When Monica woke up and went into the living room, she was surprised to find Joey lying on her couch. "Joey? What are you--?"
Just then, Joey rolled over in his sleep, shifting the blankets enough to reveal that he was naked.
Monica screamed in horror and startled him awake.
"Huh?" He groaned and rubbed his eyes. "Oh. Monica, you're worse than the rooster in the morning."
"What are you doing over here?" she demanded, still covering her eyes. "And naked on my couch? That's where we all sit! Now I'll have to sterilize it!" Actually, that wasn't so bad. She loved sterilizing stuff.
"Sorry." He sat up and adjusted the blankets in embarrassment. "You and Rachel were already asleep when I came over, and I thought you wouldn't mind."
"I don't, as long as you keep your clothes on. Why couldn't you sleep at your place anyway?"
Joey frowned and clutched Hugsy close to him. "I couldn't take hearing Chandler and Janice all night."
"Oh!" Monica chuckled knowingly. "So they were loud, huh? Serves you right for all the nights you kept Chandler awake."
Joey was not amused. "It's not funny."
She put her hands on her hips. "What, you're still upset about Janice? Come on, Joey, get over it already. You accepted her the last time."
"I was just being polite, for his sake. Just so I could still hang out with him. But I could barely fake it then, and now she's back, and I still can't stand her. She's so--so--!"
"I know, but she makes him happy. Don't you want Chandler to be happy?"
Joey groaned in frustration. "I do, but--but why does it have to be her? Why her?! Of all the girlfriends he ever had, why not somebody I could stand, like Kathy or Joanna or somebody?"
"I don't know. But he just loves her and she loves him. I mean, how surprised can you really be about this? Chandler kept coming back to her over and over, breakup after breakup, as if they were meant to be. I think they really might be soul mates."
Joey gasped in horror at that. "No!!! Why, God, why?"
Monica threw up her hands. "Fine. Sulk if you want to. But I'm going to take a shower now, and when I get back, I expect you to be dressed and gone, so I can sterilize that couch!" She turned and went into the bathroom, locking the door just in case he was tempted to take a peek.
Joey didn't want to leave the apartment, but he didn't know how angry Monica might get if he stayed. Plus, Rachel might wake up soon and have a hissy fit about his nakedness too. So Joey reluctantly got dressed, then gathered up his blankets, pillow, and Hugsy.
As he opened the apartment door, he unfortunately ran into Chandler saying goodbye to Janice.
"Do you have to leave so soon?" Chandler kissed her and clung to her arms.
She nodded. "Yeah, sweetie, I'm sorry. I've gotta pick up Ruthie from my parents. I really can't stay for breakfast."
"But I'll miss you!" he pleaded.
"I know. I'll miss you too, Bing-a-ling. You call me at work, and I'll see if we can meet for lunch or something, okay?"
"Okay." But he still wouldn't quite let her go.
She freed her purse from his grasp and kissed his cheek again. "Bye, sweetie."
"Bye."
"I love you."
"Love you." Chandler sighed wistfully and watched her hurry down the stairs.
Joey hated to see Chandler staring after her with so much adoration in his eyes. If only there were some way to cure him of Janice and get him interested in someone else. He'd only just got over Kathy, after all.
After Janice was out of sight and hearing, Chandler finally turned and noticed Joey standing there in the doorway. "Joe? What are you doing over there?" He noticed the bedding and penguin in his hands. "You stayed the night with them? I thought you were just out with some girl."
Joey shrugged and lied, "I-I was just missing the old apartment, that's all." He brushed past Chandler and returned to their new apartment.
Chandler followed him inside and shut the door. "Really? That old place? But it's so much smaller, and dirty, and messed up by all our games of Hammer Darts and stuff."
On his way to his bedroom, Joey stopped and frowned at him. "But we had great times there. It's like home."
Chandler realized his insensitivity and came closer. "Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, it was really great, Joe. It's just, for me, that place has some bad memories too, like when Eddie lived there. I like this place better 'cause it has more room for all our new stuff, and the birds can roam around more. To me, home is wherever we both are."
"Really?"
"Yeah." Chandler nodded and hugged him affectionately. "Hey, what do you say I make you some pancakes and make this really feel like home?"
"Pancakes? I thought you didn't know how to make them?"
"Janice taught me how to make them last time. Don't you remember?" Then he thought about it. "Oh wait, you might have been preoccupied with Monica's jam at the time."
Joey frowned. "Oh. Right." He turned and put his bedding back into his (formerly Monica's) room.
Chandler just went to the kitchen and started mixing some pancake batter, humming happily all the while. He wished that he could be making this breakfast for Janice, but maybe this weekend she'd have time to stay longer.
