A/N: I do daydream about stuffs, but never once did I dream that I would be writing FFs, let alone eleven chapters! So yay for chapter 11! And thank you so much for all the reviews.

This chapter takes place when Monica is 22 weeks pregnant. One fluffy, sweet, super-long chapter, coming right up!

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters.

Forever and a Day

Chapter 10

"You got stoned in college?!" Monica looked at her brother in disbelief.

She had pestered Ross for three weeks, and he'd finally cracked and revealed what he'd told their parents on the night she and Chandler had visited them.

Ross put a finger to his lips, glaring at her. "Will you quiet down?!" he hissed, noticing that most of the heads in the coffeehouse had turned towards them.

"And you told them it was me who got stoned?!" Chandler glared at Ross, not caring that a few more heads turned towards the three of them.

Ross stared from his sister to his best friend, who were flanking him on the orange couch, and exclaimed in frustration, throwing his hands up in the air. "Hey! My lesbian ex-wife is getting married to her lesbian lover tomorrow. Does this sound like a conversation that I am willing to have right now?" He looked from one face to the other again, watching them as they reluctantly shrunk back into the couch.

"But now they do know that it wasn't me, right?" Chandler asked him a moment later, wanting confirmation.

"Yeah," Ross nodded. "And I also told them it wasn't you who melted my dad's records." He averted his gaze to the storage closet, lowering his voice. He knew the other two would kill him if they'd been in a secluded place. When they continued to glower at him, he sighed. "Big picture, please! Now we're all happy!" he nodded at them solemnly. "And that's what matters the most."

Monica rolled her eyes. "Okay, I need to go to work." She got off the couch. "Is there anything else that we need to know?" She looked at her brother pointedly, and when he shook his head, she turned to Chandler. "I'll see you at two?"

She had an appointment with her OB/GYN for the second trimester that afternoon, and she and Chandler had planned to meet at the clinic.

He nodded, smiling. She smiled back and waved at the two of them and at Rachel, who was behind the counter. "I'll see you guys later."

Watching her as she left, Chandler rose from the couch and started towards the counter, but Ross stopped him.

"Where are you going?" Ross placed his hand in front of Chandler, preventing him from moving further.

Chandler raised his eyebrows. "I need to talk to Rachel," he pointed at her, not understanding why Ross was acting weird all of a sudden.

Ross looked at him warily. "You're not going to tell her about… y'know, the whole me-smoking-pot thing, are you?" he whispered. "Because that's another thing that she could add to 'Ross's cons list'."

Chandler shook his head.

They'd learned enough from one list.

Ross pulled his hand back, nodding in relief. "Okay."

Now that the obstacle had backed off, Chandler went to the counter and tapped his fingers on it lightly to get Rachel's attention. "Rach, hey," he smiled.

Rachel looked at him warily, glancing at Ross. "Did Ross send you?" she narrowed her eyes.

"No, no," he shook his head, thanking God for the millionth time that Rachel didn't know that the whole 'list' idea had been his to begin with. "Rach, I um... I actually want to ask you something and please answer me honestly." He laid his clasped hands on the counter as he leaned in.

Rachel sighed exasperatedly. "For the hundred and twentieth time, Monica and I have never made out. And I don't know whether she'd been with or kissed a woman, but I have never been with or kissed a woman." Well, she had kissed a woman, but she was not telling him that. "Now if you could relay this piece of information to Joey as well, that would be very helpful," she smiled sarcastically.

He looked at her flabbergasted and shook his head a moment later. "That was not what I was going to ask and I am offended by the insinuation!"

She smiled at him sheepishly, realizing that he hadn't asked her such questions ever since the recent developments in his life had taken place. He had more important things to deal with now. Chandler had grown up, after all.

Huh. Who would've thought?

"I am sorry," she patted his hand. "What were you gonna ask?"

He took a deep breath, preparing himself like he was about to let her in on one of his darkest secrets. "Okay, umm…" he fidgeted with his fingers nervously. "I need to ask you a favor," he looked at her hesitantly. "And you can absolutely say no."

Intrigued, she leaned on the counter, looking at him curiously. "What's up, Chandler?"

