Emma and Ross walked outside of the studio. The sky was rather cloudy, and Emma thought how grateful she was for the sunny and beautiful weather throughout the week. Emma could not help but think the clouds reminded her of her emotions today; dreary, gloomy. Emma wondered if Ross had similar emotions to her own. Based on her discussion with Rocky moments before, it sounded as though Ross had been acting much differently from his usual self that morning.
"Do you want to see the dress Rydel bought for me?" Emma asked Ross. Emma held the bag containing the dress Rydel had just given her in one hand. Emma held Ross' hand with her other hand. Ross tried to smile. "Rydel showed it to me when she came back from the mall with it. When is that dance again?" Ross asked. "It's in a few weeks. April 23." Emma told Ross. "And it's not just some dance. It's prom. It's kind of a big deal." Emma said with a smile and a chuckle. She hoped Ross would realize she was not being totally serious. Emma was not like some of the girls in her high school. Some girls needed to go all-out for prom. These girls bought the $400 and $500 prom dresses with sparkles all over them. These girls needed perfect make-up and hair on the day of prom. Manicures and pedicures and limos and expensive dinners were a few of the things some girls really wanted to have a perfect prom. Emma both did not desire all of these things and she did not have the funds to do all of the things. Emma planned on painting her own nails for prom. She may wear earrings and one bracelet or necklace, but she did not plan on shelling out a lot of money on jewelry. Emma did have one splurge planned on the morning of prom- a hair appointment to get a nice up-do. "Oh, my bad." Ross said with a smile, catching on to Emma's lack of seriousness.
As Emma put the bag containing her dress into her car, Ross quietly said "So..." He appeared to be wondering how he should word what he wanted to say. "If someone asks you to this dance... will you go with them?" Emma looked up at Ross, who looked back at Emma. "No." Emma said. Ross smiled, and Emma smiled back. 'And this is where we are.' Emma thought. 'I'm not going to find someone I like as much as this guy right here.' "I'm probably going to try and get a group of friends together for prom. That sounds like fun to me." Emma stated.
Emma's back was to her car. She thought for a split second of the previous night. Emma's back was against the wall in the bathroom at Ross's house. Emma had chased Ross around in an attempt to get back the sweatshirt she wanted to borrow from Ross. 'Running around and being silly with you,' Emma thought 'I am going to miss that so much.' Emma then remembered how Ross leaned in and gave Emma her first kiss. Now, Emma looked up at Ross. Ross was looking at the ground now. He looked like he was thinking. He looked exhausted. And sad.
"You will text me later, right?" Ross finally spoke up. Emma smiled and nodded. She then added, "Your mom told me this morning I can come visit sometime. I was thinking I could start saving money for a plane ticket, and then I can come visit you guys this summer."
Ross smiled at the thought of Emma visiting his family again. "I knew she would say you could stay with us. I mean, she thinks you're awesome." Ross told Emma. "So... summertime? Like, in a couple of months? Don't you think you could miss a little school and visit me sooner?" Emma laughed at Ross's question. "I should probably go to school." Emma said with a chuckle. Ross smiled. "Oh, fine." he said. Ross's smile seemed to fade as he remembered that Emma was about to leave.
Emma embraced Ross. "I can't believe how lucky I am." Emma told Ross. "I got to be in an episode of Austin and Ally. I got to see this amazing city. I met you and your family. This trip was amazing." Ross wrapped his arms around Emma. Ross was wearing a soft T-shirt that felt good against Emma's face. Emma felt incredibly sad when she realized she may not get to hug Ross again for a while. "That's funny," Ross began. "I was just thinking I was the lucky one because I got to meet you." Emma smiled. She squeezed Ross a little tighter. Emma knew she really needed to get going to the airport. 'Just one more minute with this sweet, amazing guy.' Emma thought.
As Emma felt her minute slip away, her eyes began to water. 'Don't cry.' Emma told herself. 'Stay strong for Ross.' Emma took a deep breath. This was the moment she had been dreading. Emma was not really sure what to say. "I should go, Ross." Emma started. She slowly let go of Ross. Ross had been pretty quiet during their hug. Emma wondered what he was thinking. Emma had not looked up at Ross's face yet. "Th-this isn't goodbye, okay?" It was getting harder for Emma to speak. She felt her eyes continue to water. "I'll see you again." Emma finally looked up at Ross. Ross was not looking at Emma. He was looking at the ground. And Emma could understand why Ross was not looking at her. Looking at Ross made Emma feel even more sad.
"I really like you, Emma." Ross stated. He now looked at Emma. Emma happened to be looking back. "And... I'll really miss you." Emma smiled. She started to cry. Emma felt so many different feelings. She knew something for sure- She liked Ross and would miss him so much. Emma felt happiness knowing that Ross felt that same way about her as she did about him. Seeing Ross look so sad brought Emma so much pain. "I'll talk to you later, okay?" Emma managed to quietly say to Ross. Emma turned around and opened her car door. She got in her car and started the car. The rest of the world seemed to be silent as Emma reversed her car out of its parking space and drove out of the parking lot. Emma began sobbing. She tried to focus on the road as she drove to the airport.
Ross slowly walked to the entrance of the studio where they filmed Austin and Ally. Laura was standing just inside the door. She looked very nervous. "Hey," she started. "Brian said you can take a few minutes if you want. No rush." Ross looked at his friend and nodded. Ross headed to his dressing room where he began to cry. Ross kicked a couple of pieces of furniture in the small room in his frustration and sadness. He then tried to quickly prepare to get back to work. 'The last thing I want to do right now is act.' Ross thought. 'I guess that's why they call it acting.' Within minutes Ross was exiting his dressing room, still holding in a lot of his sadness.