Chapter Five

December 24th, 1997

It was officially two whole months after Ross and Rachel had fully moved into their new apartment. Lucky for them, it wasn't that hard for the couple to find a new apartment. In the same week they were looking, they accidentally found out that the ugly naked guy was moving out.

The competition was fierce to say the least, it turned out that they were a bunch of other people who were also interested in the apartment. Rachel didn't know what or how Ross did it, but in the end, he successfully convinced the guy. It was kind of suspicious if she wanted to be perfectly honest, but whenever she tried to pester him about it, he'd quickly changed the subject – his cheeks blushing, saying what matters now was they got the apartment they always wanted.

And he was right.

They finally got an apartment alright and not just an ordinary apartment too. They didn't know how they never noticed it before, but the ugly naked guy's apartment was huge in comparison with the other places they've seen. It had two bedrooms, one decent size bathroom, a functional kitchen, and a large living area. And let's not forget that this apartment was just right across the street from Monica's and a few blocks away from Carol and Susan's place. There were a few things they needed to do before the apartment was ready to live in - like painting the walls to a lighter color per Rachel's request, but over all, it was everything they could've asked for. The perfect apartment for their needs.

And more importantly, this was officially their home.

Their first home of hopefully another many.

Rachel still remembered the excitement she felt as she signed her name next to Ross'. A part of her almost couldn't believe that they were really doing this. Moving in together, getting a place with both their names on the lease. This was a huge milestone both in her relationship and personal life.

Finally… with both their names officially on the lease, within a week, they're officially moved into their new home.

In the spirit of starting new, Ross donated and sold most of his old furniture and together, they went to the nearest Pottery Barn and shopped. Turned out it wasn't hard for them to come into agreement in terms of how they'd like to decorate their house. They had exactly the same taste in the home decoration area and after spending the whole day in Pottery Barn, they basically transferred all of the furniture from their newest catalogue into their new home.

A month later after they settled in, they invited their family and friends into their new home. They were all so happy for the couple, including Rachel's father who had kissed Rachel on the cheeks as he congratulated her on their new home. At some point during the housewarming party, Rachel noticed that both her father and boyfriend were missing and when she went to look for them, she found them in the kitchen, seemingly engaged in such a serious conversation, but ended as soon as they noticed her presence. When she asked Ross about it later that night, he'd just brushed it off, saying that it was nothing she should be worried about and then distracted her by placing kisses on her lips down to her neck. And just like that the conversation was long forgotten as they engaged in a round of making love.

And now… after two whole months, the novelty of moving into a new home was starting to wear off and the house was starting to fill in with much more sentimental items - like the new framed photo of them with little Ben in the middle that they hang proudly on their living room wall. Taken on Ben's third birthday last Spring, the boy wore a toothy grin on his face as the two adults placed their hands on the boy's shoulder.

They were a family.

A family Rachel was really proud of being a part of.

Rachel fixed the slightly crooked framed photo of her family, smiling as the memories of that day entered her mind. She couldn't help but feel emotional when it came to Ross' little boy. She had been there the moment Ben was born, witnessing almost every important milestone he achieved, and even being there for him when he needed her. She was getting more and more alone time with Ben these days, especially on those days when Ross was suddenly called to work or that one time when he was asked to be a part of a panel to talk about another set of fossils they had just discovered, this time in China.

Ross had to pass on the first offer last Spring when suddenly Rachel got into a little accident just a day before the filming and broke her ribs. She had insisted for him to go, but he refused adamantly. In the end, he had to call the staff and let them know that he couldn't make it due to a family emergency. Thankfully, they were pretty understanding and even let him be a part of another panel.

So, this was a huge deal; the Discovery Channel was going to film it again and this time, Ross wanted to make sure he had done his research properly beforehand and came fully prepared. That was why he had spent the whole weekend doing his research, reading books, and taking notes.

Rachel had no problem with that because she knew the last time, he had to let go of the big opportunity because of her. But Ben didn't understand it, all he knew was his dad was too busy to play with him and the boy wasn't pleased to say the least. He kept stealing Ross' papers and drew on it. She could see the frustration in his face, but she also knew he felt really bad because he was supposed to spend the weekend with his son, having fun and bonding with him.

So, Rachel took the initiative and took Ben to the park. Rachel spent the whole afternoon in the park with Ben, watching as he ran around and playing with kids around his age. Much to Ben's delight, Rachel even decided to take a little detour to his favorite ice cream parlor before they went home. They're definitely getting closer after their little trip to the park and during his visit last month. And that same night, after Rachel read a bedtime story for him, he kissed her good night and whispered the words, 'I love you' to her ears - which instantly caused Rachel's heart to swell in some strange way she had never felt before.

"Rach? Sweetie?"

Ross' voice finally brought Rachel back from her muse. She turned around and found him staring at her.