"Rach, could you exchange apartments with me?" he looked at her with serious eyes, and rushed before she could reply. "I mean, it'd be something temporary, like, till the baby comes, and maybe a few months after that. It's just," he shrugged, not knowing how to explain it, "it's just that... I do get to see Monica everyday and that's fine, but it's not the same as being with her all the time; like when she needs something in the middle of the night. Or if the baby keeps her up all night, which she says happens a lot nowadays," he looked at her, pleading. "Just for like a few months till after the baby is born, would you consider trading apartments with me?"

Rachel stared back at him, surprised. She'd known Chandler for over a year now, but this side of him was something new to her.

The sarcastic, quippy and (self) mocking side of him had taken a backseat to a seldom revealed sensitive side, from which she could clearly see that Monica and his baby meant to him more than he'd ever let on to anyone, probably even to himself.

Her gossip-loving brain was screaming just one question at him - Chandler Bing, are you in love with my best friend?! But she ignored it for the moment and smiled at him softly. "That's not a problem, Chandler," she shook her head, watching him as he smiled widely at her.

He leaned across the counter and kissed her on the cheek. "Rach, you're my star! I haven't even talked to Monica about this yet, but I just wanted to run it by you first, to check if you'd be okay with it." Smiling, he drew back. "Thank you, Rachel."

"Chandler, Chandler," she caught his arm as he turned to leave. "Chandler, I may be out of line in asking you this, but I just need to know, as a friend to both you and Monica."

He looked at her inquiringly.

"What happens once the baby is born? What are you planning on doing then?"

He frowned, shaking his head. "I don't understand what you're asking."

"I think you do," she nodded. "What I am asking is, Chandler, how do you see this arrangement working in the future? Don't you want something more? Or would you be content with just being the guy who has a child with his best friend and neighbor?"

It was his turn to stare back at her, surprised. He was caught off guard by her question, and felt incredibly uncomfortable under her unwavering gaze. "Rachel, I… um..." he fumbled, not knowing how to respond.

"You guys are my closest friends and you know that I wish nothing but the best for both of you. I cannot tell you how incredibly happy I am for you two that you're having this baby together," she smiled, but it faded a second later. "But, unless you both reach a conclusion as to what the future holds for you, it is not going to be easy," her voice laced with concern, she watched him as he stared at her, still not opening his mouth.

"Rachel, could you come here for a second?" Gunther called out for her, smiling fondly.

She held up a finger to Gunther, indicating that she'd be with him in a second. She turned to Chandler again. "Think things through, Chandler. And keep in mind that every decision that you guys make will affect your child."

He looked at her as she walked away from him, her words reverberating in his brain.

Don't you want something more?

~.~

Neither had mentioned their almost-kiss episode from three weeks back to anyone. At least he hadn't, he didn't know about Monica. All he knew was, girls talked about everything with their friends. He just wasn't sure whether Monica would categorize whatever was happening between them as 'everything'.

They hadn't even discussed it between themselves. He knew she was as reluctant to bring it up as he was.

Now, as they both walked back from the clinic, seeing his baby again had made him realize that Rachel was right. It didn't just stop with the birth. It went beyond all that, much more beyond than what he'd ever imagined. But he didn't possess the energy or the willingness to talk about it with Monica now.

They both were elated, happy, and in high spirits. They'd just found out that their baby was as healthy as it could be. He didn't want to ruin the moment by bringing up a conversation which he was sure neither of them would know how to handle. He wouldn't even know how or where to start.

He shrugged mentally, convincing himself that the conversation could wait, ignoring that annoying, nagging voice inside his head.

Don't wait until it's too late. I've known you for a long while now and you often tend to do that.

Sometimes he wished he didn't have a brain.

They entered her apartment to find Joey and Phoebe there.

"Hey, how did it go?" Joey greeted them.

"Everything's perfect. Eleven inches long, and weighing almost one pound, everything that's supposed to be there is there and nothing is missing. " Chandler grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and sat sown on the sofa, smiling widely.

"So did you find out the sex?" Phoebe asked excitedly.

Monica glared at Chandler, taking her place next to him, and turned to Phoebe. "No… According to someone, that's against the "theme" of this pregnancy," she made quotation marks in the air as she said it.

Chandler ignored her look and smiled at her sweetly. "You'll thank me later." He wrapped an arm around her as she moved closer and leaned against him, yawning.

"So what's the theme of your pregnancy?" Phoebe leaned forward in her chair.

"It's a surprise!" Monica said with fake enthusiasm, not lifting her head from Chandler's shoulder, her eyes drifting shut.

