So yes.. I'm happy to have gotten some reviews for my first ever fan fic. fakefancritic, if I would have kept your points in my mind, the whole idea of unleashing my imagination could not have been possible. I hope you understand.
Oh yes.. someone said they liked the more hip Ross.. well.. Thiis story has a lot of surprises for you my friend. This story needs Ross to be like that, I guess. The essence is different here. And thanks for the review you gave me, it boosted my confidence!
m4manju thanks for the review dear. It means a lot. I wanted to add many songs that could have been used if Friends was made today or well.. by myself ;)
Now on with the story...
Rachel was in her PJs, lying on her bed in Jessica's bedroom. She was mindlessly switching the bedside lamp on-and-off. She was lost, lost in her thoughts, her thoughts of Ross. She had never felt anything for anybody so quickly. But Ross was different, she could tell. He was a sweet guy. So polite. A gentleman in the making, she concluded.
"Oh no. I can't find it", said Jessica interrupting Rachel's thoughts.
"What? What can't you find?", asked a very curious Rachel.
"Umm you know..there's this cousin I have, who's always talking to me. But now that she has met a guy, she's not even listening to what I'm saying for the past 10 minutes cos she's too busy thinking about him.", said Jessica sarcastically.
Rachel felt too shy now. She could not even find an argument with that. So she continued what she was doing before, thinking of Ross that is.
Rachel smiled recalling how he asked if they could meet again sometime. She couldn't wait for him to call her. And with that, she hugged her blanket tightly and fell asleep with a huge smile spread across her face.
Ross was in the living room at his parent's. He didn't feel like staying at Joey's when he was busy pleasing a girl. But Ross didn't mind. The TV was on. He didn't even know what channel was on because he was busy thinking about Rachel. Call him a hopeless romantic but he just couldn't ignore the fact that they had the same initials and that they met for a reason. He recalled how she accepted to meet him again sometime. His lips curved upwards immediately.
He was thrown back to reality when he heard the house door open. Monica came back with Chandler. The scene infront of Ross' eyes making him wanna throw up. Although he loved them together but of course he didn't want to see his best friend making out with his little sister. He switched the TV off, stood up and turned to them.
"Might wanna see to your left and right.. before you know.. you enter her parent's place", said Ross a little too seriously with a hint of anger that Chandler jumped away from Monica.
"Umm.. You're right. I guess I just got carried away, you know.", slurred Chandler. Monica too embarrassed to be caught like that.
Ross broke into laughter. Chandler was so easy to tease when it came to Monica.
"Gee Ross.. you scared the crap outta me giving that 'Red Ross' look", Chandler joked.
"Come on. I just wanted to see how you react to that. Gotta say.. you did jump a little", Ross said still laughing.
Monica got bored by their quirky acts and soon decided to go to her bedroom, not wanting to be the butt of the jokes between the two friends.
"You seem to be in a good mood. Did little Rossy get some Joey Lovin'?", said Chandler in baby voice, wanting to get some revenge.
Ross gave him a look and said,"I'm gonna ignore that last comment. FYI.. I met the most amazing girl at the bar today", Ross said smiling thinking about Rachel.
"What? Who? How? Where does she live? Is she hot? Why do-", Chandler couldn't stop the questions but was soon interrupted by Ross.
"Slow down there Chaunsie", smirked Ross. He continued,"Her name's Rachel. She was there with two other girls. One of them was her cousin who lives here in Long Island. Umm.. Rachel is from New Jersey but she's here in Long Island for the whole summer. Isn't that great? And.. what was the last question? Oh yea.. Chan I really think it should not matter to you if she's hot. I mean.. Mon IS strong, if you know what I mean", Ross said slowly.
Chandler took in what Ross said. "You know.. I would be offended.. but Monica IS freakishly strong. No arguments there", said Chandler surrendering himself. Ross laughed.
"So you're gonna ask her out?", asked Chandler, already knowing the answer.
"Gee no.. I just go gaga over a girl for the heck of it", said Ross sarcastically.
"I'm gonna call her tomorrow", said Ross more seriously. "You know.. she's the most beautiful girl I have ever seen", Ross confessed.
"By seeing you talk about her like that, I really think you have found THE ONE", Chandler said smiling.
"Yeah?", said Ross. Chandler nodded. "I hope so too, man. But its quite early to say that, don't you think? I mean.. what if she doesn't feel the same way?", said a worried Ross.
