Season Nine Opener
Tangling and untangling the Ross/Rachel/Joey dilemma after the season eight finale. All characters are included.
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, or the opening lines and images of this piece of fiction, which are taken from the last minutes of the finale.
Part One
Rachel breaks the embrace. "Oh honey, could you grab me my other box of tissues?" she says, pointing to an unreachable chair. "They're right on that chair, under Ross' coat."
"Sure." Joey let her go, and his eyes follow her outstretched hand. He goes to the chair, picking up Ross' coat. Something small and heavy falls to the ground. Joey drops to his knees, intrigued, and searches for the fallen object. Once found, he realizes it is a ring box. He opens it, awestruck. "Oh my God . . ." Joey examines Ross' beautiful ring carefully.
Rachel's voice interrupts his thoughts. "Joey?" she begins. Joey turns around, knees and head first, upper body following as he looks at Rachel. His eyes are wide and innocent, the ring still in his hand. "Oh my God," she says, echoing Joey's earlier words. Joey looks down again, a smile about to pass his lips as he gazes at Ross' ring. Rachel is looking at Joey, an unreadable expression on her face. She pauses a moment, then breathes, "Okay."
Joey immediately looks confused. He looks at the ring, then and then up at Rachel, his eyes growing wide when he realizes she thinks he is proposing. His face registers surprise, understanding, angst, and perhaps a hint of joy.
Outside and down the hall, an elevator door opens, and Ross looks around before stepping out. He carries a bouquet of white lilies enveloped in lavender tissue paper. He walks down the hall towards Rachel's room, his head filled with the words he plans on speaking when entering. He looks up when he hears giddy laughter ahead of him. Monica and Chandler come careening around the corner, obviously excited about something. They both have corny smiles on their faces.
"Hey there Ross!" Monica looks absolutely delighted to see her brother. She gestures to the flowers in his hand. "Oooh, who are those for? Got the hots for some cute nurse?"
"What?" Ross said, genuinely confused. "Oh, no, these are for Rachel. Kind of a congratulations type of thing." He immediately wonders why he lied. Phoebe knew of his plan, why couldn't his sister and his best friend know? He shook the guilty feeling off, and took a step in the direction of Rachel's room, only to be stopped by Chandler.
"Oh that's sweet," said Chandler, his expression turning serious. "So how's she doing? Rachel, I mean. Is she sleeping yet?"
Ross just looked at him, a little annoyed that he was being delayed. "I don't know, Chandler. But that's where I'm headed, so . . ." he gestured to the flowers, and cocked his head in the direction of Rachel's door down the hall, giving Chandler a stern look.
"Oh, right!" A goofy smile appeared once again on Chandler's face as realization dawned. "Well, I'll let you get to your congratulating, Mon and I are headed to the gift shop, if you need us."
Monica laughed. "Yeah, but for a different reason than flowers," she quipped, and smiled slyly at Chandler. He simply smiled back. "Well come on! Let's go already!" she nearly shouted in Chandler's ear.
Chandler jumped at the loudness, and raised his eyebrows in mock surprise at Monica's outburst. He then turned and yelled "See ya" to Ross as he and Monica flew down the hall in search of the gift shop. Ross rolled his eyes in a bemused sort of way, and continued down the hall to Rachel's room.
Phoebe peeked around the corner, a small grin on her face. She wasn't going to miss this. This was entirely too good. She had waited for what seemed like ages for Ross and Rachel to get back together, and she wanted to be the first one to congratulate them when they felt like announcing it. She watched Ross make his way past the nurses' station to the end of the corridor where Rachel's room was, and smiled to herself again. Ross paced for a while outside her room, head down, brow furrowed in concentration. He looked worried. Phoebe mentally sent out happy and calming thoughts. There, she thought, that ought to help.
Meanwhile . . .
Joey's face is still frozen in its wide-eyed expression, the ring box having tumbled from his hands and onto the floor. "Joey?" He hears a soft and seemingly distant voice call his name. "Joey, are you okay? Joey? Joey!!!" Finally he snaps out of his daze, and recognizes that the voice belonged to Rachel, whose face came slowly into focus. Rachel smiled warmly at him. "Hey there, Joe. Welcome back to earth."
