Thank you guys for the reviews! You're lovely 3 hope you enjoy the next update. After this one there'll be another 2 or 3 chapters, which means this fic is coming to an end. It's about time, ain't it? :) hope you like it!

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CHAPTER 13

"Rachel dear, look who's come to have dinner with us" I hear my mom's thrilled voice the moment I cross the front door. I let out a sigh, knowing those words mean I will have to pretend to enjoy a dinner with some fake friends of my parents and bear their incessant, intrusive questions until they decide to go. When I step inside the dining room I stop in my tracks. Of course my father would invite them! Why am I surprised?

"hello Mr Farber…hi Barry" I politely say as I force a natural smile.

"Good evening Rachel, how are you?" Barney says.

"great, quite busy to be honest, I'm afraid I won't be able to join you for dinner tonight" not true, but I need an excuse to free myself from this dinner.

"don't be impolite Rachel! Sit down, I'm sure whatever you have to do can wait for later" my father says with a withering look that makes me take seat right away. Ugh, this is going to be a long boring dinner.

"Dad, I accidentally broke my credit card, can you get me a new one?" my sister Jill breaks the silence that had set up over the table.

"sure honey, but be more careful next time" ha, had it been me who had broken the credit card and I would have been given an earful right away. How I hate being the oldest daughter!

Their conversation moves to banks and money and boring stuff I decide to ignore. I lower my gaze and keep it fixed on my plate with the intention to remain unnoticed. However, it doesn't take long for questions to come my way.

"so Rachel, do you have any plans for the future? Career-wise I mean" Mr Farber asks. I build a smile and try to think of a clever answer that won't lead to more questioning.

"I haven't decided yet…I'd love to do something related to fashion"

"like being a designer?"

"mm well no, I'm not good at drawing but something similar if possible"

"Would you be interested in studying abroad?" I hesitate for a second, not having expected such question at all.

"Abroad? I don't know, I've never considered such option"

"I asked because a friend of mine runs this very prestige college in Paris, you know, the capital of fashion…I could recommend you if you'd like to try starting your degree there"

"oh my god, that would be incredible, wouldn't it honey?" my mom exclaims excited before I have the chance to answer.

"Barney that's so nice of you" my father adds.

"thank you Mr Farber, but that won't be necessary, I'd rather stay here in the US" I say with a polite smile. My father immediately turns to me with his usual threatening face that makes my flesh creep.

"Rachel, I think you haven't realized what a huge opportunity Mr Farber is offering you" he says, hardly moving his lips.

"I have realized, but I'm not interested" I try to say as calmly as possible.

"Rachel honey, think about it, you'd be in Paris! Paris!" my mom exclaims with glittering eyes.

"mom, can we visit her during fashion week? Please please please!" my sister Amy says. I roll my eyes annoyed by the fact that everybody has assumed I'm eventually going to say yes.

"Amy quit it, I'm not going to Paris"

"give me reasons for not going" my father says. Could someone please do me a favour and freeze them for a second? I need to scream!

"well, first of all my French is non-existent, and second of all, I don't know anybody there, I want to stay here with my friends and…family"

"Actually it's an American college, you will not need to know French whatsoever" Barry's father intervenes, adding a new brick to my rising wall of annoyance. Are they gonna give up insisting? I'm not going anywhere, period.

"still…I'd prefer to go on with my studies here" I say with a smile that's getting too hard to uphold.

"oh, I see…Is it because of a boyfriend perhaps?" Mr Farber asks with a wicked smile. and there it is, the question I was dreading. All eyes fall on me and wait quietly for my answer.

"…no, I don't have a boyfriend at the moment" I smile back. I briefly glance at Barry, who is giving me an odd look, and pray for him to keep quiet.

"yes you do, I bet it's that Eric guy! He calls her every evening" my sister Jill informs everybody. I shoot her a hostile glare which doesn't seem to bother her a bit.

"There is no boyfriend, I simply don't want to go to Paris and that's the end of it" I say, my tone rising by the second. "by the way dad, you've got another two daughters, why don't you send them to Paris instead? I'm sure they'll like the idea more than me"

"yess! Daddy I want to go to Paris" Amy adds quickly.

"they're still too young, and you're the one graduating next year, you should start thinking about your future, your career. Studying in Paris will open many doors for you and-"

"dad STOP! I'm NOT going to Paris okay? and I will NOT let you take that decision for me again" my loud voice makes everybody freeze and fall into silence. A silence that makes me realize I've crossed the line and the consequences will not take long to emerge.

