Rachel arrived her building after a fatigating day of work. She had only been on Bloomingdales for few months,but both the amount of work she had to do and the level of recognition she got from the job was incredible. She hadhit the exacting stantards made by the company pretty soon,which made the coworkers acknowledge and respect her work even more now. Despite from the stress, she liked it. She liked the feeling of being independent, of being recognized and appreciated.
She opened the door nonchalantly and walked towards the living room only to find Ross at the couch, randomly flipping through the channels of the small television that sat on the small table opposite him.
"Heyy" he greeted as he shut the TV off all together.
"Hi" she chucked the big bag that slunged over her shoulder randomly to the nearby chair before she slumped her head towards the arm of the couch, bringing her feet up on the couch and laying them in Ross's lap.
"How was your day" inquired Ross.
"Oh the usual..meetings, concert planning and fashion" mumbled Rachel as she closed her eyes.
"What about you"?
"The same. Unintersed students, exams,and bones" he replied, making her laugh a bit.
"Tired Green"? Ross asked by giving her foot a massage.
"Yeah..it's been such a stressful day. She started. "I mean..I love my job. I am happy and grateful for everything I have in this moment, but.. things've been hard lately..." she trailed off staring aimlessly. Ross nodded knowingly. She was right. Its been quite a while since she went out and breathed some fresh air. Ever since the break up with Chip, she seemed a bit more quiet. Ross looked straight at her eyes. The deep blue pool of eyes lacked the tinkle he used to adore.
"I know. What do you say of we doing something together,to cheer you up? Like we used to do before? A Ross and Rachel day"? He asked expectantly.
Rachel lifted her head up, more cheered.
"Oh.. wow! We haven't done it in a while right? It sounds like fun.."
"It is fun.."! He said happily as he tickled her right foot, which made her squeal.
"Get ready Rach.. we are gonna have a lot of fun tonight.." Ross said winking at her.
Rachel smiled at him. It's unreal how he knew everything about her. He always knew the right thing to do to make her happy. It seemed like, the only thing he cared anymore is to bring a smile to her face. Rachel found it endearing the way how Ross cared, protected and took care of her. She gathered herself up and moved towards her room inorder to freshnen up and get ready.
After a little exhibition on the dance floor they returned to the bar,laughing loudly. They were both worn out and sweaty combined from both the dancing and the humid environment. Rachel plopped down beside Ross as he rested his arm on the seat behind her head.
She was busy downing a sip of hot beer into her throat when Ross found someone over the crowd. He shook his head in disbelief as he watched a drunk Chip yelling for another glass over the other side of the pub. Ross looked over to Rachel to find her vibing to the loud music which's being played. At first he thought of exiting out the place as soon as possible. Ross couldn't let his presence hurt Rachel. No. He cant risk it anymore. And that's when a thought strike him. He smirked to himself.
"I had a wonderful night Ross. It was a blast". Rachel admitted."We need to do it more oftenly".
"Yeah. We can definitely do it sooner. But..before that, we need to make this night quite memorable right"? Ross squeezed her hands.
"Who said the night is over"? He asked Rachel looked up at him, eager to know what he had in his mind.
"Look over there" Said Ross as he pointed his index finger towards the dancing crowd. Rachel raised her eyebrows in confusion as she scanned the crowd of sweaty and drunken people before she laid her eyes over him. Chip. Rachel suddenly pushed the grip of Ross's hands over hers, gathered herself up and proceeded to move towards the exit door. Ross caught with her. Grabbed her arms and turned her around.
"What do you think you are doing Ross"?
She yelled as she jerked her arms out of his grip.
"Why are you running away"? Asked Ross firmly, as he looked directly into her eyes.
"I don't wanna see him Ross..I hate him" pleaded Rachel, fresh tears forming in her eyes.
"Even I hate him. A lot.But..you need a closure Rach. You moped your eyes out for this idiot for days! I don't know how on earth he managed to gain such a great influence on you". Ross paused and looked over to Rachel. She hung her head down, crying silently. Ross lifted her chin up and wiped the tears off her face.
"He don't deserve your tears Rach.." He said in a tone which he only used with Rachel. A soft, assuring, protective, yet firm one.
"So don't you think we need to give him what he actually deserves?"Asked Ross as he raised his eyebrows mischievously. Rachel saw a small grin spreading across his face. She understood what he meant.
Rachel nodded, took a deep breath and pushed her way through the crowd taking a glass full of strong vodka on her hand. Rachel spotted Chip on the dance floor,enjoying himself. She walked her way towards him and poked him in the back. She splashed the drink directly on to his face as he turned. Chip covered his face with both his hands towards this unexpected outburst. Growing more angrier by the second, Rachel walked closer, grabbed him by the collar and gave him a backhand slap that resulted in a loud smack.