"Earth?" he simply asks, his forehead wrinkling in confusion.
"Well, I think you left me there for a minute. You were off in your own little world." Another smile played across her lips. "Did I scare you?" she teased.
"Well, yeah!" Joey's face suddenly became animated. "You scared the hell out of me! And I don't even know if I heard you right, 'cause my ears are ringing really badly and I feel like I'm about to fall over!"
"Joey," Rachel said calmly, looking directly into his eyes. "Joey, come here." He stood up, walking toward her, but she stopped him mid-step. "Aren't you going to bring the ring with you?" she asked playfully.
"Uh," Joey stuttered, his mind racing. How the heck was he going to get out of this? He had to take the proposal back. Somehow, preferably without breaking her heart, he had to undo the damage. "Umm, right. Rach, about that, I don't know if that's the best . . . I mean, I don't know if it's such a great idea to go down that—" He stopped short when he caught a glimpse of Rachel's face. It had changed immediately upon the utterance of his words. Before it had been relaxed, happy, and playful. Now, Rachel's features were twisted with anguish. Her brow was furrowed in confusion, and her eyes betrayed pain and sadness. He's taking it back, she thought. He's taking the proposal back. Her heart broke for the second time that day. First Ross, now Joey. She really was going to be all alone.
Rachel's eyes began to tear up for what seemed like the millionth time that day, but these tears weren't pure exhaustion and hormones. It was deep sadness and self-doubt that made her shoulders shake uncontrollably. "But you promised," she whispered through her tears. "Joey, you promised that I would never be alone." She sniffed as Joey stood by helplessly. He would love to hug her, but he was afraid she would flinch under his touch. "Joey?"
"Yeah, Rach?"
"I could really use those tissues right now."
"Oh! Right." Joey readily retrieved her extra box of tissues. He pulled a couple of the tissues out and paused momentarily before kneeling before her and dabbing her eyes. She didn't flinch. On the contrary, her face softened as she let Joey dry her face and tuck a few stray strands of hair behind her ear. He smiled slightly, knowing what he had to do. He took a deep breath, preparing himself to send the only woman he had ever loved into the arms of the one person who truly deserved her: Ross.
"Rachel," he began unsteadily, "About my promise, I wasn't about to break it. It's just, I'm not sure if that was exactly how it was supposed to happen," he said genuinely, his eyes locking with hers.
"What do you mean?" she breathed, her heart racing.
"I can't explain," said Joey, thinking that Ross would probably want to propose himself. He took her hand in his, trying to stop himself from thinking that this was the closest he had ever gotten to making Rachel his. He shook the thought off.
Outside, the doorknob turned, and the door opened ever so slowly to reveal a nervous Ross. Neither Rachel nor Joey noticed.
"Then I'll explain," Rachel whispered, and gently leaned forward to kiss Joey on the mouth. The kiss was brief, and more friendly than romantic, but the repercussions were endless. At the door, Ross's lilies slid from his hand and onto the floor, shock cascading through his body. He stumbled backwards as tears escaped from his eyes. The door slowly swung closed on the scene, leaving the lilies inside and their owner leaning grief-stricken on the opposite wall outside.
Part Two
Inside, Rachel and Joey jumped when they heard the soft bang the door made as it shut, leaving them in solitude once again. Silence ensued as they both looked confusedly at each other, the moment between them broken. Joey noticed the flowers first, and closed his eyes in fear. "Oh no," he said under his breath. Please don't let them be Ross's, he thought. Please. His prayers went unanswered.
"What?" Rachel asked upon seeing the look of apprehension on Joey's face. "What is it?"
Joey returned his gaze to Rachel, sadness in his eyes. He had ruined everything. He shouldn't have let her kiss him. It was all his fault. He had given her the opportunity. His heart gave an almighty wrench as he realized that he had ruined two people's chance at happiness. Maybe not, he thought. Maybe there's still time . . . Joey held Rachel's gaze for a moment longer, then said "Hold on, Rach," and got up and walked over to the bouquet of flowers. They were lilies. His heart sank even further as he knelt to examine the card. It read, Sometimes things can be simple. I love you. Ross.
