Autumn

October 31st

Halloween provided a much needed distraction for Monica from her confrontation at work the night before with Chef James. It started out like most Sunday mornings after she would work a Saturday late shift, Chandler let her sleep in. He took care not to disturb her as he woke and would get out of bed as softly as he could before he made his way into the nursery. He fed and changed the twins, getting them downstairs quickly to play for a bit before their first nap. He would also make breakfast and that morning, he made pancakes and bacon. Monica appreciated waking up to a meal already prepared for her, even though she would have made the pancakes from scratch instead of from a box, and he tends to let the bacon get just a little too crispy, burning some of it in the process.

Before she came downstairs to eat, she made the decision to wait to tell Chandler about what had happened at work last night. She wanted them to focus on today's festivities. She also was not keen on the idea that if she did say something this morning, her problems at work would then become the topic of conversation all day, with everyone offering their own opinion on what she should do. She was not ready for that. Unfortunately, she knew once he saw her that he could immediately tell something was bothering her. She was too quiet and withdrawn, especially for a day where she planned to host their friends and family. She was able to play it off as just being tired, blaming a very busy night at the restaurant and an understaffed crew.

After breakfast, instead of dwelling on the unpleasant memories from the night before, she threw herself into her hosting duties. First, she prepared some food for everyone to eat throughout the day. She had decided to make several trays of hot and cold hors d'oeuvres, some small finger sandwiches, and two types of salad. Nothing too heavy or overly complicated, she just wanted there to be enough to eat to keep everyone satiated throughout the day. She also made sure there was enough wine and beer if anyone wanted to indulge, and made some ice tea and lemonade for the kids.

She then went upstairs and pulled out the costumes she had put together for Jack and Erica. Monica had visited several Halloween stores looking for something that they could wear and didn't really fall in love with anything she saw. She either worried the outfits would be too uncomfortable for the twins to wear all day or too cliché, ending with the two of them in something that looked like every other baby's first Halloween costume. Eventually though, she had searched long enough, and was ready to give up and just dress them as two little pumpkins. Before she went back to the costume store, she took some time to walk around the mall and wandered into one of the half-dozen children's clothing stores there, as she normally would almost every time she went shopping. She couldn't help herself. She could spend hours looking at all the tiny, adorable baby outfits. Marveling at the little shoes, dresses and jackets, finding countless new items she wanted to get for the twins. It took a lot of self-control not to buy the entire store whenever she was there.

As she was looking through the sleepwear section, a silver and grey onesie with matching cap caught her eye, and her Wizard of Oz idea was born. She realized the entire family could dress up together. Monica squealed loudly and clasped her hands together so excitedly that she felt the need to apologize to anyone who was close to her. She immediately decided that Jack would be the Tin Man. She picked up the silver and grey onesie, noting that the cap was just pointy enough to help him look the part. She knew she had enough crafting ability to cut out a heart from some red fabric and sew it onto the chest. She found an orange top with a hood and some blue pants to put on Erica. She was sure she could come up with something that would look like straw sticking out to make her the perfect little Scarecrow. She walked back to the Halloween store to get Chandler a lion costume, that looked rather ridiculous with its furry mane around the head and tail sticking out from the rear, but she has made him wear worse costumes in the past. Finally, it was her turn to find a costume. She had to roll her eyes at all the styles of Dorothy outfits they had available. She thought Joey must have designed everything in the store, because it looked like a parade of slutty costumes that only he could have dreamt up. Either the skirt was too high or the top was too low cut. It was almost impossible to find something appropriate. She finally found one that she would at least be comfortable wearing in front of her parents and the neighborhood kids as they came knocking, in search of candy.

She was excited about her plan and could not wait to go home and get Chandler on board, which meant, tell him all about it after they have sex, when he was at his most agreeable. It was how she got him to finally settle on making the spare room in the apartment a guest room. After all the trouble it caused them initially, one night of passion and he no longer cared what they did to Rachel's old room, as long as they also did it in that room.

Halloween itself had gone better than she could have expected. Not everyone wore a costume like she had asked. Rachel and her mother weren't dressed up, but she assumed that would happen. They were never really into Halloween like she was. Ben was a full-fledged Harry Potter fan, and dressed up in fake glasses and a magicians robe as he ran around the house with his replica wand, casting spells on everyone. Ross and Rachel had dressed Emma as Hermione to match him, but she stripped most of the costume off almost as soon as they arrived. Ross, dressed in a doctor's lab coat with dinosaur stickers on it had to explain his costume a dozen time,

"I'm a doctor and a paleontologist! Dr. Dinosaur! Get it?"