"Well.. You have to go out with her to find that out", answered Chandler.
"Yeah.. so how was your date? Pampering my little sister or not, funny boy?", asked Ross in his big brother avatar. Chandler laughed at Ross' change in mood. "Oh yes Sir. Took her to the Tavern in the Greens for a candle light dinner and then for a romantic walk in the Central Park", said Chandler. Ross smiled.
"Anyways I'm gonna go upstairs to say goodbye to Monica. See ya", said Chandler while walking towards the staircase.
Ross headed towards his room eagerly waiting for the sun to rise upon him.
The next morning, the Gellers were having breakfast. Everybody's eating. But Ross is looking at a piece of paper. It is the napkin with Rachel's number.
"Ross, sweetie.. why aren't you having these eggs? Are they not good enough?", asked a concerned Judy, but Monica felt that it was more directed towards her as she was the one who made the breakfast.
"Huh.. no mom. Eggs are perfectly fine. Its just.. well...", he trailed off not knowing what to say.
"Ross met a girl last night at a bar", said Monica smiling.
"Is that why you are not having anything?", asked Jack. Ross shot Monica a look. Chandler must have told her, he thought. He would deal with them later.
"Umm.. I'm just a little nervous about calling her to ask her out, you know..", said a shy Ross.
"Son.. there's nothing to worry about. Be yourself and you'll do just fine!", Jack advised while having a sip of juice from his glass.
"Thanks, Dad. Umm.. I'm gonna excuse myself", said Ross while getting up from his chair and running towards the backyard to have some privacy. He took his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed the number. He heard 3 rings on the other side until someone picked it up.
"Hello.. This is Rachel Greene", said a very chirpy Rachel. Ross could not help but to smile after hearing her voice.
"Uhh.. Hi its me, Ross. Ross Geller.", answered Ross. Rachel felt butterflies in her stomach when she heard his voice. She felt so relieved that he had called.
"Ohh.. Hi. How are ya?", asked Rachel smiling. "I'm good. You?", Ross asked back. "Great", answered Rachel.
Both remained silent for a few seconds until Ross realised he should say something afterall he was the who called her up.
"Umm.. would you mind grabbing that cup of coffee.. with umm.. me today?", Ross asked nervously.
"Oh you know I had to go out with Jess today..", said Rachel trailing off. "Oh..", said Ross, disappointment evident in his tone.
"But.. umm.. I guess I'll just do that some other day", Rachel said, thinking in her mind if Jess would mind. But she couldn't care less about that. She wanted to see Ross afterall.
"You sure? I mean.. we can have coffee some other time", explained Ross, not wanting her to cancel something important but feeling happy that she offered to do that. Rachel on the other side, realised that he was willing to postpone it for her.
"No.. Maybe. Alright. Umm.. maybe tomorrow?", suggested Rachel, hoping Ross was free.
"Yea sure. Say 5-ish?", said Ross. "Perfect", Rachel agreed. "You know Central Perk? Its this great coffee shop on the Grove Street. Me and my friends have coffee there all the time. I'll pick you up" offered Ross.
"Hmm yea.. Jess took me there once. Okay. Do you have a pen and paper ready ?" asked Rachel so that she could give him Jessica's address. She gave him the directions. "Got it.. so its a.. date?", Ross said very slowly, hoping she won't mind. Rachel smiled and replied, "It sure is. Bye, Ross"
"See ya tomorrow", said a very excited Ross. He closed the flap of his cell phone and jumped with joy. "YESSSS", he exclaimed.
Rachel saved his number after hanging up. She's grinning like an idiot.
"Rach.. get down here.. lets go shopping", Jessica called her. "In a minute", yelled Rachel. She took her purse and came down to a very restless Jessica.
"What's with this smile? Wait a second.. I know that smile. He called you, didn't he?", Jessica asked, already knowing the answer.
"Is it that visible?", Rachel asked smiling.
"It's like you've got a hanger in your mouth", joked Jessica. "So.. what did he say?", asked a very curious Jessica.
"He wants to have coffee with me. He-", said Rachel
"And obviously you accepted his offer", Jessica interrupted. "Mm-hmmm", smiled Rachel.
"Alright, tell me what else he said while I'm driving. Come on", Jessica said grabbing Rachel's hand.
