Chapter 93: The Venomous Little Girl
Nightfall.
Monica's apartment.
"Hello, Paige."
After Monica brought Paige over, Rachel and Phoebe were both very enthusiastic about this delicate and beautiful little girl.
"Hello."
Paige smiled back.
"You're so cute."
Rachel squatted down. Accustomed to playing with dolls since childhood, she subconsciously reached out to touch Paige.
"You're beautiful too."
Paige dodged Rachel's hand and said with a smile, "Can I ask you a question?"
"Ask whatever you want,"
Rachel said with a carefree smile.
"Why are you like that?"
Paige pointed at her chest.
"What?"
Rachel didn't react for a moment. She looked down, didn't see anything wrong, and looked at Paige in confusion.
"She's talking about why you're going braless,"
Phoebe pointed out the issue with a laugh.
"Oh..."
Rachel finally understood what Paige was referring to and blushed.
She hadn't been like this before, but ever since she'd run away from her wedding and cut up the credit cards her father had given her, becoming self-reliant, she'd downgraded her spending, saving as much as possible on clothes and no longer buying high-end items. She didn't know when it started, but she'd gotten used to being comfortable, unwilling to be constrained. Her old friends, all young, urban professionals, were used to it, and as someone experienced in dating, she naturally didn't mind it at all.
But now, being called out by a little girl, she felt truly embarrassed.
Rachel quickly covered her chest and retreated to the bedroom.
"What a shame,"
Joey smiled, a smile every guy could understand.
"Joey!"
Monica exclaimed in disapproval, glancing meaningfully at the child present.
"Okay, okay,"
Joey held up his hands, signaling he'd stop the inappropriate comments.
"You must be Joey,"
Paige looked at him.
"Yes,"
Joey leaned down slightly to reach her eye level.
"Then you must be Chandler Bing?"
Paige looked back at Chandler.
"Unless there's another Chandler Bing you're thinking of, that's me,"
Chandler said self-deprecatingly.
"I have a question."
Paige looked from Joey to Chandler: "How are you two planning on having kids?"
"Sorry, what did you say?"
Joey was completely confused.
Paige repeated her question.
"No, we're not what you think. We're not having kids together,"
Joey quickly explained. "We're just roommates and best friends."
"Why not?"
Paige asked seriously.
"Yeah, why not?"
Ross chimed in with a grin.
"Come on, let's go back to our place and ponder this great mystery of life,"
Chandler tilted his head and pulled Joey toward the door.
He could tell that the little girl, Paige, was deliberately trying to make them uncomfortable. If they didn't leave now, they'd probably face even more embarrassing questions later.
"Dr. Geller~"
Before Ross could continue mocking Joey and Chandler, Paige turned her attention to him and called out with a sweet smile.
"..."
Ross's grin froze.
Why did she sound so sarcastic when she called him "Doctor"?
"Carol still needs me for something, I'm leaving now."
The uncomfortable paleontologist Dr. Ross Geller could no longer sit still. He stood up abruptly, muttered an excuse, grabbed his jacket and walked out.
Monica was preparing dinner in the kitchen. Hearing this, she just called back an acknowledgment and ignored the exodus.
Tonight was supposed to be her and Chuck's evening together, and of course she would rather have a romantic dinner than a group gathering.
She also wanted to work on overcoming her social anxiety.
"I'm not leaving."
Phoebe smiled back when she saw Paige looking at her.
As someone who had been surviving on the streets since she was a kid, Phoebe thought Paige's little mind games were amateur hour. She'd invented these tricks.
"Chuck still owes me a cute scientist."
"Is that mouse fur on you?"
Paige and Phoebe stared at each other for a while. Seeing Phoebe staring back without backing down, Paige immediately looked away and focused her gaze on Phoebe's sweater, speaking loudly.
"What?!"
Phoebe realized something was wrong the moment those words left Paige's mouth. Sure enough, a sharp cry came from the kitchen, and Monica came running over with a chef's knife in hand. "What mouse fur?"
"Don't get excited, there's not that much mouse fur."
Phoebe looked at the knife in Monica's hand with some concern.
"Right there!"
Paige pointed at Phoebe's sweater.
Monica immediately leaned over to take a closer look and screamed, "Oh my God! Phoebe, what is wrong with you? I've told you so many times to pay attention to hygiene! This isn't just my issue, it's Chuck's! How could you come here wearing clothes covered in mouse fur? If he sees this, will he ever come back?"
She became more and more agitated as she spoke, reaching out to examine the fur.
"Don't panic, don't panic. I don't want this to happen either. I don't know what's going on in my grandmother's apartment lately. The heater's broken, and there's a gas leak from the old furnace."
Phoebe backed away nervously, holding up her hands as she explained, "Mice really aren't that bad. Mice are actually kind of cute..."
"What else is wrong?"
Monica said frantically. "Don't tell me there's something worse, especially more hygiene issues?"
"No, nothing else."
Phoebe looked away, avoiding Monica's gaze.
"Tell me!"
Monica demanded.
"Roaches,"
Phoebe mumbled.
"What?"
Her voice was too quiet for Monica to hear clearly.
"She said cockroaches!"
Paige took a few steps back, looking at Phoebe with alarm.
"Cockroaches?!!!!"
Monica's shriek was so loud it could probably be heard in the hallway.
"I'm getting out of here."
Phoebe glared at Paige, then, seeing Monica's frantic, homicidal expression, quickly made her escape.
"This is a disaster, this is a disaster!"
Monica didn't bother chasing Phoebe for an explanation. She just paced around frantically, checking everything.
Cockroaches are small and hard to spot, yet they multiply and spread rapidly, contaminating food, spreading disease, and infesting every corner of a home. They're also incredibly difficult to get rid of completely.
For someone with obsessive-compulsive tendencies, the mere thought of cockroaches in their apartment was enough to cause a panic attack.
Even she couldn't stand it, let alone someone as severely germaphobic as Chuck.
"What should I do? What should I do?"
Monica spun around in a panic.
It wasn't just that he wouldn't come to her place anymore; there was a real possibility that he wouldn't even want to be around her.
After all, cockroaches can hitchhike on people and their belongings.
"Chuck's coming soon,"
Paige pointed out. "But there's no guarantee Phoebe actually has cockroaches."
"Yes, yes!"
Monica's eyes lit up, and she nodded frantically. "It's just a possibility, not a certainty..."
At this point, she was grasping at straws. Phoebe, an animal rights activist who even kept pet rats in her apartment, wasn't exactly known for her cleanliness standards.
"Don't tell Chuck about this,"
Monica knelt down to plead with Paige.
She was hoping for the best. After tonight, she would do a complete deep clean and fumigation, but not now.
Paige smiled sweetly and said, "Mum's the word."
(End of chapter)
If you enjoyed this chapter, leave a Power Stone or Review!
P@atreon/Soulforger (45+ advanced chapters)