No one got it.

Her father dressed as Hugh Hefner, which she scolded him for, saying it was wildly inappropriate, but her mother told her he just wanted an excuse to be able to wear his robe all day. Monica was certain her parents snuck off at some point and had sex somewhere in her house, but she immediately expunged that image from her mind by consuming a few glasses of wine. Chandler's dad came as Elvira, which, upon seeing him, elicited an immediate groan from her husband.

"Dad, maybe you don't answer the door when we get trick-or-treaters today. I'm not interested in going to prison."

Phoebe, dressed in black, just threw on some cat ears and Mike went all out, looking like one of the Bee Gees. He even grew his hair out a little and had a short, scruffy beard, looking as if he stepped off the cover of the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. Chandler moped about a bit at first; clearly, feeling emasculated that his wife selected his outfit yet again. He perked up a little though, playing with the tail of his costume and making terrible puns all day.

"Honey, I'd be lyin' if I didn't tell you how much I hated this costume."

She had to admit, it was turning out to be a good day.

For the most part, her problems with Chef James faded to the back of her mind. There was one incident that made her snap a bit, and unfortunately, it was at Chandler. She felt guilty almost as soon as it happened. He had come up behind her and placed his hand on the small of her back, as he has done countless times since they have been together. He whispered in her ear about how hot she looked and slowly lowered his hand to the top of her buttocks and she froze. The previous night's disastrous ending came flooding back to her. The tactile memory of Montgomery violating her, touching her in the exact same way less than twenty-four hours ago, blinded her to what was happening and she slapped Chandler's hand away, yelling for him to cut it out. Everyone got quiet and she could see the confusion on his face. All she wanted to do was tell him she was sorry and explain why she reacted the way she did, but she couldn't. Not in front of everyone. No, she was going to have to let him feel confused and wounded for a little while longer, until they were alone.

That evening, when the last guest finally left, Chandler immediately stripped out of his costume and took a shower. Monica sat at the kitchen table, some dirty dishes still in the sink, sipping at a cup of coffee. She could hear tiny snores through the baby monitor, the twins exhausted after such a busy day. She stared off out the window, contemplating what her next move at work was going to be. She could hear the light footsteps of her husband as he padded his way downstairs and into the kitchen. He entered the room and placed a soft kiss on the top of her head, and then sat down across from her.

"Hey. Aren't you going to change?"

She looked at herself, seemingly unaware that she was still dressed as Dorothy. "Hmm? Oh. Yeah. Hey, I'm sorry about earlier." Chandler looked over at her with confused eyes. She could tell by his expression that he had no idea what she was talking about. "When I yelled at you."

Chandler chuckled lightly. "Oh, don't worry. To be honest, I forgot all about it."

She smiled at him and reached her hand out for him to hold. As their fingers intertwined across the table, she allowed a bashful smile to spread across her lips as her cheeks began to blush.

"So, you think I looked hot today?"

Chandler jokingly looked up as if trying to recall a distant memory. "Did I say that?" He then looked her in the eyes, and he gave her that look that he has been giving her ever since they got together. The one that makes her melt. His eyes filled with confidence and tenderness. His lips curled up in a half-smile. "Yes. You looked hot today. And yesterday. Last week. You'll probably look hot tomorrow."

Monica looked down quickly and smiled sheepishly. She then looked back up at him, her face filled with worry.

"Can you tell me everything is going to be all right?"

Chandler tilted his head. A bemused look on his face. "What do you mean? What's wrong?" He looked around the room for a few moments and noticed the dirty dishes in the sink. "Is everything okay?"

Monica squeezed his hand gently trying to return his attention to her. "I just need to hear you say it."

He hesitated for a moment, still looking around, trying to figure out what brought this on. He finally faced her, submitting to her wishes. "Sure." He took her hand in his and looked at her, making eye contact as an earnest yet affectionate expression fell across his face. He spoke softly, almost at a whisper.

"Everything is going to be all right."

Monica looked down at their hands and smiled. "Want to take this costume for a spin?" She lifted her gaze and playfully nodded her head towards the stairs, intimating that they should go up to their bedroom.

"Okay!" Chandler leapt up excitedly, grabbed her hand and pulled her up from her seat. They shared a smile as they raced upstairs, quietly giggling at their own enthusiasm.

