AN: I wanted to post this chapter to see how you guys like it. PLZ R&R!
Disclaimer: I own no one. They all belong to Bright/Kauffman/Crane.
FYI: Before any of you go any further, I feel obligated to post a warning. This story will deal with same sex relationships and possibly same sex marriage. If any of you have any problems with something like that, it's your problem not mine. I am a Christian and go to church regularly, but I have my own beliefs. I'm not ashamed of what I believe either. If any of you don't agree with any of these situations, I would rather lose you as a follower/reviewer than to have to deal with your hate messages. So if I get any kinds of those messages, I will report that person. I hope all the open-minded people will give this a chance.
Thank you and read on!
Chapter 1
Monica Gellar turned over onto her side as the sun just started to peek through her window shades. She rubbed her eyes as she slowly sat up and tried to decide what to do that day. She didn't want to spend the day at home after the blow out that she'd had with her parents the night before. She could go over to Chandler's, but she didn't want him to get annoyed with her being over at his place so much. They hadn't been dating more than a few months and she knew that she was starting to fall in love with him, but she wasn't sure that he felt the same way.
She started to climb out of bed when her cell phone beeped, indicating that she had a new text message. She reached over and swiped her finger across it to receive it.
'Good morning. This is your wake up alert. :) -CB'
She smiled as she started to type a message back to him. Even if she wasn't sure how he felt about her, she could always count on him to bring a smile to her face.
'Morning. Hope work went ok last night. Can I come over today?-MG'
'You know you're always welcome here. Bad night?-CB'
'I'll explain when I see you-MG'
'See you soon. Can't wait! :) -CB'
Monica went to her dresser to find something to wear and went into the bathroom to get ready. She came out of the bathroom after taking a shower and finished getting ready in her room. When she walked downstairs, she didn't hear any sign of her parents or brother getting up so she decided to grab a quick breakfast before heading to Chandler's house.
"Hey," she looked into the living room and saw her brother lying on the couch.
"Ross," she mumbled as she went into the kitchen to grab a yogurt.
"About last night-" he followed behind her.
"Forget it, Ross." She glared back at him. "You'll always be on their side because you know it'll pay off for you."
"Mon, I'm still your brother." He started to protest.
"You could've fooled me." She threw her empty yogurt container away and walked out of the kitchen and towards the front door.
"Where do you think you're going?" she heard an angry voice and looked back to see her parents coming down the stairs.
"Like you even care," She retorted. "Just as long as I am out of your hair, isn't that right?"
"Where are you going?" Jack demanded.
"To Chandler's. He's expecting me."
"I don't like you being around him so much."
"But it's ok for Ross to hang around with him all the time."
"That's different."
"Yes, because that's about Ross, and he can do no wrong. I'll be at Chandler's." she slammed the door behind her and went out to her car.
She drove a couple blocks over to Chandler's and just let herself in like she always did. She heard some noise coming from the kitchen and walked in to see Chandler rinsing off the dishes in the sink and loading up the dishwasher.
"Hi." She greeted him and he looked up at her and smiled.
"Hey." He finished loading up the dishwasher and turned it on. "So what happened? Ross hinted that there was a big argument."
"Which he didn't help at all." She grumbled.
"I kind of figured." He sat at the island counter with her. "So what'd you argue about?"
"You."
"What?!" his voice raised an octave as he raised his eyebrows.
"They don't like me being around you so much."
"But Ross can hang out with me?"
"That's what I said."
"So you just left this morning?"
"Yep," She nodded. "So want to go see a movie or something today? I need to cheer myself up."
"All right. Just none that have sparkling vampires or boy wizards in them. I've seen enough of those."
"So romantic comedy then?"
"That's better than the other." He replied. "Like if I'm a vampire, I'm going to sparkle when I step outside."
""Stop it," she playfully smacked his arm.
"Just let me go get my keys and wallet."
"I can pay for myself." She said pointedly.
"You're not paying. It's my treat." He said as he started up the massive staircase.
Monica loved this house; it was the closest thing to a mansion that this neighborhood had. Chandler's dad and his partner had bought it when they moved to town when Chandler was ten. He had gotten Chandler's mom's parental rights revoked after he ended up in the hospital one too many times. When they received full and permanent custody of him they had wasted no time filling the house with everything a kid would ever want.
She loved being able to entertain herself whenever she came over, but she thought that it was a little excessive. Chandler didn't even use half the things that were in the house, but Charles still kept showering him with gifts.
"Ready?" Monica looked up as Chandler came back downstairs.
"Let's go." She followed him through the kitchen and out to the three-car garage. They got into his shiny red Porsche and pulled away from the house.