"Jess, please. Could we grab something to eat now? I'm starving", Rachel whined carrying so many bags in both of her hands. It had been four hours straight, going from shop to shop and buying so mamy clothes. It was not like she was bored of shopping. Oh no.. she could never get bored of it but she was really, really hungry.
"Oh come on, Rach. We haven't even bought a dress for tomorrow", said Jessica.
"What's tomorrow?", asked a very confused Rachel
"Gee.. Rach.. You forgot you have a date with that guy, tomorrow!", exclaimed Jessica.
"Ross. His name's Ross. Stop referring to him as 'that guy'.", said Rachel gesturing the quotes with her hands. "And about your idea.. It doesn't sound too bad. I mean I could use a new dress, you know", said Rachel nodding her head.
"Let's go, then", said Jessica.
The next day, Ross was standing in front of his wardrobe looking for the perfect clothes for his date with Rachel. After 15 minutes of wondering, he finally decided on Khakhi pants and a navy blue shirt. He put a tad bit of gel in his hair. He was keeping his wallet into the back pocket of his pants when he heard a whistle. It was Monica. "Someone looks fancy", Monica joked looking at Ross.
"Oh you know, she's a fashion major at Yale. I really have to look my best in front of her, don't I?", Ross explained.
"Whoa.. Ross Geller, never really concerned about his fashion sense.. he is going out of his way to impress a girl on their first date!", said Monica shaking her head in disbelief. Ross just smiled.
"I gotta meet this girl, big bro. I wanna see who has done THIS to you", Monica said while pointing at Ross. "Slow down, Mon. This is my first date with her. Let me meet her properly first", said Ross laughing.
"That's the thing, Ross. This IS your first date with her and you're acting like you are already in a very relationship-py place. I hate to be the one saying this but don't get too ahead with your feelings. Take it slow, will ya?", said Monica trying to make her point.
"No.. No you're right. I'll control myself.", said Ross completely understanding Monica's concern for him.
"But hey.. Good luck. I hope it goes well", Monica wished him, giving him a hug and hoped that this Rachel girl would get to see beyond his looks, how kind and caring Ross was.
"Thanks. See ya.", said Ross hugging her back.
Meanwhile at Jessica's... Rachel was running frantically around the place."Jessica, have you seen my black stilettos?", Rachel asked her cousin who was sitting on the couch filing her nails.
"Umm.. check my cupboard, Rach. Maybe I kept them by mistake", Jessica replied.
Her phone rang. "Could you get that, Jess? I'm still not able to find them", yelled Rachel.
"Sure" "Rach, it's Ross", she yelled. "Hello?", said Jessica on the phone. "Hi..umm.. You must be Jessica. Is Rachel there?", asked Ross a little shocked to hear someone else answering her phone.
"Oh yea Hi. She's getting ready. Are you here, already?", said Jessica. "Yes, tell her to come down whenever she's ready. I'll be waiting", Ross replied.
"Why don't you come inside?", suggested Jessica. "Won't that be inappropriate?", Ross asked thinking about her parents being there.
"Oh no.. My parents aren't even here. For the whole week, in fact", answered Jessica. "Umm.. alright. I'll come in, I guess", Ross said unsure. He hung up.
"Rach, Ross is coming", yelled Jessica. "What? Have you lost your mind? Its only our first date today, Jess", Rachel shouted while putting her stilettos on.
"Arghhhh... You're the one who's acting as if it's your fifteenth date with him. Don't blame me", Jessica argued.
The doorbell rung. Rachel looked to the direction of the house door and back. She said, "You're impossible, Jessica Samantha Greene"
"Now go get the door, I have to do some last minute touch up", Rachel ordered her cousin going up into her room.
Jessica got up from the couch. She opened the door and said, "Hey, Ross. Come on in. So... How are ya?"
"I'm fine. And you?", Ross said while looking in all directions but couldn't find Rachel.
"I'm good. How's your friend, Joey?", Jessica asked obviously interested to know more about Joey.
"He's alright. Just.. you know.. in his own world.. doing his own thing", said Ross seriously thinking about what exactly would he be doing right about now. Jessica laughed. "You're funny", said Jessica completely oblivious to the fact that Ross was indeed serious.
Ross was feeling anxious to see her. His wait ended when he heard the sound of her heels. He looked towards the stairs and got up to greet her. "Hey"
"Hi, Ross", Rachel greeted him back with a smile. Finally he got a good look of her. She looked so beautiful. Rachel was also looking at him. He cleans up good, she thought.