"so Barry dear" my mom decides to cut the insufferable tension "how about you? Do you have any girlfriends? Being the handsome man you are you must have girls running after you all the time" I roll my eyes at my mom's comment. Barry chuckles amused.

"no I don't, I've had some relationships here and there, but I still haven't found the right one" guess what's coming next? "oh you and rachel should get together! You'd be a beautiful couple"

"have you heard that Rachel? He is single" my mom says winking her eye at me. ugh. "I-I'm sure I'm not Barry's type" Barry looks at me and gives me an eloquent smile.

"not at all, in fact, I like them uglier" Everybody burst out laughing at his comment.

(….)

"why did you ask me to go with you?" Barry asks as we enter my bedroom.

"because that's the only way they would let me leave the table beforetime" I sit in my bed, wondering what to do with him there. "oh, by the way, thank you for not snitching on me earlier"

"no problem" he says as he takes seat on my desk chair. "I don't want you to see me as an enemy…I want to be your friend, be there when you need it"

"good, it's nice to know you're not an ally of my father who is just spying on me" I smile, little by little getting more comfortable with his presence.

"your father is really intimidating, Is he always this hard on you?"

"yes" I sigh in resignation "every single day of my life, you have no idea how much I want to be 18 and leave my house, be as far away from his pointy finger and his threatening looks as possible"

"Then go to Paris, You can't be further away from him than that" he says in a chuckle.

"if I didn't have someone to keep me here I would, trust me" and I'm not exaggerating.

"that Ross guy?" he asks. I give him a small smile as I nod my head, not needing further words. "You must really love him to decline such a great opportunity"

"I do, he is…my addiction" I say in a weak chuckle.

"I see…but let me tell you something, don't give up on your dreams for a person, how do you know for sure he's the one, that he won't leave you for someone else one day?" I stop breathing while I consider his question, a question that does nothing but provoke a sickening sensation in my stomach.

"I appreciate your advice Barry, but…Ross is not like the rest, he would never hurt me"

"how can you know that? You haven't been dating for long"

"I don't know…it's a feeling, and let's leave it there, it makes me sick just thinking about it"

"o-kay" he says before shrinking in my desk chair in silence. I scan my room, looking for a board game or something to make time pass faster but truly, what I want is to just kick him out of my room and be at peace, comfortable at my own little place. "You have perfect teeth" he mentions out of the blue, staring at my mouth like a creep.

"uh?"

"I mean, I'm an orthodontist to be, I know about this and yours are…quite the perfection"

"well…thank you" I shrug my shoulders and smile gawkily. This is awkward. Rach think something quick! I say to myself, feeling how his eyes are moving all over my body. "oh by the way, What on earth were you doing at that theatre the other day? And with Mindy of all people!" I say pointing my finger at him pretending resentment.

"I swear I didn't know you were there, it was pure coincidence" he says throwing his hand in the air.

"Awful coincidence I'd say"

"you don't like Mindy? She is a nice girl" he says, sort of taken aback.

"like her? I detest her, and if you do want to get along with me you'd better dump her soon"

"man, you do dislike her" he says in a chuckle.

"I'm only kidding…you can go out with her, just be careful…she is a big scrounger, would do anything to catch a rich guy."

"duly noted"

(….)

"Mon, it's me" I speak quietly through the receiver, trying to hold a sob.

"Rach, Are you crying?" I hear Monica's concerned voice speak back.

"no" I lie, but my rough voice gives me away.

"yes you are, do you want me to come over?"

"no! I'm okay…it's just my father"

"what happened again?" she asks helplessly.

"we had a really bad argument and he grounded me"

"oh.."

"I'm not supposed to leave my house in like forever"

"was it that serious?"

"no…but you know him, he overreacts over every little thing I do"

"what are you gonna do about tomorrow then?" I take a long breath and close my eyes.

"go on with it. I don't care if it will get me into more trouble, I'll manage to sneak away somehow"

"are you sure?"

"dead sure, it's my last day with him before he leaves, I won't let my dad ruin it again for me"

"Alright"

"do you know your task?"

"by heart"

"good, then I'll see you tomorrow"

"do you want to talk to your love? Maybe he'll cheer you up"

"no, I don't want him to know I've been crying. Do not tell him about this please"

"I won't, sleep well; an awesome day is waiting for you tomorrow"

"thank you sweetie, bye"

••••••••••••••••••••••

"emm Rach…I know you told me not to make questions but…why are we at the port?" Ross asks as we walk through the port hand in hand.

