A/N - don't know why, but I'm on a FRIENDS high this week. i've started two different stories (which I really shouldn't be doing right now), and am planted in front of the tv watching reruns.

this kinda just popped in my head. did Carol ever know about Rachel while she was with Ross? was she ever worried about it?

"Hey, who're you staring at?"

Chandler turns to find his roommate's girlfriend standing in front of his table. He breaks his gaze from across the room as the blonde slides into the seat across from him.

"Er... what?" he pretends not to know what she's talking about.

A raging February college party, and Faith by George Michael was blaring in the background. Overly bright lights flashed, tipsy girls danced senselessly, and plastic cups were scattered across the room.

Carol follows his gaze, only to find a tall, dark brunette chatting up another girl, a slim, raven-haired beauty.

"Who's Monica's friend over there?"

Chandler blinked. "Oh... yeah. That, um... that's who I was staring at."

"Nice," Carol commended, and joined Chandler in ogling the pair for a moment.

Chandler played on the notion he was actually staring at Monica's friend. "Yeah, maybe if lightning strikes her, she'll agree to go out with me, and we can double date."

Carol grinned at his self-deprecating wisecrack.

"Hey, great lacrosse game, by the way!" Chandler vaguely remembered Ross bragging to him about his girlfriend's Friday night win.

"Actually, it was golf. But, thanks anyways."

Chandler shrugged. "Sorry." He knew Carol was a cool girl; he may have asked her out himself if Ross hadn't gotten there first. She was a charmingly likeable girl, never overly-bitchy or rude, and she seemed to fit in with Ross and Chandler's small coterie of friends rather well.

Carol tucks a long strand of hair behind her ear, and said something that Chandler couldn't make out because a girl had just passed out and her friend was making quite a commotion.

"I actually wanted to ask you something!" she raised her voice in an effort to be heard.

"Yeah?" Chandler leaned forward and rolled up his sleeves. "Hit me."

The music changed; a sophomore in the corner was toying with the stereo controls, and a new song filled the room. U2's With or Without You.

Carol continued. "Do you know who this... Rachel is?"

"Rachel... Nichols?"

"Never mind. I - just... Ross seems to be infatuated with some girl named Rachel, that I don't even know. I'm kinda worried."

Chandler hesitated. Yes, he did recall the perky high schooler he made out with at a college party. The rich girl who was going to be hungover during her SATs, who was Monica's best friend, who his college roommate and best friend was totally head over heels in love with (and no, he wasn't planning on telling Ross about what happened at the party, ever).

He himself wasn't sure where Ross was; he knew he was in love with Rachel (keyword, was), but where Ross was currently standing on his feelings, Chandler had no idea.

Of course, Ross did have serious feelings for Rachel at for the longest time; if the constant pining in their dorm during the first month of the semester wasn't so glaringly obvious enough, he witnessed him drool over her at two years ago at Thanksgiving as well.

But, ever since Ross had started seeing Carol, the obsession had started to lessen. No more sickeningly mopey songs did Ross write, and never again did he prattle on about how beautiful Rachel's 'soft, cinnamon hair' looked like.

Chandler settled with a simple question. "Why?"

"Well, he happens to mention her, all the time."

Chandler gasped mockingly, though Ross mentioning Rachel often wasn't really a shock. Just because he stopped talking about her hair, doesn't mean he stopped talking about her at all. "That rat bastard. Do you want me to beat him up?"

Carol swatted his arm.

"I wouldn't mind it, that much. It's just... he always goes on about how sweet she was, how pretty she was at prom, and I'm pretty sure that song he wrote, 'Emotional Knapsack' or whatever, was about her."

Chandler frowned. From what he made of Rachel during their first encounter, she was a pretty spoilt girl; who knows, though? Just because he didn't detect sweet, didn't mean she wasn't. Ross had known her since the ninth grade, Chandler had known her since last Thanksgiving.

And pretty? He supposed, to an extent. She had nice hair, glowing eyes, and a really great body; the drawback was really just her nose.

He refrained from disclosing to Carol that 'Emotional Knapsack' really was about Rachel.

"Hey, hey, so? Ross talks about you all the time," Chandler tried to sway her the best he could.

"Well, it's not just that. Yesterday, we were... fooling around," she lowered her voice, "and he almost said her name."

