Harder to Breathe - Chapter 2 -
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. Nor the song "Harder to Breathe" by Maroon 5 which inspired this fic.
Monica watched closely as Ross and Rachel embraced. At that moment, her heart skipped a beat. This is something she had wished for a long time, like the two of them. Ross and Rachel. It just sounded so pure, so natural. They were destined for each other. Monica knew from the moment her dorky older brother laid eyes on Rachel all those years back that some day they'd all be gathered at their wedding. She just realized it was about to come true. As she continued to watch them hug, she felt grateful. She had a husband, Chandler, who loved her unbelievably. With that, she walked over to Chandler in the kitchen, wrapped her arms around him, and planted a kiss on his sweet little head.
"Mmm. That was nice. What was that for?" Chandler asked.
"Everything. Thank you for marrying me and loving me. I couldn't picture it any other way," she said with a smile.
Chandler looked at her and kissed her forehead. "I love you too, Baby Cakes. So, what's happening with Ross and Rachel?"
Meanwhile, Ross and Rachel continued to snuggle in each other's arms on the balcony. As his grip around her stood firm, Rachel was in heaven. This is what it felt like with Ross's arms around her, heaven. She felt safe. She felt secure. Nothing could tear her apart from this moment. But as she stood there, with Ross's arms around her, she pondered their past. Could they really get over the jealousy? Could they accept the things the other did? Would they be able to wipe those fears they had away?
How dare you say that my behavior is unacceptable
So condescending unnecessarily critical
I have the tendency of getting very physical
So watch your step cause if I do you'll need a miracle
You drain me dry and make me wonder why I'm even here
This Double Vision I was seeing is finally clear
You want to stay but you know very well I want you gone
Not fit to funkin' tread the ground I'm walking on
She broke away from Ross's embrace. "Ross?" she spoke with a quivering voice.
"What?"
"You really think it's possible for us to get through the past?"
"Of course I do. Why? What's wrong?"
"Nothing," she said. She was trying to hold back any tears. "Ross, I'm just afraid." And with that, a waterfall began to flow.
"Rach, what are you so afraid of? You know you can tell me anything."
"I'm just.I'm just.I'm just afraid that the past is going to repeat itself. I'm afraid someone is going to come along and take you away from me. Someone's going to ride in on a White Horse and save you from a disastrous relationship with me. You don't know how bad I want this Ross. For the past couple of months I've prayed night and day we'd be together by some magical force. My heart has yearned for you all these past months. It was like a piece of me had been ripped out from the inside and I could never have it back. I just want security, you know? I want to know that we're both committed to making this work. Please tell me you are. Because I don't think I can stand to get my heart broken again." She wiped away the tears. There, she said it. Those feelings she had bottled up inside her.
Baffled by what she just said, Ross took a deep breath.
"Rachel, I know I've said it a thousand times and I'll say it again. I love you, with all my heart and more. I know you're afraid of getting hurt; yet, so am I. I know you're afraid of losing me; yet, so am I. I can't tell you how much I want this to work. I think we can make it work. Don't you? We've both been in terrible relationships in the past. We've learned from those mistakes and we've learned from the mistakes in our past relationship. I honestly promise I won't disappoint. I'm here for you, forever."
It just seemed then that all of her fears were calmed. It was as if God had descended from heaven and purified their souls, rid of any jealousy or hatred. She knew this was going to be it. She knew this was going to be her future, her husband, her soul mate, her eternity.
When it gets cold outside and you got nobody to love
You'll understand what I mean when I say
There's no way we're gonna give up
And like a little girl cries in the face of a monster that lives in her dreams
Is there anyone out there cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe
Is there anyone out there cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe
What you are doing is screwing things up inside my head
You should know better you never listened to a word I said
Clutching your pillow and writhing in a naked sweat
Hoping somebody someday will do you like I did
"Let's go in," she said as she shivered. "It's cold as hell out here." She reached for his hand, put hers in it. With their fingers locking together, she turned and kissed him.
As they were proceeding to go back into Monica & Chandler's, Joey yelled out, "Hey guys! Get in here! You're missing all the festivities." They had to laugh, for Joey was dancing around with a "Happy New Year's!" crown and Phoebe was tossing him M&M's to see if he could catch them in his mouth.