"'cause we're going to sail" I grin. He makes a sudden stop and gives me an estranged look.

"s-sail? with whom?" without giving an answer I let go of his hand and make my way to my boat, under Ross' bewildered eyes. "wh-what are you doing in that-"

"shut up and get on here" I order standing on the stern of my boat. He frowns in confusion but follows my instructions without protest.

"Whose boat is this?"

"it's mine" I reply indifferently as I untie the knots that keep the boat moored.

"what! th-this h-huge boat is yours?" he exclaims without blinking.

"yeah…my father gave it to me when my pet died some years ago"

"…your father is irrational" he says still in shock.

"I know…but I'm not going to complain for one good thing I get from him…let's go to the cabin"

"Where is the captain?" He asks as we get inside.

"what captain?" I repeat in a chuckle.

"the one who's going to sail this boat"

"no one will"

"oh…so we're going to stay here?" he says with a frown that shows confusion.

"nu-uh, I'm going to sail it myself'

"y-you w-what? okay…your plan for our last day together was to give me a heart attack, wasn't it?"

"you don't think I can sail this thing?" I say placing my hands on my hips.

"no" he answers right away.

"aw thanks for your confidence honey" I say with sarcasm. "FYI I know how to sail, and I'm pretty good at it, you'll see" I say, grabbing the rudder with decision. We sail off as the sun begins to sink behind us, changing the light blue shades of the sky to an orange-dark blue color.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing? This thing is making weird noises" he says, nervously looking all around himself. I giggle to myself.

"Ross, calm down, I've got everything under control! I've practically grown up on a boat, I know about this"

"alright, alright…I trust you…" he says; words that seem to be addressed to himself rather than me. "Where are we heading to?" he asks more calmly as he makes his way towards me, not without grabbing onto everything he can reach.

"nowhere, just far enough from the coast so that no one can disturb or ruin our last day together" I say, gazing at the huge sea opening before us.

"and this is all you could think of to avoid that" he says, nodding his head disbelievingly.

"what's the problem? Are you scared of the sea?"

"no, I'm only scared of seventeen years old girls sailing a boat"

"coward" I hiss as I stop the boat and press the bottom that drops the anchor. I turn around with a triumphant smile and my arms folded across my chest. "see? nothing happened…and we aren't even that far away" I say pointing at the coast, which has now become a blur dark line in the distance. When I turn to him I find him looking at me in an odd way.

"what?"

"what's that?" he asks as he stands up and walks towards me with his eyes fixed on my face.

"what's what, what" I exclaim worried. I feel his hands rest on both sides of my face.

"Your cheekbone is swelled and sort of purple" he says, a jolt of panic immediately runs through my body.

"i-it must be an effect of the sunset light" I quickly say as I get rid of his hands.

"no it's not, did someone hit you Rach?" he asks, looking straight into my eyes with serious concern. I sigh.

"I-I had an argument with my father…and he slapped me. it's not a big deal so let's leave it there" I play it down a little, nonetheless I can see his concern expression change to a furious one.

"he slapped you!" he exclaims furious "what's wrong with that man? Why did he do that?"

"I-I told you, we had another argument and…he slapped me, but it's a normal reaction form a father, it's their way to make clear who the boss is in the house" I say shrugging my shoulders.

"it's not normal Rachel, he has no right to hit you, and what the hell was that argument about?" he asks. However, the last thing I want is to talk about it again, so I ignore his question and exit the cabin fanning myself with my hands.

"It's kind of hot, isn't it? I think I'm gonna bathe" I say as I pull my sundress off my body and stand on the border of the boat briefly before diving into the sea. I open my eyes underwater; darkness surrounds me, except for the few sunbeams that still break into the water at this time of the day. I enjoy the weightlessness of swimming underwater until my lungs begin to call for air. I gasp when I reach the surface and immediately hear his voice calling my name. When I turn around I find myself at a considerable distance from the boat.

"c-come up here right now" he demands, noticeable worried.

"come on, jump in! the water is amazing" I shout as I swim closer.

"have you gone crazy? do you know the kind of creature there must be under your feet, get up here!"

"no, YOU come down here" I challenge him with a naughty smile that contrasts his fearful expression.

"I'm not diving there, no way" he says folding his arms across his chest.

"come on chicken! Jump in"

"no" he firmly says.

"okay, whatever you say…then…I think I may head back to the coast swimming" I tease him.

