3 The Decoration and Date

Chapter 3

The Decoration and the Date

18th February 1991

Chandler's Apartment, New York.

This was the second time I woke up due to him or rather, his singing.

"Morning's here. Morning is here"

I have to admit though that he is not a bad singer. And this ain't a bad way to wake up. It sure beats the irritating sound of the alarm.

"Morning's here. Morning is here"

'I guess I was quite hung-over yesterday' I mused while I continued to lie on the mattress.

"Sunshine is here"

I didn't have to do my exercises today as I usually take a break on Mondays from my workout instead of Sundays. That's why I woke up late. It also helps in not overworking my body.

"The sky is clear"

Seeing as he won't be stopping anytime soon and thus, I won't be getting any more sleep, I decided to get up.

"The morning's her-"

Maybe it was due to a sudden shift in his peripheral vision or maybe he had some type of sixth sense, he again stopped singing like yesterday and looked at me.

"Good morning, mate" I greeted him politely.

"Good morning, friend" He greeted back jovially, either forgetting or ignoring my yesterday's rude actions.

"Sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean to but I was hung-over from a late-night party" I explained. I was more than a little bit embarrassed. After all, I am usually a very calm and collected individual.

"No problem, my friend," He said dismissively.

"My name is Hitesh," I said and offered him my hand.

"I am Samuel," He said shaking my hand.

"You're a Brit?" He half asked half said.

"Yeah," I said but there was a hint of a question in my tone.

"I noticed your accent" He explained.

I nodded. It was pretty recognizable.

"You've been there?" I asked.

He shook his head before he explained. "I have a friend who is from there," He said.

"Ah" was my eloquent reply "So, Samuel, What do you do in New York?" I asked.

"Me, I am a Sales Manager. I sell Encyclopedia Books. Maybe I can come over and interest you in buying some" He said.

"Ah! I am sorry, mate, but maybe later" I declined politely.

"Well, it's your loss. Those encyclopedias cover everything there is in just 26 books, and all of them are for only 1300 Dollars. That is a small price to pay for knowledge" He said giving me the sales pitch.

I have to say he is good at getting someone interested. Unfortunately, for him, I am not someone, though I couldn't shake off the feeling that I should remember something about this.

"I agree that it is a small price for knowledge, but unfortunately, I am not in need of it at this time. Furthermore, I am a little tight on the money" I said this time a little firmly.

"Tell you what. I will give you the whole package at 1200" He said giving me a predictable discount.

'Ah! He is one of those' I thought as I bit back a grimace.

Usually, these types of salesmen are very stubborn and don't back off until the other person becomes rude. Thankfully, I have a great way of dealing with him where I don't have to be rude.

I just smiled at him and said "Good day, Samuel" and closed the windows before shutting the drapes too for a good measure.

After dealing with Samuel, I went to the bathroom.

….

I exited the bathroom and found Chandler standing in the room. He looked like he just woke up.

"Good Morning! Chandler" I greeted him but he didn't reply back. He just stood there staring at me. It was making me uncomfortable.

"Hey! Chandler" I said clicking my fingers in front of his face.

"Huh! Oh! Good morning" He said and started walking towards the bathroom.

"Chandler" I called him suddenly getting an idea.

He stopped and turned back "Yes," He asked

"Are you gay?" I asked slowly.

"No, I am not" He replied with a perfectly good face and a little too fast. He tried to turn but he was already hooked on the conversation.

"Don't worry mate, I don't judge" I said reassuringly "One of my friends back in London is one though he is a black. I can introduce you to him whenever he comes here. I hope that is not a problem with you" I said as an afterthought.

"I told you, I am not gay," He said a little louder.

"I was just asking so that I don't walk around in my underwear anymore. I don't want to be a tease" I reassured him hiding my smile.

And before he could say anything, I walked back inside my room and started laughing as I couldn't control it anymore. Even then, I distinctly heard him yell "I AM NOT GAY"

I just laughed harder. I know he is not gay but it was fun to make him embarrassed.

Once my laughter subsided, I quickly wore my clothes. Seeing as I don't plan to go anywhere work-related, I decided to rough and tough clothes that Phoebe helped me buy yesterday.

