Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters and will not make any profit from this.


Kathy emerged from her bedroom fumbling with the clasp of a necklace. "Can you help me with this and then zip me up?" she asked Chandler, turning her back to him as he took the chain from her fingers and fixed it around her neck, "Are we meeting everyone at the restaurant?"

"Yeah, at 7.30" he replied as he tugged at the zipper or her emerald green dress "You look lovely by the way" He leaned forward to plant a kiss on her temple.

Pete had insisted on taking the whole group out for a meal to celebrate his new restaurant venture with Monica, supposedly because Joey and Kathy had not been around to share last night's low-key festivities, but Chandler suspected he was simply keen for an opportunity to show off his latest life win in a more public forum than yesterday evening's small champagne reception in Apartment 20 had afforded him. The girls often remarked, doe-eyed, upon how grounded and down-to-earth Pete was, despite his considerable wealth and success, but Chandler secretly believed that the guy had a pretty obvious ostentatious streak: The swanky, tech-filled apartment; the constant trips abroad; the sleek black Porsche he drove; the beautiful girlfriend. He was a walking Millionaire cliche. Not that Chandler blamed him for enjoying any of those things.

"And you're sure her ladyship doesn't mind my being there?" Kathy queried.

Chandler rolled his eyes in slight annoyance at this remark "Everyone is invited" he assured her, "And Monica was totally fine last night. It felt like old times in fact."

Kathy balked at the note of wistfulness she thought she heard in his voice. "Yeah?" she eyed him suspiciously "You guys had a cosy little catch up, eh? How sweet" she shrugged his hands from her shoulders rather stroppily.

"Oh honey! Is that a little hint of the green-eyed monster I can see there?" Chandler smirked teasingly, leaning forward to gently nuzzle her earlobe.

"Ha ha you wish" she scoffed, poking him in the ribs, before moving to grab her purse from the counter.

As much as Kathy had vociferously bemoaned the tension and awkwardness that had hung thickly in the air every time she and Chandler had encountered his raven-haired friend since their reconciliation, she was less than thrilled to hear that relations were now apparently thawing between Chandler and Monica.

Chandler's confession that he had planted a drunken kiss on his friend was an annoying thread that Kathy knew she could not pull too hard upon, thanks to her own infidelity, but she could not help but feel a niggle of doubt when it came to accepting Chandler's blithe version of events, considering the length of time Chandler had been friends with Monica, as well as the woman's undeniable beauty.

"Right, come on, we shouldn't keep the entrepreneurs waiting", she said sarcastically.


As their cab pulled up outside the restaurant, they saw Ross and Rachel arriving almost simultaneously and waited on the street to greet them. "Looks like a nice place" Ross observed, casting his eyes approvingly over the facade of the restaurant Pete had selected for their celebratory meal.

"Do you want to head up with these guys?" Chandler asked Kathy, pulling a packet of cigarettes from the pocket of his jacket "I'm just gonna have a quick smoke"

Kathy eyed him gravely, "When did you say you're quitting again?" she asked him pointedly.

"Soon" he promised "I'm down to one a day".

Chandler had been a smoker, on and off, throughout his adult life, and possibly a little before that. He had managed to give up completely for a long stint in recent years, but had fallen off the wagon in spectacular fashion when his suspicions about Kathy's relationship with her co-star had led to frequent anxious episodes and the subsequent trouble with Monica had not helped matters.

Kathy followed Ross and Rachel up the staircase towards the restaurant as a small, slightly stout woman with wavy dark hair passed by them in the opposite direction, her cell phone pressed to her cheek. She paused next to Chandler and requested use of his lighter by mouthing and gesticulating so as not to interrupt the telephone conversation she was clearly in the middle of. Chandler obliged, leaning forward to light the cigarette that hung from her lips and then settled to lean back against the wall, lighting up his own smoke, inhaling deeply.

"I think he has actually lost his mind with this one" the woman was shaking her head crossly, "How she managed to get her hands on an actual stake in the business is beyond me. Legal are going to go ballistic"

Chandler turned his head away in an attempt to avoid eavesdropping, but the woman continued to pace the street just meters away from him so there was no avoiding hearing her side of the conversation.

"Yeah, she seems fine. Perfectly nice." the woman told whomever was on the line "But we said that about the last one. And then the false accusations and six-figure pay-off demands started" she rolled her eyes and took a deep drag on her cigarette.

"Yeah, there's nothing we can do about it, he won't change is mind. He's head over heels. We just need to keep a close eye on her and make sure that the paperwork is water-tight I guess".

She paused to lean against the wall a short distance from Chandler as she wrapped up her conversation.

Chandler stubbed out his cigarette and popped a piece of gum into his mouth to freshen up before making for the restaurant entrance.

The woman stopped him "Sorry, may I please use your lighter again?" she tapped a second cigarette from the box she was holding.

"Sure" Chandler handed her the lighter, watched her ignite the tobacco, and then he made his way inside to join his friends.


