Lazy Summer Days

A/N: Ok, so this idea came from nowhere, but I decided I might try it out and see what I come up with… please let me know if you like it! It takes place 15 years from season 10. The words in italics are flashbacks. Erica and Jack don't exist, and Monica got pregnant right after the show ended. Also, I know Emma is a lot older than I say she is, but I still want her in this fic so I have to make her younger!

Summary: AU/CM. Lazy summer days meant eating peanut butter sandwiches and swimming in our pool with our friends… but lately? It's had a more fitting meaning. Ever since Dad left, Mom mopes around, crying. We kids try and stay out of her hair… and hope to God Dad comes back soon.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday Tabby and Allieee, happy birthday to you!" The chorus of our friends and family stopped abruptly, which turned into laughter. My twin sister and I grinned at each other, before blowing out our 13 candles. I saw Mom shed a tear, and Dad hold her close. Our family sat around us, our hair and perfumes mixing in the summer breeze. The crystal clear in-ground pool beckoned us, and we decided to save our gift opening, and cake eating for later. In an instant, Tabby and I held hands, and without changing out of our clothes, jumped into the pool. The gang followed, and soon the only ones not in the pool, was our dog Jake and our cat Bella.

I guess before I tell you about the worst day in mine and Tabitha's lives, I should introduce my family: my big, loud, annoying, and perfect family. About 15 years ago, my mom, Monica, got pregnant with my older brother Daniel. I hate to think about how her and my father, Chandler, did it, so I should move on. They moved to a big house in the suburbs, followed by my "uncle" Joey. Joey is an actor, and all my friends are always trying to get me to introduce them to him, but he isn't really a big movie star to me… Joey and I have always been close. We have very similar personalities, and my mother made him my godfather and my sister's as well. Joey and Phoebe (my godmother) got together right after Danny was born, and have been together since. Joey says her massages are what made him realize his feelings for her, but Phoebe always jokes around saying it was when she flashed him for the first time. They have a son together, named Matthew, who is the craziest, andmost opinionated kid I have ever met.They live just up the street, so they are over all the time.

So, I guess since I have known them my whole lives, they are still considered family. My family by blood though, is my Uncle Ross and Aunt Rachel. They may have their ups and downs in their relationship, but you can really tell they are crazy for one another. Ross had a son named Ben a really long time ago, but Ben is away at college so we don't see him often. He is an artist, and is studying to be an art teacher. When Ross and Rachel got together for a one-night-stand, she got pregnant with my brainy cousin Emma. Although they split right after that, they got back together again when Danny was almost one, and have the coolest daughter, Vanessa. Vanessa is exactly like her mother, and I'm not joking. She is a fashion freak and always gives Tabby and I makeovers. Emma is 16, almost 17 so she is almost always with her friends and boyfriend. I think out of all my cousins, and even my brothers and sister, I clicked with Vanessa the most. I don't know what it is, but we share a really special bond, and I love her for it. Don't get me wrong, I love all my cousins and siblings the same, but Vanessa gets me, just like how I get my sister.

Ah… my sister… How do I explain her? She's smart, she's quirky, she's talented, and she inherited her cooking abilities from my mother. She's quiet, she's understanding, and I don't think she has ever told a lie her entire life. Hardly one minute older than me, Tabitha Grace Bing was meant to be my sister. I am her complete polar opposite. I'm quirky and talented too, but in totally different ways. I love to write, and excel in English, while Tabby loves to cook, and excels in math. We may be identical on the outside, but on the inside, we couldn't possibly be more different. We have wavy, dark brown hair, while our brothers have our father's plain brown hair. The one thing we all share, though, is our mother's crystal blue eyes. Tabitha and I are both skinny, and tall, and are both girly girls. Okay, so maybe we have one thing in common…

And last, but certainly not least, there's Landon. Landon was the only one who wasn't born healthy. I guess that's kind of an understatement, because I almost died when I was born, due to the cord wrapped around my neck. Landon was born about 2 months early, and weighed 4 lbs, 14 oz. The doctors said he wouldn't make it, but my little tough guy pulled through. The only permanent damage this caused was severe asthma, triggered by anything, and a hole in his heart, fixed by a surgery two years ago. He has been tested for Autism, speech problems, everything, but nothing can explain why he hardly talks. Landon was a quiet baby, a quiet toddler and now a quiet child. He's 9, and has no friends. I feel horrible for him, but Danny always makes sure Landon has toys to play with and a book to read when we go out places. Those two are close like that. I, Allison Taylor Bing, have never met a better brother than Danny. He played Barbie's with me all the time when we were younger, because Tabby was always in the kitchen with our mom. People teased him, but he didn't care. I hate cooking, so I haven't spent as much time with my mom as I should. She isn't always cooking, but it's her job, and we simply don't have anything in common.

