Ross sat on the couch and grabbed his keys. Rachel had gone away since Sandra was sick and brought Emma with her to cheer her ailing mother. This call was very disturbing to him. Carol had been abandoned in the very same way he was eleven years ago. He knew her pain.

The cab ride over was an uneventful one. Reaching the familiar apartment, he got in the elevator. Carol greeted him at the door as she melted into his arms.

"Am I a bitch Ross? Is this why this happened?" she said through her tears. He stroked her back and allowed the tears to flow. He couldn't say how he felt back then is what she deserved , he could only feel sympathy because it was the same way she left him.

"Carol , you are not a bad person. You are kind and generous and loving." Ross said sweetly.

"No I 'm not . I am evil and vicious and cruel. The universe is paying me back. This is its retribution for the pain I caused you." she moaned. "You have the life you wanted. You have a beautiful woman and a beautiful daughter and son. You have finally gotten everything I couldn't give you."

"Carol , you are hurting and lonely. I think you just need to rest and forget about this tonight. Rachel is at her mother's , why don't I stay here with you since Ben is away. I remember how hard it was for me, and just having a friend there helps." he said as he patted her hand.

"Maybe you're right. I hope it's not going to cause any trouble for you with Rachel." said Carol concerned.

"Nope, she's at her mother's now for a few days. I will call Monica and let her know in case she calls though. I'll stay right here on this couch." Ross said. "Tomorrow we'll take you to Monica's."

Carol got up from the couch and went to the linen closet . She couldn't believe this was the same jealous and petty husband of ten years before. He was sweet and kind and he really did care about her.

A smile curled around her lips. "Thank you for everything Ross." she said .

"Carol, I have always said I cared for you. I mean you gave me the best son I could have. What we had was special, uhm you were the first woman I ever uhm …"

"I know what you are going to say. I hope to God that Rachel realizes what she has , you are a special man , Ross Geller." she said sweetly as she moved her face close to his. Pulling away, he said. "Well Carol, I am really tired. I better get some sleep , okay. See you in the morning." Ross said as he put the blanket around himself and closed his eyes.

Carol spent the longest time staring at him. It had been ages since she had been with a man. Ten years to be exact. Something inside her stirred. She wanted to take her long fingers and run them through that thick black hair. The Ross she had was a mere boy, a candidate for a masters degree. This was Ross the man, who had been through life and still looked good. She pulled the blanket further around him and sweetly kissed him on the cheek.

Carol crawled into the now empty bed. She pulled the sheets around herself and tried to remind herself that no one would be crawling in next to her. Her eyes drifted shut from the mental exhaustion. At least in her sleep she could escape her torment.

Carol was in a dark room lit with candles . Her body had been draped with a silk nightgown. It was white and long and cradled her breast. A hand reached over and held one of those breasts. At first in her reverie she smiled thinking it was Susan. The hand cupping the breast was not the soft and gentle touch of a woman, the hand appeared to be almost tanned ,dark and hairy. It was a man's hand, but it knew where she could be touched. It felt so good and Carol began to moan.

In the dream , she felt lips touch her own. His lips brushed hers and that was where she knew them from. His unshaven chin burned her face and then she laid down as he slowly kissed her breasts. Was this what a man felt like? She felt him next to her stomach and it felt like no feeling she had ever known. This man pleasured her and held her and made love to her only her. The sun came up and she could see the mystery man who had made love to her all night.

Her moaning carried on into the living room as he tried to get comfortable on the couch.

"Ross, Oh Ross." he heard coming from the bedroom. Getting up to get a bottle of water, he slowly crept toward the closed door.

"Oh Ross, Please make love to me like you used to." the voice kept uttering unaware of anyone hearing her. Ross didn't know what to make of this. Looking at his watch, he figured it was just some sort of bad dream and went back to sleep.

The next morning , he was awoken by his cell phone. Looking at the number, he knew who it was immediately.

"Hey sweetie, yeah I 'm at Carol's , she was really in for a rough night with Susan leaving. I hope you don't mind but I didn't want her to be alone , so I spent the night on the couch. Today! That's great! I missed you too Rache, and I missed my little princess too. So I'll see you when you get back and tell Sandra I hope she feels better. Love you."

While he was still on the phone, he dialed Monica. "Hey Mon, yeah , oh it was a rough night. Carol and I will be coming over later cause I really don't want her to be alone right now. Maybe the suburbs will do her some good. Ben gets back tomorrow , so maybe she can spend the night there." he said. "Plus she needs some non threatening female company."

Ross hung up the phone when he heard Carol coming from her bedroom A little smile crept on her face. It was all coming back to her now.

"Ready for some breakfast?" she said cheerfully. Carol made her way to the kitchen and started to hum.

"Boy you seem to be in a better mood than last night." Ross smiled "I'm glad because you are going to Westchester to spend the night with Chandler and Monica. Getting out of the city will be one of the best things for you."

"I can't stay with you?" she asked. "You told me you would be there for me."

"Carol , Rachel called and she is coming home tonight. I haven't seen her for about a week and I …

Ross remembered that pain. He remembered when Carol moved his stuff out and he also remembered it was his friends who helped him through this difficult time. Maybe that is what Carol needed too.

"Carol , you can stay with us. Why don't you stay in Ben's room when he comes. " Ross thought as he spoke . "God I hope I am not making a big mistake." He hoped that Rachel would understand.