"This way Sir," a suave-looking waiter led Chandler through the light and airy dining room to a large table where most of the group were already seated.

Pete and Monica were on their feet exchanging pleasantries with Phoebe. Monica was wearing a form-hugging crimson dress, her shoulder-length dark hair loose, but styled sleek and straight.

"Wow! You look amazing!" Chandler smiled, taking her in. She threw him a red-lipped grin of gratitude.

He felt the weight of Kathy's gaze boring into the back of his head and also spotted Pete regarding him with a slight glare, so he quickly took the opportunity to compliment Phoebe with matching enthusiasm "And look at you Pheebs! You look gorgeous!" he gestured towards her long, floaty floral gown.

"I know. Calm down." replied his blonde friend, causing Monica to snigger, dimples appearing in her cheeks.

Chandler took his seat between Joey and a slightly scowling Kathy.

The waiter approached the table with wine lists and menus for the group to peruse, Chandler took a swift glance towards Joey, keen to gauge his reaction to the amount of French language displayed on the menu, and was amused by his friend's predictable look of dismay.

"Oh here she is!" Pete said as a ninth figure approached the table. "Lucy, this is Chandler, Kathy, Rachel and Ross" he gestured around the table "Guys, this is my sister, Lucy"

Chandler presumed that Phoebe and Joey must have already received an introduction having arrived slightly earlier. He turned around in his seat to greet Pete's sister, and the two of them shared a brief smile of recognition as they realised they had already met: She was the woman who had borrowed his lighter downstairs. His smile faded uneasily however, when snippets of the telephone conversation he had overheard began to replay in his head.


Chandler thanked the waiter, who was busily clearing dessert dishes from the table, before turning towards Pete and Monica "That was incredible! Great restaurant choice guys!"

The others murmured in agreement and Joey asked "Is your place going to be all French too, Mon?"

"No" she replied "Although I am keen to include some European influence. I went to this amazing little Italian place last week-"

"Ugh, Italian has been done to death" Lucy interrupted her dismissively, causing Chandler's forehead to furrow.

"Hey!" shouted Joey ready to defend his heritage, "Italian will always be in fashion."

Chandler was impressed to see Monica calmly stand her ground "I don't mean your standard pasta and pizza" she clarified, "What I would really like to do is work on sourcing the absolute best and freshest ingredients and just let that quality do the talking. Keep things really clean, modern and simple, you know? Nothing too fussy. And there are some excellent Italian artisans in New York" she shot Joey a small comforting glance.

Pete nodded slowly at Monica, regarding her with a proud smile. "Well this seems like the perfect time to tell you about the little surprise I have for you"

She looked up at him, intrigued.

"Where better to gain some menu-planning inspiration and source some authentic ingredients for a modern, European-influenced restaurant than in Europe itself?"

"What?" Monica's jaw began to drop and her eyes were wide as she considered the implication of his words.

"Barcelona to be precise" Pete smiled "We leave tonight!"

"What?" Monica squealed again, her face eyes dancing with delight.

The others exchanged incredulous glances. Monica really was being propelled into a different world by this man.

"We need to head for the airport in about an hour" Pete glanced at his watch.

Monica looked panicked at this "But I haven't packed! I need-"

"I've taken care of it all." Pete told her, "Rachel let me into your place earlier."

Rachel grinned guiltily but excitedly in Monica's direction.

"You can't pack for me, Pete" Monica told him, slight annoyance evident in her voice now "You don't know what I will need!"

Kathy let out a quiet scoff at this perceived ingratitude "Unbelievable" she muttered under her breath.

Chandler shot her a look but bit his tongue, feeling a little sorry for Monica at being put in the spot like this. He knew full well how stressful his super-organised friend would find the idea of relinquishing control of packing her own case for a trip abroad. Even preparing a small holdall for a weekend at her parents' place would generally require Monica to organise a regimental operation, always including multiple lists and special folding techniques.

"Sure I do!" Pete laughed indulgently as he observed his girlfriend's anxious expression "And anything I've forgotten we can just buy when we get there. They do have stores in Barcelona."

"But-" Monica spluttered.

"If she doesn't want to go, I'll go" Kathy interjected, raising her hand, earning her a scowl from Monica and a smirk from Pete.

Pete stroked Monica's arm comfortingly, "It will be fine, I promise. I even have your passport in here." He tapped his pocket. "Trust me" He looked deeply into her eyes with sincerity, encouraging her to relax a little.

She finally allowed an excited smile to spread once more across her face. "I can't believe we're going to Barcelona!" She kissed Pete lovingly, "Thank you" she whispered.

"France Baby!" enthused Joey, to a chorus of giggles from the others.

"Spain, Joe" Chandler corrected him softly.

Joey merely gave an indifferent wave of his hand, his huge beam never leaving his face.

"Lucky lady." remarked Lucy with a smile that did not extend further than her lips. Chandler watched apprehensively as Pete's sister studied Monica, an inscrutable look on her face.