Challenge Being Miles Away: Chapter 6

Stick disclaimer .
In other words, same disclaimers apply.


Certainly dazed and shocked, Ross entered his sister's house. Chandler looked at the door and was concerned when he seen Ross' face. Chandler stood up and went up to Ross.

"Hey man, you okay?" Chandler worriedly asked.

"Where's Emma?" Ross mindlessly asked, avoiding eye contact with him.

"In the kitchen."

Chandler was definitely worried and concerned for his long-time friend. What the hell happened in that meeting!

Ross didn't say a word and walked towards the kitchen door. Stopping at the door, he heard the familiar giggles and wondered what they could be doing there. He peaked in the room, seeing Emma sitting on the counter in the middle of the room and listening intently to her aunt.

Ross smiled, knowing that Monica was teaching Emma how to make chocolate chip cookies. He chuckled at that idea and knew that it was better that Emma learn how to do it from his sister since Rachel doesn't have that great of a record for making desserts. Gotta admit, the beef in a trifle was just a disaster.

Ross entered the kitchen and stood on the other side of the counter. "You do know that she's too young to learn the recipe." He pointed out.

Ross tried to dip his finger in the mixed batter, but Monica swatted his hand away just like they always used to do back in the days.

"Hi daddy!" Emma squealed as she reached out to be carried.

Ross smiled and took her in his arms, kissing her forehead.

"How did it go?" Monica asked.

"I definitely have some news." Ross cooly answered. "I'll tell you guys at dinner."

Monica nodded and respected her brother's wishes. "Are you heading back in the city?"

"Yeah, want me to get something?"

Monica sheepishly smiled. "Can you please pick up a chocolate pie. Joey's request."

"Consider it done."

Monica reached in her pocket and pulled out a set of keys. "Here, take the SUV. The car seat is already in there."

Ross smiled. "Thanks Mon." Ross kissed her cheek and exited through the kitchen door.


Joey sat on the familiar orange couch in Central Perk. He glanced down at his watch and wondered where Phoebe or Ross was. He was pretty sure that the meeting time was at six and it was now twenty past. Gunther kept eyeing him and Joey knew that he would have to buy something soon or else he would get kicked out. Joey looked back at the counter and see that Gunther had a look that asked if he was going to get anything or what. Joey looked toward the direction of the door and still doesn't see any of his friends in sight. Sighing, he stood up and walked up towards the counter.

"Hey Gunther, can I get a small coffee to go." Joey ordered.

"Coming up." Gunther happily replied as he prepared Joey's order.

Joey dialed Phoebe's phone number but he just got her answer machine. He then dialed up Ross, but that too had the same story. Joey received his order and started to add his cream and sugar. He had no clue where his friends were and he must admit that he's surprised that he's the one that's early because it's usually the other way around most of the time. While stirring his coffee, he heard his name called out by one of his favorite person.

"Unkie Joey!" The little girl said enthusiastically.

Joey turned and had a huge smile on his face when he saw Emma standing near Ross at the door. Emma sprinted towards him and Joey picked her up.

"Hey Emma. How you doin'?" Joey said in his typical tone.

"Good. How you doin'?" Emma asked right back.

Joey giggled. "Doin' fine kiddo."

"Great Joe, you just had to teach my kid that." Ross joked.

"Yeah, you know, gotta somehow pass some of my wisdom. Just be glad that I don't teach her the other stuff." Joey smirked.

Ross didn't even want to think about the "other stuff" as he walked closer to Joey. "Sorry for getting here late Joe, but little miss here fell asleep and you know how cranky she gets if I wake her."

Joey shook his head and held up his free hand. "No problem. Seems like Pheebs and Mike are late also."

"Well...Monica lent me their car. Want to catch a ride."

Joey smiled appreciatively. "Thank you. Gunther was kind of giving me the eye already and I was forced to buy this coffee."

Ross giggled. "Let's roll then."


"Chandler, you didn't cut the hedges the way I asked you to!"

Monica came walking down the stairs as Chandler rolled his eyes and moaned.

"Mon, it's just the gang coming over. Not the fricken president."

Chandler knew he gave the wrong choice of words as he received the death glare from his wife.

"Look Mon, I trimmed them, that's the main thing. Besides it's getting dark and the gang wouldn't care if it was half-an-inch taller than you would've wanted it."