Tomorrow. I'll tell him tomorrow."

November 1st

"Do you want me to kick his ass?"

Chandler sat up in bed, shirtless, as Monica rummaged around for something to put on. He has his hands behind his head as he pulled the sheets up to cover himself from the waist down. Monica, grabbed his t-shirt that was hanging on the back of the chair and slid it over her naked body, the length of it almost making it look like she was wearing a dress.

"Chandler. Be serious."

"You're right. I'm not really the ass kicking type." He looked up at the ceiling contemplatively. "Do you want me to hold your things while you kick his ass? I know I can do that."

She bounced back into bed and smiled at him, tracing her finger around his chest. "Seriously? What do I do?"

"You have to call the owners and make sure they hear your side of the story. When you got this job, they asked for you personally. This guy is just a fill-in. You've been with them for two years and this is the first problem you've had. They'll make the connection."

Monica rested her head down on his chest. She listened to him breath and felt the thumping of his heart. "You're right. I just…this is my dream job. I feel like it is tainted now."

"I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but it is just a job. You're dream is to be a head chef at a great restaurant. This is not the only great restaurant in New York." He stroked her hair aside a bit with his fingers and gently rubbed her cheek with his thumb.

"I know. I know. But it can be so hard to start over. I made so much progress at Javu."

"Look, I'm not great at the advice, so I don't think I can tell you what to do that will make it all work out. But I know you're great at getting what you want. I know nothing can stand in your way when you put your mind to it. If it is really important to you to be the head chef at Javu, then you are going to have to fight for it and I know you're going to win."

She kissed his chest and sighed. "Thanks. You're not great at giving advice, but you do a pretty good pep talk."

November 5th

"You had to apologize to him?"

Rachel twisted her face into one of disgust as she leaned forward on the couch. Monica and Rachel have been meeting in Central Perk once a week, usually before one of her late shifts at Javu. They would catch up about everything going on in their lives and then gossip about coworkers. It was not the same as living across the hall from each other, fully entangled in each other's life, but it was a decent substitute.

"Well, what about him?"

Monica huffed a bit as she grabbed her coffee and shook her head. "They said he would let it go if I apologized for slapping him. I think they were worried he might sue them. They even had their lawyer draw up an affidavit about the whole thing."

Rachel, clearly incensed, shook her head as if she were boiling over with rage. "Well did he have to fill out one of these after-David things for grabbing your ass?"

Monica let out a sarcastic laugh. "Affidavit. Not after-David. He has to take some five-hour harassment training course. Learn what is and is not appropriate in the workplace. Get taught how not to be an ass."

Rachel sat back and seethed. "Oooo! His face is inappropriate. Maybe we should send Joey's sisters there and see what happens when he tries to hit on one of them!"

"Rachel, I just want him gone. I don't want him dead."

Rachel pulled her hands up, gesturing her surrender. "They might not kill him. They could just send him to the hospital."

Monica laughed and shook her head. "Well, we aren't going to work together anymore. He has his days, I have mine and we alternate Saturdays now. So, with any luck, I'll never have to look at his stupid face again." Monica crossed her legs and sat back, taking her mug with her. "Now look. I just wanted to make sure you guys are coming for Thanksgiving. It'll be the first one in our new home and it would really mean a lot if I could get everyone there."

"Of course. Where else would we go?" Rachel smiled and leaned her head back. "You guys are our family."

November 6th

Monica tiptoed into the nursery and peered over the side of the cribs, whispering at a barely audible level.

"Hey little bunnies. Happy six-month birthday."

She felt lucky to have the day off to spend with the twins; she was surprised Chef James kept his word and swapped shifts with her after everything that had gone down between them. She frowned at the memory and then quickly let thoughts of him fade as she looked down on her sleeping babies. She thought about how her mother told her that time flies fast when you have a baby, and that you should savor every moment before they grow up; but for Monica, these six months have felt like a lifetime. Almost as if she could not remember who she was before she was their mother. She has enjoyed every moment despite the late nights and the extra mess. This has been what she has wanted her entire adult life. Her breath shortened as she felt her husband's arms wrap around her waist from behind, taking her out of her reverie.

"Morning. You aren't thinking about waking them up now, are you?"

"No. I just wanted to see them first thing in the morning. Can you believe it has been six months? It's been so wonderful, hasn't it?"

"Wonderful. And gross."