Chandler and Monica walked out of the movie theatre after watching Grown Ups. Chandler took her hand as they made their way down the street. Chandler glanced at Monica to see if she was feeling better, but he couldn't tell with her head turned away as she looked at all the displays in the store windows that they passed.
"Want to stop for some frozen yogurt?" he asked her
"Sure." She smiled as she turned to look at him.
To their disappointment though, the moment they entered the shop, Monica saw something that made her stomach drop.
"Oh, great. Just what I need today." She mumbled.
"What-" Chandler turned and saw what the problem was.
The yogurt shop was packed with the entire varsity football team along with the varsity cheerleaders; Rachel Green and Chip Matthews-head cheerleader and captain of the football team-were in the middle of everything.
"Do you want to go somewhere else?" he looked over at her.
"It's fine." She said with a sigh. "I have to deal with her sooner or later."
Rachel Green had been Monica's best friend since grade school. They were always hanging out whenever they could; school, the mall, and each others' houses. That changed last summer; when Rachel, encouraged by her friends from the cheerleading squad, decided that she didn't want to be friends with her anymore. She was completely devastated; she had a few friends that she hung out with from the Drama Club and Home Ec. Club, but it wasn't the same.
He knew that it was selfish, but Chandler was grateful that it happened. It was because of Rachel ending their friendship that he grew closer to Monica.
Monica had always been around whenever Chandler would hang out with Ross at his house, but he didn't pay much attention to her. She was always running around, laughing hysterically with Rachel whenever they hung out. Then one day, the laughter stopped. She was constantly moping around her house and the halls at school. So he stopped to talk to her while she sat alone at a table at lunch.
She slowly opened up to him, and before they knew it they were getting closer and closer. They had their first official date when the school threw the Spring Fling dance at the end of the previous school year. They shared their first kiss that night and they officially started dating a couple weeks later.
Ross was a little freaked out by their relationship, but he learned to deal with it. The only people who seemed to have a problem with it outright were Jack and Judy Gellar. Monica had a feeling that her overly-conservative parents only had a problem with it because Chandler's dad was living openly with his partner, Terry.
"Excuse me!" Chandler announced very loudly as they made their way to the front counter. "You aren't the only customers here."
"Hey Bing," Chip Matthews smirked at him. "How's your soccer team going?"
"Better than your football team, I hear." Chandler shot back. "You've only won, what, like four games within the past three years?"
"Actually, it was six." Rachel said.
"Oh look, it's the Head Bitch of Lincoln High." Chandler spotted her.
"Here's your usual, Chandler." The owner of the shop handed him their yogurt and he gladly took them. "As for the rest of you, either order something or clear out of here."
Everyone else started to leave the shop, grumbling and muttering, while Monica and Chandler sat in a booth to eat their frozen yogurt. Monica glanced back at Rachel as she left with Chip.
"Are you ok?" Chandler asked her.
"Yeah." She said softly. "It's still hard."
"I know." He said. His phone chose that moment to start going off and he sighed as he greeted the person on the other end. "Hey, dad. What's going on?"
Monica watched him converse as she listened to the one-sided conversation. She smiled slightly as he rolled his eyes at what his dad said on the other end.
"Monica and I went to see a movie, now we're having some yogurt. Ok. I'll be there soon." He nodded. "Yeah, I'll tell her. Ok, bye."
"He wants you home?" Monica asked him as he hung up.
"He and Terry made supper. They said to tell you that you're invited, but your dad has called our house twice already."
"I'll eat at your house. I'll just send Ross a text and let him know." She took out her phone as they started out of the shop.
Chandler pulled into the garage and parked beside his dad's escalade. They started towards the door as Chandler hit the switch to close the overhead door. Charles and Terry were setting everything out on the table when they walked in.
"Hello, Monica." Terry smiled at her as they walked down the narrow hallway that led from the garage to the kitchen.
"Hey." She smiled back as she saw him taking a dish out of the oven and smelled the aroma in the air. "Whatever you made, it smells really good."
"Vegetarian lasagna." Charles got the bowl of salad out of the refrigerator and they followed him into the dining room with the pitcher of lemonade and glasses. "So what movie did you guys see?"
"Grown Ups." Chandler told them. "It was the only one that we could agree on."
"Was it any good?" Terry brought the lasagna out as they all sat at the table as the conversations started to roll around the table.
Monica loved spending time with Chandler and his dads. They were always at ease with each other; unlike her house. Time at the dinner table was spent in awkward silences unless her parents were raving about something that Ross did. She always felt like she was a disappointment to her parents no matter what she did.