"You look.. Wow..", Ross said. "Thank you. You don't look too bad yourself", Rachel replied.
"Shall we?", Ross gestured towards the door so that they could have some privacy.
"Sure, lemme just grab my purse", Rachel said. "Jess, I'm gonna take off now. Be good."
"Okay.. Mom", Jessica mocked, rolling her eyes.
Once outside, Ross led Rachel to his car. She smiled when he opened the door for her. She got in the car. Ross closed the door and got in the driver's seat himself.
They were both silent for a few minutes. They got on the Long Island Expressway and Rachel broke the silence.
"You know, I have never seen a guy picking a girl up on their first date", Rachel said with a serious expression on her face.
Ross got worried. Did she not like it? Did she agree to that so that he wouldn't feel bad? Ross' thoughts were interrupted when Rachel continued,"I found it kinda sweet actually" with a smile.
"For a second there I thought you were gonna give me a piece of your mind", Ross joked. Rachel laughed "Well..I still can"
"Would you mind if I switched the radio on?", asked Ross. "Go ahead", Rachel said.
They fell into a comfortable silence while music was playing. Suddenly, Rachel felt cold so she moved her left hand to lower the air condition. At the same time, Ross moved his right hand to change the channel. The back of their hands touched. They looked at each other and smiled. Both felt a spark.
They finally reached Central Perk. Ross parked the car. He got down and quickly rushed to Rachel's side to open the door for her. He extended his hand to her. She accepted his hand and got out of the car.
They walked the short distance towards the coffee shop. They sat on the love seat by the window.
"It's a nice place, very homely", Rachel commented taking in the surroundings.
"I know what you mean. When I'm in my dorm, Chandler, Joey and myself, we are here all the time", Ross told Rachel.
"Chandler?", Rachel asked curiously.
"Oh.. He's my best friend and room mate. I might add.. He's going out with my little sister", said Ross.
"So you've got a whole group, don't you? That sounds so cool", Rachel said. "Yea it is", Ross said simply.
"Hey.. Shall we order.. I'm kinda thirsty. Plus, that bald guy over there is continuously glaring at us like he's gonna throw us out if we don't order", Rachel joked.
Ross laughed. "Oh that's Gunther. He's just fine. But... yeah we should order", Ross said while looking around.
"Excuse me", he signaled a waitress to come over their table. "I'd like to have a Café Latte with a Blueberry Muffin", said Rachel already knowing what she wanted to have."And I'll have an iced tea with a Danish Pastry, please", Ross ordered.
Rachel looked at a couple sharing an ice-cream outside the window. She smiled. She turned back to Ross to find him already staring at her. "You do that a lot, don't you?", said a very amused Rachel. Ross was confused. "Huh.. Sorry?"
"We have met twice and it seems I've caught you staring at me like a million times", Rachel said shaking her head.
"Oh.. Don't blame me. I can't help it. You're beautiful", Ross said sweetly. Rachel blushed. The way Ross said that made her heart flutter.
"I want to confess something", Ross said looking down. When he looked up he found that Rachel was still silent so he continued. "Umm.. First let me make this clear to you that umm.. I don't do this very often.. I mean.. I just.. When I saw you the other night, it was a different feeling. Good different, you know. Umm.. what I really wanted to say is that.. I guess.. umm.. I-I ", he was so nervous confessing about his feelings. Rachel found it adorable.
Before Ross could continue, the waitress came over with their order. They politely said "thankyou" and the waitress left. Ross was feeling embarrassed, Rachel could tell. So she kept her hand over Ross' and squeezed it. Feeling her hand, he looked at her and then back at their hands.
"I know, Ross. I am feeling the same way", Rachel said with a smile.
"Really?", asked Ross with a his eyes shining. Rachel nodded."I was worried that I had completely lost it. My sister gave me a whole speech about how my actions showed that I was already in a 'relationship-py place'. Can you believe it?", Ross told Rachel about the talk he had with Monica.
"Oh.. Jess said the same thing to me. She said it seemed like we were going out on a fifteenth date", Rachel said laughing but soon stopped and got serious. "So.. you aren't afraid of your feelings?", Rachel asked consciously.
"Han? umm.. Yeah.. initially.. yes, maybe I was. But now, hearing that you feel the same way.. I feel great, you know. I mean.. I really enjoyed our talk at the bar. It is maybe fast, but it seems right", Ross said squeezing her hand with a smile on his face.