"Joey, what is it?"
"It's nothing, Rach. But stay her for a moment. Rest a while. I have to take care of something. I'll be right back," said Joey. She simply nodded and watched him run from the room. She lay back down on her pillows and welcomed peace and quiet. Sleep finally caught up with her, and her eyes closed almost immediately.
Phoebe's smile faded as she watched Ross stumble backwards out of Rachel's room just moments after he had entered it. Questions raced through her mind as she ran down the hall towards him. Ross slumped against the wall, letting gravity do its job as he slid to the floor, head in his hands and tears running silently down his cheeks. He felt a hand on his shoulder and raised his head to see Phoebe, concern in her eyes. She didn't say anything. She asked him no questions, and he didn't offer up any information. She simply sat on the floor beside him and took his hand in hers, letting the her tears flow too.
Suddenly, in front of them, the door to Rachel's room flew open. A panicked Joey looked wildly around. Although he was sitting directly in front of them, Joey didn't see who he was looking for. He turned and ran down the corridor. "Ross! Ross! Ross, where are you?!"
"Joey!" came a harsh voice. "He is right here." Joey whirled around to see Phoebe standing in front of him. He jumped back, surprised by her presence. "What happened?" she demanded. "What did you do?" She jabbed her finger at him.
Joey ignored the question and went directly to Ross, kneeling in front of him so their heads were level. "Ross . . ." he began.
"Save it, Joe," Ross interrupted his friend. "I don't want to hear anything. No excuses, no reasons, no pleas. I came too late. She belongs with you now." Ross didn't feel like arguing, and he didn't look at Joey as he said this, his head was still buried in his hands.
Joey let the silence that ensued sink in, and used it to choose the words he wished to tell Ross. "Ross, what I'm about to say is hard for me, so just bear with me," Joey began slowly, and Ross looked up and met Joey's eyes. They were dead serious. "And I promise that I won't offer any excuses, or reasons, or pleas." He took a breath and continued. "I do not belong with Rachel. I never have, really, and I never will. But there is one person who does, and that's you." He paused and looked at Phoebe, who smiled encouragingly. "Ross, we all need to be on the same side here. Whatever you saw inside that room," Joey gestured to the door behind him, "was all one big mess. That kiss was never supposed to happen!"
"You guys kissed?!" cried Phoebe.
"Not helping!!!" exclaimed Joey, scowling at Phoebe. He turned back to Ross. "I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and Rachel is just plain confused. She hasn't slept in like three days, her body has been through hell, and her hormones are all messed up," he explained. Then he realized something. "Oh crap! That probably sounded like an excuse!" He shook his head and looked at Ross, who smiled slightly. "But anyway, there's uh, there's a bit more that I wanted to say. Uh, earlier in there, I promised Rachel that she would never be alone. And I intend to keep that promise, even if I am not the one to fulfill it. She needs you Ross. Both her and Emma." Ross was looking at Joey intently, and saw the pain in his eyes as he spoke. Ross knew that look all too well. He knew what it felt like to give up the woman he loved.
Joey stood up, and extended his hand to Ross. Ross looked up at him, and resolve formed in both of their eyes. He grasped Joey's outstretched hand, which pulled him abruptly on his feet and into a bear hug. When they parted, Joey exclaimed, "Well what are you waiting for, Ross? Go in there! Oh, but wake her up gently, she's trying to sleep." He smiled brightly, his heart glad that he had done the right thing. To his surprise and Phoebe's, Ross smiled heartily back.
"Right," he said and tuned towards the door. "Oh, wait," he said turning back, suddenly nervous. "I can't go in there right now. I look like crap!" He desperately tried to smooth his crumpled shirt and dry his tear-stained face. Phoebe laughed at his attempts.
"Good God, Ross. Who cares?" she looked incredulously at him. "Rachel probably looks worse. She's been crying for two days!"
"I don't know, she looked really good when I opened the door there a minute ago," Ross looked at Phoebe doubtfully.
"Yeah, she did look pretty grea—" Joey stopped short when Ross gave him a stern glare. "Okay, I'm not going to talk for a while now."