While I did ask Phoebe to help me get some second-hand clothes, I didn't realize that I would be far out of my comfort zone. It has been years since I wore second-hand clothes. I think the last time was in the orphanage before I started doing small chores around the orphanage for money. You can call me vain or shallow but I didn't feel any one of them was good enough so I bought some cheap but new clothes. The only set of second-hand clothes I bought were the ones that I was wearing as I will be doing some dirty work.

Similarly, I did get all the other things brand new like the refrigerator, mattresses, sheets, sofa cushions, etc. I didn't feel good to buy second-hand items such as them.

Although I bought a few other second-hand items. There were not many of those. But those that I had would have been costly if I had bought them brand new. I bought a table, chair, bed, a sofa set, etc. And it was a bitch to find the sofa cushions matching to sofa set and mattress matching the bed.

This is why I was actually quite deep in my savings. I could only last a few more months before I burnt out all my savings and I definitely didn't want that.

The thing is I have not been dicking about for the last decade. I actually had quite a bit of money lying around but I spent it when I got my nose fixed. I hated my nose in my last life. It was a little large on my face. You can think of it as the same as Rachel's nose job. I did that when I went to Britain after completing my second degree here, so, about 3 years ago.

All my savings were spent on that operation and I have only been able to save so much. Though I have to admit, I look far more handsome than I looked in my previous life. It was the combination of a healthy body and that operation. Also, I don't need glasses as my eyesight hasn't deteriorated even a little bit.

With all these changes, I look like a totally new person.

Once, I was done getting ready, I quickly started on breakfast.

While I don't like to make the same breakfast every day, I decided to make French toast again seeing as Chandler didn't have anything else. Even the bread and the milk were bought by me yesterday. I don't know how he even survived all this time. I don't want to come off as rude… err… ruder so I haven't asked him about that even if I want to.

Once, I was done making, I set aside a few slices for Chandler while I put some spices into mine before digging in.

I was just done eating breakfast when I saw Chandler getting out of the bathroom.

"Hey Chandler, Wait a minute," I said as something caught my eye.

"Yes…?" He asked cautiously as if waiting for me to make fun of him about earlier.

"Is that a nipple?" I asked pointing towards a nipple between the 2 normal nipples "Oh my god, you have 3 nipples" I guffawed

"No… no… It's just a tiny bump. It's nothing" Chandler explained.

I arched one of my eyebrows at him as if silently asking 'Do I look like a fool'

"Yeah… It's a nipple" He finally bit out.

I wanted to laugh more and laugh loudly at that but I controlled myself. In the end, I merely smiled and said "I see"

"You think you can keep that a secret…?" He asked morosely when he saw my smile.

"Sure" I instantly replied.

"So a week before everyone knows…?" He asked.

"Nah, you can rest easy. I won't tell a soul" I promised.

"So a day before everyone knows, great," He said.

"I am telling you Chandler. I won't tell a soul" I promised and walked back into my room.

I laughed out loud just as the door closed as I couldn't control my laugh anymore.

"I am still here…" I heard him speak outside the door.

I tried to control my laugh but couldn't, no matter if chandler could hear me from here.

"I hate Mondays. It is not even afternoon and it is already worse than the last one" I heard him say over the door.

I laughed harder.

….

15 minutes later

"So! What's the plan for today" Chandler asked while nibbling on a toast.

I sat opposite to him after taking out juice "Well, I am gonna fix my apartment. So, I would probably be shifting there by tomorrow at the longest. If the work completes today, I might shift in the evening" I said pouring the juice in the glass.

"You don't have to. You can wait till Friday if you want" He said before continuing "Is this about the Gay thing…?" Chandler asked

"No, NO" I replied "I just want to fix it as soon as I can. The sooner I am done by the apartment, the sooner I can get a job. I don't want to spend all of my savings you know" I explained sipping in between.

"I guess that is a pretty good motivator for fixing the apartment" He agreed.

"Are you sure, it is not about the Gay thing?" He asked again.

"I am more than 100 percent sure, mate," I said before continuing "Just don't tell Monica about it. I don't want her to meddle in it and I know from Phoebe that she will if she gets even a clue about it" I said after taking the last sip.