"Idiot" she hissed as she let his collar free and stalked off. As soon as she made her way back to Ross, She saw him beaming at her, giving her a thumbs up, clearly proud by her action. She gladly smiled at him, feeling a great heavy weight melting away from her chest. Ross was right. She did feel happier.
"Now..my turn. Revenge time baby!" muttered Ross happily as he walked past her towards Chip, who was still trying hard to process the happenings. He poked him a few times before he finally turned around. Before he even had time to notice, Ross had already punched him square in the face.
"Congratulations, I've finally payed the debt, which I've been saving for you for years".
Rachel hadn't said anything through all this. But secretly she was enjoying the scene. She could imagine the amount of hatred Ross used to store in his mind for Chip.
"Ross,stop it! You're going to get us kicked out of here!"
She grabbed his wrists tightly and sprinted towards the exit door.
Once they were out of the pub,they looked at each other and bursted out laughing.
"That was amazing" she said as she buried her head towards his chest as she laughed.
"See, I told you right? Now you got the closure you wanted". Ross said,putting his arms around her protectively as they found themselves back outside,walking along the sidewalk.
"Hey look up! Look how beautiful the moon is"? Said Ross as he pointed his finger towards the sky. Rachel gazed up to see the moon shining beautifully among the night sky. She looked at Ross. He looked so cute with his little dimples appearing on his left cheek as he continued to gaze at the sky with much awe. The innocence and excitement he had for this little things made him different.
"Thank you Ross. Thank you for everything" Rachel said making him turn his attention to her. He smiled.
"Anytime".
She stopped in her tracks and so did he. She stared into his eyes and held the glance.
"I'm serious Ross. Tonight..was just..I mean..I had a great time after a long time. The food, the laughs, the slap.."
Ross let out a chuckle at that. She again noticed the small dimples appeared on his face whenever his lips turned into a curve. She haven't paid attention to this before. Was She blind or something?
"Heyy..continue the speech. I was enjoying that" Said Ross as Rachel slapped him lightly at his chest. Rachel felt him pulling her closer towards his torso.
"Anything for my girl"
"For his girl" she liked the sound of it.
"Rach.." he whispered her name as she looked up.
"Dont be so hard on yourself". He said softly as he rubbed her shoulder as he spoke. "Like..ever. Whatever happened in your life..from your..eh..divorce... to Chip.." He spoke slowly, as if he is searching for the right words to comfort her. "Is not your fault. The thing with Barry is a whole different scenario and chip...let's say you were out of your mind". Rachel chuckled at his words.
"I Know Ross..and I shouldn't feel this way. But sometimes when I look back, all I made was wrong decisions. You know"? She trailed off.
Ross stopped on his track. Put his hands on either side of her shoulder.
"Hey..divorcing Barry and deciding to live independent when your dad offered all those luxuries to you was a bad decision? No! Bagging a great job in one of the most amazing fasion spot in newyork. Was it a bad idea? Agreeing to live with an amazing roommate".. Ross said pointing to himself. "Was it a wrong decision"?
"Wrong"? Rachel scoffed. "It was the best decision I made in a while". She linked their arms together as they walked.
"The point is.. people do make mistakes Rach..and it's okay. As long as you, decide to move further, rather than dwelling on it for too long..you won. You won in the game which is being runned by the refere called life".
Rachel listened to him keenfully. Carefully taking in each word he said to her mind. His words always soothed and gave her the comfort she always seeked.
"But..why can't I just find a guy who loves me for who i am, understands me and doesn't hurt me"?
Ross looked at her straight to the eyes.
"You might be searching for him at the wrong places Rach..He would probably right here. Looking out for you... Search more"! You'll find him. He gently stroked her cheeks with the tip of his fingers as he spoke.
Right then and there she had the certain urge to kiss him. But she frowned. He was her best friend. Her roommate and nothing else. She reminded herself.
Ross didn't talk for a while. He walked through the lanes, enjoying the night and embracing the coolness of the wind to his body. Every step he walked along with her..it felt nice. It felt simply right. He smiled to himself as he walked.
Ross gave her a smile and pulled her closer to him. She tried her best to pay attention to the road,but she couldn't seem to take her eyes off him. She continued this for a while before fixating her gaze on the lanes.
"We've talked a lot about me,my problems and life. So..now what are you doing lately"?
His mouth curved into a small smile at her query. Ross looked at his watch.
"It's too late to open that door Rach..maybe later. He said flicking her nose. Now.." he continued. But she couldn't concentrate. Ross took notice of this and wandered his fingers aimlessly through his face.
"Do I have something on my face"?
"No..it's nothing. Forget it".
He raised his eyebrows before continuing their conversation. She continued to peek at him occasionally as they walked their way towards the apartment. There seemed something new about him. Something different. Or..is it just her mind playing with her?
I am not that satisfied with this chapter. Yet..here it is! You liked it? Reveiw! And feel free to criticise.