Monica sighed. "Sorry Chandler, but this is the first time that the gang is coming over at the house for dinner and I wanted it to be special, I guess."

Chandler got off the couch and gave his wife a hug. "Sweetie, it's going to be fine, just like it always has."

Monica broke the hug and smiled, giving him a peck on the lips. "I love you."

Chandler smiled. "Love you too."

The door bell rang and they both got the door. At the door was Joey with Ross and Emma just behind. They all said their greetings and entered the living room. Ross handed Monica the pie and she took it to put in the refrigerator.

"Guys want a beer?" Chandler offered.

Joey jumped on the offer and Ross declined. Chandler headed towards the kitchen while Joey sat on the couch and Ross placed Emma in a playpen in between the couch and the comfy chair. Ross gave Emma a toy to play with and sat on the comfy chair to watch whatever was on the television.

Chandler returned to the living room, handing Joey his beer and sitting on the other side of the couch.

"Hey, do you guys know what's keeping the Hannigan's?" Chandler asked as he looked at his watch. "I know Monica's doing some last minute preparations in the kitchen, but you know her, she'll finish on time and she would notice if they're a second late."

"Eeks, don't want to see the vein again." Joey declared.

Ross chuckled. "I'll check if Monica needs help with anything."

When Ross entered the kitchen, he noticed that his sister was just about done with everything.

"Looks like I'm too late. You're practically done already."

Monica grinned at her brother as she put the last dish on the table. "Yes I am. Big help you are." Monica joked. "So did you tell Rachel your news yet? You know she called me earlier to check up on you."

Ross scratched his head. "No, I didn't have the chance. After reaching home from picking up Emma and getting the pie at the bakery, Emma fell asleep in the car, so I put her in her bed. I lay down on my bed and feel asleep also." Ross arched his brows. "She's not going to be too happy about that is she?"

Monica put her fist under her chin. "She told you to call her as soon as possible?"

Ross nodded.

"Yeah she is."

The door bell chimed and Ross and Monica knew that it was Phoebe and Mike, so they exited the kitchen and went into the living room.

Greetings were said as Phoebe and Mike entered the house. They apologized to Joey for being late and claimed that they had a legitimate reason. Joey wanted to know what it was and they said that it could wait until later. Since everyone was there, Monica directed the people to the dining table.

Monica sat at the head of the rectangle table, in clockwise motion, followed by Chandler, Joey, Phoebe, Mike, Ross, and Emma in a high chair between Monica and Ross. As usual, Monica made more courses than what everyone could intake, but all were equally mouth watering.

With everyone there, Ross couldn't keep to himself any longer. He stood up and tapped his glass for their attention. Everyone quizzically looked up at Ross and wondered what this could be about.

"Hey guys. I've got some interesting news that I wanted all of you to know." Ross took a deep breath and smiled. "The reason why I got called back here is because I got a grant."

"So, they dragged your ass all the way back here to tell you that you got money to dig a big hole anywhere of your choosing?" Chandler sarcastically asked. "They couldn't just tell you on the phone?"

Ross shrugged. "I know that's stupid, but they claimed that they wanted to give it to me personally since I've been trying to get one for a while now."

"So when can you finally go on a dig that you actually didn't lie on your resume with?" Monica asked.

Ross shot her a look. "Whenever I want within a year. Look you guys, I finally can do a dig in the Painted Desert and fully excavate the area." He said excitedly.

"Not to sound rude here Ross, but can we eat?" Joey whiningly asked as he felt his stomach grumble for the...oh well, he lost count, but all he knew was that he was pretty hungry! He ate Monica's last lasagna a long time ago and he have been craving Monica's cooking for a while now.

Ross nodded and sat down.

Phoebe looked at Mike and he nodded as they both stood up, holding hands.

"Sorry Joey, but we also have some news." Mike announced.

Joey threw his napkin on the table and crossed his arms like a little kid not getting what he wanted. He managed to smile a bit to encourage the two to spit out the news. The sooner, the better!

Phoebe and Mike smiled. "We're going to have a baby." Phoebe happily announced. Everyone was surprised but happy for the newlyweds as they congratulated the couple.

After all of the commotion is done and Phoebe and Mike sat down, it was now Joey who stood up after wrestling with his conscious.

"Well since we're all telling news, I guess it's the right time to tell you mines." Joey announced.