"Yeah, I could see where you are coming from" Chandler agreed as an afterthought.

"I guess I will see in the evening," I said as I put the glass in the sink and exited the apartment towards my own. After all, I had quite a lot of work to do.

…

P.O.V Change

10 minutes later:

"Hey, Chandler" Monica said when she Chandler entering.

"Hey Monica," Chandler said as he came closer to her to see she was done making breakfast.

"I will be done in a minute" Monica explained.

"No need. I already ate some toasts" Chandler replied.

"Well, you can take some for Hitesh. He won't say no. Speaking of him, where is he?" She asked.

"Well in order. First, he made the toasts and naturally ate them. As for the second, Funny thing about that! He was talking about going to his apartment and fixing it" Chandler said with a sly smile.

A floor down, I got a shudder down my spine. I almost dropped the box I was carrying.

"Oh!"

"Maybe you should go and help him out, you know" Chandler whispered in a conspiring tone.

"I don't know. He might not want me there" Monica fretted before concentrating on the breakfast which she was now eating.

"Of course not, I think he would want you there" Chandler assured her.

"You think," Monica asked with hope seeping in her voice.

For a second Chandler thought to let go of this farce but just thinking about the prank he would pull on that bastard "Oh! I absolutely do and this way you might get a chance, you know to get him to ask you out" Chandler advised her.

"You are right. I will go call the restaurant and get a half-day off" Monica said putting down some kitchen utensils.

"Only half day?" Chandler asks curiously.

"Yeah, I don't want to miss the evening shift. It is the busiest time on Mondays and my boss might not give me if I ask" Monica explained.

"Hmm…"

…..

P.O.V change

10 minutes later

Ding! Ding!

"I am coming" I called out as I walked towards the door.

'Who could it be? I just hope it isn't Heckles. I am not in the mood for his type of crazy, this early in the morning' I thought with a grumble.

I swung the door open and got the surprise of the week.

"Monica," I said in a surprise.

There she was in her home clothes with what looked like cleaning supplies.

"Good Morning, Hitesh! Chandler said you were going to decorate your apartment so I thought I'd help you" She explained with a smile and lifted her cleaning supplies proudly before continuing hesitantly "If that's okay with you".

I closed my eyes for a second to calm my anger which surged like hot lava. 'I am gonna kill Chandler' I thought on the inside in anger while there was a small smile on my face at the outside. After all, I didn't want to upset Monica.

"Are you sure you want to spend your time helping me?" I asked with a worrying tone, wanting to get rid of her.

"Oh trust me! There isn't anywhere I would be right now" She said.

I didn't know if she was flirting with me or talking about her fetish about cleaning, but in any case, I didn't want her to be here, though I strongly suspected the latter reason was true.

"What about your work? I don't want to create any problem for your work you might get for taking a day off" I asked with a fake worrying tone seeping in my voice.

"Don't worry about that" She said dismissively but when I didn't look convinced she elaborated.

"The work on Mondays, and especially Monday-morning is pretty low. I won't need to be there and I might be able to work on my evening shift if we hurry" She explained.

I didn't want to but in the end, I admitted defeat as she didn't look like she was going anywhere.

"Okay! Monica, you can help me but you have to promise you won't try to force me in decorating it your way. I want to decorate the apartment my way" I said firmly.

"I don't do that" She exclaimed with a blushing face.

I just arched my eyebrow which screamed 'I am not a fool and don't' lie'

"Okay! I won't force you to do anything that you wouldn't want to" Monica said as her shoulders sagged.

"C'mon get in, then. With your help, we might do it by the lunch" I said walking away from the door "Why don't you clean that room…" I said pointing towards the right room "…while I clean one on the left"

"Sure" Monica replied with a smile.

I know it is gonna be a long morning.

…

A few hours later

I was right.

It was a long morning. I shouldn't have agreed with her.

"I am telling you. I like it here" I said firmly and shift the table on my side.

"But it will look better, here," Monica said shifting the table on the other side.

I took a deep breath. And then the second one, then third and then fourth. I continued till I was past the tenth one and stopped only when I was sure I wouldn't say anything in anger.