***
After he showered and dressed that morning, Joey didn't want any of the pancakes that Chandler made for breakfast.
"How can you not be hungry?" he asked in disbelief. "You're always hungry."
"I just--I just would rather have some cereal."
Chandler was suspicious. "Is it because I made the pancakes? Come on, I'm not a bad cook! At least try it. I eat all the pasta that you make."
To not insult Chandler, Joey took a bite of one pancake.
Chandler pouted. "That's a teeny tiny bite! I can't be that bad. I'm not Rachel!"
"Okay, okay." Joey finally took the stack of pancakes that Chandler offered him, and he poured a lot of syrup onto it. Yeah, it was silly not to eat it. It wasn't like Janice had made the pancakes. Chandler did.
Smiling, Chandler was very pleased and proud. "See! Isn't that good?"
Joey nodded, with his mouth full.
"Janice says they're delicious, even better than hers. She said that if I wanted to learn how to cook other stuff, she could teach me."
Joey swallowed, forcing himself not to say anything bad about Janice. He drank some juice and shrugged as casually as he could. "You don't need her to show you. I could teach you to make some stuff."
Chandler said, "Well sure. Or Monica the chef could teach me, if she wasn't so anal and bossy about it." He giggled excitedly, "No, but Janice said it would be some fun stuff. Sexy stuff. Kind of like fooling around in the kitchen."
Joey put down his fork and was no longer hungry.
"What's the matter?"
"I'm full."
"Full?" Was there any such thing as Joey Tribbiani being full?
Joey lied again. "Uh, I gotta get to an audition soon."
Chandler stared at him. "You do? But you didn't rehearse anything with me lately."
Joey coughed and stood up. "Well you were busy with Janice."
"Oh, I didn't know. You wanna rehearse with me now?"
"No, I-I went over the lines with the gang instead. Anyway, I gotta go now. Thanks for the pancakes." He headed toward the door.
"Wait!" Chandler came over and wiped some syrup off the side of Joey's mouth.
"Um, thanks."
Chandler wished him good luck, and then Joey left. Noticing some syrup sticking to his fingers instead of the napkin, Chandler licked his fingertips and started to clean up.
Going down the stairs, Joey realized that he had no idea where to go, not having any money. He decided he would walk to Central Park and hang out there until Chandler left for work. Then he could go home and sulk some more about Janice.
Just then, Joey rolled over in his sleep, shifting the blankets enough to reveal that he was naked.
Monica screamed in horror and startled him awake.
"Huh?" He groaned and rubbed his eyes. "Oh. Monica, you're worse than the rooster in the morning."
"What are you doing over here?" she demanded, still covering her eyes. "And naked on my couch? That's where we all sit! Now I'll have to sterilize it!" Actually, that wasn't so bad. She loved sterilizing stuff.
"Sorry." He sat up and adjusted the blankets in embarrassment. "You and Rachel were already asleep when I came over, and I thought you wouldn't mind."
"I don't, as long as you keep your clothes on. Why couldn't you sleep at your place anyway?"
Joey frowned and clutched Hugsy close to him. "I couldn't take hearing Chandler and Janice all night."
"Oh!" Monica chuckled knowingly. "So they were loud, huh? Serves you right for all the nights you kept Chandler awake."
Joey was not amused. "It's not funny."
She put her hands on her hips. "What, you're still upset about Janice? Come on, Joey, get over it already. You accepted her the last time."
"I was just being polite, for his sake. Just so I could still hang out with him. But I could barely fake it then, and now she's back, and I still can't stand her. She's so--so--!"
"I know, but she makes him happy. Don't you want Chandler to be happy?"
Joey groaned in frustration. "I do, but--but why does it have to be her? Why her?! Of all the girlfriends he ever had, why not somebody I could stand, like Kathy or Joanna or somebody?"
"I don't know. But he just loves her and she loves him. I mean, how surprised can you really be about this? Chandler kept coming back to her over and over, breakup after breakup, as if they were meant to be. I think they really might be soul mates."
Joey gasped in horror at that. "No!!! Why, God, why?"
Monica threw up her hands. "Fine. Sulk if you want to. But I'm going to take a shower now, and when I get back, I expect you to be dressed and gone, so I can sterilize that couch!" She turned and went into the bathroom, locking the door just in case he was tempted to take a peek.
Joey didn't want to leave the apartment, but he didn't know how angry Monica might get if he stayed. Plus, Rachel might wake up soon and have a hissy fit about his nakedness too. So Joey reluctantly got dressed, then gathered up his blankets, pillow, and Hugsy.
