Beyond Friends Episode Thirty One "Paper In Fire"
Guest Stars
Courteney Cox as Monica
"Witness"
Chandler paced in the tuxedo section of the bridal shop.
He could not believe they were there again.
During the week, on a whim, Steve and Monica chose
to change their wedding outfits. Chandler and Rachel had no problem with it, if only to get rid of the hideous wedding gear they had been stuck with the previous week: bright pinks and orange and yellow. Chandler turned as he heard Rachels voice.
"How do I look?" She asked.
Chandler turned to see Rachel in a hulu dress like outfit. Apparently Steve saw an old episode of Hawaii Five-O and was inspired.
"You look....tropical." Chandler said smiling.
"Oh please!" Rachel went to the mirror and made a face. "I look like a reject from that episode of the Brady Bunch where they went to Hawaii."
"At least it aint the fashion crime of the century." Chandler agreed.
"You should talk." Rachel said. "You haven't seen yours yet but it has no shirt."
"No way!"
"Way."
"Jeeze!"
"Hey Monica we gotta go soon." Rachel said. "My lunch break is almost over."
"Ok." Monica said. "You don't even want to see my dress?"
"We didn't see the last one." Chandler remarked. "And having not seen the last one, I doubt we will see this one either before the wedding."
"True." Monica said. "Just let me get dressed. I have to go by the restaurant site before I go home."
"Ok." Rachel said. "I don't want to be caught dead in this. Chandler If I die in this please switch this with
my fave Donna Karan pull on at the funeral home?"
"Sure." Chandler grinned.
"You're a pal."
Later
Chandler and Rachel waited outside the bridal shop.
"Let's make a bet." Chandler said. "Ten bucks, I say we will see this shop again before the wedding."
"I'll take that bet." Rachel said extending her hand.
"You owe me a ten spot anyway. I couldnt come up witha creative enough way to ask for it back."
"Ah."
Monica came out the door.
"The nerve of that shopkeeper asking if I wanted to make an appointment the next time Steve changed his mind."
"Ok Mon, if he chooses an all nude wedding, I'm out." Rachel said.
"Me too, no matter how tempting that would actually be."
Chandler pointed out.
"Let's go to the restaurant site?" Monica said as she started walking. "I could not believe it when I found out how easy it was to just walk here from the restaurant."
"Yea." Rachel said.
"Here we are." Monica said. The site had not changed much since the last time Rachel and Chandler had seen it after the big fire. Monica saw them staring at it. "Sure it looks horrible right now but now I intend to make this place better than it ever could be." Monica said proudly.
A man came up from behind her. "Are you Ms. Geller?"
"Yes I am." Monica said turning around.
"You've been served." The man said handing her a long manilla envelope.
"What is this?" Monica asked her.
"I don't read them. I just serve them." The man leaves.
"How ironic that you are served at a restaurant." Chandler remarks. "Never mind." He said when he didn't get a reaction.
"Mon, what is it?" Rachel asked while Monica tore into the envelope. She pulled out some documents and scanned them flipping the pages over quickly while speed reading to herself.
"Oh my god." Monica said.
"What?" Chandler and Rachel asked. She gave them the papers.
"I've been sued by the city of New York. They are accusing me of arson!"
Chandler and Rachel looked up from the documents in shock.
"Arson?" Chandler asked.
"For insurance money. Just to be on the safe side I insured the restaurants to the hilt. When one closed I got the money back but now they say that from the time the other closed till this one burned down...well all they are saying its just a little convienant that
it all happened in such a small space of time."
"What can we do?" Rachel asked.
"I don't know guys, I just don't know." Monica touched the burnt wall of the restaurant. "In any case, it will be along time before work on this place can be resumed."
Chandler and Rachel couldn't help but watch Monica walk away bravely holding her tears in.
Chandler and Rachel walked home.
"What are we gonna do about Monica?" Rachel asked. "She never would have burned down that restaurant. It was her life, her heart and her soul."
"Apparently the authorities think otherwise. A lot of these fires have gone on lately. And they want
to nail someone on it and its gonna be poor Monica
who takes the heat on this."
"I want to do something." Rachel asked.
"What though?"
"Let's go back to the restaurant site. I think there is alot more to this then there seems."
"Are we solving mysteries now?" Chandler asked. "Should I call up Shaggy and Scooby doo and have them meet us there in the mystery machine?"
"No!" Rachel said. She tugged Chandlers arm. "Come on!"
"Ok. Wheres the fire?" Chandler said following. "Bad joke." He replied when he got a nasty look from Rachel. "Stop looking at me like that."
Several minutes later
Rachel and Chandler finally reached the outside ofthe restaurant and were shocked at what they saw. The
entire block was cordoned off. Rachel and Chandler could not get inside or around the restaurant.
"Tell me Chandler, did this ever happen on scooby doo?" Rachel asked.
"No, but then would they let it stop them?"
"Probably. They always ended up at places on accident and the mysteries were always the same, theres something vaulable about creepy place so owner scares people away. Its a obvious plot device. Some one had to be desperate
for an idea to use it." Rachel said.
"What if that happened here?" Chandler asked.
"What do you mean?"
"What if this property was valuable and one of the higher ups knew it and that is why this happened." Chandler asked.
"You been watching too much tv."
"And Monica is the scapegoat, and then they rake the bucks in after she is caught."
"I dunno Chandler." Rachel said. "Thats impossible."
"Keep in mind, ok?" Chandler asked.
"Ok." Rachel said. "We gotta go. I was supposed to home for my date with Ross an hour ago."
"What if Monica did burn it down on purpose?" Chandler asked her after a long silence.
"We cant think of that. Monica would never do that." Rachel said.
"But what..."
"She wouldn't. I just know she can't." Rachel said. "We must never think shes guilty ok?"
"Ok." Chandler said hugging her. "Everything will work
out."
"I hope so."