"Monica! Do you remember what you agreed to before?" I asked politely.

"I don't remember it," She said suddenly finding the ground very interesting.

"You agreed to not force me to decorate my apartment your way," I said slowly as if explaining a child.

"Okay, you can place your stupid chair and table there" She pouted and turned away in a huff.

And for this reason, I didn't want her to help me. Suddenly, I got an idea.

"Look, Monica! I just need to decorate this room only. The apartment's pretty much done. So how about I complete it on my own. And it's almost lunchtime. We can eat outside"

"I guess," She said morosely.

"And Monica…" I called her out and closed the distance.

"Yeah," She asked after turning back.

I kissed her on her cheek but very close to the lips "Thanks for helping me" I said with a smile and turned back.

I didn't miss the expression changing on her in a second.

A happy Monica exited my apartment instead of a sad one.

I sighed when she left.

Truthfully, she both helped me and hindered me.

We didn't have any problem cleaning the apartment. The problems started popping when we started decorating the rooms. She suggested one thing while I liked the other.

We clashed half a dozen times before the last one. Thank god! It was over. I wouldn't have liked it if we had a fight even before our first date.

I shook my head and started decorating my other room. I don't think I will be done anytime soon. The truth was there would always be something missing. The apartment would only be finished in a few weeks. After all, I don't exactly remember all the things I could need.

….

Half an hour later

Once I was done with the apartment, I went to the chandlers. But I encountered a problem. I didn't have the key to the apartment and I definitely didn't ask one from chandler.

With a sigh, I knocked on Monica's door. I would have liked to meet her after bathing but you can't control everything.

Monica opened the door. Before she could say something, I asked the question.

"Monica, Do you have any spare key of Chandler's apartment. I forgot to ask him about it, this morning" I asked abashedly.

"Yeah! I got one" She said and gave me the key

"Actually, Chandler gave it to me but I forgot to give it to you," She said apologetically.

"No problem. So, do you have any plans for lunch?" I asked.

"No" She shook her head.

"How about we order a pizza," I asked.

"But we ordered it yesterday" She complained.

"I am still not hearing a 'No'" I replied.

"Alright, I will order one" She agreed after thinking for a bit "Same as the yesterday?" She asked

"A large Veg" I confirmed.

"Anything else…?" She asked.

"Nah" I shook my head "I will be back in 5 minutes," I said and opened chandler's apartment.

15 minutes later, I was done bathing and putting on clean clothes.

I exited the apartment just in time to see a delivery boy ringing Monica's doorbell.

"I will take it from here," I said to him "How much," I asked.

"11 Dollars 27 cents" He replied

"Here you go," I said giving him 12 Dollars and taking the lunch. By that Monica had opened the door. I quickly entered the room. Seeing as I had the pizza with me, she closed the door.

We quickly started eating lunch doing some small talk.

"I still can't believe you added 4 chili flakes pouch on your pizza," Monica said with astonishment coloring her voice.

"What's there not to believe. I love spicy food and you already saw it yesterday" I said shrugging my shoulders.

A few minutes later, my eyes fell on the clock.

"Monica! Weren't you going to your evening shift?" I asked.

"Yeah" She replied

I just pointed to the clock. When she turned and looked at it, she let out a gasp and quickly started devouring the pizza. I continued to eat slowly savoring the taste. By the time I was done, Monica was ready to go to work.

"How do I look?" She asked me after coming out of her room.

"HOT" I replied and she did look good. With a red top and blue jeans, she genuinely looked beautiful.

She smiled at the obvious compliment.

We parted ways not much later.

…

Half an hour later

I sighed for the nth time. It's been only half an hour since Monica went to work but I was already getting bored.

I also remembered about the date but as Monica hadn't mentioned anything, I didn't know if we were going today or not. Even if we were going, I had more than a few hours to kill.

In the end, I decided to take a walk around the block and see if something catches my eye.

I quickly took wore my jacket and exited the apartment. I know from my talks that they won't return here. They would stop by the bar and only come here by dinner if they don't have any emergencies.

….

A few hours later

I was right.

I found them here instead of their apartments.