As he opened the apartment door, he unfortunately ran into Chandler saying goodbye to Janice.
"Do you have to leave so soon?" Chandler kissed her and clung to her arms.
She nodded. "Yeah, sweetie, I'm sorry. I've gotta pick up Ruthie from my parents. I really can't stay for breakfast."
"But I'll miss you!" he pleaded.
"I know. I'll miss you too, Bing-a-ling. You call me at work, and I'll see if we can meet for lunch or something, okay?"
"Okay." But he still wouldn't quite let her go.
She freed her purse from his grasp and kissed his cheek again. "Bye, sweetie."
"Bye."
"I love you."
"Love you." Chandler sighed wistfully and watched her hurry down the stairs.
Joey hated to see Chandler staring after her with so much adoration in his eyes. If only there were some way to cure him of Janice and get him interested in someone else. He'd only just got over Kathy, after all.
After Janice was out of sight and hearing, Chandler finally turned and noticed Joey standing there in the doorway. "Joe? What are you doing over there?" He noticed the bedding and penguin in his hands. "You stayed the night with them? I thought you were just out with some girl."
Joey shrugged and lied, "I-I was just missing the old apartment, that's all." He brushed past Chandler and returned to their new apartment.
Chandler followed him inside and shut the door. "Really? That old place? But it's so much smaller, and dirty, and messed up by all our games of Hammer Darts and stuff."
On his way to his bedroom, Joey stopped and frowned at him. "But we had great times there. It's like home."
Chandler realized his insensitivity and came closer. "Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, it was really great, Joe. It's just, for me, that place has some bad memories too, like when Eddie lived there. I like this place better 'cause it has more room for all our new stuff, and the birds can roam around more. To me, home is wherever we both are."
"Really?"
"Yeah." Chandler nodded and hugged him affectionately. "Hey, what do you say I make you some pancakes and make this really feel like home?"
"Pancakes? I thought you didn't know how to make them?"
"Janice taught me how to make them last time. Don't you remember?" Then he thought about it. "Oh wait, you might have been preoccupied with Monica's jam at the time."
Joey frowned. "Oh. Right." He turned and put his bedding back into his (formerly Monica's) room.
Chandler just went to the kitchen and started mixing some pancake batter, humming happily all the while. He wished that he could be making this breakfast for Janice, but maybe this weekend she'd have time to stay longer.
***
After he showered and dressed that morning, Joey didn't want any of the pancakes that Chandler made for breakfast.
"How can you not be hungry?" he asked in disbelief. "You're always hungry."
"I just--I just would rather have some cereal."
Chandler was suspicious. "Is it because I made the pancakes? Come on, I'm not a bad cook! At least try it. I eat all the pasta that you make."
To not insult Chandler, Joey took a bite of one pancake.
Chandler pouted. "That's a teeny tiny bite! I can't be that bad. I'm not Rachel!"
"Okay, okay." Joey finally took the stack of pancakes that Chandler offered him, and he poured a lot of syrup onto it. Yeah, it was silly not to eat it. It wasn't like Janice had made the pancakes. Chandler did.
Smiling, Chandler was very pleased and proud. "See! Isn't that good?"
Joey nodded, with his mouth full.
"Janice says they're delicious, even better than hers. She said that if I wanted to learn how to cook other stuff, she could teach me."
Joey swallowed, forcing himself not to say anything bad about Janice. He drank some juice and shrugged as casually as he could. "You don't need her to show you. I could teach you to make some stuff."
Chandler said, "Well sure. Or Monica the chef could teach me, if she wasn't so anal and bossy about it." He giggled excitedly, "No, but Janice said it would be some fun stuff. Sexy stuff. Kind of like fooling around in the kitchen."
Joey put down his fork and was no longer hungry.
"What's the matter?"
"I'm full."
"Full?" Was there any such thing as Joey Tribbiani being full?
Joey lied again. "Uh, I gotta get to an audition soon."
Chandler stared at him. "You do? But you didn't rehearse anything with me lately."
Joey coughed and stood up. "Well you were busy with Janice."
"Oh, I didn't know. You wanna rehearse with me now?"
"No, I-I went over the lines with the gang instead. Anyway, I gotta go now. Thanks for the pancakes." He headed toward the door.
"Wait!" Chandler came over and wiped some syrup off the side of Joey's mouth.
"Um, thanks."
Chandler wished him good luck, and then Joey left. Noticing some syrup sticking to his fingers instead of the napkin, Chandler licked his fingertips and started to clean up.
Going down the stairs, Joey realized that he had no idea where to go, not having any money. He decided he would walk to Central Park and hang out there until Chandler left for work. Then he could go home and sulk some more about Janice.