Joey stared at her, confused. "Yeah, but what's the surprise?"

Chandler shook his head in exasperation. "No, Joe. That's the theme. 'Surprise!' is the theme."

"Oh," Joey nodded thoughtfully, but shook his head a moment later, looking at Chandler and Monica. "Y'know, something like this would never happen to me."

"Something like what?" Monica asked sleepily, her eyes closed.

"This," he motioned between the two of them, pointing at her belly. "This whole 'Surprise!'," he shrugged, smiling smugly. "I have a 'No glove, no love' policy."

Chandler smiled back, humoring him for the moment. "Did you know that condoms are only ninety-seven percent effective?" he asked Joey, the smile still intact. "It says so on the box."

Joey stopped smiling and turned visibly pale. "What?! Are you sure?" When Chandler nodded, he got off his chair, muttering, "I better go check," as he hurriedly left the apartment.

Phoebe stared at Chandler in amusement. "How do you know that?"

He shrugged. "Well, when you have way too much free time and way too many unused condoms that you bought with optimism," he shrugged, "you tend to get a little bored and pay more attention to these details." Phoebe laughed as he added, "But, believe me, in matters like these, ignorance is bliss."

He turned to see Monica, noticing that she'd fallen asleep in his arms. He placed a hand on her belly to find out whether his child was up, but shook his head a moment later. "Both the mother and the baby are asleep," he smiled at Phoebe. "Does it always work that way?" he asked her curiously. "If the mother is asleep, does the baby fall asleep too?"

"I don't know..." Phoebe shrugged, looking at him thoughtfully. They remained in silence, watching Monica sleep. "Do you ever wish things had been different?" she eventually broke the silence. On noticing his confused expression, she pointed at Monica. "Do you ever wish this hadn't happened?"

He looked at Phoebe, formulating an answer in his mind, and finally nodded. "On the very first day she told me she was pregnant, I did," he told her honestly. He turned to look at Monica again.

Her breathing deep and rhythmic, he could see her eyes moving beneath her closed eyelids as she slept peacefully. She sighed, pulling herself closer to him, when he placed his palm on her cheek.

He turned back to Phoebe and shook his head, his expression unreadable. "But now, I know that this is the best thing that ever happened to me."

~.~

He was yet to tell his mother. He'd surprised himself by replying to one of his father's letters, telling him that he was going to become a granddad, but he was still unwilling to call his mother. Probably because it would involve talking to her.

He'd reluctantly disentangled himself from a warm, soft, and asleep Monica, covering her with a blanket and kissing her on the forehead. He'd returned to his apartment to find Joey calling every one of his ex-girlfriends to find out whether there had been any 'accident' (Joey's code word for pregnancy). Now, Joey had hung up the phone and left it on the couch, and he was staring at it, still wondering whether or not to call his mom.

Finally, he forced himself to pick up the instrument and punched her number in before he could change his mind.

His mother picked up the phone on the fifth ring, just as he was about to hang up. "Hello…?"

When he heard her rather breathless voice, he knew he'd picked the wrong moment to call her. "Hey, Mom. It's me. Chandler."

"Chandler, sweetheart! How are you?" his mother cried out in enthusiasm, but before he could answer, he heard his mother's muffled voice affectionately drawl, 'Patrick…'

Definitely the wrong moment.

"Mother, if this is a bad time, I can-" he started, but Nora cut him off.

"No, no, no, honey. It's fine. Tell me, how have you been? Anything new with you?"

From her tone, he could clearly sense that she was distracted, but he didn't mind. This could even work for him.

"I am fine, mom. I just called to tell you that you're gonna become a grandmother!" He waited for her response, unconsciously holding his breath.

"What?" His mother suddenly sounded alert.

"Mom, I am going to become a father," he phrased it differently, hearing his mother shushing someone, probably 'Patrick', on her side.

"Chandler, is this some sort of joke you're playing on me?" She sounded more shocked than he had been on hearing it. He wondered whether she'd be less surprised if he told her that he was gay, instead.

"No, it's true," he nodded, even though she wouldn't be able to see.

On hearing her sharp inhaling and exhaling, he knew she was processing the information. She finally asked him a question that he never expected. "Is it Janice?"