Monica slapped his arm gently as she placed her hands over his and leaned her head back into his shoulder. "It hasn't been that bad."

"Are you kidding me. Do you remember the fact that the little nub left over from the umbilical cord just rots off them? Do you know how disturbing that is? Why doesn't anyone tell you that in Lamaze?"

Monica smiled as she allowed an amused "tsk" to escape her lips. "Chandler. You are the last person who can complain about things that are gross. We share a bathroom. Unfortunately."

Chandler shook his head as they disentangled and the two of them slowly crept back out of the room. Once they reached the end of the hallway, he grabbed her hand and pulled her into him. He wrapped his arms around her and leaned in to give her a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"So, I'm guessing we have a full schedule today?"

Monica smiled and nodded slowly. "I thought we could all go for a walk this morning after they eat breakfast. Take some pictures at the park. Maybe stop for some coffee and pastries at the bakery in town while we feed them a late morning bottle? My mom and dad are stopping by around two. Your dad should already be here by then, and I'm still waiting to hear from your mom."

"Good luck with that." Chandler raised his eyebrows sarcastically.

"She might come. She keeps telling me she wants to see the babies again soon." Monica slid her hands from his shoulders down to his chest and started lightly pulling on the fabric of his pajama top.

Chandler shook his head as a skeptical look fell across his face. "She's had plenty of opportunities. Look, Mon. I don't really care either way, I just don't want her to forget about Jack or Erica. Or miss out on them entirely. They should know who their grandmother is."

"She won't. They will. Those two little bunnies in there are too amazing for something like that to happen. They're already showing little personalities. Erica is so fussy and Jack is so laid back."

"Yeah. I wonder where they got that from."

Monica shook her head and gave Chandler another playful jab. "Let's go grab some breakfast before they wake up."

Chandler followed her downstairs. "You know, this is going to be the first time my dad and your parents are together here without the rest of the gang. That sounds like it'll be fun. Your dad will do some of his magic, maybe he will make a pencil disappear. Then my dad will put on a dress and make his penis disappear. Just a fun, wholesome celebration for the entire family."

Monica hid her amused smile and darted downstairs, shaking her head.

November 12th

"Hello? Monica?"

Monica could barely hear the voice on the other line, but she was fairly certain that it was Chandler's mom.

"Nora? Is that you? Chandler isn't home today."

"Oh, that's okay. I don't have a lot of time. I'm in India."

Monica shook her head in surprise. "India. Oh. That's nice I guess?"

"I just wanted to tell you I will be in New York for Thanksgiving and I want to know if the invitation to come over is still open."

Monica stammered a bit as a look of amused shock appeared on her face. "Really? I mean, of course. You're always welcome."

"Great. I have to go. There's a boy here to take me on a ride on an elephant. And, I am pretty sure will take me for a totally different kind of ride later since he is also hung like an elephant. Give my love to everyone dear."

The phone went silent and Monica hung up as she shook her head in disbelief.

November 19th

Monica stared off, not really paying attention to the conversations happening around her. Her mind was on the twins and she wondered if it was too early to call her mother and father to find out how things were going. She only left them a little over an hour ago, but it seemed as if it has been much longer than that. She felt a hand on her knee and looked up as Chandler leaned into her and softly spoke in her ear.

"You're already thinking about calling them, aren't you?"

Monica shrunk down a bit in her seat with a guilty smile on her face. "Yeah. It's just, well, you won't be home for a few hours and I have to work tonight. This is the first time that one of us is not home with them."

Chandler continued to rub her leg gently. "They've raised kids before, you know."

Monica shook her head and pulled away from her husband as she sat forward to grab her coffee. The two of them positioned closely on the orange couch. Phoebe was sitting next to Monica, but did not seem to be paying attention to their conversation. Mike and Ross were seated off to the side at the high-top table, both looked to be doing their best to avoid talking to each other. Monica leaned into him and spoke softly.

"They never had to take care of two babies at the same time."

Chandler lifted his leg up and crossed it over the other; he pulled the paper he had on his lap up and started looking through. "You and Ross were pretty good at acting like infants when you were teenagers, so I am sure they will be fine."

The joke earned him a confused, yet insulted glare from Ross. Monica pursed her lips and screwed up her face, expressing great offense to his joke as well, but then she sighed and shook her head, resigning herself to let his comment go without a retort.

Mike cleared his throat. "So, Monica. Phoebe and I will probably be late for Thanksgiving. We're going to watch the parade from my parent's apartment and stay with them for a little while."