I entered the bar and found almost everyone there. Only Carol was absent. Before going there, I ordered a beer that Chris immediately provided.

"Hitesh" Phoebe's voice broke through my gulping of a beer bottle.

I looked there to see her waiving. I smiled and walked towards the group with a beer in my hand.

"Hey guys"

"Hey" They greeted back.

"So, how was your day?" Phoebe asked as I sat down between her and Phoebe.

"Well, my morning was quite good even with a few hiccups," I said giving Monica a smile (which made her smile) and Chandler a glare (which definitely made him nervous) before continuing "But my time after lunch was a total bust"

"What happened?" She asked curiously.

"There was nothing to do. I got bored so I went out around the block to get the feel of the neighborhood" I explained "And I also got a small part-time job"

"That's amazing" Monica and Phoebe both exclaimed.

"What's it," Ross asked once the congratulations were over.

"Well, I read an ad asking for a teacher who could teach typing"

"You mean Computer or Typewriter," Chandler asked.

"I can do both but he meant computer. I mean I have 40 words per minute speed and that is without any type of practice whatsoever. I can easily do better with some practice and I only have to teach so I won't need a higher speed" I replied.

"That is a good typing speed" Chandler agreed.

"So what's the pay?" Ross asked a bit put out.

I hesitated for a second before replying "Truthfully not much. I would get 400 dollars a month for teaching him an hour a day. But the best part is I could teach the guy in my own apartment. I will just show him my personal exercises to build up speed and I would be free with limited guiding. Moreover, I won't have to go anywhere else and I could look for another job too. I won't get any problem for timings if I get another job" I explained them

"I guess that is a quick buck" Ross hummed.

"Yeah…! What about you guys?" I asked and so my time was spent in some small talk.

…

15 minutes later

Monica stood up and went to the bathroom.

I was waiting for this type of moment. I excused myself after a few minutes of her departure and went to the bartender.

"Hey Chris"

"Hey! So what can I get you" He asked.

"You don't remember my name. Do ya?" I asked lazily.

He just smiled sheepishly.

"A beer would be fine," I said and waited for Monica to show up seeing as she would be passing by after coming from the washroom.

I wanted to ask her about our date but I couldn't in front of all others so I had to try this trick. In the meantime, Chris procured me a beer which I started sipping.

"Monica" I quietly called her out when I saw her passing by.

"Yeah," She asked coming closer.

"I wanted to talk about our date" I whispered.

"I also wanted to talk about it" Monica replied.

"Have you decided the time yet?" I asked.

"How about today…?" Monica replied.

"Sure," I said with a smile before continuing "What about those monkeys," I asked pointing toward the group stealthily.

She smiled back "I don't know. Do you have any idea?" She asked

"Yeah! So here's the plan. I am gonna be settling early as I am quite tired. You, on the other hand, have a date that you don't want to share with them. You go first so that you can get ready and I will follow you in half an hour. Let's meet in after an hour outside the park" I said the last part after watching the time.

"That's a good plan. Did you just come up with it?" She asked obviously impressed.

"Yeah" I smiled abashedly.

"So, where are we going? What's the dress code" I asked.

"I thought we could go to movies before dining in a restaurant," She said.

I just nodded.

With that business finished, she went away towards the group. I saw them animatedly talking before Monica left. I also finished my beer before walking towards the group.

Half an hour later

"Ok guys, I think I am gonna settle early. I am quite tired from all the work" I said standing up and walking away. Before I walked more than a step, I turned around.

"Chandler" I called him out.

He looked at me questioningly.

"I forgot to mention but I am finished with the apartment. I already moved my stuff into my apartment" I said before fishing out the spare key of his apartment.

"Thanks for helping me," I said as I gave the key to him.

"Hey wait" Ross called out before continuing "You can't just leave after saying that"

I looked at him in confusion but he didn't let me ask the question.

"You gotta show us your apartment," Ross said sagely.

I chuckled at his antics while all of the others laughed.

"Well then, C'mon. I don't want to wake up late tomorrow" I said and we all walked back to my apartment.

"And TA-DA," I said as I opened the door.