"No, you're right," Phoebe said, surveying Ross. "You do look like crap."
Ross's eyes narrowed. "Thanks," he said dryly.
"Oh, come on, this is perfect. I have an idea." Both Joey and Ross looked skeptically at her, traces of winces on their faces as if they were afraid of the next words that dared to tumble out of her mouth. "Oh, stop it you two. This actually might work." With this, Joey and Ross's winces grew visibly.
"Fine, spill it, Pheebs," said Ross.
"Okay. Umm, Ross, you come with me. I can get you really cleaned up. Joey, you go back in there—"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" exclaimed Joey. "Go back in there?! Are you crazy?!"
"Yes, are you?!' chimed in Ross, a bit of anger in his voice.
"Uh, nooooo," said Phoebe, stating the obvious. "Listen to me. You two have clearly not thought everything through. Rachel still thinks she and Ross don't have a chance. She still thinks she's with you!" Phoebe spoke to Joey, trying to persuade him. She sighed when he didn't seem convinced. "This is the only way this will work. Joey, if you don't explain things to her, and Ross just goes in there and says whatever he's going to say, she'll be even more confused. And let's face it, we don't need that right now!"
Joey looked toward Ross, who sighed. "Yeah, okay. I guess you're right, Pheebs," Ross hated to admit it. She smiled graciously. "But if it goes wrong, you're dead. Dead, Phoebe." Joey laughed slightly at his friend's threat. "For that matter, so are you, Joey." Joey immediately stopped chuckling, and nodded enthusiastically.
"Gotcha," he said, and eyed Ross uneasily, who was glaring at him.
"Right! Let's go! Operation Ross and Rachel!" said Phoebe brightly and dragged Ross, still glaring, in search of a vacant bathroom in which to clean him up.
Joey tore his eyes from the pair of them, and faced the task before him. He stood a moment in front of Rachel's door, and breathed deeply, gathering his thoughts before grasping the handle firmly and entering her room. He smiled at the sight of her. She lay peacefully in her bed, asleep for the first time in days. Her face was still and quiet. He hated to wake her. Joey walked noiselessly to her bed, and bending down, gently shook her shoulders until her eyes opened sleepily. A smile spread itself across her face at the sight of Joey.
"Hey Joey," she greeted, and stretched her arms, yawning. "How long have I been asleep? It seems like only a few minutes." She furrowed her brow and sat forward, as if trying to recall something. "Although, that always seems to happen when I'm completely exhausted. I go to sleep for hours and hours, but it seems that barely a minute has passed when I wake up."
"Actually, Rach, you haven't been asleep for that long," said Joey. "Ten, fifteen minutes max."
Rachel cocked her head to one side in utter confusion. "What? Joey, what'd you wake me up for? Let me sleep, I need my sleep!" She threw herself back against her pillow and gave Joey a hard look.
"I know," said Joey. "I know you need your sleep, but this is really important."
Rachel sat bolt upright again. "Oh God," she panicked. "Is it Emma? Is she okay? Where is she?"
"Oh, no," said Joey. "No, no, Emma is perfectly fine. She's down in the nursery, remember?"
"Oh, right." Rachel leaned back again, adjusting the pillow behind her head before returning her attention to Joey. "So what was so important?"
"Well, funny you should ask," said Joey, trying to make the mood light. He rolled his eyes, though, when he realized that wasn't possible, and made his tone more serious. "Okay, Rachel, the thing is . . ." Joey cleared his throat and started over again. "The thing is . . ."
"What, sweetie? What is the thing?"
"Uh, well, uh . . ." Joey faltered once again. He obviously hadn't spent enough time out in the hall choosing his words. "Okay, I need a chair or something," he said, and dragged the chair with Ross's coat and ring box on it up to the side of Rachel's bed. He placed the coat and box at the foot of her bed, out of the way, and sat down.
"Joey, I already said yes, you don't have to look so worried," Rachel smiled reassuringly at him.
"That's what I came here to talk to you about."
"What?"
"The proposal, if you can call it that. And the ring, and the kiss, and my promise, and everything else. Um, before I start, I just want to tell you to not freak out or anything, because believe me, everything will work out in the end. We just have to work out a few glitches."
