A face in the crowd

Rachel knew that she had to think hard of something to keep her in contact with Emily. Not Emily and Ross together – she hated the sight of them together and wouldn't be able to tolerate much of it. In any case, Emily would be on her guard with Ross around, so that wouldn't be any good. If anything, she'd be carrying on her charade that he was the only one, something that would make Rachel feel sick.

The very best thing would be if she got Emily drunk somehow – but she hadn't ever seen Emily get drunk and wasn't sure that she could make her so. Maybe that wouldn't be necessary. Even just relaxing in her company, she might let something slip…

But how was she going to relax around Rachel if they didn't see much of each other? There were times when it was the seven of them together – a thought that made Rachel wish it was only six again, but that didn't really count. Somehow, out of all the group conversations, it seemed that Emily never addressed Rachel and Rachel never addressed Emily. All comments made were out there for everyone. Emily had tried to ingratiate herself with Rachel, in the beginning, when she'd just come back from honeymoon with Ross, but Rachel hadn't been able to bear speaking to her so hadn't responded very enthusiastically. Emily had only been doing it because she wanted her to be nice to her, that's all, Rachel thought contemptuously. Just more fakery. Thankfully she had stopped doing that, and had concentrated her efforts on Monica.

She sighed when she realised that Monica would probably be hurt too. It wasn't as though they were great friends or anything – nothing like her and Rachel, or her and Phoebe, but there was something there. That was Monica being nice, nice to someone who didn't deserve it, Rachel thought, and she was just going to be betrayed, because as soon as Emily was exposed for what she was…

Rachel turned back to the problem of how to see more of Emily. The only thing she could think of doing was shopping. To make things easier on herself though, she'd need Monica to come with her.

'Hey, that's great,' Monica said, when Rachel suggested a shopping trip, 'I'm glad you're finally getting over it.' Rachel felt both embarrassed and annoyed at the praise. She wasn't getting over anything, she was rescuing Ross. There was nothing wrong with her, nothing – only she knew Monica was not ready to believe that – or that Ross needed rescuing.

'Well,' she said, 'I thought it would help, to get to know her. We might even had the same taste.' She very much doubted that.

'I think it's a wonderful idea. Do you really need me to come? You might bond better without me there,' Monica suggested. 'I won't mind being left out if it's in a good cause.' Rachel's eyes widened in panic. She did not want to spend hours and hours alone with Emily, absolutely not.

'But of course,' Rachel said, 'I always go shopping with you. I just wanted to – to start a new ritual – we can all three of us go shopping. Once in a while.'

'Oh I like that,' Monica said, 'That's really nice of you to think of it that way.' Rachel felt despondent just then. Did that mean that Monica wanted to be more friendly with Emily and less friendly with Rachel? Were they no longer to be best friends? Emily had something Rachel didn't – membership of the Geller family – not for long, but she had it. 'But,' Monica added, 'We don't have to make it a ritual or anything. Sometimes, it can be all three and sometimes, just the two of us.' That made Rachel want to hug her. At least she hadn't lost everything to Emily.

So the three of them organised to go out, although that wasn't as easy as Rachel had assumed. She had thought that once Monica and she had decided on a day, Emily would be able to come out with them. But then Emily said she couldn't' come out on a particular day because she was meeting a friend.

'Oh, who's that?' Rachel said. She couldn't believe that she'd struck gold already. Emily had a special friend – that must be Colin…

'Alina.'

'Oh,' Rachel said. She knew Alina. Alina was at Bloomingdales, on the accounts side of thing, whom Emily must have met while visiting her uncle at work. If only her uncle had given Alina, who loved opera, the tickets instead of Rachel – but Alina was nearly ten years older, and Rachel had been chosen because she and Emily were of an age. It was plausible that they might go out together because she had seen them talk before – but it was excellent cover.

Just in case she could catch Emily out in a lie, she asked Alina about it at work. But Emily had told the truth, according to Alina, and unless Alina was covering for Emily, which was always possible, there was nothing to show that Emily was doing the wrong thing – yet.

So another day was chosen and they all went out shopping. It was hard, because Monica was easily able to talk to Emily. Of course they must have had lots of private conversations together, and things got mentioned that Rachel didn't know about, which made Rachel feel left out. It wasn't fair – why did Monica not tell her these things? But so many times, she had changed the subject when Emily was mentioned, so Monica had stopped telling her what went on between them. Monica had not set out to leave Rachal out of things.

But did Emily silence Monica when Rachel was mentioned? She couldn't think of a reason why she would – in fact, she would want to know as much as possible about her, Rachel would have thought. Did that mean that Monica told Emily things about Rachel? What there was to tell? History and embarrassing things.

Rachel was flipping moodily through a rack of clothes when she noticed it. Monica was talking, but looking the other way. Rachel glanced up to see Emily's face take on a look of shock – and what Rachel thought was recognition. Turning quickly, she could see a man – tall and dark haired looking at them – at Emily

She looked back to see Emily biting her lip, looking now at the racks of clothes. Rachel could tell that she wasn't really seeing the clothes but thinking of a way out of her problem – because it must surely be a problem. Emily suddenly said,

'Let's go back to the other shop, the one with the shoes.'

'You're going to buy those shoes?' Monica asked, instantly diverted. Those shoes had been the subject of a tiresome half hour of will she won't she, something that Monica had inexplicably gone along with – even, to Rachel's annoyance indulging

Emily's indecisiveness by telling her to try on that other pair, just one more time.

'Yes, I'll buy them,' Emily said. 'Please lets hurry in case someone else buys them.' That was hardly likely to happen, Rachel thought, but the aim was to get out of the store. Rachel felt a small spurt of anger – she was going to spend Ross's money to help in her campaign of deception.

Emily led the way out of the store, ducking and weaving, making Monica laugh,

'Is this how you go round the stores in England?'

'Er yes,' Emily said, with a glance over her shoulder that only Rachel noticed. They had lost the man, it seemed.