Monica nodded. "That's fine Mike."

Mike shifted a little nervously in his chair and looked over at Phoebe who gave him a reassuring nod. "You know Monica. I still have a lot of contacts and if you want, I could ask around about this guy at your job and see if there's been any formal complaints against him. Odds are this isn't his first-time sexually…" Mike stopped for a moment and looked over at Chandler. He winced at his choice of words and started to speak again. "I mean, he might have a history of harassing people at work. Maybe if we find something it will push the owners to take a harder stance with him."

Chandler looked back-and-forth uncomfortably between Monica and Mike. Monica noticed and decided to bail him out of having to endure an uncomfortable conversation.

"Uh, sweetie. Would you mind going to get me a refill on my coffee?"

Chandler nodded and stood up quickly, taking her mug with him.

Ross looked up at Chandler. "I'll go with you."

Chandler leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to the side of Monica's forehead. He folded up his paper and placed it on the table in front of him before walking away. Once he and Ross reached the counter, Ross turned to look over his shoulder to see if anyone could overhear what he was going to say.

"So, Chandler. You have to tell Monica to quit. She can't keep working there."

Chandler paused as a puzzled look furrowed his brow. "Ross, you want me to tell my wife, your sister, what to do? Is this your first time seeing us as a couple? Have you met Monica? Since when has she ever done what someone told her to do?"

"You have to. I can't let my sister work with that man anymore." Ross's face twisted as if he tasted something rancid as he spits words out of his mouth. "He's just lucky I haven't found my way down there because I would have to…" He held his hands up flat and steady as he mimicked a karate chop.

Chandler looked down and smiled as he shook his head. "You can't let her? Ross. Monica is stronger than the both of us combined. She knows what she is doing and if working at Javu is important to her than I support whatever decision she makes."

"Yeah, but…"

"Ross. I can't be the reason she quits a job she loves. She'll resent me for it. I mean, don't you trust her?"

"Yeah, but..."

"Okay. Then that should be good enough. She'll do the right thing."

November 21st

Monica strolled around the kitchen with a pad in hand. She tugged on her lower lip with a pen.

"Chandler. I'm almost done putting together my list for Thanksgiving. Now what do you want? Mac and cheese or a chicken or soup?"

Chandler walked into the kitchen. He pushed his glasses up and sounded nervous as he started to speak. "Uh, you know what. I'll just eat what everyone else is having."

Monica turned to face him with a look of shock on her face as she dropped the pen on the floor. "What?"

Chandler bent down to pick it up for her. "Yeah. I guess, maybe it's time to let that stuff go, right?" He handed her the pen and stood back up.

Monica stepped back a bit. "Chandler, if this is about all the food I have to make, doing one more thing it isn't going to be any trouble…."

Chandler let out a loud chuckle and put his hands in his pockets. "I know. I know. I've been thinking about it all month, and really, all my best memories happened on Thanksgiving. Or at least, I have more good memories than bad one now."

Monica glided over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist as she kissed him on the chin. "Really?"

"Sure. Think about all of the Thanksgivings we have had over the last couple of years. We found out Erica picked us on Thanksgiving. The first time I knew that I was in love with you; Thanksgiving. When we told your mom and dad about us, the first time I met you, the first time I saw you and added you to my personal collection of smoking hot chicks to think about when I had my private alone time. All of it happened on Thanksgiving. I just think I can finally let all that stuff with my mom and dad go. They can't ruin Thanksgiving anymore when I have this family of my own here to create so many more wonderful memories with. Besides, I don't want Jack and Erica growing up with the weird dad who hates Thanksgiving."

Monica raised herself up on her toes and kissed him. They both of grinned against each other's lips.

"That's so great. Really." Monica's smile faded as a look of apprehension fell over her face. "So, maybe this isn't a good time to tell you, since I wanted it to be a surprise, but your mom is coming for Thanksgiving."

Chandler pulled back and released Monica from his embrace. A look of shock washed over his face. "What?"

Monica nodded reluctantly. "Yeah, we've talked a couple of times on the phone this month and she's coming."

Chandler rubbed his chin slowly. "So, both my parents will be here, in this house, at the same time, on Thanksgiving. Next week. The Bings are coming for dinner."

Monica, still wondering if telling him was the right thing to do, simply offered him a quiet and uneasy. "Uh huh."

"Maybe you should get one box of mac and cheese, you know. In case of an emergency."