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. Nor the song "Harder to Breathe" by Maroon 5 which inspired this fic.
Monica watched closely as Ross and Rachel embraced. At that moment, her heart skipped a beat. This is something she had wished for a long time, like the two of them. Ross and Rachel. It just sounded so pure, so natural. They were destined for each other. Monica knew from the moment her dorky older brother laid eyes on Rachel all those years back that some day they'd all be gathered at their wedding. She just realized it was about to come true. As she continued to watch them hug, she felt grateful. She had a husband, Chandler, who loved her unbelievably. With that, she walked over to Chandler in the kitchen, wrapped her arms around him, and planted a kiss on his sweet little head.
"Mmm. That was nice. What was that for?" Chandler asked.
"Everything. Thank you for marrying me and loving me. I couldn't picture it any other way," she said with a smile.
Chandler looked at her and kissed her forehead. "I love you too, Baby Cakes. So, what's happening with Ross and Rachel?"
Meanwhile, Ross and Rachel continued to snuggle in each other's arms on the balcony. As his grip around her stood firm, Rachel was in heaven. This is what it felt like with Ross's arms around her, heaven. She felt safe. She felt secure. Nothing could tear her apart from this moment. But as she stood there, with Ross's arms around her, she pondered their past. Could they really get over the jealousy? Could they accept the things the other did? Would they be able to wipe those fears they had away?
How dare you say that my behavior is unacceptable
So condescending unnecessarily critical
I have the tendency of getting very physical
So watch your step cause if I do you'll need a miracle
You drain me dry and make me wonder why I'm even here
This Double Vision I was seeing is finally clear
You want to stay but you know very well I want you gone
Not fit to funkin' tread the ground I'm walking on
She broke away from Ross's embrace. "Ross?" she spoke with a quivering voice.
"What?"
"You really think it's possible for us to get through the past?"
"Of course I do. Why? What's wrong?"
"Nothing," she said. She was trying to hold back any tears. "Ross, I'm just afraid." And with that, a waterfall began to flow.
"Rach, what are you so afraid of? You know you can tell me anything."
"I'm just.I'm just.I'm just afraid that the past is going to repeat itself. I'm afraid someone is going to come along and take you away from me. Someone's going to ride in on a White Horse and save you from a disastrous relationship with me. You don't know how bad I want this Ross. For the past couple of months I've prayed night and day we'd be together by some magical force. My heart has yearned for you all these past months. It was like a piece of me had been ripped out from the inside and I could never have it back. I just want security, you know? I want to know that we're both committed to making this work. Please tell me you are. Because I don't think I can stand to get my heart broken again." She wiped away the tears. There, she said it. Those feelings she had bottled up inside her.
Baffled by what she just said, Ross took a deep breath.
"Rachel, I know I've said it a thousand times and I'll say it again. I love you, with all my heart and more. I know you're afraid of getting hurt; yet, so am I. I know you're afraid of losing me; yet, so am I. I can't tell you how much I want this to work. I think we can make it work. Don't you? We've both been in terrible relationships in the past. We've learned from those mistakes and we've learned from the mistakes in our past relationship. I honestly promise I won't disappoint. I'm here for you, forever."
It just seemed then that all of her fears were calmed. It was as if God had descended from heaven and purified their souls, rid of any jealousy or hatred. She knew this was going to be it. She knew this was going to be her future, her husband, her soul mate, her eternity.
When it gets cold outside and you got nobody to love
You'll understand what I mean when I say
There's no way we're gonna give up
And like a little girl cries in the face of a monster that lives in her dreams
Is there anyone out there cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe
Is there anyone out there cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe
What you are doing is screwing things up inside my head
You should know better you never listened to a word I said
Clutching your pillow and writhing in a naked sweat
Hoping somebody someday will do you like I did
"Let's go in," she said as she shivered. "It's cold as hell out here." She reached for his hand, put hers in it. With their fingers locking together, she turned and kissed him.
As they were proceeding to go back into Monica & Chandler's, Joey yelled out, "Hey guys! Get in here! You're missing all the festivities." They had to laugh, for Joey was dancing around with a "Happy New Year's!" crown and Phoebe was tossing him M&M's to see if he could catch them in his mouth.