"I'm ready, Joe."
"Okay then. I guess I'll start with the ring." Joey picked up the ring box and held it between them. "This . . . this is not mine to give. And-and you are not mine to be with. You belong with Ross." He lowered the box so he could better see her face, which slowly registered the magnitude of Joey's statement.
"What-what do you mean?" she asked. "And what does Ross have to do with anything?" There was a hint of bitterness in her voice, which Joey caught immediately.
"He loves you, Rach."
"Well then why isn't he here?" she demanded, and then thought of something. "And what do you mean the ring is not your to give? You've gotta say it in plain English, Joey."
Joey looked down at the box in his hand. "It's Ross's." He let the words sink in, and looked up to find Rachel with tears in her eyes. "It's what I've been trying to tell you since I found it. I just couldn't find the right words. Actually, I don't think there are any right words when it comes to something like this."
"Oh Joey!" Rachel exclaimed. Joy and sudden comprehension flowed through her body. "Oh I cannot believe this!" She reached for Joey and gave him a big hug. "Thank you. Thank you for telling me." She let him go and looked into his eyes, where anguish and sadness dwelt. "Oh Joey I'm so sorry. I was so confused about everything, maybe I still am, I don't know . . ." she began.
Joey cut her off. "Don't be. Don't be sorry."
"But I am. I can't even think straight. But I know that I love you, Joey, the way that I always have. And Ross . . . well I don't know.
"This is how it was supposed to be. You love him, Rachel. I can feel it." Rachel nodded, her emotions causing a fresh cascade of tears to fall down her cheeks.
"Thank you, sweetie," she said, her voice turning soft and serious. She smiled at Joey, who immediately and genuinely smiled back. "So what do we do now?" she asked.
Joey leaned back in his chair. "Wait for Ross."
Part Three
Phoebe dragged Ross towards yet another bathroom. "Is this completely necessary?" Ross asked her. "We've been to like four different bathrooms."
"Yes, but they all had people in them. We can't just waltz into a ladies restroom together. It's bad manners. Oh good, I don't think anyone's in this one." Phoebe and Ross peered slyly around the corner of the door, only to see two very familiar faces. "Chandler! Monica! What are you doing here?" exclaimed Phoebe. "And Chandler, what are you doing in a ladies rest room?"
"I could ask the same thing of Ross," was Chandler's reply. He raised his eyebrow and looked pointedly at the "Women's Restroom" sign on the door.
"Um, well, we're here to get him a bit cleaned up," said Phoebe, stepping back to once again survey Ross's disheveled appearance.
"Yeah, you look like crap," said Chandler, also stepping back and imitating Phoebe's odd expression perfectly.
"I think we've covered that," Ross replied wryly, as Monica too joined Phoebe and Chandler in studying her brother, her arms folded across her chest and her head cocked to one side. The three of them stood for minute, their eyes fixed on Ross's crumpled shirt and red eyes. "Phoebe! Could we get going?" said Ross impatiently.
"Oh! Yeah, sure. Chandler, Monica, would you mind? Too many people break my concentration."
"Well, Pheebs, the thing is, we kind of need a private bathroom too," said Monica a bit shyly, and for the first time Phoebe saw that in her hand Monica clutched a home pregnancy test, still in its box. Giddy smiles spread across Monica and Chandler's faces.
"Of course you do," said Phoebe, and winked at them. "Come on Ross, let's try the fifth floor." She seized his had and dragged him out of the bathroom, leaving Chandler and Monica alone.
Monica turned to her husband. "You ready?" she asked, holding the box tightly in her hands.
"More than ever," said Chandler. He leaned in kissed Monica lovingly, and then smiled against her lips. "More than ever."
Monica pulled back, and ripped open the small box in with great enthusiasm, as if she'd been itching to do so for years.
Up on the fifth floor, Ross surveyed himself in the mirror. "Amazing!" he exclaimed. "Pheebs, I'm not sure how you did it, but I look good!" He turned sideways, admiring his own profile.
Phoebe snorted. "Please, Ross. You should try to tone it down every so often."
