AN: Well, this should be my last chapter. Thank-you to everyone who has read it. One thing, to jenniferfan100, I promised to have Ross and Rachel together in my next story, not this one. Sorry, bout that, but I planned R/J thinking there were more R/J fans out there. Personally I've had enough of the whole R/R soap opera thing lately. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!
A LARGE PERIOD OF TIME LATER…
Joey was excited. It was the opening night of his premiere movie. He had acted in many successful films, but this was the first one he had produced and acted in. It was a turning point for him, and his career. This was a big day for him. And everyone was coming: Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Alyssa, Samantha, Ross, Kelly, Emma, Lewis (Ross and Kelly's 2 year old son), Phoebe, Mike, Holly and Anna. The whole gang.
Joey stepped out of his room, struggling to tie his tie and saw Rachel getting a drink of water in the kitchen, She looked so beautiful to him; a light, cream colored dress, hair up, and a simple, but elegant diamond ring on her left hand. He was so lucky.
"Hey," Rachel said when she noticed him enter the kitchen.
"You look beautiful," he told her.
"You don't look so bad yourself," Rachel told him smiling. "Although you still can't seem to be capable of tying your tie. I don't get it; you're a famous actor and you still can't tie a tie."
"What can I say," Joey said smiling. "It just proves that I need you."
Rachel laughed. "You have no idea what I would do to you if you weren't so sweet."
"I know."
Rachel sighed and rolled her eyes. "Go stand in front of the couch."
Joey did as he was told and Rachel climbed onto the couch behind him, putting her arms around him from behind and preceded to tie his tie. As she pulled her hands back, he reached up and grabbed them. He tilted his head down and kissed each one, but he didn't let go of either.
"Joey," Rachel said suspiciously. "What are you doing?"
He said nothing, but stepped forward.
"Joey," Rachel said, warningly.
He stepped even more, pulling her arms out further, so she was stuck going with him. Rachel was now stuck on Joey's back as he began to spin around.
The were both so preoccupied laughing that neither heard the door open.
Someone cleared their throat. Both Rachel and Joey stopped laughing and Joey turned so they were facing the door. Chandler stood there, one eyebrow raised, a slight smile on his face.
"Are we having fun?" He asked, jokingly.
Joey blushed slightly, embarrassed, and released Rachel's arms, allowing her to get down. He cleared his throat. "Chandler, I didn't notice you come in."
"Obviously." Chandler said jokingly.
"Hi Chandler," Rachel said smiling. "Are you guys ready to go?"
"Are you kidding? Monica had herself and the girls ready like an hour ago."
Rachel laughed. "I guess some things never change."
Chandler smiled and shook his head. "I don't mind it so much. She's worth it."
"Aww," Rachel said, lightly making fun of him. "You're such a sap."
Chandler blushed slightly and looked down.
"Rachel smiled. "She's lucky to have you."
Chandler looked up and smiled. "Thanks," he whispered. "I don't know what I would have ended up doing if you guys hadn't magically appeared again."
"You don't know what you would have done? I don't know what we would have done. At least you guys could go places. We couldn't even leave that damn cell." Rachel felt her voice crack slightly at the memory. It seemed so surreal now. Both she and Monica had spent some time in therapy together. After being back in the 'real world' for a few months they began to exhibit signs of a sort of post-disaster syndrome. They had both had problems over the years, but were doing much better.
"You guys really had a rough time, didn't you?" Chandler asked.
Rachel said nothing, her emotions still high. She simply nodded.
Chandler smiled slightly, and stepped forward, pulling her into a big, friendly bear hug. He felt her relax against him as she took a deep breath, regaining control. They were interrupted by the door opening.
"Hurry up guys! We're going to be late!" Monica's voice filtered into the room. Rachel felt Chandler laugh lightly and smiled. She pulled away from the hug and smiled at him.
"Thanks," she whispered.
Chandler smiled, "any time." He turned to face Monica, who was looking somewhat concerned at Rachel.
"You okay, Rach?" Monica asked concerned.
"I'm fine," Rachel said, offering a smile. "Just needed a minute. That's all."
"It's hard sometimes, isn't it?" Monica asked. Chandler noticed a tone to her voice and walked over to her. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple.
Rachel nodded, smiling. "Yeah, but it's getting easier." She felt Joey come up behind her and place his arm around her back.
"You ready?" He asked, sounding nervous.
"Yup," Rachel said.
"The four made their way across the hall. Everyone else was waiting and the gang made their way down the stairs to the two waiting limo's. The drive over was short and consisted of assuring Joey that everything was going to be fine.
When they arrived and were preparing to exit the limo, Joey felt like he was going to pass out, he was so nervous. The gang all got out and together made there way through the crowd to the doors. They were seated immediately and it wasn't long before the movie began.
Joey sat nervously as he watched the last seconds of the movie, followed by the ending credits. He began to fidget nervously in his seat. The credits continued to roll and Joey began to fidget more. He cracked all of his knuckles and was starting to crack them all again, when he felt Rachel's hand reach out and gently stop him. He glanced over at her, at the calm, reassuring look on his face. Joey closed his eyes briefly and took a deep breath. He silently thanked Rachel with his eyes and squeezed her hand gently. He could feel himself calming down.
The credits came to an end and Joey took a deep breath, closing his eyes tightly. All he could do was hope. At the sound applause, Joey opened his eyes. The applause grew louder and he turned to see quite a few people standing up. It wasn't long before the whole room was standing, all applauding, all smiling. Joey was amazed. He had taken a chance on this story. A big chance. Joey was ushered up to the front to make a short speech.