The first thing that people see is the Black Sofa Set that I bought just a few feet on the left. There is a 3 sitter sofa with 2 beside it on the opposite side. The sofa was facing the left wall. There was a table in between. I didn't have a TV yet so it was a little weird.

Initially, I wanted to make the second room as a kitchen and a study both. But in the end, I decided to follow Chandler's example. My fridge and kitchen were exactly the same as his. The carpet was brown in color matching the floor.

The room on the left side was my bedroom which had my clothes and bed with a medium-sized mirror. The other room had my study table for now with my "Harry Potter notes" for the second book. The stuff that I left back in England will be put in the study room once I go there and get it.

"So, how is it?" I asked.

"It's good" They murmured.

"Hey guys, not to be rude or anything but there are a few rules in the apartment," I said stopping them on the door.

They looked a little shocked but I didn't care and continued "The first rule is that you have to slip out your shoes on the shoe-stand" I said pointing towards the shoe-stand just by the side of the door that could keep about 10 pair of footwear.

"The second rule is; The Study room is off-limits," I said pointing towards the right room which had a lock on it.

"The third rule is… well… I have not thought about the third rule but you can be sure that there will be one" I said a little jokingly.

They grumbled but did as I asked. Once their curiosity was sated, I kicked them out feigning tiredness.

Once they went away, I quickly bathed for the third time of the day and wore a suit just in time.

I quickly reached the destination. It was good that I already bought a pack of condoms after lunch. I didn't have any time left for that. Thankfully, it appears that I reached before Monica.

…

10 minutes later

"You didn't have to wait much, did you?" Monica asked with embarrassment.

"Nah! I just got here" I replied offhandedly before taking out it from my back pocket "A beautiful rose for a beautiful lady," I said giving it to her.

She shyly took it and gave me a smile. She really looked amazing wearing the red dress.

…

"People are getting crazy about 'The silence of the lambs' movie, these days" Monica informed me leafing through the list of movies.

"I know and I have no problem with it. But it's a horror genre. Do you want to watch that?" I asked in return arching an eyebrow.

A shudder passed through her "NO" she replied.

"How about this," I asked showing her the name "It just released today, and critic reviews ain't bad" I elaborated.

In the end, she agreed and we watched 'He said, she said' (I know it was released on 22nd February 1991 but I didn't find any worthwhile movie for the date)

The movie was good enough for the date and I was a perfect gentleman throughout the movie. There was no inappropriate touching.

We walked hand in hand to our next destination which turned out to be a restaurant (Just think of it as the one where she went with Paul the winemaker). We sat just beside each other and ordered some food after leafing through the menu.

…

"Oh my god, you said that to a professor," Monica asked in between her laughing.

"Yeah, and he stood there like dumb fish and by the time he came out of it, I was gone. Still, I could have done without the punishment I got after the episode" I replied back.

"What was the punishment?" She asked once her laughter subsided.

"I am not gonna tell you that," I said in a no-nonsense tone before continuing "Enough about me. Now tell me something about you"

"Well…"

…

"I was gonna wait until the end of the night to kiss you but you are just so beautiful. I don't think I can wait" I whispered coming closer. I leaned in and waited for her to kiss me. I didn't have to wait for a second as I felt her lips touch mine not a moment longer.

First, it was a sweet kiss but it soon turned into a passionate one. My one hand was supporting her head from behind while the other sliding up and down, sensually caressing her thigh.

We only broke the kiss when we ran out of air. I kept one of my hand on her thigh but took out the other hand from behind her head.

The waiter coming to give the bill took us out of our funk.

I paid the bill and gave a 10% tip. I hate the tipping system but I didn't want to ruin the date so I paid the minimum seeing as the services were not that great. Soon we exited the restaurant and booked the cab. Just as we were inside and gave the address, our lips were on each other.

After paying the driver, we both went to my room. I had quite a bit of trouble getting my keys when Monica was on me. With a thud, the gate opened and with the same sound, it closed. It took time to switch the lights on as we were still making out.

Once I was able to lock the door, we took it to the bedroom.

I was going to make it sure that it was going to be a long night for Monica; A night that she would remember. After all, I had more than enough experience and practice to shake her to her core.

…

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