Ross stared blankly at his laptop. Just hours earlier he had agreed to go with Rachel to Paris, but he was almost mad at himself for doing so. This is just going to make it that much harder to say goodbye to her, he thought to himself. He knew he just had to get over it. When she moved out of his apartment last year, she had moved on for good. He needed to do the same thing too.
Ross couldn't believe how many different travel websites he had to navigate to find a good deal on a hotel. He finally decided on a four star hotel within walking distance to the Champs-Elysees. He booked two rooms that each had a queen size bed and an eat-in kitchen.
"I might as well have a nice place to stay if I'm gonna do this, right Em?" he asked the toddler as she played with a dinosaur stuffed animal on the floor next to the couch.
"Dino," she answered as she gazed up at her father.
"Oh my God, Emma. Did you just say dino?" Ross jumped to his feet and grabbed Emma. "Good girl," he continued as he stroked her golden hair. "Aw, baby. I'm gonna miss you so much."
"Rachel, come on! We're running late!" Ross shouted to Rachel from the kitchen in Joey's apartment.
"I'm coming," Rachel answered as she came out of the bedroom with two suitcases, a duffle bag, and a carry on bag.
"What are you doing?" Ross asked while staring at all of her bags. "Were going for four days. You're not moving yet."
She dragged everything to the front of the apartment and placed it next to the one bag Ross had brought.
"Ross, we're going to Paris. Did you really expect anything less?"
"I guess not," he responded as he sent a smile her way.
Ross knew it was going to be a very long day. The fact that Rachel had packed her entire closet wasn't going to make getting to the airport any easier. The last time he had flown with her had been only a few months before. Ross, Rachel and their friends had gone to Barbados for his keynote address. However, at that time, the two of them were so focused on other people that they hardly spoke to each other during the trip.
Ross then thought back to the time he and Rachel had playfully flirted with each other when they went to Las Vegas. He loved trying to embarrass her on that flight, but he also thought she was amazingly cute for pouring that water in his lap. To this day, he still enjoyed joking with her about drawing on her face.
Once they were settled on the plane, Rachel started to wonder if anything was bothering Ross. He had been very quiet in the cab ride to the airport, and he read a book while they were waiting to board the plane.
"Hey, you ok?" she asked once the plane had reached a smooth cruising altitude.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?" Ross responded looking up from his book.
"You're just quiet. Usually you babble on and on about the science of aviation or how a plane is like a trendactle."
"That's terradactyl, Rach."
Rachel turned her head to the side and gave him a look that suggested "don't start with me".
"I'm fine. I'm just really into this book," Ross lied.
Rachel knew he wasn't telling her the truth. She knew him better than anyone else did, and she could sense that he was upset about something. Perhaps he was still angry with her for deciding to take Emma away from him. She did feel guilty about that, but this was the chance of a lifetime for her. She didn't want to hurt him though. On some level she knew that a part of her would always care for him as more than a friend. The history that they shared was something that would never be completely erased for her. Looking back over the last few months she finally realized that he had moved on. He had dated Charlie for a while and really cared about her. Meanwhile, after Rachel ended things with Joey she went back to wondering if she would ever find love again.
"So are you going to read for most of the flight? No puzzles?" Rachel asked.
"Probably, why?" he inquired.
"Give me your pen," Rachel answered. She put her hand out in front of him.
"Huh?"
"Come on, give me. You aren't drawing on my face again," Rachel said as she put her hand closer to his face.
"Oh, alright. I was just gonna draw on your arms this time though," Ross smirked while reaching into his bag to find his pen.
Rachel responded with a smile and put the pen in her purse. Ross went back to his book and Rachel listened to her iPod for a while. They both wondered if they should be talking to each other or if spending a few hours in silence was ok. When they were dating, they would lay in bed for hours on end without speaking. They just enjoyed each other's bodies and presence. It was as if no words were ever needed to describe how they felt about each other.
About an hour into the flight Rachel fell asleep. Ross had the window seat and Rachel was in the middle. There was no one sitting in the aisle seat. At first Ross was going to ask Rachel to sit in the other seat so they could have a little breathing room, but he was somewhat flattered that she wanted to sit next to him. As she entered a deeper sleep, Rachel turned her head and rested it on Ross's shoulder. He wasn't sure if he should let her stay that way, but she was peacefully asleep. He didn't want to wake her up, so he found the airline blanket and covered her up. Within the next hour, Ross had fallen asleep as well. His head now rested on top of Rachel's, and they remained that way until the words of the captain woke them up.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please prepare for our descend into Paris."
