want to take the chance of her abusive boyfriend finding out the real reason why she was breaking it off: another man. Besides, that would also mean him moving out of her apartment and she was positive he was too lazy to actually get a job so he could afford his own place.
Chandler's thoughts were interrupted when the taxi cap jerked to a halt in front of Central Perk. Currently, it was three in the afternoon. After telling Monica about his stomach the previous day, she had insisted that he go see a doctor about it immediately. So, he had taken today off work and scheduled an appointment.
He paid and thanked the driver, then entered the coffee house and found Phoebe and Rachel sitting on the couch.
"Hey, you guys are out of work early." Chandler sat in one of the comfortable chairs.
The girls appeared to ignore him, simply glancing in his direction then hastily looking away.
"Um, what's wrong?" he asked.
"Nothing." Rachel looked straight ahead, pretending to be focusing on Gunther who was delivering some coffee, and Phoebe said the word in unison with her.
"Seriously! You can tell me."
"Oh, really?" Phoebe replied sarcastically. "Cause you can't seem to be able to tell us a whole lot."
Chandler, surprised by the tone of her voice, said, "What are you talking about?"
"Oh, you know all too well what she's talking about, Mr. I Can't Tell My Own Friends About My New Great-As-Ever Fling."
'Oh my god . . .' Chandler thought. "How-how did you know?"
"Phoebe and I were headed back from drying laundry and were just about to go around the corner to our hall when we heard you two talking in your doorway. Apparently she had just arrived," Rachel answered.
"What all did you hear?" Chandler's heart was pounding so hard he could feel it in his hands. What if his friends had already told people at their jobs and then those people had told others? What if one of those people knew George in some way or another? He just hoped the chances of that would be slim, seeing how big New York City was.
Phoebe shrugged. "Oh, we heard enough. How could you not tell us, Chandler?"
Chandler sighed. If they already knew this much, he might as well make them feel better by letting them know what was really going on. As soon as they realized the severity of this, then he could trust them to keep it. "First of all, it's more than a fling. I'm in love with her."
"Well, that's even more of a reason to tell us!" Rachel shouted, clearly upset.
"Yeah," Phoebe said, "we would have been happy for you."
"I know you would have, but it's so much more confusing than love, okay? Listen, it's a long story. Do you want me to explain or not?"
Phoebe and Rachel looked at each other, silently agreeing that it wasn't worth it to be mad at him anymore. Finally Rachel turned back to him excitedly. "Hell yeah!"
So, Chandler took the women up to his apartment for privacy and explained the whole situation to them. He was surprised at how good it felt to get it off his chest. When he was finished, they were all silent, contemplating what he had just said.
Eventually Phoebe spoke up. "You're right, it is really complex."
Chandler nodded. "Yeah, and the reason why I haven't told you two or Joey about it is because I'm so paranoid about this whole thing getting back to George."
Rachel nodded also. "I can understand why Monica's scared, but why can't she just break up with the guy? There's nothing wrong with that. And then if he comes after her after that she could just file charges."
"We've gone over that, but she just doesn't want to take the chance of something too bad happening before she would even have the opportunity to file charges. I guess George is that kind of guy." Chandler shrugged.
Deep in thought, Phoebe said, "There's got to be some way out of this for you guys."
"I know," Chandler leaned against the counter. He thought for a minute. The only visible way out of this would be to get Monica out of that apartment, and protect her until George lost interest. It would be risky - almost too risky - but it was possible, and as long as nothing bad happened to Monica, that was all that mattered. He thought on it some more for quite a while, then turned to his friends, "Okay guys, I have an idea, and I'm gonna run it by you. Now tell me if this sounds do-able, alright?"
~*~*~*~*~*~
When Monica Geller got home from work at the restaurant, she said a brief 'hi' to George, who was sitting in the living room with a beer can in hand, then quickly readied herself for her 'night job.'
After she changed from her work clothes, she checked the small refrigerator in the kitchen to make sure that George had a reasonable supply of alcoholic beverages to last him until morning, so he at least couldn't yell at her for that reason.
When Monica finally arrived at Chandler's apartment, she knocked five times softly on the door and waited impatiently for him to answer.
He tugged open the door, greeting her with a smile, and after she entered and the two had said their 'hello's', they began kissing passionately. Usually when she came they just sat and talked about their days, told each other how much they had missed the other person. But once in while when they both had had bad days, no words could even begin to explain how much they longed to be together. This was ones of those days.
Chandler wrapped his arms around her gently, and as soon as he got the chance, he mumbled the only words he really needed to say at the moment. "Live with me."
