Phase Three

Chapter 8: Not Ready for This Sort of Thing

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I gotta say, you guys are amazing me with the reviews for this! I had resigned myself to getting the, like, 3 or 4 reviews per chapter that I got after my first two updates, since this is Randler, and most people seem to be either hardcore Mondler or R/R fans, but…wow! I never expected to get as many reviews as I did for the last two chapters! I'm glad you guys are enjoying this :)

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"Hey, Rach," Rachel looked up at the sound of Ross's voice. She was sitting in the coffee house alone, reading a magazine and sipping a cup of tea. "Hey, can we, uh, can we talk?"

"Sure, Ross, but are you breaking up with me again? Because I think it's pretty clear that we are, in fact over," she smiled at him, and he forced an awkward laugh as he sat down beside her.

"Look, I know this is all just, really, really sudden, this whole, me getting married thing, and I just, uh, I just wanted to make sure that you're okay. You know, really okay," he paused, looking at Rachel, who was doing her best to keep a neutral face. "Because, you know, if the situation were reversed, and you were getting married soon, I, uh, I know that would be weird for me…"

"Yea, it is a little weird," Rachel admitted softly. "I am happy for you, though. Because I do want you to be happy," she added genuinely, patting him on the leg.

"I know. I want you to be happy, too. That's why I wanted to make sure that you're okay."

Rachel nodded, thinking for a moment. "I will be," she finally answered, smiling sincerely. "I will be…"

"Okay, good," Ross smiled. "Good. And, I also wanted to give you a heads up that…you are invited. You know that, right? You might be my ex-girlfriend, but you're also one of my very best friends, and I, uh, I really hope you come. I really want you there," he explained, and Rachel just nodded. "I mean, I understand if you don't want to be. But it would mean a lot to me if you did." Rachel again nodded. "Okay, well, um, I'm gonna go now. I have some calls to make. And I need to make sure Monica picked up Emily's dress today. Helping with some of the wedding planning from a completely different country is hard," Ross laughed, and again got nothing but a nod in return. "You sure you're okay?"

Rachel forced a smile. "I will be. Go. Plan," she rubbed his arm.

"Okay. Well, I'll see you later, Rach," Ross returned her smile before walking towards the door. She watched him walk out the door, and then saw him run into Chandler outside. They chatted for a couple of seconds before Ross walked away, but once Chandler looked inside and saw that she was the only one there, he hesitated before walking away.

Rachel just sighed, closing her eyes. If he was going to be immature and avoid her, there was nothing she could do about it. And he had been avoiding her since their fight. But, when they were all together, he would act normally towards her. As if nothing had ever happened. Which killed her. Did he not feel the same way she had? There was no way he couldn't have. No, he could pretend it didn't happen all he wanted, but it did happen. They did happen. Which was obvious by him avoiding her.

Monica, who had asked about them spending so much time together at the beginning, didn't seem to notice when that time together suddenly stopped. Maybe because of her obsession with wedding planning and her brother getting married. Or maybe because both of them had gone back to spending time with her, so she didn't care. Either way, she never questioned what had happened. Or else just failed to notice.

Phoebe, on the other hand, kept giving Rachel sympathetic looks, like her dog just died, every time she saw her. She had yet to talk to her about anything, so she couldn't be certain that Phoebe even noticed the thing with Chandler, or if she was just aware of any lingering feelings she had for Ross. Either way, she tried hard to avoid Phoebe, not wanting to talk about either.

Rachel sighed, picking up her tea, and suddenly wishing it was some form of alcohol instead. She was glad that she'd had the excuse of Ross getting married to be upset for the past few weeks. Because, truth was, while she was a little bit upset about Ross getting married, she was also very upset over losing Chandler so suddenly. She had just been so taken back by Ross and Emily's hasty wedding plans. It was hard. While there might have still been a small part of her that loved Ross, that part of your heart that a serious ex will claim forever and ever, she really had felt something for Chandler.

But if he was going to be his immature self and avoid her, maybe she didn't need him, anyway. She'd done the overly jealous, insecure boyfriend thing with Ross; she really didn't need to do it again with Chandler.

