Monica had difficulty getting Chandler to let himself go and make uninhibited love to her. He was too much a gentleman, and had slight self-esteem issues. He was afraid of using his physical strength, playing rough, or role-playing. Among other things, Monica wanted to be tied up, occasionally. Chandler had an innate fear that she would resent him afterward, thinking that he might actually be capable of forcing himself on a woman. Monica knew that that was ridiculous. Chandler was the Golden Retriever of lovers.
Monica decided to leverage the fact that she had allowed Chandler to enjoy anal with her. Her birthday gift from Chandler, two months after his birthday, would be a little light bondage. Monica broached the subject over dinner, "Chandler, I was thinking about my birthday."
"Oh, is that a thing? When would that be?"
"My birthday is on March 23, as you know very well. The Vernal Equinox. I recall that you got something extra special on your birthday, and I want you to reciprocate."
Chandler was incredulous, "You want anal?"
Monica sighed at how thick men could be, "No, you're the one who wants that. I want you to tie me up." Chandler squirmed uncomfortably. "Chandler, there's nothing wrong with us doing that. It'll be fun. It's like we're acting out a play. You'll see."
Chandler asked, "What would I have to do?"
"You would have to tie me up and enjoy yourself to the fullest. Can you do that?"
"I guess so. I've never done this before. What would I use to tie you up?
"Well, Chandler, it would be best if you made those decisions, so it could be a birthday surprise, but I'm willing to help out this first time. I'll give you the materials, and we can even practice, if you like."
"Have you been tied up before?"
Monica lied, "No. I never trusted anyone enough. I feel safe with you."
"Do we use a 'safe' word?"
"I don't see the need. This is not really heavy role playing. We can just talk to each other. No S and M." Monica had been tied up, with her consent, several times before, but she chose to keep this from Chandler. He had never inquired about her previous relationships in any detail. He was better off not knowing. Her previous lovers had used their own tie-downs and straps.
Monica said, "Let's take a look at your neckties." They crossed the hall to the apartment Chandler shared with Joey. Chandler wore suits and ties to work every day. He had a section of his tie rack for soiled, damaged, or ugly ties that he would never wear again. Monica surveyed them, "These would be perfect. The silk is super strong, and it wouldn't hurt my skin. I guess we only need four. What do you think?"
Chandler said, "We should bring several extras, just in case. What do we tie them to?"
Monica said, "To the bed, right? I know you were in Boy Scouts. How are your knot-tying skills?"
"It was Cub Scouts, and I have no recollection. I know how to tie a square knot and a Windsor knot. That should be enough."
Monica said, "Let's look at our beds." She turned to survey Chandler's very basic bedroom furniture. His bed, which Monica had never occupied, didn't even have a headboard or a frame. The box springs rested on the carpet. Monica summarized, "Pathetic. Let's look at my bed." Monica had a high-quality bed, base and headboard. The headboard had spindles that would be perfect for belaying. The metal frame was sufficiently exposed to offer tie-down points, as well.
"It looks like this is it, then. Here, try tying me up."
Chandler looked about, saying, "Right now?"
"Not for sex, Chandler, just to check out our technology." Chandler tied a necktie around Monica's ankle, finding that the tag ends were not long enough to reach the bedframe. He re-tied her ankle with the extreme fat end of the tie, and then another square knot on the frame.
He asked, "How does that feel?"
"Feels good, pretty comfortable, actually." Monica tugged on the restraint to test its strength. Then she spread-eagled herself and asked Chandler, "Will the neckties reach all four points?"
"Yeah. No problem."
Chandler wanted to make Monica's birthday special. There would be a party, of course, but he was also expected to do something romantic just for the two of them. He decided to enhance the bondage program. He did some searching for bondage information on the internet. He had hoped to get how-to's about types of bonds, knots, and so on. The first raft of websites were hardcore BDSM sites that shocked him. Refining his search criteria, he was eventually able to get the practical info he needed.
Candles would be an essential feature of the environment. Monica loved scented candles, but he wanted something different than half-used candles from her large inventory. Chandler spent a considerable amount of money on really large, high-quality candles, unscented.
One intriguing idea he found on the internet was the practice of removing the subject's clothes after they are tied down. Chandler decided to really surprise Monica by removing her clothes with a knife. It would be easy to pop off buttons, sever straps and such using a sharp knife. His research indicated that the ideal knife would be a skinning knife with a sharp hook that could safely split seams.
Chandler had scarcely ever held an outdoorsman's knife in his hand. He went to a knife shop, and was stunned by the outlandish selection and astronomical prices. He went to an outdoors store, and found a very menacing-looking skinning knife that would be perfect for his purposes.
The problem with the knife was that it would destroy Monica's clothing. This was difficult to cope with. Monica was sure to dress to the nines for their big dinner date, and she would freak out to see her nice dress carved up by an amateur. After studying Monica's clothing choices, Chandler decided to cut off whatever she wore to the dinner.
Chandler ultimately reasoned that the fact that the clothing would be destroyed would add an element of adventure to the ritual. She would be suffering a loss, a taste of reality. Depending on what she wore, he might only need to cut off her bra and panties, which he figured would be an acceptable loss. He hid the candles and flowers in his apartment, and stashed the restraints under Monica' bed.
Chandler brought Rachel into the scheme. Rachel would stage the room while he and Monica were at dinner. He had also acquired some eerie baroque music to play during the festivities. Rachel found out what Monica planned to wear that night. It was a little black dress. On the one hand, it was an older piece. On the other hand, it was a favorite of hers.
Rachel showed Chandler how to split the seam of the dress so that it could be easily repaired. She agreed that Monica might freak out, but that the ritual would be enhanced by the tension created by seeing her dress cut off of her. Rachel, however, shocked Chandler by telling him how much Monica's bras cost. If she wore a clasp-in-front bra, he would just unhook it and open it up. If it was a strap-in-back model, he would cut the straps in a way that might be repaired.
On the night, Monica dressed as expected. She noted, without commenting, that Chandler wore a tie she had not seen in years. The dinner was excellent, romantic, and expensive. Chandler arranged to be back just minutes after nine o'clock. Rachel was to light the candles at precisely nine.