Monica immediately pulled away and looked at him warily. "What?"
"Live with me. Why not? We'd be together, and it would get you away from you-know-who." He had expected some argument from her, but he just kept wishing and hoping that, sooner or later, she would realize that this was about the only way they had a chance to be together, and her only chance to get away from George.
"But . . . what if he comes after both of us? I don't want you to get hurt."
"And I don't want you to get hurt either, that's part of the reason why I'm asking you this. Besides, if he did find out where you'd gone, I promise I'd do everything in my power to keep us both safe." Chandler had planned out a longer speech earlier, but as soon as Monica had begun to panic, he forgot it. At least he got the point through.
She studied his eyes for a long moment, they finally said, "What would I tell him?"
"To tell the truth I have absolutely no clue," he smiled slightly. "But we'll think of something. I know I'm going with you though."
"No, Chandler, don't. He's only going to get angrier." Monica didn't like to think about exactly how mad George would get.
"He's going to get angry anyway, so unless you really don't want me there, I want to be there to back you up."
She finally smiled, then hugged him tightly. "Thank you Chandler. You're so sweet. You're right, this is really gonna work, isn't it?"
He smiled too, breathing in the fresh strawberry scent of her hair, still lingering from this morning's shower. Of course he had doubts as to whether it really was going to work, and he wasn't positive that he could defend himself, let alone Monica too if George got too mad. Those things were the reasons why he was surprised when his voice sounded sure and steady. "Yeah, it is."
After a moment's silence, Monica pulled away again, this time slowly, and ran a finger along his cheek. "How did your appointment go today?"
"Good," he said softly. "Apparently it's just a stomach flu. I guess they've been known to last this long before."
She nodded and kissed his lips, then pulled herself up into a sitting position on the counter. Grinning, she said, "Man, my night job at the gas station is tough."
He laughed, "Really now?"
"Yeah, but I'm telling you, it's all worth it."
"I'm glad to hear that."
~*~*~*~*~*~
At about seven in the morning the next day, a Saturday, Monica woke and looked over at Chandler's sleeping form. She was content until she remembered what the two had decided to get done today. Only a couple hours from now they would be headed across the street, hoping for the best reaction from George.
As if he sensed that Monica was awake, Chandler opened his eyes and smiled at her. "Hey babe."
She smiled back, leaning over to give him a good morning kiss.
He glanced at the clock. "Do you still want to do this?"
"I'm not really looking forward to this part, but if it means being with you I'm all for it. I just hope he's drugged up on something, because then if we tell him he'd just look at us and obey." Monica didn't feel bad at all for wishing someone was so high that they were willing to do anything you asked, because that someone was George.
Chandler nodded, turning over onto his side and putting an arm around her. "Just know I'm gonna be there if you need somebody for reassurance, or even if you need someone to knock some sense into the guy."
Monica grinned. "As fun as that would be to watch, our relationship is confusing enough without harassment charges on top of it."
He laughed. "Darn. You're right though, I'll keep my distance."
Monica laughed also, than they both were silent, thinking and wondering how the day would turn out. Kissing Monica's cheek, Chandler was oblivious to the fact that inside, his body was fighting a battle of its own.
Circling your head, contemplating everything you ever said
Now I see the truth I got a doubt
A different motive in your eyes and now I'm out
See you later
I see your fantasy, you want to make a reality paved in gold
See inside, inside of our heads, yeah
Well now that's over
I see your motives inside, your decision to hide
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, headstrong, we're headstrong
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, and this is not where you belong
I can't give everything away
I won't give everything away
Conclusions manifest, your first impression's got to be your very best
I see you're full of sh** and that's alright
That's how you play, I guess you get through every night
Now that's over
I see your fantasy, you want to make it a reality paved in gold
See inside, inside of our heads, yeah
Well now that's over
I see your motives inside and your decision to hide
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, headstrong, we're headstrong
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, and this is not where you belong
I can't give anything away
I won't give everything away
I know, I know all about
I know, I know all about
I know, I know all about
I know, I know all about your motives inside, your decision to hide
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, headstrong, we're headstrong
Back off we'll take you on, headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong, and this is not where you belong
I can't give anything away
I won't give everything away
This is not where you belong
Okay, that's it for chapter four! I hope you liked it and want to hear more. Please review and let me know! That song at the end is "Headstrong" by Trapt. I know it's a little violent for the fic, but it's not like it's between Monica and Chandler or anything. I guess it's kind of between Monica/Chandler and George. Besides I just like the song and wanted to put it in here. Lol