"But look! Shirt's wrinkle-free, eyes are back to their normal, human color."
"Yeah, that's great, Ross," Phoebe said in perfect deadpan. "I'm a genius, I know, I know. But you know what else? Rachel is waiting for you!!"
"Oh, right!" Ross's face immediately showed intense worry, and he clawed his shirt nervously, loosening his collar.
"Okay, Ross, I know you're anxious and concerned and all, but we just fixed that," said Phoebe, and she strode forward to again straighten his collar. She looked up into his eyes and smiled sadly and sincerely. "She loves you, Ross. And if everything has gone according to plan, which it has," she added before Ross' face contorted even further, "then Joey has explained the entire situation and she'll be ready to see you."
With that, Phoebe opened the bathroom door for Ross and motioned him to walk through. He took a deep breath, gave a slight nod, and stepped though, Phoebe following after him.
After a few minutes of comfortable silence, in which Joey and Rachel sat hand in hand, there came a slight knock on the door. Joey gave Rachel's hand a reassuring squeeze as he rose from his chair. He left the ring, still in its box, sitting in his place. Looking back at Rachel just once, Joey opened the door to her room to find Ross standing nervously in front of him. He winked, and joined Phoebe in the hall, his heart lighter than it had been in months. He let a happy smile spread across his at the thought of a united Ross and Rachel. Phoebe grinned back.
They waited eagerly outside Rachel's room, Joey relishing in his newfound joy, Phoebe once again sending out happy thoughts. They looked up when they heard two familiar voices bound towards them from around the corner.
"Monica, would you calm down? We'll take another test when we get home. According to the test itself, it was way too soon to tell anyway."
"Well I can't just sit here and do nothing! Either we take another test, or we find another spare room, this time not the janitorial closet!"
"Hi," said Joey jovially, and Chandler and Monica stopped their banter to find both Joey and Phoebe standing directly in front of them. Chandler made a show of taking one large step back. "I myself would go with Plan B," Joey said, smiling.
Monica blushed and Chandler gave him a mockingly hard look. "Thanks, Joe."
Phoebe lightly rubbed Monica's arm. "I'm sorry you guys. But Monica, Chandler's right. It is too soon to tell. Remember that I took a couple before I got a true result."
"Ah, you're probably right. I guess I'm just a bit anxious." Monica sighed and turned the conversation to the topic of Emma.
Inside the room, Ross stood silently at the door. Ross opened his mouth as if to say something but then closed it and bit his lip, not knowing where to begin. He looked at Rachel. She sat in her bed, sheets spilling around her, somehow lovelier and more perfect than she had ever been before. Before he knew it, tears had welled up in his eyes and he blurted out, "I love you!" He didn't need flowers, or a card, or perhaps even a wrinkle-free shirt. All he needed were those three little words. "I love you."
Rachel, too, was crying. "And I love you!" she said breathlessly.
His heart beating rapidly, Ross walked slowly and carefully to Rachel's bedside, now not caring that his eyes were again probably red and puffy. At that moment, nothing else in the world mattered but Rachel. He knelt down in front of her and looked into her soft blue eyes, wiping her cheek free of the tears which continued to cascade down despite her efforts to stop them, and brushing some strands of golden hair off her forehead. Ross touched his thumb to her lower lip briefly, and then replaced it with his own lips. Slowly, gently, longingly, they kissed, once again joining their souls as their ears rang with each other's I love yous. When they finally broke, they smiled at one another.
"Um, Ross, I could use a walk. Do you mind if we head to the cafeteria for some ice cream?"
"Sure, let's go."
Holding her gaze, he helped her out of bed. She obeyed his tug on her hand as he led the way down the hall to the cafeteria. Hand in hand they made their way, weaving in and out of the busy hospital hallways, throwing curious, pensive sidelong glances at each other, as if trying to remember exactly why they had never always walked contentedly side by side. They saw no one but each other, not even Joey, Monica, Phoebe, and Chandler who watched them pass, complete satisfaction in each of their faces. They ate their ice cream sitting side by side at a table by the window, looking at each other, smiling, co-existing, falling in love.
End.