"yeah right…you wouldn't do that" he says in doubt.

"good luck figuring out how to make the boat work!" I shout as I begin to swim away, only to tease him a little more.

"Rach wait! Okay okay…I'll dive in, but come closer" I smile to myself and observe how he gets rid of his t-shirt and looks at the water with dread before jumping in. he quickly emerges from the water and swims in my direction.

"Hi" I murmur through a smile as I encircle his shoulders with my arms and plant a peck on his lips. "it wasn't that bad, was it?" I smile while he gives half-lidded look and places his hands on my sides as we both beat our legs to stay afloat.

"why did you avoid my question?" he asks as he tenderly kisses my cheek.

"…because I don't feel like talking about it"

"were you arguing about me?"

"no, it was nothing in particular actually…it's just that…he thinks he owns my life, and I'm getting tired of being his puppet. It's the same shit over and over again" I say helplessly. I lift my eyes and smile weakly.

"does he know you're here?"

"no at all, in fact, I'm supposed to be locked in my room for the rest of my years" I say in weak chuckle. "I don't care if he finds out though, I needed to see you one way or another" I sincerely say; a broad smile appears on his face.

"I love you" he says out of the blue, sending a chill of joy that runs all through my body. I press my lips forcefully against his.

"so nobody knows we're here?" he asks when we part.

"only your sister, she helped me arrange everything, she also cooked us a deliiicious dinner"

"mmh, so no one will come out of nowhere and bother us? Nice"

"well maybe a shark, but don't worry, they're quite friendly in this side of the Atlantic" I say with pretended seriousness. His immediate expression of terror makes me burst out laughing. "I'm kidding silly!" I say between giggles as I splash some water on him. My laughter suddenly stops when I'm pushed underwater with force. As revenge, I pull his trunks down and that develops into a water fight that ends when he manages to immobilize me. I'm trapped within his arms; his chest up against my back, and his mouth nibbling at my shoulder, a sweet torture I don't want to escape from.

We return to the boat when the orange shade in the sky has completely disappeared and Ross started to make a fuss about how dangerous swimming at night can be. Later on, we enjoy Monica's delicious dishes as our surrounds become darker and darker until only the moonlight and the little spots of lights from the coast can be seen. We talk, we laugh, we kiss, we cuddle, we make love, we laugh some more…but as time goes by sadness begins to reign in my body, knowing that by next morning he'll be away.

"all cleaned" he informs as he walks towards me and hugs me from behind.

"thank you Monica" I say with irony.

"hey, I'm only helping"

"I know, but you could have left it for other day, it's our last day together" I say, with less sadness than I feel.

"stop saying that please" he begs as he embraces me closer. I rest my head on his shoulders and enjoy the small kisses he repeatedly leaves in my hair. "Rach" he murmurs in my ear.

"yeah?"

"what if…you came to Manhattan with me?" I slowly open my eyes and turn around in his arms.

"you mean tomorrow?"

"tomorrow and…the rest of the days, we could rent an apartment and live tog-"

"Ross honey" I interrupt "live together? We're not even old enough to drink." I chuckle.

"I know, but I want you to come with me" he says as he tightens the embrace around me.

"so do I honey, and I plan on visiting you until you get annoyed but, to live together? We don't have any money to begin with, and…you know, my father would hunt me down and kill me if he found out I run away with a boyfriend he supposedly doesn't know" I try to explain, although inside I wish I could just leave everything and start anew somewhere else.

"that's the reason why I don't want you to stay here, I'm sorry to say this but that man is insane" he says concerned.

"Everything will be fine, don't worry…let's just wait a year, I'll be graduated by that time and probably moving to Manhattan as well" I say with a grin, as I sensually brush my lips against his. "but you'll have to wait for me…you're not gonna fall for some other girl and leave me, are you?" I say pouting as I give him a sad look.

"Impossible, I already have the best one" he murmurs with the most beautiful smile. I sink my teeth into my bottom lip, feeling my heart beating fast inside my chest while I kiss him with all this passion he makes me feel.

(…)

"let's lie down here" I say as I extend the rug in the bow of the boat. We sit next to each other, and gaze ahead at the dark ocean.

"you know, I'm glad you took me here, it feels like…we're the only people in the world"

"and I'm glad you've come over your phobia" I teasing say with a smile. He smiles back as he extends an arm over my shoulders and pulls me closer. Cuddled, we gaze up at the millions of stars spread over our eyes; the moon is round and bright, so much that we didn't need to leave any light of the boat on. Many thoughts load my mind in this quietness that only the sound emitted by the waves break.