My dad… my best friend… I definitely inherited his personality. He has been my confidant since I was a little girl, and I can tell him anything. When I am having boy troubles, he is the first to hear about it. My mom and my dad love each other, and it's completely obvious. They hold hands everywhere we go, and are always kissing. Up until mine and Tabby's 13th birthday, I believed this. I truly, and completely believed this. All of us did. No one believed us when Tabby and I claimed we had witnessed the fight that changed all our lives forever. No one. Rachel, Ross, Vanessa and Emma had left just 10 minutes before this, and so did Phoebe, Matt and Joey. Landon was upstairs reading, and Danny was at a friend's house. We were alone. I can't imagine what life would be like if we had not witnessed this. It made something inside the both of us snap, and all I want, more than anything, is to just forget any of it ever happened. But, as most wishes tend to do, it backfired. We couldn't stop thinking about it, instead of forgetting it entirely. The only thing I can't remember about that evening, is why we even stayed to listen in the first place.

"Hey Allie…do you hear that?" Tabby asked me. We were cleaning up from our party in our back yard, and listening to our ipods that we had just received. She doesn't like loud music, so she always has hers on low volume, while I have mine on high. I took them out of my ears, and I heard it too. She gave me a curious look, before heading off in the direction it was coming from. I followed, and I was soon able to tell it was the voices of our parents. We snuck around the side of our house and stood as out of sight as we could be.

"Monica, you aren't being reasonable!" I heard dad shout.

"Oh, I'm the one being unreasonable? You are the one who had an affair and won't own up to it!" Mom shouted back. I gave Tabitha a scared look, and we both inched up a tiny bit, so we could see them.

"Monica, I swear I didn't cheat on you! You know I love you and the kids more than anything!"

"Oh yeah? Well, who was the message on the answering machine for, then? Hmm? On your own daughters' birthday!"

"Monica, this is just a misunderstanding!"

"No, Chandler, I don't think it is!"

"She came onto me at work, but I turned her down. She must have got mad and decided to wreck our marriage by calling and leaving that message! Why else would she leave it on our home phone line? If we were having an affair behind your back, she'd call my cell!"

"Chandler, stop lying to me! Just…go inside and take the girls out or something. They've been wanting to spend time with you, since you 'work' so much…"

"Monica! I am working!"

"Look, I…is that alcohol I smell? Chandler, have you been drinking? On your daughters' birthday, of all days?"

"Hey, I am allowed to have a beer or two whenever I want. It's a free country last time I checked."

"God, why are you so immature? Why can't you own up to your faults and take responsibility for your actions?"

"Oh, okay… so this is still about your accusation that I slept with another woman…so, you're accusing me of being drunk now because I won't tell you that you're right…I see how it is, Mon…"

"So, you have cheated on me?" Mom said, tears brimming her eyes. Mine reflected hers, and Tabby and I gripped each others hands for support, dreading our father's answer.

"No, I haven't…but now I wish I would have…" Then she did it. She slapped him; cold, and hard in the face. He glared at her, hate seeping from both of them. He turned around, threw a chair, and walked off. We gasped and started crying, holding each other as tight as we could. Not really believing my ears or my eyes, I looked back. I saw mom kick the table and knock it over, before sinking to the muddy ground and start crying. I have never seen my mom really cry before, and watching her then made my heart ache. I wanted to go to her, but Tabby held me back. Our father was out of our lives forever, and if we would have just stepped forward before she slapped him, they would have quit fighting, and none of this would have happened. That's when I looked at my wrist watch and realized: our parents split up the minute we turned 13.