Hello! Apparently, I chose the worst day to post new chapters xD Every Saturday, when I am supposed to post, something happens and I don't have my computer with me. Anyway, this chapter is a bit shorter, because if I wrote more, then the next one would be too small.

Ross was confused when his new classmate asked to sit with him at lunch. Maybe he hadn't heard about him yet. After all, school had started only a few days ago. Nevertheless, he didn't deny the company, even if it would be only for that day.

Since the end of the first trimester, Ross had lost most of his friendships. Half of his friends had stopped talking to him since the "rumour" about him kissing the old librarian started. The other ones didn't share his passion for palaeontology and thought his interesting facts were dull. He wished he knew who had started that damn rumour that destroyed his social life. Ross was pissed with whoever had seen him at the library. The person not only didn't dare to tell in his face what she'd seen but had also shared the incident with the whole school.

Ross noticed that Chandler, the new boy who had asked to sit with him, seemed nervous. However, when Ross tried to make a joke about being new at school, he visibly relaxed, although his joke was not as funny as he had wanted. After introducing themselves, they actually had a good time together. Chandler made a few jokes that Ross found funny and seemed interested in Ross's explanation about why the keychain hanging from his backpack was a dinosaur. That meant a lot to Ross because people usually would make fun of him because of it.

The bell rang, ending the final class of the afternoon. Immediately, Ross searched for Chandler.

"Hey, I have to wait for my sister to go home. Would you like to make me some company?" He asked.

"I would love to, but I signed for the chess club, which is today," Chandler answered.

"Why don't you come too?" He added.

Ross declined Chandler's invitation. He knew a guy at the chess club that upset him about the rumour more than everyone else, and Ross wasn't in the mood for it.

The next day, Ross had expected to have lunch with Chandler again. However, when he arrived at the cafeteria, he saw that Chandler was already at a table with a girl he couldn't remember the name of. He started pondering whether to join them when he noticed Rachel was sitting with his sister at a table near the windows.

"Hello!" He greeted the girls while putting his food tray on the table.

"Ross? What are you doing here? Where is your new friend that you talked so much about yesterday?" Monica inquired him.

"What? Can't have lunch with my sister anymore?"

Rachel made a face at his statement. Monica looked at her for a moment, and both girls shared a silent conversation.

"Fine. You can have lunch with us," Monica gave in.

"But, don't make a habit out of it! You can have lunch with us only once a week," Rachel added.

"Why?" Ross whined. He was hoping that now that his sister and her best friend were spending more time together, he could take advantage to try to spend more time with Rachel.

"Because, Ross, we want to talk about stuff without you here," Monica explained.

"Unless you want to hear what your sister wants to do with Chip Matthews…," Rachel said suggestively.

"Rach!" Monica yelled in her high-pitched tone, and Ross wished he hadn't seen the blush that appeared on her face.

"Fine, fine. I won't be here pestering you every day," Ros said.

Luckily for him, the rest of the lunchtime was calm, without any more mentions of his sister's love life. Moreover, since the first time Ross could remember, Rachel had talked more naturally with him. As if she saw him as a possible friend and not only Monica's older brother.

Later that day, Ross stood by his locker picking up some books, ready to go to the library to do his homework. Suddenly, he felt a presence behind him and turned around to see who it was.

"Hey! I thought you would have lunch with me today," He said when he saw it was Chandler.

"Oh, sorry about that. I was with Susan, she's in my English class. But you could've joined us," Chandler answered.

"It's okay; I had lunch with my sister. She was with Rachel, so it wasn't so bad," Ross said, forgetting that no one was supposed to know about his crush on Rachel.

"You mean Rachel Greene?!" Chandler asked, surprised.

"Yes, that Rachel," Ross confirmed.

"Did I hear Rachel?" A familiar voice behind them asked.

"You found a new member for the club, Ross?" Will asked.

Ross wished he had kept his mouth shut. It seemed like the misunderstanding about his feelings for Rachel would chase him for the rest of his life.

"What club? Am I missing something?" Chandler asked, confused.

"The "I hate Rachel Greene club!" Will exclaimed. "I heard you two talking about Rachel and assumed she also did something horrible to you, right?"

Ross could tell that Chandler didn't know what to say but managed to give him a look that silently said to try to dodge the conversation. Luckily, his new friend seemed to understand the message.

"I... Rachel didn't do anything to me. We were just talking about her."

"So, you don't hate Rachel? But she is so mean, you should join our club. Tell him, Ross," Will insisted.

"Yeah..., she is so mean. You should hate her too...," Ross said, although not so convincingly.

"Think about it. Now, if you excuse me, I am late for my class," Will said.

As soon as Will walked away, Chandler turned to Ross with a confused expression.

"What was all that about? I thought you were saying that your lunch was not that bad because Rachel was there, but then this guy shows up, and suddenly you hate her?" Chandler asked.

"Okay, but promise not to tell anyone. Especially Rachel!"Ross started.

"Okay, okay."

And then, Ross proceeded to explain to Chandler how he was trapped in the "Rachel" club. He started by telling him about his crush on Rachel. Next, he told him about the Halloween incident and how he had let Will believe that he, too, hated Rachel. And finally, how that misunderstanding led to the creation of the club.

Ross trusted Chandler, and he felt like he was his only friend, so he left the part about the rumour out of his story. Maybe it would die soon, and Chandler would never need to hear about it.