Chapter XIII

"The One With Joey's Movie Premiere"

Later that evening, Ross and Rachel were busy getting ready for the movie premiere. Ross was fixing his tuxedo, standing next to their bed when he saw Rachel came out from the bathroom all dressed. He was stunned by her looks. He was mesmerized by her beauty, completely frozen, and can't help but keep staring. Her long golden brown hair was perfectly straightened, she was wearing a simple Chanel black strapless dress, a necklace he bought for her during their engagement days, and a matching pair of Jimmy Choo's gold high heels. She noticed Ross was staring at her from top to bottom and can't help but chuckled. She always adore this side of Ross, the way he looked at her, it's priceless.

"Wow you look stunning." Ross planted a soft kiss on her cheeks.

"Well thank you. You look stunning too, Dr. Geller." She replied with a sweet smile.

"Should we just stay and not go?" He suggested as he began to pull her closer and play with her hair.

"Noooo! We promised Joey we'll be down in ten minutes. Let's go." She grabbed his arm and basically dragged him downstairs.

As soon as they got off from their limousine they found themselves bombarded by camera flashes. Ross put his arm around Rachel's waist as they were walking inside the building.

"Wow that was something. " Rachel mumbled to herself as she smiled from ear to ear.

Rachel, a former prom queen, couldn't deny the fact that she love being in the center of the attention.

Ross chuckled as he looked at her wife completely fascinated by the Hollywood glam.

Joey gave each of them their tickets and walked them towards their seats.

"So this is our seat." Joey said

As the movie started to play, Chandler tried to keep his promised to Joey not to doze off during the screening unlike the last time Joey took him to. He even drink a few shots of espresso before they came. As the movie reached it ending scenes, everyone seemed enjoying the movie. The movie was surprisingly good, it got a nice storyline, and even Ross admitted it. Ross was really skeptical with the plot and everything before, but now he love it. Joey's character was surprisingly played a big role in the movie and he did a great job portraying his character.

As the movie ended, the crowd started to cheers, it even received a standing ovation. Soon after, Joey was swarmed by the reporter, taking his pictures and asking him for interviews.

"Look at that. Joey finally got his big break." Chandler smiled at him proudly as the gang watched him from a far.

"I always knew he will make it." Phoebe added.

"Uhh.. I hope he mentioned my name." Rachel chipped in.

"What? Gal pal Rachel Green?" Monica mocked her

"Hey! Don't you guys envy me when they asked me to be on TV! " Rachel sulked

"I'm sure we'll be fine, Rach." Chandler replied

Ross giggled, earned him a death stare from her wife.

Ross cleared his throat and said, "He will get a lot more busy isn't he?"

"Yeah, we might not going to see him in months after this." Monica said as she rested her head on Chandler's shoulder.

Not long after, Joey walked towards them. He then gave each of them a hug.

"Hi guys! Can you believe it! E! was asking me for an interview!" Joey yelled ecstatically and the gang smiled and congratulates him. "Thank you so much for coming. I really appreciate it." He added.

"Did you say I'm your gal pal Rachel Green in one of the interview?" Rachel asked as her face lifted up.

"Oh my god, you wouldn't let that go, didn't you?" Ross asked her in a sarcastic tone.

"Ssstt. I wasn't talking to you." Rachel gave him a glare and then focused her attention back to Joey, waiting for him to respond. Ross rolled his eyes.

"Well Rach.. See.. I didn't exactly said, 'gal pal Rachel Green', but I did mentioned you guys, not by name though." Joey replied

Rachel looked disappointed but still she felt proud of her best friend, she gave him a hug and said, "I'm so proud of you Joe."

"Thank you" He whispered back.

"Alright enough with the hugging. Let's celebrate somewhere." Mike suggested them to grab a drink.

...

They all head to the bar back in the hotel they're staying. Everyone ordered a glass of wine, well of course with the exception of the pregnant ladies, Rachel and Phoebe, who sadly can only drink grape juices. Ross stood up as he proposed a toast for Joey.

"I always knew you will make your way to success. And I'm so glad we are here to witness it. We're proud of you, Joe! To Joey!"

They raised their glasses and cheered in unison, "To Joey!"

As Joey made his way to the rest room, he accidentally bumped into Rachel, who also just came back from the restroom.

"I'm sorry Rach, are you okay?" Joey asked, concerned.

"I'm okay." Rachel gave him a smile and left.

Joey stood still for a few seconds as he tried to control his heartbeat. He always knew he should not have a feeling for a married woman, moreover it was his best friend's pregnant wife for God's sake. But, he couldn't help it. He tried to forget her, but every time he saw her again the feeling rushing back in. He was musing when suddenly a light tap to his shoulder brought him to reality.

"What was that?" Chandler asked as he saw the whole thing happened with Joey and Rachel.

"What do you mean?" Joey tried to play dumb

"Come on Joe, I knew you for more than twelve years now. You're totally not over Rachel!" Chandler confronted him.

Joey urgently put his hand into Chandler's mouth gesturing him to shut up and said, "Ssss.. Keep your voice down! Will you! I don't want anyone know about this. Especially Ross and Rachel."

Chandler quickly pulled away Joey's hand from his mouth and yelled. "Wow you really need to start washing your hands, Joe!"

"Look you cannot bring this up to anyone, even Monica." Joey begged him

"Okay, but you do know you have to get over her right? I mean she's Ross's wife Joe." Chandler explained

"I know. I tried really hard, that's why I dated Kate, I am trying to forget her. Trust me." Joey said.

"Alright, I'll head back inside." Chandler said and left.

Joey sighed heavily. He's going to need a lot of drinks to get through the night.

...

The whole gang was back at their table and resumed their conversation.

"So Joey, now that you're famous, I guess it will be hard for the seven of us to be in the same room again." Monica sighed

"Don't get me wrong, I'm really happy for you, Joe." Monica added as she smiled at him.

"Look, I'll try my best to make sure I could come during celebration like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or even wedding." Joey replied.

"Well I don't think any of us gonna have any more wedding now that Ross is stuck with me" Rachel joked as she continue to rubbed Ross's hands.

Ross then landed a kiss in her lips and said, "That's right, I guess I'm stuck with this one"

"Oh.. You lovebirds gave me chills." Monica said as she pretend to shiver.

Monica smiled brightly as she watched her big brother and her best friend are finally happy together. But Chandler on the other side, looked concerned and can't help but staring at Joey to see his reaction. As expected Joey was forcing a fake smile that other may not noticed, but Chandler does. Joey gulped down another glass of wine before he added more.

"Do you guys realize this might be the last time the seven of us going to a trip together?" Monica asked.

"I'm so going to miss this." Phoebe added

Rachel grabbed Joey's hands as she looked at him in the eyes, "Joey, promise us you will not going to forget about us after you become rich and famous."

Joey then squeezed her hands as he said, "Of course I won't. Well it's not like it's easy to forget you. I mean.. Hello? Here I am, still trying to get over you." Joey giggled, still haven't realized what he just said.