CHAPTER TEN: OPPORTUNITIES

The apartment seemed empty when Phoebe walked in the door, but she saw Mike's keys on the table along with the mail. She put her keys and purse down and grabbed the mail before going to the bedroom.

Mike was on the phone and he smiled oddly at her when she walked in and waved hello. She went to her closet to find her suitcase and realized she had yet to unpack from her trip to L.A. Disgusted, she went on to the bathroom to draw a bath and, sitting on the edge of the tub, started sorting through the mail. Among the bills and junk mail, Phoebe found the notification from City Hall. Well, there it was. She was officially single again. She heard Mike get off the phone and come toward the bathroom.

"Hey you" she said with a smile, which Mike returned a little uncomfortably.

"Hey" he seemed somewhat different, but she couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was.

"So, this came in the mail today" she said handing him the letter

"Yeah, I saw that when I came in. How's Monica? Is she still upset?"

"Well… a little, I guess. She's got her plate full right now and this just seemed like the last straw."

"Poor Monica"

Phoebe turned the water off and distractedly put her hand in the tub. She was hedging, she knew it, but she didn't know how to bring up the subject of leaving their apartment for a few weeks.

"I have a job offer" Mike blurted out.

Phoebe's methodic wading of the warm water halted at the news, and she stared at Mike.

"I didn't know you were looking for work"

"Well, I wasn't, but Sam made me an offer I'm finding hard to refuse… The problem is that the job is in Boston"

Phoebe continued to stare and finally managed to ask.

"Who is Sam?"

"Samantha Miller. Remember I told you I'd gone with my parents to Cape Cod with some friends? She's opening a five-star restaurant and needs a piano player and she asked for my help."

"Boston?"

"Yeah"

"What did you tell her?" She didn't know how to react to the news.

"I haven't decided anything yet. I want to go over there, first for 2, 3 weeks at the most to check it out before I make up my mind."

Phoebe didn't know what to say. Mike squatted in front of her and grabbed her hands, one of which was still damp from playing in the water.

"I was gonna talk to you about this, but we've had a hectic couple of days. I really wanna do this. The money is good; the hours are great. I'd have more free time. You'd love Boston. Just think about it these few weeks. Ok? We'll talk when I get back."

"Wait a minute, wait a minute. What?! I don't know Mike… My whole life is here…When are you leaving?"

"Tonight on the last flight… do you wanna come with me?"

"No!… I mean, I have to get back to work. It's better if I stay. Monica also wanted me to go stay with her for a few days, but I told her I have to work… you go ahead. This is a great chance for you."

"Come visit me one of these weekends and we'll get married in Boston"

"I don't know about this, Mike. Why don't we wait until you come back?"

"Phoebe…" Mike pleaded with her.

"Where are staying in Boston?" She was suddenly angry that he just made this decision on his own, while she'd been having the worst time trying to break it to him that she didn't want to be remarried.

"At Tom's. He's Samantha's brother. He was my best friend all through elementary school, and then we moved to New York, and we saw each other only occasionally"

She listened to Mike's without really hearing. All of that information seemed irrelevant, as her mind was reeling with the implications of this chance.

"I'll let you know when I can get away," she said uneasily, getting up, forcing Mike to get up too.

"Ok" He said, his eyes searching for hers. "I'm gonna miss you". Phoebe's heart warmed and she gave him a genuine smile.

"Me too" She said truthfully. Mike was really fun and for a minute she remembered what made her fall in love with him in the first place. But the warmth Mike made her feel paled in comparison with the feelings the mere memory of her time with Joey evoked. This was a chance for a brand new start for Mike. She hoped he liked it in Boston so that he'd have a brand new life to go back to when she explained that there would be no remarriage. That she loved him dearly, but that she was in love with Joey.

"Well, are you packed? Do you need help?" she asked, relief made the awkwardness of the last few days go away.

Mike was relieved too. He was afraid she'd be set against the idea of moving, and he had really wanted the chance to work with Sam and see Tom again. He'd had a good time reminiscing last weekend. He wanted to recapture the feeling of contentedness he'd had when he was a child. Maybe that's what made him long to work with Sam and see Tom again. Well, he'd find out.

"I don't wanna take that much. I'm gonna be wearing a tux for work anyway. Besides, I needed to talk to you first…"

Mike's thoughtfulness warmed Phoebe. He was such a good man. He was kind, funny, loving, and silly at times. He just wasn't Joey.

With Phoebe's help, Mike was packed and on his way in a short time. He seemed so excited and she was happy for him. Their goodbye had been friendly, almost fraternal. She hoped business worked out with this Samantha person so that their breakup wouldn't be so hard on him. She'd sent a quick message to Monica's cell saying she wouldn't be going to spend time with them after all. She'd call later to explain.

When Mike had finally gone, Phoebe called Monica.

"Hello?"

"How much do you hate me right now, Mon?"

Monica chuckled and said, "I don't hate you, Pheebs. You'd have come here for nothing, anyway. Chandler came home early because his company sent him to London for 2 weeks."

"Oh no!"

"Yeah, I said the same thing, but just then I got your message that you weren't coming, so I just decided to grin and bear it… You owe me, though. Chandler and I are getting remarried when he comes back and he's taking me to Niagara Falls and guess who's babysitting?"

"I'll be happy to, Mon. It sucks, though, that he left. I may not be moving in with you guys, but I'd have babysat tomorrow."

"I figured you and Mike got to talk and you guys worked things out"

"There is really nothing to work out. We weren't fighting. We just seem to be moving in different directions now. He's gone to Boston for 2 weeks"

"What? Why?"

"A job opportunity with an old friend. You should've seen him, Mon. He was so excited. I'm actually happy for him."

"You didn't talk to him. Did you?"

"Not with his exciting news!"

"I bet your news would've made HIS news a little bit less exciting!" Monica quipped sarcastically

"I know I'm a coward, but I couldn't bring myself to do it… Hey Mon, you didn't… umm, tell Chandler about me and Joey. Did you?"

"Phoebe, between the twins chicken pox and Chandler's trip, it would've been over a month before Chandler and I could be together again… so, believe me, you and Joey were the furthest thing from our minds. I had told him you and Mike had had a fight and you were staying with us for a couple of days, then later I just said you weren't coming."

"Good. Well, thank you very much, Monica. For everything. Try to come to the city soon. Let's do something together"

"Sounds good. I'm glad things worked themselves out"

As soon as she hung up with Monica, she dialed Joey's number in L.A., but got a message saying the number was no longer in service, which made Phoebe smile. He was wrapping things up fast out there. She tried his cell phone but got no answer. Oh well. She guessed she'd talked to him tomorrow, but there was an uneasiness she couldn't shake, but just this one time Phoebe decided to ignore her gut feeling. After all, they would be together very soon.