Charles didn't know what he was getting himself into when he took on the role of full-time parent having left Chandler to be raised by nannies for the most part before the divorce. He and his partner, Terry owned a burlesque club on the other side of town. Charles spent the most time there dealing with the finances and other things, while Terry was at home most of the time keeping up with the house, managing all the household money, and keeping up with the upkeep of the house.
Monica liked them both, but she liked Terry a little bit more. He was as outgoing as Charles was, but he was the one that cooked all the meals because Charles was clueless about cooking. Monica could talk with him for hours about food; Terry even taught Chandler how to cook. It was a way for them to bond when Chandler was younger, but he also said that it would help him out with the girls when he got older.
After they all finished the main course, Charles brought out the dessert; homemade apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream. Monica loved everything that Terry made; much better than anything she tried to come up with.
"So school will be starting back up in a little over a month." Terry looked at them. "Are you guys ready?"
"No." they said in unison.
"Chandler starts his AP classes a week before school officially starts." Charles said.
"I'm in some AP classes too." Monica told them.
"So you both get to start early."
"Unfortunately." Chandler mumbled.
"We've been trying to plan a family vacation before school starts." Terry told said. "Of course you're invited Monica. And Ross too."
"I'm not sure if we'll be able to go." Monica said. "But I'll try to talk to my parents about it."
"Do your parents really have that much of a problem with us?" Terry asked.
"Isn't it obvious by the way that they look at us in disgust whenever they see us all at the country club?" Chandler grumbled. "Her ultra conservative parents don't like how we live. No offense, Mon."
"It's ok." She took his hand, knowing how hard he took it when people looked down on him when they found out about his family life. "It's their issue, not mine. I have no problem seeing how you live. Love is love, right?"
"I wish more people thought like you did." Charles smiled at her. "We hope you can make it with us."
"Me, too."
Monica helped them all clear off the table and clean up, then her and Chandler went into the den to watch some TV. Charles kept checking on them every ten minutes before Terry told him to give them some space. Finally, they could relax in each others' arms.
Later, when the movie that Monica and Chandler were watching was almost over, the doorbell sounded and Terry went to open it only to find a police officer standing before him. Charles came out as he greeted him.
"Hey, Tom." Terry shook his hand. "Did the Gellar's call you again?"
"Not yet tonight." he told them.
"So what brings you here then?" Charles asked him.
"Earlier this evening, we brought in a young girl for loitering. We believe that she's been living on the streets for a few years."
"What's this have to do with us?"
"It took awhile for us to be able to crack her. When we finally got her talking, she said that she's been staying with you guys. She didn't know your address, but I figured that I would come and ask you about it."
"Nobody but the three of us are living here." Charles said bewildered.
"That's what I figured."
"Just out of curiosity, who is it?" Terry asked him.
"Me." A girl said, appearing from the side of the porch, shocking both Charles and Terry.
The movie ended and Monica glanced down at her watch. She slowly sat up from her spot next to Chandler as he looked at her.
"Time to go?" he asked her.
"Unfortunately I have fifteen minutes before I need to be home."
"It doesn't take you that long to get to your house." He raised his eyebrows at her.
"I know, but I'd rather not give them any more ammunition than they've already stored up all day."
"Right." He stood up and started to walk her to the door.
They reached the front foyer and Chandler saw his dad and Terry talking to one of their friends on the police force as a teenage girl that looked to be wearing about five layers of clothing stood off to the side.
"Phoebe!?" they both exclaimed and rushed over to her.
"Oh my god," Monica embraced her in a tight hug. "You're ok."
"Do you know how long we looked for you?" Chandler asked her. "Where have you been?"
"It's a long story." She said.
"I actually have to get home now." Monica told her. "But I want to hear all about it."
"I was just going to walk her out." Chandler said to Phoebe. "I'll be right back."
Chandler walked with Monica out to her car and opened the driver's side door for her.
"I'm glad she's here." Monica said as she smiled at him and squeezed his arm.
"I'm curious to why she's at my house, though." Chandler glanced back at the house with a confused look on his face.
"So find out and text me later if you're able to." She climbed into her car and started it up.
"Do you want to come over again tomorrow? I have to work at five, but we can do something before then."
"Sorry. I volunteered to do an open to close tomorrow. One of the waitresses quit without any warning." She told him. "If we're slow, Tammy said I can take a break. I'll call you tomorrow if I'm able to."
"Sounds good," He shut her door and gave her a kiss through her open window. She drove away with a smile on her face.
AN: So what did you all think of this first chapter? Good? Bad? Other? Should I continue? By the way, this is just a little introduction. So don't expect all of the chapters to be this long? I'm going to try to work Joey into the story within the next couple of chapters. Keep your eyes open! PLZ R&R!
