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"Do I want to ask?", Alycia says the moment she laid eyes on Joey, noticing his outfit. He was wearing a captain outfit and a hat, probably something he bought to wear for his boat. She hated the clothing, but decided not to comment on it as she knew how excited he was to have that boat and she didn't want to make him feel bad.
"It's for the boat", Joey explained, confirming her thoughts. "You like it?".
She stared at him for a few seconds before smiling, leaning closer to kiss him. "Like would be an understatement", she replied, earning a smile back from him as he gave her another kiss.
They heard the apartment door opening and closing, watching a very troubled looking Monica looking their way. "Have you seen Rachel...or a mirror?", she asked, the last part clearly directed to Joey.
"For the boat, Joey said once again. "Pretty cool, huh?".
"Yeah, it's great", Monica mutters, not really in the mood to talk. Both noticed her behavior, immediately worrying about her.
"What happened, Mon?", Alycia asks in a soft voice, walking towards her.
"Talk to the captain", Joey added, earning somewhat of a weird look from Monica before she sighed, deciding to let out all she has in her mind, still angry at Chandler for his behavior lately.
"I'm just having one of those days when you realize you're in a dead-end relationship", she snapped, clearly upset.
"Chandler giving you a hard time, huh?", Joey guessed. Both pretty much assumed this had to do with the plan of making Monica think he had zero interest in marriage so when he eventually asks, she would be extremely surprised.
"It's not like I want to get married tomorrow! I'd just like to believe that I'm in a relationship that's going somewhere and I'm not just wasting my time".
"Chandler is a complex fellow, one who is unlikely to take a wife", Joey insisted, only making Monica even more confused and frustrated over this situation.
Alycia could tell she was feeling terrible about this. If she was on her place, she's not sure if she'd be content being with Joey if he's constantly telling her he's never going to get married. Perhaps Alycia acts like that is not a big deal for her (like Monica makes it seems), but it really is. The feeling of being with someone and knowing there's a commitment, a mutual interest in what they have together. Being with someone and trusting that person is as committed as you are to make the relationship work. That's a very important thing to have.
Joey is known for his lack of commitment, struggling to maintain a relationship and be fully devoted to it, but with her he's really trying. Perhaps the other friends don't get to see it every day, but Alycia knows deep in her heart he's really trying to be there a hundred percent. To give her that sense of trust and peace. That he's not going away. It's difficult, it's new to him, it's sometimes even scary, but he's trying his best. And she loves him so much for it. If she ever lost that trust in him, perhaps she'll be as lost as Monica is feeling right now.