"Yeah, it's a problem," he nods, his flock of seagulls haircut bobbing up and down. "Sometimes, he just forgets the last part of people's names. Last week, he called me 'Chan'. I'm thinking of taking him to a doctor."

Carol dumped her face in her hands, frustrated. "Chandler, can you please be serious?"

He shrugged submissively. "Sure."

"I don't want to be that jealous girlfriend," she continued, "but should I be worried?"

Chandler reached out for her hand, and he held it firmly on the table.

"You have nothing to worry about," he soothed her. "She's Monica's friend, he had a crush on her for a bit before, but he got over it once he met you. Trust me."

Carol sighed despondently. "How does that explain him moaning "Rach" while we were making out?"

"Well," Chandler frowned, trying to save his friend from this sinking ship. "Maybe, he was thinking of her while you two were together, because," he motioned with his hands awkwardly, "he didn't want to get... too excited. I can't tell you how many times-"

He stopped abruptly, mid-sentence, as Carol flashed him a too-much-information look. "You don't need to know that."

"Maybe I should ask him," Carol debated.

"Ask me what?" a tall, jacketed figure loomed in front of their booth.

"Hey, Ross!" Chandler jumped up to greet his roommate warmly, eager to get the topic as far away from his bedroom endeavors as possible.

Carol stood up, a worried hand on her hip and a concerned expression on her face.

"Did you get drinks?" she asked her boyfriend, who stood before them with empty hands.

"Huh?" Ross looked confused for a moment, then shook his head. "No, but I have something for you!"

He fished a small, wrapped-up present from his pocket.

"Here," he presented to her proudly.

She blossomed a grateful smile. "What's this?"

"Open it," Ross looked like a puppy dog, intent on pleasing Carol.

Carol's long fingers tore the paper apart, and in it, she found a small crystal statuette of a duck.

"Oh - oh, God!" Carol stared in shock at the present. "I can't believe you, Ross, how did you find this?"

"Do you like it?" an unsure look crept up upon his face.

"Do I like it?" she shrieked with glee. "Oh my God, I love you!"

She threw her arms around her and attacked his lips with hers, all thoughts of 'Rachel' cast aside.

Monica bade her friend a goodbye, and approached the table and the blisteringly happy couple.

"What's going on?" she asked Chandler, as Carol and Ross were a bit preoccupied.

"We're going bridesmaid dress shopping!" Chandler cried sarcastically. "Oh, and Ross is fathering Carol's child."

"What?" Monica cried. She jerked an unhappy thumb at Carol. "She's pregnant?"

Ross and Carol broke apart, and Ross looked to Carol for confirmation.

"No," Carol said breathlessly. "But, remember last year, the three of us went shopping, and I was saying how my late grandmother had one of these?" she picked up the statuette and handed it to Monica.

Monica gasped, evidently impressed too. "God, that was like... seven months ago. You guys weren't even dating then!"

Chandler rolled his eyes. So, Ross remembered, he was so freaking in love with his girlfriend that it gave him superhuman memory. Big whoop.

"Okay, if you jump Ross too, I'm leaving," he told Monica.

She smirked at him; just having gotten used to his quips, she could actually manage to hang around Chandler and forget about their first meeting.

Carol stood up on her toes to reach her boyfriend's ear. She whispered something, and his eyes sprang open with shock. He nodded, she grabbed his hand, and dragged him off to her dorm room.

"You wanna go somewhere else?" Monica asked Chandler.

"Sure," Chandler sighed. "So, er - how's Rachel doing?"

"I dunno, you might have to ask her yourself," Monica joked bitterly. "I don't see her much these days."

She stopped him halfway down the hall. "Why? You're not in love with her too, are you?"

Chandler's eyes widened. Monica didn't know... did she?

"No!" he cried. "Why, who else is in love with her?"

Monica frowned. "Davis Talbert," she admitted. "My first college boyfriend, and it turned out he was after her."

Chandler breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe he'd be the only one to know of Ross' long-time, yearning crush on Rachel.

He decided to console a depressed-looking Monica. "Hey, it's fine. One day the right guy'll show up," he patted her shoulder.

Monica groaned.

"Sure, and my brother isn't getting laid right now!"

A/N - Monica, you silly goose.

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