He cringed at the mention of his ex-girlfriend's name. He remembered telling his mother that Janice was his girlfriend's name, and he knew that his mother hadn't been too thrilled to hear Janice's hyena-like laugh even through the telephone, but he'd never told her that they'd broken up. He shook his head. "No, it's um... it's Monica."

It took a moment for his mother to respond. "Monica? Ross's sister, Monica?"

"Yeah," he smiled lightly, in spite of himself.

"I thought you guys were just friends. Are you two a couple?"

There had been instances during his college days when Nora had felt that there was probably something more to her son's friendship with Ross's younger sister, but they'd always denied when she'd voiced her doubts to them. But this was something out of the blue.

"No, we- we're…" he stuttered. "We are just friends." His reply lacked conviction. His mother, of all people, would definitely sense it.

"How did it…?" she trailed off.

"It was a one night thing, mom," he replied uncomfortably, hoping his mother wouldn't ask for further details.

"Oh… How far along is she?"

"Twenty-two weeks." He didn't even try to keep his grin at bay.

When she responded, he knew his mother was truly happy for him. "Wow, that's… Honey, that's great! Congratulations to you both! Is Monica there? Can I talk to her?"

"No, mom. She's asleep," he replied, feeling slightly grateful that Monica was indeed asleep. His parents had always possessed a knack for embarrassing him, and he had no idea what his mother would say to Monica now.

"Oh, that's fine," his mother replied happily. "I'd love to talk to her sometime, though. I mean, if that's okay with you."

"Of course it is, that would be great," he smiled, feeling a warmth towards his mother that he hadn't felt in a really long time.

"Chandler?" his mother asked after a few seconds of silence, "Are you happy?"

Even though his phone conversations with his mother were few and far between, she always made it a point to ask him that.

He didn't know why, but as she asked it now, the question felt more genuine in its intention that it'd ever felt before.

He decided he'd answer it just as genuinely. "Yes, mom. I am happy. Very happy."

~.~

After all the whining and complaining that he wouldn't even attend the wedding in the first place, Ross had been the one to give away Carol. Monica smiled as she watched Rachel play with Ben, wondering how on earth Rachel could possibly not see that Ross had a heart of gold. She felt sorry for the both of them.

Phoebe was dancing with Joey. Ross was dancing with Susan. Strangely, she realized for the first time that she'd probably never be asked out on a date, let alone for a dance, at least for the next few years, now that there was a baby on the way.

She couldn't have been more wrong, though.

"Dance with me."

She jumped as she heard Chandler murmur in her ear, interrupting her train of thoughts, almost as though he was reading it.

She turned around to look at him, smiling, her brain finally registering the song that was playing – Total Eclipse of the Heart – which was about to end. "You sure you want to be seen dancing with a fat, pregnant woman?" she teased, smiling, putting up no resistance as he grasped her hands in his and pulled her to her feet.

"I'd love to dance with a beautiful pregnant woman, yes, thank you," he nodded, leading her onto the dance floor when she didn't protest.

She placed her arms around his neck as 'Fields of Gold' started to play. He pulled her closer, his arm encircling her waist and his other hand finding the small of her back as they swayed gently to the music.

She drew back lightly to look at him when he hummed 'Will you stay with me, Will you be my love' under his breath. On noticing her amused expression, he shrugged. "I always preferred the Eva Cassidy version, to be honest."

She laughed as he crooned the lyrics in a high-pitched voice, but then she silenced him. They danced in silence for a few seconds until she broke it. "I distinctly remember someone saying that people would run for their lives when he starts to dance," she cocked an eyebrow, all the while wondered whether recalling the events of that night was a good idea, even as she said it. "For some 'unfathmomable' reason," she added bravely, grinning.

He looked surprised for a moment, like he hadn't expected her to remember it. He chuckled a moment later, kissing the side of her head, looking down at her, smiling. "I didn't know I'd be dancing with you."

She was wearing a figure-hugging, floor-length, blue dress with white and pink flowers on it. The swell of her breasts rising firmly over its straight edged neckline, the material clung to her curves, accentuating her waist and the slight flare of her hips, drawing attention to the soft mound of her pregnant belly.

She smiled up at him, her dark, soft hair framing her face, her blue eyes shining as they gazed into his, happiness and pregnancy combining to give her features an ethereal glow that he'd only read about before.

To him, she was the epitome of feminine beauty.

She raised an eyebrow as he continued to gaze at her. "What?"