"Ooh, you got a new agent and you have tons of auditions." Phoebe randomly answered

Joey smiled. "Well...yeah."

Joey heard a rounds of congratulatory comments but that wasn't all what Joey had to tell. He wanted to include something else, but he felt like it would be a total curve ball to them. He didn't want to tell them now and possibly spoil their appetite, so he decided to withhold the rest of it for now.

"Anything else Joey?" Phoebe asked, snapping out of his daze.

Joey shook his head and smiled. He sat down and everyone happily got to the food after hearing some wonderful news from the group.


The clear, starry sky was absolutely beautiful as Joey laid down in the hammock outside. He hasn't seen the stars shine so bright in the long time that he forgot what it was like living out of the city. After dinner, he excused himself and ended up in the backyard. Before going outside, Monica offered him the chocolate pie that he asked for, but he kindly declined. Monica found it very odd that he would pass up any food in general and have been keeping an eye on him while she did the dishes.

"Hey Mon, Phoebe and Mike are about to go." Chandler announced as he brought up the last dish on the counter.

Monica shut the water off and faced Chandler. "Thanks Chandler. Tell Joey that, he might want to say goodnight also."

Chandler nodded as he exited through the kitchen door. He walked towards Joey and noticed that he had a thoughtful look on his face, something he hasn't seen on his face for a while.

"Hey Joe, Pheebs and Mike are about to leave."

Joey nodded as he entered the house, followed by Chandler. When they got to the living room, Phoebe and Mike already got their light jackets on and they were saying goodbye to Ross and Emma.

Tell them already! His conscience was screaming in his head and Joey knew that it was better to tell them all at once, just like he planned to do so.

"Mon, can you get in here for a bit. I have to tell you guys something else." Joey called out.

Monica came from the kitchen and everyone sat down. Ross sat on the comfy chair while the rest sat on the couch. Everyone looked at Joey quizzically as he stood in front of the television.

Joey took a deep breath. It was definitely very hard for him to tell but he knew that it was something that he has to do for himself.

In the past couple of months, a lot of things has changed. Monica and Chandler bought a beautiful, comfy home to raise the twins in; Phoebe got married to her first serious boyfriend, and now was pregnant with a baby for her to keep this time; Rachel moved to Paris because of a great job offer; and Ross just received a grant that would allow him to dig up the bones of his long-time passion. Everyone had something new, except for Joey. Now, it's his turn.

"Remember when I said...well when Phoebe guessed that I got a new agent and had auditions coming up?" Joey paused to observe their reactions as everyone nodded. "I got a new agent, her name is Bobbie and I think that she can help me out with my career."

"That's great Joey. Estelle wasn't that great anyway. Heck, I think I got you in better auditions when I posed to be your agent." Phoebe stated.

Joey smiled at the recollection. "Yeah, thanks Pheebs."

"Anything else sweetie?" Monica asked. "I'm kinda going crazy thinking there are dirty dishes still in the sink."

Joey smiled. This was definitely the hard part. "I'm moving to L.A."

Eyes went wide, silence arose. Joey looked around at the various reactions and just like he expected, everyone was surprised and shocked.

"When are you moving?" Chandler asked, breaking the silence.

"Two weeks." Joey answered.

Phoebe's turn to ask. "Who do you know in L.A.?"

Joey shrugged. "Practically nobody. Just my sister Gina and my nephew Michael."

"Do you know the time when you considered moving out of New York?" Monica asked.

Joey raised his shoulders. "I guess it kind of popped in my mind when everything was changing, I guess." He replied truthfully. "Something was happening to everyone except for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for you guys, but I felt like I needed something for myself."

"Did you tell Rachel?" Ross asked.

Joey shook his head.

"Well at least when you get there, you wouldn't be recognized as the guy on the poster who had VD." Chandler joked.

"Yeah, he'll just be Kevin from that infomercial." Ross joined in and everyone was laughing at that point.

"Laugh all you want. I got you guys to buy the product." Joey defended.

Laughter went on for a while, but once the laughing subsided, Phoebe was the first to hug Joey, with the others following.

What a day it has been.


Still coming back? Hope so and I hope you continue to do so.

Just a note for you readers, my vacation is sadly coming to a close and school would be back in session. With that being said, I don't know what the gaps would be between chapters.

You folks know the drill, drop a review and you will be handsomely rewarded...in life :)