F.R.I.E.N.D.S. -- Season One

The One With the Fake Break (6)

Kat woke up the next morning in an unfamiliar bed. She blinked her eyes open and realized where she was.

Chandler was going to kill her if he found out.

Shawn entered the hotel room with breakfast and Kat sat up, watching him.

"Here Kitty Kat, I brought you breakfast." Shawn handed her a plate of bacon and eggs.

Kat checked her watch as she ate.

"Oh, I have to go!" Kat put the plate on the nightstand. "I'm supposed to go to Joey's play!"

"Who's Joey?" Shawn demanded with a clenched jaw, his calm and friendly demeanor was now gone.

"Chandler's best friend. You know, my brother who doesn't know that we're back together? So if I don't show up, they're gonna know something's up and Chandler will send you to the hospital." Kat walked to the bathroom and Shawn followed her.

Shawn sighed and wrapped his arms around Kat's waist while she brushed her teeth and her hair. Kat spat the toothpaste out and Shawn gave her a kiss on her neck. "I want us to be together. In the open. Like old times. And this time," he spun her around so she was facing him, "this time I'm gonna do it right." Kat smiled at Shawn and gave him a peck on the lips.

"I want us to be together too. But I need to ease Chandler into it." Shawn was still holding Kat in his arms.

"I love you, you know that right?"

"I know." Kat gave her boyfriend another peck on the lips and grabbed her purse, leaving his hotel room. She was going to have to ease Chandler into the idea of her and Shawn being back together.

***

When Kat made it to the theater, she was wearing a new outfit, she'd changed very quickly and sprayed some perfume, hoping it would hide the smell of where'd she'd been the night before until she could get a shower.

Kat sat down next to Rachel. Rachel was sitting next to Monica who was by the aisle. Sitting behind Monica was Ross, then next to Ross was Chandler, and finally Phoebe.

"Ooh!" Rachel exclaimed, holding up the program so everyone could see. "Look! Look! Look! Look, there's Joey's picture! This is so exciting!" Kat hid a laugh and shook her head. Rachel was in for a treat if she thought that this was going to be good. It wasn't Joey who was bad, it was the scriptwriters. Every. Single. Time. Joey had to do something stupid in a play where he was supposed to be smart, and then do something not funny in a comedy. It was very contradictory.

"You can always spot someone who's never seen one of his plays before." Chandler remarked, Kat laughed while her brother continued, "Notice, no fear, no sense of impending doom..."

"The exclamation point in the title scares me." Phoebe admitted, "Y'know, it's not just Freud, it's Freud!"

The lights went dim and Ross whispered, "Oh, shhh, shh. Magic is about to happen."

Kat sat back in her seat as the lights went up on the stage and Joey-- er Freud-- was sitting in a leather seat talking to a female patient.

"Vell, Eva, ve've done some excellent vork here, and I vould have to say, your pwoblem is qviiite clear." Some music started and he stood up and began singing and dancing.

"All you vant is a dingle, what you envy's a schvang, a thing through which you can tinkle, or play vith, or simply let hang..." 

Kat stopped. Did Joey hear what he was singing? He was a wonderful actor and a beautiful singer, but this play was appalling. It was terribly written, the words were disgusting and Joey's talent was being wasted on it.