"What are you doing?"

Rachel sighed, glancing back the last time at their family photo before turning her whole attention to her boyfriend… who was apparently now wearing a pink apron and had traces of flour all over his body, including his face. Rachel covered her mouth with her hand, trying hard not to laugh, but eventually failed.

"What? It's the apron isn't it?" he frowned – feeling a bit mortified, but still didn't have a single clue about the reason why she was laughing at him. "This is the only one I could find."

"It's not that, it's just…," Rachel really tried not to laugh, but she failed again and ended up bursting out laughing. "S-sorry.. It's not your apron, it's just I thought when you said you're gonna bake cookies for Ben, you'd put the flour on the batter, not all over your face."

Ross quickly looked for a nearest mirror and was in shock when he finally noticed the white substance all over his face.

"I had a little accident, dropped the whole bag of flour on the floor," he sighed as he tried to wipe his face with a napkin as best as he could. "That's why I called you, I need a small favor. Can you run to the grocery store and buy another bag of flour?"

"Yeah, sure," Rachel said, still smiling as she grabbed her purse from the table. "Do you need anything else while I'm there?"

"No, just a bag of flour. That's it."

"Okay and while I'm there, I'll stock up the snack cabinet for Ben when he's here."

"Oh, don't forget to buy..."

"Grape juice, his favorites. I know," Rachel smiled rather dreamily, cutting him off. "-and he's really into these animal crackers nowadays so I might as well stock that up too," she mused out loud.

Ross smiled proudly, his heart warmed by the way not only Rachel had accepted his son, but she truly and deeply loved Ben like he was her own son.

"Come here."

"Why?" She did what she was told, but was a little hesitant.

"Just…" he kissed her, being extra careful so that he didn't transfer all the flour into her clothes. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," Rachel sighed, smiling contentedly. "Now, you need to let me go or else you'll never finish the cookies in time."

"I know," he let go of her, reluctantly. "Alright, I'll go clean up the kitchen."

Ross went back to the kitchen and Rachel headed toward the front door. But to her surprise, when she opened the door, Carol and Ben were standing on the other side.

"Hi," the boy greeted Rachel with a hug, nearly slamming her backwards.

"Hi, Ben.." Rachel murmured, kissing the top of the boy's head as she returned the gesture. "You guys are here early," Rachel said as she glanced at the little boy and then to the older woman - noticing that Carol wasn't supposed to drop Ben in another hour or so.

"I'm sorry, we really hate to do this," Carol sighed. "-but one of our closest friends just had a baby and we want to visit them before we head to the airport."

"That's alright," Rachel smiled.

"Thank you," Carol breathed in relief. "-and please tell Ross that too," she added before bending down to Ben's eye-level and talking to the little boy, "Be extra good for daddy and Aunt Rachel, okay? Mommy loves you so much!" She then kissed the boy's cheeks. "Alright, I gotta go, Susan is downstairs and the cab is waiting… Thank you for everything," she gave Rachel a hug.

"Of course," Rachel hugged the woman back. "- and have fun in Hawaii!"

"We will!" Carol flashed them another smile before disappearing into the stairs.

When Carol was out of sight, Rachel looked down and smiled at Ben, "Now… Do you wanna go with me to the grocery store or do you wanna stay home with daddy?"

The boy pondered a little before he answered rather enthusiastically, "You!"

"Okay," Rachel's smile couldn't be wider even if she tried to. "Let's go," she grabbed the boy's hand and together they walked to the grocery store a couple blocks away from home.

December 25th, 1997

The first thing that Rachel noticed when she woke up that morning were two pairs of eyes staring at her.

"Okay, what time is it?" she asked groggily.

"Six," the two voices answered almost at the same time.

"Six?" Rachel groaned, took a pillow and buried her face into it. "I-it's too early."

"It's not," her boyfriend's voice insisted.

"It's chwismas! We gotsa do presents!"

"-but not before breakfast," Ross interjected.

"Nuh-uh, presents!"

"Nope, you know the rule. No breakfast, no presents."

"But presents, daddy!"

Rachel knew without having to open her eyes that by the way Ben's voice was cracked, the boy would start to throw a tantrum soon and that was the last thing she wanted, especially when it's Christmas. She quickly opened her eyes and sat up. Just like she had expected, the boy's lips were now quivered and his face was red. Meanwhile, her boyfriend's brows were furrowed and judging by the look of it, he was not pleased with Ben's behavior.

Before Ross had the chance to open his mouth, Rachel preceded him.

"You know, Ben… I got a letter from Santa the other day," she said, effectively gaining the boy's interests with the mention of Santa.

The scowl on Ben's face slowly went away and it was replaced by curiosity, "Santa?"

"Yep," Rachel smiled convincingly, tapping the side of her bed and signaling Ben to sit with him.

