Disclaimer: Friends is not mine.

A/N: Well, it's been a while, guys. Hope you're all doing well. I'm officially on summer vacation, and my laptop is fixed, which means I'm hopefully going to be able to finish this story before school starts back up again.

This is short, but sweet.

XXX

"Rach, will you sit down? You're pacing so much that I can actually see a hole starting in the floor."

Rachel stopped her back-and-forth and placed her hands on her hips, looking at Monica, who was doing her homework on her desk.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm just nervous," Rachel confided, smoothing her soft-pink dress and unbuttoning and then re-buttoning her small, black sweater she was wearing over her outfit. Though it was the middle of September and pretty chilly out, Rachel had decided that this evening, fashion had precedence over weather.

"Ross is going to be here any minute, so just sit down and don't make any loud noises," Monica advised, turning back to her work.

Rachel let out a breath and sat on her bed. "So… what are you doing tonight?"

"Okay, apparently I'm not going to get any work done right now," Monica said to herself as she turned again. "Chandler and I are gonna catch a movie and then get some coffee with Phoebe and Joey at Central Perk."

"Oh. Fun," Rachel said distractedly, staring at the door.

"So, uh, where are you and Ross going?"

"I'm not really sure," Rachel replied, jiggling her leg in anticipation. "Dinner, and then he said maybe a walk in Central Park." She smiled, thinking of her new boyfriend.

"Romantic," Monica commented.

A knock came from the other side of their dorm door, and at the sound Rachel jumped up from her sitting position, nearly stumbling over in her heels. She took a deep breath and smoothed her dress again. Monica stood back, watching.

"Hey," Ross greeted with a goofy grin once Rachel opened the door.

Rachel stared at him for a long moment, mesmerized by how wonderful he looked. Monica cleared her throat and Rachel finally blinked. "Oh, uh, hi," she said shyly.

"Hey Mon," Ross called to his sister, nodding to her. He then extended his arm towards his girlfriend. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah. Yes," Rachel affirmed, adjusting the strap of her purse over her shoulder and linking her arm with Ross'.

"Now don't keep her out too late," Monica said jokingly, smiling at her best friend and her brother. "I want you home at a decent hour."

"Yes, Mom," Rachel nodded with an eye roll. As she closed the door, she shot one more grin towards Monica. "Bye."

"Have fun."

Ross decided to take a bold step and reached for Rachel's hand once they were walking down the street. All she could do was look down towards the ground and blush, which she hoped he didn't notice in the darkness.

"So where are we going to dinner?" she finally asked, needing something to say instead of walking in the silence between them.

"Oh, uh, just this little place my parents love. They recommended it."

"Oh. So you, uh, told them about us?" Rachel's voice was quiet and she tried to focus on Ross' words, not his warm hand holding hers that was making her want to grin like an idiot.

"Uh, yeah, actually," Ross replied, giving a nervous chuckle. "Is that, uh, okay?"

"Of course," Rachel said. She waited a beat, then asked, "What'd they say?" She didn't want to admit out loud that she prayed for their approval, but deep down she felt their view on her newfound relationship with Ross was even more important than her mother's.

"They were really happy," Ross told her, his eyes twinkling. "In fact, I think my mother used the word 'thrilled'. She said if she could choose anyone in the world for me, it'd be you."

Rachel laughed, and inside she was doing a dance of joy. Jack and Judy were like surrogate parents to her. "Well, then, we better not disappoint them by finding you someone else that's better for you than me. I'll just have to keep you forever," she joked, and then realized what she'd just said and how it sounded.

Ross didn't change the subject or clear his throat uncomfortably or take his hand from hers. Instead, he just said sincerely, "Yeah, I guess we're stuck together now."

At his words, Rachel's heart began beating again. The sentence she'd just spoken had worried her; she didn't want Ross to feel as if he had to commit to her fully and that they were forever.

Though, forever wasn't sounding so bad.

But what does that mean, she wondered as they kept walking down the street. Did it mean she wanted to be with Ross forever? They'd been dating a week, she couldn't be considering the rest of her life. Sure, she liked him a lot. He was sweet and cute and dorky and was different from any other guy she'd been with. Sure, maybe she did feel a little more than just 'like', if she were being completely truthful, but that's normal. Right?

Her train of thought jumped to the only conclusion that was in her mind.

Was she in love?

"Here we are," Ross declared as they walked down a few steps and he opened the door for her, letting her into a below-ground level restaurant.

Rachel had never been in love before. She'd never said the words "I love you" to anyone, other than her parents when she was young and Monica when they got very emotional. She'd never even considered saying it to a guy. What made Ross so different that that was the only reason she could come up with for why she was acting and feeling how she was?

The waiter seated them and Ross pulled out her chair for her, then pushed it in once she was sitting. Each table had a small, lit candle on it, and the lights were dimmed low enough to give the restaurant a romantic glow. Ross took a seat across from her with a smile, and accepted the menu and drink selection from their waiter. He offered it to her and let her pick the wine. He made small talk that didn't leave Rachel feeling uncomfortable. He told her a story about his day, making her laugh at one of his co-worker's antics.

That was why she thought she was in love. He was easy to be with. He already knew nearly everything about her. He made her feel important. He was her Ross, and she was his Rachel, just as it had been for practically three years. All that was left was for them to slip from their 'friendship' zone into a 'dating' zone.

As Ross clumsily dribbled some water down his chin and gave her a Man-I'm-A-Dork look, Rachel knew the transition wouldn't be difficult at all.

XXX

"…And he kissed me, and that was it."

"Wow," Monica breathed as Rachel finished the story of her first date with Ross a day later. The two women had gone out shopping and were heading back to their dorm. "I'm so glad you guys are dating."

"Me too," Rachel agreed with a grin, which turned into a smirk as she said, "Y'know, you got in later than I did last night. Chandler need some help with something?"

Monica rolled her eyes and swatted her best friend. "Now, now, be nice. He's been my boyfriend for much longer than Ross has been yours. I'm allowed to stay out later with him."

"Oh, okay," Rachel nodded, still smirking. She stuck her key into the lock of their doorknob and turned, then shoved the door open, her arms laden down with bags. Monica followed her in, equally drowning in purchases.

They both dumped their cumbersome bags on their respective beds, and Monica fell into a chair. "That was exhausting."

"Rookie," Rachel mumbled, but at Monica's raised eyebrows, just shook her head.

"Okay, well, I told Chandler I'd meet him twenty minutes ago, so I should probably get going," Monica said, sitting up again.

"Alright. Don't do anything I wouldn't do," Rachel called after in a sing-song voice.

Monica smirked as she was shutting the door. "Well, that leaves me a lot of room." The door was closed by the time Rachel threw a pillow in her friend's direction.

Their answering machine was blinking, signaling for Rachel to press the 'play' button to hear the new message.

"One new message," the machine told her. "First message: 'Rachel, sweetheart, it's your mother. I was hoping you could come home tonight, there's something I wish to speak to you about in person. It's rather important, so the sooner you could come, the better. See you later, dear.' End of message."

Rachel blinked. The message had been very vague, and her mother's voice gave no hint to any sort of emotion at all. Was something wrong? Did something happen to Jill or Amy? Did her mother find out she has an incurable disease? Was someone dying?

Thinking the worst, Rachel grabbed her purse from when she'd thrown it on her bed, and rushed out of the room, hardly registering locking the door behind her.

XXX