Attired in a tiny t shirt adorned with a large red heart, the florist girl breathed a sigh of relief. After a long afternoon of boyfriends and husbands who had to make last minute purchases, she had a reprieve. Looking down at her phone, a message brought a smile to her face. It was her boyfriend and she couldnt wait for the Valentines Day to come. A male voice brought her back to the present.

"Excuse me." Ross said in a timid voice. The girl looked at him. "May I help you?" Ross began to move around the florist as he looked at what was left this late in the day. "I am sorry sir, we had a better selection earlier." she apologized. Ross eyed the flowers. Roses? No that would be for someone who was in love and they were not that. Carnations were too plain, and that was definitely not Rachel. Daisies were too cheap looking. Then he saw the only remaining lillies left, there were only five of them. He grabbed them and explained, "They are her favorites."

"I could take some other flowers and fillers to make a nice bouquet." she offered. Ross gave her the flowers and she looked to see what was left in the store. The girl added some pink roses and carnations and some baby's breath. Then she gathered some ferns and tied them with a pink ribbon.

"I hope she likes them." He paid her and then he sailed out the door. There were more things to get.

Since Mona had taken their Valentines dinner, Ross realized that he was starving. He figured that Rachel would be as well, so he went to their favorite Italian restaurant and got some spaghetti and garlic bread. Walking down the street further, he saw a heart shaped cheesecake in the window of a bakery. On the top were two strawberries. Cheesecake just happened to be her favorite dessert. He exited carrying a large , pink shopping bag. Next he went to the newsstand to get her some candy. He debated getting her a bag of candy bars, but decided to get her a heart shaped box instead. While he was there , he picked up a British Vogue, Fit Pregnancy, and Baby magazines for Rachel.

Card shopping seemed to be the most difficult task of all. If Ross got the wrong one, he could make things worse. He looked through the stacks of cards and found one that made him laugh. It had a pink dinosaur on the front and said I DIG YOU. That would have been fine if Rachel and him were in grade school, but not now. He then saw the flowery and mushy cards. They reminded him of the only Valentine s Day that they celebrated as a couple. He would give Rachel one of these cards every day with a special surprise for the actual day. The memories brought a smile and a tear. What the hell happened to them? He continued to blame himself years later for a mistake made one night. If only he could go back and not gone to that bar . If only he could have not gotten drunk and believed there was nothing between Mark and her, then maybe they would have had a chance yet. Maybe he would be shopping for his wife, not his pregnant ex girlfriend who was living with him while he dated other women. He saw cards that used words like "Friend" or "Best friend." For some reason, those cards didnt appeal to him either. Moving down the row, he found the perfect card that talked of a special relationship. It was rather lengthy but he could picture her holding it and crying. It did seem to say everything he wanted to say to her.The best part was that it was not for romance or a buddy, it was for them . Grabbing a bear for the baby and a box of chocolates, he was on his way home. He wanted to get wine, but remembered that Rachel couldnt drink , so he got a bottle of sparkling grape juice.

"Where did you go?" Rachel asked when she realised he had finally gotten home. "Did you go after Mona?" Ross opened the bag and pulled out the bouquet. "Nope, it is Valentines Day. And since you are giving me the best gift you can give me, a baby, I want you to be my Valentine." he handed her the flowers and kissed her on the cheek. He cleared the table and then took out the carry out containers and cheesecake. "Tonight we are going to have a special dinner. Just as friends. Best friends." Rachel was so excited that she and Ross could spend some time together. She moved over to the couch as he set their table. He took the candles he was going to use for Mona and lit them for her. "This is so sweet." she cooed. Next he pored the juice into the glasses. "To my Valentine." he toasted. She gave him the sweetest smile as her glass brushed up against his. He just drank down the juice and then went back to the bag. He took out the magazines first. "This is for our baby." he said as he handed her the pink bear."I have a feeling it is going to be a girl."

"It 's so cute." Rachel said as she hugged it. "Oh candy, Ross you are going to spoil me." she said as he handed her the chocolates. "You are my valentine after all." he answered.

Next he handed her the card. She opened it and then began to read. Her eyes began to water as she looked over to see him dishing out the food onto his own plates. She was speechless. She had no idea this was how he felt. It was obvious that he had taken a lot of time to pick the card out. She took special attention to the phrase

"I am so glad to have you a part of my life."

Rachel thought back on their relationship. When she walked into that coffee shop, she never dreamed that she would see the man who would be the father of her child and her best friend. She also thought of her best friend and how she and her best friend had become the most loving couple she knew. Friendship was good and it could be the start of something really great. But she had been hurt and she said when she found out about the baby, she could do this alone. Now as the birth date approached, she began to wonder if she could. It began to dawn on her that he could be as perfect of a father to her child as he already was to Ben. As he lovingly placed the cheesecake on the plate and took the strawberry and placed it on the cut piece, she could only stare at him.

"Dinner is served, madame." he announced in a poor French accent as she laughed . Rachel rubbed her hands together and sat in front of the plates. She took her fork and speared the veal. In silence, the two of them ate and wondered what the other was thinking .

"Well, I think that someone wants to go to sleep." Rachel said as she lifted herself from the couch. Ross hurried to help her up. She walked to the bedroom holding her teddy bear . She turned to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I just wanted to say Thanks. This has been a really great night and if it is any consolation, Mona lost the best man in the world." She turned the corner to the door. He stopped her and placed his hand on her belly. She opened the door and then said. "Good night." He just stood there and watched her close her bedroom door. He was beginning to feel something he hadnt felt in quite a while. He was feeling love .