Joey glanced over all of the people sitting in the audience, most being reporters and critics. He smiled as his eyes came to rest on his friends. Rachel was staring lovingly up at him. Beside her were Alyssa and Samantha, with Monica on the other side, Chandler's arm resting gently around her waist from beside her. Chandler and Monica looked so happy to be there, together. He was so glad everything had worked out for them. Samantha and Alyssa just looked happy to be there. They looked so excited. He was so glad that Samantha had the opportunity to experience this. On the end, sitting beside her uncle Chandler was Emma. She had wanted to sit in the front row. Ross, Kelly and Lewis were seated right behind Emma. Phoebe, Mike, Holly and Anna were beside them. Joey took a deep breath and gave Rachel a small smile before beginning.
He cleared his throat. "Wow! There's a lot more people in this room than I thought. I guess your perspective changes when you're up here in front of everybody…and there's a spotlight on you…and everyone's really quiet," Joey smiled as he heard everyone laugh. It gave him the confidence he needed. "Well, to start, I would like to thank all of you for coming tonight, and I hope you all liked the movie. I was really nervous about tonight. I've never produced before and I took a chance on this film. I really wanted to do something deep, something that would have meaning, that I could look back at one day and be proud of being responsible for it. When the script came across my desk, I couldn't say no. I just had a feeling and I've learned to go for things, as you never really know what will happen in the near future. I know that many of you know that I lost two people very dear to me, for a long time. I thought I'd never see them again." Joey paused and smiled down at both Rachel and Monica, who were both smiling at him, tears in their eyes. He saw Chandler lean over and kiss Monica gently on the temple. Joey smiled. "Anyway, I would like to thank all you for coming and guys," he said looking directly at the gang, "thank-you so much for all the love and support over the years. You guys are my family. I love you, all of you."
Joey stepped down as the lights came back on and everyone applauded once again. They all filed out of their seats and made their way to the small reception following the film. Joey was in heaven as one critic after another came up to applaud him for a job well done. He was left alone and jumped slightly as he felt two arms wrap around his leg. He looked down to see Samantha looking up at him, a big smile on her face.
"Hi Uncle Joey!"
"Hiya Sam, did you like the movie?"
Samantha nodded. "I did. You were really good."
Joey smiled and picked her up. "Well, thank you Miss Bing, that means so much coming from you."
Samantha smiled and giggled, burying her head in her uncle's shoulder. She was a very affectionate child.
Rachel came up beside them, wrapping her arms around Joey's neck from the side, and planting a kiss on his cheek. Joey made sure that he had a good hold of Samantha and used his other arm to give Rachel a half hug.
"The movie was amazing," she told him softly. "Wasn't it Sam?"
Samantha nodded and both Rachel and Joey smiled. They both knew the movie had been to mature for Samantha to understand, but her enthusiasm was cute. As Rachel was smiling down at her 'niece' Joey leaned forward to kiss her forehead and looked up after he saw a flash. He saw a photographer smiling at him. "That was such a cute picture," she said.
"Hi Maurine," Joey said. He had met her before at other receptions and award shows. She had actually been the photographer at Phoebe and Mike's wedding. Joey liked her, she was a really good person.
"Hi Joey. Congratulations. I loved the movie. Anyway, how about a big group picture."
"Good idea," Joey said nodding. He motioned for all of his friends, his family, to come over and get line up. The picture was taken and the rest of the evening enjoyed.
A year later this picture was found hanging in all four apartments. It hung on Monica and Chandler's wall, beside their frame wedding invitation. It hung on Ross and Kelly's apartment above a small table covered with small pictures of everyone. It hung it Phoebe and Mike's apartment underneath a picture of Monica, Rachel and Phoebe taken the day before the accident. And in Joey and Rachel's apartment it hug above the shelf holding Joey's picture of the 'old gang' and the two Oscars from the movie: one for best actor and the other for best motion picture. Everyone looked so happy, so perfect. Samantha was still in Joey's arms, with Rachel standing beside him, his free arm wrapped around her waist. Her left hand was stretched across in front of Joey, holding Samantha's hand, her diamond ring visible. To their left Mike and Phoebe looked happy and in love, Anna and Holly standing in front of them smiling. Alyssa and Emma were standing beside Anna and Holly, in front of Joey and Rachel, their arms over the others' shoulder. To Joey's right, were Monica and Chandler. He was standing half beside, half behind her, his arms wrapped around her waist, the slight bulge in her stomach just visible. She was leaning back against him, and their heads were tilted towards each other. They both looked so happy, so comfortable with the other. Ross stood next, one hand on his sister's shoulder, the other draped over Kelly's shoulder. Kelly was smiling, their son in her arms. It was such a special picture, the whole gang together. They had been through a lot, but they had been through it together. Rachel and Monica had been to Hell and back, but this was their time to be happy, and they were doing just that.
AN: Well, that's a wrap! I can't believe I'm done. I'm sorry about the delay, but it took me a while to be able to organize my thoughts. There are a couple people I would like to thank. Both catnamedzane and Exintaris were very helpful in helping me to save and upload my chapters properly, making it easier for all of you to read. To Drama-Queen, I had the idea for them to go out and get the picture taken, but thank-you for the idea of having the picture up at the end, by the old picture. I loved the idea and thus used it. Also, thank-you to everyone who has read and reviewed. I am very grateful to all of your feedback, and have learned a lot about my writing. Hope you all enjoyed.