MassaHJ
patreon
Chapter 96: Las Vegas II
🕑 Added 2025-05-09 11:57:02 +0000 UTCI looked at Uncle Charlie, eyes wide with disbelief.
"Did you hear it?" I asked.
Charlie, still focused on the road, glanced back at me through the rearview mirror. "Yeah, I heard it. I escaped that one, huh?"
I rolled my eyes. "Oh well, nothing much to do," I muttered, then leaned back and went right back to sleep.
But barely a minute later, my phone buzzed again. This time, it was a message.
Chandler: Rachel and Ross got married in Vegas. Just thought you should know, for the fun.
---
The next morning, I headed down to the hotel’s breakfast area. I already knew which hotel Monica and the rest were staying at — Joey had told me the name ahead of time, and we booked the same one.
As I entered the breakfast room, I scanned the tables. And there they were—Monica, Chandler, and Joey, seated near the windows and mid-laughter over something Joey had just said. They hadn’t spotted me yet.
With a grin, I walked up quietly from behind. "You guys started breakfast without me?"
Monica jumped slightly, Chandler flinched, and Joey nearly dropped his fork.
"Jake!" Monica gasped. "You scared the crap out of me."
"Hey, kid!" Joey said, reaching out for a quick fist bump. "Long time no see."
"Look who decided to show up," Chandler added.
I shook Chandler’s hand and gave Monica a hug before pulling out a chair and joining them at the table.
"So," I said as I settled in, "where’s Dr. and Mrs. Geller?"
"So you already know?" Joey asked, surprised.
"Yeah," I said with a smirk. "Chandler messaged me… and Rach called me drunk, screaming that she got married."
They laughed a little at that, and then Phoebe appeared at the edge of the table, looking cheerful as always. I stood up and gave her a warm hug.
"Where is the waitress?! I’m starving!" Joey groaned, looking around.
"It’s a buffet, man," Chandler replied dryly.
Joey blinked, then stood up. Chandler and I exchanged amused glances and followed him toward the food.
"Listen, I gotta talk to you," Chandler said as we grabbed plates.
"Sure! What’s up?" Joey asked, piling scrambled eggs onto his plate.
"Monica and I almost got married last night," Chandler admitted.
Joey froze. "Oh my God! That’s huge!" He pulled Chandler into a quick hug. "Wait a minute, how come I wasn’t invited? And who was gonna be your best man? Don’t say Ross. Do not say Ross."
"Look, I just don’t think Monica and I are ready to get married yet. I love her, but seeing Ross and Rachel come out of that chapel—it was like a wake-up call. Things are moving too fast. And how do I tell her that without crushing her?"
"Oh! Tell her she’s not marriage material," Joey said matter-of-factly.
"What?!"
"Girls say it to me all the time! And believe me, if she’s anything like me, she’ll just be relieved."
Joey returned to the table.
I raised a brow as I watched him sit down and take a big bite of his eggs. "You know that it’s your mistake, right? Asking Joey for this kind of advice?"
Chandler sighed. "Yeah… I figured that out somewhere between ‘she’s not marriage material’ and ‘girls say it to me all the time.’"
"Just tell her that you don’t need to hurry. And why are you two in such a rush to get married? It’s not like the world’s ending this year…" I said, shaking my head.
"We were just talking about bacon," Monica said quickly as Chandler and I walked in.
Phoebe raised an eyebrow. "No, we were talking about tennis. Tennis is more believable."
Just then, Ross and Rachel entered
"Hey!" Ross greeted cheerfully.
"Hey!" the girls echoed.
"Hey!" Chandler added with a nervous smile.
Rachel’s eyes widened slightly when she saw me. "Jake! What are you doing here?" she asked as she rushed over and gave me a warm hug.
I smiled and returned it. "Surprise visit," I said.
Then I turned to Ross. "Hey, man," I said, offering a handshake
We both sat down as Rachel poured coffee for the two of us. The room settled into an awkward silence. Ross and Rachel were acting like nothing had happened.
Rachel glanced at me again with a curious smile. "So Jake, what are you doing in Vegas?"
I took a sip of the coffee she had just poured me and replied casually, "I came for the marriage… or post-marriage, in this case."
Chandler cleared his throat. "Jake got here a little late, but we watched the wedding."
Rachel gasped. "Who got married?!"
Chandler said, "You two did", looking to Rachel and Ross
Ross, just as startled, blinked. "What?! Hello! We didn’t get married."
Rachel shook her head quickly. "No, we didn’t get married! That’s ridiculous!"
They turned to look at each other—and then their eyes widened, almost in sync.
Ross stammered, "We-we-we—I remember being in a chapel."
Rachel's jaw dropped. "Oh my God."
"You even called me, Rach," I said with a smirk. "Ross, I thought the expression 'third time's the charm' was for dating... not marriage."
Everyone laughed, even Rachel, though she buried her face in her hands. Ross, however, just glared at me.
Monica looked between them, noticeably trying to process everything. "What are you guys gonna do?"
Rachel let out a long sigh. "Well, I guess we just find a divorce lawyer?" She turned to look at Ross.
Chandler raised his hand slightly. "Well, I think, I think Ross already has one. Now, this one’s free, right? Because you paid for the first two, so the third one’s free."
Now, Ross glared at Chandler
Trying to shift the focus, Monica turned to me. "So, how did you even get here, Jake?"
"It was difficult, Monica," I said dramatically, then held up four fingers. "I told Uncle Charlie—‘Let’s go to Vegas.’"
I paused for effect, then added, "Yeah, needed four words."
Everyone laughed. Rachel shook her head with a playful sigh. "Your uncle is still irresponsible."
"Not like getting married while drunk is a big sign of responsibility," Chandler murmured under his breath.
Rachel looked to him, narrowing her eyes slightly