"Ross" I decide to break the silence.

"yeah?" he murmurs as he leaves a small kiss in my temple.

"what would you do if I told I was pregnant?" I casually ask. The lack of words makes me turn to look at him. His eyes seem frozen and his face is paler than the boat itself. His shocked expression immediately makes me realized what kind of thoughts must have crossed his mind. "no no no don't freak out! I'm not pregnant; it was just a hypothetical thinking! I promise!" I quickly clarify.

"y-you sure?" he stutters in a funny way.

"as sure as a woman can be" I assure with a smile "plus we didn't have sex this past week, doesn't that give you a hint?"

"oh…thank god, you gave me one big scare" he says placing his hand over his chest and sighing in relief.

"so you wouldn't take it well I assume" I chuckle.

"well I would freak out of course, we're too young for that…and there're so many things I want to do before experiencing fatherhood…but…If that was what fate had in store for us I would…be happy that it's with you and no one else" he says without breaking eye contact. I feel joy rising within my body.

"aw, you won so many points with that mister" I smile and lean forward to kiss his pouty lips.

"why do you ask that now anyway?" he asks curious.

"I don't know…it's just that…babies have always get on my nerves, freaked me out big time but- when I saw you with Dylan it was so…different, I actually enjoyed being around a baby, and it was the first time I pictured myself having one…and it was with you" I murmur timidly. I don't know why it makes me feel shy saying that, but it does.

"Does that mean you'd like to have kids in a future?" he asks lifting an eyebrow.

"I don't know…maybe" I say with a shrug of shoulders. A genuine smile appears on his face which I reciprocate. He leans over me and kisses me again, slowly and tenderly at first, until the atmosphere around us begins to heat up and the kiss turns into a wilder one. I feel one of his hands teasingly stroking my inner thighs, up and down, but avoiding going further than that. I lift my pelvis to let him know I want more, but as soon as I do so, he moves it away.

"damn it Geller, stop teasing me and go straight to the point!" I say frustrated, making him laugh out loud.

"I don't know what you're talking about" he says nonchalantly.

"lier" I mutter as I grab his face and bring him down to catch his lips. He deepens the kiss without warning, leaving me breathless and panting in less than a second. he rests his hand on my lower belly as his fingers begin to play with the edge of my bikini bottom. My body writhes in anticipation. "Please" I unconsciously mumble against his lips and he smiles mischievously before his hand finally slides under my bikini. My body immediately responds with a jerk when he begins to caress me with his talented fingers. I close my eyes and pull my head backwards as I feel my body react to his amazing touch and the perfect movements of his hand on me. An unexpected moan exits my mouth when he introduces one of his fingers inside, and then another. I open my eyes and find him watching me with a grin as he begins to thrust his hand against me with force. I lift my head and bite his bottom lip before he decides to invade my mouth as well. my hips involuntary being to meet his amazing touch and I gasp, moan in pleasure as my body begs for more. In a swift movement I turn us around, passion running through my veins.

"make love to me Geller" I whisper as I straddle him and pull my sundress off before his hungry look.

(…)

"Rach, are you awake?" I hear Ross whisper as he pushes my hair away from my face. Knowing what's coming, I hesitate whether to pretend to be asleep or not.

"mh-um" I mumble, my throat tight as I try to fight back tears.

"we should head back soon, the sun is rising" he says with helplessness.

"okay…" my voice sounds husky. I clear my throat as I sit up and rub my eyes to erase every possible hint of weeping. I encircle my knees with my arms and gaze at the clearing horizon, trying to control this growing angst.

"are you alright?" he asks, placing a hand on my back. A loud sob escapes my mouth and not able to hide it anymore I turn around a hug him with all my strength and release the painful tears that had been haunting me all night.

"I'm gonna miss you so much Ross" I finally admit in between sobs.

"god, please Rach don't cry, don't make this harder" he begs, his voice cracking a little. I feel his hands stroking my back reassuringly while he whispers sweet nothings in my ear.

"I-I can't help it" I stutter as I sink my face in the crock of his neck. His touch calms me down a little, but the pain of knowing I won't see him in the following weeks doesn't go away. "I love you" I say, lifting my head to kiss his luscious lips. He repeats my words with his sweetest voice, and holds me closer.

"nothing will change…right?"

"…I hope not" he whispers, but that's not the answer I was waiting for.

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