Ben slowly hopped on the bed, settling his body next to Rachel before he asked again, "Aaand?"

Rachel laughed a little at the boy's impatience, kissing the boy's hair before sharing a quick glance at her boyfriend – silently letting him know that she got this.

"Well, he said that a little boy named Ben made it to Santa's good list this year."

"Me!" The boy grinned proudly, "Ben good!"

"Yes," Rachel smiled, ruffling the boy's hair. "-but you know what else Santa said?"

The boy shook his head.

"Santa also said that good kids have to finish their breakfast before they can open their presents. No presents before breakfast."

Ben glanced quickly at his dad and then back at Rachel, his brows furrowed as he asked, "Really?"

That was not how Christmas work in her house when she was a little kid if Rachel wanted to be honest, but Carol had told them that during Ben's birthday last Spring, they decided to let Ben open his presents before breakfast and as a result, the boy refused to eat anything because he was getting a bit too excited about his new toys.

And Ross and Rachel weren't going to try and test that theory themselves.

"That's what Santa said. Right, daddy?" Rachel said before looking at Ross' direction.

Ross cleared his throat, "Yeah, that's what I hear."

Ben stared at the two adults back and forth, contemplating his choice and finally, he let out a sigh, "Mm-kay."

"Okay?" Rachel grinned proudly.

"Uh-huh," Ben nodded and then looked at Ross hopefully with his big blue eyes. "Choco pancakes?"

Rachel cleared her throat, "But first…. I think we're forgetting something here."

"What?"

"Don't you think you owe daddy an apology for raising your voice?"

Ben glanced quickly at his dad before keeping his head down, feeling remorseful. Noticing this, Ross called his son's name softly, urging him to come over as he held his arms opened for a hug.

With a green light from his dad, Ben quickly climbed down the bed and gave Ross a hug, "Sowry, daddy."

"That's alright," Ross kissed the boy's head and hugged him back. "Just remember… you don't need to yell to tell us something. You can always say things nicely. Okay?"

"Mm-kay."

"Now… go ahead and brush your teeth," Rachel said. "Your daddy and I will be right behind you and we'll have chocolate pancakes for breakfast."

The little boy grinned widely before he ran straight toward the bathroom to brush his teeth and Rachel was about to follow him before Ross stopped her, grabbing her hand and landing a kiss on her lips.

"You're amazing today," Ross murmured, his hazel eyes flashed with pride.

Rachel blushed at the compliment, "Not sure if amazing is the right word, but I'm trying."

"You are," Ross insisted. "-and gosh… I swear every time I see you with Ben, it makes me wanna…"

Ross stopped himself, biting his tongue before he could say something that was on his mind a lot lately.

Surprising him, Rachel let out a smile as she said, "Have more kids?"

Her voice was little, a bit unsure and shy. This was not the first time they talked about their future. In fact, they had been talking about this that day they exchanged their first 'I love yous'. Scarsdale. Two kids. A girl and then a boy. Complaining about taxes.

The difference was… this time those thoughts weren't scaring her anymore. It was the exact opposite, it made her stomach tingle with anticipation. She couldn't wait to start that phase of their lives together and judging by how he was looking at her, she knew he thought the same too.

"Yes," he murmured softly, looking straight into her blue eyes. "You're gonna be such a great mother, Rach.. You already are a great mother."

She smiled, her eyes glassy with fresh tears.

"Thank you," her voice cracked as she spoke and then she leaned her head into his chest as she pulled him into a hug.

"I mean it," Ross kissed her forehead before pulling away.

"I know."

They shared a moment, but much to their dismay, Ben's voice interrupted them.

"Daddy? Mom-," Ben stopped himself, apparently aware of the slip off. "Aunt Rachel?"

Ross and Rachel shared a knowing look.

"See, looks like I'm not the only one thinking about it," Ross grinned proudly.

"You better stop it or I'll cry and ruin Ben's first Christmas with us."

"You're not going to ruin anything."

"I mean it, Ross. I've been holding it pretty well, but if I heard another thing-"

"Alright, I won't say anything else," Ross silenced her with a kiss. "Now do you wanna help Ben or should I?"

"I'll take care of Ben and you go make us breakfast," Rachel replied and couldn't help but notice the look on his face. "-and wipe that stupid grin out of your face. You're not getting me pregnant anytime soon. My dad is going to have a heart attack if we have a child out of wedlock."

Ross laughed, "Relax… I know!"

Ross and Rachel shared one last glance before she turned around and exited the room. Ross smiled widely again as he watched her leave the room. Having more kids with Rachel definitely had been on his mind a lot lately, but he also knew before all that could happen, he had one thing to do first.

He was going to propose.

A/N

I just want to say Merry Christmas to all who celebrate and Happy Holidays! :)