"It does feel right", Rachel agreed.
Both took a sip from their drinks. They felt so comfortable with each other. They didn't talk after that. Not because they didn't know what to say. But they didn't need to. They often would glance at each other and smile. Soon they finished their drinks. Ross paid the cheque and they both left. Once outside, Ross turned towards Rachel and asked, "Up for a walk around the village?"
"Mm-hmmm", Rachel smiled. Ross boldly took Rachel's hand and led her to the streets.
They are walking hand-in-hand on the streets of New York. Ross is showing her around. He's also telling her about the history of the places they come across. Rachel's loving every minute she's spending with him.
Ross asks,"hey.. what do you say we get some Chinese take out and have a little picnic at Central Park?"
"Oh I'd love that", says Rachel loving his idea. They walk a few more blocks to China Gate.
They enter the South block of Central Park. They're looking for a perfect spot for their dinner.
"Ross.. let's go uphill over there. We'll be able to get a good view of the stars", exclaimed Rachel pulling his arm.
Rachel ran and sat on the grass itself, without even thinking that her dress will be spoiled.
"Rach, don't you think you'd be more comfortable over there?", Ross suggested pointing towards a bench.
"No, Ross. Let's just sit over here. It feels good to be close to nature. Let's.. let's be down to earth", Rachel joked patting the spot next to her.
Ross smiled. There was so much more to Rachel than just a pretty face, that's what he thought the night he first saw her. Today, he was sure of that.
Ross sat down with her. They started to open their food packages.
"So tell me about this sister of yours. You mentioned her quite a few times before", Rachel said to Ross.
"Monica... She's in the culinary school. Soon-to-be chef. Makes amazing lasagne. You already know she's dating my best friend. Oh and she's a clean freak", Ross told Rachel thinking about his cleanliness obsessed sister.
Rachel laughed. "Every girl is a clean freak"
"Oh you're saying that cos you've never met her. I mean.. her level of cleanliness is ten steps up from a hospital even. She refers it as Monica Clean", Ross joked making Rachel laugh even more if it was possible.
"She seems like an interesting person", Rachel said in between the laughter.
"Ahh.. she's alright", Ross said sarcastically. "What about your family?", asked Ross while having his eggroll.
"My dad.. he's in Vascular Surgery and my mom's a housewife. I have two younger sisters, Jill and Amy.. who have done a PhD in making my life hell", Rachel said thinking about her childhood. Now it was Ross' turn to break into fits of laughter.
"Alright.. Let's just eat now. My food's gonna come out if I laugh even a tad more", said Ross controlling his laughter.
They both finished their meals, put the disposables on one side and decided to lay down beneath the blanket of stars. They were happy. They felt content.
"You see that small cluster of stars with the scattered one, it's ursa major", Ross told Rachel pointing towards the sky.
"Really?", Rachel turned. "Dunno.. could be!", Ross said. Both laughed.
After spending about a half an hour looking at the stars, Rachel turned to see Ross staring at her. "What?"
"Nothing", Ross said. They both looked into each other's eyes. They soon got lost in there. Suddenly, Rachel looked down at her watch and gasped. "Oh it's 10 already. We're late, Ross. I didn't even call Jess I'd be late. Oh God, she'll be angry", Rachel started rambling.
Ross kept his hand on her shoulder,"hey.. shhh.. we'll leave right now. I'll drop you off, come on."
They drove to Long Island. They reached Jessica's house. They were still in the car. "This is me", said Rachel.
"Yea.. I really had fun tonight", Ross told Rachel. "I know, I don't think I have ever laughed that much in my entire life", Rachel said recalling the events of their date.
Ross started leaning towards her. She knew what was about to follow. She closed her eyes not really knowing whether she wanted to or not. Their lips were merely apart when Ross opened his eyes to see Rachel's expression. Her eyes were closed and lips parted. He moved his face to his left and kissed her on her right cheek lightly.
Rachel's eyes shot open. She was disappointed. Now she knew that she wanted to kiss him. Reading her expression almost immediately, Ross put her flick behind her right ear and whispered,"Don't be sad. I think we must take it slow. I wanna have a second official date with you to do that" Rachel smiled.
"O yea? I thought you would never ask", said an awestruck Rachel. All she could think was how amazing her first date was, how wonderful Ross was!