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Monica looked at Rachel, who was still staring at Ross's wedding invitation in her hand. She knew the inner turmoil Ross had gone through, as well as the argument that had ensued with Emily over whether or not to invite Rachel. "You're really not gonna go?" Monica asked softly, placing a hand on Rachel's shoulder. Rachel sighed, shaking her head as she set the invitation down on the kitchen table.

"I don't know," Rachel continued shaking her head. "I mean, it's just all so fast. Maybe, if it was a couple of years down the road, ya know?" Rachel asked rhetorically, pulling the chair out to sit in. "But, even then, I just don't know. I mean, it's Ross. Ross," she sighed. "I just, I don't know if I can watch him get married. I mean…okay, your family is friends with Richard's family, right? Say he's getting married, and you're invited. Can you go watch that? Whether it's tomorrow, or ten years from now?" Rachel asked, practically begging for confirmation that she wasn't crazy for not wanting to go.

Monica bit her thumbnail, thinking it over for a moment. "I-I don't know, sweetie," Monica nodded slowly, understanding her point. "No, probably not."

Rachel again sighed heavily. "I mean, it's not like I still love him. It's not like I want to be with him. I just," Rachel trailed off, taking a deep, shaky breath. "I just don't think I can watch him marry someone else."

"It's still gonna be weird going to London without you," Monica said softly, placing a hand on Rachel's back.

"I know. It's gonna be weird not going. But, hey, someone has to stay here and take care of Phoebe! Ya know, make sure she doesn't pop any of those babies out before you guys get back!"

"Right," Monica nodded. "Well, it's still going to be weird without you. And Phoebe. You're kinda leaving me alone with the guys."

Rachel just laughed, "Good luck with that, by the way."

"Thanks," Monica laughed as well. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yea, I am," Rachel smiled sincerely, and Monica gave her a sympathetic smile before leaving the room, heading into her bedroom. Rachel exhaled slowly, glancing back at the invitation on the table. She picked the pen up, moving it back and forth between the "attending" and "not attending" boxes. 'Eeny, meeny, miny, mo,' she thought, moving the pen back and forth. "Right," she whispered out loud, "That's the best way to make this decision…"

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Rachel sighed as she entered the coffee house, noticing that Chandler was the only one sitting on the couch. He didn't look up, so she took the opportunity to talk to him He didn't see her, so he wouldn't have the opportunity to run. When she sat down in the green chair, he looked up, forcing a half-smile as she leaned in towards him.

"Hey," he finally whispered, setting down his drink.

"Hey," Rachel replied, taking a deep breath, trying to decide what needed to be said.

"I'm sorry," Chandler interrupted her. "I'm just, I-I'm sorry…"

"Me, too," Rachel nodded. "I just didn't want you guys to leave for London without talking to you. I-"

"You're not going?" Chandler interrupted her.

"Well, no…"

"So, you're not over Ross," he stated. "I thought you came to apologize and tell me I was wrong about that," he looked at her, and when she didn't reply, he laughed out loud. "Right. Of course. So, what, did you come talk to me to let me down easy, or what?"

"You know what, Chandler?" Rachel replied harshly, "I did come to talk to you, and to apologize, but not for that. But, god, this is why you're not in a relationship," she stood up angrily. "You play the role of insecure asshole perfectly."

"Well, I'm still waiting for that one relationship that proves my insecurities wrong," Chandler shot back. "But it hasn't happened yet. And it seems like I'm always someone's second choice. Always the understudy for the leading man. Just around until something can happen with the guy who's, for some reason or another, better than me!"

"And that, right there, is why," Rachel said slowly. "You know what, I don't have time for this," she turned to leave. "Have fun in London."

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Sorry about making Chandler such an asshole, haha. But, his relationship with Kathy ended right before this, and that was kinda because he was an insecure asshole, too, so…(yes, I know she cheated on him, but he was an insecure asshole right before that).

This chapter isn't the best, but it's getting us to where we need to go. I'm pretty excited for the next few chapters, though. I'm working on the next one, and hope to have it up sometime next week, despite school starting Monday (booooooo!). So, review, and I'll post the next part as soon as I can!!! I think I'm going to set the goal of having this series done by my birthday (mid-October), but we're moving to a new apartment in a month-ish, so…we shall see. I do, however, swear to you with everything that I am, that I will finish this series! It will not become another unfinished Randler series, promise! There are too many of those as it is…