"Being pregnant suits you," he smiled slowly as he leaned in, his lips brushing against the shell of her ear. "You look beautiful."

Her heart thudding against her ribs, she looked into his eyes when he pulled back, observing that his eyes were the same color as the early morning sky - pale, watery blue. Gorgeous blue.

"Did anyone ever tell you that you have the most amazing blue eyes, ever?" she whispered back without breaking the gaze.

"You did," he replied, without missing a beat.

"I did?" She furrowed her eyebrows. "When?"

"When you told me that my blue eyes are all you'd want for your baby." The slight smile on his face dropped as he whispered again. "I assumed that that's what you meant."

Maybe it was her hormones, or maybe it was him, but her mind was fixated on just one thought - what would he do if she leaned in and brushed her lips softly across his, like he had on that night?

Even the thought was enough to send hundreds of butterflies fluttering around in the pit of her stomach.

She'd read that babies could sense in the womb if the mother was flustered. That was probably why her baby was kicking up a storm in her belly right now.

Apparently, he had felt the baby kick, too.

His whole face lighted up with joy, warming her heart. "He is just so very active," he shook his head, chuckling, "And so unlike his dad."

She grinned back, but frowned, a second later. "He?"

"Yeah, well, 'It' seems very impersonal," he smiled sheepishly and rushed before she could call him a male-chauvinistic pig. "I've thought of a few names for the baby."

"Oh, yeah?" she smiled up at him happily. "What are they?"

"Edward, Matthew, John, or Daniel, if it's a boy, and Natalie, Emma, Erica, or Juliet, if it's a girl." He ticked off his fingers as he said the names, failing to notice her grin getting wider as she observed the look on his face.

"I like Emma and Daniel," she nodded, not revealing to him that those had been her choice of baby names ever since she was fourteen. "But Juliet…" She wrinkled her nose.

"Why?" he looked at her confused. "I think Juliet is a pretty name."

"It is," she nodded again with a smirk, "but when you put it with 'Bing'? Just imagine it. Juliet Bing? I have a feeling that Shakespeare would roll over in his grave," she shook her head, grinning widely as he stared at her, unamused.

"Hey!" he started defensively, a second later. "I'll have you know that Bing is…" he trailed off, searching for inspiration, but finally shrugged, helpless. "Oh, who am I kidding? I give up."

"That's what I thought," she laughed as she laid her head on his shoulder.

She felt his shoulder tense under her arms a few moments later as he spoke uncertainly. "Mon?"

"Hmm?" She raised her head to look at him again.

"It is going to be Bing?" He looked at her, unsure. "The last name, I mean. Is it going to be Bing?"

She smiled at his uncertainty. "Of course it's going to be Bing." She touched the tip of his nose playfully. "You're the father, Chandler."

He appeared touched. "Thanks, Mon."

She smiled back, watching him as he worked up the courage to ask her something else.

He breathed in deeply, gathering confidence. "Mon, would you mind if I moved in with you until the baby is born?" He continued before she could reply. "I asked Rachel yesterday, and she told me that she'd be willing to trade apartments with me. I talked with Joey and he said he didn't mind. I mean, why would he? Girl roommate and all," he chuckled nervously before he rushed to continue. "So that just leaves you. And your opinion is obviously the one that matters the most. I mean, if you don't want to live with me, I'd completely understand. But-"

"You don't ever stop talking, do you?" she laughed, cutting him off by placing a finger on his lips. "Chandler, I'd love to live with you," she nodded, removing her finger from his lips when he smiled widely at her, his eyes crinkling.

She pulled his face towards hers by her hand on his nape, her eyes lingering on his lips.

This incredible urge to kiss him grew with every moment, but she knew that this was neither the time nor the place.

She stood on her toes, brushed her lips against his cheek and laid her head on his shoulder, pulling herself closer to him, as close as they possibly could get with her belly between them.

She felt the baby kick twice, two rather hard kicks, but she wasn't sure whether he felt it this time.

But that feeling of happiness and contentedness, juxtaposed with a longing for something more that she felt at that moment, in his arms - she was sure he felt it, too.

He tightened his arms around her, kissing her hair as they stood still in the middle of the dance floor, the soft music enveloping them into another world, a world where no one but the two of them existed.

~.~.~

A/N: God, that was long! I really hope it was worth your wait.

Once again, thank you for reviewing the previous chapter!